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By L. L. Newman

As soon as the Congress recognized the alarming rate at which our domestic oil resources were being depleted during the war, it took action to step up the rate of research and development which the Bureau of Mines had been conducting for several years on the production of synthetic liquid fuels from coals. Under Public Law 290, approved April 5, 1944, funds were authorized for the Bureau to proceed with research, development, design and construction of demonstration plants for the hydrogenation of coal, the synthesis of oil from carbon monoxide and hydrogen, and the distillation of oil from shale. During the latter part of 1944, when it became evident that the collapse of Germany was near, a Technical Oil Mission was organized to study the German techniques of synthetic oil production. Since the cost of hydrogen or synthesis gas is one of the major factors of expense in the operation of hydrogenation or synthesis gas processes, the Bureau of Mines considered it of prime importance to include on the mission gas engineers whose instructions were to examine closely the methods employed by the Germans in solving the problem of providing low-cost hydrogen or synthesis gas for their very extensive operations on synthetic liquid fuels. The Solid Fuels Mission and the Utilities Mission, as well as the Army and Navy Missions, also included teams for the study of German gas production. Although their objectives naturally differed from those of the Technical Oil Mission and from each other, it was recognized that there was considerable overlapping of their fields of investigation. Duplication of effort, however, was largely avoided through the close cooperation between the group leaders of these missions. For example, although I went to Europe as a member of the Technical Oil Mission, my first Gcrman assignment was actually made by Dr. Harry F. Yancey, leader of the Solid Fuels Mission— to investigate the brown-coal gasification methods in central Germany. The art of gasification in the United States and England, and to a large extent in the proximity of the coking-coal regions of Germany and the rest of continental Europe, depends essentially on two stages of operation; namely, carbonization and intermittent water-gas generation. As far as the United States is concerned, complete gasification in a single stage of operation is rarely practiced, except in gas-producer operations where the product is a relatively lean gas consumed close to the point of manufacture, and for water-gas production with anthracite as a generator fuel. Complete gasification of bituminous coal has been the subject of numerous investigations. Many relatively simple modifications of the water-gas generator have been tried to permit the direct gasification of low-cost bituminous coal instead of high-cost coke and anthracite for the production of water gas. Although varying degrees of Success have been achieved and the water gas produced generally has been higher in

Jan 1, 1947

By L. L. Newman

As soon as the Congress recognized the alarming rate at which our domestic oil resources were being depleted during the war, it took action to step up the rate of research and development which the Bureau of Mines had been conducting for several years on the production of synthetic liquid fuels from coals. Under Public Law 290, approved April 5, 1944, funds were authorized for the Bureau to proceed with research, development, design and construction of demonstration plants for the hydrogenation of coal, the synthesis of oil from carbon monoxide and hydrogen, and the distillation of oil from shale. During the latter part of 1944, when it became evident that the collapse of Germany was near, a Technical Oil Mission was organized to study the German techniques of synthetic oil production. Since the cost of hydrogen or synthesis gas is one of the major factors of expense in the operation of hydrogenation or synthesis gas processes, the Bureau of Mines considered it of prime importance to include on the mission gas engineers whose instructions were to examine closely the methods employed by the Germans in solving the problem of providing low-cost hydrogen or synthesis gas for their very extensive operations on synthetic liquid fuels. The Solid Fuels Mission and the Utilities Mission, as well as the Army and Navy Missions, also included teams for the study of German gas production. Although their objectives naturally differed from those of the Technical Oil Mission and from each other, it was recognized that there was considerable overlapping of their fields of investigation. Duplication of effort, however, was largely avoided through the close cooperation between the group leaders of these missions. For example, although I went to Europe as a member of the Technical Oil Mission, my first Gcrman assignment was actually made by Dr. Harry F. Yancey, leader of the Solid Fuels Mission— to investigate the brown-coal gasification methods in central Germany. The art of gasification in the United States and England, and to a large extent in the proximity of the coking-coal regions of Germany and the rest of continental Europe, depends essentially on two stages of operation; namely, carbonization and intermittent water-gas generation. As far as the United States is concerned, complete gasification in a single stage of operation is rarely practiced, except in gas-producer operations where the product is a relatively lean gas consumed close to the point of manufacture, and for water-gas production with anthracite as a generator fuel. Complete gasification of bituminous coal has been the subject of numerous investigations. Many relatively simple modifications of the water-gas generator have been tried to permit the direct gasification of low-cost bituminous coal instead of high-cost coke and anthracite for the production of water gas. Although varying degrees of Success have been achieved and the water gas produced generally has been higher in

Jan 1, 1947

By John Wulff, Robert Kamm, M. A. Steinberg

IN a previous paper1 from this laboratory, the development of a lead grid method for exploring the distribution of strain and density within metal powder compacts was described, In that work thin lead foil with rectangular holes cut at regular intervals was inserted with the powder fill, the arrangement pressed and then radiographed to permit measurement of the deformation of the lead grid. Densities at each grid element obtained in this manner were plotted as a function of the die dimensions. From such plots it was, found that the densest part of a compact pressed from one side (the top) is at the top outer region and the least dense at the bottom outer region -of the specimen. The axial density maximum occurs more often nearer the bottom than at the top. As a result of such exploratory measurements, it appeared reasonable to conclude that variations in density could be attributed in the main to die wall friction. Thus compacts of large diameter appeared relatively uniform in density except where the die fill had been uneven. Finally it was found that lubrication of the finely finished die cavity contributed more to magnitude and uniformity of density within the compact than interparticle lubrication. Since publication of the above results, it was found that circular-hole grids could be more accurately made and, when deformed within the powder, more readily measured and analyzed. Much of the former work was repeated and new results which include the effect of lubrication, compact height, pressure, speed of pressing and vacuum pressing are reported in the present paper. CIRCULAR-HOLE GRIDS AND ANALYSES OF RADIOGRAPHS Commercial lead sheet 0.008 in. in thickness was used in all the work reported. The 0.0938-in. diam holes were punched in the sheet on 1/8-in, centers to an accuracy of 0.001 in. The finished grid used contained eight or more holes in a row and from I to 24 rows. The lead sheet was clamped between two pairs of brass strips bolted to a small milling machine table which was itself bolted to a bench in correct position near a vise which held the punch. Travel of the lead grid in two dimensions was controlled by two steel lead screws calibrated in 0.001-in. divisions. A stripper plate was used on the punch to avoid distortion of the lead foil. A high carbon-high chromium (chrocar) one-piece steel die was used throughout the work. The die cavity was 1,125 in. in diam and the clearance between plungers and die wall was 0.001 in, The die was also used for pressing from both ends with two long plungers. Finally, lapping of die and plungers gave a surface whose rms value on an Abbot profilometer was 5 micro-in. The die walls and plungers were, except where otherwise noted, lubricated with a stearic acid suspension in benzene. This was put on in multiple layers and allowed to dry before filling the die.

Jan 1, 1948

By R. B. Hoy, Stanley J. LeFond, K. Reckling

Reported world production of natural diamonds approximates 40,000,000 carats a year (1980). The Republic of Zaire is the leading producer, with an output which is primarily industrial rather than gem grade. The USSR ranks second, the Republic of South Africa third, and Botswana, fourth. Diamonds are also mined in South-West Africa (Namibia), Angola, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and other African countries. In the western hemisphere, Brazil and Venezuela are the principal producers (Fig. 1). A very small output of diamonds is mined today it India, which was the first source of commercial production. In the US, efforts at commercial diamond mining have been confined to a small area near Murfreesboro, AR. The first diamond was found in a kimberlite pipe there in 1906. Small-scale trial mining has not, however, proved economical. Since diamonds were first discovered over 2,000 years ago, only about 260 tons have been mined. In order to obtain I g (5 carats) of diamonds, it is necessary to remove and process approximately 25 tons of rock. Recovering this small percentage involves a combination of highly developed techniques in mining, quarrying, and earth-moving, and extremely sophisticated recovery processes. End Uses Diamonds are used for two unrelated end uses; gem diamonds are jewels of great beauty while industrial diamonds are essential materials of modern industry. Although imitation stones are substituted for the gem diamond, none of these matches its properties sufficiently well to offer real competition. Synthetic industrial diamonds are now of a quality and size that permit them to be substituted for natural diamond in numerous industrial applications. For example, synthetic diamonds are available today in sizes up to 100 stones per carat (14/16 US mesh size). In addition, polycrystalline synthetic diamond inserts, such as De Beers Syndite®, General Electric's Compax® and Stratapax® and Megadiamond's Megapax® have replaced natural diamond in turning tools, mining and oil drilling bits and dressing tool applications. Gem Diamonds A diamond is a natural prism. It has the ability to bounce light rays (reflection), to bend them (refraction), and to break them into all colors of the rainbow (dispersion). This ability to modify light gives the diamond three characteristics for providing beauty. First is brilliance, the reflection of light back to the eye. Second is fire, dispersion of light into the colors of the spectrum. Third is scintillation, the "twinkling" that occurs when the diamond is moved (Bauer, 1969). The skill of the diamond cutter is required to unlock the brilliant, fiery beauty of a gem diamond (Fisher, 1966). Diamond-cutting skills have gradually developed over the centuries. The first cutters, in India, learned how to grind one rough diamond against another to remove their "skins" and to give them various shapes. This revealed some fire and beauty, but little compared to that of the diamonds that are cut today.

Jan 1, 1983

By E. C. Carris

THE loading of bituminous coal mechan¬ically was recognized about the year 1900, but during the following 28 years less than 5 per cent of the bituminous pro¬duction in the United States was loaded by mechanical means. During the past i6 years, however, the usage of some form of mechanical loader has had a very rapid and accelerated growth, until at present production of bituminous coal by mechanical means has reached an all¬time high of approximately 46 per cent, and is still increasing. This rapid growth in the use of the mechanical loader has been supplemented by an increase in mechanical cleaning. The importance of mechanical cleaning of coal was recognized many years before the mechanical loader was introduced, because of the impossibility of cleaning manually the sizes below 2 in., and the increasing competition from other fuels. Utilization of mechanical loaders without mechanical cleaning on the surface for at least one or more sizes is the exception, rather than the rule. One exception is a mine that employs caterpillar-mounted mobile loaders exclusively, and mines the entire seam without any selectivity, and yet loads and ships six grades of coal of the very highest quality without mechanical cleaning. Such a fortunate situation can exist only where mining conditions are ideal, where top and bottom are exceptional and there are no impurity partings, and where there is loader height. The conversion from hand loading to mechanical loading has definitely intro¬duced many problems in the preparation plant of yesterday and in the modern streamline plant as well. Many of these problems have been solved by good, sound, conscientious initiative on the part of the plant personnel, with minor expendi¬tures; the solution taking the pattern of rearranging and improving the equipment at hand. Other problems have caused, and are causing, considerable concern and difficulty. LARGE IMPURITIES The removal of large quantities of large impurities from the lump coal, and their handling and disposal, is definitely a troublesome and costly problem. The cost of manually removing the impurities from the picking table alone, based on the actual recovered lump coal, can reach a cost of 42 cents per ton or more. In the design of future plants it would be wise to give this phase of preparation considerably more time and thought, particularly if the seam of coal contains one or more heavy partings and the mining procedure is all seam. This same caution applies to seams that may not contain heavy partings but have poor and heavy draw-slate top, which falls with the coal during the mining cycle. One of the more recent of the modern preparation plants has answered this problem by installing a rock crusher under the picking table in such a manner that the impurities can be diverted by gravity directly to the crusher. This reduces the

Jan 1, 1946

By H. K. Work, G. H. Enzian

In the manufacture of steel for commercial purposes, the deoxidation practice used, i.e., the method and degree of deoxidation, is an important factor affecting the structure and mechanical properties of the finished steel. Deoxidation practice exerts a pronounced influence not only on the soundness of the ingots but also on the reaction of the steel to a number of mechanical and thermal treatments. The first mentioned effect of deoxidation is more or less obvious and was first demonstrated, though perhaps not fully appreciated, by Robert Mushet when, in 1856, he added speigeleisen to low-carbon bessemer blown metal. In 1861. Bessemer patented the addition of one pound per ton of silicon to his blown metal to "cause the metal to lie quietly in the mold." The second effect of deoxidation-—that is, the effect on the properties and behavior of the steel—is, one might say, more subtle, and certainly not as well understood as the first, although in many cases it is the more important consideration. This paper is limited to a discussion of only the second effect of deoxidation and: in particular, to the effect on the strain-sensitivity of low-carbon steels. General Discussion Originally it was thought that the function of a deoxidizer was to combine with the oxygen present in the steel as iron oxide and prevent its subsequent evolution as a gas. -More recently it has been realized that a deoxidizer does more than this. Frequent reference has been made to the effect of deoxidizers on the nitrogen in the steel, and some attention has also been paid to hydrogen. As a consequence of the above situation any study of deoxidation must be concerned with the gas content of the steel and the effect of the deoxidizer on the gases involved. The term "gas content" as used here refers to gases extracted from steel during melting in vacuum rather than to elements present in steel in the gaseous state. The extracted gases, at least in the case of oxygen and nitrogen, are generally accepted to be products of decomposition of oxides, nitrides, or other more complex compounds. The manner in which deoxidation affects the gas content of steel and the significance of gases in steel have been and still are subjects of considerable speculation. No attempt will be made here to give a complete discussion of the literature on this subject but a few references will be cited for purposes of illustration. N. Hamilton1 found a correlation between the oxygen content of alloy steel and the behavior of the steel during tube piercing. Davenport, Bain, and others associated oxygen with aging properties of steel while Köster5 and a number of others6-lo made similar claims for nitrogen. Daniloff, Mehl, and Hertyll stated that "deoxidation decreases the susceptibility of steels to aging directly

Jan 1, 1945

By Young D. R, Webb I. D

The hydro-chlorination of Fe2O3 and Fe304 has been investigated in the range 850-950¦C in order to elucidate the role of iron in the segregation process for nickeliferous laterites. The kinetics of Fe203 chlorination using 20% HC1 - 80% N2 gas mixtures is consistent with a single-stage structure control model, whereas Fe3O 4 exhibits a two-stage reaction mechanism. Oxygen potential measurements using a CSZ probe located above the bed and X-ray powder diffraction results confirm the proposed reaction scheme. When a serpentine nickeliferous laterite (1.03% Ni - 11.7% Fe) was chlorinated at 900¦C with a 20% HCl - 80% N2 gas mixture it was found that the iron oxide in the ore was extracted in a similar manner to the synthetic iron oxides. Also, it was found that the nickel extraction from the ore paralleled that of the iron and the tests indicated that for the major part of the extraction, the solid nickel species were in equilibrium with the gas phase. The recovery of nickel from laterite ores by the segregation process has been investigated by a number of workers and several extensive reviews of the literature associated with this field have been published (Iwasaki, 1972; Canterford, 1975; Wright, 1973).

Jan 1, 1987

By E. V. Potter, E. T. Hayes, H. C. Lukens

Large volumes of hydrogen are liberated at the cathode during electrolytic precipitation of manganese. Most of the gas escapes from the electrolyte, but a considerable amount may be entrapped in the manganese plate. Gas has been observed to escape from manganese melts in puffs that bite at the surface. It has been reported that castings made with electrolytic manganese tend to rise in the molds; for this reason the manganese is often treated to remove hydrogen before the melt is made or it is premelted and used as cast manganese in making the alloys. The effect of hydrogen on the properties of manganese and its alloys is not known, but its effect on iron and iron alloys has been studied extensively.l.2 The close relationship between iron and manganese suggests that hydrogen may have a similar effect on the properties of manganese and its alloys. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the amount of hydrogen or other gases in typical commercial electrolytic manganese sheet and to investigate ways of removing it most conveniently. Apparatus The apparatus used is shown schematically in Fig. I. It consists of a chamber A in which the metal sample is placed, a vacuum or pressure gauge B, volume gauge C, vacuum pump D, hydrogen container E, auxiliary gas chamber F, and furnace G. The specimen chamber was made of two concentric quartz tubes. The outer one, a, connects with the closed gas system and is surrounded by the furnace G. A second tube, b, fits closely inside a and has a small end that projects into the space for the specimen and holds the thermocouple for measuring the temperature of the sample. The inner tube is joined to the outer tube outside the furnace, with rubber tape and sealing wax, to prevent gas leakage into or out of the closed system. This type of specimen container is loaded very easily and can be used several times if molten metal does not come in contact with the quartz. An ordinary mercury manometer B is used to measure the pressure in the system. The volume gauge C is essentially another mercury manometer, but the volume of the column is much larger than normal and the height of the mercury can be varied by raising or lowering the well H. In this apparatus the tube had a volume of IOO C.C. for a 60-cm. length. For larger changes in gas volumes, auxiliary containers F were used to increase the volume of the system by known amounts. Valves were arranged so that these auxiliary containers could be filled from the system and evacuated by the pump as often as necessary to accommodate the increases in the volume of gas in the system. The furnace G, used to heat the samples, was equipped with an automatic temperature controller, which maintained the desired temperatures within ± 5°C.

Jan 1, 1945

By F. F. Aplan

INTRODUCTION The production of coal is a major part of the mining industry. In recent years the production of clean coal has exceeded 600 million tons per year and is reported to have reached 660 million tons in 1977. Some data on the magnitude and utilization for the year 1975 is given in Table I. In that year 648 million tons of soft coal were produced and of this 267 million tons or 41% approximately was produced by mechanical cleaning. Of the 374 million tons of raw coal sent to the preparation plant, 28.6% or 107 million tons was discarded as refuse. In the same year approximately 6 million tons of anthracite were produced and nearly all of this was cleaned. Table I also gives coal utilization statistics for 1975. Excluding the approximately 20% that goes to the coke ovens or to export, the vast bulk of our production is used for steam power generation and a lesser amount for captive production of industrial power and process steam. While much of the nation's coal (e.g. strip mined western, sub-bituminous coal) may be removed from the ground in relatively pure form by modest selective mining techniques, other coal requires preparation in order to remove ash and sulfur constituents and produce an acceptable steam or coking coal. Preparation is often a valuable adjunct to mining in that rather non-selective, low cost, bulk mining techniques may be used underground while the preparation plant is used to reject refuse at low cost above ground. The principal reason for the use of coal preparation is to convert raw coal into an acceptable commercial product by removing the high ash and high sulfur refuse material.

Jan 1, 1979

By O. P. Arora, M. Metzger, G. R. Ramagopal

Single-phase aluminum containing 0.0001 to 0.06 pct Cu was studied in strong acid, mainly through observations of hydrogen evolution. The strong influence of copper was exerted almost entirely through the imposition after a certain delay time of an auto-catalytic localized-corrosiott reaction. Additions of cupric ion to the acid produced lower accelerations. The significance of the quantity and distribution of copper was discussed, and the implications for intergranular corrosion and neutral chloride pitting were indicated. AN investigation of intergranular corrosion in single-phase high purity aluminum exposed to hydrochloric acid indicated the copper content of the metal to have an influence on corrosion at lower levels than previously suspected.&apos; The work reported here was a closer examination of the action of copper but dealt with general corrosion to gain the advantage of having a continuous measure of corrosion through the volume of hydrogen evolved, the reduction of hydrogen ion to hydrogen gas being the principal or only cathode reaction in strong hydrochloric acid. Previous work on the hydrochloric acid corrosion of aluminum was sometimes insufficiently structure-conscious and the need for care in evaluating it arises from the low solubility of the iron impurity,&apos; and of some alloying elements, and the known or possible presence in many of the compositions studied of second phases leading to greatly increased corrosion rates.3 These increases are attributed to the presence of low hydrogen-overvoltage cathodes provided by the second phase.3&apos;4 For the present single-phase work, a few studies which used high-purity base material and small copper additions5-&apos; provide the essential information most unambiguously. The corrosion rate was shown to be increased markedly by the introduction into the acid of small quantities of the ions of copper (and of certain other metals) which cement on the aluminum and provide cathodes of low overvoltage.5 When there was sufficient copper in the aluminum, the same result was produced during the course of corrosion leading to a rate which increased with time as the reaction was stimulated by one of its products (autocatalytic reaction). In 2N (7pct) HC1, an accelerating rate was observed at 0.1 pct Cu but not at 0.01 pct.5,7 The present work dealt with corrosion rate and morphology and their correlation with the quantity and distribution of copper catalyst for copper contents from 0.0001 to 0.06 pct. PROCEDURE A lot of high-purity aluminum containing 0.0021 pct Cu, 0.001 pct Fe and 0.003 pct Si (Alloy A) was alloyed with copper to yield aluminum containing 0.014 pct Cu (B) and 0.06 pct Cu (C). Later it was found necessary to include the lower copper Alloy K which contained 0.0001 pct Cu, 0.0004 pct Fe and 0.0004 pct Si. The upper limit for any other element can be confidently estimated as 0.0005 pct. No element other than copper appears to be present in quantities sufficient to have an effect on general corrosion as great as the observed effect of the copper in A, B, and C. The only other heavy metal detected by spectrographic examination was silver (< 0.0001 pct). The acid was made up from a selected lot of 37 1/2 pct CP hydrochloric acid containing 0.1 ppm heavy metals (mainly Pb), 0.05 ppm Fe, and < 0.008 ppm As and from water distilled from 1 megohm-cm demineralized water and believed to have contained negligible quantities of heavy metals influencing corrosion. Acid strength was adjusted to within 0.05 pct HCl of the stated value by using precision specific gravity measurements. Test blanks 10 by 41 mm were sheared from 1.65-mm cold-rolled sheet. Edges were finished by filing. The blanks were annealed in air at 645°C for 24 hr in alundum boats and rapidly water quenched. The anneal is thought to have produced a substantially homogeneous solid solution—for iron, copper, or silicon, for example, the annealing temperature was 200°C or more above the solvus-and the quench is considered to have preserved the high-temperature structure except for the condensation of lattice vacancies into dislocation loops.&apos; The 0.06 pct Cu alloy did not appear unstable in respect to slow precipitation reactions at room temperature since two pairs of tests failed to show significant differences between specimens heat treated 3 1/2 years earlier and specimens heat treated 1 or 2 days before.

Jan 1, 1962

By Carmine D. &apos, Lemuel Tarshis, Joel Hirschhorn, Antonio

Vapor-deposited nickel films in the thickness range 700 to 4360A were tested in uniaxial tension utilizing a microtester designed specifically for this study. Contrary to the findings of some investigators, a definite thickness-strength relationship was observed below 3000 A with a four-to sevenfold increase in strength over that of bulk nickel. The films were characterized by high elastic strains and little plasticity. On the basis of these and other reported data, it is suggested that the high strength level in metal films is related to the manner in which they are produced. Vapor deposition, owing to its severe quenching effect. is believed to promote the formation of point defects which inhibit dislocation movement. IN recent years it has been reported that metals, when in the form of thin films, exhibit extraordinarily high strengths. The data published to date have been primarily concerned with silver and gold because of the ease with which these metals can be vapor-deposited and their high resistance to surface oxidation. Previous investigations into the mechanical strength of thin films has uncovered an apparent dichotomy of view on film behavior. Beams and his co-workers have reported a definite dependence of strength on film thickness. Other workers,"-&apos;6 however, in separate studies on the strength of poly crystalline and single-crystal films have found no such thickness-strength relationship. The study of thin-film strength is extremely difficult because of the many variables associated with film preparation, handling, and testing. Moreover, the manner of test employed by different investigators has varied quite radically, ranging from simple uniaxial-tension to biaxial-bulge testing. The work reported herein was conducted in order to determine the mechanical behavior of a structural metal when in the form of a vacuum-deposited thin film and to gain some insight into the reasons for the high strengths exhibited by metals having such a con- figuration. In this study a method of test was chosen which would yield results which are easily interpreted and lend themselves to comparison with properties of the same material in bulk form. Moreover, specimen-preparation parameters and film-handling techniques are set forth so that other investigators can properly compare their findings with ours. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES A) Film Preparation. Vacuum deposition was performed in an 18 by 30 in. bell jar using a standard New York Air Brake Co. vacuum station with a 6-in. oil-diffusion pump. Before evaporation the system was pumped to a pressure of less than 2 x 10"5 torr. A shield was employed to protect the substrates from the emission of contaminants during the critical melting and outgassing of the evaporant. The source consisted of from one to six filaments (0.020 in. diam). The length of each filament was about 5 in. and was placed 6 to 8 1/2 in. from the substrate in such a manner that the substrate face was at 90 deg incidence with respect to the evaporant beam. The temperature of the source was 2000"~ during evaporation. The films were deposited onto a substrate arrangement which was composed of four basic components, that is: 1) a 3 by 1 in. glass slide; 2) a 22-mm sq micro cover glass on 1); 3) a 22 by 50 mm micro cover glass coated with collodion on 1); and 4) a stainless-steel sheet mask containing twelve rectangular openings of 1-mm and 2-mm widths and lengths of 5 mm laid over 3). Thus, test specimens of 1-mm and 2-mm widths are deposited onto a collodion substrate which precludes epitaxial effects in the specirnens. 17-le The rectangular cover glass and square cover glass were positioned in such a manner that a strip of film would be evaporated along the length and across the width of the large glass slide. This boundary of evaporated film was used to determine the film thickness by multiple-beam interferometry. The square cover glass was used for X-ray and chemical analyses. Thickness of the deposits was varied by changing the number of filaments used (one to six). The duration of evaporation was 30 sec for each filamgnt which resulted in a deposition rate of 8 to 20A per sec. Evaporations were all performed at room temperature; however, radiant heat from the source raised the substrate temperature to 40" to 60°C. All substrates were cleaned by ultrasonic agitation in a solution of spectranalyzed isopropyl alcohol. Collodion was deposited on the micro cover glass by immersion in solution of collodion in amyl acetate. B) Thickness Control and Measurement. Film

Jan 1, 1963

By E. V. Potter, H. C. Lukens

INTRODUCTION IN general, during all electrowinning processes, large volumes of gas are liberated at the cathodes of the electrolytic cells. Most of this gas escapes from the electrolyte, but much of it may be absorbed or entrapped in the metal being plated. In many cases, this is not objectionable, but since it is liberated when the metal is heated, it is a potential source of trouble where the metal has to be heated or melted. Since this gas is principally hydrogen, in escaping from a melt it may cause minor explosions and scattering of the molten metal, while in other cases it has been reported to make the metal rise in the molds when cast. Therefore such metals would be more generally useful if all or most of the gas were removed before they were used. In an earlier investigation&apos; the gas content of electrolytic manganese was determined and methods found for removing most of it without detrimentally affecting the properties of the metal. In this paper results of a similar investigation on electrolytic chromium are presented. APPARATUS The apparatus used in these investigations is essentially the same as that used in the manganese work&apos; and is shown in Fig I. It consists of sample chamber A, vacuum or pressure gauge B, volume gauge C, vacuum pump D, hydrogen container E, auxiliary gas chamber F, and furnace G. The pressure in the system is measured by the mercury manometer B. Changes in &apos; gas volume are measured by volume gauge C which is essentially another mercury manometer in which . the volume of the mercury column is large and can be varied by raising or lowering the well H. In this apparatus the tube had a volume of 100 cc for a 61 cm length. Larger changes in gas volume can be accommodated by auxiliary containers attached to the system at F. The sample is heated by furnace G, the temperature of which is regulated within ± 5°C by an automatic controller. The only change in the apparatus was the sample container which was made smaller because of the chromium metal&apos;s containing more gas than the manganese metal and a smaller sample was used. METHOD The measurements were made as follows: The complete system when cold was evacuated and refilled with H2 until all the air was removed. It was then refilled with H2 to the desired pressure, as indicated on manometer B. The temperature was then raised to the desired value and as gas was either liberated from or absorbed by the sample, the height of well H was changed to alter the volume of the system so as to keep the pressure constant. In determining rates of liberation of gas, volume readings were taken at convenient time intervals depending on the rapidity with which the gas was liberated. In determining total volumes, the specimen was held at constant temperature and pressure until

Jan 1, 1948

By Clarence O. Babcock

Model pillars of limestone, marble, sandstone, and granite, with length-to-diameter (LID) ratios of 3, 2, 1, 0.5, and 0.25 (0.286 for granite), were broken in axial compression to determine to what extent an increase in end constraint increased compressive strength. Radial end constraints of 13 to 23% of the average axial stress in the pillar, produced by solid steel rings bonded with epoxy to the ends of dogbone-shaped specimens, increased compressive strength somewhat above that of cylindrical pillars without ring constraint. However, when the results were compared with those obtained by other investigators for straight specimens of several rock types taken collectively, with LID ratios greater than 0.5, the resulting strengths were not significantly different. Thus, the amount of end constraint produced by the solid steel rings was about the same as that produced by the friction from the steel end plates. In other tests, a radial prestress of 3000 or 5000 psi was applied prior to axial loading by adjustable hardened steel rings to increase the constraint above that obtained for the solid rings. The average radial constraint stress, expressed as a percentage of the average axial pillar stress at failure for the 3000 psi prestress, was 54.3% for limestone, 40.3% for marble, 44.7% for sandstone, and 23.4% for granite. The average radial constraint stress, expressed as a percentage of the average axial pillar stress at failure for the 5000 psi prestress, was 74.2% for limestone, 51.2% for marble, 61.6% for sandstone, and 29.7% for granite. These constraints increased the compressive strength significantly above the strength of straight specimens and solid-ring constrained specimens. These results suggest that large horizontal stresses in orebodies mined by the room-and-pillar method should increase the strength of the pillars and allow an increase in ore recovery by a reduction of pillar size when major structural defects are absent. One important objective of the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) mining research program is the rational design of mining systems. In the design of room-and-pillar mining operations, pillar strength is a fundamental variable. It is customary to estimate this strength from uniaxial compression tests of rock samples and to correct this value for the length-to-diameter (LID) ratio of the in-situ pillar. This method of estimating pillar strength corrects for pillar shape but does not consider the effect of a large horizontal in-situ stress field that sometimes exists in underground formations. The purpose of the work covered in this report was to determine to what extent the compressive strengths of model pillars of relatively brittle rock loaded in axial compression were affected by lateral end constraint. In previous work, Obert l used solid steel rings bonded to the ends of dogbone-shaped specimens to study the creep behavior of three quasi-plastic rocks -salt, trona, and potash ore - during a test period of 1000 hr. These rings provided radial constraint during the loading cycle of 20 to 50% of the axial stress for specimens with LID ratios of 2, 0.5, and 0.25. He concluded that (1) "for a quasi-plastic material the end constraint strongly affects the specimen strength, and (2) as D/L increases (length-to-diameter decreases), the specimens lose their brittle characteristics and tend to flow rather than fracture." He also concluded that model pillars constrained by rings were better for use in predicting the strength of mine pillars than either cylindrical or prismatic specimens. This conclusion appears to be valid where mine pillars, roof, and floor are a single structural element. In the present study, 460 specimens of four relatively brittle rocks — limestone, marble, sandstone, and granite - were tested to failure. The study consisted of two parts: (1) the effect on the compressive strength of end constraint produced during the axial loading cycle by solid steel rings bonded with epoxy to the ends of the specimens, and (2) the effect on the compressive strength of increased end constraint produced in part by a prestress applied prior to axial loading and in part by lateral expansion of the specimen during the loading cycle. The first part of this study was reported in some detail earlier.2 EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE AND EQUIPMENT Model rock pillars of the sizes and shapes shown in Fig. 1 were broken in axial compression when the ends were constrained as shown in Fig. 2. he straight specimens were broken without ring constraint. The specimens of dogbone shape were broken with (1) solid

Jan 1, 1970

By Richard M. Foose

MOST of the roofing granules produced in Pennsylvania are made by two companies at three plants. The Advance Industrial Supply Co. has three quarries and a mill at Gladhill Station, in southern Adams County. The Funkhouser Company is actively engaged in mining, quarrying and milling at Charmian, about one mile west of Gladhill Station, and at Delta, in southern York County. These three plants produced approximately 100,000 short tons of granules in 1943. The production of roofing granules in 1937 for the whole country was only about 500,000 tons, generally indicating the large growth of the industry since that time. The fundamentals of producing roofing granules were discussed comprehensively by G. W. Josephson in a paper before the Industrial Minerals Division in October 1943 (Mining Technology, March 1944). The purpose of this paper is to describe the actual methods of mining the rock and milling it to make roofing granules, as practiced by the three Pennsylvania plants. MINING AND MILLING Funkhouser Company (Delta) The Funkhouser Company, near Delta, in southern York County, Pennsylvania, operates three joined quarries and a mine in the Peach Bottom slate. The joined quarries extend 1200 ft. in a northeast southwest direction along the strike of the slate cleavage and are about 200 ft. wide. The working face is about 45 ft. high. The quarrying operation is rather simple: Ingersoll-Rand Jackhamers, 1-in. and 1 1/4-in., with hollow drill steel, are used to undercut the quarry face with10-ft. holes. The face is "blown" and allowed to slump on the quarry floor. Loaded by a Marion electric shovel into trucks, the shattered rock is taken to the primary crusher 2500 ft. away. In addition to the normal quarrying operations, a drift into the northeast wall of the middle quarry was begun about 1935 and has advanced about 2000 ft. since then. Rooms have been driven at angles to the drift along choice beds of slate. The drifts and rooms have a roof more than 35 ft. high and the main drift and rooms are all more than 40 ft. wide. There is no cribbing at any place in the mine. Several of the rooms were driven upward on a 5º slope and in some of them there was stoping. Ingersoll-Rand Jackhamers are used, and only wet drilling is practiced. When visited in January 1940, an electric shovel was operating at the head of the drift, scooping up the slate blasted out of the working face. This, too, is trucked to the primary crusher. Some of the better quality slate is saved for making slate shingles. The primary crusher, which is a No. 30 McCulley gyratory, receives the slate from the trucks and crushes it to about 2-in. size (Fig. I). This product travels by a 30-in. belt conveyor to Niagara vibrating screens with 2-in. holes. The minus 2-in. product moves to a storage silo by bucket

Jan 1, 1945

By J. Bigu, M. G. Grenier, S. Hardcastle

"This study was undertaken in a belt conveyor drift of an underground hard rock mine. The conveyor transported ore or waste from a crushing operation located upwind from the drift sampling locations. A 250 m section of this drift was selected and several types of measurements were taken. Average respirable concentrations in the drift were 0.43 mg/m3 and 0.19 mg/m3 for total and silica dust, respectively. From the respirable dust concentration profile along the drift, it may be possible to estimate the contribution from extended sources such as dust produced by the belt and return idlers.The airborne dust in the drift had an average mass-median aerodynamic diameter of 4.2 micron. A continuous dust monitor showed that the crushing operation produced fairly high dust concentrations (sometimes greater than 4 mg/m3) over short periods of time.IntroductionAirborne dust in the respirable range is known to be the cause of various forms of lung ailments . In underground mines, respirable dust sources are created at many stages of production. All mining operators are responsible for de signing and establishing means of reducing airborne dust. In some cases, sources of dust are well defined and suppression methods are standard.In the case of interest here, the airborne dust cloud was formed from the contribution from many sources, which may be either discrete or extended. At the experimental site, the discrete or point sources were the crushing operation and the belt conveyor transfer point (tail pulley). These sources may be controlled by proper dust capture and scrubbing systems as well as dilution ventilation. Examples of extended dust sources in the area include dust produced by the re-entrainment of settled particles along the drift. Ventilation air movement and vehicular traffic both contribute to this phenomenon. Dust produced by the conveyor is another example of an extended dust source. Caked deposits on the return strand and idlers as well as the transportation of dry material on the belt, can be major contributors. Proper wetting of roadways and muck as well as proper belt cleaning techniques can help reduce these emissions. The cleaning apparatus, used on the belt where these experiments were conducted, is shown in Figure I. These and other belt cleaning techniques are described in more detail elsewhere."

Jan 1, 1987

By Tadashi Aiura, Yasuhiro Miura

"A small amount(0.2mass%) of Scandium(Sc) was added to the 7.NOl and 5083 Al alloys as a refiner and stabilizer of microstructure, and the resulting microstructures were discussed in comparison with the effects of the conventional additives. The followings are summarized: 1) in the as-solidified structure, a ·decreased tendency of constitutional supercooling and increased solubility of Mg were recognized for the Sc-added 5083 alloy. Sc is a -better microstructure refiner for the 7N01 alloy than Zr, in a sense that it does not suppress the favorable effect of· coexisting Ti. 2) Sc effectively suppresses recrystallization both in the 5083 and 7N01 alloys. 3) The rod like primary Al3Sc crystals formed during solidification, as well as the fine dispersion of Al3Sc precipitates formed by subsequent heat treatment, can act as a strong recrystallization suppresser. IntroductionThe 7N01 and 5083 alloys are the most popular industrial Al alloys and they are widely' used for various structures because of their superior properties. Fine macro and micro structures of the materials are required for obtaining acceptable sec resistance,consistent appearance of anodized surface and good weldability, as well as good mechanical properties. In order to produce fine grain structures, transition metals, such as Cr, Zr, and Mn, have been conventionally added.It has been reported that Sc is an efficient refiner [l, 2] and can be an alternative for the conventional and also suppresses recrystallization in Al alloys [3,4]. Scandium is the lightest transition element and forms an equilibrium intermetallic phase. The equilibrium phase, Ll2-Al3Sc, is coherent with the matrix, and of _spherical shape. A fine dispersion of the spherical precipitates is obtained by quenching and aging after solutionizing annealing. The authors have already reported a part of the experimental results on the effect of Sc on the as homogenized microstructure of the 5083 alloy [5]. In the present study, the effects of Sc on the macro and micro structures of the industrial high strength Al alloys(7N01 and 5083) for extrusion are investigated, and the superior role of Sc as a grain refiner is shown"

Jan 1, 2000

By Laszlo Valentyik

Heavy media separation (HMS) is one of the most widely used gravity methods in the mineral industry. The feed is separated, according to the specific gravities, into two products; float (light) and sink (heavy) particles. The universal acceptance of the process is due to simplicity, efficiency and robustness for ease of control. However, if optimum separation is desired during the operation of heavy media plants, a delicate balance of a number of variables is essential. Among the variables, the two which are generally the most frequently checked and controlled are specific gravity and consistency of the medium. The latter is a function of the settling rate of the media. The medium is generally made up of finely ground ferrosilicon, magnetite, galena, shale, quartz sand, clay contaminants and water. The frequently present clay in the medium acts as a stabilizing agent, since the coarse heavy medium solids (called media) would quickly settle if they were mixed only in water. Clay concentration of the medium varies between 3-7% by height (1,2). Although clay is essential for reasonable media stability, clay concentration greater than 7-8% imparts too high a viscosity to the medium, and the feed cannot accurately stratify and therefore separate into the required products. To be on the safe side, plant operators clean the medium from most of the clays, and would rather work at a lower stability than have a very viscous medium on their hands. The most recent advance in the area of consistency control rlas made by the introduction of atomized (spherical) ferrosilicon (3). This extended the upper limit of the use of ground ferrosilicon from 3.3 to approximately 3.6, broadening the range of the optimum operating conditions. A viscosity control method was also worked out by the use of low cost additives which lower viscosity while retaining a favorable low setting rate (4). Recently (5) polymers have been successfully used in oil well drilling muds then the requirements were mainly to suspend and transport cuttings during the periodic shutdowns and dril1ings respectively. The rheological properties of these polymer suspensions are such that they present an infinite viscosity to

Jan 1, 1971

By Dai Yongnian

"The feasibility to vacuum distillation of a crude metal or an alloy was discussed. The equilibrium relationship between vapor phase and liquid phase in A-B system - - - - - PA/PB =BAa*/b has been derived. The separation coefficient, BA = rAPA/(rBPB) is a judgment criterion. By calculation PA/PB, the equilibrium composition diagram of vapor phase and liquid phase was drawn. By use of the equation derived by M. Olette, the relationship among the volatilization amounts of various impurities in a crude metal (yi) was further solved. 1-(X/100)= C =(1-Y1/100)1/02i . From yi value obtained in practice, 2i, Pi and then can be calcu-lated. The correct volatilization order of various impurities was obtained. These results can be applied to determine the practical conditions (temperture, vacuum degree, type of distilla¬tion furnace, times of distillation and control of product composition) in distillation of a crude metal or an alloy.INTRODUCTIONRefining and separation of various impurities from nonferrous crude metals by vacuum distillation have many the advantages of high metal recovery, impurities recovered in metallic state, flowsheet simplified, good enviromental protection, low operation costs and in complex equipment. So in recent years this method has been adopted widely.Vacuum distillation has also been studied and used in separation of various elements from non-ferrous alloys and the area of its application is being extended rapidly.At this situation, some problems have been put up: What kind of impurities can be removed from crude metals? What kind of alloys can be separated by vacuum distillation? In present paper, attemps have been made to answer these problems and combine with practical results to analyse some valuable data obtained from testwork on vacuum distillation of crude tin and Pb-Sn alloy."

Jan 1, 1988

By Francis Gray

Mr. F. W. Gray: It is not my intention to read my paper as it is too long, so I will touch only on the high lights. The Sydney field is the most favourable example of undersea coal mining that exists, and I have not been able to find anything like it elsewhere. The nearest approach to it is a field in England where the Whitehaven collieries are operating, but it has a lot of faults. The net result of these faults so far met with in the seaward advance of the workings has been to increase, by something over 100 feet, the gain in depth of cover, in a distance of approximately three and three-quarter miles. In the Sydney field there are no faults of any consequence. On the east side, the English measures rise. In Australia the sea bottom fell and the cover became too light. On Vancouver Island the coal ran out, and in Japan the seams are steep and contorted. The Chilian fields resemble our own to some extent. An inundation of two collieries took place there some time ago, due, it is said, to the rise workings being allowed to approach the sea bottom too closely in the vicinity of a fault. The Cape Breton undersea field has been proved over a frontage of about thirty miles and has been attacked and penetrated for a considerable distance along that front. We have passed the prospecting stage and now generally use developed land areas as points of attack to win the undersea coal. Of our mining under the sea, it can be said that, with the exception of No. 1-B and Princess colliery, Sydney Mines, no real attempt has been made to win the undersea coal.

Jan 1, 1927

By JOHN JERMAIN

In my opinion, the explanation of the fuel-requirements involving the conception of heat available and necessary above a critical temperature, as advanced by Johnson 1 and elaborated by Howe, Raymond and others,2 affords a theoretically correct basis for such an accounting. It is the purpose of this paper to set forth a first crude attempt to construct a formula which shall show quantitatively the relation between the various factors affecting fuel-economy, and afford a means of comparing the enormous amount of data on the fuel-consumption of various blast-furnaces, at various times and under various conditions of operation. I have also applied this formula to a large number. of individual cases, and have, by its means, compared the furnace-practice of several important iron-making districts. II. DERIVATION OF FORMULA FOR FUEL-REQUIREMENTS. The general expression for the fuel-requirements of the blast-furnace, which I believe to be theoretically correct as to form, is as follows Carbon per ton of iron = Heat per ton of iron necessary in hearth above Tc./Heat per pound of carbon available in hearth above Tc. XFactor of rate of driving. +Carbon dissolved by CO2 of flux. +Carbon dissolved incidental to reduction of ore. + Carbon dissolved in pig-iron. (NOTE.-Tc = critical temperature.) Since, according to Johnson&apos;s theory, fuel-economy is usually limited by heat available and necessary in the hearth, rather than by the total heat supplied and necessary, we may write Carbon needed in hearth = Hn/Ha in which Hn is the heat per ton of iron necessary in the hearth above some critical temperature, and Ha is the heat per pound of carbon available in the hearth above this same critical tem¬perature. 1 Trans., xxxvi., 454 (1906). 2 Trans, xxxvi., 792 to 798 (1906) ; Trans, xxxvii., 216 to 237 (1907).

May 1, 1911