THE CHEMICAL WORLD THIS WEEK arc riboHa\ in, ascorbic acid, lactose, a n d glucose. Interference from rilwflavin is re moved chromatographically in columns containing Florisil. Interference from as corbic acid, lactose, a n d glucose is r e moved by treatment with copper sulfate and calcium hydroxide. Solar Energy. More research today should b e directed toward t h e discovery of new a n d improved uses for solar energy, said Farrington Daniels, President of t h e AMERICAN
Farrington Daniels ( c e n t e r ) , President of tlie AMERICAN C H E M I C A L SOCIETY, discusses advances in solar energy research with John Lee ( l e f t ) , chairman of t h e North Jersey Section. At right is C. L . Brown, w h o was chairman of t h e meeting-in-miniature C&EN REPORTS: ACS North Jersey Section, Meeting-in-Miniature
N e w Laboratory Procedures Speed Up Vitamin Analysis ACS urged to take greater safety in the chemical industry NEWARK, N . J.—Two rapid methods of analysis for vitamins in foods a n d multi vitamin preparations were described ;tt the 5 t h annual meeting-in-miniature of the ACS North Jersey Section, held here on Jan. 26. O n e of the new procedures is highly specific for ascorbic acid in the presence of dehydroascorbic acid and all other vitamins normally found in pharma ceutical preparations, according to a paper b y Morton Schmall, Charles W. Pifer, and Ernest G. Wollish of Hoffman-La Roche. Most methods used at present for the eolorimetrie determination of ascorbic acid are based on the reduction of 2,6-dichlorophenol indophenol or t h e coupling of de hydroascorbic acid with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine. Tlie new procedure involves t h e coupling of ascorbic acid with diazotized 3-nitro-4-aminoanisole in acid me dium, followed b y the development of a stable blue color in alkaline solution. This dye, possessing a maximum absorption a t 570 irux., is compared with standards i n a photoelectric colorimeter. Samples containing as little a s 10 micrograms of ascor bic acid p e r m l . can b e rapidly deter mined. An improved eolorimetrie determina 552
role
in p r o m o t i n g
tion of calcium pantothenate, one of t h e Β complex vitamins, w a s reported b y C. R. Szalkowski and J. II. Davidson, Jr., of Merck & Co. T h e analytical method is based on the formation of a, -y-dihydroxyp, /tf-dimethylbutyric acid b y hydrolytic cleavage in acid medium. T h e hydroxy acid reacts with 2,7-naphthaIenediol in the presence of sulfuric acid to yield a colored complex having a maximum a b sorption at 4 6 5 ιημ. T h e method is specific for calcium pan tothenate in t h e presence of most other vitamins. T h e compounds t h a t interfere
The Week's Events T a l l o w Surplus G r o w t h Due t o Syn thetic D e t e r g e n t G a i n s . . . . 5 5 5 Companies U r g e d t o C o m b a t Pub lic's Antibusiness Views . . . . 5 5 6 Engineers C o n c e r n e d w i t h Instru mentation in t h e Process Indus tries 556 Rohm & H a a s Process Yields Lower Cost Acrylics
560
Today's Research Expense is Four Times That of W o r l d W a r I I . . 5 6 6
C H E M I C A L
CHEMICAL
SOCIETY,
speaking
at t h e local section banquet. T h e sun, h e said, will b e t h e world's most important long-range energy source—one that will b e used much more than atomic energy once the earth's resources of coal, oil, a n d gas are depleted. In t h e solar energy field, nothing quick or revolutionary is in sight within t h e immediate future, although wide-scale research is certain to result in marked advances in this field. Silicone Compound. A silicone molding compound that can withstand tempera tures of 200° C. for as long as 1000 hours without significant changes in its proper ties was announced b y Solomon Kaganoff of Federal Telecommunication Labora tories. In t h e new formulation, designated as C P 7 0 1 , t h e silicone resin is b l e n d e d with Celite, which acts as a filler, a n d with triethanolamine, which accelerates the curing process. W h e n strontium n a p h thenate is added, t h e formulation can b e used to mold objects having very fine d e tail. S a f e t y . T h e vast reservoir of experi ence possessed by t h e members of t h e A M E R I C A N C H E M I C A L SOCIETY, if
tapped,
organized, a n d m a d e available, could b e an important factor in reducing accidents in t h e chemical industry, said Jack H , Thelin of t h e Calco Chemical Division, speaking at t h e meeting-in-miniature's forum on safety. D r . Thelin went on t o describe t h e activities of t h e North Jersey Section's safety committee, established early in 1 9 5 1 . An effort should b e m a d e to determine what other ACS sections h a v e committees of this type, h e said. Coopera tion b e t w e e n these safety committees would serve t h e very worthwhile purpose of increasing t h e effectiveness of all ACS activity in t h e safety field. Thought should be given to t h e desirability of establish ing a Division of Safety of t h e A M E R I C A N C H E M I C A L SOCIETY, said D r . Thelin.
T h e safe handling of volatile compounds was outlined b y H . T . Rice a n d W . C . Harney of Esso Standard Oil Co. During 1950, a special committee w a s set u p at Esso's Β ayw a y refinery to instruct all oper ating personnel in t h e proper handling of these materials. A course, divided into three two-hour sessions, w a s established which w a s devoted t o a discussion of t h e chemistry of crude oil a n d petroleum p r o d A N D ENGINEERING
NEWS
nets and to a demonstration of some of the physical properties of volatile hydrocarbons, such as their vapor pressure, combustion, and explosivity. The most effective plan for the promotion of safety in a manufacturing organization is to make it a responsibility of plant supervisors, said M. N. Gahoury of the Calco Chemical Division. In the safety program instituted at Calco, emphasis was placed on the development of proper attitudes toward safety o n the part of individual employees, particularly the new men with less than six months of service. This latter group, representing 25c/c of the working force, accounted for 50 r /t of the total number of accidents, said Mr. Gabon ry. As a result of the Calco safety program, the number of disabling injuries w a s reduced from 2 6 in 1948 to two in 1952. The cost of rehabilitating accident victims was reduced from $32,718 in 1948 t o $18,000 in 1952. Since 1934, some $3 million has been saved in insurance premiums as a result of the company's improved accident record, he said. Quartz Crystals. T h e growing of piezoelectric crystals, particularly quartz, was the subject of a report by A. C. Walker of the Bell Telephone Laboratories. After World War II, he said, a critical shortage developed in the U. S. supply of single crystals of Brazilian quartz, which found considerable u s e in band-pass filters employed in the transmission of large numbers of telephone conversations simultaneously over a single coaxial circuit. Information from Germany indicated that quartz crystals had been grown successfully at the University of Frankfort. A serious limitation of the German method was that multiple nucleation occurred, so that many crystals grew in addition to the one produced from t h e planted seed. After several years of experimentation, said Dr. Walker, a process was developed whereby large, single crystals of quartz could be grown to a weight of more than one pound in 60 days or less. O n e such crystal was recently grown to a weight of more than 1.5 pounds in about 8 0 days. The equipment involved includes autoclaves 4 inches in inside diameter by 4 feet in length, weighing upwards of 1150 pounds each. Use is made of pressures of 15,000 pounds per square inch and temperatures of 750° F. Insulating Paper. For an electrical insulating paper to possess superior dielectric characteristics, it should have high density, good capillarity, high mechanical and dielectric strength, low coefficient of friction, and satisfactory age stability, said B. B. Reinitz of the Okonite Callender Cable Co. The desired low porosity of the paper can be obtained by close packing of the fibers, swelling of the fibers by excessive hydration, or by heavy calendering. Satisfactory age stability can be obtained if the paper is somewhat alkaline and has a low mineral content. T h e paper should not only b e as free as possible from ligneous matter but should have an alpha cellulose content of at least 90 r /r. V O L U M E
3 1,
NO. 6
.
.
C&EN REPORTS: ACS Philadelphia Section. Meeting-in-Miniature
G r o w t h of Chemical Companies Depends on Products of Research Chemists win battle of spelling of sulfur P H I L A D E L P H I A . - M a n y of the ingredients entering into a national meeting of the
AMERICAN
CHEMICAL
SOCIETY
were
evident at the 5th meeting-in-miniature of the Philadelphia Section on Jan. 29. There was even a miniature "mixer," and general gathering in the evening, climaxed by a dinner during which some very pertinent details of the Napalm incendiary development were related by Louis F. Fieser of Harvard. T h e chemists from Philadelphia and #ie region surrounding came mostly to attend the technical sessions presentt>d concurrently under seven divisional headings: analytical chemistry, biological chemistry, chemical education, industrial chemistry, organic chemistry, petroleum chemistry, and physical and inorganic chemistry. There were, in addition, a student symposium o n chemistry as a career, addressed b y four prominent speakers in education and personnel from universities, industry, and the ACS. T h e meeting committee, headed by
,e
f" vs. " p h " in dictionary
Frederick C. Novell» of Sharp and Dohme, was also able to cram in a number of invited speakers on special subjects. One ot these was C. P. Neidig, chemical specialist with White, Weld and Co., who showed how important n e w products of research are in the growth of our chemical companies. Mr. Neidig disclosed that nylon represented 18r/r of the $1.5 billion sales of the Du Pont Co. in 1952 against only a fraction in 1940. Ethylene glycol likewise has made significant contributions to the sales expansion of carbide and carbon and D o w Chemical, and sales returns from styrene and polystyrene in 1952 were probably greater than total company sales in 1940 for both D o w and Monsanto. Pharmaceutical Chemistry. Pharmaceuticals and medicinal chemicals were also the subject of papers read at the technical sessions. Richard D e V. Huber ot the Wyeth Institute of Applied Biochemistry described, for example the synthesis of au entire chiss of hypnotic agents
TRIETHANOLAMINE nSPrl
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FEBRUARY
Drum stocks o f Triethanolamine a r e maintained in principal industrial areas. Larger quantities a r e shipped directly f r o m our plants. Phone or w r i t e our nearest office f o r information a n d prices.
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9,
1953
553
