A process for obtaining free fatty acid and/or free fatty acid ester, including separating a liquid mixture containing the free fatty acid and/or the fatty acid ester by contacting a vapor of the liquid mixture in a column of a distillation apparatus with condensate formed from the vapor running downward. Heat and mass transfer takes place between the vapor and the condensate on column internals. The column has at least 10 theoretical plates and the separation is conducted with a pressure drop between the top and bottom of the column of p of 3.3 mbars. Appropriately, the liquid mixture, contains polyunsaturated fatty acid, preferably omega-6 or omega-3 fatty acid and/or alkyl monoesters and/or glycerol monoesters. In one embodiment the column has at least 30 theoretical plates and the separation is conducted with a pressure drop p between 3.5 mbar and 6 mbar.

An ammonia removal system can remove ammonia from liquid, and can include an ammonia removal portion having liquid flow surfaces for flowing the liquid downward with gravity, and for receiving vapor moving upwardly past and over the downward flowing liquid for absorbing and removing ammonia from the liquid. An evaporator can be positioned below the ammonia removal portion for receiving the downward flowing liquid now with reduced ammonia from the ammonia removal portion. One portion of the liquid with reduced ammonia can evaporate and produce the vapor for moving upwardly into the ammonia removal portion for removing the ammonia. Another portion of the liquid with reduced ammonia can be drained for removal or use. A compressor can be in communication with the ammonia removal portion for compressing the vapor after exiting the ammonia removal portion. A condenser can be in communication with the compressor for receiving compressed vapor from the compressor for condensing into liquid condensate. A recirculating conduit can connect the condenser to the ammonia removal portion for recirculating at least a portion of the liquid condensate to the ammonia removal portion for reprocessing and flowing again over the liquid flow surfaces.

A heat transfer fluid comprising about 20 to about 80% by weight terphenyls and from about 20 to about 80% by weight partially hydrogenated terphenyls, wherein preferably the terphenyls and partially hydrogenated terphenyls comprise a reclaimed product from a degraded heat transfer fluid initially comprised primarily of partially hydrogenated terphenyls.

The invention relates to a method for recovering a diisocyanate which is solid at room temperature from a distillation residue from a process for producing the diisocyanate, comprising the following steps: (i) mixing the distillation residue with a bitumen such that a mixture is obtained which contains 70 to 90 wt % of the distillation residue and 10 to 30 wt % of the bitumen, each in relation to the mixture, (ii) distilling the mixture in a thin-film evaporator or a falling film evaporator to obtain a sump discharge and a gaseous product stream, (iii) condensing the gaseous product stream and obtaining a solid containing the diisocyanate which is solid at room temperature. The invention further relates to the use of a thin-film evaporator or falling film evaporator, to a composition containing the diisocyanate which is solid at room temperature, and to a method for producing an elastomer from this composition and to the elastomer itself.

A rectification column for multi-component mixture separation with internal heat and mass exchange, which ensures a heat and mass exchange in the film mode with internal reflux generation along the whole length of heat and mass exchange tubes and which allows for an increased efficiency, is proposed. The rectification column includes the rectifying/enriching section with the heat and mass exchange in its tubular and annular spaces being topped by a heat carrier distributor with a distributor chamber (17) on top of the heat carrier distributor in such a way that a higher pressure of fluid heat carrier in the distributor chamber (17) than in the annular space is allowed. The design of the distributor allows to separate an upper outlet for heat carrier vapors and a lower outlet for liquid heat carrier from the annular space completely from the fluid supply of fluid heat carrier in the distributor chamber. A feed-in device allows the multi-component mixture to enter the tubular spaces from below. A device for liquid phase (from the multi-component mixture) discharge from the rectification column. A heating medium vessel may be connected to the annular space and steam condenser of the heat carrier medium. One or more additional lower rectification section/s (19) with the heat and mass exchange in its tubular space of the tubes being aligned with the tubes may be provided directly below the enriching section. A steaming section, wherein the tubes and may be equipped with turbulators. The rectification column permits to extract intermediate fractions of the separated mixture with the help of appropriate devices installed below the enriching section.

The present invention relates to a process and system for producing fuel components, and more particularly to a process and system for producing fuel components from a material of biological origin. The process is a two-step or a three-step process comprising purifying of the feed material by evaporating and refining the purified feed material in the presence of at least one catalyst to form a mixture of hydrocarbon compounds from which mixture liquid hydrocarbon compounds are separated and further fractionated into fuel components. The present invention relates further to fuel components obtained by the process of the present invention as well as to the use of the fuel components and a mixture comprising the fuel components.

The subject of the disclosure is a vertical shell and tube straight tube countercurrent condenser, wherein the condensing steam flows on the shell side of the condenser, and the cooling water on the tube side. The disclosure is characterized in that the countercurrent condenser is two pass on both the shell side and the tube side, whereby the heat surface of the first pass on the shell side is formed from heat surface tubes in the steam space of this pass attached at their upper end to an upper tube sheet and at their lower end to a lower tube sheet through which tubes cooling water of second pass on tube-side flows; and the heat surface of the second pass on the shell side is formed from heat surface tubes in steam space of this pass and attached at their upper end to the upper tube sheet and at their lower end to another lower tube sheet, through which tubes cooling water of first pass on tube-side flows, whereby said steam spaces are interconnected through an opening between the upper end of a separating wall, dividing the shell space, and an upper tube sheet; whereby the flow direction of the steam in the steam space of the shell side first pass is upwards; and in the other steam space downwards, and the flow direction of the cooling water in the heat surface tubes of both passes is countercurrent to the steam flow flowing outside said tubes.

The present invention relates to brine recycling plants with improved evaporation systems. A brine recycling plant comprises a brine tank (30;31), an evaporation container (300) fluidly connected to the brine tank (30;31). The evaporation container (300) comprises evaporation units (200). Each evaporation unit (200) comprises three concentrically arranged tubes (19;20;21) and an evaporation head (36) arranged on a one end of the evaporation unit (200) and configured so that the brine is collectable in the evaporation head (36) and directable along walls of the tubes (19;20;21). The evaporation container (300) further comprises a fan (23) configured to maintain the negative pressure within the evaporation container (300) so that an air flow between the concentrically arranged tubes (19;20;21) of the evaporation unit (200) is maintained. Said evaporation container (300) provides effective evaporation increasing overall effectiveness of the brine recycling plant.

A crystalline pigment or colorant composition having high color intensity and/or low sugar content, and methods and processes of preparation. The composition may comprise purified fruit and/or vegetable color juices.

A falling film evaporator includes a heat transfer tube bundle with a heat medium channeled to an interior, a tank with a refrigerant inflow port having the heat transfer tube bundle disposed in the tank, a liquid refrigerant sprinkling part arranged to drop liquid refrigerant onto the heat transfer tube bundle, a vapor outlet tube extending from an upper part of the tank, a cover having a portion positioned in a location inside the tank and higher than the liquid refrigerant sprinkling part, and an impeding member provided between the liquid refrigerant sprinkling part and the cover at a different position than the vapor outlet tube along the longitudinal direction of the heat transfer tubes. The impeding part impedes the flow of refrigerant that flows between the liquid refrigerant sprinkling part and the cover and flows in the longitudinal direction of the heat transfer tubes.