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…
Synhelion S.A. (Lugano, Switzerland; www.synhelion.com) and the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa; Dübendorf; www.empa.ch) are conducting a joint research project, co-funded by the Swiss Innovation Agency Innosuisse, to further develop a high-temperature energy-storage technology that is…
Hydrogenation is an important reaction in many sectors of the chemical process industries (CPI), but H2 gas is not only expensive, its use requires considerable safety measures to prevent explosions. Significant cost savings could be achieved if hydrogenations did not…
Toxicology testing The world’s first toxicology-testing strategy without animal testing has been approved by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; Paris, France; www.oecd.org). The testing strategy consists of three so-called alternative methods. They can be used to predict…
Next year, construction will begin on an industrial-scale pilot plant to further develop a new process that decomposes methane into H2 and carbon. The process uses a thermo-catalytic decomposition (TCD) technology developed by Hycamite TCD Technologies Oy (Kokkola, Finland; www.hycamite.com).…
A family of oxidation catalysts known as TAML has been revamped to increase activity by several orders of magnitude, even at very dilute catalyst concentrations. Developed by Sudoc (Cambridge, Mass.; www.sudoc.com), these peroxidase-mimicking catalysts present a more environmentally sustainable option…
Buildup of biofouling on membranal surfaces necessitates treatments with corrosive chemicals, such as hydrochloric acid, and even replacement of membrane cartridges, which can be costly in desalination operations. A new coating, developed in the laboratory of Ran Suckevereine at Kinneret…
Until now, waste tires have been used mainly for recovering energy. Only small proportions of the carbon black contained in these tires are recycled, since the mineral ash generated by pyrolysis consists of about 20 wt.% of additives used to…
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…