When scaling up new processes involving complex feedstocks, such as biomass, well-defined mixing is key. Guidelines presented here will help to efficiently move biomass hydrogenation reactions from the laboratory to commercial-scale operations One of the most promising pathways to biomass-based,…
This company’s Wright Drive 2.0 socket design is said to distribute contact stress more effectively than other wrench systems. The Wright Drive 2.0 12-point design has up to 10 times more tool-to-fastener contact area than conventional 12-point wrenches. The design…
Ecolink (photo) is an online portal for remote monitoring and control of this company’s industrial odor-neutralization systems. With this advancement, users can now manage their equipment from anywhere with any device capable of hosting a web browser, such as a…
Plant Watch Solvay resumes soda-ash expansion in Wyoming November 11, 2022 — Solvay S.A. (Brussels, Belgium; www.solvay.com) plans to resume the construction of its soda-ash capacity expansion in Green River, Wyo. The investment totals around $200 million, and the expansion…
A decades-old, yet less well-known type of heat exchanger offers advantages for new and emerging applications Spiral-tube or helically-coiled heat exchangers have been around for decades addressing sample cooling, mechanical seal cooling, vent condensers, vaporization and general heating or cooling…
Liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) is a separation technique that exploits differences in the relative solubility of compounds of interest (the solute) in two immiscible liquids — most often an aqueous phase and an organic solvent. This one-page reference reviews basic information…
A reclusive expert of 19th-century photography laid the foundation for mechanochemistry, a once-ignored field that is re-emerging in ‘green chemistry’ applications For decades in the late 1800s, Carey Lea had been fascinated by the chemistry of photography, and had studied…
Easy Vis (photo) is a new instrument that analyzes liquid, translucent samples for their optical spectrum, color and water parameters. Combining these critical measuring tasks into one device, Easy Vis takes over the measuring tasks of up to three instruments:…
In late October, Metso Outotec Corp. (Helsinki, Finland; www.mogroup.com) introduced the DRI (direct reduced iron) Smelting Furnace to substitute blast furnaces used in iron- and steelmaking. The furnace was developed to tolerate high-slag volumes, which are problematic for a conventional…
At brownfield operating sites, energy-efficiency gains can be realized by modernizing power-generation equipment. Ideally, such projects can take place without fully shutting off power or halting plant operations Over the last two years, virtually every major chemical producer across the…