Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1916-03-30
CAN PUT COAL TAR
TO MANIFOL USES
CHEMISTS UTILIZE MANY So
CALLED WASTE FRO.
DUCTS
Commercial Manufacture OF eenzlne
is Made Possible


Nothing demonstrates the triumpls
of modern scientific chemistry better
than the innuineiable uses TO which
coal tar !s put century ago coal
tar was considered waste product,
but today IL enters into nearly every
department OF life. Not only has
chemistry put TO multitude of uses
this waste" product, but through IL
and It's derivations IL number Of other
formerly considered waste products
bave been utilized.
A wide range of colors, various
burning and lubricating oils, asphalt,
photographic developers. medicines,
flavors and perfumes are all made
partly from substances derived from
coal tar, as are dyes and dress mate
rial, colored paper and rome foods.
Before gas was introduced as a new
light century ago, Frederick Accum,
who wrote one of the first books on
gas lighting suggested the boiling of
The tar in "A still, and the condensation
and collection of the volatile products.
The experiment was made and the
process yielded two oils. One was
heavy and the other light. 1t was
soon found that the heavy could be
satisfactorily used as preservative
FOR wood that had to be fixed under
ground or submerged in water and
was used extensively in preserving
piers and wharIs.
Further experiments with the light
er oil we're made by a Scotch chem
list, Macintosh, who used it in water
proofing the clothing which still benIs
his name 1t also is used as a solvent
in varnish making and as coal naptha
for lighting. Experiments with nap
that disclosed rich treasury of colors
which for centuries had been locked
up in coal and its refuse-tar. Ben
zine was extracted from naphiha and
his in thrn produced the different
shades of violet, green, blue and yel-
low. Later another chemist made the
commercial manufacture of benzine
possible. He was experimenting on
The artificial production of quinine,
and using base known as aniline,
obtained coloring matter called
mauve.
This laid the foundation foy the
coal tar color industry which has de-
Neloped until today almost every cOlcr
and shade of color is derived from
aniline Aniiine had been obtained
previously from the indigo plant
anil. The discovery of mauve created
large demand for the artificial ami
line base and gave unexpected value
20 benzine. II yielded aniline by being
treated with nitric acid and with the
horings of cast iron powdered into
dust.
Having done its work in the ALL
line still, the dust was used by the
gas maker TO cleanse his coal gas
from the sulphur and then II passed
TO the manufacturing chemist, who
burned the sulphur cut of il and pro
duced sulphurc acid--a cycle of opera
tions whose beginning and end was
the utilization of waste.
This method of producing color was
responsible for the desulate madder
fields of France and Holland and for
the loss to the Hndus of their long
CHtllSlltu lIuiSO fuillNd'IOu AHlIIl 80
Gene, one of the heavier oils Of coal
tar, caused the fall of the madder-
growing industry. The madder pro-
duced violets, reds, blacks, puppies,
and dark browns. AnthraCene was
sold very cheaply for lubricating pur-
poses until certain chemists heated
it with zinc filings and produced ali
,.;, l, - lac. a.
der I>ant WAS discovered.
In this way chemistry displaced
agriculture, one pound OF ali2arin
having the colorihS power OF ninety
pounds of madder, and the lubricat-
ing oil sold ut trifle as waste be-
came valuable colorirg matter worth
$500 ton, THEREBY creating vast
industry.
In medicine and SURGERY coal tar
has worked wonders. Sacclarin,
many hundred times The sweetening
power of sugar is used by diabetic
patients. Caibolic acid is separated
from the oil OF coal tar by success
sive distillaiions, and in surgical op-
erations spray cf germ killing car
bolic acid is used. Quinoiine, anti.
pyrine and other fever assaugers are
made from coal tar and various an
tiseptics and food preservatives also
are obtained from il.
Vanilla flavoring for cooking, which
formerly was prepared from bean,
can now be obtained from the vanil-
lin of the gas works. and even this
vanilin can be made into heliotropa
perfume by adding oil of almonds.
while the latter can be produced by
treating benzine with an acid. Huge
quantities of this oil are used in The
making OF scented soaps.
Showing OF.