MFG Chemical, a provider of specialty and custom chemical manufacturing, completed an upgrade of its pilot plant in Dalton, Georgia.
MFG upgraded a 100-gallon stainless steel reactor that produces hot oil and steam reactions up to 550°F. The pilot has internal cooling coils, two top feed ports; one bottom (dip tube) feed port, a pack column condenser, a reflux column, standard tube condenser, a small distillation column and a vacuum capability at 8 Torr. The 100-gallon reactor now sits on a mezzanine 12 inches off the floor with new insulation. There has also been a pressure cleaning and general upgrading of the entire pilot plant.
“This 100-gallon pilot plant reactor is worth its weight in gold. It is popular with customers because it produces one and two drum sized quantities of the needed specialty chemicals for evaluation and use prior to total scale up," said Guido DeStefano, MFG's chief science and technology officer. "It is also used for internal studies to optimize process and improve safety.“
“This is a very useful pilot plant, because it meets our customers’ small quantity needs, without tying up an entire manufacturing plant," said CEO Keith Arnold. "We will plan to add a second 100-gallon pilot reactor as customer needs continue to grow.”
