Automatic System Distillation for Wine Fruit

This paper describes in detail an automatic laboratory scale (50 L) batch packed column distillation system, which has been assembled at the Department of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. The system includes real-time monitoring of temperatures (in different parts of the system), alcoholic strength, flow rates and heating power. In addition, this system allows manipulating the flow rate of the cooling water in the partial condenser and the heating power in the boiler. Data acquisition and control strategies were developed in LabVIEW® environment. The system allows developing and managing strategies to control several variables, such as distillate alcohol strength, specific temperatures and heating and cooling rates.