Here was a direct saving of £237 to £240 10s.—$1,185 to $1,202.50—per ton. Altogether the purchase of glycerine recovered from military organic waste represented a saving of £312,650—$1,563,250—because the nation obtained for £77,350—$386,750—what otherwise would have cost £390,000—$1,950,000. This figure is not quite complete because, inspired by the success achieved from the milling of the swill at home, the army in France established similar stations behind the lines upon the other side of the Channel. When these were brought into operation the shipment of fat and grease recovered from the organic waste of the British Expeditionary Force in France represented 5,000 tons a year, whence 500 tons of glycerine were derived. The 5,000 tons of fat won from the swill-tubs of the army in France realized £140,000—$700,000—while the total saving recorded under the heading of glycerine secured from army waste fat was augmented to £432,000—$2,160,000. During the year in question the aggregate financial economies directly secured from the exploitation of organic army waste, in conjunction with the introduction of ways and means to reduce the yield of such residue from the observance of improved culinary methods and reduced consumption of foodstuffs was approximately £5,626,000—$28,130,000. Finally, to demonstrate the value of this contribution to the aggressive resources of this country, it may be stated that the 1,800 tons of glycerine derived from the 18,000 tons of tallow recovered from the army swill-tubs, rendered it possible to turn out sufficient nitro-glycerine to serve as the propellant charges for 18,000,000 eighteen-pounder shells.
The success accomplished with the army waste fat and grease prompts the obvious inquiry as to why comparative methods cannot be adopted in civilian circles. The average household has but little conception of the value of its fat losses. It should not be an impossible task to segregate the waste from the house at the source, and to submit it to similar treatment. The majority of our civic and municipal authorities possess buildings which could readily be adapted to the installation of the necessary plant, and the capital outlay therefore need not be heavy. The disposal of the various by-products would not be attended by any difficulty. True, under war conditions abnormal prices ruled, but even to-day they are attractive and are likely to continue to remain so for an appreciable time to come.
Of course, the municipal authorities could not aspire to net such profits as are possible in the army. In the first place the wage problem must be taken into consideration. Under military conditions this does not arise. Fatigue parties are always available to collect the swill and to conduct its conversion into fat. But even if the practice were pursued at a loss it would redound to the distinct benefit of the community in general, because it would comply with one of the fundamental laws of National Economy and would conduce towards the reduction in the cost of living. But unprofitable exploitation would not result so long as the methods were conducted along commercial lines. Ineptitude and wastage in administration and operation alone could be responsible for any such eventuality in this connection. Happily we are becoming wiser in our knowledge: domestic organic waste is now being exploited on broader lines, as I relate in subsequent chapters.
CHAPTER V
INVENTION IN ITS APPLICATION TO WASTE RECOVERY
The necessity to conserve our industrial resources, which is so pronounced to-day, is acting as a powerful stimulant to inventive effort. The mere circumstance that approved apparatus exist for the reclamation of wastes and are readily available to those of a thrifty or enterprising turn of mind no longer suffices to meet the situation. In the past we have been content to practise waste recovery along what may be described as satisfactory lines, but satisfactory only in so far as they represented an attempt to turn refuse to commercial account. In many instances the appliances employed have only been extemporized and, as may be imagined, are far from being efficient. They only enable a certain proportion of the available materials to be recovered. In many instances residues treated for fats have carried away just as much of the essential article after treatment as were actually recovered. In other words, the work was only half completed: the system followed has been unable to give a higher yield owing to errors in its design and construction.
Waste recovery as it should be practised to-day is a science. It is just as precise a science as the extraction of nitrogen from the atmosphere, the smelting of steel, or the production of artificial silk. Hit-and-miss methods may have sufficed during the years when commodities were cheap and plentiful, but to-day there is a world-wide stringency in the supply of anything and everything necessary to commerce. As a consequence prices are ruling high, and so the practice of waste recovery along extremely well-defined scientific lines is essential.
The harnessing of science to this peculiar industry is imperative for more reasons than one. As the process of extraction, say of fats, is pushed to its logical conclusion, the task becomes more and more exacting and expensive, demanding the employment of refined methods. It is far more difficult to draw from the material the last ounce of possibly reclaimable fat than to whip out the first ounce. The last-named is surrendered readily, but to recover the first-named enormous persuasive effort is entailed.
But it is the uttermost ounce which the scientist is determined to obtain. Easy conquest does not appeal to his well-ordered mind, and so we see a spirited struggle in progress to increase efficiency. At the same time in attaining this eminent factor the inventor must keep his eye and hand upon the issue of cost. If it is going to cost more to extract the last absolute ounce than that ounce is worth, then the effort is futile. Commercialism, which considers inventive ingenuity merely from the angle of pounds, shillings and pence, or dollars and cents as the case may be, is not impressed by the mere beauty of any process or apparatus.
The financial issue is surveyed from every possible angle—capital outlay, fuel consumption, simplicity of operation, maintenance charges, depreciation, renewals, and labour. Any one of these several factors may be sufficient to cause the refusal of an advocated process, while should they be experienced cumulatively then the likelihood of the process being adopted is extremely remote. Waste recovery is such a sensitive range of endeavour as to prevent all consideration along philanthropic lines.
An instance in point may be narrated to indicate how perplexing and intricate the problem is. As is well-known, wood, in common with all vegetation, carries a certain proportion of alcohol, a product in keen demand for numerous industries. It is also common knowledge that in working wood enormous waste is incurred, notably in the form of sawdust. This fact induced inventors to attack the problem of extracting the alcoholic content from this residue. Laboratory experiment confirmed the practicability of the project, and even went so far as to indicate how the idea might be commercially developed.