MARKETS Titanium G e t s
Fresh S t a r t
O D M withdrawal won't impede metal development; rising output and $1.00 to $1,50 price seen in future TITANIUM METAL again has demon strated its toughness. In addition to high temperatures and stresses that would ordinarily crack steel, it can also absorb heavy blows such as abandon m e n t of Government's titanium plant program (C&EN Sept. 26, page 4 0 6 8 ) . But while the Office of Defense Mobilization was forced to withdraw support for titanium plant expansion d u e to fabrication bottlenecks, develop m e n t a n d research programs to expand the metal's uses are going right on. Titanium proponents have stopped bemoaning t h e inability of the Navy to build its atomic submarines and super-carriers like the Forrestai from titanium. T h e money had not been provided, for one thing. Titanium metal (sponge) production this year w a s not sufficient, for another. T h e Navy's bureaus of ships and ordnance a n d the Anny ordnance arsenals are at work testing and finding hundreds of other jobs for it in ships and planes. • Sponge Production. Jet planes a n d t h e national stockpile obviously h a v e h a d t h e first call on titanium metal in view of its melting point of 3040° F . U p to now the supply has not been great enough to allow its use to any great extent in other defense a n d industry construction. At a weeklong titanium program by New York University and t h e American Society for metals, Ν . Ε. Promisel of the Bu r e a u of Aeronautics supplied t h e figures. Production of sponge tita nium, t h e r a w material, rose from about 75 tons a year in 1950 to almost 6000 tons in 1954, and this year will reach an estimated 8000 tons. The price for sponge meanwhile has d r o p p e d from $5.00 p e r pound to b e tween $3.50 and $3.95, and a price of $1.00 to $1.50 does not appear im probable in the future. Titanium metal producers—Du Pont, Cramet, Dow, Titanium Metals, and Union Carbide's Electromet, none too h a p p y over suspension of the O D M program, would have been cheered by t h e technical confidence in titanium displayed at the NYU discussions. Ρ Chemical Processing. One of the k e y industrial markets, says Dwight 4218
C&EN
OCT.
3,
1955
Kaufmann of Rem-Cru Titanium, Inc., is the chemical industry. Here tita nium keeps equipment operating. It prevents costly downtime a n d expen sive replacement, permits utilization of new and improved processes, prevents contamination of solutions by the prod ucts of corrosion. Good examples of this were shown by equipment utilizing titanium metal —a calcium hypochlorite filter press, a steam jet diffuser, and a nitric acid condenser. Other applications: boiling zinc chloride liquor, boiling 6 0 % nitric acid, or 2 5 % chromic acid. As a gen eral rule the chemical industry is learn ing that in chloride solutions, and acids containing even small amounts of oxidizing agents, titanium quickly justi fies itself. Other cheerful prospects were seen in food processing and in electronics. Against all this loomed t h e almost forbidding barrier of costs. An as sembly of stainless steel 1 / 1 6 inch thick has a price tag of about 7 5 cents a pound. The same form in titanium to day would cost $14.50 a pound, or 19 times more. But titanium weighs only 56% as much as the alloy and its higher strength would allow thinner gage, bringing the cost factor down in this instance to six times.
Antifreeze Estimates Surveys made difficult by re-use practice on p a r t of 4 0 % of the nation's motorists FORECASTING the market for antifreeze involves many basic factors, such as car registrations, weather, consumer in come, and prices. The most carefully worked out estimates can g o haywire in this business, as was shown a t the recent meeting of the Chemical Market Research Association. One of the things which can bring forecasts into wide discrepancy with actual antifreeze consumption is re use. Paul R. Smith, Commercial Solvents Corp., outlining the market re search in connection with t h e 1951-52 season, said discrepancies appeared be
tween their earlier theoretical research and the actual potential. They were confident that these were due mainly -to t h e early lack of information on the number of motorists who were follow ing what he calls the dangerous prac tice of re-using nonevaporative anti freeze for more than one season. Although re-use was known h e said it was not suspected that around 40% of the car owners were working their antifreeze for more than one year. Some, in fact, were using it two or three seasons in the mistaken belief that it was perfectlysafe to do so. • Inhibitor Problem. Retailers and wholesalers are responsible to an extent for this situation. W h e n antifreeze is used too long, according to Smith, the corrosion inhibitors become depleted. Cooling system parts are not properly protected against rust, and eventually all metal parts in the cooling system will corrode. Manufacturers and re searchers are agreed, he said, that anti freeze regardless of type should be drained and discarded after one season's use. While the market is now largely shared by ethylene glycol and methanol, no antifreeze on the market is really "permanent/' • Retail Market Studies. T h e task of the antifreeze market researcher is almost as difficult as t h e one which faces those engaged in TBA researchtires, batteries, accessories. In simple terms, said Ray Abouchar of Firestone, cars 2.5 years of age and older and trucks 2 years of age and older, are considered the replacement tire buyers. T h e forecast for tires by type (pas senger, truck-bus, tractor-implement, and other types) is m a d e for the fol lowing year by month, and for subse quent years by yearly total. Every three months the forecast for the remainin0" months of that fiscal v e a r is revised. After review b y departmental managers the forecast is then used as a basis for planning factory production, raw material procurement, budgeting expenses, and for figuring sales quotas. • Soaps a n d Cosmetics. In market ing new products the "bench mark" is important and it may have to be changed from time to time, said Harry D. Wolfe, Colgate-Palmolive Co. Thus radio provided t h e bench mark for television growth, but only when vari ous points (years) on the chart gave the true growth. I n this instance the first points in dicated only a growth three quarters of the radio rate. Actually, TV growth was three times that for radio. Washing machines indicated fairly accurately the future growth of packaged soap; the soap increase was somewhat greater because the consumer found that the products can be used in the dishpan.
