Newsfronts
Flame Retardants: Safety is the Key
Producers continue to improve the performance of their flame retardants while ensuring safe handling and…
Commentary
The changing workplace
On my way home from the office I have heard, on numerous occasions, fellow commuter-train…
In The News
High-Performance Internals Boost Tower Capacities
New materials and designs help processors improve efficiency and reliability As in other areas of…
Chementator
June Chementator Briefs
Hydrocracking Later this year, Albemarle Corp. (Baton Rouge, La.; www.albemarle.com) says it will add a…
A step forward for the bio-production of L-arginine
The amino acid L-arginine plays a crucial role in our neurological and cardiovascular systems. It…
Economically generating hydrogen with SOECs
Toshiba Corp. (Tokyo, Japan; www.toshiba.co.jp) has started up a highly efficient electrolyzer for the generating…
Dispersing sulfur into urea
A new technology demonstrated by Shell Sulphur Solutions (London; www.shell.com/sulphur) aims to incorporate micronized elemental…
Conductive plastic for high-conductivity applications
Electrically conductive plastics have been available for several years, but the use of carbon black…
An efficiency boost for solar hydrogen
The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO, Kawasaki, Japan; www.nedo.go.jp) and the Japan…
Micronized rubber powder improves polymer loadings
A new process for partially devulcanizing and functionalizing micronized rubber powders (MRP) may allow the…
Pilot plant slated for a fast-pyrolysis process that converts biomass into fuels
Plans are underway to build a pilot plant for a fast-pyrolysis process that will convert…
Making hydrogen directly from Si nanoparticles
A safe, low-cost technology for supplying H2 to fuel-cell powered vehicles is being developed by…
Catalytic hot-gas filters reduce dust and pollutants
In late April, Unifrax I LLC (Tonawanda, N.Y.; www.unifrax.com) and Haldor Topsøe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark;…
Smart polymers enhance coatings to reduce fouling
Scientists from Singapore, including Vivek Vasantha from A*STAR – The Agency for Science, Technology and…
A smart app for pump monitoring
At Achema 2015 (June 15–19; Frankfurt, Germany), KSB AG (Frankenthal, Germany; www.ksb.com) will launch a…
Separating rare earth metals with UV light
Researchers from the Dept. of Chemical Engineering of KU Leuven (Belgium; www.cit.kuleuven.be), in collaboration with…
Business News
Evonik opens expanded oil-additives plant in Singapore; and more business news for the CPI
Plant Watch Nippon Shokubai Europe to construct new production plants for SAP and AA…
Technical & Practical
Feature Report
Materials Selection In The CPI
An overview of the many factors to be considered when selecting materials of construction Selecting…
Transmitter-Sensor Matching Improves RTD Accuracy
RTD sensors will never exhibit behavior based on theoretical ideals, but understanding the fundamentals behind…
Advances in Process Temperature Measurement: Trends and Technologies
Process temperature measurement is a constantly evolving field, and new technologies have allowed for more…
Facts at Your Fingertips
Liquid-Liquid Extraction
Liquid-liquid extraction is a common mass-transfer operation in which a target solute material is transferred…
Technology Profile
Bio-based Methionine via Fermentation of Glucose
Methionine is an essential amino acid that is not produced by animals. Methionine must be…
Solids Processing
Measuring Exposures to Aerosols and Dust
Accurate measurements of exposures to aerosols and dusts by plant personnel can be tricky. Here…
Engineering Practice
Filtration and Separation: Avoid Common Errors
The seven commonly made mistakes discussed here often lead to poor filtration and separation performance…
You And Your Job
Tips for the Multitasking Engineer
These tips, based on experience, can help engineers keep on top of their many tasks…
Equipment & Services
Focus
Focus - Software
Manage chemical inventories using this software tool Biovia CISPro is a comprehensive chemical-inventory-management system that…
New Products
Single-use harvesting for high-cell-density cultures
Sartoclear Dynamics is a clarification system featuring new single-use technology for harvesting mammalian cell cultures…
Control reactor temperatures with this circulator system
The Presto A45 and A45t expand this company’s portfolio of the new Presto family of…
This compact paint dispenser carries 24 canisters
The new CD2406 is a patented, compact simultaneous colorant dispenser with 24 easy-to-mount canisters to…
A new line of cast-steel valves
Designed in accordance with the industry’s latest standards, this new Pacific CSV line of cast-steel…
A new release of this multiphysics simulation software
Released last month, Multiphysics Version 5.1 is said to be the first and only integrated…
A new PAT technique for realtime particle analysis
Relative Backscatter Index (RBI) is a new process analytical technology (PAT) technique that indicates how…
Rotary screw vacuum pumps slash energy consumption
The new GHS 350-900 VSD+ vacuum pump range gives users energy savings of around 50%…
Control in the field with WirelessHART
While the first applications of wireless technology were limited to simply monitoring processes, now WirelessHART…
Introducing the smallest high-performance turbopump
The new HiPace 30 turbopump (photo) is currently the only turbopump on the market in…
An integrated impeller mixes inside IBCs
The new Schütz impeller (photo) is a one-way stirring system that is integrated into the…
Optimized design for new connection capabilities
The Multiline Adaptive line of connectors has been further developed to create the Multiline E…
A sound way to measure sulfuric acid concentrations
Measuring the concentration of sulfuric acid and oleum is an important process parameter to ensure…
Fast cleaning of finned heat exchangers
The JetMaster process was combined with the new JetPower system, which accelerates the cleaning of…
Overspeed protection for turbines and pumps
Overspeed protection is a key requirement in industries where failure of the turbine- or pump-speed…
A cabinet oven for Class 100 cleanroom applications
No. 1023 is a 550°F, electrically-heated, Class 100 cleanroom cabinet oven that is currently used…
Show Previews
Achema Show Preview 2
Achema Show Preview Professionals from all sectors of the chemical process industries (CPI) will convene…
Departments
Economic Indicators
Current Economic Trends: April
The preliminary value for the April 2015 CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; the most recent…