Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-07-16

thetic rubber. and nothing
should be done to waste supplies
that may turn out TO be crucial.
Whether the program will be
large enough or soon enough
for that middle ground of
civilian use of automobiles
which Is really necessary, no
one can tell"
rs there any substitute
for the rubber tire?
while we do not want 10
underestimate the inventive
genius of the country, 1 think
II would be wise to accept. for
the present, the fact that there
Just Is no substitute for the rub
Der tire, even for civilian use.
W. hat is the govern
ment's synthetic program TO
meet this situation,
THE real program on which
the country Is depending is the
program adopted by the gov
eminent after Pearl Harbor.
AS we understand from of
fetal announcements, there Is
now actually under cOnstruc-
ton, or authorized, n total of
100000 long tons annual ca
pacity of synthetic rubber as
follows:
"Seven hundred thousand tons
buna s rubber: $4,000 tons
butyl rubber; 10000 tons neo-
prene.
How soon will we get
into large-Scale production?
Production has already be-
gun In the first plants. BY the
first of the year there will be
real quantity production. BY
the middle of 1943. most of the
500, 000-t0n program should be
In actual operation.
BASIS OF PROGRAM
"The basis of the program Is
buna = rubber. The relatively
small quantities of butyI rub
Der and neOprene are intended
for special purposes, although IL
has been recognized that the
butyl could supplement the buna
to some extent for tires. / will
mention this later.
THE plan Is for the buna s
rubber to be made entirely by
the government I'm government
owned plants operated by the
rubber companies. The special
rubbers in this program, neo-
preme and butyI, also will be
made by the government, i'm
gOvernment-Owned plants Oper-
ated by Du Pont and my own
company, the originatOrs of
these two products and the only
people who had any experience
in their manufacture.
MOST DIFFICULT TASK
"The actual polymerization OF
buna : rubber, which Is to be
done entirely by the rubber
companies, requires extensive
plants, but IL Is not the most
difficult part Of the program.
Most of the difficulty and most
of the expense comes I'm making
the raw materials. butadiene and
styrene, which have TO be sup
piled in the ration Of three parts
of butadiene to one OF styrene.
BASED on plans of rubber
reserve, as announced to date,
these raw materials for this
100000 tons of buna s, accord
ing to estimate we have made,
will be derived from agriculture.
mining, and petroleum In about
the following proportions:
From agriculture $8I, 900, 900
worth OF grain for production Of
10000 tons of butadiene and
for a portion of the raw material
for styrene.
BENZOL NEEDED
"From the coal industry,
$9,900,000 worth of benzOI for
most of the raw material for
styrene and small amount Of
butadiene.
From the petroleum industry,
500, 100000 worth Of refinery
gases for $4,000 tons Of buta-
diene and some of the raw
material for styrene.
us this program going to
be fast enough?
I'VE have every reason to be-
lieve that for the military needs
OF the United Nations u is suffi-
cient and IL will be finished In
time. 1t Is equally clear that
for ordinary nOn-essential civil
ian motoring IL will be neither
large enough nor soon enough.
There Is that middle ground
OF civilian use of automobiles
which Is really necessary. No
one has yet defined that demand.
1t Is obvious that this Is n zone
i'm which there can be wide diff
ferences in opinion. My impress
sion Is that there has been a
tendency to underestimate the
amount Of rubber required TO
meet essential civilian need.
viii synthetic rubber be
as good as natural rubber?
"My opinion is that on the
whole synthetic rubber will he