and
The Chemical Industry J
E. I. du Pont de Neniours
T
HE various industries of this country may be considered as called into existence by the necessity of supplying various types of human wants. Generally speaking, human wants are food, clothing, shelter, medication, protection against aggression, transportation, communication, and ainusement. Therefore, this paper will deal with the fundamental nature of the relationship of chemical production to our various industries. During the few hundred years of the existence of our country the material wants of the people have actually changed little, although since pioneering days the emphasis has shifted, for the clothing, shelter, medicine, transportation, and communication of our forefathers were then, as today, essential requirements. The expansion from colonial times has been so rapid that, despite the abundance of our natural resources-agricultural, timber, and mineralthere was for many years a general scarcity of many of the material things required for our essential human wants. This situation was most aptly expressed by Lord Melchett recently: “Our industrial world of today differs from the world of even half a century ago, essentially in one respect: We have embarked upon an age of plenty, whereas for the past centuries in which our economic system has been built up we were living in an age of scarcity.” The origin of coIonia1 chemical industry well exemplifies the foregoing statements, but more recently, in the last decade or so, there has been a tremendous increase in the tempo of industrial production. There is probably no other chapter in the annals of national industry which presents sucsh s fascinating and impressive record of accomplishment. It would seem that this is an appropriate occasion, on the TercenNOTE The illustration is Merck Br Company.
b y Russell
C. Aikine, reproduced by oourtesy of
8;
Co., Inc., Wilmington, Del.
tenary C e l e b r a t i o n of the Foundation of the American Chemical Industry, to review the salient facts in the establishment of this industry and t o e x a m i n e t h e influence which chemical industry has exercised upon, and the contributions it has made to, our n a t i o n a l i n d u s t r i a l life. Chemical materials, although consumed in many cases in relatively s m a 11 quantities, LAMMOT DU P0N.I. and representing only a fraction of the cost of the final product, are, nevertheless, necessary integral components of manufacture, LT-ithout which industries would be severely handicapped if the domestic source of supply were cut off. If we examine the development of the chemical industry from the time of its inception, we find that we may divide it into three periods: (1) development of the heavy chemicals industry, (2) development of the synthetic organic industry, (3) the period of creating new materials and new marketr.
Heavy Chemicals Industry In reviewing the history of the heavy chemicals industry, we find that its progress has depended entirely upon the rate of growth of other industries. Its early development can be traced to the demands for acids, alkalies, and salts created by the growth of the textile, leather, paper industries. etc. During the colonial period, manufactures in this country did not assume any large proportions, largely because the 485
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held in F e w York in 1831. Portions of this report express so well the views of the manuf a c t u r e r s of those days that they deserve quotation: Intimately connected with science and the healing art, and essential to other manufactures, chemistry received very little or no attent,ion from the enterprise and skill of our country, until the late war. That event suddenly cut off the usual supplies from foreign countries. The consequent advance in price was excessive, and the inconvenience sustained by that class of manufacturers who consumed chemicals, incalculable. This state of things gave the fist impulse to chemistry in our country. The return of peace, however, brought foreign competition, which soon threatened to extinguish the infant and yet inexperienced establishments which had crept into existence during the war. The large importations which, at that period, inundated the country, caused a reduction in prices, alike ruinous to the importer and his competitor, the American manufacturer. This depression, however, would have been but temporary, had there been no interference on the part of the government. The foreigner would have prevailed in the contest-and the market becoming his, the prices would have been in accordance with his own remorseless interests. Happily for the Nation, and more particularly Courtesy, Carbide and Carbon Chemicals Corporatiun for that numerous laboring class who are dependTODAY SYNTHETICORGANICCHEMISTRY Is ON A GIGANTICSCALE ent on chemical manipulations-and the agriculturists, who iind in this class a customer instead of a rival-happily also for the other classes of manufacturers colonies -,ere regarded as outlets for manufactures and which owe their existence to chemistry, the tariff act of 1824 of raw materials, and legislation was enacted in placed the seal upon the policy of the Nation. By this act, and cordance with these ends. After the Revolutionary War, not until after its passage, was the manufacture of chemicals however, there was a definite public interest in encouraging established in the United States. American independence in a commercial as well as a political The committee later remarks that “the manufacturer is now sense. As early as 1789, Congress passed a tariff law for the so near the consumer, that his wants are anticipated and protection of domestic industries against foreign competition, scarcity is unknown-because the raw material, being unand, the following year, passed the first patent law for the limited in quantity, and individual enterprise commensurate stimulation of inventions. We have made a very large numwith it, the demand is seldom allowed t o overtake the supply. ber of valuable developments, according to the records of the When alum was an article for import, the price was generally Patent Office. It would seem that the monopoly granted to $7.50 per cwt. During the late war, it rose to 18 cents per the inventor as a matter of right under our patent laws has pound. The price at present is about 3.75 cents per pound.” had much t o do with stimulating the inventive genius of our The committee realized that, by virtue of tariff legislation, people. The manufacture of sulfuric acid was among the certain chemical imports had been practically stopped and early definitely chemical manufacturing businesses because added that the prices of many chemical articles were as low in the hazard and expense of shipping this material from abroad this country as in Europe. Nevertheless, they continued, were sufficient to give the American producer a definite ad“it would be unwise to repeal the existing duties because vantage. The increasing manufactures in textiles, paper, experience indicates that the foreign competitor, from a and leather made increasing demands for chemical raw disposition to get rid of his surplus stock, and with the materials, such as acids, saltpeter, alum, blue vitriol, potless creditable design of strangling the growing establishashes. and so on. which resulted in the gradual beginning ments which have ldeprived him of a ;arket,\ill crowd of a heavy chemicals industry. The W i r of 1812 b;.ough’i his productions upon us regardless of the calculations which about a temporary increase in American production, but, upon usually govern trade-enduring the present loss with the hope resumption of peace, immense importations of foreign chemiof distant gain, which is t o be the fruits of victory obtained cals and other goods seriously threatened the existence of some in prostrating his rival.” of these enterprises. The protests which resulted, brought The products of the chemical industry a t that period are about, in 1816, a tariff bill which gave protection to certain summarized in the following paragraph: chemicals. Duties were levied on such commodities as sulfuric, hydrochloric, and nitric acids, blue vitriol, Epsom and Besides the articles previously noticed, the chemical establishGlauber salts, saltpeter, Prussian blue, ocher, and gunments of this country manufacture calomel and various other powder. There was a long period, lasting nearly to the outmercurial preparations, Glauber salts, Rochelle salts, tartar break of the Civil War, during which competition between emetic, ammonia, sulfate of quinine, oil of vitriol, tartaric acid, aqua fortis, Prussian blue, chrome yellow, chrome green, nitric foreign and American manufacturers was especially keen. acid, muriatic acid, barilla, oxalic acid, chloride of lime, chloride The rapid development of the country, the movement toward of soda, refined saltpeter, refined borax, refined camphor, acetic the West, and the general rise in the standard of living did, acid, acetate of lead, nitrate of lead, prussiate of potash, bichrohowever, bring about a great expansion of manufacturing mate of potash-and the endless developments of the science of chemistry are almost daily adding to the list. enterprises, making more and more use of the products of the chemical industry. The committee emphasized that then, as now, the chemical An interesting document relating to this phase of our hiaindustry not only served other industries to supply raw matory is the report of the Committee on Chemistry at the terials but turned waste products into materials of value-for General Convention of the Friends of Domestic Industry,
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example, the use of blood, horn scraps, and refuse leather for making Prussian blue, and they add, strikingly, “Even the atmosphere we breathe is made subservient to the cause.” The allusion is not to the fixation of nitrogen but to the burning of brimstone to make sulfuric acid. Remarking that the chemical establishments are few compared with the number of their consumers, the committee reports the existence of thirty chemical factories in this country a t that time, with a capital investment of about $1,158,000 producing goods t o the value of $1,000,000 annually and employing 900 “hands.” Many of these paragraphs, written over a hundred years ago, have a very modern sound. This is not accidental nor the result of rhetoric; it is true because the essential characteristics of the chemical industry and its relation to the national economy are permanent. To a pioneering people, lead bullets and gunpowder were necessities. It vas the President of the United States who, in 1802, in the interest of public policy enoouraged the manufacture of gunpowder in this country. In the War of 1812, and in the later war with Mexico, a large part of our government’s supply of powder came from these plants. With the continuation of this enterprise, it became more definitely a chemical business. Improvements in the quality of the product and reductions in the price were brought about by study of processes and raw materials. One of the marked advances in black powder manufacture, resulting in reduced cost, came when it was discovered that it was possible to replace the potassium nitrate, originally an essential ingrcdient, by the much cheaper sodium salt. AGRICULTURAL MATERIALS.AS the country expanded in the years that followed, agriculture became one of the great national industries, and to it, the chemical industry contributed not merely acid for the manufacture of fertilizer, but, at a comparatively early date, chemical fungicides and insecticides. The petroleum industry, which was to develop into another of the great American industries, made enormous demands on the chemical industry for acids to be used in refining crude oils. In some casey, sulfuric acid plants were built adjacent to the refinery and constituted the beginnings of large chemical enterprises. The metallurgical industries were also dependent on the rheniical industry for large sup-
plies of essential materials. Another highly significant American development was the establishment of the rubber industry, providing another instance of the necessity for chemicals in the development of an industry. I n the early days of the rubber industry, there was a large demand for carbon disulfide to be used as a solvent. Today, the situation has wholly changed. This need is filled by safer materials which the chemical industry has made available, and carbon disulfide has its chief market in an entirely different direction-namely, in the viscose process for the manufacture of rayon and Cellophane. ALKALJ AND BLEACHING PRODUCTS. Although our heavy chemicals industry developed a capacity for sulfuric and other acids and numerous common salts, commensurate with the demands made upon it, our early domestic production of alkali and bleaching products was insignificant. Until as late as 1885, our supplies of these materials were obtained almost entirely from the great alkali industry of Great Britain. The Solvay process for soda ash was started in New York State in 1884, and some years later this was followed by the building of alkali n-orks near salt deposits in Michigan and Virginia. The Solvay process, however, did not provide chlorine, another raw material which the textile industries demand and consume in large quantities. Chlorine continued to be imported in the form of bleaching powder until the establishment of a distinctly American enterprise-the production of chlorine and alkali by the electrolysis of brine. This was a significant venture because, in the hands of American chemists and business men, it became one of a number of large-scale electrochemical processes, including the manufacture of a new metal, aluminum; of new abrasives; and of calcium carbide, which became of great importance to the country and contributed in a most important way to other industries. The automotive industry would be seriously handicapped in fabrication without abrasives and acetylene. Although the chlorine from the electrolysis of brines was originally converted into bleaching powder for use in the textile industry, its use as a disinfectant has now grown and become so important to public health that over 75 per cent of the people of our cities today drink water which has been chlorinated to make it safer. l V . 4 ~PRODUCTS. The World War created an enormous demand for heavy chemicals, particularly acids for the manufacture of explosives. The chemical industry expanded t o meet this need with the result that very large quantities of smokeless powder were supplied to the Allies and our own War Department. These war activities, however, disclosed the serious need for the development of a number of different materials of chemical manufacture, among which was nitrogen, indispensable for agriculture and for the manufacture of munitions. At the time of the World War all nitrogen for industrial and agricultural purposes was obtained from two sourcesnamely, from the distillation of con1 and from Chile saltpeter. It has been pointed out by others that, while the supply of coal is plentiful, the yield of recoverable nitrogen by distillation is only 0.25 per cent, so that it is necessary to distill 400 tons of coal to get 1 ton of nitrogen. Likewise, Chilean nitrate is plentiful but the supply is controlled by the Chilean Government, and in time of war the risk to ocean shipments is great. The War Department was so concerned during the World War about the supply of nitrogen required for munition purposes that Congress appropriated 80 million dollars to build nitrogen CARNEGIE STEELCOMPANY plants a t Muscle Shoals. After the War, the
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chemical industry turned its attention to the manufacture of of nitrated cellulose as a propellent explosive, hut a halfammonia and its oxidation to nitric acid, realizing that these century of derelopment 1% as necessary before thib material could he made into safe ammunition. During the Spanish important raw materials were indispensable t o our industrial development and too important to rely upon foreign sources War in 1898, our armed forces made use of this product for of supply. Thirteen years ago began the development of the the first time. nitrogen industry and such remarkable progress has been CELLULOID. I n 1869 Hyatt discovered the unique effect made that today industry and agriculture are no longer deof camphor when mixed with witable rrradeq of nitrocellulose pendent upon by-prodto-make a thermoplastic uct animonia from the m a t e r i a l . In hisearly d i s t i l l a t i o n of coal or experiments, Hyatt had upon Chile saltpeter for in mind the possibility their products containof manufacturing 1) i 1ing nitrogen, liard balls, but in the This brief survey of discovery of this plasthe development of the ticizer for nitrocellulose, heavy chemical indu+ he made a v a i l a b l e a try points out quite intype of material which adeqiiately its relationlent itself to e n t i r e l y shir, to the i m p o r t a n t novel m a n u f a c t u r i n g i n d u s t r i e s w h i c h use p r o c e s s e s . This new acids, alkalies, and salt. material, given the name in large quantities. The “Celluloid,” possessed a u t o m o t i v e industry, such outstanding merits in the fabrication of R over previous mixtures c a r , u s e s , directly or that it created new uses indirectly, almost every for plastics such a s product made on a large dental plates, brushes, scale b y t h e heavy mirrors, combs, collar., chemical industry. The t o y s , etc. This same g r e a t industries, such discovery revolutionized as textile, p e t r o l e u m , the photographic induspaper, glass, m i n i n g , t r y and almost disand leather-are assured placed glass as a supof an uninterrupted and p o r t f o r photographic complete supply of imemulsions. It t h u s p o r t a n t raw materials. m a d e possible the deAgriculture is no longer velopment of t’he huge dependent upon foreign motion picture industry. supply for a n important BAKELITE. Prior to plant food such as nitrothe World War, Baekegen; even a substantial ANILINEOIL STILLSAND PROCESS EQUIPMENT, land succeeded in deDON’ CHEMICAL COMPANY percentage of potassium, veloping a nexv type of likewise indispensable to s y n t h e t i c p l a s t i c by plant growth; is now a domestic product. The country is combining phenol and formaldehyde. An important characindependent of foreign sources of supply of this class of raw teristic of this type of resin was that it could be produced in materials which are vital to our national industry, health, agrithe infusible, insoluble state. B y developing a suitable moldculture, and defense. ing technic, he established a new manufacturing process which lent itself particularly to the large-scale mechanical production Synthetic Organic Chemical Industry of complicated shapes. This resin is of great importance to a large variety of manufacturers, particularly to the electrical The second phase of the development of the chemical intlusindustry on account of the insulating properties which it try has been the establishment of the synthetic organic possesses. chemical industry, comprising the manufacture of intermediates and dyestuffs, medicinal chemicals, explosives, plastics, SYNTHETIC FIBERS.In 1911, the viscose process for the solvents, cellulose derivatives, and fine chemicals. Prior to manufacture of rayon was started in this country but, up to the World War, the manufacture of industrial explosives was the outbreak of the mar, the amount produced was relatively the only well-established representative of the synthetic small. During the past fifteen years, however, there has been an enormous grom-th in the production of this fiber, due to the organic chemical industry. The rapid and extensive growth recognition and appreciation of its remarkable characteristics of railroads not only involved a vast amount of blasting but and its establishment as a fiber distinctly different from cotton also produced an increase in mining operations which required or silk. At the present time, the consumption of synthetic large quantities of hlasting powder. Black powder was, of fibers by our textile industries is approximately three times course, the material originally used for this purpose, but after that of natural silk and is approaching the consumption of 1862, when Xobel first produced commercial nitroglycerin, wool. In 1934 the domestic production of rayon by the visthe demand of industry for a disruptive explosive, with its cose process was over 160 million pounds. Another new valuable characteristics, compelled the chemical industry to fiber, the production of which started about ten gears ago, is ascertain how this material might be safely made and used. cellulose acetate. This fiber, having characteristics different The manufacture of nitroglycerin was first undertaken in this from the other known fibers, is slowly earning a place of it5 country in 1866, and the manufacture of dynamite and gelaown and, according to 1934 estimates, was produced to the tins became in time important industrial explosives. extent of 41 million pounds. The production of synthetic Schonbpin. in 184.5, first called attention to the pos-ible u*e
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questionably face to face x i t h conditions which are without fibers in the United States represents a n outitailding advance a parallel in the past.” of the synthetic organic chemical industry. The story of the development of synthetic dyestuffs as well SYKTHETIC DYESTUFFS.I n reviewing the progress of the a. synthetic coal-tar medicinals is a familiar one and does not qynthetic organic chemical industry prior to the World K a r , need r e p e t i t i o n . it will be seen that a beginning had been made in some of the The establishment industries claqsified under this heading but compared with the of these industrieq lieavy chemical industry, the production of the whole synon a permanent thetic organic chemical industry was very small. During basis v a s only this period abroad, howeT-er, particularly in Germany, the powible by breakpossibilities of synthetic organic chemistry had been demoning the German strated in a most ipectacular x a y in the manufacture of tlyemonopoly, which stuffs. After the discovery of Xauve by Perkin in 1856. m-as based on the tlicre took place a very rapid commercialization of qmthetic large n u m b e r of dyestuffs in Germany with the result that she n-a3 able t o German p a t e n t s e-tablish virtually a world monopoly. I n this country efforts covering the ininere made to manufacture dyes as early as 1866 but the reportant products sults were discouraging. The first enterprise5 had a severe in these fLelds. Ftruggle, partly because the textile manufacturers were opThe importance posed to establishing duties on dyes which to them were of the s y n t h e t i c raw materials and partly because the development work o r g a n i c chemical necessary to produce satisfactory materials was difficult i n d u s t r y to our and expensive. Furthermore, it was perfectly clear, a5 it national industries had been earlier to the Friends of Chemical Industry, that was well recogthe European producers did not wi5h to lose the American nized by President market by seeing a strong domestic industry established, HEAT AND TREMENDOUS PRESSURE Wilson and led to and they were willing, when necessary, to make a tempoCOMBINE WITH PERFECTLY MADE his’ authorization rary sacrifice of prices in order to secure this end. ConROLLERS TO EMBOSS DU P O N T “F.4BRIsequently the industry consisted of only a few plants for KOID” WITH N u n r E R o u s ATTRACTIVE o f i t h e s a l e of GRAINS e n e m y - o TT n e d rrinversion into dyestuffs of the intermediates purchaqed chemical patents abroad. by the Alien Property Custodian to the Chemical Foundation At the outbreak of the World War when the importation of which would prevent their again falling into hands where they dyestuffs was cut off, the dye-consuming industries, reprecould be used as a serious obstacle to the national industrial sented particularly by textiles, leather, and paper, realized growth. There is no doubt that the dyestuff industry could the great importance of dyestuffs to the salability of their not have reached its present state of development without the products. Although the cost of the dyestuff in a suit of authorization of sale of enemy-owned patents by E’resident clothes, for example, lies somevhere between 3 and .30 cents, Wilson or, equally as important, the protection which the Condepending on the fabric and the specific dyes employed, it i, gress of the United States has afforded this industry. of enormous importance to the marketability of the product. R ith the cessation of importations, the dye-consuming indusIt is well known how rapidly and with what success the chemiqts and business men of this country evolved a synthetic tries, representing a capital investment of over 2.5 billion cl ollars a n d e m p I o y i n q organic chcmicals industry during the over a million people, were TVar: in fact, it is almost uniquein being faced with the danger of the only peace-time industry to be delibercer iou s curtailment or ately developed as a part of the scheme t e m p o r a r y crippling by of national defense. The stimulus given inability to obtain these by war-time conditions, supplemented by important raw materials the passing of protective tariff legislation from abroad. The sigin the post-war period has rnade possible nificance of this industry in this country a synthetic organic chemias a political w e a p o n is cals industry which has grown in twenty illustrated strikingly by years from almost nothing to a point of a r e p o r t of G e r m a n practical self-sufficiency. C o n s u l Hossenfelder in It is interesting to note that the proM a r c h , 1916, w h e n h e tection granted to chemical industry as said, “Through the lack a w h o l e w a s n o t a s high either in the of dyestuffs a l o n e , n o t Tariff Acts of 1922 or 1930 as was the only is a whole list of improtection granted to industry and agriculportant industries (wool, ture in general. Moreover, between 1899 cotton, l e a t h e r , p a p e r and 1934, the general wholesale price industry, etc.) gradually index of the U. S. B u r e a u of L a b o r made lame, but for the statistics advanced approximately 43 per great public, living becent, whereas the official chemical price comes more e x p e n s i v e , index actually decreased more than (i both through the rise in per cent. price as well as through In 1933, the last year for which comthe small d u r a b i l i t y of plete statistics are available, the reported PFAUDLER GL.4SS-IJNED S T E E L REACTIOX all p r o d u c t s for whose p r o d u c t i o n of c o a l - t a r dyes in this K E T T L E U S E D FOR P H l R Y A C E U T I C A L SIANUp r o d u c t i o n c o l o r s are country was over 100 million p o u n d s FACTURE I N PL.4N’I OF P.4RKE-D.kVIS AND used. We are here unwlued a t o v e r 43 rnillion d o l l a r s . COYPASY
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Evidence of continued growth is the fact that this production is 7 per cent more than the average of the 1925-1930 period and higher than for any year except 1929. This figure, 100 million, may be compared Rith the imports of 1914 of approximately 46 inillion pounds. The imports since 1920 have dropped t o 3 to 5 million pounds per year. I n 1933 the production of coal-tar medicinals exceeded in quantity that of any year since 1919 and was valued a t nearly 7 million dollars Analysis shows, too, that development of the domestic industry has made possible the lowering of the unit price of the products t o the consumer. There are two further points which should be emphasized in connection with this development, quite aside from the added wealth represented by the figures quoted above: First, the industry has supplied the needs of a great variety of domestic manufactures, and secondly, there is enormous capacity for useful growth in this industry based on research and backed by intelligent capital. The service to the textile industry is obvious. It has not been limited to dyestuffs but extends t o numerous other products consumed by the textile industrv, such as new detergents, new wetting agents, finishing nmterials, stock lubricants, etc. The leather industry has been benefited by new tanning materials, new baiting compounds, and new preservatives. The paper industry has better colors and new materials for finishing paper. Agriculture has been given new weapons with which t o combat insects and plant diseases. The output of the rubber industry has been increased enormously by the use of vulcanization accelerators, saving the rubber factories an estimated additional capital investment of 50 million dollars and yielding improved products. Other ingredients, antioxidants, have added greatly t o the life of rubber tires. Motor fuel has been improved by the addition of tetraethyllead. The organic chemical industry has also provided antioxidants which prevent the formation of tars and gums in motor fuel and make it possible for the refiner to preserve the maximum antiknock properties. Moreover, small amounts of synthetic products added t o oils improve their lubricating properties. These few examples illustrate some of the benefits which have accrued to other American industries from this enterprise. Estimates of the financial gains are difficult and even inadequate to express the contribution to our national life. Medicine, for example, has been provided with new and more effective materials t o cure and prevent disease and to alleviate pain. We are unquestionably more secure in the event of war. Analysis, either in general terms or in detail, leads to the conclusion that no citizen of this country has failed to benefit in large measure from the activities of the synthetic organic chemical industry in the U. S. A.
New Materials and New Markets The third phase of the development of the chemical industry in America covers the progress that has been made by research in the creation of new materials and new markets for chemicals, It has been pointed out that the development of our heavy chemical industry was the result of supplying demands for chemicals which had already been created by the chemical-consuming industries. Likewise, the demands for synthetic organic chemicals, particularly intermediates, dyestuffs, coal-tar medicinals, photographic developers, and certain fine chemicals brought about the establishment of this phase of chemical industry. Markets for these materials had existed for many years but had been supplied by importations. After the development of those sections of our chemical industry which were necessary to complete a well-rounded chemical industry and the establishment of these new activities on a sound technical basis, it became possible for the industry t o pay attention to the creation of new materials and the exploitation of new uses for them. This new phase of
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chemical activity began within the past ten yearb in a modest way and has made definite progress, particularly during the past fire years. Its development has been encouraged and accelerated by the establishment of large, capable research organizations in many parts of the chemical-consuming industries and is the result of the closer cooperation between the manufacturers and the consumers of chemicals. In the early days of the chemical industry, the chemical manufacturer mas not much interested in the me industry made of his materials. He had little knowledge of the finished products, in the manufacture of which his chemical materials played an important part. His main interezt was to supply the chemicals of the quality specified by the consumer, and it v a s no matter of concern to him how the materials were used. It became evident, however, in certain sections of the chemical industry that this simple relationship was insufficient. One of the earliest industries in this country to recognize the need of a knoTtledge of the problems of the consumer, in order to obtain the best results in the uqe of its products, was the explosives industry. For moqt effective use of industrial explosives, it is necessary t o know the conditions of use and the results desired: The recognition of this need led t o the employment of technically trained men in the sales organization, who would assist the consumer in obtaining the best results from explosiveq. Thic relationship brought about a better knowledge on the part of the chemical manufacturer of the problems of the consumer, with the result that standard industrial explosives vere modified and new types n-ere produced. The dyestuff industry realized early the iiececaity of technical sales service. The dyer showed complete lack of knowledge of how certain synthetic dyestuffs could be applied. In order to be of greatest use t o him it was necessary for the industry t o work out the method of application of these new dyes and to assist in reducing the results t o large-scale application. It is well known that this phase of technical service reached a high state of development in the dyestuff business and was one of the important factors which led to the rapid acceptance of many new classes of dyestuffs. Without this relationship between the producer and the consumer it is doubtful if vat dyes, for example, would have been so readily accepted by the consumer, even in spite of the well-recognized superiority of this class in respect to fastness-to-light and washing. Technical sales service has now been widely recognized by the chemical industry as an important and necessary adjunct to sales. I t is the important line of communication between the research and production departments of the chemical producer on the one hand, and the consumer on the other, in the most effective application of the producer’s products. By means of this information, the research organizations of the chemical manufacturer bring about, through chemical investigation, the modification of the product to fit the needs of the consumer. This relationship between producer and consumer has developed to such a degree that it has led to what has been termed in recent years “customer research.” Its objective is to show how the consumer’s cost can be reduced, how processes can be improved, and how a greater efficiency and economy can be attained in the use of materials. Sales service laboratories for the study of the problems of the consumer have now been established in many parts of the chemical industry. CELLOPHAKE.In the latest phase of the development of the chemical industry, research is creating markets for new materials through the recognition of the unsatisfied and even the latent needs of the consuming public. Probably one of the outstanding examples has been the development of moisture-proof Cellophane. It will be recalled that Cellophane was first developed in France by Brandenberger and was an
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outgrowth of his experiments to produce a highly lustrous &ish on cotton by the deposition on it of a film of cellulose from viscose. When this material was brought to this country, it was high in price and was used only for the wrapping of luxury articles. It was recognized, however, that the use of Cellophane could never penetrate certain fields because of its permeability to water vapor. Realizing that a latent demand for a moistureproof material existed, research chemists
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Corporation employed for the first time in the syntheses of a large variety of chemicals, the petroleum resources of this country and took advantage of this large supply of cheap raw materials in advancing the state of the chemical industry. DUPREKE. Another example within the last few years has been the development of DuPrene, which in certain respects is superior to rubber and for certain uses will replace the natural product. The story of the technical development is well
DRIERSA S D EJECTORS IN INSULIN-MAKING LABORATORY OF ELI LILLYAND COMPANY
attacked the problem of producing a product impermeable to moisture, and finally there emerged a nitrocellulose lacquer and a method of application which gave the impermeability desired. The moisture-proof product has been of value to many industries and has had a profound effect in the protection and merchandizing of many commodities. It i; of interest to note that. since Cellophane was first plared on the American market, there have been seventeen price reductionas a result of continued research on the process and of increased production. Kithin a period of ten years there has been a total price reduction of more than 86 per cent, while the physical volume of sales has increased about sixtyseven times. Another example has been the PETROLEUM BY-PRODUCTS. development of synthetic materials, which have not been available commercinllp in the past, based upon the byproducts of the petroleum industry. The development of the manufacturing proceqses and of the markets for ihese materials, derived from ethylene and propylene, is one of the outstanding accomplishments of the synthetic organic chemical industry, either in this country or abroad, during the past decade. Thece materials are now used by a large number of the chemical-consuming industries. The products include solvents which have been of great importance in the lacquer industry, special solvents for use in the refining of lubricating oils, an ingredient used in the explosive industry for making nonfreezing dynamite, detergents and lubricants for the textile industry, chemicals for influencing the ripening of fruits, antifreeze, hydraulic brake fluids, raw matjerials for synthetic resins, and a large number of other important materials. I n the past, the synthetic organic chemical industry has been built chiefly upon cellulose and aromatic chemicals derived from coal. The Carbide & Carbon Chemicals
known and does not need repetition, but two inferences may be drawn from the development that are worth while to mention. The first is the necessity for industry to keep in close contact with the work in pure science in our universities and colleges so that this country may enjoy to the fullest the scientific accomplishments of its investigators; the second observation is the economic advantage to the public. I n the past the rubber industry has been faced with great fluctuations in the price of its raw material] which always had to be passed on, as far as possible, to the consuming public. It is confidently believed that in the future, DuPrene, when manufactured on a very large scale, will approach a cost that will permit use in tire construction. The work of the rubber chemists has already indicated that it is technically suitable for this use. DuPrene should serve to prevent violent increases in the cost of rubber through such devices as price fixing and restriction of exports. As a threat to high-priced rubber, this development should prove of great economic importance to the country, from which the public will benefit in many ways. XEW TYPEOF RAYON. As a further example of how the chemical industry created new products for the consuming market, it may be of interest to direct attention to a new type of rayon, to which little publicity has been given up to the present. The rubber industry, during the past fifteen years, has through research brought about a very creditable accomplishment in extending the life of rubber tires. Although considerable. progress has been made in the construction of the cord fabrics, greater emphasis has been placed in recent years upon the use of accelerators and antioxidants and the conditions of vulcanizing. The recent development in rayon cords should extend still further the life of a tire, and should double or triple the mileage of heavy-duty bus and truck tires. This rayon, designated “Cordura,” was made possible by recogni-
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INDUSTRIAL AND EKGISEERIKG CHEMISTRY
tion, on the part of the rayon chemist, of the unique characteristics that could be developed in rayon under certain conditions of manufacture. This rayon has great strength and is as strong as structural steel of the same cross section. I t also has low elongation and a very harsh and unpleasant feel compared with the rayon designed for fabrics. It possesses, however, unparalleled resistance to heat degradation. In cooperation with the rubber chemist, this rayon has now been used successfully in tire construction and promises to be another important contributing factor to prolonging still further the life of the automobile tire. Time permits only a passing reference to the outstanding work of other companies, such as Allied Chemical &: Dye, American Cyanamid, DOW,Eastman Kodak, Monsanto, Rohm & Haas, etc., in the development of materials for which a large number of new uses are being explored. This creative work insures a continuous flow of new materials to the chemical-consuming industries and mill prove to be an important contribution to our industrial progress. AGRICULTURE.I n considering the relationship of the chemical industry to agriculture, it is evident this country noJy has its domestic nitrogen, potash, and phosphate industries. Relatively little attention, however, has been given to the possible need of the soil for other elements, such as sulfur, magnesium, calcium, and manganese, which are beginning to be appreciated as having an important relation to crops. Instead of making standard types of fertilizer, more attention will undoubtedly be given to the specific suitability of the fertilizer to the particular soil and to the particular crop for which it will be used. The question of soil acidity is one which has been neglected by the farmer, and the type of fertilizer has a n effect upon t h i s i m p o r t a n t DU P O S T ChMPHOR variable. The chemical manufacturer is beginning to pay more attention to this problem in t h e t y p e of n i t r o g e n compounds offered, as evidenced by the use of urea in fertilizers. In controlling pests, which have caused an a n n u a l d a m a g e of hundreds of millions of dollars, chief dependence has been placed in the past on compounds of lead and arsenic which are, unfortunately, toxic to human beings as well as to insects. Although these products have been used f o r a v e r y long time a n d have given good control, attention has been directed in recent years by the chemical manufacturer to the possibilities of organic compounds which may be more effective on a mreight basis and a t the same time less toxic to human beings. As our knowledge of the toxicity of organic comp o u n d s to i n s e c t life progresses, it is not un-
VOL. 27, NO. 5
reasonable to assume that, from the enormous number of organic materials known today, it should be possible to select materials that hare a high specificity for different types of insects. The farmer has also sustained large losses as a result of fungi. Different chemical products have been used for combating these diseases and research has been directed by the industry to this problem. Ethyl mercury phosphate is one of the nen-er types of fungicides that have been so efficacious in combating surface diseases of seeds, tubers, and bulbs. This product has been especially effective in the treatment of cereal grains, and experience has irrefutably demonstrated the increased yields that can be obtained as a result of seed disinfection. As our knowledge of plant life and plant disease increases, the chemist will be in a position to make further contributions in obtaining the best yield and quality of product from the soil. The chemical industry is showing an increasing interest in the problems of agriculture and views this great industry as a growing outlet for its products. As the chemical industry has been an aid to the farmer in increasing production, so also the products of agriculture have been important as ram materials for the chemical industry. Cotton is used as the initial material for rayon, acetate rayon, lacquers, photographic films, and plastics; vegetable oils are uced in the manufacture of paints, varnishes, and enamels; turpentine is being converted into synthetic camphor, replacing the natural and imported product; a large variety of uses has been developed for turpentine and rosin; corn is used for making butyl alcohols and acetone. Other examples could be cited of uses that the chemical industry has been making of the products of the farm, but those mentioned are sufficient to show the use of farm products in chemical industry. KATIONALDEFEKSE. In portraying the imP L A S T EQUIPMEST portance of chemistry to o u r n a t i o n a l life, the picture would be incomplete without indicating the relationship of the industry to national defense. It is unnecessary to delineate the contribution of the chemiqt during the past war and the dependence of our K a r Department upon the chemical i n d u s t r y for the manufacture of explosives and p o is on gases. He took an important part in the utilization of the mental and physical resources of the country to bring the War to a successful conclusion. A t this time when nations are increasing armaments, it is well to remember that the chemical industry is an important element in the line of the country’s defense. Plants which are engaged in the peacetime activity of manuf a c t u r i n g c henii c a l s could be converted quickly into the manufacture of materials used for explosives, poison
MAY. 1935
IKDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
gases, and other materials so important in the waging of war. Far more important, however, than these physical assets is the available personnel, There are now a large number of chemids, engineers, and men trained in the operation of chemical plants, who have a broad experience in chemical manufacture :md a knowledge of materials of construction for plants, and who could be mobilized to construct and operate the necessary 1 nunition plants. In the increasing mechanization of modern warfare, new chemical problems would be encountered and new adaptations of chemical materials would be required. The large rwearch organizations of the chemical industry would be invaluable in the study and solution of problenis which would inevitably arise. There can be no possible substitute for a >trongchemical industry in the manufacture of materials so indispensable for waging war. In this respect the country has been immeasurablr strengthened in its defense. ROLEOF PURESCIEKCE. The-story of the relationship of the chemical industry to our other industries would be incomplete if reference were not made to the dependence of chemical nianufacture upon pure science, upon which all advances of applied chemistry have been based. Our universitlies and colleges hal-e had the task of developing new methods, of studying the properties of materials, and of exploring i~ewfields of knowledge, while the chemical industry has devoted its efforts to harnessing the advances of pure 3cience to practical application. Many years ago the chemical industry depended largely lipon heat to produce chemical changes. As a result, however, of pure science, the industry is now employing tools such as electric current, high pressure, many different catalysts, bacteria, etc., to bring about transformation of materials. Employment of these methods has been made possible only by years of patient research ?)y. a host of investigators whose only purpose has been to augment the knonledge of their ecience. I n the past history of the chemical industry, in general, there has been a long delay between scientific discovery and t,he industrial developments based on these scientific advances. Nearly a century elapsed between the discovery of the chemical effects of the electric current and the establishment of an electrochemical industry. It took nearly twenty years after the structure of the molecule of natural indigo had been determined to develop a commercial synthesis. The thermodynamics of ammonia synthesis were well understood long before synthetic ammonia became a practictil reality. There must necessarily be some time required for any revolutionarv change, but industrv in this countrv, because (Jf the rapid progress made during the pist twenty years, is now in a much better position to develop rapidly the practical applications of discoveries which offer definite advantages to industry and to society. From a longer point of view, the rate a t which the chemical industry can develop will depend in no small measure upon the progress in pure research. If pure research fails to adranee, as a result of an insufficient number of adequately trained investigators capable of guiding research students, or as a result of our universities having inadequate funds to -upport work of this type, or from other causes, then industry in time will be retarded in its further development. Industry may be able to supplement to a small degree the theoretical advances in fields of knowledge, but it can never take over the large volume of work in which our research institutions are engaged today. The fuller development of the chemical industry can be realized only by the close cooperation of the research’ In view Of the Of pure and dependence of industry upor1 the Progress Of pure science, industry should give pure research not only its nioral and
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financial support, but that freedom which is so essential to the most productive work. One direct way in which industry can assist in the development of university research is in the providing of funds for scholarships. The du Pont Company has had some experience in this line but quite recently has given consideration to a modification of the original plan in the attempt to foster the more advanced phases of university research work by means of post-doctorate fellowships, and to provide promising young professors with trained assistants so that research can be carried out in some of the more difficult, unexplored fields of chemistry. This plan so far has been initiated on a very modest experimental basis, but, if it accomplishes the purpose for which it was designed, there is likelihood of expansion. Experience has indicated in the past that, with the increasing difficulty and complexities which arise from deeper penetration into unexplored fields of knowledge, the highly trained research chemist is necessary for further progress in thePe fields. It is of primary interest to the industry that progress should be made in American institutions for pure research. Industry should be prepared to give whatever assistance is needed to maintain it on a high level, particularly in those fields upon which important branches of the industry are dependent for progress. I n this brief review, an attempt has been made to indicate the importance of the chemical industry throughout its history to our national life. It began with the manufacture of a small number of acids and salts, but from this basis have been constructed other branches of the chemical industry that are chemically more complicated. The finished products of the heavy chemical industry have, in turn, served as t h t raw materials for the synthetic organic chemical industry, so that today the products of the chemical industry are not only used by the chemical-consuming industries but also, to a very considerable extent, within the industry itself. In the present state of development, it is a complicated structure of interrelated products. The last few decades of the chemical industry have been characterized by its rapid rate of growth, and the progress made during the past ten years is infinitely greater than that made in the first two centuries of its existence. This progress is the result of intelligent application of research to technical problems. Today no significant branch of the chemical industry is neglected in this country. “Probably no other industry,” reads a report of the Department of Commerce, “has done as much to raise the standard of living in the United States as has the chemical industry, and consequently none is developing in the same degree. The deDendence uDon it of txacticallv all other industries leads some business analysts to look upon it as a barometer of industrial progress.” It is also prepared to make its contribution to the development of new industries by the creation of new materials, designed to meet certain needs. Our industrial progress in the future will undoubtedly proceed a t a greater rate through the cooperation that industry in general will receive from the chemical industry. The chemists of this country have built an important national asset. The immediate job confronting us as chemists, business men, and citizens is to apply our energy, ingenuity, and skill to the promotion of national recovery, which in plain language means creating more wants and thereby more jobs. Emphatically, it does not mean the destruction of wealth, arhitrary control of prices, class subsidies, and other measures contrary to principles established after generations of slow, painful experience. 1
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RECEIVED April 9, 1935. Presented before t h e general meeting a t t h e 89th Meeting of the American Chemical Society, New York, N. Y., April 22 to 26, 1935.
