Plant Watch Sika more than doubles capacity at its largest manufacturing plant in Indonesia August 13, 2024 — Sika AG (Baar, Switzerland; www.sika.com) has more than doubled the production capacity at the Bekasi plant, its largest manufacturing facility in Indonesia.…
Equipment innovations and monitoring solutions help chemical processors create more effective dust collection systems Uncontrolled dust can lead to several complications, including health and safety concerns, product quality problems, regulatory compliance issues and legal ramifications. Although dust should not be…
Recycling rates for post-consumer textile waste are very low (<0.5%) because the fabrics often consist of tightly interlaced synthetic and natural fibers that require costly sorting and separation processes, and because they often contain dyes and additives that must be…
A research team at the University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science (Charlottesville, Va.; engineering.virginia.edu) is the first to explore how an emerging plant-based material, cellulose nanofibrils, could amplify the benefits of 3D-printed concrete technology. “The improvements we…
Plant Watch Trelleborg Group to construct new production plant in North Carolina July 16, 2024 — Trelleborg Group AB (Trelleborg, Sweden; www.trelleborg.com) is investing in a new production facility to expand its business for engineered coated fabrics in Rutherfordton, N.C.…
Concrete production is responsible for 6–9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions. “The largest contribution to that comes from the production of cement, a precursor product,” says Peter Stemmermann from the Institute for Technical Chemistry (ITC) at the Karlsruhe Institute of…
At Achema 2024 (Frankfurt, Germany; June 10–15), Sulzer Chemtech (Winterthur, Switzerland; www.sulzer.com) revealed MellapakEvo (photo), the latest addition to its structured-packing product family. The MellapakEvo structured packing has been developed to enhance the efficiency and capacity of distillation columns, maximizing…
Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS; www.ikts.fraunhofer.de) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (FEP; both Dresden, Germany; www.fep.fraunhofer.de) are introducing an eco-friendly, biologically induced method of producing biogenic construction materials as…
Tanning Agent Södra Skogsägarna (Södra; Växjö, Sweden; www.sodra.com) is investing in a production line at Värö that will create a tanning agent from tree bark. This new tannin can be used to process leather in a more environmentally friendly way,…
Bio-based polymers, such as polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), are seeing increasing application as a more sustainable alternative to fossil-based materials. A new, flexible production platform developed by CJ Biomaterials, Inc. (Woburn, Mass.; www.cjbiomaterials.com) is now enabling the production of PHA in both…