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By H. R. Banks

THE Sullivan concentrator has completed 20 years of operation. During this period a considerable amount of data has been accumulated concerning the characteristics of several types of flotation machines in their application to the problem of the differential separation of the lead sulphide, zinc sulphide and, in more recent times, iron sulphide, in the ore from the Sullivan mine. It is the author's intention to sketch briefly experiences encountered when the several types of flotation machines were introduced into the flow. ORIGINAL FLOTATION EQUIPMENT AND ORE The original flotation equipment consisted of four 18-cell lead-roughing machines, whose concentrate was cleaned in an 8-cell and recleaned in a similar 8-cell machine. Zinc concentration was carried out in four 18-cell machines. One 8-cell zinc re-treatment machine received the reground zinc middling. The 168 cells handled some 3000 tons of original daily feed. These cells were of the standard Minerals Separation type, equipped with 24-in. impellers. Spindles were driven through geared line shaft at a speed of 255 r.p.m. The impellers were the 45° type, except for the last three cells of the zinc-rougher machines, which were of sub-aeration type, with full bottom shroud and half shroud for the top side of the impellers. Four-pound air was introduced. This recognition of the benefit of intensified flotation operation for "gleaning" was an important phase in the early operation and will be discussed further on in this paper. Sullivan ore during this period is described as a finely disseminated mixture of four sulphides, totaling 90 per cent made up of 13.6 per cent galena, 14.4 per cent marmatite, 1 per cent pyrite and 61 per cent pyrrhotite. The specific gravity of the ore was approximately 4.4. There has been a gradual change in the ore content. The 10 per cent of nonsulphide constituents has increased to between 15 and 20 per cent and all three sulphides have dropped somewhat. Added equipment and changing technique have made possible the treatment of 8000 tons per day of mill feed instead of the 3000 originally handled. SPECIAL FEATURES OF FLOTATION AT SULLIVAN Sullivan flotation differs greatly from customary practice. The very heavy return of lead rougher middling and lead cleaner tailing, totaling at times 125 per cent of the new feed tonnage, has been the subject of much investigation. The practice is still employed.

Jan 1, 1944

By Norman Weiss

Most papers on xanthate have dealt with principles rather than practice. On the assumption that many millmen are interested in knowing where and in what manner the xanthates are being used in mills other than their own, this paper will summarize the results of a recent survey of North American plants. A brief background story and a description of the xanthates will be followed with the results of that survey; then a few observations will be made on storage, feeding, and ore testing. The first xanthate was made in 1822 by Zeise of the University of Copenhagen. With commendable scientific detachment (or perhaps a bad cold) Zeise ignored a more pervading quality of the substance and named it for its color, after the Greek word "xanthos," meaning yellow. During the first 80 years of its recorded existence xanthate found use only in small quantity as an insecticide; after the turn of the century there was some further demand for it in the vulcanization of rubber. It was not until 1922, by coincidence the centennial of Zeise's discovery, that C. H. Keller of San Francisco, seeking sul-phidizing agents, recalled xanthate in connection with his experience years earlier when he had seen this material used in Europe to combat grape phylloxera. His successful tests with the new flotation reagent culminated in the basic xanthate patent (U. S. 1,554,216) in 1925. In the minds of many metallurgists the introduction of xanthate as a flotation reagent is identified with the beginnings of alkaline circuits, the first use of chemical collectors, and the beginning of selective flotation. Actually, these preceded xanthate by a number of years. The alkaline circuit in lead-zinc flotation was introduced by Lyster as early as 1912. In 1922 Sheridan and Griswold made their momentous discovery (Timber Butte) that alkali cyanides and zinc sulphate effectively inhibited the flotation of pyrite and sphalerite in pulps made alkaline with sodium carbonate or bicarbonate. The use of lime to retard pyrite in copper flotation began within two years after Ralston directed attention to its possibilities in 1917. These were the beginnings of modern selective flotation, which was practiced successfully on copper-iron ores at Nacozari in 1922, and at Inspiration, Cananea, and others only shortly afterward. In the lead-zinc mills, selective flotation was of even greater economic importance at that time. The Sunnyside plant of U. S. Smelting, Refining, and Mining Co. used the process earlier than 1920, and Consolidated, Timber Butte, and others soon followed. As a chemical collector xanthate was relatively a latecomer, for the Corliss patent of 1917 covered the first of these, alpha-naphthylamine, and the Perkins patent of 1919 the second, thiocarbanilid. Both of these were in extensive use before Keller's xanthate made its commercial debut in 1923. There is general agreement, nonetheless, that the introduction of xanthate was

Jan 1, 1949

MORE than 2500 members of the AIME from all sections of the U. S., Canada, Central and South America are expected to attend the 175th General Meeting scheduled for Los Angeles Feb. 16 to 21, 1953. The Southern California Section will be host for the meeting. It will be the first time the Annual Meeting has been held in Los Angeles. In keeping with the historic nature of the event, headquarters will be the fabulous Statler Hotel, recently opened in downtown Los Angeles. Meeting plans are under the direction of Henry T. Mudd, General Chairman, assisted by members of the Southern California Section, headed by Basil P. Kantzer. The annual business meeting is scheduled to be held Tuesday, February 17, at the Statler Hotel, at 4 pm. Minerals Beneficiation Div. has planned a very important program, with 10 technical sessions, the famous Scotch Breakfast, divisional luncheon, and participation in the Mining Branch and All-Institute activities. The MBD business meeting is set for the morning of Feb. 16, 1953.

Jan 1, 1952

By H. K. Shearer

Oil production in north Louisiana in 1937 was 28,668,070 bbl., an increase of 1,896,925 bbl., or 7.1 per cent over 1936, as against an increase of 178 per cent from 1935 to 1936. Gas production of 301,148 million cu. ft. from gas wells and 17,330 million cu. ft. of casinghead gas, a total of 318,483 million, was an increase of 33,483 million cu. ft., or 11.7 per cent over 1936. Well completions numbered 716, with 411 oil wells, 175 gas wells and 130 dry holes; compared with 346, 109 and 78, respectively, in 1936. There were 58 wildcat dry holes. In addition to the wildcat producers described and tabulated with the fields, there were two small, shallow gas wells in Sabine and Tensas Parishes, which did not open fields of any present importance. At the close of 1937 there were only five wildcat tests actually drilling, with nine others shut down or temporarily abandoned. Chief interest during 1937 was in development rather than discoveries. The only real discoveries were two deep gas and distillate fields, Bear Creek and Ruston. There were also three completions of gas-distillate producers from deeper formations in old fields, of which the most important was at Cotton Valley, one discovery of oil in a previously known gas sand and five or six extensions of some importance. Geological Section The columnar section in south Arkansas (Fig. 1, p. 317) also applies in north Louisiana, with a few changes noted below. The oldest known formation in north Louisiana is a bed of rock salt. Except on salt domes, only one well at Rodessa has been drilled into this salt, but it has been penetrated by a number of wells in south Arkansas. Salt domes have been discovered near Vicksburg and Hattiesburg, Miss., and a deep well in Limestone County, Texas, has drilled into rock salt. In Louisiana the distance between the "interior salt-dome basin" and a salt dome of the "Gulf Coast salt basin" is hardly 60 miles. In short, evidence is accumulating to indicate that all of Louisiana, with the possible

Jan 1, 1938

By E. M. Wise

IT is known qualitatively that the recrystallization behavior of platinum is dependent upon the amount and particularly the nature of impurities present, the amount of prior cold-work and the annealing time and temperature, but published data are limited. A study of the effects of cold-work and annealing temperature on the hardness of a sample of very pure platinum was undertaken to supply part of this information. CONCLUSIONS 1. The platinum used in the experiments had a probable platinum content of 99.99+ per cent, and had the following mechanical properties in the completely softened condition: Vickers hardness number, 39.4; ultimate tensile strength, 19,340 lb. per sq. in.; proportional limit, very low; elongation, 37.5 per cent in 2 inches. 2. The effect of cold-rolling on the hardness is shown in Fig. 1. The hardness increases rapidly up to 10 to 15 per cent reduction and more slowly up to about 75 per cent reduction, beyond which it increases more rapidly. 3. The recrystallization temperatures for a 15-min. anneal, after cold-rolling 19, 39.5, 50.8, 66, 80.5 and 89.5 per cent reduction in thickness, are approximately 765°, 700°, 635°, 600°, 545° and 425°C., respectively. 4. The recrystallized grain size of this platinum is a function of the percentage of cold reduction, being larger the lower the percentage of cold-work. 5. Little or no grain growth resulted from subjecting recrystallized samples to higher temperatures or annealing for longer times.

Jan 1, 1940

By Andrew A. Blair

THE increased importance and value of chemical analysis in connection with metallurgical operations is largely, if not entirely, due to the increased accuracy of the analytical methods used for the quantitative determination of the foreign elements always associated with the metal operated upon. This applies especially in the working of iron and steel, and to the determination of the amounts of such elements as phosphorus, carbon, and silicon. The influence of greater or smaller amounts of these elements upon the physical properties of iron and steel will be better understood when the proper experiments shall have been made upon samples whose chemical composition is known with almost absolute certainty. From the present standpoint of analytical chemistry, it is easy to see that at least one reason for the failure of many attempts to solve this problem, is the inaccuracy of the analytical methods used. Even at the present time the frequent want of agreement (over and above the unavoidable error due to manipulation) between chemists working on the same sample, leads one to think that there is still at least a choice in the methods used. It is true that very frequently a faulty method in the hands of a skilful analyst may be made to give corroborative results

Jan 1, 1876

By Benjamin Smith Lyman

It is a time-honored saying in the anthracite region that " under the conglomerate there is no coal;" and the adage is generally reckoned a sure guide in coal-exploration. Yet there are many places where conglomerate, even coarse conglomerate, occurs above important coal beds, and, among others, above the great Mammoth bed. One of the most striking of such occurrences is on the Shippen and Wetherill tract, half a dozen miles west of Tamaqua; and it illustrates remarkably the disastrous effect of a too unquestioning blind confidence in the sweeping literal truth of a broad generalization. Here there is a conspicuous crag formed by a twenty-foot bed of egg-conglomerate, dipping 60 degrees southerly, and jutting out boldly at the western end of a hill, where it is cut through by the small stream of Little Creek. The hill runs eastward for half a mile, with occasional exposures of pebbly rock along the western half of the crest. Eastward from the exposures lies the old Kentucky Bank mine, abandoned thirty years ago, where the Mammoth bed was worked down to water-level through a space of a mile and a quarter westward from the Palmer tunnel to the very edge of the

Jan 1, 1893

By K. P. Wang, Virgil L. Barr

The U.S. Minerals Attaché Program, similar to the scientific and technical attache programs of other industrialized nations, is designed specifically to keep surveillance on significant worldwide developments in minerals, metals, and fuels. Knowledge of international minerals developments is essential for both domestic planning and conduct of foreign affairs. CONTROLLED BY DEPT. OF STATE Ten minerals specialists-eight minerals attaches and two petroleum attachés-man this far-flung, worldwide program for the U.S. Government as best they can. Minerals attach& also handle oil, in posts lacking petroleum attaché. The legislative authority for the Minerals Attaché Program is the Foreign Service Act of 1946 and succeeding amendments and Presidential Executive Orders. Therefore, this program is controlled by the Department of State. Interior (representing the Bureau of Mines) and State collaborate in policy formation and direction by means of a "memorandum of agreement" which covers establishment of posts, selection of officers, contents of reports, and supplemental training. State also has about half a dozen nonspecialist officers to complement the work of the minerals and petroleum attaché. It is not the intention here to evaluate the administrative arrangements of this program but rather to describe it and to provide examples of the important job it is doing.

Jan 11, 1965

By Charles Mitke

EXCLUDING top-slicing, and sublevel caving, large production caving methods may be divided into two general classes, the branch raise, or undercut caving method, and the combined shrinkage and caving method, each of which has a number of variations, the result of continual efforts towards obtaining lower costs and better extraction, by the introduction and substitution of minor improvements and modifications. EARLY CAVING METHODS Present caving methods are the cumulative result of developments covering a period of many years, with the most rapid growth during the past 15 years. They originated, presumably, from early English stoping methods, and, as far as is generally known, were first introduced in the Michigan iron district. They have had their greatest expansion and application in the large low-grade porphyry coppers. In their present form, they are probably a development and combination of sublevel caving and shrinkage (back-stoping on ore) with gravity handling of broken material. Sublevel caving, as practiced in the Michigan district today, is a combination of drift, or crosscut, mining, with top-slicing, and caving, supplemented by later refinements in the shape of mechanized handling of broken ore. A height of anywhere from 16 to 20 ft. is generally taken, and the ore is drilled and blasted along the drift or crosscut for half this height (say 8 to 10 ft.), after which the upper 8 to 10 ft. caves and breaks of its own weight, with comparatively little assistance from drilling. This

Jan 1, 1928

By Hans Haalk

PRACTICAL or applied geophysics-as we designate the border region between physics and geophysics on one hand and practical geology on the other-has as its object the application of physical or geophysical methods of investigation to problems of practical geology. Its field of operation comprises all methods of physical measurement that are used in the problem of determining, from the geophysical influences of the subsoil that can be measured at the surface of the earth, the special characteristics of the association of strata, faults, etc., to detect the presence of deposits and to investigate underground structures. It therefore repre-sents an aid, a physical method of research in practical geology, and is inseparably connected with geological studies; for this reason, it is also called geophysical prospecting. Formerly research methods of practical geology were based on observation exclusively: first, on the observation of the strata and formations at accessible parts of the surface of the earth, especially in shafts, borings and mines if such were available; then on the observation of the tectonic conditions in so far as these were already known at places directly visible; and finally, by estimation of the importance of formations of the terrane. Later, there were added in special cases, analytical chemical crystallo-graphical, petrographical and similar investigations of rock samples which were taken from the places under consideration. The knowledge thus obtained is of value and is expanded by hypotheses and constructions that are supported by geological theories of origin and by laws of the sequence of formations and rock systems, which are based on long experience.

Jan 1, 1928

By Hans Haalck

PRACTICAL or applied geophysics-as we designate the border region between physics and geophysics on one hand and practical geology on the other-has as its object the application of physical or geophysical methods of investigation to problems of practical geology. Its field of operation comprises all methods of physical measurement that are used in the problem of determining, from the geophysical influences of the subsoil that can be measured at the surface of the earth, the special characteristics of the association of strata, faults, etc., to detect the presence of deposits and to investigate underground structures. It therefore represents an aid, a physical method of research in practical geology, and is inseparably connected with geological studies; for this reason, it is also called geophysical prospecting. Formerly research methods of practical geology were based on observation exclusively: first, on the observation of the strata and formations at accessible parts of the surface of the earth, especially in shafts, borings and mines if such were available; then on the observation of the tectonic conditions in so far as these were already known at places directly visible; and finally, by estimation of the importance of formations of the terrane. Later, there were added in special cases, analytical chemical crystallo-graphical, petrographical and similar investigations of rock samples which were taken from the places under consideration. The knowledge thus obtained is of value and is expanded by hypotheses and constructions that are supported by geological theories of origin and by laws of the sequence of formations and rock systems, which are based on long experience.

Jan 1, 1928

By Dorsey Hager

North Central Texas has recently become a center of interest for the oil men of America. The bringing in of the McClosky well at Ranger, Eastland County, and the shallow pool at Brownwood, Brown County, in 1917, has stimulated interest in this area to fever pitch. Oil men from all over the United States are now investing there. The area of present interest is shown by the accompanying map (Fig. 1). The money spent in leases runs into millions of dollars. It is no exaggeration to say that a strip of country 200 miles (321 km.) long and 125 miles (201 km.) wide, comprising some 15,000,000 acres (6,070,310 ha.), has been leased practically solid at a cost for rentals and bonuses of at least $1 per acre. The test holes contracted for will certainly number 400, at a cost of at least $5,000,000. From what has been done in the past six months, $20,000,000 at least will be spent. To pay returns on this amount of money, new production to the extent of at least 12,000,000 bbl. must be obtained. At present, the production from new fields will not average over 5000 bbl. per day; three wells at Ranger are producing 3000 bbl.; 250 wells at Brownwood produce 1000 bbl.; and the Gray well, Coleman County, is as yet an unknown factor. However, at Ranger there is every indication of developing a good pool covering from 1500 to 2000 acres (607 to 809 ha.), more or less, but the wells are deep, 3400 to 3800 ft. (1036 to 1158 m.), and cost $35,000 to $40,000 to drill. Large wells are necessary to pay for such expensive holes. As new wells are drilled, the gas pressure will be lowered rapidly, and large production need not be expected. For those oil men who expect a second Cushing or an Eldorado, Ranger holds little of promise. At Brownwood, Brown County, there are some 250 shallow wells (depths from 200 to 350 ft.) averaging 4 to 7 bbl. per day. There is a chance of an extensive producing area for these shallow sands to the southwest, and the opening of several thousand acres of shallow oil territory, and also some promise of deeper oil horizons in the Ranger horizon, but probably all under 2500 ft. At present, the lease brokers and speculators, and only a handful of oil men, have made any money. More fields must be developed, and it is more particularly with these possibilities that this paper deals. Lack of water for drilling purposes has undoubtedly held back development so far this year; this part of Texas has had a drouth for two years and there is an actual scarcity of water. Geological investigations so far undertaken cover nearly all the area outlined, and while pakt of the

Jan 1, 1920

By M. Semchyshen, G. A. Timmons

P. A. Beck (University of Illinois, Urbana, 111.)—An interesting result of this work is the fact that in cold rolled molybdenum sheet complete loss of work hardening is obtainable on annealing, without change in texture. The retainment of the cross-rolling texture on soft-annealing is particularly significant, since this is essentially a single orientation texture, where texture retainment could be achieved by only one of the two niechanisms which produce this effect in aluminum,16 namely by recrystallization in situ. Recrystallization in situ was originally discovered by Collins and Mathewson (1940) and by Crussard (1944) as a phenomenon taking place on annealing in relatively mildly deformed single crystals of aluminum. It now appears to be a major (in many cases the major) mechanism of annealing of severely cold rolled poly-crystalline material, not only in aluminum,le but in metals as different in character as beryllium," tita- nium,'" and molybdenum. All these data now confirm the general validity, at least for more or less pure metals, of the interpretation of the annealing process given a few years ago by Smith.'" The whole question of recrystallization is now reopened. Indeed, it appears that recrystallization, as defined traditionally, may not occur at all, since at the time "deformed material" is absorbed by "recrystallized grains," it has already become completely strain free by recovery and "recrystallization in situ."

Jan 1, 1953

By A. H. Miller

THIS survey is one of the more recent tests of geophysical methods of prospecting by the Dominion Observatory and the Geological Survey of Canada, of which the purpose is to find out what application such methods may have to geological problems in Canada. The Malagash salt deposit lies on the north shore of Nova Scotia about 40 miles east of the New Brunswick boundary, and forms a part of faulted and folded Carboniferous strata. The salt beds are exposed only in the mine workings, which are about 1000 ft. deep and at one place extend for 1000 ft. along the strike. Lack of rock exposures, complicated folds, and faults make it impossible to predict the location of salt away from the mine. A survey of an area in the vicinity of the mine was therefore undertaken to find out whether the salt could be located by the torsion balance and whether its extension from the mine workings could be traced. As the gravitational effects at Malagash may be fairly typical of those at other concealed salt deposits in the Carboniferous rocks of the Maritime Provinces of. Canada, the survey has a direct bearing on prospecting for other deposits. The survey was made in 1934 by A. H. Miller in collaboration with Dr. W. A. Bell, of the Geological Survey of Canada.. Observations began on June 15 and were completed four months later, on Oct. 15. Definite gravitational effects including a lowering of gravity were observed over the deposit. The survey also disclosed one other area of low gravity east of the mine but whether this area is underlain by a large body of salt is not yet established.

Jan 1, 1936

By Howard I. Epstein, John R. Buzek

Thickeners are simply large tanks, usually circular in shape, which are designed to allow settling of solids and to operate with continuous overflow of clear water and underflow of thick pulp. The dimensions of the thickener are usually such that dewatering of very fine pulps may be accomplished while still overflowing clear water. Some thickeners such as the Center, Hardinge and Hydrotator types combine thickening with filtering2 while others such as the Dorr type are pure thickeners. l .2 , 3 A schematic diagram of the traction type Dorr thickener is shown in [Fig 1]. This type is appropriate for tanks over 15 m (50 ft) in diameter. This tank employs a rotating raking mechanism which moves the settled material toward the central discharge. For this and other thickeners, it is common to have a shallow conical tank bottom in order to conform to the geometry of the raking mechanism, and it is often desirable to elevate the tank for ease of access to the product. When the tank does not rest on the ground, the forces resisted by the cone are large, and thick plates must be employed. The fabrication of these tanks requires temporary supports in order to erect the cone. A flat-bottomed tank could also be used because the settled material would soon form a hardened conical surface. However, because of the presence of large bending forces, even larger plate thicknesses are required than for the conical bottom. Significant cost savings often can be realized by the use of a scalloped-bottomed tank such as the one partially shown in [Fig. 2]. The particular scalloped bottom discussed in this paper employs radial beams forming the outline of the cone-shaped bottom. These beams are supported directly by columns. Cone segments are hung between adjacent beams. The exact geometry of these segments depends upon the cone angle and radius, the number of radial beams, and their inclination. The geometry is chosen to satisfy certain clearance restraints and to utilize the material as efficiently as possible. The resulting thickness of these segments is significantly less than that of the equivalent plate for the tank with a conical bottom. This result, along with the simpler fabrication procedures required, accounts for the cost savings associated with this design. The raking mechanism employed may be the same as for the conventional conical bottom since the settled material soon forms a conical surface. Determination of the internal force mechanism for the scalloped bottom leads to designs that utilized material efficiently and thus maximize the cost savings. The complicated geometry of these bottoms along with the difficulty in analyzing the structure are factors which may have limited the use of scalloped-bottomed tanks to date. When such tanks have been built, the uncertainties associated with the internal forces have led to designs that are somewhat inefficient. In this paper, equations relating the geometric parameters are presented along with simplified closed-form solutions for the internal forces in the cone segments, from which the loads applied to the beams and the loads carried to the cylindrical tank shell can be deduced. An example is presented to show the magnitude of the savings which may be realized with this configuration.

Jan 1, 1979

By A. Vignes, J. P. Sabatier

A study of ternary diffusion at 1315°C in the Fe-Co-Ni system covering the entire ternary phase diagram has been carried out. Experimental values of the four interdiffusion coefficients DFeNico,DFeCoCo, DFeCoNi were computed at 33 points of the ternary diagram. The limiting values of these coefficients on the three sides of the ternary diizgram have also been determined. This set of data is presented as a contour map on the ternary isotherm for each of the four coefficients. Assuming that the Fe-Co-Ni system can be considered as ideal, the phenomenological coefficients Lk ij (with k = Fe) have been computed and the Onsager reciprocal relutions verified. It is shown that, in the Fe-Co-Ni system, the diffusion process can also be described by only two interdiffusion coefficients DFeFe and DCoNiFe, the second cross diffusion coefficient DCoFeNi being equal to zero and the second direct difusion coefficient being given by The values of the cross interdiffusion coefficients and of the Onsager coefficients are explained in terms of atomic mobilities of the three components with the help of a kinetic calculation due to Lane and Kirkaldy.8 It is shown that all the results are explained if the tracer difusion coefficients of the three components are such that DFe > DNi ~ DCo in complete agreement with experimental data on the three binary systems. DIFFUSION in a ternary alloy system is basically and significantly different from diffusion in binary alloys. In binary diffusion, there is just one independent composition variable and only one coefficient Dij is needed to describe the interdiffusion process. In ternary diffusion, we must allow for cross interaction between two independent species, and four interdiffusion coefficients are necessary to describe the transport process. Kirkaldy et al.1,2 have determined interdiffusion coefficients in the systems, Cu-Mn-A1 and Zn-Cu-Al. Guy and Leroy4 have reported intrinsic diffusion coefficients for the r phase at 1300°C of Co-Ni-Cr alloys as a function of composition using the analysis of Philibert and Guy.3 Interdiffusion coefficients were measured at three different compositions at 850°C in the single phase copper-rich corner of the Cu-Zn-Mn system by Dayananda and race.5 Zie-bold and Ogilvie6 have determined interdiffusion coefficients in the single-phase field of the Cu-Ag-Au system at 725°C. Preliminary results on diffusion at 1136°C in the system Fe-Co-Ni have been reported.7 In this study, data are reported on a more complete determination of interdiffusion coefficients in the Fe-Co-Ni system in the entire ternary at 1315°C. There is complete solid solubility with the fcc structures at 1315ºC, and this system can be considered as nearly ideal. This approximation allows the computation of the Onsager phenomenological coefficients. These values can then be used to test a kinetic calculation of the Onsager L coefficients in ternary substitutional solid solutions due to Lane and Kirkaldy.8

Jan 1, 1970

By N. L. Muench, J. S. Osba

Research conducted previously has demonstrated that spectral analysis of gamma radiation from the naturally radioactive elements present in earth materials permits detervination of the relative concentrations of these elements. This research suggested that spectral analysis of gamma radiation resulting from neutron bombardment of elements not nor-mally radioactive might serve to identify these non-radioactive elements, and might permit their quantitative determination. To investigate this possibility, laboratory experiments were conducted in which various earth materials were subjected to bombardment by neutrons from a polonium-beryllium source, and in which the spectra of the resultant gamma radiation were analyzed. The geometry of the lab-ortory system was designed to simulate wellbore conditions. The laboratory work demonstrated that some elements not only can be identified with relative ease, but also can be determined quantitatively. This finding indicates that the use of an intense source of more energetic neutrons may lead to the identification and measurement of additional elements of interest by means of induced nuclear reactions. INTRODUCTION In recent years the applications of nuclear physics to the producing branch of the petroleum industry have become increasingly numerous. One significant development, an outgrowth of nuclear science which is of potential importance in well logging, has been the analysis of gamma-ray spectra of naturally radioactive elements in earth strata. The work of Brannon and Osoba1 has demonstrated that presently available equipment and techniques may be used to determine the relative concentration of thorium, potassium, and uranium in underground strata by means of gamma-ray spectral analysis. Success of the research on spectral analysis of naturally radioactive elements suggested that spectral analysis of induced radioactivity might serve to identify, and perhaps measure quantitatively, those elements which normally are not radioactive, but which become radioactive on neutron bombardment. It was to investigate this possibility that the research described in the following sections was undertaken. THEORY OF INDUCED NUCLEAR REACTIONS Of fundamental importance is the fact that an element, when bom- barded with neutrons, emits gamma rays of energies characteristic of that element. Therefore, in theory, an element may be identified by analysis of the energy spectrum of the neutron-induced gamma radiation. If a neutron impinges upon the nucleus of an atom, any one of several reactions may occur. For identification of elements in earth formations the more important are listed below: 1. The neutron may be elastically scattered, as in a collision between two billiard balls. In this case the total kinetic energy is conserved, and no nuclear radiation is emitted. 2. The neutron may be inelast-ically scattered, as in a collision between two automobiles in which case the total kinetic energy is not conserved. The lost kinetic energy reappears in the form of gamma radiation. 3. The neutron may be captured, in which case the neutron becomes a part of the target nucleus, and a gamma ray is emitted. For example, if the target nucleus is H1, the pro-duced nucleus will be H3, and gamma radiation of a particular energy will be emitted. 4. The neutron may produce nuclear fission, or may enter into miscellaneous reactions which result in the emission of

Jan 1, 1958

By Ralph Monaghan, Arthur Youmans

General principles of scintillation counter-type instruments for radioactivity logging are discussed and the various possible causes for instability are examined. It is shown how instrumentation problems are solved. Means are discussed for minimizing drift and instability due to "fatigue" of the photomultiplier tube and neutron activation of the crystals. INTRODUCTION Neutron and gamma-ray logs made with logging instruments employing scintillation counters are now routinely available from most of the logging service companies. The superior characteristics of scintillation counters by comparison with older types of detectors promises to bring about important improvements in quantitative interpretation of radioactivity logs. Moreover, new types of logs can be made with scintillation counters which are not possible with other detectors. But in spite of the obvious superiority of these counters with respect to efficiency, speed, and versatility, they suffer from a number of inherent difficulties and weak- nesses. Unless these inherent diffi-culties are fully recognized and satisfactorily overcome by sound engineering of the associated instrumentation, scintillation counter logs are particularly likely to exhibit drift and instability of sensitivity. This defect in logs when they are intended for quantitative interpretation is intolerable and more than outweighs any advantages over the older type of instrumentation when the latter is operating correctly. SCINTILLATION COUNTER OPERATION In general all radioactivity logging instruments consist of a detector sensitive to gamma radiation or to neutron radiation coming from the strata. This radioactivity is either due to naturally decaying radioactive elements in the rock, radioactivity induced in the rock by a neutron source in the instrument, or scattering by the rock of neutrons or gamma rays coming from a source in the instrument. In the scintillation counter the gamma radiation or neutron radiation reacts with the scintillation phosphor to produce light pulses. These light pulses are then converted to amplified electrical pulses by the multiplier phototube. Basically the problem of making a good scintillation counter logging instrument is to make the radiation sensitivity of the system as nearly constant as possible. The size of each scintillation counter pulse is dependent on the energy of the individual quantum of radiation being detected. In normal radiation logging, gamma rays of all energies, up to some maximum value, reach the detector. If a suitable scintillator is used, such as a sodium iodide crystal, each gamma ray produces a number of photons proportional to the energy absorbed by the crystal from the impinging radiation. The light flashes are detected by means of a photo-multiplier tube which contains not only a photo-sensitive cathode from which photoelectrons are collected, but also an amplifier, called an electron multiplier, built inside the photomultiplier tube; the electron multiplier usually has about 10 stages, having an over-all gain of perhaps 500,000. In an ordinary gamma-ray log one wishes to detect all gamma rays down to the lowest possible energy; therefore, one wishes only to reject the "noise" pulses which are invariably present due to thermal emission of electrons from the photo-cathode of the photomultiplier. In other radioactivity logs it may be desired to measure the radiation within a particular energy band, or above

Jan 1, 1958

By J. A. Holmes

It is a fact that is coming to be more widely recognized by the general public, as well as by members of the medical fraternity, that the health of persons living in our hill-country depends in no small degree upon the drinking water obtained, just as it has been found that the* use of pure water in the lowlands and swamp-areas of the Southern States results in practical immunity from malarial diseases. Hence the problem, how to obtain supplies of wholesome water for the towns and manufacturing establishments in the hill-country or Piedmont plateau-region of the Southeastern States, becomes one of considerable interest, the importance of which will continue to increase, as the favorable conditions for manufactures and agriculture in this region will make it, in the near future, the most thickly populated portion of the South Atlantic States. Water-supplies from Surface-streams are unquestionably of the first importance; and in the mountain counties, where the region is still largely forest-covered and the streams are swift and continually aerated by rapids and cascades, the water is of superior purity and clearness. This statement is also applicable to the more elevated and sparsely settled portions of the Piedmont plateau; but in the less hilly and more thickly settled portions of this region the streams are more sluggish, and the waters more muddy and less pure, owing to the fact that a much larger proportion of the surface is under cultivation.

Jan 1, 1896

By R. W. H. Atcherson

BLAST-FURNACE flue dust is one of the most troublesome operating factors in the iron and steel industry. It is usually involved in all the unpleasant phases of blast-furnace operations. It adds to our aggravations until we are willing to spend large sums of money to keep it out of our stoves and boilers acid more money to handle it again and again on one scheme or another to induce the furnaces to retain it without bad after effects. Several successful operators claim that it is useless to recharge raw flue dust because the furnace would never have blown it out if it had been suitable material for blast-furnace consumption. Most of us who have made persistent efforts to return raw flue dust to the furnaces have decided that it is very often false economy to do so. Yet some remarkable results have been attained at the Ohio Works of the Carnegie Steel Co. through recharging raw dust. The plant comprises six modern blast furnaces. Up to 1909, about 300,000 tons of flue dust had accumulated in stock piles. During the last 10 years, there have been recharged into these furnaces all of the flue dust recovered from the furnace operations, the entire stock pile of flue dust, and nearly 80,000 tons of dust shipped from other furnaces of the Carnegie Steel Co. The results obtained are shown in Table 1.

Jan 2, 1920