TPT May 2007

Technology Update

Latest order for bright annealing roller hearth furnace

Shahid Bahonar Copper Industries Co, Iran, has awarded a contract to Otto Junker GmbH, Germany, for an indirect gas fired roller hearth furnace for the bright annealing of 15,000 tons per year of level wound coil DHP copper tube. Shahid Bahonar Copper Industries annually produces more than 45,000 tons of copper semi-manufactured products, such as tubes, sheets and coils, for use in second stage industries. The contracted roller hearth furnace is designed for the purpose of bright annealing copper tube in the form of level wound coils. It will be installed in the company’s new Hydropath Ltd, UK, manufactures a range of water conditioning systems using Hydropath technology. This technology works by inducing coaxial electromagnetic fields in the fluids passing through the pipe. A ‘wave’ is generated from the unit, which is carried throughout the system, and this charge helps prevent the electromechanical process of corrosion taking place. The

copper tube production plant in Kerman, Iran. The level wound coils are individually loaded onto trays which are then transported into a stacking device which automatically stacks the trays – up to a maximum of 5 trays per stack. Following the stacking procedure, the ends of the individual coils are connected to the atmosphere distribution system of the Otto Junker CTP system (copper tube purging system). The stack is then transported to the furnace line via a cross conveyor. On the entry table system. An AquaKlear P120 unit was fitted to one of the pipes and a series of test coupons installed throughout the system. Seven carbon steel coupons with nuts and bolts (made from the same material as the pipes) were located throughout the system to measure corrosion, and a further seven stainless steel alloy coupons were affixed with plastic nuts and bolts to measure scale build-up. Plastic was used to eliminate any interference from galvanic action.

Preventing rust without chemicals

negatively charged electrons are drawn towards the outer skin of the pipe (known as the ‘skin effect’) whilst the heavier positively charged ions are drawn away from the service. The result is that a state of passivity exists within the water. AquaKlear system also provides the benefit of killing bacteria and algae. It does so by applying a charge to the bacteria, which gets hydrated with a pure water layer. This layer The company’s

› Hydropath’s AquaKlear P120 water conditioning system

is absorbed into the bacteria by osmosis, creating osmotic pressure which bursts the membrane thus killing the bacteria. The Jordan Steel Factory outside Amman, Jordan, was concerned about corrosion within the pipework of its cooling system, caused by large quantities of sulphate reducing bacteria, iron oxides and scaling build-up. These factors contributed to an overall reduction in the efficiency of the direct and indirect cooling system at the factory. The solution was to undertake an eight month trial of Hydropath’s water conditioning

Following the installation of the AquaKlear P120 system, there was a significant reduction in corrosion at the steel factory. The results indicated a reduction of iron oxide percentages in an eight month period from 60-70 per cent to 49 per cent, which reflected positively on reducing corrosion rates. Scaling percentages also reduced dramatically, leading to the more efficient operation of the direct and indirect factory cooling system.

Hydropath (UK) Ltd – UK Fax : +44 115 986 9944 Email : sales@hydropath.com Website : www.hydropath.com

42

M ay /J une 2007