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CENtrates T o d a y ' s n e w s of the chemical w o r l d l i k e l y to i n f l u e n c e t h e h a p p e n i n g s o f t o m o r r o w
P a y - a s - Y o u - G o G o v e r n m e n t Services
Stepped up efforts to have government agencies charge enough for special services to cover costs is shaping up. T h e Bureau of the Budget and congres sional committees have been urging government agen cies to consider the costs of the service functions they perform for special groups and individuals. In many cases, Increased costs of services performed have not heen offset by increased charges. The Patent Office, which annually runs a deficit carrying out its function of issuing patents, is considering ways and means of boosting its charges to meet costs. During the year which ended June 30, government agencies h a d in creased their revenue by an estimated $23 million through increased charges. Further steps are expected along this line as the Administration tries to reduce costs of Government. A g a i n s t Α - D a t a to A l l i e s
Atomic Energy Commissioner Eugene M. Zuckert last week said he opposed proposals to give the Ameri can people or their allies more information about U. S. atomic weapons manufacture. He said that by disclos ing more information w e would not be helping the American people as much as we would b e helping a potential enemy. In his opinion the AEC is giving the American people all the elements of information that they really need. While pointing u p law changes mak ing possible greater «exchange of basic information, he said that h e saw n o advantage to this country or to total security of sharing weapons manufacture information. N e w P c ' i c y f o r Federal Research?
T o p government administrators, who are involved in scientific research and development matters, are being queried as to the role they feel the National Science Foundation should play in promoting basic research. The Bureau of the Budget has circulated t o these offi cials a tentative executive order which is designed to clarify and strengthen NSF's role. T h e document also proposes methods for joint efforts of government agen cies to improve their administration of government sup ported research and development and to carry out the programs at the least possible cost. T h e job of sifting and analyzing suggestions received has begun but there are no indications as to when definite results may be forthcoming. No D e a l
Proposal of Interhandel Corp., through its president .(•page 3552), that U. S. Government split holdings in disputed General Aniline & Film shares on an 18—82% basis favoring Interhandel, came in for a cool reception at the Office of Alien Property. At New York it was said that GAF officials fully share OAP view that talk of a V O L U M E
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settlement on such a basis is "unrealistic/' They were especially nettled by suggestions that GAF h a d been mismanaged while its stock was being held b y U. S. Attorney General. In Washington, Col. Dallas Townsend, head of OAP, b a c k e d them up with contention that despite financing difficulties General Aniline was doing two to three times better than w h e n their hold ings were seized b y Government. Dogs D o n ' t , D o You?
There was a significant reduction in odor of test dogs fed chlorophyllins when compared with control dogs, according to recently completed organoleptic studies at Sagarin Institute. Sodium potassium copper chlorophyllin reduced the dog odor, b u t did not completely eliminate it. This m a y have been d u e to too low dosage (100 mg. per d a y ) or length of treatment (two w e e k s ) . Some 2800 observations m a d e in t h e series of tests sub stantiated the conclusion that chlorophyllins, when em ployed in amounts prescribed, act as systemic deodor ants on dogs. These tests were made using American Chlorophyll Division, Strong, C o b b and Co., veterinary grade chlorophyllin ( V g M ). Sagarin Institute says that it can and does effect deodorization in dogs. Soda-Base P u l p C o o k i n g
Large scale evaluation of soda-base cooking of sulfite pulp is under way at Nekoosa-Edwards Paper Co., Port Edwards, Wis. Economical operation hinges on success of a process owned by Western Precipitation Corp., Los Angeles, whereby the waste liquor is eventually burned and the soda recovered. So far 500 tons of soda-base sulfite p u l p have b e e n produced b y Nekoosa-Edwards. Elimination of the traditional waste liquor disposal problem of t h e lime-base process is big advantage of soda-base cooking. Although soda-base sulfite processes are used in Europe, t h e r e has been no previous mill scale work in this country. G a s Seepage
Peoples Gas Light & Coke Co., (Chicago) has tem porarily halted injection of natural gas into its under ground storage vault n e a r Kankakee, 111. (C&EN, Jan. 28, 1952). Recent leakage of marsh gas from water wells and abandoned oil wells in the vicinity, it is feared, may b e in some w a y connected with company's pumping of gas into the Herscher Dome, 1800 feet un derground. Marsh gas is found at lesser depths, but Peoples Gas is carefully investigating to determine whether pressure from injected gas m a y b e forcing marsh gas through underground lesions. Other possi bilities: leakage of injected gas through injection well casings, or around concrete "shoes" (where injection wells terminate in sand s t r a t u m ) may b e forcing marsh gas laterally through u p p e r porous strata and into old wells. Company will p u m p no further gas for storage
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eonCEEJWtrates until it completes check on 21 injection wells, has satisfied itself and local residents that storage will not present a hazard. Since April, about 8 billion cubic feet of gas have been p u m p e d into the dome; some 18 billion must be stored before any substantial withdrawal can be made. International N u c l e a r E n e r g y Society
In Oslo early this month preliminary plans were laid for the formation of an International Nuclear Energy Society. Representatives of 19 countries meeting there for a heavy water reactor conference named a committee for mapping preliminary organization. Committee chairman is Norway's Gunnar Randers, director of the Joint (Norwegian-Dutch) EstabHshment for Nuclear Energy Research. Proposed activities of new organization: standardization of notation and nomenclature; possible foundation of a European periodical on nuclear science; organization of international conferences; and collection and circulation of published material in the field. Physicists and chemists from the U. S. attended the Oslo conference and it is felt that any new society would include American represents Hon. Refiners D o u b l e D u t y
Crude oil running capacity of the Texas Co/s refineries at Amarillo and E l Paso, Tex., will b e doubled by late 1954, according to both plant superintendents. The Amarillo refinery, which is the oldest in the Panhandle area, was placed in operation by Reese S. Allen in 1918 and sold to the Texas Co. in 1928. New "facelifting" operations will include entire replacement of existing crude oil distillation facilities, installation of an Orthoflow catalytic cracking unit, ? catalytic reformer, a delayed coker, a catalytic polymerization unit, a n d an alkylation unit. Approximately 1.3 million barrels of new tankage will b e added. El Paso is to receive a fluid cat cracker, a catalytic reformer, a delayed coker, and a catalytic polymerization unit in addition to 834,000 barrels of new tankage. t More Coke Chemicals
Coke chemical production is being increased by the addition of a new coke oven battery at the Bethlehem Works of the Bethlehem Steel Co. Output will b e increased one fifth With the addition of 1300 tons of coke daily to capacity, making total annual production for that company 2.3 million tons of coke. New battery should add 6900 gallons of tar, 1700 gallons of benzene, 260 gallons of toluene, and 8.5 tons of ammonium sulfate to the company's daily output of coke chemicals. By-product coke production for the U. S. has been running 72 million tons annually. Commerce Joins A g a n d C h e m
Decreased work load and need for economy has led the Commerce Department to consolidate two of its Office of International Trade divisions and eliminate a third one. The Agricultural Products Division a n d the Chemical Division have been combined into the Agricultural and Chemical Products Division. The Petroleum Division has been eliminated and its functions divided between the Materials Division and the Projects and 3522
Technical Data Division. The new Agricultural and Chemical Products Division is concerned with export licensing for agricultural chemicals, agricultural machinery, fertilizer, chemicals a n d drugs, and both natural and synthetic textiles. H e a d of agricultural products division, R. T. Stewart, has been named director of the new division. L. N. Markwood, head of the chemical division, is now associate director of the new division. Unusual feature of the move is that the number of chemicals and drugs subject to export licensing outweighs agricultural products more than two to one. Boost in A s p h a l t
The Cincinnati area will soon have a sizable increase in its asphalt production. American Bitumuls and Asphalt Co., of San Francisco, a subsidiary of Standard Oil Co. of Calif., plans to construct a $4 million refinery on a 100-acre tract recently acquired at Miami Ford. The plant will process a high grade asphaltic crude from Venezuela, brought to New Orleans by tanker then barged up-river. Products will include asphaltic material used by the paving industry for roads, streets, anH airports, and for bituminous maintenance of all kinds. The project will include a two-stage distillation unit, administration building, and laboratory facilities. Company will not state the rated capacity of t h e new refinery, b u t storage capacity will total 1.1 million barrels, including four tanks of 168,000 barrels each, the largest of their kind in Ohio. AB&A operates refineries at Seattle, Portland, Baltimore, East Providence, and Mobile. T h e Miami Ford refinery will serve Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Michigan. Eventual employment: 100 persons. Fluon A g a i n A v a i l a b l e
A new plant for producing polytetrafluoroethylene has just been brought into operation in Great Britain by Imperial Chemical Industries. Trade-named "Fluon," this versatile polymer has been i n short supply in Britain since 1950 when an explosion completely stopped production in the original factory. ICI officials are reluctant to discuss capacity, investment, or even location of the new plant. Plastic P i p e Reaches the ' S t i c k s "
When an average product is introduced, t h e city markets are usually gone over first because of concentration of population and potential customers. Plastic pipe as water conduits has now reached the ^sticks" and with great enthusiasm, C&EN learns. It is used particularly in homes and public buildings for carrying cold water, and in wells. One small town skeptic carried on experiments at his well equipment shop for two years and found plastic resisted all kinds of punishment, such as being filled with water in cold weather and freezing—it bulged but did not break. Less satisfactory are phenol-formaldehyde resin connections, which are reported brittle and more subject to damage than the nipe. Copper tubing introduced many plumbing advantages; plastic has copper's advantages and others. Some steel makers and at least one m a k e r of copper pipe are starting manufacture of plastic pipe, joining t h e new movement rather than fighting it. C H E M I C A L
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