Search Documents

By William H. Hamilton

Tunnel-driving capabilities in terms of feet per hour have advanced several hundred percent in the last century. Indications are that this capacity will double each decade for the next three decades. These future improvements will be made possible by a greatly increased need for underground excavation and the awareness of industry of its own latent capabilities. The factors of most interest to any potential user of a tunneling machine are those making possible an increase in production. The first and most obvious factor, and probably the one that has created the excitement and interest of most people, is the increase in boring rate through faster rock fracture and improved support systems. Boring rate can be increased by more horsepower in the form of increased thrust, torque, and cutterhead speed, and by better cutters and cutting methods, better material-handling systems, and better ground-control systems. All of these items are extremely important and are the basis of much discussion and effort by everyone concerned with the excavation of tunnels by machine. The second factor, just as obvious and equally important as an increase in boring rates, is "increase in production through better utilization of the tunneling machine and related equipment," which means a reduction in downtime through greater reliability of equipment. Mechanical rock attack is presently capable of cutting hard rock at 5 fph and soft rock at more than 20 fph. In current practice, however, this advance rate is maintained for less than 50% of the shift time. I predict that tunnel-driving contractors and their supporting manufacturers of tunnel-boring equipment will provide machinery that will maintain these advance rates for more than 90% of the shift time. This increase in effective production will be due to the increase in reliability of the tunneling machine and tunneling system components. Such a percentage increase in utilization of the tunneling equipment is just

Jan 1, 1970

By L. D. Frink

Those actively interested in mining are fully aware of the ever-increasing difficulty of making conditions such that efficient work can be done in underground openings, especially as higher rock temperatures are encountered in depth. This is also true where an effort is being made to cut down the burden of overhead expense by working headings 24 hr. in a day if blasting is done as often as is possible in that time. That the conditions resulting from both these causes have driven the native-born Americans from the mines and that their places have been taken by less efficient foreigners is a fact that we must all admit. The great war now being fought in Europe and the educational qualification clause written into our immigration law by the last Congress will probably limit very materially the supply of labor, such as we are now using in our mines, and will force upon mine operators the necessity of making this work appeal again to Americans. Metal tubing, with blower or exhaust fans, has long been used in supplying air to dead ends where natural ventilation is impossible, or in driving the smoke from such places, or in doing both, as the need might be. Here in Butte we have now come to use canvas tubing very extensively and find that it has many advantages not possessed by the metal. The use of flexible tubing is not new, but it has not been generally used in mining operations. Recent improvements, however, in the canvas itself and in the jointing of sections and manner of suspension have so increased its usefulness that it promises to add much to the efficiency of mining. There is now on the market a product that is impervious to air, is fireproof, and has a system of jointing which permits it to be put up or taken down in a few seconds. In this article an effort will be made to explain the manner in which canvas tubing is being used in the North Butte company's operations at Butte, Mont. The accompanying photographs will, I hope, help make clear what may be done with this material.

Jan 1, 1918

Molybdenum was first discovered on the Continental Divide in Colorado in 19 11; and in 1918 two companies, one of which was the Climax Molybdenum 250 stpd operation, were producing. In 1919 both mines were shut down, but in 1924 the Climax mine reopened and has been producing ever since. Over the years mine production has been increased until today the mill capacity is 48,000 stpd (43,500 mtpd). From 1935 to 1973 all ore was mined underground by block caving with scraper slushing. Since 1973 ore production has been supplemented by open pit mining. As demand for molybdenum increased, upper levels of the mine became worked-out and new lower levels were opened. In late 1972 production began on the 600 level with the mined ore being primary and secondary crushed in the new No. 4 crushing station. Ore is hauled to the primary in 10 st (9. 1 mt) capacity Granby side-dump cars. The trains, carrying 200 st (181 mt), pass throug.h a dump block and discharge directly into a 54 in. by 84 in. Traylor TC gyratory crusher set at an 8 in. (203 mm) open side setting. Since the ore has already been broken to a size which will pass the finger raises in the mining areas, there are only rare oversize boulders to block the crusher opening. Selection of the crusher was based more on its capacity than its receiving opening, as is often the case with gyratories used in open pit operations. Nominal and maximum capacities for this unit are 1250 and 1800 stph (1 135 and 1635 mtph). The ore is often wet and sticky, so a mechanical car cleaning device is utilized. Under the crusher is a 300 st (270 mt) ore pocket equipped with a 60 in. (1.52 m) wide inclined conveyor which delivers the ore to a 2,000 st (1800 mt) surge bin. Near the head pulley of this conveyor is a wood picking station whe re tramp wood and steel are put into cars for removal. Two more apron feeders remove the primary crushed ore from the surge bin, and impact belts and conveyor belts transport the ore to the crushing station for screening ahead of two 7 ft (2. 13 m) standard crushers. Secondary crushed ore is then conveyed to the surface for tertiary crushing. The entire underground crushing room containing the primary, two secondaries, screens and related equipment is serviced by a 100 st (90 mt) crane with a smaller capacity fast hook. A control room is situated so the operator can observe all the crushing operations. Rotoclone collectors remove dust from the entire operation (including the fumes from the zinc pots) and discharge it to the final product belt. The Rotoclones are vented through drifts and raises to the surface. Shop facilities, electrical gear, and lubrication equipment are located

Jan 1, 1978

In 1975, the US produced 10 900 tons (12,000 st) of U3O8 from ores whose grade ranged from a low of 0.160% to a high of 0.196% U3O8. By the early 1980's if the current mining projects described here are allowed to go on stream, Australia will be able to produce at least 10 900 tons of U3O8 annually from ores whose grade ranges from a low of 0.150%to a high of 2.300%. As pointed out in the previous article, this initial rate of production could have been reached now-giving an immense boost to the depressed Australian economy. So, let's have a close look at current mining projects.

Jan 1, 1977

By AIME AIME

MEMBERS of the Engineering Education Committee held two meetings at Joplin preliminary to the opening of the main meeting there. The first was held on Sunday afternoon. It was attended by all who had arrived early enough and as among the dozen or' fifteen who were present the heads of a half dozen schools of mines were included it was a representative gathering. C: H. Fulton, chairman of the Committee presided and T. T. Read acted as secretary of the meeting. The chair., man reminded those present that last year there had been some discussion as to the advisability of the proposal, made by Edward Steidle, that a, separate society, devoted to education in the mineral industry, he organized. Many .people had felt that there are already so many societies in existence to demand one's time and attention, that it would be a mistake to add to their number and the counter suggestion had been made that the work of this committee could be so reorganized as to meet all the needs that a separate society could fill. He therefore presented for discussion these four' questions: (1) Shall a subcommittee .be appointed to study, and report in February, 1932, the possibility of the reorganization of the work of the Engineering Education Committee into the equivalent of an' Institute division; (2) if the work is so reorganized what shall be the relation of the work of the Committee (division) to the work of the-Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education; (3.): what are the, cardinal objectives of education for the mineral industry; and (4) what should be done as regards the movement in some institutions to plan their work-in the light of that being done in other institutions, for example, in geophysics?

Jan 1, 1931

By R. A. Matuszak

Throughout the history of power excavating machines, engineers have continuously tried to shape the main drive speed- torque characteristics to provide an optimum from each main motion. Selection of prime mover for the various motions has been the subject of many engineering studies and most forms of energy conversion have been tried. A new form of electrical power conversion looms on the horizon as the most optimum yet. Controlled frequency operation of a squirrel cage induction motor increases the reliability of the most reliable form of energy conversion (electrical) found thus far, and improves the performance characteristics.

Jan 1, 1979

By T. B. Brooks

THE iron ores of the Marquette region are mostly extracted in open excavations; hence the process is more properly quarrying. Several attempts at underground work have been made, which have not, on the whole, been successful. The Edwards mine has been almost entirely wrought by candle-light. The slate ore pit, NO. 1, of the New England mine, is now worked in the same way, as is also the Pioneer furnace pit of the Jackson mine. The Champion mine was opened systematically for underground work, with two levels, 60 feet apart, and three shafts at distances apart along the bed of 200 feet; but this idea has been practically abandoned, the greater part of the ore in that mine being now taken out in open pits. Several other mines have occasionally worked underground stopes, but only temporarily; if such stopes could not be opened out to daylight, they have usually been abandoned. In brief, it may be said that no considerable amount of ore has as yet (1870) .been extracted underground in the region, and of that so mined very little has been taken out at a profit; and I may add that it seems to be the belief of the most experienced mining men that this state of things will hold for some time to come for reasons which will appear. Nearly the same remarks may be applied to the mines of the Iron Mountain region, Missouri, the ores of which are very similar in character to those of Marquette. Some of the New York and New Jersey magnetic deposits are wrought open, but this is the exception, underground mining there being the rule. The following brief sketch of the geological structure of the Marquette deposits will indicate some advantages of the method of mining employed. The iron-bearing (Huronian) series of rocks, are stratified beds, the principal ore formation being overlaid by a quartzite, and underlaid by a diorite, or greenstone. This ore formation is made up, first, of pure ore; second, of "mixed ore" (i. e., banded

By Robert Burrows

IN preparing this paper the object has been to set forth facts relating to illumination problems, which, judging from the results realized in the iron and steel and other industries somewhat similar to mining, will tend toward furthering safety, production, and contentment of employees, as well as economy of operation in mines. By applying the principles of illumination with the assistance of modern appliances, the full benefits in efficiency may be derived from improvements already made in other details of mine operation. The lighting of a typical coal mine may be divided into four distinct parts: 1, The lighting of the buildings about the top; 2, the lighting of the working faces; 3, general illumination at the bottom; and 4, special applications of lighting. The lighting of buildings about the top may be treated in the same manner as that of any other industrial plant, for we have a boiler room, an engine and generator room, a forge, a machine shop, and a hoist room. These can be well and efficiently lighted by the use of 100-watt tungsten-filament multiple lamps with proper reflectors so spaced and suspended that a power consumption of from ¼ watt per square foot in the boiler room to 1 watt per square foot in the machine shop is obtained. The methods that apply to this kind of lighting have been ably treated by a number of authors,1 and for this reason a detailed discussion is unnecessary.

Jan 11, 1915

By Herbert Clark Hoover, Lou Henry Hoover

QUESTIONS as to the methods of smelting ores and of obtaining metals I discussed in Book IX. Following this, I should explain in what manner the precious metals are parted from the base metals, or on the other hand the base metals from the precious'. Frequently two metals, occasionally more than two, are melted out of one ore, because in nature generally there is some amount of gold in silver and in copper, and some silver in gold, copper, lead, and iron ; likewise some copper in gold, silver, lead, id iron, and some lead in silver ; and lastly, some iron in copper2. But I will begin with gold. Gold is parted from silver, or likewise the latter from the former, whether it be mixed by nature or by art, by means of aqua valens3, and by powders which consist of almost the same things as this aqua. In order to preserve the sequence, I will first speak of the ingredients of which this aqua is made, then of the method of making it, then of the manner in which gold is parted from silver or silver from gold. Almost all these ingredients contain vitriol or alum, which, by themselves, but much more when joined with saltpetre, are powerful to part silver from gold. As to the other things that are added to them, they cannot individually by their own strength and nature separate those metals, but joined they are very powerful. Since there are many combinations, I will set out a few. In the first, the use of which is common and general, there is one libra of vitriol and as much salt, added to a third of a libra of spring water. The second contains two librae of vitriol, one of salt-petre, and as much spring or river water by weight as will pass away whilst the vitriol is being reduced to powder by the fire. The third consists of four librae of vitriol, two and a half librae of saltpetre, half a libra of alum, and one and a half librae of spring water. The fourth consists of two librae of vitriol, as many librae of saltpetre, one quarter of a libra of alum, and three-quarters of a Mbra of spring water. The fifth is composed of one libra of saltpetre,

Jan 1, 1950

mean to say that these explosions are mechanical, but that the ejectment of the stock, throwing out of tops, etc., are mechanical. I see no reason at present, although I have had almost no experience in the use of large quantities of Mesabi ore, to change my ideas on the subject. That these explosions should follow irregular working or slipping in the furnace, I think can be explained. I have noticed that immediately following slips there is little or no settling of the stock on top, although there is no lessening of the volume of gas passing into the stoves and boilers. Supposing that, after a slip of 3 or 4 feet, the filling continues, but for some distance from the 'top the stock fails to move: there would be a much better chance for the deposited carbon to clog interstices in the stock, and for the additional effect in the same direction of the fine ore in the charge, than if the stock were properly settling. Under such conditions it is easily supposable that the openings would be entirely closed, or closed so tightly that the pressure below the obstruction would be raised to a point approaching the blast-pressure, or to a point high enough to force a passage or an enlargement of the small passages which may remain. When this occurs, gas from below under pressure carries with it large quantities of deposited carbon and fine ore; if the case is aggravated, coke, stone, bell, etc. As soon as the red-hot deposited carbon meets the air there are perfect conditions for a dust explosion, which naturally follows, the same as in a coal-mine or flour-mill.

Jan 1, 1899

The Section on Aerial Geologizing of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers convened on Monday afternoon, Feb. 17, 1936, during the Annual Meeting of the Institute. Mr. Theodore Marvin presided. Chairman Marvin.—We hope to get through with the papers on the program in time so that you can examine the instruments that are displayed here, and also the photographs and air views brought by the Fairchild people. This is what we might call the first bread and butter session of the Aviation Committee. The group, as many of you know, was started at the request of the Board of Directors two years ago. We have had two sessions since then, both of them of a somewhat general nature, their purpose being to point out the reasons why mining and petroleum engineers should be more interested in the facilities of aviation. Today we have two papers. The first is one by Mr. Eliel, of the Fairchild Company's California branch. In Mr. Eliel's absence, Mr. Gale, of the Fairchild Company, will read it. C. H. Gale.—Before I begin to read Mr. Eliel's paper, I would like to point out two instruments that he mentions- One is what he calls the solar-navigator, a new type of aerial navigating device which he has developed for use in flying cameras in aerial surveys. Flying a camera at high altitudes over unfamiliar territory is a very difficult procedure and only a few pilots in this country can do it. So far as I know, this is the first time this device has been discussed in public. Another facility I want to refer to in advance is the use of the stereoplanigraph in making contour maps from photographs. This is an extremely interesting procedure, which we are appreciating more than ever at the present time.

Jan 1, 1937

By T. M. Chance

THE necessity of adopting improved methods of bituminous-coal cleaning at. many collieries is recognized by all familiar with the requirements of the various bituminous markets, the approaching exhaustion of the relatively small areas of inherently high-grade-coal, and the difficulties encountered in maintaining a uniform grade of shipped coal. Many coals lose much of their .market value by degradation in size, and, in any event, if the cleaning process is to contemplate wetting the coal the minimum amount of fines should be produced to prevent sludge losses and the difficulties resulting from the moisture content of the wet fines. Hence, it is desirable to by-pass the finer coal dry, if this can be done without too-great increase in impurities in the final product. This procedure has given excellent results at washeries at Steelton and in the Birmingham district. If the raw fines are too impure to permit admixture with the washed coal, it may be desirable to use dry methods, such as the pneumatic table, rather than to wet an excessive amount of such fine material. The bituminous-coal cleaning plant should therefore: (1) Treat the raw coal in as large lump as possible and without sizing; (2) eliminate degradation of pure coal -in the washing process; (3) avoid wetting the fines, if possible; (4) produce washed coal practically free from mechanically included impurities; (5) crush the refuse and retreat, if much intergrown coal, and refuse are present, rather than precrush the entire feed. Ordinary gravimetric methods of concentration, whether hydraulic or pneumatic, will not meet all of these requirements, as the large lump includes those sizes. now sent to the picking tables, if it is desired to treat material of such size. I do not know of any prior commercial method, based on the falling velocity, coefficient of friction or resistance to fracture, that permits the production of clean coal varying in size from, say, 10-in. lump to 1/16 -in. mesh.

Jan 6, 1924

By F. L. Bosqui

Discussion of the paper of F.* L. Bosqui, presented at the San Francisco meeting, September, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 101, May, 1915, pp. 997 to 1033. SIDNEY J. JENNINGS, New York, N. Y.-I notice Mr. Bosqui says that zinc dust can be used profitably. I had occasion recently to try to ship some zinc deist to South Africa, owing to the. high price of zinc in the last six or eight months and the difficulty in getting zinc sheets We were informed that the steamship companies in England refused to accept zinc dust for shipment through the tropics on the score that it was an explosive mixture. C. W. MERRILL, San Francisco, Cal.-In the early days zinc dust was packed in wooden casks. The steamers at that time were very chary of transporting it. It was put on the deck in the wooden casks, and if the zinc dust got wet it exploded. Since that time we have used hermetically sealed cases, in which case there is no risk whatever in its transportation.. This rule of the steamship companies is perhaps another sample of their ultra-conservativeness. HENNEN JENNINGS, Washington, D. C.-Unfortunately, I have not yet read Mr. Bosqui's paper, but believing it might interest you to know something of the beginning of the cyanide process on the Rand, I will speak briefly as to my own knowledge and experience of the early initiation of this process in South Africa. I took the position of consulting engineer of H., Eckstein, the parent firm of H. Eckstein & Co., and a branch of the firm of Wernher, Belt ,C Co., at Johannesburg, in December, 1889, and at that time the Robinson Co. managed by them was the premier company of the fields. Up to this date plate amalgamation and catchment of a small percentage of concentrates by blankets, and in a few instances Frue vanners, were the main gold-saving devices used and had obtained an extraction' of only about 65 per cent of the gold contents of the ore. Also at that time the orebodies were seen to be changing from oxidized deposits to pyritic at varying depths from 50 ft. to 300 ft. below the surface, and uneasiness was felt as to future recovery. The deepest exploitation at any of the mines was not much below 300 ft.

Jan 12, 1915

By William M. Bowron

In the hope that a brief description of the conditions that are favorable or unfavorable to success in the practical treatment of titaniferous ores in the blast-furnace may not be without interest to the members of the Institute, the present paper is submitted. The class of ores of which I speak may be described as magnetites, with a gangue of siliceous matter, in which a portion of the silica is replaced by titanic acid. Professor Dana, in his System of Mineralogy, gives a long list of representative analyses of titanic iron ore in which the percentage of titanic acid varies from 59 down to 34. If the percentage is below the latter figure, the ore is no longer recognized as a "titanic ore;" although, according to my experience, titanic acid is present, in small quantities, in almost all ores. In the methods followed in ordinary analysis it is usually included with the "insoluble matter," unless special search is made for it. In the ores usually regarded as "titanic "the proportion of titanic acid frequently assumes quasi definite percentages, such as from 4 to 5, 8 to 9,12 to 13, and so on, in an ascending scale to those higher percentages that do not at present concern us. The proportions quoted characterize large masses of ore that are now accessible to market and are lying idle only on account of the titanic stigma. My experience with titanic acid in the furnace began in England, fourteen years ago, with my being employed as chemist by the manager of the Norwegian Titanic Iron Company, which was at that time smelting, without mixture, ilmenite from Norway in a furnace 16' X 50'. The process, regarded as a process, was a perfect success; but the enormous quantity of fuel required, the small quantity of iron in the ore, and the cost and uncertainty of importation militated seriously against its commercial success, and a few years saw the attempt abandoned. The metallurgy being successful, an at-

Jan 1, 1883

Discussion of the paper of WALTHER MATHESIUS, presented at the New York meeting, February, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 99, March, 1915, pp. 539 to 555. JOSEPH W. RICHARDS, So. Bethlehem, Pa.-This paper answers. partly the difficult questions which have come up as to why it is not economical to use higher blast temperatures in the smelting of Mesaba ores, such as the high temperatures used in European practices, and the answer is very plain that the ores will not stand the higher temperature. But the paper does not go into detail as to what special difficulties were found with the higher temperature of blast, and I would ask the author to kindly specify them. W. A. FORBES, New York, N. Y.-A large part of the troubles that furnace men experienced in using high-blast heats in smelting Mesaba ores in the early days of using Mesaba ores, was clue to the attempt to use these soft ores on furnaces having the same lines as the furnaces used in smelting the hard Old Range ores. As the result of observation and study, the dimensions of the lower part of the blast furnaces have been changed and the difficulties of the blast-furnace men in operating with a large percentage of Mesaba ore and high-blast temperatures have been largely overcome. The changes I refer to in particular are: (1) steepening the angle of the bosh; (2), decreasing the height of the bosh; (3) increasing the diameter of the hearth. JOSEPH W. RICHARDS.-Mr. Forbes's answer is quite satisfactory, and the moral which it points is that when the furnace is run with a higher temperature in the smelting zone, the furnace lines which were adapted for the lower temperatures are not necessarily those best suited for the higher hearth temperatures. If. enriched blast were used in a furnace, and higher temperatures run, it would be found necessary to further modify the lines of the furnace to meet the new conditions and to get the maximum output with economy. J. E. JOHNSON, JR., New York, N. Y.-It seems to me this is one of the few papers which could well have been a little longer. The data which Mr. Mathesius has given us, I think should be considered in connection with the paper which Mr. Brassert read before the American Iron and Steel Institute last spring, in which he described how they had obtained remarkable results with furnaces with steep but very short boshes; the angles have been raised to 80°, and the boshes made so short that they no longer appear as a conspicuous part of the shape of the furnace.

Jan 5, 1915

By Berlen Moneymaker

THE development, within recent years, of core drills capable of drilling holes up to 72 in., or even more, in diameter, has made possible an entirely new and valuable method of geologic exploration, Although little used until recently as an exploratory tool except in the United States, by the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Corps of Engineers of the U. S. Army, for the exploration of damsites, the large-diameter core drill may be used to good advantage in other types of geologic exploration. Its princi-pal utility is that of supplementing, rather than replacing, other means of exploration. Although core is frequently recovered intact, the greatest advantage of large-diameter drilling is that the holes produced are large enough to be entered by the geologist and engineer, and thus afford an excellent means of examining undisturbed rock. The walls of the holes are smoothly cut, and in some rocks nearly or quite polished, so that the most minute details of structure and stratigraphy are clearly disclosed. Such features as faults, joints, bedding planes, weathered "seams," and beds or layers of soft materials, which are not always amenable to disclosure by cores recovered from small-diameter holes, are conspicuously displayed in the walls of large holes. Frequent reference to the drilling of large-diameter holes is made in engineering literature, but comparatively little emphasis has been placed on their value in geologic investigation. It is, therefore, intended that the present paper acquaint the geologist, as well as the engineer, with the large-diameter core drill and the technique involved in its use, and also with its advantages, disadvantages and limitations as an implement of geologic exploration.

Jan 1, 1938

By E. C. Truesdale, W. K. Waring

The Research,Division of The New Jersey Zinc Company (of Pa.) has conducted, over a period of years, numerous tests of the reducibility of various zinc ores and the reactivity of various kids of coal, using a number of different experimental methods. Most of these tests have involved the reduction of mixtures of ore and coal. In such cases the following simultaneous reactions are believed to be mainly responsible for the production of zinc, as was shown by Bodenstein' some years ago: ZnO + CO = Zn + CO2 [i] C + COj = 2CO [2] Each of these reactions is dependent upon the other for the supply of CO and COz, respectively, and the over-all rate of formation of zinc vapor will be determined by the slower of these two reactions. An analogous pair of reactions sometimes of importance is: ZnO + He = Zn + HZO 13] C + Hz0 = CO + He U3 While it is possible to obtain an indication of the relative reducibility of various ores, or of a fine versus a coarse Ore, by testing them with a given coal, and while coal reactivities may be measured in a corresponding manner, a more direct determination of relative reaction rates is possible by carrying out the desired reactions, such as I and 2, separately and under reproducible conditions. It is one purpose of this paper to present some of the results that have been obtained by the latter method. C. G. Maier2 discusses the relative rates of reactions I and 2 and concludes that while at relatively low temperatures reaction I is faster than reaction 2, this difference becomes less with increasing temperatures, although at smelting temperatures reaction is still the faster. He also says (p. 48), "At temperatures . . . be- -tween 1100' and 1300°C., . . . the zinc oxide reduction reaction is intrinsically more rapid than its physical limitations; that is, it is limited by gas diffusion rates.'' In the course of numerous reactivity tests involving the separate use of reactions and I and 2, we have obtained data that show by direct experiment, we believe for the first time, the correctness of Maier's statements concerning these reactions. We also include data on the relative rate of reaction 3, involving reduction by hydrogen. Finally, some interesting results obtained by carrying out the reduction of ' a zinc ore-coal briquet in streaming atmospheres of nitrogen, carbon monoxide and hydrogen, respectively, are presented.*

Jan 1, 1944

By T. Egleston

FOR several years I have been engaged in studying the behavior of iron' and steel under varying conditions of tension and compression, as well as of shock and abrasion. Some of these observations have been communicated to the Institute at various times. Within the past year I have been looking at the various observations that I have made as a whole, and have been led to the conclusion that there is a regular law of fatigue and refreshment of metals, and that the change which produces either the fatigue or refreshment is a chemical one, which is, however, in almost all cases accompanied by physical and molecular changes at the same time. That metals under conditions that were more or less well understood became worthless, has been known for many years. It has been known to blacksmiths that iron and steel, when improperly treated in their fires, become "burned," as they call it, and could no longer be used, and some of them have had a scrap heap into which such material was thrown. A few of them knew that after a period more or less long the iron or steel recovered some of its original properties and could, with many precautions, again be used, but that these phenomena followed any law has not to my knowledge been announced. My attention was first attracted to the varying conditions under which iron and steel rails break in service. It was not long before I became convinced that there was a general law applicable to all metals which allowed of their being used with safety within certain limits, and caused their rupture when the use extended beyond these limits, and this law I have called the law of fatigue of metals. When we observe the causes of deterioration in iron and steel rails, we find that they are principally shocks, either slight and frequent, like those produced by the passing of a train over a road-bed in good order, which produces a vibration. sensible to the ear laid on the rail, for very long distances, but distinctly audible for only a short one; or from sudden and heavy blows, like the descent of the locomotive and each car successively from a high to a low rail. * Read at the Montreal Meeting, September, 1879.

Jan 1, 1880

By A. N. Crownover, H. T. Kennedy, E. P. Miesch, C. H. Bowman

The paper presents correlations of (l) molar volume of gaseous hydrocarbon mixtures with pressure, temperature, composition and properties of the C,-plus fraction; (2) shrinkage of oils during flash and differential liberation of gas, including the calculation of formation volume factor under various conditions; and (3) bubble-point pressure with temperature, composition and characteristics of C, plus. The data on which the correlations are based comprise 1,615 measurements on 900 hydrocarbon systems, including numerous systems containing nitrogen, hydrogen sul-fide and carbon dioxide. In each correlation, the number of data points covered and the accuracy is substantially greater than in previously available work. Thus, the equation yielding molar volumes of gases has an average deviation of 2.04 per cent, applied to mixtures having temperatures up to 313F and pressures up to 9,800 psis, compared to 2.37 per cent for the Benedict-Webb-Rubin equation applied to the same data, and 4.53 per cent for the method based on the law of corresponding states. he equations resented are all explicit in the dependent variable, and require no iteration on the digital cow puter. INTRODUCTION The ease and accuracy of determining the composition of hydrocarbon mixtures, compared to the difficulty of measuring their properties under reservoir conditions, makes it desirable to utilize composition as the key to physical behavior to the greatest possible extent. As a result, there are available correlations between composition, or easily measured characteristics dependent on composition, and practically every important engineering property of reservoir fluids. The task confronting us is one of finding more exact relationships between important variables rather than extending correlations to new properties. This paper describes new correlations of molar volumes of gases, formation volume factors, and bubble-point pressures with composition, temperature and where possible, pressure. Each correlation is obtained by employing a sufficiently large amount of data so the calculated properties are probably as least as accurate as the measurement on which they are based. MOLAR VOLUME OF GASES Although many equations of state have been proposed for pure gases, only a few methods are applicable to hydrocarbons at conditions comparable to those in petroleum reservoirs. Still fewer arc useful in describing the behavior of mixtures, with which the petroleum engineer is largely concerned. The correlation presented here involves procedures similar to those of Alani and Kennedy The van der Waals equation is modified to make a and b functions of temperature instead of being constants for each material.This is a cubic equation, which may have either one or three real roots. The lowest root corresponds to liquid volume, while the highest applies to gas. When the procedure was applied to 703 pressure-temperature points of 164 gases of known composition and volume, the average deviation was 12.08 per cent, and the standard deviation 8.15. The above calculations were made using the constants derived for liquids by Alani and Kennedy and the mixture equation developed by them. A closer approximation to measured molar volumes is obtained by employing different sets of constants for different areas on the pressure-temperature chart, and by changing the relationship between a,,, and b,,, for mixtures and the a, and b, for individual hydrocarbons. The various sets are shown in Table 1, and the areas for which they are recommended are plotted in Figs. 1 through 7. In these figures, the area designated by zero is in the critical region for pure materials, and the values obtained for them may be unreliable. For normal mixtures, however, the area may be added to any of the bounding areas without substantial error. The new relationships employed are

Jan 1, 1966

By Iichiro Omori

THE Mabuki process, a Japanese hearth process for the treatment of matte, uses the same princi-ple as the Bessemer steel process. The only difference between the two is that in the Mabuki proc-ess a hearth furnace, not a converter, is used. Though the hearth is not as good as the converter, the first cost is very low and the capacity is compara-tively small; so the process is most suitable for smelters FIG. 1.-PLAN AND SECTION OF HEARTH. having a small production. To construct the hearth, an excavation, 6 ft. in each dimension, is made in the ground and a drainage channel is dug at the bottom. Then all side walls are faced with stone or slag brick and the cavity is filled with fireclay or brasque, except the hearth at the top.

Jan 9, 1922