Sieve Tray

Sieve trays became a dominant tower internal for mass transfer columns in the 1950’s owing to their simple shape and ease of manufacture. This made sieve trays a popular device for extensive research and as a result, a considerable amount of experience has been gained for tray design and its application. Sieve trays are flat perforated plates in which vapour is forced through the holes into the cross-flowing liquid. Vapour flow prevents liquid from leaking/weeping through the holes. At low vapour velocities, liquid weeping through the holes occurs, which bypasses a portion of the tray active area and reduces efficiency, giving sieve trays a relatively low turndown ratio of approximately 2–2.5:1.

Saiptech has the capability to design and manufacture virtually any type of sieve tray. Tray hole sizes ranging from 3.2 mm up to 19 mm in diameter are offered.

Material of Construction

Fractionation trays are fabricated from a wide variety of materials. When corrosion is expected to be extremely low and design temperatures not excessive, carbon steel is a logical choice because of its favorable mechanical properties, malleability and cost. However, since the material of construction is dictated by the process conditions of each particular system for which it will be used, many different types may be required with unique properties that allow some materials to have corrosion resistance and maintain their strength at elevated temperatures.

The most common tray materials that Saiptech utilizes are listed below starting from the least expensive:

• Carbon steel
• Stainless steel: 410s/304/316L/321/904L
• 2205/2507 Duplex Steel
• Titanium
• Zirconium
• Monel 400
• Hastelloy C276