Advances in next-generation materials and assembly techniques have enhanced membranes’ effectiveness in numerous applications Membranes are one of the primary technologies used for separations. While they may be best known for their use in water-treatment operations, advances in membrane technologies…
Plant Watch Inovyn starts up KOH plant in Belgium October 13, 2017 — Inovyn (London, U.K.; www.inovyn.com) announced the completion of its new potassium hydroxide (KOH) production facility at its Antwerp/Lillo site in Belgium. The new plant uses membrane technology…
For petroleum refineries, the cost of converting hydrofluoric-acid-based alkylation units to the relatively safer sulfuric-acid-based alkylation process (diagram) has been cost-prohibitive and has lacked specific economic benefits. Now, DuPont (Wilmington, Del.; www.dupont.com) has developed a low-cost approach to converting existing…
Microbes inhabiting the extreme environments thousands of feet below the earth’s surface possess unique properties not encountered elsewhere. A research consortium of South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (SDSMT; Rapid City; www.sdsmt.edu), University of Oklahoma (Norman) and Montana State…
Chemists and engineers from the Performance Materials Segment of Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) have developed a new process for making methyl methacrylate (MMA). With a yield of over 90%, the so-called Leading in Methacrylates (LiMA) process can be…
A triple-layer, porous membrane system developed at the Functional Materials Laboratory at Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich (www.fml.ethz.ch) can be fashioned into evaporative curtains to cool and humidify indoor spaces, potentially decreasing the energy demand for climate-control systems. Juxtaposing opposite forces…
In critical pumping applications involving toxic or expensive products, the use of double mechanical seals or external flushing fluids can lead to product contamination or leakage, as well as additional costs for installation and monitoring. Although hermetically-sealed pumps, such as…
Environmental regulations and high energy costs are driving technology advances that make plants cleaner and more efficient For some, the production of chlorine and caustic has been considered a nasty business: not only are the products dangerous if not handled…
DPC monomer As part of an NEDO project, Asahi Kasei Corp. (Tokyo, Japan; www.asahi-kasei.co.jp) verified a newly developed process for diphenyl carbonate (DPC), a monomer used to produce polycarbonate (PC) at its Mizushima Works (Kurashiki, Okayama). The stability and operability…
From additives to polymers to coatings to 3-D printables, new materials improve performance High-performance materials are intended to make consumer goods, industry and the world, in general, function better. Inventive performance materials can be found in all categories, from additives…