Environmental Engineering

MLJ630: separation technology

Vekting (SP): 5
Books

C.J. Geankoplis: Transport Processes and Separation

Process Principles, 4th Ed., Prentice-Hall, 2003*

Pauline M. Doran Bioprocess Engineering Principles

Second edition

Levenspiel O.: Chemical Reaction Engineering, 3rd ed.,

Wiley & Sons, 1999 ISBN: 978-0-471-25424-9
 • Mixture of solution or chemical substances
in to distinct products

• Exploiting different chemical, physical

properties

Separation • Can be done is lab scale (mainly for

analytical purpose) and large scale-
industrial applications
process
• Sometimes combination of methods can be
used

10.01.2024
4

HOW DO WE SEPARATE …?
SEPARATING MIXTURES

• Substances in a mixture are physically combined, so processes bases

on differences in physical properties are used to separate
component
• Numerous techniques have been developed to separate mixtures to
study components
Process and unit operations
Industrial process:
Raw material Product

Chemical
Physical
Biological

Raw material 1 2 Product

- Industrial processes are carried out by performing various step operations. This
basic step operations in a process are called unit operations.

- Now days unit operations are also referred as separation processes.

1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 7
Keys To Separation

• Differences among the components of the mixture.

• If there is no difference, no separation is possible.

• The more the difference the easier the separation.

• Separation of components within a single phase is more difficult.

1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 8
Keys To Separation
Differences in particle size, density, velocity, vapor pressure, solubility, diffusivity, etc.

Examples of processes that exploit the difference in particle size, density, velocity are

• screening, filtration, sedimentation, centrifugation, decanting, etc.

• These operations are called mechanical separations
• These techniques are good for separating phases (solid from liquid), but not
necessarily components within a fluid phase.

Separation of components within a single phase is carried out by exploiting the

differences in vapor pressure, solubility, diffusivity, etc.

• called diffusional separation

• Separations that are achieved by enhancing the rate of mass transfer by
diffusion of certain species relative to others by bulk movement within a
particular phase.
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 9
Mechanism of Separation
• Mixing of chemicals is a spontaneous, natural process.
• The inverse of mixing, i.e. separation, is not a spontaneous process;
it requires an expenditure of energy.
• A mixture to be separated usually originates as a single
homogeneous phase (solid, liquid, or gas).
• If it exists as two or more immiscible phases, it is often best to first
use a mechanical means based on gravity, centrifugal force, pressure
reduction, or an electric and/or magnetic field to separate the
phases.
• Then, appropriate separation techniques are applied to each phase.
Process and unit operations

Water treatment plant

Preliminary treatment

Pre chlorination

Flocculation

Sedimentation

Filtration

Post chlorination

https://idiclo2.com/applications/potable-water/attachment/water-treatment-plant-schematic/
Process and unit operations
Penicillin production
Heat sterilisation Fermentation

Drying Centrifugal extraction

Crystallisation
http://dailyrevshare.com/
Natural gas plant Start

end
Example of oil-water-solid separator (three phase separator)

http://freenewsman.com

Oil pump out Water outlet

Separation processes

https://makeagif.com/gif/hydrocyclone-h17yCM
Unit operations or separation units
Unit operations
Evaporation involve removal of solvent such as water at its boiling point.

Drying liquid is removed in vapor form from the solid

Sedimentation or is a process of separation that separates components, under

clarification the effect of gravity.

Absorption removal of one or more species from a gas stream by treatment

with a liquid

Adsorption one or more species from gas or liquid stream is removed and
adsorbed by a solid adsorbent

Distillation Components of liquid mixtures are separated by boiling

because of their differences in vapor pressure.

Membrane separation Separation of component from fluid by diffusion of component

from liquid or gas through a semipermeable membrane

Liquid –liquid extraction component in liquid is removed by contacting with another

liquid
Unit operations or separation units
Unit operations
Evaporation involve removal of solvent such as water at its boiling point.

Drying liquid is removed in vapor form from the solid

Sedimentation or is a process of separation that separates components, under

clarification the effect of gravity.

Absorption removal of one or more species from a gas stream by treatment

with a liquid

Adsorption one or more species from gas or liquid stream is removed and
adsorbed by a solid adsorbent

Distillation Components of liquid mixtures are separated by boiling

because of their differences in vapor pressure.

Membrane separation Separation of component from fluid by diffusion of component

from liquid or gas through a semipermeable membrane

Liquid –liquid extraction component in liquid is removed by contacting with another

liquid
Equilibrium relations between phases
Based on the phases in contact, the separation process can be grouped into following 5
groups
Solid –solid separation (physical separation)
Solid-liquid separation (sedimentation, crystallisation)
Solid-gas separation (Adsorption , particulate removal)
Liquid-liquid separation (liquid-liquid extraction, metal extraction)
Liquid-gas separation (Absorption, Distillation)

All involve removal of component or components from one phase to other phase.

If the two phases are not at equilibrium, the rate of mass transfer is directly
proportional to the driving force which is departure from equilibrium.

In all cases involving equilibria, the important variables affecting the equilibrium
of solute are temperature, pressure and concentration.

The equilibrium between two phases in given situation is restricted by the phase rule
Phase rule

𝐹 =𝐶−𝑃+2
F is the degree of freedom
P is the number of phases involved in equilibrium
C is the number of total components in the two phases,
Josiah Willard Gibbs
when no chemical reaction

Example: CO2-air -water

gas-liquid phase system (P =2)

Three components in systems (C= 3)

𝐹 =𝐶−𝑃+2=3−2+2=3

Therefore there are 3 degree of freedom, temperature, pressure and concentration.

At constant temperature and pressure

if the Concentration xA of the CO2 in the liquid phase is set then pA or concentration
of CO2 in gas is automatically determined.

Phase rule does not tell about partial pressure of pA in equilibrium with xA. pA needs
to be determined experimentally.
Unit operations (separation processes)

Unit operations

sedimentation

Membrane separation

Evaporation Transport processes

Property balance
Drying
Momentum transfer Energy balance
absorption
Mass balance
Heat transfer
adsorption
Momentum balance
ion exchange, Mass transfer

Liquid –solid leaching

Distillation

Crystallization
Mechanical-physical separation,
 10.01.2024

TYPES

• Evaporation
• Drying
• Distillation
• Membrane separation
• Liquid-liquid extraction
• Adsorption
• Ion-exchange
• Liquid-solid leaching
• Crystallization
• Mechanical-physical separations
 10.01.2024

TRANSPORT PROCESS

• Momentum transfer
• Heat Transfer
• Mass transfer
 10.01.2024

MOMENTUM TRANSFER

• Transfer of momentum in a moving media

• Occurs in fluid flow, sedimentation, mixing and filtration
 10.01.2024

HEAT TRANSFER

• Transfer of heat
• Occurs in drying evaporation, distillation
 10.01.2024

MASS TRANSFER

• Transfer from one phase to another

• Gas, liquid, or solid
• Occurs in distillation, absorption,, liquid-liquid extraction, membrane separation,
adsorption , crystallization and leaching
Law of conservation
Conservation of mass, momentum and energy are the fundamental principles which are
used in the analysis and design of any separation device.

The consrvation principle may be applied to the material system, or to control volume

In any perticular region of space the macroscopic balances express the fact that the
time rate of change of mass, momentum or energy within the sytem is equal to the
sum of the net flow across the boundaries of the region and the rate of generation
within the region.

Law of conservation of Mass https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2S6e11NBwiw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHztd6k5ZXY

Law of Conservation of Mass implies that mass can neither be created nor destroyed
Mass or material balances
Mass balance is nothing but the application of law of conservation of Mass.

Law of Conservation of Mass: mass can neither be created nor destroyed

Mass
Mass input Mass output
accumulated

Input = output + accumulation

Energy Balance

Law of Conservation of Energy

Input = output + accumulation

Energy
Energy input Energy output
accumulated
Steady state system or process:
The condition inside the process (temperature, pressure, mass of material) remain
constant with time,

100 kg 100 kg
1000 kg H2O H2O
H2O

Input = output “What goes in must come out”

Unsteady state system or process:

The condition inside the process (temperature, pressure, mass of material) changes
with time,

100 kg 90 kg
1000 kg H2O H2O
H2O

Input = output + accumulation

What is the difference between steady state and equilibrium?

A system at equilibrium do not change with time.

In continuous processes at steady state, mass is constantly exchanged with the

surroundings; this disturbance drives the system away from equilibrium so that a net

change in both the system and the universe can occur.

To convert raw materials into useful products there

must be an overall change in the universe
Chemical reaction

A
Reactor C+A
B

A + B C
B A

Mass in through Mass out through 𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒𝑑

− + −
the system boundary the system boundary 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚

𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑
=
𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚

The equation is known as the general mass balance equation.

Type of material balances

For continous process the amounts of mass entering and leaving are specified using
flow rates.

eg.: molases enters the system at 100 kg/h at the same time fermentation broth leaves
at rate 50 kg /h

These two quantities can be used as input and output in mass balance equation
A mass balance based on rates is called a differential balance.

For batch and Semibatch process Information about these systems is usually collected
over a period of time rather than at a particular instant.

For example: 100 kg substrate is added to the reactor; after 3 days of incubation, 45 kg
product is recovered.

Each term of the mass balance equation in this case is a quantity of mass, not a rate.
This type of balance is called an integral balance.
Problem

Evaporation of cane sugar solutions. An evaporator is used to concentrate sugar

solution. A feed of 10 000 kg /d of solution containing 38 wt % sugar is evaporated,
producing 74 wt % solution. Calculate the weight of solution produced and amount
of water removed.
Strategy for solving material balance problems

1. Read and understand the problem statement

2. Draw a sketch of the process and specifiy the system boundary
3. Place lables for unknown variables and values for known variables on the sketch.
4. Obtain any missing needed data.
5. Choose a basis
6. Determine the number of unknowns
7. Determine the number of independent equations, and carry out a degree of
freedom analysis
8. Write down the equation to be solved
9. Solve the equations and calculate the quantities asked for.
10. Check your answer(s).

Input = output + accumulation

The 90/90 Law: The first 10% of the task takes 90% of the time. The remaining 90% takes the
remaining 10%.
1.5-1 Evaporation of cane sugar solutions. An evaporator is used to concentrate sugar
solution. A feed of 10 000 kg /d of solution containing 38 wt % sugar is evaporated,
producing 74 wt % solution. Calculate the weight of solution produced and amount
of water removed.
W kg/d

10 000 kg/d S kg/d

Evaporator
Sugar 38 wt% Sugar 74 wt%

Total mass balance 10 000 = S + W

Balancing for sugar content 10 000 (0.38) = S (0.74) + W (0)

S = 5135.13 kg /d
Now we can calculate W from the total mass balance and value of S

10 000 = 5135.1 + W

W = 4864.86 kg / d

How can we check the water balance?

Two stage process
In a process producing KNO3 salt, 1000 kg/h of a feed solution containing 20 wt %
KNO3 is fed to an evaporator, which evaporate some water at 422 K to produce a 50 wt
% solution. This is then fed to a crystallizer at 311 K, where crystals containing 96 wt %
KNO3 are removed. The saturated solution containing 37.5 wt % KNO3 is recycled to the
evaporator. Calculate the amount of recycle strem R in kg/h and the product strem P in
kg/h.
W kg/h

1000 kg/h S kg/h Crystallizer P kg/h

Evaporator
422 K 50 wt% KNO3 311 K
20 wt% KNO3 96 wt% KNO3
4 wt% H2O
R kg/h
37.5 wt% KNO3
1.5-1 Evaporation of cane sugar solutions. An evaporator is used to concentrate sugar
solution. A feed of 10 000 kg /d of solution containing 38 wt % sugar is evaporated,
producing 74 wt % solution. Calculate the weight of solution produced and amount
of water removed.
W kg/d

10 000 kg/d S kg/d

Evaporator
Sugar 38 wt% Sugar 74 wt%

Total mass balance 10 000 = S + W

Balancing for sugar content 10 000 (0.38) = S (0.74) + W (0)

S = 5135.13 kg /d
Now we can calculate W from the total mass balance and value of S

10 000 = 5135.1 + W

W = 4864.86 kg / d

How can we check the water balance?

Two stage process
In a process producing KNO3 salt, 1000 kg/h of a feed solution containing 20 wt %
KNO3 is fed to an evaporator, which evaporate some water at 422 K to produce a 50 wt
% solution. This is then fed to a crystallizer at 311 K, where crystals containing 96 wt %
KNO3 are removed. The saturated solution containing 37.5 wt % KNO3 is recycled to the
evaporator. Calculate the amount of recycle strem R in kg/h and the product strem P in
kg/h.
W kg/h

1000 kg/h S kg/h Crystallizer P kg/h

Evaporator
422 K 50 wt% KNO3 311 K
20 wt% KNO3 96 wt% KNO3
4 wt% H2O
R kg/h
37.5 wt% KNO3
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 37
Mass Transfer
Natural tendency to transfer a given component in a mixture
from a region of high concentration (the source) to a region
of low concentration (the sink) aiming to bring about a
uniform equilibrium condition.

Examples:
Water evaporation from wet cloths
Sugar dissolving in coffee AND diffusing uniformly through
the coffee
Perfume diffusing to the surrounding atmosphere
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 38
Mass Transfer

Mechanism of
movement

Molecular and
Macroscopic
microscopic
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 39
Mass Transfer
Examples of macroscopic movement

Mechanical Transport of Flow of liquids in pipes

solids by conveyer belts

Material Transport is a general term: primarily used for bulk

macroscopic movement.
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 40
Mass Transfer
Examples of microscopic/molecular movement

Water evaporation from a pool

Movement of perfume molecules from one part of a room to

another part

Solids dissolving in a liquid

1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 41
Separation
Type 1: No change in composition

Separation of solid mixtures, mostly mechanical separation

Filtration of solid from its suspension in

a liquid

Classification of solid particles by size

using screening methods

Separation based on density etc…

1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 42
Separation
Type 2: Change in composition

Changing composition of solutions

Separating substances into components

Example:
Evaporation of water from a solution of water
and urea

Evaporation of water from brine solution

Operations involving change in composition:

Mass transfer operations
1/10/2024 •Mass Transfer II 43
Industrial Relevance of Separation

A typical chemical plant consists of chemical reactors surrounded by

separators.

• Preliminary purification of raw materials

• Final separation of products and byproducts