Katherine Cheek operates an automatic pleating machine making filter elements at Perry Equipment Corporation. The Mineral Wells-based company is exploring the new science of nanotchnology for applications in the oilfield.

Never one to be letting the grass grow under its corporate feet, a 69-year-old Mineral Wells company is forging ahead to maintain its position in the technological forefront of a very specialized field.

Perry Equipment Corporation has joined Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, of Richland, Wash., in an ongoing commercialization effort utilizing nanotechnology in the oil-patch.

Nanotechnology - "nano" means dwarf in Greek - is the science of the small. Small as in the world measured in billionths of a meter.

The science is primarily focused on molecular-level manufacturing, and so far, has found uses in pharmaceutical manufacturing and the defense industry. PECO is exploring the feasibility of utilizing nanotechnology to remove naturally occurring mercury from water found in oil and natural gas wells.

PECO general manager John Krogue said the firm is very early into the cutting edge project, but it shows promise. He laughed when he said, "Come back and see me in a year, and we'll have something to show you."

PECO, a pioneer and leading manufacturer of oil and gas filtration products, intends to employ the molecular structure of a new chemical - Thiol-SAMMS - to absorb and bind mercury molecules in water.

Mercury is harmful to humans and wildlife if allowed to enter drinking water. It is not present in all oil and gas wells, Krogue said, but in some parts of the world it is a consistent problem.

He said, "The thing about Thiol-SAMMS in this process is that the mercury is captured forever. It can be disposed of safely because it doesn't leak back out."

PECO - founded by Susan and Dunman Perry in Lubbock - is in the oilfield filtration business because they invented it. In 1939, Perry got the company started by developing a bypass compressor oil filter for Phillips Petroleum. After a stint in Dallas, the Perrys moved the company in 1949 to the wide open space of Mineral Wells to grow.

After natural gas comes out of the ground, it must be cleaned of contaminants and refined into its various useful elements before home or industrial applications. The holder of many patents in its field, today PECO specializes in filter elements, gas-liquid coalescers and containment vessels used in the production of pure natural gas.

PECO's corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities with 240 employees are located on 40 acres in Wolters Industrial Park. The firm also has marketing offices in Canada, Mexico, Italy, Malaysia, Bahrain and Great Britain employing another 160 people.

PECO recorded sales of approximately $60 million in 2004.

Used with permission from the Mineral Wells Index, Mineral Wells, Texas
Article published May 22, 2005      Visit - www.mineralwellsindex.com.
Written By Jerry Ambrose Index Staff Writer.