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Air Liquefaction with Linde System

The document summarizes the Linde single-column system process for air liquefaction. It involves compressing air, cooling it, and passing it through a distillation column where oxygen condenses as a liquid and is withdrawn from the bottom while nitrogen exits as a vapor from the top. The simulation results show nitrogen and oxygen were obtained at 90% and 99% purity respectively. Incorporating other air constituents like argon and separating them before liquefaction could be explored in the future.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
50 views2 pages

Air Liquefaction with Linde System

The document summarizes the Linde single-column system process for air liquefaction. It involves compressing air, cooling it, and passing it through a distillation column where oxygen condenses as a liquid and is withdrawn from the bottom while nitrogen exits as a vapor from the top. The simulation results show nitrogen and oxygen were obtained at 90% and 99% purity respectively. Incorporating other air constituents like argon and separating them before liquefaction could be explored in the future.

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NaiduJagarapu
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Air Liquefaction using Linde Single-Column System

Srivatsa Varadarajan, P. R. Naren*


School of Chemical and Biotechnology, SASTRA Deemed to be University

E-mail ID: [Link]@[Link] , prnaren@[Link]


A. Background:
Air is a mixture of various types of gases and each constituent gas has a wide range of applications.
Atmospheric air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon 0.04% other gases by volume
(on dry basis). Separation of air into its constituent components are of significant relevance to the fertilizer
and medical technology industry. Specifically, the pandemic period created a sudden surge in the oxygen
requirement across hospitals. There are various technologies for separation process, the most common
being cryogenic distillation. In addition to the cryogenic method, there are other methods such as
Membrane, Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) and Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption (VPSA), which
are typically used to separate a single component. The Linde Single-Column System is a cryogenic
separation system which can separate both Oxygen and Nitrogen by liquefying air.
B. Process Description:
The Process Flow Diagram for Linde Single-Column System for Air Liquefaction is shown below, as
adapted from Bose (2012). The flowsheet based on Bose (2012) is developed in DWSIM (v7.3.1).

Figure 1. Process Flow Diagram of Linde Single-Column system for air liquefaction.
Feed air is assumed to comprise of only Nitrogen and Oxygen, other constituent gases like Argon, CO2, water
vapour are neglected. The feed air enters a compressor (Compressor). The compressed air is cooled (Cooler
01) and passed through a heat exchanger (Hex 01) in which the incoming air is cooled. A two-channel type
heat exchanger is used to separate the oxygen in liquid phase. The liquid oxygen is then withdrawn from the
lower section of the column.

The cold air is expanded through a pressure valve (Valve), wherein some liquid is formed. This liquid is then
passed to the top of the column (Distillation Column) and flows down across the plates. The liquid flowing
down is enriched in oxygen by exchange with the upward-flowing vapor. When the liquid reaches the bottom
of the column, a portion is evaporated by the incoming air. This vapor flows up the column, bubbling through
the liquid layers and carrying nitrogen on its way. The gas at the top of the column is removed (Distill) and
passed through the heat exchanger (Recycled Distill) to help cool the incoming air.
C. Operating Conditions for Simulation

Air is assumed to comprise of 79% Nitrogen and 21% Oxygen, all other constituent gases are neglected. The
thermodynamic model used was the Peng Robinson Model. The operating conditions are as follows:
➢ Ambient Temperature = 298 K
➢ Ambient Pressure = 1 atm
➢ Maximum Pressure for Compression = 200 atm
➢ Molar Flow Rate = 200 mol/s
➢ Number of stages = 7 (100% efficient)

D. Results
Nitrogen of 90% purity and Oxygen of 99% purity were obtained after separation
The important result streams are tabulated in Table 1 below.
Table 1. Important result streams from simulation of Air Liquefaction using Linde Single-Column System
Parameter S-01 S-02 S-07 S-09 S-08 Units
Temperature 24.85 960.91 -194.15 -195.23 -183.21 C
Pressure 1.01 202.65 1.01 1.01 1.01 bar
Mass Flow 20772.20 20772.20 20772.20 17893.70 2878.50 kg/h
Molar Flow 720.00 720.00 720.00 630.00 90.00 kmol/h
Molar Fraction (Vapor) 1.00 1.00 0.17 0.00 0.00 -
Molar Fraction (Liquid 1) 0.00 0.00 0.83 1.00 1.00 -

E. Further Works
The process was simulated assuming that air comprised of Nitrogen and oxygen alone. Therefore,
incorporating other constituent gases like Argon and CO2 and the separation of the same prior to
liquefaction can be implemented as future scope.
F. Reference
Bose A. (2012). Simulation of Air Liquefaction Using Aspen Plus. B. Tech. Project Report, National
Institute of Technology (NIT), Rourkela.

Common questions

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The Linde Single-Column System is a cryogenic separation method that liquefies air to separate oxygen and nitrogen. It uses a distillation column where cold air is expanded through a pressure valve, forming liquid that flows down the column. This liquid is enriched in oxygen by exchange with an upward-flowing vapor, leading to oxygen withdrawal from the lower section and nitrogen carried up with vapor to be removed at the top. The gas at the top is then recycled through a heat exchanger to aid in cooling incoming air .

Potential improvements for future air liquefaction processes include incorporating other constituent gases like Argon and CO2 and implementing their separation prior to liquefaction. This suggests an enhancement in the separation technology to handle a broader range of air components rather than limiting it to nitrogen and oxygen, thereby increasing overall efficiency and output .

Excluding other constituent gases such as Argon and CO2 in the Linde Single-Column System simulation can limit the comprehensiveness and real-world applicability of the model. This exclusion overlooks their potential influential behavior in phase change dynamics and separation efficiency, thereby potentially oversimplifying the process and reducing predictive accuracy for complete air composition .

Ambient conditions, specifically temperature (298 K) and pressure (1 atm), serve as the initial conditions for the air feed in the Linde Single-Column System. These parameters affect the initial energy requirement for compression and cooling. Lower ambient temperatures and optimized pressure can enhance initial liquefaction onset, reducing subsequent cooling needs and improving overall process efficiency .

The Linde Single-Column System manages pressure changes by compressing the feed air and expanding it through a pressure valve. The compression to a maximum pressure of 200 atm enhances liquefaction probability, while expansion induces liquefaction, crucial for separating components with differing boiling points. Proper pressure management ensures high separation efficiency and gas yield .

The number of stages, set at 7 in the Linde Single-Column System, is significant as it directly influences the separation efficiency. Each stage provides an opportunity for vapor-liquid contact and mass transfer, enhancing component separation. More stages can lead to higher purity products while optimizing the number of stages ensures cost-effective operation and limited energy expenditure .

Separating air into its constituent gases is primarily relevant to the fertilizer and medical technology industries. The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the importance of this process due to a sudden surge in the oxygen requirement across hospitals, showcasing the critical need for efficient oxygen separation and supply .

The Peng Robinson Model was used as the thermodynamic model in the simulation, which is significant for accurately predicting phase behavior and properties of mixtures, especially in high-pressure conditions like those in the Linde Single-Column System. Its accuracy in simulating the thermodynamic properties contributes to precise optimization and operational efficiency of the liquefaction process .

Achieving 90% purity for nitrogen and 99% purity for oxygen in the Linde Single-Column System is advantageous because it ensures the production of high-quality gases suitable for various industrial applications, including medical oxygen supply for hospitals, where higher purity is crucial for safe and effective use .

In the Linde Single-Column System, a two-channel type heat exchanger is significant as it plays a critical role in cooling the incoming air, which aids in separating oxygen in the liquid phase within the distillation column. This cooling process is essential to achieve the required liquefaction necessary for effective separation .

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