From: tkoenig@netcologne.de   
      
   Mikkel Haaheim  schrieb:   
      
   > Much of the processing equipment for the different materials   
   > actually have a number of elements in common. You are not   
   >talking about mass production here, until you decide that you   
   > want to mass produce for export, so you use the equipment to   
   > set up limited production for one material, and when you have   
   > enough, you disassemble the equipment and reassemble it for the   
   > next use.   
      
   Disassembly and reassembly for a different chemical process   
   needs lots of planning, replacement parts (pumps, pipes, gaskets),   
   different materials (most importantly catalysts, but think corrosion   
   - you will need austenitic stainless steel, martensitic stainless   
   stell, duplex steel, Hastelloy, ...), which are not readily   
   interchangable.   
      
   We are also looking at months to years for basic reassembly.   
      
   We are not Motie Engineers (which were not that realistic   
   anyway). Our current level of tech does not allow this, especially   
   if your aim is to actually produce useful product.  I'm sort of   
   assuming that, for example, a Polycarbonate spacesuit helmet should   
   be transparent, UV resistant (UV-induced cracks and yellowing   
   would be a _bad_ idea), so....   
      
      
   > Since we are talking about low volumes, the actual   
   > equipment set ups don't have to be large, either, despite their   
   > complexity.   
      
   you don't want inhomogenities in your helmet bubble.  Unfortunately,   
   small polymer plants tend to make poor quality.  And again, once   
   you have set up a BPA and Polycarbonate process, you will not be   
   able to make Polyethylene or Polypropylene in it.   
      
   > You only need multiple plants, or shops, if you are   
   > running concurrent production. For the most part, this should not   
   > be necessary... although theree will likely be enough personnel   
   > and equipment to run several concurrent operations, in any case.   
      
   How many chemicals do you think you will need   
      
   - in end use   
      
   - as intermediate products to make the chemicals you need   
      
   for a Mars colony?   
      
   Don't look at materials of construction only, also look at   
   fertilizer, water conditioning, ....  Take a good look at Ullmann's   
   Encyclopedia, a plastics additive handbook and so on before   
   you care to answer that question.   
      
   > Whereas the polymer might not evaporate, it DOES molecularly   
   > break down in extreme low pressure environments.   
      
   I'm not aware of a mechanism.  Please provide a qoute.   
      
   > There is very little that current automation can not do.   
      
   This is an overstatement of the state of the art.  There is   
   no way to automatically disassemble and reassemble a chemical   
   plant.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)