Snapshot: Eco-Friendly Fashion
US biotechnology company MycoWorks makes fashion eco-friendly with its patented Fine Mycelium tec...
Features
Liquid Metal: a Catalyst for Change?
Requiring temperatures into the hundreds of degrees to work, solid catalysts prove incredibly ene...
Making Wind Power More Sustainable
Designed to withstand decades of strong winds and harsh weather conditions, wind turbine blades a...
Life After End of Life
The limited lifespans of wind turbines and solar panels mean many of the vital materials involved...
Public Engagement for a Sustainable World
Alexandra Meldrum and Amit Verma share how IChemE members have been working to shape policy and p...
We Must Go Round in the Right Circles
Adam Duckett on the need to go around in the right circles
Question Time: Materials
Adam Duckett shares the major talking points from the latest centenary webinar
Materials: Making a Positive Difference
Adam Duckett talks to the engineers developing technologies to reduce the environmental impact of...
Materials: Decarbonising Cement
Kerry Hebden talks to the researchers and companies aiming for greener concrete processes
Materials: Switch on/Switch off
Pablo Brito-Parada and colleagues discuss how SOSO technology could provide the paradigm shift ne...
Materials: Upcycling – Making Plastic Waste Valuable
Amanda Jasi speaks to researchers working to realise novel chemical upcycling methods
Careers in Chemical Engineering: Xueqi Wang
Xueqi Wang talks to Yasmin Ali about her career in refining precious metals across the globe
Made in Space
Andrew Bacon talks to Adam Duckett about plans to launch feedstocks into space, and bring them ba...
Process Engineering for the Final Frontier
Kathryn Hadler tells Amanda Jasi about the exciting prospect of extracting and processing resourc...
From Junk to Fuel: Addressing the Space Debris Challenge
Amanda Jasi talks to Gary Calnan about his company’s work on developing a forge for recycling was...
Put on Your 3D Glasses
Jonathan McDonough explains how 3D printing will benefit the chemical engineering discipline over...
Pure Processing for Battery Tech
William Hawker discusses his role in commercialising low cost, low emissions processes for produc...
100 Centuries of Chemical Engineering
In a prelude to IChemE’s centenary celebrations, IChemE Fellow Martin Pitt charts the influence o...
The Bomb in Your Pocket?
Paul Orange explains why testing battery safety matters more than you’d imagine
Closing the Plastics Loop
Ivan McCormack discusses his role in the recycling sector, developing a chemical process to clos...
Forging Positive Change
Chris McDonald discusses his career in metals, and why the industry needs more chemical engineers
Fight corrosion with simulation
CORROSION is an age-old problem that is now being effectively contained and prevented due to the ...
A Life in Lithium
The future of energy needs chemical engineers, and lots of them, say Jacob Brown, Titi Oliyide, L...
Materials Utilisation
The importance of materials efficiency in the fight against the climate crisis
Decarbonisation of End Uses
Malcolm Wilkinson and members of the Sustainability Special Interest Group discuss the technologi...
Set in Stone
Amanda Doyle speaks to Rahul Shendure about innovations for lower-emissions cement and storing CO...
Book Review: Coulson and Richardson’s Chemical Engineering: Volume 2A: Particulate Systems and Particle Technology, 6th Ed
Raj P Chhabra and Basavaraj Gurappa; ISBN: 9780081010983 (Paperback); 9780081012208; (eBook; Butt...
Book Review: Graphene – Important Results and Applications
George Wypych; ISBN: 978-1-927885-51-2; ChemTec Publishing; 2019; US$350
Bulk Solids Handling: Perspective on a Professional Blind Spot
A topic often overlooked and misunderstood, Grant Wellwood looks at the prevalence of bulk solids...
Plastics: Towards a Circular Economy
Using chemical recycling to tackle the problem of plastics waste
Keep it All In: How to Bund with Confidence
Kevin Wheeler explains bunding’s vital role and offers a practical summary of issues to consider ...
12 Steps to a Green Chemicals Score
Merck's free-to-all method for product sustainability scoring
AM: Keeping it Clean
How atmospheric gases will be key to future additive manufacturing.
First Steps
Mark Yates charts the development of Apollo’s portable life support system
Snapshot: Royal Mail stamp of approval for engineering excellence
The UK’s Royal Mail has revealed ten new special stamps which feature “marvels” of British engine...
Hydrogen Transport
Andy Brown looks at the options and challenges of moving hydrogen from A to B in bulk
Answering the Call of Nature
Dyllon Randall explains how bio-bricks can be grown from human urine
Testing the Metal
Amanda Doyle visits SaMI to learn about the next steps for steel research
No More Lost Light Gases
Jason Ornstein, Ray Ozdemir & Anne Boehme on adapting failed automotive capture technology for ...
Producing Graphene at Scale
The challenge for chemical engineers of producing graphene at scale
Process Hengineering, You Say?
How a team of process engineers turned waste calcium hydroxide into valuable animal feed
Creating a Sustainable Future – The Role of Material Selection
The one challenge that engineers of all stripes need to deal with is material selection.
Add It Up!
How 3D printing of reactors can help chemical engineers with process intensification
Pet Projects
Standard routines and their place in continuous improvement
Under One Roof
The University of Cambridge’s new chemical engineering and biotechnology building is open for b...
How to Build a Retina
Chemical synthesis of a retina, and how it can ‘see’ the world around it
Lego makes plants from plants
LEGO has announced that plant-based plastic sourced from sugarcane will be used in pieces such as...
Spencer Silver and Arthur Fry – In Search Of An Application
Spencer Silver and Arthur Fry: the chemist and the tinkerer who created the Post-it Note
Rubbish Roads
A solution to the world’s plastic problem could be right under our feet. Toby McCartney, MacRebur...
Vaccines: The End of the Cold War?
How an award-winning ensilication technology could remove the need to refrigerate life-saving vac...
Bob Gore – One Sudden Yank...
… for Bob Gore, one giant leap for outdoor lovers. Claudia Flavell-While looks at the history of ...
Tomio Wada – My Grandad the Pocket Calculator
Claudia Flavell-While explores the surprising ancestry of modern electronic gadgets, and how a ch...
Little by Little
Creating scalable nanomaterials for industry
Solar-Powered Water Purification Wins Top Prize
Helen Tunnicliffe reviews the winners of IChemE’s annual awards programme
Into the Future
Water and wastewater processes: the last (and next) 30 years
Technology Sharing
Why we must harness the power of horizontal innovation in the formulation sector
In Orbit
Astronaut Donald Pettit talks to Adam Duckett about his life and work
Turning Ocean Trash into Cash
Project turns plastic waste in the sea into vehicle fuels
Usher in a New Age
Adam Duckett on ushering in a new era
Paul Héroult and Charles Hall – Turning a Rarity into a Commodity
What’s the most valuable metal in the world? Today, it’s gold, the price of which has soared so m...
News
Australia invests A$400m in alumina amid global critical minerals race
AUSTRALIAN aluminum manufacturer Alpha HPA is set to benefit from a A$400m (US$258m) government c...
SSAB and Exxon among project partners in US$6bn US decarbonisation scheme
SWEDISH conglomerate SSAB and ExxonMobil are among the companies selected by the US to deliver va...
50 technologies that could change the world
BIOLOGICALLY-INSPIRED AI, data stored in DNA, and power beamed from space are among 50 emerging t...
Sweden’s Northvolt hails sodium battery breakthrough
NORTHVOLT says it has made a breakthrough in the development of sodium-ion batteries that could h...
University of Birmingham launches EvoPhase, an AI-powered design approach for industrial processing equipment
UNIVERSITY of Birmingham Enterprise has launched EvoPhase, AI-led technology that optimises the d...
Engineers successfully trial single process to produce zero emissions steel and cement
ENGINEERS working on a process to produce zero-emission cement as a byproduct of recycling steel ...
UK lithium boost as engineers use membranes to extract lithium from brine
ENGINEERS have piloted a process that uses membranes to produce battery grade lithium carbonate f...
Sika announces funding award for new concrete-recycling technology that stores carbon
SPECIALITY chemicals company, Sika, has announced that its reCO2ver technology is now receiving t...
Researchers develop mussel-inspired coating that can extract rare earth elements
RESEARCHERS at Penn State University, US, have developed a mussel-inspired nanocellulose coating ...
MOF capture firm secures £3.4m funding for UK CCS pilot
NUADA, which is developing a MOF-based carbon capture process, has received £3.4m (US$4.3m) inves...
UK dye recycling startup recognised by the fashion industry while a demonstrator launches for textile circularity
DYERECYCLE, a startup of Imperial College London, UK working to recover and reuse dyes in the fas...
BASF opens centre to research microplastics and biodegradation
BASF has opened a research facility in the US to help understand how plastics disintegrate and bi...
Peak Cluster: UK lime and cement producers join forces to capture 3m t/y of emissions
CEMENT and lime producers in the UK have formed a carbon capture and storage cluster – the Peak C...
NCC advances UK-based composite cryogenic hydrogen programme with testing facility
THE National Composites Centre (NCC) has announced a UK-based test programme to assist the aerosp...
Primark launches its first circular clothing range
CLOTHING retailer Primark has launched its first product range designed to be reused or recycled,...
UK and Canada forge ties to strengthen critical minerals supplies
THE UK and Canada have agreed to cooperate on critical minerals including research to bolster the...
US aims to create semiconductor manufacturing clusters by 2030
THE US is planning to create at least two manufacturing clusters for leading-edge semiconductors ...
Ineos buys former BASF concrete chemicals business
INEOS is buying MBCC’s admixture business from Sika, acquiring manufacturing sites in the US, Can...
Composites centre wants UK to lead on recycled carbon fibres
THE UK’s National Composites Centre (NCC) has set its sights on scaling up new industrial process...
UK set to host rare earths processing hub in push for cleantech security
THE UK is set to host a new US$195m rare earth processing hub that Pensana is building at the Sal...
Engineers push to make zero emissions steel and cement from a single process
WHAT if it were possible to make cement as a byproduct of recycling steel – and power its product...
£3.8bn UK gigafactory receives funding
THE UK Government has committed funding towards a huge £3.8bn (US$4.5bn) battery manufacturing pl...
UK joins forces with MIT spin-out to accelerate nuclear fusion
THE UK Atomic Energy Authority has joined forces with Common Fusion Systems (CFS) of the US to sp...
KBR to design Carbon Clean CCS plant for Cemex
KBR has been awarded the FEED contract for a CCS project that Cemex plans to install at a cement ...
Johnson Matthey will invest £80m in hydrogen fuel cell factory
JOHNSON Matthey (JM) will invest £80m (US$96m) in expanding its site in Royston, UK to manufactur...
UK sets up centre to advise on critical minerals, amid warnings of supply risks
THE UK has established a Critical Minerals Intelligence Centre in Nottingham to help the country ...
Plant-based alternative to plastic microbeads set for scaleup
ENGINEERS have received funding to scale up a technology that produces sustainable alternatives t...
Cemex opens new non-fossil fuelled facility in UK
CEMEX has officially opened its new Climafuel facility at its Rugby, UK cement plant. The plant, ...
UK partnership successfully recycles continuous carbon fibres
ENGINEERS at the UK’s National Composites Centre (NCC), along with partners, have successfully re...
FLSmidth leads work to electrify calcination in bid to cut cement emissions
ENGINEERS are building a pilot plant to electrify production of a clinker replacement that would ...
Veolia announces its first UK battery recycling plant
VEOLIA is building its first electric vehicle battery recycling facility in the UK, with the capa...
Steel industry gathers to discuss sustainability
INDUSTRY workers and researchers from across the steel sector gathered for the virtual bi-annual ...
Simple changes for environmental and cost benefits in textiles
ONE-OFF investment in wet processors for simple, practical improvements could lower environmental...
HyNet secures new hydrogen customers
MAJOR producers of food, ceramics, glass, paper and cars – including PepsiCo and Jaguar Land Rove...
Glass industry sketches process technology route for reaching net zero
THE UK’s glass industry has said it faces a challenging road ahead in meeting net zero targets, a...
Johnson Matthey set targets to lower waste and improve safety on journey to net zero
JOHNSON MATTHEY has announced targets to heavily focus its sales and R&D spend in line with UN Su...
Cement major plans world’s first carbon-neutral production plant
HEIDELBERGCEMENT plans to retrofit its plant in Sweden to capture 1.8m t/y of CO2, and become wha...
CarbonBuilt’s commercial project to accelerate through purchase agreement
CARBONBUILT has announced that it has entered into a purchase agreement with financial services a...
Innovation challenge launched to decarbonise cement and concrete industry
THE Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) has launched a programme to help accelerate low...
BP and CEMEX partner for net-zero cement
BP and building materials company CEMEX have partnered to accelerate progress of CEMEX’s ambition...
Carbon Clean supplies carbon capture technology to three more industrial facilities
CARBON Clean has announced three new agreements with power-to-fuels, cement, and hydrogen product...
Covestro pilots chemicals recycling process to close loop on used mattress foam
COVESTRO has begun to pilot a chemical process to recycle the foam from used mattresses. If succe...
DuPont buys Laird Performance Materials
DUPONT has agreed to buy Laird Performance Materials for US$2.3bn.
LED pioneers win Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering
FIVE engineers who helped develop LED lighting have won the 2021 Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engine...
CPI launches programme to support SMEs
CPI, an independent technology centre, has announced the launch of a programme aiming to support ...
Partners to develop and commercialise polysaccharide technology
DUPONT Nutrition & Biosciences and global chemicals company Kemira have partnered to develop and ...
Robert Gore, inventor of Gore-Tex, has died aged 83
ROBERT “Bob” Gore, chemical engineer and renowned inventor of Gore-Tex has died at the age of 83.
Developing sulfur polymers
RESEARCHERS at the University of Liverpool, UK, are making significant progress in developing new...
Australian-first hydrogen project completes funding
HYDROGEN technology company Hazer’s commercial demonstration project – which will produce low-emi...
LG Chem invests US$53m to triple nanotube production
LG CHEM is more than tripling its production of carbon nanotubes for the burgeoning electric vehi...
Arkema to focus on specialty materials business
ARKEMA is to exit the intermediate chemicals business as it seeks to realise its ambition of beco...
Green process converts almost any carbon source into graphene
RESEARCHERS at Rice University, US have discovered a green process which can quickly and cheaply ...
Communication troubles are holding back UK biotech
ENGINEERING biology must learn to communicate better if the breakout discipline is to achieve its...
Advancing low-carbon technologies together
LED by the World Economic Forum (WEF), chemical companies are to collaborate to reduce the chemic...
Covestro partners with 3D printing pioneer to scale up production
COVESTRO is working to scale up the production of a resin developed by Silicon Valley firm Carbon...
HeidelbergCement sets Paris-aligned emissions targets
HEIDELBERGCEMENT has set targets to reduce its emissions in line with the Paris Agreement climate...
A tougher bioplastic for food packaging
ADDING rubber to bioplastic to make it less brittle has led to the development of a new type of b...
Threads that change colour in response to certain gases
A NEW method for dying threads could be used to create smart clothing that changes colour in the ...
Carbon-negative concrete wins inaugural CCUS prize
A CARBON-NEGATIVE form of concrete has won an inaugural prize that recognises the potential of us...
Dual-polymer hydrogel can respond dynamically to its environment
A HYDROGEL has been developed that can bend, twist, or stick together when exposed to certain sol...
GO dough: transforming graphene oxide
RESEARCHERS have developed a method to turn graphene oxide into a mouldable dough, making it safe...
Scepticism over the UK bioeconomy strategy
INDUSTRY has expressed mixed reactions towards the recently-released UK Bioeconomy Strategy. The ...
UK government announces £60m in funding for sustainable packaging
THE UK government has announced the launch of a £60m (US$76m) innovation fund to accelerate the d...
Novel particles for photocatalytic water treatment
RESEARCHERS at Rice University, US, have developed novel micrometre-sized, titanium dioxide (TiO2...
The next step for CO2-based plastics
COVESTRO’s carbon dioxide-based polyols have been used to produce synthetic sports flooring. The ...
Improving water purification
A NEW, multi-university research centre, headquartered at the US' University of Texas at Austin (...
Covestro to build world-scale MDI plant
COVESTRO, a leading supplier of high-tech polymer materials, is to invest €1.5bn (US$1.73bn) to b...
Evonik to build a new silicones plant
EVONIK, a world leader in specialty chemicals, is to build a new silicones plant at its Geesthach...
Uranium: Under the sea
LCW Supercritical Technologies and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have taken a mile...
‘Green’ high-tech dye synthesis
RESEARCHERS at TU Wien, Austria, have discovered a novel, highly efficient, ‘green’ method of syn...
Invista brings latest ADN technology to China
INVISTA Intermediates is to build a 300,000 t/y, world-scale adiponitrile (ADN) plant in China, a...
New packaging: cheap and slippery
FANS of fast food know how tricky it is trying to squeeze out the last drops of ketchup from thos...
Lanxess to sell JV stake to Saudi Aramco
SPECIALTY chemicals group, Lanxess plans to sell its 50% share of Arlanxeo to its joint venture p...
Neste aims to turn plastic waste into fuel
NESTE, a producer of renewable diesel, is developing ways to turn liquified plastic waste into a ...
Turning wood waste into adhesives
A substance in trees that is usually discarded by paper manufacturers has been used to create adh...
Heat-triggered polymerisation method saves energy
A NEW polymer manufacturing process that uses the energy from the internal polymerisation reactio...
3D-printing human corneas
HUMAN corneas have been 3D-bioprinted using a specially designed bio-ink containing corneal cells.
New aluminium smelting process will cut carbon emissions
ALUMINIUM producers Alcoa and Rio Tinto have announced a new joint venture, called Elysis, which ...
DuPont and ADM launch bioplastic pilot plant
DUPONT and ADM have announced the opening of a pilot plant in that will be the world’s first prod...
Printing all-liquid 3D structures
A TEAM of scientists has developed a method to 3D print all-liquid structures which could have ap...
New 4D printer can create shape-changing objects
RESEARCHERS have developed a prototype ‘4D’ printer that allows 3D-printed objects to change thei...
New MOF membrane cuts energy use for petrochemical industry
AN ENERGY efficient separation method for propylene and propane has been developed using metal-or...
Graphene as a carrier for fertiliser micronutrients
A GRAPHENE-BASED carrier system for delivering micronutrients to crops increases the efficiency o...
3D printing metal alloys for flexible electronics
RESEARCHERS at Oregon State University have developed a method to 3D-print metal alloys which cou...
Nuclear fusion is 15 years away from reality, say MIT engineers
FUSION power – the clean energy technology wryly said to always be 30 years from reality – could ...
Green LEGO gets greener
LEGO has announced that plant-based plastic sourced from sugarcane will be used in pieces such as...
Toyota magnet cuts need for rare earth elements
TOYOTA has developed a new magnet for electric car motors that requires less neodymium than conve...
Steel furnace reignited after two years
His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, has formally restarted an idle furnace at a Liberty Stee...
LyondellBasell announce plans to acquire A. Schulman
PLASTICS company LyondellBasell has announced that it will merge with A. Schulman as part of a US...
New densified wood is as strong as steel
ENGINEERS at the University of Maryland have developed a way to make wood more than ten times str...
Green glycidol pilot plant in the UK
Green Lizard Technologies (GLT) will use dimethyl carbonate and unpurified waste glycerol for env...
DNV GL opens centre to catalyse 3D printing in oil and gas industry
DNV GL has set up an R&D centre in Singapore to accelerate the use of 3D-printed technology by th...
3D printing of living cells using in-air microfluidics
A TECHNIQUE has been developed that allows two fluids to be combined mid-air by using two jets of...
Using LEGO bricks for microfluidics
RESEARCHERS at MIT have simplified the process of creating microfluidics prototypes by building t...
Australia must act now to own big downstream battery opportunity
AUSTRALIA’S government has been urged to act now if it wants domestic industry to push downstream...
New continuous cell therapy bioprocess
A COATING that allows the first ever continuous production of cells could remove a significant bo...
Stored heat from the sun can provide energy on demand
ENGINEERS at MIT, US, have developed a chemical composite that can store heat from the sun during...
Locking plastic in concrete
ADDING plastic bottles to concrete could lead not only to lower carbon emissions, but improve str...
New graphene oxide membrane filters organics
GRAPHENE OXIDE membranes were once thought to be permeable only to aqueous solutions, but researc...
Detecting water leaks with ‘smart paper’
A SMART paper laced with conductive nanomaterials could be used to easily locate water leaks in a...
Using AI to discover new processes
A MACHINE learning tool with the potential to search through millions of research papers to devel...
ENGIE Fabricom selected to design and build novel Saltend chemical plant
ENGIE Fabricom has been awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for ...
Novel coating turns windows into radiators
MUCH of the heat loss from buildings is through the windows, but researchers in Sweden have devel...
14 partners join CO2-to-plastic consortium
COVESTRO is leading a consortium of 14 European partners from seven countries in a new project to...
Ceramic pump works at 1,400°C
A CERAMIC pump capable of transferring molten tin at temperatures of more than 1,400°C could lead...
Arup: Organic waste could be used in construction
A NEW report from engineering major Arup says that organic waste such as that from bananas, potat...
First liquid MOF described, retains porosity
NOVEL research has demonstrated that metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), commonly produced as fine p...
A fashionable process
A PILOT facility in Finland has successfully trialled an environmentally-friendly process to recy...
Solvay sells polyamide business to BASF
SOLVAY is selling its integrated polyamides business to BASF for €1.6bn (US$1.92bn) as it continu...
Caterpillars might not break down plastic after all
RESEARCHERS in Germany say that research earlier this year showing that waxworms can chemically b...
Storing energy brick by brick
FIREBRICKS similar to those used to line kilns for over 3,000 years could provide an industrial e...
Thorium nuclear research boost
A THORIUM molten salt reactor (TMSR) experiment – the world’s first in over 45 years – has been s...
Spraying electric rainbows
A SAFER, easier process to apply colour-changing conjugated polymer films to consumer goods such ...
Lab on a chip 3D-printed
MICROFLUIDIC devices that are effective at a scale less than 100µm have been 3D-printed for the f...
Solving the big butt problem
STREETS worldwide could be made greener and cooler by incorporating waste cigarette butts into as...
Making polysulfates and polysulfonates
RESEARCHERS using so-called “click chemistry” say they have developed a fast, easy way to make su...
Turning dirty foil into useful catalysts
CONTAMINATED foil is unrecyclable as grease and fats damage recycling equipment, so it is often l...
Spinning silkworm cocoons
BIOCOMPATIBLE, biodegradable silk cocoons capable of being accurately spun on a nano-scale could ...
Very strong plant-inspired graphene aerogel
A NEW form of graphene aerogel, inspired by the structure of a plant stem, is exceptionally stron...
Funding to extract rare earths from coal
THE US Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded US$1m in funding to Penn State University and its i...
Making polycarbonate from sugar and CO2
CHEMISTS at the University of Bath, UK, have developed a process to create polycarbonate plastic ...
Solar paint turns wall into a fuel station
ONE day, fuel stations could become little more than a wall coated with a special catalytic paint...
