Plating Application: Chromic Acid Tank Level

Plating acid tanks.

Chromium is widely used in the metal finishing industry for both decorative and hard-chrome plating. The chemicals used in Chrome plating are very harsh and corrosive. Chromium plating requires that the metal to be plated to be pretreated in a sodium cyanide/caustic soda bath and then plated in a chromic acid bath.

A large international plating company located in the USA needed a cost effective liquid level switching that would perform flawlessly on their chemical plating baths.

Problem

The chemicals used in plating, specifically Chromic Acid, are extremely corrosive. Many times these chemicals need to be kept at elevated temperatures, resulting in corrosive vapors. Controls installed in and around areas where vapors are present are adversely affected.  For this customer, the tank level instruments near the chromic acid tanks were the most problematic.

Solution

Levelpro PLF

Icon Process Controls, a manufacturer specializing in corrosion resistant fluid handling instrumentation, recommended their Levelpro PLF series plastic level switch. The Levelpro PLF provides excellent chemical resistance. Body materials are available in PVC, PP, PVDF, or 316SS. The level switch is available is sizes from 6" to 10 feet, with up to 8 different switch points, and unlike ultrasonic sensors, the PLF Series are not affected by foam, vapor, or turbulence. Additionally, they require no power and are available in N/O or N/C switch positions.

The PLF series can be used to indicate high and low levels, notification of upset conditions or turn pumps or valves on-off. They are also an excellent choice for redundant high| low level indication when used in conjunction with a continuous level sensor.

For more information, contact M.S. Jacobs and Associates. They can be reached at 800-348-0089 or you can visit their web site at https://msjacobs.com.

Coriolis Flow Meter Improves Fuel Oil Control and Efficiency at Power Plant

A power plant installed variable area flow meters for fuel oil feed control.  The variable area flow meters proved too unreliable to detect clogging in the burner system. The result was inefficient, unbalanced flow measurement resulting in very low burner efficiency, frequent downtime due to clogging, and heavy maintenance requirements.

The process medium was burner fuel oil at temperatures between 50 F to 210 F, with flow varying between 7 to 55 lbs/hr.

The solution was installing TRICOR’s TCM-28K Coriolis flow meter. The TCM 028K Coriolis Mass Flow Meter has a maximum mass flow rate of 28,000 kg/hr (1029 lb/min) or 4227 bbl/day and nominal size of DN25 (1”), and is rated for process pressures up to 100 bar (1450 psi). Standard accuracy for the TCM 028K is 0.3%, but with a custom calibration, 0.1% accuracy is possible. These meters have good overall accuracy, zero stability, and pressure drop. The simple self-draining U-shape tube design provides for easy cleaning/flushing.

After installation, all mentioned problems disappeared. Moreover, with the flexibility of TRICOR installation length, TRICOR was able help the customer in this challenging application to avoid extra installation costs.

ADVANTAGES:

• Increased burner availability
• Less downtime
• More efficient burner management 
• Reduced maintenance costs Increased productivity

For more information, contact M.S. Jacobs by calling 800-348-0089 or visit their web site at https://msjacobs.com.