Electrolytic apparatus, system and method for the safe production of nitrogen trifluoride
AssigneeAir Products and Chemicals, Inc.
InventorsJames Joseph Hart, Reinaldo Mario Machado, Howard Paul Withers, Jr., Sai-Hong A. Lo, Edward Jay Cialkowski, Krishnakumar Jambunathan
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Abstract
An electrolytic cell and system used for making nitrogen trifluoride consisting of a computer and an electrolytic cell having a body, an electrolyte, at least one anode chamber that produces an anode product gas, at least one cathode chamber, and one or more fluorine adjustment means to maintain fluorine or hydrogen in the anode product gas within a target amount by adjusting the concentration of fluorine in said anode product gas, and the process that controls the system.
Claims14
A process of controlling an electrolytic apparatus used for making nitrogen trifluoride comprising a body, an electrolyte, at least one anode chamber that produces an anode product gas, at least one cathode chamber, and one or more fluorine adjustment means to maintain a target excess concentration of fluorine in said anode product gas by adjusting the concentration of fluorine in said anode product gas to react with hydrogen to maintain a concentration of hydrogen below deflagration levels in said anode product gas, wherein said one or more fluorine adjustment means are selected from the group consisting of current, temperature, composition of the electrolyte, and flow of fluorine from an external fluorine gas supply, said process comprising the steps of:
- (a) analyzing anode product gas;
- (b) determining if hydrogen or fluorine are present within a targeted amount in said anode product gas;
- and if so going to step (d) below;
- (c) adjusting one or more of said fluorine adjustment means to adjust the level of fluorine in said anode product gas;
- and
- (d) repeating steps (a) to (c).
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.