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Process Commercialization: The 2017 Kirkpatrick Chemical Engineering Achievement Award

The path to commercialization can be long and arduous, which means the engineers and chemists taking the path must have a good deal of patience, dedication and fortitude. To honor the efforts of those chemical engineers and their companies that…

Pump Sizing and Selection Made Easy

Viscosity, power consumption, commercial availability and lifecycle cost analysis are all important considerations in pump sizing. An automated spreadsheet method helps engineers take those factors into account in centrifugal pump selection Many aspiring chemical engineers enter industry after university study…

Disaster Preparedness at Manufacturing Facilities

Development of robust preparation and response procedures can help chemical plants to weather disaster events and return to normal operations in a safe and efficient manner Having a well-defined and understood approach to disaster preparation and response will ensure that…

Facts at your Fingertips: Agglomeration and Granulation

Agglomeration and granulation are used to achieve a wide range of objectives in solids-handling processes, including to ensure a desired particle-size distribution, minimize segregation, and improve solids flow, as well as to control de-aeration and compaction behavior and attrition resistance…

Technology Profile: Bio-acrylic acid production from glucose

This column is based on “Bio-Acrylic Acid Production from Glucose – Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/acrylic-acid-production-cost. Acrylic acid is a moderately strong carboxylic acid, primarily used in the production of emulsion and…

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Cost Engineering: Time Value of Money

Deciding whether to put a project on the fast track entails risks. Some observations are presented here to help minimize risks and maximize profits Time is money!” my mother used to tell me, whenever she caught me reading comic books…

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Cost Engineering: Integrating Technology and Economics

The Process Synthesis Model presented here is a methodology that integrates technology and economics, thereby improving process design and reducing costs Broadly, the chemical process industries (CPI) are comprised of companies in the chemical, petroleum refining, pharmaceutical, household and personal-care…

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Decommissioning: Preparing Plants for a Retrofit

As technologies advance and market challenges continue to pose new pressures for operators, the decommissioning and retrofitting of facilities is inevitable. This article provides guidance on how to tackle projects of this nature safely and efficiently As with many industrial…

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Powder and Bulk Solids Handling: Particle Size and Distribution Analysis

The size and size distribution of particles are important determining factors in the design and operation of many process operations involving dry particles and powders. Follow this guidance to understand the impact of these key characteristics  Bulk solids are dry…

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Facts at your Fingertips: Filter Aids

Cake filtration is a common operation across many sectors of the chemical process industries (CPI). In cake filtration, the solid being filtered acts as a screen so that particles of the suspension are retained by the medium, resulting in the…