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Editor’s Page: Seeking Wise Counsel
The leadership expert Ken Blanchard said “None of us is as smart as all of us” — a phrase that applies to Chemical Engineering's process of editorial decision-making. One source of intelligence is the CE Editorial Advisory Board. We have…
World-first sewage-treatment trial proves comprehensive dual-phase PFAS removal
An ongoing large-scale demonstration project in Australia is the world’s first to apply a foam-fractionation technology to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in a sewage-treatment plant. The Surface-Active Foam Fractionation (SAFF®) technology developed by EPOC Enviro (Emu Plains, NSW,…
Electrolysis at Scale: Unlocking Sustainable Lithium Hydroxide Production
Electrolysis-based lithium refining presents a promising alternative to conventional approaches, offering benefits related to reduced reagent consumption and effluent production, higher-purity products and an improved environmental footprint Electrolysis, a process that uses electric current to drive non-spontaneous chemical reactions, has…
Facts At Your Fingertips: Particle Stress and Feed Requirements for Impact Milling
The chemical process industries (CPI) include many applications of impact comminution to process solid matter, such as minerals, chemical products, foods and pharmaceutical products. This one-page reference discusses conditions for particle fracture and feed characteristics in industrial milling equipment. Particle…
Atomically thin photocatalysts unlock new pollution-degradation capabilities
Researchers at the University of Birmingham (www.birmingham.ac.uk) have demonstrated a new production method for ultra-thin catalysts, unlocking new capabilities for the catalytic breakdown of persistent water pollutants. “The production method takes layered materials as the precursor, disperses them in a…
Electrified process converts CO2 and biochar into industrial products
The production of salable co-products can substantially improve the economics for CO2 conversion processes. A new electrified thermochemical process developed by startup Reduciner Oy (Espoo, Finland; www.reduciner.com) combines captured CO2 streams with biochar to produce carbon monoxide, along with activated…
New insights into graphene oxide’s strengthening effects in concrete could accelerate commercial development
The nanomaterial graphene oxide (GO) has been investigated as a way to improve concrete strength, but reported results of GO’s effects have been inconsistent and detailed understanding of the mechanisms of its strength-enhancing effects has been elusive. New studies by…
New Technologies Optimize Mixing Processes
Advanced designs and controls achieve complete mixing while reducing batch times In the chemical process industries (CPI), mixing is about more than simply combining raw materials. It plays a central role in product quality and process efficiency, but it is…
Business News: July 2026
Plant Watch Air Liquide starts up CO2-capture pilot unit at Holcim cement facility June 11, 2026 — Air Liquide S.A. (Paris, France; www.airliquide.com) started up its first industrial-scale pilot unit specifically designed for the cement sector, based on its proprietary…
Tower Doctor: Should a Doctor Diagnose by a Hunch?
Henry Kister shares lessons learned from troubleshooting distillation towers The C2 splitter tower is the final step in ethylene plant distillation. It separates a high-purity ethylene top product (typically a few hundred ppm ethane impurity) from the ethane recycle bottoms.…