Pilot numbering

History. Methods for the fractionation of plasma were developed as a contribution to the U.S. war effort in the 1940s (2). Following pubHcation of a seminal treatise on the physical chemistry of proteins (3), a research group was estabUshed which was subsequendy commissioned to develop a blood volume expander for the treatment of military casualties. Process methods were developed for the preparation of a stable, physiologically acceptable solution of alburnin [103218-45-7] the principal osmotic protein in blood. Eady preparations, derived from equine and bovine plasma, caused allergic reactions when tested in humans and were replaced by products obtained from human plasma (4). Process studies were stiU being carried out in the pilot-plant laboratory at Harvard in December 1941 when the small supply of experimental product was mshed to Hawaii to treat casualties at the U.S. naval base at Pead Harbor. On January 5, 1942 the decision was made to embark on large-scale manufacture at a number of U.S. pharmaceutical plants (4,5). 

The performance of SCWO for waste treatment has been demonstrated (15,16). In these studies, a broad number of refractory materials such as chlorinated solvents, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and pesticides were studied as a function of process parameters (17). The success of these early studies led to pilot studies which showed that chlorinated hydrocarbons, including 1,1,1-trichloroethane /7/-T5-6y,(9-chlorotoluene [95-49-8] and hexachlorocyclohexane, could be destroyed to greater than 99.99997, 99.998, and 99.9993%, respectively. In addition, no traces of organic material could be detected in the gaseous phase, which consisted of carbon dioxide and unreacted oxygen. The pilot unit had a capacity of 3 L/min of Hquid effluent and was operated for a maximum of 24 h. 

Pilot plants can be categorized by a number of different methods. Size is the most common classification as it is the most uniformly proportional to constmction and operating costs some typical characteristics are shown in Table 2. These characteristics are generalizations and may not be appHcable in... 

Three types of computer control systems are commonly used for pilot-plant instmmentation. The first is a centralized system, usually based on a minicomputer or occasionally a mainframe. These systems have large storage capacities, substantial memories, and much associated equipment. They typically control all the pilot plants in an area or faciUty. Centralized systems are economical if a large number of units are involved but are becoming less common due to their high installation and maintenance costs as well as the limitation that any failure of the central system shuts down all pilot plants involved. 

Distributors in industrial units typically have large numbers of injection points of quite diverse design characteristics, some of which are depicted in Eigure 16 for fluidized-bed appHcations. Flow variations through these parallel paths can lead to poor flow distributions within a reactor, thus reducing product yields and selectivity. In some circumstances, undesirable side products can foul portions of the distributor and further upset flow patterns. Where this is important, or where the possibiHties and consequences are insufficiently understood and independent means caimot be employed to assure adequate distribution, the pilot plant must be sized to accommodate such a distributor. Spacing should be comparable to those distributors that are anticipated to be... 

Laboratory or pilot plant tests are usually conducted on individual ores to determine the number of dmms required to obtain optimum concentration results. Dmms that are 914 or 1219 mm in diameter are usually used in cobbing service. 

A most useful feature of the agglomeration technique is its ability to work with extreme fines. Even particles of less than nanometer size (ca 10 ° m) can be treated, if appropriate, so that ultrafine grinding can be appHed to materials with extreme impurity dissernination to allow recovery of agglomerates of higher purity. A number of appHcations of Hquid-phase agglomeration have reached either the commercial or semicommercial pilot scale of operation. 

One goal of catalyst designers is to constmct bench-scale reactors that allow determination of performance data truly indicative of performance in a full-scale commercial reactor. This has been accompHshed in a number of areas, but in general, larger pilot-scale reactors are preferred because they can be more fully instmmented and can provide better engineering data for ultimate scale-up. In reactor selection thought must be given to parameters such as space velocity, linear velocity, and the number of catalyst bodies per reactor diameter in order to properly model heat- and mass-transfer effects. 

The process monitors and controllers typically also have the capabiUty for data logging, analysis, and display. This capabiUty has made on-line control of pilot plants, as well as commercial-scale processes, desirable. Pilot-plant appHcations for on-line control have been described (106), and the use of such systems for both monitoring and process diagnosis has been discussed (107). A number of commercially available process control programs that mn on microprocessors have been reviewed (108). Virtually all of them incorporate graphic display as an integral part of the interactive capabiUty of the program. 

The other common objective for calculating the number of countercurrent theoretical stages (or mass-transfer units) is to evaluate the performance of hquid-liquid extraction test equipment in a pilot plant or to evaluate production equipment in an industrial plant. Most liq-uid-hquid extraction equipment in common use can oe designed to achieve the equivalent of 1 to 8 theoretical countercurrent stages, with some designed to achieve 10 to 12 stages. 

As stated above, the design of an RDC contactor usually involves the performance of pilot tests due to the large number of factors whicF can influence performance. These pilot plant data must then be scaled-up to Rill commercial size. The following procedure is recommended. 

Pilot plant tests are conducted using the actual plant materials since small amounts of contaminents can have significant effects on throughput and efficiency. These tests are usually conducted in columns ranging from 0.075-0.15 m diameter the column height (and therefore number of compartments) should be sufficient to accomplish the separation desired this may require several iterations on column height. 

The rotor speed of the scaled up tower is based on maintaining the same specific power input number as used on the pilot column it can be determined by substituting the specific values into the relationship ... 

There are many uses of fluidized beds. A number of applications have become commercial successes others are in the pilot-plant stage, and others in bench-scale stage. Generally, the fluidized bed is used for gas-solids contac ting however, in some instances the presence of the gas or sohd is used only to provide a fluidized bed to accomplish the end result. Uses or special (maracteristics follow ... 

Typical pilot-plant top-suspended baskets are 305 mm (12 in) diameter by 127 mm (5 in) deep. Commercial machines are available in sizes from 508-mm (20-in) diameter by 305-mm (l2-in) depth to 1524-mm (60-in) diameter by 1016-mm (40-in) depth and develop up to 1800g in the smaller and intermediate sizes. Except in the sugar apphcation, operation with a two-speed motor (half speed for loading and full speed for purging) is typical. Hydraulic drives with variable-speed capability are commonly used in the chemical industiy To maximize the number of cycles per hour, a combination of electrical and mechanical braking is employed to minimize the deceleration period, which is a transition period of no value to the process. 

Continuous pilot-plant test runs are generally recommended to verify the laboratory results and to estabhsh criteria for plant design. Facihties for these runs are available at a number of minerals-processing research centers. 

FIG. 23-10 Residence time distributions of pilot and commercial reactors. <3 = variance of the residence time distribution, n = number of stirred tanks with the same variance, Pe = Peclet number. 

Experimental analysis involves the use of thermal hazard analysis tests to verify the results of screening as well as to identify reaction rates and kinetics. The goal of this level of testing is to provide additional information by which the materials and processes may be characterized. The decision on the type of experimental analysis that should be undertaken is dependent on a number of factors, including perceived hazard, planned pilot plant scale, sample availability, regulations, equipment availability, etc. 

---