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By M. ROWE, H. E. Gilliland, L. BARNES

The authors of this paper are to be commended for a clear exposition of a timely subject. However, some important conclusions, in addition to those presented in the paper, can be drawn from the results of their elaborate and rather complete numerical computations. First of all, the major part of the calculations presented in the paper are for semi-infinite slabs of oil shale (the authors designate this as Model I) and a question must be posed — Are these elaborate computations needed to arrive at realistic estimates of the shale oil displaced. Consider the model of Lauwerier* that corresponds to the authors Model I if thermal conduction parallel to the fracture be neglected. If one also neglects the finite (but relatively small) heat capacity of the material in the fracture, it is easily shown from Lauwerier's solution that the cumulative oil production would be:

Jan 1, 1969

By H. Evans, L. A. Hunt

The raw materials used in the blast furnaces at the Geneva Works of U.S. Steel Corp. have a high degree of variability in size-consist and chemical content. To overcome the problems caused by the use of highly variable raw materials in the blast-furnace operation, large blending piles are used. An investigation of the blending system showed that variability was significantly reduced by the use of these blending piles. This paper describes the blending system, the method used to evaluate the effect of the blending system, and the results of the investigation. The remarkable improvement in blast-furnace performance since World War II has been in large measure due to the use of beneficiated burdens to reduce the variation of both chemical analysis and size consist. This practice allows the operator better control of his blast furnace, enabling him to operate more economically and to produce chemically uniform hot metal. Planning for uniformity usually begins during mining by extracting ore from several locations within a pit to produce a final product with a specified analysis. Another approach is to stockpile ores having widely varying analyses in individual piles and then drawing the required amounts from each stockpile to provide a blend with a predetermined analysis. A further improvement in blending procedures is to take ores from several sources, bedding them horizontally in layers and reclaiming by vertical slicing from the blended pile. The last procedure, when properly executed, is one of the best methods for achieving maximum uniformity with highly variable ores. U.S. Steel Corp.'s Geneva Works initially obtained iron ore for their blast furnaces from the Cedar City area of southern Utah. These ores were formed primarily by the replacement of limestone and siltstone formations with solutions containing iron and several other elements. The original iron content of the ores in the ground varied from a high of 70% to practically zero with a minimum acceptable iron content for shipping of 37%. Substantial amounts of silica, calcium, magnesium and alumina were found in the ores along with minor amounts of copper, lead, zinc, nickel, titanium, manganese, phosphorus and sulfur which were sometimes present in detrimental amounts. Iron-to-silica ratios varied considerably throughout

Jan 1, 1968

Discussion of the paper of EDWARD G. NORTON, presented at the New York meeting, February, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 97, January, 1915, pp. 93 to 102. G. D. HARRIS, Ithaca, N. Y. (communication to the Secretary *).¬Since I have on several occasions1 expressed at length my general views on this interesting subject, it seems fitting that I endeavor here to comment as briefly as possible on a few points suggested by the paper. Doubtless you all know of the rather extensive publications of Lachmann on mid-European salines and his scarcely successful, attempt to make the phenomena presented by our domes fit. into his "Exzeme" theory based on studies of European phenomena. This paper is a most welcome indication that scientific America is very much alive to the difficulties that have been encountered in attempts already made to explain the origin of the salt domes in the lower Mississippi embayment region. Praiseworthy, too, is the attempt to explain these phenomena by agencies still in operation. I may, perhaps, be permitted to state here that a former student of mine, and co-worker in Louisiana, A. C. Veatch, is now interested in the Algerian region, where it would seem similar dome-phenomena are to be found, and hopes may well

Jan 5, 1915

By James Douglas

THOUGH liberality is not supposed to be a prominent trait of the Scottish character, Canada owes to a Scotchman, Sir Wm. Macdonald, more than to any other of its people, not only wise ideas, but pecuniary help towards extending education: and another Scotchman, in New York, has sumptuously housed under one roof three branches of the engineering fraternity, of which we are one. Having thus created us members of the same family-for the metaphorical meaning of house and kinship is identical-Mr. Carnegie expresses more emphatically than even he could in words, that, by affording facilities for closest intercourse, he in¬vites the mechanical, electrical and mining engineers to par¬ticipate in the freest interchange of idea and experience, and to correlate and combine the results of their studies and activi¬ties; and, being members of the same household, to banish re¬serve and secrecy. And now we, the members of the - American Institute of Mining Engineers, meet as though we were at home in a neighboring country. For whether we meet in Canada, in England, or elsewhere, the Institute is always received as though no political or geographical divisions separated its members from those of congenial associations in the land of its host. In truth, the title which we have assumed claims for the sphere of our activities the whole American continent, regardless of such trifling details as boundary-lines. The fact that we meet to communicate each other's experience, to discuss our difficulties, and to seek each other's aid in solving the intricate problems that so often present themselves in the course of our profes¬sional life, is an acknowledgment of our individual helpless¬ness; and therefore an argument for united effort. But no effort can be of any value if there is an underlying suspicion

Jan 9, 1907

By F. R. Hutto Jr., F. L. Kady Jr., L. E. Weymouth

The behavior of particulate non-metallic materials in moving contact with smooth surfaces is of interest and concern to manufacturers and users of abrasives, of fillers, and of pigments alike. The theoretical aspects of the subject have been treated to considerable extent in the literature, and correlatic,ns are available that attempt to relate various methods of hardness determination." 2 The particle size and friability are characteristics of the abrasive that are not related to the smooth surface. The hardness, on the other hand, may be visualized as relative to that of the smooth surface. In a study of abrasive action, the role that hardness, per se, plays is a complicated one. For it is necessary to compare the "hardness" of the abrasive, usually a non-metallic, with that of the smooth surface, generally a metal. Hardness of non-metallics is defined as resistance to scratch and is almost universally described with respect to the Mohs scale.3 Minerals have been rated by Mohs numerically from the softest (talc = 1) to the hardest (diamond = 10). By definition, a mineral has a designated hardness when it is scratched by the standard that is numerically just above it on the scale; and conversely, when it scratches the standard that is just below it. Hardness of metals. however.. implies resistance to indentation, a property that has been measured by a number of methods. In fact, the indentation hardnesses of the standard minerals on the hlohs scale have been determined by the Rockwell tester. Reproduced below are two versions of this correlation. 'A conversion chart, prepared by Wilson Mechanical Instruments Division of American Chain and Cable Co., merely gives the conversion from Rockwell to Knoop hardness. The relation between Knoop indentation hardness and Mohs scale has been reported by G. S. Smith — A New Scale of Hardness, The Engineer, Aug. 26. 1949. G. F. Kinney in Engineerin Properties and Aplications of Plastics reports the Rockwell hardness of the minerals directly in the Mohs scale. The question immediately arises as to whether this relation is valid when applied in reverse; namely,

Jan 1, 1961

By S. Jana, C. M. Wayman

The reverse transformation of bcc martensite to the fcc phase was studied in an Fe-33.95 wl pct Ni alloy by nzeans oj dilatometry, melallography, and electron microscopy. Upon "slozc" heating (-1°C per min) length cJmnge us temperature plots showed u gradual contracLion over the temperature range 200" to 280"C ,followed by a more abrupt contraction beginning a1 -280°C. Howet,ev, zchen the heating rate was increased -4°C per tnin, no gradual contraction was observed and only the abrupt contraction starting at -2BO"C was found. Thus on slower heating- the AS "temperature" for the subject alloy, unlike the MS temperature, is better defined as a range of temperatures. Both optical and transmissiorl electron microscope observations showed that some of the martensite plates exizibited a partial loss of transformation twins during reversal. The midvib region of the martensite plates disappeaved relatively early duirng the reversal. Metallographic observations slowed that the earliest detectable stage of the rezlerse tvansforrvration begins (axd Moues inulardly) at The Martensens i te - parent interface. At higher temperatirres, the. formation of martensitically reversed jcc plates within the bcc martensite plales was observed. It is concluded that the reverse transformation consists of a diffusion less process (martensitic); but this is ps-obably aided by a prior or simultaneous dijjusiorz-comltvolled process, at leasl in the case of slower heat-ing' experiments. ALTHOUGH numerous investigations have dealt with the parent-to-martensite ("forward") transformation (fcc — bcc) in Fe-Ni alloys, comparatively little is reported on the ("reverse7') martensite-to-parent transformation.'-4 Even though such reverse transformations have been studied in detail in some nonferrous systems, one of the difficulties of studying the reverse transformation in most ferrous mar-tensites is that the martensite decomposes by tempering during heating. However, carbonless Fe-Ni alloys do not exhibit this difficulty since the transformation in these alloys is completely reversible. The present investigation represents an attempt to shed more light on the nature and mechanism of the martensite-to-parent transformation. 1) EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE 1.1) Alloy Prepatation. Fe-Ni alloys of compositions near 34 wt pct Ni were prepared from zone-refined iron (99.994 wt pct Fe) and high-purity nickel (99.999 wt pct Ni) by induction melting in recrystallized alumina crucibles in an argon atmosphere, with prior vacuum evacuation to 10"3 mm Hg. The alloys were homogenized by induction stirring in the molten state for 5 min. After solidification, the alloys were further homogenized in evacuated quartz capsules for 96 hr at 1230°C. 1.2) Dilatometry. Slices of the ingot were hot-forged (750°C in air) into approximate rod form and these specimens were then hot-swaged (750°C in air) into long cylindrical rods 0.55 mm diam. From the rods, specimens about 1 in. long were cut. These were then vacuum-annealed for 24 hr at 1200°C, cooled to room temperature, and subsequently transformed to martensite in liquid nitrogen (whereby about 40 pct transformation was obtained). Dilatation measurements were made by observing length changes in a vacuum dilatometer with an externally mounted LVDT sensing element. 1. 3) Preparation of Electron Microscope Specimens. Slices of the ingots were cold-rolled (with intermediate vacuum anneals) to -0.020 in. Out of these rolled sheets, specimens (about 1 by 1 in.) were cut. These were then vacuum-annealed, transformed to martensite by cooling in liquid nitrogen, and subsequently heated from room temperature to various temperatures to effect either partial or complete reverse transformation. These specimens were then chemically polished to 0.002 in. in l:l HsOz (30 pct) and &PO4 (85 pct) solution, and thinned to electron transparency in an electrolyte consisting of 150 g CraOs, 750 ml glacial acetic acid, and 30 ml ~~0.~ Observations were made with a 100-kv Hitachi HU-11 electron microscope equipped with an HK-2A tilting device. 1.4) Optical Microscopy. Metallographic observations were made with a Leitz MM5 metallograph on the same 0.020-in. sheet specimens as were used for electron microscopy and on bulk specimens which were 0.2 in. or more on a side. The chemical thinning solution when cooled below 20°C also served as an etchant for this alloy. Observations of surface relief were made with a Zeiss interference microscope employing a Thallium light source of wavelength 0.54 p. Specimens for interference studies were prepared by two-stage polishing on Buehler vibromet polishers using 0.3 and 0.05 p alumina abrasives. 2) EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS 2.1) Comparison of the MS,AS, and Af Tempera-tures wTth Previous Re sults. The AS aLd Af tempera -tures of several Fe-Ni alloys were determined dila-tometrically. The MS temperatures of the same alloys were determined by continuously lowering the temperature using a mixture of isopentane and liquid nitrogen and observing the highest temperature at which a prepolished specimen showed surface upheavals. For the present the As temperature is defined as the temperature at which an abrupt decrease in length occurs in the dilatation plot. The Ms,As7 and A determinations in the present investigation and those of Kaufman

Jan 1, 1968

By W. F. Rochow, W. C. Burke

Numerous designs of linings and accessories, including dams, lifters, and heat exchangers, contribute greatly to kiln efficiencies. Greater conductivity is achieved with basic brick than with fireclay and high-alumina refractories, depending largely upon the use of steel plates in radial joints between adjacent brick to increase heat transfer through the lining. Refractory lifters expose all portions of the load to radiant or convective heat and raise some portions to higher temperatures by cascading the load down through the path of the hot gases.

Jan 3, 1955

By G. Reinberg, C. D. Clarke

Most underground mining operations are dependent on pumping installations to keep the mine unwatered. The reliability of such installations is obviously of paramount importance. The volume of water to be handled is often considerable, and the total head is relatively high. In these cases, both capital cost and operating expense of the pumping installations will become significant factors in overall mining costs. To insure reliability and to keep efficiencies, and hence operating costs, within acceptable limits it goes without saying that mechanical maintenance of a mine pumping installation must receive scrupulous attention at all times. Large mine pumping installations today almost invariably use multistage centrifugal pumps, since positive-displacement units would not be economically competitive except under very unusual conditions of small volume combined with extremely high heads. Centrifugal pump maintenance, under ideal circumstances, would be confined to parts subject to normal running water, i.e., bearing surfaces, stuffing box packing, and shaft sleeves. Under adverse conditions, however, metal may be lost from the wetted surfaces of a pump by erosive or corrosive action of the pumped fluid, and maintenance costs can easily attain enormous proportions.

Aug 1, 1956

By F. M. Drake

IN this paper I propose to describe a plant which I lately erected for the Mount Stewart Lead and Silver Mining Company of Leadville, New South Wales, Australia. I am indebted to Mr. W. F. Burrow, of the Roads and Bridges Department of New South Wales, for the drawings which I present herewith, he having reduced and assembled them from my working drawings. The works are situated on a sloping hillside, but sufficient fall mas not available to have the furnace as high as desired, and at the same time have a good slag-tip and sufficient depth on the ore-floor to store a supply of ore and flux. The ore is delivered on the ore-floor (which is of the full width of the furnace-building, and extends back into the hill a distance of seventy feet) by two overhead tramways (not shown in the drawings), one on each side. From these the ore-mixture is made up on one side, while it is being taken to the furnace from the other. The fuel also is delivered by these tramways. The fluxes are stored on a floor directly at the back of the boiler and engine room. The boiler is a Cornish one, 6 feet 6 inches in diameter by 25 feet long. Its flue is 3 feet in diameter and does not contain Galloway tubes. The working-pressure is 40 pounds per square inch. The engine is an old-fashioned one, with a cylinder 16 inches in diameter by 30 inches stroke. Both the engine and boiler had been part of the plant of a defunct gold-mining company. They were very extravagant in their consumption of fuel. The blast is supplied by a rotary pressure-blower, of the Baker pattern, made in England. It has a capacity of 60 cubic feet per revolution. The furnace, which has several novel points, is shown in detail in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. The jackets are of cast-iron, and are higher than those generally used. They are different, too, in that the feedwater inlet is through a hand-hole plate near the bottom. This plate is fastened to the jacket by stud-bolts, and is provided with a baffleplate, which prevents the cooling water from impinging against the inner plate. The outlet is by a goose-neck at the top, which dis-

Jan 1, 1893

Jan 1, 1970

Jan 1, 1968

By W. A. Barrows, Carl Zapffe

Jan 1, 1913

By C Gunther

The term metamorphism as commonly used means any change in a rock in either form or composition, from whatever cause. By metasomatism, according to Lindgren, is meant a metamorphism that involves a change in the chemical composition of a rock by the addition or subtraction of substance. Certain types of metamorphism are due to the action of mineralizing solutions, and are closely connected with ore deposition; they form, therefore, valuable guides in the exploration for ore-deposits. Other types of metamorphism are due to regional processes, and are not connected with ore deposition. By dynamo-regional metamorphism is meant a primary alteration of rocks over large areas under conditions of pressure, flow- age, and heat. This process produces schists and gneisses from either sediments or igneous rocks. It is thought that there is little migration of minerals or of elements in dynamo-regional metamorphism, and that the changes are due chiefly to recrysallization and rearrangement of original minerals in bands with their major axes oriented normal to the direction of greatest pressure. Under these conditions limestones are commonly altered to marble, and sandstones to quartzite, basic igneous rocks to greenstone or serpentine, while rocks of normal or acid com- position commonly yield the usual types of schist or gneiss. Dynamo-regional metamorphism, extending over large areas, has no connection with mineralizing processes, and is, therefore, no guide to ore deposits; while this process has certain features, such as characteristic mineral associations, in common with contact metamorphism, the results of the two processes may usually be distinguished without difficulty.

Jan 1, 1932

By J. M. Uys, T. B. King

WalSH, Chipman, King, and rant' have measured the water content (as hydrogen) of actual steel-making slags. An average water content of 290 ppm was found for basic open-hearth tapping slags and 114 ppm for acid open-hearth slags. Upon equilibration of these slags at 1550°C with a 25 pct H20-75 pct Nz atmosphere, the water content increased to about 410 and 300 ppm for the basic and acid slags, respectively. Walsh et al. concluded that an acid slag was thus relatively far removed from equilibrium, and that basic slags showed a closer approach to equilibrium, with the water vapor in the furnace atmosphere. Herasymenko2 contended that these conclusions were unjustified, as the oxygen pressure used in the equilibration experiments, ;bout 5 x X atm, was quite different from that found in the furnace. Consequently, during the experiments the slag composition would have changed due to oxidation of ferrous iron. As an extension of Walsh's work and to attempt to clarify this matter, the solubility of water in a basic open-hearth slag was measured as a function of oxygen pressure. Similar measurements were also made on synthetic silicates in the "Fe0"-Fe203-SiO, system. The experimental technique has been described previously by Walsh et a1.l and Uys and King.3 Samples of the basic open-hearth finishing slag, contained in 10-cc platinum crucibles, were equilibrated at 1550°C with atmospheres of different oxygen pressure but constant water-vapor pressure, Ph~o = 0.192 atm. Calculations, as well as measurements, indicate that this figure approximates the water pressure of the combustion gases in a steam-atomized, oil-fired open hearth. Oxygen pressures in the open hearth can vary from 10"2 atm in the combustion gases to between l0-' and 10" atm in the steel bath. The former figure depends on the combustion practice and the latter on the carbon content and temperature of the bath. The oxygen pressure of the slag should lie somewhere between these extremes and is expected to be closer to that of the steel bath than that of the combustion gases. Oxygen pressures were therefore varied between 10" and 6 x l0 atm. At the lowest pressure the slag "puffed up" when quenched (indicating possible loss of water) so experiments were not conducted at lower oxygen pressures. The results are shown in Fig. 1, which includes the water content of the slag "as sampled". The results show that the water content of the slag increased appreciably on equilibration with water vapor at 0.192 atm pressure and that the water solubility apparently decreases with increased oxygen pressure. The solubilities found are comparable to those of the Li20-Ca0-Si02 system.3 Work with synthetic slags in the "Fe0"-Fe203-SiOz system was performed at 1500" C, with Ph20 = 0.192 atrn and for oxygen pressures varying between 10"2 and 10-lo atm. Samples for chemical analysis were prepared as described by Larson.4 The results are shown in Fig. 2. Some low-silica melts tested at low oxygen pressures "puffed up" when quenched and analyzed less than 100 ppm water; these results are not included in Fig. 2. The melts containing 40 mol pct silica also showed a tendency to "puff up" during the quench, when they were tested at the lowest oxygen pressure. These results indicate that, at constant silica content, the solubility of water decreases somewhat with increased oxygen pressure. The effect is, however, small considering the wide range of oxygen pressures studied. Also, at constant oxygen pressure (above about lom5 atm) the solubility increases

Jan 1, 1963

The term metamorphism as commonly used means any change in a rock in either form or composition, from whatever cause. By metasomatism, according to Lindgren, is meant a metamorphism that involves a change in the chemical composition of a rock by the addition or subtraction of substance. Certain types of metamorphism are due to the action of mineralizing solutions, and are closely connected with ore deposition; they form, therefore, valuable guides in the exploration for ore- deposits. Other types of metamorphism are due to regional processes, and are not connected with ore deposition. By dynamo-regional metamorphism is meant a primary alteration of rocks over large areas under conditions of pressure, flowage, and heat. This process produces schists and gneisses from either sediments or igneous rocks. It is thought that there is little migration of minerals or of elements in dynamo-regional metamorphism, and that the changes are due chiefly to recrystallization and rearrangement of original minerals in bands with their major axes oriented normal to the direction of greatest pressure. Under these conditions limestones are commonly altered to marble, and sandstones to quartzite, basic igneous rocks to greenstone or serpentine, while rocks of normal or acid com- position commonly yield the usual types of schist or gneiss. Dynamo-regional metamorphism, extending over large areas, has no connection with mineralizing processes, and is, therefore, no guide to ore deposits; while this process has certain features, such as characteristic mineral associations, in common with contact metamorphism, the results of the two processes may usually be distinguished without difficulty.

Jan 1, 1932

By F. Weinberg, L. MacAulay

DAVIS,' in an investigation of solute redistribution along molten rods of dilute silver in tin, concluded that at horizontal temperature gradients below approximately 5°C per cm very little convective mixing takes place. Cole and winegard2 observed temperature oscillations in horizontal melts of tin, with temperature gradients of several deg per cm. They associated the temperature oscillations with the presence of convective flow in the melt. At temperature gradients less than 1°C per cm they did not detect convective flow. In the present work, direct measurements of con-vective flow in liquid tin have been made using a radioactive tracer technique. The results indicate that extensive convective flow occurs at temperature gradients below those previously reported. The apparatus used to determine the extent of con-vective flow is shown in Fig. 1. The graphite boat Fig. l(a), has two rectangular channels both of which contain molten tin. Radioactive Ag110 in the form of Sn-0.2 pct Ag alloy was introduced at the end of one channel, by rotating the cylinder shown. A series of fixed thermocouples were positioned along the center of the second channel to determine the temperature gradient. It was assumed that the two channels had identical temperature distributions. The graphite boat was inserted into a vycor tube which was surrounded by a multiple winding tube furnace as shown in Fig. l(b). The tin was melted in an argon atmosphere. The distribution of Ag110, as a function of position along the boat at a given time after introduction of the ~g"', was determined with the

Jan 1, 1970

By D. H. Polonis, M. B. Kasen

AN unusual thermal etching phenomenon has been observed on the surface of a Cu-Si alloy. The observations were made during studies of vacancy condensation pit formation which were reported in previous papers.1,2 Figs. 1 and 2 are photomicrographs of the surface of a Cu-4.8 pct Si alloy after heating in vacuo (3 x X mm Hg) to 525°C and subsequently holding at that temperature for 16 hr in an impure (air-contaminated) argon atmosphere. Under these conditions preferential removal of silicon from the matrix by oxidation results in a surface which is entirely a phase overlying an a plus y structure. The light areas of Fig. 1 are regions in which very little thermal etching has occurred, while the majority of the surface has experienced severe etching. Similar regions in Fig. 2 are seen as plateaus above contours produced by net transfer of material from the specimen surface. Twin boundaries are also visible in Fig. 2. The difference in matrix mi-crostructure between Figs. l and 2 reflects the par- ticular orientation of low-index planes with respect to the surface of observation. Thermal etching contours of this type have been studied in detail by Hondros and Moore Both of the photomicrographs show that one or more dark spots are located approximately at the center of every protected area; where two spots are in close proximity, the protected areas have merged. The microstructures indicate that the anomalous resistance to thermal etching is related to the presence of these spots. Williams and Hayfield have shown that local regions of unusually high oxidation resistance can be caused by a surface monolayer of atoms with a work function higher than that of the base material. The result is an inhibition of the rate of electron removal from the base material and a decrease in the oxidation rate. The source of the protected layer may be either surface diffusion from contaminants on the specimen surface or pipe diffusion of solute atoms followed by migration across the surface. In the latter case the driving force is a difference in chemical potential resulting in a Gibbs adsorption phenomenon. In the present case, chemical polishing of the specimen surface precluded contaminants of a strictly surface nature. Consequently, diffusion of impurity atoms from within the lattice appears to be the most tenable explanation of the observed phenomena. The authors propose that the structures of Figs. 1 and 2 reflect the diffusion of impurity atoms along extended dislocations within the individual a phase grains prior to surface oxidation. The central spots within the protected regions are seen as sites of dislocation emergence which have become locally decorated with oxide in the manner discussed in Ref. 1. Williams and Hayfield observed protected regions adjacent to the grain boundaries of iron-contaminated copper which they attributed to the segregation of iron to the grain boundaries coupled with high dif-fusivity along the complex dislocation array at such boundaries. No evidence of such grain boundary protection was observed in the Cu-Si alloy; this

Jan 1, 1964

By W. M. Lehrer

RECENT development of high-temperature brazing alloys has required information regarding the eutec-tic temperature and composition of the Pd-rich section of the Pd-B system.. Literature on this subject was found to be scanty with no complete system yet determined. Buddery and welch1 report an inter-metallic compound occurring in the Pd-B system at 6.33 wt pct B (PdsBz). Another source, Sieverts and Bruning,2 indicates that after annealing at 700°C, a 1.6 and a 2.0 wt pct B alloy were two phase whereas a 0.75 pct B alloy was single phase. Recent work3 using a hot-stage microscope has proposed a eutectic temperature of 743OC. This method utilized the observation of the onset of incipient melting at grain boundaries. The eutectic composition, however, was not determined. METHODS AND PR0CEDURES Five alloys were prepared by triple inert arc-melting high-purity palladium (95.98 pct) with additions of 2 to 6 pct purified amorphous boron. The alloys were crushed within a hardened steel mortar with a steel pestle. The 2 pct alloy, however, was too tough to be crushed in the above manner so was crushed by successive reductions through a rolling mill. Approximately 17 to 18 g of the crushed alloy was used in the thermal analysis. The alloys were melted in pure quartz crucibles. The thermocouple protection tubes were also of quartz and fused along the inside wall of crucibles to prevent floating of the thermocouple. This was an expediency as centering of the thermocouple in the melt would have been preferable. Melting was done in a tube furnace with a slow flow of tank helium maintained as a protective atmosphere. Heating and cooling rates were maintained at 3.5OC per min through the critical temperature ranges by means of a synchronous motor hook-up to a furnace controller. All specimens were heated to 100°C over the indicated liquidus on heating prior to reversing to the cooling cycle. Specimens emerged from the furnace with mirrorlike brightness attesting to the protective quality of the helium atmosphere. Thermal arrests were detected by the differential thermocouple technique using chrome l-alumel couples and nickel as the reference specimen. Arrests were recorded on a Leeds-Northrup automatic X-Y recorder. The specimen temperature and temperature difference were read to + 7.5OC and ± 1.5OC, respectively. These readings were well within the sensitivity of the instrument amplifier. Chromel-alumel couples were used in lieu of Pt-Rh as very few arrests were contemplated in excess of 1200" to 1300°C, the approach of instability. No standardization was performed on these thermocouples subsequent to their use. RESULTS The thermal arrest temperatures obtained are plotted in Fig. 1 as a function of wt pct B. The composition function was obtained by chemical analysis of portions of the specimens after the thermal analysis was completed. The 2 to 6 pct nominal alloys were found to have 1.80, 2.35, 3.65, 4.18 and 5.90

Jan 1, 1960

By C. M. Young

THE safety lamp is the most common and convenient apparatus for detecting inflammable gases in mines, the presence of gas being shown by a blue flame, called the cap, if the wick has been lowered to suppress the luminous flame. The height of the cap increases with the proportion of gas and with the temperature of the lamp flame. Lamps of the Wolf type, the fuel of which is benzine, have a hotter flame than lamps in which vegetable oils are used, such as the Davy, and the Clanny, and are more sensitive than the latter and their many modifications. The Piehler alcohol lamp gives a still higher cap while the Clowes hydrogen lamp is most sensitive of all. While the effect of the temperature of the source of ignition is well known, the writer knows of no previous attempt to correlate the change of this temperature with change of the height of the cap produced. In order to determine the height of the cap at various temperatures, it was necessary to have a source of ignition the temperature of which could he accurately controlled over a considerable range. This condition was met by a coil of wire of high fusing point heated by an electric current controlled by a variable resistance. The use of a coil offered the further advantage of freedom from complications due to the flame of a burning fuel. Such a flame, being itself of variable height, would to some extent raise or lower the elevation of the base of the cap and therefore add to the difficulty of determining the height of the cap. Besides this, the presence of a small cap from the lamp fuel, commonly known as the "fuel cap, " would interfere with the observation of small gas caps. After some experiment, a coil was made of platinum wire, No. 26, diameter 0.016 in. The coil was 17/64 in. (6.746 mm.) in outside diameter and had eight full turns in a length of ½ in. (12.69 mm.). This was connected to an electric circuit through an adjustable resistance, as shown in

Jan 8, 1919