SOP NO. 085 Distillation Plant

1.0 Environment, Safety and Health Precautions

a. Wear mask, goggles, rubber gloves and rubber shoes at the time of using Nitric Acid.
b. Carefully observe the pressure gauges of Distillation Plant to avoid any mishaps.
c. Only trained person are allowed to operate Distillation Plant.
d. Do not carry out any repair/maintenance work when it is “ON”.
e. Distillation Plant should be properly grounded to avoid any electric shock.
f. In case of any injury/burn get medical attention immediately.

2.0 Procedure

a. Operation Precautions

i. Before switch “ON” the Plant check all the joints and valves.
ii. Switch “ON” the compressor.
iii. Check safety valve and pressure gauges for its calibration.
iv. Check the cooling tower of its proper working.
v. Check the level of water in De-ionized water tank if empty then full it first.

b. Operation

i. Open the De-ionized water valve.
ii. Switch “ON” the Distillation Plant.
iii. Distillation Plant automatically fills three columns according to the requirement.
iv. Open the S.S ball valve of all three columns to prevent it from air lock for 2 minutes.
v. Also open the steam valve for 2 minutes.
vi. After two minutes close all the valves.
vii. When water reaches the required height heater turns “ON” automatically.
viii. After 45 minutes steam generation starts and temperature rises between 80 – 100°C and conductivity is “0”.
ix. Switch “ON” the cooling tower motor the temperature of water decreases between 75 – 80°C.
x. If the conductivity of water shown, (0 – 0.99) it means the water is OK and store in distilled water tank.
xi. But if the conductivity of water is 1 or greater then 1 it means the water is rejected by the system and is drained.
xii. When the storage distilled water tank complete the limit of 1000 litres.
xiii. The distillation plant will shut “OFF” automatically.
xiv. The level of water is shown in glass tube.
xv. Enter the running time in logbook.

c. Maintenance Precautions

i. Hang maintenance plate.
ii. Use proper tools for opening and closing of Distillation Plant.
iii. Switch “OFF” the system before staring maintenance.


d. Maintenance

i. Check and clean all pneumatic valves for proper working.
ii. Check and adjust the pressure switches for proper working.
iii. Check all pipes for any leakage, if there is any leakage then replace the pipe.
iv. Check water level glass for any breakage.
v. Then flush all the columns of Distillation Plant with solution having (10 litres Nitric Acid and 100 litres water) and continuous recycle the solution for 2 hours.
vi. Then start rinsing the Distillation Plant with De-ionized water for 3 – 4 hours.
vii. Close all the valves after maintenance.
viii. After maintenance enters in logbook for record.

e. Calibration

i. Perform calibration of pressure gauges according to procedure of calibration.
ii. Note the readings in calibration certificate.
iii. After calibration paste calibration slip on machine/equipment.
iv. If the calibration results do not comply with specification raise engineering work order for maintenance and paste NOT TO BE USED slip.
v. Re-calibrate the gauges after maintenance.

f. Validation

i. As per Validation Protocol for System/Equipment Qualification Protocol.

g. Cleaning

Clean the Distillation Plant with duster.