On first sight process requirements in urban mining seem to be much less complex as in the classical mining of primary ore bodies since numerous metals are available in high concentrations. Anyhow the presence of many different metals makes the separation to pure end products very demanding and complex.

SNF announced a $ 1.2 billion investment in a further increase of Polyacrylamide production. These water-soluble polymers profit from increasing demand in the enhanced oil recovery industry (fracking).

Scientists at ETH Zurich and oil and gas company Total have developed a new catalyst that converts CO2 and hydrogen into methanol. The technology is to pave the way for the sustainable production of fuels and chemicals.

Clariant will significantly expand the capacity of its catalysts production facility in Panjin, Liaoning province, Northeast China. A double-digit million dollar investment is to further optimize the existing facility and enable the creation of a new state-of-the-art production line for Syn Dane maleic anhydride (MA) catalyst.

To succeed in the lucrative orphan drug market, pharma companies require specialist capabilities. To do so, most big pharma companies have inherited specialty business units through mergers and acquisitions (M&As), says analytics company Global Data.

Under the terms of the contract, Honeywell UOP will provide process technology, engineering design, key equipment, catalysts and adsorbents to the new facility which is expected to have an annual crude processing capacity of 20 million tonnes.

SNF has plans to have a total emulsion-grade PAM production capacity of 1 million Mt/year in the U.S. by the end of 2020. With an aim to support this move, the company is actively investing in upstream monomer production capabilities.

The year 2018 was another good year for the Innovation Bio/Pharma Industry. 16 of the top 20 publicly traded pharma players globally reported year-on-year (YoY) growth in their revenue, says analytics company Global Data.

Turning a fascination for vacuum into real applications and products  — the history of industrial vacuum engineering is closely connected to the name Pfeiffer Vacuum. Ever since 1890, everything at Asslar/Germany has revolved around the valuable “nothingness” of vacuum. “The perfect vacuum solution for every challenge” is the bold claim of the company from Hesse in Germany. Chief Executive Officer Dr. Eric Taberlet spoke to us about challenges and future developments at the company.

The 10 % stake was sold by the Midstream Group for 785 million dollars. The Midstream Group is a holding company whose sole beneficiary is Dmitry Strezhnev, former Chief Executive Officer of the Euro Chem Group.