Characteristic features of the reflux and raw-material intake to a column and alternate design schemes for subassemblies for the introduction of raw-material are examined. The influence exerted by the number of theoretical plates on the purity of the ethylene glycol produced is analyzed. The diameter of the column is evaluated for different equipment-operating conditions. Reactive distillation columns [1] in which a chemical process is combined with separation of reaction products make it possible to simplify considerably the process-flow diagram, lower capital expenditures for plant construction, and optimize the process on the whole [2-8]. Reactive distillation columns (RDC) can be used in such chemical-engineering processes as etherification, hydrolysis, oxidation, alkylation, isomerization, etc., when the chemical stage takes place in the range of the boiling points of the components of the reactive mixture in several contact mass-exchange units of the column [1], for example, during the production of ethylene glycol (EG).The method most widely used for EG production is the direct hydration of ethylene oxide. Side reactions between the glycol and ethylene oxide take place simultaneously with the target reaction with the formation of diethylene glycol, trimethylene glycol, and tetraethylene glycol. To suppress the side reactions, the EG is synthesized in the liquid phase at elevated temperatures (about 470 K) and under pressure (1.5-2 MPa) with an excess of water [9].The process-flow diagram is rather cumbersome and includes, in addition to the reactor, three evaporators to remove excess water from the reactive mixture, and a distillation-column unit to remove the di-, tri-, and tetra ethylene glycol impurities from the commercial-grade EG; here, all components of the reactive mixture are subsequently evaporated and condensed, and only tetraethylene glycol is obtained in the lower section of the last distillation column in the liquid phase [9]. Use of RDC makes it possible to combine the chemical synthesis of EG from the initial raw material and distillation of reaction products on one or several plates of the column, but specific conditions of the process cause significant problems. In conformity with the stoichiometry of the basic reaction, the molar ratio of water to ethylene oxide should be 1:1; here, however, a large amount of side-reaction products is formed -polyglycols, which on concentrating in the lower section of the column, prohibit the production of EG with a high degree of purity. It is possible to elevate the purity of the EG with a significant increase in the water:ethylene-oxide ratio; here, however, it is necessary to bleed a very considerable amount of water from the top of the column.This drawback in RDC operation during the production of EG can be eliminated by circulating excess water within the column with virtually complete conversion of the initial ethylene oxide in the reaction zone of the column. Moreover, the
