Five-effect and six-effect distilled water machines are both multi-effect distilled water machines. They consist of distillation columns, preheaters, vapor-liquid separators, condensers, feed pumps, filters, control valves, flow meters, frames, piping, and controllers. The main difference lies in the number of distillation columns, preheaters, and vapor-liquid separators, which determines whether a unit is classified as four-effect, five-effect, or six-effect.
A six-effect unit has one more evaporation effect than a five-effect unit, allowing secondary steam to be reused one additional time. This improves thermal efficiency and reduces specific steam consumption per liter of distilled water, while increasing rated output under the same steam supply conditions. However, the six-effect configuration also requires more heat exchange components, more connection piping, and a larger footprint, so it is generally selected for higher capacity or stricter energy-saving requirements.
For the distillation columns, preheaters, and vapor-liquid separators that determine the effect number, non-standard tube bundles, tube sheets, separation internals, and connection flanges often need to be matched to specific process conditions. Hansheng Automation can provide precision machining based on customer-provided drawings, including single-piece and small-batch production, helping users maintain stable heat exchange and separation performance.
In addition, different effect configurations require corresponding control valve interfaces, flow meter adapters, and pipe fittings. We can also custom-manufacture these components according to customer specifications, supporting installation and commissioning of five-effect and six-effect systems.
Selection between five-effect and six-effect should be based on required output, steam cost, available space, and energy-saving targets. For a given feed water quality, a six-effect unit generally offers lower operating energy consumption, while a five-effect unit has a simpler structure and lower initial equipment complexity.
