BATTERIES |
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In science and technology, a battery is a device that stores chemical energy and makes it available in an electrical form. Batteries consist of electrochemical devices such as one or more galvanic cells, fuel cells or flow cells. The earliest known artifacts that may have been batteries are the Baghdad Batteries, from some time between 250 BCE and 640 CE. The modern development of batteries started with the Voltaic pile developed by the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta in 1800. The worldwide battery industry generates 48 billion dollars in sales annually (2005 estimate).
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CARBON MONOXIDE EMISSIONS |
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Carbon monoxide, chemical formula CO, is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, flammable and highly toxic gas. It is a major product of the incomplete combustion of carbon and carbon-containing compounds. It is less dense than air under ordinary conditions, however it accumulates on the ground, meaning that if poisoning causes loss of consciousness the amount of carbon monoxide inhaled increases and so fatality is radically increased. It is very slightly soluble in water and burns in air with a characteristic blue flame, producing carbon dioxide; it is a component of producer gas and water gas, which are widely used artificial fuels. It is a reducing agent, removing oxygen from many compounds and is used in the reduction of metals, e.g., iron , from their ores. At high pressures and elevated temperatures it reacts with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst to form methanol. Carbon monoxide is formed by combustion of carbon in oxygen at high temperatures when there is an excess of carbon. It is also formed with a byproduct oxygen by decomposition of carbon dioxide at very high temperatures (above 2,000 °C). It is present in the exhaust of internal-combustion engines, often the exhaust of automobiles, and is generated in coal stoves, furnaces, and gas appliances that do not get enough air. This may be due to insufficient ventilation or other reasons.
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COATINGS |
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A coating is a covering that is applied to an object to protect it or change its appearance. They may be applied as liquids, gases or solids.
Examples of coatings:
Anodizing
Chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition
Chromate conversion coating
Enamel (paint)
Industrial coating
Oxide (coating)
Paint
Plasma coatings
Electroless plating or electrochemical plating
Phosphate (coating)
Polymer coatings, such as Teflon
Sputtered or vacuum deposited materials
Plate steel is often ordered from the mill pickled and oiled)
Enamel (vitreous)
Fusion bonded epoxy coating (FBE coating)
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COOLING TOWERS |
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Cooling towers are structures for cooling water or other working medium to near-ambient temperature. The primary use of large, industrial cooling towers is to lower the temperature of the cooling water used in power plants, petroleum refineries, petrochemical plants, natural gas processing plants and other industrial facilities. It is desirable to cool the water rather than simply discharging it because the cooling water is typically demineralized and it is cheaper to cool it rather than getting more demineralized water. Furthermore, discharging large amounts of hot water may raise the temperature of the receiving river or lake to an unacceptable level for the local ecosystem. A cooling tower serves to dissipate the heat into the atmosphere instead and wind and air diffusion spreads the heat over a much larger area than hot water can distribute heat in a body of water.
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CORROSION EVALUATIONS |
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Corrosion is deterioration of intrinsic properties in a material due to reactions with its environment. Weakening of steel due to oxidation of the iron atoms is a well-known example of electrochemical corrosion. This type of damage usually affects metallic materials, and typically produces oxide(s) and/or salt(s) of the original metal. Corrosion also includes the dissolution of ceramic materials and can refer to discoloration and weakening of polymers by the sun's ultraviolet light.
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LEAD |
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Lead is a chemical element in the periodic table that has the symbol Pb (L. plumbum) and atomic number 82. A soft, heavy, toxic and malleable poor metal, lead is bluish white when freshly cut but tarnishes to dull gray when exposed to air. Lead is used in building construction, lead-acid batteries, bullets and shot, and is part of solder, pewter, and fusible alloys. Lead has the highest atomic number of all stable elements. (But see the article on Bismuth, which has a half life so long it can be considered stable.)
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METALLURGY |
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Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and of materials engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds and their mixtures, which are called alloys.
Extractive metallurgy is the practice of separating metals from their ore, and refining them into a pure metal. In order to convert a metal oxide or sulfide to a metal, the metal oxide must be reduced either chemically or electrolytically.
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PLASTICS |
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Plastic covers a range of synthetic or semisynthetic polymerization products. They are composed of organic condensation or addition polymers and may contain other substances to improve performance or economics. There are few natural polymers generally considered to be "plastics". Plastics can be formed into objects or films or fibers. Their name is derived from the fact that many are malleable, having the property of plasticity. Plastics are designed with immense variation in properties such as heat tolerance, hardness, resiliency and many others. Combined with this adaptability, the general uniformity of composition and light weight of plastics ensures their use in almost all industrial segments.
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POWER PLANTS |
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A fossil fuel power plant is an energy conversion center that combusts fossil fuels to produce electricity, designed on a large scale for continuous operation.
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