1935-08-01 — Page 2

4,000 TONS OF SOOT

NAVY'S BIG PROBLEMS

DOWN FROM SMOKE | HEAVY TOLL OF RUST

OF EDINBURGH

COST OF £567,000 LAST YEAR'

Four thousand tons of noot fell on Edinburgh last year, causing dam age, which, combined with other losses through inefficient combus tion, amounted to £667,000.

This is revealed in the roport by Mr. Allan W. Ritchie, Chlef Sani- tary Inspector, who directs atton- tion to smoke pollution in Scotland's Capital.

Paradoxically, he says, the pollu tion of the atmosphere In our in- dustrial centros is common daily experience which can only be attri buted to the acceptance of smoke as a necessary evlf, to ignorance of the elementary principles of -com- bustion and their scientific applica- tion to industrial plant, or to a lack of appreciation of utility and economic advantages of smokeless forms of power.

The evil effects of smoke should require no emphasis. It not only seriously pollutes the atmosphere but it also reduces the quantity of sunshine as well as obstructs the wn daylight. Experiments have that in our great cities fully 40 per cent, of the light is shut out by this cause. Records over a considerable period have proved that the death- rate decreases as sunshine in- cresses, indicating that the amount of sunshine is one of the factors governing health.

The effect of amoke on buildings and furnishings is also quite ap- parent. Apart from the deposit of Boot which blackens and disfigures buildings, a corrosive action of the stonework occurs on many build- Ingk due to the effect of sulphur produced from coal and this results

On the steeples of French churches now-one finds the new and delicate sound detectors which will give the alarm in the event of air raids.

in the face of the stonework flak- ing off. A similar action is pro- duced on Ironwork that is not con- stantly cleaned and painted. Vegetation also suffers from sul- phur impurities which poison the soll. The green leaves are soot- laden and suspended smoke in the air deprives plant life of the neces sury sunshine and light so essential to growth.

CO-OPERATION

For a number of years the De- partment has been co-operating with the Atmospheric Pollution Research Committee of the Depart ment of Scientific and Industrial Research in order to ascertain the extent of atmospheric pollution within the city. For this purpose three atmospheric pollution deposit- gauges are stationed as follows:-- One at Leith Links, one at Brunta- field House, and one at West Princes Street Gardens. Statistics for the year ending December 1934 show that the mean monthly de- posits in total solids per square mile were 15.665 tons in Leith, 13.839

AND BARNACLES

In

HONGKONG TEL

PRISONER'S DEATH

IN ADVANCED STATE OF

PERTUBERCULOSIS

NO FEAR OF GAS y morning was conducted by Mr.

WARFARE

Twenty-nine million tone Iron and steel are dissipated rust every year;

of

in

One hundred and fifty thousand pounds is spent annually by our Navy in removing barnacles;

AUGI

GERMANY DECLARES WAR ON RUSSIA

• ITS

BY

MORRIS GILBERT

T8 August 1, 1914-and war! Swiftly, now, move tragic events that finally embroil the whole of Europe in armed conflict auch as the world never before har seen

Paris. 3.45 p.m.-General mobilisatien ordered. Berlin. 4 p.m.-General mobilisation ordered. War déclared London-French ambassador pleads with Sir Edward Grey to reach a decision. He wilde: "After the naval agreement betweon our two countries by which our fleet has been concentrated in the

An inquest Into the death of a male prisoner, Lam Tin, aged 23, who died in the Victoria daol hospital yester Macfadyen sitting as Coroner at the Central Magistracy in the afternoon, weslated by

on Rusala. jury comprising Messrs. A Мотве

G. R. M. (Foreman), Ricketts and F. J. Neves.

warder of Mr. H. Barrett, chief Victoria. Gaol, stated that deceased, No. 18222, was sentenced on prisoner June 17 to undergo three

months" imprisonment with hard labour. He was admitted to Victoria Gaol hospital on June 28, where he died at 4.80 yesterday morning. Witness at 12.30 p.m. the same day identified the body in the presence of Dr. Shaw, so that

Drinking water is gross compar: ed with the refined water needed to run a moderni ship's boller;

Gas warfare holds no horror for the Navy, since Buch methods of attack would be rela- 1 Shaw, medical officer of tively ineffective.

Tim.

Dr. G. 1,

Victoria Gaol, stated that when de- These were some of the points ceased was admitted to gaol he was mado in a paper read to the con- found to be suffering from tuber- forance of the Society of Chemical culosis. The man was put on half- Industry at Glasgow, by Comman- labour, which meant that he did no der J. L. Bedale, RN of the work at all. He was admitted to the Engineer-in-Chief's Office at the prison hospital on June 26, where, on

both clinically Admiralty.

examorically, it was

confirmed that tuberculosis. was suffering from

bo. rapidly

Commander Bedale maid over 90|acter

ho was per cent. of the effective ships in The condition of deceased the Navy, submarines excepted, came worse, and he died yesterday were now propelled by highly morning at 4.30. A post-mortem was forced steam plants which relled en-conducted later and revealed extensive tuberculosis. The lungs were in a tirely on a number of chemical pro dreadful stato, so much se

that do cesses, Instruments, and testa, without which, in certain circum-ceased's voice had gone. The actual POVLE pulmonary stances, they could not operate cause of death

tuberculosis and generalized tuber- at all.

culosis.

THE BOILER EPICURE One of Commander Bedale's points was the Importance of pure foed water for boilers.

"In the olden days," he remark- ed, "scamen were not too particu lar even about the drinking water, and much water was used for this purpose

which nowadays would be cast away as foul: The modern taste, however, is gross compared with the fastidiousness of the modern boiler,

"A present-day naval water tube boller in a very epicure and demands to be fed with the purest de-nerated distilled water obtain. able. Failing this, corrosion, scal- ing, priming-or all three-may be expected."

After sisting that they did not wish to see the body, the jury returned a verdict of death from natural causes.

CHEMISTRY AND WAR

BRITAIN MUST BE PREPARED

LESSON OF 1914

A plea that Britain should be! chemically prepared for war was This distilled water, Comman-made by Dr. E. F. Armstrong, the der Bodale went on, was very scientist, at the annual meeting pleasant to wash in but very flat and conference of the Society of

Chemical Industry in Glasgow. for drinking.

Commander Bedale went on to deal with chemical warfare. It Kave rise, he said, to no problems peculiar to the Navy. Indeed, many held the opinion that the use of such gases against ships was likely to be rare since, if it were possible to approach suf- ficiently near ships to employ them, explosives were ilkely to be more effective.

COST OF CORROSION Proceeding, Commander Bedale said it had been estimated that 29,000,000 tons of iron and steel are dissipated in the form of rust every year and, with it, four or five times as much coal or coke involved in ita-production..

"The figures just quoted for the annual cost of steel corrosion are," he said, "Astonishing, and if a similar estimate were made of the losses due to the fouling of ship bottoms, the result would also be remarkable.

"All the dry docke of the world

Dr. Armstrong was the recipient of the medal of the Society, "For conspicuous services to Chemistry," and after receiving the honour gave an address entitled "The Past, the Present, and the Future."

"It cannot be gainsaid that the war found us chemically unpre- statod Dr. Armstrong. pared." "If it is true that another war

'THE BRITISH FLEET.. MOBILISES

Mediterranean to permit yours to concentrate in the North Bea, with the result that if the German fleet chose to destroy Calais, Boulogne and Cherbourg, we could not oppose the resistance, you tell me that your government cannot decide to intervene. How can I send such a message to my government?"

Sir Edward observes that no written agreement exists and that the decision rests with parllament alone.

Winston Churchill, again acting on his own hook, gives orders for the British fleet to mobilize. "We had no authority to call out the naval reserves," he declares in his Memoirs. The act was ratified next day by the cabinet.

Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Samual Goldman and Al Lichtman,

Hollywood's Associated Film Actors.

may it be very remote-will make when the latter had just been informed of his section as President of

UB- an ever greater, in fact, an precedented call on our chemical to be resources, it, behoves us

quantity all munition, from a lump of coal sequences; the replacement of prepared to make those substances which are likely and a blade of grass to the most cotton was near at hand. Synthe- complex optical instrument. Glytic rubber would follow. Nitrates to be required at short notice."

The modern mass-production carine and nitric acid had very could be taken from the air. Coal plants could not be improvised, different uses in peace and in war. and water or carbon and hydro- continued Dr. Armstrong, and al 'It was, however, essential in gen were providing solvents, mo- though it was possible to build peace that we maintained those tive oils, and the ever-increasing

in active range of useful and them quickly, this only hold true chemical industries when the constructional material being which in war would furnish products known to all. was available with quick delivery. the plants and the material and The chemical industry's ability the chemists necessary for war to expand rapidly to supply war production.

chemical industry, needs would be very important. In tho

дв

essential

There was going to be no end i

to the range of possibilities. When-

ever the team of chemist and en- gineer really turn their hands to the plough, large-scale produc.

Even more essential would be indeed in all other matters, stated are Alled for the greater part of the availability of the technical Dr. Armstrong, the past 25 years tion and now low costs, permitting the year not with ships requiring personnel capable of handling the largely divided itself into the war a large extension of the use of repairs to their plates, rudders, intricate manufacturing problems, period and its aftermath. During the product, would be within propellers, or underwater fittings, as well as those emergency pro- the former but simply for the removal of blems which must be solved in the lamentably unprepared, and wore barnacles, while every ship upon shortest possible time. the seas pays a daily toll in ex- tra fuel burned.

"A concrete figure may help. The annual cost of docking ships of our own Navy alone for this purpose, even at its present re- duced strength, is on the order of £160,000 a year. And yet it

is economical to do so.

OLD PROBLEM

we found ourselves

reach.

us to

forced at first to improvise and "The future," concluded Dr. PROSPECTIVE MUNITIONS later to bulld manufacturing Armstrong, "concorns us all far One would like to forget the plants on a scale never previously more than the past or the present; war period from many points of attained. It was undisputed that these count in so far as the ox view, added Dr Armstrong, though chemista and the chemical indus-perience gained qualifies present-day happenings made that try came well out of the search make the best provision for the futuro. It is a time for planning) unwise when the question of ing ordeal. During the past-war chemical productivity came under period, it had been for us to take wisely and well. Cheap money

leasons we had review. In peace time, chemicals to heart the

learned.

were definitely and absolutely not munitions, though there

WoTe

cranks. sufficiently crazy to claim

Commander the contrary. Neither chemists

"Tho problem," Bedale added, "has, of course, engaged attention for centuries."

A visit by ships to the Yang- tre, he also remarked, was almost as good as a docking for remov. ing underwater growths, because fresh water disagreed with the marine growths accumulated in salt water.

Commander Bedalo mentioned that by a modern method of air conditioning,

can i submarine R remain below for wight hours without undue discomfort to the

crew.

As our submarines are now em- ployed in tropical waterz to a greater extent than formerly, at tention was being given to me- thods of de-humidifying the air.

tons in Bruntsfield, and 24.323 tons in West Princes Street Gardens, | averaging: 17.875 tona, which equivalent to approximately 4,000 tons of depoalts in total solids falling upon the built-up area of the city for the year...

Efforts have been made to assess. the monetary cost of smoke to cities" and, whilst it is quite impossible to obtain any definite figures," ap. proximate estimates, published by the National Smoke Abatement Society inclusive of inefficient com bustion, damage to bulldings, house- hold, goods, merchandise, &c. put the annual cost of amoke to Edin burghalt 2587.000.

glves the industrialist the oppor tunity to extend or modoraise his plant. Now is the time to introduce new methods or econ-

CHEMISTS' OPPORTUNITY Commenting on the future, Dr. omles

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nor chemistry made war. In war Armstrong said that the discovery processes. We chemists have our everything became a prospective of rayon had profound social con-opportunity as never before."

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