The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-08-17
Pittsburgh Scientists To
 Attempt Conquest Of Fog
 By New Petroleum Product
River Mists to eB Thwarted by Spreading New Oil De- rivative on River Waters; 1; Soot Abated by Modern Methods, Fog Evil Next in Line-U. s. War Depart ment and Weather Bureau Cooperating ng-New Film May Also Find Use in Calming Rough Seas.

Pittsburgh, Pa, Aug. 17-I A major scale experiment in fog prevention will be attempt ed by scientists of Mellon Instl- tute of Industrial Research and its parent body, the Uni versity of Pittsburgh, in con. junction with the War Depart ment, the Weather Bureau and State and city authorities with in the next sixty days. The cost will be defrayed by a Pittsburgh business man who has been persuaded on the ba- sis of wholly successful labor atory tests that fog can be con quered. If the big outdoor demonstration comes up to ex- pectations Pittsburgh can be insured for a few thousands of dollars annual outlay that, it can have sunshine when the up-river and down-river val leys are shrouded in dense mist.
 Soot Nuisance Abated.
 By the strict. enforcement of smoke
 
 cd wonders in abating its soot nuis- ance. The present desire is to also banish the terrors of fogs. which, though infrequent, bring midnight in the congested downtown triangle, formed by the confluence of the Monongahela and the ANenghany rivers.
 The scene of the experiment will be a 20-mile stretch of the Monon- gaheIa, running from Rfce's Landing tion of Major J. Franklin Bell. dis triot chief of the War Departments rivers and harbor work, government steamers and crews will lend air. The CTS for equfpping the boats. Oils and chemicals for the experiment are all ready in storage at the government plant at Rice's Landing.
 River Main Fog Source.
 The battle against the fog will be water surfaces, except in excessively wet spring seasons, that all the vapor clouds arise to spread for miles over adjacent land areas. It has long beer known that evaporation can be com. pletely checked by blanketing a body of water in heavy mineral oil. But always, heretofore grave objections to the of oil have existed. Cost has been excessive and the petroleun1 product used gave the water a dis agreeable taste.
 
 the university and institute scientists have discovered how to lay down an oil film twenty-five times thinner than that produced by the petroleum 1y retaining all the toughness. thai the thicker coating possessed. This film is 1-7500 of an inch thick and in laboratory experiments it kept heated water from giving off vapor for one hundred days. Use is made of an intermediate oil from petroleum. costing about $2 barrel, to which is added a small amount of a cheap organic acid. The process is so sim pie that the wonder is it was not dis covered before, it Is said.
 New Method is Cheap.
 The thin film cuts present oil costs such a small amount to cover a great kater surface that no bad taste or deleterious effect will be noticeable. The acid is present in such minute quantities that it is entirely negligible as being a possible agent in rendering the water unfit for any use.
 The research men to whom credit is due for the discovery and for lay ing plans for the proposed outdoor experiment are 1T. B. Mel1er, dean of the school of mines, University of Pittsburgh, and chief of the bureau of smoke regulation, city of Pitts burgh; William A. Hamor, assistant director of Mellon Institute, and War ren F. Faragher, senior incumbent ot 
 fellowship on petroleum technology and professor of refinery technology In Pitt School of Mines. They pro- pose to secure letters patent for theil discovery and dedicate it to the pub lie.
 Henry Pennywitt, governmen weather forecaster for the Pittsburgh area, enters into the experiment witt the statement that he can predict { fog twelve hours in advance.
 This means that at a mfdnigh hour, and after he has gfve1
 The word of a fog due the nex morning, the scientists on their flee of boats will set out at Rice's Lana ing to lay down a blanket of oil sev eral miles long over the Monongahela At dawn, unless some flaw develop in the carrying out of the experiment the observers stationed along the rive from Rice'S Landing to MckeeSpor expect they will see the sun througl clear atmosphere, while at othe points, up and down the river, dens fogs will prevail.
 Also Mosquito Ban.
 As a further development of com mercfaI use of the thin oil film it I proposed to apply it to mosquito F infested waters and swamp lands. Tn oil spreads over such a greatly ex tended surface that it may be possi bqe to use an airplane, with a Hgh cargo of oil, to spray marShy land HINTON OFF IN
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