Chemical world This week parent from published analyses will deter drug abuse. He says that use of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) dropped precipitously on U.S. campuses after evidence of chromosome breakage appeared four years ago. Dr. McWhirter expects analyses to show adulterants and diluents such as strychnine and atropine in samples given him for analysis. In the Canadian case, a sample of harmaline (a particularly dangerous hallucinogen) given by a patient to Dr. Lionel Solursh at Toronto Western Hospital last month accelerated events which have resulted in the setting up of official procedures in Canada for analyzing street samples of drugs. Under amended narcotics laws, physicians may give samples of drugs to laboratories of the Food and Drug Directorate, the Addictive Research Foundation, or eligible universities and hospitals, on an emergency, nonroutine basis, in cases of either danger to patients' lives or the appearance of new, potentially lethal drugs. Harmaline, 3,4-dihy dro-7-me thoxy-1 -me thy 1-9-pyrid[3,4-B]indole, was not even covered by Canadian law at that time, but its sale has since been banned. The danger of harmaline is that if a person is brought into a hospital emergency room with an overdose of the drug, then tranquilizers usually used to counter hallucinogens might prove fatal. Also, taking harmaline and certain cold tablets together might provoke fatal rise or fall of body temperature. Although drug analysis may serve to deter drug abuse, opponents of drug testing argue that analysis could turn into a free quality-control service for users and sellers.
existing fixed-bed, semiregenerative designs, UOP's continuous regeneration Platforming gives about 2% higher Platformate (reformate) yields at a given severity; hydrogen production is continuous; and yield is 2.6 million s.c.f.d. greater. Other pluses are longer on-stream time, and lower vapor-pressure Platformate, which permits inclusion of more butanes in the final blend, thereby increasing the volume of 10RVP (Reid vapor pressure) product, UOP says. Butanes are relatively cheap, and the ability to use more of these in the final blend without changing the blend's properties would presumably lower—though slightly—the cost of gasoline. In the Platforming process, lowoctane naphtha is reformed catalytically into higher-octane naphtha which can be used to boost the octane rating of gasoline (without using lead, UOP—a major champion of lead-free gas—adds). The process also produces aromatics such as benzene, toluene, xylenes, and ethylbenzene, all raw materials of the petrochemical industry. Chemicals take about one third of the benzene in reformate; 1 / 1 5 of the toluene; and V 10 of the xylenes. Since reforming naphtha eventually impairs the effectiveness of catalysts, refiners have had either to replace catalysts periodically or regenerate them in the reforming reactor chambers, resulting in down time. UOP's design automatically moves catalysts continuously through the reactors to an adjacent reconditioning unit and back again in a closed system. UOP says that catalyst life is thereby increased by at least 60%. Although on-site regeneration does require additional capital investment for the regeneration unit, OIL REFINING: UOP indicates that Coastal States Advanced Platforming expects to justify this investment on Coastal States Petrochemical Co. a five-year basis, indicating that has put into operation a Platform- process economics are favorable. ing process featuring continuous catalyst regeneration. The process MAGNETIC TAPE: is considered "a very significant advance in the art of Platforming" by Du Pont C1O2 licenses its developer Universal Oil Prod- Tapes based on Du Pont's Crolyn ucts, Des Plaines, 111. chromium dioxide magnetic tape Though UOP stresses that the fi- technology seem poised to claim a nal optimization of its process de- substantial portion of the rapidly pends on gaining added experience growing market for high-perform—the first full turnaround of cata- ance audio cassettes, which offer lyst in the Coastal States plant at better frequency response, greater Corpus Christi, Tex., was com- dynamic range, and higher signalpleted barely a month ago—the to-noise ratio. company can already point to sevLast week Du Pont added Baderal pluses. When compared with ische Anilin-& Soda-Fabrik (BASF) 12 C&EN MAY 17, 1971
to its licensees of the Crolyn technology; Agfa-Gavaert is also negotiating with Du Pont for an agreement. Both firms claim to have been developing chromium dioxide technology of their own, but BASF now says it has given up. Electronic giants Sony, Philips, Ampex, and Memorex are already Crolyn licensees. Apparently, the makers of traditional ferric oxide tapes aren't giving up their premium market to Crolyn without a fight. Such tapes have constantly been improved. For example, the latest move is by technically formidable 3M Co. with a cobalt-modified ferric oxide tape that it calls "high energy" and claims is comparable in performance to chromium dioxide tape. Crolyn tapes and the new 3M tape are said to yield improved fidelity at slower tape speeds and they make possible cassette recorders with performance comparable to that of reel-to-reel machines retailing at up to about $500. A current hold-back for chromium dioxide audiotapes is that most cassette machines on the market cannot obtain the optimum performance from them as they require slightly modified electronics. However, future high-performance equipment—such as for the home— will have the capability of handling both chromium dioxide and premium iron oxide cassettes. One such machine was put on the market in this country last fall by Advent Corp. of Cambridge, Mass. Both Advent and Memorex have chromium dioxide audio cassettes on the market. 3M stresses that its new cobaltmodified ferric oxide tape can be used on existing equipment. The company also points out that it also retains the advantages of other ferric oxide tapes—long life and minimum wear on recorder heads. The firm's "high-energy" videotapes are already on the market; the audiotape is scheduled to be introduced in June. Du Pont is also expecting Crolynbased tapes to penetrate the video area, especially when the new "played through TV" videotape equipment hits consumer, industrial, and education markets in a year or two. Major advantages claimed for chromium dioxide videotape are rapid mass production of duplicate tapes with no signal loss and improved picture quality.
