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By David M. Hopstock

The performance of the most common type of low-intensity dry magnetic separator is analyzed on the basis of fundamental physical principles. Expressions are developed for estimating the optimal choice of design and operating parameters for beneficiation of magnetite ores. By proper choice of these parameters either a high-grade concentrate or a low-grade tailing can be produced from an incompletely liberated feed.

Jan 1, 1976

By John Devine

DURING the past few years the Bureau of Mines has been studying hydrogen-sulfide corrosion in the petroleum and natural-gas industries. Early work was confined to investigating the various practical, or operat-ing, factors that control the corrosion reaction when ordinary mild steel is being attacked. In that work it was shown that, if the optimum operating conditions1 are obtainable, . gas containing hydrogen sulfide can be handled at ordinary temperatures without serious corrosion resulting. However, frequently "sour" gas must be handled under other than optimum operating conditions, and combating corrosion then becomes a problem to be considered more during the construction of a system than during its subsequent operation. That is, where economi-cally practicable in such cases the designer will seek to substitute for mild steel other steels or ferrous metals more resistant to corrosion by hydro-gen sulfide. The comparative resistance of various commercial steels and alloy steels to corrosion by hydrogen sulfide at elevated temperatures has been reported systematically by previous investigators,2 but similar information for corrosion at ordinary temperatures is available only from scattered sources, representing different methods of testing. As the value of comparative corrosion tests depends largely upon the use of a

Jan 1, 1934

By Elbert Rowland

THE widespread interest in the alloys of beryllium with copper is due principally to the fact that certain compositions show very favorable precipitation-hardening characteristics and are, in fact, the strongest nonferrous alloys known at the present time. Investigations have been conducted by Masing and Dahl and others on the physical characteristics of ternary beryllium alloys, in an attempt to produce precipitation-hardening effects with a smaller amount of beryllium than that required in the binary copper-beryllium alloys (2.0 to 2.5 per cent Be). The results of these investigations show that ternary alloys of beryllium with Cu-Sn, Cu-Al and Cu-Zn, among others, exhibit promising improvements in physical properties after precipitation-hardening treatment and, while the increases in properties obtained are not as high as those realized from the binary copper-beryllium alloys, excellent properties are obtained with beryllium contents averaging about one-half the amount required in the binary alloys. This paper presents the results of an investigation of the equilibrium relations of certain alloys containing copper, tin and beryllium. The alpha-phase boundary of the ternary system is given for alloys containing from 0 to 1 per cent beryllium. The equilibrium conditions beyond the alpha-phase boundary are presented for alloys containing up to 32 per cent tin and 1 per cent beryllium. The data were collected by means of

Jan 1, 1935

By M. J. Duggin

Structural similarities between the E, X, and iron carbides are illustrated. Experimental evidence regarding phase transformations occurring during ternpering reactions in finely divided carbides, thin-film carbides, and carbides which occur in steels is considered and possible mechanisms for the E — x and x — 9 transformations proposed. HOFER1 has shown that within the appropriate temperature ranges carbon monoxide will react with finely divided a iron to form either iron carbide or x iron carbide. He has shown that at an elevated temperature the E iron carbide will transform to the x iron carbide (Hagg carbide) which, upon further elevation of temperature, will transform to 9 iron carbide (cementite). Jack,2,3 using X-ray diffraction methods, has observed that during the tempering reactions occurring in steel the E iron carbide formed in the first stage of tempering passes into two-dimensional platelets of 0 iron carbide during the second stage of tempering. The three-dimensional form of the 0 carbide is formed during the third stage of tempering. Jack suggested2 that the two-dimensional platelets of 0 carbide could be related to the faulted x iron carbide. Okada and Arata4 investigated a Swedish steel containing 1.05 wt pct C and approximately 1.0 wt pct Mn using permeability measurements at low field strength. A Curie point of 360°C was observed in the quenched steel, which indicated the presence of E iron carbide. On tempering at 400°C the specimen developed a Curie point at 230°C, indicating the presence of x iron carbide, and on tempering at 700°C the specimen developed a Curie point at 190°C which was assigned to 0 iron carbide. The carbides were extracted electro-lytically and the use of X-ray diffraction techniques4r5 indicated the carbide with a Curie point of 230°C to be x iron carbide. The Curie points of the carbides are 10 to 22°C lower than the accepted values which is probably due to the presence of manganese in the carbides, since it has often been observed (e.g., Ref, 6) that a partial substitution of manganese for iron in cementite will lower the Curie point of this carbide. Hofer' summarizes additional evidence of the tempering reactions in steel in which E iron carbide, formed during the first stage of tempering, transforms to x iron carbide during the second stage of tempering. During the third stage of tempering, the x carbide disappears as the 0 carbide is formed. By carburizing thin iron films in a CO gas stream, ~a~akura' has been able to produce the E, X, and 0 iron carbides. He found that below 250°C the E iron carbide was formed; between 250" and 350°C the x iron carbide was formed and above 350°C the 0 iron carbide was formed. He has shown that the E iron carbide transforms to form x iron carbide at 380" to 400°C and that the x ir°n carbide transforms to form the 0 iron carbide at approximately 550" C; both of these phase transformations are irreversible. Hofer' presents a review of evidence to show that the sequence of reactions occurring during tempering processes subsequent to the formation of E iron carbide formed by the direct carburization of finely divided a iron is the same as the sequence of reactions which occur during the tempering processes subsequent to the formation of E iron carbide in steel during the first stage of tempering. It is evident from Nagakura's work that identical tempering reactions are found in thin films of iron which have been carburized to form iron carbide. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the structural similarities between the E, X, and 0 carbides and to suggest a possible mechanism by which regions of the E carbide, formed during the first stage of tempering, may transform to the x carbide during the second stage of tempering. For the finely divided or thin film carbides a mechanism will be proposed for the transformation of the x carbide to the 0 carbide during the third stage of tempering, although it will be suggested that there is evidence that such a transformation may not occur in steels. STRUCTURAL DATA OF THE E, X, AND 0 IRON CARBIDES € Iron Carbide. It is evident from X-ray diffractions and electron diffraction', investigations that the metal atoms in the E iron carbide form an hcp structure with lattice constants ah = 2.752A, ch = 4.3534, using electron diffraction, reports the lattice paramet$rs of the superlattice cell to be a = 4.767A, c = 4.354, c/a = 0.9134. He finds that the carbon atoms occupy the octahedral voids in the metal atom structure so as to form a hexagonal stacking sequence with its basal plane parallel to that of the metal atoms. Considerable long-range disorder occurs in the positioning of the carbon atoms, however, which is in agreement with the possible range of composition Fe2C-Fe3C discussed by Hofer.' Barton and ale" have made X-ray diffraction measurements on a sample of E iron carbide extracted from a catalyst in an organic process. Although there were few reflections recorded on the obtained X-ray powder diffraction pattern, they have proposed that the structure could belong to one of the three possible space groups p3m1, P63/mmc, or Pbcn if one assumed the composition to be Fe2C. Nagakura, using electron diffraction data, suggests a space group of P 6322 for a specimen of c iron carbide of apparent composition Fez.&. x Iron Carbide. The x iron carbide has been studied by Duggin and Hofer" and by Jack and wild,' who

Jan 1, 1969

By P. Greenfield, P. A. Beck

RECENT work by J. Darby, Jr. in this laboratory has shown that the reported vanadium-rich limit of the s phase in the Co-V system at 1200°C is in error. The appearance of a second phase in s actually is restricted to alloys containing over 68 atomic pct V. The error in the original value is due apparently to a reaction that takes place along the numerous cracks in the s specimens between the alloy and the impurities present in the He + 8 pct H atmosphere in the annealing furnace. Such a reaction and the consequent appearance of a second phase can be suppressed if the alloys are sealed under vacuum in Vycor tubing. The new value of 68 atomic pct V for the vana-dium-rich limit of the s phase in the Co-V system effects slightly the s compositions calculated from average values of N, and N,. for various s phases. The standard deviation between experimental mean compositions and those calculated from the assumption that s is characterized by a constant number of 3d + 4s electrons per atom (N,), is slightly reduced from 9.1 to 8.8 pct. The maximum divergence for the V-Mn s phase is reduced from 15.5 to 14 atomic pct. The standard deviation calculated from constant electron vacancy numbers given by N.. = 4.66 (Mo + Cr + V) + 3.2 (Mn) + 2.2(Fe) + 1.71(Co) + 1.6(Ni) is now greatly reduced, as the maximum divergence for this correlation previously occurred in the V-Co system. This maximum divergence is reduced from 7.6 to 2.3 pct, and the standard deviation for all s- phases is reduced from 4.1 to only 2.9 pct. The correlation for electron vacancy numbers given by N. 5.66 (V when with Ni or Co) + 4.88 (V when with Mn or Fe) + 4.66 (Cr + Mn) + 3.3 (Mn) + 2.66 (Fe) + 1.71 (Co) + 0.61 (Ni) is made slightly worse, and the standard deviation increases from 2.8 to 3.9 pct. These changes, however, do not affect the conclusions of the paper.' The deviation between calculated and experimental s compositions is much less for either one of the electron vacancy correlations than for the correlation with the number of 3d + 4s electrons.

Jan 1, 1955

By Alan Morris

Season cracking of brass has received wide attention and there is a wealth of technical literature on the subject. Its causes arc fairly well understood and means for its prevention are inexpensive and effective, so that the frequency of failures from this source has diminished of recent years. But its sister phenomenon, the failure of annealed brass by reason of applied tensile stress plus a certain type of corrosion, has received less attention, though it has been responsible for occasional more or less troublesome cases of cracking of brass in service. The work described in the following pages was undertaken about two years ago to determine the relative resistance of various commercial brass mixtures to stress-corrosion cracking, and to learn something of the controlling factors. By stress-corrosion cracking we mean the cracking of brass free from internal stresses by reason of applied tensile stress and simultaneous attack by certain corrosive agents. Rogers,' in discussing a paper by Hatfield and Thirkell, says: " He had also applied a solution of mercuric salt to tensile test pieces of brass whilst they were under stress in the testing machine. At very moderate stresses such test pieces cracked, and very readily broke." Moore, Beckinsale and Mallinson2 subjected test pieces to simultaneous corrosion and tensile stress. In order to determine the minimum stress detectable in brass by the mercurous nitrate test, tensile samples were placed under stress and treated with mercurous nitrate solution. They found that brass stressed below a minimum did not crack. Dr. McAdam3 has investigated the effect of corrosion on the fatigue limit of brasses, among other materials. He directed a stream of either fresh or salt water against the specimen while it was undergoing fatigue test. The corrosion-fatigue limits thus determined may be considerably lower than the endurance limit without coincident corrosion. The exact

Jan 1, 1930

By F. Forward, H. Veltman, A. Vizsolyi

Activities of oxides in the ternary FeO-MnO-SiO system are calculated from data on the binaries, using the Gibbs -Schuhmann method. These activity data are used, together with thermodynamic relations, to calculate the contents of oxygen, silicon, and manganese in liquid iron, and the composition of the corresponding oxide phases in equilibrium with it. Excellent agreement was found between calculated and experimental metal compositions, indicating that thermodynamic methods, such as those presented, can supply useful data on slag-metal equilibria, and are therefore capable of wider application. When molten steel containing oxygen is treated with a deoxidizer, the product of the reaction is composed of the oxides of the deoxidizing elements together with more or less iron oxide. This assemblage of oxides is presumably very close to equilibrium with the melt since it is formed directly from elements dissolved in it. Therefore, it is likely that metal analyses corresponding to a given oxide phase composition are calculable with considerable precision where sufficient information is available on activities in both phases. The present study was made to test this hypothesis in the case of deoxidation by silicon and manganese. Here experimental data on the relationship among oxygen, silicon, and manganese in the metal phase are available, as are activity data for the MnO-SiO2, FeO-SiO2, and FeO-MnO binary systems. A further objective was to demonstrate in a specific example how gaps in the data may be filled by judicious interpolation, and how the Gibbs-Schuhmann method is applied to obtain activities in ternary systems. The rigorous derivation of the latter, requiring considerable facility in handling partial differential equations, tends to mask the real simplicity of the method, and repel the very engineers and experimenters who would benefit the most from its use. I) GENERAL PROCEDURE Deoxidation of steel with silicon and manganese results in the formation of two phases, metal and oxide. The number of components is four—Fe, Mn, Si, and 0. The phase rule then gives the number of degrees of freedom: If temperature and pressure are fixed, 2 deg of freedom remain. Consequently, it suffices to fix the concentration of two of the components of the system for all the concentrations to be determined and, at least in principle, calculable. The practical problem is then to discover a straightforward method of calculation with a minimum of trial and error solutions. The type of reactions to be dealt with are like the following: Si (in steel) + 2 O(in steel) = SiO2(in oxide phase) The standard free energy of this reaction is readily obtained from the literature, so that the equilibrium constant can be calculated by the expression: Since the metallurgist is concerned with percentages rather than activities, a real solution requires information that will permit activities to be converted to concentrations. This information is fairly adequate for the elements dissolved in molten steel, but is not available for the FeO-MnO-SiO2 oxide system. Therefore, the first step in this study was to find the relation between activity and concentration for the three oxides making up the system. The next step was the calculation of slag and metal compositions that are in equilibrium with one another. As shown by the phase rule, it is sufficient to assume the values of two composition variables in order to calculate the rest. But which two are picked makes a vast difference in how difficult the calculation turns out to be, so that it is necessary to make preliminary trial of several routes to find the easiest one. A convenient method is to begin with the slag, and to pick FeO concentration and that of one of the other oxides. Starting with the relation between oxygen dissolved in the liquid steel and FeO in the slag permits a good first estimate to be made of the oxygen content of the steel in equilibrium with FeO, because the iron content being fairly close to 100 pct, Fe has an activity close to unity. Using this first estimate of oxygen activity, approximate values of the manganese and silicon contents of the melt are readily calculated from the appropriate equilibrium constants. A minor correction for the depar-

Jan 1, 1963

By E. S. Davenport, R. J. Hafsten, R. A. Grange

The influence of austenite grain size upon the hardenability of steel is now fairly well understood; for a given austenite, increasing the grain size increases the depth of hardening, and, since the latter is related to the fundamental transformation behavior of austenite, it follows that austenite decomposition must, in general, be retarded by increasing grain size. To date, very little quantitative information bearing directly on the effect of austenite grain size upon the progress and result of isothermal transformation has been published. Davenport and Bain,' and Zimmerman, Aborn and Bain2 have shown that the transformation is definitely relarded in hypereutectoid plain carbon steels at temperatures near and above the upper region of rapid transformation (Ar') when the austenite grains are increased in size. More recently, Griffiths. Pfeil and Allen3 investigated the effect of a series of different heating (austenitizing) temperatures upon the progress of isothermal transformation at 1245°F. (675°C.) and 745ºF. (395°C.) in a medium carbon, low-alloy steel; while they reported no measurements of the austenite grain size, their results suggest that increase in grain size retards austenite transformation at 1245ºF. (675°C), but has no appreciable effect at 745°F (395°C.). The present paper deals with the results of a study of the isothermal transformation of austenite in a single commercial alloy steel in which a fine-grained or a coarsegrained state was induced by appropriate selection of austenitizing temperature. The data are presented in the form of isothermal transformation diagrams, which clearly show that coarsening the grains lessens the rate of transformation of austenite to proeutectoid ferrite and pearlite—that is, at temperature levels above about 1000°F. (540°C.)—but is without significant effect at lower temperatures where the transformation product is bainite or martensite. It is to he presumed that the foregoing statement would be valid, at least in principle, for many other grades of steel; it confirms again that the mechanism of transformation to a pearlitic structure is fundamentally different from that to an acicular structure. A number of related observations were made, which seem to throw some light on the transformation process as it takes place in alloy steels, particularly at temperature levels in the vicinity of 1000ºF. (540°C.), where the transition from lamellar to acicular structures occurs. These data are discussed briefly in the belief that they may lead to a clearer understanding of this aspect of the subject. Material and Experimental Procedure The material investigated was a cornmercial grade of S.A.E. 4140 steel, the composition of which was as follows: 0.37 per cent C, 0.77 per cent Mn, 0.98 per cent Cr and 0.21 per cent Mo. It was hot-rolled to a 1 1/8-in. round bar and normalized by air-cooling from 1800°F. (980°C.).

Jan 1, 1941

By R. J. Hafsten, E. S. Davenport, R. A. Grange

The influence of austenite grain size upon the hardenability of steel is now fairly well understood; for a given austenite, increasing the grain size increases the depth of hardening, and, since the latter is related to the fundamental transformation behavior of austenite, it follows that austenite decomposition must, in general, be retarded by increasing grain size. To date, very little quantitative information bearing directly on the effect of austenite grain size upon the progress and result of isothermal transformation has been published. Davenport and Bain,' and Zimmerman, Aborn and Bain2 have shown that the transformation is definitely relarded in hypereutectoid plain carbon steels at temperatures near and above the upper region of rapid transformation (Ar') when the austenite grains are increased in size. More recently, Griffiths. Pfeil and Allen3 investigated the effect of a series of different heating (austenitizing) temperatures upon the progress of isothermal transformation at 1245°F. (675°C.) and 745ºF. (395°C.) in a medium carbon, low-alloy steel; while they reported no measurements of the austenite grain size, their results suggest that increase in grain size retards austenite transformation at 1245ºF. (675°C), but has no appreciable effect at 745°F (395°C.). The present paper deals with the results of a study of the isothermal transformation of austenite in a single commercial alloy steel in which a fine-grained or a coarsegrained state was induced by appropriate selection of austenitizing temperature. The data are presented in the form of isothermal transformation diagrams, which clearly show that coarsening the grains lessens the rate of transformation of austenite to proeutectoid ferrite and pearlite—that is, at temperature levels above about 1000°F. (540°C.)—but is without significant effect at lower temperatures where the transformation product is bainite or martensite. It is to he presumed that the foregoing statement would be valid, at least in principle, for many other grades of steel; it confirms again that the mechanism of transformation to a pearlitic structure is fundamentally different from that to an acicular structure. A number of related observations were made, which seem to throw some light on the transformation process as it takes place in alloy steels, particularly at temperature levels in the vicinity of 1000ºF. (540°C.), where the transition from lamellar to acicular structures occurs. These data are discussed briefly in the belief that they may lead to a clearer understanding of this aspect of the subject. Material and Experimental Procedure The material investigated was a cornmercial grade of S.A.E. 4140 steel, the composition of which was as follows: 0.37 per cent C, 0.77 per cent Mn, 0.98 per cent Cr and 0.21 per cent Mo. It was hot-rolled to a 1 1/8-in. round bar and normalized by air-cooling from 1800°F. (980°C.).

Jan 1, 1941

By L. A. Roe

Magnetic separation occupies an attractive position in the field of ore beneficiation. It is a simple yet effective method, used for some 150 years and steadily growing more important. This type of beneficiation orginated in 1792, when William Fullarton was issued a British patent covering the separation of iron ore by magnetic attraction. What is magnetism, and why are some materials capable of being magnetized and others not? The study involves many unknowns, and even a partial answer to these questions would be a dissertation in solid state physics and perhaps other fields of science. But the last two decades have revealed basic facts as to why certain materials are magnetic and what happens to them when they are magnetized.

Jan 12, 1958

By V. K. Zworykin

THROUGHOUT its development the science of electronics, like so many other branches of science and industry, has been indebted to the metallurgist. Metallurgy has provided the electronic engineer with conductors to furnish passage for electrons outside of his evacuated tubes; it. has developed tungsten and tantalum wires for emitting electrons and various refractory metals and alloys suitable for electrodes, which receive them and guide them within the tube; finally it has supplied ferromagnetic materials both for shielding electronic apparatus from magnetic fields and for forming highly concentrated fields for deflecting electron. Today I hope to show you that electronics has not been altogether ungrateful for this assistance. More specifically, I wish to indicate the role that the electron microscope, a relatively recent product of electronic engineering, is playing even now in the study of metals. Every metallographer is aware that his standard metallographic microscope will not reveal structural detail involving separations smaller than a certain fraction -at the very best a tenth-of a micron. This limitation, he knows, is a consequence of the fact that the wave length of the light employed for forming the image has this order of magnitude. It is, thus, a property of all light microscopes. To overcome it, a different imaging medium must be employed. The existence of such a medium became evident when it was demonstrated' that electrons were affected by magnetic and electric fields with axial symmetry just as light is affected by glass lenses; these fields, or "electron lenses," curve the paths of electrons reaching them from an object located on the axis of symmetry in such a manner that, at some distance from the lens, a true image of the object is formed, Furthermore, although a wave length may be ascribed to electron beams just as to light, this wave length is much shorter; for electrons accelerated through a difference of potential of 50 kilovolts, the wave length is only about one hundred-thousandth of that of visible light: Actually, the electron microscopes of today resolve detail one hundred times as fine as light microscopes; if the maximum useful magnification of the latter is taken to be a thousand, that of electron microscopes is one hundred thousand. THE ELECTRON MICROSCOPE Since electrons are readily scattered and absorbed by matter, specimens to be observed in the electron microscope must be prepared to be less than one micron in thickness; furthermore, the interior of the microscope must be carefully evacuated to prevent collisions between the electrons and the molecules of the air. Finally, as already mentioned, the lenses are formed by axially symmetric magnetic or electric fields, and not by any material medium such as glass. Apart from these basic differences, the electron microscope closely

Jan 1, 1943

By C. F. Smart

SINCE their comparatively recent development, the alloys of cadmium with silver and copper or nickel, and of cadmium with nickel alone, have been used somewhat extensively as liners for connecting rod bearings and main bearings of internal-combustion engines. In applications where, owing to high hearing loads and elevated operating temperatures, the life of hearings made from tin-hale or lead-base alloys has been undesirably short, cadmium alloys have demonstrated considerable advantage. In applications where, because of deflection of the crankshaft or bearing supports, copper-lead bearing metals have resulted in scored shafts, cadmium alloys have been operated successfully. The somewhat serious drawback to these alloys in hearing service has been that they, in common with copper-lead and certain lead alloys, are susceptible to corrosion in the presence of lubricants containing organic acids. These acids may be fatty acids (such as oleic acid) derived from animal or vegetable oils that sometimes have been compounded with engine lubricants, or they may be compounds of an acid nature developed by the oxidation of some petroleum oils under operating conditions. The result of such acid attack on hearings is illustrated by the photograph, Fig. 1. The petroleum oils that are most readily oxidized to a corrosive condition, and the operating conditions under which such oxidation most readily occurs, are now rather well known among the technical organizations of both the petroleum and automotive industries. While means have been developed for inhibiting petroleum oils against such acid formation, the knowledge that this condition may be encountered has been a factor in restricting the wider use of cadmium alloys as engine bearings. It has appeared, therefore, that their value and use would be enhanced if they could be made corrosion-resistant to a degree compatible with the most severe operating requirements. Investigation, undertaken with this in view, indicated that the addition of fractional percentages of the metal indium to the cadmium bearing

Jan 1, 1938

Sec. 1. The membership of the Institute shall comprise six classes, namely: 1. Members; 2. Honorary Members; 3. Senior Members; 4. Associates; 5. Junior Members; 6. Rocky Mountain Members. All shall be equally entitled to the privileges of membership, excepting that no member of any class whom residence shall be outside of the United States of America, except those residing in Mexico and Canada, shall be entitled to vote. SEC. 2. Members: A person to be eligible for election or transfer into the claw of Member must be at least 27 years of age and must have had at least six years' employment in the practice of engineering, mining, geology, metallurgy, or chemistry, during at least three years of which he must have held positions of responsibility in one or more of these fields. This shall not apply to Rocky Mountain members.

Jan 1, 1944

By A. E. Wheeler, H. Y. Eagle

The copper industry in the Province of Katanga, in the Belgian Congo, which is now controlled and operated by the Union Minére du Haut Katanga, had its inception many years ago in the vision of a Scotsman, Robert Williams, now Sir Robert Williams, Baronet. He it was who personally negotiated the mineral concession with King Leopold of Belgium, sent in the prospecting parties who located most of the present mines of the company, later arranged for the Belgian participation from which the present company was formed, and has been its active mentor ever since. The idea back of his efforts was the establishment of an industry on the Congo-Zambezi divide, of sufficient importance to draw up to it the head of the Cape to Cairo Railroad, the dream of Sir Cecil Rhodes, and the consummation of which he had left as a legacy to Mr. Williams, his successor. The reports of the prospecting expeditions showed that copper in profitable quantity was there, but many difficulties lay in the way of the establishment of the infant industry. The isolated location of the mines, various tribal wars, the Boer War, and many other factors contributed to making progress very slow. However, in spite of these difficulties the railroad was finally built and a blast-furnace plant erected at Lubumbashi, near Elisabethville, the capital of the Province. Operations of this plant were started in 1911, treating high-grade oxidized ores and producing pig copper by a reducing smelting. Production has been continuous since that time and the company has grown so that at present it ranks as the largest individual copper producer in the industry. It is a fitting monument to the foresight, optimism and driving force of its founder, and the progressive policies of his Belgian colleagues. In January, 1914, the Union Miniere du Haut Katanga engaged as its consulting engineer, Archer E. Wheeler, metallurgical engineer, at that time general superintendent of the Great Falls plant of the Anaconda Copper Mining Co. Mr. Wheeler was commissioned by the Board of Directors to proceed into Katanga, and make all necessary investigations to enable him to report on a comprehensive development program, and to recommend a scheme of treatment particularly for their low grade

Jan 1, 1934

L. C. UREn,* BerkelEy, Cal. (written discussion).—I heartily concur with Rlr. .Fobs concerning the need for advanced courses on various phases of Petroleum Engineering. I think that his criticism is probably true of most of the engineering schools that are specializing at all in Petroleum Engineering, that is, that most of their so-called graduate courses are not of graduate caliber but are merely more specialized aspects of undergraduate subjects. It would undoubtedly be to the advantage of the petroleum profession if more advanced work could be offered in a few of the leading engineering institutions so that there would be something substantial to offer graduate students wishing to return after a period of undergraduate work, for additional training. There is no doubt but that a better trained engineer, more useful to the oil industry, could be secured from schools offering such advanced training. The problem of adpting our instruction to fit the needs of engineers trained along other lines who wish, after completion of their undergraduate work, to enter thc petroleum engineering field, is a more difficult one. It has been my experience that such men are usually sadly deficient along certain lines and that they are really not prepared for the more advanced work in Petroleum Production Engineering until they have gone back over the work which they have missed in their undergraduate training. I note that Mr. Fohs suggests that other eastern and western colleges not now stressing Petrolelim Engineering, should be encouraged to take up advanced work of this character. With this, however, I cannot agree unless the institutions arc also prepared to offer a full sequence of undergraduate work on which the more advanced courses may be superimposed. Whether or not there is a need for additional engi-ncering colleges entering the petroleum engineering field is an open qucstion. I believe that we arc turning out enough petroleum engineers at the present time and that none of the six institutions now specializing in this field arc overcrowded. Morc-ovcr, they are fairly well distributed over the country, though there may be room for an additional school in the field in the eastcrn section of the United States. F. W. Padgett, Norman, Okla. (written tliscussion).—Assuming that the stnclcnt has the proper fundamentals, that is, general science and a knowledge of the technology of the industry, then the problem is: What courses should be offered from the graduate standpoint? (a) Course Work.—His knowledge of the technology of the industry can be extended advantagcously by means of one and two-hour courses, which consist in a more detailed survey of the various branches of the industry. (b) Lilerdure.—This work may, or may not, be connected directly with his research problem. The student should become familiar with methods of locating articles in the 1iterature; should also become familiar with all the important original

Jan 1, 1928

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

World production of natural diamonds prob¬ably exceeds 50,000,000 carats a year. The Republic of Zaire is the leading producer, with an output which is primarily industrial rather than gem grade. The USSR ranks second, and the Republic of South Africa third. Diamonds are also mined in South-West Africa, Angola, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and other African coun¬tries. In the western hemisphere, Brazil and Venezuela are the principal producers (Fig. 1). A very small output of diamonds is mined today in India, which was the first source of commercial production. In the U.S., efforts at commercial diamond mining have been con¬fined to a small area near Murfreesboro, Ark. 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 2000 years ago, only about 130 tons have been mined. In order to obtain 1 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 ma¬terials 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 indus¬trial diamonds are now of a quality that per¬mits wide substitution in the fine-grained sizes. 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 dia¬mond (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. About 1475, a Flemish cutter named Van Gerquem discovered that diamond dust on an iron wheel would polish facets on a diamond to provide more brilliance and fire. Cutters continued to experiment with facets, and shortly before 1700 a Venetian cutter named Peruzzi developed the 58-facet brilliant cut. With the development of the science of optics, cutters have learned more about the behavior of light within the diamond. Early in the 20th century, they learned how to angle Peruzzi's

Jan 1, 1975

By Walter Nummela

INTRODUCTION By the end of 1979 pellet productive capacity from the processing of low grade iron ores in the Lake Superior-District will total 86 million tons per year. Of that tonnage, 72 million result from the processing of magnetic ores such as taconite, about 6 million tons from the flotation processing of relatively coarse grained specular hematite, and 8 million tons from the processing of fine grained non- magnetic ores at Tilden. The Tilden flowsheet represents a break- through in the processing of this type of crude ore and hence is unique in the Lake Superior District (1). Operations at Tilden started in late 1974 with Algoma Steel, J&L Steel Corp., The Cleve- land-Cliffs Iron Company, The Steel Company of Canada, Ltd., Wheeling- Pittsburgh Steel Corp., and Sharon Steel Corp. as participants. Cleveland-Cliffs operates and manages the operation. Other companies have conducted extensive pilot plant tests or are in commercial production in the processing of fine grained non-magnetic ore materials (2). Flowsheets and reagent schedules may be different for each particular application, but some of the problem areas in the processing of Tilden ores have also been experienced at operations such as the IOC Plant at Sept-Isles, at Lamco and at Bong in Liberia, and in pilot testing of Fabrica ores of Ferteco Mineracao in Brazil. With a grind of about 80-85% -500 mesh resulting in 50% of the particles in the concentrate being less than 15 microns, a discussion of the pro- cessing of Tilden type ores fits the topic of this workshop. There are very large tonnages of fine grained non-magnetic crude ores which exist throughout the Lake Superior District and other iron ore producing regions. These fine grained non-magnetic materials constitute an important source of iron minerals. Before going into specifics of the flowsheet, it is important to

Jan 1, 1979

"For many years it has been known that large bodies of iron ore existed in Iron and Washington counties in Utah. The ore is chiefly hematite—both hard and soft—though some magnetite is found. No definite and complete estimate of the iron ore reserves of the state have been made. The U. S. Geological Survey estimated that 40,000,000 tons of ore were disclosed by development work averaging only 35 feet below the surface of the ore. The ore is found along an area about one and a half miles wide by twenty miles long, and for the most part on the eastern and southern slopes or foothills of Three Peaks, Granite Mountain and Iron Mountain. Later estimates by others have gone as high as ore in sight 164,000,000 tons, probable ore 300,000,000 tons and possible ore 1,000,000,000 tons. Whether this last estimate is too great or not there is sufficient iron ore in Utah to justify the starting of an iron industry.Two companies are now mining iron ore in Utah, the Columbia Steel Corporation and the Utah Iron Corporation. The mine of the Columbia Steel Corporation is at Iron Springs a few miles west of Cedar City. About 650 tons, of ore a day is being shipped to the blast furnace at Ironton. The ore is mined by the glory hole method. After being drilled it is blasted to the bottom of the several glory holes and is dropped through chutes into cars on the ore haulage level below. It is then hauled by electric locomotives to the crushing plant, where it is crushed to blast furnace size before going to storage bins. Some of the softer ore is brought to the chutes by Fresno scrapers."

Jan 1, 1925

By H. E. Nold

ThE raw materials of the ceramic industry are mostly clays. This raw material is ground, water is added and the mixture pugged into a moist, plastic, rather stiff mass. From this mass the desired units of manufacture are made (bricks, hollow building tile, sewer pipe, etc.). These units are dried; then placed in kilns and heated until the desired degree of vitrification is obtained. For firing ceramic ware, two distinct types of kilns are used; namely, periodic and continuous tunnel. Periodic Kilns Periodic kilns are those ordinarily seen in a brick plant. They are either round or rectangular. The raw, dried, formed ware is piled or set in the kilns to depths frequently exceeding 10 ft. The kiln is heated until the ware is matured, then gradually cooled sufficiently to allow men to remove the ware; then the cycle is repeated. The time duration of the cycle may be more than two weeks. In order that heat can be distributed uniformly throughout the pile or setting, the units are placed so as to leave open spaces or flues throughout the pile for the passage of the hot gases. Each kiln is provided with a number of fireboxes (usually 10 or 12) spaced equally in the outside wall. The fireboxes may be equipped with flat or inclined grate bars or they may have no grates at all (dead bottom). Down-draft kilns are most used. In these the hot gaseous products of combustion from the fireboxes are deflected upward by bag walls just inside the fire zone. From the top of the kiln the gases are drawn down through the setting, off through holes in the kiln bottom, and conducted to a stack or stacks. In up-draft kilns the fireboxes are usually set somewhat lower. The hot gases are drawn inward and upward through the ware and pass off from the top. Up-draft kilns find their greatest use in the firing of common brick. In either case the problem is to maintain, as nearly as possible,

Jan 1, 1934

By Howard Willey

Mining operations of the Charcas unit at present are limited to the Tiro General mine at Charcas, in the State of san Luis Potosi, Mexico. The Tiro General mine was first operated during the Spanish occupation of Mexico for rich silver ores in an oxidized zone along the outcrop of the principal vein. In depth the ore is a complex sulfide with widely varying proportions of sphalerite, argentiferous galena and chalcopyrite ; and until recent years, it was economically impossible to carry on mining otherwise than irregularly in sections of the veins richest in galena and chalcopyrite. The advent of selective flotation brought the orebody as a whole within the field of economic interest, and a flotation mill of 650 metric tons daily capacity was constructed in the year 1925. The mining of partly worked-out sections of the mine, as well as the very heavy ground in most of the stopes opened in virgin ore, presented an unusually difficult problem. This paper describes the so-called "filled top slice" stoping method finally adopted as the standard system. Physical and Geological Conditions The principal orebody of the mine is an oreshoot about 1400 ft ng in a fissure vein striking about east and west and with an average lip of 70" to the north. The footwall of the orebody is fairly cleancu and regular both longitudinally and vertically and generally shows a dell-marked post-mineral slip. The footwall rock varies from a fairly strong limestone to a broken, metamorphosed limestone which requires heavy timbering. In some sections it is an altered, crumbly porphyry, which swells badly and necessitates frequent renewal of drift and raise tirnber. The hanging wall is irregular and frequently an assay wall. The stopina width ranges from a few feet up to more than 90 ft.; it averages about 30 ft. For the most part the hanging-wall rock is a shattered and altered monzonite porphyry, nearly aways requiring heavy timbering. The orebody is greatly fractured by post-mineral movement, which usually followed the footwall and left it as a smooth surface frequently covered with a slippery clay gouge. Two well marked transverse faults

Jan 1, 1931