Sept., 1912
T H E J O U R N A L OF I.VDUSTRIAL AAVD ENGIAVEERI.VG C H E L V I S T R Y .
gas-muffle or electric furnace to a temperature of Seger cone 1 2 for 2 hours, shall not show, on cooling, more than 0.75 per cent. linear contraction or expansion. Variations from Measurements.-In the case of ordinary bricks, 9 in. X 41/2 in. X’ 3 in. or z ’ / ~ in. thick, there shall not be more than about I ’ / ~per cent. variation in length, nor more than about z1,12 per cent. variation in width or thickness; in all cases the bricks shall work out their own bond.
THE UTILIZATION OF SULPHITE LIQUOR. The waste liquor from sulphite mills contains from 12 to 20 per cent. of highly colored organic matter. In order to use this liquor in the textile industry as a finishing material or in the leather industry as a filling, it is necessary to decolorize it; accbrding to PaPer (8, 2 9 ) , it has been found that phosphoric acid under certain conditions possesses the property of separating a red coloring substance from the liquor in an insoluble form; a recent German patent covers a process by which this is effected. To carry out the process, all the free acids stronger than phosphoric acid are first removed from the liquor : insoluble carbonates, such as calcium carbonate, are added, and the excess is removed by filtration. Such a n amount of phosphoric acid is then added that about equal parts of liquor and acid are present. The mixture is concentrated, and the organic thio-compounds in the waste sulphite liquor are decomposed by the phosphoric acid; sulphurous acid separates, while the phosphoric acid combines with the lime present as “sulpholignate” to form a n insoluble calcium phosphate which may be employed as a fertilizer. The separation of the red coloring matter occurs after the elimination of the sulphurous acid. ITALIAN SHIPMENTS OF CARBON DISULPHIDE. According to The Chemical Engineer (16, 41),a shipment of 5 0 tons of carbon disulphide has recently been made from Catania, Italy, to the United States. This shipment, it is learned, is the forerunner of a monthly consignment of like amount. This fact, coupled with several inquiries received from rubber manufacturers, induces the belief that a shortage in the supply of that product exists in the United States. When it is considered that there is a duty of 2 5 per cent. on the product, that owing to its highly inflammable nature difficulties are encountered in finding vessels which will carry it, that the freight is $18.25 per ton, that the containers (iron drums) are of two-thirds the value of the product and are subject to a duty of 45 per cent., it must be evident that the seeking of this product in a foreign market is hardly a matter of price, but is the result of inadequate production in the United States. There is one establishment producing carbon disulphide a t Catania, a sulphur center, Sicily, namely, 1,’Insulare. I t began operations some 1 2 years ago to supply a local demand, where the article is used in extracting the oil remaining in the residuum of olive oil presses. THE CONDITION OF THE CHILEAN SALTPETER INDUSTRY. According to Die Chemische Industrie, 35, No. 13, 420, in the period from May I , 1911, to April 30, 1912, the world’s saltpeter consignment was increased by I 15,000tons as compared with a similar period the past year. The total consignments for the year ending April, 30, 1912, were: Toxs. In Europe and Egypt.. ......................... In the United States and remaining countries.. . . . .
Total consignments.. ...........................
1,848,000 550,000
~2,398,000
687
In the last four months, the Chilean production decreased j,OOO tons, owing to the scarcity of laborers and to the low price prevailing for saltpeter. There is also much competition in the saltpeter industry, while the atnmonium sulphate industry is practically in one hand. I t is stated that the nitrogen price varies 1.31 M. per kg. for saltpeter and 1.39 X. per kg. in the case of ammonium sulphate.
METHYL CHLORIDE AS A REFRIGERATING AGENT. Methyl chloride has been used to some extent as a means of producing cold and its use has been suggested in refrigerating machines. I t is non-poisonous, although anaesthetic, and by its evaporation a temperature of -23O C. is produced, while with air-blowing a temperature of - 5 5 O C. may be reached. A mixture of 88 per cent. air and 1 2 per cent. methyl chloride by volume is exploded only by electric sparks or a powder fuse, and not by flames; when the content of methyl chloride falls below IO per cent. or is raised above 15 per cent., the mixture does not ignite (2. Ges. Schiess- u. Sprengstofw., 6, 304). Lachmann and Heylandt Ges. m. b. H. (French Patent 438,727, 1912) now claim methyl fluoride either alone or mixed with other gases, as methyl chloride, for use as a refrigerating agent. Considerable quantities of methyl chloride are wasted in the chlorination of denatured spirit, and it may be prepared, if required in large quantities, by the chlorination of natural gas. ACCELERATING PAINT DRYING WITH OZONIZED AIR. A method of hastening the drying of paint, particularly freshly applied paint on automobile bodies, by means of ozone, has recently been tried out. The ozone was carried by forced draft into the drying room, where it came into contact with “green” paint on a newly painted body selected for the test. Another body, having an equal amount of paint spread over the same area, was placed in a natural atmosphere. At the end of an hour the body kept in the ozonized air had gained 1.67 per cent. in weight, while the other had increased only 1.13 per cent. At the end of a second hour the respective increases in weight were 3.34 per cent. and 1.51 per cent.; while after I j hours the ozone-treated body had gained 19.74 per cent., as against a total increase of 9.76 per cent. for the other. The treatment with ozonized air thus showed a n advantage of more than IOO per cent. over plain air drying.
A NEW PROCESS FOR PRODUCING STEARIC ACID. Another process for the production of stearic acid from oleic acid is claimed in a recent German Patent (No. 247,454). According to the specification, oleic acid or its esters is treated with concentrated sulphuric acid, and the product, after washing free from sulphuric acid, is reduced to stearic acid by means of an electric current. In more detail, the process is as follows: The sulpho-acid is washed with cold water to free it from sulphuric acid, and is then dissolved in boiling water. The water solution thus obtained is made the catolyte in a diaphragm cell, a 30 per cent. sulphuric acid solution serving as the anolyte. Lead electrodes are employed, with a current density of from 2 . 5 to IO amperes per sq. ft. After the passage of the current for about one-fifth of the time indicated theoretically-assuming IOO per cent. current efficiency-as required to complete the reduction, the fatty acids separate out and are again treated with sulphuric acid and electrolyzed. I t is said that by repeating the operation several times, oleic acid may be almost quantitatively converted into stearic acid.
In 1911,the total consignments were 2,285,000 tons, 1,661,000 THE RAPID PRODUCTION OF PURE CREAM OF TARTAR. tons of which went to Europe and Egypt. The falling off in America is explained by the substitution of In German Patent 247,452, recently issued, is described a cotton-seed residue, much of which was on the market in 1911. simple means of obtaining cream of tartar of a high grade of This, however, is looked upon as a matter of passing importance. purity by a single operation. The discovery was made that the
