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Open Process Automation Offers Business Benefits

The Open Process Automation Standard (O-PAS) Business Guide makes the business case for the O-PAS. An example from the biopharmaceutical industry illustrates the benefits of interoperability and open process automation architecture Normally, technical standards focus purely on technology. However, while…

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Pilot trials for a carbon-capture process that combines VPSA and MOFs

This summer, pilot trials will begin at a Buzzi Unicem S.p.A. (Casale Monferrato, Italy; www.buzziunicem.com) cement plant in Monselice, Italy, which will perform field tests of a new carbon-capture process developed by Nuada, the new tradename of MOF Technologies Ltd.…

Focus on Pumps

Vacuum pumps with hygienic design for daily cleaning The new DV 650 and DV 800 FP-r washdown vacuum pumps (photo) of the dry-running Dryvac series have been introduced for vacuum systems used in food and packaging applications. The new screw…

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Chementator Briefs

Using Waste Heat To convert large amounts of waste heat into electricity as efficiently as possible, turbines with a high degree of efficiency are required that work with a special conversion process — the organic Rankine cycle (ORC). In a…

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Ligand-based separation method for rare earth elements

Rare-earth elements (REEs) are difficult to separate because of their similar properties, so conventional methods are often costly and generate significant amounts of waste. Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) have developed a new technique…

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A hydrogen-fired furnace for ceramics

This month, a demonstration experiment will begin on a new firing furnace for ceramics that is being developed by NGK Insulators, Ltd. (NGK; www.ngk.co.jp). The furnace is fired with hydrogen instead of fossil fuels, thereby reducing CO2 emissions. H2-fired combustion…

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Spinning reactor recovers metals from spent Li-ion batteries

Recycling lithium batteries (LIBs) requires extensive use of hydrometallurgy, which requires multiple steps of extraction-stripping processes, each requiring separate reactors and different parameters. Although there have been attempts to devise a single-step, one-pot solution by partitioning the reactor using membranes,…

Tumble blenders for high accuracy mixtures

The V Cone Tumble Blender (photo) utilizes diffusion mixing to deliver low impact, highly accurate and repeatable mixing of powders, high-density powdered metals, granules, pellets and other free-flowing solids. The Model VCB-50 V Cone Tumble Blender (photo) is designed for…

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Lithium Extraction: Prime Time for Brine

Technologies to process lithium-containing brines are in high demand as manufacturers seek to improve recovery volumes and sustainability The two main sources of lithium — one of the most in-demand materials on earth — are mining from ores and extracting…

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Use existing refinery infrastructure for hydrogen storage and transport

Hydrogen is a clear piece of the decarbonization puzzle for many industrial sectors, including petroleum refining, but a major challenge lies in the storage and long-distance transport of hydrogen in its gaseous form. One proposed solution is the use of…