Design of simulated moving bed chromatography based on asynchronous shifts

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Lutz Tobiska
• Subject Area: Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering
• Term: from 2002 to 2006
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5469259

In recent years continuous chromatographical processes have attained an increasing interest in the production of pure chemical components in particular in the pharmaceutical industry. Based on the true moving bed process the simulated moving bed (SMB) process with a simultaneous shift of the inlet and outlet points in a multicolumn system has been investigated and successfully implemented in practice. However, the traditional SMB process exhibits several disadvantages which could be avoided by a more flexible regime of shifting the inlet and outlet positions at different moments during the time intervall. To find an optimal process regime for the SMB with asynchronous shift, a detailed mathematical model based on the numerical solution of the underlying partial differential equations and the application of advanced methods of discrete mathematics and integer programming is needed. The mathematical model and solution strategies will be verified by performing selected experiments using a partly available lab scale SMB unit.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 468: Methods from Discrete Mathematics for the Synthesis and Control of Chemical Processes
• Participating Person: Professor Dr.-Ing. Andreas Seidel-Morgenstern