Deutsche Fett-Saüre Werke, Witten-Ruhr
Location
This plant is adjoining the Märkische Seifen-Industrie in Witten. Arrangements to inspect it were made through the Military Government Detachment in Witten.
Description
The raw material for the production of fatty acids is the soft wax, “gatsch”, fraction from the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. This has a boiling range of between 320 and 450°C. The wax is oxidized with air and the resulting yield of fatty acids separated from the unoxidized wax by saponification. The fatty acids are then regenerated by acidification and distilled under vacuum. The principal fraction from the vacuum distillation, composed of acids with 9 to 20 carbon atoms per molecule, is esterified with glycerine at the Märkische Seifen Industrie to produce edible fats. The plant has a capacity of 40 to 45,000 tons per year of gatsch, of which about of fatty acids. The esterification plant produced about 1800 to 2400 tons of edible fats per year.
The construction and operation of the plant has been described by E.L.Baldeschweiler, CIOS Target No. 22/459. This report is on file at the CIOS Library, File No. XXVI-50.
Status
On September 20th the writer visited the plant and interrogated the following personnel:
Dr. K.H.Imhausen, Owner and Manager
Dr. Prosch, Chemist.
The fatty acid plant had sustained practically no damage but was not in operation because no raw material was available. The production of the raw material depends on operation of the Fischer-Tropsch plants which in turn depend on the catalyst supply for Holten. The soap factory was in operation on natural fats.