Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1920-06-24
WORLDS BIGGEST
NITRATE PLANT
Mammoth Explosives Factory
IN Alabama Built in
Eight Months.
ALL SPEED RECORDS BROKEN
Covd Supply 13 Per Cent Of
Allies Needs Had War
Continued.
ALL SPEED RECORDS BROKEN
sy GARRETT SMITH.

BY GARRET SMITH.
Lifting the ban Of war secrecy has
Just now brought to light for the FIRST
time one Of the most ~stupendous feats
Of construction in history--the plan
ming and building in less than one year
Of the largest ammonium nitrate plant
In the world and of q city around II
for the housing Of its $4,000 workmen
IL revealed one Of the chief reasons
why Germany suddenly surrendered a
year ago. The German high command
knew that the United States was
ready At Muscle Shoals. Alabama, to
manufacture Ii per cent Of all the
high explosives needed by all the Al.
lied armies on all fronts In the expect
"a drive of the following spring.
The first person on construction
work reached Muscle Shoals on No
vember "a 1917. On February 16.
1918, ground was FIRST broken for a
permanent plant building. On Octo-
Der e, 1918, eight months and eight
days later. the manufacturing plant
had begun the production Of ammo
MUM nitrate.
When America entered the world
war IN April, 1917, she had no means
q producing the enormous quantities
Of high explosives necessary to pro-
vide the huge army she planned to
raise. The very fact that our indus
tries were already worked to capacity
providing ammunition to the allies
seemed to make further production for
our own use impossible.
Fertilizer Process Turned to War Use
AT this juncture the Ordnance De.
partment turned to cyanamid. q com
mefcial fertilizer. which had for some
years been produced successfully at
Niagara Falls, by q process the Ameri-
. rights Of which were obtained in
1907 from Germany by Frank Sher-
Cyanamid Company.
BY this process cyanamid was pro
duced by extracting nitrogen from the
air and combining il with calcium OBJ
tanned from limestone rock and carbon
from coke. BY putting cyanamid
through three more processes both n
monia and nitric acid can be extracted
from 1t and combined into the explo
sive, ammonium nitrate. Mr.. Wash.
burn was invited to present plans and
estimates for the construction in the
shortest possible time of an ammonium
nitrate plant at Muscle Shoals. Ala
bama, and q contract between his rom.
pany and the United States was enter
"a into under date Of November 10
1917.
To have general supervision Of plan.
ming and carrying out the work an or.
sanitation known as the Air Nitrates
Corporation was formed to act a
agent Of the Ordnance Department
This corporation provided the general
designs, supervised all the work and
operated the camp. the town and the
plant. 1t also Installed all equipment
In the chemical plant. The various
other sections Of the work were sub
let to organizations that were special
lists in the directions In which they
were asked to help.
New City Built From the Ground.
II was necessary to build q new
town to house the laborers. For this
lob Westinghouse Church Kerr Com.
MANY was called in as contractor. This
company also built the buildings Of the
chemical plant. Within four months
II. 900 workmen had been assembled
and a city capable Of accommodating
$4,000 inhabitants had been completed,
with lodging. restaurants, stores, Of
Aces. police headquarters. schools, Arc
departments, hospitals. motion picture
theaters. electric tight and sewerage
systems.
The construction Of the plant proper
was begun On February 16. 1918 Just
eight months and eight days later the
Rig plant began a steady output Of am
monium nitrate. The plant contains
l13 permanent buildings. with 4 root
area OF over 26 acres,
To provide the electric current II
was necessary to build a steam power
electric plant. for II would have taken
three years or more to complete the
dam and hydro-electrIc station now IN
de way. This plant, built by the J. O
white Corporation, Is n OF he larg
est steam plants for developing cleo.
rricai energy in the world
IT, output Of the plant Is 3OO tons Of
ammonium nitrate a day, and this car
he produced at Muscle Shoals at a cost
less than one-half the standard fixed
price paid by the Government for am
rnonium nitrate produced by other
methods and one-fourtf to one-fifth the
cost of other high explosives of equal
strength. Compare~ with the Older
process Of making ammonium nitrate
the savings made by this plant woult
have paid the sec. Op0 900 cost of the
entire plant In about n and one-hall
years Of operation.
As a military weapon ii is n of tht
wiseSt and most economical expendi
lures that the Ordnance Department
has undertaken. As an agent in stop
ping the war and as a future protec
ton to the country is value is incaleu
Ahla.