The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing spray-dried powders. During the process, a solvent is used. The process is done in multiple steps such that the emulsification mass ratio is low when removal of the solvent is started. Preferred solvents are isopropyl acetate and ethyl acetate. The invention also relates to a set-up to run the inventive process at industrial scale.

The invention relates to a method for producing particles with pore structures, by means of a hybrid process of atomization via drying-cooling, from a water-in-oil-type emulsion of a composition of a non-solubilized and in melt state matrix. The production method comprises: i) forming a water-in-oil-type emulsion consisting of a composition of a solvent that is aqueous or soluble in water (dispersed phase) and a composition of a non-solubilized and in melt state matrix (continuous phase); ii) forming discrete particles from the emulsion via atomization, using a flow of gas at high pressure and temperature; iii) immediately removing the solvent via evaporation; and iv) subsequently cooling the formed discrete particles, resulting in porous particles that are substantially free from solvents.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing PHA capable of providing PHA (for example, a PHA powder) having excellent thermal stability with high productivity. The present invention is a method for producing polyhydroxyalkanoic acid, the method including a step (a) and a step (b) below step (a) of preparing an aqueous suspension liquid containing polyhydroxyalkanoic acid and polyvinyl alcohol and having a pH of 7 or less; and step (b) of spray-drying the aqueous suspension liquid prepared in the step (a).

The present invention relates to a modified siloxane resin, a crosslinked modified siloxane resin, and a method for preparing the crosslinked resin. More specifically, the present invention relates to a modified siloxane resin, a crosslinked modified siloxane resin with excellent superhydrophobicity obtained by dual curing of the resin, and a method for preparing the crosslinked resin. The use of the modified siloxane resin according to the present invention allows the crosslinked modified siloxane resin to have excellent superhydrophobicity and high hardness. The water repellency of the crosslinked resin can be appropriately controlled by varying the amount of the siloxane resin mixed.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing PHA capable of providing PHA (for example, a PHA powder) having excellent thermal stability with high productivity. The present invention is a method for producing polyhydroxyalkanoic acid, the method including a step (a) and a step (b) below: step (a) of preparing an aqueous suspension liquid containing polyhydroxyalkanoic acid and polyvinyl alcohol and having a pH of 7 or less; and step (b) of spray-drying the aqueous suspension liquid prepared in the step (a).

This cellulose powder has: an average degree of polymerization of 100 to 350; a weight average particle size of over 30 μm, but less than 250 μm; an apparent specific volume of 2 to less than 15 cm.sup.3/g; and an organic carbon content from residual impurities, which is defined by the total organic carbon content (%) during 1% NaOH extraction to the total organic carbon content (%) during pure water extraction, of over 0.07 to 0.3%.

A method for producing material powder, comprising providing material and an atomization gas charged with an atomization gas pressure by means of an atomization gas compressor to an atomization device, melting the material and pulverizing the molten material into material powder by means of charging the molten material with the atomization gas using the atomization introducing the material powder from the atomization device into a pressurized container and providing a conveyor gas charged with a conveyer gas pressure by means of a conveyer gas compressor to the pressurized container, wherein the conveyor gas pressure is higher than the atmospheric pressure and lower than the atomization gas pressure, as well as a device for carrying out the method.

Porous cellulose microparticles and their use in, inter alias, cosmetic and pharmaceutic preparations are provided. These microparticles comprise cellulose I nanocrystals aggregated together, thus forming the microparticles, and arranged around cavities in the microparticles, thus defining pores in the microparticles. A method of for producing these microparticles is also provided. It involves mixing a suspension of cellulose I nanocrystals with an emulsion of a porogen to produce a mixture comprising a continuous liquid phase in which droplets of the porogen are dispersed and in which the nanocrystals of cellulose I are suspended; spray-drying the mixture to produce microparticles; and if the porogen has not sufficiently evaporated during spray-drying to form pores in the microparticles, evaporating the porogen or leaching the porogen out of the microparticles to form pores in the microparticles.

A powdery and/or granular material which achieves excellent dispersibility of fine polymer particles in a matrix resin is provided. The powdery and/or granular material contains specific fine polymer particles (A) and a specific resin (B), and has pores with an average pore diameter of 0.03 μm to 1.00 μm, where a total volume of the pores is not less than 0.0600 mL/g.

The present invention provides a method for preparing a vinyl chloride-based polymer, the method including (1) polymerizing a vinyl chloride-based monomer in the presence of a vinyl chloride-based first seed particle, a vinyl chloride-based second seed particle, and an emulsifier and (2) separating, after the polymerizing, a first vinyl chloride-based polymer and a second vinyl chloride-based polymer which are in a particulate form, wherein the separated first vinyl chloride-based polymer is dried using a fluid bed dryer (FBD), and the first vinyl chloride-based polymer has a smaller average particle diameter (D.sub.50) than the second vinyl chloride-based polymer, and two kinds of polymers having different physical properties may be prepared through a single manufacturing process.