PROCESS Innovation Award nominates the Champions of Innovations 2015 — A smartphone that understands pumps? A virtual chromatography process? An innovative material? These and many other developments have the potential to fundamentally change the industry. Anyone believing that all significant inventions in the process industry have already been made is much mistaken: At Achema 2015, we have searched for the innovation champions — with surprising results.

Yara International ASA and BASF opened a new world-scale ammonia plant in Freeport, USA. The $ 600-million facility uses production process, based on by-product hydrogen instead of natural gas.

World–scale peroxide plant project in Saudi–Arabia: The Saudi Hydrogen Peroxide Company, a joint–venture of Solvay and Sadara, just stated the construction of one of the world's largest hydrogen peroxide plants...

Located at the Verbund site, the annual capacity of the plant is expected to reach 80,000 metric tons, on expansion. This move will further strengthen strategic success between the two companies.

Engineeringcompany Fluor and BASF signed an agreement to continue their global engineering collaboration.

Anyone who works in the chemical industry is familiar with the problem: aggressive media and high temperatures put vessels, valves, fittings and internal components under extreme stress. It is important to select the right material to ensure that the equipment does not become the expected point of failure in the process chain.

The world’s leading event for the plastics industry projects the image of an industry in upheaval. Demand remains strong for lightweight materials and composites, but new competitors are putting chemical companies under pressure. Hopes are pinned on customer-specific solutions and alternative raw materials to provide a breakthrough.

What are your natural inclinations? Do you feel more comfortable with a process control system that has a proven track record, or are you by nature receptive to advanced developments and new approaches such as model predictive control, soft sensors and real time optimization? No matter what your natural tendencies may be, this year’s Namur General Meeting broadened the horizon for conservative users and innovators alike.

Yara and BASF broke ground on a world scale ammonia plant at the BASF U.S.-site in Freeport, Texas. Total capital investment for the plant – which is expected to come online in 2017 – is estimated at $600 million.

BASF further expands its long-standing partnership Petronas. The companies want to build World-scale plant for highly reactive polyisobutene at Kuantan/Malaysia.