Industrial Chemistry

certain absolutely necessary materials, and how the difficulties were surmounted, is a story that cannot be repeated too often. The successful efforts made to provide these vital substances are well known to chemists but it is desirable that the essential facts should also be brought home to the general public, if adequate recognition of science is to be secured in the future. It has been proved without doubt that national life is to an extraordinary degree dependent on the chemist, and that nations neglecting science, and most especially applied chemistry, are trkading the path which leads to industrial decay. Germanys success in industry was fostered by a liberal supply of trained chemists and engineers, adequate plant. and capital, and co-operation between manufacturers and research workers. Unlike the state of affairs in this country, their business meu had some knowledge of science, and their scientific men some acquaintance with business. We were heavily handicapped by permihting the control of our educational interests to pass into the hands of those who despised a first-hand knowledge of science, and with whom the caste of classics held supreme sway. Science with no voice in our repre-7 sin Gtiv8 G ove me. dits q igs ified one for holding high public office, and the more important positions in the Civil and Diplomatic service could only be counted on with some degree of certainty by those men who lived in the classical atmosphere. At the same time the treatment of chemical subjects by the daily press is one long series of - lwamriteenrsta balne d belduintdoersrs, acnodm imnfiltitcetde d buyp onu nq a u apluifbileidc which undeniably fully appreciates any trouble taken to increase its store of knowledge. Yet, in spite of these disadvantages, Great Britain has become since the autumn of 1914 a larger producer of explosives, pharmaceutical, photographic, and other essential chemicals than Germany. Chemical science furnished the means for that revolutionary change, and the whole land became one vast chemical laboratory. Trade research associations have been promoted by the Government, and, provided purely official administration is reduced to a minimum, Briti h industry should benefit thereby. Scientific men, manufacturers, workers, and the training schools have co-operated, resulting in the estabIishment of whole groups of new industries. Seeing that Gott strafe this, that, and the other industry is not likely to be mitigated in the future, it behoves us to do our utmost to prevent reversion to the old order, with its neglect of science, which slowly but surely leads to national downfall. The present outlook is encouraging, and, considering the recent headway made, we see the promise of a brilliant. future for our scienc Industrial Chemistry. INDUSTRIAL CHEMISTRY CHAPTER I. CATALYSIS AND CATALYSTS. ON glancing into any of the journals published by the various chemical industries, one cannot but fail to be impressed by the constant occurrence of the names catalyst and catalysis. Apparently in every branch of chemical industry the manufacturer is making extensive use of these so-called catalysts, or catalytic reagents, to bring about or speed up maay of his processes...