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Energy efficiency prize for alumina production

At the Hannover Messe 2010, Alumina do Norte do Brasil S.A. (Alunorte; Barcarena, Brazil; www.alunorte.net) and Outotec Oyj (Espoo, Finland; www.outotec.com) received the X Prize (special recognition) for energy efficiency in alumina production. The award, part of the German Energy Agencys…

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June Chementator Briefs

An new olefins process A 40,000-m.t./yr demonstration plant for a new process that produces olefins by catalytic cracking of paraffins-rich naphtha will be started up in October by SK energy (Seoul, South Korea; www.skenergy.com) at Ulsan, South Korea. Developed jointly…

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Revamped hydrotreater co-processes light gas oil and tall oil derivative to produce ULSD

Co-processing of biomass-derived feed with petroleum feed for the production of diesel fuel is a tricky business, given that the former (unlike petroleum) contains oxygen. The oxygenates can be removed by hydrotreating, which converts the biofeed to normal paraffins, but…

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Destroy HFCs and recover CaF2 with this process

A process that destroys hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and recovers high-purity calcium fluoride has been developed by chemical-engineering professor Hideki Yamamoto at Kansai University (Suita City, Osaka; www.cheng.kansai-u.ac.jp/Process) in cooperation with Shiraishi Kogyo Kaisha Ltd. (Amagasaki City, Osaka; both Japan; www.shiraishi.co.jp/kogyo). The technology…

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Distillation-tray downcomer design improves mass transfer efficiency

A new approach to the design of the downcomer portion of distillation column trays — presented at the recent American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Spring 2010 meeting (San Antonio, Tex.; March 21–25) — promotes a uniform fluid flow pattern,…

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Surface-structured RO membrane couples fouling resistance with flux

Engineers at the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA; www.ucla.edu) have developed a new class of highly permeable reverse-osmosis (RO) membranes for water desalination that incorporates a “brush layer” of hydrophilic polymer chains anchored to the membrane surface. Brownian motion of…

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Improving enzyme performance for making chemicals

By genetically modifying E. coli — introducing four enzymatic genes from bacteria of the Clostridium family — Mitsui Chemicals Corp. (Mitsui, Tokyo, www.mitsuichem.com) has increased the selectivity for fermenting glucose into isopropyl alcohol (IPA) from 40% to up to 70%.…

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These microfluidic sensors can be made with a sewing machine

A low-cost method for fabricating microfluidic diagnostics devices using cotton, paper, or other multifilament threads has been developed by a team from Monash University (Melbourne, Australia; www.eng.monash.edu.au). The devices can be used to provide qualitative and, at least, semi-quantitative analyses…

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These microfluidic sensors can be made with a sewing machine

A low-cost method for fabricating microfluidic diagnostics devices using cotton, paper, or other multifilament threads has been developed by a team from Monash University (Melbourne, Australia; www.eng.monash.edu.au). The devices can be used to provide qualitative and, at least, semi-quantitative analyses…

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May Chementator briefs

  A new Cl2 process Oxygen-depolarized cathodes (ODCs) will be used for the first time to produce chlorine on an industrial scale in a 20,000 metric ton per year (m.t./yr) electrolyzer at the Krefeld-Uerdingen chemical park in Germany. The plant…