Processing & Handling
New Possibilities in Upstream Milk Processing
While thermal treatment remains king, new alternatives for processing milk are promising a number of benefits to the dairy industry The dairy industry faces a daunting challenge. It has to produce — at an affordable price — milk and milk…
Harnessing Biotechnology: A Practical Guide
Biotechnology is increasingly proving its ability to address chemical industry challenges. An engineering-focused approach — bioengineering — is vital to successful industrial application For those undertaking overall process design and implementation for intermediate and specialty chemicals, the incorporation of biotechnology-based…
Synthetic Biology for Chemical Production
Rapidly expanding computational power and decreasing costs for DNA sequencing and synthesis have made synthetic biology tools more accessible to chemical makers Not long ago, the late former Apple CEO Steve Jobs said, “I think the biggest innovations of the…
Designing for distillation
I read your article “Flooded Condenser Controls: Principle and Troubleshooting” [ Chem. Eng., January 2016, pp. 37–49]. The article was very informative. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience. I need your guidance related to Figure 4b. In the…
CPI Demands Pumps with Lower Lifecycle Costs
Improved designs result in leak-free, reliable, longer-lasting pumps Because pumps move media through reactors, valves and piping, they serve as “the heart” of any process in which they are placed. So, whether the pump is a large sump pump, a…
Materials Management — Evolving the Process for an Evolving Marketplace
The case examples presented here show that proper planning, communication and execution of tasks can add value and reduce unintended negative consequences for many capital-intensive projects Materials management means something different to different groups of people. For the engineering and…
Collaboration lowers cost for bio-based FDME process
A partnership between DuPont Industrial Biosciences (Wilmington, Del.; www.dupont.com) and Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM; Chicago, Ill.; www.adm.com) has developed a less costly and more efficient process for producing bio-based furan dicarboxylic methyl ester (FDME) from the six-carbon sugar fructose.…
Weighing Equipment Selection
The number of options available for scales and weighing equipment can make it difficult to determine which instruments will offer the best value and which will meet the application requirements (Table 1). Focusing on the following ten areas can help…
Acrylic Acid Production via Propylene Oxidation – By Intratec Solutions
Acrylic acid is a moderately strong carboxylic acid primarily used as an intermediate in the production of acrylate esters. These acrylate esters are then mainly used to manufacture adhesives, plastics additives, coatings, paints and textiles. The process Figure 1 depicts…
The Relationship Between Materials Selection and Machining Processes
An awareness of the impact of materials selection on the machining processes for small, complex components can affect overall end-product quality and costs The importance of material selection for small, complex components found in equipment critical to the chemical process…