A new catalyst promises to cut the cost of the Fischer-Tropsch process
When coal-derived synthesis gas (syngas) is converted to liquid fuel by the Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process,…
Commentary
A booming interest in separation technologies
Distillation and absorption are back. The AIChE Spring Meeting (San Antonio, April 28–May 2) proved…
Keeping the water flowing
Currently, there are around 13,000 desalination plants in operation or under construction in 150 countries,…
In The News
Chementator
A ‘new’ concept for CO2 capture: birds’ lungs
Researchers at the University of California Irvine (UCI, Irvine CA; www.chem.uci.edu) have taken a cue…
Cross-coupling catalyst
A highly active nickel catalyst for performing cross-coupling reactions has been developed by the research…
October Chementator Briefs
Strength with stress Shear forces usually break bonds in polymer materials, but a research…
These resins make tastier orange juice
A process from Dow Water & Process Solutions (DW&PS; Edina, Minn.; www.dowwaterandprocess.com) uses a unique…
Control particle size and morphology with this technique
Lactose has been widely used as a pharmaceutical excipient, where the size and morphology of…
New approach for biobutanol reaches ‘lab-pilot’ scale
A continuous fermentation process for making biologically derived butanol from a variety of sugar feedstocks…
Pelletizing technology for iron ore improves strength and output
Iron ore is traditionally pelletized using the binding agent bentonite to facilitate transport and handling.…
An inexpensive iron catalyst for efficient hydrogenation reactions
The research group of Yasuhiro Uozumi and Yoichi Yamada at Riken (Saitama, Japan; www.riken.jp), in…
Scaleup for a CO2 mineralization process
A pilot plant will be established at the University of Newcastle (Newcastle, Australia; www.newcastle.edu.au) to…
Solid-catalyst method for breaking down cellulosic biomass cuts costs
Fermenting sugar is at the heart of many bio-based chemical and biofuel processes, but obtaining…
Business News
Clariant opens new innovation center in Frankfurt
Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) is today officially opening its new €100-million Clariant Innovation Center (CIC)…
Clariant plans to divest Leather Services Business to Stahl
Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) plans to sell its Leather Services business to Stahl Holdings B.V.…
World’s largest SNG plant goes onstream in China
Haldor Topsøe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark; www.topsoe.com) says that Qinghua, the largest substitute natural gas (SNG)…
BASF obtains exclusive rights to market magnetocaloric materials
BASF New Business GmbH (Luswigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) has entered into an agreement with the Dutch…
Evonik starts up new production facility in Shanghai
Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) has opened a new production facility for organic specialty…
Honeywell to build new production facility in China
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) says it will establish a new manufacturing campus in Zhangjiagang, China, to support…
Jacobs receives contract from Codelco in Chile
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (Pasadena, Calif.; www.jacobs.com) :JEC) announced today that it was awarded a…
Eurochem launches mining operations in Kazakhstan
EuroChem (Moscow, Russia; www.eurochem.ru), one of the world's largest fertilizer companies, today announces the launch…
WorleyParsons awarded detailed EPCM contract by Invista
WorleyParsons Ltd. (North Sydney, Australia; www.worleyparsons.com) announces the recent award of an engineering, procurement and…
Teijin establishes new Thai subsidiary
Teijin Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan; www.teijin.com) has established Teijin Corporation (Thailand) Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary…
Foster Wheeler awarded FEED contract from Khurais in Saudi Arabia
Foster Wheeler AG (Zug, Switzerland; www.fwc.com) says that subsidiaries of its Global Engineering and Construction…
Praxair starts up ASU in Brazil
White Martins, the Brazil-based subsidiary of Praxair, Inc. (Danbury, Conn.; www.praxair.com), has started up a…
Neste Jacobs signs MoU with Quangang Petroleum and Chemical Industry Park in China
Neste Jacobs Oy (Porvoo, Finland; www.nestejacobs.com) and Quangang Petroleum and Chemical Industry Park Management have…
CB&I awarded technology contract from GS Caltex
CB&I (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.cbi.com) has been awarded a contract by GS Caltex Corporation for…
Gazprom Neft, UOP and EMRE finalize technology licensing agreement
UOP LLC (UOP; Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, and ExxonMobil Research and Engineering…
Air Products to build new world-scale H2 plant to support Shell Scotford facility
Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com), and its subsidiary Air Products Canada Ltd., today announced…
ICA Fluor to build vinyl-chloride-monomer plant in Mexico
Fluor Corp. (Irving, Tex.; www.fluor.com) says that its ICA Fluor industrial engineering-construction joint venture (JV)…
Technip awarded contract for ethane cracker in Louisiana
Technip (Paris, France; www.technip.com) was awarded a contract by Sasol to supply its proprietary ethylene…
Clariant divests Detergents & Intermediates Business to ICIG
Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) has signed an agreement to divest its Detergents & Intermediates business…
Wison wins contract for project in Venezuela ;
Wison Engineering Services Co. Ltd. (Shanghai, China; www.wison.com), the largest private sector chemical engineering, procurement…
Cooper Valves acquires Accuseal
Cooper Valves (Stafford, Tex.; www.coopervalves.com) says it has acquired Accuseal (Houston), the leading manufacturer of…
Haldor Topsøe and E.ON to harness excess industrial heat
Haldor Topsøe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark; www.topsoe.com) and E.ON, one of the world’s largest power and…
ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions receives fertilizer plant contract from Belarus
Belarus-based Grodno Azot has placed an order with plant engineering specialists ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions AG…
Neste Jacobs to deliver APC technology whey-powder factory
Technology, engineering and project-management company Neste Jacobs Oy (Porvoo, Finland; www.nestejacobs.com) and dairy company Valio…
Outotec receives minerals-processing-technology orders from Mexico
Outotec Oyj (Espoo, Finland; www.outotec.com) has been awarded minerals-processing-technology orders by Grupo Peñoles for four…
Oman Oil acquires Oxea from Advent International
Advent International www.adventinternational.com), one of the largest and most experienced global firms dedicated solely to…
Clariant brings new Houdry dehydrogenation catalyst capacity on-stream
Clariant (Muttenz, Switzerland; www.clariant.com) has successfully expanded production capacity for Houdry dehydrogenation catalysts at its…
Lanxess commissions CO2 concentration unit in South Africa
Lanxess AG (Cologne, Germany; www.lanxess.com) has commissioned a new CO2 concentration unit at its Newcastle…
Air Products plans liquid N2 facility in Texas
Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) announced plans to build, own and operate a new…
Solvay to acquire Chemlogics
As part of its ongoing transformation, Solvay S.A. (Brussels, Belgium; www.solvay.com) has signed an agreement…
Technical & Practical
Ethanol from Sugarcane
Ethanol is a widely used commodity chemical with several applications, including use as a solvent…
Biological Wastewater Treatment: Selecting the Process
Chemical, pharmaceutical and related industries produce large amounts of wastewater in their production and cleaning…
Understanding Boiler Circulation
Boilers generate steam using different methods to circulate the steam-water mixture through the evaporator tubes.…
The Owner Role in Capital Projects
Avoid delays, cost overruns and more with significant owner involvement It is well known…
Facts at Your Fingertips
Maximizing Fan Efficiency
Optimizing fan performance can help plants reach overall process efficiency goals. The cost of powering…