RECTIFICATION OF MULTICOMPONENT SYSTEMS . 1. SIMULATION OF A RECTIFICATION COLUMN USING GROUP-CONTRIBUTION

A collection of two articles about the simulation of rectification col umns for multicomponent mixtures is presented. In this first article, the mathematical model, the methods for the prediction of the physical properties using group-contribution and the description of the corres ponding program is treated. Besides, the program is applied in a compa rative study between methods of vapor-liquid equilibria prediction and excess enthalpies. The influence of diverse varibles in the form of c omposition profiles and temperature is also analyzed. This study is ap plied to azeotropic and extractive separations of different homogeneou s multicomponent systems.