The AVN Blog

AVN designed and built a catalyst testing unit featuring a 2 cm x 0.75 m tubular reactor heated by an electric furnace capable of exceeding 600 °C, with an approximate catalyst volume of 30 cc. The system was configured to deliver controlled feeds of up to five gases and liquids. Reactor effluent samples were… Read More

Last week, June 4-6,  the AIChE Process Development Symposium was held at the West Virginia Regional Technology Park, sponsored by AVN Corporation.  The PDS is a national symposium put on by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) with the help of its Process Development Division.  The symposium… Read More

A company developed a process for a new bio-based product that required hydrogenation followed by distillation. To demonstrate scalability, AVN commissioned a 6-inch internal-diameter, 22-foot-tall fixed-bed hydrogenation reactor along with three large packed distillation columns. Over multiple campaigns, operating with continuous, around-the-clock shifts, the team produced multiple totes of… Read More

AVN successfully screened a raw material from a new supplier for use in production of a flame-retardant product.  AVN replicated the existing process with the existing raw materials utilizing a heated reactor, distillation equipment, and product washing procedures.  AVN then repeated the process with the material from the new… Read More

 A 300 mL Parr reactor was operated at 2500 psi (172 bar) and 300°C to satisfy a customer’s scoping needs. AVN assembled a pressure feed system using a Haskell compressor and surge cylinder. This process was used to help the customer narrow future optimization efforts over a ten-batch designed… Read More