Ammonium Sulphate, Naphthalene and Benzene
Dr. Shimomura was one of the eariest workers on ammonium sulphate to produce it on a large scale and put it on the market as a fertilizer in the days when its superiority to sodium nitrate in Japanese soils was not very well recognized. He was not an expert in tar distillation and was among the first to produce naphthalene in powder, balls and cakes at a time when its smell was objected to as something unbearable.
He was the first to put up a plant to extract benzene from coke-oven gas, when it was thought that it would not sell. This fear was subsequently contradicted by increased demand for benzene as solvent, motor oil and also as an important raw material for dyestuffs. In the time of the world war, Japan was amply provided with benzene obtained from coke-oven gas to make the manufacture of dyestuffs independent of foreign supply.
Read more about this topic: Kotaro Shimomura