The spread of COVID-19 opened the world’s eyes to the weakness of much of its infrastructure and drove home the important role operators and engineers play in keeping manufacturing plants running. These unsung heroes were challenged with the difficult logistics…
Nitrogen (N2) makes up 78% of ambient air (20.95% of air is oxygen). N2 is an inert (non-flammable) gas used in industrial plants to prevent undesirable chemical reactions from occurring. Nitrogen is the most common inert gas used in the…
This overview presents guidance for the safe design of piping systems that are used for the distribution of hydrogen gas Hydrogen gas is a very volatile fluid that has a high propensity to leak. This is a very dangerous and…
Special considerations must be made for loading expensive solid catalyst materials into fixed-bed and tubular reactors Most units in the chemical process industries (CPI) use complex and expensive heterogeneous catalysts aimed at improving reaction performance. Although sometimes overlooked, the solids-handling…
Synhelion S.A. (Lugano, Switzerland; www.synhelion.com) and the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa; Dübendorf; www.empa.ch) are conducting a joint research project, co-funded by the Swiss Innovation Agency Innosuisse, to further develop a high-temperature energy-storage technology that is…
Hydrogenation is an important reaction in many sectors of the chemical process industries (CPI), but H2 gas is not only expensive, its use requires considerable safety measures to prevent explosions. Significant cost savings could be achieved if hydrogenations did not…
Toxicology testing The world’s first toxicology-testing strategy without animal testing has been approved by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; Paris, France; www.oecd.org). The testing strategy consists of three so-called alternative methods. They can be used to predict…
Haldor Topsoe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark) and Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Co., Ltd. (Yanchang) form a joint venture (JV) with the aim of delivering locally produced MK-151+ methanol synthesis catalysts to the Chinese market. The JV will secure fast delivery to…
Neles Corp. (Helsinki, Finland) has signed an asset purchase agreement to acquire the valve and pump businesses of the Finland-based technology company Flowrox Oy (Lappeenranta, Finland). The acquisition will complement Neles' offering and exposure to the mining and metals industry.…
The Chemours Company (Wilmington, Del.) has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Mining Solutions business for $520 million in cash to Draslovka Holding a.s., a Czech-based private company specializing in cyanide production. The transaction is expected to close…