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By Linn Bradley

F. H. WILLCOX, Pittsburgh, Pa. (communication to the Secretary*). -We must keep in mind, in balancing the savings-to be anticipated by the most efficient combustion of gas, the best heat absorption by stoves or boilers, and by heat conservation of the thermal equivalent carried in. blast-furnace gas-against the cost in operation, maintenance, depreciation and interest charges of the equipment required to realize the savings, that in boilers and hot-blast stoves we are basing our economies upon two different, combustion phenomena. In a boiler, evaporating water at a heat efficiency of 70 per cent., approximately 47,550 B.t.u. is consumed per boiler horsepower. Taking the blast, furnace gas cited in the above paper, we are using about 38 ¾ lb. of cold-washed gas per boiler horsepower. Using the hot-cleaned gas, the same equivalent heat is furnished by 34 1b. of the gas , This leaves of the 38 ¾ lb. required in the case of cold-washed gas, 4 ¾ lb. or 6,650 B.t.u. available for raising more steam when dry-hot gas is used, which means that an equivalent amount of coal firing can be dispensed with. Per ton of iron, this figure 2/3 X 12,000/38.75 X 4.75 = 980 lb. gas or 1,372,000 B.t.u. or 100 lb. coal. At $1.50 per ton of coal, the net saving per ton of pig iron produced by the use of dry-hot over wet-cold cleaning will, therefore, be about $0.06 2/3. At a stove heating 8,500 lb. of air per toil iron from 150° F., one-quarter of the dry-hot cleaned gas, or 3,000 lb., would heat the air to 1,450° F. 3,000 X 1,400 X 0.70 = (8,500 X 0.255) = 1,300. The cold-wet gas would heat the same amount of air to 1,280° F. 3,000 X 1,225 X 0.70 = (8,500 X.0.255) = 1,130.

Jan 4, 1917

By Robert W. Bartlett

A computer model for predicting the rate of oxidative leaching of copper from fragmented low grade sulfide ores is presented. The model involves the kinetics of the dissolution of chalcopyrite grains and solution diffusion of oxygen within rock pores. Adjustable curve fitting parameters are not used. The model was tested by comparing computed extraction curves with experimental results for a -11 inch ore obtained by block caving and leached at 90°C and 400 psi oxygen for one year at the Lawrence Livermore Laboratories.

Jan 1, 1973

By F. J. Darnell

SINGLE crystals of a-titanium are difficult to obtain because of the phase transformation at 882 °C in which the structure changes from the high-temperature body-centered structure ß to the low-temperature hexagonal close-packed structure a. Preparation of single crystals of a-titanium has previously been accomplished by a strain-anneal method which takes several days and is not generally reproducible. Single crystals as large as 5 mm

Jan 1, 1959

By T. S. Lundy, J. I. Federer

A graphical method has been developed and tested for separating the effects of grain boundary and lattice diffusion in polycrystalline materials. The method is based on the assumptions that for unidirectional diffusion from a plane source of radioactive material, the penetration of activity far into the specimen from the source is due solely to grain-boundary effects, and 2) pure grain-boundary penetration is described by a linear plot of log activity vs the perpendicular distance x from the source. The former is based on the fact that at any temperature the grain-boundary diffusion coefficient is always very large relative to the lattice diffusion coefficient; and the latter is based on the derivation of Fisher.1 Using these criteria along with appropriate penetration data (in this case, data for the diffusion of Cb95 in pressed and sintered UO2) one first plots the data as log activity vs x2 and as log activity vs x, as shown by curves 1 and 2, respectively, in Fig. 1. A tangent line to curve 2 for large x (curve 3) is then transferred to the x2 plot as curve 4. The subtraction of curve 4 from curve 1 yields curve 5 which represents only lattice diffusion and may therefore be related to the diffusion coefficient by using the appropriate solution to Fick's second law. It should be noted that the method has inherent inaccuracies for small and large values of x2 and only the subtraction at intermediate values can be used. For the illustrated specimen the calculated diffusion coefficient is 3.4 X 10-11 sq cm per sec at1445°C while data using a single crystal of UO2 at the same temperature yielded a value of 2.9 x 10-11 sq cm per sec.2 The same method of subtracting grain-boundary diffusion effects to obtain lattice diffusion coefficients has been successfully used to determine self-diffusion coefficients of Th230 in polycrystalline thoria.

Jan 1, 1962

By Richard R. Parizek, E. Scott Blair

Numerical modeling of ground water flow systems can be used to help analyze many practical problems encountered in the mining industry. Numerical models can be used to predict ground-water seepage rates into surface mines, shafts, and other large excavations; to predict water-level changes under adjacent properties; and to predict the effectiveness of various deep-well dewatering schemes. As with any model, the results from a numerical model are limited by the quality and quantity of data, and by the restrictions of any simplifying assumptions. A case study is presented that shows how a numerical model was used for engineering purposes to help analyze the hydrologic impact of a proposed open-pit mine by Predicting changes in the dewatering rate caused by the lateral growth and deepening of the mine and by predicting the effectiveness of various deep-well dewatering schemes.

Jan 1, 1982

By A. A. Jr. Smith, J. S. Smart

Numerous investigations of the effects of the various impurities common to commercial coppers have been published, and the data have found wide use in industry. Naturally, emphasis has been placed on the oxygen-bearing coppers of the tough-pitch variety, but need is now evident for data covering the oxygen-free condition as well. Furthermore, relatively few of the important reactions between oxygen and the various impurities are well understood, and often the data at hand are not applicable to the low concentrations encountered in commercial coppers. This paper presents the changes in conductivity and softening temperature derived from individual additions of the group VIII triad, iron, cobalt and nickel, to high-purity copper, and constitutes a portion of the copper-research program being conducted at the Central Research Laboratory of the American Smelting and Refining Co. The method of preparation of high-purity copper and its alloys in either the oxygen-free or oxygen-bearing form has been described previous1y.l The purity of this material, and the methods developed to produce it, provide the means for direct investigation of the very low concentration range in which the various impurities generally exist in commercial coppers. The usual necessity for extrapolation to this range using the results obtained from higher concentrations, and the interfering effects of extraneous impurities, are thus simultaneously circumvented. Since previously published data have adequately presented the effects of higher concentrations of iron, cobalt and nickel, the present investigation has been confined to the composition range o to 0.05 per cent. All alloys were initially prepared in the form of oxygen-free continuous cast rod, the weighed alloying additions in suitable form being charged with the pure copper to the continuous casting crucible. The best of the available high-purity alloying materials were used, and spectrographic analyses confirmed the absence of interfering elements from the alloys formed. Each series was compounded in the direction of increasing concentration, starting with pure copper in a new crucible and finishing with the 0.05 per cent alloy. Composition was closely controlled by adding the alloying element in the form of a carefully compounded and analyzed master alloy rendered uniform by continuous casting. The accuracy of this method of synihesis was proved by chemical analysis of the more concentrated alloys, and, accordingly, there is every reason to credit the stated composition of the very dilute alloys in the range where chemical analysis becomes highly uncertain. Oxygen-free samples for measurements of conductivity and softening temperature Were obtained by drawing the continuous cast rod to wire of 0.08I-in. diameter. employing a number of intermediate anneals to refine the grain structure. The

Jan 1, 1942

By A. A. Jr. Smith, J. S. Smart

Numerous investigations of the effects of the various impurities common to commercial coppers have been published, and the data have found wide use in industry. Naturally, emphasis has been placed on the oxygen-bearing coppers of the tough-pitch variety, but need is now evident for data covering the oxygen-free condition as well. Furthermore, relatively few of the important reactions between oxygen and the various impurities are well understood, and often the data at hand are not applicable to the low concentrations encountered in commercial coppers. This paper presents the changes in conductivity and softening temperature derived from individual additions of the group VIII triad, iron, cobalt and nickel, to high-purity copper, and constitutes a portion of the copper-research program being conducted at the Central Research Laboratory of the American Smelting and Refining Co. The method of preparation of high-purity copper and its alloys in either the oxygen-free or oxygen-bearing form has been described previous1y.l The purity of this material, and the methods developed to produce it, provide the means for direct investigation of the very low concentration range in which the various impurities generally exist in commercial coppers. The usual necessity for extrapolation to this range using the results obtained from higher concentrations, and the interfering effects of extraneous impurities, are thus simultaneously circumvented. Since previously published data have adequately presented the effects of higher concentrations of iron, cobalt and nickel, the present investigation has been confined to the composition range o to 0.05 per cent. All alloys were initially prepared in the form of oxygen-free continuous cast rod, the weighed alloying additions in suitable form being charged with the pure copper to the continuous casting crucible. The best of the available high-purity alloying materials were used, and spectrographic analyses confirmed the absence of interfering elements from the alloys formed. Each series was compounded in the direction of increasing concentration, starting with pure copper in a new crucible and finishing with the 0.05 per cent alloy. Composition was closely controlled by adding the alloying element in the form of a carefully compounded and analyzed master alloy rendered uniform by continuous casting. The accuracy of this method of synihesis was proved by chemical analysis of the more concentrated alloys, and, accordingly, there is every reason to credit the stated composition of the very dilute alloys in the range where chemical analysis becomes highly uncertain. Oxygen-free samples for measurements of conductivity and softening temperature Were obtained by drawing the continuous cast rod to wire of 0.08I-in. diameter. employing a number of intermediate anneals to refine the grain structure. The

Jan 1, 1942

Graham Macfarlane, Louisville, Ky. (communication to the Secretary*):—In the paper by S. Whinery under the above caption mention is made of the occurrence of Clinton iron-ore in Kentucky and Tennessee. I believe that this is really a ferruginous limestone in what the Tennessee Geological Survey calls the Fernvale formation. In Davidson and Sumner counties, Tennessee, this occurs at about the horizon stated by Mr. Whinery. The maximum thickness of the deposit is from 10 to 12 ft., but it averages between 6 and 8 ft., lying practically horizontal. The Red River Furnace Co., under my direction, opened a mine in the Fernvale " red rock" near Goodlettsville, Tenn., several years ago. When it was first found we assumed it to be Clinton ore, but the absence of the characteristic Clinton fossiliferous structure and other evidence satisfied us that it is really limestone saturated with iron oxide. I think the very low ratio of SiO2 and Al2o3 to iron content as compared with the usual ratio in the Clinton ore is also evidence in favor of its being the Fernvale. The Tennessee Geological Survey states that at outcrops where this ore has been leached it carries about 44 per cent. of iron; under cover, from 20 to 25 per cent. of iron and from 3 to 6 per cent. of silica, the remainder being chiefly calcium carbonate. Its phosphorus content is irregular and generally rather high for a foundry-iron mixture. Since it is more than self-fluxing, we have at times operated with a mixture of brown hematite and red ore with no limestone.

Jan 1, 1913

By G. Venturello, C. Antonione, G. Della Gatta

Results from work on the effect of inferstitials on recovery and recrystallization of' very pure iron (99.995 pet) doped with nilrogen up to 400 ppm are reported. Nitrided specimens were obtained by heating the iron in a static atmosphere of NH3 + H2. The samples were cold-rolled 80 pet, subjected to a series of isochronal and isothermal anneals, and submitted to examination by X-rays, micrographs, and hardness tests. Small additions of nitrogen show a strong effect in reducing recovery of' the mechanical properties of high-purity iron. At the temperatures of. the experiments, this effect proved greater than in the case of carbon. At 400°C pure iron recovers more than 50 pet of the total hardness increase, carburized iron vecovers 25 pet, and nitrided iron only 10 pet. On the other hand. the addition of nitrogen has, similarly to carbon, a very small effect on recrystallization; the effect is, however, slightly higher than that of carbon. When the concentration Of nitrogen is above the solubility limit in a iron at the temperattue of the experiments, an increase in the frequency of nu -cleation is also observed. THE object of the present work is to improve knowledge on the effect of interstitials both on recovery and on primary recrystallization of pure iron. In fact. at present there are no available data on the effect of nitrogen on high-purity iron. The only work which at present can be somewhat related to this problem is a work of Leak et al.1 in which grain boundary internal friction at high temperature in the presence of increasing amounts of nitrogen is studied by a torsion pendulum. The present work is a continuation of a previous one2 on the effects of carbon. EXPERIMENTAL PART Preparation of the Material. Pure iron was prepared following the same methods used in the pre- vious work2 and was nitrided using controlled quantities of ammonia in an apparatus similar to that used for carburizing. The apparatus consists essentially of a gas-tight quartz tube containing the specimens. The tube, maintained at constant pressure by means of a mercury seal, is placed in a resistance furnace. For nitriding, the NH3 + H2 atmosphere with a suitable concentration of NH3 was introduced into the tube, which had been previously carefully evacuated and degassed by heating at 600°C. The hydrogen used was carefully purified by passing it through a palladium filter. The ammonia required was prepared with the following reaction: CaO + 2NH4CI —CaCl2 + H2O + 2NH3 by heating the mixture of CaO and NH4C1 in a glass flask and then collecting the ammonia in a graduated Hempel burette. For each nitriding program a given amount of NH3 prepared by this method was introduced together with the H2 into the tube previously evacuated. Nitriding of the sample was then performed at 570°C for 48 hr. After this, to ensure a homogeneous distribution of nitrogen, the samples were further heated for 72 hr at 800°C. With this method which uses a static nitriding atmosphere, carefully controlled conditions of purity are obtained. Contrarily, with the conventional continuous-flow methods, using large quantities of circulating gas, there is a greater risk of introducing impurities into the samples. Furthermore, the required nitrogen concentration in the specimen is easily predetermined and obtained. A plot of the relation observed between the initial concentration of NH3 in the gas and the quantity of nitrogen introduced into the iron samples is given in Fig. 1. The data refer to samples of 1.2-mm thickness and to the nitriding conditions previously described. Furthermore, as a comparison, the data relative to two 0.5-mm-thick samples are reported. The presence of a reservoir in the cold zone of the reaction bulb made possible the gradual dissociation of ammonia on the sample in the hot zone. Internal-friction methods were used to determine the content of nitrogen dissolved in the iron samples. Some analyses were also carried out with chemical methods. The following table, Table I, shows a comparison of data obtained with chemical and internal-friction methods. The correspondence between chemical methods and internal-friction

Jan 1, 1964

By R. P. Carreker

THE experiments described in this report were conducted as a part of a general program designed to document the deformation behavior of pure metals over a wide range of temperature. Material The silver used in this investigation was obtained from the Handy and Harmon Co. as 99.97+ pct pure. It is from the same length of wire as that designated H-H silver by Hoffman and Turnbull in their investigation of self-diffusion in silver.' The silver was drawn at room temperature from 0.060-in. diam to 0.020-in. diam wire without intermediate annealing. Seven-inch lengths of cold-drawn wire were annealed in groups of ten by placing them in individual quartz tubes spaced circumferentially about and near the vertical furnace axis. Dry nitrogen was passed through the furnace to lower the partial pressure of oxygen. The three annealing temperatures used were 700°, 800°, and 900°C, producing grain sizes of 0.017, 0.040, and 0.250 mm diam after 30 min at temperature. Testing Procedure The details of the testing procedure have been described in the reporting of results of a similar investigation of Copper. Annealed specimens of 5-in. gage length were gripped between grooved plates. Tests were performed using an Instron tensile-test-

Jan 1, 1958

By R. W. Smith, K. H. Lee Discussion by Fred C. Bond

Fred C. Bond (Tucson, Ariz.) — This is a valuable paper presenting much well directed research testing. It describes a practical method by which the long and relatively accurate Bond closed-circuit grindability can be adapted to a known ore so that results of comparable accuracy can be obtained on the same ore from much shorter batch grinding tests. This can be very useful in control work. In large mills a routine batch grinding test on the head sample can be made each day, or even each shift, to check grinding performance by comparison of the work index from each mill grinding section with that obtained from testing. However, it would be well to re-standardize the batch test against a Bond test, perhaps once a week at

Jan 1, 1969

By E. C. Truesdale, Gerald Edmunds

A few years ago H. M. Cyr, working in the Research Laboratories of The New Jersey Zinc Co., produced a few pounds of zinc1 of such purity that no other elements were detected in it by spectrographic analysis, using the facilities then available. This zinc contained less than one ten-thousandth of one per cent of metallic impurities.&apos; During the decade that followed upon the laboratory production of this "spectro-graphically pure" zinc, commercial developments brought about the production of large tonnages of zinc of purity exceeding 99.99 per cent, and today zinc of 99.999 per cent purity is produced and marketed as "chemically pure" zinc. Typical analyses of present supplies of high-purity zinc are given in Table 1. Table 1.—Typical Analyses Percentnge by Weight Sum of Zinc Fe, Ib1 Fe Cd 1A1 cd Special High Grade*.......... 0.007b 0.005b 0.005b none O.OIOb C.P. (chemically pure)......... < 0.0002 0.0005c 0.000052 S.P. (spectrographically pure).. <0.0002d <0.00005d a A.S.T.M. Standard Specification for Special High Grade Slab Zinc (A.S.T.M. Designation: B 637). b Maximum. &apos; Fe chemically determined. Pb and Cd are spectrographically determined. d Differences between composition of C.P. and S.P. zinc are discussed later in this paper. The availability of commercial tonnages of special high-grade zinc has been the basis for the development of the zinc-base die-casting alloy industry which, in the year 1936, consumed one-eighth of the zinc used in the United States for all purposes. This and the C.P. and S.P. grades have given impetus to scientific investigations into the properties of pure

Jan 1, 1939

By E. C. Truesdale, Gerald Edmunds

A few years ago H. M. Cyr, working in the Research Laboratories of The New Jersey Zinc Co., produced a few pounds of zinc1 of such purity that no other elements were detected in it by spectrographic analysis, using the facilities then available. This zinc contained less than one ten-thousandth of one per cent of metallic impurities.&apos; During the decade that followed upon the laboratory production of this "spectro-graphically pure" zinc, commercial developments brought about the production of large tonnages of zinc of purity exceeding 99.99 per cent, and today zinc of 99.999 per cent purity is produced and marketed as "chemically pure" zinc. Typical analyses of present supplies of high-purity zinc are given in Table 1. Table 1.—Typical Analyses Percentnge by Weight Sum of Zinc Fe, Ib1 Fe Cd 1A1 cd Special High Grade*.......... 0.007b 0.005b 0.005b none O.OIOb C.P. (chemically pure)......... < 0.0002 0.0005c 0.000052 S.P. (spectrographically pure).. <0.0002d <0.00005d a A.S.T.M. Standard Specification for Special High Grade Slab Zinc (A.S.T.M. Designation: B 637). b Maximum. &apos; Fe chemically determined. Pb and Cd are spectrographically determined. d Differences between composition of C.P. and S.P. zinc are discussed later in this paper. The availability of commercial tonnages of special high-grade zinc has been the basis for the development of the zinc-base die-casting alloy industry which, in the year 1936, consumed one-eighth of the zinc used in the United States for all purposes. This and the C.P. and S.P. grades have given impetus to scientific investigations into the properties of pure

Jan 1, 1939

By O. Skiredj, J. F. Elliott

It has been necessary to collate the available data on the solubility of graphite in Fe-Si-Mn alloys for a study of slag-metal equilibria in ferromanganese production. That study will be reported later; the collation is reported here. The carbon content of graphite-saturated liquid iron above 1153ºC by Chipman and co-workers1 is: %C= 1.34 + 2.54 x 10~3t(°C) [l] For graphite-saturated manganese above 1322ºC it is: %C = 2.68 + 3.52 x 1CT3 t(°C) [2]

Jan 1, 1963

By N. J. Grant, R. Nordheim

An extensive study was made of the aging characteristics of alloys based on the 80 pct Ni-20 pct Cr composition hardened with aluminum and/or titanium, each up to 4 pct. Aging was followed by means of hardness and hot electrical resistance measurements as well as by X-ray and microscopy. Stress rupture tests at 1500°F were utilized as a check on the predicted behavior. THE titanium and aluminum hardened Ni-Cr alloys, exemplified by Nimonic 80 and Inconel X, constitute one of the more important groups of alloys developed to meet the demand for materials retaining their strength at elevated temperatures. For service in the temperature range 1200" to 1500°F, these alloys offer high creep resistance. With increasing service temperature, however, the strength of the simpler Ni-Cr base alloys falls off rapidly so that above 1500°F there is a significant loss of strength. The present investigation was undertaken with the hope that a better understanding of the factors controlling the precipitation hardening of these alloys would make it possible to increase the useful service temperature range. Primarily this investigation involved the study of the effects of titanium and aluminum on the hardening and the subsequent softening at elevated temperatures. The titanium and aluminum contents were each varied between 0 and 4 pct by weight at a constant nickel to chromium weight ratio of about 4:1. (Except when otherwise stated, all compositions are expressed on a weight basis.) The major part of the investigation was confined to alloys with less than 0.06 pct C. Recently several papers dealing with the identity of the microconstituents in the titanium and aluminum hardened Ni-Cr alloys have been published. Using X-ray analysis of the residues from anodic dissolution, Rosenbauml was only able to identify carbides and nitrides in Nimonic 80 and Inconel X. However, since Rosenbaum worked with alloys in the hot rolled rather than in the aged condition, his results are inconclusive. Recently Hignett&apos; reported that the hardening of Nimonic 80 was due to the controlled precipitation of Ni,(TiAl) having the cubic Ni3A1 structure. Taylor and Floydv-" published the results of an investigation of the nickel-rich corner of the Ni-Cr-Ti, Ni-Cr-Al, and Ni-Ti-A1 systems. In the Ni-Ti and the Ni-A1 systems the hexagonal Ni,Ti phase, 7, and the cubic Ni3A1 phase, -y&apos;, respectively, exist in equilibrium with the nickel-rich solid solution. The interatomic distances in the basal plane of Ni,Ti and the octahedral planes of the matrix are almost equal, thus explaining the Wid-manstaetten type structure formed when Ni,Ti precipitates from solid solution. When Ni:,Al precipitates from solid solution, it appears usually in globular form, often dispersed along rows corresponding to definite crystallographic directions. The 7 and phases are also the only intermetallic compounds which occur in the nickel ternary alloys with up to 25 pct Cr and 10 pct Ti or Al. Taylor and Floyd found that Ni,Ti takes practically no nickel, chromium, or aluminum into solution. Nial, on the other hand, dissolves a considerable amount of chromium and titanium and some nickel. Up to three out of every five aluminum atoms could be replaced by titanium in Ni,Al. This substitution caused a slight increase (less than 1 pct) in the lattice parameter. With respect to the effect of variation in the titanium and aluminum contents on the high temperature strength of Nimonic 80 type alloys, Pfeil, Allen, and Conway" reported that an 80 pct Ni-20 pct Cr alloy containing 0.20 to 0.30 pct A1 had the highest creep resistance when the titanium content was kept between 1.65 and 2.75 pct. Experimental Procedure The materials used for this investigation were electrolytic nickel, electrolytic or low carbon chromium, sponge titanium and 2s aluminum. The alloys were melted in an indirect carbon arc furnace under

Jan 1, 1955

Discussion of the paper of GEORGE S. RICE and H. H. CLARK, presented at the Pittsburgh meeting, October, 1914, and printed in Bulletin No. 94, October, 1914, pp. 2563 to 2571. NORMAN V. BRETH,* Pittsburgh, Pa.-It was my privilege to visit in the last two months on behalf of the U. S. Bureau of Mines 10 mines where electric shot-firing systems controlled from outside the mine are installed. I will describe briefly what I saw in some of these mines, which are located in Utah, New. Mexico, Oklahoma, Alabama, and Kansas. At a mine in Utah, 230-volt alternating current is used to fire the shots, which is taken from a small transformer in the substation. The shot-iring circuit is independent of all other wires and is tested for grounds every day. There are no lightning arresters on the firing circuit. Porcelain insulators are used inside of the mine, and glass outside. The switches are situated as follows: One in the substation, one in, the shot-firer&apos;s cabin, two at each cross entry; where the shot-firing circuit crosses the trolley wire a switch is placed on either side of the entry in series with the shot-firing circuit. The miners are checked in and out of the mine. The coal is undercut and is shot down with permissible explosive, the shots being connected in multiple. There are 75 to 110 shots fired each day. A great many times there are no missed shots. If not more than two or three are missed they are left until next day. The fan is kept running at full speed when the shots are fired. The shot-firing switch is closed only once and the whole mine is shot at once. At another mine in Utah, power wires are used for shot-firing circuits; 500-volt, direct current is used to fire the shots. The only sizes of wire used outside of the power wires are Nos. 8 and 14 B. & S. gauge. The return is connected to the pipe lines and track. Porcelain insulators are. used inside of the mine.

Jan 4, 1915

By G. Sherburne Rogers

One of the features of oil-field work that puzzles operator, chemist, and geologist alike, is variation in the gravity of the petroleum produced on neighboring leases or even from adjoining wells. Few fields in the United States yield oil that is of uniform gravity throughout; in some fields the different grades are produced from different sands, in a few from different formations, and in many from different areas in the same sand. In a few cases, perhaps, a common assumption—that the heavier oil is derived from the lighter through the escape of the more volatile constituents—is valid, but many cases can not be explained in this way. Although in the California fields the specific gravity of the oil generally decreases with depth, there are numerous exceptions to this rule; and, as in many other regions the light oil is found nearest the surface, it is evident that evaporation underground is generally an unimportant factor. It is generally recognized that the great differences between petroleum from widely separated fields are due largely to differences in age and degree of metamorphism and to variation in the composition of the original organic matter; but in the writer&apos;s opinion some of these broader differences, as well as most of the minor variations in the character of the oil from any one field, are due to the local action of natural reagents such as sulphur or oxygen. This is particularly likely to be true if the oil has migrated from one formation to another, as in the California fields; and in some arcas it appears that variation in sulphur content may even afford a rough index of the extent or distance of the migration. It is the purpose of this paper to call attention to the chemical action of sulphur and oxygen on petroleum, to show that the gravity of the oil from any one field is intimately related to its sulphur content, and to discuss the possi-

Jan 1, 1918

By Robert Bosworth

THE liability for damages to the surface caused by subsidence is an ever present threat in all underground mining. In ordinary lode mining, this threat rarely materializes into an action, due to the method of mining metalliferous ores, the dip of the veins, and the nature of the ground itself. In the mining of coal, however, this threat is very real. The coal frequently lies close to the surface, in beds underlying large areas of land of which the surface is suitable for agricultural or urban development. Furthermore, the coal is generally mined by the "room and pillar" method and when the pillars of coal are removed, the subjacent support is destroyed. This question of the duty of surface support has now become a very live one in Colorado. What was waste prairie land a few years ago has become valuable agricultural land dotted here and there with growing towns. Frequent references will be made here to Colorado conditions and adjudicated cases, but those conditions and cases and the conclusions to be drawn therefrom are applicable to all coal-mining states. Briefly stated, the question is "Does the owner of the substrata or underlying mineral owe any duty of surface support to the owner of the superjacent strata or surface?" There is -no absolute duty of support owed by the mineral owner and this assertion is made with full knowledge of numerous expressions to the contrary by courts of Pennsylvania, Illinois, Colorado and other coal-mining states. Whether or not any duty exists depends upon the circumstances surrounding each case, and since in the nature of things those circumstances are rarely identical, there can be no absolute rule.

Jan 1, 1928

By R. E. Head

SOME mixtures of sulphide and oxide ores from the Tintic district in Utah are of a sufficiently good grade to be shipped to the smelter without beneficiation. In mining this type of ore, however, a material tonnage of ore of a similar composition but of lower grade is obtained. It is a question of economics whether such ore should be shipped with a certainty of a small return or concentrated if that would yield a sufficiently increased return to amortize plant construction and upkeep and yield a higher rate of profit than at present. It may be assumed that the tonnage of this borderline ore is constantly increasing and that eventually it will attain such proportions as to justify plans for milling on a relatively large scale. Under existing conditions, the producer of mixed sulphide and oxide ores is not greatly concerned about the physical characteristics of his ore or of its mineralogical complexities, since his contract with the smelter calls for payment on the basis of chemical analysis. When concentration is contemplated an entirely different picture is presented. Percentages of valuable metal content must then be considered in terms of minerals, for it is in the form of minerals that recoveries are made and losses sustained. In describing the performance of a given flotation mill and reagent combination, it may be stated as a generality that a specific percentage recovery of valuable elements is made. Technically, however, the concentrator is really constructed and the reagents are selected to recover the valuable minerals. These considerations must be given prominence in discussing border- line ores from the Tintic district because of their physical characteristics and mineralogical composition. Because of these peculiarities they may be justly termed complex, since their lead, silver, and copper contents are each represented by two or more minerals of different chemical composition and presenting widely divergent physical properties. This paper sets forth the results of a microscopic study of a type of borderline ore from the Tintic district that is now being treated by direct smelting. A

Jan 1, 1938

By Walter S. Larsh

The Ruth orebody, so far developed, is roughly oval in plan, major and minor axes about 1600 ft. (457 m.) and 1200 ft. (365 m.) respectively, average thickness about 120 ft. (36 m.), and with a general dip of about 15" to the northwest. According to the generally accepted theory, the ore is a secondary enrichment of the porphyry due to leaching in situ by meteoric waters. Copper occurs as chalcocite, chalcocite coating pyrite, and a little chalcopyrite. The leached zone, or capping, covering the ore varies in thickness from 110 to 540 ft. (33 to 164 m.), average about 410 ft. (124 m.). The ore is blue gray in color, and the capping, light yellow to brown. Ore was first discovered in quantity in the workings from the Ruth shaft, now caved. Further development work was done by churn drills, and the outline of the orebody, as stated above, determined in this manner. Drilling is still being carried on. The porphyry area is entirely surrounded by sedimentaries, limestones, and shales; and, in so far as the underground workings have shown, the porphyry itself, the sedimentaries&apos; near the contact, and the country underlying the ore (igneous or sedimentary) is very soft, heavy, and in places swelling ground. All openings have to be carefully and stoutly timbered, and, after once driven, they have to be constantly eased off and repaired. The mine Is at present served by two shafts, the Star Pointer, the main working shaft, a vertical, and the Ingersoll, an incline used for waste and material. The two shafts are about 2600 ft. (792 m.) apart, connected on the 500 level; a connection is now being driven on the 600 level. (Dec., 1917. This connection is now completed.) The 300 level, which is finished, and the 400 level which is nearly completed, are accessible only from the Ingersoll and connections with the 500 level. The 300 level was developed for and mined by the shrinkage stope system, similar to that used successfully in the Ray Consolidated property.

Jan 1, 1918