Summer Globetrotting

by Carter Rechtin, Guest Blogger

Prior to working this summer, I was part of the NCSU group of students that were fortunate enough to go visit China with the PIE program. That in itself was the experience of a lifetime and I am very thankful to be a part of it. If you’d like to know more about the trip, the China blog can be found at: https://cnr.ncsu.blogs/pse-china.

This summer I worked as a chemical sales intern for Eka Chemicals at two different mill sites. I began the summer where I left off last summer in West Point, Virginia at a RockTenn mill producing white top linerboard and recycled corrugating medium. During two weeks in West Point, my work primarily revolved around the use of Colloidal Silica, which was being used for retention purposes. Eka also has a new product on one of the machines that allows for high levels of filler in the white top ply on a 2-ply linerboard machine. I did routine testing on this product to test effectiveness of the product and help optimize the use of the chemicals.

The last six weeks I have been working in Port Hudson, Louisiana at a Georgia Pacific mill that makes tissue, towel, and fine paper. Eka supplies ASA, ACH, Colloidal Silica, and aPAM to the fine paper machines. My work here was mainly testing system charges to help determine the proper dosage of ACH, testing ASA to ensure proper particle size and process application, and testing retentions again to determine the effectiveness of retention aids.

Louisiana has plenty to offer in the ways of entertainment. On the 4th of July, I went to the zoo in New Orleans for part of the day, then visited Bourbon Street for a few hours before returning to Baton Rouge to watch fireworks over the Mississippi River. Another weekend, myself and some others went river tubing at a place called Tiki Tubing right outside Baton Rouge. Downtown Baton Rouge also has much to offer, plenty of dance clubs, bars, casinos, or even a walk next to the Mississippi River.