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By R. W. Raymond

There is apparently no end to the doubts, inconsistencies and absurdities in which the courts of our mining States and Territories are involved in their attempts to apply to conditions of ever-increasing complexity the provisions of our anomalous mining law. In previous papers, I have called this statute " the law of the apex," because it based upon that vague, novel and mysterious condition the most important grant of title. But the apex is scarcely a more essential feature than the end-lines and the side-lines; for the rights which it may confer may be limited in various ways by these; so that we have, in many a case, the most ridiculous result that the United States, in return for the money of a citizen, conveys to him with much solemnity, under its broad seal, nobody knows what, bounded nobody can tell how. A decision recently made at Butte by Judge De Wolfe, of the United States District Court of Montana, in the case of King et al. vs. The Amy and Silversmith Mining Company, furnishes a fresh illustration of this criticism. The diagram on the following page, constructed without precise regard to courses and distances, simply to assist in the statement of the essential features of the case, will, 1 hope, make clear the principles . involved : The plaintiff occupies a location (the Nonconsolidated) adjoining on the north the defendant's location, a b c d (the Amy), and the disputed mining-ground lies, let us say, in depth under the point W, that is, on the dip of the vein, VD, but not under the surfacelocation, a b c d. The defendant has the prior title, and claims this ground under its extra-lateral right. It is admitted that the apex does not cross the end-line, a d, and does cross the side-line, a b. Whether it crosses, at the other end of the location, the end-line, b c

Jan 1, 1889

By C. C. Griggs

From its inception, a limestone quarry or mine should be under the direction of a capable engineer. Before it becomes a reality, he should outlinc the future results, plan the most economical methods for moving the materials and the most efficient equipment, and pilot the undertaking along the narrow pathway of success, avoiding the pitfalls of uneconomical production and the precipitous walls of scanty profits. Inspection of successful limestone properties shows that all have had difficult engineering problems, the solution of which have required keen engineering ability. In approaching a subject of this nature, it is logical to follow the progress of the limestone operation from its inception to the end, as reflecting the engineering required. There are four major divisions: Investigation, equipment, development, and operation. Investigation On the reliability of the engineer's estimates and the soundness of his judgment depend the success or failure of the enterprise. When one visits a prosperous concern, realizes that the limestone is of a constant chemical composition, sees the mechanical devices installed, and watches the output leave the plant in trains of railroad cars or fleets of vessels, he may overlook the fact that in the remote past this great creation was born in some man's brain and evolved through competent engineering. Many factors must be considered before a promoter could procure the money necessary to launch such an enterprise, for a conservative banker will only recommend a successful producer while the promoter must provide funds on his own and his engineer's judgment. An engineering investigation must be made preliminary to expenditure for actual operation, which, for a limestone deposit, would' naturally embrace such subjects as : ' Readily available. 1. Tonnage available........ Possibly available. Chemical analysis.

Jan 1, 1925

By J. Parke Channing

These days of great industrial and social problems in America produce many suggested solutions and great changes. The practical engineer and employer of labor views these problems differently from the labor leader or the social reformer, but as never before he is sincerely interested in solving them in a way that will be just to all. The inevitable tendency of the day is toward "industrial betterment," " safety," '(industrial education," " efficiency," and the many other things which have become so familiar to progressive employers. There is no longer any question that these things are worth while from both the human and economic standpoints. They "pay" in dollars and cents. The very center of final success in improving conditions and increasing the efficiency of workingmen must be the spirit of fairness and a knowledge on the part of the employer of how to deal sympathetically and intelligently with his employees. Every progressive employer knows how greatly he desires foremen, superintendents, managers and others who possess these qualities. On the other hand, we are all familiar with serious mistakes made by young graduates of engineering schools who have had no opportunity to develop these qualities, and who have no real appreciation of the worth of the workers. Indeed, one wonders whether much ill-feeling, labor difficulties, and many strikes could not be avoided if such men had the right attitude. Is there any way of remedying this condition? If this particular difficulty can be solved, if these young engineers, many of whom are our coming leaders of industry, can be given the right perspective and the right understanding of these other problems in addition to fair, sympathetic methods of handling men, many of our other problems will be solved—not at once, but gradually and permanently, as these men make good and become influential in paths of industrial righteousness and industrial peace. Many progressive employers of to-day have enlarged their own perspective and realize the great importance of enlarging the perspective of those who shall follow them. How can it be done? For seven years a movement has been making

Jan 1, 1915

By David White

Jan 1, 1925

By Henry Fay

The erosion of guns is a complex problem which can be solved only by a detailed study of all the factors involved. In the present paper it is proposed to submit the results of observations and experiments which have extended over several years. Certain facts have been established and preliminary reports have been published.' Conclusions have been reached since then which, it is believed, are worth presenting for the purpose of promoting discussion, and with the hope that ultimately the whole truth will be known. The particular phase of the problem which will be presented here is the hardening of the inner surface of the gun tube. It has been known for a long time that after firing a large caliber gun for some time, the surface of the metal becomes hard and brittle, cracks, and wears away.2 The character of this phenomenon may be learned by an examination of some results which are typical, obtained from a detailed study of a 12-in. gun. The gun was trepanned and rings representing various sections of the gun were cut out for examination. The first ring represented the metal at the muzzle end, and the other rings were removed at approximately 120, 240, 325 and 337 in., respectively, toward the breech end. The appearance of the surface of the metal in the different sections is shown in Fig. 1. The greatest amount of wear and maximum amount of hard surface layer was found in section marked E, which is nearest the powder chamber and at the beginning of the rifing; the maximum amount of cracking in D; the maximum amount of copper deposition in C. Section B showed heat cracks on both lands and grooves, and section A showed heat cracks on the driving edge of the lands only. There was much flow of metal in both sections E and D, and there was progressively less effect noticeable toward the muzzle end. The polished cross-section of these same pieces is shown in Fig. 2. The extent of the erosion is greatest nearest the powder chamber, and diminishes toward the muzzle end.

Jan 1, 1917

By Fulton B. Flick

The micrography and macrography of aluminum and its alloys present certain difficulties. Many of the difficulties attendant on the micrography have been removed by methods developed during the past few years, notably those of E. H. Dix, Jr.1 The development of grain size in aluminum and its alloys may be equally troublesome, yet comparatively little detailed attention appears to have been given to it. Satisfactory reagents are available for the development of such structurcs in ferrous and most non-ferrous metals, but those applied to aluminum and its alloys, i. e., alcoholic or aqueous solutions of sodium hydroxide or hydrofluoric acid are not entirely satisfactory. Hanson and Arch-butt,2 in speaking of these two reagents, state that "These two reagents give fairly satisfactory results, but they sometimes produce badly tarnished surfaces from which the surface deposit is difficult to remove." It has been our experience that neither of these reagents is to be entirely relied on for developing structures suitable for study or photography. This means that when the etch fails to produce satisfactory results the specimen must be repolished, through the 000-paper at least, and then etched with another reagent. This procedure entails a considerable loss of time, and the final results may not be all that might be desired. However, the reagent to be described, although not a panacea for all etching troubles, has improved results so markedly that it is felt that it & worth offering as a grain-size etch generally applicable to aluminum and aluminum alloys. Czochralski3 in 1915 mentioned the application of a solution of 10 to 20 c. c. concentrated hydrofluoric acid in 100 c. c. absolute alcohol, etching in this reagent being followed by dipping in concentrated hydrochloric acid soliltion.

Jan 1, 1925

By C. H. Green

Recently two papers on the structure of eutectics were read before thc British Institute of Metals, one by F. L. Bradyl and the other by A. Portevin. 2 In the preparation of photomicrographs of laboratory specimens as illustrations for student work, and in connection with various researches, the writer has been working along the same line for some time and, therefore, was much interested in the results given, especially those of Portevin. He has correlated the information on the subject and has outlined a broad scientific basis for future work along this line. It is largely with the idea of adding something by way of illustration to the work already done that this paper is written. The eutectic is generally understood to mean the alloy having the lowest melting point of any alloy of the system, and in which the melt becomes supersaturated with reference to the two or more phases which separate out simultaneously or alternately. From the surface pattern, the eutectic means a structure with no primary crystals. It is not always easy to get the exact eutectic composition in making any alloy; in fact, a slight range in composition may be expected and some of the coarser particles may be richer in either of the composing metals. Even when chemical analysis shows the right composition, differences in density of the pure metals may cause segregation, or supercooling resulting from different crystallizing properties may give a surface pattern the appearance of being on one side of the eutectic point. However, the alloys on either side of the eutectic composition, showing primary crystals of one of the phases and the effect of the proeutectic form on the surface pattern of the eutectic make a very interesting study, which is slightly touched upon in this paper. The phases, or microconstituents, of a eutectic may be pure metals (Pb-Sb, Tl-Au), solid solutions (Cd-Zn), a pure metal and a solid solution (Ag-Sn), or a pure metal or solid solution with an intermetallic compound (Sb-Mg, Sb-Cu, As-Cu, Bi-Te, etc.).

Jan 1, 1925

By Dorsey Hager

The information given in the accompanying table is submitted as evidence confirming the application of the anticlinal theory and the value of geology in the Kansas and Oklahoma oil fields. The term anticline has been used to define a particular type of arched fold. The anticlinal theory of oil accumulation should, however, be broadened to include any structural fold of an arched type even if not a distinct anticline. A terrace may very properly come under the heading of the anticlinal theory of accumulation, as the folding is closely related to that of the anticline; in fact, in many cases is an arrested anticline, though not completely closed in all directions. Stratigraphic forms due to lensing or irregular cementation of the sands certainly cannot be considered to fall within the anticlinal theory, though the laws of accumulation may be similar. A dome is similar to an anticline and belongs to the same class. A dome is broader in proportion to its length than an anticline. Many anticlines undulate along their axes to form domes. The anticlinal theory in this discussion will then be applied to anticlines, domes and terraces. In the following list, the writer has tabulated the main oil fields of Oklahoma, and a few recently discovered fields in Kansas. The fields discovered within the past 4 years are listed with the date of their discovery. Under "How found," the writer puts "Wildcat" where a geologist has not been employed, "Geology" where it has been used, and "7" where there is doubt. In some places the geologists have claimed pools that may rightly belong to them, but their claims have been questioned, so that they belong in an unsettled category. Unless one has mapped all the old pools, it is not possible to say just how far they are dominated by structure, but from our own work, and from discussions with others, it is safe to venture that nearly all the "shallow-pool" districts, Nowata, Bartlesville, and the Eastern Osage, are controlled by structure; domes, noses, and terraces are the main structural features. The "shallow pools" of Kansas show the same relation. At Peru and at Sedan, domes are evident, though gas occurs high on the domes, and oil well down the flanks, leading some to believe

Jan 1, 1917

By J. J. Rutledge

On Sept. 4, 1914, Mine No. 1 of the Union Coal Co., Adamson, Oklahoma, suddenly caved, entombing thirteen miners whose bodies were never recovered. The seam of coal mined, the Lower Hartshorne, averaged 5 ft. in thickness and dipped at an angle varying from 22" to 30n. The strata overlying the coal seam were sandstones and shales. The mine was worked by the pillar-and-room method, the rooms being driven directly up the dip of the seam. All coal was blasted off the solid. Rooms were turned on short centers and room pillars were thin and irregular, as shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a cross-section of the form; showing the mine workings. Some cracks had been observed on the surface, it is said, at least a month before the squeeze occurred, but the collapse of the mine workings came very suddenly. As is usual when squeezes occur on such steep dips and the pillars fail, the crush progressed rapidly down the dip until it reached solid coal; there was a line of break, or draw, over in the solid coal. Several well-defined cracks appeared on the surface, after the mine had squeezed, but there was no appreciable subsidence of the surface, the weight seemed to be thrown entirely to the dip. About one year after the squeeze, and after the workings of the adjoining mine, NO. 4, had been retimbered and made safe, the writer inspected the tenth north (right) entry, or lift, off of No. 4 slope, which was below and fairly near the lowest caved portion of mine No. 1. The roof shale was composed of thin layers, which had been bent in somewhat the same manner as the leaves of a book having flexible covers are bent when the book is folded or rolled up in the hands. Though the mine workings are immediately beneath the streets and buildings of the mining town of Adamson, business was not disturbed by the squeeze, so far as any subsidence of the surface was concerned. No surface monuments were available and no elevations were taken, but the mine workings had been accurately surveyed and traversed, and the streets of the town overlying the mine workings had been carefully platted on the mine map, so that it was possible to locate accurately the cracks on the surface.

Jan 1, 1923

By J. J. Rutledge

On Sept. 4, 1914, Mine No. 1 of the Union Coal Co., Adamson, Oklahoma, suddenly caved, entombing thirteen miners whose bodies were never recovered. The seam of coal mined, the Lower Hartshorne, averaged 5 ft. in thickness and dipped at an angle varying from 22" to 30n. The strata overlying the coal seam were sandstones and shales. The mine was worked by the pillar-and-room method, the rooms being driven directly up the dip of the seam. All coal was blasted off the solid. Rooms were turned on short centers and room pillars were thin and irregular, as shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a cross-section of the form; showing the mine workings. Some cracks had been observed on the surface, it is said, at least a month before the squeeze occurred, but the collapse of the mine workings came very suddenly. As is usual when squeezes occur on such steep dips and the pillars fail, the crush progressed rapidly down the dip until it reached solid coal; there was a line of break, or draw, over in the solid coal. Several well-defined cracks appeared on the surface, after the mine had squeezed, but there was no appreciable subsidence of the surface, the weight seemed to be thrown entirely to the dip. About one year after the squeeze, and after the workings of the adjoining mine, NO. 4, had been retimbered and made safe, the writer inspected the tenth north (right) entry, or lift, off of No. 4 slope, which was below and fairly near the lowest caved portion of mine No. 1. The roof shale was composed of thin layers, which had been bent in somewhat the same manner as the leaves of a book having flexible covers are bent when the book is folded or rolled up in the hands. Though the mine workings are immediately beneath the streets and buildings of the mining town of Adamson, business was not disturbed by the squeeze, so far as any subsidence of the surface was concerned. No surface monuments were available and no elevations were taken, but the mine workings had been accurately surveyed and traversed, and the streets of the town overlying the mine workings had been carefully platted on the mine map, so that it was possible to locate accurately the cracks on the surface.

Jan 1, 1923

By Boyd Dudley, R. H. Richards

In nearly all ore-dressing operations it is a common practice to discharge mixtures of fine ore and water through spigots; for example, from classifier pockets, from jig hutches, from settling tanks, etc. As a general rule it is desirable to regulate the composition, i.e., the ratio of water to sand, of such discharged products; and this can usually be done by varying the size of the orifice or spigot through which the material is discharged. Thus it is that problems similar to the following are frequently encountered: With a given quantity of solids per unit time, of a given specific gravity, to be discharged with water under a given head, and with a given ratio of water to solid, what must be the size of the spigot opening? If the spigot is to be open continuously, there are, aside from its form, but three factors governing the rate at which it will discharge a mixture of sand and water, namely: the head of water above the spigot; the area of the spigot opening; and the viscosity of the material to be discharged. The term viscosity, as used here, means the ratio of the volume of pure water that will flow through a given orifice under a given head in a given time to the volume of the material under consideration that will flow through the same orifice in the same time under the same conditions. While the actual viscosity of water containing sand in suspension is not increased by the presence of the sand, nevertheless the volume-rate at which such a mixture will flow through an orifice is less than that at which pure water will flow, by reason of the friction of the particles of sand against each other and against the sides of the orifice. In other words, the flow is retarded as it would be by increased viscosity; and therefore, for the purpose in view, we may speak of the viscosity of a mixture of ore grains and water as defined above. The head of water above the spigot is generally fixed by the form and design of the classifier or tank to which the spigot is attached. So, with the head known, in order to determine the size of the spigot required it is necessary to know the viscosity of the desired mixture, and the coefficient of discharge of

Jan 1, 1915

By Leon McCulloch

WIIen clean iron and metallic zinc dust, protected from the air, arc heated below the melting point of zinc, the iron takes on a coating that has excellent protective value. This coating is a brittle alloy of zinc and iron, and the process is called sherardizing. Although the zinc particlcs are covered with oxide and cannot touch the iron, an extremcly small amount of the zinc vaporizes and the vapor, reaching the iron, alloys with it. Other zinc then vaporizes to replace that which has been removed from the atmosphere. This process continues indefinitely at a decreasing rate, for the coating already formed permits zinc to diffuse through it to combine with the iron beneath. In this way, the coating grows outward from the surface of the iron, as the bark grows from a tree. The method of growth was clcarly seen while sherardizing small cubes of cast iron, at about 450" C., in a srnall glass-stoppcrcd bottle enclosed in a rotating drum. The dust contained about 3 per cent. iron, which prevented caking, and coatings % in. thick were grown in a few hours. After a heavy layer had been formed, the cubes mere again treated for a shorter time. The layer last formed was seen to lie next to the iron, instead of at the outer surface, showing that the growth was from the surface of the iron outward. The coatings split at the edges and corners, leaving the iron exposed there. Flakes of graphite from the iron were lifted upward and embedded in the coatings. The composition of sherardized coatings varies from the outer surface inward, as would be expected from the mode of growth. That is, the iron content increases slowly at first, then more rapidly as the iron is approached. At the surface the least amount of iron possible is 6 per cent., as the experiments described below have shown. A study was made of the effect of iron in zinc dust on the proccss and on the resulting coatings. Glass bulbs, holding the small pieces to be sherardized, together with enough zinc dust to make them two-thirds full, were heated in a small, rotating electrically heated and controlled furnacc. The bulbs had 6-in. (15 cm.) necks, of 96-in. (9.Fj mm.) tubing, plugged

Jan 1, 1923

By Leon McCulloch

WIIen clean iron and metallic zinc dust, protected from the air, arc heated below the melting point of zinc, the iron takes on a coating that has excellent protective value. This coating is a brittle alloy of zinc and iron, and the process is called sherardizing. Although the zinc particlcs are covered with oxide and cannot touch the iron, an extremcly small amount of the zinc vaporizes and the vapor, reaching the iron, alloys with it. Other zinc then vaporizes to replace that which has been removed from the atmosphere. This process continues indefinitely at a decreasing rate, for the coating already formed permits zinc to diffuse through it to combine with the iron beneath. In this way, the coating grows outward from the surface of the iron, as the bark grows from a tree. The method of growth was clcarly seen while sherardizing small cubes of cast iron, at about 450" C., in a srnall glass-stoppcrcd bottle enclosed in a rotating drum. The dust contained about 3 per cent. iron, which prevented caking, and coatings % in. thick were grown in a few hours. After a heavy layer had been formed, the cubes mere again treated for a shorter time. The layer last formed was seen to lie next to the iron, instead of at the outer surface, showing that the growth was from the surface of the iron outward. The coatings split at the edges and corners, leaving the iron exposed there. Flakes of graphite from the iron were lifted upward and embedded in the coatings. The composition of sherardized coatings varies from the outer surface inward, as would be expected from the mode of growth. That is, the iron content increases slowly at first, then more rapidly as the iron is approached. At the surface the least amount of iron possible is 6 per cent., as the experiments described below have shown. A study was made of the effect of iron in zinc dust on the proccss and on the resulting coatings. Glass bulbs, holding the small pieces to be sherardized, together with enough zinc dust to make them two-thirds full, were heated in a small, rotating electrically heated and controlled furnacc. The bulbs had 6-in. (15 cm.) necks, of 96-in. (9.Fj mm.) tubing, plugged

Jan 1, 1923

By A. Werenfels

No PETROLEUM, in commercial quantities, is found in France except the small production of the Pechelbronn field (Fig. 1) in Alsace, which produced 75,000 tons in 1923; therefore the test of the petroleum prospects of the Limagne is most interesting. Under the superintendence of M. Termier, chief engineer of the French mines, a well near Crouelle (Fig. 2) was drilled in 1921 to a depth of 856.3 m. (2808 ft.); at different depths favorable showings were encountered. The well, however, was abandoned because of drilling difficulties. A second one is now being drilled near the same place.

Jan 1, 1925

By Edmund C. Perhin

At the suggestion of some members of the Institute, attention is called to the record of the working of Dunbar Furnace during the twelve months ending in Jaunary, 1874. During this period, with a product of over eleven thousand gross tons, not a single ton of

By Zay Jeffries

This paper will include a brief discussion of Prof. Howe's paper on The Supposed Reversal of Inheritance of Ferrite Grain Size from that of Austenite.l The general subject of grain refining in steel and iron will also be treated. The conclusions reached are stated in the following hypotheses which are discussed more in detail below. 1. The ferrite grain size in pure iron, the ferrite and pearlite grain size in hypoeutectoid steel, the pearlite grain size in eutectoid steel and the cementite and pearlite grain size of hypereutectoid steel are not inherited from the grain size of the mother austenite. 2. The only structural feature that is generally inherited from the austenite of hypo- and hypereutectoid steels on cooling through their transformation ranges is the position of the excess ferrite or cementite at the austenite grain boundaries, sometimes causing complete and sometimes incomplete networks which outline the old austenite grain boundaries. Rapid cooling through the transformation range will cause the non-inheritance of this structural (network) feature. 3. The austenite grain boundaries themselves are nearly always effaced in all steels and also in pure iron during the At transformations. 4. The grain-size refining of steel and iron is brought about by the combined effect of non-inheritance of the transformation products on either heating or cooling, i.e., the austenite transformation products do cst inherit their grain size from the austenite on cooling through the transformation range nor does austenite inherit its grain size from the products which form austenite on heating. 5. In general, in both iron and carbon steel the larger the austenite grain size, the larger will be the grain size of the transformation products on cooling. This, of course, assumes all other conditions constant except the austenite grain size. An exception is found to this general rule in very pure iron such as electrolytic iron. In this instance small austenite grains may form very large ferrite grains on cooling through Arg.

Jan 1, 1918

By A. L. Field, P. H. Royster

The first report on the slag viscosity work of the Bureau of Mines was made by one of the authors1 in 1916. It was concerned chiefly with the method of measurement. A paper2 on this phase of the work was presented to the Institute in February, 1917, and a similar paper3 was communicated to the Faraday Society. PuRpose and Scope of the Slag Viscosity Tables Following the development of a suitable method, the next step in the investigation was the measurement of slag viscosity over a wide range of temperature and composition, and the arrangement of this experimental data in the form of tables for the use of the blast-furnace operator. It is believed that this information, if used intelligently, should help the operator to reduce losses in production caused by off-grade pig iron, to improve fuel economy, to promote operating efficiency, and to extend present-day practice to meet the increasing need of smelting lean and complex ores. In the experimental part of the work it was carly, observed that the temperature-viscosity relations of a slag were determined, for practical purposes, by the relative proportions of the three major constituents, lime (CaO), alumina (Al2O3), and silica (SiO2), provided the percentage

Jan 1, 1918

By S. W. Miller

During the examination of welds made in steel by the oxy-acetylene and electric-arc processes, the writer has met with some unusual structures, which he has not encountered elsewhere. They seem to be quite closely associated with the welding methods used, and characteristic of them, and would seem to be worth noting, especially as the references to them in the literature are few, and their explanation not clear or complete. An introductory word or two about fusion welding may not be out of place. The oxy-acetylene process is based on the great and very local heat generated by the burning of acetylene in the presence of commercially pure oxygen, the two gases being thoroughly mixed before combustion. The theoretical temperature is somewhat under 4000" C, but on account of various losses, the actual maximum temperature is probably about 3000" C.' The electric-arc process, using a metal electrode, which is also the filling rod, generates a still higher and more local temperature. The actual temperature of the positive crater of the carbon arc is given as 3500" C.2 NO figures have been found for the temperature of the arc using a metal electrode, but it would probably not be very different from that of the carbon arc, and probably higher than that of the bxy-acetylene flame. The greater localization of the electric arc is due to the fact that it is not surrounded by a large envelope flame, as well as to its higher temperature; while the oxy-acetylene white cone, or welding flame, in which the carbon of the acetylene is burned to CO, is surrounded and preceded by a long envelope flame, itself of quite high temperature, in which the CO is burned to GO2, and the hydrogen of the acetylene to H2O. This flame spreads around and over the pieces being welded, heating them to a further distance from the weld than does the electric arc.

Jan 1, 1918

By A. L. Field, P. H. Royster

Bureau of Mines Technical Paper 189 consists of a record of the scientific data obtained in the iron blast-furnace slag investigation which is reported in Technical Paper 187, "Slag Viscosity Tables for Blastfurnace Work." It includes a description of the method of preparing the synthetic melts, construction of an improved electric furnace, and refinements in laboratory methods of measurement. Only the general features of the work and the conclusions drawn from the experimental data can be given attention here. Silicates in the Liquid State In the manufacture of refractories, Portland cement, glass, and porcelain, and in pyrometallurgical operations, importance attaches to the behavior of-silicate compounds at temperatures beyond the range of common experience. This field of research has not been investigated as carefully as its scientific and industrial importance would seem to warrant. Probably the most important of the unsolved problems in the chernistry of silicates is the question of their stability in the liquid state. That little progress toward the solution of this problem has been made is not strange if there be borne in mind the difficulties attending experiments made at temperatures at which silicates become fluid, and the comparatively short time since it became possible to measure these temperatures. On the other 'hand, considerable progress has been made in the study of the compounds in the solid state because of the directness and simplicity of methods of optical examination. Important advances have been made by the Geophysical Laboratory at Washington in recent years. An extended study has been made there of saturated solutions representing a considerable number of binary and ternary systems of the more common refractory oxides. The methods

Jan 1, 1918

By Arch. B. Johnston, Carle R. Hayward

The effect of copper on steel has been studied by numerous investigators. Before modern testing methods had been developed, blacksmiths noted red shortness in iron, the cause for which was ascribed to the presence of copper. Numerous papers have been published on the corrosion of steels containing various amounts of copper, and a few writers have discussed the effect of copper on the mechanical properties of steel. The purpose of the investigation described in the following paper was to obtain additional data on the mechanical properties of medium-carbon steel containing small quantities of copper. Among those who have published results of mechanical tests on copper steels are Ball,' who states that copper increases the tensile strength and hardness but lowers the elongation. Stead2 states that copper steels closely resemble nickel steels containing equivalent percentages of nickel, as regards tensile strength, resistance to shock, corrosion and hardness. Wigham3 found that copper in small amounts had no injurious effect on steel. Breui14 found that with 1 per cent. carbon, copper lessened the brittleness of steel and in low-carbon steel it increased the tensile strength and lowered the ductility slightly. H. H. Campbell5 states that copper up to 0.25 per cent. slightly raises the elastic limit, elongation and reduction of area.

Jan 1, 1918