The Washington herald., 1922-04-23
sHALE GASOLINE WILL
RUN 1925 AUTOS.

RUN 1925 AUTOS.
MericaH ou fields ore nosoi.f
salt tooteT and oil shdle confotrs
no otl-yef shdles totu prodsce tAs
fuel for the 1925 model duto-no-
bties. DR.. RoIph II. Mckee, pro
tessoT Of chemical erOtneeTtno af
Columbia UHSDerstfV and one o,
the leading experts on oil shals.
IN the Jollototao dT1ctIe, tells about
the gasoline Of the fHrpre.
When you get that 1875 model
car. what will be the source OF IN.
gasoline you will use? American
petroleum production has about
reached its peak and certainly with
in three years will begin 60 de-
crease. On the other hand. our
yearly consumption Of gasoline ana
other petroleum products is stiN
rapidly increasing. Even now we
are a debtor nation in this respect.
for in 1920. In order 70 make up
the shortage, we imported 10000. =
900 barrelf Of petroleum from Mex
leo and in spite OF the extensive in
dustrial depression Of 1921 the i'm
portation was 2o.or0.OOO barrels,
greater. But the known Mexican
oil fields are soon 20 give out; al
ready many wells have begun to
flow salt water where formerly they
gave oil. when salt water begins.
then the wise ones know that that
oil field is nearing exhaustion. This
is one important reason why the
market for that Mexican oil stock
you own has fallen TO a third of
the value IL had in 1919.
Our consumption of petroleum has
been increasing at approximately
50.O00.O00 barrels a year. The num-
Der Of trucks. farm tractors and
automobiles used must be decreased
or we must find another source u
motor fuel. Happily. We have an
other possible supply OF oil IN the
enormous oil shaIe deposits OF colo
rado and Utah and the lesser de-
posits OF other States and Eastcru
Canada
Oil shale Is a rock much rescm-
bling the slate layer commonly over
lying coal seams II you will look
in the coal you arc using you will
find pieces Of this slate which YOU
have purchased at the price 81 coal
and appearance Of this slate. O.
cept that it is generally a mahoEan-
brown instead Of black. and further. 4,
on heating. IL will give petroleum
vapor and will burn. For more
than sixty years the Scottish ana
French oil shales have been mined
and distilled TO get petroleum.
From each ton of oil shsle rock
they get twenty-five gallons "f
petroleum. The American oil shs'H
is somewhat different and is richer.
giving generally about forty =sl-
Ions per ton. This richness makes
the shale on heating give a sticky
mass which adheres to the wall ~
the ordinary Scotch retort and ro-
quires that the retort be mNbih"d
II it IL to be used successfully on
American oil shales.
Oil shale is not a porous deposit
containing petroleum IN its inter
stices. Indeed. oil shale contains no
oil. II does contain a solid ma
terial. apparently resinous in ma
ture called kerogen. and which On
heating gives petroleum. II has
been shown by work lately com
pleted at Columbia University that
the formation OF petroleum from nil
shale takes place in stages. on
heating. the keroEen FIRST ChanE-s
to an asphaltic. tar-Iike mass "'
about the consistency OF vsseiine.
The further change OF this hearN
grease into lighter oils Of the char
acter Of ordinary petroleum is due
to a cracking process. brought
about by heating 20 a high tenn
perature. by which the large mole
cules are split into smaller ones
the higher the temperature the
smaller the molecules formed. Ac-
cordingly. by choice Of the right
temperature. we Will get largely
motor fuel composed ot small mole
oules rather than lubricatinE and
fuel oils composed of large mole
cules BY such cracking procesScs.
Il is practicable to charge fully %
per cent Of tho shale oil 60 EsS"-
line Such gasoline gives NOR"
miles per gallon than ordinary old
tyne gasoline. but Il deposits more
carbon in the cylinders. Is yellowish
in color. and has a little strongc-
odor-however who uses even pres
( ent day gasoline as a perfume The
odor and color We will prohs hly
have to endure, but by changing
! our carburetors or by mixing alCo-
hol with the gasoline. we can avoid
! tho carbon deposit. In England and
Scotland they have been using this
I type Of fuel made from oil shal"
/ for automobiles for a decade and
! find u entirely satisfactory.
Already there are several Amer
icap shaIe oil plants operating on a
semi-industrisl scale. With the pc
troleum shortage and the resulting
higher price Of gasoline. which will
certainly begin within two or three
wears, the number and size OF shale
oil plants will rapidly increase and
Jn ten or fifteen years the making
Of shale oil mag be one OF our very
largest manufacturing industries.