THE CHALLENGE: Can you improve the economics of my process? HOW WE SAID YES: Step 1: Supplied process generated a large amount of solvents that were not possible to reuse due to the azeotropic properties and the resulting high water content.

1. Case Study C:
Agricultural Company
The challenge:
Can you improve the economics of my process?
STEP 4: Supplied process included a wash of
How we said yes: the isolated product with a flammable solvent.
STEP 1: Supplied process generated a large amount • Added a water wash, then later reduced the
of solvents that were not possible to reuse due to solvent wash
the azeotropic properties and the resulting high • Made the isolated product safer to handle
water content.
• Investigated and then implemented changing the The yes formula benefits:
order of the quench and solvent strip. Yield increased by 20%; cycle times improved;
• With the strip completed prior to the quench, less and overall productivity doubled compared to
water entered the system and the solvent was suitable baseline production.
for reuse as a two-solvent system.
• Optimization of the ratios in the recycled solvent Solvent usage was decreased by 85% in
system led to a reaction conversion increase of 10%. the reaction step and waste volumes also
STEP 2: The supplied process ratio of solvent to decreased accordingly.
raw material was not optimized for improved
All quality expectations were met or exceeded.
reaction conditions.
• As the yield increased, impurity levels decreased.
Therefore it was possible to decrease the solvent ratio
Project completed at our Tyrone facility.
with no detrimental effects to yield, cycle time or quality.
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• The lower solvent to starting material ratio allowed
scale up to a 10% larger batch size with the same cycle
time, thus further increasing productivity.
STEP 3: The product was isolated from a two-solvent
system was occasionally off-specification.
• By investigating various solvent ratios, the
concentration of product in the filtrate was reduced.
A consistently higher yield of product that met all
specifications was produced.
Fine Chemistry Services

2. TYRONE FACILITY
• Production capabilities from kilo-lab scale
through hundreds of metric tons per year
• More than 30 reactors, from 30 gallons
through 4,000 gallons
• Proven expertise in countless
quick-turn situations
• Especially well-equipped for complex,
multi-step synthesis, with various materials
of construction and almost every unit
operation available
• Synthetic minor air permit — eliminates
permitting delays
• On-site waste treatment system removes
organic contaminants from wastewater
• Cryogenic Ag reactions
Find out how we say yes to hundreds of fine chemistry projects annually.
Albemarle is experienced and equipped to provide custom manufacturing for customers worldwide.
To experience the difference of a committed fine chemistry partner, contact your Albemarle Representative.
AMERICAS E U R O P E , M I D D L E E A S T, A F R I C A
Fine Chemistry Services EMA Fine Chemistry Services
Tel: +1 225 388 7402 Tel: +32 10 48 1711
ALBSales@albemarle.com EMASales@albemarle.com
www.albemarle.com
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