Sir Carl Wilhelm Siemens. In the
open hearth furnace there are two
layers of molten materials heated
to 1,600F°. On the bottom is iron,
and on the top, slag. The slag is
composed basically of oxides
such as silica or calcia. The process
worked by keeping the steel and
the slag molten and agitated so
that impurities like carbon (uniting
with oxygen to form CO) and manganese (combining with oxygen
for insoluble MnO) would rise into
the slag layer, thereby purifying the
iron into steel.
This open hearth process took
hours to complete. The conjecture
regarding the Titanic is that the
steel that was used to make the
rivets was tapped too soon from
the furnace, without allowing time
for all the impurities to rise into
the slag. This caused the rivets to
have defects that weakened them
and caused them to shear. Some
theorized that had the rivets been
sound, the initial impact with the
iceberg would have left a gaping
hole, but when the water rushed
in, it would not have peeled off
the outer layers of steel had the
remainder of the rivets held. This
would have allowed an estimated
three to four hours more before
it sank, allowing rescue boats to
arrive at the scene.
NIST metallurgist Timothy
Foecke, back in 1998, analyzed the
rivets recovered from the wreck
and found major crystal defects
with long inclusion stringers and
dark zones diagnosed as slag
inclusions. The iron in the rivets
contained three times the amount
of slag that should have been present, causing a reduction in ductility
and making the iron brittle.
Today, using the scanning electron microscope, crystal defects
can be detected before expensive
gas instrumentation or tools fail.
Gases & Instrumentation International is proud
to announce our newest Editorial Advisory Board
(EAB) member, Robert Eiermann. Our EAB members provide expert guidance and advice to maintain our high technical editorial quality.
Robert Eiermann, P.E. is president and chief engineer at Bellopressor Technologies. Mr. Eiermann
has worked as a mechanical engineer in the semiconductor, aerospace, and medical industries for
over 25 years. He has developed technologically advanced products
using state of the art analysis and testing methods. He has most
recently developed a bellows gas compressor, and holds patents in
bellows and valve technology. Mr. Eiermann graduated from Worcester Polytechnic Institute with a Bachelors of Science degree and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a Masters of Science degree, both in
Mechanical Engineering. He may be reached at + 781-572-0866, or
by email at info@bellopressor.com
New G&I Advisory Board Member
Praxair Acquires American
Gas Group
(DANBURY, CONNESTICUT, USA)
Praxair Distribution Inc., a subsidiary
of Praxair, Inc. has acquired American
Gas Group (AGG), a supplier of spe-
cialty gases worldwide. AGG is com-
prised of Specialty Gases of America,
Inc., American Specialty Gases Inc.,
Semiconductor Resources, Inc. and
Specialty Gases of America, LLC. The
business includes facilities in Toledo,
Ohio and Wheeling, Illinois, with 56
employees and annual sales of $28
million. Financial terms of the transac-
tion were not disclosed. Praxair www.
praxair.com +1 203- 837-2311
Noble Gas Appoints
Director of Sales
(ALBANY, NEW YORK, USA) Noble
Gas Solutions announced the addi-
tion of Patrick O’Donnell as its Direc-
tor of Sales. O’Donnell was previously
with General Electric for more than
six years, and while there earned his
LEAN Six Sigma Black Belt Certifica-
tion. Additionally, he holds his B.S. in
management from Rensselaer Poly-
technic Institute in Troy, NY. Noble Gas
Solutions www.noblegassolutions.
com +1 518-465-5229
MATHESON Increases Capacity
in North Dakota
(BASKING RIDGE, NEW JERSEY,
USA) MATHESON announced today
that it plans to build a new large
capacity air separation unit to meet
the growing demand for merchant
liquid oxygen and nitrogen in North
Dakota. The plant is expected to be
on stream, producing high-purity
merchant product, during the third
quarter of 2012. MATHESON www.
mathesongas.com +1 215-648-4026
SGD Acquires Special Gas
Supplies
(EMERSON, NEW JERSEY, USA) SGD
Inc. has acquired Special Gas Sup-
plies LLC, a supplier of compressed
gas cylinder fillers of shrink wrap,
tamper-proof seals, status tags, cyl-
inder status neck ring discs, cylinder
netting, lecture bottles, and lecture
bottle valves. Special Gas Supplies,
which previously operated out of
Bahama, North Carolina, USA, will
now be operating out of SGD’s facil-
ity in Emerson, New Jersey, USA. SGD
+1 201-261-1908
