UTILIZATION OF WOOD WASTE 



19 



chemical properties of woods, the value of various species for 

 pulp and paper manufacture, the art of timber preservation to 

 prolong its life, and the destructive agencies which cause decay 

 and other kinds of depreciation. The drying of lumber by both 

 natural and artificial means, testing of special preservatives and 

 processes of preservation for individual species and for particular 

 purposes, development of improved methods of pulp and paper 

 manufacture and of wood distillation, and the practical applica- 

 tion of results in the arts and industries are among its activities. 



Sudden changes in commercial relations caused by the European 

 war have given stimulus to numerous domestic industries. Some 

 of these utilize forest products. Osage orange dye, produced 

 from mill waste, has within the last year been developed as a 

 substitute for fustic imported from Jamaica, Southern Mexico and 

 Central America. Over $1,000,000 worth of this dye was pro- 

 duced in 1916 and osage orange has gained lasting commercial 

 recognition as a dyewood. 



Charcoal is used in the manufacture of black powders and in 

 driving bullets from shrapnel. It is also indispensable in the 

 production of certain high grade steels required for guns and 

 armor plate. The nitrate fibres used in nitrocellulose powders 

 must be treated with a solvent and acetone, made from acetic acid, 

 a hardwood distillation product, is employed for this purpose. 

 Without acetone, procured largely from this country, Great 

 Britain could not produce the cordite used by her soldiers on the 

 battlefield. In this connection it may be interesting to note that 

 a study by the Laboratory experts of the operating methods in a 

 destructive distillation plant 'resulted in one case in increased 

 yields of products valued at $15,000 annually. Another investiga- 

 tion resulted in the use of spent tanbark in the manufacture of 

 patent roofing to the extent of 160 tons per week. The value 

 of the bark has thereby increased from 60 cents to $2.50 per 

 ton. The tanning industry now handles over 1,000,000 cords of 

 waste per year. Some of this will be used in making sheathing 

 paper, carpet liners, bottle wrappers, deadening felts and similar 

 articles for daily use. 



Formaldehyde, the universal disinfectant, is manufactured on 

 a commercial scale entirely from wood alcohol. It would be 

 difficult to estimate how many human lives are saved by pre- 

 venting the spread of contagious diseases with this effective 

 enemy of the germ. The agriculturist finds a use for it in disin- 

 fecting seeds, thus assuring a greater food crop. 



For 5 years the Laboratory has been working on the produc- 

 tion of grain alcohol from wood. In this time the yield has 

 been raised and the cost of production lowered. Waste material 

 of coniferous species has been found to give higher yields than 

 do hardwoods. Chemical analysis of certain woods, notably 

 western larch, has shown them to be especially rich in a water 



