T H E JOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL A N D ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
Sept., 1922
York finance. Through the evolution of various credit information bureaus, Pittsburgh to-day has facilities in this direction second to none in the country. Of the fifteen commercial paper houses in America to-day, four are located in Pittsburgh. This means, that should money be cheaper in San Francisco, or in any other community in America, than in Pittsburgh, by means of these commercial paper houses, the Pittsburgh manufacturer can get the benefits of that market. I n the element of finances, it is to be noted that the authors refer to availability t o New York finances. This is a direct recognition of New York as the center of all major financing. Many cities attempt to show themselves as major elements in national financing projects, but a consideration of the transactions of their local stock markets and their achievements in financing large new industries as compared with New York, shows such claims to be without foundation. The effort of Pittsburgh financial leaders in dealing with national, financial problems has not been one of financial competition with New York, but instead the effort and the result has been that Pittsburgh financial institutions to-day are ahle to offer their clients all the advantages of New York, Boston, and Pkiladelphia, as well as of Pittsburgh, either for the purposes of home manufacture or foreign trade.
J 1911
I I I I I I I 72
73
74
i i i i i i i i i i i i i i 75
yb
77
j8
:I9
'20 '21
PITTSBURGH BANKCLEARINGS, 191 1-1921
Regardless of this, Pittsburgh as a financial community is in the forefront of Amcrican cities. With bank clearings in 1911 of about $2,500,000,000 these have grown to more than three times that much during the past decade. Pittsburgh has 78 banks and trust companies, with a cnpital of $63,000,000 and a surplus of 895,000,000, and with savings deposits of $323,000,000. One institution alone has a combined capital and surplus of $39,000,000, a figure which compares favorably with any financial institution in the world. The assessed valuation of Allegheny County's property is $1,800,000,000, an amount greater than any one of 34 states of the United States. Such is a brief account of the industrial development of Pittsburgh. Enough has been given to show that- the people who settled in this district have risen to the occasion in the development of their resources, and have met every challenge imposed by the city with reference to the developing valleys to the westward. To-day, Pittsburgh stands one of the indust,rial giants of the world, having satisfaction for work well done, and seeing even greater promise for future development.
775
The Paint Industry By A. H. Sabin CONSULTING CHEMIST,NATIONAL LEADCo., NEW YORK, N. Y.
ELATIVELY little can be said of progress in the paint industry. During 1921 titanium oxide became important enough commercially to be recognized by the paint trade. It is produced by a single company; is obtained from a deposit of ilmenite (double oxide of titanium and iron) found in Florida associated with zircon, rutile, garnet, monazite, etc., from which it is separated by milling and concentrating; and then shipped to Niagara Falls, where it is treated in an electric f u r n a c e , and then leached with dilute sulfuric acid to make a crude titanium oxide. This is dissolved in strong sulfuric acid, and is then partly diluted with water. Barium sulfate (blanc fixe) is added, more water, and then treated u n t i 1 hydrated titanium oxide precipiA . H. SAEIN tates in intimate mixture with the barium sulfate. It is dewatered, calcined, and pulverized. The finished product contains 75 per cent of barium sulfate and 25 per cent of titanium oxide and is sold under the trade name of Titanox. As in the case of lithopone, the opacity of the final product is nearly as great as that of its opaque ingredient. Hydrofluoric is the only common acid which attacks it. It makes a soft film with oil, and is mixed with 25 to 40 per cent of zinc oxide to harden it. The makers of lithopone claim that they are progressing in making it less liable to change by the action'of light, and this seems to be generally conceded. It is said to be due not so much to any new discovery as to increased care and knowledge of the processes involved. Lithopone is used to some extent in outside paints, but two of the foremost makers express doubt as to its value for this use. There appears to be nothing new in the paint vehicles. Perilla oil seems to have secured a permanent place, so much so that all offerings are taken, usually a t a price above that of linseed oil; it is chiefly used in the varnish industry.
R
Research in Wood Finishing Dr. A. H. Sabin, working in cooperation with the Forest Products Laboratory, the Engineering Foundation, and the National Research Council, is largely responsible for the organization of a committee which is going forward with the organization of research in wood finishing. We have groups of men who are well versed in the characteristics of different woods and others who through research and experience have important data on finishing materials, but the two groups have not combined their knowledge on the solution of the problem of making articles of wood more enduring. There is much research still to be done, but the first work of the committee is the assembling of data in the literature, the reports of experienced painters and finishers, and in general the collection of what is known of the present state of the art. The initial work is being underwritten by industries concerned in the use of wood finishers and the work of research is being initiated a t the Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wis.
