U. S. Department of Commerce

Daniel C. Roper, Secretary

National Bureau of Standards

Lyman J. Briggs, Director

Visitors' Manual

National Bureau

of Standards

A Brief Synopsis of Its History, Functions, and

Laboratory Facilities

Miscellaneous Publication M160

(Supersedes Miscellaneous Publication M153)

of the

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1937

VISITORS' MANUAL OF THE NATIONAL

BUREAU OF STANDARDS 1

CONTENTS

Page

ibjects of Bureau activities 2

sneral information 3

)ints of special interest 5 South building 5 West building 7 Sound chamber 8 Low-temperature building 8 Wind-tunnel building 8 Altitude laboratory 8 Dynamometer building 9 Northwest building 9 Chemistry building 12 East building 13 Radio building 14 Hydraulics building 14

Industrial building 14 Kiln building 16

Fire-resistance group 16 Ten-foot wind tunnel 16 few notable accomplishments 17 umber of publications issued 18 )lume of testing 18

1 Prepared by Hugh G. Boutell, Chief, Information Section. (1)
Location of the National Bureau of Standards in rei , tion to a few of the principal streets and pub

buildings.

(id
VISITORS' MANUAL OF THE NATIONAL

BUREAU OF STANDARDS 1

CONTENTS

Page

Subjects of Bureau activities 2 General information 3 Points of special interest 5 South building 5 West building 7 Sound chamber 8 Low-temperature building 8 Wind-tunnel building 8 Altitude laboratory 8 Dynamometer building 9 Northwest building . 9 Chemistry building 12 East building 13 Kadio building 14 Hydraulics building 14 Industrial building 14 Kiln building 16

Fire-resistance group 16 Ten-foot wind tunnel 16 A few notable accomplishments 17 Number of publications issued 18 Volume of testing 18

i Prepared by Hugh G. Boutell, Chief, Information Section. (1)
SUBJECTS OF E Electricity

Resistance Measurements

Inductance & Capacitance

Electrical Instruments Magnetic Measurements

Photometry- Radio

Underground Corrosion Electrochemistry

Telephone Standards Weights and Measures

Length Mass

Time

Capacity 8s Density Gas Measuring Instruments Thermal Expansivity, Dental

Materials & Identification Weights 8g Meas. Laws and Adm.

Large Capacity Scale Test- ing Limit Gages

Heat and Power

Thermometry

Pyrometry Heat Measurements Heat Transfer Cryogenics

Fire Resistance Automotive Power Plants Lubrication & Liquid Fuels Optics

Spectroscopy

Polarimetry

Colorimetry

Optical Instruments Radiometry

Atomic Physics, Radium, &

X-Rays

Photographic Technology

Interferometry Chemistry

Paints, Varnishes, 8s Bitu- minous Materials. Detergents, Cements, Corrosion, Etc. Organic Chemistry Metal 8s Ore Analysis, 8s Standard Samples

Reagents 8s Platinum Metals

Electrochemistry (Plating) Gas Chemistry

Physical Chemistry

Thermo-Chemistry and Constitution of Petroleum

(2)

iEAU ACTIVITIES Mechanics and Sour,

Engineering Instruments Mechanical Appliances Sound

Aeronautic Instruments Aerodynamics

Engineering Mechanics

Hydraulics

Organic Fibrous M,

terials Rubber

Textiles Paper

Leather

Testing 8b Specifications Fiber Structure Organic Plastics Metallurgy

Optical Metallurgy Thermal Metallurgy Mechanical Metallurgy Chemical Metallurgy

Experimental Foundry

Clay Silicate Pro

ucts

Whiteware

Glass

Refractories Enameled Metals Heavy Clay Products Cement 8s Concreting I: terials Masonry Construction Lime 8s Gypsum

Stone Simplified Practice

Wood, Textiles, & Paper Metal Products 8s Const - tion Materials Containers 8s Miscellan< s Products

Materials-Handling Eq - ment 8s Ceramics Trade Standards

Wood, Wood Products, a- per, Leather, 8s Rubb

Metal Products

Textiles Apparel

Petroleum, Chemical & ]M

cellaneous Products
3

Subjects or Bureau Activities—Continued Codes and Specifications

Safety Codes

i Building Codes

Building Practice and Specifi- cations Producer Contacts and Certification Consumer Contacts and Labeling Office

Finance

Personnel Purchase & Stores Property & Transportation

Mail 65 Files Library Information GENERAL INFORMATION

History and functions.—The National Bureau of Standards was established by act of Congress, approved March 3, 1901. Besides continuing the

duties of the old Office of Standard Weights and

Measures of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey,

: lnew scientific functions were assigned to the Bureau.

It is charged with the development, construction,

custody, and maintenance of reference and working

standards and their intercomparison, improvement,

and application in science, engineering, industry,

land commerce. Originally under the Treasury Department, the Bureau was transferred in 1903 to the Department of Commerce and Labor (now the U. S. Department of Commerce).

Statistics.—'The original staff numbered 14 and

|i the laboratories were housed in temporary quarters

jnear the United States Capitol. There are now

about 870 employees, two-thirds of whom are scientifically and technically trained. The laboratories

j occupy 12 major and 7 minor buildings on a site of

1 56 acres, situated at the intersection of Upton Street

; and Connecticut Avenue in the northwest suburbs

j of Washington, 4 miles northwest from the Washington Monument. The altitude of the lower floor

of the north building is 335.69 feet above mean sea

: level, latitude 38°56'32" north, longitude 77°03, 59// west. The Director of the Bureau is Dr. Lyman J. Briggs.

Those desiring other general information about

the Bureau may telephone Cleveland 1720, branch

230.

Shops

Instrument Woodworking

Glassblowing

Construction Stores & Tool Room

Operation of Plant

Power Plant

Electrical Piping Grounds

Construction Guard

Janitorial
4

Organization.—The Bureau is organized in three principal groups—the first dealing with research and

testing; the second with commercial standardization; and the third with the administrative work, operation of plant, and construction of laboratory

apparatus. There are 9 divisions of the first group, made up of 70 sections; 3 divisions with a total of 14 sections in the second group; and 3 divisions containing 19 sections in the third group.

Services.—The Bureau's services are available to the National and State Governments without charge. Work other than that for the Government

is undertaken under certain conditions, the main consideration being the value of the work to the Nation as a whole. For private tests a fee is charged, which, however, is turned into the United States Treasury and is not available to the Bureau. Research associates.—In addition to the regular

staff, there are at the Bureau a number of research associates, supported by industrial groups to work on research problems of mutual interest to the Bureau and the industry concerned. Their status

is similar to that of Bureau employees. Results of the work of research associates are public property. Publications—The results of the Bureau's inves- tigations are made available through its own publications and by articles in the scientific and tech- nical journals. Several series of publications are issued by the Bureau covering various phases of the work. A list of the Bureau's publications (Circular C24 and supplements) may be purchased for 55 cents from the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. Results of original research are published monthly

in the Journal of Research of the National Bureau of Standards, obtainable on a subscription basis at $2.50 per year ($3.25 foreign). Semiannual vol- umes of the Journal of Research bound in cloth may

also be purchased from the Superintendent of Docu- ments at $3 per volume. The various papers in the Journal are also published and sold separately as Research Papers. These are numbered consecutively, as RP1, RP300, etc. Progress of work in the laboratories, important

conferences, and new publications issued can be followed in the Technical News Bulletin, issued monthly and obtainable by subscription at 50 cents per year (70 cents foreign) from the Superintendent

of Documents.

Nonperiodical publications include Circulars, containing compiled information on scientific and
5

Ihnical subjects; Handbooks, usually containing

fights and measures regulations, safety codes, and

ilLilar recommended laws, standards of practice,

II regulations; Simplified Practice RecommendaIns, intended to reduce the number of unnecessary

lis and varieties of articles in common use; Building

jil Housing publications, covering recommended

fuirements for building codes, home-owner's

|>blems, and related matters; Commercial Standils, giving acceptable standards of quality agreed

Ion by manufacturers, distributors, and coniners; and Miscellaneous Publications, generally

fnpiled data, charts, etc., that do not fit into the Rer series. None of these publications is available |a subscription basis. POINTS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

|rhe laboratories in the following list have been

i)sen as of greatest interest to the majority of

litors. Likewise they are representative of the

treau's work, which includes fundamental and

plied research and testing.

imperial arrangements can be made to visit other

| oratories not listed. Wisitors' trip.—A scheduled trip through the laboJories for general visitors starts from room 300,

|rth Building, at 1:45 p. m., daily, excepting Satllays, Sundays, and holidays. Special arrangetnts must be made several days in advance for

I»ups of 10 or more. It is possible, on any one

id, to visit only a few of the places listed. In the

lie of a small group, the guide tries, as far as possiI , to accommodate the interests of those making

h trip, but the visitor with some definite interest

slmld go to the laboratory concerned rather than

I the general trip. The sequence of buildings here

I en is that in which the trips are ordinarily routed. SOUTH BUILDING

torn 101—Mass section jrhe National Standard of Mass, Kilogram No.

I obtained from the International Bureau of

jiights and Measures, is kept in a vault on the

|

it floor of this building. It is a plain cylinder with

1 diameter equal to its height, and is made of an

Ipy-of 90 percent of platinum and 10 percent of

i lium. Weights of many different classes are comIred with the Bureau's working standards, which

J turn are based on the National Standard. The

fiances used in this work include several of the
G

highest precision. One of these is a large balance

for comparing 50-pound weights with an error of only 1 part in 20 million. Rooms 108 and 109—Dimensional variations Equipment is provided for determining the thermal expansivity of solids over a wide range of temperatures and with various degrees of precision,

depending upon the use to which the materials are to be put. In cooperation with the American Dental Association, great improvements have been made in dental materials and technique. The advances are all based on precision measurements. Room 114- and corridor—Interferometry

A demonstration apparatus is arranged to show

the bending of a steel bar 5 inches in diameter, under the pressure of a finger. Optical methods are em- ployed by the Bureau in making all sorts of precision measurements of length. The equipment of this laboratory includes apparatus for constructing length standards directly from light waves. Rooms 201 and 202—Capacity and density Tests are made of glass volumetric apparatus and hydrometers; and the density and thermal expansion

of liquids are determined.

Room 209—Length measurements

In this laboratory length-measuring instruments of all kinds are checked against the working standards

of the Bureau. These in turn have been compared

with the National Standard Meter No. 27 (made of the same platinum-iridium alloy as the Standard

Kilogram) which is kept in the vault on the first floor of this building. High-precision length mea- surements are made in a special underground room, where the temperature of the standards is practically constant. (Open only by special arrangement when

no work is in progress.)

Room 212—Spectroscopy In this section the spectra of the elements are photographed, and the position and intensity of the

lines determined with high precision, thus furnishing reference standards for the science of spectroscopy.

The spectra of rare gases occurring in the atmosphere

may be viewed through a small spectroscope. This laboratory has made important contributions to the

art of photography, particularly in the production of special emulsions for photographing through haze.
7

1 1 218—Time section

l atches and clocks are here compared under

I ^olled conditions with the Bureau's standard

Lis, which are installed in a special room in the

J rient. These clocks do not vary more than

| 3ne-hundredths of a second per day. They are

( )ared daily with the standard clocks of the

f ed States Naval Observatory through radio

\ ds.

I I 400—Colorimetry and spectrophotometry me colors of materials and illuminants are anai and specifications for colors are developed in

\ section. Standard railway signal colors (of lh the Bureau is the custodian), standard

I linants, United States flag colors, commercial

l dards for sanitary ware, and fluorescent matef are illustrated.WEST BUILDING

m 102—Engineering instruments

rcessure gages, liquid meters, anemometers, and

extinguishers are among the instruments and

iances tested in this laboratory. A standard

for elevator interlocks was developed by this

ion. m 203—Testing of thermometers

l this and the adjoining laboratories, mercurylass and other types of thermometers are com-

>A with the Bureau's standards by immersing

l instruments in a bath, which may contain

er a low-freezing liquid, water, oil, or melted

depending upon the temperature desired. The

*e of temperatures covered is from —40° to

,000° F. m 212—Pyrometry

>evices for measuring high temperatures from

')0° to 4,000° F, including thermocouples, and

ical and radiation pyrometers, are tested in this

)ratory. The apparatus and method necessary

the realization of a new primary standard of

t (the Waidner-Burgess standard) were developed

his section.

>ra 306—Optical testing of sugar

~!he standard test for purity of a sugar solution nade by means of an instrument known as a

ccharimeter." This instrument measures the 21791—37 2
s

rotation of a beam of plane polarized light passing

through the solution. The Bureau also carries out research work on the properties of sugar. By special arrangement with the United States Treasury De- partment, the Bureau supervises the equipment

and methods used in testing sugar at the U. S. Customs laboratories, which are located at the various ports of entry. SOUND CHAMBER

Transmission, absorption, and reverberation of sound in rooms by acoustical building materials are studied in this laboratory. A revolving loud- speaker is used as the source of sound in the rever- beration chamber and will be demonstrated by special arrangement.

LOW-TEMPERATURE BUILDING

The discovery of deuterium (heavy hydrogen) was the result of cooperative work between the staff of this laboratory and Columbia University. Here the production of the lowest temperature so far attained in this country, that of liquid helium

( — 456° F), has made possible the study of the properties of materials at very low temperatures,

particularly superconductivity in metals. Liquid

air (temperature —310° F) is usually on hand and

its effect on the properties of common materials can be demonstrated.

WIND TUNNEL BUILDING

Main laboratory—Aerodynamics

This is one of the three wind tunnels at the Bureau employed in studying the characteristics of air flow in the tunnel itself and the behavior of model

airplanes, automobiles, bombs, buildings, chimneys,

etc., in an air stream. This tunnel is 54 inches across at smallest section, and in it a wind speed of 75 miles an hour can be attained. ALTITUDE LABORATORY

This was the first laboratory ever built for studying the performance of aircraft engines under flight conditions. It was completed in 1917. The low air pressures and temperatures encountered at altitudes up to 30,000 feet can be duplicated. It is suitable only for liquid-cooled engines, and consequently is not often used at the present time, but the funda- mental facts brought out as the result of this pioneer

work are applicable to all engines.
9 DYNAMOMETER BUILDING

Main laboratory—Automotive power plants

Investigations are conducted in this laboratory on

the performance of internal-combustion engines

with special reference to fuels, lubricants, and devices intended to promote economy and efficiency.

The equipment includes electric dynamometers to which any engine may be coupled. A special test plant is provided for studying modern air- or liquid- cooled aircraft engines, and there are many pieces

of special apparatus for testing fuels, lubricants,

and ignition systems.

NORTHWEST BUILDING

Basement—Experimental foundry and metal-working

equipment In this laboratory alloys can be prepared by

melting in induction, electric-arc, or gas-fired fur- naces, and can be cast, rolled, forged, or drawn into the shape desired. The equipment employed is similar to that used in actual mill practice but on

a smaller scale. Room 105—Microstructure of metals The crystalline structure of metals and alloys is studied in this laboratory and in adjoinging rooms. The effect of working, heat treatment, corrosion,

etc., can be determined.

Room 202—Gages

This section is engaged in testing precision gages used for controlling the dimensions of machine parts. By the optical methods used in these laboratories, the lengths of gages can be determined to onemillionth of an inch. Room 203—Library

The Bureau has a library of nearly 42,000 volumes

on physics, chemistry, and engineering. It receives

practically all the domestic and foreign periodicals

in these fields. Its facilities are utilized by research workers from all parts of the country.

Room 311—Aeronautic instruments Testing of aeronautic instruments for scale errors, effect of temperature and pressure, elastic defects, vibration, and other factors affecting the perfor- mance of these instruments constitutes the work of this section. Fundamental research and a certain amount of development work on special instruments

are also being carried on.
The names of the principal buildings are shown. The main entrance to

trip through the laboratories starts at 1:45 p. m. fn
onal Bureau of Standards

g south] Bureau's grounds is on Connecticut Avenue, to the left of this picture. The

room 300, South Building, shown near the top center.
!

12 CHEMISTRY BUILDING

Room 8—Electrochemistry As the result of work conducted in cooperation with

the electroplating industry, important improvements

have been made in processes for chromium plating

and for the rapid deposition of copper. The equipment includes a small electroplating plant, used for preparing specimens for exposure and laboratory

tests. Rooms 14-C and 31 8-C—Standard samples

The preparation and distribution of standard

samples of ores, ceramic materials, metals, and pure

chemicals are conducted in these laboratories. Room 112—Electrochemistry

The equipment of this laboratory is used for measuring conductivity and hydrogen-ion concentration. Room 205—Gas chemistry

Special equipment is provided in the gas chemistry

section for testing gas appliances, particularly as regards safety. Several devices are installed for the rapid analysis of products of combustion and of mixtures being burned. The laboratory is of great

interest to those engaged in the study of the utiliza- tion of gas. Room 208-—Gas chemistry Here will be seen a considerable variety of apparatus for the analysis of gases, especially some very

well-designed equipment for volumetric analysis,

and elaborate apparatus for the fractionation of gases by distillation. Room 211 and shaft in corridor-—Petroleum The equipment of this section includes unique

stills for the fractional distillation of petroleum, an

important step in determining its composition.

Room 303—Organic chemistry Pure crystalline rubber has been produced in this section. Room 410—Apparatus for determining hiding power

of paint

Accelerated-weathering equipment for organic

protective coatings and apparatus for determining

the breakdown of protective coatings are among the

special features of this laboratory.
13

(Note.—A special mimeographed guide to the

laboratories in the Chemistry Building may be obtained on application at the Chief Chemist's office, room 215.) EAST BUILDING

Rooms 106 and 107—Tests of electrical measuring

instruments This laboratory is provided with a special switch- board for connecting different circuits, and an optical

device for reading the scale of an instrument with

great accuracy. Room 109-—-Heavy-current testing Tests are made up to 10,000 amperes, current

being supplied from a special storage battery. Room 111 —Resistance measurements The oil bath in which wire standards of resistance

are immersed during test contains a special stirring

arrangement and temperature control. Precision standards for other laboratories are thus compared

at a constant temperature with the standards which

represent the Bureau's basic unit of electrical

resistance. Room 307—Life tests of incandescent lamps

Each year several thousand lamps, representing Government purchases of about 3,000,000 lamps per annum, are tested to ascertain whether they comply

with the Federal specification requirements for

rating and life. Room 31 If—-Integrating sphere for determining the mean spherical candlepower of lamps

By means of a hollow sphere, the inside surface of

vvhich is painted white, and at the center of which is placed the lamp, the total amount of light given

ff in all directions by any electric lamp is deterlined by a single measurement.

loom 317—Tests of radium and development of radio meteorograph

Practically all radium sold in the United States is tested in this laboratory. The rate of gamma radiation is compared by means of an electroscope with

that of a standard sample.

A special meteorographic apparatus and radio- transmitting set have been developed in this laboratory in cooperation with the U. S. Weather Bureau.

These instruments are attached to sounding balloons
14

and send back automatic signals giving weathel

conditions at altitudes up to 20 miles. Room 407—Optical instruments This laboratory is equipped for testing lenses] 1 including the highest grade of photographic lensel used in airplane mapping.

Room 408—Standard cells In this laboratory the Weston normal saturated

cells, by which the standard of voltage is maintained

for the United States, are kept, and compared witl the standards of voltage of other nations. RADIO BUILDING

Main hall—Museum and library Here will be found an exhibit showing varioufj

types of electron tubes, French and American radic sets used in the World War, miscellaneous apparatus1 developed for research, and publications, reports, ancij books of the radio section. Rooms 213-214—Standard of radio-frequency In this laboratory is located the Bureau's funda- mental standard of radio-frequency, consisting o|

six quartz oscillators and auxiliary apparatus'

The frequency as obtained from this standard doeal not differ from the true frequency by more than on^ part in 10,000,000.

(Note.—Other parts of the radio work may btj seen by special arrangement with the section office.''! HYDRAULICS BUILDING

This building, which is 285 feet long and from 6(, to 92 feet wide, contains supply and measuring ba-,1 sins, flumes, and pumping and metering equipment;

for every variety of hydraulic investigation, include ing experiments with models of large structures. A maximum flow of 250 cubic feet per second is possible in the main flume, which is 12 feet square and

200 feet long. (Open to visitors by special arrange-: ment with chief of the section.) INDUSTRIAL BUILDING

Basement, west end—Cement-, concrete-, and stone- testing equipment

Samples from about 70 percent of all cement which the Government buys are tested by thej Bureau, but most of this work is done in field laboratories rather than in Washington.
15

isement, center—Large testing machines for structural materials The vertical machine on the west side of the room

f s the greatest capacity of any machine in the

brld, 10,000,000 pounds in compression. On the

1st is a 600, 000-pound machine for either tension or mpression, and specially designed for testing

I ams. In the room next to this machine is the

i nery high-precision testing machine with a capacr of 2,300,000 pounds in compression and

150,000 pounds in tension. horn 25—Optical glass Here are shown examples of glass produced by

e Bureau and the method used in examining glass

r striae and strain.

jo m 136—Textiles The equipment includes many special machines

[r determining properties of textiles. Tests of

xtiles and paper are made in a room in which

e humidity and temperature are automatically

;pt constant. \wm 107—Paper

The Bureau has a complete papermaking plant,

eluding a paper machine for making a sheet 29

:ches in width, with which improvements in prosses and the use of new materials can be studied,

jj particular, the life of paper, including the paper

ued by the Government for printing currency, has

ien increased three or four hundred percent through

Le research work of this laboratory. Considerable

tention has been given to the most effective ethods for preserving important books and docuents in libraries. The Declaration of Independice and Constitution have been protected from

traviolet rays, following methods worked out by

Le Bureau. oom 227—Rubber

The work of this section occupies several labora-

>ries on this floor and in the basement. Automobile

res are tested for power loss and endurance, on

)ecial machines which simulate service conditions

id greatly shorten the time needed for a test. oom 307-—Organic plastics This section is engaged in studying plastic mateals used for a great variety of purposes, including

Tcraft windows, electrical panels, household arties, and ornamental trimmings for buildings.
16

Room 319—Leather In this and adjacent laboratories may be sej samples of leather made from various kinds of hide1 a machine for measuring the durability of shoes, || investigations of tanning solutions. Means fj increasing the life of leather, and for combatn

deteriorating influences, such as sulphuric acid j the atmosphere, are receiving particular attentio Room 336—pH measurements The amount of active acid present in materials h an important effect on their useful life. Methods f measuring this quantity are being developed in th laboratory.

KILN BUILDING

East end—Optical-glass plant

The Bureau operates one of the few plants no making optical glass in the United States. Most j the glass made here is used by the Navy Departmeij

for binoculars, gun sights, periscopes, and simiki devices. The equipment includes machinery f<! making pots, melting and annealing furnaces, arj s instruments for determining quality of glass. Center Furnaces are installed for ceramic material, an

for enameling metals. An automatic electrical] heated kiln will prove of interest to ceramists. West end This large room contains a rotary cement kiln an

ball mills for experimental production of cement. FIRE-RESISTANCE GROUP

West of the Industrial Building is a group of strflj tures in which tests are made to determine the m

tensity and duration of fires and the fire resistand

of building materials and constructions. The equir

ment includes a large furnace for wall panels anj another for testing safes. TEN-FOOT WIND TUNNEL

This outdoor wind tunnel, located just west of th fire-resistance group, has a diameter of 10 feet and

maximum wind speed of 75 miles per hour. Test on large models of buildings, chimneys, full-sized aii plane wing sections, etc., are made in this tunnel.

i] ([)

s
17

A FEW NOTABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The National Bureau of Standards—

| Redetermined the constant of gravitation with

;| accuracy 10 times as great as ever before obtained,

j Carried out researches on density and thermal

pansion of liquids of importance in industry, and

>iiculated standard density and volumetric tables pt are widely accepted; for example, ethyl alcohol,

fcroleum oils, linseed oil, turpentine, milk and

j jam.

(Cooperated with the American Petroleum Instijte in setting up standards for oil-country tubular

|ods, pumping equipment, etc., and in the standiization and inspection of limit gages necessary

j • maintenance of these standards.

! Cooperated with the National Screw Thread

immission in setting up screw thread standards

[d standard methods of inspection.

; Constructed the first altitude laboratory fcl- osuring the performance of airplane engines under

wkt conditions.

' Developed the radiobeacon which, in combination

Ith a special aerial and receiving set on the air-

' me, gives the pilot a visual switchboard indication

> whether he is following the correct course. [Discovered that a thin coating of pure aluminum

[11 greatly decrease the atmospherie corrosion of

j ralumin, a special light alloy largely used in

•craft construction.

! Worked out successful process for plating steel

i d other metals with chromium, the hardest metal

j.own, thus prolonging the life of gages, printing

jites, and other mechanical parts several hundred

i rcent.

| Developed the paper now used for printing United

ates currency, with strength increased three or

i,jr times, resulting in increased service life. [Discovered that certain waste water from paper

Ills makes a satisfactory material for tanning

| ither. Established the dextrose (corn sugar) industry.

| Made three standards for planeness for testing

ges, flat to within one five-millionth of an inch. 'Constructed standards of length from fused

Lartz, known to 1 part in 5,000,000.

' Commenced experiments in making optical glass 1914 and at last solved the difficult technique, so

at optical glass of many grades is now produced as routine matter.
18

Designed and constructed many special instrl ments, such as strain gages, proving rings, textij and paper testers, etc. Assisted in securing the adoption of a unifor] international temperature scale by the Internationj

Conference on Weights and Measures.

Published books on house construction and repaij home ownership, zoning regulations, and plumbii

requirements.

Helped to eliminate unnecessary variety of sizl and styles of over 160 articles in common us securing agreement of manufacturers to concentra on production of those in greatest demand, thi, lowering cost of manufacture and distribution. Assisted industry in agreeing on satisfactoij standards of quality for over 60 products, and pulj lished the results as commercial standards. Published National Directory of Commodh|

Specifications and developed certification and labe' ing plan for making available to both large ari small purchasers the benefits of buying by specific;! tion. NUMBER OF PUBLICATIONS ISSUED

During the fiscal year 1937 the number of pape; published in the monthly Journal of Research of tl National Bureau of Standards was 107. In add; tion, the Technical News Bulletin was issued eac month. Thirty-seven papers were published

other series of the Bureau, including Simplified Practice Recommendations, Commercial Standard;

Circulars, Handbooks, and Miscellaneous Public

tions. In addition, 128 papers were published in on

side scientific and technical journals.

VOLUME OF TESTING

In 1 year the National Bureau of Standards teste approximately

1,440 electrical standards and instruments.

2,040 electric batteries. 6,550 electric lamps, representing purchases < 3,000,000 lamps by the Government.

3,190 gages and samples of gage steel. 5,110 weights and balances. 1,800 scales. 420 timepieces.

13,700 pieces of glass volumetric apparatus.

1,820 hydrometers.

2,360 laboratory thermometers.
19

4 600 clinical thermometers.

270 samples of engine fuels and lubricants.

! 770 samples of sugar.

,640 samples of radium and radioacitve materials determining a sale price of $1,000,000. 630 engineering instruments.

; 035 aeronautic instruments.

,360 specimens of engineering materials. 200 fusible boiler plugs. 700 samples of metals and alloys.

£ 000 samples of cement and concrete, representing purchases of 5,000,000 barrels of cement.

550 miscellaneous samples of ceramic materials. 520 samples of rubber.

];220 samples of textile materials. 340 samples of paper. 620 samples of leather.

1 450 samples of paint and varnish.

|i addition to the above, 2,680 miscellaneous

:'nical tests were made and 8,620 standard samples

h distributed. o