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PSE announces release of gCRYSTAL
Integrated model-based engineering and optimisation of crystallisation processes
LONDON, 15 September 2011 --- Process Systems Enterprise (PSE), providers of the world-leading gPROMS® high-fidelity process modelling environment and related ModelCare®services, today announced the release of its new gCRYSTAL® product.
gCRYSTAL provides an integrated, easy-to-use, drag and drop graphical environment for model-based innovation, engineering and optimisation of solution crystallisation processes. The package is aimed at scientists and process engineers in industries where crystallisation processes - including precipitation - play an integral part, such as pharmaceuticals, food, chemicals and mineral processing, and has been developed with several years of input from leading companies in these sectors.
Uniquely combining ease of use with modelling power, gCRYSTAL provides detailed population balance-based models containing first-principles representations of the complex crystallisation physics and chemistry, as well as facilities for validating models against multiple sets of data from steady-state and dynamic experiments. The resulting high-fidelity predictive models are used to optimise crystallisation process design and operation, determine the optimal process economics subject to product quality constraints and quantify and manage the risks associated with engineering decisions, for both batch and continuous processes.
Dr Sean Bermingham, VP for Strategic Business Development in PSE's Solids modelling business, says "despite the importance of crystallisation processes to industry and society, there has been a notable lack of effective modelling tools in this area until now. We believe that gCRYSTAL brings a step change to the capabilities available to industry".
Crystallisation processes are notoriously difficult to scale up, and there is often little understanding of the fundamental phenomena occurring, meaning that there is often large scope for process optimisation. Bermingham says, "New model-based techniques now make scale-up from laboratory bench to industrial size much easier and more reliable. In addition, proper quantification makes it possible to achieve higher throughput and better and consistent quality, often with large energy savings". As an example, Friesland Campina reported a 44% reduction in batch time after optimising a cooling crystallisation process for production of pharmaceutical-grade lactose.
gCRYSTAL links with PSE's gSOLIDS® product to support design and optimisation of integrated vapour-liquid-solid processes, including the full downstream solids handling.
BP, Shell, GSK, Pfizer present at PSE Annual Meeting
Model-based engineering conference draws wide range of process industry innovators
Leading process organisations BP, Shell, GSK and Pfizer presented this week at the PSE Annual Meeting on model-based engineering (MbE) in London.
Aimed at technology managers from across the process industries, the event covered the application of MbE techniques to enhance process design and scale-up, optimise operations, accelerate process innovation and manage new technology risk. Sessions covered oil & gas, refining, petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, pulp & paper, food & beverage, mining, metallurgical, water treatment and carbon capture & storage (CCS) applications.
The BP keynote address described challenges faced by the upstream oil industry that are being addressed by the Field of the Future® technology programme, which aims to deliver success at scale across a large distributed global organisation via solutions such as the Model-Based Operational Support toolkit.
Shell Global Solutions described the application of dynamic optimisation to product blending to enhance process economics by millions of Euros per year. GSK and Pfizer outlined how model-based experimentation can be applied as part of Quality-by-Design (QbD) programmes to accelerate time-to-market of new drugs.
PSE provides the gPROMS® process modelling platform and ModelCare® MbE services to the process industries. gPROMS represents a new generation of modelling technology that enables companies to capture corporate knowledge in high-fidelity mathematical models and apply it across the organisation for engineering and operational decision support and risk management.
Other highlights of the conference included:
- SASOL's use of whole-plant economic optimisation to screen conceptual designs for syngas facilities.
- Süd-Chemie's model-based approach to accelerating new catalyst development.
- Anglo American Platinum's troubleshooting of an underperforming crystallisation process used for monetising a waste stream.
- Veolia's model-based techniques for simultaneously optimising energy efficiency and water quality in industrial waste water treatment.
- DNV's work with PSE to develop maritime CO2 capture processes.
Prof. Costas Pantelides, MD of PSE, says "The diversity and scale of applications that generate real value show that model-based engineering is becoming a key technology for process industry innovators. We believe that this will drive a step change in value creation across all process sectors."
Field of the Future is a registered trademark of BP
[Press release] [PDF] [Conference agenda & overview] [Presentations]PSE and MECIP sign Malaysia gPROMS agency agreement
Model-based engineering for process development and plant optimisation
We are pleased to announce the appointment of MECIP Global Engineers Sdn Bhd (MECIP), the Malaysian engineering consultancy company, as agent for PSE's technology and model-based engineering (MBE) services in Malaysia and Brunei.
MECIP (www.mecipglobal.com.my) is a leading supplier of multi-discipline engineering consultancy to South-East Asian industry, covering project engineering, project management, feasibility and conceptual studies, basic engineering design, detail engineering design and information management for a broad spectrum of engineering disciplines.
Mr Ahmad Nazari Ashari, CEO of MECIP, says "We are very pleased to be able to represent PSE's technology and capabilities to expand our already strong position as a provider of specialist engineering services and solutions for the process industries in Malaysia. We believe that together we can add significant value to the operations of our Malaysian customers."
Prof. Costas Pantelides, MD of PSE, says "We are delighted to be taking our first step into the considerable market for process engineering software in Malaysia with a company that has an excellent track record and reputation. We believe that Malaysia, with its extensive and dynamic oil & gas, petrochemical and chemical sectors, will develop into a major market for PSE and gPROMS."
[Press release][PDF]
Call for submissions for €5000 Model-Based Innovation Prizes
Best use of gPROMS advanced process modelling in support of research
We are inviting submissions for the prestigious 2011 PSE Model-Based Innovation Prizes.
Every year PSE awards prizes totalling €5000 – a winner's prize of €3000 and two runners-up prizes of €1000 each – for the best published papers in which gPROMS is used to generate research results in a novel area of application or technology.
PSE is a leader in the emerging field of Model-Based Innovation (MBI), in which high-fidelity mathematical models of processes and products are used to accelerate innovation and reduce technology risk. MBI helps to integrate R&D activities with engineering design, resulting in optimised process design and operation and reduced costs.
gPROMS is the world's leading modelling environment for such applications, and is widely used throughout the chemicals, energy, petrochemical, food and pharmaceuticals sectors. It is also used to support academic research in some 200 academic organisations around the world.
The 2010 prize was won by Ala Eldin Bouaswaig and Sebastian Engell from the Process Dynamics and Operations Group at the Technische Universität Dortmund, Germany, with a paper published in Chemical Engineering Science on mathematical techniques for modelling of complex phenomena such as particle growth in emulsion polymerisation.
Researchers using gPROMS in support of research published between 1 July 2009 and 30 June 2011 are invited to submit a paper for the 2011 prize via the PSE website (www.psenterprise.com) by 15 July 2011. The prize is open to applicants from industry as well as academia.
Submissions will be judged by the panel of three leading academics in the field of Process Systems Engineering: Professor Stratos Pistikopoulos (Imperial College London), Professor Rafiqul Gani (Technical University of Denmark) and Professor Michael Georgiadis (University of Western Macedonia, Greece). Prizes will be awarded at the 2011 AIChE Annual Meeting in Minneapolis.
Mark Matzopoulos, PSE COO, says "As a company closely involved in research and innovation throughout the process industries, we are keen to recognise and foster the efforts of others who are doing the same."
[Press release][PDF]
PSE Inc. appoints Dale Curtis Jr. as President
Expansion of Americs operation PSE Inc.
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dale Curtis Jr. as President of our Americas operation, PSE Inc.
Dale has over 15 years of experience in sales, strategic business development, marketing and management within the material and life science industries. In this role he will be responsible for expanding PSE's Americas customer base of large process industry organisations and building a sizeable Americas operation centered on the New Jersey headquarters.
Previously Dale was the Director of Strategic Account Management for Freeslate, Inc., a leading provider of integrated, high throughput workflows and enterprise software for research and development labs in multiple industries. Prior to this he was the Director of Business Development for Symyx Technologies Inc., a leader in high throughput technology and services, and held various sales and management roles for Accelrys Inc.
gPROMS is the world's leading advanced process modeling environment. It is used by large process industry companies in the oil & gas, chemicals and petrochemicals, power generation, clean energy, food & beverage, pharmaceutical and other process sectors to accelerate innovation, manage technology risk and optimize process design and operation through the application of high-accuracy mathematical models.
PSE is currently introducing a range of specialist process engineering tools built on the gPROMS platform, for safety, solids processing, crystallization and fuel cell component and system design. PSE also provides expert consulting services in reactor design, process design optimization, process development and plant optimization.
Costas Pantelides, PSE CEO, says "This appointment signals our intention to invest significantly in further development of our Americas business". The PSE Inc. operation already counts Procter & Gamble, Praxair, ExxonMobil and United Technologies among its largest customers.
[Press release][PDF]
PSE joins C-SOPS consortium
gSOLIDS to be used as basis for particulate research
We are pleased to announce that PSE has joined the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center for Structured Organic Particulate Systems (C-SOPS).
PSE will supply gSOLIDS as a modelling basis for research into representation of particulate processes and a means for transferring that research to industry, as well as training and modelling advice.
C-SOPS is a consortium of four universities led by Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Industry partners include Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson and Procter & Gamble. The consortium was set up to be a focal point for science-based development of structured organic composite products and their manufacturing processes in the pharmaceutical, food, consumer product and agrochemical industries.
Center Director, Dr Fernando Muzzio, says "Our aims include the development of science and engineering methods for designing, scaling, optimising and controlling manufacturing processes. Given its gSOLIDS platform and process optimisation focus, PSE will be able to contribute significantly to all of these objectives as well as enable effective technology transfer to industry."
Developed in conjunction with Procter & Gamble, another Center member, gSOLIDS provides an integrated drag & drop graphical flowsheeting environment for model-based engineering and optimisation of solids processes. Population balance-based models of solids processing equipment are used to validate models against experimental data, optimise process design and operation, determine optimal process economics and quantify and manage risk.
gSOLIDS covers units such as high-shear wet granulators, fluidised bed dryers, mills, screens, spray dryers and agglomerators. Key goals are to maximise throughput, ensure product quality, size recycles and surge bins for new plants, determine optimal trade-offs between capital and operating cost and make informed purchasing decisions. Typical benefits include reduced capital investment, reduced operating costs, improved product quality, increased throughput, more flexible process design, reduced CO2 footprint and a better process understanding.
Dr Sean Bermingham, VP of PSE's Solids strategic business division, says "We are delighted to be part of the industry-leading C-SOPS consortium, in particular through the use of gSOLIDS as a vehicle for enabling and capturing research and transferring it to industry in usable form. This is key to reducing process development and commissioning timelines as well as ensuring that the design capacity is reached or exceeded."
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