A REPORT ON IN-PLANT TRAINING AT

(FACT), Udyogamandal

Submitted by

HAILIN .K. BENNET

CIM17ME027, B-Tech (2017-2018)
Mechanical Engineering
Cochin Institute of Science and Technology,
Ettapilly, Mannathur, Muvattupuzha,
Ernakulam, Kerala-686 723

Training Period: 23.05.2018-29.05.2018

 ABSTRACT

I underwent an in-plant training to acquaint myself for a period of one week from
June 23rd to June 29th, 2018 to get an industrial exposure in a practical aspect of
technical implementation. During the course of study I was able to interact freely
with the officials and other employees in the plant and fetch maximum relevant
information from them. I also got an opportunity to visit the work area and get a
experience in working and maintenance on various industrial devices.

The training helped me to get an idea about the various manufacturing

processes and the machinery which are used in the plant. I also got familiarized
with various large scale compressors, pumps and distribution systems which play
the most crucial role in manufacturing process, controlling various processes and
distribution and transportation of chemicals in a chemical industry.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to

all those who have helped me throughout this in-plant training. It gives me
immense pleasure to acknowledge all those who have rendered encouragement and
support for the successful completion of work.

First of all, I would like to thank my institution- Cochin Institute of Science

and Technology, for allowing me to proceed with the in plant training.

I place my sincere thanks to Mr. K Vijayan AMG (Training&Dev) of FACT

Training department, for permitting me to do the training at FACT.

I would also like to thank Mr. R Dileep DGM(Mech) Petro/AC, Mr. George
Varghese AGM(Mech) H&U, Mr. M O George SMM(Mech) A&L,
Mr. Harikumar AMM(Mech) H&U, Mr. Selva Muthu AMM(Mech) A&L for
giving there valuable time in guiding and sharing their knowledge with me.

I express my hearty thanks to all The Employees of THE FERTILISERS AND

CHEMICALS TRAVANCORE LIMITED for their constant support during the
entire training.

FACT- An Introduction
Man’s history is replete with revolutions, responsible for molding his system
of thought and shaping his modes of living. Revolutions have, more often than not,
emerged out of crisis-situations it was one such crisis situation that guided the
enlightened perception of a far sighted visionary to form FACT. Yes! The
FERTILISER AND CHEMICALS TRAVANCORELIMITED-popularly known as
FACT-was indeed a revolution when it was established as the first large scale
fertilizer factory in the country. Since then, it has played a major role in creating
fertilizer consciousness among our farmers, and giving a positive direction to the
modernization of agriculture in India. And that, of course is an interesting story-a
story of never ending challenges and constructive responses.

The History
The 1940,s were a time of critical food shortage in our country. The traditional
approach to cultivation was not of much help in finding a solution to this problem.
And nitrogenous fertilizer had not yet arrived on the agriculture scene in sufficient
quantities to make any perceptible impact. A revolution was indeed necessary to
change the status quo. And when it came, it did through the vision of Dr. C.P.
Ramaswami Aiyar, the Dewan of the former Travancore State, who mooted the
idea of increasing food production by the application of fertilizer as a long term
solution to food problem. To give concrete shape to his idea, he sought the help of
Seshayee Brothers Ltd. Industrialist known for their pioneering work.
And India’s first large-scale fertilizer plant was set up in 1944 at
Udyogamandal on the banks of the river periyar in Kerala State. The new venture
of course had to go through many teething troubles. For instance, the raw materials
necessary for the production of ammonium salts were not available in the state. But
this deficiency was overcome by adopting a revolutionary method known as the
FIREWOOD GASIFICATION PROCESS.
However, initial difficulties notwithstanding, the plant at Udyogamandal
went into commercial production in 1947, with the slated capacity to manufacture
50,000 tonnes of Ammonium Sulphate (10,000 tonnes of N). This was followed by
the production of SUPERPHOSPHATE in a new plant with a capacity of 44,000
tones. A sulphuric acid plant of 75 tonnes per day was also installed which was
considered large going standard at that time. Meanwhile the inner dynamics of
FACT was finding another expression in the formation of new unit with the help of
the State Government and Methur Chemical & Industrial Corporation Ltd., for the
production of caustic soda which later become today’s Travancore-Cochin
Chemical Ltd., a Kerala Government undertaking. This indeed was a big leap
forward as it replaced all the imports of that product, saving a considerable amount
of foreign exchange. FACT was the first to use its by-product, chlorine, as
hydrochloric acid to produce Ammonium Chloride. These by-products produced
by FACT paved the way for setting up of other industrial units around the FACT
complex viz. Hindustan Insecticide Ltd., Indian Rare Earth Ltd., etc.
Expansion.
 In the late 50s, the Udyogamandal Division launched its first expansion with
an outlay of Rs. 3 crores. Highlights of the period were the installation of two
plants to produce Phosphoric Acid and Ammonium Phosphate(16:20 Grade). The
second stage of expansion involving Rs.2 crore saw the replacement of the
Firewood Gasification Process and the Electrolytic Process by the Texaco Oil
Gasification Process for which a new plant was set up. FACT became a Kerala
State Public Sector Enterprise on 15th August1960. On 21st November 1962, the
Government of India became the major share holder. The 2nd stage of expansion
of FACT was completed in 1962.

The 3rd stage of expansion of FACT was completed in 1965 with setting up
of a new Ammonium Sulphate Plant. FACT has been a pace-setter in marketing
evolving a continuous and comprehensive package of effective communication
with farmers and promotional programs to increase the fertilizer consciousness
among our farmers. In fact, FACT was the first fertilizer manufacturer in India to
introduce the village adoption concept since 1968 to improve agricultural
productivity and enhance the overall socio-economic status of farmers. FACT has
a well organized marking net work, capable of distribution over a million tones of
fertilizers. With the licensing of Cochin Division in 1966 FACT further expanded
and by 1976 the production of sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid and Urea was
started. In 1979 Production of NPK was commercialized.

Technical Divisions
FACT Engineering and Design Organization (FEDO) was established
In 1965 to meet the emerging need for indigenous capabilities in vital areas
of engineering, design and consultancy for establishing large and modern fertilizer
plants. FEDO has since then diversified into Petrochemicals and other areas also. It
offers multifarious services from project identification and evaluation stage to
plant design, procurement project management, site supervision, commissioning
and operating new plants as well as revamping and modernization of old plants.
FEDO received international accreditation ISO 9001 2004 for quality system
standards covering areas of consultancy, design & engineering services for
construction of large fertilizer, petrochemicals, chemicals and related projects
including purchasing, construction, supervisor, inspection and expediting services.

FACT Engineering Works (FEW) was established on 13th April 1966 as a

unit to fabricate and install equipment for fertilizer plants. FEW was originally
conceived as a unit to fabricate and install equipment for FACT’s own plants. Over
the year it developed capabilities in the manufacture of class I pressure vessels,
heat exchangers, rail mounted, LPG tank wagons etc. It has a well equipped
workshop approved by Lloyds Register of Shipping, further; this division has
excelled in laying cross country piping fabrication and installation of large
penstocks for hydel units in Kerala.

The Cochin Division of FACT, the 2nd production unit was set up at
Ambalamedu and the 1st phase was commissioned in 1973. The 2ndphase of
FACT Cochin Division was commissioned in 1976. The project was designed to
produce Ammonia which would be converted to Urea and also to produce high
analysis, water soluble NP fertilizers. This division comprises of a number of large
capacity plants to produce Ammonia, Urea, Sulphuric Acid, Phosphoric Acid and
Fertilizers like FACTAMPHOS 20-20and DAP 18-46.

FACT has also a Research & development Department which carries out
research related to fertilizers. This Division is also capable of doing fundamental
research in areas of fertilizers and chemicals technology. So far FACT R & D has
taken 17 patents in areas like Sodium Fluoride, Sulphuric Acid and Ammonium
Phosphate.

PRODUCT AND PRODUCT MIX

PRODUCTS

Finished products
Ammonium Sulphate- Udyogamandal Division
Ammonium Phosphate/ Complex fertilizers / Factamfos – Udyogamandal
Division & Cochin Division
Caprolactum- Petrochemical Division
Biofertilizers - Research & Development Division

Exported Products
Caprolactum - Petrochemical Division
Ammonium Sulphate - Udyogamandal Division
Byproducts

Byproducts
Nitric Acid & Soda Ash- Petrochemical Division
Gypsum - Udyogamandal Division & Cochin Division
Carbon Dioxide Gas – Udyogamandal

Intermediary Products
Ammonia - Udyogamandal & Cochin Division
Synthesis Gas - Udyogamandal Division
Sulphuric Acid- Udyogamandal & Cochin Division
Oleum - Udyogamandal Division
SO2 Gas - Udyogamandal Division
Phosphoric Acid - Udyogamandal & Cochin Division

GENERAL SAFETY

Safety is the state of being "safe" ,the condition of being protected against
physical, social, occupational, or other types or consequences of failure, damage,
error, accidents, harm or any other event which could be considered non-desirable.
Safety can also be defined to be the control of recognized hazards to achieve an
acceptable level of risk. This can take the form of being protected from the event or
from exposure to something that causes health or economical losses. It can include
protection of people or of possessions.

The Fertilizers And Chemicals Travancore has been declared as a Major

Hazard Accidental Industry –MHAI.

There are two methods for classifying an industry into MHAI unit-
i) Process Involved – Fertilizers, petrochemical products, cement, paint, etc.
ii) Quantity of chemical being handled and its commonly specified in tonnes
Heinrich's Domino Theory

Heinrich's Domino Theory

Heinrich's Domino Theory states that accidents result from a chain of
sequential events, metaphorically like a line of dominoes falling over. When one of
the dominoes falls, it triggers the next one, and the next... - but removing a key
factor (such as an unsafe condition or an unsafe act) prevents the start of the chain
reaction.
Heinrich posits five metaphorical dominoes labelled with accident
causes. They are Social Environment and Ancestry, Fault of Person, Unsafe Act or
Mechanical or Physical Hazard (unsafe condition), Accident, and Injury. Heinrich
defines each of these "dominoes" explicitly, and gives advice on minimizing or
eliminating their presence in the sequence.

Fire and safety


Fire triangle
The fire triangle or combustion triangle is a simple model for understanding
the necessary ingredients for most fires. The triangle illustrates the three elements a
fire needs to ignite: heat, fuel, and an oxidizing agent (usually oxygen). A fire
naturally occurs when the elements are present and combined in the right mixture,
meaning that fire is actually an event rather than a thing. A fire can be prevented or
extinguished by removing any one of the elements in the fire triangle. For example,
covering a fire with a fire blanket removes the oxygen part of the triangle and can
extinguish a fire.

Classification of fire
Class A: Ordinary combustibles- Class A fires consist of ordinary
combustibles such as wood, paper, fabric, and most kinds of trash.
Class B/C: Flammable liquid and gas. These are fires whose fuel is
flammable or combustible liquid or gas. Flammable liquids are
designated "Class B", while burning gases are separately designated
"Class C". A solid stream of water should never be used to extinguish
this type because it can cause the fuel to scatter, spreading the flames.
The most effective way to extinguish a liquid or gas fueled fire is by
inhibiting the chemical chain reaction of the fire, which is done by dry
chemical extinguishing agents, although smothering with CO2 or, for
liquids, foam is also effective.
Class C or Class E: Electrical fires are fires involving potentially
energized electrical equipment. This sort of fire may be caused by
short-circuiting machinery or overloaded electrical cables. Electrical
fire may be fought in the same way as an ordinary combustible fire,
but water, foam, and other conductive agents are not to be used.
Carbon dioxide CO2, and dry chemical powder extinguishers such
as PKP and even baking soda are especially suited to extinguishing
this sort of fire.
Class D :Metal - Class D fires consist of combustible metals such
As magnesium, potassium, titanium, and zirconium.
Class K or F - Class K fires involve unsaturated cooking oils in well
insulated cooking appliances located in commercial kitchens.

CAPROLACTUM

FACT Caprolactam plant was built with license and know-how from the world
leaders in Caprolactam technology - M/s Stamicarbon, the engineering subsidiary
of DSM of Netherlands. Sourcing of technology from a single source ensured
unified package and excellent consistent quality right from the time of
commissioning Detailed engineering of the plant was undertaken by Chiyoda
Corporation of Japan in association with FACT Engineering and Design
Organisation (FEDO, a subsidiary unit of FACT.
The plant can product 50,000 TPA of Caprolactam and 2,25,000 TPA of
Ammonium Sulphate as co-product.

Process
Cyclohexanone, the main intermediate, is produced from benzene by
hydrogenation to cyclohexane and subsequent oxidation. Hydroxylamine, the
second intermediate, is obtained in the form of its stabler sulphate salt, from
ammonia, sulphur-di-oxide and ammonium nitrite by the proven, easy-to-operate
and efficient Raschig route.

Cyclohexanone oxime is formed by the reaction of Cyclohexanone and

Hydroxylamine. Caprolactam is produced by the Beckmann rearrangement of the
Oxime in the presence of oleum. The subsequent neutralisation step yields
ammonium sulphate as co-product. The crude Caprolactam is purified by solvent
extraction, ion-exchange, hydrogenation, evaporation and vacuum distillation to
obtain products of extremely high purity and consistent quality.

Application
Caprolactam is the popular monomer for the versatile Nylon-6 polyamide. Nylon-6
offers excellent properties like high strength-to-weight ration, good chemical and
thermal stability and durability. Textile yarn manufactured from Nylon-6 exhibits
fine drape, resistance to abrasion, high flexibility, chemical and biological stability

etc.

Nylon-6 is widely used in manufacture of fishing nets, tyre yarns, sewing threads,
industrial drive-belts etc. As an engineering plastic, it finds wide application in
castings, injection moulding and extrusion. Items manufactured using Nylon-6
offer excellent engineering properties even at high temperatures.

Captive Power Plant

Captive power plants are a form of distributed generation, generating power close
to the source of use. Distributed generation facilitates the high fuel efficiency along
with minimising losses associated with the transmission of electricity from
centralised power plants.
Gas engines make ideal captive power plants where there is a localised supply of
gas. This might be from a gas pipeline, but can also be transported via vehicle as
compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG).
 Demineralised Water Plant
Demineralised water is specially purified water that has had most or all of its
mineral and salt ions removed, such as Calcium, Magnesium, Sodium, Chloride,
Sulphate, Nitrate and Bicarbonate. It is also known as Deionised water, DI or
Demin water.
Demineralised water and deionised water are generally considered distinct
from distilled water, which is purified in a still ie. by boiling and re-condensing, a
process which also removes salt ions.

The major differences are that demineralised water is usually freer of mineral
ions, depending on the number of processes used to make it, and distilled water
may have less organic contaminants, as deionisation does not remove uncharged
molecules such as viruses or bacteria. However, deionisation also leaves behind
less ‘scale’ than distillation, and so has a cleaner production.

A Demineralisation Plant that uses Ion-exchange Resins. These specially

manufactured resins can be purafine resins, clear gel resins, or gel polystyrene
resins. The cation exchange resins exchange the positive ions (eg. Calcium) for
hydrogen ions, and the anion resins exchange negative ions (eg. Chlorine) for
hydroxide ions. The final water consists primarily of hydrogen and hydroxide ions,
which is the chemical composition of pure water.

Several stages of demineralisation occur to obtain the required quality of the

final product, and some of these stages may also include reverse osmosis (RO)
systems, where water is pressurised and forced through semi-permeable membranes
which retain the mineral ions and other impurities, as well as distillation and
filtration.

USES
 high pressure boiler feed
 steam irons and steam raising applications

Demineralised water is NOT generally used for drinking water, as it is the minerals
in potable water that provide the health benefits and taste. It also tends to remove
minerals from food and electrolytes from the body, so it is not usually
recommended for drinking or cooking.
 Nitrogen Plant
Atmospheric air is roughly filtered and pressurised by a compressor, which
provides the product pressure to deliver to the customer. The amount of air sucked
in depends on the customer’s nitrogen demand.
The Air Receiver collects condensate and minimises pressure drop. The dry and
compressed air leaves the air to refrigerant heat exchanger at about 10°C.
To clean the process air further, there are different stages of filtration. First of all,
more condensate is removed, this removes some hydrocarbons.
The last unit process in the warm end container is the thermal swing
adsorber (TSA). The Air purification unit cleans the compressed process air by
removing any residual water vapour, carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons. It
comprises two vessels, valves and exhaust to allow the changeover of vessels.
While one of the TSA beds is on stream the second one is regenerated by the
oxygen rich waste flow, which is vented through a silencer into the ambient
environment.
 Compressor House
Reciprocating Compressor
A reciprocating compressor or piston compressor is a positive-displacement
compressor that uses pistons driven by a crankshaft to deliver gases at high
pressure.
The intake gas enters the suction manifold, then flows into the compression
cylinder where it gets compressed by a piston driven in a reciprocating motion via a
crankshaft, and is then discharged. Applications include oil refineries, gas
pipelines, chemical plants, natural gas processing plants and refrigeration plants.
One specialty application is the blowing of plastic bottles made of polyethylene
terephthalate (PET).
In the ionic liquid piston compressor many seals and bearings were removed in the
design as the ionic liquid does not mix with the gas. Service life is about 10 times
longer than a regular diaphragm compressor with reduced maintenance during use,
energy costs are reduced by as much as 20%. The heat exchangers that are used in a
normal piston compressor are removed as the heat is removed in the cylinder itself
where it is generated. Almost 100% of the energy going into the process is being
used with little energy wasted as reject heat.

Rotary-screw compressor
A rotary-screw compressor is a type of gas compressor that uses a rotary-type
positive-displacement mechanism. They are commonly used to replace piston
compressors where large volumes of high-pressure air are needed, either for large
industrial applications or to operate high-power air tools such as jackhammers.
The gas compression process of a rotary screw is a continuous sweeping motion, so
there is very little pulsation or surging of flow, as occurs with piston compressors.
 HYAM PLANT
The process involves:
a) Reacting air with ammonia gas in an ammonia conversion zone to produce
nitric oxide;
b) Oxidizing a portion of the nitric oxide to nitrogen dioxide to produce an
NOx-rich process gas stream;
c) Reacting the NOx-rich stream with ammonium carbonate in a nitriting zone
to produce ammonium nitrite;
d) Reducing the ammonium nitrite to hydroxylamine diammonium sulfate;
e) Hydrolyzing the hydroxylamine diammonium sulfate to hydroxylamine
sulfate;
f) Oximating the hydroxylamine sulfate with cyclohexanone to produce
cyclohexanone oxime; and
g) Converting the cyclohexanone oxime to caprolactam.

The process is improved by adding supplemental oxygen downstream of the

ammonia conversion zone to increase the quantity and rate of formation of nitrogen
dioxide in the NOx-rich process gas stream.

ANONE PLANT

Cyclohexanone is the organic compound with the formula (CH2)5CO. The molecule
consists of six carbon cyclic molecule with a ketone functional group. The
colourless oil has an odour reminiscent of peardrop sweets as well as acetone. Over
time, sample assumes a yellow colour due to oxidation. Cyclohexanone is slightly
in water, But miscible with common organic solvents. They are mainly used as
precursor to nylon. They are used in the production of caprolactum.

RAW MATERIALS
Benzene, synthesis gas and sodium hydroxide

Process
Hydrogenation
Cyclohexane is an important chemical derivative derived from Benzene.
Cyclohexane is made by catalytic hydrogenation of Benzene in liquid phase or
vapour phase. Hydrogenation of Benzene takes place at 300 ℃ and 300kg/cm2
pressure in the presence of aluminum pellet catalysts. In the end cyclohexane is
produced by hydrogenation of Benzene at around 240℃.
Oxidation
3.5% conversion takes place. Removal of water from cyclohexane takes place. A
two column heat exchanger is used.
Cyclohexane flows through the 3rst column and vapours at 180℃ flows
through the second column (D.H.E). A cooling scrubber is present between the two
columns. Removal of water takes in 4 stages. Each stage there are condensers and
the dry air ratio is observed at a controlled rate.
It then passes through a series of 5 reactors in cascade position and an
intermediate is obtained. To obtain the desired product, it undergoes selective
decomposition in the presence of caustic soda and a catalyst and the salt is
removed. Agitators are used and it leads to the formation of undesirable lather
formation. It then passes through a flash vessel and series of 3 distillation columns
(cyclohexane distillation columns).
Vapours from the flash vessel go to the 3rd distillation column and the
remaining liquid to the 1st distillation column. Vapours of 1st used for 2nd column
for distillation and vapours of second for the 3rd distillation column.
Products are obtained in crude forms and consist of anone, anol, lights and
heavies. Lights are obtained in the first column, anone is obtained in the second
column and anole is obtained in the 3rd column and heavies are obtained in the 4th
distillation column. Anole is converted back to anone and a 40% conversion takes
place.