Absorption and stripping are important mass-transfer operations within the chemical process industries (CPI). This one-page reference provides some basic information on the principles and applications of stripping and absorption in industrial chemistry settings. General operation In absorption, a solute from…
The NH6000sc online ammonia analyzer (photo) is designed for installation in wastewater applications in outdoor locations. By designing the unit to have reagents conveniently located right inside the door, the bottles can be easily accessed and replaced. With reagents lasting…
An ExxonMobil Corp. (Spring, Tex.; www.exxonmobil.com) adhesive-resin finishing facility in Baton Rouge, La. has become the first commercial process-manufacturing facility to be controlled by an open, standards-based process automation system. This is a departure from the closed, proprietary systems currently…
These powders are designed for thermal spray applications This company’s WallCarb™ HVOF (high-velocity oxygen fuel) tungsten carbide powders are designed for thermal spray applications (photo) and are engineered to provide dense, hard coatings with exceptional wear and corrosion resistance. These…
Despite the abundance of nitrogen and hydrogen, industrial ammonia synthesis remains an energy-intensive process. Electrochemical methods have been suggested as potentially lower-energy alternatives to traditional ammonia synthesis, but these newer technologies often struggle with achieving key performance metrics. By integrating…
A pilot plant intended to manufacture silica aerogel products for different applications, including spray insulation, is being planned by the company Aeroskin Tech AG (Zurich, Switzerland; www.aeroskintech.com). Aerogels are dried gels that maintain their volume when dried, and have nanoscale…
Type CG330 and CG340 gas regulators (photo) are specifically engineered to address the growing demand for low-emission solutions in industrial applications involving compressed gases, such as inert gases, natural gas and other sensitive media. CG330/CG340 regulators are designed to deliver…
Capital intensity is among the current constraints on industrial-scale fermentation, because the hardware for steam sterilization of bioreactors is complex and expensive. After recently emerging from stealth status, the startup company Biosphere (Oakland, Calif.; www.biosphere.io) has launched a new reactor…
Many separation processes depend on chemical or thermal principles, such as solvent extraction or distillation, but in some cases, mechanical methods can provide effective separations with lower cost and energy requirements. Eirex (Vaughan, Ont., Canada; www.eirex.ca) has developed a proprietary…
Olivine, a magnesium-iron silicate mineral, is common in the earth’s subsurface, and can sometimes contain other valuable elements, such as cobalt, manganese and nickel. Olivine has been explored as a possible sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide in carbon-capture methods that…