Nalco Chemical Company

Ecolab USA Inc.

Nalco Company

Ondeo Nalco Company

Scr Research, LLC

Ronald V Davis

Donald E Govoni

Dodd W Fong

Nicholas S Ergang

Jiansheng Tang

Michael James Fehr

Stephen J Blubaugh

Walter Gerlach

Charles F Marth

John E Hoots

Peter E Reed

Rodney H Banks

Phillip W Carter

Barbara E Moriarty

Jing Wang

Mita Chattoraj

David P Workman

Michael G Strominger

Michael A Kamrath

Daniel N T Hay

Christopher Ryan Greulich

Dennis P Bakalik

Daniel Child

Michael Ignazio LaRosa

Sasireka S Ramesh

Robert W Shiely

Wayne L Moss

Randon Renzello

Thomas A Faigl

Nancy L Casselman

Disclosed herein are methods and compositions for increasing the alumina content of a bauxite ore prior to alumina extraction by an extractive process, such as the Bayer process. By adding a beneficiation agent to an aqueous ore slurry, then applying a gravitational force to separate, or partition, the slurry into a beneficiary and a gangue, a number of quantifiable benefits are observed. These include increased alumina content and reduced silica content in the beneficiary solids as compared to the starting ore. These benefits are in excess of those observed by pre-extraction gravitational separation of ore slurries without the addition of a beneficiation agent. Beneficiation agents include DADMAC polymers, and combinations of DADMAC polymers with dextrans. The beneficiary is collected and applied to an extractive process, such as the Bayer process.

Methods and compositions for pre-extractive beneficiation of ores

The removal of oxoanions from an aqueous stream having a concentration of a metal cation and a concentration of an oxoanion that varies over time may involve continuously monitoring the concentration of the metal cation and the concentration of the oxoanion to provide a current metal cation concentration and a current oxoanion concentration. A metal cation source and an aluminum reagent may be added to the aqueous stream based on the measured current metal cation concentration and the current oxoanion concentration. The amount of the metal cation source and the aluminum reagent added to the stream may be effective to reduce the concentration of the oxoanion in the aqueous stream below a target threshold.

Addition of aluminum reagents to oxoanion-containing water streams

A method of recovering gold from refractory ore containing a carbonaceous material, a sulfide and gold is provided. Gypsum seed crystals are added to a slurry containing a roasted refractory ore or a pressure-oxidized refractory ore to decrease gypsum encapsulation of gold and improve gold recovery.

Method for recovering gold from refractory ore

The invention provides methods and compositions for freeze conditioning particulating materials. The invention includes the use of the combination of crude glycerin with flowback or produced water. This combination prevents unwanted agglomeration when frozen. This combination also is non-corrosive and best of all facilitates the safe clean recycling of what would otherwise be unwanted dangerous waste material.

Freeze conditioning agents utilizing crude glycerin and flowback and produced water

To determine the concentration of an oxoanion in an aqueous solution, an aluminum reagent is added to the aqueous solution to form an optical analysis solution. Addition of the aluminum reagent may or may not form an alumino-oxoanion hydroxide hydrate precipitate. Light is directed into the optical analysis solution to determine an optical response of the optical analysis solution. Thereafter, the concentration of the oxoanion in the aqueous solution is determined based on the optical response of the optical analysis solution. For example, the concentration of the oxoanion may be calculated using a molar ratio relating oxoanion concentration to aluminum reagent concentration, when the aluminum reagent concentration corresponds to an inflection point of the optical response of the optical analysis solution.

Oxoanion concentration determination using aluminum reagents

A method for minimizing the addition of water to a phosphoric acid production process is described. The method uses phosphoric acid to make down a flocculant that is added to the process in order to promote filtration or clarification of crude phosphoric acid. Preferably, the phosphoric acid is a crude, clarified phosphoric acid that is recycled from the phosphoric acid production process itself.

Phosphoric acid production gypsum filtration flocculant pre-dilution (make down) with post-filtration phosphoric acid

The invention is directed towards methods and compositions for treating piles of low-rank coal to inhibit its spontaneous combustion. The method involves applying to the low-rank coal a composition containing VAE and crude glycerin. The composition prevents water from evaporating out of the low-rank coal. This prevents the formation within the low-rank coal of hollow openings which are a huge factor in causing its spontaneous combustion. The composition has better performance than its ingredients do alone. In fact it is so effective that certain cumbersome low-rank coal-handling methods, such as FIFO recordkeeping and inventorying, not using pinch points, or only using elbow-free equipment can be disregarded when the composition is used.

Chemical additives to inhibit the air oxidation and spontaneous combustion of coal

A method for monitoring a chemical component in an industrial water system comprises irradiating a liquid sample from an industrial water system, containing at least one chemical component to be monitored, with light from an excitation light source. Room temperature phosphorescence emitted from the sample is detected after irradiation. The concentration of the chemical component to be monitored is then calculated from the detected room temperature phosphorescence. The liquid sample includes at least one room temperature phosphorescent material (RTPM) and at least one heavy atom perturber (HAP) dissolved therein. The HAP is present in the sample at a concentration sufficient to induce phosphorescence activity in the RTPM. The liquid sample is irradiated in a manner sufficient to induce the RTPM within the sample to emit room temperature phosphorescence, and the calculated concentration of the chemical component to be monitored is a function of the room temperature phosphorescence intensity or temporal metric. A phosphorimeter for measuring room temperature phosphorescence is also described.

Room temperature phosphorescence apparatus and methods

A method of preparing a synthetic fuel from coal comprising applying to the coal an aqueous emulsion of one or more reactive polymers and thoroughly mixing the coal to yield a complete reaction of the coal with the reactive polymers, wherein the reactive polymers are selected from the group consisting of ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers, ethylene/vinyl alcohol copolymers, poly(acrylic acid), poly(vinyl alcohol), vinyl alcohol/vinyl acetate copolymers, poly(vinyl acetate), vinyl acetate/acrylic acid copolymers, poly(vinyl acetate/acrylic acid/ethylene), acrylic acid/acrylamide copolymers and poly(acrylamide).

Method of preparing a synthetic fuel from coal

A method of preparing a synthetic fuel from coal comprising reacting the coal with a polymer composition comprising an aqueous solution or an aqueous emulsion of one or more reactive polymers, the reactive polymers selected from the group consisting of ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymers, ethylene/vinyl alcohol copolymers, poly(acrylic acid), poly(vinyl alcohol), vinyl alcohol/vinyl acetate copolymers, poly(vinyl acetate), vinyl acetate/acrylic acid copolymers, poly(vinyl acetate/acrylic acid/ethylene), acrylic acid/acrylamide copolymers and poly(acrylamide).

A method for monitoring the microbiological contamination of opaque media is described and claimed. In this method, a Fluorogenic Dye is added to an Aliquot of opaque medium. After a certain time period, a fluorometer capable of measuring fluorescent signals in an opaque medium is used to measure the fluorogenic signals of the Fluorogenic Dye and the Reacted Fluorogenic Dye. A Useful RATIO of the fluorescent signal of the Reacted Fluorogenic Dye to the fluorescent signal of the Fluorogenic Dye is calculated and the information gleaned from the RATIO is used to ascertain the state of microbiological contamination in the opaque medium.

Measurement of microbiological activity in an opaque medium

Autocycle control of cooling water systems

The invention is a water-soluble N,N-diallyl-N-alkyl-N-(sulfoalkyl) ammonium betaine containing copolymer, wherein said copolymer is formed from the polymerization of an N,N-diallyl-N-alkyl-N-(sulfoalkyl) ammonium betaine of the formula:

Sulfobetaine-containing polymers and their utility as calcium carbonate scale inhibitors

A biodegradable scale inhibitor and dispersant is provided. The scale inhibitor includes a copolymer comprising at least one of N-oxygenatedhydrocarbonamide monomers and at least one of amino acid monomers. A method of reducing scale build-up on heating exchanger surfaces that come in contact with an industrial water is provided by adding a copolymer comprising at least one of N-oxygenatedhydrocarbonamide monomers and at least one of amino acid monomers to the water system such as cooling towers.

Use of biodegradable polymers in prevention scale build-up

The invention is a water-soluble N,N-diallyl-N-alkyl-N-(sulfoalkyl) ammonium betaine containing copolymer, wherein said copolymer is formed from the polymerization of an N,N-diallyl-N-alkyl-N-(sulfoalkyl) ammonium betaine of the formula: ##STR1## wherein R is selected from the group consisting of alkyl and aryl groups, and R.sub.1 is selected from the group consisting of alkyl groups, aryl groups, and alkylaryl groups, and an anionic monomer. The invention is also a method of inhibiting the precipitation and deposition of scale on metal surfaces in contact with industrial cooling waters comprising the addition of an effective, scale-inhibiting amount of a water-soluble N,N-diallyl-N-alkyl-N-(sulfoalkyl) ammonium betaine containing copolymer, wherein said copolymer is formed from the polymerization of a betaine of the formula: ##STR2## wherein R is selected from the group consisting of alkyl and aryl groups, and R.sub.1 is selected from the group consisting of alkyl groups, aryl groups, and alkylaryl groups, and an anionic monomer. A preferred polymer is a water-soluble copolymer of N,N-diallyl-N-methyl-N-(2-sulfoethyl) ammonium betaine and acrylic acid.

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Geneva, IL, United States of America

Ronald V Davis