Industrial gases are critical for a wide range of applications throughout the chemical process industries (CPI). Many of these gases must be separated from others, such as nitrogen from air, or hydrogen from natural gas using physical gas-separation techniques that…
Henry Kister shares lessons learned from troubleshooting distillation towers Many cooling-water systems do not have flowmeters. This is a tale about a cooling-water flowmeter that made a difference. As a startup superintendent at ICI Australia in the late 1970s, the…
Understanding the basic principles of operation and construction designs of glass membrane sensors can help in choosing the right pH sensor One of the most critical measurements in liquid chemical processing is pH. In this article, the importance of the…
Comprehensive planning, along with appropriate level-measurement technologies and safety instrumented systems, can empower plant personnel to significantly reduce the likelihood and severity of hazardous chemical spills In most industries that manufacture, use or store chemicals and other hazardous liquids, a…
Operational troubleshooting guidance is provided for several scenarios involving trapped non-condensable gases in distillation towers Non-condensable gases are often present in distillation towers, either expectedly or unexpectedly. When they do appear, or when the quantity of non-condensable gases varies from…
Ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber is a terpolymer elastomer derived from ethylene and propylene, along with small amounts of a non-conjugated diene as a third monomer (Figure 1). With a completely saturated polymer backbone, this random elastomeric copolymer exhibits…
Predictive maintenance (PdM) programs can provide advanced warning of equipment problems and potential failures. This one-page reference provides brief descriptions of six common predictive maintenance methods. Infrared thermography Continuous monitoring of equipment temperature over time has the potential to identify…
When a pump operates inefficiently, or fails all together, the challenge is to make the most economical decision on how to remedy the situation. Some guidance is provided here Centrifugal pumps are widely used throughout the chemical process industries (CPI).…
Lysine (Figure 1) is an α-amino acid used in the biosynthesis of proteins. The compound contains an amino group and a carboxylic acid group. Under biological conditions, the amino group is protonated (–NH3+) and the carboxylic acid group is deprotonated…
Many factors impact the performance of synthetic filtration media, from thread and weave styles to drainage and coverage considerations Under the broad umbrella of filter media, there are many synthetic media materials, including woven filter cloths, woven and non-woven fabric…