Metabolix, Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.; www.metabolix.com) has demonstrated, in recently completed greenhouse trials, that switchgrass plants engineered using the firm’s multi-gene expression technology produced significant amounts polyhydroxybutyrate (a polyhydroxyalkanoate; PHA) bioplastics in leaf tissues. The result is said to be the…
BHR Biofuels, a subsidiary of BHR Group (Cranfield, U.K., www.bhrgroup.co.uk), has installed and demonstrated two process-intensified, full-size Biodiesel Reactor Systems at a chemical plant producing biodiesel from waste and virgin oils. The reactor systems are said to consume some 70%…
Rentech, Inc. (Los Angeles, Calif.; www.rentechinc.com) has produced its first run of jet fuel from its Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) product demonstration unit (PDU) in Commerce City, Colo. The plant produces a synthesis gas of hydrogen and carbon monoxide by steam-reforming of…
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) plans to acquire Ciba Holding AG (Basel, Switzerland), a leading specialty chemical company, and will make a public takeover offer to Ciba’s shareholders. BASF will pay CHF 50.00 in cash for each nominal share in…
CB&I (The Woodlands, Tex.; www.cbi.com), through Lummus Technology, has been awarded contracts with an overall value in excess of $45 million by Essar Gujarat Petrochemicals Ltd. for technology licenses and basic engineering related to a major grassroots petrochemicals complex in…
Solvay S.A. (Brussels, Belgium; www.solvay.com) announces today that its Thai affiliate Vinythai has increased its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) production capacity in its plant in Map Ta Phut (Thailand) by 70,000 metric tons (m.t.) to 280,000 m.t./yr, to accompany the growth…
The Linde Group (Munich, Germany; www.linde.com) has entered into a joint venture (JV) with Sinopec Fujian Petrochemical Company Ltd. (FPCL), a subsidiary of China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec), for the long-term supply of industrial gases to customers in the…
Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; www.evonik.com) has signed a contract for the sale of its U.S. and Canadian cyanide activities with Oaktree Capital Management. The cyanide business constitutes a part of the CyPlus Group owned by Evonik. The parties have…
SAFC Pharma, a focus area within SAFC (www.safcpharma.com), a member of the Sigma-Aldrich Group (St. Louis, Mo.; www.sigma-aldrich.com), today officially announced details of a $30-million expansion plan to its Madison, Wisc., facility, designed to significantly increase its capacity to produce…
The Linde Engineering Division (Pullach, Germany; www.linde) announced that on-spec ethylene production of the Tasnee ethylene plant in Al-Jubail, Saudi Arabia, was achieved on August 23, 2008 following mechanical completion on July 15, 2008, which is six weeks ahead of…