Patent ID: 8864948

Claim:
A dividing wall column comprising a main column comprising: a condenser that is connected to an upper end of the main column; a reboiler that is connected to a lower end of the main column; and a dividing wall that is in the main column and divides the main column into a top zone, an upper inflow zone, an upper outflow zone, a lower inflow zone, a lower outflow zone, and a bottom zone, wherein the main column comprises an inflow middle plate where the upper and lower inflow zones contact with each other and an outflow middle plate where the upper and lower outflow zones contact with each other, wherein the top zone is an upper area of the main column with no dividing wall, the upper inflow zone is one of a plurality of areas divided by the dividing wall and is located above the inflow middle plate, the upper outflow zone is one of the plurality of areas divided by the dividing wall and is located above the outflow middle plate, the lower inflow zone is one of the plurality of areas divided by the dividing wall and is located under the inflow middle plate, the lower outflow zone is one of the plurality of areas divided by the dividing wall and is located under the outflow middle plate, and the bottom zone is a lower area of the main column with no dividing wall, wherein the main column is installed such that an inflow stream, that is a feed comprising crude neopentyl glycol, can flows into the inflow middle plate and then, is separated into a low boiling component flowing out to the top zone, a medium boiling component flowing out to the outflow middle plate and a high boiling component flowing out to the bottom zone, wherein at least one of the low, medium and high boiling components includes neopentyl glycol.