Search Documents

By Paul D. V. Manning

MAGNESIUM is an exceedingly strategic material but the importance of its production at the time this war started was not realized. Our Government then suddenly became much alive to the need of a tremendous increase in magnesium output, and became a participator in the industry. In this paper an attempt will be made to given an over-all picture of the industry as it has been, and is being, developed. The present war is giving a great acceleration to the use of lighter metals. Development of facilities for production of great tonnages of aluminum and magnesium is bound to bring about some interesting changes in later peace times because costs will be low and production capacities high. As our knowledge of the metallurgy of magnesium alloys increases, this metal will become of vital peacetime importance and will be used in ways we do not now imagine. Household refrigerators, furniture, automobiles, even houses will all be lightened through the use of magnesium.

Jan 1, 1943

By H. J. Levinstein, H. J. Guggenheim

RbFeF3 is a transparent ferromagnet with a large faraday rotation which permits the direct observation of magnetic domain structures in bulk crystals. If the position of dislocations within the crystal were known a study of domain wall dislocation interactions would be possible. In this paper an etch pitting solution is described which gives a one-one correspondent between the etch pits and the dislocations intersecting the (100) surfaces of RbFeF3 crystals. In addition, RbFeF3 is shown to have sufficient plasticity so that known arrays of dislocaticms can be put into the crystal. It is concluded that RbFeF, is an ideal material for the investigation of domain wall dislocation interactions. THE influence of lattice defects on the motion of domain walls in ferromagnetic materials has been studied extensively both theoretically and experimentally.4 The experimental data obtained has been qualitative in nature due to the lack either of a quantitative knowledge of the magnetic domain array in the material or of the nature of the dislocation configuration in the material. At room temperature RbFeFJ has the cubic perovskite structure. It is ferromagnetic below 86°K.5,6 It is also transparent and has a large faraday rotation in the magnetic state.7 The domain structure of this material is observable in three dimensions in crystals which are millimeters in thickness.' Since RbFeF3 satisfies the requirements of having an easily visible three-dimensional magnetic domain structure, it was of interest to determine if the dislocation structure of the material could be determined and if the material was sufficiently plastic so that dislocations could be introduced into the as grown crystals. This is a report of the results of that investigation. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The crystals of RbFeFs used in this experiment were grown by a technique described elsewhere.5 In order to obtain flat strain-free surfaces, the samples were first cut to the crystal orientation desired and the surfaces were polished by employing standard metallographic techniques. The samples were then immersed in a solution of 1 to 3 g of KOH in 100 ml of water. This solution removes the damaged surface layers uniformly leaving a film on the surface of the sample. Etch pits are obtained by immersing the sample in an approximately 50-50 solution of 30 pct peroxide and concentrated acetic acid. The film formed during the KOH treatment turns deep red in color in the etching solution and flakes off the sample. The etching time required depends upon the pit size desired and

Jan 1, 1970

By E. M. Wise

MANY of the platinum metal alloys are hot-forged in the early stages of reduction from ingot and substantial quantities of platinum alloys are commercially employed at very high temperatures in ammonia oxidation units, orifices for forming glass rods and fibers and as cathodes in long-life thermionic amplifiers. They are used also for electrical heating resistors, safety blowout disks, thermocouples and crucibles. The tensile prop-erties at elevated temperatures are important in many of these situations but data on the subject are limited. Creep data also are important, but will not be covered at this time. SCOPE AND CONCLUSIONS Tensile tests were carried out at room temperature and elevated temperatures up to 1100° C. on previously well annealed samples of platinum, palladium and several of their important alloys with composi-tions shown in Table 1. The results are presented graphically in Figs. 1 to 4. The tensile strengths of platinum and the platinum-base alloys (with the exception of the 10 per cent rhodium-platinum alloy) at 1100° C. are from 16.6 to 18.8 per cent of the strengths of the same alloys (well annealed) at room temperature. The strength ratio of the 10 per cent rhodium-platinum alloy is 22.3 per cent, which is appreciably higher than that of the other materials tested.

Jan 1, 1938

By R. C. Schmidt, B. E. Kennedy

The Mont Klahoyo magnetite deposit is located about 600 km (373 miles) northwest of Abidjan, Ivory Coast. During an exploration period ending in 1977 an international joint venture group investigated the deposit and proved reserves of 670 Mt (739 million short tons) grading 36% iron. The deposit occurs at the northeast end of the Baoubly-Kiriao chain of Precambrian iron formations with associated amphibolites, pyroxenites, and gneisses of the Liberian Shield. The ore body is represented by a highly metamorphosed banded quartz-magnetite iron formation with alternating beds of iron silicates and quartz-magnetite. Amphibolite-pyroxenites and sillimanite-cordierite-garnet gneisses form hanging and footwall rocks. The iron formation has been folded into an elongated, overturned 2-shaped major drag fold with axes trending and plunging approximately northeast. Beds are vertical or dip steeply to the southeast. The ore zone has an average thickness of 130 m (427 ft) and outcrops intermittently over a distance of approximately 5.5 km (3.4 miles). Based upon detailed studies of drill cores and the results of ore dressing test work, eight stratigraphic units, identified as K- 1 to K-8, are recognizable in the iron formation. Four interbedded units are low grade silicate zones (silicate facies) while the remaining quartz-magnetite units are oxide facies, representing the important Mont Klahoyo deposit ores. Ore-bearing "K" units are subdivided further into 11 ore types, based upon their specific lithologies, iron content, and concentration characteristics. Identification of these ore types proved particularly useful to mine planning and flowsheet design. A cap of oxidized material overlies the primary quartz- magnetite iron formation, but no enrichment has occurred. It is thought that the Mont Klahoyo iron formations were deposited chemically in a volcanic environment as a siliceous iron formation with volcanism the primary source of iron and silica. Metamorphism converted the siliceous iron formation to a coarse-grained, quartz-magnetite-silicate iron formation.

Jan 1, 1983

THE primary interest in the subject of this chapter lies in the fact that various heats of steel made to the same chemical specification do not always have the same properties. The properties considered here, of course, are those inherent in the ingot immediately after solidification and not qualities imparted by variations in subsequent mechanical or thermal treatment. The expression "made to the same chemical specification" is used because some of the variations in properties are due to variations in chemical analysis within the specified ranges of those elements commonly specified and determined. Other variations in properties are due to variations in those constituents of steel (elements or compounds) that are not ordinarily included among the elements specified, thus not a part of the specified "composition." The term "constitution" is used to include not only the specified composition but also the nature and distribution of every element or compound contained in the steel entering the ingot mold ; also included are items such as aluminum oxides and nitrides, presence of soluble gases, and dispersion of nonmetallic particles. When it is considered that the constitution of steel is determined by the addition or absorption into the bath of all such constituents from whatever source, it follows that constitution is of necessity the final result of steelmaking practice. It is the agency through which steelmaking practice operates to control the properties of the steel. The term steelmaking practice is here used in the broad sense, meaning the control of all the materials entering the steel and of the conditions under which the process is carried out. Steelmaking practice, thus defined, establishes the chemical system within which the reactions between components must proceed in obedience to the laws of chemistry. Thus the chemical constitution of the steel is established and, through constitution, the properties of the metal are established. In the preceding chapters it has been shown how the constitu-

Jan 1, 1964

By D. V. Carter, Dan C. Williams, John R. Coombs

Exploration was active in East and East Central Texas during 1944. Ten oil fields were discovered during the year, of which four show promise of development. The discovery wells of the Sand Flat and Tyler, South fields were drilled to a depth greater than 10,000 ft., and the latter field now produces from the Pettit at a depth of 9890 ft. The Sand Flat well was plugged back to the Paluxy. The other two fields are Glen Rose producers near 8000 ft. The Pickton field produces from the Bacon Lime and Winnsboro from the Rodessa section. The Eylau field, Bowie County, was significant as the first Smackover production in Texas. Magnolia drilled a test in the Concord field, which topped salt. The most extensive and significant development in the district was the Carthage gas-condensate field. It expanded from the 8000 acres of last year to an estimated 190,000 acres, or about 300 sq. miles, and is not defined as yet. The first oil production in the Carthage area was made from the Travis Peak in 1944 in the Rogers Lacy's Cameron Lumber Company well No. I, on the northwestern side of the field. The New Hope field, Franklin County, scored the largest number of completions during 1944 with 24, bringing its total number of wells to 27. Two more pays were opened and produced as dual completions with the older horizons. The Manziel field, Wood County, had 19 new wells added during the year, for a total of 29, while the Pittsburgh field, Camp County, reached a total of 23 wells by completing 14 new ones. Material shortages and drilling restrictions dropped the total number of producing wells completed in the district from 171 during 1943 to 141 for 1944. Abandonments increased from 531 during 1943 to 609 for 1944. Of this number, 479 were in the East Texas field. Subsidy payments had very little effect in the district and it was mostly a few of the old fault-line fields that had any wells to fall within the requirements for subsidy payments. The prices of crude oil remained constant in the district except for increases as a result of subsidy payments. Production and Probation Wartime demands called for increased allowables for many fields, consequently the condensate and oil production for 1944 increased to 190,016,180, which is up 6.9 per cent over 1943. The East Texas field, of course, remained the principal producer of the district, accounting for 134,768'499 bbl. during the year, or 71 per cent of the district total production of condensate and oil. The field topped its own 1943 production by 4.8 per cent and became the first field in the world to produce 2 billion barrels of oil. The Hawkins field remained the second largest oil producer in the district, with 13,317,088 bbl. for the year, a drop of 6.8 per cent from 1943, while Van field was third with 11,635,708 bbl. The

Jan 1, 1945

By Frederick N. Rhines, Robert F. Mehl

IT has been shown elsewhere1 that the data on the rates of diffusion in solid metals are fragmentary and in many cases unacceptable. As a result, relatively little is known concerning the factors determining rates of diffusion and the variations in these rates with temperature. The first form of Fick's law (equation 1 below), ‡ in which the diffusion coefficient D is assumed invariant with composition, has been recognized for many years as only an approximation. The differential equation representing the second form of Fick's law (equation 4 below) has only recently been integrated by Matano,2 and unfortunately only in cases where a full diffusion-penetration curve (concentration-distance curve) has been obtained can the Matano solution be applied. The proper analysis of diffusion data is thus confined to the data of Grube and Zedele and of Zedele.§ These data are essentially for one temperature alone and do not furnish any information on the variation of the activation heat of diffusion, Q, with concentration: no information exists on the variation of Q with concentration within a singles olid solution field. 11 Much of the argument concerning the properties of metals that determine D and Q has been drawn from data in which variations of the quantities with concentration are unknown, for these data have been taken from experiments that could not furnish this information. Speculation concerning the properties of metals that may be effective in determining D and Q on the basis of data in which the chosen D and Q values are averages over wide concentration ranges of values at particular concentrations, ranges often of 100 per cent, is likely not to be fruitful.

Jan 1, 1938

By John J. Secretary Egan

The present list of problems relating to the physical chemistry of steelmaking has been prepared by the Committee on the Physical Chemistry of Steelmaking, from answers to a questionnaire submitted to a number of metallurgists engaged in both industrial and educational work throughout the United States. The purpose of the project is to make available to research laboratories a list of problems, all reduced to their simplest terms, the solution of which would aid in creating a better understanding of the steelmaking process. It is not intended to restrict the problems to practical steelmaking. The list also includes the study of the properties, and their correlation, as well as the physical and chemical reactions, of all substances that occur or that may be in any way associated with steelmaking operations, such as metallic substances, refractories, nonmetallic inclusions, and the constituents of slags. Many of the problems can be carried out in university or other research laboratories. Others may be most successfully attacked by cooperation of the research men with the operating personnel. It is the Committee's earnest wish that this cooperation be fostered. It is requested that investigators who are working on any of the problems listed and who anticipate future publication of their results, notify the Secretary of the Committee that such investigation is in progress. Suggested additions to the present list are also requested. The Committee is undertaking to act as a clearing house for information regarding the topics in this field that are being actually studied. Interested persons are invited to correspond with the Secretary. I. Data involved in the state of equilibrium for the various systems (laboratory work, almost entirely). A. Specific heats, heats of formation, entropies and free energies of various PURE ELEMENTS OR COMPOUNDS; ALSO CERTAIN TYPICAL SLAGS AND REFRACTORIES I. Determination of specific heats and entropies of oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc, over a wide temperature range. 2. Determination of free energies of oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc., over a wide temperature range. 3. Determination of the heats of formation of the oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc. 4. Determination of the thermodynamic properties of the more important mineral-ogical constituents of the basic open-hearth slags such as calcium silicates, calcium phosphates, calcium ferrites, manganese silicates, FeO and Fe2O3. 5. Determination of the specific heats of open-hearth slags, including liquid silicates, if possible.

Jan 1, 1941

By John J. Secretary Egan

The present list of problems relating to the physical chemistry of steelmaking has been prepared by the Committee on the Physical Chemistry of Steelmaking, from answers to a questionnaire submitted to a number of metallurgists engaged in both industrial and educational work throughout the United States. The purpose of the project is to make available to research laboratories a list of problems, all reduced to their simplest terms, the solution of which would aid in creating a better understanding of the steelmaking process. It is not intended to restrict the problems to practical steelmaking. The list also includes the study of the properties, and their correlation, as well as the physical and chemical reactions, of all substances that occur or that may be in any way associated with steelmaking operations, such as metallic substances, refractories, nonmetallic inclusions, and the constituents of slags. Many of the problems can be carried out in university or other research laboratories. Others may be most successfully attacked by cooperation of the research men with the operating personnel. It is the Committee's earnest wish that this cooperation be fostered. It is requested that investigators who are working on any of the problems listed and who anticipate future publication of their results, notify the Secretary of the Committee that such investigation is in progress. Suggested additions to the present list are also requested. The Committee is undertaking to act as a clearing house for information regarding the topics in this field that are being actually studied. Interested persons are invited to correspond with the Secretary. I. Data involved in the state of equilibrium for the various systems (laboratory work, almost entirely). A. Specific heats, heats of formation, entropies and free energies of various PURE ELEMENTS OR COMPOUNDS; ALSO CERTAIN TYPICAL SLAGS AND REFRACTORIES I. Determination of specific heats and entropies of oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc, over a wide temperature range. 2. Determination of free energies of oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc., over a wide temperature range. 3. Determination of the heats of formation of the oxides, sulphides, nitrides, etc. 4. Determination of the thermodynamic properties of the more important mineral-ogical constituents of the basic open-hearth slags such as calcium silicates, calcium phosphates, calcium ferrites, manganese silicates, FeO and Fe2O3. 5. Determination of the specific heats of open-hearth slags, including liquid silicates, if possible.

Jan 1, 1941

By Walter P. Jenney

An investigation, conducted by the author, was begun in September, 1889, by the United States Geological Survey, having for its object the study of the questions bearing upon the occurrence and manner of formation of the deposits of lead- and zinc-ores in Missouri and the adjoining States. The field-work was completed in December, 1891. During the first season the State Geological Survey of Missouri furnished an assistant, and in other ways co-operated in the research within the boundaries of that State. In order that the ore-deposits of the southwest might be compared with those of other sections of the Mississippi valley, an examination was made of the lead- and zinc-mining area of Wisconsin-Iowa, and of the argentiferous lead-mines of the region extending westward from Hot Springs, Arkansas, to Indian Territory. In the discussion of the general geology, and in comparisons between the ore-deposits of the Mississippi valley and those of the Rocky Mountains, the writer has drawn largely from his personal experience, having been engaged for many years in professional work as a geologist and mining engineer in that region. The Director of the U. S. Geological Survey and the Scate Geologist of Missouri have kindly consented to the publication of the present paper. While giving the more important economic results, an endeavor has been made to set forth the unity of plan which appears in the formation of the deposits of lead and zinc of the Mississippi basin, and to show their relation to the argentiferous ores of the Rocky Mountains—that the ores of gold, silver, and mercury, and also of copper, antimony, zinc, and lead, have a universal common origin, irrespective of the geological formations in which they occur.

Jan 1, 1894

By Stephen Krickovic

THERE is today no proven continuous mining machine that can be used under all the varying conditions found in most bituminous coal mines. During the last five years, however, both the machines and methods of using them have been improved. Coal operators can now exercise a fair degree of selectivity, except those who must struggle with thick and hard partings and operate in seams less than 40 in. thick. It must be realized, then, that more than one type of continuous miner may be used advantageously in the same coal mine. Although this appears to violate the standardization generally sought after, the gain can more than offset added maintenance and, to a lesser degree, operating problems. It is equally important to realize that most coal mines will require one or more conventional loader setups in the plan of total mechanization. Seam variations, adverse physical conditions, and special designs of main headings for haulage and ventilation, to name only three reasons, may render 100 pct use of continuous miners uneconomical. Of course, this situation may change. In one mine, prior to 1954, machines that ripped coal from the face achieved only average results, as compared to the impressive performance of boring-type units in another coal mine. A boring-type unit was therefore selected for the first mine in the belief that the chance of success would be greater if it were used in a combined cutting and wedging operation, cutting a full face in its forward movement. The miner was located in a part of the mine where a special projection could be readily developed, a solid area scheduled for mining according to the overall progress plan. All openings surrounding the particular area were carefully investigated for the presence of sulfur balls. Fig. 1 (opposite) shows the representative seam section, containing the several pyritic bands 1/4 to 1/2 in. thick; a characteristic Pittsburgh seam parting averaging 5 to 6 in. of slate, coal, and slate; and the occasional py-rite lenses 2 to 3 in. thick. Under normal conventional mining methods, the top 10 or 12 in. and the bottom 4 in. are left in place to offer roof protection

Jan 1, 1958

By Yang Tsang Woo

The method of making coke that has been adopted at the Kaiping and other collieries in northern China resembles, to some extent, the familiar bee-hive oven process of the United States, except that a kiln with permanent sides is used instead of a closed oven, and the products of combustion are drawn off at the bottom. In building coke-kilns in China, two circular holes, 8 ft. 6 in. in diameter at the bottom and 13 ft. in diameter at the top, are excavated in the ground, and connected at the bottom by a flue, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The sides and bottom of the kiln are lined with fire-bricks, and covered with a lager of fireclay, and a rectangular opening, 6 in. by 8 in., connects the bottom of each kiln with the main flue. Around the edge of the hole, and overlapping the lining, is a wall of fire-brick extending 2 ft. 6 in. above the level of the ground. An open space 5 ft. wide is left in this wall, through which the coal is carried into the kiln and the resultant coke removed. This space, of course, is bricked up during the time that the coking-operation is being carried on. The wall is pierced with nine flue-openings uniformly placed around the circumference, each interverliilg space in the wall being strengthened with a brick buttress, as is shown in Figs. 2 and 4. The floor of the kiln, as well as the main flue, is lined with fire-brick. Before charging the coal, it is first placed in shallow bamboo sieves, 2 ft. in diameter, and immersed in a trough 10 ft. long, and 3 ft. wide, fed with pit-water, in which it is washed by hand. Fig. 3 shows the manner in which the washing is done. From 25 tons of good "dust" coal, 22.5 tons of washed coal are obtained. When ready to charge the coal into the kiln, a temporary cone-shaped flue of fire-wood and lump coal is first built to a

Jan 1, 1906

By S. R. Goodman, Hsun Hu

A study has hem made of the formation of annealing textures in an 18-8 austenitic stainless steel (Type 304L) from various deformation textures obtained by rolling at different temperatures. When the deformation texture is a mixture of the ferritic type and the brass type owing to the pres -ence of both martensitic ferrite and retained aus-tenite in the specimen, recrystallization takes place by the growth of the existing austenite phase. In a previous report,' it was shown that the rolling texture of austenitic stainless steel (Type 304L) changed gradually from the brass type to the copper type with increasing temperature of deformation above 200°C. These changes are similar to those in high-purity silver2,3 and electrolytic copper;4 a brass-type texture is favored at low rolling temperatures, whereas a copper-type texture is favored During the course of rolling -texture transition from the brass type to the copper type, the subsequent recrystallization textures change accordingly. The orientation relationship between the annealing textures and the various rolling textures, being consistent with previous observations on various fcc metals, can be described as [Ill] rotations of approximately 25 to 40 deg. Carhide precipitation may influence the annealing textures. at high rolling temperatures. Furthermore, the annealing textures in high-purity silver5 and electrolytic copper4 were found to depend entirely on the prior deformation texture. From a copper-type rolling texture a strong cube texture will form upon recrystallization, whereas from a brass-type rolling texture the annealing texture will be quite different from the cube orientation. In an earlier comm~nication,6 the formation of a strong cube texture in 18-8 austenite stainless steels (Types 304 and 304L) was reported briefly by the authors. The present paper constitutes the results of a complete study of the annealing textures obtained from a

Jan 1, 1965

By J. W. Halley, G. L. Plimpton

BECAUSE of the two distinct stages in the solidification of rimmed steel, segregation in the rimmed ingot is more complex than that in the killed or semikilled ingot. In the earlier stage, chemical reactions, resulting in evolution of gas and vigorous stirring of the metal, effect a degree of negative segregation unique to rimmed steel. The composition of this zone constitutes the principal quality advantage of this type of steel. In the later stage of solidification, after the evolution of gas has ceased, the segregation follows the general pattern of a more completely deoxidized steel. However, the composition of the liquid remaining after the first solidification stage varies markedly from that of the original melt, some constituents having been partially removed as reaction products while the concentration of others has been intensified by rejection from the metal solidifying in the first zone. The aim, from the standpoint of segregation, in rimmed steel of high quality is to effect a maximum negative segregation in the rim zone without excessive concentration of undesirable elements at the center of the ingot. To achieve this aim, the composition of the melt may be varied and the furnace and pouring practice may be adjusted within certain limits. It is the purpose of this study to discuss segregation in rimmed steel from the standpoint of the mechanisms that produce it and to survey the phases of open-hearth practice that influence those mechanisms. MECHANISMS PRODUCING SEGREGATION The mechanisms that determine the degree of segregation in the rimmed ingot are closely interrelated, making it difficult to select the primary factors and to determine a satisfactory order for presenting them. For instance, the question of sulphur segregation is relatively simple, since sulphur is not directly involved in chemical reactions in the ingot; but its concentration in the rim zone is dependent not only on its original analysis in the melt, its segregation coefficient, and the freezing rate, but also on the rate of its removal from the impure film on the solidifying surface. This washing action involves all the factors (such as freezing rate, the carbon-oxygen product, pressure, etc.) that determine the rate of gas evolution and hence the efficiency of film removal. Sulphur distribution between the rim and core is affected by the volumetric ratio between the two zones, and its segregation in the core is a function not only of the freezing rate of the core but also of all the foregoing factors that determine its concentration in the metal when solidification of the core starts. To simplify the presentation, it is proposed to treat the mechanisms affecting segregation independently in this section, reserving a discussion of their over-all effects for the section in which actual segregation data are given. The factors affecting segregation will be treated in the following order: (I) differential solidification, (2) removal of constituents as

Jan 1, 1944

By Hans Lundberg

By electrical prospecting, orebodies that do not otherwise manifest themselves at the surface may be located. Conditions favorable to success with the methods are: Favorable geological conditions, such a proportion of minerals of good electrical conductivity in the orebody as will render the latter materially a better conductor than the enclosing rock, situation of the orebody within the range of influence of the electrical currents used and in proportion to this range a sufficient area of horizontal cross section of the orebody. The result is to permit of spotting drill holes accurately and to save the expense of drilling barren ground. THE art of prospecting, like other branches of mining, has developed rapidly during the last ten years, mainly because of the advancement of mining geology, but also because of the development of "geophysical methods," which are based on the different physical characters of minerals and rocks, e. g., specific gravity, elasticity, and magnetic and electric properties. These methods have proved of great value, especially in countries where the rock is covered by soil and direct geologic investigation is out of the question. In prospecting for orebodies, the methods based on studying differences in electrical conductivity have proved most successful; for which reason, the methods of electrical prospecting have been subject to the most energetic and systematic work, especially in Sweden. This paper gives a brief description of the methods of electrical prospecting now in use, especially the new electromagnetic methods, which have not been described before. The great differences in the electrical properties, especially in conductivity, between ore minerals and rock minerals are fundamental to all methods of electrical prospecting, for which reason, the electrical conductivity of ore minerals and rock minerals has been carefully studied in connection with and previous to the development of the various methods of prospecting with electricity. Ore minerals with a metallic luster, such as chalcopyrite, iron pyrite, galena, specular iron, magnetite, etc., also graphite and a number of cows, have considerably higher conductivity than the surrounding rock and soil (see Table 1). The figures of the table denote the specific resistance W, expressed in ohms for a cube with an edge of 1 centimeter.

Jan 7, 1925

By W. L. Fink, L. A. Willey

This paper is the nineteenth of a series from the Aluminum Research Laboratories, presenting the results of the investigations of equilibrium relations in aluminum-base alloys made from electrolytically refined aluminum. In previous papers equilibrium relations have been determined and correlated for 12 binary systems. Equilibrium relations have also been determined for portions of the aluminum corners of three ternary systems (aluminum-iron-silicon, aluminum-magnesium-silicon and aluminum-copper-magnesium). The object of the present paper and those to follow is to increase our knowledge of the aluminum corner of the more important ternary systems. In 1926 Dix and Keith † suggested a new method for designating the phases encountered in alloy systems. The system has been used to a very limited extentl,2,3 The system has since been slightly modified and will be used in this and future papers. In the system as modified, a phase is designated by placing in parentheses the chemical symbols of the elements essential to the formation of that phase. The symbols in the parentheses are separated by dashes in order to clearly distinguish them from a chemical formula. Elements that are not necessary to the formation of the phase in question, but which may be present in solid solution, are not indicated in the designation. If two or more phases would have the same designation according to these rules, they are distinguished by prefixing Greek letters, and are definitely identified by X-ray diffraction patterns. Previous Investigations The solid solubility of magnesium in aluminum has been well established by the work of Dix and Keller4, Schmid and Siebe15, and Saldau and Sergeev6. There is no agreement as to the composition of the magnesium constituents at the aluminum end of the binary aluminum-magnesium system. Hanson and Gayler7 report Mg2Al3; Boyer8 found that the alloy

Jan 1, 1937

By John H. Walthall, Raymond L. Copson, Travis P. Hignett

In October 1942, the War Production Board requested the Tennessee Valley Authority to undertake investigations to determine the feasibility of producing alumina suitable for reduction in aluminum cells, from clays and other domestic materials, by a lime-sintering, soda-ash leaching process. The work was undertaken by the chemical engineering staff of the Authority under the general direction of the War Metallurgy Committee of the National Academy of Sciences. The investigation included small-scale tests to determine the most suitable conditions for the process, and construction and operation of a pilot plant to obtain data for evaluation of the process and for design of a plant. The results of this investigation are described in the present paper. Sources of Alumina Alumina for the commercial production of aluminum is obtained from bauxite by the Bayer process. The tremendous demand for aluminum for wartime uses is causing rapid exhaustion of the high-grade bauxite deposits in the United States. On the other hand, there is an abundance of aluminous materials such as clay and lower grades of bauxite, which are not suitable for treatment by the Bayer process because of their high silica content. The Tennessee Valley Authority has conducted research and pilot-plant work for more than 5 years on methods for the production of alumina from clay and low-grade bauxite. Particular attention has been given to the high-grade white kaolin found in Carroll County, Tennessee. Exploratory drilling has demonstrated that at least 4 1/2 million tons of kaolin containing in excess of 34 per cent AlzOI is available in this area by strip-mining methods. It has been estimated that hundreds of millions of tons of clay of similar quality occur in the Tennessee Valley region. The Process The process is illustrated in the flowsheet (Fig. I), and consists essentially of the following steps: I. Heating a mixture of clay and limestone to form a sinter containing calcium aluminate and dicalcium silicate. z. Leaching this sinter with a dilute sodium carbonate solution, to form a sodium aluminate solution and a calcium carbonate, calcium silicate residue, which is discarded. 3. Treating the sodium aluminate solution with carbon dioxide to precipitate aluminum trihydrate and regenerate the sodium carbonate solution, which is recycled. 4. Heating the aluminum trihydrate to produce alumina. The process was considered promising because of the abundance and cheapness of the two raw materials, clay and limestone; and because, as compared with an acid process, smaller amounts of critical

Jan 1, 1944

By H. W. Weart, D. J. Mack

SINCE the first recognition of eutectic solidification as the simultaneous formation of 2 solids from one liquid,1 many complex structures thus produced have been observed. Despite many attempts to ascertain it, however, the detailed mechanism by which these structures develop remains obscure. In an attempt to clarify the origin of eutectic structures, the study described in this paper was undertaken. The broad objective of the study was to investigate the effect of different solidification conditions on the structure of single eutectic grains. It was expected that the eutectic structure would thereby be isolated for study, but preliminary experiments revealed another structure within each grain. When a literature surveye revealed only 1 previous mention of the subgrain structure,' it was decided to determine the origin of the structure and to study its response to various growth conditions. Before presenting the details of the investigation, it is apropos to distinguish carefully among the 3 structures produced during eutectic solidification. This is especially desirable in view of the apparent confusion existing in the literature concerning the structures in a eutectic specimen. The confusion is due largely to the existence of the subgrain structure noted above which is easily mistaken for the grain structure. In the following paragraphs, an effort is made to distinguish the 3 structures by briefly describing their origin during solidification, even though the results are thereby anticipated slightly. The 3 structures produced during eutectic solidification are the grain structure, the colony structure, and the eutectic structure, each one contained by the one preceding it. The grain structure is analogous to the polycrystalline structure of a metal or inle-phase alloy in that each grain grows from a single nucleus. A somewhat broader interpretation is needed here, however, because of the presence of 2 phases in each grain. Since in most eutec-tics particles of 1 phase are dispersed in a matrix of the other, a grain may be taken to be the region in which the matrix phase is monocrystalline.*

Jan 1, 1959

By H. C. Spaulding

The rapid increase, during the last few years, in the number and magnitude of applications of electric power-transmission to commer cial uses in this country, has been due principally to three causes: first, the ability and enterprise of those who have been identified with the progress of electrical industries, since electric illumination became an economic fact instead of a laboratory-experiment: sec ondly, the readiness of the American people to adopt new and ad vanced methods as soon as their superiority has been fairly demon strated; and thirdly, tile economy and flexibility of the apparatus employed, when properly designed and constructed, and installed under suitable conditions. Basing our judgment on the world's advance in scientific devel opments during the past century, we may reasonably conclude that in no other country would the pioneeis of electrical invention, whose names have now become household words, have received the prompt and plentiful financial support which has enabled them to inaugurate undertakings of exceptional magnitude, even in this era of tremendous monetary organizations. And, on the other hand, we have seen, in the numerous financial and engineering failures inseparable from such rapid development, the natural results of a too implicit faith in electrical omnipotence. It is not to be wondered at that conservative engineers have been slow to adopt this new and mighty agent in the solution of exten sive problems, and under circumstances where a single failure means not only a greater or less financial sacrifice, but the loss, in a greater or less degree, of professional reputation. Be mechanical engineer, while recognizing the fact that thousands of horse-power are to-day transmitted by electrical means, from sunning the lathe in a dentist's office to the operation of a fifty-ton travelling crane; from passing a cooling draught of air through a

Jan 1, 1891

By R. S. Handy

DOES hand-sorting of mill feed pay? The fact that the practice is so general would seem to indicate that there must be good reasons for following it; yet, to my mind, the advantage in many cases is doubtful enough to invite a thorough discussion of the subject, in an effort to determine under what conditions hand-sorting does pay. A typical sorting plant in the Coeur d'Alene district handles about 800 tons of mine-run ore per day. The material is run over a grizzly with about 4-in. opening; the oversize is crushed to about 4-in. size and joins the undersize, and the whole product is washed and screened on trommels with about 1 ½ -in. openings. The oversize from these trommels is spread on a belt and the waste and first-class ore are sorted out by hand, the residue being further crushed, and passes, together with the trommel undersize, into the mill feed bins. About 50 tons of shipping ore and 150 tons of waste are sorted out per day, leaving about 600 tons of mill feed. To sort out this material requires 20 ore sorters and five bosses and repairmen. The normal cost of hand-sorting is about 16 c. per ton of run-of-mine ore, or 65 c. per ton of material sorted out. I believe that straight crushing and milling of the run-of-mine ore, in this case, is not only cheaper, but is metallurgically moree canonical and efficient than hand-sorting followed by milling of the residue. At one of the Bunker Hill rock-houses, 1250 tons of run-of-mine ore are reduced to pass 30-mm., or about 1 ¼ -in. opening in six hours, requiring five men. The equipment and the power consumed are not greatly different from that required in a sorting plant of the same capacity, and the normal cost of thus preparing the feed for milling is under 3 c. per ton of mine product. The relative cheapness of this method as against hand-sorting is thus clearly established, the saving being about 13 c. per ton. If there is any virtue in hand-sorting, then, it must lie in the metallurgical results achieved.

Jan 4, 1918