David Abadie, Julia Baratta, Jenna Dibeh, Leah Michealoff
Ethylene is an olefin produced at INEOS due to its popularity in chemical manufacturing industries. A challenge associated with ethylene production is carbon monoxide poisoning in the acetylene reactor, which decreases acetylene conversion and necessitates flaring of the off-spec stream. The primary objectives of this project are modeling the three acetylene reactors’ standard and upset conditions, evaluating flare’s operation, and providing recommendations to comply with EPA emission regulations. Using Aspen HYSYS and Excel, bed performance was estimated both in normal and upset conditions. In normal conditions, conversion varied linearly with temperature, however when CO poisoning caused upset conditions, conversion varied quadratically with time. During flaring, a large exit velocity initially overwhelms the flare system, releasing emissions that exceed environmental regulations. As volumetric flow decreases with time, emissions fall within acceptable values. Splitting the flare stream can mitigate the effect of high-volume flaring and decrease time spent over emission limits.
Chloe Camel, Hailey Hayes, Diego Molina
Our project aims to determine whether B504, a new extender technology, can sufficiently mimic or exceed the performance of D239, the current extender. D239 will be discontinued by 2024 due to limited natural resources of dipotassium phosphate. D239 is also more expensive ($35.26 per gallon) than B504 ($3.94 per gallon). We conducted rheology, free fluid, and thickening time tests according to API and industry standards. From the results of these tests, we concluded that the viscosity, stability, and pumpability of B504 is comparable to D239. In basic laboratory tests that do not include all additives of a real-world slurry, three parts of B504 are needed to mimic one part of D239. However, a case study that included all necessary additives showed that the desired viscosity, stability, and pumpability can be reached without increasing the amount of B504. Thus, B504 is a viable substitute for D239 and is recommended because of its financial advantages.
Alex Cheek, Celeste Marter, Sophie Slaughter, Will Wiehl
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) conducts research to valorize byproducts from sugar-crop processing. Beet molasses is one such byproduct with limited applications; however, it can be used to produce acetoin through fermentation. Acetoin is a compound used commercially as a flavor additive and a platform chemical for other valuable compounds. The extraction of acetoin from fermentation broth is commonly performed through a “salting-out” method with dipotassium phosphate and an organic solvent to separate the phases. Salting-out extraction does not allow for recycling, so sugaring-out extraction with sucrose is being tested as an alternative. The overall goal of this project was to maximize acetoin recovery by determining the viability of sugaring-out as an extraction method and the solvent that best facilitates separation of phases. Another project goal was to determine the economic viability of scaling up the process to an industrial level by simulating the process and performing an economic analysis.
