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By R. E. Tate, L. J. Herman

We have had occasion to produce wire of Np-237 in small diameters for use in some chemical experiments. Since the mechanical metallurgy of neptunium has not been investigated extensively, it seems desirable to report our successful extrusion technique. Because of the neptunium activity and its attendant health hazard the experimental work was done in glove boxes and related equipment also used for Pu-239. At room temperature a phase neptunium' is a hard (Dph -355) orthorhombic metal of high density (p = 20.45 g per cu cm). a neptunium transforms2 to tetragonal ß neptunium at about 280°C and this in turn transforms to bcc y neptunium at about 577°C. The y phase melts at about 637°C. A temperature of 340° to 345°C was selected for the extrusion, this temperature being a compromise be- tween a possible advantage of working with the presumably more plastic cubic y phase above 577°C and the risk of having the neptunium react with the alloy steel die to form the low-melting Fe-Np eutectic. A 0.75-in.-long, 0.26-in.-diameter ingot of good-purity* Np-237 was extruded by the direct *C = 230 ppm, Pu = 200 ppm, thirty-five metallic elements below limit of detection by spectrographic methods. process through flat-face orifices to form several sizes of wire ranging from 0.010 to 0.030 in. in diameter. Molybdenum disulfide was used as the die lubricant. The extrusion was done in a vacuum of about 10-4 torr to reduce reaction of the neptunium with atmospheric gases. British workers3 at Harwell have extruded neptunium under similar conditions. The force required to extrude 0.010-in.-diameter wire at the rate of 4 in. per min was 6000 lb, as measured with an electrical load cell. Wire 0.020 in. in diameter was extruded with a force of 4700 lb at a rate of 2 in. per min, and wire 0.030 in. in diameter was extruded with a force of 4000 lb at a rate of 1.3 in. per min. An extrusion constant, c, can be computed from the measured forces, P, for the equation4 P = c log-A/a where A/a is the extrusion ratio or the ratio of the cross-sectional areas of the container and the

Jan 1, 1965

By AIME AIME

A PAPER recently presented before the Anthracite Section of the A. I. M. E. by S. J. Phil- lips, Mine Inspector, Fifth Anthracite District, Department of Mines of Pennsylvania, covering the water hazards in the anthracite coal mines of the Lackawanna River Valley, was especially timely because the conditions there are duplicated to a large extent in the Wyoming Valley, which is traversed by the Susquehanna River with its many large tributary streams. Also, in the southern anthracite field, where there are a number of large creeks, similar pumping problems and mine water hazards will in time be presented if mining is continued to its conclusion.

Jan 1, 1936

The first discovery of gold in Montana is credited to François Finlay, a half-breed, from the Red River country, in Canada; he went to California during the early days and learned there how to wash the gold from placer deposits; then, on his return, he crossed Montana and found gold on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains, on Gold creek, a minor tributary of the Hell Gate river, in what is now Deer Lodge county. That was in 1852.* Finlay did not find enough gold to induce him to continue at work, but six years later a group of miners, led by the brothers James Stuart and Granville Stuart prospected on this same creek, obtaining about ten cents to the pan. They, however, were harassed by the Blackfeet Indians, and they were also handicapped by lack of proper tools; so they too desisted from further operations. Two years later, in 1860, Henry Thomas started to work on Gold creek with three sluice-boxes hewn out of green timber that he cut on the spot. With this simple apparatus he won from $1.50 to $2.00 per day. This may be considered the fist instance of systematic mining in Montana. Meanwhile the Stuarts went to Fort Bridger, in southwestern Wyoming, where they remained as traders until 1861, when, again lured by the gleam of gold, they returned to the valley of the Deer Lodge and resumed prospecting, using 10 sluice-boxes that were brought from Walla Walla, in Washington, 425 miles distant. In the summer of 1862 they were joined by many others, chiefly from Colorado, in consequence of an exchange of

Jan 1, 1932

By C. P. Sandberg

C. P. Sandberg, London, Eng. 1 think we should all be grateful to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and to their chemist, Dr. Dudley, for spending so much time and money in order to solve an important question; nor are me less indebted to the public spirit which leads them to impart tlie experience thus gained. In Europe nothing similar has hitherto been done, either by a company or by any private individual. In England the great railway companies employ their engineers in other ways, and do not keep a chemist or specialist to study rails; bat even if they did they would probably not publish the results. The chief professional engineers are so occupied with their private practice of railroad construction generally, that they cannot be expected to devote their time and energies to so special a question. The German Railway Union has, in my opinion, missed the real object of its elaborate researches by falling into the error of specifying costly, impracticable tests for rails—tests at the same time which do not infallibly expose the impurities that may be in the rails under examination. There has, therefore, been nothing done on this side of the Atlantic in the way of exhaustive study to determine the best composition for steel rails. America should consequently have full credit for the enlightened example which she has set. I wish, however, to make a few remarks on Dr. Dudley's second paper,—& paper which follows very much upan the same lines of argument as the first red three years ago, upon which I have previously touched in my pabr on the same subject read at the meeting in August last. If Dr. Dudley had discovered a new metal he could hardly, I think, have taken wore pains to prove that he was correct in his first formula for the best chemical colnposition of steel rails. But I hare seen so much done in the way of proof by experiment that I am inclined to think that almost anything can be proved by experiments and by satnples. If Dr. Dudley would only give up his formula, which would not suit any country—not even America—

Jan 1, 1881

By Oliver Bowles, Carl A. Gnam

THE construction industry normally contributes extensively to the general economic welfare of all sections of the country. Billions of dollars are spent for materials and labor, and the success or failure of many business enterprises depends upon the volume of construction. The steel, aluminum, copper, cement, brick and tile, lime, gypsum, stone, sand and gravel, and several of the less prominent mineral industries are vitally concerned. Of great interest, therefore, is the accumulation of needed construction following the relative inactivity of the past five years, the recent moderate revival in building, and the prospect of a broader and more definite upturn. One may judge the magnitude of possible expenditure for construction by what has occurred in the past. The peak years were 1925 to 1928, inclusive, when the annual values of con- tracts awarded amounted to over six billion dollars. In marked contrast was the 1933 total of about 1% billion, the lowest level shown in the Federal Reserve Board Index, which goes back to 1919, and the more favorable 1935 figure of about 1.7 billion. An increase of nearly four billion over the 1935 volume would be necessary to equal the peak year 1928.

Jan 1, 1936

C. P. Sandberg, London, Eng. 1 think we should all be grateful to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and to their chemist, Dr. Dudley, for spending so much time and money in order to solve an important question; nor are me less indebted to the public spirit which leads them to impart tlie experience thus gained. In Europe nothing similar has hitherto been done, either by a company or by any private individual. In England the great railway companies employ their engineers in other ways, and do not keep a chemist or specialist to study rails; bat even if they did they would probably not publish the results. The chief professional engineers are so occupied with their private practice of railroad construction generally, that they cannot be expected to devote their time and energies to so special a question. The German Railway Union has, in my opinion, missed the real object of its elaborate researches by falling into the error of specifying costly, impracticable tests for rails—tests at the same time which do not infallibly expose the impurities that may be in the rails under examination. There has, therefore, been nothing done on this side of the Atlantic in the way of exhaustive study to determine the best composition for steel rails. America should consequently have full credit for the enlightened example which she has set. I wish, however, to make a few remarks on Dr. Dudley's second paper,—& paper which follows very much upan the same lines of argument as the first red three years ago, upon which I have previously touched in my pabr on the same subject read at the meeting in August last. If Dr. Dudley had discovered a new metal he could hardly, I think, have taken wore pains to prove that he was correct in his first formula for the best chemical colnposition of steel rails. But I hare seen so much done in the way of proof by experiment that I am inclined to think that almost anything can be proved by experiments and by satnples. If Dr. Dudley would only give up his formula, which would not suit any country—not even America—

Jan 1, 1881

By J. W. Spretnak, V. Kandarpa, G. W. Powell, R. A. Erickson

Neutron-diffraction pattens were obtained at room temperature from two austenitic manganese steels, oxc wth n carbon content of 1.23 zct PC/ and the olher 0.63 wt pct. Analysis of the data showed that the curOan atols (ions) occupy tile octaheadral site. any of the cavbon is in the tetahedral site, tile concentration is too strzall lo be detecled by tzeulr-on d$facton. AS part of a long-range investigation of eutectoid decomposition, a study of the structure of austenite has been undertaken in order to characterize as best as possible the parent phase in the Fe-C system. Austenite is a solid solution of carbon atoms in fcc iron, the carbon atoms being located in interstitial positions. Of the two kinds of interstitial sites, octahedral (0, +, +) and tetrahedral (4, a, $), in this lattice, the larger octahedral sites are usually considered as the probable position of carbon. The strain energy involved in pytting a neutral carbon atom (covalent di; ameter 1.54)' into a tetrahedral site (diameter 0.56A) is considerably greater than that associated with p2tting carbon into the octahedral site (diameter 1.08A). Dayal and arkeen' observed the migration of carbon in iron under the influence of an electric field indicating tha tye carbon is ionized. pe ionic radius of C'4 is 0.15A and that of C" is 0.29. Consequently, it is conceivable that carbon ions could occupy the tetrahedral sites if one considers only the strain energy. Size considerations alone do not provide a complete explanation for the formation of the interstitial solid solutions, however. because metals such as copper, zinc, and cadmium do not appear to form interstitial solid solutions in spite of their large interstitial sites. Evidence which suggests partial ioni-zation of the carbon in austenite has also been obtained by Speiser, Spretnak, and alor who derived formu- lae relating the observed change in lattice parameter to the effective diameter of the solute atom. Assuming the carbon occupies the octahedral site. they computed the effective diameter of carbon to be 1.33A whereas the covalent diameter is 1.54A. petch5 concluded from powder X-ray diffraction experiments that carbon atoms occupy the octahedral sites. His conclusion was based on the general trend observed in the intensity of the diffraction lines as the carbon content of the austenite was increased. However, the major difficulty associated with application of X-ray diffraction to this particular problem is the relatively poor scattering power of carbon. Williamson and smallman' utilized X-ray diffraction to study the line broadening caused by the strain field about carbon atoms inferrite: these investigators concluded that at least 85 pct of the carbon in ferrite occupies the octahedral (0: 3, B) site rather than the larger

Jan 1, 1967

By O. D. Sherby, J. E. Dorn

SEVERAL years ago Zener and Hollomon1 suggested that the flow stress of metals might be related to the temperature and strain rate in accord with the functional equation: s=s(eeh/rt) [1] at the same state. The Zener-Hollomon relation also contains the significant tacit implication that the energy for activation, AH, is substantially independent of the state of the material. The utility of this method for correlating creep data with tensile data was illustrated in a preliminary reportL on the effect of alloying additions on the secondary creep rates of binary a solid solutions in aluminum as shown for Al-Mg alloys in Fig. 1. Not only do the secondary creep and ultimate tensile properties for each alloy correlate well on this plot but in addition the activation energy, AH = 17,900 R cal per mol. is identical for the various compositions. Similar types of curves correlating the secondary creep rates at 422°K (300°F) with ultimate tensile data were also obtained for a series of dilute a solid solutions of copper, germanium, zinc, and silver in aluminum. In all cases the activation energy for creep, AH, was found to be equal to about 17,900 R cal per mol independent of the type of alloying element or its concentration. The coincidence of the activation energies for these alloys is probably due to the fact that the activation energies for creep are rather insensitive to small composition changes. Alloying additions, as shown in Fig. 1, however, increased the stress necessary to obtain equivalent values of ee?H/RT. Thus the stress level in curves of the type represented by Fig. 1 gives the relative creep strengths of the various alloys. Inasmuch as these correlations between creep and tensile data were obtained for creep tests at 422°K, it appeared advisable to ascertain the range of secondary creep rates and temperatures over which correlations between creep and tensile data could be made on the basis of the Zener-Hollomon relationship. If, for example, the activation energy changes with different ranges of creep temperatures, the utility of the proposed analysis would be severely weakened. But if AH is constant not only for all dilute alloys, but also over wide ranges of temperature and secondary creep rates, confidence will be developed not only in the broad utility of the Zener- Table I. Chemical Analysis':' and Grain Size of Alloys Mean Grain Residual Impurities. Wt Pct Diam- Alloying Atomic-eter, Element Pct Si Fe Cu Mg Mn mm Aluminum 99.987 0.003 0.003 0.006 0.001 0.25 Magnesium 1.617 0.003 0.004 0.006 0.26 Copper 0.101 0.003 0.003 0.0006 0.001 0.29 Zinc 1.616 0.003 0.005 0.007 0.001 '0.26 * The authors express their appreciation to the Aluminum Company of America for the preparation and chemical analyses of these alloys. Hollomon relationship, but also in its theoretical justification. The following investigation was instituted in order to ascertain the range of validity of the Zener-Hollomon relationship when it is applied to creep and tension data. Materials, Equipment, Technique In view of rather extensive correlatable data now available on the plastic properties of a series of binary a solid solutions of magnesium, copper, germanium, zinc, and silver in aluminum, these alloys were again selected for the present investigation. Previous reports have already covered the tensile properties of these alloys at subatmospheric temperatures," and at elevated temperature," as well as their fatigue properties at atmospheric temperatures, nd their creep properties at 422°K.' Resistivity measurementsa as well as precision lattice constant determinations? evealed that these alloys are a solid solutions. After homogenization. 0.100 in. thick sheets were rolled to 0.070 in. in thickness and recrystallized to about the same grain size. Since the details of these treatments were reported previously," they will not be repeated here. In order to appropriately reduce the scope of creep tests in this investigation only the typical alloys shown in Table I were investigated. All creep specimens were machined such that their tensile axes were in the rolling direction of the 0.070 in. sheet stock. The gage section was 2 in. long and 0.500 in. wide with a reduced section of 3.50 in. Creep strains were measured by means of rack and pinion type extensometers with a sensitivity of 0.005 in. per division. Readings were estimated to 1/10 of

Jan 1, 1953

By Shun-ichi Satoh

THE electric arc welding of cast iron has been studied by Braune, Lamberton, Schimpke, Kenyon, Gale Manufacturing Co., Wedemeyer, Candy, Neese, Miller, Carter, American Welding Society, Namack, Lebrun, Achenbach, Jansson, Kochendörffer and others.1 The writer of this paper has been able to obtain a series of cast irons, from gray to white, without using cast-iron electrodes but by coating on wrought-iron bars mixtures of carborundum (SiC) and graphite (C). In this work, he has found the curious phenomenon of barium- carbonate.

Jan 1, 1929

By Hans W. Schreiber

INTRODUCTION At the end of the day, the decision by the sponsor to proceed with a project and to seek financing, or the decision by the financier to grant financing are made on a judgmental basis. Cash flow projections, sensitivity and risk analysis, the innumerable ratios applied by the financier, the so-called feasibility study, etc. are all only tools, and the degree to which they affect decisions is as highly varied as are the personality differences and business conduct and outlooks of the persons who render the decision of "go or no-go". The independent consultant, then, is expected to provide an additional increment of credulity and/or reliability to the "tools" which others will use in reaching a decision; the consultant is really not in a position to directly recommend a "go or no-go". PROJECT FINANCE INGREDIENTS The project finance situation has basically three ingredients: - The project; - The inherent risks attendant with project failure; - The parties. The project, to be viable for financing, will have certain essential characteristics, namely: 1. Clear title or rights to the mineral; 2. Proven definition/establishment of mineral quantity; 3. Financial viability; 4. Physical access consistent with financial viability; 5. A market for the product at a price and for the quantity consistent with financial viability; 6. Transportation/shipping from the project facility to the market at a cost consistent with financial viability; 7. Availability and demonstrated expertise of the developer of the facility; 8. Demonstrated expertise of the operator of the facility; 9. Production processes do not involve unproven new technology; 10. Availability of management personnel; 11. The property and the facilities have value (and thus can be used as collateral); 12. Government approvals/support, as required, will have been obtained; 13. The political environment is essentially friendly and stable; 14. The owner(s) of the project have the financial, strength to make equity contributions consistent with total required investment capital and project risk; 15. Backing by credit support other than that of the financier (i.e. guarantees); The inherent risks of failure are (Nevitt, 2nd Edition); 1. Completion delays with consequent delays in the generation of revenue 2. Cost overruns 3. Technical failure 4. Financial failure of contractors 5. Government interference 6. Uninsured losses 7. Increased price or shortages of raw materials, supplies 8. Technical obsolescence 9. Loss of competitive position in the market place 10. Expropriation 11. Inadequate/poor management The parties directly or indirectly integral to the project financing are: - The mineral rights owner - The developer - The operator - The equity investor

Jan 1, 1985

C. P. SANDBERG, LONDON, ENG : † I think we should all be grateful to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and to their chemist, Dr., Dudley, for spending so much time and money in order to solve an important question ; nor are we less indebted to the public spirit which leads them to impart the experience thus gained. In Europe nothing similar has hitherto been done, either by a company or by any private individual. In England the great railway companies employ their engineers in other ways, and do not keep a chemist or specialist to study rails; but even if they did they would probably not publish the results. The chief professional engineers are so occupied with their private practice of railroad construction generally, that they cannot be expected to devote their time and energies to so special a question. The German Railway Union has, in my opinion, missed the real object of its elaborate researches by falling into the error of specifying costly, impracticable tests for rails-tests at the same time which do not infallibly expose the impurities that may be in the rails under examination. There has, therefore, been nothing done on this side of the Atlantic in the way of exhaustive study to determine the best composition for steel rails. America should consequently have full credit for the enlightened example which she has set. I wish, however, to make a few remarks on Dr. Dudley's second paper, a paper which follows very much upon the same lines of argument as the first read three years ago, upon which I have previously touched in my paper on the same subject read at the meeting in August last. If Dr. Dudley had discovered a new metal he could hardly, I think, have taken more pains to prove that he was correct in his first formula for the best chemical composition of steel rails. But I have seen so much done in the way of proof by experiment that I am inclined to think that almost anything can be proved by experiments and by samples. If Dr. Dudley would only give up his formula, which would not suit any country-not even America- * For the convenience of members it has bees thought best to insert the continuation of this discussion at the Virginia meeting in tide place, rather than to delay its permanent publication until the issue of Volume X, Transactions, where it would properly belong. T. M. D., Sec'y, † Sent to the secretary in manuscript.

Jan 1, 1881

By Charles H. Fulton

The process of crushing ore in cyanide solution was first used at the Crown mine, New Zealand, in 1897, by Mr. F. R. W. Daw; and, two years later, Mr. John Hinton tried it experimentally at the old Dakota plant, Central City, South Dakota. To Mr. Hinton belongs the credit of introducing this important modification in the Black Hills, this being its first successful application in the U. S., and its results have been so satisfactory that it has become established as the proper manner in which to treat the dense oxidized siliceous ores of this district. Five mills are now crushing ore in cyanide solution, namely, the Horseshoe, 120 stamps (60 in operation); the Dakota, 30 stamps; the Maitland, 40 stamps; the Hidden Fortune, 60 stamps; the Lundberg, Dorr & Wilson, one 6-ft. Monadnock roller-mill; and several others intend to adopt this practice. The dry-crushing process still holds its place for the treatment of the more porous and open siliceous ores; and two mills continue to dry-crush dense siliceous ores. Character of the Ores. The occurrence of the ores of the Cambrian strata in the northern Black Hills has been frequently described.' In practice they are classified, according to their appearance, into " red " and " blue " ores, the former being oxidized and the latter unoxidized. At the present time, usually the red ores only are treated at the mills, although occasionally small quantities of blue ore, which have become intimately mixed with the red in mining, are included. Generally the extraction of values by the direct treatment of raw ore is from 70 to 75 per cent. for red ores, and from 25 to 50 per cent. for blue ores. The ores consist mainly of a siliceous matrix containing, as a +1SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MINES, RAPID CITY, SO. DAK.

Jan 1, 1905

By A. D. Hughes

A relatively small area in Malaya, about 200 miles long by 40 miles wide, is the most important source of tin in the world. Some tin is recovered in other parts of the peninsula. Of the tin mined, 98 pct is recovered from alluvial deposits. From 1935 to 1941 the average annual world production of tin was 190,000 tons. The average annual production from Malaya during the same period was 62,000 tons or about one third of the total. Other producing countries, in order of importance, were the Netherlands East Indies 34,000 tons, Bolivia 30,000, Belgian Congo, Nigeria, Siam, Burma, China, and a few others with smaller amounts. The serious shortage of tin during the war period was due to the fact that the Japanese were occupying Malaya, Netherlands East Indies, Siam, Burma, and China which, together, formerly were producing 65 pct of the world supply. Because of the importance of tin in the world economy, and because of the fact that little is generally known in this country regarding the methods of recovering the tin in Malaya, it is believed that a short description of the industry, as carried on there, may be of interest to many of the readers. In addition you may be interested in the effect of the Japanese occupation, subsequent recovery of the properties and conditions existing at that time. The Malay Peninsula lies at the southeast tip of Asia. Singapore, a British colony, is situated on a small island at the southern end of the peninsula. It is a city of nearly a million population, an important world port, the site of a large British naval base and of one of the tin smelters. The Federation of Malaya consists of nine states, plus Penang, Malacca, and other small areas formerly part of the Straits Settlements, and it now covers the entire peninsula. The civil administration is controlled by the British. A constitution was adopted recently after reaching agreement with the Malay Sultans of the various states, who retain control of religious matters. The Capital is at Kuala Lumpur, a city of about 200,000 population, 250 miles north of Singapore and about half way to Penang. The country covers an area of 51,000 square miles, an area about equal to that of Florida and about one third that of California. It has a population of about seven million consisting of Malays, Chinese, East Indians, and a relatively small number of Europeans. The principal products are tin and rubber. There are over three million acres of planted rubber. The country is not self-supporting agriculturally as about one third of the necessary food supplies is imported. Rice is the principal food of the Asiatic population and some of the recent unrest is caused by a shortage of rice and the consequent high price. Good highways have been built through the settled part of the country. A railway, Government owned, extends from Singapore northward through the entire peninsula. The climate is tropical but health conditions are good for a tropical country. I was in Malaya from 1939 until January 1942, during the time of the simultaneous air attacks on Pearl Harbor, Manila, Hongkong, and Singa-

Jan 1, 1950

By R. S. Botsford

SPECULATION as to when and under what conditions mining may be resumed in Russia by foreign interests is becoming more interesting. Circumstances have changed so completely that all new projects must give careful consideration to the conditions as they exist at this time. For example, it is now estimated that a certain copper company in Russia can produce copper and put it on board ship at seaboard for 8 1/2c. per lb., crediting the copper with the value of precious metals contained. It is further estimated that in some places gold can be produced at a cost of about one-half of its value; platinum can be produced even more advantageously. Transportation, which is absolutely necessary for mines of coal, iron or manganese ore, as well as for an industry consuming either coal or coke, is not so essential for the operation of a gold or platinum dredge when the dredge has once been put into operation; after that, food is the principal material for which transportation must be provided. During 1922 the operators in the Urals, who had combined in a so-called platinum trust, expected to produce about 2340 lb. of crude platinum but the amount actually recovered during that season was reported as only 1620 lb., most of which came from hand workings; Nicolo Pavda had the principal dredges in operation during that year. In preparation for 1923 operations, about $400,000 worth of repair parts were obtained in England. At least two American-built dredges and one Putiloff dredge are reported in operation at Nicolo Pavda and it is supposed that most of the better dredges in the platinum district are now working.

Jan 12, 1923

By W. C. Clark, J. B. Schloen

Two papers have been written, previously concerning operations at the Montreal East plant of Canadian Copper Refiners Limited. The first one,' written in 1932, described silver-refinery operations at the time for producing silver and gold bullion from tankhouse anode slimes; the second,Z published in 1933, consisted of a description of the entire plant. Since publication of these papers the refinery has become the world's largest producer of refined selenium. The first selenium was produced in August 1934. Tellurium production on a commercial scale followed in October 1935. This paper will deal with selenium and tellurium production and also with present operations in the silver refinery. Blister cakes from Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Co., Flin Flon, Manitoba, and commercial anodes from Noranda Mines Limited, Noranda, Quebec, are refined at Montreal East. Both these bullions have unusually high gold, selenium and tellurium content. The average assay of raw slimes produced from domestic and Noranda anodes is about 40 per cent Cu, 3600 oz. per ton Ag, 800 ox. per ton Au, 22 per cent Se and 3.7 per cent Te. Early Silver-refinery Operations From the start of operations in 1931 until July 1934, the raw slimes were oxidiae-roasted at 700' F. in a Nichols-Herreshoff furnace, acid-leached with tankhouse discarded foul electrolyte (20 per cent HzSOa), filtered and charged directly to the dor6 furnace for refining to dore metal. This is the customary method for treating tankhouse anode slimes but was not suitable at the Montreal East plant because of the high selenium and tellurium content of our slimes. In the acid-leaching process about 50 per cent of the selenium and tellurium in the roasted slimes was dissolved in the electrolyte. These elements were recovered with the copper as a sludge in a small electrolytic

Jan 1, 1944

By J. C. Melrose, W. R. Foster, J. G. Savins, E. R. Parish

Many differences can be imagined between gas-oil flow in which the gas is supplied at the face of the core and gas-oil flow in which the flowing gas was originally dissolved in the oil. If capillary pressure characteristics and flow requirements control gas saturation distribution, the gas would be expected to be located at preferred sites within the porous medium as determined by pore sizes. On the other hand, during solution gas drive the gas first appears as bubbles through a nuclea-tion process. Nothing in self-nucleation theory specifies at which sites the first bubbles should be formed. In all probability they will be randomly distributed throughout the porous medium. Furthermore, it is not at all certain that even at low rates of production the gas will redistribute itself after nucleation to the channels normally occupied by gas in simple gas flow. Stewart, et at, have shown that at least for some limestone samples, oil recoveries could not be predicted for all rates of production using any one set of relative gas and oil permeabilities. An important factor in controlling recoveries during solution gas drive was the rate of bubble formation, higher rates giving higher recoveries. Stewart, et al, attributed the increase in recovery to a better distribution of the gas phase in heterogeneous limestone samples than is obtained by simple external gas drive. Differences in recovery from these causes were not reported for sandstone cores. In the experiments to be reported here, oil recovery, pressure and producing GOR history were measured during solution gas drive for a 5-ft sandstone core. The results were compared with predictions from the Muskat method for computing solution gas-drive behavior using external gas-drive relative permeability. The effects of changing the rate of production and oil viscosity were studied. At high laboratory rates of average pressure decline, two observations were made which would not have been predicted by Muskat's depletion theory: (1) oil recovery increased with increasing rate of production for a given viscosity oil, and (2) oil recovery increased with increasing oil viscosity for a given high rate of production. Both of these observations are explained as consequences of diffusion control of gas saturations superimposed on the normal gas-oil flow requirements, Fur- thermore, discontinuous gas phase flow appears to be significant during solution gas drive. The laboratory tests were performed at rates of average pressure decline many times greater than the maximum possible rate of average pressure decline in an actual oil field. It is, therefore, not possible to draw any direct conclusions regarding the effect of rate on recovery for the solution gas-drive mechanism under actual field conditions. However, at the lower laboratory rates, recoveries were nearly independent of rate and could be predicted by the Muskat method, using external gas-drive relative permeability data. These results suggest that at normal oilfield rates the effect of rate on recovery for the solution gas-drive mechanism is negligible. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES The core material for the pressure depletion studies was Bandera sandstone from an outcrop in the Mid-Continent. This sandstone was selected because of its low permeability (about 10 md), which would permit the development of substantial pressure gradients in the corn at moderate flow rates. The core was 5-ft long and 2-in. in diameter. Its properties are listed in Table 1. Relative gas-to-oil permeability ratios were measured by an external gas-drive method2. The results are shown for a short 2-in. core and for the 5-ft core in Fig. 8. Oils used in the pressure depletion experiments were kerosene and a highly refined white oil (standard white oil No. 3) with gas-free viscosities of 1.8 and 25 cp, respectively. The gas was a naturally occurring methane from Gough field, Inglewood, Calif. The oil viscosities, gas solubilities and formation volume factors are plotted as functions of pressure at 75°F in Figs. 1 and 2. Methane viscosities and compressibilities were obtained from the literature"'. A core mounting was required which could withstand up to 2,500 psi internal pressure. This was obtained by first encasing the core completely in a plastic resin (Scotch Cast, manufactured by Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Co.) The plastic covered core was then inserted into a steel pipe equipped with screw caps so that the plastic coating could be pressured from

By C. H. Mahoney, A. L. Tarr, P. E. Le Grand

Magnesium, it is now generally realized, differs in some important aspects from most other structural metals, not excepting even its close neighbors, the aluminum-base alloys. This is particularly true with respect to the effects of elevated temperatures on the two light metals when in the molten state. Aluminum, 0' the one hand, should not be raised above its melting point any higher than is absolutely necessary if one is to avoid danger of gas absorption and a tendency toward grain growth in the resultant casting.' Magnesium alloys, in sharp contrast, actually benefit by being heated to temperatures considerably above their melting point, It is a commonly accepted practice to establish the desired fine grain in the industrial magnesium alloys of the aluminum-hearing group by raising the temperature of the melt after the refining treatment to some 250°C (482°F.) above the melting range. To recall briefly the typical practice for magnesium alloys, the molten metal is refined by fluxing at about 730°C. (I350°F.), and after the melt has been covered with a suitable flux, the temperature is raised to between 870°C. (I600°F.) and 930°C. (1700°F.). It is then cooled as quickly as possible to the casting temperature. This superheating, as it is called, results in a fine-grained cast metal structure which has superior mechanical properties, enhanced amenability to 'solution heat-treatment, and better machinability than cast metal that has not been superheated. The minimum temperature of superheating varies to some extent with the composition of the alloys to be treated and usually increases with the percentage of magnesium in alloys containing the same constituent metals.' It should be noted that the grain-refining effect of superheating is markedly apparent only in connection with the alloys containing aluminum as an alloying Constituent—the binary alloy containing 1.5 per cent manganese, for example, is not refined in grain to any noticeable extent by a superheating effort. While the phenomenon of superheating is well known in the magnesium industry, the mechanism of the process has remained a mystery During the superheating cycle something occurs that forces a fine grain upon the solidifying metal. The process has been controlled in an empirical manner, and occasionally, especially on large-scale melts, and for no apparent cause, no grain refinement is obtained from a superheating treatment. Only a few papers of importance have been published on the subject. Of these, one of the most helpful is the paper by Achenbach, Nipper and Piwowarski,3 which gives considerable data concerning the effect of superheating on various properties such as fluidity, shrinkage and hot crack

Jan 1, 1945

By George Rice

THE subject of dust explosions in coal mines first appears in the Transactions of this Institute following the first great mine disaster that happened in bituminous mines of the United States. This was the Pocahontas explosion, which occurred Mar. 13, 1884, causing the loss of 112 men. The operating company wisely asked the technical assistance of the Institute, requesting that a committee be appointed to investigate and report. This committee consisted of Messrs. Bramwell, Buck, and Williams, who, after careful study, reached the conclusion that the explosion was due "either to dust alone or to dust quickened by an admixture of fire-clamp too slight for detection by ordinary means." This is perhaps the first time in this country that coal dust was considered to be the chief agency in a mine explosion.. The report is given in the Transactions, vol. xiii, p. 237 (1885). It is particularly worthy of note that the committee called attention to "the necessity of full-sized tests and systematic experiments. " In the same volume of the Transactions, there is a most interesting paper reviewing the literature relating to coal dust, by E. S. Hutchinson, entitled Notes on Coal-Dust in Colliery Explosions. Mr. Hutchinson gives a historical account of observations on the part played by coal dust in mine explosions, beginning with Messrs. Lyell and Faraday's report on the Haswell colliery explosion in 1844, in which it is said "much coal gas had been made from this dust in the very air itself in the mine by the flame of the firedamp, which raised and swept it along, and much of the carbon of the dust remained unburned only from want of air." The subject lay dormant until 1875 when William Galloway began some coal-dust experiments in a small gallery at a mine in South Wales of which he was manager. At that time he considered the presence of firedamp necessary for continued propagation of a dust explosion; but in 1884, the year of the Pocahontas disaster, he stated that no earlier author-than himself had credited coal dust with being a principal factor in mine explosions, relegating firedamp to a secondary place.

Jan 10, 1914

By Roy Lindgren

SINCE the year 1643, when the first blast furnace in America for treating iron ore was built at Saugus, Mass., out of mica schist quarried in the neighboring district, the procurement of a suitable refractory for furnace lining has been a problem of concern to the operators of furnaces. The stacks built of mica schist continued to smelt iron ore until about 1836, when, according to F. H. Norton, the first firebrick were produced1, at Queens Run, Pa. Other writers speak of brick having been molded and burned in Massachusetts about the year 1834. In 1841, Andrew Russell began to produce medium refractory plastic clay brick near East Liverpool, Ohio, that were used for lining blast furnaces1. The well-known Kentucky clay-producing district was not opened up until the year 1871, but since then it has produced a large percentage of the linings for iron blast furnaces. While some strides have been made by the refractories industry during the 100 years that have passed since the first firebrick were produced, it has been only during the last two decades that any real progress has been made towards bettering the product, even though the method of production had improved. Perhaps the fault lies with the user of the brick rather than with the producer, for not sooner demanding a supe-rior product. During the past 15 years the tonnage produced per lining has increased from 500,000 gross tons to 1,000,000 gross tons, and now some furnaces are producing 1,600,000 gross tons and better on a single lining. It is true that enlarged capacity of furnaces and improved practice have accounted for some of this increase in tonnage, nevertheless better quality in firebrick must be given credit for its share. However, we are not yet ready to say that we have reached a maximum life of furnace lining. We believe that a better product can be produced and that the refractories industries of America will, through their extensive research depart-

Jan 1, 1936

F. E. BASH, Philadelphia, Pa.-In order to make a definite check on the emissivity of crucible steel under works conditions, a test was planned and executed by the plant of the Midvale Steel Co., by a Sub-committee, as follows: Five crucibles were put in a crucible furnace with-the normal charge and were treated in the same manner as a number of others that were charged at the same time; the only difference was that the five cur-cibles had lids with.2-in. holes in the center. It was thought that after the crucibles were removed from the furnace a reading could be made through the hole in the lid with the optical pyrometer and that such a reading would give the true temperature of the steel as black-body con-ditions should prevail inside the crucible. If after obtaining the true temperature, the crucible lid were removed and the steel poured into the ladle, the apparent temperature could be taken by sighting on the steel stream and the emissivity obtained from the two temperature values. Such a test was carried out with five crucibles. About a third of the crucibles charged into the furnace with the five experimental ones were first drawn from the furnace and poured into the ladle. The experimental crucibles were then drawn and readings of the true temperature were made

Jan 12, 1919