Process Engineering articles from February 2000

Process Engineering archives from February 2000

IN BRIEF: Pantek automates AstraZeneca.
February 1, 2000... Wonderware visualisation software is an integral part of a new expansion of AstraZeneca R&D's Charnwood energy centre, says Pantek, the software's supplier. The expansion, carried out by Saake and Wellman Robey, included a fully-automated pilot...

IN BRIEF: BioMedica aids discovery.
February 1, 2000... Oxford BioMedica has licensed its LentiVector gene delivery technology to AstraZeneca. The technique allows researchers to deliver a gene to a particular tissue, which helps identify the role played by the gene in diseases. AstraZeneca will use...

IN BRIEF: BP Amoco's record quarter.
February 1, 2000... As PE went to press, BP Amoco posted year-end profits of $6.2billion, up 40 per cent on the previous year. This was mostly due to a record fourth quarter in which profit before exceptional items rocketed 145 per cent to $2.1billion. A full...

ICI begins to see the benefits of changes.
February 1, 2000... Record profits from speciality chemicals helped radically-reshaped British chemicals giant ICI to beat the market's expectations and post a 17 per cent increase in year-end profits to #376million, with sales rising by 2.5 per cent to...

ABB bags power firm.
February 1, 2000... ABB's UK division has sealed a deal to buy East Midlands Electricity Contracting, the power network servicing company, from PowerGen. The price of the company was not disclosed. The company will be incorporated into ABB's power distribution...

Valves bound for China.
February 1, 2000... China syndrome: this collection of IMI Bailey Birkett safety relief valves, bound for the Luo Yang petrochemical complex, is the fruit of the company's network of regional offices, says sales director John Davis. The SafeSet pilot-operated...

IN BRIEF: Shell sets up a PET shop.
February 1, 2000... Shell has agreed to sell its polyethylene terephthalate (PET) business to the Italian Mossi & Ghisolfi Group for an undisclosed sum. The business, which also makes polyethylene naphthalate, operates in the US, Mexico, UK and Italy. ...

IN BRIEF: Air pollution powers up.
February 1, 2000... The market for air pollution control systems, and the associated engineering and monitoring products, will be worth some $26billion this year, according to the McIlvaine Company. The largest customer will be the power industry, mostly for SO2...

IN BRIEF: TotalFina Elf names execs.
February 1, 2000... Following the merger of Elf Acquitaine and TotalFina, the merged company has named the executives who are to take charge of the chemicals division. Francois Cornelis will be executive vice-president and chief executive of the business, while...

Heraeus in catalyst reprocessing acquisition.
February 1, 2000... German precious metals specialist Heraeus has acquired an aluminium oxide catalyst regeneration business from Degussa-Huls, extending its spread of catalyst regeneration businesses. Heraeus already operates machinery for catalyst...

Focus on R&D set to boost BASF Pharma.
February 1, 2000... BASF has set itself a 15-20 per cent target for return on sales in its pharmaceuticals division. Alone among the German majors in combining heavy chemicals with life sciences, the company intends to reach this target by accelerating the...

Investment and product launches signal optimism at DSM Fine Chemicals.
February 1, 2000... Dutch major DSM's Fine Chemicals business has announced plans to invest E50million in new plants in Linz, Austria, and Venlo, the Netherlands. Aimed at servicing the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries, the new sites represent...

IN BRIEF: Weir wins power station refurb.
February 1, 2000... A consortium comprising Weir Engineering Services and Dowding & Mills has won a #4.25 million contract to refurbish the Clachan hydro power station by the end of the year. The contract covers the complete mechanical/electrical refurbishment of...

IN BRIEF: Rotork becomes the first offshore.
February 1, 2000... Rotork has won a contract valued around #2.25 million to become the first manufacturer to supply a total package of electric, pneumatic and hydraulic valve actuation and control systems for an offshore platform - the Snorre B. This platform is...

Siemens continues on the process acquisition trail.
February 1, 2000... Siemens Energy & Automation has entered a $170 million agreement to acquire Moore Products Co. Donald Bogle, president and ceo of Moore Process Automation Solutions, the operating name of Moore Products Co, said: `This acquisition unites...

Government programme cuts back on wasted energy costs.
February 1, 2000... Site Specific Advice is now available to UK engineering companies which can knock 10 to 20 per cent off their energy bills for little or no cost to themselves. Administered under the Energy Efficiency Best Practice Programme (EEBPP), any...

Butterflies replaced in Japan site.
February 1, 2000... The Mucon Division of the Kemutec Group has just secured an order worth around #80 000 from a Japanese pharmaceuticals firm for 72 of its Series K Mucon Iris Diaphragm Valves to replace butterfly valves on a powdered products line. Series...

Speed drives go down under.
February 1, 2000... Supplied by Alstom Drives & Controls, 225 Alspa GD3000E variable speed drives are now at work down under at the Murrin Murrin nickel mine in Western Australia. Most are being used in centrifugal pump applications, covering ratings from 0.75 to...

Peristaltic prize.
February 1, 2000... Peristaltic pump specialist Watson-Marlow Bredel's new 620 series pump range combines ease of maintenance with versatility, making it suitable for a wide range of tasks usually entrusted to other types of positive displacement pumps. The...

Software aims at the panel level.
February 1, 2000... The latest addition to Intellution's Dynamics software family, iVisualize is a Windows CE-based solution for the panel level of the control marketplace. And the company has entered a partnership with Pro- face Europe, a subsidiary of Digital,...

Straight swap recorder cuts out paper on price.
February 1, 2000... The Logoscreen 500 paperless recorder from Jumo Instrument offers a direct replacement for conventional chart recorders. Until now, most paperless recorders have been expensive, complicated to use and too large to fit standard panel slots. But,...

The great North drive.
February 1, 2000... Just a few miles below the Arctic Circle, drives manufacturer Vacon - Vaasa Control - is one of the beneficiaries of ABB's transformation. But it didn't seem like that when the company was formed. ABB decided to move its Finnish drives...

ABB repositions for `Brain Power' future.
February 1, 2000... Focusing on software and `knowledge-based' businesses, ABB starts to prepare for the 21st Century. Stuart Nathan reports from Zurich The towering steel support columns and exposed brick and concrete of a disused electrical switchgear...

COMMENT: Can big business bounce back through e-business?
February 1, 2000... When the US government decides to unleash the might of the FBI in the search for the hackers who overloaded many leading websites for a few hours this month, then you know e-business is now big business. By pure chance, the hackers - who...

Piping cost estimates (pt 5).
February 1, 2000... This series on estimating the costs of pipework and piping projects might be one of the longest we have published (having started in September 1999 and continuing through October, November and January) but it reflects the importance - and...

EXTENDING OUR COST DATA BOUNDARIES.
February 1, 2000... Last month we introduced eight new countries to our international indices. While we could present data up to 1998 last month, more recent data is proving harder to come by, but we hope to rectify this soon. The base for all is 1996=100. ...

UK AND INTERNATIONAL PLANT COST INDICES.
February 1, 2000... Process Engineering's PREDICT plant cost index for the UK is made up of five components covering mechanical IM, electrical IE, civil engineering IC, site engineering IS, and project overheads IO. These are all calculated to the base 1996=100,...

Greenhouse - free fossil fuel.
February 1, 2000... A project to extract methane from deep coal beds is about to enter its third phase, with the first full-scale test of a system developed by the Alberta Research Council in Canada. The technique involves injecting flue gases - carbon dioxide,...

Elf Atochem rewards end-users for product innovation.
February 1, 2000... On this page we regularly feature research and technology developments that will bring rewards to tomorrow's process industries, but this month we report on innovations that have already proved a success in their own particular marketplaces....

Hydrogen route uses one step.
February 1, 2000... German technology firm Caloric Anlagenbau has developed a new route to hydrogen from natural gas by combining the preformer, reformer and CO- shift in a single process step. The route uses only one catalytic step, followed by a pressure-swing...

DERA system has firmer foundations.
February 1, 2000... A new coupling system for fluid-filled pipes promises to reduce vibration in `critical pipework applications'. The system, developed by the UK's Defence Evaluation and Research Agency, uses active vibration control, which was originally...

Carbon sorts out the smell for Witton.
February 1, 2000... Cost-effective removal of large quantities of contaminants may pose a bit of a challenge, but it's no easier for small amounts of complicated chemical cocktails, as Witton Chemicals discovered when it decided to replace the worn out local...

`Trusted' will find the faults in new Sicilian LP gas plant.
February 1, 2000... ICS Triplex has been asked to provide an integrated turn-key control and safety system for the new liquid petroleum gas storage plant which is being built at Raffineria di Milazzo, Sicily. For simplicity, the refinery's operators wanted...

Knocking away at the mill.
February 1, 2000... There was no chance for workers at Scottish woollen textile company Johnstons to enjoy a quiet working environment with the waterhammer problem caused by the unreliable heating and humidification. Fortunately peace was easy to restore by...

PLCs are saving.
February 1, 2000... PVC producer European Vinyl Corporation (EVC) has managed to save around #750 000 by using Mitsubishi Q series dual redundant PLCs instead of a traditional DCS to control a new combined heat and power plant at its Fleetwood, Lancashire...

Genesis of double silicone.
February 1, 2000... Dow Corning is on a mission. Through the so-called Genesis project, the company plans to make its Barry site the most technologically advanced silicone manufacturing plant of its kind in the world, with double its current level of production....

Don't panic avoid alarm overloads.
February 1, 2000... Alarms are a plant's way of telling you something needs doing. Alarm overloads tell you it needs doing now. But deciding what `it' is can be an operator's worst nightmare. Mike Spear reports Listening to the speakers at the recent DTI...

Serious safety.
February 1, 2000... With estimates of over 2000 explosions a year during storage/handling of combustible materials, 20 accidents a month involving runaway reactions, and one large fire a day, the European process industries are having to take safety extremely...

PLANT OPTIMISATION using real time measurements.
February 1, 2000... Iain Crosley and Jim Scotland explain how online particle size analysis helped identify problems at an underperforming grain mill and brought it into line with its neighbours In recent years energy costs have been rising. This has brought...

Preparing for the Solvents Directive.
February 1, 2000... From April 2001, European companies are legally obliged to comply with the European Council of Minister's Solvent Emissions Directive. But help is at hand from the ETBPP, as Sandy Muirhead explains In recent years, legislation has often...

Flexibility the key to PUMPING solids.
February 1, 2000... From low concentration suspensions of soft solids to highly abrasive mineral and metal slurries, liquids containing solids are difficult to pump. Selection of the right model is critical if process performance is to be maintained. Here Brian...

Conference gets to the heart of pumping station design.
February 1, 2000... At the heart of all clean water, cooling water or wastewater transmission systems is the pumping station, governed by a complex combination of design, engineering, operational and financial considerations. This is the thesis behind a...

Hygienic pump gets EHEDG approval.
February 1, 2000... The SH/BH progressing cavity pump range from Netzsch Nemo Pumps has been designed with the co-operation of the EHEDG working group. It is 3A certified to meet, among others, FDA regulations for use in the food industry. Various component...

Tubing lasts 18 times longer.
February 1, 2000... Jointly developed by US sealant specialists W L Gore and leading peristaltic pump manufacturer Watson-Marlow Bredel, the new Sta-Pure tubing is now available across W-M Bredel's range of 300, 500, 600, 700 and 800 Series pumps. Boasting a...

Weir Pumps aims for growth.
February 1, 2000... Weir Pumps is to replace its seven divisions with four small market- driven business units. According to md John Frew, the new arrangement will give greater focus to the company's main markets - power, oil (downhole and subsea), industrial,...

More power to the piston.
February 1, 2000... New from Kecol Pumps is an intermediate range of piston pumps for use with viscous creams and pastes. Made in stainless or carbon steel, new 115 pump tubes fit to either the 160 or 200 air motor to provide a 5:1 or 7:1 pumping ratio. These...

Fast track for maintenance.
February 1, 2000... With its `one-nut' design, Flotronic's Chemflo diaphragm pump lends itself to easy maintenance - a particularly important feature in hazardous areas. A failed diaphragm can be changed in less than ten minutes, without the pump having to be...

Here's to better suction lift.
February 1, 2000... The IP range of peristaltic pumps from Alfa Laval's Flow Division features a patented `hose-in-hose' vacuum system that improves suction lift ability and extends hose life. The design incorporates a secondary bore in the transport hose that...

Mono helps to put cream in your coffee.
February 1, 2000... An SL Range progressing cavity pump from Mono has solved a maintenance problem at Premier Brands UK's Staffordshire plant where it has been installed to work on the liquid coffee whitener line. The previous pump on this duty needed to be...

Machining makes for 3D impellers.
February 1, 2000... Until now, thermoplastic pumps - despite their inherent corrosion- resistant advantages - have only been available with simple cylindrical vanes. This has now changed thanks to production developments by manufacturer Munsch, whose pumps are...

No worry over the inhibitors from these injection pumps.
February 1, 2000... A total of 13 Cerex injection pumpsets are to be supplied by Bran+Luebbe to ROC Oil's on-shore gas field at Saltfleetby in Lincolnshire. They are to be used for hydrate inhibitor (methanol) injection and corrosion inhibitor injection on the...

Dosing pump range end is upgraded.
February 1, 2000... ProMinent Fluid Controls has introduced several upgrades to its Vario motor-driven dosing diaphragm pumps. Replacing the Plexiglas polypropylene and PTFE liquid ends of earlier models, there is now a new PVDF liquid end. This is...

Now in hot water.
February 1, 2000... The new ZDNA and ZHNA models extend Sterling Fluid Systems' range of high temperature pumps for hot water applications. The ZDNA long-coupled pump is suitable for hot water up to 185 degrees C. It has a single, uncooled mechanical seal and...

Compounders interest polyolefin producers.
February 1, 2000... The polyolefins industry's never-ending urge for expansion has led to a need for new equipment, according to process technology specialist Krupp Werner & Pfleiderer. Compounding and pelletising plants are struggling to keep up with the output...

IN BRIEF: Norsk Hydro exits UK.
February 1, 2000... Norsk Hydro has put its UK assets, mainly comprising three North Sea oilfields, up for sale. It hopes to raise over #300million from the divestment, which is part of an effort to boost shareholder returns. Copyright: Centaur Communications...

Cryogenic pump heats up the cooling market.
February 1, 2000... Under development on site trials for four years, the 950 cryogenic pump from Girdlestone Pumps has shown that it can almost eliminate unscheduled downtime. Although successful during continuous operation, the pump was developed for those...

Versatility is the feature of robust progressing cavities.
February 1, 2000... Two progressing cavity pumps from Robbins & Myers demonstrate the versatility of this robust design. The R&M 1000 is an economical, high performance, low maintenance pump said to be ideally suited to municipal wastewater treatment applications,...