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Business & Economics

Additive manufacturing industry surpasses $5.1 billion, Wohlers report says

Wohlers Associates, Inc. (Fort Collins, Colo.; www.wohlersassociates.com), recognized widely as the leading consulting firm and preeminent authority on additive manufacturing and 3-D printing worldwide, today announced the publication of the Wohlers Report 2016. The 2016 edition marks the 21st consecutive…

ADM to sell sugarcane ethanol operations in Brazil

Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM; Chicago, Ill.; www.adm.com) announced today that it has reached an agreement to sell its sugarcane ethanol operations in Limeira do Oeste, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, to JFLim Participações S.A. “We regularly review…

Endress + Hauser completes takeover of Analytik Jena

Swiss measurement and automation engineering specialist Endress+Hauser (Reinach, Switzerland; www.us.endress.com) has completed the takeover of German analytical instrumentation provider Analytik Jena (Jena, Germany; www.analtik-jena.de). The remaining minority shares of Analytik Jena were legally transferred to Endress+Hauser on 30 March 2016…

Interfacing biology and engineering

When I was studying for my degrees in chemical engineering, I had the option to take several elective courses. Two that I chose were biochemical engineering and biomedical engineering. During the biomedical engineering course, I was fascinated with the ways…

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Business News

Plant Watch NET Power breaks ground on clean-power demonstration plant March 10, 2016 ­— NET Power, LLC (Durham, N.C.; www.netpower.com) has broken ground on a first-of-a-kind 50-MW demonstration power plant in La Porte, Tex. NET Power’s zero-emission Allam Cycle technology burns natural…

KBR to engineer FCC revamp in China

KBR, Inc. (Houston; www.kbr.com) announced today it has been awarded a license and basic engineering design contract for the revamp of a Fluid Catalytic Cracker (FCC) unit with the company's MAXOFIN technology. The project was awarded by a confidential client…

U.S. CPRI edges higher in February, ACC report says

The U.S. Chemical Production Regional Index (U.S. CPRI) edged higher by 0.2% in February, following a 0.5% gain in January, and a 0.4% gain in December, according to the latest Weekly Chemistry and Economic Report from the American Chemistry Council…

U.S. specialty chemicals market progresses in 1st quarter, ACC says

The Specialty Chemicals Market Volume Index, a tool created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), progressed further during the first quarter of 2016, rising 0.1 percent on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis in February after a…

Arzeda and Zymergen collaborate on development of new molecules

Zymergen Inc. (Emeryville, Calif.; www.zymergen.com) and Arzeda (Seattle, Wash.; www.arzeda.com) announced a multi-year agreement to develop strains and processes to manufacture novel, high utility molecules and materials utilizing Arzeda’s pathway and enzyme design and Zymergen’s strain construction capabilities.    “The development…

Current Economic Trends – March 2016

The annual value for the CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI) was calculated to be 556.8, down significantly from the annual value for 2014. The monthly preliminary value for the January 2016 CEPCI (the most recent available) continued to fall from…