Techniques for manufacturing carbon adsorbent materials with highly tuned pore properties have been developed by EnerG2 Technologies Inc. (Seattle, Wash.; www.energ2.com). The technology platform produces carbon adsorbents that enable the storage of natural gas at significantly lower pressures than those…
Water treatment technology from Alcoa Inc. (Pittsburgh, Pa.; www.alcoa.com) that includes engineered areas of natural wetland vegetation is now available commercially for the first time. The engineered wetlands technology can lower capital and operating expenses, as well as energy consumption,…
Dealing with wastewater streams in petroleum refineries and petrochemical operations is often a trying task — environmentally, economically and logistically — especially as regulations on salinity in waste streams are tightened. However, many waste streams actually contain useful components, such…
Professor Susumu Kitagawa’s group at Kyoto University (Kyoto, www.sbchem.kyoto-u.ac.jp/kitagawa-lab/index-e.html) has developed a new soft nanoporous material that selectively adsorbs carbon monoxide from gas mixtures. The researchers believe their achievement will enable the separation and recycling of CO from the emissions…
Gasoline-like fuel suitable for internal combustion engines can be obtained from the pyrolysis of plastic waste, according to a study conducted by a team of people from Gadjah Mada University (Yogyakarta, Indonesia; www.ugm.ac.id), University Sains Malaysia (Penang, Malaysia; www.usm.my), and…
Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL; Richland, Wash.; www.pnnl.gov) have developed a continuous process for generating crude oil from algae that they believe can lower the cost of producing algae-based fuel. The process works by combining hydrothermal liquefaction and…
A high-throughput method for synthesizing ionic-liquid-containing electrolytes developed by Boulder Ionics Corp. (Arvada, Colo.; www.boulderionics.com) has been refined to enable its use in commercial production. Boulder Ionics had previously piloted the continuous process for producing advanced ionic-liquid (IL) electrolytes at…
Offgases containing compounds of chlorine or fluorine are typically burned to enable the recovery of HCl or HF and prevent release into the environment. However, conventional combustion chambers require a long time to heat up, and thus are typically run…
Extraction of palm oil generates large amounts of lignocellulose-rich byproduct known as empty fruit bunch (EFB), which is usually wasted. A new process for utilizing this waste to make lactic acid has been developed by a team of researchers in…
Professor Takao Masuda and colleagues at Hokkaido University (Sapporo; www.eng.hokudai.ac.jp/labo/cse), in collaboration with Idemitsu Kosan Co. (Idemitsu; Tokyo; both Japan; www.idemitsu.com), have developed a two-step process that converts wood-based lignin into phenols. They believe the achievement could lead to an…