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SDK-UOP JV starts operation of new high silica zeolite plant – Union Showa's second zeolite plant in Japan starts operation in Fukushima
F O C U S abundant supplies of non-food, plantbased feedstocks in Malaysia to produce a variety of commercial diacids, including DDDA. Original Source: Verdezyme, 2014. Found on SpecialChem Adhesives and Sealants Formulation, 19 Nov 2014, (Website: http://www.specialchem4adhesives.com)
SDK-UOP JV starts operation of new high silica zeolite plant – Union Showa’s second zeolite plant in Japan starts operation in Fukushima Union Showa (USKK), a joint venture between Showa Denko (SDK) and UOP LLC of Illinois, USA, has completed the construction of a new high silica zeolite plant within the premises of SDK’s Higashinagahara Plant in Aizu-Wakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, and will start operation of the new plant in Dec 2014. The new zeolite production facilities built in the premises of SDK’s Higashinagahara plant are designed to act flexibly, responding to every need of customers, and can also produce special zeolites other than high silica zeolite. USKK will fully utilize its two plants in Mie and Fukushima prefectures, aiming to develop and supply new zeolite products for conventional use such as treatment of industrial waste water and for nuclear-waste-remediation and decontamination, including treatment of contaminated water at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, and treatment of radioactive nuclides to promote decommissioning of nuclear reactors. Original Source: Showa-Denko KK, 3 Dec 2014, (website: http://www.sdk.co.jp/) © Showa-Denko KK 2014
NEW TECHNOLOGY Teijin develops non-platinum metal carbon alloy catalyst for cost-efficient fuel cells suited to mass production On 11 Nov 2014, Teijin Limited announced that it had developed a carbon alloy catalyst (CAC) that eliminates the use of platinum to reduce costs for mass production. JANUARY 2015
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CAC is made from polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and steel via carbonization. Less expensive and more readily available than platinum, PAN enables the catalyst to be produced at reduced cost and in higher volumes. Teijin’s CAC demonstrates excellent performance using catalytic particles miniaturized by proprietary polymer chemistry and carbonization processes. It enables fuel cells to achieve electrical generation on world-leading levels equal to those of other high-quality fuel cells using a non-platinum catalyst. Teijin has been developing and refining its CAC technologies in collaboration with the Tokyo Institute of Technology. The effort is part of a project targeting the development of automotive fuel cells using CAC, led by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Teijin will continue to advance the properties and durability of its CAC, targeting commercial use by 2025. Original Source: Teijin, 11 Nov 2014, (website: http://www.teijin.co.jp/) © Teijin Limited 2014
Sustainable chemicals: Verdezyne builds bio-sourced dodecanoic acid in Malaysia US company Verdezyne has signed an agreement with the Malaysian public-private organization Bio-XCell concerning the construction of the world’s first factory making biosourced dodecanoic acid. The new factory will be built on Bio-XCell’s industrial park in Iskandar, S Malaysia (where French company Metabolic Explorer had planned to build a biosourced 1,3-propanediol factory but the project failed to go ahead). Construction work on Verdezyne’s 13,600 tonne/y factory will begin in 2015. The unit will use fermentation technology with locally harvested nonfood biomass as its raw material. The agreement between Verdezyne and Bio-XCell was announced at the BioMalaysia conference attended by Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak. Dodecanoic acid is an intermediate used in making nylon. For Verdezyne, the new unit represents a major step forward in its plans to replace oil-derived chemical products with products made from
renewable resources. The US company will rent a 6.9 hectares plot on Bio-XCell’s park for 13 years (with an option to expand onto neighbouring plots). Verdezyne’s project brings the amount of money invested in Bio-XCell’s ecosystem to $75 M since its creation in 2010. Other companies already based at the site include Biocon (an Indian biotechnology company), GlycoBio (a US ethanol producer) and Agila (a Malaysian biotechnology company). Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 1 Dec 2014, (698), (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2014
Global Bioenergies announces breakthrough in direct biological production of butadiene. Global Bioenergies announces having succeeded in the production of biosourced butadiene by direct fermentation. It is the first time ever an entirely biological production process – ie, without any chemical step – is reported for butadiene, one of the most important petrochemical building blocks. Original Source: BioSpace.com, 2014. From BioSpace, 26 Nov 2014, (Website: http://www.biospace.com)
Biomass waste gets upgraded Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed a novel lignin depolymerization process that produces low-molecular-weight aromatics. The process exposes lignin to oxygen before treating it with weak acid under mild conditions. The resulting aromatics can be further processed into other valuable products like plastics, pharmaceuticals, and pesticides. During experiments, the team found that treating lignin with formic acid without a metal catalyst generated the highest amount of aromatics. By changing the reaction conditions and the type of acid and metal used, the team was able to fabricate different products, including aromatic monomers veratric acid and guaiacol, a diketone product, and an aryl ethyl ketone reductive cleavage product. Original Source: Chemical Engineering Progress, Dec 2014, 6 (Website: http://www.aiche.org/cep) © American Institute of Chemical Engineers 2014
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SDK-UOP JV starts operation of new high silica zeolite plant – Union Showa’s second zeolite plant in Japan starts operation in Fukushima Union Showa (USKK), a joint venture between Showa Denko (SDK) and UOP LLC of Illinois, USA, has completed the construction of a new high silica zeolite plant within the premises of SDK’s Higashinagahara Plant in Aizu-Wakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, and will start operation of the new plant in Dec 2014. The new zeolite production facilities built in the premises of SDK’s Higashinagahara plant are designed to act flexibly, responding to every need of customers, and can also produce special zeolites other than high silica zeolite. USKK will fully utilize its two plants in Mie and Fukushima prefectures, aiming to develop and supply new zeolite products for conventional use such as treatment of industrial waste water and for nuclear-waste-remediation and decontamination, including treatment of contaminated water at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, and treatment of radioactive nuclides to promote decommissioning of nuclear reactors. Original Source: Showa-Denko KK, 3 Dec 2014, (website: http://www.sdk.co.jp/) © Showa-Denko KK 2014
NEW TECHNOLOGY Teijin develops non-platinum metal carbon alloy catalyst for cost-efficient fuel cells suited to mass production On 11 Nov 2014, Teijin Limited announced that it had developed a carbon alloy catalyst (CAC) that eliminates the use of platinum to reduce costs for mass production. JANUARY 2015
O N
C ATA LY S T S
CAC is made from polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and steel via carbonization. Less expensive and more readily available than platinum, PAN enables the catalyst to be produced at reduced cost and in higher volumes. Teijin’s CAC demonstrates excellent performance using catalytic particles miniaturized by proprietary polymer chemistry and carbonization processes. It enables fuel cells to achieve electrical generation on world-leading levels equal to those of other high-quality fuel cells using a non-platinum catalyst. Teijin has been developing and refining its CAC technologies in collaboration with the Tokyo Institute of Technology. The effort is part of a project targeting the development of automotive fuel cells using CAC, led by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Teijin will continue to advance the properties and durability of its CAC, targeting commercial use by 2025. Original Source: Teijin, 11 Nov 2014, (website: http://www.teijin.co.jp/) © Teijin Limited 2014
Sustainable chemicals: Verdezyne builds bio-sourced dodecanoic acid in Malaysia US company Verdezyne has signed an agreement with the Malaysian public-private organization Bio-XCell concerning the construction of the world’s first factory making biosourced dodecanoic acid. The new factory will be built on Bio-XCell’s industrial park in Iskandar, S Malaysia (where French company Metabolic Explorer had planned to build a biosourced 1,3-propanediol factory but the project failed to go ahead). Construction work on Verdezyne’s 13,600 tonne/y factory will begin in 2015. The unit will use fermentation technology with locally harvested nonfood biomass as its raw material. The agreement between Verdezyne and Bio-XCell was announced at the BioMalaysia conference attended by Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak. Dodecanoic acid is an intermediate used in making nylon. For Verdezyne, the new unit represents a major step forward in its plans to replace oil-derived chemical products with products made from
renewable resources. The US company will rent a 6.9 hectares plot on Bio-XCell’s park for 13 years (with an option to expand onto neighbouring plots). Verdezyne’s project brings the amount of money invested in Bio-XCell’s ecosystem to $75 M since its creation in 2010. Other companies already based at the site include Biocon (an Indian biotechnology company), GlycoBio (a US ethanol producer) and Agila (a Malaysian biotechnology company). Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 1 Dec 2014, (698), (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2014
Global Bioenergies announces breakthrough in direct biological production of butadiene. Global Bioenergies announces having succeeded in the production of biosourced butadiene by direct fermentation. It is the first time ever an entirely biological production process – ie, without any chemical step – is reported for butadiene, one of the most important petrochemical building blocks. Original Source: BioSpace.com, 2014. From BioSpace, 26 Nov 2014, (Website: http://www.biospace.com)
Biomass waste gets upgraded Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed a novel lignin depolymerization process that produces low-molecular-weight aromatics. The process exposes lignin to oxygen before treating it with weak acid under mild conditions. The resulting aromatics can be further processed into other valuable products like plastics, pharmaceuticals, and pesticides. During experiments, the team found that treating lignin with formic acid without a metal catalyst generated the highest amount of aromatics. By changing the reaction conditions and the type of acid and metal used, the team was able to fabricate different products, including aromatic monomers veratric acid and guaiacol, a diketone product, and an aryl ethyl ketone reductive cleavage product. Original Source: Chemical Engineering Progress, Dec 2014, 6 (Website: http://www.aiche.org/cep) © American Institute of Chemical Engineers 2014
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