Construction is underway on a demonstration plant for manufacturing 1,5-pentanediol (1,5-PDO) from bio-based furfural, a platform chemical that can be derived from plant-based hemicellulose sugars. The process under construction by the company Pyran Inc. (Madison, Wis.; www.pyranco.com) offers a lower-cost…
New electrochemical processes are being developed to help CPI companies reduce their carbon footprint For over a century, electrochemistry has played a crucial role in the chemical process industries (CPI), and many chemicals are still produced using traditional electrochemical processes,…
A new fibrous catalyst-support material can enhance a wide range of industrial catalytic reactions, allowing higher yields and reduced coke buildup compared to pellet supports. Unifrax (Tonawanda, N.Y.; www.unifrax.com) leveraged its expertise in ceramic materials to develop the high-alumina fiber…
A first-of-its-kind pilot project in Abu Dhabi is integrating large-scale atmospheric water generation (AWG) with solar-thermal energy storage to enable carbon-free production of water. Led by partners AQUOVUM LLC (Dover, Del.; www.aqvglobal.com), Masdar Clean Energy (www.masdar.ae) and Khalifa University of…
EnviroGold Global Ltd. (Toronto, Ont., Canada; www.envirogoldglobal.com) has filed a patent application for a proprietary electrochemical process designed to achieve advanced metal recoveries from refractory ores with reduced capital expenditures (capex) compared to industry standard solutions. “The residual metals contained…
A hydrometallurgical process for recovering vanadium from slag, a byproduct of steelmaking, has been significantly scaled up. Previously deployed at mini-pilot and bench scales, the process, developed by Neometals Ltd. (West Perth, Australia; www.neometals.com.au), has now been expanded by a…
Bionext and its partners — a consortium of six industrial companies — have successfully completed the test program on BioTfueL demonstration units, setting the stage for commercialization of the thermochemical process that makes low-carbon-footprint sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and other…
Automated synthesis One of the most modern infrastructures for automated process control in chemistry is being built by the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT; www.kit.edu) together with BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com). The facility will initially produce new substances in…
Plant Watch PPG starts up sealants manufacturing plant in Morocco August 13, 2021 — PPG Industries, Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; www.ppg.com) started up a facility in Tangier, Morocco that will produce automotive sealants for local vehicle production. The plant marks the…
A new technology developed by Enertopia Corp. (Kelowna, B.C., Canada; www.enertopia.com) aims to improve the efficiency of solar panels by collecting excess waste heat and using it to heat water. Besides improving energy output, the technology also significantly lengthens the…