Praxair's CoJet Technology Starts Up At Birmingham Steel in Seattle

DANBURY, CONN. (March 2) BUSINESS WIRE -March 2, 1999--Praxair, Inc. (NYSE: PX) today announced start-up of its patented CoJet(TM) coherent jet technology on a 135-ton electric arc furnace at the Birmingham Steel Corporation (NYSE: BIR) plant in Seattle.

Praxair currently licenses its CoJet technology to steel makers for installation on new or existing electric arc furnaces. The CoJet system totally eliminates the need for conventional lance manipulators and provides cost and energy savings, plus safety, productivity and environmental benefits. To date, the technology is operating at nine steel mills; installation on another five furnaces is underway.

The system installed at Birmingham's plant in Seattle has shortened the power-on time by 4 minutes per heat, lowering the plant's power consumption by over 20 kWh per ton. Worker safety is improved because the slag door is now closed during melting. Other benefits, including less refractory consumption, dramatically improved life of the electrode delta, improved electrode life and improved foamy slag practice, are also reported.

Birmingham Steel's Seattle plant produces rebar and merchant products. The company operates electric arc furnace steel mills in Birmingham, Ala., Cartersville, Ga., Kankakee, Ill., Jackson, Miss., Memphis, Tenn., and Seattle. Praxair supplies oxygen and other industrial gases to five of Birmingham's facilities (except Alabama) via cryogenic air separation plants and non-cryogenic vacuum pressure swing adsorption (VPSA) oxygen-generating plants. The two companies signed a corporate licensing agreement last year for installation of the CoJet technology at Birmingham's six steel-making plants in the United States.

In September 1998, Praxair received U.S. Patent No. 5,814,125, which covers the process invented by Praxair for injecting gas into liquids such as molten steel. Praxair has additional patent applications pending in the U.S. and other countries that cover improvements to the basic system.

CoJet technology is potentially applicable to about 500 electric arc furnaces at steel mills around the world.

Praxair is the world's leading supplier of industrial gases and application technology used by manufacturers of steel, aluminum, copper and other primary metals, with 1998 sales to this segment of more than $800 million. The company supplies industrial gases and technologies to more than 40 customers operating electric arc furnaces in North America. Praxair has received more than 275 patents for steel-making technologies using industrial gases in innovative, money-saving ways.

Praxair is the largest industrial gases company in North and South America, and one of the largest worldwide, with 1998 sales of $4.8 billion. The company produces, sells and distributes atmospheric and process gases, and high-performance surface coatings. Praxair products, services and technology bring productivity and environmental benefits to a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, food and beverage, healthcare, electronics, steel, chemicals and refining, metal fabrication, water treatment, glass and others. For more information, visit Praxair on the Internet at www.praxair.com.

-0- rc/ny*

CONTACT: Praxair, Inc., Danbury

          Eric Jones, Media Relations, 203/837-2705 

eric_jones@praxair.com

KEYWORD: CONNECTICUT WASHINGTON
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: OIL/GAS ENERGY Today's News On The Net - Business
Wire's full file on the Internet

with Hyperlinks to your home page.

                      URL: http://www.businesswire.com