Editing Distillation (section)

==Applications==
The application of distillation can roughly be divided into four groups: [[#Laboratory scale distillation|laboratory scale]], [[#Industrial distillation|industrial distillation]], distillation of herbs for perfumery and medicinals ([[herbal distillate]]), and [[#Distillation in food processing|food processing]]. The latter two are distinctively different from the former two in that distillation is not used as a true purification method but more to transfer all [[Volatility (chemistry)|volatiles]] from the source materials to the distillate in the processing of beverages and herbs.

The main difference between laboratory scale distillation and industrial distillation are that laboratory scale distillation is often performed on a batch basis, whereas industrial distillation often occurs continuously. In [[batch distillation]], the composition of the source material, the vapors of the distilling compounds, and the distillate change during the distillation. In batch distillation, a still is charged (supplied) with a batch of feed mixture, which is then separated into its component fractions, which are collected sequentially from most volatile to less volatile, with the bottoms – remaining least or non-volatile fraction – removed at the end. The still can then be recharged and the process repeated.

In [[continuous distillation]], the source materials, vapors, and distillate are kept at a constant composition by carefully replenishing the source material and removing fractions from both vapor and liquid in the system. This results in a more detailed control of the separation process.