STRUCTURAL PACKING

RECENT ADVANCEMENT AND ITS

APPLICATION

GUIDE TEACHER: CHIRAG A. TAMBOLI

NAME: RAVI J. MEHTA

INTRODUCTION
Packings are used in towers to contacting equipment for gas-liquid and liquid-liquid systems.
The shell is usually cylindrical, although square wooden, light metal or reinforced plastic towers are used.

The basic unit consists of:

1)Shell.
2)Packing.
3)Packing supports.
4)Liquid distributors.

TYPES OF PACKING:
1)Random Particle Packing.
2)Grid Packing.
3)Structured Packing.

A) RANDOM PARTICLE PACKING;

Their proper selection entails an understanding of packing operational characteristics and the

effect on performance of the points of significant physical difference between the various types.
Good progress has been made in the past decade in the development of packing for difficult
and wide ranging process application.
It is discrete, individually, shaped particle designed to provide contacting surfaces between normally down flowing
liquid and up flowing vapor.

B) GRID PACKING;
It is probably the newest type packing.
It is lower in pressure drop and has higher capacity and lower efficiency then the other types.
REFERENCE;
Ernest E. Ludwig.APPLIED PROCESS DESIGN PACKED TOWER,VOLUME-2,THIRD EDITION (230 & 236).

TYPES OF PACKING
C) STRUCTURED PACKING;
Offered by several manufactures is usually composed of pack pads fabrication by Crimping,

bending, rolling, etc. sheets of thin gauge wire.

Some pads or pack are formed using various plastic material, selected to be resistant to the
fluid Services involved.

REFERENCE;
Ernest E. Ludwig.APPLIED PROCESS DESIGN PACKED TOWER,VOLUME-2,THIRD EDITION (230 & 236).

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

1)Mellapak and MellapakPlus;

Key Characteristics;
Pressure drop per theoretical stage 0.3 - 1.0 mbar.
Pressure drop at 70-80% flooding about 2 mbar/m.
Minimum liquid load approximately 0.2 m3/ m2h.
Applications;
High pressure for selected applications.
High pressure for selected applications.
Petrochemical industry: quench columns, C3- and C4- splitters, xylene splitters.
Refineries: vacuum and atmospheric columns.

2)Gauze Packings;
Key Characteristics;
Large number of theoretical stages.
In vacuum from 1 mbar to atmospheric pressure .
Where minimum pressure drop per theoretical stage is important.
Applications;
Monomers from plastics.
Fatty acids, fatty alcohols, fatty acid esters.
Mono,di, tri and tetra-ethylene glycols.
REFERENCE(1);

http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Mellapak-MellapakPlus-Mellapak-Pl
astic
.
REFERENCE(2);
http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Gauze-Packings-BX-CY-BXPlus-AYPlu
4
-DC-Hyperfil-and-Multifil

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

3)Hybrid Gauze Packing AYPlus DC;
Special Features;
Pressure drop comparable to MellapakPlus 252.Y and for aqueous systems even lower.
Pressure drop comparable to MellapakPlus 252.Y and for aqueous systems even.
Applications
Dimethyl acetamide / water.
Dimethyl formamide / water.
Gas sweetening wash sections.
Glycol dehydrations.
Caprolactam.
Ethanolamine.
Ethylene glycols.

4) Multifil Packing;
Developed by Knit Mesh in the early 60s, this is one of the earliest structured

packing types, consisting of spirally wound knitted mesh.

For laboratory column diameters ranging from 25 to 100 mm.
Especially suited for exotic materials.
REFERENCE(3);
http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Hybr
id-Gauze-Packing-AYPlus
.
REFERENCE(4);
http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Labo
ratory-Packings-DX-EX

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

5) Laboratory Packings;
Especially made for small columns for the preliminary appraisal of separation tasks.
Available in stainless steel and different alloys.
For laboratory column diameters ranging from 20 to 80 mm.
Gentle distillation with very high separation efficiency at low pressure drop.

6) Structured Grid Packings

Applications;
Vacuum tower wash section.
Atmospheric column over flash section.
Fluid Catalytic Cracker (FCC) main fractionators slurry pump around section.
FCC flue gas scrubber.
Coker main fractionators quench section.
Visbreaker main fractionators wash section.
Ethylene primary fractionators.
Ethylene water quench tower.
We offer three types of grids:

Mall
grid
REFERENCE(5);

Nutter Grid

F-Grid

http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Laboratory-Packings-DX-EX.
REFERENCE(6);
http://www.sulzer.com/en/Products-and-Services/Separation-Technology/Structured-Packings/Grids-Mellagrid-F-Grid-Nutter-Grid.

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

7) INTALOX high capacity structured packing;
The higher capacity of INTALOX structured packing is delivered by a
combination of:
An aggressively textured surface.
Corrugation reversals in each packing layer.
Other proprietary geometric features.
INTALOX structured packing is successfully used in a variety of high
liquid rate, high pressure systems in addition to the usual applications in
vacuum and atmospheric processes.
The aggressive surface texture of INTALOX structured packing provides
excellent surface wetting, making it a preferred packing in aqueous
distillation applications.
The unique physical characteristics of INTALOX structured packing
show their advantage in the larger corrugation crimp sizes by providing:
Superior efficiency compared to other structured packings of similar
surface area.
Excellent capacity and pressure drop characteristics.

REFERENCE(7);
http://www.koch-glitsch.com/masstransfer/pages/INTALOX_SP.aspx.

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

8) AMACS WOVEN STRUCTURED PACKING;
AMACS Woven Structured Packing is excellent for application that require a large
number of theoretical stages, lower pressure drop and small overall packed bed
heights.
The packing is manufactured from specially woven wire gauze that impressed into
smooth plates, uniformly perforated, corrugated and stacked with corrugations in
alternate directions.
This construction promotes intimate gas/liquid contact. AMACS
AWSP packing is well suited for applications that require high separation
efficiency and minimal hold-up.
Woven structured Packing is available in a wide range of metal and alloy
materials.
Applications:
Pharmaceuticals.
Fine chemicals.
Flavors and fragrances.
Electronic chemicals.

Reference(8);
http://www.amacs.com/packing/structured/.

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

9)FLEXIPAC structured packing;

Provides a lower pressure drop per theoretical stage and increased capacity compared to trays

and conventional random packings.

APPLICATION;
Improved product yields.
Improved product purities.
Reduced reflux ratios.
Increased throughput.
Lower pressure drop.
Reduced liquid holdup.
Increased heat transfer.

Charactistics:

FLEXIPAC packing is available in a variety of corrugation crimp sizes, each at two inclination angles.
"Y" designated packings.
45 degree nominal inclination angle from horizontal.
Most widely used.
"X" designated packings.
60 degree nominal inclination angle from horizontal.
Used where high capacity and low pressure drop are required.
Provide lower pressure drop per theoretical stage for the same surface area.

Reference;
http://www.koch-glitsch.com/masstransfer/pages/flexipac.aspx.

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

10)FLEXERAMIC Structured Packing

FLEXERAMIC Structured Packing is geometrically arranged corrugated sheets that

offer improved operation over saddle random packing and provides greater resistance to
fouling than random or monolithic packing.
Our design provides high capacity, higher efficiency and lower pressure drop than any
random packing and most trays that are available today.
Revamp of existing packed or tray columns with structured packing from Koch Knight,
LLC. offers an economical alternative to other media.
FLEXERAMIC structured packing provides plant operators increased separation
efficiency and operation capacity, lower pressure drop and often significantly lower energy
costs for distillation or absorption operations.
Our structured packing element is manufactured from advanced ceramics for long lasting
performance.
FLEXERAMIC structured packing is a market leader in structured media.
KNIGHT-CHEM FLEXERAMIC Ceramic Structured Packing provides the
advantages of a high purity, acid resistance and nonporous grade of porcelain with the
geometry of one of the most advanced ceramic packing in the world.
REFERENCE(10);
http://www.kochknight.com/flexeramic-structured-packing.html.

10

TYPES OF STRUCTURED PACKINGS

11)Ceramic Structured Packing;

JINTAI Ceramic Structured Packing is constructed of corrugated sheets of

ceramic.
This promotes intimate mixing and radial distribution of the liquid and
gas streams.
In passing through each element, gas and liquid are thoroughly mixed
in the direction parallel to the plane of the sheets.
By rotating subsequent elements, excellent mixing and spreading,
both side to
Application
; side and front to back are obtained over the entire cross

section
of the of
tower.
Fining process
corrosive mixtures, which have strict requirements for pressure drop
and number of theoretical sheets.
Vacuum treatment under absolute pressure higher than1m bar.
Fining and distillation of halogen organic compounds.
Rectifying organic halide.
Rectifying and absorbing some corrosive mixtures, which are definitely regulated in
pressure drop and theoretic plate number.
Applied in some towers that contain a large quantity of natural media used to absorb
nitric acid and concentrated sulfuric acid, as well as for purifying the air in chemical
plants.
Operating in vacuum conditions at a bottom absolute pressure of 100pa.
Used in heat exchanger and demisting, or as a catalyst carrier.

REFERENCE(11)
;http://www.ceramic-honeycombs.com/ceramic/Ceramic_Structured_Packing_Regular_Packing.htm.

Thin film flow over structured packings at moderate Reynolds numbers

A model describing the dynamic evolution of waves on laminar falling wavy films at low to moderate Reynolds

numbers (Re<30) over corrugated surfaces is presented.

This model is based on the integral balance method, which is used to simplify the analysis by assuming a parabolic
velocity profile within the bulk of the film.
The predictions of this model are compared to those obtained from a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code for
which no assumptions regarding the film velocity profile are made.
The film evolution profiles, obtained via numerical solution of the model equations, are used to calculate the ratio of
film interfacial area to that of the substrate.
The model predicts suppression of wave growth on a corrugated surface.
The model is also used to predict the effect of packing geometry on the flow characteristics, which may improve
packing design.
Solutions obtained for Re200 using the CFD code demonstrate the degree of fluid accumulation within the valleys
of the structured substrate wherein re-circulation occurs.

REFERENCE;
http://www.amacs.com/packing/structured/.