1RESEARCH

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Nuclear Fusion

1 billion years—using the deuterium in the oceans

Fusion Power—Future Necessity Data f rom Project Sherwood poin t out some w a y s of achieving contro l led thermonuc lear react ions

JHLTOMIC POWER from the nuclear fission reaction may be only a stopgap if predictions of total energy demand 100 years from now are reasonably accurate. But if the controlled release of fusion energy can be achieved on a large scale, t he world will have an in­exhaustible energy supply. Uncon­trolled thermonuclear reactions have been achieved, as witness t h e hydrogen bomb, bu t work on controlling these potent reactions is only in the early exploratory stage.

Under the code name "Project Sher­wood," whose existence was revealed last year in a terse announcement, the Atomic Energy Commission is carrying on a long-range research program to achieve controlled fusion reactions for peaceful uses. Last week, a t the Wash­

ington, D. C , meeting of the American Nuclear Society, Richard F . Post of the University of California radiation laboratory highlighted the work of Project Sherwood. Here , within the limitations of security, are some of the possible ways of achieving controlled fusion réactions and some of the ob­stacles to achieving the goal.

r Big Advantage—if. Today, t h e only way we can utilize atomic power is th rough t h e fission reaction. Bur­geoning numbers of large atomic power plants, as Post sees it , will increase the probabili ty of radiation accidents and possible exposure of the population to radioactive materials (see page 6328) . In addit ion, t h e disposal of ever-in­creasing amounts of radioactive wastes will become a more difficult and ex­

pensive operation. T h e cost of atomic fuel i s also expected to rise as we ex­haust the supply of h igh grade ore.

Power produced by atomic fusion reactions will suffer from none of these drawbacks. According t o Post, there is no discernible explosion hazard in the fusion reactor. N o appreciable aniuUEit of radioactive was te is îiKeiy to be produced, hence there is no dis­posal problem. Fur thermore , if the reactor is powered b y deuter ium ob­tained from the sea, t h e fuel cost should drop o r a t least remain relatively con­stant.

The big advantage of the fission re­action is tha t we know how to make it go. Achievement of the fusion ré­action, must await t he solution of some formiclable problems.

• H«art of t h e M a t t e r . In simple terms.* the fusion reaction involves con­tinuous mutual collision between particles in a heated gas (plasma) at a certain temperature. The reaction, which, may attain a t empera ture greater than 1 X 108° K., must b e contained in a reactor vessel in some manner. To be practical, t he power ou tpu t must be considerably greater than the input.

The most promising reactions, ac­cording t o Post, a re those involving isotopes of light elements such as hydrogen (see b o x ) . Reactions (1) and ( 2) occur with abou t equal proba­bility and release considerable energy. Reactions (3) and ( 4 ) no t only release very la rge amounts of energy, but also involve the reaction products of (1) and ( 2 ) . To illustrate the power-pro­ducing potential of these reactions, in­puts of thousands of electron volts re­quired to make the reactions self-sus­taining will theoretically produce mil­lions of electron volts in t h e power output.

• Process P rob lems . Bombardment of a target of deuter ium with a beam of deuterons, Post says, does not pro­duce a favorable energy balance. One way to overcome this is t o heat the fuel charge to a high enough kinetic temperature to produce a substantial reaction rate . In t h e case of the D D reaction, the critical reaction tempera­ture i s 3 5 k.e.v. (1 k.e.v. kinetic tem­perature = 1.16 X 107° K . ) . At these temperatures something must be done

ÎFra b a b ' e R o u t e s t o 1 Fusion P o w e r

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(O

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H e 3

D - l -D - » Τ - j -p Τ -f E> ->

m.e.v. H e 4

He* -J- D -» He 4

rri.e.v.

+ η + 3.25

-f- 4 m.e.v. + η

+ Ρ

+

+

17.6

18.3

6 2 9 0 C & E N D E C . 2 4, 1956

VERSATILE ORGANIC ACIDS AVAILABLE

IN QUANTITY • When Pfizer opened the world's first successful citric acid fermen­tation plant in 1923, the world price of c i tr ic dropped more t h a n two-th irds! Since that t ime Pfizer lead­er sh ip in f e r m e n t a t i o n c h e m i s t r y has made many other useful acids available to industry in quantity.

CITRIC ACID Pfizer offers citric acid in both an­hydrous and hydrous forms. With P f i z e r ' s anhydrous f o r m of c i tr ic acid, you save m o n e y i n reduced fre ight costs. Why pay fre ight for SVz lbs. of water per each 100 lbs. of citric shipped? In addition the anhydrous form offers the advan­tage of ideal quality control since there is little or no variation in mois­ture content.

Citric acid is a relatively s trong acid notable for its nontoxicity, i t s sequestering ability and the number of chemical reactions it will under­go . Pfizer also offers citric acid salts and five esters in commercial quan­t i t ies . These are Triethyl and Tri-b u t y l C i t r a t e s as w e l l a s t h e i r acetylated forms. Acetyl tri-2-ethyl-hexyl citrate i s also available.

GLUCONIC ACID B y the f e r m e n t a t i v e ox idat ion of g lucose , P f i z e r produces g luconic acid, which it offers as a 50 percent aqueous solution and in the form of stable salts. Gluconic acid has a low order of toxicity, i s extremely mild and non-corrosive and has excellent s e q u e s t e r i n g propert ies . T e s t s at Pfizer have.shown that I N gluconic acid solutions affected metals less than any o f five other mild acids. Consider copper for example :

COPPER 1 v

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^ 0.20 Η u Ζ 0 . 1 6 -

ι <5 ^ 0 . 1 2 -^ Je 0.08 -en· *«· ^ 0 . 0 4 -

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OXALIC ACID P f i z e r developed a f ermenta t ion process which yields oxalic acid in a high degree of purity. One of the

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES QF ITACONIC ACID

Wv-.V>-'::'::.:--· Ç-COOH

CH2CbÔH

Formula .. H2C5H4O4

Molecular Wgr 130.10

- Appearance . . . I white crystalline powder

Melting Point 167-8° C

Solubility in Water

A t 2 0 ° C „ . . . . .8.3 Gm./lOOml.

_ At 80°C . . . . . . . . . . .72.5 Gm./100 ml.

outstanding· features of this strong acid is rts abi l i ty t o solubilize iron oxide. Pfizer Oxalic Acid is available in granular and une granular forms. Ammont urn, f err-ic ammonium, ferric and otheir oxalates are also available.

TARTARIC ACID

Crystalline deposits in wine fermen­tation vats provided the raw mate­r ia l from w h i c h P f i z e r b e g a n producing high purity tartaric acid in 1862- Like c i t r i c and gluconic acids, tartaric acid i s notable for its low toxic i ty and i t s s eques ter ing activity.

ITACONIC ACID

Pfizer skzill in fer-mentation has made industrial itacooiic acid a reality. Two carlsoxyl gxoups, a conjugated double bond and an act ive methylene group nxake itaeonic acid a reactive and versatile molecule. Itaeonic es­ters, readily prepared in high yields, can be polymerized and may serve as useful plastieizers. Polyesters of itaeonic acid and .glycols may be polymerized or- copolymerized to hard thermoset resins.

You can ©rdeo· versatile PFIZER ORG AKMC ACIDS i n large tonnages. If you want further information on any of tiieini, wr-ite u s outlining the type of application you are consid­ering. PJQzer Technical Service can help yow with e x t e n s i v e data on organic acids.

Mc^mifcucticring Chemii for OveirlOO Years

CHAS, PFIZER & CO., INC. CJhemical Sales Division 030 Flushing Ave., Brooklyn 6 , Ν. Υ.

Branch Offioes: Chicago, 111.; Son Frohcïsco, Calif.; Vernon, Colif.*

Allonta, Gcs.; Dallas, Texas

DEC. 24, 19*56 C&EN 6 2 9 1

RESEARCH

to prevent the walls surrounding the reaction zone from being vaporized.

Other problems are connected with the fuel particle density. If the fuel density is too low, the reaction is in­efficient. If the fuel density is too high, Post says, power input demands are too high to be practical. The mean free path of a fuel particle i s also a problem. For an efficient reaction, a particle must remain in the reaction region for a long time (several sec­onds). To accomplish this, Post cal­culates that in the D D reaction operat­ing at 100 k.e.v. the mean free path of a fuel particle before collision is a distance about equal to the circumfer­ence of the earth.

One way to keep particles from es­caping the reaction region too soon, ac­cording to Post, is to use an electro­magnetic field to contain the particles for a useful length of time. Under the reaction conditions, the fuel gas is com­pletely ionized and is known as a plasma—an approximately equal mix­ture of ions and electrons. Passing a high current through the plasma gener­ates an electromagnetic field which causes the plasma to constrict on itself and pull away from the walls of the container. However, this ~pinch effect** is of short duration and tends to he-come unstable very rapidly.

When will controlled thermonuclear reactions be achieved? Some scientists say we will have the answer in 20 years. In Post's opinion, if we are to meet the projected energy demands of the future, we must solve these problems some time in the next 100 years.

Cancer & Food Additives Man has long tried to relate human

disease to environmental factors, par­ticularly the elements of the environ­ment to which he is constantly or re­peatedly exposed—atmosphere, water, and foodstuffs, for example. To clarify the issue for the public, the National Academy of Science-National Research 'Council has issued a statement on the possible relationships between cancer and food additives.

NAS-NRC notes that scientific con­jecture on possible cause and effect re­lationships can be an effective device in development of new knowledge con­cerning disease. However, when sci­entific discussions have been reported in the general public, the conjectural nature has frequendy been forgotten, misconstrued, or poorly stated; this has contributed to apprehension among consumers over the safety of foods and concern among food manufacturers oyer possible loss of consumer confi­dence.

Knowledge about possible cancer-causing agents in foods is, in general, at the point that studies are being un­dertaken to test possible relationships. Years of study will be required to build definitive knowledge concerning all causes of cancer, Measures taken to safeguard the food supply can be only as effective as our state of knowledge permits, says NAS-NBC, so present ef­forts to identify any such relationships should be continued and expanded.

0-N-C Ring System Certain azomethines sluggish toward

acid hydrolysis may be oxidized readily in good yield with anhydrous peracetic acid in methylene chloride. The prod­ucts, says William D. Emmons of Rohm and Haas' Redstone Arsenal Re­search Division, appear to be the first compounds obtained with a well authenticated oxygen-nitrogen-carbon three-membered ring system.

In Dec. 5 JACS, Emmons says the compounds are active oxygen com­pounds comparable in many respects to organic peroxides. They are ex­tremely reactive and undergo a variety of rearrangements and fragmentations. The compounds may be regarded as "electronic tautomers" of both amides and nitrones and may be readily iso-merized to either one or both of these isomers under the proper conditions.

Applications of the compounds are at present uncertain but would appear to be as oxidizing agents, polymeriza­tion catalysts, and synthetic intermedi­ates.

Engine Deposits Fuels and lubricants both contribute

to engine deposits. It's a tough prob­lem to find out which is the worst of-

American Oil researchers C. N. Sechrist (left) and K. S . Titsworth are on the trail of factors causing engine deposits

fender. The problem hasn't been solved, but American Oil researchers are approaching the answer.

Using aromatic components of to­day's gasolines—Benzene and toluene— Amoco finds that with polyglycol syn­thetic lubes, deposits are attributable primarily to the -components; with pe­troleum-based lubes the deposit weight is boosted 90%.

An American Oil research team pin­pointed the increase with carbon-14 tagged hydrocarbons, using unleaded fuels. It confirmed its suspicions that most of the deposit from the lube oc­curs on the piston crown.

C. N. Sechrist told the Southwide Chemical Conference in Memphis that ~ the team's research techniques can be used to determine deposits from ad­ditives in both fuel and lubricant.

Heavy Ice Scientists have finally found a

method for concentrating heavy water by freezing it. The trick: violent agi­tation during 24r to 48 hours of very slow freezing. The result: ice with 2% more deuterium than the water from which it is frozen.

According to Hilton A. Smith of Uni­versity of Tennessee3 this concentration has been predicted, since heavy water freezes nearly 4 * higher than normal water.

Although Smith has scored a scien­tific success, he cautions that the method is impractical for concentration of large amounts of heavy water by natural freezing in cold climates, since it is virtually impossible to duplicate the necessary conditions in nature.

New Reactor Atomic Energy Commission is plan­

ning an experimental reactor facility to supplement current work in the boil­ing water reactor program. The f acuity will cost $8.5 million and is scheduled for operation in late 1959.

The facility—reactor core and pres­sure vessel, steam condensers, heat ex­changers, pumps and necessary valves, controls, and auxiliary equipment—will have sufficient flexibility in size, power removal equipment, and design pres­sure to simulate experimentally a wide range of operating conditions pertinent to performance of boiling water reac­tors. AEC believes it will contribute materially to design studies now under way at several large central station power plants.

The facility will b e known as ARBOR —Argonne Boiling Reactor Facility. It will be an extension of the work on boiling water reactors currendy under

6 2 9 2 C&EN DEC. 2 4, 195 6

• Ι ^ : ^ ^ . , - - . : ^ . ^ ^

UiQiBkafyA Davison pioneered in the development o f the first commercially useful silica gel

more than three decades ago, and for years has been America's leading producer. Silica gel, with its porous amorphous physical structure providing a

surface area of 90,000 square feet per cubic inch, is a unique compound of continuing importance and increasing application. Silica gel's most important

properties are its ability to condense and retain condensable gases in the porous structure and its regenerable nature through the application of heat or other

elutriation methods. A wide variety o f particle sizes, densities and adsorptive capacities are available, each having been developed to meet specific application

demands. Investigate Davison Silica Gel, now. See your Davison Field Service Engineer or write for technical literature.

DAVISON CHEMICAL COMPANY Division o f W . R . Grace & Co. 1 & * £ E 2

Baltimore 3, Maryland Soles Offices: Baltimore, Md,; Chicago, III.; Columbus, Ohio;

Houston, Texas; N e w York, Ν . Υ.

Producers of: Catalysts, Inorganic Acids, Superphosphates, Triple Superphosphates. Phosphate Rock, Silica Gels, Silicofluorides:

Sole producers of DAVCO® Granulated Fertilizer.

ask for.

Davison Silica for the dehydra­tion of air and gas.

Syloid® 308 . . . lacquer f lat t ing agent.

Syloid® AL-1 . . . prevents gas build­up in metallic paint.

Protek-Sorb® 121 . . , for Method II de­hydrated packaging.

Syloid® 162 . alkyd-urea varnish flatting agent.

Syloid® 244 . . . superior | flatting agent in clear ] a l k y d f inishes and : oleoresinous varnish.

w ^ j W i t i M " •jit^jiKM^am

DEC. 2 4, 1956 C&EN 6 2 9 3

RESEARCH

φ Growing α Single Cell Single, living plant cells have been grown in glass flasks by Louis G. Nickell (above) and coworkers of Pfizer's phy-tochemistry laboratories. According to Pfizer, this development can br ing new insight into plant genetics, nutrition, metabolic processes, a n d pathology. Cultures grown from a single plant or animal cell may also provide excellent subjects for testing new drugs against cancer and other diseases at the cellu­lar level. In 1951, Nickell isolated a parent tissue of the pole bean Phaseolis vulgaris from which he has propagated whole populations of the single cells in a synthetic liquid medium.

way at Argonne. ARBOR will be located at the National Reactor Testing Station in Idaho.

• An enzyme in sheep liver that con­verts citrovorum factor, one of the folic acid vitamins, into tetrahydrofolic acid has been identified and partially iso­lated, according to David M . Green-berg and James M. Peters of University of California. Tetrahydrofolic acid is required in foraiing protein and nucleic acid components. Greenberg says this work may show how antifolic acid agents work to slow the growth of can­cer: it is possible that they block the enzyme, rather than having a direct effect on folic acid.

• A phenoth iaz ine de r iva t ive with a heterocyclic side chain is being tested in Canadian hospitals as a tranquilizer. Called Pacatal ( Warner-Chilcott Labo­

ratories), it is said to be as effective as older drugs and in many cases to pro­duce results after other tranquilizers have failed. I t is also said to have fewer side effects. Pacatal is available in the U . S. only for investigative purposes.

r R e s c î n n a m î n e , an alkaloid derived from B-auwolfia serpentina, is being marketed by Chas. Pfizer & Co. under t h e name Moderil. Pfizer says i t has many advantages over older Rauwolfia derivatives for control of hypertension and as an ataractic agent in that it produces milder side reactions.

• Barbiturate intoxication can be counteracted with /?-ethyl-/?-methyl-giutarimide (Megimide) . According to Nicholas Products Laboratories of Slough Bucks, England, patients deeply under the influence of barbiturates are quickly and safely brought to a state of light anesthesia from which recovery to full consciousness usually occurs within eight hours. The same com­pany has developed Daptazole, 2,4-di-amino-5-phenylthiazole hydrochloride, for use wi th morphine. It is said to allow the analgesic action of morphine to continue while counteracting respira­tory depression, nausea, a n d constipa­tion. T h e company has filed an appli­cation with Food and Drug Administra­tion.

• An ant ichol inergic a g e n t for relief of pain, cramps, and bloating in functional and organic colon disorders has been marketed by Lakeside Laboratories. Ν - Methyl - 3 -piperidyl - diphenylglyco-late methobromide, it is called Cantil. Lakeside says i t is unusually free of side effects.

• An intramuscular iron preparation will be marketed by Lakeside Labora­tories under license from Benger Labo­ratories of Holmes Chapel, England. Called Imferon, it is a neutral , iso­tonic solution of iron-dextran complex. Experience from over 5 million injec­tions in England has shown it is easy to administer, free from unpleasant or toxic effects, quickly absorbed, and it produces rapid hematologic and clinical improvement, according to Lakeside. It is said to cure iron deficiency anemia of late infancy and t o supply sufficient iron stores to prevent future anemia.

• Conduction in g e r m a n i u m is not af­fected by greater than 1 0 1 8 atoms of oxygen and hydrogen per cubic centi­meter of germanium (10 1 3 atoms of gallium or arsenic is significant), ac­cording to C. D . Thurmond, W . G. Guldner, and A. L. Beach of Bell Tele­phone Laboratories. Their results are

CH2=CH-C00R

Methacrylate monomers CH3

CH2=C-C00R

Glacial Methacrylic acid CH3

CH2=C-C00H

Dytol® fatty alcohols CH3(CH2)n0H

Gctylphenol j

CeH i7 -<^> -0H j

' Ί Nonylphenol |

C 9 H , 9 - < 3 > - 0 H j

1

Octyl phenoxyethanols j

C8H,7-<Z>-(0CH2CH2)n0H j

R O H M £• H A A S C O M P A N Y

WASHINGTON SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA S, PA. Rtprtmlaliurs in principal foreign countries

6 2 9 4 C&EN DEC. 2 4, 1956

Low Cost Route to Many Products ROHM & HAAS METHYLAMINES

As low cost sources of basic organic nitrogen, Rohm & Haas methylamines

are logical intermediates in dozens of reactions. That 's why they're so widely used in products of all descriptions: rubber-vulcanization accelerators, pesticides, surface-active agents, photographic developers, dyestuffs, phar­maceuticals, and quaternary disinfectants among others.

With Rohm & Haas methylamines, you also gain other important advantages:

• Continuing Availability—through large volume produc­tion in two separate plants.

• High Quality—the result of over 20 years' experience in producing amines.

• The Right Amine—mono-, di-, or trimethylamine; aque­ous or anhydrous form ; in drums, cylinders or tankcars.

Write today to Department SP for complete data.

Chemicals for Industry

R O H M £· HAAS WASHINGTON SQUARE, PHILADELPHIA 5, P &

Representatives in principal foreign countries

D E C . 2 4, 1 9 5 6 C & E N 6 2 9 5

RESEARCH

based on determination of hydrogen and oxygen by a refined vacuum fusion technique in specially prepared ger­manium. About twice as many hydro­gen as oxygen atoms are present, indi­cating the possibility that the two gases i*0O££ and exist as water molecules: this would account in part for their electri­cal neutrality.

• Infrared spectra of relatively large particles can be observed with a tech-uxv£u.v; v i C \ C*vr^v/VA xjy x ^ a u u a a i w u i c a u

of Standards. The material under study—usually polyvinyl chloride—was imbedded in pellets of potassium bro­

mide, a material of about the same index of refraction. Spectra of pellets are free from scatter losses and contain no extraneous absorption bands, ac­cording to Mary Harvey, B. G. Ach-hammer, and J. E. Stewart. The pro­cedure is part of a broad program on degradation mechanism in plastics. Satisfactory spectra have also been ob­tained on paper, nylon, and cotton fibers of large size.

w fcjstierïs! Bureau «f Standards has established a new unit for fundamental investigations of dielectric properties. Part of the electricity and electronics

division, the new section will l>e headed by John D. Hoffman. Specific areas of research will include polymeric sys­tems; direct current conductivity of dielectrics; methods of increasing the accuracy of dielectric measurements on solids especially at audio and lower frequencies; and fundamental studies on molecular and ionic crystals. • A radioisotope laboratory for basic biochemical and clinical research has been established by the Veterans Ad­ministration Hospital, Madison, Wis. Emphasis will be on research on bio­synthesis and metabolism of lipids. University of Wisconsin medioal school will assist in administering the work. John W. Porter will direct laboratory research; Frank C. Larson, clinical in­vestigations. A Kmited number of pre-and postdoctoral appointments will be available through UW.

• Franklin Institute has created a nu­clear engineering division to handle its growing activities in the field. • As part of its plutonium recycle pro* gram (C&EN, Dec. 10, page 6025), the Hanford Works plans a small heavy-water moderated and cooled reactor. • Research aimed at finding possible chemicals in the body that may play a role in production of some forms of mental illness has been launched at Veterans Administration Hospital, Pitts­burgh, Pa. Disturbances in brain function which could result from a dis­order in brain metabolism will be studied, particularly in schizophrenia. Heading the study is Amedeo S. Mar-razzi. • Air pollution in Gary, Ind·, will be studied by Armour Research Founda­tion. Authorized by the Gary City Council, the year-long study will try to determine some of the sources of air pollution and possible methods of control. ί Stanford Research Institute per­formed about $12.5 million -worth of research contracts in 1956, a 25% gain over 1955. SRI looks for an annual growth rate of less than 2 0 $ a year for the next several years; during the past five years, the rate has been in excess of 25%. ^ Armour Research Foundation's re­search volume in the 1955—56 fiscal year was $11.9 million, about $1 mil­lion more than the prior year. A record 691 programs—179 more than 1954-55—were conducted, Other highlights of ARF's year: announce­ment of a $5 million expansion pro­gram, operation of the first private nuclear reactor for industrial research in the U. S., opening of a lab in Tucson, Ariz,, and opening an office in The Hague, Netherlands.

6 2 9 6 C&EN DEC. 2 4, 1956

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