Constantin Krauss

Constantin Krauss (born May 14, 1864 in Eisfeld ; died May 16, 1928 ) was a German chemist and industrialist. Together with Ferdinand Eduard Polzeniusz, he was involved in the optimized production of calcium cyanamide ( calcium cyanamide ) from calcium carbide , which is named after them as the Polzenius (z) -Krauss process . From 1910 until his death he was the plant manager of what is now Knapsack Chemical Park .

Life

Constantin Krauss grew up in Eisfeld and after graduating from high school studied chemistry in Erlangen , Greifswald , Königsberg , Berlin and Jena . During his studies in 1884 he became a member of the Rugia Greifswald fraternity . His doctorate took place in Erlangen.

In 1893 he became an employee of the Farbwerke vorm. Master Lucius & Brüning AG in Höchst , where he was responsible for the production of sulfuric acid as head of the operations . He then went on to work as factory manager for chemical production at the Consolidierte Alkaliwerke in Westeregeln and the later test factory for calcium cyanamide. Here he optimized the Polzenius (z) process to become the Polzenius (z) Krauss process for the production of calcium cyanamide (calcium cyanamide). In October 1910, after the test factory had been closed, he came to the Knapsack site , which the Consolidated Alkali Works were also involved in setting up, and became plant manager of the existing plant for the production of calcium carbide and calcium cyanamide.

During his time in Knapsack, the production of calcium cyanamide was switched to a continuous process. With the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the need for gunpowder , which could be made from calcium cyanamide, grew suddenly - ammonia and nitric acid were used to produce nitrates that could be used for ammunition production. The war raw materials department of the German Empire became the major customer for the location; a new and modern factory for the production of carbide, calcium cyanamide and ammonia was built via a loan of 15 million gold marks by expanding the old plant and adding a new plant with a power station and 6 new ones Furnaces was rebuilt. In this new plant, 450 t calcium cyanamide per day or 150,000 t per year could be produced in 14 sewer ovens. In 1915/1916, 55,000 tonnes of ammonia water were produced in 40 autoclaves and in 1916 the nitrogen production was switched to a new system for air liquefaction using the Linde process .

In the years 1916 to 1918 the Farbwerke acquired vorm. Meister Lucius & Brüning AG, the later Hoechst AG, the majority of shares in the Aktiengesellschaft für Nitrogen fertilizer and thus secured the carbide supply for the production of acetylene , with which the Knapsack location became part of the Farbwerke. Krauss also remained plant manager under the new owners of the plants and organized the further expansion of the plants for the production of acetic acid , acetone and aldehydes . In the 1920s there were further changes in carbide production, and ferrosilicon was also produced since 1922 . A number of social developments at the location also fall during his term of office, including the establishment of the plant fire brigade and the establishment of the civil servants 'and workers' benefit fund, the introduction of a pension fund and the award of annual bonuses to the workforce.

Appreciation

Dr. Krauss Street

According to Constantin Krauss, the method he optimized for carbide production was called the Polzenius (z) -Krauss method . In Hürth-Knapsack there is also a street after him as Dr. Named Krauss Strasse .

literature

• Helmut Neßeler: 100 years of Knapsack chemical site, published by InfraServ GmbH & Co. Knapsack KG, 2007; P. 22.
• Horst-Dieter Schüddemage, Werner Pieper: Knapsack Chemie - From the carbide factory to the chemical park. Klartext-Verlag, Essen 2002; Pp. 3489-349 (Chronicle). ISBN 3-89861-097-7

Individual evidence

1. ^ Hugo Böttger (ed.): Directory of the old fraternity members according to the status of the winter semester 1911/12. Berlin 1912, p. 110.