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By D. A. Keyes

International Minerals & Chemical Corp. (Canada) Ltd. is presently exploiting by underground mining a potash-rich zone in the middle Devonian Prairie Evaporite formation near Esterhazy, Saskatchewan. Of the three main potash-bearing horizons denoted by Goudie as zones 1, 2 and 3 only the 1ower. two are present at Esterhazy and mining is confined to the lower or zone 1 horizon. The area in which the evaporites were deposited, although flanked on the west by a zone of geosynclinal deposition and tectonic activity, has been subjected to only very gentle epeirogenic activity. The sylvinite ore is coarsely crystalline and occurs in well-defined beds. The halite, sylvite and insoluble content of the ore bears a direct relationship to the lithological units, but the carnallite cuts across the beds. Local concentrations of salt produce blank spots in the ore horizon. Some of these appear to be salt-filled, post-ore channels and cracks while others have been formed by brines emanating upward from below the ore. INTRODUCTION International Minerals & Chemical Corporation (Canada) Ltd. is operating an underground potash mine near the town of Esterhazy in eastern Saskatchewan. The deposit was discovered by IMC in 1955. Subsequent drilling outlined extensive high-grade reserves, and in 1957 shaft sinking and plant construction began. Production from Yarbo No. 1 Shaft commenced in September, 1962 and quickly reached the initial capacity of one million tons of muriate product per year. Production is currently being expanded to 1.6 million tpy. The single mining level is 3140 ft below the surface at No. 1 Shaft. GENERAL GEOLOGY The Esterhazy district lies within the Interior Plains region of Canada and on the northeast rim of the Williston Basin (Fig. 1). Average dip of the rock formations in this area is about 40 ft per mile to the southwest. The potash ore occurs in the Prairie Evaporite formation of the Middle-Devonian Elk Point Group. The Prairie Evaporites are overlain by 3000 ft of Paleozoic shales and limestones and by Jurassic and Cretaceous sandstones and shales (Fig. 2).

Jan 1, 1967

By J. T. Crawford

ALTHOUGH nearly 10 pct of the total tonnage of coal produced annually within the United States is handled by bulk freighters on the Great Lakes, very little of the detail connected with it has been published other than occasional newspaper stories and publication of tonnage statistics. Of the total tonnage floated on the Lakes each year some 10,000,000 is stored and distributed from the port of Duluth Superior, at the western end of Lake Superior commonly known as the Head of the Lakes. This port has the largest single area concentration of coal docks in the world. Since this area contains the largest ore docks, the largest movable material handling bridge, the largest and highest grain elevator and the largest coal briquetting plant in the world, it is entirely fitting and proper that here also should be located the largest coal dock and what we believe to be the worlds largest clam shell. Of the sixteen coal docks operated by ten companies, five are owned and operated by the North Western-Hanna Fuel Co. which has two docks on the Superior, Wis. water-front and three docks in Duluth, Minn. It is with these five docks that we are primarily concerned. GENERAL HISTORY In the summer of 1871 a small sailing vessel entered the harbor of Duluth Superior with the first commercial coal cargo. All the coal brought up that first year did not amount to more than 3000 tons. During the year 1877 the first dock equipped for handling coal was built in Duluth. Coal receipts increased to 52,785 tons in 1879 the first year for which an official record was kept. Since then the volume of water-borne coal to the Head of the Lakes steadily increased to a maximum of 12,688,321 tons in the year 1923. This tonnage was nearly equalled in the year 1927 and the next highest tonnage recent year was in 1946 when 10,105,703 tons were unloaded. The average annual bring-up over a ten year period 1938 to 1947 was 8,605,231 tons. Approximately 30 pct of the coal unloaded at the Head of the Lakes is handled over the docks of the North Western-Hanna Fuel Co. Competition of other fuels coupled with expansion of coal fields in the mid-west have held coal receipts for Duluth-Superior at a relatively constant figure during the last eight years although the total tonnage of coal floated on the Great Lakes has more than doubled in the past 25 years. From the shovel and wheelbarrow method of unloading early cargoes to the horsepowered windlass derrick with a wooden tub was but a short step. The first movable coal handling, steam operated,

Jan 1, 1948

By G. W. Nabor, A. S. Odeh

The effect of production history of a well on the results of two-rate flow tests, and conventional build-up analyses was investigated. The effect was examined by means of digital computers and an R-C network model, respectively, for wells with infinite and finite radii of drainage. For systems which behave as infinite, it was found that production history and the duration of production at constant rate prior to the initiation of the test have important effects on the results. During build-up time equal to about one-fourth of the stabilized time, correct permeability-thickness product calculations can be made. For wells with finite radii of drainage, the time was determined during which the straight line can be satisfactorily used for permeability-thickness product calculations in case of drawdowns and build-ups. On build-ups, the dimensionless time (based on the external radius) during which the straight line gives reliable results was detertriined to be about 1/12. This is one-fourth as long as that of the drawdown. The investigation was done theoretically, and subsequently was verified by R-C network model runs. General interpretive rules were formulated which, if not followed, could lead to serious errors. Moreover, a recommended testing procedure is reported. INTRODUCTION The method used by most reservoir engineers for estimating formation characteristics in a producing well is the analysis of pressure build-up data. The method originally devised by Horner' makes use of the point source solution to the diffusion equation. This solution is approximated by a logarithmic function and the superposition principle is employed to arrive at the well known pressure build-up equation:where q, the flow rate, is in reservoir B/D; ft is in cp; kh is in md-ft; At is the shut-in time; and t is the producing time. At and t are in any consistent time units. Ey. 1 is applicable to a well of unlimited drainage radius which produces at a constant rate q from zero to time t and is then shut in. Such a constant production rate seldom obtains in practice. Therefore. a correction term must be applied to Eq. I to account for the varying rate. Two theoretically accurate methods are available for treating the variable rate case. The first, originally derived by Horner,' is based on the application of the superposition theorem. It requires knowlege of production history of the well as a function of time and results in lengthy and laborious calculations. The second t*q* niethod is suited for short production tests and requires that the shut-in time be at least one and one-half times the production time. A third method which is not based on any theoretical justification and which was suggested by Horner as a "good working approximation" is the one used by the majority of reservoir analysts. especially when the well has been producing for a long time and the t*q* method is not practicable. The key to this method is in choosing or determining the t that appears in Eq. 1. Horner suggested using a corrected time t, in place of t. t, is calculated by dividing the total cumulative production by the last established rate. Therefore, a normal procedure of pressure build-up testing is to stabilize the well at a constant rate for at least 24 hours before shut in and to use the stabilized rate to calculate t,. The analysis is then made by plotting either or P. and examining the resulting plot for the expected straight line to calculate kh and the original reservoir pressure. Recently, Russell" proposed a method for determining formation characteristics from two-rate flow tests. His method reduces to pressure build-up if the second flow rate is zero. Russell uses the Horner simplified procedure for calculating a corrected t,. His method also requires the stabilization of the well at a constant rate q which is used to calculate t,. Theoretically, the above procedure is valid for a well with an unlimited radius of drainage or with a limited radius as long as the boundary effect has not been felt by the well. Several authors'' derived formulas which allow the estimation of time during which limited reservoirs behave as infinite ones and, thus, can be treated by unsteady-state mechanics. One equation derived by Swift and Kiel' terminates the application of unsteady-state theory when the drainage radius reaches one-half the reservoir radius. Thereafter, steady-state behavior obtains. Another equation derived by Jones'" initiates steady-state

Jan 1, 1967

By R. L. Perrine

The rise of drain holes drilled from a well to improve productivity is becoming increasingly common. This paper presents data on the productivity increase that may he expected. The data were obtained by use of an electrolytic tank mode1 of a reservoir. Parameter varied in the study to show their effect on productivity include the length, number, and arrangement of drain holes, formation thickness, and damage near the well-hore. The most important results are that very large increases in productivity can be expected only ill damaged wells. The distance, to which drain holes penetrate is of primary importance. Additional length is more effective than increasing the number of drain holes. INTRODUCTI O N In planning the use of drain holes to improve productivity, it is important to he able to estimate the increase in production that can be obtained for a given expenditure. It is also important to know what combination of parameters related to the use of drain holes can he chosen to give the largest production increase. This paper presents data on the productivity increase that may be expected, as obtained by use of an electrolytic tank model of the reservoir. In this study, :! number of parameters were varied to show their effect on productivity. These included the length, number, and arrangement of the drain holes. The presence or absence of a damaged zone of low permeability around the well-bore and the thickness of the producing formation were also considered. The productivity increase that might be expected due to drain holes is presented as the ratio: productivity of a well after drain holes are drilled and completed to the productivity of the same well in an undamaged state without drain holes. The symbol Q/Qo is used to represent this productivity ratio. Thus, the comparison in each case is with a formation of uniform and undamaged permeability. Additional notation includes I;, for the radial extent of the damaged zone, which is assumed to be cylindrical and concentric with the wellbore. Thus the effect of an actual block is approximated by a discontinuous varia-tion in permeability. For purposes of this paper, the permeability within the damaged zone, denoted by kb, is assumed to be 1/25 that in the remainder of the formation, or k. A necessary assumption in making comparative tests using an electrolytic model is that reservoir flow behavior can be approximated by single-phase, steady-\tate flow according to Darey's Law. In addition, the formation must be assumed to be homogeneous with equal horizontal and vertical permeability. The well-hore diameter in this study is assumed to be 11¾ in. and the drainage radius of the well equal to 500 ft. The drain holes are considered to have been completed without damage. THE ELECTROLYTlC MODEL 'She producing formation was modeled by forming a sheet of phosphor-bronze into a cylinder 40% in, in diameter to represent the boundary of the drainage area. This was enclosed in a waterproofed plywood box, and the box filled to an appropriate level with a dilute sodium chloride solution. Solution concentration was adjusted to give a total resistance from

Jan 1, 1956

By E. A. Holbrook

The art of ore dressing is as old as civilization itself. Jason's search for the golden fleece was perhaps only the use of sheepskins for catching gold from gold-bearing sands washed over them. From Hoover's translation of Agricola we gather that in the middle ages ore dressing had advanced through the stage of hand sorting to water concentration by jigging. German methods and apparatus continued in the lead until the closing years of the past century; indeed, it is little more than a generation ago that many ore-dressing plants in this country were designed and operated by German-trained ore-dressing specialists. Meanwhile the development of the ore deposits in this country during the nineteenth century brought forth new inventions and methods. Blake's invention of the rock breaker in 1858 and the coming of the Wilfley table about 1896 are random examples of the improvements caused by our expanding needs. Yet ore dressing remained an art developed and practiced more or less by cut and try methods. The publication of the volumes on Ore Dressing by Dr. Robert H. Richards in 1903 marks the beginning of American ore-dressing practice as a science. Previously we had as guides only a few incomplete books based on foreign practice, or scattered references and articles in our own Transactions. Dr. Richards set down all the developments that had gone before, and outlined the ways for a scientific approach to the subject. He gave us a starting point. Since then ore-dressing practice and technique in this country have set the pace for the world. Coal preparation has been called "ore dressing upside down,'' because in ore dressing we generally save a small percentage of the heavy valuable mineral and discard the lighter gangue, whereas in coal preparation we save the larger quantity of light mineral and discard the smaller percentage of heavy waste. By comparison with ore dressing the history of coal preparation is brief, extending backwards hardly 100 years, for although coal had been dug and used locally for centuries it became an important article of commerce only with the coming of the industrial revolution 150 years ago. In new mines it was to he expected that the thickest and purest seams should be worked first. So long as these lasted there was little thought of coal preparation other than hand picking of the larger impurities and simple sizing to supply the real or fancied need

Jan 1, 1934

By Charles B. Dudley

THEO. N. ELY, Esq., Superintendent of Motive Power. DEAR SIR: It is now nearly three years since my first report to you on the subject of steel rails was written. That report, as you will remember, dealt principally with the question of the relation between the chemical composition and physical properties of steel rails and their power to resist crushing and fracture in actual service. Other matters were referred to or touched upon in that report, but the main question was, Why do some rails crush or break in service while others do not? You will doubtless remember that the principal conclusion arrived at was, that the softer rails are less liable to crush or break in service than the hard ones. Or, in other words, so far as conclusions could be drawn from the chemical analysis and physical test of 25 samples of steel rails which had actually been in service, these conclusions were that those rails which have the smaller amounts of carbon, phosphorus, silicon, and manganese are less liable to crush or break in service than those which have larger amounts of these elements. Or, again, looked at in the light * At the Lake George meeting of the Institute in October, 1878, I had the honor of presenting to the Institute, through the kind permission of the officers of. the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, the results of a study of twenty-five samples of steel rails, which had all been in actual service. Considerable discussion followed the publication of that paper, and there seemed to be a strong disinclination, especially on the part of the steel-rail manufacturers, to accept the conclusions presented. One of the principal objections urged against the conclusions drawn was, that they were based on too few samples; in other words, that no conclusions safe to act upon could be drawn from the examination of twenty-five rails. In view of this criticism it was decided to repeat the investigation with a larger number of samples, and with the aid of the experience gained in the first investigation. The results of this second study of steel rails are, by the permission of the officers of 'the Pennsylvania. Railroad Company, herewith presented to the Institute, with the sincere desire that they may aid in adding to our knowledge of this most important product. Like the previous paper, this is in the form of a report to one of the officers of the company, which will account for the style, and the manner of presenting the data

Jan 1, 1881

By Earl Bardwell

THE structural relations existing between cuprous oxide and copper -were first systematically studied by Heyn1', who suggested that a study of the microstructure of refined copper might be substituted for the analytical methods in vogue for determining the oxygen content of copper coming from the refining furnace. Hofman, Green and Yerxa,2 in their paper A Laboratory Study of the Stages in the Refining of Copper, working along the lines suggested by Heyn, showed that a study of the microstructure could be made to yield a correct estimate of the oxygen content of the specimen of refined copper under examination. In order to determine the oxygen content of the specimen of refined copper under. examination a photomicrograph was first made. From the relative areas of copper and eutectic, the percentage of cuprous oxide and the corresponding percentage of oxygen were then readily calculated. It was found that the values for oxygen thus obtained corresponded closely with the analytical results. With the idea of utilizing this method of determining the oxygen content of each charge dipped from the refining furnaces at the Boston & Montana Reduction Plant, the physical testing laboratory was equipped with suitable apparatus for carrying out the work. It may be of interest to describe certain of the methods which have been worked out in this connection and give such data as have been obtained bearing on the effect of the oxygen content of refined copper upon its conductivity. Apparatus.-For the benefit of those who may be unfamiliar with metallographical apparatus and methods and may be interested to know what equipment is required, a few words with regard to the apparatus is in place at this point.

Jan 7, 1913

By C. A. Zapffe

BOTH the foundryman and the theoretical metallurgist are now generally agreed that the anomalous "rising" or "bleeding" of certain ferrous castings of killed metal is primarily attributable to hydrogen. How and why the phenomenon occurs, however, have not been made clear. The following discussion is intended to harmonize foundry experience with metallurgical theory so that the foundryman may possibly improve his ability to prognosticate whether a certain casting may bleed or not. BLEEDING, RISING, AND PIPING The "rising" to be discussed here is not to be confused with the action in rimming ingots as a result of the carbon-oxygen reaction, although a conclusion will be drawn that may apply to the art of controlling the rimming action. Only killed metal is considered, which includes both steels and irons. In Fig. I, three killed, chill-cast ingots are shown: a porous ingot whose evolution of gas during late stages of solidification has ejected metal through the top; an ingot in which moderate gas evolution during solidification has lifted the mushy central metal, i.e., it has "risen"; and, third, a sound ingot with good piping characteristics. The first type is referred to as "bleeding," and generally infers that a solid skin had first formed through which the liquid metal later erupted. There is no fundamental distinction between bleeding and rising in reference to killed metal.* POROSITY Hydrogen appears as a cause of bleeding because the gas evolution simultaneously leaves a porosity of a type traceable to hydrogen. Twenty years ago, Melmoth1 noted that killed steel that rose unexpectedly in the mold, if returned while liquid to the furnace and heated further under a reducing lime slag, would again rise in the mold; but that if the ingot were allowed to solidify and was then remelted no rising occurred. A critical quantity of the responsible gas is therefore removed by the rising action. Melmoth associated rising with high silicon (0.7 to 0.9 per cent) and concluded that silicon increased gas absorption. Because silicon is a strong deoxidizer, oxygen must, therefore, be eliminated from consideration of the three common gases in steel-oxygen, nitrogen, and hydrogen. Butterworth2 later decided that pinhole porosity was caused by gases dissolved in the metal and that hydrogen was obtained from steam in the mold. Allen's classical work on copper castings,3 soon followed by

Jan 1, 1942

By C. E. Cottrell, G. W. Preckshot, N. D. Delisle, D. L. Katz

Most crude oils contain asphaltic substances that may be naturally or artificially precipitated. In the Greeley field, California, this asphaltic bitumen is precipitated during the flow of the oil from the reservoir to the stock tank The mechanism of such precipitation is not well understood. This paper presents the progress that has been made by using the electron microscope as a new tool and by observing the effects of the streaming potential on the formation of bitumen particles. Crude oils at atmospheric pressure viewed in the electron microscope in very thin films under a vacuum showed no asphaltic particles. A technique of preparing slides of thin films by dilution of the oil with benzene and washing in petroleum ether was used at first, and these observations showed that the solvents caused the formation of the particles, varying from 0.01 to 0.2 micron in diameter. The electrical effects of fluids flowing through porous solid were studied, with emphasis on the formation of colloidal particles by the streaming potential. The streaming potential of crude oil flowing through sand was measured and was shown to be responsible for the formation of bitumen particles. These results bring out a new phenomenon, which may occur when crude oil flows through the porous oil reservoir. mechanisms. Asphalt has been the subject of widespread investigation but, owing to the complexity of the substances being considered, progress has been slow. Investigators working primarily with the asphaltic substances have treated the subject from the colloidal standpoint and have developed theories that picture the asphaltic particles as surrounded by adsorbed materia1s.14,15,17,24 The deasphaltization of lubricating oil by the use of solvents treats the subject primarily from the standpoint of liquid-liquid equilibria.'' A complete understanding of asphaltic substances would make possible the following of the material from its initial state in the crude oil through precipitation processes to the final plastic stage, the most common form of which is used in asphaltic pavements. Since these asphaltic particles are very small, it appears 'hat the electron microscope4 might be a useful tool in studying the precipitation processes. Specimens are examined by the electron microscope in a vacuum and as very thin films, requiring special techniques in preparation of samples. A brief description of the electron microscope and its operation will bring out the difficulties and advantages of its use for this problem. The first work was done with crude oils that had been diluted with solvents for the preparation of the film to be examined. Later a technique was developed by which the undiluted oil film could be made thin enough for direct examination. These two techniques show vastly different results Asphaltic particles have been precipitated from crude oils by a variety of

Jan 1, 1943

By G. W. Preckshot, C. E. Cottrell, D. L. Katz, N. D. Delisle

Most crude oils contain asphaltic substances that may be naturally or artificially precipitated. In the Greeley field, California, this asphaltic bitumen is precipitated during the flow of the oil from the reservoir to the stock tank The mechanism of such precipitation is not well understood. This paper presents the progress that has been made by using the electron microscope as a new tool and by observing the effects of the streaming potential on the formation of bitumen particles. Crude oils at atmospheric pressure viewed in the electron microscope in very thin films under a vacuum showed no asphaltic particles. A technique of preparing slides of thin films by dilution of the oil with benzene and washing in petroleum ether was used at first, and these observations showed that the solvents caused the formation of the particles, varying from 0.01 to 0.2 micron in diameter. The electrical effects of fluids flowing through porous solid were studied, with emphasis on the formation of colloidal particles by the streaming potential. The streaming potential of crude oil flowing through sand was measured and was shown to be responsible for the formation of bitumen particles. These results bring out a new phenomenon, which may occur when crude oil flows through the porous oil reservoir. mechanisms. Asphalt has been the subject of widespread investigation but, owing to the complexity of the substances being considered, progress has been slow. Investigators working primarily with the asphaltic substances have treated the subject from the colloidal standpoint and have developed theories that picture the asphaltic particles as surrounded by adsorbed materia1s.14,15,17,24 The deasphaltization of lubricating oil by the use of solvents treats the subject primarily from the standpoint of liquid-liquid equilibria.'' A complete understanding of asphaltic substances would make possible the following of the material from its initial state in the crude oil through precipitation processes to the final plastic stage, the most common form of which is used in asphaltic pavements. Since these asphaltic particles are very small, it appears 'hat the electron microscope4 might be a useful tool in studying the precipitation processes. Specimens are examined by the electron microscope in a vacuum and as very thin films, requiring special techniques in preparation of samples. A brief description of the electron microscope and its operation will bring out the difficulties and advantages of its use for this problem. The first work was done with crude oils that had been diluted with solvents for the preparation of the film to be examined. Later a technique was developed by which the undiluted oil film could be made thin enough for direct examination. These two techniques show vastly different results Asphaltic particles have been precipitated from crude oils by a variety of

Jan 1, 1943

By M. C. Flemings, T. Z. Kattamis

Dendrite morphology and grain size were studied in bulk samples of iron and nickel base alloys under-cooled up to 300°C. In the alloys studied, dendrite morphology gradually changes with increasing undercooling from the usual dendritic structure to a structure composed of cylindrical dendrite arms. At a critical undercooling of approximately 170°C in these alloys there is an abrupt transition to a fine-grained structure of spherical morphology. Final dendrite-arnz spacing of melts nucleated at less than the critical undercooling decreases with increasing undercooling and with decreasing distance from a chilled surface. Grain size of melts nucleated at greater than the critical undercooling decreases similarly with these factors. It is concluded that structure coarsening, with reduction of surface area as driving force, is the principal mechanism determining final dendrite-arm spacing in melts nucleated at small undercoolings and grain site in melts nucleated at large undercoolings. IN solidification of highly undercooled melts, nuclea-tion and growth of the solid is accompanied by a rapid release of latent heat of fusion. The heat release is sufficiently rapid in bulk specimens that it takes place essentially adiabatically with respect to the surroundings; hence the specimen heats up ("recalesces") to some maximum recalescence temperature. For bulk liquid metals and alloys, a simple thermal balance shows the undercoolings obtainable in bulk samples are not sufficient to lower the maximum recalescence temperature below the equilibrium solidus temperature. Hence, some liquid always remains at the end of recalescence; this liquid must solidify by rejection of heat to the surroundings. Metals, including iron and nickel base alloys, normally freeze with only a few degrees of undercooling. In general, nucleation begins on impurity particles present in the metal, at a "heterogeneous nucleation temperature" that is quite close to the equilibrium liquidus temperature. Very small droplets of metal can be undercooled considerably before nucleation occurs,1-4 presumably because subdivision of the liquid reduces the probability of solid impurity in a given droplet. Following early work on metal droplets,' a series of studies has shown that it is possible, without great difficulty, to undercool bulk samples of many metals and alloys. Undercoolings obtainable are approximately two tenths of the melting point for nickel, iron, copper, and other metals and alloys.5-9 Specimen sizes have generally been in the range of 50 to 500 g. Studies on undercooling to date have been concerned primarily with techniques of undercooling and with nucleation and growth kinetics. Only limited consideration has been given to dendrite morphology in under- cooled alloys. One such study, in bulk Cu-Ni alloy,8 showed that at small undercoolings a typical dendritic structure was obtained. At undercoolings the order of 175°C the structure of a Cu-40 pct Ni alloy became "ray or starlike", and a dense network of subbound-aries appeared. At still larger degrees of undercooling, of the order of 250°C, the structure became more random and included an ensemble of globular forms. Comparable results were obtained by walker10 on Cu-Ni alloys, and by Kamenetskaya et al.11 in research on Cu-Ni, Sb-Bi, Fe-Ni, and Fe-Cr alloys. In this work, study was made of the processing parameters influencing dendrite morphology and grain size in undercooled alloy melts. Experiments were specifically designed to show the effects of coarsening ("ripening") during solidification on final casting morphology. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Apparatus used was patterned after that of Walker,10 Fig. l(a). Melting was by induction under reduced pressure of helium. Two different types of crucible materials were used; there was no difficulty in obtaining substantial undercooling in both types of materials. Alumina crucibles were used for the bulk of the runs made, with a glass coating separating the metal from the crucible walls. Other runs were made using fused silica crucibles with or without slag coating. A graphite susceptor was employed around the crucible to aid in melting and to reduce melt stirring. The major portion of the experimental work was on

Jan 1, 1967

By R. K. Hopkins

For a great many years fusion welding has been used in and around petroleum refineries, but it is only within six or seven years that the more important pressure vessels have been constructed by this process, because before that time the properties of fusion welds would not with-stand such rigorous service. Since the adoption of fusion welding for the construction of this equipment, the refiner has required pressure vessels suitable for operation over a very wide range of conditions. On the one hand, vessels must operate at extremely high temperatures, in the range of 950° to 1000° F., and on the other vessels must be suitable for operation at sub-zero temperatures down as low as -75° F. Also, vessels are required suitable for operation at pressures upwards of 1000 lb. per sq. in., and as low as a 29-in. vacuum. In addition, vessels are required to withstand the attack of very corrosive mediums. It has been a rather difficult task for the fabricator to meet all of these require-ments, but as a result of the extensive research carried on by steel manu-facturers and several fabricators of class I vessels, practically all of these demands have been met. In order to meet the refiners' requirements for this wide range of conditions, the fabricator has worked closely with the metallurgist. This has enabled him to choose the proper base metal for each service condition, but it has been the fabricator's problem to develop a welding rod and welding technique, as well as a heat-treatment, that would produce in the welded vessel characteristics in and around the weld comparable to those in the base metal. Where corrosion is not a serious problem, and where the operating temperatures are not too high, ordinary carbon steel has served very well. But when corrosion is serious, and/or when the temperatures are either very high or very low, it is necessary to use some form of alloy steel to give satisfactory service.

Jan 1, 1935

By S. K. Tarby, W. O. Philbrook

Limited experimental data and a critical review of the literature are given to indicate that the true equilibrium distribution of manganese between carbon-saturated iron and blast-furnace type slags has not yet been satisfactorily established as a function of the composition, temperature, and pressure of the system. THE distribution of manganese between carbon-saturated iron and blast-furnace type slags has been studied by a number of investigators.1-7 Generalization of the results of these works indicates that the weight percent distribution ratio, (%Mno)/[%Mn], decreases with increasing temperature and slag basicity, in accord with thermodynamic data and practical observation. However, where comparisons among these studies can be made for similar slag compositions and temperatures, the reported values of the manganese distribution ratio are discordant. The variations are attributed to failure of the experimenters to bring their systems completely to equilibrium with graphite and CO at 1 atm, as judged by departures from silicon equilibrium. Even in the most recent work,5-7 this problem was recognized but the authors made the questionable assumption that equilibrium could prevail for manganese distribution even though other reactions were still in progress. Manganese equilibrium values for three particular slag compositions were required incidental to a kinetic study8 and were determined experimentally. Special pains were taken to approach concurrent equilibrium with respect to silicon. Although the results were not completely definitive, they indicate that the true manganese equilibrium distribution ratios are lower than have heretofore been reported. The data are presented together with a brief commentary on the literature to suggest the need for further work in this area. EXPERIMENTAL METHOD Equilibrium runs were carried out in a stationary, induction-heated graphite crucible closed by a graphite lid and flushed continuously by a slow flow of carbon monoxide at 1 atm pressure. Temperature was controlled manually within ±3 deg C with the aid of immersed thermocouples in mullite tubes protected against slag attack by graphite sleeves. The desired temperature was established by a calibrated Pt vs Pt-10 pct Rh thermocouple and control was then maintained using a more stable W-Mo couple. Runs were made at 1500º and 1575ºC for durations of 7.5 to 10.5 hr. The charges were calculated to yield 400 g of metal and 100 g of slag. The primary slag compositions and designation numbers were as follows:

Jan 1, 1963

By K. A. Natarajan, I. Iwasaki

Platinum electrodes are not inert as often thought to be. The reactivity of platinum electrodes can explain their erratic behavior in many electrochemical measurements of metallurgical interest, e.g, in flotation systems, streaming potential measurements, contact-angle measurements, and in leaching systems. The anomalous behavior of platinum electrodes in redox potential measurements in aqueous systems was studied through Eh and pH measure ments in water-oxygen, iron-water-oxygen, and manganese-water-oxygen systems. Stability relations between Fe++ and Fe (OH), and between Fe (OH), and Fe (OH), were studied to judge the correspondence between experimental and theoretical equilibrium lines. The practicality of redox potential measurements in estimating ferric-ferrous ratios in aqueous systems was investigated along with their suitability as indicators in leaching operations, e.g., the removal of iron by aeration from manganese leach solutions. Platinum electrodes have often been used in the measurement of dissolved oxygen concentrations and of redox potentials (Eh) in a variety of fields, e.g., analytical chemistry,' corrosion," geology and mineralogy,,'' biology,"' sewage treatment,' * hydrometallurgy,"I" and flotation."la The effectiveness of Eh-pH diagrams, first reported by Pourbaix' in 1949, has contributed much towards the theoretical understanding of numerous problems encountered in the metallurgical industry. Not many references are available in the literature, however, wherein attempts have been made to confirm Eh-pH diagrams from experimental measurements. One reason might be that, in spite of the apparent simplicity of the electrochemical technique, the direct measurement of Eh involves complex practical problems.' Factors such as the purity of the solution, the type of electrodes used, the history of the indicator electrode, and the type of atmosphere (namely, oxidizing, reducing, or inert) do have effects on the measured Eh values. The influence of mixed potentials cannot be underestimated. The poisoning of platinum electrodes by organic and inorganic impurities present in the solution may lead to erratic results. Platinum, commonly thought to be an inert electrode material, is not really so, as attested by a number of previous investigators who advised caution concerning the anomalous behavior of platinum electrodes in various electrochemical measurements.'" In the present article, a few pertinent experiments related to Eh-pH measurements in systems of interest in the metallurgical and water pollution fields are described in an attempt to correlate such information with what is already known, especially in the electrochemical literature. Iron-water and manganese-water systems were selected with a view of studying the correspondence between experimentally observed and theoretically established equilibrium lines. The work included an investigation of the behavior of platinum electrodes with respect to pretreatment and adsorption characteristics, the measurement of dissolved oxygen concentrations and their relation to Eh, the determination of the electrode potential of the ferric-ferrous couple at different pH, and the measurement of oxidation potentials in iron-manganese leaching systems. Experimental Procedure A rotating platinum electrode was used in many of the measurements to study the effect of rotation on measured Eh values. The electrode made by the Pine Instrument Co. consisted of a stainless steel rod with a platinum disk soldered to the end. It was covered with a Teflon insulation along the sides, so that only the circular tip of the electrode was exposed to the solution. Prior to its use, the platinum surface was brightened on a metallurgical polishing wheel with alumina as an abrasive, unless specified otherwise. The electrode was rotated with a Sargent cone-drive motor at 350 rpm. The contact of the electrode with the external circuit was made by filling a notch at the top of the stainless steel shaft with mercury and by dipping a copper wire into the mercury pool. The performance of the rotating platinum electrode was compared with the performances of a Beckman platinum button electrode and a platinum wire electrode. All the potentials were measured with respect to a saturated calomel electrode. A saturated KC1-agar bridge was used to minimize the liquid junction potential. A Beckman Zeromatic pH meter together with a Beck-man electrode switch was used to measure both the Eh and pH. A double-walled, all-Pyrex jar with a capacity of about 1 liter and themostated by circulating water of constant temperature was used for a reaction cell. Four equally spaced ports in the cover provided access for a glass electrode, a salt bridge connecting the saturated calomel electrode, a dispersion tube for bubbling gases into the cell solution, inlet and outlet tubes for passing the desired gases over the solution, and a graduated burette for introducing reagents from outside. The rotating platinum electrode was inserted through an opening in the top-center of the cover, and a positive gas pressure was maintained inside the cell to prevent air from entering into the cell compartment. A magnetic stirrer was used to mix the solution inside. For the determination of dissolved oxygen in the test solutions, the polarographic techniquex was used.

Jan 1, 1971

By Charles T. Baroch, Corbin Allardice

Nuclear energy probably has greater potentialities for changing the world's way of life than any other recent discovery. The atomic-bomb bursts over Hiroshima and Nagasaki suddenly changed the concepts of war. Peaceful uses of nuclear energy are advancing so rapidly that no study of economic trends is complete without giving them consideration. The minerals specialist, especially, must be aware of this new force in our lives, as minerals and metals are essential in harnessing the new force, and atomic energy itself is rapidly improving its competitive position in the energy field. Future historians may chronicle December 2, 1942, as the beginning of the Atomic Age. On that day Enrico Fermi and his co-workers at the University of Chicago produced and controlled the first self-sustaining nu- clear chain reaction. Like many inventions, the first application of nuclear energy was as a weapon of war. However, its potential usefulness in man's work and welfare far outweighs in economic importance its destructive use in war, unless its military effect would be considered so great and all-embracing that no major power will hereafter chance a world conflict. Recognition of this potential has generated a vast international effort to exploit the atom for peaceful beneficent purposes. Like its physical manifestation, the advent of nuclear energy has unleashed chain reactions that have pervaded the political, social, and economic environments of the world. The impact of nuclear developments in one of many fields is exemplified by the uranium mining industry. Uranium was discovered in 1789 and in the next century and a half it found only an insignificant use as a ceramic coloring agent; in fact, in the latter part of that period, it was a largely unsalable by-product of the radium and vanadium industries. Up to 1940 the total quantity of uranium metal produced was not more than a few grams, of doubtful purity. Thus the production of 12,400 pounds of pure

Jan 1, 1959

By F. H. Wilson

Copper base alloys containing various amounts of aluminum and silicon are of considerable commercial interest. In particular the alloy containing 7 pct aluminum and 2 pet silicon shows an attractive combination of high strength with excellent, machinability. Since there is no evidence ill the literature that this ternary system has been studied since the recognition by Smith1 and Anderson2 in 1939 of the kappa phase of the binary copper-silicon system, the determination of the equilibrium phase relationships in the copper corner of the ternary diagram has been undertaken to provide a fundamental basis for understanding the behavior of these alloys. Phase boundaries have been determined by the micrographic examination of quenched samples while points on the liquidus surface have been obtained by thermal analysis. The results, of sufficient precision to serve their major purpose of providing a guide for the control of the manufacture of alloys in the region covered, are presented in a series of both isothermal and vertical sections of the diagram. Alloys StVdied For a rough survey of the copper corner of this ternary system the compositions listed in Table I (Series A) were employed. The results of examinations of these alloys indicated that the compositions listed in Table 2 (Series B) would further clarify regions of greater complexity. All alloys were prepared as 1200 g heats, the copper being melted under charcoal, and then first silicon and then aluminum were added. An excess of 0.05 pet silicon was allowed to cover deoxidation losses. Two small bars 5/8 by 1 1/4 by 5 1/4 in. were cast using Durville type casting equipment. Ailalyses were made on all alloys using material which was hot-rolled at 800 or 850°C and annealed 17 hr at 650°C. All analyses were found to be within 0.05 pet of the nominal composition. Since the precision of analysis is not much better than this, the points of both isothermal sections and vertical sections at fixed aluminum and silicon contents have been plotted at the compositions indicated by the nominal composition.

Jan 1, 1949

By Wilson T. Lundy

The history of the production of sulfur from salt domes in Louisiana and Texas originated with the operations of the Union Sulphur CO. at Sulphur, La., followed by the Freeport Sulphur Co. at Bryanmound, Tex. Including the present development of Grande Ecaille by the Free-port Sulphur Co., which constitutes the tenth dome to be equipped for the production of sulfur in the Gulf Coast, less than 10 per cent of all the known domes have proved to contain sulfur in commercial quantities. The Grande Ecaille salt dome is in the tidal marsh of the Mississippi River delta in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. It is 10 miles southwest of the right descending bank of the river approximately 45 miles below the city of New Orleans and is within 4 miles of the shore line of the Gulf of Mexico. Terrain Characteristic of the delta region, the terrain consists of a low, flat, uninhabited area of marsh land intersected by many shallow lakes and bayous. With the exception of salt grasses, the region is devoid of vegetation and presents, in all directions, an unobstructed path to the vagaries of the winds. The general character of this area can be best visualized from the mechanism of its formation.' Offshore bars formed enclosing long narrow lagoons between the bar and the inner shore line, the lagoons communicating with the sea by means of tidal inlets. The water in the lagoons, being comparatively quiet, favored the deposition of fine debris composed of sand carried into the lagoons by action of the waves, tides and river-borne sediments from the land surface. As this material accumulated the bottoms of the lagoons were built up and eventually salt grasses obtained a foothold. The successions of growth and decay of these grasses formed a brown fibrous mat varying in depth from a few inches to several feet. This mat of vegetation virtually floats on an ooze that is several feet thick and is composed of alluvial sediments and very fine sand, and the whole is underlain by an unctuous clay. The decayed vegetation from the upper layer when dried has a peaty appearance.

Jan 1, 1934

By J. E. Burke, Y. G. Shiau

SEVERAL attempts have been made to account for the fact that grains in a fully recrystallized metal will coarsen on annealing Two fundamentally different hypotheses have been advanced; with several variations of each. One school considers that the cause of grain growth is the surface energy of the grain boundary The theory of Jeffries1 that grain size and grain size contrast control growth is an example The second school considers the primary cause to be a difference in the lattice energy on either side of the grain boundary The more perfect grains are considered to grow at the expense of their less perfect neighbors, with a decrease in free energy, and a consequent increase in the stability of the system. Burgers2 presents the case for the strain or lattice imperfection theory of grain growth quite completely The latter theory is attractive, since there is no doubt that differences in lattice energy or lattice perfection can cause grain boundary migration A recrystallization nucleus grows for this reason as was beautifully demonstrated by van Arkel and Ploos van Amstel3 Although it is generally stated that grain growth does not precede recrystallization, several workers4,5 have shown that small strains may induce a single crystal in an aggregate to grow, or at least may cause some' grain boundary migration The origin and nature of the imperfections that are considered to be responsible for normal grain growth have never been clearly described, but it is generally agreed that they are a consequence of the difficulty of atomic reorientation in the solid state, and that they do not seriously differ from the type of imperfection that-can be introduced by mechanical deformation An object of the present work was to determine whether the introduction of mechanical deformation would cause grain growth in a specimen which would not otherwise show it under the conditions used It was also planned to determine the effect of such deformation the rate of growth in a specimen which would show - growth in the unstrained condition Recently Maddigan and Blank6 have indicated that slightly strained specimens of alpha brass can undergo considerable growth prior to recrystallization if annealed at low temperatures French7 has reported that at deformations less than 17 pct it is very difficult to detect the beginning of recrystallization in the same material. It was therefore planned to broaden this work to include a complete study of the microscopic behavior of alpha brass under conditions of temperature, time, grain size and deformation such that recrystallization would not occur or would occur to only a small extent EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The brass was prepared by melting cathode copper and commercially pure zinc

Jan 1, 1947

By David R. Maneval, W. E. Foreman, J. Richard Lucas

INTRODUCTION The objective of this chapter is to inform the industry, as well as the public, of the challenges in dealing with problems associated with air and water contamination by coal preparation plants. The need for an informed industry is most important. It is hoped that some contribution may be given to a more efficient and economical approach to the problems of plant waste contaminants at individual plants. The problem has many facets, and consideration should be given to specific areas before any significant problems develop at a given plant. It is then possible to have a reasoned approach before the pressures of an emergency environment force hasty and incomplete solutions. It will be necessary to anticipate these problems in the design of new preparation plants, and advance consideration should be given to all problems concerned with contaminants.

Jan 1, 1979

By Jim D. Mote, Eugenia M. Howard, Willis L. Barmore, John E. Dorn

The effect of stress and temperature on the creep rate of Ag-33 at. pct A1 and Ag-33 at. pct Al-1 at. pct Zn for prismatic slip was determined over a range of temperatures from 440º to 700°K. The alloys exhibited a brief initial inverted transient creep over which the creep rate increased slightly to a steady-state value which depended only on the stress and temperature, regardless of the previous strain history. The steady-state creep rates were found to be given by: where the activation energy is independent of the stress and strain and agrees fairly well with that estimated for diffusion. The observed creep behavior was shown to be in qualitative agreement with a model based on the stress-induced local disordering in the vicinity of a dislocation. OVER the past fifteen years, considerable progress has been made in correlating the experimen-entally observed plastic behavior of pure metals over each temperature range with one or more of a series of theoretical strain-rate controlling dislocation mechanisms. Despite the current interest in the plastic behavior of intermediate phases and inter metallic compounds, however, very little has been done in identifying the operative dislocation mechanisms in these materials. It is anticipated that the plastic behavior of intermediate phases can be rationalized in terms of the same dislocation mechanisms that are appropriate to pure metals and a solid solutions, provided the additional complexities arising from crystal structure, bonding, long-range order, short-range order, and defect lattices are taken into account. As part of a more extensive investigation on the plastic behavior of intermediate phases, Mote, Tanaka, and Dorn1 recently reported on the effect of temperature on the yield strength for prismatic slip in the hexagonal Ag-33 at. pct A1 intermediate phase as recorded in Fig. 1: Over Region I the deformation was observed to take place as a result of the thermally-activated Peierls mechanism, and over Region II the athermal disordering mechanism applied. The experimental data at that time, however, were not sufficiently extensive to identify the thermally activated mechanisms operative over Region III. It is the purpose of this investigation to attempt to identify the mechanisms that are operative over this high-temperature region. It will be shown that the same mechanism operates all over Region Ill, although the activation energy for this mechanism is in good agreement with that for diffusion, the process cannot be attributed either to the motion of jogged screw dislocations or the climb of edge dislocations. The results, however, are in good qualitative agreement with stress-induced disordering localized at dislocations. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The alloys studied in this investigation were prepared from silver, aluminum, and zinc (each of purity greater than 99.995 pet) by induction melting under an argon atmosphere and chill casting in a copper mold. Rectangular bar single crystal specimens (1/4 by 1/8 in. in cross-sect ion) of Ag-33 at. pct Al were grown in vacuum by a modified Bridgman technique. Similar Ag-33 at. pct Zn specimens were produced by an identical technique employing an argon atmosphere. The specimens were so oriented that the angle 90-Xo between the tensile axis and the normal to the prismatic plane and the angle A, between the tensile axis and the slip direction were 45 ± 1 deg. The effect of a change in temperature on the creep rate and a change in stress on the creep rate were determined over the temperature range

Jan 1, 1963