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By J. M. Uys, T. B. King

WalSH, Chipman, King, and rant' have measured the water content (as hydrogen) of actual steel-making slags. An average water content of 290 ppm was found for basic open-hearth tapping slags and 114 ppm for acid open-hearth slags. Upon equilibration of these slags at 1550°C with a 25 pct H20-75 pct Nz atmosphere, the water content increased to about 410 and 300 ppm for the basic and acid slags, respectively. Walsh et al. concluded that an acid slag was thus relatively far removed from equilibrium, and that basic slags showed a closer approach to equilibrium, with the water vapor in the furnace atmosphere. Herasymenko2 contended that these conclusions were unjustified, as the oxygen pressure used in the equilibration experiments, ;bout 5 x X atm, was quite different from that found in the furnace. Consequently, during the experiments the slag composition would have changed due to oxidation of ferrous iron. As an extension of Walsh's work and to attempt to clarify this matter, the solubility of water in a basic open-hearth slag was measured as a function of oxygen pressure. Similar measurements were also made on synthetic silicates in the "Fe0"-Fe203-SiO, system. The experimental technique has been described previously by Walsh et a1.l and Uys and King.3 Samples of the basic open-hearth finishing slag, contained in 10-cc platinum crucibles, were equilibrated at 1550°C with atmospheres of different oxygen pressure but constant water-vapor pressure, Ph~o = 0.192 atm. Calculations, as well as measurements, indicate that this figure approximates the water pressure of the combustion gases in a steam-atomized, oil-fired open hearth. Oxygen pressures in the open hearth can vary from 10"2 atm in the combustion gases to between l0-' and 10" atm in the steel bath. The former figure depends on the combustion practice and the latter on the carbon content and temperature of the bath. The oxygen pressure of the slag should lie somewhere between these extremes and is expected to be closer to that of the steel bath than that of the combustion gases. Oxygen pressures were therefore varied between 10" and 6 x l0 atm. At the lowest pressure the slag "puffed up" when quenched (indicating possible loss of water) so experiments were not conducted at lower oxygen pressures. The results are shown in Fig. 1, which includes the water content of the slag "as sampled". The results show that the water content of the slag increased appreciably on equilibration with water vapor at 0.192 atm pressure and that the water solubility apparently decreases with increased oxygen pressure. The solubilities found are comparable to those of the Li20-Ca0-Si02 system.3 Work with synthetic slags in the "Fe0"-Fe203-SiOz system was performed at 1500" C, with Ph20 = 0.192 atrn and for oxygen pressures varying between 10"2 and 10-lo atm. Samples for chemical analysis were prepared as described by Larson.4 The results are shown in Fig. 2. Some low-silica melts tested at low oxygen pressures "puffed up" when quenched and analyzed less than 100 ppm water; these results are not included in Fig. 2. The melts containing 40 mol pct silica also showed a tendency to "puff up" during the quench, when they were tested at the lowest oxygen pressure. These results indicate that, at constant silica content, the solubility of water decreases somewhat with increased oxygen pressure. The effect is, however, small considering the wide range of oxygen pressures studied. Also, at constant oxygen pressure (above about lom5 atm) the solubility increases

Jan 1, 1963

By Roy Lindgren

SINCE the year 1643, when the first blast furnace in America for treating iron ore was built at Saugus, Mass., out of mica schist quarried in the neighboring district, the procurement of a suitable refractory for furnace lining has been a problem of concern to the operators of furnaces. The stacks built of mica schist continued to smelt iron ore until about 1836, when, according to F. H. Norton, the first firebrick were produced1, at Queens Run, Pa. Other writers speak of brick having been molded and burned in Massachusetts about the year 1834. In 1841, Andrew Russell began to produce medium refractory plastic clay brick near East Liverpool, Ohio, that were used for lining blast furnaces1. The well-known Kentucky clay-producing district was not opened up until the year 1871, but since then it has produced a large percentage of the linings for iron blast furnaces. While some strides have been made by the refractories industry during the 100 years that have passed since the first firebrick were produced, it has been only during the last two decades that any real progress has been made towards bettering the product, even though the method of production had improved. Perhaps the fault lies with the user of the brick rather than with the producer, for not sooner demanding a supe-rior product. During the past 15 years the tonnage produced per lining has increased from 500,000 gross tons to 1,000,000 gross tons, and now some furnaces are producing 1,600,000 gross tons and better on a single lining. It is true that enlarged capacity of furnaces and improved practice have accounted for some of this increase in tonnage, nevertheless better quality in firebrick must be given credit for its share. However, we are not yet ready to say that we have reached a maximum life of furnace lining. We believe that a better product can be produced and that the refractories industries of America will, through their extensive research depart-

Jan 1, 1937

By George W. Maynard

IN the course of an examination of some of the California hydraulie mines in November last, I visited the property of the Gold Run Ditch and Mining Company, near Dutch Flat, Placer County. This is one of the most important and extensively worked mines in the district. The gold occurs in the characteristic blue gravel, which averages 175 feet in thickness, the lower 40-60 feet being made tip of cement gravel, which resists the action of water, and can only be loosened by blasting. The specimen which I have the pleasure of laying before the members was presented to me by Mr. I. L. Gould, the intelligent superintendent of the mines, who informs me that he found it in the old river channel, about twelve feet above the bedrock. The flattened water-worn nugget of gold, about the size of a kidney-bean, is imbedded in blue cement gravel, around which quartz has crystallized. When found the projecting portion of the nugget was enveloped in quartz, the core of gravel and gold having only been discovered after breaking the lump of quartz. On the quartz there is a shell of cement. The specimen is a remarkable confirmation of the theory of the deposition of quartz from solution. DISCUSSION. DR. T. STERRY HUNT, in commenting upon this occurrence, remarked that it is in accordance with what we already know of the recency of some of the quartz of this region, and cited the microscopic

Jan 1, 1880

By George W. Maynard

In the course of an examination of some of the California hydraulic mines in November last, I visited the property of the Gold Run Ditch and Mining Company, near Dutch Flat, Placer County. This is one of the most important and extensively worked mines in the district. The gold occurs in the characteristic blue gravel, which averages 175 feet in thickness, the lower 40-60 feet being made rip of cement gravel, which resists the action of water, and can only he loosened by blasting. The specimen which I have the pleasure of laying before the members was presented to me by Mr. I. L. Gould, the intelligent superintendent of the mines, who informs me that he found it in the old river channel, about twelve feet above the bedrock. The flattened water-worn nugget of gold, about the size of a kidney-bean, is imbedded in blue cement gravel, around which quartz has crystallized. When found the projecting portion of the nugget was enveloped in quartz, the core of gravel and gold having only been discovered after breaking the lump of quartz. On the quartz there is a shell of cement. The specimen is a remarkable confirmation of the theory of the deposition of quartz from solution. DISCUSSION. Dr. T. STERRY HUNT, in commenting upon this occurrence, remarked that it is in accordance with what we already know of the recency of some of the quartz of this region, and cited the microscopic

Jan 1, 1880

By Michael Epstein, Daniel E. Rosner

Fume nucleation sufficiently close to vaporizing suvfaces can augment net vaporization rates into cooler environments. Environmental conditions favoring large vaporization rate enhancements are briefly discussed and a previous theoretical treatment of this nucleation phenomenon is generalized to account for the self-regulating effect of condensalion-heat release within the boundary layer. Despite kinetic limitations on homogeneous nucleation, and latent heat release, non-diffusive condensate removal processes appear to make possible large enhancements in steady-state vaporization rates, provided surface temperatures are well below the boiling point. When condensed phases vaporize (or dissolve) into cooler media, the diffusion-limited mass loss rate can be strongly influenced by the process of nucleation/con-densation (or precipitation) within the thermal boundary layer. This condensation process (which typically leads to mists or fumes in the case of evaporation into cooler gases) has the effect of steepening the vapor pressure profiles near the evaporating surface, since the condensation zone acts as a vapor sink. However. the resulting enhancement in the diffusion-limited evaporation rate can be estimated (as first done by Turkdogan1 for the case of molten iron/nickel alloys evaporating into helium) only if one has independent knowledge of the critical supersaturation, sCrit(T), required to homogeneously nucleate the vapor.* In a recent reformulation and generalization of the theoretical model of Ref. 1 it has been shown that, when log sCrit is approximately linear in reciprocal temperature, rather simple expressions can be derived4 for the ratio of the actual rate of vaporization j" to either the minimum (no condensation) rate j"min, or the maximum (equilibrium condensation) rate j"max In the present communication we wish to briefly report on further developments and implications of the formulation of Ref. 4, with emphasis on i) environmental conditions favoring large enhancements in vaporization rate, and ii) the self-regulatory influence of condensation heat release (neglected in Refs. 1 to 4) on predicted vaporization rates. Additionally, we take this opportunity to correct several misprints appear- ing in Ref. 4, and comment on Elenbaas's recent criticism5 of Ref. 1. MAXIMUM POSSIBLE VAPORIZATION RATE IN PRESENCE OF CONDENSATION A nonequilibrium theory is of interest because of the very large difference between the minimum (no condensation) and maximum (equilibrium condensation) vaporization rate. The magnitude of this maximum possible enhancement can be shown quite clearly by combining a result of Refs. 3 and 4 with the fact that for most liquids there is a simple relationship between the molar heat of evaporation, A, and its boiling point, i.e., A/(RTBp) = C, where the constant C, often called the Trouton ratio, takes on values not very different from 11.* More generally, for any substance (including The Trouton ratio (which for water is 13, for methane, 10, and so forth) will be recognized as the ratio of the molar entropy change upon vaporization (at TBP or Ttransf) to the unlversal gas constant R. Its near constancy reflects the fact that the change in atomic order upon vaporization depends only weakly on the kinds of molecules involved. those that sublime under ordinary conditions) we can define a characteristic transformation temperature. Ttransf, by a relation of the form Ttransf =A/(CR), and then examine the maximum possible evaporation rates as a function of how far removed from Ttransf are the surface temperature, Tw, and ambient temperature, T. Subject to the assumptions: 1) equilibrium vapor pressure, pv,eq, everywhere small compared to prevailing total pressure, p, and 2) negligible effect of condensation heat on temperature profile, the maximum enhancement ratio was found (Eq. [17], Ref. 4) to be: where, for most vapors, Nu/NuD (the ratio of heat transfer coefficient to mass transfer coefficient for the same configuration) is a number near unity.* Ex- *An alternative derivation of the Nu = NuD special case of this equation. revealing its validity for arbitrary velocity/temperature profiles in a laminar boundary layer, is given in Ref. 3. amining this result for a "Trouton substance", one obtains the results shown in Fig. 1, constructed for C = 11. Since we are concerned with vaporization enhancements (j'max/J"min > 1) at surface temperatures below Ttransf, this area of interest is shown unshaded. One notes that at a fixed ambient temperature (hence, T/TtranSf) there is a unique surface temperature, 2T , at which j"max/j"min attains its peak value; moreover, the peak enhancement ratio, see dashed locus. Fig. 1, is: (NuA/NuD)(C/4)(Ttransf/T,). Hence, if Nu = NuD, when the ambient temperature is less than 1/4 of TtranSf the peak enhancement exceeds the Trouton

Jan 1, 1969

February 18th, 1873. THE Institute assembled in the Hall of the Boston Natural History Society on Tuesday evening. Dr. T. Sterry Hunt, of the Boston Institute of Technology, after a brief address of welcome to the Institute, read an introductory paper on the Geognostical History of the Metals. President Raymond responded to the welcome of Dr. Hunt. The following names were then presented to the Institute, with the recommendation of the Council, for election Adams, J. M., - Silver City, Idaho. Daggett, Ellsworth, - Salt Lake City, Utah. Geist, Alfred W., - Boston, Mass. Hays, Dr. S. Dana, - Boston, Mass. Heinrich, Oswald J., - Midlothian, Va. Johnson, J., - Braidwood, Ill. Leckie, Robert G., - Actonvale, Canada. Lyman, Edward, - Troy, N. Y. Maltby, William, - Braidwood, Ill. Nichols, Lyman, Jr., - Boston, Mass. Ordway, Prof. J. M., - Boston, Mass. Rand, Theodore D., - Philadelphia, Pa. Richards, Prof. Robert H., - Boston, Mass. Rockwell, Prof. Alfred P., - Boston, Mass. Roepper, Charles W., - Bethlehem, Pa. Schulz, A. von, - Central City, Colorado. Singer, William F., - Pittsburgh, Pa. Spillsbury, E. G., - New York. Wells, Calvin, - Pittsburgh, Pa. The session concluded with the reading and discussion of a paper, by Henry Engelmann, On the Mines and Ores of the Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah. The second session was held on Wednesday morning, when the following papers were presented; On the Midlothian Coal Mines, by Oswald J. Heinrich. On the Probable Existence of Microscopic Diamonds in California, by Prof. Benjamin Silliman.

Jan 1, 1873

By E. A. Jones

THE Southeast Missouri division of the St. Joseph Lead Co. normally hauls and hoists over 5 million tons of lead ore each year. This ore is mined in the stopes and headings of 20 mines, hauled to a main line system, see above, and transported up to 6.4 miles to ore-hoisting shafts. Average haulage distance is 2.16 miles. A few years ago a distinguished mining engineer visiting this area for the first time remarked, "You do not have a mining problem; yours is a haulage problem." Its relative importance may be gaged by the fact that mine haulage represents about 25 pct of the total cost of mining ore, the most costly single underground operation

Jan 4, 1953

By H. DeWitt Smith

THE mine operated by the United Verde Copper Co. is situated near Jerome, Ariz., on the eastern flank of the Black Hills, at an elevation of approximately 5500 ft. (1676 m.) above sea level. The mine and the town of Jerome are located on a steep hillside, which slopes rapidly to the valley of the Verde River. The smelter town of Clarkdale is situated in the Verde valley 4.1 mi. (6.5 km.) distant in an air line from Jerome, and at an elevation of 3560 ft. The two towns are connected by the standard-gage railroad of the Verde Tunnel & Smelter R. R., a subsidiary of the United Verde Copper Co. This road is 11 mi. long and has a compensated 4 per cent. grade. At Clarkdale, it connects with the Verde Valley branch of the Santa Fe R. R. The narrow-gage (36-in.) line of the United Verde & Pacific Ry. was, until 1919, Jerome's only rail connection with a main trunk line. This road connects with a branch line of the Santa Fe system at Jerome Junction, after traversing 26 mi. of mountainous country. From the time of its location, in 1876, until its purchase by Senator W. A. Clark, of Montana, in 1889, the United Verde mine was worked on a small scale and shipments of high-grade gold-silver ore were made from the surface workings. Until 1894, when the narrow-gage railroad to

Jan 8, 1920

By AIME AIME

THE petroleum economics session," held on Wednesday morning, Feb. 20, 1929, presided over by Campbell Osborn, chairman, proved to be of un- usual interest and resulted in serious and constructive discussion of the papers presented. The first paper on the program, "Gasoline Economics and Refinery Operation," was by H. J. Struth, petroleum economist of the Gulf Publishing Co., Houston, Tex. While this paper was intended to cover the re- finery situation, it also presented the author's reasons for believing that the oil producer should give cognizance to gasoline demand as a most reliable barometer by which to parallel the production of crude petroleum. The discussion which followed brought out some interesting points in connection with the immediate outlook for the industry as a whole during the present year. Some advanced the opinion that, regardless of the out- come of proration efforts, the refiner is in a position to conduct his operations on a reasonably profitable basis, provided that he exercises control over them. This would mean running less crude and resorting to wider utilization of cracking to produce the gasoline demand. Thus, if the refiner uses diligent care in scheduling his still runs, the producer will be obliged to carry over a large stock of crude this year, unless he is able to keep production below the limits prescribed by the demand for gasoline.

Jan 1, 1929

By P. D. Merica

MY remarks are addressed to the question whether a program of international mineral control can effectively serve as a means of maintaining world peace in the kind of world envisaged by the Atlantic Charter. They do not touch the quite different questions whether such control could be appropriately used for postwar punishment of Germany and Japan, or for other purposes. I assume also that the question relates, not to the transition period immediately following the war, but to the more normal years which we hope will succeed this. Finally, they deal primarily with metals and metallic minerals rather than with. oil or coal or other minerals, although they may be applicable also to these other nonmetallic materials.

Jan 1, 1944

By D. J. McAdam

In a recent survey of the literature, the author has found evidence incompatible with prevalent views regarding the technical cohesive strength and yield strength of metals. Some of the evidence regarding the technical cohesive strength was presented in a previous paper,21 and views were presented that are believed to be in better accord with the evidence. In that paper, it was shown that the technical cohesion limit (contrary to prevalent views) varies with the combination of principal stresses,t and that the influence of plastic deformation on the technical cohesive strength is not in accordance with prevalent views. In this paper, consideration will be given to both the technical cohesion limit and the yield stress as affected by the combination of principal stresses. Evidence will be presented that the variations of the yield stress and the technical cohesion limit with the combination of principal stresses are not in accordance with prevalent views. Consideration will also be given to ductility and work-hardening capacity, which depend on the initial difference between the technical cohesion limit and the yield stress. By the "technical cohesion limit" is meant the mean stress at actual or poten- tial* fracture. An example of a rechnlcal cohesion limit is the "true" breaking stress of a tension-test specimen, the breaking load divided by the sectional area at fracture. The cohesion limit thus obtained for a ductile metal, however, has been greatly altered by the plastic deformation. It is important to consider the cohesion limit of the metal prior to this deformation, and the variation of the cohesive strength with plastic deformation. The relation between the cohesion limit and the corresponding flow stresst determines the ductility of a metal and the energy that it will absorb before fracture. In this paper, as in the previous paper,21 tensile stresses will be viewed as positive and compressive stresses as negative. The algebraically greatest principal stress will be designated S1, the least principal stress will be designated S3, and the intermediate principal stress will be designated Sz In the previous paper, attention was confined to stress combinations with two of the principal stresses equal (with the intermediate principal stress S2 equal eithel to S3 or 31). In this paper, consideration will also be given to the effect of stress combinations with all three principal stresses unequal. In the earlier sections of the paper (pp. 3I I to 324), attention will be confined to stress combinations with

Jan 1, 1942

By D. J. McAdam

In a recent survey of the literature, the author has found evidence incompatible with prevalent views regarding the technical cohesive strength and yield strength of metals. Some of the evidence regarding the technical cohesive strength was presented in a previous paper,21 and views were presented that are believed to be in better accord with the evidence. In that paper, it was shown that the technical cohesion limit (contrary to prevalent views) varies with the combination of principal stresses,t and that the influence of plastic deformation on the technical cohesive strength is not in accordance with prevalent views. In this paper, consideration will be given to both the technical cohesion limit and the yield stress as affected by the combination of principal stresses. Evidence will be presented that the variations of the yield stress and the technical cohesion limit with the combination of principal stresses are not in accordance with prevalent views. Consideration will also be given to ductility and work-hardening capacity, which depend on the initial difference between the technical cohesion limit and the yield stress. By the "technical cohesion limit" is meant the mean stress at actual or poten- tial* fracture. An example of a rechnlcal cohesion limit is the "true" breaking stress of a tension-test specimen, the breaking load divided by the sectional area at fracture. The cohesion limit thus obtained for a ductile metal, however, has been greatly altered by the plastic deformation. It is important to consider the cohesion limit of the metal prior to this deformation, and the variation of the cohesive strength with plastic deformation. The relation between the cohesion limit and the corresponding flow stresst determines the ductility of a metal and the energy that it will absorb before fracture. In this paper, as in the previous paper,21 tensile stresses will be viewed as positive and compressive stresses as negative. The algebraically greatest principal stress will be designated S1, the least principal stress will be designated S3, and the intermediate principal stress will be designated Sz In the previous paper, attention was confined to stress combinations with two of the principal stresses equal (with the intermediate principal stress S2 equal eithel to S3 or 31). In this paper, consideration will also be given to the effect of stress combinations with all three principal stresses unequal. In the earlier sections of the paper (pp. 3I I to 324), attention will be confined to stress combinations with

Jan 1, 1942

By Frederic L. Kadey

Perlite, as a volcanic glass, has been recognized since the Third Century, B.C. (Langford, 1978). The precise details of discovery often become lost in antiquity, and the variations among the stories pertaining to the more recent discovery of perlite as a material of commerce are no exception. Credit in the United States is given to a dentist who, while experimenting with tooth enamels about 1941, discovered that perlite-the rock-intumesced when subjected to heat. At about the same time it is reported that the chief geologist of Silver and Barytes Ores Mining Co. attempted to put out a picnic bonfire on the shores of Milos Island, Greece by throwing beach sand on it. The ensuing pyrotechnic display immediately conjured up in that man's mind the possibility of a new use for the volcanic rock that constituted most of the island. Very little was done with this discovery either here or abroad until after World War II. Today the name perlite is applied to both the hydrated volcanic glass, generally of rhyolitic composition, and to the lightweight aggregate that is produced from the expansion of the glass after it has been crushed and sized. Petrologically, it is defined as a glassy rhyolite that has a pearly luster and concentric, onionskin parting. Occurrences of perlite are restricted to several Tertiary to Quaternary age rhyolitic belts that trend in a generally north-south direction around the world. Commercially suitable deposits generally occur as domes of several hundred feet in height, although glassy zones in welded ash-flow tuffs and others associated with dikes and sills also have been reported. Mining is by ripping and blasting from open pits. Because of weight considerations, perlite usually is shipped to the local market area for subsequent expanding. In the United States, New Mexico leads in production with Arizona, California, Nevada, Idaho, and Colorado following in approximately that order. The principal use for expanded perlite is as a lightweight insulating aggregate in cryogenics, in plaster, concrete, and in loose fill insulation. Expanded perlite is also used in horticultural applications, and after subsequent milling and classification, as a filter aid. The United States is the world's largest producer and consumer of perlite. Table 1 shows the world production of perlite and Table 2 shows the perlite mined, processed, expanded, and sold or used by producers in the United States. Geology Composition and Morphology Any discussion of perlite must take into consideration its dual nomenclature, for it is known by the same name as both the naturally occurring rock and, after processing and expansion, as the lightweight aggregate of commercial significance. In its naturally occurring form, perlite is a rhyolitic glass that contains from 2 to 5% combined water. While perlite also can occur as andesitic or dacitic glass, these latter types are of negligible commercial significance. Table 3 lists the chemical composition of a few typical perlites (Anderson, et al., 1956; Langford, 1979). What sets perlite of commercial significance apart from other volcanic glasses is the fact that under the proper conditions of preparation-crushing and sizing-it will, when rapidly introduced into a flame of sufficient temperature, expand or "pop." All of the elements of composition contribute to the expansibility of the rock. The role of the combined water, however, is the most significant because it is believed not only to produce a fluxing effect in the softening of the highly siliceous glass prior to expansion, but it is also responsible for the explosive force of expansion through volatilization during heating. The current theory of the origin of the water in perlite is now less con-

Jan 1, 1983

By Woolsey Johnson

THE object of this paper is to, describe the several necessary characteristics of the zinc-retorting charge and to show how by certain improved methods; the large excess of coal, over that theoretically required, can be reduced, thereby effecting an increase in the smelting capacity of a retort plant as well as other economies. In the Southwestern zinc works a charge of roasted zinc ore with a side mixture of carbonates and silicates, analyzing on the average 50 per cent. Zn, is mixed with 55 or more per cent. of its weight of a mixture of coal and coke analyzing 60 to 70 per cent. fixed carbon. . The ore is of varying fineness and the coal and coke are usually crushed in a semi-moist condition through a 3/8 -in. screen. With ores of a slaggy nature, this coal proportion is increased, sometimes to as much as 100 per cent. of, the weight of the ore. With carbonate ores, or where anthracite screenings with higher carbon content are cheap enough, the percentage of reducing agent is cut to 45 per cent. or even somewhat lower. The average charge per retort for a monthly run of a plant on ore, as distinguished from retorts on blue-powder, ladle-skimmings and other between-products, runs from 60 to 66 lb., with a mean of 63 lb. for the Southwest with standard retorts of 8 ½ -in. inside diameter and 50 in. long inside, using roasted sulphide ores. Conditions will change these figures, but 40 lb. of ore per cubic foot of retort space is, I believe, an average in the better-operated plants. Since the rise in. the price of spelter, the tendency has been to overcharge. To remove the slag that is formed when retorts are overcharged, extra men are put on to "gum-chisel" the retorts to prevent "set" furnaces and "butchered, retorts." Taking the above conditions as premises, we find that from four to six times the amount of coal necessary for the reduction is used, as is evidenced by the fact that the residues analyze as high as 35 per cent, fixed carbon. There are good reasons why this excess of fixed carbon must be used and perhaps these can be best explained by a description of the metallurgical requisites of a zinc charge. We may enumerate these as follows: 1. High reducing power, especially at the end f the shift, to reduce any carbon dioxide to monoxide and bring about a good condensation

Jan 2, 1918

By George D. Graffin.

The first use of graphite is lost in the mists of time. It was used by primitive man to make drawings on the walls of caves and by the Egyptians to decorate pottery. As early as 1400 A.D. graphite crucibles were being made in the Haffnerzell district of Bavaria. Through the Middle Ages graphite was confused with other minerals, especially galena and molybdenite. Two common names that are still used for the mineral are "Plumbago," meaning leadlike, and "Black Lead." The latter name implied that graphite is either composed of lead or at least contains a large percentage of it. Gessner is credited with having recognized it as a separate mineral in 1565, but its composition was not determined until 1779, when Scheele demonstrated that graphite oxidized to carbon dioxide, thus proving its carbon constitution. In 1789, Werner named it "graphite" from the Greek word "graphein," meaning to write. The United States has long relied on foreign countries for its graphite supplies. This reliance has been due more to the lack of suitable domestic graphites than to any particular preference for buying minerals overseas. Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) graphites were imported as early as 1820, and Madagascar graphites have been imported since the properties on that island were opened up about a hundred years later. Mexico has long supplied the United States with most of its requirements for amorphous graphite. Physical Properties and Classification Graphite is found in laminated, flaky aggregates disseminated in schistose rocks. It also occurs in veins and exhibits a foliated or fibrous structure. Graphite is a black lustrous mineral that crystallizes in the hexagonal system, with rhombohedral symmetry. The crystals have tabular form and are six-sided; the faces are commonly striated. The flakes have perfect basal cleavage and are opaque. When well crystallized, the flakes have a black metallic luster while the amorphous material is black and earthy, with a microcrystalline compactness. The flakes feel greasy. Graphite is an excellent conductor of heat and electricity. It melts at approximately 3550°C at a triple point under 1250 psi. It sublimes between 3300-3500°C at 14.7 psi. At 3726°C a second triple point occurs at approximately 100,000 atmospheres. Thermal oxidation in the presence of oxygen begins at 300°C and the rate increases with temperature. The three forms of carbon (charcoal, graphite, and diamond) are distinguished by chemical and physical tests. The specific gravity of charcoal is 1.3 to 1.9, of graphite 2.266 g/ cm3 (crystal density), and of diamond 3.5. Graphite has a hardness of 1 to 2 (Mohs' scale). Natural graphite can be divided into three classes: disseminated flake, crystalline vein (fibrous or columnar), and amorphous. Flake graphite is a lamellar form found in metamorphic rocks, such as marble, gneiss, and schist. Each flake is separate, having crystallized as such in the rock. Crystalline vein graphite is found in the form of well defined veins or as pocket accumulations along the intrusive contacts of pegmatites with limestones. The graphite of such deposits is of two types, foliated and columnar. The important Sri Lanka (Ceylon) deposits are vein type. Amorphous graphite is commonly found as minute microcrystalline particles more or less uniformly distributed in feebly metamorphic rocks, such as slates and shales, or in beds consisting practically entirely of graphite. The latter usually are metamorphosed coal seams and carry as much as 80-85% graphitic carbon, while the former, being altered carbonaceous sediments, commonly range from 25 to 60%

Jan 1, 1983

By P. S. Rudman

Crystal-structure occurrences in binary phase diagrams of fifth- and sixth-period elements, zirconium through palladium and hafniun through platinum, are surveyed with the conclusion that average .group number GN is the dominant correlative. This is interpreted in terms of curves of enthalpy differences between competitiue structures that are continuous func -tions of GN. It is further reasoned that the absolute formation energies may also be continuous functions of GN and if so can be simply obtained from the regatives of the heats of sublimation of the elements. It is shown that from such a heat of formation-GN plot the heats of mixing of alloy systems can be quantitatively predicted. For example, for sixth-period alloys very large exothermic heats of mixing are predicted for systems that span GN = 6 (i.e., Hf-Pt, Ta-Os, ...). Thermodynamic data with which to test these predictions do not appear to be available. If in the latter transition (A subgroup) elements we eliminate from consideration the fourth period where magnetic terms contribute to crystal-structure stability, as shown in Table I, there is a very regular sequence of structures. Using the group number (GN) assignments of Table I, which differ from the usual assignments of 8 to the elements listed as 8 through 10, it is perhaps trivial to say that the phase occurrence is a unique function of GN. However, the interesting aspect of alloys from among these elements is that the alloy structures also appear to correlate with GN. The GN for an alloy is given as GN = SixiGNi, where xi and GNi = atomic fraction and GN of component i, respectively. It is difficult to credit anyone in particular with having discovered this correlation, so many people have implicitly or explicitly employed it in the last 10 years. However, Bloom and Grant' in their correlation of s-phase occurrence with total number of d + s electrons were certainly one of the first to appreciate the correlation and Hume -Rothery2 appears to be responsible for the use of average GN as defined above. Only in the last few years have the phase diagrams of enough alloy systems been determined for this correlation to be surveyed with any degree of completeness. We shall here, in an abbreviated format, summarize the available phase-diagram literature and discuss some consequences of the GN correlation. BINARY DIAGRAM SURVEY In Figs. 1 to 3 the phase occurrences are summarized. In Fig. 4 the occurrence limits for the more common structures are summarized. That the GN of an alloy falls within the occurrence limits of a particular structure is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the appearance of that structure. The preceding figures certainly illustrate that GN is a dominant correlative for structures of these elements. Many of the diagrams have complications, with ordering and other phase changes occurring in intermediate phases, that cannot be clearly accommodated in such a schematic survey and have hence been left out. Such omissions cannot, however, negate the GN correlations discussed here. Relative atomic size is also an important crystal-structure determinant and since atomic size varies quite regularly with GN for these elements it is possible that the apparent GN correlation is basically a size correlation. In Fig. 5 relative size occurrence limits are given for intermediate phases and extended terminal solutions. The relative volume, ?v/(v) - 2(vA - vB)/(vA + uB), has been taken as the measure

Jan 1, 1968

By AIME AIME

Award of a Gold Medal : to the Institute. The Jury of Awards of the Jamestown Ter-Centennial Exposition has conferred a gold medal, the highest distinction within its power,. on the American Institute of Mining Engineers for the excellence of its publications during the past decade. ; A half-tone photographic reproduction of both sides of the medal is given in the accompanying illustration.

Jan 7, 1908

By Arthur Dwight

WE NOT have to go so very far back, when measured in actual years, to what may be considered the beginning of the industrial era of the great West, the discovery of gold in California in 1848, just 74 years ago. By a strange coincidence, this event occurred within a few days of the signing of the treaty with Mexico which ceded California to the United States. Needless to describe the mighty wave of humanity that hurled itself toward the setting sun in response to that call. The single thought in every one's mind was gold. The gold as they found it in placers or ledges could be so easily worked, and the product was so readily transportable, and available immediately as money, that practically no attention was paid to deposits of the base metals, in the treatment of which cheap transportation was a paramount con-sideration; consequently little progress was made in anything but gold mining until after the Civil War. The next great step was accomplished when East and West were united by the successful construction of the Union Pacific Railroad from Omaha across the great plains and through the Rockies to meet the rails of the Central Pacific coming eastward across the Sierras. The industrial history of our great West really dates from the day when those two hands of steel were joined, on the shores of the Great Salt Lake at Prom-ontory Point,. May 10, 1869. That seems a long time ago when we think of the enormous changes that have been wrought since that day, and when we regard the rich empire that has sprung up in that western land. Into the new empire thus made accessible, by this first thread of steam transportation, flocked a new brood of adventurous spirits from the older communities of the East. This way walked Fate; and as she, went, flung far the line of destiny, That bound an untracked continent to brotherhood from sea to sea; That long gray trail of dream and hope, marked mile by mile with graves that keep On every barren hill and slope some stout heart lost in dreamless sleep. Patience and faith and fortitude were willed to it and justified; Stern, homely virtues, plain and rude, eternal as the sky and wide. Nor ever sea-king dared the sea in sterner mood than these who went Strong armed to wrest from Mystery their birthright, half a continent.

Jan 4, 1922

By P. B. Baxendell, R. Thomas

Work on the calculation of vertical two-phase flow gradients by Cia. Shell de Venezuela has been based mainly on the "energy-loss" method proposed by Poett-mann and Carpenter in 1952. The "energy-loss-factor" correlation proposed by Poettmann and Carpenter was based on relatively low-rate flow data. This correlation proved inapplicable to high-rate flow conditions. In an attempt to establish a satisfactory correlation for high rates, a series of experiments was carried out at rates up to 5,000 BID in Cia. Shell de Venezuela's La Paz field in Venezuela, using tubing strings fitted with electronic surface-recording pressure elements. As a result of these experiments a correlation between energy-loss factor and mass flow rate was established which is believed to be applicable to a wide range of conduit sizes and crude types at high flow rates (e.g., above 900 BID for 27/8-in. OD tubing). It is anticipated that the resulting gradient calculations will have an accuracy of the order of % 5 per cent. At lower flow rates the energy-loss factor cannot be considered as constant for any mass rate of flow, but varies with the free gas in place and the mixture velocity. No satisfactory correlating parameter was obtained. As a practical compromise for low flow rates, a modification of the curve proposed by Poettmann and Carpenter was used. In practice this was found to give gradient accuracies of approxirnately ± 10 per cent clown to flow rates as low as 300 B/D in 27/8-in. tubing. INTRODUCTION Production operations in Cia. Shell de Venezuela's light- and medium-crude fields are principally concerned with high-rate flowing or gas-lift wells. Under these conditions the analysis of well performance, the selection of production strings and the design of gas-lift installations are vitally dependent on an accurate knowledge of the pressure gradients involved in vertical two-phase flow. Initially, attempts were made to establish the gradients empirically as done by Gilbert,' but the results were not reliable due to scarcity of data over a full range of rates and gas-oil ratios. Several methods of calculation based on energy-balance considerations were attempted, but the computations were cumbersome and the results cliscouraging. In 1952 a paper was published by Poettmann and Carpenter' which proposed a new approach. Their method was also based on an energy-balance equation. but it was original in that no attempt was made to evaluate the various components making up the total energy losses. Instead, they proposed a form of analysis which assumed that all the significant energy losses for mutiphase flow could be correlated in a form similar to that of the Fanning equation for frictional 1osses in single-phase flow. They then derived an empirical relationship linking measurable field data with a factor which, when applied to the standard form of the Fanning equation, would enable the energy losses to be determined. The basic method was applied in Venezuela to the problem of annular flow gradients in the La Paz and Mara fields" This involved establishing a new energy-loss-factor correlation to cover high flow rates and, also, some adaptation of the method to permit mechanized calculation using punch-card machines. The final result was 1 set of gradient curves for La Paz and Mara conditions which proved to be surprisingly accurate. With the encouraging results of the annular flow calculations, several attempts were made to obtain a corresponding set of curves for tubing flow. Here, unfortunately, little progress could be made. The original correlation of Poettmann and Carpenter was based on rather 1imited data derived from low-rate observations in 23/8- and 27/8-in. OD tubing. It did not cover the higher range of production rates, and extrapolation proved unsuccessful. A new correlation covering high flow rates was required, but this proved to be extremely difficult to establish since tubing flow pressure measurements at high rates did not exist—due to the difficulty of running pressure bombs against high-velocity flow. The necessity for reliable tubing flow data increased with the development of the new concessions in Lake Maracaibo, where high-rate tubing flow from depths of 10,500 ft became routine. Thus. it was decided to set up a full-scale test to establish a reliable energy-loss factor for tubing flow conditions. A La. Paz field light-oil producer with a potential of approximately 12,000 B/D on annular flow was chosen. To obtain full pressure gradients, a special tubing string was installed which was equipped with electronic surface-recording pressure measuring devices,