Raschig - Nye Trays
Nye trays were developed to provide a cost effective way to significantly increase the capacity of existing distillation towers. Compared to a conventional valve or sieve tray a significant higher capacity can be achieved. The general design of Nye trays can be compared to conventional valve or sieve trays containing the same three general regions: the active area (contact zone), the disengagement zone of vapour and liquid above the active area and the down comer.
Compared to a conventional tray the inlet panel is modified. The Nye insert consists of an elevated inlet panel with perforations in the vertical face to the tray above.
With this design, on the one hand the active area is increased by the perforated vertical face which lowers the pressure drop. In addition to that the disengagement zone above the tray deck is increased. With those advantages, Nye trays consistently provide a higher capacity than conventional valve or sieve trays. A further advantage of the Nye tray is the fact that for a revamp only minimal tower modifications have to be made and the existing supports can be reused. For new column, considering the same capacity than conventional trays, the column diameter can be reduced and so the initial investment will be reduced.