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By L. W. McKeehan, W. C. Elmore

THE magnetic powder method, long used for roughly mapping magnetic fields, has recently been refined 1,2 for investigating the microscopic variations in the surface magnetization of ferromagnetic crystals. Bitter' first discovered regular powder patterns connected with the crystal structure of such specimens. Several other investigators3 have used Bitter's original technique, with slight modifications, to study the variation of the patterns with variations in the magnetizing field applied parallel to the surface, and their dependence upon the state of strain, of polish and of crystal cut. All of the explanations of these patterns on metallic ferromagnetics have been couched in general terms. In a preliminary report we have described an improvement in the powder technique which led us to the discovery of a new effect throwing considerable light on the magnetic secondary structure of alpha iron4 and of nickel' single crystals. We now report additional evidence confirming the existence and stability of a magnetic block secondary structure. SPECIMENS The following list describes the specimens used in the present investigation. DESIGNATION DESCRIPTION A1 Silicon ferrite furnished to us by Dr. W. E. Ruder, of the General Electric Co., for which he gave the following typical analysis: C, 0.05; P, 0.038; 5, 0.026; Mn, 0.15; Si, 3.24. Disk, 0.60 cm. diameter, about 0.05 cm. thick.

Jan 1, 1935

By E. Furubayashi, T. Taoka, S. Takeuchi

Recrystallization textures developed from artificial nucleation around indentations were compared with spontaneously recrystallized textures in two rolled 3 pet Si-Fe single crystals with (111)[112] and (100) [011] orientations. Orientation of individual grains in some stages of their growth was also directly determined by a microetch-pit method. In both the crystals, the recrystallization texture was characteristic of each orientation regardless of any nucleation conditions, artificial or spontaneous, though artificially nucleated grains were more randomly oriented in finer stage. These results support the concept that the process of selection of growing grains controls the formation of the prejerred recrystallization texture. Discussion is given on the factors controlling the mobility of grain boundaries. Recrystallization textures are formed through a number of stages which are customarily called by the terms recovery, nucleation, and grain growth. Many experiments have been done to clarify the mech- anism of formation of recrystallization texture but no fully successful explanation has been proposed. The texture consists of oriented grains which nucleate at many sites of the deformed matrix and grow at the expense of the matrix during annealing. The current theories on the formation of recrystallization texture are based on the following two extreme hypotheses: 1) the oriented nucleation theory by Burgers et al.;1, 2 2) the oriented growth theory by Beck et al.3-5

Jan 1, 1968

By W. David Leyshon

This paper compares the general characteristics of Florida phosphate rock for the manufacture of fertilizers and phosphoric acid. The subjects covered are relative reactivity for superphosphate manufacture and various properties of the rock for use in phosphoric acid production, including gypsum filterability, sulfuric acid consumption, foaming, relative cor-rosiveness, chemical composition, and others. Comprison will include rocks of North Africa, the western U.S., and other locations. This paper reviews some of the important properties of phosphate rock, giving particular attention to a comparison of Florida phosphate with some of the major phosphates produced in the world. It also discusses some of the techniques available for evaluatine Phosphate. rock for phosphoric. acid and fertilizer use. The use of Florida rock outside the U.S. has been increasing steadily, evidence in itself of certain desirable properties of this rock. Table I is a list of the major producers and exporters of phosphate rock as of 1965. Florida, meaning in this case Central Florida, was the largest producer of phosphate rock and the largest exporter of rock. Of a total world production estimated at 60 million tons, about 50 million tons were produced during 1965 by the areas listed in Table I. One major producing area omitted from Table I and from subsequent evaluations in this paper comprises Nauru, Ocean, and Christmas Islands, whose output totaled about three million tons in 1965. This phosphate is marketed entirely by the British Phosphate Commissioners, primarily in Australia and New Zealand, and does not get into the world market elsewhere to a significant degree at the present time. South Africa, Egypt, Israel, and North Vietnam also produce lesser quantities of rock for the international market, and these materials are also excluded from this review. The phosphate industry is now seeing the introduction of several new areas that will be significant factors in the rock market in the future. The North Carolina and North Florida areas each have capacity at present or in the near future for producing about three million tons per year. The Djebel Onk mine in Algeria has a potential of about 800,000 tons per year. In addition, announcements have been made of significant development of deposits in Peru and in the Spanish Sahara, and sizable expansions are planned in several of the existing areas that are now of minor importance. Competition for the rock market appears to be increasing so that more attention will probably be paid to evaluating phosphates available from different areas. It is not possible here to go into all the properties of even a few of the materials listed in Table I. However, it is practical to discuss some comparative properties important for making phosphoric acid and fertilizers, and to touch on the techniques used for the evaluation of various phosphate rocks. Table II gives typical analyses of the major phosphate rocks available in the world as of 1965. There is, of course, an inherent danger in labeling any analysis as typical, but it appears that variations between two samples of rock within one given area are generally less than between two samples from different areas. The analyses listed were compiled from several years of data so they may not be representative of the present output of any particular area. The range of grades represented by these analyses goes from 66 BPL for Gafsa rock to 85 BPL for Kola

Jan 1, 1968

By E. H. Dix, F. Keller

The use of magnesium as an alloying element in aluminum alloys has been limited, in general, to comparatively small quantities. In duralumin-type, strong aluminum alloys, magnesium is present to the extent of 35 to 3/4 per cent. and various grades of Magnalite and the "Y" alloy of the National Physical Laboratory of England contain up to 1 1/2 per cent. In this country small quantities of aluminum alloy sheet containing 4 per cent. magnesium are produced commercially. All commercial aluminum contains sufficient silicon to convert a portion of the magnesium added to the compound Mg2Si. It is well known that the solubility of both magnesium and magnesium-silicide decrease with decrease in temperature. It is, therefore, impossible to separate the age-hardening effect of the magnesium-silicide from that of magnesium, except by the use of aluminum of such high purity that the silicon content is negligible. The present paper is the fifth l, 2, 3, 4 of a series from the laboratories of the Aluminum Co. of America reporting the results of investigations of the equilibrium relations in aluminum-rich alloys made from the high-purity aluminum manufactured by this company. 5 Previous Investigations A number of investigations have been made of the constitution of the complete aluminum-magnesium system and several determinations made

Jan 1, 1929

By F. Keller, E. H. Dix

The use of magnesium as an alloying element in aluminum alloys has been limited, in general, to comparatively small quantities. In duralumin-type, strong aluminum alloys, magnesium is present to the extent of 35 to 3/4 per cent. and various grades of Magnalite and the "Y" alloy of the National Physical Laboratory of England contain up to 1 1/2 per cent. In this country small quantities of aluminum alloy sheet containing 4 per cent. magnesium are produced commercially. All commercial aluminum contains sufficient silicon to convert a portion of the magnesium added to the compound Mg2Si. It is well known that the solubility of both magnesium and magnesium-silicide decrease with decrease in temperature. It is, therefore, impossible to separate the age-hardening effect of the magnesium-silicide from that of magnesium, except by the use of aluminum of such high purity that the silicon content is negligible. The present paper is the fifth l, 2, 3, 4 of a series from the laboratories of the Aluminum Co. of America reporting the results of investigations of the equilibrium relations in aluminum-rich alloys made from the high-purity aluminum manufactured by this company. 5 Previous Investigations A number of investigations have been made of the constitution of the complete aluminum-magnesium system and several determinations made

Jan 1, 1929

By B. Silliman

THE remarkable outflow of natural gas recently developed in Western Pennsylvania, and along the valley of the Ohio and its tributaries, has called attention to an important series of patents for improvements in glass-fnrnaces and the manufacture of glass, which the brothers Siemens have made since 1872. The basement-patent of this series, is No. 127,806 of the U. S. Patent office, and is of date June 11th, 1872. This has been followed by eleven other patents (including one re-issue), all for improvements in glass-furnaces, or methods of manufacture, of which the latest is of date July 11th, 1882. Nine of these patents were issued in 1880-82. The following is the list of these patents, in order of dates, viz.: 1872. June 11th. No. 127,806 (U. S. office), Improvement in glass-furnaces; 17 sheets drawings, 5 pages text. This is the basement-patent. 1877. April 17th. No. 139,800. Improvement in the manufacture of glass; 3 sheets drawings, 2 pages text. Boats and floating vessels swimming in the liquid glass of the tank-furnace. Re-issued in 1880. q. v. 1880. April 27th. No. 226,931. Furnace for annealing and tem pering glass. " July 13th. No. 220,846. Glass-melting-furnace. " August 3d. No. 230,668. Glass-melting-furnace; 4 sheets drawings, 2 pages text.

Jan 1, 1885

By C. H. North, L. E. Lynd, W. W. Anderson, H. Sicurdson

D. R. Grantham (Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, London, England)—This paper is a very valuable contribution to our knowledge of ilmenite and its alteration products. Two aspects are not treated in the paper and further information would be valuable. How far are the alteration processes described influenced by the original composition of the ilmenite? The word gangue is used but it is not clear whether this refers to other chemical constituents in the ilmenite, e.g., magnesia, or to other minerals loose or in composite grains. Has the work described been related to specific gravities? Pure ilmenite is stated to have a specific gravity of 4.79. Some varieties range up to over 5.0, while high magnesic varieties have a specific gravity ranging to below 4.2. Alteration to hematite might lower the specific gravity and a porous texture due to the removal of iron and the formation of rutile might also lower it. As specific gravity is a quick method which often gives an approximate indication of composition, data on the above would be valuable. L. E. Lynd (authors' reply)—Because of the way in which beach sand deposits were formed, it is impossible to tell exactly what the original composition of the parent ilmenites might have been. Information on the influence of original composition on the alteration processes must be derived from other sources, perhaps by comparing the alteration products formed from ilmenite in place in a variety of rock deposits, where parent ilmenite and its alteration product can be recognized. No information of this type has yet been brought to our attention. The material referred to as gangue includes all constituents other than oxides of titanium and iron. Nearly all of this was present as separate grains of garnet, augite, hornblende, quartz, feldspar, spinel, or other gangue minerals. Inclusions of gangue minerals within ore grains were rare, and we believe there is little MgO (1 pct or less) or other impurity actually held in the ilmenite structure in any of the concentrates studied. No specific gravity measurements were made on the samples studied. However, the suggestion that alteration involving loss of iron would lower the specific gravity is a very reasonable one, and is in accord with the findings of Creitz and McVay (Ref. 9 of our paper) who reported two magnetic opaque fractions from Trail Ridge, Fla., to have the following specific gravities and pompositions: The specific gravity of this porous, high TiO² alteration product of ilmenite is closer to that of rutile (4.25) than to that of ilmenite. Due to the porosity, it may even be less dense than rutile, although lower in TiO² and higher in iron.

Jan 1, 1955

By B. M. Blake, R. S. Reppert, A. F. Keiser, E. J. Trinkle

The southern West Virginia coalfield was formed in a rapidly subsiding depositional basin associated with deep-seated growth faults. Subsidence began to the southeast during deposition of the Pocahontas Formation, and then shifted to the northwest during deposition of the New River, Kanawha, and Allegheny Formations. Rocks of all the coal-bearing formations grade into massive sandstones to the northwest. For the No. 3 Pocahontas, Sewell, Campbells Creek, and No. 5 Block coals discussed in this study, the overall sulfur and ash values of each coal seam increase gradually toward the northwest. The thickness of each coal tends to increase toward the southeast. These trends are partly a reflection of the differential subsidence of the coal basin along with varying degrees of peat accumulation and degradation. The northwest side of the coal swamps underwent relatively less subsidence and, thus, more degradation due to increased aerial exposure, with a resulting increase in the sulfur and ash values of the coals, and a decrease in the thickness. The open sea existed to the west of the coal swamps, and this marine environment also contributed to the higher sulfur values to the northwest. Coals of the Pottsville Group in the southern West Virginia coalfield generally have sulfur values between 0.6-1.0% with some as high as 2-3% on the northwest edge of the coal basin.

Jan 1, 1983

By John E. Dowis

Ore distribution being what it is, many of today's mining companies are forced to develop foreign reserves to satisfy the demands of their customers. This necessity complicates the economic picture for a company, because management must look well be- yond grade and tonnage to determine the feasibility of developing a foreign orebody. Above all, the taxes on such a development must be assessed. The difference that taxes can make in mining profits will be illustrated here for three countries-Canada, Mexico and the United States. For purposes of comparison, identical orebodies will be assumed to occur in all three countries. Only the taxes on these properties will vary. Grade, tonnage, gross income, production costs and production rates will all be the same. The discussion will be limited to federal taxes, because state and provincial taxes are usually negligible by comparison. Assumptions relative to the orebody and the nature of the company undertaking the operation are as follows: (1) Copper is the only value to be recovered. (2) Sixty million tons of ore have been delineated. (3) Underground mining is required, and the production rate will be 3 million tpy. (4) The life of the property is 20 yr. (5) Operations in Mexico or Canada will be handled by a subsidiary of a U.S. parent company. (6) The subsidiary will offer stock.

Jan 1, 1970

By J. M. Steininger

The mechanism of flotation of sphalerite with sulthydryl compounds of different acidities has been interpreted in terms of chemisorption of unionized collector molecules on hydroxylated zinc surface sites. At a constant collector concentration of 1.5 x 10 -4 M, the upper pH limit of flotation has been found to be directly and closely related to the negative logarithm of the collector acidity constant, pKa The experimental results indicate that flotation is prevented when about 95% of the collector is ionized. At low pH, collector adsorption decreases because of the reduction in number of hydroxylated zinc surface sites. These two effects explain why sphalerite does not float with the more acidic sulfhydryl compounds. Typical anionic collectors for sulfide minerals are short chain xanthates or dithiophosphates which are nearly completely ionized in the generally alka- line flotation circuits.1,2 Flotation mechanisms have therefore been usually interpreted in terms of ionic collector adsorption and competition with ionic depressants of the same sign as the collector. A few attempts have been made, however, to consider adsorption of neutral collector molecules. Contact angle measurements obtained by Wark and cox3 have been interpreted by Cook and Nixon4 as representing adsorption of the free acid molecules on sulfide minerals such as pyrite, galena, chalcopyrite, and sphalerite. Cook and Nixon tried to show that the free acid concentration of the collector was substantially constant along the curves relating collector addition and minimum pH for bubble adherence. However, in a review of the subject,5 Sutherland presented new data on the flotation of pyrite with mercaptobenzothiazole which did not support the hypothesis of constant concentration of either collector ions or collector free molecules. He further showed that, with the assumption of constant occupation of surface sites, both theories lead to relations between pH and collector addition having similar mathematical expressions. In fact, with the more likely assumption of variable occupation of surface sites which results in more complex relationships, it appears impossible to

Jan 1, 1968

By J. R. Low, M. Gensamer

During the course of an investigation into the drawability of automobile-body sheet steel, it became apparent that certain advantages would be possessed by a deep-drawing steel with a very low yield strength, but almost normal tensile strength, provided a reduction in yield strength could be accomplished without sacrifice of ductility and fine grain size. It would also be desirable to have this steel free from strain-aging; that is, free from the tendency for the yield point to return after it had been eliminated by straining. It was known that, wet hydrogen treatment acted to eliminate aging, but as carried out by other investigators, at relatively high temperatures, this treatment resulted in grain coarsening. It has been established by some of the experiments reported in this paper that all of these objectives can be accomplished by treatment in wet hydrogen at a low temperature, in the neighborhood of 72o°C. The time of treatment is relatively short (about 3 hr, to completion with 20-gauge sheet) if the water content of the hydrogen atmosphere is made fairly high, say aimost 30 per cent by volume. At this temperature. the grain size remains fine in the time required. After this treatment sheet reduced the usual amount by cold-rolling has a grain size of about A.S.T.M. No. 7. The yield point is completely eliminated, and the yield strength is reduced to a very low value, in the neighborhood of 15,000 lb. per sq. in. The stress-strain curve departs gradually from the straight-line elastic part after the fashion of nonferrous deep-drawing alloys. This elimination of the yield point is accompanied by a verv low indentation hardness; for example, 32 Rockwell B or even lower. There is no aging as measured by increase in the yield strength upon aging at room temperature or for 3 hr. at 200°C., after stretching about 10 per cent in tension. Tensile strength is only slightly less than the box-annealed sheet, seldom dropping much below 40,-ooo lb. per sq. in. Elongation is practically unchanged, or increased slightly. The term yield point, as here used, refers to the phenomenon of heterogeneous deformation occurring at a substantiallv constant load, observed principally in annealed low-carbon steels. If such a steel is loaded in tension, the load increases steadily with elastic strain, suddenly falls, fluctuates slightly about some constant value for a time and then begins to rise again as deformation proceeds. The maximum initial load before the sudden drop is generally called the "upper yield point"; the value of the load where deformation proceeds at a

Jan 1, 1944

By J. R. Low, M. Gensamer

During the course of an investigation into the drawability of automobile-body sheet steel, it became apparent that certain advantages would be possessed by a deep-drawing steel with a very low yield strength, but almost normal tensile strength, provided a reduction in yield strength could be accomplished without sacrifice of ductility and fine grain size. It would also be desirable to have this steel free from strain-aging; that is, free from the tendency for the yield point to return after it had been eliminated by straining. It was known that, wet hydrogen treatment acted to eliminate aging, but as carried out by other investigators, at relatively high temperatures, this treatment resulted in grain coarsening. It has been established by some of the experiments reported in this paper that all of these objectives can be accomplished by treatment in wet hydrogen at a low temperature, in the neighborhood of 72o°C. The time of treatment is relatively short (about 3 hr, to completion with 20-gauge sheet) if the water content of the hydrogen atmosphere is made fairly high, say aimost 30 per cent by volume. At this temperature. the grain size remains fine in the time required. After this treatment sheet reduced the usual amount by cold-rolling has a grain size of about A.S.T.M. No. 7. The yield point is completely eliminated, and the yield strength is reduced to a very low value, in the neighborhood of 15,000 lb. per sq. in. The stress-strain curve departs gradually from the straight-line elastic part after the fashion of nonferrous deep-drawing alloys. This elimination of the yield point is accompanied by a verv low indentation hardness; for example, 32 Rockwell B or even lower. There is no aging as measured by increase in the yield strength upon aging at room temperature or for 3 hr. at 200°C., after stretching about 10 per cent in tension. Tensile strength is only slightly less than the box-annealed sheet, seldom dropping much below 40,-ooo lb. per sq. in. Elongation is practically unchanged, or increased slightly. The term yield point, as here used, refers to the phenomenon of heterogeneous deformation occurring at a substantiallv constant load, observed principally in annealed low-carbon steels. If such a steel is loaded in tension, the load increases steadily with elastic strain, suddenly falls, fluctuates slightly about some constant value for a time and then begins to rise again as deformation proceeds. The maximum initial load before the sudden drop is generally called the "upper yield point"; the value of the load where deformation proceeds at a

Jan 1, 1944

By William P. Lohden

INTRODUCTION It is recognized that, for a variety of reasons, some companies in the mineral industry today are by no means cash-rich and, in fact, are reporting a growing proportion of long-term debt in their capital structures. A review of recent balance sheets of small, medium-size, and some larger companies, indicates that a fair number still have substantial positions in cash equivalents such as U.S. government issues and other short-term money market instruments. In part, this paper concerns itself with companies which have sufficient cash and equivalents and/or cash generation to internally finance mining projects or expansions but which, for some reason, choose to borrow funds. Misconceptions which appear to frequently underlie so-called "leveraging" decisions are explored in this paper. Also considered arc' those circumstances under which any company, including one that is cash rich, should consider borrowing for a project in an amount beyond what would otherwise be necessary based upon its internal financing ability. I do not attempt to cover the raising of equity capital in public markets in this paper. OVERALL RETURN ON INVESTABLE CASH If you approach an individual with an investment which can be financed from savings, or by borrowing at a rate higher than one is earning on savings, that individual will quickly tell you that to pay interest at a rate higher than is being earned on savings would reduce overall income. Assuming that additional investment opportunities are not currently being considered, the individual concludes that a draw-down on savings, leaving a cushion for contingencies suited to individual circumstances, is the correct financial decision. For reasons discussed later, the simple mathematical logic leading to this conclusion tends to become obscured at the corporate level. When Leveraged Studies Are Inappropriate or Premature Surprisingly, I have heard of a number of companies that could afford to finance an investment solely with internal funds, which have made DCFROR (i.e. discounted-cash-flow rate-of-return) studies not only on a 100% equity basis but also on a leveraged basis. Certainly, a leveraged study would be appropriate if additional projects were competing for more capital than was available internally. Often, however, other projects are not far enough along to warrant a leveraged study and there is some danger that a project may be undertaken because it has an estimated acceptable rate of return, on a leveraged basis, that is not ultimately earned because some of the other projects are postponed or abandoned and borrowing is less than expected. For the above reasons, until it has been determined that (1) borrowing is a reasonable certainty for a particular project and (2) the timing and amount to be borrowed has been determined within a reasonable range of accuracy, I believe it is inappropriate and misleading to calculate DCFROR for a project other than on a 100% equity basis. Even when there are several projects currently competing for funds and borrowing will be required to finance one or more of them, using the common yardstick of calculating DCFROR on a 100% equity basis is a safer method to initially evaluate and compare the attractiveness of the projects. Many companies, whether they would have to borrow or not, will reject projects that on a 100% equity basis do not meet their minimum rate of return standards. Some companies which have to borrow will undertake a project provided the project's DCFROR on a leveraged basis meets its minimum return standards. The danger of this approach is that even moderate shrinkages of estimated cash flows could plunge return below

Jan 1, 1985

By E. R. Shorey

FLOTATION-Mill operator's have recognized that slimes are detri-mental to the flotation concentration of zinc ores. The, presence of primary slime in many of the Wisconsin ores is largely responsible for the failures experienced in treating these ores by flotation. These failures have discouraged the adoption-of the flotation process by opera-tors in the Wisconsin zinc district. The removal of slimes by decantation seemed to be the obvious way to meet the problem of treating slimy or' clayey ores by flotation. To facilitate the removal of slime, it was decided to mix the ore pulp with sodium silicate, which acts to deflocculate the pulp.1 Deflocculation causes slime suspension, making it possible to separate the slime from the sands by decantation.2 Since the literature contains little definite information on the use of sodium silicate to deflocculate ore pulps, a series of tests was conducted to obtain the necessary information. Tests to determine the settling rates of sand and slime in deflocculated pulps were conducted on a dolomite-marcasite-sphalerite ore ground to minus 80 mesh (175 microns) and mixed with water to form a pulp. The deflocculator3 was Mallinckrodt 40° to 42.5° Bé. liquid sodium silicate (Na20 + 3.25Si02). .By microscopic analysis the suspended slimes4 were found to be minus 15 microns (approximately 1000 mesh).

Jan 1, 1934

By Gary E. Melickian

Last year's review was characterized as a year of politics and began an era of legislation. The 1972 review can be similarly characterized, with even more rigid health and safety regulations and environmental legislation. The mining industry should be aware of what's happening in the nuclear power and other fields as a result of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, where the environmental impact of most major construction activities are already under close scrutiny. Section 102 of NEPA requires that all federal agencies include a detailed statement on specified environmental conditions as part of every report on proposed actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment. All such environmental reports must consider the same general conditions: • The environmental impact of the proposed action. • Any adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided should the proposal be implemented. • Alternatives to the proposed action. • The relationship between local short-term uses of man's environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productivity. • Any irreversible and irretrievable commitments of resources which would be involved in the proposed action should it be implemented.

Jan 2, 1973

By D. J. Blickwede

WHEN iron is dipped in molten zinc at temperatures in the range 840" to 930°F, the two metals react to form layers of Fe-Zn compounds which adhere to the iron. At the galvanizing tem- perature, the successive layers are:' y (Fe5Zn21), 61 (FeZn;), and 5 (FeZn13), in conformity with the Fe-Zn constitution diagram. There is no quantitative information in the literature on the rates of growth of the individual alloy layers over the temperature range 840° to 930°F. Rather all the past experiments have studied the loss in weight of iron as a function of galvanizing

Jan 1, 1954

By P. Somasundaran, K. P. Ananthapadmanabhan

A knowledge of the role of effects and interactions of chemical species is important in developing an understanding of the behavior of mixed minerals and natural ores in beneficiation processes such as flotation and flocculation. In this study the role of such species was examined for the calcite-apatite system by conducting flotation of each mineral in various supernatants prepared by mixing with water. Supernatants of apatite and even that of calcite depressed the flotation of calcite markedly in the pH range of 5 to 13. Addition of Ca(NO3)2, K2C03, and K3P04 also produced definite effects under various pH conditions. Apatite flotation was also affected by the mineral supernatants and by carbonate and phosphate solutions. The results are analyzed in terms of the surfactant's solubility properties and the mineral's electrochemical and dissolution properties. While depression of calcite flotation by the dissolved species is found to be governed by depletion of oleate by bulk precipitation, the depression of apatite flotation is caused by the carbonate and phosphate species in the system. Turbidity measurements and a thermodynamic analysis of possible interactions in the system support these considerations. The effect of the supernatant of minerals on their own flotation suggests the important role of kinetics of various surface interactions in comparison to that of mineral dissolution.

Jan 1, 1985

By Colin Rae

THE absence of paraffin and other oil hydrocarbons in the soil, although they are concentrated in extensive deposits in some localities, the common distribution of plant remains through many formations that .are not productive for oil, and many other factors, seem to indicate the existence of an intermediate organic compound between the complex plant compounds and the petroleum hydrocarbons; and much evidence points to the humus acids or associated organic compounds, which are probably collected by surface waters and concentrated in certain areas by means of precipitation by electrolytes, which would be contained in sea water or possibly in various inland seas or lakes. PRESENT-DAY EVIDENCE There are many present-day evidences of the association of petroleum with humus acids. Binney, in 1912, made observations without explanations on the peat mosses of Down Holland, England, where he found petroleum being formed by decomposition, in the presence of an infiltration of sea water. The analysis of a typical peat will show its relationship to the humus acids under consideration. SAMPLE 'No. 1, SAMPLE NO. 2, PER CENT. PER CENT. Water : 20.0 29.5 Ash 3.0 3.05 Fiber 47.0 54.95 Humus acids 30:0 12.50 J. D. Haseman and others have noted the association of asphalt and hydrocarbons with the swampy, boggy areas, particularly adjacent to the sea.

Jan 2, 1922

By G. R. Purdy, J. A. Malcolm

The isothermal dendritic precipitation of y in p CuZnSn is compared with the isothermal formation of Widmanstatten a plates in p CuZn. Although both precipitates are evidently bounded by semicoherent interfaces, the dendritic shape of y evolves through smooth "sinuoidal" shape perturbations, while a-p interfaces tend to be strictly planar, or rnicroscopically faceted. An estimate of the average inter-facial free energy of cube-oriented y in p through the Mullins-Sekerka analysis indicates that it is low (of the order of 50 ergs per sq cm). Interface mication is apparently controlled by volunle dij'usion, and the observed anisotropy in growth probably results from anisotropy of inter facial free energy. Studies of the grain boundary precipitation of y in p indicate that the precipitate can grow in both $ grains, but becomes unstable with respect to the grain with which it shares a mobile semicoherent interface. Facets observed at the tips of Kurdjumov-Sacks-oriented Wid-manstatten a plates correspond to variants of an irrational hahit, near (231)0. Comparison with Hu and Smith's determination of relative interfacial free energies of a-(3 boundaries suggests that this system possesses an extremely deep o cup, which results in an ej'ective low-o zone. The possible effects of such a cup on the stability of a-p interfaces are discussed, a needles, grown during rapid continuous cooling, possess microscopically smooth interfaces, and are characterized by a high degree of' damage in the region of the boundaries. These boundaries, induced to move on tempering at 200"C, become faceted as equilibrium is approached, which seems to indicate that boundary structure and mobility in this system are dependent on the local degvee of departure from equilibrium MULLINS and sekerkal have elucidated the phase boundary stabilizing effect of surface tension. a factor not taken into account in previous treatments of morphological development. Their analysis applies to the isothermal growth of a pure spherical precipitate (planar in the limit of infinite radius) in a slightly supersaturated solution, under conditions of inter-facial local equilibrium and isotropy of interfacial free energy. More recently, several other factors which might tend to stabilize planar interfaces have received attention. These are: i) interface diffusion;4"8 and ii) slow interfacial reaction. cahn7 included a slight anisotropy in interfacial free energy, and showed that it has no stabilizing effect, but forces shape perturbations to reflect the anisotropy. shewmon4 noted that dendritic morphologies are rarely observed in solid-solid systems, and, in particular, postulated that slow interfacial reaction occurs at all boundaries between proeutectoid ferrite and austenite, except those which propagate parallel to {11 l)y planes (for Kurdjumov-Sachs [K-S] related phases). Previously, Aaronson~ had proposed interfacial reaction at the broad faces of Widmanstatten plates, and expected that the lateral motion of high-mobility incoherent ledge edges would produce planar precipitates bounded by law-mobility semi-coherent interfaces. The problem of interfacial reaction during the dif-fusional formation of precipitates has often been ignored, although it is apparent that a small component of chemical reaction must exist at any moving interface." Further, all solutions of the diffusion equations for boundary conditions corresponding to isothermal growth predict infinite growth rate at time zero, so that elements of interfacial reaction would be most easily detected at early times. However, reported deviations from diffusion control are comparatively rare," and the local-equilibrium diffusion-control model appears adequate for the description of many isothermal growth systems.'2"9 Cahn14 has treated the problem of migration of an interface which is able to reach positional energy minima, and concluded that such an interface, if subjected to a high local ther-modynamic "driving force", may migrate normal to itself without the benefit of ledges. As local equi-

Jan 1, 1968

By William Fink

Two of the aluminum-alloy systems previously studied-the alumi-num-titanium and the aluminum-chromium-exhibit a peritectic reaction at the extreme aluminum end of the diagram. Preliminary work indi-cated that the aluminum-zirconium and certain other aluminum systems were similar in this respect. The present paper, the twentieth of a series from the Aluminum Research Laboratories, reports the results of a recent investigation of equilibrium relations in aluminum-zirconium alloys of high purity, which confirm the preliminary observations. PREVIOUS INVESTIGATIONS There has been only one investigation of the aluminum end of the aluminum-zirconium system. Sykes1 prepared and studied alloys containing 0 to 70 per cent Zr. The lowering of the freezing point of aluminum by the addition of zirconium was found to be very little, if any (less than 2°C.). He placed the solid solubility of zirconium in aluminum at room temperature between 0.57 and 0.97 per cent. A few other investigators have attempted to determine the com-position of the intermetallic compounds occurring in this system. Hönigschmid2 obtained the compound ZrAl3 as a by-product during the preparation of ZrSi2. He made no attempt to prepare other aluminum-zir-conium compounds. Weiss and Newmann3 prepared an alloy by heating aluminum with a double fluoride of potassium and zirconium. When this alloy was treated consecutively with caustic soda and hydrochloric acid, there was a residue, which contained approximately 72 per cent Zr and 28 per cent Al (Zr3Al4). Marden and Rich4 prepared an alloy in the same way, treated it with caustic soda, and obtained a residue of silver-white crystals, which contained 70 per cent Zr and 30 per cent Al (Zr3Al4).

Jan 1, 1939