Will zirconium and titanium b e economical and practical in corrosionprone spots such a s these in C o l u m b i a Southern's Barberton, Ohio, plant ( c e n t e r ) ? C-S hopes its new test program will give the answers
Where Will Zirconium Go? Columbia-Southern launches program to Find plant uses for zirconium in a long term venture COLUMBIA-SOUTHERN
CHEMICAL
has
taken a key step to help develop zirconium markets. It will test t h e metal in actual plant operations, find out just where in a chemical plant t h e metal might have a commercial future. Since many people are vitally interested in a comparison b e t w e e n zirconium a n d titanium, the program also includes titanium to provide that comparison. For C-S, the program will: • Help reduce its own corrosion costs.
• Help i t s brother in the zirconium field—Columbia-National (ColumbiaSouthern owns half of C-N; National Research t h e other half). • Help t h e titanium field. (C-S supplies titanium tetrachloride to Electromet.) Commercial markets are obviously n e e d e d to secure zirconium's long-term growth. Since it resists corrosion by water very well at temperatures up to 900° F . , it's a likely prospect to solve
many chemical industry corrosion p r o b lems. Supplies to date, however, h a v e been earmarked for Atomic E n e r g y Commission t o use in nuclear reactors. Result: There simply hasn't b e e n enough metal available for people t o take a good look for uses in civilian markets. This year though, will see a c h a n g e . Zirconium sponge production should exceed AEC needs b y roughly 1 million pounds—enough t o get civilian p r o grams off the ground (C&EN, D e c . 16, 1957, page 30). Firms active in the zirconium sponge field (Columbia-National, USI, W a h Chang, and Carborundum) h a v e fabricated various equipment items such a s pipes, valves, and reaction vessels. Although creating some interest, these items have not yet stimulated w i d e FEB.
10,
1958
C&EN
57
EQUIPMENT
NEW KEWAUNEE
FRADIO-ASR SAMPLER OPERATES CONTINUOUSLY Kewaunee's Continuous Radio-Air Sampler is the only instrument o f its kind on the market . . . an invaluable tool for every nuclear installation. You need it to establish an acceptable Health-Physics operating plan and for Environmental Background Studies and SurveysSmall and compact, the Air Sampler has a weatherproof, stainless steel housing. It's portable . . . goes anywhereinside, outside—wherever you need continuous and extensive air monitoring. Kewaunee's Continuous Radio-Air Sampler collects radio particulates with a high efficiency filter ( r e t e n t i o n efficiency of 99.999% for 0.3 to 0.5 micron size particles). Standard radio-autograph methods will give you a quantitative analysis of the airborne radio particulates collected by the filter. Check these Outstanding Features • Continuous operation • Oil-less pump • Time-rate meter • Valved by-pass for remote sampling • Double overload protection • Operates on 110 volt AC current • Weighs only 75 pounds © 2 1 % " x 15" x 15" overall
spread plant use. What's needed is a program which gets at specifics—where in a chemical plant is it practical a n d economical to use zirconium? Just as important is similar knowledge on titanium. These are the questions C-S will try to answer. Columbia's program amounts to testing zirconium and titanium in all plant areas where corrosion is a problem. And, it includes areas where plants suffer effects from sea-water. Plants in the program include Natrium, W . Va.; Barberton, Ohio; Corpus Christi, Tex.; Lake Charles, La.; a n d Jersey City, N. J. Also involved: Columbia-National's plant at Pensacola, Fla.; Standard Chemical, Ltd., at Beauharnois, Que. At first, C-S will place test strips or "coupons" of titanium a n d zirconium along with the metal now in use in key process points such as brine, acid, and caustic lines as well as chlorine gas streams. Periodically, these strips will be removed and examined. If outstanding resistance is noted, a length of p i p e or some other p a r t will b e fabricated and placed in service. Eventually, t h e program will work u p to process vessels. But, before C-S makes any decision to install zirconium a n d titanium, several factors must be evaluated: • W h a t problems m i g h t the metal create in plant use? • Is it cheaper in the long run to use the higher priced metals which should provide longer service life than nickel, stainless, or some other metal? • Will their use reduce plant shutdowns for inspections and repair? Conceivably, such a test program could take several years. C-S has not set a time limit. W i t h zirconium sponge capacity only 6.1 million pounds now, time does not seem a problem as far as zirconium is concerned. Once they find w h e r e zirconium can be used in a chemical plant, and if this should prove a sizable market, zirconium producers would be happy to add capacity to meet d e m a n d . Titanium makers could also benefit.
Write for FREE bulletin describing this unit in detail.
Kewanee KEWAUNEE MANUFACTURING CO. 5012 S. Center Street, Adrian, Michigan REPRESENTATIVES IN PRINCIPAL CITIES
58
C&EN
FEB.
10,
1958
• Distributor head of impervious graphite has been developed for falling film absorbers by Falls Industries. A liquid reservoir dampens any surges of entering liquid a n d forces all the liquid to reach the same level at the same time, the company says. E2
• Air filter, developed by Arco Mfg., consists of a disposable filter pad made of synthetic fibers and a cadmiumplated metal holding frame. T h e pads are more efficient than viscous-coated filters, according to Arco. E3 • N e w indicator lights, b y Dialight, are oil-tight, water-tight, and dusttight, the company says. The lights have a built-in resistor for use with neon glow lamps. They mount in an 11/16in. hole. E4 • Resistance sample holder, by Walter N . T r u m p , can b e used with any resistance measuring equipment to find both surface and volume resistances of molded plastics. Holder takes specimens in t h e form of disks, 4 in. in diameter b y 1 / 8 in. thick, with foil or conductive-paint electrodes applied. E5 • Rotary face seals, by Skinner Seal, operate from —320° to 1200° F., t h e company says. The seals come with facings of carbon, tungsten-carbide, or other material, according to temperature and pressure needs, E6 • N e w tubular infrared radiant heaters are available from Douglas C. Whitaker Co. The units can b e used for baking, drying, curing, dehydrating, degreasing, preheating, vulcanizing, and the like. They operate in ambient temperatures up to 1000° F., the company says. E7 • Automatic liquid weighing unit, by Glengarry Processes, consists of a weigh tank, mounted on a beam, with an adjustable poise. Range of the unit is 1 oz. t o 10 lb. with an output of up to 10 weighings per min. E8 • Packing material for shipping protection is available from Pontefract Box Co., Ltd. Usually tailormade for the shipped article, the material is a resilient pulp containing a high percentage of sawdust. Packing is molded, eliminates messy handling. E9 • N e w line of load scales is being marketed by Manning, Maxwell & Moore. T h e units take care of weighing and handling in one operation. E 10 • Plastic laminate, developed b y Richardson, combines good electrical properties with flame retardance and arc resistance, the company says. Laminate keeps its electrical and arc resistance properties after being exposed to high humidity or immersion, Richardson adds. E 11
EQUIPMENT
• New heat fans, b y General Blower, are designed to k e e p heat away from bearings. The fans are rated from 600 to 30,000 cu. ft. per min. and will handle temperatures u p to 1650° F., the € 12 company says. • Anode container, developed by W a g n e r Brothers, eliminates hang-up anodes, the company says. T h e container is of the basket type. Vertical members and supporting rings are arranged to give maximum weight distribution. E 13
Electro Devices, have individual pullout units which disengage completely. This isolates external sensing contacts, simplifies the process of checking for grounds, according to the company.
• General purpose nickel cadmium batteries are now being marketed by Gulton Industries. The batteries are rechargeable, come with nominal voltages in multiples of 1.2 volts with rated capacities from 0.1 to 160 ampere hours. E 14
• Ten n e w atomic models are available from Arthur S. LaPine & Co. for constructing organic metal chelate compounds. The models are scaled t o a magnification of 1.5 X 10 8 . Measurements between any two points on a molecule model are proportional to
E21 • Combination tube benders are n o w
available from Imperial Brass Mfg. in an improved design. T h e units bend both h a r d and soft tubing and handle from two to seven sizes. They will make bends u p to 180°, the company says. E 21
• New ultrasonic cleaner, by Alcar Instruments, delivers 2 kw. of power. Stainless steel tank holds 5 gal. of liquid. A timer shuts off generator at a predetermined time. E 15
• Fractional horsepower motors with a new oil wicking material are now available from Westinghouse. The material is a specially processed cellulose fiber. Motors are guaranteed for five years' use without lubrication, the company says. E 18 • Modified
scintillation
detector,
• Multiple
selector switch, by
(Continued on page
112)
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Tracerlab, has a bypass switch on its back plate. This lets the output pulses of the photomultjplier t u b e bypass the built-in stable pulse amplifier and feed directly to the linear amplifiers used for spectrometry. E 19 • Flexible lacing for troughed conveyor belts has been developed by General Splice. No templates, drilling, or hole punching are n e e d e d to make a splice, the company says. E 20
CBC
Electronics, has four outlets, each one controlled by its own switch. Each switch and outlet pair is color-coded for identification. E 23 • Second iron-chromium-aluminum alloy in a new series is now being made by Hoskins Mfg. T h e alloy has good ductility and low growth properties when used where continuous operating temperatures do n o t go over 2250° F., according to company. E 2 4 • Fine mesh electroplate screens have holes 10 times smaller than the diameter of the average human hair, says Pyramid Screen, the maker. They have 250,000 conical holes per sq. in. E 25
February 10, 1958
• New instrument recorder, by Hogan Laboratories, produces 450 traces across 14 in. of a 15-in. sheet. It can be used for digital d a t a reduction, telemetry output recording, spectrum analysis work, and general off-on event displays. E 16 • Air-operated, portable hydraulic test stand has been designed by Kahn & Co. to lest hydraulic components and systems. Standard units have one or two test outlets, give maximum pressures from 3000 up t o 30,000 p.s.i. E 17
distances on the actual molecule, the company says. E 22
STAMP
To: Readers' Information Service Chemical and Engineering N e w s 4 3 0 Park Avenue N e w York 22, N. Y.
• Combination alarm-control units, by
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(Situations Wanted, Continued) CHEMICAJL E N G I N E E R : Ph.D. Six years post-doctoral experience in pilot plant design, erection and operation in t h e chemical process industries. Competent at supervision and a d ministration. New Jersey or Connecticut preferred. Box 328-H-2, C. & E. N . , Easton, P a . ORGANIC C H E M I S T : Extensive experience in synthesis of new insecticides and other biocides, bioassay, formulation, toxicology. Numerous publications and patents. Ph.D. 1952. Desires position with progressive firm. Available July or September. Box 329-H-2, C.
