THE CHEMICAL WORLD THIS WEEK Expense Grants
Available
The committee on research of the American Philosophical Society meets five times a year to make grants for expenses to individuals engaged in research in the physical sciences, the biological sciences, the social sciences, and the humanities. An application may b e made at any time and will be considered at the next meeting of the committee if received a month in advance. These meetings are held in October, December, February, April, and June. Information concerning grants and application forms may be obtained from the executive office of the society, 104 South Fifth St., Philadelphia 6, Pa. N D A C Receives G r a n t s For Chemical Research The school of chemical technology at North Dakota Agricultural College has recently received two grants for the coining academic year. A fellowship of $2400 has been granted by the Cataphote Corp. of Toledo, Ohio. The funds will be used to subsidize basic research at the graduate level in the field of highway traffic paint. The Archer-Daniels-Midland fellowship, for a graduate student in chemistry, is for the encouragement of basic research. The grant amounts to $750 per year. Engineering Scholarship Fund a t Lehigh A scholarship fund for engineering students at Lehigh University has been established by the Philco Corp. The grant of $18,000 will provide three scholarships valued at $1500 each annually for the next four years. Grants will be made on the basis of financial need, character and personality, and high scholastic achievement. Recipients of scholarship aid may have the award renewed providing they maintain high scholastic records while students at Lehigh University. Michigan Receives G r a n t s and Gifts At their June meeting, the regents of the University of Michigan accepted grants and gifts amounting to $68,639.44. Among these grants was one from Eli Lilly and Co. in the amount of $4000 for the Gout Research fund to cover the period from July 1, 1952 to June 30, 1953. Another grant of $4000 came from the Du Pont Co. for infrared research.. The General Electric education fund has given $1200 to pay semester fees and incidental expenses of a fellowship held by Sumio Yukawa. Sandoz Chemical Works, Inc. gave $500 for research to be carried on under the leadership of Mark Nickerson, department of pharmacology. Carbide and Carbon Chemicals Co. gave a $500 scholarship in chemical engineering for the academic 2716
year 1952-53. The company's offer to renew this scholarship for four succeeding years also was accepted by the regents. NSF G r a n t f o r Ketone Research The University of Texas has received a $15,400 National Science Foundation grant for research to determine the properties of ketones produced by the petrochemical industry. Kenneth A. Kobe, chemical engineering professor, will be in charge of the twoyear project, scheduled to get under way in September. The grant is the first awarded the University by the foundation.
nmEnnmn Freeze-Drying Aids Electron Microscopy Re-evaluation of the sizes and shapes of viruses is predicted as a result of a newtechnique for use with the electron microscope. Announced at the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Corvallis, Ore., last week, the method is said to produce the clearest pictures of the submicroscopic world yet known. The technique involves preparation of samples by freeze-drying prior to photographing. Fine droplets of the sample are sprayed on a film of collodion on a copper disk in a flask of liquid air. Vacuum is app^'ed and the droplets are frozen in 0.0001 second. The viruses or other biological objects retain their original shape whereas in older methods of drying they are squashed flat, as a result of surface tension created during drying, and viewed as distorted flat objects. It is believed that the improved technique will lead to a better understanding of just how and where viruses and bacteria attack living cells. Frozen Milk N o t Likely In N e a r Future Sufficient knowledge is available about the technicalities of processing and distributing frozen concentrated milk to make the marketing of a satisfactory product possible at any time, F. J. Doan, Penn State, told a recent meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists. Frozen milk could be handled by the food store and the consumer in the same way as other frozen foods, Mr. Doan said, although a lower storage temperature might b e desirable. The early appearance of the product in the groceries is unlikely, however. The poor acceptance of fluid concentrate milk in markets showed the consumer to be mainly interested in convenience and price, Doan continued. Frozen concentrate milk would not b e cheaper than fluid milk and would be less CHEMICAL
convenient, Mr. Doan therefore concluded that this product will find uses at present in areas where milk is lacking or high in price and perhaps in limited military utilization. C y c l o n e Process Removes Small Solid Particles A process which will separate very small solid particles has been developed by North western University under the direction of D. A. Dahlstrom. This process utilizes a cyclone, a n d is ~~id to separate solid impurities and particles so small that until now it has been economically impossible to remove them from such things as cereal grains, medicines, and organic chemicals. It has been possible to substitute this continuoLis process for former expensive and inefficient batch methods at a substantial increase in purity and recovery of the valuable material. The cyclone is a relatively small vessel and contains no moving parts. It requires only conventional pumps to furnish the energy required lor the separation, and develops forces up t o 2000 times that of gravity. Thus, it is possible to separate particles as fine as 0.004 inch and vary, ing by as little as l in weight from other solid material, lis flow rate capacity is up to 2000 times higher per unit of floor space area than any other type of separator. The material to be separated is fed into the cyclone in a liquid suspension wherein the heavier solids are concentrated to one point and t h e lighter material is withdrawn from a second outlet. The equipment has already been applied to the mining industry where millions of tons of formerly-wasted coal and ores have been saved. Because of its high efficiency and low cost, a second research program was initiated at Northwestern University in order to develop its use for the food, pharmaceutical, and chemical industries. Electrolytic Manganese C a n Be Substituted in Some Uses That electrolytic manganese from lowgrade domestic ores can be substituted satisfactorily for some uses of ferrom^ iganese made from high-grade foreign ores has been established by extensive tests conducted in cooperation with industry, according to a report released today by J. T. Forbes, director of the Bureau of Mines. The Bureau's tests show that for some purposes electrolytic manganese is superior to other grades because of its high purity. In the tests, 46 producers substituted electrolytic manganese produced at the bureau's experiment station at Boulder City, Nev., for their customary grades of manganese in the production of ferrous and nonferrous metals and alloys and of welding rod coatings. More than 1.2 million pounds of manganese were given to these producers for testing, and the bureau's tests show that electrolytic manganAND
ENGINEERING
NEWS
THE C H E M I C A L W O R L D THIS WEEK
cse is highly desirable for stainless steels and welding rods because of its virtual freedom from phosphorus and carbon. Free copies of Report of Investigations 4861, "Electrolytic Manganese Tests in Cooperation with Industry," may be obtained from the Bureau of Mines, Publications Distribution Section, 4800 Forbes St., Pittsburgh 13, Pa. EDUCATION Engineering Links Science with Utility Engineering was described as the vital link that bridges the vast distance between pure science and utility in a recent address by Jess H. Davis, president of Stevens Institute of Technology. Speaking at SIT's commencement exercises, Dr. Davis noted that in the past 100 years the engineer, by becoming more adept at translating the scientist's findings into tangible goods, has not only changed the physical appearance of the world, but has also altered political, social and economic relationships. Today's engineer, the man who speaks the language of the laboratory and of the market place, has proved the natural choice for the decision-making role in industry, according to President Davis. He quoted from a report of the American Institute of Management which revealed that of 159 companies studied for the report, 27 had presidents who were engineers, and that no other profession had produced as many men for top management. In addition, engineers held many other leading managerial posts. "Now that he has assumed a leading role in industry, it is natural to expect that the engineer will become more active in public affairs," said Dr. Davis. He observed that the engineer trained to approach problems dispassionately, to assemble facts in logical order, and to arrive at a workable solution, is well-equipped to supply the firm, understanding leadersi lip that can enable human beings everywhere to benefit by America's technological genius.
committee of college presidents and deans has been appointed to review the applications for grants to select initially 10-15 institutions to which grants will be made. Each participating institution will receive a maximum of $25,000 to be used to free the time of faculty members for the study, to provide technical and secretarial aid, and to provide outside consultants. The kind of study contemplated goes far beyond t h e type of survey generally made for accreditation purposes. The committee hopes instead that the colleges will be interested in re-examining why they exist and why they offer the specific programs they have arranged. Although the central concern will presumably be the curriculum and the effectiveness of instruction, a college may wish to consider its particular circumstances as determined by its history, its clientele, its location, its faculty, its financial support, and its social responsibility. The institutions selected under this program will carry out their studies independently of each other. On the basis of these reports the committee plans to publish a statement which may be helpful to liberal arts colleges generally. The Committee on College Self Studies of the Fund for the Advancement of Education, 980 San Pasqual St., Pasadena 5, Calif., will accept applications for grants until Nov. 1, 1952.
Education Notes • • • A gift valued at over $20,000 has been given to the chemistry department of Adelphi College by the estate of the late Charles Dakin, noted English scientist. The gift includes an extensive collection of scientific books, rare chemicals, and laboratory equipment. Clemson Agricultural College has been unanimously elected as a sponsoring university at the seventh annual meeting of the Council of the Oak Ridge Institute of Nuclear Studies. This brings to 30 the number of sponsoring universities of the institute. The Science Clubs of America, 1719 N Street, N.W., Washington 6, D . C , advises high school seniors of 1953 to start now on their scientific projects for the Twelfth Annual Science Talent Search. The division of chemical engineering FAE Establishes Self-Study Program in Liberal Arts Colleges State University of Iowa, has announced that Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. has esThe need for a critical examination and tablished a graduate fellowship in chemiappraisal of liberal education in the Uni.ed cal engineering to begin with the 1952—53 States has prompted the Fund for the school year. The initial fellowship has Advancement of Education to establish been awarded to Francis B. McDaniel. It a new program of self-studies for liberal will carry a cash award of $1900 for each arts colleges, whether independent or full year of graduate study and will be suaffiliated with universities. pervised by Dr. Karl Kammermeyer, proSince its establishment in 1951, the fessor of chemical engineering. Fund has been approached by many colApplications for Fulbright Awards for leges interested in defining the role of the university lecturing and postdoctoral reliberal arts college in our educational search in Europe and the Near East for structure. A number requested financial the 1953—54 competition are due Oct. 15. assistance to conduct self examinations of Details are available from Committee on their programs. -To assist in this program _ International Exchange of Persons, 2101 the Fund has appropriated $300,000. A Constitution Ave., Washington 25, D. C. V O L U M E
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NO. 26
JUNE
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