Processing & Handling Archives - Chemical Engineering

New bio-based concrete admixture is scaling up production

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

A new biomass-based liquid admixture for concrete uniquely combines the benefits of traditional performance-enhancing additives with decarbonization. Hydrous bio-graphene oxide (hBGO) is a stable, high-solids dispersion that helps to improve strength and durability, reducing the amount of carbon-intensive and expensive Portland cement used, while also drastically reducing the carbon footprint via the use of carbon-negative feedstock. Unlike other lower-carbon concrete technologies like carbonation or supplemental cementitious materials, hBGO requires no modification to admixture dosing systems or batching practices.

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A biocatalytic process for producing nitriles — without cyanide

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Nitrile compounds are important for the manufacturing of fragrances, pharmaceuticals, superglue and chemical-resistant gloves. Currently, such nitrile compounds require the use of highly toxic cyanide in their synthesis. Now, an alternative cyanide-free chemo-enzymatic cascade process is being developed by a research team from Graz University of Technology and the Czech Academy of Sciences in a project funded by the Austrian Science Fund FWF and the Czech Science Foundation (GACR).

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Pilot plant produces climate-friendly cement clinker

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Concrete production is responsible for 6–9% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Now, a research group has developed a clinker that is made instead from recycled concrete and only partly from limestone. To produce belite cement clinker, the pilot plant uses an all-electric heating system powered by renewable energy and a carbon dioxide atmosphere, reducing the energy required for the process.

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Cyanobacteria mineralize CO2 into biogenic construction materials

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems and the Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology are introducing an eco-friendly, biologically induced method of producing biogenic construction materials as part of the BioCarboBeton project. The process does not emit any carbon; instead, it binds CO2 inside the material.

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Chementator Briefs

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Södra Skogsägarna (Södra; Växjö, Sweden; www.sodra.com) is investing in a production line at Värö that will create a tanning agent from tree bark. This new tannin can be used to process leather in a

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Versatile production of biopolymers in new semi-crystalline format

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Bio-based polymers, such as polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), are seeing increasing application as a more sustainable alternative to fossil-based materials. A new, flexible production platform developed by CJ

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A proof-of-concept “BionicHydrogenBattery”

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The BionicHydrogenBattery is a new concept for the simple storage and safe transportation of hydrogen. Currently, H2 can only be stored and transported safely and in a space-saving manner using processes that require extremely high or low temperatures, and high pressures of 150–700 bars, which requires a lot of energy. In contrast, the fully automated biotechnological system, the BionicHydrogenBattery, is a completely new approach, whereby H2 and CO2 are converted into formic acid with the help of bacteria in a low-risk and energy-efficient manner.

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Electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 into a range of chemicals

Chemical Engineering — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

At Achema in June, GIG Karasek 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, the unit can be tuned to make both single-carbon products, such as carbon monoxide, formic acid and methanol, as well as multi-carbon products like ethanol and acetic acid.

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A closed-loop hydrometallurgical process for low-carbon iron processing

Chemical Engineering — Mon, 01 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Electrification will be a key factor in decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors, but challenges arise in applications that require very high temperatures, such as steel production. The intense heat requirements for converting iron ore into metal contribute significantly to the CO2 emissions of the steel sector. A new hydrometallurgical process that promises to remove CO2 from this process is being scaled up in a new pilot plant operated by Electra.

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A fungus converts cellulose directly into a platform chemical

Chemical Engineering — Mon, 01 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Conventional bioprocesses use three separate steps to convert cellulose into products, such as bioplastics and biofuels. The consolidated bioprocess (CBP) combines all steps — cellulase production, cellulose hydrolysis and product fermentation — in a single reactor. Using the natural abilities of the non-genetically modified fungus, Talaromyces verruculosus, a research team from the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology — Hans Knöll Institute has discovered a method for the efficient conversion of cellulose into enantiopure erythro-isocitric acid — a chiral isomer of citric acid with a large potential as a chemical building block.

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