Extractive Distillation for Terpene Separation from Alcohol-Water Mixtures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for separating terpenes from aqueous alcohol mixtures, such as steam distillation and phase separation, are inefficient due to the solubilizing effect of alcohol, leading to undesirable terpene accumulation in alcohol cycles, especially in processes like citrus pectin extraction.
Innovation Solution
The method involves using extractive distillation in a heatable distillation column with hot water added to the top region, which increases terpene volatility and separates terpenes from overhead vapors, followed by phase separation, allowing for efficient removal of terpenes while maintaining low alcohol concentrations throughout the process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If steam distillation and phase separation are used to separate terpenes from aqueous alcohol mixtures, then the process is simple and familiar, but the separation performance is significantly reduced or completely eliminated due to the solubilizing effect of alcohol
Solution Approach 1:
Water is introduced as an intermediary substance into the distillation column to modify the vapor composition. The water acts as a mediator that reduces the alcohol concentration in the overhead vapors, thereby eliminating the solubilizing effect that prevents effective terpene-water separation in the condenser and phase separator.
Solution Approach 2:
The composition parameter of the vapor phase is changed by adding water, which alters the relative concentrations of alcohol, water, and terpenes in the overhead vapors. This parameter change reduces the alcohol concentration below the threshold needed for solubilization, enabling effective phase separation.
2Manufacturing precision
If rectification or partial evaporation is used to separate terpenes from alcohol-water mixtures, then the process attempts to address separation, but satisfactory separation cannot be achieved because mixtures show very different behavior depending on composition and physical properties
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of attempting complex rectification or partial evaporation processes that must account for varying mixture compositions, the invention changes the key parameter of vapor composition by introducing water. This simplifies the approach while achieving consistent separation effectiveness across different mixture compositions.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses a simplified version of steam distillation (introducing water at the top rather than from below) that copies the successful separation mechanism while avoiding the complexity of multiple evaporation stages and composition-dependent optimization.
3Productivity
If alcohol is recycled after extraction, then the process is economical and sustainable, but terpenes accumulate in the alcohol cycle due to inadequate separation
Solution Approach 1:
Water serves as an intermediary that enables effective terpene removal from the alcohol stream, allowing alcohol to be cleanly recycled. The water modifies the vapor composition to ensure complete terpene separation, preventing accumulation in the recycled alcohol.
Solution Approach 2:
The phase-separated terpene-poor phase is fed back to the top of the distillation column, creating a feedback loop that continuously maintains low alcohol concentrations in the overhead vapors and ensures complete terpene removal before alcohol recycling.
4Manufacturing precision
If hot water is added to the top region of the distillation column to reduce alcohol concentration, then terpene volatility increases and separation improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Water is introduced in a predetermined state (hot or boiling) at a specific location (top region) of the distillation column before the vapors reach the condenser. This preliminary action of modifying the vapor composition upstream ensures that the solubilizing effect is eliminated before separation occurs, simplifying the downstream phase separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The water is introduced at a specific local region (top region of the column) rather than uniformly throughout. This localized introduction creates a specific zone where alcohol concentration is reduced, enabling separation without modifying the entire column operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively separates terpenes from alcohol-water mixtures with high efficiency and reliability, even with varying compositions, and is economically advantageous by utilizing waste heat and recycling low-terpene phases to maintain low alcohol concentrations.
Implementation Method 1
the volatility of a broad spectrum of terpenes is influenced by targeted addition of the entraining agent water into a predetermined area of a distillation column
Implementation Method 2
The method proposed according to the invention is therefore based on the principle of extractive distillation (extractive rectification)
Implementation Method 3
removing the overhead vapors from the distillation column and feeding them to a condenser in which an overhead vapor condensate is produced by condensation
Implementation Method 4
Feeding the overhead vapor condensate to a phase separator downstream of the condenser, in which a terpene-rich phase and a terpene-poor phase are separated from the overhead vapor condensate
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The present invention relates to a process for separating terpenes from an aqueous alcohol mixture, comprising the steps of feeding the terpene-containing aqueous alcohol mixture into a middle section (12a) of a heated distillation column (12); feeding hot water into a top section (12b) of the distillation column (12); removing the top vapors from the distillation column (12) and feeding them to a condenser (20), in which a top vapor condensate is produced by condensation; feeding the top vapor condensate to a phase separator (22) downstream of the condenser (20), in which a terpene-rich phase and a terpene-poor phase are separated from the top vapor condensate; and removing the terpene-rich phase as the final product. The invention further relates to an apparatus for carrying out such a process.