EDITORIAL. 
Investigation Officer will similarly be to keep the Board informed of all 
progress in connexion with research into the utilization of peat, to 
continue and extend experiments on the mechanical cutting and winning 
of peat, and to make arrangements for tests of the use of peat as a fuel 
under boilers. 
POWER-ALCOHOL FROM SAW-MILL WASTE. 
In an article on power-alcohol which appeared in the last issue of 
this journal, attention was drawn to the manufacture of aleohol from 
saw-mill waste, and it was stated that up to the present softwoods only 
have been used for the purpose in America. The Forest Products 
Laboratory, Madison, U.S.A., has recently completed a comprehensive 
inquiry on the whole question, and advance figures have been received 
showing the yields of spirit obtainable from various timbers. These are 
shown in the following table :— 
ALCOHOL FROM WOOD-WASTE. 
Yields from different Timbers in United States of America. 
Sorrwoops. Harpwoops. 
Yields in Imperial Yield in Imperial 
gals. (95 per ceut. gals. (95 per cent. 
Species. spirit) per ton, Species. spirit) per ton, 
allowing 5 per - allowing 5 per 
ceut. Distillation cent. Distillation 
Loss Loss. 
Idaho White Pine igs 21-87 Birch 5e F5 12°05 
Red Spruce .. a 21°32 Hard Maple .._ ne, 8-53 
y o oe 22°41 Silver Maple re 13-13 
Douglas Fir (Montana) .. 19-22 Beech « =e Me: 5-62 
4 (Wash.) ta 22°35 White Oak .. = 11-56 
White Pine .. i 21:07 Red Oak... be 7°53 
Long-leaf Pine “y PRE PH} Sycamore .. a 9-03 
“i ae 23°48 Slippery En fc 5:58 
Lodgepole Pine Ss 20°30 Redgum a ion 10°29 
Norway Pine .. = 21°82 Cottonwood .. 29 6°73 
West Larch .. 7 14:03 ; 
ts cs “i 24°46 
: Aa fe: oF 19°58 
West Hemlock we 22°47 
Sugar Pine... ae 17°67 
33 ae ae * 20:04 
White Spruce .. he 24°06 
Further information, with comments and interpretation of the above 
results, will be published in the American Bulletin, which is to be 
published shortly on the matter; but at present further particulars 
cannot be given. It will be seen that the yields obtainable from hard- 
woods are much lower than those from softwoods. With the facilities 
and resources at its disposal, it has not been possible for the temporary 
Institute to carry out any investigations on the yields of alcohol 
obtainable from Australian woods. . The question is one of undoubted 
importance, in view of the enormous quantities of timber wasted in 
this country. It is one of the many urgent problems awaiting investiga- 
tion by the proposed Forest Products Laboratory. 
133 
