Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1939-06-09
My|on' Is Viewed
As Eventual Rival
OF Ce||ophane
Du Points New Material
May Not Get on
Market Until 1910
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, June 9.-Much spec
ulation is being INDUCED in regard
ing the possibilities of "nylon,'
which is produced by E. l. du Pont
de Nemours & Co. Authorities say
that its future should be bright, and
that it may eventually rival cello
plane as a source of profits.
Emphasis is placed on the fact
that the new product is not merely
another textile fiber that is threat
ening japanese silk as material
for women's full-fashioned hosiery.
1t is technically described as a COM
pletely new synthetic material with
a variety of uses. These. it is added,
will undoubtedly take time to de-
velop fully. Potential uses for the
product are said to be so numerous
and diversified that in the years to
come the use of nylon in hosiery
may turn out to be of secondary I'M
portance.
1t is also emphasized that the
new field which has been opened up
by the product is still in the eX-
perimental stage. A large amount
of additional and exhaustive techni-
cal work will have to be done in
the development of suitable mar
kets for the new material. After
further tests, necessary changes and
notifications, there will eventually
come an important stage where
those manufacturers who propose
to use the new material must be
shown by technicians how to ham
die it efficiently And this proceed
ure in itself is also expected to take
time.
May Wait Until 1910.
Although it is believed that the
new plant which is being erected for
production of the material ought to
be finished in the latter part of this
year. it would not be surprising if
hosiery from this new material did
not reach the market in any guam
tity before the latter part of 1910.
Some authorities are of the opinion
that it ought to make its appear
ance II months hence.
Policies as to price and market
ing of the new product have not as
yet been decided. This has raised
the question in some quarters as to
whether the initial price of the new
material, which is intended to be
used in hosiery, will be much below
the price of silk.
One great advantage of nylon is
said to be its great lightness. and
this is expected to offset price to
some extent, in addition to its re-
ported better-W wearing qualities. 1t
is also stated that the price of the
new product should tend to decline
with volume production. since that
was the case with rayon.
Tooth Brush Bristles.
The original use of the new ma
terial was in bristles for tooth
brushes. Later on, the product is
expected to be used in hair and also
in clothes brushes. A large produc-
ton of what will be called nylon
sewing thread is also said to be I'M
der way, and other potential appli-
cations for the new material will
include tennis racquet gut and fish
line leaders. Other important uses
for this material are being carefully
studied while the experimental work
is under way.
Nylon is made from two highly
complicated materials which only a
few years ago constituted names IN
text books. One, called CYCLIC
hexanol, is oxidized so as to form
what is known as an adipic acid.
The other is called hexamethylene-
diamine in the phraseology of the
chemical world The original base
of nylon is said to have been ordi-
nary coal and air, but the present
product is a long way from its start
ing point.
Technicians acknowledge that it
would be futile at this juncture to
try to enumerate the ramifications
of its ultimate application. And
that is why the business world will
continue to give careful study to its
evolution. Its outstanding qualities
are said to be high tensile strength
elasticity, resistance to moisture and