Bayer MaterialScience LLC (BMS; www.bayermaterialscience.com), a subsidiary of Bayer AG (Leverkusen, Germany; www.bayer.com) and part of the global Bayer MaterialScience business, has acquired Artificial Muscle, Inc. (AMI; Sunnyvale, Calif.). AMI is a pioneer and leader in the field of electroactive…
Lanxess AG (Leverkusen, Germany; www.lanxess.com) has decided to expand the global capacity of its high-performance rubber Neodymium Polybutadiene (Nd-PBR). Lanxess will invest about €20 million to increase production by an additional 50,000 metric tons per year at its sites in Dormagen,Germany; Orange,…
Outotec Oyj (Espoo, Finland; www.outotec.com) has agreed with South African Kalagadi Manganese Pty. Ltd. on the design and delivery of a new manganese sinter plant to be built in Hotazel in the country’s Northern Cape Province. The contract value is approximately…
Foster Wheeler AG (FW; Zug, Switzerland; www.fwc.com) says a subsidiary of its Global Power Group has been awarded a contract by Fundación Ciudad de la Energía (CIUDEN), an institution created by the Spanish Government, for the design and supply of a…
Wacker Chemie AG Munich, Germany; www.wacker.com) officially opened a new production facility for pharmaceutical proteins (biologics) in Jena today. The new plant is part of the company’s investment program to enlarge its biotech operations. The expansion enables Wacker to accommodate…
BioTfueL is a new joint project launched by five French partners and Uhde GmbH (Dortmund, Germany; www.uhde.eu). BioTfueL integrates the various technology stages of the so-called biomass-to-liquid (BTL) chain with the aim of developing and integrating all the stages of…
Toyo Engineering Corp. (Toyo; www.toyo-eng.co.jp) and Modec, Inc. (both Tokyo, Japan; www.modec.com), which have been working together since November 2007 on the development of small- and medium-scale GTL, concluded a cooperation agreement with Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras; www2.petrobras.com.br) to construct…
Today the European Commission approved Amflora, BASF’s genetically-optimized starch potato, for commercial application in Europe. The potato can now be used for the production of industrial starch. “After waiting for more than 13 years, we are delighted that the European…
Steam reforming of methane into hydrogen takes place in catalyst-packed alloy tubes that are heated in a furnace. Up to now, this energy-intensive reaction has used catalyst-impregnated ceramic pellets, which are poured into the tubes. However, these ceramic pellets do…
Outotec Oyj (Espoo, Finland; www.outotec.com) has signed a contract with Codelco for the design and delivery of a copper-concentrate-roasting plant, gas-cleaning system and sulfuric-acid plant for Codelco’s new Mina Ministro Hales mine near Calama, Northern Chile. The contract price is…