As the chemicals industry prepares to enter the second decade of this millennium, a survey completed by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (DTT) suggests the industry is on track for substantial changes. Innovation and a focus on customer demands will change the way chemical companies do business. They will create an environment in which chemical businesses will be managed for cash rather than for profit. These changes will also shape the way chemicals are used, processed, and purchased. To find out more, read the report and consider if and how proposed changes in the chemicals industry will impact your organization.

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Air-Clear, LLC, one of the nation's leading manufacturers of industrial air pollution equipment, announces the turnkey installation of a Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO) on a major food/spice manufacturer located in Baltimore, MD.

Actio Corporation provides manufacturing companies with on-demand, centralized management of product materials data, down to the substance level. Leveraging Actio's automated SaaS platform, customers more easily globalize products and avoid compliance fines — resulting in higher profitability. See how Actio helps manufacturers implement defensible material management systems.

Reducing costs and ensuring operational safety are concerns facing most chemical manufacturers. One 'PEARL' of an idea to save money and the environment is to purchase used and surplus low- and medium-voltage electrical products. A Plant Services article says these tools can improve adherence to maintenance schedules and reduce maintenance costs.

Batch operations place unique demands on the manufacturing system. Creating efficiency in these operations can be a significant challenge. However, with proper planning and review, batch operations can be made more efficient. Chemical Processing says frequency and management can improve efficiency in batch operations.

Plastic requires considerable petroleum to produce. In an effort to improve production, researchers developed a manufacturing technique using carbon dioxide as a central material for plastics manufacturing. The technique is less energy intensive compared with traditional plastic manufacturing and produces a plastic with more impact resistance and durability.

Increasing oil prices drove the search for alternative energy sources. Ethanol was touted as a panacea (see the video) for dependence on foreign oil. Research now suggests that ethanol may create more problems than it solves. A Stanford University study suggests that ethanol powered vehicles may produce more ozone than gasoline powered ones.

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Evonik's Industrial Chemicals business unit offers a wide range of custom manufacturing services essential to your industrial and agricultural programs. Evonik provides full support for all phases of your product's life cycle. Benefit from increased yields, improved efficiencies, and co-product solutions to improve your competitive advantage in today's challenging marketplace.

TMC is an important building block in the production of polymer membranes useful for fluid purification via reverse osmosis (RO) techniques. An important application for TMC in water purification membranes involves interfacial polymerization of meta-phenylene diamine (MPD) with 1,3,5-benzenetricarbonyl tri-chloride producing a crosslinked polyamide (US 4,277,344). Read more.

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Rare earth oxides are critical to manufacturing wind turbines and hybrid and electric cars. Recently, researchers discovered how to extract these materials from the waste of other industrial processes. Applied on an industrial scale, the processes provide access to raw materials which can improve environmental sustainability in a cost-effective manner.

Reducing vehicle carbon dioxide emissions can be accomplished through innovations in tire manufacturing. Specifically, improvements in silica compounds help reduce the rolling resistance of tires on pavement. This advance could mean dramatic changes in the tire manufacturing and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

Carbon nanotubes production requires electricity passed over carbon graphite in an inert environment (see video). Now researchers can produce carbon nanotubes by converting disposable plastic carrier bags to make the tubes. The technique is one of the cheapest and most environmentally-friendly methods for carbon nanotube production.

Visions of the future include self-cleaning windows and electric cars. Even though these products haven't become reality, scientists have taken remarkable steps by developing self-assembling peptides at the nanoscale. The compounds offer a wide range of properties, including the ability to repel dirt and increase solar panel efficiency.

Arkalon's expertise in the manufacture of custom reactive monomers is exemplified by our product TMC, which is a key cross-linker used in the manufacturer of water purification membranes. We have the capability of developing and scaling-up processes to meet unique specifications and packaging requirements. Call 203-285-8103.

Griswold designs and manufactures a variety of pumps, including ANSI, end suction centrifugals, self-priming, and submersible/vertical turbines. With hundreds of thousands of pump installations worldwide, Griswold serves a broad range of chemical process, industrial, and municipal applications. Learn more.

Although unemployment remains a pressing issue of global economic concern, job forecasts for the engineering field suggest positive growth in both the number of jobs and overall increases in salaries. Taking a cautious approach to growth, large companies are expected to increase contract hiring to as much as 20% of their workforce. Experts at the staffing firm Yoh project that contract-to-hire positions will increase in 2010 with emphasis for skilled professionals in defense, nanotechnology, and aerospace engineering.

In what appears to be the next step forward in synthesizing man and machine, scientists at the Mayo Clinic have advanced a new technique known as electrocorticography (ECoG). Using this technique, brain waves can be translated into alphanumeric code which can be interpreted by a computer. This translation may aid in the development of new assistive devices which allow operation without direct physical control by the operator.

Predicting the Chemical Future

What changes do you foresee in the chemical industry? Have you noted changes in your organization? What do you believe the future will bring in 2010 and beyond?