1. Aims of a pilot column test

Pilot column distillations and absorptions are operations carried out on small quantities of product, using small-scale equipment, to process a new mixture and obtain specific products. The operation can be considered from two different points of view:

• for the manufacturer of the mixture to be processed, it is generally sufficient to know whether the separation envisaged is possible and to obtain a sufficient quantity of pure products to examine them, subject them to further processing or supply samples to his customers: the problem is above all qualitative;

• for the equipment designer, product quality must be respected, but precise knowledge of the pilot unit's operation is still needed to calculate the industrial installation: the problem becomes quantitative, with a view to extrapolation.

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