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The use of vacuum pumps in the fine chemicals industry
Fine chemical products, used as raw materials in the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and agro-chemical sectors, differ from basic chemical products due to their high purity.
Fine chemistry involves multiple processes of synthesis and purification, which involve use of vacuum technology. These include reaction, drying, distillation and crystallization.
Reaction
Chemical reactions are widely used in the synthesis of compounds, where the use of vacuum is required to avoid high temperatures, remove oxygen and secondary products. The pressure at which the reactions are carried out is normally around 10/20 mbara.
For such applications, a vacuum pump with a nominal flow rate between 80 and 380 m3/h is often sufficient. In this context, the most suitable solution is represented by Saurus939 in the double stage version, thanks to high final vacuum volumes and reliability in any working environment.
Some application examples of the Italvacuum vacuum pump can be found in the processes of:
- compounds intended for the agro-chemical sector, the context in which Saurus939 is used in the special version ATEX zone 0 / marking II 1 GD.
- additives of various kinds, i.e for the food and lubricants sector, where the Saurus939 piston pump is the only applicable technology due to the presence of aggressive solvents and large quantities of powders.
Drying
Vacuum drying takes place immediately after centrifugation or filtration. It is a process in which the moisture present in a solid mass is removed, introducing heat from the outside. This operation is carried out under vacuum to dry thermo-sensitive or thermolabile substances at low temperatures.
In the field of fine chemicals, the vacuum drying process is of the discontinuous type and can be carried out with different technologies depending on the product.
Distillation
Vacuum distillation is a process by which the pressure above a liquid mixture is reduced below the vapor pressure, causing the evaporation of the more volatile liquid. This process is adopted when the liquids to be distilled have low volatility (Teb> 150 ° C) or when they can undergo a chemical decomposition transformation at temperatures close to their atmospheric boiling point. Vacuum distillation is also used to remove impurities from thermo-sensitive materials, such as aromas.
The pressure at which the distillations are carried out can vary according to the compounds to be separated, from values close to absolute vacuum up to 60 mbara. Vacuum distillation columns generally have a volume between 5 m3 and 20 m3. For these applications it is advisable to combine a root compressor with the Saurus939 vacuum pump to increase the nominal flow rate and lower the limit pressure.
Some application areas of the Italvacuum vacuum pump can be found in the vacuum distillation of fragrances and aromas of vegetable origin, intended for the cosmetics market and the food industry.
Crystallization
It is a process through which a solid compound is obtained by vacuum precipitation starting from a solution. The operation is usually of a discontinuous type. The crystallization cycles last from 2 to 8 hours.
The pressure at which the crystallizations are carried out can vary from values close to absolute vacuum up to 30 mbara. Vacuum crystallizers generally have a volume between 1 m3 and 4 m3. For such applications it is often essential to supply the Saurus939 vacuum pump combined with the root compressor.
Thanks to the uncontaminated vacuum and the continuous recovery of the extracted solvents, the Italvacuum vacuum pump allows to preserve the total purity of the final product.
