Whoa, here we go. This is a blog on seemingly unrelated topics. Searching for gorillas in the jungles of Rwanda and solid-liquid filtration testing.
This past summer, my wife and I had the unique opportunity to go Trekking with the Gorillas in Rwanda. We hiked about 2.5 miles through crop fields and finally arrived in the jungle to “look” for the gorilla families. The next day, we did the same looking for the golden monkeys.
Now, how are these adventures related to filtration testing.
Patience & Process
There is an African proverb “Patience can cook a stone” which emphasizes that with time and persistence, even the hardest situations can change.
In the jungle, we learned patience in the hours of waiting required to see action, such as a lion grazing or a leopard in a tree.
The animals also taught us patience. We might see zebras, giraffes, ostriches, warthogs, hyenas, and hippos all together at a watering hole just hanging out together.
But, yes, we would also follow a hyena that was tracking a lion cub for hours, getting ready for dinner.
Sometimes, it was peaceful and serene and other times, well, the law of the jungle. The trekking emphasized the “Process.” The experience is not so much seeing the animals, but about appreciating the journey and the “wait.”
Both are in Solid-liquid Separation Testing Too
Solid-liquid separation testing is also about the “Process.” Testing plays an important role in solid-liquid separation and is the key for selecting the most suitable filtration technology for the individual solid-liquid separation task. By identifying the role of each influencing parameter, the process engineer can better understand the findings from the testing to develop a path forward.
Just from experience and for the benefit of engineers, some overview observations are necessary:
- Don’t stop testing just because the first results suits your target
- Don’t accept samples without verifying the parameters in the description
- Never change more than one parameter at a time
- One result is no result => verification is a must
- Take a break and check the conformity of the results, before you call it a day
On a trek, the goal is to “quiet the mind” and listen.
As my readers know, I am a big fan of Sherlock Holmes and as shown in many and too many occasions, Holmes warns “don’t jump to conclusions.” That’s just another way of saying look at the facts with a quiet mind.
Jumping to conclusions is one of the biggest risks we face during tests in the daily work of process engineering.
Let me know if you need help with your testing and project. Of course, if you want to know more about our adventures in Rwanda and Botswana, also give me a call.