Vacuum fractional distillation of tall oil and distillation apparatus

Claim 1

A FRACTIONAL DISTILLATION APPARATUS PARTICULARLY ADAPTED FOR THE HIGH VACUUM DISTILLATION OF TALL OIL WHICH COMPRISES, IN COMBINATION, AN ELONGATE SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL EVAPORATOR VESSEL, HEATING MEANS DISPOSED IN THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID VESSEL TO HEAT LIQUID FLOWING THROUGH THE VESSEL, A PLURALITY OF TRANSVERSE BAFFLE MEANS SPACED APART ALONG THE LENGTH OF AND EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY IN SAID VESSEL BUT TERMINATING SHORT OF THE LOWER PORTION THEREOF TO DIVIDE THE VESSEL INTO A PLURALITY OF VAPOR COMPARTMENTS AND YET PERMITTING LIQUID TO FLOW FREELY AND UNINTERRUPTEDLY ALONG THE HEATING MEANS IN SAID VESSEL, MEANS FOR INTRODUCING LIQUID TO BE FRACTIONATED INTO ONE OF SAID COMPARTMENTS, MEANS FOR REMOVING UNVAPORIZED LIQUID FROM ANOTHER COMPARTMENT, UPWARDLY DISPLACED OUTLETS ONE FROM EACH OF SAID COMPARTMENTS, VAPOR-LIQUID CONTACT DEVICES EACH CONNECTED THROUGH ONE OF SAID OUTLETS TO A COMPARTMENT TO RESPECTIVELY RECEIVE VAPORS TO BE FRACTIONATED FROM SAID COMPARTMENTS AND TO RETURN LIQUID BOTTOMS FROM THE DEVICES TO THE RESPECTIVE COMPARTMENTS TO WHICH SUCH DEVICES ARE CONNECTED, MEANS FOR SEPARATELY CONDENSING VAPORS DERIVED FROM AN UPPER PORTION OF SAID DEVICES AND RETURNING AT LEAST A PORTION OF THE RESULTING CONDENSED VAPORS AS REFLUX TO THE ONE OF SAID DEVICES FROM WHICH THE VAPORS WERE DERIVED, MEANS FOR PASSING ANOTHER PORTION OF SUCH CONDENSED VAPORS TO A COMPARTMENT HAVING A DEVICE CONNECTED THERETO OTHER THAN THE ONE FROM WHICH THE CONDENSED VAPORS WERE DERIVED, AND EVACUATING MEANS CONNECTED TO EACH OF SAID DEVICES TO CREATE A SUBSTANTIAL VACUUM THEREIN AS WELL AS IN SAID VESSEL.