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By James Terry Duce

The symposium on production for the year 1941 contains few papers on the foreign situation. Rigid censorship prevails in various countries, as the question of the volume of petroleum supplies has become one of great strategic importance. This is even truer than in the last war, owing to greater mechanization of armies. It has always been the policy of officers in charge of the symposium to refrain from publishing information that might possibly injure national or private interests. At the close of the war we hope again to publish full and accurate records of production abroad. Excerpts from Circular to AutHORs In order to facilitate interpretation of the data in this chapter, we print the fol-lowing excerpts from the Circular to Authors. The field is the unit in this tabulation. In cases of fields extending across State boundaries, such as Rodessa, it is suggested that each State author treat the section of the field in his State as a unit, and by a footnote indicate that the field extends into an adjacent State. Each space in Table I may represent one of four possibilities; either it is not applicable to the particular field, or the proper entry is not determinable, or the proper entry may be determinable but is not determinable from data available to the author, or the proper entry is determinable. When spaces are not applicable, leave blank; in spaces where the proper entries are determinable but not de-terminable from data available to the author, please insert y; in spaces where the proper entries are determinable by the author, make such entries. y implies a hope that in some future year a definite figure will be available. The entry of a zero is a positive declaration, and an important declaration where it is in order. Inability to determine precisely the correct entry for a particular space should not lead the author to insert merely y. Contributions of great value may be made by the author in many cases where entries are not subject to precise determination. In such cases the author should use his good judgment and make the best entry possible under the circumstances. For many spaces the correct entries represent the opinion of the author (for example, "Area Proved") and in such cases the entry need not be hedged to such extent as when the quantities are definite yet can be ascertained only approximately by the author. In cases under definite headings but where figures are only approximate, the author may use x. It is thought that the nearest whole numbers are sufficiently accurate for our purposes except as to percentage of sulphur in oil. If an author desires to report any other figures to tenths, he may do so. The quantity of gas produced should include, where possible, gas sold or otherwise marketed, and gas blown into the air, burned as flares or otherwise wasted. Segregation of these figures would be interesting if the authors can make such segregation. In any event, the figures should represent as nearly as possible the total quantity of gas removed from the reservoir.. Under the columns on "Depth," the average depth to the top of the productive zones and to the bottom of the productive wells, when

Jan 1, 1942

By H. L. Gilbert, H. A. Johansen, R. G. Nelson

High purity electrolytic chromium plate has been hydrogen-reduced and arc-melted under inert atmosphere to give sound ingots. These ingots may be hot forged to break the as-cast structure and then worked at 500°C to finished form. An intermediate and final high temperature anneal gives best ductility and grain refinement. HE increasing interest in refractory metals for I use in high temperature gas turbines, jets, and rockets has led to great efforts in exploiting the fifth and sixth groups of transition elements. Much of the interest has centered upon production of metals that can be worked and fabricated by normal means to produce various engine parts or components having the high temperature characteristics of oxidation resistance and high creep strength required for such uses. If these pure elements do not exhibit all of the desired characteristics, it may be possible to obtain a high purity alloy that will. Since, in all cases, development of these transition elements has depended to a large extent upon removal of oxygen and nitrogen as a means for producing ductile metal, the hypothesis has been accepted that oxygen is the normal embrittling material in a high grade electrolytic chromium metal. Various methods have been employed in an effort to remove this oxygen by direct or indirect attack.' Many workers have endeavored to produce pure chromium through reduction of the oxide by carbon or active metals, while others have recommended fusion electrolysis of chromium salts or reduction of these salts by active metals, such as sodium or calcium. Hydrogen reduction of the oxide or chloride and thermal dissociation of the iodide have been reported to give high purity metal. Experimental Work The U. S. Bureau of Mines, Northwest Electro-development Laboratory, has systematically re-examined the more promising methods and developed two which produce metal having ductility at temperatures lower than heretofore described. It has been found' that oxide-free chromium chlorides in a NaCl-KCl carrier salt may be mag- nesium-reduced and the byproduct salts distilled off in vacuo to give a high purity chromium sponge. Fusion analysis conducted under the supervision of W. W. Horton of Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory showed the oxygen and nitrogen both to be below 10 parts per million on a selected sample. A small amount of carbon is carried over in the final metal from the chlorination and reduction steps which are carried out in graphite crucibles. This trace of carbon is not detrimental to hot ductility. A more practical method for producing ductile metal is through hydrogen reduction of high purity electrolytic chromium. Normal electrolytic chromium will, if "developed" for a few minutes at 1100°C in high vacuum, be found by the method of Adcock:; to contain about 1 pct chromium sesquioxide (Cr2O3). This small amount of oxygen may be effectively reduced by hydrogen.2, 4 The method employed was to crush electrolytic chromium plate in a gyratory crusher to pass 60-mesh; finer crushing appears to offer no advantage. A nitric acid leach removed the iron picked up during crushing. The leached powder was rinsed until neutral with distilled water and vacuum-dried.

Jan 1, 1954

By J. B. Morrow, D. H. Davis

THERE are two general approaches to the problem of increasing profits from an operation. One is to lower expense; the other is to raise income. Mechanical preparation of coal may be used for either purpose but a prudent consideration of many details must precede any decision lest the results be negative instead of positive. It is quite possible that any net gain will result from a combination of the two. Since mechanically prepared coal invariably is a better product qualitatively than a hand-picked coal from the same mine, it is a reasonable expectation that the customer will be willing to increase the producer's income by paying a higher price. Or there may be the possibility that a combination of mechanical mining plus mechanical cleaning will give a lower over-all production cost for the coal in the railroad car. More likely, there will be found a combination of these two factors. From the customer's point of view, the competitive delivered cost per B.t.u. considered in relation to such incidental factors as dust nuisance, handling properties, ash disposal, and ash fusibility determines what he will pay. In-a bulk tonnage such as coal, freight is a very considerable part of the delivered fuel cost, and obviously freight paid on incombustible ash has no economic attractions. INCENTIVE FOR CLEANING Coal is prepared in four major ways: l (1) by screening or sizing, (2) by mixing or blending, (3) by cleaning, including hand picking and mechanical cleaning, (4) by dustless treatment. By a combination of any or all of these methods, coal can be prepared to standard specifications. It is easily possible to have good cleaning and still get a poor final product because of faulty screening or mixing, while it is possible to produce a very acceptable product from mediocre cleaning if the coal is well screened and mixed.

Jan 1, 1950

By J. Lindbo, B. Vigeholm

IN transmission electron microscopy, specimen thicknesses quoted are frequently based upon either traditionally familiar values or a few evaluations representing the whole material. Taking aluminum in 100 kv TEM as an example, average and maximum values are widely accepted as being 2000 to 2500 and 6000 to 7OOOÅ, respectively. It is the purpose of this note to revise these figures and to point out the importance of evaluating individual specimens carefully. All evaluations have been based upon slip trace widths and lattice orientations as determined from diffraction patterns. In many cases where two or more slip systems have been operating the geometrical method described by Crocker and Bevis1 has been applied as a check. The foils were usually oriented to within 2 deg from the exact Bragg angle. Kikuchi patterns were used as indications of correct orientations but not applied in the evaluations. The tilt of the foil surface relative to the beam normal may with certain geometrical relations between the tilt axis and the operating slip plane lead to substantial errors.2'3 Where these geometries were inevitable the samples were omitted in the investigations. Various measures were taken in order to overcome ambiguities, e.g., comparison with neighboring grains, tilts, evaluations based upon two or three slip systems,' and comparison with extinction contour evaluations where s = 0 conditions were obtained. Errors caused by misinterpretation of the slip traces on a micrograph are easily avoided by considering the bright-dark sequence on opposite surfaces and by taking into account the tapering of the foil usually leading to a distinguishable divergence of the pair of traces. In the investigations described here the interpretation was further facilitated as the slip trace formation was observed on the microscope screen and sketches taken down. In a few observations slipping was so violent that the distinction of pairs was considered dubious and consequently given up. To assess average values, thickness evaluations carried out in two independent investigations were analyzed: I) 99.998 pct A1 extruded, cold-drawn, and recrys-tallized to grain sizes between 35 and 500 um were deformed in tension at room temperature. In order to determine the dislocation densities as a function of strain,4 specimens prepared by spark machining and electropolishing in a PTFE holder were analyzed in the electron microscope at 100 kv. Thicknesses were evaluated for 569 selected areas. Histogram I in Fig. 1 shows the results, the average thickness being 4900Å. II) Electropolished specimens prepared from 99.9999 pct A1 with magnesium contents from 0.005 to 0.5 pct rolled to foil and annealed were subjected to fission fragment irradiationa2 For volumetric dose and defect concentration determinations thickness evaluations were performed on 123 areas. Histogram II in Fig. 1 shows the thicknesses of these areas averaging 4250Å. Whereas in investigation I no selection related to thickness has been made, some thin as well as thick areas have been omitted from I1 for experimental reasons. This and the application of two different microscopes although of the same type may account for the difference in average thickness. Assuming a mean error of 10 pct for a single evaluation, the error of the average should be negligible. In order to investigate the maximum transmissible foil thickness in aluminum, specimens were prepared from single crystals with (111) and (110) orientations parallel to the beam, and from polycrystalline material. Maximum values of thickness that could be measured were given by the stopping of the dislocations. The visibility often extended far beyond the end of the slip trace, but with no means of knowing the

Jan 1, 1970

By JULIAN HINDS

Industrialization is raising the standard of living of people everywhere. The common man is demanding and getting more of everything. Perhaps more markedly than most other things, he is consuming more water. A hundred years ago water for domestic use, in all but a few large centers, was lugged from wells in buckets. This still is true in many rural areas, even in the enlightened United States of America. but pumps and pressure systems are rapidly replacing the "old oaken bucket," even on farms and in isolated country homes. Nevertheless, many still fail to see water as a ?commodity? in the same sense that coal, lumber, fertilizer, and bread are considered as commosities. Water is too frequently taken for granted.

Jan 1, 1949

Draftsman and transitman for coal-mine work in middle West. Salary $125 per month. No. 277. Surveyor and mine sampler for development company in Mexico. Applicant must be willing to interest himself in mine sufficiently to, act as assistant to the superintendent and be able to take charge in case the superintendent should be incapacitated at any time. No. 326. A copper company in Mexico desires services of engineer to act as chief chemist and flotation operator. No. 327. Instructor in mining and metallurgy, the work being chiefly in mining for college in middle West, to start Dec. 1. Salary $1200 to $1400. No. 328. A copper company in Mexico is increasing its force of underground foremen and desires the services of two men competent to act as assistant underground foremen. Chances for advancement excellent. Knowledge of Spanish is required. Salary to start $200 per month. No. 329. Young man for core-drill work for coal company. No. 330.

Jan 7, 1918

By Franz R. Dykstra

DEFINITIONS The ores of iron are classified in three general categories: direct shipping, concentrates, and agglomerated-i.e., pelletized or sintered. Direct Shipping As the name implies, direct-shipping ores are shipped as mined or, perhaps, after screening. Generally, direct-shipping ores are hematitic (R203), magnetitic (R304), or limonitic (2Fe2O3.3H20) in nature. Grades of direct-shipping ores vary widely. Prices are frequently related to the historical Mesabi standard of 51.5% iron, although certain premium lump ores may contain up to 68% iron. The use of direct-shipping ores is diminishing as the advantages of beneficiated ores become evident and reserves are depleted. Concentrates Where the nature of the deposit and economics allows, certain ores are upgraded. This may include no more than washing and screening, or may be as elaborate as fine grinding followed by magnetic, gravity, or even flotation procedures for separation. Coarser concentrates may be smelted "as is.'; Fine concentrates usually are sold as sinter feed. (Sinter, as used here and in the following, refers to a process by which a fine ore-carbon mixture is agglomerated at elevated temperatures on a direct-fired moving grate to eliminate fines and improve chemical and physical homogeneity.) Agglomerates-Pellets or Sinter The development of economic techniques of mining and concentrating taconite (fine-grained, ferruginous jasperoids) led to the introduction of the iron-ore pellet, which is now becoming the major form in which iron is introduced into the furnace. The tremendous reserves of magnetic taconites of the northern United States and Canadian Precambrian shield had been recognized for many years. A century of mining has seen the reserves of the direct-shipping or "red ores" of the Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin ranges approach depletion. Research started in the 1930s has seen the evolution of motives and techniques to concentrate these stubborn refractory ores. The efficacy of concentrate pellets in iron-making has been such as to induce mines throughout the world to grind, concentrate, and pelletize otherwise shipping-grade ores. Table 14.1A.1 shows typical analyses of iron ore. Marketing-Prices of iron may be quoted on a value per long-ton (2240 lbs) or metric-ton (1000 kg or 2204 lb) basis, or on a value per long-ton-unit or metric-ton-unit basis. One iron unit represents 1 % of contained iron per ton. (Thus, a price of $0.45 per iron unit for ore containing

Jan 1, 1976

By D. C. Seidel, E. F. Fitzhugh

The cementation of nickel from acidic solutions by metallic iron is discussed. The cementation is carried out in pressure vessels at temperatures above 100°C. The results from bench scale studies on variables such as retention time, temperature, and solution pH are presented. A continuous processing flowsheet is proposed. Cementation is one of the oldest known hydrometal-lurgical reactions. The cementation of copper on iron was recorded by 'Paracelsus the Great' in about 1500,1 and by 1600 the technique was being used to recover copper at the Rio Tinto operations in Spain.2 At least one early author felt that cementation may have been one of the primary reasons for the alchemists' belief in the transmutation of metals.' The early writings state that when iron was placed in the clear waters from some mountain springs, the iron disappears and copper is found in its place. To the alchemists this may well have been one of the most convincing proofs that transmutation could and did occur. Since these early times the recovery of copper from acidic solutions by cementation has been practiced in plants throughout the world. Probably the cementation technique in some form has been common to more copper mining and milling operations than any other single recovery process. During current hydrometallurgical extraction studies, which were sponsored by the Republic Steel Corp. at the Colorado School of Mines Research Foundation, Inc., it was found that under the proper conditions, metallic nickel could be cemented from acidic solutions by powdered iron. The reactions are apparently similar to those that occur during the cementation of copper, but the nickel cementation had not been anticipated because iron and nickel are nearly adjacent in the electromotive series. The potential difference between iron and copper is approximately 0.78 v, while the potential difference between iron and nickel is less than 0.21 v. The cementation of nickel with iron at room temperature is almost negligible, but when the reaction is carried out in a closed vessel at temperatures in excess of 100°C, the nickel can be cemented almost quantitatively. The part played by this discovery in a practical method of nickel recovery is set forth in a separate paper.3 The following paragraphs are a discussion of experimental studies that were made to investigate this cementation reaction. The technique has been designated the HTC or High Temperature Cementation procedure. The cementation work was part of a study on hydrometallurgical techniques for the extraction of nickel from the garnierite or silicate type nickel ores. A hydrothermal extraction procedure had been developed, and this technique produced an acidic pulp or solution that contained both nickel and appreciable amounts of magnesium.3 Small quantities of ferric and ferrous iron were also present along with cobalt, manganese, and chromium. The potential for recovering the nickel from these acidic solutions by ion exchange or solvent extraction did not appear to be promising because of the relatively high magnesium content. The Ni ++ and Mg++ have nearly identical ionic dimensions and tend to be co-absorbed or extracted during ion exchange or solvent extraction treatments. Preliminary tests indicated that the nickel could be precipitated as a sulfide when using the high pressure H2S precipitation technique developed for the Moa Bay operations of the Freeport Nickel CO.4 This technique gave good recoveries, but the nickel sulfide product requires considerable additional processing before a marketable form of nickel is realized. The process also requires clarified feed solutions, and the solids-liquid separations on the garnierite residues are difficult. A program was initiated to investigate alternate procedures that might shorten the route to a marketable nickel product, and hopefully also permit bypassing the difficult solids-liquid separation steps required for the H2S precipitation technique. It was during these studies that the nickel cementation reaction with iron was encountered. EXPERIMENTAL EQUIPMENT AND PROCEDURES The bench scale precipitation tests which were conducted during this experimental program were made in 2-liter stirred autoclaves.* A photograph showing the form and arrangement of the autoclave

Jan 1, 1968

By Anna H. Connard

SUMMARY The discussion focusses on developments in the debt/equity swap market since the Marte project was negotiated in early 1988. It emphasises carrying forward the recent market trends to anticipate the breadth and scope of debt/equity conversions for mine development in the 1990s. Secondary market prices of LDC paper, conversion values and political influences in the host countries and the use of near debt and commodity-based instruments as components of mine financing in debt/equity deals will be placed in the perspective of recent trends and expectations for the future. THE MARTE PROJECT The Marte mine is a gold porphyry deposit in Chile's high Atacama, for which financing was put together at the beginning of 1988. The Marte project was financed by a combination of common equity and loans. It was unusual that the equity infusions were made under different programs. Some of the international equity was infused with fresh funds via DL 600. Other common foreign equity was provided through the conversion of Chilean bank debt under Chapter XIX. On the loan side,. export credits for the import component of machinery and equipment were sought. Local bank financing was negotiated for the remainder of ' the project's anticipated cost. The debt conversion market in Chile was at its apex in terms of interest, activity and government support when the mine financing was arranged. The price of Chilean paper in the secondary market hovered about 62 to 66 cents per U.S. dollar of face value. Meanwhile, the Chilean government was negotiating conversion redemptions significantly closer to full face value. The government differentiated between debt paper exchanged for corporate investors who had sourced that paper in the secondary market, and debt paper held by bank investors who would incur a transaction loss in the conversion. The use of a combined DL 600lChapter XIX equity financing created different yield calculation bases for the various investors. Chapter XIX prevents remittance of profits before year 5 and capital repatriation before year 11. Investors choosing this vehicle have either for a corporate policy in the target project not to declare dividends until repatriation is allowed, or they have to seek uses for the peso liquidity that would be generated through dividend declarations in the early years. However, DL 600 investors face no such waiting period on dividends, nor do they have restrictions imposed on cashing out of the investment before the 11th year. Therefore, any equity structure with components of both investment mechanisms will have inherent differences in cost basis and future income flows for the various participants. This equity imbalance is defensible if the investment motivations of the parties are analyzed: a mining investor using fresh funds looks for a hurdle return on equity calculated at conservative commodity prices, with as much flexibility to reap upside benefits as possible; a mining investor choosing to invest through a debt conversion mechanism will realize a modest short term gain on the conversion, reducing his effective cost basis, but sacrificing some return because of the waiting period on repatriation of dividends. INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES A bank investor exchanging his own paper for an equity participation in a mining project realizes a conversion loss on the transaction. He seeks a risk adjusted acceptable hurdle rate of return to recoup that loss over time. Motivation for the bank investor to take that loss may be derived partly from a strategy to diversify its existing portfolio by internal policy and externally regulated guidelines. The bank will compare yields on its loan portfolio to that country with anticipated dividend flows discounted back at a risk adjusted rate. It will analyze the project with return objectives of yield enhancement over time and with

Jan 1, 1990

By G. L. Kehl, Emilo Jaraiz F., J. S. Brett

The transformation of eutectoid beryllium bronze has been quantitatively investigated at 550° and 592°C, the temperature region where the products of p decomposition are a fine lamellar eutectoid and a coarse lamellar aggregate which replaces the fine eutectoid with prolonged annealing. Metallographic evidence indicates that the coarse lamellar aggregate forms preferentially in the most densely lamellated regions of the fine eutectoid and favors the hypothesis that the development of the coarse lamellar aggregate in the fine eutectoid is due to the occurence of a cellular segregation reaction. WHEN eutectoid beryllium bronze (Cu-94 pct, Be-6 pct) is isothermally transformed at high temperatures in the and y region after quenching from the fl field, the principal initial decomposition process is G one of growth of approximately spherical nodules composed of a number of lamellar colonies of the a and y phases. After the initial reaction has proceeded substantially or completely, depending on the transformation temperature, a second reaction occurs wherein the fine lamellar eutectoid is replaced by a coarser lamellar aggregate composed of the same oand yphases.' This reaction is not simply a spheroidization of the initial fine eutectoid but the nucleation and growth of a coarser, structurally different, and more stable distribution of the @and yphases. Fig. 1 illustrates the replacement of the initial fine lamellar structure by a coarse lamellar aggregate. The a phase is the dark mottled constituent; the light constituent the y phase. The phase diagram for the copper-rich end of the Cu-Be system2 is shown in Fig. 2. The a phase has the face-centered cubic structure characteristic of copper-rich solid solutions. The B phase is a disordered body-centered cubic structure, while the y phase is body-centered cubic, ordered (CsC1, B2 type). A. viswanathanS investigating Debye patterns of Cu-6 pct Be discovered that a transitory phase appeared on very rapid quenching from the /3 region which was absent when the quenching velocity was moderate. The phase could be assigned a body-centtred cubic structure with a lattice parameter of 2.876. Tempering at 100°C for 2 hr after quenching resulted in complete disappearance of the phase. The work of Fillnow and Mack' is the only previously published study of the isothermal transformation of eutectoid beryllium bronze. Their study elucidated the nature of decomposition at various subcritical temperatures in an exploratory fashion. The purpose of the research reported in this paper was principally to obtain quantitative information on the isothermal decomposition of the fl phase and to clarify the relationships existing between the fine lamellar eutectoid and the coarse lamellar aggregate. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The material used in this investigation was an almost eutectoid Cu-Be alloy bar furnished by D.J. Mack. The alloy had been melted under a protective carbon cover and centrigugally cast into a graphite mold preheated to 490 "C. Segregation was minimized by violent agitation during melting and pouring. The analysis of the casting was 93.85 pct Cu, 5.60 pet Be with traces of Si, Mg, Mn, Co, and Al. To determine the minimum soaking time necessary to insure specimen homogeneity, a number of specimens were held in the P region at 788OC for times fron 1 min to 12 hr and isothermally transformed at 550°C. Specimens betatized less than 12 min exhibited partial transformation at times shorter

Jan 1, 1961

By A. B. Cook

Gas cycling is generally considered a much less efficient oil recovery mechanism than water flooding. HOWever, recoveries from some fields have been exceptionally high as a result of gas cycling. Recovery from the Pick-ton field, for example, was calculated to be 73.5 perceni of the stock-tank oil originally in place. In evaluating pressure maintenance projects, determining how much of the recovery is due to displacement by gas and determining how much is due to vaporization of the imrnohile oil in the flow path of the cycled gas is very difficrilt. Even though most of the oil is recovered by displacetr~ent, the success of a project may depend on the amount of oil vaporized. A limited number of experiments have heen performed with a rotating model oil reservoir that simulates gas cycling operations and allows a separation of the oil from, tile free gas flowing into the laboratory wellbore at reservoir conditions, thus revealing which is displaced oil and which is vaporized oil. It Iras been determined that the amount of varporizatio'n is .significant if proper conditions exist These experiments show that oil vaporization depends on pressure, temperature, volatility of the oil and amount of gas cycled. Increases in each of these conditions increase the volume of oil vaporized. Data from six experiments affecting vaporization are presented to illustrate reservoir condition that range from favorable to unfavorable. 111 these eaperitnenis recovery by vaporization ranged from 73.6 to 15.3 percent of /he immobile oil (oil not produced by gas displacerrlt). INTRODUCTION Between 1930 and 1950, gas cycling was a popular. oil recovery practice. especially for the deeper reservoirs. Later, with many case history-type studies published for both gas cycling and waterflooding, it was generally believed that waterflooding was far superior to gas cycling, even when gas cycling was conducted as a primary production procedure by complete pressure maintenance. A good example illustrating the advantage of water-flooding over gas cycling is given in a paper by Matthews' on the South Burbank unit where gas injection was followed by waterflooding. The author concluded in part that "Early application of water injection, without the intervening period of gas injection, would have recovered as much total oil as ultimately will be recovered by waterflooding following the gas injection, and total operating life would have been shortened". This appears to be a logical conclusion. However, it should not be applied to all fields. Pressure maintenance with gas in the Pickton field, as reported by McGraw and Lohec;' will result in a much larger percentage of oil recovery than was obtained in the South Burbank unit. The great success in the Pickton field resulted partly from vaporization of the immobile oil in the flow path of the cycled gas. The amount of vaporization is related to the following conditions: volatility of the oil as reflected by the APT gravity of the stock-tank oil; reservoir temperature; reservoir pressure during gas cycling; and the amount of gas cycled. Therefore, the U. S. Bureau of Mines is investigating these effects on vaporization in a research project using a model oil reservoir. Three different stock-tank oils having 22, 35 and 45" API gravities are being used as base stock to synthesize reservoir oils. Experiments are being performcd to determine vaporization at 100, 175 and 250F and at 1,100, 2,600 and 4,100 psia. This is a progress report showing the results from six experiments. Other Bureau of Mines reports"- concerning vaporization are listed. LABORATORY EQUIPMENT AND PROCEDURES The equipment ' consists of an internally chromium-plated steel tube packed with finely sifted Wilcox sand. The tube is approximately 44 in. long and has an ID of 13/4 in. The sand section contains approximately 570 ml of voids, has a porosity of 32 percent, and a permeability to air of 4.3 darcies. A unique feature of the laboratory reservoir (Fig. 1) permits the tube part to rotate at 1 rpm while the outlet and inlet heads are held stationary. The outlet end contains diametrically opposed windows to permit observatlon of the flowing fluids, and two valves, one on the top and the other at the bottom. Oil and free gas. when being produced simultaneously, can be separated by manipulating the two valves to keep a gas-oil interface in view through the windows. Thus, only gas is produced through the top valve and only oil flows through the bottom valve. The laboratory equipment was designed to study vaporization. Therefore, a uniform reservoir was made using dry sifted sand as opposcd to using a consolidated sand core with interstitial water. Furthermore. the reservoir was tilted to minimize fingering of gas. This tilting also in-

By H. S. Geismer

INTRODUCTION. THERE are three general methods available for obtaining commercial brown iron-ore : hand-screening; washing; and washing and concentrating. Hand-screening has produced a large tonnage of ore in the past, but is rapidly falling into disuse, except as a preliminary step, largely because modern furnace-practice requires all foreign material to be separated from ores before they are delivered to the furnace, and hand-screened ores can rarely be made to fulfill that requirement. Another argument against hand-screening is, that the waste-pile often contains as much ore as the screen recovers. The operation known as hand-screening consists of throwing the ore-bearing material against a stationary inclined screen of 0.5- to 0.75-in. mesh, similar in construction to the screens employed in sand-pits. The recently-prospected brown-ore deposits of Cuba seem to offer possibilities for hand-screening not possessed by the average American deposit, since these ores are not associated with worthless clays. Washing, and washing and concentrating, may be discussed together, since concentrating is never practical on brown iron-ore, except to treat ores that have already been washed. (Strictly speaking, washing might be classed as concentrating, but it is never so designated by brown-ore men.) The various steps of removing ore-bearing material and converting it into ore suitable for blast-furnace use, may be grouped under five heads: loading for transportation ; transporting ; feeding into the washer; washing; and concentrating. These five subjects will be considered in consecutive order. Each of these successive steps may be accomplished in a number of different ways, the choice depending entirely upon the character of the ore-bearing material to be treated.

Aug 1, 1911

By O. J. Huber, P. D. Frost, H. A. Robinson

URANIUM is a (ß-stabilizing, eutectoid-forming element when alloyed with titanium. Udy and Boulger1 have reported that an alloy of 48.6 pet uranium in titanium retains ß-phase when quenched from the ß-region, while compositions of approximately 30 pet uranium transform to martensite during such quenching. Since the eutectoid reaction is rather sluggish, titanium-uranium alloys should be capable of being strengthened by the ß — a trans-

Jan 1, 1959

By Jose M. Sobral

Approximate figures for petroleum production in Argentina for 1929 show an increase of only about 300,000 bbl. over production for 1928. This increase is due to greater yield in the Plaza Huincul and in the Salta regions. Table 1 shows the distribution of production in the various fields of the whole country, using estimates for the later months of the year. The outlook for production remains about the same as in 1928. It is believed that in northern Argentina there are regions that contain oil, but they are yet unexplored. Notable traces of oil at depths between 1280 and 1390 m. have appeared in a 1500-m. boring in Comodoro Rivadavia, but their importance is unknown.

Jan 1, 1930

By James R. Cudworth

ENGINEERING has been taught at the University of Alabama for over a hundred years. The School of Mining and Metallurgy was authorized by the Board of Trustees in 1887 and four students were graduated in 1888. In 1919 the legislature directed that all mineral industry instruction in the state should be centralized at the University and designated the department of mining of the College of Engineering as the Alabama School of Mines and made financial provisions for carrying on both instructional and research work for the benefit of the mining industry of the state and for cooperation with the U. S. Bureau of Mines, which had established its Southern Experiment Station on the campus.

Jan 12, 1950

By O. F. Walker, W. C. Hahn, V. A. Johnson, J. D. Wood

The diffusion coefficients of zinc in single-crystal zinc and carbon in single-crystal and poly crystalline nickel were measured by means of radioactive tracer techniques both with and without the application of ultrasonic vibrations under conditions such that the temperature of the sample was closely controlled. The results of this investigation indicate no enhancement of diffusion in any of the samples. It is suggested that previously reported enhancement may have been due either solely to temperature increases caused by ultrasonic vibrations or in combination with changes in the boundary conditions. A number of observations have been reported in the literature in which it has been implied or inferred that the application of ultrasonics enhances diffusion (see, for example, Refs. 1-5). The present study was undertaken in an attempt to observe this effect under carefully controlled conditions, particularly with regard to measurement and control of the temperature of the sample. Two different types of systems were studied; these were the self-diffusion of zinc and the diffusion of carbon in nickel. EXPERIMENTAL For diffusion with ultrasonic energy applied, the samples were included as part of a resonant ultrasonic system operating at 58.5 kcps. The ultrasonic generators used were rated at 100 and 250 w and could be tuned over a frequency from 10 to 100 kc. A PZT (lead titanate/lead zirconate) ceramic transducer provided the driving vibration. This system requires no metallurgical joining of the specimen to the acoustical transmission line since the ultrasonic driver and the follow-up section clamp the specimen in position by means of a constant pressure of 50 lb developed by an air cylinder. The ultrasonic driver and follow-up section, both made of titanium, were 4 in. in length from clamping point to the end in contact with the specimen. Using the relationship given by Mason,6 A = V/f, the resonant wavelength, A, in titanium is calculated to be 3.3 in. at a frequency, f, of 58.5 kc, taking the velocity of sound in titanium, V, as 1.95 X 105 in. per sec. The 4-in. driver and follow-up section, therefore, are each 4.0/3.3 =1.21 times the resonant wavelength. Clamping pressure must be applied at stress nodes of the transmission line in order to preserve resonance. Therefore, a specimen length of 0.58 times the wavelength in the specimen was required to place the clamping pressure application points at stress nodes exactly three wavelengths apart. A stress antinode was contained in the center 3 in. of the specimen. A small PZT ceramic disc attached to the follow-up section provided an output voltage proportional to the intensity of the standing wave. This output voltage was monitored on an oscilloscope and the ultrasonic system was tuned to resonance by varying the frequency until the output signal was a maximum amplitude. The amplitude of the output signal was maintained constant throughout the diffusion anneal. A split cylindrical stainless-steel chamber, which was purged with argon prior to and during the runs, was placed around the specimen. The chamber in turn was surrounded by a movable furnace whose temperature could be controlled to 7C. Heat exchangers were used to cool the driver, follow-up section, and ultrasonic transducer. Great care was taken to obtain the true specimen temperature in all cases. Several different methods were tried; the most successful was that in which the thermocouple was held in contact with the midlength of the specimen by means of an asbestos insulating pad and wire straps. In the case of zinc, single-crystal specimens of 99.999 pct purity were used. The samples were 0.25 by 0.25 in. square and of the proper length for resonance, that is 1.1 in. long with the c axis parallel to the long dimension of the specimen for the case of diffusion perpendicular to the c axis and ultrasonic motion parallel to the c axis, and 1.9 in. long with the c axis perpendicular to the long dimension of the specimen for the case of diffusion parallel to the c axis and ultrasonic motion perpendicular to the c axis. In each case, one of the rectangular faces was electroplated with a thin film of zinc containing Zn The constant pressure used to clamp the specimen in place in the ultrasonic system caused some deformation in some of the samples. For these samples the deformation was concentrated in either end of the specimen; thus, for all samples (both zinc and nickel) the center in. was cut from the specimen after the diffusion anneal to be used for sectioning and counting. The nickel single-crystal samples, of 99.999 pct purity, were used in the form of rods 0.25 by 0.187 by 2.07 in. long with the (100) direction parallel to the rod axis. The polycrystalline nickel samples of 99.97 pct purity had an average grain diameter of 0.007 in. and were used in the form of rods 0.25 by 0.125 by 1.87 in. long. The direction of ultrasonic motion was parallel to (100) direction (bar axis) for the single-cqstal samples and parallel to the bar axis for the polycrystalline specimens. A thin film of c14 suspended in methanol was applied to the diffusing face of the specimen. Two specimens were butted together lengthwise for each diffusion anneal to minimize oxidation. After diffusion, a precision lapping device similar to the one described by Goldstein7 and a radiation detector were used to obtain a plot of specific activity vs penetration distance for each specimen. (A scintil-

Jan 1, 1969

By J. Szekely, Robert G. Lee

Calculations are presented for the prediction of the combined radiative-convective heat loss from molten steel held in a ladle, covered by initially molten slag. A mathematical formulation is given and numerical solutions are presented of the resultant partial differential equation. It is shown that a slag layer of about 2 to 3 in. thick would prevent any significant heat loss from the top metal surface for Periods of up to 1 hr. For thinner slag layers (or in the absence of the protective slag) appreciable heat losses would occur; plots given in the paper allow the quantitative evaluation of the fall in the metal temperature due to this heat loss. The ironmaking-steel processing operation involves several intermediate steps where the molten metal is held or transfered in ladles. The quantitative assessment of the heat losses occurring under these conditions is of considerable importance in process design considerations since the temperature of the metal may have to meet rigid specifications in any given part of the processing sequence. While the metal is held in a ladle, heat is lost by two mechanisms: i) by conduction into the ladle walls; ii) by radiation and convection from the top surface. Calculations relating to the conductive heat loss, are readily made and information may be found in the literature both on data pertaining to metallurgical situations and on the techniques that are available for performing additional computations.'-3 The evaluation of the combined convective-radiative heat loss is less straightforward, especially when there exists a protective slag layer covering the metal. In this latter case, as the top slag surface loses heat partial solidification may occur and the latent heat thus given up by the slag may represent an effective barrier to the heat loss from the metal. A semiquantitative assessment of the role played by the slag in preventing heat loss from the metal has been made in a previous paper,4 where it was shown that a slag layer 6 in. thick would act as a near-perfect insulator for periods of up to 2 hr. However, this first paper reported on an essentially preliminary investigation that considered only one slag layer thickness; furthermore, the boundary conditions used for the calculations were somewhat restrictive since no allowance was made for changes in the metal temperature. The purpose of this second paper is to extend the scope of the preliminary investigation previously reported by: i) considering several slag layer thicknesses; ii) allowing for variations in the metal temperature; and finally iii) by performing calculations on the net loss from the metal rather than from the slag surface. FORMULATION Consider a slag phase extending from y = 0 to y = L1, covering a metal phase that occupies the region extending from y = Ll to y = L, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Denote the slag and metal temperatures by TS and Tm and assume that initially both slag and metal are molten, having a uniform temperature Ti. At time = zero the surface represented by the y = 0 plane (top slag surface) is brought into contact with cold air, the temperature of which is given as T Thus for time > zero, heat will be transfered from the slag to the air by natural convection and thermal radiation; as a result of this heat loss the slag temperature will fall and after some time a solid phase is formed and a solidification boundary (more realistically described as a zone) will move progressively from y = 0 toward y = L1. Once the region of temperature gradients, moving ahead of the solidification zone, reach the slag-metal interface (y = L1) there will be a net transfer of heat from the metal through the slag to the cold air, across the y = 0 plane. In the formulation of moving boundary problems, involving phase changes that require computer solution, it is convenient to represent both phases by a single equation, making allowance for the latent heat of solidification by assigning an appropriate temperature dependence to the specific heat content. Thus the energy equation for the whole of the slag may be written as follows:

Jan 1, 1969

By Louis A. Carapella, William E. Shaw

MAGNESIUM and its alloys have long been characterized as possessing limited capacity for mechanical forming at atmospheric temperatures prior to rupturing despite their outstanding performances in this respect at elevated temperatures. Responsible for this behavior are the fundamental facts that these hexagonal-type metals have comparatively few slip elements at low temperatures for any extensive deformation and that, at high temperatures, additional slip elements become operative, thus enhancing greater plasticity under strain. The transitional point has been set at 225°C by Schmid1 for single crystals, and at 250°°C by Morell and Hanawalt2 for extruded magnesium metal. In a recent X-ray investigation on polycrystalline magnesium-alloy sheets, Barrett and Haller3 have revealed that, below the transitional temperature, the initial plastic deformation proceeds mostly by a twinning action; that, above such a temperature, the action is mostly by slip. The deep-drawing performance of the magnesium + 1.5 pct alloy sheett over a wide range of temperatures has been investigated by Weber and Vanden Berg,' and their results are presented in Fig r. It should be noted from this work that a maximum drawability of about 25 pct at room temperature has been obtained on this alloy under the conventional deep-drawing operations. For the same alloy, it is now possible to augment the cold drawability to about 40 pct by a process to be disclosed. Hitherto, this value has been obtained only by deep-drawing the alloy at around 230°C. That greater plastic flow is attainable at atmospheric temperatures on magnesium under certain deformational techniques was discovered by the authors6 in their analyses of plastic-deformational behaviors of pure magnesium. This fact is best illustrated in Fig 2 from the Hargreaves analysis6 performed by the authors under two different modes of loading. For direct test, a separate unstrained specimen was used for each load duration, whereas for the integrated test the same specimen was employed for all the five intermittent loadings so that the load duration was made additive throughout the investigation. The higher plastic flow-rate at room temperature, as designated by the Hargreaves constant S, was obtained by the integrated or intermittent loading procedure. The authors5 in further tests showed that, under such a procedure greater plastic flow was also realized with a progressive increase in deformational loads. These findings have been applied

Jan 1, 1947

By R. P. Aikman, F. G. Miller, J. M. Podgursky

In response to the growing demand for low-sulfur coking coal for iron-making, the coal industry is continually striving to perfect methods for cleaning coal to acceptable ash and sulfur levels while maintaining maximum product yield. By present standards the industry has adequate processes for cleaning coarse coal, (i.e., +28 mesh) at almost any desired specific gravity. However, in the case of fine coal (i.e., -28 mesh) neither of the two existing processes-froth flotation and hydrocycloning-in its present state of development yields products that are comparable in ash and/or sulfur content to products normally obtained from coarse coal processes. The work outlined in this article is part of a larger study directed toward maximum exploitation of froth flotation for fine coal processing. The concepts and data presented are now serving as a basis for designing fine-coal circuits in which improved efficiency is obtained by optimum use of froth flotation with other fine-coal processing methods.

Jan 7, 1967

Raymond Weir Smyth, born Nov. 3, 1888, was the son of Herbert Weir Smyth, professor of Greek Literature at Harvard University. He graduated (A. B.) from Harvard in 1909 and later pursued advanced studies there in chemistry and in metallurgy. He held the position of metallurgist for the American Steel and Wire Co. at Worcester, Mass., and also for the Steel and Tube Co. at Youngstomn, Ohio. For a time he was inspector of munitions for the British Government and stationed at the Railway Steel and Spring Co. at Latrobe, Pa. For a short time, in 1917, he was Inspector of Ordnance for the U. S. Government, and the following year, having entered the U. S. Naval Reserve Force, he was ordered in a similar capacity to the Midvale Steel Co. In September, he removed to the Navy Yard, League Island, Philadelphia, to train for the obligatory minimum of six months' sea duty. There he contracted influenza, which was followed by pneumonia, from which he died, September 27, at the Navy Yard Hospital. Captain Braxton Bigelow* Captain Braxton Bigelow was the son of Major John B. Bigelow, U. S. A., retired, and grandson of the late John Bigelow, author, and Minister to France under President Grant. Captain Bigelow graduated

Jan 1, 1920