Evening journal., 1916-09-29
ALCOHOL soon As
AUTOMOBILE FOOD
Chemists Declare Denatured
Product Now a CONNER
cial Success
SAY SAWDUST IS
PROLIFIC SOURCE

NEW YORK. Sept. 29.--Chemists
who attended the afternoon session
OF the American Chemical Society in
the Chemists Club yesterday pre-
dicted that the day OF cheap alcohol
is near at hand and that in the near
future cartoonists will have TO seek
something to replace their "a fiivver
with every gallon of gasoline" pic
lures. They have discovered alcohol
IN all sorts of unsupported places,
they revealed during their lengthy
discussion of the subject OF indus
trial Alcohol. Acetone and Ascetio
Acid" and consider one who throws
anything away without first having
4 examined chemically as a person
whose business methods are anti
quated.
sawdust, for instance has been
found TO be.a most prolific source OF
alcohol Moreover. Il is grain" al
soho that Is being extracted from
this erstwhile waste matter OF tho
sawmill and chair factory and not
wood" alcohol. One of the chmeists
afterward explained very carefully
"a
der new process the alcohol ex-
tracted from sawdust is grain alco-
hoI instead OF wood alcohol. using up
three pages OF foolscap with analy-
sis Of reactions and swarms OF such
destinations as H-2. SO.-4 and others
more complicated and harder to re-
member, but making the matter per-
fectly clear 10 other chemists who
happened 10 be listening.
BY the new method Of treating
sawdust Il appeared sulphuric acid
Is added and the combination sub
iected 10 heat and pressure. BY that
time the cellulose is willing to split,
/ and from then on it's perfectly sim
pie. The stuff then has only to be
fermented and grain alcohol Is pro
duced from It.
Alcohol rs Motor Fuel.
Among the other waste substances
from which this alcohol can be made
the chemists named sulphlde liquor
and "black strap"-that Is, a sort OF
molasses that is a by-product OF the
sugar refinery. For years the chem
lists have been experimenting with
methods Of making use Of the by
products of large industries that had
formerly been thrown away and now
they are convinced that in the case
OF alcohol. at least they have sue
ceeded. II has been produced so
cheaply. they say. that II can now be
used for automobile fuel and soon
thew expect to have alcohol motor
boats and to have alcohol replacing
gasoline in numerous other fields
4NaNN ~ hN
Standard oil Company present 80 fai
as could be ascertained.
Arthur d. Little. well-knowr
chemical engineer. of Boston. who IL
considered one OF the foremost au.
thorities in the United States on pa
per and wood pulp chemistry, pre-
sided al the meeting and said
There IA no longer any question
Of commercial success in the manu-
facture of alcohol for automobiles
Experiments have shown that alcohol
can be manufactured for sale as low
as twenty-five cents a gallon. and al
that priceit will undoubtedly be pre-
ferable 10 gasoline.
Alcohol is cleaner than gasoline
for use in engines. and It will not
explode or easily catch Are. and II
will develop virtually as much horse
power as gasoline
Extract Alcohol from SawduSt.
Mr.. Little said that alcohol WIS th
only fuel in sight that promised 10 re
place OF hold down the price of gasoline
and he read telegram from the duPon
Powder Company's laboratory hea
Y stating that the making Of alcohol fror
lsawdust was undoubtedly a commercia
success. Mr. Little said that II was al