Archives :: News
June 1, 2009
Dow is currently building a 770-million-lb/yr train to produce Dowlex linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) in the middle of a sugar cane field in Brazil. Once online, the unit will be the first fully integrated sugar-cane-to-polyethylene complex in the world, according to the company. In the process, sugarcane juice is fermented, centrifuged and distilled to produce ethanol, which is then converted into...
http://www.che.com/news/Renewable-feedstocks-Biobased-plastics*_4843.html
May 1, 2009
Petroleum refiners throughout the world are faced with increasing uncertainty regarding future refining margins, crude prices and project costs. These factors, along with falling demand for refined products, a global recession, and tighter credit markets, are forcing global refiners to reconsider, postpone, or cancel expansion projects. At the same time, mandated reduction of sulfur levels in refined...
http://www.che.com/news/Petroleum-Refiners-Face-Uncertain-Future_4761.html
May 1, 2009
As it is with all chemical processors, the current economic climate is forcing batch processors to produce more saleable product at a better profit margin from the same assets. Increasing flexibility, reliability and visibility while decreasing batch cycle times via integrated automation systems can help increase throughput and the chance of survival. Staying afloat Figure 1. Many batch automation...
http://www.che.com/news/Batch-Processing-Staying-Alive_4762.html
April 14, 2009
Brooks Instrument (Hatfield, Pa.; www.brooksinstrument.com), a flow measurement and control provider, has acquired Key Instruments, Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Key Instruments is a flowmeter manufacturer that offers precision-machined acrylic, molded-plastic, glass-tube and...
http://www.che.com/news/Brooks-Instrument-acquires-Key-Instruments_4733.html
April 1, 2009
As CRTs become an obsolete form of video display technology, recycling their lead-filled glass is increasingly important Earlier this decade, liquid crystal display (LCD) and plasma screens surpassed cathode ray tubes (CRTs) as the visual display of choice in computers and televisions. While the production of CRTs has dwindled to nearly nothing, we will still deal with end-of-life (EoL) units for years to...
http://www.che.com/news/Recycling-Cathode-Ray-Tubes_4644.html
April 1, 2009
Project management can be a messy, complex issue for all involved parties and, likely, the most hair-raising aspect of all is project handover from the EPC (engineering, procurement, construction) contractor to the chemical processor. In the past, this literally involved a truck pulling up with cartons and boxes chock full of engineering documents, drawings, operations manuals and catalogs. From there, the...
http://www.che.com/news/Project-Management-Digital-Handover-Headaches_4645.html
April 1, 2009
The current economic recession has hit trade show attendance especially hard. A number of events for 2009 have been cancelled, while others are implementing contingencies. Discounted registration fees are common, while at least one event offered to cover attendees airfare before finally deciding to postpone altogether. Some of the more resilient organizations are offering the alternative of live...
http://www.che.com/news/Achema-Defies-Economic-Odds_4646.html
April 1, 2009
With the exception of Oslo-type crystallizers, the main commercial crystallizers are agitated systems that use an agitator [agitated tank or draft-tube baffle (DTB)] or a circulation pump [forced circulation (FC) crystallizers]. In such systems, however, large crystals become damaged by the pump or impeller, which leads to the generation of fines, says Michel Malfand, president of Crystal Evap consult...
http://www.che.com/news/Chementator-This-new-crystallizer-reduces-damage-to-larger-crystals_4670.html
April 1, 2009
Aqueous Recovery Resources, Inc. (ARR; Bedford Hill, NY; www.suparator.com), has developed the Suparator, an oil/water separation system that involves no moving parts or media, for low operational costs and minimal maintenance. The separator (diagram) is based on the Bernoulli effect, whereby increased stream velocity in a fluid results in internal pressure reduction, which enables liquids of different...
http://www.che.com/news/Reduce-process-consumables-with-this-new-separator_4672.html
April 1, 2009
Cambrios Technologies Corp. (Sunnyvale, Calif.; www.cambrios.com) has formed a strategic partnership with Chisso Corp. (www.chisso.co.jp) and Sumitomo Corp. (both Tokyo; www.sumitomocorp.co.jp) for commercialization of Cambrios’ first product, ClearOhm coating material. Targeted for the liquid crystal display (LCD) market, ClearOhm is seen as a solution to some of the problems with the currently...
http://www.che.com/news/Chementator-A-less-expensive-way-to-make-conductive-coatings_4673.html
April 1, 2009
The American Society of Testing Materials (Conshohocken, Pa.; www.astm.org) has developed a new standard for measuring viscosity: ASTM D 7483-08, Determination of Dynamic and Kinematic Viscosity of Liquids by Oscillating Piston Viscometer (OPV). The new ASTM method is part of a brand new product line to be launched this month by Cambridge Viscosity (Medford, Mass.; www.cambridgeviscosity.com). OPVs are...
http://www.che.com/news/Chementator-A-new-standard-for-viscosity-measurement_4674.html
April 1, 2009
Last January, Chiral Photonics, Inc. (Pine Brook, N.J.; www.chiralphotonics.com) was awarded $500,000 in a Small Business Technology Transfer Phase II grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF; Washington, D.C.). The grant will be used to develop a new optical-fiber-sensor platform capable of measuring temperature, pressure, strain axial twist, liquid levels and other variables. The company has...
http://www.che.com/news/Chementator-Optical-fiber-sensing-gets-an-NSF-boost_4677.html
April 1, 2009
Calibration-free pH The world’s first continuously self-calibrating pH measurement system was previewed at the Interphex show in New York last month by Sensorin (Burlingame, Calif; www.sensorin.com). According to the manufacturer, all currently available pH sensors including glass, optical and ion-selective field effect transistors (ISFET) require calibration, whereas Sensorin’s approach, which...
http://www.che.com/news/April-chementator-briefs_4680.html
March 1, 2009
Nearly 30 years ago (May 6, 1979), U.S. President Jimmy Carter made the following prophetic statement at the inauguration of a solar-thermal water heater installed on the White House roof: "In the year 2000, the solar heater behind me will still be here, supplying cheap, efficient energy. A generation from now, this solar heater can either be a curiosity, a museum piece, an example of a road not...
http://www.che.com/news/Cover-Story-Solars-Second-Coming_4563.html
|
Get more from Che.com
Get email updates in your inbox
Official Publication of:
Our LinkedIn group is now 5,000 members strong!
- Join other CPI professionals from all over the globe and share best practices, expertise, concerns and more.
- Provide feedback to Chemical Engineering Editors
Current members represent Worley Parsons, DuPont, SABIC, Fluor, Air Products, LyondellBasell, Nalco, Dow Chemical, Dow Corning, BASF, Jacobs Engineering, ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron and more.
We also offer the three following subgroups for more targeted discussion:
|
|
|
Processing...