This fifth in a series of articles [1 – 4] on piping design discusses the practical issues of installation and cleaning. Pipe installation The installation of pipe follows its fabrication and is very frequently a part of it. The…
A good understanding of the reaction chemistry is needed for a safe process design It is a fact that safety-related incidents do occur in the chemical process industries (CPI). These incidents have, in part, led to increased attention to reactive-chemical…
Separation by a membrane is achieved by creating a boundary between different bulk gas or liquid mixtures. As different solvents and solutes flow through a membrane at different rates, separation is achieved. Here, we will focus on three filtration techniques:…
This is an important year for any company that makes, uses, buys or sells chemicals or products containing chemicals. On June 1, 2007, the European Union’s (EU) Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemical substances (REACH) came…
On Dec. 18, 2006, the European Union (EU) passed a new law creating a single integrated system for the registration, evaluation and authorization of chemicals, which is known as REACH. Described as the most important EU regulation in the last…
An understanding of instrumentation is valuable in evaluating and troubleshooting column performance Instrumentation is critical to understanding and troubleshooting all processes. Very few engineers specialize in this field, and many learn about instrumentation through experience, myth and rumor. A good…
The batch reactor is the workhorse of the fine chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Within it, many different unit operations are performed such as chemical reactions, bioreactions, crystallization, distillation and dissolution. Despite their significance to the industry, batch reactors have been…
Tube plugging is probably the most frequently used maintenance and repair technique for the tube side of an exchanger. This article provides information on how to locate the positions of tube failures and discusses why it is important to know…
Hydrocarbon leaks can disrupt recirculated cooling-water systems. Here’s an outline of effects and remedies Water is often the fluid of choice for cooling systems in the chemical process industries (CPI). Recirculated cooling-water systems are used to control the temperature of…
The interior surfaces of your storage tanks are constantly at risk. If you walk past a tank often without giving thought to what is happening on the inside, it is because you trust the interior coating to protect not only…