Miniaturized distillation device for detection of hydrocarbons using distillation curve principle

Abstract The objective of this study is to miniaturize the distillation apparatus to detect and analyze the composition of hydrocarbon mixtures. To achieve this, a micrometric chip measuring 150 × 100 × 6 mm 3 was fabricated using a CO 2 laser engraving machine. The chip, made of poly-methyl methacrylate, consists of a mini heater, condenser, and column. Its purpose is to separate hydrocarbons and determine the distillation curve of the mixtures. To assess its performance, three hydrocarbons (iso-pentane, 1-pentene, and n-hexane) were injected into the chip in different percentages ranging from 0 to 100%. These hydrocarbons were selected to represent pure, binary, and ternary compounds. The chip then analyzed the samples, and the distillation curves were obtained by plotting the boiling temperature against the percentage of condensed volume. The results of the experiments revealed that each distillation test lasted about 15 minutes. Despite the close boiling temperatures of iso-pentane and 1-pentene (27.8 and 30 °C, respectively), the chip could accurately identify the composition of different mixtures in the analyzed materials. The repeatability test demonstrated that the average standard deviation for the examined binary mixtures ranged from 1–2%, indicating the reliable reproducibility of the results. In conclusion, the miniaturized distillation chip that was fabricated can effectively analyze hydrocarbon mixtures and determine their purity.