hte GmbH – the high throughput experimentation company (Heidelberg, Germany) has been selected by Bechtel, a global engineering, construction, and project management company, to produce white petroleum waxes from refinery waxes in hte’s R&D pilot plant. These highly valuable products…
In an example of a biologically inspired and nano-engineered catalyst, researchers at RMIT University (Melbourne, Australia; www.rmit.edu.au) have developed ceramic catalyst particles with a porous network organized hierarchically, where one chemical reaction takes place within larger pores, while a second…
Researchers from the College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University (Nanjing, China; www.njtech.edu.cn) have developed a new strategy for forming lithium ion-sieve membranes to achieve an efficient recovery of lithium ions from brine or seawater. Spinel lithium manganese oxide ion-sieves…
Advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and improved technologies for providing robots with positional awareness have driven an expansion of robotics use in a variety of application areas across the chemical process industries (CPI) Robots have been fixtures on discrete-product manufacturing…
The use of molecular hydrogen is common across the chemical process industries (CPI). Annually, 70 million metric tons of H2 are produced worldwide. Most industrial H2 production currently occurs via steam reforming of methane, but production via water electrolysis is…
This column is based on “Isopropyl Alcohol Production from Acetone – Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/isopropyl-alcohol-production-cost. Isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol or 2-propanol) is a colorless and flammable liquid with a strong odor. Isopropyl…
Lifecycle cost analysis (LCCA) can be used as a tool for selecting alternatives that add the most value to a project. The methodology for implementing LCCA is described here In the chemical process industries (CPI), identifying optimum process designs challenges…
Site commissioning is underway at a facility in Nebraska that uses plasma pyrolysis to generate hydrogen gas and carbon black from natural gas without any local carbon dioxide emissions. The developer, Monolith Materials (Lincoln, Neb.; www.monolithmaterials.com), scaled up the process…
A new rejuvenator technology aims to improve the chemistry and service life of recycled asphalt pavement (RAP). The Invigorate additive, developed by Colorbiotics (Ames, Iowa; www.colorbiotics.com) based on Iowa State University research (www.iastate.edu), helps overcome issues with asphaltene aggregation and…
A new project in Canada will build a pilot facility to demonstrate a carbon-neutral production strategy for battery-grade graphite materials. Nouveau Monde Graphite (Saint-Michel-des-Saints, Québec, Canada; www.nouveaumonde.ca) has signed an agreement with Olin Corp. (Clayton, Mo.; www.olin.com) to construct two…