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For the first time in its history the Institute will hold a meeting in the State of Arizona. A few years ago Arizona stood third in the copper-producing districts of the United States. Since that time, with the development of porphyry mines, the output has gone up with great rapidity until it not only is the leading district, but its output at the present tune is at the rate of nearly double the Montana output; which now stands second in the list. In connection with this development, most interesting departures have been made in methods of mining, concentration and smelting. Principles of mining and metallurgy of the greatest interest will be covered by papers which will appear in the Bulletin and be presented at Technical Sessions, while ample opportunity 'will ,be- afforded for those who go to the meeting to see all the points of interest to them. In addition, members will be well rewarded by the marvelous natural features to be seen on the trip, including the petrified forests, the cliff dwellings on the Apache Trail and the Grand Canyon of Arizona. It is planned to start the special train from New York, but members and guests may join the special at other points en route as indicated by the following schedule: ITINERARY Thursday; September 14th, Lv New York Grand Central Terminal 5.30 p.m. Dinner in dining car, a la carte

Jan 9, 1916

For the first time in its history the Institute will hold a meeting in the State of Arizona. A few years ago Arizona stood third in the copper-producing districts of the United States. Since that time, with the development of porphyry mines, the output has gone up with great rapidity until it not only is the leading district, but its output at the present time is at the rate of nearly double the Montana output, which now stands second in the list. In connection with this .development, most interesting departures have been made in methods -of mining, concentration and smelting. Principles of mining and metallurgy of the greatest interest will be covered by papers which will' appear in the Bulletin and be presented at Technical Sessions, while ample opportunity will be afforded for those who go to the meeting to see all the points of interest .to them. In addition, members will be well rewarded by the marvelous natural features to be seen on the trip, including 'the petrified forests, the cliff dwellings on the Apache Trail and the Grand Canyon of Arizona. It is planned to start the special train from New York, but members and guests may join the special at other points en route as indicated by the following schedule: ITINERARY . , Thursday, September 14th Lv New York, Grand Central Terminal.. ............... 5.30 p. m. Dinner in dining car a la carte New England Members via B. & A. R. R. . Lv Boston. ............. (Regular train). ............. 2.00 p. m. Lv Worcester. ........... (Regular train). ............. 3.12 p. m. , Lv Springfield. ........... (Regular train). ............. 4.37 p. m. Dinner in Dining Car a la carte Ar Albany.. ......... .New York Central R. R.. ....... 7.45 p. m. Lv Albany .......................................... 9.00p.m. Lv Schenectady.. .................................... 9.32 p. m. Lv Utica ............................................ 11.08~.

Jan 8, 1916

The Arizona Committee, consisting of GERALD F. G. SHERMAN, Chairman, ARTHUR NOTMAN, Secretary, NORMAN CARMICHAEL, B. BRITTON GOTTSBERGER, W. L. CLARK, J. C. GREENWAY, W. G. MCBRIDE, FOREST RUTHERFORD, has arranged the following program for the Arizona Meeting, which has been approved by the President of the Institute and by the Executive Committee. It is printed herewith for the information of members, and probably will not be changed in any material respect. Sunday, September 17, 1916.-Arrive at El Paso, Texas, 2.40 P.M., leave 10.20 P.M. Monday, September 18, 1916.-Arrive at Deming, N. Mex., .12:47 A.M. Arrive at Santa Rita, N. Mex., 4.00 A.M., where luncheon will be served, after which there will be a visit to the Chino mines. From there the train will proceed to Hurley, N. Mex., where a visit will be made to the mill of the Chino Copper Co.

Jan 7, 1916

By Harold W. Aldrich, Frederick Laist

After a series of experiments covering a period of about three years, extending from the spring of 1912 to the spring of 1915, a 2,000-ton leaching plant for the treatment of the accumulated copper concentrator tailing was built and put into operation. During the experimental period, the first step was that of laboratory experiments or beaker leaches. The results on this small scale were so satisfactory that a small operating plant, capable of handling 5 tons of roasted tailing per day, was installed. Again, the results proved satisfactory and an 80-ton plant was built and operated continuously from August until February, 1913. In this plant, full-sized roasting and leaching units were

Jan 1, 1917

By M. G. F. Söhnlein

In a Bolivian tin concentrator an appliance was needed to furnish a suitable product for fine jigging from a pulp of the following composition: Mesh Per Cent. + 20 8.0 40 36.5 + 60 9.0 + 80 10.5 + loo 5.5 4-150 1 4.5 -150 25.0 99.0 Loss 1.0 In the jigging process, particles of cassiterite as small as 0.1 mm. can be recovered, provided they are not present in excess, that is if the material treated on the jigs contains sufficient coarser sands to keep the interstices between the grains open. Removing the fine material from the pulp by screening, to prepare the jig feed, is impractical, because that means the use of an 80-mesh screen or finer, and is not as effective as hydraulic classification. A screen would eliminate mineral grains from the feed which can be recovered by jigging, and in addition would throw more gangue and low-grade middling on to the jig. Formerly a one-spigot Richards vortex classifier had been used to accomplish this separation, but the tangential openings through which the hydraulic water enters became clogged by fine vegetal matter with which the water was contaminated, and which it was impossible to remove from the water. Consequently the work of the classifier was imperfect and a good deal of slime was sent to the jig. When designing the plant referred to in this paper it was decided to use a hydraulic classifier as shown in Fig. 1. The essential features had been copied from the Anaconda classifier.' This remodeled classifier consists of a truncated pyramidal wooden hopper A with an attachment of cast iron

Jan 1, 1917

By Maxwell Adams

Considerable interest has recently been developed in sage-brush oil because of its possible utilization as a flotation agent in the mining industry. A list of some of its physical properties, together with the method used in its extraction, may prove of interest at this time. Something over a year ago, a study of the essential oils in desert plants was begun in the Chemical Laboratory of the University of Nevada. None of the oils so far studied possess properties of special interest to engineers, except the oil of sage, Artemisia tridentata, which has exceptional power as a flotation agent. This plant, known as common sage brush, also called black sage, is widely distributed over the semi-arid West, being found quite generally on most of the dry plains and mountains west of Missouri. The method of extracting the oil followed in these experiments is very simple. The leaves, twigs and small branches are placed in an airtight drum, having a capacity of about 27 cu. ft. Steam is admitted through a number of ,small openings at the bottom of the retort, and the pressure maintained at 20 to 25 lb. per sq. in. for 3 hr. The escape of the steam from the retort is regulated by allowing it to pass through a stop-cock into a condenser. The water in the receiver is drawn off from time to time and the oil, which is insoluble and floats upon the water, is thus collected. At the end of 2 hr. most of the oil has been driven out, though traces continue to come over for a much longer time. By raising the pressure, the time required could probably be shortened and the yield increased, but the lack of laboratory equipment has prevented the carrying out of this experiment. The stock wood, bark and branches contain no oil, the distribution of the oil being limited to the leaves and young shoots. There is a seasonal variation in the amount of oil contained. Samples collected on different dates gave the following amount of oil: May 1, 0.42 per cent.; May 27, 0.6 per cent.; June 30, 0.72 per cent.; Aug. 1, 0.9 per cent.; Sept. 10, 1.0 per cent. The increase appears fairly constant from early spring, when the leaves first appear, until light frosts occur in the autumn. When the plant is air-dried there is some loss of oil, as the following data will show: Two 100-lb. samples were collected at the same time. One was distilled when green; the other was air dried for

Jan 1, 1917

By G. H. Clevenger

The reagents now used in flotation consist of various acids or salts, which may be either electrolytes or non-electrolytes, dissolved in water and some substance or combination of substances which function as collecting or frothing agents. At times the only dissolved salts present are those naturally occurring in the water used. The general effect of the electrolyte is to greatly sharpen the separation between the gangue and the concentrate. Examples of this are: The use of sulphuric acid with zinc ores; and of sodium carbonate or calcium oxide (lime) with silver-gold ores. Crude pyroligneous acid is also sometimes used when avail able. Various oxidizing agents, such as permanganates, bichromates, etc., are added in the selective flotation of lead-zinc ores. Many other reagents for performing certain specific functions, either real or imaginary, have been proposed, and a number of them have been tried upon a working scale. The wild orgy of experimentation which is now going on in flotation exceeds even that which followed the introduction of the Washoe process for the treatment of Comstock ores, when, among other things, sage-brush tea and tobacco juice were reagents added to the pans. Out of all this will, of course, eventually come a more or less standard practice for the treatment of each class of ore. Omitting a discussion of the functions of frothing and collecting agents, the reagents used in flotation for this purpose may be classified under five general heads: (1) Essential oils; (2) fixed or fatty oils; (3) alcohols and their combinations with organic acids; (4) coal tar and its refined products; (5) petroleum and its refined products. A flotative agent of some kind is required in flotation as now practiced. A single reagent, as, for example, certain of the essential oils, may perform the dual function of frothing and collecting agent, or a mixture of substances may be required. In this country, the essential oils used have been wood products, and have been almost exclusively confined to the steam-distilled pine oils. At the present time, the supply of these is limited, and the cost almost prohibitive, so that their use has been dispensed with as far as possible. The oils and tars resulting from the destructive distillation of

Jan 1, 1917

By A. F. Taggart, F. E. Beach

The flotation process for the concentration of ores is a method by means of which one or more of the minerals in the ore (usually the valuable ones) are picked up by means of a liquid film and floated at the surface of a mass of fluid pulp. Here they are separated from the other minerals, which remain immersed in the body of the pulp. In general, the minerals which are floated are sulphides of metallic luster, but some other minerals of metallic luster such as graphite and some sulphides with adamantine luster, such as sphalerite and cinnabar, are amenable to treatment by the process. The importance of flotation lies in the fact that it is primarily a "slimes process" by means of which the particles of valuable mineral, too fine for efficient gravity concentration, are saved with a high percentage of recovery. Recoveries in the mills treating low-grade copper sulphide ores have been advanced 10 to 20 per cent. by the installation of the process and similar increased savings have been accomplished by the same means in mills treating sulphide ores of zinc and lead. When finely ground ore containing sulphides mixed with a siliceous or earthy gangue is brought gently onto the surface of a body of water, in a direction forming an acute angle with the surface of the water, a considerable portion of the sulphide constituent of the ore floats on the surface of the liquid, while the gangue sinks. This is the so-called film flotation, exemplified by the Wood and Macquisten processes. When gas bubbles are introduced into a fluid pulp composed of finely ground ore and water, to which has been added (1) a small amount of certain oils, or (2) a small amount of certain acida or acid salts, or (3) a small amount of certain alkalis or alkaline salts, or (4) a small amount of a mixture of oil with acid or alkali, the sulphide particles in the ore are brought to the surface on the gas bubbles. These collect in a froth

Jan 1, 1917

By F. E. Lathe, G. A. Guess

This investigation was started with the idea of determining whether copper-nickel mattes might not have a lower flowing temperature than copper mattes, and thus perhaps aid in accounting for the difficulty so far experienced in attempts at pyritically smelting copper-nickel ores. We have used the term flowing temperature to avoid confusion with the usual melting temperature. The idea at first was that there might be a greater viscosity range in the one matte than in the other. In the early experiments it was in our minds to determine the relative fluidity of the mattes at a given temperature. Looking to this end we tried pouring equal quantities of matte at the same temperature down an inclined graphite slab, and comparing the distances traveled. Results from such experiments were not satisfactory. We next tried pouring equal quantities at the same temperature through a drilled hole in an Acheson graphite crucible, timing the flow with a stop watch, the whole operation being carried out in the muffle. The flowing temperatures of the mattes tried in this way appeared to be about the same, and there was no marked difference in their fluidity when well fused. Oxidation gave some trouble. These experiments finally led to the adoption of the following apparatus which we thought at the time was wholly original with us, but which we have since found was described by W. McA. Johnson.l The tray used was a slab of graphite 8 in. long, 2 in. wide and 1/4 in. thick. It had six holes, into each of which sat a cup of Acheson graphite. Centrally in the bottom of each cup was a vertically drilled hole 3/16 in. in diameter and 1/2 in. long. The mattes to be tested were put into the cups, in a solid piece. The cups were covered with inverted Battersea "A" cups. The tray was put into the muffle of a gas-fired furnace. Supports on each end held the tray about 2 in. from the floor of the muffle. Under

Jan 1, 1917

By M. A. Whiting, H. Kenyon Burch

One of the advantages presented by electric drive in many classes of work is the ease with which the electric motor can be controlled automatically. In a large number of cases certain features of the control are automatic—for example, the rate of acceleration may be limited automatically or the equipment may be stopped automatically at the limit of travel—but the equipment is started and ordinarily is stopped by hand. In other cases the motion of the machinery is utilized to start, control the speed, and stop the motor automatically, independently of any operator. A considerable proportion of the large mine hoists now in use have certain automatic features, particularly protective devices against overwinding, and, in some classes of electric hoists, devices for preventing excessive acceleration or retardation. The large automatic hoists discussed in this paper, however, are completely automatic, i.e., capable of making their trips without the presence of an operator at the control levers. According to circumstances, various advantages may be obtained . by automatic control, chief of which are decreased power consumption, increased precision and safety of operation, and decreased cost of attendance. The first step in the analysis of a prospective automatic mine hoist is to determine whether automatic operation is feasible at all. If men are to be hoisted, or levels changed, the attention of an operator is required for these purposes; but under some conditions it may be entirely practicable and advantageous to build the equipment so that, while provision is made for hoisting men or changing levels, ore can be hoisted automatically from any one level. If, however, an operator's attention is required every few minutes for changing levels, handling men or drills, or other work requiring hand control, it is obvious that automatic operation between times will not be of any practical benefit.

Jan 1, 1917

By P. B. Liebermann

The resistance to motion offered by mine cars is caused principally by: Rolling friction, flange friction, bending rails, bearing friction and wind resistance. With proper construction and with a fair amount of attention and care, that is, under favorable conditions, the first three items cannot be greatly improved. The wind resistance ordinarily is negligible on account of the slow speeds commonly used. The bearing friction, however, is a variable item, depending upon the design, the bearing material, the lubrication, the location (whether in wheel-hub or on car-body) and the alignment. Under the most favorable conditions the bearing friction will reach a lowest possible value. By the development of a successful anti-friction mine-car bearing this lowest value has been improved to such an extent as to affect the whole system of mine haulage. After being satisfied of their durability and certainty of operation, any investigation into the advantages of anti-friction bearings for mine cars will have to be based upon reliable information as to the saving in power of such bearings. While numerous tests have been made in this direction, the results have not always been convincing, principally because of the rather crude methods that were employed. These crude methods are the main cause of the wide variations existing in regard to the exact amount of the frictional resistance. Frequently an ordinary spring balance is used and the pull necessary to move a certain car or train of cars is obtained by a number of readings. Such spring balances necessarily have a coarse graduation and the continuous vibration and fluctuations to which they are subjected make them highly dependent upon the individual observer. Further, they must be frequently calibrated. Sometimes these tests were made without regard to acceleration, speed or even grade. The method of using an electric locomotive as a testing device is perhaps more open to criticism than the spring-balance method, because it introduces additional sources of error: The varying electrical and mechanical losses in the locomotive. Also, such a measurement always includes the power necessary to move the locomotive itself. This means a considerable amount of figuring, and the results due to the various multiplications and corrections may be of little value, for obvious reasons. When figuring the drawbar pull from the electrical

Jan 1, 1917

By F. C. Blickensderfer

During 1914 and 1915, extensive experiments were conducted at the concentrator of The Detroit Copper Mining Co. of Arizona, at Morenci, Ariz., in order to test the relative grinding efficiencies of the Marathon, the Chilean and the Hardinge Mills. The Marathon mill used in the experiments was the first one ever built by the manufacturers; and since this was the first time that it was given a thorough tryout, with such remarkable results, the data have been assembled in the following paper and submitted in the interests of the milling profession. Description of the Flow Sheet The concentrator flow sheet, as it existed at the time of these tests, is shown in Fig. 1. The total mill feed, as delivered from the crushing plant, had as its maximum size 1-in. material. This material was screened dry on Cole Zig-Zag screens fitted with 4-mesh openings; the oversize going to one pair of coarse rolls, the undersize to five Wilfley tables fitted with Butchart National riffles. The coarse-roll product was elevated and screened wet on Zig-Zag screens fitted with 4-mesh openings, the undersize going to the five tables mentioned above and the oversize to one pair of fine rolls. The fine-roll product was elevated and screened together with the coarse-roll product; so that, before any concentrating operations took place, the total mill feed was reduced to pass a 4-mesh screen. After concentration on Butchart-riffled tables, the tailings from these tables passed to de-sliming hoppers, where two products were formed, viz., an overflow and a discharge. The discharge constituted the feed for the Chilean mills. It contained 16 per cent. slime (—200 mesh) and 3 parts of water to 1 of solids. The concentrator was equipped regularly with four Chilean mills (Monadnock type) to the unit; but, in order to

Jan 1, 1917

By C. H. Mathewson, E. M. Thalheimer

In planning the present experiments, we have made a particular effort to secure that adjustment of working conditions which would render the forthcoming tests most serviceable by way of indicating the comparative properties of the three different commercial grades of copper used. More specifically, we have endeavored to obtain certain definite information with respect to the relative behavior under test of ordinary electrolytic copper and furnace-refined lake copper containing (a) a moderate percentage of arsenic and (b) a rather large percentage of arsenic, in addition to the usual content of silver and other impurities. These comparisons were made systematic and comprehensive by testing throughout a series of (eight) reductions running from 0 to 70 per cent. in the case of cold-rolled metal, and throughout a series of (15) temperatures running from 100' C. to 1,000" C. in the case of annealed metal. In other words, a survey of properties similar to that made by Grard,' in the case of electrolytic copper, was here repeated (with modifications) and extended to two other commercial varieties of copper. The great importance of copper both as a material of construction and as the base of our most important alloys (aside from steel) has led to innumerable investigations of its properties, particularly in commercial forms. Naturally, the merits of furnace-refined lake coppers us. those of the very pure electrolytic product have furnished the subject of much experimental work and animated discussion, wherein the effect of arsenic has by no means been overlooked. In the literature of the past 10 years,

Jan 1, 1917

By C. E. Arnold

In attacking the problems of mining and treating large disseminated copper orebodies such as those occurring in the Miami or the Ray district of Arizona, one of the vital questions to be decided is, "What is the value of the orebody per ton in place?" The importance of this question lies in the fact that its answer helps to reach a decision concerning the method of mining to be employed. Let it be assumed for the moment that milling and smelting practice, especially the latter, is more or less standardized, and has a cost incapable of much variation, while the cost of mining has a considerable range owing to the large number of mining methods by which a mine may be exploited. For instance, a method may be adopted whereby all the available ore can be extracted perfectly clean (i.e., unmixed with barren material) at a relatively high cost; or a method may be used involving the necessary dilution of a portion of the ore with waste, in order to recover that portion, thus giving a relatively poorer extraction but nevertheless a lower working cost than the former method. Naturally, between these two extremes there lie intermediate methods. In order to arrive at a solution of a mining method problem that is of any value, it is necessary that accurate and complete estimates of mining, milling, and smelting performances and costs shall be established. By way of illustration is given a case of mining, by the system of undercutting and caving, a large orebody with an average content of 1.50 per cent. copper supposedly all in sulphide form, to which case has been applied those results in mining operations which one may fairly assume are to be expected when viewed in the light of G. R. Lehman's ore-drawing experiments, which form the subject of a paper to be presented at this meeting. It is assumed that the total costs will be as shown in the table on page 204. To attain these costs, a daily production and treatment of 14,400 tons has been assumed. Other assumptions are as follows: 15 per cent. of orebody is to be extracted clean by development work and undercutting; 63.8 per cent. (75 per cent. of 85 per cent.) is to be extracted clean by caving, leaving 21.2 per cent. part of which is to be extracted by diluting with waste, and the remainder lost. Dilution and extraction are to

Jan 1, 1917

By Joseph P. Hodgson

Since about 70 per cent. of the total cost of mining is due to underground work which is out of sight, it is essential that expenditures should be made here to the best advantage. A great many mistakes have been made which were expensive, but perhaps these have not even been detected by mine owners. In the future these may be minimized to some extent, especially if there is cooperative effort on the part of each employee. I have been interested in this subject for some years and have tried to deduce principles and methods. These have proved highly advantageous and may also be of help to others. Some corporations, like the United States Steel, and the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co., have done a great deal in this field by having stated meetings of their organizations, with the view to interchanging ideas among their men and educating them along the lines of concerted effort. Since no man knows all about the various branches of mining, it is advisable that frequent meetings of the operating department be held for the interchange of ideas and that all members of the organization have an opportunity to express themselves on the various subjects. It has often been found that in discussions between heads of departments, foremen and bosses, many valuable suggestions may be obtained which promote the best interests of the company. The method regarded as the most conducive to cooperative effort, and pursued by the organization, is to analyze and develop the different phases of various mining subjects at regular meetings. Nine Foremen's Dinners In the latter half of 1912, the Copper Queen Consolidated Mining Go. gave monthly dinners to the men in the operating departments. Those who attended were superintendents, foremen, shift bosses, engineers, geologists, and heads of all departments, making a total of about 75 men. After the dinner, lectures were given on subjects which pre-

Jan 1, 1917

By Paul R. Cook

The ore deposit of the Buckhorn Mines Co., Buckhorn, Nev., is peculiar in being a shallow kaolinized mass of material with basalt walls, and having apparently no direct connection with any of the usual gold-bearing rocks. The average ore contains 16 per cent. water of hydration, and the cyaniding of this hydrous clayey material offered unusual difficulties as compared with an average Nevada quartz ore. The orebody was thoroughly developed; then the mill was built according to the latest cyanide practice, with such changes as were thought to be demanded by the peculiar nature of this ore. Upon starting the mill, the ore proved more difficult to handle than had been anticipated. It is hoped that an account of how these difficulties were met may prove of interest to anyone having a clayey ore to handle and to the profession in general. Geology The Buckhorn orebody lies along a north and south fault plane of perhaps 1,000 ft. dislocation, that can be traced for miles; but the only other known mineralization consists of similar ore in the Murphy mine, a mile farther north. The east or hanging wall is hard and smooth, being a typical fault plane. The best ore is along this wall, gradually grading down toward the west until at 30 to 60 ft. it is too low-grade to mine. The country rock on the west consists of alternating layers of hard and soft basalt and basalt scoria, pitching toward the mine. One of these basalt layers on the hillside a little above the mine is marked, for 3 or 4 miles in length, by a line of springs which seep out along it. Perhaps the meeting of the surface drainage, passing down these basalt layers, with the fault-plane solutions explains the formation of the Buckhorn orebody.

Jan 1, 1917

By J. Moore Samuel

Before the year 1909, no measurements of dust losses and flue gases had been made at the Copper Queen Reduction Works, at Douglas, Ariz. At that time the "unaccounted" loss of the smelter had reached a figure that drew attention to the possibility of large stack losses. The measurement of dust losses had not been studied much at that time, and estimates of dust losses, with a few exceptions, were the results of tests by what has been termed '(chemical methods," that is, the aspiration and filtration through cotton, wool or some similar medium of a few liters of gas, the dust being weighed on a chemical balance, and the volume of gas computed from the volume of aspirator water. The possible error of this method is enormous, and the probable error much too large for reliable results. Since the object of these tests was to discover not only the extent of the dust losses, but also the possibility of profitably reducing them, it was decided that the method adopted must have the following characteristics: 1. The sample of gas taken for filtration must be representative of the whole volume of gas, that is to say, it must have the same dust content. This condition will be fulfilled in all cases if the gas sample is drawn off without change of rate of flow. Then it will contain the same proportion of entrained or suspended particles of dust as the original gas. In the case of flue gases which contain only fume, at a temperature above or near the sublimation point, this condition need not be adhered to since the fume will not behave as entrained particles, but more nearly as a true gas. Consequently the gas sample in this case only may be drawn off at any rate of flow. 2. The gas sample taken must be large enough (a) to yield sufficient dust to permit of accurate chemical and physical examination; (b) so that the ratio of the total volume of gas passing through the flue to the volume of gas sample taken shall not be too large.

Jan 1, 1917

By Herbert Haas

ChEap power is essential to large-scale mining and metallurgical operations, particularly where fine grinding of large tonnages has to be resorted to, as is the case with an increasing number of mines treating disseminated copper ores, or low-grade gold ores, in the grinding of which considerable power is consumed. A comparison of the cost of generating power with Diesel engines and steam turbines and a brief discussion of the different factors governing the profitable use of either type of prime mover may be timely in view of the importance of a cheap supply of power to the mining industry, and the prominence that has lately been given to Diesel engines in America. As many of our most important mines and largest producers of metals are located in sections where neither cheap coal nor water power is available, and the price of oil fuel is increased by long hauls, the Diesel engine will become a prime mover of increasing importance. This applies particularly to the Southwestern States, where an ample supply of cold water for condensing purposes is unusual and local climatological conditions interfere in securing the high vacua essential to high turbine efficiency. About 12 times as much water will be required for condensing purposes with steam turbines under general conditions as is needed for jacket-cooling of two-stroke cycle Diesel engines; four-stroke cycle Diesel engines require only one-twentieth of the cooling water. Another condition favoring the use of Diesel engines is the high load factor at which most mine power plants operate. The influence of load factor on the cost of generating power is shown in Tables 1. and 2 and in Fig. 1. The higher the cost of fuel and the load factor, the greater will be the proportion of the fuel to the other costs making up the total cost of generating power. Capital charges (interest and redemption), maintenance, operating labor, and lubrication are practically constant amounts regardless of the load-output of the station; the fuel consumption and its cost are practically the only variables with the load. The costs here given are based on conditions as generally found in the Southwestern States, and on Diesel engine operating experience in European countries, where this type of prime mover has reached a high state of perfection, units upward of 4,000 hp. having proved entirely successful in operation.

Jan 1, 1917

HeRbeRT Haas,—(communication to the Secretary*).—Fig. I plainly shows that the comparison of the steam-turbine and Diesel-engine plants was made on a basis of 6,000 kw. continuous operating load. The tabulation of costs for an 8,000-kw. load is merely done to show the relation of increased output on the unit power costs. Both plants would sacrifice their reserve capacity, which is to insure continuous operation, if operated to generate 8,000 kw. continuously; unless Mr. Hawkins advocates the operation of one of the turbines at 33.33 per cent. overload, retaining the other as a standby, which, besides overtaxing the turbine, results in a great loss of efficiency. It would be well for Mr. Hawkins to qualify certain of his statements. Thus, under the caption "Diesel Engines, Selection of Units," he says that '(two of the largest Diesel-engine builders take the position that, in the present state of the art, they would not attempt to put out units over 1,000 kw.;" he should qualify it by saying that "two of the largest American Diesel-engine builders take the position that, in the present state of the art in the United States, they would not attempt to put out units over 1,000 kw." The reason that American manufacturers restrict themselves at present to units of that size is to be found not so much in a lack of experience in building large units as in a lack of a sufficient demand for them in the United States to justify the heavy capital outlay connected with the development of such engines. There are relatively few localities in the United States where fuel prices are as high as they are in the South-, west, and regions of high fuel prices are sparsely settled and have a very limited demand for power. Where low fuel prices obtain, steam turbines are active competitors of Diesel engines for large power plants, particularly when the station load factor is low. As most of the American manufacturers of Diesel engines work under license agreements with European manufacturers, which limit their market to the United States and its possessions and Canada, a further limitation is imposed upon them, leaving to European firms practically the entire world as a market. The greater number of power plants range in size from 300 to 1,000 hp.; the average size of the central station, on a basis of all central stations in the United States, not greatly exceeding 500 kw.; in these sizes it is hard for steam engines to compete with Diesel engines, unless fuol oil prices are excessively high, and coal prices very low, or the exhaust steam is used for heating purposes.

Jan 1, 1917

By A. G. McGregor

During the past 5 years, five new copper-smelting plants have been built and put into operation in the State of Arizona. The monthly copper output from these plants averages from 5,000,000 to 18,000,000 lb. Previously, there never was as much activity in copper-smelting plant construction in the same length of time in all the rest of the world. Naturally, in this amount of work, some new problems were met and new features in plant design and equipment developed. Some of these features are described in this paper. Concentrate Hauling, Unloading and Sampling System (a) Concentrate Car The International Smelting Co. has provided at its plant at Miami specially designed cars for hauling the concentrates from the mills of the Inspiration Copper Co. and the Miami Copper Co. The car has a bottom that is readily made tight to hold flotation concentrates and is quickly and cheaply unloaded. Figs. 1, 2 and 3 show views and details of the car. The main feature of this car is the slot in the bottom throughout its length, which is closed by means of short planks that overlap like ship-lap as shown by Fig. 1. At one end of the car an iron gate operated by a screw and hand wheel is provided, which clamps or presses the planks together, making the bottom tight. A removable tapered plug rests vertically over this gate when the loading of the concentrates at the mill commences. A concentrate unloading pocket (Fig. 4), 180 ft.long, is provided at the smelting plant, which has a conveyor belt running throughout its length underneath the track. To unload a car, the vertical plug at the end of the car is lifted by means of a chain hoist which is supported by a trolley overhead. The gate at the end of the car is opened approximately 18 in. The removal of the plug leaves a hole down through the concentrates. The concentrates are poked through the hole from the top of the car until it is convenient for a man to stand on the bottom and draw one of the slats in the bottom toward the gate end of the car. The concentrates are then raked down with hoes on their natural angle of repose,

Jan 1, 1917