From Concept to Commercialization - A Case Study of Solid Bed Detergent Alkylation Process

A project from research to commercialization has to pass through not one but many hurdles; it is not a trivial matter. It is an expensive, time-consuming undertaking. From concept to commercialization, the development of new technologies may take anywhere from 1 to 20 years based on relative simplicity or complexity of its application and market condition. The investment needed for development and scale-up of the technology and the duration of the time it would take are if not always, often significantly under estimated at the research stage.

Successful technology development, from concept to commercialization requires a structured process; employing modern tools such as, Stage Gate Reviews, Failure Mode Effect Analysis (FMEA), etc. The barrier is very high, often not visualized or understood. This presentation out lines all necessary steps one must go through from research to development, scale-up and commercialization. The author will discuss this and other criteria in more detail with a case study of development and commercialization of solid acid alkylation catalyst that replaced liquid HF acid for the production of linear alkylbenzens, a detergent raw material.