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There have been an increasing number of publications on flow chemistry applications of compact NMR. Despite this, there is so far no comprehensive workflow for the technical design of flow cells. Here, we present an approach that is suitable for the design of an NMR flow cell with an integrated static mixing unit. This design moves the mixing of reactants to the active NMR detection region within the NMR instrument, presenting a feature that analyses chemical reactions faster (5–120 s region) than other common setups. During the design phase, the targeted mixing homogeneity of the components was evaluated for different types of mixing units based on CFD simulation. Subsequently, the flow cell was additively manufactured from ceramic material and metal tubing. Within the targeted working mass flow range, excellent mixing properties as well as narrow line widths were confirmed in validation experiments, comparable to common glass tubes.
Analysis of dynamic systems
(2019)
Monitoring specific information (i.e., physico-chemical properties, chemical reactions, etc.) is the key to chemical process control when looking at dynamic systems, and quantitative online NMR spectroscopy is the method of choice for the investigation and understanding of dynamic multi-component systems. NMR provides rapid and non-invasive information, and due to the inherent linearity between sample concentration and signal intensity, peak areas can be directly used for quantification of multiple components in a mixture (without the need for any further calibration). This is one of the most attractive features of quantitative NMR spectroscopy. With the launch of devices covering magnetic field strengths from 40 to 90 MHz, so called compact or benchtop NMR systems, this analytical method is now reaching a sufficient degree of compactness and operability for an application outside of very specialized laboratories.
Whilst there are also many other tools available to examine various analytical parameters from dynamic processes, such as mass spectrometry, (near) infrared or Raman spectroscopy, each of these tools can only really be used independently. How can we examine and compare all data describing a particular chemical reaction? How can we visualize information rich, specific, or direct methods together with less specific but established analytical methods? And how can we transfer calibration information to the most appropriate process analytical method or method combination? Quantitative NMR spectroscopy (qNMR) has the potential to substitute offline laboratory analysis for calibration purposes by delivering quantitative reference data as an online method.
The workshop briefly presents the current state of the art of the analysis of dynamic systems by online NMR spectroscopy and analytical data fusion, with the remaining time being used for questions and open discussion with the attendees.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds. Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts while being based on “chemical” information.
As an example, a fully automated NMR sensor is introduced, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. Therefore, a commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was adapted to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as, e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
A full integration and intelligent interconnection of such systems and processes progresses only hesitantly. The talk should encourage to re-think digitization of process industry based on smart sensors, actuators, and communication more comprehensively and informs about current technical perspectives such as the “one-network paradigm”, edge computing, or virtual machines. These give smart sensors, actuators, and communication a new perspective.
Companies in the chemical industry have to tread new paths in order to survive successfully in a changed environment. This includes, in particular, the potential of digital technologies. The full integration and intelligent networking of systems and processes is making slow progress.
This talk is a tribute to the field level. It wants to encourage a more holistic approach to the digitalisation of the process industry based on smart sensors, actuators and communication and provides information on current technical perspectives, such as the "one-network paradigm", ad-hoc networking, edge computing, FPGAs, virtual machines or blockchain. These give smart sensors, actuators and communication a completely new perspective.
Process analytical technology (PAT) is a cross-sectional technology and thus essential for future smart production. While in the past decades, the focus of process optimization strategies was on increasing efficiency, in the future, the focus will be on the sustainability of a production and its products. In addition, products will be increasingly personalized in order to match the property profile exactly to the intended use. PAT is able to provide context-sensitive information at the molecular level for process control. Spectroscopic sensors can determine inline and simultaneously both the chemical composition and its sub-microscopic morphology. The article will focus on the optical spectroscopy and therefore starts with a brief introduction on the basic concepts of molecular spectroscopy. In addition, the particularities of measuring liquids, surfaces, or particulate systems in PAT applications are described. This should enable the reader to select the appropriate method for the specific problem. Many examples from everyday industrial practice illustrate the applications. The areas covered are the manufacturing industry, process and pharmaceutical industry, food industry, as well as biotechnology and medical technology. Future will show that PAT is especially important for applications in the field of medicine (point of care) circular economy (recycling, water–wastewater, etc.). It is important to emphasize that sustainability in industrial production can only be successful with an inter- and transdisciplinary close exchange between the different disciplines.
Online monitoring and process control requires fast and noninvasive analytical methods, which are able to monitor the concentration of reactants in multicomponent mixtures with parts-per-million resolution. Online NMR spectros-copy can meet these demands when flow probes are directly coupled to reactors, since this method features a high linearity between absolute signal area and sample concentration, which makes it an absolute analytical com-parison method being independent on the matrix. Due to improved magnet design and field shimming strategies portable and robust instruments have been introduced to the market by several manufacturers during the last few years. First studies with this technology showed promising results to monitor chemical reaction in the laboratory.
In case study one of the CONSENS project, two aromatic substances were coupled by a lithiation reaction, which is a prominent example in pharmaceutical industry. The two aromatic reactants (Aniline and o-FNB) were mixed with Lithium-base (LiHMDS) in a continuous modular plant to produce the desired product (Li-NDPA) and a salt (LiF). The salt precipitates which leads to the formation of particles. The feed streams were subject to variation to drive the plant to its optimum.
The uploaded data comprises the results from four days during continuous plant operation time. Each day is denoted from day 1-4 and represents the dates 2017-09-26, 2017-09-28, 2017-10-10, 2017-10-17.
In the following the contents of the files are explained.
Introduction
NMR spectroscopy is one of the most important analytical methods in organic chemistry. While most analyses are carried out qualitatively with the aim of substance identification and structure elucidation, quantitative NMR spectroscopy (qNMR) is increasingly gaining importance in research and industry. qNMR provides the most universally applicable form of direct purity determination without need for reference materials of impurities or the calculation of response factors but only exhibiting suitable NMR properties.
Methods
One of the most attractive features of quantitative NMR spectroscopy is that the NMR peak areas can be used directly for concentration quantification without further calibration. Another advantage of NMR spectroscopy is that the method has a high linearity between absolute signal area and sample concentration, which makes it an absolute analytical comparison method that is independent of the matrix. This enables automated robust data evaluation strategies that can be used for online applications of qNMR spectroscopy.
Jancke et al. proposed NMR spectroscopy as a relative primary analytical method because it can be fully described by mathematical equations from which a complete uncertainty budget can be derived, allowing it to be used at the highest metrological level. Weber et al. discussed in detail important aspects of the procedure that enable the realisation of low measurement uncertainties in qNMR measurements. Since certification of CRM requires expanded mea¬sure¬ment uncertainties of less than 0.5 % (relative), the work of Weber et al. demonstrated for the first time that qNMR can fulfil this criterion.
Results
To date, further comparative studies have been carried out in metrology and industry, demonstrating the performance of quantitative NMR spectroscopy and further reducing measurement uncertainties. The development of validation concepts and the commercial availability of suitable certified reference materials facilitate the application, especially in the usually highly regulated industrial environment. Users can thus accelerate the development of analytical methods. The talk will cover a wide range of topics from current metrological activities to new challenges for qNMR spectroscopy and also deals with aspects such as validation and accreditation.
Innovative aspects
• qNMR provides the most universally applicable form of direct purity determination
• Expanded measurement uncertainties lower than 0.15 % (relative) possible
• Benchtop NMR instruments increasingly used for qNMR spectroscopy
Driven mostly by the search for chemical syntheses under biocompatible conditions, so called "click" chemistry rapidly became a growing field of research. The resulting simple one-pot reactions are so far only scarcely accompanied by an adequate optimization via comparably straightforward and robust analysis techniques possessing short set-up times. Here, we report on a fast and reliable calibration-free online NMR monitoring approach for technical mixtures. It combines a versatile fluidic system, continuous-flow measurement of 1H spectra with a time interval of 20 s per spectrum, and a robust, fully automated algorithm to interpret the obtained data. As a proof-of-concept, the thiol-ene coupling between N-boc cysteine methyl ester and allyl alcohol was conducted in a variety of non-deuterated solvents while its time-resolved behaviour was characterized with step tracer experiments. Overlapping signals in online spectra during thiol-ene coupling could be deconvoluted with a spectral model using indirect hard modeling and were subsequently converted to either molar ratios (using a calibrationfree approach) or absolute concentrations (using 1-point calibration). For various solvents the kinetic constant k for pseudo-first order reaction was estimated to be 3.9 h-1 at 25 °C. The obtained results were compared with direct integration of non-overlapping signals and showed good agreement with the implemented mass balance.
Compact nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) instruments make NMR spectroscopy and relaxometry accessible in industrial and harsh environments for reaction and process control. An increasing number of applications are reported. Robust field integration of NMR systems have to face explosion protection or integration into process control systems with short set-up times. Tis paves the way for industrial automation in real process environments.
Automated data preparation and analysis are cornerstones for a breakthrough of NMR techniques for process control. Particularly, robust chemometrics as well as automated signal processing methods have to be (further) developed especially for NMR spectroscopy in process control. This becomes even more important for so called “smart sensors” providing the basis for the future project “Industrie 4.0”, and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), along with current requirements to process control, model based control, or soft sensing. Data analysis techniques are available but currently mostly used for off-line data analysis to detect the causes of variations in the product quality.
The talk presents current research activities towards process control with compact NMR and reflects “cultural differences” between the interdisciplinary parties involved.
Resource Analytics with the help of process analytical technology and the use of online methods is becoming increasingly important for mining and processing technologies and for the recovery of raw materials from secondary raw materials. Current online analytical methods like laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), X-ray fluorescence analysis (RFA), or Raman spectroscopy for the characterization of primary and secondary raw materials are increasingly being used in close association with the technologies for exploration and extraction, mechanical and metallurgical processing, as well as for recycling. Because of the complex matrices such methods are a considerable challenge at the same time. The use of reference materials, which are derived from appropriate matrices, can considerably shorten calibration and method development times. As an example, the development of an online process control method for recovery of phosphorus from sewage sludge ashes is discussed. A combination of LIBS and RFA was developed for the determination of element contents in sewage sludge ashes and their products coming from a thermo-chemical reprocessing step, which removes pollutants.
Smart sensors and smart reference materials – an approach to the industrial internet of things
(2016)
The BAM targets within Bonares I4S are adaption of two online sensors being optimised for mobile applications: A LIBS spectrometer (Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) as well an a XRF spectrometer (X-Ray Fluorescence
Spectroscopy). Beyond , the certification of soil reference materials is scope of I4S at BAM. Therefore, a managable relational database structure is needed, based on a modular Architecture, which is dedicated to spectroscopy. The requirements to such a database are discussed.
Aktuell wird von der Prozessindustrie die Weiterentwicklung einiger Messaufgaben und Technologien als sehr bedeutend eingeschätzt. Dazu zählen Infrarot-Kaskadenlaser, die Online-Analyse von Partikeln und Emulsionen, neuartige NIR/MIR-Spektroskopiemodule und deren Miniaturisierung sowie die Weiterentwicklung und Kostenvergünstigung der Raman-Spektroskopie. Heute wie morgen müssen Prozess-Sensoren zuerst die Aufgabe des robusten Messens und der Generierung von Prozessinformationen erfüllen.
Accelerating chemical process development and manufacturing along with quick adaption to changing customer needs means consequent transformation of former batch to continuous (modular) manufacturing processes. These are justified by an improved process control through smaller volumes, better heat transfer, and faster dynamics of the examined reaction systems.
As an example, for such modular process units we present the design and validation of an integrated nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) micro mixer tailor‐made for a desired chemical reaction based on computational modelling. The micro mixer represents an integrated modular production unit as an example for the most important class of continuous reactors. The quantitative online NMR sensor represents a smart process analytical field device providing rapid and non‐invasive chemical composition information without need for calibration. We describe the custom design through computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for the demands of the NMR sensor as well as for the given reaction conditions. The system was validated with an esterification reaction as an example for a chemical reaction process.
Systems utilizing such an online NMR analyser benefits through short development and set‐up times based on “modular” spectral models. Such models can simply be built upon pure component NMR spectra within minutes to a few hours (i.e., assignment of the NMR signals to the components) instead of tedious DoE calibrations runs. We present a range of approaches for the automated spectra analysis moving from statistical approach, (i.e., Partial Least Squares Regression) to physically motivated spectral models (i.e., Indirect Hard Modelling and Quantum Mechanical calculations). The approach was validated for typical industrial reactions, such as hydrogenations or lithiations.
Currently, research in chemical manufacturing moves towards flexible plug-and-play approaches focusing on modular plants, capable of producing small scales on-demand with short down-times between individual campaigns. This approach allows for efficient use of hardware, a faster optimization of the process conditions, and thus, an accelerated introduction of new products to the market. Driven mostly by the search for chemical syntheses under biocompatible conditions, so-called “click” chemistry rapidly became a growing field of research. The resulting simple one-pot reactions are so far only scarcely accompanied by an adequate optimization via comparably straightforward and robust analysis techniques.
Here we report on a fast and reliable calibration-free online high field NMR monitoring approach for technical mixtures. It combines a versatile fluidic system, continuous-flow measurement with a time interval of 20 s per spectrum, and a robust, automated algorithm to interpret the obtained data. All spectra were acquired using a 500 MHz NMR spectrometer (Varian) with a dual band flow probe having a 1/16-inch polymer tubing working as a flow cell. Single scan 1H NMR spectra were recorded with an acquisition time of 5 s, relaxation delay of 15 s. As a proof-of-concept, the thiol-ene coupling between N-boc cysteine methyl ester and allyl alcohol was conducted in non-deuterated solvents while its time-resolved behaviour was characterised with step tracer experiments.
Through the application of spectral modeling the signal area for each reactant can be deconvoluted in the online spectra and thus converted to the respective concentrations or molar ratios. The signals which were suitable for direct integration were used herein for comparison purposes of both methods.
Process analytical techniques are extremely useful tools for chemical production and manufacture and are of particular interest to the pharmaceutical, food and (petro-) chemical industries.
Today, mainly optical online methods are applied. NMR spectroscopy has a high potential for direct loop process control. Compact NMR instruments based on permanent magnets are robust and relatively inexpensive analysers, which feature advantages like low cost, low maintenance, ease of use, and cryogen-free operation. Instruments for online NMR measurements equipped with a flow-through cell, possessing a good signal-to-noise-ratio, sufficient robustness, and meeting the requirements for integration into industrial plants (i.e., explosion safety and fully automated data analysis) are currently not available off the rack.
A major advantage of NMR spectroscopy is that the method features a high linearity between absolute signal area and sample concentration, which makes it an absolute analytical comparison method which is independent of the matrix. This is an important prerequisite for robust data evaluation strategies within a control concept and reduces the need for extensive maintenance of the evaluation model over the time of operation. Additionally, NMR spectroscopy provides orthogonal, but complimentary physical information to conventional, e.g., optical spectroscopy. It increases the accessible information for technical processes, where aromatic-toaliphatic conversions or isomerizations occur and conventional methods fail due to only minor changes in functional groups.
As a technically relevant example, the catalytic hydrogenation of 2-butyne-1,4-diol and further pharmaceutical reactions were studied using an online NMR sensor based on a commercially available low-field NMR spectrometer within the framework of the EU project CONSENS (Integrated Control and Sensing).
Currently research in chemical manufacturing moves towards flexible plug-and-play approaches focusing on modular plants, capable of producing small scales ondemand with short down-times between individual campaigns. This approach allows for efficient use of hardware, a faster optimization of the process conditions, and thus, an accelerated introduction of new products to the market. Driven mostly by the search for chemical syntheses under biocompatible conditions, so-called “click” chemistry rapidly became a growing field of research. The resulting simple one-pot reactions are so far only scarcely accompanied by an adequate optimization via comparably straightforward and robust analysis techniques. Here we report on a fast and reliable calibration-free online high field NMR monitoring approach for technical mixtures. It combines a versatile fluidic system, continuous-flow measurement with a time interval of 20 s per spectrum, and a robust, automated algorithm to interpret the obtained data. All spectra were acquired using a 500 MHz NMR spectrometer (Varian) with a dual band flow probe having a 1/16 inch polymer tubing working as a flow cell. Single scan 1H spectra were recorded with an acquisition time of 5 s, relaxation delay of 15 s. As a proof-of-concept, the thiol-ene coupling between N-boc cysteine methyl ester and allyl alcohol was conducted in non-deuterated solvents while its time-resolved behaviour was characterised with step tracer experiments Through the application of spectral modeling the signal area for each reactant can be deconvoluted in the online spectra and thus converted to the respective concentrations or molar ratios. The signals which were suitable for direct integration were used herein for comparison purposes of both methods.
Hydroformylation of short-chained olefins has been established as a standard industrial process for the production of C2 to C6 aldehydes. Using aqueous solutions of transition metal complexes these processes are carried out homogeneously catalyzed. A biphasic approach allows for highly efficient catalyst recovery. Regarding renewable feedstocks, the hydroformylation of long-chained alkenes (> C10) in a biphasic system, using highly selective rhodium catalysts has yet not been shown. Therefore, the Collaborative Research Center SFB/TR 63 InPROMPT develops new process concepts, involving innovative tuneable solvent systems to enable rather difficult or so far nonviable synthesis paths. One possible concept is the hydroformylation of long-chained alkenes in microemulsions. For this, a modular mixer-settler concept was proposed, combining high reaction rates and efficient catalyst recycling via the application of technical grade surfactants. The feasibility of such a concept is evaluated in a fully automated, modular mini-plant system within which the characteristics of such a multiphase system pose several obstacles for the operation. Maintaining a stable phase separation for efficient product separation and catalyst recycling is complicated by small and highly dynamic operation windows as well as poor measurability of component concentrations in the liquid phases. In this contribution, a model-based strategy is presented to enable concentration tracking and phase state control within dynamic mini-plant experiments. Raman spectroscopy is used as an advanced process analytical tool, which allows for online in-situ tracking of concentrations. Combined with optical and conductivity analysis optimal plant trajectories can be calculated via the solution of dynamic optimization problem under uncertainty. Applying these, a stable reaction yield of 40 % was achieved, combined with an oil phase purity of 99,8 % (total amount of oily components in the oil phase) and catalyst leaching below 0.1 ppm.
Validation report on NMR
(2017)
The departure from the current automation landscape to next generation automation concepts for the process industry has already begun. Smart functions of sensors simplify their use and enable plug and play integration, even though they may appear to be more complex at first sight. Smart sensors enable concepts like self-diagnostics, self-calibration, and self-configuration/ parameterization whenever our current automation landscape allows it.
Here we summarize the currently discussed general requirements for process sensors 4.0 and introduce a smart online NMR sensor module as example, which was developed for an intensified industrial process funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (www.consensspire.eu).
The departure from the current automation landscape to next generation automation concepts for the process industry has already begun. Smart functions of sensors simplify their use and enable plug-and-play integration, even though they may appear to be more complex at first sight. Monitoring specific information (i.e., “chemical” such as physico-chemical properties, chemical reactions, etc.) is the key to “chemical” process control. Here we introduce our smart online NMR sensor module provided in an explosion proof housing as example, which was developed for an intensified industrial process funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (www.consens-spire.eu). Due to NMR spectroscopy as an “absolute analytical comparison method”, independent of the matrix, it runs with extremely short set-up times in combination with “modular” spectral models. Such models can simply be built upon pure component NMR spectra within a few hours (i.e., assignment of the NMR signals to the components) instead of tedious calibrations runs.
Calibration-Free Chemical Process and Quality Control Units as Enablers for Modular Production
(2021)
Modular chemical production is a tangible translation of the digital transformation of the process industry for specialty chemicals. In particular, it enables the speeding-up of process development and thus a quicker time to market by flexibly connecting and orchestrating standardised physical modules and bringing them to life (i.e., parameterising them) with digitally accumulated process knowledge.
We focus on the specific challenges of chemical process and quality control, which in its current form is not well suited for modular production and provide possible approaches and examples of the change towards direct analytical methods, analytical model transfer or machine-supported processes.
The goal of this work is to identify the optimal operating input for a lithiation reaction that is performed in a highly innovative pilot scale continuous flow chemical plant in an industrial environment, taking into account the process and safety constraints. The main challenge is to identify the optimum operation in the absence of information about the reaction mechanism and the reaction kinetics. We employ an iterative real-time optimization scheme called modifier adaptation with quadratic approximation (MAWQA) to identify the plant optimum in the presence of plant-model mismatch and measurement noise. A novel NMR PAT-sensor is used to measure the concentration of the reactants and of the product at the reactor outlet. The experiment results demonstrate the capabilities of the iterative optimization using the MAWQA algorithm in driving a complex real plant to an economically optimal operating point in the presence of plant-model mismatch and of process and measurement uncertainties.
Within the Collaborative Research Center InPROMPT a novel process concept for the hydroformylation of long-chained olefins is studied in a mini-plant, using a rhodium complex as catalyst in the presence of syngas. Recently, the hydroformylation in micro¬emulsions, which allows for the efficient recycling of the expensive rhodium catalyst, was found to be feasible. However, the high sensitivity of this multi-phase system with regard to changes in temperature and composition demands a continuous observation of the reaction to achieve a reliable and economic plant operation. For that purpose, we tested the potential of both online NMR and Raman spectroscopy for process control. The lab-scale experiments were supported by off-line GC-analysis as a reference method.
A fiber optic coupled probe of a process Raman spectrometer was directly integrated into the reactor. 25 mixtures with varying concentrations of olefin (1-dodecene), product (n-tridecanal), water, n-dodecane, and technical surfactant (Marlipal 24/70) were prepared according to a D-optimal design. Online NMR spectroscopy was implemented by using a flow probe equipped with 1/16” PFA tubing serving as a flow cell. This was hyphenated to the reactor within a thermostated bypass to maintain process conditions in the transfer lines.
Partial least squares regression (PLSR) models were established based on the initial spectra after activation of the reaction with syngas for the prediction of unknown concentrations of 1-dodecene and n-tridecanal over the course of the reaction in the lab-scale system. The obtained Raman spectra do not only contain information on the chemical composition but are further affected by the emulsion properties of the mixtures, which depend on the phase state and the type of micelles. Based on the spectral signature of both Raman and NMR spectra, it could be deduced that especially in reaction mixtures with high 1-dodecene content the formation of isomers as a competitive reaction was dominating. Similar trends were also observed during some of the process runs in the mini-plant. The multivariate calibration allowed for the estimation of reactants and products of the hydroformylation reaction in both laboratory setup and mini-plant.
Monitoring chemical reactions is the key to chemical process control. Today, mainly
optical online methods are applied. NMR spectroscopy has a high potential for direct
loop process control. Compact NMR instruments based on permanent magnets
are robust and relatively inexpensive analysers, which feature advantages like low
cost, low maintenance, ease of use, and cryogen-free operation. Instruments for
online NMR measurements equipped with a flow-through cell, possessing a good
signal-to-noise-ratio, sufficient robustness, and meeting the requirements for
integration into industrial plants (i.e., explosion safety and fully automated data
analysis) are currently not available off the rack.
Intensified continuous processes are in focus of current research. Flexible (modular)
chemical plants can produce different products using the same equipment with short
down-times between campaigns and quick introduction of new products to the
market. In continuous flow processes online sensor data and tight closed-loop control
of the product quality are mandatory. If these are not available, there is a huge risk of
producing large amounts of out-of-spec (OOS) products. This is addressed in the
European Unionʼs Research Project CONSENS (Integrated Control and Sensing)
by development and integration of smart sensor modules for process monitoring and
control within such modular plant setups.
The presented NMR module is provided in an explosion proof housing of 57 x 57 x
85 cm module size and involves a compact 43.5 MHz NMR spectrometer together
with an acquisition unit and a programmable logic controller for automated data
preparation (phasing, baseline correction) and evaluation. Indirect Hard Modeling
(IHM) was selected for data analysis of the low-field NMR spectra. A set-up for
monitoring continuous reactions in a thermostated 1/8” tubular reactor using
automated syringe pumps was used to validate the IHM models by using high-field
NMR spectroscopy as analytical reference method.
Prozess-Sensoren 4.0 vereinfachen ihre Einbindung über Plug and Play, obwohl sie komplexer werden. Sie bieten Selbstdiagnose, Selbstkalibrierung und erleichterte Parametrierung. Über die Konnektivität ermöglichen die Prozess-Sensoren den Austausch ihrer Informationen als Cyber-physische Systeme mit anderen Prozess-Sensoren und im Netzwerk.
Der Wandel von der aktuellen Automation zum smarten Sensor ist im vollen Gange. Automatisierungstechnik und Informations- und Kommunikationstechnik (IKT) verschmelzen zunehmend. Eine Topologie für smarte Sensoren, die das Zusammenwirken mit daten- und modellbasierte Steuerungen bis hin zur Softsensorik beschreibt gibt es heute jedoch noch nicht. Wir müssen jetzt schnell die Weichen für eine smarte und sichere Kommunikationsarchitektur stellen, um zu einer störungsfreien Kommunikation aller Komponenten auf Basis eines einheitlichen Protokolls zu kommen. Unnötiges Schnickschnack ist nicht erwünscht. Wenn die Prozessindustrie dieses nicht definiert, tun es andere.
Für die weitere Entwicklung von der Ist‐Situation zu einer Industrie-4.0-Welt in der Prozessindustrie werden mehrere Szenarien diskutiert. Diese reichen vom erleichterten Abruf sensorbezogener Daten über zusätzliche Kommunikationskanäle zwischen Sensor und mobilen Endgeräten über vollständig bidirektionale Kommunikation bis hin zur Einbindung der Cloud und des Internets in virtualisierte Umgebungen.
Um zu einer störungsfreien Kommunikation aller Komponenten untereinander zu kommen, muss mindestens ein einheitliches Protokoll her, das alle sprechen und verstehen. Der derzeit greifbarste offengelegte Standard, der moderne Kommunikationsanforderungen erfüllt, ist OPC Unified Architecture (OPC-UA). Viele halten das Sortieren der Kommunikationsstandards für eines der wesentlichen Errungenschaften von Industrie 4.0.
Der Vortrag greift die Anforderungen der Technologie-Roadmap „Prozess-Sensoren 4.0“ auf und zeigt Möglichkeiten zu ihrer Realisierung am Beispiel eines Online-NMR-Analysators, der im Rahmen des EU-Projekts „CONSENS“ (www.consens-spire.eu) entwickelt wurde.
Aktuelle und zukünftige öffentliche Förderung von Industrie 4.0-Projekten sind eine gute Investition. Wegen der hohen Komplexität und Interdisziplinarität gelingt die Umsetzung nur gemeinsam zwischen Anwendern aus der Prozessindustrie, Software- und Geräteherstellern sowie Forschungsgruppen. Anwender sind gefragt, diese neue Technologie durch eine beschleunigte Validierung und Akzeptanz umzusetzen. Sie erhalten die einzigartige Chance, ihre Prozesse und Anlagen wettbewerbsfähig zu halten. Kooperativ betriebenen F&E-Zentren und gemeinsam anerkannten Applikationslaboren kommt dafür eine hohe Bedeutung zu.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds.
Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts and thus should be based on “chemical” information. The advances of a fully automated NMR sensor were exploited, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. A commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was integrated to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as , e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
In future, such fully integrated and intelligently interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
The departure from the current automation landscape to next generation automation concepts for the process industry has already begun. Smart functions of sensors simplify their use and enable plug-and-play integration, even though they may appear to be more complex at first sight. Monitoring specific information (i.e., “chemical” such as physico-chemical properties, chemical reactions, etc.) is the key to “chemical” process control.
The talk introduces a smart online NMR sensor module provided in an explosion proof housing as example. This sensor was developed for an intensified industrial process (pharmaceutical lithiation reaction step) funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (www.consens-spire.eu). Due to NMR spectroscopy as an “absolute analytical comparison method”, independent of the matrix, it runs with extremely short set-up times in combination with “modular” spectral models. Such models can simply be built upon pure component NMR spectra within a few hours (i.e., assignment of the NMR signals to the components) instead of tedious calibrations runs.
The talk also generally covers current aspects of high-field and low-field online NMR spectroscopy for reaction monitoring and process control.
Accelerating chemical process development and manufacturing along with quick adaption to changing customer needs means consequent transformation of former batch to continuous (modular) manufacturing processes. These are justified by an improved process control through smaller volumes, better heat transfer, and faster dynamics of the examined reaction systems.
As an example, for such modular process units we present the design and validation of an integrated nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) micro mixer tailor‐made for a desired chemical reaction based on computational modelling. The micro mixer represents an integrated modular production unit as an example for the most important class of continuous reactors. The quantitative online NMR sensor represents a smart process analytical field device providing rapid and non‐invasive chemical composition information without need for calibration. We describe the custom design through computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for the demands of the NMR sensor as well as for the given reaction conditions. The system was validated with an esterification reaction as an example for a chemical reaction process.
Systems utilizing such an online NMR analyser benefits through short development and set‐up times based on “modular” spectral models. Such models can simply be built upon pure component NMR spectra within minutes to a few hours (i.e., assignment of the NMR signals to the components) instead of tedious DoE calibrations runs. We present a range of approaches for the automated spectra analysis moving from statistical approach, (i.e., Partial Least Squares Regression) to physically motivated spectral models (i.e., Indirect Hard Modelling and Quantum Mechanical calculations). The approach was validated for typical industrial reactions, such as hydrogenations or lithiations.
This work wants to show the benefit of NMR spectroscopy as online analytical technique in industrial applications for improving process understanding and efficiency. Especially development and set‐up times based on “modular” data analysis models will enable new production concepts, which are currently discussed with respect to digitization of process industry.
PANIC is the ideal forum for such discussions in the application of NMR spectroscopy and its data analysis to the everyday problems in process industry.
The competitiveness of the process industry is based on ensuring the required product quality while making optimum use of equipment, raw materials and energy. Chemical companies have to find new paths to survive successfully in a changing environment, while also finding more flexible ways of product and process development to bring their products to market more quickly – especially high-quality high-end products like fine chemicals or pharmaceuticals. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these.
One way is knowledge-based production, taking into account all essential equipment, process and regulatory data of plants and laboratories. Today, the potential of this data is often not yet consistently used for a comprehensive understanding of production. Another approach uses flexible and modular chemical plants, which can produce different high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short downtimes between campaigns and reduce the time to market of new products. Digital transformation is enabling completely new production concepts that are being used increasingly. Intensified continuous production plants also allow for difficult to produce compounds.
This contribution aims to encourage a more holistic approach to the digitalization and use of machine-assisted methods in (bio) process engineering by introduction of integrated and networked systems and processes, which have the potential to speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds.
Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts and thus should be based on “chemical” information. The advances of a fully automated NMR sensor were exploited, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. A commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was integrated to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as , e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
In future, such fully integrated and intelligently interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds.
Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts and thus should be based on “chemical” information. The advances of a fully automated NMR sensor were exploited, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. A commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was integrated to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as , e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
In future, such fully integrated and intelligently interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds.
Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts and thus should be based on “chemical” information. The advances of a fully automated NMR sensor were exploited, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. A commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was integrated to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as , e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
In future, such fully integrated and intelligently interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Chemical companies must find new paths to successfully survive in a changing environment. The potential of digital technologies belongs to these. Flexible and modular chemical plants can produce various high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short down-times between campaigns and reduce time to market for new products. Intensified continuous production plants allow for difficult to produce compounds.
Therefore, fully automated “chemical” process control along with real-time quality control are prerequisites to such concepts and thus should be based on “chemical” information. The advances of a fully automated NMR sensor were exploited, using a given pharmaceutical lithiation reaction as an example process within a modular pilot plant. A commercially available benchtop NMR spectrometer was integrated to the full requirements of an automated chemical production environment such as , e.g., explosion safety, field communication, and robust evaluation of sensor data. It was thereof used for direct loop advanced process control and real-time optimization of the process. NMR appeared as preeminent online analytical tool and allowed using a modular data analysis tool, which even served as reliable reference method for further PAT applications.
In future, such fully integrated and intelligently interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can speed up the high-quality production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
Chemical and pharmaceutical companies have to find new paths to survive successfully in a changing environment, while also finding more flexible ways of product and process development to bring their products to market more quickly – especially high-quality high-end products like fine chemicals or pharmaceuticals. A current approach uses flexible and modular chemical production units, which can produce different high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short downtimes between campaigns and reduce the time to market of new products.
NMR spectroscopy appeared as excellent online analytical tool and allowed a modular data analysis approach, which even served as reliable reference method for further Process Analytical Technology (PAT) applications. Using the available datasets, a second data analysis approach based on artificial neural networks (ANN) was evaluated. Therefore, amount of data was augmented to be sufficient for training. The results show comparable performance, while improving the calculation time tremendously. In future, such fully integrated and interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can increase the efficiency of the production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
At the end of the article, ideas for solutions are discussed in order to speed up the implementation of new special products from the point of view of process analytics and to network the existing process chains more closely.
Chemical and pharmaceutical companies have to find new paths to survive successfully in a changing environment, while also finding more flexible ways of product and process development to bring their products to market more quickly – especially high-quality high-end products like fine chemicals or pharmaceuticals. A current approach uses flexible and modular chemical production units, which can produce different high-quality products using multi-purpose equipment with short downtimes between campaigns and reduce the time to market of new products.
NMR spectroscopy appeared as excellent online analytical tool and allowed a modular data analysis approach, which even served as reliable reference method for further Process Analytical Technology (PAT) applications. Using the available datasets, a second data analysis approach based on artificial neural networks (ANN) was evaluated. Therefore, amount of data was augmented to be sufficient for training. The results show comparable performance, while improving the calculation time tremendously. In future, such fully integrated and interconnecting “smart” systems and processes can increase the efficiency of the production of specialty chemicals and pharmaceuticals.