Sulfuric Acid Index of Production Follows Industrial Activity

SULFURIC acid production in the United States has followed closely the trend of gross national product and national income for a number of years. The Chemicals and Drugs Section, Office of Domestic Commerce, for some time has been working on the relationships between the production of sulfuric acid and several indicators of industrial activity such as the gross national product, national income, and various Federal Reserve Board indexes. Some work has also been done on the relationship of soda ash and caustic soda to these indicators. Although the task of developing indexes for sulfuric acid and alkalies is far from finished because of difficulties of interpretation, necessary data are being correlated and the job is under way. Meanwhile, it is felt that information thus far developed may aid manufacturers in their estimates of future demands for chemicals. Steps leading to the discovery of the relationship between sulfuric acid and gross national product are of ...