Chemical firms in fuel firsts

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2004
• Weight: 63 KB
• Volume: 2004
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1351-4180
• DOI: 10.1016/s1351-4180(04)00220-x

✦ Synopsis

and antibacterial tiles is estimated at around Yen 40 bn/y. Four photocatalyst standards are to be established by METI covering selfcleaning, air cleaning, water clarification, and antibacterial and antifungal photocatalysts.

Japan Chemical Week, 12 Feb 2004, 45 (2257), 2

Chemical firms in fuel firsts

Both Dow Chemical and Novozymes advanced fuel cell-and ethanol-based alternative energy projects last week, both projects having the backing of the Department of Energy. A switch was flipped in Freeport, TX, on a General Motors fuel cell -the first used to generate electricity at Dow Chemical's chemical complex at the location. The cell generates 75 kW of electricity, enough for about 60 homes. Following 4-6 months of testing, GM and Dow will install 12 more modules, generating 1 MW. Some 400 units are planned by 2006, producing 35 MW and supplying about 2% of the site's power needs. For Dow, the fuel cells are a test of a technology whereby it can use byproduct hydrogen more efficiently than burning or selling it to industrial gas companies. Elsewhere, Novozymes has achieved a 12-fold reduction in the cost of making cellulase, an enzyme needed to convert the cellulose in biomass into glucose for fermentation to fuel ethanol (see p 6).