Processing & Handling
Pristine Equipment & Systems
Eliminate contamination with these drive sockets Designed for sterile and critical environment applications, these 1/4-in. drive stainless-steel deep sockets (photo) are manufactured entirely from 17-4PH stainless steel, so no chrome plating is required on the surface. The risk…
Biometallurgy?
Researchers at CSIRO Exploration and Mining (Kensington, Australia; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6515-548) have discovered that a bacterium, called Ralstonia metallidurans, may be responsible for the formation of secondary gold grains in nature. Cultures of the R. metallidurans - identified, using molecular biology techniques,…
High-throughput screening
Two chemicals producers have recently reaped the benefits of high-throughput-screening technologies, through research collaborations with Symyx Technologies, Inc. (Santa Clara, Calif.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6515-550). In April, Celanese Corp. (Dallas, Tex.) deployed a new catalyst at one of its vinyl acetate plants. The…
Materials of Construction for Low-Temperature and Cryogenic Processes
Trends in the worldwide chemical process industries, especially a steep rise in the compression and liquefaction of gases to lower the costs of their storage and transportation, have heightened the engineer's need to have a working familiarity with…
SusChem is European; its rationale is global
The 135,514 sq.m. of exhibitor booths, plus the 925 tracks, lectures and other conference presentations, that made up the Achema Exhibition-congress presented by Dechema e.V. in Frankfurt this May offered its 180,000 attendees technological wares and information across a remarkably…
A completely new design for mag-drive centrifugal pumps
Conventional magnetically coupled centrifugal pumps can only survive dry running — if at all — by using costly materials and complicated constructions, according to Christian Wallrodt, sales manager at Wernert-Pumpen GmbH (Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6514-531). Such pumps’ bearings…
NH3-based CO2 capture to be field tested
Powerspan Corp. (Portsmouth, N.H.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6514-535) is developing a process that uses an aqueous ammonia (AA) solution to capture COâ‚‚ from the fluegas (FG) of power plants. Results from a joint research project with the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s (DOE; Washington,…
Plastic pipe proves itself after three years of service
Although polymer-based piping systems have been used in the chemical process industries (CPI) for decades, the global market share is only around 10%, says Stephan Schuessler, head of technology and R&D at Georg Fischer DEKA GmbH (GF DEKA; Dautphetal, Germany;…
Making pure hydrogen from biomass
Professor emeritus Kiyoshi Ohtsuka and his colleagues at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6514-538) have discovered a new process that produces pure Hâ‚‚ from cellulose. The process not only has nearly a 100% yield, but produces no CO…
New polymers improve the repair of knee cartilage
A traditional treatment for damaged knee cartilage is called autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI), whereby healthy cartilage-forming cells are taken from an undamaged site of the patient and injected to the damaged site. This procedure takes many weeks, during which time,…