Products
and Processes Exploding Grains with Compressed Air A process for exploding cereal grains and legumes by means of compressed air or other gases has been announced b y the Midwest Research Institute, Kansas •City, M o . T h e procedure has obtained a preferential segregation of husks, bran,
short contact period, o a t hulls are removed completely w i t h o u t harm t o the oat berry. With a somewhat higher pressure, t h e o a t is split and the germ removed. With still higher pressures, oats or a n y grains can be pulverized. Whole wheat, germ-free flour has been prepared in the experiments and has been baked into bread. Countless other tests have b e e n made o n the effects of humidity, rate of feed, time of pressurization, and pretreatment of grain with enzymes and othcrsubstances with materially improved results. Studies are being made o n t h e effect o f atmospheric temperature and the effect o f active and inert gases.
Heat-Resistant
Glass
Chance Bros., Ltd., of England, have recently produced a heat-absorbing glass, ON" 19, said to represent a considerable
Welchboard
A. Continuous "free pressurizing cereal grain hopper. B. Grain feed t o high-pressure air stream. C. Housing containing nozzle where grain dissociation takes place. D. Highpressure air supply line to pressure hopper and nozzle stream. E. Separator removing grain particles from air stream. F. Dissociated grain particles ready for segregation into husky bran, germ, or flour as desired germ and endosperm in wheat, grain sorghums, and oats. Experiments with ' ''explosive dissociation" indicate that the process offers possibilities of improved milling processes because of easy separation of the component parts of cereal grains. The principle utilized is that grain, under pressure, when fed through a nozzle within a pipe, is shattered by the instantaneous release of pressure within t h e pockets of t h e grain. While the apparatus compares in some respects with that used t o obtain the flash pulverization of coal, t h e action on the grain is drastically different. In the explosive dissociation process, by varying pressures and pressure contact periods, almost any desired end point can b e obtained. With low pressure and
1462
Withstands
advance over previous types of the glass. At a thickness of 6.0 mm., a sheet of this glass will transmit 8 1 % of the visible light, b u t only 4 . 5 % of the heat; i t is colorless and of good durability. For use in projection systems, it i s suggested that it should normally be placed near the condensers, on the side of the lamp; some form of forced cooling is usually necessary. T h e filter can sometimes be cut into strips further to reduce t h e risk of fracture. T h e glass is stocked in rolled sheets, 5 to 6 m m . in thickness. I t is likely t o contain scattered fine bubbles and is n o t intended for optical use other than as a filter. I t should find many useful technical and scientific applications.
Ion-Exchange Used for Ulcer
A t t h e Women's Medical College of Philadelphia, a n e w synthetic resin treatment was tried on 30 persons with chronic ulcers of several years' duration. I n all cases, except one, the treatment proved effective. Studies of the Amberlites, ionexchange resins developed by the Resinous Products and Chemical Co. of Philadel-
Severe
The Westcoast Plywood Co. of Aberdeen, "Wash., has announced t h e development o f a modified plywood which affords a homogeneous surface for coatings and is claimed to withstand severe wear and weathering. T h e new board consists of conventional exterior t y p e fir-plywood coated with a Vieth-inch layer of bonded wood-flour. T h e flour, mixed w i t h a phenolic resin, i s mechanically spread on the uxisanded board in a uniform layer and t t i e "open sandwich" is subjected t o 1751b. per square inch pressure a t 3 6 5 ° F .
Resins Treatment
Weather for five minutes in conventional plywood fabricating presses. Recent developments will soon make it possible to combine the laminating process and t h e surfacing into one operation. T h e resulting product has a smooth, fine-grained surface and can b e cut and tooled exactly like natural wood but is only suitable for flat applications. T h e wood flour used i n formulating the coating is obtained from saw-mill waste and represents a 2 5 % saving in the amount of raw timber required t o produce a given thickness of board.
Cut-away sample \ of Welchboard re- \ veals top layer, \ VM inch thick, a hard, durable surface co mpletely masking plywood base. This "extra ply", affording superior appearance and finishing properties, is manufactured from, wood tens te, pulverised and bound together with waterproof resin.. Below are three plies in alternating grain direction»l Small rule is 3 /2 inches
CHEMICAL
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ENGINEERING
NEWS
40 to 6
less wemrf New CRANE a
PRESSURE-SEAL
BONNET
VALVES T h e scales s h o w t h i s w e i g h t - s a v i n g a c h i e v e m e n t . . . w i t h n o loss o f s t r e n g t h thai cms p i p i n g e r e c t i o n a n d m a i n t e n a n c e costs- N o x e comparative weights of this n e w Crane d e sign and t h e c o n v e n t i o n a l 1 5 0 0 - P o u n d Steel G a t e Valve, b o t h 8 - i n c h . Size f o r size, ihere amazing weight-reduction , - - 4 0 ^ t o . . . d e p e n d i n g o n size. OTHER BASK ADVANTAGES 0 Î THIS NEW PRINCIPLE 7. Eliminates Bonne/ Joint
Leakage
2. Ends Bonnet Joint
Maintenance
3. N e w Streamlining and out
.. .. ,
inside
4. N e w Ease of Inspection 5. N e w Ease of
Operation
6. Improved
Flow
Characteristics
7. Reduced
Over-all
Dimension
REVOLUTIONARY DESIGN IN STEEL VAIVES FOR HIGH PRESSURES AND HJGM TEMPERATURES N o valve i m p r o v e m e n t in a quarter-century compares w i t h the Pressure-Seal Bonnet principle. It c o m p l e t e l y eliminates the customary flanged bolted b o n n e t joint w i t h its p r o b l e m s of leakage a n d m a i n t e n a n c e . T h e joint i s inside the v a l v e — a u t o m a t i c a l l y sealed by fluid pressure. T h i s n e w principle, a s a p p l i e d b y
C r a n e , b r i n g s a w i i o l e n e w s e t o f sîaindairdïi for on-the-job v a l v e emciency. T h e Crane Pressure-Seal l i n e imckides sçaiteu g l o b e , a n g l e , a n d a u t o m a t i c sKOp-dheck pasterns w i t h w e l d i n g ends. C o m p l e t e im£(G>;nnmiation r e g a r d i n g p e r f o r m a n c e amd adaptafoaHniy t o your r e q u i r e m e n t s s u p p l i e d . C. Orders should be accompanied by check or money order, payable to the Treasurer of the united States. Comprehensive technical information on liquid and solid gas drying agents, in cluding properties and methods, is con tained in report PB 23,201 (photostat, $11; microfilm, $2; 152 pages). The ma terial is potentially useful for the food, automotive, textile, chemicals, air condi tioning, and other industries where hu midity problems are significant.
CHEMICAL
PROCESSE
Experimental data for use in designing large-scale equipment for removing car bon dioxide from atmospheric air are in cluded in report PB 9,416 (photostat, $12; microfilm, $2; 178 pages, including illustrations). A secondary objective of the program was to gain understanding of the manner in which transfer between gas and liquid phases occurs. Investiga tions covered : ( 1 ) packed tower studies in volving the variables of pressure and flow rates; (2) absorption of carbon dioxide by solid reagents; and (3) preliminary studies of jet type absorbers. T h e performance of a smokeless propellant in a JATO (jet-assisted take-off) unit designed for navy carrier-based air craft is described in report P B 32,219 (microfilm, S2; photostat, $7; 100 pages). Test models powered by t h e new solventless-extruded powder exhibited high thrust and long burning capacity without creat ing deposits of smoky film. T h e results of American wartime re search on tropical deterioration, which may prove useful in protecting awnings, shower curtains, and other household furnishings from mildew and moid are presented in report PB 30,483 (photostat, $29.50; microfilm, $3.75; 294 pages). In addition to textiles, the report covers technical studies on tropical deterioration of plastics, optical instruments, photo graphic supplies, and electrical equip ment. Numerous chemicals were found effective in preventing deterioration of textiles, among them copper 8-hydroxyquinoline, pyridyl mercuric stéarate, pyridyl mercuric chloride, copper naphthenate, and copper ammonium fluoride. Several other reports on the same subject and allied problems are available. PB 23,167 (photostat, $5; microfilm, $1; 75 pages) indicates successful work done with the volatile fungicides 2-ethyl-3-propyl acrolein, furfural, ethyl-chloroacetoacetate, and ethyl thiocyanoacetate. Tests for determining strength of fungicide compounds in mildew-proofed materials are described in PB 39,772 (photostat, $4; microfilm, $2; 54 pages, including drawings), a U . S. Army manual. The authors, technicians at the Jeffersonville Quartermaster Depot, believe this report will be useful for further research on mildew-proofing, and may also prove prove valuable t o industrial firms which manufacture or handle fungicide-treated materials. Tests are described for the following fungicides: copper (including copper naphthenate and copper oxyquinolate), pentachlorophenol, dihydroxydichlorodiphenylmethane (DDDM), organo-mercurials, tetrabromo-o-cresol, zinc diethyldithiocarbamate, salicyl anilide, amino guaiacol benzothiazole imino urea, hyamine 3258, and silver.
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