Innovative Process Solutions

Research andDevelopment Capabilities

Innovative Process Solutions

Research andDevelopment Capabilities

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Ethanol / Biofuels Industry

HPD’s research and development center has performedseveral key demonstrations of Enhanced Forced CirculationTechnology in the development of the High EfficiencyStillage Concentration (HESC™) system for the renewablefuels industry. These tests confirmed design parametersand concentration limits for stillage (syrup) in theproduction of co-products in corn-based ethanol facilities.The HESC system was designed as an intermediary step toincrease solids between the falling film evaporators andgas-fired dryers for more efficient water removal in theproduction of DDGS (distillers dried grain with solubles).

A critical characteristic of the process stream is the highviscosity experienced at higher product solids. Standardevaporative processes, such as falling film evaporation,often experience difficulties in reaching higher total solids(above 30%TS) due to reduced heat transfer and excessivefouling as a result of increased stillage viscosity. The HESCsystem’s unique heat transfer technology was developed toaddress the need for higher concentrations in these highlyviscous streams while minimizing system fouling.

Mining Industry: Lithium Chloride – Argentina

HPD developed a process design for production of bothhigh-purity lithium chloride monohydrate and anhydrouslithium chloride (catalyst grade). The Research andDevelopment Group at HPD performed an extensivelaboratory bench-scale crystallization program to determinecrystallization growth kinetics and the subsequentequipment design to meet production requirements.

Laboratory testing resulted in an extremely accurateprediction of achievable crystal size. More importantly, theuse of bench-scale testing allowed HPD to directly translatethe findings from the laboratory to a successful,commercially proven crystallization system.

Research and DevelopmentDirect Results

Bench-scale and pilot-scale testing confirmed that theHESC system will achieve concentration levelsexceeding 50% total solids with minimal fouling. Moreimportantly, the testing demonstrated that the systemwill reduce energy consumption in the process withannual savings of over $2,000,000 in natural gas usagefor water removal in a typically sized plant.

HPD maintains its market leadership in evaporation andcrystallization systems based on providing innovative process

solutions and technological excellence. This can only beachieved by a thorough understanding of the diverse group ofindustries and customers served.

Research and development plays a critical role in delivery ofthe solutions that customers expect from HPD. Complexprocess designs and the establishment of new technologies incommercial applications require this high degree ofpreliminary evaluation and testing.

Whether driven by specific customer requirements orintroducing new technologies to the market, HPD’s researchcenter provides the necessary foundation for design feasibility

and accurate process validation.

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The Philip J. Stewart Technology Center,

located on the campus of HPD, is a state-of-

the-art research and development facility,

dedicated to providing industry leading

support for evaporation and crystallization

applications.

This 50,000+ square foot complex is home

to a wide variety of tools used for the

investigation new of process designs,

testing to support customer projects, and

development of new technologies.

Industry Leadership Through R&D

“Instrumental in this project was HPD’s

pilot testing in their research facilities and

the subsequent supply of monohydrate

and bicarbonate crystallizers that serve as

the heart of the production process.”

Charlie YatesCOO and V.P.American Soda, L.L.P.

The comprehensive in-house capabilities,

unmatched variety of equipment, and the

breadth of experience

differentiate HPD in the

industry and directly

contribute to the success of

over 650 installations

worldwide. Decades of

extensive cataloging of

physical / chemical pilot

evaluations and critical design

data supplies an unparalleled

knowledge base for future

system designs.

The Philip J. Stewart Technology Center on the

HPD Campus Plainfield, IL, U.S.A.

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Bench-scale evaporator and crystallizer

Results from the research and testing center often allow the process engineering team to improve

or economize system designs. Testing provides HPD and the client with the technical confidence required to

commercialize a system knowing the process objectives will meet or exceed expectations. The subsequent

performance guarantees for each project then become the standard in measuring performance of the

installed system.

HPD researchers and process design engineers, as a team, collaborate on each project. This ensures all

critical aspects of the system are supported by the results from the many methods of laboratory analysis

available. This approach provides accurate and thorough information to facilitate customer approval of

large, complex projects.

From the Laboratory to Commercial Success

Analytical Testing

The range of in-house analytical capabilities at HPD is critical tounderstanding the project chemistry and its impact on the subsequentprocess design. Analysis of customer samples is generally the basiswhich supports all other phases of evaluation.

The following array of analytical tests are routinely performed at

HPD’s Research and Development Center:

> Atomic absorption> Gas chromatography> Rheometry> Inductive coupled plasma

> Total organic carbon> Crystal size distribution> Polarized light microscopy> Wet chemistry / gravimetric procedures

Bench-Scale Testing

An in-depth understanding of each customer’s chemistry is critical to ensurethat each unique system will perform as designed. HPD’s bench-scale testingprovides excellent characterization of specific chemical behavior and oftenreveals the necessary information required to transition directly to acommercial design. Some of the characteristics determined during bench-scale testing are:

> Condensate quality > Boiling Point Rise (BPR) > Foaming or fouling tendencies> Crystal size and habit data> Crystal purity versus mother liquor contaminant concentration> Characteristics of crystal impurities> Vapor/liquid equilibrium data> Physical properties (specific gravity, viscosity, specific heat)> Solubility and phase diagrams > Crystal habit modification> Crystallization kinetics

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Case Study - Research to Commercial Success

Specific objectives for pilot-scale tests may include:

> Obtaining heat transfer data to ensure optimum design

> Determination of the expected fouling rate during commercial operation

> Producing sufficient amounts of commercially pure product for distribution

to potential end customers for determination of its market value

> Establish the amount of purge required to achieve the desired purity

> Verify the viscosity of solutions at various concentrations versus temperature

> Determining the impact of wash water quantity on crystal purity

> Verify product control stability

A Pilot-scale Enhanced ForcedCirculation Crystallizer is used to

fully validate heat transferefficiency, fouling characteristics,and reduced energy consumption

Mini-Works PIC™ crystallizer (Partitioned Internal Circulation crystallizer)

Mini-Works

HPD maintains a wide range of smaller-scale equipment that effectivelypredicts fouling potential, investigates heat transfer performance, andmeasures fluid dynamics. Testing at this scale is particularly useful forgreenfield projects where there is a limited amount of samples availablefor full-scale evaluation or when shipping limitations are a concern.

Pilot Scale TestingDesign Validation with Confidence

HPD’s pilot testing capabilities provide a proving ground for each systemduring project development. A wide array of large-scale evaporators andcrystallizers can be used to test and validate process solutions designed forcommercial stage production.

The pilot test setup utilizes ancillary equipment found in a full system toreplicate a commercial installation and provides thorough identification ofpotential upstream and downstream issues. This unique capability is alsoan excellent tool for determining possible performance enhancements andevaluation of cost-effective approaches to the process.

HPD’s Enhanced Forced Circulation Crystallizer, designed to address problemsassociated with the concentration of highly viscous products, is one of the manyachievements from the Research and Development group.

New process designs and rigorous testing confirmed that the Enhanced ForcedCirculation technology reduced energy consumption by 50% and increased heattransfer efficiency over 100% versus standard forced circulation designs andmaintained minimal system fouling.

This innovation has been successfully implemented through commercialinstallations in the pulp and paper industry for processing black liquor and forconcentration of stillage in the generation of co-product in the ethanol market.

Pilot-scale Enhanced Forced CirculationCrystallizer used to fully validate heat transferefficiency, fouling characteristics and reducedenergy consumption

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Mobile forcedcirculation crystallizer

Veolia Water's AnjouResearch Center

Mobile Test Equipment

Pilot-scale evaporators and crystallizers are available that can be used for on-site

system testing at customer facilities. These mobile units are skid-mounted anddesigned to be customized for a variety of applications. Field pilot-testing isespecially beneficial when:> Long-term fouling is a concern> Feed chemistry varies considerably over time> The shipment of feed material is not feasible> Production samples are desired for marketing purposes> Operator training is necessary prior to commercial installation

Corporate Commitment to Research

HPD, as a part of the Veolia Water group of companies, mirrors the commitment toresearch and development demonstrated throughout the organization.

Based at Maisons-Laffitte, just outside Paris, “Anjou Recherche” is the researchcenter for Veolia Water. It replaced the historic laboratory set up in 1889 at theGroup’s headquarters at rue d’Anjou in Paris.

Opened in 1982, it currently is staffed by 110 researchers. Research focusesprimarily on the water sector (production and distribution of drinking water)and wastewater (treating municipal and industrial wastewater, odor control). Asa globally focused group, Veolia Water’s Anjou Research Center works inpartnership with more than a hundred ministries/government agencies, universitiesand institutions in France, Germany, Great Britain, Canada and the United States.

From the Laboratory to Commercial Success

The Field Service Group at HPD is dedicated to providing a variety of field pilotservices. These services range from equipment rental with training of customerstaff to complete 24 hour per day monitoring and operation by HPD personnel.The Service Group will typically provide complete data analysis and interpretationof pilot results in a formalized report.

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Soda Ash Industry: Monohydrate – North America

HPD performed bench-scale evaporative crystallization ofsodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate from solutionmining of nacholite deposits. Crystal habit, crystal shapeand crystal size distribution were also verified.

Crystallization testworks included both bench-scale andpilot-scale tests. Pre-concentration analysis confirmed thedecomposition rate of bicarbonate and the need for morecomplete stripping upstream of the crystallization system.Sodium carbonate crystallization confirmed commercialsystem design parameters and that crystal purityrequirements could be achieved.

HPD constructed a sodium bicarbonate crystallizerspecifically for the purposes of the comprehensive testingfor the soda ash manufacturer. The new pilot-scale unitconfirmed the complex process design of sodium

Mining Industry: Nitrates – Chile

HPD’s Research team performed bench-scale leaching andcooling crystallization testing that aided in the final processsolution for the production of sodium and potassiumnitrate from Chilean caliche ore. The study involved acomplete process flowsheet simulation from heap leachingcaliche (nitrate ore) with sea water, solar evaporation of theleachate, harvesting the crystallized salts from the solarponds, hot leaching the harvest salt with heated brine, tocooling crystallization of sodium nitrate.

Results from the laboratory testworks confirmed thefeasibility of the process and satisfied the customer that acommercial system could be designed and built withoutfurther pilot testing. The commercial performance was asprojected from the test work.

bicarbonate crystallization. Critical process elements suchas operating temperature, CO 2 utilization, equipmentdesign parameters, and achievable crystal size and habitwere revealed utilizing the new testing equipment.

Research and DevelopmentDirect Results

USA23563 W. Main Street, IL Route 126Plainfield, IL 60544Tel.: 815-609-2000Fax: 815-609-2044

SPAINAvenida de Neguri, 9 - 1˚48992 GetxoTel.: +34 94 491 40 92Fax: +34 41 491 11 40

www.hpdsystems.comHPD.info@veoliawater.com

HPD

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R&D

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