The Washington herald., 1921-07-03
GOVERNMENT MAKES F1ELIUM GAS

the promise of becoming the coldest spot in the world
When all OF the units of the laboratory operating
condition hoped be reached by September the
engineers and scientists in charge Of the operation
will be dealing with substance whose temperature Is only
as degrees centigrade above absolute
When the Heum plants started in 1913. owing
the pressure i'll connection with all undertakings,
there time opportunity to do research work
small semi-commercal scale. 1t necessary to
design and build the plants rapidly possible and to
do whatever experimentation required in the plants
themselves Shortly after the two experimental units at
Fort Worth operating, the adviSabily Of research
work in connection with the undertaking plainly scen
and work started at the Bureau
of Standards under cooperation arrangement with the
Bureau of Mines and the army and navy. Last year
rangementS made with Dr. Harvey N. Davis of Har-
ward University and DR.. f. G. Kcyes of Massachusetts,
Institute OF Technology. There is however, distinct
addition in having thoroughly equipped laboratory which
is available at all times for research work connection
With the plants, and this has been accomplished through
tho establishment this year the Bureau OF Mines at
Washington of a cryogenc laboratory. The funds were
allotted to the Bureau Of Mines last June through the
interest of Comdr A. K. Atkins of the navy, and Col C.
DEF. Chandler, and 1t. R. S. Omsted of the Army Air
Service and at the present time It. Comdr S NJ Kraus
and Mai P f. Van Nostand acting navy and
army. respectively, under the cooperative agreement
the Bureau of Mines.
HE temperature toward which these scientists are
working is that of Equhed heium. which is the
gas which into prominence during the
for the imitation Of army dirgbles. 1t is noninflam
mable duses through fabric about Is per of the
of hydrogen and possesses lifting power almost as
great that of hydrogen. whose planned that
heum should suppant. Helium changes from a gas to
liquid form at temperature Of 268S degrees cengrade
below As the weather determines temperature
by the Fahrenheit scale this temperature would be 483
degrees below the freezing point of degrees
below Absolute which 273 degrees cengrade
below is the point which there is of
molecules in matter.
Only in the records of science has heium been
iquifed This done by Prof. H. Kamerngh Onnes,
the University of Leiden who succeeded in Eque
faction of hcum in 1908
This laboratory is designed primarily supply
very considerable of scientific data which is still
needed for the proper and efficient operation of the heum
plants according to DR.. R. B, Moore chief chemist Of
the Bureau of Mines who is in charge of the laboratory
practically work has been done in the past
prcSures specific heats heats of vaporzaton of mix
tures of helium nitrogen methane. and the other hydro
carbons and yet the efficient operation of the plants is
very largely dependent upon data of this character"
Helium in relatively small portions in the natural
gases of Texas and surrounding States The process of
separation of helium from its accompanying is
fgeration process which lquefes everything except the
helum which quihes at the lowest temperature of the
known gases This process in the present time
in the navy plant Fort Worth Tex, and the plant
aed by the Bureau of Mines in conjunction with the army
and navy at Petrolia, Tex.
IT HE attainment of temperature the lowest
possible temperature opens up large field of
scientific investigation in the determination of what
will happen general at such low temperature
Tentative plans are being made by the Bureau of Mines
whereby limited number of prominent scientists will be
permitted to use this laboratory for experimental work
along this line.
Among the things known to occur at this temperature
is that mercury will have electrical conducivy millions
of times greater than its conductivty at the atmospheric
Temperature and has already been shown by foreign
scientists that electrical started by induction in
coil of lead will maintain its potentiaity with but little
d;min,tion for more than hour Among some OF the