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By Carle R. Hayward

ATHOUGH there are signs of improvement in the lead industry, conditions are still far from what we have been accustomed to call normal. There has been little to stim¬ulate research and those responsible for the finances of the companies have been inclined to discourage expenditures except where need was urgent or the prospect for immediate returns bright. In spite of this fact, improvements have been developed here and there which will be available as business conditions become adjusted. No publicity is allowed at present. The rising price of silver has had a tendency to increase the production of lead from argentiferous ores but the greatest interest continues to be in the secondary field. Practically all lead plants situated near large centers of population are treating scrap materials, particularly battery plates, the quantity of which is increasing with the improvement in automobile sales.

Jan 1, 1936

By Ziebell, Howard A.

THE Washington magnesite deposits, located in the hilly and mountainous northeastern part of Washington, occur as massive lenses in a sedimentary series made up of dolomite, shale, and quartzite, into which basic dikes have intruded. The ore pattern resembles a series of disconnected chain links extending approximately 25 miles in a south-west direction. Magnesite in this district is all crystalline and closely associated with dolomite, talc, serpentine, and basic dike rock. All deposits which have been developed are near the surface so that quarry-bench mining has been possible. For over twenty years hand sorting magnesite ore at the quarry face was standard practice. Ore cars were hand trammed on 30-lb rail systems which led from the face to ore passes or raises for the magnesite ore and to the waste dumps for disposal of the rejected waste material. This system was somewhat modified by the use of Dempster Dumpster trucks. The ore was, however, still sorted by hand from the calcium and silica bearing waste rock. Power equipment. consisting of one 3/4-yd electric shovel, was

Jan 1, 1949

May 219t, 1872. THE Institute assembled in the rooms of the Geographical Society at the Cooper Union, Tuesday evening at 8 P.M. President Raymond called the meeting to order, and introduced Mr. Abram S. Hewitt, who welcomed the Institute to New York. President Raymond, in behalf of the Institute, replied. The President then read the following report of the Council for the past year. The Council respectfully report that the American Institute of Mining Engineers has held four meetings-at Wilkes-Barre, Bethlehem, Troy, and Philadelphia, respectively-all of which have been well attended, and socially and professionally most successful. The proceedings of these meetings having been published in the Engineering and Mining Journal, and sent to all members and associates, are sufficiently well known. Forty-four papers, by twenty-six authors, have been read. These papers embrace s wide range of subjects, and prove the practical character of the proceedings of the Institute. The finances are in a satisfactory condition. By the report of the Treasurer it appears that $1290.10 have been received, $519.90 expended, and that $770.20 now remains in the treasury exclusive of fees for 1872. This fund, it is hoped, will be so increased by voluntary subscriptions as to enable us before long to issue s volume of our most important transactions in a permanent form. The Council has made a favorable arrangement with the Scientific Publishing Company, publishing the Engineering and Mining Journal, by which that journal became the organ of the Institute for the first publication of the proceedings, papers, and notices to members. This arrangement it is proposed to continue through the present year unless the Institute shall otherwise direct. It is not intended to supersede the publication of an annual or occasional volume, but to maintain an interest in the Institute, and to serve the convenience of members while our funds do not permit s more ambitious publication.

Jan 1, 1873

THE Institute assembled in the rooms of the Geographical Society at the Cooper Union, Tuesday evening at 8 P.M. President Raymond called the meeting to order, and introduced Mr. Abram S. Hewitt, who welcomed the Institute to New York. President Raymond, in behalf of the Institute, replied. The President then read the following report of the Council for the past year. The Council respectfully report that the American Institute of Mining Engineers has held four meetings-at Wilkes-Barre, Bethlehem, Troy, and Philadelphia, respectively-all of which have been well attended, and socially and professionally most successful. The proceedings of these meetings having been published in the Engineering and Mining Journal, and sent to all members and associates, are sufficiently well known. Forty-Bur papers, by twenty-six authors, have been read. These papers embrace a wide range of subjects, and prove the practical character of the proceedings of the Institute. The finances are in a satisfactory condition. By the report of the Treasurer it appears that $1290.10 have been received, $519.90 expended, and that $770.20 now remains in the treasury exclusive of fees for 1872. This fund, it is hoped, will be so increased by voluntary subscriptions as to enable us before long to issue a volume of our most important transactions in a permanent form. The Council has made a favorable arrangement with the Scientific Publishing Company, publishing the Engineering and Mining Journal, by which that journal became the organ of the Institute for the first publication of the proceedings, papers, and notices to members. This arrangement it is proposed to continue through the present year unless the Institute shall otherwise direct. I t is not intended to supersede the publication of an annual or occasional volume, but to maintain an interest in the Institute, and to serve the convenience of members while our funds do not permit a more ambitious publication.

By Reginald S. Dean

THE widespread occurrence of manganese in low grade oxide and carbonate ores not amenable to mechanical concentration has led to extensive investigations of hydrometallurgical methods for producing a pure manganese compound suitable for further treatment. Manganese carbonate is the preferable compound. This product when fully crystalline and of not too fine crystal size is easily filtrable and stable in air. It can be converted to other compounds such as the oxides by heating in air or can be reacted with acids for producing salts. A useful hydrometallurgical process must produce relatively concentrated solutions that can be purified easily, reagents must be cyclically used, and heat requirements must be small. Neither the ammonium sulphate nor sulphur dioxide leaching processes that have been tested extensively fulfill these 'requirements. Other hereto-fore proposed processes have obvious limitations and have not been tried on a large scale. The present process is based on the discovery by the writer of a new group of aqueous manganese-ammonia complex solutions highly concentrated in ammonia, which permit rapid solution of manganous oxide to concentrations of 80 to 100 g Mn per liter and from which a fully crystalline, easily filterable manganese carbonate is precipitated by the addition of carbon dioxide and partial ammonia removal. Although the process may be carried out with many ammonium salts, commercial advantages dictate the use of ammonium carbamate, which is obtained when CO2 is passed into concentrated aqueous solutions of ammonia. If the carbamate is used, the only reagents, ammonia and C02, are volatile and may therefore be recovered from solutions and residues by heating, thus eliminating washing and extensive evaporation. Impurities are controlled easily as most metal oxides are either insoluble in the lixiviant or fail to precipitate with the manganese carbonate. Others are controlled by sulphide addition. The process has been tested extensively on a small scale on a wide variety of ores; including Three Kids, Artillery Peak, Cuyuna, and Chamberlain; as repre-

Jan 1, 1952

THE 144th* meeting of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers was held in New York, Feb. 18 to 21, 1935. It consisted of the annual business meeting, 45 technical sessions at which 216 papers were presented (approximately the same number of sessions and papers as at the previous annual meeting), two sessions of the Board of Directors, three meetings of Section delegates, two formal lectures and two addresses, luncheon Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for members and guests, six group dinners and eight group luncheons, ten committee meetings, the annual reception and dinner dance, an informal dance, a smoker-dinner and the annual meeting of the Woman's Auxiliary. Attendance was generally greater than for the two preceding meetings; the statistics follow (figures are in the order 1935-1934-1933); total registration, 1609-1534-1475; dinner dance, 577-543-426; dinner-smoker, 490-425-394; informal dance, 279-295-250; women's registration, 179-160-133; general luncheons, 1132-1034-734. The Coal Division held two general sessions on Monday and a symposium on coal-mine ventilation on Tuesday morning. The Committee on Bituminous Planning, Edward Steidle, chairman, presented a report at the Monday morning session. C. B. Huntress, President of Appalachian Coals, Inc., was the principal speaker at the luncheon on Monday, at which Eli T. Conner, Chairman of the Division, presided. Mr. Huntress was preceded by Howard N. Eavenson, President of the Institute, who spoke briefly. The Sectional Committee on Classification of Coal met Wednesday afternoon. A feature of the meeting concerning three Divisions-Iron and Steel, Institute of Metals, Petroleum-was the symposium on Use of Metals in the Petroleum Industry, Thursday morning and afternoon. Five of the papers presented at this symposium have been published in METALS TECHNOLOGY'. Another feature, of general interest, was the Tuesday morning session in the Auditorium, devoted to Federal Government and Mineral Industries. Dr. C. K. Leith delivered the principal address, on "A, Mineral Policy for the United. States." . The Institute of Metals Division held technical sessions Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday. morning and afternoon and on Thursday

Jan 1, 1936

By F. W. Bryan, D. H. Lynch

Introduction This paper is a general description of current central Florida phosphate mining, beneficiation, and product transportation. It is directed and believed to be of interest to engineers not familiar with this industry. Deposit: The phosphate deposits of central Florida are generally located in a five county area which includes Polk, Hillsborough, Hardee, Manatee, and DeSota counties. Geologically, the deposit is of marine origin and is identified as the Bone Valley formation. This formation is Pliocene to Recent in geological age and overlies a Miocene limestone formation known as the Hawthorn. The Bone Valley formation sediments are regionally characterized by equal proportions of apatite, quartz, and clay. The clay is predominantly of the mont-morillonite family. On a local scale, however, the proportions of these three major constituents vary considerably. The phosphate occurs as the apatite mineral (Ca 10F2(PO4)(6) and with the clay and sand, the minable ore is commonly referred to as matrix. This matrix is overlain by unconsolidated overburden of sand and sandy clays, ranging in depth from 10 to 45 ft. The matrix usually occurs in fairly horizontal continuous beds from 3 to 25 ft in thickness. The bedded limestone formation lies directly below the matrix and is generally well defined. The phosphate particles range from 3/4 in. to 200 mesh (Tyler) in size. The phosphate particles coarser than 14 mesh are called pebble phosphate and those less than 14 mesh are termed flotation feed which, when beneficiated, subsequently become concentrates. Through mining and beneficiation, phosphate quality is measured in BPL percent which stands for bone phosphate of lime units. In subsequent chemical manufacturing, the quality is indicated by P205 content. The deposit is economically characterized by various ratios such as tons of product per acre and cubic yards handled per ton of product. Magnesium, iron, and aluminum content are also considered in evaluating ore reserves. These elements are often critical to the chemical fertilizer processes. Presently, an ore body is considered economically minable if it meets the criteria shown in [Table 1]. These, of course, are general guidelines and specific costs and returns on investment must be considered in each case for acquiring reserves. On a new grass-root venture, a 20-30 year life is generally expected with a mineral recovery of 80%. History and Uses Phosphate mining in central Florida began around the turn of the century. However, in the early days, only pebble phosphate was produced until about 1930 when technology was available to beneficiate the -14 + 150 mesh particles. The -150 or -200 mesh material was discarded as it is today. The basic processes for beneficiation are washing, scrubbing, desliming, sizing, and flotation. These basic unit processes are essentially the same today although many improvements have been developed since the early days. Phosphate is used primarily in the production of high analysis fertilizer chemicals, typical of which are triple superphosphate, monoammonium phosphate (MAP), and diammonium phosphate (DAP). Phosphate is also used in the production of food preservatives, dyes for cloths, vitamin and mineral capsules, steel hardeners, gasoline and oil additives, toothpaste, shaving creams and soaps, bone china dishes, plastics, optical glass, photographic films, light filaments, water softeners, insecticides, soft drinks, road fill, and livestock feed supplements. Florida produces over 80% of the nation's marketable phosphate rock and one-third of the world production, according to the US Bureau of Mines. This amounted to approximately 35 million tons in 1975. Exports of Florida phosphate rock were to such countries as Canada, Japan, West Germany, Italy, and India, with Canada and Japan being the major users. Almost 95 o of all outbound cargo shipped through the port of Tampa is phosphate rock or related products. Beneficiation Following is a description of Agrico's new Fort Green beneficiation plant which is typical of the newer large capacity plants being built in the field. Agrico's Fort Green mine was completed in 1975 and is located in the southwest corner of Polk County and is directly adjacent to Manatee, Hillsborough, and Hardee Counties. With some minor differences, Fort Green is typical of a modern central Florida plant. The rated capacity is 3,000,000 plus tons of product per year and this varies according to the richness of the ore being handled. A simplified flowsheet is presented in [Figs.1 and 2]. This plant is served by three draglines of the 40-cu-yd class. The phosphate beneficiation is usually divided into three major functional steps: (1) washing and screening to produce a pebble product and flotation feed, (2) feed preparation and (3) flotation to produce concentrates. The typical plant is similarly divided into these three functional areas. Washer: Briefly, the slurried matrix is pumped from two draglines simultaneously at a combined rate of about 20,000 gpm at 2000 tph (solids) to rotary trommel screens sized to make a 7/8-in. separation. ([See Fig. 1]-) The trommel oversize is sent to hammermills where it is crushed and returned to the trommel screens, or pumped to tailings if minor impurities (Fe203, A1203, MgO) are too high. The trommel undersize is pumped to 14 mesh stationary (static) flat screens. The flat screen over¬size is subjected to three stages of 14 mesh vibrating screening and two stages of log washing in order to produce a final pebble product. The pebble product (+ 14 mesh material) is conveyed by belt conveyor to a large on-ground storage pile. Pebble product is reclaimed through a tunnel and loading system below

Jan 1, 1980

By Reginald S. Dean

Manganous oxide is readily soluble in concentrated ammonia solutions containing ammonium salts. Lixiviants of ammonia and ammonium carbamate permit ready extraction of manganese from reduced ores and the manganese in such solutions may be precipitated by heating to transform the carbamate to carbonate. THE widespread occurrence of manganese in low grade oxide and carbonate ores not amenable to mechanical concentration has led to extensive investigations of hydrometallurgical methods for producing a pure manganese compound suitable for further treatment. Manganese carbonate is the preferable compound. This product when fully crystalline and of not too fine crystal size is easily filtrable and stable in air. It can be converted to other compounds such as the oxides by heating in air or can be reacted with acids for producing salts. A useful hydrometallurgical process must produce relatively concentrated solutions that can be purified easily, reagents must be cyclically used, and heat requirements must be small. Neither the ammonium sulphate nor sulphur dioxide leaching processes that have been tested extensively fulfill these requirements. Other heretofore proposed processes have obvious limitations and have not been tried on a large scale. The present process is based on the discovery by the writer of a new group of aqueous manganese-ammonia complex solutions highly concentrated in ammonia, which permit rapid solution of manganous oxide to concentrations of 80 to 100 g Mn per liter and from which a fully crystalline, easily filtrable manganese carbonate is precipitated by the addition of carbon dioxide and partial ammonia removal. Although the process may be carried out with many ammonium salts, commercial advantages dictate the use of ammonium carbamate, which is obtained when CO2 is passed into concentrated aqueous solutions of ammonia. If the carbamate is used, the only reagents, ammonia and CO2, are volatile and may therefore be recovered from solutions and residues by heating, thus eliminating washing and extensive evaporation. Impurities are controlled easily as most metal oxides are either insoluble in the lixiviant or fail to precipitate with the manganese carbonate. Others are controlled by sulphide addition. The process has been tested extensively on a small scale on a wide variety of ores, including Three Kids, Artillery Peak, Cuyuna, and Chamberlain, as repre-

Jan 1, 1953

By Reginald S. Dean

Manganous oxide is readily soluble in concentrated ammonia solutions containing ammonium salts. Lixiviants of ammonia and ammonium carbamate permit ready extraction of manganese from reduced ores and the manganese in such solutions may be precipitated by heating to transform the carbamate to carbonate. THE widespread occurrence of manganese in low grade oxide and carbonate ores not amenable to mechanical concentration has led to extensive investigations of hydrometallurgical methods for producing a pure manganese compound suitable for further treatment. Manganese carbonate is the preferable compound. This product when fully crystalline and of not too fine crystal size is easily filtrable and stable in air. It can be converted to other compounds such as the oxides by heating in air or can be reacted with acids for producing salts. A useful hydrometallurgical process must produce relatively concentrated solutions that can be purified easily, reagents must be cyclically used, and heat requirements must be small. Neither the ammonium sulphate nor sulphur dioxide leaching processes that have been tested extensively fulfill these requirements. Other heretofore proposed processes have obvious limitations and have not been tried on a large scale. The present process is based on the discovery by the writer of a new group of aqueous manganese-ammonia complex solutions highly concentrated in ammonia, which permit rapid solution of manganous oxide to concentrations of 80 to 100 g Mn per liter and from which a fully crystalline, easily filtrable manganese carbonate is precipitated by the addition of carbon dioxide and partial ammonia removal. Although the process may be carried out with many ammonium salts, commercial advantages dictate the use of ammonium carbamate, which is obtained when CO2 is passed into concentrated aqueous solutions of ammonia. If the carbamate is used, the only reagents, ammonia and CO2, are volatile and may therefore be recovered from solutions and residues by heating, thus eliminating washing and extensive evaporation. Impurities are controlled easily as most metal oxides are either insoluble in the lixiviant or fail to precipitate with the manganese carbonate. Others are controlled by sulphide addition. The process has been tested extensively on a small scale on a wide variety of ores, including Three Kids, Artillery Peak, Cuyuna, and Chamberlain, as repre-

Jan 1, 1953

By M. J. Coolbaugh

There is a need for concepts and techniques developed specifically for blasting in areas where the rock is loose or highly fractured. Common practice has been to use techniques developed in hard homogeneous rock and reduce the amount and strength of explosive. However, this rule cannot cope with all of the special characteristics of highly fractured rock and has not adequately taken care of the problems of overbreak, gouging, and wall damage. The main problems encountered when blasting in highly fractured rock are controlling the amount of rock broken, minimizing the damage done to the remaining wall material, and adapting blasting methods to rapidly fluctuating ground conditions. In addition, because it frequently needs timber support right into the blasting area, there is also the problem of how not to shoot out the timber when heavy loading is needed in order to offset a loss of impact caused by deflection of the detonation wave off the numerous rock interfaces, and by the absorption of the wave by resilient clay particles. Another consideration is the fact that less attention needs to be directed toward producing satisfactory fragmentation of the broken rock. Those blasting methods designed for breaking hard rock into manageable segments are, as a rule, not needed in highly fractured rock which will usually break along its own numerous fracture lines.

Jan 8, 1965

By John T. Galey

The outstanding developments of the year in southwestern Pennsylvania were the establishment of the Summit Fayette County gas pool and the gas pool in Nicholson township, Fayette County, and Monongahela township, Greene County, as major producing areas, and the indication of four new shallow gas pools. Curtailment of drilling for shallow gas is expected to follow order M68 of the Office of Production Management. Gas completions were approximately 70 per cent higher, oil completions nearly 25 per cent lower, dry holes were unchanged and drilling wells as of Dec. 31, 1941, nearly loo per cent higher than last year. Shallow Development Oil.—Outside Butler County, only 11 producers were drilled, with a total initial of 221 bbl. The best of these was in a portion of Gilmore township, Greene County, which ordinarily produces gas. This well flowed 77 bbl. in 11 hr., along with about one million cubic feet of gas from the Fourth (U.Dev.) sand. Washington County had a 10.20 and a 25-bbl. well in Morris township and a 20-bbl. well in South Franklin township. These were all in the Fifth Sand. The price of oil to Jan. 27 was $1.80 per barrel, when a 15¢ increase was made. This was followed by a raise of 20¢ on Apr. 23, 15¢ on May 21, 20¢ on June 18 and 25¢ on Aug. 14. The last increase was canceled on Aug. 23 by the Office of Price Administration, which pegged southwestern Pennsylvania crude at $2.40 per barrel. Gas.—An almost doubled initial production of natural gas is the result of the large increase in number of wells drilled. The outstanding discovery of the year was in the vicinity of Armbrust, Hempfield township, Westmoreland County, where a well drilled to what at first was considered the Bayard sand, but what is now known to be the Fifth (U.Dev.) sand, at 2100 ft. found nearly 5 million cu. ft. of gas. Since this completion 14 wells have been finished, only one of which was dry, giving a combined total open flow of approximately 15 million cu. ft. The sand is 35 to 40 ft. thick and the saturation extends through most of that thickness. Rock pressure, which is 1040 lb. per sq. in., is abnormally high. An area of only about one square mile has been proven but some of the 24 new wells drilling as of Dec. 31 will no doubt extend it considerably. This development has taken place in an area heretofore considered to have had little prospect. There were three good wells in other parts of Westmoreland County. One well in Franklin township, which had 12 million cu. ft, of gas in the Fifth sand, was entirely surrounded by dry holes but is still pro- . ducing at a high rate. In Bell township a 1.6 million cu. ft. well was found in the Speechley (U.Dev.) sand and in Washington township the same sand produced 2.7 million cu. ft. with shut-in pressure of 970 Ib. at 2820 ft. This well is offset by two dry holes and one well with a capacity of only 10 M cubic feet.

Jan 1, 1942

By John T. Galey

The outstanding developments of the year in southwestern Pennsylvania were the establishment of the Summit Fayette County gas pool and the gas pool in Nicholson township, Fayette County, and Monongahela township, Greene County, as major producing areas, and the indication of four new shallow gas pools. Curtailment of drilling for shallow gas is expected to follow order M68 of the Office of Production Management. Gas completions were approximately 70 per cent higher, oil completions nearly 25 per cent lower, dry holes were unchanged and drilling wells as of Dec. 31, 1941, nearly loo per cent higher than last year. Shallow Development Oil.—Outside Butler County, only 11 producers were drilled, with a total initial of 221 bbl. The best of these was in a portion of Gilmore township, Greene County, which ordinarily produces gas. This well flowed 77 bbl. in 11 hr., along with about one million cubic feet of gas from the Fourth (U.Dev.) sand. Washington County had a 10.20 and a 25-bbl. well in Morris township and a 20-bbl. well in South Franklin township. These were all in the Fifth Sand. The price of oil to Jan. 27 was $1.80 per barrel, when a 15¢ increase was made. This was followed by a raise of 20¢ on Apr. 23, 15¢ on May 21, 20¢ on June 18 and 25¢ on Aug. 14. The last increase was canceled on Aug. 23 by the Office of Price Administration, which pegged southwestern Pennsylvania crude at $2.40 per barrel. Gas.—An almost doubled initial production of natural gas is the result of the large increase in number of wells drilled. The outstanding discovery of the year was in the vicinity of Armbrust, Hempfield township, Westmoreland County, where a well drilled to what at first was considered the Bayard sand, but what is now known to be the Fifth (U.Dev.) sand, at 2100 ft. found nearly 5 million cu. ft. of gas. Since this completion 14 wells have been finished, only one of which was dry, giving a combined total open flow of approximately 15 million cu. ft. The sand is 35 to 40 ft. thick and the saturation extends through most of that thickness. Rock pressure, which is 1040 lb. per sq. in., is abnormally high. An area of only about one square mile has been proven but some of the 24 new wells drilling as of Dec. 31 will no doubt extend it considerably. This development has taken place in an area heretofore considered to have had little prospect. There were three good wells in other parts of Westmoreland County. One well in Franklin township, which had 12 million cu. ft, of gas in the Fifth sand, was entirely surrounded by dry holes but is still pro- . ducing at a high rate. In Bell township a 1.6 million cu. ft. well was found in the Speechley (U.Dev.) sand and in Washington township the same sand produced 2.7 million cu. ft. with shut-in pressure of 970 Ib. at 2820 ft. This well is offset by two dry holes and one well with a capacity of only 10 M cubic feet.

Jan 1, 1942

By Ma Guang, Huang Jinshou

In this paper we briefly describe measuring techniques and their practical use in the mining industry of China. A strain coefficient matrix of triaxial strain cell for a flat ended borehole is also introduced.

Jan 1, 1983

By Ferid Kromer

Geography: The Tagtepe district of the Vilayet of Eskigehir is about 20 miles northeast of the city of Eskigehir (approximately midway between Ankara and Istanbul) in western Anatolia. The area is a mountainous one, the highest peak being Tagtepe Mountain (5200 ft) which is approximately in the center of the district. The mountains drop off to the deep valley of the Sakarya River on the north and to the plain of Eskigehir on the south. FERID KROMER, Junior Member AZME, is a Consulting Mining Engineer and General Manager, Bagtag Turk Maadin Ltd., Istanbul, Turkey. New York Meeting, February 1950. TP 2629 H. Discussion of this paper (2 copies) may be sent to Transactions AIME before Feb. 28, 1950. Manuscript received Dec. 29, 1948. For the most part, the watershed is on the northern side of the mountain barrier, draining into the Sakarya River, which in turn empties into the Black Sea midway between Zonguldak and the mouth of the Bosphorus. The approximate area covered by the Tagtepe district is shown in fig. 1. Transportation to shipping points is available via the Istanbul-Ankara railroad. The station on this line nearest the mining district is Alpikoy station, about 20 miles by road southwest of Tagtepe Mountain. Interior roads within the district are poor. Being of dirt, the winter rains and snows render them almost impassable for trucks from about the middle of December until the end of March, thus presenting a considerable transportation problem. However, the roads from the Bagoren and Tagtepe chromite mines to the railroad shipping point at Alpikoy station have recently been repaired and will be maintained for all-weather truck transportation. Detailed climatic data are not available. However, in general the spring, summer, and early autumn months are dry, and good weather may be expected from May until early November. Then the winter rains commence, and heavy snow is usual during January and February. Geology: The mountainous structure of Tagtepe belongs to basic rocks of serpentine (Variscan Orogeny) which is in contact with Paleozoic schists at west, and an Oligocene outcrop of red clays in Margi-Sepetci region (see fig. 1) at southeast. The northwest and southwest borders of Tagtepe district are, respectively, surrounded by Paleozoic schists and pebbly gray and yellow Neogene clays. More recent formations of alluviums overlay the plain of Eskigehir. Dark basic rocks of trachytes with hornblende are visible on Turkmenbaba Mountain, at the west of Tagtepe. Mineral Occurrences: Chromite: the most important mineral found in any quantity in the Tagtepe district. The alignment of the deposits of chromite is in general along the line Bagoren-Tagtepe (see fig. 1). The first mines in the area were those of Tagtepe and Bagoren, which were developed over 20 years ago with Swedish capital. Other deposits of chromite, more recently discovered and so far of less importance, are being worked at Kurucor, Komurcu, Gelinmezari, and Lacin (see fig. 1). Deposits average generally between 46 and 48 pct chromic oxide, with the exception of the Bagoren mine which averages 44 pct. However, a new lode, very recently plotted, in the Tagtepe mine averages 50 pct Cr,O,, 4.6 pct SOz, and 7 pct FeO. Geological character of the chromite occurrences in the Tagtepe mine may be considered typical of most chromite lodes in this area. The indications are that the formations of ore lenses are developed by the segregation of chromite crystals intruded into the serpentinized rock, and exposed later to tectonic movement within the zone of crystallization. All lenticular masses are more or less regular in shape and follow each other in southeast-northwest direction and dip generally 70" NE. Ore lenses do not seem to persist in depth, average depth of two lenses is 60 ft below surface. Three lodes .have been mined as open-pit. The average dimensions of individual lenses are as follows: pitch length, 100 ft; breadth, 27 ft; and width, 20 ft. The lenses and their enclosing rocks are broken by parallel fractures in approximately east-west direction. These joints are filled, except in one lode, with cementing material, which gives to the ore a

Jan 1, 1951

By Ferid Kromer

Geography: The Tagtepe district of the Vilayet of Eskigehir is about 20 miles northeast of the city of Eskigehir (approximately midway between Ankara and Istanbul) in western Anatolia. The area is a mountainous one, the highest peak being Tagtepe Mountain (5200 ft) which is approximately in the center of the district. The mountains drop off to the deep valley of the Sakarya River on the north and to the plain of Eskigehir on the south. FERID KROMER, Junior Member AZME, is a Consulting Mining Engineer and General Manager, Bagtag Turk Maadin Ltd., Istanbul, Turkey. New York Meeting, February 1950. TP 2629 H. Discussion of this paper (2 copies) may be sent to Transactions AIME before Feb. 28, 1950. Manuscript received Dec. 29, 1948. For the most part, the watershed is on the northern side of the mountain barrier, draining into the Sakarya River, which in turn empties into the Black Sea midway between Zonguldak and the mouth of the Bosphorus. The approximate area covered by the Tagtepe district is shown in fig. 1. Transportation to shipping points is available via the Istanbul-Ankara railroad. The station on this line nearest the mining district is Alpikoy station, about 20 miles by road southwest of Tagtepe Mountain. Interior roads within the district are poor. Being of dirt, the winter rains and snows render them almost impassable for trucks from about the middle of December until the end of March, thus presenting a considerable transportation problem. However, the roads from the Bagoren and Tagtepe chromite mines to the railroad shipping point at Alpikoy station have recently been repaired and will be maintained for all-weather truck transportation. Detailed climatic data are not available. However, in general the spring, summer, and early autumn months are dry, and good weather may be expected from May until early November. Then the winter rains commence, and heavy snow is usual during January and February. Geology: The mountainous structure of Tagtepe belongs to basic rocks of serpentine (Variscan Orogeny) which is in contact with Paleozoic schists at west, and an Oligocene outcrop of red clays in Margi-Sepetci region (see fig. 1) at southeast. The northwest and southwest borders of Tagtepe district are, respectively, surrounded by Paleozoic schists and pebbly gray and yellow Neogene clays. More recent formations of alluviums overlay the plain of Eskigehir. Dark basic rocks of trachytes with hornblende are visible on Turkmenbaba Mountain, at the west of Tagtepe. Mineral Occurrences: Chromite: the most important mineral found in any quantity in the Tagtepe district. The alignment of the deposits of chromite is in general along the line Bagoren-Tagtepe (see fig. 1). The first mines in the area were those of Tagtepe and Bagoren, which were developed over 20 years ago with Swedish capital. Other deposits of chromite, more recently discovered and so far of less importance, are being worked at Kurucor, Komurcu, Gelinmezari, and Lacin (see fig. 1). Deposits average generally between 46 and 48 pct chromic oxide, with the exception of the Bagoren mine which averages 44 pct. However, a new lode, very recently plotted, in the Tagtepe mine averages 50 pct Cr,O,, 4.6 pct SOz, and 7 pct FeO. Geological character of the chromite occurrences in the Tagtepe mine may be considered typical of most chromite lodes in this area. The indications are that the formations of ore lenses are developed by the segregation of chromite crystals intruded into the serpentinized rock, and exposed later to tectonic movement within the zone of crystallization. All lenticular masses are more or less regular in shape and follow each other in southeast-northwest direction and dip generally 70" NE. Ore lenses do not seem to persist in depth, average depth of two lenses is 60 ft below surface. Three lodes .have been mined as open-pit. The average dimensions of individual lenses are as follows: pitch length, 100 ft; breadth, 27 ft; and width, 20 ft. The lenses and their enclosing rocks are broken by parallel fractures in approximately east-west direction. These joints are filled, except in one lode, with cementing material, which gives to the ore a

Jan 1, 1951

By M. J. Richards, A. Szirmae, G. R. Speich

The formation of austenite from ferrite, ferrite plus retastable carbide, spheroidite, and pearlite has been studied in a series of irons, Fe-C alloys, and plain-carbon steels using fast heating techniques. In the absence of carbide, austenite nucleates at ferrite/ferrite grain boundaries; nucleation is followed by the rapid growth characteristic of a massive transfornation. The trarnsformation occurs at 950°C at heating rates of 106º C per sec and cannot be suppressed. Metastable carbide dissolves before austenite forms and does not influence the transformation kinetics. For spheroidite structures, austenite nucleates preferentially at the jinction between carbides and ferrite grain boundaries. Growth from these centers proceeds until the carbide is completely enveloped; subsequent growth occurs by carbon diffusion through the austenite envelope. For pearlite structures, austenite nucleates preferentially at pearlite colony intersections. Carbide la)?zellae dissolve at the advancing austenite interface but complete solution of carbide does not occur; the residtial carbide is eventually dissolvled or spheroid-ized depending on the carbon cuntent. The magnitude and temperature dependence of the austenite growth rate into Fe-C pearlite when incomplete carbide dissolution is assumed are satisfactorily explained by an approximate colume diffusion model. The impurities present in plain-carbon steel reduce the growth rate of austenite in comparison to that jound in an Fe-C alloy. The formation of austenite has been studied in much less detail than the decomposition of austenite. This is primarily a result of the importance of harden-ability in determining the mechanical properties of steel. Recently, more interest in the kinetics of austenite formation has resulted from the discovery by Grange1 that rapid heating techniques strengthen steel by refining the austenite grain size. Although the strengthening effect is not large, it is accompanied by no loss in ductility. In addition, interest continues in rapid heat treatment of low-carbon steel sheet for tin plate applications.2,3 Among the few systematic studies of austenite formation are the early work of Roberts and Mehl4 on formation of austenite from pearlite and recent work of Molinder5 and of Judd and paxton6 on formation of austenite from spheroidite. Also, Boedtker and Duwez7 and Haworth and paar8 have recently studied the formation of austenite from ferrite in relatively pure iron, Kidin et al.9,10 have studied the formation of austenite in 8 pct Cr steels, and Paxton has recently discussed various aspects of austenite formation in steels." The present work was undertaken to determine the kinetics of austenite formation for a variety of starting structures including ferrite, ferrite plus metastable carbide, ferrite plus spheroidal cementite, and ferrite plus pearlitic cementite. Emphasis was placed on determining the active sites for austenite nucleation, determining the temperature and time range of austenite formation, and in the case of pearlite a careful study of the growth rate of austenite was made in the absence and presence of impurities. By using a variety of heating techniques including laser-pulse heating, it has been possible to study austenite formation in an isothermal fashion over a wide range of temperatures. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The alloys studied in the present work are a zone-refined iron with 4 pprn C, an Fe-C alloy with 130 pprn C, 2 Fe-C alloys with 0.77 and 0.96 wt pct C, and a plain carbon steel with 0.96 wt pct C. The zone-refined iron and Fe-C alloys contained 60 pprn and 200 pprn total substitutional impurities, respectively. The plain carbon steel contained 2400 pprn Si, 2000 pprn Mn, and 900 pprn Cr. Various heat treatments were given to these alloys to produce different starting structures of equiaxed ferrite, ferrite plus metastable carbide, fine pearlite, and spheroidite. These heat treatments are given in Table I. A wide range of heating rates were employed in this work because many of the reactions occur so quickly at temperatures in the austenite range that they are completed during the initial heating cycle unless very fast heating rates are used. Essentially the same heating techniques employed by Speich et a1.12 and Speich and Fisher13 were used in this work. For time intervals of 2 sec to 20 hr, simple hand immersion of 0.010-in. thick specimens in a Pb-Bi bath was employed. These specimens were quenched in a 10 pct NaC1, 2 pct NaOH aqueous bath. For time intervals of 100 m-sec to 2 sec, an automatic dunking and quenching device was employed with 0.002-in. thick specimens. Again, liquid Pb-Bi baths were used for a heating medium but now helium gas quenching was employed. For time intervals of 2 to 100 m-sec a laser heating device was employed with 0.002-in. thick specimens; a helium plus fine water-droplet spray was now used for quenching. Additional information on heating times shorter than 2 m-sec was obtained by study of the zones around the centrally heated laser spot. Here diffusion of heat from the centrally heated zone raises the temperature of the specimen locally to all temperatures between ambient and the peak temperature, but for times of the order of microseconds. All the heat-treated specimens were examined by

Jan 1, 1970

By S. Shapiro, G. Krauss

The strutural and cr~stallo~aphic features of the plates of austenite produced by the martensite to aus-tenite or reverse martensitic tramformation have been determined in an Fe-33 wt pct Ni alloy. Micro-focus X-ray techniques and single-surface trace analysis 072 bulk samples yielded two distinct habit planes, (0.174, 0.309, 0.~35)~ and (0.375, 0.545, 0.749jM. The former plane uas the one predorninantly observed and its existence was verified by transn~ission electron microscopy. The orientation relation-ship between the reversed austenite and the parent martensite was approximately the same as the Nishiyamna and other relationships reported for the direct tramformation. Replica and thin-joil obser-vations show that both high densities of tangled dis-locations and occasional twins constitute the fine structure of the reversed austenite. Application of the phenomenological theory to a variant of the predominant habit plane defines an irrational plane and direction for the second shear in accordance with the comnplexity of the fine structure. The shear accompanying the reverse martensitic transformation is at least 0.51, the maximnum value of- the tangent oJ the tilt angle measured on surface replicas. A mechanism relating the fine transformation twins in martensite to the nucleation of reversed austenite of the predominant habit is proposed. The reversal of Fe-Ni martensite takes place both at the edges of martensite plates and in a piecewise fashion within them.' The shear-type nature of the reverse transformation is verified by the surface relief which accompanies both edge-type reversal2 and the fragmentation of plates of martensite' as a result of rapid heating above the A, (austenite start temperature). The orientation relationship between the edge-type reversal product and the parent martensite, as determined by transmission electron microscopy, is reported to be within 4 deg of either the Kurdyumov-Sachs or Nishiyama relationships,' but there is no work at present in the literature relating to the crystallography of the platelike reversed austenite. The fine structure of reversed austenite after heating to 50°C above the Af is reported4 to be composed primarily of tangled and jogged dislocations in concentrations up to 10" per sq cm. A replica investigation of partially reversed Fe-Ni martensites5 corroborates the increase in dislocation density following reversal and presents indications of other possible modes of fine structure. This paper reports on an investigation performed to examine in detail the morphology and crystallography of the plates of reversed austenite and the shear which accompanies their formation in a matrix of Fe-Ni martensite. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Discs of a high-purity Fe-32.9 wt pct Ni single crystal served as the starting material. The single crystal had been produced in the course of an earlier investigation6 and the carbon content was determined at the time to be 0.006 wt pct. The M,, and the A,, were respectively -120" and 300°C. Partial transformation to martensite was performed at -125°C and reversal of some of the martensite was accomplished by heating in the temperature range 340" to 355°C. Most samples were heated to the reversal temperature by immersion' in a salt bath for 2 min. For surface-relief studies some polished and etched Samples were heated in a tube furnace for ten min in a hydrogen atmosphere maintained over the samples throughout the heating and cooling cycles. Samples were prepared for metallographic examination by electropolishing and etching with an HC1-HNOs-H20 et~hant.~ On one of the surface-relief samples two sets of fiducial scratches were placed on the etched sample by drawing it over a slurry of 0.06 p alumina on a "microclothJ'. The orientations of individual plates of martensite were determined by X-ray analysis. A Rigaku-Denki microbeam X-ray generator in conjunction with a Micro-Laue camera with facility for precision location of the sample in front of the beam was employed for this purpose. The collimator size was 30 p and the specimen to film distance was 5 mm. The Laue photograms were enlarged to an equivalent 3-cm specimen to film distance for analysis. The orientation of each of the plates of martensite was compared to that of the parent austenite and the relationship be -tween the two phases was, in all cases, within a few degrees of those predicted for the direct transformation. The orientation relationship between one of the larger plates of reversed austenite and its parent martensite was determined in a similar manner. The habit plane of the islands of reversed austenite in the X-rayed plates of martensite was determined by a single-surface trace analysis. Each reversal island had with the parent phase one comparatively straight boundary which was presumed to represent the habit plane trace. The pole locus technique7 was applied to traces from six different plates of martensite to determine the indices of the habit plane. A 40-cm stereographic net was employed for this analysis The morphology and fine structure of the reversed austenite were studied by electron microscopy of pre-shadowed direct carbon replicas,5 and the macroscopic shear was evaluated by a two-stage replica technique similar to that employed in electron fractog-

Jan 1, 1968

By A. Raman, P. P. Singh

The constitution of the La-Rh system was studied by powder X-ray diffraction, metallopaphic, and differential thermal analysis techniques and an equilibrium diagram is presented. Eleven intermediate phases occur in the system and the crystal structural data for nine of them were determined. La3Rh crystallizes in an orthorhombic structure of undetermined type, whose unit cell is obtained by doubling the 'a; and 'c,,' edges of an FesC type unit cell. The other intermediate phases of the system are LarRh-3( undetermined structures also occur in the system. LaRh, undergoes a polymorphic phase transformation at 1240°C. LaRh3 and La2Rh7 also exhibit polymorphisnz. The phases Laah and LazRh7 melt congruently. The latter undergoes a eutectoid transformation into LaRh, and Rh at 1205°C. Laah3 is formed by a peritectoid reaction between Laah and La,Rh,,. The other Phases result from peritectic reactions between the liquid and the adjacent rhodium-rich phases. The intermediate Phases of the La-Rh system are compared with those of the La-Co and La-Ni systems. DURING the course of a detailed investigation to study the occurrence of CrB, FeB, A1B2, and related structures in the rare earth alloys it was found that much information is lacking for the rare earth noble metal systems. Although the structures of several rare earth alloys containing the noble metals at the AB and AB2 stoichiometries have been reported, the occurrence of related structures at other stoichiometries has not been studied. We have initiated a project to study the crystal structural features of selected rare earth-rhodium alloys and to map the equilibrium diagrams of representative systems with conventional methods. The results of our investigation in the La-Rh system are presented in this paper. Two phases were known in the La-Rh system. LaRh has the CrB-type structure.' LaRhz is a MgCu2-type Laves phase.z EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Alloys weighing less than 1 g were prepared from commercially pure lanthanum (99.9 pct +), supplied by Lunex Company, Pleasant Valley, Iowa, and rhodium (99.92 pct +), supplied by Engelhardt Industries, Newark, N.J., in a conventional arc melting furnace under argon atmosphere. The buttons were turned upside down and remelted three times to insure homogeneity in the samples. Since negligible loss of material was encountered during melting, a chemical analysis of the alloy buttons was not undertaken. Powder specimens for X-ray diffraction studies in the as cast state were then prepared. The buttons were wrapped in thin molybdenum foils and homogenized by heating in vacuum at suitable high temperatures for more than 1 week. They were then broken into three or four pieces for annealing experiments. The pieces were wrapped in molybdenum foils and annealed at various temperatures in evacuated quartz capsules. The annealing was carried out for 2 hr at or above 1200°C, 1 day at temperatures close to llOO°C, 2 days at 1000°C, and for 1 week at temperatures below 1000°C. After annealing the alloy pieces were again broken and powder specimens for X-ray diffraction were prepared. The powders of the lanthanum rich alloys with more than 80 at. pct La were prepared by filing. The filings were sealed in molybdenum tubings and stress-relieved at 600°C in vacuum. It was not deemed necessary to stress-relieve the powders of the other alloys, since the alloys were very brittle and were ground easily. POWDER X-RAY DIFFRACTION X-ray diffraction photographs of powders (-325 mesh size) of the alloys in the as cast and annealed states were prepared in a Guinier-de Wolff focussing camera with copper K, X radiations. These patterns were studied to identify the stoichiometries and the crystal structures of the intermediate phases. The lattice parameters of the phases were calculated after minimizing the differences between the observed sin2 6 values, calculated from the diffraction angles 8, and the sin2 8 values, calculated using approximate lattice constants obtained from a few lines. These differences were minimized manually to less than 0.0005. The latLice constants are judged to be accurate to *0.005A for values less thp about 10A and to k0.01~ for values greater than 10A. The relative intensities of the lines were calculated using a computer program written by Jeitschko and Parthk.~ No attempt was made to refine the atomic positional parameters in the phases. METALLOGRAPHY The phase equilibria in the investigated alloys in the as cast and annealed states were also studied by metallographic examination. The polished specimen surfaces were etched with 10 pct picric acid in alcohol (alloys up to 25 pct Rh), concentrated picric acid (from 25 to 37.5 pct Rh), 2 pct nital (40 to 50 pct Rh), 10 pct nital (from 50 to 66.7 pct Rh) and with concentrated 48 pct HF for the other rhodium-rich alloys. Selected microstruture~ were then photographed using a Po-laroid Land camera. THERMAL ANALYSIS Differential thermal analysis of the alloys was carried out in DTA-668 Stone differential thermal ana-

Jan 1, 1970

By R. R. Sayers

TWO serious hazards from coal dust confront the bituminous-coal miner- -a physical or safety hazard and a physiological or health hazard. The first threatens the miner with loss of life from coal-dint explosions, and the second with loss of health and earning capacity from inhaling large quantities of the dust. Studies by the Bureau of Mines have shown that coal dust, except some grades of anthracite dust, is capable of initiating an explosion when no explosive gas is present and that its property of extending or propagating an explosion has been responsible for nearly all the widespread explosions that have occurred in bituminous mines in the United States in the present century. For years many mining people believed that low-volatile coal dust was not explosive but not only is it explosive but if the source of ignition is intense, it is as explosive as the dust of many high-volatile coals because the war is creating increased pressure for greater coal production and because of the trend toward greater mechanization in mines, explosion and health hazards from coal dust are likely !n increase considerably.

Jan 1, 1943

By R. M. Bird

Few persons outside of the foundry trade have any conception of the great variety of sands now regularly specified and furnished, nor of the differences in foundry practice frequently resulting from apparently minor changes in sands. Conditions in each locality where the sands are mined and prepared necessitate special equipment designed to perform the work efficiently. The description that follows of the foundry-sand producing operations is typical of the areas in New York and New Jersey, and particularly refers to the operations of the George F. Pettinos Co. A few years ago the so-called Albany sands were dug by simple methods and hauled by horsecart to railroad. Depletion of sand near railroad sidings and extended use of automotive power have appreciably extended the area from which sand is now being dug. It is not unusual to haul 5 miles to the railroad. As stripping is quite shallow, 6 to 18 in., and the banks of usable sand generally run from 12 in. to 4 ft., it is economical to work the bank by benches so narrow that the overburden can be thrown by hand shovel to the exposed bottoms. In effect the top soil goes back to where it was, but on a lower level. Consequently the general surface appearance of a mined acreage is the same as before. This condition is in fact cutomarily required when a farm owner sells his sand in the ground. After such replacement, in the course of 3 to 5 years the soil is no less fertile than it was before mining. The sand itself varies as to grain and bond vertically and also along the breast. No mechanical equipment has been developed to compete with hand shovels and no machine has as yet been devised that grades the sand as required. Uniformity of sand, as shipped, depends first, last and all the time on the man on the job. Mixing equipment can change the appearance of the sand and mask its lack of uniformity, but it will never correct wrongly graded sand, dug from the bank. Modern methods of testing are helpful in setting up standards against which the man in the bank can compare his sands, but a good bank foreman is the only assurance that the sand, as dug, matches the required sample.

Jan 1, 1926