As an innovative company paving the way for a clean and sustainable industry, we need to utilize the best available technology and tools to further enhance our advancements.
One area where we have put in a lot of effort is using advanced simulation techniques like Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). With this technology, we can analyze and understand how gas flows, particles, and chemical reactions interact within our electrified reactors before real-world testing and adjustments. Together with a leading actor in industrial simulation, we are creating digital twins of our processes – highly detailed virtual models that mirror the physical system. These digital twins allow us to test, optimize, and validate designs long before a single component is built.
Simulations are a key component in product development and scaling up technology, ensuring functionality, efficiency, and reliability. Unlike traditional approaches—building prototypes, testing, and revising—SaltX can now identify areas for improvement in advance and optimize processes digitally. This not only saves time and resources but also provides technical and business benefits as the technology advances toward industrial scale.
We asked a few questions to Michele Pressiani, Senior Development Engineer at SaltX, and about why simulations and digital twins are so important right now, how they contribute to energy efficiency and process optimization, and what the next steps will be in strengthening SaltX’s position as a climate technology leader.
Why are CFD simulations so important in modern industrial development in general?
CFD simulations have become a powerful tool in modern industrial development, as they enable the detailed analysis of complex flows, heat transfer, and reactions before a physical prototype is built. This allows companies to test multiple design alternatives quickly. In addition, simulations provide insights into processes that are often impossible to measure directly, such as internal flow fields, local temperature, or chemical concentrations. By combining speed, accuracy, and depth of understanding, CFD has fundamentally changed how industries design, scale, and operate advanced technologies.
Of course, the expertise of engineers remains essential to ensure that the input data is accurate, to adapt and refine the underlying models when needed, and to critically evaluate the quality and reliability of the simulation results.
How does today’s simulation-driven approach differ from the past, when prototypes were built, tested, and revised?
Today, simulation-driven engineering offers a fundamentally different workflow. With the help of CFD models and digital twins, multiple design concepts can be tested and evaluated virtually before any prototype is built. This enables efficient comparison of alternatives, reduces development costs, and makes it possible to optimize geometries much earlier in the process.
Moreover, simulations provide insights that physical testing often cannot. For example, airflow inside a reactor is difficult—or sometimes impossible—to measure directly. Using digital twins, however, the entire flow field can be visualized and analyzed in detail, giving engineers a deeper understanding of the underlying physics and guiding better design decisions.
What improvement areas have you already been able to identify thanks to CFD modeling?
With CFD, we have already been able to evaluate different reactor geometries and operating conditions before going into physical tests. For example, simulations helped us identify how the distribution of gas and particles inside the reactor affects the stability of the flame and the calcination efficiency. We have also pinpointed design changes that can reduce particle deposition on the walls, which in turn lowers maintenance needs.
These kinds of insights are very valuable, as they allow us to focus on the most promising design paths early in the process. So far, the design changes identified through CFD and later implemented in our test facilities have proven successful, confirming the reliability and value of the simulations.
How do simulations help you optimize industrial processes, for example, in terms of energy efficiency and maintenance costs?
With digital twins, the energy required to pump or blow air through a system can be predicted and minimized already in the design phase. This makes it possible to identify energy-saving design choices before implementation. Simulations can also predict the stability of flow patterns inside a reactor. A stable and symmetric flow not only improves process performance but also extends the lifetime of the reactor by reducing mechanical stress and wear.
In addition, the number of particles that adhere to internal surfaces can be minimized, lowering maintenance needs and associated costs. This was demonstrated just a few weeks ago, when we successfully eliminated material build-up in the reactor by optimizing the control of the gas inlet flows.
Why is this the right time for SaltX to start working with this technology?
We are currently scaling our technology from pilot to industrial scale, which is a critical and challenging step. The ability to predict and optimize performance digitally is therefore more important than ever. Without simulation, scale-up would rely heavily on trial-and-error, which is both time-consuming and costly.
By introducing CFD and digital twins now, we can reduce risks, shorten development cycles, and accelerate our path to market.
What business value do you see in the longer term?
In the long run, simulation becomes a strategic asset. It makes SaltX more agile, strengthens our competitive edge, and accelerates the industrial deployment of our technology. Developing fully functioning digital twins takes time, but the effort we invest today builds unique expertise in electrified calcination.
By working directly with the fundamental equations and physical models, we gain a deeper understanding of the complex dynamics inside the reactor, knowledge that not only enhances our simulations but also reinforces our position as true experts in this field.
What unique expertise does your simulation partner contribute to SaltX?
Our partner brings deep experience in fluid dynamics, heat transfer, and particle systems across multiple industries. They provide advanced CFD software tailored for multiphase flows and particle interactions, as well as access to high-performance computing resources.
For SaltX, this means access to cutting-edge simulation expertise and computational power that accelerate innovation, reduce development risks, and provide deeper insights into process performance.
What are the next steps in developing the models?
The next step is to continuously refine and validate our models with experimental data from our existing pilot plants. By combining simulations with real test results, we can increase confidence in the predictions and extend the models to cover more aspects of the process.
We also plan to use digital twins as a design tool for our upcoming large-scale reactors, where they will help us optimize geometry, flow stability, and energy efficiency before construction. Where it may take months to build a physical plant, we can now create a digital twin in a matter of weeks. Over time, the goal is to integrate simulation as a standard part of SaltX’s development workflow.
CFD simulations and digital twins have already shown their worth for SaltX by highlighting design and process improvements early on. By working with a leading actor in industrial simulation, SaltX can accelerate development and scale-up, reduce risks, and boost both performance and cost efficiency.
As a result, simulations are not just valuable for current projects – they give SaltX a crucial strategic edge in building a more sustainable and competitive industry.