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By M. A. Hammer

In this study by the Federal Bureau of Mines Pennsylvania anthracite from the Eastern Middle field was oxidized by concentrated nitric acid at steam-bath temperature for 24 to 1,000 hours. The quantitative data obtained include yields of nitric-acid soluble and insoluble products and the distribution of carbon and ash in each. The acid-insoluble residues were examined for solubility in aqueous sodium hydroxide. With a sodium hydroxide concentration of at least 1 normal, a portion of the residue could be extracted in the form of a true solution. With lower alkali concentrations, peptization occurred. Alkali solubility of the residue increased with length of oxidation. However, when expressed in percentages of original coal weight, the alkali solubility remained essentially constant after 192 hours of oxidation. This suggests that the alkali-soluble products are converted to acid-soluble products at the same rate as the original coal substance is converted to alkali-soluble material. Microscopic observations of the peptization of the acid-insoluble residues revealed a gross micellar physical structure. The action of nitric acid is apparently not restricted to the surface of a coal particle. The acid penetrates the particle through the pore structure, dissolving some of the ash and altering the bonds between the coal micelles. The bond alteration, as indicated by ultimate analyses, involves the physical and chemical adsorption of the components of nitric acid. Some of the altered bonds are not thermally stable; this instability is shown by the complete loss of peptizing ability when the acid-insoluble products are heated above 200° C. This loss is accompanied by the evolution of water, oxides of nitrogen, and hydrocyanic acid.

Jan 1, 1961

By S. B. Casey

[ ] IN 1880, an electric arc was struck over metal for the first time to experiment with controllable melting. The glare of this arc has reflected on the stacks of the steel industry and continued to light the path of steelmakers in their never ending quest -for faster, more economical, and better ways of producing steel. William Siemens is credited with first employing the electric arc to melt metal in a closed hearth and produce basic metallurgical reactions. By the turn of the century, an Italian, named Stassano, was experimenting with ore reduction by the electric arc. In 1899, Dr. Paul Heroult, in France, used the direct arc principle for producing ferro-chromium. His experiments quickly led him to develop a dosed-top arc furnace for the production of steel, and his first commercial shipment was recorded in December, 1900. American steelmakers, quick to sense the possibilities of this method of melting, invited Heroult to our shores, where, in 1905, he was responsible for installing the first arc furnace on the North American continent. This furnace, at Sault Ste. Marie, was built for ore reduction. But Charles Holcomb, founder of Holcomb Steel. Co. of Syracuse, N. Y. contacted Heroult in 1905 and contracted for the first American direct-arc electric furnace for steelmaking. On April 5, 1906, the first heat was tapped from this 3-ton unit. The furnace was basic lined and powered by a single-phase, 500 kw generator, -producing high amperage at low voltage. It is interesting to note that, although the first few heats were made with cold charges, subsequent heats were duplexed. R. H. Bully, first superintendent of Holcomb Steel, persuaded the directors to purchase the unit to effect a more economical and efficient means of making tool steel by duplexing prime melting in a combustion fired furnace, and transfer of hot metal to the arc furnace for temperature adjusting, refining, and adding carbon and alloying elements. Today, duplexing is foreseen by some as the steelmaking process of the future. The promise shown by America's first arc furnace for ingot production quickly led to the purchase of a similar unit by The Firth Sterling Steel Co., in 1909, and to the purchase of the first arc furnace for production of steel castings, by the Treadwell Engineering Co., in 1911. From its humble start in 1906, production of arc furnace steel has never ceased to increase its yearly percentage of total steel production in the U. S., although certain other methods have declined or almost disappeared. By its ability to be used intermittently, the arc furnace gained favor and enhanced its reputation during depression days. When the attack on Pearl Harbor plunged us headlong into the long days of World War II, the arc furnace stood ready, flexible enough to be overburdened hearth wise 30 pct and power wise 25 pct, pouring its endless flood of alloy for the guns, tanks, ships, and planes which ultimately brought victory. During the post war boom, the now, proven virtues of low initial cost, faster installation, better yield, improved availability, and lower operating cost, enabled industry-particularly the small, new, independent producers-to locate strategically and profitably to meet the demand of an America that had been starved for new homes, appliances, cars, and highways. In the Korean police action, the arc furnace again proved itself by providing the latest alloys metallurgists could develop to meet the demands that the jet age and the innovations of guided missiles required. In today's peacetime prosperity, the arc furnace is continuing to provide the economic flexibility required to meet an ever increasing demand for better steel in the face of mounting costs, scrap shortages, and pressure toward decentralized location of industry.

Jan 1, 1961

By Francis J. Quinn

The Natural Gas Act, of 1938, which put interstate pipelines under the jurisdiction of the Federal Power Commission, did not place a protective competitive shield around such companies - nor does any provision of the act guarantee them a profit. Natural-gas pipelines are competitive with each other and also with the coal and oil industries. Gas distributing companies must compete not only with the coal and oil industries, but also with the electric industry. Natural gas has captured markets from oil, which had taken them from coal. Oil men contend that gas prices have: been, held to an artifically low level by regulation. The electric industry is moving into the space-heating market, which pleases the coal people because the coal industry's largest customer since losing the railroads to dieselization has been the electric companies. The coal industry is attempting to monopolize the industrial and electric generating market through government intervention, and this is being done under the guise of concern for the national welfare through advocation of a "National Fuels Policy purporting to, further the cause of fuel conservation. Such a policy is contrary to American principles and would result in the individual's loss of freedom of choice and ultimately, in less reserves of preferred fuels because of diminished exploration efforts.

Jan 1, 1961

By A. N. Fried

With the growing importance of fluid injection in recent years, the petroleum industry has been investigating and field- testing a variety of new methods designed to modify the physical properties of reservoir oil to improve the efficiency of gas and water injection. These procedures include condensing-gas drive, LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) injection, alcohol-slug process, high-pressure-gas displacement, detergent-solution flooding, and in situ combustion (30, 37).3 A new and different method to increase the effectiveness of gas and water injection has been tested by the Bureau of Mines, Consideration of both fundamental and practical factors that operate to limit the oil recovery attain- able by conventional oil-displacement mechanisms led to the concept of a displacement mechanism called the foam-drive method. This report describes the experimental study that tested this concept in the laboratory.

Jan 1, 1961

By R. B. Porter

Bench-scale tests were performed by the Federal Bureau of Mines on lignite and subbituminous coal at pressures to 1,000 p.s.i.g. (pounds per square inch gage) in atmospheres of hydrogen or nitrogen to obtain information concerning the influence of pressure on carbonization of normally noncaking coals. The distribution of gaseous, liquid, and solid products as a function of processing pressure was determined. Except for special experiments, the carbonization was at 940° F. In a hydrogen atmosphere above 400 p.s.i.g., agglomeration of the solid residue (especially with lignite) became noticeable and increased directly with the processing pressure. Although in some instances the solid particles fused together, the mechanical strength of the agglomerate was always low. On the basis of visual inspection, the coals agglomerated in the following order of decreasing intensity: (1) Steam-dried lignite; (2) lignite; and (3) subbituminous coal. Addition of lignite tar in quantities to 25 percent by weight of charge did not increase agglomeration or change the carbonization characteristics of the coal.

Jan 1, 1961

By J. G. Walters

In 1928, the Coal Carbonization Section of the Federal Bureau of Mines, in cooperation with the American Gas Association, began a survey of the carbonizing properties of American coals. A standard test method for evaluating the carbonizing properties of coals that met the following conditions was developed: To yield products similar to those obtained in commercial operations. To produce yields sufficient to permit analyses and tests of quality. To be laboratory size. To be convenient to operate. To permit reproducible control of test conditions and results. This test method has become known as the Bureau of Mines-American Gas Association (BM-AGA) test (53),3/ and more coals of greater variety have been tested in this apparatus than in any other of similar scale.

Jan 1, 1961

By W. W. Mullins

The development, by the mechanism of volume diffusion, of a grain boundary groove on an interface separating a solid phase and a saturated fluid phase is calculated under the following assumptions: 1) isotropy of the interfacial free energy 's, 2) applicability of the Gibbs-Thompson formula relating curvature and chemical potential, 3) a nearly planar groove surface. The groove profile is found to have a .fixed shape and linear dimensions that are proportional to (time)1/3. The constant of proportionality is evaluated and involves ?s in such a way that the latter my be evaluated from grooving kinetics. A grain boundary that intersects an interphase interface will tend to produce a groove along the line of intersection (Fig. 1). The ultimate motivation for the formation of the groove is the reduction in interfacial free energ that occurs as the grain boundary contracts. Smith has discussed the way in which the free energy of the interfaces determines their dihedral angles at the groove root and has given a detailed analysis of the effect of the dihedral angles upon the nature the microstructures developed in polyphase alloys. Herring2 has extended the considerations to the case in which the free energy of an interface depends on its orientation and has thus added torque terms to the condition for interface equilibrium. Although the grain boundary and the interphase interface may quickly achieve the proper equilibrium angles where they intersect, as determined by the balance of equivalent tensions and torques,"2 the groove will generally continue to grow (though with decreasing speed). Thermodynamically, this continued growth reflects the fact that the lowest free energy cannot be achieved until the entire grain boundary has been eliminated; mechanistically, the growth occurs in response to inhomogeneities of chemical potential that are caused by the constraint of fixed dihedral angles at the groove root. The latter point is illustrated in Fig. 1, which shows that atoms* near the groove are on the convex side of a cylindrically curved surface and therefore have a higher chemical potential than atoms on the flat interface beyond. Thus atoms tend to leave the curved groove shoulders and force the groove to deepen. When both phases are solid additional chemical potential gradient may arise from whatever strain fields are necessary to insure continuity of material across the interface. In the discussion that follows, this complication due to strain will not occur since we always assume one phase to be a fluid and the other a solid. The transport processes that may operate to permit growth of the groove are surface (interface)* diffusion, volume diffusion in the phase on either side of the interface, and evaporation-condensation when one phase is gaseous. (Also a melting-freezing process is responsible for groove enlargement on a solid-melt interface as discussed in Sec. VI). The theory of grain boundary grooving has been discussed in detail for the processes of surface diffusion and of one type of evaporation-condensation.3'4 The theoretical predictions for the mechanism of surface diffusion have been confirmed in an experimental study of grooving kinetics in copper.5 In this paper, the theory of groove development by volume diffusion will be presented. Volume diffusion can occur either by atomic migration in the solid S or by diffusion of S atoms in the fluid phase, or solvent, adjacent to the groove surface. As discussed in Sec. V, volume diffusion in the solid should be less important than surface diffusion in forming a groove. Apart from verifying this statement then, the main interest of the present analysis centers on diffusion in an external solvent. The solvent may be either a liquid (e.g., water, or-

Jan 1, 1961

By W. S. Landers

In contrast to the large fund of information available on the carbonizing properties of Eastern U.S. coals, the experimental data available for most Western U.S. and foreign coals are meager. To supply some self-consistent data, the Bureau of Mines conducted 220 low-temperature carbonization assay tests at 500° C. in a laboratory-scale carbonization apparatus. The results are included in this report. The U.S. coals tested are from Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. Assays were also made on coals from Canada, Ecuador, France, Greece, India, Mexico, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Yugoslavia. In addition, one assay of pine sawdust and one assay of a peat from Ireland are reported. Prediction equations were developed relating the yield of products of carbonization obtained at 500° C. in the assay unit to the proximate and ultimate analyses of the coals. The equations for predicting the yields of tar plus light oil, char, and gas, and the heating value of the gas, are considered good, each equation having a multiple correlation coefficient of 0.90 or higher. The equation predicting volume of gas obtained upon carbonization is considered as fair, with a multiple correlation coefficient of 0.84. A reproducibility study of the assay made on 10 replicate samples of a subbituminous coal indicated that the standard deviation of the individual products was 0.31 percent or less.

Jan 1, 1961

By Ben Sheneider

AT THE Flin Flon plant of the Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Co., Limited there are two types of multiple hearth furnaces used in the roasting of sulphides. This pa-per will deal primarily with the wedge-type furnace in the roasting of zinc concentrates. The other furnace, the Nichols-Herroshoff type, is used in the copper smelter and is described in the papers given by (1) J. H. Ambrose in 1935 and (2) R. E. Mast and G. H. Kent in 1954. The design and operation of these roasting furnaces at the present time is essentially the same as given in the write-up in 1954. No at-tempt will be made here to describe these furnaces, except to mention that there are five Nichols-Herreshoff multiple-hearth furnaces, four of which are used to roast a dried mixture of copper concentrate, zinc plant residue, and flux, before this material is fed to the reverberatory furnace.

Jan 1, 1961

By T. T. Campbell

This report traces the development of techniques for the preparation of high-purity rare-earth metals. Rare-earth metals, excepting samarium, europium, and ytterbium, were prepared by converting their oxides to anhydrous chlorides or fluorides and reducing the rare-earth halides with active metals such as lithium or calcium. High-purity, anhydrous rare-earth chlorides were prepared by dissolving the rare-earth oxides in hydrochloric acid to form hydrated chlorides and by subsequently dehydrating the hydrated salts in the presence of ammonium chloride at temperatures ranging from 70° to 360° C. while under reduced pressure (50 microns to 1 inch Hg). The chlorides were also prepared by direct chlorination of rare-earth oxide-carbon mixtures. Reaction efficiencies in excess of 95 percent were obtained by either method; however, purer chlorides were prepared by the aqueous ammonium chloride conversion method. Purification of yttrium chloride by high-temperature vacuum distillation proved to be an effective method of separating, oxygen-bearing compounds from the chloride. Yttrium metal prepared from purified chloride contained significantly smaller amounts of oxygen (990 p.p.m. oxygen in yttrium metal prepared from raw chloride and 200 p.p.m. in that prepared from distilled chloride).

Jan 1, 1961

By E. V. Bowman

This paper is intended to deal with the material handling aspects of fine coal cleaning as applied to a recently built plaint in: southern West Virginia. This plant is processing 160 tons per hour of 1/4" x.0 coal on a two shift basis. Past experience with this very friable low volatile metallurgical coal indicated that its plastometer readings, varied directly with the size and length of time elapsing between mining' and ultimate consumption. Due to the mines location with, respect to its consumers, little could be done to decrease the time element. Studies indicated that the plastometer readings are considerably less in the minus 60 mesh range than that experienced in the plus 60 mesh sizes. Therefore, handling the coal in such a manner as to have the least amount of degradation became extremely important.

Jan 1, 1961

By Richard Havens

A flotation procedure was devised by the Federal Bureau of Mines for beneficiating Mount Wheeler, Nev., beryllium ores that contain the beryllium minerals bertrandite and phenacite in a complex association with calcite, fluorspar, mica, quartz, and other accessory minerals, The method also has proven to be effective in trials on ore from the Lake George, Colo., area. Samples used in most of the research ranged from 0.49 to 0.73 percent BeO. Beryllium mineralization varied from two-thirds bertrandite to all phenacite. An unusually high grade sample containing 5 percent BeO as phenacite was floated on a batch basis to prepare concentrate for utilization studies. The beryllium minerals were floated from undeslimed pulps at natural pH using sodium fluoride and sodium hexametaphosphate (HMP), as modifiers, and a fatty acid-fuel oil combination as the collector. Key factors were the use of a minimum of about 4 pounds of sodium fluoride and between 2 and 4 pounds of HMP per ton of ore. Efficacy of the HMP was related to the grind, mineralogical composition, corollary reagents, and type and time of conditioning. Addition of the fluoride, HMP, and collector in that order, followed by appropriate conditioning after each addition, was essential for satisfactory flotation.

Jan 1, 1961

Comparative tests of four coals used industrially for coke production have been made by three laboratories of the Federal Bureau of Mines, each using its standard equipment and procedures for evaluating coal for coking. Two of the coals were blends used in the western and eastern sections of the United States, the third was a strongly coking coal widely used for producing coke in Alabama, and the fourth was a blend typical of those used for producing foundry coke in the Birmingham district. The coals used and the cokes produced from them covered a wide range of chemical and physical properties. The tests used at all three laboratories for determining the physical properties of the cokes were made according to ASTM (American Society for Testing Materials) methods. The excellent agreement found for the physical properties of the cokes indicated that, for the coals tested, the BM-AGA (Bureau of Mines-American Gas Association) 18-inch circular retort used at Pittsburgh, Pa" the 14-inch slot-type oven used at Denver, Colo., and the 17-inch slot-type oven used at Tuscaloosa, Ala., were substantially equivalent for evaluating coals for production of coke. Thus, added value is given to data obtained previously and independently at these three Bureau laboratories. INTRODUCTION Laboratory equipment to produce coke for evaluation has not been standardized by the industry. The results obtained with anyone design of equipment have been regarded as showing only the relative values of coal to produce coke of the requisite quality. Few systematic studies have been made to correlate results obtained in different types of equipment. Results of one, in which the Bureau of Mines participated, were published recently.2/ This

Jan 1, 1961

By R. B. Porter, R. P. Porter, R. A. Lothrop

Changes became necessary in dredging methods employed in Idaho through passage of the Dredge Mining Protective Act (1954). Among other provisions, the law requires dredge operators to construct settling ponds of sufficient capacity and character to reasonably clarify the water used in the mining process before such water is discharged into the stream. Porter Bros. Corp., a placer mining company with many years operating experience in Oregon and Montana, became interested in strategic mineral placers in Idaho in 1950 when it was learned that prospectors had discovered a radioactive mineral deposit in Bear Valley Creek, 95 miles northeast of Boise. The company acquired mining leases and proceeded with exploration and development work on the property. After extensive research had resulted in the determination of successful separation processes, contracts were negotiated with the federal government and deliveries of columbium-tantalum and uranium concentrates commenced in 1956. The mining operations are located in a primitive area of Idaho among salmon spawning grounds and crystal-clear mountain trout streams. To avoid involvement in a very controversial issue, it appeared advisable for the company to develop water treatment procedures exceeding those requirements stated in the Idaho Dredge Mining Protective Act. Operation: The company operates one 6 cu ft continuous bucketline dredge and one 4 1/4 cu ft continuous bucketline dredge on the property. The dredges are jig-equipped, with feed being screened to 3 in. by trommels. The screening and gravity concentration methods satisfactorily separate the heavy minerals from companion clays, sand, and gravel. However, this separation of the heavy minerals requires water from the dredge pond with a minimum content of silt and colloids; therefore, water for dilution is added continuously to the dredge pond to suppress solids buildup. Discharge of this highly turbid water to maintain the proper pond level would ultimately result in an excessive silt load in Bear Valley Creek. To prohibit the turbid pond water from flowing directly into Bear Valley Creek, it was necessary to isolate the dredging area. Main by-pass canals were constructed along each side of the dredge pond and numerous secondary canals were dug for diverting seepage and snow runoff. One by-pass canal, extending more than two miles along the west side of the valley, diverts the main stream as well as tributaries entering from the west; a canal east of the dredge area diverts streams entering from that direction. At the beginning of operations in 1956, the dredge pond effluent was filtered through tailings and settled by use of coagulents in a series of lagoons. The filtrate was then discharged directly into the stream. Although this procedure gave satisfactory results in conformance with the state law, ice buildup and lagoon freezing hindered the efficiency of the process during periods of low temperature. For this reason, testing began in 1956 on a water treatment process that would operate efficiently under the extreme weather conditions encountered in Bear Valley. Development of Water Treatment System: Porter Bros. Corp. established the following requirements for effective continuous treatment of dredge pond effluent to the stream which, at low flow conditions, effluent to the stream which, at low flow conditions, would not result in a turbidity exceeding 25 ppm in the stream, 2) produce a sludge sufficiently dense to minimize disposal area requirements, 3) be semi-portable to follow dredge movements, 4) be capable of operating at low temperatures, and 5) be capable of handling a variety of capacities and turbidities.

Jan 1, 1961

By T. W. Wloder

During recent studies concerning the effects that various surface treatments, surface imperfections, locked-in residual stresses and metallurgical and geometrical notches have upon the mechanical behaviour of metals and, in particular, upon their tension-bending characteristics under impact loads, it became apparent that specially developed methods and samples would be of great assistance in determining the desired data. This paper describes and discusses a number of different types of double-notched tension-bending impact samples which have been considered and examined for this purpose. The types most suitable for exploratory investigations are proposed for application in the study of the _behaviour of metals, their welds, and, in particular, their surfaces, when subjected to various notch-severities, surface imperfections, strain rates, temperatures, and constrained states of stress (i.e. the relations of the three principal stresses). It is expected that the proposed double-notched tension-bending samples and the proposed test methods will also contribute toward further understanding of the cold brittle behaviour and the notch-sensitivities of metals. The possibilities of introducing the so-called impact notch-sensitivity index and relative impact notch sensitivity of metals are discussed. Data obtained on double-

Jan 1, 1961

By S. J. Aresco

The Bureau of Mines has been active in promoting the purchase of coal for Government use under specifications that define the requirements in terms of heating value of the coal, expressed in British thermal units, and the composition as shown by proximate analyses. To these, when required, are added the ash-softening temperature, the free-swelling index, and the Hardgrove grindability index. Under most of these specification contracts the bidders guarantee the quality of the coal, and that guaranteed by the successful bidder becomes the standard of his contract. The deliveries are sampled in accordance with instructions5/ issued by the Bureau of Mines; the samples are analyzed in the Bureau laboratory to determine whether the coal is of the quality guaranteed by the contractor and, if it is not, a price adjustment is made. Analyses of the delivered coal and tipple samples (samples collected at mine tipples as coal is being loaded into railroad cars or trucks) provide valuable data for use in evaluating future bids. In addition, the continuous sampling of coal as delivered is a check on the practical results obtained in burning the coal.

Jan 1, 1961

By M. E. Tyrrell

Despits its high melting point (2,135° C.), resistance to attack by molten metals, and its hardness (8), spinel (MgO?Al203) synthesized by the fusion of alumina (Al 2 0.) and magnesia (MgO) is not used on a large scale as a commercial furnace lining, mainly because of the prohibitive cost. This investigation by the Federal Bureau of Mines was prompted by the possibility of producing synthetic spinel from inexpensive raw materials by methods outlined in U.S. Patent 2,029,773, "Process for Obtaining Products Containing Spinets," dated February 4, 1936. In this patent Ture B. Haglund described a process for recovering crystalline spinels from melts in the system Mg0?Al203-2CaO-SiO2, a system well suited to the use of starting materials such as dolomite CaMg(C03)2, olivine [2(Mg?Fe)0.Si02], and bauxite (Al203?2H20) which are abundant in the southeastern United States. Compositions, ranging from a low content in the eutectic mixture of 35 percent spinal and 65 percent dicalcium silicate (2 CaO?SiO2) to a high of 75 percent spinel and 25 percent dicalcium silicate, were fused in electric furnaces of the arc-resistance and internal-resistance types. So long as members of the system were in proper chemical balance, "dusting" slags could be produced over the entire range of spinel concentration.

Jan 1, 1961

By H. W. Manley

SULPHUR, like the minerals of coal, iron and petroleum, is one of the essential materials in our modern expanding industrial civilization. Before discussing the salient features of the production of sulphur from the Canadian sour gas, it seems appropriate to outline the historical past and probable future utilization of sulphur. The ancient Greek writer Homer spoke of its "pest-averting sulphur" and the "divine purifying fumigation". Ancient alchemists found sulphur to be a fascinating and baffling material. The discovery of gun powder in the year of 1250, and its application to the art of war a, century later, made sulphur an important commodity in the progress of mankind. The initial manufacture of sulphuric acid in the year of 1736 by the Englishman Joshua Ward, established the basis of a chemical industry that today utilizes 80 per cent of the consumption of elemental sulphur. Commercial production of the chemical soda ash ( N a2C03) discovered in 1787 by the famous Leblanc Process, in-creased international demand for the element sulphur and marks the birthday of the Sicilian sulphur industry.

Jan 1, 1961

By M. G. Zabetakis

The use of liquid hydrogen as a high-energy fuel introduces numerous hazards not ordinarily associated with the use of other more conventional fuels. These hazards are attributable to the unique properties of hydrogen in the liquid and gas states (table 1). Since little work has been conducted on explosion and related hazards of cryogenic fuels, a research program was undertaken to obtain basic data on such dangers for hydrogen and other combustibles under these conditions. These data were used to outline emergency procedures for protecting personnel and equipment when an accidental spillage of liquid hydrogen occurs and to establish a quantity-distance table for the storage of this fuel. The vaporization of liquid hydrogen from a surface is treated as a prob¬lem in heat transfer theory. Two extreme cases are briefly considered: (1) The transfer of heat occurs at constant temperature drop between, the boiling liquid and the hot surface, and (2) the transfer of heat is limited by the rate at which it can flow to the surface from a hot insulating medium. The available data indicate that the former case (1) is applicable when vaporizing from a conducting surface and, initially, when vaporizing from an insulating medium; the latter case (2) is applicable after initial flash vaporization has occurred from the insulating medium. The vaporization rate determines in part the rate at which flammable hydrogen vapor-air mixtures are formed above a spill area. However, the rates at which heat is transferred to the vapor, and air is brought in contact with it also are of importance. Accordingly, the distribution of flammable mixtures above a spill area was determined experimentally. In general, flammable mixtures were found to be both above and within the visible vapor cloud.

Jan 1, 1961

By F. M. Morris

A large reserve of thick coal in southwest Virginia was developed by Clinch-field Coal Co. in 1957-1958 to produce a nominal rate of 1500 tph raw coal. Operation features coal cleaning in transit. Refuse removed averages 35 pct. Evolution of plant from initial conception to completion is discussed, selection of means applied is explained, and performance to date us design expectation is described. The long-range plan calls for ultimate handling capacity of 40,000 tpd raw coal with anticipated clean coal capacity of 26,000 tpd on a three-shift basis. From a materials handling viewpoint, the Moss No. 3 operation is principally of interest as an ensemble. Generally speaking, it uses time-tested equipment and ideas but some of these are employed on a scale that may be new in the industry. At present about 20,000 tpd of raw coal are being handled. This is expected to increase to 40,000 tpd as soon as business conditions justify it. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the evolution of the plant as to materials handling practices, to describe briefly the equipment and methods used, and to comment on performance in certain areas. The subject divides itself naturally into four phases: 1) operations at the mines, 2) transportation from mines to plant, 3) raw coal handling into the plant, and 4) transportation of refuse away from the plant. OPERATIONS AT THE MINES The coal reserves for Moss 3 are in southwest Virginia where Dickenson, Russell, and Buchanan Counties come together. This area contains about 15 square miles and over 100,000,000 tons of coal. Here the No. 4 (Tiller) and No. 5 (Jawbone) seams of the Norton Formation lie so closely together that for practical purposes, they constitute one seam of coal. This seam, which is called the Thick Tiller, varies from 10 to 18 ft in thickness and underlies Sandy Ridge, a mountain cresting between 2400 and 3300 ft above sea-level. At 18-ft seam height (which is considered to be the maximum practical mining height) the parting between seams will be about 3 1/2 ft thick and each bench of coal will be about 7 ft thick. Depending on the amount of impurities in the seams Drover. total reject in this height coal may approximate 50 pet by wt. It will average about 35 pet for the property as a whole. The first move in developing this resource was made in 1953 when contour maps of several square miles around Duty, Va., including all the known outcrop, were made by photogrammetry. At this time, it was felt the prospective operation would be served by the Clinchfield Railroad and a photogrammetric route survey was made by this railroad from Haysi to Duty. Study of the resulting maps indicated only one site—adversely owned—which might accommodate the size washing plant to be erected. Water resources of a dependable nature seemed nonexistent. In 1954 bulk washability tests were made on the Tiller Bench at the Moss No. 1 preparation plant. The tests indicated this portion of the seam, mined separately, would wash to 4 pet ash with good recovery. Also in 1954, development of Moss No. 2, south of Sandy Ridge, was begun. This mine is in the Tiller Seam where it is about 100 ft below the Jawbone Seam. The reasons for developing a mine in the normal Tiller Seam before tackling the Thick Tiller seemed compelling: Railroad service could be established quickly, communications were better (though not good!), more was known of the seam (it had been mined in the years 1911 to 19241, and there was no essential property to be acquired. After some legal skirmishing, the Norfolk & Western Railroad was granted the right to serve the new mine. Three decades earlier the old mine had been served by the Clinchfield Railroad. The event which triggered active development of Moss 3 was the Appalachian Power Co.'s decision in 1956 to build a 450,000-kva power plant on Clinch River at Carbo. This solved the problem of marketing the steam coal which inevitably must be a product of a mine in the Thick Tiller. Management promptly decided to build the preparation plant at Carbo where an excellent site was owned; where railroad service existed; where telephone service could be obtained; and where roads, bridges, and water supply were tolerable.

Jan 1, 1961