IPCI
R&D ACCOMPLISHMENTS
The
Research and Development accomplishments of the company in aqueous hydrotreating
and processing of sugars and sugar products include:
Research leading to 5 process patents covering
continuous hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis of sugar and starch to sugar
alcohols and industrial oxy-chemicals
Acquisition of some 17 separations patents covering
use of azeotropic and extractive distillation techniques for specific glycol,
alcohol and polyol separations
Design, construction and successful technical
demonstration of its hydrogenolysis technology in a 5,000 metric ton per year
pilot plant installed at a major U.S. corn wet mill (ADM)
Novel use of soluble co-catalysts to increase
product slate selectivity
Independent completion by a major U.S.
Architect/Engineering firm of a detailed conceptual design for a 100,000 mtpy
commercial IPCI cane sugar juice-to-polyols production plant
Conceptual design of a bulk flash separations
technique for isolating and recycling non-volatile unconverted sugars and
sugar-alcohols with minimized exposure to carbohydrate-degrading or
caramelizing, excessively high separations temperatures
Development of high performance, durable,
reasonable cost, non-noble metal catalysts systems; and arrangements with a
major commercial catalyst manufacturer to make the IPCI catalysts available in
full commercial production to IPCI clients
Increase in performance of IPCI HC-1 catalyst
system to enable >1600 hours of operation without need for periodic catalyst
regeneration
Development of a high specificity catalyst system,
together with other high-potential catalyst developments by a National
Laboratory under a CRADA with IPCI
An
extensive library of catalyst screening and performance data for commercial and
proprietary catalyst systems of potential use in the IPCI process
Exploratory research results from the use of low
cost carbohydrate feedstocks from biomass and waste carbohydrate streams for
both 5- and 6- carbon sugars and anhydrans
Severe-condition reactor and catalyst system
capable of converting many heavy polyols and related dehydrated compounds to
desired EG, PG and mixed alcohols products.
CURRENT AND
PLANNED R & D ACTIVITIES
Participation in development efforts to produce
pure monomer sugars from cane sugar processing byproducts
Pilot plant operation of flexible hydrotreating
pilot plant in conjunction with South African and Icelandic industrial entities
to further broaden and demonstrate the IPCI hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis
technology
Site specific engineering Part A design of 100,000
mtpy IPCI Type 3 (hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis) sugar-to-polyols plant for
two non-U.S. locations
Investigation of higher activity non-noble metal
catalyst system recently identified by IPCI
Continued marketing of IPCI's hydrotreating
technologies, with emphasis on locales where IPCI process polyol products are
not otherwise manufactured in-country, and where favorable supply of sugars is
available, and where energy cost and supply advantages exist.
Continued development of IPCI concepts
for producing tetrahydrofuran dimethanol.
Test of advantageous IPCI separation techniques
for isosorbide.
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