Search Documents

After the close of the Revolution, settlers began to pour over the mountains, to settle in the western parts of Pennsylvania, of Virginia, to move down the Ohio into Kentucky, and in the late seventeen-eighties to settle on "the Indian side" of the river, now Ohio. With the growth of population the interest in coal increased and it was not long before the production of coal west of the mountains was larger than that east of them. Foreign nations, too, became interested in the young republic and in 1783, at the instance of the Swedish government S. A. Hermelin, an engineer, visited this country to investigate its iron industry. He made a very interesting report, not published until 1931, in which he gave many details of the iron plants in the eastern United States; apparently he was not west of the mountains, but was well informed about conditions there. He says, "that some coal near the first branches of the Schuylkill River has been mined and utilized by the blacksmiths," referring, of course, to anthracite; again that "coal mines have also been worked for several years near Pittsburg," and that "great supplies of iron ore are available at the Ohio Falls and further to the west, at Coney Creek, a part of the Green River, where there is also coal."' In 1788, Dr. Johann David Schoepf, who came to this country with the Hessian troops, visited Pittsburgh. He was an intelligent man and acquainted to some extent with minerals and methods of working them. In speaking of Coal Hill on the south side of the Monongahela he mentioned several strata of marble in the lower part and that

Jan 1, 1942

By Clarence P. Linville

A previous article1 by the authors contained a general description of the new roasting furnace herein described but it did not go into detail as to the metallurgical behavior or the results obtained. Believing that such information would be of great value, they have elaborated on the subject and have given many unpublished details. The furnace described applies the principle of roasting finely divided zinc-sulfide ores, now produced in large quantity by the flotation process, in gaseous suspension; that is, the ore particles are carried, in suspension, in a current of air and gaseous products of the roast. The relatively great fineness of flotation concentrate presents difficulties and problems of roasting in furnaces of the ordinary type; the fine ore is forwarded through the furnace in the form of a shallow bed and its very fineness leads to dense impervious bedding which prevents oxygen from reaching the interior of the bed, thus unduly lengthening the time of roasting and preventing the elimination of the last of the sulfur. The fineness of the concentrate, normally, should lead to a rapid and complete roast, for the speed of roasting is a function of the surface exposed to oxygen, which surface is greatest, per unit of weight, in very fine material. The difficulty in bed roasting is to get the oxygen to the particle. If the fine ore, during the roasting, could be freely suspended in oxidizing gases, full advantage could be taken of the great surface conferred by its fineness. This fundamental idea, of course, is not new, for the Stedtefelt furnace, familiar to the older metallurgists, is an example of it; but the manner in which this is accomplished may be new. The numerous efforts to roast in gaseous suspension show that the idea is attractive; in fact, an analysis would indicate that it is the most reason-

Jan 1, 1925

By R. L. Loofbourow

Trends in the metal mining industry were definitely down in 1954. With a record in 1953 of $1.8 billion output, the last year dropped to $1.5 billion, the lowest value since 1950. The decrease in iron ore production alone accounted for at least 10 pct of the decline. PROBABLY more than any previous year, political debates of 1954 marked a new high for the mining industry. Lead and zinc prices gave forth with minor rallies producing no real improvements. An anticipated drop in copper prices never came to be. Early in the year arguments for more free trade versus tariffs to restrict imports were voiced eloquently by Charles P. Taft, president, Committee for a National Trade Policy, and Andrew Fletcher, president, St. Joseph Lead Co.

Jan 3, 1955

• "This country eventually may have to rely on foreign sources for some metals, not because it does not have them here but because it may have difficulty getting the labor to mine them. Few people realize the extent to which the 'old timers' are still the backlog of the important districts." --Fred Searls, Jr. • A new filter has been developed by Arthur D. Little, Inc., for the ABC which will remove all dust from the air. Submicroscopic asbestos fibers are used as filter media and are claimed to stop all dust and pollen while passing suitable quantities of air. •Out in front public relationswise is the Peabody Coal Co. which has launched a 15-min television news program on WNBQ at 10:30 C.S.T., Tuesday and Thursday nights. Clifton Utley, news commentator, will tell how coal is mined today and indicate, with pictures, the improvement in efficiency and safety which has resulted from today's mechanized operations. •Two hundred coal mining companies are using roof bolts as a means of supporting about 14 million sq ft of roof surface, Edward Thomas of the Bureau of Mines reported. Various types of metal and wooden pins can be used. The method was first used by the St. Joseph Lead Co. over 20 years ago, but is now being studied and adopted widely in metal, nonmetallic, and coal mines. * The first ten technical graduates have reported at Hanford Works in the state of Washington, to begin the newly installed General Electric rotational training program, believed to be the first of its kind at any U.S. atomic energy plant. The program is to provide suitably trained personnel for the nation's atomic energy program. •The need for top-notch scientists and engineers to stimulate mining programs in British colonies is acute. About 60 American experts are being sought for the ECA sponsored program. Positions for mining engineers, geologists, assayers, topographers, and petrologists are open. •Production of primary aluminum for the first quarter of 1950 was 322,4250008 lb which is 6 1/2 million lb more than was produced in the first quarter of 1949. Shipments of aluminum sheet, plate, and strip amounted to 259.772,1571b for the first quarter. •Policy on manganese procurement for the stockpile is being studied by a House Armed Services Subcommittee with the possibility of lowering specifications. The U. S. Bureau of Mines is drafting a bill to encourage domestic production for stockpiling through producer subsidies. 'It will have to be cleared by the Bureau of the Budget and other agencies before going to Congress. •Oil men consider dry holes a necessary evil in their search for oil. Last year 34 out of every 100 wells drilled were dry holes. Yet Texas Technological College is attempting to drill a dry hole on its campus at Lubbock, taking every precaution to make sure it is a "duster" so its petroleum engineering students can play around with experiments without being bothered by any messy crude oil. --Natural Resources Notes. •A portable alertness indicator which signals lethargy in persons doing monotonous jobs has been developed for the Navy's Special Devices Center. A possible application to hoistmen is indicated but broaching the matter to them would be tricky.

Jan 6, 1950

By G. D. TRANT

HOT metal is commonly transported from the blast furnace to the open hearth by one or the other of two general methods: (1) by hot-metal ladles, usually in conjunction with a stationary mixer, or; (2) by means of mixer-type ladle cars, taking the place of both the hot-metal ladles and the stationary mixer. In both cases, the use of transfer ladles for charging the metal into the open-hearth furnaces is necessary. The American Rolling Mill Co. at its Middletown division, adopted hot metal practice on. June 2, 1928. The pig iron is produced' in a .blast furnace about 11 miles from the open-hearth furnaces, and is trans- ported in Pugh-type mixer cars having a capacity of 150 gross tons each. Three cars are in service and handle the delivery of hot metal to the pig machine and the open-hearth furnaces. The capacity of the blast furnace is 550 tons and casts are made every four hours.

Jan 1, 1929

By Charles E. Hughes

HERBERT HOOVER had to sit through an hour and a half of eulogy of himself at Carnegie Hall last night, said the Sun and New York Herald of Feb. 19. When his turn to answer came he remarked that, although one of the speakers had referred to him as a modest man, he would never, in view of this experience, be able to prove it. The occasion was the presentation by the Civic Forum to Mr. Hoover of its medal of honor for distinguished service, the only recipients in past years having been General Goethals, Thomas A. Edison, and Alexander Graham Bell. Only by distortion of intent could there be said to be anything political in the affair, which was carefully described by the chairman, Charles E. Hughes, as non-partisan. Nevertheless, the praise bestowed on the former Food Administrator by the former Republican candidate for President, proved specially interesting to a much applauding audience which filled the hall to the uppermost gallery. A piece of real news was supplied by Horace V. Winchell, whom Mr. Hoover succeeded on Tuesday as President of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers. He said that Mr. Hoover, when in Europe after the . armistice, caused to be collected the literature of the war in all Europe.

Jan 1, 1920

By Heinrich 0. Hofman

A T THE meeting of the Board of Directors on June 24, Prof. Heinrich O. Hofman was elected an honorary member of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers. Professor Hofman is best known to the world at large for his publications, and in this respect he is to this generation what Schnabel was to the previous one. The first edition of Professor Hofman's "Metallurgy of Lead and Desilverization of Base Bullion"; was published in 1893; the fifth edition in 1898. In 1913, he published his work on "General Metallurgy;" this was followed by "Metallurgy of Copper" in 1914, and a revised and enlarged edition of the "Metallurgy of Lead" in 1918. "Metallurgy of Zinc and Cadmium" is now in press. He also published, through the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, "An Outline of the Metallurgy of Iron and Steel" for students' use. Since the founding of "Mineral Industry" in 1892, he has been continuously the annual contributor on the metallurgy of lead, and all Institute members know that his contributions to the TRANSACTIONS have been liberal in the extreme. It is through this medium that the results of the extensive research work, which he has always carried on in connection with his work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have been published. Of the greatest importance are his papers dealing with the formation temperatures of slags, but many other metallurgical subjects have been covered.

Jan 1, 1921

By Walter C. Smith

THE Cerro de Pasco Copper Corp. began to produce bismuth at the Oroya smelter in 1929, at which time the only important consumption of that metal was in the manufacture, of pharmaceutical compounds, and the normal supply of metal exceeded the demand. With a new and major producer entering the field, additional uses for bismuth had to be developed. A survey indicated that the most promising opportunity lay in fusible alloys containing bismuth. A large number of bismuth alloys were known and a few of them were being used in the manufacture of automatic sprinkler heads and safety plugs. The literature cover in,- the- alloys was found to be sketchy and contradictory. Research, development, and educational work carrried on by the Corporation during the past fifteen years has resulted in greatly enlarged uses for the metal. In general the low-melting bismuth alloys are of high specific gravity, relatively soft, of low tensile strength, brittle to shock, yet subject to plastic

Jan 1, 1945

The Engineers Society of Western Pennsylvania, William Penn Hotel, Pittsburgh, Pa. K. F. Treschow, Secretary Since 1880 this society has been publishing Proceedings containing papers on a wide variety of engineering and related subjects The Proceedings are issued monthly throughout the year (except for the months of August and September each year) and the monthly Proceedings from February of one year to and including January of the next are also collected in volumes The latest is vol 47, for 1931 The rate of subscription for the monthly Proceedings is $5 per year throughout the Postal Union, single copies (monthly), 50 cents each The price of the yearly volumes from vol 17 to date is $5 each, unbound. The Secretary will quote prices for

Jan 1, 1933

By G. M. BUTLER

TWENTY-ONE of the states in the Union, the Territory of Hawaii, and seven provinces of Canada now have in operation laws requiring that professional engineers be registered or licensed. In addition, two states require that civil engineers be registered, and one other state demands registration of structural engineers. Moreover, nearly every year sees additions made to the list. The registration movement, fostered by the American Association of Engineers, now has the powerful, energetic backing of the An1,erican Society of Civil Engineers, which is itself now fostering registration legislation, and there is a strong sentiment in favor of registration in the American Institute of Electrical Engineers and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Only in the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers is anti-registration sentiment, strongly dominant, but many members of this organization are enthusiastic advocates of registration.

Jan 1, 1930

By C. W. Hoffman, W. R. Hinken

Probability sizing, a fairly recent development in the field of particle separation, is now under investigation to determine its value to the mining industry. The method employed is probability sizing through a vibrating network of decreasing screen openings. While probability sizing is not new, the possibility of using it for coarse, highly abrasive ores at high tonnage rates has only recently appeared to merit practical consideration. The advantages of probability sizing vs. conventional screening methods are: (1) reduced space requirements for a high capacity unit, (2) fewer moving parts, (3) more versatile product sizing selection, (4) reduced maintenance requirements, and (5) lower power consumption. Screening is a necessary part of virtually every crushing circuit. At some stage in the process, particle separation becomes a controlling factor in the operation. The basic type of screen in use today is the vibrating unit, which usually employs a mechanical vibrator of one type or another to obtain sizing and material transportation across the screen surface. The vibrating screen has its limitations and inherent problems. Operators must live with: (1) high maintenance — worn rods, screen cloth, spacers, cross members, chutes, etc., (2) low capacity in relation to floor space requirements, (3) extreme noise levels, (4) high power consumption, and (5) structural problems in the screens and supporting steelwork. All plant operators have become tolerant of these drawbacks through the years, and little innovation has been developed in screening. The vibrating screens in use today incorporate improved metals, more efficient power sources, better lubricants, and increased manufacturing skill, but the basic machine itself remains unchanged. Screening is a relatively small part of most plants' operating expenditures and gets relatively little attention from research and development. The HiProb sizer is a new approach to the problem of particle separation on a high tonnage basis. Developed by Dr. Fredrik Mogensen (president of Fred-rik Mogensen, A. B. of Djursholn, Sweden), this unit has found its primary acceptance in the sizing of wet or dry materials in the fine ranges. Climax has been working cooperatively with Mine and Smelter Supply Company, the United States licensee, on the adaptation of the sizer to obtain consistent recovery at a high tonnage rate on a — 3/8-in. separation. This was a new application for the sizer and opened up a whole new field of problems. Dr. Mogensen's machine utilizes the control of normal probability of falling particles and is designed to eliminate some of the undesirable features of vibrating screens mentioned earlier. The machine is light, compact, consumes less power than conventional screens and has a low noise level. PRINCIPLES Probability sizing is a process designed to allow solid particles to segregate with a high ratio of the materials reporting into their respective size fractions with a minimum amount of misplaced particles. Sizing is defined in this paper as segregation of dry solid particles into fractions of comparable sizes. Probability is usually estimated as the ratio of the number of ways an event might occur vs. the total number of allowable ways. The probability process described depends upon the fact that particles falling through a network will segregate across the sizing surface even though all openings are larger than the particles. The degree of segregation is dependent upon the particle size and the trajectory applied by the sizing network to each falling particle. Specifically, the process utilizes a maze made up of screen cloth to control the path of a particle in free fall as illustrated in Fig. 1. The usefulness of this probability sizing process is dependent upon the degree of efficiency of an effective maze. Primarily, a maze must be extremely flexible to meet the multi-faceted nature of solid particles and, at the same time, the degree of control must be reproducible so that a desired separation is predictable. Dr. Fredrik Mogensen has formulated a maze that is not only flexible and easily controlled, but, mote importantly, easily adaptable to a working machine.

Jan 1, 1970

By W. A. Anderson

IN the pressure die-casting of zinc alloys it is customary to force the molten alloy under high pressure into a permanent steel die by means of a plunger moving in a bushing that has a clearance on the diameter of the order of 0.002 in. Successful operation of the plunger type of machine requires the presence in the zinc alloy of certain percentages of aluminum. Without these aluminum additions, the normal reaction of molten zinc on ferrous materials causes sticking of the plunger and a complete shutdown of the equipment. All of the zinc alloys used for pressure die-casting today contain approximately 4 per cent of aluminum, which is more than sufficient to make plunger operation feasible. The clearance between the plunger and its bushing is an important matter. As the space becomes larger, there is a loss in effective metal pressure. Ordinary gray cast iron served fairly well and is still used in some machines. However, the rate at which the plunger clearance increases with this material is considered by many to be far too great. There is, therefore, a serious interest in finding new materials more capable of retaining the desired clearance during long periods of use. Today many die casters are using special materials for plungers and bushings selected by the somewhat expensive and time-consuming test of actual experience. An analysis of the problem reveals two possible end points of plunger operation: (1) the building up of zinc-alloy plunger-material reaction products in sufficient bulk to cause sticking and (2) rapid solution, wear or erosion, all of which will increase the clearance to an undesirable extent. If neither of these takes place, the plunger will operate for a long time, of course. The authors have developed a laboratory apparatus in which the action of a plunger moving in a bushing immersed in molten zinc alloy could be simulated closely. Such a machine made possible a more rapid and less expensive survey of the available construction materials and an analysis of the specific alloying reactions taking place in the clear-ance area.

Jan 1, 1939

Jan 1, 1923

By C. McCulloch

OPEN-PIT mining of coal is relatively a recent innovation; men still active in the industry can trace its development. Re- viewing the growth of operations from the original horse-drawn scrapers, through the various stages of power equipment to the huge strip- ping shovels of today, one also notes changes in the methods of what the coal man calls preparation at the face. We really should not call it face preparation because, in contrast to underground mining, a face does not exist in strip mining. Further, preparation of the coal for market at the loading point has already, in but a few years, become largely of historic interest only and modern mines as well as old mines recently modernized rely almost entirely on separate and elaborate preparation plants to produce marketable coal. This practice was not voluntarily adopted by the producer but was forced upon him by the inadequacy of previous

Jan 1, 1939

By J. Lewis, J. Harper, M. F. Ashby

A grain boundary in a metal interacts with second-phase particles, which exert a pinning force (first estimated by Zener) on the boundary opposing its motion. We have computed the shape of boundaries which interact with more or less spherical second-phase particles and have constructed a soap-film model to reproduce the shape of the boundary surface. An important result is that measurement of this shape allows the pressure, or driving force, on the boundary to be measured. We hare applied this technique to grain boundaries in two alloys and hate measured the pinning force exerted by single second-phase jwrticles on the boundaries. It is in good agreement with Zener's estimate. J\. boundary between two grains, or two bulk phases, interacts with small inclusions or particles of a second phase, whether they are gas or solid. This interaction means that the boundary, forced to migrate by a difference in free energy between the material of the two grains or phases which it separates, exerts a force on a particle which it touches, tending to drag it forward. (The movement of inclusions through metals under the influence of this force, has, in fact, been observed. 1-3) Equally, the particle can be thought of as exerting a pinning force on the boundary, tending to hold it back. Zener (in a celebrated private communication4) first realized that this interaction, and the resulting pinning force, existed. His calculation of its magnitude was crude but adequate: a spherical inclusion of radius r blanks off an area nr2 of the boundary on which it sits; since the boundary has an energy of rMM x per unit area, the blanlung-olf decreases the energy of the system by MM: this energy is returned to the system if the boundary is pulled free from the inclusion— a forward movement of the boundary by a distance r will do this—so that the maximum pinning force is Trrym.M- A similar argument can be made for inter-phase boundaries. The nature of the particle itself did not enter this, or two subsequent treatments.5,6 When it is considered, tic leifthe energyoftheb a) The boundary may enter and pass through the particle if the energy of the boundary is lower within the particle than in the matrix. Fig. l(r/). Certain coherent precipitate particles behave like this. h) More usually, the boundary will bend round the particle, enveloping and bypassing it. Fig. l(b). In doing so, it changes the structure and energy of the interface between the particle and its matrix. This means that the boundary does not touch the particle surface at right angles, as early treatments assumed,5'9 but at some angle a which depends on this change in surface energy of the particle, and can be calculated from the equilibrium of surface tensions. Most precipitate particles and inclusions behave like this. Gas bubbles or liquid drops can be regarded as belonging to either group. The progress of bypassing is conveniently measured by the angle shown in Fig. 1. When the nature of the particle is ignored, its maximum pinning force is exerted when - 45 deg. When it is considered, this critical value of is found to depend on a and thus on the nature of the particle. The maximum pinning force lies between nryMM and 2jtjMM (Appendix 1). not very different from Zener's result. In reality, a boundary between crystals has a specific energy and tension which varies with the orientation of the boundary. Furthermore, recent experiments7 indicate that such a boundary is not atom-ically smooth, but has steps on it: migration of the boundary corresponds to the sweeping of these steps across the boundary surface, like the Frank model of crystal growth from the vapor. This means that the interaction of a boundary with particles should really be considered in terms of the way in which particles hinder the movement of these steps. To suppose a grain boundary or interphase boundary to be smooth, and to ignore the variation of its energy with orientation, is to liken it to a soap film. The advantage of this soap film approximation, which we have used throughout this paper, is that interaction energies and boundary shapes can be calculated easily. We have done this by numerical computation and by using a soap film model, and have compared the results with grain boundaries in an aluminum-based and a copper-based alloy. It turns out that the shape of the boundary which bulges between particles allows the pressure an it to be calculated; that is, the local driving force an the boundary can be measured. This has allowed us to check the Zener relationship experimentally.

Jan 1, 1970

By H. K. Shearer

North Louisiana (including all townships north of the Louisiana base line) had a year of normal development in 1940, marked by the discovery of two shallow oil fields producing from the Wilcox formation in La Salle Parish and a large increase in drilling in the old Caddo shallow field. This renewal of shallow drilling activity led to a somewhat unexpected increase in the number of wells drilled, although the total footage and average depth continued to decline, as in several preceding years. Well completions and depth statistics for 1940, with previous years for coinparison, are as follows: Wildcat producers in 1940 include the discovery oil wells in the Olla and Nebo fields; also three gas wells in the vicinity oi the Olla field and a shallow gas well, which opened a new field or extension in the Greenwood area of Caddo Parish. This table illustrates the lack of important deep discoveries since 1937, in which year the Rodessa, Lisbon and Cotton Valley fields were being actively developed. Operators have been forced to return to the old type of shallow drilling, which necessarily means smaller producing wells. Oil production in 1940 was 24,381,760 bbl., a decrease of 867,880 bbl. from 1939, or 3.44 per cent. The newly discovered fields of La Salle Parish produced over a million barrels, and other increases worthy of note were at Cotton Valley, Caddo, Sligo and Sugar Creek. The greatest decrease was again at Rodessa, although this remains the principal producing field. Geological Names Revised Deep drilling during 1940 did not provide a great deal of new geological information. However, by agreement of a majority of the members of the Shreveport Geolog- ical Society, the names of some of the Lower Cretaceous formations have been revised in the interest of greater clarity and in order to make the descriptions agree better with the facts discovered in recent years. The geological section is discussed in detail and reasons for changes in nomenclature are stated in a recent publication by Ralph W. Imlay. Although not yet in universal use among field men, the new names are employed in this report and accompanying tables, as

Jan 1, 1941

By H. K. Shearer

North Louisiana (including all townships north of the Louisiana base line) had a year of normal development in 1940, marked by the discovery of two shallow oil fields producing from the Wilcox formation in La Salle Parish and a large increase in drilling in the old Caddo shallow field. This renewal of shallow drilling activity led to a somewhat unexpected increase in the number of wells drilled, although the total footage and average depth continued to decline, as in several preceding years. Well completions and depth statistics for 1940, with previous years for coinparison, are as follows: Wildcat producers in 1940 include the discovery oil wells in the Olla and Nebo fields; also three gas wells in the vicinity oi the Olla field and a shallow gas well, which opened a new field or extension in the Greenwood area of Caddo Parish. This table illustrates the lack of important deep discoveries since 1937, in which year the Rodessa, Lisbon and Cotton Valley fields were being actively developed. Operators have been forced to return to the old type of shallow drilling, which necessarily means smaller producing wells. Oil production in 1940 was 24,381,760 bbl., a decrease of 867,880 bbl. from 1939, or 3.44 per cent. The newly discovered fields of La Salle Parish produced over a million barrels, and other increases worthy of note were at Cotton Valley, Caddo, Sligo and Sugar Creek. The greatest decrease was again at Rodessa, although this remains the principal producing field. Geological Names Revised Deep drilling during 1940 did not provide a great deal of new geological information. However, by agreement of a majority of the members of the Shreveport Geolog- ical Society, the names of some of the Lower Cretaceous formations have been revised in the interest of greater clarity and in order to make the descriptions agree better with the facts discovered in recent years. The geological section is discussed in detail and reasons for changes in nomenclature are stated in a recent publication by Ralph W. Imlay. Although not yet in universal use among field men, the new names are employed in this report and accompanying tables, as

Jan 1, 1941

By AIME AIME

IN an address before the New York Section. A.I.M.E., Oct. 20, Alex L. ter Braake, speaking on the tin industry of the Netherlands East Indies, interjected a few remarks, at the chairman's request. on the mineral stock-piling project now before Congress in a bill sponsored by Senator Scrugham. The full text of Mr. ter Braake's paper was published in the Nov. 6 issue of the American Metal Market. Following mention of the buffer stock scheme as applied in the tin industry, Mr. ter Braake continued:

Jan 1, 1943

By W. L. III McMorris, R. E. Zimmerman, Michael Sokaski, E. R. Palowitch, M. R. Geer, C. E. Capes, A. W. Deurbrouck, S. C. Sun

PART 1: DENSE MEDIUM SEPARATION by M. SOKASKI, M. R. GEER, and W. L. MCMORRIS III INTRODUCTION In the early days of coarse-coal treatment by the dense-medium process in Europe, loess was one of the materials used for medium solids. Newly developed cyclones were used to reclaim and thicken the loess suspension. On occasion, when the cyclone thickener at the Maurits mine in the Nether- lands plugged, the overflow was found to be filled with clean coal free of impurity. From this observation stemmed the concept of the cyclone as a cleaning device. Development took place during World War I1 in the lab- oratory of the Dutch State Mines under the direction of M. G. Driessen. A 15 tph (13.6 mt) pilot plant was in operation in the laboratory by 1945, when, in September, Driessen made the first public disclosure of the process in a paper presented to the Institute of fie1 in London. In April 1945 operation of this pilot plant was observed by H. F. Yancey, who was so

Jan 1, 1979

By B. E. Field

Cobalt is a silvery white metal with a slight bluish cast. It strongly resembles nickel in its appearance and properties, notably its resistance to corrosion, although its alloys with other metals differ decidedly in their properties from those of nickel. The name "cobalt" was derived from the German Kobold, meaning goblin, and this came to be applied to the cobalt minerals which, although they resembled ores, did not readily yield metal when smelted by the primitive processes available in the Middle Ages. Cobalt minerals were used as pigments by potters and glass workers before the Christian era. Cobalt blue glass was found in the tombs of the Egyptians and in the ruins of Troy, and many colors used by the ancient Greeks and Romans contained cobalt. The ancients were entirely unaware that the colors they used were caused by cobalt and the metal itself was not isolated until about the middle of the eighteenth century, by Brandt, although the preparation of cobalt compounds had been carried on in a small way ever since the opening of the silver-cobalt deposits at Schneeberg, Germany, in 1470.

Jan 1, 1935