Latest News
Low-voltage, membrane-free electrolysis produces hydrogen and FDCA
A new approach to the traditional alkaline electrolyzers used to produce “green” hydrogen from water eliminates the membrane and introduces a new reaction mechanism at the anode, enabling the production of a high-value plastic precursor, 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA). Developed at…
These “self-driving” bioreactor sensors are forging new fermentation frontiers
Ubiquitous in biomanufacturing, fermentation processes are complex and unpredictable when compared to traditional chemical-processing operations. From changing cell-growth rates to drifts in environmental conditions, typical control approaches can only react to predetermined setpoints rather than reliably maximize product output. A…
Layered graphite membrane has internal structure to aid water separation from IPA
Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) is a key industrial solvent for the pharmaceuticals, electronics and fine chemicals sectors, among other uses, but methods for making IPA leave water-alcohol mixtures that need to be separated to achieve the purities required for industrial use.…
Recovering Valuable Chemicals from Vapor Streams Using Absorption
Absorption can pull a high-value component out of an air stream and return it for reuse, often at a lower cost than destroying it Many chemical and biological processes produce a vapor stream that is primarily air, but contains a…
Scaleup planned for system that can decarbonize furnace-based processes
Technology spun out from the University of Birmingham (www.birmingham.ac.uk) and developed by the startup PeroCycle Ltd. (Cambridge, U.K.; www.perocycle.com) is aimed at low-cost decarbonization of blast-furnace and direct-reduced-iron (DRI) steel-making operations, along with other furnace-based industrial processes, like glass-making. The…
Testing Hydrogen Infrastructure Materials: A Practical Framework
As hydrogen infrastructure expands, existing material-qualification frameworks must keep pace with hydrogen-specific degradation risks, such as embrittlement, stress corrosion cracking, permeation and accelerated aging Hydrogen infrastructure deployment is speeding up in the chemical process industries (CPI). However, the material qualification…
Sorbent-based ammonia-production system lowers cost and allows modularity
World-scale ammonia-production plants based on the Haber-Bosch process supply the ammonia for most of today’s agricultural fertilizer industry. But building new capacity for ammonia production is economically difficult because of the high capital expenditures needed for plants large enough to…
Facts At Your Fingertips: Real-Time Particle-Size Measurement
Particle size is a key parameter in many solids-handling processes, and can have a strong influence on product performance and quality, as well as for effectiveness of downstream operations. One important approach to particle-size measurement is conducting real-time, inline measurement…
Canada takes the stage with major energy and mineral investments
The first-ever Canada Investment Summit, held Sept. 14–15 in Toronto, along with other recent funding initiatives and global partnerships, put the spotlight on Canada’s support for innovation and competitiveness in energy, manufacturing and critical materials. The Summit convened investors from…
Mobile Rounds, Real-Time Results: Kaneka Brings Operator Rounds into the Digital Age
At Kaneka North America, replacing paper procedures and reports with guided digital workflows for operator rounds streamlined knowledge-sharing and improved process consistency Kaneka North America LLC, a division of Kaneka Corp. (Osaka, Japan; www.kaneka.com), manufactures specialty chemicals and advanced polymer…