- Email: [email protected]
Norwegian research programme on natural gas
336 iary of Allied Signal. The combined business will operate under the UOP name. The second of these involves the launching of Criterion Catalyst Co., a 50: 50 joint venture of Shell and American Cyanamid. The shell side of the deal includes Shell Oil, Shell International Chemical and other Shell companies. The deal involves the movement of certain aspects of the catalyst business from each company to the new one, which will own and operate catalyst manufacturing plants at Azusa and Pittsburg, California, and Michigan City, Indiana. The other plants belonging to the partners, situated in Willow Island, West Virginia and in Canada, the U.K. and Belgium, will make products for the joint venture. The product range will include catalysts used in refining, including processes such as hydrotreating, hydrocracking and other hydrogenation reactions, as well as reforming and isomeration, plus catalysts for making styrene and other selected chemical processes; Criterion will also make alumina powder. The agreement does not include the Shell ethylene oxide catalysts or the catalysts for propylene polymerisation developed in a joint venture with Union Carbide. Criterion will later become involved in recovery and disposal of spent catalysts. Criterion will be one of the largest non-FCC catalyst producers, rivaled in size only by Akzo’s Ketjen operations. Another joint venture involves Shell Catalysts Enterprises Polymer and (Houston) and PQ Corp. (Kansas City) who have formed Zeolyst Enterprises to make zeolite catalysts. Finallly, the item in the April 1 1th issue of Chem. Eng. News makes mention of the purchase by Engelhard of Harshaw/ Filtrol from KaiserTech and Carbide’s announcement of a US$40 million expansion of the Katalistiks fluid catalytic facilities. manufacturing cracking (Sources: Chem. Eng., April 25 (1988),
applied
CatatySiS
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Volume 42 No. 2 -
p, 23, Chem. Week, March 30 (1988) p. 9; Chem. Eng. News, March 28 (1988) p. 6; and Chem. fng. News, April 11 (1988) P. 23)
MGssbauer
Conference
ICAME ‘89, the 1989 International Conference on the Applications of the Mossbauer Effect, will be held in Budapest, Hungary, from 4 to 8 September 1989. The aim of the meeting, which will include both invited and submitted contributions, is to communicate significant results obtained using the technique. Topics to be covered include surface phenomena and catalysis. Further details can be obtained from the organisers at the address given in the calendar. Norwegian Research Natural Gas
Programme
on
The Norwegian Ministries for Oil and Energy (OED) and Industry (ID) have initiated a State-financed R and D programme for the utilisation of natural gas (SPUNG). Made up of sectors dealing with chemical conversion, electricity generation, LNG, and miscellaneous, the total budget for the initial year (1987) was 10.5 million NOK while that for this year is 36 million NOK. The project is being administered by the Norwegian Council for Scientific and industrial Research (NTNF), whose address is Sognsveien 72, P.O. Box 70 Tasen, N-0801 Oslo 8, Norway. In the booklet describing the project, it is stated that Norway possesses some 50% of the known Western European reserves of natural gas. It is expected that these will last some 120 years while known reserves of oil will be exhausted in about 45 years. The goal of the programme is to support initiatives to help to develop technology aimed at enhanced utilisation of natural gas, bearing in mind that Norway has substantial oil
September
1988
reserves located far from the market. In this context, natural gas is taken as meaning both that from pure gas reservoirs as well as associated gas from oil wells. The section of the programme on chemical conversion includes research on five main areas: new products from synthesis gas; direct synthesis of methanol; oxidative coupling; pyrolysis; and electrochemical methane conversion. As the aim is to produce new processes, the programme is of necessity long-term. Under the topic of synthesis gas, the production of higher alcohols and ethers as well as of lower olefins receive special mention while under the direct synthesis of methanol, work on the partial oxidation route being carried out at the Norwegian Institute of Technology and the Foundation for Scientific and Industrial Research at the University of Trondheim (NTH/SINTEF) get special mention. In relation to oxidatived coupling, ethylene is expected to be an intermediate product for various finished petrochemical products based on ethylene, with aromatic gasoline being an alternative product. Aspects of reactor technology and of separation technology will also be given attention. It is expected that the main thrust in the catalytically oriented programmes will come from NTH/SINTEF in Trondheim, the University of Oslo, The Centre for Industrial Research (SI), and the Institute of Energy Technology in Oslo. Although aimed at sponsoring work in Norwegian universities and research establishments, SPUNG is open to various forms of cooperation, including that with local industry and also with major universities abroad; it will also allow the en-
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42 NO.2 -
gagement of visiting foreign researchers. The responsibility of running the chemical conversion programme lies with SI and SINTEF. The chairman of the technical working group responsible for the programme is Arne Anundskas of Norsk Hydro a.s. and he is assisted by a number of academics and industrialists. Akzo - A New Corporate
Identity
Akzo is one of the largest chemical companies in the world but its identity has long been submerged by a number of other names such as the various sections of Enka. Another well-known grouping within Akzo known to most people working in catalysis is Ketjen, the manufacturer of aluminas, FCC catalysts, etc. As part of a drive to promote its image, Akzo has reorganised itself with a series of divisions: Enka becomes the Fibres and Polymers Division, Akzo Zout Chemie becomes the Salt and Basic Chemical Division, Akzo Chemie (which includes Ketjen) becomes the Chemicals Division, Akzo coatings becomes the Coatings Division, and Akzo Pharma becomes the Pharmaceuticals Division. The new logo of the company is shown below.
September 1988
applied
CatatySiS
-
Volume 42 No. 2 -
p, 23, Chem. Week, March 30 (1988) p. 9; Chem. Eng. News, March 28 (1988) p. 6; and Chem. fng. News, April 11 (1988) P. 23)
MGssbauer
Conference
ICAME ‘89, the 1989 International Conference on the Applications of the Mossbauer Effect, will be held in Budapest, Hungary, from 4 to 8 September 1989. The aim of the meeting, which will include both invited and submitted contributions, is to communicate significant results obtained using the technique. Topics to be covered include surface phenomena and catalysis. Further details can be obtained from the organisers at the address given in the calendar. Norwegian Research Natural Gas
Programme
on
The Norwegian Ministries for Oil and Energy (OED) and Industry (ID) have initiated a State-financed R and D programme for the utilisation of natural gas (SPUNG). Made up of sectors dealing with chemical conversion, electricity generation, LNG, and miscellaneous, the total budget for the initial year (1987) was 10.5 million NOK while that for this year is 36 million NOK. The project is being administered by the Norwegian Council for Scientific and industrial Research (NTNF), whose address is Sognsveien 72, P.O. Box 70 Tasen, N-0801 Oslo 8, Norway. In the booklet describing the project, it is stated that Norway possesses some 50% of the known Western European reserves of natural gas. It is expected that these will last some 120 years while known reserves of oil will be exhausted in about 45 years. The goal of the programme is to support initiatives to help to develop technology aimed at enhanced utilisation of natural gas, bearing in mind that Norway has substantial oil
September
1988
reserves located far from the market. In this context, natural gas is taken as meaning both that from pure gas reservoirs as well as associated gas from oil wells. The section of the programme on chemical conversion includes research on five main areas: new products from synthesis gas; direct synthesis of methanol; oxidative coupling; pyrolysis; and electrochemical methane conversion. As the aim is to produce new processes, the programme is of necessity long-term. Under the topic of synthesis gas, the production of higher alcohols and ethers as well as of lower olefins receive special mention while under the direct synthesis of methanol, work on the partial oxidation route being carried out at the Norwegian Institute of Technology and the Foundation for Scientific and Industrial Research at the University of Trondheim (NTH/SINTEF) get special mention. In relation to oxidatived coupling, ethylene is expected to be an intermediate product for various finished petrochemical products based on ethylene, with aromatic gasoline being an alternative product. Aspects of reactor technology and of separation technology will also be given attention. It is expected that the main thrust in the catalytically oriented programmes will come from NTH/SINTEF in Trondheim, the University of Oslo, The Centre for Industrial Research (SI), and the Institute of Energy Technology in Oslo. Although aimed at sponsoring work in Norwegian universities and research establishments, SPUNG is open to various forms of cooperation, including that with local industry and also with major universities abroad; it will also allow the en-
applied
C&al@
-Volume
42 NO.2 -
gagement of visiting foreign researchers. The responsibility of running the chemical conversion programme lies with SI and SINTEF. The chairman of the technical working group responsible for the programme is Arne Anundskas of Norsk Hydro a.s. and he is assisted by a number of academics and industrialists. Akzo - A New Corporate
Identity
Akzo is one of the largest chemical companies in the world but its identity has long been submerged by a number of other names such as the various sections of Enka. Another well-known grouping within Akzo known to most people working in catalysis is Ketjen, the manufacturer of aluminas, FCC catalysts, etc. As part of a drive to promote its image, Akzo has reorganised itself with a series of divisions: Enka becomes the Fibres and Polymers Division, Akzo Zout Chemie becomes the Salt and Basic Chemical Division, Akzo Chemie (which includes Ketjen) becomes the Chemicals Division, Akzo coatings becomes the Coatings Division, and Akzo Pharma becomes the Pharmaceuticals Division. The new logo of the company is shown below.
September 1988