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February 2006 Meeting

The three hundred sixty-first meeting of the Section will be held on Wednesday, 8 February 2006 at the Merck Cherokee facility in Riverside, Pennsylvania. The lecture will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be preceded by dinner at Mulberry's in Danville, PA. The speaker will be Mr. Daniel Muzzio, Process Engineer from the Process Safety Laboratory, Merck & Co. Inc. His presentation is on Chemical Reactivity Evaluation Program Conducted at Merck & Co, Inc.

Dinner: A dinner will be held at Mulberry's (336 Mill Street, Danville, PA 17821) beginning at 6:00 p.m. The dinner entrees are Chicken Marsala, Broiled Salmon with a Maple Dijon Sauce or Baked Ham. Each dinner comes with a choice of soup du jour, tossed salad (choice of dressing), vegetable (green beans almondine), baked potato, dessert (choice of homemade cake or assorted ice cream/sherbert), and beverage (coffee, decaffeinated coffee, tea, iced tea, soft drinks or milk). The cost of the dinner is $20.90 (Chicken Marsala or Broiled Salmon) or $17.20 (baked ham) and includes sales tax and gratuity. Please RSVP to Bob Ritter (570-271-2054 or robert_ritter@merck.com) with your choice of entrée by February 1, 2006.

Anyone who plans to attend only the meeting must call or email Bob Ritter by February 6, 2006.

Chemical Reactivity Evaluation Program Conducted at Merck & Co, Inc.

The presentation will focus on the chemical reactivity evaluation program conducted at Merck & Co., Inc. The program's main concern is about a runaway condition, which is an uncontrolled heat release and/or uncontrolled gas generation. Elements of a runaway are: highly exothermic chemistry (either desired or undesired), insufficient heat removal relative to heat generation, and pressure generation caused by vaporization, decomposition, or unintended reactive addition. The cornerstones of this program which will be discussed in detail are: Thermal Analysis (TA) - screening for undesired exothermic runaway activity outside normal processing range. Accelerating Rate Calorimeter (ARC) - which more precisely determines the onset temperature of significant exothermic activity identified by thermal analysis as occurring at or near expected operating temperatures. DIERS Technology (VSP/EAC) - which quantifies pressure generation which is known to exist or was identified by ARC testing to establish secondary venting requirements.

Mr. Daniel Muzzio received his B.S. degree in Chemistry from West Virginia University and M.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. Mr. Muzzio is currently Project Engineer in the Process Safety Laboratory of Merck and Company, Inc.

Directions:

TO MULBERRY'S
Take Interstate 80 to Exit 224 (formerly Exit 33, Danville). Turn right at the bottom of the ramp onto Route 54 East. Continue on Route 54 for approximately two miles to the intersection of Route 54 (Continental Boulevard) and Route 11 - there will be a Wendy's restaurant on your left. Turn left at the intersection of Route 54 and 11. Make a right at the next light (Mill Street). Mulberry's is on the left at the corner of Mill and Mulberry streets.

TO THE MERCK PLANT (FROM MULBERRY'S)
Take Mill Street, through Danville until the road comes to a "T". Make a right at the stop sign, and proceed to the light. Make a left at the light and cross over the bridge. Take the first right after the bridge onto D&H Avenue, and continue straight to the Cherokee Plant. Turn right into the Plant entrance and follow the signs to Visitor Parking.