Process Technology Research

The Division develops, demonstrates and models advanced technologies and processes for industrial applications with an emphasis on basic process industries. The breadth of the work ranges from bench-scale through commercial demonstration. The emphasis is on applied technology demonstration that often includes design and operation of large-scale facilities based on strategic partnerships with industrial consortia.

Process Engineering and Analysis research encompasses:

• Materials Recycling Research and Process Development
• Industrial Metals and Materials Research
• Chemical and Bio Process Development
• Hydrogen and Greenhouse Gas Engineering
• Process Simulations and Modeling

Members of the Process Technology Research Team include: (more info)

Materials Recycling Research and Process Development

The Division has a long track record in the development of technologies to facilitate recycling of industrial materials including plastics, polymers, metals, metal-oxides and glass. (Plastics Recycle Summary.pdf)

A new 5-year multi-million dollar cooperative research program with the Vehicle Recycling Partnership and the American Plastics Council to develop technology for the recycling of automotive materials was initiated in late FY 2003. The objective of this collaboration is to maximize the cost-effective recovery and recycling of automotive materials (learn more about the US ELV CRADA). The focal point of this effort is a large-scale pilot-plant to demonstrate Argonne developed automotive materials recycle technologies.

Some of the processes that have been developed to enable the recycling of materials include:

• Electrochemical Recovery of Zinc and Clean Steel from Galvanized Scrap

• Separation and Recovery of ABS and HIPS from Mixed Plastics via Froth Flotation

• Recovery Flexible Polyurethane Foam from Auto Shredder Residue

• Recovery of Plastics via Froth-Flotation from Nylon Manufacturing Waste

• Separation and Recovery of Polyethylene from Mixed Polyolefins via Froth Flotation

• A Process for the Recovery and Recycling of Glass-Manufacturing Waste and Fiberglass Scrap

• Separation and Recovery of Carbon Fiber from Polymer Matrix Composites

• Electrodialysis for Salt Recovery from Aluminum Salt Cake Brines 

• Development of Clay Purification Process Using Froth Flotation and Deflocculation Techniques

Industrial Metals and Materials Research

Industrial metals and materials research includes development of both transitional and transformational processes for production of metals such as aluminum, magnesium, steel. (Advanced Materials Processes )

Representative metals processing projects include:

• Inert Metal Anodes for Primary Aluminum Production – A new low-temperature electrolyte composition based on KF-AlF3 enables the use of aluminum bronze anodes in the elctrololytic production of aluminum

• Magnesium electrolytic production – Minimization of chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHC) during the electrolytic production of magnesium from a chloride molten salt using carbon-based anodes

• Molten Iron Electrolysis – Electrolytic production of carbon-free iron from iron oxide using a molten oxide electrolyte

• Iron Recovery from ASR – Production of value-added iron units from ASR fines

• Melt Loss Reduction – Technology was developed for minimizing melt less during aluminum and magnesium re-melting

• Magnesium Castings – In collaboration with AFS a Magnesium Casting Industry Technology Roadmap was prepared to guide the development of magnesium casting processes (e.g., lost foam, low-pressure permanent mold, low-pressure sand) for use in the transportation sector

• Lost Foam Casting of Magnesium – demonstration of LF process to magnesium

• Aluminum Recycling, including dross processing, salt cake processing, and by-product processing. More information can be found here.

Research is also being conducted to advance the development of nanomaterials for a wide range of industrial applications. Working with the Materials Science Division that developed the basic technology for Ultrananocrystalline Diamond (UNCD), we are leading a project with Advanced Diamond Technologies (www.thindiamond.com) to demonstrate the applicability of UNCD coatings for industrial applications such as multi-purpose mechanical pump seals.(DOE fact page)

With the Materials Science Division, the Energy Systems Division initiated a program to develop applications of atomic layer deposition technology (ALD).  We have recently initiated bench-scale work on the development of ALD for fabrication of industrial materials and are exploring the technical and economic feasibility of this technology for synthesis of high-temperature superconducting wire, thin-films for lithium ion battery anodes, and nanoporous catalytic membranes. ALD is a viable technique for depositing multi-layered materials with precise film thicknesses. ALD utilizes self-limiting reactions between gaseous pre-cursor molecules and a solid substrate to deposit materials one atomic layer at a time. By repeating the deposition cycle, relatively thick films can be grown conformally on any type surface with atomic layer precision and without line-of-sight restrictions. The Energy Systems and Materials Science Divisions are collaborating on several projects that exploit the unique features of ALD. In high-temperature superconductors (HTS), an opportunity exists to use ALD to fabricate the YCBO layered structure in a way that would produce kilometer-length HTS wires. In nanoporous separation membranes, ALD offers the potential to fabricate membranes with tunable pores sizes by coating the interior channels of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO). These membranes would be effective in numerous gaseous and liquid separation applications with 100% molecular size selectivity. Moreover, by depositing catalytic materials into these ALD-coated AAO pores, it becomes possible to create single pass catalysts in a process that is readily scalable.  We are also working with Northwestern University to develop commercial catalysts using ALD for the selective oxidation (dehydrogenation) of alkanes (paraffins) to alkenes (olefins).  Please visit the ALD home page.

Chemical and Bio-process Development

Chemical and bio-process development research focuses on the development of advanced processes for the production and separation of chemicals, intermediates and process solutions from conventional and alternative feedstocks---to improve process efficiency, to increase process intensity and to reduce capital and operating costs.  Research is being conducted on advanced chemical synthesis and separation technologies employing process improvements to conventional technology, adaptation of alternative process technology and development of new transformational technology, including biocatalysis, integrated chemical/bioprocessing, and membrane separations.

We are developing advanced membranes for both chemical and biological processes, and are integrating pathway design (metabolic engineering) with downstream processing. We are leading a Laboratory-wide effort to develop biocatalysis technology that    focuses on using enzymes in industrial processes and integrating enzymes with separation technologies.

The Division is working with ArcherDanielsMidland to optimize the production of an organic acid called gluconic acid from sugar using Argonne's patented separative bioreactor technology---a technology could be applied to a variety of organic acids and polyols. The separative bioreactor is an offshoot of a salt-removal technology called electrodeionization (EDI). EDI is commonly used in biochemical labs, chemical and semiconductor factories to produce ultrapure water. An EDI cell contains ion exchange resins, similar to those found in some commercial water-softening units. ES researchers developed and patented an improved EDI resin wafer stack that won a 2002 R&D 100 Award. Research funding for the EDI process – which efficiently removes salt added during a manufacturing process from high fructose corn syrup – was provided by DOE's Industrial Technology program.

Recently we successfully converted our large-scale electrodialysis pilot plant [link to “learn more about pilot plant] to assist BASF Corp. in the development of a specialty agricultural chemical. (electrodialysis pilot plant pdf)  Our plant was originally built to determine the technical feasibility if using electrodialysis as a mechanism for recovering salts from salts solution of the aluminum recycling industry.  The plant was modified to demonstrate the process that BASF had developed.  Technology developed by Argonne was incorporated into the BASF process to chemically control the process and to achieve requisite production rates.  This work received the Federal Laboratory Consortium Excellence in Technology Transfer Award for 2003.

Some of our other projects in this area include:

• Electrodialysis for Production of Specialty Agricultural Chemicals

• Development of a New Solventless Process for Making Adhesives

• Upgrading Low-Btu Natural Gas Discoveries to Pipeline Quality Gas

• Advanced Biocatalytic Processing of Heterogeneous Lignocellulosic Feedstocks to a Platform Chemical Intermediate

• Advanced Bioprocess Technologies

• Biocatalytic Systems Development

• Advanced Electrodeionization Technology for Product Purification, Waste Recovery, and Water Recycling

• Advanced Separations Technology for Efficient and Economical Recovery and Purification of Hydrogen Peroxide

• Removal of Heavy Metals from Waters Using Organically Modified Nanosized Titanium Dioxide Colloids

• Reduced Chemical Use and Toxicity in Produced Water Systems (Microbial Corrosion Control Methods)

• Root Engineering for Self-Irrigation that Exploits Soil Depth for Carbon Sequestration

Hydrogen and Greenhouse Gas Engineering

The Division has been involved in the development and analysis of advanced control technology to mitigate fossil energy emissions for more than 20 years.  Early work focused on the development of technology for control of Hg and NOx emissions from fossil-fueled power plants. In the late 1980’s, Argonne confirmed the technical feasibility, in pilot-plant trials, of coal-fired combustion employing a carbon-dioxide recycle loop to yield a nitrogen free carbon-dioxide flue gas for use in enhanced oil recovery.  This technology is an option today for minimizing the cost of capturing carbon-dioxide from fossil-fired power plants.  More recently our work has focused on the development and analysis of alternative fossil-energy conversion technologies and to minimize greenhouse gases, in particular carbon-dioxide emissions and on advanced thermo-chemical nuclear cycles to produce hydrogen.

Some of the projects in this research area include:     

• Development of Advanced Environmental Control Technology

• Evaluation of CO2 Capture/Utilization Disposal Options

• Planning for Hydrogen Generation Using Nuclear Power

• Thermochemical Hydrogen Production (Calcium-based)

• High-Temperature Electrolysis for Hydrogen Production

• Microwave Plasma Dissociation of Hydrogen-Sulfide for Hydrogen and Elemental Sulfur Recovery

• Economic Feasibility of Low-temperature Plasmas to Treat Gaseous Emissions from Pulp Mills and Wood Products Plants

Process Simulation and Modeling

Industry is increasingly looking towards Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for analyzing the performance of their processes. CFD provides a cost effective technology that can give indications on how to optimize industrial processes as well as providing a tool that can investigate new designs. Since these industrial processes involve multiple phases and reacting flow, advanced software is needed to properly model these systems.

The Division has developed a suite of state-of-the-art multiphase, reacting flow CFD codes. The codes have been specifically tailored for particular industrial applications. This allows for a computationally more efficient code that focuses exclusively on the physics of a particular process. These codes solve the representative transport equations for mass, momentum, and energy for multiple phases (solid, liquid, and gas) as well as incorporating chemical reaction sets specific to the particular application. Since these applications were created specifically for industry, they are designed to run on off-the-shelf PCs in a reasonable period of time. Also, the majority of the applications created in this group have user friendly pre- and post-processors that help facilitate creating the simulations and viewing the computational results.

CFD Projects Include:

• Glass furnace modeling – This comprehensive simulation of the entire glass furnace couples the combustion space with the glass melt. The glass melt model includes models for batch melting, electric boost, and bubblers. This model has been validated against three sets of in-furnace data. [Glass Furnace Model (GFM) Code (for more information on the no fee trial license, visit the Argonne National Laboratory Software Shop)]

• Aluminum furnace modeling – A detailed model of the combustion space of aluminum furnaces has been created. This model has been validated against measurements in a test furnace. Once validated, the model has been used by industry to investigate methods for improving thermal efficiency.

• Commercial fluid catalytic cracker (FCC) modeling – Over ten years of effort have been invested in creating software that simulates the multiphase and chemical effects in fluid catalytic crackers. This software accounts for the heat transfer from the catalyst to the liquid droplet, the evaporation of the droplets and then the chemical reactions taking place in the gas phase. This model has also been validated against pilot plant data.

• New designs for fluid catalytic crackers – ANL is using the experience gained from the commercial FCC modeling to assist in the development of new staged FCC technology that may revolutionize the industry. (Optimizing FCC Riser Technology with ICRKFLO)

• Fired heater modeling – The process simulation group is beginning to model the U-bends in fired heaters in order to explore how the local heat flux and local geometric conditions affect the flow field. The flow field in turn affects the chemical reactions which are directly related to fouling.

• Fuel processor and catalytic reactor modeling – A parallel, multiphase, reacting flow CFD code, Parmflo, was developed for 3D component modeling of catalytic reactor systems. Models for flow and reaction through porous media catalyst supports are included. The software can distribute computation over computers in a local area network (LAN) to greatly increase the size of simulated problems or reduce simulation run times. Parmflo is available for commercial and academic license through the Argonne National Laboratory Software Shop.