Hou, a famous scientist, an outstanding chemical expert and a pioneer of heavy chemical industry in China. In the 1920s, he broke through the mystery of ammonia-alkali technology and presided over the construction of the first soda plant in Asia. In 1930s, he led the establishment of the first joint venture in China that could produce synthetic ammonia, nitric acid, sulfuric acid and ammonium sulfate. In the 1940s and 1950s, a new process of combined soda production with soda ash and ammonium chloride, and a new process of ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer production by ammonia carbide synthesis were invented, which were industrialized and popularized on a large scale in the 1960s. He also actively disseminated and exchanged science and technology, trained many scientific and technological talents, and made outstanding contributions to the development of science and technology and chemical industry.
Hou, whose real name is Zhiben, whose name is Qirong, 1890, was born in Minhou County, Fujian Province on August 9. Work-study program since childhood, diligent and studious. I have the reputation of "trailer learning". From 1903 to 1906, my aunt sponsored me to study in Huaying College in Fuzhou. He witnessed foreign foremen bullying dock workers in China, and heard the outrageous news that racists in San Francisco persecuted overseas Chinese and expelled Chinese workers on a large scale, which made him feel strongly patriotic. He took an active part in the anti-imperialist patriotic strike demonstration. 1907 ——1910 years, studying at Shanghai Fujian-Anhui Railway Institute. After graduation, I worked as an intern in the British-funded Jin-Pu Railway. During this period, Hou further felt that the imperialists exploited and oppressed the poor and backward China and people with their technical and economic advantages, and were determined to master science and technology and use science and industry to save the suffering China. 19 1 1 year, Hou was admitted to Peking Tsinghua preparatory school for studying in the United States. He is well-known in Tsinghua campus with 10 subject and 1000 score. 19 13 was recommended to study in the chemical engineering department of MIT. 19 17 graduated with a bachelor's degree, then went to Pratt Institute to study tanning, and obtained the diploma of tanning chemist the following year. 19 18 went to the tanning institute of Columbia University to study tanning, 19 19 received a master's degree, and 192 1 year received a doctorate. Because of her excellent academic performance, Hou was accepted as a member of the Sigma Science Society and the Philip Chemical Society. Dr. Hou's thesis "Iron Salt Tanning Leather" focuses on the characteristics of iron salt, and deeply discusses the main reasons and countermeasures for the shortcomings of iron salt tanning products, such as temperature intolerance, roughness, brittle grain surface, perishable, easy moisture absorption and salt spots, which is very original. The full-text serial publication of Journal of American Leather Chemists Association has become one of the classic documents widely cited in leather industry.
192 1 year, Hou accepted the invitation of the general manager of Yongli Alkali Industry Company and left the United States for home to undertake the technical task of continuing to build an alkali plant. Under the situation that foreign companies strictly monopolized the production technology and market of soda ash, Hou led the broad masses of workers to struggle hard for a long time, solved a series of technical problems, and 1926 succeeded in producing high-quality soda ash normally. On the basis of summing up his personal practice, Hou wrote The Manufacture of Soda in English, which was published in new york on 1933, and had a far-reaching influence in academia and industry. 1934, in order to "develop the first wing of chemical industry", Wynn Company decided to build Nanjing Tancheng Plant, which can also produce synthetic ammonia, nitric acid, sulfuric acid and ammonium sulfate, and appointed Hou as the director and technician (that is, chief engineer) to be fully responsible for the preparatory work. Hou Bangde knew the complexity of establishing this joint venture, and it was the chemical industry with the highest scientific and technological content at that time, producing high-difficulty technologies such as high temperature and high pressure, flammability and explosion, strong corrosion and catalytic reaction. The domestic foundation is weak, the company has limited financial resources, and the work is extremely difficult. He is very worried "... If we fall short and let China people never talk about chemical industry again, then we will become sinners in China! "But with the determination to" only know where the responsibility lies and work hard for it ",I will overcome the difficulties. According to the principle of "high quality, high speed, low price and patriotism", he decided to introduce key technologies from abroad, bid for some important designs, buy equipment and hire foreign experts ... As a result, in just 30 months, in 937, 65438+ 1 was built into a heavy chemical joint enterprise, which was successfully put into production at one time and the technology reached the international level at that time. It provides a good experience for how to introduce technology and build factories quickly and economically in the future. Together with Li Yong Soda Factory, this factory laid the foundation of basic chemical industry in China and trained a large number of chemical science and technology talents. But it didn't take long for the "July 7th Incident" to happen, and the Japanese invaders gradually advanced to Nanjing. They threatened "factory safety" three times and demanded "cooperation" in the management of Nanjing Shipyard. Hou and his colleagues righteously insisted on "mourning without libation" and refused to "cooperate"; At the same time, it actively responded to the anti-Japanese war and used factory facilities to switch to ammonium nitrate explosives and mine bombs to support the front line. After the factory was bombed by Japanese planes for three times and could not be produced, Hou organized employees to dismantle equipment urgently and sent personnel and materials to the mainland.
1938, Wynn set up a factory in Wutongqiao, western Sichuan, and appointed Hou as the director and chief engineer. Under very difficult conditions, he led employees to save themselves and maintained the livelihood of employees in the company. At the same time, set about organizing Sichuan soda plant. Because the conditions in Sichuan are not suitable for the use of ammonia-alkali method, Hou Zai 1939 sent a team to Germany to inspect and prepare to buy the patent of tea temple method. Under the condition that the other party humiliated the country, Hou suspended the negotiations and made a determined effort to study new methods of alkali production. He led a large number of researchers and designers through hard work, and developed a new process of co-producing soda ash and ammonium chloride fertilizer in one furnace in 194 1. 1943 completed the semi-industrialized factory test, but it was interrupted because of war and political chaos, and there was no condition to continue industrialization. 1In August, 945, the Japanese invaders died shortly after their surrender, and later took over as general manager, leading the work of Wynn Chemical Industry Company in an all-round way. He immediately organized Yongli Solid Plant and Nanjing Sichuan Plant to resume production. During the war, the nitric acid equipment of Sichuan Factory was transported to Japan by the Japanese invaders. Later, after Li repeatedly made solemn representations to the relevant parties, he went to Tokyo to find the Allied General Command and other relevant parties to argue. It was not until 1948 that all nitric acid equipment was returned and nitric acid production was resumed, which is still in operation. From 65438 to 0947, Hou was employed as the consultant chief engineer of Tata Company in India, and went to India five times to guide and improve the equipment and technology of the soda plant of the company, so that the soda plant could operate normally and produce high-quality soda. Later, Prime Minister Nehru visited China and praised it as a model of friendship between the Chinese and Indian peoples. During his fifth visit to China in 1949, Hou was very excited to learn that the central leadership of was very concerned about Wynn's career and wanted to discuss with him the country's major plans. Rick detoured Thailand, Hong Kong and South Korea to get back to Beijing. Marshal Nie Rongzhen personally greeted him at the station. When meeting with him, President Mao Zedong said: "Revolution is our cause, and industrial construction depends on you! I hope that Qi Xin will work together to build a prosperous and powerful new China. " Premier Zhou Enlai personally visited Wynn's Beijing office, congratulated him on his successful return to China, praised his patriotic spirit, and invited him to attend the China People's Political Consultative Conference, "* * * to discuss state affairs and design a blueprint for building a new China". Hou was greatly encouraged and determined to work harder and serve the motherland. Later, he was elected as the first member of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and the second, third and fourth members of the Standing Committee. Deputies to the First, Second and Third National People's Congresses; He has served as a member of the Central Financial and Economic Committee, a technical consultant of the Ministry of Heavy Industry of the State Council and a deputy minister of the Ministry of Chemical Industry. He was employed as a member of the Technical Department of China Academy of Sciences. From 65438 to 0953, he participated in the Democratic National Construction Association and was elected as the first and second Central Standing Committee. At the same time, he worked harder in science and technology and developed the chemical industry day and night. He once introduced "Wynn's idea of building top ten chemical enterprises" to the central leaders, and put forward many suggestions such as "Opinions on Revitalizing Industry". Participated in many major decisions of national chemical industry and science and technology, and led many major scientific and technological activities in the chemical industry. Under his advice and guidance, the new process of combined soda production continued to carry out supplementary tests and intermediate tests, and was industrialized in 1962, becoming one of the main methods for producing soda ash and chemical fertilizer in China. 1958 put forward the idea of producing ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer by carbonation synthetic ammonia process, and personally led the design, construction, test and improvement of the demonstration plant, which was successful in 1965. With the strong support of governments at all levels and the joint efforts of the broad masses of workers, more than 65,438+0,000 factories have been promoted one after another, and their output has accounted for more than half of the total national nitrogen fertilizer output for a long time, making indelible contributions to the development of agriculture in China. In addition, Hou has made many contributions to the development of industrial and chemical anti-corrosion technologies such as phosphate fertilizer, pesticides, polyvinyl chloride and chemical machinery, as well as the dissemination and exchange of science and technology and the cultivation of scientific and technological talents. After 1972, Hou was seriously ill and inconvenient to move. He still asked for factory inspections many times to help solve technical problems. He also invited scientists and technicians to meet at home many times to discuss the improvement and development of sodium bicarbonate technology, and worked hard until the last breath. Hou Yisheng's scientific and technological practice left valuable spiritual wealth and material wealth for future generations.
Break through the mystery of soda production by ammonia-alkali method
Soda soda ash, scientific name sodium carbonate, is an indispensable basic chemical raw material for producing many industrial products, such as glass, enamel, paper, etc., food and daily life. 186 1 year, the ammonia-alkali method invented by Belgian Sulvi, that is, the method of making soda ash by the reaction of salt, ammonia and carbon dioxide, is suitable for large-scale industrial production, with high product quality and low cost, which is far superior to the early method of making soda ash by sodium sulfide from mirabilite by Nicolas Leblanc. However, this mode of production has long been controlled by several major companies, blocking technology and monopolizing the soda ash market. 19 17 After the outbreak of World War I, Bunniemen Company took the opportunity to increase the price of alkali by seven or eight times in China, and even there was no market, which led to the closure of many factories using alkali as raw materials. Fan Xudong, a patriotic industrialist, was very sad about this, and specially raised funds to set up Yongli Alkali Company. After many efforts, we bought a set of patchwork drawings and some equipment from the United States and started to build a factory in Tanggu, Tianjin on 19 19. In the process of construction, there are many problems in design drawings and equipment, and the complexity and difficulty of ammonia-alkali production process are gradually paid attention to. The continuous alkali production process, from chemical salt, ash burning, ammonia absorption, carbonization, calcination and ammonia evaporation to power, is linked by one ring and connected into a whole, which needs coordination to be normal production; Any local fault or maladjustment will affect the whole factory and lead to accidents. Fan Xudong realized that it would be impossible to run such a modern chemical plant well without reliable experts in charge of technical work. After the warm recommendation of Steve Chen, I chose Hou who is studying for a doctorate in the United States. 192 1 At the beginning, he wrote a letter and sent it to the United States, frankly inviting Hou to "return to China after finishing his studies and set up an alkali industry in China". The importance of soda ash industry, the urgency of the problem and the ambition, courage and enthusiasm of saving the country by industry deeply touched Hou. He regarded the invitation as a good opportunity to serve the motherland and resolutely agreed.
As soon as Hobonde arrived at Wynn Soda Factory, he devoted himself to his work. At that time, the equipment installation of the soda plant was in full swing, and Hou began to learn by doing, gradually getting familiar with the situation, exploring and solving problems. During the trial operation, hundreds of problems and accidents occurred one after another for several years. Among them, the tower was blocked by ammonia distillation, the earthquake, the carbonization tower was flooded and scarred, the calciner was scarred, the knife was bitten, the product was burned and colored. He went deep into the scene, personally observed, tested and operated, and mastered first-hand materials; He relied on the broad masses of workers, listened to opinions and suggestions, organized and guided workers to consult books and periodicals, conducted experimental research, and studied ways to solve these problems one by one. In order to solve the problems of scarring and tower blockage during ammonia distillation, Hou and his colleagues found out the different effects of different ammonia sources, such as ammonium sulfate and coking ammonia water, on scarring, on ammonia concentration and on the quality of ammonia brine, and thus obtained different suitable operating conditions. For the carbonization process, they deeply studied a wide range of problems from theory to practice, such as reaction heat, solution heat and quaternary system phase diagram, through calculation, measurement and experiment, and found appropriate parameters and measures for the types, structures, sizes, compatibility, operating conditions, carbonization/cleaning inverted tower system and abnormal conditions of carbonization tower and heat exchanger. Regarding the calcination process, they studied and found out the influence of the humidity of alkali ash on the scarring, and found out the mechanism and operation method of proper sulfide to ensure the whiteness of soda ash. By studying the change process of temperature/decomposition rate, thermal corrosion and the material and structure of calciner, we designed and debugged the advanced rotary calciner by ourselves. By June of 1926, Hou and his colleagues had solved the problems of each process, thoroughly mastered all the technical secrets of the ammonia-alkali process, created and improved the Sulvi process, and made the first soda plant in Asia produce high-quality soda ash with red triangle brand. In August, this soda won the gold medal at the World Expo in Philadelphia, USA, and was praised as "the symbol of China's industrial progress".
Yongli Alkali Industry Co., Ltd. has suffered from monopoly of technology and market for a long time, and has been on the verge of bankruptcy for many times. Hou is deeply touched by this. After the successful production of the soda plant, he didn't want to see future generations bound again. He insisted on the inscription of his teacher, D.D. Jackson: "Science and technology belong to all mankind, and it should benefit mankind", and he said: "We will never be the second Sulvi or the second Bunniemen", and he was determined to make the technical experience of soda production gained in his years of practice public. Fan Xudong greatly appreciates and supports this. 1933, Hou wrote the book "The Manufacture of Soda" in English, which was published in new york as one of the series of American Chemical Society. Hou wrote in the preface of the book: "This book can be said to be a breakthrough in the strictly confidential ammonia-alkali process for thousands of years. This book describes the manufacturing methods of ammonia and alkali. Describe its details as detailed as possible, and make it practical as a feature of this book. The content of this book is the natural development of the experience, records, observations and opinions obtained by the author in the direct operation of the factory for more than ten years ... Generally speaking, the factory is fully protected by the unique requirements of the industry, and its details can only be obtained through years of practical operation. As for the special links of the factory, it can be said that any good designer can get a good solution through some experiments, and there is no need to keep secrets for the industry ... The experience of handling a large number of gases and liquids in the field of physical chemistry is the basic motivation for publishing this book. " This preface properly summarizes the purpose and nature of this book. The publication of this book has ended the history of monopoly and blockade of ammonia-alkali production technology, and has been highly valued by academia and industry, and is recognized as the authoritative work of alkali-making industrial technology. Professor Wilson, a famous American chemist, praised this as "China chemist's great contribution to world civilization". It was translated into many languages and published, which played an important role in the development of soda ash industry in the world.
In recognition of Hou's achievements in breaking through the secret technology of ammonia and alkali production, Columbia University awarded him the first-class medal of 1930; 1933 China engineers association awarded him the honorary gold medal; 1943, the Royal Society hired him as an honorary member, which was one of only 12 honorary members in the world at that time.
Invent a new process of combined alkali production
The new process of continuous combined soda production with ammonium chloride is the third leap in the development of soda production technology after Nicholas Leblanc method and ammonia-alkali method. Its appearance, as Hou later pointed out in the book Alkaline Chemistry, is due to the uneconomical consumption of raw materials (salt) by ammonia-alkali method; The amount of waste liquid is large, which occupies a large area of land and pollutes water sources. In order to overcome these shortcomings, 193 1 year, Cha 'an Company first set up a factory in Czech Republic, with a daily output of soda ash and ammonium chloride 10 ton, and the salt utilization rate can reach 90%-95%. 1938, at the beginning of the establishment of the soda ash plant in Yonglichuan Plant, Hou and others thought that the ammonia-alkali method could not be used because of the shortcomings of expensive well salt and lack of cultivated land in Sichuan, so Hou led a team to Germany to buy a patent for the tea temple method. Under the political background that Germany, Italy and Japan became the axis countries of fascism, their political parties encountered many difficulties in their journey and work. During the negotiation, the other party first extorted money at a high price, and then put forward: "The products produced by the tea nunnery method are not allowed to be sold to Manchuria. "Openly deny that the three northeastern provinces are our territory. Hou was very angry at this condition of damaging power and humiliating the country, and immediately refuted it, suspended the negotiations and retired Germany. Since then, with his rich experience and profound knowledge, Hou has organized and guided a large number of technical backbones of Wynn Company to carry out research on new alkali production. The first step is to explore the imitation of the Securities Law. The experiment began that year at Wu Tong Bridge in western Sichuan. At that time, scientific research equipment, reagents and materials in Sichuan were very scarce and it was difficult to move forward. The following spring, Hou arranged for the researchers to transfer the experiment to Hongkong, and he contacted him in new york by letters and telegrams. Through more than 500 experiments and analysis of more than 2,000 samples, Hou and several technical backbones have basically mastered the tea temple method. In the second step, Hou decided to study the method of direct double decomposition of ammonium bicarbonate aqueous solution and salt powder. At the beginning of 1940, a preliminary conclusion was reached, and then an expanded experiment was arranged in the French Concession in Shanghai. At the same time, additional technicians were sent to the United States to carry out in-depth supplementary tests, and the design of alkali plant was started. 194 1, the American experiment got an accurate conclusion, and found out the wrong conclusion that "the key of this law lies in adding intermediate salt" in the patent report of Cha 'an Law. At the same time, the scale-up test in Shanghai has also achieved similar results to the small test, indicating that the new method of alkali production has been initially successful. The factory affairs meeting of Yonglichuan Factory decided to name the new law "Hou's soda production method", and called on new york to congratulate Hou on "designing a new soda production process suitable for the environment of West China, and opening a new era for the world soda production technology with the achievements of 20 years of profound theoretical research and efforts".
Soon, the Pacific War broke out, the French Concession in Shanghai was occupied by the Japanese army, and the expansion experiment of the new legal alkali was forced to be interrupted. At the same time, Wynn Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. was caught between Scylla and Charybdis in the retreat, and the construction prospect of Sichuan factory was seriously threatened. With the support of our company, Hou continued his third experiment, that is, to study the industrial experimental scheme of continuous production of soda ash and ammonium chloride by combining alkali production process with synthetic ammonia process. He bought controlled liquid ammonia in America and airlifted it to Sichuan. According to Hou's plan, Guo Xi and other technicians and workers built a set of continuous intermediate test device with a daily output of dozens of kilograms of soda ash and ammonium chloride in Chuanxi Bridge. 1943 Start-up test was conducted in autumn. The refined salt solution (mother liquor containing salt) is sent to an absorption tower, ammoniated with ammonia (from the synthetic ammonia plant), sent to a carbonization tower, carbonized with carbon dioxide (from the synthetic ammonia plant) to obtain a reaction solution containing sodium bicarbonate crystals, filtered, and the filter cake is calcined to obtain soda ash; Cooling the filtrate, adding salt, precipitating crystals, filtering, and drying the crystals to obtain ammonium chloride; The mother liquor is added with salt and then sent to the absorption tower for ammoniation ... This cycle and continuous operation continuously produce soda ash and ammonium chloride. The test runs smoothly, and the principle flow of "Hou Shi Alkali Method" is established. It combines the ammonia-alkali method with the safety inspection method, so that the alkali plant and the ammonia plant are closely combined, the utilization rate of salt reaches 95%-98%, there is no waste liquid discharge, and the investment and product cost can be greatly reduced compared with that of a single plant. In June 5438+February of the same year, chinese chemical society specially arranged the 1 1 annual meeting in Yonglichuan Factory. By listening to the report and visiting the operation of the experimental workshop, the annual meeting spoke highly of "Hou's soda production method" and sent a letter to congratulate Hou abroad. This new technology was approved by the patent authorities twice in 1949 and 1953, and obtained the patent certificate. Unfortunately, due to the war and difficult conditions, the pilot factory stopped production after more than two months of operation.
1945 After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Li Yong Company turned its energy to the resumption of production of Tanggu Alkali Plant and Nanjing Tancheng Plant. Subsequently, due to the influence of the civil war, the construction of Yonglichuan Plant and the industrialization of Hou Shi Alkali Process failed to last for a long time. At the end of 1949, entrusted by the Central Financial and Economic Committee and the Ministry of Heavy Industry, Hou led a delegation to the northeast to inspect and found that Dalian Chemical Plant, which produces ammonia, is adjacent to the partition wall of Caodachang Power Plant in Far East, which is an excellent condition for the development of joint alkali production. He immediately suggested that the two factories merge and adopt this new technology. At the same time, it is suggested that a joint alkali production test workshop should be established during the resumption of production in Dalian Chemical Plant. His suggestion was supported by all parties concerned, and a large number of technicians were quickly mobilized. Under the guidance of Hou, the design, equipment manufacture, installation and test of Nissan 10 ton test device were carried out. At the same time, supplementary tests are carried out in the laboratory. At the end of 1952, shortly after the test device was put into full-process test, a Soviet expert came to the competent department and said, "There is something wrong with the fertilizer efficiency of ammonium chloride; The Soviet Union did not use ammonium chloride as fertilizer, nor did it engage in joint alkali production. " The experiment was forced to stop. Faced with the pressure of "one-sided", Hou conducted a serious investigation and study, and fully grasped a large amount of information on the use and trial of ammonium chloride in Germany, North Korea, Britain, Japan, the Soviet Union, Northeast China and North China, which proved that "the fertilizer efficiency is certain". At the beginning of 1957, Hou wrote a report to the * * * group of the Ministry of Chemical Industry on the topic of "upholding scientific truth, which is the basic belief of scientists", interviewed the minister, and frankly, seriously and in detail stated his views on the opinions of Soviet experts, as well as that three Japanese synthetic ammonia plants had produced ammonium chloride by similar methods. Soon, Minister Peng told him: "Premier Zhou called just now and said that the report of the Ministry and your letter had been received. The Central Committee discussed this issue, agreed with your opinions, and supported you to continue the experiment in Dalian, hoping for an early success. Premier Zhou also said that you should take care of yourself when you are old. " The experiment will be resumed and further enriched in the second half of this year, and then. A 6.5438+600,000-ton workshop was designed. Under the guidance of Hou, the production process of combined soda was further improved, and the data such as process parameters and equipment selection required for production were determined. Among them, "adopting twice carbonization" further steadily improves the yield of ammonium chloride and alkali in unit salt-containing mother liquor; The research on crystallizer and corrosion protection has also achieved results; The experimental steam calciner further improved the technological advancement of the whole process. 196 1 year, the first 80,000-ton production line was completed and put into operation. During the period of 1964, the trial production reached the predetermined index, and the deputy director of the state science and technology commission visited the site to preside over the technical appraisal of the new process of soda production. Since then, this new technology has been popularized in more than 50 factories across the country, with an annual output of more than 100,000 tons of soda ash and ammonium chloride/kloc-0.000 million tons, which has become one of the main methods for producing soda ash and chemical fertilizers in China.
The carbonized synthetic ammonia process was invented to produce ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer.
In the mid-1950s, the enthusiasm of hundreds of millions of farmers in China for developing agriculture was unprecedentedly high, and chemical fertilizers were urgently needed. At the beginning of 1957, Minister Peng Tao of the Ministry of Chemical Industry put forward the strategic idea of establishing small nitrogen fertilizer plants in various places, which was discussed among technicians. The discussion soon focused on the key issue of the selection of ammonia processing varieties. In July of the same year, Hou was inspired when he visited the edible ammonium bicarbonate small device in Dalian Alkali Factory. He further came up with a method to integrate the production of ammonium bicarbonate with the production of synthetic ammonia by using the idea of a new process of combined alkali production. There is a water washing process in the production of synthetic ammonia, and the carbon dioxide in the shift gas can be absorbed by water, which can purify the synthetic gas. It is envisaged that water washing will be changed to ammonia washing, and ammonia produced by ammonia synthesis workshop will be used to absorb carbon dioxide instead of water, and ammonium bicarbonate will be generated while purifying synthesis gas, and the decarbonization process and ammonia treatment workshop will be integrated. This method does not need special materials, and can greatly reduce the investment, energy consumption and product cost of nitrogen fertilizer plants; Making a small device not only reduces the difficulty of equipment manufacturing, installation and production operation management, but also can be used nearby, reducing decomposition loss and saving packaging and transportation costs. These advantages may be to develop chemical fertilizers under the existing conditions in China and realize the hope envisioned by Minister Peng Tao. He immediately put forward suggestions to Minister Peng Tao, and soon got the support of the leaders of the Ministry and the vast number of technical personnel. After further discussion and calculation, Hou and relevant designers determined the process flow and design scheme. With the approval of the leaders of the Ministry, it was decided to transform the existing synthetic ammonia workshop of Shanghai Research Institute of Chemical Technology into a county-level small nitrogen fertilizer plant with an annual output of 2,000 tons of synthetic ammonia and 8,000 tons of ammonium bicarbonate.
1in the spring of 958, Hou led a group of technicians to Shanghai to cooperate with relevant units in the design, trial production, installation and testing of equipment. In the upsurge of the Great Leap Forward, 68-year-old Hou ate and lived with everyone, climbed towers, went down ditches, burned the midnight oil, and seized the time to engage in design and construction. Hou attaches great importance to engineering quality and economic benefits in his work and is meticulous about technical problems. Every piece of paper is checked by him to ensure that every size is correct, and then signed and issued. In order to reduce the difficulty of equipment manufacturing, provincial machinery factories without large hydraulic presses can also manufacture complete sets of equipment, which can not only ensure the quality of equipment, but also run safely. Hou pays special attention to the innovation of manufacturing technology. Among them, he is active and cautious about making high-pressure vessels (including synthetic tower, copper liquid tower, alkali washing tower, etc.) with cast steel technology instead of forging technology. On the one hand, he actively advocated and strongly supported; On the other hand, organize relevant personnel of Shanghai electromechanical system to discuss and implement its feasibility, reliability and corresponding measures repeatedly. I also personally discussed it with Professor Konscher, a German mechanical expert who was working in Shanghai at that time. After verification, I decided to carry out trial production and testing. Among them, the synthetic tower, as the key equipment for high pressure and high temperature operation, also participated in the blasting test in person, and agreed to use it in a small nitrogen fertilizer plant after confirming its safety and reliability. At the end of April, 1958, the demonstration device was completed, and the test began as planned on May 1st. In the afternoon, the whole process was successfully started, and the first batch of ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer was produced. Then, under the arrangement of the Ministry of Chemical Industry, some provinces and cities built 13 sets of county-level nitrogen fertilizer plant test devices, from coal and coke gasification to fertilizer production, to further test the wide adaptability of this new technology and accumulate experience for large-scale promotion.
Due to different local conditions, there are many differences in 13 devices according to local conditions, and the testing work is very complicated. Among them, whether carbon dioxide and ammonia are balanced is controversial, but it has a great influence. In order to prevent the imbalance from affecting the whole process, some factories have added high-pressure water washing in the process to recover high-concentration carbon dioxide, so as to improve carbonization efficiency and adjust the balance. But in this way, many advantages of the new process do not exist. Pay close attention to these experiments, especially the balance problem. On the one hand, I consult the information myself and organize tests, calculations and experiments. On the other hand, I go deep into the test sites, investigate and study, and summarize exchanges. The main operating conditions and suitable parameters affecting the stable and high yield of ammonia absorption and carbonization process, the relationship between the humidity and stability of ammonium bicarbonate, the methods to reduce the humidity of ammonium bicarbonate and other measures to improve the stability of ammonium bicarbonate are put forward. , so as to guide all localities to do a good job in experiments. Hou paid special attention to the balance test of carbon dioxide and ammonia in Danyang Chemical Fertilizer Plant. Together with Minister Peng Tao, he assigned tasks and put forward requirements to Chief Engineer Chen Dong, who presided over the device test in Jiangsu Provincial Department of Chemical Industry. I personally went to Danyang to discuss problems with the factory, sum up experience and observe the effect of the measures. On the basis of the existing water washing decarbonization unit, combined with management, the shift gas volume of the water washing tower is gradually reduced and the shift gas volume of the ammonia tower is gradually increased. Finally, all water washing is not sent, only ammonia washing is sent. 1962 realizes the balance of carbon dioxide and ammonia in the whole process, ensures high and stable yield and low energy consumption, and marks that the new process of producing ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer by ammonia carbide synthesis method has passed the technical and economic barrier. After that, this new technology was further rapidly popularized in the whole country, and more than 1000 factories were built, and some factories were expanded to increase production. Since the mid-1970s, the output of this small nitrogenous fertilizer plant has long accounted for more than half of the total nitrogenous fertilizer output in China, making an indelible contribution to the development of agriculture in China. In 1965, the State Science and Technology Commission awarded invention certificates to three technical directors and four units with significant contributions, especially Mr. Hou.
Disseminating scientific knowledge and cultivating scientific talents
Hou has set up the ambition of "saving the country by science" and "saving the country by industry" since he was a child. He is very enthusiastic about the dissemination and application of scientific and technological knowledge and pays attention to caring for and cultivating scientific and technological talents.
As early as during his study in the United States, Hou actively collected technologies of practical value for China's industrial development. 19 17 published scientific and technological articles such as "the manufacture of silicon carbide", which still has technical guidance. He conscientiously summed up his achievements and experiences in scientific and technological work, worked diligently, and made every effort to let the world fully understand these achievements and experiences. In the preface of the magnum opus Alkali-making Project published by 1959. Hou wrote: "The soda ash industry in China has advanced by leaps and bounds, and workers have become the masters of the country, and they urgently need to master technology. Therefore, the staff of Li Yong Soda Factory in Tanggu translated the author's second English version (Editor's Note: 1942, The Manufacture of Soda Soda) into Chinese ... But the author thinks that the content of the second English version is more than ten years ago, especially the foreign language materials, which should be revised and supplemented in combination with the resource situation in China ... Recently, the leading comrades of the Ministry of Chemical Industry gave the author a rest because he was ill. It took me four or five months to finish this book during the break. In order to fulfill my long-cherished wish ... If the countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America can establish their own alkali industry, promote the independence of their own chemical industry and get rid of the control of the imperialists, it will be even luckier. " These words profoundly reflect Hou's writing mood. Driven by this emotion, Hou, who was busy with production and construction all his life, wrote and published 10 scientific and technological books and more than 70 papers with more than 2.5 million words. It has played an important role in spreading technology and cultivating talents, and also added wealth to the treasure house of scientific and technological knowledge in China and the world.