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A plate column is a type of distillation device for making homemade alcohol.
It is a vertical cylinder, inside which horizontal partitions (plates) are placed at a certain distance, along which the liquid product flows during distillation.
It allows you to get quite high-quality alcohol even with a single distillation due to repeated contact of liquid and gas.
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Disk Column Advantages
Good purification from toxic impurities (the more partitions – the higher);
Design variability (you can change the characteristics of the distillate by reducing or increasing the number of plates);
No dependence on water pressure drops or voltage (unlike nozzle-type devices);
High performance (enhanced by larger cylinder diameter).
Plate columns are also made of copper, steel, glass and fluoroplast. Copper versions are commonly called “flutes” because of their resemblance to a musical instrument.
The columns differ in the type of holes on the plates. They can be cap, sieve, lattice, lamellar, disk.
To obtain high-quality homemade alcohol, cap options are best suited, which are distinguished by high performance and ease of operation.
However, they are quite difficult to assemble and require expensive components. Therefore, most often such devices are used to make noble drinks: whiskey, cognac, bourbon.
If desired, you can assemble yourself and a cheaper analogue of the cap column.
What should be the plate column
The body of the device is usually made of stainless steel, but glass models are more visual.
The diameter depends only on the heating power: you can increase it at your discretion, thereby increasing the efficiency of the device.
The degree and degree of purification of the drink is increased by adding plates inside the cylinder.
Most often, columns with 5–10 partitions are used (the range of distillate strength is from 88 to 95%).
To seal the floors, ordinary silicone discs are used.
Optionally, the column can be supplemented with an intermediate sampling unit or a fitting for a thermometer.
Approximate parameters of elements:
The area of the steam tubes is about 10% of the section of the column;
The area of the slots is 70–80% of the area of the steam tubes;
The drain area is 1/3 of the total area of the steam pipes (the diameter is about 18–20% of the pipe thickness).
Tray Height Formula
H = (N-1)*h + z₁ + z₂
Where h is the distance between the trays, z₁ is the distance between the top baffle and the top of the column, z₂ is the distance between the bottom baffle and the bottom of the column, N is the number of trays.
The lower partitions are made with a large cross-section of holes and the level of phlegm (as holding), the upper ones – with smaller parameters (as separating).
The caps are selected from available sizes (for example, plugs with a diameter of 28 or 22 mm).
The shape of the holes in the plates does not play a special role, but it is better to make them as narrow as possible so that the vapor is divided into small bubbles, thereby increasing the phase contact area. More caps would also be beneficial.
You can improve the device by placing steam pipes (higher than drain pipes) instead of holes in the plates and covering them with slotted caps. The phlegm divided into fractions will remain on the partitions even after the heating is turned off.
Download the scheme of the tray column
In order to download the archive with drawings, click on the picture below, or this link.
Relevance: 16.01.2020
Tags: Vodka, mash, moonshine, Moonshine stills and accessories