The ability to forecast costs, align budgets and maintain control throughout the lifecycle of a project can mean the difference between delivering value and facing costly overruns In asset-intensive industries, such as energy, chemicals, power and infrastructure, the balance between…
Year’s end is, of course, the default juncture at which current situations are assessed and forecasts for the future are posited. As this year nears its end, indications are that 2026 will likely be a tough year for much of…
Among the major challenges facing efforts to chemically recycle common waste plastics is that many methods require a pure stream of a single type of polymer to be effective. Now, researchers at Northwestern University (NU; Evanston, Ill.; www.northwestern.edu), led by…
Siloxanes — synthetic chains of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms — are widely used in personal care products, soaps, pharmaceutical formulations and other products, but are notoriously difficult to manage in production- and waste-fluid streams. Current approaches, including flaring and…
Pharmaceutical residues, particularly from antibiotics, are extremely difficult to fully remove from wastewater using traditional bulk-treatment methods, wherein antibiotic compounds are often only partially broken down. Even at trace amounts, antibiotic fragments can accumulate and wreak havoc on natural ecosystems.…
The production of commercially important hydrocarbons from synthesis gas (syngas; mixtures of H2 and CO) using the Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process is a key strategy for making fuels and chemicals from a range of non-petroleum feedstocks. But F-T processes are relatively…
Understanding how particle size affects flow properties helps ensure reliable flow of materials between process steps Many industries utilize dry solid materials and powders (collectively referred to as bulk solids in this article) for producing and manufacturing products. It is…
The widely used plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET) can be depolymerized by reacting it with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) under strong mechanical impact from metal spheres in a ball mill. This type of mechanochemical route to recycling could alleviate some of the…
All-in-one monitor, data-logger and converter for flow sensors The IFQ Monitor 2 (photo) is a user-friendly monitor, advanced data-logger and converter for this company’s flow sensors. The IFQ Monitor 2 ensures accurate liquid-flow measurement in open-water and full-pipe applications, providing…
Advanced safety-instrumented system features minimize complexity, downtime and costs Chemical process plants must be vigilant when it comes to preventing accidents that have the potential to harm people, assets and the environment. While safety instrumented systems (SIS) reduce risks, they…