E_mg_GB_03_vorne-29_3_04

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56 GEA: innovation that adds value The Mechanical Separation division developed and brought to market its Protein-Plus system. This enables significantly more protein to be extracted from milk. Because the system does not have to be emptied as frequently as before, its availability is improved. A further environmental benefit is that the system saves up to 600,000 liters of water per year. This provides customers with added value worth tens of thousands of euros in total per machine per year. The system’s modular construction also means that separators already in use can be upgraded. GEA’s Refrigeration division continued to make advances in the use of environmentally friendly refrigerants, especially those that are not harmful to the climate. GEA’s engineers devised a new patented process for the efficient use of carbon dioxide in conjunction with ammonia for lowtemperature applications. The company extended its range of screw compressors with the launch of a new product line. These compressors are mainly installed when environmentally friendly ammonia is used as a refrigerant. This division is therefore well-equipped to meet the needs of the market and offers its customers tailor-made solutions for their preferred application using the most suitable, environmentally friendly refrigerant. Lurgi: plastic made from gas During the period under review, Lurgi’s research and development activities focused mainly on its fast-growing gas-to-petrochemicals business. As a market and technology leader, Lurgi offers its customers innovative, inexpensive and resource-saving processes for converting natural gas into value-added chemical and petrochemical products. Under this process, gas is first converted into synthesis gas. The next stage is to turn the synthesis gas into methanol, from which petrochemical products such as plastics and synthetic fuels are finally extracted. Traditionally these products are manufactured from crude oil, which is an increasingly scarce and relatively expensive resource. Lurgi’s continuous expansion of its alternative and extremely efficient gas-to-petrochemicals and gas-to-synfuels technologies provides this plant engineering firm with outstanding business prospects. At a newly built HP POX high-pressure synthesis-gas research facility on the premises of the Freiberg University of Mining and Technology in eastern Germany, Lurgi’s engineers are working with scientists from the Institute of Energy Process Engineering and Chemical Engineering on the optimization of proprietary Lurgi processes for the production of synthesis gas. Their aim is to use extremely high pressure to convert gas and other commodities, such as hydrocarbons, even more efficiently and economically into synthesis gas before this is refined into methanol and other petrochemical products. This offers considerable competitive advantages for Lurgi’s customers, as it substantially reduces plant operating costs.
MANAGEMENT SHARE STRATEGY SPECIAL SECTION MANAGEMENT REPORT FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FURTHER INFORMATION Economic Environment • Situation of the Company • Organization and Structure • Risk Report • Employees • Performance of the Subgroups • Outlook Lurgi Lentjes: optimization of proprietary processes lowers costs As a specialist in environmentally friendly processes for thermal waste disposal, Lurgi Lentjes continued to optimize its processes for the incineration of waste. During this time, Lurgi Lentjes engineers gained valuable insights into the mechanism by which nitrogen oxides are formed. These findings are now being translated to an industrial scale. The company believes this will considerably reduce the cost of running waste disposal plants. Once it has successfully optimized its proprietary processes, Lurgi Lentjes will be able to offer a simplified, more compact form of flue-gas desulfurization plants that will generate further cost savings in this product area. Zimmer: cutting the cost of producing PET bottles Zimmer is currently developing a new process for manufacturing PET bottles, a rapidly growing market. This process facilitates the direct production of bottle preforms from the PET polymer without the need to produce granules. Because this process has fewer stages and does not involve transporting intermediates to the processing agent, it reduces production costs by around ten percent. Dynamit Nobel: successful development projects in all businesses Chemetall’s specialty chemicals business developed and brought to market its Cerate process, an environmentally friendly way of protecting aluminum surfaces against corrosion. In the past, such surfaces have been protected against corrosion using highly-toxic chromic acid. Chemetall’s chrome-free process protects aluminum against environmental influences and optimizes the paint's adhesiveness. Dynamit Nobel’s plastics business focused on developing its so-called hybrid technology, which is used in the automotive industry. This process uses plastic-metal compounds as stabilizers in the front section of cars. This mix of materials is much lighter than conventional stabilizing elements made of metal. The hybrid construction reduces the vehicle’s weight and fuel consumption. In the growth area of nanotechnology, researchers at Sachtleben Chemie have developed a new generation of nano-particles for a new field of application: nano-fine pigments made of titanium dioxide make it possible to produce self-cleaning, dirt-repellent surfaces. They are used, for example, on house walls, roof tiles and paving stones. Experiments have shown that as dirt does not stick to surfaces coated with titanium-dioxide pigments, it is easy to rinse it off with water. The nanoparticles are either added to high-quality paints and varnishes or applied directly to the surface as a solution. As part of a development project funded by the European Union, Dynamit Nobel’s advanced-ceramics business is working on the development of a ceramic material for use in medical equipment. 57
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