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By R. H. Thielemann, E. R. Parker

The conventional short-time tensile test provides a reliable means of predicting the sustained load-carrying capacity of steels only when the temperature is such that continuous plastic flow does not occur. At elevated temperatures, stresses considerably less than the short-time rupture value may produce continuous flow, with fracture occurring only after long periods of time. The amount of flow or creep accompanying failure varies for different steels, and depends, to a large extent, on the temperature and the duration of the test. Service records of cracking stills, steam superheaters and high-temperature boilers have shown that brittle fractures sometimes occur with little or no warning. In installations of this type, localized stresses are often encountered, and steels must be capable of withstanding a certain amount of deformation without fracture. The sustained-load rupture test determines the expected life and corresponding ductility of steels at various stresses and temperatures. It also yields additional information regarding the effect of micro-structure and metallurgical stability on the high-temperature properties. Present Status of Sustained-load Rupture Test The sustained-load rupture test conducted at elevated temperatures is not entirely new. Dr. Zay Jeffriesl presented in 1919 the results of a large number of rupture tests made on copper, iron and tungsten. These tests were made with various strain rates and at temperatures ranging from the boiling point of liquid air to 1000° C. At that time he observed the interesting phenomenon characteristic of metals, that a temperature exists below which a metal is ductile and breaks with a transcrystalline fracture (through the grain) and above which the metal is brittle and breaks with an intergranular fracture (through the grain boundaries). He observed that this temperature varied with the testing speed, and that a minimum temperature, slightly above the recrystallization temperature, existed at which the cohesion of the grains themselves was

Jan 1, 1939

By AIME AIME

PRIZES totaling $450 were awarded at the Annual Meeting luncheon on Monday, Feb. 9, to the winners of the third national student prize paper contest. The undergraduate prizewinners, each of whom received a check for $100, were as follows: Mayo W. Lanning, Lafayette College, for his paper entitled ?Some Aspects of the Mining Methods Employed at the Scrub Oak Mines of the Alan Wood Steel Company,? (entered by the Lehigh Valley Section). Charles F. Parent, Montana School of Mines, for his paper entitled ?Relationships of Manganese Minerals in the Butte District,? (entered by the Montana Section). Harry Czyzewski, University of Illinois, for his paper entitled ?A Metallurgical Study of Cast Irons Used for Glass Molds,? (entered by the Chicago Section).

Jan 1, 1942

By Smith, George Otis

ENGINEERING is in essence quantitative, and the engineer must deal with exact figures when he plans and, constructs. Engineering truths are not best expressed by adjectives, yet my wish, today, is not to attempt a quantitative measure of the dominant position of the mineral industry of the United States in the existing scheme of material things, but rather to seek a clualitative appraisal of what mining and metallurgical engineers are doing to promote and make secure our , national progress. Statistics help when we wish to gage material prosperity, but they fail when we desire to determine what share the engineers have in adding to the happiness and welfare of our people

Jan 1, 1928

By W. B. Wise, H. D. Attra, W. M. Black

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate a comparatively new approach for solving a problem that has plagued oil producers for many years—how to make the most money with available field production capacity. In a very basic operation such as a top-allowable one-well field, a computer and staff of engineers are not required to determine that the best operation is to produce that well at its maximum for as long a time as it will produce. However, as the problem becomes more complex and the number of wells and number of reservoirs increase, it probably will be a wise choice to devote some engineering thought and calculation time to determine the best way to operate that field on both an ultimate and day-to-day basis. Continued developments in the field broadly referred to as "operations research" have led to a number of useful engineering analyses for optimizing field operational problems. One of these techniques, termed linear programing, is parlicularly interesting because of its potential applications to the study of complex oilfield operating problems. Linear programing is concerned with the problem of planning a complex set of interde~endenl activities in the best possible (optimal) fashion. A field application of linear programing is being used to maximize daily income from a multi-reservoir producing operation. The initial results of this study indicate that the linear programing technique (I) can be applied effectively to field problems, (2) can be used to detect unsuspected avenues for improving operations and (3) can effect a significantly improved means of controlling field operations through the use of the highspeed computer. INTRODUCTION The usual approach for studying complex field operational problems has been to look in detail at several basic plans suggested by judgement and experience and, then, to choose the best plan from those investigated. This approach is entirely satisfactory provided: (1) that judgment and experience alone will reliably pick the best or near the best program as one of the plans to be investigated; and (2), and most important, that the factors which control field production will not change. This paper deals with the large group of field operations which are at least one-step removed from a satisfactory solution using the conventional method of analysis. Problems such as pipeline- and gathering-system design, transportation studies, large field development projects and multi-reservoir producing operations fall in this latter category. To find the best program for handling these problems when the best program is not obvious, a complete optimization study is required, and high-speed computers are required to continually update the program once it is selected. Operations of this type have an extremely large number of possible solutions. However, only one will result in maximum economic return and, more important, this one program must be re-evaluated and adjusted constantly to accomodate such changing field factors as the number of producing days, the price of crude, the discovery of new reserves, declining reservoir pressure with subsequent decline in production and a host of other factors which characterize specific operations. One of the most widely used, direct methods of optimization is a numerical procedure termed "linear programing", which is designed to investigate systematically each of the possible solutions involved in a given problem, determining rapidly and uniquely the optimum answer. As implied by the name, linear programing requires that all field variables be either defined or expressed in a series of interdependent linear equalities or inequalities. These relationships are solved simultaneously, using a form of matrix solutions to determine the optimum values for each producing variable that will maximize net profits. The solution techniques used in a recent field case study is termed the "simplex method" and is discussed in full detail in Ref. 1.

Fred. T. Greene, Rossland, B. C. (communication to the Secretary): At the beginning of his gaper, Mr. Herzig refers to an article of mine in the Engineering and Mining Journal of January 27, 1900. I would like to add that the method de-

Jan 1, 1901

By Heinrich Oscar Hofman

IN THE death of Professor Hofman who was born on Aug. 13, 1852 and died on April 28, 1924, the world has lost a great metallurgist and a great author of metallurgical literature. Measured in time his life was not quite seventy-two years, but measured in work accomplished it was much longer than this. It is not surprising that Dr. Hofman became a great scholar for his father, Karl Hofman, was on the faculty of Heidelberg University, and his early days were spent in these surroundings. He studied in the University under such men as Kirchoff and Bunsen and often spoke of the intimate relations he had with them. Following his course at Heidelberg, he studied at the Clausthal Mining Academy where he graduated with honors, receiving the degrees of Mining Engineer and Metallurgical Engineer in 1877.

Jan 1, 1924

Organization Place Date 1919 American Railway Engineering Association Chicago, 111. Mar. 18-20 Society of Industrial Engineers New York, N. Y. Mar. 18-21 American Electrochemical Society New York, N. Y. Apr. 3-5 National Foreign Trade Council Chicago, Ill. Apr. 24-26 American Iron and Steel Institute New York, N. Y. May American Institute of Electrical Engineers Lake Placid, N. Y. June

Jan 3, 1919

By JOHN A. MALONEY

AS noted in the February issue of MINING AND METALLURGY, an advisory committee to the Museum of Science and Industry of Chicago was authorized by the Institute's Board of Directors, with W. R. Wright of Chicago, former Director of the Institute, as chairman. Since that time the committee has been undergoing organization, and held its initial meeting at the Museum offices in Chicago on April 11 and 12. Functioning as consultants to the Geology and Mineral Industries branch of this new institution, the advisory committee is aiding in building an exhibit which will tell the story of geology, mining, and metallurgy to millions of visitors a year. Although patterned to some extent

Jan 1, 1932

HOW the Engineers' Memorial clock and carillon at Louvain has impressed the people of that city is indicated by the following letter sent by the Secretary of the University of Louvain to the Secretary of the United Engineering Society. We are still full of the memories of that splendid July 4, when we came into such .delightful contact with our American friends and more specially with the representation of the engineering societies of the United States. It was a great joy for all the members of the University to see those, American friends who have given to us such a splendid memorial in honor of- the brave men who fell in the Great War.

Jan 1, 1928

By AIME

A present the colleges and universities are struggling to meet the responsibilities placed upon them by the return of the veterans from the armed forces to the educational institutions as well as the youth graduating from the high schools. The problems of meeting these responsibilities are complex and upon the shoulders of the educational administrators lies much of the burden. One of those educators who is in the midst of this situation is James Rowland Cudworth, dean of the College of Engineering of the University of Alabama and Chairman of the Mineral Industry Education Division, AIME, both for 1946 and 1947. He was born at Norwich, Conn., on Sept. 23, 1897, and like his father before him went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he received his Bachelor's degree in 1921. His studies at MIT were mainly in the fields of geological and mining engineering. Why a New Englander studies mining is anybody's guess, but it may be due to a love of traveling to far places which so many New Englanders do. After graduating tinder the famed Waldemar Lindgren. Jim trekked to Mexico where he worked at Pachuca for the Cia. Real del Monte and at Charcas with the American Smelting and Refining Co.

Jan 1, 1946

By Carel Robinson

THE little coal mine at Otsego, in the Winding Gulf field of southern West Virginia was dying. In the history of coal mining thousands of mines have been successful at first, but usually a change occurred and profits ceased. Often be change was so gradual and extended over such a length of time that the fundamental causes did not stand out in sharp relief and their significance was not realized. Studies often reveal that the cause for failure was in the arteries that connect the producing places with the mine entrance. Profits continued so long as the working places were close to the tipple and while the thrill of newness aid ease of access resulted in effective supervision from day to day. The air- way and haulageway, the wire line and manway, may have been sufficient when the distance from the entrance was a few hundred feet, but were inadequate when this was extended for thousands of feet.

Jan 1, 1937

"NAME…""Utah"" is derived from the name of the Indian tribe, variously spelled ""Yuta, “Ute"" ""Youta,"" ""Uta,"" ""Eutaw,"" and finally ""Utah."" It means ""in the tops of the mountains,"" or ""on the heights."" The state emblem is the ""Beehive,"" typical of industry. State nickname is ""Beehive State.""AREA…Utah is the tenth state in area. It contains 84,990 square miles, of which 2,806 miles are water. When admitted as a territory in 1850, Utah included all the area from the east line of California to the summit of the Rocky Mountains between the 37th and 42nd parallels, which embraced practically all of the present state of Nevada, all of western Colorado, part of Idaho and part of Wyoming, in addition to the present area of Utah.TOPOGRAPHY…Utah is generally mountainous, with several main ranges and also detached groups of mountains. The valleys are broad and level. The mean altitude of the state is 6,100 feet above sea level, which makes the state the third highest of the Union. The highest point in Utah is King's Peak (13,498) in the Uinta range. The lowest point is Beaverdam Creek (2,000) in Washington county.CLIMATE…The climate is diversified between mild temperate in the northern portion to semitropical in the southern portion. There are four distinct seasons. Snowfall is heavy at the greater altitudes and rare in the southern portion. Rainfall is moderate throughout the state. Extremes of heat and cold are unusual."

Jan 1, 1925

By AIME AIME

THE coal classification session* on Monday morning, Feb. 17, was opened by a paper by M. R. Campbell, entitled "Natural Groups of Coal and Allied Fuels," in which he pointed out, by means of graphical presentation of selected proximate analyses of coal, that coals can be classified on the basis of their moisture content. He proposes four groups of coal, brown coal, hydrobituminous, bituminous, and anthracite, each subdivided into two or three sub-groups. In a written discussion of this G. H. Cady, of the Illinois Geological Survey, showed that there is, in general, a progressive decrease in the moisture of Illinois coals from north to south, and that it would be very difficult to draw any arbitrary line dividing the coals of the State into two groups on the basis of moisture content.

Jan 1, 1930

By C. E. LAWAL

WITH the object of adapting high-school vocational courses to the industrial needs of the community, a few high-school officials in West -Virginia working with the School of Mines of the State university decided to try an innovation this year. The purpose of this experiment was to teach coal mining in two high schools situated in mining communities. We thought that if a course in coal mining would be included in the list of optional courses offered in the high school, it might interest some of the boys, and if the course were properly taught it would undoubtedly be of inestimable value to those boys who later decided to take up mining work as their vocation. This coal-mining course was started last September in the Berwind and Gary high schools in West Virginia. The high-school officials in their conferences with' us decided that we should work up the outline of this course and they would assign the science teachers of the schools as instructors, with ,the understanding that we would help 'these instructors with this work. We consented to all this and submitted -an outline to the school officials which they are following this year.

Jan 1, 1929

By CHARLES M. SCHWAB

THE ENGINEERS have placed this great country of ours in a preeminent position with everything pertaining to manufacture, metallurgy, and the kindred arts. We are second to none in the world. We have a country which, another speaker has said, God has endowed with such riches in coal and natural resources as no other country in the world. But rich as these are, there is one thing greater; the sturdy character, energy, and integrity of its people, which will make these great resources an influence in the world's developments. Great as are these resources and the energy and integrity of our people, there is one problem of our .engineering, which I term human engineering, that is of far more importance than the creation of machines and methods, with which you have been so successful in the past. Of what value is the skillfully devised machinery, the complex process, unless manned and operated by people whose heart and soul are in sympathy with the work they are doing and who have before them the giving of a complete day's work for a day's pay?

Jan 1, 1920

Alexander N. Winchell, Butte, Mont. (communication to the Secretary): Mr. Spurr calls attention to the fact that an ore-deposit may be due to a succession of concentrations at different geological epochs. He cites an example of such a condition on Napoleon creek, a branch of Forty-Mile creek, Alaska. It will perhaps be of interest to call attention to another example of the same general character, not so remotely situated. The example referred to is located on Pole creek, a tributary of Cherry creek, in the extreme northeastern part of Madison county, Montana. An excellent geological map of this region is to be found in the Three Forks folio (No. 24) of the United States Geological Survey. According to this map, Pole creek, in its upper course, occupies the contact between the " Flathead " formation, which Peale correlates with the Middle and Lower Cambrian, and an area of gneisses and schists supposed

Jan 1, 1903

The meeting of the Institute at St. Louis brought together many members of the Women's Auxiliary, and Mrs. Philip N. Moore, who was nominated as the Director for the St. Louis Section, took the occasion formally to inaugurate the organization in that district. A meeting was held at the Planters Hotel, anti after discussion as to, the aims and objects of the. Auxiliary, officers were nominated for the' Section; the meeting then adjourned for two days, to he resumed in Joplin.. Here a very successful meeting was held, at which the Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer were elected. A great deal of interest was arouse under the able directorship of Mrs. Moore the St. Louis Section is likely to become a large and active organization. The president of the Women's Auxiliary, in opening the meetings, told the ladies present of the inauguration of-the-Society in February, 1917, and of the work which had been accomplished up to date. She told how the Society devotes itself to patriotic and humanitarian work along lines acceptable and interesting to the Mining Engineer, standing always alongside and behind the men of the profession. The Central Welfare Committee of the organization has three Sub-Committees: Foreign Relief, Emergency, and Americanization, and under one or other of those heads most of the work of the' Society has been done. Mr. Hoover was responsible for the inception of the Foreign Relief Committee, as its first work was the collection of funds for the supplementary meals for the Belgian Children. Under the energetic administration of Mrs. H. Knox, this sub-committee raised $12,100 in the period between the February meeting and the Declaration of war by the United States, when our government took over the entire duty of feeding starving Belgium. The organization of the Belgian Relief Committee, as it was styled, still remains, but the members are now asked to take up the question of relief in France. The President, Mrs. S. J. Jennings suggested at the St. Louis meetings that one way of working for the foreign relief alight be that all the members of the Auxiliary should, during the period of the war, forego all giving' and receiving of Christmas presents, except those they have been accustomed to give to the poor or in charity, and those they would give to the men in the services of the United States; that the money usually spent on the Christmas gifts should be put into a fund to be sent abroad for the fatherless children of France, as a gift from the families of the Institute. A good deal of discussion followed this proposal, as some of the ladies felt that children should have their Christmas gifts as usual. The Director of the Section emphasized the truth that the Christmas spirit was the .spirit of giving and sacrifice, and that no sacri-

Jan 1, 1918

By K. C. Strebig, C. W. Schultz, A. A. Selim

The effect of some organic additives in diamond drilling of quartzite was investigated in the laboratory. The drill was designed to measure the rate of penetration, the thrust, and the torque and to record each as a function of the distance drilled. A statistical plan was followed throughout the investigation and an equation representing the bit performance was derived from the mathematical theory of reliability. The drilling torque was found to increase with the use of additives while the sliding coefficient of friction and the wear coefficient decreased. The energy per unit volume consumed was found to increase with the use of additives. A hypothesis explaining the effects achieved with the additives is given. INTRODUCTION For some time researchers have attempted to increase drilling efficiency by adding certain agents to the flushing medium. Much of this interest is the result of the observations of Rehbinder, Shreiner and Zhigach1 They postulated that "...in processes for the mechanical destruction of solids, a region of increased crack formation is created in the deformed layers adjoining that surface of destruction, forming the predestmction zone. The surrounding medium (for example, a liquid) which wets a given solid will penetrate the embryo microcracks of the predestruc-tion zone. Increasing the molecular affinity of this liquid for the surface of the solid considerably facilitates the deformation and destruction by softening the solid in the zone of increased crack formation. In this manner, the hardness or strength of the deformed body is decreased by the influence of the penetration of the liquid into the predestraction zone." This is known as the "Rehbinder effect". Rehbinder's work has prompted many investigators to examine the effect of additives on the mechanical destruction of rocks. Engelmann, Terichow and Selim reported that the maximum penetration of the rock by a diamond point in a solution environment was at the isoelectric point of the solution.* Robinson reported that his results did not appear to support the theory of Rehbinder.3 Joris and .McLaren suggested that additives with surface tension lower than water will be more efficient in cooling the diamonds.4 Their effectiveness in removing the fine cuttings from the face of the bit will also improve the efficiency of the system. They reported an improvement in impregnated bit life and penetration rates with the use of soluble oil additives. In contrast, Long and Agnew, drilling with surface set bits, reported that lubricating agents increase bit temperature and wear.5 A significant change was reported6 in the mechanical properties of rock with polar additives. It was concluded that this change in the mechanical properties of the rock in the presence of the additive is due to the rock hydrophilic properties. Ethylene glycol, glycerine and anionic detergent were selected for this investigation because their surface tension is lower than that of water. The surface tension of these additives for the concentrations studied was 42 to 75 percent of the surface tension of water. A low surface tension additive would wet the surface of the diamonds more easily and hence would be more effective in cooling the diamonds. Another characteristic of these low surface tension additives is their effectiveness in removing the cuttings and preventing the flocculation of the formed particles in the drilling process. This article summarizes the results of an investigation performed at the laboratories of USBM, Twin Cities Mining Research Center. The objective of the investigation was to study the over-all effects of some organic additives on the performance of diamond impregnated bits in atmospheric drilling conditions only and not in downhole pressured conditions.

Jan 1, 1970

By A. J. Boyer, T. R. Meadowcroft

An experimental determination has been made of the efject of surface diffusion on the vapor pressure obtained in a Kwudsen cell. The results show that a knife-edge orifice in a molybdenum lid may give erroneous results for the vapor pressure of silver. when a correction suggested by winterbottom and Hirth is made, the results become meaningful. Experimental work with cylindrical orifices in molyhdenz~m lids and knife-edge orifices in ceramic lids shows that good vapor-pressure results may he obtained when the orifice is designed so that ejfusion is the only significant source of weight loss. THE Knudsen effusion cell technique has been used by many investigators to study relative and absolute vapor pressures over metals and alloys at elevated temperatures. As a result of this interest, some theoretical studies have been made of geometric factors affecting effusion from the orifice of a Knudsen cell. A review of these studies has been made by Margrave.1 Recently, Winterbottom and Hirth2 have suggested that a physical effect, that of condensation, surface diffusion, and re-evaporation, may seriously affect Knudsen cell measurements, especially when a knife-edge orifice is used. Inasmuch as many of the present vapor-pressure data have been obtained using knife-edge orifices. it was felt that an experimental evaluation of the effect of surface diffusion on Knudsen cell measurements would be of value both in the design of the cell orifice and in establishing realistic estimates of the limits of error for existing data. The experimental program was in two sections. Firstly, measurements of the vapor pressure of silver were made in cells with cylindrical and conical orifices in which the surface-diffusion contribution to the weight loss should be negligible. These results were correlated with existing data to give a reliable measure of the real vapor pressure of silver. Secondly, measurements made using knife-edge orifices were corrected using the surface-diffusion theory of Winterbottom and Hirth2 and were then compared to the real values. The experimental arrangement is shown in Fig. 1. The balance was an Ainsworth RV-AU-1 automatic recording microbalance capable of measuring weight changes of ±0.02 mg on a total load of up to 100 g. The temperature was measured by an optical pyrometer signted on the bottom of the suspended crucible. The temperature readings were calibrated in a separate experiment in which pyrometer measurements were made while at the same time thermocouple readings were taken of the temperature at the inside top and bottom of the crucible. The range of reproducibility with this technique was ±4°C. A constant voltage source maintained a temperature of ±2°C at 1200°C over 10 hr. Silver of 99.99 pct purity was used in nonporous alumina crucibles. Lids of molybdenum, tantalum, or magnesia were cemented to the crucible using a sodium silicate cement. Table I shows the characteristics of the lids used. The vapor pressure is obtained using the basic Knudsen formula:

Jan 1, 1965

THE third annual Joint Western Mining Convention, held at Los Angeles, Sept. 10 to 13 inclusive, was a notable success both as to attendance and interest. Registration the first day amounted to 201, and the total crept up to 347 before the close. The American Institute of Mining Engineers was well represented, approximately 80% of those registered and most of the speakers being members. This illustrates largely the amount of interlocking membership and the reason for holding at one time and place meetings of the several related organizations. The plan has proved so successful that it is probable that Spokane will extend an invitation for next year that seems likely to be accepted. It is proposed that the convention be timed so as to permit visitors from the East to stop there Oct. 3 to 5, en route to the American Institute of Mining Engineers meeting at San Francisco, Oct. 7 to 9. Simultaneously, it is expected that the Petroleum Division will hold its fall session at Los Angeles, the two streams of travel meeting in San Francisco, just before departure of the party of engineers traveling to Japan to attend the World's Engineering Congress. The Los Angeles meeting opened Monday morning with a general session under the auspices of the Western Division of the American Mining Congress with Philip Wiseman in the chair. After a series of short responses to the welcome extended, Charles W. Merrill discussed the needs of the western mining industry. A complimentary luncheon to members and delegates followed.

Jan 1, 1928