Continental Europe Germany An order lias been issued by the German Price Commissioner for the reduction of cartel prices, and the chemical industry is one of those which are likely to be affected by the new order and feel some concern about its possible effects. Before the order was issued the cartels had been asked for proposals about price reductions, but this voluntary action does not seem to have given satisfactory results, and the price commissioner has therefore decided to fix prices himself. The position in the chemical industry is rather more complicated than in others, as the same products may be obtained by different processes. They may be principal objects of production in one factory and merely by-products in another plant. Nevertheless the price commissioner intends to fix binding prices in accordance with costs as established by him in a typical efficient plant. In general, the costs allowed will be those of the most efficient producer; other firms have either to adjust their production methods or to bear a loss. This intention seems to have aroused a great deal of opposition even from official representatives of the chemical industry, who point out that low costs, though undoubtedly important, are not the only factor to be taken into consideration. In the choice of the material availability at home and possibility of substitution are regarded as no less important, and substitution may in many cases result in higher prices. It is argued that if low costs are the only determining factor, the utilization of many waste products from other processes will become impossible, with the result that the demand for essential raw materials in short supply will increase. It is said that the examination of all these questions in detail will take considerable time. In the meantime negotiations with the price commissioner have begun.
French Chemical Workmen A r e Transferred to Germany
The chemical factories belong to one of the six industrial groups in which direct negotiations between German and French organizations have taken place with a view to the transfer of skilled workmen from France to the Reich. It is reported that the I. G. Farbenindustrie alone wishes to employ 7,000 French workmen, probably largely in its plants at Mannheim, Ludwigshafen, and Oppau which have been visited on various occasions by the Royal Air Force. The willingness of French industrial firms to cooperate with German companies in the transfer of workmen will depend somewhat upon the present form of the placement of German orders with French firms, comments a neutral paper, the Neue Zûricher Zeitung. In recent 1312
months it has been noticed in France that German contracts have been cancelled or allowed to expire, with the result that substantial numbers of workers in French factories had to be paid off. It is intended to transfer these unemployed workers in Belriehazellen—i. e., groups of workers who have been employed together in one factory—to German industrial centers where, it is hoped, they will acclimatize easier if they have all their colleagues with them. The recruiting of labor for German chemical factories has been extended to the unoccupied zone and enjoys the full support of the Vichy authorities, while French chemical manufacturers are reluctant t o dismiss their skilled workers and thus deprive themselves of the possibility of resuming operations speedily when conditions change. Several firms, for instance, in the oil refining business, which have had to close down their plants entirely, retain their staffs of specialized workers with that in mind, and the German authorities seem to make special efforts to release these workmen for employment in Germany.
Vegetable Caoutchouc to Be Cultivated in Eastern Europe
The Ost-Gesellschaft fur Pflanzenhautschuk und Guttapercha m. b. H. has been formed with the small capital of 30,000 marks as one of the so-called trust companies which have been created by the German authorities for the special purpose of encouraging the production of certain important commodities in occupied territories of eastern Europe. The company is to assist in the cultivation and processing of vegetable caoutchouc and gutta-percha. Another company formed in eastern Europe is the Pankreas-VenvertungsGesellschaft m. b. H., which is to collect pancreas glands from slaughter yards in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Ukraine. Owing to the shortage of insulin, which has led to the introduction of an insulin ration card for diabetics, a large organization for the collection of glands from German slaughter yards was drawn up a long time ago, but this has not apparently solved i t s task in a satisfactory manner.
Leather Fibers Treated with Synthetic Resins
A leather substitute was made before t h e war from leather fibera (derived from waste leather) and latex, but the latter material is now replaced by emulsions of synthetic polymerization products, usually on t h e basis of polyvinyl or polyacrylic acid compounds. I t is stated that waste leather tanned with chromium products has better strength, wear, and suppleness than leather treated with vegetable tanning materials, but must be detanned with a slightly alkaline solution before use. CHEMICAL
Products made with polyvinyl acetate are said t o be stronger, while polyacrylic acid esters seem to give a greater degree of flexibility, but both are inferior to latex in wear resistance, partly because of their greater moisture absorption. Fats, softeners, and repellents are normally included in the material to give special properties. The sheets in which the material is eventually obtained require careful drying. I. G . Farbenindustrie Subsidiary for High-Molecular Paraffins
T h e Gesellschaft fur Synthese-Produkte m. b. H. has been formed in Frankfort (Main) by the I. G. Farbenindustrie A.-G. for the processing and treatment of highmolecular paraffins. The company has the right to establish branch works abroad and to take over existing equipment of a suitable type.
Removal of Hemi-Celluloses from Textile Cellulose Studied
T h e removal of hemi-celluloses from pulp intended for use in the manufacture of artificial rayon and staple fiber has attracted considerable attention from German chemists, also in connection with the use of new raw materials such as straw and reed. Beside alkaline processes, the possibility of treating celluloses with a pentosan content with 58 to 60 per cent sulfuric acid has recently been investigated. It is claimed that theoretically cellulose with α-cellulose content of 95 per cent can be obtained in this way, which, however, is not easily applicable on an industrial scale. "Prehydrolysis" has been tried out by several producers with apparently satisfactory results. If carried out at high pressure an excellent textile cellulose with 1.8 per cent pentosan only may be obtained b y use of a solution con taining 0.57 per cent hydrochloric acid. 0.66 per cent hydrobromic acid, or 2.54 per cent sulfuric acid. Work with hydro bromic acid seems to have given the high est cellulose production with the highest α-cellulose content. Use of a mixture con taining 0.5 per cent of sulfuric acid and 0.5 per cent of hydrobromic acid gave 31.28 per cent of a very good cellulose with an α-cellulose content of 98.43 per cent from rye straw. T h e type and strength of acid to be used depend in part upon the tem peratures at which the work is carried out. Entirely different results have been ob tained with acids, in varying strengths, at different temperatures and pressures.
Tincture of Iodine Replaced by Indigenous Substitution Product
A new substitute for tincture of iodine, called Kodan tincture, has appeared on the German market. I t is a brown liquid A N D
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with a slight smell of thymol and contains in alcoholic solution chlorobenzylates of the alkyl amides of dimethylaminoacetic acid, chlorodimethylphenol, and chloroxydiphenylmethane. The phenols, which are not soluble in water but soluble in lipoids, lrave a deep effect on the skin. It is claimed that the tincture wets the skin well without irritating it. It does not corrode metal instruments and the brown dyestufT can be easily removed from linen.
iodine Recovered from Flue Dust Flue dust as obtained in German blast furnaces b y electrical gas purification contains between 0.001 and 0.2 per cent of iodine, a n d experiments for the recovery of the iodine have been carried out at the Heinrich Bierwes plant of the Mannesmann tube works. The flue dust, 19 tons of which axe obtained every 24 hours with 0.025 to O.035 per cent of iodine, is first concentrated by thorough boiling with water, resulting in a dry substance which contains largely sodium and potassium chloride and carbonate, organic compounds, fluorine, ferric oxide, and iodine. Xhe organic compounds are removed b y calcination at about 700° C. The remaining salts are dissolved, leaving the ferric oxide as a residue which is separated. Next the material is precipitated w i t h calcium chloride in order to eliminate the fluorine as far as possible. The remaining clear solution is slightly acidified -with hydrochloric acid and distilled, when it yields between 80 and 90 per cent of thie original iodine content. The potash saJts i n the flue dust can be recovered i n the form of potassium chloride of 98.5 per cent purity and may contribute towards the costs of the process. The economic side of the recovery process seems not to have been examined yet.
Concentration Ordered in the Cosmetics Industry An order issued by the government limits t h e manufacture of cosmetic products to firms which made them in 1938 and h a v e continued production ever since. N o less than 1,600 firms were engaged i n the manufacture of cosmetics before the war, but most of these have been compelled to close down, owing to shortage of raw materials, and the number of firms which h a v e been officially entrusted with the manufacture of toilet preparations by the Reich Office for Chemistry is below 100. In recent years, however, outsiders believed t o number several hundreds have entered t h e market, with the result that, as the Frankfurter Zeitung reports, the market has been inundated with doubtful products. The new concentration measure is directed against these firms. V O L U M E
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New Motor Car Engines Designed for Liquid Gases The use of gases in motor engines has made considerable progress in various countries of Europe, particularly in Italy where natural deposits of methane gas are available, but also in smaller countries like Hungary, Holland, and Denmark. In Denmark gas engines using natural gas have been introduced into small sea-going vessels like fishing boats. In Germany no natural gas deposits are available, but greatly increased use has been made of liquid gases obtained by compression of butane and propane from Fischer-Tropsch plants for synthetic gasoline. In 1936 about 4,000 road vehicles were running on liquid gases in Germany, by 1939 the number had risen to 33,000, and the present circulation is said to be several times larger. The use of liquid gases has been encouraged by the fact that at times their use was virtually unrestricted because the Fischer-Tropsch plants had to dispose of the growing output obtained automatically in the course of their normal operations. At other times restrictions were imposed in order to safeguard supplies of butane for industrial purposes, but in general owners of liquid gas vehicles have fared better than others. Lately there has been a tendency to encourage the use of liquid gases by technical adjustments in engine design. It is claimed that the motor itself need not be altered for liquid gases if Otto motors are used, while for Diesel engines conversion to the Diesel-gas process, which is characterized by the use of small quantities of Diesel oil for starting, etc., is recommended. The high antiknock value of the liquid gases would permit the use of engines with a higher compression ratio than is usual in gasoline or Diesel engines, but users are reluctant to order these specialized engines because they cannot be converted back to the use of liquid motor fuels, although it is stated that these special gas engines consume about 15 per cent less gas than ordinary converted motors. There are now about 700 gas filling stations in various parts of Germany exclusively for liquid gases, and distribution is also helped by mobile distributing stations—i. e., tank cars which are sent wherever they may be needed. Distribution is still a major problem in the utilization of liquid gases.
Sweden Synthetic rubber is now produced from sulfite alcohol in a pilot plant at the rate of 100 kg. a day by Mo and Domsjô, an important firm in the cellulose industry. A larger plant is under construction and will, when completed, have a capacity of 200 tons of synthetic rubber which will be marketed under the trade name Modo. The Industrial Commission assists All-
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manna Svenska Elektriska A.B., a firm of electrical manufacturers, which is experimenting with synthetic rubber in its plant at Viisteras. Meanwhile the rubberyielding plant Taraxacum Kok-Sagys has been cultivated on trial plots in Sweden, and laboratory experiments are also carried out with several local types of dandelion. Less Cellulose For Paper and Rayon The output of fodder cellulose, which according to official plans is to roach 550,000 metric tons in the year ending June next, has assumed considerable proportions, with the result that supplies of wood pulp for the paper industry and of cellulose for rayon manufacture are meeting with some difficulty. Between 40 and 50 per cent more wood will be required to meet all demands, and cellulose manufacturers complain that the prices for fodder cellulose compare unfavorably with those received from rayon producers. Swedish cellulose plants seem to have concluded large contracts for the export of textile cellulose to rayon factories in Continental Europe, and these may not be fulfilled. New Pharmaceutical Factories to Be Built T w o new pharmaceutical factories are to be built in Sweden by Astra A. B. Apotekarnas Kemisker Fabriker and by Apoteksvarucentralen Vit rum. The plant to be built by the former firm at Sôdertâlje will be the largest pharmaceutical factory in the Scandinavian countries. The latter firm hitherto specialized in the manufacture of insulin, a shortage of which is reported from several European countries. Zinc Paints to Be Made in Closed Cyanide Plant A. B. Glucksmans Metallaffar has bought from the Swedish Government the cyanide plant now lying idle at Trollhâttan. T h e company intends to treat zinc scrap in the plant and later to use zinc concentrates. The products of the plant will comprise ammonium chloride, zinc white, and zinc gray in addition to metallic zinc. Hitherto about 5,000 tons of scrap zinc have been exported annually from Sweden, so that the company should find no difficulty in securing the raw material for its plant. Shale O i l Producer Applies for Permit The Company for the Lime and Stone Industry has asked the Swedish Government for a permit for the erection of a shale oil plant at Skoellersta near Tarsta in the district of Naerkc, where oil shale 1313
has been exploited industrially for some time. It is intended to build a plant at an expenditure of 300,000 kronor and to treat 20,000 tons of shale and 12,000 tons of limestone annually for the production of ôôO tons of shale oil and 7,500 tons of burnt lime. It was announced only a short while ago that another plant which commenced production during last spring will produce 25,000 to 30,000 tons of shale oil and 10,000 to 15,000 tons of sulfur annually.
Denmark Dansk Sojakagcfabrik has been compelled by shortage of imported raw materials to reduce its production of oil cakes for Danish farmers. It is now announced that the firm has been experimenting during recent months with a new synthetic rubber product which will be marketed under the trade name Aetylan. It is produced from alcohol, and chlorine, kaolin, sodium sulfate», and sulfur are mentioned as materials used in the production. While the new product does not compare with other synthetic rubbers in all properties, it is said to be suitable for shoe soles and driving belts. Its use for bicycle tires is under development. Quartz Sand Found in Jutland
Large deposits of quartz sand suitable for the manufacture of high-class optical glass have been discovered in Jutland. A process has been worked out by S. A. Andersen for the reduction of t he iron content of the sand to 0.2 per cent, so that it can be used for the manufacture of optical glasses for which formerly 24,000 tons of quartz sand had to be imported. These imports are in future to become superfluous. The only window glass factory in Denmark, which has been closed for the past two years because of the lack of coal, has now been reopened. Dry Blood Plasma to Be Produced
Dansk Albumin Fabrik A.S., a firm which has been producing technical blood albumin for use in the plywood industry for a number of years, has now formed a new department for the manufacture of dry blood powder and plasma for use in the food industries. Medicinal Herbs to Be Cultivated
A survey of medicinal herbs growing wild in Denmark has been undertaken, and their systematic collection is to be organized. Det Danske Medicinal- og Kemikalie-Kompagni reports that the cultivation of medicinal plants and collection of 1314
herbs have made good progress. The cultivât ion of poppy for the production of opium preparations was especially satisfactory. Vitamin products are being made from halibut, carrots, and spinach. The production of cod liver oil increased, hut that of tunny liver oil was insufficient.
France In contrast toother European countries, France pursued before the war a policy of importing crude mineral oils and refining them in large plants in the four import ports of Marseilles, Bordeaux, Nantes, and Rouen. Three of these are now in the occupied zone, and Marseilles alone is left to Vichy France. Owing to the interruption of oil imports, however, all the French refineries have had to curtail operations drastically, and war damage has also caused great difficulties, with the result that none of the importing refining companies has been able to show a profit in recent years. Typical of the conditions prevailing in the French oil-refining industry is the position of the Raffinerie de Berre, which reports that the plant was closed down almost completely until the second half of 1941, when some sections wore reopened for the treatment of substitut es whieh, however, do not permit anything like complete use of the plant facilities. T h e company endeavors to hold its technical staff together, so as to be able to resume operations later on. Grande Paroisse to Distill Lignite
T h e Société Chimique de la Grande Paroisse has commenced construction work on a plant for the treatment of lignite and production of liquid fuels at St. Ililaire on the Allier river in C'entrai France. It was only recently that the company acquired a concession for the exploitation of lignite deposits in that district, and the new plant is being built under an agreement with the Vichy Ministry for Industrial Production. Apparently the company intends to use its own process for the distillation of lignite. Three-Year Plan for Cellulose Factories
T h e Société Française de la Cellulose is to spend 100 million francs on the erection of several factories for the production of cellulose from Arundo donax in Provence. During the next three years a plant with a capacity of 120,000 tons per annum is to be built. It is stated that Arundo donax (reed) has a very high α-cellulose content. The company will operate its own lignite and sulfur mines and will also produce enough chlorine and sodium sulfate for its purposes. German interests are reported to participate in the enterprise. C H E M I C A L
French Rubber Supplies Insufficient
The total French rubber supplies con sist at present of 1,500 tons of reclaim a month, a quantity which covers only a fraction of the demand which in peace time was estimated at 60,000 tons per annum. Normally France used to rely on the pro duction of plantation rubber in Indo China, and since this source has been lost to Japan, schemes have been prepared for the encouragement of rubber cultivation in French possessions in West Africa. The production of synthetic rubber has also been studied, but since France does not possess a surplus of coal, oil, or alcohol at present, the plans have been dropped for the time being, as construction ma terials are also difficult to obtain.
Italy The Azicnda Générale Italiana Petroli (AGIP) has increased its capital from 500,000,000 to 1,000,000,000 lire. The new funds are to be used mainly for financial transactions in connection with the nationalization of foreign oil companies operating in Italy. Twenty-one companies, mostly belonging to the combines of Shell, Standard, and Vacuum, are affected by the transaction. Some of these own large refining and storage plants. A recent law provides for the appointment of an expert commission to assess the value of the properties handed over to the AGIP. As the AGIP ?s a semiofficial company financed by the state and the sums fixed by the commission as representing the value of the foreign oil interests will presumably be paid into blocked accounts, the transaction causes no financial difficulty. T h e "nationalization" will probably be followed by a "rationalization", since the oil supplies available in Italy do not permit the maintenance of the large distributing organization built up by importers before the war.
Forty Barytes Deposits Exploited
About forty deposits of barytes are at present exploited in Italy, and the annual production is stated to exceed 50,000 tons. The principal deposits are found near Trent, on the island of Sardinia, in the Val d'Aosta, in Valassina, and in Tuscany. It is reported that the output of lithopone is now sufficient to meet local demands, but the supply of other paints is far below requirements.
Synthetic Rubber Industry Plants A r e Amalgamated
The Società Italiana per la Produzione délia Gomma Sintetica and Società Italiana Gomma Sintetica, the two companies A N D
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formed jointly by the official Istituto per la Hiconstrucione Industriale and the rubber company Pirelli, have deeided to merge. The former company had a capital of (i.000.000 lire, but this has been reduced to 3,600.000 lire in order to cancel the loss of 2,440,000 lire incurred during operations so far. No information about plans for commercial production are available yet, nor is it easy to see how a substantial output of synthetic rubber is to be accomplished, considering the lack of suitable raw materials and metals for equipment. Mineral turpentine oil is to be used in the manufacture of synthetic rubber. Gasworks Increase Output of Liquid Hydrocarbons
Although the provision of coal meets with considerable difficulties, the Italian gasworks, it was officially stated, are now pr during 50 per cent more gas than in 1930 and three times as much as in 1929. The output of benzene, toluene, and xylene for war purposes is eight times the quantity provided during 1914 to 191S when, of course, it was very small indeed. Some gasworks have experimented with wood and lignite as a raw material, but careful neutralization with ammonia is necessary, especially in the case of lignite, and the quantity used is limited.
Spain The l'nion Résinera 8. A. has raised its capital from 75 to 125 million pesetas, and will use new funds for plant extensions. The company has acquired further pine forests and intends to build a new factory in the Sierra de ( 'azorla. Plant for the use of waste products is to be extended. The production of celluloid is to be started under patents from the French chemieal producer, St. Gohain. Kxport licenses for resin and turpentine oil are granted in rare eases only, it is reported from Spain. O i l Refinery M o v e d from Canary Islands
Compania Kspaftola de Petroleos S.A. has dismantled part of its refinery at Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands) and transferred it to Cartagena (Spain), where it is to be rebuilt and to be extended by addition of modern equipment. The Companiade Investigaeion y Kxplotaeiones Petroliferos S. A. reports that the exploration and prospecting work was continued throughout 1941 and new oil concessions were taken up, but the results so far obtained do not yet permit any conclusions as to whether profitable oil production is possible in Spain. The Spanish Government has encouraged the» development of substitute fuels, but in this field also little progress has yet been made. The distillation plant at Puertollano is still the only one of its kind in the country.
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Aluminum and Masnesium Production to Be Increased
.\lurninio Kspanol S.A., hitherto the only light metal producer in Spain, has derided to increase the annual output from 1,300 to 2,000 metric tons at a cost of -Ι,όΟΟ,ΟΟΟ pesetas. Another Spanish com pany, Kmpresa Kleetro-Meeàniea de Cordoba, intends to build an aluminum plant with a capacity of 8,000 tons per annum. The establishment of a magnesium industry is also intended. Investments of 20 million pesetas would be required, and the erection of suitable plant would take two years, but no definite decision has yet been taken.
Southeastern Europe New Fertilizer Factory Formed in Yugoslavia
The Chemical Factory. Ltd., which was funned in March by the Prager Chemisclier VercMii. successor to the Aussig ehoniieal combine and now under German control, and a group of Croatian industrialists will shortly commence the production of sulfuric acid, copper sulfate, superphosphates, anil other chemical fertilizer's. The capital of the company is 50 million kuna, 20 million of which have been paid in.
New Process to Use Asphalt Oils in Hungary
A new process for the extraction and utilization of asphalt oil from the bituminous deposits at Derna-Tataros and Bodnos in the district of Bihar has been developed by Julius Xyula. These deposits contain between 10 and 20 per cent of asphalt oil which has penetrated the stone. A heavy crude lubricating oil is produced by treatment with benzene, benzol, or other solvents, and this may be processed further to yield equal pails of a lubricating oil and an asphalt suitable for road construction. It is claimed that the lubricating oil can be blended to advantage with that obtained from the Hungarian mineral oils a t Lispe. A commercial plant is to he ready for production within twelve months.
Shale O i l Plant to Be Built in Bulgaria
Two 600-foot wells have been drilled near Bresnik, 25 miles west of Sofia, where oil shale deposits are known to exist. Plans have been prepared for the erection of a plant capable of an output of 20,000 tons per annum of liquid fuels from either ii»Tr nun working ftnnff» ie|>ni
