The Chemical World This Week RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY
•
5,
1965
CONCENTRATES
Effects of air pollution on t h e human body and a d v e r s e effects of p e s t i c i d e s are among recom mendations for n e w joint research proposed by the fifth meeting of the U.S.-Japan Committee on Scientific Cooperation, held in Tokyo. Other areas the committee cites for joint study include neurophysiology, bioclimatology, a n d earthquake prediction. Except for pesticides research, which would b e a new field of cooperation, all the study areas, if approved, would b e handled by panels already sponsored b y the joint committee. Next year's meeting will b e held in Washington, D.C., in June. T h e U.S.-Japan science cooperation program is implemented in the U.S. by the Na tional Science Foundation.
ί A system t o remove w a t e r , air, suspended solids, and dissolved contaminants from fluids has been developed by Pall Corp., of Glen Cove, N.Y. T h e system removes water by countercurrent exposure of the fluid to dry gas in a packed stripping column. Removal of air is a three-step operation: operating the stripping column at re duced pressure to remove dissolved air; passing the fluid through a fine mesh screen at the base of the column to remove entrained air bubbles; a n d removing any entrained air passing the screen with a filter assembly. T h e filter assembly also removes suspended particles more than 3 mi crons in diameter. Dissolved contaminants are removed either b y a d d e d reagents or b y an ad sorbent b e d filter. • A g a m m a scanning d e v i c e t h a t provides in c r e a s e d sensitivity for evaluating nuclear re actor fuels is operating at Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio. T h e instrument, de signed a n d constructed at Battelle, precisely measures the radiation emitted by a fission prod uct in a spent fuel element. After spectrometric analyses of a few samples of an element are made, a correlation is established between the relative intensity of the radiation emitted a n d the amount of b u r n e d fuel. T h e radiation in tensity along with location information is used as the basis for drawing radiation profiles of fuel elements, which, in turn, are of value in designing or operating nuclear reactors. •
JULY
Nickel t h a t is pure enough t o allow studies of its electronic structure has b e e n p r e p a r e d at Bell Telephone Laboratories. T h e ultrapure
metal was p r e p a r e d by electroplating a 0.15-in.thick layer of nickel onto a 0.003-in.-thick com mercially purified nickel foil. T h e plated foil was then lightly oxidized a n d freed of carbon a n d nickel oxide by float-zone melting, using an elec tron beam as the heat source. Purity was evalu ated indirectly by determining the ratio of the metal's electrical resistance at room temperature to its electrical resistance at liquid-helium tem perature; the higher the resistance ratio, the lower the amount of impurities. Bell finds that the resistance ratio of its nickel is about three times greater than that of the best commercially avail able nickel. Metal impurities total less than 2 p.p.m. and other impurities, such as carbon, less than 10 p.p.m., according to Bell. ^ A 6 0 - w a t t , i s o t o p e - p o w e r e d g e n e r a t o r is now furnishing e l e c t r i c i t y to an offshore oil a n d gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico in the first com mercial use of an atomic battery. Electrical power for the platform was previously supplied b y diesel generators. T h e SNAP-7F nuclear gen erator was built for the Atomic Energy Com mission by the nuclear division of Martin Co. ( Baltimore, Md. ) a n d installed under a two-year cooperative program with Phillips Petroleum. T h e five-year design life of the nuclear generator far exceeds that of currently available diesel generator a n d battery systems, both of which re quire frequent servicing. SNAP-7F is fueled by about 14 pounds of strontium titanate, a highly insoluble compound. ^ A n e w chromium plating p r o c e s s has been in t r o d u c e d b y Udylite Corp., of Detroit, Mich. T h e process, called Cromylite, is designed to pro duce bright, stain-free chromium deposits with good covering power over a wide range of op erating conditions. Rigid control generally as sociated with chromium plating processes isn't re quired with Cromylite, according to Udylite chemists. W i t h the process, catalyst ratios are self-maintained at proper levels. However, these ratios can be adjusted to meet unusual plating re quirements. Increases in plating efficiencies of 25 to 3 0 % over conventional chromium processes are possible with Cromylite, the company says. T h e covering p o w e r of Cromylite results from ac tivation of nickel surfaces. Recesses come from the b a t h clean a n d stain-free. Special conform ing anodes can b e eliminated. JULY
5, 1965
C&EN
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