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By Warren E. Wilson

The transportation of solids in pipe lines is a matter of deep concern in many fields of engineering. Much experimental and theoretical work has been done in an effort to devise means of designing pipe lines that will satisfactorily transport given solid loads, but there remain many unanswered questions in this field. The present discussion will be confined to a rather narrow portion of this field and will endeavor to point out certain factors that may well be considered when comparing the relative economy of various installations. The data have been presented previously but a new interpretation was prompted by a suggestion in a paper by Professor O'Brien,1 of the University of California, that the friction work per pound of dry material should be considered in determining the relative efficiency of various installations. This method of considering relative economy in various pipe lines leads to some rather unexpected conclusions, especially with reference to the economy of large pipe sizes. A previous suggestion by the writer3 concerning the economy of a rather peculiar type of installation is strengthened. It is not believed that the considerations set forth herein apply directly in the case of dredge lines, where economy is largely a matter of a high rate of pumping in order to reduce the unit overhead charge. However, it is believed that some value may be gained from these considerations in cases involving the disposal of a fixed amount of solids per unit time with a minimum expenditure of energy and at a low cost for replacement of worn pipes. Such situations are not uncommon in the disposal of mill tailings and the disposal of solids deposited from irrigation waters. It was found that data leading to general conclusions for various pipe sizes were not available but certain definite trends are indicated and methods of analyzing available data are presented in the hope that they may be of assistance in preparing engineering estimates on designs of pipe lines of the type described above. Energy Requirements Carrying out the idea contained in ' Professor O'Brien's paper concerning the method of computing energy required to transport solids, the following analysis leads to some rather interesting conclusions. Let us represent: Solids load in term of mass per unit time by W Ratio of mass of suspended solids to total mass of mixture flowing by p Volume rate of flow of mixture by Q Length of pipe by L slope of energy grade line by s Mass per unit volume of solids by m. Mass Per unit volume of liquid by mi Mass per unit volume of mixture by mm We then have as an expression for the solids load: W = pQmm The work done per unit mass, P, on the mixture to move it along the pipe the

Jan 1, 1948

By Warren E. Wilson

The transportation of solids in pipe lines is a matter of deep concern in many fields of engineering. Much experimental and theoretical work has been done in an effort to devise means of designing pipe lines that will satisfactorily transport given solid loads, but there remain many unanswered questions in this field. The present discussion will be confined to a rather narrow portion of this field and will endeavor to point out certain factors that may well be considered when comparing the relative economy of various installations. The data have been presented previously but a new interpretation was prompted by a suggestion in a paper by Professor O'Brien,1 of the University of California, that the friction work per pound of dry material should be considered in determining the relative efficiency of various installations. This method of considering relative economy in various pipe lines leads to some rather unexpected conclusions, especially with reference to the economy of large pipe sizes. A previous suggestion by the writer3 concerning the economy of a rather peculiar type of installation is strengthened. It is not believed that the considerations set forth herein apply directly in the case of dredge lines, where economy is largely a matter of a high rate of pumping in order to reduce the unit overhead charge. However, it is believed that some value may be gained from these considerations in cases involving the disposal of a fixed amount of solids per unit time with a minimum expenditure of energy and at a low cost for replacement of worn pipes. Such situations are not uncommon in the disposal of mill tailings and the disposal of solids deposited from irrigation waters. It was found that data leading to general conclusions for various pipe sizes were not available but certain definite trends are indicated and methods of analyzing available data are presented in the hope that they may be of assistance in preparing engineering estimates on designs of pipe lines of the type described above. Energy Requirements Carrying out the idea contained in ' Professor O'Brien's paper concerning the method of computing energy required to transport solids, the following analysis leads to some rather interesting conclusions. Let us represent: Solids load in term of mass per unit time by W Ratio of mass of suspended solids to total mass of mixture flowing by p Volume rate of flow of mixture by Q Length of pipe by L slope of energy grade line by s Mass per unit volume of solids by m. Mass Per unit volume of liquid by mi Mass per unit volume of mixture by mm We then have as an expression for the solids load: W = pQmm The work done per unit mass, P, on the mixture to move it along the pipe the

Jan 1, 1948

By L. G. Schulz

THE possibility of using reflected X-rays to produce images of crystals was explored by Barrettl who developed simple experimental procedures for X-ray microscopy and who showed by numerous examples the great range of information that could be made available. In his method characteris radiation is used to produce an image of a limited area of the sample on fine-grained film, this image subsequently being enlarged approximately X100. A somewhat different method will be described here;' white radiation from a fine-focus X-ray tube-"' is used to produce an image of a relatively large area of a single-crystal surface. part of the sample; therefore, white radiation is needed. The resolution in the image formed on the photographic film will depend on the size of the focal spot of the X-ray tube. If the sample is made

Jan 1, 1955

By Fredrick C. Kruger

Anthropological diggings have revealed that the American Indians carried on intertribal trade in flint, obsidian, ochre, and other mineral commodities, indicating that mining was practiced before the arrival of the white man from Europe Carbon datings from the native copper pits on Isle Royal and Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan, have yielded dates as early as 5555 BC for this mining. As early as Pliocene time, Eolithic-man fashioned artifacts of stones probably found on the surface, but by late Quaternary, Neolithic man was sinking shafts and mining underground for flint. Because placer gold was easily recognized and easily worked, it was used for ornamental purposes by nearly all cultures before other metals were discovered The Chaldeans hammered copper objects approximately 4500 BC and copper was used in India and China about 3000 BC. An ancient trail from the Nile to the Sinai led to the mines of copper and turquoise Paintings and bas-reliefs of Egyptian tombs dating around 3000 BC depict maps, mining, and smelting in this area. It is interesting that despite this widespread and long history of mining, Agricola records that the first mining laws were developed by the Greeks at Laurium about 700 BC. All of the base metals are known to have been produced in small quantities during the Colonial period in America, but perhaps the first commercial production was the iron ore shipped from Virginia to England in 1608, followed by lead in 1621. Among the earliest companies formed in America that still survive (according to the standard reference yearbooks), were: the Jackson Mining Co., predecessor of Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co. on the Marquette Range, Michigan, in 1844; the Sussex Zinc and Copper Mining & Manufacturing Co., fore-runner of New Jersey Zinc Co. in 1848 (although the Franklin-Sterling body was discovered in 1640); the five companies, Pittsburg and Boston, Quincy Mining, Pewabic, Huron Mining, and Minesota all formed in the decade (1844-1855) that followed the rediscovery of Keweenaw copper, were combined into Calumet and Hecla; and Vermont Copper Mining Co. in 1853 Although southeast Wisconsin lead-zinc was discovered in 1690, Mine La Motte in southeast Missouri in 1720, placer gold in California in 1848, Comstock Lode in 1859, Leadville in 1860, Cripple Creek in 1891, no surviving companies of those early mining periods exist. The first strong producer in the Mississippi Valley was St. Joseph Lead in 1864; Homestake and Pickands-Mather, were formed in 1877, Phelps-Dodge in 1881; Pittsburgh Reduction, the predecessor of Al-

Jan 1, 1976

By Victor O. Homerberg, Dexter N. Shaw

A study of the correlation of the mechanical properties and of the microstructure with the heat treatment of 60-40 brass has been confined, heretofore, to the rolled or extruded material as received from the mannfacturer. The results obtained by Babson and Buhler,' Bengough and Hudson12 Stead and Stedman,3 and Brayton4 have been confined to the treatment of the material as received. No attempt was made to get the material into a given condition and then to work from this basis. To start with a given structure would have the decided advantage of making the work independent of the original condition, hence, to make the results reproduceable. In a previous paper, it was shown, in connection with the study of the transformation that occurs at about 470" C., that if specimens were quenched to produce the beta structure and then reheated, the beta would begin to break down, at approximately 200" C., into a very finely divided alpha. It was predicted that important results might be obtained if test pieces were to be given a similar double heat treatment and then tested for the mechanical properties as well as a study of the microstructure. The material used in the present investigation was a 3/4-in. round bar of extruded muntz metal of the following composition: Copper, 61.05 per cent.; zinc (by difference), 38.90 per cent.; lead, 0.05 per cent.; iron, trace; tin, nil.

Jan 1, 1924

The Students' Organization of the Michigan College of Mines was recognized as an Affiliated Student Society by the Board of Directors of the Institute, at a meeting held on April 28, 1916. At the College of Mines, University of Washington, 30 students and instructors took part in the annual spring excursion early in April. Studies were made of the new reverberatory and casting furnaces at the Tacoma smelter, the Du Pont powder works located on Puget Sound and the Britannia Mining and Smelting Company's mine and mills on Howe Sound, near Vancouver, B.C. The Britannia mills are using Hancock jigs, Burchart tables and Minerals Separation flotation cells to effect a high recovery on low-grade chalcopyrite ore. The Mining Club, University of. Wisconsin, elected the following officers for the second semester of the present school year: J. G. SKIRM, President, H. L. RAU, Vice President, T. C. SHERWOOD, JR., Secretary-Treasurer, H. E. HODGSON, Mucker, , F. M. WOLVERTON, Assistant Mucker. Theo. C. SHERWOOD, Jr., Secretary.

Jan 6, 1916

Experiments on the Rate of Heat Transfer from a Hot Gas' to a Cooler Metallic Surface Members of the American Institute of Mining Engineers will be much interested in the subject of teat transfer from a hot gas to a cooler metallic surface, and although the book on this subject recently published by the Babcock & Wilcox Co., of New York, deals primarily with boilers, it contains a great deal of information which metallurgical engineers will find of great value. The book starts out with an introduction giving some of the current theories regarding this subject; it then describes in detail the experimental apparatus used, and the methods of conducting the experiment's and recording the data. Then follow some account of the determination of radiation losses in jackets and cooler; measurement of metal temperatures; detection and correction of errors; etc., concluding with a discussion of the results and derivation of corrective formula for heat absorption; heat pressure rate and specific heat of gas.

Jan 5, 1916

By W. F. White, W. R. Beloff, B. C. Dorwart, G. W. Jaworski

INTRODUCTION The rigid inclusion stressmeter is a relatively low-cost instrument developed by Hawkes and Bailey (1973) and was originally intended to monitor stress changes in mine pillars subjected to uniaxial stress changes. In this regard, this instrument has found considerable use by the mining industry. More recently, there have been attempts to use the stressmeter for determination of more general changes of the in situ rock stress. This paper reports on a study to characterize the performance of the rigid inclusion stressmeter for this application and presents results on the effect of anisotropic stress changes. These stress changes must be accounted for to properly analyze general changes of the in situ rock stress. BACKGROUND INFORMATION The rigid inclusion stressmeter is an instrument designed to measure variations of the in situ stress around a borehole. The stressmeter studied in this work, is manufactured by Irad Gage, Div. Creare Products, Inc. Lebanon, New Hampshire. It consists of a stiff hollow steel gage body that is preloaded across a borehole diameter. The preloading is activated by sliding a wedge between an upper platen and the gage body. Changes in the in situ stress result in slight deformations of the gage body. These deformations affect the stress in a highly tensioned wire that

Jan 1, 1982

AS I told you before in the treatise on ores, once these are found (whether they are ores of metals or semiminerals) it is necessary to assay them in order to know what is in them, since the judgment of the sight is not sufficient for recognizing the quantity or even what substance they contain. For this reason, it is necessary to come to assaying and, with the knowledge of experience, to weigh their virtues and to proceed with the work or withdraw from it and its expense; and also through knowledge to make provision for their defects if some evilness harms the ores. For if you should have need of a thing that would help them and should not find it, all that you have done would be lost; and, on the other hand, if you should find that the ores are abundant and rich and easy to smelt, you take courage to continue without respect for anything. Therefore, in the following book I shall tell you first in general how the assay of all the metals should be made. I shall enlarge in particular on silver more than on any of the others since it is more important. Then I shall tell you how the ores should be prepared for smelting and also how blast furnaces and other furnaces for smelting such ores should be constructed, and finally how all elemental mixtures of metals are to be separated one from the other with the ability and power of art, and how they are reduced to their final perfection and fineness according to their species.

Jan 1, 1942

By William Schriever

The flow of a gas-free liquid through a spherical-grain sand has been investigated by S1ichter.l By theoretical considerations involving a rather large number of approximations he arrives at the following flow-formula: V = CPd2At NLB{1 - m) where V is the volume of liquid delivered in time t through a cylindrical column of sand of length L and cross-sectional area A by a pressure-drop P when the sand grains of diameter d are packed to a porosity m and the coefficient of viscosity of the liquid is n. C and B are constants which were determined from geometrical relations; B was in reality a function of . Values of B(l — m) for various values of m were given in a table. In the same Annual Report of the U. S. Geological Survey, King reported the results of his experiments on the flow of water through porous media. He found that there was a departure of about 86 per cent. from a linear relationship between rate of flow and pressure, for a specimen of Dunnville sandstone for pressure drops not exceeding 60 cm. of mercury. The specimen was approximately 4 cm. in diameter and 5.1 cm. in length. Over the same range of pressure he found a departure of 45 per cent. for a specimen of Madison sandstone. For unconsolidated sands he found departures as great as 49 per cent. for pressure drops of 70 cm. of mercury; for pressure drops not exceeding a few inches of water he obtained a close approximation to a linear relation. He also investi-

Jan 1, 1930

By A. M. Tweedy, Felix A. Vogel

Since the publication of Prof. J. W. Richards's paper on The Schumacher Briquetting Process,' this process has been in operation on a practical scale in two plants in the United States, and a few notes on the results obtained may be of interest. An experimental plant, consisting of a toggle press and a hydraulic press, was installed at Johnstown, Pa., together with the necessary bins and other equipment, and an attempt was made to briquette a mixture of Mahoning fines and blast-furnace flue dust, in a ratio of 7 parts of ore to 3 parts of dust. The results were unsatisfactory, in that the briquettes made were not hard enough to stand the severe handling to which they were subjected in the various transferences necessary between the press and the furnace. The trouble was due to several causes: First, the mechanical arrangement of the plant, which did not lend itself to a proper hardening and loading of the briquettes into the cars. Second, the irrrgular composition of the flue dust, as to both its lime and its fine coke contents. Third, the variability of the moisture content of the ore, and its viscosity when wet. Fourth, the ratio of fine ore to flue dust; that is, it was attempted to bind in too large a quantity of fine ore for the small amount of flue dust used. The first trouble could be overcome, and has been improved upon in the plant as it stands to-day. The second trouble was important, because of the small amount of dust used as a binder, and might have been easily removed by mixing the flue dust of the different furnaces, which, however, was never done. The third difficulty was more serious, but could have been partly solved, had it been possible to meet this along with the fourth difficulty, by decreasing the percentage of ore in the briquettes. It was proposed to do this, but it seems that the problem at the works in question is, primarily, to prepare Mahoning fines for reduction in the blast furnace, and only secondarily to use up the flue dust, and a solution along this line did not seem to be interesting.

Jan 1, 1914

Samuel T. Wellman, Cleveland pioneer steel man, who was often referred to as the "father of the open-hearth process of the United States," died suddenly on July 11, 1919, of heart disease, at Stratton, Me. For more than half a century, he was closely identified with the improvement of equipment used in the making of steel and contributed a number of inventions that virtually revolutionized the industry. Mr. Wellman was born Feb. 5, 1847, at Wareham, Mass., his father at the time being superintendent of the Nashua Iron Co., Nashua, N. H. After attending public school and a year at Norwich University, he served in the Civil War as a corporal of the first New Hampshire Heavy Artillery. He went to Pittsburgh in 1867 and assisted in starting the first crucible steel melting furnace built in America at the works of Anderson, Cook & Co. It melted a ton of steel with an average of 1000 Ib. of nut coal, which cost less than $1, while the melting of a ton of steel in crucibles in the old fashioned coke furnace took three tons of the very best coke, costing from $2 to $3 per ton. This furnace was a great success and in a very few years had driven the coke furnace out of use. From Anderson, Cook & Co., Mr. Wellman went to the Singer, Nimick & Co. works, Pittsburgh, where he built two crucible steel melting furnaces of the same type. After that he spent some time in the office of the Siemens agents in Boston and also at steel works in different parts of the country, starting crucible steel furnaces. He then went to the Bay State Iron Works in South Boston, Mass., where he built the first open-hearth furnace that was a commercial success in the United States. It made steel of a much better quality than had previously been made in this country. The principal use to which it was put in those days was the manufacture of locomotive fire-boxes. From South Boston, he went hack to the old works in New Hampshire where his father was still superintendent, and built for it an open-hearth furnace, a plate mill, and a bar mill. In 1873, Mr. Wellman went to Cleveland to design and build the plant of the Otis Steel Co. He remained with this company for 16 years as engineer and superintendent. During this time he developed the open-hearth charging machine and introduced the electromagnet for handling pig iron and scrap steel. The first charging machine was operated by hydraulic power, and although it was not entirely satisfactory it performed the work fairly well and encouraged its inventor to build another one, which was driven by electric motors. This proved

Jan 1, 1920

By James E. York

At a meeting of the American Society for Testing Materials at Atlantic City, June, 1908, Dr. C. B. Dudley, in his presiden-tial address,' showed the vital necessity of not only making a steel rail as good as in the past, but of making it considerably better in order to meet the present and prospective requiremeuts of railroads. Doctor Dudley requested the co-operation of all who from personal experience could give information that would result in bringing about the production of a steel rail that could be relied upon to meet the present requirements. I have had considerable experience in the practical manufacture of steel of almost every grade, during the past 40 years, and I shall suggest changes that will bring about the results desired. Doctor Dudley has had a long experience as chemical and metallurgical expert for the Pennsylvania railroad, but he frankly admits that up to the present time both he and other metallurgical authorities lack the practical knowledge of steel-making that is necessary to state correctly the reasons for the unreliability of the steel rails now produced. The necessity is self-evident for more positive practical knowledge on the part of these experts of what is possible and what is impossible regarding the practical manufacturing of steel rails from the ingot to the finished product. Chemical knowledge in steel-making is far ill advance of what it was years ago, and might be said to cover every requirement (in that department) for producing reliable steel. The study of the metallography of steel has been of great value, also the physical testing of steel, but this knowledge will only de-

Jan 1, 1910

By S. E. Bretherton

Most metallurgists appreciate the great need of a process for the extraction and recovery of valuable metals from complex ore, where the presence of one metal increases the cost of extracting the other rnetals to such an extent that not any of the metals can be extracted at a profit. We need only refer to some of the mines in Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico, where oxidation has taken place and the sulphur, zinc, copper, and some of the iron and other metals have been leached out, large bodies of oxidized ore remaining, rich in lead, silver, and sometimes gold. These metals have been concentrated by the removal of the other metals, leaving a very desirable ore for treatment in the blast-furnace for the production of lead bullion, and recovery of the silver and gold. If lead is not present, the gold and silver metals are usually recovered by some method of milling, or the ore is shipped to a smelter, where it is mixed with lead ore or copper-iron sulphide ore from some other mine. In these same mines, when developed to greater depth below the leached or oxidized zone, the ore is found to contain the original mixture of sulphur, zinc, copper, etc., added to, or I should say left with, the lead, silver, and gold values; but instead of adding to the value of the ore, the presence of these elements, especially zinc, makes the copper, silver, and gold of less value, and often worthlees. Such was the experience of the oldest mines in Leadville,.Colo., until methods of mechanical separation of the lead from the zinc were developed sufficiently to allow of some profit by the making of a concentrate rich in zinc to be shipped to the zinc smelter, and sometimes a lead concentrate which could be shipped to the lead smelter; but even in these cases the waste of the different metals is a very serious matter. In the very best concentrating plants some zinc will be left in the lead concentrate, to be lost and to give considerable trouble in the lead-smelting furnace. On the other hand, some of the lead, with a large percentage of the copper and silver, will follow the zinc into the zinc concentrate, to be, perhaps, recovered by smelting the cinder or clinker left in the re-

Jan 1, 1915

By E. H. Roberts, L. G. Swenson, F. C. Nix, R. A. Morgen

The binary system lead-antimony has been the subject of comprehensive investigations in these laboratories by Dean1 and his associates. The effect of a third constituent on this system, particularly on the lead-rich alloys in which dispersion hardening was found, has a commercial value as well as an academic interest. This paper covers the effect of the addition of copper, bismuth and tin, all of which are likely to be found in commercial lead-antimony alloys, and is divided into three parts, as follows: I. The System Lead-A~ili~r~ony-Copper II. The System Lead-Antimony-Bismuth III. The Lead Corner of the System Lead-Antimony-Ti11 These three systerrls are of three different types, and hence may be considered as covering three general kinds of additions. Bismuth forms no compounds with either lead or antimony and forms solid solutions with both. Copper forms several compounds with antimony as well as solid solutions but with lead it forms a two liquid layer system and no appreciable solid solution. Tin is soluble in both lead and antimony in the solid state and also forms a compound with antimony. The effect of small amounts of bismuth on the lead-antimony alloys is small, having no appreciable effect on the solubility of antimony. The temperature of the solidus floor is lowered appreciably by the presence of bismuth, cutting down the range of heat treatment. Copper, on the other hand, due to compound formation, increases the apparent solubility of antimony. The excess antimony is tied up with the copper finally and so is not available for dispersion hardening. The net result of addition of small amounts of copper is to shift the dispersion hardening peak of the

By H. N. Kalia, J. B. Gresham

Several attempts have been made in the past 60 years to commercialize the vast oil shale deposits of the US. However, the industry has yet to become economically viable. To date, it has not been possible to produce oil from oil shales at a competitive price compared with oil produced by conventional methods. The development work, nevertheless, has been fruitful in furthering the art of thick bed mining and technology of in situ retorting. The in situ method has the potential of recovering oil from thick beds, and the resource recovery potential is much greater than that from underground mining and surface retorting. In situ methods require that the shales/marlstones be fragmented in place to induce adequate porosity and permeability to allow in situ heating of the fragmented shales. This can be accomplished by using explosives. However, it has been found that the existing blasting systems, though very efficient, have some drawbacks. The explosives become insensitive when shot in multiplevertical decks. They can also become insensitive when spaced horizontally at close proximity to other charges. Also, since the blasting is done in a very limited free face, the delay time that can be allowed between charges is also quite limited. Consequently, it is not always possible to routinely predict the performance of the blasting system. Furthermore, since it is not possible to undertake secondary blasting, it is imperative that the blast design function properly. Recent successful retorting by Occidental Petroleum Co. Of Retorts 7 and 8 suggests that some of these problems may have been overcome. This paper addresses some aspects of in situ retorting and problems that have impeded the development of a viable oil shale industry in the US.

Jan 1, 1986

By Grafton M. Thrasher

For the proper discussion of this subject it is necessary to incorporate in this paper the substance of part of an article published by me in Metallurgical and Chemical Engineering for January, 1915. Several years ago, while I was chief chemist for a malleable-iron company, it occurred to me that the mere regulation of silicon was not sufficient to produce the desired degree of chill. But only after repeatedly encountering this fact in both open-hearth and air-furnace, as well as cupola metal, was I led to regard variation in the total carbon as the principal cause of disturbance; and I resolved to determine the total carbon as well as the silicon in every heat, and by a carefully prepared test piece to gauge the approximate degree of chill. The test piece selected was a round plug, 2 in. in diameter and 12 in. long, cast on end

Jan 1, 1916

By K. P. Chong

Introduction One of the requirements of processing oil shale or other energy bearing rocks is to optimize particle sizes and permeability distributions in fragmentations as indicated by Hommert (1984). Basic to the understanding and planning of in situ fragmentation and ex situ mining of oil shale are the mechanical properties. During the past six years, an innovative and unique program was established by Chong et al. (1979, 1980a, 1980b, 1982a, 1982b) that developed an efficient methodology for standardized and simplified mechanical testing of the western oil shale. The experiments include precise, representative, and duplicable sample preparation; uniaxial static compression testing; "modified" split cylinder testing; uniaxial creep and relaxation testing under extended periods of time; dynamic testing with varying strain rates; and 3-D constitutive relationships. However, as far as the fracture mechanics is concerned, as Edl (1980) pointed out, there is still a lack of understanding "of the fundamental explosive rock breakage mechanisms," which "has necessitated extensive reliance on very costly empirical approaches." Fracture mechanics of rocks and oil shale (Costin, 1981; Schmidt, 1977; Abou-Sayed, 1977; and Barker, 1977) has been based on conventional fracture mechanics using regular notched samples with limited variations of oil yields and assuming the material to be isotropic and elastic (Kobayashi, 1975; Caddell, 1980). A cylindrical double cantilever beam (DCB) specimen with a "V" slot, known as a short rod specimen, has been used by Barker (1977) to determine fracture toughness of rock materials. The inherent geometric stability of the reinforced DCB specimen makes it suitable to be used with all brittle materials. Due to its remarkable stability for the initial crack growth, the DCB specimen can be used for dynamic fracture toughness testing as well. This specimen is more suitable for the evaluation of fracture toughness at high strain rates than most other fracture specimens. However, Barker's DCB specimen is not very well adaptable for short cores or layered rocks since the specimen contains numerous layers (say in a 100-mm (4-in.) long specimen), and the rock properties change from layer to layer. Schmidt (1977) studied the fracture mechanics of oil shale with two oil yields, using notched beams. Using several independent established testing methods, Costin (1981) pioneered the investigation of the static

Jan 1, 1986

J. B. Cohen (AVCO Mfg. Co.)-The model presented by the authors is only one of several possible mechanisms for low-temperature aging. It is true that the motion of dislocations to the copper atoms, followed by diffusion along the dislocation lines, is one such mechanism. However, the details of such a process which would :result in copper-rich platelets on (100) planes in the f.c.c. matrix are not clear. Furthermore, there is at least one other mechanism that may be used to e.xplain the authors' results, so that the data do not clearly favor the Turnbull model. The zones may form by "normal" diffusion. The diffusion constants would be higher at room temperature than extrapolated data would suggest due to vacancies trapped in the specimens in the quench. The diffusivity would then be multiplied by the ratio of the number of vacancies present at the solution temperature to that present at room temperature. These vacancies could remain in the alloy specimen for long times at room temerature, due to interaction with the copper atoms. ' The activation energy for diffusion is smaller than that for bulk diffusion at elevated temperatures for it is only that for the motion of vacancies existing after the quench; after these are used up, the aging process effectively ceases. It is somewhat questionable if the laws governing transformation kinetics can be directly applied to changes in elastic moduli, especially in the case of aging where the structure and the composition of the zones may be changing during aging, If such laws are assumed, it is possible to explain the exponential factor of % with this vacancy model. It is probable that the structure of the zones and the matrix match only on (100) planes. Certainly the precipitates that form in this system after various aging treatments show orientation relationships similar to those of the zones. Strains on the edges of the zone may set up fields which do not allow the zone to grow in an edgewise manner. The exponent in the growth of a thin plate in a direction perpendicular to its face would be %. It may also be that copper atoms are attracted to dislocations. If this is the rate-controllin factor in the growth process Ifthisthen an exponent of % or % may arise. The writer would like to know if the authors have tried plotting l/a; proportional to as might be expected for "dislocation drainage." R. H. Doremus (General Electric Research Laboratory)—An important new method for following the growth of Guinier-Preston zones is presented in this paper, and I wish to congratulate the authors on their experiments. Their interpretation of the results, however, is doubtful in certain respects. To determine the exponent m in Eq. [4] the authors plotted -log at against t to various powers (their Fig. 6). The initial value of frequency used for these plots was found by extrapolating the data to zero time. In Fig. A the data from their Fig. 2 are plotted against a linear, rather than logarithmic, time scale. To obtain graphs similar to their Fig. 6 for these data one must use an initial frequency of about 52720; such a plot for m = % is shown in Fig. B. The straight line in Fig. B fits the data in an intermediate range only. The curve drawn in Fig. A was mapped from this line; comparison of

Jan 1, 1960

By K. R. Waugh, Barbara S. Brown, D. W. James

AN electronic data-processing system is described which permits rapid, accurate, low-cost processing of strain-dependent damping data utilizing equipment normally available within the service facilities of most large laboratories. On analyzing the record of a stress-dependent damping test, the operator usually measures the double amplitudes at several points on the decay curve. The logarithmic decrement is then calculated for decay between consecutive amplitudes. These values of 6 are plotted against the corresponding maximum surface shear stress, T, which is proportional to the average of the two amplitudes between which is calculated: where d is the specimen diameter. The period of the vibration is not necessarily constant during decay; thus, each cycle must be counted. A decay curve may extend to, perhaps, 1000 cycles, and at least two curves are always obtained for each specimen or set of conditions. It can, therefore, be seen that manual analysis of decay curves is both tedious and costly in terms of man-hours. Furthermore, the resolution of the record is often such that accurate measurement of amplitude is extremely dif-

Jan 1, 1969