Process saving estimates

At a site in Chesapeake, Virginia, BER was used to remediate 5758 yd of soil contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. Original cost estimates of 500,000 were based on off-site incineration of the soil however, the vendor states that remediation using the BER process saved over 200,000 (D151406, p. 2). 

Estimate process/process saving and process/utility loads. 

Without disclosing security information we can state that at present we are making 10,000 heavy metal ion determinations annually by means of the x-ray photometer and that we expect this number to increase as we find new applications among essential materials, process reagents, and others. We estimate that use of the instrument saves approximately 3000 man-hours annually. This figure is estimated on the basis that analysis of a single solution by x-ray requires 20 minutes, whereas other methods require twice this time. 

Computer tools can contribute significantly to the optimization of processes. Computer data acquisition allows data to be more readily collected, and easy-to-implement control systems can also be achieved. Mathematical modeling can save personnel time, laboratory time and materials, and the tools for solving differential equations, parameter estimation, and optimization problems can be easy to use and result in great productivity gains. Optimizing the control system resulted in faster startup and consequent productivity gains in the extruder laboratory. 

Economically, the elimination of lead and nickel emissions will result in an improved product because exposure of the metal to combustion gases in the current process results in porosity and entrainment of hydrogen gas in the metal. Overall, AMPCO estimates an annual savings in operations and maintenance expenses of USD 1.2 million with the use of this technology. Assuming the same 70% industry adoption, economic savings by 2010 could reach USD 5.8 million. Without the new electric induction heating process, the capital costs required for compliance could be USD 3 million. 

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is produced by a batch process. Since it is usually cheaper to produce chemicals if a flow process is used, the development department proposes a new process and has a process engineer assigned to design it and estimate its cost. If it is only slightly less expensive than the batch process, the new method will be dropped. If it appears that substantial savings can be realized by using the continuous process, further research and pilot-plant studies will be. insfituted to make certain it will work before the board of directors is asked to authorize the construction of the plant. 

Returning to our discussion of benefits, we note that they fell into two principal areas the time-value of information and the improvement in laboratory productivity. As we saw, assessing the benefits from the time-value of information requires examination of the total process through which that information will be used. For example, using data such as the anticipated improvement in laboratory turn around time, the rate at which material Is produced and its value, and the current the financial losses attributable to scrap or rework, one can estimate the savings in dollars to be accrued (each hour of faulty production avoided through faster lab turnaround time yields as a gain to the firm, the revenue that otherwise would have been lost). 

AAS facilitates the estimation of a particular element in the presence of many other elements efficaciously. In other words, there is absolutely no necessity to separate the test elemenf from the rest thereby not only saving a great deal of time but also eliminating the possibility of various sources of error incurred by these processes. In addition AAS may be used for the estimation of both aqueous and non-aqueous solutions. 

Introduction of zeolites into catalytic cracking improved the quality of the product and the efficiency of the process. It was estimated that this modification in catalyst composition in the United States alone saved over 200 million barrels of crude oil in 1977. The use of bimetallic catalysts in reforming of naphthas, a basic process for the production of high-octane gasoline and petrochemicals, resulted in great improvement in the catalytic performance of the process, and in considerable extension of catalyst life. New catalytic approaches to the development of synthetic fuels are being unveiled. 

---