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By William H. Shockley

[SECRETARY'S ]NOTE.-The following notes, arranged and edited in this office, but not yet revised by the author, were placed at my disposal with much modest hesitation (due to their incomplete and fragmentary character), upon my earnest request, and my argument that such recent and trustworthy data concerning a new and important mining industry ought not to be withheld from our Transactions, simply because they are not sufficient to constitute a, complete academic treatise on the subject. This argument is recommended to the attention of many other members, who are waiting for the opportunity to contribute something "monumental" to our Transactions. In a number of instances, death has nulli¬fied this ambition, and the intended "monumental" contribution has turned out to be an obituary notice by the Secretary, instead of a valuable record of the professional experience thus hopelessly lost to the world.-R. W. R.] The official publications of the the Russian Government give fairly complete statistics of the dredges operated in the Empire; and in a recent English bluebook, Mr. Cook's report on Siberian Trade presents a brief account of dredging in Siberia. The data in Table I. (not given by Mr. Cook) have been taken from the Gold Mining Messenger (Russian) for July, 1905. These interesting statistics, though incomplete, show that the Yenisei dredges are working on poor ground and yield small returns. According to report, but few yield a profit exceeding 10 per cent. per annum on the capital invested. In the summers of 1904 and 1905, I traveled in the Urals as far north as lat. 61° N., long. 61° E., on the the Lozva river, a part of the vast system of the 01) river. This clear-water stream starts from the summits of the Urals at an altitude of 4,000 ft., and flows through a flat country, densely wooded with larch, spruce, pine, fir, birch and poplar. The river is full of fish, and is navigable for good-sized steamers as far as Ivdell. Winter lasts from early November to late April, the temperature rang¬ing from -60° F. to a summer maximum of 90° F. The rain¬fall is 20 in.. The climate is healthy, although mosquitoes,

Jul 1, 1906

By C. W. Dunham

DESIGN of the structures for the Morenci Reduction Works involved many interesting problems. Naturally, the chief purpose of these structures is to house and support the equipment and other things necessary for or incidental to the conduct of production. hence most of the features of the design were developed to suit these particular conditions; however, several are so generally applicable as to warrant description.

Jan 1, 1942

By J. S., Douglas

IN 1880, the late James Douglas, LL.D., was superintendent of the Chemical Copper Co., operating the Hunt & Douglas process for the treatment of the siliceous copper ores of the Jones mine at Phoenixville, Pa. In conjunction with this a refining furnace was operated. After correspondence with Ben Williams, of Bisbee Ariz., who was commencing the mining and smelting of the Copper Queen ore. Dr. Douglas decided-to make his first journey to Arizona. While making plans for the trip lie visited a friend in Philadelphia, a .Mr. Logan, a prominent lawyer. He, through Professor Treadwell, brother of the discoverer of the great Treadwell gold mine of Douglas Island, Alaska, had an option with his min¬ing partner, Mr. Lenig, on the Eureka and Wade Hampton claims near the headwaters of the Verde River in Yavapai County, Arizona. These two claims, later the source of practically all of the wealth of the Jerome district, were then owned by C. P. Head and Co. Prescott merchants. Hugo Richards, banker, and formerly sutler at Camp Apache; Rod and John McKinnon prospectors and Nova Scotians; and perhaps one or two 'other owners of minor interests. Mr. Logan, hearing of Dr. Douglas intended trip to Bisbee, asked him to go first to see the two mining prospects, and this, Douglas, in need of the $500 fee, agreed to do as the time on the option on the claims was running short.

Jan 1, 1935

By R. E. Boni, G. Derge

Application of surface tension measurements has been made to molten silicates in order to determine the effect of sulphur upon the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags. In melts with the same molar ratios of AI2O3 + SiO2 to the basic oxides BaO, CaO, and MgO, the surface tensions increase in the order of oxides listed. Sulphur lowers the surface tensions of the basic BaO, basic CaO, acid BaO, acid CaO, and acid MgO slags in that order; and the concentration of excess sulphur at the slag surface increases in this same order of slags. The rate and amount of desulphurization of iron by these slags is favored by a low excess surface sulphur in the slag. IN a previous paper,1 the authors discussed the applications of surface tension measurements of molten silicates to problems of metallurgical interest. Of major importance is the aid that such studies lend to forming a working concept of slag structure. Since the ability of a slag to desulphurize metal depends strongly upon its composition,2"4 fundamental information about the structural differences between various slags which contain sulphur should aid the development of better desulphurizing media. For that reason, the present investigation concerns the effect of sulphur upon the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags. Experimental Procedure , The maximum bubble-pressure method was used to measure the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags in the temperature range 1300° to 1600°C. The method is based upon the equation which was developed by Schrödinger5 from a consideration of the forces of hydrostatic pressure and surface tension of a liquid which oppose bubble formation when a gas is forced through a tube immersed in the liquid. where y is the surface tension between argon and slag in dynes per centimeter; g is the gravitational constant, centimeters per second2; H is the manometer reading in centimeters; s2 is the density of manometer fluid in grams per cubic centimeter; S1 is the density of the medium in grams per cubic

Jan 1, 1957

By Fred Chappell

Pyrophyllite, a hydrous aluminum silicate, physically similar to talc, receives its name from the Greek word Pyr, for fire and phyllite, a rock or stone. Firestone refers to its first recorded use as firestones or hearthstones. Composition and Properties Pyrophyllite is an aluminum silicate A12O34SiO2H2O (alumina 28.3 pct, silica 66.7 [ ] pct, water 5.0 pct) (Table 1). Vanderbilt1 gives pH value of pyrophyllite as 5.6 to 8.4. Pyrophyllite is usually white or cream, though it may be found in shades of pale green, pale yellow, buff or light gray, and in darker shades and other colors principally due to oxidation of contained iron minerals. It is opaque to translucent in thin sections. Its hardness is 1 to 2 in the Mohs scale. Its specific gravity is 2.8 to 2.9. Its luster is pearly to dull; it is recognized chiefly by its micaceous structure and cleavage, and its soft greasy feel. Two other varieties occur, one in which there are radiated needles in the crystalline form, and there is also a massive homogeneous structure found. Fine grinding reduces pyrophyllite to fiat plates or scales but aggregates of minute foliated plates may be formed.1 Distribution of Deposits Pyrophyllite is found in metamorphic rocks throughout the world but it is only in comparatively recent years that it has assumed much commercial importance. The principal

Jan 1, 1960

By R. I. Jaffee, F. C. Holden, H. R. Ogden

ECENT papers dealing with the properties of unalloyed iodide titanium have been directed primarily at the determination of base-line properties for alloy investigations. Early work was limited to a few tests because of the limited availability of iodide titanium at the time. In the results of papers by Campbell et al.,1 Gonser and Litton,2 Jaffee and Campbell,3 inlay and Snyder,4 and Jaffee, Ogden, and Maykuth, data on mechanical properties are presented for unalloyed iodide titanium in the annealed and cold-worked conditions. Data are presented in this paper which show the effects of heat treatment on the structure and mechanical properties of commercially produced iodide titanium. Correlation is made between microstruc-tural variables and the mechanical properties. Experimental Procedures Melting Stock: The melting stock used was as-deposited iodide titanium, produced by New Jersey Zinc Co. The furnished analysis showed the following range of impurities: N, 0.004 to 0.008 pct; Mn, 0.005 to 0.013; Fe, 0.0035 to 0.025; Al, 0.013 to 0.015; Mo, 0.0015; Pb, 0.0045 to 0.0065; Cu, 0.0015 to 0.002; Sn, 0.001 to 0.01; Mg, 0.0015 to 0.002; and Ni, 0.003. Hydrogen content as determined by vacuum-fusion analysis was 0.0091 wt pct (0.44 atomic pct) after arc melting and fabrication. Nitrogen analysis on the arc-melted and fabricated titanium showed a content of less than 0.002 pct N. The average hardness of the furnished stock was Rf 70, or approximately 85 VHN. Melting Procedure: The as-deposited rods were rolled, sheared, and degreased in preparation for arc melting. The charge was arc-melted with a tungsten electrode in a water-cooled copper crucible under a positive pressure of high purity (99.96 pct) argon. The final ingot was approximately 2 in. in diameter and showed no increase in hardness over that of the initial stock. Fabrication: Heating for fabrication was done in air. It was begun by forging the ingot into a 3/4 in. diam rod, at an initial temperature of 1600°F. Scale was removed by sandblasting. The rod was then swaged to 1/4 in. diam at room temperature through a series of 20 dies, with approximately 10 pct reduction in area between each die. An anneal of 1 hr at 850 °C in air was given after the 1/2 in. die, such that the final cold reduction was 75 pct. Sections cut from this rod were used for test and microstructure specimens. Heat Treatment: Heat treatments were carried out in resistance tube furnaces with stainless-steel linings, under an atmosphere of gettered argon. As further protection against contamination, the specimens were packed in titanium turnings in a titanium sleeve. Control experiments have shown negligible hardness increases with this method, indicating that contamination from oxygen and nitrogen is slight. Three cooling rates were employed in this work; these have been designated as water quenching, argon cooling (to simulate air cooling under a controlled atmosphere), and furnace cooling. The cooling rate for an argon cool is 100°C per min for the first minute, with an average cooling rate of 35°C per min over a 15-min period. A furnace cool requires about 10 hr, with an average cooling rate of 3.6oC per min during the first hour, and an average cooling rate of 1.2°C per min over the 10-hr period. Microimpact Test: The specimen adopted was based on the cylindrical Izod Type Y specimen (ASTM, E23-41T). All dimensions were reduced to half scale, including the notch radius. Specifications are shown in Fig. 1. The specimen is held vertically in an adapter and broken as a cantilever beam. Impact tests were run on a constant-velocity (11.34 ft per sec) Tinius Olsen impact testing machine with a total available energy of 100 in.-lb. Tests were made to determine the correlation between this microimpact and the standard V-notch Charpy impact test. Curves showing impact energy as a function of temperature for both impact tests are plotted in Fig. 2. Transition temperatures, when they occur, are about the same for both impact tests. All three titanium-rich materials have the same conversion factor, 10. Tensile Testing: Tensile tests were conducted on Baldwin-Southwark testing machines using the 600, 2400, or 3000 1b range. Specifications for the test specimen were taken from the 1948 edition of the ASM Metals Handbook, and are shown in Fig. 1. Strain measurements were made using an SR-4 resistance gage (Type A-7) cemented to the reduced section in conjunction with a lever-type extenso-meter. Readings on the SR-4 strain indicator were

Jan 1, 1954

By Thomas T., Read

IT will be recalled that when educational instruction for the mineral industry began at Freiberg, at the beginning of the eighteenth century, the original aim was to organize and systematize the procedures previously followed by young men in gaining -familiarity with the technology then in use. There must have been many other ideas current, even then, as to just what a young man needed to learn in order to become capable of assuming 'responsibility for the supervision and direction of such technical work. The problem in Europe was decidedly different .from that in nineteenth-century America, because some of the European mines were actually owned and operated by the governing authority and the others were supervised, regulated, and taxed by it. The American problem was the e5cient performance of technical operations; the European one was regulatory supervision. It was natural, therefore, that in the development of educational processes in Europe stress was laid on those factors which conserved and protected the interests of the state. The study of mineralogy and geology, leading to correct judgments as to the workability and value of mineral deposits; assaying, which gave the means of quantitative measurements, as did surveying; chemistry, which furnished a better basis of understanding for assaying, mineralogy, and geology; and physics and mathematics, which are the bases for the understanding and efficient use of mechanical appliances, became the core of systematic instruction, for the mineral industry. It was early recognized that men could learn more than was already known about all of these subjects and education took on that dichotomy which still characterizes it; the teaching of established knowledge to the unlearned, and that of extending of the bounds of knowledge, now loosely termed research, which after two and a half centuries of work still shows

Jan 1, 1941

By Irving Hartmann, H. P. Greenwald

READERS of this journal are familiar with the danger of coal-dust explosions in mines and with recommended means for preventing them. The subject was treated in a paper by R. R. Sayers in the January 1943 issue, as well as in several previous articles. Similarly the danger of dust explosions is generally recognized in the handling of grain dust, flour, starch, sugar, and other carbonaceous products. However, until recently, few people realized that an analogous, real explosion hazard exists wherever dust suspensions of certain finely divided metal powders are formed. This lack of knowledge was in part due to the fact that until a few years ago only a small number of metal powders, such as aluminum, magnesium, zinc, iron, and tungsten, were produced, in comparatively small volume, and partly because information on the explosibility of metal powders was lacking.

Jan 1, 1945

By R. W. Smith

There are many inconsistencies and gaps in available information concerning the mechanism whereby dodecylamine acts as a collector for quartz. The author compares the studies which have been made in correlating the contact angle with adsorption density on quartz over all pH ranges, and attempts to resolve some of the inconsistencies. In recent years much information has been obtained concerning the mechanism whereby dodecylamine acts as a collector for quartz. Fuerstenau,1 for ex- ample, has shown that adsorption density and zeta potential under some conditions, at least, can be correlated with contact angle and flotation rate. There appear, however, to be several inconsistencies and gaps in information available. One inconsistency involves trying to correlate contact angle with adsorption density on quartz over all pH ranges. Fuerstenau's correlation at a collector concentration of 4x10-5 moles per liter dodecylamine acetate and about pH 10 shows a contact angle of about 80 degrees occurring at approximately monolayer coverage. If Gaudin and Morrow's2 and Morrow's3 contact angle data for near neutrality (pH 6 to 7) are now compared with deBruyn's4,5 adsorption data on quartz in a similar pH range, it will be noticed that a contact angle of 38 to 40 degrees corresponds to complete monolayer coverage (at an amine concentration of approximately 10"3 molar). In fact even at an amine

Jan 1, 1963

By T. W. Smoot

Bentonites are composed chiefly of montmorillonites which are clay minerals generally distinguished from other clay minerals by their surface activity and extremely fine particle sizes. The uses of bentonite are many and varied, depending principally on one or more of the following characteristics: 1) Thixotropy, 2) Dispersion, 3) Plasticity, 4) Swelling, 5) Surface area, activity, ab- and adsorbtive properties. Some of the major uses of bentonite are briefly reviewed as are the mineralogical and physical properties. The uses of X-ray diffraction, differential thermal analysis and other tests for physical properties are reviewed as to their uses in evaluation. In the past 40 years, the industrial uses of bentonite have grown to include many applications. The physical and chemical properties of bentonites are such that they can be used as catalysts, adsorbants, plasticizers, binders, drilling muds, and pelletizers. Not all bentonites, however, can be used for all of these purposes and some are probably of little or no value for any use. The purpose of this paper is to briefly review the mineralogical, physical, and chemical characteristics and variations of bentonites. The determination of these characteristics and their uses in industry are also reviewed so that these determinations can be used as guides for evaluation. DEFINITION OF BENTONITE The word bentonite, as used in this paper, refers to a clay material, usually (but not necessarily) the result of the in-place-weathering of volcanic ash. Its mineralogical composition is dominated by the clay mineral montmorillonite and generally carries other clay minerals and silica minerals as the major 'impurities'. For this discussion, such a definition is justified since most of the economic uses of bentonite~ depend upon the physical and chemical characteristics of the montmorillonite minerals involved. The terms montmorillonite and bentonite have been used almost interchangeably in industry although the latter is much more commonly used. Therefore, where montmorillonite is discussed, it should be understood that the major feature of a bentonite is the subject. STRUCTIJRE OF MONTMORILLONlTE The economic importance of bentonites is generally based on one or more of the following characteristics of montmorillonite: 1) high-thixotropy and easy dispersion in water, 2) high-plasticity, 3) swelling properties, 4) large surface area/unit mass, 5) high surface activity, and 6) adsorptive properties. To understand these properties, an appreciation of the structural scheme of montmorillonite is helpful. Montmorillonite IS one of the three-layer clay minerals composed essentially of hydrous aluminum silicates. The essential building blocks of these layered silicate:; are: 1) silica tetrahedron composed of a silicon atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms, and 2) aluminun (iron, magnesium, etc.) octahedral unit that, ideally, has one of these atoms surrounded by six hydroxal units. Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic sketch of the montmorillonite structure. In the montmorillonite structure, the tetrahedron are pointed inward and attached to the octahedral units so that the O= atoms replace the hydroxal units where they are bonded; hence two-thirds of the hydroxal units

Jan 1, 1962

By E. W. Pehrson, J. W. Furness

NONMETALLIC MINERALS, exclusive of fuels, may be divided into three groups: Building materials, fertilizer minerals, and miscellaneous minerals. Building materials, such as sand, gravel, slone, lime, and the ingredients of cement and clay products, occur widely in nature and are thus available near consuming centers at relatively low prices. Cost of transportation over great distances deters any' substantial movement in world trade. On the other hand, fertilizer minerals, such as phosphate rock, potash, nitrates, sulfur, and pyrite, and the miscellaneous nonmetallic minerals, such as long-fiber asbestos, mica, graphite, fluorspar, and china clay, do not have such widespread occurrence and consequently contribute the major part of the world's commerce in such minerals. The U. S. Bureau of Mines has prepared charts showing the inter-

Jan 1, 1936

By Arthur Taggart

THE following conclusions on the work of the Hardinge mill are based on data furnished to the writer by the Hardinge Conical Mill Co. in the form of the mesh cards hereto appended. Energy units (E. U.) and relative mechanical efficiencies (R. M. E.) are computed by the "volume method" of Stadler.1 Screen apertures used are the average apertures of testing screens of the meshes given. Card 122. June 28, 1912. Vipond Porcupine Mines Co., Ltd., Schumacher, Ont., Canada. Ore from mill bin. Gangue, quartz and basalt. 4.5 ft. by 13 in. ball mill. Capacity, 48 tons per 24 hr. Charge, 4,000 lb. balls. Speed, 33 rev. per minute. Horsepower, 15 to 17. Water, 100 per cent. by weight. (50 per cent. ?) Product deslimed and oversize reground-in pebble mill, see Card 113. Feed to mill through 2-in. mesh.

Jan 7, 1915

By AIME AIME

SOME 65 members of the Institute, including most of the Local Section delegates and several Directors and officers, were on hand for the Annual Business Meeting of the Institute held in the Engineering Societies Building on Monday, Feb. 21, at 4:30 p.m., immediately following the second session of the Local Section Delegates Conference. President Mathewson presided. The meeting was largely taken up with the presentation of committee re- ports, discussion of which was invited. F. E. Wormser presented the report of the Admissions Committee ; Philip Kraft, Papers and Publications Com-

Jan 1, 1944

By Leonard A. Wood, A. G. Winslow

Subsidence has occurred in several areas of the upper Gulf Coast region of Texas, although in most cases this is not evident without precise instrumental leveling. As referred to in this report, the region com- prises about 7200 sq miles of the Gulf Coastal Plain and includes all or parts of the following counties: Harris, Fort Bend, Waller, Brazoria, Galveston, Liberty, Chambers, Orange, and Jefferson (Fig. 1 ). Topographic relief is low, ranging from sea level at the Gulf of Mexico to 300 ft or more in northwestern Harris County.

Jan 10, 1959

By Byron B. Morton

NICKEL-BEARING alloys are associated with petroleum in the fields of exploration, production, and refining. In the first- named field the geologist of today makes use of such instruments as the seismograph, torsion balance, and magnetometer, the selection of proper alloys and metals for the manufacture of which is an important matter. Nickel-bearing alloys are useful for parts that require resistance to corrosion or that must have non-magnetic properties. Where special co- efficient of thermal expansion are de- sired, they are obtained by using alloys high in nickel (20 to 60 per cent), since, by varying the nickel contents, alloys can be obtained ranging fro111 "Invar", with a low expansion between -40 and 175 cleg. F., to those with coefficients of expansion exceeding that of steels. The latter are obtained by additions of chromiurn to the alloys. Alloys containing 50 to 80 per cent of nickel, which possess high magnetic permeability, find application in certain instruments where this property is important.

Jan 1, 1935

By F. S. McNicholas

IN the first big blast at Climax, a "loop back" (three-wire system) was used (Fig. 1), with the idea of securing a wiring system that would give to all series the same amount of current. Single-phase, 60-cycle, 13,800-volt FIG. 1.-Loop BACK. A THREE-WIRE SYSTEM WITH BRANCHES VARYING IN LENGTH. power was furnished to the blasting transformers, each of which has a rated capacity of 600 amp. at 480 volts. Two blasting leads were taken from these transformers, giving a blasting current of single phase, 60 cycle, 480 volts, with an instantaneous capacity of more than 600 amp. The blasting switch was on the secondary leads from the transformers, to avoid lag in energizing them.

Jan 1, 1938

By Edgar C. Bain

A NUMBER probably a sizable group of person with a dominant interest in metals maintain contact with the developments in ferrous metallurgy by reading week by week, as time permits, some four or five periodical devoted in considerable part to this field. It seems possible that some of these, like ourself, find it difficult to see the net results of the development day by day in clear perspective, The impression sometimes seems blurred by the uninterrupted succession of so many accounts, or out of focus from the very impact of so many reports of new things enthusiastic, well written, and understandable though they usually are. It is at times almost as though one were trying to observe, from a fastmoving vehicle, objects all too near at hand. Or perhaps this impression is merely a manifestation of our individual hyperopia ; in which case we should content ourself with an observation that it would be more satisfactory on the whole to discuss in 1941 the metallurgical advances of 1930-35 than those of

Jan 1, 1941

By John M. Loveioy

EVERY producer of crude oil knows what is meant by the Rule or Law of Capture. It means that the ultimate ownership of a migratory substance such as oil is not determined until that substance is reduced to physical possession. Unless, therefore, the producer moves quickly to capture his share from the common pool, he may lose to any neighbor who is drilling and producing more rapidly than he a portion of the oil originally underlying his property. And there is no recourse open to him if his property is so drained. Under this rule it is obvious that the owner of an oil property, if he is to protect his' ownership, must be governed in his development and production policies by the activities of his neighbor rather than by his own business requirements. He must drill as densely and as fast as the other operators in the field or lose part of the oil to which he should be entitled.

Jan 1, 1936

By T. T. Read

FOR the second time the Mineral Industry Education Division opened the sessions at the Annual Meeting by gathering at the Engineering Woman's Club, Sunday at 3 p. in., and, in spite of the informality of the hour, with a good attendance of representative men in the educational field. The chairman of the Division, Thomas T. Read, after briefly reviewing some of the more significant events of the past year, introduced H. P. Hammond, professor of civil engineering, Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, a leading figure in the project of the Engineers' Council for Professional Development for accrediting engineering schools. Prof. Hammond made it clear that the project is not to rate engineering schools but to accredit them; not to arrange them in order of excellence, but to segregate them into two groups, those that are entitled to recognition as genuine engineering schools, and those that are not. About thirty schools in the whole country will presumably fall into the latter class; they are typified by an unnamed institution where the teacher of mathematics bears the title of Professor of Civil Engineering and the man who teaches chemistry that of Professor of Chemical Engineering, and having no engineering instruction except some elementary surveying, but still claiming in its catalogue to be an engineering college. While everyone would like to avoid the necessity of accrediting engineering colleges, it cannot be avoided, since the University of the State of New York, and several other agencies, are already doing it. If it cannot be avoided it is best that it should be done by a qualified agency set up by the national engineering societies, so that the results may command respect and general acceptance. It is for this reason, and this alone, that the accrediting committee of the E. C. P. D. has been set up. It is now ready to begin its task, and during-the coming year it will accredit the schools in two of the seven geographical districts into which the country has been divided, beginning with New England and the Mid-Atlantic States.

Jan 1, 1935

By E. W. Davis

THE large iron-ore producers on the Mesabi Range are able to maintain the silica in their shipping products at from 8 to 10 per cent by mixing ores of various grades, some assaying 4 per cent silica and some as high as 18 per cent silica. For each ton of 4 per cent silica ore mined, a ton of 14 per cent silica ore can be mined and mixed with it and the average grade maintained at 9 per cent. This mixing operation has made possible the utilization of large cluantities of ore too lean to be used alone. and herein lies the advantage of the producers who operate a number of mines at the same time. As the grade of the ore from one of the properties falls off, a little high-grade ore from another property can be mixed with it and the average maintained, while if one property alone were being operated all of the ore below grade would be left behind.

Jan 1, 1930