The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1917-08-12

supply and that the decline last year
was something like 100000 barrels. In
1915 the normal consumption of crude
oil was IL per cent more than it was
the year previous and last year we used
Ii per cent more oil than we did in
1915 Even on a normal increased con-
sumption basis, there would have been
this year an increase of something like
ID per cent and this would mean an
extra consumption of about 10000, 900
barrels.
Mr.. Manning says that there will be
a greatly increased demand for petro-
leum and it's products on account of the
war He believes that this, added to
the normal increase, will create a de-
mand for 100000 barrels more than we
used last year, which will have to be
as have said, is already greatly re-
duced.
Few people realize how great the de-
mands of the war will be on our petro-
leum supply. If we are to start out in
our aviation campaign with 100000 air
planes, these alone will demand an enor-
nous quantity of gasoline and lubricat-
ing oils. Our merchant feet, although
the motive power will probably be coal,
will take vast deal of oil, and the bat
tleships of the navy will burn oil as
fuel We shall have to supply the greater
part of the petroleum products needed
by France, England and others of our
allies, for the Russian oil fields are prac-
tically shut off by the war; and about
the only large available resources are
the United States and Mexico.
At the same time we shall need in
creased supplies of oil for our Industrial
plants and for the mighty increase go
ing on in our automobiles at home In
ha IF W TT,aif G+a+
used billion gallons more gasoline than
in 1870 and with the two years ending
1916 the gasoline engine horsepower built
and sold in the United States more than
doubled. Last year more than half of
all the gasoline made in this country
was used for automobiles. During that
year there were over 100000 such cars
In the country. This year there are in
operation something like 100000, and it
Is estimated that they will use at least
800 gallons per car necessitating the pro-
duction of about 2.0O0000,000 gallons of
gasoline. This does not take into ac-
count the gasoline used for motorboats,
motorcycles farm engines and motor
transports of one kind or another de-
manded by the war. The demand in
sight is SO great that all methods pos
sible will have to be used to increase
the supply, and it will be necessary to
save in every branch of the industry.
Speaking of the demand for gasoline
the director Of the United States bureau
of mines estimates that between 80 and
50 per cent of our whole supply is used
by automobiles, 20 per cent or more is
exported and the balance is used in sta
tionary engines, motorb oats, farm trac-
tors, motor trucks and other purposes of
minor Importance.
The commercial trucks are increasing
with the improvement of the highways
and in many localities they are becoming
important as a means of transportation
The fishing industry has installed gaso-
line power in place of its sailing equip
ment, and this Is so upon our entire
coasts. There is a large pleasure fleet
operated in summer which Is moved by
gasoline and there is a steady increase
in the demand for liquid fuel
Among the methods of increasing the
gasoline of the United States are the
new inventions in what Is known as the
cracking process. The originator of the
most important of these was Walter F.
Rittman, a young chemical engineer of
the national bureau of mines New dis
filling plants after his design have been
installed In many of the large refineries.
have seen some of them in the big
refineries of the southwest and new es-
adjustments are being erected The pro-
cess not only increases the yield of gas
oline, but 1t utilities for that purpose
crude oil, kerosene or any other low
grade distilllng.
Mr.. Rittman is one of the great author
tiles on gasoline. He has been making
a study of the present situation. and
last April delivered paper at the meet
ing of the American Chemical society In
Kansas City, in which he discussed the
increase in the number of au-
tomobiles and the question of their gaso-
line supply. In that paper he shows that