CHEMICAL
6 ME T A L L U R G I C A L
ENGINEERING
ESTABLISHED 1902 S. D. KIRKPATRICK. Editor
JULY, 1940
P R E P A R E D N E S S B E G I N S AT H O M E
I N D I V I D U A L L Y the chem ical engineers a n d the executives of chem ical process in d u strie s have h eav y p e rso n a l resp o n sib ilities w ith reference to p rep ared n ess. These are jobs which W ash in g to n will n o t s tu d y or d irect. T hey a re responsibilities fo r b e tte r in d u s tria l m a n ag em en t a n d technical efficiency r ig h t in o u r own p la n ts, w orking on p re se n t-d a y p ro d u c ts an d processes.
W a rs a re now fo u g h t by in d u s try as m uch as by the A rm y a n d N avy. I t is ab so lu tely essential, th erefo re, th a t in d u s tr y be m a in ta in e d on a n effi-.
c ien t basis d esp ite a n y stress of p re se n t o r f u tu re em ergency. T he n a tio n a l defense dem ands th a t all chem ical m a n u fa c tu rin g p la n ts continue to fu n c tio n w ith p ro m p tn ess a n d efficiency. N or does this a p p ly on]}- to m u n itio n s. N e a rly every heavy chem ical o r basic o rg an ic chem ical is a p o te n tia l b ottlen eck as th e n a tio n a l defense p ro g ra m moves in to b ro a d e r scope. A t le ast a h a lf billion d o llars has a lre a d y been a p p ro p ria te d or earm ark ed for p ro je c ts th a t d ep en d up o n chem ical en g in eerin g processes a n d m aterials.
B ach p la n t executive m u st face the inevitable consequences of th is b ro ad er p ro g ra m an d stu d y its im p licatio n s in re la tio n to his own business. lie m u st a n tic ip a te th e w orst a n d be re a d y fo r it. He m u st assum e possible in te r r u p tio n of raw m a terial supplies. H e m u st be p re p a re d fo r u n u su a l m ain te
n ance a n d r e p a ir w ork. H e m u st m ake su re th a t am ple p ro te c tio n is p ro v id ed a g a in st in d u stria l sabotage. H e m u st p la n fo r indefinite expansion of p ro d u c tio n , o ften w ith d em ands com ing m ost u nex
pectedly.
M an y com panies know th a t d u rin g n o rm al tim es th e y can g et r e p a ir p a rts on v e ry sh o rt notice. T hus th e y c a rry a m inim um stock of spares. F o r em er
g ency p u rp o ses a m uch la rg e r storeroom in v en to ry m ay now be necessary. N ew o p e ra tin g u n its such
as sp a re pum ps, m otors a n d controls should be on h an d to p e rm it in sta lla tio n of a w orkable m achine w hile re p a irs are being m ade on those th a t fail in service. I n te rru p tio n of p ro d u c tio n m u st be k e p t a t a m in im u m ; y e t a t the same tim e we m u st g u a rd a g a in st a fren zied b u y in g wave of d u p lic a te d o rd ers th a t will in te rfe re w ith g o v ern m en t dem ands be
in g m ade on the eq u ip m en t m a n u fa c tu re rs. H ere is need fo r honest p la n n in g , common sense a n d calm ju d g m en t.
P e rso n n el problem s will p e rh a p s be the job of the g re a te st com plexity an d u n c e rta in ty . M any tech nical m en will be d ra w n into w a r w ork if n o t into the u n ifo rm ed forces of th e c o u n try . M ilita ry ex
p e rts are h o p in g to g et th e necessary m en w ith o u t in te r r u p tin g essential in d u stries. B u t no one can re a lly expect th a t an id eal p la n can be w orked o u t or th a t even the best p la n w ill w ork p e rfe c tly fo r every p la n t a n d in d u stry . E n g la n d is a lre a d y h a v in g h e r difficulties on th is score even th o u g h she th o u g h t she h ad p ro v id ed a d e q u a te ly fo r th e civil
ian services of chem ists an d engineers. W e m u st n ot re p e a t h e r m istake.
Some far-seein g executives a re b eg in n in g to tr a in men fo r g re a te r resp o n sib ilities th a n th e ir p re s e n t jobs req u ire. Some subforem en a re b ein g tra in e d so th a t th e y can, a t a m o m e n t’s notice, ste p into h ig h e r positions. T hree o r fo u r m en fo r each im p o rta n t job is the objective in such p la n ts. T hus resig n atio n s, d r a f ts fo r selective service, or de
m ands fo r increased p ro d u ctio n ca p a c ity can be m et in these w orks w ith a m inim um of d elay a n d w ith o u t seriously d is ru p tin g personnel.
W e of th e chem ical process in d u strie s m u st th in k th ro u g h these problem s a n d be read y . I t is o u r job as in d iv id u als. W a sh in g to n has n o th in g to do w ith th is p la n n in g . I t w ill m erely expect good re su lts reg ard less of difficulties im posed bj- a n y em ergency.
TOWARD RUBBER SELF-SUFFICIENCY
“ At t h e m o m e n t th e p ro d u c tio n of s y n th e tic r u b b e r on a la rg e scale (in th e U. S. A .) has on ly a th e o retical in te r e s t,” a c c o rd in g to L o n d o n ’s C hem ical A g e (M arch 30, 1940). A t th e tim e t h a t sta te m en t w as m ade, i t m ay have been s u b sta n tia lly co rrect— b u t w h a t a difference th re e m o n th s have m a d e ! I t is no lo n g e r a q u estio n o f w h e th e r o r n o t th e U n ite d S ta te s will m ake sy n th e tic ru b b e r on a la rg e s c a le ; it is a q uestion of w hen a n d how m uch of such p ro d u c tio n will tak e place.
A cco rd in g to th e U. S. D e p a rtm e n t of Commerce, on ly 1,700 to n s of these m a te ria ls w ere m ade last y e a r (co m p ared w ith a U. S. co n su m p tio n of n a tu r a l r u b b e r a m o u n tin g to 592,000 t o n s ) . B u t th e d u P o n t com pany alone is now m ak in g n eo p ren e a t th e ra te o f 3,300 to n s p e r y e a r a n d in a few m o n th s will hav e increased its cap a c ity to 6,000 to n s p e r year.
A n n u a l p ro d u c tio n cap acity o f Thiokol is a t least 1.000 tons. S ta n d a rd Oil Co. of L o u isian a w ill be m ak in g B u n a a t the r a te o f 5 to n s a d a y before the en d of th e year. F ire sto n e is a lre a d y m ak in g some B u n a. A m eripol, a new s y n th e tic ru b b e r an n o u n ced re c e n tly by B. F . G oodrich Co., w ill be in com m ercial p ro d u c tio n to th e e x te n t of 1,000 to n s y e a rly begin
ning- th is F a ll (a n d can in crease to 36,000 tons in 12 m o n th s). S ta n d a rd Oil D evelopm ent Co. h as re c e n tly disclosed the discovery of a n o th e r sy n th e tic B u ty l ru b b e r, a n d it is believed th a t a f u r th e r a n n o u n cem en t re g a rd in g its com m ercial p ro d u c tio n w ill be m ade in S eptem ber.
A ll these figures w ill ad d u p to a sy n th e tic ru b b e r c a p a c ity o f m ore th a n 10,000 to n s p e r y e a r by the end of 1940. W ith o u t a ru b b e r sh o rtag e, how ever, th e re is a serious q uestion w h e th e r in d u s try can consum e 10,000 to n s of sy n th etics. I t is sig n ifican t t h a t la st y e a r in d u s tr y consum ed only 1,700 tons a lth o u g h considerably m ore w as available. T his w o u ld seem to in d ic a te a b ig difference betw een p ro d u c tio n a n d p ro d u c tio n capacity.
N evertheless, in the ev en t o f a ru b b e r shortage, 10.000 to n s c a p a c ity is a n in sig n ifican t a m o u n t com
p a re d w ith the 200,000 tons estim ated by th e gov
e rn m e n t as o u r m in im u m re q u ire m e n ts fo r self- sufficiency. T h is is offset by th e fa c t th a t p la n ts could be b u ilt q u ick ly — p ro b ab ly lo n g before ru b b e r
F R O M AN
in v en to ries w ere ex h au sted . Some of o u r la rg e st p la n ts have been b u ilt in as sh o rt a tim e as th re e or fo u r m onths. Likew ise in d u s tria l le ad ers a n tic ip a te little difficulty in ra is in g the $150,000,000 estim ated as th e cost of such a c o n stru c tio n p ro g ram . T h e re fore, it is p r e tty obvious th a t th e q u estio n is n ’t “ can w e ” ; i t is “ sh all w e ” g ear o u r in d u s tria l m achine fo r ru b b e r self-sufficiency.
B. R. B rid g w a te r, du P o n t executive, p o in ts o u t th a t each tim e the neoprene p la n t w as en larg ed (five tim es in as m a n y y e a rs ), changes in process a n d eq u ip m e n t w ere m ade to effect economies.
F u rth e rm o re , he re c e n tly sta te d to the S e n a te M ili
ta r y A ffairs C om m ittee th a t his com pany b u ild s s y n th e tic p la n ts to d a y w ith the e x p ectatio n a n d even th e hope, th a t th e y w ill become obsolete in less th a n five y ears. I n the event th a t $150,000,000 w ere sp e n t fo r new p la n ts in the im m ediate fu tu re , it is q u ite p ro b ab le th a t th is w ould te n d to “ fre e z e ” de
velopm ents in th e in d u s try fo r a good m a n y y e a rs to
•come. I n M r. B r id g w a te r ’s w o rd s: “ I fe a r th a t th e co n stru ctio n of h uge shadow p la n ts w ould causa a cessation of new co n stru c tio n in th e sy n th e tic ru b b er in d u s tr y fo r m a n y y ears th e re a fte r a n d , conse
q u e n tly , w ould r e ta r d the im p ro v em en t of p ro d u c ts, sim plification of process a n d lo w erin g o f p ro d u c tio n costs w hich a re now p ro ceed in g a t a ra p id ra te . ’ ’
Som e w ould hav e u s believe th a t we m u st neces
s a rily m ake a decision betw een h ig h p rices fo r sy n th etics a n d risk in g a ru b b e r sh o rtag e. F o rtu n a te ly , we can tak e a m id d le course. P ro b a b ly b y conserva
tio n we could s tre tc h o u r cru d e ru b b e r in v en to ries (now p ilin g u p ) to la st a couple of y e a rs even if all i-ubber su p p lies should be c u t off (w hich is q u ite im p ro b a b le ). Some a u th o ritie s d e c lared th a t w ith o u t technical difficulty we could ste p u p ru b b e r reclaim in g so as to consum e 40 p e r cen t reclaim ed in stead o f a b o u t 20 p e r cen t now used. A d d in g to th is 15 p e r c e n t sy n th e tic s a n d on ly 45 p e r cen t cru d e, we could be in d e p e n d e n t of fo re ig n su p p ly .
A n d should i t be necessary to em bark on th e p ro posed la rg e ex p an sio n p ro g ra m , p la n s a re b ein g d is
cussed to b u ild p la n ts (possibly w ith g o v ern m en t a id ) fo r w hich h ig h c a p ita l charges— 30 to 40 p e r cen t m ig h t be a u th o riz e d b y th e ta x in g a u th o ritie s.
T h a t w ould m ean w ritin g off th e e n tire in v estm en t in th re e o r fo u r years.
A ll told, th e situ a tio n is f a r less c ritic a l th a n th e sen satio n alists w ould have us believe.
45S • J U L Y 19.',0 . CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
E D IT O R IA L V IE W P O IN T
MORE FEDERAL TAXES
Co n g r e s s h a s p a s s e d one new ta x bill. I t will im pose new b u rd e n s on both in d u s try a n d in d iv id u al ta x p a y e rs to th e e x te n t of over one billion d o llars p e r y ear. I t is on ly th e b eg in n in g of the new b u rd e n s w hich are to be la id u p o n in d u s try an d in d iv id u a ls by th e ch aotic conditions of the w orld.
E ith e r late in 1940 or e a rly in 1941 th e re will be s till f u r th e r ta x legislation. A t th a t la te r tim e two ty p es of levies w ill be im posed. One will be th e n o r
m al m oney ra is in g effort to p re p a re th e T re a su ry fo r th e stu p e n d o u s p re p a re d n ess d ra in s now im posed. T he second ty p e of levy will be m ore o r less p u n itiv e o r re stric tiv e . I t will u n d e rta k e to p re v e n t the m ak in g of “ w a r p ro fits.”
I t will be a re sp o n sib ility of chem ical executives to u n d e rta k e p la n n in g now as to how* these f u tu r e ta x b u rd e n s a re going to he m et. T h ey w ill v ery larg ely influence the cost of d oing business. I n m a n y cases th e b u rd e n s w ill b ear on divisions of in d u s tr y th a t have no p a r t in p rep ared n ess. One ca n n o t afford to w a it fo r th é passage of new ta x bills to begin th e fig u rin g as to how th e m oney can best be m ade available to p a y the ta x collector w hen he calls.
A JOB FOR PUERTO RICO
Va r i o u s p r o p o s a l s fo r solving th e economic p ro b lems of o u r in s u la r possessions have been offered.
One o f these th a t th e chem ical process in d u strie s m ig h t en co u rag e g en erally is th e id ea th a t the semi- tro p ic a l a re a s of P u e rto Rico a n d o th er in su la r possessions should be u tilized fo r the grow th o f cer
ta in a g ric u ltu ra l ra w m a te ria ls w hich do n o t th riv e in c o n tin e n ta l U n ite d States.
The D e p a rtm e n t of A g ric u ltu re an d the P u e rto Rico a g ric u ltu ra l ex p e rim e n t sta tio n staffs should be able to select a n u m b er of such crops fo r which th e re is re a l need of new U n ite d S ta te s supplies. I t is n o t necessary to go to the s u g a r crops, of which we have excessive su p p lies alread y . F a r m ore p ro m isin g a re th e cordage fibers, th e casto r bean, a n d a n u m b e r o f th e o th e r tro p ic a l o r sem i-tropical crops fu rn is h in g stra te g ic m a te ria ls or o th er com m odities n ecessarily im p o rte d in to the U n ite d S tates.
P o ssib ly some A m erican chem ical m a n u fa c tu re rs
should take a h an d in th is s itu a tio n r ig h t now.
T here is a d istressin g sh o rtag e of su p p lies of m an y of the sem i-tropical botanicals. These a re u rg e n tly needed fo r d ru g m a n u fa c tu re a n d fo r the p r e p a r a tio n o f o th er specialties. S y n th e tic s are g e n erally n o t available as su b stitu tes.
I t will be a fine th in g if the chem ical in d u strie s an d officials in te re ste d in the w ell-being of P u e rto Rico an d o th er te rrito ria l u n its can g et to g e th e r an d prom ote grow ing, m a rk e tin g , a n d use o f these m aterials n e a r home. I t w ould be especially f o r tu n ate if such developm ents can be based on sound economic p la n s th a t w ill n o t re q u ire e ith e r gov
ern m e n t subsidy or an assu m p tio n of p e rm a n e n tly in te rru p te d m arin e traffic fro m the O rie n t o r A frica.
NEW ENGINEERING STANDARDS
An d r e y A . Po t t e r, dean of the c o u n tr y ’s larg est en g in eerin g schools, sees a need fo r even b ro a d e r tr a in in g fo r the f u tu re of o u r profession. On th e occasion of the ded icatio n o f P u rd u e U n iv e rs ity ’s new b u ild in g fo r its School of C hem ical a n d M etal
lu rg ic a l E n g in eerin g , he a p p ra ise d th e objectives of en g in eerin g a n d en g in eerin g ed u catio n in these w o rd s :
“ E n g in e e rin g is in ten d ed to u tilize economic
ally th e findings of science in o rd e r to p ro v id e b e tte r a n d easier w ays fo r sa tisfy in g hu m an needs. A n eng in eer who creates new know ledge or who u tilizes ex istin g scientific know ledge m u st a t all tim es gives special co n sid eratio n to costs an d values, to th e economical u tiliz a tio n of sci
ence a n d to th e effect of the e n g in e e r’s w ork up o n hu m an h appiness. A n eng in eer m u st have fu ll ap p re c ia tio n of the economic as well as th e te c h nologic problem s of his sp ecialty a n d m ust recog
nize a t all tim es th e social consequences to w hich his work- m ay co n trib u te. T h u s e n g in eerin g c u r
ricu la m u st stress not on ly science a n d technol
ogy, b u t also economics, sociology, psychology an d th e h u m a n itie s.”
T his philosophy fo r en h an cin g th e e n g in e e r’s services to the pu b lic th ro u g h b e tte r p re p a ra tio n an d tr a in in g sta n d s in s trik in g c o n tra st to those who w ould low er th e s ta n d a rd s of th e pro fessio n in o rd e r to p ro te c t th e m ediocre an d the unsuccessful.
CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN EER IN G • J U L Y 19!,0 45!)
O rgan izin g for
M a jo r G e n e r a l W . C.
B a k er, C hief oí C h e m i
c a l W a r f a r e S e rv ic e ,
U. S. A rm y . W a s h in g - E d i t o r i a l S t a f f R e p o r t ton
Clarence F rancis), Rubber (W. L.
Finger), Textiles (R. T. Stevens), Steel (W. S. Tower and J. D. E ast).
Directly under Mr. Stettinius in the Raw M aterials Division is a staff of industrial executives includ
ing Charles E. Adams, chairman of Air Réduction and U. S. Industrial Alcohol, who serves as senior admin
istrative assistant, William L. Batt, president of S K F Industries and M.
B. Folsom, treasurer of Eastman K o
dak Co. as executive assistants and A. W. Morton, vice president of Koppers Co., as special assistant.
In the Production Division under Mr. Knudsen, John D. Biggers, pres
ident of Libbey-Owens-Ford Glass Co. is executive assistant, and E. F.
Johnson, form er General Motors and duPont executive, is assigned to ord
nance and ammunition problems.
The lines of organization are not being drawn too sharply at first.
This is to permit growth and flexi
bility. The National Defense Ad
visory Commission does not intend to set itself up as a great new inde
pendent body. I t intends, rather, to use the existing agencies of govern
ment and industry—to act as a liaison agency and a catalyst for getting prom pt action.
During the past two years a very comprehensive series of surveys of chemical needs was made for the Army and Navy Munitions Board by a group of industry committees. This group of committees functioned under the general coordinating influence of the M anufacturing Chemists’ Asso
ciation with E. M. Allen, president of Mathieson Alkali Works, as gen
eral chairman. The sub-chairmen of the various commodity committees formed with Mr. Allen a Chemical Advisory Board fo r the military ex
ecutives. That group is renewing its activities at the request of the Defense Commission and it is ex
pected that a resurvey of a number of commodities will be made im
mediately.
Dr. Weidlein began his service with some of his technical asso
ciates during mid-June. One of the first and most pressing tasks has been the handling of innumerable offers of cooperation. In commenting on this, . J U L Y I!).',!) • CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
I n t h e language of national pre
paredness, most of the products of the chemical process industries are raw materials. This means, therefore, that in the set-up of the National Defense Advisory Commis
sion, most of thi,‘ chemical procure
ment problems come under Edward R. Stettinius, Jr., former chairman ijf U. S. Steel Corp. He has de
fined his job as being “responsible for insuring a continuous and ade
quate flow of materials from the source to the point of production.”
The best distinction between his responsibility and that of his fel
low commissioner, William S. Knud- sen, General Motors executive, was given in the latter’s picturesque words when he said he was not in
terested in raw materials “until I can cut them up.” In other words, his concern is with manufacture and production for he is “in charge of coordinating production of primary defense materials,”—planes and en
gines, tanks, guns, trucks, etc. Each of these men, as well as the other five non-government members of the commission, has organized a consult
ing staff of advisers, drawn largely from industry.
E. R. Weidlein, director of Mellon Institute, is the principal chemical adviser on the staff of Mr. Stettinius, serving as chief of the Chemistry and Allied Industries Division of the Raw M aterials Unit. He is assisted by D. P. Morgan, chemical economist for Scudder, Stevens &
Clark of New York, and E. W. Reid, who has been senior research fellow for Carbide and Carbon Chemicals Corp. at Mellon Institute. Broadly speaking, the program under Dr.
Weidlein will include the m ajor fields of interest to chemical manufacturers, even including many who do not make chemicals as such, e.g., pro
ducers of synthetic rubber.
Robert E. Wilson, president of Pan American Petroleum & Transport Co., and of the American Oil Co. and subsidiaries, is chief of the Petroleum Section, a p a rt of the Chemical Divi
sion. Other sections in the Raw M aterials U nit include Metals and Minerals (under W. L. B att), A gri
cultural and Food Products (under
E. W . R eid, S en io r R e s e a r c h F e llo w , C ar- i d e a n d C a r b o n C h e m ic a ls C o rp ., P itts
b u rg h . P a .
E d w a rd R. W e id le in . D irector M ellon In sti
tu te of In d . R e se a rc h , P ittsb u rg h , P a .
D. P. M o rg a n , C h e m i
ca l E conom ist, Scud- S te v e n s a n d C lark , N ew York
E. W i l s o n . P re sid e n ! P a n A m e ri
c a n P e tro le u m & T ra n s p o rt Co.. N ew Y ork
C hem ical P rep a red n ess
E. M. A lle n , P re sid e n t M a t h î a s o n A lk a li W o rk s. N ew Y ork
Dr. Weidlein makes it clear that the lack of prom pt reply from his office and the delayed acceptance of offers does not evidence any lack of ap
preciation. I t signifies merely the deluge of offers which have been re
ceived and the inability of a new unit to dig through this mass of in
formation as quickly as it would like.
I t has been determined as a general policy by the President and the De
fense Commission that a set of priority schedules will be worked out fo r each m ajor commodity which ap
pears at all likely to be subject to supply difficulties. This does not mean that these priorities will be imposed at this time. Any such re
striction will be delayed as long as possible. All of the President’s ad
visers recognize that the normal com
mercial flow without regulatory con
trol represents the best scheme for business functioning.
The various members of the De
fense Commission are outspoken in their compliments to industry regard
ing its willingness to exercise self- restraint in the m atter of procure
ment. One of the members of the Commission did, however, point out one helpful philosophy. He put this simply—“I f you want one or two pieces of equipment or tons of a commodity, please don’t order three or four in the hope of getting the needed smaller number.” The multi
plication of orders beyond actual need, or duplicate ordering from dif
ferent producers with the expecta
tion of cancelling some order later, might start a dangerous spiral.
Programming fo r new chemical manufacture actively under way since the first of July. At that time the major chemical bottleneck of pre
paredness is, oddly, military ex
plosives. The American concept as to the quantity of propellants and high explosives needed has so radi
cally changed during recent weeks as to make old plans altogether out of date. Rapid progress is being made by negotiation of the govern
ment with every available competent and experienced military explosives maker.
Right at this point is really the bottleneck in planning. This hottle-
neck is formed by the lack of de
pendable information regarding mili
tary needs for chemical commodities.
Even the most expert of Army and Navy staffs cannot yet tell exactly how many tons of this or that will be required fo r each unit of men as
sumed to be under arms immediately or in the near future.
Research as a tool of prepared
ness is well recognized in the defense program. A National Defense Re
search Committee has been set up by President Roosevelt as an inde
pendent body, not as a p art but co
operating with the National Defense Advisory Commission. I t is headed by Dr. Vannevar Bush, president of Carnegie Institution of Washington and includes President J. B. Conant of Harvard, Dr. F. B. Jewett of Bell Telephone Laboratories, Dr. R. C.
Tolman, California Institute of Tech
nology, President K arl T. Compton of Massachusetts Institute of Tech
nology and Commissioner C. P. Coe, of the U. S. Patent Office.
Chemical W arfare Service under Major-General W alter C. Baker, chief, has long had the benefit of in
dustrial advice and cooperation in its procurement program. The country is organized into five procurement districts, each of which is headed by a district chief and a board of eight to twelve industrial executives. The district chiefs as of July 1, were as follows: Boston, Charles F. Adams, president, Union Trust Co.; New York, E. M. Allen, president, Mathie- son Alkali W orks; Pittsburgh, Dr.
William 0. Sherman, Camegie-Illi- nois Steel C orp.; Chicago, George B.
Dryden, president, Drydcn Rubber Co.; San Francisco, William H.
Berg, president, Standard Oil Co. of California.
Donald M. Nelson, once chief chem
ist and later executive vice president of Sears, Roebuck & Co. and until recently head of the Treasury Pro
curement Division, has been made co
ordinator of all national defense pur
chases. This has been interpreted to mean that the National Defense Ad
visory Commission, to which he has been attached, will have full super
vision of the important question of priorities.
C h a rle s E. A d am s.
C h a irm a n A ir R e d u c tion Co. a n d U. S. In d u s tria l A lco h o l Co..
N ew Y ork
John D. B ig g ers. P re si.
d e n t L ib b e y - O w e n s - F o rd G la s s Co., To
le d o , O hio
D o n a ld M. N elso n , Ex
ec u tiv e V ice P re sid e n t S e a rs, R o e b u ck a n d Co., C h ica g o
A lle n W . M orton. V ice P re sid e n t K o p p e rs Co., B altim ore, M d.
CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN EER IN G • JXJLY 191,0
W hat You Can D o For
N a tio n a l D e fen se
M. E. BARKER
M ajor, T e c h n ic a l D ivisio n , U. S . C h e m ic a l W a r fa r e S e rv ic e... C h e m . & M e t . I N T E R P R E T A T I O N — ...■■■ ...
To a n sw er the m a n y req u ests for inform ation a n d the volu n tary offers of coop eration w h ich the C h em ical W arfare Service is rec eiv in g from organ ization s a n d in d iv id u a ls, its ch ief (Major G en eral W alter C. Baker) h a s h a d this brief p a p er written b y M ajor Barker.
It is illustrated w ith a chart p repared under the direction of C aptain Harry A. Kuhn, ex ecu tiv e officer of the N ew York C h em ical W arfare Procurem ent District. A ll rea d ers co n cern ed w ith the organization a n d functioning of the C. W . S. program w ill do w e ll to r ev ie w the’
articles that a p p ea re d in C h e m . & M ef. in M arch 1939 (pp. 139-41) an d D ecem ber, 1939 (pp. 754-6).—Editors.
P R E S ID E N T C O M M AN D ER-IN -C H IEF
Secretory of War
National Defense
Advisory Secretary
of the Navy
Asst. Secretary Army & Navy Asst. Secretary
of War Munitions Board of the Navy
Chief of
Chemical Chief of
Warfare Materiel
Service
Industrial Procurement Division
Chemical Warfare Procurement Districts
Rubber Plantation
M
o d e r n w a r requires severaltimes as many men in the factory as it does on the firing line.
Before the factory can go into pro
duction, a standardized article is necessary. Research, development, design and the operation of pilot plants must all precede standardiza
tion. Because of the vast quantities required only standardized products suitable for quantity production can possibly meet the test of a modern war.
Production of such large quantities means that materials and processes must be checked at every stage, and frequently it will mean that sub
stitute materials must be used with
out overly decreasing the quality of the product. Since chemical engi
neers and chemists play a predom
inant part in the control of processes of this kind, it is evident that enor
mous industrial operations, required to support a modern war, would re
quire the services of a vast number of technical men in industry.
In general, research and develop
ment is done by the various branches of the Army, such as the Chemical W arfare Service, the Ordnance De
partment, the Signal Corps, the Quar
termaster Corps, and the like. These branches have the active cooperation of numerous industrial concerns in the work. A fter such development is completed, the requirements for the item to be manufactured are embodied in specifications. The m anufacturer is required to produce the item in accordance with the drawings and the specifications furnished. In some cases, the specifications outline the performance of the article only, leav
ing the exact design and materials of construction to be decided by the manufacturer. Since many items must be manufactured and since the m ajority of these will be produced by firms who normally do not make that
particular item, it is evident that a vast amount of adjustment work is going to be required by the industries concerned, or by independent testing and research groups working on their behalf. That indicates that the chief function of the commercial research laboratory and the commercial test
ing laboratory, iii an emergency, will be to assist private m anufacturers in getting into production and in main
taining the quality of their product during manufacture. Here is the m ajor job of a considerable p a rt of the chemical profession.
I t is essential that m anufacturers take such steps as may be practicable now to lay out a personnel program which will enable them to carry on their m anufacturing work when, and if, Reserve Officers and Government consultants are called to active duty.
There are some 3,000 or 4,000 mem
bers of the chemical industry holding Reserve commissions, most of them
462 J U L Y 1940 • CHEM ICAL & M ETALLUR GICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
AKiYlT ¿cK V llt AKtA KfcrlLlING POINT TROOPS
In t e r m e d ia te A m m u n itio n i D o p â t Ordnance Depot
Advance Ammunition
Depot
/ Army Ammunition
Depot Concentration
Area Containers
Chemical*
Replacement Center
REGULATING STATION
'Chemical Weapons.
Reserve Division
* Tin
Parts Chemical W arfare
Arsenal
Cantonment
G la ss & >
j( P lastic
i Arm y C.W .S.
\ Depot
Intermediate General k. Depot n G as Mask
A ssem b ly Plant M etal Stampings
Chemical)
G,H.Q.
Chemical Troops Textiles
• Rubber Advance C.W .S. Depot
CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL EN G IN E E R IN G • J O L T 19.',0 • 463
M o d e rn w a r s a r e fo u g h t in th e fa c to rie s of in d u stry ; th u s for C h e m ica l W a r f a re it h a s b e e n e s tim a te d th a t a t le a s t 7 m e n a r e n e e d e d in th e p la n ts of c h e m ic a l a n d p r o c e ss in d u strie s for e v e ry so ld ie r on th e firin g lin e
in the technical branches of the Army.
Mobilization plans are based upon the use of these men in Government establishments. Most of them have been trained for specific assignments which are in line with their profes
sional work. In this way, the Gov
ernment will be assured of adequate technical assistance in conducting the necessary research and development of all items; and in the manufacture of those materials which can be pro
duced most economically and with greatest safety in Government ar
senals. Consequently, the chemical industry must be prepared to share its trained and experienced personnel with the Government, and must a r
range to break in new and substitute personnel. These Reserve Officers and consultants have given freely of their time during the past years in order to prepare themselves to serve their country in time of need. I t is only reasonable and proper that
chemical industry should make pro
vision for the loss of these men dur
ing an emergency, and for their re
turn to employment when the emer
gency is ended.
Should an emergency arise over and beyond that now foreseen in the building of the Regular Army, and require the procurement of a reason
able amount of war supplies, then it is certain that a tremendous burden will fall on industry which will neces
sitate expansion of existing plants and facilities, and will call for a sharing of the present trained per
sonnel with Government establish
ments. Industrial concerns as well as testing laboratories and commer
cial research organizations, should therefore make a careful study of drawings and specifications for the items for which they, or their clients, have signed programs for procure
ment, in order that they may know the problems involved and may be
prepared to test and inspect raw ma
terials and the various products throughout manufacture.
All too often in the past, commer
cial concerns have taken Government contracts with the hope of beating down the quality of the article as called fo r in the specification. Pres
ent specifications are written, and have been approved by the industry concerned, with a view to the pro
duction of articles and materials of definite quality under wartime condi
tions. M ilitary operations must be based on the receipt of adequate quantities of material of standard quality. The problem, therefore, of industry is to be prepared to produce large quantities of materials meeting the particular specifications fo r the item which each concern has agreed to furnish, or may in the future con
tract to supply. There can be no compromise on quality and perform ance of military products.
lAiiuru
ZONE POINT
P ro c e s s E conom y E m p h a s iz e d I n R e c e n t B e e t S u g a r D e v e lo p m e n ts
RALPH W . SHAFOR
M a n a g e r P ro cess D ivisio n , T h e D orr Co., Inc., N e w Y o rk . If, Y .--- C h e m . & M e t. I N T E R P R E T A T I O N
In the econ om ic readjustm ent that m ust n e c e ssa r ily fo llo w W orld W ar II, the b e e t su g a r industry h a s a v ita l interest. S u gar is an import item to the extent of about $125,000,000, a third of w h ich im ports c o m es duty-free from the P hilippine Isla n d s. A c h a n g e in the statu s quo of the P h ilip p in es or a n y of the other sugar-producing centers, or a shift in tariff reg u la tio n s m ight m e a n a n u p w ard or d ow n w ard c h a n g e in the rate of d om estic production, w h ich h a s b e e n static for s e v e r a l y e a r s. Sugar from our W estern b e e t field s p la y s a n im portant part in the o v er a ll picture. Therefore, this se e m s a n appropriate tim e to r ev iew the tech n ica l im p rovem en ts in su g a r b e et p ro cessin g that h a v e com e about in recent y e a r s.—E ditors.
I
N 1933 the writer discussed developments in sugar beet proc
essing during the preceding twenty- five years (See A.I.Ch.E. Silver Anni
versary Volume). Under the influ
ence of depression-sugar prices, some additional developments have been brought out since that article ap peared.
As a whole, the industry in North America has not grown—it produces now, as it did then, some 1.25 million tons of refined sugar per annum, some 25 per ccnt of that consumed in continental United States. Ex
pansion being impossible, much a t
tention has been directed toward im
provement in technical matters, and while some of the developments are not yet fully established, several are noteworthy in that they indicate trends of thought, methods of ap proach, as well as in some eases, money saved. F o r the most part, improvements have come through a chemical engineering study of the unit operations involved.
Extraction of sugar from the beet cossette, which is usually semi-con
tinuous in North American practice, has been made totally continuous in several European factories. The Berge battery—a Belgium develop
ment—seems to hold promise of meet
ing the needs of the economic re
quirements of the domestic industry, but no installations have as yet been made.
Juice Purification—Some progress has been made in this field through so-called “preliming’’ practices. Raw juices are being treated with lime to produce a pH within closely con
trolled limits at which an optimum amount of colloidal impurities are precipitated into irreversible solids so that they may be definitely re
moved by subsequent filtration opera
tions. The results have benefitted the processor in two ways: (1), by re
ducing the amount of reagent lime required to yield a desirable purifica
tion of the juice, and (2), by im
proving somewhat the crystallization of the sucrose.
The Dorr Continuous Carbonation Process continues to find a wider application—being used in processing substantially 50 per cent of the 1939 crop—and the sedimentation thick- ener-vacuum drum filter combination continues to supersede less economic apparatus for the first carbonation filtration step.
Multiple-effect Evaporators and Steam Economy—Ten years ago the average North American factory used some 8,500 to 9,000 B.t.u. (in the form of fuel) in the production of 1 lb. of refined sugar. During the 1939 campaign, the consumption of fuel (in the form of natural gas) in the modern Woodland, Calif., fac
tory of the Sprockets Sugar Co. av
eraged 5,740 B.t.u. per lb. of sugar produced, with definite indications that a figure of 5,000 is not unat
tainable.
Boiler efficiencies a t Woodland are reported as being of the order of 84 per cent as compared with the general average in the industry of
some 75 per cent ten years ago.
Thus by fa r the larger portion (some 60 to 65 per cent) of the savings must be credited to economy in the use of steam fo r processing. In this factory the latter saving may be contributed almost entirely to (1) the quintuple-efl'ect single-pass flume type pressure evaporator with tubes 18 ft. long (constructed by the Swen- sen Evaporator Co.) which employs high pressures and is new to the industry, and (2) to a carefully planned control, automatically actu
ated in most instances, of the flow of steam and evaporator vapors to the various heat-consuming operations.
Sucrose and other ingredients of normally purified sugar beet juices have a definite tendency to decom
pose at elevated temperatures. In old style horizontal tube evaporators where time of detention in contact with heating surfaces was quite ex
tended, it was generally held that temperatures allowed in the first body should not be in excess of 110-115 deg. C. Results obtained in this new type of unit have, taking into con
sideration the short time of juice
464 . J Ü L Y 1040 • CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
Photos Courtesy "Facts About Sugar”
M o d e rn in e v e r y d e ta il, is the b e e t s u g a r fa c to ry of th e S p re c k e ls S u g a r Co.. W o o d la n d , C alif.
detention, etc., shown that tempera
tures as high as 135-140 deg. C. are entirely practical.
The approximate pressures em
ployed in the various bodies of the quintuple-effect evaporator at Wood
land are indicated in the first column of Table I, while those in the so- called “standard” horizontal tube unit generally employed are shown in the second column.
T a b le 1— G a g e P re s s u re s a t V a rio u s S ta g e s , Lb. p e r S q . In.
W o o d la n d S tan d ard
E x h a u st s t e a m 4 4 15.0
F ir s t v a p o r ... .'¡0 S S ccon d v a p o r ... 11 2 T h ird v a p o r ... 2.1 -.'S F o u rth v a p o r ... —1 - S F i f t h v a p o r ... - 1 3 - 1 3
From the table it will be seen that the temperature of the second vapor with the new type of evaporator is approximately equivalent to that of the exhaust steam in the so-called standard evaporator of 1933. Thus if we list the more im portant steam
consuming operations and note op
posite them the source of the heat em
ployed in the old and new operations, the cause of the above saving immedi
ately becomes apparent.
This comparison indicates a t a glance the source of the processing economy. Live steam is replaced by first body vapor in one instance, and exhaust steam and first body vapor
are replaced by second body vapors in six instances, while third body vapor is used in six instances to re
place first and second body vapors.
With the new arrangement, fourth body vapor has sufficient temperature to make worthwhile its use in pre
liminarily heating raw juice passing from the battery to first carbonation with corresponding saving of second and third vapors normally, used for this purpose.
Crystallization of Sugar—Probably the most outstanding of the develop
ments in this phase of the a rt has to do with means fo r crystallizing (by cooling) the last portions of sugar from the low raw “filmass.” For those not thoroughly familiar with the art, it may be well to say that in common practice the processor, after having extracted all of the
white sugar possible from his purified syrups, finally ex
hausts them by pro
ducing a raw sugar which is later re
dissolved and re-crys
tallized into white.
The syrups from this product as extracted are extremely viscous and crystallization rates are slow'. Or
dinarily, the first
50 per cent of this sugar is crystal
lized by concentration at a tempera
ture of approximately 70 deg. C.
Because of the time factor and shape of the solubility curvc it is more economic to crystallize the latter 50 per cent by slowly cooling the filmass in a suitable manner. This has here
tofore been accomplished in a water- jacketed cylindrical crystallizer with a capacity of some 1,200 cu.ft., on the average, placed with its axis in a horizontal position and equipped with a mechanical stirring device. H eat transmission was poor and localized over-cooling pronounced with this apparatus. The average time re
quired fo r cooling to obtain a satis
factory extraction with this type of unit w’as something like 48 hours.
The Lafeuille crystallizer now used
1030 L iv e ste a m L iv e stea m E x h a u s t steam E x h a u s t stea m L iv e stea m E x h a u s t stea m E x h a u s t stea m E x h a u st stea m F ir s t vapor F ir s t va p o r F i r s t vap or F i r s t vap or F ir s t vap or S econ d vapor S econ d v a p o r F ir s t va p o r N o t u sed.
T a b le II— S te a m a n d V a p o r D istrib u tio n W ood lan d — 1939 G ra n u la to rs ... L iv e stea m B ee t s lic e r s . ... L iv e stea m E v a p o r a to r s ...E x h a u s t stea m T hin ju ic e h e a te r ...F i r s t va p o r W h ite p a n s ... F ir s t va p o r In te r m e d ia te p a n ...S econ d va p o r S u g a r m e lt e r s ... S econ d vap or T h in ju ic e b o ile r ...S econ d va p o r Cold w a st e h e a t e r ... S econ d va p o r P rim a ry th in ju ice h e a te r . . .S e co n d v a p o r Second ca rb o n a tio n h e a te r . . . S econ d vap or S ta n d a rd liq u or h e a t e r ...T h ird vap or T h ick ju ic e h e a t e r ... T h ird vap or D iffu sion b a ttery h e a te r s. . . .T h ird vap or Seco n d a ry raw ju ic e h e a te r .T h ir d va p o r R aw p a n s ...T h ird va p o r T e s tin g raw ju ic e h e a t e r . . . . F o u rth vapor
CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G • J U L Y 19J,0 465
Ju ic e h e a te r s for r a w ju ic e , s ta n d a r d ju ic e , se c o n d c a rb o n a tio n a n d th in ju ic e a t th e S p re c k le s fa c to ry
in several factories completes this cooling operation in a period of from 8 to 12 hours and produces a crystal which separates from the syrup in the centrifugals more completely, on the average, than is possible with the old style units. The Lafeuille crvstallizer consists of a horizontally placed shell which rotates on suitable trunnions and which is equipped with water cooling tubes arranged parallel to the axis and in a manner which extracts heat uniformly from all parts of the charge.
One. Lafeuille crystallizer will do the work form erly accomplished (de
pending upon local conditions) by from 6 to 8 of the old style units.
One modem factory is equipped with Werkspoor continuous crystal- lizers and is obtaining satisfactory results with 22-hour cooling periods.
Results obtained in this phase of the art reaffirm the importance in such operations of avoiding localized excess cooling and the value of ac
curate control. With the Lafeuille crystallizer, particularly, it is possible to equip with control instruments which at the will of the operator will extract a desired number of B.t.u.
per hour from the charge with the assurance tlmt no one portion of that charge will be cooled at the expense of another.
Separation o f Crystals From Syr
ups—Marked improvements have been forthcoming in this field during the last decade. One of the primary factors affecting the separation of crystals from syrups is the viscosity of the latter. Supersaturations neces
sary fo r effecting the formation of crystals definitely increase vicosity of syrups and affect adversely (to a marked degree in the lower purity syrups) the separation of the crys
tals therefrom. E arly work in this field eliminated such unnecessary su- persaturation (and viscosity) by employing moderate dilution care
fully controlled between the crystal
lizer and the centrifugal. More recently, however, means have been developed fo r effecting this result by controlling the temperature of the mixture fed to the centrifugal baskets. This method has yielded marked improvements in the effi
ciency of the separation and the ca
pacity of the centrifugal units employed therefor.
BATCH TYPE CENTRIFUGAL
The batch type centrifuge with a 40-in. basket and operating at a speed of some 1,200 r.p.m. has long been standard in this service. W ithin the past ten years m anufacturers of
centrifugal equipment have stepped up the speeds to 1,400, 1,600 and 1,800 r.p.m. At least one manufac
turer has experimented with speeds in excess of 2,000 r.p.m.
This development has resulted (and the new machines are being used in an everwidening circle) in a large increase in the capacity of a single unit, a reduction in the installed cost of centrifuging equipment per unit of output, and a material saving in labor.
Further, with this equipment un
washed white sugars with purities of 9 9 + per cent are readily obtainable as compared with purities of 98 per cent in the older equipment. Obvi
ously, the washing of the crystal to remove the last traces of syrup is a much simpler problem with the new machine and its 99 per cent purity unwashed product. Incidentally, too.
whereas the old machine discharged a washed product carrying 1 to 2 per cent moisture, the new style unit delivers a product with from 0.5 to 1.0 per cent moisture. The subse
quent drying operation is thus much simplified.
These new style units are daily producing raw sugars from the above mentioned crystallizing operation with purities of 9 6 + p er cent as compared with, purities ot' some 90 per cent with the former units. The value of such an improvement in sep
aration is marked. It tends to im
prove the quality of the white sugar produced, it tends to reduce steam consumption, and to increase the ca
pacity (in terms of tons of beets processed) of all the equipment in
volved in the sugar crystallization operation.
Molasses Desuyariziny—The mod
ern Spreckels continuous molasses de- sugarizing process is based on the old “Steffen” reaction in which finely powdered quick lime is used to preci
pitate the sucrose from a relatively dilute aqueous solution of beet mo
lasses. The process is novel in that it successfully converts a heretofore batch-wise operation into a continu
ous one.
Tile Steffen reaction is exothermic, and unless temperatures are main
tained at points below some 15 deg.
C. during the reaction, side reactions enter to result in excessive consump
tion of reagent lime as well as poor extraction. In prior practice, which was effected almost universally in a batch-wise manner, heat was ex
tracted from the solution as it was formed. W ith the Spreckels con
tinuous process, however, the dilute molasses solution is pre-eooled to a point where the heat of reaction will not raise the temperature in excess of the upper limit. W ith th is , arrange
ment, it is possible to add the reagent instantaneously to the solution and allow the reaction to proceed with a short but thorough mixing of the two, as compared with prior practice in which the lime was added slowly over a fifteen minute period to a batch of solution.
Thus fa r artificial refrigeration has proved a necessity in connection with the use of the Spreckels procedure.
Lime Be-burniiiy—The N o r t h American industry consumes some 200,000 to 300,000 tons of quick
400 • J C L Y 19.iQ . CHEMICAL & METALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
lime per crop (per year). Ail nf this is produced under supervision of the factory management because the carbon dioxide gas as well as the lime is used in the purification of the beet juice (first and second carbona
tion operations). Because of the necessity for gasses carrying rela
tively high (3 0 + per cent) concen
trations of C 0 3, the coke-fired Belgium type of shaft kiln is almost universally employed.
In some factories where the mo
lasses desugarizing operations are carried on more extensively than others, consumption of lime is ap
preciably larger—frequently as much a.s 100 tons per 24 hours. In fac
tories of this type the need for some method of reburning lime so as to produce a usable product and a gas carrying a suitable C 02 concentration has long been apparent. In one or two instances local conditions have permitted of reburning up to 15 per cent of the product because the amount of gas obtainable from the remaining 85 per cent was sufficient fo r purification operations.
During recent years, however, the Colorado Iron Works and the Holly Sugar Co. have collaborated on the development of a mechanically
rabbled, hearth type of gas-fired W h ite s u g a r c e n trifu g a ls w ith 40-in. b a s k e ts
C o n tin u o u s first c a rb o n a tio n sta tio n a t A m a lg a m a te d S u g a r Co. in Id a h o
muffle furnace using the Skinner roaster of the metallurgical industry as a starting point. As a result of this cooperative effort by the two companies, one commercial unit cap
able of producing lime for a factory treating 3,800 Ions of beets and de
sugarizing 100 tons of molasses per 24 hours was installed and operated successfully during the last cam
paign. This unit produced a gas containing approximately 30 per cent CO; and a lime which was more active in the Steffen molasses de
sugarizing reaction than that pro
duced from freshly burned limestone.
While results to date are not finally conclusive, there seems to be little doubt of ultimate success.
Sugar Storage—The bulk storage of refined sugar in silos, similar in construction and appearance to those employed for the storage of wheat, etc., continues to expand, some ten or twelve factories having been so equipped in recent years. Its use brings about lessened handling charges, eliminates almost entirely the necessity for reconditioning due to caking in storage, lessens the first cost of storage facilities, and utilizes labor during the inter-campaign period, thus reducing the seasonal demand of the industry.
CHEMICAL & METALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G . J U L Y 191,0 • 467
P. H. GROGGINS, A. L. PITTMAN, AND F. H. DAVIS,
W a s h in g to n , D. C.*S odiu m C hlorate C ell D esig n
- C fie m . & M e t. I N T E R P R E T A T I O N ■■■---
This is the con clu d in g article in a s e r ie s d escrib in g the d e v elo p m en t of the sod iu m ch lorate ce ll, o n e of the m ost in terestin g projects the U nited S tates Bureau of A gricultural C hem istry a n d E n gineering h a s h a d under w a y . In this la st report con sid eration is g iv e n to the problem of c e ll d esig n , p articu larly w ith the object of in c rea sin g the output per unit vo lu m e of e lectro ly te. Pilot p lan t experim ents in d ica te that w ith rectan gu lar c e lls a c o n sid e ra b ly high er output of ch lorate per unit of c e ll v o lu m e w a s o b ta in e d .— E ditors.
T
h i s i s t h e t h i r d in a series of papers dealing with research on the electrochemical production of sodium chlorate. In the first article ( Chem. <£■ Met., Vol. 44, p. 302) emphasis was placed on the economies of chlorate production and in the second paper (Chem. & Met., Vol. 45, p. 692) the discussion was confined largely to certain chemical, electro
chemical and chemical engineering factors. In this new report considera
tion is given to the problem of cell design, particularly with the object of increasing the output of sodium chlorate per unit volume of electro
lyte. Compared with data in the earlier reports the results of pilot plant experiments indicate that with rectangular cells a considerably higher output of sodium chlorate per unit of cell volume was obtained.
IM PORTANCE O F TEMPERATURE
The electrolytic process is accom
panied by the generation of heat be
cause of the overvoltages at the elec
trodes and because of the resistance of the electrolyte. The heat produced in a cell is a function of both ampere load and voltage. Other things being
* Industrial Farm Products Itesearch Division.
Bureau of Agricultural Chemistry & Engineering.
U. S. Department of Agriculture.
equal, the heat liberated per pound of chlorate is closely proportional to the total potential drop minus the theoretical decomposition potential.
Since the voltage becomes greater with increased current density, it is clear that the task of controlling the operating temperature under condi
tions of equal cell amperages becomes magnified. I t has been reported (N.
V. S. Knibbs, and H. Palfreeman.
Trans. Faraday Soc. Vol. 16, p. 422, 1921) that approximately 1.6 volts are required theoretically fo r the process. Assuming 820 amp. hr. per lb. of sodium chlorate as an average current consumption, the energy con
sumption will be (820 X 1.6) = 1.31 kw.-hr. (d.c.). The energy con
sumption in excess of 1.31 kw.-hr.
(d.c.) will be converted largely to heat. Thus, when 3.00 kw.-hr. (d.c.) is used, the thermal equivalent of 3.00 - 1.31 kw.-hr. (d.c.) = (1.69 x 3,411) = 5,765 B.t.u. will be lib
erated per pound of chlorate.
The chemieal attack on the graphite anodes becomes smaller with a de
crease in cell temperature. The op
eration of cells Nos. 7 and 8 (ref. 1, above) showed that the graphite loss per ton of sodium chlorate in solution decreased from 21 lb. at 42 deg. C. to 11 lb. at 32 deg. C. The
operation of small laboratory cells showed that a further diminution in graphite loss would be realized by lowering the operating temperature from 32 to 25 deg. C.
Accordingly, it was decided to re
duce the cell temperature from 32 to 25 deg. C. A direct comparison at these temperatures was made in cell No. 2 operating a t 500 amp. load and the following average results were obtained:
T a b le I
Variation of anode attack (grams C measured as CO2 per lb. NaClO» in solution) with temperature and sodium chloride concentration
GramsNaCl
per liter 60 90 120 150
Temp.
D eg. C.
32 10.3 6 .2 5 .5 5 .2
25 8 .5 4 .0 3 .2 2 .5
The preceding data also show the marked increase in anode attack when the sodium chloride concentration falls as the result of electrolytic pro
duction of sodium chlorate. Because of this factor, in comparing the anode attacks in different cells or un
der other changed conditions, one must compute average attacks based on actual concentrations of sodium chloride. Twenty-five p er cent brine was fed to the first of a series of four cells, (see ref. 2, above). The sodium chloride concentration in the cells was found to b e : 236, 1S9, 140 and S7 grams per liter. The anode attacks in cell No. 2 of the present series, at the above-mentioned sodium chloride concentrations, were aver
aged. The average attack was found to be 5.5 grams of carbon, measured as COs p er pound or 6S lb. of graph
ite per ton of sodium chlorate in so
lution, at a cell temperature of 32 deg. C., and only 2.7 grams per pound or 34 lb. of graphite per ton at 25 deg. C. The graphite consumption per ton is based, as in Reference 2, on equal sludge and ehemical losses
46S J U L Y 1940 • CHEM ICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN E E R IN G
