A search for potash
Thesis (B.A.)--University of Illinois, 1917
Public-domain full text preserved in the Mountain Man Mining Library. Original source: archive.org.
A Search For Potash
By
Gerald C. Baker
Thesis
For The
Degree Of Bachelor Of Arts
In
General Science
College Of Liberal Arts And Sciences
University Of Illinois
Internet Archive in 2013
://archive.org/details/searchforpotashOObake
J3l7
University Of Illinois
...MAY ...S3 iqi.7.
This Is To Certify That The Thesis Prepared Under My Supervision By
G.iLRAlD..C BjUGi:E.
Entitled „...A Search F.Gr Potash.
Is Approved By Me As Fulfilling This Part Of The Requirements For The
Degree Of Ba03Exqr Of. .Arts.
in
.GMiScttL S.QIJBJO.f.
I Insti
Instructor in Charge
Approved :
Head Of Department Of .Ghjis.Thy..
37663?
Table Of Contents.
Page.
Introduction 1
History of the Potash Situation 2 Possible Sources of Potash
in the Unite I States 3
Experimental 7
Table I Potash in Water Plants 9
Table II Potash in Waste Pro -facts 10
Table III Potash in Sugar Wastes 10
Results and Conclusions H
A Search lor Potash.
Introduction .
There is scarcely any chemical problem which stares the Amer- ican chemist in the face more at the present time than the pot- ash situation. It is true that the outlook is much more encour- aging than it was six months ago, due largely to the development of the Pacific Coast kelp beds and the saline deposits in the western states*
Until the opening of the great European war immense quantities of potassium salts were annually imported into this country from Germany, of which much was used in agriculture, as well as for chemical laboratories and industries.1 The imports were about one -fourth in 1915 what they were in 1913, the last normal year and the import of kainite and manure salts were about three per- cent of those in 1913. ALL the imports of potash salts taken together in 1915 amounted to about one-tenth of the recent im- ports under normal conditions.
Potash saltB imported for consumption into the United States, 1912 - 1915.
1912 : 1913
Quantity Pounds
: Value
: Quantity
: Value
622,179,164
: $10,692,285
: 612,514,916
: $10,805,720
j 1915
485,818,459
: $8, 743,973
: 170,555,450
i |3,765,224
Iff Geological Survey, Potash Salts. (1915) 2 9fi
Since the domestic scarcity of potash salts has heen felt there has been a great increase in the prices of these com- pounds.5 From a normal price of #35 to #40 a ton for high grade agricultural salts prices have advanced steadily until in the spring of 1916 chloride and sulphate were quoted at ten times the above figures.4 In April 1916 chloride was quoted at #425 a ton and sulphate from #350 to #400 a ton.
In the light of these astonishing facts the need for the pro- duction of potash and potash salts in this country has been keenly felt, and as a result much investigation has been carried on by the government, individuals and private industries, in the hope of obtaining these products on a commercial scale.
The following investigations show some of the possibilities which might be so utilized.
History of the Potash Situation.
~bout sixty years ago potash and potash salts were produced from wood ashes. The woods mostly used for this purpose were Elm, Birch, Larch and Maple. Hard woods were found to contain more potash than the softer varieties. This was a rather ex- travagant means of obtaining potash salts, even though the potash was easily leached from the ashes, but it was carried on to some extent on a commercial basis.
From the time when the Strassfurt beds were discovered in Germany, this Indus tryitjuc gradually diminished in thiB country,
3 U.S. Geol. Survey. Potash Salts. (1915) 2, 95 4. Ibid.
until at the present time it is practically dead. The price for which potaeh salts could be obtained was so much lees than the cost of production in this country that this industry has
K
been almost entirely discontinued.' At the opening of the Eur- opean war the potash salts produced in this country was only about one percent of the potash imported.
Now, again, we are facing a new era in the production of these products. The Germans have refused to export any potash to this country due to its increased use at home in the war, and the breaking off of relations with this country.
It is this present situation, that of being unable to obtain these products from Germany that is awakening the American chemists along this branch of chemical industry.
The demand for potash salts is daily increasing and it is the hope that the industries now engaging in their production will be able to produce them commercially not only in war times, but at such a cost that they may continue in normal times.
Possible Sources of Fotash in the United States.
Kelp. — The Pacific coast kelp beds are probably the most promising Bource for potash salts at the present time in this country. Different varieties vary in their potash content. Analy- sis of the dried plants show:
5. Jour. Ind. and Eng. Chem. Vol. 9 No. 5 pp. 473
Total Sol. Salts '
K 0
n ash
Alaria
f iBtulosa
,91
Trace
.vlacrocy st is pyrif era
nereocyst is lentkeurii
Seven concerns have installed plants for carrying on this great industry, that of extracting potash salts from kelp, among which are the Hercules Power Company, Swift and Company, the packers, National Chemical Company and others.
Bitterns .
The Searles Lake in California has a specific gravity' of 1.2974. The "bitterns which are concentrated by artificial evap- oration contain rather large quantities of potassium salts, especially the chloride. Another such lake is the Owens lake in California.
An approximate total content of chlorine, sodium, potassium
Q
etc. in the water of Owens Lake, California.
Short Tons
Chlorine 40,000,000 Sodium 60,000,000 Potassium 3,360,000 Anhydrous boric acid (Bg03) 3,070,000 Total anhydrous salts 160,000,000
The Utah Chemical Company is now erecting a plant on the shores of the Great Salt Lake for the extraction of poatsh salts as a by-product.
Other bitterns worthy of mention are found in lakes of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas. Colorado, Nebraska and New Mexico.
Saline Deposits.
Saline deposits including dry lakes, mud flats, alkali flats salt marshes, etc. have been found in the Great Basin. Veinsof alunite, an insoluble hydrous potassium sulphate, have been dis- covered in Utah, Nevada and Washington. These deposits show great promise of becoming commercially important as a source for potash salts.
Another form which is attracting much attention is silicate rock such as feldspar, leucite and sericite and greensand. De- posits of leucite rocks in Wyoming and sericite, in Georgia are spoken of as possible sources for potash. An ® analysis of eerite rock from Pickens County Ga., shows 10.75$ Kg0. The greensand of New Jersey and Delaware 3.5$ to 6.25$ KgO .
These last mentioned sources seem to be of some agricultural value, but not from the standpoint of the production of pure potash salts.
6. U.S. Dept of Agr. Report No. 100 , Potash from Kelp pg. 15-18
7. U.S. Geol. Survey. Potash Salts (1915) 2 , 100
8. Ibid. 2, 100 (1915)
9. Ibid. 2, 116.(1915)
Miscellaneous Sources.
Wood ashes are a possible source. Composition of wood ashes in samples analyzed by Grossman:
Mean % Maximum Minimum %
Potash 5.5 10.2 2.5
Fhos. acid 1.9 4.0 0.3
Lime 34.3 50.9 18.0
Magnesia 3.5 7.5 2.3
The wastes from saw mills offer a possible source. Millions of pounds of saw dust are wasted yearly in our western saw mills The brush might also be utilized.
By- products from different industries offer other sources.
Molasses from distillery waste when transformed into a dry pow-
der contains 9$ Kg0. Potash is now being produced in several cement and lime factories as a by-product.
S.Vi. Sinsheimer* has invented a process for the recovery of nitrogen and potash from the concentrated molasses obtained from the manufacture of sugar from sugar beets.
The outlook now is rather favorable, for many investigations have been and are being made at the present time along the line of the production of potash salts commercially from the above mentioned sources, and plants for such production are fast being built and we look with hope upon these sources and other sources that may be discovered.
10. Met. and Eng. Chem. Nov. 15, 193 5. pg. 841-46
11. Ibid. Oct. 15, 1915 pg. 760
12. U.S. Geol. Survey. Potash Salts part 2, pg. 126
precipitate joined with the proceeding one. The total precipi- tate was then dried for one hour at 100°- 140°C and the watch glass with the precipitate placed in a dessicator for one hour, when it was weighed. From the weight of KPt Clr, the weight of potash salts was determined upon the basis of KgC .
A comparison of the two methods may be shown from the results obtained from the work on banana stalks.
$ Ko0 in air dry stalk
K 0 from laeching of air dry stalks 1.22 %
K 0 " " " ash from " 9.08 %
Further leachings gave corresponding small amounts of potash salts .
Experimental .
In those investigations the chLorplat inate method has been used throughout. Two different processes however, were thorough- ly tried out.
c onsisted
The first, tfjtsofc of leaching the air dry substance to be tested for potash, for about two weeks and testing the extract thus obtained. This method failed however, to remove but a Bmall percentage of the potash salts present and was discontinued as impracticable .
The second method consisted ir igniting the air dry sample in a weighed container until the ash was free from all form of carbonaceous material. The percentage ash was obtained at this point. The ash was then treated with excessive amounts of hot water and leached for 48 hours, when the insoluble ash was fil- tered off by suction. The remaining ash ?ras washed repeatedly with hot water to insure as nearly as possible a complete leaching out of all potash salts. An aliquot part of the filtrate was concentrated and made acid with a few drops of hydrochloric acid. To the solution was added enough 10 '€ platinum chloride solution (Pt Cl4) to insure complete precipitation of the sodium and potassium salts. The solution was then evaporated to dry- ness as slowly as possible on a water bath. The precipitate was transfered to a filter and washed repeatedly with anhydrous methyl alcohol, CHOH, to insure a complete removal of sodium salts. As nearly completely as possible the precipitate was trans- fered to a weighed watch glass. The remaining precipitate was dissolved in hot water and again evaporated to dryness and the
9 4*J
Table I.
Ko0 in Water Plants.
Plant Tested Botanical Name Locality Grown Percentage Ash
Hornwort Ceratophyllum Holland, Mich. 41.06
Demersum
Under Water
Plant Potamogeton sp. Alpfcna, Mich. 27.17 White Water
Lily Alpfcna, Mich. .12
Yellow Pond
Lily — Alpfena, Mich. 12.06
Small Leaved
Pondweed Potamogeton sp. Alpfcna, Mich. 30.51
Stonewort Chara Alpfcna, Mich. 50.29
Knot Weed Potamogeton sp. Alpfna, Mich. 26.19
Illinois Potamogeton
Pond Weed Illinois Alpfcna, Mich. 31.08
Northeru
Pondweed Potamogeton sp. Alpfcna, Mich. 33.01 Long Leaved
Pondweed Potamogeton
Americanus Holland, Mich. 29.5
Timber Moss
and Roots Springfield, Mo. 17.91
Pickerel Weed — - Portland, Maine 12.65
Arrow-Head — — Portland, Maine 11.82
Pond-Weed. Potamogeton sp. Portland, Maine 22.67
Eel Grass — — Portland Maine 18.42
Floating Pond
Moss — — - Bement, 111. 63.00
Bull Rushes Bement, 111. 36.54
Wild Swamp
Grass — Bement, 111 9.86
Rag Weeds Bement, 111 5.61
Percentage Ko0 In Percentage K?0 In Ash air dry sample
£.15 .39
2.29 .62
8.3 .099
5.49 .65
1.12 .34
1.59 .42
1 . 24 .39
1.47 .39
3.09 .91
4.69 .83
6.66 .84
16.30 1.93
4.39 .99
8.18 1.5]
.11 .069
1.48 .54
1.73 .17
4.13 1.91
Table II.
KgO In Waste Products.
Substance Locality Grown Percentage Percentage Percentage K 0 Ash KO in Ash Air Dry Sample
Banana Stalks
Sunflower Stalks
Corn stalks
Cotton Stalks
Tobacco Stems
Cigar
Urbana, 111
Bement, 111.
Urbana, 111.
Urbana, 111.
28
St, Louis Sugar Co .
Table III.
Sugar Waste Determinations.
Percentage Percentage
Ash K 0 in Ash
Percentage K 0 IN crude saro-
Holland, Mich. 3.13 31.8 .995
Owasso Owasso, Mich. 3.57 36.46 1.113
The water content in the former was approximately 25-30 and in the latter , 20-25
Sp. Gr
Discussion of Results and Conclusions.
From the above results it is clearly seen that fresh water plants, in general, do not furnish a source for potash on a commercial basis.
2. It is also evident that floating plants and leaves con- tain much less potash than those plants rooted in the beds of rivers and lakes.
3. Certain waste products seem to be commercially important in the potash industry. Banana stalks contain large amounts of potash salts, and thousands of them are discarded daily in the cities .
Cotton and tobacco stems also contain large amounts of potash salts. As neither of these products are used to any appreciable extent it may be suggested that they might be so treated as to become a commercial source of potash.
The syrups from the beet sugar industries contain rather large amounts of potash salts. These syrups by a destructive distillation can be separated into volatile and non-volatile valuable products. The potash content of these syrups, until recently has totally been ignored. They, however, appear to also be important for their potash content which might be ex- tracted for commercial gains.
note: I wish to thank Dr. B.S.Hopkins for his many suggest- ions and valuable assistance which he has given in the prep- aration of this thesis.
University Of Illinoi8-Urbana
3 0112 082198927