Methacrylic Acid Crystallizer Buffer Tank for Stable Refrigerator Load
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Solution Overview
Problem
The operation of refrigerators used in the crystallization and melting steps for producing (meth)acrylic acid is destabilized due to changes in cooling or heating loads caused by variations in temperature of the cooling or heating media returned from the crystallizer, leading to inefficiencies and potential instability in the production process.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of buffer tanks to manage temperature changes of the cooling and heating media, allowing for adjustments in the temperature of media returned to the refrigerator, thereby stabilizing the operation of the refrigerator and maintaining consistent cooling or heating loads.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the temperature of cooling or heating medium discharged from the crystallizer is adjusted by a refrigerator, then the cooling or heating load of the refrigerator changes due to temperature change of the returned medium, but operation of the refrigerator is likely to be destabilized
Solution Approach 1:
The buffer tank stores the cooling or heating medium in advance before it is returned to the refrigerator. By holding the medium in the buffer tank temporarily, the system performs preliminary storage action that decouples the temperature fluctuations from the refrigerator's operation, allowing the refrigerator to operate with more stable and predictable load conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer tank acts as a cushioning element that absorbs temperature variations before they reach the refrigerator. By providing this beforehand cushioning, the system protects the refrigerator from sudden temperature changes and load fluctuations, thereby stabilizing its operation while still achieving the required cooling or heating temperature adjustments.
2Reliability
If buffer tank is introduced to reduce temperature change of returned medium, then operation of refrigerator is stabilized, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The buffer tank serves as an intermediary component between the crystallizer and the refrigerator. It mediates the temperature fluctuations by storing and releasing the cooling or heating medium, thereby stabilizing the refrigerator's operation without requiring complex control systems or multiple additional devices. The buffer tank is a simple, passive intermediary that effectively resolves the temperature instability issue.
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 enables stable operation of the refrigerator by maintaining constant temperatures of the cooling and heating media, reducing energy consumption, and ensuring consistent production of purified (meth)acrylic acid, even with changes in production efficiency or load.
Implementation Method 1
supplying a cooling medium from a refrigerator to a crystallizer and returning the cooling medium from the crystallizer, thereby obtaining a (meth)acrylic acid crystal from a (meth)acrylic acid-containing solution
Implementation Method 2
supplying a heating medium from a refrigerator to the crystallizer and returning the heating medium from the crystallizer, thereby melting the (meth)acrylic acid crystal
Implementation Method 3
providing a buffer tank and reducing the temperature change of the cooling medium or the heating medium returned to the refrigerator
Data Source
AI summary
A process for producing (meth)acrylic acid, comprising a crystallizing step of supplying a cooling medium from a refrigerator to a crystallizer and returning the cooling medium from the crystallizer to the refrigerator, thereby obtaining a (meth)acrylic acid crystal from a (meth)acrylic acid-containing solution; and a melting step of supplying a heating medium from a refrigerator to the crystallizer and returning the heating medium from the crystallizer to the refrigerator, thereby melting the (meth)acrylic acid crystal; wherein the crystallizing step and the melting step are respectively performed at least once, thereby producing purified (meth)acrylic acid from a crude (meth)acrylic acid solution; temperature of the cooling medium discharged from the refrigerator is maintained constant at temperature T1; temperature of the cooling medium to be returned to the refrigerator is maintained constant at temperature T2; the temperature T2 is adjusted depending on a production amount of the purified (meth)acrylic acid per unit time.