The present disclosure describes a method of producing a branched fatty acid or alkyl esters thereof. The method includes subjecting an oleic acid composition comprising at least about 30% of at least one of oleic acid, linoleic acid, or a combination thereof (e.g., at least about 30% oleic acid), to an isomerization reaction in the presence of water and at least one protonated zeolite isomerization catalyst to produce branched unsaturated fatty acids or alkyl esters thereof.

An apparatus for processing a biomass material includes an evaporator and a dryer. The evaporator includes a vertically orientated evaporator housing with a heatable casing, which encloses a rotationally symmetric evaporation chamber and a drivable evaporator rotor shaft, including a central evaporator rotor shaft body and wiping units. The wiping unit includes wiping elements designed for wiping inside the evaporator housing casing. The dryer includes a housing with heatable casing and encloses a drying chamber and a drivable dryer rotor shaft for distributing the biomass material inside the casing and conveying the biomass material toward the dryer outlet and includes a central dryer rotor shaft body and rotating elements over the circumference thereof, and rigidly mounted on the dryer rotor shaft body.

A wastewater storage bucket contains a body. The body including: an outlet, an inlet, and a motor configured to drive a stirrer to rotate. The stirrer is vertically inserted into a bottom of an inner wall of the body and is configured to rotatably stir the waste liquids evenly. The body also includes a circular tube fixed on a top of the inner wall thereof, multiple spray heads defined on the circular tube and configured to molecularize the waste liquids, multiple heaters arranged on the outer wall of the body away from the motor and configured to heat the water liquids in the body, and a discharge orifice defined on a center of a bottom of the inner wall of the body and configured to discharge the waste liquids.

Methods and industrial scale set-ups for manufacturing spray-dried powders are provided. During the process, a solvent is used. The process is done batchwise such that the emulsification mass ratio is low when removal of the solvent is started. Preferred solvents are isopropyl acetate and ethyl acetate.

A system for converting biosolids to fertilizer comprising: a storage tank for holding biosolids; a plurality of conveyors for conveying the biosolids, from the storage tank to a pressurized screener, then to a centrifuge, then to a feeding chamber, to deliver the biosolids to a nip feeder and then to first and second dryer drums operatively positioned to rotate and draw biosolids into the nip, first and second scrapers are operably positioned to remove biosolids from the first and second dryer drums as they rotate, the first and second dryer drums are selectively heated with steam provided by a boiler.

An automated distillation system includes a distillation process under vacuum, a sampling device for extracting a vapor sample of distillate, a gas analyzer for measuring a property of the vapor sample, and a controller for analyzing the property and appropriately adjusting one or more parameters of the system, such as a level of vacuum, in response to the analysis.

A multi-functional slurry processing system (VARCOR) and associated methods is disclosed. The present examples provide a multi-functional slurry processing system incorporating systems and methods for separating liquid and solid components in slurries. In particular the systems and methods described herein produce clean water, dried solids, and potential concentration of desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. At least one example of the multi-functional slurry processing system provides a self-contained processing facility configured to efficiently convert high water-content slurries into its constituent solid and liquid fractions and subsequently generating and collecting clean water and concentrating desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. The multi-functional slurry processing system advantageously applies thermodynamic principles in a system which may include various combinations of a preheater, a degassing unit, a dryer, a steam filter, a compressor, a concentrating tower, and a condensation unit.

A method for reducing mineral oil content in edible vegetable oil includes the following steps: carrying out the molecular distillation on the edible vegetable oil having mineral oil exceedance; mixing water, the vegetable oil and an emulsifier with stirring to form an unstable emulsion; standing the emulsion for 1 to 5 hours for layer separation to form oil phase and emulsified phase, or oil phase, emulsified phase and water phase, and then separating different phases; freezing the oil phase after stirring, and then treating the oil phase with high-voltage pulsed electric field followed by ultrafiltration to obtain a vegetable oil I; subjecting the emulsion phase to low-temperature plasma treatment and then to high-voltage pulsed electric field treatment to break emulsion, drawing the upper oil phase for ultrafiltration followed by molecular distillation to obtain a vegetable oil II.

A multi-functional slurry processing system (VARCOR) and associated methods is disclosed. The present examples provide a multi-functional slurry processing system incorporating systems and methods for separating liquid and solid components in slurries. In particular the systems and methods described herein produce clean water, dried solids, and potential concentration of desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. At least one example of the multi-functional slurry processing system provides a self-contained processing facility configured to efficiently convert high water-content slurries into its constituent solid and liquid fractions and subsequently generating and collecting clean water and concentrating desirable constituents with a boiling point lower than water. The multi-functional slurry processing system advantageously applies thermodynamic principles in a system which may include various combinations of a preheater, a degassing unit, a dryer, a steam filter, a compressor, a concentrating tower, and a condensation unit.