Synthetic
p. 31 · Read in the full issue
Rubbers Future
War Establishes Synthetic
WHEN the Japs over-ran Indonesia, a very large proportion of the world’s rubber production was lost. The only rubber plantations available to the Allies were a comparatively few in India, Ceylon, Africa and South America. A negligible quantity comes from planta tions in Papua, Solomons, New Hebrides, Fiji and Samoa.
Early in 1942, the Allies were gravely embarrassed by the lack of raw rubber; and so they turned anxiously to their chemists and engineers, and sought syn thetic rubber.
“Synthetic rubber is here to stay,” re porters were told by the Director of Rub er, Mr. Jeffers, in Washington, on July 14.
He added that synthetic rubber pro duction had progressed to the point where, ofter the war, it would hold its own with natural rubber, both from the standpoint of use and costs, without the aid of tariffs or subsidies. He predicted that the price of synthetic rubber after the war would be between 8 and 15 cents per pound, which was not far above the pre-war cost of the natural product.
Thus there arises a problem of major importance for rubber planters in Malaya, East Indies and, to a lesser extent, in Papua and the Pacific. Will synthetic rubber serve as well as natural rubber in motor tyres? Can synthetic rubber be produced more cheaply than the planta tion product?
Earlier, on June 5, in Washington, Mr.
Patterson, Under-Secretary of War, Mr.
Forrestal, Under-Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Davies, Deputy Petroleum Adminis trator, and Mr. Jeffers, Rubber Director, made this joint statement: “One-third of the Government’s rubber programme is completed, one-half of the aviation plants considered necessary to meet eventual needs are now operating, the naval escort ship programme is proceed ing at a high rate.” Mr. Jeffers said the rubber programme and aviation gasoline production would be* well co-ordinated “by autumn, 1944. You can forget the rubber problem in the United States; there will be enough for all needs.” He said the all-synthetic tyre would be a reality by the end of 1944.