An adsorbent-based, sulfur-removal process for synthesis gas (syngas) that lowers capital and operating costs compared to alternative methods of removing sulfur has completed pre-commercial testing and has achieved commercial status. The Warm-gas Desulfurization Process (WDP; diagram) has been under development…
Australian Mines (Perth; https//:australianmines.com.au) has started operating a demonstration three metals (cobalt-nickel-scandium) processing plant that will process ore from the company’s Sconi and Flemington projects into commercial-grade samples. The company’s flagship Sconi project, located in the mining center of Greenvale…
RE-free magnets Tetrataenite (L10-FeNi) is a promising alternative to rare-earth- (RE) based magnets due to its favorable magnetic properties, such as a high uniaxial magnetic anisotropy and saturation magnetic-flux density. Compared to other non-RE alternatives, such as Nd-Fe-B and Sm-Fe-N,…
A new type of steam-reforming system that produces — in a single step — purified, compressed hydrogen from methane has been developed by a team of scientists from CoorsTek Membrane Sciences AS (Oslo; www.coorstek.com), the University of Oslo (both Norway;…
A team from the National University of Singapore (www.nus.edu.sg) led by professor Boon Siang Yeo has developed a prototype device that uses artificial photosynthesis to produce ethylene using only sunlight, water and CO2, at room temperature and pressure. The team…
Perovskite solar cells have attracted much interest in the past few years as the next-generation solar cells capable of surpassing silicon cells’ efficiency. However, because the perovskite materials are easily decomposed in moist conditions, they must be properly encapsulated, which…
Scientists from ExxonMobil (Irving, Tex.; www.exxonmobil.com) and the Institute of Chemical Technology (ITQ; Valencia, Spain; http://itq.upv-csic.es) have discovered a new material that could significantly reduce the amount of energy and emissions associated with the production of ethylene. Depending on the…
Photocatalytic reduction of CO2 into a fuel is an attractive way to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere, and there are many projects underway around the world to find ways of converting CO2 into chemicals, such as H2, CH4, ethanol,…
High-surface-area beads filled with microbes are being used to reduce biosolids in wastewater. In one case, Drylet LLC (San Francisco, Calif.; www.drylet.com) has developed engineered porous particles that provide large surface areas (the equivalent of 12 football fields of surface…
A biodiesel fuel blend known as B20 contains oils derived from waste coffee grounds, and will be used to power mass transit buses in London. The fuel is made through a partnership among bio-bean ltd. (London, U.K.; www.bio-bean.com), which has…