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Quickly: platinum deficit seen shrinking
FOCUS polyester packaging resins, biocomposites cluster for the use of biobased reinforcing fibres and resins, a cluster for using amino acids to produce 10 chosen chemicals, and a bio-based cluster located in Delfzijl, the Netherlands, for epichlorohydrin production from glycerol. All the materials are readily accessible in the northern region of the Netherlands or northern Germany. Original Source: ICIS Chemical Business, 9-22 Mar 2015, 287 (10), 37 (Website: http://www. icis.com) © Reed Business Information Limited 2015
Quickly: platinum deficit seen shrinking On 11 Mar 2015, World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) reported that it is expecting the platinum market deficit to fall 66% from 2014 levels to 235,000 oz/y in 2015, amid higher growth in mining and recycling supply. Supply of the metal is projected to increase 10% to 7.965 M oz. Demand is likely to grow by a mere 3%, primarily due to the decrease in investment and the stagnant growth of offtake by jewellers and the purchase by car makers that utilize the metal in catalytic converters. Prices of the metal dropped 12% in 2014 and are currently estimated at $1140/oz, their lowest since 2009. In end-2014, above-ground platinum inventories, excluding exchange-traded funds, industry working inventories and metal held by exchanges, were at 2.53 M oz. Original Source: Business Line, 12 Mar 2015, 22 (61), 17 (Website: http://www. thehindubusinessline.com) © The Hindu Business Line 2015
Bromine comes to the rescue for mercury power plant emissions Bromine and its derivatives have been previously cited for its negative effects on the environment. However, it has been discovered that the chemical is able to reduce mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. It is expected that demand for mercuryreducing bromine additives will increase. Major producers of bromine compounds Chemtura and ICL are expecting to gain from this projection. Cabot and Calgon Carbon, suppliers of activated carbon treated with bromine, are also hoping to benefit.
May 2015
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Bromine producer Albermarle is involved in both sectors. Coal-burning utilities in the US account for about 40% of the country's electricity and would emit 48 tonnes/y of mercury without any regulatory controls. By 2016, it is expected that US regulations requiring the removal of 90% or more of mercury emissions from power plant smokestacks would come into effect. There are already 16 US states that have adopted similar regulations and rules and are generating a multi-billion-dollar-peryear mercury emission control market. It is expected that by 2018, when all US regulations are already in effect, over 27 M lbs of bromine will be utilized by plant operators. Mercury abatement accounts for only around 2% of all bromine used worldwide. Around half of all bromine use is accounted for by flame retardants. IHS Chemical predicts that demand for bromine in the US for emission control could reach up to 45 M lb/y. Demand for bromine was boosted by the US legislation signed into law in 2004, also known as the American Jobs Creation Act, which provided a $6.00 tax credit to companies for every tonne of calcium bromidetreated coal burned in their plants. One drawback of bromine alone or with activated carbon is that it poses a threat for accelerated corrosion in metal plant equipment. Research is currently being done to look for ways to mitigate the process. ADA-ES has developed M-Prove, an elemental mercury oxidizer, which is significantly less corrosive than calcium and hydrogen bromide. Company patents reveal that the oxidizer used is based on iodine. A graph shows where bromine is being used worldwide with water treatment at 6%, catalysts for plastics at 6%, and fluids for oil production at 16%. Original Source: Chemical and Engineering News, 16 Mar 2015, 93 (11), 17-19 (Website: http://cen.acs.org/index.html) © American Chemical Society 2015
BASF and eight partners cooperate to optimize production processes for renewable-based products A consortium of companies in the European process industry from the areas of biotechnology, renewable resources, chemistry, process
engineering, equipment supply as well as research organizations recently launched project PRODIAS (PROcessing Diluted Aqueous Systems). The project focuses on unlocking the potential of renewablebased products made via white biotechnology, by significantly decreasing production costs, increasing productivity and efficiency, lowering energy consumption, and accelerating process developments. Under the consortial leadership of BASF, the partners include: Cargill Haubourdin, France; University of Kaiserslautern, Germany; Imperial College London, Great Britain; Alfa Laval, Sweden; GEA Messo PT, the Netherlands; Xendo, the Netherlands; UPM, Finland; and Enviplan, Germany. These partners will collaborate to develop cost and energy-efficient technologies for water purification, removal and productrecovery needed to support downstream processing in white biotechnology. PRODIAS aims to address these challenges by developing and implementing cost-effective separation and purification technologies tailored for renewable resources in white biotechnology production processes. Its focus is to adapt separation techniques to the need of white biotechnology products and to design novel hybrid systems combining individual advantages, for example, selectivity and energy efficiency. The bioreactions (fermentations) and biocatalysis by which the valuable products are produced are subject to alteration and optimization, to enable more efficient and resource-saving downstream processing. The total project budget is about s14 M with the European Union contributing s10 M. EU funding of the PRODIAS project is enabled via the Public-Private Partnership with SPIRE (Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency). SPIRE, in turn, is part of Horizon 2020, the EU framework programme for research and innovation, which runs from 2014 to 2020 and comprises an s80 bn budget. In partnership with industry, the EU will invest in innovative technologies for sustainable processes. Original Source: BASF, 18 Mar 2015 (Website: http://www.basf.com/) © BASF 2015
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Quickly: platinum deficit seen shrinking On 11 Mar 2015, World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) reported that it is expecting the platinum market deficit to fall 66% from 2014 levels to 235,000 oz/y in 2015, amid higher growth in mining and recycling supply. Supply of the metal is projected to increase 10% to 7.965 M oz. Demand is likely to grow by a mere 3%, primarily due to the decrease in investment and the stagnant growth of offtake by jewellers and the purchase by car makers that utilize the metal in catalytic converters. Prices of the metal dropped 12% in 2014 and are currently estimated at $1140/oz, their lowest since 2009. In end-2014, above-ground platinum inventories, excluding exchange-traded funds, industry working inventories and metal held by exchanges, were at 2.53 M oz. Original Source: Business Line, 12 Mar 2015, 22 (61), 17 (Website: http://www. thehindubusinessline.com) © The Hindu Business Line 2015
Bromine comes to the rescue for mercury power plant emissions Bromine and its derivatives have been previously cited for its negative effects on the environment. However, it has been discovered that the chemical is able to reduce mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. It is expected that demand for mercuryreducing bromine additives will increase. Major producers of bromine compounds Chemtura and ICL are expecting to gain from this projection. Cabot and Calgon Carbon, suppliers of activated carbon treated with bromine, are also hoping to benefit.
May 2015
ON
C ATA LY S T S
Bromine producer Albermarle is involved in both sectors. Coal-burning utilities in the US account for about 40% of the country's electricity and would emit 48 tonnes/y of mercury without any regulatory controls. By 2016, it is expected that US regulations requiring the removal of 90% or more of mercury emissions from power plant smokestacks would come into effect. There are already 16 US states that have adopted similar regulations and rules and are generating a multi-billion-dollar-peryear mercury emission control market. It is expected that by 2018, when all US regulations are already in effect, over 27 M lbs of bromine will be utilized by plant operators. Mercury abatement accounts for only around 2% of all bromine used worldwide. Around half of all bromine use is accounted for by flame retardants. IHS Chemical predicts that demand for bromine in the US for emission control could reach up to 45 M lb/y. Demand for bromine was boosted by the US legislation signed into law in 2004, also known as the American Jobs Creation Act, which provided a $6.00 tax credit to companies for every tonne of calcium bromidetreated coal burned in their plants. One drawback of bromine alone or with activated carbon is that it poses a threat for accelerated corrosion in metal plant equipment. Research is currently being done to look for ways to mitigate the process. ADA-ES has developed M-Prove, an elemental mercury oxidizer, which is significantly less corrosive than calcium and hydrogen bromide. Company patents reveal that the oxidizer used is based on iodine. A graph shows where bromine is being used worldwide with water treatment at 6%, catalysts for plastics at 6%, and fluids for oil production at 16%. Original Source: Chemical and Engineering News, 16 Mar 2015, 93 (11), 17-19 (Website: http://cen.acs.org/index.html) © American Chemical Society 2015
BASF and eight partners cooperate to optimize production processes for renewable-based products A consortium of companies in the European process industry from the areas of biotechnology, renewable resources, chemistry, process
engineering, equipment supply as well as research organizations recently launched project PRODIAS (PROcessing Diluted Aqueous Systems). The project focuses on unlocking the potential of renewablebased products made via white biotechnology, by significantly decreasing production costs, increasing productivity and efficiency, lowering energy consumption, and accelerating process developments. Under the consortial leadership of BASF, the partners include: Cargill Haubourdin, France; University of Kaiserslautern, Germany; Imperial College London, Great Britain; Alfa Laval, Sweden; GEA Messo PT, the Netherlands; Xendo, the Netherlands; UPM, Finland; and Enviplan, Germany. These partners will collaborate to develop cost and energy-efficient technologies for water purification, removal and productrecovery needed to support downstream processing in white biotechnology. PRODIAS aims to address these challenges by developing and implementing cost-effective separation and purification technologies tailored for renewable resources in white biotechnology production processes. Its focus is to adapt separation techniques to the need of white biotechnology products and to design novel hybrid systems combining individual advantages, for example, selectivity and energy efficiency. The bioreactions (fermentations) and biocatalysis by which the valuable products are produced are subject to alteration and optimization, to enable more efficient and resource-saving downstream processing. The total project budget is about s14 M with the European Union contributing s10 M. EU funding of the PRODIAS project is enabled via the Public-Private Partnership with SPIRE (Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency). SPIRE, in turn, is part of Horizon 2020, the EU framework programme for research and innovation, which runs from 2014 to 2020 and comprises an s80 bn budget. In partnership with industry, the EU will invest in innovative technologies for sustainable processes. Original Source: BASF, 18 Mar 2015 (Website: http://www.basf.com/) © BASF 2015
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