Large tracts of land that have been used for military training, especially in the U.S., are contaminated with RDX— a widely used explosive that is both toxic and carcinogenic. Although bacteria have been isolated that can biodegrade the RDX, the…
Groundwater, surface wa-ter, wastewater, drinking water: it’s all essentially the same stuff. Whichever stage of the water cycle you care to look at, chemical engineers are to be found — either trying to stop water from becoming polluted…
While politicians and research institutes debate about a future hydrogen economy, plant contractors and industrial gas suppliers are working overtime to build bigger, more efficient hydrogen plants to meet the immediate demands. The fact is, there doesn’t seem…
In the U.S. last year, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita powerfully demonstrated the ability of nature to disrupt companies’ operations and commitments. In a business context, the effects of such natural (or, for that matter, civil or social) disruptions can be…
Whether working on retrofits or new-plant construction, engineers involved with chemical-process projects nowadays are likely to find themselves under pressure to reach completion quickly, sometimes even at the cost of bypassing traditional procedures and project controls. The downside becomes a…
Measure more than pH with this non-glass meter This multiparameter meter measures pH, temperature, conductivity, total dissolved solids and salinity. Featuring a stainless steel pH probe and solid-state conductivity electrode, the IQ170 (photo, far left) is NEMA4X rated and can…
Arkema, Inc. (formerly Atofina Chemicals, Inc.; King of Prussia, Pa.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/5825-536) has commercialized a patented technology, based on nitroxide compounds, which can be used to control free-radical polymerization reactions. Each alkoxyamine of the BlocBuilder technology contains a functional group for…
Last month, “Series C” funding in the plastic-electronics development company, Plastic Logic Ltd. (Cambridge, U.K.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/5825-537), reached $24 million, with the addition of investments from four new companies, including BASF Venture Capital GmbH (Ludwigshafen, Germany; edlinks.chemengonline.com/5825-538). Other companies that have…
A simple tank-and-siphon system for removing oil from wastewater has been launched internationally by an engineering team from the University of New South Wales (UNSW; Sydney, Australia; edlinks.chemengonline.com/5825-541). Called the Extended Gravity Oil Water Separator (EGOWS), it is described as…
Process System Enterprise Ltd. (PSE; London, U.K.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/5825-542) has launched the latest of a series of gPROMS Advanced Model Libraries (AMLs) for Gas-Liquid Contactors (GLCs). This “open model” library of high-fidelity, non-equilibrium-component models covers a wide range of gas-liquid-separation operations,…