1. A COMPOSITION FOR GELLING HYDROCARBONS CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A SUSPENSION OF AN ALUMINUM SALT OF A SINGLE FATTY ACID CONTAINING FROM 6 TO 12 CARBON ATOMS IN A LIQUID SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF: ISOPROPANOL, BUTYL ACETATE, ISOPROPANOL CONTAINING FROM ONE TO 2.5 PERCENT ETHYL CELLULOSE, MIXTURES OF ISOPROPANOL AND ETHYLENE CHLORIDE, MIXTURES OF ISOPROPANOL AND ETHYLENE GLYCOL, MIXTURES OF ISOPROPANOL AND CARBON DISULFIDE, MIXTURES OF ISOPROPANOL AND NITROBENZENE, MIXTURES OF BUTYL ACETATE AND ETHYLENE CHLORIDE, MIXTURES OF N-BUTANOL AND ETHYLENE CHLORIDE, AND MIXTURES OF ETHYLENE GLYCOL AND HEXYLENE GLYCOL, EACH OF THE COMPONENTS OF EACH OF SAID MIXTURES BEING PRESENT IN SUBSTANTIAL PROPORTIONS, SUCH THAT THE SOLID CONTENT OF SAID COMPOSITION LIES IN THE RANGE 10-40 PERCENT BY WEIGHT.