! N D U S T R Y & BUSINESS
Τ® M a n u f a c t u r e r s off Adliesivesr 6 R-29
Blooming Deserts Still in Future Costs of converting saline w a t e r stiil too h i g h ; symposium m e m b e r s urge m o r e m o n e y f o r O S W OuBSTAXTiAL
î.has b e e n atdjudgedi safe f o r use i n adhesive compounds for Postage S t a m p s . by the U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION . . . POLYVINYL
If you use ACETATE,
you cannot afford to overlook t h e advantages of RESOFLEX R-296, the only truly compatible, resinous, ηοπ-migratin g plastîcîzer. 1
No migration
2
No volatility
3
Excellent- color
4
PROGRESS
in
improv
ing processes for converting saline water has been made but large scale conversion plants furnishing potable water at economic prices are not just around t h e corner. This was the con sensus of the international symposium on saline water conversion held in Washington, D . C. Scientists from 10 foreign countries joined with United States experts in the symposium spon sored jointly b y t h e National Academy of Sciences a n d interior Department's Office of Saline WaterOne of the principal purposes of the symposium was t o recommend to the Office of Saline W a t e r what directions its programs should take to reach its goal—finding ways t o convert saline water at acceptable costs. Said O S W director David S. Jenkins a s h e opened the symposium, "Interest and activity in process research a n d development was good during the first few years of the program, b u t t h e flow of sound new ideas to t h e federal program n o w shows some tapering off." According t o Jenkins, processes w i t h
good potential are limited to t h e s e five groups: • • • • •
Distillation. Solar distillation. Electrodialysis. Osmosis. Freezing.
Within these groups, OSW is putting emphasis on processes showing the most promise. • Cost Big Factor. What constitutes an economic conversion cost depends on the end use of t h e water. Accord ing to Jenkins, converted water for industrial use could cost a s much a s $ 3 per 1000 gallons. But for municipal use, t h e t o p figure is $0.35 per 100O gallons, and irrigation water can cost no more than $0.12 per 1000 gallons. H o w do costs of various processes stack up against these figures? T h e answer is confused. Reason: No b i g multimillion-gallon-a-day conversion plants are in operation; cost figures for large scale operation are projected from laboratory or small pilot plant data.
Excellent resistance to oils, Fats a n d grease
5
Excellent water resistance
6
Permanent tack and flexibility
7
Excellent mechanical stability in high-speed gluing machines.
FOR FREE SAMP1.E AND LITERATURE FILL OUT AND MAIL THIS COUPON ι ν ρ θ α α α Ώ Β Φ ^ β κ η & β » a si a n ssi Cambridge Industries C o . 101 Potter Street Cambridge 4 2 , Mass. Please send me a laboratory sample of Resoflex R-296 and technical Hterature-
NATIONAL ANILINE DIVBVISION COMPANY .
φ AEC Gets New Home
ADDRESS CITY
32
STATE ™
C&EN
N O V . 18, 1 9 5 7
Ike lays cornerstone of AEC's new headquarters building at Germantown, Md., a s AEC chairman Lewis Strauss smiles approval. Building, plus its 110-acre site, cost $13.3 million. I t ' s four stories high, has three wings.
INDUSTRY & BUSINESS
Baker MANGANESE DIOXIDEpo.vler
Cerme
t Industry
• A product of synthesis © High purity ® low Sulfate, Earth and Alkalies Baker Manganese Dioxide . . . synthe sized to exacting specifications., .offers high purity a n d controlled particle size to manufacturers of ceramic-electronic components. Each lot is consistently low in Sulfate content and Earths and Alkalies thus assuring that poisoning impurities are kept at low levels...note the typical analysis below. This high quality Baker product should not b e confused with less pure man ganese dioxide or hydrate made by t h e upgrading of variable ores. Bake: Manganese Dioxide of reagent purity 0 p r i c e d at less than $1.00 p e r pound, is finding increasing uses in t h e manufacture of high quality ferrites and thermistors.
Typical Analysis 99.9
Assay ( M n 0 2 )
0.01 5%
C h l o r i d e (CI)
0.006%
Nitrate ( N 0 3 )
0.03
Sulfate ( S 0 4 )
0.025%
I r o n (Fe)
0.030%
Earths a n d A l k a l es(a$$0 4 > 0.08 _,,„-
%
%
, -. . .„-,r, r
r
Baker also supplies Manganese Carbonate, Manganese Sesquioxide, and Manganese Sulfate to the specific needs of the ceramicelectronic industry. Write to our Technical Sales Department for samples and addi tional information.
\k T. Baker Chemical Co. ^1 M f Μ ; - * MOU S Τ β ΙΑ I;
NATIONAL ANILINE DIVBVISION NATIONAL ANILINE DIVBVISION
• Congress should appropriate more money for O S W (C&EN, M a y 27, page 3 5 ) . Work h a s heen severely hampered by lack of funds.
G i v e Y o u M o r e W o r k Space T a k e Up Less Room S p a c e
• A survey to determine t h e future water needs of all areas of the United States would be highly desirable. However, if cost of the proposed sur vey would mean cutting OSW funds, t h e survey should be postponed in definitely. • Work on saline water conversion processes should be aimed at industrial a n d municipal uses where acceptable costs are relatively high; the maximum acceptable cost of w a t e r for irrigation is too low to make this area attractive at present.
%
Insoluble i n HCl
Here's the way the cost picture looks. For distillation, cost estimates r u n from a low of 30 cents to a high of $2 per 1000 gallons, Solar distillation costs range from $ 1 to more than $6 per 1000 gallons, while t h e electrodialysis process gives costs ranging from 30 cents to $1 p e r 10OO gallons. Esti mated costs for freezing processes are about $2 per 1000 gallons. First firm cost figures on water con verted b y electrodialysis should be available late next year. Now under construction, a 3-inillion-gallon-a-day electrodialysis plant will go into opera tion next year at Welkom, Orange Free State, to desalt gold mine water. Ο. Β. Volckman, South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, says he expects t h e big plant to produce potable water for 3 0 cents p e r 1000 gallons, and prospects a r e good for a 27-cent cost. • Program for O S W . T h e sym posium was divided into sections, each covering one of the major saline water conversion processes. A t the sympo sium's close, the chairman of each section gave Jenkins the recommenda tions of his group for Office of Saline Water's future program. All groups agreed o n these points:
0
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• There should b e increased partici pation i n foreign projects and a more active exchange of information between O S W a n d foreign programs. Calling t h e symposium a great suc cess, Jenkins said O S W has no im mediate plans to hold a similar pro gram in t h e future. However, h e pointed out t h a t U N E S C O is planning a similar symposium to be held next year in Iran.
H e r e ' s good news for l a b o r a t o r i e s — especially those with limited space. Kewaunee's new Airflow Thinwall Fume Hoods provide 5 inches more working space in 4 inches less room spaceRigorous testing and actual laboratory use indicate that the new Thinwall Hoods are only slightly less efficient than Kewaunee Supreme Hoods, a n d have approximately 50% greater efficiency than most conventional Hoods. It has a variety of outstanding features, too. Eye-level remote control and service fixtures . . . automatic bypass . . . excep tionally attractive appearance. In every detail you'll find the Thinwall has been thoughtfully designed to fill a real need— and craftsman-built for years of efficient, economical use. Get full details on Kewaunee's complete line of Fume Hoods— from the handy, portable Flexihood to the big Airflow Supreme —in this new 48-page catalog. Shows photographs, drawings, specifications, o p e r a t i n g data, and other helpful information. Send for your copy now—it's free. See our display, Booth 3 9 8 — Chemical Show, N e w York, Dec. 2—6
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KEWAUNEE M A N U F A C T U R I N G C O . 5 0 1 2 S. Center S t . , A d r i a n , M i c h .
NOV.
18.
I9S7
C&EN
33
Cars, drums, cans . . , Diamond's Chlorinated Solvents arrive on time :
(; ρich torométHape ? j Practically Jiionflammabte
i Λ METHYL
:
• Stcr!;.-:^ Drug will pay a 10-cent extra dividend to stockholders Dec. 2 with its regular 35-cent quarterly paym e n t . This year's payments will total $1.50 a share, 15 cents more than last year.
(MprioGhlordmëthàne) Resists oxidâtîoin; : ; : Therrha]^stability .
• American Home Products has declared an extra dividend of $1.20 a share, payable Dec. 2, upping its paym e n t s for the year to $6.00 from $5.00 i n 1956.
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• OHLpROFaRM
• Yankee Atomic Electric Co. plans to raise $3 million by selling additional stock to the 12 New England utility companies that a r e its present owners. T h e money will be used to retire $1 million w o r t h of short-term notes and for construction.
technical grade ; qr U^S:?; grade
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,' Also fire extinguisher fluids; grain yfu mi gants • and custom filWncfsi
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ÇER-eri|QREXHYLEN^E \ *; )l For dry b le am rig ^and metal Megreasing
• Phone your DIAMOND Representative or write DIAMOND ALKALI COMPANY, 300 Union Commerce Building, Cleveland 14, Ohio
DC hi aemmoi cnadl s 34
C&EN
NOV.
18,
Briefs · . · • Rohm & H a a s ' n e t sales for this year's t h i r d quarter were 8% above last year's like period a t $42 million. In C&EN, Nov. 4, page 24, sales for the comp a n y were indicated as 8% below 1956. In our table of third-quarter earnings, t h e footnote applying to R o h m & Haas' earnings per share sliould have indicated that 1956 earnings had been adjusted for last year's stock dividend, and not that the comp a n y had profited from the sale of U . S. Steel stock.
M ETHYLENE ÇHLO'RjbE^^^^^^^^^
•
I N D U S T R Y & BUSINESS
1957
• Oïïn Mathieson has registered the $60 million worth of convertible debentures it plans to sell (C&EN, Sept. 30, p a g e 29) with SEC. Proceeds will b e used for expansion and for additional working capital. Olin Mathieson expects its capital outlays next year (other than for its aluminum program) will not vary much from the $47 million slated for 1957. Aluminum program requirements for this year and next are estimated at $47 million in addition to $65 million being obtained b y private sale of 4% promissory notes. Olin stockholders have approved comp a n y plans to increase its authorized shares of common stock from 15 to 20 million. • Victor Chemical will build its ninth manufacturing plant on a 35-acre site fronting on the Little Calumet River on Chicago's south side. Products will include a range of phosphate chemicals, will supplement production at Victor's Chicago Heights plant. The new site will be served b y the Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad, from which it v/as
bought. I t also has easy access to truck routes, t h e complete Illinois, Mississippi, Ohio, and Missouri waterways system, Great Lakes points, and the St. Lawrence Seaway. • Celanese's 15-rnillion-pound-a-year acrylate ester plant goes on stream at Pampa, Tex. T h e plant will use a process, developed by Celanese from basic B. F. Goodrich findings, that uses acetic acid and formaldehyde. • Philip Morris is taking a second step toward diversification. It plans to acquire Franklin Research Co. of Philadelphia, Pa., and P o l y m e r Industries, Stamford, Conn. Franklin produces emulsions, cleaners, polishes, and waxes for industrial use; Polymer makes adhesives for packaging and paper converting, also turns out specialty chemicals for t h e textile industry. • The B a d g e r - e n g i n e e r e d synthetic methanol purification expansion of Commercial Solvents at Sterlington, La., is now on stream. T h e unit uses Badger's n e w process to produce extra high purity methanol. Commercial Solvents makes synthetic methanol from natural gas and air, and refines the crude methanol by special distillation techniques so t h a t n o chemical treatment is involved in the process. • AtC cancels its plans to negotiate a contract with Foster Wheeler to develop and build a demonstration homogeneous reactor power plant to be operated by the Wolverine Electric Cooperative, Big Rapids, Mich. The commission is considering inviting bids from industry a t some future time for such a project. • General Electric gets the engineering design assignment from the AEC for a large-scale reactor to produce special nuclear materials. Deadline for the report on t h e design, including cost estimates and construction schedule, is April 1, 1958. • G e n e r a l Atomic, a division of General Dynamics, will build the first nuclear reactor designed for the custom production of radioisotopes, as well as for training a n d research, at its John Jay Hopkins Laboratory, San Diego, Calif. It is one of three reactor types that General Atomic is developing utilizing the new solid homogeneous reactor core \vhich, they say, is inherently safe.
