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By Robert H. Richards, Richard W. Lodge

A great deal of speculation, as well as actual experiment, has been devoted to ascertaining the changes in the materials (luring their descent in an iron blast-furnace, affecting (1) the chemical constitution, (2) the mechanical condition, and (3) the arrangement of the materials. With a view to throw some light upon the third question, we constructed a model and tried experiments which are here described. Our model is a vertical section of a furnace, with the lines of the Edgar Thomson furnace D of 1885 for the use of which we arc indebted to Mr. Gayley. The model is 40 inches high, and made to scale (1/2 inch equals 1 foot), and the horizontal section of the space through which the charge falls at any point in the descent is 11/2 in. x d, d being the diameter of the furnace at that place. We are unable to say just where the idea of making this model came from ; perhaps, partly from The Principles of the Manufacture of Iron, and Steel, 1884, I. Lowthian Bell, p. 124 ; partly, also, from

Jan 1, 1888

By Theodore W. Robinson

WHEREVER the amount of work renders it practicable the plan of using permanent standard solutions, in connection with the colorimetric carbon test, affords such manifold advantages that it is to be strongly recommended. That it has not attained a wider and more general application, is mainly due to the fact that, as the method is generally employed, the difficulty attending the production of the colors, and their doubtful stability when produced, have been only too evident to those who have undertaken their composition. The old method of using standard solutions made from sugar, coffee, etc., has always been hampered by the tendency of the colors to change upon exposure to the light, and the consequent liability to serious error, unless they are closely watched. Appreciating these difficulties, while recognizing the desirability of permanent colors, Mr. Magnus Troilius, at the suggestion of Prof. F. L. Erkmann, investigated the properties of cobalt, copper and ferric chlorides, with the view of determining their efficacy in the production of standard solutions. His results, as obtained, seem to have been satisfactory, but his treatment failed to eliminate many of the objections that have rendered the use of organic colors undesirable. The

Jan 1, 1888

By W. L. Austin

The only essential difference among the three methods of collecting the precious metals from their low-grade ores by fusion is comprised in the nature of the vehicle in which those metals are concentrated. If lead- or coppper-ores are used, the processes are respectively lead- or copper-smelting; but when the sulphide of iron forms the matrix in which the gold and silver are collected, the process is known as pyritic smelting. The latter method presents rarely any advantages when lead- or copper-ores are available at rates which permit profitable treatment. Pyritic silver-smelting, defined by Percy as " the smelting of silver-ores, which are either free from lead or do not contain it in sufficient quantity to collect the silver, in conjunction with pyrites, in order to produce a regulus in which the silver may be concentrated," is not, as the name would imply, confined to ores of this metal alone, but embraces auriferous silver-ores, or even gold-ores simple. This method of collecting the precious metals from lowgrade dry ores, employed at Freiberg by Barthel Kohler in 1585, does not appear, up to the present, to have been introduced into this country on a working scale. And yet the possibility of getting rid in a single operation of all the earthy or siliceous gangue of a lowgrade ore and concentrating the precious metals in a matte without loss of lead (which includes gold and silver) by slagging, or volatilization, at the same time producing a highly siliceous slag, very nearly if not quite as clean as is usual in lead-smelting, certainly commends itself. In some parts of the country, owing to the com-

Jan 1, 1888

By John Fulton

The following table shows the shipments from the four Lake Superior iron-ore districts during the year 1887, and their total outputs from their beginning until the close of 1887.* It will be noted that the Menominee district is second in importance in its total output tonnage to the close of the year 1887. These ore deposits are found in jasper-slates and in the horizon between these and their associated clay-slates; in the latter they are true contact-deposits. They are found in this jasper- and clay-slate formation under varied conditions, yet, in all, certain characteristic laws are preserved. The angle of dip varies from 15° to 20°, and up to 85° and even 90°, with the horizon. The ore is rather soft, bluish-black in color, and is a hematite. It varies in thickness from a few inches to one hundred feet, or more. It is mainly "Bessemer" ore, containing 57 to 63 per cent, of metallic iron, and .03 to .07 per cent, of phosphorus. In the mining nomenclature of this range two conditions of the ore-lens are described by the terms "dip" and "pitch." The former is in common use in defining the relation of the ore-plane to the horizon ; the latter indicates the posture of the ore-body as it inclines east or west from its position at the opening of the mine. In the

Jan 1, 1888

By John Fulton

The Menominee range is one of the four great mining belts that flank the western prongs of Lake Superior. It has received its name from its location along the north side of the Menominee river, which at this place flows between the States of Michigan and Wisconsin. The term "range" is derived from the elevated ridge, extending in a westward direction, and along the southern flank of which the iron-ore mines are located. This range is some 200 to 300 feet high above the general level of the adjacent country, and is made prominent by its surroundings of low, swampy lands. Its whole length is about 27 miles, and it is intersected, at intervals along its course, by gaps which are threaded by streams. The geology of the Menominee range is peculiarly interesting. It is composed of three distinct groups of Hurouian rocks. The supporting group consists of light-colored limestone beds of a crystalline, siliceous character, called the "Norway limestone belt." The map, Fig. 1, and the section, Fig. 2, will give a general notion of the position and structure of the range. The properties shaded in the map are those of the Penn Iron Mining Company, which is the Michigan representative of the Cambria Iron Company of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. This belt is at least 1200 feet thick. It outcrops boldly at many localities along the range, especially north of the Norway, Quinnesec and Chapin mines. At Quinnesec it can be studied readily. The next, or Banking group, which is estimated at a thickness of 1000 feet, is called the Quinnesec ore-formation. It consists, in the portion next to the limestone, of siliceons or jasper slates, largely impregnated with iron oxide. These are succeeded by argillaceous hydro-mica black and flesh-colored slates. This formation embraces the deposits of the iron-ores. The third group consists of a series of dark gray, slaty or schistose beds, with occasional quartzose bands, having a thickness of 2000 feet. It is called the Lake Hanbury slate group.

Jan 1, 1888

By Theo B. Comstock

In the summer of 1877, the writer led a party of four young men from Cleveland, Ohio, by way of the Great Lakes, to Prince Arthur's Landing (now Port Arthur), at the northwest corner of Lake Superior, thence, via the Dawson route and side journeys, as far as Cross Lake. It was the original intention to pass down the Pigeon river to its mouth, but the loss of one member of the party for six days in the forest, added to other obstacles, made it necessary to turn back. A well-filled note-book, together with illustrative collections, were sunk beyond recovery at the head of the Maligne rapids by the breaking of a tow-line, and two of our number (including myself) narrowly escaped drowning. I had, probably, obtained information of considerable economic value, but the necessity of travelling nearly 125 miles for provisions (excepting a meagre supply kindly furnished us by a Canadian government gang whom we fortunately met), rendered further note-taking impossible. Until now, such results of this expedition as could be recorded . from memory have gone unpublished, because of my inability to make them serve any useful purpose. The trip of the Institute to Vermilion Lake, only a few miles south and east of our turning point, gives some little excuse for presenting the following lines at this time. The ridge back of Port Arthur, Ontario, which follows approximately the course of the Lake Superior shore line, brings up the slates and accompanying strata through which the silver and gold veins of that region have penetrated. The interior district, hack from the lake, may be briefly described as a glaciated area, having its general drainage less modified by erosion than by the original structure. This statement, however, must be somewhat qualified with reference to minor details, which all bear the unmistakable impress of the ice-flow and its recession. In many respects there is much in this tract to remind one of the Sault Ste. Marie topography, excepting that the granitic character of the rocks is here largely replaced by fissile strata. The Kaministiquia river cuts through several of the parallel folds,

Jan 1, 1888

By Chas. A. Ashburner

The occurrence of oil- and gas-springs in the State of New York has been a fact of historical record since 1627, when the existence of the Cuba oil-spring was first recorded. The utilization of natural gas at Fredonia in 1821 attracted the attention of the public to the possibility of obtaining an illuminating gas by digging and drilling into the rocks. No active search was made, however, for oil or gas by the drilling of wells until after the discovery of commercial oil in Pennsylvania in 1859. In 1862 a well was drilled at Bradford, McKean County, Pennsylvania, but a few miles south of the New York state line, to the depth of 200 feet, in search of the oil-sand which had been found at Titusville, Oil City, and at other points in Western Pennsylvania. Immediately subsequent to this, other wells were drilled in search

Jan 1, 1888

By Fred P. Dewey

IN preparing material for the exhibit of the National Museum at the New Orleans Exposition in 1881, it was decided to attempt to photograph the interior of a coal-mine, in order to get a strictly truthful representation of a thick coal-seam, and to show incidentally the methods of mining. While we have many drawings, both mechanical and artistic, illustrating the subject, they are not satisfactory for these purposes, simply because they are drawings. Aside from this, much interest attaches to pictures of inaccessible places, and the enlarged copies (30 inches by 40 inches) of the photographs we succeeded in obtaining, have attracted a large amount of attention from the visitors to the Museum. The Kohinoor colliery, Shenandoah City, Pa., was selected as most suitable for the attempt, principally on account of the fine exposure of the Mammoth bed, and the comparatively level character of the workings, in that colliery. This is one of the many anthracite-mines of the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company. A detailed section of the fiftyfoot or Mammoth bed in this colliery is as follows: Feet. Inches. 1 0 Clod. 1 7 0 Coal. 1 0 Slate. Top Split. 8 0 Coal. 1 6 Slate divider.* 6 0 Coal. 1 0 6 Slate. 2 6 Coal. 0 5 Slate. 1 8 Coal. 1 2 Charcoal. 5 0 coal. 1 0 Bone and Coal. „ „ Coal. [ Bottom Split. 0 6 Bone and Slate. 3 0 Coal. 0 10 Bone and coal. 1 2 Coal. 0 2 Bone. 4 4 Coal. 0 1 Bone. 0 8 Coal.

Jan 1, 1888

By Clemens Jones

An interesting paper by J. E. Merion and Edward Hart, in Volume I., No. 2, of the Journal of Analytical Chemistry, on the Decomposition of Blast-Furnace Cinder by Acid, describes a plan of sampling the cinder by means of a previously-heated iron bar thrust into the cinder car or into the cinder at the notch, and then allowed to cool, thus chilling the cinder which adheres to the bar, and rendering it decomposable by hydrochloric acid, of 1.12 sp. gr. A short series of results is given, from which the deduction follows that blast-furnace cinder " is decomposed perfectly when chilled." Where many silica determinations are to be made, this method, if reliable, would effect notable economy of time and reagents. The conversion of insoluble silicates by fusion with an alkaline carbonate, together with the subsequent solution, evaporation, drying, etc., is destined to remain the standard method. But all fusionmethods are time-consuming and expensive. Chilling appears to render the supplementary method available for all practical purposes, in the determination of silica in cinder. But, with a view of securing more evidence on the subject, and in view of the fact that uniform results were not obtained by employing this method, it was decided to test the method in the laboratory of the Thomas Iron Company where a large number of silica determinations are made. The experience met with may not be devoid of value, both theoretical and practical. Mr. Iles's paper, in the Chemical News, Volume L., 1881, doubtless suggested to several chemists, connected with iron metallurgical

Jan 1, 1888

By James Herbert Bartlett

I desire, very briefly, to call the attention of the Institute to the iron trade of the Dominion of Canada. A wonderful development is now going on in Canada. The completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, and the numerous extensions of the various railways all over the country, combined with the progress made in nearly every kind of manufacture, is drawing attention to the field offered in Canada for the profitable employment of capital, and specially to the opportunity there is for the manufacture of iron. In a paper presented to the Institute at the Halifax meeting,* the writer gave a review of the varions attempts to manufacture iron in Canada. The facts then presented were not such as to offer much encouragement to any one to embark in similar enterprises under the conditions then existing, but, happily, these conditions are now changed, and an early development may be anticipated. There are two reasons which make the present time an appropriate one to direct attention to the field offered for enterprise in this direction, the first being the very favorable reports of the experts who examined and reported on the exhibit of minerals at the Colonial and Indian exhibition, held in London, England, last year. The exhibits there of coal and iron attracted so much attention that at the request of the Iron and Steel Institute a paper on the " Ironmaking resources of our Colonies as illustrated by the Colonial and Indian Exhibition," was prepared and read at the last meeting of the Institute.? This report of 135 pages is very exhaustive, and the conclusion arrived at, so far as Canada is concerned, is, that she has in many parts of the country every natural facility for the manufacture of iron. The second and more important reason is the recent change in the Canadian customs tariff inaugurated in May last. The tariff is now generally two-thirds of the American tariff, in addition to which the Government, in order to encourage the manufacture of iron, grants a bounty upon pig-iron made in Canada out of Canadian ore.

Jan 1, 1888

By Per Larsson

The Chapin Mine, on the Menominee range, Lake Superior, was first opened in 1880 and has since then produced 1 1/2 million tons of soft blue hematite, containing about 63 per cent. of iron and 0.07 per cent. of phosphorus. Up to the present time, the ore has been mined from three separate lenticular deposits, which conform with the Huronian strata of the district, striking N. 75' W., dipping from 70' to 80' N., and pitching about 30' W. The largest of these ore-bodies has a horizontal length of 2500 feet, and a maximum width of 130 feet in the middle, from which it gradually narrows to the pointed ends. Its dimensions have not changed materially as greater depth has been attained. Figs. 1 and 2 show the geology and the mine-workings on the main deposit.. As this main deposit pitches away from the eastern part of the property, it is replaced by another lens, containing ore of the same quality. When first opened on the 1st level, this lens was 150 feet long and up to 50 feet wide, while now on the 6th level it shows a length of 550 feet, and a maximum width of 100 feet. It is separated from the extreme east end of the main deposit by about 30 feet of clay-slates It pinches out gradually between the slates to the west, and stops abruptly against the jasper to the east. Farther east in this belt of jasper occurs the third ore-lens which has a pretty regular length of 100 feet and averages, from the 1st to the 5th level, 20 feet in width. A cross-section of the ore-formation shows, on the north or hanging side of the ore, about 200 feet of clay-slates, and farther north a heavy belt of magnesian limestone. The slates and the dolomite are generally separated near the surface by a conglomerate of broken dolomite and soft slates. The foot-wall rock is also a clay-slate, containing a higher percentage of iron and less magnesia than the hanging-slate. Farther south occur alternate beds of slates and lean ore or jasper.

Jan 1, 1888

By E. B. Harden, J. H. Harden

The practical use to which topographical models or relief-maps have been put, has within the last few years taken a wider range. They are rapidly coming into favor for other than purely scientific purposes, and their value for illustration and instruction is being more fully appreciated. Topographical maps; representing by contour-curve lines the elevations and depressions of the earth's surface, are now demanded in engineering work of nearly every description, and afford a ready means of bringing out the configuration of the country in a simple manner. A beautiful example of recent topographical mapping is seen in the seventeen sheets just issued by the Geological Survey of New Jersey. By reason of the inability of unskilled persons to understand the nature of a topographical map, it is sometimes necessary to con struct the same in relief, with the rivers, canals, railroads, etc., delin eated upon it. With the aid of such a map, problems in engineer ing science which would otherwise require expert assistance to explain them, are reduced to a simple and understandable form. Relief-maps are also of value to the geologist in working out the geological structure. To the instructor they present the most ready and efficient means of imparting clear and accurate knowledge of topography and kindred subjects. To the lawyer they are invalua ble in enabling him to bring into the court-room a representation of a part of the country with all its features accurately shown, to ex plain to the court and jury the special points about which litigation is pending and which would otherwise require long and laborious description. The application of the topographical map to business purposes is shown in a relief constructed by the writers for the Cumberland Valley Railroad Company and used by that company in the various ways of calling attention to the desirability of its route. This model is based partly on actual survey and partly on sketch topography. The horizontal scale is ,%, the vertical 1/19,200 of

Jan 1, 1888

By W. H. Adams

Among the engineering plants with new features and deserving details which are constantly being brought to the working stage in the Southern States by the generous expenditure of capital, none can exceed in interest, whether to the public or the profession, the incline-railway built from base to summit of Lookout Mountain, near Chattanooga, Tennessee. Much geological and historical interest centers in this section of the middle mountain-country. Of its geology, the Transactions of the Institute contain many particulars. Of its history, the most

Jan 1, 1888

By Kwong Yung Kwang

This mine, which is sometimes called Tong colliery, from its director, Tong King Sing, is about 80 miles northeast of Tientsin (see map, Fig. 1). Fig. 2 shows a vertical transverse section through the coal-beds. These beds have a dip to the south of about 45' and are interstratified with sandstone, shale, indurated clay and fire-clay. Of the

Jan 1, 1888

By John Birkinbine

In the belief that a resume of what will be exhibited during this meeting, and a brief record of progress in the seven years which have elapsed since the Institute's first visit to Lake Superior would be interesting, the following statistical data have been prepared or copied from the most reliable sources, and considerations are also presented concerning the development or utilization of some of the resources of the Lake Superior Region. When the Institute, on the return trip from enjoying the charming panoramas of Thunder Cape or Isle Royale, and inspecting the unique development of Silver Islet, passed, in August, 1880, through the St. Mary's Falls ship canal, en route to Escanaba, the boat was lowered from the level of Lake Superior to that of Michigan and Huron lakes (18 feet), through two locks each 70 feet wide and 350 feet long, which had been in use since 1855. But as these locks accommodated vessels which drew 12 feet of water or less, a new lock 80 feet wide, 515 feet long and admitting vessels of 16 feet draught was approaching completion and was opened in September, 1881. The time required to pass the locks was utilized by the members in examining the work upon this new lock and in viewing the Sault Ste. Marie, which in discharging from Lake Superior all average volume of 90,783 cubic feet of water per second, forms a rapid, falling 18 feet in one mile. But the lake traffic through the St. Mary's ship-canal has developed so rapidly that another and larger lock is now required, and work has been commenced by the

Jan 1, 1888

By W. H. Adams

One of the most attractive subjects for technical writers is the gigantic industry of the manufacture of sulphuric acid. This is no doubt, natural when we take into account that it has grown in this country during the past twenty years, from a production of 60,000 tons in the year 1867, to that of nearly 450,000 tons in 1887. We may well excuse much of the literature which but repeats the same old story, as it serves to bring to the public notice, at proper intervals, the hidden resources of our land; and this constant application of essential truths will sooner or later be the means of freeing us from dependence upon the Old World for necessary chemical products. The present increase in manufacture of this acid in the United States is almost wholly from pyrites ores, which we have in unlimited quantities close at hand. The largest consumption of such acid is for treatment of other native products, petroleum, rock-phosphates, etc.; and, considering the knowledge we have gained during the past twenty years, it is safe to say that the industry is but fairly established, and the causes which have operated to place us in our present proud position are but natural incentives for a further growth and an increased consumption of the many other undiscovered or undeveloped resources of our American soi1. In one of his earlier editions Muspratt says: " It would seem that the manufacture of sulphuric acid, though as extensively carried on as any other business, yet seems to be the least understood; and the ignorance of some manufacturers appears to be only equalled by that of writers, who, in their description of the production of this acid, give figures of apparatus, and vaunt as improvements, things which have been exploded for years. It is possible to find in the works of eminent men drawings of apparatus, for the production of sulphuric acid, which never could possibly have worked one day—some, in fact, could never have worked at all."

Jan 1, 1888

By Byron W. Cheever

At the meeting of the Institute held in St. Louis, in October, 1886 (Transactions, xv., 448), I presented a paper upon the above subject. From the well-known action of certain solvents on phosphide and phosphate of iron, the conclusion was then reached, founded on analyses, that phosphide and phosphate of iron must be present in all iron. But this conclusion was based upon the reactions obtained in the analyses of iron phosphide and phosphate, in which the phosphorus existed in conditions different from those found in commercial iron. In the former, the phosphorus is concentrated ; in the latter, diffused. This fact left a reasonable ground for doubting the existence of phosphoric acid in commercial irons. Some direct method was therefore sought which would prove its presence. After investigating the subject for some time, I came to

Jan 1, 1888

By Frank C. Roberts

Progress in the facilities for handling mining products has been largely superinduced by the necessities of commercial economy ren dered requisite in order to meet the demand of competition. So rapid has been the depreciation in the value of mineral products, primarily due to the disproportionate increase of output over con sumption, that it may be justly claimed that mining, when considered as a commercial success, depends largely upon the ease and cheap ness by which the products are brought to the surface of the ground. In all methods of performing this operation, wire rope enters as an important factor; and the object of the present sketch will be to explain, as fully as is consistent with the space allotted, the various • adaptations of wire rope employed in placing coal and ores within the reach of our overground systems of transportation. These adaptations will be considered in the following order: I. Hoists. II. Inclined planes. a. Engine planes. b. Gravity planes. c. Aerial planes. III. Haulage. a. Tail-rope system. b. Counter-rope system. c. Endless-rope system. IV. Hoists. The term " hoist" is applied to the system whereby the mine product is elevated from the mine-level to the surface through ver-

Jan 1, 1888

By E. E. Malouf

With the continued development of low-grade porphyry copper deposits by open pit mining, substantial amounts of copper-bearing strip material have been accumulated in waste dumps adjacent to the many large mines. Since the end of World War II, the production of copper from leaching these copper-bearing wastes increased from approximately 4% of the total copper production to 10% by the early 1960's. Projected increases will probably raise this figure to 20 to 30% by the early 1970's. Furthermore, a gradual recognition of the economic feasibility of leaching mined-out areas is evident and will undoubtedly contribute additional production. Waste dumps in canyons and gulches on the periphery of open pit mines, mine stopes, caved areas, and abandoned open pits often contain substantial quantities of leachable rock ranging in concentration from 0.1 to 0.4% copper. Recent developments in the leaching of copper, mainly the recognition of bacterial oxidation of sulfide minerals combined with better under- standing of the control of the salt content of the leach solutions, both by adjusting the pH and/or by hydrolysis, are resulting in a greatly expanded recovery of copper from these hitherto uneconomic mine rejects. 11.5-1. Mechanism of Leaching. Leaching processes for the extraction of metal values from mine ore or waste may be classified for convenience as either chemical leaching or bacterial leaching. Chemical leaching is considered to be the extraction of soluble salts by metathesis in acidic, basic, or neutral water solutions. The reactions involved may be evaluated by chemical thermodynamics. Bacterial leaching, although a chemical process, is dependent on biological catalysis and this is generally a much more complex process. This justifies its separate treatment in the application to leaching. Acid ferric sulfate solutions are commonly employed in the mining industry to leach valuable metals from metal sulfide ores. The leaching mechanism is a reduction-oxidation reaction in which minerals are oxidized at the expense of ferric sulfate. Such chemical leaching is profitable when

Jan 1, 1968

By J. C. Draper

Duquesne Light Co.'s Portal No. 3 mine, in the Warwick group of mines in Southwestern Pennsylvania, was started in June 1965 with battery- powered tractor-trailer face haulage. The area as- signed to Portal No. 3 encompasses over 8000 acres of coal and will be developed by driving a set of main entries through the center of the tract in roughly a westerly direction, and sub mains on a 45º deflection angle in roughly a northerly direction (Figs 1 & 2). In the original planning these sub mains were to be at a 90º angle with the mains, but difficult roof conditions necessitated a change in plans. The entries and crosscuts are driven 18 ft wide in the normal Sewickley seam which varies between 46 and 56 in. high. The mine bottom is a strong shale and in average, cool or dry outside conditions stands up well for rubber-tired haulage equipment, but when the outside conditions are hot and humid, the bottom becomes soft and muddy. This condition lessens as the mine faces are advanced further from the portals because the condensation will then take place principally on the surfaces of intake entries outby the working areas. To aid the situation, an air cooling system was installed and is used as conditions dictate.

Jan 7, 1968