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By S. S. Clarke

ABOUT two years ago some of my friends were discussing the amount of drill-steel breakage that was permissible or not excessive, per month, per rock ton, per ton of steel or any unit of measure or output that would give a comparison between different kinds of drill steel. No one seemed to know what life to expect of steel, or what percentage of breakage might be termed excessive. In fact there were no operating data available to guide one in selecting the best steel for our mines, nor could any ideas or information be secured from the steel manufacturers. One was merely told that so and so used their steel and it was very satisfactory; or else one was given a highly technical lecture on their specific heat-treatment. Any estimates on expected breakage were just guesses, ranging from a fraction of a per cent to as high as ten per cent per month.

Jan 1, 1933

By R. M. Brick, Arthur Phillips

The Institute of Metals Division Lecture in 1936, given by R. F. Mehl, on diffusion in solid metals1, was introduced with the statement that "the phenomena of diffusion are intimately related to many basic problems of the metallic state, but in addition to this the process of diffusion is of first importance practically." In view of the scope of that lecture, it does not seem necessary to review the importance, history or present status of diffusion problems. One aspect of the subject of diffusion that has received little attention became of some immediate importance in the course of a study on segregation. When a solid solution alloy freezes, the familiar mechanism of solidification requires that the first nuclei formed be low in solute concentration, with a resultant normal segregation or coring effect during freezing. Theoretically, musion of solute atoms during solidification should result in a homogeneous solid solution. Actually, of course, it is impossible in most binary alloys to obtain a cooling rate that will permit diffusion to eliminate coring in the freezing dendrites. For a given alloy, the extent of diffusion attained up to the point of final solidification will determine the degree of enrichment in solute atoms of the final liquid phase. The flow of this liquid into dendritic contraction channels and the solute concentration of the liquid seem to be the determining factors as to whether the final gross segregation is normal, inverse or absent. The purpose of the present study of diffusion was to determine to some extent the separate diffusion rates of copper and magnesium into pure aluminum with a view to clarifying previous results on segregation in these alloys; i.e., the fact that under similar freezing conditions aluminum-copper alloys segregate inversely and aluminum-magnesium alloys segregate normally. Of concomitant interest were the questions of the homogenization times required for segregated ingots or partially melted, i.e., "burnt," structures, and the solution heat-treatment times required for cast, hardenable aluminum-copper and aluminum-magnesium alloys, for worked and annealed structures, and so forth.

Jan 1, 1937

By AIME AIME

The following abstract of the minutes of the final Adjourned Annual Business Meeting, held Nov. 12, 1912, in the office of the Institute, 29 West 39th Street, New York City, is here presented for the information of the membership at large. On the announcement by the Secretary that there was a quorum present, President James F. Kemp called the meeting to order. The minutes of the Adjourned Annual Business Meeting of Oct. 7, 1912, were read and approved. (Sec p. xi,Bulletin No. 71, November). Prof. Jos. W. Richards, in behalf of the Special Committee of the Board of Directors and the Council (Messrs. Richards, Kirchhoff, and Rand), withdrew the two proposed amendments to the Constitution offered by the said Committee at the Adjourned Annual Business Meeting of Oct. 7, 1912. (See Bulletin. No. 70, October, 1912, p. vi., and Circular Announcement No. 8, Oct. 15, 1912, p. 15.) Professor Richards presented a syllabus of the proposed amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws prepared by the Special Committee. Several members present discussed various sections of the proposed Constitution, and the Committee advised that the suggestions would he duly considered before submitting the final document, which would be duly presented and sent to the membership at large at least 30 days before the next Annual Business Meeting, Feb. 18, 1913. Professor Richards presented a resolution, seconded by Mr. Kirchhoff, making a change in the present Certificate of Incorporation, so that it would conform to the proposed changes in the Constitution and By-Laws; said resolution was unanimously adopted. Professor Richards presented another amendment to the Constitution, which had been purposely omitted from the printed list, but had been requested by many members, namely, the creation of a " Class of Fellows." This question was freely discussed at the Cleveland meeting (see Bulletin No. 71, November, 1912, p. 1348), and in view of the diversity of opinion it was-decided to present it in separate form for separate action of the membership at large at the Annual Business Meeting, Feb. 18, 1913. In answer to question, the President announced that the proposed amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws presented by Messrs. Corning and Stone at the Adjourned Annual Business Meeting, Oct. 7, 1912, and published in Circular Announcement No. 8, Oct. 15, 1912, were still on record. Professor Richards presented a syllabus of the proposed amendments to the By-Laws, and several sections were discused by members present, but no action of record was taken. Mr. Charles F. Rand read a letter from Mr. L. K. Armstrong, Sec-retary of the Spokane Local Section of the Institute, referring to the proposed amendments to the Constitution, and he announced that many of Mr. Armstrong's suggestions were, in one form or another, already incorporated in the proposed amendments submitted by the Special Committee. A special vote of thanks was passed to Dr. Albert R. Ledoux for the valuable assistance rendered by him to the Special Committee in the preparation of the proposed amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws.

Dec 1, 1912

Prof. J. C. BRanner, Stanford University, Cal. (communication to the Secretary): On p. 398, Mr. Hedburg mentions Marionite and Brannerite as ores of zinc. Neither of these has been authoritatively recognized as a distinct mineral species. Marionite, originally described by Elderhorst, was subsequently determined to be nothing else than hydrozincite. Analyses of the so-called Brannerite were sent by me to Prof. Penfield, who says it is a mixture of Smithsonite with some other mineral. On p. 398, Mr. Hedburg says the zinc-bearing formation of North Arkansas " is recognized as the Upper Silurian." So far as my observation goes, the ores occur both in Lower Carboniferous and in Ordovician or Lower Silurian rocks, but nowhere in rocks known to be of Upper Silurian age. If Mr. Hedburg has any paleontological evidence of the Upper Silurian age of these rocks, or of any of them, he will confer a favor upon geologists by making it known. On the same page is another statement in which I cannot concur. He says that in this region, " it can easily be seen that the largest fissure-deposits have been eroded and washed away, leaving here and there a few patches adhering to the hillsides." I am compelled to say that in many years' study of the geology of the region in question, I have never been able to recognize such a state of affairs as Mr. Hedburg here describes. The patches which he regards as remnants of fissure-veins, " adhering to the hillsides," I have found to be either the edges of bedded deposits, or portions of the zinc-bearing breccias, formed along old drainage-lines, and laid bare by the ordinary processes of erosion. That fissure-deposits have been partly removed by the same agency, goes without saying; but it is, in ,my judgment, no more true of North Arkansas than of any other mining-region that erosion has selected and washed away " the largest " deposits. My own views of the region in question are given in detail

Jan 1, 1902

By Allan J. Clark

It is nearly three years since the metallurgy of the Homestake ore was discussed with considerable thoroughness, in a paper1 read before the Institution of .Mining and Metallurgy. Certain changes have been made in this period which are perhaps of sufficient interest to justify a brief description, and it is chiefly with such details and miscellanies that this paper will deal. In the circumstances, a certain amount of repetition is inevitable, but matter treated of in the former paper will be referred to here only when it is necessary for the sake of coherency. For full descriptions of equipment and technique, the former paper should be consulted. The mineralized slates and schists which constitute the ore vary considerably in composition, but the unoxidized ore, perhaps constituting the major part of the reserves, contains either chlorite or hornblende (cummingtonite), with quartz, carbonates of lime, magnesia and iron, and arsenopyrite, pyrite, and pyrrhotite. Ferrous minerals predominate, and this fact has been an important factor in determining the metallurgical treatment. With one or two exceptions the minerals noted are of relatively high specific gravity, and the ore as a whole is exceptionally heavy, many determinations giving an average specific gravity of 3.00. This high specific gravity presents one decided advantage, when the cost of treatment is compared with operations elsewhere, in that the ton, almost universally the basic unit, represents a volume probably less by 10 per cent. than that of many gold ores. On the other hand, this high gravity renders more difficult the discharge of pulp from mortars, its distribution on amalgam tables, and its transportation in launders. In the same way, as attesting the usual balance of such variations of different ores, it may be noted that the needle-like fibers of hornblende (cummingtonite), interlacing throughout the mass, render the ore more difficult to crush than would be anticipated, but on the other hand assist

Jan 1, 1916

By M. J. Sinnott

WITH the advent of nodular iron as an engineering material, considerable interest has been shown in developing this material for various applications. Generally the strength, hardness, or ductility are the more common properties used for design purposes but occasionally applications involving a knowledge of the thermal conductivity of the material is required. A search of the literature showed, rather surprisingly, that relatively little work has been done on this property for all types of cast iron. Insufficient data are available on thermal and electrical conductivities to develop the Weidemann-Franz ratio, or the Lorentz relationship, for estimation purposes. There are no data on nodular irons and the published data on malleable irons are quite sketchy. For these reasons the conductivity of the group of nodular irons listed in Table I were measured. Irons I to IV were made in such a fashion as to maintain the carbon and alloy content essentially the same while varying the silicon content. Test specimens were cut from the mid-section of 4-in. keel castings. Iron V is a commercial casting of nodular iron. The test specimen of this iron was cut from the center of a large cast billet 3x10x26 in. All alloys were tested in the as-cast condition. A microstructural examination showed that each iron had spheroidal graphite but the size and distribution varied with the silicon content of the iron. The spheroid size decreased while the number of graphite nodules increased as the silicon content of the iron was increased. The matrix structures of each iron consisted of pearlite and ferrite with the proportions varying from predominantly pearlite in the low-silicon iron to mostly ferrite in the high-silicon iron. The commercial heat, iron V, was predominantly pearlite probably because of its higher manganese and phosphorus content. Two methods for measuring the thermal conductivity were used. The first was a modification of the techniques described by Powell and Hickman and Van Dusen and Shelton,² the second method was a simpler technique described by Jakob and Hawkins." Since the agreement of both methods as tested on two sets of duplicate samples was excellent, the simpler experimental technique was used. The results of the measurements are given in Table II along with a summary of the microstructural constituents. These conductivity data indicate that as the percentage of silicon increases there is a corresponding decrease in the thermal conductivity even though the structure is changing from pearlitic to ferritic. Such a change in microstructure is usually accompanied by an increase in conductivity. A third factor involved in the behavior of these irons is the size and distribution of the graphite nodules. The relative amounts of graphite do not change greatly but the size and distribution do. Generally graphite improves the conductivity but in the present case such an effect is probably masked by the alloying effect from the silicon and its dispersion through the matrix. The thermal conductivity of the nodular irons studied is less than that of regular foundry irons by some 10 to 30 pct and is less than that of regular malleable irons.' The cause of the decreased conductivity is probably the more highly alloyed fer-rites obtained in these irons and the changed mode of distribution of the graphite as compared to the regular foundry irons. References R. W. Powell and M. J. Hickman: Journal Iron and Steel Inst. (1946) 154, No. 2, p. 99. 'M. S. Van Dusen and S. M. Shelton: U. S. Bur. Standards Journal of Research, RP668 (1934) 12, p. 429. ³M. Jakob and G. A. Hawkins: Elements of Heat Transfer and Insulation. 2nd Ed. (1950) New York. John Wiley and Sons. ' J. W. Donaldson: Journal Iron and Steel Inst. (1933) 128, No. 2, p. 255.

Jan 1, 1954

By H. A. Meyerhoff, R. J. Colony

Deposits of iron are widely scattered in the folded Cretaceous rocks and the associated igneous intrusives of Puerto Rico. Most of them are too small for commercial development, but a few have aroused some scientific and economic interest, among them the large body of residual limonite at the west end of the island near Mayagüezl-6 (Fig. 1) and the mixed hematite and magnetite deposit on the southern slopes of the Sierra de Cayey, about four miles north of Arroyo.7"9 Neither of these orebodies has been developed, nor have investigations of the widely distributed deposits of magnetite, which include all the remaining occurrences of iron deserving of economic consideration, proceeded beyond the exploratory stage. With the possible exception of the mixed deposit near Arroyo, the magnetite is directly associated with andesitic and dioritic intrusives, which invade the Cretaceous rock section, and the bulk of it, occurring in calcareous sediments, is clearly of contact-replacement origin. The small deposit on Rio Portugües, north of Ponce, is found in a limestone band near its contact with an andesite dike.10,11 Two deposits of unde-

Jan 1, 1935

By H. A. Meyerhoff, R. J. Colony

Deposits of iron are widely scattered in the folded Cretaceous rocks and the associated igneous intrusives of Puerto Rico. Most of them are too small for commercial development, but a few have aroused some scientific and economic interest, among them the large body of residual limonite at the west end of the island near Mayagüezl-6 (Fig. 1) and the mixed hematite and magnetite deposit on the southern slopes of the Sierra de Cayey, about four miles north of Arroyo.7"9 Neither of these orebodies has been developed, nor have investigations of the widely distributed deposits of magnetite, which include all the remaining occurrences of iron deserving of economic consideration, proceeded beyond the exploratory stage. With the possible exception of the mixed deposit near Arroyo, the magnetite is directly associated with andesitic and dioritic intrusives, which invade the Cretaceous rock section, and the bulk of it, occurring in calcareous sediments, is clearly of contact-replacement origin. The small deposit on Rio Portugües, north of Ponce, is found in a limestone band near its contact with an andesite dike.10,11 Two deposits of unde-

Jan 1, 1935

By Frederick C. Hull, Robert F. Mehl, Robert A. Colton

IT is known that pearlite forms from austenite by a process of nucleation and growth, and that the rate of formation of pearlite may be described by a rate of nucleation and a rate of growth 12 The manner in which these two quantities operate to produce the observed isothermal reaction curve has been analyzed in a paper published in 1939 3 Two types of process were described (I) that in which nucleation occurs at the grain boundaries of the parent phase, with the nodules growing toward the centers of the grains, initially as hemispheres and then after impingement as roughly radial-columnar structures, and (2) that in which nucleation occurs generally, with the nodules growing to full spheres until impingement with other growing nodules restricts growth Both cases are met in the formation of pearlite from austenite (Fig 1),2,3 the former, occurring near the knee of the S-curve has been named "grain-boundary transformation," and the latter, occurring at temperatures near AeI, has been named "group-nodule transformation " In developing our knowledge of the factors that determine the rate of formation of pearlite from austenite, it is important''' to obtain data on the rate of nucleation and the rate of growth of pearlite Such data, when obtained near the knee of the S-curve, will furnish information of use in understanding the actors that affect hardenability, when obtained at higher temperatures, such data will be useful in understanding the behavior of steels that during heat-treatment react to pearlite 2 It is the purpose of this paper to present data on the rate of nucleation and the rate of growth of pearlite in dependence upon composition, grain size, temperature,, and the degree of homogeneity of the parent austenite The studies are restricted chiefly to plain carbon commercial steels PREVIOUS DATA ON RAID OF NUCLEATION AND RATE OF GROWTH Data on the rate of nucleation and the rate of growth of pearlite have been published by Scheil and Lange-Weise,5 by Mirkin and Blanter,6,7 by Mehl,1 and by Dorn, De Garmo and Flanigan22 It is difficult to interpret the data, for in most cases too little information is given on austenitizing temperatures and times, the state of homogeneity of the austenite (presence or absence of carbide, etc ), austenite grain size, and mode of formation of pearlite at the temperatures given

Jan 1, 1942

By Frank R. Barnako

Coal mining is a hazardous occupation, but tremendous progress has been made in reducing accidental injuries and deaths in the mines. Let us take a look at the hazards in coal mining and the accident record. COAL MINE SAFETY TODAY Underground coal mining creates underground open areas, rooms, and haulageways. The roof (top) and ribs (sides) become highly stressed, and because coal and slate are very weak in tension or compression they frequently fail and fall from the roof and ribs unexpectedly. This is the most hazardous condition miners must cope with underground, and it has consistently produced the greatest number of fatal injuries in the coal mining industry. Only very sophisticated equipment, but which is not yet practical for use underground, is able to detect the buildup of stresses that may eventually lead to a roof or rib fall. Today's miner still looks for fresh cracks in the roof or rib, listens for the "drummy" sound, and feels vibrations from loose material in the roof, when tapped with a sounding stick, in order to find material which may fall. Once located, it is barred down, but if this is not possible, it is then secured to prevent it from falling. The next great& hazard is the equipment used to mine or haul coal. It is large, heavy, reacts quickly to its controls and is operated in con- fined areas with low lighting levels. The record of the last few years shows that fatalities attributable to mining and hauling equipment are about equally divided. Thorough training as part of a complete safety program is necessary to teach employees the hazards of loose roof, rib, and machine operation in order that they can work in the safest way possible. Unless there is such a program, the trade is learned by trial and error with a resulting tragic.

Jan 1, 1973

By Alden Greninger

THE time-honored description of the growth of metal crystals to form polycrystalline aggregates is one in which two important steps are con-sidered: (1) nucleation, and (2) dendritic growth, each dendrite starting from its individual nucleus and resulting (upon slow cooling, assuming no solid phase changes) in a macrograin. This picture of the process of crystallization is incomplete, and it is with the hope of enlarging upon it that the following summary and correlation of experimental results are given. MOSAIC STRUCTURE For an exact definition of the mosaic structure of metal crystals-if, indeed, one can be found that will hold for all metals-one must await the results of much experimental work in this field. The writer's investiga-tions have been confined almost entirely to copper and a few of its alloys. The following terms are proposed, and will be used in this report: Macromosaic Structure l.-Large-scale mosaic structure; more specif-ically, mosaic structure of a scale large enough to produce splitting of Laue spots on back-reflection Laue X-ray patterns2. The deviation from exact parallelism of neighboring macromosaics varies from a few

Jan 1, 1935

By Milo Krejci

(Butte Meeting, August, 1913.) THE plant and quarries of the Inland Portland Cement Co. are located at Metaline Falls, Wash., about 128 miles north of Spokane, on the Pend Oreille river, and within 10 miles of the Canadian border. The plant is one of a chain of cement plants controlled by the Lehigh Portland Cement Co., of Allentown, Pa. Work on this plant was commenced in June, 1910, and was completed in April, 1911, but on account of some delays in 'the construction of the power plant, the works were not put into operation until August, 1911. Since then it has been in continuous operation and has furnished the Inland Empire with a high grade of cement. Fig. I is a view and Fig. 2 is a plan of the works. Water Power Development.-The source of the water supply for the hydro-electric plant of the Inland Portland Cement Co. is Sullivan lake, a body of water approximately 5.5 miles long and 0.5 mile wide, situated in the Kaniksu Forest Reserve. A wooden crib dam was installed so as to raise the elevation of the lake 25 ft., and the additional storage capacity was taken up by the diversion of Sullivan creek into the lake by means of a wooden flume, 0.25 mile long, 6 by S ft. in cross-section, and a ditch 1,200 ft. long. The water from the lake follows the natural water course to an intermediate storage reservoir, which was created by the construction of an earthen dam. This pond wits used in connection with the saw mill which was installed at this point. Besides the earth dam, there was also built a crib, at the point shown in the sketch map, Fig. 3. This crib dam is 35 ft. high. From this point the excess water follows the natural course of Sullivan creek to the Pend Oreille river.

Jan 7, 1913

By J. E. Steiner, J. M. Hodge, M. A. Orehoski

Ingots of four steels (1045, 1080, Ni-Mo-V, and Ni-Cr-Mo-V) were cast at pressures varying from about 1 to 760 mm of mercury, so as to obtain a range of hydrogen contents in each steel. The susceptibility of these steels to flaking was evaluated by cooling hot-rolled blooms at a range of cooling rates, varying from water quenching to slag cooling, and studying the occurrence of flaking as a function of cooling rate. The steels exhibited differences in susceptibility to flaking, and a tlzreshold value for hydrogen content for each steel was found, below which the susceptibility was very low and above which the susceptibility increased markedly with increasing hydrogen content. Mechanical property evaluations, metallogvaplzic exantinations, and X-my diffraction determinations o,t retained austenite were made on samples from the blooms. A mechanism of flaking which is consistent with the observed behaviors, the effects of hvdrogen content, and the differences in susceptibility among the steels investigated is postulated, based on the results of mechanical property evaluations and metallographic and X-ray diffraction studies. ThE important role of hydrogen as a factor in the occurrence of "flakes" or "hair-line cracks" in steel has now been established by many investigations. These have included investigations by steel producers and forging manufacturers, to whom the prevention of flaking is a very real and serious problem, and many research studies aimed primarily at establishing the mechanism of this behavior Several investigators3 have reported that steels cast at reduced pressures (absolute pressures of about 1 mm) not only are low in hydrogen content but are essentially insensitive to the formation of flakes. These investigations have shown that a general relationship exists between hydrogen content and susceptibility to flaking. The difficulty of obtaining suitable samples of steels of a given composition with the desired range of hydrogen contents, particularly in the relatively large sections in which flaking most commonly occurs, has been the principal obstacle to quantitative evaluations of these relationships. Steels with intermediate hydrogen contents between 1 ppm, and the 4ppm or higher of air-cast steels are generally not available in commercially produced steels. Laboratory procedures, in which the hydrogen is introduced into solid steel samples by heating in a hydrogen atmosphere under pressure, generally involve a limitation in the size of the sample which can be treated, and thus are not representative of the behaviors in large sections. The availability of a facility at the South Chicago Works of U.S. Steel, in which several ingots could be cast from a single heat of steel at total air pressures ranging from 0.25 to 760 mm of Hg, has made it possible to overcome this obstacle and to obtain ingots of a given steel covering the intermediate range of hydrogen contents desired. These ingots, furthermore, are of a size suitable for the production of product with section sizes large enough to be representative of the products in which flaking most commonly occurs in commercial production. In these experiments, this facility was used to study the relationships between hydrogen content and the susceptibility to flaking of four steels, two plain carbon steels at 0.45 and 0.80 pct C and two low-carbon alloy steels representing a medium and a rather high hardenability level. These flaking studies were supplemented by evaluations of mechanical properties and by metallographic studies on samples from the blooms, in order to obtain pertinent information on the factors other than hydrogen content which influence the susceptibilities of these steels to flaking. Based on the results of these tests, a mechanism for the initiation and propagation of the flaking cracks, which is consistent with the observed behaviors, is postulated. MATERIALS AND EXPERIMENTAL WORK Steelmaking and Conversion. To provide material for the investigation, five 29- by 35-in., hot-topped, big-end-up ingots were cast from each of four 80-ton, basic electric-furnace heats of four different steels (a 1045 steel, a 1080 steel, a Ni-Mo-V steel, and a Ni-Cr-Mo-V steel). A double-slag practice was used on all steels and the two plain carbon steels were Si-A1 deoxidized with an addition of 2 lb of A1 per ton, while the Ni-Mo-V and Ni-Cr-Mo-V steels were deoxidized only with silicon and

Jan 1, 1964

By Herty, C. H.

The effect of temperature on the physical properties of structural materials has been the subject of many investigations during the past decade. The literature on the effect of elevated temperatures. is voluminous, and during the last four years a great deal of experimental work has been carried out on the effect of low temperatures on the impact properties of steel. For many engineering purposes it is important to know the shock resistance of steels at low atmospheric temperatures, and with the ever-developing field of refrigeration and separation of materials at low temperatures, the normal limits of atmospheric temperature have been exceeded in practice. Iron and its alloys in the unnotched condition have a high impact strength at low temperatures, but in practice variations in type of notches result either from design or accidentally through scratches and surface or internal defects. A study of notched bar impact tests is, therefore, highly important to the engineer. A survey of the literature on low temperature impact testing indicates that chemical composition, heat treatment and method of testing have been the variables which have been considered in most previous work. In only a few instances has any mention of the steel- making method been mentioned and in these the comparison was between steel-making processes and not between steel-making methods on the same process. In view of the wide variations in impact properties at room temperature, in quench and strain ageing and in grain growth of steels of identical chemical composition, (by this is meant the usual five element analysis reported), it was felt

Jan 1, 1957

By R. Ebeling, M. F. Ashby

The paper is in two parts. The first develops the formulae and method needed to calculate the size, nu)nber, spacing, and volume fraction of hard or inert particles in the interior of a specimen from measurernents made on an extraction replica; throughout, the spread of- particle sizes in a single specimen is taken into account, and the extraction efficiency of the replica is considered. A method for testing whether the particles are randotnly distributed in space is described, and the spacing of randomly distributed particles is discussed. The second Part describes the application of the method to copper containing spherical particles of silica; the description includes an estimate of the errors involved, and a comparison of this with alternative methods. All parameters except uolume fraction can be determined satisfactorily, and the method offers advantages over other electron-,rzicroscopic techniques when dealing with hard particles in a softer matrix, or inert particles in a chem-ically less inert matrix. 1 HE experimental measurement of sizes and numbers of discrete particles of a second phase embedded in a matrix material from opaque, plane sections has been considered by many authors, notably by Fullman.' It is assumed that, when the specimen is sectioned, the particles are also sectioned, so that the diameters of the circles of intersection of particles with the plane of the cross section ("surface diameters") are measured. It is difficult to derive the distribution of true particle diameters ("volume diameters") from measurements of the distribution of "surface diameters" on a plane section. The measurement of size and numbers of small second-phase particles by transmission electron microscopy through thin foils of matrix containing the particles has been described by Cahn and ~uttin~' and by ~illiard.~ Because of overlap and the fact that particles which intersect the foil surface may be sectioned whereas those in the bulk of the foil are not, it is again difficult to measure the true distribution of particle sizes. The use of replicas for this sort of measurement has not been analyzed in detail. A replica made from an opaque cross section, thus replicating the circles of intersection of particles with the plane of section, is analyzed by Fullman's method and suffers from the same difficulties. Under certain circumstances, however, extraction replicas can be used, and offer a special advantage in that they make the determination of the true distribution of particle diameters particularly simple. It is the purpose of this paper to describe this extraction replica method. Consider the example of an alloy consisting of SiOz particles, whose mean diameter is about 1000A, dispersed in a copper matrix. When the alloy is sectioned and mechanically polished, the particles are not sectioned, because they are much harder than the matrix, and so will be either left in the surface or pulled out whole, and because the particle size is smaller than the abrasive size of even the finest abrasive. The particles are chemically inert in solutions which chemically etch or electropolish the matrix, so that chemical treatments do not section the particles either. (Experimental measurements of particle shape in this alloy confirm this—truncated particles are never seen.) Small, hard or inert, particles are therefore not sectioned when the specimen is sectioned and polished. An extraction replica taken from this polished surface shows the true "volume" diameter of each extracted particle; the distribution of diameters seen on the replica is the surface distribution of true "volume" diameters, and the volume distribution of true "volume" diameters is easily derived from it. The extraction replica method is not subject to the difficulties associated with sectioning of particles, and avoids the problem of overlap from which the transmission method suffers. The method is well-suited for studying hard particles in a soft matrix. Examples are provided by internally oxidized alloys, oxide-dispersion strengthened metals like T.D. Nickel, and carbides, nitrides, and strong intermetallic compounds in metals. It should be possible to adapt polishing techniques in alloys containing softer but inert particles to avoid sectioning the particles (say by electropolishing or etching). The method is tested and illustrated in Sections 8 and 9 by applying it to a dispersion of spherical SiO2 particles in a copper matrix. I) SYMBOLS Symbols are defined where they first appear in the text. Volume fractions of particles are denoted by the symbol f, particle diameters by x, center-to-center particle spacings by D, and numbers of particles by N. Mean particle diameters and standard deviations about these means are denoted by x and a. Both arithmetic (subscript A) and geometric (subscript G) means are employed. In this paper we measure the distribution of true diameters of particles which touch or pass through a random-plane section of the specimen. We may want to know the distribution of particle diameters in the

Jan 1, 1967

By E. S. Davenport

WHEN annealed carbon, or low-alloy, steels are suitably heated the ferrite (alpha iron solid solution) and the carbide, of which they are composed, react together to form a single solid solution of carbon (and other elements) in gamma iron (austenite). This reaction may begin only at a certain minimum temperature called the eutectoid temperature. The first ferrite and carbide thus to react together do so in definite proportions known as the eutectoid composition. With further heating the original constituent that is present in excess is dissolved in the austenite until exhausted. Whether the excess constituent be ferrite (hypoeutectoid steels) or carbide (hypereutectoid steels) the procedure is much the same, and upon slow cooling the homogeneous austenite expels the excess of either (proeutectoid ferrite or carbide) until the eutectoid composition is reached. Thus the reaction upon heating is strictly reversed upon cooling and accordingly an equilibrium diagram of this process may be constructed. Such an equilibrium diagram concerns itself only with the tempera¬tures involved and with the proportions and compositions of the phases developed under conditions that suffice to permit equilibrium. Specifically it has no concern for the type or mode of distribution of these constituents nor with any extra-equilibrium conditions such as undercooling, which is almost universally encountered in metals. Actually, however, of great importance is the sluggishness toward equilibration caused by the not inconsiderable time involved in diffusion. Thus instead of the theoretical transformation point AE, we find for a certain rate of heating or cooling the use of the designations Ar and Ac (transformation temperature found on cooling and upon heating). These figures obviously have no particular meaning except as measured and expressed for a definite heating or cooling rate, and represent the apparent temperature displacement caused by an inadequate time allowance. In this paper are presented the results of a study of the time required for' the transformation of austenite to ferrite and carbide at a variety of temperatures and also of the time required for the reaction austenite ?martensite at the temperatures at which this reaction occurs instead of

Jan 1, 1930

By William Phillips

THE earliest mention of the sulphur deposits in what is now Culberson County, Texas, seems to be contained in "Explorations and Surveys for a Railroad Route from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, United States War Department, 1853-54." Captain John Pope (he was not commissioned Captain until 1856) had charge of one of the divisions of the Survey. In his report on the geology of the route, William P. Blake noted the analysis of a greenish earthy powder from the bed of Delaware Creek, at the springs, which contained 18.28 per cent. of free sulphur. The report states: "From the chemical examination of the waters of the spring, by Dr. Booth, it appears that chloride of sodium is the principal solid ingredient, but considerable quantities of sulphide of sodium are present. * * * * * The waters from the springs examined by Dr. Booth were alkaline, but it is possible that some of the springs are acid; and in this case the precipitation of sulphur would ensue on the mixture of the acid waters with those charged with alkaline sulphurets and the origin of the deposits of sulphur would he thus explained." This is the first reference to the existence of sulphur in that region, the first mention of the character of the water found there and the first suggestion as to the' origin of the deposits. The possibility of the existence of acid waters was confirmed by E. M. Skeats, nearly 50 years later.1 In this publication, Skeats says that the water from the sulphur deposits in Section 11, Block 114,, Township 5, contains 79.08 grains of free sulphuric acid per gallon. This locality is about 13 miles (21 km.) south of Delaware Creek and about 35-miles (56 km.) east of the Delaware Springs. The next published reference to the existence of sulphur in Trans-Pecos Texas is in the First. Annual Report of the Geological Survey of Texas, 1889, page 226, where W. H. von Streeruwitz mentions that sulphur is found in that region, but gives no further information. In the

Jan 9, 1917

By Francis P. Sinn

LOW prices have made 1938 a difficult year for the zinc industry of the world. Particularly in the United States, output had to be radically curtailed to bring production into line with consumption. Despite these unfavorable conditions, some additional plant construction is contemplated. In Jugoslavia, through co-operation with the Government, Trepca Mines is lo build a zinc plant to produce 10,000 metric tons annually, the plant to be ready for operation in July, 1941). Cerro de Pasco is proceeding with its plans for an electrolytic plant in Peru. A pilot plant, to be ready next summer, is under construction. In eastern Canada an electrolytic plant is planned in Quebec to treat concentrates from Yoranda and other mines but no defi-

Jan 1, 1939

By R. F. Mehl, G. V. Smith

THE decomposition of austenite in steels, because of its immense practical importance, has been subjected to extensive study in recent years from the point of view of the mechanism of the process.1-3 Although much information has been acquired a number of questions, principally of theoretical interest, remain. One is that of the atomic-crystallographic mechanism by which each of the various reaction products forms. The isothermal reaction products of the eutectoid decomposition in plain carbon steels (to which this study is restricted) have conveniently been classified in three general groupings-pearlite, bainite, and martensite. Of these several products, pearlite and martensite have been studied extensively, but bainite has received only scant attention. As a result, the mechanism of the formation of pearlite and that of martensite are now fairly well understood while a great deal of uncertainty exists regarding bainite. PEARLITE Pearlite forms from austenite by the precipitation of alternate platelets of cementite and ferrite, which grow into the austenite matrix.2-5 The rate of reaction may be described in terms of a rate of nucleation and a rate of growth 2 3 Mehl and Smiths have attempted to determine the lattice relationships existing between the ferrite in pearlite and the parent austenite. Using a pole-figure method of analysis, it was found that a limited number of ferrite orientations resulted from the decomposition of a single grain of austenite; it was not possible,[ ]decide between two assumed ideal relationships, both of which appeared to account for the experimentally determined pole figure. It was definitely shown, however, that the relationship obtaining was quite different from that determined for the proeutectoid separation of ferrite.7 No attempt was made to determine the habit plane (matrix plane to which the precipitate lies parallel) of the pearlite lamellae. Belaiew8 earlier had stated that the number of directions assumed by the pearlite lamellae in a single grain of austenite was 12 (no details were given) and concluded wrongly, as Mehl and Smith' have pointed out, that the lamellae delineate the {210} planes of ferrite.* MARTENSITE It is known that martensite is a transitional constituent of body-centered tetrag-

Jan 1, 1942

By R. A. L. Black, J. E. Jennings

The problems of slope stability in open cast mines are examined. A criterion, the instantaneous stripping ratio, is suggested for use in the design of pit slopes and as an index of control at all stages of the exploitation of the orebody. This criterion may also be related to safety and to the maximizing of profits. Two approaches to safe design of slopes, one from the point of view of soil mechanics and the other from the point of view of rock mechanics, are described and critically compared. The effect on slope stability of the regional tectonic stress field is discussed. Explanation is given of the application of the Terzaghi effective stress concept to problems in both soil and rock environments, including possible effects when borehole deformation techniques are used to measure stresses in rock in situ. A company embarking on open cast mining is faced with two basic questions: 1) will the venture be profitable and 2) can it be carried out with safety? The two questions are obviously interrelated because both depend upon the slope angles adopted for the pit. The cost of open cast mining depends largely upon the stripping ratio, defined as the volume of overburden that must be removed to the volume of ore recovered. The steeper the slope angles, the more favorable the stripping ratio, but the stability of the slopes, and therefore the safety of men and materials in the pit, require that the angles be made relatively flat. Consequently, the design depends upon a compromise: the slopes must be steep enough to result in economical mining and flat enough to ensure safety. Today there is a world trend towards deeper mining by open cast methods. This is mainly due to the higher cost of underground mining and the lower cost of open excavation resulting from the introduction of large modern earth and rock-moving machinery. Deeper open cast mining has led to a very great increase in the volumes of wasted overburden, and much thought is being given to the considerable economic benefits which would result if pit slopes could be made steeper by even one or two degrees. The result has been an increasing interest in research into slope stability problems in the expectation that the application of scientific principles will provide solutions leading both to economies and to more predictable operation of the mines. In at least four places, the U.S., Australia, Western Germany and Southern Africa, comprehensive investigations are at present in progress, and it is the object of this paper to review some of the more important aspects of these programs. RELATION BETWEEN ECONOMY OF OPERATION AND SLOPE ANGLES The main object of any industrial enterprise in a free economy is to make a profit. In mining, where profits must be made from a wasting capital asset, a further definition of the profit motive is imposed, namely that the economic aim should be to maximize the total possible profit. But since profits deferred for a number of years are not as valuable as profits that are immediately available, it is usual to discount deferred profits at some rate of interest which reflects their current or present value in the hands of the investor. Thus, in mining the logical aim can be defined more closely still: to maximize the present value of the total future profits. In commercial terms the present value represents the market value of the operation as a going concern. Many factors enter into the forecast of current and future profits. They include the volume of production, the price of the salable product and the cost of production. Current profits can be estimated with reasonable accuracy by the operating engineers; but it is the task of economists and management to assess future trends in the mineral markets and in the economy as a whole, and together with the engineers, they can then estimate the future cost and profitability of the mining operations. In open cast mining, the rate of ore production once decided on remains a virtually constant factor unless a major change in the capital structure of the mine is made. But one factor over which the operator has a considerable measure of control is the ratio of the volume of ore mined to the volume of waste over-

Jan 1, 1963