The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-03-09
MINES BUREAU
UPSETS THEORY

Washington. D. c., Mn s.-The pop
ular bel1er IN the more than 200
towns and cities Of the country where
natural gas is used that the gas is be-
ing robbed of some of its heat value
by the gas companies at the time
when most needed, through taking the
gasoline from the gas, has been rudely
upset by the Bureau of Mines, Depart
ment of the Interior, in a series of in
vestigations, just completed, which
show that the more than 1000, 900 nat
ural gas consumers lost practically all
of the factors involved in this prob
lem that have proved so troublesome
and so misleading and the Bureau OF
Mines claims that the taking of the
gasoline from the natural gas is a
benefit to the consumers and to the
whole country rather than a detrinaent
1t seems that whenever the weather
becomes severe in place where nat
ural gas is used and the gas pressure
becomes low, someone is always ready
to suggest that there are gasoline
making plants along the natural gas
main lines that make it a business
to take out what little gasoline re-
mains IN the pipes, thus impoverish-
ing the gas. 1t is shown that the
gasoline itself is rich in heating value
anu tanning II away therefore, RODS
the gas. During periods of low pres
sure in winter when there is a short
age of gas many good citizens have
felt that they have been doing a SER
vice in behalf of the people, in making
complaints through the courts or leg
islative bodies against this "robbing
of the gas" and because consumers
have not received competent scientific
advice from disinterested sources
there have grown up needless misun-
derstandings and a waste of efforts on
negligible factors concerning the gas
supply.
In endeavor to settle the question for
all time and for the benefit Of the
natural gas using public and the
good of the entire country, the Bureau
of Mines went thoroughly into the SUBJ
ject, with the result that the following
conclusions have been drawn by DR..
Van H. Manning. director of the bu-
reau.
In general, the decrease in heating
value of natural gas from the removal
of gasoline is CRAFTY overestimated-
One gallon of gasoline in the natural
gas burned by the domestic consumer
as gas is worth to him about one and
three-ouarter cents in b eat value,
while this same gallon of gasoline TO
the automobile owner IS worth twenty
five to thirty cents. Taking the gaso-
line out of the gas, one gallon VIII
equal 35 cubic feet of gas, but this IS
not taken from the consumer, because
his gas is measured at his nome meter
and he obtains 1000 cubic feet OF gas
irrespective OF whether the gasoline Is |
removed or not
The Bureau of Mines has even reach- |
ed the conclusion that the removal
of the gasoline from the natural gas |
is a positive benefit TO the consumer.
without these gasoline plants great
difficulty has been found by the gas
in the condensation of the /
gasoline and water in the pipe lines,
the gasoline and water disintersrat-
ing the rubber gaskets in the coup
Hngs resulting in a large leakage OF |
gas and the consequent lowering, OF the
1sressnra Therefore, the taking of
the gasoline is a safeguard to the con-
sumner that he viii not be without gas
ar serious times by reason OF Leak
age The installation of thtese plants
eliminates most Of the line trouble and
gives better service 10 the public. On
the whole the Bureau Of Mines con-
siders the extraction of gasoline from
natural gas great conservation meas
ure and desires 70 encourage this in
dustry.
Furthermore, several hundred million
gallons Of gasoline of the highest fuel