Auxiliary Process Equipment
Auxiliary Process Equipment

Auxiliary Systems can be used in conjunction with most other CPS products. Such systems include:
- Pressure vessels, reactors, and heat exchangers – Single tanks or Reaction package: small reaction units, totally integrated on skids
- Heating / cooling / cryogenic units: Based on steam or heat transfer fluid, the heating/cooling packages can be very flexible and are reliable. Cryogenic temperatures can be achieved using liquid nitrogen.
- Vacuum systems for reactors as well as for vacuum dryers: From very simple packages, where only the pump is included, to very complex skids where a dry-running vacuum pump is equipped with a booster and pre and post condensers
- Control system: PLC-based for a flexible approach, or DCS for an integrated solution
Pressure Vessels
Pressure vessels are containers designed to hold gases or liquids at a pressure substantially different from ambient pressure. They are at the core of process plants and they can be very simple (e.g. tanks) but can also be very complex (e.g. reactors for nuclear power stations), depending on the application.
Because of the potential danger involved, pressure vessel design and construction are always regulated by external authorities. Each pressure vessel is built with calculation codes and certification procedures in place.

Multipurpose Products: Customized pressure vessel
From a small expansion tank to a large fermenter, from a sanitary-designed heat exchanger to a reactor, we offer a complete range of solutions for pressure vessels in the process industry.
- Tanks
- Reactors
- Fermenters
- Hydrogenators
- Heat exchangers
According to process needs, the production range varies widely:
- Operating volume: From 10 liters to 100 m3
- Contact material: AISI316L, AISI904L, C-22, C-276, coated with elastomers
- Surface finishing: From pickled and passivated to mirror polished
- Sealing system: From stuffing box to lift-off mechanical seal
- Certification: PED, ASME, HP0, SELO
Tanks
Reactors and Fermenters
- The vessel where the reaction happens which provides the necessary heating/cooling
- The agitator, which has different tasks: mixing, improving heat exchange, dispersing a solid inside a liquid, etc.
- The discharge device, which allows for a safe and total product discharge
Vessel geometry can be designed according to DIN28136, as well as according to customer requirements. The agitator can be developed for process parameter optimization. The discharge valve can be chosen from among a very large custom or standard design range.
Heating Jacket
- The half coil (on the bottom head and the body) is most often used. The heating surface area reduction is compensated by the high liquid velocity that improves heat exchange coefficients.
- The jacket is normally used in small reactors, but it can also be used in larger vessels in processes where the heating surface area is important.
- In the case of extreme applications that need a larger heating area surface (typically fermenters), we propose the installation of internal auxiliary batteries.
The optimum solution is always designed according to the customer’s process and can also be a fusion of the above-listed design styles.
Agitators
- The process that leads to the impeller choice
- The vessel size coupled with the impeller style determines the agitator speed and power
- The maintenance approach, which influences the selection of subcomponents including mounting supports, shaft seals, drive systems (motors and gearboxes)
Accessory options that can be installed on tanks
- Heating/cooling coil, for product temperature control
- Manways manually or automatically driven, allowing safe and easy access for maintenance and inspection
- Insulation or sanitary insulation, designed based on process needs and based on different insulation materials like rockwool or foamglass
- Removable supporting legs/saddles for easy installation
- Small side agitators for gentle product mixing
- Zero dead area mushroom discharge valves
- Baffles
- Bottom discharge valves
- Dip pipes
- Spargers
- Internal systems for heat exchange surface improvement

Heat Exchangers
Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers are one of the most popular types of exchangers due to the flexibility of the design that allows for a wide range of pressures and temperatures.
A Shell and Tube Heat Exchanger consists of a number of tubes mounted inside a cylindrical shell.
- Two fluids can exchange heat. One fluid flows over the outside of the tubes while the second fluid flows through the tubes.
- The fluids can be single or dual-phase, and can flow in parallel or in a cross/counter flow arrangement.
We routinely design and produce both standard (according to TEMA) and customized Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers.
Beginning with the customer’s needs, we can thermodynamically and mechanically size the exchanger, using the most common finite elements and parametric software.
Heating/Cooling/Cryogenic Skids
Temperature is one of the most important aspects of the process. In many cases, controlling it means controlling the entire process. Our heating and cooling skids generate a thermal fluid flow, to be used inside process machine heating systems.
The skids are usually based on a steel frame where components are installed:
- Pumps (for water, oil or glycol) pumping the fluid to the heat/cold unit
- Generating units, producing the heat/cold normally produced by heat exchangers or electric heaters
- Controlling valves
- Instruments
Skids can be customized depending on:
- The requested heating power (small skids generating some of the heat)
- The temperature level (from -20 °C to 200 °C from different sources)
- The temperature accuracy
- The reliability of the system

Reactor Cooling & Cryogenic Cooling
Tailor-made and integrated solution for low temperature reactions.
To satisfy the increasing requirements of the process industry for reactions at low temperatures, we have developed cryogenic units for reactor cooling, reaching temperatures as low as -100 °C. The process is based on the cooling of a heat transfer fluid, using liquid nitrogen as the source of cold.
Process
- The heat transfer is carried out on a special cryogenic heat exchanger to obtain the best efficiency and solve the organic ice formation problem
- The unique design of the Polaris heat exchanger eliminates metal thermal stress, and guarantees a longer life for the unit
- The heat transfer fluid is collected in a storage tank and is sent to the reactor heat exchanger with a special centrifugal pump
Advantages
- Customizable: The design is customized based on client performance requirements (operating temperatures, power, etc.) and other site conditions. Also, the heat transfer fluid is selected based on the operating temperature range, customer preferences, availability at the site, and cost.
- Combined Unit: The system can be designed as a combined unit, where heating is associated with cooling. The heating phase can be performed using electric heaters or dedicated heat exchangers (through steam, diathermic oil, or other heating fluids available in the customer’s factory). The unique design offers cost savings by operating with selective partial fluid heating and avoiding sinking energy into heating the entire system.
- Low OPEX: Gas nitrogen produced by liquid nitrogen vaporization can be delivered to the factory network for blanketing or other uses. All the necessary accessories (atmospheric heater, safety pressure valve, low-temperature protection device, etc.) for safe and functional gas nitrogen recovery can be included in the unit.
- Skid-mounted: The plant is skid mounted and is supplied as a packaged unit.
Vacuum Skids
Vacuum dryers are process machines where powders are dried at a low temperature, thanks to the vacuum generated inside the vessel.
The dryer vacuum generating system is influenced by several criteria:
- Required vacuum level (normally directly connected to the drying process)
- Flow that depends on machine size and also on tightness level of the drying system
- Available cooling fluids
- Plant layout
These data inform the design and building process of the vacuum system for the process machines.
