http://www.che.com Chemical Engineering en-us 2013 Sun, 19 May 2013 10:01:50 EDT Cationic polymers have been used in the petroleum industry as shale-control agents, demulsifiers, blocking agents, and filtrate reducers for drilling fluids, but process complexity and high cost have limited their application. Now researchers from Zhejiang Normal University (Jinhua; www.zjnu.edu.cn) and... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/10074.html Tue, 1 Jan 2013 0:00:00 EST Newlight Technologies (Irvine, Calif.; www.newlight.com) has launched commercial production of a polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) thermoplastic made from air and greenhouse gases, such as methane, that can be manufactured less expensively than conventional petroleum-derived alternatives, using a novel... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9975.html Sat, 1 Dec 2012 0:00:00 EST A test method developed by SABIC (Saudi Basic Industries Corp.; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; www.sabic.com) scientists drastically reduces the time needed to evaluate slow-crack growth resistance in high-density polyethylene (HDPE) that is used in pressure pipes. The strain-hardening test method allows HDPE... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9632.html Sat, 1 Sep 2012 0:00:00 EDT New biocomposite plastics that combine soybean-meal protein with conventional plastic resins allow significantly lower use of petroleum-based chemicals in polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) manufacturing. The new class of bioplastics incorporates soybean-meal protein, which is chemically bound to... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9158.html Sun, 1 Apr 2012 0:00:00 EDT A new process for generating sheets of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) eliminates several production steps used in the traditional process, offering greatly reduced energy use and improved polymer properties. Developed by Octal Petrochemicals LLC FZC (Muscat, Oman; www.octal.com), the direct-to-sheet PET... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9160.html Sun, 1 Apr 2012 0:00:00 EDT A process to make polylactic acid (PLA) that requires no solvent or metal catalyst has been developed by Ricoh Co. (Ricoh; Tokyo, www.ricoh.com), in cooperation with Shizuoka University. Ricoh’s continuous PLA process is based on a commercially available organic catalyst... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9171.html Sun, 1 Apr 2012 0:00:00 EDT Earlier this year, the first polylactic acid (PLA) plant based on a new polymerization process was put into service by Synbra Technology in Etten Leur, the Netherlands. The plant — capable of producing up to 5,000 ton/yr of PLA — was built by Sulzer Chemtech Ltd. (Winterthur, Switzerland... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9030.html Thu, 1 Mar 2012 0:00:00 EST Earlier this year, the first polylactic acid (PLA) plant based on a new polymerization process was put into service by Synbra Technology in Etten Leur, the Netherlands. The plant — capable of producing up to 5,000 ton/yr of PLA — was built by Sulzer Chemtech Ltd. (Winterthur, Switzerland... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/9161.html Thu, 1 Mar 2012 0:00:00 EST Last month, BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) launched a new crosslinking acrylate monomer, hydroxpropl carbamate acrylate (HPCA), which is said to shorten the processing time for the manufacture of... http://www.che.com/chementator/plastics_materials_and_synthetic_resins/8281.html Mon, 1 Aug 2011 0:00:00 EDT