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An Integrated Approach

DEVELOPING INDUSTRIALCHEMICAL PROCESSan

Copyright 2002 by CRC Press LLC

CRC PR ESSBoca Raton London New York Washington, D.C.

Joseph Mizrahi

An Integrated Approach

DEVELOPING INDUSTRIALCHEMICAL PROCESSan


This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reprinted materialis quoted with permission, and sources are indicated. A wide variety of references are listed. Reasonableefforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and the publisher cannotassume responsibility for the validity of all materials or for the consequences of their use.

Neither this book nor any part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronicor mechanical, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or by any information storage orretrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

The consent of CRC Press LLC does not extend to copying for general distribution, for promotion, forcreating new works, or for resale. Specific permission must be obtained in writing from CRC Press LLCfor such copying.

Direct all inquiries to CRC Press LLC, 2000 N.W. Corporate Blvd., Boca Raton, Florida 33431.

Trademark Notice:

Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and areused only for identification and explanation, without intent to infringe.

Visit the CRC Press Web site at www.crcpress.com

2002 by CRC Press LLC St. Lucie Press is an imprint of CRC Press LLC

No claim to original U.S. Government worksInternational Standard Book Number 0-8493-1360-0

Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0Printed on acid-free paper

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Catalog record is available from the Library of Congress

1360_frame_FM Page 4 Friday, May 3, 2002 12:48 PM


Preface

This book presents a detailed discussion of the issues that have to beaddressed, in most cases, in the development and the first implementationof a novel industrial chemical process.

These issues start with the whys and wheres, then address theworking organization and all the different steps, activities, and reviews inthe process development program, and finally in the implementation, design,construction, and start-up of a new plant.

Why is such book needed at all?

This specific field of activity is constantly occupying many thousands ofmanagers, scientists, engineers, chemists, specialists, economists, and tech-nicians. These professionals work in industrial corporations, research orga-nizations, universities, engineering companies, equipment suppliers, statu-tory public functions, to name a few, in many countries around the world.The result of their activity has been hundreds of new processes and newplants in the chemical industry every year.

Nevertheless, at present, there seem to be no recognized professionalstandards, no generally accepted written procedures, or even a book cover-ing this professional field. Quite different working practices are implementedin different corporations and in different countries. Thus, any professionalwho encounters some of these issues for the first time in his job can onlyrely on the direct teaching of his boss and colleagues. And in that lotterysome have more luck than others. Strangely enough, up until now, the know-how in this important professional sector has been transmitted only byapprenticeship.

Somehow, novel processes have been finally developed and used in newplants that have been built and operated, most of them successful. But, onthe other hand, many case stories are widely spread in the profession aboutall the associated problems, serious waste of time and resources, start-uptroubles, and occasionally complete failures.

These problems have been generally attributed to personal errors inspecific situations, possibly to the individualistic characters of the inventorsand promoters, and to the opportunistic demand for quick results in newprocesses. Such explanations could only be true for the initiation stage

1360_frame_FM Page 5 Wednesday, May 1, 2002 3:40 PM


(possibly 5% of the efforts invested), but cannot hold for all the developmentand implementation work. So, a systematic study of the common aspectsto most projects can be instructive.

This book is intended primarily for those professionals who are alreadyon the job in real life, to help them, hopefully, to do a better and more efficientjob, to be happier by understanding more about what is going on aroundthem, and to reduce the frustrations associated with this line of work. It isassumed that the readers will be graduates with some professional experi-ence, who have access to all the textbooks, handbooks, and publicationsavailable, to Chemical Abstracts and to the Internet, and who know how touse these. So, this book will not be competing with these sources and willnot copy what is readily available. At most, it will refer the readers to themore useful sources, in this authors opinion. The suppliers of commercialservices have essential contributions to such projects, and the general issuesconnected with the selection of such suppliers are discussed, but no partic-ular reference is given as far as possible. The other references direct thereaders, who may be interested in any of the example cases mentioned, tomore detailed sources.

Also, in this book, with due apologies to the chemists, a chemical processdoes include any physical or mechanical transformation or separation whichis necessary to obtain the final products.

On the face of it, the development and implementation of a new chemicalprocess may appear to be a matter of chemistry, materials, equipment, con-trol, etc., but it should be recognized that this is a very complex endeavor,and its success depends, in fact, mostly on the interactions and organizationof many different people in various positions.

In each such project, hundreds of professionals are concerned, full-timeor part-time, with the research organization, the various functions in thecorporation, the engineering company, the equipment suppliers, patentattorneys, specialist consultants, and civil servants with statutory functions.These professionals are mostly chemical engineers, but all the related pro-fessions are also involved: managers (in particular in finance, production,and marketing), different fields of engineers, research and analytical chem-ists, various specialists, patent attorneys, lawyers, economists, and support-ing technicians.

The first need in a new project organization is to establish a commoncommunication and reference system in which every participant in theproject will understand the point of view, the priorities, and the jargon ofthe others. This aim can require both patience and goodwill from everyoneconcerned and should be motivated by the example of the management.

It is hoped that this book can be used for such purposes. The author hasbeen occupied in this field of activity all of his professional life in manydifferent positions. He strongly believes that a project involving the devel-opment and implementation of a new chemical process can be done betterand more efficiently if:



All the issues and all the interactions were discussed and understoodfrom the beginning by all the participants

The limits of responsibility were clearly defined A proper organizational structure and adequate programs were used

The detailed recommendations in this book can be readily integrated,without any contradiction or competition, with the latest trends in corporateresearch and development (R&D) management procedure, such as the StageGate system and similar tools, which recently have been introduced inmany large corporations. These detailed recommendations can assist theGate Keepers in defining the deliverables and criteria to be achievedin the next Stage.

All the engineers, scientists, and managers concerned with the develop-ment of a novel industrial chemical process, and/or with the implementa-tion, design, construction, and start-up of a plant based on this process, canuse this book to assist them in their work. The book will give them a generaloverview of all the issues ahead, and also provide them with checklists todraw up their own working programs, or at least understand the logic ofthe instructions given to them by their boss.

Friends with experience have remarked that the scope of this book mayappear to be very complex and its message may be confusing for rapidreaders sampling here and there. Therefore, it was decided to add at the endof each chapter a short recapitulation of the issues that can be worth anadditional thought and possibly further reading or discussion.

At least, the core team of a project would benefit from a systematic study.Evidently, not everyone would be interested in all issues at one specific time,but it is nice to know that they can come back and consider more intensivelyany pertinent issue whenever they might face the need. Professionals witha few years of experience in this field, who may recognize some of the issuesdiscussed from personal exposure, should benefit more.

Part of the material in this book can also be used as a basis for an overallcourse for graduate students who are intending to start their work in indus-trial R&D, equipment development, process engineering, plant design, andmanaging functions in industrial corporations. It also can be used for work-shops of continuing education for these working professionals.

Obviously, one could have filled the book with examples from actualprojects, but it is debatable whether more such particular examples wouldhave helped illustrate the points or distract attention from the complexissues. Furthermore, most of the examples are covered by commercial secrecyand cannot be published. So, the compromise chosen here by the author maynot satisfy every reader.

The author will be pleased to receive any comment or suggestion thatcan help expand the usefulness of this book.



The author

Dr. Joseph Mizrahi

was born in 1933 and lives in Israel since 1951 at 27AEinstein Street, Haifa, 36014, phone (972-4) 824-4431, office phone (972-4)826-0737, fax (972-4) 826-0797, email [email protected]. He holdsB.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Chemical Engineering and a D.Sc. in MineralEngineering from the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa. Inaddition, he received the Diploma of Imperial College, London, 1965, andthe professor-equivalent grade of Research Institutes Scientists. He alsotaught and was a postgraduate supervisor part-time at Technion from 1956to 1979.

Dr. Mizrahi has published 14 papers for international scientific confer-ences, 29 papers in international journals, has received 20 patents, and 24communications to various professional conferences.

He worked at the IMI Institute for Research and Development in Haifafrom 1958 to 1974, first as a research engineer, then as head of the ChemicalEngineering Department. His work included basic engineering design forprocess implementation, engineering aspects of licensing agreements, anal-ysis of new processes, economic evaluations, surveys, worldwide liaisonwith engineering companies, piloting of new processes, run-in of new plantsin foreign countries, and development and testing of new industrial contact-ing equipment. In addition, fundamental research was done under his super-vision and published in the fields of mixing and separation of liquids andof hydrochloric acid technology.

From 1974 to 1978, Dr. Mizrahi was Managing Director of Miles-IsraelLtd. in Haifa, a subsidiary of a multinational corporation in food, pharma-ceutical, and speciality chemicals. This work included the completion of newplants, the introduction of new products to the world markets, and thestabilization and diversification of operations.

From 1979 to 2001, he provided independent professional consultingservices to corporations worldwide in the fields of organization and stream-lining of R&D programs; consolidation, evaluation, and transfer of know-how; initiation, organization, and evaluation of projects; process design ofnew plants; troubleshooting and expansion of existing plants; and analysisof corporate development strategy.



Acknowledgments

This book is dedicated to my wife, Sara, for a lifetime of motivation andsupport.

I would like also to acknowledge:

The influence of Professor Avram Baniel from whom I learned verymuch in various forms of collaboration in many projects over morethan 4 decades, since he founded and managed the pioneer teamat the IMI Institute for R&D where I spent the first 16 years of myprofessional career.

The friendly and helpful reviews of the draft of this book by Ari Eyal,David Gonen, Chanoch Gorin, David Meir, and Tuvia Zisner.

The long and productive interaction over all my professional life witha large number of my friends and colleagues in many countries, thenames of whom I cannot list in this limited space.



Contents

Chapter 1 Why a new industrial chemical process could be needed?

1.1 Changing world1.2 A better quality product1.3 Lower cost of production1.4 Different raw material 1.5 Ecological pressure1.6 New products for the corporation1.7 Newly available industrial technology1.8 New functions for new products1.9 Corporate public image1.10 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 2 Starting the development of a new process

2.1 Driving forces2.1.1 Backing of a large corporation2.1.2 Promoting group 2.1.3 The second part2.1.4 Public authorities

2.2 How a new process is born2.2.l Normal research and development activity2.2.2 Personal motivation2.2.3 Corporate function2.2.4 Financial and commercial rewards2.2.5 False starts

2.3 Explicit definition of the development project2.3.1 Objectives and purposes 2.3.2 Patents 2.3.3 Possible industrial framework 2.3.4 Timetable

2.4 Different stages of a typical program 2.5 Corporate management procedures for new projects2.6 Worth another thought



Chapter 3 Essential resources needed for the development project: preceding implementation

3.1 Introduction3.2 Specific managerial skills 3.3 Core project team3.4 R&D laboratories and pilot installations

3.4.1 Companys own laboratory and pilot installations3.4.2 Outside laboratories and pilot installations3.4.3 Analytical laboratories

3.5 Experts on marketing and on potential users 3.5.1 Particular terminology3.5.2 Clients needs3.5.3 Competition

3.6 Support from experts on hardware3.6.1. Plant engineering and operation3.6.2 Equipment design 3.6.3 Corrosion in construction materials3.6.4 Operation and process control

3.7 Support from experts in software3.7.1 Publication search and analysis3.7.2 Intellectual property and secrecy 3.7.3 Patent application3.7.4 Process modeling

3.8 Safety, public regulations, and waste disposal support3.8.1 Safety3.8.2. Public regulations3.8.3 Waste disposal

3.9 Support of specific codes relevant to plant design and operation, and product quality

3.10 Economics3.11 Development expense budget3.12 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 4 Actual case examples

4.1 Nature and man: the Dead Sea4.2 Magnesium chloride-based industries4.3 Economic uses for the HCl by-product solutions

4.3.1 Strategic policy4.3.2 Coupling of HCl-producing and consuming plants 4.3.3 Timing of implementation4.3.4 Production of pure phosphoric acid4.3.5 Technological difficulties

4.3.5.1 Materials of construction4.3.5.2 Safe, stable conditions for solvent extraction

in large mineral plants



4.3.5.3 Clean starting solution for solvent extraction

4.3.5.4 Recovery of the residual solvent from different exit streams

4.3.5.5 Large-capacity liquidliquid contacting equipment

4.4 Phosphoric acid diversification processes4.4.1 Different quality specifications 4.4.2 Solvent extraction opening4.4.3 IMI cleaning process4.4.4. Close-cycle purification process4.4.5 Mixed process4.4.6 New proposals

4.5 Citric acid by fermentation and solvent extraction4.5.1 Conventional lime sulfuric acid process for citric acid4.5.2 IMI-Miles solvent extraction process for citric acid 4.5.3 Newer solvent extraction process for citric acid

4.6 Preparation of paper filler by ultra-fine wet grinding of white carbonate

4.7 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 5 Process definition and feasibility tests

5.1 Translation of the idea into a process definition5.1.1 Scope of the preliminary process definition5.1.2 Comprehensive literature survey 5.1.3 Block diagram5.1.4 Quantitative definitions of the different sections 5.1.5 Process calculations for the preliminary

process definition5.1.6 Presentation of one feasible

implementation formula5.1.7 Possible industrial implementation framework5.1.8 Timetable5.1.9 Important note

5.2 Critical and systematic review of the process definition5.2.1 Review forum5.2.2 Fundamental process issues5.2.3 Patent situation5.2.4 Profit potential

5.3 Design and execution of the feasibility tests5.3.1 Purposes of the feasibility tests 5.3.2 Equilibrium conditions5.3.3 Scale up of reactors5.3.4 Physical separation operations5.3.5 Scale-dependant and dynamic flow operations5.3.6 Extreme conditions



5.3.7 Actual raw materials5.3.8 Analytical difficulties

5.4 Analysis of the results from feasibility tests5.5 Second review of the process definition5.6 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 6 Experimental program

6.1 Basis6.1.1 Experimental program purposes6.1.2 Different sections6.1.3 Quantitative data needed for process design6.1.4 Format6.1.5 Representative raw materials6.1.6 Classification of missing data

6.2 Chemical equilibrium data6.2.1 Vaporliquid equilibrium system6.2.2 Gasliquid equilibrium system6.2.3 Liquidliquid equilibrium system6.2.4 Solidliquid equilibrium system6.2.5 Reversible and nonreversible equilibrium6.2.6 Chemical equilibrium laboratory tests6.2.7 Experimental difficulties in chemical

equilibrium tests6.3 Dynamic flow conditions

6.3.1 Design data required6.3.2 Simpler processes6.3.3 Theoretical models6.3.4 Special test rigs 6.3.5 Indirect methods

6.4 Scale-dependent operations6.4.1 Vertical driving force depending

on the hydrostatic height6.4.2 Wall effect6.4.3 Crystallizer6.4.4 High-temperature equipment 6.4.5 Failure to recognize the wall effect

6.5 Reporting results from the experimental program6.5.1 Frequent partial reports6.5.2 Complete reports on the experiment part6.5.3 Implications of the results

6.6 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 7 Preliminary process design for a particular proposal

7.1 Process team



7.2 Process flow-sheets7.3 Preparation of an overall detailed description7.4 Listing of all the main process streams7.5 Material and heat balances7.6 Material handling operations7.7 Summary tables for all required services7.8 Major pieces of process equipment7.9 Main operational and control procedures7.10 Listing of required staff7.11 Worth another thought

Chapter 8 Economic analysis of the specific proposal

8.1 Purpose8.2 Preliminary estimate of the Fixed Capital

investment (revision 0)8.3 Estimate of operating costs8.4 Expected net sales income estimate 8.5 Profitability calculation8.6 Optimistic evaluation of the profit potential

in other applications8.7 Possible synergetic effects with other production facilities8.8 Comprehensive report for the justification

of the specific proposal8.9 Contractual agreements8.10 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 9 Working program toward a first implementation

9.1 Patent protection9.1.1 Revised or additional applications9.1.2 Extended geographical coverage of the patents

9.2 Detailed process design9.2.1 Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams

9.2.1.1 Piping lists9.2.1.2 Valves9.2.1.3 Instruments9.2.1.4 Control loops9.2.1.5 Flanged manholes and hand-holes

in closed pieces of equipment9.2.1.6 Provisions for possible future connections9.2.1.7 Non-conventional drives

9.2.2 Examples of portions of piping and instrumentation drawings

9.3 Major equipment packages9.4 Pilot testing of specific process operations

9.4.1 Multiple-effects evaporator



9.4.2 Liquidliquid contacting battery9.4.3 Main problems for piloting

9.5 Modeling9.6 Complementary bench-scale testing program

9.6.1 Detailed specification of the industrial equipment 9.6.2 Pilot installations9.6.3 Process modeling9.6.4 The design of instrumentation9.6.5 Corrosion tests 9.6.6 Clarification of waste disposal issues9.6.7 Clarifying process safety issues

9.7 Preparation of product samples for market field tests9.8 Clarification concerning any formal permits needed9.9 Worth another thoughtReferences

Chapter 10 First implementation plant design: compromises and optimization

10.1 First implementation policy10.1.1 Expected start-up problems10.1.2 Design policy10.1.3 Identifying probable causes of problems 10.1.4 Guarantees for reasonable plant performance

10.2 Modeling and optimization10.2.1 Composition of raw materials10.2.2 Effects of impurities10.2.3 Changes in the kinetics of mass transfer10.2.4 Changes in specifications for the final product10.2.5 Normal fluctuations around the designed average 10.2.6 Differences in the performance of equipment

10.3 Critical pilot testing10.4 The process package10.5 The role of the engineering company in the first

implementation of a novel process10.5.1 The interests and limitations

of the engineering company10.5.2 The engineering company and the project manager 10.5.3 Specialization10.5.4 The chemical process engineering department10.5.5 Timetable

10.6 Detailed engineering documents10.7 Final review and approval for construction10.8 Worth another thoughtReferences



Chapter 11 Running in and adjustments in the new plant

11.1 The plant construction period11.2 Assembling and training the operating team

11.2.1 Recruitment11.2.2 Maintenance11.2.3 Training 11.2.4 Safety11.2.5 Functional organization

11.3 Preparation for start-up11.3.1 Dry runs11.3.2 The plant manager11.3.3 The construction manager11.3.4 The project manager

11.4 Preparation with real materials11.5 Strategic options for the running-in of the new plant

11.5.1 Possible causes of problems11.5.2 Unsatisfactory results11.5.3 Start-up strategies

11.6 Stabilization of production11.7 Demonstration run and project success report11.8 Optimization of operating conditions11.9 Worth another thought

Chapter 12 Consolidation of the new know-how

12.1 Updating the process know-how12.2 Final revision of the Process Package 12.3 Updating the Operational Manual12.4 Feedback from users in the market12.5 Additional patent applications12.6 New publications

12.6.1 Information on the competition12.6.2 Publications on the new process and plant

12.7 How can this accumulated specific know-how be used again?

12.8 A final note: what have we learned?12.9 Worth another thought

Appendix 1 Typical organization and contents of a Process Package

A1.1 GeneralA1.2 Definition of black box objectivesA1.3 Division of the process into sections as illustrated

in a block diagramA1.4 Separate discussions for each sectionA1.5 Material and heat balances



A1.6 Equipment choicesA1.7 ServicesA1.8 Materials of construction: options and preferencesA1.9 Safety aspects

Appendix 2 Functional organization structure of a typical development project

A2.1 Successive stagesA2.2 The invention and promotion stageA2.3 The process development stageA2.4 The construction and running-in period



chapter 1

Why a new industrial chemical process could be needed?

1.1 Changing world

The development of a new chemical process is a major technical, eco-nomical effort that can be justified only if it fills a definite need of anindustrial corporation. The present chapter discusses the various situa-tions in which such a need could be defined. This review allows oneconnected to the chemical industry to evaluate the probabilities thathis/her corporation would need a new chemical process in the foresee-able future. There are basic reference books that can be used as sourcesfor this initial information.

15

The chemical industry has always been operated in a

changing world

withexpanding markets, a need for better products at lower prices, change inraw materials, addition and removal of political barriers, great jumps in thetechnology available for industrial application, higher ecology demands, etc.As time goes on, the dynamic rate of such changes seems to be

increasingexponentially.

In the past 3 decades, in particular, it requires an open attitudefrom any corporate management towards possible process revision.

In such a changing world, an operating chemical corporation couldrequire a novel process for a certain product, if and when one (or more) ofthe

objective

situations discussed below becomes dominant and is recognized,at least inside the organization. Let us consider first the situation in whicha corporation is already producing and selling the product, but now needs

process changes

for

:

Obtaining a better quality product Reaching a lower cost of production Using different raw materials Responding to ecological pressures

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A different situation occurs when a corporation is considering makinga new product.

The company will need a new industrial process for:

Producing according to a soon-to-expire patent Bypassing an existing patent Using a newly available industrial technology Creating new markets with a product fulfilling new functions Expanding its public image

1.2 A better quality product

The need for a better quality product could be felt in one of the corporationsexisting markets and reported by the marketing organization. Such a needcould arise from the persistent requests or complains of clients or from thepressures of competitors products, and it could be reflected in the presen-tation of more stringent standard purchasing specifications. Furthermore, anupgraded product could open the way to other market segments.

This situation is quite common in the process industry, as a chain resultfrom changes in the downstream uses of the products. It generally motivatesa continuous effort in limited research and development (R&D) projects,resulting in

gradual changes

in the existing production technology, in anattempt to improve the products quality as requested. Such an aim couldpossibly be obtained, for example, by the addition of

purifying operations

tothe production line, such as distillation, recrystallization, active-carbondecolorization, ion-exchange purification, and the like, or by

compromisingon the products yield

in order to remove more impurities in the wastestreams.However, in many cases, a point is reached when further improvement

would no longer be possible with the existing process or with the rawmaterials presently used, or when such quality improvement would becometoo expensive. At this point, the need for a significant process change willbe recognized and defined inside the corporation, and such need could alsobe made public in the market segment. This significant process change wouldpreferably be limited to the

core production process

, while almost all of theexpensive infrastructure could most likely be maintained with minimumadjustments.

1.3 Lower cost of production

Lower cost of production is, of course, always desirable in any existing plant,either to increase the profits or to allow lower and more competitive prices.In practice, in all operating plants, this objective is dealt with continuouslyby small and gradual ad-hoc steps, which do not impair the regular flow ofproduction.

There is not always a direct link between the production cost and thesale price, and there are even examples of plants that have been supplyingan essential strategic corporate need while losing money. However, many



operating plants are living under the shadow of the possible developmentof a

more efficient, completely new

process with

drastically lower production costs

.This process may become available to the competition and may endangerthe basic economic existence of the plant. Thus, corporations must alwaysdevote a continuous effort to keeping up to date with all the developmentsthat could lead in this direction. These include higher yields, lower energyconsumption, shorter route, revaluation of byproducts, etc. This could evolveinto a

full-scale process development effort

, whenever a company intends tobuild a new plant to replace an old installation or when stronger protectionis required against the perceived competition.

1.4 Different raw material

In some cases,

different

raw materials may become available that could havedefinite technical or cost advantages. In other cases, a significant changecould be expected in the future

quality

or in the

cost

of the raw materials thatare presently used, or even in the continuation of their future supply.

The changing situation concerning the raw materials supply has alwayscharacterized those industrial chemical processes that start with

natural

rawmaterials, i.e., mineral ores, agricultural crops, or petroleum fractions for thepetrochemical industries. The situation could be even more sensitive whenthe raw materials from a plant are

byproducts

or

waste products

from the mainproduction of another plant that is using such natural raw materials (i.e.,grain hulls, molasses, mineral concentrate fractions, hydrocarbon streams,etc.). A similar situation relates to the use of some waste products from thecombustion in large power plants (fly ash from coal, soot, solutions fromecological scrubbers, etc.) as the starting raw materials.

For example, the worlds main supply of zirconium oxide (and zirconiumcompounds) for many decades came from a byproduct (Baddelayite concen-trate) mined in South Africa. It has been known from the 1990s that this uniquesource was progressively and irrevocably being depleted

6

and all the suppliersand users of zirconium oxide had to urgently look for new processes. Theacute need directed the users attention to options for extracting zirconiumoxide from the mineral Zircon (zirconium silicate), which is plentiful world-wide as a heavy-sand concentrate. Unfortunately for the developers, however,it also has a very stable mineralogical structure. To overcome this inherentstability, some proposed the use of brute force, such as fusion in an electricarc furnace at 2700C, followed by volatilization of silica fumes and otherimpurities (some of it radioactive) that had to be collected, or thermal disso-ciation by a shock treatment at very high temperatures in a plasma torch,followed by a wet treatment. Other proposals were based on sophisticatedchemical detours by additive reactions with calcium or sodium oxide at rela-tively lower temperatures.

710

The recently patented process, developed byChanoch Gorin and Joseph Mizrahi

9

for that purpose, presents an efficientnovel route and will be discussed in Chapter 5 as an illustration of severaldevelopment steps. The possibility of getting some Baddelayite supply from



a mine in Russias arctic Kola region, along with the rather small world market(in tons and in sales volume) also represent limiting factors in the developmentof these new processes.

In an opposite situation, the exclusive and efficient production of high-grade synthetic potassium nitrate, according to the 1967 IMI solvent extrac-tion process,

11

has been a profitable operation for several decades as theprincipal worldwide supplier, despite the well-known existence of largenatural deposits of nitrates in South America. Since the mining and refiningoperations have finally been established in Chile, the situation in this marketchanged throughout the world. Different grades of potassium nitrate arenow available to different users at different costs and the consumption ofthe highest quality synthetic product has decreased. All of these changescalled for drastic process reconsideration in the plants using the syntheticroute. Such options for change had been available for at least 10 years,

1213

but there was no pressing incentive for a development effort.In the last few decades of the twentieth century, the fluctuations in the

quality as well as the cost or the availability of many raw materials haveoften reflected the changes in international trade, as many

political and cus-toms barriers

were added or removed. Examples of such changes are thedecolonization of many countries, the European Union and other regionalunions, the decentralization of the former Eastern block into separate coun-tries and the accelerated privatization of their industries, as well as theincreasing role of The Republic of China in all economic areas. All of thesegeopolitical changes have seriously affected the way in which many olderchemical plants have been operated for generations, and have forced com-panies to reconsider their production processes and possibly how to developalternative processes more related to the new situation.

For example, raw (brown) cane sugar could be produced somewhere inAsia, transported to a European city to be refined and recrystallized, andthen reexported around the world. Such activity could only have been devel-oped in the past generations under the cover of heavy custom tariffs, whichhave finally affected the European consumers. But the gradual reduction ofthis practice in the future also will affect a series of downstream industries,which are linked to the byproducts of the sugar refinery in Europe (i.e.,molasses or low-grade sweeteners). There are many similar examples inother fields and in other parts of the world.

In addition, the new global village economy has led to many internationalcorporate mergers and other arrangements that have affected the distributionof raw materials in different areas. This presently accepted practice constitutesa drastic change from the anticartel laws that were taken very seriously untilrecently in the American sphere of operation (at least in open references).

1.5 Ecological pressure

Such pressures have been systematically applied in the last generation by

public

organizations and/or by

statutory

regulations in developed countries, to reduce



as much as possible the environmental damages caused by some existing chem-ical plants. In many cases, serious cleanup operations have been successful andall concerned, including the employees of these plants, were much relieved.

In other situations, the response of the chemical industry to such pres-sures has been to do something that is not too expensive (mostly down-stream effluent treatments), and to claim to have done everything possible,except for the ultimate closing of the plant, which is generally not desiredby the community. In this continuing struggle, both sides are progressivelyimproving their knowledge as more experts are called in. An underlyingmenace, however, is the occasional threat to move an industrial activity toanother part of the world where ecological pressures are less demanding.

In many situations, a mutually acceptable solution would evolve froma

change in the source or quality of the raw materials

. This would require asignificant change in the main process, while retaining the plants entireexpensive infrastructure. In such a case, the development of the new processhas to be done within strict boundaries, but the know-how developed couldeventually be applied in future plants.

Another aspect of the ecological pressure relates to the combustion gasesfrom fuel burning, either in cars or power stations. The effluent gases from carshave been dealt with more efficiently, in particular by auto industry improve-ments and through the supply of cleaner fuels from the petroleum refiningindustry. This necessitated the development of many new chemical processes(most of them still not published). This solution is not feasible for powerstations, which are using mostly coal and the residual dirty petroleum heavyfractions. There an additional treatment must be done on the effluent gases onthe way to the chimney to separate the SO

2

/SO

3

, NO/NO

2

, particulate matters,and possible poisonous metallic traces. Such treatment is complicated (fromthe chemical and technology points of view) and expensive, because gases needto be cooled and then saturated with water vapors. The resulting heavy whiteplume from the chimney would be much more visible and of concern to thesurrounding population. This could also be corrected with the use of moreheating and pressure, which would result in more energy and higher costs. Ifthe chemical industry participated in such efforts, they could recover part ofthe costs from the marketing of, for instance, valuable ammonium sulfate andnitrate of fertilizer grade produced from the treatment of effluent gas. Manyprocesses were proposed along these lines and are actively being considered,however, actively but slowly by the power station operators. (No referencesare given here, considering the actual commercial interests.)

1.6 New products for the corporation

Let us consider now the situation in which the corporation has not beenproducing and selling the product, or a new corporation that is organizedfor such project.

A corporation may have been prevented from entering into a specificproduction line that was well protected by a competitors existing patent. Such



patents could cover either the nature (analysis, specification) of the productor a specific production process for such product. These are different issues.

If the existing patent covers the

nature

of the product

, a

process develop-ment effort

would be required as soon as it is established that such

patentwould expire

in

a few years, or if a way to

by-pass

such protection can beproposed (e.g., by a small change in the formula that does not affect theperformance). Note that the patent law prevents only the selling of theproduct covered by the patent, not the study or the preparation for itseventual production or even its production for storage. This situation hasbeen typical, in particular, to the pharmaceutical industry, as so-called

generic

medicines are sold in the marketplace at reduced prices as soon asthe basic patent covering the

trademark medication

has

expired. This sametactic relates to the fine chemicals industry, producing patented chemicalspecialties, additives, resins, catalysts, etc.

A patent covering a

specific production process

can generally be

extendedon and on, by additional filing of complementary patent applications basedon the specific practical know-how that has been accumulated during theplants operation. This technique is not always effective, but it is widelyused, mostly as a deterrent toward weaker, would-be competition. On theother hand, if such a competitor has a strong incentive and a good R&Dteam, a serious effort could possibly indicate some ways to avoid the formaldefinitions in the claims of these complementary patent applications. Thiswould collapse the whole patent protection. (See the case of citric acidproduction discussed in Chapter 4, Section 4.5.)

1.7 Newly available industrial technology

Generally, whenever a

new industrial technology

has become available froman

external source supplying other industries

,

typical opportunities

for new pro-cess developments should be investigated. Such new technology could beapplied to the potentially profitable production of desired products, whichpreviously could not be produced economically.

The timely recognition andexploitation of such opportunity is one of the main challenges of industrial R&D.

As a classical example, the

solvent extraction technology

has beenresearched, applied, and refined

as an industrial separation/purification toolin the 1940s and 1950s. This was due to the

urgency nuclear applications

at thetime; however, on a relatively small scale. When the essential basis of thistechnology became publicly available in the 1950s, it was recognized as apowerful separation tool by many of the best R&D leaders in the chemicalscientific profession. Its potential uses were intensively and competitivelystudied by many faculties and institutes and discussed in successive inter-national conferences. The various proposals for processes and contactingequipment then were developed further and patented in an all-out race bythose in the fields of chemical processing, pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals,fertilizers, and hydrometallurgy, resulting in dozens of highly profitableindustrial processes and enterprises by the late 1970s.



The so-called energy crisis of 1973 prompted many fundamental studieson the more

efficient production and use of energy

, and particularly in the chemicalindustry. Many old-fashioned processes and equipment were then condemnedas utterly inefficient and, after intensive scientific and technological develop-ment, were replaced eventually by new solutions. Many new equipment mod-els and designs were developed and introduced in the following 15 to 20 years,and most of these are now considered standard practice.

A similar international effort at the time was devoted to the

desalination

of seawater in order to supply potable water to arid areas at a reasonablecost. Such an intensive effort resulted in improved industrial equipment andtechnologies, which are now available on a wide and diverse scale, althoughthe industrial investments (dependent mostly on public funds) apparentlyare still not catching up with the demand. These technologies include, forexample, multistage flash evaporation, multiple-effect distillation with dif-ferent heater combinations, vapor recompression, reverse osmosis mem-branes, etc. (See the excellent review of Rafi Semiat in Reference 14.)

However, it is important to remember that these technological develop-ments should not be classified for a limited specialized application. Theycould also be the

critical key

for many

new processes in the chemical and bio-technology industry

that has involved a significant evaporation load, or thatoperates sections at widely different temperatures and requires large heat-ing/cooling exchanges.

Later on, the use of

advanced membranes as separation tools,

of

nano-struc-tured catalysts,

of

extraction at supercritical conditions,

of

the high vacuumtechnology,

of

lasers and plasma as focused heat sources,

of

micro-systems,

(toname a few), have added many new, potent processing possibilities.

Today, the advances in industrial

biotechnology

are notable and alreadyoffering industrial ways to replace many old chemical synthesis processesand to produce economically some of the large-scale organic chemicals. Thisis a direct link to the ongoing progress made by the corn sweetener industry(mostly in North America) in the industrial uses of enzymes (in particular,the immobilized enzymes) for producing very pure, defined compoundsfrom starch or cellulose by chemical and physical processes. (See some basicreferences in 15, 16, and 17.)

Many very important applications in the pharmaceutical industries forvery expensive products were handled as a

lot of small-scale batch productionunits

. The simpler large-tonnage fermentation processes were for a longtime limited to the smaller molecules (ethanol, acetic acid, etc.) and in directcompetition with the petrochemical processing industry, except for foodapplications. The large-scale production of citric acid by fermentationopened the way to more complex products. At present, the biotechnologyR&D handled by the largest corporations aims mainly to large tonnage,relatively lower cost, and intermediate chemicals for the polymerization ofindustrial plastic materials, such as lactic acid as just one example.

18

Of course, any such research project starts with the fermentation biologyin order to select the organism and the conditions in which the desired



compound can be reliably produced. However, one should note that

any suchfermentation

can only be operated in

relatively dilute conditions

compatiblewith the life (osmotic pressure?) of the microorganism. Thus, the desiredcompound can only be obtained in a concentration range of 1 to 8% (veryrarely up to 12 to 15%) in the fermentation broth, together with unavoidableresidual contamination from the fermentation media. A quite

expensive con-centration installation will be needed downstream, together with specific separationand purification processes, to obtain the final 100% product

.

And this fact-of-lifebrings us back to the solvent extraction and/or desalination technologiesmentioned above.

Finally, the electronic computer process control technologies, whichbecame widely spread in the past few decades, did allow the practical recon-sideration of some processes that were studied theoretically, but were previ-ously rated as difficult or even hazardous to control manually (i.e., based onthe operators decisions and responses). These are mainly in the petrochemicalfield, but also in the classified chemical industry for military applications.

1.8 New functions for new products

A new product could also be needed in the market to fill a

new function

atthe users end, resulting from some parallel technological development inother industries. Whenever the need for such a product can be defined, aprocess development and evaluation effort will be justified. Of course, thesilicon chip industry jumps to mind, but there are many more prosaic large-scale products.

For example, the production of citric acid by fermentation was handledfor many decades as a

pharmaceutical product

on a small scale. However, theexpanding industry for soft drinks and packaged food required more andmore citric acid, until it was treated as a

commodity

and produced in largertonnage in continuous plants by a completely different technology.

In a different field, the way in which fertilizers are used in more sophis-ticated and intensive farming by many developed countries, under ecologicalcontrol, has continuously changed. This has called for the supply of more

concentrated, cleaner, multicomponents mixtures

, mostly water-soluble, with lessresidual contamination of the soil and underground water layers. The sameprinciple applies to products in the insecticide and fungicide fields, as thetoxic metals were removed from the formulae and replaced by very specific,biodegradable, organic components.

The purchase specifications of many of the fine chemical intermediatesused in the mass production of plastic, refractory, and ceramic materials havealso changed significantly to meet the users demands. The term advancedmaterial is more and more fashionable these days (although not alwaysjustified) and are interesting and profitable markets that the chemical indus-try is expected to supply. This would require a significant innovative effort.

For example, a young entrepreneur named Steff Vertheimer startednearly 40 years ago to study the preparation of small bits of very hard and



tough solid material, by sintering tungsten carbide powder with variouschemical additives, mechanical pressing, and heat treatments. These prod-ucts improved continuously and now the cutting tools produced by hiscompanies throughout the world have a sizable portion of a billion dollarmarket. Unfortunately, due to the climate of terrorism there also are increas-ing markets developing today for shock-resistant ceramic protectors andbulletproof glass panels.

However, there should be a real need or demand for such new productsfrom the potential users, and not just the desire from the suppliers to sell moreor to respond to a passing fashion. When this author was starting in R&D, hewas given a project (with his tutor, A. Mitzmager) to develop applications forthe use of tetra-bromoethane (TBE), a heavy, stable organic liquid containing88% bromine with a specific gravity of about 3. The wishful purpose of thisdevelopment was to increase the limited markets that existed for the companywhich was (and still is) making and selling bromine compounds. TBE wasused then only in mineralogical laboratories for bench-scale, sink-float sep-arations between solid particles of different densities after the controlled dilu-tion of TBE with a solvent. For example, a mixture of particles is slurryed ina liquid of specific gravity 2.83. All the reject particles with a lower averagedensity will float while the heavier particles with valuable metallic contentwill sink. So, why cant similar separations be obtained on an industrial scale?

This R&D project was a very interesting challenge and within a coupleof years several possible industrial applications became focused. A contin-uous separation technology with liquid cyclones was developed and piloted,and methods for the recovery and recycle of the TBE were designed andtested. The economics looked good on paper and the know-how (with fulltechnical assistance) was offered practically free of charge to any user willingto buy the TBE.

1926

However, despite all the sales efforts, nothing really happened in theindustry. A basic difference had been ignored; that separating a

hydrometal-lurgical

plant (which is basically a chemical plant, using acids or cyanide orsimilar materials) from a

mineral beneficiation

plant, where, at most, smallquantities of chemical

reagents

could be handled. This difference is not rea-sonably

objective

, but it relates to the

people

, organization, management, andstaffing. Apparently, no manager of a mineral plant was willing to have aseparation unit with thousands of tons of a bromine compound in his back-yard, and all the potential objective advantages and profits could not changethat fact. This manager may be convinced that nothing would go wrong aslong as the plant would be operated according to the instructions. But healso knew his staff and that, somehow, someone could make a mistake, andhe had enough worries to keep him awake at night.

This lesson was painful but clear; the developing team should try to putthemselves in the place and the mentality of the potential user of the newproduct. They should ascertain that they

would

like to have such a newsupply or means as this before convincing themselves that there

should be

aneed and a market.



1.9 Corporate public image

The development of a novel

high-tech

chemical process technology has oftenbeen used to enhance the

public image

of a chemical corporation as a

progres-sive

factor, particularly by those companies operating old plants in crowdedareas. Of course, this cannot be the main reason for a new developmentproject, but it could be a contributing factor. Although it is quite difficult inthese cases to separate publicity from fact, this factor has often been usedeffectively by interested parties to gain the good will of upper managementso they will invest in a novel process development, in particular, in this high-tech generation.

Another related aspect, which is recognized inside the profession buthardly ever discussed publicly, is the importance of the

professional self-esteem

of the engineering and R&D staff of the corporation. Their involve-ment in a pioneering development should boost their interest, loyalty, and

efficiency

. Upper management does not always appreciate this effort andoften act as if employees are disposable. In many cases, temporary pres-sures and false economy considerations have led upper management todrastically reduce, or even eliminate altogether, the R&D and new projectbudgets. Such decisions could have an immediate effect on the yearly profitstatement, but it generally leads to a serious loss in the corporate marketposition in the future, as available know-how becomes obsolete and themore qualified individuals leave the company.

1.10 Worth another thought

The development of a new chemical process is a major technical-economical effort that can be justified only if it fills a concrete needof an industrial corporation.

All operating plants are living under the shadow of a possibly moreefficient, completely new process with drastically lower productioncosts that may endanger the companys basic economic existence ifit ever becomes available to the competition.

All the geopolitical changes have seriously affected many olderchemical plants, forcing the owners to reconsider their productionprocesses and develop alternative ones.

If an existing patent covering the nature of a valuable product ofinterest is due to expire, or if a way to by-pass it can be proposed,a process development effort is justified.

Whenever a new industrial technology has become available, oppor-tunities for new chemical process developments should be envisioned.

The biotechnology R&D handled by the largest corporations aimsmainly at large-tonnage, relatively lower cost, and intermediatechemicals for the polymerization of industrial plastic materials.



Any industrial fermentation can only be operated in relatively diluteconditions, and a very expensive concentration installation will beneeded downstream, together with specific separation and purifica-tion processes.

A new product could be needed to fill a new function at the usersend, resulting from parallel technological development in other in-dustries. Such a need will justify a process development and evalu-ation effort, if there is a real need from the potential users and notjust the desire from the suppliers to sell more.

The developing team should try to put themselves in the place of thepotential users of the new product and ascertain if they would liketo have this new supply, before claiming that there should be a needand a market.

The professional self-esteem of the engineering and R&D staff is veryimportant to a company, and their involvement in a pioneering de-velopment should boost their interest, loyalty, and efficiency.

References

1. Hawley, G.G.,

The Condensed Chemical Dictionary

, 10th ed., Van NostrandReinhold, New York, 1981.

2. McKetta, J.J. and Cunningham, W.A.,

Encyclopedia of Chemical Processes andDesign

, Marcel Dekker, New York, 1983.3. Meyers, R.A.,

Handbook of Petroleum Refining Processes

, 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill,New York, 1996.

4. Bickford, M. and Kroshwitz, J.J.,

Concise Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of ChemicalTechnology

, various eds., John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1999.5. Comyns, A.E.,

Encyclopedic Dictionary of Named Processes in Chemical Technol-ogy

, 2nd ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1999.6. Skidmore, C.,

Review of World Baddelayite Production and Future Outlook

, pre-sentation to the Zircon 1995 Conference, Munich, May 1995.

7. Poleatev, I.F., Krasnenkova, L.V., and Smurova, T.V

.,

Manufacture of zirconi-um oxide for fusion cast

, Tsvetn. Met. (Moscow),

12, 56.8, 1988.8. Tan Guoca et al., Preparation of zirconium oxide from zircon by slaked lime

sintering process,

Faming Zhuanli Shemqing Gonkai Shuomingshu

CN, 1, 063,268, August 1992.

9.

Mizrahi, J. and Gorin, Ch., Process for the manufacture of substantially purezirconium oxide from raw material containing zirconium, Israel Patent. Ap-plication 127,848, December 1998; PTC/Il 00/00125, March 2000.

10. Schoenlaub, R.A., Method for Manufacturing Zirconium Oxide and Salts, U.S.Patent 3,832,441, July 1973.

11. Araten, Y., Baniel, A., and Blumberg, A., Process for the manufacture ofPotassium Nitrate,

Proc. of the Fertilizer Society

, No. 99, 1967. Also U.S. Patent2,902,341, 1959

.

12. Eyal, A., Mizrahi, J., and Baniel, A., Potassium nitrate through solvent extrac-tion of strong acids, I&EC Proc. Dev., 387, 1985.



13. Mizrahi, J., Improved process and apparatus for the production of potassiumnitrate, Israel Patent Application 9347HA1, 1993. (Assigned to Haifa Chemi-cals, Ltd.)

14. Semiat, R., Desalination, present and future, Water Int., 1, 5465, 2000.15. Vogel, H.C. and Todaro, C.L., Biological Engineering Handbook Principles: Process

Design and Equipment, Noyes Publishing, Park Ridge, NJ, 1996.16. Blanch, H.W. and Clark, D.S., Biochemical Engineering, Marcel Dekker, New

York, 1997.17. Johnson, A.T., Biological Process Engineering: An Analogical Approach to Fluid

Flow, Heat Transfer, and Mass Transfer Applied to Biological Systems, John Wiley& Sons, New York, 1998.

18. Baniel, A., Eyal, A., Mizrahi, J., Hazan, B., Fisher, R., Konstad, J., and Steward,B., Lactic Acid Production, Separation and/or Recovery Process, U.S. Patent5,892,109, 1997. (Assigned to Cargill, Inc.).

19. Mitzmager, A. and Mizrahi, J., Pre-concentration of flotation feed with TBE,Min. J., 7, 481, 1961.

20. Mitzmager, A. and Mizrahi, J., Improvement in the Sink-Float Classificationof Solid Granular Material, Israel Patent 18,108, 1962.

21. Mitzmager, A. and Mizrahi, J., Method for the Sink-Float Classification of WetGranular Material, Israel Patent, 18,230, 1962.

22. Baniel, A., Mitzmager, A., Mizrahi, J., and Star, S., Concentration of SilicateMinerals by tetrabromoethane, Trans. Am. Inst. Min. Eng., 146154, 1963.

23. Boskovich-Rohrlich, E., Mitzmager, A., and Mizrahi, J., Structure and benefi-ciation of a low-grade iron ore, Min. Mag., 325331, 1963.

24. Schachter, 0., Mitzmager, A., Mizrahi, J., and Brillianstein, A., Classificationand jigging with heavy liquids, Trans. Am. Inst. Min. Eng., 9196, 1964.

25. Mitzmager, A. and Mizrahi, J., Correlation of the pressure drop through smallcyclones operating with dilute pulp of various liquids, Trans. Inst. Chem. Eng.(London), 42, 152159, 1964.

26. Mizrahi, J., Separation Mechanisms in Hydro-cyclone classifiers, Brit. Chem.Eng., 10, 686692, 1965.



chapter 2

Starting the development of a new process

2.1 Driving forces

2.1.1 Backing of a large corporation

It is evident at the onset that the

development and implementation

of a novelindustrial

chemical process is a very expensive project; that only the backing of asizable corporation can carry it to

completion in the final instance, and thenonly if and when it fits into its corporate framework. Thus, this backing isa

necessary condition

for the

completion

of the project.

2.1.2 Promoting group

However, in most cases, such development projects can be initiated by agroup of

promoters

, who could be a part of

one or more

of the followingfunctions: an individual scientist, an academic department, an industrialresearch organization, or an engineering company. Lately, certain risk cap-ital funds are involved in such promotions as well.

In certain cases, this promoting role could be carried out inside thecorporation by its own R&D section, by its new business department, oreven in many cases by able production engineers. (One may also mentionthat in certain large corporations, some secret development projects areactively encouraged by certain executive managers, who report only to themwith entirely separate budgets.).

This promoting group could be formally organized as a legal partnershipand raise a limited investment, in order to manage and carry on the

first part

of the development project, which includes the following elements:

The invention (in fact, a

proposal

for a new industrial process) withits justification compared to the existing situation, its basic chemistryand mode of operation, and its implementation logic.



A sufficient basis for the formal claims in a

patent

application, whichcan derive from a novel reasoning and/or of newly-discovered fac-tual evidence.

A bench-scale experimental

demonstration

of the novel aspects of theproposal, which could convince, or at least impress, experiencedscientists.

A preliminary technical, economical study of the proposal, whichindicates conclusively that its

potential

profitability should

justify thenecessary investment in the development program

. The

promotion

, i.e., the location of potentially interested corpora-tions, contacts and presentations, and negotiations of a commer-cial contract, until the project is sold and transferred to a corporateorganization.

2.1.3 The second part

The

second part

of the project follows the transfer of the management andthe associated responsibility of the project to the corporation.

The transfer, from the promoters in the first part (or period) to corporatemanagement in the second period, changes drastically the vision and rulesof the game. This transfer could be a

delicate procedure with many pitfalls

, ascompletely different

driving forces

are operating during the development andimplementation of a novel industrial chemical process.

In the

first period

, the promoters are mainly interested in all the

principal

issues that could affect the elaboration of the rationale of theproject and the choices of possible implementation objectives. Such issuescould determine the decision-making process of each of the prospectivecorporate candidates, and result in their buying and implementing theproject. Obviously, the promoters, as a small group, have not the meansnor the time, and possibly not the ability to pursue in detail all of thepossible options.

In the

second period

, on the other hand, the corporate project manager istaking over the decision-making, with the concrete task of optimizing thenovel process in

one particular context

, and building and operating a

viableplant

. The manager has to cover every significant aspect of the developmentand implementation, but in a definitely

limited scope

.

2.1.4 Public authorities

Public authorities

also are actively pushing or helping such industrialdevelopment in many countries. For example, funds are made availableas grants, loans, or subsidies (i.e., tax credits) for industrial R&D budgetsand/or for risk capital companies, and these funds could facilitate thepromoters initiative or corporation incentive. However, this procedurecould also introduce significant restrictions concerning the location andownership of the plant.



2.2 How a new process is born

The

objective need

for a new process and its potential application must firstbecome identified in one of the situations listed in Chapter 1, and becomeknown to the professionals in the field. Only then will the

subjective motivation

for an industrial invention be actuated in one or more of the following routeslisted below.

2.2.l Normal research and development activity

Normal R&D activity creates a situation in which a

better basic scientificunderstanding of the limitations of the existing industrial processes

is systemati-cally associated with the study of similar developments, and with new

available data or technology in parallel fields

. When scientists are saturated withthis information, an

idea

may come to someone in the form of a proposal:Why cant we do it better another way?

This click is part of the functions normally expected from anyindustrial R&D group, albeit in a corporation, an academic department,or an industrial research organization. Nevertheless, the mechanism ofits occurrence is not well understood, and it is generally attributed toindividual characteristics. (

Despite much interest, most of the studies anddissertations devoted to this idea-generating psychology are related to artisticcreation and apparently there is still no accepted theory as regard to scien-tific/industrial inventions

.)But not all such ideas are actually pursued. Many (one would say most?)

are impractical, premature, or incorrect in some aspect. There is no discreditin that, since a more fundamental study of the limits of the problem can onlybe reached by raising these proposals. Many potentially interesting ideascould also be stopped just for lack of follow-up by the initiator, who, forexample, could be too busy

.

One of the

main challenges

of any R&D organi-zation is to have a

proper forum and a routine procedure

for the systematicrecording and review of such ideas, which would then avoid any possible bias dueto personalities, positions, and past records

.

2.2.2 Personal motivation

The main driving force for a

successful innovation

(the invention, the promo-tion, and the first steps) is without a doubt the

personal motivation

of themore-talented R&D scientists. In addition to their

genuine scientific curiosity

and drive, a series of successful innovations is generally considered as a keyfor their personal advancement, their public recognition, and their personalsatisfaction. It could also be linked to a financial bonus or other incentivesin certain organizations.

Since these more talented scientists could also be successful andhappy in an academic position, a major challenge for

the management



of the industrial R&D organization

is to

create conditions in which theirscientists would be interested in continuing to work there, effectively and for aprolonged period

. Of course, this motivation is a delicate matter, whichcould concern nonscientist personalities as well. There are no easy short-cuts.

2.2.3 Corporate function

The managers of the dedicated corporate departments (R&D or new busi-ness) have the role, the staff, and the budget to generate new projects, andthey are generally looking for

new ideas that may be worth promoting. Thesenew subjects could be found internally by a continuous and systematiccovering of their defined territory, or from the outside by promoters whoare familiar with their corporate business field.

On the other hand, once their hands and means are more or less full (asdecided in advance by the yearly plans and budget), they have to find waysto delay additional new proposals without causing too much ill will withthe promoters who are offering a golden opportunity. More flexibility in thismatter could give better overall results.

2.2.4 Financial and commercial rewards

Each participant in the promoter/developer group (external to the corpora-tion) is normally motivated by some

financial reward

, expected from a suc-cessful implementation, including buy-in at an early stage, development,and re-sale when ready.

But some of the participants in this group also could have additionalcommercial considerations related to their other activities, such as thesupply of engineering services, the sale of proprietary equipment, theassignment of marketing rights, exclusivity in certain services, agentscommission, and so forth. Unless all of these interests are clear from thebeginning, they could lead to conflicts between the partners. Such unpleas-ant cases are not uncommon; therefore, it is advisable to have a clear pictureof the situation at the onset of a joint venture to help promote an innovativeprocess development.

2.2.5 False starts

It is generally recognized that, due to the pressures stated above, a

verylarge part

of these would-be inventions eventually will be false startsand dropped sooner or later. This situation could also happen to excep-tional R&D scientists who, following reappraisal, will readily pull backtheir proposals (for the time being) and find other avenues for theirefforts. There is no shame in such a decision, as this is an integral partof R&D work.



Unfortunately, some of these false starts may take a long time to die,wasting precious time. The general efficiency of an industrial R&D organi-zation depends on the

routine screening procedure for new ideas

, preferably bya peer review

that is more readily accepted than a managers ruling.

2.3 Explicit definition of the development project

It is essential, at the beginning of every development project, to detail explic-itly what the

project will try to achieve and what would be considered a successfulimplementation

.This clearly written definition may be critical for the success of the entire

project, and the promoting group should give it utmost attention. The firstbenefit will be that thorough discussions will force the group to focus itsproposals exactly toward objectives and procedures that are feasible in thisreal world. This definition should include the following components listedbelow.

2.3.1 Objectives and purposes

A

quantitative

definition of the actual objectives and purposes of the devel-opment project, as compared with the known existing situation, may include,for instance:

Minimum specification of the new product or products Maximum acceptable production cost Minimum recovery of the valuable component Acceptable waste disposal, etc.

2.3.2 Patents

There is no point, however, in starting a significant development effortunless there is a reasonable prospect for an eventual patent protection incase of positive results. An adequate patent search and strategy shouldbe discussed and decided at an early stage, after consultation with therelevant experts. This analysis should start with a clear statement anddefinition concerning:

Extent of

effective patent protection needed

for the increasingly largeinvestments in industrial research and the potential profits

The need to avoid some constrains in an existing patent

2.3.3 Possible industrial framework

A

projection

of the eventual (or possible, probable) industrial implementation

framework

of the new process is needed to help cement the technological factors



specific to that framework. This projection, which will be continuouslyupdated with a compilation of more available details, generally includes:

Scale of production, which affects the equipment size and function Different options of raw materials; availability of critical services Possible synergetic coproductions, local regulations, etc.

In some cases, the initial projection of such framework may only bewishful thinking in the eyes of the promoters, as the corporation concernedmay not have been approached in the early stages. But, at least, there shouldbe a reasonable

assumed

framework since, without it, the process develop-ment would be mere speculation.

2.3.4 Timetable

In industrial reality, once the need for a new process has been recognizedand a feasible idea or proposal has been advanced and approved, theresults of the development effort should be

delivered reasonably fast, despitethe many complex issues and decisions that need to be resolved

. An often-citedgoal, before the detailed engineering of a new plant can be started, isbetween 12 and 24 months.

A detailed time-table desired or imperative should be worked outand included in the particular project definition, listing all the differentprojected activities (see Section 2.4 Different stages of a typical program),the periodical review points, the change points in project management (pass-ing the torch), the requirement for introduction of additional support teams,and the emphasis on specific efforts.

Note that the change in project management will generally require a fewmonths for systematic transmitting of know-how and of periodical summaryand review of the process package.

2.4 Different stages of a typical program

The different stages of a typical development and implementation programare listed below relating to the authors own experience. Each of thesedifferent stages will be discussed in detail in the remaining chapters of thebook. Of course, there could be many different situations relating to specificcase histories. One should emphasize that in many new processes, therequirement for a comprehensive pilot work is essential to ensure a thoroughunderstanding of the effects of the different recycle streams.

Note that this is not a simple procedure and there could be

at least fivereviews

at different levels of responsibility and authority. Each of thesereviews should be well prepared and be concluded either in a no (closingthe project) or a maybe (okay to proceed to the next step) decision . Incertain cases, additional facts and information are required before a partic-ular review can be concluded.



2.5 Corporate management procedures for new projects

In recent years, a number of management procedures have been adopted inmost large corporations for the control of strategy, choice, and cost of devel-opment programs. These procedures resulted mostly from the large number

Definition of the Objective Need for a New Process Study of the existing process

limitations, yielding the

idea

First review of the idea in the promoting group

Okay to proceed

Definition of the Development Project Grouping of the core project team Transformation of the idea into a

process-working definition Critical and systematic review Okay to proceed

Feasibility Tests and Analysis Literature survey Review Okay to proceed

Promotion Patent application Experimental program and reporting

of the results Preliminary process design for a

particular proposal Economic analysis of the specific

proposalNegotiation, Agreement, and Transfer to the Corporation

Management review Okay to proceedWorking Program Towards a First Implementation

Complementary R&D Piloting and modeling Patent updating Process and equipment detailed

design Market tests of the products Formal permits required

Final review

Decision to proceed with the first plantProcess Package and Plant Design

First plant design Modeling and optimization Critical piloting

Final engineering review

Approval for constructionConstruction and Running-In

Personnel training Running-in and adjustments in the

new plantConsolidation of the New Process Know-How Package

Patent updating



of

new product

developments aimed at the consumers in an affluent society,such as electronic hardware and software, travel, household products, toysfor all ages, etc. Large R&D budgets have been geared in this direction andthe different management schools have stepped in with recommendationsand procedures for doing it better.

Among the more known, commercially available management tools, forinstance, is the Stage-Gate system, propagated by Dr. R. G. Cooper fornew product development. This system combines certain strategic principlesand procedural steps for

choosing the right product

to develop from an

assumedlarge number

of proposals, and how to control the different steps of theprogram with Gatekeepers,

all from inside

the corporation, starting withthe invention.

There is no doubt that such management tools could be very useful tothe extent that they would force, step-by-step, the preparation of orderlydocuments, analyses, and reviews of all different aspects of the project. Aftersuch preparation, the case will be better based, but the value of such deci-sions will still depend on the decision-makers.

Although the approach described in this book for development of a new

chemical process

to respond to a recognized need (as discussed in Chapter 1)have different emphasis, it is also based on stages and successive reviews.Therefore, the employees and consultants of corporations that have alreadyadopted one of the above mentioned R&D management procedures, suchas Stage-Gate, will find it easier to understand and assimilate the messagein this book, and to use the

detailed recommendations

within their corporatedirectives.

2.6 Worth another thought

The invention is, in fact, a proposal for a new industrial processwith its justification related to an existing situation, its basic chem-istry and mode of operation, and its implementation logic.

The transfer of decision-making from the promoters to the corporatemanagement can be a delicate procedure, as completely differentdriving forces are in power. The promoters are mainly interested inthe principal issues affecting the project rationale and the possibleimplementation objectives. Later, the corporate project manager hasto cover every significant aspect in a definitely limited scope, sincehe has a concrete task of optimizing the novel process in one partic-ular context: building and operating one viable plant.

The R&D systematic activity associates a better basic scientific un-derstanding of the limitations of the existing industrial processeswith the study of similar developments and with new available dataor technology from parallel fields.



One of the main challenges of any R&D organization is to have aproper forum and a routine procedure for the systematic recordingand reviewing of proposed ideas.

There is no point in starting a significant process development effortunless there is a reasonable prospect for an eventual patent protection(in case of positive results.)

Without a projection of the eventual industrial implementationframework of the new process (scale of production, options of rawmaterials, availability of critical services, local regulations, etc.), theprocess development could be merely speculative.

The different stages of a typical development and implementationprogram would include at least five comprehensive reviews at dif-ferent levels of responsibility and authority, each ending with aNo/Maybe decision.



chapter 3

Essential resources needed for the development project: preceding implementation

3.1 Introduction

A new industrial chemical process is concerned, in the final analysis, withchemistry and technology, plants and products, and markets and finances.But the successful development and implementation of a project dependsmostly on the interaction and cooperation between

many critically importanthuman factors

. This basic statement was not realized at the onset by allconcerned. When this author suggested it in a paper in 1972

1

after a year ofstruggling with a very difficult new plant start-up and after long nightsthinking why it went wrong, the thesis apparently touched a nerve, as anoverwhelming number of colleagues from around the world responded tothe idea.

Academic research

is done mostly in small groups at universities andinstitutes. Until the final product (the thesis, the paper) is sent out, anyinteraction with other colleagues on the subject of research is done purelyon a

voluntary

basis. Apart from his/her personal scientific curiosity anddrive, the external interests of each of the researchers are also obvious, i.e.,personal advancement and recognition, or the next research grant. (At leastit was so before the epidemic of start-up ventures.)

Applied

R&D

toward a new industrial process is very different, as the

timely contribution

of many professional specialties is

essential

and

critical

toits success (after the first inventive steps). In many cases, this interaction isnot well understood by some professionals coming from academic researchand this has often been a major source of problems. Therefore, it is importantto discuss this fact-of-life in detail in this chapter, together with the essen-tial resources needed for the process development, up to the decision tobuild a new plant.



3.2 Specific managerial skills

A qualified and efficient

manager

for a

process development

project

incorpo-rates certain personal qualities and professional experience, since he/she hasto deal with a different and special management challenge. The manager ofsuch a

process development

project needs to:

Mediate

the essential

work

and the

temperamental egos

of individualpersonalities (inventors, promoters, experts), as well as the orderlycoordination and interaction between many different disciplines andfunctions, and of proper formalities, records, and communication.

Report upwards and find his way through the internal politics of alarge corporation, in which every director may have his own vision.

Have an

extensive

and

diversified background

in the

basic sciences

, in the

engineering disciplines

, in

project

control, and in

plant operations

. Be willing to learn something new every day from every new situation. Assume his first project management responsibility preferably after

his participation in several similar projects, as a professional engineerand as assistant project manager.

Managing a project long term is generally an exhausting experience,so a successful project manager expects after that and generally gets apromotion to a less-demanding job. The scarcity of qualified managers isgenerally recognized as a critical bottleneck in many organizations. A not-so-qualified individual also may succeed, but he/she should be ready toask for advice when needed and have adequate support from managementand external consultants.

3.3 Core project team

The core project team consists of all the members reporting directly to theproject manager and working full time (or at least most of their time) on theproject. This core team generally includes, in addition to the project man-agers executive assistants, people from other departments and organiza-tions who are temporarily delegated and integrated into the project team forthis particular project. For example:

Inventors and researchers from the R&D promoting team who arecontinuing to work with the project team as long as they are needed,bringing with them their scientific knowledge of the subject and help-ing in the coordination of future R&D activities, along with the processengineers who are taking over the continuation of the process design.

A specialist from the products marketing organization who is assistingin pinpointing the market needs and supervising the products testing.

A number of process chemical engineers from the engineering de-partment (or division or selected company) who are in the interim



delegated to lay down the essential process flowsheets, prepare bal-ances and economic spreadsheets, equipment comparison, engineer-ing and optimization studies, budgets, etc.

This group is

expected to work as a team

so that all its members have accessto

all

the documents and are aware of

all

the facts, and each

developinganindustrialchemicalprocess2002-140411194030-phpapp01

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