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Microbe-based process for GBL nears commercialization

Metabolix Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.; www.metabolix.com) has successfully demonstrated and completed research and development for scaleup on a fermentation process that produces gamma -butyrolactone (GBL) from genetically engineered bacteria. The process is built upon the company’s technology for engineering metabolic pathways…

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A promising method for producing conductive graphene sheets

Since the isolation of graphene by the “Scotch tape” method, many researchers have tried to synthesize solution-dispersible graphene. The challenge has been to develop a high-yield method that can exfoliate graphite efficiently into solution-dispersible graphene sheets without collateral damage to…

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Solvent extraction method shows promise for recovering bitumen from tar sands

Today only a few percent of Canada’s oil sands resource is accessible by traditional surface mining, so the rest has to be recovered in situ, mostly by steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD). In this process, steam is injected into a horizontal…

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‘Green’ surfactants from yeast

A new yeast strain that could one day substitute for petroleum as a source of surfactants for detergents, soaps and cosmetics has been identified by researchers at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (Peoria, Ill.;…

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Monomers from glucose

Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. (MCC; Tokyo, www.m-kagaku.co.jp, MCC) is developing bio-based technology for producing propylene, butadiene, 1,4-butanediol (BDO), terephthalic acid and succinic acid from glucose. In collaboration with North American partners, MCC plans to start production of succinic acid and 1,4…

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Specifying Elastomer Seals for Plastic Piping

The chemical process industries (CPI), like many others, increasingly employ non-metallic piping systems for fluid transfer — including polyvinyl chloride (PVC), chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) and fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP) — instead of exotic metal piping. While non-metallic piping systems have…

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Sterilization Approaches

Maintaining high-purity conditions in the chemical process industries (CPI) depends in large part on the techniques used for sterilization. As a method to inactivate or eliminate potentially harmful microbes, sterilization can be achieved through a number of different approaches, such…

These mag-drive pumps handle corrosive media

The latest C Mag-P 3M pumps available from this firm are competitively priced, horizontal sealless pumps with a permanent magnet drive, which makes them suited for transferring corrosive acids and plating solutions in surface treatment and finishing applications. The pump…

BASF to increase production capacity for copper and copper-chrome catalysts

BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) announced this week that its catalyst division will begin a new round of capital investment projects to increase production capacity for copper and copper-chrome catalysts. These investments are aimed at improving catalyst manufacturing efficiency to meet…

A catalyst extends the shelf life of polymer mixes

This company has developed its CSR family of latent acid catalysts to create formulations suitable for production of stable phenolic and furan-based polymeric mixes with more than three months shelf-life at room temperature. These inherently flame-retardant bulk and sheet-molding compounds…