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By A. J. Phillips, C. G. Grant, Wm. B. Price

ADMIRALTY nickel is a new corrosion-resisting and heat-resisting white metal alloy composed of 70 per cent. copper, 29 per cent. nickel and 1 per cent. tin. It has been given the trade name "Adnic." In 1924, Wm. B. Price1 described this alloy and its successful use as a diaphragm metal. The physical properties of Adnic at ordinary and elevated temperatures were given in Mining & Metallury.2 A patent3 was granted on Adnic, April 28, 1925. Work was first started on this alloy during December, 1921. An investigation of the patent situation in this country and abroad, and also a search of the literature, did not reveal any work on the ternary diagram, copper-nickel-tin; and the only wrought copper-nickel-tin alloy found was that known as "Newloy," composed of copper, 64 per cent.; nickel, 35 per cent.; tin, 1 per cent. This was being manufactured and sold by Wm. Gallimore & Sons, Ltd., Sheffield, England, for unplated spoon and fork stock, and first came to our attention in January, 1922. The preliminary work in connection with the development of Adnic was started by casting four binary copper-nickel alloys of the compositions shown in Table 1. Various amounts of tin were added to each of these mixtures, to produce the series of ternary copper-nickel-tin alloys also given in Table 1. A 200-gm. sample of each of these was cast by melting in a clay graphite crucible and allowing the melt to slowly cool with the furnace. A longitudinal section from each of these castings was polished and etched for examination. The castings were not homogeneous solid solutions, but showed the usual cored structure associated with cast alloys. However, from an examination of these sections we roughly determined

Jan 1, 1928

By L. E. Tanner

A study was made of the transformation kinetics of the commercial titanium-base alloys, Ti-2.5Al-16V and Ti-4A1-3Mo-1V, using two different heat treatment cycles: 1) step-quenching to aging temperatures from a ß solution anneal and 2) water-quenching from an a+ß solution anneal followed by reheating to aging temperatures. Metallographic examination and hardness testing provided the major portion of the data, while electrical resistivity, dynamic elastic modulus, and X-ray diffraction techniques were also used to obtain critical or confirnzatory data. TTT diagrams were constructed from these results. The sheet alloys, Ti-2.5Al-16V and Ti-4Al-3Mo-lV, are of current interest to the Department of Defense. As an aid to the planning of their respective heat treatments, a program was carried out to determine the transformation kinetics of these alloys using ß and a + ß reference states. This paper presents the TTT diagrams constructed from data obtained by metallographic examination and hardness testing, as well as by X-ray diffraction, electrical resistivity, and dynamic elastic modulus determinations. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Materials—Sheets of the alloys were obtained from the producers in the "mill anneal'' condition and were tested prior to shipment to assure their meeting mill specifications. Chemical analyses were also supplied and are presented in Table I. Heat Treatment—The majority of the data presented in this study were obtained from hardness testing and metallographic examination. Sample coupons were cut from the alloy sheets and heat treated on a mass scale. The annealing cycles were operated in the following manner: 1) The ß solution anneals were carried out in a horizontal tube furnace with the bare samples protected by a dynamic helium atmosphere. Following this treatment, the samples were quickly transferred to lead, solder, or oil-bath furnaces for aging. After prescribed times at the various reaction temperatures they were water-quenched. 2) The second cycle simulated commercial practice, which requires the alloys be quenched to room temperature following the a + ß sotution anneal. This anneal was carried out in a muffle furnace with a dynamic helium atmosphere. The specimens were then reheated from room temperature to the reaction temperatures in lead, solder, or oil-bath furnaces, followed by water-quenching after prescribed times at these temperatures. Information concerning the critical temperatures of the alloys was obtained from the literature and solution treatments were based on these values. A summary of the solution annealing treatments is found in Tables II and 111. The aging temperatures for the (a - ß alloys ranged in 50°C intervals from 200°C (392oF) to approximately 50°C below the ß/a + ß transus in the first cycle and approximately 50°C below the a + ß solution temperature in the second. The transformations in these alloys were known to be rather rapid, and thus aging times started at 0.5 min and went to a maximum of 7000 min. Hardness Testing and Metallographic Preparation— Heat-treated samples were sheared and mounted in Bakelite with their cut edges exposed. After a flat surface was ground, the hardness was determined in Vpn on an Armstrong-Vickers machine utilizing a 20-kg load. Three to four impressions were made on each specimen. After this procedure, the hardness impressions were removed and the edge surfaces of the specimens were prepared for metallographic examination in the usual manner. The etchant was 20 pct HF and 20 pct HNO3 in glycerine. Electrical Resistivity—It has been shown that the isothermal reactions in titanium-base alloys can be followed by measuring the changes in e1etrical resistivity attending these transformations. As mentioned earlier, the reaction kinetics of a-ß alloys are rather rapid; thus, it would be expected that resistivity data obtained from these alloys would be more significant if measurements were made continuously at the respective aging temperatures. To accomplish this end a special apparatus, based on the current-potential principle, was assembled. Its design was derived from earlier devices constructed by Colner and zmeska1 4 and Levinson.5 The set-up provided for the heat treatment zof machined specimens (approximately 2 x l0-4in. in cross section by 3 in. in length) and the determination of their relative

Jan 1, 1962

By B. R. Queneau

[ ] B. R. QUENEAU-One of the difficulties in metallurgy has always been a lack of precision in measurement, and I think the authors are to be congratulated on developing a method which will give us an accurate and dependable quantitative estimate of the amount of retained austenite. O. ZMESKAL*-As Chairman Queneau said, this is indeed an ingenious and needed determination. We have seen figures presented of 1/2 pct retained austenite determined, and I would like to ask the authors the lower limits of this method. How far down do they feel they can go in improving the technique still more?

Jan 1, 1948

By J. L. Rodda, R. L. Wilcox, E. C. Truesdale

In recent years various problems in connection with research work on the preparation and properties of zinc-base alloys have required reliable information concerning the constitution of the zinc-rich portion of the iron-zinc equilibrium diagram. On numerous occasions rather positive indications were obtained that, for example, the solubility of iron in zinc was incorrectly represented on the current equilibrium diagrams. A careful study of all the available literature relating to the iron-zinc system led to the conclusion that much of the early work was unsatisfactory as measured by present standards of experimental accuracy, and as a result it was decided to redetermine the location of the liquidus curve and of adjacent portions of the diagram. Part I of this paper comprises a description of the experimental methods and a summary of the results by means of which the zinc-rich end of- the iron-zinc diagram has been revised in the following ways: 1. Measurements of the solubility of iron in liquid zinc by several different sampling methods, leading to a relocation of the liquidus curve. 2. Microscopic, conductivity, and X-ray studies of the solid solubility of iron in zinc, which, together with thermal analyses, have resulted in new values for the solid solubility and the eutectic temperature and composition. 3. Heating and cooling curves, obtained by a refined differential method, leading to new locations for the two peritectic horizontals. In Part I1 of the paper the attempt is made to review all of the published work having a bearing on the constitution of the iron-zinc system, and to correlate the present results, and some recently published data involving the use of X-ray technique, with the earlier work, much of which was done from 25 to 30 years ago.

Jan 1, 1936

By L. C. Brown, E. B. Hawbolt

The formation of grain boundary precipitates has been studied in Ag-5.64 wt pcl Al alloys at 688°C. Large-grain specinzerzs were used and the boundary misorientation measured by X-ray diffraction. At low-angle grain boundrrries Primary sideplates form. u)hile abore a 17-deg misorientation lenticular precipitates predominate. Growth of the lenticular precipitates was studied on individual grain boundaries using a statistical technique. The thickening and lengthening rates appeared to be independent of &apos;pain boundary misorientation, indicating that grain boundary diffusion was not significant in this system. The precipitates grew urith constant shape, with both the length and thickness increasing parabolically with time. The parabolic lengthening rates were unexpected since previous theory and experimerztal results had indicated linear growth. By approximating the shape of the precipitate to that of an oblate spheroid grouling with constant shape an equivalent diffusion coefficienl was calculated. The zlalue obtained was in good agreement with nleasurements obtained fron, diffusiorz couples. IF a single-phase alloy is heated or cooled to a temperature such that the phase becomes supersaturated, there is a tendency for a second phase to precipitate from it in order to remove the supersaturation. Precipitation takes place initially on grain boundaries due to preferred heterogeneous nucleation, but subsequently Widmans kitten plates may form in the grain interiors if the grain size and supersaturation are sufficient. The type of grain boundary precipitate formed depends on the nature of the boundary. Aaronson1 and clark2 have shown that grain boundary misorientation can be characterized by the simple parameter R, where and X, Y, and Z represent the minimum rotations about three orthogonal axes required to bring the two lattices forming the grain boundary into coincidence. The maximum value for R is 60 deg. In using this parameter the orientation of the grain boundary itself is, of course, neglected. However it was found in both Fe-si3 and A1-Ag2 that the precipitate shape depended only on the parameter R. Clark found that the vast majority of precipitates formed were allo-triomorphs— lens-shaped precipitates that grew along the grain boundaries. At low-angle boundaries, however, (R < 15 deg) Widmanstatten sideplates nucleated at the grain boundaries and grew into the adjacent grains. It has been reported that the rate of growth of grain boundary precipitates is controlled by diffusion within the supersaturated phase.&apos; The theories which have been developed for growth rates have assumed the diffusion coefficient constant over the composition range of the supersaturated phase. This is a fairly good approximation if the composition range involved is not large. Thickening rates have been calculated using the theory developed by Zener4 and by Frank5 for the growth of planar precipitates. A parabolic growth law

Jan 1, 1968

By L. L. Wyman

SINCE the observations of Heyn,1 relative to the embrittlement of copper after having been heated in hydrogen, this subject has received considerable attention from later investigators. The published works of Archbutt2 and of Bengough and Hill3 give the reasons for this embrittlement-the formation of steam by the reaction between cuprous oxide and hydrogen. From Ruder,4 Pilling,5 Moore and Beckinsdale,6 Bassett and Bradley,7 and from Smith8 can be obtained quantitative data concerning the action of hydrogen and other reducing gases on copper samples having various oxygen contents. This problem has been discussed from a practical standpoint by Fuller9 who calls attention to some of the instances of this embrittlement encountered in the manufacturing field. The examples he cites may be considered typical cases of copper embrittlement which were incident to the process of manufacture. In many cases, such difficulties are overcome by changes in the manufacturing process.

Jan 1, 1931

By H. Ries

Introduction BODIES of pyritic ore in schistose rocks have long been known in different parts of the world. The several occurrences resemble each other in being usually of more or less lenticular shape, inclosed in walls of schist or gneiss, and carrying pyrite, chalcopyrite, and pyrrhotite in varying proportions, as the chief ore minerals. The deposits differ, however, in that sometimes one, sometimes another, of the three sulphides mentioned may predominate. The orebodies in general are more or less closely conformable with the schistosity of the wall rocks, although in cases this may not hold true. The boundaries may or may not be sharp, but in general are fairly distinct. The lenses vary in size, may occur singly, or in groups; in the latter case they may be in line, overlapping, or occasionally parallel. Pinching and swelling of individual lenses is not uncommon. The genesis of these pyritic bodies has provoked much discussion, and they have been variously classed as sedimentary, igneous intrusions, hydrothermal replacements or impregnations, etc. Indeed, in some cases different geologists have most positively assigned widely diverse origins to the same deposit, as in the case of Rio Tinto 1 and Rammelsberg.2 It is true that in the light of modern criteria, we have been able in a few cases to decipher clearly the process of origin and so there seems no doubt now regarding the genesis of the deposits at Rio Tinto, Spain;3 Rammelsberg, Germany ;4 Ducktown, Tenn.;5 southwestern Virginia;6

Jan 8, 1917

By J. A. Herbst, G. E. Agar

Beginning with the second paragraph in the second column of page 148, this paper should read: The Reynolds number in Fig. 6 was calculated from the inlet diam and it is evident from the graph that above NR = 5000 the value of K2 is as it should be, a constant. The data10 shown in Fig. 7 was obtained for fluids flowing in pipes of diam D with sharp edged orifices of diam d. To be consistent with the representation in Fig. 6 the Reynolds number was calculated with the orifice diam d. These two sets of data show similar patterns and the variation in the orifice coefficient C is believed to account for the variability of the cyclone coefficient K2. The values of C given in Table IV are derived from K2 by conversion of units. C more nearly represents an equivalent orifice coefficient for a cyclone. Armstrong1&apos; showed that data reported by Chaston 12 and Elcox13 yielded values for C of 0.24 and 0.27, re- spectively, Dahlstrom&apos;s4 data gives a value of 0.22. As a consequence of the variability of the cyclone coefficient some caution must be exercised in substituting for Q in the split size equation.

Jan 1, 1967

The Library of the above-named Societies is open from 9 A.M. to 10 P.M. on all week days, except holidays, from September 1 to June 30, and from 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. during July and August. The Library contains about 55,000 volumes, including sets of technical periodicals and the publications of scientific and technical societies. Members of the Institute, with few exceptions, are forced to spend a portion of their time in localities isolated from sources of information. To these the Library can render valuable service through correspondence; letters requesting information will receive special attention. The Library is prepared to furnish references and copies of articles on mining and metallurgical subjects; to determine the existence of mining maps, and to furnish general information as to the geology and mineral resources of all countries. All communications should be made as definite as possible so that the information received may be what is desired and not include collateral matter which may not be of interest. The, time spent in searching for such collateral matter will be saved, and the information will be sent more promptly and in more usable shape. The members of the Institute can be of service to the Library by forwarding copies of mining reports, maps privately issued,-,and similar material, which will be classified, indexed, and made available to other members. Suggestions for additions to the Library, either by purchase or personal solicitation as gifts, will be welcomed. It is hoped that members while in the city will use the Library freely, and assurance is given that most careful service will be rendered to them.

Jan 5, 1914

By James B. Duke, Ernest W. Greene

An idea of what is meant by "Ultrafine Minerals Or Slimes" as used in the title can be had by an examination of Fig. I. Particle size distributions are presented for a crude kaolin clay, a coarse fraction and a fine fraction. The crude kaolin as mined was blunged with water, degritted through a 325-mesh Tyler screen, and dispersed with sodium silicate. The dispersed crude was then centrifuged in the laboratory into the coarse and fine fractions shown in the figure. The distribution curves were obtained by the well known sedimentation technique of Casagrande&apos; using a long arm centrifuge to obtain equivalent spherical diameters down to 0.2 microns on the finer fraction. Fig. 1 shows the coarse fraction kaolin to be 50% finer than 3 microns, while the crude kaolin is 50% finer than 1.4 microns, and the fine fraction 50% finer than 0.6 microns. For comparison 53 microns on the horizontal scale would represent Stokesian diameters which would just pass a 325- mesh Tyler screen, taking into consideration the Andreasen sieve correction factor of 1.22 X the screen opening.&apos; Another helpful comparison is the surface areas, which in square meters per gram, are 0.044 for 53 micron particles, 0.77 for 3 microns, 1.65 for 1.4 microns, and 5.0 for 0.46 micron particles. Fig. 2 is an electron micrograph of a similar fine fraction kaolin showing the hexagonal plate- like particle shapes.

Jan 10, 1962

The Library of the above-named Societies is open from 9 A.M. to 10 P.M. on all week-days, except holidays, from Sept. 1 to June 30, and from 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. during July and August. The Library contains about-55,000 volumes, including sets of technical periodicals and the publications of scientific and technical societies. Members of the Institute, with few exceptions, are forced to spend a portion of their time in localities isolated from sources of information. To these the Library can render valuable service through correspondence; letters requesting information will receive special attention. The Library is prepared to furnish references and copies of articles on mining and metallurgical subjects; to determine the existence of mining maps, and to furnish general information as to the geology and mineral resources of all countries. All communications should be made as definite as possible so that the information received may be what is desired and not include collateral matter which may not be of interest. The time spent in searching for such collateral matter will be saved, and the information will be sent more promptly and in more usable shape. The members of the Institute can be of service to the Library by forwarding copies of mining reports, maps privately issued, and similar material, which will be classified, indexed, and made available to other members. Suggestions for additions to the Library, either by purchase or personal solicitation as gifts, will be welcomed. It is hoped that members while in the city will use the Library freely, and assurance is given that most careful service will be rendered to them.

Jan 7, 1916

By S. H. Ash, J. J. Forbes

Probably the newest thing in mining safety, or safety for mines, is the apparent dissatisfaction on the part of the mineral industries, as represented by both management and labor, and the general public of the Nation, with the safety record of the mining industry. This is reflected by published comments and papers in the technical press;l-9 in labor periodicals,10,11 in popular journals and periodicals,l2, 13 and in the daily press; also by discussions of the Safety Committees sponsored by the National Safety Council,9, 14-15 the American Mining Congress,l.l6 the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers,2,4 the Mine Inspectors&apos; Institute of Amerthe Coal Mining Institute of America,5 19 the American Standards Association, and others.20.21 Mining safety is a joint problem of management and the individual workman. Safety is not attained and will not be attained solely by laws, decrees, and commands because, if it could be done in this manner, acceptable mining safety would have been achieved long ago by the individual states in our Nation and by the nations abroad. The best safety performance is found at plants where management provides a safe environment for the workers; where supervision is efficient and super- visors, others concerned with promoting safety, and the individual worker know through training, experience, and personal contact the safe and unsafe practices of their field; and where the trained individual worker has become safety-minded by experience, quiet influence, unconscious suggestion, and personal guidance. Despite what may be said to the contrary, progress has been and is being made in mining safety. This is shown in Fig 1 to 4. It is beyond the scope of this paper to give possible reasons for the valleys and peaks in the fatal-injury rates. Some recent factors that appear to be contributing to the improvement in these rates are briefly discussed. Aside from mining equipment, "what&apos;s new in mining safety" for some mines has been in effect or was tried by others long ago. A safety pro- gram is a living thing; as such, it must be vitalized and continuously fed with enthusiasm, constructive action, and improvements. Because safety is concerned with human conduct, it is necessary to practice safety at all times; if not, it is soon forgotten, and accidents occur. Mining-safety Records The large employment and production concerned with anthracite contribute much to the mining-safety records of the mineral industry. Approximately 81,000 persons are. employed in this industry having mines concentrated in an area of 480 square miles in northeastern Pennsylvania. Because of the achievement of the anthracite industry in safety during 1948, the other branches of the mineral industry can profit by a study of what has been done to achieve that record. Where one mineral is produced by other large groups having methods of mining that are similar in many respects to the anthracite-mining methods, an achievement in such a large industry is important. Salient factors concerned with safetye in the anthracite industry are: no radical change has occurred in the mining-safety regulations pertaining to anthracite mines. Because anthracite mining is a branch of the coal-mining industry,

Jan 1, 1950

By J. B. Austin, R. L. Rickett

MEASUREMENTS Of the rate of decomposition of austenite at constant temperature are commonly represented by plotting the percentage transformed on linear coordinates against time on either a linear or a logarithmic scale, a method that yields a curve that in shape resembles an integral sign (Fig. 1). A graph of this kind is not always convenient because extrapolation to the beginning or end of the transformation, or even interpolation, may be uncertain unless there are a large number of observations, which seldom happens; furthermore, the degree of consistency of a set of measurements is difficult to judge from such a curve. It is desirable therefore to find some mode of plotting, or even better to find a standard variety of graph paper, that gives a straight line instead of the integral shape. The straight line has many advantages; the number of readings required to fix the position of the curve is greatly reduced, interpolation is easy and rapid, extrapolation can be carried out with greater confidence and, finally, the consistency of the measurements is readily estimated from the scatter of the points. The last advantage is particularly valuable when the data are obtained by direct microscopic examination alone, because they are influenced by the skill of the observer in estimating the relative size of areas, possibly also by undetected inhomogeneity of the specimen. A search for ways of representing the observations as a straight line yielded two methods which are described in this paper. The paper also includes an account of some interesting relations brought to light in applying these methods to the available experimental data. Usually the best way to derive such a method of plotting is to base it on established principles of chemistry and physics, as has been done, for example, for the temperature variation of the equilibrium constant of a chemical reaction. But so little is known of the mechanism of the decomposition of austenite, and so little is available in the way of well established background for changes of this kind, that it is simpler to rely upon purely empirical means. The general plan therefore is to study existing data with a view to finding some function of the direct observations that will

Jan 1, 1938

By E. M. Norris

DURING the winter and spring of 1917, an unprecedented number of underground fires occurred in the Butte district. With one exception, these fires were caused by the failure of electrical equipment, and called attention to the increased fire hazard in underground mining operations occasioned by the extensive use of electricity. Five local conditions that contributed toward a heavy fire risk were (1) The heavy continuous timbering necessary for mine supports; (2) the strong ventilating pressures in the shafts and main airways; (3) the subsidence and faulting movements in the country rock, which ruptured cables and displaced trolley and lighting wires; (4) the strongly acid mine waters, which quickly developed any weak points in the electrical insulation;(5) oxidation in old stopes containing large amounts of timber. In the summer of 1917, a comprehensive plan of fire prevention was begun by the Anaconda Copper Mining Co., which involved a thorough and intensive development of the preventive measures then in use. These were as follows: Fireproofing, remodeling and strengthening electrical insulations, extension of underground water system, control of ventilation, maintaining efficiency of fire-fighting crews, and reorganization of fire patrol.

Jan 2, 1922

By David B. Scott

The Mogollon mining district, New Mexico, has received little public attention, although for 15 years it has been the leading silver producer of the state; it is situated in a region remote from the principal lines of travel, and its activities have usually been limited to the operations of two or three companies. The value of the total production of the district in the 44 years of its history has been estimated at $15,000,000. For the years 1904 to 1917, inclusive, the output was: gold, $4,370,000; silver, 10,042,000 oz.; copper, 874,862 lb.; total value, approximately $10,500,000. In 1913 the district contributed 80 per cent. of the total silver production of New Mexico, but in 1917 only 41 per cent., due to serious interruption in the operations of the leading producer. Since 1914 the silver output has diminished one-half, and the present high value of silver is nearly offset by the increase in cost of production. The output of gold has rarely exceeded 35 per cent. of the total for New Mexico. The ratio of silver to gold, by weight, has averaged 46:1 based on the whole output of the district. Location and Topography The town of Mogollon is 75 mi. (121 km.) by a poorly located highway ,. from the nearest railroad terminals, at Silver City and Tyrone. All supplies are transported by motor trucks and teams. The area, sometimes called the Cooney Mining District, lies on the western flank of the Mogollon Mountains, which occupy the western part of Socorro County. The elevations drop steeply on the west to the valley of the San Francisco River, adjacent to the Arizona boundary. The topography is very rugged, the whole area being sharply dissected; deep canyons with steep gradients and rugged walls are characteristic of the whole western slope of the Mogollon Range. The main canyons i run east and west, and usually maintain a flow of water during the entire year. As would be expected in a region of such deep dissection, the mines are generally dry. The mountain ridges between the canyons have altitudes varying from 7000 to 10,000 ft. (2130 to 3050 m.) and drop sharply, on their western face, to the floor of the San Francisco Valley at an elevation of 5000 ft. (1525 m.). Erosion has been rapid, and the

Jan 1, 1920

By H. I. Aaronson

The nucleation of pearlite at proeutectoid ferrite is inhibited, to an increasing extent, at the following locations: At twin boundary-nucleated ferrite, between closely spaced ferrite sideplates, and at intragranular plates. These effects are discussed in terms of the influence of transformation strain energies and of the interfacial free energy of austen-ite:ferrite boundaries on the rate of pearlite nucleation. The growth of pearlite into the interiors of austenite grains from the region of the grain boundaries is markedly restricted when low reaction temperatures and large austenite grain sizes permit the development of interlocking networks of intragranular ferrite plates. PREVIOUS investigators have made extensive studies of the interactions which occur between the proeutectoid ferrite and the pearlite reactions from the viewpoint of the mechanisms through which pearlite interferes with the nucleation and growth of proeutectoid ferrite.1-3 In the present investigation, the processes through which proeutectoid ferrite (hereafter termed simply "ferrite") can reduce the rate of formation of pearlite have been explored in some detail. A steel with a relatively low carbon content, in which the ferrite reaction can compete successfully with the pearlite reaction over a wide range of reaction temperature, and exceptionally coarse-grained specimens, which further emphasize the role of the ferrite reaction, have been employed for most of this work. A brief examination also has been made, however, of the effects of smaller austenite grain sizes upon these processes. Experimental Procedure The steel employed had the following composition: 0.29 pet C, 0.76 pet Mn, 0.25 pet si, 0,007 pet S, and 0.005 pct P. This alloy was homogenized for 48 hr at 1250°C. The investigation was performed

Jan 1, 1959

By N. H. Jensen, B. L. Sackett, Carlos Bardwell, Simon Jacobson

Lead smelting has been an important industry in Utah for many years. The first lead smelting was done, over 60 years ago, at the Rollins mine in Beaver County, by burning heaps consisting of alternate layers of wood and high-grade carbonate ore. The lead thus obtained was molded into bullets. With the development of the mines, the problem of cheaper handling of the ore became important. The only outlet for this ore was Swansea or the Atlantic Coast but to ship to either cost $150 per ton or more for treatment and handling. From 1864 to 1871, experimenting was done with blast, Scotch hearth, and reverberatory furnaces, with the blast furnace surviving as the standard plant. The first crude furnaces were circular or hexagonal in shape, and were made of adobe and stone, which quickly burned out. They were small, about 21/2 ft. in diameter, and smelted from 3 to 10 tons in 24 hr. The metal had to be tapped from the bottom of the crucible, necessitating a shut down of the furnace during this process. This procedure caused salamanders to form around the tap hole when the furnace was started again, which frequently resulted in freezing. The campaign lasted until a tap of bullion was made. The first successful plant of the crude stone type was operated in 1870. From 1870 to 1872, there was a smelter building craze in the state. During that period, about 20 furnaces were built, chiefly near the mines, and their operation was limited and sporadic. The work was then placed in the hands of trained metallurgists, who standardized on the rectangular form of furnace. In 1871, Daggett, at the Winnamuck mine in Bingham, installed water-jackets around the smelting zone of the furnaces. These furnaces were circular; the diameter at the tuyere line was 3 ft. 6 in. and at the charge floor 5 ft. 3 in. The height from tuyere line to charge floor was 14 ft., height of tuyere line above top of crucible was 3 ft. 8 in. Furnace capacity was about 14 tons per day, with a campaign of about 16 days. Cost of smelting was about $44 per ton. The ores making the

Jan 1, 1926

By R. Schuhmann

PROBLEMS in expressing, interpreting, and using size-distribution data recur in many phases of mineral dressing; therefore it is desirable that size analyses be expressed in such a form, either numerically or graphically, that comparisons can be made readily. The size distribution of comminuted material is a result of a specific physical operation on the material and therefore should be governed by some definite physical principle, or cause-effect relation. Although this principle has not been discovered, it has been found that the size distribution of comminuted, homogeneous solids may be expressed by relatively simple mathematical equations. Two equations in particular, proposed by Gaudin1 and by Rosin and Rammler,2 respectively, have stood out, both having wide demonstrated ranges of application. The form and the method of application of the two appear almost irreconcilably different on the surface, but, as will be shown, they are asymptotic in the fine sizes when expressed in the same units. This paper gives the results of a further study of the Gaudin and Rosin-Rammler relations, made with the object of developing a form of size-distribution equation that will be more usable and more significant-particularly in comminution studies, both for interpreting the nature of size distribution and for evaluating surface. The work is summarized in the following: I. An equation relating cumulative per cent finer to particle size in the fine sizes is derived from Gaudin&apos;s original equation. That equation relates weight per cent retained on one size and through the next larger size in a geometric series of sizes to size (of the retaining screen, for example). 2. Comparisons with Gaudin&apos;s equation and with the Rosin-Rammler equation show that the cumulative equation applies to the fine sizes of all size distributions that fit either of these earlier relations, and, furthermore, has some advantages over each. 3. A simple graphical method of surface calculation based on the cumulative-equation plot is evolved and illustrated. 4. Additional confirmation of the cumulative equation was obtained in the more severe test of sizing down to the limit of a sedimentation balance a sample of jaw-crushed quartz. The equation was closely followed over a 20o-fold range in size, from approximately 0.4 mm. (35 mesh) down to 0.0023 mm. (2.3 microns), the lower limit of the size analysis made. There is no indication that the equation will not hold further to well below 2.3 microns. 5. Calculations of the surface produced in the jaw-crushing test mentioned above showed that at least 8o per cent of the total new surface was on particles finer than 35 mesh (about ½ 5 of the crusher setting). The minus 35-mesh portion was only

Jan 1, 1940

By N. H. Fisher

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION THE most important known deposits in Australia of what are commonly referred to as the beach-sand minerals are along the most easterly part of the Australian coast, between Southport, 17 miles north of the Queensland-New South Wales border, and Ballina, 50 miles south of the border, and most of the production has come from this area (Fig 1). Smaller deposits are known to occur farther to the south at intervals for several hundred miles, and beaches have been worked at Yamba, 96 miles south and Woolgoolga, 150 miles south of the border and at Swansea, 60 miles north of Sydney. Important deposits have been shown to exist on north Stradbroke Island and others have been located farther to the north, as far as Tin Can Bay at the south end of Frazer Island. (Fig 2). Table I gives the list of operators with the location of their deposits and workings, their approximate maximum monthly capacity expressed in tons of heavy mineral produced by their concentrating plants before separation into individual mineral concentrates, their methods of mining and concentrating the minerals, and the products obtained. This table applies as of June 1948, but all the operators are remodeling or improving their plants and plant practices will be modified accordingly. In addition, active boring campaigns have been carried out by Alluvial Gold, Ltd., of Sydney, in the Cudgen-Cudgera area, and by Zinc Corporation. Ltd., of Melbourne, on Stradbroke Island, and in other places. PHYSIOGRAPHY Submergence of the order of 100 to 200 ft at the close of the Pleistocene period left the pre-existing hills as promontories and the valleys as deep inlets. Wave action has built bay-bars and sandspits in a northerly direction from the headlands, and lakes and marshes have formed between these bars and the initial post-submergence coast line. These lakes and swamps have been or are being filled in by river-borne sediments or wind-blown sand. Beasley1 has presented evidence that suggests a recent emergence of the coast line of about 10 ft. The evidence for this belief is the presence of a black sand seam 1/3 mile inland and 17 ft above sea level (Fig 3), and although it is not entirely certain that this seam is of beach formation and owes nothing to windblown concentration, other evidence supports the suggestion of recent emergence. Such emergence would undoubtedly aid the formation of bars and sandspits and the easterly progress of the beach front, leaving a series of parallel dunes (Fig 4). This belt of north-south coastal dunes ranges up to 1/2 mile in width and as many as 15 lines of dune have been counted (Fig 3). The foredune is generally the highest, up to 25 ft high, and there is in many places a flat platform in front of the dune known as the berm. The dunes behind the foredune are lower and less well defined

Jan 1, 1947

By W. L. Dennen, V. H. Wilson

THIS paper is a description of the opera¬tion and results of a Humphreys Spiral Silt Cleaning Plant at the Powderly Colliery of The Hudson Coal Co. during the first nine months of operation and follows a pre¬liminary description given at the Anthracite Institute in May, 1947, in a paper titled "Preparation of Anthracite Sift for Boiler Fuel in a Humphreys Spiral Test Plant" by H. H. Otto, V. H. Wilson and W. L. Dennen. This plant is considered a full size operating test plant and, like all new plants, numerous minor changes in the methods of operation have been made from time to time to secure the results desired. Views of the silt preparation plant and of the screening house are given in Fig 1 and 2. This plant consists of 48 spirals in 8 batteries of 6 spirals each, 36 of which were to be operated as primary spirals and the remaining 12 as secondary spirals. A brief description of the plant and its operation follows. The only material cleaned at the plant during 1947 was that carried in the underflow from the Thickener which handles the Breaker waste water. This underflow, amounting to approximately 2000 gpm of water and containing 12.6 pct of solids, is pumped .to vibrating screens where the plus 316-in. material is removed. (Fig 3). This oversize material drops into a pocket from which it is trucked to the run-of-mine

Jan 1, 1948