Granulation acoustic chemometric monitoring

M. Halstensen, P. de Bakker, K.H. Esbensen, Acoustic chemometric monitoring of an industrial granulation production process - a PAT feasibility study, Chemom. Intell. Lab. Syst., 84, 88-97 (2006). 

In this chapter we illustrate development of acoustic chemometrics for process monitoring in the chemical engineering realm with a feasibility survey of the application potential for industrial applications. Earlier studies [3-7] describe the initial small- to medium-scale pilot experiments behind this approach, collectively giving a broad introduction to the application of acoustic chemometric for liquid flow in pipelines [3,7], industrial granulation processes [7-9,11] and similar process technological regimens. Since a full introduction to acoustic chemometrics has been published elsewhere [3-7], only an operational summary is provided in this chapter. 

The acoustic chemometric approach can also be used to monitor industrial production processes involving particles and powders and to provide a complementary tool for process operators for more efficient process control, or to monitor particle movement in a fluidized bed [7] for example. Below we illustrate the application potential by focusing on two applications process monitoring of a granulation process and monitoring of ammonia concentration. 

One major objective of this feasibility was to assess the potential of acoustic chemometrics to monitor the general process state of the granulation reactor in order to give reliable early warning if a critical situation occurs in the bed. Critical situations in the fluidized bed are often a result of lump formation and/or layering on the perforated bottom plate of the reactor (see Figure 9.5). 

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