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By AIME AIME

THIS year's Chairman of the Mineral industry Education Division is, like his predecessors, no novice in that field, having been in 1928 Chairman of the Engineering Education Committee which labored so well that it was enlarged into a Division of the Institute's activities . For almost a quarter of a century lie has been a dean in mining and engineering schools, with considerable experience before that as a teacher. A native-born New Englander (June 23, 1881), he naturally went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he received the Bachelor's degree in mining in 1904. Just why a Fitchburg. Massachusetts boy yearned to he a mining engineer he has never explained, but why should any boy ever have to explain why lie wants t? be a mining engineer? Like the old rhyme about the reasons why a man should drink, "any other reason why" is adequate..

Jan 1, 1945

By John B. Hastings

The origin of the watery vapors of vulcanism has always been an object of interest and speculation to the seismologist, and as theories of the genetic origin of ore-deposits have of late years been pretty well narrowed down to the expiring forces of plutonic action, the same question has attracted mining engineers and geologists, as is well shown by the discussions of the subject in our Transactions. The important part taken by volcanic emanations in the origin of pegmatites and quartz-veins, described in my paper, Origin of Pegmatite,' and their latent power to concentrate into useful deposits such scattered gold as occurs in the Hartsel granite, make a discussion of their derivation but a natural third and final step. It is coilceded that enormous amounts of vapor accompany vulcanism, though perhaps we are apt to forget that steam has 1,700 times the volume of water, besides which the column seen over Vesuvius and other volcanoes is greatly mixed with air; the immensity of such volumes compared with solids and liquids is shown by the experiment of Gautier, who, by heating dessicated granite to 100' C., evolved from it gases 20 times, and steam 90 times, its own volume. Dana appraised the average amount of water left in ordinary rocks as 2.5 per cent. T. M. Read estimated that the Mississippi river carries to the sea annually 150,000,000 tons of rock material. If these Mississippi sediments, as deposited, contained 20 per cent. of water, it would be 600,000,000 cu. ft., or 4,500,000,000 American gallons, annually. Allowing the vapor suspended over a volcanic cone to be mixed with 80 per cent. of air, this amount of water converted into steam would replenish anew, every 9 min., a column 15,000 ft. high, 2,000 ft. in diameter at the base, and • 10,000 ft. at the top. Read's estimate is only half of the amount given in a more recent and probably correct one.2

Jan 1, 1909

By N. J. Grant, D. Carne, J. B. Seabrook

IT is unnecessary to review much of the literature on hydrogen embrittlement of steel since several excellent reviews and bibliographies exist.1-3 Hot acid pickling and cathodic charging have been known to cause hydrogen embrittlement of steel and have been used as laboratory methods to charge steels with hydrogen.4-8 Experimental Procedure The problem of prime concern in all instances, except in the work of Sims and coworkers,10 is that at no time was there a definite known hydrogen value reported which could be related to a particular value of the degree of embrittlement. It was the purpose of this research to determine the relationship between hydrogen content and degree of em-brittlement quantitatively. The 1020 stock used for the specimens was hot-rolled 7/16 in. diam rod of the following analysis: 0.19 pct C, 0.40 pct Mn, 0.012 pct P, 0.036 pct S' Vacuum-fusion analyses for nitrogen and oxygen gave 0.014 pct O2 and 0.0011 pct N2. Cathodic charging was used to cause embrittle-ment. The advantages of this method were that no quenching was necessary, the impregnation was reasonably controllable, and representative samples for analysis could be prepared simultaneously with the charging of the tensile bars. Analyses for hydrogen were made in a vacuum-fusion type of apparatus which extracted gas from the samples by fusion in a molten tin-iron bath' This apparatus, which has recently been described in detail elsewhere, will not be discussed here.". " Consecutive samples can be analyzed every 15 min with an accuracy of 0'03 ppm. A A from an electrolytic or pickling bath can be charged for analysis in about 3 min, and analysis completed in 15 min. Samples of as-received 1020 stock were analyzed and found to contain a negligible amount of hydrogen (0.06 ppm). Preliminary pickling and electrolytic charging gave highly variable results. Cold-worked samples showed higher values but ranged from 0.6 to 6.0 ppm of hydrogen. Charging at 90°C gave higher values of charged hydrogen, but troublesome films on many of the specimens resulted. It was not until a few drops of a catalytic poison, prepared from 2 g of yellow phosphorus dissolved in 40 ml of carbon disulphide,8 was added to the electrolytic cell that fairly consistent high values of hydrogen could be charged into the as-received 1020 steel at room temperature. The cell used is sketched in fig. 1. The anode and fixture for the tensile specimens were fastened to the cell cover as shown, and the specimen was screwed in place, centrally located with respect to the anode. At first, anodes of lead and graphite were tried, but they contaminated the electrolyte and gave a slight deposit on the specimen. Later, a platinum wire was used in the form of a uniform helix. A current of 2 amp, corresponding to about 0.5 amp per sq in. of cathode, was used for most specimens. The electrolyte was 4 pct H2SO4 solution. Fig. 1 shows the form of the special tensile bar, the main portion of which was an ordinary 1/4 in. diam, 1 in. gauge length test bar, except that two to four small cylinders of stock were left attached by small links to the bottom end of the tensile bar for the purpose of providing samples for hydrogen analysis. Thus the bars and samples were charged with hydrogen simultaneously and an analysis could be made while the bar was being tested mechanically. Experiments were performed to determine how representative the test cylinders were of the middle of the test bar proper. While the bar center was being analyzed, the small cylinder was stored in dry ice, since it had been shown that such storage prevents loss of hydrogen for many hours.12 The results of these checks are shown in table 1. The checks are very good (0.3 ppm) and indicate that it is permissible to use the small end cylinders to establish the hydrogen content of the tensile test bar proper-

Jan 1, 1951

By C. M. Wayman, G. R. Srinivasan

A metallographic study of the isothermal products formed between 750° and 285°C was made in an Fe-7.9 wt pct Cr-1.11 wt pct C alloy, and a time-temperature-transformation diagram was determined. The study shows that the austenite decomposes into three different products: pearlite above 540°C, ferrite and carbide between 540° and 300°C, and lenticular bainite below 300°C. No upper bainite forms in this alloy. The results are discussed in terms of carbon diffusion models for upper bainite formation. AUSTENITE transforms into several products depending on the temperature, composition, and rate of cooling, and the various transformation products have been a source of controversy for a long time. Since the classical study of Davenport and ~ain' extensive work has been carried out. The present study concerns the isothermal transformations in an alloy which was used for a detailed investigation of bainite crystallography and provides information supplementary to the work of Lyman and Troiano who studied austenite decomposition in steels containing 1 pct C and varying amounts of chromium. Their work showed that increasing the amount of chromium in high-carbon steels had the effect of depressing the B, temperature and of shifting the TTT curves to longer times and lower temperatures. They further found that if the chromium content is increased in a 1 pct steel to about 9 pct no bainite would form even after a period of 100 days. However, a preliminary investigation by the present authors showed that bainite plates do form in steels containing about 8 pct Cr and 1 pct C. In view of this and some results from a thin-foil electron microscope investigation of the bainite formed in the present alloy: it was considered desirable to investigate the other isothermal products as well. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The alloy used in the present investigation was obtained from a triply vacuum-melted ingot prepared from high-purity materials. Chemical analysis for the alloy verified the composition to be Fe-7.9 wt pct Cr-1.11 wt pct C. Metallographic observations were made on i by i by « in. specimens which were aus-tenitized at 12 50°C for 50 to 60 hr in evacuated quartz capsules and then water-quenched. Since the M, temperature for this alloy is below room temperature, the homogenizing treatment produced a completely austenitic structure consisting of very coarse austenite grains (ASTM #0-1). Several samples of the austenitized specimens were metallographically prepared and observed for any proeutectoid carbide separation. It was found that all the carbon was in solution. The water-quenched specimens were upquenched and given isothermal treatments at temperatures between 285" and 750°C for varying periods in molten salt or lead baths. The specimens were then water-quenched, and those showing less than 5 pct transformation were used for plotting the beginning of the austenite decomposition. To ensure the removal of the disturbed layer, the mechanically prepared specimens were electropolished in a 1:6 HzS04, CHSOH solution for 10 to 15 sec at 20 v. Final polishing was done with a vibratory polisher using 0.05-p alumina. Various etchants including nital, ferric chloride, and hot ferricyanide (Murakami's reagent) were used to bring out details in the different transformation products. The ferricyanide etch was used whenever the preferential etching of carbides was desired.

Jan 1, 1969

By A. English, M. J. Greaves

This paper is a discussion of pelletizing systems developed over the last 15 to 20 years for the agglomeration of fine iron ore concentrates. Five different pelletizing systems are now in commercial use in the U.S., and for the purposes of comparison, estimated operating costs and capital costs for the construction of four of them are included. Capacities of existing commercial plants are examined, together with the anticipated capabilities of plants presently being built or projected. In just 21 years, the art of pelletizing iron ore concentrates has reached maturity with mastery of the separation of finely divided concentrates from low-grade iron ores and their agglomeration into pellets containing about 65% iron. This accomplishment has firmly established an improved feed for the blast furnace, with resulting benefits in faster reduction of burdens and greater economy of operation. The present production capacity of pelletizing facilities in the U.S. is about 20 million tons annually, and it is expected to double by 1970. The rapid expansion of pelletizing in the U. S. has been closely observed in European countries, notably in Sweden and Germany, where pioneer agglomerating techniques were developed early in this century. PELLETIZING PLANTS AND PROCESSES Twelve commercial pelletizing plants are presently in operation in the U. S. and Canada. An equal number are in various stages of engineering and construction, and many others are being considered. The pelletizing systems currently employed include shaft furnaces, horizontal grates using three different airflow arrangements, and grate kilns. The capacity of pelletizing operations in North America is shown in Table I. All of these plants are integrated with the mine, the ore-crushing facilities and the concentrating plant and are equipped with storage and loading-out facilities for the product. Normally, a pelletizing plant is composed of a shuttle conveyor above the receiving bins; balling equipment; a heat-hardening system including the necessary auxiliaries such as furnaces, burners and controls, ducts, fans, meters and instrumentation; fines recovery equipment; and product handling equipment. Also included are the necessary auxiliaries and utilities such as boilers or power plant; oil unloading and storage facilities; coal unloading storage, grinding and distribution facilities; and bentonite or other additive storage and distribution equipment. Shaft Furnaces: Vertical shaft furnaces used in this country are limited to the treatment of natural magnetite concentrates containing minor quantities of residual fluxing elements. Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of the shaft furnace with balling, feeding and pellet-handling equipment. An elevation of a shaft furnace is shown in Fig. 2. A commercial shaft furnace unit is about 45 ft in height with a 6 x 14-ft rectangular cross section and has a nominal production rate of approximately 50 gross tons of pellets per hour. The upper portion of the furnace shaft is constructed of fire brick as protection from the high process temperatures involved. The lower portion of the shaft is lined with abrasion-resistant brick to withstand erosion from the fired pellets. Rectangular-shaped, refractory-lined and insulated combustion chambers are situated on each side of the shaft furnace. Oil or gas is burned to produce high temperature gases which are forced into the furnace through ports located near the top of the combustion chambers. The shaft furnaces operate at a pressure of approximately 6 psi. Pellets are fed into the top of the furnace by a pantographic feeder designed to produce the desired pellet stockline. The furnace is kept filled at all times and pellets are fed and discharged from the furnace at the same rate. In early development, 10 to 12 lb of solid fuel was incorporated in the pellets. However, the main source of process heat is now derived from the combustion chamber gases. In some instances no solid fuel is used. The pellet movement in the shaft furnace is counter-current to the flow of gases. Ambient air is introduced through louvers at the lower end of the furnace, at about 6 psi, cooling the fired pellets and supplementing the heat of the high temperature gases from the combustion chamber ports. The zone of maximum temperature, located above the ports of the combus-

Jan 1, 1963

By Sidney W. Poole

THE control of deoxidation, together with other factors involved in electric-furnace melting practice, to consistently produce heats of high-quality alloy steel to stringent specifications as to nonmetallic inclusion content is a problem of considerable magnitude. Steel melting as an industrial process is subject to many variables that can influence the quality of the product made. In order to modify the size, amount and distribution of inclusions and to promote their elimination, deoxidation, among other practices, plays a major part. The primary purpose of deoxidation in the production of electric-furnace alloy steels is the removal of dissolved oxygen present as FeO in the bath, which is produced as a result of prior oxidizing conditions. The elements usually added to effect this removal of soluble oxygen are those that will, upon addition, cause the formation of an oxide compound insoluble in the molten steel bath as silica, alumina or silicate combinations.

Jan 1, 1947

CONTENTS PAGE ZAPFFE, CARL.-Manganiferous Iron Ores of the Cuyuna District, Minnesota. Discussed by A. K. Knickerbocker 1 MCCORMACK, C. P.-Economics of the Cuyuna Manganiferous Iron Ores. Dis-cussed by T. L. Joseph, J. Wilbur Van Evera, C. P. Perin, T. T. Read, L. E. Ives 4 READ, T. T.-Probable Error in Blast-furnace Records and Calculations Therefrom. Discussed by C. H. Herty, Jr., T. T. Read, T. L. Joseph, Ralph H. Sweetser 8 SCHWARTZ, H. A. and HIRD, (Mrs.) ANNA NICHOLSON.-Chemical Equilibria During Solidification and Cooling of White Cast Iron. Discussed by N. B. Pilling, Ralph H. Sweetser, H. M. Boylston, Albert Sauveur 10 HERTY, C. H., JR., BELYEA, A. R., BURKHART, E. H., and MILLER, C. C.-Some Factors Affecting the Elimination of Sulfur in the Basic Open-hearth Process. Discussed by Henry D. Hibbard, L. F. Reinartz,. C. H. Herty, Jr., Ancel St. John, A. L. Feild, C. R. Hayward, Ralph H. Sweetser, C. D. King, Haakon Styri, George A. Orrok 12 HIBBARD, HENRY D.-Finishing Melting Temperatures of Simple Ingot Steels. Discussed by Haakon Styri, George V. Luerssen, A. G. Zimermann, A. L. Feild, George A. Orrok, Albert Sauveur, R. F. Harrington, Henry D. Hibbard, I. A. Billiar, William J. Priestley, H. W. Gillett, W. P. Barba, Jerome Strauss, Harry H. Smith, H. LeChatelier, L. F. Reinartz 19 HERTY, C. H., JR., and TRUE, O. S.-The Reaction between Manganese and Iron Sulfide. Discussed by A. L. Field, H. S. Rawdon, C. H. Herty, Jr., T. L. Joseph, Haakon Styri 37 KAMURA, HEIHACHi.-Reduction of Iron Ores by Carbon Monoxide. Discussed by T. L. Joseph, R. Franchot, Ralph H. Sweetser, C. H. Herty, Jr 43 JOSEPH, T. L.-Effect of Sulfur on Blast-furnace Process. Discussed by R. Franchot, C. A. Meissner, T. L. Joseph, C. H. Herty, Jr., Ralph H. Sweetser, I. E. Waechter, F. N. Speller, T. T. Read 45 GOOSTRAY, JOB, HARRINGTON, R. F., and HOSMER, M. A.-Brief History of Metallurgical Practice in Cannon-making with Particular Reference to the Cast-iron Gun. Discussed by A. G. Zimermann, Geo. A. Orrok, Chas. Me-Knight, Jr., F. Brauer 51 Manganiferous Iron Ores of the Cuyuna District, Minnesota Discussion of the paper of CARL ZAPFFE, presented at the New York Meeting, February, 1925, and issued, as Paper No. 1390-I, with MINING AND METALLURGY, December, 1924. A. K. KNICKERBOCKER,* Virginia, Minn. (written discussion).¬The author makes a broad distinction between the "black" ores (the

Jan 6, 1925

Pennsylvania has been a leader in the pageant of industrial America because of her natural mineral re- sources, geographical location, and the ingenuity and industry of her citizens. Brick and other clay products were manufactured in Philadelphia in William Penn's time. Ores of iron, zinc, lead, and copper were mined and smelted in eastern Pennsylvania long before the Revolution. Coal was mined on a commercial basis in the anthracite region as early as 1820 and in the bituminous fields in 1830. The first canals and railroads were constructed to transport minerals and mineral products. Oil was struck at Titusville in 1859. A significant event occurred in 1855-the establishment of the Farmers' High School-Pennsylvania's first attempt to provide higher education for its youth. The Farmers' High School included instruction in geology, mineralogy, and assaying. In 1859 the laws of Pennsylvania transferred to the School the state geological and mineralogical collections formerly located in Harrisburg. Well-informed people are familiar with the effects of the Land-Grant Act of 1862. With inspiring words it established state institutions of higher learning where "the leading object shall be, without excluding other scientific and classical studies . . . to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts . . . in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the sev-

Jan 1, 1950

By W. B. Dancy, A. Adams

Laboratory test work on heavy liquid separation of sylvite from halite is reported. Numerous tests were run on sylvite ore sized in the ranges of 4x20 mesh, 10x65 mesh, 8x100 mesh, -8 mesh and -10 mesh with heavy liquids in the range of 2.05 to 2.15 sp gr. From the test results, it was concluded that, with the type of ore under study and a size in the range of -8 mesh, a recovery as high as 90% could be achieved with a product grade of 70% KCl. However, a final product at an acceptable recovery cannot be made with one pass, and the float must either be further processed with heavy liquids or dried and sent to a conventional froth flotation circuit. Potash ores occurring in this country consist essentially of sylvite and halite plus minor amounts of magnesium sulfate salts and montmoril-lonite-type clays. Recovery of potash minerals from evaporite ores in the North American potash fields is accomplished almost exclusively by use of amine flotation. European practice involves froth flotation as well as solution-crystallization processes. Laboratory and pilot plant test work has been reported in Europe and the U. S. on the application of heavy media separation to potash ore beneficiation. Work was probably discontinued because of lack of ore with the required very coarse liberation characteristics (1/8 to 1/2 in. liberation size). Sylvite, with a gravity of 1.99, and halite, with a gravity of 2.17, appear to be ideal for separation by heavy liquids, which are now available in gravities from 1.59 to 2.95. This paper reviews preliminary results obtained from laboratory test work on heavy liquid separation of sylvite from halite. TEST WORK The heavy liquids used in the tests under discussion were chlorobromethane, with a specific gravity of 1.923, and dibromethane, with a gravity of 2.490. These liquids, completely miscible, were combined in the proportions needed to give a mixture having the desired specific gravity. Feed for the laboratory tests was mine-run ore screened to the desired mesh sizes. In conducting the tests, the sample was fed at a constant rate into a stream of heavy liquid and the mixture directed into a small separatory vessel. The float overflowed into a collecting pan while the sink collected in the bottom of the separatory vessel and was removed at the end of the test. Approximately 500 g of feed constituted a charge. Pulp density of the feed was kept low to prevent particle to particle interference in separation. With feed in the range of 8x100 mesh, a pulp density of under 10% solids by weight was found advisable. With coarser feed the pulp density could be carried as high as 15% solids. Time of separation was very rapid. In the case of 4x20-mesh material, separation was effected in 15 to 30 sec; with -10-mesh feed, separation required about 1 to 2 min. SPECIAL EQUIPMENT Since heavy liquids are toxic to varying degrees, all separatory work was carried out in a standard laboratory fume hood. It was noted that complete removal of fumes was not being effected; therefore the hood construction was modified, resulting in a completely satisfactory arrangement for heavy liquid test work. In the interest of safety, details of this fume hood are reported here. Unlike most fumes, heavy liquid fumes tend to settle and flow like water, rather than to rise like a gas. Working on this assumption, a standard water drain was installed in the hood. Across the front of the hood a 1-in. barrier was constructed. In the rear of the hood a false back was installed, with an adjustable sliding door on both the bottom and top of this panel. As shown in Fig. 1, the exhaust fan pulled a vacuum behind the barrier, sucking the heavy fumes from the bottom of the hood. Another addition was the drying box, shown to the right of the hood. This is simply a box covered on top with hardware cloth and connected by a 6-in. inlet to the hood. Sample trays made of fine mesh wire filter screens were found ideal for drying samples. With this arrangement, air flowed completely through the sample and all fumes were drawn into the hood. In use, it was found effective to cover with a

Jan 1, 1963

By W. A. Backofen, D. L. Holt

Push-pull fatigue tests have been carried out at 4.2°K, 77oK, and room temperature on two poly crystalline materials of widely different stacking-fault energy (?): pure copper (? - 70 ergs per sq cm) and the Cu-8 wt pct A1 alloy (? - 2.8 ergs per sq cm). Constant stress-amplilude was imposed and measurement was made of the plastic-strain amplitude (ep) at saturation. Lives extended from 104 to 106 cycles. Designating lives at the various temperatures by NRT, N77, and N4.2. the ratios N77/NNT and N4.2/N77 ranged from 3.5 to 18 under the condition of common Ep . Metallo-graphic examination revealed different crack morphology in Cu-8 Al fatigued at room temperature, and at 77" and 4.2oK. At room temperature, cracks lay in or near grain and lain boundavies; at 77o and 4.2oK. cvacks were transcrystalline. Tests on single crystals of Cu-8 A1 showed that such a change in the cracking mode in polycrystallitle material accounted for a factor of- about 3.25 in N77/NRT . The longer life at lower tewperatztre (conslant cp) has heels attributed to two deuelopinents: a reduced production of the dislocation tangles and subgrain boundaries which serve as paths of rapid cracking, and suppression of oxygen chetni-sorption at the crack tip It was concluded that in both materials the luller accounted for an extension of the life at 4.2oK beyond that at room temperature by a factor of 15. XV ECENT experiments on the fatigue of Cu-A1 alloys in the so-called high-cycle range (greater than lo4 cycles) have emphasized the importance of stacking-fault energy (y) as a quantity affecting crack propagation rate and fatigue life.1,2 It was found in comparisons at essentially fixed plastic-strain amplitude that crack growth rate decreased by a factor of about 5 over the composition range from copper (? - 70 ergs per sq cm) to Cu-8 wt pct Al (? - 2.8 ergs per sq cm). The argument was made that, when stacking-fault energy is high, cross slip and climb are favored, so that dislocation tangles and/or subgrain boundaries form more readily under cyclic loading. Since the boundaries and tangles act as paths of rapid crack propagation ,3, 4 life is shortened as a result. However, when stacking-fault energy is reduced (as by alloying), cross slip and climb become more difficult, with the result that substructure formation is retarded and growth rate is also reduced. A purpose of the present work was to investigate the substructure effect in relation to temperature. As temperature is lowered, ? is varied only slightly (if at all), but decreased thermal activation can interfere with cross slip and climb. Thus substructure formation could be curtailed and life increased. Fatigue life in the high-cycle range is also known to be strongly influenced by environment. Working with copper, Wadsworth and Hutchings observed that life in a vacuum of 10-8 mm Hg exceeded life in air by a factor of 20.5 They isolated oxygen as the agent that furthered cracking. While the details are still unclear, a requirement in any mechanism of oxygen-accelerated cracking is that there be chemisorption at the crack tip. That could prevent welding on the compression half cycle,= interfere with reversal of slip,1, 6 or aid in breaking metal-metal bonds at the crack tip.5'7 In the work being reported here, temperature was lowered by immersion in liquid nitrogen and helium, which also served to reduce both the oxygen concentration and chemisorption rate. A possible effect upon life, i.e., a lengthening, had to be recognized. Several researchers have determined fatigue lives at low temperatures presenting their results in the form of stress amplitude (S) vs cycles in life (N) curves.8-11 Such curves reflect, primarily, the fact that metal is strengthened by lowering temperature; effects of substructure and changing environment tend to be masked. The difficulty can be overcome by comparisons based on identical plastic-strain amplitudes, and in the present work the dependence of life on both plastic strain and stress amplitude was established. EXPERIMENTAL Materials. The principal materials were polycrystal-line copper (? - 70 ergs per sq cm)" and the Cu-8 wt pct Al alloy (? - 2.8 ergs per sq cm),I3 the latter being near the limit of solubility of aluminum in copper and having, therefore, the lowest stacking-fault energy in the CU-Al system. Specimens were machined from 0.118-in.-diam cold-swaged rods of high-purity (99.999 pct) copper and the Cu-8 Al alloy, the latter produced initially in a graphite boat by induction vacuum melting a mixture of 99.999 pct Cu and 99.99 pct Al. The machined specimens were annealed to produce mean grain diameters of about 0.070 mm in copper and 0.190 mm in the alloy. Specimen dimensions are given in Fig. 1. Values of the tensile yield stress, ultimate strength, uniform strain (determined by the Considgre construction), and reduction of area, for both materials at 4.2oK, 77oK, and room temperature, are listed in Table I. The tensile apparatus in which these results were obtained has already been described.14 Apparatus. Specimens were fatigued in push-pull with a machine that is illustrated schematically in Fig. 2. The specimen is first soldered into the top grip (1) with Woods metal, and the grip is then screwed into the inner tube (2) which is connected to the drive rod of the Goodmans vibration genera-

Jan 1, 1968

By E. A. Gulbransen, W. S. Wysong

THE behavior of molybdenum and its surface oxides in oxidizing and reducing gas atmospheres and in high vacua at elevated temperatures is a question of scientific and technical importance The use of molybdenum as a metal or as an important component in alloys in oxidizing atmospheres at elevated temperatures has been limited because of the unprotective nature of its oxide film and the volatility of this oxide at moderate temperatures. This communication will present results of a vacuum microbalance study 1,2 of the following problems. (11) the oxidation kinetics in the temperature range of 250° to 450°C; (2) the reduction with pure hydrogen of thin oxide films formed on molybdenum; (3) the volatility of the thin oxide films, and (4) the vacuum oxidation of molybdenum at high temperatures. Molybdenum is an interesting metal to study for the following reasons: (I) although the oxide-to-metal-volume ratio is greater than one, the metal is not considered protective; (2) the metal oxidizes readily at temperatures of 250°C and higher; (3) the oxides of the metal are reduced at temperatures as low as 500°C by pure hydrogen; (4) the oxide MoO3 melts at 795°C; and (5) the oxides of molybdenum are volatile at moderate temperatures. The following variables are studied in the oxidation kinetics. time, temperature, pressure, surface preparation, surface area, concentration of inert gas in the lattice, cycling procedures in temperature, vacuum effect and high temperature vacuum oxidation The general interpretation of many of these factors has been previously discussed. LITERATURE The oxidation of molybdenum has not been studied critically. Although" many studies have probably been made on the kinetics of the oxidation process, none has been reported in the literature available to us. The crystal structures found in the oxidation of molybdenum have been studied by Hickman and Culbransen 4 Their results showed that MoO2 is the oxide which is stable in contact with the metallic subgtrate throughout the temperature range 300 to 700°C. As the film thickens in the low temperature range, MoO3 becomes predominant on the surface. Above 400°C, Mo03 is no longer observed, Mo02 being the only oxide found. Hagg and Magneli5 have shown from an X ray study that the a-phase, orthorhombic MoO3 is stable up to 1050°C. Two other phases, ß and ß', with compositions close to Mo02 90 are also obtained The formula for the ß phase is not given but that of the ß' phase is defined as Mo9026. The ß' phase is found to be built upon a monoclinic unit cell. A -?-phase is isolated from a preparation M00275 heated for 17 hrs at 670°C. This phase is

Jan 1, 1947

By C. W. Vaupell

THE Huitzuco mines lie in north central Guerrero, Mexico; production has been about 90,000 flasks of quicksilver since 1873. Near-surface ores fill extinct mud geysers and the deep deposits are chambered veins, stock-works in brecciated blocks, and replacements in limestone. The epigenetic minerals livingstonite, stibnite and sulphur occur in limestone, gypsum and dolomite through a developed vertical range of 260 meters. The deepest workings expose an increased amount of stibnite, which probably indicates that the lower limit of mercury mineralization is being approached. A resurgence of heat and water formed geysers over an extended area after the period of mercury mineralization. Mud geysers, which are situated, in the outcrops, contain the secondary mercury minerals, cinnabar and barcenite in the gravel and mud filling the vents. A 150-ton flotation plant is in operation concentrating stope fills that assay 3.0 kg. of mercury per ton. In one open stope, which is more than one hectare in area and 60 m. high, 150,000 tons are available. INTRODUCTION The Huitzuco mercury mines are of interest because of the unusual occurrence of ore in extinct geyser vents and the presence of several rare mercury minerals. Some of the deposits have typical characteristics of the telethermal zone and there is a gradation towards typical epithermal mineralization in depth. Halse,1 Villarello,2 Mactear3 and Merrill4 have described the geology and the early operations in the district, and Barcena5 and Mallet6 have described the rare mercury minerals, livingstonite and barcenite, found at Huitzuco. LOCATION The village of Huitzuco lies in the north central part of the State of Guerrero, Mexico, 27 km. (16.7 miles) east of Iguala, which is the largest and most important town in the area. Iguala is served by the Mexican National Railways and also by the Mexico City-Acapulco highway. The highway is surfaced from Mexico City to Iguala, a distance of 200 km. (124 miles) by road, and there is a fairly good, level, dirt road from Iguala to Huitzuco. The elevation above sea level is about 1000 m. (3280 ft.). The climate is warm and very dry except during the rainy season, from June to

Jan 1, 1937

By D. A. Augenstein, L. V. Amundson

Operators of coal preparation plants use equipment such as large-capacity dump trucks and bulldozers to haul, spread, and compact refuse material to conform to federal and state regulations governing the disposal of solid waste. For example, federal regulations require that refuse be spread and compacted in layers not more than 0.6 m (2 ft) thick. If the refuse layers or piles have poor load-bearing characteristics, movement of equipment over them becomes extremely difficult. The increasing cost and limited space for the construction of settling ponds extensively used for fine refuse disposal are leading to the growing practice of dewatering the fine refuse by means of vacuum disk filters and combining the resulting filter cake with coarse refuse for waste bank disposal. However, this filter cake usually contains more than 25% moisture. Therefore, when it is combined with coarse refuse, the moisture level of the total refuse may become high enough to impair the load-bearing strength of the refuse. Precisely this problem and the attendant difficulties of moving heavy equipment arose when vacuum disk filters were installed at a preparation plant in West Virginia. Combining the moist filter cake with the coarse refuse generally results in a 12% moisture level for the total refuse at this plant. At this moisture level, the refuse can still be handled with some dif¬ficulty by the equipment. However, the problem has frequently been compounded after rains. The experimental program described in this paper tested the following methods of improving the load-bearing properties of coal refuse: moisture reduction, addition of crushed coarse refuse, addition of fly ash, addition of lime, and addition of a mixture of lime and fly ash. In terms of a balance between economic and technical considerations, the most effective method was demonstrated by laboratory and plant tests to be a 2% to 5% addition of lime. Test Program During formulation of a test program aimed at improving coal refuse stability, a number of treatment techniques were selected for evaluation of their effect on refuse load-bearing characteristics. The reduction of refuse moisture was the first technique considered, since moisture content plays a key role in the bearing strength of a bulk solid. The reasoning was that a very small reduction in refuse moisture, provided it could be accomplished with minimal effort and cost, would be sufficient for eliminating refuse disposal problems most of the time. At the same time, it was recognized that periods of rainy weather would offset moisture-reduction measures. Other techniques selected for evaluation because of their potential for improving refuse-bearing strength at reasonable cost were: addition of crushed coarse refuse, the addition of fly ash, and the addition of lime. A simple one-dimensional laboratory compaction test was designed for evaluating the effect of each of these techniques on refuse-bearing strength. Those techniques that gave best results in the laboratory would then be tested in the preparation plant in West Virginia. Laboratory Tests The laboratory test for evaluating each of the techniques involved the application of weight to a load module placed on a refuse sample in a container. The distance the load module sank with an increasing amount of applied weight was measured, and the relationship between module displacement and loading was obtained. The refuse container was large enough to minimize the influence of wall effects, and to decrease the effect of the container bottom, a test was terminated when the load module sank to about three fourths the depth of the container. Initially, an attempt was made to conduct compaction experiments with samples of total plant refuse. However, the presence of + 0.13 m (+ 5 in.) material in the refuse interfered with the mechanics of the test, and the large amount of material required for a representative sample made testing extremely tedious and time-consuming. To avoid this problem and because it was believed that only the fine components of the refuse were the major cause of the stability problem, tests were conducted with 13 mm X 0 (1/2 in. X 0) material from the total plant refuse. The equipment consisted of a 0.46 m (18 in.) cubic container, a loading module with 62 cm2 loading area, weights totaling 450 kg, and a portable concrete mixer for combining water and additives with the refuse. Refuse samples of about 110 kg dry weight were used for each test. Experimental compaction test data were evaluated by plotting the linear displacement of the load module vs. loading. During compaction tests, the vertical displacement of the load module was measured at each loading value. The plot of

Jan 1, 1980

There are no data available of shipments until 1858, and then estimated, when railroad service became available. By reason of the iron made in the county, and the large amounts of salt, the tonnage used locally was quite large, and until 1860 these are estimated from the probable salt and iron production. After 1859 the tonnages shipped by rail are partly estimated from the total shipments of the Allegheny Valley Railroad from four counties. It is believed that the totals are below, rather than above, what the actual production was. While considerably larger for the same years than figures given by the Secretary of Internal Affairs and census reports, these data were always too low in those days, partly because of lack of facilities for gathering them, but more largely because of the strong prejudice existing in those days against furnishing such data to any governmental agencies.

Jan 1, 1942

By W. Rostoker, S. A. Spachner

FOLLOWING the discovery of the w transition phase in certain titanium-chromium alloys by Frost, Parris, Doig, and Schwartz, much interest has centered on the alloys in which this phase is found and its mode of precipitation. The w phase has been found in alloys of Ti-Cr, Ti-Fe, Ti-Mn, Ti-MO,2 and Ti-v.3 The temperature-time-transformation characteristics have, as yet, not been determined for most of these. In this study, such transformation characteristics have been investigated for two heat-treatable titanium alloys known to exhibit transition phase phenomena. The alloys chosen, Ti-8Cr and Ti-13M0, are representative of two classes of binary equilibrium systems. In the

Jan 1, 1959

By F. W. Luersson

High carbon, low phosphorus steel can now be made from pig iron containing 0.7 pct P or more, in a commercial sized open hearth furnace. No external heat is required for refining, and steel produced is identical with basic open hearth steel. THE classical Thomas process, which requires liquid pig iron containing over 11/2 pct P, yields a product relatively high in phosphorzs and nitrogen. Unless large quantities of recarburizers are added to the refined steel, the product is low in carbon content. Thus, the Thomas process is not well suited to American raw materials, and its product is often not acceptable according to the standards set by American industry. The shortcomings of the Thomas process have long been recognized; with the advent of low cost oxygen, studies were initiated to develop pneumatic processes which would conceivably overcome the inherent objections to Thomas steelmaking. Several such modified basic pneumatic processes have been tested experimentally in commercial trials during the past decade. Probably the most widely publicized of these developments has been the oxygen converter process as practiced in Austrial,2 and in Canada.8 n this process, oxygen is substituted for air and introduced above the liquid bath in order to increase the heat available to the metallurgical system. This avoids the need for high phosphorus raw materials and gives a product low in nitrogen. In this process, the phosphorus content in the final product depends, to a considerable extent, on the total amount of that element in the burden. The rotary furnace4 which is now in commercial operation at Domnarvet Steelworks, Sweden, is producing low phosphorus steel from iron containing 1.8 to 2 pct P. One or more early slags are removed and by this means high carbon steels of open hearth quality can be produced. At this stage of development there is some question as to the applicability of the rotary process to large heats. Another development has been the use of oxygen in combination with either steam6 or carbon dioxide yn the basic bessemer, thus avoiding the introduction of nitrogen gas into the refining system and giving a product relatively low in nitrogen content. A double slag process has been used in Europe7 in conjunction with a regular Thomas converter, by means of which it is possible to obtain a phosphorus content in the product approaching that obtained in basic open hearth steels. The Turbo-Hearth process:' which uses the side blowing principle so as to produce low nitrogen steel from normal American pig irons, has been developed experimentally in this country. A process fitted to U. S. raw materials All of the preceding processes, with the exception of the rotary furnace, suffer from the common shortcoming that they cannot be adapted to the production of high-carbon, low-phosphorus steels unless large proportions of recarburizers are added. In 1947, a program was initiated by the Inland Steel Company1' to study an oxygen steelmaking process specifically designed to utilize the full range of phosphorus analyses encountered in American pig irons and to give finai products with phosphorus and nitrogen contents comparable to steel produced by the basic open hearth process. Some of the objectives of the proposed process are: 1) the process should be able to accommodate molten pig iron conta;rl;rrg up to 1 pct P., 2) sne process should be subject to close control of carbon analysis, 3) the process should be capable of producing high carbon

Jan 1, 1958

Jan 1, 1985

By D. I. Cameron

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 at 1445°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 polycrystal- line thoria.

Jan 1, 1962

By James K. Gluck, William E. Galloway, Gary E. Smith, John P. Morton, Christopher D. Henry

INTRODUCTION Surface mining and in situ leaching of uranium have the potential to alter ground-water quality around mines and leach sites. Of particular concern is the fate of uranium and its associated trace elements: molybdenum, arsenic, and selenium. We wish to under- stand the natural processes that control trace element concentrations in ground water and how these processes will influence dispersion of the elements from a mineralized zone, both naturally and during and after mining or restoration. For example, it is commonly recognized that the trace elements are soluble in oxidizing ground water but are insoluble, and can be precipitated, in reducing ground water. Thus oxidizing, metal-bearing water leaving a deposit could re- enter reduced ground, causing the water to be re- reduced and the trace elements to be, reprecipitated. In a sense, this is recreating the original mineralization process. To accomplish the above goals, we have (1) examined the theoretical controls of concentrations based on the available geochemical and thermodynamic data, (2) determined the major ion composition and oxidation-reduction status of Oakville waters because of the influence of these factors on trace element solubility, and (3) determined trace element concentrations and distribution in Oakville ground water. The last approach is used to evaluate how well actual behavior follows predicted behavior. This report focuses on two elements, uranium and molybdenum, because they exemplify the results obtained. The report also is restricted to a regional study of Oakville ground water. Results of more de- tailed study in and around major uranium districts in the Oakville and much of the raw data that support the conclusions in this report are presented in Galloway, Henry and Smith (1980). This report is part of that larger study, which concerned the depositional systems, hydrology, and geochemistry of the Oakville. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency funded the study, under grant numbers R-805357-01 and R-805357-02. Theoretical controls were determined by reviewing the available literature on aqueous chemistry and behavior of uranium and molybdenum. To aid in under- standing water chemistry, Oakville water analyses were run through a modified version of the computer model WATEQF (Plumer, Jones, and Truesdell, 1976). WATEQF calculates speciation of dissolved ions and determines saturation with respect to a variety of minerals. In the discussion below, ion activity products (IAP) are compared with the equilibrium constant (KT) for various reactions and mineral products. Values of log IAP/KT near zero indicate that the water is in equilibrium with a mineral. Values less than -1 indicate considerable undersaturation and values greater than +1 indicate oversaturation. Galloway, Henry, and Smith (1980) give a more complete discussion of the application of this approach to Oakville water chemistry. Eh-pH diagrams have been constructed or adapted from the literature to predict what form -- dissolved ion or stable mineral species -- uranium and molybdenum assume under various conditions. Construction of the diagrams has followed procedures described by Garrels and Christ (1965). This approach is particularly appropriate because the solubility of the elements is Eh-dependent, and Eh varies greatly within the Oakville aquifer. A number of assumptions or approximations are inherent in the use of Eh-pH diagrams and chemical models such as WATEQF and in the interpretation of water chemistry in general. Both Eh-pH diagrams and chemical modeling rely entirely upon available thermo- dynamic data, including free energies of formation and dissociation constants for various reactions. These values are known to varying degrees of accuracy. Most major ions and minerals are relatively well control- led; however, data for trace metals are much poorer. Thermodynamic data are not available for some minerals, and for other minerals, two or more divergent values exist. By necessity, we have relied on the judgment of others to evaluate thermodynamic data. Calculations by WATEQF and constructions of Eh-pH diagrams are based on an assumption of equi1ibrium. Equilibrium may not be comnon in low-temperature aqueous environments; at best, ground-water composi tion may be in a state of dynamic equilibrium, continuously changing due to changes in environmental conditions. Eh-pH diagrams show what phases are stable at equilibrium under given conditions; they do not prove that the phases actually exist. Many minerals persist or form metastably under conditions outside their equilibrium stability field. The kinetics of reactions, which cannot be evaluated here, are important in determining what phases occur. Kinetics may be less of a problem for ground water that travels and evolves slowly through a semihomogeneous matrix than for many other natural systems. Eh-pH diagrams show equilibrium fields only of phases included. They do not indicate anything about stability relative to phases not included in the diagram. WATEQF, obviously, cannot calculate the degree of saturation of a mineral not included in the program or for which the appropriate ions were not analyzed. Thus, a mineral that was not considered may be the most stable phase under a given set of conditions and may control the solubility of a trace element. Also, this study is limited exclusively to in- organic compounds. Organic material is known to be an

Jan 1, 1980

Bill S.1431 for the creation of a Department of Natural Resources has received a propitious hearing before the Senate Committee on Government Operations. Interior Secretary Rogers C. B. Morton was one of the prominent witnesses who testified in favor. The department had been proposed, Morton said, with "the conviction that the development of all natural resources would be harmonized with the most practicable possible means to protect and preserve the environment, consistent with the social and economic needs of the Nation." Another opinion on the pro side came from Atomic Energy Commissioner Clarence E. Larson, who said that a "total picture" had become essential to the establishment of a policy for developing energy resources in the best public interest. Commissioner James T. Ramey, on the other hand, was one of the AEC dissenters. Ramey said he believed the reorganization of resource responsibilities would hinder efforts to deal with energy-environmental problems and prevent the use of AEC "expertise and facilities" to the greatest advantage. As Arnold Weber, associated director of the Office of Management and Budget, pointed out, however, retiring AEC Chairman Glenn T. Seaborg is in favor of the new department. Another supporter, and one who can cast a vote on the bill, is Sen. Frank E. Moss. Final Standards for emissions from new stationary sources will be published by the Environmental Protection Agency on October 27. The initial proposals, appearing in the Federal Register on August 17, called for limiting emissions per million Btu of heat input (maximum 2-hr average) to 0.2 lb of particulate matter, and, where solid fuel is burned, to 1.2 lb of sulfur dioxide and 0.7 lb of nitrogen dioxide. While the new rules are mainly for new plants, the EPA is also proposing them for "existing plants which are modified in such a way as to increase or alter. . . their emissions."

Jan 1, 1971