Chemical & Metallurgical Engineering, Vol. 50, No. 1

S. D. KIRKPATRICK . . . . E d ito r JAMES A . LEE... M a n a g in g Editor THEODORE R. OLIVE...A s s o c ia te Editor HENRY M. BATTERS...M a r k e t Editor JOHN R. CALLAHAM... A s s is ta n t Editor NORMAN G . FARQUHAR. .A s s is ta n t Editor LESTER B. P O P E ... A s s is ta n t Editor

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W a ste D isp osal Problem s in W a r tim e .. .

By F. W . MOHLMAN

S a fety in H andling A lum inum P ow ders.

By G . M. BABCOCK a n d F. B. RETHWISCH

Progress Report of the Rubber D irec to r..

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J A N U A R Y 191,3 • CHEMICAL & M ETALLURGICAL E N G IN EER IN G

CHEMICAL

» a I I U i M < i c U

ENGINEERING

ESTABLISHED 1902

S. D. KIRKPATRICK, Editor

JAN 1943

O U R Y E A R I I O f W O R L D W A R I I

W E HAVE come a long way since P e a rl H a rb o r.

M unitions p ro d u c tio n , as an n o u n ced a t th e end of 1942, was u p to 382 p e rc e n t of th a t of a y e a r ago, w a r co n stru c tio n w as u p to 256 p erc en t, a n d to tal w a r o u tp u t to 314. W e h ad au th o rized , th ro u g h N ovem ber 30, 1942, a w a r p ro g ra m to cost $237.9 billions of w hich $61.8 billions h a d a lre a d y been sp e n t W e h a d a u th o riz e d a n d la rg e ly com pleted co n stru c tio n of $16,944 m illions of in d u s tr ia l f a ­ cilities of w hich $13,551 m illions a re governm ent financed a n d $3,593 m illions a re p riv a te ly financed.

W e hav e m obilized, eq u ip p ed a n d p a rtia lly tra in e d th e la rg e s t a rm y a n d n av y in o u r history.

B u t we hav e come a lo t f a r th e r th a n th e figures show. W e have le a rn e d w h a t i t m eans to fight a h ig h ly tech n ic al w a r on a global scale. W e have le a rn e d th a t m anpow er, p a rtic u la rly tech n ically tra in e d b rain p o w er, is m ore im p o rta n t th a n m oney

or even m a te ria ls— w hen a n a tio n m obilizes its re a l resources. M ore a n d m ore com panies have come to realize th a t th e job to he done in W a sh in g to n o r in th e m u n itio n s p la n ts calls fo r th e b e st m en th e y hav e in th e ir o rg an izatio n s n o t those who

can he s p a re d m ost easily. _

W e have m ade some o th er m istakes fro m w hich we should have le a rn e d im p o rta n t lessons. T he B a ru c h re p o rt p u t its finger on som ething b ro a d e r th a n th e tro u b le w ith th e ru b b e r p ro g ra m w hen i t cited th e d isastro u s effect of p o litical control over essen tially tech n ical decisions. C onflicting views am ong th e h eads of v a rio u s w a r agencies w ith d u p lic a tin g o r o v erla p p in g a u th o rity com pletely overshadow ed th e recom m endations of th e technical m en who w ere best qualified to pass on th e problem s involved. A p p o in tm e n t of a n aggressive executive to head u p a single agency, w ith w h a t we th o u g h t w ere e n tire ly ad e q u a te pow ers, seemed like a move in th e r ig h t d irectio n . Y et D ire c to r Jeffers m ost re c e n t re p o rt, sum m arized elsew here in th is issue,

is none too encouraging. T h ere a re s till some people who th in k we need av iatio n gasoline m ore th a n we need sy n th e tic ru b b er. This, too, is a technical problem capable of acc u ra te ev alu atio n if only the essential fa c ts a re m ade available.

B u t because m a tte rs affecting technology, scien­

tific research an d en g in eerin g developm ent a re in ­ h e re n tly com plicated a n d o ften difficult fo r th e la y m an to com prehend, we are p a rtic u la rly ■vulner­

able to a tta c k by th e p o litician s a n d social re fo rm ­ ers. P eople fe a r th a t w hich th e y do n o t u n d e r­

stan d . P e rh a p s th a t is the reaso n c e rta in g re a t legal m in d s in th e p re se n t A d m in istra tio n see n o th in g b u t conspiracy a n d d eception in every p a te n t agree­

m ent, p a r tic u la rly i f i t involves a fo re ig n eo u n try . T hey w ould have you believe th a t A m erican scien­

tists a n d engineers a re dupes th a t m u st be p ro tected fro m all business contacts w ith th e sm a rte r, m ore re so u rcefu l technologists fro m a b ro ad . T he im ­ p lic a tio n is th a t o u r science a n d technology are in fe rio r a n d th a t som ething m u st be done to h elp th em grow a n d develop.

So we have such th in g s as th e K ilg o re bill. H ere th e v e ry leg al m in d s of some of o n r m ost a stu te leg islato rs g e t to g e th e r a n d decide th a t technology w ill w in th e w ar if only i t is p ro p e rly co o rd in ated a n d given a su b sid y of a q u a r te r of a billion dollars.

T hey hold h e a rin g s in w hich th e y a re to ld th a t b e­

cause R ussia a n d G erm an y hav e b o th reg im en ted th e ir technologists in to g re a t w a r m achines, we should do likewise. O th e r w itnesses p o in t to de­

fects (re a l and im ag in ed ) in o n r te ch n ical setu p

an d propose to co rrect th em b y su p erim p o sin g an

over-riding' co n tro l b y po litician s a n d non-technical

a d m in istra to rs. T he w hole p e rfo rm an ce, we are

so rry to say, strik es us as a b o u t as rid icu lo u s as

would be th e case if a com m ittee of scien tists a n d

engineers w ere to g et to g e th e r a n d decide th a t

som ething sh o u ld be done to co o rd in ate an d reg i­

m en t the law yers a n d p o litic ia n s who a re so im ­ p e d in g o u r tech n ical p ro g re ss w ith un n e cessary an d co nflicting laws, reg u la tio n s, rn lin g s a n d re d ta p e .

B u t the w a r p ro g ra m d e m an d s th a t. we. do n o t w aste too m uch tim e w ith these obstacles th a t po litics have p lac ed in o u r p a th s. T h e re is a tr e ­ m endous jo b to be done in this second y e a r of th e w ar. B y th is tim e n e x t y ear, 9,700,000 of o u r citizen s m u st be in th e arm e d forces, 20,000,000 in w a r in d u s try , 19,600,000 in essential civ ilian in d u s try , 7,900,000 in y e a r-ro u n d a g ric u ltu re , a n d 6,000,000 in seasonal a n d m iscellaneous occupations.

T h is is g o ing to m ean m ore tr a n s f e r r in g of m en an d jobs, m ore tra in in g , m ore em p lo y m en t o f wom en a n d o ld er p eople th a n ever before. To m a n y chem i­

cal en g in eers i t is g o ing to m ean d o ing th e eq u iv a­

le n t of th e w ork of tw o m en. O ne m u st h elp in th e p rim a ry job of tu r n in g o u t th e goods in th e q u a n tity a n d q u a lity th e w a r dem ands. T he o th e r m u st do m ore of th e th in k in g a n d p la n n in g t h a t w ill keep a tech n ical o rg a n iz a tio n fu n c tio n in g effi­

cie n tly on in to th e re c o n stru c tio n p e rio d ahead.

D u r in g th e com ing y e a r we a re g oing to h e a r a g re a t deal m ore a b o u t p o st-w a r p la n n in g . Some of i t is c e rta in to be sta rry -e y e d idealism th a t w as c h a ra c te ristic of th e boondoggling d ay s of th e e a rly b ra in -tru s te rs . O th e r p lan s, g ea red to th e sam e h ig h objectives of m ax im u m em plo y m en t a n d a n ] en h an ced s ta n d a rd of living, w ill be m ore p ra c tic a l I in th e ir a p p ro a c h to o u r com m on problem . T he

! chem ical en g in e e r can c o n trib u te m ost to such s p ro g ra m s th ro u g h th e d evelopm ent o f new p ro d u c ts a n d th e im p ro v em en t of e x istin g processes. P ro m now on every m in u te th a t can be s p a re d fro m the

\ p rim a r y jo b of Avar p ro d u c tio n can be p ro fita b ly em ployed in p la n n in g f o r th e d a y w hen chem ical Avarfare gives w ay to chem ical w elfare.

Ours is th e job to h elp in e v e ry w a y Ave can to m ake 1943 th e decisiAre y ea r in W o rld W a r I I . W e are n o t o p tim istic en ou gh to th in k it can a ll be ov er a y e a r from noAV, b u t w e knoAV Ave are g o in g to p ile u p a trem en d ou s p ro d u ctio n o f w a r good s d u r in g th e n e x t 12 m on th s. W e k n ow th a t th e U n ite d N a tio n s h ave sta rted an offen sive th a t can ­ n o t sto p sh ort o f a E u ro p ea n v ic to r y in 1944 i f n o t in 1943. A ft e r th a t Ave can g iv e ou r u n d iv id ed a tte n tio n to the job o f a v e n g in g P e a r l H arb or—

an d th a t Avon’t take too lo n g either.

RESEARCH COORDINATION GROW S

S t i m u l a t e d ,

p erh ap s, by th e th rea ts o f d ra stic reg im en ta tio n p rop osed in th e K ilg o re b ill, a three- p a rt p rogram o f coord in ated research an d d e v elo p ­ m en t is b ein g p rep ared to serv e th e go v ern m en t d u r in g th e w ar p eriod . T h e first o f th e th ree p arts, in order o f estab lish m en t, is th e Office o f S cien tific R esearch an d D ev e lo p m e n t Avhich d eals Avith th e in str u m e n ta litie s o f Avar. N e x t cam e th e Office o f P r o d u c tio n R esearch an d D ev e lo p m e n t w h ich f u n c ­ tio n s Avithin W P B on w a r p r o d u c tio n prob lem s, (see C h e m & Me t . D ec. 1942, p p . 80-1). NeAA7est of th e trio is A g r ic u ltu r a l R esearch A g e n c y Avliicli Avill se rv e th e F o o d A d m in istra to r as th e cen tra l co o r d in a tin g fo rce w ith resp ect to research on fo o d s an d oth er a g r ic u ltu r a l p rod u cts.

T h e h ead s o f these th re e g ro u p s, Y a n n e v a r B u sh of O .S.R.D ., H a rv e y D av is of O .P .R .D ., a n d E . C. A u e h te r of A .R .A ., a re in effect th e th re e r e ­ search czars. Colleges, p u b lic in stitu tio n s, p riv a te agencies, a n d researc h d e p a rtm e n ts of in d u s tr y all m u st look to th em fo r policy m a k in g on a n y scien­

tific o r en g in e e rin g p ro b lem Avhich affects g o v ern ­ m e n ta l in te re sts. F o r tu n a te ly these m en a re q u a li­

fied b y lo n g ex p erien ce a n d h ig h pro fessio n al s ta n d a rd s to set a sou n d course w ith re sp e c t to a ll these m a tte rs affectin g Avar-time problem s.

T o a con sid erab le e x te n t even th e p r iv a te Ayork o f in d iv id u a ls an d com p an ies Avill b e in flu en ced . T here is no in te n tio n to stop su ch Avork, or a n y d e­

sire to re g im en t it. B u t it m u st b e reco g n ized th a t th e extrem e p ressu re o f n eed fo r im m ed iate r e su lts on w ar-tim e p rob lem s m a y m ake i t n ece ssa r y fo r m a n y in d iv id u a ls an d com p an ies to la y asid e th e th in g s th a t otherAvise Avould b e fo re m o st in th e ir p r iv a te p la n s. W h ere su ch sacrifice is ask ed or m ad e it w ill b e in th e in te r e st o f n a tio n a l se cu rity , an d n o t becau se th ere is a n y effort a t W a sh in g to n am ong th ese le a d e rs to in te r fe r e Avith p r iv a te in ­ cen tiv e, p a te n ts, or p ro d u c ts, as th e y re la te to in d u str ia l research .

T h is is a v e r y fo r tu n a te situ a tio n . Tt is a v er y d ifferen t one th a n Avould r e su lt i f “ r e fo r m ” le g is ­ la tio n lik e th e K ilg o r e b ill o f la s t season Avere to pass. T h a t b ill w ou ld h a v e re g im en te d research , p u t p o litic a l bosses ov er te c h n ica l m en, an d cou ld h a v e d o n e irrep arab le d am age to th e w ar effort as Avell as to p r iv a te in d u str y .

V olum e 50— C hem ical & M etallu rgical E n gin eerin g— Num ber 1 Chemical & M etallurgical E ngineering is

the successor to M etallurgical S ’ Chemical Engineering, which in tu rn w as a consoli- lation of Electrochem ical S ’ M etallurgical In d u stry an d Iro n & S te e l M agazine, effected

n July, 1906.

T he m agazine w as orig in ally founded as Electrochemical In d u stry, in Septem ber, 1902.

m d was published m onth!v u n d e r the editorial lirection of D r. E . F . Roeber. I t continued m d e r th a t title u ntil J a n u a ry , 1905, when it vas changed to Electrochem ical & M eta llu r- rical In d u stry . I n Ju ly , 1906. the consolida- to a was made w ith Iron S ’ S teel M agazine,

f6

which had been founded eight y ears previously by D r. A lbert S a u v eu r. In J a n u a ry , 1910, the title w as changed to M etallurgical S ’ Chemical Engineering, and sem i-m onthlv publication was begun Sept. 1, 1915. O n Ju ly 1, 1918, the present title w as assum ed and weekly pub­

lication w as begun O ct. 1, 1919. M onthly publication w as resum ed in M arch, 1925.

D r. E . F . R oeber was ed ito r of th e paper from the tim e it w as founded u n til his death O ct. 17. 1917. A fte r a b rie f in te rim he w as succeeded by H . C. Parm elee. T en years la te r, Nov. 1. J928, M r. P arm elee assum ed other responsibilities in the M cG raw -H ill

• JANUARY 194S • CHEMICAL

Pub lish in g Com pany and S idney D . K irk ­ p atrick w as appointed editor.

The^ p re sen t editorial staff of th e m agazine com prises, in addition to M r. K irk p a trick : Jam es A . Lee, m anaging e d ito r; H . M . B at­

te rs, m ark et e d ito r; T . R. Olive, associate e d ito r; J . R. C allaham , N . G. F a rq u h a r and L . B. Pope, assistan t editors. R. S . M cB ride, E . S. S ta te le r and E a jle M auldin a re editorial rep resen tativ es in W ash in g to n , Chicago and A tla n ta , respectively.

[A ll rig h ts to above m agazine titles a re re ­ served by M cG raw -H ill P u blishing Co., 330 W . 42nd S t., New Y ork, N . Y .)

METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING

PERMIT US TO INTRODUCE—

Se a s o n e d r e a d e r s

of Cliem. & Me t . w ill rem em ber n u m ero u s instances in the p a s t w hen D an G utleb- e n ’s nam e has headed a n a r t i c l e : p erh ap s a discus­

sion of m ain ten an ce in the su g a r re fin e ry ; or a d is­

course on a new ty p e of su g a r c e n tr if u g a l; ag ain a d e sc rip tio n of a g ad g et fo r im p ro v in g h ea t recovery in th e re fin e ry ; or m aybe a new m eans of e lim in a t­

in g corrosion in th e re fin e ry ’s associated molasses ferm en ters.

D an is chief en g in eer of th e P en n sy lv a n ia S u g ar Co., a t P h ila d e lp h ia . In a d d itio n to being, if not th e fo u n d e r a t least one of th e g u id in g sp irits of th a t in fo rm a l o rg an izatio n w hich m ig h t be known a t th e A m alg am ated S u g a r T ra m p s of A m erica, he has now the d istin ctio n of becom ing Chem. & Met. s first re g u la r “ c o ly u m ist.” H e is a philosopher of r a re w it, a n in d e fatig ab le co rrespondent, a n d a m an given to re c o rd in g h is im pressions on s u n d ry su b ­ je c ts w ith succinctness, hum or, a n d a knack fo r finding th e n u b o f a su b ject, w hich w ill ap p eal to engineers, w h ate v er th e in d u s try th e y serve.

F o r y ears D an G u tle b e n ’s “ L o g ” has c ircu lated

w idely in the su g a r in d u stry , an d to a lesser extent am ong his frie n d s outside th a t field. However, w hen he has a p p e a re d in the Chem. & Met. in the past, it has been u n d e r special assignm ent, hedged a ro u n d w ith restric tio n s set u p by the E ditor.

L arg ely elim in ated w ere the p ith y p articles which m ade such am u sin g j?e t in stru c tiv e read in g in the Log. Gone were his “ p o la n d e rs ” and th e ir m is­

haps, his p o ly n atio n al m echanics and th e ir in ­ genious dodges a n d sh o rtcu ts, his observations on places, people a n d things.

S ta rtin g fo rth w ith , o u r 1943 resolution is to elim inate these shortcom ings of ours an d give D an his head. H a v in g overcome considerable objection on his p a rt, d ue to his n a tu r a l b u t unjustified m odesty, we now p re se n t him in h is own column.

The space on page 133 is his own, to use as he will.

Som etim es i t w ill co n tain excerp ts fro m the Log, sometimes p a ra g ra p h s from his “ L e tte rs to M ac.”

Some will be w ritte n especially fo r the colum n, some will be new, some old. On th e su rface w h a t he says m ay a p p e a r to ap p ly only to th e su g a r in d u stry . I f so re a d it again, E n g in eer R e a d e r! W e g u a ra n ­ tee y o u r m o n ey ’s w orth, w hatever th e subject.

W A S H I N G T O N H I G H L I G H T S

POST-WAR PLANNING

is being greatly speeded by the feeling in Washing­

ton that the European phase of the war will be largely settled in favor o f the United Nations by the end of 1943. Whether we agree or not with that schedule it has definite and im­

portant meaning for process indus­

tries. It suggests the need for more planning by business to utilize the products of these industries effec­

tively and to eliminate burdensome surpluses by their prompt adapta­

tion to peace-time purposes. I f busi­

ness does not do the planning, the New Dealers will. That should in­

spire new effort in industry.

GLYCERINE

will no longer be allowed to impose any burdens on the edible fat and oil supplies. The shortage of glycerine is very real. But gov­

ernment officials now fear more the shortage of food fats. We can syn­

thesize the glycerine but no one can synthesize the food fats. This gives new stimulus to new methods of glycerine making and it imposes new burdens on the soap maker who tries to maintain customer satisfac­

tion with quality soap while short of most-desired raw materials.

GAS OR TIRES,

this is the choice.

A very sharp conflict continues to rage in Washington between those who want more aviation gas and those who seek to speed the svn-

thetic rubber program. There are several causes of conflict between the two. Both want the same raw ma­

terials, certain petroleum refinery fractions. Both wish the same high pressure machinery and control in­

struments. Both burden the same management and engineering skills and compete for the time of scientists and engineers. The whole conflict demonstrates the shortages, both of chemical engineering skill and of chemical process equipment capacity.

NEW PRODUCTS

which will be mar­

keted after the' war can well be pro­

moted at this time. Washington con­

siders such advertising and promo­

tion effort a very desirable war-time activity so long as it does not inter­

fere with actual war production.

Naturally the making o f the new products on a commercial scale is not encouraged unless they are ac­

tually needed for the war. Small scale production, as in pilot plants, may be encouraged when it permits prospective customers to have re­

search quantities to try out new uses. Any such program is judged from the over-all effect on today

and tomorrow.

COORDINATION

of government ac­

tivities to avoid duplications or com­

plications has been substantially im­

proved in recent weeks. Senator Kilgore is entitled to some of the

credit. His bill proposing tech­

nologic mobilization in a super super board has impressed officials enough to get some constructive action. Re­

search coordination is being very much advanced, and will be still further helped by interchange of in­

formation and opinion between the big department groups working on foods and process-industry problems.

As we give Senator Kilgore this credit, we repeat our conviction that his proposed bill should not pass.

It would regiment scientific matters much to the detriment o f the public and it would handicap scientists and 1

engineers very seriously by im posing’

political bossing. jj

SHORTER HAULS

for industrial goods1 must be sought by every possible means. Strenuous effort is being made by officials to prevent cross haul o f goods. Particular attention has been given to foods, even to a proposal that no food be hauled' more than 500 miles from source to destination without special permis­

sion. Cooperation in deliveries to- customers for chemicals must take' account of these facts. With the aid' of government officials there can be' agreements between companies that?

normally would be illegal. The’

shortage o f transportation facilities justifies many such arrangements’

even in the eyes of the Departmen of Justice.

C H E M IC A L & METALLURGICAL E N G IN EER IN G . J A N U A R Y 191,3 •

77'

W aste D isp osal P rob lem s In W artim e

F. W . MOHLMAN

Director of Laboratories. Sanitary District o f C hicago, a n d Editor ot S e w a g e W orks Journal

"" C h cm . & M e t I N T E R P R E T A T I O N ——— — — — — —

E ngineers are so in v o lv e d in the urgent n e e d for production a n d still m ore production that th ey are apt to overlook the fact that th e entire w a s te d isp o sa l situation is v a s tly different w h en a n ation is at w ar.

Dr. M ohlm an. w h o is one of the country's outstanding authorities in this field , h a s recen tly su r v e y e d the m a n y problem s in v o lv e d in the w artim e d isp o sa l of both dom estic s e w a g e a n d industrial w a ste s.

In the first of tw o articles, b a s e d on the p a p er h e p resen ted in Chi­

c a g o during the se c o n d N ation al C h em ical Exposition, ch ief em p h a sis is on s e w a g e a n d byproduct reco v ery . N ext m onth h e w ill d iscu ss w a s te s from m a n y of the ch em ica l p ro cess industries, in clu d in g m unition p la n ts .

T

for produc­

tion, and ever more production, on the industrial war front forces the problem o f industrial wastes into the background, where it will prob­

ably remain until the war is finished.

Yields, economy, clean streams, es­

thetic standards, recreational facili­

ties,— all may have to be sacrificed temporarily, until we have produced the products needed to win the war.

Even in normal times the mention I o f waste disposal evokes no warm response from the average manufac­

turer, and now he can find no con­

vincing reason why the problem of waste treatment should be resurrect- i ed, now that the bars are down be-

; tween government and industry, and j the product rolls out of the produc­

tion line, even though an excessive

! residue also rolls out the sewers and into our streams and lakes. In fact, i I

1 Squirrel-cage m ills in slu d g e drying circuit b reak so lid s for fla sh d rying in

1

industry is supreme now, and our rivers and water resources should be regimented in the war effort, to do their share in washing away the sins o f industrial inefficiency and the soaring tons o f waste substances dis­

charged daily from industrial sew­

ers.

Under present conditions, we ought to have a Water Priorities Board that would allocate stream flow and dilution resources for the byproducts that come out o f the hack door of industry, in the same manner that the War Production Board allocates priorities and establishes quotas in the products that come out of the front door. The urgency o f our need for critical materials such as alcohol, rubber, foodstuffs, steel, tin, and munitions far transcends the resultant pollution problems of the disposal o f mash residues, soap and organic emulsions, packinghouse wastes, pickle liquor, acids, dyes and organic compounds. I f production can he hastened and the use o f cri­

tical materials obviated, let our stream deteriorate temporarily, cer­

tainly in their esthetic or recreation­

al aspects. Health standards, how­

ever, must be maintained, and in a situation such as that o f Lake Mich­

igan in the Calumet District, cor­

rective measures must be applied if industrial wastes are permitted to increase the hazard to the point o f menace to health of millions of people.

Most of our rivers, however, do not constitute such a health hazard, because their waters are not used for drinking purposes, or the river flow is so tremendous as to dilute and oxidize pollution beyond the limits o f the sensitive and infinitesi­

mal detection methods of water chemistry and bacteriology.

There seems to be an astonishing lack of appreciation among indus­

trial chemists of the metabolism of streams— the significance o f bio­

chemical oxygen demand and oxygen balance, the seasonal changes of stream bacteriology and biology, the mechanism of self-purification, and the measurement o f assimilative cap­

acity for domestic or industrial pol­

lution. It is surprising that even our best managed industries rarely make any attempt to study the rela­

tion between their wastes and the water courses into which the wastes are discharged. The officials come into conferences with government engineers with no conception o f how to meet the problem, and either po­

litely rebuff the state sanitary engi-

JANÜAST 1943 • CHEMICAL k METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING

CHEMICAL & METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING • JANUARY 19/,3 • neer’s staff or other publie repre­

sentative, or stall for time, or fall back on the inability to do anything because o f (a) lack o f methods for treatment of their particular wastes, or (b) lack of funds to do anything.

How much more sensible it is for the industry to face the issue square­

ly, to spend some money and some years on the study of the problem, and to abate the problem in consecu­

tive and logical steps, rather than in one full and expensive swoop, with back to the wall, and no progres­

sive constructive measures available.

It is profitable for an industry, if large enough, to make its own studies o f its waste problems. There have been several instances in which a thorough study o f the problem, in­

side the plant, would have saved the company a lot o f money that was spent on waste treatment.

Salvage, separation, change of process, substitution o f pollution- free ingredients, re-circulation, re­

generation— these inter-plant proce­

dures should be exhausted before over-all treatment should be decided upon.

Industrial executives are usually ready to agree that these steps are wise, in principle, and sometimes they make a half-hearted effort to utilize these steps in the solution of their waste problem, but usually the problem is -turned over to some young chemist just out o f college, and no determined, competent, nor continuous effort is made to study the problem in the same thorough way the modern plant executive studies problems o f production and development. A good, experienced man should be picked in the plant organization; he should be supplied with a staff, a laboratory and com­

petent advice on the pollution as­

pects of his waste problem; and he should set about abating the prob­

lem by the least painful and least expensive steps possible, so that the company’s money may be spent wisely and efficiently.

A subdivision in the plant scheme of organization devoted to waste prevention and polution abatement would be able to prevent many losses of recoverable materials down the sewers; it would be able to advise all operating divisions as to whether they were creating excessive pollu­

tion, and could help them to lessen such pollution; and it would con­

serve our national resources so that we would have more raw materials to produce more goods, and thus to improve our whole national economy and efficiency.

Dried slu d g e is rem oved from the drying circuit b y cy clo n e separators

However, it is unwise to make the mistake of approaching industry in the role of an economic crusader, bent on demonstrating that fortunes are being lost down the sewers un­

known to the plant management.

This approach is wrong both psy­

chologically and economically. Sur­

veys can be made, pounds o f losses computed, and values assigned super­

ficially, without taking into account the many factors of overhead, mar­

kets, depreciation, competition and obsolescence that can and usually do change most of the salvage accounts from black to red.

I t has seemed to me that the hon­

est approach to the alleviation of industrial waste pollution is to con­

sider the objectives to be the same as those objectives we have achieved in some phases o f sewage disposal, namely reduction of the cost of an inevitable burden that certain types o f industry, those that produce liquid wastes, must assume. Modern sewage treatment has developed sev­

eral sources of salvage, none of which amounts to a net profit, but several of which serve to reduce the cost o f treatment and disposal, and contribute to the universal desire for conservation.

SALVAGE FROM SEWAGE

Fertilizer .— The favorite diversion if the conservation enthusiast is to ompute the value of the ton.- of litrogen that are discharged into our treams and lakes daily in the sew- ge of our urban communities. This ype of computation is highly falla-

•

,n

small portwL t cious because only a

of the nitrogen can be recovered iije;

the form of usable solids which hav;^ j enough value to warrant their trans,!

portation to farm lands. However^

there are two types of sludges tha,^

should be recovered and used fertilizer. Digested sludge is low Id fertilizing value, because (a) it ha;(j been produced by biological deeonf position of settled sewage solids^

and (b) it contains a large amoup.

of water. I f the moisture is reduce^

below 10 percent, by mechanics j drying, objection (b) is eliminatecj' but the question then is whether th j dried digested sludge is worth enougjy to pay for its drying. Most sewagj.

authorities agree that it is unwise ti.

attempt to prepare and sell digest^

ed sludge as a commercial fertilize^- but that farmers should be urged tU use the air-dried sludge within trucajj hauling distance o f the sludge pil<aj and that the sludge should be givebj to them free of charge by the sew age works management. Now, wit?

Victory gardens urged throughou^

the land for next summer, the*

ought to be a nation-wide campaig^j

to promote the use of digested sludgy

as a fertilizer for most types

vegetables and farm produce,

em heat-digested sludge is free

pathogenic organisms if

digested and dried, and can be

with impunity on the plants of

vegetables that are cooked, or

the plants o f tomatoes, com,

or squash. Possibly esthetie

sidérations ban its use on

lettuce and celery.

A ctiv a te d slu d g e fertilizer is produced at the Southw est Treatment W orks, San itary District of C hicago

Activated sludge is now well es­

tablished as a commercial fertiliz­

er, particularly as a source o f or­

ganic nitrogen. It is practically dry, has little phosphoric acid and no potash, but the nitrogen is available and valued for green crops, cotton jS.nd tobacco. It is shipped to the

| southeastern states.

The production o f these types of sludge by the Sanitary District of Chicago in 1941 is on page 81.

Milwaukee also sells 50,000 or more tons of activated sludge per year. Toledo, Grand Rapids, Akron, nd a few other cities, sell digested ludge after it has been dried in

¡rotary heat dryers. Hundreds of Smaller cities send digested sludge to city parks and to neighboring farm lands.

The U. S. Public Health Service ins recently reported results o f a purvey of sewage treatment in the Jnited States, in which it is stated hat there are 5,403 sewage- works in vhich sludge digestion is practiced.

This is 97 percent o f all the sewage reatment plants in the U. S., but lot 97 percent o f the population

; vhose sewage is treated, inasmuch ,is Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis jind other large cities dry sludge mechanically, without previous di­

gestion. The population for which digestion is used may be estimated jt around 35,000,000 people. I f we 5 lake a per capita production o f dry

■ jludge o f 75 lb. per year, a removal

| f 80 percent suspended solids, and

digestion of 33 percent of the set­

tled solids, there should be available annually 1,400,000 tons of air-dried sludge containing 50 percent mois­

ture. This would be sufficient, at five tons per acre, to fertilize 280,000 acres, or nearly 440 sq. mi., of gar­

dens, lawns and fields.

Of course, this type, of fertiliza­

tion is incomplete and not to be compared with the results that can be obtained with mixed, complete commercial fertilizer, but the sludge constitutes a source o f low-grade plant food that should not be wasted.

In Oriental countries, with lower standards o f sanitation than ours, all human excrement is used on the land, in spite o f its health hazards of hookworm, amoebae, typhoid fever and cholera. Digested sludge does not contain these hazards, or at least they are present to a negli­

gible degree.

Use of dried, digested sewage sludge should therefore be promoted as a potential source o f nitrogen and plant food that is available free, except for the cost o f trans­

portation. This is an important obstacle these days, but possibly city authorities or garden planning com­

missions could arrange to have sludge transported short distances to stor­

age piles where it could be obtained by the truck gardener even under gasoline rationing.

Gas and Power — A second source o f salvage from sewage is contained in the gas produced in heated sludge

digestion tanks. This gas contains approximately 70 percent methane and has a net heat value of 600 B.t.u. per cu. ft. The various steps in the development o f efficient use of this gas are interesting. At first, the gas was wasted, and still is, from Imhoff tanks. Widespread research in the decade 1920-1930 demon­

strated that by heating the digesting sludge from an annual average of 60 deg. F., as collected, to an aver­

age of 85 deg.-90 deg. F., the time required for digestion would be re­

duced by 60 percent, thus requiring much less tank capacity and pro­

ducing a more thoroughly digested and less infective sludge.

The gas was then used to heat water, which was circulated through coils in the digestion tank to bring the contents up to the desired tem­

perature. The excess gas was wasted. It was not found advisable nor profitable to sell the sludge gas to the city’s gas plant, as the amount o f sludge gas produced is only a small fraction of that required by the city, and the purification, trans­

portation and delivery o f the sludge gas is too expensive to make its sale profitable.

Then a number o f alert engineers proposed and tried out the scheme o f using the gas to drive a gas- engine, which furnished the power for lighting, pumping, aeration and other uses around the sewage works.

The heated water from the water- jacket o f the gas engine circulates

• JANUARY 19.',S • CHEMICAL & METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING

through the digestion tank coils, is cooled, and returns to the gas en­

gine. Thus all gas can be used, and the power produced greatly re­

duces or eliminates the cost of pur­

chased power at the sewage works.

Walraven at Springfield, 111., was a pioneer in this development. Piatt, in North Carolina, used one of the first gas engines in .1928. In 1941 there were 180 gas engines in 115 sewage works, developing 35,000 hp. Three of the largest, of 1,440 lip. each, are at the Jamaica, Long Island, treatment works.

An average of approximately 0.6 eu. ft. of gas per capita per day is produced in heated digestion tanks. Gas engines use approxi­

mately 20 cu. ft. of sludge gas per hp. hr. or 480 eu. ft. per day. There­

fore the sewage solids of 800 people, on the average, furnish enough gas to produce 1 hp. o f useful energy.

Sewage gas lias also been used for operating motor vehicles. 1 his use started in Germany in 1936 at Munich, Berlin, and Stuttgart. The CO* was removed, and the CH, com­

pressed to 150 atmospheres in steel flasks holding 22 cu. m. o f gas. A 40-hp. motor was reported to use IS cu. m. per 100 km. (10.2 eu. ft.

per mile). Gas from the digestion tanks of the Middlesex Sewage Treatment Works, near London, the largest ti'eatment plant in the Brit­

ish Empire, has been collected in bags) lightly compressed, and used to run motor vehicles on London

streets during the past two years.

In the U. S., the use of gas for city garbage trucks was investigated at Atlanta during the past year. It was estimated that the operating costs and fixed charges would amount to $15,743 'per year as compared with a saving of $19,350 worth of gasoline at 15c. per gal.

Grease —Recovery of grease from sewage and sewage sludge has al­

ways intrigued chemists and engi­

neers. There is a long history of uneconomical attempts at recovery, and during the last war the so-called Miles Acid Process was investigated at New Haven, Conn., under the direction o f the writer. In this process, SO, was dissolved in the sewage to form sulphurous acid, the soaps were cracked to fatty acids and recovered in the sludge. It was proposed to dry the sludge and ex­

tract the grease. Grease, however, although present in the sludge in rather large amount, up to 27 per­

cent, was high in non-saponifiable, containing 20 to 28 percent, and in normal times the value would be only 2 to 3c. per lb.

The various grease-separating ba­

sins and processes that have been developed in sewage treatment dur­

ing the past few years have not been promoted for recovery of usable grease, but rather to relieve biolo­

gical treatment processes of operat­

ing difficulties. Grease in the heat­

ed digesters produce a large amount of gas, and this seems to be the pre­

ferred method of disposal of the floated grease, which is mixed with the putrescible sewer solids.

There is one important exception to the general dictum that grease cannot be recovered with profit from sewage. This is the plant at Brad­

ford, England, which was visited by the writer in 1938. In normal times Bradford washes and processes one- fifth of all the world’s wool, and the wash waters are discharged into the sewers. The sewage is treated with acid, the sludge containing the grease is removed, heated, filter pressed hot, and the grease separat­

ed by cooling. It has sold from a low o f $40 per ton in peace times to a maximum of $300 per ton in 1918. During the year ending March 31, 1940, the sales exceeded ]

$350,000. However, there is no other situation similar to that in Bradford. For normal sewages, grease recovery continues unprofita­

ble. It must be removed before the sewers are reached. Grease traps on army camp kitchen drains are re­

ported to recover appreciable amounts of usable grease. Catch basins on packinghouse drains have always been a profitable investment.

Fish Culture — The growth o f fish in diluted sewage effluents has been carried on for years at Munich, and similar river fertilization promoted a large fish industry on the lower Illinois River in past years, but levees and dikes of drainage dis­

tricts constructed during the ’20’s so restricted fish spawning in sloughs and backwaters that the industry all but disappeared. Treated and di­

luted sewage effluents, when suitably diluted, promote growth of plank­

ton, algae and protozoa, which serve as fish food. It is reported from Munich that about 500 lb. of carp are produced annually per acre of ponds. However, it is unlikely that this byproduct o f sewage disposal will ever prove popular in the U. S.

Hormones ^{— Sewage and sewage}

sludge have been shown to contain hormones which stimulate plant growth, such as indole, skatole, in- dole-acetie acid and naphthalene-ace­

tic acid. These hormones have not been extracted or identified clearly and their value is still questionable but some of the stimulating effect of sewage and sludge on plant growtl is ascribed to these hormones. Sew­

age may also prove to be the sourc(

of other obscure extracts, of valu<

for germicidal or anti-toxic uses Not enough work has been done a;

yet to prove or disprove this possi bility.

8: Fertilizer an d S lu dge Production. Sanitary District oi Chicago, Year 1941

Dry

Basis

Sewage T rea tm e n t W orks Tons

titim et (A c tiv a te d )... I ’f l ? djthwest (A ctivated)... 4 9 , 18o e st Side (Im hoff) ... 149,867

Front v ie w of a slu d g e b ed cleaner N H .%

Avail.

P ,0 . % Ash Organic

5.10» 1.94* 4 3 .7 50.3

6.41* 2.32* 33.3 6 6.7

0.S6»* 0.33** 52.9 47.1

BMICAL & METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING • JANUARY 19Ą3 •

S afety in H an d lin g Alum inum P ow ders

G. M. BABCOCK a n d F. B. RETHWISCH

... C h em . & M e t. I N T E R P R E T A T I O N — --- -

Except for th ose p e o p le w h o w ork co n sta n tly w ith alum inum p o w d ers, sufficient resp ect for the exp losib ility of this m aterial d o es not a p p ea r to exist. W ith the presen t w id esp re a d u se of alum inum p o w d ers for the m anufacture of m ilitary pyrotech n ics, n e e d h a s d e v e lo p e d for the m ore w id esp re a d d issem in ation of inform ation on s a fe p ractices in their h a n d lin g an d in m an u factu rin g p yrotech n ics.

The article w h ich fo llo w s is b a se d o n the ex p erien ce g a in e d b y the R ey n o ld s M eta ls Co. in m a n y y e a r s of p roducing an d h a n d lin g m eta llic p ow d ers a n d is offered a s a starting point in the d e v e lo p ­ m ent of sa fe ty program s for con cern s e n g a g e d in or b eg in n in g o p era ­ tion s in p yrotech n ic work. C ertain fu n d am en tal p recau tion s are d is­

c u sse d b y the authors a s a se rv ice to the industry, but neither th ey nor their co m p a n y a ssu m e lia b ility of a n y kind in p resen tin g this inform ation.—

F

some­

what similar to the material commonly used in aluminum paint

; under the rather misleading name of

“aluminum bronze powder,” is a valuable component o f pyrotechnic mixtures used for flares and signals.

The high surface area of a given weight o f aluminum flake powder makes it easily ignitible when in the presence o f oxygen or air. Burning, it evolves a tremendous amount of heat and light. Owing to its low apparent density, fine particles of i the material tend to float in air with the attendant danger o f violent ex­

plosion upon ignition, when a proper ratio o f aluminum to oxygen is reached.

i A somewhat different aluminum powder, the grained variety, consists o f spheres, sausage shapes or irre- i gular grains o f aluminum, which are relatively hard to ignite. When mixed with oxygen-producing compounds, the grained powder will burn with : the evolution of much heat and light.

This material, however, has a high japparent density and low surface

’area which tends to keep it from

¡suspension in air so that the danger iof explosion or fire from aluminum

¡“fog” is almost nil.

Both flake and grained aluminum ' jare shipped in sealed drums with fnlly removable heads. These drums

I I,

should be stored unopened in a sep­

arate area wherever possible, since if they are stored along with such chemicals as sulphur, nitrates and others o f similar character, a fire from any cause would present a most serious problem. Whenever a drum o f aluminum powder is opened for loading or inspection, it should be closed and re-sealed as soon as pos­

sible. This not only insures greater safety against fire from external causes but also limits the likelihood o f tramp material getting into the powder, m o f the powder absorbing water from the air. In one instance a sealed drum of flake aluminum withstood an aluminum dust explo­

sion and subsequent fire without ignition o f the drum contents.

There are few practical means of extinguishing fires involving alumi­

num powder or mixtures containing this powder. Anything which tends to disturb the burning mass may throw the aluminum into the air and result in a violent explosion o f tre­

mendous destructive power. I t is true that dry sand, carefully placed over a pile o f burning aluminum, will smother the flame, but in the excitement attending such a fire, there is danger that the sand will be thrown or shoveled on to the mass, and that the powder will be thrown into the air. There have been

several eases where relatively harm­

less fires have been changed to seri­

ous and fatal explosions from this cause.

Consequently, the safer and more prudent rule is to instruct employees to walk out o f the building in the case of an aluminum fire, shutting the door securely but as gently as possible to avoid disturbing the burning mass.

All employees should be instructed in procedures to avoid. They should understand thoroughly that water, carbon tetrachloride, fire foam, car­

bon dioxide and similar extinguish­

ing agents should not be used on aluminum fires. Use o f such materi­

als will cause explosions. Night watchmen should be instructed to convey this information to any regu­

lar or volunteer group which at­

tempts to extinguish an aluminum fire. Furthermore, the use o f a fine spray of water from a stirrup pump, such as is used by civilian defense workers on incendiary bombs, should never be used on aluminum powder fires.

I t is o f utmost importance that local fire departments be informed o f these precautions. The depart­

ment should be provided with com­

plete information and eharts regard­

ing those warehouses which contain aluminum, as well as those contain­

ing other chemicals. These charts should also be readily available to the watchmen and to the plant’s own protection division at all times.

AVOIDING HAZARDS

A source o f great danger in the handling o f aluminum powder is the presence o f foreign substances, par­

ticularly hard or metallic materials.

Care should be taken to see that closing bolts, nails and similar bits of metal cannot contaminate alumi­

num powder or pyrotechnic mixtures.

Good plant housekeeping is one o f the most effective methods in achieving plant safety and care must be taken particularly in the weigh­

ing, mixing and pressing rooms. As little material as is practical should be kept in one place at one time.

Scoops for handling powders should be o f non-sparking material and the handling should be slow and deli­

• JAJíüJJiY 19ĄS • CHEMICAL & METALLURGICAL ENGINEERING