A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

In an apparatus for mass transfer between a liquid and a gas inside a rotor, the liquid is supplied to a center of the rotor and is driven outward by centrifugal force generated by rotation of the rotor, the gas surrounding the rotor is forced inward through the rotor by a pressure of the gas, counter to the liquid flow in the rotor, and the rotor has a plurality of passages lying in the plane of the rotor that begin at a center of the rotor and terminate at an outer circumference of the rotor. The passages are each filled with a packing that increases the area of contact between the liquid and the gas.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for facilitating the distribution of the flow of one or more streams within a bed vessel is provided. Disposed within the bed vessel are internal materials and structures including multiple operating zones. One type of operating zone can be a processing zone composed of one or more beds of solid processing material. Another type of operating zone can be a treating zone. Treating zones can facilitate the distribution of the one or more streams fed to processing zones. The distribution can facilitate contact between the feed streams and the processing materials contained in the processing zones.

A method for separating ethanol from fermented biomass is provided. Fermented biomass that is rich in ethanol is used directly as packing material in a distillation column, and a small amount of water at the bottom of the column is used to efficiently transfer heat to the biomass at the bottom of the column. The fermented biomass packing has a high ratio of surface area to volume, making an efficient packing material. As vapor condenses on the biomass, diffusion of ethanol/water vapor from the body of the biomass enriches the ethanol concentration at the surface of the biomass. Droplets containing lower concentrations of ethanol drip downwards from the biomass, and vapors containing higher concentrations of ethanol rise upwards from the biomass, resulting in a higher concentration of ethanol at the top of the column than was initially in the biomass.

A method for separating ethanol from fermented biomass is provided. Fermented biomass that is rich in ethanol is used directly as packing material in a distillation column, and a small amount of water at the bottom of the column is used to efficiently transfer heat to the biomass at the bottom of the column. The fermented biomass packing has a high ratio of surface area to volume, making an efficient packing material. As vapor condenses on the biomass, diffusion of ethanol/water vapor from the body of the biomass enriches the ethanol concentration at the surface of the biomass. Droplets containing lower concentrations of ethanol drip downwards from the biomass, and vapors containing higher concentrations of ethanol rise upwards from the biomass, resulting in a higher concentration of ethanol at the top of the column than was initially in the biomass.