McDermott completes pipeline installation for GWF 2 project

McDermott International Inc (MDR) has successfully completed the contract for phase two of the Greater Western Flank (GWF) project. The contract was awarded by Woodside Energy Ltd in January 2016.

McDermott was responsible for the procurement, fabrication, installation and testing of a series of pipeline buckle initiators, pipeline end terminations and foundation mudmats, in-line tee structures and approximately 21 miles (35 kilometers) of a 16-inch (40 centimeters) corrosion resistant alloy (CRA) pipeline extending from the existing Goodwyn A Platform to the Lady Nora and Pemberton field manifold locations.

McDermott deployed two of its speciality vessels to complete the installation phase, namely DLV 2000 for the pipelay campaign and the Lay Vessel 108 for the pre-lay and post-lay campaign. McDermott also set up an onshore portable and temporary double jointing facility at its Batam fabrication yard in Indonesia to simulate the offshore installation campaign.

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Enterprise begins construction of tenth NGL fractionator in Texas

Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPD) has begun construction of a new natural gas liquids (NGL) fractionator adjacent to its Mont Belvieu, Texas complex. The new unit will have a nameplate capacity of 150,000 barrels per day (bpd). Giving Enterprise 905,000 bpd of fractionation capability in the Mont Belvieu area, and approximately 1.4 million bpd companywide. The fractionator is scheduled to begin service in the first quarter of 2020.

“The addition of our newest fractionator will facilitate continued NGL production growth, including from the Permian Basin where NGL volumes are expected to more than double over the next four years. This new fractionator will supply NGL products for the expanding petrochemical industry on the US Gulf Coast as well as growing global demand for NGLs,” said A J Jim Teague, CEO of Enterprise’s general partner.

Read more: Enterprise begins construction of tenth NGL fractionator in Texas

BASF to increase Hexanediol capacity at Ludwigshafen site

BASF SE plans to increase the production capacity of 1,6-Hexanediol (HDO) at its Ludwigshafen Verbund site by more than 50 percent. After the start-up in 2021, BASF’s global annual nameplate capacity of HDO will be more than 70,000 metric tons per year at its production facilities in Ludwigshafen, Germany and Freeport, Texas, US.

HDO adds value in many applications by giving hydrolysis resistance, flexibility, adhesion and weatherability to the end-products. Due to its superior performance compared to other materials, BASF’s customers use the intermediate to formulate high quality industrial, automotive, wood or leather coatings, polyurethane plastics, adhesives and cosmetics.

HDO also serves as a raw material for environmentally-friendly applications including low volatile organic compound formulations for coatings and adhesives. In addition, there is the production of reactive thinners in the formulation of epoxy systems which are used for the efficient production of rotor blades for modern wind turbines and many other applications.

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Scientists pioneer a new way to turn sunlight into fuel

The quest to find new ways to harness solar power has taken a step forward after researchers successfully split water into hydrogen and oxygen by altering the photosynthetic machinery in plants.

Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert sunlight into energy. Oxygen is produced as a by-product of photosynthesis when the water absorbed by plants is ‘split’. It is one of the most important reactions on the planet because it is the source of nearly all of the world’s oxygen. Hydrogen which is produced when the water is split could potentially be a green and unlimited source of renewable energy.

A new study, led by academics at the University of Cambridge, used semi-artificial photosynthesis to explore new ways to produce and store solar energy. They used natural sunlight to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen using a mixture of biological components and manmade technologies.

The research could now be used to revolutionise the systems used for renewable energy production. A new paper, published in Nature Energy, outlined how academics at the Reisner Laboratory in Cambridge's Department of Chemistry developed their platform to achieve unassisted solar-driven water-splitting.

Their method also managed to absorb more solar light than natural photosynthesis.

Katarzyna Sokol, first author and PhD student at St John’s College, said: “Natural photosynthesis is not efficient because it has evolved merely to survive so it makes the bare minimum amount of energy needed – around 1-2 per cent of what it could potentially convert and store.”

Read more: Scientists pioneer a new way to turn sunlight into fuel

Honeywell acquires gas processing technology developer

Honeywell has acquired Ortloff Engineers Ltd, a privately held licensor and industry-leading developer of specialized technologies that drive high returns in natural gas processing and sulfur recovery.

Ortloff will become part of Honeywell UOP's gas processing and hydrogen business, bringing the industry's most advanced expertise in the recovery of high-value natural gas liquids (NGLs) from natural gas streams. Ortloff technologies are specialized to maximize gas separation, providing customers with high operational flexibility and greater returns on their plant investments. Ortloff also specializes in unique technologies for removing sulfur from refinery feedstocks, ensuring greater plant reliability and operability over the refinery lifecycle.

Honeywell UOP has worked closely with Ortloff since 2002, proving the effectiveness of these technologies with its customer set and establishing a long record of commercial success. This has helped gas processors secure financing for new projects and win long-term supply contracts with customers. 

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BASF presents new concrete additives

BASF SE is presenting its broad portfolio of innovative solutions for the aerated concrete industry under its brand name of Master Builders Solutions.

MasterCast allows faster and more efficient production. The benefit to the customers is a shorter pre-curing time. In the pre-curing phase of the production, the concrete is expanding and at the same time setting. The reduction in the water content of the concrete ensures shorter setting times.

“Concrete additives from the MasterCast series for the production of autoclaved aerated concrete disperse the binder particles efficiently, allowing the water content of the fresh concrete to be significantly reduced,” said Nicoletta Zeminian, Segment Manager Manufactured Concrete at BASF. 

In addition, MasterCast improves the rheology without impairing the pore formation process. This leads to a significant reduction in the setting time with considerable time savings. By shortening the duration of the pre-curing phase, it is possible to achieve a faster turnover of the molds, leading to an overall acceleration of the manufacturing process and an increase in the productivity of the plant.

Another benefit to the customer is the cost saving, as a result of the composition of the material, which can be changed to a less expensive one. At many plants, the individual production steps have been harmonized with each other to achieve maximum efficiency, therefore the target is not always to accelerate production. In this case, the main advantage of MasterCast is the possible reduction of up to 15 percent in the cement and lime content, with no change in the pre-curing time – resulting in significant material cost savings.

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Zeon to establish new acrylic rubber subsidiary in Thailand

Zeon Corporation said that it will establish a new subsidiary in Thailand for acrylic rubber manufacture and sale. Zeon Chemicals Asia Co Ltd (tentative)will be located in the Rayong Province, Thailand.

Acrylic rubber (ACM) is a speciality synthetic rubber combining high heat resistance and excellent oil resistance. ACM is broadly utilized in under-hood automotive applications such as transmission seals, gaskets as well as inter-cooler hoses.

Read more: Zeon to establish new acrylic rubber subsidiary in Thailand