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By C. W. Binckley, F. R. Burgess, E. R. Haymaker

A method of establishing stabilized back-pressure curves for gas wells producing from formations of extremely low permeability is presented. Actual well performance under many different operating conditions is shown by the stabilized back-pressure curve. By use of the method. it is possible to conduct back-pressure tests with a critical-flow prover on wells that stabilize slowly, and save approximately 88% of the gas ordinarily vented to obtain satisfactory test data, with a great reduction in time required for testing. INTRODUCTION The reasons for establishing dependable back-pressure curves on gas wells have been pointed out by previous publications. The publication most referred to. of course, is the United States Bureau of Mines Monograph 7, titled "Back-Pressure Data on Natural Gas Wells and Their Application to Production Practices". The technique generally established therein has been accepted and used by many engineers; and, when proper tests are conducted, the results can be used for the analysis and solution of several practical problems concerning field operation and development. Even where formations of low specific permeability are encountered, the determination of a well's actual performance by the back-pressure test method permits the engineer to analyze many problems in individual well operation and also to predict necessary future field development. Such problems as the determination of the ability of a well to produce into a pipe line at a predetermined line pressure, the design of gas gathering systems and meter settings, and the determination of the time and the number of wells required to be drilled to meet future market obligations, can be solved, in part., by the use of a reliable back-~ressure curve. In addition, the computed well delivery rates determined by data from backpressure tests ordered by state regtilatory bodies, when compared with the true back-Pressure curve, permit the operator to ascertain whether such data represent unstable or relatively stabilized delivery rates for given pressure conditions of the well. The technique of back-pressure testing, as described in this report, was developed by Phillips Petroleum Company engineers from data obtained during a testing program that started in 1944 and has been continued to date. Three hundred and eleven back-pressure tests were conducted on 299 wells located in the southern part of the Hugoton Field. The gas-bearing zone is composed of several dolomitic formations of the Permian Age; the important ones are the Herington, Upper Krider, Lower Krider, and Winfield. The average bottom-hole temperature is approximately 91 °F.. and the initial wellhead shut-in pressures range from 400 to 440 psig. The spacing pattern is 640 acres per well with each well located near the center of the section. The range of back-pressure potentials on wells tested was from 500 to 23,000 Mcfd. All gas wells were acidized, and the quantity of acid used, expressed in 1574 hydrocloric acid, varied from 12,000 to 22,000 gallons per well. The quantity and concentration of each treatment depended on the stage, the formation being treated, and experience gained from previously completed wells. The gas in the Hugoton Feld is a "dry" gas. It has a gasoline content of approximately 0.25 gallons per thousand cubic feet, as determined by charcoal test, and its specific gravity averages about 0.71 as compared to air (air = 1.00 at 60°F.). Of the wells tested, 71 were completed with 7" casing, 3 with 9 5/8" casing, and 1 with 6%" casing set on top of the upper producing formation with the well bore through the gas bearing formations being open hole. Two hundred and twenty-four were completed with 5 1/2'' O.D. casing set through the gas bearing formations and perforated. For the purpose of establishing reliable back-pressure curves in the area, Phillips Petroleum Company personnel has computed data on the basis of 24-hour flows per point. Early in the program, many tests were actually permitted to flow 24 hours to obtain data for each plotting point, at great expense in man power and time. Presently, however, such tests have been replaced by tests of short duration flows which can be made to effect results that correspond to the tests obtained by flows of much longer duration. METHOD When a gas well producing from a reservoir of low permeability is opened for production through a constant size orifice, both the rate of flow and working pressure decline. first at a high rate and later at a lower rate until after several hours the decline becomes difficult to ascertain. In this paper the rae of flow and working pressure are considered to be stabilized when it becomes difficult to observe changes in working pressure during a period of three hours by the use of a deadweight pressure gage. Stalibization of pressure in the literal sense is never obtained in a producing gas well. In formations of low permeability. such as those in the Hugo-ton Field, most wellhead working pressures approach stabilization closely enough to be used satisfactorily in the determination of a back-Pressure potential curve after flow periods of 24 hours. We shall therefore describe the backpressure curve calculated from ohserved rates of flow and working pressure at the end of 24-hour flow periods.

Jan 1, 1949

By E. R. Haymaker, C. W. Binckley, F. R. Burgess

A method of establishing stabilized back-pressure curves for gas wells producing from formations of extremely low permeability is presented. Actual well performance under many different operating conditions is shown by the stabilized back-pressure curve. By use of the method. it is possible to conduct back-pressure tests with a critical-flow prover on wells that stabilize slowly, and save approximately 88% of the gas ordinarily vented to obtain satisfactory test data, with a great reduction in time required for testing. INTRODUCTION The reasons for establishing dependable back-pressure curves on gas wells have been pointed out by previous publications. The publication most referred to. of course, is the United States Bureau of Mines Monograph 7, titled "Back-Pressure Data on Natural Gas Wells and Their Application to Production Practices". The technique generally established therein has been accepted and used by many engineers; and, when proper tests are conducted, the results can be used for the analysis and solution of several practical problems concerning field operation and development. Even where formations of low specific permeability are encountered, the determination of a well's actual performance by the back-pressure test method permits the engineer to analyze many problems in individual well operation and also to predict necessary future field development. Such problems as the determination of the ability of a well to produce into a pipe line at a predetermined line pressure, the design of gas gathering systems and meter settings, and the determination of the time and the number of wells required to be drilled to meet future market obligations, can be solved, in part., by the use of a reliable back-~ressure curve. In addition, the computed well delivery rates determined by data from backpressure tests ordered by state regtilatory bodies, when compared with the true back-Pressure curve, permit the operator to ascertain whether such data represent unstable or relatively stabilized delivery rates for given pressure conditions of the well. The technique of back-pressure testing, as described in this report, was developed by Phillips Petroleum Company engineers from data obtained during a testing program that started in 1944 and has been continued to date. Three hundred and eleven back-pressure tests were conducted on 299 wells located in the southern part of the Hugoton Field. The gas-bearing zone is composed of several dolomitic formations of the Permian Age; the important ones are the Herington, Upper Krider, Lower Krider, and Winfield. The average bottom-hole temperature is approximately 91 °F.. and the initial wellhead shut-in pressures range from 400 to 440 psig. The spacing pattern is 640 acres per well with each well located near the center of the section. The range of back-pressure potentials on wells tested was from 500 to 23,000 Mcfd. All gas wells were acidized, and the quantity of acid used, expressed in 1574 hydrocloric acid, varied from 12,000 to 22,000 gallons per well. The quantity and concentration of each treatment depended on the stage, the formation being treated, and experience gained from previously completed wells. The gas in the Hugoton Feld is a "dry" gas. It has a gasoline content of approximately 0.25 gallons per thousand cubic feet, as determined by charcoal test, and its specific gravity averages about 0.71 as compared to air (air = 1.00 at 60°F.). Of the wells tested, 71 were completed with 7" casing, 3 with 9 5/8" casing, and 1 with 6%" casing set on top of the upper producing formation with the well bore through the gas bearing formations being open hole. Two hundred and twenty-four were completed with 5 1/2'' O.D. casing set through the gas bearing formations and perforated. For the purpose of establishing reliable back-pressure curves in the area, Phillips Petroleum Company personnel has computed data on the basis of 24-hour flows per point. Early in the program, many tests were actually permitted to flow 24 hours to obtain data for each plotting point, at great expense in man power and time. Presently, however, such tests have been replaced by tests of short duration flows which can be made to effect results that correspond to the tests obtained by flows of much longer duration. METHOD When a gas well producing from a reservoir of low permeability is opened for production through a constant size orifice, both the rate of flow and working pressure decline. first at a high rate and later at a lower rate until after several hours the decline becomes difficult to ascertain. In this paper the rae of flow and working pressure are considered to be stabilized when it becomes difficult to observe changes in working pressure during a period of three hours by the use of a deadweight pressure gage. Stalibization of pressure in the literal sense is never obtained in a producing gas well. In formations of low permeability. such as those in the Hugo-ton Field, most wellhead working pressures approach stabilization closely enough to be used satisfactorily in the determination of a back-Pressure potential curve after flow periods of 24 hours. We shall therefore describe the backpressure curve calculated from ohserved rates of flow and working pressure at the end of 24-hour flow periods.

Jan 1, 1949

By Holt, Grover J.

PRIOR to :1937 any discussion of mining and transportation in the iron mines of Minnesota would have been limited largely to conventional methods which have been used for years in the iron ore industry. Today, however, an inspection trip to the crest of almost any open pit on the ranges will re- veal great progress underground mining and the transportation of underground ore have also developed rapidly and if and when underground mining of iron ore again becomes generally economically feasible; these mining methods will probably witness a transformation equal to that which has taken place in the open pits.

Jan 1, 1941

By W. G. Pfann

THE problem of forming points on wires that were from 0.002 in. to 0.010 in. in diam arose in the recent appearance of silicon and germanium point contact rectifiers as elements in microwave radar.1 In these devices a pointed tungsten wire makes a delicate contact with the surface of a semiconductor. Because the quality of such rectifiers is largely determined by the nature of this contact, considerable attention has been given to the formation of the metal point. Reproducibility of contour and freedom from burrs and even microscopic irregularities are considered essential. The operations involved must be simple and rapid enough for mass production. Previously tungsten wires had been provided with conical points by a grinding method which involved rotating a wire about its axis and causing it to bear at an oblique angle against a spinning abrasive disc. This was later complemented with an electrolytic polishing treatment which removed irregularities from the ground point and also rounded it off at the tip-a desirable feature. Finally, these operations were supplanted by the electrolytic pointing method described here. MECHANISM OF POINT FORMATION The wires to be pointed are partially immersed- in an electrolyte in a .vertical position whereupon they are provided with smooth rounded points entirely by electrochemical action. The process is independent of the depths to which the wires penetrate the electrolyte because the points are formed at the surface level. It may be used to point a single wire or many of them simultaneously and is applicable to wires of different diameters within a limited range. Solution of the immersed portion of a tungsten wire is accomplished by making it the positive electrode in an electrolytic cell, as shown in Fig I. While the wire is maintained at constant voltage the current through the cell falls continuously, principally because of the decrease in wetted area which results from solution of the tungsten. This increase in resistance occurs in a reproducible manner and is used as a control in the process. As the immersed portion of the wire dissolves, it remains cylindrical in shape except for the short section which is wetted by the meniscus. Here the rate of solution is lower and decreases as the top of the meniscus is approached. The result is the formation of a tapered section inside the meniscus. As solution continues, the cylindrical section either dissolves entirely or drops off just before complete solution, leaving only the taper which is now sharply pointed. Further action causes this point to become rounded and then quite blunt, until finally the end of the wire is almost plane. Fig 2 shows the stages in this development. Contour PF is most representative of those used in point contact rectifiers. Thus a variety of point

Jan 1, 1947

By Joshua I. Tracey, Mackenzie Gordon

THE bauxite deposits in central Arkansas were formed by weather¬ing, in early Eocene time, of fresh or kaolinized nepheline syenite above the water table in a subtropical climate of fairly continuous moisture. Four types are recognized: (1) residual bauxite deposits on kaolinized nepheline syenite, (2) residual deposits on kaolin and bauxite detritus, (3) alluvial deposits of sorted pebbles and pisolites of early Wilcox age, and (4) rubble deposits of later Wilcox age. All were invaded by kaolin and siderite during subsequent burial by Eocene sediments. PART I-FIELD RELATIONS OF THE DEPOSITS The Arkansas bauxite region for years has produced about 95 pct of the domestic supply of bauxite of the United States and it contains today reserves of more than 40 million tons-nine tenths of the known domestic reserves. During World War II, the Arkansas bauxite deposits were explored jointly by the U. S. Geological Survey and the U. S. Bureau of Mines. Some 6000 holes were drilled by rotary rigs under contract to the Federal Govern¬ment, which resulted in the discovery and delimiting of approximately 20 million tons of ore in place. Detailed study of the many sections cored through the bauxite, of data from a much greater number of drill holes made available by all the operating companies, and of the extensive mine faces exposed in the strip pits, has yielded valuable geologic information about the origin of the deposits. It is now possible to piece together a paleotopographic picture of the deposits and the now-buried land surface on which they formed. The bauxite region in the center of Arkansas (Fig 1) contains two producing districts: one in Pulaski County, just south of Little Rock, and the other in Saline County, about 15 miles to the southwest. The deposits in both districts are associated with hills of nepheline syenite, bosses of a large batho¬lith that was intruded into Paleozoic rocks and later buried beneath coastal plain sediments deposited during Cenozoic time. The folded Paleozoic rocks are exposed in the northwest half of the state and are covered in the southeast half by the nearly flat-lying coastal plain sediments. The older rocks were intruded by nepheline syenite, probably in Late Cretaceous time, and sub¬sequently were eroded so as to expose the top of the batholith. In Paleocene time, marine limestone and laminated black silty clay of the Midway group were deposited in an advancing sea, and covered all but the most elevated parts of the batholith. Erosion of the islands of nepheline

Jan 1, 1952

By Zay Jeffries

Tungsten has the highest melting point of all the known metals, namely 3350 C.; it is one of the hardest of the metals; it has the highest equiaxing or recrystallization temperature after strain hardening, of any pure metal known. It is particularly distinguished because, when composed of small equiaxed grains, it is extremely brittle and fragile at room temperature, and when possessing a fibrous structure it may be ductile and pliable at room temperature. The common ductile metals act in exactly the opposite manner in this respect. The present paper will include a brief note regarding the manufacture of wrought and ductile tungsten. The metallography of wrought and ductile tungsten in the various stages of manufacture will be considered more or less in detail. The general relationships between the properties of tungsten and other metals will also be considered. A discussion will be given explaining why fibrous tungsten is ductile at room temperature, even though past experience with other metals would indicate that it should be brittle. Finally, a brief note regarding some new fundamental metallographic propositions relating to all metals will be given. Manufacture of Wrought and Ductile Tungsten Up to about 10 years ago, it had not been possible to work tungsten mechanically. About the year 1908, Dr. William D. Coolidge, of the General Electrie Go., produced ductile tungsten from what was then supposed to be an inherently brittle metal and which, in fact, was inherently brittle in its normal state, that is, when composed of equiaxed grains. Since that time many products, chief among which are the filaments for electric incandescent lamps, have been made from wrought and ductile tungsten. Tungsten is produced chiefly from the minerals wolframite and scheelite.1-8 The ores may be reduced in many ways. For example, the ore may be fused with alkali carbonates and the fusion dissolved in water; sodium tungstate is formed, which is soluble in water. This

Jan 1, 1919

By M. R. Geer Olds, H. F. Yancey

THE increase in the number of coal-cleaning plants employing dense-medium processes occurring since 1946 is especially interesting when viewed historically. Both sand and magnetite were introduced as material for heavy mediums at about the same time, sand in the Chance process in 1921 and magnetite in the Conklin process in 1922, but from that point on their records diverge. The Chance process enjoyed a steady growth from its inception, whereas no additional magnetite plants were built in the United States for over 20 years. Then, following the close of the World War 11, magnetite was again introduced, this time with marked success. During the following years some 47 plants employing magnetite medium were built. This rapid growth of dense-medium cleaning has been concurrent with widespread adoption of full-seam mining on one hand and a return to a more competitive market on the other. At a time when changing mining practice has provided cleaning plants with dirtier coal and changing market conditions have simultaneously demanded a cleaner product, the industry has through necessity turned to improved preparation. The inherently greater sharpness with which dense-medium processes can separate coal from impurity is thus helping to hold the line against ever-increasing mining costs and at the same time assisting materially in retaining badly needed markets. Although dense-medium cleaning unquestionably offers a distinct advantage when the washing problem is difficult, other methods can provide almost equally high efficiency when the coal is easy to wash. Moreover, fine coal cannot yet be treated by heavy medium in a proved process, although the Driessen cyclone is in the pilot-plant stage. Most of the present types of dense-medium equipment have been in use only a few years, and the dearth of information in the literature concerning their performance characteristics is entirely understandable, Nevertheless this information is necessary if the process is to be intelligently applied to individual cleaning problems. Without data on the efficiency of a process in a particular type of separation, it is difficult to assess the advantage to be expected from it. Similarly, the role of particle size in heavy-medium separation is important in some cases, yet there is little published information on this aspect. To mention only one more of the numerous points on which essential information is lacking, the bearing of medium characteristics on performance has been discussed only in qualitative terms. It was with the hope of providing information on some of these points that the Bureau of Mines built a dense-medium pilot plant for cleaning coal at its Northwest Experiment Station in Seattle in 1950. The plant has been operated continuously since that time, and over 50 runs have been made on 7 coals exhibiting a wide range of washability characteristics. An idea of the magnitude of this work will be gained from the fact that examination of the plant products has involved some 600 float-and-sink separations and about 2500 ash determinations. A laboratory pilot plant is especially well adapted to investigate many aspects of performance because close control over test conditions can be exercised and because a large number of tests can be made rapidly. On the other hand, factors such as consumption of medium and other cost items can be investigated satisfactorily only in a commercial plant. Actually, the two forms of investigation should be complementary, with the laboratory work pointing the way for confirming tests in commercial units. Pilot Plant The dense-medium pilot plant employed for this work comprises a 24x30-in. drum-type separating vessel, a 12-in. densifier, a 12-in. magnetic separator, a 26-in. x 9-ft vibrating screen, and the necessary pumps and conveyors for handling materials. Arrangement of these units corresponds with the flowsheet used in most commercial plants, except that a thickener is not provided for the feed to the magnetic separator. Coal and refuse discharge from the separating drum to the vibrator, which is divided longitudinally down the center. Medium draining through the first 3 ft of the screen is recirculated directly to the drum. Sprays on the middle 3 ft of the screen rinse medium from the products, and the last 3-ft section is for dewatering. Dilute medium from the rinsing and dewatering sections is pumped to the magnetic separator, where magnetic solids are recovered. These are pumped to the densifier, from which they return to the medium-drainage sump by gravity through a demagnetizing coil. The drum-type separating vessel is a scale model of a commercial unit. Feed enters axially at one end of the drum just below the surface of the bath, and float material overflows through a circular opening at the other end. Particles sinking to the bottom of the bath are picked up by lifting flights bolted to the inner wall of the drum, elevated out of the bath, and sluiced to the vibrating screen. Baffles suspended in the bath prevent float material from entering the sink-lifting flights. About 8 gpm of medium is used to sluice the feed into the drum. An additional 15 to 24 gpm, depending upon operating conditions, is added through two pipes dipping into the bath behind the baffle on the side where the sink-lifting flights enter the bath. The bath available for separation is 2 ft long and 13 in. wide, giving an area of 2.08 sq ft. Depth of bath from the surface to the top of the sink-lifting flights, measured vertically below the axis, is 6 in.

Jan 1, 1954

By John Stewart

The market at present supplied by shipments from the phosphate districts of Quebec, Ontario, and New York State requires high-grade ore, carrying from 75 per cent. to 90 per cent. of phosphate of lime. In sorting out such material by hand, much valuable phosphate is necessarily left in the "culls" or refuse, besides which, much phosphate-rock of low-grade is not now mined at all, because it cannot be made available by the crude method of cobbing and hand-sorting. The utilization of such material, which would, of course, greatly benefit this industry, requires either a mechanical separation or a chemical process which would concentrate the phosphate in a form suitable for agriculture. Considering the rich phosphate now shipped as the first class, we may arrange the lower grades in three classes, as follows: Second Class.—Cull-ore from the first class, and the mass of deposits having, as gangue, pyroxene or hornblende. The following table gives the hardness and specific gravity of the minerals concerned: Hardness Spec. gravity. Apatite,....... . 5 3.1 to 3.25 Crystalline limestone (pink calcite),. 3 to 4 2.5 to 2.9 Pyroxene,..5 to 6 3.23 to 3.5 Hornblende,.5 to 6 2.9 to 3.4 Feldspar (orthoclase),. .. . 6 to 6.5 2.5 to 2.6 It is evident that when pyroxene and hornblende are present in large proportions, this ore cannot be successfully concentrated by crushing and jigging. It may be reduced to fine powder by successive treatment in a rock-breaker and a Sturtevant or Frisbee-Lucop mill, or other suitable apparatus, and in this condition it could be largely used by applying it freely upon exhausted clay soils, such as occur in Quebec and Ontario. The occupants of these once fertile river-lands are, however, hard to move in the direction of such improvements. When water-power is at hand, the cost of crushing

Jan 1, 1893

Separates of all the Technical Publications published in 1931 are available at Institute headquarters. All the papers are on file in public, university and technical libraries, and when so indicated in the list, may be found in the Transactions. Copies of these papers have been mailed to those members of the Institute who are registered in the different classes: A-Metal Mining; B-Milling and Concentration; C-Iron and Steel Division; D-Nonferrous Metallurgy; E-Institute of Metals Division; F-Coal Division; G-Petroleum Division; H-Nonmetallic Minerals; I-Mining Geology; K-Mining Administration; L-Geophysical Prospecting. Other members may obtain copies by writing to the Secretary. Additional copies are sold at the rate of I cent per page; minimum charge, 25 cents. Metal Mining Tech-nical Publi- Title Author Meeting TRanb. cation Volume No. and Page* 411-A.43 Ventilation at the Portovelo Mines, J. P. Harmon New York. T31, 83 Ecuador (18) Feb., 1931 425-A.44 Use of Models for the Study of Mining P. B. Bucky New York, Problems (28) Feb., 1931 Milling and Concentration 375-B.32 Ball Mill Studies, I (53) A. W. Fahrenwald New York, H. E. Lee Feb.. 1931 401-B.33 Experimental Flotation of Oxidized H. S. Gieser New York. Silver Ores (9) Feb., 1931 410-B.34 Flotation of Minor Gold in Large-scale E. S. Leaver New York, Copper Concentrators (32) J. A. Woolf Feb., 1931 414-B.35 Effect of Particle Size on Flotation A. M. Gaudin New York, (23) J. 0. Groh Feb., 1931 H. B. Henderson 416-B.36 Ball Mill Studies, 11.—Thermal A. W. Fahrenwald New York. Determinations of Ball Mill Effi- G. W. Hammar Feb., 1931 ciency (13) H. E. Lee W. W. Staley Iron and Steel Division 38QC.59 Open-hearth Steel Process as a Prob- E. R. Jette New York, C31, 80, 111 Iem in Chemical Kinetics (34) Feb., 1931 381-C.60 Thermodynamic Study of the Phasial Yap, Chu-Phay New York. Equi1ibriain the System Iron-car- Feb., 1931 bon (26) 382-(3.61 Influence of Dissolved Carbide on the Yap, Chu-Phay New York, Equilibria of the System Iron-car- Feb., 1931 ban (19) 383-C.62 Research on Blast-furnace Slags. R. S. McCaffery New York, Three papers (88) Co-workers Feb., 1931 384-C.63 Statistical Analysis of Blast-furnace K. S. McCaffery New York, C31, 60, 70 Data (13) R. G. Stephenson Feb., 1931

Jan 1, 1931

By W. G. Pfann

The problem of forming points on wires that were from 0.002 in. to 0.010 in. in diam arose in the recent appearance of silicon and germanium point contact rectifiers as elements in microwave radar.' In these devices a pointed tungsten wire makes a delicate contact with the surface of a semiconductor. Because the quality of such rectifiers is largely determined by the nature of this contact, considerable attention has been given to the formation of the metal point. Reproducibility of contour and freedom from burrs and even microscopic irregularities are considered essential. The operations involved must be simple and rapid enough for mass production. Previously tungsten wircs had been provided with conical points by a grinding method which involved rotating a wire about its axis and causing it to bear at an oblique angle against a spinning abrasive disc. This was later complemented with an electrolytic polishing treatment which removed irregularities from the ground point and also rounded it off at the tip—a desirable feature. Finally, these operations were supplanted by the electrolytic pointing method described here. Mechanism of Point Formation The wires to be pointed are partially immersed in an electrolyte in a vertical position whereupon they are provided with smooth rounded points entirely by electrochemical action. The process is independent of the depths to which the wires penetrate the electrolyte because the points are formed at the surface level. It may be used to point a single wire or many of them simultaneously and is applicable to wires of different diameters within a limited range. Solution of the immersed portion of a tungsten wire is accomplished by making it the positive electrode in an electrolytic cell, as shown in Fig I. While the wire is maintained at constant voltage the current through the cell falls continuously, principally because of the decrease in wetted area which results from solution of the tungsten. This increase in resistance occurs in a reproducible manner and is used as a control in the process. As thc immersed portion of the wire dissolves, it remains cylindrical in shape except for the short section which is wetted by the meniscus. Here the rate of solution is lower and decreases as the top of the meniscus is approached. The result is the formation of a tapered section inside the meniscus. As solution continues, the cylindrical section either dissolves entirely or drops off just before complete solution, leaving only the taper which is now sharply pointed. Further action causes this point to become rounded and then quite blunt, until finally the end of the wire is almost plane. Fig 2 shows the stages in this development. Contour PF is most representative of those used in point contact rectifiers. Thus a variety of point

Jan 1, 1949

By J. L. Rodda

THE desirability of a uniformly sized abrasive for metallographic polishing has probably been recognized in a general way for a long time. Certainly all metallographers have recognized the damage that can be done to a polished surface by a piece of grit, especially if one of the softer metals, such as zinc or aluminum, is being polished. It is to be doubted, however, whether many metallographers have had any adequate idea of the particle size of the abrasives they were using or of the range of sizes encountered in any given grade of abrasive. At any rate, the descriptions of abrasives for metallographic work found in the literature are generally very meager. It was with the idea of securing an abrasive with a limited range of particle size that a study of this problem was commenced. Commercial abrasives, even when recommended for metallographic work, are made up of particles of varying sizes. One such abrasive contains some particles so fine that they remain in suspension for days and other particles so coarse that they settle at the rate of 3 in. per minute. It is evident that the coarsest particles are over 100 times the diameter of the smallest ones, or over 1,000,000 times the volume. The hopelessness of avoiding scratches under these conditions is evident. Vanderwilt1 has described a laboratory method for grading abrasives in which the elutriator is used. Le Chatelier's method, described by Goerens,2 also makes use of an elutriator. However, the elutriator is too slow for this purpose and requires too delicate a control for the range of sizes desired. The method of stirring up the abrasive in water, allowing it to settle for as given time, then drawing a measured depth off the top of the suspension, has been finally adopted as the simplest proce-dure. The largest particle in a given portion is. then determined by Stokes' law:3

Jan 1, 1931

By Glen R. Neighbors, Sylvan Cromer

HIGH subsurface temperatures and pressures are making cementing operations more difficult as deeper producing horizons are being sought. Recorded bottom-hole temperatures above 200°F. and pressures in excess of 12,000 Ib. per sq. in., obtained by combining hydrostatic and pump pressures, are not uncommon. Insufficient time is available for proper placement of standard Portland cement, because of the shortened setting time produced by these excessive temperatures and pressures, therefore special types of cements have been developed to overcome these difficulties. From the standpoint of placement, the ideal slurry would be one that would remain fluid long enough to be placed, then harden rapidly, so that there would be a limited amount of contamination and the well could be placed on production in a minimum of time. It is highly desirable, therefore, that some method be devised to measure accurately the time that any slurry will remain in a fluid state while being pumped into the well. To study the effect of elevated temperature and pressure on fluidity, the authors have developed the pressure-type consistometer (Figs. I and 2) described below, and are presenting data obtained with it, using slurries of both quick-setting and slow-setting cements. Studies were made over a temperature range from 110° to 270°F., and a pressure range from atmospheric to 3000 lb. per sq. inch. APPARATUS The fluidity of cement slurries at atmospheric pressure is usually determined with the Halliburton consistometer1 or the Thickening Time Tester.2 These instruments are similar, in many respects, to an ordinary ice-cream freezer. The slurry to be tested is placed in a container that is rotated at a constant speed with an electric motor. Constant temperature is maintained by surrounding the container with a thermostatically controlled bath. The torque on the paddles, which is proportional to the force needed to shear the slurry, is indicated on a scale. The Halliburton instrument is calibrated from 0 to 100 poises against fluids of known viscosity. To permit direct correlation of observed elevated pressure data with those published at atmospheric pressure, the authors' designs of the slurry container, paddle, and torque indicator closely resemble those used on the Halliburton instrument. Duplicate results may be obtained at atmospheric pressure in either instrument. Instead of the atmospheric constant-temperature bath, one was built from a high-pressure steel bull plug. A Uni-Bolt union equipped with a blanking plug serves as the top, permiting the instrument to be opened or closed in less than one minute. The slurry container is built from Shelby steel tubing. A wrench socket welded to the bottom of the container engages a hexagonal nut on the top of the steel shaft that rotates it. This acts as a universal

Jan 1, 1941

By James T. Gow, Oscar E. Harder, Anton de S. Brasunas

THIS paper deals with the results obtained and the techniques employed in determining: I. Liquidus and solidus temperatures of the HH and HT type heat-resistant alloys. † 2. The relation of true temperatures (thermocouple) to apparent temperatures (optical pyrometer) for the molten HH and HT type alloys. This work was the outgrowth of needing to know something definite about these temperatures in order to study the effect of pouring temperatures, shake-out times, and heat-treatments on the properties of some heat-resistant alloys. The information developed is thought to be of interest to industry for guidance in foundry practices and the industrial heat applications of the alloys. This paper is based upon work that has been done for the Alloy Casting Institute at Battelle Memorial Institute. LIQUIDUS AND SOLIDUS TEMPERATURES OF HH AND HT TYPE ALLOYS Experimental Procedures Temperature-time curves were obtained during the cooling and solidification of several HH and HT type alloys. The metal was melted in an Ajax high-frequency induction furnace and poured into a coresand mold for cooling. The temperature measurements were obtained by means of a platinum, platinumrhodium thermocouple contained within a fused silica sheath, which was extended through the side wall of the dry core-sand mold to a point at about the center of the mold cavity, which was 3 in. in diameter by 5 in. deep. The cold junction of the thermocouple was kept in an ice bottle, and the temperature was recorded automatically on a direct-reading potentiometer recorder. Through a switching arrangement, the temperature recorded was checked occasionally with a portable Leeds and Northrup potentiometer indicator. Less than a 5°F. variation in the two instruments was always found. This is within the limit of accuracy of readings. The thermocouple used was checked for accuracy against a standard couple, both before use on this work and after completion of the work, by the instrument laboratory. Temperature-time Cooling Curves Fig. I is an enlarged reproduction of a part of one of the cooling curves over the temperature range of 2600° to 2200°F. for an alloy of the HT type with 0.45 per cent carbon, 16 per cent chromium, and 36 per cent nickel. This is a typically shaped cooling curve as obtained for the alloys. It will be noted that two temperatures are shown on Fig. r for the liquidus temperature. It is thought likely that the higher temperature, A, at the point at

Jan 1, 1945

By William Victor Vietti

A METHOD of determining the average density of the fluid column in a flowing oil well is presented. Actual field data from several wells are used to illustrate the application of the method in the Yates Field, Pecos County, Texas. The depth of the wells in the Yates Field varies from 900 to 1700 ft. depending on surface elevation and the location of the wells on structure. Production rates over 8000 bbl. hourly have been determined and many

Jan 1, 1930

By V. R. Garfias

Principal events in petroleum operations of Mexico during 1934 have been the completion of three producing wells in the Poza Rica area and the plans for the expansion of operations of the Cia. de Petroleos de Mexico, S.A. (Petromex). Production for 1934 is estimated at close to 38,000,000 bbl., an increase of 4,000,000 bbl. over the previous year; an increase due in large part to the successful development in Poza Rica. The output of the South fields (Golden Lane) and Tehuantepec fields also increased somewhat during the year. Production of natural gasoline increased from 382,000 to 431,000 bbl. in 1934. Crude run in local refineries is estimated at 26,000,000bbl., some4,000,000bbl. more than the previous year. Exclusive of bunker fuel exports totaled 24,000,000 bbl., or 3,000,000 more than in 1933. Domestic consumption increased approximately 500,000,bbl. during the year, reaching a total of close to 13,600,000 bbl., exclusive of ships' bunkers. A total of 148 wells were completed as compared to 91 in 1933 and 40 in 1932. In proven areas, 133 completions resulted in 54 producers and 79 failures. The 15 wildcats drilled during 1934 gave no encouraging results. Seven of these were located in the border zone of northeastern Mexico; three tested possible northeast extensions of the Northern fields; two were drilled for possible extensions of the "Golden Lane" and three were completed in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Fields Northern Fields (Heavy Oil District).—There were 34 producing wells and 71 failures completed in the Northern fields, as compared to 20 producers and 20 failures in 1933. Practically all new producers were drilled to the shallower San Felipe formation, while wells drilled to the deeper Tamasopo limestone encountered salt water. Production of the field totaled 11,890,000 bbl., a decrease of 7.5 per cent from the previous year. Acid treatment was attempted during the year in seven wells

Jan 1, 1935

By Lawrence K. Jetter, Robert F. Mehl

SOME advances have been made recently in the theory of the kinetics of precipitation from metallic solid solution despite the complexities of the problem, but there is surprisingly little quantitative information available on rates of precipitation with which to test present theory or upon which to build new theory.? Attempts to measure rates of precipitation have been beset with difficulties which originate both in the anomalies that attend the changes in the properties selected for measurement, as, for example, in electrical conductivity or mechanical properties, and also in the complexities in the structural changes in some systems, as in the aluminum-copper system. If the functional relationship between the quantity of precipitate and the value of the selected property is uncertain, measurements of that property are obviously of uncertain utility in determining absolute rates of precipitation. If the precipitating system passes through one or more transition stages, the interpretation of measured rates lacks definiteness; in such cases, it is necessary to measure the rate of reaction in each separate stage, if the rate measurements are to have any significance from the kinetic point of view.* These difficulties cannot be wholly avoided, for at least in some measure they are characteristic of the process of precipitation from solid solution, but they can be minimized both by the selection of a simple system and by the use of a method of measurement relatively free from anomalous behavior. The present paper reports dilatometric measurements on the rate of precipitation of silicon from the aluminum-rich solid solution in the aluminum-silicon system-a study that approaches the desiderata of simplicity. The aluminum-silicon system offers advantages from these points of view: there are no known anomalies in the property changes accompanying precipitation ;2,3,4 there are no known transition stages; the precipitate is an element, not a compound, and both matrix and precipitate are cubic, and while the structures are not identical (the solid solution is face-centered cubic and the precipitate is diamond cubic), the system at least approaches the ideal case of a crystal precipitating from a matrix of the same crystal type-the ideal case which Becker5 assumed in treating the precipitation process theoretically. The dilatometric method, while not free from disturbing effects, as the subsequent dis-

Jan 1, 1942

By G. R. Gohn, S. M. Arnold

The results of stress-corrosion tests upon several non-ferrous sheet metals are presented in this paper. The metals include tough pitch copper, five binary brasses, two leaded brasses, one copper-silicon alloy, two tin bronzes, and two nickel-silver alloys. The tests indicate that for most of these sheet metals, externally applied bending stresses below the yield point (0.01 per cent offset) do not result in stress-corrosion cracking as determined by the A.S.T.M. Tentative Method of Mercurous Nitrate Test for Copper and Copper Alloys (B 154-41T).~ Only in the cases of low brass, high brass and medium leaded brass, all cold-worked 4 B & S numbers hard, was any corrosion cracking observed below the yield strength, and in all cases such failures occurred at stresses above the proportional limit for these materials. However, when some of the same materials which showed no evidence of stress-corrosion cracking at stresses below the yield strength, are stressed beyond the yield point, stress- corrosion cracking is quite apt to occur. Since experience has shown that some of these materials, particularly the brasses, are susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking under service conditions, these tests would indicate that, besides externally applied stress and corrosion, plastic deformation in addition to that resulting from the original cold working of the material is also required to produce conditions conducive to stress- corrosion cracking.

Jan 1, 1945

By M. C. LYNN

RECENT completion of a $40,000 lubricating oil plant will make it possible for students in the School of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Oklahoma to carry out on a large scale the entire process of refining crude oil, from the time it is received in tank cars and pumped through the 1/4-mile University pipe line to storage tanks on the campus until the various products appear in finished form. This plant is part of a $100,000 expansion program which this school has been carrying out during the past year. Two years ago the Oklahoma State Legislature appropriated $50,000 for the School to use in improving its laboratory facilities. A few months later a $30,000 PWA grant was ob-

Jan 1, 1937

By David Baker

IN a paper presented to the American Institute of Mining Engineers, September, 1904, entitled ? Improvements in the Mechanical Charging of the Modern Blast-Furnace,"' I showed the great fault of mechanical charging-devices to be that the materials charged by the dumping of the skip were separated, the coarse materials having high velocity, and the fine, low-thus giving paths of low resistance through the stock in the furnace, which resulted in unequal distribution of the furnace gases, unequal reduction, slips, scaffolds, irregular cutting of the. inwall, " off " iron, and increased fuel-consumption. I showed how this could be prevented by rotary distribution, through which the irregular distribution in one layer charged is compensated by charging the subsequent layers from successively varied positions of the charger, and becomes practically eliminated when the angle between two successive positions is a little more or less than an even fraction of a full circle. Of all the devices then on the market, the nearest approach to the ideal arrangement was found in the Brown distributor, a full description of which was given. The one defect pointed out, however, was the difficulty of maintaining so much mechanism on the top of a blast-furnace. Since the presentation of that paper, I have designed a very simple form of rotary distributor, which may be applied to any form of double-bell charger, retaining the perfect gas-seal, which is so admirably obtained by that construction. In seeking protection for this invention, I found no similar distributor on record in the patent offices of the various countries where application was made; but an application show-

Jul 1, 1906

Edward K. Landis, Philadelphia, Pa.: In studying Mr. Thackray's paper it seemed that a critical comparison of the results from different methods therein reported would he of interest. For this purpose Table I. was constructed by grouping all determinations made by the same method, and the probable errors were calculated. In this table all chemists titrating with permanganate (A1, E, F, G and 0 of Mr. Thackray's paper) are classed under "Emmerton;" those titrating with nitric acid (C, J, S and Y) under " Handy; " those re Probable error of result: a, ±0.0008996; b, ±0.000694; c, ±0.00107; d, ±0.00115; e, ±0.000674; f, ±0.000473; g, ±0.003675; h, ±20.0007959; i,0.000.5098; k, ±0.0008303. Probable error of single determination: a, ±0.001989; b, ±0.001547; c, ±0.00214; d, ±0.0023;e, ±0.00116;f, ±0.000818;g, ±0.0019;h, ±0.00224; i, 40.00143; k, ±0.00234. The formula for calculating the probable error is 0.6745, where N (N— 1)' S is the sum of the squares of the differences from the mean and N is the number of determinations.

Jan 1, 1897