The Washington herald., 1912-12-08
Rubber by Artifce
Latest Achievement
Chemists Derive the Very Stuff Itself from Corn,
Lime, and Salt-Means Rubber at Is
Cents a Pound in Future

b. HoW does the idea Of rubber at .
cents a pound strike your
The question was asked by DR.. Charles
r. Munroe, one Of the most famous Of
living chemists, and Dean OF the George
Washington University.
We may soon have 1t at that price" I"
be added, "and at half that in all nken-
hoon a little later on. The reason why
is simply that we have learned how to
make the stun by artificial means.
This does not signify that a success
full imitation Of rubber has been pro-
duced. The thing itself is now beginning
to be manufactured-rubber that is to
say, Just as real and as truly such as any
that can be obtained from a tree. A proc
ess different from that employed by
nature is used. but the result, physically
and chemically. is exactly the same.
Crude rubber at the present time
thing over 81 a pound. according to
quality. Think what a reduction TO s
cents a pound means. 1t means an enor-
nous decrease in the price Of everything
that is made from this material. from
rubber shoes to automobile tires. The
rubber goods market will be revolution
lied.
There is just one important difference
between the natural rubber and the arti-
fetal The former always contains i'm
purities; the latter is pure rubber and
nothing else 1t bids fair indeed. TO dis
place the natural rubber entirely to
great extent. not only by reason OF its
relative cheapness, but also sbecause of
its greater purity.
This latest achievement OF organic
chemistry comes after many years Of
experimentation. during which dozens Of
limitations of rubber, mostly Of no prac-
teal value, have been produced. Now at
last we have the stun itself. indistin-
guishable from the natural article. II
vulcanizes by both the hot and the cold
processes. and is equally adaptable to all
the uses to which ordinary rubber is put.
The commercial Importance Of the dis
covery is almost beyond estimate.
No Secret Process.
a secret process? Not at all. The raw
materials are corn. common salt, and
line For the grain one must pay about
fifty cents a bushel at present market
rates, I believe. The salt costs 81 ton.
and the lime about the same. There is
nothing very expensive so far.
From the corn Is obtained fusel OIL
which. as perhaps you know. is a mix
ture OF amyl, butyI. and other alcohOls.
This serves as a base for the process
which 1 shall presently describe. Doubt
less you are aware that the alcohol
which gives to whisky its stimulating
property is ethyl alcohol. Other alcOhOls,
such as prOpyl amyl, and butyl, are liza
Bile to find their way into the whisky,
and. taken together. are called fusel oil
W Of those unHR-
sirable impurities. But when the corn
is fermented for the rubber-making proc
ess, the object in view is to get as much
fusel oil from II as possible. the ethyl
alcohol being suppressed. To accom-
plish this, II is necessary merely TO en-
courage the growth in the mash OF GER
tain kinds OF microscopic fungi, or
species. in fact, which pro-
duce the alcohols OF fusel oil
The fusel oil being thus obtained, 1t is
treated with hydrochloric acid, and aft
erwards with chlorine and lime. Both
the acid and the chlorine are obtained
from common salt. BY this means is pro-
duced a colorless liquid known TO the
chemist as isoprene.
There is nothing mysterious about fso-
prene.' 1t is simply one-half OF turpen-
tine. BY which. mean that il turpen-
tine could be split chemically into two
equal parts, each part might be pure
isoprene.' 1t is a question merely OF
molecular division and atomic arrange
ment But this has nothing important TO
do with what we are discussing.
IF the fsoprene' be allowed merely to-
stand in contact with a small quantity
Of the metal sodium. it changes into rub
ber That is the whole business. What
could be more simple and easy? Fusel
oil is cheap stuff. Treat ii IN the manner
described: immerse a little sodium in the
'isoprene.' and YOU have rubber
the pure stuff. ready to be worked up
for commercial use.