Nov., 1917
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T H E J O U R N A L OF I N D U S T R I A L A N D ENGINEERING C H E M I S T R Y
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THIRD EXPOSITION OF CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES
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T h e T h i r d N a t i o n a l Exposition of C h e m i c a l Ind u s t r i e s w a s h e l d i n Grand Central Palace, New Y o r k C i t y , S e p t e m b e r 2 4 t o 2 9 , 1917. The varied and a t t r a c t i v e e x h i b i t s p r o v e d a v e r i t a b l e i n s p i r a t i o n t o the t h o u s a n d s w h o d a i l y t h r o n g e d t h e building and f u r n i s h e d c o n c r e t e evidence of the tremendous strides f o r w a r d of t h e chemical i n d u s t r i e s d u r i n g the p a s t year. Brilliant as the spectacle was, however, i t is p r o b a b l e that the l a s t i n g impression of t h e Ex-
position will lie i n t h e m a n y t h o u g h t f u l addresses given d u r i n g t h e week, not o n l y by men closely identified w i t h t h e s e industries, b u t also by publicists, government officials, b a n k e r s a n d o t h e r s , all of w h o m recognized t h e m a n y fields of h u m a n e n d e a v o r t o u c h e d b y chemistry. For t h e p r e s e r v a t i o n of t h i s t h o u g h t record we r e p r o d u c e h e r e as given, or in abstracted form, these addresses. [EDITOR.]
OPENING ADDRESSES
In the second place, this army has its camp followers-men who, under the guise of chemistry, seek to enlist capital in developments bearing all the earmarks of get-rich-quick schemes, the disastrous out-working of which may, perhaps, shake that confidence between capital and chemists which should grow daily stronger if this battle is t o be fully won. And it must be won. Only patriotic motives underlie that conviction. It is the nation’s service t o which we are called and to that service the good faith and untiring zeal of the American chemist is pledged.
September 24, 1917 T H E BATTLE OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL INDUSTBIES By CRAS. H. HERTY Chairman Advisory Committee of the Chemical Exposition
The battle for national self-containedness, in that portion of the line held by the American chemist, is progressing favorably. It is not yet won, but many heights have been conquered, many formidable streams crossed, and the open plains of full national service are almost in sight. This Exposition, increasing in magnitude each year by one hundred per cent of its original size, constitutes the bulletin by which the nation is informed of the progress made. I n the center, the advance up the steep slopes of “capitalization” has been marked. I n 1915there was added t o the chemical industries $65,565,000; in 1916,$99,244,000, and in 1917,up to September I, $65,861,000, a total gain of $230,670,000. On the extreme right the forces of “Empiricism” have steadily yielded ground to the advances of our research chemists. More and more called upon for utmost effort, they have never failed t o respond. On the left flank a steadily increasing force of the ablest American chemists is being gathered to capture the hill of “Obsoletism of Army Equipment” and is providing the great armies we are now raising with the most efficient forms of modern chemical means for both offensive and defensive warfare. On the right center the terrain of “Congressional Apathy” has been partly won, as typified by favorable protective legislation for our dyestuff industry and by the guarding of the all-important electrochemical industries a t Niagara Falls from power shortage, due to lapsing legislation. On the left center, the quagmire plains of “Public Indifference” have been largely dried and made passable through the clearing skies of a sympathetic daily press. which has constantly einphasized the value to the independence of the nation of a full-rounded chemical industry. Finally, the counter-attacks of subtle propaganda against the ability of American chemists and the worthiness of our products, such as American dyestuffs, have ingloriously failed. The optimism engendered by such splendid progress will prove, however, a curse indeed if it leads us to overlook two features of the present situation. I n the first place, in order to man the present lines of this battle of the chemical industries, we have already drawn heavily upon our reserves in the universities throughout the country. Many professors, advanced students, and even only partly trained students, have been called into the industries. This, together with the losses by enlistment, has created a serious shortage of chemists whose replacement through all favoring means should be a constant charge upon the liberality of the leaders of ourgchemical industry, and the far-sightedness of those vested with the powers of national administration.
AMERICAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRY AND THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY By JULIUS STIBGLITZ President American Chemical Society
Every cloud has its silver lining, and even the great black cloud of war, which has been oppressing the world these three years, has been penetrated, here and there, by bright rays Qf good accomplished. One of these brighter effects of the disaster, as far as this country is concerned, has been the influence of the war on our chemical industries. Facing the necessity not only of very greatly expanding their output, but also of developing many new products and of making older products of a far higher grade in quality than ever before, our American industries, as evidenced by the three expositions held in this place, have met and conquered one great problem after the other. Itre may confidently expect. and, indeed, we must insist. that out of this period of forced effort we shall emerge independent of all foreign nations in regard to our ability to supply the basic chemical needs of our country, not only in quantity, but also in quality. As a single instance of the progress these years have witnessed in a field we must continue to hold after the war, let me recall the dismay of our universities-and I am sure, also of our industrial laboratories-when, early in 1915, we saw the supplies of Jena glass and of other finer glass cut off. Yet to-day we are manufacturing in the United States glassware fully as good as, if not indeed superior to, the German brands we thought we never could do without. When the war is over, no matter how fierce trade competition may be, we must see to it that our new industries survive, that we do not relapse into our old dependence on European sources for almost every article in which quality, highest quality, is essential. I n the heat of effort of these years only the most urgent and immediate of our needs have been met; some of these results still depend for their stability upon war conditions; they are still too liable to collapse when the world returns to its normal life and trade is free once more. In this situation, fraught with magnificent possibilities for much greater chemical achievements, but also with great dangers for the permanency of some of the American chemical industries, the American Chemical Society, for which I am speaking, sees its opportunity of being of new and still greater service to the country.
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T H E J O U R N A L O F I N D U S T R I A L A N D E N G I N E E R I N G CHEMISTRY COBPERATIVE ACTIVITIES OF THE SOCIETY
Including in its membership of more than .IO,OOO the great majority of leading technical chemists, as well as practically all the foremost men of the chemistry staffs of our universities and colleges, the society is in a position to render service in any branch of chemistry, service that will be both expert and at the same time judicial and unbiased in its spirit. Thus, the society, influenced by the conviction that our national welfare demands independence in dye manufacturing, was active in aiding the movement t o secure a much-needed measure of protection by duties on dyes. Then, at the invitation of the chairman of the United States Tariff Commission, the American Chemical Society, through its Advisory Committee, a few months ago recommended the name of a n expert, Dr. Grinnell Jones, on chemical schedules, who is now working with the commission on the task of placing the tariff on a scientific, non-political basis. The Society recently urged upon the Secretary of Commerce that standard chemicals and reagents are as essential for successful work, for the saving of wasted effort in chemical industries, as are standardized weights, measures and gauges in other industries. With the approval of Secretary Redfield, the Bureau of Standards, with the cooperation of a committee of the American Chemical Society, has now started this important work. Then, our appeal in Kansas City t o the women of the country to refrain from the purchase or acceptance of platinum jewelry had its immediate effect; within a few days thereafter the jewelers’ representatives, in conference with the Secretary of Commerce, agreed not t o use the precious metal for heavy articles, thus making a larger proportion of the valuable metal available for the industries. According t o the latest information that has come t o me, the price of platinum has at last begun t o recede somewhat, instead of continuing the steady rise which its extravagant use in jewelry brought about and which put a burden equivalent to a duty of several hundred per cent on a vital necessity of our scientific and industrial laboratories. I have the fullest confidence that if the situation should remain intolerable, we shall have the support of the government in taking much more stringent measures to protect chemical industries and scientific work, so vital t o our nation’s life, against what is, after all, a mere luxury. Further, a t the instance of the American Chemical Society and in cooperation with a committee of the Society, the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce has started the compilation of as complete information as it can secure for the guidance of our industries in regard t o the chemical needs of manufacturers, the sources of supply of crude and finished products, and the relation of the various products t o one another and to specific industries. Thanks t o the efforts of the able editor of our Industrial Journal, Dr. Herty, a large fund has been raised to make possible this cooperation of the Society with the government in this important work, and if the chairman of our committee, Dr. B. C. Hesse, has his strenuous way, the work will be a model of thoroughness and usefulness. SOCIETY WELCOMES APPEALS FROM INDUSTRIES
I have mentioned these instances of the activities of the American Chemical Society in order to emphasize that the society would cordially welcome any appeals made t o it by industries needing support of one kind or another. We are now organized for quick and effective action-in matters of legislation and policy, through our Advisory Committee t o the President, in matters of research through our affiliation with the National Research Council, all of whose active members in chemical fields are also active members of our society. When such appeals or suggestions are received, they will receive prompt and earnest consideration, and, if necessary, be looked into by a committee of experts, not only with that fair, judicial spirit which science develops in its devotees, but also with that
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sympathy and consideration which the service of our country instills into her sons. Final action will then follow, with t h a t fearlessness and energy which a good case always warrants, and which we trust will always be truly in the interest of American Chemical Industry. QEEETINGI FBOM T E E ELECTBOCEEMISTS By COLING. FINK President American Electrochemical Society
It was certainly a very propitious moment when three years ago Mr. Roth and Mr. Nagelvoort suggested and planned the first chemical exposition. The American Electrochemical Society heartily welcomed the idea and felt fully confident that the enterprise would be popular and successful. An undertaking which is based on the promotion of the common welfare, an undertaking that affects the progress and prosperity not of a few individuals but of every member of the country, an undertaking that serves t o teach and demonstrate in a very striking and lasting manner the diverse applications and activities of the most fundamental of all national industries-an undertaking of this kind cannot fail, it must succeed. At the first exposition the exhibits were confined t o one floor; in the second year the booths extended over two floors and in this third year practically every square inch of space is occupied. Very soon Mr. Payne will have t o build a bigger palace. Never before in the history of electrochemistry has the vast importance of the various electrochemical products been so forcibly brought to the attention of our government and of our people as in the present year of the great war. Take from this country its electrochemical industry with its numerous and diversified manufactures and the martial strength of our country is hopelessly crippled. Think of the hundreds of machine shops that are utterly dependent on the electrochemical abrasives, carborundum and alundum; think of the thousands of rifles and guns turned out every month with the aid of high speed steel made from electric ferro-alloys; think of the millions of pounds of electrolytic copper that are absolutely essential for our electrical apparatus. There is the aeroplane whose light, strong stays are made from the electrochemical metals, aluminum and magnesium; there is liquid chlorine, a product of the electrolytic cell and the basis of the Carrel-Dakin method of treating the wounds of our heroes; there is electrolytic hydrogen used in all of our scout and observation balloons and there are the numberless electric alloys entering into the composition of nearly every item of the government’s vast military equipment. An interesting feature of the electrochemical industry is its American origin and its present international scope, international in so far as the industry is not restricted or confined t o one or two countries or localities. Take, for example, the calcium carbide industry: this was founded by a n American, Thomas Willson; within a brief generation it has grown in leaps and bounds; to-day there are large carbide factories in almost every civilized country of the world. Compare with this the sulfur industry confined t o the United States and Russia. The natural saltpeter industry is confined t o Chile, but the electrochemical saltpeter industry, founded by Bradley and Lovejoy, at Niagara Falls, has spread to every important civilized center. Wherever low-priced waterpower or low-priced fuel is available in generous and steady amounts, there electrochemical industries have been and will be established. Our country has been foremost in the electrochemical industry ever since its inception, due t o American genius on the one hand and to our vast natural resources on the other. May we continue to lead the world in the supply of the many electrochemical products, pure metals and alloys for the arts, gases for cutting and welding, chlorine and peroxides for our hospitals, chlorates and acetone for munitions, nitrates for the farm and defense, abrasives, electrodes, solvents and lubricants! May we continue to excel in the products of the electric furnace and the electrolytic cell!
