Rotating Packed Beds (RPBs) offer increased flexibility and the potential of significant size-reductions for distillation processes through mass transfer intensification. This may be of interest for example for retrofits or off-shore applications. However, validated models for process design of multicomponent distillation in RPBs are not available up to now. To bridge this gap, distillation of binary and ternary mixtures at total reflux was experimentally investigated in an RPB test rig. Depending on the flowrate and rotational speed, up to 10 theoretical stages were achieved in the investigated RPB, corresponding to an HETP (height equivalent of a theoretical plate) of as low as 17 mm at the best operating point. With increasing centrifugal acceleration, separation efficiency increased at first, but decreased again at high centrifugal accelerations. Using the rate-based stage approach, a correlation for gas-side volumetric mass transfer coefficient in the RPB is developed. It is capable of reproducing the observed maximum of separation efficiency. Coefficients are fitted for this correlation, based on results obtained from distillation of ethanol/n-propanol. The model is validated using data obtained from distillation of ethanol/water and ethanol/n-propanol/water. Overall volumetric mass transfer coefficients and numbers of theoretical stages are described for most of the data within $\pm$30 %.

旋转填充床 (RPB) 为蒸馏过程提供了更高的灵活性和通过传质强化显着减小尺寸的潜力。例如，这可能对改造或离岸应用感兴趣。然而，迄今为止，RPB 中多组分精馏过程设计的验证模型尚不可用。为了弥补这一差距，在 RPB 试验台上对全回流下的二元和三元混合物的蒸馏进行了实验研究。根据流速和转速，在研究的 RPB 中实现了多达 10 个理论级，对应于低至 17 的 HETP（理论塔板的高度当量） mm 在最佳工作点。随着离心加速度的增加，分离效率首先增加，但在高离心加速度下再次下降。使用基于速率的阶段方法，开发了 RPB 中气体侧体积传质系数的相关性。它能够再现观察到的最大分离效率。基于从乙醇/正丙醇蒸馏获得的结果，为该相关性拟合系数。该模型使用从乙醇/水和乙醇/正丙醇/水的蒸馏获得的数据进行验证。描述了大部分数据的总体体积传质系数和理论级数$\pm$30  %。