GT-DWC™ - Dividing Wall Column Design Saves Costs and Energy
GT-DWC (Dividing Wall Column) is Sulzer’s proprietary distillation technology that separates multi-component feeds into three or more high-purity streams within a single tower. By eliminating secondary columns, GT-DWC cuts capital costs by 20–30% and energy consumption by 20–30% compared to conventional systems. Ideal for heart-cut separation (e.g., benzene/toluene/xylene splits, naphtha splitter), it delivers unmatched efficiency for refineries, petrochemical plants, and chemical processors..
20–30% lower CAPEX
Half the count of distillation column and other auxiliary equipment
20-30% lower OPEX
Less reboiler/condenser duty for the same product specifications by multi-column system
Cleaner heartcut and higher product purity
Much cleaner middle cut comparing to a normal column with side draw
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Charlie Chou
Global licensing director
Contact our expert for more information about Gt-DWC
Main Benefits
Reduced CAPEX: One column replaces two; fewer auxiliaries and foundations (typically 20–30% lower)
Less reboiler/reflux duty for the same specs (typically 20-30% lower)
Plot space ~30% smaller due to reduced less equipment count
Better Quality due to cleaner, higher‑purity heart‑cut with better yield
Key Characteristics
Column mid section split in pre‑fractionation on one side and final refining and heart‑cut withdrawal on the other
Optimized vapor/liquid routing and pressure balance across the wall
Works with trays or packings; tailored distributors/collectors
Various DWC types and applications
Process performance guarantee available
Both grassroots and revamps
Optimize multi-component hydrocarbon separation with GT-DWC
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BROCHURE
Optimizing distillation
processes with Dividing Wall Column technology
With a smaller initial investment, GT-DWC technology provides the most comprehensive range of applications
in refineries and petrochemical plants, delivering reduced energy consumption than conventional two-column systems or a significantly better separation efficiency than a regular side-draw column.
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Brochure
GT‑DWC is a unique distillation technique called dividing wall column, that produces three or more purified products in a single tower that otherwise in conventional way is done by 2-3 columns in series. A vertical wall splits typically the mid‑section into two functional zones so the column can pre‑fractionate the feed on one side while the other side refines the middle cut (heart‑cut) from the top and the bottom cuts. Compared with a conventional in-series distillation columns, this integrated column reduces investment by half of the equipment count, and its internal arrangement reduces remixing that lower the utility consumoption as well. When comparing with the normal column with a side draw, GT-DWC produces the heart‑cut where it is most concentrated with contamination from top & bottom products, and achieves the same (or better) product specs as by the multi-column system.
A two‑column sequence inevitably wastes duty by splitting and then remixing components between shells, causing thermal inefficiency that drives up utility consumptions for reboiling and condensing. GT‑DWC® consolidates that work inside one shell, so the separation is done once without such thermal inefficiency, with one reboiler and one condenser. That means fewer separation efficiency losses, lower internal flows, and smaller overall duty. Where applicable, GT-DWC typically provide 20-30% energy saving comparing with two-column system with the same or better product separation quality.
Yes. GT‑DWC is often a revamp enabler because it replaces two columns with one shell, freeing plot space and reducing energy consumption. It can also be applied for revamping an existing column with sidedraw to greatly improve the middle heartcut purity/quality that benefit its value and downstream units. Sulzer high-efficiency tower internals and proprietary DWC design are key to guarantee the success of the revamp. Dynamic simulation is used to validate start‑up/shutdown procedures as well as the feed variation to prove controllability within your existing utility envelope.
Sulzer supplies the full set of trays or structured packings, along with distributors, collectors, and when needed, custom wall hardware. The internals are engineered to maintain pressure balance and uniform liquid/vapor distribution on both sides of the wall—this is critical to prevent maldistribution, channeling, or cross‑leakage that can degrade efficiency. Selection (trays vs. packing) depends on capacity, turndown, fouling tendency, and pressure drop targets; our design team sizes distributors/redistributors and sealing elements to keep performance stable across the operating range.
Yes. A single shell creates a clean condenser ↔ reboiler pairing that a heat pump can bridge: the overhead releases heat while condensing; VoltaSplit™ lifts that heat to the reboiler temperature replacing a large share of steam with electricity and reusing condenser heat that would otherwise be rejected.
GT‑DWC excels when there is a meaningful middle cut (heart‑cut) to recover, and when the alternative would be a two‑column arrangement. Typical examples include aromatics heart‑cuts, naphtha splitter, reformate splitter, iso/normal-separation column, and light/medium hydrocarbon fractionations where three product slates are needed. As a rule of thumb, if your feed has a clear light, middle, and heavy region—and the middle product purity/yield matters—GT‑DWC is a strong candidate.
We pair a standard temperature/reflux control structure with additional loops to maintain vapor/liquid splits around the dividing wall. It ensures high controllability, and robust operation even facing the feed variation. Dynamic simulation is used to test disturbances (feed swings, utility changes) and to finalize startup/shutdown sequences before commissioning.
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