solvay_live243_p02a04 somEdito

Dossier
104188
48
USING MELTCRYSTALLIZATION INSTEAD
OF ACETONE CRYSTALLIZATION
FOR PURIFICATION OF CHOLESTEROL
GREATER PURITY
WITHOUT SOLVENTS
SolvayInnovationTrophy2006
Crystallisation is a classic chemical process
that is used to isolate and purify the
end-products. The traditional processes,
which use solvents, are heavy users of
energy, which is required for the evaporation
of the solvents. The subsequent
indispensable stages involving the filtration
and washing of the crystals obtained are also
difficult to control. The innovation consists
on directly doing the crystallization from the
melted product, therefore without using
solvents. The crystals separate naturally from
the impurities. By repeating the operation
several times, we can obtain a product
of a very high purity. This process has been
developed with an external partner
(Sulzer/Switzerland) and has proved to be
effective for the purification of cholesterol.
When applied to other products under study
in the Group, for an equivalent level
of production, compared with acetone
crystallisation, meltcrystallization:
• consumes less energy;
• costs less in terms of equipment;
• is safer (no solvent);
• is less labour-intensive;
• is more productive.
> Hans Hoogendijk; Jeffrey Felix.
> PHARMACEUTICALS SECTOR
101924
OPTIMIZATION OF SOLVAY SOLOX PLANT
THINKING OUTSIDE
THE BOX LEADS
TO CONCLUSIVE RESULTS!
The production of epichlorhydrine in
Rheinberg (Germany) uses large
quantities of water, approximately 350 m3 per hour. The water is treated in the Solox
plant to significantly reduce the CSB and
AOX emissions. An improved method was
developed to dramatically reduce the
consumption of chlorine and bisulphate.
This only required modifications to be made
to the existing process. No major investment
was needed. The original method also used
a great deal of energy to heat the water up to
130°C before mixing in the additives
to destroy the organic compounds. Then
the water has to be cooled down again.
The new process is as simple as it is efficient.
Simply changing the sequence in which the
reactants are added reduces the time
required to treat the organic AOX. This
minimizes the consumption of chlorine
and bisulphate. The emissions in the water are
well below the statutory limits. The resulting
savings of approximately EUR 390 000 per
year have a significant effect on
the profitability of the process. Finding
the solution considerably benefited from
the open-minded approach; a working group
was able to positively question the existing
experience and opinions and thus the
successful solution to optimize the process.
> Franz-Jozef Krekeler; Klaus Huecklekemkes;
Frank Steffens.
> SBU EDS
104407
AIR SHOWER FOR RAW MATERIALS,
FINISHED PRODUCTS AND PERSONNEL
A BREATH OF FRESH AIR
Air showers, designed by the Engineering
Department, have been installed for
both personnel and products. It has been
found that this is the best solution to meet
the requirements of the production
standards related to the access of personnel,
their equipment and the materials into
regulated production zones. The personnel
walk into an airlock in which the filtered air
is forced upwards at a high speed,
eliminating the dust and other fibre residues.
For the materials, the speed of the air is
increased and the ionised air is even more
efficient. Not only is the investment minimal,
this system is also user-friendly,
straightforward, completely safe,
environmentally-friendly and can be installed
in only six to eight weeks. Furthermore,
the original design of the system facilitates
compliance with the GMP manufacturing
standards. It also makes it possible to cut
down on the number of persons working in
the production zones, as, without this kind
of system, the standards require one person
per product, with a specific type
of equipment, for each working zone.
> Aurea Xumetra; Juan Carlos Correa; Oscar Roig;
Jesús Manuel Vega.
> PHARMACEUTICALS SECTOR