Chemical Processing Distilled

If you're a regular listener, you already know the deal — you work in this industry. You've spent your career in control rooms, on plant floors, in engineering offices, running calculations and managing processes that most of the world never thinks about. You know what a distillation column is. But this episode is meant to be shared with a spouse, a parent, a kid, a friend — someone who's asked yo...

The complexity of the human body makes critical thinking an essential skill for doctors. It’s also important in our work. However, engineers often learn the value of critical thinking the hard way. Dirk Willard, by way of Editor Traci Purdum's spoken word, tells us not to over-concentrate on the zebras... and let the horses run free.

From a $144 million federal push to address microplastics in drinking water to a CEO transition at Dow and Edison Award wins for chemical giants, here's what moved the needle in April 2026.

Throwing operators into full simulator scenarios sounds thorough, but it can mask the one critical subtask they actually need to master. Human factors engineer Dave Strobhar argues that effective operator training starts by identifying which subtasks carry the highest consequences — loss of containment, asset destruction, major downtime — and drilling those specifically before integrating them int...

In this episode of Chemical Processing's Distilled podcast, editor-in-chief Traci Purdum speaks with water treatment expert Brad Buecker about the dangers of the "water is water" mindset in industrial settings. Buecker shares real-world examples of costly boiler failures caused by ignoring water chemistry, explains how water's near-universal solvent properties create scaling and corrosion risks an...

After nearly two decades, Seán Ottewell retires from Chemical Processing, leaving behind a legacy that spans battlefield bones, Neanderthal adhesives and one particularly memorable hedge. In this episode, Editor-in-Chief Traci Purdum highlights some of his best work...including taking a tinkle on his neighbor's landscaping.

Supply chain shocks from the Iran conflict, a contested overhaul of chemical safety law, an ethylene oxide rollback and a green chemistry advance — the month's biggest stories summarized by Executive Editor Jonathan Katz.

Cross-training process plant operators sounds simple, but execution is often flawed. Human factors engineer Dave Strobhar explains that effective cross-training must be based on job complexity and demonstrated competency — not arbitrary time requirements. Common pitfalls include inconsistent crew procedures that cause negative transfer of training, inadequate alarm management for operators returni...

In this bonus episode, Executive Editor Jonathan Katz highlights main points from his recent interview for his Chemical Processing Notebook series.  Eric Byer lives and works in Washington, D.C., where he fights for more than 400 companies that make up the Alliance for Chemical Distribution. As CEO and president of ACD, he backs the interests of chemical distributors by lobbying on issues such as...

Corrosive acids, erosive slurries, viscous polymers, fluids with variable conductivity — these are the kinds of process streams that prove most challenging. Selecting the wrong technology or materials can mean frequent failures, costly downtime or, worse, a safety incident. Electromagnetic flow meters — also known as mag meters — have been a workhorse of the chemical industry for decades. But ther...

Workforce Matters columnist Lauren Neal explains what happens when experience stops sharpening judgment and starts dulling curiosity. The comfort and danger of “we’ve seen this before.” You can read the full column here. This was read by Editor-in-Chief Traci Purdum.

Executive Editor Jonathan Katz reviews this month's chemical industry news, which covers a landmark tariff ruling, Dow's AI-driven layoffs, the rollback of the EPA's Endangerment Finding, BASF's India expansion and a new leader for global plastics treaty talks.

Chemical processing operators need training that mirrors real-world conditions, not idealized scenarios. The final six guidelines from Walter Schneider's research emphasize maintaining motivation through consequences, presenting complex contexts with distractions, intermixing tasks to build switching skills, and incorporating time pressure. Training should capture expert strategies that minimize w...

eChem Expo, recently acquired by Chemical Processing’s parent company EndeavorB2B, returns April 7-9, 2026, in Kingsport, Tennessee. Conference Director Damon Shackelford discusses the event's evolution from a regional gathering to a comprehensive three-part experience featuring an expo floor with nearly 200 vendors, professional conference sessions and technical seminars. This year's theme, "Ener...

From light-driven catalysts to EPA debates, chemical sector balances technological advances with safety, economic and environmental challenges. Editor-in-Chief digs into what the audience was reading. 

The chemical industry faces flat growth, formaldehyde regulation debate, Venezuela oil investment push, winter storm threats and a cheesy viral moment.

Global chemical regulatory ‘best guess’ for 2026 amid political shifts, litigation and evolving U.S. and European Union policies.  Each year, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C., its global consulting affiliate The Acta Group, and consortia management affiliate B&C Consortia Management, L.L.C., prepare a summary overview of things to come in the new year. We are pleased to present our Forecast 2026....

In this Chemical Processing podcast, Traci Purdum and Dave Strobhar discuss training guidelines for operators. They cover five of 11 guidelines based on Walter Schneider's research: promoting consistent processing to build automaticity (where tasks become automatic), designing training for repeated practice of critical skills, avoiding memory overload through reference materials, varying training...

Cautiously Optimistic Despite Near-Term Headwinds U.S. chemical sector shows resilience with long-term growth potential amid trade uncertainties and uneven recovery. Martha Gilchrist Moore, chief economist for the American Chemistry Council, offers her predictions for the coming year.  Editor-in-Chief Traci Purdum reads the column. You can read the article here.

Alexandra Savino explains why new data showing recycled plastics contain more hazardous substances than virgin materials is driving Extended Producer Responsibility reforms that link compliance to chemical performance. Key Highlights EPR now includes chemical safety, increasing scrutiny on contaminants like metals, PFAS and PAHs in post-consumer recycled plastics. Upstream accountability is growin...

Welcome to the year-end edition of Distilled News. To wrap up 2025, we will review some of the top stories coming from the chemical industry over the past 12 months.

This episode of Distilled features the final 2025 Vaaler Award winner: Flowserve's INNOMAG TB-MAG Dual Drive. This sealless pump technology provides secondary containment through the pump itself rather than the motor, unlike canned motor pumps. The system prevents catastrophic leaks of toxic and corrosive fluids while handling up to 30% solids. Nick Rentzelos, the technology's inventor and Flowser...

Yokogawa's Vaaler Award-winning reinforcement learning algorithm reduces implementation time, balances plant objectives and achieves rapid learning in trials. Factorial Kernel Dynamic Policy Programming, or FKDPP, a reinforcement learning AI developed by Yokogawa and the NARA Institute of Science and Technology and applied by Yokogawa to process industries is the first reinforcement learning AI to...

Vaaler Award winning technology allows operators to forgo traditional insulation systems and all the associated labor, materials, inspection, and maintenance expenses in favor of a spray-applied coating that retains process heat, protects personnel, and eliminates corrosion under insulation. Editor-in-Chief Traci Purdum chats with Neil Wilds, global product director, Corrosion Under Insulation Tes...

Deloitte forecasts 0.2% production decline as industry faces "confused sea state," German sentiment plummets, and environmental groups challenge Trump's chemical plant exemptions. Welcome to Distilled News, where Jonathan Katz, executive editor of Chemical Processing,  looks back at the top stories each month on Chemicalprocessing.com.