In The News
A microwave-assisted flow reactor for organic synthesis
Saida FDS Inc. (Shizuoka, http://saidagroup.jp/fds_en/) has commercialized a flow reactor that uses microwaves to produce fine chemicals and pharmaceutical intermediates at high temperatures and pressures. The system has been shown to boost productivity by a factor of 3–6 compared to…
Making bio-oils via solvent liquefaction
At a pilot plant near Ames, Iowa, a team of researchers from Iowa State University (Ames; www.iastate.edu) and Chevron Corp. (San Ramon, Calif.; www.chevron.com) has validated the production of bio-oil via a new process technology called solvent liquefaction. Developed by…
Solution mining technique improves potash yields
A new patent-pending solution-mining technique known as SMER (selective mining with enhanced recovery), developed by Innovare Technologies Ltd. (Carlyle, Sask.; www.innovaretechnologies.ca), can increase yields of potash (potassium chloride; KCl) and achieve lower operating and capital costs compared to traditional potash…
Purify p-xylene without the heat
Current commercial technologies for separating and purifying p-xylene — an important precursor for polyesters and plastics — from hydrocarbon mixtures involve phase-change techniques that require large amounts of thermal energy. Recently, a research team from Georgia Institute of Technology (Ga.…
Chementator Briefs
Making CO from CO2Professor Rhosuke Suzuki at Hokkaido University (Sapporo City, Japan; www.eng.hokudai.ac.jp) has developed a molten-salt electrolysis process that can produce CO from high temperature CO2 present in the fluegas of industrial furnaces. The process uses a molten salt…
Catalytic process converts sorted waste into aromatic compounds
The rising cost of landfilling trash creates a strong incentive to utilize the waste for saleable products. A recently piloted process is an example: the process can convert municipal solid waste (MSW) into a narrow range of valuable aromatic compounds.…
Control biofouling with I2-vapor disinfection
A patented technology for infusing bubbles of elemental iodine into fluid or air can reduce microbial counts and potentially eliminate surface biofilms. Originally developed to remove biofilms from water lines in the dental industry, the technology is being used as…
This coating makes glass into a solar panel
A layered coating that acts as an organic semiconductor material allows building windows to generate electricity from direct, indirect, shaded, diffused and reflected sunlight, as well as from artificial light. Developer SolarWindow Technologies Inc. (Columbia, Md.; www.solarwindow.com) has designed and…
Engineering bacteria to make muconic acid
Researchers at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR; Singapore; www.a-star.edu.sg), led by Sudhakar Jonnalagadda, have provided another step toward replacing petrochemicals with renewable resources in the manufacture of synthetic fibers and plastics. The team has genetically modified Escherichia…
Ethics Survey Results: Your Responses
Responses from 2015 CE ethics survey range from hopeful to cynical, and both similarities and differences emerge when compared to earlier surveys In October 2015, Chemical Engineering conducted a survey among chemical process industries (CPI) professionals about workplace ethics and…