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By P. H. Griffin

The manufacture of iron in the Province of Quebec forms one of the most interesting subjects in the development of this great industry in America. It began soon after the first steps taken in the New England colonies, where iron was first practically made in America. In both cases the ores smelted were bog-ores. In Qaebec the first work was done in and about, the town of Three Rivers, and many interesting facts in connection with the development of this industry may be found in the paper read at the Halifax meeting, September, 1885, by Mr. James Herbert Bartlett, of Montreal,* which traces the industry from its inception, about 1730, down to 1883, at which time the St. Maurice forge is declared to be the oldest active furnace on the American continent. A few years later the Canada Iron Furnace Company, Ltd., became interested in the enterprise, the extent of which has been greatly enlarged beyond all former limits. In fact, the manufacture of this particular class of iron has never been attempted on the scale now practiced by this company. This work has been carried on for the purpose of supplying a grade of iron hitherto procurable only at heavy cost for Canadian consumption from the United States, and for English consumption from Sweden. The manufacture of iron in the Province of Quebec was based entirely on bog-ores during the period referred to; and as the supply of iron made elsewhere from cheaper ores became more abundant, the local manufacture, handicapped by want of shipping facilities, lack of capital, and other natural causes, was gradually discontinued. It was always admitted that for certain purposes the iron made in the Province possessed special value; but the demand for articles requiring such special virtue was limited, and cheaper grades were gradually substituted for general uses. Some years ago we were led to test, in our car-wheel shops at

Jan 1, 1893

By Thomas Brownfield

The chronicle of the oil industry in Oklahoma in 1939 is one of declining production bolstered by strenuous efforts to find new pools or new producing horizons in the older, highly exploited, relatively shallow areas. Production, which averaged 608,000 bbl. daily in 1937, the post-depression peak, declined to 463,000 bbl. daily in 1938 and continued downward to 421,000 bbl. daily for the year 1939. While the state could produce somewhat more oil if demand warranted it, production in most areas is at as great a rate as could be justified on the basis of maximum efficient operation. Outlet for Oklahoma crude has been seriously affected by the increase in production in the Illinois Basin. Crude movements from the Kansas-Oklahoma area to the northeastern consuming centers averaged 314,000 bbl. daily in 1939 as compared with 397,000 bbl. in 1938. Oklahoma producers bore the brunt of this loss of market. The general production decline was accentuated by the August, shutdown of 15 days, precipitated by the action of a major crude purchaser posting a 20-cent reduction in the price of crude. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission, in collaboration with other members of the Interstate Oil Compact Commission, ordered a complete shutdown of all producing wells in order to prevent the premature abandonment of stripper wells, which might result from a prolonged period of production at prices below operating costs. The reduction in price was forestalled, most major purchasers failing to meet the cut in view of the shutdown, and the company initiating the move rescinded its action. Fear of the shutting in of oil wells, especially those making considerable quantities of water, is generally unfounded in the light of a superficial examination of the records. Oklahoma's unprorated pools, which produced 154,000 bbl. daily in May, declined to 152,000 bbl. in June and 143,000 bbl. in July. Immediately following the shutdown, the same pools produced 150,000 bbl. in September, 145,000 in October, and 145,-000 in November. Thus, while the half month's production loss in August has not been made up, the wells apparently hare produced at a greater rate since the shutdown than immediately preceding it.

Jan 1, 1940

By Thomas Brownfield

The chronicle of the oil industry in Oklahoma in 1939 is one of declining production bolstered by strenuous efforts to find new pools or new producing horizons in the older, highly exploited, relatively shallow areas. Production, which averaged 608,000 bbl. daily in 1937, the post-depression peak, declined to 463,000 bbl. daily in 1938 and continued downward to 421,000 bbl. daily for the year 1939. While the state could produce somewhat more oil if demand warranted it, production in most areas is at as great a rate as could be justified on the basis of maximum efficient operation. Outlet for Oklahoma crude has been seriously affected by the increase in production in the Illinois Basin. Crude movements from the Kansas-Oklahoma area to the northeastern consuming centers averaged 314,000 bbl. daily in 1939 as compared with 397,000 bbl. in 1938. Oklahoma producers bore the brunt of this loss of market. The general production decline was accentuated by the August, shutdown of 15 days, precipitated by the action of a major crude purchaser posting a 20-cent reduction in the price of crude. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission, in collaboration with other members of the Interstate Oil Compact Commission, ordered a complete shutdown of all producing wells in order to prevent the premature abandonment of stripper wells, which might result from a prolonged period of production at prices below operating costs. The reduction in price was forestalled, most major purchasers failing to meet the cut in view of the shutdown, and the company initiating the move rescinded its action. Fear of the shutting in of oil wells, especially those making considerable quantities of water, is generally unfounded in the light of a superficial examination of the records. Oklahoma's unprorated pools, which produced 154,000 bbl. daily in May, declined to 152,000 bbl. in June and 143,000 bbl. in July. Immediately following the shutdown, the same pools produced 150,000 bbl. in September, 145,000 in October, and 145,-000 in November. Thus, while the half month's production loss in August has not been made up, the wells apparently hare produced at a greater rate since the shutdown than immediately preceding it.

Jan 1, 1940

By David Mitchell

MANY of the difficult operating problems of the preparation of coal for market, of sampling coal shipments and in the utilization of coal are caused by segregation in the coal mass. Segregation may be of two kinds: i.e., "size segregation," in which parti- cles of the same size in a mass of coal containing a range of sizes collect to-gether and "density segregation," in which particles of the same density or specific gravity in a mass of particles of varying density gather together. MECHANICS OF SEGREGATION Size segregation cannot take place with closely sized coal. As the size range increases, the tendency for size segregation increases. Similarly, cleaned coal with particles of approxi- mately the same specific gravity have very little tendency for density segrega- tion. The wider the density range of particles and the more particles of different density, the greater the chances are for density segregation. FIG. 1.-SEGREGATION IN A SIDE-FILLED The following discussion deals primarily BIN with coal of a wide size range as screenings and of wide density differ-ences as uncleaned or run-of-mine screenings. If a mass of coal containing particles of a wide size range is subject to the stream action of a moving current of water, the small particles are transported farther than the coarser. Particles of different density in a stream of moving water are subject to the laws of classification, the heavier settling out first. The familiar sluice box of the gold miner and the action of rivers and other streams in classifying material according to

Jan 1, 1937

Six hundred miles inland from Australia's east coast Port of Townsville in Queensland's sea of rock and spinifex lies Mount Isa. The town, as in most mining towns, is dominated by its mine and the mine in turn is dominated by its 503 ft copper smelter stack. This candy and white painted stack is a striking introduction to one of the world's greatest copper producing mines and a town where people of over 40 different nationalities live remote but well. Mount Isa Mines Limited is surging into the ranks of' the world's great mines on the momentum of a relentless push begun in 1956. It is as if the time lost in the lean years of the past should be caught up in a hurry.

Jan 10, 1964

By Arthur Fleischer

The Kalunite process+ for the production of metal-grade alumina from alumina-con-taining ores is applicable, considered from a general point of view, to any aluminous raw material that can be converted to potassium alum or equivalent normal alum. This result of modern technology has been the subject of a continuous study and development since 1929, on a laboratory and test-plant scale, with initial emphasis on the utilization of alunite as the raw material. The research and developmental program was carried out by the Kalunite Company and its successor, Kalunite, Inc., an affiliate of the Olin Corporation of East Alton, Illinois. The process is now approaching the time for a major test in its history with the completion of construction of a plant having a capacity of IOO tons of alumina per day in Salt Lake City for the conversion of Marysvale, Utah, alunite ores to alumina and potassium sulphate. The Salt Lake Alumina Plant is a Defense Plant Corporation project. Production of Aluminum: The known existence of alunite deposits, especially in the Marysvale district, furnished the motive for the original inquiry into the utilization of this raw material for aluminum production. The deposits in this region were actively explored during World War I and utilized for the production of potassium sulphate, an essential fertilizer, of which a shortage of monumental proportions then existed. Up to the twentieth century—for alunite is a mineral with an ancient history—it was used in Europe and in China as a source of potassium alum. It never had been used successfully in this country as a source of oxide for reduction to metal. Although the known reserves of this ore, which undoubtedly will be greatly expanded with a commercial outlet for this ore, are recognized to be sufficient for only a part of the present-day needs of aluminum, it has a definite place in the aluminum industry. Academically it points the way for future raw materials. The aluminum industry has undergone a remarkable growth in the past few years as a result of defense and war requirements. Its expansion in many ways has been beyond belief and prediction, both in volume and location. This wartime status of the industry has accelerated the consumption of bauxite to such an extent that a re-evaluation of the raw material reserves for the future peacetime industry and for eventual wartime reserves is seemingly of concern. The generally accepted picture of bauxite ore reserves in the United States, especially in raw material suitable for treatment by the Bayer process, focuses attention on other possible sources of raw material of metal-grade oxide. The perspective for the development of a suitable process may have changed in the interim since the original work by Kalunite, but the ultimate goal is the same.

Jan 1, 1944

By W. M. Robertson

The rate of crack Propagation thvough a solid meta1 in the presence of a liquid metal has been calculated. The crack is assumed to propagate by solution of the solid in the liquid under the influence of an applied stress, with volume diffusion of the dissolved solute through the liquid controlling the propagation. The calculated velocities can be tens of centimeters per second or higher. THE embrittlement of normally ductile solid metals by liquid metals has been the subject of extensive study, as summarized in the book by Rostoker, McCaughey, and arkuus.' In experimental studies of liquid-metal embrittlement it is usually concluded that the observed crack-propagation rates are too high to be accounted for by diffusion processes. Diffusion is considered to be an unimportant factor and various other mechanisms are invoked to account for the experimental observations. The similarities of liquid-metal embrittlement to stress-corrosion cracking, to hydrogen embrittlement of steel, and to low-temperature embrittlement of bcc metals are frequently used as analogies for these mechanisms.1"3 The present paper assesses how rapidly a crack could propagate by a mechanism of volume diffusion through the liquid metal. We assume that the crack propagates by solution of the solid in the liquid at the crack tip under the influence of the applied stress and diffusion of the dissolved solute away from the crack tip. The model uses only macroscopic thermodynamic, kinetic, and elastic concepts. The calculations indicate that this dissolution-diffusion mechanism can give high crack velocities. In some previous treatments4'' of crack propagation in a liquid-metal environment the fundamental step has been the breaking of atomic bonds at the crack tip. The liquid greatly decreases the energy necessary to break these bonds. The present model assumes the crack is filled with liquid metal; the presence of the liquid is essential because diffusion through the liquid is assumed to control the rate of propagation. With proper modification this model could also apply to stress corrosion in a liquid environment. THEORY Consider a crack in a homogeneous elastic continuum, ignoring all the structural details of the solid. This neglects a host of metallurgical details which can be significant in the problem of liquid-metal embrittlement;' but this simple assumption is a useful approach in evaluating the role of diffusion through the liquid. The stress distribution around the crack tip establishes a gradient in the chemical potential at the tip, which causes a diffusion flux through the liquid away from the tip. The solid-liquid interfacial tension works against crack propagation, since propagation requires creation of interfacial area. From these two considerations we derive the diffusion flux, which then yields an expression for the velocity of the crack tip. The concentration of the solute in the liquid, C, is equal to the equilibrium concentration in the presence of an unstressed, flat surface, Co, plus the excess concentration due to the stress, AC(a), plus the excess concentration due to capillarity, AC(y): We calculate AC(o) and AC(y) and then obtain the diffusion flux. Consider (Fig. 1) a long flat crack of length 2L, thickness 2r, and tip radius r, where r remains constant as the crack propagates in the positive x direction. There is no stress ay in the y direction across the flat surfaces of the crack. The magnitude of the stress at the crack tip due to the applied stress, a,, is given by the relation6 ^=^[l-2^] 12] which, for long narrow cracks, becomes The stress increases the chemical potential in proportion to the strain energy.? The excess chemical potential due to the stress, Ap(a), is given by where 52 is the atomic volume of the solid and E the Young's modulus. Inserting Eq. [3] gives Now consider the crack to be filled with a liquid metal. The excess solubility due to stress, hC(a), is given by the excess chemical potential due to capillarity, Ap(y), is given by8 where y is the solid-liquid interfacial energy, and v1 and YZ are the two principal radii of curvature of any surface point. At the crack tip, r1 = -r and vz = m, so TRANSACTIONS OF THE METALLURGICAL SOCIETY OF AIME

Jan 1, 1967

By Tell Ertl

THE term oil shale is defined. Foreign oil-shale developments are outlined briefly, The richest and most extensive oil-shale deposits in the United States lie in Western Colorado. The Bureau of Mines is opening two adjacent areas for underground mining in Western Colorado. From the first area the oil shale is mined selectively as required by the retorting plant. The second area is being developed as a unit of a full scale oil-shale mine to ascertain the most practical methods of mining oil shale and to determine costs. In both of these mining areas, research will be carried on to develop new and improved practices for mining oil shale.

Jan 1, 1947

By A. C. Fieldner, F. H. Gibson, W. A. Selvig

A foRmer paper1 described in detail various methods of calculating coal analyses to obtain the composition and calorific value of the pure coal substance—that is, of the coal free from its mineral matter. The paper included a table showing calorific values of pure coal, as calculated from float-and-sink portions, by means of the Parr formula for "unit coal" and by the customary moisture-free and ash-free formula. A modification of the Parr formula was proposed, based on the assumption that one-half the sulfur present in Coal occurs as pyritic sulfur and one-half as organic sulfur. In the published discussion of the paper Cady gave a table of results on a large number of Illinois coals as obtained by the Parr formula and the proposed modification thereof. The results obtained by Cady indicate that the Parr formula applies better to Illinois coals than does the modified formula proposed by Fieldner and Selvig. The present paper gives results obtained by applying the modified Parr formula to the analyses of the float-and-sink portions of the coals shown in the former paper, and results obtained by applying the Parr formula, the modified Parr formula, and the simple moisture-free and ash-free formula to various coals of the United States ranging in sulfur content from less than 1 per cent to more than 4 per cent sulfur. A graphic method of estimating the calorific value of pure coal and determining the relation of the coal ash to the mineral matter of coal, as proposed by Stansfield and Sutherland,2 was applied to a number of coals, and the results are given herein. Testing Formulas with Float-and-sink Separations The former paper by Fieldner and Selvig gave heat values of pure coal of the float-and-sink portions of 21 coals, as calculated by the Parr formula

Jan 1, 1932

By H. C. H. Darley

The influence of particle size and concentration on the development of chip hold-down pressure (CHDP) was studied in an apparatus designed to measure the change of filtration rate during the first second of the filtration process. CHDP is controlled by the "bridging" particles (i.e., particles in the 50 to 0.2 micron range), whereas filter loss is controlled by the colloid fraction. The results indicated that a fast drilling fluid with a low filter loss could be obtained if the concentration of bridging solids and the viscosity were kept very low. A novel group of drilling fluids, which we have named colloid emulsions, was developed to meet the above requirements. These colloid emulsions are made by dispersing art oleophilic colloid in oil and emulsifying about 5 per cent of this dispersion in water or a dense brine. Good results have been obtained in field trials with emulsions which use asphalt as the oleophilic colloid. INTRODUCTION In recent years it has been found that fast rates of penetration can be maintained in hard formations by using "clear" water as a drilling fluid. In some cases, however, water cannot be used because the very high down-hole filter loss creates various difficulties in drilling, in logging, or in producing the well. It then becomes necessary to "mud up", which results in a decrease in drilling rate. The reason that mud decreases drilling rates is a complex subject which has been well covered by such authors as Garnier and van Lingen, Cunningham and Eenink,' and van Lingen.3 One of the principal factors involved is the tendency of the drilling fluid to develop a filter cake on the bottom of the hole. The pressure differential which develops across this filter cake opposes the action of the bit in dislodging chips from the rock. This pressure differential is referred to by Garnier and van Lingen' as the chip hold-down pressure, which is denoted by the initials CHDP in this paper. The work described in this paper was undertaken to develop a drilling fluid which would minimize CHDP but which would still have a low filter loss—in other words, a fluid which would deposit a filter cake on the sides but would lay little or no filter cake on the bottom of the hole. EVALUATION OF CHDP EXPERIMENTAL Conditions governing the growth of filter cake on the sides of the hole are obviously different from those on the bottom of the hole. On the sides of the hole, cake will form continuously but at a decreasing rate, until eventually the rate of growth will equal the rate of cake erosion by the mud stream.' On the bottom of the hole, each time a bit tooth dislodges a chip the cake is removed, a fresh rock surface is exposed, and the filtration process must start over again. Thus the CHDP is determined by the amount of cake which can form in the interval between successive tooth strikes at a particular spot, normally a fraction of a second. Our first step therefore was to study filtration rates over the first second or so of the filtration process. These tests were conducted in the simple type of dynamic filter cell shown in Figs. 1 and 2. In this cell the mud was filtered through a train of rock cores while rotating blades kept the mud flowing over the surface of the core. The procedure was to evacuate the cores to 0.05 mm of mercury, saturate with brine, and assemble in the holder under brine. The permeability of the core train was then determined. A plastic seal was placed on the face of the core train, and a rip cord was attached from the seal to one of the blades. At the start of the test, 500 psi was applied to the mud, and the meniscus in the capillary measuring tube was adjusted to zero. When the blades were started, t,he seal was ripped from the face of the core, and filtration began. The filtration rate was at first measured by photographing the advance of the meniscus in the capillary tube. Using

Jan 1, 1966

By Edmund M. Wise

NATURE has provided us with many metals, but with few really good ones, and frequently the better metals are the rarer. It is to this circumstance that many physical metallurgists, inventors, and just plain experimenters owe their employment, for much of their work is directed, consciously or otherwise, toward the alleviation of some of the more serious shortcomings of the cheaper, less noble, and weaker metals; by alloying, age-hardening, passivating, cladding, plating, and other useful dodges, which sometimes permit the substitution of one of the less gifted metals for one of the really good ones. As a matter of fact, the varied needs of our complex civilization could be quite well met with only five metals, if they were sufficiently abundant, and one of the five would certainly be platinum, the most noble and versatile that nature provides. Many metals are difficult to handle and seem to take pleasure in defying their investigators to find good uses for them, and finally when a use is found it is frequently quite a specific one; in other words, a hole has to be found--or perhaps made-to fit the peg. It is for this reason that a large amount of research must be con- ducted before the more recalcitrant metals become really useful. In platinum, however, we have a metal that inherently possesses so many valuable attributes that it became useful as soon as methods for producing it in massive ductile form were devised, and once its complicated chemical behavior was understood it became principally an aid to research rather than the subject thereof. In recent years, much research has been done to further improve

Jan 1, 1953

By William G. Brissenden

Gaspe Copper Mines Ltd., a subsidiary of Noranda Mines Ltd., operates a completely integrated copper mining, milling and smelting plant at Murdochville, on the Gaspe Peninsula of Quebec. Operating six days a week, the mine produces 8000 tpd of ore. The mill runs continuously and capacity is rated at 6500 tpd of ore. Treating Gaspe concentrate output plus a certain amount of custom concentrate, the smelter produces between 3700 and 4000 tons of copper anodes per month.

Jan 9, 1959

By Marion Rice

THE copper-mining district of Jerome, Ariz., is of such economic importance that the following brief notes may be of interest. The ore deposits are said by Ransome1 to be pre-Cambrian, and are contained in the pre-Cambrian schists of the region. In the vicinity of the mine (the United Verde) the schist stands nearly vertical .and strikes a little west of north. At least three varieties are distinguishable-(1) a green rock, schistose, on its margins but grading into massive material, which is evidently an altered dioritic intrusive; (2) a rough gray schist with abundant pheno-crysts of quartz, apparently an altered rhyolite; and (3) a satiny, greenish gray, very fissile sericitic schist that may be a metamorphosed sediment. The ore occurs in varieties (2) and (3), the main belt of dioritic rock (1) lying just west of the orebodies. The ore is said to follow as a rule the layers of fine sericitic schist. T. A. Rickard2 says that the ore at the United. Verde Extension mine is found at the contact of diorite and schist, that both diorite and ore are earlier than the regional metamorphism, and that the quartz porphyry (" rhyolite" of Ransome) is of post-Cambrian age.

Jan 9, 1918

By C. A. Pierce

Underground operations of the United States Potash Co. at its mine near Carlsbad, N.M., have been continuous since the property was opened about five years ago. Approximately one million tons of potash has been mined and two shafts have been sunk, each to a depth of about 1000 ft. Outstanding in the company's operations is the fact that not a single blasting accident has occurred during the aforesaid period. The purpose of this paper is to describe the blasting practice that has made possible the achievement of this accident-prevention record. The mining method employed in extracting the thick horizontal bed of potash may be described as a double-entry room-and-pillar system. Mine development is kept well in advance of extraction operations, and a three years' supply of ore, at least, is always available. Limits of the orebody have not been determined, and in the present system of mining headings are advanced by a "shortwall" method. This was the first potash ore bed developed in the United States. The nature of the deposit, therefore, was unknown, and it was deemed expedient to outline a conservative mining policy. Later, when more is known about the deposit and certain control ascertained, a "longwall" panel retreating method may be found advisable. The necessity for a domestic supply of potash became a national issue previous to and during the World War. The United States Government came to realize that this country should not be dependent upon foreign sources of potash, and began extensive explorations in many parts of the country, seeking an orebody that would meet the exacting requirements of the domestic market. The Department of Interior, through the Geological Survey and Bureau of Mines, made every effort to determine the location of potash deposits and encouraged their exploitation by private capital. Through the combined efforts of the Department of Interior and private industry, the deposit now being worked by the United States Potash Co. was discovered and brought into production.

Jan 1, 1937

By L. L. Gray, D. W. Reed, F. Morgan

A flowMeter has been developed at Gulf Research and Development Co. and tested in the field for measuring the flow of gas in well bores. It has been used in a study of the injection capacity of different horizons in gas injection wells in Oklahoma. The flow sensitive element of the meter is a semi-conductor having a very high temperature coefficient of resistance. Advantages possessed by this meter are the result of that property and the high specific resistance of the element. The instrument possesses a sensitivity considerably higher than any reported previously. In the application described here the element is heated to a temperature considerably above ambient by an electric current, which is supplied by a voltage source at the surface. When fluid flows through the meter the rate of dissipation of heat is increased and the temperature of the element decreases. Because of the negative temperature characteristics of the resistance element such a decrease of temperature will be accompanied by an increase of resistance which, under flow conditions ordinarily found in wells, is of such a magnitude that it can be directly measured or recorded in terms of a change in voltage at the surface. In practice, rate of flow is measured in terms of the drop in voltage in the resistance element. All the metering and control apparatus remains at the surface while the thermal element is lowered into the well on a single conductor cable, consisting of an insulated wire and sheath. The meter is calibrated by passing known quantities of gas through it either at the surface or in the hole at a point immediately above the region in which gas is lost to the formation. In case calibration is made at the surface, the ambient temperature in the hole may readily be obtained by a second resistance element which is operated at a current so low that effectively no heating occurs. The instrument has been adapted to con-tinuous recording, but the velocity of the meter relative to that of the gas must be low unless corrections are made. Curves giving data obtained in actual field tests are shown' The meter can also be used to determine the distribution of flow capacity in a gas producing well. A differential form of the meter has been designed and built in which the local flow or injection capacity of the formation is obtained directly. Introduction When fluid is injected into a well in a secondary recovery or pressure-maintenance operation the question of its most effective use invariably arises. Although the core log, when available, will show the regions of good permeability and oil saturation, there is normally no assurance that the fluid actually enters the formation in zones where injection is deemed desirable. In view of the uncertainties involved in such programs, it is generally conceded that measurements of permeability for a formation in place are more significant than those obtained by the core-sampling technique. A subsurface meter has been developed at the Gulf Research and Development Co. for measuring flow of fluids at different horizons in a well bore, and field tests have been made on the instrument in Cooperation with the Tulsa Division of the Gulf Oil Corp. In this paper the meter is de-

Jan 1, 1948

By F. Morgan, L. L. Gray, D. W. Reed

A flowMeter has been developed at Gulf Research and Development Co. and tested in the field for measuring the flow of gas in well bores. It has been used in a study of the injection capacity of different horizons in gas injection wells in Oklahoma. The flow sensitive element of the meter is a semi-conductor having a very high temperature coefficient of resistance. Advantages possessed by this meter are the result of that property and the high specific resistance of the element. The instrument possesses a sensitivity considerably higher than any reported previously. In the application described here the element is heated to a temperature considerably above ambient by an electric current, which is supplied by a voltage source at the surface. When fluid flows through the meter the rate of dissipation of heat is increased and the temperature of the element decreases. Because of the negative temperature characteristics of the resistance element such a decrease of temperature will be accompanied by an increase of resistance which, under flow conditions ordinarily found in wells, is of such a magnitude that it can be directly measured or recorded in terms of a change in voltage at the surface. In practice, rate of flow is measured in terms of the drop in voltage in the resistance element. All the metering and control apparatus remains at the surface while the thermal element is lowered into the well on a single conductor cable, consisting of an insulated wire and sheath. The meter is calibrated by passing known quantities of gas through it either at the surface or in the hole at a point immediately above the region in which gas is lost to the formation. In case calibration is made at the surface, the ambient temperature in the hole may readily be obtained by a second resistance element which is operated at a current so low that effectively no heating occurs. The instrument has been adapted to con-tinuous recording, but the velocity of the meter relative to that of the gas must be low unless corrections are made. Curves giving data obtained in actual field tests are shown' The meter can also be used to determine the distribution of flow capacity in a gas producing well. A differential form of the meter has been designed and built in which the local flow or injection capacity of the formation is obtained directly. Introduction When fluid is injected into a well in a secondary recovery or pressure-maintenance operation the question of its most effective use invariably arises. Although the core log, when available, will show the regions of good permeability and oil saturation, there is normally no assurance that the fluid actually enters the formation in zones where injection is deemed desirable. In view of the uncertainties involved in such programs, it is generally conceded that measurements of permeability for a formation in place are more significant than those obtained by the core-sampling technique. A subsurface meter has been developed at the Gulf Research and Development Co. for measuring flow of fluids at different horizons in a well bore, and field tests have been made on the instrument in Cooperation with the Tulsa Division of the Gulf Oil Corp. In this paper the meter is de-

Jan 1, 1948

By K. G. Davis

Dilute alloys of silzer in tilz haz been solidzjzed a1 controlled rules, in lzorizontal tubes 2 mrz and 0.5 rn in diam. Radioactive; tracer techniques we?-e used to study solute distvihutions along llze specimens and irmpurity substructures, as functions of the conditions growth. The results have heen mzalyzed using Burton, Prim, and Slichter's tnodel for the solute disty-ihution in the liquid ahead of an advancing solid-liquid interface. DECANTING techniques have been used to establish criteria for the formation of impurity substructure during solidification in several alloy systems An analysis equating the appearance of impurity substructure with the incidence of constitutional supercooling was developed,= in which diffusion was assumed to be the predominant mode of solute mixing in the liquid. Substitution of experimental data into the equations derived from the diffusion analysis gave reasonable values for solute diffusivity in the liquid. However, in these investigations solidification rates of 10 cm per hr and over were used, to minimize the effect of natural conection, whereas for crystals of high perfection lower solidification rates are needed, usually between 1 and 5 cm per hr. A knowledge of the conditions under which impurity substructures will be formed at low growth rates, and the degree of segregation to be expected, is therefore of interest. In the present investigation, radioactive-tracer techniques have been used to study the effect of growth rate, initial solute concentration, and size of specimen on the formation of substructure in uni- directionally solidified rods of dilute silver in tin alloys, over a range of growth rate between 0.5 and 10 cm per hr. Criteria for the formation of substructure were established by auto radiography. This was believed preferable to the decanting technique, for the relationship of the structure on a decanted interface with that of the freezing interface is not clear, since a layer of liquid is left on the surface following decanting.' The effect of substructure on the distribution of solute along the rods was also investigated. EXPERIMENTAL The procedure for sample preparation has been described in detail by einber. Alloys were prepared from tin of 99.999 pct purity and silver of 99.99 pct purity. A"', an emitter of both y and 0 radiation, was used as tracer. Samples of the alloys were drawn up into silica tubes with inside diameters 0.5 or 2 mm, remelted in a horizontal furnace, and solidified at controlled rates. A few centimeters of the samples were left unmelted for a measure of the initial concentration. Total sample length was approximately 20 cm. The temperature gradient in the furnace was kept constant at 36°C per cm in the region corresponding to the melting point for tin. To find how well this corresponded to the actual temperature gradient in the melt, a thermocouple of 38-gage wire was electrically insulated with a thin layer of Sauereisen cement and placed within one of the 2-mm-diam tubes, which was then filled with tin. The maximum diameter of the coated wire was 0.5 mm, the bead of the thermocouple junction being no larger than the diameter of the wire. A plot of temperature vs distance traveled by the furnace is given in Fig. 1 for a rate of furnace travel of 1 cm per hr. The temperature gradient in the liquid

Jan 1, 1967

NEW MEMBERS The following list comprises the names of those persons who became members during the period Aug. 1, 1916, to Sept. 10, 1916: ALLEN, Louis M., JR., Chief Mine Sampler, Old Dominion Min: & Smelt. Co., Globe, Ariz. ATKINSON, CHESTER, Min. Engr., Asst. Supt., Smelt. Dept., Cerro de Pasco Mining Co., La Fundicion, Peru, South America. BAKER, CLAIR LINCOLN, Genl. Mgr., Mexican Dept., Amer. Smelt. & Ref. Co., 1108 Mills Bldg., El Paso, Tex. BARROWS, WALTER A., 3d, Asst. Supt., Blast Furnaces, Thomas Iron Co., Hellertown, Pa. BARTHOLOMEW, GEORGE POMEROY, Asst. Cons. Engr., Guggenheim Bros., 120 Broadway, New York, N. Y. BILLOW, ELMER E., Pres., National Supply Co., 416 NN-rest Grand Ave., Chicago, 111. BROWN, SAMUEL ROLLINS, Mill Supt., The Plymouth Cons. Gold Mines, Ltd., Plymouth, Cal.

Jan 10, 1916

By O. Jay Myers

The war effort has furnished the necessary impetus for better magnesium foundry practice. Four or five years ago, there were but a few formulas in general use for core-sand mixtures for magnesium castings. Certain sands, binders, and inhibitors were specified and the proportions of these materials in each mixture were maintained between very narrow limits. As more and more war industries entered the field, much research was carried out and methods and practices were improved. Magnesium founding is still in a state of flux; therefore it is not uncommon to find one foundry spraying inhibitors on its cores, and another foundry using sand mixtures with incorporated protective agents. The basic core or dry-sand mold mixture for magnesium in use today is compounded with sand, core oil or resin binder, cereal, and moisture. Core oil or resin binder are added for baked strength while the cereal binder and moisture are for green strength. The normal mixtures (based on the weight of the sand) contain from o.5 to 1.5 per cent of both cereal binder and core oil, and the moisture content variesbetween 1.5 and 5 per cent. The ratio of core oil to cereal binder varies from 60:40 to 40:60, while the correct amount of moisture depends upon the method of coremaking. Protective Agents In all magnesium practice, protective agents are used in conjunction with the core and molding sands to prevent oxidation of the metal. The use of these inhibitors is not novel, but publications covering this field are not entirely adequate. Beck1 says: Magnesium alloys decompose water to form magnesium oxide, hydrogen being liberated in the process (Mg + H2O ? H2 ?+ MgO). This reaction results in the blackening of the skin and the appearance of areas of porosity on the casting surface, the cavities of which are filled with a grey oxide powder (these are termed 'burns'). Although sand cores for magnesium castings are thoroughly dried during the baking cycle, burning will take place on the casting5 unless the metal is protected properly. This type of burning is more difficult to define than the "water-magnesium" reaction cited by Beckl A possible explanation may lie in the following equation: 2Mg + O2—> 2MgO Here, the source of the oxygen is not water, but the air in the mold cavity, together with the chemically combined oxygen in the core-binding media. Generally, two methods are used to prevent this reaction from taking place.

Jan 1, 1945