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By PROCEEDINGS OF MEETINGS

THE opening session of the Institute was held at Hazle Hall, Tuesday evening, October 27th, with a large attendance of members. President Raymond called the Institute to order, and after a few introductory remarks, introduced Mr. I. Lowthian Bell, President of the Iron and Steel Institute of Great Britain, and Honorary Member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers. Mr. Bell was received with great applause, and made his acknowledgments in a brief speech, of which the following is the substance: He desired to thank the Institute personally for the honor conferred upon him in his election to membership, and also for the invitation extended last year to the body of which he was President. The difficulty felt by many members of the Iron and Steel Institute, of leaving for a long journey the works of which they had charge, aggravated by special industrial troubles at the time of the invitation, had obliged them to conclude that it could not then be accepted in a fitting manner. The iron manufacture of this country is a subject of great interest to Englishmen, who look with pride upon the achievements on this side the water of the descendants of a common ancestry. His own reception in this country had far surpassed in cordiality even the well-grounded anticipations he had formed from the assurances of the President and other friends. Notwithstanding the flattering manner in which his friend, in introducing him to the Institute, had spoken of his contributions to the science of iron metallurgy, he could not take to himself alone the significance of this welcome. He knew it was a recognition of the services rendered by the body which he had the honor to represent; and he was glad to see present a member of that body, Mr. Thomas Whitwell, who had fortunately been able to make the journey at this time, and whom he had had the pleasure of meeting on the shores of Lake Champlain. He had been requested to say something of his impressions of the American iron industry. It was not easy to digest so soon the vast

Jan 1, 1875

By Clinton M. Young

(Pittsburg Meeting, March, 1910.) I. INTRODUCTION. THE experiments herein. described were carried on in 1908-9 . by the State Geological Survey of Kansas. Some months before taking up work on black powder the Survey had resumed work on an interrupted investigation of explosions in coal-mines, a subject which is engaging the attention. of numerous investigators. An unusual number of serious disasters has directed to. the subject a study which discloses the disquieting fact that, in the. United States, the ratio of lives lost per ton of coal mined has been on the increase. Methods of coal-mining have changed to some extent with the great increase of output, attained in, comparatively recent years. These changes involve the working of very extensive mines, with increased difficulty of ventilation, increased accumulation of coal-dust, and. a very great increase in the amount of explosive used.. . This last point assumes truly startling proportions when it is carefully observed. In the fields of the Middle. West it is not now uncommon for a miner to use six ,kegs (150 lb.) of black powder in a "pay" of two weeks, while within the memory. of men still active, one keg (25 .lb.) would last two men for a " pay." So. great has . the use of explosives become in some fields that the skilled coal-miner is hard to find, and the coal is not mined, but blasted. A preliminary study of the subject. of explosions in coal-mines has. led to the belief . that the use of, large -quantities of explosives, in some cases by slightly-trained men, had not been * Associate Professor- of Mining Engineering, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Ran.

Aug 1, 1910

By AIME AIME

THE graduating class whom I am particularly addressing are going into the world at least a month earlier than normal, because of the war. You have been free to choose your work. You have chosen to be mining engineers. The principal importance of your engineering education to date has been in teaching you how to think and how through books to have ready access to the accumulated experience of previous generations, as well as the current experience of the day. You should by now have acquired something of the engineering point of view, the open skeptical mind. the power to observe, experiment, and draw conclusions, form theories and test these by further experiment, and weigh the inherent probability of conclusions drawn by others. I am asking you today to consider certain facts and the conclusions I am drawing from those facts.

Jan 1, 1942

By William B. Plank

IN my studies during the past twenty years of the enrollments in the mining and metallurgical schools of the United States and Canada, I have been struck with the great diversity in the curricula offered by these schools. In 1933 when I made my first complete study of the schools (Mining and Metallurgy, May 1934, p. 211), I discovered 19 different curricula or programs of study, leading to almost as many different bachelor degrees, in the 49 schools in the United States and the 4 schools in Canada. These were: (1) Mining Engineering, (2) Coal Mining, (3) Metal Mining, (4) General Mining, (5) Mining Administration, (6) Mining and Metallurgy, (7) Metallurgical Engineering, (8) Metallurgy, (9) Petroleum Engineering, (10) Petroleum Refining, (11) Petroleum Geology, (12) Petroleum and Natural Gas, (13) Ceramic Engineering, (14) Ceramics, (15) Geological Engineering, (16) Mining Geology, (17) Economic Geology, (18) Geo- physics, (19) Fuel Technology.

Jan 3, 1950

TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND MEMBERS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGICAL ENGINEERS GENTLEMEN: Submitted herewith are the report of the Treasurer for the year 1939 and reports for the same year of the following standing committees: Admissions, Membership, Papers and Publications, Mining and Metallurgy (Magazine), Library, Speakers for Local Sections and Student Societies, and Student Relations. These reports present additional details. Membership.-For the second year in Succession membership reached a new high level for all time, as indicated in the accompanying tabulation in which "Members" includes all categories except Student Associates. [END 1938 END 1939 NET GAIN Members9, 57 610, 163 587 Student Associates 2,898 3,760 862 12,474 13,923 1,449] Net gain in membership (aside from Student Associates) was 587 compared with 744 in 1938, despite the fact that applications received in 1939 exceeded those received in 1938 (1271 against 1162). The smaller net gain is accounted for in three ways: (1) A greater lag in enrollment of those elected in the last quarter of the year; (2) an increase in the number of applications involving change of status from Junior Member to Member; and (3) an increase of 167 in the loss by death by resignation and by suspension in 1939 as compared with 1938. Experience shows that at the end of a year of less prosperous conditions in the mineral industries, and, therefore, among engineers engaged in these industries, resignations and suspensions are more numerous. Business and industrial indexes all show 1938 to have been somewhat less prosperous than 1937; but the improvement in 1939 should be reflected in the record for 1940.

Jan 1, 1940

By A. T. Shurick

THE NRA Administrator's casual reference to the coal code as the next "pineapple" to be fixed was a conservative estimate of his job. This thorny and adamantine morsel now looms as a critical test of NRA. A failure in coal supplies would have the gravest potentialities in the Administration's program at this time. And the loss of prestige from a breakdown of the enforcement machinery in this initial large-scale test of strength would accentuate the incipient indications of insurrection in other directions. General Johnson has had a difficult task. It involves problems festering for a quarter of a century. A succes¬sion of Presidents have been glad to tide over their respective regimens with inconclusive expedients; they have been baffled by the complexities of the technical angles and hopelessly irreconcilable concepts of powerful conflicting interests with large issues at stake.

Jan 1, 1933

THE shipments of high-grade manganese ore, con-taining 35 per cent or more of manganese, from the mines in the United States in 1926 were slightly less than half as large as similar shipments in 1925, accord-ing to the United States Bureau of Mines, Department of Commerce. The shipments in 1926 by 45 producers amounted to 46,258 long tons as compared with 98,324 long tons by 42 producers in 1925. This decrease was due to the falling off of the shipments from Montana. The domestic production of metallurgical ore in 1926 was 26,530 tons; that of chemical ore, 19,728 tons. Montana was the largest shipper with 5713 tons of metallurgical ore and 17,904 tons of chemical ore. The largest individual shipper of metallurgical ore was the Crescent Mine in the Olympic Mountain Region, Clallam Co., Washington, from which the shipments for the year were 3162 tons. The mine was operated by lessees and reverted to the owners in July, and thereafter to the close of the year no .ore was shipped.

Jan 6, 1927

By William E. Ford, Edward Salisbury Dana

URANINITE. Cleveite. Broggerite. Nivenite. Pitchblende. Isometric. In octahedrons (o), also with dodecahedra1 faces (d) ; less often in cubes with o and d. Crystals rare. Usually massive and botryoidal; also in grains; structure sometimes columnar, or curved lamellar. Fracture conchoidal to uneven. Brittle. H. = 5'5. G. = 9'0 to 9'7 of crystals; of massive altered forms from 6'4 upwards. Luster submetallic, to greasy or pitch-like, and dull. Color grayish, greenish, brownish, velvet- black. Streak brownish black, grayish, olive-green, a little shining. Opaque. Comp. -A uranate of uranyl, lead, usually thorium (or zirconium), often the metals of the lanthanum and yttrium groups; also containing the gases nitrogen, helium and argon, in varying amounts up to 2'6 p. c. Calcium and water (essential?) are present in small quantities; iron also, but only as an impurity. The relation between the bases varies widely and no definite for- mula can be given. Radium was first discovered in this mineral and it has been shown that it and the helium present are products of the breaking down of the uranium.

Jan 1, 1922

By Jack Fox

Although this is going to appear in the December Issue of &E, it is being written long before the end of the year. December, of course, is the time for a summing up of the year's activities. Perhaps, the best way to begin is to report on what went on at the SME Board of Directors Meeting in St. Louis on October 20. This won't be a chronological report, and I shall take time to comment on some of the items we cover as we go along. You should be encouraged to know that your Directors take their duties seriously. Of the 21 current Directors, 19 were present, and three of the new 1971 Directors came to observe what goes on at an SME Board Meeting.

Jan 1, 1970

By E. H. Hamilton

THE furnace on which the following investigation was based had dimensions 48 by 160 in., and was in continuous operation during the three days of the test. The average charge consisted of PER CENT. LB. PER HOUR Bed ore?14.5?2,980 Roast from Dwight-Lloyds?44.5?9,160 Siliceous ore?3.5?720 Iron flux?2.1?430 Battery plates?0.5?103 Lime rock?23.9?4,925 Briquettes?4.0?825 Scrap iron?2.1?430 M. P. slag?4.2?865 L. P.speiss?0.7?142 Total 100.0 THE furnace on which the following investigation was based had dimensions 48 by 160 in., and was in continuous operation during the three days of the test. The average charge consisted of PER CENT. LB. PER HOUR Bed ore?14.5?2,980 Roast from Dwight-Lloyds?44.5?9,160 Siliceous ore?3.5?720 Iron flux?2.1?430 Battery plates?0.5?103 Lime rock?23.9?4,925 Briquettes?4.0?825 Scrap iron?2.1?430 M. P. slag?4.2?865 L. P.speiss?0.7?142 Total?100.0?20,580

Jan 1, 1924

By Arthur Zentner

THE essentials of the electrolytic zinc process, as now used in commercial plants, date back to work done by Letrange in 1881. He used sulfuric acid to leach roasted sulfide and ,oxide ores, purified his solution very much as we do now, and electrolyzed the purified zinc sulfate solution. Ten years later Hoepfner developed a process using chloride solutions, and built three plants. One in England operated until 1924 in one of the works now merged in the Imperial Chemical , Industries, Ltd. Ashcroft built a plant in 1898 in the Broken Hill district of Australia. He used both chloride and sulfate solutions.. While his work failed, the aid his published results have been to later workers has made him an outstanding contributor to the de- velopment of the electrolytic zinc process. A good deal of work was done in the following years, aiming to electrolyze zinc chloride solutions and fused zinc chloride. Quite a bit of work on sulfate solutions was also done in the last years before the war. With the outbreak of the war, metal demand and rise in metal prices provided the stimulus which resulted in the remarkably rapid commercial development of electrolytic zinc. In this last period of development, all the work brought to commercial fruition has been with sulfate solutions. The high-density process, or the Tainton process, is used, as you know, in the Sullivan electrolytic zinc plant at Kellogg, Idaho, and will be used in the Evans- Wallower plant now being built at East St. Louis. The low-density process is used by the other plants now operating in the United States and other countries. There are now in operation and under construction four electrolytic zinc plants in the United States, two in Canada, two in Italy and one each in Australia, Rhodesia, Poland, Norway and Germany.

Jan 1, 1929

By A. G. Allten

EXAMINATION by metallographic and X-ray diffraction means of an austenitic steel containing 0.06 pct C, 1.26 pct Mn, 0.38 pct Si, 21.15 pct Ni, 18.72 pct Cr, 3.07 pet W, and 9.14 pet Mo indicated that a - phase, which had not been reported in the literature, existed in this steel. Both the s and car-bides of the M6 C type were present in the as-forged steel. The carbides dissolved completely in the aus-tenite at approximately 2200°F (1205°C). The s, however, was present at all temperatures up to the solidus temperature of the steel at approximately 2375°F (1300°C). Ferrite was not found in any condition of the steel. The faintness of some of the s lines in X-ray patterns obtained from samples of the steel made it desirable to isolate the s prior to verification of its entire pattern. It was found that the s phase could be separated from samples of the steel which had been water quenched from 2250°F (1230°C) by dis-

Jan 1, 1955

By J. W. Powell, F. H. Spedding

A complete review of the use of chelating agents in the sepa ration of rare earths by ion-exchange is given as well as a concise description of the recent pilot-plant operations of the Ames Laboratory. The two chelating agents which show the greatest promise are ethylenediamine-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid and N'-(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediarnine-N,N,N '-triacetic acid. The first successful separations of rare earths by ion exchange were reported in a collection of papers which appeared in the November, 1947, issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.1'9 Some of this work was performed at the Ames Laboratory of the A.E.C., the remainder at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The processes developed at Oak Ridge, as well as some of the early Arnes methods, employed 5 pct citric acid-ammonium citrate eluant at low pH and were carried out on either H+-state or NH:-state resin beds. These techniques were successful for the separation of small quantities of either naturally occurring or radioactive rare earths and are still used for the isolation of rare-earth activities from fission products. Concentrated citrate is not economical, however, for use in moderate or large-scale rare-earth separations. For this reason, the Ames Laboratory turned its attention to lower concentrations and higher pH's in order to make more effective use of the eluting agent.10-14 Although elutions have been performed successfully over a wide range of conditions, 0.1 pct citrate at a pH of 8.0 is highly recommended for use on H+-state resin beds.15,16 Elu-tion with 0.1 pct citrate in the pH range from 5 to 9 brings about the separation of the constituent rare earths into a series of flat-topped elution bands which progress down the resin bed, head to tail, without actually pulling apart as do the rare-earth peaks which develop when trace quantities are eluted with 0.25M (5 pct) citrate at low pH's. Because of this, elution with 0.1 pct citrate at pH 8.0 do not produce pure rare earths unless sufficient quantities are present to provide developed bands which are at least several inches long on the columns. Although other eluting agents have proved more effective than citrate solutions, articles concerning the use of citric acid for separating rare earths still appear in the literature occasionally. For example, Ketelle and Boyd17 reported some further studies on the separation of rare earths with 5 pct citrate in 1951. They used 270 to 325 mesh Dowex-50 columns at 100°C and a pH of 3.28. vickery18 compared the effectiveness of a number of eluants for the separation of rare earths on NH+4 state Dowex-50 in 1952. He found that citric acid was more efficient than acetic, malic, tartaric, and aminoacetic acids. In 1953, Mayer and Freiling18 reported that citrate was inferior to malate, glycolate, lactate, and EDTA for the resolution of Sm-Eu and Y-Tb mixtures on 250 to 500 mesh, NH+4-state, Dowex-50 at 87°C. pinta20 used 5 pct citrate in the pH range 2.8 to 3.4 to obtain some rare earths for analytical work the same year. Trombe and Loriers21 reported the use of citric acid in their laboratory to separate rare earths in kilogram quantities. Lariers and Quesney22 reported some separations with citrate in 1954. They used 5 pct citrate at pH 2.8 to separate yttrium and the yttrium-group rare earths from the cerium-group rare earths. briers23 used 5 pct citrate at pH 3.2 and 90°C as late as 1956 to isolate thulium in fair purity. For the separation of tracer quantities of rare earths, Mayer and Freiling19 have recommended pH 5.00, 0.24M lactate at 87 °C on 250 to 500 mesh, NH+4-form Dowex-50. Freiling and Bunney24 have also employed lactic acid for the separation of fission-product rare earths. Cunninghame, Size-land, Willis, Eakins, and Mercer25 have reported a 4-hr separation of Y, Eu, Sm, Pm, Nd, and Pr with 1M lactic acid at pH 3.25 on Zeokarb-225 at 87°C. Stewart, et al.,26 reported separation factors for rare earths distributing between Dowex-50 and 0.25M glycolic acid. stewart27 also reported a 30-61 separation of Y, Tm, Er, Tb, and Lu tracers with buffered, 0.25M glycolic acid containing 0.05 pct Aerosol OT. The resin bed was 400-mesh Dowex-50 (X12). The pH of the ammonia-buffered eluant was 3.5. Various aminopolyacetic acids have also been used to obtain varying degrees of separation of the rare earths. In 1951, Fitch and Russell28 investigated iminodiacetic acid (IDA) and nitrilotriacetic

Jan 1, 1960

By John V. Beall

BROMO Seltzer blue has gone to war. The blue of the Bromo Seltzer bottle is a product of cobalt, the Nation's No. 1 strategic metal. When the National Production Authority, on Nov. 21, 1950, ordered a 70 pct cutback in domestic use of cobalt, a stab of pain was felt in the hearts of the glass, porcelain enamel, steel, paint, pottery, and electrical and electronic equipment industries. The reason: A full-scale wartime economy with astronomical requirements for jet engines, high velocity projectiles, armor plate, electronic equipment, and the many products needed to win a war. There is little potential comfort for cobalt users in nonessential manufacturing, and the military will be pinched for optimum supplies of the metal. However, if proper measures are taken immediately and current plans are completed, in two years there will be far more cobalt available than ever before. When normal times return, cobalt supplies should be sufficient to meet peacetime military requirements, and greatly expanded domestic requirements that will result from new technological development for wartime but adaptable to peacetime products. The pres-

Jan 1, 1951

TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND MEMBERS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGICAL ENGINEERS GENTLEMEN : Submitted herewith are the report of the Treasurer for the year 1944 and reports for the same year of the following standing committees: Membership, Ad- missions, Papers and Publications, MIN- ING AND METALLURGY (Magazine), and Library. To these reports you are referred for additional details.

Jan 1, 1946

C. P. BOWIE, San Francisco, Cal.-In my work with the U.S. Bureau of Mines, I have been detailed to report on oil storage containers, and in going around the country I have, been much interested in, the possibilities in the use of concrete for such containers. In talking with a good many people, I have discovered that concrete is being used A good deal for a wide variety of oils ranging from 14° to as high as 40° Bé., especially, by some of the western railroads:, If any member has had experience, in storing gasoline in concrete, I should like to learn of it. DORSEY HAGER, Tulsa, Okla.-Mr. M J. Munn, formerly .with the U. S. Geological Survey, acid connected with the Gypsy Oil Co., until a short time ago, has invented a invented a method for the application of concrete to the storage not only of crude oil but of refined products:. The Cosden Oil Co., of Tulsa, is now working on that plan, and, expects to store refined products in concrete tanks. THE CHAIRMAN (I.N. KNAPP, Ardmore Pa.).-I have had considerable experience in building masonry tanks for gas Holders. I do not believe it is possible to build a concrete or masonry tank of any kind. With hydraulic cement, mortar, which will be absolutely water-tight, unless the bottom and inner wall, after completion are waterproofed with some impervious material. The same will be true of oil tanks, the bottom and inner face of which must be made impervious to oil. Masonry tanks are intended to be sunk in the ground. All that the wall of the tank then amounts to is a retaining wall to keep the excavation in shape and to receive an impervious coating. The bottom of, a; tank, when empty, must be protected by a relief valve from any hydraulic: pressure acting from below. At ordinary prices, for sheets, a tank 100 ft. diam by 20 ft. deep can be built of steel much quicker and cheaper than of masonry. Several years, ago I saw very large oil storage tank under construction in California the bottom and sides being concrete. The sides were, sloped at about the single of repose for the material excavated: If you build a steel oil tank, you can get. .men for the work who do nothing else, and you, are likely to get a satisfactory job; but if you wish to build a concrete or masonry tank it is almost: impossible to find men skilled in building absolutely water-tight masonry Work. The general idea is that any laborer can mix up concrete in any old way and make a,

Jan 1, 1918

By L. Kovisars, F. Buttazzoni

The current demand for copper in the western world exceeds 7 million tonnes annually. The growth in demand is expected to average 2.6% annually to a level exceeding 11 million tonnes in 2000. Copper mine production is currently about 6 million tonnes annually; the annual net addition to mine output in the future will have to average about 190,000 tonnes of contained copper. The industrial nations of Europe and the western Pacific are heavily dependent on copper imports. Currently these import needs are supplied by Canada, Africa and Pacific producers. The increased demand for copper in the future is expected to further weight the trade balance to the Pacific suppliers. An evaluation of undeveloped deposits allows the ranking of these deposits based on total cost of production, including provision for plant and infra- structure investment as well as political/social/ economic risk. Peru, Canada, and the Southwest Pacific are expected to significantly increase exports. The United States will develop deposits to replace depleted mines, maintaining mine production at a level approximately equal to current output, with a consequent increase in copper imports. Chile is expected to become the world's leading copper producer, as well as expanding it's position as the leading exporter.

Jan 1, 1982

By James P. Kimball

Jan 1, 1881

By Earnshaw Cook, J. A. Fellows, Howard S. Avery

Heat-resistant alloys of the higher nickel and chromium ranges have been empirically developed through the practical experience of the past two decades to a position of significant industrial importance. Few quantitative metallurgical data have been published, however, that could be related directly to engineering specifications and design. Inadequate information led to the inauguration, in 1934, of a research directed toward a better understanding of the properties and performance of these steels at temperatures between 1400° and 2000°F. Investigation was concentrated upon the 26 per cent Cr:I2 per cent Ni type, which owes its extensive application to an excellent combination of economy, strength and surface stability at elevated temperatures. The requirements of the oil-refining industry have been prominent in influencing the scope and evolution of the program. Creep strength at the maximum allowable deformation ranges has been employed to evaluate the merits of these alloys. Permissible elongation rates vary from 1.0 per cent in one million hours for turbine blades to I .o per cent in ten thousand hours for tube supports and heating-furnace equipment. Throughout this paper, the limiting creep stress (L.C.S.) for a given temperature has been defined as the stress that will produce a uniform elongation rate (stage 11) of one per cent in ten thousand hours as extrapolated from rates per hour for tests of less than two thousand hours duration. Certain current specifications require a minimum L.C.S. of 1600 lb. per sq. in. at I800°F., of 3600 lb. per sq. in. at 1400°F., and include a tensile acceptance test at room temperature, after aging for 24 hr. at 1400°F., as a measure of embrittlement in service. An elongation of 4 per cent is considered satisfactory for general use, while a minimum of 9 per cent is prescribed on occasion. Many differences of opinion concerning the properties and performance of these alloys appear to result from their sensitivity to unappreciated variations of chemical analyses which, for example, may change their L.C.S. from 3500 to 350 lb. per sq. in. at 1800°F. Within broad chemical limits, it is possible to balance the six or more important elements present to attain desirable properties with a number of different combinations. One method for adjusting the composition has been described under the sponsorship of the Alloy Casting Institute,' in which, by maintaining a substantially austenitic* alloy, optimum creep strength and minimum tendency to embrittle after aging are expected. Unless, however, the limits are undesirably close, it has not been possible to ensure a moderate range of strength and of ductility by any chemical specification alone. There is a definite need

Jan 1, 1942

By J. A. Fellows, Earnshaw Cook, Howard S. Avery

Heat-resistant alloys of the higher nickel and chromium ranges have been empirically developed through the practical experience of the past two decades to a position of significant industrial importance. Few quantitative metallurgical data have been published, however, that could be related directly to engineering specifications and design. Inadequate information led to the inauguration, in 1934, of a research directed toward a better understanding of the properties and performance of these steels at temperatures between 1400° and 2000°F. Investigation was concentrated upon the 26 per cent Cr:I2 per cent Ni type, which owes its extensive application to an excellent combination of economy, strength and surface stability at elevated temperatures. The requirements of the oil-refining industry have been prominent in influencing the scope and evolution of the program. Creep strength at the maximum allowable deformation ranges has been employed to evaluate the merits of these alloys. Permissible elongation rates vary from 1.0 per cent in one million hours for turbine blades to I .o per cent in ten thousand hours for tube supports and heating-furnace equipment. Throughout this paper, the limiting creep stress (L.C.S.) for a given temperature has been defined as the stress that will produce a uniform elongation rate (stage 11) of one per cent in ten thousand hours as extrapolated from rates per hour for tests of less than two thousand hours duration. Certain current specifications require a minimum L.C.S. of 1600 lb. per sq. in. at I800°F., of 3600 lb. per sq. in. at 1400°F., and include a tensile acceptance test at room temperature, after aging for 24 hr. at 1400°F., as a measure of embrittlement in service. An elongation of 4 per cent is considered satisfactory for general use, while a minimum of 9 per cent is prescribed on occasion. Many differences of opinion concerning the properties and performance of these alloys appear to result from their sensitivity to unappreciated variations of chemical analyses which, for example, may change their L.C.S. from 3500 to 350 lb. per sq. in. at 1800°F. Within broad chemical limits, it is possible to balance the six or more important elements present to attain desirable properties with a number of different combinations. One method for adjusting the composition has been described under the sponsorship of the Alloy Casting Institute,' in which, by maintaining a substantially austenitic* alloy, optimum creep strength and minimum tendency to embrittle after aging are expected. Unless, however, the limits are undesirably close, it has not been possible to ensure a moderate range of strength and of ductility by any chemical specification alone. There is a definite need

Jan 1, 1942