Soviet scientists plan international seminar An unprecedented international scientific seminar in Moscow—designed to help harassed Soviet Jewish scientists to break out of their scientific isolation and to help publicize their plight—is being planned for July 1 to 5. The seminar, on "Collective Phenomena and the Applications of Physics to Other Fields of Science," is being sponsored by an international advisory board of noted scientists, including eight Nobel laureates, by Tel Aviv University, Israel, and by a Soviet program committee. Plans for the seminar were described at a press conference in New York City earlier this month. Soviet Jewish scientists who have applied for permission to go to Israel have been ousted from their scientific
positions and ostracized by official Soviet science, but they generally are not allowed to emigrate, notes Dr. Edward A. Stern of the University of Washington. These scientists "have no normal channels within which they can pursue their scientific careers. They even have been denied scientific contact with their colleagues outside of the Soviet Union, not being permitted to attend any scientific conferences"—even conferences in the Soviet Union. Furthermore, Dr. Stern points out, Soviet authorities seem to be trying to erase the very existence of these scientists. Their names are blanked out of foreign journals citing their publications, for example. Since no official facilities can be expected, the seminar will be held in the private apartment of physicist Alexander Voronel. Abstracts of 68 papers already have
been submitted, from the U.S., the U.K., Israel, West Germany, and the U.S.S.R. The 27 papers from Soviet scientists include two by Dr. Veniamin G. Levich, a noted electrochemist. Dr. Stern tells C&EN that the sponsors realize that it is highly unlikely that Soviet officials will grant visas to any foreign scientists to go to Moscow for the seminar. "But we still felt we had to go ahead," he says. The interest already expressed has been a demonstration of moral support and solidarity for the Soviet scientists, and the publicity engendered will keep the world scientific community alerted to their plight, he says. Furthermore, Dr. Stern explains, some papers from abroad—if not their authors—should be able to reach the seminar. And it is hoped the seminar will give the Soviet scientists a chance to exchange scientific information.
Technology
Recycled wastes minor source for minerals The National Materials Conservation Symposium, held at the National Bureau of Standards (C&EN, May 6, page 7), agreed that intraindustry recycle programs are functioning reasonably well, but that problems with municipal waste processing are just beginning. With the annual quantity of municipal wastes approaching 115 million tons, not including sewage, it has been estimated by the National Center for Resource Recovery that the potential value of recoverables is about $1 billion per year. The nation's annual bill for trash handling is about $5 billion, with 80% being spent on collection alone. The emphasis on economics was made early in the symposium by Elliott M. Estes, executive vice president of General Motors, who said, "All the arguments for materials conservation are sound, important, and convincing, but favorable economics for waste recovery is the clincher." Just how much recyclable material can be realized from municipal wastes depends on future recovery technology, but even if total recovery were possible, the growing national demand for minerals would make recycled waste a minor feature of the minerals picture. In testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Mines and Mining, Dr. John D. Morgan, Jr., assistant director of the Bureau of Mines, has said that the U.S. economy requires more than 4 billion tons of new mineral supplies annually with increasing amounts being imported. However, the import statistics are most disturbing because they imply that mineral processing technology is lagging. Charles B. Kenahan, research director for the Bureau of Mines' College Park research center, told the
NBS symposium that, despite major problems with petroleum and aluminum imports, the basic mineral position of the U.S. is sound. There are few high-grade mineral deposits left but there is a wealth of low-grade deposits that can be used when more favorable economics and a lagging recovery technology catch up to the demands. In the interim, the emphasis will remain on present recovery methods and waste recycling. Ideally, all municipal trash would be separated into its components at the source, usually the household. Though there are some exceptions, separation at the source is not practiced and this provides the principal difficulty for municipal trash processors. The most advanced technology for waste recovery centers on making the waste stream uniform in physical characteristics. Shredding is the preferred method. Ferrous metallics may be separated magnetically. Organics may be separated by air or water classification. Tin is recovered by caustic solution. Other unit operations for separation include screening, optical sorting of glass fractions, electrostatic separations, and hand picking. There are now in operation two demonstration plants, in St. Louis and Franklin, Ohio, which combine these operations in integrated plants. Four more demonstration plants are scheduled in the next few years. The design data obtained from these plants will form the basis for the use of this integrated system in future municipal plants. However, there are numerous, nontechnical problems that may be decisive. The NBS symposium was divided into five working groups, each charged with making recommendations for fu-
ture action. Each group concentrated on one kind of waste, such as glass or paper. Some of the 28 recommendations were predictable—for example, the promotion of public education in waste recovery. In the ferrous metals group, great emphasis was placed on obtaining legal authority for making long-term contracts with private disposal firms, and for the long-term financing of equipment. The nonferrous group was particularly concerned with establishing tax incentives for the private sector to encourage waste recovery, as well as for an independent and objective assessment of alternative technologies now available. The glass group emphasized government-funded research and development for sorting and removal of ceramic inserts from scrap. The paper group concentrated on the need for information dissemination to municipalities, the private sector, and the public at large. From the technical viewpoint most of the unsolved problems lie in the area of plastics, rubber, and textiles. A major recommendation was that polymeric materials be identified to facilitate separation in the waste processing system. Another was that future specifications for polymeric products be written to encourage product performance rather than materials compositions. There was unanimous agreement that there is no really national distribution system for recyclable wastes. High freight rates militate against long-distance transport of low-density scrap. And unreliability of supply and instability of future markets for scrap foster imaginative recovery systems only in large urban areas, even though the greatest need is in smaller communities. May 13, 1974 C&EN
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