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By Robert R. Britton

A study conducted at The Ohio State University sought to deter- mine whether explosives break rock primarily employing shock energy or energy stored as borehole gas pressure. The amount of broken material, calculated borehole pressure, and measured stress waves are compared as decoupling ratios (borehole diameter/explosive charge diameter) increased from 1 to 3 and all other variables remained constant. Breakage and calculated borehole pressure displayed a decrease as the decoupling ratio increased while the shock energy remained constant. The strong implication is that borehole gas pressure is the primarary force in breaking rock with explosives.

Jan 1, 1984

Bureau of Mineral and Topographic Survey, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky. Arthur C. McFarlan, State Geologist The Kentucky Geological Survey was abolished by a recent legislative act and the Bureau of Mineral and Topographic Survey at the University of Kentucky was created in its place Publications of the former Survey are distributed by the present Bureau Several series of papers and volumes have been issued but only those of Series 3, 4 and 6 are now to be had in whole or in part Of Series 4, (1912-18) only one group of papers is available Vol: 1, pt. 2, Miscellaneous papers on fire clays, limestones and coals of parts of the state (1913), $125. Of Series 3 (1904-1912), the following bulletins are pertinent and may be had. Bulletin 3, Coals, clays, etc., of Kentucky (1905), 50 cents, 14, Coals of the Pineville Gap region (1912), $1.25, 16, The Waverlain formation of east central Kentucky (1912), 50 cents, 17, Coals of the Tradewater region (1912), 50 cents, 18, Coals of Quicksand region (1912), 50 cents; 19, Geology and coals of the Central City, Madisonville, Calhoun, and Newberg Quadrangles (1912), 50 cents

Jan 1, 1933

By V. O. Struebing, K. A. Johnson, F. H. Ellinger, C. C. Land

The system Pu-Ce-(Pu,Ce)Co2 has been investigated by thermal, micrographic, and X-ray diffraction methods. The principal characteristics of this system were found to be: 1) a "eutectic" valley extending across the phase diagram from the 6 Pu/Pu3 Co eutectic at 408°C to the 7 Ce/Ce24Co11 eutectic at 42Z°C, the maximum temperature in the valley being 443°C; 2) three ternary inter mediate phases, each having an appreciable mutual solid solubility for plutonium and cerium; 3) eleven four-phase equilibria comprising one eutectic, four peritectics, and six Class II reactions; 4) a pseudobinary section between the ternary phase A and the y Ce solid solution, and another such section between the 6 Pu solid solution and the 77 phase (Pu3 CO) containing cerium in solid solution. ALLOYS of plutonium that are completely molten at temperatures in the vicinity of 500°C are of interest for use in the liquid state as fast reactor fuels. Since exploratory work1,2 on Pu-Ce-Co alloys had indicated that a "eutectic" valley extended across the ternary system between the Pu-co[6 Pu/n (Pu3co)] and the Ce-CO[? Ce/? (ce24co11)] binary eutectics, thus allowing alloys of any plutonium concentration to be selected within the temperature limitation, the present investigation was begun for the purpose of accurately defining the "eutectic" valley. However, when the existence of three ternary intermediate phases and the consequent complexity of the liquid-solid equilibria were discovered, the investigation was expanded to cover the complete system, except for the corner between the isomorphous series PuCo2-CeCo2 and pure cobalt. 1) EXPERIMENTAL The purities of the alloy components are given in Table I. Alloy buttons, each weighing about 5 g, were prepared by arc melting the accurately weighed components (±0.1 mg) under a purified He-Ar atmosphere. Weight loss as a result of melting was usually less than 1 part in 1000; therefore, the buttons were not chemically analyzed. One half of each button was re-melted by induction heating in vacuo in a magnesia crucible and furnace-cooled, so as to produce a somewhat coarser microstructure than that of the rapidly cooled arc-melted button. About 20 g of each alloy to be examined by thermal analysis were remelted in vacuo in a tantalum crucible of the inverted thermocouple well type. The thermal, X-ray diffraction, heat treating, and micrographic methods used in this investigation were essentially the same as have been described in earlier reports.3,4 Two etchants for these alloys were found to be satisfactory: A) 8 (parts by volume) orthophosphoric acid, 5 ethanol, and 5 glycol; B) 7 tetraphosphoric acid, 36 water, and 57 2-ethoxyethanol. Etchant A was used at 5 to 6 v for 15 to 20 sec, and etchant B was used at 10 v for 10 sec. 2) THE LIMITING BINARY SYSTEMS 2.1) Plutonium-Cerium. The phase relationships of this system have been investigated by Ellinger, Land, and Cramer,5 and by Selle and Etter.6 The over-all agreement of their phase diagrams is good, but there are some discrepancies in the positions of some phase

Jan 1, 1967

By C. E. Lundin, M. Hansen, D. J. McPherson

PRIOR work on the Zr-Cu phase diagram by Alli-bone and Sykes,' Pogodin, Shumova, and KUGU cheva,' and Raub and EngeL3 as confined largely to copper-rich alloys. The investigations of Raub and Engel were the most recent and seemingly the most complete of these. Alloys from 0 to 68.3 pct Zr were studied principally by thermal analysis and microscopic examination. These authors reported an inter metallic compound ZrCu, (1116°C melting point) and two eutectics, one at 86.3 pct Cu (977°C mp) and the other at 49 pct Cu (877°C mp). The solubility of zirconium in copper was reported to be less than 0.1 pct at 940°C. The zirconium melting stock consisted of Westing-house "Grade 3" iodide crystal bar (nominally 99.8 pct pure). It was treated by sand blasting and pickling (HF-HNO, solution) to remove the surface film of corrosion product, resulting from grade designation tests. The crystal bar was cold rolled to strip, lightly pickled again, and cut into pieces approximately 1/32 in. thick and 1/4 in. square. These were cleaned in acetone, dried, and stored for charging. The high-purity copper (spectrographic grade) was supplied by the American Smelting and Refining Co. with a nominal purity of 99.99 pct. These copper rods were rolled to strip, cut into squares the same size as the zirconium platelets, cleaned in acetone, dried, and stored. Equipment and Procedures The equipment used for melting and annealing the zirconium binary alloys and for the determination of solidus curves has been described in connection with previous work on the Ti-Si system' and in recent papers in this series describing the studies on eight binary zirconium systems.5-' Techniques employed for preparing and processing the alloys were also similar to those used in the above references. Ingots of 20 g were melted under a protective atmosphere of helium on water-cooled copper blocks in a nonconsumable electrode (tungsten) arc furnace. The ingots were homogenized and cold-worked prior to isothermal annealing to aid in the attainment of equilibrium. The specimens were heat-treated in Vycor bulbs sealed in vacuo or under argon, depending on the temperature of the anneal. Quenching was accomplished by breaking the Vycor bulbs under cold water. Temperature control was within ±3OC of reported temperatures. Thermal analysis was primarily relied on to determine eutectic levels, peritectic levels, and compound melting points. The induction furnace incipient melting technique was also used but did not provide the accuracy obtained by thermal analysis in this system, which involves much lower solidus temperatures than the other zirconium systems. A special technique for the determination of characteristic temperatures was employed in the case of several intermediate phases and their eutectics which displayed very small differences in melting temperatures. Specimens were sealed in Vycor bulbs and annealed at a series of very accurately controlled temperatures. Metallographic examination was then employed to reveal incipient melting. Furnaces and techniques in general were described previously.' The echant used was 20 pct HF plus 20 pct HNO3 in glycerine unless otherwise stated. Results and Discussion The chemical analyses of the majority of alloys prepared for the determination of phase relationships in this system are given in Table I and a brief summary of the equilibrium anneals employed is given in Table 11. In a preliminary program, alloys containing 1, 4, and 7 pct Cu were annealed for three different times at each of the temperatures 700°, 800°, and 900°C. No change in the relative amounts of phases present was detected after 350, 150, and 75 hr at the above temperatures, respectively. The times listed in Table II were accordingly chosen as a result of these preliminary tests. Zirconium-rich alloys containing from 0.1 to 10 pct CU were reduced by cold pressing from 58 to 8 pct, depending upon thk alloy content, homogenized for 7 hr at 900°C, and then reduced 80 to 13 pct by cold rolling, again depending upon copper content. Other alloys were studied in the cast, or cast and annealed conditions. The contracted scope of investigation for this system included the range 0 to 50 atomic pct Cu. This approximate region is shown in Fig. 1. Due to evidence of phase relationships departing considerably from those proposed by Raub and Engel" in the 50 to 100 atomic pct range, the investigation was extended to cover this composition area rather thoroughly also. Fig. 2 is a drawing of the entire diagram. The labeling of some phase fields was omitted in Fig. 2 for the sake of clarity. An expanded view of the zirconium-rich region, with the experimental points necessary for its construction, is given in Fig. 3. The generally accepted value of Vogel and Tonn8 or the allotropic transformation a + 862' ±5OC, was employed in the construction of these diagrams. A careful study revealed that the "Grade 3" crystal bar used in this investigation actually transforms over the approximate range 850" to 870°C, due to impurities. It must be expected that this two-phase field in unalloyed zirconium will cause some departures from binary ideality in the very dilute alloys. Zirconium-rich Alloys: The a + ß transformation temperature is decreased from 862" to about 822°C by increasing amounts of copper. Thus, a eutectoid reaction, fi ß a+ Zr,Cu, occurs at a composition of about 1.6 pct Cu. The eutectoid level was determined to lie between the alloy series annealed at 815" and 830°C. The placement of this eutectoid temperature

Jan 1, 1954

By Samuel S. Adams

Potash, the generic term for a variety of potassium-bearing minerals, ores, and refined products (Table I), owes its importance as an industrial mineral to the potassium requirement of growing plants. The term "potash" originally referred to potassium carbonate produced by the leaching of wood ashes. This process, for which the first U.S. patent was issued in 1790, was the basis for the largest United States chemical industry in the early nineteenth century. The agricultural use of potash soon eclipsed the chemical applications following the German discovery in 1840 that potassium is essential to plant growth. The initial discoveries of large deposits of soluble potassium minerals, essential for agriculture applications, were made in 1857 in Germany and in 1914 in the United States. More than 90% of the 20.4 million short tons K2O produced in the world in 1970 (Eilertsen, 1971 ) was derived from marine evaporite deposits and approximately 90% was used in fertilizers. The potassium content of an ore, mineral, or product is customarily expressed as % K,O, a unit of measure which is neither a natural nor synthetic compound of potassium (1 .O% K is equivalent to 1.2046% K,O) . Geology Potassium, the seventh most abundant element in the earth's crust, is present in silicate minerals in igneous, sedimentary and meta- morphic rocks. Potassium is also a major constituent of many surface and subsurface brines (Table 2). Economic potash deposits are essentially restricted, however, to widespread, thick accumulations of marine chloride evaporite deposits. These deposits yield high grade, large tonnage ore bodies, many of which are amenable to low cost mining and beneficiation. The products from these deposits are, moreover, ideal for use in fertilizer because of the high relative solubility of the potassium chloride and sulfate evaporite minerals. World potash production and reserves for such de- posits so vastly overshadow other sources of potassium that the following discussion will be limited largely to potash deposits in marine evaporites with brief reference to certain potash-rich brines. Approximately 85% of current domestic production is from bedded salt deposits and much of the balance is from brines. Marine evaporite deposits are accumulations of salt minerals deposited in structural sedimentary basins through the evaporation of sea-water or mixtures of seawater and other brines. The salt minerals are precipitated in assemblages and sequences of assemblages as determined by the compositions of the brines and the solubility relations in the salt systems (D'Ans, 1933). The evaporation of seawater normally yields carbonate minerals as the first precipitates (Table 3). Further evaporation and concentration of the brine leads to the precipitation, in succession, of sulfate, chloride, and supersaline mineral assemblages including the salts of potassium and magnesium. The common minerals, ores, and products of potassium deposits are listed in [Table 1]. Many potash deposits contain accessory evaporite minerals together with a variety of detrital and authigenic silicates (Braitsch, 1971).

Jan 1, 1975

By M. A. Torcaso, P. Raimondi

The distribution of the oil phase in Berea sandstone resulting from increasing and decreasing the water saturation by imbibition was investigated Three types of distribution were recognized: trapped, normal and lagging. The amount of oil in each of these distributions was determined as a function of saturation by carrying out a miscible displacement in the oil phase under steady-state conditions of saturation. These conditions were maintained by flowing water and oil simultaneously in given ratios and by using a displacing solvent having essentially the same density and viscosity as the oil. A correlation shows the amount of trapped oil at any saturation to be directly proportional to the conventional residual oil saturation Sor The factor of proportionality is related to the fractional permeability to the water phase. Part of the oil which was not trapped was displaced in a piston-like manner (normal part) and part was eluted gradually (lagging part). The observed phenomena are more than of mere academic importance. Oil which is trapped may well provide the fuel essential for forward combustion and thus be beneficial. On the contrary, in tertiary recovery operations, it is this trapped oil which seems to make current techniques uneconomic. INTRODUCTION A typical oilfield may initially contain connate water and oil. After a period of primary production water often enters the field either from surrounding aquifers or from surface injection. During primary production evolution and establishment of a free gas saturation usually occurs. The effect and importance of this third phase is fully recognized. However, this investigation is limited to a two-phase system, one wetting phase (water) and one non-wetting phase (oil). The increase in water content of a water-wet system is termed imbibition. In a relative permeability-saturation diagram such as the one shown in Fig. 1, the initial conditions of the field would be represented by a point below a water saturation of about 35 per cent, i.e., where the imbibition and the drainage curves to the non-wetting phase nearly coincide. When water enters the field the relative permeability to oil decreases along the imbibition curve. At watered-out conditions the relative permeability to the oil becomes zero. At this point a considerable amount of oil. called residual oil, (about 35 per cent in Fig. 1) remains unrecovered. Any attempt to produce this oil will require that its saturation be increased. In Fig. 1 this would mean retracing the imbibition curve upwards. In addition, processes like alcohol and fire flooding, which can be employed at any stage of production, involve the complete displacement of connate water and an increase, or imbibition. of water saturation ahead of the displacing front. Thus, in several types of oil production it is the imbibition-relative permeability curve which rules the flow behavior. For this reason a knowledge of the distribution of the non-wetting phase, as obtained through imbibition, whether "coming down" or "going up" on the imbibition curve, is important.

Jan 1, 1965

By M. H. Cullender

The performance characteristics 01 gas wells producing from formations which fail to stabilize within a relatively short period of time are obscured by the interrelation of the coefficient (C) and the slope "n" of the conventional back-pressure curve q = C(P2 f- p2s)n An empirical method is presented whereby the characteristic or true slope (11) of the back-pressure curve may be determined for a particular gas well. For those gas wells which do not stabilize within a relatively short period of time, the coefficient (C) is considered as a variable with respect to time and as a constant only with respect to a specific time. Thus, the back-presrure performance of such a well is presented as a series of parallel curve5, each curve representing the performance of the well at the end of a given time interval. Through use of the method presented, a simple presture gradient is developed and maintained within the drainage area around a producing gas well during the test period in order that the variation of the coefficient (C) with respect to time does not obscure the true value of the lope. INTRODUCTION The back-pressure method of testing gas wells as set forth by Schellhardt and Rawlins1 is dependent upon the requirement that a series of flow rates and corresponding pressure data be obtained under stabilized conditions. These data arc then plotted on logarithmic coordinates of flow rate (Q) vs difference in squared pressures (P2f — P2s) in order to determine the constants (C) and (n) for Equation 1. With respect to this method of presenting the performance characteristics of a gas well, it should be pointed out that although Equation 1 is an empirical relationship, the form of the equation was justified to a considerable extent by an independent development by Muskat and Botset.2 This development was theoretical in nature; however, certain assumptions with respect to the type of flow existing (viscous vs non-viscous) were madc which may or may not be correct. As the use of the method presented by Schellhardt and Rawlins spread through the industry, it became evident that the method of testing was applicable for those wells which approached stabilized prbducing conditions within a relatively short period of time. Performance characteristics could not be determined by this method, however, for wells which approached stabilized protlucing conditions slowly over a considerable period of time. This characteristic of "slow stabilization" has generally been associated with gas wells producing frorn reservoirs of low permeability. As the demand for natural gas continued to grow through the years, a great number of wells were completed in reservoirs of low permeability which exhibited "slow stabiliz:~tion" characteristics. Consequently, the problem of determining the true performancc characteristics of these wells became more apparent. It is with this problem in mind that the isochronal performance method of determining the flow characteristics of gas wells is presented.

Jan 1, 1956

By Fred H. Poettmann, A. L. Benham

correlation of waters and identification of mixtures of two and three waters is important in secondary recovery evaluation studies and studies involving underground movement of waters. The importance of such studies suggests the need for a method to correlate a great number of water analyses to accurately identify and improve the understanding of mixtures of waters. Geochemical analyses of waters furnish a quantitative measure of each of the ions present in a water. Table L shows a portion of the data on many oilfield water analysis report forms in use today. Under "parts per million" are listed the quantitative amounts of each ion in milligrams per liter. Following the work of Stabler' and Palmer", some laboratories have reported additional data to indicate the reaction capacity, or reacting value of each ion. Table I lists data under two subheads for the "reacting value". Under the first subhead, the reacting value is reported in gram equivalents per million, hereinafter called equivalents per million. This value is determined by multiplying milligrams per liter of the ion by a factor equal to the reciprocal of the equivalent weight of the ion. Under the second subhead (per cent) is listed the percentage of each ion based on the total equivalents per million. Sodium is not usually an analyzed value in routine analyses, but is determined by the difference between total negative equivalent per million values and the sum of all of positive ion values for which analyses were made. This difference is reported as sodium, hereafter labelled "sodium". On this basis, the subtotals of the equivalent per million and per cent reacting values of the positive and negative ions are equal. CORRELATION OF WATER ANALYSES DATA Previously reported methods for correlating oilfield waters have used part of the data in Table 1, and can be classified into two categories. Correlation by Chemical Character Correlation methods using the chemical character of waters, as represented by the per cent reacting values of the ionic constituents, have been used by Palmer2 and Tickell. These methods have the limitation of neglecting the ionic concentration of the waters. This limitation can be serious in areas where waters have the same chemical character, but differ in concentration. Correlation by Concentration of the Ionic Constituents The Reistle' and the Stiff methods use the ionic concentration in parts per million and equivalents per million. These methods are effective in differentiating waters of similar chemical character and varying concentration, as in the highly saline waters of the Mid-Continent area. These methods have the disadvantage that they correlate waters by comparing many graphs of individual water analyses to determine the similarity to, or the variance from "type" waters. PROPOSED METHOD OF CORRELATING WATER ANALYSES DATA Correlation graphs presented in Fig. 1 represent water analyses data as points to facilitate the correlation of waters. The graph on the left of Fig. 1 is a plot of per cent reacting value of magnesium vs calcium. The right

By Martin S. Maier, H. R. Nelson

THE diffusion of metals plays an important role in many metallurgical processes, 1,2 as, for example, the formation of alloys by the annealing of mixed powders, the homogenization of segregated alloys, and the carburization of steel. Other equally important phenomena, such as recrystallization and creep, are based on the movement of like atoms. Although much is known concerning the effects of diffusion in metals, very little is known concerning the details of the physical processes involved.1,3-5 The data that should give most information concerning the processes involved in diffusion are those on the diffusion of like atoms-self-diffusion. Very little is known concerning the rates of self-diffusion of metals because before the discovery of artificial radio-activity in 1934 there was no means of detecting the movement of the diffusing atoms through the solvent metal except in the elements possessing natural radioactive isotopes-lead, thallium and bismuth. Using the induced radioactivity of the element as an indicator, atoms can now be "tagged" so that the rate of diffusion of the radioactive isotopes of an element (tagged atoms) into the stable isotopes of the same element can be measured. As the radioactive and stable isotopes of an element differ only in nuclear structure, it is quite certain that all isotopes of an element diffuse at the same rate. Two techniques have been used to measure self-diffusion. In one, a thin layer of radioactive metal is deposited on the face of the solvent metal, and the decrease in the surface activity as the radioactive atoms diffuse into the solvent metal is measured. This method has been used to determine the coefficients of self-diffusion of lead6-10 and bismuth10 using natural radioactive isotopes, and of gold11 and copper12 using artificial radioactive isotopes. In the other technique a thin layer of the radioactive metal is deposited on one face of the solvent metal, and after diffusion has occurred the specimen is cut in thin sections to obtain the concentration-penetration curve. This method has been used to determine the coefficients of self-diffusion of gold,13 zinc, 14-16 silver,17 and copper.18 The second method was used for the work described in this paper. MATERIALS The coefficients of self-diffusion were determined in two grades of polycrystalline copper and in single crystals of copper. Commercial OFHC copper was used in the form of disks I in. in diameter by 1/8 in. thick. Samples of high-purity copper described by Phillips and Skinner19 were supplied through the courtesy of the American Smelting and Refining Co. The high-purity copper rod was used without remelting by cross-rolling to a thickness of 0.075 in., from which disks 7/8 in. in diameter were cut. A good grade of bus-bar copper was used to make the single crystals.

Jan 1, 1942

By C. G. Dunn, F. W. Daniels, M. J. Bolton

J. P. Nielsen—The data that Dr. Dunn and his associates have been obtaining are welcome checks on the theoretical aspects of grain boundary energies. With reference to the comments on the validity of the inter-facial tension concept, I should like to say that I have been having considerable difficulty myself in untangling the confusion between "interfacial tension" and "interfacial energy." The confusion however resolved itself for me when I learned that "interfacial tension" for solids, or at least crystals, is used with two distinct meanings. One meaning12. ' "hat is implied for "interfacial tension" is the work necessary to produce or increase the surface of the solid in question by a unit area, temperature and pressure held constant. This comes from the somewhat surprising but simple fact that surface tension and surface energy in the case of liquids are identical quantities. This synonymity has carried over to crystals, where it should be kept in mind that the tension connotation has meaning only by analogy with liquids and that no real stresses are being referred to. The only reason that there is apparently a set of stresses acting at a grain boundary junction is the optical illusion that liquid interfaces are being observed for the grain boundaries. The other meaning3,14,15 for the term has to do with actual states of stress in the surface of a material as would be measured by a system of forces applied to the surface to equate the surface stress state with that in the body of the crystal. J. B. Hess—Since the authors have proposed that the surface tension concept should be discarded in order to deal with the general case of interface energies in solids, their attention should be called to a recent paper by Gurney." The latter has shown, from a thermodynamic argument, that surface tension is a valid concept in solids. In fact, Gurney has rejected the idea that surface tensions are merely mathematical fiction and, instead, has given an interpretation of their physical reality. Finally, he has concluded that, as long as appreciable atomic migration takes place, specific surface energies and surface tensions must be equivalent in solids as well as in liquids. Accordingly, the authors' eqs 2 and 3 can be written with equal accuracy in terms of interface tensions, simply by replacing each E,! with its numerically and dimension-ally equivalent Interfacial tension ?,,. If the interfacial tensions (or specific energies) are independent of interfacial orientation, as is true in liquids, then the general equations that define the geometry at equilibrium of the common junction of three interfaces reduce to eq 1. However, neglect of the effect of boundary orientation is never completely justified theoretically' in dealing with crystalline solids; hence, use of eq 1 in such cases must always be considered as an approximation, though clearly a reasonable one for many purposes.1,2 At the same time, one should not be surprised that the assumption that interface tensions in solids are free from orientation

Jan 1, 1951

By W. C. Winegard, E. L. Holmes

The effects of the solute elements lead and bismuth on grain growth in zone -refined tin have been investigated. At low temperatures, viz. below 160°C. or at high concentrations, viz. greater than 0.03 at. pct, the temperature dependence of grain growth was found to be constant. A correlation was found to exist between the rates of grain growth in the presence of solute impurities and the factor [C Ir - 1]2 , where C is the solute concentration, r is the radius of solvent atom, and r' is radius of solute atom. It is shown that the Liicke and Detert theory does not give a satisfactory explanation of the results obtained. INVESTIGATIONS of grain growth in zone-refined lead and tin and some effects of solute elements on grain growth in these metals have been reported by Bolling and winegardly2 and Holmes and winegard? The present investigation is an extension of the previous work, and was undertaken to provide additional results which might make it possible to discover the mechanism whereby the rate of grain growth is affected by the presence of foreign solute atoms. The experimental procedure was exactly the same as that described previously.3'4 Figs. 1 and 2 show the results obtained with lead and bismuth additions over the same temperature range, viz. 167" to 220°C, as that used for the investigation of grain growth in zone-refined tin.3 Fig. 3 shows the results obtained for zone-refined tin and for this tin with lead solute additions over an extended temperature range. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS As mentioned previously,3 the character of grain growth in the particular zone-refined tin used in these experiments appears to change as the temperature of annealing falls below about 160°C. The grain growth became somewhat irregular and was characterized by a jaggedness of many of the grain boundaries. The reason for this change is not known, but may be due either to residual impurity effects or possibly an oxide precipitation. It was obvious that normal grain growth only occurred in the zone-refined tin through the high-temperature range 167" to 220°C, and so the effects of solute atoms on grai11 growth over the two temperature ranges will be discussed separately. a) Effect of Impurity on Grain Growth in the Temperature :Range Above 167°C. It is apparent from Figs. 1 and 2 that, for low concentrations of solute, the rates of grain growth tend towards a common value as the melting temperature of tin is approached. As the concentration of lead is increased, the rate of grain growth close to the melting temperature is also reduced, and at high concentrations the temperature dependence of the rate of grain growth appears approximately constant. It should be noteil that the effect of bismuth is greater than that of the same concentration of lead, but both these solutes have a smaller effect on the rate of grain growth than silver, as seen from an earlier investigation of Holmes and Winegard. It should

Jan 1, 1962

By J. C. Allen, E. V. Herring

CHILE EXPLORATION CO's. oxide plant at Chuquicamata, the largest of its kind, started in 1915 with initial operations at the rate of 10,000 tons of ore per day. Anaconda Copper Mining Co. acquired the controlling interest in 1923 and in the next few years modernized the plant and mine, extending operations to a nominal capacity of 490 million lb of electrolytic copper yearly by 1942. Plant production averaging 495.7 million lb of copper per year was maintained for the eight-year period extending from 1941 to 1948 inclusive. During the World War II production reached its highest level when in 1944 the output was 531.8 million lb. The maximum production for any one month was 49.6 million lb, achieved in May 1947. E. A. Cappelen Smith, consulting metallurgist for M. Guggenheim's Sons, worked out the first process for the treatment of Chuquicamata copper oxide ore about 1913, and directed a staff of 20 young engineers operating a pilot plant at Perth Amboy, N. J., on three shifts for an entire year. The copper is extracted from the oxide ore by a hydro-metallurgical treatment described in detail by T. A. Campbell in AIME Transactions, Vol. 106, Copper Metallurgy, 1933. The Oxide Plant is divided into five main operations as follows: (1) Crushing, (2) Leaching, including dechloridizing and sulphur dioxide treatment, (3) Tailing disposal, (4) Electrolytic precipitation, (5) Smelting and melting. Crushing The present Primary Crushing Plant has been in operation 25 years, during which time 4,342,112 cars of 70 tons net capacity have passed through the dumpers. The ore as received from the mine is frequently blocky and up to 5 feet in section. It is reduced to 9-in. size by two 60-in. gyratory crushers, and transported to the east and west ore bins by 60-in. conveyors. In the secondary crushing operation the ore is first reduced to 2 to 3-in. size by five standard 7-ft cone crushers and two No. 10 gyratories. This product is then reduced to 3/8-in. size by fifty-two 48-in. vertical Symons disc crushers and is transported by belt conveyors to the loading bridges from which it is charged° into the leaching vats. Conveyor belt No. 14 which serves the eight vats in the east section of the leaching plant has transported over 125 million tons of ore, which is a record for any type of conveyor. This 60-in. belt travels at a speed of 600 fpm and carries loads up to 5500 tons per hr. Leaching The ore is leached in 14 vats, averaging 13,500 short tons net capacity each. These vats are lined with a natural mastic which adequately resists the sulphuric acid leaching solutions. The leaching process as presently conducted comprises soaking the ore with successive volumes of leaching solution and spent electrolyte and withdrawing successive volumes of enriched solution from the vat to a total of approximately 3.2 million gal. The first 1.6 million gal of this volume withdrawn is called strong solution and contains about 35 parts of copper per 1000. The balance of 1.6 million gal subsequently withdrawn is stored in a

Jan 1, 1952

By G. D. Hobson, I. Mrosovsky

Material balance relationships for expansion-type reservoirs above the bubble point have been discussed in recent years by H. N. Hall and M. F. Hawkins, Jr. The former drew attention to the effects of rock compressibility, and the latter to the effects of the compressibility of any interstitial water. Hawkins derived a general relationship which took note of oil, water and rock compressibilities, and then by assuming first, the absence of interstitial water and secondly, no effects due to interstitial water or rock compressibility, obtained relationships symbolically of the same form as those previously derived directly by Hall. Hawkins defined his terms clearly, and noted an approximation, due to the omission of a term involving the product of two compressibilities, made in reaching his final equation. There is, however, possible ambiguity with regard to Hall's written definition of the oil production term. One interpretation would mean that the produced oil and initial oil-in-place, if both required as stock tank barrels, would be obtained by using different formation volume factors in the conversion in order to satisfy the conditions implicit in Hall's formulae. The other would involve an approximation which, if used, was not stated. In both Hall's and Hawkins' studies the effect of the approximation or inconsistency is very slight. Nevertheless, it may be justifiable to give a somewhat more consistent derivation, since the complexity of the final relationships is not thereby greatly increased. Let the initial pore volume be Vi and the volume after a pressure drop of Ap, V. Then V = V, (1 - ?p . cr), where c, is the rock compressibility expressed as change in pore volume/unit pore volume/unit pressure change, and is defined with the initial pressure as base. Suppose that the interstitial water saturation under the initial conditions is Sw. The total volume of interstitial water under those conditions will be ViSw. If the volume of the water after dropping the pressure by ?p is V., this will be given by Vw = ViSw (1 + ?p.c,w), the compressibility of the water being c, which is ex- pressed using the volume at the initial pressure as base. If Boi is the reservoir volume factor of the crude oil for the initial reservoir conditions, and B. the equivalent factor when the pressure has dropped by ?p, with N the initial amount of oil expressed as stock tank barrels. N.Boi = Vi - V,Sw If n is the amount of oil produced (in terms of stock tank barrels) as a result of the pressure drop ?p, the remaining subsurface volume of oil at the lower pressure will be Bw, and Bc can be related to the compressibi:ity of oil and the pressure drop, and if c, is the compressibility factor based on the initial conditions, The relationship derived by Hawkins was case to a standard at the lower pressure, while a term (Ap) had been dropped, because of its smallness arising from its dependence on the products of two compressibility factors. When there is no interstitial water and rock compressibility can be ignored, Eq. 1 reduces to:

Jan 1, 1957

By Nicholas J. Grant, Italo S. Servi

SPECIAL polishing and etching techniques were developed during an investigation of the high temperature mechanical properties of high purity aluminum (99.995 pct Al).* Electrolytic polishing was done successfully in the following electrolyte: 5 ml perchloric acid (72 pct), and 95 ml glacial acetic acid. No special precautions need be taken during the preparation of the electrolyte since no appreciable heat of mixing is evolved. Although the electrolyte is not an explosive, it is recommended that Jacquet's safety rules' be followed during the polishing operation. A voltage of 25 to 60 v gives a good polish in about 2 min at room temperature after preparation on 3/0 metallographic paper. Most of the grain boundaries are visible under the microscope after polishing. Since the current is controlled essentially by the resistance of the bath, it is necessary to keep the anode-to-cathode distance as constant as possible. Accordingly, polishing of irregularly shaped pieces will be difficult. A cooling bath and a stirring system are advisable in order to keep the temperature of the bath uniform and constant. Coarse-grained samples can be macroetched in a few seconds by lowering the voltage below 10 v. This is done after electrolytic polishing, without removing the sample from the bath, Fig. 1. The specimen can be repolished in less than 1 min by raising the voltage above 25 v. The "galvanic etching" technique, which has been described elsewhere,' was found to be helpful not only for macroetching, but also for microetching coarse-grained specimens. In fact, the different orientations of adjacent grains provide good contrast at the grain boundaries, when the sample is observed under polarized light. If the specimen is only partially etched, Fig. 2a, the grain boundaries can be located without completely destroying the appearance of the surface of the specimen. The unetched surface appears black under polarized light. Excellent color contrast is obtained by using a "sensitive tint" plate in the optical system of the microscope. In this case, the unetched surface has a magenta color, while the etched part of the sample assumes different colors varying from green to brown, according to the orientation of the grains. Etch pits were produced on high purity aluminum by using the technique suggested by Lacombe and Beaujard." Good results also were obtained by substituting 70 pct nitric acid for the fuming nitric acid recommended. This gave an etching reagent of the following composition: 70 ml nitric acid (70 pct), 50 ml hydrochloric acid (37.5 pct), and 3 ml hydrofluoric acid (48 pct). An example of the results is shown in Fig- 2b. The outline of the etch pits is revealed sharply if the specimen is observed under polarized light, as shown in Fig. 2c. These metallographic techniques are not suitable for the examination of commercially pure (2s) aluminum. References 'P. A. Jacquet: Metal Finishing (Nov. 1949) 47, p. 62. 21. S. Servi: Metal Progress (1950) 58, p. 732. 3 P. Lacombe and L. Beaujard: Journal Inst. of Metals (1947) 74, p. 1._________________________

Jan 1, 1952

By R. C. Buehl, J. P. Morris

F. D. Richardson—The authors are to be congratulated on this further contribution to our knowledge of the thermodynamics of the interaction between sulphur and carbon and silicon in liquid iron. As the authors state, the influence of carbon and silicon on the activity coefficient of sulphur in liquid iron is clearly of great importance in the blast furnace, since it must cause a three to fourfold improvement in the partition of sulphur between slag and metal. The influence of increasing temperature in further increasing the activity coefficient of the sulphur in the metal in the blast furnace by increasing the carbon content is also of interest. This effect, however, is probably only part of the reason for the general observation in blast furnace practice, that the sulphur content of the metal is lowered by increasing temperature. Other contributing factors are the lowering of the oxygen potential in the presence of carbon by increasing temperature and the probable increase in the activity coefficient of the lime in the slag for the same reason. The former of these effects, which works via the (CaO) + [S] = (CaS) + [O] equilibrium, might possibly account for a 70 pct improvement in the sulphur partition and the latter might give a further 50 pct improvement. C. Sherman—I would like to compliment the authors on their very careful research. If I may, I would like to show results of calculations on the carbon-sulphur-iron system similar to the ones that were shown in our paper for the silicon-sulphur-iron system. For Fe-S-C ternary system k=PHgs/PH2 x 1/(f1°) (f2°) (%S) where fs = sulphur activity coefficient fs' = fs for Fe-S system of equal pct S f3° = f2/f2 for Fe-S-C ternary system This same analysis has been used on other systems, but the results shown in fie.- 7 are for carbon and silicon. L. S. Darken—I would like to make two brief comments in addition to complimenting the authors on an apparently very precise and accurate investigation. The first is that the present work is in agreement with a calculation by Larsen and myself." Our calculation (much less precise than the present work) was based on: (1) Unpublished work on the sulphur content of molten iron (1.5 pct at 1500°C) in equilibrium with graphite and an iron sulphide slag; (2) the distribution coefficient of sulphur between slag and carbon-free liquid iron. We expressed the result in a form equivalent to log 7. = 0.18 [%C] which gives an activity coefficient (?s.) of sulphur only slightly higher than the authors find and certainly within the precision of the earlier work. My second comment concerns the correlation of the thermodynamic findings with atomistics. A rough pic- ture of the atomic arrangement in the liquid solution is rather easily conceived for this particular liquid solution containing iron, carbon, and sulphur. Carbon has a very much stronger affinity for iron than for sulphur. Hence we may conclude that a sulphur atom will but seldom be adjacent to a carbon atom—since this would be a position of high energy. From the metallic radii of iron and carbon we know that six iron atoms pack neatly around one carbon atom. Thus each carbon atom in retaining this shell of iron atoms (which latter may not be replaced by sulphur on account of the high energy requirement) decreases the available positions for each sulphur atom by six. Hence each atomic percent of carbon decreases the equilibrium sulphur content by 6 pct (of itself). Or, at low concentration each atomic percent of carbon increases the activity coefficient of sulphur by 6 pct. This is in good agreement with the observed increase (6 or 7 pct at low carbon content). It is indeed gratifying to find a case where, by such simple reasoning, quantitative agreement is found between precise data and the modern picture of the atomistics of the metallic state. J. P. Morris (authors' reply)—We would like to point out that there is an error in the equation on p. 322 of the paper. The third equation should read: ½S2 (gas) + H2 (gas) = H2S (gas) The authors wish to thank everyone for the interest they have shown in the paper. In regard to the general observation in blast furnace practice, that the sulphur content of the metal is lowered by increasing the temperature, Dr. Richardson is correct in stating that the cause can be attributed only in part to the increase in activity coefficient of sulphur resulting from the rise in carbon plus silicon content of the metal with rise in temperature. However, this factor is probably an important one. The results of one experiment, performed since this report was written, indicate that at a constant temperature the addition of silicon to a melt saturated with carbon causes an increase in the activity coefficient of sulphur even though the carbon solubility is lowered. In this test, 2.5 pct silicon was added to a melt saturated with carbon and maintained at 1400°C. Although the carbon content dropped from 4.85 to 4.1 pct, the activity coefficient of sulphur was increased by about 20 pct.

Jan 1, 1951

By H. C. Chang, N. J. Grant

REEP studies and measurements in most in-V> stances are based on a relatively gross gage length. Even in some recent theoretical studies on the mechanism of creep, changes were followed by means of X-rays and metallography without regard for the behavior of the individual grains and grain boundaries.'" Analytical studies of creep have frequently indicated that more than one competing process is operative and that the ultimate creep performance depends on the effects of temperature, time, and strain rate as well as grain size.'-" he grains and grain boundaries are known to respond differently to these variables but the extent of the response is still little known, especially in poly-crystalline materials where the relative orientations of grains and grain boundaries are important. This paper reports some experimental observations of the behavior of the grain boundaries and their effect on the deformation in the grains. High purity aluminum was used to avoid complications of aging reactions, second phase, inclusions, etc. Experimental Procedure A small vertical nichrome wound furnace was built to permit direct loading on the test specimen. This furnace is capable of operating up to about 1300°F with reasonable temperature distribution. A ground rectangular quartz window, 1.25x0.5 in., is imbedded in the external stainless steel tube to permit observations of the creep process with a microscope. An argon atmosphere ,was provided to prevent oxidation. The quartz window caused a temperature gradient between the back and front surfaces of the specimen of 15" at 700°F. The temperature gradient could be cut down to 3°F along the length of the specimen by adjusting shunts across the furnace windings. An ordinary metallurgical microscope with a working distance of 14 mm was rebuilt so that it could be moved in three mutual perpendicular directions. Visual examination could be made with either a 30X eyepiece or a 15X filar eyepiece. Using an objective of focal length 24.3 mm and a numerical aperture 0.20 a total magnification of 120X or 240X could be obtained. High purity aluminum rated at 99.995 pct was supplied by the Aluminum Co. of America as % in. then the gage portion was further machined to 3/16 in. diam. The ends were Y4 in. diam and threaded to fit available specimen holders. Two opposite flat surfaces of the gage portion were obtained by milling, giving final dimensions of the gage portion of 3/4x3/16x3/32 in. Machined specimens were first electropolished in Jacquet's solution.' Reference marks were produced by pressing a thin sewing needle into the surface of the specimen. The specimen was then annealed at 900°F for 24 hr and at 1150°F for 12 hr. Typical macrostructures of specimens treated in this manner are shown in Fig. 1. The range of the grain size was 1 to 5.5 mm (see Fig. l), but most of the grains were of 2.5 mm and went through the whole thickness of the specimen. The specimen was re-electropolished and etched electrolytically to reveal the grain boundaries. In order to reveal the orientation difference of the grains, etch pits were produced on the surface of the grains by etching in a mixture of hydrochloric and nitric acids (HC1, 45 pct; HNO,, 10 pct; H,O, 45 , by volume). The specimens were very carefully put into the holders and furnace; yet even with this care, fine slip lines were developed on the specimen surface.

Jan 1, 1953

By K. G. Davis

Dilute alloys of silzer in tilz haz been solidzjzed a1 controlled rules, in lzorizontal tubes 2 mrz and 0.5 rn in diam. Radioactive; tracer techniques we?-e used to study solute distvihutions along llze specimens and irmpurity substructures, as functions of the conditions growth. The results have heen mzalyzed using Burton, Prim, and Slichter's tnodel for the solute disty-ihution in the liquid ahead of an advancing solid-liquid interface. DECANTING techniques have been used to establish criteria for the formation of impurity substructure during solidification in several alloy systems An analysis equating the appearance of impurity substructure with the incidence of constitutional supercooling was developed,= in which diffusion was assumed to be the predominant mode of solute mixing in the liquid. Substitution of experimental data into the equations derived from the diffusion analysis gave reasonable values for solute diffusivity in the liquid. However, in these investigations solidification rates of 10 cm per hr and over were used, to minimize the effect of natural conection, whereas for crystals of high perfection lower solidification rates are needed, usually between 1 and 5 cm per hr. A knowledge of the conditions under which impurity substructures will be formed at low growth rates, and the degree of segregation to be expected, is therefore of interest. In the present investigation, radioactive-tracer techniques have been used to study the effect of growth rate, initial solute concentration, and size of specimen on the formation of substructure in uni- directionally solidified rods of dilute silver in tin alloys, over a range of growth rate between 0.5 and 10 cm per hr. Criteria for the formation of substructure were established by auto radiography. This was believed preferable to the decanting technique, for the relationship of the structure on a decanted interface with that of the freezing interface is not clear, since a layer of liquid is left on the surface following decanting.' The effect of substructure on the distribution of solute along the rods was also investigated. EXPERIMENTAL The procedure for sample preparation has been described in detail by einber. Alloys were prepared from tin of 99.999 pct purity and silver of 99.99 pct purity. A"', an emitter of both y and 0 radiation, was used as tracer. Samples of the alloys were drawn up into silica tubes with inside diameters 0.5 or 2 mm, remelted in a horizontal furnace, and solidified at controlled rates. A few centimeters of the samples were left unmelted for a measure of the initial concentration. Total sample length was approximately 20 cm. The temperature gradient in the furnace was kept constant at 36°C per cm in the region corresponding to the melting point for tin. To find how well this corresponded to the actual temperature gradient in the melt, a thermocouple of 38-gage wire was electrically insulated with a thin layer of Sauereisen cement and placed within one of the 2-mm-diam tubes, which was then filled with tin. The maximum diameter of the coated wire was 0.5 mm, the bead of the thermocouple junction being no larger than the diameter of the wire. A plot of temperature vs distance traveled by the furnace is given in Fig. 1 for a rate of furnace travel of 1 cm per hr. The temperature gradient in the liquid

Jan 1, 1967

By A. Rosenzweig, M. M. Karnowsky

The generalized binary diagram of the Au-Sn-Pb system is presented. The chief characteristic is the pseudobinary between lead and AuSn. On the high-gold side of the pseudobinary, four reaction isotherms were found at 363°, 274°, 225°, and 204°C. On the low-gold side of the pseudobinary, three reaction isotherms at 277°, 205°, and 176°C were found. A vertical section from the eutectic solder composition to gold was developed from the isothermal sections generated. METALLURGICAL problems arising from the intentional or accidental formation of Au-Sn-Pb alloys in soldering applications have indicated a need for information on the phase equilibria in this ternary system. The literature indicates that a complete diagram presenting this information has not been prepared. Even the recent excellent work by prince' entitled "The Au-Pb-Sn Ternary System" actually extends only to the AuSn or 50 at. pct Au range. There are more events in the 50 to 100 at. pct Au than in the less than 50 at. pct range. This article by Prince furnished much guidance in preparing this report. Initial efforts with the isopleth from the eutectic solder composition 61.9 wt pct Sn-38.1 wt pct Pb and 0 to 90 wt pct Au indicated that extensions of the work to the whole of the diagram (even if in less detail) were necessary to understand this system. In undertaking the construction of such a diagram, this study used differential thermal analyses (DTA) and metallography with verification and identification of phases by electron microprobe analyses. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The procedure began with the development of a cell which would be unreactive with lead, tin, and gold, retain its strength to 1100°C, exclude oxygen, and also furnish a suitable well for insertion and protection of a thermocouple to monitor temperature changes in the material. Such a cell would make it possible to reuse the sample should a repetition of determination be desired. Fig. 1 is a photograph of two such quartz cells as finally developed. The specimens have been run many times. The cell is made up of an inner sample bucket and an outer capsule with a thermocouple well which the sample surrounds. The DTA unit was an assembly devised from available instrumentation. The sample holder was a 3-in.-long cylinder of nickel, 2 1/2 in. in diam, fitted securely in a vertical tube furnace. Two holes 7/8 in. in diam were symmetrically located to receive the quartz cells. A dummy cell with nickel powder was used as the reference. The absolute temperature was recorded with a Pt/Pt 10-pct Rh thermocouple with an automatic Kaye ice bath compensator. (Calibration indicated the compensator to be accurate to better than ±0.5° over the 100° to 1000°C range.) The absolute temperature was measured in the sample and recorded on an L&N mul-tirange recorder with a full-scale display of 1 mv and automatic ranging of 99 mv. The differential signal between the sample temperature and the reference temperature was amplified with an L&N microvolt amplifier and recorded on an L&N Speedomax G recorder. Since two charts were obtained, the chart speeds were equalized and each event was noted on the differential chart, and the temperature at that time was obtained from the temperature record.

Jan 1, 1969

By W. M. McKewan, R. G. Olsson

In order to improve the understanding of the iron oxide reduction mechanism, the rate of equal molar diffusion of hydrogen and water vapor was measured through disks of porous iron and alumina. The measuretneizts were made at atmospheric pressure at 800°, 900- , and 1000°C. It is shown tint the reduction of dense hematite pellets with hydrogen at these temperatures and at atmospheric pressure is to a great extent limited by gaseous diffusion between the bulk-gas phase and the iron-wustile interface. THE investigation of the reduction of iron oxides with hydrogen has been the subject of numerous papers. Although the effects of temperature, pressure, and gas composition on the rate of iron oxide reduction have been studied, the actual mechanism of the reduction process has not been definitely determined. As a means of improving the understanding of the mechanism, the rate of equal molar counterdiffusion of hydrogen and water vapor was measured through porous iron and porous alumina disks at reduction temperatures. The alumina was used as a basis of compari-son because its pore structure is homogeneous and independent of temperature. The porous iron was prepared by the reduction of dense hematite disks with hydrogen at the temperature of the subsequent diffusion experiment. The hematite disks were made from pellets that were identical to those used by McKewan1,2 in his study of iron oxide reduction with hydrogen. In these investigations the weight loss and rate of movement of the various interfaces were measured as a function of the reduction temperature and gas composition. With these reduction data and the presently reported diffusion data it is possible to determine the importance of H2-H2O transport between the bulk-gas phase and the Fe/FeO interface to the reduction of dense hematite. APPARATUS AND PROCEDURE A porous iron or alumina sample was held in the base plate of a sealed canister containing porous granular wustite, as illustrated schematically in Fig. 1. The canister was suspended from an automatic recording balance in a vertical tube furnace through which flowed hydrogen and water-vapor mixtures of known composition at atmospheric pressure (0.96 atm). Hydrogen from the gas stream diffused through the porous sample, reducing the wustite in the interior of the canister. The water vapor that was formed diffused back to the gas stream. The rate of diffusion was determined from the recorded weightloss data. The furnace, automatic balance, and gas-metering equipment have been described previously.2 The main body of the canister and the tubing extension were made of stainless steel while the base plate was made of high-purity iron. The main body of the canister was % in. in diam. It held approximately 6 g of porous granular wustite that was prepared by reducing 0.1- to 0.2-cm-diam specular hematite particles at 900°C with an H2-H2O mixture of a composition near the iron-wustite equilibrium value. The upper end of the 1/8-in.-diam tubing extension was sealed with a segment of plastic tubing and a tubing clamp. The temperature at the top of the furnace was sufficiently high so that no water vapor condensed inside the extension. In the experiments with porous iron, iron oxide samples were prepared from reagent-grade hematite that was pressed and sintered in a manner previously described.' The resulting pellets had a density of 5.15 ± 0.05 g per cu cm. Each pellet was centerless-ground

Jan 1, 1967

By John P. Huger

me phase diagram for the system Ag-Si has been established by thermal analysis. The diagram is a simple eutectic type with a eutectic at 3.0 pct Si and 840°C. From the liquidus curve and with the aid of regular solution theory, the thermodynamic properties of the liquid Ag-Si system at 1420 °C have been determined. Silicon exhibits positive deviations from Raoultain behavior at all compositions, while silver exhibits both positive and negative deviations. MEASUREMENTS of silicon activities in liquid iron alloys by means of distribution studies between the immiscible liquids silver and iron have been reported by Chipman, Fulton, Gokcen, and caskey.' The applicability of this technique is dependent, however, on the accuracy of the silicon activity values in the Ag-Si alloys, particularly in the dilute silicon region. Darken and Gurry2 have shown that log ?si/(1-xSi)2 is approximately linear with composition, but uncertainty exists in the extrapolation to dilute solutions. Their calculations are based on the old Ag-Si phase diagram of Arrivaut3 and any variation in the position of the liquidus curves will strongly influence the extrapolation. The purpose of this study is to redetermine the Ag-Si phase diagram and calculate the associated thermodynamic properties. EXPERIMENTAL The Ag-Si phase diagram was determined by thermal analysis of liquid alloys. The alloys were contained in a 35 mm alumina crucible under a protective stream of purified argon. The crucible was placed inside a 64 mm alumina tube fitted with a gas-tight, water-cooled, copper head. The tube and assembly were heated in a manually controlled globar furnace. The temperature was measured with a Pt, Pt + 10 pct Rh thermocouple in a high-temperature porcelain protection tube. The thermocouple calibration4 was checked against the melting point of pure silver at the start and during the course of the experiments, and against both gold and silver at the completion of the experiments. The alloys were prepared from granular silver analyzing 99.95 pct Ag and powdered silicon analyzing 99.88 pct Si and 0.026 pct Fe. Approximately 150 g of alloy were used for each run. The composition of the alloy was determined by withdrawing samples of the liquid alloy with a vycor tube-aspirator bulb device. Analysis of solidified samples agreed, for alloys containing less than 23 pct Si, within ±0.3 pct Si of the calculated composition. Duplicate samples showed a variance within 50.05 pct Si of the mean analysis. The alloy was heated to 100' to 20pC above the estimated liquidus temperature and then the furnace was adjusted to give an average cooling rate of 2" to 7°C per min. A cooling curve was obtained by taking potentiometer readings at 15-sec intervals. Several analyses were made by recording the thermocouple output on a high-speed, Stip-chart recorder, with the exception of run NO. 11, a minimum of two thermal analyses were made for each alloy and the cooling curves then obtained duplicated the liquidus and eutectic temperatures to about 1°C. RESULTS The results of the thermal analysis are given in Table 1, and are represented as the Ag-Si phase dlagram, Fig. 1. The eutectic composition was found

Jan 1, 1963