The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-01-08
UTAH's CHEMICAL PRODUCTS.
A Display That VIII Attract the Attention
of Manufacturers.

UTAH'S CHEMICAL PRODUCTS.
A Display That VIII Attract the Attention
of Manufacturers.
One of the most striking exhibits from
Utah, which will attract attention at the
Worlds fair, is the chemical display
which the department of manufactures
has prepared, under the supervision of
Prof. Hirsching. 1t consists OF about two
dozen glass Jars, containing specimen
salts, sodas, chlorides, sulphates, etc.,
ETC.. and VIII prove most effective ad
Tertisement OF the marvellous resources OF
the Great Salt Lake.
In the district these resources consist OF
chloride of sodium and sulphate of
sodium. The former is produced in the
summer season by solar evaporation, and
during the past two years an enormous
quantity of fine table salt has been pro-
dnced by the refinery at Saltair.
The sulphate of sodium, or fssul-
pilates, however, is of far greater i'm
portance, being the chief product OF the
great soda industry. This, in the old
country, is produced by a special process,
at a cost of about SO per ton, involving
an extensive plant and big capital, while
here on the shores of the lake, it can be
obtained-a perfect chemical compound
by the simple and inexpensive gathering
and drying and is in condition, then, for
direct use in the manufacture of glass.
paper, soap, etc.
Professor Hirsching explains in one of
his publications how this salt is formed
and also the process by which the water
OF crystaiizatlon can be expelled by an
actual expense of not more than 80 cents
per ton. He is the inventor of this new
but simple process, after experiments ex-
tending over a period of several years,
and has been successful also in manufac-
turing direct from this salt, splendid
article of caustic soda at one-half the cost
of producing it by the old process.
This magnificent collection of salts
which has been prepared with much care,
at the instance of Mr.. Frank w. Jen-
nings, chief of the department of manu-
features, viii show the natural and arti-
fetal processes by which these incompar-
able resources Of our lake are converted
into valuable chemical compounds, and
which constitute this the most favored
part of the whole country for a populpus
and prosperous manufacturing center
Ii is believed that the Hot and Warm
springs of this basin afford the natural
source OF supply of the chloride of
sodium, and the sulphate of sodium in
the lake; and while admitting that the
diminution of the waters of the latter has
brought about a concentration which
might seem to account for the remark
able density of the water, still it is in
teresting to note that its specific gravity
in 1855 was 100, while in December Of
'92 it showed I. 166, the measurements
being taken as nearly as possible the
sa n8e day IN the respective years. Add to
this the further consideration that hun
dreds OF thousands of tons of salt and
sulphates have been taken from the lake
waters without making any apparent de-
crease in the volume OF the latter, which.
meanwhile. exhibits an increased density.
and it would not be difficult to accept the
theory that there is a foreign source OF
supply and that it is none other than the
Hot and Warm springs, located in this
basin. This theory is confirmed bv
some Of these springs. From one of the
hot springs we get the following: 1928
graTnmes chloride of odium, and PAS
grammes sulphate OF sodium, and from
one of the warm springs: 4.22S grammes
OF chloride OF sodium ano 1852 grammes
of sulphate OF sodium in one liter of
water. The lake water, in sample
taken Dec. %, 1885, contained is per
cent. chloride of sodium and 1.25 per
cent. sulphate of sodium, and in a
sample taken Dec. %, 1892, 81 OBI
per cent. chloride of sodium and
2 per cent sulphate of sodium in one liter
of water.
THESE sample waters Win tnelr inter-
esting analysis, constitute part he
worlds fair exhibit and will r placed
with the beautiful collection of hemical
products from the lake wat These
latter consist of one bottle of lloride OF
sodium, three bottles of sulraates iron
the lake shore at Garfield beacl Lake.
Park and Syracuse), three bottles ala -.ay
sulphates (produced by exposure to the
atmosphere for one, two and three years..
one bottle glauber salt, refined and man.
ufactured from the sulphates. one bottle
dry sulphate of sodium or salt cake. from
which the green tank liquor is produced
by the La Blanc process. Its density is
"a per cent. beamme. BY boiling this
liquor. soda ash is precipitated out and
red liquor containing caustic soda is pro-
duced from this the caustic soda is
obtained by boiling down. One bottle
white soda ash, 5s degrees, one bottle sal
soda, obtained bv dissolving the soda ash
and crystalizing it out. One tank waste
which has been exposed TO the atmosphere
about four years. 1t contains 5 per cent.
hyposulphate of culerium, and in the
teaching out process from this to the
hyposulphate OF sodium, there is left
residium which is a very fair quality of