THE SUPPLY OF NITRATES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2809, 15 January 1908, Page 6

THE SUPPLY OF NITRATES.

Every farmer must be in sympathy with the enterprising and scientific men who are endeavouring to discover practical means whereby the impending exhaustion of the world's supply of nitrate for manurial purposes may be averted or fresh supplies artificially produced. The proposal to institute inquiries regarding the possibility of utilising some of the great water forces and lime deposits of New Zealand in the fixation of-atmos-pheric nitrogen, by various processes which are claimed to be commercially successful on the Continent of Europe, is possibly too ambitious, but it should not be dismissed from consideration as chimerical. The processes have been described in these columns. Briefly stated they are on two principles— viz. : (i.) Those in -which --atmospheric nitrogen is burnt to nitrous or nitric acid_by means of the electric arc; and (2) 'those in which atmospheric nitrogen is combined by means of carbides, obtained by -fusing together in an electric furnace metals or metallic oxides and carbon 3. In Germany, the European country most interested in the nitrate question, the quantity of the fertiliser used annually being upwards of 600,090 tons, the subject- is being closely, investigated, and a pamphlet in the nature of a progress report has lately been issued by one of the inquiring scientists, Dr Wilhebn Radius, whose name is well known.- In his publication, which has been translated into English;"" little encouragement-^ given to the hope that the desired supply will be produced by »jrfy of the processes yet in operation. It is stated that some of the companies formed for working one or other of the numerous patents which have been registered have already collapsed, while none of them show any definite prospect --of becoming leconomieally successful. Dr Radius is inclined to abandon hope from what .may be termed mechanical processes for -fixing atmospheric nitrogen, and he does not suggest any alternative — eyen the growing of leguminous crops for green manure, a practice which has "the approval of antiquity. Dr Radiuß'B conclusion will not be "unanimously or even generally accepted. Too much has been seen of the achievements of science to allow it to be said by anyone, however eminent, that the capacity of inventors for further progress has been exhausted, and all probabilities are that before very long the processes will be greatly cheapened. Even now it is claimed by the Norwegian -manufacturers of nitrate that they are producing it at a fcosfc which will enable it to be sold at a profit at two-thirds of the price of .the Chilian article, and this must be authoritatively contradicted before the process useS can be condemned as economically impracticable. Other processes^ too, have been mentioned, some of which may decisively solve the problem. Meantime, those who have suggested the inquiry into the pos-' sibility of producing, oe, rather, collecting, the nitrogen in New, Zealand should be afforded the necessary meaes. for gro- i

secuting their investigations, and the) agricultural societies ,and the Government might fairly v contribute. ■