Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-12-07

= SAh WIZ ~. Sy 49,. Il
have shown that if the atmosphere
were not i~mpregnated with dust there
would be no cloud effects. no radiant
sunsets, no soft afsterglow Of har-
monious colorings which lend a halo to
thu quiet of eventide. Also there could
be no condensation of moisture as in
rain, mist OF fog without nuclei such
as dust particles.
That is one phase of the story of
the usefulness of dust, but government
scientists and others are more inte-
rested just now in determining what
can be done with dusts Of specific kinds
that have long constituted big items
of waste IN various industries.
Perhaps the most interesting devel-
opment of the experimental work that
has been going on is in connection with
the problem of what to do with saw
dust. Ever since the first saw bit its
way through a piece of timber the
enormous waste in sawdust has been
q matter to worry over. In time it was
found that this debris could be made
commercially valuable as the basis Of
various manufactures. Oxalic acid is
produced on a large scale from saw
dust, and sawdust is also used in the
c~arbonatlng stage of the process for
lHt hiuhuldILuIt " SOud ASH.
But now it has been discovered that
sawdust can be converted into a food
and by carrying the process a step
further alcohol may be produeed-not
wood alcohol, but the kind that was
the basis for gloom eradicators in pre-
Volstead days.
The sawdust food is one for beast
and not for man. but nevertheless it
is useful and may become a factor in
farm economics. Sawdust alcohol will
not be used for beverage purposes,
but there is a great need for a new
motor fuel to take the place of gasoline
or to supplement the supply of that
article which is not keeping pace with
the demand. and alcohol seems to hold
out the greatest possibilities in that
direction.
White pine sawdust is used in this
process. it is treated with dilute
s~ulfuric acid and cooked under pressure
with steam. This brings about a chem
zeal change in which the sawdust is
partially converted into glucose. a
simple sugar which is both digestible
and of food value. There is from IA
TO IS per cent Of glucose in this mix
ture, which is then neutralized with
lime. the sugar dissolved. and the
solution filtered off and boiled down
under reduced pressure until it is of
the consistency of molasses. This
molasses is Their mixed with the par
TALLY dried sawdust residue. and the
result is a product closely resembling
bran.
Farmer Had Fight Idea
Thus it would appear that the tight
listed farmer who tried feeding his
mules excelsior and sawdust as substi-
tutes for grass and bran mash had the
right idea. or at least a feasible idea.
His trouble was that he did not pre-
pare the stuff properly.
In producing alcohol from the bran
mixture the essential step is to let the
sugar in it ~fer1nent. It is estimated
that three to four hundred million
gallons of alcohol could in this way be
derived from sawdust, shavings and
bits of lumber that are wasted each
year III the mills Of the country.
The debris OF the lumber industry is
by no means the only dust that is be-
ing conserved and put to useful pur-
poses. Coal dust is another notable
example, and in view of the present
shortage in the coal supply as a result
Of the strikes its utilization is especi-
ally important.
For years the culm or dust produced
in sizing anthracite for the market was
regarded as practically worthless, al
though it was for the most part per
fectly good coaL 1t could not be hand
led or shipped economically, however,
and the consumer did not know how
to use it, so it was permitted to go
as waste. Smaller and smaller sizes
Of anthracite were foun useful until
now the dust itself is being burned.
either through Il powdered-coal burner
which sprays the pulverized fuel into
/ ~ .n,,o -, ST., 49, -. =. A. E-.-z
of briquettes.
A corporation recently formed has
an establishment At Alexandria. Va.
where a new process Of preparing a
fuel that is an amalgam of coal dust
and crude oil is being exploited. 1t is
claimed that a wholly satisfactory sub
stitute for domestic purposes is being
produced, and it is also said that it
can be marketed at a price that is al
together interesting in these days.
when the so-caiIed law Of supply and
demand is sending the cost Of anthra-
cite skyward.
Other Materials Used.
Briquettes are made Of other mater
ials in the campaign against waste.
Metal filings and turnings are subject
ed to pressure and thus converted into
compact masses that can be charged
INTO luIIatFS ana FSlltIieI Win the
least possible loss. Powdered ores and
minerals that would either blow away
or clog the smelters may be handled in
similar fashion and made almost as
satisfactory as lump ore. Immense
quantities of disintegrated iron ore
that were formerly considered Of little
or no economic Importance are thus
made available.
In at least one instance the u~tiliza-
ton of dust has beer brought about not
as a mere measure Of economy but in
order TO save the industry itself. In
smelling valuable metallic ores, notably
copper and lead, considerable quaint
ties Of arsenic contained in the ores are
driven off with the furnace gases in
the form of a fume or very fine dust.
This fume or dust settled over the
farms for great distances surrounding
the smelters and caused great injury to
all kinds Of vegetation. with the result
that the smelling companies were be-
ing mulcted for heavy damages con-
stantly and there was a prospect that
they might be required TO shut down
their plants.
Eyrar+o mana 1oIfoj =, a.J a-as.-II