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@epicpilotplants
A question that I get a lot when speaking about my job at EPIC is ‘What does EPIC do?’ This question as simple as it is, is quite hard to answer. EPIC has a very wide variety of expertise. Do I say we do modular process systems, or custom machines? Well what about packaging systems, …
#engineer #engineering #pilot plant #pilot plants
Our modular process group is well versed in solvent recovery. We design and fabricate complete solvent recovery modular process skids. What does that mean? That means that we produce proven systems that follow industry regulations and combat solvent costs. Whether you want to recover solvent to recycle it back into your process or dispose of it …
Safe practices used in our module fabrication shop often parallel the procedures used in the field, our offices, & our everyday lives. Read about the critical steps EPIC uses to ensure shop safety
As a skid fabricator EPIC has a lot of modules coming in and out of our shop every year. Here are a few examples of what we have going on in our shop currently. We have been working on a large run of industrial safety shut down modules in our carbon steel shop. This is …
Front End Engineering (FEE) significantly decreases these risks in the early stages of any large modular process project.
Some of us are visual learners, so we wanted to accommodate those that want to watch and not read. To highlight EPIC’s capabilities and previous projects, there has been a video library created for your viewing pleasure. Here you will see videos about modular process systems, development of a sound distillation system, and much more. …
“The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” Socrates said this thousands of years ago, and it is still true today. Process intensification is centered on focusing the collective energy and technologies at our disposal on building the “new”. Process intensification consists of …
Some of us are visual learners, so we wanted to accommodate those that want to watch and not read. To highlight EPIC’s capabilities and previous projects, there has been a video library created for your viewing pleasure. Here you will see videos about modular process systems, development of a sound distillation system, and much more. …
We've been busy developing custom pilot plant modules for our clients. Here's a review of some of our most recent projects:
Ask An Engineer: Chemical Plant Design
Ask An Engineer: Chemical Plant Design with Mike Wodicker
Question: What is a main concern when you are working on a system for an industrial chemical plant?
Answered by Mike Wodicker, an EPIC Chemical Project Manager: A main focus that has to be taken into account when you are designing a system for an industrial chemical plant is accounting for all process hazards and designing in the necessary safety measures. This comes with the territory of working with systems that are running under high temperatures and intense pressure. Working with flammables is dangerous, but this danger is amplified when a system operates with flammable chemicals at temperatures that exceed their flash point.
When working with flammable chemicals, a purge strategy should always be designed into each chemical pilot plant or distillation system. Typically, a purge system consists of eliminating the oxygen that is present in a system and displacing it with an inert gas like nitrogen. In a tank system, this could be a process as simple as shutting a lid and blowing the inert gas through tank for a period of time. Another route that can be used is vacuum purging in which vacuum is used to pull out the air in system andreplace it with nitrogen. This is the recommended method buy Mike, but it requires a system to have a vacuum source, and properly rated vessels and equipment.
When designing a chemical pilot plant it is best to take your time and specify the proper vessels and purge strategy up front. This will be a big relief when implementing said strategy down the road.
For more information EPIC’s chemical plant design, pilot plant and distillation capabilities, click here. You can also talk directly to Mike or another EPIC Chemical engineer by calling EPIC today at 314- 845-0077.
Modular Skid Systems VS. Traditional Process Systems
Whether you recognize a shortened project timeline or the savings associated with building modular, there is an advantage to modular skid design for all applications.
Show me the money!
One of the most important factors to those looking to have a process system manufactured is cost. This is also a factor that modular skids dominate. In a comparison to a traditional process system, modular skids, on average cost 24% less in overall project schedule to design, fabricate and install.
The use of parallel on-site construction and improvements with off-site fabrication of the process system in a controlled shop environment, typically shortens the overall timeline. That’s a lot of savings, especially considering some skids can cost up to one million dollars.
What diet are you on?
What is the layout of your plant? Where is the process system going to live inside the plant? Are there other things that have to live around the process system? All very important questions to ask yourself when considering a process system. The advantage of modular skids is how little space they require. A traditional system could potentially stretch throughout an entire plant, where a skid system takes up much less space.
Move it, shake it
Another large advantage of skid designs: Mobility. A skid designed system is 100% mobile and can be moved not only around a facility, but can be up and moved to an entirely different facility. A traditional process system, is either a lost cause and is to be scrapped when you leave to go to a new facility or has to be moved piece by piece. Whereas a self-contained skid system can be lifted in its entirety on to the back of a truck and moved, ready to do what it’s designed to do the moment it stops.
All things considered, skid systems bring many advantages to most process systems. Shorter timelines, time and money savings, smaller footprint inside the facility, and future versatility. Skid systems are the systems of the future. They make sense, from an ergonomic standpoint, and a functionality standpoint as well. If you find yourself on the fence, get in touch with one of our process engineers and let us show you how skid design benefits your specific application.
How do you get a pilot plant to hit your price point?
EPIC is your one stop shop for pilot plant design, fabrication, integration, and word has gotten out. We have been experiencing an increased amount of inquiry’s with questions around our pilot plant capabilities and the cost associated with pilot plants. In response to the recent increases we’ve developed a few new resources to help iron out some of those preliminary questions.
The first is a revamped FAQ page that answers some of the most common questions about the steps associated with designing and building a pilot plant, and it also scratches the surface of the cost associated with pilot plants. The second new resource is a more in depth break down of the cost associated with pilot plants, and also the factors that will increase the cost of your pilot plant. That can be found on Pulse.
You can also find basic pilot plant information on our Pilot Plant page. If you have specific questions regarding your pilot plant application, give us a call 314-200-0831 or directly contact our process design engineer here.
Keeping the elements needed to complete a pilot plant under one roof is the quickest way to get your system to production.
There is more than one way to skin a cat, as they say. We just think that the EPIC way is the most well rounded solution for not only us, but for each of our clients. Here is a turnkey example of a batch reaction-to-distillation pilot plant that was completed by EPIC.
EPIC was tasked with up-scaling a new formulation that replaced an asphalt additive with a bio-base polymer. Once the concept of up-scaling the pilot plant from a lab scale tested formula was completed, the go-ahead was given by the R&D client for front end engineering to be conducted in-house.
Continuing to keep cost down, EPIC’s designers and experience fabricators were able to work cohesively to create a sustainable pilot plant that was capable of producing the process technology developed by the client. The particular plant also had the capability to test and produce variations of the original formula. An added bonus of hiring a company that has a process system design team, along with a process controls and automation division.
Post pilot plant assembly, all necessary electrical and hydro testing was conducted through EPIC’s quality assurance program. EPIC handled all logistical responsibilities, delivering the pilot plants to the customer’s job site on schedule. EPIC’s engineers then remained on site for start-up and commissioning of the two-phase pilot plant.
How does this answer the question of how EPIC brings value with a turnkey solution?
Keeping the elements needed to complete a pilot plant under one roof is the quickest way to get your system to production. This reduces labor costs and eliminates lead times that would delay a project if you decided to divvy up different phases of plant production.
Working with EPIC mean accountability. The time and investment that is put into front end engineering ensures each client of the necessary steps required for proper pilot plant creation. The development of project scope by the EPIC engineers takes the burdens of project management off the clients that we work with.
The EPIC advantage is having our state of the art fabrication shop only feet away from the same individuals that designed your pilot plant. This gives each client the benefit of work hand-in-hand with each engineer and fabricator that is assembling their system. Each of our clients has working relationship with the EPIC engineer that is there for each phase of pilot plant construction, from concept to start-up.
Pilot plants help our customers prove process technology quickly, can be built off-site for minimal plant impact, and provide needed data. \
The most common type of pilot plant a customer is looking for is a way to prove or upgrade process technology quickly and discretely. They need a solution that doesn’t interrupt current operations, scales-up a new process to a level that has significant outputs, and does it all in the next couple of months.
Pilot plants are the perfect solution to this problem. They can be fabricated off-site, installed as plug-and-play systems, and incorporate production level technologies. We don’t even have to know all the details of a client’s process technology in order to build a working pilot plant. Plus, we can usually build a high-quality solution in a matter of weeks or months, providing fast process scale-up.
Example: An ion exchange pilot plant that we built for an agricultural chemical client. The client never disclosed the proprietary chemical technology to EPIC. Instead, we sat down with the client and we through detailed design parameters. A detailed sequence of operations was developed, and we designed a flexible processing skid around those parameters.
This particular pilot plant was scaling up a lab process to a commercial level. Many of the included components were industrial grade, and there were several sampling points included. Three things were really important to the client:
1. Will pilot plants prove our technology at a commercial level and lend enough data to justify a future production facility?
2. Can we fit the pilot plant into our existing facility, even though we only have a small area available?
3. Can we get the solution in place in the next four months?
EPIC fulfilled all three of these criteria with a modular chemical pilot plant. Extensive design efforts and the ability to layer equipment on a pilot skid allowed EPIC to fit the pilot plant into the small footprint. Careful equipment selection and highly automated controls allowed the clients chemical process to take place in controlled, measurable conditions, proving the technology. Modular design/build allowed for a compressed timeline and fast implementation of the new technology.
The steps needed for proper pilot plant design
Want to build a pilot plant to test process technology, but not sure how to get started? What does a pilot plant cost? What steps are involved?
The steps of pilot plant design are outlined in the slideshare below. The six basic steps are:
Consultation with a professional process engineering company
Design – creating process flow diagrams, P&ID’s and specifying the basic system components
Advanced 3D modeling and process simulation – the process technology and proposed pilot plant equipment are run through an engineering simulation to ensure proper equipment sizing, system controls, and to find the optimal pilot plant design.
Controls engineering – automation and controls are developed for the pilot skid, installed, and tested during fabrication and assembly.
Fabrication and assembly of the process module(s) begins after final design is completed. Factory acceptance testing (FAT) is conducted at the end of fabrication to ensure proper module function.
Installation – after testing is completed, pilot plants are shipped to their final destination and installed. Typical installation only takes a few days, with minimal plant interruption.
Startup – modules are fully commissioned with punch-list resolution. Training for operators and maintenance personnel is conducted and the pilot plant is turned over with complete documentation.
When it comes to pilot plant cost, the specific price depends on many factors, for example:
What is the required output? What processing time maximizes output while ensuring the process stays in control?
How toxic or volatile are substances involved? Will they require special equipment, alloys, or safety considerations?
Where is the pilot module going? Are the special design requirements or compensations for existing plant layout?
How many pieces of data must be collected or monitored? How many sampling points will be required? How often must data be collected and logged, and by what method?
The specific list of considerations is unique to the application being scaled. These are the types of questions that are explored and answered in partnership with a professional pilot plant design firm. 3D modeling and simulation will help provide optimal equipment and system arrangements, run-times and process parameters. To discuss a pilot plant design project, contact an engineer today.
Pilot plant design is the process of taking a specific technology and scaling it up to a pilot plant to test or prove production level technologies. Pilot plant design steps are:
Select a pilot module design specialist to scale-up your technology
Complete basic design including: PFD’s (process flow diagrams), GA (general arrangement drawings), and begin developing P&ID’s (process and instrumentation diagrams)
Conduct advanced 3D modeling and simulation to test proposed system parameters and finalize optimal equipment layout
Begin automation and controls engineering during the basic design stage and continue developing plant controls throughout advanced modeling and fabrication
Fabricate and assemble the pilot module based on completed designs. Test controls and equipment before shipping to final destination.
Install the completed system(s) in the final destination
Commission the new pilot skid(s) by connecting them to the facility, and completing several successful runs. Punch list items, training and documentation are resolved and provided upon successful startup.
Below is a video that demonstrates the modular phases EPIC uses for pilot plant development and implementation. This approach has brought successful systems to clients such as Church and Dwight Co Inc., BASF, Dial, DuPont, P&G, Monsanto and many more. Pilot plant modularization trumps a tradition stick build project by bringing your system to market quicker, using a lower budget, a higher quality of assembly and fabrication, requiring less resources, while practicing superior safety. Here is more information regarding the advantages of modular fabrication and skid mounted systems…
Pilot Plant Design Proves Viability of Chemical Processes
Pilot plants are designed to prove production capabilities for new processes or test viability of an established process on a larger scale. A higher than average number of sampling points and instruments are typical in pilot plants, and are used to measure process parameters and results.
Design of pilot skids is not straight forward. Scale-up of chemical processes is not linear and you cannot simply increase the ingredients of a successful process system proportionately. With increased scale, surface area to mass ratios change. Laminar and turbulent flow patterns alter, due to the new surface ratio. Reaction kinetics, fluid mechanics and thermodynamics also change non-proportionally.
Through process ASPEN/Hysys process modeling, a successful pilot plant can be designed. Process flow diagrams (PFD’s), piping and instrumentation diagrams (P&ID’s), material balances and equipment layout are developed by process system experts based on the process modeling results.
A variety of chemical processes and applications can be proven with a pilot plant. A few examples of recent pilot plants developed by EPIC include:
A CO2 absorption column pilot skid
This large absorption column – similar to a distillation column – strips CO2 out of flue gas at refineries. A new technology by Akermin, this pilot plant skid was installed at a test facility in Alabama. Data from the test plant was used to prove to investors and the US Government the viability of the new process, and has since led Akermin to build multiple units with evolved versions of the technology.
Liquid biofuel from biomass process
Needing to prove full-production feasibility, this challenging biomass to liquid fuel application had several unique challenges. Traditional electric heating sources were not sufficient for the process. There were no pre-existing utility systems in the lab where the demonstration plant would be installed. The skid would also have to be fully enclosed to be installed in it’s final destination, and safety rated for an earthquake zone.
Agricultural fertilizer formed through ion-exchange reaction process
A highly corrosive process was proven through a demonstration plant with a high number of sampling points. Production level equipment and an after-process effluent processing system were tested and vetted. After several months of testing the highly corrosive batch process, the parent company was ready to build a full-scale production facility for the product.
If you have a chemical process you would like to scale-up to a pilot plant or demonstration module, contact one of our process system experts today.