This document summarizes an article from the January 2009 issue of Chemical Engineering magazine. It discusses how the chemical process industries are facing a deep recession due to plant closings and layoffs. While the situation is sour, the article provides a few recommendations that could help sweeten the situation. These include strategic capital investments, predictive maintenance programs, and industrial wireless technologies, which can improve performance and reduce costs. The article also notes that now may be a good time for longer-term projects that require plant shutdowns due to reduced demand and lower equipment costs.

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5. January 2009 In This Issue Volume 116, no. 1
Commentary
5 ditor’s Page
E
Our 2009 lemon-
ade recipe The
chemical process
industries (CPI)
www.che.com are in a deep re-
cession, marked
Cover story by plant closings
and layoffs. There
30 over Story CSTRs: Bound for Maximum Con-
C
is a sweet side,
version Here, a design approach for continuous
though, for those
stirred-tank reactors is developed for both revers-
who take advan-
ible and irreversible second-order reactions
tage of smart in-
NEWS
vestments and for
13
Chementator Commercialization is set for a meth- projects that re-
anol-to-olefins technology; More efforts to capture quire a shutdown
CO2 from power plants; This mechanical cleaning
process reduces fouling in MBRs without chemicals; departments
Pretreatments helps recover more coal from primary Letters.................. 6, 8
flotation step; Mass-production technology for mak- Bookshelf........... 9, 28
.
ing functionalized organic nanotubes; Continued
commercial success for a new MEG process; A hard Who’s Who. ........... 28
.
coating promises to reduce wear and power use in Reader
rotating equipment; and more Service page........... 58
Economic
19 Newsfront Kirkpatrick Nominations are equipment services Indicators. ........ 59, 60
.
open for this magazine’s 2009 Kirkpatrick Chemi-
cal Engineering Achievement Award, which
28D-1 New Products Services
(Domestic Edition) Vacuum degassing advertisers
honors the most-noteworthy chemical engineer-
chamber connects directly to vacuum Italian
ing technology commercialized anywhere in the
pump; Simplify Fieldbus testing with Section .........28I-3–16
world during 2007 or 2008
this product’s bus health test; Cut costs Product Showcase.....51
20 ewsfront PM and PDM: Crucial Gear in
N when operating with this vertical pump;
the CPI Toolbox Given that predictive and Achieve high flowrates with these cus- Classified
preventative maintenance programs save tomizable pumps; Use this ultrasonic Advertising........53–56
money and increase uptime, new solutions level transmitter in wastewater applica- Advertiser Index...... 57
are relatively easy to justify tions; Prevent spilling at liquid transfer
23 echnology Showcase A Primer On Coal-
T points; and more coming
to-Liquids Converting coal to liquid fuels is in February
28I-1 New Products Services
one option China and the U.S. are pursing (International Edition) This new paddle Look for: Feature
design simplifies installation and re- Reports on Handling
Engineering moval; This little data logger stores a lot Nanoscale Materials;
of measurements; HART communica- and Heat Exchang-
29
Facts At Your Fingertips Tray Column
tion is now possible with this gas moni- ers; A Solids Pro-
Design This one-page guide presents crite-
tor; Size-up protein molecules without cessing article on
ria needed for the effective specification of
sacrificing samples; Temperature moni- Selecting Conveyors;
trays for a distillation or stripping column
toring for trace-heating applications; An Environmental
35 eature Report Controlling Emissions With
F and more Manager on Eye
Ceramic Filters Ceramic filters are well suited and Face Personal
for high-temperature processes that are subject to 49 ocus Mixing
F Protective Equipment;
strict emissions limits, including those for dioxins Blending Portable A Focus on Flow
mixers for pilot Measurement Con-
40
Engineering Practice Active Management plant and small- trol; News articles
of Pipespool Fabricators Contractors need to scale production on Water Supply
integrate and engage to improve deliveries and processing; Rout- Reuse; and Oil Sands;
shorten project schedules ing maintenance Facts at Your Fin-
46 ngineering Practice Mechanical Carbon
E is simplified with this mixer drive; Blend, gertips on Piping; an
In Chemical Processing Equipment This heat cool and add liquids in this rotary Interphex Show Pre-
self-lubricating material offers advantages batch mixer; These new laboratory mix- view and more
when used for components that are running ers go digital; Easily mount these mixers
submerged in the process fluid to IBCs or totes; and more Cover: David Whitcher
Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009 3
02_CHE_011509_TOC.indd 3 12/23/08 10:04:58 AM

6. We’re raising expectations.
The presence of polar gas or steam is no
match for dynamic gas phase compensation
When highly accurate liquid level measurement is required, Levelflex M
goes to work. Microwave pulses are directed down the instrument’s probe and
reflected from the medium’s surface. Level is determined by the time required
for the pulse to travel to the surface and back. This means reliable measurement
is not affected by changes in process conditions, turbulence or foam.
Continuous gas phase compensation technology is one way Endress+Hauser is
raising expectations. With traditional level instruments, the presence of polar
gas or steam can cause an error of 28% or greater depending on the pressure in
the application. Levelflex M uses dynamic gas phase compensation to virtually
eliminate this error. One more reason Endress+Hauser is the preferred supplier
for difficult and critical level measurement applications.
www.us.endress.com/level
Endress+Hauser, Inc
2350 Endress Place
Greenwood, IN 46143 Sales: 888-ENDRESS
inquiry@us.endress.com Service: 800-642-8737
www.us.endress.com Fax: 317-535-8498
Circle 06 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-06
Endress 8-08.indd 1 12/17/08 3:22:29 PM

7. Winner of Eight Jesse H. Neal
Awards for Editorial Excellence
Editor’s Page
Published since 1902
Our 2009 lemonade recipe
F
An Access Intelligence Publication irst, you’ll need a lot of lemons. As 2009 kicks off, sour fruit happens
Editors Art Design
to be in great supply. To be blunt, the chemical process industries
(CPI) are in the middle of what appears to be the worst recession
Rebekkah j. Marshall DAVID WHITCHER
Editor in Chief Art Director/ since World War II (WWII).
rmarshall@che.com Editorial Production Manager
dwhitcher@che.com
There are many signs that point to such a conclusion, but a particularly
Dorothy Lozowski clear picture can be drawn from the November 2008 CPI operating rate (see
Managing Editor Production
dlozowski@che.com p. 60), which is the industry’s most recent figure available on capacity utili-
MICHAEL D. KRAUS
GERALD ONDREY (Frankfurt) VP of Production Manufacturing zation. At 72.7%, the operating rate hasn’t been this low since the end of the
Senior Editor
gondrey@che.com
mkraus@accessintel.com 2001 recession. “But that data point is of cold comfort,” says Mike Montgom-
kate torzewski
Steve Olson ery, analyst at Global Insight, Inc., (Lexington, Mass.), “Since the low of the
Director of Production
Assistant Editor Manufacturing last recession will be passed (going down) with ease [in the December num-
ktorzewski@che.com solson@accessintel.com ber].” In the release of January data, Montgomery expects the operating rate
SUZANNE A. SHELLEY WILLIAM C. GRAHAM
Contributing Editor Ad Production Manager
to fall — again, “with ease” — below any other post-WWII recession except
sshelley@che.com bgraham@che.com for that of 1981–1982. “The recession is spreading fast, and all the cutbacks
CORRESPONDENTS Audience in car and truck production announced recently will make January dismal,
Development
Charles ButcheR (U.K.) with slim chance of improvement in February or March,” he says.
cbutcher@che.com Sylvia sierra
Senior Vice President,
What is reflected in the declining operating rate is a sharp drop in demand
Paul S. Grad (Australia)
pgrad@che.com Corporate Audience Development for nearly everything. In response, CPI companies have idled production and
ssierra@accessintel.com
Tetsuo Satoh (Japan) are implementing other cost-cutting measures. Last month, Dow Chemical
tsatoh@che.com John Rockwell
Vice President,
Co. (Midland, Mich.), the U.S.’s largest chemical company in terms of revenue,
Joy LePree (New Jersey)
jlepree@che.com Audience Development Chemical eliminated 5,000 jobs (or 11% of its workforce) and closed 20 facilities while
jrockwell@accessintel.com
Gerald parkinson also announcing plans to temporarily idle approximately 180 plants and re-
Laurie Hofmann
(California) gparkinson@che.com
Audience Marketing Director duce its contractor workforce by approximately 6,000 worldwide. Only weeks
Editorial lhofmann@Accessintel.com before, BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany), the world’s largest chemical com-
Advisory Board
Terry Best pany, announced plans to temporarily idle 80 plants and to reduce capacity at
John Carson Audience Development Manager
Jenike Johanson, Inc. tbest@accessintel.com 100 other facilities. (For more on both, see p. 59.)
David Dickey George Severine The comprehensive list of CPI companies with similar moves is long
MixTech, Inc. Fulfillment Manager and includes Arkema, DSM, Eastman, DuPont, Lanxess, Air Products and
gseverine@accessintel.com
Mukesh Doble Merck KGaA. While their cost cutting measures certainly help to dilute
IIT Madras, India Christie Lamont
List Sales, World Data 561-393-8200 the sour effects of the current economic recession, our recipe also calls for
Henry Kister
Fluor Corp.
Conferences
something sweet: strategic capital improvements, particularly those that
Trevor Kletz improve performance while also reducing costs.
Loughborough University, U.K. Dana D. Carey
Director, Global Event Sponsorships For instance, the newsfront on predictive and preventive maintenance,
Gerhard Kreysa
DECHEMA e.V.
dcarey@chemweek.com p. 20, outlines a number of ways in which substantial returns can be
Ram Ramachandran
Peck Sim achieved in the short-term with minimal costs. The article also touches on
Senior Manager,
BOC
Conference Programming the virtues of industrial wireless technology, yet another powerful tool that
Marketing psim@chemweek.com brings otherwise-expensive process improvements within reach.
Holly Rountree Beatriz Suarez
Marketing Manager Director of Conference Operations
Even some longer-term investments make sense now, for several rea-
hrountree@accessintel.com bsuarez@chemweek.com sons. The virtual elimination of demand pressures is one; a more oppor-
Information services Corporate tune time you will not find for projects that require shutdown. Meanwhile,
Robert Paciorek Steve Barber the cost of capital equipment, itself, is decreasing. Chemical Engineering’s
Senior VP Chief Information Officer
rpaciorek@accessintel.com
VP, Financial Planning Internal Audit
sbarber@accessintel.com
Plant Cost Index (also see p. 60) has been on a steady decline since August.
Charles Sands John Pearson The only categories showing a mild increase at all this month are pumps/
Senior Developer Divisional President/Publisher compressors and electrical equipment. Categories experiencing the most
Web/business Applications Architect jpearson@accessintel.com
csands@accessintel.com dramatic decline are tanks and general equipment, due to their high cop-
Headquarters per and steel makeup. Excess supplies of these raw materials are likely
110 William Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10038, U.S. to persist in the form of price breaks for awhile, says Montgomery. As an
Tel: 212-621-4900 Fax: 212-621-4694
example, copper hit its low price in 2003, even though
European Editorial offices
the U.S. recession ended in late 2001.
Zeilweg 44, D-60439 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Tel: 49-69-2547-2073 Fax: 49-69-5700-2484 Of course, nearly everyone is pointing out that there
Circulation Requests: is a practical limit on how far consumer spending will
Tel: 847-564-9290 Fax: 847-564-9453 retreat. No one knows for sure, however, where the limit
Fullfillment Manager; P.O. Box 3588,
Northbrook, IL 60065-3588 email: clientservices@che.com is. Most agree with Montgomery that the recovery will
Advertising Requests: see p. 58 be strong as the inventory cycle reverses itself, and job
For photocopy or reuse requests: 800-772-3350 or info@copyright.com cuts turn to payroll gains. In the meantime, the rest of
For reprints: chemicalengineering@theygsgroup.com
us will continue squeezing. ■
Rebekkah Marshall
Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009 5
03_CHE_011509_ED.indd 5 12/23/08 10:56:50 AM

8. Letters
Discussions on pressure relief
I would like to draw your attention to a few points on the
November 2008 article, Pressure Relief System Design
(pp. 40–45):
1. Pressure drop and pressure loss: The inlet pressure
“drop” that the author refers to under Relief system pip-
ing is non-recoverable pressure loss, and does not include
a “drop” in pressure due to elevation increase. It should be
labeled as a pressure loss rather than a pressure drop as
the author has specified elsewhere. It may sound trivial,
but such errors are not uncommon. The 3% rule is code-
mandated and should be followed. However, any excess
above this can still be defended in some circumstances in
the court of law, but only by an expert analysis.
2a. Bursting of rupture disk: In the penultimate para-
graph, when a rupture disk is used in series with a relief
valve, the author writes: “... the disk would never burst”.
The rupture disk (as well as a conventional relief valve) is a
differential pressure device. So the disk will burst when the
difference between the upstream pressure and the down-
stream pressure of the disk equals the burst pressure of the
disk (or the set pressure of a conventional relief valve).*
2b. Pressure indicator between a rupture disk and
relief valve: The second point in this subject is the il-
lustration of Figure 5 which is backed by the author’s rec-
ommendation: “whenever a rupture disk is installed up-
stream of a relief valve, it is important to have a pressure
indicator in the section between the two.” If the author is
following the ASME VIII, Div. 1, the paragraph UG-127
stipulates the following: “the space between a rupture disk
device and a pressure relief valve shall be provided with a
pressure gage, a try cock, free vent, or suitable telltale indi-
cator. This arrangement permits detection of disk rupture
or leakage.” Because of the presence of a serial comma in
Circle 07 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-07
the phrase in italic letters, a grammatical parsing of the
phrase accepts the author’s recommendation to include
just a pressure gage to be in technical compliance with the
code. However, the spirit of intent of the code will not be
followed by such design. In fact just the installation of a
pressure gage is not enough and it is unsafe to do so.*
3. K.O. drum: By showing the K.O. drum in strategic po-
sition, the author implies two-phase flow possibilities. The
DIERS (Design Institute for Emergency Relief Systems)
does not recommend the use of conventional relief valves
for applications with potential two-phase flows. The pres-
sure drop calculations for two-phase flows are more com-
plex than the methods used by the author.*
Dilip K. Das, P. E.
Bayer CropScience, Kansas City, Mo.
Author replies
1. Pressure drop and pressure loss: Having worked in
various projects worldwide, I had a look at process data
sheets for the terminology used for permanent pressure
loss. In many cases, I found that the term “pressure drop”
has been used to denote permanent pressure loss, such as
in flow-orifice data sheets. The following books also use the
* This letter has been abbreviated to fit here. The full letter and response
can be found at www.che.com by searching for the title of the article.
04_CHE_011509_LET.indd 6 12/23/08 12:44:42 PM

9. Circle 08 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-08
A Box 4 U 1-09.indd 1 12/17/08 3:23:27 PM

10. Letters
term “pressure drop” instead of “pressure loss”:
• “Control Valve Handbook”, 4th edition, by Emerson
• Applied Instrumentation in the Process Industries” Vol
“
III (Andrew WG/Williams HB) and Vol IV, (Leslie M Zoss)
• Perry’s Chemical Engineers’ Handbook” uses the term
“
frictional losses in some cases. However, at many places,
it also uses the term “pressure drop” for two-phase flow,
single-phase flow, flow in spirals, annular flow, flow
through beds of solids and so on
• ven the API 521 (5th Ed, January 2007) uses the term
E
“pressure drop” at many places
The term “pressure drop” may be interpreted by some as a
drop in pressure due to elevation increase. However, refer-
ences show that in several cases, the term “pressure drop”
has been used to denote frictional losses.
2a. Bursting of rupture disk: When I mentioned “rup-
ture disk would never burst”, what I meant was “rupture
disk would never burst at its burst pressure”. An example
is illustrated in a rupture disk with a burst pressure of 90
psig. The protected equipment design pressure is 100 psig.
A pinhole develops and the space between the rupture disk
and the relief valve reaches a pressure of 60 psig. Now the
contingency develops. The protected equipment reaches
90 psig (the burst pressure of the disk). Downstream of
the rupture disk, the pressure is 60 psig. At this stage,
we would expect the rupture disk to burst, but it will not,
because the differential pressure is only 30 psig (90 – 60).
Now the protected equipment reaches 100 psig (its design
pressure). Even now the disk will not burst. This is what I
meant by my statement in the article. The pressure in the
protected equipment now further develops until it reaches
160 psig. Downstream of the rupture disk, the pressure has
reached 70 psig. Only at this stage will the rupture disk
burst. But the damage to equipment may have been done.
It may be argued that there is a margin of safety in the ves-
sel. However, this is not what the design was intended for.
The disk should burst at its burst pressure.
2b. Pressure indicator between a rupture disk and
relief valve: The pressure indicator between the rupture
disk and the relief valve, of course, needs monitoring. We
have detailed designs of combinations of rupture disks
and relief valves with a pressure switch on the line and
an on/off valve, which depressurizes the system once the
pressure reaches a certain set value. Detailed schemes
such as these could be the subject of another article.
3. K.O. drum: Yes there are two-phase flow possibilities.
But two-phase flow will not necessarily occur all the time.
Single phase flows are also possible. Please note that Figure
1, where the K.O. Drum is shown has no direct relation with
the illustrated example. The example illustrates a single-
phase flow calculation to show how discharge-side piping
headers and branch lines are sized. The basic theory and
equations for single phase flow will not change, whether it
is the more recent API 521 (January 2007) or the relatively
older API standard cited in the article. For two-phase flow,
there are several references in the literature. But it was not
the intent here to illustrate a two-phase flow calculation.
Siddhartha Mukherjee
Lurgi India Co., Ltd.
Circle 09 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-09
8 Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009
04_CHE_011509_LET.indd 8 12/26/08 2:26:05 PM

11. Chemical Engineering half 3 3/8 x 10:Inter labmate half page
Bookshelf
Patent Savvy for Managers. By Kirk
Teska. Nolo, 950 Parker St., Berkeley,
CA 94710-2524. Web: nolo.com. THE WORLD FORUM OF THE PROCESS INDUSTRIES
2007. 278 pages, $29.99
Reviewed by Charles R. Richard,
Patent Attorney, Washington, D.C.
crobrich@yahoo.com
T
he book I am reviewing here is one in a series of
Nolo guides geared toward non-lawyers on vari-
ous legal topics and their aspects. I must caution
readers that although this book provides some good back-
ground into the world of patenting, it is no substitute for
consultation with a competent patent attorney or agent
when appropriate. Although I did not notice problems
with it, I cannot guarantee that this book is “complete”
for any reader’s purpose and/or error free, nor do I neces-
sarily agree with all the author’s opinions/advice. (Sorry
for the disclaimer, but that is the world we live in.)
Mr. Teska takes readers through various practical and
important patenting topics using easy-to-understand lan-
guage and provides as illustration interesting (sometimes
even humorous) stories, many based on actual patent Be part of the
cases. I am pleased to see the inclusion in Chapter 3 of
one of my favorites, the Dembiczak case (also known as
the “Pumpkin Case”), as an illustration of non-obvious-
bigger picture...
ness; after reading about it, readers should agree that
patents can be fun! Unfortunately, there were few if any ... and see innovations of today
chemical case examples, but this is to be expected from for the solutions of tomorrow
a book that is aimed at a general technical audience; ex-
amples focus on technology that is generally familiar.
The book contains an introduction that is worth read- The global appeal of ACHEMA gives you a competitive edge by
ing, ten chapters, an extensive glossary and an index. allowing you to see the bigger picture.
Chapters 1–4 cover important background patent princi- ACHEMA attracts engineers, chemists and decision makers from around
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see these alone), case studies, patentable subject matter interface across technology disciplines.
and patentability standards, and understanding claims Be better prepared for the challenges to come – Attend ACHEMA.
and how to read a patent — all very useful to know.
Chapters 5–8 take up “capturing” patentable inven- � CHEMICAL ENGINEERING � SAFETY
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should work, as well as perspective on what many activi- � THERMAL AND MECHANICAL USE OF RESOURCES
ties relating to patenting actually provide and may be PROCESSES
worth are included. I recommend taking a good look at
the discussion on searching in Chapter 6, even though 4,000 EXHIBITORS � 180,000 ATTENDEES � 30,000 EXECUTIVES
the author may be a bit more negative than warranted. 100 COUNTRIES � 900 LECTURES
The comments on patent examiners in Chapter 7 should
be very revealing for those with little experience with the
U.S. Patent Office.
Any reader who thought that patent litigation might
be desirable would be advised to take the discussion in
Chapter 9 into account before making any decision in an www.achema.de
actual case. The comments on licensing in Chapter 10 www.dechema.de
will probably be illuminating for neophytes as well as for
many who have had experience here.
(Continues on p. 28)
Circle 10 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-10
Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009 9
05_CHE_011509_BKS_WW.indd 9 12/18/08 1:06:44 PM

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14. Circle 12 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-12
Emerson Rosemount1-09.indd 1 12/17/08 3:26:46 PM

15. Edited by Gerald Ondrey January 2009
Reaction products CO to
combustion
Commercialization is set for a Olefin rich
methanol-to-olefins technology product to
recovery
L ummus Technology, a CBI company (The
Woodlands, Tex.; www.cbi.com) and SYN
Energy Technology Co. (Dalian, China; www.
Methanol/
water to
Air reactor
syn.ac.cn) have signed a global, cooperative
Steam
market agreement to license a methanol-
to-olefins (MTO) process. The
technology, called DMTO, was de- Methanol Recovered
Reactor water
veloped by the Dalian Institute of Quench and Wastewater
Chemical Physics, Chinese Acad- Catalyst regenerator stripping tower stripping tower
emy of Sciences (Dalian, China),
which has a controlling interest in SYN. amount of propylene desired. The ratio of
The first application of the technology propylene to ethylene can range from 0.8 to Bioethanol
will be in a coal-gasification-MTO complex 1.2:1, depending on the reaction conditions,
Last month, an energy-saving
that is being built by Shenhua Baotou Coal says Helion Sardina, vice president and gen- plant for producing bioethanol
Chemicals Co. in Baotou, China. The olefins eral manager of Lummus Technology. started up in Norrköping, Swe-
plant will convert 1.8-million metric tons Currently, the economics of the process den, for Lantmännen Agroetanol
(m.t.) per year of methanol into 600,000 are roughly equal to those of naphtha-based AB. When operating at full
m.t./yr of ethylene and propylene. Startup is plants, with naphtha priced at around capacity, the plant will produce
scheduled for 2010. $375/m.t. and methanol at roughly $140/m.t., 470,000 L/d of bioethanol from
In the DMTO process (flowsheet), metha- says Sardina. He expects the process will grain (mostly wheat), making
nol is fed to a fluidized-bed reactor and con- find a ready market in regions where there it the largest bioethanol facility
verted by a molecular sieve catalyst to ethyl- is an abundant supply of coal, such as China, in Northern Europe. The plant
is based on the Multipressure
ene, propylene, some butene, and 1–2% coke or where there is stranded natural gas that
system of Vogelbusch GmbH
and light ends, plus 55% water. Conversion can be converted to methanol. He also sees (Vienna, Austria; www.vogel-
takes place at slightly above atmospheric a large market potential in the addition of busch.com). The Multipressure
pressure and 400–550°C, depending on the capacity at existing steam crackers. system uses several distillation
columns operating at different
More efforts to capture CO2 from power plants steam pressures, which results
in a “significant” reduction in
A iming at bringing down the barriers to for flue gases. The plant will be constructed steam consumption — over
the commercial deployment of post-com- in the first half of 2009 and will be ready 50% less than conventional
bustion capture (PCC) of CO2, an Australian for operation in the second half of 2009 technology, says Vogelbusch.
Additional energy savings are
team from CSIRO Energy Technology (New- • SIRO has also partnered with the Xi’an
C
achieved through optimal ther-
castle, New South Wales; www.csiro.au), Thermal Power Research Institute and mal integration of the distillation
CSIRO Energy Technology (Clayton South, China HuaNeng Group for the develop- and dehydration processes.
Victoria), and several other research orga- ment and operation of an amine based
nizations has developed an integrated PCC pilot plant at the HuaNeng Beijing Co- Photolithography
RD and pilot plant program. The program generation Power Plant. This power sta-
Last month, Sumitomo Chemi-
includes four pilot plants: tion has fluegas desulfurization (FGD)
cal Co. Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan;
• he Latrobe Valley PCC pilot plant at the
T and deNOx. (The Australian power plants www.sumitomo-chem.co.jp)
Loy Yang power station in Victoria started do not have FGD and deNOx.) The Chi- started up a $120-million plant
operating in March 2008. It is based nese plant will help CSIRO understand for producing argon-fluoride
on amines as the CO2 solvent. It will be the tradeoffs between an integrated pol- (ArF) liquid immersion (LI)
tested on flue gases from Victorian brown lution control system and separate con- semiconductor resist at its
coal. The capture plant capacities range trol technologies for each pollutant. It has Osaka factory. The facility has a
from 100 to 500 kg/h of CO2 been operating since June production capacity of 100,000
• he second pilot plant, based at Delta
T PCC science leader Paul Feron, of CSIRO En- gal/yr, which the company
Electricity’s Lake Munmorah black-coal- ergy Technology, says further development of says will give it one third of the
global market share — two
fired power station in NSW, is undergo- the capture technology and the power plant
thirds of which is in Asia — for
ing commissioning. The plant is based on technology can lead to power-plant-gener- ArF LI resists, which are use in
aqueous ammonia for CO2 capture ation efficiencies with 90% CO2 capture, ArF excimer-laser (l = 193 nm)
• third plant, to be located at the Tarong
A which are equivalent to the current efficien- photolithogtaphy.
power station in Queensland will focus on cies without CO2 capture (For more on CO2 (Continues on p. 14)
the determination of an optimum solvent capture, see CE, December 2008, pp. 16–20).
Note: For more information, circle the 3-digit number
on p. 58, or use the website designation. Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009 13
06_CHE_011509_CHM.indd 13 12/23/08 11:49:27 AM

16. C hementato R
This mechanical cleaning process
reduces fouling in MBRs without chemicals
F or wastewater treatment, membrane bio-
reactors (MBRs) provide superior effluent
quality in a small footprint compared to al-
brane as they rise — and then
settle back down by gravity after
leaving the module (diagram). In
ternative activated-sludge treatment meth- the pilot plants, back-washable,
ods. However, MBRs are prone to fouling, flat-sheet membranes (Bio-Cel)
and thus may require frequent membrane are used. The hydraulic flow
cleaning with the associated manpower conditions of this module allow
and chemical costs. Microdyn-Nadir GmbH the addition of particles for foul-
(Wiesbaden; www.microdyn-nadir.de), in co- ing control. Also, the mechani-
operation with Darmstadt University (both cally strong and permanent hydrophilic flat
Germany), has developed a unique fouling- sheet PES (polyethersulfone) membranes
control process, called Bio-Cel-MCP, which (Nadir UP150) have been shown to with-
does not require chemicals. Tests conducted stand the cleaning action of the granules
on two pilot plants operating continuously as demonstrated by the continuous opera-
for more than 400 days have demonstrated tion of the MBR module at high flux rates
that the process leads to a 40% increase in (23.6 gallons per square foot of membrane
flux compared to a standard MBR operating per day) without significant decrease of per-
without MCP, says Stefan Krause, head of meability, says Krause. After more than one
water-treatment technology applications year of operating the two pilot plants, the
at Microdyn-Nadir. average COD (chemical oxygen demand) re-
The MPC process is based on the prin- moval was about 95%, and online measure- (Continued from p. 13)
ciples of fluidized-bed technology. Small ment of the turbidity of the effluent showed The company has begun
(3-mm dia.) plastic granules are added into no disturbance, indicating a constantly high mass production of Sumiresist
the filtration basin (inside the activated removal of suspended solids and hence an PAR, a specific photo acid
sludge), and are forced to flow upward intact membrane, he says. Krause esti- generator (PAG) for the manu-
alongside the membranes by an air-induced mates the the return-on-investment for an facture of 50-nm-node memory,
crossflow — mechanically cleaning the mem- MPC system at about six months. which performs well without a
top coating. Another product
being produced is for 40-nm-
node logic device applications.
Pretreatment helps recover more coal The company is also in the final
stages of developing an LI re-
from primary flotation step sist for 40-nm-node DRAM (dy-
namic random access mem-
C oal is typically cleaned by gravity separa-
tion to reduce ash and pyrite content, with
flotation used to recover fines. Various meth-
The team has found that the removal of
fine particles leads to an increase in coal
recovery from 28% (after 20 minutes flota-
ory) and Flash memory, and
preparing for the development
of 30-nm-node processes.
ods have been applied to disperse fine clay tion using 64 g of diesel per ton of coal) to
particles from the surface of coal particles 79% with screening at 75 µm, and 97% with Tough ceramic
and thus improve coal flotation performance. screening at 38 µm (after 12 min flotation; Scientists at the DOE’s Law-
A team of researchers from the Ian Wark Re- 40 g diesel/ton coal). It says that the process’ rence Berkeley National Labo-
search Institute, University of South Austra- downside is that it leads to a fine product that ratory (Calif.; www.lbl.gov)
lia (Adelaide; www.unisa.edu.au), has studied cannot be discarded since it contains signifi- have synthesized a ceramic
the effect of fine clay on the flotation of sev- cant amounts of coal that would be difficult that imitates the structure
of Nacre (mother of pearl).
eral coal samples. It found that the removal to recover by flotation. The losses of coal in
Nacre is 95% aragonite, a
of fine particles either from the primary tail- the screened fines represent 26% (screening hard, brittle calcium-carbonate
ings or the feed sample by sieving (38 µm) or at 75 µm) and 22% (screening at 38 µm). mineral, and 5% “soft” organic
de-sliming with a Mozley hydrocyclone gave However, the team also conducted experi- molecules, and yet can be
vastly improved flotation performance of the ments to compare the effects of fine-particle 3,000 times more resistant
coarse coal particles. Team member Keith removal by either wet screening the feed or to fracture (toughness)than
Quast says this process recovers coal that the primary flotation tailing at 38 µm and aragonite. By emulating the
did not float in the primary flotation stage, de-sliming the feed or tailing using the Mo- microstructure of Nacre, the
and would otherwise be lost to the process. zley cyclone. The results showed that the scientists have created large,
In both cases, he said, the removal of slimes removal of fines from the primary tailing by porous ceramic scaffolds and
“brick-and-mortar” structures.
from the circuit stage gave a better overall sieving or de-sliming allows a high propor-
The hybrid ceramics are
combustible recovery than processing a feed tion of the coal to float using a smaller addi-
that had received no pretreatment. tion of diesel (20 g/ton instead of 54 g/ton). (Continues on p. 16)
14 Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009
06_CHE_011509_CHM.indd 14 12/22/08 9:50:49 AM

17. Circle 23 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-23
SR1 PEP-09.indd 1 12/17/08 3:28:35 PM

18. Courtesy of AIST
C hementato R
Mass-production technology for making
functionalized organic nanotubes
R esearchers at the Nanotube Research
Center of the National Institute of Ad-
vanced Industrial Science and Technology
example, a Cu-complexed organic nanotube
has been shown to selectively adsorb gold
nanoparticles that have an amino group on
orange ball = metal ions
light blue ball = hydrophyllic part
of the peptide lipids
gray stick = hydrophobic part
(AIST; Tokyo; www.aist.go.jp) have devel- their surface. of the peptide lipids
oped a process for making organic nano- The new nanomaterials are made by add-
tubes of metal complexes (photo, left). The ing aqueous solutions of metal salts to a (Continued from p. 14)
scientists have produced organic nanotubes suspension of peptide lipids in methanol or
with metal ions (Zn+2, Cu+2, Co+2, Ni+2, ethanol. Nanotubes form after 10 minutes, made through the controlled
freezing of aqueous suspen-
Fe+2 and Mg+2) complexed at the inner producing about 2–20 g/mL of suspension
sions of an aluminum oxide
and outer surfaces of organic nanotubes — a production rate about 200 times higher
(alumina) and the addition
(diagram, right), and believe such materi- than alternative methods. The simple proce- of polymethylmethacrylate
als will find applications as: new catalysts dure consumes little energy and is easy to (PMMA), producing materi-
with transient metal coordinated spatially scale up, says AIST. als that are 300 times tougher
(Continued from p. 13)
on the inside; low-molecular-weight com- This is the third mass-production process than their constituents. To
pounds with coordinated functional groups; for making organic nanotubes that has been make even tougher materials,
DNA and protein inclusion, adsorption, and developed by AIST. The previous processes the researchers are working
separation for biotechnology; and new elec- produce organic nanotubes with hydroxyl to increase the proportion of
tronic, magnetic and optical materials. For and carboxyl groups on the surface. ceramic to PMMA (presently 85
wt.% alumina), and by replac-
ing PMMA with a different poly-
Continued commercial success for a new MEG process mer or, eventually, metal.
W hen completed in early 2010, Shell
Chemicals’ B.V. (The Hague, Nether-
lands; www.shell.com) 750,000-m.t./yr fa-
sively by Shell in 2002 (for more process
details, see CE, July 2002, p. 19). The pro-
cess achieves a selectivity of EO to MEG
Self-healing coatings
Researchers at the University
of Illinois (Champaign; www.
cility at the Shell Eastern Petrochemicals of 99.3–99.5%, compared to about 90% for
illinois.edu) have developed
Complex in Singapore will be the world’s conventional processes, and produces up to
coatings that automatically
largest plant to produce mono-ethylene gly- 1.95 ton of MEG per ton of ethylene, com- repair themselves and prevent
col (MEG) using Shell’s Omega process. This pared to 1.53–1.70 ton, depending on the corrosion of the underlying
plant marks the fifth license of the Omega catalyst used, says Shell. substrate. The coating is made
technology since the first commercial appli- According to Shell, capital costs for a new by encapsulating in separate,
cation came on stream last May — a 400,000 Omega plant are about 10% less, at equal 100-µm-dia. beads, a cata-
m.t./yr facility for Lotte Daesan Petrochemi- MEG yield, compared to alternative technol- lyst and a healing agent. The
cal Corp. (Daesan, Korea). ogies. Omega also generates 30% less waste- beads are then dispersed
Omega (short for Only MEG Advanced) water, has 20% lower steam consumption at within the desired coating
material to be applied to the
integrates two complementary and highly equal EO reaction selectivity, and produces
substrate. When the coating is
selective processes: Shell’s Master EO (eth- negligible amounts of byproducts, such as
scratched, the contents of the
ylene oxide) process and a catalytic MEG diethylene glycol and tri-ethylene glycol de- damaged beads is released,
conversion process originally developed by rivatives, thereby eliminating the need for causing the catalyst and heal-
Mitsubishi Chemical Corp. (MCC; Tokyo; the infrastructure and resources needed to ing agent to mix. The subse-
www.m-kagku.co.jp), and acquired exclu- handle and market these products. quent reaction is said to repair
the damage within minutes or
hours, depending on the envi-
A new PFSA polymer for membrane ronmental conditions.
and other applications New engineered polymers
S olvay Solexis S.p.A. (Bollate, Italy; www.
solvaysolexis.com) has commercialized a
new perfluorosulfinic acid (PFSA) polymer,
The membranes enable PEM cells to oper-
ate over a broad temperature range with
improved ion conductivity.
Kraton Polymers LLC (Houston,
Tex; www.kraton.com) has intro-
duced two new sulfonated copo-
tradenamed Aquivion, which was specifi- The membranes are also suitable for ap- lymers, MD9150 and MD9200,
cally designed for polymer electrolyte mem- plications in water electrolyzers, H2 separa- for ion-exchange and high-water-
transport applications. The new
brane (PEM) fuel cells. Aquivion ionomer tors, and pervaporization or gas humidifica-
polymers are selectively mid-
membranes are melt-extruded products tion systems. The polymer is also available
block sulfonated copolymers and
based on the Short Side Chain (SSC) copo- as a dispersion that can be used for making are available in both membranes
lymer of tetrafluoroethylene and a sulfonyl electrodes, super-acid catalysts or for surface and solution form.
fluoride vinyl ether of low molecular weight. treatment of membrane-filtration devices.
16 Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009
06_CHE_011509_CHM.indd 16 12/22/08 9:53:27 AM

19. C hementato R Filtering oil from water
Material engineers at Perdue University
(West Lafayette, Ind.; www.purdue.edu)
have developed a new type of membrane
for separating oil from water. The mem-
A hard coating promises to reduce wear brane consists of a layer of perflourinated
end-capped polyethylene glycol, which is
and power use in rotating equipment covalently bonded to fritted glass mem-
branes. When an oil-in-water emulsion
is passed through the membrane, the
R esearchers at the U.S. Dept. of Ener-
gy’s (DOE; Washington, D.C.) Ames
Laboratory (www.ameslab.gov) and
die at about 1,400°C and 14,000 psi to
form a solid, dense block.
The researchers have been using a
oil beads up on the Teflon-like surface,
while the water passes through. A 98%
separation efficiency has been observed
Iowa State University (both of Ames, technique called pulsed laser deposi- in the labortatory, using hexadecane as a
Iowa) have developed a hard, smooth tion to dislodge atoms from these blocks model oil.
coating that can be applied to indus- and deposit 1-µm coatings on adjacent
trial equipment, such as pumps, gears targets, such as pump vanes. However, OLEDs
and cutting tools, to reduce friction and this method is not practical for commer- BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany;
extend the life of the equipment. Ames cial use, says Russell, so Eaton is using www.basf.com) and Osram Opto
has been working with various compa- magnetron sputtering, a commercial- Semiconductors GmbH (Regensburg,
nies, including Eaton Corp. (Cleveland, scale process. This is done in a vacuum Germany; www.osram-os.com) have
Ohio; www.eaton.com), whose products chamber and uses radio frequency en- developed a highly efficient white or-
include hydraulic pumps. ergy to ionize argon. The ions dislodge ganic light-emitting diode (OLED) that
The coating material is a ceramic atoms for deposition on the target. achieves a light yield of over 60 lumens
alloy that combines boron, aluminum, In laboratory tests the coating has per Watt, while also meeting the inter-
magnesium and titanium boride, says proved to have only about 5% the wear national Energy Star SSL Standard with
regard to color requirements. The new
Alan Russell, a professor of materials rate of tungsten carbide, says Russell.
OLEDs contain phosphorescent metal
science and engineering at the univer- He adds that in tests of rotating parts, complexes as emitter materials and cus-
sity. These ingredients are milled to a performed by Eaton, the coatings have tomized complementary materials; this
particle size of 0.5–1 µm, thoroughly reduced power requirements by up to (Continues on p. 18)
mixed,CHEM Ad-CE.qxd 12/2/08 10:33
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Circle 14 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-14
Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009 17
06_CHE_011509_CHM.indd 17 12/26/08 2:17:37 PM

20. (Continued from p. 17)
C hementato R
combination enables the diodes
to be “color-stable” even when
there are variations in luminous
intensity.
EPA proposal on HCFCs
This LNG vaporization process will reduce air emissions The U.S. Environmental Protec-
tion Agency (EPA; Washington,
A new method for vaporizing liquefied
natural gas (LNG) that is more envi-
ronmentally friendly than the traditional
porization technology (FHVT). The pro-
cess uses a conventional fired heater
with a low-NOx burner and fluegas recir-
D.C.; www.epa.gov) has proposed
a new rule to decrease the con-
sumption and production of hydro-
submerged combustion vaporization (SCV) culation. The combustion gases are used chlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) for
process is being offered by Black Veatch to heat a closed-loop circulating fluid the years 2010 (by at least 75%) to
(BV; Overland Park, Kan.; www.bv.com). (usually water) to 100–200°F. This loop 2014. HCFCs are ozone-depleting
In an SCV process, LNG is passed vaporizes the LNG via a shell-and-tube substances and potential green-
house gases, and as a party to the
through stainless steel tubes in a water heat exchanger.
Montreal Protocol on Substances
bath that is warmed by sparging combus- The company has obtained a configura-
that Deplete the Ozone Layer,
tion gases from a submerged, gas-fired tion patent on the technology, but has not the U.S. will completely phase out
burner. The thermal efficiency is close to piloted it, says Price, who notes that it HCFCs in 2030.
100%, says Brian Price, vice-president of uses conventional components. He points This action will also amend
LNG technology for BV. However, he out that the process avoids the disposal of provisions concerning HCFC pro-
points out, the downside is that the com- large volumes of wastewater and is calcu- duction for developing countries’
bustion gases create nitrous, nitric, car- lated to reduce NOx emissions to close to basic domestic needs and would
bonic and other acids in the water bath those of an SCV system that is equipped clarify a ban on the sale and
and the stack gas emissions contain ox- with selective catalytic reduction. CO distribution of HCFCs through
interstate commerce under the
ides of nitrogen (NOx) and carbon monox- emissions are expected to be less than
Clkean Air Act. EPA will accept
ide. Also, the bath has to be neutralized to 20% of those from an SCV. Preliminary
comments on the proposed rule
maintain a pH above 6 and the bath water calculations indicate that the process has for 60 days after publication in the
has to be treated for disposal. an overall efficiency comparable to that of Federal Register. ❏
BV calls its method fired heater va- SCV, says the firm. ■
Circle 15 on p. 58 or go to adlinks.che.com/23010-15
18 Chemical Engineering www.che.com January 2009
06_CHE_011509_CHM.indd 18 12/22/08 9:56:35 AM