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By J. D. Miller, R. J. Smith

The hot water process for Utah tar sands differs significantly from that used for Canadian tar sands due to inherent differences in respective bitumen viscosities and the nature of bitumen-sand association. These differences have led to the identification of certain design criteria necessary to achieve satisfactory phase disengagement during digestion (Sepulveda and Miller, 1978; Misra and Miller, 1980). Subsequent flotation of digested tar sand is a subject of current attention and is considered in this publication for the Asphalt Ridge deposit. Although contact angle measurements of solvent extracted Asphalt Ridge bitumen indicated moderate hydrophobicity, air bubble attachment to the bitumen concentrate is not possible. This surprising result suggests that flotation separation is dependent on air bubble entrapment rather than on air bubble attachment due to surface hydrophobicity. The entrapment of air bubbles in the bitumen was apparent from examination of the bitumen concentrate, especially at lower flotation temperatures. A factorial design of the major operating variables in flotation separation indicated that the quality of separation was significantly dependent on the flotation temperature and to a lesser extent on the degree of agitation. For a flotation temperature of 77°C a recovery of 96.7% was realized at a grade of 61.0% bitumen. The improved separation at higher flotation temperatures was found to be due to the decrease in bitumen viscosity resulting in more effective rejection of coarse sand from the concentrate. This research effort, which has been sustained for the past six years at the University of Utah, is being continued to provide necessary design data for the construction of a pilot plant to treat Utah tar sands.

Jan 1, 1982

By James J. Wise

INTRODUCTION One basic design feature utilized in all caving and sublevel stoping techniques is the drawpoint. These draw- points may be located on sublevels when using sublevel caving methods, or may be located at the floor pillar when using block caving, sublevel stoping, or vertical crater retreat methods. How the drawpoint is designed and developed, how the ore is withdrawn from it, and how the ore is hauled to the shaft or portal encompasses the loading and hauling function. Historically, predominate loading and hauling equipment for caving and sublevel stoping has been scraper slushes, air powered overshot loaders, and rail mounted train haulage. All of this equipment has two common constraints. 1. The equipment locked into specific work sites and is not easily shifted to another work site. This constraint can often lead to low utilization and low productivity of the equipment. 2. The equipment is designed to work in the horizontal plane, which requires that the various horizontally-oriented working levels be connected by vertical raises. Vertical development by means of raises is not only increasingly expensive, but also is not well adapted to movement of large equipment into the s topes. In the last 20 years, two revolutionary labor saving concepts have become common in caving and sublevel stoping. 1. Long-hole drilling, which has mechanized the development of the drawpoint extraction structures as well as the actual stoping and undercutting. 2. Vertical access by means of trackless ramps between levels, and the consequent use of rubber-tired vehicles not only for loading and hauling ore, but also for the rapid movement of men, material, and equipment into the stopes. The introduction of trackless mining systems for loading and hauling has not been easy. Mine planners have had to re-orient their thinking to the larger operating space required by trackless equipment. Larger access drifts have necessitated reconsideration of mine layouts to insure proper ground support. Spiral ramp developments were often laid out on slopes steeper than the equipment could negotiate economically. Mine operators had to accept the added responsibility of roadway maintenance, water removal, increased ventilation, and more technical mechanical maintenance. As the mine operators enthusiastically embraced the superior productivity of trackless mining systems, they some- times disregarded opportunities to combine the older types of equipment with trackless vehicles to maximize productivity at lowest cost. In order to gain a proper perspective on this problem, it is necessary to review the various techniques of loading and hauling and to become more aware of the advantages or disadvantages that each system or combination contributes. LOADING Loading consists of two functions, (1) primary loading from a drawpoint and (2) secondary loading into long- haul system, a truck, train, or possibly a belt conveyor. Mine planners have four basic loading systems available to fit various operating conditions. These are, (1) gravity, (2) scrapers, (3) rail-mounted loaders, and (4) trackless loaders. Each system can produce optimum results under specific conditions. Gravity Loading Gravity loading is probably the oldest system in general use today.

Jan 1, 1981

By William Blauvelt

Tun technical and engineering problems in the manufacture of coke are today the problems of the byproduct oven. Except in a few special localities, practically no beehive ovens have been built in the United States for the last 5 or 6 years except as renewals of old plants, and during these years the total number of beehive ovens in existence has been steadily falling. On the other hand, the number of byproduct ovens has increased from 4624 in 1911 to a total of about 7660 in operation at the end of 1917; with 2800 building, this makes a total of about 10,460 which will be in operation in 1918, or shortly thereafter. Preliminary Government estimates place the total production of coke for 1917 at 56,600,000 tons, the largest tonnage in the history of the industry. Of this 34,000,000 tons or 60 per cent. was beehive, and 22,-600,000 tons, or 40 per cent. was byproduct coke. Some time in 1918 the production of byproduct coke should pass the beehive output, and when the byproduct ovens now building are completed the total byproduct capacity will be about 40,000,000 tons of coke per. annum, which is over 70 per cent. of the record-breaking total coke production of 1917. The reasons for these changes in the coking industry are familiar to all of us, and need not be discussed here.

Jan 3, 1918

By John N. Hobstetter

IT is widely believed that the nucleation of phase transformations in solid metals is accomplished by some type of local atomic fluctuations in the parent phase which arise from spontaneous diffusion in the metal or alloy system. Under appropriate conditions, these fluctuations are believed to be stable in the sense that the free energy of the entire system is lowered if the fluctuations, or nuclei, grow,' Under other conditions they are thought to be unstable in the sense that the free energy is lowered if they redissolve. The criterion for stability is usually taken as the size of the fluctuation. This view has been rationalized by Becker1 in terms of the free energy released by the volume of the nucleus and the free energy associated with the formation of a new surface surrounding the nucleus. The qualitative result of this reasoning is shown in Fig I where the changes in free energy for the surface and volume effects are plotted together with their sum against the radius of the nucleus. There is evidently always a critical size r. beyond which the release of free energy which is proportional to the volume always dominates the increase of free energy which is proportional to the surface area. Borelius2 has also attempted to rationalize the stability criterion for binary alloys, but in terms of the internal concentration of the fluctuations. He has found that, if surface energies are entirely ignored, the fluctuation must still reach a critical concentration if it is to become stable and avoid subsequent dilution. Although the Borelius theory fails to predict many observed nucleation phenomena such as the vanishing of the nucleation rate at the critical temperature, the major premise must certainly be valid. In this paper a reconciliation of the Becker and Borelius views is made by means of a search for nuclei which are at once stable with respect to both size and internal concentration, The increase in free energy per mole accompanying the formation of a nucleus which is just stable, ?fe, is independent of the path whereby the nucleus is brought into being. It is thus appropriate to seek critical nuclear attributes without reference to the fluctuation mechanism. The rate of nucleation, however, cannot be treated without a detailed understanding of the exact fluctuation process which produces stable nuclei. In this and succeeding papers the purpose will be to find the size, shape and internal concentration of the stable nucleus which is formed with a minimum increase in free energy in a wide variety of systems. THE NATURE OF THE NUCLEUS It is necessary to have rather detailed knowledge of the nature of a nucleus if ?Fe is to be computed. Fortunately, enough facts are known or suspected about the nucleus to make possible a detailed analysis. X ray diffraction studies have shown3

Jan 1, 1948

By Ralph H. Sweetser

Carbon in pig iron is not only essential but, ordinarily, it is the most abundant metalloid present; iron without carbon could not be pig iron. Carbon in pig iron has been accepted, but seldom specified. How it gets into the pig iron as it is being smelted in the blast furnace, and why just about so much of it enters into the pig iron in certain blast furnaces, and more of it,; or less of it, enters the pig iron in other blast furnaces, or in the same blast furnace under varying conditions, are problems that have not yet been satisfactorily solved. During my own practical blast-furnace experience, I collected analyses of pig iron, including the graphitic and combined carbon, and recorded them in reference to the percentage of silicon present, having in mind the generally accepted explanation that "silicon drove out the carbon." To this actual experience, I have added some analyses given to me by J. B. Rogers, who was superintendent of the blast furnaces of the Ashland Iron & Mining Co., Ashland, Ky., and was making "silvery iron" at the time. These analyses are shown in Table 1. The analyses do not tell the whole story, but they show that with Pocahontas beehive coke, the total carbon was generally high. The data relating to the composition of the slag are lacking but my own customary practice was to have a rather basic slag. During my experience in making pig iron for the Bessemer and open-hearth departments, there were times when the steel men would complain about some mysterious quality in the pig iron that caused bad steel, in spite of the fact that the percentages of silicon, sulfur, phosphorus and manganese were within the specifications. Many reasons were advanced for this undetermined "poison" in the pig iron, but the favorite one offered by the steel men was that the blast-furnace man had "oxidized" the pig iron at the tuyeres in his eagerness to get big production and low cost. To these complaints of the users of steel-making pig irons were added those of the gray iron-foundry men and the malleable iron men. These groups are unaninlous in their conclusions that the trouble lies with the blast-furnace men; but there is not yet any harmonious conclusion as to the exact cause and remedy.

Jan 1, 1927

By W. A. Backofen, G. Mayer

Single crystals of iron, copper, and a Cu-7 wt pct A1 alloy were pulled through conical dies to simulate the constraint in a polycrystalline aggregate undergoing axisymmetric reduction. With Taylor-type hardening, dependence of the drawing stress, od, on the Taylor orientation factor, M, is predictable from the polycrystal stress-strain curve; in particular, for a power-law relationship, it should follow that d log od/d log M = (1 + n). A first-order agreement with analysis was found in the data from iron. For copper, the implied n from the observed d log od/d l°g M was -0, while for Cu-7Al it was negative. The trend was in the direction of random polycrystal behavior. Thus the idea of hardening only in response to the amount of prior slip loses validity as stacking fault energy (SFE) is lowered. Two possible explanations have been suggested: as stacking fault ribbons are widened, barriers from dislocation reactions become increasingly effective in dispersing slip and reducing the orientation dependence of the total glide strain dm that appears in alternatively, or conjointly, the polyslip shear stress, 7, acquires an orientation dependence of a kind which has the same leveling effect on M. The problem of relating the strain hardening of polycrystalline material to that of an isolated single crystal is still largely unsolved. In a new experimental approach from recent work, single crystals of different orientations have been deformed under the constraints found in an aggregate while measuring their deformation resistance. Procedures have involved drawing cylindrical crystals through conical dies1 and compressing slab-shaped crystals in plane strain.2'3 Predictions for the outcome of such experiments were made first by Taylor~ and later, in more general form, by Bishop and Hill.5'6 Taylor's example was the axisymmetric extension of an fcc crystal slipping on the usual {111}(110) systems or, equivalently, a bcc crystal undergoing 'kestricted" slip on {110}(111). In his solution, the deformation work supplied was equated to that dissipated internally in slip on all active systems. With o the single applied tensile stress, dc the resulting axial strain, and dyT the total glide strain on systems operating at resolved shear stress, 7: The orientation dependence of M was found by minimizing dyT for each orientation while activating five independent systems, Fig. l(a).? The Bishop and Hill analysis, based on a principle of maximum work, leads to essentially the same conclusion; the need for at least five active systems is recognized in the finding that either six or eight are actually brought into operation. The mean value from the entire stereo-graphic triangle in either case is M - 3.06. More recently, Hutchinson8 made a Taylor-type analysis for pencil glide in a bcc structure, from which piehlerg prepared Fig. l(b) as the counterpart in Fig. l(a); here M = 2.75. The obvious weakness in such analyses is the indifference to slip-system interactions. A condition of what might be termed "independent"

Jan 1, 1969

By A. C. Noble, D. E. Ranta

Orebodies with intricate three- dimensional shapes (such as porphyry molybdenum deposits) are difficult to model using geostatistics or other computer- assisted methods. 'The strong trends in their spatial grade distributions occur as mathematically complex shapes and prevent the customary assumption of local stationarity that is required for accurate ore reserve estimation. "Zoned Kriging", a new method developed by AMAX, solves this problem directly by using the geologist's interpretation of the ore zones as a parameter in the kriging equations. The geological basis and methods used in the Climax ore zoning technique are reviewed and discussed relative to their application in zoned geostatistical modeling. The Zoned Kriging technique is described and demonstrated using data typical of mineral de- posits.

Jan 1, 1984

By Charles A. Ashburner

DURING the early part of August, 1880, I was directed by Prof. J. P. Lesley, State Geologist, to assume charge of the geology and mapping. of the Second Geological Survey of the anthracite codfields. I visited the region uninaumbered by any instructions other than this,—that I should submit a plan for making the sur-

Jan 1, 1881

By C. Norman Bowers, Blaine B. Wescott

MARKED improvement in the serviceability of sucker rods has been effected in the last two years, partly because of the insistent necessity for greater economy in the operating costs of crude oil production growing out of the general industrial depression and partly because many of the recently developed fields have imposed more severe operating conditions upon both surface and underground equipment. The latter is particularly true of Kansas, where practically all of the oil produced. is associated with damaging amounts of hydrogen sulfide brine and where the method of establishing potential production demands equipment capable of being operated at maximum capacity without interruptions. The decline of flush production in the Oklahoma City field created new problems in deep-well pumping on a scale heretofore unequaled and the increased proportion of water it has been necessary to produce in the fields of the Greater Seminole area presented conditions that were acutely in need of betterment. The problem in the latter fields was complicated by the shift towards sulfide characteristics, which accompanied water encroachment, and it is probably true that nowhere, at the present time, are pump¬ing conditions generally as severe as in this territory. The Mid-Continent district, therefore, has become the proving ground for the numerous materials that have been proposed for sucker-rod fabrication. The information that ultimately will be obtained from an unprecedented amount of field experimentation will pay ample dividends when the decline of East Texas increases the demand for the vast reserves of sour crude in West Texas. It is a rare occurrence in industry that the use of such a simple piece of equipment as a sucker rod presents so complicated a problem for solution. As proof of this, it is only necessary to consider the numerous types of sucker rods on .the market at the present time and contrast this condition with that of less than four years ago, when it was the common aim of manufacturers to develop a single sucker rod for all conditions of

Jan 1, 1935

By Clarence E. Sims, Donald W. Williams, George A. Moore

INTRODUCTION DURING the past several years the steel casting industry has made studies of heavy castings in which the test bar has been taken from heavy sections rather than from attached or separately cast coupons. It has been noted that the ductility properties of these heavy sections are often lower than those normally expected. Such lowered ductility is usually accompanied by a spotty test bar fracture and the ductility values often can be greatly improved if a low-temperature aging treatment is given to the casting. A loss of ductility of this type is considered "abnormal," since it is not accompanied by an increase of tensile strength or hardness, and "temporary" when the ductility can be restored by aging. The cure of such an abnormal condition represents a real improvement in the quality of the steel. Some hundreds of previous investigations, largely qualitative in nature, have established beyond reasonable doubt that hydrogen is normally present in newly manufactured steel and that this gas, in small amounts, can cause a temporary abnormal loss of ductility. The commonly observed association of high gas content and low ductility has given strong evidence for the presumption that hydrogen, possibly assisted by other gases, is the primary cause of the low ductility observed. Accordingly, the Steel Founders' Society of America has, since Nov. 1, 1944, sponsored investigations at Battelle Memorial Institute whose primary objective is to obtain quantitative information on the relation of the amount of hydrogen and nitrogen in steel, together with associated methods of steelmaking and treatment, to low-ductility effects and porosity. In order that these investigations might proceed on a quantitative basis, hydrogen analyses of a precision considerably higher than any previously reported in the literature were necessary. The method chosen was selected entirely on the basis that it had the highest probability of freedom from uncontrollable errors and will be described in detail in another publication.1 Briefly, the method used consisted of the hot extraction of solid pieces of steel weighing from 45 to 50 g in a highly evacuated quartz tube maintained at 1050°C (1925°F) for a period 0f approximately 40 hr. The greatest precautions were taken to eliminate blanks and insure a sound gas-collection system. Vacuum and temperature conditions were maintained automatically. Mercury-filled risers were used for the introduction of samples in order that the system could be degassed thoroughly in

Jan 1, 1948

By Stewart R. Wallace

"For his achievements in unravelling the complex geology of the Climax ore body; for his leadership in the discovery of the Henderson deposit; for his continued encouragement of young geologists; and for his lecture . .."

Jan 1, 1975

By H. S. Martin

The Phosphate Recovery Corporation operates three flotation plants, NOS. 1 and 2 concentrators about three miles northeast of Mulberry, Florida, and No. 3 plant at Wales, Tennessee. These plants represent the first commercial phosphate flotation operation and are also believed to be the largest nonmetallic flotation operation in the world at the present time. The details of this paper will be confined to plant No. 2, this being the newest and largest concentrator in Florida, and the flow sheet being practically the same as at plant No. 1. The No. 3 plant has been operated but a short time and has been shut down since December, 1932, on account of the decrease in phosphate rock production. The phosphate washers usually are located centrally on a known deposit so that about two hundred acres of ground can be mined economically to each washer location. The washers are moved to new areas when the distance becomes too great for economical pumping. The flotation plants are built either adjacent to a washer, so that current debris may be utilized, or on the site of a former washer where there is sufficient accumulated debris available for mining, and the flotation plants must also be moved from time to time. Most of the water used in the Florida flotation plants is recovered after passing through a circulating system where most of the fine SUSpended matter is settled out, but some make-up water is obtained from deep wells near the plant. Power is obtained from the Tampa Electric Co. through the distribution facilities of the International Agricultural Corporation. Flotation concentrate is hauled from the plant by trolley over the International Agricultural Corporation's trolley system, to the drying plant at Prairie, one mile northwest of Mulberry. Ore Treated In the pebble phosphate district of Florida, the phosphate mineral, or collophane, is usually found in horizontal beds of varying thickness

Jan 1, 1934

By Sidney Powers, Alfred C. Lane

This paper aims to present the results of an investigation concerning gravitative differentiation in lava flows, based on a quantitative microscopic and chemical study of a Triassic basalt from Nova Scotia, and confirmed by data secured from a study of certain Keweenawan ophites. At Cape d'Or, Nova Scotia, near the head of the Bay of Bundy, marine erosion has exposed a series of Triassic basalt flows in which copper has been sought for a number of years. Studies of the thickest flow of the series with regard to volumetric composition, specific gravity, and grain have been made by the junior author, and measurements by students at Tufts College, together with confirmatory observations of the same nature on this and other flows by the senior writer, and chemical analyses made by the Division of Chemistry, Mines Branch, Ottawa,' all show differentiation in lava flows comparable to that in intrusive bodies. The work was made possible by the availability of the drill-cores, the property of Tufts College, and emphasizes the desirability of the study of drill-cores from other localities. Measurements of the specific gravities of certain Keweenawan lava flows of Michigan by the senior author, from material collected in 1915, will be given as a comparison to those of the Cape d'Or flow. It has been found that the specific gravity of drill-cores, or volume per cubic foot, can be readily obtained by measuring their dimensions. This can be done to an accuracy of within 1 per cent. in pieces of core over 100 mm. in length by using a micrometer gage for the diameter, and taking the average of six measurements of the diameter; and the average of four measurements of the length made with a finely graduated ruler. Then, after weighing them, the weight in grams per cubic centimeter, or what is practically the same thing, ounces per cubic foot, is obtained. System-

Jan 1, 1916

The notion prevails that writing is a knack, that the skilful use of the pen is a gift of nature. This is an error. Dogberry may be responsible for it; he said: "To be a well-informed man is the gift of fortune, but to write and read comes by nature". Because Dogberry said it, we may be sure that Shakespeare thought otherwise. Ability of any sort may be partly innate, but my own observation and experience lead me to conclude that most of the easy writers have become so by constant practice. As I recall the names of men successful with the pen, I remember that most of them have written a great deal and have taken particular pains to improve their style. The suggestion that proficiency in the difficult art is a happy accident provokes a sardonic smile. The larger part of the great writing in our literature is the result of persistent effort. An easy fluency has been the undoing of many; their flamboyant and fantastic scribbling has proved as perishable as froth. This criticism applies to technical writing also; in order that a technical description or discussion may hold the interest of the reader, at least long enough to cause him to read it to the end, the writing must be done carefully and systematically; otherwise it will fail in its purpose of conveying information. Clearness is absolutely essential. "It is not enough to use language that may be understood; it is necessary to use language that must be understood."* The purpose of writing, at least of that which is meant to be read by others, is not only to express ideas but to communicate them. Lack of perspicuity may prove as bad as

Jan 1, 1931

Recognizing the fact that the problems of the committee named by the Board to prepare the "official ticket for officers and Directors of the Institute are various and difficult; and desiring to assist this committee by setting forth some of the principles that should guide the committee and some of the qualifications that should be required of candidates, the following instructions are formulated and the Secretary is directed to publish them in MINING AND METALLURGY concurrently with the publication of the names of each newly appointed Nominating Committee and to send a copy to each member of the Committee.

Jan 1, 1937

Slovenliness is as reprehensible in words as in clothes. Much writing that we recognize as poor in style is merely sloppy. Just as some students postpone the necessary shave or forget to change their collars, so young engineers in writing drop their articles, definite and indefinite, or omit prepositions where they are required, possibly to compensate for those they use unnecessarily The work will begin [on] Saturday. Influenza seriously affected many mines [during] the last three months. Flotation in America [during] the last two years has made tremendous strides. Construction of the mill started [on] August 12, 1915, at which time 75% of the excavation was completed. The idea I wish to convey is [that] there are mineral deposits to which the present law applies badly. For this reason, if there was [for] no other, the ownership of the ore below and [of] the surface above should go together. When a unit of mapping is furnished, be the unit a claim or [a] group of claims, it is necessary . . . A fully stocked store was started in Park City and all employees [were] sold merchandise on a strictly cost basis. The word "merchandise" is left without government or agreement. 'I suggest: ". . . and merchandise was sold to all the employees on a strictly cash basis." The verb 'be' is serving concurrently both as a principal and as an auxiliary in the following: At first the work was interesting and [was] liked by most of the men. The sulphide ore was more complex or [was] milled at an increased cost. The failure to repeat the auxiliary verb in successive clauses is a common error, as in The filter is filled with liquid allowed to empty, and then ignited.

Jan 1, 1931

By R. A. Irvine

The use of large vibrating screens presents unique challenges to the screen manufacturer, the plant designer, and the plant operator. The design of vibrating structures that span greater unsupported distances is critical to the reliability of a screen subjected to billions of fatigue cycles. Larger percentages of total plant production become dependent upon fewer, larger vibrating screens. Plant designers and operators must plan for equipment maintenance in a manner which optimizes the production availability of large vibrating screens.

Jan 1, 1985

By Carl E. Swartz

ALTHOUGH a number of articles appeared during the war advocating the use of cadmium in lead-tin solders, very little information of value can be found in the literature regarding the properties of solders containing cadmium. In most of the published articles the cadmium seems to have been considered merely as a partial substitute for tin in a tin-lead alloy rather than as an essential constituent of a ternary alloy. The primary object of the substitution of cadmium for tin was to lessen the amount of tin required, at a time when the latter was scarce and high-priced, and thus to produce a cheaper solder. While this object was accomplished, the new properties resulting from a change from a binary lead-tin alloy to a ternary lead-tin-cadmium alloy were not given proper consideration in many cases. For the past few years, the American Smelting & Refining Co. has been marketing a very considerable amount of cadmium in the form of lead-tin-cadmium alloys for use as solders for certain special purposes, and the successful use of these solders suggested that if more extensive knowledge were available concerning the properties of lead-tin-cadmium alloys of various compositions their field of usefulness might be materially extended. The investigation described in the present paper was undertaken to obtain this information and, by means of tests under conditions approaching those of practical use, to determine the suitability of cadmium solders for various purposes. CHARACTERISTICS AND REQUIREMENTS OF SOLDERS IN GENERAL General Physical Properties.-When cast into bars, solder should present a smooth and bright appearance free from oxide inclusions and bubbles. Ductility should be as great as possible without sacrificing tensile strength, and vice versa. Hardness and specific gravity are not of any great importance. Melting Characteristics.-The melting or solidification range is important. This statement applies both to the extent of the range and to the actual temperature at which complete solidification occurs. A rather narrow solidification range is desirable in soft solders in order that solidification may take place quickly. The solder should have high fluidity at temperatures only slightly above its melting range. For a

Jan 1, 1928

By C. R. Garr, A. R. Troiano

FLAKING or hair-line crack formation has been a major problem confronting the producer of large alloy steel forgings.' Today it is generally conceded that hydrogen in one or more forms in alloy steel sections is a requisite for flaking. Hence an obvious remedy is a thermal cycle that reduces the hydrogen content to some low level. In practice, this generally means holding the material at some subcritical temperature for a period of time depending on the size of the ingot or forging. Another method that will suffice in some cases is to cool large forgings slowly, i.e., bury in ashes. In practice, this hydrogen bake is sometimes accemplished inadvertently by a series

Jan 1, 1958