VOL. 2, No. 6
SYNTHETIC METHANOL
429
SYNTHETIC METHANOGAN ACCOMPLISHMENT OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH CARLR. DELONG, WASHINGTON, D. C. Nothing in recent years has brougHt chemical research so forcibly to the attention of the chemical indnstry as the production of synthetic methanol (wood alcohol). It had been rumored for some time past that a process had been developed in Germany for the synthesis of methanol. The importation into the United States of large quantities of this product from Germany during the first three months of 1925 confirmed these rnmors and demonstrated that synthetic methanol was an accomplished fact. As a result of research started in the production of synthetic hydrocarbons for use as motor fuels by catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide the Germans discovered that under certain conditions methanol was produced. Further research work on the optimum conditions as to temperature, pressure and catalysts has improved this process to a point where the production of methanol from carbon monoxide and hydrogen is a commercial accomplishment. Imports of synthetic methanol into the United States during the first three months of 1925 have amounted to 101,784 gallons with a value of 48.5 cents per gallon landed a t Atlantic ports without payment of duty. The duty of 12 cents per gallon added to this makes a total cost of 60.5 cents per gallon. The present price of domestic methanol is about 75 cents per gallon. The production of methanol by this process, a t a cost well below that of producing methanol in the United States by the distillation of wood, will have far-reaching economic effects on the domestic industry and also upon the various industries which depend upon this essential raw material. The production of methanol and allied products in the United States from the distillation of hard woods was one of the first chemical industries established in this country. According to Government reports, the primary products of this industry were valued a t $30,000,000 in 1923. The industry employed 4022 wage earners who were paid wages amounting to $4,240,000 per annum. The latest figures (1919) of the capital invested in the indnstry are $42,235,000. Additional capital invested in refining the crude methanol produced and in the conversion of acetate of lime into acetic acid and acetone would undoubtedly increase this investment to somewhere between 50 and 75 millions of dollars. The manufacture of synthetic methanol either in Germany or in the United States offers a serious threat to the wood chemical industry. Indeed i t is probable that within a very few years the production of synthetic methanol will have become so well established in this country that the major portion of the domestic supply will he synthesized. This does not
430
JOURNAL on CHBWCAL EDUCATION
Jm,1925
mean that the wood chemical industry will be wiped out overnight, as the process of shifting from production of the natural methanol to the synthetic product will take several years. This development will also hav; a widespread effect on various other chemical industries in the United States which consume methanol. Cheaper synthetic methanol means cheaper formaldehyde which, in turn, will reduce the cost of manufacturing synthetic phenolic resins, such as bakelite. The use of these resins in place of wood is unlimited if the cost can be lowered. Lower prices for methanol will also open up a new and broader field for its use as a solvent. The development of synthetic methanol in the United States must be accompanied by the production of synthetic acetic acid which is produced jointly with it in the distillation of wood. Fortunately the manufacture of synthetic acetic acid has been worked out, and the industry is already well established on a large commercial scale in Canada and Europe. The introduction of the manufacture of synthetic acetic acid in the United States will be reflected in appreciable saving in transportation costs. Acetic acid as produced synthetically is over 99 per cent pure. The saving in freight rates through shipment of the concentrated product instead of the weaker grades produced from wood chemical acetate of lime will he considerable. The development of synthetic methanol parallels in many respects the successful production of synthetic indigo and synthetic phenolic resins (amber substitutes). Here, again, the chemical industry has by synthesis produced a product which is cheaper than that from natural sources and which surpasses the natural product in purity and uniformity. Shipments of synthetic methanol have been proven by actual manufacturing tests to be equal in every way to the natural product, and meet the most rigid specifications of the consuming industry. Although the introduction of synthetic methanol in the United States will probably mean a great loss of investment in the wood chemical industry, it is hoped that it will serve as an object lesson to other branches of the American chemical industry. Chemical research has too often been looked upon as an expensive luxury. It has been the policy of many chemical firms during periods of depression to retrench by cutting their research organizations. During such periods of keen competition a well organized and trained research staff offers the best possibility of reducing costs, improving products, and developing new products at a lower cost. Synthetic methanol is an outstanding example of what may be accomplished through scientific research when appreciated and supported by industrial chemical concerns and when properly coordinated with commercial developments. I t is to be hoped that this example will indelibly impress upon the chemical industry the importance of chemical research.
