DONALD S. FRASER "SCHAUMKOHLE"

D. S.  Fraser. There is not much to say about schaumkohle, or foam coal, as it was called by its inventors, Dr. Heinrich Schmitt and his brothers Ludwig and Julius, who formed the company known as Dr. Heinrich Schmitt-Werke, K. G., Berchtesgaden. This target was asserted incorrectly by field intelligence as the message we received in London asked for a team to investigate coal-oil fuel mixtures developed by two Czech scientists.

We thought there might be something of interest in the way of coal oil mixtures, perhaps of colloidal type, as there was some interest in the subject some years ago in this country, so two of our group and two British associates from the Ministry of Fuel and Power journeyed to Berchtesgaden. We found upon arrival that the target was merely a process for coal briquetting.

Schaumkohle was prepared by bonding together granules of anthracite, bituminous, or brown coal, of about 0.5 to 2.5 mm dia., with a cementing material such as water soluble phenolic resin. The mixture of coal and resin was molded into cubes, which can be burned as briquets in gas producers and heaters, or into other shapes, as in on example, in cylindrical form in a thirty-gallon oil drum with tubes running length-wise in a radial pattern through the drum. After the coal paste was tamped firmly in this mold and hardened, the tubes were then withdrawn, leaving wide holes or openings through the foam coal mass for the purpose of getting increased surface for combustion. The Inventor Schmitt had some fantastic ideas to use this molded briquet for jet-propulsion or in forms of motor power equipment.

The information is in the report that has been submitted, so to save time on our agenda I will not go into any further discussion or remark, except perhaps a recommendation in closing that the Schmitt Brothers not be brought to this country as they are hoping.

W. C.  Schroeder. Does that cover the subject?

D. S.  Fraser. Yes, in a brief manner, except that I would like to ask about the disposition of the samples that we brought from Berchtesgaden.

L. L.  Newman. Mr. Fraser brought back an envelope full of samples and we sent these to the Pittsburgh Station of the Bureau of Mines, where a group of the solid fuels men have met and decided what series of tests to put the samples through, giving them a thorough examination in addition to an approximate analysis. Maybe there is something to foam coal at that; in any case we will see what the samples amount to.

W. C.  Schroeder. We ought to have that information in a report form that will be an addendum to the report that you have already.

L. L.  Newman. The idea is that when the report comes in we will in some way add it to the other information in the other analytical reports.

W. C. Schroeder. Mr. Fraser, I read the brief report on schaumkohle and I remember you mentioned the possible use of such material for solid fuel and gasification purposes, and I gather the general information that this is a long was from future possible use for rocket fuel.

D. S.  Fraser. Yes, that is correct.

W. C.  Schroeder. I mean it seems to be just an invention of a promoter who did a lot of wishful thinking but not much sound development.

The next discussion is on "Shell Research," by Dr. Vladimir Haensel.