Many
ideas and projects—big
useful
information
detailed
report and analysis,
development, We present
process
and little—can
for "current design,
also our comments
awareness."
designed
influence Each
for easy reading,
engineering,
production,
on other interesting
you, give you ideas
month
I/EC's
for use in your
field editors
some of the most timely, and marketing
happenings
and
provide
staff select for
in research
commercial
areas in the chemical
of business
work,
and Washington and process
and professional
industries.
interest.
The Chemical World Today inexpensive knitted paper is its launderability. After 10 washings, prototype T-shirts m a d e from tissue p a p e r (12-pound basis) show only slight fading a n d shrinkage which can be compensated for in t h e treating process. M a r k s h a s a lady's overcoat which still retains its shape after more t h a n 30 launderings. And women's hats w o n ' t get weak a n d soggy in t h e rain. O n e of t h e factors in this water-resistance, of course, is m e l a m i n e t r e a t m e n t for the p a p e r — A m e r i c a n C y a n a m i d ' s Parez Resin 607, for example, accomplishes this purpose. T h e knitted fabric withstands dry cleaning, too—a dress, already cleaned 14 times, is so far unaffected. Biggest Field:
Reinforced Plastics
But w h a t M a r k s foresees as t h e biggest potential area for his knit materials lies in t h e fast-growing field of reinforced plastics a n d resins. K n i t t e d p a p e r c a n be a cheap a n d strong core material for t h e r m o setting resins a n d a wide variety of thermoplastics. H e figures it c a n r e d u c e costs of some glass-reinforced laminates, without lowering strength, by replacing as m u c h as 8 0 % of t h e glass fiber. I t c a n be combined
iff) O u r fashion model wee "Brim S w a g g e r , " a p a p e r h a t which d r a p e s like sculptor's clay, a n d is lightweight a n d knitted
(Right) Three o f the many types o f knitted p a p e r materials a r e shown here
with other more expensive fibers, like asbestos o r nylon, t o vary properties a n d reduce costs in textiles for resin impregnation. A n d for supported plastic films, stretch factors of knitted papers c a n b e tailored to m a t c h those of the plastic. At t h e recent National Paper Week exhibits in N e w York, dozens of other possible uses were brought u p for serious consideration, a n d major paper companies—on t h e
lookout for logical diversification t o u p g r a d e their products—began t o prick u p their ears. A m o n g t h e poss'bilities: seamless cartons for virtually u n b r e a k a b l e packaging, wire-reinforced p a p e r pipe, draperies a n d decorative wall papers, parachutes, a n d even heat-shielding m a terials for missile nose cones. M o r e a n d more, M a r k s feels h e has a bear by the tail. H e ' s getting ready for a n exciting ride. D.G.W.
Modern "Igloos" Offer Low Cost Shelter Fuller geodesic design available in build-it-yourself kits for low-cost temporary housing and storage
I H E LEGENDARY difficulty of selling
iceboxes to Eskimos eventually gave way t o progress, a n d m a n y of this continent's northern natives today demand refrigerators—and even home freezers—along with t h e rest of us w h o seek the better life. W i t h that hurdle over, it won't be long now before someone starts trying to sell igloos to o u r Arctic friends. As a m a t t e r of fact, t h e C a n a d i a n government for several years h a s actually been experimenting with thick foam-plastic blocks which the Eskimo could use t o replace snow in forming his conventional type of shelter. T h e idea here is t h a t it would last all year long—even through t h e summer's perpetual daylight in t h e relatively w a r m lower-arctic latitudes—so that a tupek wouldn't have t o be built every year t o replace a melted igloo. But nomadic Eskimos d o n ' t seem to stay in one place long enough to want a p e r m a n e n t abode.
M o d e r n Look:
Geodesic Domes
Leaving the land of t u n d r a a n d permafrost, t h e basic principle of igloo engineering h a s been freed from its septentrional origins. As developed commercially by inventor R . Buckminster Fuller, it is being applied i n broader a n d more practical directions: inexpensive a n d sturdy shelters for world-wide, yearr o u n d use. Fuller's famous geodesic-dome design, increasingly popular these days a m o n g architects a n d builders for large a n d unusual structures, h a s been scaled d o w n t o small " G e o space" units. These c a n be assembled quickly a n d easily for weatherproof emergency housing, e q u i p m e n t o r bulk-material storage for industry a n d farm, job-site warehousing, a n d as a n expendable military item.
F o a m S a n d w i c h Units
M o n s a n t o Chemical C o . , through its Filtered Resin Products C o . subsidiary, is marketing these domes in t h e form of ready-to-assemble Fomecor board panels. M a d e by Fome-Cor Corp., jointly owned b y VOL. 53, NO. 4 • APRIL 1961
33 A
I/EC
REPORTS
AND
INTERPRETS
The Geospace utility shelter comes in a compact, 350-pound package. It can be assembled by three men in less than one working day
Monsanto and St. Regis P a p e r Co., these arc triangular panels of lightweight, rigid resin foam, 0.5 inch thick, sandwiched between 69-pound kraft paper, and dip-coated with alkyd-based paint for weather resistance. F u t u r e modifications can include lamination with plastic film, treated fabric, or metal foil, according to Monsanto.
T h e panels, cemented together at the site, form a self-supporting geodesic d o m e 22 feet in diameter. This shape reportedly provides maxim u m strength and contained volu m e , with the m i n i m u m a m o u n t of construction material. Fifty panels are needed to form the d o m e ; total weight (including base ring, stakes, and eyebolts) comes to a b o u t 350
A Rucksack Full of N e w Ideas Research is popping in a London suburb I HE very n a m e of T c d d i n g t o n , England, has an air of serenity and tranquility about it. But things are popping in this L o n d o n s u b u r b — at the National Chemical L a b o r a tory. Dr. I. Berkovitch has furnished I / E C with a potpourri of projects now u n d e r w a y at N C L . Beryllium Rucksack First off is the rucksack, a sort of piggyback knapsack for beryllium prospectors. This metal, gaining importance because of its use in nuclear reactors as a moderator, has d r a w n m a n y new searchers for beryl deposits. T h e diversity of these deposit locations makes prospecting portability a must—they m a y be found in such places as Brazil, Rhodesia, Kenya, or Portugal. T h e 34 A
N C L beryllium kit allows detection of small amounts of the element at the surface, indicating deposits beneath the soil. W e a t h e r i n g causes dispersion of traces of the ore, so that field testing can provide a good indication. Results, of course, are only semiquantitative, a n d must be correlated with w h a t is known of geological rock formation of the area. And everything necessary can be neatly packed in the rucksack. Anaerobe Probe T h e Corrosion Section of N C L has been busy trying to get more concise information on the activities of anaerobic sulphate-reducing bacteria. Past work has l u m p e d these several strains together; consequently, the differences in attack
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
pounds. T h r e e m e n can assemble a unit in 8 hours. I n the standard kit, selling for $300 (this a m o u n t s to only 85^ per square foot of floor space), two of the panels can be hinged to make a man-size door. F u t u r e kits will include ceiling vents, as well as preframed doors a n d windows, as optional equipment. D.G.W.
a m o n g the various types has led to spotty and variable results. N C L has now shown how these strains can be isolated, preserved, a n d maintained. T o determine the mechanism of the corrosion process, the researchers are studying the electrical behavior of steel in p u r e cultures of the bacteria while the effect on the corrosion rate of the separate strains of organisms is being determined by weight-loss experiments in semicontinuous culture conditions. Pulp Purified—Solvent Saved N C L ' s Extraction of Metals G r o u p has been working on a new type of contactor for conserving solvent used in u r a n i u m extraction. After being leached from ore, u r a n i u m is further concentrated by solvent extraction from the sulfuric acid slurry. Existing contactors suffer the disadvantage of solvent loss from removal with slurry solids. Each of N C L ' s con[Continued on page 36 A)
