January Chementator briefs
New cellulase enzyme Last month, Codexis, Inc. (Redwood City, Calif.; www.codexis.com) introduced the CodeXyme…
In The News
Chementator
This gold catalyst takes the crown for high activity and selectivity
Gold catalysts have been shown to have superior activities for oxidation reactions, especially at low…
PDVSA will commercialize a heavy-oil upgrading process
Venezuela’s state-run petroleum company, PDVSA Petroleo, S.A. (PDVSA, Caracas; www.pdvsa.com), will commercialize a company-developed process…
Demo plant for high-yield biomass-to-gasoline process under construction
Construction of a demonstration plant has begun for a biomass-to-gasoline process that boosts biomass conversion…
This distillation column promises substantial energy reductions
A new distillation system capable of reducing energy consumption by up to 50% compared to…
Waste disposal system for military operations
The Micro Auto Gasification System (MAGS) is a compact solid-waste disposal system that is designed…
Reforming ethanol into hydrogen
A group from the University of Canterbury (www.canterbury.ac.nz), and Industrial Research Ltd. (both Christchurch, New…
Making biodiesel with SC methanol
A team from the School of Chemical Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia (Penang; www.eng.usm.my) has carried…
First inline, direct measurement of wall shear
To date, determination of the shear forces exerted on vessel walls by moving fluids has…
Modeling algorithm adjustment can improve equipment sizing
The Brinkman method is one of several approaches used to predict the effective viscosity of…
Business News
B&W awarded $75-million environmental construction contract for Indiana power plant
The Babcock & Wilcox Co. (B&W; Charlotte, N.C.; www.babcock.com) says that its subsidiary Babcock &…
Major expansion and upgrade project at Samsung Total Petrochemicals’ complex in Daesan
Total S.A. (Paris, France; www.total.com) is consolidating its positions in petrochemicals in Asia with a…
Eastman to acquire Solutia
Eastman Chemical Co. (Kingsport, Tenn.; www.eastman.com) and Solutia Inc. (St. Louis, Mo.; www.solutia.com) have entered…
UOP technology selected for petroleum-refinery expansion in Pakistan
UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, says that its new process technology…
Technip awarded a petroleum-refining contract in Bulgaria
Technip (Paris, France; www.technip.com) was awarded by Lukoil Neftochim Burgas ad, subsidiary of OAO LUKOIL,…
SNC-Lavalin Nuclear awarded contract for containment-filtered-venting system in Romania
SNC-Lavalin , Inc. (Montreal, Canada; www.snclavalin.com) says that SNC-Lavalin Nuclear has signed a contract with…
Siemens to acquire Cambridge Water Technology
Siemens Industry Automation Division (Warrendale, Pa.; www.siemens.com/industryautomation) entered into an agreement to acquire Cambridge Water…
Genomatica: Exclusive worldwide rights to Proesa process for making BDO
Genomatica (San Diego, Calif.; www.genomatica.com) has obtained the exclusive worldwide rights to Beta Renewables S.p.A.’s…
B&V launches Smart Analytics for making smart utilities smarter
Black & Veatch (B&V; Overland Park, Kan.; www.bv.com) announced today the launch of Smart Analytics,…
CERA System joins Samson Group
On January 1, 2012, Cera System Verschleißschutz GmbH (Hermsdorf, Germany; www.cerasystem.de) — a company specializing…
Toyo awarded contract for caprolactam plant in China
Toyo Engineering Corp. (Toyo; Chiba, Japan; www.toyo-eng.co.jp) has been awarded a contract for a caprolactam…
BASF to sell share in JV PEC-Rhin to GPN
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf) has signed a contract to sell its 50%-share in PEC-Rhin…
Torresol Energy launches commercial operations of twin solar-thermal plants in Spain
Torresol Energy S.A. (Madrid, Spain; www.torresolenergy.com), a joint venture (JV) between Sener IngenierˇËa y Sistemas…
A PLA plant with new Sulzer/Purac technology starts up in the Netherlands
The first polylactic acid (PLA) plant running with innovative Sulzer technology was successfully put into…
CB&I lands contract for Kearl Oil Sands Expansion Project
CB&I (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.cbi.com) has been awarded a contract, valued in excess of $750…
Sartorius Stedim Biotech and G-Con Manufacturing announce global collaboration
Sartorius Stedim Biotech (SSB; Göttingen, Germany; www.sartorius-stedim.com) and G-Con Manufacturing, LLC (G-Con; College Station, Tex.;…
UOP to provide technology for petrochemical and fuels production in South Korea
UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, has been selected by Samsung Total…
BASF to build an integrated TDI plant in Ludwigshafen
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) says it will build a single-train 300,000 metric tons per…
Toyo awarded contract for a bioethanol production facility in Malaysia
Toyo Engineering & Construction Sdn. Bhd. (Toyo-Malaysia), a Malaysian subsidiary of Toyo Engineering Corp. (Toyo;…
Foster Wheeler wins EPC contract for Petron refinery upgrade in the Philippines
Foster Wheeler AG (Zug, Switzerland; www.fwc.com) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Engineering…
Bayer MaterialScience commissions new hydrogenation technical center
Bayer MaterialScience AG (Leverkusen, Germany; www.materialscience.bayer.com) has commissioned a new technical center for the development…
Solvay and Air Liquide form fluorine-gas JV for high-tech industries
Solvay SA (Brussels, Belgium; www.solvay.com) and Air Liquide (Paris, France; www.airliquide.com) have entered into an…
BASF invests $50 million to acquire equity ownership position in Sion Power
BASF Corp. (Iselin, N.J.; www.basf.com) has invested $50 million to acquire an equity ownership position…
BASF and Sinopec complete second phase of Nanjing
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) and Sonopec Corp. (Beijing, China; www.sinopec.com.cn) today inaugurated the $1.4-billion…
Jacobs awarded contract for gas heat exchanger
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (Pasadena, Calif.; www.jacobs.com) announced today that its Chemetics unit in Pickering,…
UOP technology selected by Kumho P&B Chemicals
UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, has been selected by Kumho P&B…
Foster Wheeler completes purchase of scrubber company
Foster Wheeler AG (Zug, Switzerland; www.fwc.com) says that a subsidiary of its Global Power Group…
UOP’s Oleflex technology selected by Dow Chemical
UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell (NYSE: HON) company, says that it has…
Toyo awarded utility-facilities construction contract for Brazilian refinery
Toyo Engineering Corp. (Toyo; Chiba, Japan; www.toyo-eng.co.jp), in consortium with Brazilian UTC Engenharia S.A. and…
Jacobs secures contract with ISACC in Saudi Arabia
Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (Pasadena, Calif.; www.jacobs.com) has been awarded a contract by IDEA Soda…
Technical & Practical
Designing Shell & Tube Heat Exchangers: Avoid Vibration From The Start
Mechanical integrity is an essential consideration in heat exchanger design. The most common threat to…
Ten Tips For Smart Project Managers
Projects have been undertaken by nations, private enterprises and individuals for more years than recorded…
Designing Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers: Consider Two-Phase Flow
In the chemical process industries (CPI) it is relatively common to use a homogeneous two-phase…
Lubricating Rotating Machinery
Lubricants in rotating machines reduce friction and wear, dissipate heat, protect surfaces,…
Designing Shell and Tube Heat Exchangers: Consider Two-Phase Flow
In the chemical process industries (CPI) it is relatively common to use a homogeneous two-phase…
Facts at Your Fingertips
Avoiding Pressure Relief Problems
Pressure relief valves and rupture disks are critical safety devices for protecting personnel and processing…