Removing CMR molecules in the pharmaceutical sector

A well-known French pharmaceutical company came under pressure from the authorities to find a rapid solution to CMR molecules in its air emissions. Failure to do so would mean production would have to stop.

Previously, the company had used gas combustion to remove CMR molecules. However, this approach has three main disadvantages: it’s a big investment; it has high operational costs (especially where production is discontinuous); and it produces very high CO₂ emissions, which have an environmental impact.

The company turned to DESOTEC to find an alternative.

Our filtration set-up has solved several of the customer’s problems simultaneously.

The operational costs are just 25% of the gas combustion approach, and the CO₂ emissions are ten times lower.

As our filters are supplied on a rental basis, the customer doesn’t need to make any serious upfront investments.

Plus, the filter units are designed in such a way that no manual intervention is required during operation. This means the filtration process is 100% safe, with no risk to the company’s employees.

When the carbon is saturated, the filter is exchanged for a new one in a swift process that requires no production downtime.

All filtration waste is transported away from the customer’s site in closed units and taken to DESOTEC’s facilities. There, the used carbon is analysed so the right measures can be taken to keep our employees safe while handling it.

All molecules that were adsorbed on the activated carbon at the customer’s site are desorbed inside DESOTEC’s reactivation furnaces. These contaminants are then fully destroyed in accordance with national and European legislation by an incineration and neutralisation setup. The entire installation and its emissions are under continuous online monitoring, which guarantees that only harmless water vapour is seen exiting the chimney.