Carbide/Graphite Plant

These photos are from a visit to an industrial facility in Niagara Falls, New York during early April, 2005. The plant is in mid-demolition and appears to have shut down a few years ago. These are mostly outdoor shots given that most of the structures had been demolished by this point or they just appeared too chemical infested for us to risk entering.

From the company's ex-web site comes the following description of what went on here:

We are a major U.S. manufacturer of graphite electrode products and calcium carbide products. Graphite electrodes are used as conductors of electricity, and are consumed, in the electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking process common to all minimill steel producers. Calcium carbide and derivative products, primarily acetylene, are used in the manufacture of specialty chemicals, as a fuel in metal cutting and welding and for iron and steel desulfurization. We are the only manufacturer of graphite electrodes that produces its own requirements of needle coke, the principal raw material used in the manufacture of graphite electrodes. We also sell needle coke to other manufacturers of graphite products.