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Wire Meshes in Filtration

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: Operating Direct-Contact Heat Exchangers

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…

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Design of Experiments (DoE): Optimizing Products and Processes Efficiently

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…

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Critical Connections Demand Certainty

Figure 1.  During tightening, hydraulic pressure load within a bolt should be uniformly and accurately applied to avoid gasket damage and other issues that can create leakage Common knowledge dictates that planning ahead ensures effective results, regardless of the task…

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D,L-methionine production via the carbonate process

Methionine is an essential amino acid that is not synthesized by animals, so it must be obtained from their diets. Synthetic methionine is traditionally commercially available in two varieties: D,L-methionine (DLM), a racemic mixture of the two stereoisomers, and methionine…

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Burner Inspection and Maintenance

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…

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Pneumatic Conveying: Optimal System Design, Operation and Control

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…

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Better Filtration for the Bottom Line

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…

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Hydrogen Cyanide Production

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…

Pressure Transmitter Basics: Selection Guidelines

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…