Latest Chemical Stories
Design for toxic-waste incineration facility wins Kevin Kelly Design AwardJanuary 31, 2017
UCD graduate in chemical and bioprocess engineering Amy O'Keeffe outlines her award-winning design of a toxic incinerator plant for Irish domestic requirements and her review of the use of electrostatic precipitators in industry
Irish-designed software is a game changer for safe disposal of pharmaceutical wasteJanuary 17, 2017
Kevin Walsh’s research carried at Waterford Institute of Technology has led to engineering consultancy Aphex developing revolutionary software for safe disposal of chemical waste for the pharmaceutical industry
3D antibody arrays could help diagnose malaria and other diseasesJanuary 17, 2017
MIT chemical engineers have built three-dimensional arrays of antibodies that could be used as sensors to diagnose diseases such as malaria or tuberculosis
A cleaner, more efficient car? New material designed to better store hydrogen fuelDecember 13, 2016
Chemical engineer Jose Mendoza-Cortes has designed new materials that could be used to store hydrogen fuel more efficiently in hydrogen fuel cars or other devices that use clean energy
‘Mood ring’ materials: a new way to detect damage in failing infrastructureNovember 29, 2016
Mixing nanoparticles into a batch of clear polymer resin results in a smart material that changes colour when it is damaged or about to fail. The technology could play an important role in minimising and mitigating damage to failing infrastructure, say researchers
New discovery by chemical engineers could help oral medicines to work betterNovember 29, 2016
A new method has been discovered for customising ingredients that help oral medications, such as anti-seizure drugs and prostate-cancer drugs, dissolve in the body and be absorbed into the bloodstream
Plant-to-human communication: nanobionic spinach plants can detect explosivesNovember 15, 2016
By embedding leaves with carbon nanotubes, chemical engineers have transformed spinach plants into sensors that can detect explosives and wirelessly relay that information to a handheld device
Process-safety case studies – catastrophic failures of heat exchangersNovember 1, 2016
Peter Marsh analyses three temperature-related failures of shell and tube heat exchangers in gas processing and oil-refining plants from around the world, resulting in substantial loss of business and, tragically, the deaths of nine employees
New ‘green’ soap molecule could clean out cleaning product industryNovember 1, 2016
A new soap molecule has been invented by engineers.Oleo-furan-surfactant, or OFS soap, is made from renewable sources that could reduce the number of chemicals in cleaning products and their impact on the environment
Bioburden control in biopharmaceuticals and single-use technologyOctober 18, 2016
Concluding our series on bioburden control, Chris J.A. Davis outlines the control measures that can be applied to the biopharmaceutical process, compares steam-in-place to hot-water sanitisation and examines the increasing use of single-use technology
Researcher engineers clean water-treatment option to target sporadic outbreaksOctober 18, 2016
An environmentally friendly technology to zap outbreak-causing viruses and bacteria from public drinking water has been developed by engineers
Bioburden control in biopharmaceuticals: managing the risksOctober 4, 2016
In the first of a two-part series on bioburden control, Chris Davis defines biopharmaceutical products, outlines the risks inherent in biopharmaceutical processes and examines how to prevent microbial contamination
Portable device produces biopharmaceuticals on demandOctober 4, 2016
System is designed to use microbes for manufacturing small amounts of vaccines and other therapies that could be used to produce treatments at the point of care
Engineering polymer brush patterns: quicker and more versatile methodsSeptember 20, 2016
A new method of engineering polymer brush patterns developed at UC Santa Barbara promises to cut down processing time while adding versatility in design
Successful water treatment – setting the scales straightSeptember 20, 2016
Effective water treatment can be a balancing act for businesses, with scaling, corrosion and tuberculation all potentially problematic. Dr Simona Vasilescu explores how bespoke monitoring is a cost effective and sustainable water-treatment solution
The importance of properly classifying chemical substances and mixturesSeptember 6, 2016
Áine Monaghan outlines the importance of correctly classifying chemical substances and mixtures, even though the UN’s Globalised Harmonised System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals is interpreted differently in some jurisdictions
Engineers use microwaves to produce high-quality grapheneSeptember 6, 2016
Engineers have found a method for producing quality graphene that can be used in next-generation electronic devices: bake the compound in a microwave oven
New wastewater technologies to allow development in poor soilsAugust 9, 2016
Joe Walsh looks at two technologies that can provide solutions for many sites previously considered unsuitable for development due to the health risks associated with sewage-related pollution
Flexible pharmacy with portable system that can produce drugs on demandAugust 9, 2016
Engineers have developed a compact, portable 'flow processing' pharmaceutical manufacturing system that can be reconfigured to produce a variety of drugs on demand
Towards sustainable agricultural waste management using dry anaerobic digestionJuly 26, 2016
Treatment of wastewater containing high concentrations of nitrogen from pig farming is an ongoing environmental problem. Can dry anaerobic digestion technology solve the problem of how best to treat pig manure, including piggery wastewater?