Focusing on a ‘reliability culture,’ mechanical availability and optimum costs leads to top performance Three factors drive manufacturing performance in the chemical process industries (CPI). These factors establish an operational culture that creates maximum availability of assets (mechanical availability) at…
Mechanical seals, as required by most vessel agitators, are systems sufficiently complex to warrant a good understanding by engineers and appropriate training for operators To ensure safe and reliable agitator operation, the sealing of the rotating shaft is of fundamental…
Many factors can impact the success of mixing in chemical process operations. The design breakthroughs profiled here address some of the most commonly encountered issues The last few decades have not lacked for innovations in mixing technology. As the chemical…
This column is based on “Styrene-Butadiene Rubber Production: Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec Solutions that can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/styrene-butadiene-rubber-production-cost. Styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) is an elastomer that was originally developed prior to World War II as a replacement…
Heat-transfer-fluid (HTF) system piping is insulated to reduce heat loss and prevent worker contact with hot surfaces. Insulated piping minimizes the effects of changes in ambient temperature to help ensure precise control of process temperature. Proper design of the HTF…
Plant Watch TCV begins construction of new liquid polybutadiene plant in France April 15, 2016 — Total Cray Valley (TCV; Paris, France; www.crayvalley.com) has begun construction of a new plant for liquid polybutadiene in Carling, north-east France. The plant will…
Language evolves. As the needs of the users change, language adapts to meet those needs. One way to adapt is to add new words. “Selfie,” for example, now a well-known word, has only been in popular use for a few…
Shell Thiogro (www.shell.com/sulphur/thiogro) and Uhde Fertilizer Technologies (UFT; www. uhde-fertilizer-technology.com), part of thyssenkrupp Industrial Solutions AG (Essen, Germany), have established a partnership to integrate UFT’s fluidized-bed (FB) granulation technology with Shell’s Urea-ES (enhanced sulfur) technology, which was introduced in May…
A design-of-experiments (DoE) approach has resulted in better-performing fluids for metal grinding, cutting and machining applications. These fluids serve to lubricate cutting surfaces, remove heat, prevent corrosion and carry away fine particulates that can distort machined surfaces. In recent years,…
The Clark-Reliance Corp. (Strongsville, Ohio; www.clark-reliance.com) has been awarded a U.S. Patent for its Eye-Hye SmartLevel system for remote indication of water level for industrial boilers. The patent recognizes the uniqueness of the system’s self-diagnostic technology, which intelligently monitors the…