ELA100 – Stirred Liquid-Liquid Extraction Column

The ELA/100 Stirred Liquid-Liquid Extraction Column from Pignat is a benchtop chemical engineering teaching unit for studying liquid-liquid extraction, the transfer of a solute from one liquid phase to a second immiscible solvent of different density. Heavy and light phases are held in separate storage tanks and fed to a stirred glass column, where the heavy phase enters at the top and the light phase at the bottom, migrating in opposite directions under the influence of density and agitation. The stirred glass column is DN 32 and 57 cm high, agitated by 29 stainless steel Rushton impellers on a variable-speed drive that promotes intimate contact between the two phases and drives mass transfer between stages. Two self-priming, variable-speed peristaltic pumps feed the column from two 10 L polyethylene tanks, while glass decanters recover the light and heavy phases into 5 L collection tanks. Interphase level is set by a side adjustment, and agitation speed is controlled from the integrated control unit via a 0 to 50 Hz frequency dimmer, protected by a 16 A / 30 mA differential circuit breaker and rated for 100 to 240 V single-phase supply. Built on a 40 x 40 mm stainless steel tubular framework with a compact 105 x 65 x 135 cm footprint, the unit lets students identify column components, calibrate pumps, determine the operating point, apply ternary phase diagrams and evaluate column efficiency through HUT and NUT analysis. The unit can be customised and is delivered with an educational handbook and full technical documentation. Bestech Australia supplies the ELA/100 Stirred Liquid-Liquid Extraction Column with on-site training and commissioning support available.