Carbon nanofibers Researchers at North Carolina State University (Raleigh, N.C.; www.ncsu.edu), in conjunction with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) have produced, via a plasma-enhanced vapor deposition process, vertically aligned carbon nanofibers using an acetone and…
A research group at Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, N.J.; www.stevens.edu) has developed a new mass spectroscopy technique, called helium-plasma-ionization mass spectrometry (HePI-MS), that enables direct sampling of materials without the need for rigorous sample preparation, as is required for…
North American production of crude oil, driven by a rapid increase in output of “tight oil” from U.S. shale deposits like Bakken and Eagle Ford, is surging. In many, but not all areas, petroleum refiners are incorporating an increasing amount…
A new kind of highly flexible and non-flammable inorganic paper that can be used for the permanent and safe storage of information has been developed by a team led by professor Ying-Jie Zhu, from the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese…
Construction will soon begin at a site in Korea on an anaerobic digester technology that converts organic waste and biomass to methane at high conversion rates, while also producing a fertilizer stream. Technology developer Bioconversions Solutions LLC (Exton, Pa.; www.bioconversionssolutions.com)…
A newly developed proprietary terpolymer from GE Water and Process Technologies (Trevose, Pa.; www.gewater.com) has been shown to provide improved scale control on heat-transfer surfaces in low- to intermediate- (up to 900 psig) pressure-steam boilers. Deposit formation on heat-transfer and…
Shinji Inagaki and colleagues at Toyota Central R&D Labs, Inc. (Nagakute City, Japan; www.tytlabs.com) have synthesized an entirely new immobilization support that can be used to recycle and reuse metalo-organic-complex catalysts, which are widely used for the synthesis of pharmaceuticals…
Production of monoethylene glycol (MEG) from waste carbon dioxide has been validated in a demonstration-scale reaction cell developed by Liquid Light Corp. (Monmouth Junction, N.J.; www.llchemical.com). The company says the catalytic-electrochemistry-technology platform used to make MEG can also produce a…
Lithium is an element of growing importance for the production of batteries and nuclear fuels. Because Japan relies completely on imports of this material, with the majority coming from South America, the country is looking for alternative sources for this…
Last month, Alfa Laval AB (Lund, Sweden; www.alfalaval.com) introduced a new range of tantalum heat exchangers that offer the corrosion resistance of a solid-tantalum heat exchanger, but at a much lower investment cost. The heat exchangers are made of stainless…