Differential advantage

As more and more markets become in effect commodity markets, where the customer perceives little technical difference between competing offers, the need is for the creation of differential advantage through added value. Increasingly a prime source of this added value is through customer service. 

Recently, the state-selective detection of reaction products tluough infrared absorption on vibrational transitions has been achieved and applied to the study of HF products from the F + H2 reaction by Nesbitt and co-workers (Chapman et al [7]). The relatively low sensitivity for direct absorption has been circumvented by the use of a multi-pass absorption arrangement with a narrow-band tunable infrared laser and dual beam differential detection of the incident and transmission beams on matched detectors. A particular advantage of probing the products tluough absorption is that the absolute concentration of the product molecules in a given vibration-rotation state can be detenuined. 

The three main sources of competitive advantage in the manufacture of high value protein products are first to market, high product quaUty, and low cost (3). The first company to market a new protein biopharmaceutical, and the first to gain patent protection, enjoys a substantial advantage. The second company to enter the market may find itself enjoying only one-tenth of the sales. In the absence of patent protection, product differentiation becomes very important. Differentiation reflects a product that is purer, more active, or has a greater lot-to-lot consistency. 

Rota.ryAgita.ted Columns. Because of the mechanical advantages of rotary agitation, most modem differential contactors employ this method. The best known of the commercial rotary agitated contactors are shown in Eigure 15. Eeatures and appHcations of these columns ate given in Table 3. 

Proton chemical shift data from nuclear magnetic resonance has historically not been very informative because the methylene groups in the hydrocarbon chain are not easily differentiated. However, this can be turned to advantage if a polar group is present on the side chain causing the shift of adjacent hydrogens downfteld. High resolution C-nmr has been able to determine position and stereochemistry of double bonds in the fatty acid chain (62). Broad band nmr has also been shown useful for determination of soHd fat content. 

An outstanding advantage of common differential pressure meters is the existence of extensive tables of discharge coefficients ia terms of beta ratio and Reynolds numbers (1,4). These tables, based on historic data, are generally regarded as accurate to within 1—5% depending on the meter type, the beta ratio, the Reynolds number, and the care taken ia manufacture. Improved accuracy can be obtained by miming an actual flow caUbration on the device. 

A significant advantage of the PLM is in the differentiation and recognition of various forms of the same chemical substance polymorphic forms, eg, brookite, mtile, and anatase, three forms of titanium dioxide calcite, aragonite and vaterite, all forms of calcium carbonate Eorms I, II, III, and IV of HMX (a high explosive), etc. This is an important appHcation because most elements and compounds possess different crystal forms with very different physical properties. PLM is the only instmment mandated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the detection and identification of the six forms of asbestos (qv) and other fibers in bulk samples. 

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