IE REPORTS ON
ÊNDUSTRIAL
MOBILIZATION
N e w s of the nation's activity in marshaling its resources to meet the international e m e r g e n c y
Expansion A i m s for H e x a m i n e , Pentaerythritol, a n d Octyl Alcohols
DPA has set expansion goals for hexylmethylenetetramine at 28 million pounds, pentaerythritol at 65 million pounds, and octyl alcohols at 167 million pounds. All three goals are set for completion by Jan. 1, 1955. Certificates of necessity have already been issued to cover the expansion for hexarnethylenetetramine and octyl alcohols. All hut 1.3 million pounds of the expansion for pentaerythritol is covered by expansion already under way. The hexamine goal represents an expansion of 10 million pounds over the Jan. 1, 1951, capacity; the pentaerythritol goal, 2 5 million pounds over the early 1951 capacity; and the octvl alcohols goal, 60 million pounds over the capacity on J a n . ' l , 1951. Expansion Target Set for Rutile a n d Air Preheaters
would have to be increased by 315,000 tons of nitrogen annually to meet the nation's food requirements under full mobilization. T h e 1955 expansion goal for nitrogen calls for a production capacity of 2,930,000 tons of nitrogen. Production for 1951-52 amounted to 1.8 million tons. Industry members of the committee think present and projected expansion will meet all needs because: Industry is building all the plant capacity possible u n d e r existing conditions of material and equipment supply. Plant expansion is scheduled to increase by about 300,000 tons a year to 1955 and the expansion rate could b e increased more rapidly in the event of all-out emergency. Rated plant capacity, they said, is usually considerably less than actual production because of process improvements, removal of plant bottlenecks, and improvements in plant efficiency. NPA told the committee that the Department of Agriculture's suggested 1955 requirement of 690,000 tons of nitrogen in solid nitrogen materials would be achieved based on announced industry plans. On the basis of information from industry and requests for rapid tax amortization certificates received before Sept. 22, N P A stated that indicated supply of solid nitrogen materials would amount to 747,350 tons annually by 1955. NPA also said that construction work has already started on 16 of the 25 plants certified under the nitrogen expansion goal and one plant has been completed.
An expansion goal for rutile, a sand from which titanium is produced and which is used in the manufacture of ferroand aluminum alloys, ceramic colors, fiber glass, and various chemicals, and revision of another expansion goal for regenerative air preheaters, lias been announced by DPA. The goal for U. S. supply of rutile from both domestic and foreign sources has been set at 25.000 tons a year, to be achieved during 1954. This would provide about 6000 tons of new capacity over that existing in 1951. Only about a third of the present U. S. supply is from domestic sources, the rest being imported from Australia. Although 1 1 8 N e w Certificates A p p r o v e d rutile is not now in short supply, DPA DPA approved applications for 118 certificates of necessity for rapid amortizafeels that because of titanium's growing uses a larger supply is considered tion of new or expanded facilities amounting to $209,018,315 during the period from Sept. 18 to 24. Accelerated tax amortization amounting to $22,635,670,000 desirable. DPA said that it expects that Florida has now been granted for 13,907 facilities. T h e largest certificate announced in will b e the principal source of domestic the new list went to Southern Natural Gas Co. of Birmingham, Ala., for natural rutile expansion. Benefication plants gas transmission facilities, $165,000, 20% allowed, and $79,828,273, 25% allowed. are planned for extraction of this min- Certificates of chemical interest are listed below. eral from the sand there. PERCENTAGE AMOUNT N A M E O F C O M P A N Y AND ALLOWED CERTIFIED P R O D U C T OR S E R V I C E L O C A T I O N O F FACILITIES The expansion goal for regenerative 45 I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Adipic acid and hexamethylene $ 4,549,000* air preheaters, used in large boilers, es- E. Orange, diamine Tex. 1,630,000* 45 pecially in electric power generating E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Adipic acid and hexamethylene diamine W . Va. plants, has been revised upward to Ε. Belle, 45 33,475,000* Adiponitrile I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. Tex. provide f-ul an annual production ca- Ε. Victoria, 45 Adiponitrile 5,170,000e 1. du Pont de Nemours & Co. pacity of 384 units by Jan. 1, 1954. Niagara Falls, Ν. Υ. 70 Dextran injection fluid for mili 233,000 H. K. Laros Co. This represents an increase of 228 units tary use Bethlehem, Pa. 45 Nitro-phosphatc* fertilizer 7,361,250* Improvement Co. over annual capacity on Jan. i, 191:1. Gulf Pascagoula, Miss. E x p a n s i o n Plans Indicate A l l Nitrogen Needs M e t by 1 9 5 5
T h e Nitrogen Industry Advisory Committee has told NPA that current and projected expansion of nitrogen production capacity will be sufficient to meet military, industrial, and agricultural requirements in the event of full mobilization. However, the Department of Agric lture thinks present partial mobilization expansion goals 4282
45 Phosphatic fertilizers 1,396,000e» Tennessee Corp., U. S. Phosphoric Products Div. East Tampa, Fla. 65 2,840,900 Cities Service Oil Co. Natural gasoline Terrebonne Parish, La. 65 2,693.500 Texas Gas Products Corp. Natural gasoline 90 190.000 Upton, Midland, Reagan, and Glasscock Counties, Tex. 50 70,000 Petroleum refining facilities McMurrey Refining Co. Tvler, Tex. 65 Natural gasoline 646,574 Tide Water Associated Oil Co. East Bernard, Tex. Rare earth concentrates 75 549,427 Molvbdenum Corp. of America New York, Ν. Υ. ( Homo office) Spodumene concentrates 70 157,591 l i t h i u m Corp. of America, I n c . Hill City, S. Dak. ft This figure to be reduced by Internal Revenue at a later date upon determination of the cost of certain facilities. 6 This figure to be reduced a t a later date upon determination of the cost of facilities.
CHEMICAL
AND
ENGINEERING
NEWS
