The Changing Industrial Alcohol Picture ROBERT S. ARIES, Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, N. Y.
T i i e b i g g e s t f a c t o r i n t h e f u t u r e of i n d u s t r i a l a l c o h o l i s i t s p r o d u c t i o n as a b y - p r o d u c t o f t h e s y n t h e s i s of g a s o l i n e f r o m n a t u r a l g a s . B u t t h e possibility of its u s e w i t h gasoline a s a fuel is r e m o t e , a n d w o u l d o n l y f o l l o w a s e r i o u s disposal p r o b l e m D E C A U S E of t h e paramount importance of industrial alcohol in many phases of t h e chemical and chemical process industries, its economics affect numerous other chemicals, directly or indirectly. The factors which affect it are also indicative of t h e upsets to be expected in t h e entire industry. In contrast t o most mechanical products, chemicals can usually b e made by numerous processes from several r a w materials. In addition, many other chemicals can be employed a s . substitutes i n their uses. These factors contribute t o keener competition in the chemical industry coupled with t h e need for constant technical and market research. Alcohol can be manufactured by t h e fermentation of vegetable materials b y the action of yeast. T h e hexose sugars may already be existing, as in blackstrap molasses, or invert sugar, sugar beet, sulfite waste liquors, etc., or it may be transformed as in starchy grains, potatoes, a n d sawdust. By synthesis, alcohol may b e made from natural gas, petroleum refinery gases, or coal. Previous to the war t h e bulk of t h e production was from molasses, while at present petroleum is the largest single source, exceeding 6 5 % of the normal prewar consumption of alcohol, in comparison with about 2 5 % in t h e last prewar years. Economic
Relationships
During the 30's, t h e price of industrial alcohol seems to have depended on t h e demand and competition between t h e producers from molasses, although in later years plants making alcohol from synthesis were apparently a more important factor. Grain (chiefly corn) was used very little during t h e decade preceding t h e war. Even in 1941, only 17.5 million g a l Ions of alcohol, or less than 6 % of t h e total produced, was made from grain. I t is i n teresting t o note t h a t all sources other tlian grain molasses and ethyl sulfate amounted to 0.25% of t h e total output of alcohol during that year. From Table I we see t h a t there is a rough parallelism between t h e price changes for alcohol and those for molasses. It is interesting to note t h a t the price of molasses tended to drop after 1935, which undoubtedly contributed to the maintenance of its relative position versus ethylene gases. Being by-products, b o t h
1792
all tlie molasses available. Biggest increases a r e expected in cattle feeds, although these again a r e tied u p in t h e price of meat and what farmers can pay for the feed. Some yeast increases should be expected also as well as t h e possible production of glycerin, b u t these should be minor. However, it is believed t h a t they will prevent the price from going t o ''distress" levels (Table I I I ) . In the evaluation of the use of ion exchange in sugar refining and its possible effect on t h e molasses situation, t h e following points have been taken into account. Sugar companies are very slow t o move into new developments. I n this connection they seem to act exactly in a n inverse manner of chemical companies. A halfmillion dollar unit would create quite a hesitancy on the part of the s u g a r mill manager before he approved it. T h e profitability of ion exchangers today would be high because of the high price of sugar. However, it was indicated that b y 1950 we expect to have a surplus of sugar which will depress prices. T h u s i t will not look as a t tractive t o install ion exchange e q u i p m e n t as it does now, b u t will glut s u g a r prices further.
sources' quantities produced are determined by t h e d e m a n d for sugar a n d for cracked gasoline, respectively. Also, t h e large capital investment required for s y n t h e t i c alcohol might have retarded its growth before t h e war. C u b a a n d other nations are using much of their molasses a t present, while allocations to others a r e t o be distributed a m o n g nine nations (Table I I ) . It should not be forgotten t h a t so far, an offshore producer of it h a s no alternative t h a n t o d u m p , burn, or ship molasses. T h e uses for molasses will increase during t h e next decade; they will not t a k e care of
Cost of Production of Alcohol T h e cost of production of e t h y l alcohol from molasses is determined t o a large extent b y the cost of its raw material, as 1 gallon of 190-proof alcohol required 2.5 gallons of molasses. T h e approximate costs per gallon of 190proof (95%) alcohol a r e given in T a b l e I V . T h e price of invert molasses w i t h a 7 5 % sugar content has been largely a m a t t e r of bargaining. F r o m t h e standpoint of production costs—i.e., t h e saving of labor a n d equipment necessary for crystallization— it is estimated t h a t invert should be sold
T a b l e I . Alcoliol ( S p e c i a l l y D e n a t u r e d , F o r m u l a N o . 1) a n d Blackstrap INIolasses. P r i c e s in T a n k - C a r Lots a t Eastern Works for Alcohol a n d i n T a n k - C a r L o t s f . o . b . N o r t h A t l a n t i c Ports for M o l a s s e s , 1929-42 Calendar Year
Price p e r Gallon Alcohol Molasses
Cents Cents 1929 48.0 11.7 1930 39.9 11.6 7.0 1931 27.3 5.0 1932 30.4 5.6 1933 30.4 6.7 29. S 1934 8.1 30.7 1935 7.8 1936 26.3 7.2 1937 26.5 6.7 1938 24.6 5.3 1939 20.5 6.6 1940 22.9 9.5 26.5 1941 53.0 16.5 1942 ° N o t availiable. b Estimated. Source, U. S. Tariff Commission, 1944.
Price of 2.5 Gallons of Molasses Cents 29.3 29.0 17.5 12.5 14.0 16.8 20.3 19.5 18.0 16.8 13.3 16.5 23.8 41.3
CHEMICAL
Margin of Alcohol over Molasses Cents 18.7 10.9 9.8
17.9 16.4 13.0 10.4 6.8 8.5 7.8 7.2 6.4 2.7
11.7
Production of Alcohol P e r Cent Total Synthetic Millions of Gallons 106 101 87 76 59 85 93 101 115 104 104 126 156 223
AND ENGINEERING
a
. .. 7.8& 9.8 9.9 7.5
10.0 16.4 15.5 18.0 24.4 25.6 23.6 25.0
NEWS
Table II.
C u b a n M o l a s s e s 1947
(Millions of gallons) Domestic and Other Supplies except Accepted Cuba Requirements 173.0 346.0 48.0 178.2 3.4 13.0 10.1 16.5 25.0 34.6 10.1 16.5 20.0 27.2 0.6 4.4 2.7 i!3 5.6 0.4 1.3 1.9 2.2
United States United Kingdom Canada Netherlands France Belgium Italy Eire Greece Austria Norway 8witierland Reserve
Allocation from Cuba 73.1 72.4 7.7 1.2
at a price equivalent to 0.30 t o 0.40 cent per pound of sugar content below t h e price of raw cane sugar. I n prewar years, some invert had been sold at t h e same price as blackstrap. Invert has approximately 1.45 times m o r e sugar t h a n blackstrap (9 versus 6.25 l b . of sugar per gallon). Blackstrap molasses prices u p to t h e war were about 6 to 8 cents per gallon. Since 1942, thoy h a v e been at 16.5 t o i8.5 cents or more per gallon delivered Atlantic Seaboard, while current prices are almost double that amount. A historical note is perhaps pertinent a t this stage. Inuring World W a r I molasses rose from S cents per gallon in 1917 to 31 cents per gallon in 1918, as against a high of 18.5 rents during t h e last war. T h e allT a b l e III. " N o r m a l " U n i t e d S t a t e s Production a n d I m p o r t s of Molasses, 1939 Production a n d Imports Production i n the continental United S t a t e s From beet sugar Prom raw cane sugar From refiner's cane sugar
Quantity (Thousand of Gallons 15,361 31,647 20,341
Total
67,349
United States receipts from insular possessions Hawaii (cane sugar) Puerto Rico (cane sugar)
28,979 20,034
Total
49,013
United States imports from foreign oountries Cuba (cane sugar) Dominican Republic (cane sugar) Other Western Hemisphere except Canada (cane sugar) Europe a n d Canada (beet sugar)
173,217* 16,419 5,619 8,232
Total
203,487 Grand Total 319,849 ° Converted to blackstrap equivalent. Actual imports of 160,386,000 gallons estimated to include 20% "high-test" molasses. One gallon of "high-test" molasses is equivalent to approximately 1.4 gallons of blackstrap molasses (basis total sugar content). Source, official statistics of t h e U. S. Department of Commerce.
Table
IV.
C o s t of A l c o h o l Molasses
2.5 gallons molasses a t 5 cents per gallon 501b. steam at 30 cents per 1,000 1b. Direct labor, 0.01 man-hour at 70 cents Water, power, repairs, etc. Depreciation, etc. Approximate cost
VOLUME
2 5,
SO. 162
NO.
2 5
20.0
3.2
3.1 1.9 2.6 0.9 1.9 3.2
165.0
458.8
time low is reported t o be 1.5 cents per gallon. Grain T h e use of grain has been until now more expensive t h a n molasses a s a source of alcohol. T h e approximate price a t which i t would have to b e procurable on t h e Atlantic Seaboard in comparison with t h e highest molasses prices is given in Table V. I t should be interesting; to compare t h e price of grains of close to 82.00 per bushel at present. T h e above figures do n o t t a k e into account credit for by-products whose value varies in normal times from 10 to 20 cents per bushel of corn processed. During t h e period 1936-41, alcohol was selling a t about 25 cents a gallon and in 1939 sold for 20 cents, without bringing any marked expansion in the quantities utilized. T h e equivalent grain cost should n o t exceed 3 5 to 45 cents per bushel delivered to t h e distillery. This figure is based on t h e assumption t h a t t h e alcohol plant is equipped t o degerminate corn and recover corn oil a n d oil meal, and has evaporators a n d dryers to recover t h e slop as cattle feed. By crediting these by-products, t h e n e t cost of corn is reduced to 25 cents per bushel. I n the case of wheat, there is n o recoverable oil, t h u s the value of by-products is lower. A yield of 2.5 gallons of a l cohol per bushel being obtainable, t h e corn cost would be 10 cents per gallon (still a s suming an original cost of only about 4 0 cents a bushel). T h e processing costs of an efficient operator will be a t least 5 t o to 7 cents per gallon, making a total cost of 15 to 17 cents. This is barely enough to ensure a profit in the 20-cent ceiling price previously referred t o , especially as in many instances there is an expense of approximately 2 cents per gallon to cover t h e average freight
T a b l e V.
from $0,125 0.015 0.007 0.010 0.005
113
1 2 2.5 1.9 1.3 0.5
Totals
Total Allocations 246.1 120.4 11.1 11.3 25.0
JUNE
Alcohol R a w M a t e r i a l Costs f.o.b. A t l a n t i c S e a b o a r d P l a n t s
Cost of Molasses per Gallon S 8.25 7.25 7.00 6.50 7.00 15.9
Year 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941
2 3,
paid to equalize t h e cost of transportation with t h a t of some competitor. No credit has been given for the sale of dry ice and liquid carbon dioxide. The-market for the latter is rather restricted, being almost nil during t h e winter months, while it cannot be stored economically in substantial quantities. These speculations are based on a price of 35 to 45 cents per bushel of corn delivered, which would be of no help to farmers without, subsidy or t h e use of excess land on which he is paying taxes and interest. Yet even at this low price for alcohol, 75 million bushels of grains would be enough to satisfy amply t h e present-day expanded requirements, or only 1 % of our combined yearly wheat a n d corn crops. An even lower sales price would be necessary to build up new markets—-about 2.5 cents per bushel of corn for each 1-cent reduction in alcohol price. T h e common sense behind large-scale outlets, such as power alcohol, if they should be satisfied with grains, are coupled with a d e m a n d or cheaper grains rather t h a n a m a i n t e nance of parity prices. T h e cost of producing alcohol by wood hydrolysis can only b e approximated a t present. T h e plant which will process 220 t o n s of dry wood per day is expected t o yield 11,500 gallons of 190-proof alcohol. Wood m u s t be cheap, for a t $2.00 per ton i t represents 6 0 % of t h e raw material cost. If a m a r k e t for lignin is found, other t h a n its use for fuel, its sale for even one cent per pound profit will reduce t h e cost of alcohol by 10 cents per gallon. T h e sawdust t h e n would cost 4 cents per gallon of alcohol or more. Processing costs are estimated a t about 15 cents per gallon. T o this should be added amortization. T h e total cost should t h e n be a b o u t 30 cents a gallon, according t o present indications, without a n y provisions for b y product utilization except burning. T h e costs of sulfite liquor alcohol h a v e already been substantiated by the plant of t h e Ontario Paper Co. in Canada a n d t h e Puget Sound P u l p & Paper Co. in t h i s country. Depending on conditions, locations, and sugar content of t h e liquors, it could be made for 15 t o 25 cents per gallon. In addition t o t h e p l a n t at Bellingham, it is not expected t h a t other installations will be made in t h e foreseeable future, b e cause (1) t h e sulfite pulping process which is the one giving rise to these sugars is on t h e decline and being replaced by t h e sulfate and semichemical processes. (2) P u l p mills have in general no desire to en-
1947
Equivalent Value of Grain per Bushel (No By-Products) SO. 51 0.46 0.44 0.41 0.44 0.99
Actual Market Price of Grain, per Bushel Wheat Corn $1.20 S I . 18 0.67 1.12 0.64 0.72 0.72 0.73 0.77 0.84 0.86 1.11
1793
ter the by-product field and few if any chemical companies would tie themselves for raw materials to a pulp company. Sugar yields vary with the type of cook or wood used, thereby creating additional complications. (3) If pressure against pollution is exercised, mills would rather go into yeast manufacture which is more profitable as it ferments the pentose sugars as well as the hexoses, thereby getting higher yields from the wood sugars.
Germany in 1936, using brown coke or coal as raw material. In the United States, natural gas would be the logical and cheapest raw material. Five fields in the USA contain 40% of the total reserves and these will support Synthol installations. In most instances these will not interfere with the use of feas for fuel, as the B.t.u. value of many of the gases from these fields is low. The plants now being built could produce as by-products about 8 million gallons of alcohol each, together with a large number of other oxygenated products. The exact costs of recovering alcohol from the S\-nthol process are not known, but it would be substantially a matter of bookkeeping. The important matter is that apparently the ethyl alcohol is relatively easy to separate with simple equipment, most of the difficulties arising in the separation of the higher alcohols and acetic acid. Synthol alconol looms as the one with the cheapest costs, but is not expected to enter the alcohol picture actively until about five years from now.
various reasons (mostly poorer yields) are not used. However, a new plant is apparently going to use direct hydration and while its costs may be the same as the ones of conventional process, the initial investment is reported to be lower. Most of the developments undertaken in this field have been fitted into existing refinery operations, mostly using byproduct still gases produced by cracking. Thus the utilization of uncondensed cracked gases, formed incidentally in cracking for gasoline, the principal product, bears the same economic relation to petroleum refining as the manufacture of coal-tar light oil and its derivatives does to the coking of coal. The enormous quantities of propane and butane which are available as by-products of the stabilization of gasoline may also be cracked to produce gaseous olefins. In fact, most commercial producers supplement their ethylene with cracked stock in their plants. In the form of ethylene alone, it is estimated that 6.5 million lb. per day are charged as fuel. The price allotted to the latter is about 5 cents per 1,000 cubic feet. However, purer ethylene suitable for conversion to alcohol costs several cents a pound. While an advantage of petroleum as a source of simple olefins is that it does not interfere with the supply of other refinery products, some of the difficulties encountered are in the complexity of petroleum by-products and the difficulty of their separation in a pure state. Besides, the widely varying nature of crude oils contributes to the problems encountered. Generally, low percentage ethylene gases are not economical as a source of ethylene, the procedure being to start with a gas containing at least 30 to 3 5 % ethylene. The quantities of available olefins produced by a typical vapor phase thermal cracking plant yielding 4.5 million cubic feet of gas per day are (in tons):
Alcohol from tlve Fischer-Tropsch Process The biggest factor in industrial alcohol in the foreseeable future is the by-product from the Synthol gas process. Thus far,' three plants are planned, and even they will have a pronounced effect. If the petroleum industry, however, enters the field in a big manner, the alcohol market will literally be glutted witli alcohol which will have to be sold. Unless the price of alcohol drops to below 10 cents per gallon, which is improbable in the foreseeable future, no alcohol will be used with gasoline. Some of the other oxygenated products may be Petroleum as a Rate Material used to doctor gasoline, while the aceticacid and acetaldehyde will even compete Synthetic ethyl alcohol lias been made in with outlets for ethanol. the United States since 1931. A large Natural gas reserves were estimated at amount of ethanol is being produced 110 trillion cubic feet in 1942, 140 trillion from the cracking of petroleum hydrocarcubic feet in 1945, and 160 trillion cubic bons, although on the other hand, some feet in 1947, thus indicating that no real ethylene is still made from ethyl alcohol. effort was put until recently to determine The method used consists of absorbing them. With marked natural gas producethylene in strong sulfuric acid, followed tion approximately 3.25 trillion cubic feet by dilution to ho'drolyze the ethyl sulfuric in 1943, there would be a supply for the acid formed. The acid medium has to be next 50 years at the present rate of conreconcentrated and valuable by-products sumption. The oxidation and chlorination such as diethyl ether are formed. There of natural gas and its derivatives are of are obvious advantages in using gas rich proved commercial importance and in in olefins, thus coal gas is not considered competition with other raw materials. economical on account of the necessary Only 75% of the gas lost and wasted could concentration. be converted into the entire 1946 producConcentrated sulfuric acid is now the tion of acetaldehyde, acetic acid, acrylic only reagent used industrially for the resins, ethyl alcohol, formaldehyde, methyl conversion of olefins to alcohols. Other alcohol, and isopropyl alcohol. This cnuld reagents have been proposed, but for be largely done through the regenerative cracking from the recoverUses of Special! v D e n a t u r e d Ethyl Alcohol I n d u s t rial Alcohol W a r t i m e End-Use P a t t e r n Fiscal Year 1940 October 1944-June 1915 able ethane, propane, Alloc a l i o n s : 100% = 475 m i l l i o n gallons and butane content of the gas, or less than 20% by weight of the natural gas, thus leaving 80% for use as dry natural gas. Since e t h a n e , p r o p a n e , and butane may r e a d i l y be extracted from natural gas and are transportable by modern methods, these speculations should not be assumed as being hypothetical. If the gas reserves are converted into liquid fuels, we could double our known reserves of petroleum. The Synthol process was put in operation in 1794
C H E M I C A L
AND
E N G I N E E R I N G
NEWS
ethylene 40, propylene 38, butenes 30, amylenes 20, miscellaneous 16. The synthetic alcohol industry has made a tremendous advance in the United States. Originally employed by the Carbide & Carbon Chemicals Corp. on natural gas at Charleston, W. Va., about 1926, a second plant was soon started (1933) at Whiting, Ind., by this same company utilizing waste gas from the adjoining petroleum refinery of the Standard Oil Co. of Indiana. Later a plant was built at Texas City, Tex., (1940), also in conjunction with a petroleum refining operation. The latest plant (1943) has been built at Baton Rouge, La., to use ethylene gas derived from the petroleum refining plants of the Standard Oil Co. of Louisiana. Another plant of the Shell Oil Co. is now under construction, while several others are being planned. The costs of petroleum alcohol are less than 15 cents per gallon, depending on the ethylene cost and credit of byproduct ether.
600500^"o o
-
CL
_
RAW
o 400
Ti
MATERIALS
fflB
Synihetic
CD
Grams
1HJ
Molasses
—
-J 3 0 0 I _
o **o
I
-
200-
100.
0
i
i
1915
i
i
i
1 1 1
'20
i t
'25
million tons of suitable wood waste. From grain, it would mean 360 million bushels of corn. While substantially larger amounts of wood waste are available, it is doubtful whether it would be available in adequate amounts in the proper localities for efficient utilization. This would be further accentuated if we were to imagine that 10% of our gasoline requirements were to be met by alcohol, so that on the basis of a 14 >~rear reserve estimate, we could extend it by about 16 months. Such a tremendous production would undoubtedly follow the principle of increasing costs and we could not hope to get alcohol at prices anywhere near the ones of gasoline.
U. S. I n d u s t r i a l M o l a s s e s I m p o r t s , Including; Receipts from Hawaii a n d P u e r t o Rico
TOO
J 50 ° o C7>
300
o
100
U 1920
1925
1930
B35
I94C
a =» Q u a n t i t y of molasses in millions of gallons (left-hand scale) b =• Value of molasses i n millions of dollars (right-hand scale) c «=• Average value of molasses in cents p e r gallon (right-hand scale)
VOLUME
2 5,
NO.
25
»
»
*35
U. S . P r o d u c t i o n of E t h y l Vlcohol
Power Alcohol Problems If we should extend our gasoline with alco'iol, numerous problems would arise. Proposals to add a few per cent to the 30 billion gallons consumed annually would already provide an unparalleled demand for alcohol while based on pessimistic estimates of our petroleum reserves would provide fuel for our cars for only a few extra months. Thus an addition of 3 % would require 900 million gallons of anhydrous alcohol or over eight times the normal prewar consumption to which grain, molasses, and ethylene gases all contributed. If we subtract the output of beverage distillers this figure would be more than double the total remainder of the output. If we were to make it by wood hydrolysis alone, it would necessitate 16.8
c
'30
»
JUNE
2 3,
1947
1945
'40
y 45
However, let us assume that the cost of gasoline at a particular refinery is 6 cents per gallon and the cost of absolute alcohol at a nearby plant at 25 cents per gallon. Assuming that they both give the same amount of power per gallon (which is not the case), alcohol will be in case of 100% substitution, over four times more expensive to the consumer. If 10% is to be used and the increase absorbed in the total output, the cost of fuel would be 1.6 cents more per gallon. The consumer differential would probably be higher. Since we are accustomed to read large figures, this would mean over $465 million annually. Also the assumed price of 25 cents per gallon for anhydrous alcohol should be compared with the present price of about 80 cents per gallon (95%) from grain. Questions such as the comparative merits of direct versus indirect subsidies should also be considered. Also a similar substitution would present new problems in the control of illegal diversion of alcohol, because of the tendency of the latter to separate from gasoline. Incited by the present high taxes on beverage alcohol, fuel alcohol could be purified and diverted to illicit use. It should be obvious that under normal economics, power alcohol is out of the question. Despite political pressure, power alcohol should not be counted upon in the foreseeable future. Later, if more petroleum companies enter the Synthol gasoline field, it is conceivable that petroleum companies may reverse their stand and mix alcohol with gasoline. However, they may doctor their gasoline with some other oxygenated by-products, and before they add alcohol the price of the latter should drop below 10 cents per gallon—i.e., it should be a "must" disposal problem at any price. 1795
D e n a t u r e d Alcohol P l a n t s O p e r a t e d a n d P r o d u c t i o n Fiscal Y e a r 1911
rest, a n d probably more t h a n 5 0 % , should go to ethylene glycol. It should be remembered t h a t t h e costs of producing methanol are low a n d several manufacturers h a v e their own brands of antifreeze, thus eliminating t h e spread t o retail prices. In general, alcohol will lose some of its prewar antifreeze market. Increased
HAWAII © 40.7 PORTO RICO 1300
Dot=? show nurufoer of pla'-.ts Figirres indicare thousands of gallons
Status
ami Future* of
Alcohol
Previous to "the war, t h e consumption of industrial alcohol was a b o u t 100 million wine gallons (190 proof) anually, as pure xilcohol, specially denatured alcohol, or completely denatured alcohol. Some additional quantities consisted principally of pure alcohol used in the beverage industry for blending of liquors. T h e amount of alcohol annually used in industry fluctuated with t h e business cycle, b u t there w a s n o significant opening or development of new or enlarged markets over a great m a n y years. Prices remained at low levels, consistent with raw material costs. It is doubtful if a lowering of prices would have s t i m u l a t e d any significant new markets (except motor fuel), since ethyl alcohol usually was t h e cheapest material in its field. With t h e present war, the alcohol requirements for munitions, synthetic rubber, and lend-lease raised industrial alcohol requirements to unprecedented figures. At the wartime peak, synthetic rubber production alone required 330 million gallons of alcohol per year and other outlets took 270-million. T h e war effort can best be indicated b y giving t h e major chemical uses i t h a d during t h e fiscal year 1944-45. Of the 35 million cars which we expect to h a v e in 1950, about 28 million will use antifreeze. The entire market will be for about 56 to 6 0 million gallons per year. During t h e war t h e antifreeze picture had a distorted p a t t e r n . Since glycol and methanol were not readily available, heavy emphasis was placed on completely deatured ethyl alcohol. T h e future sale of pure methanol antifreeze a n d 6 5 % methanol-isopropyl mixtures m a y force a substantial part of the market t o pare methanol, thereby capturing a s much a s 5 0 % of t h e market. The 1796
Table
VI.
Uses of Specially n a l u r e d Alcohol
De~
Fiscal y e a r e n d e d J u n e 30, 1945
1.
2 3. 4.
5.
Cellulose and resins (total) Lacquers and varnishes Plastics Explosives Solvents Toilet preparations Processing (total) Nitrocellulose Drugs Pharmaceuticals for external use
6. 7.
Quantity (in Thousands of Gallons) 30,298 5,499 5, 162 18,139 19,611 5,387 76,015 23,188 13,900 1,380
Cleaning, preserving, and flavoring Used for chemicals (total) Svnthetic rubber Acetaldehyde Ethyl chloride Ethyl acetate Vinegar Acetic acid Ethylene dibromide Ethyl ether Miscellaneous ethyl esters
1,764 425,198 315.940 55,733 14,867 10,155 7,174 4,995 4,431 3,865 2,861
CHEMICAL
Requirements
T h e price of alcohol cannot in competitive t i m e s be much higher t h a n t h a t of m e t h a n o l . In fact, recently isopropyl alcohol h a s been used successfully in many former ethanol fields, indicating even keener competition in the future. In t h e foreseeable future there will be an increased requirement of alcohol for usual industrial purposes above t h e prewar n o r m a l consumption. This is accentuated now a n d continued decreasingly through the period during which accumulated shortages of civilian commodities would be gradually taken care of. These industrial general-use requirements m a y reach about 220 million gallons annually at peak to perhaps a " n o r m a l " consumption of 175 t o 200 million gallons. In addition, there may b e an increased use of pure alcohol for blending of beverages, amounting to perhaps 2 5 million gallons or more per year a t peak. Governmental, scientific, and hospital requirements for tax-free use will probably continue a t slightly more than prewar rates (2 million to 5 million gallons as a m a x i m u m ) . No alcohol is expected to be u s e d for synthetic rubber, unless the price should drop drastically. While the industrial alcohol pattern has changed radically from its prewar norm, its markets have increased with synthesis looming as the l a r g e s t source. New producers are in the p i c t u r e and more are destined to enter it. A l e r t entrepreneurs will be rewarded, while o t h e r s will suffer in t h e competitive race. T h e chemical industry and the ultimate consumer will benefit from the better p r o d u c t s and low prices wiiich will result. PRESENTED on the program of the Division of Sugar Chemistry and Technology, ACS, at Atlantic City, April 16, 1947.
AND
ENGINEERING
NEWS
