Latest News
Business News: November 2023
Plant Watch BASF to build a new fermentation plant in Ludwigshafen October 12, 2023 — BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) is investing in a new fermentation plant for biological crop-protection products, such as fungicides, insecticides and seed treatments, at its…
Management and Maintenance Strategies for Valves
Asset criticality and risk are primary among the many factors that must be considered to appropriately manage valves throughout their lifecycle Asset strategies usually define how assets will be treated in the different phases of an asset lifecycle, from acquisition…
Chementator Briefs
Bio-acrylonitrile Site selection is underway for a glycerol-to-acrylonitrile demonstration-scale plant that will enable the production of plant-based acrylonitrile (ACN). Trillium (Knoxville, Tenn.; www.trilliumchemicals.com) is partnering with Zeton (Oakville, Ont.; www.zeton.com) to design and build the plant, known as Project Falcon.…
Closed-loop CO2-based energy-storage system slated for Wisconsin
Alliant Energy (Madison, Wis.; www.alliantenergy.com) was recently selected to receive a $30-million grant from the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED; Washington, D.C.; www.energy.gov/oced) for a proposed 200-MWh energy storage system. Alliant Energy’s new battery system,…
Safely Operating a Heat-Transfer-Fluid System
Being aware of and understanding potential hazards are crucial for operating a heat-transfer-fluid system safely A significant number of industrial processes require heating or cooling with precise temperature control. Maintaining this temperature control can be achieved through several industrial practices,…
Ultrathin films achieve record hydrogen separation
Scientists at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL; Switzerland; www.epfl.ch) have synthesized the first ever metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) membrane with the thickness of just one unit cell. The ultrathin film yields record-high performance for the separation of hydrogen from nitrogen.…
A new heat-resistant membrane
Most polymeric membranes degrade during use, making them impractical for industrial separation processes. To solve this problem, researchers from the State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY Buffalo; www.buffalo.com), with cooperation for scientists at Rensselar Polytechnic Institute, have created…
Clariant to acquire cosmetics business from IFF
Clariant AG (Muttenz, Switzerland) announced that it has agreed to acquire Lucas Meyer Cosmetics, a leading provider of high value ingredients for the cosmetics and personal care industry, from International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) for a total cash consideration of…
Nouryon begins production at microspheres plant in Wisconsin
Nouryon (Amsterdam, the Netherlands) has started full-scale production at its new Expancel expandable microspheres plant in Green Bay, Wisconsin, US. The launch of the new plant is an important milestone to better serve specialty additives customers in North America in…
Busch Vacuum Solutions acquires centrotherm clean solutions
Busch Vacuum Solutions has acquired centrotherm clean solutions, one of the technology leaders in industrial-gas abatement systems. The strategic acquisition underlines the commitment of Busch Vacuum Solutions and Pfeiffer Vacuum to sustainability and will help to further strengthen the position…