A Wasted Life
Martin Pitt reflects on the history of the waste industry, including his own experiences
Features
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: Upcycling – Making Plastic Waste Valuable
Amanda Jasi speaks to researchers working to realise novel chemical upcycling methods
Ethics Series - For the People: By the People
Mark Miodownik discusses ethical research goals and the power of citizen science
Bioplastics Promise
Nyssa Nair, Steven Pratt, Paul Lant and Bronwyn Laycock explain the use of bacteria to produce bi...
Closing the Plastics Loop
Ivan McCormack discusses his role in the recycling sector, developing a chemical process to clos...
The Chemical Industry’s Balancing Act
Lars Krause and Michael Carus discuss crediting the value of bio- and CO2-based and recycled mate...
Transforming Supply Chains
Industry will be forced to adapt, says Paul Hodges
Taking Aim
Malcolm Wilkinson and members of IChemE’s Sustainability Special Interest Group discuss the futur...
Deconstructing Runaway Reactions Using Dynamic Modelling
James Close, John Barker and Georges Melhem use a case study to explain the importance of underst...
Challenges for recycled polymers in Europe
An analysis of the increasing pressure faced by the recycled plastic supply chain in Western Europe
Making Every Molecule Matter: The Technology Journey
Nick Flinn describes the technologies that may play a crucial role as the energy transition develops
A Circular Economy for Plastics
What’s standing in the way of us closing the loop on plastics? Mark Vester discusses
Malaysia Versus Waste
Malaysia has much to do, say Kok Siew Ng and Eleni Iacovidou
Pyrolysis Gets Personal
Adam Duckett visits the workshop of Nik Spencer to understand more about a pyrolysis unit that ...
Hot Water
A bright future awaits chemengers in the water industry, say Richard Hill and Chris Short
Policy Perspective
Samson Yosef explains how IChemE is supporting members to influence policy
What to do About Waste?
Conclusions from the Royal Society of Chemistry’s summit on future waste science policy.
Take it Apart; Put it Back Together
How do you dismantle a chemical plant for re-erection at the other side of the world? Richard Van...
Pet Projects
Standard routines and their place in continuous improvement
Friendly Foams
Building the UK’s first captured-carbon polymerisation plant
Nathaniel Wyeth – Got a lot of bottle
Richard Jansen-Parkes looks into the life and times of Nathaniel Wyeth, inventor of the PET bottle
Landfill vs Skyfill
How landfill might be the better option for disposal of low-grade plastics
A Battery Olympics
Getting around the limitations of battery devices with clever ways of teaming different technolo...
Lego makes plants from plants
LEGO has announced that plant-based plastic sourced from sugarcane will be used in pieces such as...
Rubbish Roads
A solution to the world’s plastic problem could be right under our feet. Toby McCartney, MacRebur...
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
Modern Times
Leo Hendrik Baekeland, the inventor of Bakelite, whose work ushered in the age of polymers
Dermot Manning and colleagues at ICI – Plastic Fantastic
The commercial success of PE starts with Reginald Gibson, Eric Fawcett, Michael Perrin and Dermot...
Waldo Semon – Rubber, PVC and... bubblegum?
Waldo Semon has a lot to answer for, finds Claudia Flavell-While
News
Emerson wins automation contract for Ras Laffan petchem complex
EMERSON has won the contract to supply automation and analytics technology for the US$6bn Ras Laf...
UK government fails to support technology that could be key to combatting plastic waste
THE UK government has been criticised for dismissing recommendations to support chemical recyclin...
Chemical engineers explore upcycling microfibres released from washing clothes
UNIVERSITY of Surrey and UK-based washing technology group, Xeros Technology, have teamed up to a...
Plastic Energy opens new R&D labs at Loughborough
RECYCLING technology firm Plastic Energy has opened new research and development labs and a dedic...
Plastics recycling partners plan 100,000 t/y facility
INEOS and Plastic Energy have signed a memorandum of understanding for a 100,000 t/y facility in ...
Prince William announces Earthshot Prize finalists
A CARBON-ZERO aggregate made from waste materials and by-products for use in construction, a curt...
UoQ’s A$13m research centre wants to lead the way on greener plastics
THE University of Queensland, in Australia is leading a new training centre that aims to become a...
Back in style: using enzymes to recycle PET from big brand clothing
FRENCH biotech firm Carbios has signed an agreement with On, Patagonia, Puma, and Salomon, to spe...
Wood wins contract to engineer Ineos’ huge European chemicals project
WOOD has won a contract worth more than US$100m to help engineer a chemicals facility in Belgium ...
Plant-based alternative to plastic microbeads set for scaleup
ENGINEERS have received funding to scale up a technology that produces sustainable alternatives t...
LanzaTech transforms captured carbon into plastic
Carbon recycling specialist LanzaTech, with the support of Danone, says it has found a way to pro...
BP agrees to buy naphtha from Teesside circular plastics plant
BP has signed an agreement to purchase naphtha produced from a plant being built in Teesside, UK ...
Ineos awards Técnicas Reunidas contract for massive European chemicals investment
INEOS has awarded Técnicas Reunidas a contract to engineer a world-scale ethylene plant in Belgiu...
Neste studies plastic waste processing facility
AS IT works to commercialise chemical recycling of plastic waste, Neste is conducting a feasibili...
Fluor will engineer Itero’s chemicals recycling process
FLUOR has won the contract to engineer a chemical recycling demonstration plant for Itero in the ...
175 countries commit to create historic global plastics treaty
ONE HUNDRED and seventy-five nations have agreed to create a global treaty to end plastics pollut...
Turbocharging towards CO2-free cracking
ENGINEERS at Coolbrook and ABB have set their sights on replacing steam cracking technology with ...
LG Chem to build plastic recycling facility in South Korea
LG CHEM has invested in Mura Technology’s plastic recycling process, and has also announced that ...
Ineos joins NEXTLOOPP polypropylene recycling project
INEOS Olefins and Polymers (O&P) has announced that it is joining the NEXTLOOPP project, which is...
Grangemouth trial to advance plastics recycling
INEOS and its JV company Petroineos will work with recycling technology company Plastic Energy on...
Fire destroys UK plastics factory
A PLASTICS factory near Hull in the UK has been destroyed by a fire.
Shell invests in upgrader as it pivots towards circular chemicals at Singapore site
SHELL will build a new pyrolysis oil upgrader unit at its Pulau Bukom site in Singapore as part o...
Plastic Energy and Axens join forces to license circular plastics processes
PLASTIC ENERGY has partnered with engineering services firm Axens to license its plastics recycli...
CRI will build second Chinese plant to produce methanol from industrial emissions
CARBON Recycling International (CRI) has agreed to design a plant to produce methanol from captur...
Novel process could recycle PVDC
SOLVAY has shown that polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) has the potential to be recycled and is now ...
North-west industry calls for UK Government action to support green growth
INDUSTRY in north-west England has published a manifesto, calling on the UK Government to impleme...
LG Chem and TK Chemical sign MoU for biodegradable plastics
LG Chem and TK Chemical have announced a memorandum of understanding to produce biodegradable pla...
Ineos Styrolution joins U.S. Plastics Pact
STYRENICS supplier Ineos Styrolution has joined the U.S. Plastics Pact, a collaborative initiativ...
Mitsubishi develops 20,000 t/y plastics recycling plant in Japan
MITSUBISHI Chemical Corporation (MCC) will develop a 20,000 t/y HydroPRS plastics recycling facil...
Engineered yeast strain could revive interest in non-food bio-feedstocks
CHEMICAL engineers at MIT have genetically engineered yeast that are tolerant to toxic biorefinin...
New catalyst makes propylene production more efficient
A SINGLE-atom catalyst has been developed that that can lower the carbon footprint of propylene p...
LEGO makes bricks from recycled plastic bottles
THE LEGO Group has developed a prototype LEGO brick using PET from recycled plastic bottles.
Pilot project develops process to recycle single-use face masks
A COLLABORATION between research and industry is developing a closed loop process where single-us...
Peel NRE plans second plastic-to-hydrogen facility in UK
PEEL NRE has announced plans to develop a waste plastic to hydrogen facility in West Dunbartonshi...
Industry joins RSC taskforce to chart a greener path for PLFs
UNILEVER, Croda and Crown Paints have joined a taskforce convened by the Royal Society of Chemist...
McDermott awarded contract for plastics recycling project
MCDERMOTT has announced that it has been awarded a front end engineering design (FEED) contract f...
Pilot plant will convert soybean waste into bioplastic
A FINNISH consortium is building a pilot plant to convert waste from soybean processing into comp...
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...
Partners to build world-first commercial recycling facility
WOOD and advanced recycling company ReNew ELP have partnered to build the world’s first commercia...
Plastic Energy joins forces with ExxonMobil on plastic waste
PLASTIC ENERGY has agreed another partnership with an industry heavyweight – this time ExxonMobil...
SABIC and BP join forces on circular plastics
SABIC and BP are working together to produce recycled plastics at the Gelsenkirchen chemical comp...
Closure of Altona refinery fuels concerns about Australian manufacturing
EXXONMOBIL is closing its Altona refinery in Victoria, Australia. The decision comes hot on the h...
KBR secures recycling technology licence
KBR has signed an agreement with Mura Technology under which KBR will be an exclusive licencing p...
BASF starts up new MDI unit in push to double Geismar production
BASF has completed the first phase of its push to double production of MDI at its integrated chem...
Neste acquires stake in plastics recycling company
NESTE has acquired a minority stake in plastics recycling company Alterra Energy. The companies w...
LyondellBasell and SUEZ joint venture expands plastic recycling capacity
LYONDELLBASELL and SUEZ have jointly acquired plastics recycling company TIVACO, which will becom...
Plastic Energy’s push to close loop on plastics wins top IChemE Award
A PROCESS to chemically recycle plastic waste that cannot be mechanically recycled won IChemE’s t...
LyondellBasell sets ambitious plastics sustainability target
LYONDELLBASELL has released its 2020 Sustainability Report in which it sets the target of produci...
Four proposed UK plastic recycling facilities receive funding
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has invested £20m (US$26m) in four proposed plastic recycling p...
Sasol forms polyethylene JV with LyondellBasell
SASOL has sold half its stake in its Lake Charles petrochemicals complex in the US to LyondellBas...
New recycling facility in Europe will recycle plastic repeatedly
TECHNOLOGY company Loop Industries and environmental services company SUEZ have announced that th...
LyondellBasell starts up pilot plant to recycle plastics
LYONDELLBASELL has started operation of a new pilot plant for a pyrolysis process that it is deve...
Transition to low-carbon world needs to be faster, says DNV GL report
ENERGY-RELATED CO2 emissions have peaked due to the pandemic, but the world is still on track to ...
Partnership to accelerate plastic waste elimination
PACKAGING company Sealed Air has announced a partnership with advanced recycling technology compa...
Developing sulfur polymers
RESEARCHERS at the University of Liverpool, UK, are making significant progress in developing new...
Worley awarded FEED for bio-based plastic intermediate plant
TECHNOLGY developer Avantium has awarded Worley the front-end engineering design (FEED) contract ...
Ineos Styrolution reports polystyrene can be successfully recycled
INEOS Styrolution has reported the final results of research project ResolVe, showing that waste ...
Dow aims to be carbon neutral by 2050
DOW has set a target to be carbon neutral by 2050 and that all the packaging its chemicals produc...
Stretch film manufacturer commercialises sustainable alternative
DOXA Plast, a stretch film manufacturing company, is commercialising a family of bio-based high p...
UK Government warned against plastic lobbyist efforts during the coronavirus crisis
MORE than 20 scientists, campaigners, and politicians have signed a letter in which they warned t...
Partners plan plant to recycle plastics into high-purity feedstock
INEOS and recycling technology company Plastic Energy are collaborating to construct a new plant ...
Recycling Technologies signs agreement for first European site
SPECIALIST plastic recycling technology provider Recycling Technologies has signed an agreement w...
More than a quarter of Europe’s ethylene capacity under threat
AROUND 6.6m t/y – or 26% – of Europe’s ethylene production capacity is threatened by reduced acti...
Coronavirus could lead to packaging material shortage, warns Recycling Association
THE UK risks a shortage in material for vital packaging needed to protect food and medical suppli...
Green light given to UK plastic-to-hydrogen facility
THE UK’s first plastic-to-hydrogen facility has received planning consent at a site near Ellesmer...
Teesside industry evolves its CCS pitch and pushes plans to host net zero cluster
A CONSORTIUM operated by BP is pitching for the UK Government to support the development of a net...
INEOS to produce plastics from wood-derived oil
INEOS has signed an agreement to use naphtha derived from wood pulp processing to manufacture bio...
Drax and Econic partner to produce plastic using waste CO2
DRAX has announced a partnership with cleantech company Econic Technologies, to explore the poten...
Turning banana waste into food packaging
RESEARCHERS at the University of New South Wales, Australia, have developed a process to turn ban...
Ineos to build world-scale styrene plant in China
INEOS Styrolution, a global styrenics supplier, is to build a 600,000 t/y greenfield acrylonitril...
Steam cracking transforms waste plastic into new
A PROCESS has been developed for steam cracking of plastic waste to produce new plastic, which co...
Upcycling plastic bottles for the chemical industry
RESEARCHERS at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia have ...
Partners build Vietnam’s first ‘plastic road’
MATERIALS science company Dow and Vietnamese industrial zone developer DEEP C Industrial Zones ha...
Borealis and Neste enter agreement for renewable polypropylene
NESTE will provide its renewable propane to Borealis for production of polypropylene as part of a...
100+ partners commit to the Circular Plastics Alliance
MORE than 100 public and private partners, including from the chemical sector, have signed the De...
Cracker consortium aims to reduce carbon emissions
SIX companies with European petrochemical operations have established a consortium that will join...
Behold the Plastic Age: synthetic fibres found in fossil record
GEOLOGISTS could one day determine the age of rocks by measuring the amount of plastic found in s...
BASF and Domo Chemicals to acquire Solvay’s polyamide business
BASF, Solvay, and Domo Chemicals have reached an agreement for the acquisition of Solvay’s polyam...
Jaguar Land Rover and BASF trial recycled plastic in cars
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has partnered with BASF in a pilot research project to trial plastic recy...
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...
Neste and LyondellBasell claim bioplastic first
NESTE and LyondellBasell are claiming an industry-first with the parallel, commercial-scale produ...
Avantium commercialising PEF production
CHEMICALS company Avantium is commercialising production of polyethylene furanoate (PEF), a 100% ...
Petronas Chemicals looks to convert waste plastic into feedstock
PETRONAS Chemicals is investigating building a plant to turn plastic waste into virgin feedstock ...
A step towards closing the carbon loop
RESEARCHERS at the University of Toronto (UoT), Canada have developed a novel electrochemical pat...
New plastic can be recycled repeatedly
SCIENTISTS at the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory (LBNL) hav...
BASF to build two plastics plants at proposed site in China
BASF is to build an engineering plastics compounding plant and a thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU...
ExxonMobil doubles manufacturing capacity of UK specialty elastomers plant
FOLLOWING a plant expansion ExxonMobil has doubled the manufacturing capacity of a plant in Newpo...
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...
Consortium aims to bring world-first PET recycling technology to market
PEPSICO, Nestlé Waters, and Suntory Beverage and Food Europe have joined a consortium to help bri...
BP joins effort to make paraxylene from biological sources
BP has formed a partnership with Virent and Johnson Matthey to commercialise a process that produ...
ECHA publishes comprehensive plastic additive inventory
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has published a comprehensive inventory of all of the high-v...
Chemical engineers quiz MPs on science funding and single-use plastic
IN a reversal of roles, chemical engineers took the opportunity yesterday to quiz UK policy leade...
Evonik sells methacrylates business for €3bn
EVONIK is selling its methacrylates business to private equity firm Advent International for €3bn...
A new process for converting plastic waste to fuel
A NEW process has been developed that uses supercritical water to transform polypropylene plastic...
Report identifies challenges towards a plastics circular economy
THE European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry (SusChem) has released a report identi...
Improved process for making plastics from sulfur
SCIENTISTS led by the University of Liverpool, UK have discovered a novel catalytic process for t...
New alliance combatting environmental plastic waste
NEARLY 30 companies from across the plastic value-chain, including BASF, Dow Chemical, Shell, and...
Coca-Cola Company to extend loan for novel PET recycling technology
THE Coca-Cola Company has announced an agreement extending a loan to Ioniqa Technologies, a start...
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...
The next step for CO2-based plastics
COVESTRO’s carbon dioxide-based polyols have been used to produce synthetic sports flooring. The ...
Recycling mixed plastics together
RESEARCHERS in the UK have undertaken a project which aims to develop new technologies for dealin...
New MOF makes plastic manufacturing more energy efficient
RESEARCHERS have developed a metal-organic framework (MOF) containing iron-peroxo (Fe2(O2)) sites...
Producing hydrogen from plastic waste
A PROCESS has been developed to convert waste plastic into hydrogen which could be used as fuel.
Ineos picks McDermott for new PDH unit
INEOS has awarded McDermott a contract for the licence and engineering of a new propane dehydroge...
New technique for recycling multi-layer packaging
CRISP packets, chocolate wrappers, and blister packets for pills are all extremely difficult to r...
Neste aims to turn plastic waste into fuel
NESTE, a producer of renewable diesel, is developing ways to turn liquified plastic waste into a ...
New process for creating biodegradable polyesters
RESEARCHERS have developed a new polymerisation process involving a light-activated catalyst that...
Stemming the flow of plastic waste
EUROPE has proposed a law banning or restricting single-use plastics, the UN has released a polic...
Top ten bio-based chemicals for UK economic growth
A REPORT from the Lignocellulosic Biorefinery Network (LBNet) has identified ten biochemicals whe...
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...
Plastic as a heat conductor
A PLASTIC has been developed that can dissipate heat instead of trapping it, which could be used ...
Engineered enzyme digests plastic
AN EXPERIMENT to study a plastic-eating bacterium accidentally created a mutant enzyme that degra...
Unilever joins forces with Ioniqa to scale up breakthrough plastic waste recycling process
UNILEVER has formed a partnership with processing pioneer Ioniqa and Indorama, the world’s larges...
Shell shows scale of work underway at Geismar expansion
SHELL has released photos showing its progress building the world’s largest alpha olefins product...
Green LEGO gets greener
LEGO has announced that plant-based plastic sourced from sugarcane will be used in pieces such as...
Europe's first waste-to-chemistry facility provides solution for non-recyclable plastics
A FACILITY that will convert non-recyclable wastes into biofuels and chemicals for industrial use...
LyondellBasell announce plans to acquire A. Schulman
PLASTICS company LyondellBasell has announced that it will merge with A. Schulman as part of a US...
Using LEGO bricks for microfluidics
RESEARCHERS at MIT have simplified the process of creating microfluidics prototypes by building t...
Genomatica and Aquafil join forces to make bio-based nylon
GENOMATICA is working with nylon-maker Aquafil to produce one of its key feedstocks – caprolactam...
UK launches 25-year plastic waste plan
THE UK government has launched a 25-year plan to protect the environment and reduce “avoidable” p...
UK plastic recycling crisis expected
THE UK’S recycling industry says it may not be able to cope with an increase in plastic waste, as...
Locking plastic in concrete
ADDING plastic bottles to concrete could lead not only to lower carbon emissions, but improve str...
Evonik develops new process for MMA
EVONIK has developed a more efficient process to produce methyl methacrylate (MMA), a widely-used...
Petronas Chemicals, Saudi Aramco in polymers JV
PETRONAS CHEMICALS GROUP has sold a 50% stake in its PRPC Polymers subsidiary to Saudi Aramco for...
Surf and turf: replacing plastic laminates
A COMPOSTABLE biomaterial made of derivatives from lobster shells and wood could sustainably repl...
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...
Chemical fire reported at Arkema Texas plant
ARKEMA has reported a chemical fire at its organic peroxide (OP) plant in Crosby, Texas, amid flo...
Chemical fire expected at flooded Texas plant
A CHEMICAL fire or explosion is expected within days at Arkema’s organic peroxide plant in Crosby...
Spraying electric rainbows
A SAFER, easier process to apply colour-changing conjugated polymer films to consumer goods such ...
Cyborg bacteria make chemicals from sunlight
“CYBORG” bacteria covered in tiny solar panels have been demonstrated to produce acetic acid from...
Sadara JV commissions last plant
SAUDI-based Sadara Chemical Company has commissioned the last of 26 plants at its US$20bn petroch...
Giving green polymers the blue light
BLUE light has been used by researchers to create an interpenetrating polymeric network (IPN) in ...
Making polysulfates and polysulfonates
RESEARCHERS using so-called “click chemistry” say they have developed a fast, easy way to make su...
First global plastics analysis
A WORLD-first study of the production, use and fate of all plastics ever made has shown that 8.3 ...
Making polycarbonate from sugar and CO2
CHEMISTS at the University of Bath, UK, have developed a process to create polycarbonate plastic ...
