The first phase of the government’s initiative to support the biofuel sector has now closed. Earlier this year, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy revealed plans to invest £5 million to fund innovation in hydrogen bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) technologies. The Hydrogen BECCS Innovation Programme will provide support to the technologies that can use biogeneic feedstocks to produce hydrogen. Phase 1 was intended to support several projects and develop a protype demonstration project, which will…

The challenge of producing concrete products with lower carbon footprints is an issue the construction materials handling and producing sectors have been seeking to take on with a range of innovations of late, with precast concrete firm FP McCann producing a UK first new product developed with the help of its international partners.  It has become the first company in the UK to make precast manhole rings by using Wagner’s Earth Friendly Concrete (EFC), which makes use of a geopolymer…

Steel Manufacturer Submits Proposals For Forge BuildingA steel company in Sheffield has submitted plans to build a new forging press at its current site.   Sheffield Forgemasters wants to construct a 144,000-square-foot building on Brightside Lane, where its existing forge building is currently situated. The application, which was sent to Sheffield City Council, said: “The proposed development represents the first stage in a significant investment for Sheffield Forgemasters.” Within the new building will be a 13,000-tonne forging press, which will be able to…

A call has been issued to the government by the UK ports industry to supercharge the delivery of energy network infrastructure so that ports can serve as hubs for freight transport decarbonisation on both land and water. Sector bosses want to see new research and a transformational funding programme introduced to help drive this step change, with ports around the country already committed to helping the UK transition to a net zero future. For example, significant investment has been seen…

The first plastic recycling park in the UK has been given the green light, with councillors at Cheshire West and Chester approving plans for the £165 million project, which will include innovating treatment and processing technologies to boost the recycling of 367,500 tonnes of plastic and mixed recyclables annually.  Peel PRE now intends to work with potential operators to get going with onsite construction at Protos, the energy and resource hub just outside Ellesmere Port in Cheshire. The scheme itself, which…

  4B Milli-Speed 4 - 20 mA Analog Output Speed Sensor – ATEX version now available LEEDS, U.K. — 4B has just launched an ATEX version of its popular Milli-Speed, a loop powered 4 - 20 mA analogue output speed switch for PLC, DCS or stand-alone controllers.   The Milli-Speed switch is designed to detect belt slip, belt underspeed, stop motion, low speed or zero speed on bucket elevators, conveyors, airlocks, mixers, fans, grinders and many other rotating machines.  …

Which Airswept Mill is Right for Me: Single-Pass or Recycled System? If you find yourself in the market as a first-time buyer of an airswept mill, or even if you’re an airswept mill ‘veteran’, chances are you will find yourself making the critical decision of choosing between a Single-Pass Airswept Mill System vs. a Recycled Air System.  There are certainly projects where the specifications of the process dictate a clear-cut choice of one system over the other, but most fall into…

4B IE-Node – Provides Sensor Data to PLC’s and Automation Systems LEEDS, U.K. —4B Braime Components has introduced the Industrial Ethernet Node (IE-NODE) remote monitoring interface designed to provide sensor data to PLC’s or other automation and control systems. The IE-NODE is available in two versions, both with a total of 10 sensor inputs. Version 1 has eight contact or NTC temperature inputs, and two pulse or 4-20 mA (current loop) inputs.  Version 2 has 10 inputs for 4-20 mA…