Technical & Practical
Cooling Towers: Estimate Evaporation Loss and Makeup Water Requirements
Applying mass and energy balance calculations yields critical operating insight Cooling towers are an important unit operation in chemical process industries (CPI) operations. Applying mass and energy balance calculations enables process engineers to evaluate evaporation loss, blowdown and makeup-water requirements,…
Crossflow Membrane Filtration Essentials
Several aspects of crossflow membrane filtration, including process design, equipment selection and control, are detailed here A membrane, also referred to as a semipermeable membrane, is a thin layer of material that selectively passes one or more components of a…
Gas-Phase Filtration Media Properties: What to Know
There are many physical properties that can impact the ultimate performance of adsorbent media in gas-phase filtration applications Gas-phase filtration media specifications may list numerous physical parameters, such as shape, moisture content, bulk density, impregnation level, size and hardness (crush…
Facts at Your Fingertips: Gas Detection
Detection of gases is a critical task in many chemical process industries (CPI) facilities to avoid hazards to personnel and to the environment. Gases may present risks of explosion, flammability, toxicity, environmental pollution and displacement of breathable air. This one-page…
Technology Profile: Bio-based Adipic Acid Production from Glucose
This column is based on “Bio-based Adipic Acid Production from Glucose – Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/adipic-acid-production-cost. Adipic acid is one of the most commercially important aliphatic dicarboxylic acids. It is produced…
Designing Atmospheric Storage Tanks
Insights into the basics of process design of atmospheric storage tanks and an example of how to prepare a process datasheet are presented here Storage tanks are widely used in the petroleum refining and petrochemical sectors to store a variety…
Key Considerations in Specifying Control Valves
Follow this guidance to specify a control valve accurately during the design phase Control valves are one of the most common and important instruments used in the chemical process industries (CPI). They help to ensure smooth and efficient operation…
Eye Protection, Part 1: Beyond Basic Eye Safety
How to protect, preserve and enhance workers’ safety Safety eyewear (Figure 1) is among the most prevalent types of personal protective equipment (PPE) worn across the chemical process industries (CPI). It protects an individual’s most valuable sense — vision —…
Eye Protection, Part 2: How to Avoid Fogging
A look at the hidden dangers of lens fogging and how to prevent them Fogging is the number one problem faced by safety eyewear users in the chemical process industries (CPI; Figure 1). Across applications, both indoors and out, the…
Facts at your Fingertips: Fermentation
For intermediate and specialty chemicals, the incorporation of biotechnology-based processes has become a viable option for the chemical process industries (CPI). This one-page reference discusses some of the benefits and challenges of fermentation-based processes. Fermentation advantages Among the potential advantages…