Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1910-10-28
ZINC INDUSTRY IS
IN PECULIAR SHAPE
SMELLING CAPACITY LIMITED
BY FAILURE OF SEVERAL
OIL FIELDS

The zinc industry has worked it
self into a. situation that is unpar-
alleled in the memory of twenty
years, and is likely to be of impor-
tant effect on the market for the
metal. Briefly stated, there is al
ready shortage of the metal in
Europe, and there is prospect that
there will also be a shortage in
America. The causes leading to
these conditions are different. 1t is
useless to summarize their nature
and devote some consideration to
the probable results, says the En-
cheering and Mining Journal,
In the United States a chronic
condition during the last twenty
years has been a surplus of smelt-
ing capacity, a condition that is al
most inherent to all branches of
metallurgical industry. We have
witnessed one radical change in
zinc smelling, viz, the virtual aban-
donment of the old Belgian system
in Kansas and Missouri, about 1900
and 1901, when the natural gas of
lola and other places began to be
extensively used for fuel, but this
change created no disturbance in
general commercial conditions. In
fact, it was contributory to the en-
largement of smelling capacity, the
natural-gas smelters being built
with much larger furnace units and
larger aggregate capacity than for
merly, while those of the old coal
smelters that were kept in good re-
pair could be, and were, put into
temporary operation when market
conditions rendered that profitable.
The eventual failure of the sup
ply of natural gas in Kansas and
the probable transfer of the zinc
smelling industry to Illinois were
early pointed out, and these pros
poets were recognized by many en-
gagged in zinc smelling. There has
been noteworthy construction of
new works in Illinois, but by no
means enough, and, as often is the
case in such matters, the impending
situation comes as more or less of
a surprise.
The supply of natural gas in
Kansas has been waning for several
years, but has been eked out by
new drilling, and now and then by
the discovery of new outlying pools.
1t appears, however, that the sup
ply at lola will probably give out
this winter, while at some other
smelling points in Kansas the stu
alton is critical, and continuance of
gas supply is anticipated for only
two or three years. 1t is considered
by some persons that this coming
failure of natural gas is going to
create distinct shortage in smelt-
ing capacity, with the result that
the smelters will be able to exact
practically their own terms for the
spelter and pay for the ore only
what will suffice to maintain the
production of the choice grades that
they will especially want. We be-
lieve that the tendency will be in
those directions, but we think also
that ameliorating factors will pre-
vent, by very much, the markets
from going to the extremes that
some anticipate.
The total production of virgin
spelter in the United States in 1908
was 266,462 tons. Of this, 1898
tons were produced by smelters
using natural gas as fuel, and 1885,
464 tons by smelters using coal.
Shelters making sulphuric acid as
a by-product produced 103,0S7 tons
of spelter. Some of these used
natural gas as fuel, and some coal
the latter greatly predominating