Convertors at ICI in Billingham. The convertors are for hydrogen and nitrogen they are combined at a high pressure and temperature to form ammonia. 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Convertors at ICI in Billingham. The convertors are for hydrogen and nitrogen they are combined at a high pressure and temperature to form ammonia.
I was working there the day it exploded, 19 year old apprentice fitter, fastest I have ever moved in my life!
A similar “Haber Bosch Pressure Mantle” from BASF Oppau, Germans is preserved at Science Museum Swindon Wiltshire, together with an ammonia compressior from ICI Billingham
A Converter Leg ( one of those coming from the bottom ) blew a 1/4″ hole which caused a terrific explosion and a second explosion when the Hydrogen ignited. I was in the Instrument shop at the time and it blew all the windows in. No one was hurt but many needed clean underware afterwards. Aircraft were redirected around ICI as the flames and heat were so intense ( or so I was told later ). Myself and a few others were asked to stay back to asses the damage. I beam columns were bent by the terrific heat. At 350 atmospheres pressure it could be a dangerous place to work. The converter leg failure was attributed to the converters being used for Methanol duty during the war.