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How to simulate flash separation

An isothermal flash drum at 358 K splitting an ethanol–water feed into ethanol-rich vapor and water-rich liquid products.

Featured in:Water Treatment
FEED
DRUM
VAP
LIQ
  1. 1
    Open the ready-made model

    Open the "Flash separation" model in the MaximaLabs workspace — no install, no license. It loads live on the canvas, ready to edit and run.

  2. 2
    Confirm the thermodynamics

    This process is modeled with the NRTL property package over ethanol, water — already selected, so the phase equilibrium and enthalpy are physically consistent from the first run.

  3. 3
    Review the flowsheet

    The flowsheet chains DRUM. Every block is a real, solvable unit op you can reconfigure on the canvas.

  4. 4
    Run the simulation

    Click Run. The deterministic solver converges the material and energy balances (recycles included) and fills the live stream table — the AI never invents a number.

  5. 5
    Read the results and iterate

    Inspect the converged streams, tweak a spec, and re-run — or ask the AI copilot to explain a result or diagnose a failed solve in plain English.

What you'll build
Thermodynamics
NRTL
Components
ethanol, water
Unit operations
DRUM
Open this model in the workspace

Opens live on the canvas — free, no install.

Explore the model & flowsheet

Frequently asked questions

What does the Flash separation model simulate?
An isothermal flash drum at 358 K splitting an ethanol–water feed into ethanol-rich vapor and water-rich liquid products.
Which thermodynamic method does it use?
The NRTL property package, over ethanol, water — already selected. You can switch the method on the canvas before running.
Which unit operations are in the flowsheet?
It chains DRUM. Every block is a real, solvable unit operation you can reconfigure, add to, or remove.
Do I need to install software or buy a license?
No. Flash separation runs entirely in your browser on MaximaLabs — free, no install, no license. Open the model to load it live and run the deterministic solver.

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