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Impressions of Achema

I first visited Achema some years ago, while I was working in Europe as an R&D project leader for a large, international chemical company. It was my first year living in the Netherlands on an expatriate assignment from the U.S.,…

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Plant Watch: Business News for August 2018

Plant Watch BASF to expand global antioxidant production capacities July 10, 2018 — BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) plans to increase the global production capacity for its antioxidant Irganox 1010 by 40% with production expansion projects at its sites in…

U.S. specialty chemical markets end Q2 on a solid note, ACC says

The American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) reported that U.S. specialty chemicals market volumes ended the second quarter on a solid note, increasing 0.4 percent in June after a slightly revised 0.4 percent gain in May, and a 1.0…

Global chemical production expands during June, ACC says

Data collected and tabulated by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) show that the global chemical industry ended the second quarter on a good note. ACC’s Global Chemical Production Regional Index (Global CPRI) shows that global chemicals production…

Chemical Activity Barometer for July signals gains, ACC says

The Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB), a leading economic indicator created by the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com), rose 0.1 percent in July on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis, improving upon June and May performances which were essentially…

2018 CEPCI Updates: May (prelim.) and April (final)

The preliminary value for the May 2018 CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; most recent available) once again increased substantially compared to the previous month’s value, continuing a string of monthly increases since the beginning of 2018. The rise seems to…

Covestro to expand polymer film production at four sites

Covestro (Leverkusen, Germany; www.covestro.com) intends to significantly expand its global film production to meet the growing demand in all regions. In particular, capacity expansions are planned at Map Ta Phut, Thailand, Guangzhou, China, South Deerfield, USA, and Dormagen, Germany. The…

Cortec announces expansion of industrial coatings facility

Cortec (Houma, La.; www.uscortec.com), a leading manufacturer of high quality API chokes, valves and manifolds, and Louisiana Economic Development (LED) have announced a $2.5 million expansion of Cortec’s industrial coatings facility in Port Allen, La. Cortec and LED began working…

Recently Published Books for the CPI: July 2018

The following is a list of recently published books that may be relevant to different parts of the chemical process industries (CPI).   Microplastic Contamination in Aquatic Environments: An Emerging Matter of Environmental Urgency. Edited by Eddy Y. Zeng, Elsevier…

The 2018 Chopey Scholarship

Since 1902, Chemical Engineering has been a leading source for practical technology information and news for the chemical process industries (CPI). Additionally, we strive to bring recognition to, and help advance the chemical engineering profession. With that in mind, in…