Physical Processing Example

In a Downstream Decomposing facility not the subject of this example, intentional chemistry is performed as ammonium dichromate is heated to decomposition to make chromium dioxide, which is used in the production of magnetic tape products. In the Upstream Feeds facility under study, physical processing is performed as ammonium dichromate is fed through a screw conveyor. The Preliminary Screening Method is to be used as a first-cut determination whether chemical reactivity hazards will need to be managed in the physical processing facility. 

This example presents a simplified retrospective of the 1995 explosion and fire at the Napp Technologies facility in Lodi, New Jersey (EPA 1997). The intent is to illustrate the Preliminary Screening Method for the type of process involved in the incident. 

Do the answers to the following questions indicate chemical reactivity hazard(s) are present 1 YES  

Is intentional chemistry performed NO Physical processing only 

Is there any mixing or combining of different substances NO Ammonium dichromate only 

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Fluidized-bed appHcations in the 1990s may be separated into catalytic reactions, noncatalytic reactions, and physical processes. Examples of fluidized-bed appHcations include the foUowing ... 

Air pollution (qv) problems are characteri2ed by their scale and the types of pollutants involved. Pollutants are classified as being either primary, that is emitted direcdy, or secondary, ie, formed in the atmosphere through chemical or physical processes. Examples of primary pollutants are carbon monoxide [630-08-0] (qv), CO, lead [7439-92-1] (qv), Pb, chlorofluorocarbons, and many toxic compounds. Notable secondary pollutants include o2one [10028-15-6] (qv), O, which is formed in the troposphere by reactions of nitrogen oxides (NO ) and reactive organic gases (ROG), and sulfuric and nitric acids. 

An important property of compounds is that chemical processes are required to separate the elements that make up a compound. Mixtures are different. The components of mixtures can be separated using physical processes. Examples of physical processes include the following ... 

The fabrication processes selected for each planar SOFC cell/stack design depend on the configuration of the cells in the stack. The key step in any selected process is the fabrication of dense electrolytes. In general, ceramic fabrication processes for planar SOFCs can be classified into two groups, based on the fabrication approach for the electrolyte the particulate approach and the deposition approach. The particulate approach involves compaction of ceramic powder into cell components and densification at elevated temperatures. Examples of the particulate approach are tape casting and tape calendering. The deposition approach involves formation of cell components on a support by a chemical or physical process. Examples of the deposition approach are chemical vapour deposition, plasma spraying, and spray pyrolysis. 

For physical processes, two examples are the elimination of normal paraffins from a mixture by their adsorption on 5 A molecular sieves or by their selective formation of solids with urea (clathrates)... 

Exceptions to the simple definition of an essential oil are, for example, gadic oil, onion oil, mustard oil, or sweet birch oils, each of which requires enzymatic release of the volatile components before steam distillation. In addition, the physical process of expression, appHed mostly to citms fmits such as orange, lemon, and lime, yields oils that contain from 2—15% nonvolatile material. Some flowers or resinoids obtained by solvent extraction often contain only a small portion of volatile oil, but nevertheless are called essential oils. Several oils are dry-distiUed and also contain a limited amount of volatiles nonetheless they also are labeled essential oils, eg, labdanum oil and balsam oil Pern. The yield of essential oils from plants varies widely. Eor example, nutmegs yield 10—12 wt % of oil, whereas onions yield less than 0.1% after enzymatic development. 

Many empirical correlations have been pubHshed in the Hterature for various types of Hquid atomizers, eg, one book (2) provides an extensive coUection of empirical equations. Unfortunately, most of the correlations share some common problems. Eor example, they are only vaHd for a specific type of atomizer, thereby imposing strict limitations on thein use. They do not represent any specific physical processes and seldom relate to the design of the atomizer. More important, they do not reveal the effect of interactions among key variables. This indicates the difficulty of finding a universal expression that can cover a wide range of operating conditions and atomizer designs. 

The level of technical service support provided for a given product generally tracks in large part where the suppHer considers thek product to be located within the spectmm of commodity to specialty chemicals. Technical service support levels for pure chemicals usually provided in large quantities for specific synthetic or processing needs, eg, ammonia (qv), sulfuric acid (see SuLFURic ACID AND SULFURTRIOXIDe), formaldehyde (qv), oxygen (qv), and so forth, are considerably less than for more complex materials or blends of materials provided for multistep downstream processes. Examples of the latter are many polymers, colorants, flocculants, impact modifiers, associative thickeners, etc. For the former materials, providing specifications of purity and physical properties often comprises the full extent of technical service requked or expected by customers. These materials are termed undifferentiated chemicals (9),... 

Corrosion also occurs as a result of the conjoint action of physical processes and chemical or electrochemical reactions (1 3). The specific manifestation of corrosion is deterrnined by the physical processes involved. Environmentally induced cracking (EIC) is the failure of a metal in a corrosive environment and under a mechanical stress. The observed cracking and subsequent failure would not occur from either the mechanical stress or the corrosive environment alone. Specific chemical agents cause particular metals to undergo EIC, and mechanical failure occurs below the normal strength (5aeld stress) of the metal. Examples are the failure of brasses in ammonia environments and stainless steels in chloride or caustic environments. 

The second classification is the physical model. Examples are the rigorous modiiles found in chemical-process simulators. In sequential modular simulators, distillation and kinetic reactors are two important examples. Compared to relational models, physical models purport to represent the ac tual material, energy, equilibrium, and rate processes present in the unit. They rarely, however, include any equipment constraints as part of the model. Despite their complexity, adjustable parameters oearing some relation to theoiy (e.g., tray efficiency) are required such that the output is properly related to the input and specifications. These modds provide more accurate predictions of output based on input and specifications. However, the interactions between the model parameters and database parameters compromise the relationships between input and output. The nonlinearities of equipment performance are not included and, consequently, significant extrapolations result in large errors. Despite their greater complexity, they should be considered to be approximate as well. 

A one-dimensional mesh through time (temporal mesh) is constructed as the calculation proceeds. The new time step is calculated from the solution at the end of the old time step. The size of the time step is governed by both accuracy and stability. Imprecisely speaking, the time step in an explicit code must be smaller than the minimum time it takes for a disturbance to travel across any element in the calculation by physical processes, such as shock propagation, material motion, or radiation transport [18], [19]. Additional limits based on accuracy may be added. For example, many codes limit the volume change of an element to prevent over-compressions or over-expansions. 

In many cases, it is possible to replace environmentally hazardous chemicals with more benign species without compromising the technical and economic performance of the process. Examples include alternative solvents, polymers, and refrigerants. Group contribution methods have been conunonly used in predicting physical and chemical properties of synthesized materials. Two main frameworks have... 

A familiar example of limited attentional resources being distributed among different mental and physical processes occurs in car driving. A driver in a foreign country who is required to operate a manual gear change system, and at the same time drive on the opposite side of the road, may find that he or she has little capacity available to navigate or respond to a sudden stop by the car in front. 

Condensed phase interactions can be divided roughly into two further categories chemical and physical. The latter involves all purely physical processes such as condensation of species of low volatility onto the surfaces of aerosol particles, adsorption, and absorption into liquid cloud and rainwater. Here, the interactions may be quite complex. For example, cloud droplets require a CCN, which in many instances is a particle of sulfate produced from SO2 and gas-particle conversion. If this particle is strongly acidic (as is often the case) HNO3 will not deposit on the aerosol particle rather, it will be dissolved in liquid water in clouds and rain. Thus, even though HNO3 is not very soluble in... 

It should also be mentioned that some compounds of relatively low toxicity act as physical poisons, although such pollutants are seldom important in ecotoxicology. They have no known specific mode of action, but if they reach relatively high concentrations in cellular structures, for example, manbranes, they can disturb cellular processes. Examples include certain ethers and esters, and other simple organic compounds. 

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