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.

The present disclosure relates to a method for continuously manufacturing an ester-based composition and a manufacturing system therefor, the method improving a manufacturing yield by optimizing process variables of each reactor of a reaction unit in which a plurality of reactors are connected in series.

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.

By this invention processes are provided for the conversion of carbohydrate to ethylene glycol by retro-aldol catalysis and sequential hydrogenation using control methods having at least one of acetol (hydroxyacetone) and a tracer as inputs.

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.

A material synthesis apparatus may include a synthesis device configured to perform a synthesis of a material of a target product; a communication interface configured to receive a first synthesis method of the target product, the first synthesis method being calculated by an external apparatus using a previously trained synthesis prediction model; and a processor configured to: determine first commands for synthesizing the target product based on the first synthesis method, schedule an order in which the first commands are executed, and control the synthesis device based on the scheduled order.

A test system comprising a reactor having a fluid circuit and a test zone for an item under test. A plurality of control zones are included in the fluid circuit for controlling parameters of the fluid in accordance with control information. A control system receives input data specifying test values for the fluid parameters, predicts the behaviour of the fluid using the input data and a mathematical model of the reactor, calculates control information based on the predicted fluid behaviour, and communicates the control information to the control zones. The system can simulate transient test conditions by selective use of fluid evacuation and dilution, and by use of temperature and flow bypass circuits.

A variation in the performance value of a polymer being manufactured can be reduced. A prediction device (10A) that, in manufacturing of a polymer, predicts a performance value indicating performance of the polymer in a polymerization tank after a raw material is fed, and may include: an acquisition unit (111) that acquires, as a prediction observation value, an observation value observed, in current manufacturing of the polymer, as a value related to the manufacturing of the polymer; and a prediction unit (112) that predicts the performance value of the polymer being currently manufactured at a predetermined timing, from the prediction observation value acquired by the acquisition unit, by using a relation between an observation value acquired in past manufacturing of the same type of polymer as the polymer, and a performance value of the polymer at the predetermined timing in the past manufacturing.

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.

Systems and methods associated with biomass decomposition are generally described. Certain embodiments are related to adjusting a flow rate of a fluid comprising oxygen into a reactor in which biomass is decomposed. The adjustment may be made, at least in part, based upon a measurement of a characteristic of the reactor and/or a characteristic of the biomass. Certain embodiments are related to cooling at least partially decomposed biomass. The biomass may be cooled by flowing a gas over an outlet conduit in which the biomass is cooled, and then directing the gas to a reactor after it has flowed over the outlet conduit. Certain embodiments are related to systems comprising a reactor and an outlet conduit configured such that greater than or equal to 75% of its axially projected cross-sectional area is occupied by a conveyor. Certain embodiments are related to systems comprising a reactor comprising an elongated compartment having a longitudinal axis arranged substantially vertically and an outlet conduit comprising a conveyor.