Jan., 1913
T H E J O U R N A L OF I N D U S T R I A L A N D E S G I S E E R I - V G C H E M I S T R Y
reference to their content of the much more precious metals iridium, platinum, osmium, etc , and that gravels well n o r t h mining, particularly a t the present price of iridium and platinum, may have been passed over because they contained little or no gold’” This query applies v i t h equal force to the alluvial depmits in the entire serpentine and peridotite areas of the coast range, in northcrn California and southcrn Oregon. THE PURCHASE OF LIME FOR WATER PURIFICATION Monfort ( I < H ~.Yvws, . 68, No. 2 0 , 889) points o u t that lime for water treatment is valuable in proportion to the percentage of \iatcr-soluble calcium oxide which it contains; but that its value is diminished dis1)ri)pi)rtionately by the presence of magnesia, alumina, silica, and unburnt stone, although for certain purposes these materials may lx. harmless y r nearly so. “Hydrated lime” has been U S C ~Iiy niiincrous railroad and commercial softening plants, and in sonic smaller cities; but its relatively high cost, the difficulties encountered in fecding it on a large scale, and the abundaucc 01 dust liberated in handling it have limited its application. In most of the larger plants, quicklime is used, but Monfort statcs that thc vagaries of the specifications for the purchase of this latter material arc numerous. In his opinion, specifications for the purchase of lime should be based upon a single percentage guarantee ; and bonus and penalty clauses introduced to guard against the loss incident to impurities should be in terms of the percentage of thc contract price. The illcrcmcnt should be sufficiently largc t o provide an actual bonus and penalty for variations in the quality of the lime delivered, and should be based upon the sourcc and quality of the lime available. Well-burned lime (the “overburncd” lime of the trade) suffers slight deterioration i n transit, especially if covered with paper. Methods of sampling and analysis should he d r scribed in the specifications. THE EFFECT O F BOILER SCALE I’oiwr (36, No. 18, 634) reports that recent tests made by the ISiiginccring Department of the University of Illinois show the pussibility of heat loss from mineral incrustations inside of boilers to inch. I’speriments gave varying in thickness from t he following results : Character C B f walr 1Iard Suft Ilard Soft IIard I r ard Soft Soft Soft
Thickness
I,OSS
Composition Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly Mostly
carbonates carbonates carbonates carbonates sulfates sulfates sulfates carbonates carhonates
Per cent 9.4
7.2 8 5 R .o 9.3 11.1 10.8 11.0 12.4
The resul 2 how good evaporative results may be handicapped, not only 1 2 per cent., but even more, by allowing incrustations to increase beyond the 1/16 inch thickness. NITRIC ACID FROM COKE-OVEN GASES The Zeatschrajt j u r angeu’andte Chemae, 25, 2309, reports that a company, capitalized a t I million marks, has been organized in Heringen bei Hamm for the manufacture of nitric acid from nitrogen. Particular attention will be paid to the utilization of gases from coke-ovens, and a plant is toibe established in connection with the coke plant of Zeche de Wendel in Hayingen. THE ELECTROTECHNICAL PRODUCTION OF AMMONIA The ZeLtscltrtft f u t augewandte Chemze (25, 2258) states that two concerns are a t present engaged in the manufacture of ammonia in Norway: one of these is Norwegian (“Dct Norske Aktieselskab for Elektrokemisk Indust ri”) and the other French
75
(“SociCt6 GCnCrale des Nitrures”). A third company, “Det Norske Kitritaktieselskab,” has just been organized, and a plant is being erected in Arendal which is to run on a n experimental scale in 1913 and is to be put into full working operation in 1914. The 2 5 , 0 0 0 horse-power necessary is to be obtained. from Arendal water-power and a production of 40,000 tons per year is contemplated. An investment of rg,ooo,ooo francs is assured, mostly French and partly Norwegian capital. The originators of this project are Messrs. Rernheim and Badin, of Paris, and S. Eyde, of Christiania; the two first mentioned control the “Soci6tb GPn6rale des Nitrures.” The last mentioned French company is manufacturing ammonia by a French electrochemical process; the ammonia produced is used in the preparation of “kalksaltpeter.” Ammonia is used in larger quantities a t the Notodden factories, where, until recently, the ammonia was obtained from (>ermany and England, but is now being produced by the Serpek process. A factory for the utilization of atmospheric nitrogen is proposed to be erected in Finland. I t is said that suitable limestone and water power are available, and that, if the preliminary experiments are satisfactory, thc riccessary capital has been subscribed for a large company. I t may be mentioned here that during the last ten years or so the production of nitrites in Germany has been monopolized by a number of large lead works, which formed a syndicate. Now, owing to the growing production of “atmospheric nitrates” in Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, which enables the producers to manufacture nitrite much cheaper than when sodium nitrate is used, the German manufacturers are no longer able to compete profitably and a number of firms have discontinued this branch of their business, in consequence of {vhich the syndicate has h e n dissolved. ~-~
~
THE PRODUCTION OF CALCIUM CARBIDE In I C I I I , there were produced 18,000 tons of calcium carbide in Spain, 16,000 tons of which wcrc consumed there and 2,000 tons exported. In Italy, 28,000 tons were manufactured, 23,000 tons of which were used and 5,000 tons exported. I n Germany, however, only 7,joo tons were produced, and 36,230 tons were consumed, 29,230 tons of which were imported from other countries. Norway and Sweden exported 48,000 tons, Switzerland 26,000 tons, and the United States 13,000 tons. France produced 32,000 tons, all of which was consumed in that country. The production of England was small. At Odda, in Norway, more than 30,000 tons of calcium carbide are manufactured annually; a t this place, nitrolim works have been erected near the carbide plant. The production of carbide is to be attempted near Sydney, Australia: large quantities of the material are now imported from the United States and Sweden. Two concerns control the carbide output in the IJnited States. Acetylene is now supplied in compressed form in cylinders a t a pressure of about 1 2 0 pounds to the square inch. Acetone, which dissolves 2 5 volumes of the gas per atmosphere a t 60’ F., is widely employed; generally, about 40 per cent. of the tank volume is filled with the liquid and an absorbing material, as asbestos. Large quantities of acetylene are produced a t Joliet, Ill., for steel-cutting and welding.
THE JAPANESE WINDOW GLASS INDUSTRY Window glass is manufactured in Japan a t A4magasaki,the factory a t which place is under the direction of a Belgian expert. The glass is hand-blown, in which operation certain Japanese arc very efficient, and mechanical blowers have never been tried. The glass produced is much too green and is deficient in transparency: it is marketed only in the form of small sheets, and is accordingly most used for half-sized window panes and
76
T H E J O U R N A L OF I N D U S T R I A L A.VD E,‘\‘GI.VEERING
small pictures. The sand which is used runs high in calcium carbonate; the other components of the batch are imported from Germany. The Amagasaki factory commenced operations with four furnaces, and was run a t a loss; but now, with an in.crease of two more tanks, there is a profit in the manufacture. While Japanese window glass does not offer any serious competition to foreign-made glass a t home, considerable quantities being still imported, yet the Japanese industry is making a strong effort to get into the Chinese market. However, the quality is low, the packing faulty, and the loss from breakage and poor glass is so great as to overcome any margin of price in favor of the Japanese product. The bulk of the Chinese trade is held by Belgium, the United States having no part in the supply. The use of window glass in China is still restricted to parts of the country where winter must be resisted, and among the wealthy and foreign inhabitants. PRECAUTIONS I N HANDLING COMPRESSED GASES The French Minister of Commerce has submitted to a commission the question of precautions to be taken with cylinders containing compressed gases. The following rules are laid down ( J . d u Four Elec., November I , 1912): The cylinder holding compressed gases for autogenous welding or for cutting metals should not be used in works where there are floors above containing people. Before being used, each cylinder should be placcd in a trench of which the sides are protected by battens of wood, and only the neck of the cylinder should protrude above the surface of the ground. The cylinder should be located at least 5 meters from any fire, etc. Every cylinder should bear a legible indication of the date when it was placed in service, the pressure to which it was submitted a t the last test, and the date of the test. No lubricants other than glycerin or soapy water shall be employed for greasing the valve. No application of heat shall be employed in facilitating the opening of the valve, even though this opening proves to be difficult. I n employing oxy-hydrogen gas for welding, there should always be a mixer between the bottles and the flame, and there should always be a distance of a t least 3 meters between the neck of the flask and the neighborhood where the flame is to be employed. THETA TUBING “Theta” tubing, invented by H. W. Jacobs, and manufactured in Atchison, Kansas, is a special shaped tube which combines maximum strength with minimum weight. I t is said to possess very desirable qualities for bicycle and motorcycle frames, aeroplane frames, and other light vehicles which require more strength than the present round tubing affords. “Theta” tubing is so-called because its cross-sectioned shape resembles the Greek letter Q. The tubes are made of sheet alloy steel, which, when oil-treated has its tensile strength increased by 60 to 75 per cent. Two sheets are bent over mandrels to about the required shape and then welded together; the surfaces are then ground on a n emery wheel, making the welded portion as smooth as the rest of the tube. A machine is being devised to roll the material out in flat sheets and another for welding the tubing. THE PRODUCTION O F CAOUTCHOUC The Caoutchouc Exchange estimates the world’s production in 1911 a t about 98,000 tons, out of which a t least 2,500 tons were taken on account of direct sale. The fall in prices was due to the greater production of Para; but, on the other hand, while the conditions of shipping had been unfavorable the last recorded year and considerable quantities of raw caoutchouc were held back, this was put on the market in 1912. The world’s consumption undoubtedly increased in 1912 over
CHEMISTRY
Jan., 1913
the others, and if such a relative increase were to continue, then, states the Chemzker-Zettung ( 3 6 , 1334), there would exist no doubts about the advisability of acquiring the great plantations in the next few years to conic The same authority prcdicts a constant fall in price The English plantation companies have, as far as rentability is concerned, satisfactorily developed, and a t the end of the year large dividends were declared The production from January to August, 1912, amounted to 21,733,661 pounds, a5 against 1 1 , j 8 ~ , 2 3 pounds 5 for the same period in 1911, and 7,zrg,250 pounds in 1910 The increase in production in 1912 u a s about 88 per cent over that of the other years, and in the month o f August, 1912, alone, 3,655,535 pounds of caoutchouc xvere placed on the market The Ceylon production \cas 7,961,jog pounds for the fiscal period in 1912, as compared n i t h 3,570,627 pounds in 1911 I t is worthy of attention that no\\, for the first time, the prices for Plantation Para are distinctly lower than those for ran Para, or “wild P a r a ” The usual London quotations (converted to U S currency) for I pound lots follow August 1911 August, 1912
Plaitation para CT 61 34
$1 2 X
\Vild para $1
13 @, $1 11 1 25 1 21
I in
bcrap @ $1 I 1
$ 1 04
0 851/A@ 1 00 @ o 91 @
0 93 1 OR o 8;
A WATER TEMPERATURE REGULATOR The “Sarco” \Later temperature regulator uses as its actuating motive power the expansion of a sensitive liquid hermetically sealed nithin a chamber into \\hich is inserted a flexible corrugated tube In installing the apparatus, the thermostatic element is inserted into the tank or container, the temperature of which is to be regulated, and t is connected in the steam or hot water pipe, opening up or closing according to the tempcrature in the tank I t is made o f three principal parts A , the thermostatic c l e m e n t which is inserted in thc boiler or tank, G, the controller element, and, K, the Lalce The sectional cut shons thc construct ion. The thermostatic clcment A is a tubular receptacle containing a heavy hydrocarbon oil into which is insertcd a piece of corrugated copper tubing, the length of which is extended or reduced by turning the regulator head C From thisthermostatic element a piece of fine copper tubing D, passes to the controller G which also contain4 a piece of corrugated tubing capable of compression n hen an increase of temperature causes the surrounding liquid in A to expand. I t will be observed that the thermostatic element A, the connecting copper tube D, and the controller G form one hermetically closed chamber. When temperature increases in A , the pressure increases and is transmitted to G, causing a compression of the copper tube F which forces out the piston I and tends t o close the talve. Spiral springs E and J, operating in the opposite direction, tend to keep the valve open.
