3115.     ---------------.  [SCHROEDER, W. C.]  Synthetic Liquid Fuels in the United States.  Mech. Eng., vol. 69, 1947, pp. 989-995; vol. 70, 1948, pp. 555-556; Oil Gas Jour., vol. 46, No. 31, 1947, p. 128; Chem. Abs., vol. 42, 1948, p. 733.

        Synthetic fuels industry capable of producing 1-2,000,000 bbl./day should be established as soon possible so as not to cause too great a drain of national resources during a possible future emergency.  Depending upon the raw materials available, the H₂O supply, the predominant type of products wanted, the location of the market, and the transportation expense, such a fuel will range in cost from $0.03-$0.05 per gal. above present petroleum fuel prices.  Raw materials will be natural gas, coal, and oil shale.  From an available 50 trillion cu. ft. of natural gas, 4-5 billion bbl. of liquid products should be obtained.  Coal hydrogenation is well adapted to the production of aviation fuel and is the only synthetic process at present that will give a base stock for 100-octane gasoline with good rich-mixture performance.  It does not produce good Diesel fuel and will not produce motor gasoline as cheaply as the Fischer-Tropsch process.  Oil shale is simple to process, takes less initial investment, and can be refined to yield fuel oil and Diesel fuel with a cetane rating 34-45.  Gasoline from oil shale is, at present, unsuitable for motor fuel as it has an octane number of only 50-60.  Two new catalytic oil-processing methods have been developed and give promise of satisfactory commercial application:  The fluidized technique of the oil industry and the oil-cooled catalyst method of the Bureau of Mines.