The Chemical World This Week INDUSTRY & BUSINESS
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CONCENTRATES
• In a move toward plasticizer integration Monsanto will make oxo chemicals at Chocolate Bayou, Tex. It expects to complete a plant late next year to make butanol, isobutanol, isooctanol, isodecanol, 2-ethylhexanol, and other alcohols for captive use. Capacity probably will be around 50 to 60 million pounds a year. Monsanto is the largest domestic plasticizer producer, with an estimated phthalate ester capacity of 100 million pounds a year. When the plant is completed, Monsanto will be completely integrated in plasticizer acids (anhydrides) and alcohols. • Goodrich-Gulf Chemicals confirms reports that it will exchange synthetic rubber knowhow with Chemische Werke Huels (C&EN, March 13, page 21). The exchange, involving both cis-polyisoprene and cis-polybutadiene, will include lab and pilot plant data, process and plant design, manufacturing know-how, and test data useful in promoting sales of these products. Besides Ziegler patents, Huels already holds a license under Goodrich-GulFs West German patent rights on these rubbers. Earlier, Goodrich-Gulf licensed Shell Chemical, Ltd., to use its stereospecific rubber patents in the United Kingdom and Polymer Corp., Ltd., to use them in Canada (C&EN, March 27, page 17). • Celanese and Hoechst have announced plans to make and market nytril fiber in Europe. Bobina Faserwerke G.m.b.H., a new company owned by the two, will make the fiber at Bobingen, West Germany. Capacity will be 32 million pounds annually, with production starting early in 1962. Hoechst, a basic producer of acetic acid and vinyl acetate, will supply all raw materials and sell the fiber under the tradename Travis. Darvan is the U.S. trademark for the fiber. Celanese acquired exclusive world rights for it from B. F. Goodrich more than a year ago. • Professional and scientific groups have raised a storm of protest over a bill passed in New York's State Assembly and Senate March 24 which, if signed by Governor Rockefeller, would put control of bioanalysts under the New York State Society of Bioanalysts (see also page 7). ACS Board Chairman Louis P. Hammett, in asking the governor to veto the bill, says that passing such a law without full public hearings would be "unconscionable." He adds that the bioanalysts group, an organization of fewer than 100 owners of bioanalytical labs, is "attempting
to perpetuate certain archaic employment practices" and that the bill "overlooks the proper interest of the various fundamental scientific disciplines affected." • Atlas Powder has asked shareowners to change its name to Atlas Chemical Industries, Inc. It also asked them to okay the merger agreement with Stuart Co., West Coast pharmaceutical firm (C&EN, Feb. 27, page 24). Atlas, incorporated in 1912 to make black powder and explosives, entered chemicals markets in the late thirties with sorbitol, later branched out into activated carbon, other polyols, surfactants, and resins. • Romania will have a British-designed polystyrene plant in operation by the end of 1962. Petrocarbon Developments, Ltd., has contracted to supply a $2.4 million plant under an agreement signed with Masinimport in Bucharest. The plant will use Petrocarbon's suspension polymerization process, which already is in use by France's Pechiney, Britain's Styrene Products, and a Polish plant built by Petrocarbon. • Finland's entry into the European Free Trade Association became a reality last week. Broadly speaking, Finland and the other EFTA members assume the same rights and obligations toward each other as the original seven members had already assumed among themselves. Under the agreement, Finland can retard its reductions of duties on some imports and can continue quantity restrictions on some others. Starting in July, Finland will cut its import tariffs by 30 %, except for the retardable items, on which the cut will be only 20%. Among the retardable items are varnishes and lacquers, tires, and textiles. Among the products on which it will keep import restrictions are natural calcium phosphates and apatite, coal, coke, and natural or chemical fertilizers containing potassium or phosphorus. • Tires with superior traction can be made with Neotex low modulus carbon blacks, Columbian Carbon claims. Neotex reinforcing oil furnace carbon blacks were introduced by Columbian Carbon a year ago for producing low noise, soft ride tires. Recent tests at Ontario's Lake Bernard on clear ice, hard packed snow, and varying slopes showed traction of tires made with Neotex blacks was up to 24% better than that of tires made with conventional blacks. APRIL
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