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The article states that the system was cooled using a solution of sodium chromate to inhibit corrosion. However the wiki page of sodium chromate states that it

The article states that the system was cooled using a solution of sodium chromate to inhibit corrosion. However the wiki page of sodium chromate states that it is very corrosive. Is it a typo or something? It's also mentioned that the computer uses one of the first integrated circuits for miniaturization. Do you know if this can be definitely traced to advances in industrial/consumer products? It's a common trope that military research trickles down - so it's a "good" thing. It's not clear if this actually happens or if progress would have been made eventually without the need for these machines.

philipkglass 2y ago
The article states that the system was cooled using a solution of sodium chromate to inhibit corrosion. However the wiki page of sodium chromate states that it is very corrosive. Is it a typo or something? Chromates are effective corrosion inhibitors for aluminum alloys and some other metals. Here's a brief article about how they work with aluminum: "Inhibition of Aluminum Alloy Corrosion by Chromates" https://www.electrochem.org/dl/interface/wtr/wtr01/IF12-01-Pages34-38.pdf https://www.electrochem.org/dl/interface/wtr/wtr01/IF12-01-P... When the Wikipedia entry's "Safety" section says that sodium chromate is corrosive, in context it means "destructive to human tissue by contact." That is, like sodium hydroxide (lye) and many other chemicals, in concentrated form it can destroy skin and eyes.
kens 2y ago
Sodium chromate is highly corrosive to humans (as well as carcinogenic, see the movie Erin Brockovich). However, it inhibits corrosion in metal, acting as a passivating inhibitor, forming some sort of protective oxide. I've been doing a lot of research on the impact of Minuteman and Apollo on the IC industry (which led to the current post). The Air Force likes to take credit for the IC industry, as does NASA, but the actual influence is debatable. My take is that both projects had a large impact on the IC industry, more from Minuteman. However, even in the absence of both projects, there was a lot of interest and demand for ICs. If I had to take a quantitative guess, I'd say that those projects advanced ICs by maybe a year, but the basic trajectory would have remained the same.
- dboreham 2y ago
  Ken, the story I heard wasn't so much that the MM3 demand created the IC industry, but rather that it created the quality culture that then led to ICs being widely accepted, because they were reliable. The AF had such purchasing power due to the program that they were able to impose quality standards on the industry that hitherto were not expected.

philipkglass 2y ago

The article states that the system was cooled using a solution of sodium chromate to inhibit corrosion. However the wiki page of sodium chromate states that it is very corrosive. Is it a typo or something? Chromates are effective corrosion inhibitors for aluminum alloys and some other metals. Here's a brief article about how they work with aluminum: "Inhibition of Aluminum Alloy Corrosion by Chromates" https://www.electrochem.org/dl/interface/wtr/wtr01/IF12-01-Pages34-38.pdf https://www.electrochem.org/dl/interface/wtr/wtr01/IF12-01-P... When the Wikipedia entry's "Safety" section says that sodium chromate is corrosive, in context it means "destructive to human tissue by contact." That is, like sodium hydroxide (lye) and many other chemicals, in concentrated form it can destroy skin and eyes.

kens 2y ago

Sodium chromate is highly corrosive to humans (as well as carcinogenic, see the movie Erin Brockovich). However, it inhibits corrosion in metal, acting as a passivating inhibitor, forming some sort of protective oxide. I've been doing a lot of research on the impact of Minuteman and Apollo on the IC industry (which led to the current post). The Air Force likes to take credit for the IC industry, as does NASA, but the actual influence is debatable. My take is that both projects had a large impact on the IC industry, more from Minuteman. However, even in the absence of both projects, there was a lot of interest and demand for ICs. If I had to take a quantitative guess, I'd say that those projects advanced ICs by maybe a year, but the basic trajectory would have remained the same.

dboreham 2y ago
Ken, the story I heard wasn't so much that the MM3 demand created the IC industry, but rather that it created the quality culture that then led to ICs being widely accepted, because they were reliable. The AF had such purchasing power due to the program that they were able to impose quality standards on the industry that hitherto were not expected.