Forward osmosis (FO), whereby a concentrated salt solution is used to “draw” water through a membrane from a less-concentrated salt solution (via osmotic pressure), has the advantage over reverse osmosis (RO) in that high pressures, with the associated pumps and…
A set of technologies that create an immobilized thin layer of lubricant on a solid surface, thus enabling highly repellent, omniphobic surfaces, has moved closer to commercial application. Known as slippery, liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS), the technologies can be applied…
The efficiency of circulating fluidized-bed (CFB) combustors can be significantly increased by substituting conventional bed material with an ilmenite-based bed material, according to researchers at Chalmers University of Technology (Gothenburg, Sweden; www.chalmers.se). Conventional CFB boilers use silica sand to evenly…
In late September, GE Power & Water (Trevose, Pa.; www.gewater.com) introduced its new Membrane Aerated Biofilm Reactor (MABR) technology, tradenamed ZeeLung, at the Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition and Conference (Weftec; Chicago, Ill., September 26–30; www.weftec.org). This technology is poised…
Coal could become a major source of lithium, according to a team led by professor Shenjun Qin, of Hebei University of Engineering (Handan, China; www.hebeu.edu.cn). From available data, the concentration of lithium in most coal varies between 10 and 50…
Plant Watch BASF and Sinopec inaugurate world-scale isononanol plant in Maoming October 12, 2015 — BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec; Beijing; www.sinopec.com) have inaugurated a world-scale isononanol (INA) plant in Maoming, China.…
A newly launched technology known as Flare Buster is capable of converting natural gas streams, such as flare gas and stranded gas from remote sites, to synthesis gas (syngas) and then to synthetic crude oil via a Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) synthesis…
A new process technology from Aggreko North America plc (Houston; www.us.aggreko.com) aims to make turnarounds at petroleum refineries more cost-effective by decreasing the time required for catalyst cooling. The catalyst materials used for refining operations, such as hydrotreating, hydrocracking and…
CO2 to formic acid Professor Yutaka Amao and colleagues at Osaka City University (Osaka City, Japan; www.osaka-cu.ac.jp/en) have enhanced the photocatalytic efficiency for the conversion of CO2 to formic acid by up to 20 times. The efficiency boost was achieved…
More tools and fresh applications bring modeling and simulation to all facets of chemical processing Modeling and simulation software is becoming not only more powerful, but also more user friendly and affordable, making it a valuable tool for chemical processors…