Pilot-range Plants

Microreactor pilot plants consist of, at their core, very similar flow sheets to the laboratory plants and thus in their choice of components and connection. The 

Industrial Microreactor Process Development for Fine and Functional Chemistry 

The most convincing tests of the new tool microstructured reactor and new type of processing, named chemical micro process engineering, are real-life applications. Some new examples are given below, either with IMM involved as research entity or with IMM tools being used. The next subsection gives the first examples of industrial case studies for chemical production, either with IMM or other suppliers tools. There are certainly more such examples, some of which are known to the authors however, these have to remain confidential at present, although some may be made public in the near future. Several subsequent subsections present IMM in-house process developments that were made to be launched to clients. 

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A wattmeter, however, automatically takes the phase angle into account and computes power directly. This provides an accurate measurement. Wattmeters are relatively inexpensive and can be installed by any electrician. Several measurement ranges (numbers of coils) can be built into one unit so that the same wattmeter can be used on pilot and plant-scale equipment. 

As mentioned earlier, both chemical (catalyst, surfactants, stabilizers) and physical (fluid dynamics, energy dissipation rates, circulation time and so on) factors control the performance of the suspension polymerization reactor. It is first necessary to examine the available experimental data to clearly understand the role of these chemical and physical factors. The available data indicates that the yield of usable polymer beads in laboratory scale reactor is more than 85%. Laboratory experiments were then planned to examine the sensitivity of the yield to various parameters of the polymerization recipe under the same hydrodynamic conditions. These experiments showed that the yield is relatively insensitive to small deviations in the chemical recipe. Analysis of the available data on pilot and plant scale indicated a progressive decrease in the yield of usable polymer beads from laboratory to pilot to plant scale. This analysis and some indirect evidence suggested that it may be possible to re-design the plant-scale reactor hardware to generate better fluid dynamics and mixing to increase the yield of particles in the desired size range. 

Fig. 6.15 Fine chemical microreactor plant for laboratory- and pilot-range operation, completely assembled (lower image) and microreactor-system core (upper image). (Source IMM.)...

RANGE FOR CRITICAL PROCESS PARAMETER The range for each process parameter generally developed on laboratory-, pilot-, or plant-scale batches that encompasses values that are capable of... 

Podbielniak Inc., of Chicago, manufacture automatic pilot distillation plants ( Fractioneer series. Fig. 146) in four types, suitable for batch or continuous operation in the following ranges ... 

Kowalchuck (2011) selectively removed F from drinking water based on a process which combined precipitation by aluminum hydroxide Al(OH)3 with subsequent removal of the floe by membrane ultrafiltration. A 0.3 gal min ( 11.4 Lmin ) pilot test plant achieved F removal to a concentration of 3.5 mg L at an aluminum dose of 30 mg L . The former F concentration met the USEPA effluent discharge standard of 4 mg L for F from wastewater. However, it was not in the optimum range since the maximum WHO safe F level in drinking water is considered to be between 0.5 and l.OmgL (Ghorai and Pantk, 2005 Wang and Reardon, 2001 WHO, 2011). 

Fig. 7.12 Operating range of pilot scale plant for different substances...

Aromatic and Nonaromatic Hydrocarbon Separation. Aromatics are partially removed from kerosines and jet fuels to improve smoke point and burning characteristics. This removal is commonly accompHshed by hydroprocessing, but can also be achieved by Hquid-Hquid extraction with solvents, such as furfural, or by adsorptive separation. Table 7 shows the results of a simulated moving-bed pilot-plant test using siHca gel adsorbent and feedstock components mainly in the C q—range. The extent of extraction does not vary gready for each of the various species of aromatics present. SiHca gel tends to extract all aromatics from nonaromatics (89). 

The first commercial plant to use CYANEX 272 became operational in 1985. An additional three plants were constmcted between 1985 and 1989. Of the four, one is in South America and three in Europe. An additional three plants have been built two in Europe (1994) and one in North America (1995). Approximately 50% of the Western world s cobalt is processed using CYANEX 272. Both high purity salts and electrolytic cobalt metal are recovered from solutions ranging in composition from 30 g/L each of cobalt and nickel to 0.2 g/L Co, 95 g/L Ni Operating companies usually regard use of CYANEX 272 as confidential for competitive reasons and identities cannot be disclosed. CYANEX 272 is being evaluated on the pilot-plant scale in many additional projects involving the recovery of cobalt and other metals. 

The way a pilot plant is designed affects its cost, operabiUty, and effectiveness. AH operating ranges may not yet be fully defined at the initial design stage, but a reahstic preliminary range is required before the design is commenced, as is a clear definition of the pilot plant s purpose. 

Pilot plant costs range from 10,000 to 10,000,000, but the majority are typically in the range of 50,000 to 250,000, assuming an existing facihty is available to house them. There are three basic methods for estimating the costs to design and constmct a pilot plant similarity, cost ratios, and detailed labor and materials. 

In the United States the Clean Coal Technology program was created to develop and demonstrate the technology needed to use coal in a more environmentally acceptable manner. Activities range from basic research and estabUshing integrated operation of new processes in pilot plants through demonstration with commercial-scale equipment. 

Adsorption. Adsorption (qv) is an effective means of lowering the concentration of dissolved organics in effluent. Activated carbon is the most widely used and effective adsorbent for dyes (4) and, it has been extensively studied in the waste treatment of the different classes of dyes, ie, acid, direct, basic, reactive, disperse, etc (5—22). Commercial activated carbon can be prepared from lignite and bituminous coal, wood, pulp mill residue, coconut shell, and blood and have a surface area ranging from 500—1400 m /g (23). The feasibiUty of adsorption on carbon for the removal of dissolved organic pollutants has been demonstrated by adsorption isotherms (24) (see Carbon, activated carbon). Several pilot-plant and commercial-scale systems using activated carbon adsorption columns have been developed (25—27). 

The yield in a chemical reaction determines the quantities of materials in the material balance. Assumed yields are used to obtain approximate exploratoiy estimates. In this case, possible ranges should be given. Firmer estimates require yields based on laboratoiy or, preferably, pilot-plant work. 

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. 

Continuously operated, small-scale or pilot-plant thickeners, ranging from 75 mm diameter by 400 mm depth to several meters in diameter, are also effectively used for sizing hill-scale equipment. This approach requires a significantly greater volume of sample, such as... 

Figure 4-1 shows two nozzles at the top of a bateh reaetor where eharging of the reaetants oeeurs. Bateh reaetors are used extensively in a final seale-up of an industrial plant. The ehoiee of a bateh reaetion over a eontinuous system is often a result of speeial eonsiderations. The size of bateh reaetors range from 5 gal (19 1) in small industrial pilot plants to 10,000-20,000 gal (38,000-76,000 1) in large plants. 

Pilot plant experiments vary over a wide range, aeeounting for industrial eonstraints (e.g., duration of operation, eontrol parameters, equipment reliability, and impurities in the raw materials). Seale-up problems are investigated during pilot plant experiments. A pilot plant is an experimental rig, whieh displays the part of the operation that eorresponds to an industrial plant. It allows for simultaneous analysis of the physieal and ehemieal meehanisms. A pilot plant is indispensable for measuring the extent of the possible interaetions between these two types of meehanisms. It ean be small to minimize extraneous eosts sueh as the total operation eost as well as other eonstraints. 

Following is a questionnaire format developed by a divisional PSM Task Force to elicit feedback from a plant s employees about the PSM pilot test. The Task Force designed it to be adaptable to a range of activities and plans to use it at the conclusion of each one. At the request of the plant manager, responses are sent directly to the Task Force rather than directed to him. 

Four pilot plant experiments were conducted at 300 psig and up to 475°C maximum temperature in a 3.07-in. i.d. adiabatic hot gas recycle methanation reactor. Two catalysts were used parallel plates coated with Raney nickel and precipitated nickel pellets. Pressure drop across the parallel plates was about 1/15 that across the bed of pellets. Fresh feed gas containing 75% H2 and 24% CO was fed at up to 3000/hr space velocity. CO concentrations in the product gas ranged from less than 0.1% to 4%. Best performance was achieved with the Raney-nickel-coated plates which yielded 32 mscf CHh/lb Raney nickel during 2307 hrs of operation. Carbon and iron deposition and nickel carbide formation were suspected causes of catalyst deactivation. 

IGT selected Harshaw Ni-0104T nickel-on-kieselghur catalyst formed in 4 X y in. cylindrical pellets for the initial catalyst charge to the methanation section of the HYGAS pilot plant. This selection was based on high activity over a range of temperatures (274°-516°C) and space velocities. Catalyst activity life tests were conducted for 1420 hrs without deterioration (Table I) consequently, we felt that suitable longevity could be obtained in the pilot-plant methanation reactors. 

In 1930, DuPont launched the synthetic fiber industry with the discovery of nylon-6,6.2 In 1938, a pilot plant for nylon-6,6 production was put into operation, and in 1939, production was commenced at a large-scale plant in Seaford, Delaware. The classical method for the synthesis of nylon-6,6 involves a two-step process. In the first step, hexamethylene diamine (HMDA) is reacted with adipic acid (AA) to form a nylon salt. Polymerization of the aqueous salt solution is carried out at temperatures in the range of about 210-275°C at a steam pressure of about 1.7 MPa. When 275°C is reached, the pressure is reduced to atmospheric pressure and heating is continued to drive the reaction to completion. 

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