Fatty Acid Distillation

Utilizing a feedstock of Crude Fatty Acids from splitting Fats and Oils, they are distilled at very low temperatures and in a vacuum.  In our design the evaporation is with the addition of live steam and partial pressure reduction, and not on the heating surface, thereby enabling the vacuum to become fully effective.  The vapor is condensed on the surface condensers and the distillate that is withdrawn is free of low-volatile components. 

A few highlights of our design process are –

  • The Pre-Cut Column allows us to handle the worst possible feedstocks available in the market today like PFAD, Acid Oils etc., and still produce a high grade Distilled Fatty Acid for Soap Noodles
  • Optimizes the recovery of heat and produces 3 bar steam for use
  • Reduces the thermal stress on the product by the use of Falling Film Evaporators
  • Our system has a structured packed column for efficient distillation and separation of odors, colors and fractions
  • The use of the internal heavy end sections results in the best product color
  • The Reboiler for the residue makes for the least amount of Fatty Acid loss

FACT SHEET
Plant Capacity Range – Up to 300 TPD

Utility Consumption per ton of Crude Fatty Acid
Heating Steam (50 barg) 370 Kgs.
Steam (3-10 barg) 150 Kgs.
Cooling Water (20°C) 15 m3
Electrical Energy 5 kWh
Export Steam (3 barg) 120 Kgs.
Output Product Data
Fatty Acid Distillation with Pre-Cut Column
Ester Value 1.0 max.
Purity  
For PS-FA feed
C16 content in C12-C14 Pre-cut 10% max
C14 content in C16-C18+ Main Distillate 0.2% max
For PKO-FA feed
C10 content in C6-C8 Pre-cut 5% max
C8 content in C10-C18+ Main Distillate 0.5% max
For PFAD-FA feed
C16 content in C8-C14 Pre-cut <50%
C8–C14 content in C16-C18+ main distillate <0.3%
Colors
For PS-FA feed
C16-C18+ Main Distillate 0.4R/ 4Y
For PFO-FA feed
C10-C18 Main Distillate 0.2R/ 2Y