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By Fred P. Dewey

The product of the Muirkirk, Md., furnace has always enjoyed a very high reputation for strength ; and this is supported not only by its behavior in practice, both alone and in mixtures, but also by the following series of tensile tests, made at various times during the last fourteen years: South Boston Iron Co., November loth, 1874. Strength. Pounds Grade. per square inch. Density. No. 3,....... 30,685 7.2794 No. 4,....... 35,140 7.2713

Jan 1, 1889

By T. O. King, Y. P. Gupta

The self-diffusion of sodium in two sodium silicate liquids was measured in the temperature range 850" to 1500°C by the capillary-reservoir technique. Radioactive Na 22 was used as the tracer. The total count and autoradiographic methods were used for determination of the total Na 22 depletion and diffusion profiles of the dqy-used specimens. The diffusion coefficients obtained by the autoradiographic technique are slightly smaller than those obtained by a total count method. Error analysis of the two methods suggests that more confidence be placed in the results of the total count method. The experimental results were analyzed in terms of the existing activated rate process theory. The activation energy for diffusion was shown to decrease markedly as the temperature increased. This was attributed to a variation in the heat of activation with temperature, probably related to a change in the distribution of anions associated wilh the cation. In terms of a model, suggested for diffusion in liquid silicates, differences in the aclivation energies for diffusion and electrical conduction may arise from the effect of the electric field applied in conduction measurements. It is generally accepted that liquid silicates consist of cations and an equilibrium distribution of complex anions determined by temperature and composition. Transport properties in molten silicates are of interest, not merely because of their relevance to the kinetics of pyrometallurgical reactions and glassmak-ing processes, but also because they are useful to development of the theory of such ionic liquids. Self-diffusion is one such transport process that may, if studied for liquid silicates of widely varying compositions, indicate structural changes through changes in the activation energy for diffusion. The self-diffusion of calcium, silicon,' sulfur: aluminum, 4 and oxygenS in lime-alumina-silica melts and of iron6 in molten iron silicates have been measured. Unfortunately, the errors in some of the reported activation energies for diffusion are too large to allow firm conclusions concerning structure and the mechanism of the diffusion process to be drawn. The research reported here was a study of the self-diffusion of sodium in liquid sodium silicates. The soda-silica system was chosen since: i) a reasonable composition range can be covered in the binary system at moderate temperatures; ii) suitable isotopes of sodium (radioactive Na 22 and NaZ4) can be obtained; iii) data on the electrical conductivity and viscosity of sodium silicate liquids are available. However, the range of composition actually used in diffusion experiments was limited, to 20 to 35 wt pct soda, by the relatively high viscosity of silica-rich compositions and by evaporation of soda from basic melts. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The capillary-reservoir technique was used, wherein a radioactive tracer, Na 22, incorporated in the capillary melt, was allowed to diffuse out of the platinum capillary tube into a large reservoir of silicate liquid containing a chemically identical melt, but without radioactive tracer. After a specific diffusion time, both the total depletion in the tracer concentration and concentration-distance profiles of the diffused samples were measured by procedures to be described later. The diffusion cell assembly was similar to that used by Koros and King.' The temperature of the diffusion cell was measured with a calibrated Pt, Pt-10 pct Rh thermocouple located at the center of the liquid reservoir. The same thermocouple was used to obtain the temperature profile in the reservoir. The temperature at the top of the reservoir was slightly higher (2°C) than that at the bottom, to minimize convection in the capillary tubes, which were placed, open end up, in the reservoir. Convection was not expected to be a problem since the length-to-diameter ratio of the tubes was about 12:1 and the maximum capillary diameter was 1 mm. The diffusion cell was heated in a molybdenum-wire resistance furnace, previously used by Koros and King, but somewhat modified. A Pt, Pt-10 pct Rh thermocouple enclosed in an alumina tube and located near the furnace winding was used in conjunction with a preamplifier and Micromax proportional controller for temperature control, within 4°C, at temperatures near 1500°C. Before starting a diffusion run, the furnace was heated to the desired temperature and an alumina guide assembly for the capillaries was slowly lowered to within 2 cm of the liquid reservoir. The capillaries were thus heated to about the temperature of the bath. The run was started by lowering the assembly till the open ends of the capillaries were about 1 cm below the surface of the liquid. The run was ended by raising the assembly to about 15 cm above the liquid bath. Later, the sample assembly was slowly withdrawn from the furnace. Six diffusion samples were usually run at the same time. Three runs made with the open ends of the capillaries down were discarded because in the majority of these samples air bubbles trapped at the open end were observed. Some glass adhered to the outside of the capillary on withdrawal. This was carefully removed and used to check that the Na 22 activity in the sink remained at a low level. Materials. Nonradioactive sodium silicates were prepared by melting, in a platinum crucible, weighed quantities of sodium carbonate and powdered silica. To prepare radioactive sodium silicates, Na2 obtained in HC1 solution, was first checked for radioactive impurities by obtaining a y-ray energy spectrum, then the chloride ions were removed by anion-ex-

Jan 1, 1968

By Arcy A., J. G. Davis, D&apos Shock

Results of a pilot operation in the Carlsbad Basin are discussed. After hydrafracing between wells, a block of potash was removed by solution techniques. The distance between frac wells was about 200 ft, the thickness of potash mineralization, 5 ft. By proper manipulation, a feed of concentrate brine was obtained. The ex-periment showed that the thin-bedded potash could be removed by the solution techniques. The details of well construction, method of operation, and removal rates are discussed. Continental Oil Co.'s laboratory research on the fundamentals of potash solution mining has been expanded by means of a series of field tests, and subjects such as well completion and hydraulic fracturing were added to the investigation. Both single-well and multi-well systems were studied in the field work. Discussion Background: The current paper discusses one field test in which potash was solution mined by a two-well system from a thin sylvinite zone. The potential economic value of solution mining evolves from (1) the use of drilled holes and solution techniques instead of excavated shafts and caverns and (2) the ability to mine both land and marine deposits through any type of overburden geology and below conventional mining depths. Recent interest has been focused on potash' and other soluble minerals, such as trona. Solution extraction minerals, such as copper and uranium, are also worthy of important consideration. In addition, many of the techniques are directly applicable to the construction of horizontal underground storage carverns in salt. There are two general approaches to potash solution mining. The first is to mine on a single-well basis, in which the same well bore is used for both injection and production. This method is slow, and the areal extent may be quite limited in other than very thick ore zones. The second, and the preferred approach, is to mine on a multi-well basis in which the solvent is circulated between wells. This technique, if applied in a manner which allows the ore zone to be mined from the bottom upward, results in nearly all the solution taking place from the cavern roof. Salt removal rates, therefore, are very much higher than from a single-well system.l Wells can be interconnected into a multi-well pattern by several means. One is to join single-well caverns in the lower part of an ore zone. Another is to use the hydraulic fracturing techniques developed in the oil fields.' We preferred the fracture approach because of its potential for creating the greatest area of salt exposure. Test Site Description: The field tests were conducted in New Mexico's Carlsbad Basin, where the potash deposits are flat and uniform over reasonable distances. Here, 12 potash zones are present in the massive Salado Salt section. The specific target was the Third Ore Zone which is about 4 ft thick at our location and about 1150 ft deep. The test pattern was designed in the shape of an equilateral triangle with a fourth well located in the center, 200 ft from each of the vertex wells. This configuration allowed the ore zone to be hydraulically fractured from the center well with good assurance that the fracture would intersect the bore of at least one outside well. Several multi-well test patterns would be available if the fracture connected all wells. Well Completion: Surface casing was set in the top of the Salado Salt at 600 ft to shut off water flows from the surface sands, and the salt section was drilled and diamond-cored to a point below the Third Ore Zone. A drilling fluid made of diesel oil with a small amount of emulsified water was used to drill and core the salt. This fluid was highly successful in preventing enlargement of the drilled hole and in promoting good core recovery. The three outside wells were completed by setting 51/2-in. casing at the base of a streak of anhydrite about 20 ft above the ore zone. Pipe was set high so that the intersection point of the fracture could be detected even if the fracture migrated above the ore zone as it progressed outward from the center well. The center well itself was completed by cementing 51/2-in. casing through the Third Ore Zone. Cement bond logs run on the center well have shown excellent bonding. Fracturing Practice: A mechanical tool was used to cut a notch through the casing and into the salt at a point about 1 ft below the ore zone in the center well. The purpose of this notch was to fix the point of fracture entry into the salt. The fracturing was done with water at injection rtaes as high as 30 bbl per min. The salt parted at 1450 psi; and it required only 5 min for the fracture to reach the well which was 200 ft to the south. It took about 5 min more to reach the other two wells. Caliper surveys were run to locate the point of fracture entry in the three outside wells. The fracture appears to have drifted downward slightly, entering the outside wells at the top of a streak of carnallite 8 or 9 ft below the ore zone. A cross section of the wells selected for the multi-well test is shown in Fig. 1. The figure includes KC1 values based on core analysis and the trace of the fracture plane between the wells.

Jan 1, 1971

By Larry D. Patts

Section 317(e) of the Federal Coal Mine Health & Safety Act of 1969 directed the Secretary of the Interior to prepare standards under which all working places in a mine shall be illuminated by permissible lighting while persons are working in such places. Section 317(e) further provides that such working places shall be illuminated within 18 months after such standards are promulgated. In accordance with this section of the Act, there was published in the Federal Register for December 91, 1970, a notice of proposed rulemaking which prescribed the illumination to be provided in the working places of underground coal mines. In light of written comments, suggestions, and objections to this proposed rulemaking, the proposedstandards were withdrawn and reproposed in the Federal Register for Wednesday, October 27,-19h. In light of further comments, suggestions, and objections, a public hearing was held on April 4, 1974, and standards were again reproposed and published in the Federal Register for April 1, 1976. Promulgation of the final lighting standards took place on October 1, 1976, which means that the underground coal mining industry must comply with face illumination requirements by April 1, 1978. As mentioned previously, the first proposed rulemaking for illumination of underground coal mines was published in the Federal Register on October 27. 1971. In early 1972, Consolidation Coal Company (Consol) and the United States Bureau of Mines agreed to a cooperative study of underground face illumination: Consol felt that expertise is this field would become increasingly important. Consol's initial efforts in illumination were aimed at investigating practical lighting systems for underground face equipment. We were concerned with installing unobtrusive lights which provided sufficient face illumination for safety, but at the same time were readily maintainable, electrically reliable, and physically sheltered from damage. We believe that our initial lighting systems did provide sufficient face lighting for safety, but because only prototype components were available for field testing, the resultant poor system reliability and maintainability necessitated drastic improvement before face lighting could become practical. Final Lighting Standards Deem Early Lighting Installations Out Of Compliance On April 1, 1976, the Federal Register contained the final version of the illumination standards (as they were later promulgated in October). When these illumination regulations and measurement techniques were defined and measuring instruments were available, Consol checked their lighting systems underground and determined that the systems were not in compliance with these final illumination standards. More Lighting Hardware Added In An Attempt To Achieve Compliance. After determining that all of our face lighting systems were not in compliance, we began adding additional lighting hardware in order to meet compliance with published regulations. Unfortunately, to date, we have not been able to meet compliance with practical lighting systems. We have determined from our field installations that the required additional lighting hardware, (to meet compliance) with its increased vulnerability and decreased reliability, renders the lighting systems impractical, if not impossible, to reasonably maintain. Our attempts to provide 0.06 footlamberts have also produced adverse operator reaction to the glare and to illumination systems in general. BCOA Members Ask MESA To Demonstrate Practicability Of Compliance With Regulations Industry concern about meeting the impending lighting regulations was mounting, and in May of 1976 a meeting between MESA and BCOA members was held to discuss lighting compliance problems. At this meeting, BCOA offered to work cooperatively with MESA in testing the practicability of various lighting systems mounted on underground mining equipment. Field tests were to be conducted by United States Steel Corporation, American Electric Power Service Corporation, and Consolidation Coal Company. The purpose of this underground field testing was to develop capability to provide adequate face illumination in a safe, workable manner which would not detract from efficiency of operation. BCOA members involved in this cooperative study were to submit necessary machine drawings, sketches, etc. to MESA in order that MESA could perform a "black-box" study and specify the type and location of luminaires to be installed on the test machines. MESA was confident that they could specify lighting systems that would be in compliance and would be practical so as not to detract from efficiency of operation. Consol was first to install lighting hardware under the BCOA/MESA cooperative agreement. As per MESA specifications, Control Products HgV luminaires were installed on a Joy 2BT-2H boring machine at the Williams Mine of Northern West Virginia Region. As of mid-October, 1976, Consol had approximately eight weeks operating experience with the lighting system on this boring machine underground and had drawn the following conclusions: The lighting system installed at Williams Mine (1) does not meet compliance with lighting standards as originally proposed by MESA, (2) does not provide illumination in a safe workable manner, and (3) will detract from efficiency of the mining operation due to operational delays. Although Consol has rearranged lights on this boring machine in an attempt to reduce operator objections, a practical lighting system which is "in compliance" has not been arrived at as of this writing.

Jan 1, 1979

By Percy Gillie

THE Tralee preparation plant, owned and operated by the Semet-Solvay division of Allied Chemical and Dye Corp., is located on the Virginian rail- way, near Mullens, Wyoming County, W. Va., and the mine, which is in the Winding Gulf district, produces coal exclusively from Pocahontas No. 3 seam. The property, comprising 4900 acres, is leased from the Pocahontas Land Corp. Prior to 1930 four separate mines were operated in this tract, some having been started about 1916.

Jan 11, 1953

By Robert L. Greyer, John I. Myung

The Birdwell 3-D Velocity Log displays photographically the amplitude of elastic waves as a function of time and of the depth of the logging tool in a borehole. The elastic waves are generated by a magneto-strictive source transducer and detected by a receiving transducer, which is at a fixed distance from the source. The output of the receiver, which is proportional to the amplitude of the received elastic waves, modulates the light that exposes the film record. The duration of the receiving time can be selected to record the entire wavetrain of late events or to record only early events at a finer time scale. When a full complement of elastic waves (i.e., the refracted compressional wave, composite shear wave, direct fluid wave, and boundary wave) is recorded, their velocities and the density of the borehole fluid provide the information necessary to compute the elastic moduli and density of the rock surrounding the bore-hole. The differences between the values of the moduli determined from measurements of 3-D Velocity Logs and by other better known techniques are small, well within the limits of experimental error, when the velocity log is interpreted by an experienced seismic analyst. INTRODUCTION Quantitative descriptions of the mechanical properties of the rock environment have long been basic requirements of planning, design, and quality control of engineering projects. Because of this need, many techniques for determining the elastic moduli from static and

Jan 1, 1971

By Robert Corcoran, George Wiener

A study of the orientations and microstructure of 3 pct Si Fe alloys after deformation and recrystallization has been made. The components found after deformation agreed with recently published work on single crystals, being primarily (001) [110], (111) [110], and (111) {112}. A pronounced effect of temperature of recrystalliza-tion was found on microstructure and orientation. Low temperature recrystallization was interpreted in terms of low angle boundaries which resulted in the retention of a large amount of the deformation texture. High temperature recrystallization was interpreted in terms of high angle boundaries which gave rise to new components. No simple angular relation between the deformation and high temperature recrystalliza-tion textures could be detected. DEFORMATION and recrystallization behavior of 3 pct Si-Fe has been the subject of scientific investigation for many years. The fact that it is a single phase body-centered-cubic alloy from room temperature to the melting point permits study over a wide range of temperature without the complications of phase transformations. There is an important commercial interest in this material as well, since it is widely used in the electrical industry. In the present work the deformation and recrystallization behavior of poly crystal line silicon iron has been studied with the primary purpose of evaluating the effect of a second phase impurity on both processes as well as the effect of temperature on the recrystallization characteristics. With regard to deformation, the emphasis has been placed on a study of the crys-

Jan 1, 1957

By Frank C. Aplleyard

The two calcium sulfate minerals-gypsum and anhydrite-occur in many parts of the world, and gypsum has long been of economic importance in the family of industrial minerals. Gypsum, the dihydrate form of calcium sulfate (CaSO4•2H2O) and anhydrite, the anhydrous form (CaSO4) are frequently found in close association, and it is seldom that a calcium sulfate deposit will consist exclusively of one mineral or the other. Although known gypsum deposits are extensive, anhydrite makes up the largest part of total calcium sulfate reserves. However, it has very minor economic use, and most of the following discussion will be devoted to gypsum. Calcium sulfate is one of the principal constituents of evaporite deposits, and when pure, has the following composition: [Sulfur Combined Lime Trioxide Water (CaO) (SO,) (H2O) Gypsum 32.6% 46.5% 20.9% Anhydrite 41.2% 58.8% -] Deposits of pure gypsum or of pure anhydrite which are large enough to be considered commercial have never been found because of both the metastable relationship between the two minerals, and the presence of impurities such as calcium or magnesium carbonates, chlorides, other sulfate minerals, clay minerals, or silica. As a result most mine production of gypsum will range between 85 and 95% pure. Often it is used as mined, although in certain cases, one or more forms of mineral beneficiation are employed to upgrade the product. End Uses The largest use for gypsum is based upon the unique property which calcium sulfate has of readily giving up, or taking on, water of crystallization. With the application of a moderate amount of heat in a process known as calcining, gypsum is converted to plaster of paris (the hemihydrate of calcium sulfate, CaSO4 ½ H2O) which when mixed with water will set or harden as the calcium sulfate returns to the dihydrate form. This semifinished product, usually called stucco, is then manufactured into a large variety of plasters, wallboard, and block for construction use, or into plasters for industrial applications. About 75% of the gypsum used in the United States is calcined for these purposes. Uncalcined uses of gypsum are principally as a retarder for portland cement, as a soil conditioner, as a mineral filler, and other minor industrial applications. About 25% of the gypsum mined in the United States goes into these markets; however, in less developed countries where construction and other industrial uses may be quite limited, the use of uncalcined gypsum for portland cement retarder may well be the dominant-if not the only-market for the mineral. It has often been noted that calcium sulfate constitutes the world's largest reserve of sulfur, and minor use of both anhydrite and gypsum has been made to produce sulfuric acid or other sulfur compounds such as ammonium sulfate. However, because sulfur is readily available at lower cost from other sources, use of calcium sulfate has been limited to only a few locations where it could compete economically. No such use is reported in the United States at this time. Mineralogy Anhydrite, CaSO4 because of its geologically rapid conversion to gypsum, and relatively high solubility (about 0.2 g per 100 g H2O) is not often found outcropping in climates wet enough to support abundant vegetation except on steeply dipping slopes or other places where hydrated material is continuously removed. Anhydrite rock is most often light to bluish gray in color, and under the microscope, varies

Jan 1, 1983

By W. M. McKewan, R. G. Olsson

In order to improve the understanding of the iron oxide reduction mechanism, the rate of equal molar diffusion of hydrogen and water vapor was measured through disks of porous iron and alumina. The measuretneizts were made at atmospheric pressure at 800°, 900- , and 1000°C. It is shown tint the reduction of dense hematite pellets with hydrogen at these temperatures and at atmospheric pressure is to a great extent limited by gaseous diffusion between the bulk-gas phase and the iron-wustile interface. THE investigation of the reduction of iron oxides with hydrogen has been the subject of numerous papers. Although the effects of temperature, pressure, and gas composition on the rate of iron oxide reduction have been studied, the actual mechanism of the reduction process has not been definitely determined. As a means of improving the understanding of the mechanism, the rate of equal molar counterdiffusion of hydrogen and water vapor was measured through porous iron and porous alumina disks at reduction temperatures. The alumina was used as a basis of compari-son because its pore structure is homogeneous and independent of temperature. The porous iron was prepared by the reduction of dense hematite disks with hydrogen at the temperature of the subsequent diffusion experiment. The hematite disks were made from pellets that were identical to those used by McKewan1,2 in his study of iron oxide reduction with hydrogen. In these investigations the weight loss and rate of movement of the various interfaces were measured as a function of the reduction temperature and gas composition. With these reduction data and the presently reported diffusion data it is possible to determine the importance of H2-H2O transport between the bulk-gas phase and the Fe/FeO interface to the reduction of dense hematite. APPARATUS AND PROCEDURE A porous iron or alumina sample was held in the base plate of a sealed canister containing porous granular wustite, as illustrated schematically in Fig. 1. The canister was suspended from an automatic recording balance in a vertical tube furnace through which flowed hydrogen and water-vapor mixtures of known composition at atmospheric pressure (0.96 atm). Hydrogen from the gas stream diffused through the porous sample, reducing the wustite in the interior of the canister. The water vapor that was formed diffused back to the gas stream. The rate of diffusion was determined from the recorded weightloss data. The furnace, automatic balance, and gas-metering equipment have been described previously.2 The main body of the canister and the tubing extension were made of stainless steel while the base plate was made of high-purity iron. The main body of the canister was % in. in diam. It held approximately 6 g of porous granular wustite that was prepared by reducing 0.1- to 0.2-cm-diam specular hematite particles at 900°C with an H2-H2O mixture of a composition near the iron-wustite equilibrium value. The upper end of the 1/8-in.-diam tubing extension was sealed with a segment of plastic tubing and a tubing clamp. The temperature at the top of the furnace was sufficiently high so that no water vapor condensed inside the extension. In the experiments with porous iron, iron oxide samples were prepared from reagent-grade hematite that was pressed and sintered in a manner previously described.' The resulting pellets had a density of 5.15 ± 0.05 g per cu cm. Each pellet was centerless-ground

Jan 1, 1967

By J. P. Manning

UNQUESTIONABLY, the outstanding feature of the piping for the sulphide plant is the large amount which had to be done in almost every size from instrument tubing to 84 in. OD pipe. In this article the piping will be considered under the main headings of Yard Piping and Building Piping. Tables I and II give data concerning the individual systems. In the case of yard piping the figures pertaining to lengths and weights are approximately correct; those for building piping are given only for the concentrator and smelter buildings where the amounts were the most extensive. Yard Piping The installation specifications for yard piping called for all sizes larger than 12 in. to have welded joints made with outside welding rings. This type of joint was selected over butt-welded joints because less time would be needed for lining up, damaged pipe ends would be less of a problem, and deflections up to 6° per joint could be made when necessary. These advantages were thought to outweigh the disadvantage of the greater amount of welding required. Yard piping in sizes of 3 to 12 in. was specified to have butt-welded joints made with inside welding rings which were intended to facilitate lining up and keep welding material out of the lines. Screwed connections were specified for sizes under 3 in. No protective coatings or wrappings were required on pipe to be buried because of the dry climate at Chuquicamata.

Jan 1, 1952

By N. A. Parlee, A. E. Lord

Measurements of the solubility of lead in liquid iron were made at 1550°, 1600°, 1650°, and 1700°C using two different methods, i.e., 1) liquid iron-liquid lead equilibration and 2) liquid iron-lead vapor equilibration. LEAD was long considered insoluble in liquid iron1. Today steels containing 0.15 to 0.35 pct Pb are used. One laboratory has found a solubility of about 0.5 pet in the 1600°C range. Recently Miller and Elliott2 gave 0.60 pct as the result of one determillation at 1540°C. Because these findings resulted from the

Jan 1, 1961

By N. Mohan, A. K. Biswas, V. Y. Sampat Kumar

At low sodium-oleate concentration, calcite flotation is substantially improved by the use of CO2 instead of air. Electrophoretic mobility measurements indicate that carbonation results in the accumulation o f positive charge on the calcite particles. This heightens adsorption of oleate anion, an effect confirmed by tracer-technique measurements. Fundamental insight is obtained as to how CO2 serves better as an activator than some mineral and organic acids, how oxalic acid acts as a depressor, and why the influence of Ca++ ions, liberated during carbonation, on flotation behavior of calcite is insignificant and sometimes adverse.

Jan 1, 1972

President MRS THORNS E LLOYD 14 Green Hill Road Morristown, N J First Vice-President MRS A B PARSONS 52 Edgewood Road Scarsdale, N Y Second Vice-President MRS H A PROSSER 1001 Park Avenue New York, N Y Third Vice-President MRS HARRY J WOLF 3 Glenwood Avenue Littleneck, N Y Fourth Vice-President MRS MARK LAWRENCE REQUA 140 North Plymouth Blvd Los Angeles, Calif Fifth Vice-President MRS NEWELL G ALFORD 314 South Homewood Avenue Pittsburgh, Pa

Jan 1, 1952

By C. Perez-Rosales

A simplified method for evaluating specific surface of porous media is described. The theory takes as its point of departure a previous statistical method. Due to its simplicity, it is considered that the proposed method has certain advantages over methods currently used. By making some simplifications, the procedure for estimating specific surface is reduced to superposing, on an enlarged reproduction of a section of the sample to be analyzed, an evenly spaced grid and counting the number of intersections of the grid lines with the perimeter of pores. An indirect test of the theory is presented and the advantages of the method are discussed. INTRODUCTION The specific surface of a porous medium, defined as the surface area of the pores per unit bulk volume, is an important parameter with regard to flow of fluids through porous materials. In particular, it has long been recognized that specific surface is closely related to permeability. Since the internal surface of any porous material is extremely complex, the measurement of specific surface can only be accomplished by indirect means. It is considered that the best method' in current use for determining specific surface is the statistical method of Chalkley, Cornfield and Parka who originally applied it for estimating volume-surface ratios of morphologic components, such as cells or nuclei. This method will be outlined later. A method which has been used extensively in determining specific surface is based on the adsorption of a vapor by the internal surface of porous media. However, this method does not yield the surface pertinent to fluid flow, since it includes the tiny molecular interstices which do not influence the permeability of the porous material.' This method has been employed by Brooks and Purcell measure internal surface area of sedimentary rocks. The Kozeny equation, which relates the specific surface to the permeability of a porous medium, has found wide use in determination of specific surface. However, the KOzeny equation is not strictly correct. Large discrepancies have been found between theory and experiments.' Consequently. the specific surface estimated by this method is subject to serious uncertainties. Finally, there are other methods for specific surface measurements which are based upon a variety of physical and chemical properties: the heat conduction by a gas, ionic adsorption phenomena and direct chemical reactions of the surface with other substances. This paper describes a simplified statistical method for determining specific surface of porous materials. It is considered that, due to its simplicity, it has certain advantages over the methods presently used. For its validity, it is required that the porous structure of the material under study be of a spatially random nature. This is not a serious limitation since the naturally occurring porous media have this characteristic. THEORY The method proposed in this paper takes as its point of departure the interesting result obtained by Chalkley et al The method shows that if a line of length r is dropped repeatedly at random over a section of a porous medium, and counts are made of the number of times the two end points fall within pore areas (denoted by h for "hits") and the number of times the line intersects the perimeter of pores (denoted by c for "cuts"), then in a very large number of throws where S is the internal surface of the sample (surface of pores) and V, the volume of the pores (Fig. 1). Since the specific surface S, and the porosity 4 are given, respectively, by S. = Sl V, and 4 = V,l V,, where V, is the total volume of the sample, it follows from Eq. 1

Section 89 Virginia State Geological Survey, Box 329, University, Va. Arthur Bevan, State Geologist A list of publications will be sent free upon request. Publica¬tions are distributed free to residents of Virginia, and others are asked to pay the cost of postage. Selected Bulletins available are: Bulletin 3-A, Geology of the titanium and apatite deposits, with chapters on the Lower Cretaceous and The economic geology (1913), 4, Physiography and geology of the Coastal Plain Prov-

Jan 1, 1933

Organization Place Date 1919 American Electrochemical Society New York, N. Y. Apr. 3-5 American Chemical Society Buffalo, N. Y. Apr. 8-11 National Foreign Trade Council : Chicago, Ill. Apr. 24-26 American Iron and Steel Institute New York, N. Y: May American Institute of Electrical Engineers Lake Placid, N. Y. June 23-27 American Society for Testing Materials..: Atlantic City, N. J. June 24-27 American Railway Bridge and Building Association Cleveland, O. Oct. 21-23

Jan 4, 1919

By Charles M. Brinckerhoff

When I first went to Arizona in 1925, mining was primarily an underground job. Ajo, Sacramento Hill in Bisbee and Jerome were the only open pit operations in the state. Thousands of men, however, were employed in underground mining at Morenci, Miami, Inspiration, Globe, Ray, Bisbee, and Superior. The grade of ore in the larger operations was about 1-1/2% copper while a few of the smaller ones mined ore better than 2% Cu. In Utah, the Bingham pit was doing well and growing; in Montana, the vein mines of Butte still yielded ore running 6% Cu.

Jan 3, 1972

Masjid-i-Su1aiman.—There have been no new developments in the Masjid-i-Sulaiman oil fields during the year 1938. In spite of the age of this field, the fall in dome pressure shows no appreciable variation from the low rate of about 0.3 lb. per sq. in. per million tons net production. Drilling has been limited to deepening old wells and to new wells required for maintenance of production and general reservoir control. The rate of offtake has been reduced over the past few years, partly because of depletion of the oil column, and it is expected that future offtake from the Masjid-i-Sulaiman field will be stabilized for some years at around the present figure of 3,000,000 tons per annum. Haft Ke1.—An exploratory well to test deeper formations in the Haft Kel field has proved the existence of productive conditions in the Eocene, which underlies the Asmari limestone (the main producing horizon). Drilling to the northwest in the white-oil springs area has revealed the presence of a separate structure with productive potentialities. One well with a satisfactory production rate has been completed. Offtake from the Haft Kel field has steadily increased since it first came on to production in 1929. Naft-i-Shah.—Production from this field has continued to supply market requirements in northwest Iran. The policy of returning surplus products to the reservoir, which was adopted at the beginning of 1936, has been continued.

Jan 1, 1939

Masjid-i-Su1aiman.—There have been no new developments in the Masjid-i-Sulaiman oil fields during the year 1938. In spite of the age of this field, the fall in dome pressure shows no appreciable variation from the low rate of about 0.3 lb. per sq. in. per million tons net production. Drilling has been limited to deepening old wells and to new wells required for maintenance of production and general reservoir control. The rate of offtake has been reduced over the past few years, partly because of depletion of the oil column, and it is expected that future offtake from the Masjid-i-Sulaiman field will be stabilized for some years at around the present figure of 3,000,000 tons per annum. Haft Ke1.—An exploratory well to test deeper formations in the Haft Kel field has proved the existence of productive conditions in the Eocene, which underlies the Asmari limestone (the main producing horizon). Drilling to the northwest in the white-oil springs area has revealed the presence of a separate structure with productive potentialities. One well with a satisfactory production rate has been completed. Offtake from the Haft Kel field has steadily increased since it first came on to production in 1929. Naft-i-Shah.—Production from this field has continued to supply market requirements in northwest Iran. The policy of returning surplus products to the reservoir, which was adopted at the beginning of 1936, has been continued.

Jan 1, 1939

By E. Ryba, D. J. Michel

SAMPLES of REZn2 (RE = rare earth) intermetallic compounds prepared by a variety of techniques have been shown to exhibit an extensively twinned micro-structure.1-4 We have recently conducted compression tests at room temperature on specimens of HoZn2 prepared by a powder metallurgy technique.' The microstructures of specimens before and after testing are shown in Fig. 1. The "before" specimen, Fig. l(a), shows the basic twin structure of this material. Fig. l(b) shows the microstructure of the "after" specimen just below the fracture surface and reveals considerable cross-twinning as well as additional

Jan 1, 1970