Short-range molecular distillation is an advanced separation technology widely used in chemical, pharmaceutical, food and other fields. It uses the difference in physical properties between molecules of different substances to achieve a low-energy separation process.
I. Basic Principles
Molecular distillation is a separation technology based on the difference in the mean free path of molecules. Under vacuum conditions, the thermal motion force of molecules in a liquid mixture is greater than the attraction between molecules, allowing the molecules to overcome the attraction between each other and escape from the liquid phase to form a gas phase. Due to the differences in physical properties such as molecular mass, shape and polarity of different substances, their mean free paths are also different. Therefore, by controlling conditions such as distillation temperature and pressure, effective separation of different components in the mixture can be achieved.
II. Separation process
In the short-range molecular distillation process, the mixture is first introduced into the evaporator. By heating, the low-boiling point components in the mixture begin to evaporate. Due to the high vacuum environment in the system, the evaporated molecules will not condense in situ, but will be transported to the condenser over a shorter distance. In the condenser, these molecules are rapidly cooled and condensed into liquid, and then collected.
3. Features
1. High vacuum: The use of an efficient vacuum pump system can achieve high vacuum at a lower temperature, which is beneficial to protect heat-sensitive substances from being destroyed.
2. Short-range distillation: Compared with traditional distillation, the distillation distance is greatly shortened, thereby reducing the heating time of the material and improving the separation efficiency.
3. Low-temperature operation: Due to the high vacuum characteristics, it can be separated at a lower temperature, which is beneficial to maintain the original properties of the material.
4. No pollution: The use of an oil-free vacuum pump system avoids grease pollution and ensures the purity of the separated product.
IV. Application fields
1. Chemical industry: used to separate and purify organic compounds, polymer materials, etc.
2. Pharmaceutical industry: used to extract active ingredients in natural and synthetic drugs.
3. Food industry: used to remove impurities such as solvent residues and pigments in food to improve food quality.
4. Flavors and essences industry: used to extract and refine various components in flavors and essences.
