“This is the first time since the early 1970s there have been four strong years in a row; every piston of the economic engine was running,” says Dr. Thomas K. Swift, chief economist for the American Chemistry Council “We have…
Chemical Engineering announced today the release of its new beta website. The completely retooled site and online information service will provide up-to-the-minute news and in-depth technical expertise from Chemical Engineering’s global team of chemical engineers, CPI professionals and journalists. “The…
Genencor, the enzymes division of Danisco A/S (Copenhagen; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6900-544) and DONG Energy (Fredericia, both Denmark) are collaborating to produce second-generation bioethanol. Public subsidies are being sought for establishing a demonstration plant, which will process 4 m.t./h of straw and produce…
The Chemical Business Area of Evonik Industries AG (Essen, Germany; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6900-542) is the new identity of what was formerly known as Degussa. The other two business areas of Evonik Industries are energy and real estate. The German coal-mining operations will…
Lanxess (Leverkusen, Germany; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6900-543) has won a large contract to supply ion-exchange resins to Goro Nickel S.A.S. (Noumé, New Caldedonia), which will use the resins in future mining operations. Goro Nickel will start Ni production at the mine in 2009.…
Plant Watch Liheng adds largest continuous polymerization capacity for PA6 to China September 25, 2007 — Liheng (Changle) Polyamide Technology Co. has contracted Lurgi Zimmer GmbH to build a polyamide-6 (PA6) plant in the province of Fujian. The plant will…
Eastman Chemical Co. (Kingsport, Tenn.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6899-534), which has been producing chemicals via coal gasification (flowsheet) since 1983, will build a $l.6-billion plant in Beaumont, Tex., that will roughly quintuple the size of its current production of chemicals from synthesis gas.…
ABB (Zurich, Switzerland; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6899-546) has agreed to sell its Lummus Global business to Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (CB&I; The Woodlands, Tex.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6899-547) for an enterprise value of $950 million on a debt and cash free basis, subject to…
Gneuss Kunststofftechnik GmbH (Bad Oeynhausen, Germany; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6899-541) has developed a patented technology that significantly increases the surface exchange of molten polymers during vacuum degassing — a technique used to remove residual water and monomers during polymer processing. Compared with conventional…
ExxonMobil Chemical (Houston, Tex.; edlinks.chemengonline.com/6899-543) has commercialized a new process for making butyl rubber at its Notre Dame de Gravenchon plant in France. The company declines to give details on the process, but says it is more energy-efficient than the…