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GEA launches meVap® family to electrify industrial heat and accelerate decarbonization
In industrial plants, the biggest climate gains are often hidden in plain sight. Behind every evaporation step, every distillation column and every crystallization line lies a constant demand for heat — and with it, a major opportunity to cut emissions.…
A labeling system designed for smaller production volumes
The new 152E HC wrap-around labeling system (photo) is well-suited for pharmaceutical contract packers. It handles a wide range of product formats while requiring only a minimal number of changeable parts. Many pharmaceutical requirements are already implemented as standard, including…
Modular, low-cost ammonia-production system is designed for intermittent energy
Ammonia is a critical input for agricultural fertilizers, but NH3 production is plagued by volatile prices, difficult global logistics and high CO2 emissions. A new NH3-production system from the startup TalusAg (Austin, Texas; www.talusag.com) addresses these challenges with a modular…
Electrochemical-redox process expands recycling potential for LFP batteries
Lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries offer a compelling combination of performance characteristics for stationary energy storage, including improved safety and longevity, when compared to other lithium battery chemistries, such as nickel- and cobalt-based formulations. However, there are limited recycling pathways dedicated to…
Focus On: Pressure Measurement
This pressure transmitter works without a PLC The 4051S pressure transmitter (photo) provides local real-time control, eliminating the need for a separate device, such as a programmable logic controller. This functionality is provided by two relay switches, each of which…
Low-temperature plasma process supports direct recycling of battery cathodes
Direct battery-recycling methods, such as re-lithiation — where depleted lithium is replenished directly onto cathodes via a solid-state reaction — hold many benefits over indirect methods, such as those relying on hydrometallurgy or pyrometallurgy, where cathodic structures are destroyed in…
PVC polymer chlorination with LEDs enhances resin stability
Lubrizol (Cleveland, Ohio; www.lubrizol.com) recently began producing chlorinated polyvinyl chloride (CPVC) resin in commercial reactors equipped with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the light source, instead of the conventional mercury lamps. The company’s LED reactor technology enhances the thermal stability of…
Gas-fed, solid-state electrolyzer could allow ethylene from waste-derived syngas
Conventional ethylene production via steam cracking of ethane or naphtha leads to the emission of 1 ton of CO2 for every ton of ethylene produced. Given the carbon intensity of the process and the annual volume of ethylene produced (300…
Editor’s page: From ‘automated’ to ‘autonomous’
The continued and expanding use of digitalization technologies in the process industries have pushed facility operations from “automated” — featuring distributed control systems, programmable logic controllers, safety instrumented systems and others — toward “autonomous” operations, where technologies like machine-learning, open-software-defined…
Refiners Pursue Flexibility Amid Economic Headwinds
Petroleum refiners are taking steps to support and increase operational flexibility and business agility as logistical challenges and economic headwinds build, and policy certainty is difficult to find Amid the current economic climate, business agility and operational flexibility have emerged…