electrochemical society revises publication policy
TRANSCRIPT
Electrochemical Society lU'viscs Publication Policy
A STAFF REPORT
A F T E R two years of publication the scope of the monthly Journal of the Electrochemical Society will be enlarged beginning with the January 1950 issue. The new journal will have a larger size, about 8" X 11", will have a slick cover, and will accept advertising. Inside make-up will provide a two column format and editorial content will be expanded to provide "much more information of immediate interest*' to the members of the society. With the advent of the new journal, publication of the Trarisactions of the Electrochemical Society, hithertofore published semiannually and containing the papers presented at the national meetings, will be discontinued.
In discussing these changes before the 96th national meeting of the society held in Chicago Oct. 12 to 15, Alfred Ferguson, current president of the s o ciety, said that they were motivated by the necessity of meeting increasing publishing costs for a steadily growing number of papers being submitted to the Journal. The new arrangement is also aimed at increasing the stature of electrochemistry and the Electrochemical Society in the scientific community.
The Joseph W. Richards Memorial Lecture for 1949 was delivered by Oliver W. Storey formerly of Burgess Battery Co. In order to predict the possible impact of political considerations on the nature of future research, Dr. Storey reviewed the record of the Federal Government's past attitude toward industrial research. His conclusion is that "a voluminous record—shows that government is definitely antagonistic to industrial research and that the antagonism is increasing." In support of this conclusion the speaker cited the long scries of attacks made in recent years on the established patent system. Any weakening of this system tends to decrease the monetary value of the results of* private research according to Storey. The second most successful attack on industrial research has been made by the U. S. Treasury D e partment which in recent years has refused to allow many companies to consider research expenditures as business expense for income tax purposes. By insisting that these expenditures be entered as a capital investment the tax bureau in essence levys against future profits which may or may not be realized depending on whether or not the investigation produces profit making results. Dr. Storey quoted instances in which this policy has actually resulted in the
O. W. Storey, who delivered the Richards Memorial address, is introduced by Clif-ford Hantpel, Armour Re· search Foundation, and general chairman of the meeting
complete suspension of all research activities by individual companies. Thi only corrective suggested by the speakei for this condition was increased participation in government activities, even at a local level, by industrial scientists
Corrosion The opening symposium of the tech
nical program of the convention was* devoted to corrosion. R. B. Mears of the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Corp. in continuing his exposition of the mechanism of passivation of metals, presented apparently conclusive proof that the passi-vating action of chromate ion on alumi-nus is due to the polarization of the local anodes. In discussing his data Dr. Mears commented on the various techniques for determining polarization curves of both local anodes and cathodo and the reversible potentials of metals. He pointed out that the east ing techniques are subject to severe limitations if they are not actually questionable and expressed the hope that additional work will be devoted to simplifying the techniques and assuring that the data obtained are more comprehensive.
Two papers presented by Norman Hackerman of the University of Texas may shed important light on the mechanism by which polar organic compounds inhibit corrosion in acid solutions. The speaker and his colleague E. L. Cook found that straight-chain compounds decreased in inhibiting effect from the acid to the amine to the alcohol to the esters. There was some indication that the effect increased with increasing concentration and molecular weight up to a point and then leveled off. The authors postulated that the absorption of these molecules occurs at both the local anodic and cathodic areas of the metal surface and they believe that maximum inhibition is obtained when different molecules, or different functional groups on the same molecule were absorbed at the two different elec
trically characteristic areas of the metal surface.
Intermetallic compounds of magnesium with tin and lead were described in a paper presented by W. D . Robertson of Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The compounds, MgzSn and MgsPb, are half of an analogous series formed by magnesium with members of the fourth periodic group of elements. The compounds are definitely stoichiometric and exhibit peculiar characteristics not found in alloys of the two metals. One of these properties, apparently unique, is a crystallographic disintegration which occurs in distilled water, hydrogen peroxide, ammonium hydroxide, and sodium hydroxide. In these solvents, individual crystals of the intermetallic compounds disintegrate spontaneously in geometric fragments in the shape of pyramids and rhombohedra derivable from the octahedral cleavage planes of the face-centered crystal system of the compounds. It is thought that this overt phenomena may hold the key to s o -called corrosion cracking of certain metals; hithertofore assumed to be due to residual or applied internal stresses.
An interesting theoretical contribution was offered by Donald C. Rogers and Arthur A. Burr of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the symposium on electro-deposition. These authors show that the classic Eyring theory of rate processes can be adapted to practical plating cells. Specific studies reported on the plating of chromium from chromic acid indicated the possible applicability of this method to irreversible cells. One of the interesting results of this study indicates that the beneficial results of the presence of sulfate ion in the electrolyte may be due to the retardation of hydrogen deposition rather than the direct catalysis of the plating reaction as has been generally assumed.
Electro-Organic The behavior of acrylic acid, methyl
methacrylate, alpha-chloracrylic acid, and
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crotonic acid in a sulfuric acid electrolyte at a mercury cathode was described by Christopher Wilson, Eugene Dineen, Ohio State university, and T. C. Schwan, Valparaiso University. It was reported that no dimeric products were obtained. Reduction to dihydro compounds was slow and difficult but, with acrylic and methacrylic derivatives, polymerization was rapid. At both lead and mercury cathodes, crotonic acid was reduced to butyric acid, butyl alcohol, and crotyl alcohol.
Sherlock Swann, Jr., University of Illinois, reported on work done with Κ. Η. Wanderer, H. J. Schaffer, and W. A. Streaker, on the electrolytic reduction of maleic acid to succinic acid in sulfuric acid solution. The cathodes used were copper, zinc, and nickel. The highest yield of succinic acid was obtained at a mercury cathode and the lowest at bismuth and cobalt cathodes. Etching reduced the activity of copper cathodes, while increasing that of nickel. Others, with the possible exception of zinc, were not appreciably changed.
Studies of the polarographic method as means for distinguishing between the opon and cyclic forms of phthaladehydic acid and its derivatives by Stanley Wawzonek and J. H. Fossum, at the University of Iowa, showed this technique to l>e effective. Data obtained from the structure of these derivatives, which are well known, in unbuffered and buffered media indicated that 2-benzoyl-benzoic anhydride and di-2-benzoyl-benzoyl sulfide have normal structures, while the mixed anhydride from acetic acid and benzoylbenzoic acid has a cyclic structure.
The dropping mercury electrode in diazo chemistry was the subject of a paper by R. M. Elofson, R. L. Edsberg, and Patricia Mecherly, General Aniline and Film Corp. They report that it is possible to follow diazotization rates, coupling rates, etc., by using the dropping mercury electrode for continuous recording of diazo concentrations.
A feature which was especially well received was a round table concerned with industrial electro-organic processes. It was emphasized in the comments of a number of those present that a better understanding of the fundamental principles of electro-organic chemistry, which can be brought about through research, is likely to reduce some of the industrial disadvantages of processes of this kind, such as large investment required and large amount of equipment; difficulties of control; purification difficulties; diaphragm problems; and solubility, blending, and agitation. It was also contended by some that it is useless on the basis of present knowledge to try to differentiate between certain mechanisms, for example, to decide whether a given reaction is produced by electron transfer or atomic hydrogen.
The Caver · · ·
Folkers to Give liai w
HEN Karl Folkers stands to de-! liver the Harrison Howe Lecture before 1 the Rochester Section on Nov. 7, those
in attendance will find it hard to believe that this very young looking man was born in 1906. But his list of accomplishments is such that many men 20 years
ι his senior would be proud to claim it as their own.
As director of organic and biochemical research for Merck & Co., Inc., Dr. Folkers directs the research efforts of more than 50 chemists engaged in the
I study of antibiotics, synthetic médicinale, hormones, and vitamins. The
I isolation of B» was an outstanding I achievement of Dr. Folkers and his co-I workers: Edward L. Rickes, Norman
G. Brink, Frank R. Koniuszy, and Thomas R. Wood.
His early desires to study the anti-! pernicious anemia factor were hindered
by the lack of suitable test methods 1 since the only known way to test for j the factor at that time was on a person
suffering from pernicious anemia. At a meeting of gastroenterologists he
: discussed the problem with Randolph I West of the Columbia University deli partment of medicine, who was also in-| tcrested in pernicious anemia. Dr.
West offered to provide the necessary clinical assistance, thus stimulating the research efforts.
The work was delayed somewhat by the war, but on a visit to George M. Briggs of the University of Maryland in 1947, Dr. Folkers learned of the work of Mary Shorb in developing a relationship between liver extract and the growth of a microorganism, Lactobacillus lactis Dorner. Collaborating with Dr. Folkers and his coworkers, Dr. Shorb and Dr. Briggs developed a method of microbiological as<ay for the antipernicious anemia factor that relieved the necessity of testing on human subjects, and prog-
| ress toward isolation of crystalline vitamin Bu was greatly accelerated. Announcement of the isolation was made early in 1948, and by the end of the year the workers had found that the vitamin could be isolated from Streptomyces griseus. Shortly afterwards, crystalline Bu was available to physicians under the trade name Co
ll bione by Merck & Co., Inc. Currently, one of the major projects of Dr. Folkers* group at Merck is the study of the chemistry of Bu.
Vitamin Bis has an extremely high degree of biological activity and a single administration of 3 micrograms has
I given a positive hemotological response.
rison Howe Lecture Dr. Folkers' researches and work M
since joining the Merck laboratories in I 1934 have been concerned with the I organic chemistry of numerous prob- I lems in the field of therapeutic agents II and vitamins. In 1935 he began a II series of experiments on curare, and I he has studied Erythrina alkaloids ex- II tensively, having tested species from all II parts of the world. II
The quality of his early work was I recognized when he was given the II ACS Award in Pure Chemistry in 1941. II The citation read, "For contributions II in the field of organic chemistry, in- I eluding Erythrina alkaloids, vitamin Be, I catalytic hydrogénation, and pyrimi- II dines." In 1940 and again in 1949 he II was corecipient of the Mead Johnson I and Co. Award for research on the I vitamin Β complex. I
From almost his earliest days in I Decatur, 111., Karl Folkers knew he II wanted to be a chemist. He went on 11 to the University of Illinois for his II undergraduate work, graduating in 1928. I For his graduate work he went to the I University of Wisconsin where he be- II gan research under Homer Adkins on II the reactions of aldehydes and of esters II over oxide catalysts and on hydro- I genation under elevated temperatures I and pressures. He received a Ph.D. I in 1931. \
Next he accepted a postdoctoral II research fellowship in organic chemistry 11 with Treat B. Johnson at the Sterling II Chemistry Laboratory at Yale Uni- Il versity. There he studied the syn- II thesis, mechanism of formation, and re- I actions of certain pyrimidine dériva- Il tives. While at Yale he met and II married Selma Leona Johnson, and 11 they now have two children, Cynthia, II 14, and Richard, 8. II
He was elected to the National Acad- II emy of Sciences in 1948. Also in that I year he received a presidential certifi- I cate of merit for his work as a member II of the division of chemistry of the I National Defense Research Committee II during World War II. II
Dr. Folkers has just returned from II Europe where he gave a paper on Bu I before the International Congress on II Biochemistry. He also visited much of II the continent to observe at first hand I the work of foreign chemists in the II postwar world. II
His subject before the Rochester Sec- II tion will be "Research on Vitamin Bu." I It is expected that he will advocate I strongly the value of team effort in H modern research. 1
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