United States production.
The domestic output of formaldehyde has increased with the increased demand by resin makers. Production and sales in 1937 were more than double those in 1930. There are three domestic makers, two of which produce methyl alcohol, the raw material. Their plants are located in New Jersey and Oklahoma.
Statistics of production and sales are shown in table [84].
Table 84.—Formaldehyde: United States production and sales, in specified years
| Year | Production | Sales | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quantity | Quantity | Value | Value per lb. | |
| 1,000 pounds | 1,000 pounds | |||
| 1914 | (1) | 8,426 | $655,174 | $0.078 |
| 1919 | 25,007 | 19,664 | 3,928,322 | .200 |
| 1921 | 9,657 | 6,056 | 651,681 | .108 |
| 1922 | 23,958 | 16,140 | 1,676,401 | .104 |
| 1923 | 24,081 | 18,855 | 2,474,506 | .131 |
| 1924 | 26,155 | 20,542 | 1,971,053 | .096 |
| 1925 | 31,456 | 23,392 | 1,895,913 | .081 |
| 1926 | 31,953 | 22,552 | 2,050,967 | .091 |
| 1927 | 29,920 | 24,597 | 2,256,534 | .092 |
| 1928 | 38,718 | 27,934 | 2,491,615 | .089 |
| 1929 | 51,786 | (2) | (2) | |
| 1930 | 40,763 | (2) | (2) | |
| 1931 | (1) | (1) | (1) | |
| 1932 | (1) | (1) | (1) | |
| 1933 | 52,236 | 46,424 | 2,122,925 | .046 |
| 1934-37 | (2) | (2) | (2) | |
1 Not available.
2 Not publishable; figures would disclose operations of individual firms.
Source: Compiled from annual reports of the Tariff Commission on dyes and other synthetic organic chemicals in the United States.
Production in other countries.
Formaldehyde is produced in England, Germany, France, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Sweden, the Soviet Union, Japan, and Canada. Production data are not available but Germany and England are probably the leading foreign producers. Estimated productive capacity in the Soviet Union is given as 10 million pounds annually; in Japan 6.5 million pounds; in France 4 million pounds; and in Italy 3 million pounds.