Ideas for magazine article

[vonbad]

I have been asked to write an article for a magazine. Unfortunately, I have only come up with one idea.

Our main focus is filtration of hot oils (650°F range, low psi <150). However, we do a lot of custom heating and cooling equipment as well as N2 blankets. Right now, I am leaning towards a short article based on the effects of the filter in an existing system, ie psi drop, flow rate, etc.

I would welcome any suggestions you may have.

 

[rmw]

What is the target market of the magazine?

rmw

 

[vonbad]

The market is process heating manufacturing industry. Dealing with liquids and the corresponding equipment; pumps, valves, gauges, temp controllers etc.

 

[MintJulep]

Typical m.o. for such articles is to highlight the usefullness of whatever particular component/system/service you provide, and include just enough information so that a reader can't really figure it all out for himself.

Basically it is a marketing tool.

 

[vonbad]

Mint, so true. Unfortunately I was unable to dodge this one so it ended up on my desk. Much rather be designing a system or doing a on site start up.

 

[rmw]

In order to keep it from being too blatantly commerical, y ou can do a review of the various types of filter media available for this industry, including, of course, your own specialty or favorite. You can give an overview of the pro's and con's of each type, (including yours).

rmw

 

[CRG]

Vonbad (Electrical), perhaps the best article topic would be one that you have the most experience with. Do you plan to put an electrical bent on your article?

 

[MikeHalloran]

I'm imagining ... that if I had a process heated by hot oil, I'd like to know how to prevent it leaking out, and how to deal with the resulting potentialities when it does.

E.g. general employee training.. Don't step in it, how to shut it off, etc.
Training for the plant's emergency response team.. hazmat issues, coordinating with external response services, first aid, containment, etc.
Training for the plant's maintenance department.. special procedures, cautions.
Preparation of briefing notes for corporate idiots and PR persons.. preparation of a FAQ sheet, what to tell reporters about 'boiling oil', etc.
Training for the plant operators.. special precautions, flow sheets for what to do when whatever happens, when to decide "she's gonna blow" and get outta town, etc.

OR, maybe some techno- verbiage about pipefitting techniques unique to the industry, for the gearheads. I was fascinated by a report on regularly testing the hydraulics for the SR-71 with hot oil, because stuff that didn't leak at room temperature, did leak when the plane got hot.

... but I was just imagining..



Mike Halloran
NOT speaking for
DeAngelo Marine Exhaust Inc.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

 

[vonbad]

Thank you all for you ideas. Working with these parts and system layouts, you can get to the point of just taking some knowledge for granted and overlooking questions others may have.

So far we have:
1. Effects of filtration into an existing system.
2. Types of Filtration and/or filter media
3. Leak prevention
4. What to do in case of castastrofic leak (loss of fluid)

5. "Preparation of briefing notes for corporate idiots and PR persons" My favorite but to short, it would come down to don't touch anything. It would take to long to explain the system to you and you still would not understand the operation.


Mike you really gave me a few good ideas, thank you. Little curious, were in Ft Laud? I lived there for a short time.

 

[tomwalz]

What works best for me is case studies of good companies where we work on problems common to the industry.

Cutting Tool Engineering ran an article of mine a couple years ago. It was an aerospace firm and I examined the failure of their cutting tools. The premise was that hard particles in the coolant caused edge chipping in the tools. Did some nice photographs showing edge chipping. This was in support of the filter systems we build.


Thomas J. Walz
Carbide Processors, Inc.

http://www.carbideprocessor.com

 

[MikeHalloran]

On the North side of Ft. Lauderdale's international airport, west of Port Everglades and South of the New River's South Branch, is a square mile like no other on Earth, where you can find multiple sources for anything you'd need to build or repair a superyacht. We are, of course, the best there is at what we do. ;-)





Mike Halloran
NOT speaking for
DeAngelo Marine Exhaust Inc.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

 

[vonbad]

Mike,
I grew up in the Keys, then lived (really just worked) in Ft Laud for awhile. In a different life I cooked. Worked at Septembers and the Fisherman. Think it's a little north of you near commercial ave.

It's amazing how small the world is when you 'run' into someone that lives in the same area that you did once upon a time.

 

[plasgears]

I edited an article some time ago on hydraulic oil filtration, and it met with praise by a readership panel.

Several tips:

- Map out the world of filtration and media on a two dimensional plot. the variables could be temp, pressure, particle size, media, flow, time period, etc.

- Discuss what was acceptable in the past, present practice, and leading edge tech for the future. This article should go beyond present textbook treatments.

- Discuss containers and size minimization. Convenience of long service and quick servicing should be discussed.

- The article should be instructive to both neophytes and experienced engineers. Commercial reference should be limited to the byline. That should be enough.

 

[schola]

Perhaps, two or three lines about value engineering could "feed" yor article.

Regards,
Schola