Process Engineering

The consulting services of MME Engineering aim at providing the customer with timely and targeted support in special technical topics. The essential advantage for the customer consists in eliminating the need to develop specialised technical know-how, which can be both time and cost intensive.  The consultation proceeds based on applications and is customised to the specific task and ends with a concluding presentation and documentation of the approach to solving the problem.

MME Engineering is able, due to many years of experience in the industry in the areas of inorganic technology and process engineering to provide professional consulting for its customers. The consulting activity extends across the areas of hydrometallurgy, environmental technologies and acid treatment.

For MME Engineering, basic engineering means that a closed process concept will be developed for any plant or chemical process to be planned. In the centre of this activity is the process diagram to be drafted, which is tailored to the customer’s needs.

At this early phase, there is already a need for particular focus on the practical feasibility of the process. Start-up and shut-down behaviour, safety aspects and the availability of equipment are just a few key examples of points that must be taken into account.

Thanks to the many years experience of the persons involved, MME has the ability to provide solid basic engineering.

In the course of development projects, MME has the option of securing data through laboratory experiments. Through this process, it is possible to replace assumptions with facts at an early stage.

The scope of the engineering task will be clearly defined together with the customer and can include the following points:

• Experiments on laboratory scale
• Drafting P&ID´s
• Thermodynamic calculations
• Mass balancing
• Drafting energy balance sheets
• General dimensioning for processing technologies
• CAPEX / OPEX considerations

Special processes also require high tech construction materials. Hydrometallurgical recycling technologies are based on the digestion of the raw material with acids or bases. By  downstream separation steps pure material fractions can be recovered.  Specialised equipment is used in the technical realisation of such projects. These materials must exhibit high corrosion resistance.

The manipulation of acid or base leachates presents particular demands on the materials and components used. Steel, stainless steel or even steel alloy push their limits under these conditions and are not suitable for use.

Boron-silicate glass, enamel, graphite, titanium in various qualities, niobium, tantalum, silicon carbide, PP, GFK, PVDF, PEEK, PFA are all materials which are adequate to these challenges.

MME Engineering has a tight network of suppliers and manufacturer’s, who make components out of the materials listed above or apply resistant protective coatings. This makes it possible to procure, for example, resistant valves, coatings, pipelines, pumps, heat exchangers, centrifuges, dryers or belt filters, or even only determine the costs of a CAPEX estimate. Moreover, there are contacts with various manufacturers for all possible aggregates, allowing price comparisons.

MME can cover the entire procurement process from the first query to the final negotiation. There is nobusiness connection with the manufacturers for special equipment, which assures independent action in the interest of the customer.

“Try to leave this world a little better than you found it,…”

Quote: Robert Stephenson Smith Baden Powell

The goal of MME Engineering’s R&D activities is to develop technically and economically more efficient process solutions for its customers.

The technicians and engineers at work are qualified and experienced, able to efficiently and effectively complete R&D -projects. MME Engineering has a full-fledged infrastructure beginning with the available of specialised professional literature to analytical and laboratory infrastructure at its disposal. MME Engineering knows how to apply the knowledge they gain through this to process technologies in the course of upscaling.

The technical feasibility studies by MME Engineering demonstrate possible approaches to solutions for a project with respect to the required technologies and their feasibility. In the framework of MME’s work, approaches to solutions are identified and analysed. A significant component of a feasibility study is made up of risk assessment and the identification and evaluation of the prospects for success.

It tests whether the technological approach considered in each case can achieve the required results under the stipulated technical limiting conditions.

In the course of the study it is also possible to illuminate the technical and financial aspects in the form of CAPEX/OPEX estimates.

Finally, MME Engineering works up a comprehensive report during the study, which supports the customer in the next steps. A solid feasibility study be an independent engineering office constitutes a solid source of information for potential partners and Investors.