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Driving change through funding
The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), which was passed into law last August, directs federal funding to a variety of sectors in the forms of grants, loans and tax incentives for corporations, and to a lesser extent to…
Integrated capture and conversion of CO2 to methanol
Processes that capture carbon dioxide from industrial fluegas and simultaneously convert it into useful chemicals are desirable because they offer an opportunity to produce CO2-derived chemicals more efficiently and economically than conventional approaches, where costs are driven up by the…
More sustainable curing technology for coil coatings
Coil coating is a continuous process for producing prepainted sheets of metal (steel or aluminum), which can then be fabricated into various building and other materials. Because organic coating materials are used, the process requires substantial energy for the curing…
Battery electrode binder allows easier recycling
Recovering valuable metals, such as cobalt and nickel, from used lithium-ion batteries is emerging as a key capability because of anticipated high battery demand and material shortages. Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley, Calif.; www.lbl.gov) have developed a technology…
This centrifugal sifter addresses labor-shortage costs
The Centri-Sifter M1 (photo) is a centrifugal sifter specially designed to help address the high costs associated with maintenance and recruiting, training and retaining skilled labor. The Centri-Sifter M1 sifts, scalps, de-agglomerates and dewaters granular materials ranging from dry bulk…
A new way to improve valve resiliency against flashing
Flashing occurs when the pressure of a fluid passing through a valve is lower than the same substance’s vapor pressure. This causes the fluid to boil — otherwise known as “flashing.” “By reducing flow capacity and eroding the valve itself,…
This coating boosts the efficiency of perovskite solar cells
Perovskite materials have great potential as a lightweight and low-cost option for solar panels, but in the past have not been seen as stable or durable enough for widespread use in large-scale solar-power installations. Now, a new coating developed by…
Sorption-enhanced methanation
The production of substitute (or synthetic) natural gas (SNG) by methanation of CO2 with hydrogen is energy intensive and also requires a purification step to remove the byproduct water and remaining reactants. To address these issues, researchers at The Swiss…
Business News: March 2023
Plant Watch Arlanxeo starts up new polybutadiene production line in Brazil February 14, 2023 — Arlanxeo B.V. (Maastricht, the Netherlands; www.arlanxeo.com) opened a new polybutadiene production line in Brazil. The new production line supplements Arlanxeo’s existing production capacity in Brazil…
World’s first 5G smartphone for hazardous areas
The IS540.1 (photo) is said to be the world’s first 5G smartphone for ATEX and IECEx zone 1/21. The intrinsically safe mobile device, which was also developed for use in 5G campus networks, offers extensive deployment scenarios ranging from predictive…