The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering’s (CJCE) latest virtual issue is now live: 2024 in Review: Top Trending Articles. This virtual issue comprises 15 articles that have received the top number of views among all articles published in 2024 thus far.
In his editorial, João B. P. Soares, CJCE Editor-in-Chief, outlines what readers can expect to see within this virtual issue:
“These 15 articles cover many areas of chemical engineering—composites, carbon capture, circular-plastic economy, polymeric materials, experimental methods in chemical engineering, microfluidic devices, risk and safety, oil and gas, and educational aspects related to the future chemical engineering—and showcase the fascinating breadth of our profession.” He closes the editorial by celebrating the contributions of the authors featured in this virtual issue to the chemical engineering field: “I would like to thank the authors of these outstanding articles for pushing the boundaries of our ever-changing profession. Their dedication is essential to the progress of chemical engineering as a discipline that is here to help humankind move towards a more prosperous society while keeping in mind the health of our planet and the well-being of our future generations. I hope the readers of this virtual issue enjoy reading these articles as much as I did.”
Within this issue, you will find articles with a wide range of topics that are of significant importance in chemical engineering in 2024. In “Towards strengthening resilience of organizations by risk management tools: A scientometric perspective on COVID-19 experience in a healthcare and industrial setting”, an issue highlight article from the May issue, authors Bruno Fabiano, Mariangela Guastaferro, Margherita Pettinato, and Hans J. Pasman, of Genoa University and Texas A&M University, discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic revealed “the need of more effective strategies to support decision-making process and to empower safety barriers”, and through a “combined scientometric and systematic review”, the authors “analyze tools and methodologies able to combine resilience with more traditional risk assessment, learning from the experience posed by the COVID-19 crisis.”
In “Shaping futures: A dialogue on chemical engineering education”, the May issue Editor’s Choice article, authors Pranav Chintalapati, Greg Evans, Derek Gladwin, Marnie Jamieson, and Naoko Ellis, of the University of British Columbia, University of Toronto, and University of Alberta, provide perspectives on how engineering education practices and theory can be considered within the continually evolving complexity of and rapid changes around the planet. Their dialogue “uncovered innovative possibilities, educational themes, experiences, and opportunities for others in the profession to consider” and “The findings reveal instructive perspectives on the shape of chemical engineering education that should be of value not only to engineers, but also other professionals, practitioners, or those in various science, technology, and math fields.”
In “Gasification for material recycling—A solution to the plastic flood?”, the September Issue Editor’s Choice article, author Corinna Schulze-Netzer of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway, discusses how “steam gasification stands out as one of the most promising approaches for recycling mixed, contaminated, and unsortable plastics”. While “this method utilizes high temperatures”, the “resulting gas can be reformed through hydrocarbon syntheses” and the “biomass can be used as a substitute for an extension of the carbon feed, ultimately reducing reliance on fossil feedstock”. As a result, “steam gasification can significantly increase recycling rates and contribute to a bio-integrated circular carbon economy.”
Articles within this virtual issue are open access or have been set as free-to-read for a limited time. Be sure to access this issue and explore recent research on topics important to chemical engineers now.