PI is more than a trend; it's a movement; and if finding smaller, less costly and more efficient processes can make the lab safer, cleaner, smarter and more productive, it's worth getting behind.
Like fashions, trends come and go.
They're hot for a while, gathering a few disciples along the way, but eventually they go the way of the hula-hoop.
Movements, on the other hand, tend to have a real shelf life.
They stand to make a major impact on the populations they effect.
In the industrial world, there's a movement afoot called process intensification.
It's a philosophy with roots dating back to the 1970s that is now significant enough to have a trade association promoting its premise.
The trade organisation is called the Process Intensification Network, and the premise is this: pursue technologies that replace large, expensive, energy-intensive equipment or processes with ones that are smaller, less costly and more efficient, or that combine multiple operations into fewer devices.
The kind of reductions PI encourages are intended to produce better products, and processes that are safer, cleaner, smaller and cheaper.
Dennis Hendershot, a senior technical fellow with specialty chemical manufacturer Rohm and Haas, knows a thing or two about PI.
He spent 12 years in process research and development with the company and 20 years improving process safety in its new and existing facilities.
"There are lots of advantages to process intensification in the chemical industry, but the biggest is that it makes things smaller," Hendershot said.
"When you're working with less material, there's reduced risk and better control.
"That means accidents are less likely, and when they do happen, containment is easier.
"Ideas like process intensification are valuable in getting us out of the 'stirred tank' mentality," Hendershot added.
"Big tanks are not necessarily good for chemistry.
"A lot of reactions happen fast, even though they appear slow.
"A big pot means that mixed molecules have a harder time finding each other.
"Smaller equipment brings them into contact more quickly.
"It saves time and advances safety".
Among the companies helping the chemical industry put process intensification to work is Delp Mixer.
The Columbus, Ohio-based bench-scale mixer manufacturer had PI in mind when it designed its line of powered and unpowered mixers, adapters, accessories and systems.
Created to replace the complex mixing systems of old, Delp mixers are scalable, user-friendly and can be assembled in minutes with a single tool.
They allow users to mix in limited pressure or vacuum conditions, and are designed to use off-the-shelf glassware.
And they're durable enough to carry a lifetime warranty.
"Flexible, adaptable, reliable and affordable - that's the PI recipe.
"Simple solutions - that's what our clients are after in the lab," said Lisa Delp, president and CEO of Delp and Associates, owner of Delp Mixer.
"Even if the problem is complex, the ideal solution should be simple.
"That's what process intensification is all about, and that's what our products are designed to provide".
The company has created a mixing system it considers the embodiment of the PI ideal.
The system utilises its standard-duty 216 S series mixer, a threaded adapter, a tapered adapter and a Collet shaft to give chemists the flexibility of several individual machines in one complete package.
"So many of our clients are working toward standardisation and simplification across multiple labs," said Delp.
"We wanted to provide products and accessories that would allow them to do that in a way that would not only save money, but also save space, reduce waste, improve safety, and limit the amount of time spent on assembly, disassembly and maintenance.
"We're about doing right by scientists, and providing them with simple, flexible, reliable products that can improve their processes is the best way to do that as far as we're concerned".
The company's growing list of satisfied clients is reason to believe they're on the right track, it says.
"We do a lot of mixing on the research side of our business, and Delp mixers give us a lot of flexibility," said Mike Stanfield, director of operations for Kion, a company leader active in silazane polymer technology.
"We can use them with reactors from five litres to 70 litres because they're extremely powerful for their size.
"The reinforced shafts have totally reduced the shaft wobble we were accustomed to.
"And since the Mag Drive power supply creates a closed system, there's no corrosion to the motor.
"We've had multiple users on each of our Delp mixers for more than a year now and we can't seem to blow one out.
"We save a lot of maintenance time, too," Stanfield added.
"We can change the shafts easily, and the shaft lengths, too.
"They've even designed shafts, connectors and fittings just for us.
"That's why we have three Delp mixers in the lab and another on order".
Successfully integrating process intensification into major operations like Rohm and Haas and Kion is no accident, says Delp.
It's a sign that PI is more than a trend; it's a movement.
And if finding smaller, less costly and more efficient processes can make the lab safer, cleaner, smarter and more productive, it's a movement worth getting behind.
