Chemical Processing Distilled

Most Read: Amid Regulatory Uncertainty, Chemical Industry Navigates Innovation

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. 

What Topped Chemical Industry News in January 2026?

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

Chemical Compliance: What to Expect in 2026

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. Our global team of chemical experts works hard each year to summarize our collective best guess on what to expect in the new year regarding global industrial, agricultural and biocidal chemical regulatory and policy initiatives. This year's analysis was no easy feat, given the general capriciousness of the world in which we live, global geopolitical and trade tensions and the looming 2026 midyear elections.

Master 5 Critical Guidelines for Effective Operator Training

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 conditions to match real-world scenarios, and maintaining active trainee participation. Dave emphasizes practical applications like alarm recognition and emergency response training. The discussion highlights how proper training helps operators perform effectively under stress by developing automatic responses to critical situations rather than relying solely on conscious thought.

2026 Chemical Industry Outlook

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.

EPR and Recycled Plastics: Why Chemical Safety Is the Next Compliance Frontier

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 growing, with regulators and brand owners requiring chemical producers to verify product safety and recyclability data.

Proactive compliance creates opportunity, as processors that audit, reformulate and improve traceability can gain an advantage in chemically safe recycling.

Read the column here.

Chemical Processing Distilled News: 2025 in Review

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.

Fail-Safe Pump Technology Wins Vaaler Award

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 Flowserve's director, explains how the maintenance-free design addresses the skilled workforce shortage and stringent safety regulations. The pump features hydrodynamic silicon carbide bearings that don't wear, requires no seal replacement or shaft alignment, and easily retrofits into existing facilities. Energy-efficient carbon fiber containment shells replace traditional metal cans, reducing friction and motor drag while keeping hazardous fluids completely isolated from electrical components.

AI Technology Autonomously Optimizes Complex Chemical Processes

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 autonomously control complex chemical processes, FKDPP complements manual and conventional control methods like PID and advanced process control.

Karthik Gopalakrishnan, part of the digital transformation, smart manufacturing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and industrial automation team at Yokogawa, discusses the award-winning tech with EIC Traci Purdum

Corrosion Under Insulation is 86’d by Sherwin-Williams

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 Testing, to learn how this innovation earned a Vaaler Award. Neil is affiliated with the Sherwin-Williams Protective and Marine Products line.