Методичка по английскому языку для ИТС (пр. С.С.Иванов)

TECHNOLOGY OF ELECTROCHEMICAL PROCESSES

The chemical industry in general and electrical chemistry, in particular, is a comparatively young branch of our national economy. The real burgeoning of the chemical industry began in the pre-war period, when the nitrogen, cokechemical, aniline dye, forest chemistiy, potassium, and apatite branches were set up; at the same time the foundation was laid for synthetic rubber, synthetic fibre, plastics, and imitation leather industries.

After the Second World War the chemical industry advanced by leaps and bounds: in 1950 the pre-war output level was surpassed by 80 per cent, the production of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium fertilizers increasing by 120, 90 and 40 per cent respectively.

Year by year our chemists are steadily expanding the technological possibilities of complex utilizing raw materials. New branches of organic synthesis have been set up on the basis of processing coals and the byproducts of oil refining.

Chemical processing methods made it possible to utilize rationally industrial waste, to speed up technological processes (for example, hydrometallurgical), and to ensure their continuity and automation.

The close links between science and industry enabled the chemical industry to make great progress. N. D. Zelinsky‘s works formed the basis for synthesizing a large number of new chemical compounds. There are thousands of them now, and ‗they are extremely important for the economy of our country. Our scientists elaborated a new method of extracting phenol and acetone simultaneously from benzene and propylene. Both of them are necessary for manufacturing plastics, textile, fibres, organic glass and other chemical products. Together with physicists chemists have elaborated an industrial method for manufacturing artificial diamonds, which are 40 per cent harder than natural.

Special attention should be paid here to electrochemistry, which gave rise to technology of electrochemical processes. Electrochemistiy is a science that deals with direct transformations of electrical energy into chemical and vice versa when electric current is passed through an electrolyte. Electrochemistry, chiefly electrolysis, is widely employed in our century of electricity and chemistry; and this has permitted organizing and perfecting electrochemical methods of plating metals. Electroplating refers to coating by electrolytic means a metal part that lacks certain qualities, such as appearance

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and resistance to wear and corrosion, with thin layer of metals, alloys of superior qualities, oxides and salts. Electrochemical methods are widely used in galvanic processes to give desirable properties to various surfaces by depositing thin layers of certain metals oxides salts. They may be of different kinds: chromium plating, copper plating, zink plating, nickel plating, cadmium plating, tin plating (tinning), silver plating, gold plating (gilding) and others. Such finishing coatings give the surface high corrosion resistance, hardness, wear resistance, fire resistance and attractive decorative appearance.

Additionally, almost all non-ferrous metals, annual output of which is considered to be about 30 million tons, are either produced or purified by electrochemical methods. The main advantage of these is high purity of the metals produced and the economy gained. Different plastics, and synthetic fibres that are widely used in all branches of industry are produced on the basis of chlorine and alkalies. These valuable products are also manufactured by means of electrochemistiy. Besides, advanced technological processes have been introduced at our chemical enterprises: chemical reactions in gas phases, catalysis under high temperatures and pressures, utilization of oxygen and hydrogen in oxidation and reduction reactions, development of electrochemical and electrothermal methods, employment of biochemical processes.

Chemotronics is a new field of electrochemistry application which deals with development of electrochemical information transducers.

Chemical power supplies is a vast scope of electrochemistry, aimed at designing various systems of electric cells, accumulators, electrochemical generators and methods of their manufacturing. So production of storage batteries and cells for electromobiles would be impossible without electrochemistry. Accumulators are used in watch-making industry and medicine as well. And successful space conquering would also become problematic without compact powerful accumulators and cells.

Electrochemical methods are widely employed for desalinating water processes, waste water purification systems and systems of electrolyte regeneration, for solving ecological problems as well as metals recovery from processing wastes. A remarkable part of physics and chemistry research methods is based on the background of electrical chemistry.

The students specializing in ―Technology of Electrochemical Processes‖ study a lot of special subjects, such as: applied electrochemistry, electrochemical processes, structural materials, nature of materials, examination and modeling electrochemical processes methods, etc. Engineers

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of this qualification can work in various fields of science and engineering. These may be enterprises of machinebuilding and chemistry as well as radio-electronics, metallurgy and other branches of industry.

Words and phrases to be remembered:

Exercises

Find the following word - combinations in the text. Try to memorize

them.

В течение многих лет; основное научное направление; настоящий расцвет химической промышленности; синтетический каучук; уровень довоенного производства; год за годом; комплексная утилизация сырья; методы химической переработки; непрерывность и автоматизация; новый метод извлечения фенола и ацетона; промышленный метод получения искусственных алмазов; прямое преобразование электрической энергии в химическую; совершенствование электрохимических методов; электролитическим способом; электрохимические методы; гальванические производства; различные поверхности; цветные металлы; ежегодное производство; при высоких температурах и давлении; реакции окисления; разработка различных систем; прикладная электрохимия; материаловедение; изучение и моделирование электрохимических процессов.

Agree or disagree with the following statements. Use some of the speech patterns listed below.

I agree with you; I am of the same opinion; That‘s fight; Exactly so; I disagree with you (on that point); You are wrong; Far from it; On the contrary; To my mind (In my opinion); I shouldn‘t (wouldn‘t) say so; As far as I know (remember); I think, that...

The faculty of Physics and Chemical Engineering is a very young one.

There are six departments at the faculty now.

The faculty of Physics and Chemical Engineering trains the students in two basic specialities.

The real burgeoning of the chemical industry began in tsarist Russia.

The foundation for synthetic rubber and fibre was laid in the pre-war period.

After the Second World War the chemical industry advanced very intensively.

Chemical processing methods facilitated rational utilization of industrial waste.

Science did not promote developing the chemical industry.

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Benzene and propylene are necessary for manufacturing plastics.

It was organic chemistry that gave rise to technology of electrochemical processes.

Electrochemical methods are widely used in galvanic processes.

Almost all ferrous metals are produced by electrochemical methods.

Chemotronics deals with the development of electrochemical information transducers.

Chemical power supplies is a vast scope of Ecological Engineering.

Our successful space conquering would be practically impossible without electrochemistry.

Electrochemical methods are widely used for desalting water processes.

Students specializing in ―Technology of Electrochemical Processes‖ study a number of special subjects.

Answer the following questions:

What faculty do you study at?

How many departments are there at the faculty of Physics and Chemical Engineering? What are they?

What basic specialities does the faculty train the students in? Which is your future specialization?

The chemical industry is a comparatively young branch of our national economy, isn‘t it?

When were the nitrogen, coke-chemical, aniline dye, forest chemistry, potassium, and apatite branches set up?

In what way did the chemical industry advance after World War II?

What kind of technologies are our chemists steadily expanding in the chemical industry year by year?

On what basis have new branches of organic synthesis been set up?

What made it possible to speed up some technological processes?

What enabled the chemical industry to make great progress?

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Whose works formed the basis for synthesizing a large number of new chemical compounds?

What have our chemists elaborated together with physicists?

Electrochemistry gave rise to technology of electrochemical processes, didn‘t it?

What does electrochemistry deal with?

Where are electrochemical methods widely used?

What is electroplating? What kinds of electroplating are known to you?

What valuable products are produced or purified by electrochemical methods?

What kind of advanced technologies have been introduced at our chemical enterprises?

What does chemotronics deal with?

Where else is electrochemistry widely employed except the chemical industry?

What special subjects do the students specializing in ―Technology of Electrochemical Processes‖ study?

Read the dialogue. Reproduce it in pairs. Make up your own one.

A:As far as I know you are a student of the faculty of Physics and

Chemical Engineering, aren‘t you?

B:Exactly so. And my future speciality is ―Technology of Electrochemical Processes‖. And what about you?

A:As for me, I am a second-year student of the same faculty.

B:Really? But I haven‘t seen you at the lecture.

A: I am specializing in the second basic speciality of the faculty. It is

―Electronics and nanoelectronics‖.

В: I see. And if I am not mistaken there are seven departments at our faculty, aren‘t there?

A:No, not really. There are six departments at the faculty now.

В: I see.

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Speak on the following:

I am a student of the Physics and Chemical Engineering Faculty.

Electrochemistry is the basis of ―Technology of Electrochemical Processes‖.

My future speciality provides a variety of career opportunities.

Supplementary Texts for Independent Reading

Chemical engineering

Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that applies the physical sciences (e.g., chemistry and physics) and/or life sciences (e.g., biology, microbiology and biochemistry) together with mathematics and economics to processes that convert raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms. In addition, modern chemical engineers are also concerned with pioneering valuable materials and related techniques – which are often essential to related fields such as nanotechnology, fuel cells and biomedical engineering. Within chemical engineering, two broad subgroups include 1) design, manufacture, and operation of plants and machinery in industrial chemical and related processes ("chemical process engineers"); and 2) development of new or adapted substances for products ranging from foods and beverages to cosmetics to cleaners to pharmaceutical ingredients, among many other products ("chemical product engineers").

Energy and Processing

Heat, light and our ability to travel – all consume energy and all are indispensable to the quality of our lives. Our sources of energy are mainly based on fossil fuels – oil, natural gas and coal – and in time these will be exhausted. Chemists contribute to the conservation of natural energy sources, by finding more efficient ways of using combustible fuels and investigating technology that uses renewable resources, particularly sunlight. Chemical engineering, in turning chemists‘ ideas into products by design of processes and manufacturing plants, also conserves energy. New processing improves the efficiency of chemical transformation, minimizing energy consumption and environmental impact.

Existing energy supplies

Energy consumption in Europe will grow, as in other parts of the world. This growth will be sustained by a combination of primary sources:

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petroleum oil, from our own continent and imported from other parts of the world

other fossil energy sources - natural gas and coal

nuclear energy - fission and fusion

natural renewable resources - wind, water, direct transformation of solar radiation (photo-voltaic cells, photolysis, etc.), agricultural energy (biomass in general, atmospheric, oceanographic and earth-crust temperature differences)

Chemistry research in the fossil fuel area is targeted on the search for new efficient heterogeneous (solid) catalysts for the production and refinement of vehicle and aircraft fuels. The chemical industry strives with increasing success to minimise the environmental impact and energy cost of the refining processes while maximising the energy content of the fuels produced. Heterogeneous catalysts are also employed with increasing effectiveness in the conversion of exhaust gases from unavoidable combustion processes into relatively benign substances.

Chemists and chemical engineers in the nuclear industry are engaged in the manufacture of nuclear fuels, which is primarily a chemical rather than a metallurgical process. They are also involved in spent fuel reprocessing, the separation and recovery of uranium and plutonium by solution chemistry. The miniaturisation of nuclear reactors through micro-engineering and microchemical techniques, particularly exploiting new materials technology, will have substantial advantages for the decommissioning and decontamination of future redundant nuclear power plants. Chemists play a key role in nuclear waste monitoring, management and control.

Future Energy sources

The development of new energy technologies will occur either because of a major change of primary energy sources which significantly affects existing technology, or because new scientific developments make energy generation or new raw materials economically and environmentally more attractive. The most probable scenario will be that of a combination of these effects causing a shift in the emphasis of the technology mix over time, in part dictated by geopolitical and economic issues. Primary sourcing is certainly not the only focus for energy research and development. Conversion from one form of energy to another will also provide an important part of the supply spectrum.

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But what of these new energy sources? There is enough energy to supply society at an acceptable level from the following sources:

The sun, our unfailing solar generator, drowns us in energy: ca. 100 megawatts per person - equivalent to the power output of a moderate-sized power station. However, the collection, conversion and distribution of this 'free' energy is a massive challenge, requiring a breakthrough in photovoltaic cell-efficiency which can nevertheless be confidently expected. With fossil-based energy prices expected to increase rapidly due to economic and environmental pressures, these cells will become economic for more than local applications. New materials for solar cells with optimum absorbance characteristics for the solar spectrum are a particular target for chemistry.

Non-fossil fuel sources will provide a cleaner and practically inexhaustible supply of energy. However, this will require the scientific and engineering communities to develop systems of high reliability and lower risk and the education of the public to accept that the benefits outweigh any remaining minimal risk. The conversion of wind, water, earth-crustal, oceanographic and atmospheric temperature differences to electricity, particularly for local uses, is already in progress and has relatively little direct interaction with chemistry. Farming of agricultural biomass could provide an additional source of carbon-based fuel for the next century, but while its great advantage is that nature assembles the desired carbon skeleton in the organic fuel components, the disadvantage is the low energy conversion efficiency and the low availability of water in arid areas. For such parts of our planet, however, solar radiation is at a maximum. It does not seem likely, however, that bio-derived energy could ever provide a significant proportion of mankind's energy requirements.

For transportation, conversion to a form of energy with high energy content per unit weight, little risk and easy logistics in distribution, filling and use is essential. At present and in the foreseeable future, this energy will be in liquid form, especially for long-range and heavy-duty traffic, but for local and low-duty traffic the electric vehicle has a bright future (see Caring for our planet). Photolysis of water by catalytic means may well lead to the construction of vast plants for automotive fuel production. The hydrogenbased economy is a possibility, certainly for electricity production, although for automotive purposes the problem of the heavy weight of hydrogen carriers must be overcome. However, the use of metal hydrides as storage media may provide a solution.

The Carbon Products Industry

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The carbon products industry is an extremely diverse industry supplying critical materials and components to some of the United States' most essential industries such as aluminum, steel, chemicals, aerospace, electronics, recreation, and environmental protection.

A large portion of the carbon products industry is built on recovering and processing byproducts from other primary operations. This is good from a waste utilization viewpoint, but it means that availability and quality of essential feedstocks for much of the carbon industry are subject to priorities in other business sectors.

What is a Carbon Product?

Essentially any organic material can be thermally transformed to carbon. The carbonization process uses heat to convert organic precursors into a carbon polymer. Some selected precursors can then be transformed into a three-dimensional graphite structure or near-graphite structure. Differences in properties of the final carbon products depend on the raw materials used, on the extent of completion of overall chemical and physical ordering processes, and upon whether the thermal transformation takes place from the vapor, liquid, or solid phase.

Carbon products can be grouped according to the extent of material processing: Raw Material, Carbon Precursors, and Finished Carbon Products. Figure 1 presents an overview of the processing flow from raw material to finished carbon product.

Coal tars and petroleum cokes are the principal raw materials used in the carbon products industry. These materials are by-products of refining and other coal and oil processing operations. In the United States, approximately 1.8 million metric tons of coal tar and 24 million metric tons of petroleum coke are produced each year (the U.S. processes 72% of world-wide production of petroleum coke).

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