Ammonia is in demand: The boom of biofuels, emerging economies, a growing population and dietary improvements in many regions drive the demand for this raw material. With this perspective and the abundance of cheap shale gas, fertilizer Projects boom in the US a new study says.

Since many ports were not able to cater with the spurt in demand for coal and iron ore world wide, offshore transshipment became the only answer. Up-to-date transshipment facilities employ more than one crane on the pontoon and a complex cargo handling system consisting of hoppers, conveyors and ship loader. Three examples show how it is done.

Claimed to be the world's most powerful supercomputer infrastructure in the industrial sector, the new super computer HPC5 is capable of enhancing highly complex processes in the energy sector. The move will assist Eni to further improve its digitalisation process.

BP announced that production has begun from the giant Khazzan gas field, which is operated by BP in partnership with Oman Oil Company Exploration and Production. The start of production from Khazzan is BP’s sixth and largest major project start-up so far this year.

After been granted two patents on bio–based isobutanol, American biofuels company Gevo filed a lawsuit against Butamax, a BP and DuPont business, for patent infringements. Its only the latest development in a long row of legal activities of the two companies.

Tunable diode laser (TDL) technology has proven to be exceptionally reliable for measuring trace gas components like H2O, H2S, CO2, NH3 and C2H2. TDL absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) is a highresolution technique that enables the measurement of specific gases with precision while avoiding interferences that are common with traditional analyzers.

Roeland Baan will be succeeding Bjerne S. Clausen as Haldor Topsoe’s new Chief Executive Officer. Previously, Baan has held numerous higher management designations in Outokumpu, Aleris International, Arcelor Mittal, SHV and Shell.

Linde has secured an engineering, procurement and site services agreement for Sibur’s cracker plant located at the Amur Gas Chemical Complex in Russia. The services will be offered in collaboration with Nipigas.

Process Intensification is a relatively new approach to boost a plant’s efficiency: It combines the optimisation of capital, energy, environmental and safety benefits with a radical reduction in plant-size. But the application of such revolutionary techniques has to overcome obstacles. Elaborate design and specialised equipment are needed to deal with unconventional constrains.

Grace and Al Dahra Agriculture have executed a Joint Venture agreement to build the first fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts manufacturing facility in the Middle East. The companies marked their commitment and progress with a briefing and gala dinner today for over 100 industry and government leaders from around the region.