Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Beijing, China; www.cas.cn), led by professor Ying-Jie Zhu, have reported a “smart” fire-alarm wallpaper prepared using ultralong hydroxyapatite nanowires and graphene oxide thermosensitive sensors. At room temperature, the graphene-oxide sensor is an electrical…
Using ultraviolet (UV) radiation or ozone (or both) to oxidize air pollutants, such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a well-established treatment method in the chemical process industries (CPI). What is not so well known, however, is that for most…
Professor Toru Murayama at Tokyo Metropolitan University (Tokyo, Japan; www.haruta-masatake.ues.tmu.ac.jp), in collaboration with Chugoku Electric Power Co., Inc., has developed a vanadium oxide catalyst that removes oxides of nitrogen (NOx) from fluegas generated by the combustion of heavy fuel oil…
The world’s first pilot plant for manufacturing bio-based furan dicarboxylic methyl ester (FDME) began operating last month in Decatur, Ill. A collaboration between DuPont Industrial Biosciences (Wilmington, Del.; www.biosciences.dupont.com) and Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM; Chicago, Ill.; www.adm.com), the 60-ton/yr…
Digitalization, sustainability, security and safety are at the forefront of innovations in the logistics and supply-chain sectors Ensuring that chemical products reach the correct location at the correct time requires intricate networks of complex logistics and scheduling tasks where several…
Plant Watch Total and Sonatrach begin engineering studies for joint petrochemicals project May 11, 2018 — Total S.A. (Paris, France; www.total.com) and Sonatrach (Algiers, Algeria; www.sonatrach.com) will launch engineering studies for a petrochemical project in Arzew, Algeria. The project includes…
Plug-and-produce concepts for automating modular skids may solve integration challenges for modular construction projects Modular construction — both of facilities and process skids — has gained popularity due to its benefits, including speed of delivery and predictability of cost and…
Hydrogen sulfide occurs naturally in petroleum reservoirs, but must be removed from crude oil prior to transportation from drilling sites to storage tanks at petroleum refineries. H2S is corrosive to storage tanks, pipelines and railcars, and without proper treatment, can…
The global textile industry generates a great deal of waste, and many efforts are taking place to make textile processing more sustainable. PolyOne Corp. (Cleveland, Ohio; www.polyone.com) has introduced a new fiber-colorant technology for polyester that incorporates proprietary high-pressure metering…
PET recycling Last month, Unilever N.V. (Rotterdam, the Netherlands.; www.unilever.com) announced a partnership with start-up company Ioniqa Technologies B.V. (Eindhoven, the Netherlands; www.ioniqa.com) and the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin producer Indorama Ventures plc (Bangkok, Thailand; www.indoramaventures.com) to pioneer a new…