rubber, of course, will have about 4 percent resin, and guayule has 19 or 20 percent resin content, and in the old days there was the problem of getting that resin out as there was no use for it, but the expense of a deresinator was so great it was not feasible; however, at the present time derisinating is such a simple process that the byproduct will pay for it.

Senator DOWNEY. Mr. Mason, can you tell us how the product compares in quality with crude or raw rubber?

Mr. MASON. The best information we have on that, which is the same information the Tariff Commission has, is that it will, in a tire, say, give 90 percent of the wear which may be obtained from tires made from the best tree rubber, or, a second grade of Hevea rubber. Senator LODGE. How do you spell that guayule?

Mr. MASON. G-u-a-y-u-l-e.

Senator DOWNEY. Mr. Mason, you spoke about a record made before the United States Tariff Commission?

Mr. MASON. Yes, sir.

Senator DOWNEY. And you handed me such a report?

Mr. MASON. Yes, sir.

Senator DOWNEY. Mr. Chairman, I hold in my hand a copy of the "Report of the United States Tariff Commission on Rubber, Possibilities of Producing Rubber in the United States and Rubber Conservation," dated Washington, September 1941.

Is that the document to which you referred?

Mr. MASON. Yes, sir.

Senator DowNEY. Mr. Chairman, I would like to offer this docu

ment

Senator AUSTIN. Admitted.

(The document referred to is as follows:)

RUBBER-POSSIBILITIES OF PRODUCING RUBBER IN THE UNITED STATES AND RUBBER

CONSERVATION

INTRODUCTION

For many years this country has been dependent almost entirely on the Far East for rubber. Of the 650,000 long tons of crude rubber consumed in the United States in 1940, approximately 97 percent came from that area. United States imports of crude rubber, chiefly Hevea rubber, amounted in 1940 to 818,000 long tons, valued at $318,000,000. Stocks of crude rubber in the United States are sufficient to operate the rubber-manufacturing industry for only about 8 months at the present rate of consumption.

The great importance of rubber in our civilian national economy is a familiar fact. Defense preparations require large quantities of rubber, which is classified by the Army and Navy Munitions Board as a strategic material. About threefourths of the rubber consumed in the United States goes into tires and inner tubes, which are indispensable, both for civilian and military use. Other highly important uses for rubber are in medical and surgical articles, water hose, electrical insulation, and gas masks.

If a shortage of shipping or other causes should greatly reduce the quantity of rubber obtainable from the Far East, serious problems would at once arise. For this reason the Tariff Commission has just completed a survey as to the feasibility of producing rubber in this country and as to means of conserving supplies. Representatives of the Commission have visited the principal rubbermanufacturing centers of the United States and the principal domestic regions in which guayule rubber has been grown experimentally and have obtained information from the best-informed men in the industry.

CONCLUSIONS

There are several ways in which a shortage of rubber imports from the Far East, if it should occur, could be relieved at least in part. These include: (1) Increased production of crude rubber in Latin America and increased importation from that source; (2) more efficient use of imported crude rubber-conservation of available supplies; (3) increased reclaiming of used rubber; and (4) increased production of synthetic rubber and of guayule rubber in the United States.

The possibilities of increasing the production of crude rubber in Latin America have been discussed in a previous report of the Tariff Commission.1 It is pointed out in that report that, since it requires about 7 years to bring a rubber tree into bearing, any emergency arising in the near future could not be met by increased production in Latin America.

Of the numerous methods of conserving the use of new rubber, the most important is by increased retreading of tires. As much as 115,000 long tons of rubber might be saved yearly by this method, with little new investment of capital in retreading plants.

Large quantities of reclaimed rubber are already being produced, and the quantity could be increased materially within a short time by reducing the number of varieties produced and by not carrying the refining of reclaimed rubber so far as is now the practice. Reclaiming could be increased still further within a year or two by the building of new plants. However, natural rubber cannot be reclaimed repeatedly without marked deterioration in quality. A drastic shortage of imports for any considerable length of time, as distinguished from a short time, could not be relieved by reclaiming.

Present production of synthetic rubber in the United States is insignificant, and although new plants are being erected the total capacity at the end of 1941 will be only about 20,000 long tons annually. The total cost of constructing plants, including plants for supplying the required component materials, to produce 100,000 long tons of synthetic rubber annually would be from 75 to 100 million dollars, and the construction would take considerable time, especially since it would require large quantities of materials of which shortages exist. Rubber is produced from the guayule shrub, which can be grown in semiarid regions of California and other far Southwestern States. The plant can be harvested within 1 year after planting, but it is more economical to let it continue to grow for several years. A shortage of seed limits the rapidity with which guayule production could be increased. It would require several years to make the guayule shrub an important commercial source of rubber. Probably about $20,000,000 of capital investment would be required for every 100,000 long tons of yearly productive capacity.

Reclaimed rubber, synthetic rubber and guayule rubber are inferior to ribbed smoked sheet No. 1, which is a high grade of Hevea rubber and the grade used most extensively in the United States, although synthetic rubber is superior to all grades of Hevea for certain minor uses. Reclaimed rubber can be used satisfactorily in articles not requiring a very high grade of material. Guayule rubber, after being deresinated, is equal in quality to the lower grades of Hevea rubber and can be used in the manufacture of practically all rubber goods. Synthetic, reclaimed, and guayule rubber can be used quite satisfactorily in most articles when mixed with Hevea rubber.

Such information as is available indicates that neither synthetic nor guayule rubber can be produced, under present conditions, except at a cost much higher than that of crude rubber grown in the Far East. If their production is developed on a large scale to meet or forestall an emergency, the producers probably would not be able to compete with the Far Eastern product when the emergency is over. If it is considered necessary to undertake their production on a large scale, sufficient Government aid will presumably have to be extended to protect producers against ultimate loss of invested capital.

SUMMARY OF INFORMATION OBTAINED IN SURVEY

Reclaimed rubber.-In 1940 the domestic production of reclaimed rubber amounted to 210,000 long tons. Operating practically at full plant capacity, the industry is now reclaiming rubber at the rate of more than 270,000 long tons

1 The Foreign Trade of Latin America, pt. III, vol. 2, p. 393.

per year. Leaders of the industry state, however, that they could increase production 20 percent by reducing the number of varieties to 3 or 4 and by not carrying the refining of reclaimed rubber so far as is now the practice. More than 100 varieties, most of which are not essential, are now being produced. Reducing the number of varieties and decreasing the degree of refinement would permit a production of approximately 340,000 long tons a year.

The capacity of the reclaimed rubber industry could, of course, be increased by erecting additional plants. Production would be limited by the amount of scrap rubber which becomes available yearly.2 Various estimates have been made as to the total quantity of scrap rubber that could be collected annually, the estimates ranging from 400,000 to 800,000 long tons.

Available data indicate that at least 500,000 long tons could be collected. This tonnage of scrap rubber would produce about an equal tonnage of reclaimed rubber.

The cost of erecting additional reclaiming facilities would be about $10,000,000 for every 100,000 long tons of yearly capacity. Under present conditions and with the benefit of priorities for necessary materials and equipment, it would require from 18 to 24 months to construct and equip a sufficient number of plants to produce 100,000 long tons yearly.

The three most important considerations in selecting a site for a rubber reclaiming mill are the availability of scrap rubber, the availability of labor, and the availability of power. If additional plants are built, trade experts suggest that a good geographical distribution from the point of view of these three factors would be one plant in the Midwest, one in the South, and one on the Pacific coast. Three good-sized plants might well have a combined capacity of 150,000 long tons. It is less expensive to transport reclaimed rubber to rubber manufacturing centers, such as Akron, Ohio, than to transport the scrap rubber (principally old tires) used in making reclaimed rubber.

Except for use in certain types of rubber goods, reclaimed rubber is not so satisfactory as natural Hevea rubber (the most common type entering commerce), Reclaimed rubber is comparatively soft and lacks the "nerve" of Hevea. In the manufacture of tires it can be mixed with Hevea rubber and used satisfactorily in rubberizing fabric plies and in sidewalls but it lacks the resistance to abrasion required for extensive use in treads.

Ordinarily, a 6:00x16 tire weighing 21 pounds will contain about 12 pounds of Hevea rubber. Members of the trade state that by partial substitution of reclaimed rubber a fairly good tire of this size can be made with only 51⁄2 pounds of Hevea rubber distributed as follows: 31⁄2 pounds in tread, 1 pound in sidewalls and undertread, and 1 pound in fabric plies. It is said that this tire gives a mileage approximately three-fourths that of a tire containing 12 pounds of natural rubber. A more moderate substitution of reclaimed rubber for crude rubber would result in an increase in mileage.

Natural rubber cannot be reclaimed many times. Its quality is reduced considerably with each reclaiming. Therefore, this country could not rely on reclaimed rubber alone if imports of crude rubber were cut off for any prolonged period. Reclaimed rubber would serve as a stopgap only until the production of synthetic rubber and guayule rubber should become of consequence.

Stocks of reclaimed rubber on August 31, 1941, amounted to about 39,000 long tons.1

The cost of producing reclaimed rubber is relatively small. This is seen from the fact that reclaimed rubber for use in tires has been sold at 6 to 74 cents a pound for the past 2 or 3 years.

Synthetic rubber.-Synthetic rubber has been widely publicized as a substitute for Hevea rubber. In 1940 the domestic production of synthetic rubber amounted to only about 4,000 long tons. Production in 1941 may be twice that figure, and by the end of the year the total productive capacity may be 20,000 long tons.

Synthetic rubber has been produced only since about 1931, and practically all the output has been made from acetylene obtained from coal and limestone and from hydrochloric acid obtained from salt. This synthetic rubber has been sold at 65 cents to $1 a pound and it has been used only for special purposes, in which

3 There is disagreement among members of the trade as to whether substantial quantities of scrap rubber uncollected in past years have accumulated in outlying regions. Scrap collectors in these regions state that accumulations are negligible.

3 This is the most common size of tire. It is used on the Ford, Plymouth, Chevrolet, Dodge, and Pontiac automobiles. The Rubber Manufacturers Association.

resistance to oil, heat, or excessive sunlight is desired. In these uses it is much superior to Hevea rubber.

Authorities on the subject think that if in the future synthetic rubber is produced on a large scale it will be made from butadiene, which in turn is made from petroleum products in combination with styrene, acrylonitrile, or some of the olefins. If synthetic rubber is produced from butadiene on a large scale, it will be necessary to expand greatly the production of this material. Presumably, plants for manufacturing butadiene would be erected near oil refineries or oil fields, and the butadiene would be shipped to synthetic rubber plants near rubberconsuming centers. It would also be necessary to construet plants for the production of styrene, acrylonitrile, or olefins. Styrene or acrylonitrile would require chlorine or nitrogen, and both of these are now on the priorities list by reason of the strong demand for them in defense uses. The total cost of constructing plants for the production of butadiene, styrene, acrylonitrile, or olefins and synthetic rubber would range from seventy-five to one hundred million dollars for every 100,000 long tons of yearly synthetic-rubber capacity. A single syntheticrubber plant having a capacity of 20,000 long tons might be erected and equipped in 18 months, but because of the difficulty in obtaining steel and chemical equipment, it appears that from 3 to 5 years would be required to construct and equip sufficient number of plants to supply the rubber requirements of the United States. Priorities would be necessary on steel and chemical equipment for erecting plants. After the war there would be serious readjustments if imports of low-priced crude rubber from the Far East were resumed. Members of the trade think that probably synthetic rubber could be produced in quantity from oil products at a eost of about 25 cents a pound, or perhaps less. The cost of producing crude rubber in the Far East, in the absence of controlled output, is reported at 4 to 10 cents a pound, and since 1931 prices in New York have ranged from 2% to 27 cents a pound. The Government is now purchasing all the crude rubber imported into the United States and is selling it delivered in New York at 221⁄2 cents a pound. Synthetic rubber of the butadiene type was not produced in the United States until 1940, and it is now produced only in negligible quantities. Tire companies have experimented with this rubber and have had considerable difficulty in using it. They have found, however, that they can make fairly good tires by mixing synthetic rubber in equal parts with natural rubber (Hevea or guayule).

Germany is using large quantities of butadiene synthetic rubber (made from coal and limestone rather than from oil products) in the manufacture of tires, but the Germans were 2 years leraning how to use it. The cost of producing synthetic rubber in Germany is reported at about 40 cents a pound. Some passenger-car tires are made exclusively from synthetic rubber in Germany, but the lack of sufficient adhesiveness is understood still to present difficulties in the manufacture of large tires requiring many plies.5

In the manufacture of some tires the Germans use synthetic rubber in the treads, reclaimed Hevea rubber in the side walls and plies, and Hevea rubber in the inner tubes."

Guayule rubber.-Guayule is a rubber-producing, desert shrub which is native to North Central Mexico and the Big Bend area of Texas. In 1912, the year of greatest output, Mexico produced 10,000 long tons of guayule rubber. After 1912 the Mexican output declined, and in 1940 amounted to about 4,000 long tons. Production facilities are being increased and production in 1942 may amount to 7,000 long tons. The entire Mexican production is from wild guayule, and the output is now restricted by the Mexican Government in order to prevent extinction of the shrub. Most of the guayule rubber produced in Mexico is shipped to the United States.

For the past 30 years, the Intercontinental Rubber Co., whose principal business is producing rubber in the Far East and importing rubber, has cultivated guayule at its experiment station near Salinas, Calif., and at scattered points in Arizona and Texas. The company has about 1,000 acres under cultivation at Salinas where it produced about 225 long tons of rubber in 1940. After extensive tests the firm has selected high-yielding, disease-resistant strains of guayule. Also, it has devised special machinery for planting, cultivating, and harvesting the shrub. One machine with a crew of 14 men plants 15 acres in 1 day of 10 hours, 8,020 plants to the acre.

U. S. Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Synthetic Rubbers Hold Unique Place in Industry, June 1941, p. 1.

Germany accumulated a large stock pile of Hevea rubber before the war, and has acquired additional supplies from occupied countries.

Guayule requires little cultivation and an annual rainfall of only 6 to 12 inches, depending upon soil and climate. The climatic and soil conditions of the Salinas and nearby valleys in California have been found especially suitable for growing guayule, but other States in the Southwest also have areas suited to guayule cultivation.

The guayule shrub may be harvested at any time between the ages of 1 and 30 years, the general practice being to harvest it at 4 years. If for any reason it is. desired not to harvest the plant after 4 years, it may be left in the ground and in that way serve as a continually increasing reserve supply of rubber until the plant is 10 years of age. After growing for 10 years, guayule has a tendency to become gnarled. The shrub may be left in the ground for an additional 20 years but without any increase in rubber content. The entire shrub is taken from the ground at the time of the harvest and by a mechanical process the rubber is removed from the roots, stem, and large branches.

The cost of producing guayule rubber depends upon the age at which the plant is harvested. Starting with a cost of about 80 cents per pound of rubber when the plant is harvested at 1 year, the cost decreases for every year that the plant is in the ground until it is 7 years of age. After 7 years the carrying charges, principally interest on investment, exceed the increment in value. It appears that when the plant is harvested at the age of 4 years guayule rubber may be produced at a cost of 15 to 19 cents a pound, including the cost of land rental, preparing the land for planting, and all other costs incidental to producing the rubber, except interest on investment and the cost of deresinating.

Guayule rubber has a resin content of about 20 percent. For this reason underesinated guayule rubber is suitable only for blending with Hevea rubber or for friction stocks (for use in manufacturing tire fabric plies, transmission belts, friction tape, etc). It is especially suited to use in rubberizing tire fabric plies, the production of which is very large. Mr. J. H. Doering of the Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. has written the most authoritative article on the use of underesinated guayule rubber."

After considerable testing, Mr. Doering found that tires made from underesinated guayule rubber give a mileage 60 percent as great as tires made from Hevea ribbed smoked sheet No. 1.

However, when guayule rubber is deresinated it is of the same quality as the lower grades of Hevea rubber and can be used interchangeably with them. It is softer than Hevea ribbed smoked sheet No. 1. Practically all the large tire-manufacturing companies have tested deresinated guayule rubber, and it is reported that tires made from it give approximately 90 percent of the mileage given by tires made from ribbed smoked sheet No. 1. Most of the purchasing agents and research directors of these firms think that the Government should advance funds for the production of guayule rubber.

It appears that if substantial quantities of guayule rubber were deresinated, the cost of deresinating would not exceed 1 or 2 cents a pound. The solvent used in the process can be used several times, and the resins recovered probably could be sold.

The information available indicates that the capital investment for agricultural equipment, nurseries, buildings, maintenance shops, rubber extraction mills, and deresinating factories probably would amount to about $20,000,000 for every 100,000 long tons of yearly productive capacity.

A shortage of planting material limits the quantity of rubber which could be produced from guayule in the next few years. If all the seeds available were planted immediately, there would be only enough seedlings to plant 45,000 acres of guayule shrubs in the spring of 1942. If 45,000 acres were planted in 1942 and harvested in 1943, they would yield a total of only about 1,500 long tons of deresinated rubber. If the 45,000 acres were not harvested until 1944, they would yield approximately 5,400 long tons. If harvested in 1946, they would yield about 21,300 long tons.

In 1943 there could be made available sufficient seedlings to plant 450,000 This acreage might yield 15,000 long tons if harvested in 1944; 54,000

acres.

7J. H. Doering, Firestone Tire & Rubber Co., Guayule Rubber in Tires and TubesService Tests in Which the Rubber was Exclusively Guayule, Industrial and Engineering Chemistry, 1934, vol. 26, p. 541.

8 For comparative purposes, about 650,000 long tons of crude rubber were consumed in 1940 in the United States.