Scientists from Singapore, including Vivek Vasantha from A*STAR – The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (www.a-star.edu.sg) – developed a new block copolymer that can change its structure when placed in an electrolyte solution, such as salt water. The monomers…
In late April, Unifrax I LLC (Tonawanda, N.Y.; www.unifrax.com) and Haldor Topsøe A/S (Lyngby, Denmark; www.topsoe.com) signed a partnership agreement to begin a joint global effort to commercialize an innovative new line of catalytic filter candles. This new product family…
Plant Watch Nippon Shokubai Europe to construct new production plants for SAP and AA May 11, 2015 — Nippon Shokubai Co. (Osaka, Japan; www.shokubai.co.jp) plans to construct new facilities for the production of superabsorbent polymers (SAP) and acrylic acid…
Researchers from the Dept. of Chemical Engineering of KU Leuven (Belgium; www.cit.kuleuven.be), in collaboration with KU Leuven chemists, have discovered a method to separate two rare-earth elements — europium and yttrium — with ultraviolet (UV) light. The study, published earlier…
A natural fungicide An international research team, led by Yoshikazu Ohya at the University of Tokyo (www.ib.k.u-tokyo.ac.jp), has discovered a new chemical compound that inhibits the growth of pathogenic fungi. The new compound, called poacic acid, was isolated from hydrolyzed…
Industrial gases specialist Messer Group GmbH (Bad Soden, Germany; www.messergroup.com) has developed a new cryogenic technology that makes it possible to use liquid nitrogen (LN2) to cool high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cables down to –209°C, which is significantly lower than that…
Plant Watch Roquette launches isosorbide production unit in France April 10, 2015 — Roquette Freres (Lestrem, France; www.roquette.com) has started operations at a new unit for the production of isosorbide at its site in Lestrem. The new unit will produce…
Researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) have demonstrated an efficient desalination process using a porous graphene-based desalination membrane. While the thinness of the freestanding graphene (roughly 0.3 nm) allows for significantly higher flux than traditional…
Particle-size analysis methods are changing for the better, reducing rework and improving yield Particle-size analysis plays an important role in many chemical processes that involve dry powders and granules, fibers, suspensions, emulsions, gels, sprays, inhalants and the like. Processors rely…
Developments from the 2015 AFPM annual meeting frame a picture of the current state of the U.S. petroleum refining industry On a broad level, the outlook for the U.S. petroleum-refining industry remains bright, despite a recent decline in crude oil…