CSIRO Energy Technology (Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia; www.csiro.au) is developing a solar-powered air conditioning unit for residential use, using a desiccant-evaporative process to provide cool and dehumidified air. Thermally driven ab- or adsorption chillers are commonly used to provide…
A photocatalyst that is more active for decomposing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with visible light than existing catalysts has been developed by researchers from the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO; Kawasaki City, Japan) in a project lead…
Last month, GE Oil & Gas (Florence, Italy; www.ge.com/oilandgas) received a contract to supply Eni S.p.A. (Rome; www.eni.it) with the largest refinery reactors of their type ever to be manufactured. GE Oil & Gas’ components-production facility in Massa, Italy, will…
Bioethanol Ethanol from plant and forestry waste and dedicated energy crops could replace approximately one-third of U.S. gasoline requirements by 2030 on a sustainable basis, according to a study by Sandia National Laboratories (Livermore, Calif.; www.sandia.gov) and General Motors Corp.…
A process that produces hydrogen from coal with close to 80% energy conversion efficiency, plus coproduction of a carbon-dioxide-rich stream for sequestration, is being developed at Ohio State University (Columbus, Ohio; www.osu.edu). This compares with around 60% conversion efficiency for…
In the framework of the Impulse project (Integrated Multiscale Process Units with Locally Structured Elements; CE, April 2005, p. 19), researchers from the Industrial Chemistry Group at RWTH Aachen University (Germany; www.itmc.rwth-aachen.de) have developed a continuous production plant capable of…
Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. (MCC; Tokyo, Japan; www.m-kagaku.co.jp) has developed a new technology for producing 1,3-butadiene (butadiene) from waste butenes using a self-developed, proprietary catalyst. The process has been pilot tested (200-ton/yr capacity) at MCC’s Mizushima site in Japan, and the…
Click here for full pdf version of this article - includes all graphs, charts, tables, and author information Construction to begin on a large solar plant in Spain Thanks to a €171-million financing deal, construction can begin on what is…
Thanks to a €171-million financing deal, construction can begin on what is claimed to be the world’s first utility-grade solar power plant with central tower and salt receiver technology. When the so-called Gemasolar plant — located in Fuentes de Andalucia,…
Mitsunori Shimura and colleagues at the R&D Center of Chiyoda Corp. (Yokohama, Japan; www.chiyoda.co.jp) have developed a new catalyst for producing a synthesis gas (syngas; hydrogen and carbon monoxide) from steam reforming of methane. The catalyst consists of precious metals…