Manoel Barreto Ribeiro

Process Engineer

Professional Experience:

            Over 32 years of experience in the fertilizer industry, both nitrogen and phosphate plants, working mainly in the fields of process and project engineering, also with know-how in production management and economic evaluation of projects.

 Highlight actions linked to phosphate:

Sterlite Industries India Ltd.

·      Co-ordination and project engineer of basic engineering of a New HDH Phosphoric Acid 800 TPD Plant, in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, India.

·      Co-ordination and project engineer of basic engineering for two revamps of HDH Phosphoric Acid, from 400 to 600 TPD, and from 600 to 750 TPD.

Maroc Phosphore S/A

·      Co-ordination and project engineer of basic engineering for the modification of an existing MAP Plant to produce DCP 20 TPD and modification of NPK Plant to produce MCP 20 TPD, in Morocco.

Pequiven  Petroquimica

·      Project manager and design engineer of the basic and detailed engineering for the Expansion of Phosphoric Acid Plant, increasing the capacity from 300 to 600 TPD, in Morón, Venezuela.

Bunge Fertilizantes S/A

·      Project manager, coordinator of all phases of the implementation for the Reactor Expansion Project at the HDH Plant of Bunge Fertilizantes, in Cajati, São Paulo, Brazil. This project consisted in a new 130 m³ concrete reactor with agitators and pumps, low-level flash cooler and a totally new scrubbing system. It also included the modifications for the control room, electrical design, instrumentation and off-sites.

Copebrás - Anglo American Group

·      Co-ordination of basic engineering for a New Flash Cooler, to be fitted in an existing DH Plant in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil. Copebrás decided to convert this plant due to favourable experience with a similar unit at Catalão Plant. The flash cooler located in Cubatão requires cleaning every 3-4 months, Catalão Unit is inspected annually.

Petrobras Argentina S/A

·      Co-ordination and project engineer of basic engineering of SSP Acidulation Den, Granulation Plant, storage and facilities in Campana, Argentina.

Mosaic Argentina

·      Co-ordination and project engineer of basic engineering of SSP Acidulation Den, Granulation Plant, storage and facilities in Rosario, Argentina.

·      Co-ordination of detailed engineering of a SSP Acidulation Den Revamp in an existing fertilizer complex, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

Fospar S/A

·      Co-ordination of basic engineering of a SSP Acidulation Den and Granulation Plant in Paranaguá – Paraná, Brazil.

Fosfertil - Vale Fertilizantes S/A

·      Project manager for the implementation of a Prayon Low-Level Flash-Cooler to replace an old conventional unit in a Door-Oliver DH Plant. This project also involved the design of a hot water system using a pre-condenser and the Expansion of the Evaporation Unit, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

·      Project manager and responsible for the basic engineering for the project of the Ammonium Nitrate Plant Revamp, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

·      Process engineer for Ammonia, Ammonium Nitrate, DAP/MAP, Sulphuric Acid, Nitric Acid and Phosphoric Acid Plants, where has been involved with performance analysis of equipment, pipe reactor installation and scrubber revamps for MAP plant, equipment design for Phosphoric Acid Plant, waste disposal projects, utilities expansion and pollution control, including a biological treatment as the chief engineer, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

John Sinden 

Process Consultant

Professional Experience:

            John Sinden has 44 years of experience in the fertilizer industry. He began his work as an industrial chemist at Fisons Fertilizer (currently Yara Fertilizer) and later became a production manager at Plymouth. After that, he worked in the Central Technical Services (CTS) Unit, working directly for the production director. He was responsible for the process trouble shooting in all the granulation plants (14), super phosphate plants (3) and bulk blending units (20), he was also involved in all the other process plants sulphuric acid and ammonium nitrate.

            After the CTS unit was incorporated in the Process and Licensing Unit, he also started up six granulation units and two MAP/DAP plants in Brazil, Uruguay and Turkey. During this period he was responsible for the basic process design and/or feasibility studies for granulation projects in Turkey, Cyprus, Poland and Yugoslavia.

            As Technical Manager of Manah S.A., he was responsible for all aspects of process development and control, project and product research and development.

Projects designed and commissioned in the last few years:

·           Two Slurry Route ROP SSP Units, using recirculation of FSA;

·           One Conventional ROP SSP Unit;

·           Two Conventional ROP SSP Units with sequential acidulation, using recirculation of FSA;

·           Three Units Revamp to the Slurry Route;

·           Two Conventional SSP Units Revamp.

→ Some of these projects have used high silica phosphate rocks such as ”slimes” from three of the Brazilian mines, which can have up to 8% reactive silicates. Other rocks include Morocco K10, K11, K12; Togo; Israel Zin; Taiba; Gafsa;Algeria; Florida and all the Brazilian igneous phosphates.

·           Three New Granulation Units;

·           Two Granulation Units Revamp, including pipe reactors;

·           Two New Animal Feed Phosphate Units;

            John Sinden has carried out many process audits and due diligence studies on ROP SSP/TSP, G/TSP, NPK and DAP/MAP/AP. Granulation units in Brazil, Uruguay, South Africa, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, Portugal, Austria, Lithuania, Mexico and USA.

Experience Record:

·           Design and development of the new product and its production Units Fosmag and Multifosfato Magnesiano;

·           Author of the only patented fertilizer product in Brazil: modified magnesium calcium phosphate;

·           Design and development of the slurry route for producing ROP SSP from reject slimes with high impurity levels with the recirculation of FSA resulting in no liquid effluents;

·           Design of granulation units revamps with and without pipe reactors and high efficiency scrubbing systems;

·           Design and development of an one step minigranular dicalcium phosphate mineral salt product for animal feed Manafos;

·           Design and development of a low recycle animal feed phosphate granulation process;

·           Development of granulation and acidulation processes for the economic recovery of all types of raffinates from phosphoric acid purification units.

·           Commissioning manager for the start up of several granulation and super phosphate units.

Currently employed as a process consultant of the following companies:

ü  Fosfertil S/A          

ü  Cargill Fertilizers Inc.

ü  Bunge Fertilizantes S/A 

ü  Omnia Nutriology

ü  Copebrás Ltda.          

ü  Fospar S/A

ü  Ravensdown Fertilizer Ltd.

ü  Indo-Jordan Chemical Company

 Publications:

Ø  Frequent contributor to the British Sulphur Publishing, Fertilizer International and Nitrogen;

Ø  Has presented papers at the International Fertilizer Industry Association - IFA, American Institute of Chemical Engineer - AICHE and the British Sulphur technical conferences.

Antonio da Conceição Alves da Silva

Process Engineer

Professional Experience:

Over 27 years of experience as a process engineer in the Petrochemical and Fertilizer Industry.

 Highlight actions linked to phosphate:

Petrobras Argentina S/A

·      Co-ordination Basic engineering for a Run of Pile SSP Plant with associated Granulation Plant.

·      Coordinator of a project to expand a fertilizer unit and improve exhaustion to make the workplace more acceptable.

Sterlite Industries India Ltd.

·      Process enginner in the HDH Phosphoric Acid Expansion Project, increasing the capacity from 600 to 750 TPD P₂O₅.

·      Basic engineering for the Expansion of the HDH Phosphoric Acid, increasing from 400 to 600 TPD P₂O₅.

Bunge Fertilizantes S/A

·      Project co-ordination of the installation of a phosphate mill for Bunge Fertilizantes, Brazil.

Copebrás - Anglo American Group

·      Co-ordination of the detailed engineering of a Fluosilicic Acid Recovery System on the evaporators, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

·      Basic engineering for improved gas scrubbing on an SSP Plant, in Catalão, Goiás, Brazil.

·      Participation in the project to install a P. Smith & Associates flash-cooler in the existing Phosphoric Acid Plant, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

Fosfertil - Vale Fertilizantes S/A

·      Co-ordination of detailed engineering of the installation of a high performance scrubbing system on a Dehydrate Phosphoric Acid Plant in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

Mosaic Argentina

·      Basic engineering for a Run of Pile SSP Plant with associated Granulation Plant, for Mosaic, in Rosario, Argentina.

Omnia Fertilizer Ltd. – Omnia Holdings

·      Revamp of a Run of Pile SSP Plant and scrubbing system, in Rustenburg, South Africa.

Pequiven - Petroquimica

·      Economic study and analysis of investment and operating costs for Pequiven, Venezuela.

Vandenberg Soares de Andrade

Process Engineer

Professional Experience:

            Over 27 years of experience as a process engineer in the Petrochemical and the Fertilizer Industry.

 Highlight actions linked to phosphate:

Petrobras Argentina S/A

·      Co-ordination basic engineering for a Run of Pile SSP Plant with associated Granulation Plant.

·      Coordinator of a project to expand a fertilizer unit and improve exhaustion to make the workplace more acceptable.

Pequiven - Petroquimica

·      Process engineer and project coordinator of basic and detailed engineering of a New 600 TPD P₂O₅ Phosphoric Acid Plant, with the use of P. Smith and Associates process for the Fertilizer Complex of Morón, Venezuela.

Mosaic Argentina

·      Process engineer of basic engineering for a SSP Acidulation Den, Granulation Plant, storage and facilities in Rosario, Argentina.

·      Process engineer of basic engineering for a SSP Acidulation Den Revamp in an existing Fertilizer Complex, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

Fospar S/A

·      Process engineer of basic engineering of a SSP Acidulation Den and Granulation Plant Revamp in Paranaguá, Paraná, Brazil.

Fosfertil - Vale Fertilizantes S/A

·      Process Engineer of basic and detailed engineering of a Phosphoric Acid Plant Revamp with capacity of 500 TPD P₂O₅, entailing the installation of a new Prayon low-level flash cooler.

·      Process engineer for Phosphoric and Sulphuric Acid Plants, Gypsum Ponds, MAP/DAP Plants and Waste Water Treatment, also experience as the Utilities Plant manager. Involved in start up and plant developments and revamp projects, which included the fitting of a Prayon low-level flash cooler to the old Dorr-Oliver phosphoric acid reactor.

Copebrás - Anglo American Group

·      Phosphoric Acid and Utilities Plant manager. Experience in start up and plant developments.  The 500 TPD P₂O₅ Plant was built using a proprietary Copebrás design, based on a Nissan Plant and including a P. Smith & Associates flash-cooler. 

Carlos Ribeiro Pinheiro da Silva

Process Engineer

Professional Experience:

Over 20 years of experience in the Fertilizer Industry, both Nitrogen and Phosphate plants, working mainly in the fields of process, project engineering, also with know-how in laboratory production management and economic evolution projects.

Highlight actions linked to nitrogen and phosphate:

Pequiven - Petroquimica

·      Senior process and project engineer in the development of the basic engineering and support to detailed engineering for the Expansion of the Phosphoric Acid Plant from 240 to 600 TPD, in Morón, Venezuela. The project was based on the P. Smith & Associates technology. This project consists of a new 1.300 m³ concrete reactor with agitators and pumps, low-level flash cooler, a new filter, a new train of evaporators and totally new scrubbing system.

Petrobras Argentina S/A

·      Senior process and project engineer of the basic engineering of a SSP Acidulation Den, Granulation Plant, storage and facilities, in Campana, Argentina.

Fosfertil - Vale Fertilizantes S/A

·      Project manager and responsible for the basic engineering for the new Project of Nitric Acid Plant, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.

·      Process engineer for Ammonia, Ammonia Nitrate, DAP/MAP, Sulfuric Acid, Nitric Acid and Phosphoric Acid Plants. As a production manager, has been involved with performance analysis of equipment and pipe reactor installation for MAP/DAP Plant, in Cubatão, São Paulo, Brazil.