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BEFORE an audience which included many notable members of the engineering profession, the John Fritz Medal was presented to Senator Guglielmo Marconi on July 6, 1922, in the auditorium of the Engineering Societies Building, in New York. The medal was awarded for achievements in the development of wireless telegraphy, but all of the speakers emphasized the inventor's service to mankind, in saving life at sea, especially, as well as his remarkable scientific attainments. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE JOHN FRITZ MEDAL The John Fritz Medal is presented from time to time for notable achievements in applied science, as a memorial to the engineer and metallurgist whose name it bears, one of the charter members of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers. The medal fund, contributed by friends of Mr. Fritz, is administered by representatives of the four national engineering societies. Seventeen awards have been made to men of eminent distinction in the various branches of the profession of engineering, whose names are more familiar to the civilized world than are the names of most of the presidents of the United States. Four of the medallists were present on the evening of July 6: Dr. Elihu Thomson, the dean of the electrical engineers, General Goethals, Orville Wright, and J: Waldo Smith, who developed the New York City water supply, system. In opening the meeting, Dr. Comfort A. Adams, president of the Board of Award, said in part: The profession of engineering knows no national boundaries. That the engineers of this country sense this fact deeply is evi-denced by the absence of any limitations as to nationality in the award of the John Fritz Medal. The engineer is seeking for the truth wherever it may be found, and it frequently happens that the most helpful sugges-tions for the solution of a particular problem are the results of the work of men of other nationalities on the other side of the world, whom we have never seen. Thus through this long range interchange of information and of ideas, there has grown up a feeling of real kinship among the engineers of the civilized world, a sense of interdependence and of the need and value of cooperation, in wide contrast with the all too prevalent sense of conflicting interests, of racial and national antagonisms of bitterness and misunderstanding. We often think of the nations of the earth as separated by walls or barriers, of various kinds and of various heights. Some of these are the natural results of evolution, for example, differences of language, customs and traditions; while others are more artificial, being maintained by law and dictated by fear, greed, and shortsightedness or ignorance. There is deep conviction that the degree in which we can abolish these barriers is a true measure of our progress towards real civilization, and that the destruction of these barriers is the only method of attaining that world-wide peace for which every

Jan 8, 1922

By Jr. D. C. Williams, D. V. Carter

The four new oil-field discoveries made in the East and East Central Texas districts during 1941 were the East Long Lake field, Anderson County; Pickering field, Shelby County; Pleasant Grove field, Rusk County, and Tri-Cities field, Henderson County. The discovery of oil production in the Pettit lime of the Lower Glen Rose was made in the Groesbeck (Barron) field in Limestone County and the Willow Springs field in Gregg County. Important extensions were made to the Pittsburg field, in Camp County, the Chapel Hill field, in Smith County, and the Hawkins field, in Wood County. The Hawkins field was extended sufficiently to more than double the number of proved surface acres. As usual the East Texas field led the district in the number of completions for the year. The second most active field during the year was the Hawkins field, with 250 new wells completed. The third most active was the Long Lake field, in which 50 wells were completed. Approximately 964 wells were completed in the district during 1941. Production and Probation The district is credited with having produced 163,566,695 bbl. of oil and distillate during the year. This represents a decrease of 4 per cent from the 170,424,685 bbl. of oil and distillate produced during the preceding year. The production of 130,378,620 bbl. of oil and distillate from the East Texas field represents 79.7 per cent of the total production of the district; that is, 6.3 per cent less than the production for the year 1940, The district had an estimated basic daily allowable of 614,982 bbl. of oil on Dec. 31. Approximately 33 per cent of the state's annual production was produced in the district, compared with 34.9 per cent for 1940. Since the majority of the fields in this district are subject to proration, any change in the annual production is attributable largely to changes in proration schedules and number of shutdown days. Fields subject to shutdown days were closed in for 113 days during the year, with the exception of the East Texas field, which was shut down 111 days. An order was promulgated by the Oil and Gas Division of the Texas Railroad Commission for encouraging the disposal of salt water and reservoir-pressure maintenance in the East Texas field. Discoveries Tex Harvey Oil Company'sNo. I S. E. J. Cartmel was completed as the discovery well for the East Long Lake field, Anderson County. Production was found in the Woodbine sand, the horizon from which the Long Lake field produces. The Pickering field, Shelby County, secures its production from the Nacatoch sand, found at an approximate depth of 1510 ft., in A. E. McKiernan's No. I, Pickering Lumbering Co. This field is in an area near the state line in which a number of relatively unimportant and

Jan 1, 1942

By Jr. D. C. Williams, D. V. Carter

The four new oil-field discoveries made in the East and East Central Texas districts during 1941 were the East Long Lake field, Anderson County; Pickering field, Shelby County; Pleasant Grove field, Rusk County, and Tri-Cities field, Henderson County. The discovery of oil production in the Pettit lime of the Lower Glen Rose was made in the Groesbeck (Barron) field in Limestone County and the Willow Springs field in Gregg County. Important extensions were made to the Pittsburg field, in Camp County, the Chapel Hill field, in Smith County, and the Hawkins field, in Wood County. The Hawkins field was extended sufficiently to more than double the number of proved surface acres. As usual the East Texas field led the district in the number of completions for the year. The second most active field during the year was the Hawkins field, with 250 new wells completed. The third most active was the Long Lake field, in which 50 wells were completed. Approximately 964 wells were completed in the district during 1941. Production and Probation The district is credited with having produced 163,566,695 bbl. of oil and distillate during the year. This represents a decrease of 4 per cent from the 170,424,685 bbl. of oil and distillate produced during the preceding year. The production of 130,378,620 bbl. of oil and distillate from the East Texas field represents 79.7 per cent of the total production of the district; that is, 6.3 per cent less than the production for the year 1940, The district had an estimated basic daily allowable of 614,982 bbl. of oil on Dec. 31. Approximately 33 per cent of the state's annual production was produced in the district, compared with 34.9 per cent for 1940. Since the majority of the fields in this district are subject to proration, any change in the annual production is attributable largely to changes in proration schedules and number of shutdown days. Fields subject to shutdown days were closed in for 113 days during the year, with the exception of the East Texas field, which was shut down 111 days. An order was promulgated by the Oil and Gas Division of the Texas Railroad Commission for encouraging the disposal of salt water and reservoir-pressure maintenance in the East Texas field. Discoveries Tex Harvey Oil Company'sNo. I S. E. J. Cartmel was completed as the discovery well for the East Long Lake field, Anderson County. Production was found in the Woodbine sand, the horizon from which the Long Lake field produces. The Pickering field, Shelby County, secures its production from the Nacatoch sand, found at an approximate depth of 1510 ft., in A. E. McKiernan's No. I, Pickering Lumbering Co. This field is in an area near the state line in which a number of relatively unimportant and

Jan 1, 1942

By J. S. McNeil, J. U. Messenger

In the drilling of oil wells the control and prevention of lost circulation of the drilling- fluid is a oroblem which is frequently encountered; in many cases existing materials and methods for alleviating this condition have not been adequate. For severe cases of lost circulation in which the simpler methods, such as application of various bridging materials to the mud system, have proven unsatisfactory. a new material and method for applying to the loss zones have been developed which appear to he superior to existing techniques in many respects. The material, called a clay cement, is capable of being handled as a drilling fluid after initial mixing of the solitl ingredients with water and may be pumped down the drill pipe and squeezed into loss zones. After a short period, the material develops a very high gel strength which seals off the zone against further losses of the drilling fluid. In field tests, the process has been demonstrated to be a very effective method for combatting lost circulation. INTRODUCTION Methods of treating lost circulation in rotary-drilled wells by the addition of special materials to drilling fluids have long been in the process of development and are continuing to improve.' However, the annual drilling costs which can be traced directly to lost circulation difficulties still run into the millions of dollars. The loss of mud materials into highly permeable zones may range up to $50,000 per well in some areas. In addition to mud costs, excessive requirements of casing, cement; rig time, and the attendant blowout hazards further emphasize the importance of the need for improved methods of combatting lost circulation. The shortcomings of presently-used materials and methods have led to the development of a new lost returns material in the form of a time-setting clay cement. In field tests this material has proven very successful in plugging off loss zones. which other more conventional materials had failed to do. REVIEW OF PRESENT CORRECTIVE MEASURES The proper control of such operating factors as pump pressure, clearance between pipe and hole, and speed of running pipe in a holez is of primary importance in preventing and minimizing lost circulation problems. These factors, however, concern matters of drilling technique and do not directly involve lost circulation materials. Aside from setting casing past loss zones, three principal methods are generally employed for the purpose of avoiding or combatting lost circulation: (1) adjustment in properties (principally density) of the drilling fluid, (2) addition of fibrous, flaky, granular or other types of bridging materials to the mud system, and (3) the application of cements to the loss zones. The latter method is usually employed only after the first two have proven unsuccessful. In Table I are listed some advantages and disadvantages of the common corrective measures. Frequently, a combination of bridging material and cementing material is used." This combination is based on the premise that a bridge will

Jan 1, 1952

By Larry A. Shiprnan

DEMANDS upon power plants by the war program in 1941 intensified problems of coal utilization. It was an outstanding year in that field. The domestic heating stove witnessed outstanding development; the research folks progressing so rapidly that the design of the "perfect" stove is just around the corner. Use of colored motion pictures in analyzing fuel-bed performances has reached a new high with the colored pictures taken at minute intervals and projected at sixteen frames a second as shown by the Koppers Coal Co. and the Anthracite Institute (on domestic stokers) and the Consolidated Edison Co. (industrial stokers). Continued efforts of this kind will be beneficial in analyzing further some of the "Code for Testing Coal" problems confronting Subcommittee No. 2 of the Joint A. I. M. E. - A. S. M. E. Committees.

Jan 1, 1942

By William L. Batt

IT IS becoming increasingly evident to management that it has other obligations than merely to earn dividends for stockholders. The head of one of America's largest organizations has stated it in these words: "There rests upon them a far broader responsibility than the mere production of goods and services, or solely the interests of their stockholders. They must assume the important obligation, through proper policy, of attuning industry to a rapidly changing world, from social as well as economic standpoints." Stockholders might as well reconcile themselves, therefore, to the fact that management cannot always put their interests first in the obligation of business enterprise: and that the legitimate requirements of customers and employees have acquired a new significance which must be recognized if the business of today is to prosper.

Jan 1, 1938

By H. W. Gillett

BATTELLE Memorial Institute is an endowed in stitution for scientific research in metallurgy, fuels, and allied fields, established by the will of Gordon Battelle, 2nd, as a memorial to his father, Colonel John Gordon Battelle. Before I tell you more of what Battelle Memorial Institute is, I want to go back a bit and tell you why it is. Colonel Battelle began his services in the iron and steel industry in Wheeling in 1866 and in 1883 came to Ohio, where he successively engaged in the iron and steel industry in Cincinnati, Piqua and Columbus. The family had been prominent in Ohio affairs since 1788, when Gordon Battelle's great-great-grandfather came from New England to settle in Marietta. He was one of the pioneers and a member of the famous "Ohio Company."

Jan 1, 1929

By C. A. Worner

THE meeting of the Petroleum Division at the Annual Meeting of the Institute maintained the high standard set in previous years, and attendance of member: of the Division was at a new high. The impact of the war was evident not only in the tone of many of die papers but also in the presence at the meeting of many of our members now serving in the armed forces of our-country. Ken interest was manifested in all papers presented and the discussions which followed developed many additional facts of interist and importance. The first activity of the Division was the joint meeting of the Papers and Programs and the Publications Committees on Monday afternoon; at which time definite plans were formulated for a simplification and co-ordination of the work of the committees.

Jan 1, 1944

The American Institute of Mining Engineers, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the American Institute of Electrical Engineers have established the . Engineering Societies Employment Bureau under the management of their Secretaries. One of the purposes of the Bureau is to keep in touch with all engineering firms with a view to supplying them with desirable men. Plans are under way to assist in placing men who are retiring from the government service. The Bureau is not intended to be exclusively for the benefit of unemployed members, of the Founder Societies; non-members who are introduced properly will be registered. Information, registration forms, etc., may be obtained from the office of the Bureau, Engineering Societies Building, 29 West 39 Street, New York, Room 903.

Jan 1, 1919

(Members are urged to send in for this column any notes of interest concerning themselves or their fellow-members.) Members and guests who registered at Institute headquarters during February: Paul S. King, Wilmington, Del. William Kelly, Vulcan, Mich. A. Del Mar, South Pasadena, Cal. F. H. Armstrong, Vulcan. Mich. T. D. Babbitt, Nampa, Idaho. Reginald E. More, Toronto, Canada. H. L. Williams, Newtonville, Mass. Tom M. Owen, Broken Hill, Australia. F. W. Bacorn, Pittsburg, Pa. Percy E. Barbour, Candor, N. C. Huntington. Adams, Mexico, D. F. Karl Nibecker, Youngstown, Ohio. Clifton B. Johnson, New. York, N. Y. G. A. Reinhardt, Youngstown, Ohio. W. Spencer Hutchinson, Boston, Mass. Herbert B. Cox, Boston, Mass. F. Louis Grammer, Leesburg, Va. E. C. Pechin, Buchanan, Va. H. C. H. Carpenter, London, England.

Jan 3, 1914

POSITIONS VACANT (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or. other persons.) Position for a single man experienced in cyanide mill construction and operation at a small mine in Nicaragua. Salary $150 per month and expenses. No.. 39. ENGINEERS AVAILABLE (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons introduced by members.) Member, technical graduate, desires position in ore dressing, either experimental or operating. Has had practical experience in flotation and other special methods. No. 228. Member, technical. graduate, 10 years' experience in Belgian coal mines, five years' experience in American coal mines in connection with reorganization of companies and opening of new coal fields. Aged 37. Speaks Spanish. No. 229

Jan 7, 1915

By J. A. Bowknocker

NATURAL GAS was secured in the Trenton limestone near Findlay, Hancock County, in 1884, and oil in the following year. Drilling was rapid so that the production increased by leaps and bounds; in 1896, it exceeded 25,250,000 bbl., the maximum for the field. Since that time, the yield has decreased steadily and in 1921 was only 1,447,243 bbl. The territory extends as an arc of a circle from near the western end of Lake Erie southwest into Indiana, which it enters in Adams and Jay Counties. Sixteen counties are listed in Ohio but five of them combined had a new production of only 264 bbl. and they might well be omitted. Progress in the Trenton limestone field of northwest Ohio in 1923 is shown in Table 1.

Jan 3, 1924

By Fred P. Dewey

In my paper on the porosity and specific gravity of coke, read at the Roanoke meeting, June, 1883, and published in this volnme, an analysis by Dr. henry Froehling is reported (p. 10 of the preliminary edition of the paper, or p. 120 of this volume), as showing the composition of Fire Creek coke. This analysis WaS of coke made in beehive ovens at Low Moor, Va., from New River coal. Dr. Froehlng's analysis of the Fire Creek coke was as follows: Moisture..........0.260 Volatile matter.........0.260 Fixed carbon .........92.377 Ash 1....6.750 Sulphur..........0.535 Phosphorus.........0.0146 Both analyses are reported side by side in The Erginias for 1883, p. 99. By an error in copying, the Low Moor analysis was trans-

Jan 1, 1884

CHARLES KIRCHHOFF, Chairman. ALBERT SAUVEUR, Vice-Chairman. HERBERT M. BOYLSTON, Secretary, Abbot Bldg., Harvard Sq., Cambridge, Mass. John Birkinbine, J. E. Johnson, Jr., J. S. Unger, William H. Blauvelt, William Kelly, Felix A. Vogel, James Gayley, Richard Moldenke, Leonard Waldo, Henry D. Hibbard, Joseph W. Richards, William R. Walker, Henry M. Howe, C. F. W. Rys, William R. Webster, Robert W. Hunt, E. Gybbon Spilsbury, Frederick W. Wood. A. A. Stevenson, J. S. Unger and C. F. W. Rys have accepted membership on the Iron and Steel Committee. The Program Committee has held two meetings- in New York and has perfected the preliminary plans for the October meeting. The Committee will meet again in September. The following provisional program has been laid out by the Program Committee, but is subject to later additions and changes :

Jan 9, 1913

By John F. Abel

At the spring meeting of the Open Pit Division of AIME's Arizona Section, I was asked a question which indicates the acceleration of technical advancement. The question was: "How does an engineer at a properly keep abreast of what is new?" The fact that some 200 Arizona AIME members were at the meeting is a testimonial to the desire of these men to do just that- keep abreast. There is a great deal of talk in academic circles about the built-in obsolescence of an engineering or scientific education, too. About 100 commencement speakers every spring are sure to admonish the graduates that education is a continuing thing. Mining engineers are a small fraternity. We keep informed by talking to one another. Talking shop is valuable but there is no substitute for reading.

Jan 1, 1970

By W. Mostowitsch, H. O. Hofman

In our investigation of the Behavior of Calcium Sulphate at Elevated Temperatures with Some Fluxes,' we incidentally studied the decomposition of ferric oxide when heated in a current of dry air. We found that at 1,500° C., with 15-min. periods of heating, Fe²,O³, hardly changed in weight, the greatest loss being 0.23 per cent., and we therefore concluded that the compound remained unchanged at 1,500° C. in a current of dry air. In a more recent experiment we heated Fe²,O³, in a current of dry air and found that there was a decided loss in weight. A new investigation upon the behavior of Fe², O³, using a larger amount of substance and heating for a longer period of time, revealed the fact that a measurable dissocia-

Jan 1, 1910

Two separate but closely related projects now under construction on the St. Lawrence River- the Seaway and the St. Lawrence Power Project- are providing the impetus for what may become one of the most significant economic expansions in the Northeast. By 1959, or even earlier, electric power will be flowing from the largest single hydroelectric installation east of the Rockies. Simultaneously there will come into existence a great new commercial waterway which will provide cheap transportation from the farm and industrial heartlands of the U. S. and Canada to the markets and resources of the world. When the Seaway is completed, vessels with five to ten times the capacity of those now using the Canadian canal system will be able to move from the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Superior.

Nov 1, 1955

By D. V. Fites

The ripper is not a new tool. In fact, it dates back as far as the Roman Empire. The Roman's ripper-mounted on wheels and shaped something like a plow-was pulled by oxen and was used to loosen the earth for the shovelers and basket carriers building the Appian Way. There are records of rippers being used in this country in railroad construction between 1860 and 1880. The tractor-mounted ripper, introduced a little over ten years ago, extended the capability of the ripper because of greatly improved maneuverability and the additional weight which could be brought to bear upon the ripper tooth. Increases through the last ten years in tractor weight and horsepower further increased ripper capability until now, in some geographic areas, hardly any rock is unchallenged by them.

Jan 12, 1967

By M. J. Greaves, Alan English

Pelletizing on a commercial scale is only 10 years old; yet in this period more than 150 million tons of pellets have been produced. Instrumentation and controls have played an important part in the development of an entirely new industry in almost unprecedented time. Initially, most control circuits used in the pelletizing industry were manually operated, since the confidence factor in instruments and controls was quite low at that time. This changed considerably in recent years and improvements in the use of instruments and controls have probably developed more rapidly in pelletizing than in any other metallurgical process. Now, within a decade of the start of commercial operations, the use of manually operated controls has changed and consideration is being given to the utilization of computers for data logging and control purposes.

Jan 7, 1965

INTERNAL The year 1976 was another outstanding year in the operation of the Institute and in the success of its varied activities. Total AIME membership reached 59,773 for a gain of. 6.4 percent. Total revenue increased to $5,111,2 10, up 22.4 percent, and balance sheet assets increased to $8,479,612, up 12.2 percent from the previous year. AIME and its constituent units conducted 30 technical meetings during the year, and attendance was up at most of them. Publications issued by the Constituent Societies continued a healthy growth. During the year 9 new local Sections were established, and at the end of the year the Institute had 150 Sections, with 19 of them overseas. Details on all of these operations are on pages 2 and 3 of this report.

Jan 4, 1977