POTOMAC POSTSCRIPTS W P B Activities Alcohol. T o save a n additional million gallons of ethyl alcohol a year for military production, use of alcohol in toiletries and cosmetics, shoe polishes, candy glazes, a n d nonbody deodorant sprays will be limited to 50 per cent of the a m o u n t used in a base period by General Preference Order M-30, as amended by the Director General for Operations. Under the original order use of alcohol was restricted to 70 per cent of the base period for certain cosmetics and toiletries, while for others the permitted use was 100 p e r cent of the base period amount. T h e amended order limits quarterly con sumption of alcohol t o 50 per cent of con sumption in the comparable quarter in the fiscal year ended J u n e 30, 1941. F o r the m o n t h of December 1942, use of alcohol is limited t o 50 per cent of the amount used in December 1940, and total fourthq u a r t e r consumption may not exceed 70 per cent of consumption in t h e correspond ing quarter in the base period. Chlorine. Restrictions on the use of chlorine and products containing available chlorine have been revised to remove from control of Conservation Order M-19 all products containing available chlorine such a s liquid sodium hypochlorite, cal cium hypochlorite, and sodium chlorite. Also exempted from t h e order, as amended, are deliveries and use of 2,000 tons of chlorine or less per month. Fertilizers. A grade-substitution pro gram expected t o reduce t h e consumption of chemical nitrogen in mixed fertilizers by approximately 20 per cent has been in stituted by the Director General for Oper ations through issuance « General Prefer ence Order M-231 as amended. Through this program a large amount of nitrogen will b e saved without greatly impairing crop production. Schedule Β of the amended order lists the grades of fertilize by nitrogen content used during the 1940-41 season in the respective states. Opposite these are the approved grades which are t o be substi tuted in 1942-43. Fertilizer manufac turers are required to produce the ap proved 1942-43 grades in the same pr^* tion a s the 1940-41 grades. The » order also places manufacturer? same basis as dealers and agents i >ect to stocks on hand. T h a t is, manufacturers may now deliver stocks of fertilizer pack aged in lots of less than SO pounds. Pre viously they were required to reprocess these stocks into approved grades and re pack them in 100-pound bags. V O L U M E
2 0,
NO.
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Graphite. Complete control over dis tribution and use of graphite will be ef fected by Conservation Order N-61, as amended by t h e Director General for Op erations. Madagascar flake graphite alone was covered by the previous order. The amendment extends this control to a lowergrade than previously covered and brings into control all graphite which will stand on a number 50-mesh screen. Beginning immediately no person may p u t into process for any purpose any strategic graphite except with specific authorization by W P B . No person except a jobber may deliver or accept delivery of any crucible, or any other product con taining strategic graphite, without specific authorization. Preference ratings will hereafter have no bearing on delivery of crucibles containing strategic graphite. Lithium. Lithium ores have been put under complete allocation and use control by General Conservation Order M-253. issued b y the Director General for Opera tions. Beginning immediately, no supplier may deliver and no consumer may accept delivery of, or use, lithium ores except with specific authorization of W P B . This restriction covers stocks of ore which have been produced and are now in private or government hands, including spodumene. lepidolite, amblygonite, triphylite, petalite, and zinnwaldite. Allocations will be made without regard to preference rat ings. Forms PD-728 and PD-729 are to be filled with W P B in connection with this order. Lithium compounds are under alloca tion control by Order M-190. The opera tion of newly constructed production facili ties is placing substantial new burdens on lithium ore supply. The new order is is sued to ensure an orderly and complete reg ulation of all phases of lithium compounds manufacture. It is estimated that more than 300 tons of spodumene a month may be directed into war production as a re sult of the order. Sulfuric Acid, including oleum and spent acid, has been placed under alloca tion control through the issuance by the Director General for Operations of General Preference Order M-257. Deliveries of acid will not be prohibited subject to specific authorization, as is usually the case th an allocation order, but di rections will be issued when and as needed, covering deliveries to be made and uses to be permitted or prohibited. The order is prompted by the need of a continuous supply of sulfuric acid to fulfill military explosive requirements, and will enable the Chemicals Division of the War Production Hoard to act
..DECEMBER
2 5,
1942
promptly in emergencies. It provides that all producers of sulfuric acid, and all others who deliver spent sulfuric acid, must file monthly reports covering their shipments and production during the prior month, as well as a statement of estimated production for the current month. T h i s report is to be made on the standard chemical supplier's form, PD-601.
Theobromine and Caffeine. Proce dures for filing reports under Order M-222 covering theobromine and caffeine have been changed by issuance of an amended order by t h e Director General for Opera tions Under t h e amended order three copies, rather than two, of the customer's application, Form PD-600, must be filed with WPB. Also the interval is reduced between t h e fiHW of the customer's and supplier's application. The amended order does not change the actual distribu tion of materials. Vegetable Fats and Oils. Importers of vegetable fats a n d oils have been notified of a revision in the schedule of commodi ties and consideration days under which the Commodity Credit Corporation con siders offers submitted to sell fats, oils, and oil-bearing materials for importation under provisions of W P B General Imports Order M-63. T h e new schedule, effective December 2, 1942, is a revision of the schedule announced October 20, 1942. Jointly announced by the Board of Economic Warfare, the W P B , and the CCC, the revised schedule changes con sideration days for offers from a TuesdayFriday basis t o Tuesdays only. On Tuesdays, the C C C will consider offers of the following commodities, if received by 4:00 P.M. E W T , by the Director of Foreign Purchases, Commodity Credit Corporation, U. S. Department of Agri culture, Washington, D. C.: babassu oil, babassu kernels, cashew nut shell oil. castor oil, castor seed, coconut oil, copra, corn oil, cottonseed oil, oiticica oil, palm kernels, palm kernel oil, palm oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, and sunflower seed oil. Because offers by the trade were so small on muru muru oil, neatsfoot oil. ouricury oil, and tucum oil, these commod ities, which were on the list announced October 20, were not included in the cur rent list. No change is made in t h e pro cedure announced August 18, 1942, under which importers submit offers t o the CCC.
Price Regulations Fine Chemicals and Drugs. Dollars and cents maximum prices a t manufac turers', wholesalers', and retailers' levels have been set by the Office of Price Ad ministration in Maximum Price Regula tion 278 issued December 4, a n d effective December 10, for totaquina, a newly de veloped product of cinchona bark. This 1625
will be used in fighting malaria in this country, thus freeing all available sup plies of quinine for the armed forces. The use of totaquina, with attendant encouragement for the growing and col lecting of the cinchona bark in Latin America, will extend the existing and fu ture supply of cinchona bark by employ ing cinchonidine, cinchonine, and quinidine for malaria in addition to quinine. Maximum retail prices will enable con sumers to obtain totaquina at about half the cost of quinine. A smaller dosage of quinine is required, however. Since only a few sales of totaquina were made on an experimental basis in March 1942, and at the higher prices which al ways accompany sales of this type & specific maximum price regulation was is sued. After conferences with representa tives of the industry and of interested government agencies, the maximum prices were established on a basis of 40 cents an ounce for sales of totaquina powder in bulk quantities. Specific maximum prices are set for the powder and for tablets and capsules at all levels, including retail. Fluorspar. Fluorspar ores have been freed from price control by the Office of Price Administration in another action designed to facilitate the Government's program for expansion of the production of duosspar, Amendment 42 to Supple mentary Regulation 1 to the General Maximum Price Regulation, effective November 23, 1942. Ceiling prices previ ously were the highest charged during the month of March 1942. The action follows closely on the issu ance November 18 of Maximum Price Regulation 126, as amended, which in creased metallurgical and acid grade fluor spar maximum prices to encourage broad ening of production in present mines and mills and development of new facilities. According to ΟΡΑ, if fluorspar price increases are to become fully effective as production stimulants, they must be re ceived by the producers of fluorspar ores from which the metallurgical and acid grades of fluorspar are obtained. Glycerol. A big saving to the tax payer on glycerol has been effected by the Office of Price Administration through a voluntary agreement with the six leading manufacturers to reduce their price one cent a pound on all sales to the Govern ment. The companies, which produce 95 per cent of the Nation's glycerol, are Armour Soap Works, Colgate-PalmolivePeet Co., Harshaw Chemical Co., Lever Brothers Co., Procter & Gamble Co., and Swift & Co. The agreement was worked out in conferences between company representatives and OPA's Chemicals and Drugs Price Branch. Glycerol prices were reduced substan tially in October 1942, when the product was brought under Price Schedule 38. With the new reduction of one cent, the
1626
price on sales to the Government will be 17.5 cents a pound in tank cars for C. P. glycerol (98 per cent glycerol), 17.75 cents in carload lots of drums, and 18.25 cents in less than carload lots of drums. All other grades will run 17 cents, 17.25 cents and 17.75 cents. Phosphorus. Sales of phosphorus by the Tennessee Valley Authority to the Chemical Warfare Service of the War De partment have been exempted from price control by the Office of Price Adminis tration. The action was taken in Amend ment 13 to Revised Supplementary Regu lation 4, effective December 5, on the ground that TVA will make all such sales at cost. The new form of Order M-19 is a straight allocation order replacing the previous conservation and allocation order. Under the new order control over the allchlorine products will be exercised by controlling original shipments of chlorine. The change from end-use restriction to complete allocation control is made neces sary because restrictions on consumption were too rigid when chlorine was in easy supply and not tight enough when chlorine was scarce. Under allocation control instant adjustments can be made in dis tribution and use control as the supply situation changes. Under the new order no person may de liver, accept delivery, or use chlorine ex cept by specific authorization by WPB. Exempt from these restrictions are users of 2,000 pounds or less per month, and de livery and use of chlorine for water puri fication and sewage treatment, so long as inventories are not for more than 30 days' supply. Purchasers under this excep tion must file a certificate with their sup plier. Under the amended order pur chasers must place their orders with dis tributors by the 5th of each month, and with producers by the 10th of each month. Forms PD-190 and PD-191 (revised) are to be used in applying for authorization under the order.
National Research Council Reports on Metallic Compounds RECOMMENDATIONS as to relative essentiality of medicinal compounds made of metallic salts have been made to the War Production Board by a special sub committee of the Committee on Drugs and Medical Supplies of the National Re search Council. This report, requested by WPB, is an effort to marshal scientific advice as to which of the metallic com pounds are most vital to medicine and which should, if restriction becomes neces sary, be continued in production. The recommendation of this committee, according to F. J. Stock of the Drugs and Cosmetics Section of the WPB Chemicals Branch, is simply a recommendation and does not mean that officiai action will be
taken. T h e committee hopes that in matters dealing with t h e science o f medi cine it can get the advice of the medical profession and druggists. Metallic compounds listed in the report are divided into two groups. Group I con sists of arsenic and bismuth compounds, listed according to essentiality as follows: essential t o the civilian practice of medi cine to the extent of being practically indis pensable; not indispensable b u t highly d e sirable if available; n o t essential t o civil ian practice of medicine. Group I I consists o f aluminum, anti mony, copper, a n d magnesium metal and compounds.
Interior Department Inventions Assigned to Government OWNERSHIP a n d control of any inventions developed b y Interior Depart ment employees on government time or with government equipment hereafter will be assigned to t h e Federal Government in the interests of national security. The Secretary's order gives official rec ognition t o a policy already adopted voluntarily by virtually all of the technical and scientific personnel of the department. For a number o f years many Interior D e partment employees w h o have made i n ventions have voluntarily assigned their patents t o the Government, and others have turned over their patents for t h e duration of the war t o the Government and to the war industries.
Lime Advisory Committee Formed b y W P B THE W P B Division of Industry Ad visory Committees has announced formation of the following new committee: LIME INDUSTRY ADVISORY,
Committee,
J. H. Russell, government presiding officer. Reed C. Rye, Warner Co.; Ralph L. Dickey, Kelley Island Lime & Transport Co.; John II. Durvall, Heesac Valley Lime Co., Inc.: Eric Johnston, Washing ton Brick & Lime C o . ; Warren Lewis, Longview-Baginew L i m e Works; H. B . Mathews, Jr., Mississippi Lime Co.; Bernard L . McNulty, Marblehead Lime Co.; Amos B. Mirer. National Cyprus Co.; W. W . Sprague, National Mortar & Supply C o , and É. I. Williams, Riverton Lime Co.
Industrial Economy
Division
ReorganizedTHEIndustr Bureau of Foreign a n d Domestic Commerce has again been reorganized into industrial groups, C. C. Concannon heads the Chemicals Unit, T . W. Delahanty the Drugs a n d Pharmaceuticals Unit, and Charles E. Lund t h e F a t s and Oils Unit.
CH E M I C A L A N D
ENGINEERING
NEWS
