📋 Case Study
Bioethanol Distillation Energy Integration at Brazilian Sugarcane Mill
Steam demand exceeded boiler capacity during peak season; column flooding observed
🏗️ Project Overview
350 m³/day anhydrous ethanol plant in São Paulo
🎯 Challenge
Steam demand exceeded boiler capacity during peak season; column flooding observed
🔧 Design Approach
Heat integration via vapor recompression + column sequencing optimization using Aspen Custom Modeler
📐 Design Diagram
AI-generated project design illustration
📐 Key Calculations
Vapor Recompression COP
Δh_comp / W_comp
Result: 2.9
Measure of energy recovery efficiency
Minimum Reflux Ratio (Underwood)
R_min = (xD − α·xB)/(α − 1) × (1 − xB)/(xD − xB)
Result: 1.62
Sets theoretical energy floor
📊 Results
58% steam reduction, 100% elimination of column flooding, 27% lower specific energy (MJ/L ethanol)💡 Lessons Learned
- •Non-ideal VLE (NRTL) required to predict azeotrope shift with water-ethanol-impurities
- •Dynamic simulation revealed startup transients causing temporary overloads
✅ Key Takeaways
- 1Non-ideal VLE (NRTL) required to predict azeotrope shift with water-ethanol-impurities
- 2Dynamic simulation revealed startup transients causing temporary overloads