R&D, Product Testing and Process Evaluation

The Test Station

TEST AND DEVELOPMENT
Niro has many years of experience in adapting a wide range of technologies and processes into viable solutions for our customers. The Test & Development Department also hosts an ongoing programme, which determines the proper use of emerging technologies and develops them further. Most of the staff provides service to our sales divisions and their customers at the test station and associated analytical laboratory, while a smaller team carries out long term development projects.

TEST STATION
The test station, located at Niro A/S in Soeborg, Denmark, is one of the best-equipped and most comprehensive facilities in the world for testing custumers' products on process equipment within Niro's inventory. More than 35 different pilot plants are available for feasibility studies and pilot scale testing of various processes used in the manufacture of chemical, dairy, food and pharmaceutical products. Samples of a few grams up to several hundred kilograms per hour can be processed.

Experienced personnel co-operate directly with our customers during pilot trials to determine the optimum process conditions by simultaneously analysing the test results in our laboratory.

The test station can be contacted through one of the sales divisons.



THE MAIN ACTIVITIES OF THE TEST STATION INCLUDE:

• Feasibility testing, to evaluate whether a product can be dried, agglomerated, extracted, concentrated etc. and to determine equipment suitable for pilot tests
• Pilot tests, to provide basic design data for drying of new or existing products, optimise process conditions for small scale dryers, and produce samples for market analysis
• Laboratory analyses, for evaluation of product quality before and after processing
  

FEASIBILITY TESTING
Niro investigates a product sample supplied by the customer and determines the first draft layout of a suitable process. This is subsequently confirmed through trials in our pilot plant. The sample can be a solution, slurry, paste, filter cake etc. or a powder, either as raw material or as a reference product indicating the properties of the final product.

The investigation of the product consists partly of a laboratory analysis, partly of an evaluation of the product properties. The laboratory analysis is focused on total solids content, viscosity and particle size distribution. The product properties are described qualitatively in terms of droplet formation, pumpability, and expected behaviour during the drying process. Niro uses this evaluation as basis for recommending the appropriate atomization method, maximum solids content in the feed, and other process related data.

PILOT TESTS
Pilot scale testing may serve several objectives:

• Investigating if a product can be produced according to the customer's requirements / specification
• Providing our sales division with basic data for scale-up to industrial size
• Production of samples for the further investigation by the customer
• Small scale production of material for market analysis, approval etc.
• Process or equipment development
  

Before the test work can begin, the customer will agree with the Niro sales engineer and test engineer upon the pilot plant size and configuration to be used. Product requirements and safety aspects of product handling also need to be clarified. Finally a test date or period must be agreed upon.

Pilot scale testing comprises the following steps:

• Installation and preparation of pilot plant
• Test work, discussions, and evaluation of results and product samples
• Cleaning of pilot plant
  

Before departure from the test station the customer participates in a meeting, where a preliminary conclusion is agreed upon and product samples handed over, if required.

The final step is the compilation of a report with relevant data from the tests. This test report provides the customer with the basis needed for evaluating the prospects, and the Niro sales division with the data it needs to scale up the process, finalise a proposal, and establish guarantee conditions regarding capacity, energy consumption, product quality, and level of emission rates.

Test work is normally conducted at the Niro test station in Soeborg, near Copenhagen, but can also be carried out at other locations with access to more suitable equipment for the actual process (e.g. larger scale plants) or better possibilities for materials handling (e.g. according to GMP).

Niro's representatives during test work are typically a sales engineer, a test engineer, one or two plant operators, and staff of the analytical laboratory. An electrical and a mechanical workshop are part of the test station.

Test work is normally conducted during the day hours. In special cases shift operation may be organised.

The majority of cases involve a single pilot plant. More complete process lines can be made available when appropriate, for example for:
Instant coffee: From pre-treatment of beans over extraction, aroma distillation, concentration, spray drying and agglomeration.
Dairy products: Mixing, pasteurisation, evaporation, homogenisation and spray drying.

Our facilities comprise more than 35 pilot plants and a variety of auxiliary equipment.

SPRAY DRYING AND SPRAY COOLING

• Rotary atomizer operation
• Nozzle atomization (pressure nozzles, two-fluid nozzles, combinations)
• Cyclones, bag filter, wet scrubber for collection of product and cleaning of outlet air
• Co-current, counter-current and mixed configurations
• With integrated fluid beds (Fluidized Spray Dryer - FSDTM, COMPACT DRYERTM).
• With integrated filter (IFDTM Dryer)
• With integrated belt dryer (FILTERMAT® dryer)
• Closed cycle / open cycle operation
• Water based or organic solvent based feeds
• Atmospheric air or nitrogen as drying medium
• Evaporative capacity from a few grams up to more than 100 kg per hour
  

FLUID BED PROCESSING

• Drying, cooling and de-dusting
• Static fluid beds
• Vibrating fluid beds (VIBRO FLUIDIZER®).
• Pressurised steam fluid bed dryers
• Open cycle / closed cycle
• Atmospheric air / nitrogen as drying medium
• Sizes from a few square centimetres to two square meters
  

OTHER DRYING PROCESSES

• SWIRL FLUIDIZERTM (drying of filter cakes)
• Flash dryer
  

AGGLOMERATION / GRANULATION

• Coffee rewet agglomerator
• Diary products agglomerator with lecithination
• High Efficiency Compactor (HECTM)
• Tumbler de-dusters (V-Blender, Zig-Zag®).
• Fusing / grinding process
  

CONCENTRATION

• Falling film evaporator.
• Freeze concentration and membrane filtration (can be arranged)
  

EXTRACTION AND RELATED PROCESSES

• Battery extractor
• Continuous counter-current screw extractors
  • Atmospheric operation
  • Pressurised operation
  • Water or organic solvents
• Aroma distillation equipment

VARIOUS EQUIPMENT

Pumps, tanks, heating facilities, centrifuges, grinders, milling equipment, sieves, filters etc.

LABORATORY ANALYSES

The analytical laboratory is fully equipped with state of the art instruments for product quality analyses.

The customer and our experienced laboratory personnel will discuss the results of the analyses of the product samples obtained during the pilot plant trials

The properties most frequently analysed are particle size distribution, bulk density, moisture content, photomicroscopic analysis, flowability and hygroscopicity.

A wide range of apparatus is available for standard and customised analyses: Malvern Mastersizer, Gas Chromatography (GC), Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Differential Scanning Calorimetri (DSC), Atomic Absorption (AAS), High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM).

DEVELOPMENT

INTERNAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
Internal development projects represent a main activity for the development team of Niro A/S. Such projects are by nature confidential. They are carried out by project teams comprising specialists in for example process engineering, mechanical design, product testing, field testing etc. Projects are aimed at both process and equipment development.

DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS WITH CUSTOMERS
Niro A/S development projects are always directed towards meeting industrial challenges. And even if they start as internal laboratory work, they often expand into industrial scale trials with involvement of customers as a natural step. Niro A/S has a long history of fruitful collaboration with customers on developing or adapting technology to specific products. As a general rule such projects are covered by confidentiality agreements.

DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS WITH SUPPLIERS AND INVENTORS
Niro is the leader in spray drying technology, commercially as well as technically. This position has been achieved through dedicated development of the essential technologies and collection of experience. Niro A/S, however, does not in any way exclude collaboration with external sources of know-how and equipment. Many examples exist to demonstrate how spray drying technology has been improved through contact with suppliers and inventors. Two examples:

Over the last two decades Niro A/S developed its fluid bed plate technology in co-operation with a trusted supplier. The latest step in this process is the sanitary, non-sifting plate called the BUBBLE PLATETM covered by patents.

Niro A/S is developing the laminar flow rotary atomizer, invented by Professor Peter Walzel of Dortmund University and covered by patents. The ability of this atomizer to produce narrow droplet size distributions looks very promising within several industries.

CO-OPERATION WITH UNIVERSITIES AND RESEARCH INSTITUTES
Niro A/S has a well-established network of contacts with universities and research institutes. One recent example of co-operation in this group is the joint program with the CHEC Research Centre, Department of Chemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark, through which Dr. Marcus G. Frey achieved his Ph.D. degree in January 2001 under the Industrial Ph.D. Program. The title of Dr. Frey's dissertation is "Product Recovery from Spray Dryers". The project received financial support from the Danish Academy of Technical Sciences.

JOINT DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS WITH EXTERNAL FUNDING
Niro A/S has an open and positive attitude towards participation in Joint Development Projects with full or partial external funding such as projects sponsored by the European Commission.

The following EU-projects had Niro A/S as a partner:

Program: Standards Measurement and Testing programme
Project Name: Explosive atmospheres: Risk assessment of unit operations and equipment (RASE)
Project ID: SMT4-CT97-2169
Partners INBUREX Consultinggesellschaft für Explosionsschutz und Anlage nsicherheit mbH, Germany
HSE, Health and Safety Executive, United Kingdom
FSA Forschungsgesellschaft für angewandte Systemsicherheit und Arbeitsmedizin e.V.,Germany
INERIS Institut National de l'Environnement Industriel et des Risques, France
CMR Christian Michelsen Research AS, Norway
Niro A/S, Soeborg, Denmark
Period: December 1997-May 2000

Program: Joule III
Project Name: Energy Efficient, Intensified Spray Drying
Project ID JOE3-CT97-0086 (DG 12 - WSMN)
Partners Bayer AG, Leverkusen, Germany
Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine, London, UK
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Rouen, France
National Technical University of Athens, Greece
Cranfield University, School of Mechanical Engineering, UK
Niro A/S, Soeborg, Denmark
Period: January 1998-Janu ary 2001