Page 139 - Principles of Catalyst Development
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CATALYST  PREPARATION                                            127
           6.7.6.  Competition and  Brief Pay-Out Periods

                Competition  within  the industry is  very  intense.  When a  new  catalyst
           emerges,  there  are  usually  similar  developments  not  far  behind.  Patent
           coverage is  important but becomes confused very quickly.  New areas bring
           a  flood  of patent applications, which  are only clarified after a  long period
           of litigation.  In  the  meantime,  the  frontrunners  attempt  to  capitalize  on
           their  advantage.  Establishing  a  strong  market  position  I~arly  is  essential,
           since a new venture has about three to four years before competitive pressure
           is  felt.



           6.8.  CATALYST  FORMING

               The only  processing step not yet considered is  catalyst forming,  since
           this is only practiced in commercial manufacturing. Laboratory usage does
           not  normally  include  particle  formation,  powder samples  being  sufficient
           for  most  purposes.  Indeed,  formulation  techniques  are  very  difficult  to
           duplicate on a  small  scale and it  is  better to  leave these toO  the experts.  We
           consider here the  principal  factors  in  the  production of common  forms  of
           particles.


           6.8. I.  Pellets

                Pellet or pill  formation  is  illustrated in  Fig.  6.25. The process is  essen-
           tially  powder  compression  in  a  pelleting  press.  Powder  is  poured  into  a



                          FLOWING       PRESSURE
                          POWDER

                         II







                                                        II


                                                    EJECTED  PELLET
                                Figure 6.25.  Production of pellets.
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