Evening star., 1921-02-28
FIND LIQUID USEFUL
| TO THE INDUSTRIES.
New Properties of SeIenium
/ 0xychloride Discovered
n Powerful as Solvent.
ONcEAEcHEMIsTs' DREAM
So Vigorous It VIII Remove Btu
men From Soft Coal, Univer-
sity Professor Says.

By the Associated Press.
LINCOLN, Neb., February 2S.-New
properties of liquid described before
the students of the department of
chemistry Of the University of Ne
braska show that it almost realizes
the dream of the alchemists of old
who sought the universal solvent. AS
described by DR.. Victor Lenher. pro-
fessor of chemistry at the University
of Wisconsin, who has come here to
deliver series of addresses on the
subject, further tests have shown that
that selenium oyxchloride, as the
even than was indicated in his pre-
liminary announcement made before
the American Chemical Society.
1t disSolveS rubber, CLUES, enamels,
hydrocarbons and many other sub
stances which hitherto have been re-
Earded as most resistant to all chem
lca1 agencies except fire.
Products Easily Dissolved.
Such products as redmanol, bakelite
and condensite. which are used as sub
stitutes for amber in the making of
tobacco pipes and for many other in
dustrial purposes, and have been until
now regarded as inSoluble in all
known solvents, are readily dissolved
by Selenium oxychloride, according to
the announcement Of DR.. Lenher. By
itp use ordinary paints, varnishes and
shellacS can be removed from furni-
ture, carriages and other objects
without injuring the wood, and
Ibiles without affecting the steel body.
Its solvent powers are so Wgor-
ous." said DR.. Lenher. that it will re-
move the bitumen from soft coal, but
will! not attack the pure carbon of
tanthracite"
IL
power in this powerful solvent, as it
can be employed in making more
porous charcoals contained in the
Hitter material of war gas masks. a
process known as activation.
The cocoanut charcoal used in the
gas mask" continued DR.. Lenher. "can
be activated by this new reagent by
treatment at ordinary temperatures,
which is considerable advance over
the older steam activation at white
heat"
The use Of activated charcoal in
the extraction of gasoline from nat
.ural gas is one which is Interesting
tchemists today. as it will tend to in
;crease the supply of fuel for motor
vehicles, and still leave the gas avail
able for household and Industrial pur-
poses. AS a laboratory reagent, DR..
Lenher said that the properties of
selenium oxychloride are so unusual
that it is likely to come into common
use wherever research is conducted.
Finds Place in Industries.
The solvent, which was formerly
regarded as merely a laboratory Curl
osity. is finding its place in many in
dustries. The original statements
concerning its exceptional powers
have been amply verified, the speak
er asserted. by him and a group of
students who have been attracted to
the Laboratories &ofethe University of
Wisconsin during the past year.
The raw material from which it
is obtained was once a waste product
from the electrolytic refining for cop
Per, for until recently the selenium
from these electrolytic shines. while
known to the chemist as a rare ele-
ment, had been considered as almost
valueless. The solvent itself is a
heavy liquid, and nearly colorless. It
can be readily handled in a CONNER
cial way, however, for were it the
universal solvent" of alchemy 1t
could not be transported. as no vessel
could withstand it.
This discovery Of everyday uses for
a substance formed from discarded
material is regarded by scientists as
. typical Illustration of the value OF
research. -