Burners are mechanical devices that are utilized for mixing proper quantities of fuel and air, and also for maintaining a stable flame inside fired equipment. Burners are critical components that must be periodically maintained to ensure the reliability of fired…
This letter is in reference to the article, Forces Acting on a Gasket [ Chem. Eng. October, 2014, p. 32a]. I need to clear my understanding on the seating stress required for the proper sealing. As per the article, seating…
Fabricated metal-wire mesh is one of the major categories of filter media. Woven metal cloths are often used to support a filter aid coating or a bed of granular or porous material. Proper selection of wire cloth can have a…
Bulk solids are frequently used as reactants, catalysts or products in chemical process industries (CPI) operations. Often, they must be heated or cooled so that they can be handled safely or processed at a desired temperature. Traditionally, heat transfer to…
Experiments are done to quantify cause-and-effect relationships between adjustable parameters (inputs, factors, x) and the results (outputs, responses, y). They help to answer questions like: How do the ingredients and proportions of a mixture (inputs) influence its properties (outputs)? How…
Numerous strategies and options for both dilute- and dense-phase conveying systems are presented here Pneumatic conveying is a ubiquitous mode of conveying bulk solids in a wide range of industries, including chemicals, plastics, grain, food, agricultural, mining, power and…
Many applications in the chemical process industries (CPI) require filtration — from cleaning the air of dust, to corrosion prevention, to cleaning up incoming process water, to recovering proteins downstream. No matter the application, filtration providers are working to improve…
Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is a chemical precursor used in the production of several industrially relevant compounds, such as adiponitrile for nylon production, methyl methacrylate for polymer manufacturing, sodium cyanide for gold recovery and for the production of methionine, which is…
Gaskets are relatively simple pieces of equipment in principle, yet are entirely critical in many types of chemical process industries (CPI) applications, including pipes and vessels. An understanding of gasket function, and of the forces and stresses acting on gaskets…
What are the steps to finding the best pressure sensor for a particular application? That’s a challenge faced by many a young engineer just out of school. Engineering school teaches a great deal of theory, but what is the best…