Secrets of Wiped Film Distillation - Part 4

Secrets of Wiped Film Distillation - Post 4

Melts

One thing that not everyone knows about wiped film distillation is the feed material and the products do not need to be liquid at room temperature to be distilled. Your feed material just needs to be melted and fairly thin once melted to be run.

Once you have a melt, then it is just a matter of having the right heat tracing to maintain the melt.

There are many intricacies of this, of course. The higher the melt point, the more challenging it is to process the material. Also, the separate components need to stay liquid at the temperatures the distillation is run. So, you need to think about residue melt points and distillate melt points.

There are many ways to help these processes. Carrier fluids can be added, hot condensers can be used and other tricks are possible.

But, just because your feed is a solid, it doesn't mean distillation can't be used to purify it.

If you ever have a project of this nature and you want an experienced opinion, please reach out. I'd be happy to take a look at the application and see if it is feasible on paper.