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By Jan Visman, S. J. Aresco

INTRODUCTION The accurate sampling of coal, as with most minerals, is a difficult task. Coal is a heterogeneous material made up of different types of coal and varying amounts of mineral matter. The product as mined may contain all the layers of coal and impurities found in the seam as well as portions of the stratas above and below the coal seam. The preparation plant is the device to size, crush, and/or remove impurities so the coal may be shipped as a salable product. Sampling may be needed at many stages in the preparation process. Although this chapter is primarily concerned with sampling in connection with preparation processes, the principles apply to all coal sampling. The main reasons for sampling in connection with coal preparation are: 1) To determine the washability characteristics of the raw coal by means of float and sink tests. These may be used for the design of a preparation plant, prediction of results to be obtained, or monitoring raw coal delivered to the plant. 2) To check the performance of various operating units in the plant, either by float. and sink tests or chemical analyses. 3) To determine the analytical characteristics of the products produced, such as moisture, ash, Btu, sulfur, etc. HISTORY The earliest accepted methods of sampling coal in the United States were given in US Bureau of Mines (USBM) publications by J. A. Holmes,l G. S. Pope,2 and A. C. Fieldner.3 The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) more or less adopted the methods proposed by USBM in their Standard D-21-1916 and it remained a standard for many years. Briefly, this standard called for a 500 lb (227 kg) sample for coals less than 94 in. (19 mm) in size and a 1000 lb (454 kg) sample for all coals over 94 in. (19 mm) in size. No mention was made of increments, but there was an instruction that the sample should spread over the coal

Jan 1, 1979

By S. D. Dahlgren

The plasticity of unalloyed P plutonium was studied by evaluating the strain-rate-hardening exponent, m, in the equation Values of m up to 0.33 and tensile elongations up to 680 pct were obtained for ß plutonium formed directly from the a phase. Casl bars that were cycled and tested had lower flow stresses and higher values for than uncycled bars , hut their total plastic elongations were not as great as expected because of premature failure at voids formed during cycling. Flow stresses were higher and m was lower (m = 0.15) for 9 plutonzutn formed from the y phase. ThE strain-rate-hardening exponent for plastic flow of p plutonium was determined as a function of strain rate, test temperature, and heat-treating history, and it was related to the rather large plastic elongation found previously for some plutonium tensile samples. Gardner and ~ann' obtained tensile elongations of up to 620 pct for P plutonium samples which had been completely transformed from the low-temperature a phase to the P phase before testing. Such a large percentage elongation is unusual for unalloyed metals or single-phase alloys.' The a phase is stable below approximately 112°C and (3 is stable between approximately 112" and 190"c.~ Both phases have mono-clinic structures. A temperature of 160°C is 0.58 of the effective absolute melting point, 475°C) of the p phase. The effective melting point is obtained by considering the enthalpy and entropy changes associated with the higher-temperature phase transformations and it is not the same as the experimental melting point of the highest-temperature allotrope of unalloyed plutonium. Nelson, Bowman, and Bierlein observed a striking difference between the ductility, as well as other mechanical properties, of p plutonium formed from the next higher-temperature phase (y) and the ductility of /3 plutonium formed from the a phase. The total elongation of /3 plutonium formed from the y phase was less than 5 pct. Earlier, the creep rate of 13 plutonium formed from the a phase was shown to be 200 to 500 times faster than the rate for 0 formed from y for the same test temperature and stress.

Jan 1, 1969

By AIME AIME

For the convenience of persons who desire to file, or otherwise use separately, the technical papers in Section II of the Bulletin, each of these papers has been paged and wired by itself; the whole collection being held together by a single, heavy wire, upon the removal of which it will fall apart into individual pamphlets, substantially like those formerly issued. A small stock of separate pamphlets, duplicating the technical papers given in Section II. of this Bulletin, is reserved for those who desire extra copies of any single paper. All communications concerning the contents of this Bulletin should be addressed to Dr. Joseph Struthers, Assistant Secretary and Editor, 99 John St., New York City (P. 0. Box 223; Telephone number 5477 John).

Mar 1, 1906

By A. STEPHENSON

EXPERIMENTAL work conducted at the Petroleum Engineering Laboratory of the University of California by L. C. Uren, J. Domercq, Jr., and J. Mejia has shown that small diameter wells offer tremendous resistance to the flow of fluids in their immediate vicinity. This resistance is due in part to the constriction of the area through which the fluids must pass as they approach the wall of the well, but is also accentuated by the increased volume which results from gas expansion. The latter in turn is a function of the deduction in pressure, the fundamental cause of fluid movement. If the diameter of the bore is enlarged several diameters, the capacity of the well, or the volume of fluid passing per unit drop in pressure per unit of time, is greatly increased without necessitating such high fluid velocities. The fundamental features which should be taken into consideration in the design of casing joints were stressed by J. B. Graham and E. E. Smith. These involved such points as correct thread design, high efficiency, and small diameter, together with the insurance that leakage will absolutely be prevented. The practical features of such design were ably discussed by engineers from leading steel manufacturers.

Jan 1, 1935

The Industrial Minerals div. has been forging ahead in formulating a program for the February Annual Meeting in Los Angeles. Several papers have been listed and more are being worked into the program. For the cement, lime and gypsum part of the sessions, papers on Gypsum in the Aircraft Industry, Geology of San Marcos Island Gypsum Deposit, and Status of New Dry Rotary Blast Hole Drills, are expected. The Chemical Raw Materials sessions will feature a symposium on potash, with 13 papers as the anticipated number to be presented. Airborne and Ground Magnetometer Work has been suggested. Eight papers have been set for Mining Geology, Four papers, Mining Phosphate Rock, Idaho Phosphorous, and Geology of Carlsbad Potash and Geology of Pearlite will be on the program. Sessions on Dimension stone and slate have been tentatively worked out with papers on Geologic Factors Affecting the Dimension Stone Industry of California, A Quarter Century of Granite Quarrying in Massachusetts, Rock Bursting and Other Geologic Problems in the Granite Quarries of Barre, Vt., Quarry Practices in the Indiana Building Stone Industry, Stratigraphy and Composition of the Salem Limestone, and Dimension Stone in the U. S. in 1952. The Rare Minerals Committee is aiming for six papers with two papers now definitely on the program.

Jan 1, 1952

By M. J. Pool, with Appendix by Larry Kaufman, R. W. Krenzer

Thermodynmic properties of the Cu-Mn system have been deterrrzined in the temperature range 973" to 1273°K by measuring the vapor pressure of manganese in equilibrium with alloys of compositions varying from 0.13 to 0.91 rnole fraction manganese using the Knudsen effusion technique. Activities of manganese calculated from the measured vapor pressures show large positive deviations. Calculated heats and entropies of mixing are positive with a maximum occurring at approximately 0. 7 mole fraction manganese. ThE investigation of thermodynamic properties of binary systems involving transition metals is of considerable interest at the present time. The incomplete subvalency electron levels of transition metals lead to unusual behavior in some alloys, and considerable information can be obtained by determining the thermodynamic characteristics of these systems and relating the thermodynamic behavior to observed physical properties. The Cu-Mn system, shown in Fig. 1,' provides an example of an alloy system in which the determination of the equilibrium phase diagram and various physical properties has received considerable attention, but very little work has been done on measurement of the thermodynamic properties. Elemental copper and manganese have comparable electronegatives, atomic sizes, and cohesive energies, but differ in crystal structure. They form a continuous series of solid solutions only at high temperatures and the structure varies in a continuous manner from fcc at the copper-rich end to fct at the manganese-rich end.' The purpose of this investigation was to measure the vapor pressure of manganese over a series of Cu-Mn alloys and from these values determine the thermodynamic properties of the binary system. Vapor pressure measurements were made in the temperature range 973" to 1273"K, remaining within the solid-solution region for each alloy studied. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The relative thermodynamic properties of solid Cu-Mn alloys were determined from vapor pressure measurements by means of the Knudsen effusion tech- nique. Several discussions of the theory can be found in the literature. In the case of copper and manganese, it is assumed that manganese is the only component subliming, so the vapor pressure of manganese over the various alloys can be determined directly by measuring the weight loss of the effusion cell. This is a valid assumption since the vapor pressure of manganese is about four orders of magnitude higher than the vapor pressure of copper in the temperature region of interest. The vapor pressure of manganese over the alloys at any given temperature is then related to the weight loss of the effusion cell per unit area per unit time. An upper limit of 1.5 x 10"s has been measured for the ratio of polyatomic to monoatomic molecules for manganese vapor in equilibrium with solid manganese at 1180°K, so it was assumed that manganese vapor is monoatomic. The effusion cells, fabricated from high-purity alumina, are 26 mm high, 18 mm OD, and have a wall thickness of 1 mm. Three different sized holes of 2.03, 2.54, and 3.18 mm diam were drilled in the lids from the inside face to minimize chipping, and the lids were then slip-cast onto the cells to provide a gas-tight seal. Alumina was selected for this particular application both because of its resistance to thermal shock and reaction with manganese vapor. In the ideal case, the orifice of the effusion cell should have a knife edge so that effusion through the orifice

Jan 1, 1970

By K. A. Pauly

(Wilkes-Barre Meeting, June, 1911.) COMPRESSED air has been and is still very extensively used in connection with mining-operations, but its application in the past has been almost entirely confined to supplying power to underground machinery. Its introduction was due to the difficulty of taking care of the steam which is exhausted underground, rather than to any advantage in efficiency to be gained by its use. The ease with which electric power may be carried to the remotest parts of the mine and the high efficiency of the electric motor have long been appreciated by mine-operators, and electric power is now extensively used underground in the more recent developments, while many of the compressed-air engines in the older workings are being rapidly replaced by electric motors. Recently, however, it has been suggested to use compressed air for driving the large shaft-hoists, the air for the engines being supplied by electrically-driven compressors, and an installation of this character is being erected at Butte; Mont. It is the object of this paper to compare the compressed-air system of hoisting with the various electrical systems, from the stand-points of first-cost and cost of operation. However, before entering into a discussion of the various systems, it will be well to consider briefly the conditions affecting the choice of a system of hoisting in which electricity is the ultimate source of power. The power required by a mine-hoist is extremely intermittent and fluctuates between very wide limits, the all-day average consumption of power not exceeding from 5 to 15 per cent. of the maximum demand during hoisting. The cost of supplying power for such a fluctuating load is necessarily higher than that for supplying an equal amount of

Dec 1, 1911

By R. P. Abendroth

This study is concerned with the kinetics of selective oxidation of chromium in a commercial Fe-Cr-Ni alloy. Selective oxidation of chromium in this alloy, by use of a low oxygen-potential atmosphere, leads to the formation of a compact, protective layer of Cr2O3. This layer serves to protect this alloy from gross scaling when it is subsequently exposed to severe oxidizing conditions at high temperature. The interaction of low oxygen-potential atmospheres close to equilibrium with Fe-Cr and Ni-Cr alloys has been studied by others."' These studies werk concerned with the surface-structure variations under slightly oxidizing conditions. NO detailed study was made of the oxide scale formation kinetics, however. The alloy samples were cut from 0.012-in.-thick sheet, with an apparent surface area of 7.1 sq cm. These sheet samples were abraded through 4/0 metallographic paper, and washed in alcohol and acetone. The analysis of the sheet alloy is (in weight percent): 42 pct Ni, 5.5 pct Cr, 0.09 pct C, 0.18 pct Al, 0.36 pct Si, 0.26 pct Mn, balance Fe. The weight gain vs time data were obtained with a 2-g capacity fused-silica spring—cathetometer system. The spring deflection was optically magnified ten times before being read by the cathetometer. A sensitivity of about 0.01 mg was attainable. The spring was enclosed in a water jacket maintained at 60°C to minimize the effect of temperature changes. The sample was suspended from the spring with a fused-silica hangdown and was positioned in the thermal center of a mullite furnace tube. Sample temperature was read with the aid of a thermocouple placed outside the mullite tube and an inside vs outside temperature calibration. Temperature change during the course of a run was ±0.25°C, with a temperature gradient of less than l.O°C over the length of the sample. Total temperature uncertainty was no more than ±3.0°C. Alignment difficulties between the hangdown and radiation shields in the furnace tube required that the sample be positioned in the furnace when cold, and heated with the furnace until the temperature stabilized at the desired point. This required 5 to 6 hr, and was carried out in Matheson ultrahigh-purity hydrogen. Oxidation was started, after evacuation, by introducing a hydrogen-water vapor mixture, obtained by saturating hydrogen with water vapor at 31.00o ± 0.02oC. Oxidation was continued for 90 min. Gas flow was 300 ml per min during heat up and oxidation. Since only several milligrams of oxide are formed on each sample, chemical analysis of the oxide is difficult. A representative analysis is: 80 pct Cr2O3, 5 pct Fe2O3, 3 pct Al2O3, 4 pct MnO, 7 pct SiO2, 1 pct or less NiO. X-ray diffraction analysis of the oxide as formed on the alloy gives rhombohedra1 Cr2O3, and barely distinguishable amounts of a cubic spinel phase, and possibly AlZOs and SO2. The identification of these latter two compounds is by no means certain. The spinel phase could be based on iron or manganese as these elements are present in significant amounts in the oxide. The results of the kinetic studies using 31°C dew-point hydrogen-water vapor mixtures were found to conform to a parabolic rate law. In many cases the parabolic plot consisted of two intersecting straight lines, defining an early and a late rate for a particular run, and in the other cases the parabolic plot consisted of one straight line for the entire run. The slopes of the various straight lines were determined by the method of least squares. Reproducibility of the data was good enough for multiple runs at the same temperature such that the value given for the rate constant is the average for two or more closely similar values, rather than widely varying values of the rate, where more than one determination is indicated in Table I. The exhibition of only one or of two rate constants during a run can happen at the same temperature. Thus, Table I shows that at 11'74°C a single rate constant was obtained from one sample, while other samples oxidized at the same temperature gave an early and a late rate constant. It should be noted that the single rate constant corresponds very closely with the early rate constant. This is also true at 1153°C. The time at which the late rate started to appear was variable, usually occurring 20 to 40 min after oxidation had started.

Jan 1, 1964

By R. M. Daelen

Mechanical science is severely tested by the demands of the iron manufacture for the varied apparatus needed to transport and to treat raw materials and products. Water has long been a favorite means of transmitting pressure for such purposes, because of its own incompressibility. Further advances in its use are the more to be expected, since mechanical improvements have steadily tended to overcome the difficulties formerly encountered in the employment of great hydraulic pressures. So long as the pressure is not higher than that which requires for plungers, etc., only ordinary stuffing-boxes, with hemp or other similar packing, the necessary arrangements for the production and transmission of the water-pressure without leakage are very simple. But when this limit (which is, for most purposes, 50 kilos to the square centimeter) is exceeded, new conditions of construction arise, which are met in various ways, and which justify a primary division of hydraulic presses into low-pressure and high-pressure respectively. The former are used in lifting and moving weights, and employ pressures as high (in extreme cases) as 100 kilos per square centimeter; but at this point the friction between piston and hemp-packing is so great that the use of cup-leathers is already preferable. Beyond 100 kilos it becomes a necessity. The range of practicable tight packing which follows is considerable, extending to about 1000 kilos; but "high pressure" in practice is from 100 to 600 kilos, and it is to this that the present paper applies. General Classes and Types. Hydraulic transmission at high pressure usually claims consideration in case the solid mechanism, such as levers, cams, screws, and gear-wheels, would have to be too large, would involve too much friction, or could not be suitably adapted to the speed-requirements of the working-tools. Since steam is mostly the primary carrier of

Jan 1, 1893

By Otto C. Kopp, Thomas B. Crattie, Dennis R. Owen

Whole-rock analyses of limestones, fine-gralned dolostones and coarser-grained dolostones adjacent to mineralized breccias (Coy mine, Mascot-Jefferson City district) were compared with similar lithologies adjacent to apparently non-mineralized breccias at the new Thorn Hill section located approximately 39 km north of the Coy mine. Specimens were analyzed for Ca, Mg, Si, Al, K, Fe, Mn, Sr, Br, C1, S, Ti and P using X-ray fluorescence analysis. The concentrations of the major and most minor elements for Thorn Hill specimens fall within the range of concentrations for Coy mine specimens; however, significant differences (probability < 0.05) were noted for Fe, C1 and Br for fine-grained dolostones and for MgO, Fe and Mn for the coarser-grained dolostones. No significant differences were detected for the limestones.

Jan 1, 1985

By J. B. Wagner, p. Hembree

The iron tracer diffusion coefficient of umstite has been measured at 110(fC across the phase field and at a single composition at 800°C. Assuming a simple cation vacancy model the tracer diffusion coefficient was found to be a linear function of the cation vacancy concentration at 1100°C. The equation is D = 3 x 20 29 where denotes the concentration of vacancies in numbers per cc. The tracer work at 800°C was carried out to investigate the reported "pinning" of tracer to the wustite surface at low temperatures. No evidence for the "pinning" of the tracer was found at 800°C in COz-CO gas mixtures. HIMMEL, Mehl, and Birchenall,&apos; Carter and Richardson,2 and Desmarescaux and La combe3 have measured the diffusion of iron tracer in wustite at several temperatures and compositions. The present work was undertaken to extend the measurements over a large composition range at 1100°C and to resolve certain apparent discrepancies in the data, expecially at lower temperatures. EXPERIMENTAL Wustite was prepared by oxidizing rectangular iron plates* in C02-CO mixtures. The samples were •The iron was supplied by the Battelle Memorial Institute courtesy of the American Iron and Steel Institute. The analysis is presented in Table I. quenched. Due to the inward flow of cation vacancies during oxidation, the center of the sample contained a thin void. The edges of the wustite slab were sanded until the sample could be split into two parts. Each part was then sanded on the front and back flat area until a smooth surface was obtained. The specimens were then replaced in the furnace and equilibrated at llOO°C in a predetermined COa-CO mixture by methods described elsewhere.4"6 The specimens were again quenched and the surfaces were lightly sanded to remove any roughness following the first equilibration. The specimens were then reequi lib rated in the same C02-CO mixture for thirty minutes in order to relieve any mechanical damage on the surface due to the polishing. The specimens were then quenched and the tracer was applied by an electroplating technique. The work of Carter and ~ichardson&apos; demonstrated that there was no systematic difference in the iron tracer diffusion coefficient in wustite if the tracer was plated, dried, or evaporated on the specimen. In the present study a piece of filter paper was saturated with an iron chloride solution of pH <* 3 that contained the tracer FeS5. The wustite was placed on the filter paper and made the cathode. A current density of 0.4 to 0.6 ma per sq cm was passed for about five to ten minutes. The thickness of the tracer layer was estimated to be about 7 x lom6 cm. This estimate was made by considering the area plated, the current flow, and time for plating and the activity of the iron in the plating solution. Different areas of the specimen were counted using a collimator to determine the uniformity of the tracer. Any specimen which exhibited a variation from the initial count rate (about 1500 cpm) by more than 15 pct was rejected. An estimate of the time necessary to convert the thin layer of iron tracer to wustite was made using the data of Pettit and wagner." he estimated time was 1 sec at 1100°C assuming linear oxidation kinetics. The shortest diffusion anneals were 1800 sec. The samples were suspended in the hot zone of a furnace by two platinum wires. Two separate specimens were run at the same time. Only the edges of each sample were in contact with the wires. The C02-CO gas of the same composition as that used in the pre-diffusion anneals flowed freely around the samples at a linear velocity of 0.9 cm per sec. To initiate a run, the specimens were lowered from the cold zone of a furnace to the hot zone by a magnetic lowering device." bout 60 sec were required for lowering. To terminate a run, the sample was withdrawn from the hot zone to the cold zone. Time zero for the beginning of the experiment was taken when the sample blended into the red glow of the furnace and conversely for the end of the experiment. The surface decrease method of measuring the tracer diffusion coefficient was used to collect the data. This method requires that counting geometry be reproducible because the specimen is counted before the diffusion anneal and after the anneal. A special jig was constructed for each specimen so the specimen could be removed from the jig and returned to the jig such that the well geometry was reproducible.

Jan 1, 1970

CONTENTS PAGE Rae, Colin C.-A Possible Origin of Oil. Discussed by S. Linker, Colin C. Rae... 2 Cottingham, Kenneth.-Subsurface Conditions on Portion of Arches Fork Anticline. Discussed by David B. Reger 6 Moyer, W. Irwin.-Time to Pay Out as a Basis for Valuation of Oil Properties. Discussed by H. J. Smith 9 Pogue, Joseph E.-Future Demands on Oil Industry of United States. Discussed by James O. Lewis 11 J. J. Walsh.-Coa-lmine Ventilation. Discussed by W. B. Daly, J. J. Walsh, R. R. Sayers, H. H. Stock, George S. Rice, James W. Paul, D. Harrington, T. D. Thomas 15 Longyear, Robert Davis.-Diamond-drill Sampling Methods. Discussed by Ira B. Joralemon, J. J. Rutledge, E. C. Harder 19 Joralemon, Ira B.-Sampling and Estimating Disseminated Copper Deposits. Discussed by J. Parke Channing, John E. Hodge, E.E. Hunner, B. B. Gottsberger, W. Y. Westervelt, W. O. Hotchkiss 20 Boericke, W. F.-Sampling and Estimating Zinc and Lead Orebodies in Mississippi Valley. Discussed by J. Parke Channing, Arthur Thacher 24 Daly, W. B. and Linforth, F. A.-Organization of Mine Sampling at Anaconda. Discussed by George A. Packard, W. B. Daly, B. B. Gottsberger 25 Norris, E. M. and Rahilly, H. J.-Mine Fires. Discussed by R. Dawson Hall, W. B. Daly, Frank Haas, D. Harrington, Robert E. Tally 26 Raymond, R. M.-Safety Practice for Hoisting Ropes. Discussed by B. F. Tillson, Graham Bright, Rudolph Kudlich, J. F. Howe, Robert Peele, H. G. Davis. 30 Howe, J. F.-Use of Wire Rope in Mining Operations. Discussed by Horace F. Lunt, J. F. Howe, B. F. Tillson 36 Tanner, W. N., and Jaccard, F. C.-Wire Rope and Safety in Hoisting at Butte Mines. Discussed by Horace F. Lunt, W. B. Daly, C. L. Colburn, William Kelly, Robert Peele, B. F. Tillson, Graham Bright, Charles E. Locke 38 Richardson, A. S.-Ventilation of Butte Mines of Anaconda Copper Mining Co. Discussed by D. Harrington, Chas. A. Mitke 42 Stuart, Charles E.-Storage-battery Locomotive as Applied to Mine Haulage. Discussed by Howard N. Eavenson, Charles E. Stuart, William Kelly, Arthur Thacher, W. H. Patton, Graham Bright 45 Woodward, C. D.-Electric Haulage Systems in Butte Mines. Discussed by William Kelly, Graham Bright, Howard N. Eavenson, C. E. Arnold, Gerard B. Rosenblatt, K. A. Pauly 47 Harrington, D.-Efficient Ventilation of Metal Mines. Discussed by R. E. Simpson 52 Otagawa, Masayuki.-Mining Methods at the Ashio Copper Mine. Discussed by Horace V. Winchell, D. W. Brunton 52 Stoek, H. H. and Clagett, Thomas H.-Coal Mining Methods. Discussed by P. D. Browning, G. L. Cox, Erskine Ramsay, Frank Haas, George S. Rice.

Jan 6, 1922

By AIME AIME

JANUARY saw the completion of the 237-ft. Upper-Narrows hydraulic debris dam on the main Yuba River in northern California. This project which is the key unit in a series of four similar structures on the Bear, American, and Yuba Rivers, removes the last obstacle to the revival of California&apos;s vast hydraulic gold-mining industry. The Upper-Narrows dam is a single-arch type of structure, and embodies the latest developments in that type of construction. One of the principal innovations used is the series of air vents in the crown (that part over which the water spills) which serve to break the vacuum caused by the spilling water, thus reducing vibration to a minimum. Electric strain gages were also embedded in the concrete of the dam, and it is hoped that by careful study of these instruments true stresses can he determined.

Jan 1, 1941

By Henry M. Howe

THE death of Sir Lowthian Bell removes almost the last of the group of heroic leaders who made their age and ours the Age of Steel-a group which his luster and the luster of his peers, Bessemer, Siemens and Tunner, made one of the most brilliant, perhaps even the most brilliant, in the annals of industry. Born on February 15th, 1816, in Newcastle-on-Tyne, he was the eldest son of Thomas Bell, an alderman of Newcastle, and of his wife Catherine Lowthian of Newbiggin, near Carlisle, in Cumberland, and was christened Isaac Lowthian, the name of his maternal grandfather. His father was born about 1788, and came in 1808 from Newbiggin to Newcastle, where he entered the office of the Cumbrian firm of Losh and Company, manufacturers of alkali and wrought-iron, at the Walker Iron and Alkali Works, at Walker, Dear Newcastle. Young Isaac Lowthian Bell was educated at Dr. Bruce&apos;s school in Newcastle, whence he went to Germany and Denmark, learning there German and Danish. On his return he studied at Edinburgh University, and then at the Sorboune in Paris. As a student he already showed the remarkable character and application which later gained him such distinction. After studying the manufacture of alkali near Marseilles, he returned, and when about twenty years old (A.D. 1836) was employed in his father&apos;s firm, then called Losh, Wilson, and Bell. After spending a year in their Newcastle offices, and after visiting the important iron-making districts of France, Germany, Poland, and Austria, he took charge of their rolling-mills at Walker, and profited so well by his opportunities, and especially by the teachings of his father and of Mr. John Vaughan (later one of the founders of the great firm of Bolckow, Vaughan & Co.), that he was made manager of the Walker works in or about

Sep 1, 1905

By J. W. R. Rayner

THE conventional method of making water gas involves individual plants for the separate carbonization of coal to coke and the subsequent gasification of coke with steam. The process demands lump coke, preferably made from the best quality of coking coals. The ash in the coke should have a high melting point and the gasification process suffers a loss of efficiency when cokes with low ash-melting points are used. In Britain, these coals are generally the most expensive and they are readily available only in certain localities. The coals not suitable for making lump coke, or yielding only poor quality coke, are much more widely available and are generally cheaper. DEVELOPMENT OF ALTERNATIVE PROCESSES In Germany, processes have been developed and operated commercially for the production of water gas from very low-rank coals such as brown coal and lignites, but much less effort has been spent on processes to use coals of intermediate rank, which are widely available in Britain. The brown-coal processes use coal in the form of either dust or briquettes. The most successful of the dust-gasification methods is the Winkler process, which made a substantial contribution to German oil production during the war. It uses coal in the size range 0 to 8 mm and the fuel bed is blown with a mixture of oxygen and steam at a rate high enough to give it a characteristic boiling motion or, in present-day phraseology, at a rate more than sufficient to fluidize it (Fig. 1). Air cannot be used to provide the heat required for gasification, for vari¬ous reasons. In the first place, to make the process continuous by mixing air and steam would involve the production of a lean gas containing much nitrogen. If a separate blow were used, a large amount of potential heat would be lost because the blow gas in such a process would contain a very high percentage of carbon monoxide. Oxygen is necessary therefore and oxygen remains relatively expensive for use in gasification. In the Winkler generator, formation of clinker caused by local overheating does not occur, because of the mobility and high heat transfer of a fluidized bed. These properties of fluidized dusts have been used most successfully.

Jan 1, 1953

By RAY LYMAN WILBUR

SINCE boyhood I have had a keen interest in mining engineering. To see the prospector with his pack outfit and his pan, followed by the assayer and the trained engineer, has always had -something of the lure of romance for me. It is appropriate that the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers should hold a general meeting in California, since this State has long been a home of mining engineering. Here, after the early open methods of mining, it has been necessary for the universities to train men in geology and mining, so that the earth could be penetrated and the rich ledges opened. In the eighty years in which the mines of California have been offering experience to the miners of the world, we have seen mining engineering evolve from a comparatively simple art, covered largely by rule of thumb, into a complex group of specialties, each utilizing the very latest discoveries in the various fields of physical sciences. Mining, too, has become a great business requiring large financial support and the most careful handling. Those mining engineers who have applied new processes in special fields have thus been able to give a wide-flung range to their activities in all parts of the world. The hand of nature in distributing minerals over the surface of the earth has compelled the mining engineer to become a modern pioneer, facing the heat of the tropics as well as the frozen regions of the north. There has been a marked cosmopolitan aspect to mining engineering, since the engineer had to go wherever the prospector discovered favorable leads. This has meant dealing with the harshest of conditions, the handling of labor of all sorts, the control of sanitary conditions, and relations to all forms of transportation. Naturally this has called on some of the very best minds in all countries to unlock the stores of hidden wealth. To make them available for civilization has been the job of the mining engineer.

Jan 1, 1929

By H. Hubert

The first attempts at direct utilization of blast-furnace gas in engines were made in 1895. For a considerable time the gas had been burnt in Cowper stoves for heating the blast for the furnace, and under the boilers which supplied steam to the blowing-engines, and others serving the furnaces. It was natural, therefore, that the idea of directly employing it in gas-engines should have occurred simultaneously to several engineers, notably to Lurmann and to Lencauchez, who had pointed out the blast-furnace as a powerful gas-producer. Nevertheless, nowhere had any attempt been made to apply it to this purpose up to the end of 1894, when Thwaite proposed it to Mr. James Riley, of the Glasgom Iron & Steel Company. About the same time investigations were being made in Belgium and in Germany, independently of Thwaite&apos;s experiments, which were not generally known on the Continent. The industrial world, which up to that time had hardly favored the idea, had thus been gradually prepared to receive it. The gas-engine, long restricted to small sizes and dependent upon the use of an expensive fuel obtainable only in large centers, now began to make headway. At the Paris Exhibition of 1889 two engines of 100 h.p. were shown and excited much interest among engineers. One had four cylinders, and was made at the celebrated works of the Deutz Company, and the other was a single-cylinder engine, exhibited by two French designers, Messrs. Delamare-Deboutteville and Malandin. In the meanwhile the design of gas-producers had made important progress, completely freeing the new engine from its

Jan 1, 1907

By Samuel Taylor

IT is customary for the president of an engineering society, in his annual address, to describe either some engineering problem with which he has beer connected or to review the work of the society during his administration. My first thought, this being the sesquicentennial year of our nation, was to review the advance in coal mining for the past fifty years, during which period I have been more or less intimately con-nected with the bituminous coal industry, and have personally witnessed most of the great changes which have occurred in methods and machinery used in the production of coal, but preparation of the requisite address would take more time than could be spared to prepare it, and its presentation would consume so much time that it .would not be suitable. The new arrangement providing for giving the presi-dent&apos;s address at the business meeting makes it more .appropriate to review the work of the Institute during the past year, together with some suggestions which appeal to me as being of advantage to the future wel-fare of the Institute, which I will try to do briefly. The work of the business office has been reviewed in the Secretary&apos;s report and it will not be necessary for me to dwell on it. Suffice it to say, it seems to be going along very well. Additional work could be done which would be to the advantage of the Institute, if we had the money with which to defray the necessary ex-pense incident to it, but I will refer to this again later. I would be derelict if I did not refer to the splendid work of the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary. Keeping in touch with all the sections, which number now about 26, and affiliated student societies which number 40, besides special committees, and represent-ing the Institute on various boards, provides work enough to occupy the Secretary&apos;s time almost exclu-sively. In addition to this the Secretary and the As-sistant Secretary have the work of editing and publishing the TRANSACTIONS of the Institute; the issuing of the magazine, MINING AND METALLURGY, in the splendid manner in which it goes out to the mem-bership is no light task and I think they should receive the commendation of the membership for this work.

Jan 3, 1927

By Mi Chung

T HE ore-dressing problem at Tul Mi Chung is complicated by the unusually complex nature of the ores. These come from replacement ore- bodies in limestone at the contact with a granite batholith, and contain copper, gold, silver, bismuth, molybdenum, iron, arsenic, zinc, and lead, the first two metals constituting the principal sources of profit. Iron is present as pyrite, magnetite, and hematite. Arsenic occurs both as mispickel and lollingite (FelAsa), the latter carrying a certain amount of finely divided gold. The gangue minerals are those typical of limestone con- tact-metamorphism and include a large percentage of garnet, together with diopside, serpentine, calcite, epidote, zoisite, actinolite, &apos;mica and other minerals. A part of the gold occurs in a free state; some is combined with chalcopyrite and lollingite, and a consider- able proportion is contained in the pyrite. Researches towards the improvement of recovery have been energetically conducted since 1915. Amalgamation, gravity concentrating tables, vanners, can- vas plants, etc., have all been tried and discarded in favor of flotation. It was very quickly established that fine grinding was essential for satisfactory recovery. This was and is still accomplished in Hardinge ball and pebble mills. A comparative test showed that when the ore was crushed to the point at which it contained 20 to 26 per cent. coarser than 100 mesh, the gold recovery was only 55.9 per cent., whereas when crushed so that only 11 to 15 per cent. was coarser than 100 mesh, the gold recovery was increased to 82.5 per cent. No particular difficulty was ever experienced in making a satisfactory recovery of copper but the losses in gold were considered serious and led to the investigation described in this paper.

Jan 1, 1924

By J. D. Cooner

Since my working life of 32 yr has been spent in and about the anthracite mines of the Hudson Coal Co., and the previous 4 yr in a college school of mines, I can write best about the safety program of a coal mining company. However, most of the suggestions, statements and practices mentioned herein are applicable to the members of a safety organization and program of almost any industry. It is realized that industrial officials actually interested in real safety work are fully acquainted with the requirements of a practical safety program. Therefore, for such persons there may be nothing new in this paper. The Hudson Coal Co. of Scranton, Pa., employs 7000 men and produces 5,000,000 tons of anthracite annually at nine collieries scattered for a distance of 40 miles throughout the Lackawanna and Wyoming valleys of northeastern Pennsylvania. For the past 17 yr of the above mentioned 32, I have been engaged in safety work as a safety inspector, assistant mine superintendent, and at present the safety engineer. I have also had the privilege of visiting coal and metal mines in other parts of the United States and Canada. We Americans are the most careless people in the world. If any one doubts this statement why are 100,000 of our people killed accidentally annually? Or why during the almost four years we were engaged in World War II were more of our people killed accidentally at home than were killed in our army, navy, marine corps, coast guard, and other services during the same period? We are careless everywhere— in our homes, on the highway, at work and at play. The purpose of this paper is to outline the requisites of a safety department and its program to stop the accidents occurring to employees at work in mines or industrial plants. The first requisite for a safety program is that the management must be convinced of the need and value of a real safety program. By "management" is meant each department head from the president down. Otherwise a good safety department with a good safety program will not succeed because it will not have the proper personnel and equipment to work with, its rules and regulations will not be enforced, and the members of the safety department will be belittled in the eyes of most of the workmen and supervisors. Next, a safety engineer and his inspectors should have worked in the production end of the mines as workmen and also in an official capacity. They are then in a position to have practical and first hand knowledge of the accident hazards of the industry, how to prevent them, and in general the problems of both the workmen and officials. Some men are appointed as safety inspectors when they are physically unable to carry on as mine officials. Such men may know the safety end of the industry and even be safety-conscious, but if they are physically unable to be mine officials they are also physically unable to be safety inspectors, as a safety inspector in our mines must walk from 2 to 4 miles on each daily inspection and visit each working

Jan 1, 1949