Commercial developments

Since the 1960s the commercial development of continuous countercurrent processes has been almost entirely accompHshed by using a flow scheme that simulates the continuous countercurrent flow of adsorbent and process Hquid without the actual movement of the adsorbent. The idea of a simulated moving bed (SMB) can be traced back to the Shanks system for leaching soda ash (58). 

Although the use of simple diluents and adulterants almost certainly predates recorded history, the use of fillers to modify the properties of a composition can be traced as far back as eady Roman times, when artisans used ground marble in lime plaster, frescoes, and po22olanic mortar. The use of fillers in paper and paper coatings made its appearance in the mid-nineteenth century. Functional fillers, which introduce new properties into a composition rather than modify pre-existing properties, were commercially developed eady in the twentieth century when Goodrich added carbon black to mbber and Baekeland formulated phenol— formaldehyde plastics with wood dour. 

Phosphorus-Containing Diols and Polyols. The commercial development of several phosphoms-contaiuing diols occurred in response to the need to flame retard rigid urethane foam insulation used in transportation and constmction. There are a large number of references to phosphoms polyols (111) but only a few of these have been used commercially. 

The 1993 market for LPC-type products in the United States was for dried alfalfa meal for animal feed. This product is sold for both protein and carotenoid content. The USDA Pro-Xan product attempts to obtain improved xanthophyU contents for use in egg-laying rations in addition to protein contents. The limitations to commercial development of LPC products for human food use are high capital costs as compared with the low yields of protein, seasonal availabihty of raw materials, and the need in the United States for FDA approval of the products. 

A subsidiary of lEC and Toshiba Corp. called ONSI Corp. was formed for the commercial development, production, and marketing of packaged PAEC power plants of up to 1-MW capacities. ONSI is commercially manufacturing 200-kW PAEC systems for use in a PC25 power plant. The power plants are manufactured in a highly automated faciHty, using robotic techniques to assemble the repeating electrode, bipolar separator, etc, units into the fuel cell stack. 

Most of the developed hot-water fields are located by significant surface indications, particularly in the form of hot springs. Once a resource has been identified, a variety of techniques can be used to map the system and determine whether it is of a size sufficient to justify commercial development. Hidden hot-water resources are much more difficult to locate, but geologic indicators such as volcanic activity and evidence of hydrothermal alteration can be used. 

Direct Uses of Geopressured Fluids. Many of the uses typical of hydrothermal energy, such as greenhouse, fish farm, and space heating, have been proposed for geopressured resources, but none has been commercially developed (34). Hydrothermal fluids are widely used in enhanced oil recovery, however, to increase production from depleted oil fields. 

After the discovery of isotactic polymerisation of propylene using shconocene catalysts, stmcturaHy analogous hafnium catalysts produced from hafnium tetrachloride [13499-05-3] were found to produce high yields of high molecular weight polypropylene (55), but not enough to lead to commercial development. 

Polyquinolines are some of the most versatile thermally stable polymers they were developed during the 1970s in response to increasing demand for high temperature resistant materials and are undergoing commercial development (Maxdem, Inc., San Dimas, California). Evidence of their stabiUty is... 

The exact status of the development of the AVLIS process is subject to security classification. It is beHeved that the process is ready for transition to an industrial operator for commercial development. 

Butene. Commercial production of 1-butene, as well as the manufacture of other linear a-olefins with even carbon atom numbers, is based on the ethylene oligomerization reaction. The reaction can be catalyzed by triethyl aluminum at 180—280°C and 15—30 MPa ( 150 300 atm) pressure (6) or by nickel-based catalysts at 80—120°C and 7—15 MPa pressure (7—9). Another commercially developed method includes ethylene dimerization with the Ziegler dimerization catalysts, (OR) —AIR, where R represents small alkyl groups (10). In addition, several processes are used to manufacture 1-butene from mixed butylene streams in refineries (11) (see BuTYLENEs). 

In business transactions the parties should have a clear understanding of exactly what constitutes trade secret information and consider how the information will be used and who will retain ownership rights. If the transaction is a pure and simple sale, concerns over ownership may be meritless. However, such concerns might be weU-founded, if further research or commercial development involves similar information. It may also be necessary to consider whether the seUer should be allowed to compete against the buyer in ventures involving the same or related information. These are just some of the issues which arise with the sale of the trade secrets. 

Thermal analysis iavolves techniques ia which a physical property of a material is measured agaiast temperature at the same time the material is exposed to a coatroUed temperature program. A wide range of thermal analysis techniques have been developed siace the commercial development of automated thermal equipment as Hsted ia Table 1. Of these the best known and most often used for polymers are thermogravimetry (tg), differential thermal analysis (dta), differential scanning calorimetry (dsc), and dynamic mechanical analysis (dma). 

Rhenium oxides have been studied as catalyst materials in oxidation reactions of sulfur dioxide to sulfur trioxide, sulfite to sulfate, and nitrite to nitrate. There has been no commercial development in this area. These compounds have also been used as catalysts for reductions, but appear not to have exceptional properties. Rhenium sulfide catalysts have been used for hydrogenations of organic compounds, including benzene and styrene, and for dehydrogenation of alcohols to give aldehydes (qv) and ketones (qv). The significant property of these catalyst systems is that they are not poisoned by sulfur compounds. 

Sodium nitrate is also used in formulations of heat-transfer salts for he at-treatment baths for alloys and metals, mbber vulcanization, and petrochemical industries. A mixture of sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate is used to capture solar energy (qv) to transform it into electrical energy. The potential of sodium nitrate in the field of solar salts depends on the commercial development of this process. Other uses of sodium nitrate include water (qv) treatment, ice melting, adhesives (qv), cleaning compounds, pyrotechnics, curing bacons and meats (see Food additives), organics nitration, certain types of pharmaceutical production, refining of some alloys, recovery of lead, and production of uranium. 

Another commercial development of the 1970s is the appHcation of superplasticity which is exhibited by a number of zinc alloys (135—138). Under the right conditions, the material becomes exceptionally soft and ductile and, under low stresses, extensions exceeding 1000% can be obtained without fracture. The grain size must be extremely small (about 1 micrometer) and stable. This grain size is less than one tenth that of common metals in the wrought condition. 

Ester derivatives of oleandomycia (17, R = CH ) were also pursued leading to commercial development of (31) also known as troleandomycin (TOA), which improved oral bioavadabihty and taste as compared to the parent (135). 

Microbiological leaching of copper and uranium has been commercially developed and research has iadicated that microorganisms may be used to oxidize complex antimony sulfide minerals (22,23). If this technology is developed commercially, it may aHow for the exploitation of many low grade antimony deposits. 

Silver—Iron Cells. The silver—iron battery system combines the advantages of the high rate capabiUty of the silver electrode and the cycling characteristics of the iron electrode. Commercial development has been undertaken (70) to solve problems associated with deep cycling of high power batteries for ocean systems operations. 

Prior to the commercial development of this process benzyl alcohol was obtained from benzaldehyde [100-52-7] which undergoes the Cannizzaro reaction (2) upon treatment with potassium hydroxide. High yields of benzyl alcohol and potassium benzoate are obtained by this route which cannot compete with the present day process because of the high cost of benzaldehyde (qv). 

Cellulose acetate [9004-35-7] is the most important organic ester because of its broad appHcation in fibers and plastics it is prepared in multi-ton quantities with degrees of substitution (DS) ranging from that of hydrolyzed, water-soluble monoacetates to those of fully substituted triacetate (Table 1). Soluble cellulose acetate was first prepared in 1865 by heating cotton and acetic anhydride at 180°C (1). Using sulfuric acid as a catalyst permitted preparation at lower temperatures (2), and later, partial hydrolysis of the triacetate gave an acetone-soluble cellulose acetate (3). The solubiUty of partially hydrolyzed (secondary) cellulose acetate in less expensive and less toxic solvents such as acetone aided substantially in its subsequent commercial development. 

Around 1800, the attack of chromite [53293-42-8] ore by lime and alkaU carbonate oxidation was developed as an economic process for the production of chromate compounds, which were primarily used for the manufacture of pigments (qv). Other commercially developed uses were the development of mordant dyeing using chromates in 1820, chrome tanning in 1828 (2), and chromium plating in 1926 (3) (see Dyes and dye intermediates Electroplating Leather). In 1824, the first chromyl compounds were synthesized followed by the discovery of chromous compounds 20 years later. Organochromium compounds were produced in 1919, and chromium carbonyl was made in 1927 (1,2). 

SNR s fluidized-bed cogeneiation system is an early example of the commercial development of AFBC technology. Foster Wheeler designed, fabricated, and erected the coal-fired AFBC/boHer, which generates 6.6 MWe and 37 MW thermal (also denoted as MWt) of heat energy. The thermal energy is transferred via medium-pressure hot water to satisfy the heat demand of the tank farm. The unit bums 6.4 t/h of coal and uses a calcium to sulfur mole ratio of 3 to set the limestone feed rate. The spent bed material may be reiajected iato the bed as needed to maintain or build bed iaventory. The fly ash, collected ia two multicyclone mechanical collectors, may also be transferred pneumatically back to the combustor to iacrease the carbon bumup efficiency from 93%, without fly ash reiajection, to 98%. 

Acetals. Acetal resins (qv) are polymers of formaldehyde and are usually called polyoxymethylene [9002-81-7]. Acetal homopolymer was developed at Du Pont (8). The commercial development of acetal resins required a pure monomer. The monomer is rigorously purified to remove water, formic acid, metals, and methanol, which act as chain-transfer or reaction-terminating agents. The purified formaldehyde is polymerized to form the acetal homopolymer the polymer end groups are stabilized by reaction with acetic anhydride to form acetate end groups (9). 

Urea—Other Aldehyde Reaction Products. Urea can also react with other aldehydes to form slow release nitrogen fertilizers. However, cost constraints associated with higher aldehydes have either precluded or limited broad commercial development of these products. Two exceptions are isobutyhdene diurea (IBDU), registered trademark of Vigoro Industries, and crotonyHdene diurea (CDU), registered trademark of Chisso-Asahi Fertilizer Co. 

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