Devices and methods for controlling the properties of chemical species during time-dependent processes. A device includes a reactor for containing one or more chemical species of a time-dependent process, an extraction pump for automatically and continuously extracting an amount of the one or more chemical species from the reactor, one or more detectors for measuring property changes of the one or more extracted chemical species and generating a continuous stream of data related to the one or more property changes to the one or more chemical species during a time interval, and a process controller configured to fit the continuous stream of data to a mathematical function to predict one or more properties of the one or more chemical species at a future time point and make one or more process decisions based on the prediction of one or more properties at the future time point.

A computer implemented method for determining at least one target parameter set for a flow chemistry setup (110) for flow chemistry in slugs is disclosed. The method is a self-learning method. The method comprises the following steps: a) determining at least one process variable by using at least one sensor (122) of a flow chemistry setup (110); b) training of at least one machine-learning model (126) based on the process variable; c) determining the target parameter set by applying an optimizing algorithm in terms of at least one optimization target on the trained machine-learning model (126); d) providing the determined target parameter set and/or considering the determined target parameter set for evaluating a flow chemistry setup (110) and/or for evaluating at least one flow chemistry product.

An actuator is provided that includes a housing, a linear actuating shaft disposed within the housing, a piston coupled with the shaft, and a fluid barrier disposed on an end of the shaft and encircled by the piston. The piston is movable longitudinally between an extended configuration and a retracted configuration upon rotation of the shaft. The fluid barrier engages an inner surface of the piston preventing fluid communication across the fluid barrier. The fluid barrier has a shaft engaging side which receives the shaft and a fluid facing side. A cavity is formed between the piston and the fluid facing side and expands when the piston moves to the extended configuration and contracts when the piston moves to the retracted configuration. A port is disposed in the piston and extends from the cavity to external the piston thereby permitting fluid communication between the cavity and external the piston.

A synthesis machine for preparation of a targeted inorganic material for recommended synthesis by a computer program that determines optimal solid-state methods for synthesis of an inorganic material. The computational method involves inputting a target inorganic material, querying structural data and thermodynamic data for the target inorganic material, enumerating possible synthetic reactions to construct a synthetic reaction database with a viable subset of the possible synthetic methods. The routine generates a nucleation metric and competition metric that are combined to provide recommended synthetic methods. The output for each of the recommended syntheses are input into a robotic synthesis machine where the delivery of reactants, reaction conditions, and analysis of extent of reaction, and product quality is controlled by a processor.

Devices and methods for determining the cumulative distribution of a polymer property in a reactor without physical separation of reaction subcomponents. The device includes a means of measuring an instantaneous property of the polymers being produced in a reaction vessel a plurality of times during a polymerization reaction as well as a means of determining the corresponding change in polymer concentration in the reaction vessel between measurements of the instantaneous polymer property The device also includes a means of computing a statistical distribution appropriate to the polymer characteristic and applying the statistical distribution to a recently measured instantaneous value of the polymer property so as to have an instantaneous distribution of the polymer property and a means of adding together the instantaneous distributions of the polymer property in order to obtain the cumulative distribution of the polymer property in the reactor.

Assemblies and methods to enhance control of a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) processing assembly associated with a refining operation, may include supplying a hydrocarbon feedstock to one or more first processing units associated with the refining operation. The assemblies and methods also may include conditioning a hydrocarbon feedstock and unit material samples, and analyzing the samples via one or more spectroscopic analyzers. The assemblies and methods further may include prescriptively controlling, via one or more FCC process controllers based at least in part on the hydrocarbon feedstock properties and the unit material properties, the FCC processing assembly, so that the prescriptively controlling results in enhancing accuracy of target content of materials produced by the FCC processing assembly, thereby to more responsively control the FCC processing assembly to achieve material outputs that more accurately and responsively converge on target properties.

Devices and methods for determining the cumulative distribution of a polymer property in a reactor without physical separation of reaction subcomponents. The device includes a means of measuring an instantaneous property of the polymers being produced in a reaction vessel a plurality of times during a polymerization reaction as well as a means of determining the corresponding change in polymer concentration in the reaction vessel between measurements of the instantaneous polymer property. The device also includes a means of computing a statistical distribution appropriate to the polymer characteristic and applying the statistical distribution to a recently measured instantaneous value of the polymer property so as to have an instantaneous distribution of the polymer property and a means of adding together the instantaneous distributions of the polymer property in order to obtain the cumulative distribution of the polymer property in the reactor.

Methods for simultaneously determining the concentrations of transition metal compounds in solutions containing two or more transition metal compounds are described. Polymerization reactor systems providing real-time monitoring and control of the concentrations of the transition metal components of a multicomponent catalyst system are disclosed, as well as methods for operating such polymerization reactor systems, and for improving methods of preparing the multicomponent catalyst system.

Methods for simultaneously determining the concentrations of transition metal compounds in solutions containing two or more transition metal compounds are described. Polymerization reactor systems providing real-time monitoring and control of the concentrations of the transition metal components of a multicomponent catalyst system are disclosed, as well as methods for operating such polymerization reactor systems, and for improving methods of preparing the multicomponent catalyst system.

A synthesis machine for preparation of a targeted inorganic material for recommended synthesis by a computer program that determines optimal solid-state methods for synthesis of an inorganic material. The computational method involves inputting a target inorganic material, querying structural data and thermodynamic data for the target inorganic material, enumerating possible synthetic reactions to construct a synthetic reaction database with a viable subset of the possible synthetic methods. The routine generates a nucleation metric and competition metric that are combined to provide recommended synthetic methods. The output for each of the recommended syntheses are input into a robotic synthesis machine where the delivery of reactants, reaction conditions, and analysis of extent of reaction, and product quality is controlled by a processor.