Maruzen Petrochemical Company, Limited

Kansai Chemical Engineering Co., Ltd.

Kimura Chemical Plants Co., Ltd.

Hiroshi Matsuo

Nobuyuki Kobayashi

Hideo Noda

Tomoaki Takada

Kazumasa Aso

A monotube or multitube 2 is coupled to a body shell 1 via tube plates 3a and 3b at both ends, so that a tube interior 4 and a tube exterior 5 of the monotube or multitube 2 are isolated from each other. A difference is made in operating pressure between the tube interior 4 and the tube exterior 5, so that one of the tube interior 4 and the tube exterior 5 is used as a lower-pressure column and the other is used as a higher-pressure column. A wall of the tube is used as a heat transfer surface, so that heat is transferred from the higher pressure side (higher temperature side) to the lower pressure side (lower temperature side). Monotubes or multitubes 2 having different diameters are connected to each other via a reducer 20, so that a monotube or multitube 2 whose diameters are varied stepwise is disposed between the tube plates 3a and 3b at the upper and lower ends, thereby increasing the column cross-sectional area as moving from the top to the bottom of the column in the enriching section (tube interior) 4, and decreasing the column cross-sectional area as moving from the top to the bottom of the column in the stripping section (tube exterior) 5.

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Habikino, Japan

Hiroshi Matsuo