The weekly Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1911-1922, 1911-10-19
MUCH IN THIS COUNTY
Efforts At Tyner Failed, But Lake
vile Plant Is Developing This
Territory With New
Inventions.

That there are important deposits
of peat in Marshall county has been
.lnown for Some time. "a has also the
fact that this peat is of the best
grade. AT Tyner. in North town.
ship and also in West and German
are important deposits of this fuel.
The plant recently erected at
Lakeville is beginning to develop
this industry and after the peat
there is exhausted those deposits in
this county will be worked. Speak
ing of the peat industry an October
Bulletin of the United States Geo
logical Survey has the following:
The great peat deposits of the
United States seem destined to re-
main an undeveloped resource. at
least for some tiWe to come. not
through any ignorance of theiS prac-
teal value According to Charles
a. Davis, in an advance chapter on
the production of peat from Minera.
Resources of the United States, for
1910. which is issued BY the United
States Geological Survey. note
worthy progress was made in 1910
IN the production of peat fuel i'll
other countries than the United
States, not only in the quantity ac-
tually marketed but also IN methods
of production and utilization. In
this country. however, although it
is generally known that there are
large quantities Of material good for
fuel In the peat boys and swamps Of
the northern and eastern parts OF
country. but little progress has been
made in developing his resource on
a commercial scale.
In commenting on the growing use
Of peat IN Europe Mr.. Davis refers
TO its value as gas producer. the
resulting producer gas" having
recognized high value for fuel and
power. In a recently perfected gas
producer it has been found that In
converting peat containing a good
percentage of nitrogen into gas
large amount of ammonia, greatly
valued as a fertilizer, can be OBJ
tanned as a by-product. Mr.. Davis
quotes from report which shows
that uboro oa-nrodroar ,1IoptS ne
ing peat are carefully managed so
great are the profits obtainable that
it Is often possible, while aking no
credit whatever for the value Of
The power gas. to obtain as much as
100 per cent profit from suiphate of
ammonia alone. after making prop
or allowance for the cost of digging
the peat. bringing it TO the plant,
and for lahcr. stores, capital. shares,
tic. Indeed, with peats compare
lively poor in nitrogen, it is pos
sible In many cases TO produce the
gas for nothing the cost of power
being then merely that of operating
the gas engines. together with capt.
tai charges on the same.
Although these claims may be
somewhat optimistic, says Mr.. Davis
it is clear that if each ton of the
oretically dry peat easihed yields
from $4,000 to 10000 cubic feet of
producer gas, the calorifc value of
which is from 125 to 135 British
thermal units per cubic foot, and
also gives 200 pounds of sulphate
of ammonia as by-product, the OPP
Grafton of plant consuming 10 tons
of dry peat fuel day would pro-
duce a ton Of the ammonia salt.
The price of sulphate of ammonia
has for some years remained very
uniform at about $50 per ton in
spite of enormously increased pro-
duction.
This process, which is of practical
application in the United States, Mr.
Davis, believes, should be investigat-
ed carefully by owners of American
peat lands, many of which are very
rich in nitrogen, some Government
analyses showing as high as 3.39
per cent of combined nitrogen. Peat
consumption of all kinds in the
United States in 1910 amounted to
$lS2, 147. The report on the pro-
duction of peat in 1910 can be OBJ
tanned by applying to the Director,
United States Geological Survey,
Washington, ID. c.