Flashing occurs when the pressure of a fluid passing through a valve is lower than the same substance’s vapor pressure. This causes the fluid to boil — otherwise known as “flashing.” “By reducing flow capacity and eroding the valve itself,…
When searching for catalysts for the energy transition, materials consisting of at least five elements — so-called high-entropy alloys (HEAs) — are considered highly promising. But to find the right combination of elements and composition ratios needed for the best…
The production of substitute (or synthetic) natural gas (SNG) by methanation of CO2 with hydrogen is energy intensive and also requires a purification step to remove the byproduct water and remaining reactants. To address these issues, researchers at The Swiss…
Recovering valuable metals, such as cobalt and nickel, from used lithium-ion batteries is emerging as a key capability because of anticipated high battery demand and material shortages. Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley, Calif.; www.lbl.gov) have developed a technology…
From headsets to gloves to fabric sensors, technologies that can be worn on the body are providing many new benefits for plant workers Apace with innovations in all “smart” technologies, wearable devices for industrial personnel are rapidly evolving to incorporate…
Plant Watch Arlanxeo starts up new polybutadiene production line in Brazil February 14, 2023 — Arlanxeo B.V. (Maastricht, the Netherlands; www.arlanxeo.com) opened a new polybutadiene production line in Brazil. The new production line supplements Arlanxeo’s existing production capacity in Brazil…
Perovskite materials have great potential as a lightweight and low-cost option for solar panels, but in the past have not been seen as stable or durable enough for widespread use in large-scale solar-power installations. Now, a new coating developed by…
ODC Technology Last month, Covestro AG (Leverkusen, Germany; www.covestro.com) started up a new world-scale facility for the production of chlorine in Tarragona, Spain. It is the first world-scale production plant for chlorine based upon the oxygen-depolarized cathode (ODC) technology invented…
A recently commissioned, 150,000-ton/yr facility in Sumner, Wash. is the first wastewater-treatment plant to deploy a new liquid-waste treatment technology. Owned by Generate Upcycle (San Francisco, Calif.; www.generatecapital.com), and operated in partnership with Sedron Technologies, LLC (Sedro-Woolley, Wash.; www.sedron.com), the…
Magnet Metals Bilfinger SE (Mannheim, Germany; www.bilfinger.com) is supporting REEtec AS (Oslo, Norway; www.reetec.no) with engineering, procurement, construction and management (EPCM) services for a new processing plant for neodymium and praseodymium — two rare earth elements (REE) used in the…