Chapter 111 Soap and Matches
"Going to Qiongzhou Fucheng? Are you alone?" Tao Donglai asked in shock. Although it was only a matter of time before someone was sent to Qiongzhou City in the north of Hainan Island to inquire about the situation, it was not urgent for the Crossing Group, so the executive committee had not been in a hurry to arrange the matter. Unexpectedly, He Xi took the initiative to bring it up.
"Mr. Tao, don't be nervous. I don't plan to stay there permanently. I just followed Shopkeeper Zhang to check out the situation. I also paid a visit to the boss of 'Anfuxing' to see how strong this business is. " He Xi thought for a while and then added: "Isn't the executive committee planning to buy a boat? I think you should have discussed this matter with the two shopkeepers this afternoon. I can come and take a look at the boat first. quality, let’s discuss the price.”
Tao Donglai thought for a while, nodded slowly and said: "We have to send people there sooner or later. You might as well go and set up a front station first. By the way, we will also hire some boatmen and sailors there. The salary can be relaxed appropriately. Once the boat is bought, , the plan to open a separate mine will be launched as soon as possible.”
Now it was He Xi's turn to be surprised: "So fast? No one has ever taken this route before. Isn't it too risky?"
"We have arranged for North America to help those two ships go to Hongji Port for on-site survey. When they come back, we will start to formally prepare materials and manpower." Tao Donglai sighed and said: "The material consumption in the early stage of development is estimated It will be a big event, and the preparation work in all aspects is also very complicated. It can be said that it is a miniature version of the Victory Port landing! You can also help to check the market conditions outside. If you feel there are any business opportunities, please report back to the base camp in time. "
He Xi nodded and said: "Speaking of this, I really have some suggestions. The products we sell now, except for salt, are luxury goods, and the development of the daily necessities market is completely blank. Should we consider using the existing conditions to develop Are some daily necessities with small profits but quick turnover coming out?”
Tao Donglai said: "Your suggestion coincides with the plan of the executive committee. We just talked about this matter when we held a meeting yesterday. However, we do not have the conditions to produce many daily necessities on a large scale. We can only It is done step by step and often requires the coordination of multiple departments. It cannot be done immediately if you understand the production process. ”
He Xi was intrigued by Tao Donglai's words and quickly asked: "Tell me first, what products are you going to develop and put on the market next?"
Tao Donglai raised two fingers and said: "One is soap, and the other is matches."
Soap is nothing new historically. The Romans had already begun primitive soap production as early as the 2nd century AD, using animal fat and plant ash to make soap. The Chinese have a long history of making soap. By the Southern Song Dynasty, the term "soap" had clearly appeared in books at that time.
Li Shizhen's "Compendium of Materia Medica" clearly records the soap making method, and "Renzhai Zhizhi" written by Yang Shiying of the Song Dynasty also has very detailed soap making recipes. "Jasmine soap" was mentioned in "Jin Ping Mei". From the perspective of future generations, it should be regarded as a relatively primitive soap. Li Yu, a native of the Qing Dynasty, recorded in his book "The Occasions of Leisure": "The fragrance of a good soap will last for a long time after taking a bath." There is also a description of Jia Baoyu's use of soap in the classic "A Dream of Red Mansions".
However, the soap used by the Chinese is still very different from the soap soap that is seen daily in later generations. The production efficiency and decontamination ability are far inferior to the latter. It is very common among the people. There is no doubt that soap even in this comparison In the primitive era, it was still a daily necessity with huge market potential.
However, the department that first proposed the production of soap at the Executive Committee was not the Ministry of Chemical Industry or the Ministry of Commerce, but the Ministry of Military and Police. The military and police department proposed this plan not out of economic considerations. Their purpose was quite clear, which was to obtain the by-product glycerol, commonly known as glycerin, through the production of soap. In addition to its wide range of uses in medicine, printing and dyeing, food, paper and other industries, glycerin also plays a very important role in the production of nitroglycerin, the main ingredient in the safety explosive invented by the Swedish scientist Nobel in the 19th century.
Of course, to make nitroglycerin explosives, glycerin alone is not enough. Sulfuric acid and nitric acid are also indispensable. And even if there are detailed formulas and production processes in the large database, mass production of explosives is still extremely dangerous. Things cannot be accomplished overnight. The development process required is many times more complicated than the boring text descriptions in the database. It may take several years before glycerol can be truly used in the military field. When the Military and Police Ministry proposed this plan, they did not expect to be able to produce yellow explosives in a short time. They just wanted to use it as a pre-research project for future military technology. But in any case, the manufacture of soap or toilet soap is indeed a project with good market prospects, and it is not too difficult to put into production.
Sanya is rich in coconut resources. The metallurgical workshop has produced a set of oil extraction equipment in accordance with the requirements of the Executive Committee. The next step is to build a small oil extraction workshop to specialize in the production of coconut oil. When the oil palms planted in large areas by the Ministry of Agriculture start to bear fruit in two or three years, then some palm oil can be supplemented, and there is no need to worry about the supply of oils used in soap making. Caustic soda, another material needed for making soap, can be produced by the simple method of electrolyzing salt water until the hydropower station is put into use. From a technological perspective alone, there are no obvious technical obstacles to large-scale soap production.
After the Executive Committee approved the soap production plan, the Ministry of Chemical Industry immediately proposed a match production plan. Their reason is simple, that is, all the materials needed to prepare matches are already available, and there is no reason not to produce such a daily necessity - even if they are not sold, they will use it sooner or later.
The raw materials for making matches are not complicated. They are mainly potassium chlorate, manganese dioxide, sulfur and other substances on the match head, as well as the firing surface coated with red phosphorus. As early as the beginning of the crossing, when the executive committee organized a working team to visit Lidong, it had already discovered the Damao phosphorus manganese mine located in the inland area. The phosphate ore reserves here are nearly 10 million tons, and the manganese ore reserves are also over one million tons. Sufficient to support the production needs of the crossing group.
However, due to current traffic conditions, only small-scale mining can be carried out, and then the Li people will carry the ore to the mineral processing plant in Tiandu for deep processing. It is only possible to open a mineral processing plant near the mining site when conditions are mature. Improve mining efficiency. However, even with the current production efficiency, it is more than enough to meet the supply of manganese and phosphorus required for the production of matches.
As for sulfur, we still mainly rely on imports, but the supply is quite sufficient, and it is even easier to buy than coal. After all, sulfur is not a necessity of life, and the market will not be as tight as coal.
The most troublesome thing is potassium chlorate, which requires first using potassium-rich raw materials such as plant ash, saltpeter or alum to prepare potassium salt, and then going through a series of chemical reactions to make potassium chlorate. Judging from the current production level of the chemical industry sector, it is not possible to manufacture potassium chlorate on a large scale for the time being, which may become a technical bottleneck limiting match production.
Of course, there are still some minor issues that need to be resolved one by one, such as the location of the future explosives workshop. Such a dangerous place cannot be placed in a densely populated area. Even a laboratory for pre-research of explosives must be built in a relatively remote area. Mountainous areas. In the end, the Executive Committee found a hillside near the Tiandu Iron Mine, and next to what would later be known as the Songhe Reservoir, and allocated a piece of land for the Military and Police Department to serve as a future ordnance research and development institute. This place is far away from the residential area. Even if it explodes, it will not damage the No. 2 base and some major production workshops. There is a mountain lake next to it. If there is a fire, you can get water nearby to put out the fire.
In addition, the packaging of matches has also led to the demand for papermaking. Although a large amount of paper brought by the public has not been used so far, and many occasions still rely on laptops and tablets for paperless office, but we must prepare for a rainy day. Sooner or later, the future Still have to rely on pen and paper. What's more, the uses of paper are far more than that. If all the toilet paper in the reserve is used up, do we really have to use bamboo blades and blades of grass to wipe our butts? Therefore, in addition to approving the match production project, the Executive Committee also included the construction of the papermaking workshop in the next batch of construction project list of the Ministry of Construction.
Early the next morning, He Xi left Victory Port on the merchant ship "An Fuxing". He was going to Qiongzhou City in the north of Hainan Island, which was later known as Haikou City. There is now the seat of the entire Qiongzhou Island, and all aspects of materials and information are richer than in Yazhou. For the business that He Xi is engaged in, it is undoubtedly a better stage than Yazhou.
Another merchant ship, the "Fu Ruifeng", set off an hour late. This was because Shopkeeper Li got Schneider's instructions and deliberately delayed the time. After the "Anfuxing" ship set off, Schneider took shopkeeper Li to the warehouse to receive another batch of goods unknown to his competitors - one thousand kilograms of refined salt.
Schneider does not intend to support a second local dealer besides Luo Shengdong in Hainan Island. This is not only to take care of Luo Shengdong's interests, but also to avoid competition between the two dealers in the local market. . Luo Shengdong had both ships and soldiers at hand, so it was just right for him to start a private salt business locally. Developing an additional dealer would actually be a disguised waste of resources. The situation of "Fu Ruifeng" is different. The roots of this trading company are in Guangzhou. If we can use this relationship to sell the private salt produced by Chuan Chuan Group to the mainland, then it will open the door to the private salt business. Really opened up.
(End of chapter)