February, 1932
INDUSTRIAL A N D ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
conceived desire of younger and inexperienced chemists to be wholly self-sufficient in dealing with problems beyond the range of their experience and training, while it may frequently flow from an entirely laudable desire to know all about a problem. qhould be properly directed and regulated. It is as
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pernicious in its results as the attitude of the specialist in the university laboratory who recognizes no interest and no virtue in any type of work save that in his specialty. RECEIVED July 28, 1931.
Preparatory Stage of Research M. L. CROSSLEY,The Calco Chemical Co., Bound Brook, N . J . EFORE starting research, it is essential to have as complete a picture as possible of what it is desired to accomplish, of the obstacles likely to be encountered, and the likelihood that the results obtained will be worth while. Each research problem must be analyzed and its elements carefully evaluated. In so far as possible the problem must be considered in its relationship t o other similar problems in order to know its comparative importance. A too limited view of the problem is often the main contributing cause of failure to obtain anything worth the effort put into the investigation. The preliminary consideration of the problem will vary in accordance with the nature of the work. In certain cases the results of the analysis of the problem will suggest a limited amount of exploratory experimentation to permit the formulation of the research problem and to indicate if further expense is justified for the preparation of the data essential to a decision as to whether or not the research is worth undertaking. I n other cases research problems are definite enough to permit a decision, and no preliminary investigation is necessary for the formulation of the plan of attack. I n some cases it may not be possible to complete the analysis of the problem until literature, patent, and economic surveys have been made, Generally the expense for such work should not be incurred until an analysis of the problem indicates that the research is worth doing. The preliminary analysis of the problem made, the next step is to secure all the available information that might help in planning the research. The search for data bearing on the problem should be done thoroughly and should include the chemical literature, patents, and trade journals. It should be broad in scope; otherwise much useful information will be missed and considerable unnecessary laboratory investigation conducted. It is not enough to find out that a solution to the specific problem has or has not been published. A satisfactory survey should produce all the information that might help to guide the research t o a successful conclusion or might lead to a decision on the plan of attack with greater certainty. After obtaining the available information, it is essential t o correlate it and try to understand its significance. Reported failures to secure results do not always mean that the research contemplated should be abandoned. I n evaluating the data it is essential to try to see the viewpoint of the previous investigators and t o find out, if possible, to what degree the results were limited by the scope of their investigations. All information that is relevant to the problem, whether positive or negative, should be included in the evaluation.
ECONOMIC FACTORS As early as possible in the preparatory stage of research the economic factors should be considered. In the consideration of the economic side of research, common sense must dictate what course to pursue. It is obvious that research should not be undertaken if the available evidence indicates that the
result to be expected will not be worth the cost of the effort to obtain it, In any event, the research director must strive to estimate both the cost of the work contemplated and the value of the results to be expected. In the estimate of the potential value of the research there must be taken into consideration more than the direct earning power of the knowledge to be secured. The results may have no direct application and yet be very valuable. They may add to the fundamental facts essential to a better understanding of what is now being done, or suggest a better way of securing the same results now obtained and thus contribute much to the present earning capacity of the processes in operation. Also, such fundamental knowledge may open up new paths of research that will accelerate progress and benefit humanity. The criterion of value in the ultimate must be the degree to which the research adds to the fulfilment of life. That research is costly, no one can deny. The important question is, does it pay? This is the question that must always confront both the directors and the investigators in research, and together they must see that everything possible is done to minimize the work that does not pay and to learn to choose more and more wisely the investigations that are likely to be worth while. In seeking to determine if a research is worth while, it must be estimated what effect its successful outcome will have on what we already know and have. If it is likely to add to the sum of knowledge; if it may improve what we now have or create something better than we have to fill an existing need; if it results in the production of new things to fill new demands; if it gives insurance that the efficiencies of the present are all that are to be expected: then the cost is justifiable and ultimately it must pay. This is not only true of industrial research, but also applies to pure research. Of course, the problem is more acute in industrial research, but waste in research is tragic wherever it occurs. There are no infallible means of knowing what research will be successful. The best that can be done is to consider all the factors in each case and then use one’s best judgment. The results will be good or bad, depending upon one’s range of vision and capacity to understand and interpret the data he has. In the preparatory stage of industrial research nothing is more important than a market survey to ascertain the needs that exist and how well they are met by the products now available. No desirable end is accomplished by merely substituting a new product for an old one. In fact, much harm might be done and capital endangered or destroyed. To justify itself the new product must possess some advantage: it must be cheaper; or it must give better service in satisfying a demand not adequately fulfilled; or it must create a new demand which will not conflict with existing demands; or it must enhance the service of existing products, making them more efficient than they now are; or it must make possible new processes which will result in increased efficiencies and lower costs of production.
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I N U U S T K I 4. 1. A iF 1)
E N G I N E E R I N G C H E hl I ST R Y
SOURCE OF RAWMATF IRIALS In the preparatory stage of research it is also essential to consider the source of raw materials. Many 5 brilliant .concept has gone down to oblivion in industrial research because no adequate source of raw material was svailablc a t a price which made the development possible or desirable. The consideration of tho raw material must embrace the sonrce, qualit,y, location, and the cost of making it snitable for use, and of transporting it tu the point of use. The consideration must also give due weight to the by-products vhich will result, either in the preparation of the raw material or in the development of the finished product, and estimate the effect these will have on the quality, cost, and utilization of the finished product. The synchronization of nianufacturing processes so as to utilize the total production of isomeric products and the creation of a demand for the balanced production constitute problems of grave importance to
VOI, 24, No. 2
chemical industry. They are among the most important problems to be considered in the preparatory stage of research. In planning industrial research, considerable thought must be &en to the question of the effect of such research on the general sales picture. What will the contemplated change do to the salcs siiuation? Will improvements iii production introduce a sales-resistance factor wbich will offset the advantages to be secured? If so the advantages must be great enough to justify the cost of overcoming this sales resistance. This problem is particularly complicated when the products are sold on the basis of the effect which they are capable of producing and not on t.he basis of ehemicnl purity, as is true with dyes. Good preparation is csscntial for wiee plnnirinp. and this is indispcnsahle to succeralul researcli. Rsceirie~Deasmber 8. 1931
Functions of a Laboratory Organization N o s m T R . WIIAIAMS,fell Telephoriv Idmratories, 463 West Slreef, New York, N . Y .
T
HE purchasing department of'an industrial o r g a n i z a t i o n complains of the rising cost of a particular raw material and asks its Iaboratory to develop a substitute. Preliminary investigation reveals that the fundamental requirements underlying the specification under which the material is hought are somewhat vague. R'o one knows just which properties of the material are essential and whirl! are incidental. The history of the adoption of the material i n d i c a t e s that it way chosen on the basis of a factory trial which merely showed that it worked. A study of the manufacturing process isinitiatedinconjunction with themanufactnring engineers and of the service c o n d i t i o n s by collaboration with the consumer. Rcsearch men versed in tlie fundamentals are consnlted who presently come to reject certain prevailing ideas about the material and its use as doubtful or erroneous and to select others A, plauuiblc. The latter are explored experimentally and an idea is generated which later becomes a conviction that the imporbant and unique property of this material is a t bottom R low-teniperature coefficient of baking reaction. This low-temperature coefficient is important because it avoids the necessity for a supposedly difficult temperature control in the maniifactiiring process. n u t it is found possible by drawing on laboratory experience to devise an automatic temperature regulatrrr for the factory apparatus. Trial of this regulator not only makes possible the use of a cheaper substitute material, but discloses an unexpected improvement in some quality of the product, supposedly unrelated to the question \%-hiellpmvokcd the investigation. So, in the purchasing needs of an industry, begins one laboratory enterprise. Many industries, like tile one referred to, consume raw materials which require laboratory cvaluation but may produce a commodity which need only be evaluated by the practical test of salability. This tends to
be true most often of producers 01 articles for household and personal or family use, as the retail buyer is guided b\ general a p p e a r a n c e and reputation rather t h a n rigorous and exhaustive test. Tooth brushes and automobiles, domestic refrigerators and clothing are random emnples. In a typical case of this sort the purchase and mannfacturing use of raw products may jointly determine the n a t u r e of l a b o r a t o r y activity. The chief business of some laboratories is devising new processes, rather than tbe modification or control of old ones Numerous instances might he cited in which the entire economics of a commodity have been overturned by the development of a new process for making the material more cheaply. This is perhaps especially true in chemical industrv. Notable examnles durinc the past two d e c a d e s art?'the c r a & i u g processes fur production of gasoline, the Weissman fermentation of starch to acetone and butyl alcohol, the synthesis for methanol and probably most memorable of all, the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen. When such radical innovations arc involved, the details of purchasing economies sink into insignificance. Another manufacturer may be producing an article which permits little freedom of choice of raw material or process. Such enterprises are usually highly competitive, yet the producer may often profitably spend substantial sums in tile study of the quality of his product and base his sales competition upon quality rather than price. This can best be donein cases in which the market is governed to a great extent by the purchases of large concerns who can afford to and do subject their purchases to a careful laboratory appraisal. I n such appraisal the buyer, as well as the more competent producer, is often served by such agencies as the American Society for Testing Materials, However, similar appraisal of articles for the use of the retail buyer is sometimes performed as R
