Pumps and compressors account for a large share of energy consumption in process industry equipment. Best practice that can help further reduce consumption by this type of equipment will be a major theme at ACHEMA 2012 on June 18th to 22nd in Frankfurt/M., Germany. A key aspect to consider in this context is the contribution that control valves and sensors can make in enhancing process stability in automated production environments.

Evonik is investing a double-digit million dollar amount in the construction of a new multi-purpose facility at its Geesthacht location in Northern Germany, 30 km outside the city of Hamburg.

Demand for TPE is strongly focused on the largest economic powers: Currently, processors in China, the USA, Japan, and Germany combined account for about two thirds of global demand, Ceresana says in a study.

The India-based project is expected to process 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day and will produce a range of refined petroleum as well as petrochemical products. Expected to be commissioned in 2022, the project aims to meet India’s fast-growing fuels and petrochemicals demand. Read more about the engineering mega project in the article.

A story of the replacement of the process control system – Cht R. Beitlich’s decentralized control system with isolated PDA had seen better days. Rather than helping to optimize production, it was tying up valuable resources. Changes to the system were tedious; replacement parts were getting harder and harder to come by. The company began surveying the market for an appropriate replacement. In the end, there was only one system that met all of their requirements.

Market and raw material trends set the direction in the chemical industry. That is one of the reasons why the 2008/2009 crisis signaled the start of a paradigm shift in chemical plant engineering and construction. Traditional EPC suppliers (general contractors based in the Western industrialized nations) are facing increased competition from Asia. At the same time, the plant engineering teams at global chemical companies are intensifying their partnerships with EPCs and spreading the workload across the international engineering resource base.

Air Liquide inaugurating Hy Balance, a pilot site for the production of carbon-free hydrogen, in Hobro, Denmark. The facility uses electrolysis technology and allows to balance the electricity grid and store surplus electricity in the form of hydrogen that will be used in industry and transportation. .

The global demand for biodegradable plastics is predicted to be over a million tonne in 2022 and hence, the company has undertaken this move. Once complete, the facility is expected to produce a capacity of about 5,000 tonne per year.

Reliance Industries has appointed Texan based Fluor with project management services at its its world scale Jamnagar refining and petrochemical complex in Western India, wehere the company plans one of the largest coke gasification facilities worldwide.

Chemicals giant Bayer plans to get rid of the remaining material science and polymers business: The company wants to focus on life science solutions, bringing its subsidiary Bayer material Science on the stock market by 2016. Already in 2004, the company had divested large parts of its speciality chemicals and polymer business into the new formed Lanxess.