Chemical engineer and distiller Katherine Condon describes the importance of possessing technical, creative and communication skills, while also having a good nose for judging whiskey; and says that Henry Ford, 'the man who put the world on wheels', and Ada Lovelace, the first computer programmer, are among her engineering heroes.

The novel approach, developed by chemical engineers, could help create more efficient consumer products, including drugs, cosmetics and food.

It is difficult to fully separate many solvents from water. An ethanol solution containing 4 wt.% water is an azeotrope: the vapour has the same composition as the liquid when boiled. Such mixtures cannot be separated by standard distillation. Pervaporation uses a membrane to separate such mixtures, writes Dr Cilian Ó Súilleabháin. 

This article discusses the hazards of handling powders and how dust explosions can arise in the bakery industry.

The main aim of this research, writes University of Limerick chemical and biochemical engineering student Úna Real, is to investigate the possible advantages of using an angle-mounted Rushton impeller in a mixing tank.

Max O’Neill summarises his final-year research project which investigated and analysed forward osmosis including membrane characterisation and the variables which contribute to the efficiency of the process.