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Chemical Engineering

Lonza divests two sites in France and Scotland

Lonza AG (Basel, Switzerland) has completed the sale of its sites in Ploermel, France and Edinburgh, Scotland to Next Pharma. Gordon Bates, President and Head of Small Molecules, Lonza said: “The strategic divestment of our Ploermel and Edinburgh sites will…

Plant Watch: Business News for April 2021

Plant Watch Thermo Fisher Scientific plans $600-million bioprocessing expansion March 12, 2021 — Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (Waltham, Mass.; www.thermofisher.com) plans to invest more than $600 million in capital investments to expand its bioprocessing production capabilities through 2022. These investments…

Cybersecurity: Continuous Vigilance Required

As digitalization becomes more common and remote operations become necessary, guarding against cybersecurity breaches grows even more critical The hacking of a Florida water plant, which made headlines in February, was a poignant reminder of the dangers posed by breaches…

A Mixer Makes a Better Sunscreen

Changing from a conventional mixer to an ultra-high-shear mixer led to improved dispersions, increased production capacities, and reduced electricity and labor costs As the days get sunnier, people will be looking to sunscreens to protect their skin from the harmful…

Facts At Your Fingertips: Microbial-Influenced Corrosion

Any corrosion process in which microorganisms initiate, facilitate or accelerate corrosive chemical reactions is termed microbially influenced corrosion (MIC). MIC occurs when the chemical, microbiological and physical conditions allow the active growth of biofilms containing specific types of microbes on…

Technology Profile: Suspension Polymerization of Polyvinyl Chloride

This column is based on “Polyvinyl Chloride Production from VCM (Suspension Polymerization) – Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/polyvinyl-chloride-production-cost. Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is the third most commonly produced synthetic polymer, after polyethylene and…

Improve Energy Efficiency Using Expanders

Expanders can take advantage of pressure reductions to drive rotating machines. Information on how to assess the potential benefits of installing expanders is provided here Often in the chemical process industries (CPI), “a considerable amount of energy is wasted in…

Direct metal conversion streamlines cathode-material supply chain

As application demands evolve, battery materials have gotten more complex, incorporating not only lithium, but higher nickel, manganese and cobalt content, while also including various dopants like aluminum or zirconium and stabilizing coatings. Processing all of these disparate components into…

Operational Best Practices for Rotary Dryers

To maximize the service life and reliability of rotary dryers for solid materials, adhere to this set of practices Rotary dryers have a well-deserved reputation for reliability, often providing decades of trouble-free operation in solids-handling processes. As with any type…

Recycling electrolyte from vanadium RFBs

U.S. Vanadium LLC (Hot Springs, Ark.; www.usvanadium.com) has successfully demonstrated the ability to recycle the liquid electrolyte used in vanadium redox-flow batteries (VRFB), a rapidly growing commercial technology that promises to enable intermittent renewable energy technologies, such as solar and…