1.6 million euros for making production processes 'greener'
Production processes in the chemical industry can be made greener: with less energy and smaller waste flows. That requires a better understanding of the production processes. Theoretical and experimental research groups from the universities of Eindhoven, Twente and Delft are joining forces to make a contribution to 'greening' these processes. The FOM Foundation is investing 780,000 euros in an Industrial Partnership Programme. Together the multinationals AkzoNobel, DSM, SABIC, Shell and Tata Steel are also contributing 780,000 euros, over a period of six years, to make a total investment of 1.6 million euros.
Programme leader Hans Kuipers (Eindhoven) cannot wait to start the project: "Through a better understanding of production processes in the chemical industry the equipment needed can be made smaller, for example, so that less energy is required for the same yield. This will also increase the production level and result in fewer by-products. All of this will lead to less energy use and smaller waste flows, which will benefit the environment."
From small-scale to large-scale
During the production of chemicals, the raw material for many products, reactions often take place between gases and liquids. During these reactions molecules go from the gas to the liquid. The gas is located in bubbles of different sizes in the liquid. The researchers will study these bubbles and use computer models to observe the behaviour on a larger scale. Associate professor Niels Deen: "If you understand what happens during a chemical reaction on a small scale then on the basis of this information you can predict how the reaction will proceed on a large scale in the industrial setting."
Collaboration
The university partners will develop experimental and computational techniques so that bubbles can literally be seen during a chemical reaction. The five companies involved in the project, AkzoNobel, DSM, SABIC, Shell and Tata Steel, will use the results to optimise their own production processes.
Contact
Martijn de Jager, FOM programme officer, +31 (0)30 600 13 68
Niels Deen, +31 (0)40 247 36 81.
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