Phenpropanone monomers can be produced from lignin via an enzymatic process developed by Yukari Ohta and coworkers at the R&D Center for Marine Biosciences, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (Yokosuka City; www.jamstec.go.jp), in collaboration with National Defense Academy,…
A patented, inline absorption system has been developed and field-tested by ExxonMobil (Houston; www.exxonmobil.com), and has just been licensed to Sulzer Chemtech (Winterthur, Switzerland; www.sulzer.com). Because the tradenamed cMIST technology operates inside pipes, it replaces the need for conventional methods…
Plant Watch Arkema plans $90-million upgrade at Clear Lake acrylic acid plant January 11, 2017 — Arkema (Colombes, France; www.arkema.com) is investing $90 million at its Clear Lake, Tex. site to replace two acrylic-acid reactors, each with a capacity of…
New technology is helping to reduce costs and enabling CSP plants to generate electrical power 24 hours per day If you are keeping upwith the news, then you are aware of the quiet revolution that is taking place in the…
Good housekeeping results in a better safety record and higher product quality Safety is a high priority in the chemical process industries (CPI). However, safety programs tend to focus more on larger, regulated concerns, such as personal protective equipment, chemical…
Compact regulator is designed for analytical instruments The EX2 Series Control Station (photo) is a flexible, small-footprint, gas-delivery system that includes a dual-stage regulator, mounting bracket and flexible hose. It is designed for applications such as calibration systems, gas panels…
Steam is commonly used in the chemical process industries (CPI) for process heating, power generation, atomization, cleaning and sterilization, moisturization and humidification, among other applications. This one-page reference provides a refresher for key concepts related to steam. Pressure-temperature relation The…
This column is based on “Methionine Hydroxy Analog Production Process - Cost Analysis,” a report published by Intratec. It can be found at: www.intratec.us/analysis/methionine-production-cost. Methionine is an essential amino acid that is widely used as an animal feed additive, especially…
Reliable operation of shell-and-tube heat exchangers begins with an appropriate standard. This article provides an overview of those that are applicable Shell-and-tube heat exchangers are the backbone of the power generation, chemical process, petrochemical and pulp-and-paper industries. They are designed…
Single-pass, floating-head heat exchangers are common in certain process operations, but they often use flange joints that are not covered in existing design codes. Design details, advantages and disadvantages of the different options are discussed here Shell-and-tube heat exchangers are…