Chemical Industry Journal 25

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| foreword |

chemicalindustryjournal.co.uk

Welcome Karen Southern Editor

Editor Karen Southern karen.southern@distinctivegroup.co.uk

And now for the good news…

Let’s start the not-so-new year with some good news for a change.

Design

Congratulations to the UK pharmaceuticals and biotechnology sector, which dominates the top 10 spinout companies of the last decade with a combined value of £3.14 billion.

Distinctive Media Group Ltd, 3rd Floor, Tru Knit House, 9-11 Carliol Square, Newcastle, NE1 6UF Tel: 0191 580 5990 distinctivegroup.co.uk

The rankings, according to GovGrant’s University Spinouts Report 2021, highlight the immense role played by university tech and innovation in achieving this world-leading status.

Advertising Distinctive Media Group Ltd, 3rd Floor, Tru Knit House, 9-11 Carliol Square, Newcastle, NE1 6UF Tel: 0191 5805990 David Perratt Business Development Manager email: david.perratt@distinctivegroup.co.uk Tel: 0191 5805471 distinctivegroup.co.uk

When analysing the last 20 years, the sector accounts for half (£5.9 billion) of all capital raised by university spinouts in the UK (followed by computer hardware (9.6%) and healthcare devices and supplies (8.8%).

Within pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, 76 (13%) drug discovery spinouts account for £2.6 billion of capital raised (39.6%) and 60 (10.3%) biotechnology spinouts for £1.2 billion (17.5%).

According to the report, the most successful spinout company over the last decade is Exscientia, which is worth £785 million and was founded at the University of Dundee.

Using proprietary AI technology to discover and design new drugs, the firm received a $4.2 million grant from the Gates Foundation earlier this year to develop new medicines for infectious diseases.

In this issue, we highlight yet more of the successes and challenges in the industry. While

Distinctive Media Group Ltd or Chemical Industry Journal cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies that may occur, individual products or services advertised or late entries. No part of this publication may be reproduced or scanned without prior written permission of the publishers and Chemical Industry Journal.

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the sector continues to wrestle with the huge logistics of sustainable investment and shifting regulatory requirements, the EU has begun drafting new legislation for chemical recycling.

Can a ‘one-size fits all’ approach work for waste management across Europe? ICIS editor Mark Victory investigates.

We also feature positive breakthroughs in the development of environmentally friendly chemicals. For instance, researchers at Newcastle University aim to create a new generation of catalysts for the production of biorenewable chemicals… with promising results so far. Read more in this issue.

In a similar vein, Stephen Thomas, of the University of Edinburgh, was recently honoured in the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists UK for his research into the development of sustainable metal catalysts. We publish an overview of Stephen’s exploration into the use of such metals for large-scale agrichemical production.

And last but by no means least, Daniel Brown, from James Robinson Specialty Ingredients, investigates how careful planning and adaptation is key to using natural chemicals in sustainable production.

Please feel free to drop me a line with story ideas and contributions at karen.southern@distinctivegroup.co.uk.

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| contents |

Challenges for sustainable product recovery from micro-organisms

features

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ChemUK 2022 Preview

Chemical Business Association – approaching 100 Not Out!

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| contents |

contents chemicalindustryjournal.co.uk

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welcome

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Contents

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chemuk 22 Preview

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issue 25

The CHEMUK 2022 EXPO returns on the 11th & 12th May 2022 at the NEC in Birmingham. The event, now established as the UK’s only major expo for the UK chemical industries, will showcase 300+ specialist exhibitors and 100+ expert speakers across two co-locating shows.

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agrichemicals As agrichemicals become ever more complex, the need for catalysis is higher. Stephen Thomas, of the University of Edinburgh, has been recently honoured for his research to replace precious and toxic metals with environmentally and physiologically benign metals.

20-22

supply chain When the ‘British Chemical and Dyestuffs Trading Association’ was founded almost a century ago, little did its founder members know that 99 years later as the Chemical Business Association (CBA), it would be the leading organisation within the UK chemical supply chain.

30-36

environmental Europe chemical recycling to keep growing but legislative, infrastructure challenges remain.

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ingredients and blending Daniel Brown, Biotechnology Lead, at James Robinson Specialty Ingredients, examines the benefits and challenges of using natural chemistry in sustainable production.

46-49

reach Industry leaders have called on the European Commission to work together to develop an EU Chemical Industry Transition Pathway to sustain the massive investments required to meet the objectives of the EU Green Deal.

46 Upcoming EU legislation puts industry at crucial crossroads

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

ACHEMA 2022 date change ACHEMA 2022, the World Forum for the Process Industries, will be held at the Frankfurt Fairground from 22 to 26 August 2022.

The move from the original April dates was made in view of continuing uncertainty caused by the Omicron covid variant.

The organisers see the four-month postponement as an opportunity to ensure an international ACHEMA as current travel restrictions continue to wreak havoc with event timetables.

“After many months of digital meetings, we want to fulfil the desire of exhibitors and visitors for a physical ACHEMA with participants from all over the world,” explains Dr Björn

Mathes, Member of the Board of DECHEMA AusstellungsGmbH. “This requires a comprehensive lively exhibition and the opportunity for personal contact. Apart from the date, nothing else will change about the planned ACHEMA 2022.”

The global trade fair is an opportunity for manufacturers and service providers to present their products and solutions for chemistry, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, alongside other industries.

The focus will be on ‘Modular and Connected Production’, ‘The Digital Lab’ and ‘Product and Process Security’ – all very topical themes for the process industry. Digitalisation and climate neutrality will also be at the forefront of discussion. Full details at achema.de

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MAXIMUM SAFETY FOR TRANSPORTING CHEMICAL PRODUCTS

EPAL CP1-CP9 pallets: strength and security for chemical supply chains.

ISPM15-compliant as standard. uk-irl.epal-pallets.org

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

Extracting value in the battery lifecycle Li-ion battery systems are vital to the future of renewable energy, but sustainability is also a crucial consideration, as Sam Bailey, Partner and Patent Attorney, Mewburn Ellis explains.

Most with a basic understanding of chemistry will have heard of chromatography, solvent extractions, and precipitations. Indeed, you could be forgiven for thinking that chemical extraction and separation techniques and their applications are typically well-established. New developments of these techniques, however, are starting to show promise in lessening the environmental impact of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries.

A SURGE IN DEMAND With developments in technologies such as electric vehicles and grid power storage to support renewable energy generation, the demand for Li-ion battery capacity is set to rise exponentially in the next decade.

To meet this demand there is a huge focus in the scientific community on improving the efficiency and capacity of these battery systems by changing the underlying cell chemistry and construction.

While those innovations will play a vital role in meeting the future energy needs, addressing the environmental impact at both ends of the battery lifecycle is also essential if this form of power storage is to be truly sustainable.

THE NEGATIVE (-) Both ends of the battery lifecycle share some common challenges, like extracting a desired pure material from a heterogeneous feedstock.

At the birth of a battery, raw materials must be extracted, maybe from a mined ore, and made into a battery cell in an energy efficient and environmentally friendly way.

At the death of a battery the raw materials need to be retrieved as far as possible to feed back into the manufacturing process alongside the freshly extracted raw materials.

These challenges have prompted researchers to adapt existing extraction technologies to meet the specific conditions in the battery environment.

For example froth floatation extraction is a well-known technique in the mining industry to increase the hydrophobicity of valuable parts of a mined ore so that they can be skimmed off the surface of a floatation vessel while the less valuable components sink to the bottom.

Unfortunately valuable battery cathode materials such as lithium manganese oxide (LMO) typically sink in this type of system making them hard to separate.

THE POSITIVE (+) In new research scientists at MIT have succeeded in adapting the known systems to effectively separate out not only the metal foil parts of a Li-ion battery but also the LMO cathode material in high purity for recycling into new battery cells.

Other innovative extraction technologies are also being applied in the battery arena; such as a selective chemical transformation to allow easier separation of valuable elements, either from mined ores or from used Li-ion electrode materials.

Sam Bailey.

Isolation processes such as solvent extraction, ion exchange, and precipitation techniques are known to achieve this type of isolation. These commonly use large amounts of solvents, however, many of which may be environmentally damaging.

A second research group at MIT has developed a process by which desired elements in an ore or recycling feedstock can be selectively transformed into sulphides allowing separation and then desulphidation to reclaim the valuable material; thus avoiding the use of large amounts of solvents.

Extraction technology is also being enlisted to address one of the supply-chain hurdles facing Li-ion battery manufacture; sourcing a local supply of lithium.

Worldwide, the main areas of lithium mining (Australia, South America and China) do not, with the exception of China, coincide with the regions of high Li-ion battery production. This leaves many manufacturers forced to import their lithium supply.

Application of a variety of extraction techniques to geothermal brines (aqueous solutions having high concentrations of salts resulting from circulation through hot underground rock formations) is touted as a possible local lithium supply to avoid the environmental impact of transporting lithium around the world.

A variety of extraction techniques have resulted in large numbers of patents in this area some of which are summarised in a research paper from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

These approaches to extraction of valuable components demonstrate the type of innovative techniques that will be needed to develop local production of elements for battery manufacture and the recycling of valuable materials from spent Li-ion batteries.

These clever twists on known technologies will work alongside the performance improvements in the batteries themselves as we strive for a more sustainable battery lifecycle.

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FUTURE INTEGRATED The new Integral process thermostats from −90 to 320 °C LAUDA is driving forward the connectivity of temperature control technology with the new Integral process thermostats. Thanks to the modular interface concept and intuitive operation via the integrated web server, they are more user-friendly and smarter than ever. The newly developed, superior cooling technology guarantees maximum process reliability in accordance with the European F-Gas Regulation. With its highly dynamic, precise temperature control, high connectivity and improved pump performance, your research and pilot plants will be sustainably fit for the future.

LAUDA Technology Ltd. +44 1780 243 118

info@lauda-technology.co.uk

www.lauda-technology.co.uk

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| brenntag |

Investing for the Future

By Richard Ward

President Brenntag Essentials UK & Ireland

2021 INTO 2022 For most of us, 2021 was a year like no other. I don’t think anyone has ever experienced so much disruption and uncertainty in their home and personal lives during a 12-month period. As a business, we dealt with the additional complexities associated with the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union, the pandemic, supply chain disruptions globally and a business transformation project designed to ensure our future.

Nevertheless, thanks to the skills and dedication of our colleagues, we came through stronger than ever.

As 2022 unfolds, we will inevitably continue to see supply chain disruptions, but everything we learned in 2021, and all the investments we made, will ensure we are best placed to continue offering value to both our customers and suppliers.

ASSETS & INFRASTRUCTURE 2021 saw our highest level of investment in assets and infrastructure to continue providing the best facilities for our business. We have a firm commitment to operate at the highest levels of safety and sustainability and our investment profile reflects this. Through the development of technology-based Asset Integrity monitoring, we were able to prioritise our tank and vehicle replacement programme to deliver the greatest improvements in the shortest timeframes.

Specifically, we installed a new bulk storage facility at our site in Perth and commenced work on our automated container filling project in the South-East.

Our investment in new and multi-capability delivery vehicles continues to reflect the needs of our customers and suppliers, meaning Brenntag UK & Ireland is the bestplaced distributor to service all market sectors.

IT/DIGITAL Development in our Digital and IT solutions have accelerated through 2021 following investment across numerous areas. Our Transend Mobile Delivery Management System incorporates sign-on-glass capability with pre-delivery checks and safety assessments, ensuring deliveries go smoothly and, more importantly, safely.

We have commenced investment in a new Warehouse Management System (WMS) which will ensure a faster turnaround of product through electronic/QR tracking of products throughout our UK & Ireland warehouses with real-time stock replenishment information.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| brenntag |

A new Transport Management System (TMS) is in development to be rolled out in early 2022 with automated routing capabilities and optimisation for improved efficiency, real-time delivery notifications and vehicle telematics.

challenges 2021 entailed, we maintained and improved our performance in this area. In January, Brenntag was once again successful in maintaining our Gold status in the EcoVadis Sustainability Assessment – a status we are proud to have held since 2016.

Progress was made developing our Digital Sales Solutions through the Brenntag Connect portal and we can expect further news on this during the year.

The use of returnable containers remains a priority for us, as this relatively simple activity significantly reduces the environmental impact through the re-use of plastic and stainless steel containers for chemical deliveries.

Increasingly, our customers and suppliers are recognising the importance of this and the introduction of higher levels of recycled polymers into some containers will further enhance this positive contribution.

PEOPLE & CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE Providing our usual levels of in-person skills-based training has been a challenge in recent years, but we have an internal Learning & Development platform which our colleagues have accessed to gain additional insights into key areas. One particularly popular area was a suite of courses designed to support the needs of working remotely and ensuring employee welfare.

I am also pleased that we commenced the training and development programme for over 20 Mental Health First Aiders in December 2021. This will continue throughout 2022 to offer the best possible support to our colleagues.

Our Customer Experience ethos has moved forward substantially this year and culminated in our UK business winning the Gold Award in the B2B category at the UK Customer Experience Awards. This award recognises the efforts of everyone in the business and we will continue to invest in our people to support this important area and key differentiator in the market.

SUSTAINABILITY There is no higher priority to us than the Safety and Security of our colleagues, stakeholders, and the public. Despite the

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We are exploring the use of all fuel options for our vehicle fleet and expect to see encouraging developments in terms of Electric and Hydrogen-fuelled transportation in the coming years.

Overall, the challenges we and the industry faced throughout 2021 helped us to better understand the challenges we may face in the future and investments in our safety, our infrastructure, our people, our digital landscape and our sustainable practices will enable us to secure our operations for the future. www.brenntag.com

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

Agreement for renewable ethyl acetate plant London-based Johnson Matthey and CropEnergies AG have entered an agreement to produce renewable ethyl acetate from sustainable ethanol.

Sustainable chemicals technology supplier Johnson Matthey has signed up to the engineering, license and technical services agreement for the CropEnergies plant, in Germany.

By using Johnson Matthey technology, the renewable ethyl acetate will help reduce the fossil carbon footprint

“Our process is ideally suited for use with bio-based ethanol feeds and offers an ethyl acetate route that is almost 100% carbon neutral while providing a valuable hydrogen co-product stream.

Alberto Gionvanzana, Managing Director for Johnson Matthey

of a variety of everyday products, offering CropEnergies’ customers a sustainable, local source in Europe.

The plant will be designed to produce 50,000 tonnes per year of renewable ethyl acetate from renewable ethanol feedstock using renewable energy. The plant will also generate renewable hydrogen as a co-product. Together with biogenic CO2 from the CropEnergies fermentation process, this will be the basis for further conversion of renewable energy into PtX (power-to-X) downstream routes to produce e-fuels, for example.

The Johnson Matthey process design package is scheduled for completion in mid-2022 after which Crop Energies will make the final investment decision.

Alberto Gionvanzana, Managing Director for Johnson Matthey explained: “Our process is ideally suited for use with bio-based ethanol feeds and offers an ethyl acetate route that is almost 100% carbon neutral while providing a valuable hydrogen co-product stream.

“We are committed to helping the chemical industries manage the 2/2 transitions needed to decarbonise and are looking forward to supporting CropEnergies through the engineering and beyond for this ground-breaking project.”

Dr Stephan Meeder, CEO of CropEnergies AG: “If we want to live in a climate friendly world, we have to change the materials we use. Our goal is to provide to our customers innovative, sustainable products made out of biomass. As a sustainable alternative to fossil products, renewable ethyl acetate significantly saves greenhouse gas emissions.”

Coil Reactor enables on-demand gas introduction to Flow Chemistry reactions The Gas Addition Module II (GAM II) from Uniqsis is a coil reactor that permits gas to be introduced ‘on-demand’ to reactions performed under flow-through conditions by diffusion through gas-permeable membrane tubing.

Using a GAM II - your gas and liquid phases do not come into direct contact with each other at any point.

As the gas dissolved in the flowing liquid phase is consumed, more gas rapidly diffuses though the gas-permeable membrane tubing to replace it. For chemists looking to perform efficient carbonylation or hydrogenation reactions - the novel design of the GAM II ensures that the flowing liquid phase does not contain any undissolved gas bubbles, thereby delivering greater stability, consistent flow rates and reproducible residence times.

Available in two different versions - the GAM II can be cooled or heated just as with more conventional coil reactors. To ensure the most efficient heat transfer, the standard outer reactor tubing can be manufactured from 316L stainless steel. Alternatively, a thick-walled PTFE version of the GAM II is available that offers both improved chemical compatibility and visualisation of the reaction mixture through the opaque tubing walls.

Based upon a standard Uniqsis coil reactor mandrel,

the GAM II coil reactor is fully compatible with their full range of high-performance flow chemistry systems and other reactor modules.

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Search our database of members and the services they provide on bcmpa.org.uk

The BCMPA is a Founder Supporter & Headline Sponsor of CHEMUK Come and visit the BCMPA and our exhibiting members at the NEC Birmingham next May

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| chemuk 22 preview |

CHEMUK 2022 PRESENTS ‘THE CHEMICAL, PROCESS & PLANT ENGINEERING SHOW’ & ‘THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES SUPPLY CHAIN SHOW The CHEMUK 2022 EXPO returns on the 11th & 12th May 2022 at the NEC in Birmingham. The event, now established as the UK’s only major expo for the UK chemical industries, will showcase 300+ specialist exhibitors and 100+ expert speakers across two co-locating shows; ‘The Chemical, Process & Plant Engineering Show’, and ‘The Chemical Industries Supply Chain Show’.

Show organiser, Ian Stone, comments: “CHEMUK is deliberately set out to be a total industry meeting point, creating a fusion of cross-sector energies, inputs and connectivity, however we also recognise the contrasting needs of attending ‘engineering & plant technical management’ and the wider ‘industry supply chain’ focused attendees, on themes such as supply chain chemicals & ingredients, logistics & outsourcing, HSE, regulatory compliance, R&D management and more….

Separating into two complimentary yet contrasting exhibition shows can only help to get attendees locked into discussions with their primary targets quicker, as well as providing an easy ‘under one giant roof’ experience to take in the broader trends of the sector”

The Chemical, Process & Plant Engineering Show The Chemical, Process & Plant Engineering Show will showcase latest technology and specialist services to attending UK plant, process, control & engineering professionals across the chemical and wider process industries embracing: Process Plant / Chemical Unit Equipment / Process Ancillaries & Consumables

Mixing, Agitation & Dispersion

CHEMICAL 4.0 / Digital / Automation

Metering & Dosing

Plant Energy Management

Chemical Processing Tanks / Storage Tanks

Catalysis & Reaction Engineering

Conveying/Feeding / Materials Handling

Heat Exchanger technology / Thermal transfer innovation

Industrial dryers

Control Valves & Actuators / Digital & Automation

Bio-Chemical Process Engineering

Pipes, Hoses, Tubing & Fittings

Process Design / Modelling, Scale-up & Pilot Plant

Flow Technologies

Predictive Maintenance / Condition monitoring / Asset management

Filtration & Separation

Plant Safety Systems Process QA / QC …and more

Current Exhibitors already booked into the show include; FESTO, Schenk Process, Endress+Hauser, Applied Scientific Technologies, GEMU Valves, Moody Direct, Gericke, APEX Pumps, Atlas Copco, AVT Pump, Carbis Filtration, CDR Pumps, Elaflex, Falck Fire Services, HRS Heat Exchangers, VEGA Controls… and many others.

Partners supporting the show include GAMBICA, BPMA - British Pump Manufacturers’ Association, BVAA – The British Valve & Actuator Association, Process Intensification Network, NEPIC, Chemicals Northwest and the Tank Storage Association... to name a few

Show Feature: CHEMICAL 4.0 Stage – The Digital Opportunity Reflecting the tectonic shift towards digitized operations, CHEMUK 2022 will present a dedicated speaker programme covering Digital Adoption Strategies, Process Automation & Robotics, Big Data & Process Data Management, AI & Deep Learning, IIoT/VR, Digital-driven sustainability, and lots more.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| chemuk 22 preview |

The Chemical Industries Supply Chain Show The Chemical Industries Supply Chain Show will showcase specialist exhibitors to attending Product Development, R&D, Supply Chain, Operational and Logistics teams from across the chemicals, chemical products & chemicals-dependent industries, covering: Chemicals, Raw Materials & Ingredients

Toll / Contract / Outsourcing/ White & Private Label Services

Chemical Logistics & Transportation

R&D/Laboratory, Analytical & Testing

HSE Management & Regulatory Compliance

Skills, Training & Recruitment

Specialist Chemical Labelling

Business & Operational Support

Major names already booked into the show include: BTC Europe, Brenntag, Surfachem, Robinson Brothers, Kimia UK. Cod Beck Blenders, Airedale Group, Briar Chemicals, Libra Specialty Chemicals, NCEC, AirSea Containers, Knoell, RAS Risk & Hazard Management, Lakeland Laboratories, Rutpen… and many others.

Partners supporting the show include the CBA – Chemical Business Association, BCMPA – The Association for Contract Manufacturing, Packing, Fulfilment & Logistics, BIOVALE, Chemicals Northwest, NEPIC, CATCH, Royal Society of Chemistry… to name a few.

Show Feature: ‘CHEMLAB’ Programme CHEMLAB will showcase specialist exhibitors providing Laboratory solutions & services, embracing Research & Development, Testing & Analysis, Process Design & Optimisation through to QC/QA Laboratory testing, serving the industrial chemicals & chemical products industries.

Expanded Sustainability & Circular Economy agenda at CHEMUK 2022: New for 2022 is the dedicated ‘Sustainability Stage’, hosting panel sessions and feature presentations embracing critical themes such as chemical recycling & sustainable chemical processing, together with ‘green chemistry’ innovation and transition to bio-based products.

Also new for 2022 will be the ‘Bio-Based Chemicals & Processing INNOVATION ZONE’, showcasing breaking innovation start-ups, university spinouts etc, with exciting concepts.

DATES FOR THE DIARY CHEMUK 2022 takes place on Wed 11th & Thu 12th May 2022 Venue: NEC - National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, B40 1NT Opening Times: Day 1: 9.30am – 5.00pm Day 2: 9.30am – 4.00pm

Registration for CHEMUK 2022 will open in February 2022. Register for your FREE entry badge at www.chemicalukexpo.com

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chemuk2022 preview

exhibitors See us at stand

B27

BPMA has been supporting UK and Irish suppliers of liquid pumps and pumping equipment since 1941.

Its mission: • To be the effective voice of the pump industry • To satisfy the needs of the members • To encourage the active participation of the members • To maximise the membership of the Association BPMA helps the pump sector through the provision of technical support, standards updates, knowledge transfer and independent pump training, which includes two world-class e-Learning courses, six lecture-based courses, as well as on-site and bespoke pump training.

In 2019, BPMA launched Flow, a unique quarterly magazine packed with news, innovations, insight and applied technology for users of pumps and pumping systems.

Come along to Chem UK, see what BPMA has to offer and pick up a free copy of Flow. www.bpma.org.uk

See us at stand

E33

Over 20 year’s experience ISS Projects (UK) Ltd (Stand E33) provide specialist Liquid Level Management solutions to industry throughout the UK and Europe. We design, install and upgrade all types of tank gauging systems and provide planned preventative maintenance and annual calibration/validation services.

Our safety professionals can design and verify Safety Integrity Level (SIL) systems and have experience of working in conjunction with the Health and Safety Executive on top tier COMAH sites.

For remote telemetry we use off the shelf units giving real time levels, alerts and trending using GSM technology to provide seamless integration with existing site infrastructure. www.issprojects.co.uk

See us at stand

M33

Chemlink Specialities, a member of HARKE GROUP, is a dynamic company offering an application and formulation led approach to chemical distribution. We are supported by a comprehensive range of products from quality manufacturers.

Our unique service covers an extensive spectrum of industries ranging from HI&I, Cosmetics and Personal Care to Autocare and Pharmaceuticals.

Addi-Tec offer a sophisticated range of performance chemicals to the Plastics, PVC, Paints, Coatings, Geo Textiles and Formulator Industries.

Our approach is to work closely with processors to ensure we meet ever more stringent technical and regulatory demands at a reasonable cost. We are ideally placed to assist you in overcoming technical problems and achieving long term improvement and commercial benefit.

Visit us at ChemUK! Stand K11 chemlink.co.uk

addi-tec.co.uk

In the chemical industry the demand for speciality lubricants continues to increase due to higher demands on processes and the extreme conditions involved.

Conventional lubricants could be dangerous when exposed to oxygen, aggressive or cryogenic environments. Our speciality lubricants have a positive impact on plant safety by resisting high temperatures and corrosive or solvent media.

We help our customers select the right lubricant for the right application to extend the service life of components and support plant availability/uptime and reduce maintenance times for Gas compressors, air compressors, fasteners used on flanges, ball valves, pump bearings, mechanical seals, and gear boxes.

klueber.com

See us at stand

See us at stand

H10

J55

Progressive approach to reciprocating compressor lubrication

Dura-ID Solutions help you comply to changing regulations with ease.

A full solution allows you to print in-house, reducing pre-printed label waste when an ingredient or percentage changes in a product. A rollfed solution will allow you to utilise an applicator on your filling line, reducing the manpower and time associated with labelling product. With access to various exclusive materials, a number of our print solutions are fully 3-part BS5609 approved, but only when used in conjunction with our labels. Come and see our print solutions in-person on Stand J55 and talk to our experts about how we can help. www.dura-id.com

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Series progressive automatic lubrication system for cylinder and packings with full monitoring of each lube point. Tailor made to customer specifications and needs: • Modular compact systems or complete skid • Brand new systems or overhaul and improvement of systems in place www.lionoil.be

www.chemicalukexpo.com

chemuk2022 preview

exhibitors See us at stand

J50

Your Partner for Energy Transition to See us at Carbon Neutrality stand The market for innovative, highly efficient and climate-friendly energy generation - integrated into production processes on site is gaining momentum.

In this context, projects for setting up your own efficient and secure supply of steam, combined heat and power or cooling are promising but complex and sometimes challenging. Therefore we provide attractive complete packages for construction, takeover or modernisation as well as financing your power plant capacities with our individual contracting and financing solutions. www.decarbsolutions.uniper.energy

L43

RAS Ltd is an independent firm of risk experts specialising major accident hazards. RAS work with a number of the leading companies in the oil and gas and specialist chemical sectors to help them manage their safety, environment and business risks.

RAS has specialists from a variety of backgrounds, enabling us to develop bespoke solutions to any risk problem. Our services span the breadth of risk management, from helping our clients to understand their risks through hazard identification and risk assessment, to helping them prevent, control and mitigate these risks according to the principles of ALARP and emergency response planning. ras.ltd.uk

See us at stand

J53

Whether studying the chemistry of life, or developing the advanced science behind modern technology, chemical scientists use their expertise to improve our health, our environment and our daily lives.

Collaboration is essential. We connect scientists with each other and society as a whole, so they can do their best work and make discoveries and innovation happen.

We publish new research. We develop, recognise and celebrate professional capabilities. We bring people together to spark new ideas and new partnerships. We support teachers to inspire future generations of scientists. And we speak up to influence the people making decisions that affect us all.

We are a catalyst for the chemistry that enriches our world. www.rsc.org

See us at stand

E29

VEGA will be featuring their world leading level and pressure innovations, including latest radar sensors and IIoT inventory solutions, to measure liquids, solids and gases in Chemical manufacturing and distribution.

Industrial instrumentation for monitoring and controlling level, interface, pressure even flow and density with an extensive range of technologies: Radar, Ultrasonic, Radiometric, Capacitance/ Admittance, Pressure solutions, extensive point-level switches and state of the art controllers.

Approvals: EX, SIL, Marine, Hygienic. Communications: Bluetooth, HART, Ethernet, Profibus, FF and Modbus. A standard 5 day build-time and 3 year warranty and experienced support and advice, provides peace of mind. vega.com

ISSUE14

ISSUE16

SUPPORTED BY

SUPPORTED BY

ISthe future of commercial bio-based chemicals now?

Precise, reliable powder processing solutions The future of brand management in the chemical sector

Visit us at stand C15 » WEIGHING & FEEDING » SIFTING & SCREENING » MILLING & GRINDING enquiries@schenckprocess.co.uk www.schenckprocess.com

www.chemicalukexpo.com

» DENSE PHASE CONVEYING » MIXING & BLENDING » EXTRUSION

UK AND WORLD NEWS • ChemUK 2019 • SUPPLY CHAIN • CBA • big interview • SIA • ctpa • reach

UK AND WORLD NEWS • cyber security • chemuk2020 • CBA • big interview • chemicalsupply chain

If you would like to feature in the next editon of Chemical Industry Journal contact: David Perratt Business Development Manager Tel: 0191 5805471 email: david.perratt@distinctivegroup.co.uk

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| agrichemicals |

Sustainable access to molecular complexity As agrichemicals become ever more complex, the need for catalysis is higher. Stephen Thomas, of the University of Edinburgh, has been recently honoured for his research to replace precious and toxic metals with environmentally and physiologically benign metals. These metals also happen to be very inexpensive (by comparison), so suited to large-scale agrichemical production.

Molecular complexity is ever increasing across the breadth of chemical manufacture, from materials to pharmaceuticals and agrichemicals. With this increase in complexity comes the need for chemical transformations to enable this. In an ideal scenario, these transformations would allow the expedient and efficient transformation of simple starting materials into complex building blocks and final targets. Catalysis offers the single most powerful method to enable this by minimising energy and material inputs, while offering established and novel pathways for molecular construction and diversification. Indeed, greater than 80% of manufactured chemical products involve at least one step which uses catalysis – hydrogenation, hydrofunctionalisation and cross-coupling reactions being key examples.

Heterogeneous catalysis dominates bulk chemical manufacture, however where control of 3D complexity, and particularly stereochemistry, are required, homogenous catalysis using precious metals is the ‘go to’ method.

While great efficiently and reactivity can be achieved using (enantioenriched) coordination complexes of the platinum group metals (platinum, rhodium, palladium and iridium), the inherent restrictions on physiological and environmental exposure, long-term sourcing and price stability limit the sustainability of these metals. The first-row transition metals, particularly iron, titanium and manganese, offer a highly sustainable alternative.

These metals are Earth-abundant, found across the continents, and have significantly lower daily exposure limits, costs, and environmental impact in terms of both extraction and waste discharging. It therefore begs the questions why do we not use these metals in place of the platinum group counterparts? In short, operational ease.

The platinum group metals, and complexes thereof, are generally easy to handle, commercial available (or have precursors which are) and we understand the reactivity patterns of these catalysts. It is not a lack of reactivity that poses the greatest hurdle to the adoption of sustainable metal catalysis, but practicality. One can readily test and apply platinum group metal catalysis, so why spend time and effort making the analogous iron catalyst that is highly air- and moisture sensitive and may not work in the given transformation.

It is this barrier to operational simplicity that the Thomas group have spent the last 10 years trying to break down. Our overarching goal is to make it as easy to reach for an iron or manganese (pre-)catalyst as it is a palladium or rhodium catalyst. By developing methods to enable simple access to and testing of sustainable catalysis manifolds at the earliest stages of development, we hope these methods will trickle down to process development and manufacture – the same way platinum group metal catalysis did decades ago. Over the last 10 years we have developed a number of activation methods for Earth-abundant metal catalysis. In all cases, an activating agent is added to a bench-stable metal complex, the pre-catalyst, to initiate catalysis in the presence of the reagents, under reactions condisions. This negates the need to handle and manipulate the highly air- and moisture sensitive active catalyst, often a low oxidation-state species, but allows simple access to the same catalytic processes. For example an ironcatalysed alkene hydrogenation, which require formally iron(0) catalysts, would be carried out using an air stable iron(II) or iron(III) pre-catalyst and activating agent.

Stephen Thomas

About the author: Stephen Thomas is the Chancellor’s Research Fellow at the University of Edinburgh. In 2022, he was named as an honouree of the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the United Kingdom, in recognition of his research into the development of sustainable, earth abundant metal catalysts.

Pre-catalysts activation offers a simple, potentially drop-in means to use Earth-abundant catalysis, but the activating agent must also offer the benefits of sustainability and operational simplicity. Our early activation methods relied on organometallic reagents (Grignard, organolithium and metal hydride reagents), however the flammability of these reagents offered little benefit in terms of operational simplicity. We next developed an alkoxide activation where the salts of simple alcohols could be used in place of organometallic reagents. We were amazed to find that hydrofunctionalisation, hydrogenation and even carboncarbon bond forming catalysis could all be accessed using alkoxide activation. The bench stable, solid, readily available alkoxide salts offered equal and greater reactivity to that previously limited to highly reducing, highly flammable organometallic activators. Most recently, we have moved beyond the need for an added (exogenous) activating agent. By using specific counterions of the metal(II/III) salts, we have been able to access Earth-abundant metal catalysis without the need for an activating agent. The metal counterion serving this purpose on dissolution. After 10 years we have reached the peak of simplicity. One can now reach for sustainable, Earth-abundant catalysis as easily as the platinum group metal analogues.

USEFUL LINKS thomas.chem.ed.ac.uk blavatnikawards.org/awards/united-kingdom-awards

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| cba |

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| cba |

Chemical Business Association – approaching 100 Not Out! When the ‘British Chemical and Dyestuffs Trading Association’ was founded almost a century ago, little did its founder members know that 99 years later as the Chemical Business Association (CBA), it would be the leading organisation within the UK chemical supply chain.

And while the founders might marvel at the incredible changes in today’s modern world and the advances in technology and globalisation, some of the original reasons for founding the association remain as relevant today as they were then, including dealing with raw material shortages and promoting the ‘cause of Free Trade’.

WHAT IS THE CBA?

HOW THE CBA SUPPORTS THE CHEMICAL SUPPLY CHAIN INDUSTRY

The CBA has grown to be the voice of the UK chemical supply chain where it has provided unswerving dedication and consistent support throughout the years. It represents distributors, manufacturers, traders, warehouse operators, logistics and transport companies in the chemical supply chain, many of whom are SMEs and who are the main industry interface providing products and services to thousands of UK downstream chemical users.

One of the chief roles of the CBA is to lobby on behalf of members. This is something it does at the highest levels and over the years, industry has benefitted significantly from the CBA’s interventions. Most recently, its leadership in highlighting and addressing the HGV driver shortage issue led to the introduction of various short and medium-term remedies, and it continues to work with various stakeholders towards more long-term solutions. In addition, its lobbying about concerns of the practicality, workability, and requirement for duplication of testing and costs to implement UK REACH achieved a major breakthrough when DEFRA announced it would consult on extending the deadlines for submission of data, and that it would explore a new data model that would be workable as well as affordable.

Such a diverse membership gives a distinct advantage and a 360-degree view of the chemical supply chain, along with an extensive and in-depth range of expertise and insight.

The CBA is governed by a member-elected Council which is currently chaired by Kate Mingay, Managing Director of Dakram Materials Limited, with Richard Gilkes, Managing Director of Stort Chemicals Limited, in the role of Vice Chair. The Executive Committee, drawn from the Council, is led by and provides ongoing support to the Chair.

The day-to-day operations of the CBA are managed by its CEO, Tim Doggett, former Managing Director of Clugston Distribution Services Limited, together with an experienced team of industry professionals based in Crewe, Cheshire. The association also runs various committees which focus on technical, operational, trade, and sustainability matters. These committees consist of representatives from member companies who provide specialist expertise, input and evidence, which further contributes towards achieving the objectives and the overall strategy of the association.

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Besides lobbying for the industry as a whole, the CBA also offers advocacy representing businesses in both Whitehall and Westminster, as well as Brussels where it has effective working relationships with policy makers, regulators, and legislators alike.

The combined experience as well as capabilities of the CBA and its members enable it to take an active and instrumental role. In the UK, the association works closely with and engages at all levels of Government to provide evidence, feedback also advice directly to Ministers along with various departments such as the DfT and DIT, including bodies such as the Health and Safety Executive.

Further afield, the CBA is currently in discussions with the Indian High Commission as well as the German

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| cba |

Embassy to promote trade between the UK and these two important economies.

The CBA also collaborates with other associations and is an active member of the Alliance of Chemical Associations (ACA). It works closely with the CIA (Chemical Industries Association) and BCF (British Coatings Federation) when appropriate. And while the organisations have very different remits, there are numerous areas of mutual interest.

It is also an active member of the International Chemical Trade Association (ICTA) in addition to taking a leading role and working with national chemical industry associations across Europe.

PRACTICAL SUPPORT FOR BUSINESSES Playing a highly valuable role, the CBA also supports UK businesses on the ground. This includes training in the form of workshops and seminars, which are now available online as well as face-to-face. These cover a wide range of subjects that are of value and benefit to both members and non-members, including compliance, regulations, and best practice. The CBA also offers Dangerous Goods Safety Adviser (DGSA) services through its own in-house DGSA’s, as well as providing training and support on everything from the carriage of dangerous goods through to the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH).

The association also provides a helpdesk which members can contact for assistance on everything from technical advice through to questions on importing and exporting and customs formalities. This service has seen record levels of demand over the course of the last few years, not least due to the significant changes and continuing challenges that have arisen as a result of Brexit, the ongoing impacts caused by Covid-19 along with extraordinary and unparalleled disruption throughout the entire global supply chain.

In addition to the services it offers, the CBA understands the importance and value of networking for members and facilitates this through events such as regular member engagement days, attending exhibitions and not forgetting its annual lunch. Held at the Grosvenor Hotel in London and affectionately known as “Floggers,” the annual lunch has for decades been a ‘must attend’ for anyone and everyone in the chemical supply chain. Attracting attendees from all over the world, quite simply it is the biggest event of its kind in the UK. The CBA offers support throughout the entire chemical supply chain. Following Brexit, it has played a key role in helping members understand transport in the EU, customs formalities and guiding them through changing import and export rules. It is also internationally recognised for its expertise in chemical security, as well as for providing workshops on transport site security and countering the threat of terrorism to members. The CBA also provides representation and consultancy services to various overseas security and government agencies.

A SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY CHAIN Like every other sector, the chemical supply chain industry needs to make considerable progress towards sustainability while reducing and minimising the impact of its operations on the environment as a whole. Indeed, contrary to belief, the chemical industry is heavily involved in finding solutions to solve the problems of climate change.

The CBA’s commitment towards sustainability dates back to at least 1993, since when it has been actively involved with the Responsible Care Programme. This global, voluntary initiative goes beyond legislative and regulatory requirements, providing the chemical supply chain industry with an ethical framework for the safe use and handling of chemical products, while seeking ongoing improvement in health, safety, security, and environmental performance

Tim Doggett

Since its inception, nearly 100 years ago, the CBA has seen its remit expand and the issues affecting the industry change radically and dramatically. As chemicals become increasingly important and critical to industry, its vital role within the chemical supply chain will only grow and become even more important. across the industry. Companies can benefit from and participate in the Responsible Care Programme through their membership of the CBA.

THE CBA’S ROLE IN THE FUTURE Since its inception, nearly 100 years ago, the CBA has seen its remit expand and the issues affecting the industry change radically and dramatically. As chemicals become increasingly important and critical to industry as well as everyday life, and with constant changes not to mention divergence in regulation, policy, and markets, including continued and rapid innovations in technology, its vital role within the chemical supply chain will only grow and become even more important.

A steadfast presence for its members, the CBA will continue to ensure that their changing needs are addressed. It has already become increasingly more proactive, as evidenced by its persistent lobbying of the UK government, and featuring heavily on BBC, ITV, and other national news programmes to raise and highlight concerns on supply chain issues.

Another important aim is to raise the profile not just of the CBA itself and the chemical supply chain industry it represents, but of the wider and far-reaching role that chemicals play in society, such as in pharmaceuticals, food supply, health and beauty, fashion, construction and almost every other sector and industry. As part of this, the CBA’s activities will continue to cover the entire supply chain giving a 360-degree view. This will include maintaining its position as a thought leader and influencer in areas such as science, innovation, and investment, which are integral and vital to the future success of the industry.

While the CBA may have nearly reached 100 not out, it’s obvious this national treasure still has a lot more batting to do.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| cba |

CBA devises innovative IBC solution Back in 2000, changes to the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) regulations meant that the percentage concentration of Ammonia solution that could be legally carried in Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBC’s) by road was almost halved.

This created a major issue for the chemical supply chain and in order to continue to allow deliveries of a concentration up to 35%, a series of Multi-Lateral Agreements (MLAs) were put in to effect to ensure that supplies could continue.

became clear that an entirely new IBC was required, and contact was made with Thielmann, a company recognised as one of the world’s leading manufacturers of stainless steel containers who offered tailor-made in-house solutions to meet a range of design requirements.

Ammonia solution in the higher concentration is used for a number of specialist applications. It is a key chemical component in the recycling of catalytic converters, the approval process for many pharmaceutical products, used in the disposal of military ammunition and, in dealing with slurry in the oil and gas sector.

In association with Thielmann and a group of interested member companies, CBA agreed the required specification and, following various prototype development and testing, the new IBC received authorisation for use in the UK from the Department for Transport in April 2019. Since then, further modifications to the initial design have been made to allow for pressure discharge, which were tested and passed during 2021.

The first IBC’s have already successfully entered service.

As the holder of the approval certificates, authorisation to manufacture is required from the Chemical Business Association. Contact chemical.org.uk for details.

However, the last MLA expired on January 31 2022, creating a significant issue to all for the carriage of ammonia solution in territories that continue to remain contracted to the ADR agreement.

The Chemical Business Association (CBA) identified this problem several years ago and set out to find a solution. It

UK REACH – A MOVE TOWARDS A PRAGMATIC SOLUTION Last December, the Government announced that it will consult on extending the deadlines for UK REACH, and that work will take place to develop a new data model that would be workable and affordable for business and deliver the levels of data to support UK REACH registrations.

This follows a series of meetings and communications between industry and Government, including the Chemical Business Association.

In response to the Government’s announcement, CBA’s Chief Executive, Tim Doggett said: “This is a common sense, pragmatic way forward to solving what

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is an intractable problem. The original intention – to create a mirror image of the data held by the European Chemicals Agency for EU REACH – would involve replicating this testing data for UK purposes. This would be a massive cost to UK industry as well as the likelihood of having to repeat and duplicate animal testing.”

“Industry remains committed to creating a fitfor-purpose regulatory regime which adopts the highest contemporary levels of chemical safety and environmental protection. We look forward to continuing to work with the Government and other stakeholders and to contribute further towards the Government’s intention of extending the deadlines for the full registration data in order that a new model can be considered that would reduce the need for industry to replicate existing EU REACH data.”

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| vega |

IBC Level Monitoring Goes Mobile

When it comes to checking stocks in tanks and silos, radar level measurement has long been a leading technology. But what about small mobile containers like IBC’s whose contents are usually estimated with just a quick glance – if at all?

There is a new, affordable and impressive solution for this application: VEGAPULS Air. With radar level technology, the small sensor is installed quickly and delivers precise volumes. One such site has demonstrated its use: DS Smith, at the De Hoop plant in the Netherlands, is one of Europe’s leading providers of sustainable packaging solutions, paper products and recycling services. Founded in 1657, the mill currently manufactures containerboard products (liner and medium grades) from 100% waste paper. “We recycle about 400,000 tonnes of paper and cardboard every year.

Our customers use the materials we make for paper to produce boxes, trays and displays,” explains Marco Verkerk, Coordinator of Technology & Product Support.

wireless data transmission and energy consumption are perfectly coordinated for this purpose. Batteries, in combination with optimised measurement cycles, ensures a service life of up to 10 years. The sensors can be reliably used in a wide variety of scenarios wherever levels need to be measured. Thanks to specially formulated self-adhesive adapters or flexible strap mounting, they are easy to attach to the IBCs. Using radar technology, the level is monitored from the outside, so the plastic tank doesn’t have to be modified in any way. This solution is designed to remain permanently on the container with the liquid level and location transmitted regardless of where the IBC is located. Even when the containers are stacked on top of each other, the sensor on each individual container transmits its current level and GPS location several times a day to the cloud.

These measured values can be transmitted via a mobile (NB-IoT/LTE-M1) or LoRa network to the VEGA Inventory System which can help manage the data.

BRAND NEW TECHNOLOGY

QUICK SETUP

“We store more than 40 different chemicals and auxiliary materials in silos and IBC’s. The fixed storage tanks and silos are already equipped with VEGA level sensors and values are fed into a process control programme. We know exactly what the consumption levels are to order raw materials to meet production demands”, says the Marco Verkerk.

Installation was really simple: remove the film, stick the sensor on, it’s done. Thanks to 80-GHz technology, the radar can measure the level right through the plastic top of the IBC. “We had previously considered whether we could get along with a wire-connected radar instrument. But at the locations where the IBCs are deployed, connecting with cables was extremely difficult and the time savings would not have offset the investment costs”, Verkerk makes clear.

With the mobile IBCs, however, this had not been possible.

“Generally, we don’t need every auxiliary chemical or additive for every type of product. So we drove through the plant every day to manually estimate the quantities in the different IBCs”, continues Verkerk, elaborating on the previous strategy. “Our experiences with the VEGA instruments we’ve used up to now have been very good. So, in September 2019, we asked VEGA if they had a solution.

EVERYTHING IN VIEW DS Smith De Hoop B.V. became one of the first companies to monitor levels in IBCs with VEGAPULS Air 23. Three trial radar level sensors were initially installed on the exchangeable IBC’s. These wireless, battery powered sensors are inexpensive, flexible and reliable – and they quickly installed and easy to set up. During their development, energy efficiency was the main priority : performance,

Since the instrument measures down through the container roof from the outside, it doesn’t need especially high resistance materials to chemicals. Another big advantage: the IBC can also be cleaned on the outside, as the sensors have IP68 and IP69K protection.

EXPERIENCES AS A FIRST USER “We were among the first to use the new instrument and experience how it really works in practice”, says Verkerk. In his opinion, “The double-sided adhesive pad is sufficient for attaching the sensor to the IBC”. DS Smith have since installed more units on their IBC’s and now get real-time information on the Chemicals and additives stored on site. info.uk@vega.com

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www.vega.com/radar

WHAT’S MORE IMPORTANT THAN A MILLION RADAR SENSORS? ONE MILLION SATISFIED CUSTOMERS. After 30 very successful years in radar measurement technology and 1 million sensors sold, an exciting new chapter is about to begin. Watch this space, so you don’t miss out as we write the next pages in this best-selling story.

www.vega.com/radar

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| ras |

Hazard Studies – The Value of a Staged and Methodical Approach Hazard studies are a well-established and essential practice within the chemical industry and are intended to enable effective planning, implementation and safe operation of hazardous systems and processes.

Although studies such as Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) analysis are indeed well known and widely performed, is there a risk that we could be missing out on valuable process, safety and financial benefits by overlooking earlier, more fundamental, types of hazard study? What is the value of ensuring a staged and methodical approach? Whilst different studies are relevant for systems at all stages of their life cycle, consideration is given here to the benefits of a staged and methodical approach for planned new systems since, arguably, the benefits to be gained are greatest.

Generally speaking, there are eight types of hazard study (HS), beginning with HS0 (Inherency) at the research stage and extending to decommissioning at HS7. HS0 identifies the most fundamental or inherent means of minimising risk, so as to reduce later reliance on protective measures for an inherently hazardous system.

Following this is HS1, the ‘Concept study’, which is checklist-based at the start of process development and ensures an adequate understanding of the project, processes and materials. Often, these studies come up with numerous actions and suggestions that can really help with the design and again help to minimise the need for more protective systems and retrospective design changes at later stages in the project.

Hazard Identification (HAZID), or HS2, is again a promptbased study which uses guidewords to help the study team identify hazards within a proposed design. This study is more structured around the proposed design than HS1, with the main purpose being to identify hazards and then suggest ways of eliminating or minimising them before it is too late to do so. Without HS2, unidentified hazards may remain and then cause problems in later hazard studies when the design is more difficult to change, or even at the construction or operation stages.

There is often an eagerness to jump straight to HS3, without performing earlier studies. Whilst HAZOP can be an incredibly valuable tool, without the supporting earlier studies, actions and improvements, it risks becoming a design review. This can repeat the pattern, with the HAZOP failing to identify key hazards and operability issues, potentially resulting in significant costs at later stages.

It is all very well preaching the benefits of a methodical approach, but there is often a reluctance amongst design/ engineering teams to take a step back and look at things more fundamentally using earlier hazard studies. However, experience has shown that such reluctance rapidly evaporates once, for example, a series of improvements has been identified during an HS1. Often this is quite a positive experience for the team and provides constructive momentum for subsequent studies, maximising the quality, findings and improvements along the way.

viewing the plant as constructed so that aspects discussed in the hazard studies can be seen first-hand.

The final two types of hazard study include a post start-up check (HS6) after the system has been up and running for a short while to make sure the system is functioning as intended and to identify any issues that have occurred and which may need addressing. The final study (HS7) deals with the demolition of a plant when it has reached the end of its life cycle. Naturally, this needs to be done in the safest and most efficient way possible.

Overall then, the point is not a new one, but is nevertheless often overlooked. Taking the time to go about hazard studies in a staged and methodical manner will provide benefits for the safety and efficiency of a new installation, together with financial savings that would otherwise not be possible.

Rob Ritchie and Carolyn Nicholls enquiries@ras.ltd.uk

Once the HAZOP has been effectively carried out, the need for subsequent studies remains in order to ensure that the intentions and actions from earlier studies have indeed made it as far as the final design and build. This is where HS4 and HS5 come in and help to verify the safe, efficient and intended state of a new installation. This includes both the inspection of documentation and procedures as well as

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RAS RISK & HAZARD MANAGEMENT

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people, using the right processes at the right time. We believe we are different to many of our competitors and our approach is distinctive, we don’t always walk the well-trodden path but look at each client’s particular risk context and develop a tailored solution, working in partnership with our client.

We work across all aspects of risk, from Quantitative Risk Assessments and Predictive &

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+44 (0) 1244 674 612 • enquiries@ras.ltd.uk • www.ras.ltd.uk

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| health and safety |

one third of companies not ready for chemical emergency Crisis preparation and management standards are falling short in almost a third of businesses as a new report reveals internal teams worry their organizations are not prepared for a global chemical emergency as part of future risk management.

The global study by emergency dangerous goods response service provider CHEMTREC®, asked respondents from organizations across the chemical industry anonymously, to rank their organisation’s emergency preparedness levels.

The survey shows that almost a third of businesses (28%) under-prioritise their chemical emergency response and crisis management, with 63% being coordinated by management or department teams rather than at a C-suite level (19%) and less than 3% of organisations employ a full-time crisis management professional.

In ranking preparedness for a crisis out of 10, where 10 is the most prepared, 17% gave their companies a score of five or lower.

Amidst a series of environmental crises such as the Colonial Pipeline spill, the biggest in the last decade, emergency preparedness and crisis management is coming under greater scrutiny.

CHEMTREC surveyed crisis leaders across their broad customer base, including chemical producers, logistics partners and end users, to determine the level of crisis readiness globally.

The company particularly wanted to identify the level of coordination between business continuity and crisis management systems. The two systems should be fully integrated: whilst one part deals with the crisis event; the other needs to consider the impact on core services and implement workarounds to ensure the organisation can

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continue to deliver its key services to stakeholders.

Despite this, only 11% of respondents feel the two systems are integrated, with 33% saying they’re not clear how the two systems operate and respond in a unified manner during a crisis. This is despite the knowledge that a fully functioning relationship between the two is crucial to ensuring businesses reputation is maintained should disaster strike.

CHEMTREC also sought to discover to what extent global businesses conducted regular crisis simulation exercises to test whether policies and plans are fit for purpose. Good practice recommends that simulation exercises occur at least annually, however, 19% stated exercises occur only every two or more years at best, and 18% of businesses admitted to having no stress testing plans at all.

Crisis management and response training is similarly lacking, with 31% of respondents saying they don’t regularly take part in training programs. Given this lack of training, it is unsurprising that 4 in 10 people do not understand their crisis management and emergency ‘response’ roles and responsibilities.

Bruce Samuelsen, CHEMTREC’s Chief Executive, said the survey highlights a number of key issues with the world’s global chemical preparedness model: “The survey has shown us that businesses across the world are putting crisis management and emergency preparedness plans in place, but many are not doing enough to ensure they’re enforced, stress tested or kept up-to-date.

“This is not necessarily down to negligence, however, as all companies who responded to the survey indicated a desire to improve their capabilities. What is clear from the survey is that there is a lack of specialist knowledge in the field, with some team members holding crisis management roles in addition to their busy day jobs.”

Further guidance is at chemtrec.com

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

Europe chemical recycling to keep growing but legislative, infrastructure challenges remain This leaves the regulatory status of chemical recycling under the proposals uncertain.

By Mark Victory

Senior Recycling Editor at ICIS

Chemical recycling continues to attract a wealth of investment in Europe and is still seen by many as the only potential way to meet mass-scale food-contact recycled material content targets for most polymers.

As a result, new pilot plants are expected to continue to emerge in 2022. Nevertheless, a number of legislative and infrastructure challenges continue to face the industry.

EU definitions on the legal status of chemical recycling are becoming increasingly pressing for the industry following the EU Commission’s proposals in November to overhaul current rules surrounding the export of waste.

Several players have said that the new proposals would make it more difficult to export waste, particularly for chemical recyclers.

Of particular concern to some waste managers is the EU allowing modification of waste measure to be up to individual countries, which they fear would lead to significant regulatory divergence.

The Commission is proposing an EU-wide system to electronically exchange documents and information, which would allow authorities to better monitor waste streams.

The EU Commission stated in late 2020 that it would take a decision in 2021 on the legal status of chemical recycling based on its cradle-to-grave life-cycle impact. This has failed to emerge.

Materials not listed on the EU’s green list and destined for recovery operations will require prior written consent and approval from relevant authorities in both the sending and receiving countries.

Current EU regulations typically use the definition of recycling set out in Directive 2008/98/EC, in which recycling is “any recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances whether for the original or other purposes.

Shipments of waste for disposal in other member states will be broadly restricted under the proposals. Mixing waste streams during shipment will also be prohibited under the proposals.

It includes the reprocessing of organic material but does not include energy recovery and the reprocessing into materials that are to be used as fuels or for backfilling operations.”

CONSULTATION BEGINS In December, the Commission issued new draft legislation for consultation on changes to food-contact recycled

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

material regulations, which would encompass both mechanical and chemical recycling.

mixed-polyolefins increasingly economically viable for mechanical recyclers.

Along with restrictions on the type of input waste used for recycling to food contact, the legislation would mandate the use of “suitable technologies” for recycling waste, which currently only include mechanical polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling, and closed-loop recycling originating from a food distribution chain or catering service in a closed and controlled chain.

With pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers not wanting to compete with mechanical recycling on ideological grounds, and process costs expensive before the variable cost of bales is accounted for, pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers are increasingly shifting away from the use of mixed-polyolefin waste.

The legislation would cover both mechanical and chemical recycling processes.

Nevertheless, there is an exemption from the regulation for plastic waste used to manufacture substances under Article 5 of Regulation (EU) No 10/2011, as long as they are intended for subsequent use in accordance with that Regulation. This would appear to potentially exempt chemical recyclers reverting material back to monomers.

The consultation period was open until 10 January 2022.

Process costs from plant to plant remain too variable to give estimated production costs and are highly dependent on factors such as yield, technology and logistics.

Nevertheless, some players spoke of costs in triple figures due to rising electricity costs – with pyrolysis typically an energy-intensive industry.

This has also led to differences in costs from country to country, with energy prices in France, for example, typically lower than other parts of Europe due to the prevalence of nuclear energy.

There is currently 364,000 tonnes/year of operational chemical recycling capacity in Europe, of which 218,000 tonnes/year (or 60%) is pyrolysis based, data from the ICIS Chemical Recycling Supply tracker shows.

COSTS SET TO FALL

With new chemical recycling plant volumes frequently being announced, this volume is expected to increase in the coming years, even as the majority of plants remain at pilot or lab scale.

Historically, mixed polyolefins have been the feedstock of choice for pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers because of the need to limit PET (which oxidises and does not depolymerise via pyrolysis), chlorine (which is corrosive), nylon and flame retardants content in its input material.

One challenge facing pyrolysis-based chemical recycling start-ups is the sheer number of different input waste types that can potentially be used in the process, which typically requires extensive testing of different types of input waste to see which will deliver within specification at the lowest cost.

70% mixed-polyolefin, 90% mixed-polyolefin, or RDF-reject bales are commonly used, depending on what sorting facilities chemical recyclers have on site.

Prices of mixed-polyolefin bales suitable for mechanical recycling have increased sharply during 2021, as a result of high prices of mono-sorted material making the use of

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It is expected that pyrolysis-based chemical recycling costs will fall as technology and economies of scale develop and the market matures.

At the same time, high energy costs are making burn for energy more attractive and the RDF market is growing, particularly from the cement industry.

While most pyrolysis-based chemical recyclers are eager to avoid competition with mechanical recyclers for ideological reasons, this is placing them in direct competition with the RDF sector due to a lack of sufficient infrastructure to meet expected future demand.

ICIS has launched a new mixed plastic waste pricing service.

Details at clientsuccess@icis.com.

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

INEOS, Petroineos and Plastic Energy in plastic recycling breakthrough INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe and Plastic Energy are working together on a trial to convert ‘hard to recycle plastic material’, such as flexible packaging, back into ‘food-grade’ quality plastic for use in food packaging, and other high hygiene standard applications.

The companies have come together to launch a preliminary trial in Q1-2022 at the INEOS Grangemouth facility in Scotland. This preliminary trial and the evolution of the policy environment in the UK will inform the development of a large-scale advanced recycling plant, which aims to be the first of its kind in the UK. Advanced Recycling creates a closed-loop system for plastics management, helps reduce landfill, prevents plastic from ending up in the environment, and reduces the use of fossil derived raw materials. The circular re-use of ‘end of life’ plastic is a further step to reduce total emissions.

INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe and Plastic Energy have a shared goal to create a world class circular economy value chain in advanced recycling, driving circularity to create the next generation of food-grade recycled content packaging.

Plastic Energy uses its advanced recycling process to convert post-consumer plastic, otherwise destined for landfill or incineration, through a pyrolysis process, into a liquid raw material (called TACOIL) for re-use in the next generation of plastic production. TACOIL is used as a replacement for fossil derived materials, to make foodgrade and/or medical grade plastics.

The trial will take place in partnership with Petroineos at Grangemouth. It will use the existing refinery operations to process the TACOIL supplied by Plastic Energy, which already operate two recycling plants in Spain.

Plastic Energy’s technology allows for the improvement in circularity of highly demanding labelling, and packaging applications, such as chocolate bars, snacks and biscuits, pet and dry food. The new project is complementary to the existing use of mechanically recycled plastic in INEOS Recycl-IN range of products.

Petroineos will supply the recycled raw material to INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe to be transformed into Certified Circular plastic with the identical properties expected of conventional plastics made from oil and gas.

The partners recognise the need for collaboration to make such innovations sustainable at scale – in the spirit of “SDG#17 Partnerships for the Goals”, each partner contributes complementary skills and expertise that together create the circular value chain.

Plastic being recycled and compressed

“We are pleased to announce this trial in Scotland, which exemplifies a strong partnership between companies working together to take big strides to reduce plastic waste in the UK. Working with INEOS, we are pleased to see our advanced recycling technology being used as a core component to improve the circularity of packaging.”

Carlos Monreal, Founder and CEO of Plastic Energy

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

Rubber holds key to long-lasting, safer EV batteries Georgia Tech engineers have solved common problems (slow lithium-ion transport and poor mechanical properties) using rubber electrolytes.

For electric vehicles (EVs) to become mainstream, they need cost-effective, safer, longer-lasting batteries that won’t explode during use or harm the environment. Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology may have found a promising alternative to conventional lithium-ion batteries made from a common material: rubber.

Elastomers, or synthetic rubbers, are widely used in consumer products and advanced technologies such as wearable electronics and soft robotics because of their superior mechanical properties. The researchers found that the material, when formulated into a 3D structure, acted as a superhighway for fast lithium-ion transport with superior mechanical toughness, resulting in longer charging batteries that can go farther. The research, conducted in collaboration with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, was published recently in the journal Nature.

In conventional lithium-ion batteries, ions are moved by a liquid electrolyte. However, the battery is inherently unstable: even the slightest damage can leak into the electrolyte, leading to explosion or fire. The safety issues have forced the industry to look at solid-state batteries, which can be made using inorganic ceramic material or organic polymers.

“Most of the industry is focusing on building inorganic solid-state electrolytes. But they are hard to make, expensive and are not environmentally friendly,” said Seung Woo Lee, associate professor in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, who is part of a team of researchers who have uncovered a rubber-based organic polymer superior to other materials. Solid polymer electrolytes continue to attract great interest because of their low manufacturing cost, non-toxicity and soft nature.

However, conventional polymer electrolytes do not have sufficient ionic conductivity and mechanical stability for reliable operation of solid-state batteries.

NOVEL 3D DESIGN LEADS TO JUMP IN ENERGY DENSITY AND PERFORMANCE Georgia Tech engineers have solved common problems (slow lithium-ion transport and poor mechanical properties) using the rubber electrolytes. The key breakthrough was allowing the material to form a threedimensional (3D) interconnected plastic crystal phase within the robust rubber matrix. This unique structure has resulted in high ionic conductivity, superior mechanical properties and electrochemical stability.

This rubber electrolyte can be made using a simple polymerization process at low temperature conditions, generating robust and smooth interfaces on the surface of electrodes. These unique characteristics of the rubber electrolytes prevent lithium dendrite growth and allow for faster moving ions, enabling reliable operation of solid-state batteries even at room temperature.

“Rubber has been used everywhere because of its high mechanical properties, and it will allow us to make cheap, more reliable and safer batteries,” said Lee.

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Prof. Seung Woo Lee (left) and Michael J. Lee (right) have demonstrated a more cost-effective, safer solid polymer electrolyte (rubber material) for allsolid-state batteries. (Photo credit: Georgia Tech) “Higher ionic conductivity means you can move more ions at the same time,” said Michael Lee, a mechanical engineering graduate researcher. “By increasing specific energy and energy density of these batteries, you can increase the mileage of the EV.” The researchers are now looking at ways to improve the battery performance by increasing its cycle time and decreasing the charging time through even better ionic conductivity. So far, their efforts have seen a two-time improvement in the battery’s performance / cycle time.

SK Innovation, a global energy and petrochemical company, is funding additional research of the electrolyte material as part of its ongoing collaboration with the Institute to build next-generation solid-state batteries that are safer and more energy dense than conventional LI-ion batteries. SK Innovation is building a new EV battery plant in Georgia, expected to produce an annual volume of lithium-ion batteries equal to 21.5 Gigawatt-hours by 2023.

“All-solid-state batteries can dramatically increase the mileage and safety of electric vehicles. Fast-growing battery companies, including SK Innovation, believe that commercializing all-solid-state batteries will become a game changer in the electric vehicle market,” said Kyounghwan Choi, director of SK Innovation’s nextgeneration battery research centre.

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

Scientists develop novel strategy for sustainable post-lithium-ion batteries

Bristol University scientists are celebrating the performance of sustainable batteries with far-reaching implications for e-vehicles and devices.

High-performance sodium and potassium ion batteries have been developed using sustainably sourced cellulose.

Scientists at the Bristol Composites Institute developed a novel controllable unidirectional ice-templating strategy which can tailor the electrochemical performances of nextgeneration post-lithium-ion batteries with sustainability and large-scale availability. The paper is published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.

There is a rapidly increasing demand for sustainable, ethical and low-cost energy-storage. This is due in part to the drive towards developing battery-powered transport systems – mostly replacing petrol and diesel-based engines with electric vehicles – but also for hand-held devices such as mobile phones. Currently these technologies largely rely on lithium-ion batteries.

Batteries have two electrodes and a separator, with what is called an electrolyte between them which carries the charge.

There are several problems associated with using lithium for these batteries, including build-up of the metal inside the devices which can lead to short circuits and overheating.

Alternatives to lithium, such as sodium and potassium batteries have not historically performed as well in terms of their rate performance and the ability to use them lots of times. This inferior performance is due to the larger sizes of sodium and potassium ions, and their ability to move through the porous carbon electrodes in the batteries.

Another issue associated with these batteries is they cannot be easily disposed of at end-of-life, as they use materials that are not sustainable. The cost of the materials is also a factor and there is a need to provide cheaper sources of stored energy.

Additionally, lithium is mined in countries such as Chile, Bolivia and Argentina. This mining is very destructive and there are poor human rights records associated with it.

in collaboration with Imperial College, has developed some new carbon electrode materials based on an ice-templating system. These materials are called aerogels, where cellulose nanocrystals (a nano-sized form of cellulose) are formed into a porous structure using ice crystals that are grown and then sublimated. This leaves large channels within the structure that can carry the large sodium and potassium ions.

The performance of these new sodium and potassium ion batteries has been shown to outperform many other comparable systems, and it uses a sustainably sourced material – cellulose.

Corresponding author, Steve Eichhorn, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Bristol and a world-leader in cellulose-based technologies, said: “We were astounded with the performance of these new batteries. There is great potential to develop these further and to produce larger scaled devices with the technology.”

Jing Wang, lead author and a PhD student in the Bristol Composites Institute, said: “We proposed a novel controllable ice-templating strategy to fabricate low-cost cellulose nanocrystals/polyethylene oxide-derived carbon aerogels with hierarchically tailored and vertically-aligned channels as electrode materials, which can be utilized to well-tuning the rate capability and cycling stability of sodium and potassium-ion batteries.

“Benefiting from the renewability of the precursor and scalability at relatively low cost in the environmentally benign synthesis process, this work could offer an appealing route to promote large-scale applications of sustainable electric vehicles and large-scale energy storage grids in the near future.”

Professor Eichhorn said: “In light of these findings, we now hope to collaborate with industries to develop this strategy on an industrial scale and to explore whether this unique technology can be easily extended to a variety of other energy storage systems such as zinc, calcium, aluminium and magnesium-ion batteries, thus demonstrating its universal potential in next-generation energy storage systems.”

Work at the University of Bristol in the Bristol Composites Institute, published in Advanced Functional Materials, and

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

UK scientists apply pressure to develop sustainable and affordable catalysis for production of biorenewable chemicals

Dr Zongyuan Zhu from the Process Intensification Group, University of Newcastle

The Process Intensification Group at the School of Engineering, Newcastle University, is using the MultiCell-PLUS High-Pressure Reactor as part of their program of ongoing research to create a new environmentally-friendly generation of catalysts for production of biorenewable chemicals.

Many industrial processes rely on catalysts containing expensive precious and metals, or metals sourced from areas of conflict. A key objective for the Process Intensification Group has been to develop affordable, less hazardous catalysts to achieve similar function and performance to those currently available, keeping synthesis simple and easy to scale up.

“By doing this, it enabled us to screen the catalyst intrinsic activity, rather than having the results masked by mass transfer limitations. For some of the reactions we investigate, accurate temperature control is also very important – a few degrees under the desired temperature and the reaction won’t progress fast enough, a few degrees above, and we experience unwanted side reactions.

Dr Fernando Russo Abegão, a Lecturer from the Process Intensification Group, said: “In order to develop our new generation of catalysts we needed to be able to screen a high number of samples, often at high pressure and temperature. In the past we only had isolated autoclaves in the lab.

“It is therefore important to stay within the correct temperature ranges to ensure optimal catalyst and reaction performance. We looked at various commercially available high-pressure reactors and chose the MultiCell-PLUS system from Asynt as it incorporated parallel agitated reactors with automatic temperature and pressure control.

Using this versatile, high-performance system we have already successfully developed a new generation of ‘greener’ catalysts for dehydration of C5 and C6 sugars into furans.

Looking to the future, our plan is also to use the MultiCellPLUS for screening of solvents and process conditions”.

“These weren’t ideal for screening as they required large amounts of catalysts for testing, and we could only perform one reaction at a time. To be effective we required an instrumental set-up that could provide a fast turnaround, allowing us to quickly test, rationalise, and identify optimal catalyst formulations”.

Dr Kamelia Boodhoo, a Reader in Sustainable Process Technology, added: “For screening of heterogeneous catalysts, mass transfer can play a big role in the process.

We wanted to ensure that we selected a high-pressure reactor system that was well stirred to keep the particles in suspension at all times, reducing mass transfer limitations.

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The Multicell-PLUS was developed by Asynt to provide scientists with a flexible and customisable device for high throughput screening of chemical reactions under high pressure. The reactor allows users to set up a multitude of experimental conditions in each of its 8 reaction cells, ideal for optimisation and screening investigations.

Details at asynt.com/product/multicell-plus

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| environmental |

Collaboration on bio-based acrylonitrile for carbon fibre applications The new agreement with Trillium Renewable Chemicals will enable Solvay’s development of sustainable, bio-carbon fibre for use in various applications.

Solvay and Trillium Renewable Chemicals have signed a letter of intent to develop the supply chain for bio-based acrylonitrile (bio-ACN). Trillium will supply Solvay with bioACN from Trillium’s planned commercial asset, and Solvay will evaluate bio-ACN for carbon fibre manufacturing as

“Innovation partnerships such as this are driven by a desire to make a real-world sustainability impact. Biobased feedstocks are a key part of Solvay’s sustainability strategy, and we look forward to being a consumer of bio-ACN from Trillium’s first bio-based acrylonitrile plant.”

part of its long-term commitment to developing sustainable solutions from bio-based or recycled sources.

The aim of this partnership is to produce carbon fibre for use in various applications such as aerospace, automotive, energy, and consumer goods.

Acrylonitrile is a chemical intermediate typically made from petroleum-based feedstocks like propylene and is the primary raw material used in the production of carbon fibre. Trillium’s Bio-ACN™ process delivers acrylonitrile from plant-based feedstocks like glycerol with a lower carbon footprint.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Trillium which aligns well with our Solvay One Planet commitment to more than double our revenue based on renewable or recycled materials by 2030,” said Stephen Heinz, head of composite research and innovation, Solvay.

“Innovation partnerships such as this are driven by a desire to make a real-world sustainability impact. Bio-based feedstocks are a key part of Solvay’s sustainability strategy, and we look forward to being a consumer of bio-ACN from Trillium’s first bio-based acrylonitrile plant.”

“Trillium’s bio-ACN process technology enables biocarbon fibre,” added Corey Tyree, CEO of Trillium. “We are excited to continue our partnership with Solvay, who have supported the bio-ACN process technology development since 2014. Solvay is a leader in the most rapidly-growing acrylonitrile segment (carbon fibre) and are market leaders in bio-carbon fibre and sustainable development.”

Bio-ACN™ is a registered trademark of Trillium.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

New filtration system fuelled by whisky A filtration system fuelled by whisky co-products is being developed by researchers to sustainably extract rare and valuable metals – including gold, silver, and palladium – from waste electronics using a new combined biological and chemical approach. Professor Jason Love was involved in the research at the University of Edinburgh’s School of Chemistry.

The consortium of organisations – comprising of Aberdeenbased environmental tech company, SEM; WEEE Scotland, the waste services provider; the University of Edinburgh; and the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) – has proven the feasibility of a more sustainable method for recovering reusable scrap metal from products such as TVs and laptops.

Current physical and chemical extraction techniques are energy intensive or use solvents that are difficult to recycle to dissolve valuable metals from electronic circuit boards.

The latter process generates large volumes of acidic liquid waste containing traces metals, which can be damaging to the environment.

The new method developed by the group uses recyclable solvents to extract valuable gold and copper from printed circuit boards. Other metals – such as aluminium, tin, and zinc – can then be recovered separately from the effluent using SEM’s ‘Dram’ filtration system, making the discharge from the extraction process environmentally benign.

Dram is manufactured using co-products from the distillation of malt whisky. The filter captures metals that can be recovered in the form of metallic nanoparticles by microbes and then purified for re-use. The final effluent from the process is also suitable to be discharged into the environment.

Leigh Cassidy, lead scientist at SEM, explained: “There are a number of methods for removing valuable metals from electronic waste, but they are largely chemical and physical which comes with an environmental cost. This project has proven the use of an approach that is more rooted in biology and, with that, is much more sustainable – each stage of the filtration process has a lower impact than if it was done in any traditional manner.

“We are now looking to build the system into WEEE’s operations and then take it to other sites, where processes

can be made more environmentally friendly. The next stage will be commercialising the technology to full effect, and we are pulling together bids for funding to make that happen.

Professor Jason Love added: “This exciting project has allowed us to marry chemical processes that separate valuable and critical metals from electronic waste with a biological filtration method that both maximises the metals recovered and minimises the overall environmental footprint.”

According to the UN’s Global E-waste Monitor 2020 report, in 2019 the UK produced the second highest level of electrical waste per capita at 23.9 kilograms – a total 1.6 million tonnes of waste electronics. Most of this waste is transported to Asia for processing, which also contributes to the environmental impact of electronic waste.

Once commercialised, the new filtration process could not only reduce the reliance on mining new metal resources for electronics, but also open up the opportunity for Scotland and the UK to drive more circular practices and create value from ‘e-waste’.

Liz Fletcher, director of business engagement at IBioIC, concluded: “With demand for electronics only likely to increase, this project is an incredibly important step forward in the treatment and management of e-waste. The consortium has designed a new approach to recovering metals for re-use that is significantly more sustainable than anything that has been done so far, underlining what can be achieved through collaboration.

There is a huge opportunity for Scotland, and the wider UK, to lead the way in creating value out of used electronics and other waste streams through biologically based, sustainable methods. These materials need to be recycled and doing so could make a significant contribution to supporting our bid to become a net-zero nation by 2045.”

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| novaflex |

Novaflex – Process Flow The Novaflex Group is a market leader through excellence in product innovation and a commitment to continuous advancement in hose and connector solutions.

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EXTRUDED THERMOPLASTIC DUCTING Novaflex offer a wide range of ducting products for air and dust control, light material handling and wet or dry fume control, and many other applications.

Novafles ducting is lightweight, flexible and economical.

COUPLINGS Novaflex composite hoses are manufactured to meet British and European standards BS5842, BS3492, and BS EN 13765.

Novaflex composite hoses and assemblies hold Lloyd’s Register Certified Type Approval for BS EN 13765:2018.

Novaflex have manufactured composite hoses in the UK since 2008 and supply thermoplastic composite hoses in diameters ranging from 1” to 10” in lengths of up to 40 metres.

Hoses are made to a wide range of specifications for a wide range of chemical, application, and customer requirements.

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Fittings are also available in a range of threaded and flanged designs specifically designed to work with our range of Novaflex hoses. www.novaflex.com

The Novaflex rubber hose range includes material handling, chemical, food grade, and mining hoses, as well as a range of expansion joints and connectors. Novaflex rubber hoses are available in a wide range of diameters in EPDM, UHMWP, Teflon, Nitrile, and Viton, for resistance to chemicals, abrasion, heat and corrosive conditions.

Hoses are manufactured in North America and comply with FDA, 3A, USDA, and REACH standards.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| ingredients and blending |

Challenges for sustainable product recovery from micro-organisms Daniel Brown, Biotechnology Lead, at James Robinson Specialty Ingredients, examines the benefits and challenges of using natural chemistry in sustainable production.

Natural chemistry is gaining serious attention given the perceived benefits it could have for sustainability efforts.

Major companies are looking to formulate products with ingredients derived from natural chemistry to reduce their carbon footprint and bring more environmentallyfriendly products to shelves. Now, the onus is on ingredient companies to deliver these products, to stay relevant in fast moving markets and meet rising consumer and client demand for sustainable goods.

Natural chemistry includes the production of products using micro-organisms. Compared to traditional synthetic chemistry, the use of micro-organisms presents unique challenges, specifically product recovery from the microorganism biomass. Smart thinking early on in a project can help overcome these challenges.

‘ONE-POT’ REACTIONS Micro-organisms are able to convert simple substrate molecules into complex final products, transforming the substrate through a series of intermediates. Microorganisms can accomplish this with a speed and stereoselectivity impossible for synthetic chemistry to replicate. This can be done in a single vessel, or a ‘one-pot’ reaction.

Honed through billions of years of evolution, a microorganism can accomplish 20 or 30 reaction steps in ‘onepot’ at ambient temperature and pressure in a matter of hours. Development work typically focuses on optimising these ‘one-pot’ reactions to achieve the highest possible yields of product. This however, is only half of the story; the challenge is then to recover the product from the pot.

COMPLEX MATRIX A relatively high yielding process by the standards of a biotechnologist would be considered a low yielding process

by the standards of a synthetic chemist. The nature of micro-organisms means that the final product is not the only molecule that is produced. The micro-organism must also make every other molecule necessary for growth and survival; to do so, it must be surrounded by nutrient rich liquid media.

This means the final product will represent only a small fraction of the end process mixture, and is contained within an incredibly complex matrix of large and small organic and inorganic molecules that comprise a biological process.

This complexity presents immense challenges for economic product recovery.

A LIVING REACTION Recovery steps begin the moment that optimal yield of final product is reached, at this point the micro-organism is harvested. However, we must remember that microorganisms are living things and the reaction doesn’t stop there.

Even after harvesting begins, the micro-organism will continue to be biologically active, and reactions will continue, ultimately leading to undesirable degradation or conversion of the end product. These processes can quickly reduce yields and continue to occur even after cell death.

As a result, once harvesting begins, the final product must be separated from the biomass as quickly as possible.

It is vital to assess just how quickly a product degrades during harvest, especially at scale. It can take a long time to process a large volume of biological material at scale.

Something which may take minutes in a laboratory, may take hours on a plant. If the processing time at scale results in excess product degradation, then the process cannot be considered economically viable.

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| ingredients and blending|

IN OR OUT? At harvest, the product to be recovered is either contained within the micro-organism itself, or will have been secreted out of the micro-organism into the surrounding liquid media.

Products contained within the micro-organism are more challenging for several reasons. This includes spending time and energy bursting or rupturing the micro-organism, which represents an additional process step. This leads to the release of a cocktail of biologically active molecules and enzymes, contributing further to degradation of the final product. It presents difficulties for further processing, as certain molecules may contribute to undesirable outcomes such as discoloration or skin sensitization.

Products that have been secreted outside of the microorganism are easier to recover than those retained within.

In this case, the liquid media containing the product is separated from remaining biomass. Great care must be taken during separation to minimize the accidental rupture of micro-organisms through process-shear.

After separation, the products from an extracellular process will be contained within simple media largely composed of inorganic salts or small organic molecules. This makes subsequent isolation of the final product much easier compared to an intracellular product.

When selecting projects and processes to pursue, special attention should be paid to whether a final product is contained inside or outside of the micro-organism. A target product may seem desirable but if it can only be produced inside the micro-organism, and the cost of the additional processing steps do not match what a customer is willing to pay, then the process will not be viable.

CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS Plenty of research and investment has been funneled into optimising product yields by micro-organisms.

In recent years there has been a greater appreciation of the importance of product recovery. Reducing time, energy and the number of process steps will make the difference as to whether a product is sustainable from an economic, but also an environmental, point of view.

It is not simply the case that bigger and better processing technology will improve product recovery. Product recovery

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requires a holistic approach, with smart decisions early in a project often making the largest difference: Smart selection of product producing micro-organisms and smart process development. Consider not just product yields, but parameters such as the strength of cell walls or impact of by-products on viscosity as well. Likewise, some liquid media components may be beneficial for growth or yield, but may impact on separation steps.

Novel techniques such as cell immobilization or magnetic separation may improve product recovery and reduce the impact of shear.

Modification of micro-organisms is an area of active research, and may be done to encourage secretion of a product outside the micro-organism. Modification may also be conducted to move the reaction steps from difficult micro-organisms into benign and well characterized host micro-organisms. This is important when the host micro-organism contains toxic or undesirable by-products.

SMART THINKING The ability to carefully plan and adapt to challenges is vital when it comes to sustainable product recovery from micro-organisms. Process development is never a linear process, though smart thinking early on can impact product recovery down the line. This can make the difference between a sustainable and unsustainable product and meeting your client’s product requirements and budgets.

More details at jrsi.com

ABOUT JAMES ROBINSON SPECIALITY INGREDIENTS James Robinson Speciality Ingredients is a global supplier of speciality ingredients for the personal care and photochromics industries, backed by over 180 years of heritage and supported by a dynamic team of experts. Founded in 1840, the company underwent a 2019 management buyout that saw it return to the James Robinson brand, with sites in Manchester, Huddersfield, Amsterdam and India.

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| ingredients and blending |

Mini grinding mill closes in on details of ‘green’ chemical reactions

Scientists at the University of Cambridge have developed a new approach for observing mechanochemical reactions – where simple ingredients are ground up to make new chemical compounds and materials that can be used in anything from the pharmaceutical to the metallurgical, cement and mineral industries.

The study, published in Nature Communications and led by Cambridge Earth Sciences’ Dr Giulio Lampronti, observed reactions as materials were pulverised inside a miniaturised grinding mill – providing new detail on the structure and formation of crystals.

Knowledge of the structure of these newly-formed materials, which have been subjected to considerable pressures, helps scientists unravel the kinetics involved in mechanochemistry. But they are rarely able to observe it at the level of detail seen in this new work.

The study also involved Dr Ana Belenguer and Professor Jeremy Sanders from Cambridge’s Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry.

Mechanochemistry is touted as a ‘green’ tool because it can make new materials without using bulk solvents that are harmful to the environment. Despite decades of research, the process behind these reactions remains poorly understood.

To learn more about mechanochemical reactions, scientists usually observe chemical transformations in real time, as ingredients are churned and ground in a mill – like mixing a cake – to create complex chemical components and materials.

Once milling has stopped, however, the material can keep morphing into something completely different, so scientists need to record the reaction with as little disturbance as possible – using an imaging technique called time-resolved in-situ analysis to essentially capture a movie of the reactions. But, until now, this method has only offered a grainy picture of the unfolding reactions.

By shrinking the mills and taking the sample size down from several hundred milligrams to less than ten milligrams, Lampronti and the team were able to more accurately capture the size and microscopic structure of crystals using a technique called X-ray diffraction.

The down-scaled analysis could also allow scientists to study smaller, safer, quantities of toxic or expensive materials. “We realised that this miniaturised setup

had several other important advantages, aside from better structural analysis,” said Lampronti. “The smaller sample size also means that more challenging analyses of scarce and toxic materials becomes possible, and it’s also exciting because it opens up the study of mechanochemistry to all areas of chemistry and materials science.”

“The combination of new miniature jars designed by Ana, and the experimental and analytical techniques introduced by Giulio, promise to transform our ability to follow and understand solid-state reactions as they happen,” said Sanders.

The team observed a range of reactions with their new miniaturised setup, covering organic and inorganic materials as well as metal-organic materials – proving their technique could be applied to a wide range of industry problems. One of the materials they studied, ZIF-8, could be used for carbon capture and storage, because of its ability to capture large amounts of CO2.

The new view on these materials meant they were able to uncover previously undetected structural details, including distortion of the crystal lattice in the ZIF-8 framework.

Lampronti says their new developments could not only become routine practice for the study of mechanochemistry, but also offer up completely new directions for research in this influential field, “Our method allows for much faster kinetics, and will open up doors for previously inaccessible reactions – this could really change the playing field of mechanochemistry as we know it.”

“It’s exciting because it opens up the study of mechanochemistry to all areas of chemistry and materials science” Giulio Lampronti

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| ingredients and blending |

European biogas offers huge potential for digestate

By Matt Hale

International Sales and Marketing Director, HRS Heat Exchangers As much as 40 per cent of Europe’s total gas consumption could come from sustainable biomethane by 2050, according to the European Biogas Association (EBA). Their new statistical report highlights the importance of creating sustainable uses and markets for digestate, without which such ambitions will not be realised.

The report analyses the current availability of renewable gases in Europe, notably biogas and biomethane, and concludes that combined production of these energy sources in 2020 was 191 TWh, a figure which is expected to double in the next nine years.

In particular the report predicts that biomethane, which saw its biggest year-on-year increase across the bloc in 2020, with an additional 6.4 TWh of production – a figure which is itself predicted to be eclipsed in 2021 as a record number of new biomethane plants become fully operational.

The EBA report is the latest in a series of national and international reports which highlight the important role that anaerobic digestion has to play meeting greenhouse gas reduction targets, as well as providing renewable green energy and improving soil health and agricultural productivity. Unlike some other reports, the EBA also provides an assessment of the use of digestate from anaerobic digestion in each country, highlighting the importance that digestate plays in delivering the circular economy benefits of biogas and biomethane generation.

The uptake and use of digestate as a sustainable biological fertiliser can be improved with appropriate treatment, such as pasteurisation, to prevent the spread of pathogens, as well as weed seeds and crop diseases. For example, the HRS Digestate Pasteurisation System (DPS) is based on heat exchangers rather than tanks with heating jackets.

Pasteurising digestate can increase its value and prevent the spread of pathogens and viable weed seeds

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Matt Hale Using heat exchangers means that effective digestate pasteurisation is possible using surplus heat while allowing additional thermal regeneration levels of up to 60 per cent.

This saved heat can then be used for other processes, such as evaporation of the digestate to remove water.

The standard 3-tank DPS provides continuous pasteurisation, with one tank being pasteurised while one is filling, and another being emptied. The DPS uses a double tube heat exchanger to heat the digestate to 75°C above the required pasteurisation temperature.

This allows for variation in the sludge consistency and its incoming temperature, making sure that the digestate is always properly pasteurised. The tanks can also be used individually, for example to allow for routine maintenance.

Details at hrs-heatexchangers.com

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

Gear pumps: versatility in fluid handling Versatile pump technology allows operators to handle multiple fluids in multiple applications, say Michael Coburn and Geoff VanLeeuwen, who investigate why gear pumps remain a popular industry choice for handling liquids.

Pump technology can be traced as far back as ancient Egypt, a time when a shadoof was used to move water from one well to another. Technology has of course evolved considerably through history, but one type of pump stands out for its versatility, efficiency and longevity – the gear pump.

Gear pumps create flow by pushing liquid through a mesh of teeth from two or more rotating gears. A drive shaft moves one gear, and that motion moves the other gear. The rotating gears form a liquid seal inside the casing, creating a vacuum at the inlet as the gear teeth separate. Liquid flows into the space and moves around the outer edge of the gears. Once the teeth meet again by the outlet, the gears force the liquid out.

Consisting of few moving parts, gear pumps deliver a constant amount of liquid with each revolution of their gears, with their tight clearances and rotational speed preventing slippage during operation. Because the gears are rigid, these pumps create a smooth, pulse-free flow, while also fully capable of handling high-pumping pressures, a necessary trait when handling high-viscosity fluids.

COMPONENTS (NOT) GALORE When looking closer at the advantages of gear pumps over similar pump technologies, it’s best to start internally.

Gear pumps don’t have many moving parts regardless of configuration. In the external gear setup, two gears mesh to process liquid. Separate shafts support those two gears, which serve as the primary components of the pump.

Internal gear pumps consist of a rotor (larger gear) and an idler (smaller gear), as well as an idler pin, bushing and a crescent-shaped partition.

In either setup, the number of components is minimal, meaning operators don’t have to worry about having a massive stockpile of extra components on hand in case of failure. Having fewer components also means not having to worry about

so many moving parts breaking down. Whether external or internal, both gear pump variations don’t require constant shutdowns to replace different components with varying lifecycles.

When it comes to a shutdown for the sake of maintenance, gear pump operators only have a few components to evaluate and service. This speeds up and simplifies the maintenance process, giving operators more time to focus on other tasks instead of dedicating too much time to an array of moving parts with different service requirements.

Should a component, such as a gear, fail, operators only have to open the pump and replace the part and put it back online. This is a less tedious procedure compared with other pumping technologies. Additionally, operators can service most gear pumps without removing them from the base, making it easier to service and put back online.

TIGHT INTERNAL CLEARANCES When it comes to handling liquids of varying viscosities, tight internal clearances become essential to the success of the pump. Gear pumps are the kings of tight internal clearances, which makes sense given their composition.

Once again, internal or external configurations create close tolerances and suction due to their design. Meshing gears don’t leave any room for slippage because of the tight fit.

In gear pumps, the tightest clearances are found in the rotor/case, rotor/head and rotor/crescent mesh. Not only do the properly selected clearances bode well general liquids but also aggressive varieties and dissolved solids.

Examples of these include food-based products, paints and coatings, sealants, adhesives, epoxy resins, rubbers and detergents.

Some products, however, can cause major damage to pumping technology. One such substance is asphalt, which can range from a solid to a liquid depending on the temperature and has several fluid characteristics. Asphalt also comes in several variations, which include hotmix asphalt, emulsified asphalt and filled asphalt.

Hot-mix asphalt can vary in viscosity based on temperature and

44

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| news |

contains a blend of high-quality aggregates, polymers and liquid asphalt cement. Emulsified asphalt is made from a mixture of asphalt cement, water and a surfactant (emulsifying agent), which makes it susceptible to shearing.

Filled asphalt is highly abrasive because it contains limestone and other particle concentrations of 60% to 70%.

While many pumps would fail at handling asphalt and its variations, gear pumps have a robust nature and tight internal clearances that aid in processing it. Gear pumps, though, require a break-in period to handle asphalt. After that, gear pumps can handle asphalt without damaging its components.

ROBUST BY DESIGN When it comes to highly corrosive fluids, many operators turn to internal gear pumps because they can be constructed to better handle them. Their design already provides an advantage, as discussed with the tight clearances. While gear pumps typically are made from stainless steel or cast iron, they are not limited to these materials.

When handling highly abrasive fluids, gear pumps can be designed using composites or alloys that allow them to process corrosive liquids, such as sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide. Carbon steel is another option that provides the proper strength to handle aggressive liquids.

Another option to reduce costs, but not sacrifice performance is ductile iron. Using this in gear pumps provides the same performance as steel without the costs associated with it. This is especially helpful when costs are a concern and an operator requires larger gears pumps for their application.

high-flow pressures. Operators can push high flows and scale them back, depending on the application. The flow variation means gear pumps won’t be susceptible to accelerated wear-and-tear on the pump internals from consistent high flows. The varying flows will allow the gear pump to have better longevity.

TEMPS CAN VARY Being able to handle a wide temperature range is imperative to pumping technology if an operator needs it for a variety of applications with different internal and external conditions. Gear pumps perform exceptionally well in nearly all temperature conditions due to having a wide range of tolerances.

Gear pumps can successfully operate in temperatures as low as -112°F (-80°C) and process fluids with temperatures as high as 800°F (425°C). Having this type of flexibility allows gear pumps to accept several liquids of varying temperatures – from soaps and surfactants to asphalts and adhesives – while also operating in environments with extreme weather fluctuations. That means that gear pumps can operate just as effectively with these fluids in the northern-most regions of Canada to the equator regions of South America.

Additionally, gear pumps are designed to accept jacketing across most of its surface area, a key feature that allows this technology to retain heat for substances that require it, such as asphalt. Operators can jacket up to 70% to 80% of the gear pump’s surface area, allowing the apparatus to retain heat effectively. This means most of the gear pumps will keep hot liquids at the proper temperature without the risk of solids forming due to cold spots.

POSSIBILITIES WITH ALL VISCOSITIES

STEADY FLOW Gear pumps thrive under varying flow rates, allowing operators to place them in multiple applications with different demands. While some pumps need higher pressures for proper functionality or back pressure to avoid flow instability, gear pumps can function well under different flow conditions.

Gear pumps are designed to handle the same repeatable displacement regardless of the pressure. Mechanical volume displacement provides a much more repeatable fluid movement through the pressure range, providing operators with accurate flow control.

Some pump technologies are limited when it comes to the thickness or thin nature of the fluid. Gear pumps, however, can process a vast range of fluid viscosities. The interlocking gears can accept fluids as low as 1 cP or as high as 1,000,000 cP. This dynamic range gives operators with gear pumps the ability to run several different fluids through them without incident. That means operators don’t have to outfit a plant with several different pumping technologies for varying fluid properties. They can rely on gear pumps to reliably and efficiently handle several different viscosities.

Being able to operate at varying flows means gear pumps don’t suffer from the perils of constant

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Michael Coburn is Product Manager for EnviroGear®. Geoff VanLeeuwen, P.E., is Product Management Director with Blackmer® and PSG®. For more information, visit envirogearpump.com or psgdover.com

45

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| reach |

Upcoming EU legislation puts industry at crucial crossroads Industry leaders have called on the European Commission to work together to develop an EU Chemical Industry Transition Pathway to sustain the massive investments required to meet the objectives of the EU Green Deal.

This call follows the release by European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) of the first in a series of studies, conducted by independent economic research consultancy Ricardo Energy & Environment, on the business impacts of the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability (CSS).

The data from more than 100 European chemical companies will be used as an input to the European Commission’s impact assessments on the Classification, Packaging and Labelling Regulation (CLP) and REACH, the centrepieces of EU chemical legislation.

Cefic president Dr Martin Brudermueller said: “The EU chemical industry supports the goals of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and we are ready to work with the Commission and Member States to deliver on the policy goals just like we are already working on our industry’s climate transition. The results of the first in a series of reports show that we have an enormous challenge ahead of us. To enable industry to transform, it needs a robust Chemical Industry Transition Pathway. I am inviting European

policymakers and EU Member State governments to work with us and turn the CSS into a genuine Growth and Innovation Strategy”.

According to this first study, as many as 12,000 substances could potentially be in the scope of the two upcoming legislative proposals alone – the changes to Classification, Packaging and Labelling Regulation (CLP) and the application of a Generic Risk Approach (GRA). The study found that these substances could cover up to 43% of the European chemical industry’s total turnover.

After applying different weighting factors to account for uncertainty about definitions and criteria in the CSS, the consultants concluded that the most likely impacted portfolio would be as much as 28% of the industry’s estimated turnover.

The companies consulted indicated that around one third of this most likely affected portfolio of 28% could potentially be substituted or reformulated.

However, the ability of companies to substitute potentially affected products will largely depend on the details of the upcoming regulations, on what might be technically and economically feasible, and especially on how customers will react to the substitutes or reformulated products. The most significantly impacted downstream sectors are expected to be adhesives and sealants, paints, washing and cleaning products.

Dr Brudermueller added: “The role of the chemical industry is to supply downstream customers with

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| reach |

crucial materials to meet the targets of the Green Deal. The EU chemicals industry is a major supplier of all manufacturing industries and essential and strategic value chains, including pharmaceuticals, electronics, EV batteries, construction materials.

The intended policy changes coming with CSS will also create a significant “ripple effect” across many value chains relying on chemicals.”

Sustainability. However, there is a lot of uncertainty as to how businesses along the value chain could achieve it under the current framework. Industry needs a predictable growth framework for economic investments in the coming two decades. For us to meet the many challenges of the Green Deal, we need a robust Chemical Industry Transition Pathway.”

The economic analysis concluded that even when derogations are taken into account, a heavy net impact remains. Regardless of the scenario considered, this would represent a net market loss of at least 12% of the industry’s portfolio by 2040, according to the study.

The proposed Transition Pathway should include timelines and measures for the industry to develop substitutes and focus on those products where these substitutes could be available first.

In this, it should build on proven and established approaches such as the risk assessment under REACH. Incentives will be needed to create markets for these new chemicals, combined with a doubling down on enforcement of REACH and product safety legislation for imports. The package should be complemented by a strong innovation agenda to accelerate the development of safe and sustainable-by-design alternatives. Finally, the Transition Pathway should also address the other three transitions that the chemical industry has to undergo – climate neutrality, digitalisation and circularity.

As only two of the measures proposed by the CSS have been assessed so far, the cumulative impact of all other changes proposed by the Strategy will be bigger. The effect that these changes could have on EU chemical exports has not been examined, which could add significantly to the overall impact.

He continued: “The chemical industry has always been driven by innovation, passion for new technologies and entrepreneurial spirit. The results of this study indicate that there could be an opportunity for an industry-wide substitution effort to deliver on the goals of the Chemicals Strategy for

The next report is expected to be published in Q2 2022.

“The EU chemical industry supports the goals of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability and we are ready to work with the Commission and Member States to deliver on the policy goals just like we are already working on our industry’s climate transition.”

Dr Martin Brudermueller, Cefic president

47

| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| reach global |

Time is ticking for Turkey’s KKDIK. .Less than 2 years for full compliance!

With not so many appointed Lead Registrants in Chemical Registration System - KKS (Turkish acronym), industry is wondering whether a postponement of the final registration deadline (31.12.2023) is in the loop or not. The answer of the Ministry is an unambiguous - “No” and the co-registrants are waiting for the Lead Registrant’s and the Only Representative/consultancy companies’ informative communications to take action, as the deadline is approaching.

With less than 700 days to go, the Turkish chemical industry is getting excited about the upcoming registration deadline, as the flow between the Lead Registrants and the coregistrants started increasing in 2022.

MINISTRY’S NAME AND FUNCTIONS ARE UPDATED A fresh news following the completion of the MoEU’s EU-financed project “Technical Assistance to Conduct Chemical Safety Assessments under the scope of REACH Regulation”, is that the name of the Ministry managing the KKDIK regulation is recently updated via the Official Gazette numbered 31463 on the 29th of October 2021.

Formerly known as the Ministry of Environmental and Urbanization (MoEU), the Ministry is now named as the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change (MoEUCC). This update being the alignment of Turkey with the recently ratified Paris Agreement.

UPDATES IN KKS As of November 2021, the Ministry launched its own Turkish Chemical Safety Report tool for its users, called Chemical Safety Assessment and Reporting System (CSARS, with Turkish acronym - KGDRS). And within a short period of 2 months, the supporting guidance document is already updated a few times as the minor changes within the KKS system still occur. Companies placing substances on the Turkish market for 10 tonnes or more per year must prepare a Chemical Safety Assessment (CSA) and include the Chemical Safety Report (CSR) to their registration dossier. If companies conclude that their substance is not hazardous or PBT/vPvB, the CSA use description can be limited with hazard assessment, PBT assessment, and CSR Sections 1-8.

Unlike EU’s separated systems IUCLID and Chesar, CSARS is fully integrated with CRS and the CSRs can be generated within the same IT environment.

There are also changes in the system that are related to the Only Representatives (OR). One of the dissimilarities between the ECHA’s REACH-IT and CRS is that ORs have to have one single account for all the companies they are representing. Now the Ministry is altering their system to encourage ORs to use a numeric design to identify the nonTurkish manufacturers. Though this technic was already used by some of the experienced ORs. As an essential remark, it is mandatory for companies to enter their Downstream User information into the registration dossier. However, in practice, it is still a question mark for companies to gather this information for their indirect importations (exportations for non-Turkish manufacturers) without transgressing confidentiality or competition laws.

into account this scheme can be impossible to follow as a daily task. The industry is trying to figure out alternative ways to effectively manage the transactions.

One of the challenges is that; even though more than 163.000+ (includes repetitive EC, CAS numbers) preregistrations were submitted under CRS (ref. October 2021) prior to the pre-registration deadline 31.12.2020, Lead Registrants are appointed only for the 1-2 % of the substances. EU REACH experienced non-Turkish companies or big players in the Turkish chemical industry should eventually decide on stepping up as the Lead Registrant if no other company does. This would avoid any last-minute panic in 2023 within the SIEFs, as it will be hard for companies to meet the deadline on short notice.

Especially with the complexity of data sharing procedures becoming evident, most of the companies are waiting for each other to take action. On the other hand, it should be reminded that the data sets that will be used for KKDIK registrations are in parallel with REACH dossiers, therefore no further evaluation is required.

Coordination is needed to manage cost modeling, Letter of Access selling, to implement the right to use data, etc.; which are sensitive topics and should be carried out by experienced and trustworthy hands. Since 2008, as RGS Group of companies, we are assisting more than 1100 manufacturers in over 55 countries to comply with global chemicals legislations.

We have joined our forces with Chemservice Group to establish ChemAdvocacy Turkey (CATR) in April 2021 to independently coordinate the administrative and technical processes of the SIEF management with the Lead Registrants, and the relevant consortia in the EU. CATR will transpose its EU REACH, K-REACH, UK REACH experience on Consortia Management, Data Management, Financial Management into KKDIK. If you have any questions on Turkish chemicals regulations, do not hesitate to contact RGS for more details on our services.

REACH Global Services Group Tugce Gizem GURLEROGLU Deputy Director www.reach-gs.eu

CHALLENGES FOR THE INDUSTRY Currently, the payment procedures are carried out by a physical deposit of cash money to one pre-defined bank of Turkey. Though when tens or hundreds of dossiers are taken

48

Chemicals REGULATORY compliance is a global competition strategy, not a formality!

• • • • • •

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| CHEMICAL INDUSTRY JOURNAL |

| intelligencia |

Intelligencia Training announced as finalists in this year’s FE Week & AELP AAC Apprenticeship Awards Specialist apprenticeship training provider, Intelligencia Training have been announced as finalists in the forthcoming FE Week & AELP AAC Apprenticeship Awards with winners being announced at the FE Week Annual Apprenticeship Conference taking place in Birmingham on 21-22nd March.

The awards, now in their fifth year, are a celebration of the very best in apprenticeship delivery and provide well-deserved recognition for the people, teams and organisations that make excellent apprenticeships happen.

A record-breaking 370 entries were received from training providers, colleges, universities and employers and we can now reveal the worthy finalists going forward to the national awards ceremony in March.

Shane Mann, Managing Director of FE Week’s publisher Lsect, said: “We have once again been blown away by the quality of nominations and especially of this year’s finalists.

Nick Atkinson, Commercial Director at Intelligencia Training said: “This is a huge accolade for us and testament to the fantastic work that our highly skilled teams have carried out during the last year. Intelligencia have been at the forefront of Protective Services apprenticeship provision, actively involved in supporting Trailblazer Groups developing both Intelligence Analysis and Counter Fraud Investigation apprenticeship Standards. Over the last year Intelligencia Training has not only ensured effective continuity of often intensive apprenticeships in Intelligence Analysis and Fraud Investigation, but facilitated a significant increase in the volume of apprentices on programme, adapting programmes to very specific employer needs across both public and private

sector organisations. Whilst the pandemic continues to apply operational pressure to many of our investigative and intelligence services, the development of a widely adopted and respected curriculum has supported the growth of analytical and investigative capability within the UK, reducing the burden on existing systems. Our effective delivery of higher apprenticeships within the Protective Services sector has significantly increased the educational opportunities available for apprentices within a sector more traditionally associated with apprenticeships at a lower level and they continue to be very well received from within the multiple sectors in which we operate. We are very proud of our relationships with our employer clients and the support we receive, this is testament to our continued success.”

You can read more about Intelligencia Training and their engaging apprenticeship standards at intelligenciatraining.com

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29

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94

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64

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95

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110

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2 8 18 28 8 2

67

98

Ho

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68

164.93032

Er 167.259

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99

(251)

Californium

(252)

69

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100

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70

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101

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103

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85

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117

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118

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131.293

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79.904

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Cl

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2 8 7

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20.1797

35.453

Polonium

173.054

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2 8 18 32 30 8 2

84

Ne

2 8

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127.6

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168.93421

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2 8 18 30 8 2

35

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2 8 18 6

78.96

208.9804

115

17

32.065

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2 8 18 32 18 5

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121.76

207.2

114

34

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74.9216

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2 7

18.9984032

S

Arsenic

118.71

2 8 18 32 18 3

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30.973762

72.64

Sn

2 8 5

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As

9

15.9994

P

Germanium

204.3833

113

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28.0855

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14.0067

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114.818

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Dysprosium 2 8 18 32 27 8 2

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200.59

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69.723

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162.5

Terbium

97

111

49

112.411

2 8 18 32 18 1

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Gallium

Cd

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158.92535

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2 8 18 18 2

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196.966569

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79

195.084

157.25

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2 8 18 32 17 1

31

Zinc

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2 8 3

26.9815386

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65.38

107.8682

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151.964

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192.217

109

Ag

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12.0107

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63.546

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58.6934

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58.933195

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2 8 18 32 32 11 2

55.845

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144.242

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2 8 18 13 2

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54.938045

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26

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238.02891

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58

V

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47.867

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137.327

88

Y

2 8 10 2

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88.90585

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2 8 9 2

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87.62

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39

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132.9054

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40.078

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