Archive for January, 2008

According to some estimates, corrosion costs the United States more than $1 billion every year. Besides actual piping failure and pinhole leaks, copper corrosion leaves blue stains on sinks, tubs, fixtures, laundry and hair.

Corrosion can also make the water unfit for drinking. Copper can be toxic and water containing levels over 1.0 mg/L should not be used for drinking.

The main causes of copper corrosion are:

Low pH (acid water less than 7.0) or high pH (alkaline water greater than 8.5)

High levels of dissolved oxygen

High levels of salts dissolved in the water (total dissolved solids)

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This ski season, if you’re planning to take a ski trip, skip the long, annoying security checks at the airports and take the train instead.

It’s no secret that air travel is less environmentally friendly than train travel. Eurostar train operators in Europe have decided to compete with airlines to transport travelers to The Alps.

Eurostar is the first operator in the world to offer ‘carbon neutral’ journeys for all its travellers - at no extra cost. Newly opened Ebbsfleet offers seven trains per day to Paris and five per day to Brussels. Trains travel as fast as 186 mph, making your trip as short as possible. And as economically friendly as possible to boot.

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New statistics for the temperature of the Mediterranean are better than predicted, and conflict with some environmental leaders have been saying.

Among the leaders with a Mediterranean coastline none have been campaigning so successfully as Prince Albert of Monaco.

Since becoming Soverign of Monaco, Prince Albert has let it be known that the environment is a major concern of his, and early on in his reign made a visit to the North Pole to highlight global warming, and he has established a foundation to study among other things, ironically sea temperatures.

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The Arctic tundra may soon see a second visit from Prince Albert of Monaco. A Russian news agency announced in October that Albert II intends to visit the North Pole in a Russian airship next spring. The expedition will be led by Jean-Louis Etienne, a French explorer famous for becoming the first man to travel to the North Pole alone on foot in 1986. Not only does he have Arctic experience, he crossed the entire continent of Antarctica on foot in 1989 and 1990. He has also sailed around the world, rowed across the Atlantic Ocean and climbed Mount Everest.

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The RoHs directive restricts the use of lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), hexavalent chromium (Hex-Cr), poly-brominated biphenyls (PBB) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) to maximum 1000 parts per million and cadmium to 100 ppm. The restrictions are on a homogeneous material basis, which means that they apply to any single substance that could (theoretically) be separated mechanically.

The restricted substances have traditionally found extensive usage in Industrial control switches because they impart strength, reliability and durability. These are crucial properties as the switches often operate in harsh conditions such as in boilers, etc. They are expected to have a long life and operate accurately and reliably. These restrictions have therefore been challenging to the switch industry.

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