Barium sulfate Barium sulfate Barium sulfate (or sulphate) is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula BaSO. It is a white crystalline solid that is odorless and insoluble in water. It occurs as the mineral barite, which is the main commercial source of barium and materials prepared from it. The white opaque appearance and its high density are exploited in its main applications. About 80% of the world's barium sulfate production, mostly purified mineral, is consumed as a component of oil well drilling fluid. It increases the density of the fluid, increasing the hydrostatic pressure in the well and reducing the chance
Sterling v. Velsicol Chemical Corp. Sterling v. Velsicol Chemical Corp. Sterling v. Velsicol Chemical Corp., 855 F.2d 1188 (6th Cir. 1988), was an environmental lawsuit filed by citizens of Hardeman County, Tennessee, led by Steven Sterling, who sued Velsicol Chemical Corporation for contaminating their water supply through improper disposal of toxic chemicals. In August 1964, Velsicol Chemical Corporation acquired of rural land in Hardeman County, Tennessee. Velsicol used the site as a landfill for by-products from the production of chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticides at its Memphis, Tennessee, chemical manufacturing facility. Before Velsicol purchased the landfill site and commenced depositing chemicals into the ground, it neither conducted