Distilling arrangement

Claim 1

A DISTILLING ARRANGEMENT COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, AN ELONGATED DISTILLING COLUMN HAVING AN UPPER END PORTION IN WHICH THE VAPORIZED HEAD PRODUCT COLLECTS; AIR COOLED CONDENSER MEANS COMPRISING AT LEAST ONE JACKET COMPOSED OF A PLURALITY OF GROUPS OF FINNED TUBULAR CONDENSER ELEMENTS SPACED FROM EACH OTHER AND SURROUNDING SAID UPPER END PORTION OF SAID COLUMN SPACED THEREFROM AND HAVING EACH AN UPPER END LOCATED AT A HIGHER ELEVATION THAN THE LOWER END THEREOF AND A LENGTH WHICH IS ONLY A SMALL FRACTION OF THAT OF SAID COLUMN; MEANS CONNECTED TO THE UPPER ENDS OF A PLURALITY OF SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS AND TO THE UPPER END OF SAID COLUMN FOR CARRYING SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS ON SAID UPPER END OF SAID COLUMN AND FOR CONNECTING THE INTERIOR OF SAID UPPER END OF SAID COLUMN IN PARALLEL WITH THE INTERIOR OF SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS SO THAT THE VAPORIZED HEAD PRODUCT MAY PASS THROUGH SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS TO CONDENSE THEREIN, WHEREBY THE CONDENSATE WILL FLOW IN DOWNWARD DIRECTION THROUGH SAID ELEMENTS; MEANS CONNECTING THE LOWER ENDS OF SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS IN PARALLEL TO EACH OTHER; AND AIR CIRCULATING MEANS LOCATED IN THE REGION OF SAID UPPER END PORTION OF SAID COLUMN AND WITHIN THE AREA BETWEEN SAID COLUMN AND SAID JACKET FOR CIRCULATING AIR BETWEEN SAID CONDENSER ELEMENTS AND THROUGHT THE SPACE BETWEEN THE LATTER AND SAID UPPER END PORTION OF SAID COLUMN.