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By J. B. Morrow, D. H. Davis

THERE are two general approaches to the problem of increasing profits from an operation. One is to lower expense; the other is to raise income. Mechanical preparation of coal may be used for either purpose but a prudent consideration of many details must precede any decision lest the results be negative instead of positive. It is quite possible that any net gain will result from a combination of the two. Since mechanically prepared coal invariably is a better product qualitatively than a hand-picked coal from the same mine, it is a reasonable expectation that the customer will be willing to increase the producer's income by paying a higher price. Or there may be the possibility that a combination of mechanical mining plus mechanical cleaning will give a lower over-all production cost for the coal in the railroad car. More likely, there will be found a combination of these two factors. From the customer's point of view, the competitive delivered cost per B.t.u. considered in relation to such incidental factors as dust nuisance, handling properties, ash disposal, and ash fusibility determines what he will pay. In-a bulk tonnage such as coal, freight is a very considerable part of the delivered fuel cost, and obviously freight paid on incombustible ash has no economic attractions. INCENTIVE FOR CLEANING Coal is prepared in four major ways: l (1) by screening or sizing, (2) by mixing or blending, (3) by cleaning, including hand picking and mechanical cleaning, (4) by dustless treatment. By a combination of any or all of these methods, coal can be prepared to standard specifications. It is easily possible to have good cleaning and still get a poor final product because of faulty screening or mixing, while it is possible to produce a very acceptable product from mediocre cleaning if the coal is well screened and mixed.

Jan 1, 1950

ON FEBRUARY 4, 1952, the Phelps Dodge Corporation signed Contract GS-00P(D)-12068 with the United States Government. This interesting document dealt with the "Bisbee East" project as part of the Government's program to increase the supply of needed copper by encouraging private enterprise to expand production. The ore deposit involved was a relatively small body of low-grade ore lying east of the remnants of the old Sacramento Hill deposit that was exploited with indifferent success from 1923 to 1931, as related in THE PORPHYRY COPPERS. Planning for the entire enterprise had been directed from the start by Harrison M. Lavender, who in 1945, succeeded Percy G. Beckett as vice-president and general manager for all of Phelps Dodge's Western mines and smelters. The untimely death of Mr. Lavender in 1952 prevented him from seeing his plans brought to fruition; but in his honor the mine was fit- tingly named "The Lavender Pit" and was so dedicated on August 7, 1954. The Copper Queen Branch operates under- ground mines at Bisbee (production in 1955 was 28,000 tons) ; but, as this volume is concerned only with Porphyry operations, this chapter deals only with the Lavender Pit project, or as the Government knows it, Bisbee East. My reason for going into some detail regarding the floor-price contract is that it is fairly typical of contracts made by the Government in connection with a half-dozen other copper-expansion projects; and, incidentally, with various projects involving other strategic metals. Phelps Dodge did not seek a loan or other financial aid. The only encouragement asked consisted of (a) the privilege of a five-year write-off (commonly called rapid tax amortization)

Jan 1, 1957

By William H. R. Gibney

Pine Point Mines is located in the Canadian Northwest Territories about 1,200 kilometers north of Edmonton, Alberta, close to the south shore of Great Slave Lake. Originally staked in 1898 by prospectors en route to the Dondike gold rush, it was not until the mid-1940's that large scale exploration was undertaken and Pine Point Mines Limited was formed. Work was suspended in 1954 while studies were made to resolve one of the main problems, transportation. In 1961, under the Canadian Government "Roads to Resources" program, agreement was reached for the construction of the Great Slave Lake Railroad and plans made to put the property into production. A townsite was established in 1963 and plant construction commenced. The first production was in the form of high grade ore which was shipped to Kimberley, B.C. for concentration starting in late 1964. The Pine Point concentrator started up in late 1965 when hydroelectric power became available. Initially designed for 4,540 metric ton per day, facilities were expanded to a designed 7,250 metric ton per day in 1969. Problems associated with mining operations at Pine Point are not unique but are augmented by the isolation, climatic conditions, topography, high water table and spread out nature of the operation. Maintenance of a reasonably stable work force is the number one problem but this is gradually being overcome as more local people are trained and oriented from a nomadic type life to an industrial society. The purpose of this paper is to give a general description of the mining operations of Pine Point Mines Limited and to review some of the problems encountered in the operation along with problems associated with northern operations.

Jan 1, 1970

By Arthur F. Taggart, G. R. M. Del Giudice, M. Hassialis, A. M. Saddler

Flotation of sulphide minerals and native metals is no longer a practical difficulty. The underlying scientific principles of the method, although not explored in anything like complete detail, have been formulated with sufficient breadth so that the direction of attack on any specific case is clearly indicated. It has been known since the earliest days of flotation that certain of the nonsulphide nonmetal minerals—e.g., sulphur and graphite—would respond to flotation by oils as sulphides do; therefore they have been grouped with sulphides in many patents. But since the development of the chemical theory of collection,1,2,3 this similarity in action has been one of the facts cited in disproof of the theory by opponents of the hypothesis.4,5,6 Air levitation† of certain oxidized minerals, both metalliferous‡ and nonmetalliferous, and separation thereby from other oxidized minerals, is a recent development in practice, although the discovery of the method dates back 17 years7 This paper presents evidence that the principles underlying the air levita-tion of the nonsulphide nonmetal minerals are the same as those utilized in the flotation of the sulphides and native metals. It will be apparent immediately to anyone with knowledge of mineral concentration that separation of air-levitated minerals in water from minerals not so levitated is a simple matter of water-gravity concentration, the separating device employed depending solely upon the size of the particles treated and the buoyancy differences effected by the levita-tion. The usual separating means employed are: (1) a flotation machine for fine, slimy and for well aerated granular material; (2) shaking tables for granular less aerated material. By using large quantities of oil, it is possible to form substantially air-free oil-bound masses or granules of nonsiliceous minerals and to

Jan 1, 1939

By A. M. Saddler, G. R. M. Del Giudice, Arthur F. Taggart, M. Hassialis

Flotation of sulphide minerals and native metals is no longer a practical difficulty. The underlying scientific principles of the method, although not explored in anything like complete detail, have been formulated with sufficient breadth so that the direction of attack on any specific case is clearly indicated. It has been known since the earliest days of flotation that certain of the nonsulphide nonmetal minerals—e.g., sulphur and graphite—would respond to flotation by oils as sulphides do; therefore they have been grouped with sulphides in many patents. But since the development of the chemical theory of collection,1,2,3 this similarity in action has been one of the facts cited in disproof of the theory by opponents of the hypothesis.4,5,6 Air levitation† of certain oxidized minerals, both metalliferous‡ and nonmetalliferous, and separation thereby from other oxidized minerals, is a recent development in practice, although the discovery of the method dates back 17 years7 This paper presents evidence that the principles underlying the air levita-tion of the nonsulphide nonmetal minerals are the same as those utilized in the flotation of the sulphides and native metals. It will be apparent immediately to anyone with knowledge of mineral concentration that separation of air-levitated minerals in water from minerals not so levitated is a simple matter of water-gravity concentration, the separating device employed depending solely upon the size of the particles treated and the buoyancy differences effected by the levita-tion. The usual separating means employed are: (1) a flotation machine for fine, slimy and for well aerated granular material; (2) shaking tables for granular less aerated material. By using large quantities of oil, it is possible to form substantially air-free oil-bound masses or granules of nonsiliceous minerals and to

Jan 1, 1939

By L. Segle, R. Resnick

NUMEROUS experiments in the past few years have proven that void formation occurs quite generally in the diffusion zone of bimetal specimens1-4 The phenomenon has been explained in terms of the accumulation of lattice vacancies resulting from unequal diffusion of the constituents and their eventual precipitation as holes.= Attention has recently been directed to the fact that voids also form within homogeneous metals during high-temperature creep.' The idea has been put forward that these voids form by the condensation of excess lattice vacancies generated by intersecting dislocations.".' If the precipitation of lattice vacancies from solution is treated as a nucleation and growth process, the predicted vacancy concentration for homogeneous nucleation of voids at an observable rate is 100 to 1000 times the normal thermal equilibrium concentration. It appears that voids actually form during diffusion at vacancy supersaturations which are much lower than this8 According to the calculations of Machlin,' the same must be true for voids formed in homogeneous metals during creep, if these are considered to arise from the precipitation of lattice vacancies. Therefore, if the vacancy mechanism is valid, it seems that the holes which form in diffusion and creep specimens are heterogeneously nucleated by imperfections or impurities in the metal. Irregularities in the frequency and distribution of voids in diffusion couples bear out this explanation.' , It is not known at the present time what the nuclei are on which vacancies condense. Various investigators have speculated that they could be certain dislocation configurations, already existing voids produced during solidification or working, gas pockets, or inclusions in the metal. Relatedly, the precise value of the degree of vacancy supersatura-tion for void nucleation is still uncertain. An initial attempt to estimate this value from diffusion data, made by Balluffi, indicated that voids form in diffusion couples at vacancy concentrations which may

Jan 1, 1958

By Richard McCaffery

THE statistical analysis of blast-furnace data was undertaken to determine some of the relations which exist between the variables involved in furnace operation, and particularly to show the effect of variation of slag composition on such economically important factors as coke consumption, daily tonnage of pig iron and sulfur elimination. It was desired to correlate the results obtained in- commercial practice with those predicted from a study of the quaternary system lime-alumina-silica-magnesia. This paper presents the results of a preliminary study of blast-furnace daily operating reports, and is intended to indicate the suitability of our method of attack and something of the results that may be expected from an extended statistical examination of such data. It has been shown that blast-furnace slags are not composed of oxides, as reported by chemical analysis, but are actually composed of several compounds, each made up of two or more of the oxides present.1 These compounds persist in the liquid state, and the properties of a slag are the properties of a mixture of these compounds, and not of a mixture of the ultimate oxides .2,3 The oxides lime, alumina, silica and magnesia make up 94 to 96 per cent. of the usual blast-furnace slag, and assuming that we may neglect the remainder of the components, we may determine the minerals present, and their relative proportions, from a study of the quaternary system involving these four oxides. Operating reports from 15 furnaces were available for this investigation. Complete slag analyses for one slag per day were available, permitting the calculation of the mineral composition of the slags used. Basic, malleable and foundry irons, with silicon varying from 0.75 to 4.50 per cent. were included in the reports for this examination.

Jan 1, 1931

By E. H. Hamilton, H. C. Vacher

The limiting concentrations of carbon and oxygen which may CO-exist at equilibrium in liquid iron are important in determining the degree to which liquid steel may be refined before it is deoxidized. Most refining processes depend upon the oxidation of a highly carburized iron which invariably results in contaminating the steel with oxygen. The oxygen thus introduced presents many problems to the refiner, who in turn has attempted to rid the steel of this impurity by deoxidation witch elements such as manganese, silicon and aluminum. The importance of the limiting concentrations of carbon and oxygen is accentuated in view of a number of recent researches which have indicated in many instances the existence of relations between oxide inclusions and dissolved oxygen and physical properties and chemical behavior of steel. The determination of the equilibrium concentrations of carbon and oxygen existing in iron under steelmaking conditions is obviously of fundamental importance. It has been generally assumed that the product of the equilibrium concentrations of carbon and oxygen in liquid iron is a constant and that this product is directly proportional to the carbon monoxide pressure in equilibrium with the liquid iron. Hertyl.2 has computed values for this product based on open-hearth data which are all in the neighborhood of 0.01 to 0.03 (per cent. FeO X per cent. C) for temperatures in the vicinity of 1550" to 1600" C. and one atmosphere pressure. Kinzel and Egan % have attempted to determine the value of this product by exposing liquid iron to carbon monoxide at one atmosphere pressure. The value reported by them was 0.0005 at 1550" C. In order to apply certain equations to the rate of carbon elimination in the open-hearth process, Feild4 found it necessary to assume a value of 0.0102 at 1580" C. for this

Jan 1, 1931

By D. W. Fuerstenau

Measurement of zeta potentials is a useful tool to study the surface chemistry of minerals under flotation conditions. Because there is continued interest in this approach, the apparatus for obtaining zeta potentials of nonconducting solids by the streaming potential method is outlined here. Fig. 1 illustrates the streaming potential apparatus. The streaming potential cell or plug consists of two 24/40 standard ground joints (4) joined with a piece of pyrex tubing 60 mm long and 12 mm in diam (5). The electrodes are made of bright platinum disks 19 mm in diam and 1 mm thick through which 0.5-mm holes have been drilled (6). To the surface of each is welded a piece of 80-mesh platinum gauze. Each electrode is permanently mounted on the ends of the inner parts of the two standard joints by means of a platinum wire (7) which connects it to the tungsten seal at the end of the cell (8). For ease in cleaning and handling the apparatus, the streaming cell is fastened to the 500-ml reservoir flasks (1) by means of two 18/9 ball and socket joints (2). This particular arrangement permits passage of the solution in either direction through the plug of particles. Flow of solution can be stopped by a stopcock (3). One of the reservoir flasks has a large opening to permit insertion of either a thermometer or a pair of electrodes for measuring pH of solutions within the system. In making the experiments, the plug is filled with 48 to 65-mesh particles, but a layer of 28 to 35-mesh particles is placed at each electrode to prevent any of the finer particles from passing through holes in the electrodes.

Aug 1, 1956

By Charles W. Bauer

Most of the aluminum produced in the United States today is derived from foreign bauxite deposits. Earth Sciences, Inc. initiated a program to evaluate domestic non bauxite sources for alumina in the 1960's. In the initial evaluation of alunite, domestic resources were not sufficient to support development. An exploration program led to the discovery of large deposits of alunite in Utah and several other western states. Identification of alunite is difficult as both its physical and chemical characteristics are similar to the minerals with which it is associated. Most of the significant alunite deposits in the western United States are replacement type deposits. These deposits have formed as a result of hydrothermal alteration of volcanic, sub-volcanic, and igneous rocks. Typical alunite deposits contain between 30 and 50% alunite and 50 and 70% quartz, with minor amounts of other minerals. Four mineralogical zones are common in these systems. They include a siliceous zone, a quartz-alunite zone, a kaolinite zone, and a chlorite-montmorillonite zone. Total US reserves of alunite were estimated at 20 Mt fat 30% alunite) by the US Bureau of Mines in 1941. More recent work by the US Geological Survey estimates reserves of 252 Mt and potential resources at 1.4 Gt. Reserves and resources estimated for 23 properties on which field work has been done by ESI are considerably higher. Most of these properties have reserves and potential resources of several hundred million metric tons. The combined demonstrated reserves of these properties are estimated to be about 650 Mt. Inferred reserves are estimated at 2.5 Gt and potential resources at 8 Gt. It appears that the US has sufficient reserves and resources for alunite to be considered as a potential nonbauxite source of alumina.

Jan 1, 1982

By Michael Hoch

The phase diagrams of binary systems of some of the transition elements of Groups IV, V, and VI were used to compute the partial free energies of these elements and the free energy of formation of their Laves-type compounds. From these data, isothermal sections of ternary phase diagrams were calculated and compared with experimental results. DURING the investigation of ternary and quaternary high temperature systems formed by the transition elements of Groups IV, V and VI, the binary phase diagrams for these elements available in the literature were studied. In this study, the free energies of formation of the compounds formed in these binary systems were calculated; these values were then used to determine the general shape of the ternary and quaternary phase diagrams. Above 900°C, the transition elements of Groups IV, V, and VI are all bcc and form only Laves-type compounds in binary systems. The investigation was based on the binary phase diagrams published by Hansen.1 The Cr-Nb system was constructed from the data of Elyutin and Funke.' Several unpublished phase diagrams were taken from Schmidt'sLo and English'sl1 compilations. THE BINARY SYSTEMS valuations of the Thermodynamic Functions. Rostokers evaluated the boundaries of the (a + b) field in Ti-base alloys with a two-constant equation. The authors' interest is mainly in the center of the diagrams; therefore the miscibility gaps in the Zr-Nb, W-Cr, Ta-Zr, Ta-Hf, and Ti-W systems were used to evaluate the thermodynamic behavior of the binary systems. Lumsden's4 Equations 29.2, 32.1, and 33.1, page 287, were used for the excess integral free energy FeX, and for the excess partial free energies Fx and replaces b and b replacesP in Lumsden's notation):

Jan 1, 1962

By S. F. Ramseyer, E. A. Steigerwald

INFILTRATED structures represent composite materials which are capable of combining high-temperature strength with adequate low-temperature toughness and thermal shock resistance. Although copper- and silver-infiltrated tungsten structures are actually being used in rocket nozzle hardware, adequate understanding of the fracture mechanics of these composite systems is not available. Specifically the relative importance of the strength, ductility, and modulus of the infiltrant in determining composite properties is not known to the extent that optimum composites can be selected. The major portion of experimental effort in the area of composite strength has been devoted to fiber-reinforced systems1 or to systems where a discontinuous phase is imbedded in a relatively ductile matrix.2'3 In the case of high-temperature systems, which are composed of a relatively brittle matrix, such as tungsten or an oxide, a continuous phase exists for the propagation of a crack. The method by which the presence of a conjugate ductile continuous phase influences the gross properties of the composite represents an area which requires further investigation. This technical note presents results which evaluate the effect of infiltrant strength on the strength of the tungsten-base composite. A tungsten matrix and copper-base infiltrant were selected for the initial studies because of the ease of fabrication. Tungsten structures with nominally 20 and 30 pct porosity were evaluated. The porosity was controlled by varying the initial powder size and a ratio of open-to-total porosity greater than 95 pct was obtained by selective sintering cycles. The processing sequence involved hydrostatic pressing followed by a 72-hr presinter in hydrogen at 2000° F and a final sinter at 4000°F for 4 hr in vacuum. The 20 pct porous structure was obtained

Jan 1, 1965

By J. J. Gilvarry

Recently, Gilvarry1,2 has given a rigorous derivation of the proper distribution function for fragment size in single fracture, based on a closely defined physical model and deduced strictly by the laws of probability. The physical point of departure is Griffith's theory of brittle strength, identifying sub-microscopic flaws as the cause of the low strength of a solid in comparison with values implied by cohesive energies. Gilvarry and Bergstrom,4-7 and Gilvarry8 have compared the predictions of the theory with experiment, and have found excellent agreement, in general. The purpose of this communication is to sketch the extension of the theory to the case of comminution, and to indicate the applications to some examples in nature. The present treatment represents an amplification of a brief discussion appearing elsewhere. 9 Although the basic ideas of the Griffith theory are perfectly general for rupture of brittle solids, it was originally formulated with very brittle materials such as glass in mind. Moreover, Griffith's original experimental work was carried out on glass specimens. Recently, however, the theory has been extended by race" to apply directly to rocks. This extension makes the theory immediately applicable to the materials generally of interest from the standpoint of comminution. GENERAL CASE To obtain the distribution function for fragment size in single fracture, three assumptions are made, that: 1) Fracture proceeds by activation of preex-istent Griffith flaws in the volume, faces, and edges of a fragment; 2) the distributions of flaws of these three types are independent of each other; and 3) activated flaws of a particular type are distributed at random, individually and collectively, in the sense of Fry.11 The last assumption implies that each distribution is separately of Poisson type.

Jan 1, 1964

By R. S. McCaffery, R. G. Stephenson

The statistical analysis of blast-furnace data was undertaken to determine some of the relations which exist between the variables involved in furnace operation, and particularly to show the effect of variation of slag composition on such economically important factors as coke consumption, daily tonnage of pig iron and sulfur elimination. It' was desired to correlate the results obtained in commercial practice with those predicted from a study of the quaternary system lime-alumina-silica-magnesia. This paper presents the results of a preliminary study of blast-furnace daily operating reports, and is intended to indicate the suitability of our method of attack and something of the results that may be expected from an extended statistical examination of such data. It has been shown that blast-furnace slags are not composed of oxides, as reported by chemical analysis, but are actually composed of several compounds, each made up of two or more of the oxides present.' These compounds persist in the liquid state, and the properties of a slag are the properties of a mixture of these compounds, and not of a mixture of the ultimate oxides. The oxides lime, alumina, silica and magnesia make up 94 to 96 per cent. of the usual blast-furnace slag, and assuming that we may neglect the remainder of the components, we may determine the minerals present, and their relative proportions, from a study of the quaternary system involving these four oxides. Operating reports from 15 furnaces were available for this investigation. Complete slag analyses for one slag per day were available, per-mittling the calculation of the mineral composition of the slags used. Basic, malleable and foundry irons, with silicon varying from 0.75 to 4.50 per cent. were included in the reports for this examination.

Jan 1, 1931

By G. W. Housner

The series of earthquakes in the vicinity of Koyna Dam in south- western India, which included a very damaging magnitude 6.5 shock on Dec. 11, 1967 (Dec. 10 GMT), is of much interest. The events are exceptionally well documented, which is a tribute to Indian geologists, seismologists, and engineers. To help in disseminating the information in the United States, this chapter presents a brief summary of the pertinent data and lists references. Koynanagar (Koynatown), which began as the construction camp for the dam, is located about 140 miles southeast of Bombay and 70 miles south of Poona at 17.4ºN and 73.7ºE, about 40 miles inland from the Arabian Sea. Koyna River flows almost due south from its source a distance of about 38 miles and then makes an abrupt turn to the east and travels some 480 miles to empty into the Bay of Bengal. Koyna Dam is located about 3 miles north of this turn. The approximately north-south trending continental divide is a few miles west of Koyna and the terrain drops steeply about 1700 ft to where the hydroelectric generating station is located. The reservoir behind Koyna Dam forms a long, narrow lake (Shiva- jisagar Lake) with mean water level (MWL) at 2160-ft elevation. The 345-sq-mile watershed receives an annual rainfall of about 200 in., most of which falls between mid-June and mid-October. The peak storage is 99 x l09 cu ft. A controlled flow passes under the continental divide in a tunnel and then down to the electric generating station about 5 miles WNW of the dam. The inflow not used for power generation is released to Koyna River. The Koyna project is a major source of electric power for Bombay and produces 540 MW at peak load.

Jan 1, 1970

By Pope Yeatman

THE Committee on the Elimination of Waste in Industry, of the Federated American Engineering Societies, in its report says that "Waste in -industry is attributable to four causes: 1. Low production, caused by faulty management, of materials, plant, equipment, and men; 2. Interrupted production caused by idle materials, idle plants, and idle equipment; 3. Restricted production intentionally caused by ,owners, managers, or labor; 4. Lost production caused by ill-health, physical defects and industrial accidents. The committee sent out elaborate questionnaires, and in them divided the responsibility into Manage-ment, Labor, and Outside Contracts. These question-naires showed that in the different industries examined the responsibility of Management was from 50 to 80 per cent. and of Labor from 9 to 28 per cent. The percentage of responsibility that Management was held accountable for was much larger than any of us supposed. However, when this question is studied, we realize how necessary it is to select, in the first instance, suitable personnel, in the form of directors, managers, heads of departments, experts, etc. We would like to -believe that the percentage of responsibility of Management for waste in the mining business was less than that quoted above, but there are so many mining properties started up and operated by men of no experience in such lines, and there have been so many improvements in late years in mining and metallurgical methods not taken advantage of, that we can not believe that. the percentage will vary much from that already quoted. Quoting from a report approved by the Committee on Management of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers: Management is the art and science of preparing, organizing, and directing human effort applied to control the forces and util-ize the materials of nature for the benefit of man.

Jan 3, 1922

By William L. Fink, Dana W. Smith

Approximately two years ago the authors obtained data that indicated that initial precipitation could not be detected by change of lattice parameter in the aluminum-rich aluminum-magnesium alloys. Some of these data were first published in a brief note in Mining and Metallurgy'. Cast specimens were used at that time and they showed initial precipitation relatively sooner than sheet material of the same composition. For this reason a more thorough investigation has been carried out using a homogenized aluminum-magnesium sheet corltairling approximately 10 per cent magnesium. Materials.—The aluminum used in the preparation of the aluminum-magnesium alloy was of high purity, containing less than 0.01 per cent each of iron, silicon and copper. The magnesium was high-purity sublimed magnesium. Preparation of Alloy.—Approximately 4 kg. of the aluminunl was melted in a plumbago crucible in an electric furnace and the magnesium was added. The melt was thoroughly stirred with a graphite rod and fluxed with chlorine gas before casting. The alloy was cast in the form of a sheet ingot in a cold iron tilting mold (approximately 200 by 165 by 40 mm.) and into small chill-cast slabs for chemical analysis (75 by 40 by 5 mm.). The chemical analyses were made upon drillings from the analysis slabs. The analytical methods were those described in "Chemical Analysis of Aluminum," published by the Aluminum Company of America. The composition of the alloy was found to be: magnesium 10.30, silicon 0.013, iron 0.008 and copper 0.005 per cent. In order to insure homogeneity the alloy was given two intermediate anneals at 430' C. for a total time of 36 hr. The ingot was hot-rolled

Jan 1, 1937

By M. L. Fuller

MOST commercial alloys undergo changes in phase composition after casting. This is a natural result of the fact that the alloys are not in a state of phase equilibrium as cast and phase changes will therefore take place, with more or less rapidity, in an attempt to attain equilibrium. The practical aspect of aging in zinc-alloy die castings concerns the changes in physical properties and in dimensions that may accompany aging phase changes. Harmful alterations have been reduced to a minimum and zinc-alloy die castings are being produced today that are so stable with respect to dimensions and physical properties that they are entirely suitable for most practical purposes1. In the first paper' of this series, and in this paper, aging phase changes of zinc alloy die castings have been investigated and the possible influence of these changes on dimensional changes of the castings has been evalu-ated and compared with the dimensional changes actually experienced. The change of dimensions has been selected for practical comparison in these papers because the effect of phase changes on the dimensions of a casting is directly calculable; from X-ray crystal-analysis data of the phase structure. The die-casting alloys considered contain, in addition to zinc, 4 per cent of aluminum, about 0.03 per cent magnesium, and from 0 to 3 per cent of copper. It was shown in the former paper that the eutectoidal decomposition of the beta aluminum-zinc phase, while intrinsically capable of causing a considerable shrinkage, can have very little effect on the observed shrinkage of die castings because it takes place within a few days of aging, whereas the observed shrinkage continues for five weeks. It was therefore concluded that the other existing phase change,

Jan 1, 1936

By Ralph A. Sherman

In these days of intense competition for the domestic fuel market much is heard of the low efficiencies with which solid fuels, and most particularly bituminous coal, are burned in domestic heating equipment. In contrast to the every-day operating efficiencies of 85 and 90 per cent in large, central, electric-generating stations, efficiencies of 50 per cent and lower are cited for the hand-fired home furnace. Just as the miles per gallon of gasoline is only one of the factors that determine the cost of operation of an automobile, so the thermal efficiency is only one factor in the cost of domestic or other heating. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the total costs of domestic heating by various fuels and types of equipment, to determine the relative importance of efficiency and other factors, and to discuss what this signifies relative to the future of the use of fuels in the home. Factors That Govern the Choice of Fuel and Burning Equipment A rational, intelligent selection of fuel and equipment for heating the home would consider two groups of factors: Cost Factors Convenience Factors 1. Cost of potential heat in fuel 1. Attention 2. Efficiency of combustion and heat transfer 2. Dirt 3. Fixed charges 3. Noise a. Interest b. Depreciation c. Repairs 4. Power costs 5. Cost of handling ash and refuse. As just stated, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the relative importance of the five cost factors and not to discuss particularly the relative total costs of different methods of heating. However, to arrive at the percentage costs and to show clearly how they were determined, a statement of the total costs is unavoidable. One example only will

Jan 1, 1934

By R. L. Wilcox, M. L. Fuller

MOST commercial alloys undergo changes in phase composition after casting. This is a natural result of the fact that the alloys are not in a state of phase equilibrium as cast and phase changes will therefore take place, with more or less rapidity, in an attempt to attain equilibrium. The practical aspect of aging in zinc-alloy die castings concerns the changes in physical properties and in dimensions that may accompany aging phase changes. Harmful alterations have been reduced to a minimum and zinc-alloy die castings are being produced today that are so stable with respect to dimensions and physical properties that they are entirely suitable for most practical purposes1. In the first paper2 of this series, and in this paper, aging phase changes of zinc alloy die castings have been investigated and the possible influence of these changes on dimensional changes of the castings has been evaluated and compared with the dimensional changes actually experienced. The change of dimensions has been selected for practical comparison in these papers because the effect of phase changes on the dimensions of a casting is directly calculable from X-ray crystal-analysis data of the phase structure. The die-casting alloys considered contain, in addition to zinc, 4 per cent of aluminum, about 0.03 per cent magnesium, and from 0 to 3 per cent of copper. It was shown in the former paper that the eutectoidal decomposition of the beta aluminum-zinc phase, while intrinsically capable of causing a considerable shrinkage, can have very little effect on the observed shrinkage of die castings because it takes place within a few days of aging, whereas the observed shrinkage continues for five weeks. It was therefore concluded that the other existing phase change,

Jan 1, 1935