Rotating Rotor Evaporator with Integrated Condenser
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing evaporators face challenges in achieving thermally gentle conditions for distillation, particularly when reducing pressure to extremely low values, as the spatial distance between the evaporator and condenser creates a pressure gradient that cannot be adequately managed, limiting the efficiency of processes like thin-film evaporators and rotary cone evaporators.
Innovation Solution
The method employs a rotor with axial end regions and radial baffles to create a rotationally symmetrical cavity under reduced pressure, utilizing centrifugal force for precise regulation of liquid film thickness and distribution, allowing for direct metering and uniform distribution of the liquid, and features a condenser either inside or outside the rotor to manage vapor efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the pressure is reduced to extremely low values to achieve gentler distillation conditions, then the thermal gentleness is improved, but the spatial distance between evaporator and condenser creates a pressure gradient that cannot be adequately managed
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the evaporator and condenser into a single integrated rotor structure. The condenser is positioned directly within the evaporation zone, eliminating the spatial distance between the two components. This integration allows extremely low pressure conditions to be maintained without creating problematic pressure gradients, as the vapor travels only a minimal distance to the condensation surface.
Solution Approach 2:
The condenser is nested within the rotor structure, specifically positioned in the center of the evaporation zone and surrounded by the wiper blades. This nested arrangement allows the condensation function to be embedded within the evaporation system, creating a compact configuration that maintains extremely low pressure while enabling efficient vapor-liquid separation.
2Productivity
If thin-film evaporators are used to increase evaporation efficiency, then the productivity is improved, but the spatial distance between evaporator and condenser creates a pressure gradient issue
Solution Approach 1:
The invention combines the thin-film evaporation mechanism with an integrated condenser system. The wiper blades distribute the liquid as a thin film over the heated surface for efficient evaporation, while the condenser positioned in the center of the evaporation zone immediately condenses the rising vapor. This merging of evaporation and condensation functions eliminates pressure gradient issues while maintaining high productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a linear arrangement where evaporator and condenser are separated by a distance to a radial arrangement where the condenser is positioned in the center and the evaporation occurs at the periphery. This dimensional change allows the vapor to travel a minimal radial distance to the condenser, eliminating pressure gradient problems while maintaining thin-film evaporation efficiency.
3Stability of the object's composition
If centrifugal force is used to stabilize the liquid film in existing evaporators, then the liquid distribution is improved, but the centrifugal force plays only a limited role and cannot enable exact regulation of liquid inflow
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs centrifugal force generated by the rotating rotor to automatically regulate the liquid inflow and distribution. The centrifugal force created during rotation naturally meters the liquid from the free liquid under atmospheric pressure into the evaporation zone under reduced pressure, and subsequently meters the exit of the concentrate. This self-regulating mechanism eliminates the need for complex external control systems while achieving exact regulation of liquid flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes changes in centrifugal force parameters (rotation speed, rotor radius) to control the liquid film thickness and flow rate. By adjusting the rotation speed of the rotor, the centrifugal force can be precisely controlled, which in turn regulates the amount of liquid metered into the evaporation zone and the thickness of the liquid film, enabling exact control of the evaporation process.
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 efficient and gentle evaporation without the need for a vacuum container, allowing for high renewal rates of the liquid surface and turbulence, which enhances concentration and heat exchange, and is suitable for processing highly viscous and suspension solids, while reducing the power required for evaporation.
Implementation Method 1
the speed of the rotor being selected so that in the interior of the rotor along its axis of rotation, a rotationally symmetrical cavity under reduced pressure is formed within the liquid with a lateral surface available for the mass transfer of vapor, the diameter of this lateral surface and thus the thickness of the rotating liquid layer surrounding the cavity being determined by the balance of the centrifugal force generated by the mass of the rotating liquid
Implementation Method 2
Another essential task of the wiper blades is to create turbulence in the film, which leads to rapid heat exchange between the heated wall and the liquid
Implementation Method 3
the heat generated by the stirring effect accounting for part of the through the heat generated by evaporation is compensated for, while the remaining heat is optionally covered by a heating system
Implementation Method 4
the steam that has passed over is either discharged via a line to a condenser located outside the rotor with a downstream vacuum pump or is liquefied at a condenser located inside the cavity and the condensed liquid is removed from the cavity with a pump
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 2C
AI summary
The baffles which are bounded by two end plates (311) and (331), optionally generate a flow in the axial direction, and take the form of blades (3) of a rotor immersed in a liquid (1) and driven by means of a shaft (2) create, along with the cover (12), a rotating liquid region (11) delimited in the radially outward direction by the stationary baffle (51) so as to form a cavity that is under reduced pressure and has an outer face (13) which is available for the vaporization process and is defined firstly by the equilibrium between the centrifugal force generated by the mass of the rotating liquid and the opposing force generated by the combination of the atmospheric pressure acting on the liquid from the outside and the pressure built up by the local immersion depth of the rotor, and secondly by the reduced pressure in the cavity. The vapour penetrating from the outer face (13) into the cavity is conducted outward as indicated by arrows (92) via radial channels (23) and the central channel (22) in the shaft (2) and is supplied, via a rotary seal and a line, to a condenser having a downstream vacuum pump.