A method of desalinating an aqueous composition includes forming a hetero-azeotrope mixture by combining the aqueous composition with an entrainer, the aqueous composition including at least one salt, and subjecting the hetero-azeotrope mixture to distillation at a distillation temperature of less than the boiling temperature of the aqueous composition for an operating distillation pressure, resulting in separating the hetero-azeotrope mixture into a distillation bottoms liquid and a multi-phase condensate. The method includes recovering the multi-phase condensate having an entrainer-rich phase and an aqueous phase, the aqueous phase comprising desalinated water, and removing a portion of the aqueous phase from the multi-phase condensate to recover the desalinated water. Systems for conducting the method of desalinating an aqueous stream are also disclosed.

A process and an apparatus are disclosed for a compact processing assembly to remove C.sub.5 and heavier hydrocarbon components from a hydrocarbon gas stream. The hydrocarbon gas stream is expanded to lower pressure and supplied to the processing assembly between an absorbing means and a mass transfer means. A distillation vapor stream is collected from the upper region of the absorbing means and cooled in a first heat and mass transfer means inside the processing assembly to partially condense it, forming a residual vapor stream and a condensed stream. The condensed stream is supplied to the absorbing means at its top feed point. A distillation liquid stream is collected from the lower region of the mass transfer means and directed into a second heat and mass transfer means inside the processing assembly to heat it and strip out its volatile components.

Methods, apparatus, and processes are provided for a condenser including flowing a vapor stream including formaldehyde into a tube bundle in a vertical upflow reflux condenser, where a tube in the tube bundle has a length to outside diameter ratio of greater than about 170:1, flowing a cooling fluid on a shell-side of the vertical upflow reflux condenser to condense at least a portion of the vapor stream, where the condensed portion of the vapor stream forms a wetted tube internal surface area on each tube in the generally upright tube bundle; and maintaining the vapor stream velocity at a rate that provides a liquid residence time where formaldehyde condensed on the wetted internal surface area of each tube can react with water to form methylene glycol, removing at least sixty percent (60%) of formaldehyde from the vapor stream fed to the condenser.

Improvements in biological conversion processes and associated apparatuses are disclosed for the generation of useful end products such as ethanol, through metabolic pathways of C1-fixing bacteria that utilize, as a nutrient, a C1-carbon source from a C1-containing substrate such as an industrial waste gas. Particular aspects of the disclosure relate to the downstream recovery of ethanol and/or isopropanol from bleed and permeate streams and more particularly to performing such recovery with improved efficiency that can advantageously reduce capital (e.g., equipment) and/or operating (e.g., utility) costs.

A process for treating effluent streams in a renewable transportation fuel production process is described. One or more of the sour water stream and an acid gas stream are treated directly in thermal oxidation section. The process allows the elimination or size reduction of a sour water stripper unit, waste water treatment plant, and sulfur recovery unit.

Improvements in grain alcohol distillation plants by incorporating a novel internal arrangement in the wort column and the rectifying column with distributors and accumulators inside thereof, achieving a stable and safe process in wide ranges of operation, guaranteeing the productivity of the plant and the quality of the products. The wort column features detachable perforated plates, easy to access and clean through manholes. By having easily detachable plates and, also, a manhole for each plate with “holder” type connections, the access to the interior of the column for cleaning and maintenance purposes is facilitated. The rectifying column is a special filling column with flow distributors, it has an intermediate alcohol accumulator and a condenser which is an integral part of the column that prevents the use of pumps. The arrangement of distributors and accumulators within the rectifying column favors the operational stability of the plant, allowing a low scale equipment to work similarly to an industrial scale column. The improvements include an integrated automation system with Internet communication for self-management of the plant with remote monitoring and autonomous operation.

A continuous vacuum fractionation system for separation of one or more of the plurality of components present in a raw cannabis extract into at least an overhead fraction, a bottoms fraction, and a side stream fraction, wherein the raw cannabis extract may be prepared by any of a variety of extraction techniques. The system includes an extract supply assembly having a primary feed pump, and one or more continuous fractionation units each including a modular fractionation column. Each column has a re-boiler, a close-coupled overhead condenser, and at least one modular fractionation stage, and further, the columns are operable in either series or parallel configurations. The close-coupled overhead condenser has an oversized impingement plate overlying a condenser inlet to minimize non-vapor components from entering and contacting the condenser. A vacuum assembly is provided to maintain at least the modular fractionation columns under a predetermined vacuum during operation.

The invention relates to a process (100) for deriving polymerizable aromatic compounds having nine carbon atoms (S) in which a component mixture (B) is formed at least partially by steam cracking, in which the component mixture (B) is subjected to a workup (2, 3, 4, 5) comprising a gasoline removal (5) and thereafter is a compression (8) and a fractionation (10), and wherein one or more pyrolysis gasoline fractions (H, L) is or are formed in the gasoline removal (5) and/or the compression (8). The invention provides that a separation feed is formed which comprises predominantly exclusively pyrolysis gasoline from the or at least one of the pyrolysis gasoline fractions (H, L) and that the separation feed is subjected to a separation (7), wherein in the separation (7) at least one fraction (P) enriched in aromatic compounds having nine carbon atoms compared to the separation feed is formed. A corresponding plant likewise forms part of the subject matter of the invention.

In a propane dehydrogenation (PDH) process, the purpose of the deethanizer and chilling train systems is to separate the cracked gas into a methane-rich tail gas product, a C2, and a C3 process stream. By the use of staged cooling, process-to-process inter-change against propane feed to the reactor and use of high efficiency heat exchangers and distributed distillation techniques, refrigeration power requirements are reduced and a simple and reliable design is provided by the process described herein.

A process for producing THC-O-acetate using a succession of distillation, salting-out assisted liquid-liquid extractions (SALLEs), and solvent recovery techniques. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in cannabis oil reacts with acetic anhydride under reflux to produce THC-O-acetate and acetic acid. The resulting crude product is distilled and subjected to a SALLE with hexane followed by a SALLE with petroleum ether, before being distilled again in order to obtain a refined, THC-O-acetate product.