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SupaClean
Multinational Pharmaceutical API Manufacturer
Capture of Palladium on Carbon (Pd/C) Catalyst
Spain
Elimination of operator exposure to catalyst and solvents
Pharmaceutical
Catalysts are used extensively to initiate and promote the chemical reactions required to synthesise new chemical entities in the pharmaceutical industry. Following their use, they have to be removed from the fluid stream and disposed of. From both an environmental and cost perspective, it is prudent to implement strategies to reclaim as much of the rare metals ( Palladium, Platinum, Rhodium and Ruthenium) as possible.
How many companies are actively engaged in reclaiming these rare metals is difficult to ascertain, but it is definitely a practice that will have more focus in the near future as companies show commitment to developing more sustainable production practices.
We have recently been working closely with a number of pharmaceutical companies engaged in developing processes to capture catalyst. The focus has been on increased health and safety for the operators in addition to guaranteeing high efficiency catalyst capture.
The method by which the catalyst is removed from the pharmaceutical intermediate is dependant on the form of catalyst. They are typically divided into either heterogeneous or homogeneous form. In this case study we are dealing with heterogeneous catalysts that can be removed by physical filtration.
Heterogeneous catalysts are solid catalysts used in reactions where the reactants are in a different phase, typically liquid. These are favoured due to the relative ease of separation from the reaction mixtures.
Once used in the synthesis, the catalyst needs to be removed for subsequent disposal or recycling in a safe and efficient way. Spent palladium catalyst can pose a number of health and safety risks such as
Traditional methods for recovering or capturing spent catalysts include, but are not limited to, manual plate filters, filter presses, bags or lenticular cell filters.
The main problem with these technologies is potential operator exposure once the catalyst has been captured. So how do you capture the catalyst and remove it from the process while minimising or eliminating operator exposure?
This particular process used a Palladium on Carbon (Pd/C) catalyst (5 % wt. loading on an activated carbon matrix). This is supplied wet (50% water), then mixed with Methanol for use in the reaction vessel.
The customer traditionally used filter bags to capture the catalyst, but this method had inherent associated health and safety issues. Filter change outs increased the risk of operator exposure and made subsequent re-packaging for off-site processing complicated.
The SupaClean filter system was introduced in place of the existing bag filter design. It is designed specifically to eliminate operator exposure. It also has the additional benefit of simplifying the onward handling and transportation of the catalyst for subsequent recovery of the valuable palladium.
Working closely with the customer resulted in the manufacture of a specially modified SupaClean system, utilising 7 off 20" SupaSpun II filters in a 30" length SupaClean housing. The additional free volume available allowed up to 3 kg of concentrated catalyst slurry to be retained.
The video below shows the retained catalyst being removed from the SupaClean housing.
The SupaClean system provides an elegant solution to improve the health and safety of catalyst removal.
For more detailed information on the product click here SupaClean.
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