Search Documents

Jan 1, 1957

By J. Bruce Clemmer, P. E. Churchward, Carl Rompacek

The paper describes a cyclic method for processing manganese ores using sodium sulphate as the basic reagent. Sodium sulphate is electrolyzed in a diaphragm cell to give an anolyte sodium sulphate acid and a catholyte containing caustic soda, a part of which is carbonated in a cyclic manner to form soda and reduced ore is leached with the anolyte to dissolve the manganese and the impurities are precipitated by addition of catholyte. Manganese in the pregnant solution is precipitated as synthetic rhodochrosite with a carbonated catholyte, and sodium sulphate is regenerated. Calcining the manganese carbonate site a high-grade product and the carbon dioxide is returned to the carbonation step. the results of laboratory tests using cells equipped with synthetic fiber diaphragms and permselective membranes which permit transfer of using or cations during electrolysis are described. The article from which the above abstract is reprinted appears in Trans. AIME (1955) 203, p. 51; Journal op Metals (January 1955).

Jan 1, 1956

By FREDERICK W. BRADLEY

MINING methods are evolved rather than devised; and the process is slow. The advance in no particular year is phenomenal, but progress is un- questionably being made constantly in several directions: (a) better adaptation to given conditions of various "systems" of mining; (b) better utilization of mechanical equipment ; (c) improvement in working conditions so as to promote the health, safety and efficiency of the workers. During the year 1930 operations were commenced at a number of important new mines. Methods adopted are not new, except in minor detail, but the fitting of methods to conditions is interesting, because, as the engineers presumably started from scratch, they have selected the methods that experience under similar conditions has indicated as being the best.

Jan 1, 1931

By H. S. Drinker

THE first discovery of zinc 011 the property now worked by this company was made by the celebrated mineralogist, Prof. William Theodore Rapper, in 1845. Different claimants kept the property in continual litigation till 1861, when everything was satisfactorily settled by the purchase of the land by the company, who have worked it ever since. The mines are situated in a valley, four miles south of Bethlehem, Pa., in Lehigh County. The valley is from two to three miles broad, and is bounded 011 the north and south by syenitic hills. Syenite underlies the valley, and upon this is deposited the Potsdam sandstone, then a layer of slate, and, finally, a dolomitic limestone, belonging to the Chazy or Black River formation, in which the zinc deposits are inclosed. The rocks occur in folds, and have evidently been subjected to tremendous pressure from below, the zinc deposit being found in an anticlinal axis, in nearly vertical veins. I t is supposed that the zinc was originally disseminated through the

By Eugene Guccione

Before answering the question raised in the title, let's briefly consider how East-West trade is viewed within the entire US political spectrum. Essentially, there are four major schools of thought: (1) The Peaceful-Coexistence School. Advocates of this school call themselves free-traders and hold to the premise that: (a) trade benefits all parties involved, hence it is the best tool to achieve peace; (b) US trade barriers should be removed, and the quicker the better; and (c) negotiations, cultural exchanges, and political compromise should be used extensively.

Jan 9, 1974

By A. W. Ambrose

The present plans for the Petroleum Division of the American Insti-tute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers provide for two principal meetings in the year 1928. The first will be at Tulsa, Okla., in September or October, 1928, with the exact date largely dependent upon the date of the .International Petroleum Exposition. The officers wish to hold the meeting at the same time as the Exposition in order that members of the Petroleum Division of the A. I. M. E. may have the advantage of attending both meetings at the same time. It is planned that this meeting will be devoted largely to petroleum production engineering problems. A tentative outline of subjects to be discussed is as follows: 1. Repressuring New Oil Fields, and naturally in conjunction with this falls Repressuring of Old Fields. 2. Air or Gas Lift. 3. Flow Strings in New Wells. 4. Deep Drilling Technique. It is also planned to have at this meeting a general paper relating to Supply and Demand of Petroleum and its Products. The second meeting is planned for February, 1929, in New York at the same time as the annual meeting of the Institute. Special details have not been carried very far on this meeting, although it is expected the program will cover technical problems in relation to production and refining of crude oil, as well as 1928 development in foreign fields and the United States. It is planned during 1928 to cooperate with the Bureau of Mines in an attempt to compile a set of definitions on petroleum engineering. These would be of value to the petroleum engineering profession, in order to better standardize various terms used in discussion of current problems. It has also been suggested that the Petroleum Division study certain problems in which research work is needed by the petroleum industry and outline certain definite programs that could be carried out by the Bureau of Mines and the U. S. Geological Survey, as a follow-up to

Jan 1, 1928

By Thomas E. Ban, Charles D. Thompson, Charles A. Czako

Continuous sintering-a metallurgical process for more than 50 years-has broadened from its origin in nonferrous metallurgy to present-day applications in ferrous, chemical, and nonmetallic fields. During the past year, self-fluxing sinter production has been a subject of active interest to iron metallurgists in North America. Accomplishments however, have come predominantly from Europe and proper interpretation of these reports requires an understanding of European raw materials and European economics. The technology, of course, can be applied universally.

Jan 10, 1959

By William J. Coulter

WITHIN the past thirty years the United States has been involved in two tragic, vicious, and costly world wars. To make the world safe for democracy was the reason given for our participation, but the confusion and misunderstanding that prevails all over the world today suggests that war is not the proper approach to the attainment of that utopia. These conflicts were conceived and prosecuted by nations far advanced in civilization and culture. Their best manhood was sacrificed, a staggering tax burden was saddled on their peoples, huge financial losses were incurred, destruction of property was appalling, and cultural and peaceful scientific advancement received a setback that may require centuries to retrieve. Therefore, some basis is established for the conclusion that progress in the past fifty years has been most outstanding in the development of instruments used for death and destruction, and that progress in this direction between the two World Wars would indicate that the next war will go far toward total destruction of world civilization.

Jan 1, 1946

By Claudio Gutiérrez

The action of quebracho in the selective flotation of fluorite and calcite has been studied. It has been found that the unavoidable ions produced by dissolution of these minerals can precipitate calcium oleate which profoundly influences the adsorption of oleate. The depressing action of quebracho is due, at least partly, to a decrease of the oleate adsorption. The depression of flourite flotation by quebracho in the presence of calcium is due to the fact that precipitated calcium oleate can become only physisorbed, its adsorption being strongly prevented by quebracho. It is concluded that adsorption experiments with flourite must be conducted with a flotation-size mineral, which has a lower dissolution rate than when finely ground.

Jan 1, 1980

NORTH AMERICA Number Members Alaska 36 Canada 323 Mexico 184 Newfoundland 3 United States Alabama 40 Arizona 111 Arkansas 8 California 646 Colorado 171 Connecticut 90 Delaware 21 District of Columbia 136 Florida 16 Georgia 7 Idaho 66 Illinois 208 Indiana 66 Iowa 11 Kansas 24 Kentucky 32

Jan 1, 1934

By J. J. Frawley, W. J. Childs

The dynamic nucleation of supercooled bismuth and Bi-Sn alloys has been studied over a frequency range of 15 to 20,000 cps. For low-frequency vibration, a minimum vibrational energy was required for enhancement of nucleation. Above this critical energy, the dynamic supercooling was less than static supercooling showing that vibration promoted nucleation. The amount of dynamic supercooling continued to decrease with increasing vibrational energy until a minimum or threshold value was reached. This minimum value of supercooling for nucleation remained constant joy all further increases in vibrational energy. For higher frequencies, similar results were observed. This behavior has been related to the necessity of cavitation for dynamic nucleation. When a liquid is cooled to a temperature below its equilibrium melting point, the solid phase is more thermodynamically stable. However, for solidification to occur, a two-step process, nucleation and subsequent growth of the solid phase, must occur. When a liquid is supercooled, that is cooled below the equilibrium melting point, the controlling process for solidification to begin is the rate of nucleation. Once nucleation has occurred, the solidification process is controlled by the rate of growth. Nucleation can be induced by two factors: either by a catalyst or by the use of mechanical shock. Numerous investigators1-4 have studied the effect of nucleation catalysis but much less systematic study has been made of nucleation by mechanical shock waves. The influence of vibrations on grain size in castings and ingots has been studied by many authors but no clear understanding of the mechanism or accurate prediction of the effect has been presented.5 It would be intuitively expected that the further the departure from equilibrium (i.e., the greater the supercooling), the easier it would be to induce nucleation. This has been quantitatively demonstrated both by walker6 and later by Stuhr,7 that the greater the degree of supercooling the easier it is to nucleate by a shock wave. Stuhr also attempted to obtain the mechanical energy required for nucleation of bismuth as a function of supercooling. He vibrated a crucible containing supercooled metal at low frequencies and various amplitudes and noted the corresponding dynamic supercooling obtained. The amount of supercooling was inversely proportional to the mechanical energy applied. Limitation of his experiment was the problem of the confinement of the liquid in the crucible without splashing and minimizing other unwanted modes of vibration. Tiller et al.8,9 did similar work on tin and Sn-Pb alloys using an electromagnetic stirring device. Their conclusions were that the magnitude of the magnetic field strength did not affect the amount of undercooling at which nucleation was initiated. While conclusive experimental results have been lacking to explain this effect of mechanical vibration on inducing nucleation, a number of theories have been proposed. Two of these theories are discussed below. 1) The Change in Melting:- Point Locally Due to the Change in Pressure (Clapeyron Equation). According to Vonnegut10 the most plausible explanation for the nucleation of a supercooled melt by cavitation is the effect of changing the melting point by a change in pressure. For materials where the volume decreases on solidification, an increase in pressure raises the melting point; for materials which expand on solidification, the melting point is raised for a decrease in pressure, i.e., rarefaction. Using the Clapeyron equation, the melting point of a metal can be calculated as a function of pressure. If it is assumed that the equation can also be used to calculate the temperature of nucleation of a supercooled melt as a function of pressure (i.e., the temperature of heterogeneous nucleation will increase with pressure at the same rate as the melting point), the amount of supercooling required for nucleation will be constant at all pressures as shown in Fig. 1. It is obvious that an isothermal change which results in an increase in melting point results in an equal increase in supercooling. This increase in supercooling may now be sufficient for nucleation. A pressure of 80,000 atm was calculated, using the Clapeyron equation, as the pressure required to increase the temperature of nucleation of nickel by 200°C. According to Lord Rayleigh,11 this very large pressure could be generated for a very brief period of time by the collapse of a cavity. This pressure wave is radiated in all directions from the collapsed cavity. If the temperature of the melt is slightly below its equilibrium melting temperature at atmospheric pressure, stable growth can follow; that is, once nucleation occurs, growth becomes the main driving force of the solidification process. This proposal has been extended to water which expands on freezing by assuming that nucleation occurs during rarefaction following the pressure pulse. This negative pressure pulse should follow immediately after the positive pressure pulse with its magnitude approaching the critical tensile strength of the liquid. The negative pressure developed during this period would raise the melting point of water and thus promote nucleation. Hunt and jackson12 have suggested this for water. Similarly, it could be postulated that bismuth which also expands on freezing could be nucleated during the negative pressure pulse. 2) Nucleation by a High-pressure Phase. An extension of the Clapeyron equation to systems where density decreased on freezing at atmosphere pressure has been proposed by Hickling.13 The phase diagram for water initially shows the well-known decrease in

Jan 1, 1969

By J. D. Hunt, R. J. McDonald

It is proposed that extensive fluid motion occurs between the dendrites of a Partially solid casting and it is suggested the A segregates in steel castings are a direct result of this motion. The fluid flow arises because of density differences between liquid ahead of the dendrites and the interdendritic liquid. Experiments are described on a model system investigating this fluid motion. The importance of interdendritic fluid flow is discussed with reference to longitudinal segregation. SERIOUS macro segregation is often found in large killed steel ingots. Among the most common segregates are those known as A and V, Fig. 1. The A segregates are arranged over the surface of cones, the wide parts being at the base of the ingot. The A segregates are pencil like in shape and extend from the columnar into the equiaxed region. The V segregates are distributed over inverted cones but have a less well defined shape. They occur at the center of the ingot. Because of the commercial importance of macro inhomogenities these segregates have attracted wide-scale attention. The segregates contain alloying elements and impurities which depress the freezing temperature and are thus the last liquid to freeze. A number of explanations have been proposed to explain their presence. It has been suggested1'' that the segregates are the result of the equiaxed zone growing towards the columnar region together with the interaction of convection within the bulk liquid. It has also been proposed that the segregates are the result of nucleation and rapid growth ahead of the dendritic front.3 Neither of these explanations is completely satisfactory because A segregates are pencil shaped and are not found as continuous cones. In this paper an alternative mechanism is proposed, and experiments are described on a model system to determine whether the mechanism occurs in practice. It is thought that A and V segregates are not peculiar to steels but should occur in many other large castings. Fluid motion within the bulk liquid region of a casting has been extensively discussed. Little attention has been paid to fluid motion within the partially solid regions. The work415 that has been done has been mainly concerned with the fluid motion which results from the volume contraction on freezing. The volume contraction is used to explain various types of macro segregation. The present authors suggest that in many cases the fluid flow resulting from volume contraction will be small compared with that due to other causes. When the columnar region is growing, the liquid still remaining between the dendrites has a much lower temperature near the ingot walls than at the dendrite tips. The composition of the liquid in contact with solid will vary with temperature. The density of the liquid will thus vary both because of changes in temperature and composition. The layers of different density liquid will give rise to a slow but steady liquid flow through the interdendritic regions. If there is no density change with composition, the temperature gradient within the dendritic region should give rise to a downward flow between the dendrites, shown schematically in Fig. 2. When the liquid density changes appreciably with alloy concentration this motion could either be en-

Jan 1, 1970

By R. E. Old

THROUGH the use of pressure and production records, formation properties and bottom-hole sample data, the performance of an oil reservoir may be studied analytically to define and evaluate the natural forces acting on and within the reservoir. Use is made of material-balance methods and the equations for natural water encroachment to estimate reserves. Methods for calculation of pressures are given. A study of the Jones sand, Schuler field, Arkansas, has been made and is given here to illustrate the value of the methods discussed.

Jan 1, 1942

By G. R. Mansfield

THE third year of Government exploration f or potash by the U. S. Geological Survey and-the U. S. Bureau of Mines under the authorization of the act approved June 25, 1926 (Public 424-69th Cong.) is drawing to a close. The results thus far obtained are thought to be sufficiently interesting and satisfactory to justify the presentation of a brief preliminary account of the work. REVIEW OF EARLIER EXPLORATION The general geologic similarity of the Permian basin of Texas and New Mexico to the potash field of Germany had long ago suggested the possibility of the presence of potash salts somewhere in that basin, but petroleum exploration was then making little headway there and the necessary data could not be obtained. The discovery by Udden in 1912 of potash in brine from the Spur well in Dickens County, Texas, was the first direct evidence of its presence. In 1915-17 the U. S. Geological Survey drilled a test well with standard tools at Cliff side near Amarillo, but failed to find potash. Nevertheless, an observer has been kept in the field, at first in cooperation with the Texas Bureau of Economic Geology but since 1922 by the Survey alone, to `secure data and samples from oil and gas tests. Since the discovery of oil in Reagan County in 1923 exploration by drilling has been rapidly extended to many parts of western Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The identification of the potash-bearing mineral polyhalite was first announced by the Geological Survey in June, 1921, the material having come from cuttings from the Bryant well in Midland County and the Burns well in Dawson County, Texas. Successive discoveries and announcements of similar purport aroused widespread interest in potash exploration, which culminated in the action by Congress already noted.

Jan 1, 1929

THOSE NOT MARKED ARE MEMBERS; MARKED THUS t ARE ASSOCIATES. HEAVY-FACED TYPE SIGNIFIES HONORARY MEMBERSHIP. JUNIOR MEMBERS ARE MARKED II. THE FIGURES AT THE END OF THE ADDRESS INDICATE THE YEAR OF ELECTION. AARONS, J. BOYD, Genl. Mgr., Chaffers G. M. Co., Boulder City, West. Australia. '05 ABADIE, EMILE R., Min. Engr Box 291, Porterville, Tulare Co., Cal. '76 ABBOTT, CLARENCE E., Genl. Supt., Iron Mines Div., 1405 Minnesota Ave., Bessemer, Ala. '04 ABBOTT, J. W., Min. Engr., "St. Omer," 123 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, Cal. '94 ABBOTT, Louis BENJAMIN, Chief Engr., Consolidation Coal Co., Elkhorn Div., Jenkins, Ky. '15 ABBOTT, ROBERT R., Met. Engr., Peerless Motor Car Co., Cleveland, Ohio. '12 ABE, ASAKA Yamagano G. M., Satsuma-Gori, Satsuma, Japan. '14 || ABRAHAMS, A. I., Student 1391 Madison Ave., New York, N. Y. '14 tACKER, E. O'C., Met Bethlehem Steel Co., Bethlehem, Pa. '86 ACKER, LOUIS K., JR., Min. Engr 565 Highland Place, Bellevue, Pa. '08

Jan 1, 1917

Executive SIDNEY J. JENNINGS, Chairman GEORGE D. BARRON J. E. JOHNSON, JR. EDWIN LUDLOW ROBERT M. RAYMOND Membership KARL FILERS, Chairman LEWIS W. FRANCIS J. E. JOHNSON, JR. LOUIS D. HUNTOON ARTHUR L. WALKER Finance GEORGE D. BARRON, Chairman CHARLES F. RAND BENJAMIN B. THAYER Library E. GYBBON SPILSBURY,1 Chairman ALEX C. HUMPHREYS3 GEORGE C. STONE 2 J. H. JANEWAY4 BRADLEY STOUGHTON

Jan 5, 1918

By AIME AIME

IN a recent technical paper of the Central Committee of the French Coal Mines (Note technique No. 198, by L. Lahoussay) the author points out that continuous in¬crease in depth of mine shafts makes it more and more necessary to look for appropriate means to reduce the weights and dimensions of the hoisting ropes. Increasing depth demands a larger section and weight for the cable if the useful load is not to be cut down at the same time. This naturally leads to increased cost per ton, and at the same time creates serious mechanical difficulties. The dimensions of the hoisting engine must be increased, acceleration at the start must be decreased so as to avoid periods of excessive peak power loads, and a longer time be allowed to slow down the speed of the hoist when applying brakes. The hoisting rope, upon which depend the dimensions and hence the mass of the hoisting engine, presents the greatest obstacle to the development of hoisting from greater depths. Evidently, for a given depth, the total weight of the rope can be notably reduced by utilizing a wire rope of decreasing section, approaching the theoretical logarithmic form. This is a solution frequently adopted for great depths. Of course, the weight of the rope could be easily' diminished by reducing the useful load, but it is certain that with increasing depth of mining, more effort must be made to confine the hoisting to a small number of shafts, and increase the load hoisted per trip.

Jan 1, 1933

By G. L. Oldright

NEARLY all of the present schemes for treating complex (i. e. lead¬silver-zinc-copper) ores are based on the idea that lead holds, and will hold for some time, the strongest economic place from the viewpoint of supply and demand of all the non-ferrous metals. Copper, it is thought, will come back to its own when European affairs are stabilized, although at that time competition from Chile, Peru, and Katanga, in particular, will be more severe than in pre-war days. The future for silver and for zinc is uncertain. New uses are developing for zinc, and the market has remained better than many expected, but the stabilization of world markets will bring in foreign competition instead of relief. The cost of producing zinc from simple zinc ores, by the retort process, will, from the nature of the labor required and the increasing cost of fuel, increase steadily. As a result, the small producers of purely zinc ores around Joplin are shutting down their mines, even with a good market price for zinc; on the other hand, the producer of lead from complex ores, in the Rocky Mountain states, is confident of a profit from the sale of his lead, and is seeking means to make the zinc in his ore pay some part of the cost of treatment. However, the tonnage costs for mining and ore dressing are much higher in the Rocky Mountain states, as may be seen by comparing tax-return statements from the various states. Even before the recent drop in the price of silver, many mines were operating on a very slender margin of profit; labor and supplies cost more. Mining at greater depth has shown most orebodies to grow increasingly more complex, so that improvements in mining and ore-dressing practice have not been sufficient too compensate for the additional expense involved in beneficiating these ores. The smelters have had to meet the same general economic situation, so they can only give

Jan 3, 1924

By Tracy C. Jarrett

In making gold alloys possessing certain physical properties, such i~nportant factors as corrosion resistance, color, hardness and melting points must be considered. All of these requirements depend directly upon the composition. It is possible to obtain the same colored gold alloy by using different compositions, but in doing so one may bring in some undesirable property. Other investigations have been carried on in this field by F. E. Carter,' E. M. Wise12 and L. Sterner-Rainer2 To make a complete study of the effect of composition upon these properties, a systematic investigation was carried on involving a range of copper content from 85 to 65 per cent. Elements such as zinc, silver and nickel were used to replace in part the copper content. The gold content in all the alloys remained constant. Only 10-karat gold alloys of those containing 41.6 per cent gold will be considered. All of the alloys were made in an induction furnace. Each alloy was cast in a 3 by 1/4 by 3/4-in. ingot. The method of obtaining the melting points and making color determinations was described in a previots paper.4 The Rockwell B scale with the 1/16-in. ball and 100-kg. weight was used for all hardness determinations. The submersion of test pieces in concentrated nitric acid is one of the standard corrosion tests used in the optical trade. A test piece in the 50 per cent cold-worked condition, % by 2 by 0.045 in., is blanked from a skip using a die, and the weight loss per square inch of surface is taken as a means of comparison. The time for this test is 2 1/2 hr. of actual submersion of the test picce in the acid. This standard test was applied to all of the 10-karat gold alloys discussed in this paper. The tensile tests were made upon strips of the dimensions shown in Fig. 1. The test pieces after blanking were annealed at 1300" F. for 20 min. and cooled in air. Thc "drop of the beam" method was used in determining the yield point, as there was a very marked "drop" when the yield point was reached.

Jan 1, 1940

By Tracy C. Jarrett

In making gold alloys possessing certain physical properties, such i~nportant factors as corrosion resistance, color, hardness and melting points must be considered. All of these requirements depend directly upon the composition. It is possible to obtain the same colored gold alloy by using different compositions, but in doing so one may bring in some undesirable property. Other investigations have been carried on in this field by F. E. Carter,' E. M. Wise12 and L. Sterner-Rainer2 To make a complete study of the effect of composition upon these properties, a systematic investigation was carried on involving a range of copper content from 85 to 65 per cent. Elements such as zinc, silver and nickel were used to replace in part the copper content. The gold content in all the alloys remained constant. Only 10-karat gold alloys of those containing 41.6 per cent gold will be considered. All of the alloys were made in an induction furnace. Each alloy was cast in a 3 by 1/4 by 3/4-in. ingot. The method of obtaining the melting points and making color determinations was described in a previots paper.4 The Rockwell B scale with the 1/16-in. ball and 100-kg. weight was used for all hardness determinations. The submersion of test pieces in concentrated nitric acid is one of the standard corrosion tests used in the optical trade. A test piece in the 50 per cent cold-worked condition, % by 2 by 0.045 in., is blanked from a skip using a die, and the weight loss per square inch of surface is taken as a means of comparison. The time for this test is 2 1/2 hr. of actual submersion of the test picce in the acid. This standard test was applied to all of the 10-karat gold alloys discussed in this paper. The tensile tests were made upon strips of the dimensions shown in Fig. 1. The test pieces after blanking were annealed at 1300" F. for 20 min. and cooled in air. Thc "drop of the beam" method was used in determining the yield point, as there was a very marked "drop" when the yield point was reached.

Jan 1, 1940