PARTNER

PROJECT
ION EXCHANGE RESINS:
FROM BEADS TO BRIGHT SOLUTIONS
For Lewatit® customers:
BENEFIT FROM A PARTNERSHIP THAT
INCLUDES KNOW-HOW TRANSFER AND
A FULL RANGE OF SERVICES!

“A tailor-made solution for every project!” That is the Lewatit® concept This problem-solving competence has been made possible among
for ensuring that our partners – in this case our customers – enjoy eco- other things by considerable ongoing expenditure on research and
®
nomic success, and it is also a challenge that our Lewatit team is development and also by our major strategic investments, such as the
always delighted to take on, in whatever form it takes. For us it is a construcion of a new production plant in Bitterfeld, Germany, and our
question of providing our partners with convincing answers to the most acquisition of Sybron Chemicals Inc., through which we have now also
diverse range of problems. These problems may involve the treatment strengthened our presence on the US market. We also invest on a per-
of potable water, the separation of individual components in the food manent basis in the quality and quantity of our Lewatit® support ser-
industry, or the extraction of valuable materials in hydrometallurgy. vices. This makes it possible to operate a system of knowledge trans-
®
Whatever the issue involved, Lewatit is the product that comes up fer with our customers that is unmatched in its intensity anywhere else
with the right answer in over 500 applications – supported by our spe- in the world of ion exchange resins.
cialists with their extensive technical knowledge. We are a committed We have chosen the title “The Lewatit® Partner Project” to symbolize
and highly motivated team. this expressly customer-oriented approach and to provide a signal that
®
Lewatit is seen as an innovator and a key driver in the development of communicates the new dynamism and attractiveness of the traditional
new and efficient high-performance ion exchange resins. These prod- Lewatit® brand. It also documents the future-oriented Lewatit® philoso-
ucts have paved the way for completely new fields of application by phy, namely that the customer is, for us, not only a buyer but a partner
opening up new dimensions in terms of performance. Lewatit® comes whom we are fully committed to helping achieve market success. We
wrapped in a convincing package: it is an all-embracing solution con- provide state-of-the-art ion exchange resins and adsorbers and we use
cept consisting of the product itself plus full technical support. Lewatit® tailor-made processes, geared specifically to the particular application.
stands for supreme expertise. Through this optimal technical constel- In addition, we offer our partners an exemplary form of customer sup-
lation, our partners can be sure of receiving the solution with the max- port with a wide variety of practical services. It is a package of offerings
imum economic benefit. that sets new standards! Welcome to the “Lewatit® Partner Project”.

Dr. Michael Zobel heads the ION EXCHANGE RESINS business unit Performance Chemicals segment – which also embraces the Ion
of LANXESS Deutschland GmbH, a leading chemical company with Exchange Resins business unit – brings together LANXESS's user-ori-
production plants and branches throughout the world. LANXESS is a ented business activities in the field of specialty chemicals. It offers a
global player with around 18,700 employees in more than 50 compa- broad range of process and functional chemicals for a variety of indus-
nies operating in all the key economic regions. An efficient organiza- tries throughout the world. In 2004, the Performance Chemicals seg-
tional structure ensures maximum dynamism and flexibility. The com- ment posted sales of €1,910 million (based on the combined finan-
pany is divided into four segments: Performance Chemicals, Chemical cial statements).
Intermediates, Engineering Plastics and Performance Rubber. The

3
The Lewatit® laboratories
are permanently on the go,
monitoring quality and
developing new solutions.
 CONTENTS

A modular structure has been set THE LEWATIT ® PARTNER PROJECT –

up for the Lewatit® products and
services to ensure that they MODULES FOR YOUR SUCCESS 6–7
comply with the customers'
many different wishes.
The “Lewatit® Partner Project” –
MODULE:
a system of individually
accessible modules. CONSULTING, SERVICE, SUPPORT 8–13

The name Lewatit® stands for MODULE: PRODUCT QUALITY

pioneering ideas, innovation
and patented progress. MONOPLUS, THE BIG BENEFIT 14–17
Monoplus is the
latest state-of-the-art
product development.
MODULE: APPLICATION TECHNOLOGY

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL LEWATIT ® PROCESSES 18–21

Lewatit® high-tech products for

MODULE: PLANT ENGINEERING 21
customized water treatment
in numerous applications.
For example, for the trouble-free,
low-maintenance oparation of a ION EXCHANGE RESINS
complex industrial plant.
FOR WATER TREATMENT 22–23

ION EXCHANGE RESINS

Ion exchange resins
FOR THE FOOD INDUSTRY 24–25
in the food industry:
Specially developed
Lewatit® grades with an
enormous spectrum of ION EXCHANGE RESINS FOR
applications and performance.
HOUSEHOLD WATER FILTERS 25

ION EXCHANGE RESINS FOR

Ion exchange resins for the
chemical, pharmaceutical and CATALYSIS AND CHEMICAL PROCESSES 26–27
biochemical industries, for
metal extraction, electroplating,
electrical engineering – ION EXCHANGE – IN PRINCIPLE, SIMPLE:
ideal solutions for even the most
difficult reaction conditions. HOW ION EXCHANGE WORKS 28–30

PRODUCT SCOUT ANNEX

5
MADE-TO-MEASURE
MODULES FOR
MADE-TO-MEASURE
SUCCESS.
MODULE: PRODUCT QUALITY
Lewatit® is one of the world's leading brands of ion exchange resins. It
comprises an exceptionally wide range of high-performance products
for all kinds of applications. The extensive portfolio of exchange resins,
adsorbers and functional polymers has been divided into three main
segments in line with the principal customer applications: water, food,
and catalysis plus chemical processes.

MODULE: APPLICATION TECHNOLOGY

On the one hand, we have the right choice of product. On the other,
we have its use in the right process. Product plus application technol-
ogy: two symbiotically linked success factors. The Lewatit® success
principle for perfect solutions. The “product” module and the “pro-
cess” module as one, in an all-embracing concept!

The Lewatit® Partner Project

Good products – is good.

Good products plus good

application technology – is better.

The perfect combination

of all components – is best.

The ideal tool for this – Lewatit®-

consulting.
 MODULE: PLANT ENGINEERING
An all-embracing approach will necessarily also involve a consideration
MODULES FOR YOUR SUCCESS of the treatment plant. The more seamlessly the ion exchange resin(s),
the process and the unit are regarded as a single concept in the initial
planning and design, the more effective the overall result will be, and
MODULE: MODULE: the easier it will be to comply with the relevant specifications. The Le-
PRODUCT PLANT
watit® strategy involves close cooperation with planners, engineering
QUALITY ENGINEERING
offices, plant engineers/ OEMs, universities, associations and other
institutions.
CUSTOMER

MODULE: CONSULTING, SERVICE, SUPPORT

The wide variety of demands made on ion exchange resin technology
MODULE: MODULE:
APPLICATION CONSULTING, and the individual parameters for the optimal integration of exchange
TECHNOLOGY SERVICE, or separation processes into production cycles underscore the impor-
SUPPORT
tance of qualified consulting by an experienced partner from the very
beginning.
THE BASIS:
QUALITY MANAGEMENT
The Lewatit® service package includes full support during the plan-
ning, consulting and evaluation stages. With certain projects, our tech-
nical service team can also be on hand during the start-up of a plant –
and afterwards, too.

THE BASIS:
LEWATIT ® QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Lewatit® products and services are always customer-oriented. That is
why they are so broadly accepted and so successful. An important
factor for achieving this high performance is our effective quality man-
agement system.
A combination of clearly defined processes and structures, plus a set
of internally binding guidelines, regulations and procedures gives our
customers the assurance of having, in Lewatit®, a partner that can per-
form at the very highest level – reliably and continuously.

7
OUR PARTNER'S SUCCESS
IS ALSO A MEASURE MODULE:
CONSULTING, SERVICE, SUPPORT
OF THE QUALITY
OF OUR SERVICES
In addition to the product quality, application technology and plant
engineering modules, Lewatit® partners can also call on a wide range
of services and support offerings that are geared entirely to their indi-
vidual needs and the local conditions.

LEWATIT ® – A HIGH PROFILE

THROUGH PROFESSIONALISM.
The high professional quality of the consulting services and the broad
spectrum of technical services are two factors that make Lewatit® quite
unique.

With a concept that is consistently geared to meeting customers'

expectations, the Lewatit® team enjoys a uniquely high profile among
the suppliers of ion exchange resins.
A CASE OF FINDING THE OPTIMAL SOLUTION. CONSULTING – ALWAYS WORTHWHILE.
The ion exchange technology plays a key role in the overall structure Everyday industrial practice shows that expert advice is not only
of a production process, so it is very important to take advantage of all required for specialized applications like the use of resins in process
the available opportunities for consulting before making an investment solutions for removing aldehydes or mercaptens. Even with standard
decision. It is a matter of identifying the optimal solution from a techni- applications in the water segment, better results can be achieved
cal, operational and economic point of view. That is precisely where through accurate analysis and the drawing of the right conclusions. It
the skilled Lewatit® experts come in. Experts with a wealth of experi- also makes for more reliable compliance with legal regulations – re-
ence to share with their partners. lating, for example, to the prevention, reduction and recycling of waste.
The repeated use of rinsewater (by passing it through an ion exchange
BETTER CONSULTING, BETTER PERFORMANCE. demineralization unit), for instance, can reduce water consumption by
With its consulting services, the Lewatit® department provides the 95 % and at the same time optimize the quality of the water used for
technical advice that companies want. The analysis results and recom- the rinsing process.
mendations are an important factor in helping Lewatit® customers take
the necessary decisions. From the small planning office to the global EASY TO REACH IN THE EVENT OF A PROBLEM.
plant engineering company, Lewatit® partners use the consulting ser- For operators of ion exchange units, it is important to know that
vices as a module for their own success – whether they are planning a Lewatit® experts can be contacted quickly should a serious mal-
new plant, optimizing an existing process or trying out a new technical function occur. Schedules are drawn up to ensure effective trouble-
solution. With the growing pressure of structural reorganization in shooting in emergency situations.
many companies, dependable access to external sources of expertise
is becoming increasingly important for many enterprises.

9
 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.
There is virtually no other brand in the field of ion exchange for which
MODULE:
research, development and analytics are actively carried out to such a
CONSULTING, SERVICE, SUPPORT
vast extent as with Lewatit®. Lewatit® is represented with its own labs
in all the key economic regions of the world, with the laboratories in
Japan, the United States and particularly the central laboratory in
ALWAYS AT THE READY. Leverkusen playing the main roles. Scientists work, for example, on
For the Lewatit® team, consulting expertise is not just a marketing tool modifying the fine details of the resins to align their properties even
but an integral part of the brand philosophy. However, consulting also more precisely to specific applications. They are also constantly
requires communications. Apart from the use of electronic media, per- involved in the development of new resin grades to tap completely
®
sonal presence is also very important. Lewatit provides the personal novel fields of application.
touch with a team of 70 consultants who operate locally as direct con-
tact partners. They are specialists who serve as expert discussion part- PREVENTION IS ESSENTIAL!
ners for commercial, product-specific and technical matters. The man- Another important task for the Lewatit® laboratories involves testing
agement is based at the Leverkusen headquarters, customer-oriented resins that are currently in use in order to obtain data about their pres-
and structured according to different areas of application. With com- ent level of performance. This is becoming an increasingly important
prehensive, more specific projects, the relevant technical service man- service from the customer's point of view.
ager can be called in anywhere in the world.
Through reliable preventive analysis, it is possible to accurately deter-
mine the remaining service life of a resin, thus enabling an imminent
resin replacement to be budgeted and performed in good time. INFORMATION, EXCHANGE OF OPINIONS,
Without the right investment planning, companies risk delaying the EXCHANGE OF EXPERIENCE.
necessary replacement too long, and this can have serious negative The Lewatit® philosophy is to consistently encourage dialogue be-
effects on production processes. Such malfunctions generally have tween all the parties involved in ion exchange resin technology. This
®
considerable economic consequences. The Lewatit team has opti- covers a whole host of people, including the users, plant designers and
mized the procedure for performing “precautionary examinations” of builders, OEMs, the authorities, the chemical industry and universities
the resins and has made them very customer-friendly. The administra- and associations, and can involve the organization of symposia, techni-
tion and form-filling processes can be carried out unbureaucratically, cal conferences, lecture sessions and presentations. The Lewatit®
conveniently and quickly through Web support. experts also attend trade fairs and participate in organized virtual meet-
ings on the Internet giving current reports on trends and developments
ANSWERS TO SPECIFIC QUESTIONS. in front of a global auditorium.
It is inevitable that with the constant changes in technical develop- Apart from this, a whole range of other information material is available,
ments and the legislative environment, questions concerning the use including brochures, datasheets and other printed media.
of ion exchange resins will be raised again and again. Lewatit® experts
are on hand to help, for example with matters involving official regula-
tions, specific legislation in certain countries or regions, application-
related topics, the disposal of ion exchange resins, wastewater and
solid waste, design problems, resin changeovers, regeneration, and
changes in raw water conditions. They can also answer questions on
costing, amortization etc.

11
 ly. Firstly the straight route, in which partners are supplied direct, and
secondly through a comprehensive network of distributors, ideally lo-
MODULE:
CONSULTING, SERVICE, SUPPORT cated to supply Lewatit® customers.

THREE PRODUCTION PLANTS

ON TWO CONTINENTS.
RELIABLE DELIVERY – LANXESS has tackled production constraints head-on – with the aid of
BOTH QUANTITY AND QUALITY-WISE. investments running into millions of dollars. Alongside the modernized
®
The increasing number of Lewatit ion exchange resins available for high-performance facilities at the company's main site in Leverkusen, a
specific applications is making the range of Lewatit® products and ser- second Lewatit® plant has been built from scratch at a central location
vices ever more attractive. But while this may be a tremendous benefit in the middle of Europe.
for customers, it makes enormous technical and logistic demands on In Bitterfeld, in the eastern part of Germany, a wide range of versatile
internal management. After all, the main goal will always be to ensure Lewatit® grades are manufactured using state-of-the-art processes.
that, in close coordination with the customers themselves, they will be They are produced in very large quantities and in consistently high
supplied with the products they want, at the agreed time, in the speci- quality. The focus in Bitterfeld is on the monodisperse ion exchange
fied quality and wherever they may be located. resins belonging to the Lewatit® MonoPlus line. A new polymer silo
park enables the company to supply a large number of product vari-
TWO ROUTES TO THE CUSTOMER. ants at short notice, significantly enhancing product availability for cus-
®
The reliable supply of Lewatit ion exchange resins to customers is tomers. A further step taken in 2005 to optimize delivery reliability was
ensured by two logistics systems that complement each other perfect- a 50 % increase in the storage area for ready-for-delivery Lewatit®
Prospects for the future:
The Lewatit® plant in Bitterfeld.
Production and logistics, optimized
for maximum flexibility to benefit
the customer.

products. This provides greater logistic flexibility for customers. The WWW.LEWATIT.COM
capacity expansion projects with the silo park and warehouse are a SERVICE AROUND THE CLOCK,
response to the constantly increasing demand on the world market for AROUND THE WORLD.
Lewatit® products, and confirmation of the future-oriented strategy to The highly user-oriented Lewatit® website features numerous practical
®
make Lewatit increasingly attractive for customers by building on its tips, technical advice, information and interactive offerings for cus-
own strength throughout the world. tomers in all fields of application. It also adds significant value to their
Through the takeover of Sybron Chemicals Inc. with the entire Ionac ®
practical work. The major elements of the services needed in day-to-day
product range, the Ion Exchange Resins business unit now has an operation are thus immediately available to Lewatit® partners at any
ideal strategic alignment in the United States. The acquisition has had time.
a definite positive effect for customers particularly on the American and The straightforward design of the website makes for clear and direct
Asian markets. navigation as it is based on the structure of the LANXESS Ion Exchange
Resins business unit. Apart from general information about the business
unit itself, the website also contains details of products, applications,
processes and services. A personal password opens up a broad spec-
trum of additional information for customers.
Under “Products” and “Applications”, for example, there are detailed
descriptions of the more than one hundred different resin grades mar-
keted under the brand names Lewatit® and Ionac® for over 500 differ-
ent applications. Such data can be easily and directly downloaded. The
extranet also offers Lewatit® partners the possibility of identifying the
optimal products for a specific application through a highly detailed
interactive product scout. Products can be selected by four different cri-
teria: industry segment, application, type (gel or macroporous) and
chemical characteristics.
The Lewatit® website also features an extremely comfortable, accurate
and constantly updated plant design software, oriented specifically to
the demands of the practitioner. Apart from a wealth of industry-specif-
ic information, it also offers download possibilities for brochures, presen-
Practical information about the tations and useful tools. There are also electronic forms to support and
Lewatit® Internet site can be found simplify the submission of specimens for resin testing.
on a separate information sheet
(enclosed on page 31), or you can
work through the site step by step
from the homepage.

13
L E W A T I T ®: P A C E M A K E R
W I T H M O N O P L U S TM.
NOT SCREENED BUT SHAPED.
A large proportion of what the global ion exchange resin market de-
MODULE:
clares as products of constant bead size cannot compare with
PRODUCT QUALITY
MonoPlus. The decisive difference lies in the performance of the
resins. A product that is manufactured by a conventional process and
then turned into a supposedly "constant size" by screening is simply
NEW APPLICATIONS FOR THE TINY BEADS unable to offer a monodispersity to match that of MonoPlus, which is
WITH THE BIG BENEFITS. characterized by extremely narrow tolerances. The Lewatit® team
MONOPLUS – A QUESTION OF EFFICIENCY. instead developed a new process for the production of monodisperse
The specifications laid down for the quality of the media being treated ion exchange resins, the result being the first monodisperse genera-
and for the efficiency of the selection processes are becoming stricter tion. The chemists then worked consistently on underscoring the claim
all the time. In all industries and in all sectors. As the range of applica- of Lewatit® to be the pacemaker in its field by raising the performance
tions expands, so there is an increasing need for specialized, higher- bar even further for monodisperse ion exchange resins. And the efforts
performance ion exchange resins and adsorbers. The Lewatit team ®
have certainly been worthwhile.
has come up with the innovative answer: The current generation of The performance attained by today's MonoPlus products is quite sim-
selective monodisperse resins is now available for an even wider range ply outstanding. The range of products in the MonoPlus line has been
®
of applications. MonoPlus from Lewatit represents the state of the art consistently oriented to the varied individual needs of the customers.
®
in research and development engineering. This gives Lewatit partners Equal diameter of the resin beads not only means equal size, it also
the assurance that they have opted for top product performance with means equally improved performance of the beads with regard to their
unmatched efficiency. chemical and physical properties.
 MonoPlus beads are available for diameters. The bead size can be ad-
many applications in monodisperse justed between 0.30 mm and 0.90 mm.

PROGRESS FOR ALL! > Lewatit® MonoPlus M 800 KR is used for the decontamination of cir-
Lewatit® is available in the optimized MonoPlus grades for virtually cuits in nuclear power plants. This grade is highly regenerated and
every application. Whether industrial water, potable water or ultra-pure purified to meet the specifications of nuclear engineering. It is general-
water is involved, whether the application is in the food industry or the ly combined with MonoPlus S 200 KR, a highly effective cation resin.
product is needed for catalysis or chemical processes, the Lewatit ®

specialists will find the right solution: with monodisperse anion and > MonoPlus TP 214 is the ideal candidate for removing mercury from
cation exchange resins, strongly or weakly basic, or in perfectly coordi- flue gas water or groundwater, and for separating or extracting metals
nated mixtures, or with chelating resins. (gold, silver, platinum group elements) in hydrometallurgy.

Here are three from dozens of examples to illustrate the scope of the Compared with conventional types, this MonoPlus product has a num-
current applications: ber of clear advantages: greater mechanical and osmotic stability,
higher kinetics, 10-20 % higher capacity and much lower leakage.
> MonoPlus MP 500, for example, has proved ideal for the demineral-
ization of water for industrial steam production by modern counter-
current processes.

It is a monodisperse, strongly basic, macroporous anion exchange

resin based on a styrene divinylbenzene copolymer. Its favorable kinet-
ic properties result in better capacity utilization than with comparable
ion exchange resins that have a heterodisperse bead size distribution.

15
 MODULE:
PRODUCT QUALITY

CONVINCING PLUSSES.
MonoPlus is the Lewatit® process that enables resin beads to be pro-
duced in a defined uniform size and with a uniform internal structure,
optimally geared to the particular application. This process, which has
been patented for Lewatit®, represents a technology leap with consid-
erable practical benefits. It always yields the hydraulically optimal bead
size, with every single bead having a homogeneous inner structure
with optimized properties. The diffusion paths are exactly the same in
all the beads. Other benefits include ideal liquid dispersion, low pres-
sure loss, economic utilization of the unit volume, no clogging of the
nozzles due to fines, high mechanical and osmotic resistance, and
fewer side-reactions resulting in constant yields for more efficient
process control.

THE HIGHER THE QUALITY AND SAFETY

SPECIFICATIONS, THE MORE COMPELLING
THE ARGUMENT FOR LEWATIT ® .
Faced with specifications such as these, Lewatit® will be your only alter-
native: High chemical resistance and mechanical stability, resistance to
swelling and shrinking (osmotic stability), durability, long regeneration
cycles, tailor-made selectivity, outstanding capacity, low amount of
fines, genuine monodispersity.

Lewatit® is also your strong, reliable partner when you merely require
supply of ion exchange resins, adsorbers or functional polymers, stan-
dard grades or MonoPlus products. Efficiency you can count on!

The monodisperse ion exchange economic and ecological benefits

resin grades in the Lewatit® particularly in the treatment of
MonoPlus range really come into water for large-scale facilities with
their own when water is concerned. high throughput rates (e.g. power
Lewatit® MonoPlus displays its plants).

Lewatit® MonoPlus ion exchange

resins in a multistep unit:
Perfect interplay of product quality,
application technology and plant
engineering.

17
GOING AGAINST THE
FLOW. BUT IN THE
RIGHT DIRECTION.

MODULE:
APPLICATION TECHNOLOGY

APPLICATION DIVERSITY NEEDS PROCESS THE COUNTERCURRENT PROCESS –

DIVERSITY. PROCESS DIVERSITY ENABLES PATENTED FOR LEWATIT ® .
APPLICATION DIVERSITY. With the ion exchange resin technology, products and processes are
directly and inseparably linked. For this reason, it is entirely logical that
WHY THE LEWATIT ® TEAM INVENTED the pioneer of fundamentally new ion exchange products should also
THE COUNTERCURRENT TECHNOLOGY. have assumed a pioneering role in the development of new processes.
In the beginning was the co-current technology: The feed solution The countercurrent process was born. Invented and patented by the
and the regenerant passed through the resin bed in the same direc- Lewatit® scientists and chemists, the principles of countercurrent oper-
tion. Although the basic process of ion exchange worked, it had a ation represent a significant improvement over the co-current process.
number of disadvantages (and indeed still does where such units are It has since been repeatedly perfected, optimized and diversified!
in use). To be able to achieve adequate performance despite ineffi- Today's Lewatit® countercurrent processes are the farthest developed,
cient material exchange, very high quantities of regenerant have to be the longest tested and the most thoroughly proven. Several thousand
used – often more than twice the amount needed for the countercur- units have so far been built using this technology, and the figure is ris-
rent technology. Because of compaction of the resin bed, for exam- ing constantly.
ple, backwashing has to be performed before every regeneration.
This requires large volumes of fresh water and also produces effluent. LEWATIT ® TURNS EVERYTHING UPSIDE DOWN.
In addition, a high internal volume is needed for backwashing, which Because no further significant optimization was possible with the co-
means that only half the entire unit is left for the ion exchange resin. current technology, the Lewatit® experts began searching for new
On top of this, because of the unfavorable concentration distribution, approaches, and they came up with this completely new design. What
the use of regenerants is not very efficient, and there is an excessive they did, quite literally, was to turn things upside down, and this proved
consumption of acids and alkalis. This means long regeneration and to be the key step towards a new solution: With the Lewatit® counter-
rinse times. Summing up, one can say that co-current processes work current technology, the regenerant flows through the resin bed in the
in principle, but the principle is highly ineffective. opposite direction to the feed solution. The special feature of the
Lewatit® countercurrent technology is the upflow exhaustion and the
downflow regeneration. Upflow exhaustion avoids any compaction of
the resin bed and ensures optimal distribution of the treated product
flow.
With downflow regeneration, the resin lies on the bottom nozzle plate.
This prevents reclassification of the resin bed and thus eliminates the
possibility of destroying the polishing layer, which exerts a major influ-
ence on the quality. The regenerant level is reduced (potential savings
of well over 50 %!), and the quality of the treated solutions is signifi-
cantly improved.

19
THREE LEWATIT®
CHAMPIONS: FLUIDIZED
BED, LIFTBED, MULTISTEP.

MODULE:
APPLICATION TECHNOLOGY

ALL CLEAR: A FLOATING SOLUTION. Other key benefits include low investment costs, small space require-
®
The Lewatit fluidized bed system is a special countercurrent technolo- ment, lower regenerant demand than with mixed-bed units, exhausted
gy that works with upflow exhaustion and downflow regeneration. The components that can be regenerated separately, a system that is insen-
®
process has been patented for Lewatit as a further logical development sitive to load fluctuations or ionic changes of the influent water, and
of the basic principle of countercurrent technology. easy automation of the unit. In many cases, the multistep process is an
The resin “floats” between the upper and lower nozzle plates of the extremely efficient alternative to the mixed bed technology.
column. Between the resin layer and the upper nozzle plate is a layer of
inert resin. The interior of the unit is deliberately small, just about large WITH OTHER PROCESSES TOO,
enough to accommodate the changing volume of the resin between LEWATIT ® IS THE IDEAL SOLUTION!
exhaustion and regeneration. The advantages for the user are greater Lewatit® is the ideal partner not only for the fluidized bed, liftbed and
efficiency in regeneration, less regenerant chemicals, maximum utiliza- multistep processes, but also for other commonly known processes.
tion of the tank volume and lower water consumption. Whether the need is for consulting services, ion exchange resins or
both, Lewatit® will always provide the answers!
A GOOD IDEA: TWO CHAMBERS.
The Lewatit® liftbed process is based on the fluidized bed principle.
Each unit consists of at least two chambers separated from one an-
other by an additional nozzle plate. The chambers are connected to
each other by lift pipes (for transferring the resin). The lower chamber
is only partly filled with resin (approx. 1/3 of the total) and has enough
freeboard for internal backwashing. This saves space, and means that
no external rinse tank is needed. Other advantages include the high
operating capacity, the fact that it is also suitable for water with a very
high salt content, and that it can be used in cases of inadequate raw
water pretreatment. On top of this, of course, it has all the other bene-
fits of the fluidized bed system.

MULTI-TALENTED: THE MULTISTEP PROCESS.

The multistep system, which has also been patented for Lewatit® , is an
innovative, highly variable process that boasts many economic and
ecological advantages. Its main asset is that many kinds of demineral-
ization can be performed in one single unit. The column can be filled
simultaneously with several ion exchange resins for different functions.
Furthermore, these different resins can be regenerated with their own
particular chemical regenerants (e.g. hydrochloric acid and caustic
soda solution) without any cross-contamination occurring.

The world's biggest multistep Expert consulting services in

facility in Ning Po is an impressive application technology and plant
example of the successful integra- engineering plus the product
tion of the Lewatit® modules: quality of Lewatit®.
 MODULE:
PLANT ENGINEERING

THE LEWATIT ® TEAM DOES NOT BUILD PLANTS engineering offices and technical development departments. The
ITSELF – BUT IT CAN HELP TO DESIGN THEM. Lewatit® specialists study all the different aspects of an individual proj-
The more successfully all the parameters required for the operation of ect, analyze the tasks and functions, research application technology
an ion exchange unit can be integrated, the better the facility will work databases and, where necessary, carry out laboratory trials. As a result,
in practice and the better the cost-to-benefit ratio will be. This applies they glean a wealth of reliable data on such aspects as selectivity, oper-
not only to the initial investment, but also later in everyday operation. ating capacities, ion exchange techniques, regeneration procedures
This is why it is a good idea for the Lewatit® experts to be involved in the and resin stability.
planning and design of a new unit to contribute their wide-ranging The Lewatit® experts can also answer questions about pretreatment
expertise. and aftertreatment of the product flow, disinfection, start-up, process
®
Many of the Lewatit experts previously gained their experience in engi- application engineering and the recycling of used regenerant. De-
neering offices, making them ideally equipped to cooperate with OEMs, sorption parameters are optimized for ideal unit design.

Picture above: The world's biggest nies from the planning phase to the
multistep facility in Ning Po in start-up to give advice and active
eastern China has a capacity of support.
500 m3/h with a daily operating This impressive multistep unit
time of 20 h. Lewatit® experts were demineralizes contaminated river
involved with the partner compa- water for use in a power plant.

21
LEWATIT ® ION EXCHANGE RESINS
FOR WATER TREATMENT

HOW TO TURN WATER

INTO A PERFECT MEDIUM.

The treatment of water is the best-known and biggest field of applica-

tion for ion exchange resins. Constantly mounting specifications
regarding the quality of the treated water are making ever higher
demands on the suppliers. Lewatit® has the right ion exchange resins
and the right processes to meet just about any set of requirements.

WORKING FLAT OUT FOR HIGH-QUALITY WATER.

One example of the application of Lewatit® ion exchange resins in
industry is in power plants. There, ion exchangers have to cope with
very high volume flows and withstand numerous regeneration cycles
without problems. Planners and operators of power plants throughout
the world put their trust in the outstanding performance of various
Lewatit® ion exchange resins that have been specifically developed for
such applications. They treat the water to stop it from causing any
incrustation or corrosion. With the help of Lewatit®, the water treatment
process has become a reliable and unproblematic step in the overall
process. It also has economic benefits: Valuable equipment, turbines,
steam generators and pipelines last longer and the operating costs are
significantly reduced.

ULTRA-PURE WATER
FOR ULTRA-SENSITIVE APPLICATIONS.
Ultra-pure water is needed above all in the electronic and pharmaceu-
Ultra-pure water as needed, for
tical industries. Demands made on the ion exchange resins used in
example, in the pharmaceutical
these sectors are extremely high.
and electronic industries must com-
Because of the stringent specifications on water quality in terms of ply with specifications that extend
TOC emissions and residual ion contents, the ion exchange resins down to the ppq range
used for such applications have to be specially purified and treated. (parts per quadrillion = 1015).

The pharmaceutical industry needs ultra-pure water, for example for For comparison, 1:1015 is the ratio
between the thickness of a hair and
sterile applications and processes under cGMP conditions. In certain
the distance between the Earth and
constellations, the Lewatit® specialists can compile data for pharma-
the Sun.
ceutical customers needed for certification of the water treatment – for
licensing procedures or official audits, for example. The Lewatit® range
also includes a line of ion exchange resins developed specifically for
the production of ultra-pure water for the highly sensitive production of
semi-conductors, processors and electronic components. Residual
salts or organic components remaining in the water can cause enor-
mous damage, and can well be the reason for short circuits between
the conductive tracks on a chip. The greater the density of the conduc-
tive tracks, the higher the specifications regarding the quality of the
water.

ENJOY!
The treatment of potable water plays a major role in food and house-
hold applications. Very often, ion exchange resins are the only possible All water is different, and hardly
way to comply with laws such as the potable water regulations, and any of it is ideal if it is not treated.
numerous potable water suppliers put their trust in the reliability of In order to remove the substances
®
Lewatit ion exchange resins. In private households, there are two that impair processing or spoil the
taste, the water must be subjected
main uses: firstly, preventing “furring” in the houses’ pipe systems,
to optimal treatment. Depending on
domestic appliances and sanitary installations, and secondly, treating
the particular application, it may
potable water by removing undesirable substances that impair the need to be partly dealkalized or
taste and odor – and in some cases, are harmful to the health. Water have its salt content reduced.
treated with Lewatit® is ideal for preparing beverages. Thanks to their purity and capacity,
Lewatit® ion exchange resins in
combination with state-of-the-art
Lewatit® processes provide the ideal
conditions for simple and economi-
cal treatment.

23
LEWATIT ® ION EXCHANGE RESINS
FOR THE FOOD INDUSTRY

LEWATIT® – ENTIRELY
TO THE TASTE OF THE
FOOD EXPERTS.

INVALUABLE FOR EXTRACTING VALUABLES. A STOUT PERFORMANCE WITH STARCH.

Ion exchange resins are an established and indispensable part of the The starch industry produces high-quality syrups and polyalcohols
®
food industry. Within the large Lewatit product range, the grades based on starch hydrolyzate for use as sweeteners, e.g. in soft drinks.
developed specifically to comply with the specifications of the food A special range of Lewatit® ion exchange resins has been developed
industry are identified by a letter “S” in their name. Ion exchange resins especially for demineralizing and decolorizing (refining) these syrups.
and adsorbers play a key role in the technique of separation by liquid-
solid partition. Often, there is no alternative for isolating, concentrating DEMINERALIZING, DECOLORIZING AND REMOVAL.
and purifying valuable materials from the liquid phase. With Lewatit®, Lewatit® removes mineral salts from food acids and gelatine, extracts
even the most sophisticated separation processes can be performed undesirable bitter substances from orange and lemon juices, takes
easily. Lewatit® plays a major role in ensuring on-spec purity and dura- substances like mineral salts and undesirable fruit colors from grape
bility, while giving the purified product a pleasant taste and good juice, and removes salts, acids and bases from raw glycerin. All in all,
appearance. Lewatit® makes an important contribution to the taste of many prod-
ucts.
LEWATIT ® MAKES SUGAR SWEET AND WHITE. To extend the shelf life of beer, for example, without adding any preser-
One important application in the food industry is the treatment of vatives, the water used to produce it must contain as little dissolved
syrup. Industrial-scale production of crystallized sugar and liquid sugar oxygen as possible. Lewatit® plays a key role in solving this problem:
syrup would be virtually impossible without the use of macroporous Catalysts coated with palladium are used in a process in which 99.8 %
Lewatit® ion exchange resins. The resins help to turn brown cane of the dissolved oxygen is removed.
sugar into the popular white product we all know so well. It also makes
sure that the sugar tastes like sugar. Special Lewatit® grades are used WINNING WITH LEWATIT ® .
to demineralize the raw solution and remove the yellowish brown sub- Valuable proteins and milk sugar, for example, are extracted from whey
stance that gives the raw sugar its natural color. and sent for further processing. For this process to be a success, the
whey must be suitably treated with Lewatit® ion exchange resins.

Brita household water filters con- removed so that the flavor of

taining Lewatit® ion exchange resins beverages like tea and coffee
are used to treat hard tap water can develop to the full.
containing lime by removing the Lead and copper ions are also
calcium and magnesium salts adsorbed by the Lewatit® cation
(decalcifying). Substances that exchange resins and exchanged
impair the taste and odor are for hydrogen ions.

25
Lewatit® resins developed
specifically for the needs of
the mining industry make the
extraction of valuable metals from
the mined ores very effective.

LEWATIT ® ION EXCHANGE RESINS FOR CATALY-

SIS AND CHEMICAL PROCESSES.

THERE'S A LOT MORE THAT

LEWATIT® CAN DO.

CHEMICAL PRODUCT SYNTHESES, HYDRO-

METALLURGY, BIOTECHNOLOGY, FOR EXAMPLE.
Chemical processes generally comprise the stages of feedstock pro-
cessing plus the synthesis, isolation and purification of the final prod-
ucts. The effluent has to be treated to protect the environment and to
recycle the used materials. Ion exchange resins are used in all these
steps. Their properties as catalysts or selective adsorbers under de-
manding, and sometimes exotic, reaction conditions are tailor-made.
There are numerous established applications for ion exchange resins
in the chemical, pharmaceutical and biochemical industries, in the
extraction of metals, in electroplating and electrical engineering and
also in the disposal and recycling industry – and there is enormous
potential for more.
PETROCHEMICALS DO BEST WITH LEWATIT ®. the hydrometallurgical steps of mining processes, both in the extrac-
Organic ethers like MTBE and TAME have assumed the function in tion of metals from ores (e.g. copper, nickel, cobalt) and in the removal
fuels that formerly fell to lead. Lewatit® makes an important contribu- of contaminants. The Lewatit® resins with their chelate groups devel-
tion towards preparing these additives for large-scale, inexpensive oped specifically for the needs of the mining industry adsorb the dis-
production. Thanks to special Lewatit® resins, complex and uneco- solved valuable materials, which are very finely dispersed in the liquid
nomical production processes are now a thing of the past. Today, (suspension or pulp). Lewatit® and the resin-in-pulp technology make
highly selective processes with excellent conversion rates ensure that the extraction of valuable metals extremely effective. Apart from this
the market is supplied with sufficient quantities of organic ethers – application in mining, the recovery of valuable materials from product
without delivery bottlenecks and at reasonable cost. This develop- streams is also highly interesting in the fields of electroplating, electron-
ment has been accompanied from the very beginning by Lewatit ®
ics and the chemical industry.
experts working in the field of catalysis and organic synthesis. With
their knowledge of acid-catalytic reactions in the homogeneous Using Lewatit® ion exchange resins, processes can also be run eco-
phase, solutions were found to make full use of the benefits of hetero- nomically in a decentralized unit – usefully combining the two main
geneous chemical reaction engineering through the use of Lewatit ®
parameters of economy and ecology.
ion exchange resins.
TRACKING DOWN THE POLLUTANTS
PVC PRODUCTION: WITH LEWATIT ® AND WITHOUT IN THE GROUNDWATER.
ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE. In the treatment of industrial effluent and in the purification of ground-
With global production standing at an estimated 26 million tons a year, water, the removal of toxic ionic and non-ionic substances plays a key
PVC is one of the most important plastics of all. For PVC production, role. Substances that harm the environment can be collected on
elementary chlorine is needed, produced in very large quantities by exchangers and adsorbers and thus reliably removed from the water.
electrolysis from highly concentrated sodium chloride solutions. The This ensures that only water that has largely been freed of pollutants is
controversial production process using mercury has since given way to discharged into the environment.
the environmentally friendly membrane process. The only problem is
that the sensitive plastic membranes become blocked by alkaline earth LEWATIT ® SUPPORTS BIOTECHNOLOGY.
ions due to the precipitation of hydroxides. Lewatit® ion exchange res- The processing of biotechnologically produced active ingredients and
ins are able to specifically eliminate the troublesome metals even from formulations of pharmaceutical active ingredients makes very high
highly concentrated salt solutions. As a result, the expensive mem- demands on the material used for separation.
branes are effectively protected and can remain in use for much
longer. The concentration of valuable substances by adsorption and desorp-
tion has proved to be an important field of application for Lewatit® just
SELECTIVE PRODUCTION AND as has selective chromatographic separation and polishing. Another
RECYCLING OF VALUABLE SUBSTANCES. potential application in biotechnology and pharmacy: Enzymes can be
®
Another large field of application for Lewatit ion exchange resins is in immobilized exceptionally well with Lewatit®.

Production processes in the two interesting fields in which the

pharmaceutical industry and Lewatit® team is working on new
catalysis in chemical operations – developments.

27
 ION EXCHANGE –
IN PRINCIPLE, SIMPLE.

Separation and concentration are two of the most fundamental opera-

tions in the chemical industry. Depending on the particular application,
the scope and level of difficulty of the task can vary considerably: Solids
can be separated relatively easily by filtration. When isolating compo-
nents dissolved in liquids (ions = cations and anions), on the other
hand, ion exchange resins are needed. In such applications, it is essen-
tial to have detailed chemical knowledge of possible reactions with the
ion exchange resins and any other interactions.
POLYMER BEADS WITH TENTACLES. substances, which adsorb anions or cations and exchange them for
Lewatit® chemists produce ion exchange resins by combining styrene- other ions, function like tentacles. Depending on the nature of the
acrylonitile with divinylbenzene – intermediate products from the oil- functional groups – i.e. the tentacles on the surface of the filaments –
processing industry. The structure of these tiny polymer beads is simi- a wide variety of components can be captured from the solution.
lar to that of a ball of wool. In this case, however, it is not a single
thread but numerous individual polymer filaments. They combine to The Lewatit® product range contains a number of ion exchange resins,
form a finely branched network with many cavities. The surfaces of all adsorbers and functional polymers that feature a structure such as this
the polymer filaments are specifically manipulated by the chemists and operate by this kind of functional principle.
through the application of certain functional groups. These chemical

POLYMER CHAIN

MICROPORE

“TENTACLE”
(= FUNCTIONAL GROUP)

29
 + +
-

NEGATIVE CATCHES POSITIVE, ADSORBING MOLECULES,

POSITIVE CATCHES NEGATIVE. PURIFYING THE ACTIVE INGREDIENT.
If the functional groups carry a negative charge, they exchange cations If the resin beads are left “unfunctionalized”, use can be made of their
(positively charged ions). This works through the undesirable cation surface and porosity to adsorb a variety of substances. With these
being replaced by the desired one. The resins involved are cation Lewatit® adsorbers, for example, pharmaceutical active ingredients
exchange resins. can be isolated and purified.
The other variation is anion exchange resins, where functional groups
with a positive charge replace anions (negatively charged ions) by the
same principle.

CHELATING AGENTS FOR METAL.

If chelating agents (from the Greek “chala” = crab) are applied to the
surface of the polymer beads, clawed tentacles catch metal ions from
the solution (like a crab that catches its victim with its claws). De-
pending on the particular chelating agent and the application condi-
tions, a specific metal ion or an exactly definable group of different
metal ions is surrounded and isolated.

REGENERATION.
++ The period of service of ion exchange resins is not infinite: The capac-
ity of the resins is exhausted when the majority of the tentacles of the
+ + functional groups are full of “captured” ions/molecules. This means
++ that the ion exchange resins have to be regenerated (cleaned). The
beads are returned to their original state and reactivated by displacing
the ions/molecules adsorbed during operation by the same functional
groups that had been applied to the surface before service.
Regeneration can be performed as often as necessary, although the
capacity (the number of free tentacles) of the ion exchange resins
decreases over the course of time.
REGIONAL BUSINESS CENTERS

EUROPE LANXESS Europe GmbH

Langenfeld, Germany
Fax +49-2173-2033-311
E-mail [email protected]

NAFTA Sybron Chemicals Inc. a LANXESS Company

Birmingham, NJ, USA
Fax +1-609-894-8641
E-mail [email protected]

ASIA PACIFIC LANXESS Pte Ltd

Singapore
Fax +65-6-2666959
E-mail [email protected]

JAPAN & SOUTH KOREA LANXESS K.K.

Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Fax +81-3-3280-9869
E-mail [email protected]

SOUTH AMERICA LANXESS Industria de Produtos Quimicos

e Plasticos Ltda, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Fax +55-11-37412548
E-mail [email protected]

HEADQUARTERS LANXESS Deutschland GmbH

Leverkusen, Germany
Fax +49-214-3050621
E-mail [email protected]

www.lewatit.com 31
This brochure contains forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and fore-

casts made by LANXESS Deutschland GmbH management. Various known and unknown

risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual

future consolidated results, financial situation, development or performance of the company,

and the estimates given here. The company assumes no liability to update such forward-look-

ing statements or to conform them to future events or development.

This information and our technical advice – whether verbal, in writing or by way of trials – are

given in good faith but without warranty, and this also applies where proprietary rights of third

parties are involved. Our advice does not release you from the obligation to verify the informa-

tion currently provided – especially that contained in our safety data and technical information

sheets – and to test our products as to their suitability for the intended processes and uses. The

application, use and processing of our products and the products manufactured by you on the

basis of our technical advice are beyond our control and, therefore, entirely your own respon-

sibility. Our products are sold in accordance with the current version of our General Conditions

of Sale and Delivery.

Order No. LXS-LEW 001/e Edition: 2006-03

LANXESS Deutschland GmbH

Chemiepark Leverkusen
51369 Leverkusen
Germany
www.lewatit.com