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By W. Evans, C. E. Ells

The agglomeration of hydrogen in pure aluminum and A1-Mg alloys has been studied through use of hydrogen introduced into the metal by cyclotron proton irradiation. Both the growth and dispersal of the agglomerates have been followed by metal-lographic techniques. During the cyclotron irradiation, agglomeration occurs at temperatures i 100°C for hydrogen concentrations as low as 1 ppm. On heating at elevated temperatures, 300°C to 600°C, intragranular agglomerates first coarsen and then disperse. The agglomerates formed at grain boundaries are much larger than the intragranular agglomerates; with hydrogen concentra- tions > 10 PPm, heating for 1 hr at 500°C results in extensive grain-boundary cracking. The hydrogen agglomerates have been shown to inhibit grain growth, but no inhibition of recrystallization has been observed. The ability of hydrogen to enter aluminum at a free surface, combined with its high-diffusion rate at elevated temperatures, accounts both for growth and dispersal of the agglomerates. Irradiations at elevated temperatures give results consistent with the explanation proposed for agglomerate behavior on post-irradiation heating. 1 HE formation of hydrogen-filled bubbles, or blisters. in aluminum and its alloys has been studied for over' thirty years. The work up to 1952 has been reviewed by Kostron' and since then Ransley and

Jan 1, 1963

By AIME

THE history of the Mine La Motte area covers a greater period of time than any other mining operation west of the Mississippi, for it was almost exactly four centuries ago that the white man first visited the region. In May 1541 a few men from the party of Fernando de Soto traversed the place looking for silver which they understood the Indians had found in the vicinity. Some historians say that De Soto himself visited the place sometime later. No other white man came through again until the early 1700's. In 1712 King Louis XIV of France granted to Antoine Crozat a charter for transacting all business and government in the vast domain of the New Continent stretching from the Gulf of Mexico northward indefinitely. This

Jan 1, 1947

By K. J. Brondyke, P. D. Hess

Lack of correlation between densities of aluminum alloy samples solidified under reduced pressure (vacuum gas test) and hydrogen content of the metal is explained on the basis of inclusions serving as nuclei for hydrogen bubble formation. As a result of these findings, the vacuum gas test is suggested as a practical tool to indicate metal cleanliness and the potential effects of hydrogen. Visual obseroation of the sample during solidification under vacuum provides more useful information than that obtained either from density meas -urements or sectioning of the solidified sample. A rapid, practical method of detecting and measuring gas in molten-aluminum alloys has been sought for many years. The development of the vacuum gas test appeared to solve this problem. However, the vacuum gas test is subject to certain limitations, and the results must be interpreted mindful of these limitations, as described herein. Since the only gas which is appreciably soluble in aluminum is hydrogen, the terms gas and hydrogen will be used interchangeably in this paper. In the early days of the aluminum industry, when techniques were not as refined as they are today, it was customary to pour small "pancakes" of alumi- num on a metal plate. These were allowed to solidify under atmospheric pressure. Excessive gas in the metal was evidenced by the appearance of small bubbles on the surface of the "pancake".' It is obvious that such a method would only show very high gas levels far above any which could be tolerated by today's standards of quality required for most applications. Various attempts were made to develop methods which would be more sensitive. Among these were measurements of density of aluminum alloys solidified under controlled conditions, radiography of cast slabs, and examination of fractures. The method which showed the greatest promise and appeared most practical was the solidification of a sample of the molten aluminum alloy under vacuum. The samples so solidified are evaluated either by observation for bubble emission during solidification, by sectioning the solidified sample and examining for porosity, or by determining the density of the solidified sample. This test is known internationally as the Straube-Pfeiffer test or the reduced-pressure solidification test, but in America it is commonly referred to as the vacuum gas test2-' and will be so designated in this paper. The determination of density appeared an attractive and convenient means of providing a numerical rating for the samples. Attempts were made in some instances to correlate densities to hydrogen contents. Unfortunately, the visible loss of gas during solidification of samples with high gas contents precluded a correlation of vacuum gas test densities with the observed gas evolution. This led to Alcoa's use of two different pressures; 50 mm of

Jan 1, 1964

By Wolfgang O. Gluschke

INTRODUCTION Virtually all countries have general legislation covering most aspects of mining and mineral processing, including investment and tax laws, safety and health regulation, and specific rules applying to exploration reporting procedures. Yet most developing countries negotiate individual agreements with foreign investors for major mineral projects, in particular when all or part of the expected output is exported. Such agreements are known under several different names, as for example concession agreement; technical assistance agreement or service contract; management agreement; production sharing contract; joint venture; or contract of work. The objectives and conditions governing such contracts are as diverse as these titles are. While a mining project is only one among a large mumber of similar undertakings in industrial countries, in most developing countries such projects usually have a dominating position within the country's economy. The general legislation is often inadequate and insufficiently detailed to cover all aspects of large projects with extensive foreign inputs and international markets. Therefore, the need for specific arrangements. Specific arrangements may also become necessary due to the complexity of markets for mineral products, the large number of participants - equity partners, suppliers, financial institutions, buyers, etc. - or economic and political conditions in the host country and fiscal regulations in the home country of the investors. Most agreements are concluded between governments, or government agencies, in developing countries and private industry headquartered in developed market economies - Canada and the United States of America in North America, Western European countries, Japan, South Africa and Australia - or, in some instances, with state-owned firms in these countries. There are fewer agreements between developing countries and the centrally planned economy countries - Eastern Europe and the USSR - which cannot be considered here because of absence of adequate information. Agreements can be concluded at any of the different stages from exploration through closing of a mine. While most contracts are negotiated at the time when a potentially viable ore body has been delineated and investigated sufficiently to anticipate a realistic time for commencement of production, other agreements start with "grass-roots" exploration, during operation of a mine, smelter or refinery or, exceptionally, after a temporary shutdown. While several major provisions are included in all types of agreements, others are covered in much more detail (or not at all) in some contracts reflecting the specific work programme of each project. While it is realized that subdivision and classification of complex contractual relations is necessarily arbitrary to a certain extent, such grouping is useful in practical terms, especially for the non-specialist. The following discussion, therefore, will start with a description of the major forms of contractual relation - concession, investment contract, joint venture, management agreement, service and production sharing contracts. Major issues covered in all, or almost all, agreements will then be dealt with. These include stages of development, corporate structure and control, fiscal arrangements, infrastructure development and environmental law, and dispute settlement and renegotiation. FORMS OF CONTRACT RELATIONS There has been marked change in the type of agreement entered into during the 1960s (and before) and the early 1970s and the period thereafter. While straight "concessions" - granting of exclusive rights to foreign investors over a certain deposit or areas with little restriction or well-defined obligations - were the rule during the first half of this century, more complex agreements have evolved since. Some of these cover every conceivable aspect, foreseen or only possible, and define rights and obligations of all partners to the last detail. Over the years, agreements have without doubt become more beneficial for the developing host countries, in part as a result of well-publicized nationalizations, as for example in Chile, and in part due to changed attitudes in all countries

Jan 1, 1985

G. Sherburne Rogers (written discussion*).—Mr. Kennedy's discussion1 of Mr. Matteson's paper takes the form of a criticism of my own comments2 on this paper. Mr. Kennedy is a respected authority on matters pertaining to the salt-dome oil fields, and his characterization of my "elaborate figures" as "worthless" is sufficiently candid and comprehensive to warrant a brief reply. My 'voluminous figures" consisted simply of a rough estimate of the minimum quantity of salt in the Humble dome, and a, calculation of the volume of sea water and of the volume of saturated brine which this salt would represent. Mr. Kennedy apparently interprets my remarks as opposing the idea that so,large a volume of salt could have been deposited from sea water, for he cites the area and thickness of European salt beds; but nothing was further from my intention. Given an arm of the sea, an arid climate, and evaporation under a hot sun, it is easy to conceive the formation of almost any thickness of bedded salt. I cited the figures in connection with Harris' theory of the origin of salt domes, according to which the plugs were formed by the deposition of salt from ascending brine solutions, owing to the drop in temperature as they neared the surface. I pointed out the well known fact that the solubility of salt is only slightly affected by temperature, and that a drop of 80" C. would cause the deposition of less than one-tenth of the salt in solution; hence that more than ten times the volume of salt actually forming the plug must have been involved. If ten times the salt actually in sight be computed in terms of brine and multiplied by 50 or 60 to take into account all of the known salt domes, the resulting figure is so enormous that I am not at all so sure as Mr. Kennedy seems to be that the porous stratified rocks of eastern Texas and western Louisiana could contain or furnish so great a volume of migratory brine. Mr. Kennedy, however, does not dwell on drop in temperature as the cause of the precipitation, but contents himself with ascribing the whole process to lateral secretion. As I understand it, this implies that the connate waters and brines contained in the rocks migrated to the Gulf Coast region, and there deposited their salt at various loci of crystallization. Just what started the crystallization or what force caused the

Jan 1, 1918

By M. J. Marcinkowski, E. N. Hopkins

An investigation has been made of the ß(fcc) — a(hexagonal) transformation which occurs in lanthanum using both electrical resistivity and transmission electron microscopy techniques. It has been shown that the ß phase can be retained below the transformation temperature by rapid quenching but that the sample immediately begins to transform to the a phase. The transformation is observed to nucleate in the vicinity of inclusions. Based on the above observations, a detailed model of the transformation has been advanced which involves the nucleation of an extrinsic stacking fault bounded by a pair of Shockley partial dislocations in the vicinity of some heterogeneity, i.e., an inclusion. The stress field of the resultant dislocation pair acts to nucleate extrinsic faults in adjacent planes and leads quite naturally to the B-a conversion with a minimum of strain energy induced in the crystal. LANTHANUM possesses an fcc structure ß) (8) upon cooling transforms to a hexagonal modification (a) in much the same way as cobalt. The one exception, however, is that the stacking sequence of the closest packed planes in a La is ABAC ABAC, and so forth,1 whereas in cobalt it is ABAB, and so forth, i.e., hep. Mainly on the basis of transmission electron microscopy techniques, there seems to be little doubt that the 0 — a transformation in cobalt involves a dislocation mechanism2 although its exact nature still remains obscure. Although the ß - a transformation in lanthanum is somewhat more complex than that occurring in cobalt, it was thought that its very uniqueness would be helpful in understanding fcc — hexagonal transformations in general. Such a general understanding of these transformations is important since they represent what are perhaps the simplest of the martensitic class of transformations. The experimental techniques used were those of electrical resistivity and transmission electron microscopy. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The lanthanum used in this investigation was prepared by the calcium reduction of lanthanum fluoride in a tantalum crucible under an argon atmosphere as described by Spedding et al. The residual calcium was removed by vacuum remelting in a tantalum container. Portions of the metal were then analyzed by emission spectroscopy as well as vacuum fusion. The amounts of the various impurities that were found are listed in Table I. A portion of the lanthanum ingot was swaged at room temperature into 0.030-in.-diam rod for the resistivity samples while the remainder was rolled into 0.010-in.-thick sheet for the transmission electron microscopy phase of this investigation. In order to eliminate the plastic deformation induced in the samples during fabrication, they were sealed in evacuated tantalum lined quartz capsules and annealed for 1 hr at 700° C. Specimen resistances were measured using the conventional "four-wire" technique described by MacDonald, 4 employing a type K-3 Universal Potentiometer and a standard 0.001-ohm resistor, both manufactured by Leeds and Northrup Co. By taking into account all of the possible errors in the apparatus, it was felt that the absolute resistivities of the approximately 0.87-in.-long specimens measured are reliable to 3 pct. Resistances from room temperature to 700°C were measured using a vacuum furnace. In order to avoid sample contamination by the thermocouple, chromel-alumel leads were spot-welded into a tantalum shield which in turn was welded to the lanthanum specimen. Resistances below room temperature were obtained by transferring the sample to a helium gas-filled quench tube and slowly dripping liquid nitrogen into a surrounding dewar flask. A steady reduction of temperature to about —190°C was completed in about 23 hr, and the resistances were measured at various temperature intervals. As will be shown shortly, rapid quenching from above about 350°C was sufficient to suppress the B -a transformation initially but subsequent annealing at lower temperatures leads to a partial ß --a conversion. To investigate this aspect of the transformation, the samples were suspended in the hot zone of a helium-filled furnace from which they could be rapidly dropped into the quench tube mentioned previously which was now

Jan 1, 1969

By L. P. Bayvel

The method of spectral transparency was investigated. A device for measuring particle sizes based on this method was developed, tested and applied. The device affords measurements of particle size distribution in the range from 0.1 to 4 µm. It proved possible to measure sizes not only of spherical particles but also of non- spherical ones. The spectral range in which it is necessary to determine transparency for particle size measurements was found.

Jan 1, 1980

WALTER P. JENNEY, Rapid City, S. Dak.: This paper is the first publication, I believe, of the fact that traces, up to two or three ounces to the ton, of tellurium have been found in the gold ores of the Black Hills occurring in the Potsdam formation. There are two great classes of ore-deposits in the Black Hills. First, the gold-ores in the Archæan, of which the great Homestake lode, extending from Lead City to Central, in the northwest section of the Hills, may be taken as a type; second, the refractory gold-ores found in the Potsdam sandstone over a

Jan 1, 1897

By Theodore Simons

(Butte Meeting, August, 1913.) DURING the last half century a great amount of ingenuity and energy has been devoted to the invention of appliances for the recovery of valuable minerals from very fine sands and slimes. The reason for this is that in almost every dressing plant the greatest losses of values, considered relatively as well as absolutely, occur in the treatment of slimes. The natural aim of mill operators to minimize these losses has in recent years received another impetus, from the fact that the gradually diminishing occurrence of high-grade ores makes a more intense recovery of values from existing resources absolutely necessary for profitable operation. The results of such attempts are found in the appearance of a great number of machines and appliances which make it profitable to-clay to rework old dumps, containing the tailings of older processes. A constantly growing difficulty of obtaining skilled labor and the increase in wages made it prohibitory to employ those types of machines which required much attention, and in the middle of the nineteenth century the various concentrating tables of the percussion type, which automatically discharge their products, began to take the place of the intermittent tables, on which, when the bed had reached a certain thickness, operation had to be stopped in order to allow the skimming by hand of the separate layers formed on the table. In the course of years, two general types of machines evolved for the treatment of fine sands and slimes : The so-called concentrators and vanners, on the one hand, and the buddies and round tables on the other.1 For the profitable treatment of the very finest slimes, round tables have as a last resort proved more satisfactory and economical than other machines.

Jan 7, 1913

By Robert S. Lewis

Park City, Utah, elevation 7200 ft., is on the eastern slope of the Wasatch Mountains about 25 miles southeast of Salt Lake City, elevation 4200 ft. The town and surrounding mining district are served by two railroads: one, 28 miles long, is a branch of the Union Pacific R. R. and joins the main line at Echo; the other, 35 miles long, connects with the main line of the Denver & Rio Grande R. R. at Salt Lake City. The main shaft and important mine buildings, elevation about 8200 ft., of the Silver King Coalition Mines Co. are 11/2 miles by road to the southwest of Park City, and are near the head of Woodside Gulch. The property of this company is a consolidation of several groups of mining claims, and comprises an area that is roughly 4 miles long by 1 mile wide, the long axis of which has a N. 55" E. bearing. Geology A general geologic section through the property shows a basal formation of gray quartzite, called the Weber quartzite, above which seems to lie conformably the Park City formation. Both beds are of Carboniferous age. The Park City strata consist of a number of beds of limestone, with intercalated beds of quartzite, sandstone, and shale. The exact thickness is difficult to determine, but is apparently between 650 and 850 ft. Above the Park City beds and conformable with them lie the Woodside Shales. These thinly bedded fine-grained shales, about 1000 ft. in the thickness, are of no economic importance. They are overlain conformably by the Thaynes formation, which has about the same thickness and is composed of beds of limestone, sandstone, and shale. A thin bed of shale divides the formation into an upper and a lower part; the upper part contains more lime than the lower part. The Woodside shales and the Thaynes formation are of Triassic age. All the beds dip northwest, the dip is usually from 20" to 30°, but may be as great as 40°. In places, intrusions of diorite porphyry have deformed the beds. Marked faulting in zones of a northeast-southwest trend occurred after the intrusion of the porphyry. Later faulting in a

Jan 1, 1925

By C. G. Grant, Wm. B. Price

This investigation of low copper-nickel silvers was untiertaken to check the work of Lèon Guillet on special brasses and to determine, more accurately, the effect of the addition of nickel on the mierostructure of the binary alloys of copper arid zinc. It was hoped that the results could be successfully applied to the practical production of low copper-nickel silvers. To explain the results of his investigations on special brasses, Lèon Guillet evolved his conception of "fictitious compositions." He states,' in his general conclusions, that on the introduction of a small amount of a third metal to a copper-zinc alloy, it enters into solid solution with the normal constituents up to saturation, but by so doing it brings the ternary alloy into a state microscopically equivalent to a binary copper-zinc alloy of fictitious composition, and physically more nearly like the latter than the brass containing copper-zinc in the ratio actually present. The physical properties of the ternary alloy, when compared to the same properties of an actual brass of the fictitious composition, are modified by the natural properties of the third element. Beyond the point of saturation, a special constituent appears and the above generalization no longer holds. For example, if a 60:40 brass has 4 per cent. of tin substituted for 4 per cent. of zinc, the actual composition would analyze 60:36:4. Assuming that 1 per cent. of tin plays the same part as 2 per cent. of zinc, the proportions of copper and equivalent zinc may be stated as 60 parts of copper and 44 parts of zinc, which, figured to 100 per cent., gives an analysis of 57.7 per cent. of copper and 42.3 per cent. of zinc, the fictitious composition for a 60:36:4 tin brass. The relation between ternary alloys containing copper and zinc together with a third metal, and the microscopically equivalent binary alloy of copper and zinc, may be expressed mathematically.

Jan 1, 1924

By D. G. Brubaker

IN the history of geophysical exploration by the electromagnetic method many procedures and types of equipment have been used. Source arrangements for surveying on the ground have included long wires grounded at both ends, large loops laid on the ground, small horizontal loops, and vertical loops of moderate to small sizes. Receivers have ranged from simple direction-finding coils to combinations of coils and a bridge circuit to measure quantities related to both amplitude and phase of the received signal. Primary considerations in choosing a survey method are effectiveness, speed, and economy. In work on the ground in which locating and out- lining conducting bodies is the objective, methods using a vertical coil and a simple direction-finder have been found the most satisfactory. Mason1 and his associates applied such a method by setting up a vertical source loop, fed with low frequency alternating current by an engine-generator set. With a direction-finding receiver they surveyed lines along the ground in the plane of the loop, taking measurements at each station of the azimuth and inclination of the magnetic field direction. Deviations of this direction from the normal direction, that is, from horizontal and perpendicular to the traverse line, indicated a conducting body. Recent advances in design of light-weight generating equipment have encouraged using this and similar methods.

Jan 7, 1957

J. S. UNDER, Pittsburgh, Pa. (communication to the Secretary*).¬In discussing Mr. Wysor's paper, I said that we were investigating the deposits around furnaces working on certain ferro alloys. Since the meeting, we have made a number of investigations, and have found that the deposits in the second and third passes of the hot-blast stoves, and near the stack at the boilers of furnaces working on spiegel and ferromanganese, contain about 15 per cent. total potash, of which 10 per cent. is water-soluble. The potash occurs mostly as potassium sulphate, a very small amount being present as potassium carbonate.

Jan 6, 1917

By Lewis Reeve

As. part of a program of investigation of the properties of electric arc welds carried out in the laboratories of the A. 0. Smith Corporation, considerable work has been done on the determination of the oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen content of different types of weld metal, employing for this purpose the so-called "vacuum fusion method." It is the purpose of this paper to describe certain improvements that have been introduced in this method of determining the gas content of metals, with particular references to the steel specimens examined in this investigation. The method and apparatus used at the beginning of the investigation were essentially those of the Bureau of Standards as described by Vacher and Jordan.1 Later a number of changes were introduced which resulted in. more rapid evacuation of the graphite crucibles employed and which enabled larger volumes of gas to be dealt with than could be handled conveniently in the Bureau of Standards equipment. In addition, the analyzing of the gases evolved from a melt in the same apparatus as collected was abandoned in favor of analysis outside the equipment using standard methods of gas analysis. The time required for gas analysis in the apparatus itself, as described by the Bureau of Standards, was found to be considerable, and during this time the rest of the equip-ment was tied up, preventing its use for the analysis of further steel sam-ples. As a result of the modifications introduced, the time required for the analysis of a steel sample for gas content was reduced from about 8 hours to less than 3 hours. Subsequently, the whole procedure of melting the sample and collect-ing the gases evolved was modified so as to enable a distinction to be drawn between the easily reducible oxides such as iron oxide and the more stable oxides such as silica and alumina. At the same time evidence was obtained indicating the probable existence in the steels of other nitrides than those of iron alone and making possible their quantitative determination.

Jan 1, 1933

By Wilbert McBride

Two Alco 3 ½ -ton motor trucks were used by Young Bros. while operating at the Mammoth Collins mine at Shultz, Ariz. One was equipped with an oil tank holding 1,075 gal. and was used for the transportation of "tops." The, other was fitted with a stake body and used to carry machinery, wood, rails, pipe and all classes of miscellaneous supplies. The bodies were made of oak with maple flooring and were attached to the frame of the chassis by U-bolts, to avoid drilling the main members of the frame. Most of the hauling was done from Tucson, a distance of 47;2 miles. During the first. 3 months, part of the road was in very bad condition and the tire cost was excessive. After this part was repaired the road was in fair condition, but never good. There were no excessive grades or bad sand, but wagon ruts, too narrow for the truck wheels and of a different gage, caused heavy tire loss; while chuck holes, sharp curves and stones, both imbedded and loose, were objectionable features. During wet weather the trucks could not get sufficient traction to climb some of the hills and were likely to stick in the mud in certain places, so that no attempt was made to run them unless they were on the road when the rain started. This lost time amounted to about 5 per cent. of the total, but, whenever possible, it was utilized in making minor repairs. The price of gasoline, was from 17 to 21 c. per gal. Rubber tires were used throughout. Drivers were paid $4.50 to $5 per shift, and a return trip to Tucson was counted as two shifts even when made in one day. Drivers were provided with a room in Tucson and were paid for all time lost due to causes beyond their control. Trucks were loaded one way only.

Jan 7, 1916

By J. P. Givry

The bath and the liquid metal in the aluw~inuw~ electrolytic cells are moving under the action of the Laplace forces. Consequently there are differences in level at the interface of the liquid. This phenomena is studied by means of a computer; the characteristics of the mathematical model used are presented with the results corresponding to two typical cases. This study gives a new and origi~zal interpretation of magnetic ej-jects; their action depends very closely on the hydraulic phenomenon which explain the sensibility of the cells to the slope and thickness of solid bath frozen around the pot. MAGNETIC effects produced in the electrolytic cells used for the production of aluminum are known to exist, a factor whose importance is well-known by producers through its influence on cell operation and output. In particular, these effects bring about movements in both the bath and metal as well as interface variations in level that are detrimental to sound electrolysis . A direct study of these effects by means of an experimental device would raise a number of problems particularly difficult not to say impossible to solve in the present state of techniques. It is for this reason that we had recourse to an electronic computer for working out the speed and pressure distribution within the liquid in the cells. We have assumed that all other possible causes for movement, such as thermal convection and evolution of gas at the anode, are acting without any connection with magnetic effects, and that consequently we may study each of these causes separately. A basic cause for magnetic effects lies in the presence of Laplace forces within the bath and metal. Electric current and magnetic field distribution have been calculated with the help of an electronic computer, and two communications about it have already been made to AIME.* 1) PRESENTATION OF THE MATHEMATICAL PATTERN In order to solve this problem, it was essential to assume a number of simplifying hypotheses with regard to both the geometry of the actual cells and the phenomena themselves. A first simplification consisted in assuming that the movements of the conducting liquid modify neither the electric currents nor the magnetic fields. In consideration of the magnitude of the values involved this assumption seemed accep-tible. 1.1) Finding the Equation of the Problem. The problem raised consisted in determining the flow of two viscous immiscible liquids with different densities subjected in a complex environment to gravity and Laplace forces. As a matter of fact, the sum of the external forces acting on the liquids is: F = JAB +pg where F = volume energy, B = magnetic field, J = current density, p = specific gravity, g = gravity. In the case of a laminar flow and assuming that the liquids are Newtonian and incompressible liquids, the equations governing movements are the following: 1) Navier Stokes' equation written in vectorial form: In fact one tries to find a steady-state solution, so aVx/at = 0; besides, one assumes that the movements are slow enough for quadratic terms such as Vy(a Vx/ay) (of round about the square of speed) to be neglected in front of the viscosity term: pAV, so

Jan 1, 1968

By R. J. Wysor

CHARLES H. RICH, Conshohocken, Pa. (communication to the Secretary*).-Mr. Wysor has certainly covered his subject in the most thorough and able manner and his paper will no doubt result in enlarged effort toward the conservation of this important byproduct. Not all furnace burdens are as rich in alkalies as those noted by Mr. Wysor. In our own experience we have never gone into any extended examination of the materials entering the furnace burdens, but have made a number of determinations of the water-soluble alkalies of our flue and boiler dust and found maximum of about 4 1/2 per cent. K20-too small for profitable reclamation. We have, however, frequently encountered the smoky gas described by Mr. Wysor. Such gas carries heavy fume, and buds with a fitful flame difficult to maintain. So pronounced was the inhibitory effect of the fume that, in extreme cases, the flame of a lighted match was extinguished by the current of gas and it was found impossible to conduct calorimeter tests without preliminary washing of the gas. When the gas was led through a washer filled with distilled water and pieces of coke, the fume was absorbed and the gas burned without difficulty. Careful analyses conducted on the water solution from the washer showed cyanides in increasing amounts in proportion to the difficulty experienced in burning the gas. We, note Mr. Wysor's statement that he has never found evidence of cyanides in their gas, ascribing the difficulty of burning such gas to the presence of chlorides. Our determinations were conducted in such manner as to preclude possibility of interference by chlorine.

Jan 3, 1917

By F. W. Jessen, G. F. Sears

Cavities in massive salt for the purpose of storage of liquid hydrocarbons have assumed a prominent position in recent years. This paper describes a program to facilitate leaching operations for the formation of specifically shaped storage cavities. Various forms and sizes of cavities may be possible through use of the techniques developed. INTRODUCTION The creation of large under ground storage facilities for natural gas and liquified petroleum gases has been practiced for many years. Use of cavities obtained through solution of salt for this purpose is a fairly new and novel approach, but has gained increasing importance due mainly to the economics of this type of mining operation opposed to hard rock mining or surface and pit storage.1 The idea of controlling the shape of any cavity dissolved from massive salt has not been a prime consideration of companies engaged in the formation of storage space. This has been due mainly to an insufficient knowledge of the mechanics of the leaching process and a dearth of published information dealing with both the desirability and ease of control possible for this type of operation. Two distinct advantages are readily ascertainable. From a stability standpoint (i.e., the ability of the completed cavity to withstand stress imposed by overburden pressure and lateral tectonic stresses) a controlled cavity may be generated which will yield the most favorable attitude to these external forces and remain in operable use for longer periods of time.2 A second advantage is that for a given volume, a sphere (which is one controlIed shape possible) represents the minimum surface area exposed. This may become more important in the future when dealing with refrigeration and product losses in underground cavities. The basic solution mining process, without regard for controlling the final shape, is quite simple in that the equipment and materials required to dissolve a cavity in a salt dome or layered salt section are a source of fresh water, a circulating pump, several strings of tubing and a means of disposal of the return brine. To add control measures involves the use of an inert blanket material above the position at which solution proceeds. Initially the annulus of the largest wash pipe is filled with this blanket down to the top of the proposed cavity. The bottom of the proposed cavity is determined by the depth of the original drilled hole or a blanking plug. The blanket material is added incrementally in stages and displaces the water in the enlarging cavity downward. Where the blanket material has displaced the water, no further solution takes place. The rate at which to add this controlling blanket material so as to be able to form specifically shaped cavities of any particular size is of considerable importance. THE PROBLEM It is desirable to have as much information as possible as to the behavior of the mining operation since visual observation obviously is impossible. It would be advantageous, for example, to have a step-by-step program showing how much salt is to be removed, at what rate and the time required. This type of program would facilitate procurement of surface equipment and provide for proper management of manpower requirements, as well as yield a host of intangible benefits. As mentioned earlier, only rule-of-thumb estimates were available until recently and made this type of pre-planned operation haphazardous at best. Recent work3-' has done much to clear up the ambiguities and inaccuracies attendant to solution mining of salt and has helped to place the operation on a more scientific basis. This study attempts to correlate much of the information thus far developed into a complete mining program; to extend the idea of controlled solution mining to include not only spheres, but solid conic sections of the ellipsoidal variety; and to refine the computation of the rate of removal of salt during the various stages of mining. Dommers3 and IIemson4 made extensive laboratory

Jan 1, 1967

By James Terry Duce

Production of oil in Bahrein for the war years was as follows: YEAR BBL PER YEAR Prior to 1939 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,287,055 1939 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,588,554 1940 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,073,919 1941 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,794,157 1942 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,240,627 1943 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,571,609 1944 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,713,795 1945 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,308,938 Total to Jan. 1, 1946 . . . . . . . . 70,578,654

Jan 1, 1946

By L. J. Demer, W. W. Walker

AMONG several variables of the indentation hardness test is the effect of loading time on the measured hardness of a material. The most generally recommended duration of loading is 10sec.1-3 Although this short loading duration is undoubtedly satisfactory for harder metals, it is questionable that it is sufficient for very soft metals,4 or for certain plastics.5 The effect of duration of loading on the measured hardness of ionic crystals is largely unknown, although Onitsche and Mitsches found that the indentor (under a very low load) had not yet reached equilibrium after 60 sec in a variety of ionic crystals. To extend further the data of Onitsche and Mitsche, a systematic study was made of the effect of duration of loading for longer periods, up to 50,000 sec, on the 136 deg Dph of synthetic lithium fluoride. For comparison, less extensive tests were made on synthetic magnesium oxide and copper single crystals. The general procedure used was to indent a cleaved and polished (100) face of a lithium fluoride crystal using a Leitz Durimet microhardness tester. In certain cases, the indentor was so oriented as to align the diagonals of the 136 deg diamond pyramid indentation parallel to a (100) edge. In other cases the diagonal of the indentation was aligned at 45 deg to a (100) edge of the crystal. After indenting, the surface tested was etched in the acid etchant recommended by Gilman and Johnston.' This revealed the position of dislocation lines which intersected the surface tested. At these points of emergence were formed the usual sharp, pyramidal etch pits as shown in Fig. 1. The specific procedure used in studying duration of loading was as follows. The surface of the crystal was indented, and the load was left on the indentor for a predetermined time. This duration of loading was varied systematically from 1 to 50,000 sec. After the desired amount of time had elapsed, the indentor was removed from the crystal and the size of the resulting indentation was determined using a micrometer eyepiece. The surface was then etched to reveal the dislocation etch pit pattern around the indentation. Procedures used for lithium fluoride, magnesium oxide, and copper were similar. Preliminary studies revealed that, although an indentation was enlarged by increasing loading time, no corresponding changes occurred in the surface etch pit pattern. Since no evidence of dislocation movement was observed on the surface, it was assumed that the plastic deformation indicated by the indentor sinking into the surface was a result of dislocation movement inside the crystal. This movement was studied bf making a series of surface indentations in a crystal corresponding to various lengths of time, cleaving the crystal vertically through the indentations, etching the freshly

Jan 1, 1964