Every plant owner knows that maximizing profits while minimizing plant and processing costs is the name of the game. KL Capacity^SM is a service that offers an analysis on a biofuels process through rigorous process simulation. The goal of the analysis is to offer plant owners options when contemplating expansion and meet the demands of a competent understanding of the existing process design. Once the process model is prepared, we offer possible synergies with existing equipment that foster improvements in capacity and energy efficiency without the burden of cost and scheduling associated with full expansions. The first step in KL Capacity^SM is an understanding of the existing plant capacity, expressed in a simple heat and material balance spreadsheet. Once we identify production-inhibiting equipment in a simple stairstep diagram, the owner can select levels of production increases and compare the costs assigned to level of equipment change of replacement.

In optimizing ethanol plant operating conditions, there are four principal advantages of a completely modeled process that can provide justification for implementing KL Capacity^SM:

• Increased production. Incremental increased production can often times be achieved by the elimination of a few bottlenecks in the process. As the process conditions are fully understood, a more comprehensive approach to debottlenecking is proposed.
• Improved operating efficiency. Modifications can be made to reduce energy costs and/or resource consumption.
• An “evergreen” tool that provides plant owner’s with highly predictable solutions when troubleshooting, planning for future expansions, brainstorming process improvements, and solving environmental permitting and compliance issues.
• Guaranteed compliance with process safety management (PSM). As the process is improved or capacity increased, the process model will provide, accurate, up-to-date heat and material balance data to meet OSHA PSM documentation standard.