A challenge in recovering fissile material from spent nuclear fuel is separating radioactive components that cannot be reused as fuel. Researchers at Sandia National Laboratory (Albuquerque, N.M.; www.sandia.gov) have fabricated metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) capable of selectively capturing gaseous iodine from…
Plant Watch AkzoNobel invests €80 million to supply new Suzano pulp mill in Brazil February 1, 2012 — AkzoNobel (Amsterdam, the Netherlands; www.akzonobel.com) plans to invest €80 million in the construction of a new pulp “chemical island” facility in Brazil.…
Earlier this year, the first polylactic acid (PLA) plant based on a new polymerization process was put into service by Synbra Technology in Etten Leur, the Netherlands. The plant — capable of producing up to 5,000 ton/yr of PLA —…
Earlier this year, the first polylactic acid (PLA) plant based on a new polymerization process was put into service by Synbra Technology in Etten Leur, the Netherlands. The plant — capable of producing up to 5,000 ton/yr of PLA —…
A naphtha-cracking process with improved yield, reduced coking and longer catalyst life is being developed in a five-year Japanese project led by professor Takashi Tatsumi at the Tokyo Institute of Technology (TiTech; www.titech.ac.jp), with participation from the National Institute of…
A naphtha-cracking process with improved yield, reduced coking and longer catalyst life is being developed in a five-year Japanese project led by professor Takashi Tatsumi at the Tokyo Institute of Technology (TiTech; www.titech.ac.jp), with participation from the National Institute of…
A carbothermal process for obtaining magnesium — developed by CSIRO (www.csiro.au) Light Metals Flagship (South Clayton, Victoria, Australia) — overcomes previous limitations to commercial viability. For several years, magnesium has been produced mainly by electrolytic routes, from magnesium chloride sources…
The first commercial-scale biobutanol plant using the Gevo Integrated Fermentation Technology (GIFT) process is set to come online in mid-2012 at the former site of an ethanol facility in Minnesota. In late January, Gevo (Englewood, Colo.; www.gevo.com) was awarded a…
The first commercial-scale biobutanol plant using the Gevo Integrated Fermentation Technology (GIFT) process is set to come online in mid-2012 at the former site of an ethanol facility in Minnesota. In late January, Gevo (Englewood, Colo.; www.gevo.com) was awarded a…
The engineering company Uhde Inventa-Fischer (Berlin, Germany and Domat/Ems, Switzerland; www.uhde-inventa-fischer.com) has successfully commissioned a plant for the production of polyamide 6.6 for its Chinese customer Huafon Group. The production plant has an annual capacity of 40,000 metric tons and…