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Britannia Creek Wood Distillation Plant
The Britannia Creek wood distillation plant was the only commercial undertaking of its type in Australia. It formed part of the Cumming, Smith and Company and operated about 80 km east of Melbourne in the foothills of the Yarra Ranges between 1907 and 1924. Background The plant grew out of turbulent times in the late 1880s when the State of Victoria and its capital Melbourne was experiencing an unprecedented land boom. Pastoral development, particularly in western Victoria created a big demand for fertilizers and various other chemicals which at the time were all imported. Later during the 1890s, Australia suffered a major economic depression which multiplied the costs of imported chemicals and bulky fertilizers. Rationalising of Victoria's fledgling fertilizer industry followed with many company closures and some amalgamations. Cumming, Smith and Co survived and seized the opportunity to investigate producing chemicals using wood waste left behind after forest harves ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chloroform
Chloroform, or trichloromethane, is an organic compound with chemical formula, formula Carbon, CHydrogen, HChlorine, Cl3 and a common organic solvent. It is a colorless, strong-smelling, dense liquid produced on a large scale as a precursor to PTFE. It is also a precursor to various refrigerants. It is trihalomethane. It is a powerful anesthetic, euphoriant, anxiolytic, and sedative when inhaled or ingested. Structure The molecule adopts a tetrahedral molecular geometry with C3v symmetry group, symmetry. Natural occurrence The total global flux of chloroform through the environment is approximately tonnes per year, and about 90% of emissions are natural in origin. Many kinds of seaweed produce chloroform, and fungi are believed to produce chloroform in soil. Abiotic processes are also believed to contribute to natural chloroform productions in soils although the mechanism is still unclear. Chloroform volatilizes readily from soil and surface water and undergoes degradation in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wundowie Charcoal Iron And Wood Distillation Plant
The Wundowie charcoal iron and wood distillation plant manufactured pig iron between 1948 and 1981 and wood distillation products between 1950 and 1977, at Wundowie, Western Australia. Originally a state-owned enterprise, it seems not to have been incorporated as a company, during the time it was known as the Charcoal Iron and Steel Industry. At its greatest extent, the plant comprised two blast furnaces, a metal foundry, sawmill, retorts for charcoal production, a power plant, and a refinery for wood distillation products. The planned garden town of Wundowie, approximately east of Perth by road and west of Northam, was built to provide accommodation for the workers of the plant. From 1966, the plant was privately managed by Australian National Industries, and its workers became employees of that company. The plant was sold by the government in 1974 to Agnew-Clough Ltd. Production of iron ceased in 1981. The foundry continued in operation, under several different owners, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Britannia Park (Girl Guides Victoria)
Britannia Park is a campsite belonging to Girl Guides Victoria. It is located near Yarra Junction in Victoria, Australia. It is 72 km east of Melbourne. The site covers 42 acres (approx 10 hectares), although the original purchase was smaller. The site had originally been part of the Britannia Creek Wood Distillation Plant. Fundraising to buy the site began in 1934 and continued until 1938. Helen Storrow contributed £100. A competition was held for a typically Australian round, to be sold to raise funds. The winning song, Kookaburra, by Marion Sinclair, was sung at the 1934 Scout Jamboree in the presence of Lord and Lady Baden-Powell. The opening ceremony was planned to be held in January 1939, with Lord Hampton representing Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Guiding worldwide. Bushfires in Victoria made this impossible, and the event was rescheduled for September 1939. The outbreak of World War II forced the cancellation of the ceremony entirely. Despite this, the f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1925–26 Victorian Bushfire Season
A series of major bushfires occurred between 26 January and 10 March 1926 in the state of Victoria in Australia. A total of 60 people were killed with 700 injured, and 1000 buildings and 390,000 ha were destroyed across the south-east of the state. On 14 February, later referred to as Black Sunday, bushfires swept across Gippsland, the Yarra Valley, the Dandenong Ranges and the Kinglake area. The fires had originated in forest areas on 26 January, but wind gusts of up to 97 km per hour led to the joining of the fire fronts on 14 February. In the Warburton area, 31 deaths were recorded including 14 at Wooley's Mill in Gilderoy, 6 at Big Pats Creek and 2 at Powelltown. Other affected settlements included Noojee, Erica and Kinglake, where St Mary's Church and Thompson's Hotel were amongst the buildings destroyed. References {{DEFAULTSORT:Victorian Bushfire Season 1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gembrook, Victoria
Gembrook is a town in Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Cardinia local government area. Gembrook recorded a population of 2,559 at the 2021 census. Gembrook is a popular destination for the residents of Melbourne as it is less than 1.5 hours drive from the city centre. History Gembrook was settled in 1873 for farming and timber; the surrounding countryside was suitable for both dairy and orchards. Timber provided income while farms were established. The name Gembrook came from the small gems that were found in small creeks and watercourses in the surrounding area. The Post Office opened on 5 October 1877. Puffing Billy railway The Gembrook railway line was opened from Upper Ferntree Gully on 18 December 1900. The narrow gauge line, these days known as Puffing Billy, brought tourists from Melbourne, as well as enabling timber and local produce, including fruit trees and potatoes, to be taken back to Mel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kurth Kiln
Kurth Kiln was established by the Forests Commission Victoria in 1941 on a site about 7 km north of Gembrook on the Tomahawk Creek. Dr Ernest Edgar Kurth from the University of Tasmania was commissioned to design the kiln with the aim of mass-producing charcoal as an alternative fuel in the response to war-time petrol rationing. Gembrook was selected as the ideal site for the Kurth Kiln because it fully met three essential criteria required for successful operation; # Water - the kiln required 2000 gallons (9,100 litres) of water per day in order for its cooling systems to be effective. # Wood - the kiln burnt about 28 cords (~100 cubic metres) of wood per week. # Gradient - sloping land enabled easier top loading of wood into the kiln. Dr Kurth was paid £5 for the use of his patented design (No 2563/41) and the total cost of establishing the kiln was 1,799 pounds 17 shillings and 2 pence. The kiln commenced operation in March 1942 but transport difficulties combined wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Latrobe Valley
The Latrobe Valley is an inland geographical district and urban area of the Gippsland region in the state of Victoria, Australia. The traditional owners are the Brayakaulung of the Gunai nation. The district lies east of Melbourne and nestled between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Baw Baw Ranges, part of the Great Dividing Range, to the north. Mount St Phillack () is the highest peak to the north of the Latrobe Valley, due north of Moe. The highest peak to the south is Mt Tassie (), south of Traralgon. The area has three major centres, from west to east, , Morwell and Traralgon, with minor centres including , , , and . The population of the Latrobe Valley is approximately 125,000. The valley draws its name from the Latrobe River which flows eastward, through the valley. According to Les Blake, in 1841 William Adams Brodribb, an early settler, named the river in honour of Charles La Trobe, Lieutenant Governor of the Port Phillip District. A. W. Reed also attr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warburton Railway Line
The Warburton railway line just outside Melbourne, Australia, was a railway branching off from the Healesville line at the present terminus, Lilydale. History The route between Lilydale and Warburton was originally proposed to be built as one of four experimental narrow gauge lines, but the recommendation was not accepted and the Warburton line opened as a railway on Wednesday, 13 November 1901. The line from Lilydale to Warburton was slightly over long. The last train ran on Sunday, 1 August 1965, although the official closure was on 29 July 1965. Services Throughout its life the Warburton line had both passenger and goods services (passenger services generally running as a shuttle between Lilydale and Warburton stations), although passenger services dwindled during the later years. Current status Although the track was dismantled in the 1970s, the Warburton line right-of-way is intact, except for a short section leased to Mount Lilydale Mercy College. All the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Denatured Alcohol
Denatured alcohol (also called methylated spirits in Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the United Kingdom; wood spirit; and denatured rectified spirit) is ethanol that has additives to make it poisonous, bad-tasting, foul-smelling, or nauseating to discourage its recreational consumption. It is sometimes dyed so that it can be identified visually. Pyridine and methanol, each and together, make denatured alcohol poisonous; and denatonium makes it bitter. Denatured alcohol is used as a solvent and as fuel for alcohol burners and camping stoves. Because of the diversity of industrial uses for denatured alcohol, hundreds of additives and denaturing methods have been used. The main additive usually is 10% methanol (methyl alcohol), hence the name ''methylated spirits''. Other common additives include isopropyl alcohol, acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, and methyl isobutyl ketone. Denatured alcohol blends average 60 to 90% ethanol. Denaturing alcohol does not ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anesthetic
An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; see spelling differences) is a drug used to induce anesthesia — in other words, to result in a temporary loss of sensation or awareness. They may be divided into two broad classes: general anesthetics, which result in a reversible loss of consciousness, and local anesthetics, which cause a reversible loss of sensation for a limited region of the body without necessarily affecting consciousness. A wide variety of drugs are used in modern anesthetic practice. Many are rarely used outside anesthesiology, but others are used commonly in various fields of healthcare. Combinations of anesthetics are sometimes used for their synergistic and additive therapeutic effects. Adverse effects, however, may also be increased. Anesthetics are distinct from analgesics, which block only sensation of painful stimuli. Local anesthetics Local anesthetic agents prevent the transmission of nerve impulses without causi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Celluloid
Celluloids are a class of materials produced by mixing nitrocellulose and camphor, often with added dyes and other agents. Once much more common for its use as photographic film before the advent of safer methods, celluloid's common contemporary uses are table tennis balls, musical instruments, combs, office equipment, and guitar picks. History Nitrocellulose Nitrocellulose-based plastics slightly predate celluloid. Collodion, invented in 1848 and used as a wound dressing and an emulsion for photographic plates, is dried to a celluloid like film. Alexander Parkes The first celluloid as a bulk material for forming objects was made in 1855 in Birmingham, England, by Alexander Parkes, who was never able to see his invention reach full fruition, after his firm went bankrupt due to scale-up costs. Parkes patented his discovery as Parkesine in 1862 after realising a solid residue remained after evaporation of the solvent from photographic collodion. Parkes patented it as a clothi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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