The Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory (IBRL) is getting a lot of attention lately. If you’ve seen Illini athletics on television, you may have seen this:
At IBRL, basically, companies and researchers use the facility to ferment things under different conditions to find new products that can be made of local crops like corn and soybeans. Basically, the building has giant metal containers, each with an overwhelming amount of sensors, inlets, holes, controls, detectors, outlets, and valves.
Connections need to be made to each container, many using local utilities used as part of experiments — resources like water, pressurized air, or steam.
Real science is happening here, and it’s thanks, in part, to F&S refrigeration mechanic BJ Glasa.
Glasa’s role is so important to folks at IBRL, he’s even featured on their website as on their management team: https://ibrl.aces.illinois.edu/people/robert-bj-glasa/.
“BJ is an integral part of the IBRL team,” said Marissa Nyland, assistant director of operations & safety at IBRL. “He provides invaluable expertise and perspective to the team, helping with all types of problem solving in the pilot plant. In addition to piping almost all the existing fermentation infrastructure at IBRL, he’s also our technical team’s go-to when they need to talk through an unusual equipment problem. Even if it is something he hasn’t encountered before, he’s always got a good idea on who else to call, or what to try next. His in-depth knowledge also allows our plant staff to really get creative with projects since they can work together collaboratively to come up with solutions that are unique but still safe.”
“I’ve never seen so much stainless steel.”
For what refrigeration mechanics and pipefitters traditionally do, much of what Glasa has done at IBRL involves one material not commonly used in utilities settings: stainless steel. Turns out, the stuff being fermented needs to be done on the most food grade setting possible. That requires stainless steel.
Stainless is rare for pipefitters, but Glasa is a 28-year expert now. And working at IBRL on these complicated systems, seemingly endless mazes of piping, is probably not for someone with one year of experience. There, he manages what he calls “Ferm Row” – six different fermenters in a row. Sizes and shapes and capabilities of fermenters vary widely, between as small as 16 Liters and as large as 1200 Liters.
“I’m on call to adjust pressures, volumes, and temperatures [of the primary utilities]. As many times as these utilities get turned on and off, on a Tuesday you might have no leaks, but they could be there Wednesday. Work here is always not the same as what you did the day before.”
Asked to list off the utilities available, Glasa recounts quicker than an auctioneer: “Domestic water, chilled water supply and return, steam and steam condensate, compressed air, natural gas, nitrogen, vacuum, and carbon dioxide. That should cover most of it.”
Glasa is thankful for the job : “This is more diverse work in a day-to-day field than I’ve ever had. And you can’t be afraid to do something you haven’t done before.”