METHOD FOR OPERATING CRYOGENIC RECTIFYING COLUMN

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To separate the components of air with increasing volume while avoiding flooding passing a mixture containing both high and low volatile components of air through a column for cryogenic rectification and concentrating the high volatile component into vapor flowing upward while concentrating the low volatile component into fluid flowing downward. SOLUTION: Supply air 1 is subjected to cryogenic rectification in a high pressure column 21 and separated into nitrogen rich vapor and oxygen rich liquid. A nitrogen rich vapor flow 22 is passed to a main condenser 23 and condensed through indirect heat exchange with the bottom liquid in a low pressure column 24 to produce a nitrogen rich liquid 25. A part 26 of the nitrogen rich liquid 25 is returned back to the high pressure column 21 and another part 27 thereof is cooled through a heat exchanger 6 and returned back to the low pressure column 24. At least one of the towers 21, 24 contains a stacked filler layer or block formed of a vertically oriented texture filler sheet. The vapor is fed upward at such a flow rate as causing pressure drop of 0.7 inch (1.78 cm) per unit feet (0.3 m) of the filler height in the tower.