The Reducibility Of Metallic Oxides As Affected By Heat Treatment. (1e935cf8-3e33-4139-8576-73903723886c)

Discussion of the paper of Woolsey McA. Johnson, presented at the Butte meeting, August, 1913, and printed in Bulletin No. 79, July, 1913, pp. 1137 to 1145. F. L. GRAMMER, Leesburg, Va. (communication to the Secretary *):-Mr. Johnson's paper must interest by suggestion those connected with the " burning " of lime, the production of cement, and the smelting of iron. All iron men know how quickly the impalpable purple ore of wet origin reduces compared to finely ground red hematites of approximately identical composition obtained from Lake lump ores. Most housekeepers appreciate that the several forms of carbon-charcoal, coke, and anthracite, not to include graphite and diamond -have different temperatures of ignition. The temperature usually rises with the density and hardness. Some of the scientific bureaus of the government might appropriately conduct some tests along lines suggested by Mr. Johnson's article. We are unable to say whether the topic lies within the spheres of activity of the Bureau of Mines, the Bureau of Soils (Agricultural Department), the Geological Survey, or the Bureau of Standards. The calcining qualities of limestone is a topic too wide for individual effort and is of wide enough interest to merit government or State activity. It is of interest, as aforesaid, to burners of lime, cement manufacturers, and smelters. The chemical composition of a limestone does not tell all the story -if over 1-in. size lumps. The limestones of Annville and Myerstown, Pa., break at a tap; those on the Hudson above Poughkeepsie .act like "nigger heads." The manager of lime kilns near Lake Champlain told me his fuel consumption was high compared to that at other points. Yet the Hudson and Annville stones were both of greatest purity, being rivaled by only the marble at Rutland, Vt., or some stones near Martinsburg, W. Va. A local kiln operator says the conglomerate or pudding limestones of Loudoun county, Va., act very differently in the kiln from the more normal limestone deposits nearby. The tilted and twisted bedding in the anthracite region tells the story of hard coal origin. We might therefore expect that the limestones of greater geological age or depth or metamorphism