Hard water scale problem solved for Cotto Tiles21 May 2010

Cotto Tiles, part of TCC (Thai Cement Company), reports that Fluid Dynamics International has solved a long standing hard water problem at one of its sites.

One of Thailand's biggest construction industry suppliers, Cotto uses moulds that are cooled using local town mains water, which is very hard.

Over the years, the firm has tried chemical additives and a range of electronic and wrap-around water conditioners, but nothing was able to stop a 10mm build up of scale in the pipes. That was effecting production as moulds could not cool properly.

Fluid Dynamics identified oil in the system and proposed a radical solution combining two of its technologies: Magstream and Colloid-A-Tron.

The firm's prototype MagstreamPlus uses magnets encased in poleheads manufactured from the metal used in the catalytic core of its Colloid-A-Tron.

Calcium carbonate particles, formed when hard water is heated, remain in suspension after thr magnetic treatment, instead of precipitating as scale on pipework and heat transfer surfaces. Fluid Dynmics also claims that the system gradually removes existing scale.

MagstreamPlus was installed on a trial basis for 137 days and was then removed for inspection under the supervision of TCC's Chief Engineer.

He says it "was immediately obvious that the MagstreamPlus was having a considerable effect on the system". Scale thickness had decreased from 10mm to 3mm and, in some places, the bare metal was now visible.

Cotto Tiles has since re-installed the unit and ordered several more for other parts of the factory.

Brian Tinham

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