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DistilCare™ Sulzer’s innovative vacuum distillation technology for the gentle separation
DistilCare is Sulzer’s advanced vacuum distillation technology, designed to deliver exceptional purity for heat-sensitive applications while operating at temperatures up to 300 °C under deep vacuum conditions (<1 mbar). This optimized solution minimizes energy consumption, supports sustainability goals, and simplifies separation thanks to improved relative volatility (α-value) under vacuum.
Proven in the most demanding applications, DistilCare can replace a series of short-path evaporators, offering a more compact and efficient, and reliable alternative for the concentration and purification of heat-sensitive products.
> 99.99% purity
Exceed 99.99% purity while safeguarding products quality and integrity
> 70% energy savings
Cut energy use by > 70% with reduce number of stages and reflux under vacuum
Zero waste
Lower emissions and costs with compact, efficient systems
Main Benefits
Ultra purity & compliance – achieve impurity levels
Energy savings – optimize your column design and reduce energy usage down to 70%
Product quality preservation – gentle deep vacuum conditions prevent thermal degradation and maintain color consistency
Achieve high recovery yields
Operational flexibility – dual-mode functionality for vacuum distillation and atmospheric solvent recovery
Lower CAPEX & OPEX – Single-step process reduces complexity, footprint, and costs compared to multi-step systems
Sustainability & Circularity – Minimize waste and emissions through in-process solvent recovery and electrified distillation options.
Main Applications
Pharmaceuticals – high-purity for stringent quality standards
Fine Chemicals – precise separation
Natural Extracts – gentle processing of plant-based compounds
Animal Feed – compliance with strict impurity limits
Semiconductors – Ultra-clean separation for electronic-grade materials
Petrochemicals – Fractionation of high-value components under deep vacuum conditions
Hazardous Chemicals – Safe purification of reactive or explosive substances under controlled vacuum conditions
BioFuels – Efficient separation of bio-based feedstocks to achieve high-purity renewable fuels while minimizing energy consumption
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Get in touch
Dr. Gerardine Epane
Global product line manager
Contact our expert for more information about DistilCare.
CASE STUDY
Unlocking premium fatty
acid quality with Sulzer’s
DistilCare™ vacuum
distillation solution
See how a leading Malaysian soap maker hit high‑purity fatty acid cuts at 150 t/d across SPSFA & C1618UH by solving vacuum distillation pressure‑drop. Sulzer’s advanced design and internals delivered consistent color, purity, and lower energy.
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EvapCare™ film evaporators portfolio
DistilCare is powered by Sulzer’s EvapCare film evaporators, designed for gentle heat transfer and minimal residence time, ensuring product integrity.
Direct heat-integration for
distillation and evaporation plants
DistilCare is Sulzer’s advanced vacuum distillation solution designed for the gentle separation of heat-sensitive materials. It uses advanced technology to deliver excellent performance by operating under deep vacuum conditions. DistilCare is the result of Sulzer Chemtech’s 60 years of leadership in the gentle separation of heat-sensitive materials. It consists of a distillation column installed with high efficiency structured packing or wire gauze packing like MellapakPlusTM or BXPlusTM respectively. This helps to reduce pressure drop and thereby operating temperatures for optimal results.
By reducing the reflux ratio and the number of theoretical stages, DistilCare lowers both OPEX and CAPEX compared to atmospheric distillation. Operating under vacuum also provides a safe margin from autoignition, flash point, and explosive limits—critical when handling hazardous chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide or hydrazine.
In addition, this technology includes EvapCare™ film evaporators and specially designed overhead system ensuring that the vacuum level remains consistently at the lowest level. The system’s precise control over vacuum level, heat transfer, and residence time, combined with minimal maintenance requirements, ensures reliable performance across wide range of applications.
DistilCare™ enables manufacturers to achieve impurity levels as low as a few ppm or even lowersurpassing stringent global standards. This ensures market access and compliance with evolving regulations in industries such as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, personal care, animal feed additives, and specialty chemicals.
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Ultra high purity without thermal degradation
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Up to 70% energy savings through optimized vacuum operation
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High recovery yields up to almost 100%.
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·Lower CAPEX & OPEX thanks to single-step purification and compact skid-mounted design
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DistilCare is ideal for:
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Pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals
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Natural extracts and food ingredients
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Animal feed additives
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Oil & gas and specialty chemical sectors
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Oleochemicals
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Nutraceuticals
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Petrochemicals
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Hazardous Chemicals, such as H2O2
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The DistilCare solution is highly scalable, from laboratory dimensions (a few centimeters in diameter) up to 5 meters. Thanks to Sulzer Chemtech’s proprietary technologies, we can achieve this scale-up reliably and without risk, while also offering the possibility of performing validation tests. Furthermore, we have extensive know-how, internal tools, and advanced software capabilities to design the system, which in many cases eliminates the need for physical trials.
Yes. DistilCare can offer modular, skid-mounted systems as well as components and stand alone equipment that can be tailored with cold traps, heat recuperators, automated controls,coolers, vacuum pumps. This flexibility ensures optimal performance for your unique process requirements.
