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By F. B. Plummer

GEOLOGICAL engineering as applied to oil fields, or production geology as some prefer to designate the profession, is designed to fill in the border line between pure geology and pure petroleum engineering. Therefore the production geologist may, and frequently does, reach out to grasp much in both professions. Where once the oil geologist was content to pick samples out of a mud ditch and try to identify oil formations from the color or appearance of flakes of rock bailed out of a well, now he has to deal with graphic electrical logs obtained by intricate and highly technical electrical apparatus and to make exact determinations to the fraction of an inch of the depth and thickness of an oil sand 2 miles below the surface.

Jan 1, 1944

By Alfred H. Bell, George V. Cohee

Illinois produced 146,788,000 bbl. of oil in 1940, or nearly 11.0 per cent of the total for the United States, and ranked fourth among the oil-producing states. Its production was only slightly less than that of Oklahoma, which produced 11.5 per cent of the national total. Illinois' production in 1940 represents an increase of 55 per cent over the previous year, when it amounted to 94,912,000 barrels. The development of the Devonian limestone in the Salem and Centralia fields is largely responsible for the increase in production during 1940 Production from the Devonian limestone in these two fields was estimated to be 36,698,000 bbl., or 25 per cent of the state's total production (Table I). The increase in production during June, when the state's daily average production attained a peak of 518,200 bbl. for the week ending June 29, was due to the Devonian production at Centralia (Fig. I). The initial production of the best Devonian wells in the Centralia field was as high as 12,000 bbl. in 24 hr. Daily average production in IIIinois for 1940 was 400,000 bbl. of oil, but actually daily production fluctuated widely during the year. At the beginning of 1940 daily production was approximately 330,000 bbl. During the first hali of the year it in-creased irregularly to the peak in June mentioned above and as the prolific Devonian producing areas were drilled up, the state's daily production declined rapidly during July and continued to decline, although more slowly, until the end of the year, when the daily production was approximately 325,000 bbl. The daily average production per well in the new fields at the end of the year was approximately 40 bbl. (Fig. I). Oil from the Devonian was also produced in the Bartelso field, Clinton County, the Sandoval field, Marion County, and the Irvington field, Washington County, bringing the estimated total production from the Devonian limestone to about 26 per cent of the state's total production, The remainder was obtained largely from the Mississippian system. About 2 per cent of the total was from Pennsylvanian and Ordovician strata. The decline in the Devonian limestone production has been so rapid that the 1941 output from this system will probably be only a small fraction of that of 1940 unless large new reserves are discovered. The "Trenton" (Ordovician) limestone has been tested in two wells in the Centralia field and both were small oil producers at a depth of about 4000 it. The "Trenton" also was found productive in the Salem field at a depth of 4500 ft. (Table 5). The initial production of the discovery well, which was completed shortly after the end of the year, was 130 bbl. on pump. Other wells drilled early in 1941 had initial productions averaging 172 barrels. The outlook for 1941 is for a continuation of drilling activity in Illinois, but at a declining rate (Fig. I, upper curve). The most active area at the end of 1940 was in the deep basin area in Wabash, Edwards, White, and Hamilton Counties.

Jan 1, 1941

By Alfred H. Bell, George V. Cohee

Illinois produced 146,788,000 bbl. of oil in 1940, or nearly 11.0 per cent of the total for the United States, and ranked fourth among the oil-producing states. Its production was only slightly less than that of Oklahoma, which produced 11.5 per cent of the national total. Illinois' production in 1940 represents an increase of 55 per cent over the previous year, when it amounted to 94,912,000 barrels. The development of the Devonian limestone in the Salem and Centralia fields is largely responsible for the increase in production during 1940 Production from the Devonian limestone in these two fields was estimated to be 36,698,000 bbl., or 25 per cent of the state's total production (Table I). The increase in production during June, when the state's daily average production attained a peak of 518,200 bbl. for the week ending June 29, was due to the Devonian production at Centralia (Fig. I). The initial production of the best Devonian wells in the Centralia field was as high as 12,000 bbl. in 24 hr. Daily average production in IIIinois for 1940 was 400,000 bbl. of oil, but actually daily production fluctuated widely during the year. At the beginning of 1940 daily production was approximately 330,000 bbl. During the first hali of the year it in-creased irregularly to the peak in June mentioned above and as the prolific Devonian producing areas were drilled up, the state's daily production declined rapidly during July and continued to decline, although more slowly, until the end of the year, when the daily production was approximately 325,000 bbl. The daily average production per well in the new fields at the end of the year was approximately 40 bbl. (Fig. I). Oil from the Devonian was also produced in the Bartelso field, Clinton County, the Sandoval field, Marion County, and the Irvington field, Washington County, bringing the estimated total production from the Devonian limestone to about 26 per cent of the state's total production, The remainder was obtained largely from the Mississippian system. About 2 per cent of the total was from Pennsylvanian and Ordovician strata. The decline in the Devonian limestone production has been so rapid that the 1941 output from this system will probably be only a small fraction of that of 1940 unless large new reserves are discovered. The "Trenton" (Ordovician) limestone has been tested in two wells in the Centralia field and both were small oil producers at a depth of about 4000 it. The "Trenton" also was found productive in the Salem field at a depth of 4500 ft. (Table 5). The initial production of the discovery well, which was completed shortly after the end of the year, was 130 bbl. on pump. Other wells drilled early in 1941 had initial productions averaging 172 barrels. The outlook for 1941 is for a continuation of drilling activity in Illinois, but at a declining rate (Fig. I, upper curve). The most active area at the end of 1940 was in the deep basin area in Wabash, Edwards, White, and Hamilton Counties.

Jan 1, 1941

By R. G. Ward, A. E. El-Mehairy

A technique was developed to calculate the density of liquid metals from the profile of a weighed levitated drop obtained by emitted light photography and calibration. The density of liquid copper was determined over the temperature range 1370" to 2100°K and expressed with the equation: The molar volumes and thermal coefficients of expansion are calculated. Copper, upon melting, was found to expand 3.34 pct. A knowledge of the density of liquid metals is essential as it is a parameter appearing in most theories of the liquid state. The liquid density is also necessary for the calculation of the commercially important contraction occurring on solidification. Unfortunately good density values are rarely available and the present work was undertaken to establish a new method of density determination free from the limitations of the existing methods. For liquid metals with high melting points, the variation and the limited number of density values reported in the literature have been caused primarily by difficulties in technique, a matter which has been adequately discussed by Urbain.' In all the methods used for measuring the density of the high-melting liquid metals there are sources of error, and corrections have to be made. For example, in the method of balanced columns, the formation of gas bubbles in one or both arms was a great source of error. In the pyknometer3 and immersed-sinker methods, corrections of certain volumes for thermal expansion to the operating temperature exceed 4 pct. In the maximum-bubble method5 a correction for the thermal expansion of the bubble-tube is used (about 1.6 pct); a second correction takes into account the change in the volume of liquid displaced by the bubble-tube (about 3.5 pct). Another method used is based on the shape of a drop of liquid, at rest on an inert refractory plaque, obtained photographically or radiographi-cally. The volume is calculated from the shape, which is sensitive to the surface tension and supporting material, by some intricate empirical relation. The drop contour changes with 90 deg rotation of the support.7 The application of all methods is limited by reaction between liquid metal and the apparatus. The successful stabilization of a mass of liquid metal during levitation melting8 afforded a technique for measuring the density of liquid metals out of contact with solid materials. The technique was developed by using copper as the density of liquid copper has already been studied extensively, thus allowing comparison with the new method. It consists of calculating the volume from the dimensioned profile of the levitated drop obtained by emitted-light photography and careful calibration. The molten egg-shaped drop spins around the magnetic axis of the coil (lined vertically) at a speed which seems to increase with increasing temperature. The method does not involve corrections and the experimental setup allows the use of vacuum or special atmospheres. The maximum operating temperature is limited by excessive evaporation of metal from the droplet. EXPERIMENTAL Levitating System. A stabilizing ring was used in conjunction with a 3-turn levitating coil energized by a 450-kc per sec, 10-kw Toccotron with a high current-low voltage output stabilized to f 1 pet.' APyrex glass tube with a Pyrex Optical flat window inserted through the coil and ring allowed the use of special atmospheres during levitation melting, as shown in Fig. 1. Optical System. Fig. 1 shows the optical arrangement used to photograph the profiles of the drop, parallel and perpendicular to the vertical spinning axis, simultaneously on the same frame of a high-speed 35-mm film. The optical system was adjusted to avoid any distortion of the profiles and to ensure that both profiles are in focus. The length of path from object to objective was about 30 cm, and a magnification factor close to 1 was obtained with the single-lens reflex-camera system. Temperature Measurement and Control. In operation, the specimen temperature was constant to 5 C for a fixed power input to the levitating coil and fixed rate of gas flow through the tube. The temperature was measured by an automatic two-color pyrometer (Coloratio) checked at the melting

Jan 1, 1963

By Carleton Ellis

(Presented at a meeting of the New York Local Section of the Institute, Apr. 12, 1912.) I. INTRODUCTION. THE problem of the influence of hot surfaces upon gaseous combustion is one which, from a purely scientific stand-point, has engaged, for many years past, the attention of Prof. William A. Bone, of Leeds University and the Imperial College, London; and as his recent work has been the direct outcome of earlier scientific investigation, it will be appropriate, by way of introduction, to review briefly the present position of science with respect to this important subject, as stated by Professor Bone. One may perhaps best arrive at an understanding of the term " ?flameless " or " surface " combustion by considering certain facts which differentiate it from the more familiar processes of combustion as they occur in ordinary flames. All hot surfaces have an accelerating influence upon chemical changes in gaseous systems. If, at any temperature, a gaseous system, A, tends to pass over into another system, B, contact with a solid at the same temperature will accelerate the process. To take a very simple example, if a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen in their combining proportions (electrolytic gas) were maintained in an inclosure with smooth glass walls at a temperature of, say, 450° C., there would certainly be a tendency to form steam, but the rate of change would be negligibly small. If, however, there were brought into the system some porous solid material at the same temperature, so that a large surface was exposed to the gases, the rate of change would at once be rapidly accelerated in the layer of gas immediately in contact with the hot surface. Steam, the product, would diffuse outward from the surface, and the supplies of hydrogen and oxygen at the surface would be renewed by diffusion inward. Thus combustion would proceed heterogene-

Sep 1, 1912

By AIME AIME

IN ORDER to carry on its work most effectively, the Committee on Industrial Organization (now known as the Committee on Industrial Relations) consists, of .a number of sub-committees, each composed of a chairman and members who are especially fitted to carry out the work designated by its title. With only one or two exceptions, all of these committees made reports at the New York meeting of the Institute, in February of this year, abstracts of which follow.

Jan 1, 1920

By S. A., Taylor

IT is very difficult to arrive at exact figures for the cost of maintaining excess capacity of coal mines, but we can approximate the various items. To do this, I will take the Pittsburgh district of Pennsylvania and the other districts can be compared to this one. I believe we can take the depreciation item of plant ac- count as a whole and discount it over a period of 20 years; while this is high for some items it is low for others and I believe it is not far from a safe basis. This equals 5 per cent per year, and this depreciation will take place about as rapidly when not in use as when in operation. A fair value in the Pittsburgh district to- day for plant and houses is close to $4 per ton per annum. At 5 per cent this will equal 20 cents per ton per year. The item of keeping the mine in condition, free from water, etc., will be close to an average of 2y2 cents per ton per annum.

Jan 1, 1928

By Joseph E. Pogue

FOR a number of years the petroleum department of The Chase National Bank has been making a continuing study of the financial aspects of thirty oil companies. (See Pogue and Coqueron, "Financial Analysis of Thirty Oil Companies," pamphlet, The Chase National Bank, November 1945, for data covering eleven years, 1934-1944, and the list of the companies making up the group. See also "Capital Employed in the Petroleum Industry," by the same authors, M&M, November 1944.1 This group represents a large sample of theAmerican petroleum industry, covering about two thirds of the business. Certain aspects of this study concern the capital employed in crude oil production, the main features of which arc presented in this paper.

Jan 1, 1946

By James E. Harding

AT just about the geographical center of the peninsula of Lower California is the El Arco gold mine. It is small and spotty, and three separate attempts to operate it in the past have failed. The only reason the present operation is possible is because of the higher price of gold and because the previous operators had spent about $300,000 developing the property with shafts, four levels, machinery, and a complete mill, all of which was acquired at a bargain price. All the known ore in the mine, to say nothing of the cost of recovering it, is

Jan 1, 1937

By J. G. EVANS

It is with a certain amount of trepidation that a man considers gathering his family of six, traveling across a continent, two oceans and a sea, and going to live in a foreign land. But "pioneering" is still possible, and a nation is "foreign" only until one has lived in it. We've had eight years of pleasant experiences in South Africa on which to base that contention. It was in January 1938 that my brother first extolled the virtues of South Africa to us, and just three months and a thousand small problems later my wife, two daughters, three sons and I were boarding a ship in New York, bound for Cape- town. We arrived in May, and within a week had found a furnished home with beautiful lawns, tennis, court, a garden, and everything needed for family comfort. The children were soon located in school, and I settled down to the task of entering the importing business, as had been my original intention. The importing business started out slowly but was coming along nicely when on Sept. 3, 1939 the war started in Europe and a declaration of war by the Union of South Africa was made on the following day. With the declaration came import and export controls. In fact we were controlled completely out of business in one stroke. Liquidating the business, I went to Johannesburg intending to find work in one of the mines. Government health and safety regulations require that all underground mine employees have a red ticket from the Miners Phthisis Bureau certifying that they are not susceptible to silicosis, the scourge of the Witwatersrand gold mining industry. I made application to the Bureau, completed a form covering my whole past life, and was given a complete physical examination. The following day I was startled to find that I had not only been refused a red ticket but had been classified with a green ticket which for- ever bars one from working underground in any scheduled mine in the country, and all this in spite

Jan 1, 1949

By Cleveland Dodge

THE present organization of Copper Queen employ-ees, known as the Employees' Conference Com-mittee, is really an outgrowth of the former Grievance Committee, which, in turn, had developed from the original Hospital Committee. The relatively small membership of these older organizations, the practical limitation of their activities to the presenting of grievances, and their lack of initiating powers, were the principal defects which the plan now in operation seeks to overcome. A somewhat parallel scheme was instituted in our Sacramento Hill division about four years ago; this gradually developed into the Ways and Means Committee, which, in addition to providing a forum for the discussion of operating problems, was instrumental in establishing an excellent and mutually satisfactory bonus system. Before recommending adoption of the plan now in force, we made extensive inquiries among those who have had any experience in such matters, and ended by proposing a modification of a scheme developed by John Leitch,1 which was characterized by its similarity to the constitution of the Federal Government. As finally remodeled, the. plan was submitted to vote of the entire working forces at the Copper Queen mines, and was adopted by them in May, 1920. Mining opera-tions since that date have been so interrupted that it is scarcely possible to state exactly what the results have been. The following quotations are from a printed pamphlet containing the constitution of the organization, as finally adopted. The first extract is from a letter addressed by the management to the employees: The plan submitted for your approval and adoption is modeled after the constitution of our own country, under which every individual is given an opportunity for advancement, according to his ability and determination, and every citizen is given a voice in the laws that shall govern him. So it is to encourage the individual employee in advancement, and to give him a voice in making the rules that shall govern his conduct, that we favor the adoption of the proposed constitution.

Jan 1, 1923

By H. De Cizancourt

Peche1bronn.—So far Pechelbronn is the only producing district. Figures are given in Table 2 covering the main features of the field, but these figures call for the following remarks: First, Pechelbronn should not' be considered as a single unit, it appears, but as a succession of small oil fields, each of which is affected by very variable conditions. Consequently, certain figures concerning production per acre, production per acre-foot, pressure conditions and thicknesses of oil sands would be so misleading that they have been omitted here. Second, as regards production methods, attention is drawn especially to the fact that 42 per cent of the oil is extracted by the use of shafts and galleries and the remainder by pumping wells. Exploitation, formerly confined to Oligocene sands, has been extended recently to Jurassic and Triassic oil-bearing formations. Gabian.—This small oil field, discovered in 1924, is almost exhausted. Exploitation to date is restricted to three wells. There were no drilling activities in 1933. Exploration.—During 1933, two exploration holes have been started in France. The first, in the vicinity of Lavelanet (Ariége) on the Dreuille anticline, has reached the depth of 2400 ft,.; the second, in the Autun Permian Basin, is drilling at 1300 feet. Northern Africa Morocco.—Drilling operations have been on a large scale in Morocco. In the Gharb district (Souk el Arba area), the deepest well was abandoned in 1933 at 7014 ft. Small irregular productive horizons were encountered in the Miocene at shallow depth, oil and gas showing in the Eocene, but no commercial oil field has been discovered. In the Djebel Tselfat, near Petitjean, a small production of oil was obtained from a Jurassic horizon. In the meantime deeper formations are being explored and a new structure in the vicinity is being tested. In Eastern Morocco, a well is drilling near Taza. Production in Morocco, about 2400 bbl., has not been listed on Table 2, owing to its origin—exploration wells.

Jan 1, 1934

By R. B. Walker, R. Palmer, L. C. Bryner

The purpose of this investigation was to further study some of the factors affecting the air oxidation of sulfide minerals. Data obtained from laboratory studies on the effect of temperature, concentration of iron salts, pH, and other catalysts on the biological and nonbiological oxidation of sulfide minerals are presented. The oxidation of copper sulfide minerals and subsequent leaching of the soluble copper has long been a profitable operation. The chief oxidizing agent is oxygen from the air. This reaction is influenced by a number of different factors such as temperature, light, hydrogen ion concentration, oxidizing agents, and various catalysts. Sullivan1 found that copper sulfide minerals are slowly oxidized by the air and that dilute sulfuric acid and iron (111) increased their solubility. At that time it was not known that bacteria were involved in the oxidation of the sulfide minerals. It has been shown that pyrite, molybdenite, free sulfur, and the copper sulfide minerals found in the waste rock dumps in Bingham Canyon, Utah, are largely oxidized by chemosynthetic autotrophic microorganisms found in the leaching streams.2-6 Similar organisms have been isolated in other mining areas7,8 and from the effluents from coal rnines.9 The following are some of the questions that have arisen regarding the mechanisms of the reactions involved in the leaching process. How dependent is the leaching operation upon the biological reactions? How does the temperature effect the biological and non-biological reactions? How does the concentration of iron (II) and (111) effect the rate of oxidation of copper (II) sulfide? Does the iron act as a catalyst? Does activated carbon act as a catalyst on the oxidation of sulfide minerals? What effect does the hydrogen ion concentration (pH) have on the above reactions? The purpose of this paper is to report the results of laboratory studies on these problems. EXPERIMENTAL The apparatus used in this investigation was an air lift percolator described in our earlier work.' The percolator consisted essentially of an air lift which enabled the leaching solution and microorganisms to pass freely through a suspension of mineral (substrate) in Ottawa sand. The air lift served the additional purpose of maintaining an ample concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the nutrient (leaching) solution. (See Fig. 1.) The percolators were so constructed that they could be immersed in liquid constant temperature baths for temperature studies. The thermostats were controlled to +0.5°C. The reactions were all run in the dark. The percolators were charged with one to three g of mineral, dispersed in 100 g of Ottawa sand and 100 ml of nutrient or leaching solution. The sand was purified to remove traces of iron by digesting with concentrated hydrochloric acid and washng with distilled water until free from chloride. After drying, the sand was ready for use. The compressed air supply was regulated to 5 psi and bubbled through an aerator containing distilled water, which was maintained at the same temperature as the bath used. The air was filtered through cotton plugs to maintain sterile conditions. The tops of the

Jan 1, 1968

By Carl F. Dietz

(New York Meeting, February, 1912.) THE problem of drying ores is one that most mill-engineers are sooner or later called upon to meet, and it may be timely to point out sortie of the difficulties resulting from such operations from purely a metallurgical and economic stand-point. We mean, in the following pages, to discuss primarily the effect of such operations on. the ore itself, without particular reference to the mechanical or cost features of the subject; That an appreciable tonnage of the ore fed to the usual form of drier, either rotary or stack, is lost, is fairly well appreciated, but we believe that only a few mill-managers know just. what their drier-losses amount to, and we have found that in most cases they console themselves with the fact that the drier-smoke is not very much discolored, and it is generally believed that the draft is not sufficient to carry away more than a. negligible percentage of the values. The drying of ores is becoming an important factor. since the more general application of magnetic, static, and dry-table treatment. Its importance in the field of metallurgical operations warrants a close examination into its effects. This subject has been repeatedly brought hone to us, and while the drier-losses, in every case examined, have considerably exceeded even the most generous estimate, an attempt at a recovery of these values is rarely made. We have found that the losses resulting from drying-operations can be effectively recovered, at a low cost, and believe that the publication of the results of a number of investigations along these lines will be of interest and benefit to the profession at large. To dry an ore quickly and effectively, it must be brought into actual contact with hot gases or air. The rapid drying is effected by the fact that the hotter the gas the hungrier it is

Jul 1, 1912

By AIME AIME

IF the observation of our British friends is true that Americans put new records in bigness above everything else then the 150th meeting of the Institute was not the grand success it seemed to be. Just why the attendance slumped a little this year is anyone's guess, but the favourite explanation seemed to be that half the country is planning to come to the New York World's Fair this summer and that two trips from the hinterland to the me- tropolis, with another to San Francisco of course, can hardly be justified with the present condition of the stock market and the prices of the products of our mines. Certainly, some were pre- vented from coming too by the epidemic of respiratory afflictions that was rampant in February. Unfortunately. several succumbed after they had reached New York.

Jan 1, 1939

By L. W. McKeehan

IT is no longer necessary, if it ever was, for your annual lecturer to apologize for including in his remarks frequent references to the arrange-ment of metal atoms in crystals and for basing his arguments that metals behave as they do upon their crystal structure. Neither will any objec-tion be raised because the large metallic crystals of which we will speak are hard to prepare and of negligible commercial interest. The particular set of physical properties we propose to discuss-ferromagnetic proper-ties-may require more justification. Very few in this audience are primarily, or even remotely, interested in the ferromagnetic behavior of the metals they handle. By no means all of you ever deal, by choice or by necessity, with metals which display any ferromagnetism at all, and even those who study or control ferrous metallurgy must usually depend upon electrical engineers for assistance in ferromagnetic applications. My excuse for talking about such an obvious specialty is, like all Gaul, divided into three parts. In the first place, the members of the com-mittee who select the annual lecturer must wish the speaker to confine himself to matters he has at least thought about before he prepares his speech. In the second place, the study of ferromagnetism in crystals has, as you will soon realize, suffered in the not-too-distant past from inade-quate metallurgy. Further progress probably depends upon proper use being made of the skill and knowledge of some members of the Institute of Metals Division who have not, before today, been asked to think about the problems presented here. Finally, there is at least a sporting chance that the ferromagnetic properties of a few metal crystals will give some insight into the more generally interesting properties which they share with nonferromagnetic metal crystals.

Jan 1, 1934

By AIME AIME

THE growth of the spirit of progress and mutual aid which motivated the founders of the Institute sixty years ago in Wilkes-Barre was vigorously demonstrated at the sixtieth anniversary meeting held there on May 22. Committees headed by Cadwallader Evans, "resident director" of the Institute, and Paul Sterling, chairman of the local section, had arranged for a full-day tour of the northern anthracite field, so that the hundred and fifty members and guests who had come for the celebration of the anniversary might see the changes and progress made in that field in recent years. More than forty automobiles were in line in the cavalcade which left the Westmoreland Club at nine- thirty. Operations visited were fully described in the May issue of MINING AND METALLURGY, so it is enough to say that after a seventy-five mile drive through the beautiful Susquehanna Valley and over the rolling green hills of northern Pennsylvania a stop was made for lunch at Forest City. Carey, Baxter and Kennedy, contractors at the stripping operations there, had provided, in the shelter of tents, a well-prepared luncheon and other refreshments. The return trip was made by way of Scranton, arriving at Wilkes-Barre at five- thirty.

Jan 1, 1931

By Joseph A. Holmes

I. INTRODUCTORY. THE plans for the investigation of fuels and structural materials now being conducted by the Technologic Branch of the United States Geological Survey were, before being decided upon by the Director of the Survey, submitted for consideration to the National Advisory Board, upon which there are nine representatives from the membership of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, viz.: Messrs. John Hays Hammond, Robert W. Hunt, B. F. Bush, and E. V. d'Invilliers (representing the Institute); Messrs. Julian Kennedy and C. S. Robinson (representing the Iron and Steel Institute); Dr. Charles B. Dudley (representing the American Society for Testing Materials); Mr. F. H. Newell (representing the U. S. Reclamation Service); and Dr. Richard Moldenke (representing the American Foundrymen's Association). It seems fitting, therefore, that a report of these investigations of the past three years should be submitted to the Institute for publication in its Transactions. The above, together with other representatives of the national engineering societies and allied organizations, were invited by President Roosevelt to serve, along with the Chiefs of the several Government Bureaus who have charge of public works and large. fuel purchases, on the National Advisory Board to give advice concerning these investigations. The appointment of this National Board grew out of a wish on the part of the President, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Director of the Geological Survey not only that the appropriations for these investigations be expended in a manner most beneficial to the several branches of the government

Jan 7, 1908

By John S. Crout

TWENTY-FIVE years ago the training of an engineer was of interest solely to the educator and to the student entering the field. At that time the engineer's position in society was relatively simple. His training emphasized design and operation and he expected to enter industry to handle the engineering problems of raw materials production, mechanical and product design, and the operation of power plants, factories, transportation and communication systems, and similar phases of industrial activity. He was not concerned with or particularly interested in the problems of management, administration, sales, publicity, industrial relations, or of legislation. To a large degree he was content to leave these matters to self-made businessmen, or men trained in law, finance, or commerce. That period in the evolution of the engineer is now history. It is generally conceded that the modern world is dependent upon engineering technology for its day-to-day survival. The continued operation of facilities on which mankind relies is dependent upon the functioning of mines, utilities, chemical plants, and other factories, all of which require the knowledge and the skills of trained engineers. Thus from a purely mechanical point of view, the engineer has become indispensable to

Jan 1, 1947

By Oliver Bowles

AMONG mining men as well as in the popular mind the conviction has held sway that mining is pre-eminently a western industry. True it is that gold, silver, copper and other metals have made the States of California, Colorado, Montana, Utah. Nevada and Arizona famous. The prominence attained by these States as mineral producers is, however, not measured alone by the money value of the products of their mines. While the metals are without doubt indispensable in industry, the glamour of the precious metals, and the lure of copper, lead and zinc have given to their ore deposits a sentimental interest that often quite out-weighs their commercial importance. Today a great group of more commonplace minerals are finding a place in commerce and industry rivaling that of the metals, but there is little sentiment attached to them, and,. therefore, they attain relatively little publicity. This is the great group of the non-metallic minerals, exclusive of fuels and oils, including stone, sand and gravel, cement, lime, gypsum, asbestos, mica, phos-phate rock and many others. Almost unnoticed they have grown in production to almost unbelievable pro-portions. The estimated value of metal production for 1925 is given as $1,380,000,000, of the non-metals (ex-cluding fuels) $1,294,000,000. The non-metallic industries are not new, many of them date back almost to pre-historic times; but, as the greatest of them (on a tonnage basis) provides raw materials for the construction industries, it required the activities of the present age of construction to bring about their enormous development. Many of them enter manufacturing as well as con-struction. Non-metallic minerals constitute the back-bone of our great chemical industries. While construction and manufacture reach to all parts of the country their widest development has been in the great industrial centers of the eastern Seaboard and the middle West. Consequently the raw materials of mineral origin required for these great industries have attained a remarkable growth in the eastern half of the- United States. In compiling figures of mineral production for 1924, for which more complete data are available than for later years, the surprising fact is brought to light that the non-metallic mineral produc-tion alone of some of the eastern and middle-western States exceeds by a substantial margin the total min-eral production of some of the western States that have been classed as essentially mining States. Thus the non-metallic mineral production, exclusive of coal and petroleum, of the State of Ohio, was approximately $150,000,000; of Pennsylvania $175,000,000; and of New York $107,000,000. For the same year, 1924, the total mineral production of Utah was $84,357,000; of Montana $70,632,000; of Colorado $61,488,000; and of Nevada only $26,226,000. Even Minnesota, with its enormous iron ore production, reached only $107,845,-000, or a sum about equivalent to the non-metallic min-eral production of the State of New York.

Jan 8, 1927