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…
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…
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) and a team of interdisciplinary scientists tripled the yield of methanol in the catalytic hydrogenation reaction of carbon dioxide by introducing hydrides into the catalyst support material. The researchers…
An Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) team created and tested two different formulations for stationary batteries that could utilize CO2 from industrial sources while storing energy from wind turbines and solar panels. Consisting of two electrodes in a saltwater solution,…
Traditionally, many polymerization reactions are carried out batchwise in reactor vessels, with the reaction taking place in solution, emulsion or in a melt. This procedure reaches its limits if, for example, the reaction is very exothermic or the viscosity increases…
Calcium-sulfonate complex greases are widely used in applications in the pulp-and-paper, marine and steel-manufacturing sectors. Within an ever-volatile lithium market, calcium-sulfonate greases are increasingly seen as a reliable alternative to lithium-based greases. However, typical methods for preparing high-performance calcium-sulfonate grease…
A research team led by Kenneth C. Neyerlin at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL; Golden, Colo.; www.nrel.gov), with members from Argonne National Laboratory (Lemont, Ill; www.anl.gov) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Tenn.; www.ornl.gov) has developed a membrane electrode assembly…
A process commercialized by Fortera Corp. (San Jose, Calif.; www.forteraglobal.com) creates a cement product that reduces CO2 emissions by 70% on a ton-for-ton basis, and can be blended with conventional cement or used as a standalone material to make ready-mix…
E-Cracking Last April, BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com), SABIC (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; www.sabic.com) and Linde Engineering (Pullach, Germany; www.linde-engineering.com) inaugurated the world’s first demonstration plant for large-scale electrically heated steam-cracking furnaces. Following three years of development, engineering, and construction work,…
Asphaltenes are an ultra-complex fraction of crude petroleum that comprise a diverse population of molecules that vary in size, solubilities, aggregation states and hetero-atom contents. Asphaltene buildup and deposits create many operational and safety issues, and can occur anywhere in…