CHEMICALS
Chapter 2.
UNBRANCHED POLYMER. Dist Anal uses a boron catalyst in ether solution to make polymethylene from diazomethane, inorganic chemistry consultant Dr. Selbin explains
Dist Anal Markets Polymethylene Polymer with no side chains serves as reference standard in polymer research Polymer research chemists can now buy polymethylene. Available from Dist Anal, Baton Rouge-, La., polymethylene is a high molecular weight, completely linear polymer made from diazomethane. Its use: a linear ref-
IR Fingerprints Linearity . . .
I I I I I I
If you expect an explanation of how we took this picture, you'll have to read on, because * first we have a lot more to tell you about Kay-Fries and the chemistry of our products.
Remember, last time we talked about our large volume products, J formaldehyde and the phthalate I plasticizers. These are good "bread I and butter" items, but not half as fascinating as other things we make . . . the cyanoacetates, for instance.
These used to be thought of as lab curiosities . . . far too expensive I for industrial use. That's not so I any more, since Kay-Fries went into volume production (as our truckers will testify). Chemists erence standard in polymer research. find that our cyanoacetic acid (which Up to now, polymer chemists have sells for well under $1 per lb.) has made their own polymethylene, using pretty broad application for anypreparations outlined in the literature. one needing a cyanoacetyl, an active methylene, a cyanomethylene, Difficulty: You don't always get a or a carboxymethylene group in a completely linear product. Dist Anal's new molecule. People tell us its method, however, gives a polymethylquality is unequalled. Ghances are ene without any branched components, some of its many derivatives are says Dr. Joel Selbin. A professor at found right in your medicine cabinet or even in your refrigerator. Louisiana State University, Dr. Selbin is a consultant to Dist Anal in inor- I But we don't stop at the acid ganic chemistry. alone. We esterify it too. Hence methyl and ethyl cyanoacetates How It's Made. First, Dist Anal have found industrial uses. Howdecomposes the diazo compound, then ever we can talk about these in the polymerizes the resulting methylene next chapter. groups with the aid of a boron catalyst. As for the picture . . . it was not The reaction takes place in ether at taken upside down. about 0° C. to give a crystalline polymer with no side chains. In comparison, Dist Anal says, high pressure So long for now process polyethylene has 20 to 25 methyl groups per 1000 carbon atoms, Ziegler polyethylene has three to five, and Phillips' Marlex about 2.5. And Wes Haverstraw while the polymer has an average I molecular weight of about 300,000, it shows a high melt viscosity ( 107 poise, CHCMICALS.INC. as compared to Marlex-50's 105 poise, II V V for example). I Kay-Fries Chemicals, Inc. Continued on page 75
m
MAY 16, 1 9 6 0 C & E N
69
C&EN
COMMERCIAL CHEMICALS
PROGRESS REPORT
Companies added these products to their lines during the past four weeks Material Anhydrous Ν,Ν,Ν',Ν',-tetramethyl ethylenediamine (T-23)
Company Ames Laboratories Norwalk, Conn.
Suggested Uses Include Preparing ion exchange resins, pharma ceuticals, quaternary ammonium compounds, urethane foam catalysts, and textile treating agents. Available in drum lots
2-Hydroxy-4,6-dimethylpyrimidine hydro chloride
B. L. Lamke & Co. Lodi, N J .
Available in pilot plant quantities only
Methylamine chromium sulfate
City Chemical New York, N.Y.
Electronic uses. Available in experimen tal quantities only
Chloromethylated diphenyl oxide
Dow Chemical Midland, Mich.
Fire resistant foams and plastics. Avail able in pilot plant quantities only
Two ceramics (molybdenum and tungsten suicides)
Electro-Thermal Industries Pearl River, N.Y.
Oxidation resistant coatings, electrical resistance applications
Three electronics grade solvents (acetone, trichloroethylene, and methyl alcohol)
Fisher Scientific Pittsburgh, Pa.
Drying and cleansing electronic parts
Anticoagulant rodenticide (sodium salt of 2-isovaleryl-l,3-indandione)
Inland Chemical New York, N.Y.
Low-cost chloro compounds [monochloromethyl alkylbenzenes, bis-(chloromethyl) alkylbenzenes, chloromethyl methylnaphthalenes, and polychloro methylnaphthalenes]
International Minerals & Chemicals Skokie, III.
Plasticizers, herbicides, fungicides, func tional fluids, cosmetics, pharmaceuti cals, inks, paint, and adhesives. Available in research quantities only
Potassium hydroxide, 4 5 % solution
J. T. Baker Chemical Phillipsburg, N J .
Analysis and semiconductor production. Available in one- and eight-pint bottles
Fatty acids (methyl esters, alcohols, and amines from C6 to C18)
Lachat Biochemical Chicago, III
As comparative standards and in re search
C1 Mabeled compounds (methyl alcohol-C13, methyl iodide-C13, sodium acetate-1-C13 and -2-C13, and methyl-C13 acetylene)
Merck & Co., Ltd. Montreal, Que.
Tracer studies
Radioactive carbon compounds (cortisone-4-C14, cortisone-4-C u ace tate, and l,2,3,4-dibenzanthracene-9C14)
Nuclear-Chicago Des Plaines, III.
The two steroids: adrenal cortical in sufficiency studies; the anthracene derivative: physiological tracer studies of tumors
Porous silver
Pall Corp. Glen Cove, N.Y.
Four specialized biochemicals (adenosine 3',5'-cyclic phosphate, guanosine 5'diphosphate, guanosine 5'-triphosphate, and radioactive tritiated L-histidine)
Schwarz BioResearch Mt. Vernon, N.Y.
D-Dibenzoyl tartaric acid
Sonbert Chemical Brooklyn, N.Y.
Separating stereoisomers
High energy oxidizers (nitrogen trifluoride and tetrafluorohydrazine)
Stauffer Chemical New York, N.Y.
Preparing compounds for specific high energy fuel applications. Available in pilot plant quantities only
Three α-bromo compounds (α-bromopropionic acid, a-bromopropionyl chloride, and a-bromopropionate)
Valchem Langley, S.C.
Available in commercial quantities unless otherwise noted·
70
C&EN
MAY 16, 1960
The portion of sunlight with a wave length of about 0.000029 to 0.000033 centimeters is the region in the ultraviolet area of the spectrum that tans or burns the skin. It can't be detected by the eye but it can be felt. The remainder of the sunlight in the ultraviolet range is safe—in fact, beneficial. Suntan and sunburn go hand in hand depending on exposure. Effective suntan lotions are sun screens. They protect the skin from sunburn . . . when applied frequently in sufficient quantity. Certain chemicals in suntan lotions act as filters for the damaging rays and have no effect on harmless rays outside the 0.000029-0.000033 range. These chemicals absorb the radiation which would burn, and most lotions will absorb radiation for at least two hours. The real benefit of the lotions is that they permit sun worshippers to remain exposed to their deity for longer periods of time without being burned. The ultraviolet absorbing chemicals in many suntan lotions are derivatives of benzene, toluene and naphthalene—members of the fine family of USS Chemicals serving industry in thousands of ways. Benzene · Toluene · Xylene · Phenol · Cresol · Cresylic Acid · Naphthalene · Creosote · Pitch · Picoline · Pyridine · Ammonium Sulfate · Ammonium Nitrate · Anhydrous Ammonia · Nitric Acid
UNITED STATES STEEL Chemical Sales Offices in: Pittsburgh, New York, Chicago, Salt Lake City and Fairfield, Alabama
® TRADEMARK
Chemicals
The portion of sunlight with a wave length of about 0.000029 to 0.000033 centimeters is the region in the ultraviolet area of the spectrum that tans or burns the skin. It can't be detected by the eye but it can be felt. The remainder of the sunlight in the ultraviolet range is safe—in fact, beneficial. Suntan and sunburn go hand in hand depending on exposure. Effective suntan lotions are sun screens. They protect the skin from sunburn . . . when applied frequently in sufficient quantity. Certain chemicals in suntan lotions act as filters for the damaging rays and have no effect on harmless rays outside the 0.000029-0.000033 range. These chemicals absorb the radiation which would burn, and most lotions will absorb radiation for at least two hours. The real benefit of the lotions is that they permit sun worshippers to remain exposed to their deity for longer periods of time without being burned. The ultraviolet absorbing chemicals in many suntan lotions are derivatives of benzene, toluene and naphthalene—members of the fine family of USS Chemicals serving industry in thousands of ways. Benzene · Toluene · Xylene · Phenol · Cresol · Cresylic Acid · Naphthalene · Creosote · Pitch · Picoline · Pyridine · Ammonium Sulfate · Ammonium Nitrate · Anhydrous Ammonia · Nitric Acid
UNITED STATES STEEL Chemical Sales Offices in: Pittsburgh, New York, Chicago, Salt Lake City and Fairfield, Alabama
MISS) Chemicals TRADEMARK
JACQJJES BERNOULLI
THE WIZARD OF ODDS He solved a telephone traffic problem two centuries ago Jacques Bernoulli, the great Swiss mathematician, pondered a question early in the 18th century. Can you mathematically predict what will happen when events of chance take place, as in throwing dice? His answer was the classical Bernoulli binomial distribution—a basic formula in the mathematics of probability (published in 1713). The laws of probability say, for instance, that if you roll 150 icosahedrons (the 20-faced solid shown above), 15 or more of them will come to rest with side " A " on top only about once in a hundred times. Identical laws of probability govern the calls coming into your local Bell Telephone exchange. Suppose you are one of a group of 150 telephone subscribers, each of whom makes a three-minute call during the busiest hour of the day. Since three minutes is one-twentieth of an hour, the
probability that you or any other subscriber will be busy is 1 in 20, the same as the probability that side " A " of an icosahedron will be on top. The odds against 15 or more of you talking at once are again about 100 to 1. Thus it would be extravagant to supply your group with 150 trunk circuits when 15 are sufficient for good service. Telephone engineers discovered at the turn of the century that telephone users obey Bernoulli's formula. At Bell Telephone Laboratories, mathematicians have developed the mathematics of probability into a tool of tremendous economic value. All over the Bell System, the mathematical approach helps provide the world's finest telephone service using the least possible equipment. The achievements of these mathematicians again illustrate how Bell Laboratories works to improve your telephone service.
BELL T E L E P H O N E
LABORATORIES
World center of communications research and development
Dist Anal has priced its polymethylene at about $6.50 per gram. Biggest factor in this cost: making diazomethane from nitrosomethylurea. An alternative route to diazomethane, which would be developed and used if demand for polymethylene warrants, would cut this cost significantly—perhaps even by a factor of 100, the company says. C1
NEW CHEMICALS An elastomeric polymer emulsion which can be sprayed along highway grades and landscapes to control soil erosion and to speed seed germination has been introduced by Alco Oil & Chemical, Philadelphia, Pa. Applied with standard spray equipment, Vulcanol forms a pliable, .water insoluble coating which yields against wind and water, but does not crack, the comC2 pany says. Paper base phenolic laminate to reduce fire hazards in printed electric circuits has been developed by National Vulcanized Fibre, Wilmington, Del. The new laminate has good cold punch characteristics and costs less than epoxy laminates, National says. C3 Pressure
sensitive
adhesive
for
foamed polystyrene and polyethylene is a development of Adhesive Products, New York, N.Y. Polystix becomes pressure sensitive after it is applied to foamed plastic and allowed to dry. Pressing it to almost any surface—wood, metal, glass, or plasticthen forms a bond. C4 Two ultraviolet absorbers have been developed by General Aniline & Film, New York, N.Y. The two products, Uvinul N-35 and Uvinul N-38, are substituted acrylonitriles, contain no aromatic hydroxyl groups, and absorb UV at varying pH, GAF says. Uses: protect nitrocellulose lacquers, butadiene-styrene latexes, melamine-formaldehyde, u r e a-formaldehyde, epoxy-amine, and nylon formulations. C5 1
j I j
L
Further useful information on keyed Chemical items mentioned is readily available . . .
I I j
Use handy coupon on page 78 É
j
J
EQUIPMENT
NBS Improves Coulometry New cell, technique, make it as precise as chemical methods National Bureau of Standards has developed an improved coulometer and a method to go along with it that are good enough to be used to establish purity of chemical standards and reference materials. Both the method and the instrument are precise to one part in 100,000, the bureau says. With these developments, from work by Dr. John K. Taylor and S. W. Smith, coulometry can give results as good as—and sometimes better than— classical chemical methods, NBS says. And coulometric analyses are simpler, quicker, and easier to run than the classical methods. A main point in their development, the bureau scientists explain, is their modified titration cell. It has two compartments—one with a platinum cathode, the other with a silver anode. They are separated by fritted glass disks, thus preventing transfer of the electrolyte solution to or from either. Potassium chloride solution is the electrolyte. The other key factor: the care with which current and time are measured. In the bureau's new method, current is measured as a voltage drop across a standard resistor, which is then compared with the drop across a saturated standard cell. Both the standard cell and the resistors are calibrated against NBS standards, as is the crystal-controlled time-interval meter.
Dual beam light scatter photometer, from Monitron, Cincinnati, Ohio, is designed to monitor atmospheres where particulate matter, dusts, aero sols, or the like create hazards or nuisances. The unit can detect changes in dust content of air in a room from a person walking through, the company says. Ε2 Flame ionization analyzer can detect hydrocarbon contents as low as parts per billion, according to its producer, Carad Corp., Redwood City, Calif. The detector can be used on combus tion efficiency studies, poisonous gas detection, and metabolic studies, the company suggests. Ε3 Semiautomatic instrument to measure surface and interfacial tensions has been developed by Fisher Scientific, Pittsburgh, Pa. The Fisher Tensiomat uses the du Nouy method—a small platinum-iridium ring is pulled or pushed through the surface film and
Glass Finds More Uses BRIEFS Process flame photometer, from Waters Associates, Framingham, Mass., is designed to detect sodium content of water from 0.1 to 10 parts per billion, can handle five sample streams. The instrument can also measure boron, chromium, cobalt, rubidium, and other elements which emit in flames. Ε1
Low cost glass pillows and balls for filler, filter, packing.and tumbling uses are now made by Corning Glass Works. The pillows include both solid and hollow pieces, can be supplied in lengths up to 72 in. The balls can be made to diam eters of 7 2 in. Some uses of the hollow pillows: packing in aircraft wings, filler in casting larger plastic pieces. Solid pillows: as fillers in fractionating columns and in filter beds. Automatic washing machine makers use ballshaped pieces in their antilint filters. Corning will display the pieces at the De sign Engineering Show in New York, May 23 to 26. Ε4
MAY 16, 1960 C&EN
75
