Multiple-Effect Stillage Evaporation for Continuous Operation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ethanol distillation processes face challenges in conserving energy and water, require frequent shutdowns for maintenance, and generate high greenhouse gas emissions, making them inefficient and costly.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a distillation vacuum technology that uses a series of evaporators and interconnected equipment, allowing one unit to be taken offline for maintenance while others continue operating, and utilizing waste heat for evaporation, reducing the need for clean steam and minimizing downtime.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional evaporation equipment is used, then evaporation function is provided, but frequent shutdowns for maintenance are required
Solution Approach 1:
The evaporation system is divided into multiple independent effect units (first effect evaporator, second effect evaporator, etc.). When one unit requires maintenance, other units can continue operating, enabling continuous production without complete shutdown. This segmentation allows isolated repair of individual components while maintaining overall system functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The system operates different effect evaporators at different pressure parameters (vacuum levels). The first effect operates at a higher vacuum level than the second effect, allowing independent optimization and maintenance of each unit without affecting others. This parameter differentiation enables flexible maintenance scheduling and continuous operation.
2Productivity
If clean steam is used for evaporation, then evaporation efficiency is maintained, but energy consumption and operating costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously recycles and reuses steam across multiple effect evaporators. Steam generated in one effect is immediately utilized in the next effect, creating a continuous chain of useful action that maximizes energy utilization and eliminates waste of thermal energy between processing stages.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of discarding steam after single-use evaporation, the system recovers and reuses steam across multiple effects. The steam that would normally be waste heat is captured and applied to subsequent evaporation stages, recovering energy that would otherwise be lost and significantly reducing overall energy consumption.
3Use of energy by moving object
If waste heat is utilized for evaporation, then energy consumption is reduced, but greenhouse gas emissions from heat exchange equipment increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system converts waste heat, which would normally be discarded as harmful thermal pollution, into a beneficial resource for driving evaporation processes. By capturing and utilizing waste heat from other plant operations, the system transforms an environmental harm into a useful energy source, reducing both energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
Heat exchangers serve as intermediary devices that transfer thermal energy from waste heat sources to the evaporation process without direct combustion. This intermediary approach allows efficient heat transfer while minimizing emissions, as the waste heat is simply redirected and reused rather than requiring additional fossil fuel combustion to generate equivalent thermal energy.
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 reduces energy consumption, lowers greenhouse gas emissions, decreases operating costs, and maintains continuous facility operation, enhancing overall efficiency and compliance with carbon intensity standards.
Implementation Method 1
evaporating water from the thin stillage to produce mid stillage and first effect steam; evaporating water from the mid stillage produced with heat from the first effect steam to produce a second effect steam and byproducts including a syrup
Implementation Method 2
distilling the ethanol-laden beer in a beer column maintained at a pressure below atmospheric pressure by a condenser to produce: (i) a vapor primarily including ethanol which is condensed by the condenser into a liquid primarily including ethanol
Implementation Method 3
a vapor primarily including ethanol which is condensed by the condenser into a liquid primarily including ethanol
Implementation Method 4
evaporating water from the mid stillage produced with heat from the first effect steam
Data Source
AI summary
This disclosure describes energy efficient process to distill a process stream in a production facility. A process uses multiple effect evaporators, ranging from one evaporator to eight evaporators in each effect. The process arrangement shows an example of four effect evaporators, with a zero-effect evaporator having a single evaporator, a first-effect evaporator having a set of three evaporators, a second-effect evaporator having a set of three evaporators, and a third-effect evaporator having a set of evaporators to create condensed distillers solubles.