A team from the School of Chemical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia (Penang; www.eng.usm.my) has carried out a study for optimizing non-catalytic supercritical (SC) methanol extraction and transesterification of Jatropha curcas seeds to produce biodiesel fuel. Jatropha curcas is a species…
Gold catalysts have been shown to have superior activities for oxidation reactions, especially at low temperature, compared to other metal-based catalysts. But the high price of gold makes it necessary to develop Au catalysts with ever-higher activities, reducing the amount…
Venezuela’s state-run petroleum company, PDVSA Petroleo, S.A. (PDVSA, Caracas; www.pdvsa.com), will commercialize a company-developed process for upgrading heavy crude oil in its Puerto La Cruz refinery, about 300 km (190 miles) east of Caracas. The 210,000-bbl/d plant will employ PDVSA’s…
Construction of a demonstration plant has begun for a biomass-to-gasoline process that boosts biomass conversion efficiency in producing bio-gasoline. The demonstration, to be located at the Hillsborough, N.J. headquarters of Primus Green Energy (www.primusge.com), is slated for completion in the…
The S-Jet/V is the newest version of the S-Jet range of homogenizers, and was developed to handle a very large amount of solid input. By the changed geometry of the rotor/stator system and increased pumping power, the possible metering of…
A catalyst for making amides from alcohols and amines under aerobic conditions has been developed by Professor Shu Kobayashi and his research group at the University of Tokyo (Tokyo, www.chem.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/users/synorg/index_e.html). The catalyst — nano particles (2.4-nm dia.) of gold and…
Using an array of lamps inside a highly reflective chamber, the optical cavity furnace (OCF) takes advantage of photonics effects to help manufacture solar photovoltaic cells with higher efficiency than those made by conventional rapid-thermal-processing (RTP) methods. In addition, the…
The patented Earthing Bridge is now complimented with a new model — the Universal Earthing Bridge. The new version replaces the earthing cable traditionally used for electrostatic grounding of pipe systems. The bridge is fixed to the company’s pull-ring using…
Sil-X-Shin silicone elastomers are specifically engineered for extruded tubing for healthcare, beverage and architectural glazing applications. The elastomers are available in a wide range of Shore A hardness (from 30 to 80 on the Shore A scale), and come in…
Available from this company, the HNP 11558 micro annular gear pump features the toughest, most chemically resistant materials for its key components, as well as magnetic coupling for leak-free pumping. For example, ceramics are used for bearings and shafts, the…