WASTE OF NATURAL GAS.

The recklessness with which Americans are prone to use or rather to misuse the products with which nature has so bountifully endowed the country is conspicuously illustrated by the manner in which the vast supplies of natural gas have been carelessly permitted to go to waste.

The State of Indiana, by reason of its geological features, is probably more favorably situated in the matter of natural gas supplies than any of the neighboring states, and the manufacturers of Indiana have availed themselves of the product more extensively than elsewhere, and to their great advantage. From a recent report of the State Geologist, it appears, however, that they will not long enjoy the benefits of this cheap and admirable fuel. He reports that the people of the State not only waste the gas in furnaces, grates and stoves, but through sheer indifference have for years been permitting the gas to escape into the air at the rate of perhaps 20,000,000 cubic feet per day, simply through neglect to cap the wells which have been bored for oil.

Already there are ominous signs of the approaching exhaustion of the gas supply. Originally the gas-producing territory embraced 3000 square miles, to-day it has shrunk to one-half this area. In the beginning of the gas era, the average gas pressure as it issued from the wells was 325 pounds to the square inch; now it does not exceed 200 pounds. During the past year the gas pressure in the center of the Indiana gas area diminished 30 pounds per square inch. Taking all the circumstances into consideration, the Geologist estimates that at the present rate of consumption, the gas supply will be practically exhausted within five years, and he even estimates that it may not last more than one year.

Oddly enough the manufacturers, who should be the most careful conservators of this product, appear to take the matter quite complaisantly, with the knowledge that they can fall back upon petroleum (of which the State is a large producer) as an efficient substitute for the gas fuel.

It is impossible to form an estimate of the enormous quantities of natural gas that have been altowed to go to waste in the oil fields of the United States since the period when deep drilling first tapped the gas reservoirs. It is within bounds to say that for every cubic foot that has been utilized a thousand have been wasted.

In its want of thought for the conservation of this overbountiful gift of nature, Indiana has only imitated the bad example of her neighbors, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

W.

The lightest solid known is said to be the pith of the sunflower, with a specific gravity of o 028, while elder pith-hitherto recognized as the lightest substance-has a specific gravity of o'09, reindeer's hair o'I, and cork o°24. For saving appliances at sea, cork with a buoyancy of 1 to 5, or reindeer's hair with one of 1 to 10, has been used, while the pith of the sunflower has a buoyancy of 1 to 35.

DARLING'S ELECTROLYTIC PRODUCTION OF METALS AND NITRIC ACID FROM FUSED NITRATES.

[Being the report of the Franklin Institute, through its Committee on Science and the Arts, on the invention of J. D. Darling, Philadelphia. Sub-Committee: Joseph W. Richards, Chairman; C. J. Reed, H. F. Keller, Samuel P. Sadtler, Carl Hering.]

[No. 2188.]

HALL OF THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE,
PHILADELPHIA, June 3, 1901.

The Franklin Institute of the State of Pennsylvania for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, acting through its Committee on Science and the Arts, investigating the merits of Darling's Electrolytic Production of Metals and Nitric Acid from Fused Nitrates, reports as follows:

The process described and shown in operation is the electrolytic decomposition of fused sodium nitrate, producing therefrom metallic sodium and acid vapors, which are converted into nitric acid. The process is applicable to the nitrates of other alkaline metals.

Applicant's patent 517,001, of March 20, 1894, describes the continuous electrolysis of fused sodium nitrate contained in a metallic pot serving as cathode, using carbon or platinum anodes, enclosed by inverted metallic cups, which serve to collect the gases and prevent their dissemination in the electrolyte, and consequent re-combination with the liberated sodium. The arrangement of apparatus shown and method of operation described in the judgment of your committee are not such as would be conducive to high efficiency, or even admit of practical continuous working ; but, since Mr. Darling, in his application for this investigation, has indicated as the particular novelties of his process, the porous cell and shunt current described in his subsequent patents, we refrain from a detailed discussion of the merits or demerits of this first patent.

Patent 590,826, of September 28, 1897, describes a porous diaphragm intended for use in a fused salt, such as the

sodium nitrate of the previous patent, and meant to increase the efficiency of the operation by preventing re-combination of the liberated ions. The great difficulty of using a material for the diaphragm which would resist the intense fluxing action of the fused salt was met by the discovery that the vitrified earthy oxides, such as pure magnesia fused in an electric furnace, were practically unattacked. The additional difficulty of forming such material into a partition was met by the device of using it as coarse powder or sand between perforated supporting walls, which may be of perforated sheet-steel.

Patent 641,276, of January 16, 1900, supplements the preceding by cheapening the material used as the filling of the diaphragm. The fused earthy oxides are costly, and applicant discovered that, contrary to expectation, a considerable proportion of Portland cement could be introduced into the partition without impairing its life, and even making a diaphragm more solid and with less tendency to crack. such a mixture, however, ground, burned magnesite can be substituted for the more costly fused or vitrified magnesis. Improvements in the mechanical details of the construction of the cell are also shown.

In

Patent 641,438, of January 1, 1900, describes a complete apparatus for conducting the process, in which are shown arrangements for heating, etc., but which contains as its principal feature the novel idea of connecting the sheetmetal supporting walls of the porous diaphragm by a shunt circuit with the anode, in order to minimize the destructive action upon them of the liberated ions. When not so connected they act as "middle" or "secondary" electrodes, and a small fraction of the current liberates at their inner surface, sodium; at their outer surface, nitric-oxide gas and oxygen, and the combined effect of both ions upon these supporting walls causes their rapid destruction. By connecting them through a resistance, with the anode, they become positive, and are subjected only to the action of whatever anions may be liberated there. The statement is made that the supporting walls, with this device, have a ten-times longer life than without it.

The plant, in working operation, was very interesting. The debris of former types of pots and partitions gave evidence of the assiduity with which the problem had been attacked and followed up. The actual pots in operation worked without the explosions characteristic of other electrolytic sodium processes. The ladling-out of the metal was witnessed, and showed that the workmen had become familiar with the manipulations required. The current kept the electrolyte molten without the assistance of extraneous heating, except in starting. The arrangements for collecting the gases and producing nitric acid worked apparently as well as could be desired. The principal drawback to the process is the large amount of electrical power absorbed in the resistance of the porous partition, an inevitable concomitant of its use, but a disadvantage more than offset by the other features of the process, provided the process is run where power can be obtained cheaply.

Your committee admires the energy and pertinacity with which a very difficult problem has been attacked; the finding of a material which will be substantially unattacked by the fused salts used, and also act as a porous diaphragm, has been accomplished; the details of construction of the porous diaphragm have been well studied out; the idea of protecting its supporting walls by making them secondary anodes is ingenious and of practical advantage.

In view of the above conclusions, we recommend the award of the John Scott Legacy Premium and Medal to J. D. Darling, of Philadelphia, Pa.

Adopted at the stated meeting of the Committee on Science and the Arts, held Wednesday, October 2, 1901. Attest: WM. H. WAHL, Secretary.

THE SAPPHIRES OF MONTANA.

Mr. George F. Kunz, the noted gem expert, in a recent publication, makes some interesting remarks on the occurrence of sapphires in Montana, which was first noticed in 1891, and appeared to be so promising that several companies were formed to mine for them systematically. The sapphire region extends for a distance of six miles along the Missouri River, the central point being Spokane Bar, about twelve miles from Helena; while another region lies about seventy-five miles east of this, centering at Yogo Gulch.

The gems of these two districts exhibit marked differences by which they may readily be distinguished. Mr. Kunz says of them: "Much beautiful material has already been obtained, but little of high value. Those from the Missouri bars have a wide range of color-light blue, blue-green, green and pink-of great delicacy and brilliancy, but not the deep shades of blue and red that are in demand for jewelry. The Judith River region is more promising, the colors ranging from light blue to quite dark blue, including some of the 'cornflower' tint so much prized in the sapphires of Ceylon. Others incline to amethystine and ruby shades. Some of the more peacockblue, and some show a deeper tint in one direction than in another. Some of the 'cornflower' gems are equal to any of the Ceylonese, which they strongly resemble.

...

W.

USES OF INFUSORIAL EARTH.

Infusorial earth, sometimes known as fossil meal, diatomaceous earth, and by other names, has of late years found numerous applications in the arts. Its principal use is in the manufacture of dynamite, the virtue of its property of absorbing and holding in suspension several times its weight of oily substances, such as nitro-glycerine. It is used also as an ingredient of soaps, the cleaning powers of which it assists principally by its mechanical action. It also affords a source of silica in the manufacture of the so-called soluble glass, or silicates of the alkalies. It is used in the manufacture of extremely light bricks and other compositions for fire-proof linings of magazines and the like, and in similar compositions as a filtering medium for water, and for other uses less important.

The Chemical Trade Journal mentions another suggestion in connection with the material, which is interesting: An argillaceous earth named “tfol,” which contains free gelatinous silica, is largely used in Northern Africa by the Arabs as a substitute for soap in washing linen. Lahache finds that it has great capabilities of absorbing oil, one part of this substance completely absorbing five parts of heavy tar oil. When the compound is mixed with the water a perfect emulsion is formed, which does not adhere to the sides of the vessel. It is proposed to employ this earth for the purpose of emulsifying heavy tar oil for disinfecting purposes. For this purpose the tfol is first mixed with an equal weight of water, and then intimately incorporated with sufficient heavy tar oil to make a paste. W.

PROGRESS IN TELEGRAPHY.

The enormous strides that have attended the development of telegraphy during the nineteenth century are strikingly illustrated by some statistics recently issued by Sir W. H. Preece, K. C. B., late electrician to the English Post-office. In 1870 the number of words transmitted per minute was only 80; in 1890 the number had been increased to 450. In 1870, 9,850,177 messages were dispatched throughout the United Kingdom at a cost of $3,061,505, while in 1900, 89,576,961 telegrams were sent, bringing in a revenue of $17,296,765. The total number of government and private cables encircling the globe is at present 1624, covering a total length of 187,353,172 nautical miles.