THE CHEMICAL WORLD THIS WEEK
O r g a n i c Pesticides E n d a n g e r e d By Chlorine, Benzene Shortages C&EN REPORTS: N a t i o n a l A g r i c u l t u r a l Chemicals Association, Annual M e e t i n g
SPRING LAKE, N. J . - T h e agricultural industry may not be able to p r o d u c e the newer organic insecticides should such shortage chemicals as benzene a n d chlorine not be available in the amounts required, said Ernest Hart, president of t h e National Agricultural Chemicals Association, when that organization convened here for its seventeenth annual meeting from Sept. 5 to 8. However, he said the industry lias plant capacity to produce increased volumes of the older stand-bys such as calcium ar senate, lead arsenate, nicotine*, and the mercurials. Emphasizing the industry's preparedness to meet emergency defense requirements and protect the Nation's f SEPT E M B E R
15,
May 1950 1.5.=>.9 147 ' . 6
ne 5.4 ne i . 5 122 Î.3 l i e i.8
April 1949 11616.0 495.0 53.4 148.1 60.5
106.3
107.3
108.7 April 1949 1 5 6 .9
May 1949
152.9
154.5
155.7
146.4
145.6
146.8
14S.8
117.1 116.4
116.8 116.9
118.1 116.7
1 1 7 .7 117.2
122.0 117.4
124.3 117.5
123.6 118.9
123.0 119.7
j Vv . W e e k l y H o u r s Mav Apr. May 1949 1950 1950°1 38.6 3 9 . 7 . 0 40
61 . 22 6 5 . 81 6 3 . 95 5 8 . 87
60.52 65.77 63.12 58.67
58.20 6 2 . 59 60.09 56.68
41 40 40 40
.2 .7 .5 .8
41.2 40.9 40.1 40.8
40.7 40.2 39.2 40.4
6 3 . 28
62.53
58.21
41. 2
4 1 .0
39.2
A v . Hourly Earnings May Apr. May 1950a 195C 1949 SI . 4 4 3
31.434
SI.401
1.486 1 .617 1.579 1.443
1.469 1.608 1.574 1.438
1.430 1.557 1.533 1.4C3
1 .536
1 52.5
1.485
100)
& N o t e l s e w h e r e classified.
1950
11337.0 464.0 52.3 139.1 59.9
May 1949 11324.0 476.0 52.6 141 . 8 59.8
June 1949
April 1950
Av. Weekly E a r n i n g s May Apr. May 1950° 1950 1949 S 5 7 . 72 S56.93 $54.08
A v . c o s t - o f - l i v i n g i n d e x i n l a r g e cit;ies ( U . S. D e p t . of L a b o r : B a s e 1935 - 3 9 = All i t e m s figures.
169 233 404 182 158 202 104 114 285
May 1950
Hours and earnings ( U . S. D e p t . of L a b o r ) All m a n u f a c t u r i n g Chemical and allied p r o d u c t s (all) Industrial inorganic chemical? Industrial organic chemicals Drugs and medicines Plastics (except s y n t h e t i c rubber)
" Preliminary
195 256 444 273 171 327 131 122 290
thousands J une 1950 12039.O 480. 0 c c e
All m a n u f a c t u r i n g ( n o n a g r i c u l t u r e ) C h e m i c a l a n d a l l i e d p r o d u c t s (all) Industrial inorganic chemicals Industrial organic chemicals Drugs and medicines O t h e r c h e m i c a l a n d a l l i e d p r o d u c t *i N.E.C.i» W h o l e s a l e price i n d e x e s June ( U . S. D e p t . of L a b o r : 1950° B a s e 192G = 100) All p r o d u c t s 157 . 3 All p r o d u c t s e x c e p t f a r m 1481.8 p r o d u c t s a n d foods Chemicals and allied p r o d u c t s 114 . 5 (all) 117 3 Industrial chemicals Drugs and p h a r m a c e u t i c a l 122',.7 materials 1081.4 Fertilizer m a t e r i a l s Hours and earnings ( U . S. D e p t . of L a b o r ) All m a n u f a c t u r i n g Chemical and allied p r o d u c t s (all) Industrial inorganic chemicals Industrial organic chemical* Drugs and medicines Plastics (except s y n t h e t i c rubber;
Without Adjustment June May June 1949 1950 1950 170 195 200° 230 255 259° 404 444 455° 182 273 271 158 171 Ν A 202 327 430° 104 131 136 119 125 131 268 286 278
1y Adjusted May June 1950 1949
•lune 1 9 5 0 170.2 e
M a v 1950 168. 6
J u n e 1949 169.6
Not available.
3353
THE C H E M I C A L W O R L D THIS WEEK parable quarter in 1949. F o r t h e twelve months e n d i n g J u n e 3 0 mixed gas reve nues totaled $100 million, a rise of 0.8?r over a year earlier.
W e i g e ! Asks I m m e d i a t e A c t i o n on Alkali Strikes A telegram calling for immediate steps to end the soda ash strikes was sent by Hot he W e i g e l , president of Victor Chemi cal Works, o n Sept. 13 to officials of the* National Labor Relations Board. Received b y Paul Mer/.og, chairman of X L R B ; Robert D e n h a m , X L R B general counsel; Cyrus S. Ching, director of Fed eral Mediation; a n d John Hull, regional director of N L R B in Cleveland, the wire said that Victor has h a d to reduce "dras tically" the production of six plants for lack of soda ash, caustic soda, chlorine, sodium bicarbonate. T h e cutbacks, said Weigel, have created serious shortages of chemicals n e e d e d for detergents, flour, food, dairy p r o d u c t s , p e t r o l e u m , sanitation chemicals, antibiotics, plasticizers, textiles a n d leather, and chemicals used by the Army, Navy, and Air F o r c e for demothhalling aircraft, o r d n a n c e e q u i p m e n t , and combat and cargo vessels. Weigel also e m p h a s i z e d the serious effect t h e prolonged strikes in the alkali branch of chemical i n d u s t r y are having upon t h e welfare of Victor's employees a n d those of other companies reiving on chemicals p r o d u c e d by Victor.
MEWS B R I E F S Sales Representative. Krumbhaar Chemicals, Inc., have a n n o u n c e d that they have a p p o i n t e d as their representative in t h e Chicago and M i l w a u k e e territory the Carl A. Lechnor Co., 230 East Ohio St., Chicago 11, 111.
Flaumenhaft, president, has stated that several territories have not yet b e e n as signed. Recent Office Openings. T h e Foxboro Co., Foxboro, Mass., has opened two new branch offices. T h e newest addition is t h e b r a n c h office at 214 W . 10th St., W i l m i n g t o n 1, Del., under t h e manager ship of Kenneth L. Barton. Earlier a Fox boro office was opened at 225 S. 5 t h St., Minneapolis 2, Minn., with Robert C. Cahill a s resident engineer. Foxboro in terests L a v e been represented in t h e Min neapolis—St. Paul area for m a n y years by a firm of engineers; but t h e mounting volume of business p r o m p t e d t h e opening of a full-scale branch office a n d the trans fer of Cahill from Foxboro b r a n c h at Appleton, AVis., it was said. Ammunition Sale. T h e office of the field director of ammunition plants, Joliet, III., h a s announced that approximately 475,000 lb. of propellant p o w d e r (class 2A ) 20 mm., Navy ammunition is being offered for sale by sealed bids. Bids will be opened at 2 : 0 0 P . M . , C D S T , Sept. 28. T h e p o w d e r may b e inspected at the Kansas O r d n a n c e plant, Parsons, Kans. MM&R t o Distribute Dow Propylene Glycol. T h e appointment of Magnus, Mabee & Reynard, Inc., as N e w York dis tributors for propylene glycol N . F . was marked by a dinner at New York's Gramercy Park Hotel. Propylene glycol N . F . is a Dow Chemical Co. specialty used in food, d r u g , cosmetics, flavor, and essen tial oil formulas because of its solvent, hygroscopic, and wetting properties; and for its ability to inhibit m o l d growth. Representing t h e D o w Chemical C o . at t h e dinner were Leo Grant, m a n a g e r of N e w York operations; Richard Crider, N e w York sales representative; B. L. Barry; a n d R. \V. Forsythe. Percy, Joseph, a n d R o b e r t Magnus were a m o n g the MM&R executives present.
Phosphate Land To Be Leased. More than 2,400 acres of W y o m i n g land, situ ated approximately 12 miles northeast of k e m m e r e r a n d 6 miles northeast of Sublet, YVyo., will b e offered for p h o s p h a t e leas ing through competitive b i d d i n g , by the Bureau of L a n d M a n a g e m e n t . The sale will be held in t h e office of the director, Bureau of L a n d M a n a g e m e n t , Washington 25, D. C. at 1:00 P . M . , E S T , Nov. 1. T h e minimum bid is $1.00 an acre with leases to be issued to qualified b i d d e r s of t h e highest cash amount an acre a s a bonus for t h e privilege of leasing under t h e p h o s p h a t e provisions of t h e mineral leasing act.
Newsprint Plant Planned. Plans are under s t u d y to build a $40 million news print a n d kraft board plant at Naheola, Ala., according to Paul D. H a m m a c h e r , industrial m a n a g e m e n t official of W a s h ington, D. C. He said the mill w o u l d be a publisher-owned cooperative and that the entire output would go to the p u b lishers w h o are helping to finance the undertaking. Annual output will be 100,0 0 ^ tons of standard newsprint and 100,000 tons of 16-point kraft board. Con struction is reported to b e scheduled for completion in two years.
Expands Distribution. T h e L a c q u e r & C h e m i c a l Corp. has a n n o u n c e d the estab lishment of a program setting up a nation w i d e plan for d i s t r i b u t i n g their newly developed industrial finishes line. T h e s e dealerships are b e i n g opened to e q u i p ment manufacturers, paint manufacturers, jobbers, and others in r e l a t e d lines. Irving
UM!^Eil§IT¥
3354
NEWS
Stevens Institute to Teach Industrial M a r k e t i n g Industrial employees and engineering students will be taught how to market the C H E M I C A L
products of industry in new marketing and research courses to b e given b y the graduate school of Stevens Institute of Technology this fall. Courses have been arranged so that students will get a good idea of all the opportunities in the distribution field and be better p r e p a r e d to a d v a n c e in such positions. Industrial marketing will be presented as including research, advertis ing, sales administration, service, policies, product design a n d packaging, a n d applica tion engineering, as well as industrial salesmanship. Most of the classes will b e given in the evening b y full-time faculty m e m b e r s or lecturers connected with related businesses. T h e r e will be some daytime classes open to advanced u n d e r g r a d u a t e students as well as graduates.
Quality C o n t r o l Course A t Rochester Tech An eight-day intensive training course in quality control for the chemical indus tries will b e offered by t h e Rochester In stitute of Technology at Rochester, Ν . Υ., Oct. 10 to 18, 1950. T h e content of this program is devoted exclusively t o the con trol problems of the chemical a n d allied process industries. T h e content of this sixth annual train ing program in statistical methods and techniques is designed for those responsi ble for controlling quality of product either in t h e analytical laboratory or di rectly in t h e m a n u f a c t u r i n g process. Among t h e instructors of the course are three men from the Bristol Laboratories, Inc., of Syracuse, N . Y. T h e y a r e Martin A. B r u m b a u g h , director of statistics, Philip I. Bowman, executive vice presi dent, and Ronald II. Noel, director of eontrol. Others are E d w a r d R. Close, Bausch and L o m b Optical Co.; Grant W e r n i m o n t , Color Control D e p a r t m e n t , E a s t m a n Ko dak Co.; H. A. F r e e m a n , Massachusetts Institute of Technology; a n d W . L. Gore, Plastics D e p a r t m e n t , E. I. du Pont d e Nemours & Co., Inc. T h e tuition of $100 per person in cludes books a n d supplies. Room accom modations will be available at t h e Hotel Rochester. Further inquiries should b e addressed t o the course coordinator, Alfred L. Davis, Rochester Institute of T e c h nology, Rochester 8, Ν. Υ.
Chemical Economics Courses a t Brooklyn Poly Repeating for the first time the cycle of a range of offerings in t h e economics of chemical engineering,, the Polytechnic In stitute of Brooklyn will present courses on the "Economic Balance in Chemical Manufacture," "Safety Practices i n C h e m i cal Engineering," and "Chemical Plant Location" during t h e 1950-51 academic AND
ENGINEERING
NEWS
THE CHEMICAL WORLD THIS WEEK year, according to R a y m o n d E . Kirk, dean of t h e g r a d u a t e school. T h e alternate series in this field, which will b e given again in 1951—52, includes " P a c k a g i n g of Chemicals and Related P r o d u c t s , " "Chemical Engineering Econ omy," a n d "Chemical Engineering Admin istration." " E c o n o m i c Balance in Chemical Manu facture" was introduced in 1948-49 for presentation every t w o years to graduate students w h o have b e e n trained as chem ists or chemical engineers. "Safety Practices in Chemical Engineer ing," also introduced two years ago as a full year's course, will be repeated when the fall semester begins on Sept. 25. "Chemical Plant Location" was added to the Polytechnic subjects in economics last spring and will b e r e p e a t e d in the coming spring semester. According to Dr. Kirk, Polytechnic started t h e first of these six offerings in chemical engineering economy four years ago to give employed chemists and chemi cal engineers an opportunity to know how newly developed processes can b e related to existing processes in t h e light of cur rent economic situations. In addition to chemists and chemical engineers, t h e courses a r e open to all qualified m e n from industry w h o may not have t h e credit requirements to matricu late in t h e g r a d u a t e school.
Courses in Corrosion Offered By Stevens and N A C E T h e g r a d u a t e school of Stevens Insti tute of Technology, in cooperation with t h e National Association of Corrosion Engineers, will offer two courses and a seminar on t h e corrosion of metals and corrosion prevention, beginning with the fall t e r m , it was a n n o u n c e d recently by Robert H. Baker, director of t h e graduate school. T h e courses are designed for chemists, engineers, metallurgists, a n d manufac turers w h o h a v e corrosion problems and want to obtain knowledge of fundamental factors a n d possible cures. Robert S. MacCormack of t h e graduate school faculty will teach t h e first course on corrosion which will meet on Wednesday evenings, beginning Sept. 27. This course will cover t h e fundamental factors and theories of corrosion beginning with the physical chemistry a n d electrochemistry involved. E m p h a s i s will b e on ordinary a q u e o u s systems. In t h e second course, to begin in Feb ruary, methods of corrosion prevention will b e studied in class, followed by weekly talks by 15 guest lecturers in fields such as corrosion factors, design features, h u m i d i t y control, deaeration, inhibitors, alloying of light metals, of copper, a n d of nickel; iron and stainless alloys, alloys of lead, zinc, a n d others; alloys for high tem p e r a t u r e , metal coatings, cathodic protec tion, paints and pigments; and use of plastics, rubber, a n d the like.
VOLUME
2 8,
NO.
3 9 » SEP
The Cover
...
T. L. McMeekin Borden A w a r d Winner V ^ O M B I N I N G t h e pursuit of funda mental protein chemistry, industrial ap plications of milk proteins, a n d the manipulations of p a p e r work are taken in stride by T h o m a s Leroy McMeekin, head of the protein division, Eastern Regional Research Laboratory of the U. S. D e p a r t m e n t of Agriculture. Mc Meekin will receive t h e Borden Award in t h e Chemistry of Milk for 1951 as tribute to his work with milk proteins. McMeekin w a s born at Monticello, S. C , on M a y 8, 1900, and graduated from Clemson College with a B.S. in chemistry in 1921. Seven years later, he married Vera Crockatt and has be come the father of three children. After spending two years as assistant professor of biochemistry at E m o r y University during 1925—27, h e then entered in dustrial work for E. R. Squibb and Son w h e r e he was engaged in t h e production of insulin. F r o m 1928 t o 1940, Mc Meekin continued his studies of protein as research associate in t h e department of physical chemistry, Harvard Medical School. Starting with the Eastern Re gional Research Laboratory in 1940 as senior chemist, h e b e c a m e h e a d of the protein division which devotes its time to investigation of t h e chemistry of milk proteins as well as to t h e com mercial development of fibers derived from proteins. T h e significance of protein is that it is associated with growth, mainte nance, and reproduction of vegetable seed and animal matter. However, McMeekin is not trying to unravel the mysteries of reproduction, nor is he trying to synthesize artificial m i l k nothing so glamorous. T h e significance of McMeekin's work is that once the structure a n d behavior of proteins can b e ascertained, then the chemistry of protein can b e opened u p , b u t until it is, further progress in the field of synthetic fibers based on agricultural and dairy products must b e limited. Since he was guided by his bio chemistry professor at Clemson, Mc Meekin has stuck to protein chemistry, starting with pepsin and carrying through insulin and blood proteins to milk proteins—casein and /3-lactoglobulin. McMeekin first turned his atten tion to t h e w h e y portion resulting from milk coagulation a n d t h e hydration of crystalline β-lactoglobulin. By employ ing large crystals which avoided inter ference from mother liquor adherence, it was possible to determine hydration
EMBER
2 5,
1950
of the crystals b y direct measurement for the first time and t h e penetration of salt from the surrounding medium into t h e crystals. McMeekin also demon strated t h e heterogeneity of β-lactoglobulin and separated t h e major compo nent as a n electrophoretically pure crys talline product. H e also has postulated that addition products between proteins and small molecules occur in nature, thereby altering the properties of t h e protein macromolecule. Perhaps the most significant study from a commercial aspect has been t h e study of casein. McMeekin was the first to separate a- and /3-casein and was able to determine t h e apparent specific volume of each in order to provide t h e missing factors in the equation of sedimentation in t h e ultracentrifuge. Separation of 7-casein was also accom plished. W h i l e McMeekin has also d e m onstrated a simplified field procedure for t h e acid-coagulation of milk to manu facture casein suitable for industrial use, t h e full potentialities of casein await more investigation of protein chemistry. McMeekin has already developed a casein bristle filament by extrusion of casein plasticized w i t h water. This bristle is being marketed as a com ponent of automobile air filters a n d has promise in such products as furni t u r e stuffing a n d oil paint brushes. But tonnage use, as in the textile field, has not b e e n scratched as yet, although zein fibers h a v e m a d e some progress a n d a casein continuous filament yarn has been m a d e on a laboratory scale. T h u s , t h e w i d e range of McMeekin's' research has been applied in the di rection of broadening industrial, p h a r maceutical, and medical uses of milk proteins. McMeekin's interests are as wide as his research program, a n d include active participation in t h e laboratory; a very early and regular morning walk during which h é u n d o u b t e d l y reflects on the mysterious powers of nature and p r o b ably of proteins specifically; and a F o r d automobile, vintage 1934, in the back seat of which his colleagues ride w i t h out benefit of support from springs, so they say. H e also refuses to become ensnarled in government paper work, a n d that may b e regarded as a major accomplishment. T h e growing promise of the field of chemistry applied to agricultural products can be attributed in iarge part to men like McMeekin w h o have made it their life work.
3355
