Clarifying Process Liquids: New Approaches for Chemical and Pharmaceutical Applications
Image Source: IFN How can the process engineer successfully automate the clarification processes to improve filtration while minimizing operator exposure? Over my career in solid-liquid separation, I've seen many examples of process engineers struggling with clarifying process liquids. In one resin facility, the slurry was in a formaldehyde process and the "masked" operators were opening up a manual plate filter to dig out the cake. In another case, during the manufacturing of zeolites, the…
Creativity and Innovation and Orangutans
Image source pixabay.com So, here we go again…intertwining seemingly unrelated topics — creativity and innovation and orangutans — into an interesting blog. Over the years, as my readers know, I’ve discussed different approaches to innovation and creativity. My recent octopus blog fell into this category; now, we have lessons from orangutans. By the way, I’m not sure where my current animal obsession stems from. I have never had any pets (except for a salamander now and then I found while…
P&IDs and Process Evolution
P&IDs are par for the course in process engineering. Recently, I was poring over P&IDs and process planning for several projects. Each project was multinational, multicultural, and extremely complex. For one specialty chemical filtration application, part of a plant expansion in the southern United States, the engineering company is in the Southeast while the existing processes were from the Netherlands and Austria. In another project, with a similar scope, the plant expansion and the…
Chemical Engineers & Our Superstitions
Superstitions surround us: Touching wood? Carrying a rabbit’s foot? Collecting lucky pennies? Not stepping on any cracks? The list goes on and on. On one of my many chemical filtration business trips (many people have superstitions making flights safer), I read an interesting article on superstitions in the Wall Street Journal’s (WSJ) Magazine. Six luminaries from different walks of life — photography, acting, cooking, writing, directing and music — weighed in. But, alas, there were no…
Selecting and Designing Combination Filtration for Solid-Liquid Separation
Photo by uptownguydenver on Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND Filtration experts, over the years, have discussed combination filtration and debated its definition. In the realm of cartridge filtration, simply defined, a combination filter is one that does at least one other processing job at the same time as filtering a suspension. For example, this could be carbon canister which removes both suspended and dissolved components. In water applications, a combination filter removes bacteria, sediment,…