Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-03-10


with millions OF motor cars all over
the world eating up tires. and warning
Europe using rubber hospital supplies
ana boots in enormous quantities the
demand Tor rubber and it's price are
both reaching heights unprecedented
Wherefore tncl" sam. through the
bureau OF Standards. is making q spc-
cial ana very Interesting study OF rub
Der with Il view to StaniaTdiziur the
product.
THIS is always Il long step toward
chcapenlns any material. and il one
OF the most popular important services
mat the government renders /" in
dustry. when the work is completed
the manufacturer OF rubber viii he
able TO order certain grade of rub
Dor ana know exactly what ne is get
ling.
~, prcsen, ,h. bureau is experiment.
ing extensively in the Manufacture or
rubber. and lS also testing the uanu-
featured rubber products now Oh the
market I" see how we'll they arc made
how homes, the material IN them H.
HccIniminG Scrip nuhhcr.
complete rubber mill equipment
has been set NJ at The Bureau Of stand
ards. ana every process OF manufacture
is hcing studied. with a view to per
fccting it. Perhaps tho most iinpor-
tan' development 10 dat" j. tn" nitric
acid process which The bureau has
evolved for tho "rcclaimimg" OF scrap
rubber Ev this process. old rubber
may Ice mad" over into product that
is better than some IL the lower grades
az frrsh rubber The Importance Of
this discovery may be gagged from the
fact that about $4,000 tons OF scrap
rubber from worn ont auiomohil" tires
alone viii br put on the IuarIc; in
the United states this NcNr. This par
ticular pile Of junk viii II. worth about
$25.0oo.oO0. Then there will also be-
about 600 tons uf old rubber shoes
and boots. worth about II cents q
pound. ana good many thousand tons
81 old air brakes. rubber hose in
sulai"d wire. ana other manufactures
OF rubber. In view OF this immense
crop OF rubber junk, ana tn" extreme
scarcity OF new rubber. h" l;urci,u of
standards can hardly render a greater
service to the industry just nov ,hau
hy d"Vclopiur new WAYS OF using this
scrap.
An elaborate mechanism for testing
rubber In it's various stages Of manu-
faCturc has been set up At the Bureau
Of Standards. It's elasticity is. 81
course. ono OF It's most essential Guali-
tics and this is tested most Thoroughly.
There are machines which win stretch
& piece nf rubber at the rates uf i've
inches :, minute, twcu,y-hvc inches a
minute. and ror,y-n inches q minute.
tn. uuiforHIit" OF tho product TN this
regard is tested by = machine Witch
stretches sis samples from tho same
batch at tho same time. In tho CHS"
Of hose and other fabrics treated Win
rubber. tho Gbcis aud threads used Us
II basis arc carefully examined. Chc,ui-
cal tests show exactly what ingredients
were used in vulcanizins and other
Wis" preparing the rubber.
Scnrcit. IN War Zone.
III the Hast twenty years. rubber has
attained place in modern industry
Witch makes II indispensable" To Il
ION" las; or arts anG Industries The
present plight of Germany shows Just
how essential II IS that country is
suffering, from a severe shOrt1G" Of
rubber, because England has cut OF
tho importatiOns. The result; is that
many OF the German hospitals are
compelled :" get along without hot
water hn"s IL" caps. rubber shectng.
and rubh"r gloves The lack OF rub
Der gloves has resulted in many OF the
nurses contracting eptic fever The
International Rcd Cross ana .>nibassa-
dor Gerard have both protested to
:n-land arainst This embargo: but the
british war Office ~ obdu,atr because
Of the great value OF rubber for mill
thry purposes.
Indeed. this demand from tho war
ION" - the most important factor in
the present rubber situation. Troops.
10y motor and most motors run on rub
Scr tires ENGLAND has sent about D.
"r",ohr rubber sheets to her hospitals.
and one English irn has an order for
".otu,n0O pairs Of hip-lcrgth rubber
boots 10 bc used in the trenches
IiuhDcr i not an ingredient in any
of III" explosives yet .cW OF them
could Dc manufactured without H. by
nauiite workers wear both rubber
gloves and rubber boots There are
about 100000 high explosive workers
in Great !"itain wearing more Or less
rubber. and it is quickly DESTROYED by
chemical action. Gas bags of Xcppclins
and war balloons are also Of rubber. \
great deal Of waste rubber in the war
zone is not being reclaimed, either.
though junk dealers VIII doubtless do q
big business after the wa, is over
Experimenting with Gumyuln.
Although the United states hos =
commanding position IN the manufac-
turc Of rubber, ii has done less than
any other ;rcnt nation to produce the
raw material Perhaps our most not
able service III that direction Is the
experimental work which the DEPART
ment OF Agriculture is now carrying
OH with small Shr,ib called guayulc.
produces rubber OF = low grade I:,-
fore the revolution in Mexico unite an
Industry in III" pruGaCiion OF rui.,"r
from This shrub bad crown .up III
Mexico, and in 1909 nearly 10 000. pO0
pounds of gUnyulc rubber was put upon
the market. Now. however. war ha.;
practically destroyed tho industry
Guayule can easily be grown i'm Texas.
Arizona and Southern California. and