Evening star., 1917-11-04
PROCESS PREVENTS
WASTE OF GASOLINE
Hydraulic Method of Handling
Oils Meets With Wide
Approval.
COST May BE LOWERED

| A new and successful method OF ham
ding and storing crude oil and its de-
rivatives,. just perfected by Detroit
hydraulic engineer. gives positive as
surance Of an almost doubled gasoline
| output, with a consequent strong prob
| ability of radically lowered prices. The
new system eliminates evaporation
| losses in all the various stages Of gas
oline refining and marketing, thereby
solving a problem which has baffied
the oil producers for years. and one
which they have spent fortunes trying
to overcome.
The new system. which is hydraulic
In principle, is founded on the use Of
water in handling and storing crude
oil and its products, both in the pro-
ducing fields and reflneries, and In
wholesale and retail storage tanks
Detroit motor car manufactures. who
long have been seriously alarmed by
the ever-clmbing prices of gasoline,
and who feared these almost prohibi-
tive quotations would eventually de-
stroy the stability of their business,
are jubilant over the announced sue
cess of the new process.
Foresee Revolutionary Change.
They foresee a revolutionary change
in the oilproducing industry. with the
good old days Of reasonable prices re-
stored. Evaporation from the open and
partly open tanks in the great oil-pro-
ducing fields carries away and wastes
an amount of gasoline conSeryattvely
estimated at something more than twelve
million barrels annually. The gasoline
ity and volatility. constituting the
lightest and best Of the gasoline con-
tained in crude oil as 1t comes from
the wells.
When saved, as it will be under the
new process of handling. and mixed
now unsuited for commercial use. the
total output of marketable gasoline
viii be increased tremendously. Elk
perts and engineers who have seen
do not hesitate to predict that the
total gasoline production will be
doubled. This result, they predict. will
bring prices to the levels that pre-
vailed before the war, or even lower
New Method Applicable.
While designed principally for the
oil-producing fields. the new method
is equally applicable to retail filing
stations and private storage systems.
An idea of the favor with which it is
looked upon by experts in the oil and
allied industries may be gained from
the statement that three of the largest
motor car factories have installed the
system for handling and storing their
supplies of gasoline and lubricating
oil.
The system has been in practical use
in Detroit and certain other cities for
upwards Of four years, and wherever
used has demonstrated its ability to
save the gasoline which evaporated
through the vent, or 'air hole. In the
systems it displaced. The new system
has been Installed in the new building
of the Detroit News, recently COM
pleted, and said to be the finest news
paper plant in the world.
Involves Use of Water.
The new system involves the use of
water in storing and handling crude
oil and gasoline. 1t provides for
water inlet at the bottom OF each
tank, SO that oil or gasoline. both Of
which are considerably lighter than
water, will be aoated to the top. thus
keeping the tanks completely filled at
all times. This does away with the
air space in the tanks and makes pos
sible the use of air-tight tanks. with
consequent elimination of evapora-
tion.
Under the present method of handling
crude oil in the producing fields large
open or partly open tanks are used
for storing the crude oil for varying
periods. With these tanks an immense
omen surface is exposed to the air.
which results in tremendous evapora-
ton losses. An idea of the extent TO
which evaporation carries away gaso-
line may be gained from the statement.
frequently made by oil operators. that
fires sometimes start in the oil nelds
from an open fame a half mile or more
distant.
Will Rrino About Saving.