Alkylglyceryl ethers (AGEs) are biodegradable nonionic surfactants with excellent foaming and moisturizing properties. Up to now, AGEs have been made in batch reactors whereby the corresponding alkyl glycidyl ether (GE) is hydrolyzed in a solvent (alcohol or ethyleneglycol monoalkyl ether)…
Compressed air is often referred to as the fourth utility, and yet for an upstart business or process there is no commercial infrastructure that provides a core supply as exists with gas, electricity and water. When a need for compressed…
Compressed air is your most expensive utility. This is a fact that has been documented time and time again. It takes 7 to 8 hp of electricity to produce 1 hp in an airtool. In many plants, the compressed air…
This sixth and final part of a series of articles [ 1 – 5] on piping for process plants discusses practical issues of leak testing and verification of piping systems. Read Part 5 here. Leak Testing Leak testing and pressure…
In Poorly Lubricated Conditions, Try this Diamond Seal... Over 50% of pump lifecycle costs result from energy and maintenance; and applying the low-wear and low-friction attributes of diamond to mechanical seals can yield significant energy savings for fluid pumps. Ultrananocrystalline…
This summer, Asahi Kasei Chemicals Corp. (AKCC; Tokyo, Japan; edlinks.chemengonline.com/7373-532) plans to begin construction on a plant for producing 200,000 m.t./yr of acrylonitrile (AN) and a plant for making 70,000 m.t./yr of methyl methacrylate (MMA), at Map Ta Phut, Rayong,…
Scientists from CSIRO (Melbourne, Australia; edlinks.chemengonline.com/7373-536) have succeeded in engineering the model plant Arabidopsis to produce 30 wt.% of vernolic acid, an unusual fatty acid (UFA), in its seed oil. The project’s leader, Allan Green — who presented the findings…
Nissan Chemical Industries Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan; edlinks.chemengonline.com/7373-538) is commercializing "ultrahighly active" catalysts, based on the catalyst technology developed by professor Yoshiharu Iwabuchi of the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku University (Sendai, Japan), which catalyzes the oxidation of alcohols into…
Soy-oil-based hydrogels developed by the U.S. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) show promise as biodegradable encapsulants for drug delivery. Scientists at ARS’ National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (Peoria, Ill.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/7373-539) have collaborated with researchers at the University of Toronto to…
Kadant AES (Queensbury, N.Y.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/7373-543) has introduced a patented control technology for high-pressure positive-displacement (HPPD) pumps, which is said to be capable of reducing energy usage by up to 60%. The so-called UniGY PhD (Pump-modeling hydraulic drive) uses pump-modeling software…