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By R. W. Raymond

This paper is simply a summary, prepared at the request of the Council of the Institute, of the report of Mr. Albert Ladd Colby, of South Bethlehem, Pa., presented at the New York meeting (October, 1896) of the Association of American SteelManufacturers, on " The Advisability of the Endorsement by the Association of the United States Standard Gauge, approved by Act of Congress, March 3, 1893, to the Exclusion of the Birmingham Gauge, the .Brown and Sharpe, and all Others:" a subject on which, at the Pittsburgh meeting (April, 1896) of the said Association, Mr. Colby had been appointed as a committee. The report favors the adoption, not of the United States standard gauge to the exclusion of others, but of a decimal system of gauging all materials in thousandths of an inch, thus doing away entirely with arbitrary gauge-numbers running in inverse order to the actual thickness. The American Institute of Mining Engineers originated this movement. The report of its committee on a standard wiregauge, presented in October, 1877,* recommended the abandonment of the system of fixed gauges for commercial use, and of the system of representing the diameters and sizes by numbers, and the adoption, in lieu thereof, of the system of expressing sizes in thousandths of an inch or fractions of a millimeter, and the use of the micrometer-gauge as a means of measuring sizes. In 1892 the American Society of Mechanical Engineers appointed a similar committee, and corresponding action was

Jan 1, 1898

By P. R. Sperry

A METHOD was recently devised to indicate two or more successive stages of the migration of grain boundaries in aluminum, and to record the direction of the migration. This technique was used for the study of the various types of boundary migration occurring in high purity aluminum.' The method employs alternate annealing and electrolytic etching treatments, repeated as many times as desired. All successive sets of grain boun- dary positions revealed by the various etches appear superimposed on each other. The last etch is designed to leave an oxide film on the surface which is optically anisotropic. The orientation of the oxide film at each point is determined by the orientation of the underlying aluminum grain. When viewed with polarized light using crossed nicols and a Biot-Klein quartz plate, grains with differing orientations appear in different colors, as described by Hone and Pearson.' The last boundary positions are revealed by these color differences. The first step of the process is to obtain a desired starting grain size by annealing, for example, if high

Jan 1, 1951

By W. C. Knopf, I. M. LaBaron

In the Carlsbad area potash is dry-mined and wet- concentrated. Wet concentration involves recirculation of saturated brines, with resultant difficulties of brine disposal and inherent losses in recovery through solution of the KC1. A dry beneficiation process for potash minerals would offer many advantages over present methods. International Minerals & Chemical Corp. has been working on development of a dry process for some time. This article is a progress report.

Jan 10, 1958

“The mining industry can do more to alleviate world poverty, hunger and human misery, more to close the widening gap between advanced and developing nations and more to achieve international peace and understanding than any other single force in the world," Charles W. Court, Minister for Industrial Development, Western Australia, told the American Mining Congress audience at the opening session of the 1969 Mining Convention, October 19-22, San Francisco. Australia, he pointed out, is a shining example. In 1971, 60% of U.S. mining investment overseas will go to Australia and other parts of Oceania, an increase of 42% over a year ago. Australia has capitalized on world needs, its own rich resources and good investment climate. Developing nations can and should do the same, but they mix emotion with nationalism, often frightening away foreign investment which could breathe life into dormant and backward areas, said Court.

Jan 12, 1969

By Frank E. Hall

The needs of the World War showed the necessity of a metal stronger than cast iron which would supplement the supply of steel. SO patriotic metallurgists were spurred to new efforts to improve the status of that half-breed of the metal world that had been, more or less erroneously, christened semisteel. As a result, it was developed that for certain purposes semisteel was superior to steel in the manufacture of shells. Steel, because of its greater strength and toughness, is able to carry a greater charge of explosive, weight for weight; consequently, a steel shell can be expected to cause greater destruction when used against fortifications or other inanimate objects, while semisteel, because of its comparative brittleness and its resulting greater fragmentation, is capable of inflicting more serious loss of life when used against opposing forces of men. Therefore, each has its proper place in the economy of war. For the present purpose, steel may be defined as a comparatively pure iron whose physical nature is modified by small amounts of carbon, silicon, sulfur, phosphorus, manganese, and possibly other rarer elements; while cast iron generally is limited to approximately 93 per cent. of iron, the remainder consisting of larger percentages of carbon, silicon, sulfur, phosphorus, and manganese. Semisteel may be defined as cast iron in which the carbon and silicon have been reduced to as low a point as is consistent with maintaining the nature of gray iron, and in which the remaining elements are adjusted so as to give the greatest strength. The fact that the addition of steel scrap, in varying percentages, is the means used to reduce the carbon, together with the fact that a considerable increase in strength results, is probably the explanation of the origin of the name semisteel. That ordinary grades of steel show from three to four times the tensile strength of cast iron is due to the fact that the crystals, or grains, of cast iron are interspersed with flakes of

Jan 1, 1922

By Frank E. Hall

The needs of the World War showed the necessity of a metal stronger than cast iron which would supplement the supply of steel. SO patriotic metallurgists were spurred to new efforts to improve the status of that half-breed of the metal world that had been, more or less erroneously, christened semisteel. As a result, it was developed that for certain purposes semisteel was superior to steel in the manufacture of shells. Steel, because of its greater strength and toughness, is able to carry a greater charge of explosive, weight for weight; consequently, a steel shell can be expected to cause greater destruction when used against fortifications or other inanimate objects, while semisteel, because of its comparative brittleness and its resulting greater fragmentation, is capable of inflicting more serious loss of life when used against opposing forces of men. Therefore, each has its proper place in the economy of war. For the present purpose, steel may be defined as a comparatively pure iron whose physical nature is modified by small amounts of carbon, silicon, sulfur, phosphorus, manganese, and possibly other rarer elements; while cast iron generally is limited to approximately 93 per cent. of iron, the remainder consisting of larger percentages of carbon, silicon, sulfur, phosphorus, and manganese. Semisteel may be defined as cast iron in which the carbon and silicon have been reduced to as low a point as is consistent with maintaining the nature of gray iron, and in which the remaining elements are adjusted so as to give the greatest strength. The fact that the addition of steel scrap, in varying percentages, is the means used to reduce the carbon, together with the fact that a considerable increase in strength results, is probably the explanation of the origin of the name semisteel. That ordinary grades of steel show from three to four times the tensile strength of cast iron is due to the fact that the crystals, or grains, of cast iron are interspersed with flakes of

Jan 1, 1922

By J. H. Hollomon, J. C. Fisher

THE fundamental problem concerning the fracture of both crystalline and noncrystalline solids is the divergence between the actual and the theoretically computed fracture stresses; the stress required for fracture, computed from the forces between atoms, is many times that actually observed with commercially available materials. Computations have been made1, 2 indicating that the theoretical fracture stress should be from 100 to 1000 times that actually observed. There are other incidental problems that have arisen, perhaps the most important of which is the problem of size effect often observed in the measurement of the fracture stress of non-metallic solids, such as glass. Another effect concerns the relation between deformation and the stress required for fracture. Experiments recently made with pearlitic steels indicate that the tensile fracture stress increases with increasing tensile deformation and decreases with increasing prior compressive deformation. This marked anisotropy of the effect of deformation on the fracture stress is in contrast with the essential isotropy of the flow stress. Early experiments on rock salt crystals by Joffé, et a13 have illustrated the effect of tensile strain in increasing the tensile stress required for fracture. A consistent theory must be constructed that will explain not only the divergence of the measured fracture stress from the theoretical value, the size effect, and the effect of deformation; but will also explain and predict the effects of combined stress, of temperature, of strain rate, and of metallurgical structure. With respect to this last variable, it has now been relatively well established that the carbide particle is the element of structure controlling the fracture of steels. In steels carbide particles vary in shape from plates to spheroids. It has been found that not only does the magnitude of the fracture stress depend upon the size and shape of these particles, but also its dependence upon strain is affected by changes in shape and size of the particles. The precipitate resulting from the age hardening of duralumin also modifies the fracture stress of this alloy. Nonmetallic inclusions greatly lower the fracture stress of all metals. The magnitude of the lowering depends on the size and shape of the included particles. In glass, the major source of the low fracture stress has been fairly conclusively demonstrated by Griffith4 to arise from real flaws or cracks present in the material. He showed that the stress concentration at the end of a defect was of sufficient magnitude to raise the stress at this location to a value comparable with the theoretical strength of the material. If the cracks were reduced in size, Griffith showed that the observed fracture strength increased by virtue of the decrease in stress concentration. He also pointed out that cracks disposed perpendicularly to the applied tensile stress would be more effective in lowering the fracture

Jan 1, 1947

Those familiar with the war in France at first hand know that in these last two years the weight of the suffering has fallen upon the families of the well-to-do classes; those who before the war lived in comparative ease and comfort, with every prospect of educating their children as their parents and grandparents had been. Thousands of the men in these families have been killed, "officiers d'élite," and the small pensions accorded the widows permit them only to house and feed their children HELÈNE JOURNÈS. and give them a common-school education. The pension for a lieutenant's widow is $245 a year; for 'a captain's, $345; for a colonel's $575; and so on. At present, it requires three francs a day to provide food for one person in cities, and conditions are not improving. The American Ouvroir Funds, 681 Fifth Ave., New York City, has tried for nearly two years to have individual Americans give individual children a "bourse," or purse, as it is called, of from $150 to $250 a year, so that they may enter such educational institutions as the Lycées, the Polytechnique, Beaux Arts, St. Cyr, etc. The war relief societies of these military schools furnish photographs and histories of children under their care and on their lists.

Jan 12, 1918

By David K. Hylbert

This study investigated roof falls in room-and-pillar drift coal mines in eastern Kentucky and utilized geologic methods for Predicting roof conditions in advance of mining. In the Highsplint mine, the roof was classified in four categories or conditions: Condition A and B (Laminated Shale); Condition C (Rolling Sandstone with Shale in Pockets); and Condition D (Zone of Major Sandstone Roll(s)). Structure contour and isopach maps of the Darby coal bed and associated immediate roof rocks were used to project axial trends of the sandstone roof. Trend mapping in the mine and on outcrop provided more detailed control for roof projections.

Jan 1, 1979

The third special war meeting of the New York Section was held on Thursday evening, Sept. 27, in joint session with the New York Section of the American Electrochemical Society, in conjunction with the Third National Exposition -of-Chemical Industries, at the Grand Central Palace. The topic for discussion was ferro-alloys, and the supply' of raw materials for their manufacture. After a few introductory remarks by President Philip N. Moore, of the Institute, and President Colin G. Fink of the American Electrochemical Society, Mr. C. S. Newcomb presented his paper on "Chrome Mining and Concentration."

Jan 11, 1917

By L. M. Higgins

Dust or fume control systems are devices for capturing contaminants at their source and preventing their discharge to atmosphere. The Primary Components Of Any Dust Control System Include: An enclosure around any potential dust source such as conveyor belt transfer, crusher, screening machine, bin loading and loadout. Ductwork including hood takeoffs (transitions) to convey the collected dust laden air away from the source of dust generation to a convenient location. A dust collector for separation of particulate matter from the air stream prior to its discharge to the atmosphere. A prime mover generally a fan, to draw air into an enclosure and to overcome resistance to flow in the ductwork, dust collector and stack.

Jan 1, 1978

By R. P. Corbett

Since the beginning of operations at the Kelley mine in 1952, Anaconda has emplaced more than 150,000 cu yd of concrete underground. Concreting practices have changed over the years but the net result is still the same- lower costs along the line and more versatility.

Jan 7, 1961

The technique of hard facing can be a quick and economical means of prolonging wear-life of many metals, but maintenance personnel must first select the proper alloy from the hundred that are available. Even then, roper selection is effective only when it is properly applied by the welder. To complete the successful weld, several hints are offered:

Jan 4, 1978

ROBERT E. TALLY,* Jerome, Ariz. (written discussion ?).-Mr. Sherman's paper, entitled "Measures for Controlling Fires at the Copper Queen Mine," embodies two new and very important features: First, automatic closing of doors communicating with the dangerous area; second, the use of a portable storage-battery fan. His other procedures, such as giving a general fire alarm, getting workmen to the surface, etc., are equally important, but have long been in use in other places. Fire and ventilating doors in connections leading to shafts, air raises, and other large timbered areas, have been in use at other mines; but the method described by Mr. Sherman for operating these doors by compressed air, through a valve on the surface, is, so far as I know, original, and should be installed in every mine where there is danger of fire. Nearly all large mines are now using artificial ventilation, with the result that there are strong air currents in the shafts and other important workings. The most important feature in mine fires is a quick and positive control of the ventilation, for it takes but a few moments for smoke to travel over a large area, with the usual results of suffocation, and destruction of property. A strong air current in an upcast shaft acts as a draft in case of fire, and unless quickly cut off the fire would soon get beyond control. An upcast shaft usually changes to a downcast when large amounts of water are used. Human lives are in more danger from downcast currents, as the smoke travels into the workings.

Jan 4, 1918

By G. B. Gould

FROM the very inception of the price-control experiment in the bituminous-coal industry, the problem of price differentials was of major importance. In fact, assuming that there will be no legal or Govern- mental obstacles to price control, the successful maintenance of the present or any other method designed to control bituminous-coal prices will depend upon the discovery of some satisfactory way to determine these differentials in price, among: individual mines and groups of mines. Being of organic origin, bituminous coal is a commodity that presents an almost infinite variety of qualities. It is inevitable, therefore, that a work- able price-control system must attempt

Jan 1, 1935

By M. G. Benz, J. F. Elliott

The austenite solidus of the iron-carbon system has been determined using a series of diffusion couples, each of which consisted of a specimen of austenite held in contact with a melt saturated with austenite. After the equilibrium distribution of carbon had been established by diffusion at a specified temperature, i.e. the austenite specimen had become austenite of the solidus conzposition, the diffusion couple was cooled, sectioned and anazlyzed for carbon. The solidus was found to be a straight line: A revised iron-carbon temperature-composition diagram is presented, COMPOSITION has a marked effect on the temperature at which austenite begins to melt and the austenite solidus of the iron-carbon system describing this effect has been the subject of many investigations.1-10 The significant results of these investigations are presented in Fig. 1. The experimental methods and purity of the materials used in them are summarized in Table I. In plotting the data in Fig. 1 no attempt has been made to convert these results to the International Temperature Scale of 1948," except for the data of Adcock,5 as this conversion would do little to reduce the uncertainty that exists as to the position and shape of the solidus. A point of major concern in evaluating these data is that the alloys studied, except those used by Adcock, were not binary alloys of iron and carbon, Table I. Also, it would appear that several of the methods did not permit equilibrium to be established through the system being studied. All that can be said for the results of these investigations is that they indicate only approximately the location of the solidus with the uncertainty as to its location at 1 pct C being approximately 100°C. The current investigation was undertaken to provide reliable data by which the austenite solidus could be established. It was hoped that information on the liquidus also could be developed at the same time, but experimental limitations prevented this as austenite segregated from the liquid on cooling. After a careful study of possible experimental methods and extensive laboratory tests, it was decided that the use of a series of austenite-liquid diffusion couples would provide the most reliable results. This paper describes the method and its results and also includes a complete iron-carbon temperature-composition diagram based on what are considered to be the best available data. EXPERTMENTAL METHOD The diffusion couple used for this investigation consisted of a small cylindrical pellet of austenite held in contact, at a specified temperature, with a melt saturated with austenite. The composition of the cylindrical austenite pellet was chosen to be approximately 0.1 wt pct C less than the estimated

Jan 1, 1962

By N. S. Keith

No one of the live subjects of the day, to which the attention of the mining engineer and metallurgist should be turned, is of greater practical interest to him than electricity in its applications to various mechanical, chemical, and metallurgical operations. The object of this paper is to call the attention of my fellow-members and associates of the Institute to various new, as well as comparatively old, developments in the science and art of electricity which seem to promise results of advantage. Too many of the comparatively old applications have been neglected by the mining engineer, which; if he had given them a place among his appliances, would have assisted him greatly. The telegraph may be noticed as one. Its. use is, however, confined to a person having skill in the. manipulations of the key, the reading of the alphabet, and familiarity with the sounder. One of the simpler forms-the call-bell-has a range of application far greater as to distance and convenience than the old wire-pull, or the hoarse voice of the windlass-man or the bucket-dumper. A few Leclanehé cells, two or more electric bells, and a mile or more of wire judiciously placed will put the superintendent, at his office, in communication with the foremen of his mills and mines, so that by the aid of a code of signals, great advantages may be gained without necessitating a knowledge of the Morse alphabet, or of the mechanical voice of the sounder. The telephone furnishes a means of communication be-

Jan 1, 1882

Accurate modeling of the semivariogram is an extremely important step in the geostatistical analysis of mineral deposits. Automatic fitting of a mathematical model is often possible but not necessarily desirable. Significant geologic and statistical information must be taken into account in the fitting process, which is not always available to the computer. Manual model fitting is, on the other hand, extremely time consuming. Interactive graphics are best suited to optimize the process. Many interactive methods are described, which are adapted to modeling semivariogram in one-, two-, or three- dimensional environments.

Jan 1, 1985

By Julien Deby

THE sinking of a deep shaft is always a serious undertaking, especially when the strata to be traversed are of great hardness, or when they are feebly coherent or highly saturated with water. In the, first case, that of solid rock, modern appliances, such as the rock-drill, put into motion by air-compressors, along with suitable explosives, will generally answer the purposes of the mining engineer until he has reached the main water-levels. When these have

Jan 1, 1877

By Augustus Locke, Edward H. Perry

In the exploration of a copper deposit by drilling, obvious advantages are to be gained from a distinction between primary and secondary ore.' Perhaps the chief of these is the aid which such a distinction renders in determining where a given hole should stop. The copper assay, often a sufficient guide, cannot always be exclusively relied upon. Primary ores may extend downward indefinitely and may fluctuate in value independently of depth: if primary ores are consistently lean for a considerable vertical distance, there is little reason to expect that, still deeper, they will increase to the commercial grade; on the other hand, rich primary ores may persist uninterruptedly downward or may come in again below a lean interval. Secondary ores, however, have a comparatively limited vertical extent; in a large way enrichment decreases with depth and finally gives out. It follows then, that when a hole descends from profitable ore into ore of less than the commercial minimum, the practical significance of the situation depends upon whether this decrease results from a decrease in secondary enrichment or is a variation in primary content: if the copper of the ore passed through has been chiefly secondary, little is gained in the average case by extending the hole much below the point at which the commercial limit is reached; but, when copper is chiefly primary, due weight must be given to the possibility that, still deeper, the ore may again improve. The distinction between primary and secondary ore may of course be effected through an examination of the drillings. It has been found, however, to be facilitated by curves made by plotting assays against

Jan 1, 1916