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Calculations in Process Engineering

The topic of carrying out process engineering calculations in the most effective manner can be considered in these four ways: 1. The purpose of the calculation 2. The content of the calculation 3. The method used to carry out the…

Jacqueline Hinman becomes CEO of CH2M Hill…

Dascalescu Hinman Kreisel Aldana Wiseman Environmental Drilling Solutions (Lafayette, La.) names John Meckert CEO, and John Marty III business development manager.   Specialty chemicals company Evonik Canada, Inc. (East Gibbons, Alta.), names Diana Dascalescu manager of the company’s Maitland, Ont.,…

Current economic trends

Preliminary data for the September 2013 CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; the most recent available) indicate that costs rose in all subcategories compared to the previous month, except the Engineering & Supervision category, which remained unchanged. The current CEPCI value…

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BASF produces first commercial volumes of bio-based butanediol  

BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) has produced its first commercial volumes of 1,4-butanediol (BDO) from renewable raw material, and is offering this product to customers for testing and commercial use. The production process relies on a patented fermentation technology from…

Kuraray to acquire DuPont Glass Laminating Solutions/Vinyls

Kuraray ( Tokyo, Japan; www.kuraray.co.jp/en) and DuPont (Wilmington, Del.; www.dupont.com) have signed a definitive agreement for DuPont to sell Glass Laminating Solutions/Vinyls (GLS/Vinyls), a part of DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers, to Kuraray for $543 million, plus the value of the…

CAB rises over October, ACC says

The U.S. economy is likely to see continued, albeit conservative growth in 2014, according to the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) monthly Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), released today. The Chemical Activity Barometer is an established leading economic indicator,…

Sasol selects Technip as FEED contractor for U.S. GTL facility

Sasol Ltd. (Johannesburg, South Africa; www.sasol.co.za) announced today that it has selected Technip S.A. (Paris; www.technip.com) as the primary contractor for the front-end engineering and design (FEED) phase of its proposed gas-to-liquids (GTL) facility in Louisiana. "The selection of Technip…

Chemical production in the U.S. edges lower in Oct., ACC says

The U.S. Chemical Production Regional Index (U.S. CPRI) was lower by 0.2% in October, following a revised 0.3% decline for September, according to the latest Weekly Chemistry and Economic Report from the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com).  …

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Wacker to expand dispersible-polymer-powder capacity in China  

Wacker Chemie AG (Munich, Germany; www.wacker.com) plans to expand its production capacity for dispersible polymer powders capacity at its Nanjing (China) site in 2014. By productivity improvement and debottlenecking measures in existing facilities, Wacker intends to essentially double its current…

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Caloric to build incinerator with HCl recovery in Poland  

Caloric Anlagenbau GmbH (Gräfelfing, Germany; www.caloric.com) has been awarded a contract for the engineering and manufacturing of a new thermal treatment plant with an integrated HCl recovery unit from a major chemical company in Poland. The thermal treatment unit is…