FUTURE OF KAURI GUM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21224, 2 July 1932, Page 12

FUTURE OF KAURI GUM.

PROSPECTS OF NEW USE. RESEARCH OFFERS PROMISE. / LACQUER-MAKING INDUSTRY. The conviction that there are still largi! possibilities in the kauri gum industry only waiting to be developed by further research is held by Mr. A. J. Parker, public analyst, and his senior assistant, Mr. L. S. Spackman. Tim conviction ill based op. Mr. Parker's 20 years' experience of chemical analysis of kauri gums,, but more particularly on two and a*hall: ; veirs' research by Mr. Spackman into j tho use of kauri gum in hcqners. i As the reiiult of his experiments Mr. j Spjckman 'says he is thoroughly satisfied j that kauri,pnm can be utilised in turning on!, the highest grade lacquers at a lower cost. /-The effect of kauri gum being ac<i!pted, for instance, in the manufacture of British furniture lacquers would be, of course, to give an enormous stiiritilug" to the gum industry in this corn try, and to set all interested in it working again at fall capacity. Time was when kauri gum enjoyed a wide sale for use in varnish manufacture and for lintfleums, but the linoleum industry has fallen on evil days and varnishes have been largely superceded by nitrocellulose lacquers. Moreover, the use of tuhg oi} in place of linseed oil had enabled high quality varnishes to be made with cheaper gums, and methods have been discovered of producing good synthetic varnish gums from waste products. Successful Experiments. In the early days of the nitrocellulose (spraying) lacquer industry, kauri gum wais. found to be one of the best gums available, but it- was definitely rejected beca.use it was not found possible to make a siiitisijjctory lacquer solution with it. This; lacquer industry has grown to enormous proportions, and is still rapidlj* expanding. Lacquer dries in a few minutes a.!t comparted wi!h days required by varnish. It is harder and more durable and withstands climate better, while its appearance is generally preferred to that of varnish. Believing, that kauri pum could be made available as one of tbe constituents of lacquer, # Mr. Spackman has conducted prolonged experiments that have now been rewarded with a large measure of success. He has been able to produce wiih kauri gum lacquers which he claims mest all commercial requirements, and which experts have assured him meet successfully all the tests required of a high-grade lacquer. A number of his lacquers^were sprayed on to panels, furniture and a rad.o cabinet, and were found to satisfy the most stringent tests. Mr. Spackman has tested all the recognise! high-grade gums at present in use,, -and! concludes that kauri gum is equal and possibly superior to every one of tliem. Way to a Solution. The problem Mr. Spackman has been j investigating is not the simple one ol finding . a s ngle formula for including kauri gam in lacquer, but to combine kauri gum with the many diverse and highly intricate solvents at pi-esent used in different lands for the manufacture oi lacquers. He claims to have gone far enough to show how a solution can bd found in probably every case, but further prosecution of tba research to itJi coisimerc'al conclusion must be left in th«i hands of those sufficiently interested to take it np. The gums chie:Sy used in Britain iti fhe manufacture of lacquer come for Ihn most part from the United States and from Germany, while in New Zealand there are ample supplies of a high-grado article available for a long time to come This problem would seem to be to demonstrate to British manufac:urers that them is within the Empire a product that can be readily adapted to their requirements, while at the same time reducing their expenditure. An interesting exhibit at Mr. Parker*!! laboratory 13 a series of bottles of kauri gum solution prepared by Mr. Spackman. Thesa are of varying degrees of consistency, and contain np to 65 per cent, of pure kauri gum. Mr. Spackman sujjgests that his process of dissolving offers-.' an improved method of cleans.ng low-grade kauri gum from its impurities r.ml also offers advantages in exporting, iof the purified gum .-outaincd in drums v.-ould have less bulk ihan th?. low-grade chips.