Search Documents

By R. E. Pollard

The National Bureau of Standards received, in August 1940, a number of samples of bridge wire taken from the cables of the General U. S. Grant suspension bridge over the Ohio River at Ports- mouth, Ohio. These cables were 7% in. in diameter under the wrapping and each was made up of 1458 ungalvanized wires of No. 8 gage in 3 parallel-wire strands. The choice of ungalvanized wire was based on the previous satisfactory performance of similar wires in other bridges over periods of 20 to 50 yr. of service(1).2 After about 12 yr. of service a number of breaks were discovered in the Portsmouth bridge cables, most of them at the anchor- age shoes, and they were replaced by cables made up of galvanized wire(2).

Jan 1, 1945

By Robert Ignouf

MY REMARKS, which I feel highly honored in being invited to make, shall be limited to a consideration of -the mining and metallurgical problems involved in this question; in fact, these problems alone might well be considered as suffi¬cient to explain the existence of the Ruhr situation and to justify the steps taken by France in this affair. Comparing the France of pre-war days with the France of the period following the Versailles treaty indicates clearly how the Ruhr question is a direct consequence of the new economic conditions which have prevailed in Europe since peace was signed between the Allies and Germany. Before the war, in 1913 for instance, the French out¬put of iron ore was 22,000,000 tons. This output, which decreased considerably during and immediately after the war, has about regained its previous level. It should be noted that 96 per cent. of the production of iron in France is obtained from the eastern part of the country, in the districts of Nancy, Briey,. Longwy, Metz, and Thionville. This concentration of practi¬cally all the iron mines into one district creates a very serious problem for France, involving strategic and economic consequences. The strategic problem arises from the fact that the whole iron resources of France lie close to the frontier of Germany, at a distance of only a few miles; hence it is of the' utmost importance for France to be assured that her eastern frontier shall not be at the mercy of a sudden invasion by an army which could in a few hours deprive France of her iron resources and render her powerless to defend herself. Invaded by her Eastern neighbor three times during the past 100 years, France has had dire experience with what such invasions mean for her. Wherever the German armies have passed, they have left an inefface¬able trail of desolation. France, therefore, intends to protect herself by sufficient and efficient guarantees against renewed invasions of her territory.

Jan 5, 1923

By Lawrence W. Aldrich

At the San Francisco meeting of the Institute last year, I presented, through the courtesy of Dr. James Douglas, some results of experiments on the roasting and leaching of concentrator tailings. After it became apparent that flotation rather than leaching was clearly the better method of handling the particular problem under consideration, before dismantling the experimental equipment, some data were secured on roasting and leaching the concentrate itself in competition with smelting. Some of the results obtained are given in the following paper and they are of particular interest at this time in view of the large quantities of flotation concentrates with their somewhat difficult smelting characteristics now being produced. A complete wet processt consists of roasting and leaching the calcines in dilute sulphuric acid produced from the roaster gases, roasting the residue with salt and leaching with dilute tower liquors (the well-known Longmaid-Henderson process) and recovering the copper, silver and gold by cementation or electrolysis or a combination of both. It is evident, however, that the residue from the first leaching, carrying about 20 per cent. of the copper and all of the silver and gold, can be smelted if preferable. In considering the application of the scheme to individual cases, it must be remembered that freight plays a large part in any reduction process wherein smelting is not conducted at the mouth of the mine, and that it is not practicable today to build small smelting plants for individual operations, The experiments may be grouped under four main heads: Roasting, leaching, chloridizing residue, and recovery of copper from solutions. The products of two concentrators were used: The Nacozari concentrates were the product of a large modern mill not using flotation, the copper mineral being largely chalcopyrite; and the Tyrone concentrates, the product of an experimental mill including flotation, the copper mineral being chiefly chalcocite. Typical analyses are given in Table 1. Fig. 1 shows screen analyses of calcines obtained by dead roasting the

Jan 1, 1917

By A. M. Hall

SULPHUR, even in small amounts, may often be harmful to nickel and high-nickel alloys, causing impairment of mechanical strength and destruction of malleability and ductility, as shown by Merica and Waltenberg.1,2 It may act. either in the form of nonmetallic inclusions produced in the liquid state during furnacing or as reaction products resulting from its diffusion into the solid metal. In recognizing the action of this element, ability to identify its various forms by means of the microscope is often of considerable importance, especially when direct quantitative methods are inapplicable. [ ] Of the sulphur compounds associated with nickel and high-nickel alloys, the sulphides that may be found in malleable nickel, Monel? and Inconel? are an important group. These sulphides were investigated by metallographic methods in order to provide descriptive data by which to identify them. The nominal compositions of malleable nickel, Monet and Inconel are given in Table I. The term "sulphide" is employed here in a very general sense, to designate a substance in which sulphur and one or more metallic elements are combined. The term includes any combinations of compounds and solid solutions. METHOD OF INVESTIGATION Three groups of small laboratory melts were made, one group to represent each of the three types of alloy under investigation. Within each group, a number of ingots with a sufficient variety of chemical analyses were prepared so that the effect of each of the elements entering the complete commercial alloy could be isolated and observed. In most cases, to facilitate metallographic study by exaggerating the number and size of the resulting sulphides, somewhat greater amounts of the minor elements were added than are present in the commercial alloys. Likewise, considerably more sulphur was added than is normal, but not enough to complicate the system. Transverse sections were cut at a point one third of the distance from the butt to the head of each ingot, polished and examined with an inverted stage metallograph equipped with a combination polarizing-analyzing vertical illuminator. The light source was a tungsten-mercury vapor arc lamp.

Jan 1, 1943

By Louis D. Huntoon

The Porcupine gold area, located on the Hudson Bay slope of northern Ontario, has produced over $100,000,000 in gold and has paid more than $28,000,000 in dividends, since the first real production in 1912. The character of the ore has been studied by the geologists of the Bureau of Mines of Ontario, the geological staffs of the operating mines, and engineers commissioned to examine properties there. What information the Government has is free to everybody; the geological staffs of the several properties also give to the visiting engineer what information regarding ore deposition they possess, and the author wishes to express his indebtedness to the geologists of the Ontario Bureau of Mines and the staffs of the operating mines for their free discussion of geological questions. This paper is based on the examination of several properties, various petrographic reports, not only on specimens from Porcupine but from elsewhere in northern Ontario, and interviews with Government and mine staff geologists. The petrographic work has been done by Prof. R. J. Colony, of Columbia University. Geological History The geological history of the district may be summarized as follows: The outpouring of great floods of lava accompanied by beds of tuff, flow following flow; the contacts of different flows can be seen in various parts of the camp. This period mas followed by an uplift and the production of the Temiskaming sediments by erosion. Later, dynamic action turned the sediments and underlying lavas on edge; this was followed by the intrusion of igneous rocks—in the Porcupine area the quartz porphyry, which is of such great importance in connection with the gold deposits. Doctor Burrows says: "The intrusions of quartz porphyry have in some way influenced the deposition or location of the gold but it is not likely the porphyry has been the source of the gold-bearing solutions." This statement of Doctor Burrows I indorse. The formation of non-gold bearing quartz veins followed the intrusion of the porphyry. These veins occur along or near the contact of

Jan 1, 1923

By Louis D. Huntoon

The Porcupine gold area, located on the Hudson Bay slope of northern Ontario, has produced over $100,000,000 in gold and has paid more than $28,000,000 in dividends, since the first real production in 1912. The character of the ore has been studied by the geologists of the Bureau of Mines of Ontario, the geological staffs of the operating mines, and engineers commissioned to examine properties there. What information the Government has is free to everybody; the geological staffs of the several properties also give to the visiting engineer what information regarding ore deposition they possess, and the author wishes to express his indebtedness to the geologists of the Ontario Bureau of Mines and the staffs of the operating mines for their free discussion of geological questions. This paper is based on the examination of several properties, various petrographic reports, not only on specimens from Porcupine but from elsewhere in northern Ontario, and interviews with Government and mine staff geologists. The petrographic work has been done by Prof. R. J. Colony, of Columbia University. Geological History The geological history of the district may be summarized as follows: The outpouring of great floods of lava accompanied by beds of tuff, flow following flow; the contacts of different flows can be seen in various parts of the camp. This period mas followed by an uplift and the production of the Temiskaming sediments by erosion. Later, dynamic action turned the sediments and underlying lavas on edge; this was followed by the intrusion of igneous rocks—in the Porcupine area the quartz porphyry, which is of such great importance in connection with the gold deposits. Doctor Burrows says: "The intrusions of quartz porphyry have in some way influenced the deposition or location of the gold but it is not likely the porphyry has been the source of the gold-bearing solutions." This statement of Doctor Burrows I indorse. The formation of non-gold bearing quartz veins followed the intrusion of the porphyry. These veins occur along or near the contact of

Jan 1, 1923

TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGICAL ENGINEERS Gentlemen: - I herewith present a report of some. of the more important activities of the Institute for the year of 1922. The outstanding feature of the year is the optimism felt by our members despite the continued depression in the mining industry. January 1, 1921, found many of our members out of employment or drifting into other industries to tide them over the depression, but almost universally the feeling has been that this was but a temporary condition and that sooner or later the necessary production of raw materials would enable these members to return to their former activities and renew their participation in Institute affairs. As the year passed conditions improved and, before it ended, many had found employment in their previous occupations. Bearing in mind that this depression has been very real, we have reason to be well satisfied with the work that the Institute has been able to do. The loss of members through inability to pay, dues has been large, and income has been correspondingly reduced, but it proved to be materially in excess of that anticipated early in the year, so that a substantial and unanticipated balance was carried forward toward the activities of 1923. PUBLICATIONS Following the example of other technical societies, and to conserve our resources, no Year Book was published in 1922. The lack of an up-to-date membership list for the use of our members was regrettable, but the saving of $5000 proved to be worth while. During the year, Volumes LXV, LXVI, and LXVII were printed and sent to members. These volumes were composed largely of the papers of 1920 and 1921, publication of which had been delayed partly through lack of funds and partly for the purpose of segregating into volumes those papers dealing with the same general subject. The segregation of papers had been suggested by a number of members who had advised that they were not primarily interested in all subjects

Jan 1, 1925

By Richard Henry Lee

Since the economies in the blast furnace resulting from enriching iron ores are so great, much attention has been paid during the past few years to the various methods of concentrating lean ores, and, as the concentrated ore is usually of extreme fineness, various methods of agglomeration and sintering, of more or less value, have been put into operation. The resulting agglomerated concentrates are generally obtained in the form of briquettes or nodules. The briquettes naturally divide themselves into two classes: (1) those made by the mixture of some binding agent, and then formed into briquettes under great pressure; and (2) those made by sintering the concentrates, the latter either being formed into bricks before exposure to heat or the sintered mass broken into fragments afterward. Of the first class I will not speak, as they are not used on an extensive scale in this country. The second class of briquettes, or those made by sintering, are simply masses of melted or fused silicate and oxide of iron mingled with more or less silicates of aluminum, lime, and magnesia. The fact that the material in a briquette is sintered is proof positive that there are no pores in the material. There are, however, quite a number of holes of greater or less diameter through the gubstance of the briquette. They are not pores in the common acceptance of that term as applied to ores by furnacemen, as the ides of the holes and channels are fused. In reality the material is simply mill cinder. It is practically untouched by the gases in the upper part of the furnace, and the iron has to be reduced by solid carbon in the boshes and hearth. Briquettes sometimes show a little saving in fuel in the furnace over an ore mixture of large lumps, but that saving is made simply because, owing to the numerous holes and channels through the mass, the briquette is practically composed of numerous small or fine lumps, and, as is well known, the finer the

Jan 1, 1914

By Marcel Daly

(A contribution to the study of the conditions of equilibrium of the "free surface" of a water body inclosed in a porous medium.) IN a recent paper, on Geologic Structure in the Cushing Oil and Gas Field, Oklahoma,1 Carl H. Beal has pointed out some interesting peculiarities in the distribution of the hydrocarbons and the disposition of the "planes of separation" between the oil and the water (water surfaces). Mr. Beal's principal statements on this matter may be summarized as follows: I. In every important dome in the Cushing field, which has not been complicated by folding along its sides, the oil area in each, of the three oil and gas sands studied (Layton, Wheeler and Bartlesville) apparently extends farther down on the long axis. of the dome than it does on the steeper sides. The result is that water is encountered at a lesser depth below datum plane (sea level) on the steep sides of the dome than along the ends where the beds are more gently tilted. II. In the Layton and Wheeler sands (to which the detailed study of water surfaces has been almost entirely confined), the water surface is not level, but dips at a gentle angle (maximum dip 100 ft. to the mile) away from the center of the structure. This inclination existed prior to development, and it has been rendered greater by the rapid extraction .of oil and gas. To these statements, the following observations are added. The dominant structural feature in the Cushing field is a broad north and south anticlinal fold, along whose, axis the domes are distributed (Fig. 1, p. 1104), and the more important oil areas in each sand lie on the west side of the field. In many cases, gas has been forced to the east side of the structure, sometimes as far as the water line. From the distribution of the oil and gas bodies, Mr. Beal concludes that the hydrocarbons in this region probably migrated from the west or the northwest.

Jan 1, 1918

By B. Trentini

In the spectacular development of pure oxygen steel-making, the process using the vertical lance converter LD, is at the present time the most widely employed. Proper control of slag composition during the steel-making process appears to be essential in achieving satisfactory blowing from both the metallic yield and metallurgical points of view. The paper illustrates the primary importance of the presence of a large quantity of metal droplets in the slag during the process. In the case of both phosphorus and hematite pig iron, it can be deduced from the phase diagrams and confirmed by experimentation that nonhomogeneous slags are one of the causes of slag overflowing during the blow. The problem is however a complex one and further physicochemical studies appear necessary. Finally, the new continuous steelmakingprocess developed by IRSID is described. PEOPLE who knew Henri Marion Howe have said that he took great pleasure in speculating on the future of metallurgical processes. It is therefore not inappropriate to devote, in his memory, some description and discussion to processes unknown to the world of his time, in particular oxygen steelmaking and continuous steelmaking. The first industrial application to steelmaking of tonnage oxygen produced by air liquefaction was made in Germany just before the war and consisted in enriching the air blown through the bottom of a basic Begsemer converter in order to melt a higher proportion of scrap and to produce steels with lower nitrogen content than is achieved with conventional practice. While this process was being developed after the war, mostly in Western Europe, steelmakers were becoming increasingly familiar with the technique of blowing pure oxygen from the top, first by means of consumable steel pipes, with or without refractory shielding, and later by water-cooled lances, designed for the purpose and affording longer life. The field was then open for the wide use of pure oxygen in steelmaking, either in existing processes such as open-hearth or electric furnace, or in new processes. These new processes can be broadly classified according to the category of furnace employed. In the case of the vertical converter taken as the first category, bottom-blowing of pure oxygen causes extremely rapid wear of the refractory tuyeres, and although various expedients have been tried to overcome this drawback (such as mixing oxygen with CO2 or H2O or using high pressure oxygen), they have had to be abandoned. The solution for vertical converters has been found in top-blowing with a vertical water-cooled lance; this is known as the LD process or basic oxygen converter process.

Jan 1, 1969

By Wilhelm Rohn

IN discussing the influence of a content of gases on metals and alloys we should probably first consider the physical and chemical conditions under which these gases may be present. By a chemical analysis, such as the total extraction of gases from the liquid metal by melting in a graphite crucible in vacuo, we find only the sum of gaseous chemical elements contained in the metal in any form and no reference is made to the special form under which they have been present previously. CONDITION OF GASES IN METALS In considering. gases in metals we may first turn our attention to gases simply dissolved. Because the solubility of almost, any gas decreases suddenly at the freezing point, most of them are released during solidification, developing rise of ingots and blowholes. If only a little gas is dissolved in the molten metal the size of such blowholes may be miscroscopical, or even submicroscopical, resulting in, a certain reduction of the notched-bar impact test values. Hydrogen is believed to become less soluble as the temperature is lowered and therefore increasing quantities of this gas may be evolved during cooling between the freezing point and room temperature, leading to unsoundness of the ingot at weak spots; i.e., at the grain boundaries. This gas at the grain boundaries probably is present at high pressure and therefore impairs the mechanical properties to a degree similar to that found in the hydrogen embrittlement of copper. Usually we may trace such gases by observing rising ingots, or at least by the formation of a characteristic pattern of small grooves upon etching. Another condition of gases present within metals is that of chemical compounds, the most common being oxides and mostly present as slag inclusions of various kinds. If such oxides are insoluble in the liquid metal and emulsify with it, we find microscopical or submicroscopical slag inclusions distributed homogeneously throughout the metal and spread through the whole mass of the crystals. This special form does little harm to the mechanical properties. Some oxides are somewhat soluble

Jan 1, 1932

By AIME AIME

THE complete list of papers for the meeting of the Petroleum Division that is to be held" at Tulsa,' Thursday and Friday, Oct. 3 and 4,, with assignment to individual sessions is given below. THURSDAY MORNING First Session Well Spacing Theory of Well Spacing-By W. P. Haseman. Discussion by S. C. Herold, J. R. Suman and Lester C. Uren. Well Spacing in the Long Beach Field, California-By - Stender Sweeney. Discussion by C. H. McNeese; R. R Brandenthaler and W. V. Vietti. Well Spacing in the Bradford Field, Pennsylvania-By Paul D. Torrey. Discussion by A. F. Melcher, R. M.. Haskell, J. B. Umpleby and J. B. Newby. Results of Different Well Spacing in the Salt Creek Field, Wyoming-By Fred E. Wood. Discussion by Sam Grinsfelder and Kenneth B. Knowles.

Jan 1, 1929

By C. D. Rubert, W. J. Parton

LARGE quantities of fine anthracite with associated impurities are discharged with the waste water from the coal-cleaning plants in the Pennsylvania anthracite region. Furthermore, for many years this fine material has accumulated and formed silt banks. The difficulty of removing the impurities from the fine material and the lack of adequate markets are responsible for the waste of this material. In view of a larger demand for fine coal, mainly for pulverized fuel, the Lehigh Navigation Coal Co. Inc. decided to investigate the froth flotation process for recovery of fine coal from these waste solids. A test plant was constructed and operated for six months during 1942 in order to determine the practicability of recovering coal from the waste water of a cleaning plant (breaker) by froth flotation, and to obtain operating data for designing a commercial plant if the results were favorable. PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION Before the pilot plant was constructed information was obtained by field and small-scale laboratory tests to serve as a guide in the design and operation of the pilot plant. Size and ash analyses of a representative sample of the material discharged in the wash water from a cleaning plant are given in Table I. [ ] The refuse content increases progressively as the size of the particles decreases. The larger particles (+35 m.) are low in ash content and could be marketed without cleaning. Since these solids are discharged from the breakers with 90 to 95 per cent water by weight, the first step in the recovery of the coal was that of reducing the quantity of water so that water in excess will not have to be handled. Furthermore, it was found that the removal of most of the minus 200 mesh high-ash material was desirable to permit the most efficient flotation of the coal. Classification tests were run and showed that a hydroseparator overflow rate of 12 ft. per hour was sufficient to eliminate much of the minus 200-mesh material while allowing the coarser material to settle and be thickened.

Jan 1, 1944

By Leo D. Jones

The use of the centrifuge for dewaxing lubricating oils grew out of the effort to secure better results than had been attained by the common "cold settling" process. This process was the only known method for dewaxing steam refined cylinder stock (600" F. fire test), the product known as "bright stock" being commonlyused for building up "pressed," i.e., dewaxed neutrals of, say, 200-sec. viscosity [to a higher value. The process consisted of mixing the cylinder stock with approximately one and one-half times its volume of naphtha, heating, to dissolve completely all the oil and wax and then slowly chilling to about 15" F. in large insulated tanks. This caused the wax to precipitate. It was allowed to settle out by gravity. The supernatant liquid was then drawn off and the naphtha distilled off, leaving a still residue of bright stock. The sediment from the settling, of a slushy nature, was withdrawn. After removing the naphtha by distillation the residue was petrolatum. At some point in the process, preferably after the dilution but before chilling, the mixture was decolored by percolation through fuller's earth. The finished bright stock produced by this process had a cold test of about 50" F. Efforts to improve this by chilling to a lower temperature resulted in a considerable reduction in yield, and increased uncertainty of settling. Even when chilling to 15" F. it was not uncommon to find that after a week's waiting a tank had not settled. It was then necessary to heat and rechill. This uncertainty was a serious problem; in one case a refinery superintendent had men riveters hold pneumatic hammers against the tank for hours, hoping thus to cause agglomeration and settling of the wax. Yields of bright stock above 70 per cent, were uncommon. History of Centrifugal Application It is not surprising, therefore, that many attempts were made to improve upon the results obtained by cold settling. George H. Taber, vice-president of the Gulf Refining Co., Pittsburgh, Pa., made a number

Jan 1, 1924

The Maas patent drill-hole compass, for determining the direction and dip of drill holes, is successfully used to a depth of 3,000 ft. APPARATUS FOR SURVEYING DEEP DRILL HOLES. The compass is placed in a thermos bottle or glass tube with hot liquid gelatine and lowered in a water-tight phosphor-bronze case, with a tube containing hydrofluoric acid. When the gelatine is cold the rods are pulled, the direction of the needle is marked on the tube which contained the acid, and the direction and inclination of the hole determined from this tube in a goniometer. There is nothing to get out of order and the compass can be used by any drill foreman, the mark and etching on the tube making a permanent record of direction and inclination. (See Fig. 1.)

Jan 1, 1916

HAVING produced one ton of concentrate that contains the copper that can profitably be saved or recovered from anywhere between 3 and 60 tons of mine ore, the ore-dressing engineer passes the result of his handiwork over to the metallurgist for smelting. Essentially, the concentrate is a damp mass of finely ground material consisting of copper sulphide minerals; pyrite, the sulphide of iron; and gangue, usually silica and silicates of aluminum. The purpose of smelting is to produce metallic copper and a slag containing the iron and siliceous constituents by pyrometallurgy-the kind of metallurgy that employs fire and heat to produce the chemical reactions through which it attains its object. Though blast furnaces have been used to smelt Porphyry-mine concentrates, notably at Braden, more than 90 per cent of [ ]

Jan 1, 1933

By F. C. Oliphant, George H. Fancher

Two samples of drilling mud from the Hastings oil field, Texas, were tested, and the solids in each were separated into small fractions of a limited range in particle size. The mineral composition of each fraction by X-ray analysis is reported, and the results are interpreted in relation to other measured quantities, such as the physical properties of the original samples and the density of the various fractions. It was found that only 7 to 8 per cent by weight of the solids was of colloidal dimensions and that neither of the samples contained montmorillonite but did contain illite. Considerable calcite was also found. These data should be useful to the geologist interested in the origin and history of sedimentary strata as well as to the petroleum engineer. Introduction The questions, What is good drilling mud? What constitutes bad drilling mud? are pertinent, because the proper use and control of drilling fluids has been a factor of great importance in the successful drilling and completion of oil wells since the days of Captain Lucas. Adequate control of the characteristics of drilling fluids has assumed greater significance comparatively recently because of the problems introduced by caving formations in deep wells, costly blowouts and impressive mud bills. Much is known about the solution of some of the problems but, despite extensive research directed toward a better understanding of the physical and chemical properties of clay suspensions, it is difficult to define precisely a drilling mud, and much more difficult to say what constitutes a good mud. It is generally believed that the smaller particles of a drilling mud greatly affect its physical properties. In fact, it is customary to blame the colloids in a mud for nearly everything that goes amiss, because colloidal properties have effects out of all usual proportion on viscosity, filtration rate and reaction to electrolytes. It is germane to know whether drilling muds possess colloids and if so, the quantity and kind. Source oF Samples Two drilling muds from the Hastings oil field, Brazoria County, Texas, were selected because it is generally agreed that in this oil field good natural muds made solely from formations penetrated by the drill can be used until the well is nearly ready for completion. Customary drilling procedure in this field is to spud in with water, set a protective string of pipe, drill to 2500 ft. and set the surface casing. Drilling is continued to 5500 ft. with no treatment of the drilling fluid other than addition of water to

Jan 1, 1943

By F. C. Oliphant, George H. Fancher

Two samples of drilling mud from the Hastings oil field, Texas, were tested, and the solids in each were separated into small fractions of a limited range in particle size. The mineral composition of each fraction by X-ray analysis is reported, and the results are interpreted in relation to other measured quantities, such as the physical properties of the original samples and the density of the various fractions. It was found that only 7 to 8 per cent by weight of the solids was of colloidal dimensions and that neither of the samples contained montmorillonite but did contain illite. Considerable calcite was also found. These data should be useful to the geologist interested in the origin and history of sedimentary strata as well as to the petroleum engineer. Introduction The questions, What is good drilling mud? What constitutes bad drilling mud? are pertinent, because the proper use and control of drilling fluids has been a factor of great importance in the successful drilling and completion of oil wells since the days of Captain Lucas. Adequate control of the characteristics of drilling fluids has assumed greater significance comparatively recently because of the problems introduced by caving formations in deep wells, costly blowouts and impressive mud bills. Much is known about the solution of some of the problems but, despite extensive research directed toward a better understanding of the physical and chemical properties of clay suspensions, it is difficult to define precisely a drilling mud, and much more difficult to say what constitutes a good mud. It is generally believed that the smaller particles of a drilling mud greatly affect its physical properties. In fact, it is customary to blame the colloids in a mud for nearly everything that goes amiss, because colloidal properties have effects out of all usual proportion on viscosity, filtration rate and reaction to electrolytes. It is germane to know whether drilling muds possess colloids and if so, the quantity and kind. Source oF Samples Two drilling muds from the Hastings oil field, Brazoria County, Texas, were selected because it is generally agreed that in this oil field good natural muds made solely from formations penetrated by the drill can be used until the well is nearly ready for completion. Customary drilling procedure in this field is to spud in with water, set a protective string of pipe, drill to 2500 ft. and set the surface casing. Drilling is continued to 5500 ft. with no treatment of the drilling fluid other than addition of water to

Jan 1, 1943

By Henry C. Freeman

During the early period of the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal, about 1838, in excavating for the canal, where the present town of Utica stands, hydraulic limestone was discovered, and its value was recognized. A kiln for calcining and a mill for grinding were erected, and the cement was used in the construction of the locks of the canal. This property was subsequently bought by the present owner, Mr. James Clark, and the work has been continued to the present time in much the same primitive manner as it was begun. The bed is exposed in the Illinois River valley by stripping off a few feet of the covering rock. It is from 4 feet to 6 feet 9 inches thick, and nearly level, dipping gently to the northeast. The Utica Cement Company's establishment, which is two miles west of Utica and two miles east of La Salle, was an outgrowth of the Illinois geological survey. The writer was in charge of the district which included La Salle county, and, in working out the details of the geology of that county, discovered, below the Utica bed, another workable hydraulic limestone, which makes its appearance in the northern bluff of the Illinois River valley, rising above the water level at the point where the company's works are established. This cement group, of which there are several thin beds, lies just below the St. Peter's sandstone, with a few feet intermediate of transition-rock, which appears to represent the Calciferous, and is exhibited in place, in concretionary form, at the top of the bluff. The hydraulic beds are very regular, and the one worked by the company is 10 feet thick; or, speaking more definitely, there are two beds, separated by 18 inches of sandstone, lying about two feet above the bottom, and the two beds are worked as one, the sandstone being first cut out and removed, to prevent mixture. In 1869 I was invited to join with a company, and to take charge

Jan 1, 1885

By George Moore

IN spite of many investigations of the occlusion of hydrogen in iron, the nature of the process and the reasons for the accompanying effects upon the metal are still open questions. This is in large part due to three causes: (1) the difficulty of obtaining iron of adequate purity as starting material; (2) the occurrence of allotropic transformations, which compli-cate the effects; and (3) the fact that the body-centered cubic modifica-tion does not lend itself readily to crystallographic investigation. The present paper attempts a critical review and correlation of the somewhat scattered and disconnected existing observations, and an experimental determination of the extent to which the conclusions that appear to follow from these are applicable to iron of really high purity, studied under well-defined conditions.

Jan 1, 1939