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THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[September 1, 1912. 



conditions, different methods of tapping and processes 

 of coagulation. For instance, here is an interesting ques- 

 tion to which the crude rubber chemist may properly de- 

 vote his attention : \Vhat is the "nerve" of the rubber 

 and how is it produced? Whoever solves that success- 

 fully will do a great deal to advance the intereists of the 

 plantations in particular, and the trade at large. 



Rut it is the second department of chemical activity, 

 namely, the chemi.st's work in the rubber factory with 

 which this discussion is particularl\- concerned. 



The chemist in the rubber works has before him the 

 problem of taking the crude rubber as it arrives in the 

 factory and getting the most out of it. At the present 

 time, and probably for some time in the future, crude 

 rubber supplies will be ordered rather according to phys- 

 ical tests than to chemical tests; that is, the purchasing 

 agent will buy rubber which, in the opinion of the factory 

 superintendent, after his years of experience, is best 

 adapted, to the purpose for which it is to be used. It is 

 not likely that any considerable amount of crude rubber 

 in the near future, at least, will be purchased by any 

 chemical formula. 



The rubber chemist in tlie average factory is not ex- 

 pected to do general research work for the benefit of the 

 trade at large. Some larger factories may be able to af- 

 ford this luxury, but, generally speaking, the manufac- 

 turer who employs an expert chemist, does so with the ex- 

 pectation that the result of the chemist's work will en- 

 ure to his own advantage. The chemist is expected to 

 apply himself to the problems of that particular mill, to 

 see if the rubber lx)ught is actually the best for the in- 

 tended purpose, and to see next if the processes through 

 which the rubber is put in that particular mill, are those 

 which produce the best goods for their cost. 



The importance of the work of the factory ciieinist can 

 be judged from the enormous volume of crude rubber that 

 annually goes into manufactured goods. In this coun- 

 try alone the manufacturers consume $100,000,000 worth 

 of crude rubber each year, and the annual value of their 

 output is over $22O,CCO,C0O. It is obvious that if the 

 chemist can secure only a small percentage of increase in 

 the value of this annual output, his task is a most im- 

 portant one. His primary problem is the old question of 

 vulcanization, the combination of sulphur with the rub- 

 ber and the subjection of the two to heat. If this cov- 

 ered his entire problem, he would have plenty of range 

 for his activities, for the number of permutations possible 

 in the volume of sulphur and the amount of heat is al- 

 most limitless ; but there are various other elements that 

 enter into the situation — litharge, whiting and other in- 

 gredients that are usually employed in rubber compound- 

 ing. Some of these ingredients act simply as fillers, oth- 

 ers undergo a pronounced chemical change during the 

 process of vulcanization. In addition, there is the prob- 

 lem of the proteids, whose presence in crude rubber and 

 whose tendency to decompose when subjected to heat fur- 

 ther complicate the situation. 



It is a vast field that opens up before the rubber manu- 

 facturing chemist. He can hardly expect to cover it all 

 himself. He must look for more or less assistance — and 

 he will not look in vain — to the laboratories of the 

 .schools. The university chemist is in a different situa- 

 tion from that of his brother in the factory. The univer- 

 sity chemist is in pursuit of knowledge in general. He is 

 interested in any sort of discovery that widens, even in 

 the least appreciable degree, the general domain of knowl- 

 edge, regardless of the immediate practical results of his 

 discovery. It has been true in the past — and will doubtless 

 continue to be true — that the work of any individual col- 

 lege laboratory may not have been of very great value in 

 itself, but when supplemented with the work done in 

 other college laboratories, the aggregate result has been 

 of great importance. So the practical working chemist 

 may always expect considerable assistance from the more 

 leisurely methods of the school laboratory ; but to him the 

 manufacturer looks for quick and practical results. 



The qualifications of a successful factory chemist are 

 \-arious. In the first place he must, of course, have an 

 accurate technical knowledge, such as it is the aim of 

 reputable teclinical schools to afford. This "book learn- 

 ing"' which he has. ought to enable him to detect at once 

 any errors into which the "practical" man by too close 

 following of ancient traditions may have fallen ; and in 

 the second place, he must have infinite patience, for the 

 work of the laboratory is exceedingly laborious. It is 

 done in sequestered quiet, far away from the sustaining 

 interest and applause of the public, and a man must de- 

 pend upon his own natural persistence to keep him 

 steadily at work. It is a continual groping in the dark, 

 with here and there a feeble ray of light. He can hardly 

 expect, although the hope may remain constantly in his 

 breast, to make any revolutionizing discovery. Those 

 come only once in a generation. He must be satisfied if 

 he is making progress, no matter how slow it may be. 

 He must also have a natural bent for experimentation. 

 The lure of new possibilities must have a strong hold 

 upon him. But this must be balanced by such a controll- 

 ing common sense, that he will be willing to give up any 

 course of inquiry that he has pursued, when he becomes 

 convinced that it will be fruitless, even though he has de- 

 voted months of time and energy to this particular line 

 of investigation. 



It goes without saying that the chemist should have all 

 the encouragement that comes of the intelligent assistance 

 of the superintendent, and his helpers, whose knowledge 

 comes less from books than from years spent in the mill. 

 He should also have the further encouragement of a 

 lironipt recognition on the part of the manufacturer of 

 the value of his services. His services should not be 

 ganged, like those of the clerical and mechanical force, 

 l>v the time of his coming in tlie morning and the hour 

 of his going at night, but rather like the expert legal ad- 

 viser who is associated with every .large business enter- 

 prise, his services should be gauged solely by the results 

 acliieved. 



