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By John M. Lovejoy

NATURAL resources become a source of wealth as they are exploited and made available to the people in usable form. Experience has taught us that Nature does not readily give up her treasures, but the ingenuity of man in the field of techologic progress is required to find and efficiently exploit these resources. History has also demonstrated that with advancing technologic knowledge the. world has become progressively richer in its resources. Those that could not be commercially exploited are now being turned to beneficial use. Through expanding technology and the use of substitutes and synthetics, availability of the world's sources of natural wealth is today many times that of a hundred or a thousand years ago. And so it is with petroleum. Technology is also the great multiplier of our petroleum resources. Through improvements in the art of finding, drilling, and producing, our ability to meet rapidly increasing demands over the last quarter century has been maintained. On the other hand, had our

Jan 1, 1944

By Simon D. Strauss

What are future prospects for U.S. mining? In many quarters the assumption is made that this country has passed its zenith as a mineral producer -- that it is in a period of decline and that it is becoming a have-not nation like Japan and much of Western Europe. These industrial rivals of ours must depend almost entirely on others for their mineral supplies. In trying to answer this question one must of course distinguish between resources and productive capacity. In today's volatile and competitive markets, the definition of what are reserves and what are merely identified resources becomes ever more difficult. Many large deposits have been found that are unlikely to be viable in the marketplace under normal conditions but that can be of significance to the nation's military and industrial security in times of emergency. I should like to draw on personal experience from World War I1 for illustration. 4fter Pearl Harbor great concern developed over the availability of a long 1ist of strategic materials for which this country was largely dependent on imports. Included were a number of minerals of which domestic deposits had been identified. Among these were chromite, manganese ore, mercury, mica and tungsten.

Jan 1, 1982

By Spencer S. Shannon

This chapter is concerned with the uses, geology, exploration, evaluation, preparation for markets, and future of 90thorium and 39yttrium, along with 14 rare-earth elements. The rare-earth metals or lanthanides were divided into three categories by Berzelius. The cerium subgroup is comprised of 57lanthanum, 58cerium, 59praseodymium, 60neodymium, and 62samarium. 61Promethium does not occur naturally. The terbium subgroup includes 63europium, 64gadolinium, and 65terbium. The remaining lanthanides are placed in the yttrium subgroup. Strictly speaking, yttrium is not a rare earth. Because the properties of yttrium resemble those of heavy rare earths, its name has been used as a designating adjective. The yttrium subgroup includes 66dysprosium, 67holmium, 68erbium, 69thulium, 70ytterbium, and 67lutetium. Rare-earth elements, especially those of the same subgroup, tend to occur together rather than in discrete minerals.

Jan 1, 1975

By A. H. Smallbone, R. Lathe

Considerable efforts have been expended to apply multiple regression techniques to quantitative determinations in x-ray fluorescence analysis. Multiple regression has been shown to be an effective method for correlating x-ray fluorescence intensities to elemental concentrations. Although many other techniques have been devised to solve the problem of matrix effects in x-ray fluorescence analysis, there are few as efficient in terms of storage requirement or ease of programming for digital computers as the multiple regression method. In the case of ore slurry, it has the additional advantage of allowing a unified approach to the problems of slurry density correction and matrix effect corrections. The data used in the present work were obtained with an on-stream x-ray analyzer capable of analyzing 15 slurry streams for as many as nine elements simultaneously. One of its fixed monochromators was set to accept scattered radiation at a discretely selected wavelength as a means of monitoring the slurry's pulp density. The data were reduced to obtain the correlation equations and a computer program combining slurry density with matrix corrections was written in FORTRAN IV to calculate concentrations.

Jan 8, 1969

By Thorp D. Sawyer

In June 1914, one week before I was to be awarded my sheepskin in upper New York State, I received a telegram from New York City which read "Can offer you position as engineer in Chile at $115 a month contract for one year. (signed) Chile Copper Co." That night, Friday, I took a sleeper to New York and arrived at the Guggenheim Brothers' company office at 165 Broadway, just as it was opening up on Saturday morning. Saturday was no holiday in that era. Presenting the telegram at the office, I was ushered into a sub-executive's office and shown a mimeographed contract which 1) agreed to pay me $115 per month from the date of leaving New York until I returned, and with travelling expenses both ways, 2) fixed a charge of $46 per month for board and lodging in company quarters, and 3) stipulated a contract term of one year with the right to retain my services for another year if the company so elected. While a bit huffed at the year's "kicker" I nevertheless accepted. I was then told to prepare to leave the following Wednesday (June 17) on a United Fruit Co. steamer for Panama. Objecting that I still had to receive my degree on the 17th and had planned a vacation in Ohio for a week or so…

Jan 12, 1960

By I. R. Taylor

Union Carbide has recently developed two open- pit vanadium mines in the Wilson Srpings area of central Arkansas about five miles southeast of Hot Springs. The ores from these mines, together with those from a larger vanadium deposit at nearby Magnet Cove, are processed at a new 1600- tpd plant built by the company in the immediate vicinity (Fig. 1). The Wilson Springs vanadium deposits are associated with the Potash Sulfur Springs intrusive, a circular igneous complex which is exposed over an area that is somewhat less than a mile in diameter.1 The complex has a crude ring structure similar to that of the larger Magnet Cove instrusive six miles to the east.2

Jan 4, 1969

By Charles H. Fulton

IT is assumed that the word "college" for the present purpose signifies technical school or technical department of a college or university. About ten or fifteen years ago, and more recently in some instances the contact between the technical school and the industry, as represented by the operating companies, was very limited. The school made no effort to place its graduates in the industry and the graduate's first position was obtained by his own or his friends' efforts; the friend often was a professor. The industries, or the operating companies, seemingly had little interest in the training of the technical graduates they employed or in seeking to discover their personal characteristics and fitness for the work. In the public mind there was little relation between technical training and industry. Such training was in the field of education; industry was in the field of business; and the interrelationship was not a matter of common knowledge or concern.

Jan 1, 1929

By Fleming, R. C.

ONE OF THE NEWEST developments of industry rising from the commercial application of scientific knowledge is in the making of solid carbon dioxide from the gas about 1925 the first efforts were made to manufacture "dry ice" on a large scale and at a price to permit widespread use. From that beginning the industry has grown to a consumption of 40,000 tons in 1930. Carbon-dioxide ice, as the name implies, is merely the gas compressed and cooled to a solid. The ice has a temperature of 109° F. below zero and is in many ways superior to water ice. It evaporates to a gaseous form so it is not wet and leaves no trace; in fact, one suggested minor use is as coasters under water glasses on the dining table. The gas is harmless except in large concentrations and. when the ice is used as a refrigerant, the resulting gas actually becomes a preservative, keeping oxygen away from perishable products. Not only does the ice have a greater amount of cold in a small volume than water ice but cooling is effected by direct contact of the resulting gas with the materials to be refrigerated rather than by convection air currents.

Jan 1, 1932

By AIME AIME

CHARLIE WARNER, Chairman of the Petroleum Division, is no stranger to the problems of the oil industry or to those of the Petroleum Division, after more than 25 years of experience in locating and producing oil and more than 22 years of membership in the Institute. He was born at Jefferson, N. Y.. April 27, 1894, and educated in the public schools of New York State and at Cornell University where he studied geology and allied sciences from 1913 to 1917 and received a B.A. degree. Immediately upon completion of this training, he was employed by the Empire Gas & Fuel Co. as a field geologist in Oklahoma and Kansas. Two years later he became district geologist for the Emerald Oil Co. in Oklahoma and Kansas, and in 1920 he rejoined the Empire Gas & Fuel Co. in the capacity of district geologist in Oklahoma. In September of 1921 he began his association with the Houston Oil Co. of Texas. He was district manager for the company in the Mid-Continent area until 1932 when he was transferred to the head office at Houston, where he became superintendent of the land and lease department in 1934 and was elected a director of the company in 1941. In these capacities, and also as petroleum engineer for the company, he keeps in intimate touch with all phases of field activity and with the regulation of the industry by State and Federal agencies.

Jan 1, 1943

By W. F. Vietti

Operations in the Texas Gulf Coast during the past year have resulted in the discovery of a number of new fields arid the extension of a few of the older fields, both by deeper drilling and by lateral development. Twenty-six new oil and gas-producing areas and discovery of oil or gas in three subsequently abandoned wells have been recorded for a total of 29 new fields of varying importance. Producing areas at Conroe, Manvel, Greta, Pierce Junction, Hastings, Dirks, Thompson, Batson, Mykawa, Tomball, Raccoon Bend, Samfordyce arid Saxct have been increased. Primary geologic studies followed by geophysical mapping or straight geophysical prospects have been responsible for the more important discoveries. These methods have further proved themselves an aid to limiting wildcatting to the more prospective areas and as the chief means to discover reserves in the future. Production for 1935 totaled 69,560,720 bbl. as compared with 60,850,-360 bbl. for 1934. Strict proration has been in force throughout the discovery of more oil than has been produced. The number of producing oil wells has steadily increased to 4851 at the end of 1935, as compared with 3858 at the end of 1934, owing in part to the prolonged life, because of proration. There were 1272 oil and gas wells completed during 1935, as against 835 in 1934. New Fields Pertinent data on the new fields discovered during 1935 are includrd in Tables 1 and 2. Hence, the discussion of these discoveries will be limited. Bee County.—Three new gas fields were added during the year: Beeville, discovered by G. M. Church in No. 1 Wood on Sept. 21; Foley, discovered by Dirks Bros. in No. 1 Foley on Feb. 8; and Plummer, discovered by Hynes and Fisher in No. 1 T. M. Plummer on Sept. 2. The three new oil fields added are: Hartzendorf, drilled on fee land by Hartzendorf and completed on May 17 as a small pumper; Ray, southwest of Tuleta, and discovered by Jameson and Burns in No. 1 Campbell

Jan 1, 1936

By W. F. Vietti

Operations in the Texas Gulf Coast during the past year have resulted in the discovery of a number of new fields arid the extension of a few of the older fields, both by deeper drilling and by lateral development. Twenty-six new oil and gas-producing areas and discovery of oil or gas in three subsequently abandoned wells have been recorded for a total of 29 new fields of varying importance. Producing areas at Conroe, Manvel, Greta, Pierce Junction, Hastings, Dirks, Thompson, Batson, Mykawa, Tomball, Raccoon Bend, Samfordyce arid Saxct have been increased. Primary geologic studies followed by geophysical mapping or straight geophysical prospects have been responsible for the more important discoveries. These methods have further proved themselves an aid to limiting wildcatting to the more prospective areas and as the chief means to discover reserves in the future. Production for 1935 totaled 69,560,720 bbl. as compared with 60,850,-360 bbl. for 1934. Strict proration has been in force throughout the discovery of more oil than has been produced. The number of producing oil wells has steadily increased to 4851 at the end of 1935, as compared with 3858 at the end of 1934, owing in part to the prolonged life, because of proration. There were 1272 oil and gas wells completed during 1935, as against 835 in 1934. New Fields Pertinent data on the new fields discovered during 1935 are includrd in Tables 1 and 2. Hence, the discussion of these discoveries will be limited. Bee County.—Three new gas fields were added during the year: Beeville, discovered by G. M. Church in No. 1 Wood on Sept. 21; Foley, discovered by Dirks Bros. in No. 1 Foley on Feb. 8; and Plummer, discovered by Hynes and Fisher in No. 1 T. M. Plummer on Sept. 2. The three new oil fields added are: Hartzendorf, drilled on fee land by Hartzendorf and completed on May 17 as a small pumper; Ray, southwest of Tuleta, and discovered by Jameson and Burns in No. 1 Campbell

Jan 1, 1936

By RICHARD MAIZE

IN this critical period of our history, the coal industry of the nation, faced with many obstacles, performed its work safely during the first ten months of 1943. Thousands of the younger mine workers were inducted into the armed forces of our country and in many instances their jobs have been filled by others without much if any experience and training. This situation alone would seem to be sufficient to interfere with the safe and orderly operation of the industry but the Government's demand for a substantial increase in coal tonnage over that produced in normal times introduced a hazard which always accompanies speed, regardless of the skill of the worker.

Jan 1, 1944

NEW MEMBERS The following list comprises the names of those persons who became members during the period Sept. 10, 1916, to Oct. 10, 1916. BLOOMFIELD, EDWIN CHARLES, Min. Engr., 1012 Standard Bank Bldg., Vancouver, B. C., Canada. BRINGS, HENRY, Min. and Met. Engr., Chief Engr., and Geol., Mollet-Mesrine, 1212 Mills Bldg., El Paso, Texas. CHASE, MARCH F., Vice-Pres., Commercial Acid Co., 1906 Boatmens Bank Bldg., St. Louis, Mo. CUMMINGS, ALVIN M., Asst. Mine Supt., Witherbee, Sherman & Co., Inc., Mineville, Essex Co., N. Y. DOUGLASS, GEORGE M., Genl. Safety Inspector, Amer. Smelt. & Ref. Co. 120 Broadway, New Fork, N. Y. EMRICH, CLARENCE T., Chief Chemist, Old Dominion Copper Min. & Smelt. Co., Box 1163, Globe, Ariz. GARDANIER, SUTTER ALBERT, Assayer, Mgr., Douglas Assay Co., Douglas, Cochise Co., Ariz.

Jan 10, 1916

By Josiah Royce

To evaluate chemically the sample of rock obtained by diamond drilling, it has long been recognized that the analyses of the two components of the sample, core and sludge, must be given appropriate influence in computing the average analysis of any unit of depth. The purpose of this investigation is to set forth what means are available for apportioning the effect of core and sludge on the final analysis, what variables affect the problem, and what combination of applied mathematics will closest approximate the truth under each condition as these variables proceed within their limitations. A drill hole is bored in iron ore ex- ploration principally to test variations in rock composition with depth and is usually directed as nearly normal to the bedding of a horizon to be tested as possible. This practice has a tendency to minimize variation in composi- tion laterally which in any event is not likely to be great. It is obvious that the opportunity for change in analysis of a particular rock is not statistically as great radially in a diamond drill hole where the distance in which such a change may occur is from 0.719 in. (EX bit) to 1.469 in. (NX bit) as there would be longitudinally even in a run as short as 5 ft. Variations in composition of bedded or layered rocks are usually greater normal to the bedding than parallel thereto. Even in massive rocks, like porphyries, varia- tions are functions of distance. Hence, in either case, variations along the hole are of greater effect than across it.

Jan 1, 1949

By E. C. Houston

The phosphate ores mined in middle Tennessee typically consist of granular rock phosphate particles disseminated in a clayey matrix. In the TVA plant near Columbia, Tenn., the phosphate ore is mined, made into a slurry with the addition of a small amount of sodium hydroxide as dispersant, and treated in a hydroseparator to remove minus 10 micron material. The hydro-separator underflow, comprising a rough concentrate, is transported by pipeline to the plant; the hydro-separator overflow, comprising a tailing, is flocculated by addition of calcium sulphate and is discharged to settling ponds at a rate of about 1400 gpm. Sedimentation in the ponds produces a clarified effluent, which may be recycled for use as process water or discharged to surface drainage. This method of tailing treatment is not entirely satisfactory since poor sedimentation characteristics of the tailing result in poor ultimate utilization of pond storage volume.

Jan 1, 1949

By R. W. Diamond

Low-grade ores can be designated by two main classifications: (1) simple low-grade ores, and (2) complex low-grade ores. As a rule the first type has a relatively small metal content, although low- grade iron ores contain a rather high percentage of metal. As the simple type is the one that is ordinarily in mind when the term "low-grade ore" is used, the paper will be devoted mainly to ores in this general category. Cheap treatment is the prime requirement in utilizing low-grade ores of the simple type, although in some cases the value of nonmetallic by-products, such as limestone for fer- tilizer and silica for flux, allows a little more lati- tude than in the usual situation. When the costs are divided under the three headings-mining, milling, and smelting-it is apparent that the last group will not constitute an important factor as a rule because the high concentrating ratio makes the smelting cost per ton of ore fairly low.

Jan 1, 1949

The following is an incomplete list of members and guests who called at Institute headquarters during. the period Mar. 10, 1919,. to Apr. 10, 1919. F. T. Agthe, Hannibal, Mo. Jay Lonergan,. Denver, Colo. W. F. Almy, Canada. R. R. London, Cebu, P. I. P. G. Bandy, Mexico. W. D. Mainwaring, Philadelphia, Pa. H. R. Bank, Humboldt, Ariz. _ W. G. Mitchell, Montreal, Can. Alan M. Bateman, New Haven, Conn. Francis Nicholson, Joplin, Mo. C. A. Brooks, Lead, S. Dak: C. H. Palmer, Los Angeles, Calif. Louis J. Brunel, Oakland, Calif. D. A. Powell, Columbus, Ohio. W. Burns, Sante Fe, N. M. W. H. Reber, Dallas, Tex. J. B. Carlock, Major, 1st Gas Regt. Capt. J. B. Richards, Spokane, Wash. Louis S. Cates, Hayden, Ariz. T. C. Roberts, E. Orange, N. J. W. M. Corse, Mansfield, Ohio Max Roesler, Washington, D. C. E. 0. Daue, Philadelphia, Pa. C. 0. Sanford, Los-Angeles, Calif. John Davenport, W. Norfolk, Va. Gustave Sessinghaus, Denver, Colo. James T. Dixon, London, England, . E. H. Shriver, Milford Center, Ohio. S. K. Dahl, Messina, Transvaal, S. Af. H. M. Spoor. W. G. Eberhardt, Tucson, Ariz. W. H. Staver, New York. H. S. Emlaw, Grant Haven, Mich. D. B. Sterrett, Washington, D. C. I. W. Farrand, Camp Merritt. W. G. Swart, Duluth, Minn. Oscar Gotsch, Jr., St. Louis, Mo. A. W. Stickney, London, England. James 0. Greenan, Oakland, Calif. E. C. Templeton, Downey, Calif. Gilbert Hart, Philadelphia, Pa. . . R. T. Walker, Pioche, Nev. K. L. Hsueh, China. A. T. Ward, Bellefonte, Pa. Zay Jeffries, Cleveland, Ohio. Joel H. Watkins, Washington, D. C. R. W. Kern, Verde, Ariz. J. Wertheimer, Cleveland, Ohio. H. D..Kinney, Easton, Pa. C. R. Wilfley, Ouray, Colo. E. L. Lasier, Washington, D. C. J. P. Wood, Engrs., U. S. A. Carl Zapffe, Brainerd, Minn. Leland D. Adams has left the employ of the Weedon Mining Co., Ltd., at Montreal, Quebec, and is going to Oakland, Calif., where his address will be 1180 Mandana Boulevard.

Jan 5, 1919

By H. C., Weed

THE Inspiration Consolidated Copper Co., located in the Globe-Miami district at Inspiration, Ariz., became a producer of copper in 1915. From 1915 until 1948, 116,278,000 tons of ore were produced from underground workings by the block-caving system of mining. In April 1948, open-pit ore production from portions of the ore body was started and earlier plans for block-caving in these areas were abandoned. The change was due to economic conditions. Prior to the war years Inspiration's costs of mining by block-caving methods were comparable to, or even below, the costs of some open-pit operations. By the end of the war these conditions were completely changed. Underground costs had risen steadily for labor and supplies. Difficulty was being experienced in finding competent underground men and underground development was almost hopelessly behind schedule. On the other hand, open-pit costs had been sharply reduced through the development of modern earth-moving machinery and plenty of labor was available for surface work.

Jan 1, 1950

By B. Foley

IN THE first report1 disks of steel of known composition and history were exposed, under carefully prescribed conditions, to impacts of explosion products resulting from the explosion of 50-gm. charges of explosives having well-determined rates of detonation, or to impacts of a weight of known mass, falling through measured distances. There were available at the Bureau of Mines Experiment Station five explosives, having rates of detonation of 5716, 4470, 3190, 2296, and 1523 meters per second. It being desired to continue this exposure downward, and no explosives with a lesser rate of detonation being at hand, resort was had to the impact of a falling weight, the differences in the velocity of impact being attained by varying the height from which the weight was allowed to fall. It was expected by this means to demonstrate experimentally that the development of Neumann bands was determined by the suddenness of the deformation of the metal in which they were produced. But while progressive deformations were obtained with the explosive arges, the falling-weight method failed because the tup was ogressively deformed, also the disks were so flattened as to be unfit for metallographic examination. A return, therefore, has been made to the use of explosives as the source of energy, an air-gap being interposed between the charge of explosive and the disk, as the effect diminishes as the function of the distance between the charge and the object on which the products of its explosion, or the shock wave from its detonation, impinge. The details of the arrangement of the tests by the air-gap method were the same as those described by Foley and Howell,2 except that after the system had been set up and the desired apparent specific gravity for the explosive

Jan 2, 1926

By Raymond O. Ladoo

FUSED quartz is a glass made by the fusion of nearly pure silica. Some confusion in terminology exists but in the trade today "fused quartz" generally refers to the perfectly transparent colorless product made from rock crystal whereas "fused silica" is a white, translucent product made from silica sand. Vitrified silica is the term preferred by purists for all quartz glass, but it lacks the definiteness of -the trade terms. Since the raw materials, methods of production, and properties of the finished products arc different for the two types, the trade terms are preferred. As fused quartz is amorphous, it-physical properties differ greatly from those of quartz crystal. Lacking crystallographic directions and having no piezo-electric properties, fused quartz. of course, has no value for the making of radio oscillator plates; but it does have other valuable and unique properties. Perhaps the 'best known and most useful properties are its extremely low coefficient of expansion and its ability to transmit short-wave ultraviolet radiant energy. Crystal quartz not only has an aver-

Jan 1, 1947