Existing methane fuel cells typically require high (750–800°C) temperatures to activate methane in a separate methane reformer that creates hydrogen gas. Now researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech; Atlanta; www.gatech.edu) have developed a solid oxide fuel cell…
New technologies can provide competitive advantages compared to established processes, but significant effort is required to transition a promising concept into a commercial reality Many students study chemical engineering with the aspiration of someday inventing an innovative process that could…
This methodology can be used not only for laminar flow, but also for the complete turbulent flow region In recent decades, the impact of energy costs on the transport of fluids has led to a significant reduction in fluid velocity…
This company has expanded the power ranges and capabilities of the TotalForce technology for its Allen-Bradley PowerFlex 755T AC drives (photo). The drives now offer an expanded power range, from 10 to 6,000 h.p. (7.5 to 4,500 kW). The expansion…
This column is based on the report “Polychloroprene Production – Cost Analysis,” published by Intratec. It can be found at the following URL: www.intratec.us/analysis/polychloroprene-production-cost. The need to find a substitute for natural rubber during World War II boosted the development…
With the onset of new environmental regulations, turnaround teams must look to temporary vapor-control strategies to ensure compliance during non-routine operations Turnarounds are one of the most anticipated and time-intensive events in a plant’s cycle, and are an essential part…
Users of compressed air can take advantage of heat recovery to enhance their sustainability, improve energy efficiency and reduce system lifecycle costs Air compressors account for a considerable portion of industrial energy consumption, and facilities that employ large-scale air compression…
As E&C companies strive to develop Building Information Modeling (BIM) 6D models for the owners and operators of CPI facilities, strong efficiency gains benefit all parties Truly transformational change is upon the engineering and construction (E&C) industry, and some consider…
The recommended velocities for fluids’ transportation must be updated periodically to obtain the optimum value of the pipe diameter in the current economic conditions To arrive at the optimum diameters for pipes, the heuristic criteria of recommended velocity has been…
The pitfalls in cost estimating that cause project overruns have been well known for decades, yet they continue to plague the CPI When I first started writing this article, I set out to summarize the mechanics of project cost estimation.…