distillation tower
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The water content in the pure methanol product is too low; why then reduce the reflux flow rate in the distillation tower?
Reducing the top reflux allows water to flow into the top product, pure methanol, thereby reducing energy consumption and product quality.
By reducing the backflow rate, steam consumption will also decrease. With lower energy consumption, it’s sufficient to ensure good quality. Why lower the moisture level so much?
First is to reduce the steam consumption in distillation, which also helps to cut costs. Second, once the product meets the premium standards set by national regulations, production volume can be increased.
An excessively low water content indicates that the distillation efficiency is too high; we actually do not need such high a level of distillation efficiency. Therefore, we either need to reduce the flow rate or increase the amount of methanol extracted from the top of the tower. If the production volume is already sufficient, reducing the flow rate is the most energy-efficient option!