Sodium was critical in the design of exhaust valves in aircraft piston engines. The valves are hollow and the molten sodium carries the heat away from the head to the stem. A full account is given in the chapter on “Exhaust Valve Cooling-The Key to Record Breaking” in the limited-edition book on the “Piston Engine Revolution” edited by F.Starr, B.Lawton and E.Marshall.
If anyone is interested I can let them have the relevant section of the chapter. I got interested in the subject as the valves in my Ford Anglia van used to burn through quite regularly and needed replacement. I used to do this outside of our house in Portrack..
More recently with the development of motor car engines of very high output, sodium cooled valves are again being manufactured in quantity.
I used to work on the Sodium Cyanide section at Cassel Works from 1978 to 1985. Started out as a warehouse hand which involved cleaning out used/damaged drums in a wash bay with water and wearing those ‘green chemical’ suits. Then moved into warehouse duties. Then became a ‘fitters mate’ for the plant fitters. Anyone remember Terry Dolye, Charlie Plant, David Whiteside, Sid Watkins? Left for North Tees Works in 85 were I’ve been ever since.
Hi Glenn,
I remember Terry Charlie and yourself, I was an apprentice in 1982/83 worked with Reed Wilks
Great times, myself and Steve Watson got laid off after our apprenticeship, still work on Teesside as an Estates manager
Who was the guy who always lead the grand national horse in?
Hi Gary. Can’t recall your name now as it was a long time ago
Ted Hutchinson was the BA stores man who used to do the National. His wife worked in the laundry on the site.
Glen, I wonder if you knew my father at all?
He worked in the Cyanide plant at Cassel works as a fitter. I remember him coming home with ‘burns’ on his hands etc. He may have been known as Bill or Fred Callender
I would be happy to have my photographs used and would like to see any other photos which are available. I was at Cassel works from 1956 to 1967 and was plant manger on Sodium cyanide plant, sodium plant and the chlorine caustic soda Plant. I wrote the monograph for the sodium plant of which I still have a copy with the photographs.
There is a facebook site run by a current employee of Lucite International the current owners of Cassel works dedicated to Cassel Works. The person running it is keen to add old photos of plant and people. Would it be possible for you to let him use your photos on the site, George?
The photograph is of the sodium plant where protective clothing was essential because of the corrosive nature of sodium. I was Plant Manager of both the Sodium Cyanide and Sodium Plants in the period 1957-1967. I have some photographs of the Cyanide Plant which may be of interest which I will look out and post to the web site.
I heard a lot about the plant from my father, Alfred Ellis, who worked there making the product during the 50″s and 60″s. He mentioned running off from the “pots”. He often came home with small burns that were due to splashes and complained often about the difficulty breathing because of ammonia which was probably used in the process. In his later years, before retirement, he moved on to lighter duties within the same area of the works.
Hi, I am a little unsure about the picture. There were 2 plants producing a Sodium material at ICI Cassel Works. One Sodium Cyanide. This was a molten process with large pots, suspended through two floors perhaps 16 or 25, not sure. The Sodium Cyanide {NaCN} was tapped from the base of the pots into moulds. A trolley containing many cart wheel looking moulds was filled and when cool opened and sections of cyanide looking like large pieces of cheese removed, another ingenious device was two caterpillar tracks continuously running together had the molten liquid poured in between the tracks at one end and reaching the other fell out as though chickens eggs had been threaded on a stick. The fall to the ground broke them off the sticks leaving the “eggs” to be shovelled into drums. This product was bright and shining white almost like cake icing, I believe the taste may have been different 🙂 The other plant(s) was producing Sodium metal {Na} Sir Humphry Davy etc. There were actually 2 plants called Downs 1 & 2 . This too was a molten process from Salt. The liquid was tapped off each of a long line of “Cells” as they were called and eventually entering an extrusion machine which produced “Sticks” of an inch round by a few inches long. Some liquid was moulded again on trolleys looking like lengths of pipe which when cooled were split open to produce 3″ or 4″ round by 24″ long not exactly but they were all packed into drums containing oil. This goes bang if it gets wet, hence old depth charges. Bulk electrically heated road tankers were also loaded and the Sodium metal used as the coolant for nuclear reactors and Titanium production. The reason for my doubts about the picture are. The protective equipment of Mole skin, face mask, apron and usually the trouser legs was worn by the Sodium metal workers because the material reacted violently with small pops & spits of material all the time. The material colour is grey again matches the metal the only thing I do not recognise are these particular mould shapes. The Sodium Cyanide workers were protected almost the same on the production floor but were moulding took place they were more likely to wear standard boiler suits and the obligatory flat cap. The material although very hot was stable. The grey colour of the material would have caused a great deal of concern as the Gold extraction people who used most of the product were very particular as to size, colour, shape, weight, etc. Hope this is of interest, from my time at Cassels until it”s demolition this plant was referred to as the “Old Cyanide plant” The “New Cyanide” was a whole new nightmare which sadly has just been decommissioned after many many years of faithful service.
Both descriptions are correct. The men wearing the protective clothing are removing sodium cyanide from the pots. The sodium was removed with a ladle from the smelter and the men had to work in temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Explosions of hydrogen were common-place when the pot lids were lifted. I am told that originally the safety suits, although absolutely necessary, had to be made by the workmen`s wives and ICI only provided the materials. The cyanide plant was the name I used in my time at ICI but it may also have been known as the sodium plant.
Sodium was critical in the design of exhaust valves in aircraft piston engines. The valves are hollow and the molten sodium carries the heat away from the head to the stem. A full account is given in the chapter on “Exhaust Valve Cooling-The Key to Record Breaking” in the limited-edition book on the “Piston Engine Revolution” edited by F.Starr, B.Lawton and E.Marshall.
If anyone is interested I can let them have the relevant section of the chapter. I got interested in the subject as the valves in my Ford Anglia van used to burn through quite regularly and needed replacement. I used to do this outside of our house in Portrack..
More recently with the development of motor car engines of very high output, sodium cooled valves are again being manufactured in quantity.
I used to work on the Sodium Cyanide section at Cassel Works from 1978 to 1985. Started out as a warehouse hand which involved cleaning out used/damaged drums in a wash bay with water and wearing those ‘green chemical’ suits. Then moved into warehouse duties. Then became a ‘fitters mate’ for the plant fitters. Anyone remember Terry Dolye, Charlie Plant, David Whiteside, Sid Watkins? Left for North Tees Works in 85 were I’ve been ever since.
Hi Glenn,
I remember Terry Charlie and yourself, I was an apprentice in 1982/83 worked with Reed Wilks
Great times, myself and Steve Watson got laid off after our apprenticeship, still work on Teesside as an Estates manager
Who was the guy who always lead the grand national horse in?
Hi Gary. Can’t recall your name now as it was a long time ago
Ted Hutchinson was the BA stores man who used to do the National. His wife worked in the laundry on the site.
Glen, I wonder if you knew my father at all?
He worked in the Cyanide plant at Cassel works as a fitter. I remember him coming home with ‘burns’ on his hands etc. He may have been known as Bill or Fred Callender
The surname rings a bell but can’t place him
I would be happy to have my photographs used and would like to see any other photos which are available. I was at Cassel works from 1956 to 1967 and was plant manger on Sodium cyanide plant, sodium plant and the chlorine caustic soda Plant. I wrote the monograph for the sodium plant of which I still have a copy with the photographs.
There is a facebook site run by a current employee of Lucite International the current owners of Cassel works dedicated to Cassel Works. The person running it is keen to add old photos of plant and people. Would it be possible for you to let him use your photos on the site, George?
The photograph is of the sodium plant where protective clothing was essential because of the corrosive nature of sodium. I was Plant Manager of both the Sodium Cyanide and Sodium Plants in the period 1957-1967. I have some photographs of the Cyanide Plant which may be of interest which I will look out and post to the web site.
I heard a lot about the plant from my father, Alfred Ellis, who worked there making the product during the 50″s and 60″s. He mentioned running off from the “pots”. He often came home with small burns that were due to splashes and complained often about the difficulty breathing because of ammonia which was probably used in the process. In his later years, before retirement, he moved on to lighter duties within the same area of the works.
Hi, I am a little unsure about the picture. There were 2 plants producing a Sodium material at ICI Cassel Works. One Sodium Cyanide. This was a molten process with large pots, suspended through two floors perhaps 16 or 25, not sure. The Sodium Cyanide {NaCN} was tapped from the base of the pots into moulds. A trolley containing many cart wheel looking moulds was filled and when cool opened and sections of cyanide looking like large pieces of cheese removed, another ingenious device was two caterpillar tracks continuously running together had the molten liquid poured in between the tracks at one end and reaching the other fell out as though chickens eggs had been threaded on a stick. The fall to the ground broke them off the sticks leaving the “eggs” to be shovelled into drums. This product was bright and shining white almost like cake icing, I believe the taste may have been different 🙂 The other plant(s) was producing Sodium metal {Na} Sir Humphry Davy etc. There were actually 2 plants called Downs 1 & 2 . This too was a molten process from Salt. The liquid was tapped off each of a long line of “Cells” as they were called and eventually entering an extrusion machine which produced “Sticks” of an inch round by a few inches long. Some liquid was moulded again on trolleys looking like lengths of pipe which when cooled were split open to produce 3″ or 4″ round by 24″ long not exactly but they were all packed into drums containing oil. This goes bang if it gets wet, hence old depth charges. Bulk electrically heated road tankers were also loaded and the Sodium metal used as the coolant for nuclear reactors and Titanium production. The reason for my doubts about the picture are. The protective equipment of Mole skin, face mask, apron and usually the trouser legs was worn by the Sodium metal workers because the material reacted violently with small pops & spits of material all the time. The material colour is grey again matches the metal the only thing I do not recognise are these particular mould shapes. The Sodium Cyanide workers were protected almost the same on the production floor but were moulding took place they were more likely to wear standard boiler suits and the obligatory flat cap. The material although very hot was stable. The grey colour of the material would have caused a great deal of concern as the Gold extraction people who used most of the product were very particular as to size, colour, shape, weight, etc. Hope this is of interest, from my time at Cassels until it”s demolition this plant was referred to as the “Old Cyanide plant” The “New Cyanide” was a whole new nightmare which sadly has just been decommissioned after many many years of faithful service.
Both descriptions are correct. The men wearing the protective clothing are removing sodium cyanide from the pots. The sodium was removed with a ladle from the smelter and the men had to work in temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Explosions of hydrogen were common-place when the pot lids were lifted. I am told that originally the safety suits, although absolutely necessary, had to be made by the workmen`s wives and ICI only provided the materials. The cyanide plant was the name I used in my time at ICI but it may also have been known as the sodium plant.
Surely this is the sodium plant?