Increasing global competition, volatile markets and the demand for individual products challenge companies in almost all business sectors and require innovative solutions. In the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, these include modular design, the integration of several unit operations in one apparatus and the development of small-scale, versatile multipurpose plants. An example for such a modular, integrated and small-scale system is the belt crystallizer. This device combines the process steps cooling crystallization, solid-liquid separation and contact drying in a single plant. The basis of the apparatus is a belt filter in which the vacuum trays below the filter medium are replaced by temperature control and filtration units. Due to identical dimensions, it is possible to arrange the individual functional units in any order, which in turn allows a high degree of flexibility and rapid adaptation to customer requirements. Within the scope of the publication, the commissioning of the belt crystallizer takes place. First of all, the general functionality of the plant concept is demonstrated using sucrose as model system. Further experiments show that the particle size and the distribution width of the manufactured crystals can be specifically influenced by the selected process parameters, e.g., temperature profile during cooling and residence time.

The combustion of metal fuels as energy carriers in a closed-cycle carbon-free process is a promising approach for reducing CO2 emissions in the energy sector. For a possible large-scale implementation, the influence of process conditions on particle properties and vice versa has to be well understood. In this study, the influence of different fuel–air equivalence ratios on particle morphology, size and degree of oxidation in an iron–air model burner is investigated by means of small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering, laser diffraction analysis and electron microscopy. The results show a decrease in median particle size and an increase in the degree of oxidation for leaner combustion conditions. The difference of 1.94 μm in median particle size between lean and rich conditions is twentyfold greater than the expected amount and can be connected to an increased intensity of microexplosions and nanoparticle formation for oxygen-rich atmospheres. Furthermore, the influence of the process conditions on the fuel usage efficiency is investigated, yielding efficiencies of up to 0.93. Furthermore, by choosing a suitable particle size range of 1 to 10 μm, the amount of residual iron content can be minimized. The results emphasize that particle size plays a key role in optimizing this process for the future.

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