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By H. F. Yancey, M. R. Geer, C. L. Allyn, R. H. Eckhouse

Four coals were treated in the Humphreys spiral concentrator, and the products were examined by float-and-sink and screen-sizing tests to determine fundamental performance characteristics. The efficiency of the separation between coal and impurity was shown to be influenced greatly by particle size. FOUR coals exhibiting different washability characteristics were washed in the Humphreys spiral concentrator and the products examined by float-and-sink and screen-sizing tests to determine the mechanics of the separation between coal and impurity. With one coal, each 1/2-in. increment of the full width of the stream in the spiral was examined separately to determine where each size and specific-gravity fraction of the feed was stratified. The basic performance characteristics of the spiral were found to be the same for all of these coals. The coarsest fraction of heavy impurity stratified so far out in the stream that it could not be removed through the refuse ports and thus either entered a middling product or contaminated the washed coal in the case of a two-product separation. Impurity particles finer than about 100-mesh also were carried out in the main body of the stream and therefore were not removed in the refuse product. Little loss of clean coal in the refuse occurred in sizes coarser than 28-mesh or finer than 100-mesh, but considerable coal of intermediate size stratified in the stream that was drawn off through the refuse ports. Because of this modifying influence of particle size, the spiral is unable to make an efficient two-product separation between coal and impurity without some retreatment. Recirculation of a middling product through the same spiral as a means of obtaining more efficient operation was not attempted in this investigation. The size and specific-gravity composition of the middling product are, however, such as to render it amenable to simple hydraulic classification for recovery of coal. Retreatment of a middling product would improve the efficiency of the spiral, but even when making a substantial amount of middling, considerable clean coal enters the refuse product. Consequently, retreatment of a combined refuse-middling product would appear to offer greater promise for providing maximum efficiency. Because of the sizing characteristics of the spiral, a classified feed can be treated with higher efficiency than is possible on a natural raw coal. For this reason, semiclassified feeds, such as silt-bank or classifier-underflow materials, can doubtless be treated with higher efficiencies than those shown for raw coals in this report. Performance is, of course, only one of many factors that enter into the choice of cleaning equipment. The fact that the one company now using the spiral for cleaning coal has built a second spiral plant is ample evidence that the inherently low efficiency of this unit may be overshadowed by the low operating costs afforded by its extreme simplicity. Introduction A number of factors enter into the selection of coal-cleaning equipment, and most of them bear directly on the final cost of prepared coal. One of these factors is performance of the cleaning unit in terms of the efficiency of the separation it effects between clean coal and refuse. The importance of performance in the selection of a coal-cleaning unit varies with the difficulty of the cleaning problem. Obviously, if the character of the coal is such that only certain types of cleaning units are capable of yielding a clean product meeting market requirements, performance is of prime importance. If, on the other hand, the cleaning problem is so simple that any type of cleaner will provide coal of suitable quality, performance is important only insofar as it affects costs by determining the amount of salable coal lost in the washery refuse. With the objective of providing the coal industry with information that is helpful in the selection of

Jan 1, 1951

By R. H. Eckhouse, M. R. Geer, H. F. Yancey, C. L. Allyn

Four coals were treated in the Humphreys spiral concentrator, and the products were examined by float-and-sink and screen-sizing tests to determine fundamental performance characteristics. The efficiency of the separation between coal and impurity was shown to be influenced greatly by particle size. FOUR coals exhibiting different washability characteristics were washed in the Humphreys spiral concentrator and the products examined by float-and-sink and screen-sizing tests to determine the mechanics of the separation between coal and impurity. With one coal, each 1/2-in. increment of the full width of the stream in the spiral was examined separately to determine where each size and specific-gravity fraction of the feed was stratified. The basic performance characteristics of the spiral were found to be the same for all of these coals. The coarsest fraction of heavy impurity stratified so far out in the stream that it could not be removed through the refuse ports and thus either entered a middling product or contaminated the washed coal in the case of a two-product separation. Impurity particles finer than about 100-mesh also were carried out in the main body of the stream and therefore were not removed in the refuse product. Little loss of clean coal in the refuse occurred in sizes coarser than 28-mesh or finer than 100-mesh, but considerable coal of intermediate size stratified in the stream that was drawn off through the refuse ports. Because of this modifying influence of particle size, the spiral is unable to make an efficient two-product separation between coal and impurity without some retreatment. Recirculation of a middling product through the same spiral as a means of obtaining more efficient operation was not attempted in this investigation. The size and specific-gravity composition of the middling product are, however, such as to render it amenable to simple hydraulic classification for recovery of coal. Retreatment of a middling product would improve the efficiency of the spiral, but even when making a substantial amount of middling, considerable clean coal enters the refuse product. Consequently, retreatment of a combined refuse-middling product would appear to offer greater promise for providing maximum efficiency. Because of the sizing characteristics of the spiral, a classified feed can be treated with higher efficiency than is possible on a natural raw coal. For this reason, semiclassified feeds, such as silt-bank or classifier-underflow materials, can doubtless be treated with higher efficiencies than those shown for raw coals in this report. Performance is, of course, only one of many factors that enter into the choice of cleaning equipment. The fact that the one company now using the spiral for cleaning coal has built a second spiral plant is ample evidence that the inherently low efficiency of this unit may be overshadowed by the low operating costs afforded by its extreme simplicity. Introduction A number of factors enter into the selection of coal-cleaning equipment, and most of them bear directly on the final cost of prepared coal. One of these factors is performance of the cleaning unit in terms of the efficiency of the separation it effects between clean coal and refuse. The importance of performance in the selection of a coal-cleaning unit varies with the difficulty of the cleaning problem. Obviously, if the character of the coal is such that only certain types of cleaning units are capable of yielding a clean product meeting market requirements, performance is of prime importance. If, on the other hand, the cleaning problem is so simple that any type of cleaner will provide coal of suitable quality, performance is important only insofar as it affects costs by determining the amount of salable coal lost in the washery refuse. With the objective of providing the coal industry with information that is helpful in the selection of

Jan 1, 1951

By P. M. Aziz, I. Markson, C. S. Barrett

The abnormal after-effect in twisted wires that occurs when untwisting is interrupted by etching con be brought under control and used to study the mechanical properties of thin surface films and how they are effected by reagents and heat treatment. Results are given of studies of oxide films on high purity aluminum. IF a wire is subjected to plastic deformation by torsion and then released, it untwists in the normal after-effect, but under certain circumstances the untwisting is abruptly lessened or reversed by the application of an etchant to the wire.1,2 This abnormal after-effect may occur, for example, if there is a coherent oxide film on the surface of the wire which is removed by the etchant. Following a suggestion of A. H. Cottrell that predicted this effect, it is attributed to dislocations that had piled up beneath the oxide layer and represents the rapid release of residual stresses caused by these dislocations. When the layer is removed, the stress relief may be by escape of piled-up dislocations from the metal, or by an activation of latent sources of dislocations located at the surface, together with rebalancing of elastic stresses to compensate for the loss of stressed material, as in a residual stress analysis determination, these mechanisms acting singly or in combination.' The slower the attack of the reagent, the more gradual is the stress relief and the smaller the change in strain rate when the reagent is applied. A study has been made of the factors that influence the magnitude of the normal and abnormal after-effects with the object of developing techniques suitable for a quantitative investigation of the influence of various surface films on dislocations in wires, and of the rate and extent of the attack on the films by different reagents. It was found that reasonable sensitivity and reproducibility could be achieved if a suitable choice of variables was made and if these variables were held constant through a series of experiments. The method was then applied to a study of oxide films produced and treated in different ways on the surface of high purity aluminum wires, and to a study of the damage to these films caused by various reagents. Experimental Procedure The material used throughout this work was prepared from 99.9968 pct Al. This high purity aluminum was melted, cast into 1/2 in. diameter ingots, and then swaged and drawn without intermediate annealing to 0.040 in. diameter wire. A sketch of the apparatus employed for twisting is shown in Fig. 1. The test wires were mounted into the apparatus by cementing one end of the wire to the beaker and the other to the tube with laboratory wax of high melting point. The length of the wire between the waxed joints was 4.2 & 0.2 cm. Extreme care was taken during mounting to avoid cold-working the wire. The wire was twisted through 335" in 2 to 4 sec by rotating the pinion on the gear box until the vertical post on the rotating table, which was initially touching the horizontal stop, was arrested by the stop. All the tests were conducted with apparatus and reagents at the same temperature (about 25°C). In all tests, except those where the duration of the initial torque was investigated, the torque was applied for a period of 2 min. At the end of this time the table was rotated back a few degrees away from contact with the stop and the wire allowed to untwist. The after-effects were measured by reflecting a beam of light from the mirror shown on the apparatus. After the wire had untwisted for 6 min, a reagent was carefully poured into the beaker and thereby applied to the surface of the wire.. In some tests the liquid in the beaker was removed after a few minutes and replaced by an-

Jan 1, 1954

Jan 1, 1902

By R. W. Raymond

Jan 1, 1902

By AIME AIME

Council. * PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL. JAMES F. KEMP NEW YORK, N.Y. (Term expires February, 1913.) VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE COUNCIL. S. B. CHRISTY BERKELEY, CAL. W. A. LATHROP PHILADELPHIA, PA. GARDNER F. WILLIAMS WASHINGTON, D. C. (Term expires February, 1913.) KARL EILERS NEW YORK, N. Y. WALDEMAR LINDGREN WASHINGTON, D. C. BENJAMIN B. THAYER NEW YORK, N. Y. (Term expires February, 1914.)

Mar 1, 1912

By K. P. Sinha, J. F. Schatz, T. F. Borschel, S. Demou

Triaxial creep behavior of oil shale was investigated in the laboratory at simulated in-situ conditions. A range of temperature and stress conditions were chosen to represent those within the inter-chamber pillars of a modified in-situ retorting operation. Oil shale in grades up to 60 gallons per ton have been tested. Experimental data and a constitutive model have been presented here.

Jan 1, 1982

By R. V. Horrigan

High purity ZrC14 (25 to 200 ppm of metallic impurities) can be readily prepared in simple apparatus by thermal decomposition of alkali chlorozirconate fused salts at 500° to 600°C and at atmospheric pressure. Suggested phase diagrams for the systems NaCI-ZrC14 and KCI-ZrCI, are presented. ALKALI chlorozirconate compositions — anhydrous fused mixtures of ZrCl4, NaC1, and KC1— are manufactured commercially and are used by the magnesium industry to introduce zirconium into magnesium alloys. Zirconium refines the grain size and improves the physical properties of many important magnesium alloys. In the course of working with chlorozirconate compositions of high ZrCl4 content, it was noticed that these salts decomposed progressively itwaswith increasing temperature to yield considerable amounts of a ZrCl4 sublimate of high purity together with a solid chlorozirconate residue. Further research led to: 1—improvements in the

Jan 1, 1956

By J. A. B. Forster

W. G. WOOLF*—The paper has a wealth of data that take careful, detailed study. As has been indicated the highlights can be only touched in the paper. The design and the arrangement of the rabble teeth as well as some of the other details of operation show a very careful study and a scientific approach to the problem which in most plants using hearth roasters are matters of trial and error with empirical conclusions and, perhaps too often, just arbitrary supervisory preferences which may be erroneous. Here the problem has been approached from a scientific angle which think well merits careful study. The ability to treat the tonnages they get through these furnaces think is made easier by reason of the high sulphide sulphur in the resulting calcines which the balance of the plant—the leaching and so on—can cope with. As indicated by Mr. Weldon in his dis- cussion earlier this morning, in most zinc plants an attempt is made to have as low a sulphide sulphur content in the roaster calcine as possible. But in the operation of the Risdon plants, they are able to cope with sulphide sulphur content up to 5 pct which is far beyond the amount of sulphide sulphur that can be handled elsewhere. I think the autogenous roasting is made easier because driving out the last percentages of sulphide sulphur brings on the necessity for extraneous heat, and that is further exemplified because even at Risdon the author shows the desirability of using some oil to better the operation, particularly for uniformity of roasting results and to obtain more regularity of furnace operation. A. A. CENTER*—Regarding the hard crusts in the beds of the furnace and autogenous roasting, the paper speaks of the former being due, at least to a considerable extent, to lead sulphide in the crusts. I wonder if the author has considered the hard crusts as being due in large part to zinc sulphate. While I was developing large zinc operations we ran into hard crusts which had to be dug up. I took several lumps which were so hard they showed the marks of the rabble teeth very plainly and kept them in my office for some weeks. A visitor came along one day, and as he was having similar troubles, I told him what we were doing about ours. I started to pick up one of these lumps and to my amazement the thing crumbled in my hands whereas originally it had been so hard it wore the rabbles down very rapidly in the furnace. I sent the sample to the laboratory and found that it analyzed very high in water-soluble zinc and sulphate-sulphur. The crumbling of the lumps was evidently due to the anhydrous zinc sulphate gradually taking on moisture from the air and forming crystalline zinc sulphate seven parts water. The increase in volume would, of course, result in disintegration of the lumps. As to getting a high tonnage in the autogenous roast, that is partly because of finishing at about 5 pct sulphide sulphur. It is a real job to get down to, say, ½ pct sulphide sulphur, which is what is usually desired, and still put through a good tonnage.

Jan 1, 1950

By Andrew S. McCreath

THE manufacture of pig iron for conversion into steel by the Bessemer and open-hearth processes, is now one of the most important industries of the United States. It is necessary that iron intended for this purpose should be very pure, and especially must it be comparatively free from phosphorus. Great care must therefore he exercised in the selection of proper ores, flux, and fuel. Only such ores as are practically free from phosphorus can be used, and pure fuel is as much a necessity as pure ores; though hitherto iron men have paid comparatively little attention to this point. During the course of my work as chemist for the Second Geological Survey of Pennsylvania, I had occasion to examine some of the bituminous coals of the State for phosphorus, and the results obtained are so interesting that I venture to present them to the notice of the members of the Institute. The coals are arranged in geological order according to the different beds, and the table shows the percentage of phosphorus in the coal and also in the coke. The greatest number of specimens have been selected from the Pittsburgh bed, because it is the principal coal-bed of Southwestern Pennsylvania, and most of the mineral fuel which is mined along the Youghiogheny and Monongahela rivers, to be used in the coke ovens of the Connellsville region and in the blast furnaces and mills of Pittsburgh and its vicinity, and to be shipped to Western and Southern markets, comes from this bed. It will be noticed that many of the specimens examined contain

Jan 1, 1880

On an average of at least once a year there comes to the attention of the Institute Headquarters the activities of some individual who represents himself as a member of the Institute, and by a hard-luck story or other means secures loans or advances of money which are never returned. On one or two occasions the Institute has been able to secure the arrest and conviction of these frauds. Recently some individual has been operating in California and defrauded several members of the Institute. He is described as a man of 5 ft. 7 or 8 in. height, decidedly slim, and his weight is about 140 lb. His hair and mustache are gray, eyes blue or gray and he claims to be near-sighted. He is also said to have had a keen, furtive, "Hang-dog" look and claims to have been raised in Bethlehem, Pa. He speaks with a German accent. If a man answering this description presents himself before any members and claims to be a member of the Institute it will be to the good of the profession if he can be caught making fraudulent representations and placed where his ability to defraud will be under control. The most effective means of apprehending persons of this character is the very prompt notification to Institute Headquarters of any persons claiming to be members of the Institute in hard luck. If such persons are asked to supply their signature or photograph or both to be, forwarded to Institute Headquarters for identification this will serve as an excellent check on their operations. Reluctance to comply with such a request is in itself a suspicious circumstance.

Jan 9, 1919

By G. Austin Schroter, Ian Campbell

ALTHOUGH there is now an extensive literature on the bleaching clays, not a great deal of material is to be found concerning the geological features of these deposits and their bearing on problems of exploration and development. At the same time, chemical and crystallographic research on the clay minerals during the past few years has laid a suitable foundation upon which to base conclusions of economic value drawn from field observations. All of the criteria and deductions herein presented are based upon extensive field work by the senior author, both in the United States and Canada, and when subjected to the ultimate tests of development and exploitation they have held up remarkably well, despite the fact that many of these conclusions apparently have not been reviewed in the literature heretofore. The nomenclature of the bleaching clays is rather confusing in the light of present-day commercial standards and has even led to litigation." The old term "fuller's earth" is largely based upon trade usage and the definition of the term therefore is dependent upon the changing standards of commerce. For statistical purposes the Bureau of Mines81 classes as "fuller's earth" all natural bleaching or filtering claylike materials that possess high adsorptive capacity without previous chemical treatmerit or activation. Conversely, the so-called activated or acid activated clays are now generally recognized as any clay mineral or mixture of the clay minerals whose adsorptive capacity has been developed to commercial standards by chemical or physical treatment. Therefore, without attempting to propose any additions to the nomenclature of bleaching clays, this paper will refer to naturally adsorptive clays and activable clays, respectively, for the two types indicated.

Jan 1, 1940

By Paul Averitt

In spite of recent trends in the United States toward construction of steam generating plants near mine mouths, and toward use of high-voltage direct current for long-distance transmission of electricity, coal in substantial amounts is being transported over relatively long distances to serve specific needs. As coal is a low-cost bulk commodity which is more suitable for use near the point of origin, some of these long hauls are of considerable interest because they show what can be done under the pressure for more and more coal to support industrial and economic growth. Japan has an Insatiable Appetite for Coal Perhaps the longest U.S. coal journey begins in the east Appalachian Basin of southern Pennsylvania, eastern West Virginia, and southwestern Virginia. High-quality coking coal mined in these areas is shipped by rail to Baltimore, Md., and to Hampton Roads, Va., where the coal is reloaded on freighters for shipment primarily to western Europe and Japan. In 1967, shipments of coal to western Europe totaled 19 million tons, and shipments to Japan totaled 12 million tons. Japan also imports coal from Australia, the U.S.S.R., Canada, Poland, the People's Republic of China, and to a lesser ex- tent from several other countries. In an effort to solve long-term needs, Japanese steel interests have contracted for the purchase from the Kaiser Steel Corp. of 51 million long tons of coking coal over the period 1970 to 1985. The coal will come from the Kaiser Steel Corp. mine near Fernie, British Columbia. This arrangement will reduce Japan's future dependence on Appalachian Basin coal.

Jan 10, 1969

By Andrew S. McCreath

The manufacture of pig iron for conversion into steel by the Bessemer and open-hearth processes, is now one of the most important industries of the United States. It is necessary that iron intended for this purpose should be very pure, and especially must it be comparatively free from phosphorus. Great care must therefore he exercised in the selection of proper ores, flux, and fuel. Only such ores as are practically free from phosphorus can be used, and pure fuel is as much a necessity as pure ores; though hitherto iron men have paid comparatively little attention to this point. During the course of my work as chemist for the Second Geological Survey of Pennsylvania, I' had occasion to examine some of the bituminous coals of the State fix phosphorus, and the results obtained are so interesting that I venture to present them to the notice of the members of the Institute. The coals are arranged in geological order according to the different beds, and the table shows the percentage of phosphorus in the coal and also in the coke. The greatest number of specimens have been selected from the Pittsburgh bed, because it is the principal coal-bed of Southwestern Pennsylvania, and most of the mineral fuel which is mined along the Youghiogheny and Monongahela rivers, to be used in the coke ovens of the Connellsville region and in the blast furnaces and mills of Pittsburgh and its vicinity, and to be shipped to Western and Southern markets, comes from this bed. It will be noticed that many of the specimens examined contain

Jan 1, 1880

By Alan U. Seybolt

UNLIKE its sister elements, columbium (niobium) and tantalum, vanadium has not been available until recently in fabricated form. While Vanadium Corporation of America has offered the metal in fairly pure form for sale for many years in small lots for research purposes, this grade of vanadium has been brittle, probably because of a high oxygen content. Hence, when in 1950 the announcement1 was made that wrought vanadium was available as a commercial material, this represented a large step forward in the metallurgy of vanadium. While vanadium is generally regarded as a rare metal, data on its occurrence in the earth's crust show it to be as abundant as copper, zinc, and lead combined. Vanadium is widely distributed, but it does not seem to occur in massive deposits except in a few localities, principally in Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, where it is found in sandstone formations, and in Mina Ragra, Peru. Only in Colorado or Peru are ores mined solely for the vanadium content. Ores in the United States are principally carnotite and roscoelite; the former is of particular interest because of its uranium content. It is a uranium-potassium vanadate containing approximately 52 pct of UO2 and 18 pct of V2O5. Production in the United States during the war years averaged around 2000 tons a year, but dropped to 636 tons in 1946. In recent years, ferrovanadium has been selling for about $2.80 per pound of contained vanadium. This suggests that the price of the pure metal will never be as low as $2.80 per pound, but it could

Jan 1, 1953

By S. C. Sun

This article by Spokes and Mitchell de- serves high commendation. For many years mineral dressers have been at a loss to explain the variation in magnetic susceptibility of the same mineral species obtained from different localities. In fact, they do not even have a list of accurately measured data on the specific magnetic susceptibility of weakly magnetic minerals to consult. Experience as a university teacher has firmly convinced me that the average student has more difficulty in acquiring a satisfactory knowledge of magnetism than of any other branch of mineral dressing. This is almost entirely because the subject has been treated far too much from a strict practical standpoint and far too little from a fundamental one. It is no exaggeration to state that almost all the published theoretical discussions are based on the experimental results of manufactured chemicals and alloys, but not of naturally occurring minerals. In an attempt to remedy this state of affairs, the author of this article not only set up a new magnetic balance in the Department of Mineral Preparation of The Pennsylvania State University, but also performed work of fundamental value, thus pointing the way to further research. This is evidenced by the fact that an investigation of the magnetic susceptibilities of manganese minerals was recently completed by S. G. Watt under the direction of David R. Mitchell, now acting dean of the College of Mineral Industries of the Pennsylvania State University. D. J. Cook is studying the magnetic susceptibility of titanium minerals under my supervision. It is hoped that our research program can be continued for several years and that similar investigations will be Initiated at other universities and research institutions.

Jan 4, 1958

By Arthur Connolly

WHEN scientific literature was lacking or meager, research necessarily meant laboratory investigation above all else. Today, scientific literature has attained tremendous proportions, and the volume increases at a much faster rate than it is digested and efficiently utilized. For that reason the present-day research worker should spend much more time in the library, and correspondingly less in the laboratory, than is the general custom. Library research would overcome two serious errors often made by scientists: duplication of work described completely and failure to appreciate inventions described almost verbatim in the literature. To emphasize these failings that often occur in present-day research, consider a hypothetical scientist as he conducts his search from inception to the stage where it is made available to the public by patent or other publication.

Jan 1, 1942

"The Great Falls of the Missouri are situated about 12 miles below the City of Great Falls and development work for the utilization of the power which they afford is now in progress. The natural fall is about 77 feet.The development will consist of a concrete dam 1,000 feet long on the crest line, and 73 feet high. The power house will be set below the present falls near the north end and the tailrace will be cut below an island which is situated just below the falls. The maximum head will be 153 feet. The power house will contain six units of 15,000 horse power each. The construction as contemplated will comprise about 180,000 cubic yards of concrete work, using 200,000 barrels of cement."

Jan 1, 1913

By AIME AIME

MEDELLIN, the famous old capital of the Province of Antioquia in Colombia, is in the heart of the Cauca Valley, famous for its beauty and wealth. Through the kindness of R. S. Botsford, we present a panorama of the city, showing the 5000-ft. mountains in the background, a picture of the cathedral, locally said to be the largest building in South America, and a sketch of the diversion work on the Nari river, near Alejandria, where C. J. London is opening 42 kilometers of placer ground. One of the hydraulic elevators at the mine is also shown. Medellin was formerly much isolated but 19 now connected with navigation on the Magdalena River by a railway from Puerto Berrio, passing through a recently completed tunnel under the central Andes.

Jan 1, 1930

By Richard Pearce

WHILST most of the silver- and copper-bearing veins of Butte have characters somewhat similar, the Gagnon vein has certain rather remarkable features which are not noticed in any of the other mines. The silver-veins proper, as illustrated in the Alice, Lexington, Moulton, and many others, have certain well-known typical characters. Manganese is always present in variable quantities as rhodocrosite or rhodonite, associated with quartz, pyrite, and sphalerite, and with little or no copper. The copper-veins also have certain mineralogical characteristics, which are very similar, or different only in minor points. Chalcocite, chalcopyrite, bornite, enargite, with variable quantities of pyrite, may be said to represent the general mineralogical features of these lodes. It is worth noticing that while the silver-bearing lodes have more or less sphalerite, this mineral is almost entirely

Jan 1, 1888