New Books and Booklets TECHNICAL G A S ANALYSES. George Lunge. Revised and re while admittedly approximate, enhance the value of the book as a written by H. R. Ambler. 410 pages. D . Van Nostrand Co., text. Inc., 250 Fourth Ave., New York, 1934. Price, $ 8 . As an illustration of his method of attack, the author carries out the design of a plant for the manufacture of ferrous sulfate from waste pickle liquor. Starting with pilot plant data, and pro T H I S is a very complete and interesting revision of a text that has gressing through heat and material balances t o the selection of been a standard for many years. T h e familiar format and topog plant equipment, the plant layout and cost estimates are finally raphy nave been retained. prepared. This section contains typographical and other minor The book i s profusely illustrated, and most of the illustrations errors which will undoubtedly b e corrected i n a second printing. a r e excellent. There are a number of venerable examples that A number of problems for student use are also presented. i t would seem might well have been replaced by more modern The book assumes that the reader has a working knowledge of apparatus. The section o n the Analysis of Small Quantities of heat and material balances and of the design of unit operations G a s is a n interesting collection of a number of more recent meth equipment, and is intended primarily a s a text for advanced s t u ods. I t should, however, be a n interesting addition t o t h e li The section on the Determination of Small Quantities of Or dents. ganic Vapors is v e r y pertinent, in connection with industrial brary of the practicing chemical engineer.A. M C L A R E N W H I T E bygiene. I t is curious that the Assman hydrometer, so widely used a s the standard instrument in the determination of water vapor, is not mentioned. INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC RELATIONS. Report of the C o m The section on the Determination of Solid Matter in Gases i s mission of Inquiry into National Policy in International rather "weak, especially in view of the large amount o f work that Economic Relations. 397 pages. University of Minnesota b a s been done on t h i s problem. In this connection t h e question Press, Minneapolis, Minn., 1934. Price, $ 3 . o f temperature control and sampling is not even touched. The book i s t o b e commended for its inclusion o f the more modern physical methods for determining the constituents, such T H I S is the report of t h e commission s e t up b y the Social Science Research Council and financed b y the Rockefeller Foundation, t o a s the gas inferometer, spectroscopic methods, and conductivity. The Table of Physical Constants of Some Gases and Vapors inquire into the subject of national policy i n international eco would seem to b e a very valuable compilation o f data that nomic relations. Those who composed t h e commission are: are frequently difficult t o find. W h y the identical table o n Robert M. Hutchins, chairman, University of Chicago; William Tudor Gardiner, vice chairman, Incorporated Investors, Boston; pages 206-7 should b e repeated on pages 388-89 is n o t clear. The rather unsatisfactory state o f some of the physical con Carl L. Alsberg, Food Research Institute, Stanford University: stants of gases and vapors i s illustrated in the tables for the Calo Isaiah Bowman, American Geographical Society and National rific Values of Gases on Combustion, page 320. There seem t o Research Council; Guy Stanton Ford, University of Minnesota; b e a number of differences running t o over 2 per cent between t h e Beardsley Ruml, R. H. Macy & C o . ; and Alfred H. Stone, Missis values adopted as standard in t h e United States by t h e American sippi State Tax Commission. The report is well presented, the first part giving the recom O a s Association and those quoted. In t h e Explosive Limits o n page 387 we would not expect close mendations of t h e commission, followed by a second and much longer part which gives in considerable detail the reasons for the concordance on account of the methods employed in determining t h e constant, but w e would expect agreement closer than 100 recommendations. T h e third part i s the report of the com per cent, such as occurs i n the figures quoted for ethylene and mission by Alvin H. Hansen, w h o until July 1, 1934, served a s pentane in t h e upper limit and in the lower limit for oxygen, and director of research and secretary t o the commission. Part 4 where variations as great a s 50 per cent occur in the lower limits presents representative selections from the written statements submitted to the commission, together with revised transcripts of for benzene and pentane. The. book well illustrates the differences in technic that have t h e statements of some of the witnesses at t h e public hearings, developed i n technical methods for gas analyses in t h e two coun while the last part summarizes t h e views expressed b y witnesses tries. In England t h e measurements appear to b e general] · · a t the hearings held before the commission, excluding those which made a t constant volume, whereas i n the United States constant appear in Part 4. It is emphasized that the commission is responsible neither t o pressure is more usually employed. As indicated in the Preface, t h e revision i s intended primarily for use in the British Empire, the Government nor t o the Social Science Research Council which which explains why a number of pieces of apparatus developed in selected its members, nor to the Rockefeller Foundation which financed its work. Its responsibility, therefore, is to itself and t o America nave not b e e n included. It i s felt t h a t even British gas chemists would be interested in the American people, t o whom t h e report is made directly. The recommendations are made under four principal headings: t h e present apparatus used for the determination of small quan (1) the general objective of American international economic tities o f carbon monoxide ; the more recent modification of the Dreschmidt apparatus for the determination of organic sulfur policy; (2) political measures; (3) economic measures; and (4) compounds; the nitrometer a s standardized by t h e American administrative measures. One who reads these various recom Society for Testing Materials; a modern form of Junkers' calorime mendations (they are stated in nearly six pages) will find some thing with whicn to agree and much either t o question or with ter; t h e Thomas recording calorimeter; and the Podbielniak apparatus for low-temperature distillation, now so widely used. which t o disagree. A t any rate, the reader will wish t o turn at One is always inclined t o criticize the omission of methods once to the part giving reasons for some of t h e recommendations long a n d widely u s e d , and i t is believed that a good deal of valu which he finds difficulty in accepting; as, for example, "immedi able material was overlooked in the publications of t h e American ate withdrawal from the Philippines on terms that will protect Oas Association, i t s predecessor, t h e American G a s Institute, their economic life from injury b y American tariffs;" "placing of immigration on a non-discriminatory basis;" "repeal and t h e classical paper of Ε . Η . Earnshaw in the Journal of the oriental f Franklin institute, which seem to have entirely escaped t h e ~ the Johnson Act forbidding loans to countries i n default ;" ooval of tariffs in all cases i n which no serious addition to author. u mployment would result:" and numbers of others for the re In spite o f its British viewpoint, i t will be of great value t o all printing of which we do not nave the space. g a s analysts. The report is not one that can be really reviewed without enter W. H. FTJLWEILER ing into space-taking argument, but i t is one which those of our readers interested in economic relations with foreign countries as OHEMICAL E N G I N E E R I N G P L A N T D E S I G N . Frank C. Vilbrandt. bearing upon our world commerce will wish t o study. X -H 341 pages. McGraw-Hill Book Co., Inc., New York, N . Y . Price, $4. PRODUCTION AND SALES OP D Y E S A N D OTHER SYNTHETIC O R
THIS latest addition to t h e McGraw-Hill Chemical Engineering Series deals with t h e design of t h e chemical engineering plant proper. It presupposes completion of laboratory and pilot plant studies, heat and material balances, and unit operations designs, a,nd hence i s concerned largely with such problems a s plant loca tion, foundation, drainage, power, plant layout, and preconstruction cost accounting. There i s , however, & brief discussion of •quantitative and qualitative flow diagrams, and a section devoted t o short descriptions of standard equipment. T h e chapter o n preconstmction cost accounting contains tables f o r the rough estimate of initial a n d installation costs, power consumption, and maintenance of a number of types of equipment. These data,
GANIC CHEMICALS, 1933. United States Tariff Commission. Report 89, Second Series. 47 pages. Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C , 1934. Price, 10 cents. T H E United States Tariff Commission has issued Report N o . 89, second series o n Production and Sales of D y e s and Other Syn thetic Organic Chemicals for the year 1933. THIS collection of statistics contains much information not otherwise available and shows i n the majority of cases better business in 1933 than in 1932, and frequently an improvement over the 1925-30 average. The fourth part of the report deals with research and shows that the synthetic organic chemical industry employed 1060 17
18
INDUSTRIAL
AND ENGINEERING
technically trained research workers in 1933, whose salaries averaged $3118. The gross cost of research is put a t $6,496V 814, with a net cost of $6,163,688 or slightly more than 5 per cent of the total sales. Under dyes and other coal-tar chemicabs, we find 193 firms, of which 70 reported separately organized research laboratories, as compared with 166 with only 46 s o equipped in 1930. Of the 98firmsproducing synthetic non-coaJtar chemicals in 1933, 44 had separately organized research laboratories. A number of firms producing synthetic produces both of coal-tar and non-coal-tar origin were unable to separate their research costs from other accounts. In this group 3 8 technically trained research workers were employed at an aver age sakry of $3463 and the net cost of the research was $219,65€>. The appendix to the report contains a directory of manu facturers of these and other synthetic organic chemicals in 1933 who were willing to have their names and addresses given. This list totals 198. GMELIN'S H A N D B U C H DER ANORGANISCHEN CHKMIE. DeulscFke Chemische GeseUschaft. System-nummer 35, Aluminium. 8th ed. Teil A, Lieferung 2, pages 285-450. Verlag Chemin, G. m. b . H., Berlin, 1934. Price, 26 marks.
CHEMISTRY
Manufacturers Publications Publications mentioned in this column will be sent free, unless otherwise noted, by the firms issuing them, to readers of INDUSTBIAL AND EKGINKKRZNQ ΟΗΒΙΧΧΒΤΒΥ who request them on their business stationery. In writing it will be appreciated if you will mention IHDUBTRIAX. AND EKGXKBXBXKO CHEMISTRY.
ANHYDREX RUBBER INSULATION for wires and cables is discussed in an illustrated 16-page booklet issued by the SIMPLEX WIRE &
CABLE CO., 79 Sidney St., Cambridge A, Boston, Mass.
APCO AUTONLATIC AIR-RELEASE VALVES.
A 4-page bulletin de
scribes these release valves designed particularly for venting large volumes of air, gas, or vapor from summits of pipe lines, from pumps, and other types of vessels handling water, gaso line, oil, or other liquids. The bulletin also includes informa tion on other types of air-release valves, as well as on the Apco automatic vacuum priming system for large pumping units and long suction lines.
AUTOMATIC PRIMER CO., I l l West Wash
ington St., Chicago, 111.
BRASSERT AUTOMATIC STRAINER. T H I S contribution completes Part A of t h e aluminum volume o f this handbook and includes a detailed discussion of the chemical and electrochemical behavior of the metal in t h e presence of aJl classes of chemical compounds, followed b y a discussion of i t s qualitative identification a n d quantitative determination. Lilce the first portion of Part A, this section comprises an uncritical review of t h e literature, well arranged a n d subdivided minutely in such a w a y a s to assemble at one point all the references on a given item, such as t h e reaction of aluminum o n ethyl o r methyl alcohol. A logical arrangement facilitates t h e finding of thte desired item by consulting t h e table of contents; presumably thte index, if any, will b e issued with the final section of Part B . Such an index would be very desirable. The section o n the chemical behavior of aluminum i s of p a r ticular interest and valuer—a veritable mine of informatiozn about the reactivity of the metal. As in the first part, the i m pression prevails that the reading of the German literature on thte subject has been thorough and the analysis complete, b u t that thte American and English literature m a y have been largely read onlry in abstract form. However, t h e American reader usually caaa check up o n the literature i n English, whereas t h e German litera ture is much more likely to escape his attention. The authors are t o be commended for the patience and z e a l with which such a mass of material has been collected. Nowhere else can w e find such a complete index of these subjects. It i s a book of permanent value in a n y chemical reference library. FRANCIS C. FRABY
Vol. 13, No. 1
A 2-page bulletin describes
this type of strainer, which continuously and automatically re moves suspended solids from liquids. The strainer is particu larly well suited to a service where the percentage of foreign matter in the water is high and the volume of liquid to be handled very large. Under these conditions the automatic cleaning feature of the strainer is particularly valuable. H. A. BRASSEBT
