Utilizing Pilot Plants for Process Development to Bridge the Gap Between Laboratory and Industry

Pilot plants have historically been constructed to manage the risk of scaling up commercial plants using laboratory data or simulated models. Pilot plant operating data can be correlated to process specific scale-up factors to be used in modeling as a more robust tool for predicting commercial yields.  The capital investment to construct and operate a pilot plant is substantially less than a commercial demonstration plant, which allows systematic operational changes to pinpoint the desirable operating ranges.  This presentation will illustrate real-world examples of how to bridge the gap between laboratory testing and commercial plants, showing the need for a variety of technical expertise, relatively low capital investment, and site infrastructure.