Evening star., 1928-12-16
XYLOSE-A NEW CHEMICAL.
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

For use in tanning and dyeing xylose
must first go through a further process
of manufacture, which turns it into an
acid. This acid has long, technical
name which it is scarcely worth while
to reproduce here. 1t has been given,
for convenience. the short name OF tri-
oxiglutaric acid.
Looking at the matter from very
mundane point of view. one is greatly
impressed by the fact that xylose has
an integrity and self-composure rarely
found. 1t is absolutely indigeStible. 1t
is harmless as an ingredient Of food
buS has no food value whatever. 1t
contributes not vestige of nutriment
to the system. Yet it is sweet to the
taste. Candy is food product in very
great demand in the world; especially
in the United States since prohibition.
The lives of a good many persons are
saddened. however. because they cam
not indulge their liking for sweets with
out accumulating an uncomely amount
of avoirdupois This is caused by the
chemical effects of the ordinary sugar
used. Now if candy can be produced
which can assuager the sweet tooth and
at the same time add no additional
burden to the weighing scales. a long
felt want will have been met. Presum-
ably there will be more room on the
at bridge parties. even though just'a
many people are present And lap dogs
will be healthier and not waddle so
much like overloaded ocean-going
tramps.
A Negative Sugar.
When the Bureau of Standards dis
covered this strange chemical sugar It
got in touch with confectionery manu-
facturers and they are showing much
interest in it. In their own laboratories
they are experimenting to determine
how the substance can be practically
used as sweetening element IN their
product.
In the medicinal field it is believed
that xylose may prove useful. A con-
tributing cause of diabetes is sugar. Use
of indigestible xylose as a substitute
might reduce the incidence Of the
malady. No direct curative properties
are claimed for it, 1t is purely mega
tive quantity when taken into the sys-
TEN, the only purpose it serves being
the sweetening of the palate.
Still another use being studied relates
to the sWeetening of soft drinks. Vast
amounts of sugar are consumed in the
manufacture of soft drinks and per-
sons susceptible to ill effects from
sugar are affected by soft drinks as
AS In the case of SO many chemicals
and substitutes, the large problem is
economical production. AS a practical
experiment to determine the feasibility
of manufacturing xylose on CONNER
cial scale, the bureau is constructing
factory at Admission, Ala. There costs
of production will be carefully studied
and the results made known to the in
dustries interested. The supply of pea
nut shells is large. Suffolk, Va, is
the peanut center of the world, and If
the bureaus work is successful and
sufficient demand can be found, it is
likely a factory will be erected there.
Very large quantities of peanuts are
shelled at factories where salted peanuts
are put up in packages for retail dis
tribution. Such factories, the bleach
ers and circus tents presumably will be
the big sources of raw material.
How chemicals as well as many other
things get their names is always a mat
ter for interesting conjecture. Once
upon time such a query was put to
Mark Twain. How did things first get
their names-the elephant. for in
stance? Mark Twain replied that the
elephant was called an elephant because
somehow it looked like an elephant. 1t
may be assumed that xylose was so
named because it looked like xylose. OF
course. there may be other reasons.