Distillation

Claim 1

A DISTILLATION APPARATUS COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL VERTICALLY DISPOSED DISTILLATION VESSEL, DOWNWARDLY ORIENTED DISTILLATION FEED SPRAY NOZZLES IN THE BOTTOM SECTION OF SAID VESSEL, A RESIDUE DRAW-OFF ALSO IN THE BOTTOM OF SAID VESSEL, AN AXIALLY DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL CONDENSATE DROP-OUT SECTION EXTENDING IN THE MID-SECTION OF SAID VESSEL, A SUBSTANTIALLY CYLINDRICAL DEMISTER ELEMENT SURROUNDING SAID DROP-OUT SECTION AND DEFINING SAID DROP-OUT SECTION, A CONDENSING SPRAY ASSEMBLY SURROUNDING SAID ELEMENT AND ADAPTED TO SPRAY A CONDENSING SPRAY OVER ITS ENTIRE SURFACE, SPACED PARTITIONS EXTENDING RADIALLY FROM SAID ELEMENT TO A POINT BEYOND SAID ASSEMBLY, THE DIAMETER OF THE ASSEMBLY BEING SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER THAN THAT OF THE VESSEL SO AS TO PROVIDE AN ANNULUS, A CONDENSATE-COLLECTING PAN PROVIDED WITH A CONDENSATE DRAWOFF EXTENDING TO A POINT OUTSIDE THE VESSEL, SAID PAN EXTENDING ACOSS THE BOTTOMS OF SAID PARTITIONS, ASSEMBLY, ELEMENT AND DROP-OUT SECTION AND BEING OF A DIAMETER SMALLER THAN THAT OF THE VESSEL AND FORMING THE LOWER END OF SAID ANNULUS, A RING-SHAPED PLATE AT THE UPPER END OF SAID ANNULUS FORMING AND CLOSING THE OTHER END THEREOF, THE APERTURE IN SAID PLATE BEING SUBSTANTIALLY COEXTENSIVE WITH SAID DROP-OUT SECTION, A DAM EXTENDING COMPLETELY AROUND SAID APERTURE AT THE TOP END OF SAID ELEMENT DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY AT THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF SAID ELEMENT, A FURTHER DAM CONCENTRICALLY DISPOSED WITHIN SAID FIRST DAM AND SUBSTANTIALLY AT THE TOP OF THE INNER PERIPHERY OF SAID ELEMENT, COOLING SPRAY MEANS IN SAID VESSEL ABOVE SAID DROP-OUT SECTION ADAPTED TO SPRAY CONDENSING FLUID INTO THE VAPORS RISING FROM SAID DROP-OUT SECTION AND ONTO SAID PLATE, A GUARD CHAMBER IN THE TOP OF SAID VESSEL ABOVE SAID LAST-MENTIONED SPRAY DISPOSED SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTALLY IN THE TOP OF SAID VESSEL, SAID CHAMBER COMMUNICATING WITH THE OUTSIDE OF THE VESSEL AT ONE OF ITS ENDS AND AT ITS OTHER END HAVING SPRAY AND BAFFLE ELEMENTS TO REMOVE LAST TRACES OF CONDENSABLES AND A PAN TO COLLECT SPRAY FLUID AND CONDENSABLES FROM SAID CHAMBER AND TO CONVEY THE SAME OF SAID PLATE.