Mobile Navigation

Latest News

The next generation of pilot reactors launched at Achema

The Sakura and Sakura Mini next-generation premium pilot reactors (photo) incorporate the latest reactor-vessel technology to provide enhanced performance and efficiency for chemical process scaleup. Sakura includes vessels of up to 100 L, with the option to upgrade to this…

Member Exclusive

Plant Watch: August 2024

Plant Watch Trelleborg Group to construct new production plant in North Carolina July 16, 2024 — Trelleborg Group AB (Trelleborg, Sweden; www.trelleborg.com) is investing in a new production facility to expand its business for engineered coated fabrics in Rutherfordton, N.C.…

Member Exclusive

Electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 into a range of chemicals

At Achema in June, GIG Karasek GmbH (Gloggnitz, Austria; www.gigkarasek.com) introduced the ECO2Cell, an electrochemical CO2-recycling technology that utilizes proprietary catalysts to convert captured carbon dioxide into a range of chemicals. Using only water, CO2 and electricity as process inputs,…

Member Exclusive

Biomimetic membrane may have promising applications

Researchers from the Adolphe Merkle Institute (AMI; Fribourg, Switzerland; www.ami.swiss), together with international collaborators, have pioneered a novel method for creating thin, energy-converting membranes that mimic the structure and function of biological cell membranes. This discovery, described in a recent…

Member Exclusive

Facts At Your Fingertips: Understanding Energy Efficiency in a Fired Heater

Process heating systems are critical parts of chemical process industries (CPI) facilities. Unfortunately, the reliable, efficient operation of utility systems is often taken for granted, and they receive little engineering attention. This is perhaps understandable, since these systems play a…

Solids’ Characteristics and the Drying Process

Understanding material characteristics is important in designing and defining process criteria for optimal performance of rotary and fluidized-bed dryers The ability to efficiently, reliably and consistently dry bulk solids in an industrial setting relies largely on tailoring the dryer’s design…

Member Exclusive

Cyanobacteria mineralize CO2 into biogenic construction materials

Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS; www.ikts.fraunhofer.de) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (FEP; both Dresden, Germany; www.fep.fraunhofer.de) are introducing an eco-friendly, biologically induced method of producing biogenic construction materials as…

Member Exclusive

Pilot plant produces climate-friendly cement clinker

Concrete production is responsible for 6–9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions. “The largest contribution to that comes from the production of cement, a precursor product,” says Peter Stemmermann from the Institute for Technical Chemistry (ITC) at the Karlsruhe Institute of…

Member Exclusive

A proof-of-concept “BionicHydrogenBattery”

At a press conference during Achema 2024, Festo SE & Co. KG (Esslingen, Germany; www.festo.com) presented the BionicHydrogenBattery — a new concept for the simple storage and safe transportation of hydrogen. Currently, H2 can only be stored and transported safely…

Member Exclusive

New bio-based concrete admixture is scaling up production

A new biomass-based liquid admixture for concrete uniquely combines the benefits of traditional performance-enhancing additives with decarbonization. Hydrous bio-graphene oxide (hBGO), developed by AlterBiota (Edwardsville, Nova Scotia, Canada; www.alterbiota.com), is a stable, high-solids dispersion that helps to improve strength and…