Galvanized coatings for cooling tower systems (cooling towers, evaporator tube bundles, etc.) have been used in the industry since the 1950s due to their relatively low cost and long service life. The galvanizing process bonds a layer of zinc metal to steel. When properly applied and passivated, the zinc coating works as a non-permeable sacrificial anode to prevent corrosion of the underlying steel structure. White [...]
As industrial facilities continually look for ways to reduce capital costs and decrease installation timelines associated with water treatment and other systems, the practice of containerizing equipment has become more prevalent. A containerized system offers many benefits of lower costs than comparable field erected buildings, faster timelines and lower field installation requirements. However, once site building [...]
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems offer power plant owners and operators a reliable and well-proven water treatment solution. However, designing and caring for an RO system requires a thorough understanding of a plant’s water supply and the technology’s capabilities. The final article of this three-part series will address RO system operation and maintenance best practices. Section one and two [...]
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems offer power plant owners and operators a reliable and well-proven water treatment solution. However, designing and caring for an RO system requires a thorough understanding of a plant’s water supply and the technology’s capabilities. The information presented here could help plant engineers design and optimize an RO system to match their needs. The success of a new RO [...]
Reverse osmosis (RO) systems offer power plant owners and operators a reliable and well-proven water treatment solution. However, designing and caring for an RO system requires a thorough understanding of a plant’s water supply and the technology’s capabilities. Part one of this series will review the importance of water samples and pilot studies as plant engineers begin to design an RO system to match [...]
Expansion of the volume of ethanol exported to the rest of the world is critical to profitability and expansion of the industry. Exports continue to set records (927 million gallons in the first seven months of 2018) but can be limited by challenges created by inconsistency in quality specifications and the methods used to guarantee them. U.S. Water has stepped forward in the last two years to help our [...]
Boiler feedwater is comprised of two very important, and increasingly expensive resources, steam condensate return and city (or well) makeup water. The condensate is valuable due to low electrical conductance, purity and high temperature. The makeup water is valuable because it is being overused and under conserved in many parts of the country, making the cost of water rise in almost all parts of the United States. [...]
In the Power industry, every minute is critical. A smooth plant start-up is vital to operations, and directly linked to lay-up procedures. A thorough understanding of critical lay-up and start-up strategies & procedures, paired with a proper corrosion control protection program can prevent unscheduled downtime, reduce operating costs and increase plant reliability. In the gas fired combined cycle market, [...]
Despite industry utilizing the internet for communications to “things” far before the advent of the Internet of Things (IoT) terminology, much focus was put on the consumer market as the general IoT began to develop. This could be due to innovators focusing on the perceived higher volume of “things” required for the consumer market or the ability for the average innovator to have a deeper [...]
Food & Beverage (F&B) facilities make products that are intended for human consumption, therefore food safety is always an area of major concern. For over a century, compliance with the rules and regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have been a driving force in the F&B processing industry, and it’s their regulation that guides [...]
For decades now, the ubiquity of the internet has been essential to modern life. Services like email, Google, and Amazon have connected us to each other, the vast collective knowledge of humankind, and brought literally whatever we desire to our doorsteps with just a few motions of our fingers. Like any widely adopted technology, the internet’s popularity relies on the principle that users need not know how it [...]
It’s increasingly obvious to me that the gap in the general understanding of technology is continuously increasing with those that are not working in the space every day. I am referring to industrial technology versus the general consumer technology market. The consumer technology market has made our lives easier, simplifying tasks and adding entertainment with intuitive technology that most [...]