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By George B. Clark

7.1-1. Introduction. The fundamentals of blasting involve both the properties of explosives and of the rock being blasted. While the knowledge of property correlation between rocks and explosives for most effective blasting is far more complete, many quantitative evaluations have been made. Four of the most important explosive properties appear to be energy density, bulk density, rate of energy release, and the pressure-time history of the gases produced. Important rock properties are density and porosity strength, and energy absorption properties, including the effective moduli of elasticity. Rock structure also has a marked effect on its breaking properties, i.e., joints, bedding, fractures, alteration, etc. Several mechanisms enter into rock fragmentation by blasting. These include slabbing, radial fracturing, crushing, and bursting by the gas bubble. All of these factors are closely related to properties of both explosives and rock. Slabbing depends upon the character of the first generated stress wave, whose shape and magnitude are a result of the pressure generated by the explosive, its time history, and the resultant response of the rock, including its ability to sustain the stress wave. Actual slabbing, in turn, is a function of the magnitude and shape of the pressure pulse and the tensile strength of rock. Further fragmentation depends to a great extent upon the amount of gas in the bubble and its energy and pressure. Blasting rounds are best designed by taking the above factors into consideration. This is effectively accomplished by use of cratering curves which relate breakage- parameters to the explosive energy. Optimum depths from single charge cratering curves must be adjusted to changes in shot geometry and related to multiple hole blasting. Blasting damage may occur from either air blast or ground waves, and in the latter ease may be due to direct vibration or to settlement caused by vibration. Technical information indicates that blasting damage is often

Jan 1, 1968

By F. F. Skiba, P. J. Root

A mathematical model has been used to investigate crossflow effects in a stratified reservoir during an idealized displacement process. A process in which one incompressible fluid displaces completely another incompressible fluid of the same density and viscosity was considered. The reservoir was assumed to be composed of homogeneous layers which are discrete but interconnected. Approximate five-spot flow geometry was simulated by arranging two pie-shaped cylindrical (two-dimensional) wedges in series. Some of the common production methods rely, for their effectiveness, on the fact that the formation consists of isolated strata. This is particularly true of selective plugging and single-zone production-injection methods. The effectiveness of these techniques for several cases in which adjacent strata are in communication has been evaluated. The usual production-injection schemes for fluid injection processes involve using the same completion interval in both the production and the injection wells. The efficiency of this, as well as alternative productioz-injection procedures has been examined for some cases involving communicating strata. INTRODUCTION The performance of many fluid injection projects is marred by early breakthrough and by production of a high percentage of the displacing phase after breakthrough. This channeling effect, if it occurs in reservoirs which have large permeability variations, is often explained on the basis of a model composed of discrete, isolated strata. Corrective or preventive measures based on this same model are also common. The behavior of stratified models has been the subject of considerable study. An excellent review of the early literature was given by Seba.1 Studies of the depletion performance have since been made for continuous, unrestricted communication between strata2-4 and for production from one permeable bed in continuous but restricted communication with an adjacent permeable bed.5,6 Model studies of displacement processes in stratified systems with crossflow also have been reprted.7-12 Finally, methods which account for crossflow have been developed for computing displacement behavior in stratified systems.13,14 Most methods for controlling or preventing channeling involve some change in the interval open to production and/or injection. Although many variations of the selective completion problem have been studied in regard to the depletion of a reservoir, little attention has been given to the behavior of a displacement process under similar conditions. Sebal used a resistance network model to study the performance of a process in which one incompressible fluid displaces an identical fluid from a linear, stratified reservoir. He investigated the possibility of improving the vertical coverage by limiting the completion interval of the production well. This investigation deals with techniques in which selective completion of the production and/or the injection wells is used in an attempt to control channeling. At one extreme, selective plugging and single-zone isolation (assuming perfect execution) should be successful if the reservoir is actually made up of independent strata. At the other extreme, they can hardly be expected to be successful if the channeling is caused by a mechanism in which stratification effects are negligible even though there are extreme variations in the formation permeability and/or the injectivity profile of the wells is not uniform. By contrast, it is difficult to anticipate the effect that the amount of communication between the beds of a stratified system will have on the efficiency of selective completion techniques. The objective of this study is the quantitative determination of the effect of communication on the behavior of some particular stratified systems which will at least lead to qualitative conclusions.

Jan 1, 1966

By Elmer R. Kaiser

COMBUSTION of coal and transfer of heat from flames and gases to boiler surfaces continue to be of great interest to engineers here and abroad. Numerous investigations have been in progress to improve furnace and boiler performance and economy. The importance of better understanding of the processes and opportunities for improvement is apparent when it is remembered that heat from at least 500 million tons of coal a year the world over is being transferred to boiler water at efficiencies ranging mostly between 50 and 90 pct. Even slight gains in efficiency, economy, and labor saving become very significant when multiplied by the enormous quantity of fuel consumed. Also the competitive position of the large coal, oil, and gas industries in satisfying the fuel consumers is greatly affected by the achievements made through technical progress with each fuel. This paper is part of a continuing activity of Bituminous Coal Research, Inc., to extend the knowledge of coal utilization for steam generation and to seek promising directions for future research and development in cooperation with others. Particularly in the latter regard, numerous interviews were held during the last three years to seek the experience and advice of boiler and combustion- equipment manufacturers, electric-utility executives, and fuel engineers. A wealth of published information was also reviewed, which together with the interviews pointed to the advisability of further work on ash and sulphur control.

Jan 3, 1954

By GEORGE H. DERN

IF THE engineer is to go into politics, as I think he should, I believe the curriculum of every engineering school should be amended to include a good stiff course in public speaking. My observation has been that the engineer in private conversation can scintillate as brightly as a life insurance agent or an oil stock salesman, but before an audience, with rare exceptions, he is a total loss. He will not get up and talk. He hides his light under a bushel, and sits on the bushel as dumb as an oyster. I have seen meetings of the Utah Section at which some topic of general interest to the members was up for discussion, and where an animated debate was the logical thing to expect. After the chairman states the subject and invites discussion, there is dense silence. Finally a member, bolder than the rest, gets up and with trembling voice and knees makes a motion. The motion carries, the meeting adjourns, and then the members gather into groups and begin to discuss the question seriously -and intelligently, giving cogent arguments on either side and embellishing their remarks with appropriate or inappropriate epithets illustrations and figures of speech. Now, I am not pleading for more speechmaking. The good Lord knows we have too much of this great American indoor sport already. But I think every man ought to be able and ready to express his opinions at the proper time. Some men have a reputation for wisdom because they do not talk much. We speak of the wise old owl because she never speaks, but in my opinion the owl's reputation for wisdom is vastly overrated. silence is more apt to be a cloak for stupidity than for wisdom. The person who has ideas can- not exert any influence by keeping them locked up in his own mind. The great motive force of the world is not muscle, but ideas, and ideas in order to get in their work must be released.

Jan 1, 1925

By R. D. Lee

A simplification of the method of Hurst and McCarty for conducting potentiometric model studies by the single probe method is presented along with experimentally determined invasion patterns for certain idealized flow problems. The analytical solution for one class of these problems is given. Finally, a general description is given of a newly developed instrument which permits direct mapping of flow lines and determination of transit times in potentiometric-model studies. Introduction The object of this paper is to present: I. A simplification of the method of Hurst and McCarty for conducting poten-tiometric-model studies of oil and gas reservoirs by the single probe method. 2. Results of a series of studies of certain idealized flow problems and the general conclusions to be drawn therefrom. 3. A description of a new instrument, the Chronocartograph, which greatly reduces the labor and time required for conducting potentiometric-model studies. Certain general conclusions may be drawn as results of the investigation of the idealized flow problems. They are: I. Injection and extraction areas should be separated by as great a distance as conditions permit since, in general, the recovery prior to first breakthrough tends to vary as the square of this distance. 2. Little advantage is to be gained by use of more than eight injection wells or groups of injection wells for the case of circular productive limits. 3. Elongated shapes of productive limits are best exploited by injection on the extended major axis only, with a line of extraction wells lying on the major axis. 4. The use of peripheral injection wells for elongated shapes is permissible, if necessary, but requires extension of the line of extraction wells. The exploitation of an oil or gas field is effected either by the expansion of the gas and oil, or by their displacement by another fluid. Both methods may be used simultaneously. When the displacement of the oil or gas is the controlling factor there arises the problem of mapping the progress of the boundary between the fluid in place and the displacing fluid. This problem is of particular interest in the operation of a cycling project in a gas-condensate field, where the wet gas is produced from one or more wells, commonly called "extraction wells.'' This wet gas is taken into a processing plant where the condensate is removed. The remaining "dry" gas is injected back into the field through one or more wells, called "injection wells," both to conserve the gas for future use and also to maintain the pressure in the field. In an operation of this type it is essential to anticipate the manner in which the dry gas will spread through the field, because the ultimate recovery of the wet gas depends

Jan 1, 1948

By R. D. Lee

A simplification of the method of Hurst and McCarty for conducting potentiometric model studies by the single probe method is presented along with experimentally determined invasion patterns for certain idealized flow problems. The analytical solution for one class of these problems is given. Finally, a general description is given of a newly developed instrument which permits direct mapping of flow lines and determination of transit times in potentiometric-model studies. Introduction The object of this paper is to present: I. A simplification of the method of Hurst and McCarty for conducting poten-tiometric-model studies of oil and gas reservoirs by the single probe method. 2. Results of a series of studies of certain idealized flow problems and the general conclusions to be drawn therefrom. 3. A description of a new instrument, the Chronocartograph, which greatly reduces the labor and time required for conducting potentiometric-model studies. Certain general conclusions may be drawn as results of the investigation of the idealized flow problems. They are: I. Injection and extraction areas should be separated by as great a distance as conditions permit since, in general, the recovery prior to first breakthrough tends to vary as the square of this distance. 2. Little advantage is to be gained by use of more than eight injection wells or groups of injection wells for the case of circular productive limits. 3. Elongated shapes of productive limits are best exploited by injection on the extended major axis only, with a line of extraction wells lying on the major axis. 4. The use of peripheral injection wells for elongated shapes is permissible, if necessary, but requires extension of the line of extraction wells. The exploitation of an oil or gas field is effected either by the expansion of the gas and oil, or by their displacement by another fluid. Both methods may be used simultaneously. When the displacement of the oil or gas is the controlling factor there arises the problem of mapping the progress of the boundary between the fluid in place and the displacing fluid. This problem is of particular interest in the operation of a cycling project in a gas-condensate field, where the wet gas is produced from one or more wells, commonly called "extraction wells.'' This wet gas is taken into a processing plant where the condensate is removed. The remaining "dry" gas is injected back into the field through one or more wells, called "injection wells," both to conserve the gas for future use and also to maintain the pressure in the field. In an operation of this type it is essential to anticipate the manner in which the dry gas will spread through the field, because the ultimate recovery of the wet gas depends

Jan 1, 1948

By AIME AIME

THE 123d meeting of the Institute was held in New York Feb. 14 to 17, 1921. The total registration was 1199, as compared with 1138 at the New York meeting in 1920. The weather was a strange and welcome contrast to that of last year, when New York was buried under six feet of snow as the result of the fiercest blizzard in its history. This year there was no snow, and the weather was said to be much more like an Arizona winter than New York. A complete program of the Technical Sessions is on p. 9. The discussions of the papers presented will be published in pamphlet form as soon as possible and will be noted in MINING AND METALLURGY in the usual way.

Jan 1, 1921

By AIME AIME

THE 122d meeting of the Institute was held in the Lake. Superior Copper and Iron Country Aug. 20 to Sept. 3, 1920 with an approximate registration of 1100 members and guests. This is the 'first visit of, the Institute to this vicinity since 1904 although previously it held meetings there every six or, seven years. 'The eastern party assembled at Buffalo and sailed on the S. S. "Tionesta ". on Friday morning, Aug. 20, arriving at Houghton, Mich., Monday, Aug. 23. En route stops were made at Detroit, where sightseeing auto trips were taken, and at Mackinac Island, where a short stop permitted a visit to the picturesque and historic Fort Mackinac.

Jan 1, 1920

By AIME AIME

A separate room in the suite occupied by the American Institute of Mining Engineers on the ninth floor of the United Engineering Society Building, has been equipped with furniture and telephone extension for the temporary use of members of the Institute or of sister societies, or visitors suitably accredited. .In addition to this general accommodation, another room has been similarly furnished as a business headquarters for a single person, and for a limited period. For the conditions of this privilege, inquiry should be made at the office of the Institute. . In order that the benefit of this arrangement shall not be restricted to a few members only, the period of continued occupancy will be limited, and applications will be considered in the order of their receipt. A small. fee will be required for the use of the facilities furnished. ANNOUNCEMENT. THE BIRMINGHAM MEETING. - The XCIVth Meeting of the Institute for the reading and discussion of professional papers will be held at Birmingham, Ala., beginning about October 1. After the Birmingham sessions and excursions, it is proposed to return by special train via Chattanooga, Ducktown, etc., to Washington, D. C., where additional sessions will be held. Further particulars will be given in a special circular, to be issued at an early day.

Jan 5, 1908

By T. G. Nilan

Steels containing 0.4 and 0.8 pet C have been transformed isothermally at pressures up to 34 kbuv. Decomposilion mechanisms are so intimately related to phase equilibvia that, as the equilibria shift under high pressure, the microstruclures of the decomposition producls change, maintaining at pressure the same correspondence between a given phase equilibrium and a given microstructure as a1 1 atm. A bainitic unicvo-structure occurs in these steels at high pressure that IS observed only at 1 aim abole 1.4 pct C. This strrrcl111,e 1s ruliorzalized in terms of the effect of pressure on the transformation to lower bainite. The pressuve depetlderlce of the kinetics of pearlile formation is descrihed by an absolute rule theory amalysis. The activation volume for the transformation is 7 cu cm per mlole, which is indicative of a phase-interface transformation-rate cotntrol mechanism. This fortmulation, when expressed in terms of known solule effects on the energelics of tvansformation, gives promise of explaining the effects of alloying elemenls on hnrden-abilily, particularly that of 'coball. KINETIC processes in solids are functions of the primary thermodynamic variables of state: composition, temperature, and pressure. Until the development of high-pressure techniques' that permitted the generation of sustained high pressure at high temperatures, metallurgical studies of such reactions were largely limited to isobaric conditions at atmospheric pressure. The data so obtained, and theoretical deductions based on these data, were necessarily incomplete For the particular case of austenite decomposition, a knowledge of the phenomenology of the reaction in terms of all the state variables should lead to a clarification of the process. This deeper understanding should facilitate a decision between conflicting theories that have been proposed to rationalize these phe- nomena. An analysis, derived from an understanding of the transformation mechanisms, may aid in the optimization of alloy steel development. The first studies of the effect of pressure on transformations in steel were made by Kulin et al. in 1952.' In a study of the influence of applied stress on mar-tensite formation in a 30 pct Ni steel, they found that the martensite start (M,) was depressed 8°C per kbar* by hydrostatic pressure. Jellinghaus and Friedewold3 were apparently the first to investigate the effect of pressure on isothermal transformations above the Ms. They found that the bainite transformation rate in a 1.2 pct C, 3.8 pct Mn steel was reduced by a factor of 3 by a hydrostatic pressure of 4 kbar. In both of these investigations,2,3 the M, of the steels studied was below room temperature. Austenitizing and quenching were done at atmospheric pressure, followed by the decomposition of the metastable austenite under pressure. The maximum temperature at pressure in the bainite study3 was 350°C. Until the advent of the present high-pressure devices, it was not possible to conduct isobaric high-pressure heat treatments from austenitizing through isothermal decomposition and quenching. The exploitation of high pressure as a variable in metallurgical studies was greatly advanced by the apparatus and techniques developed by Hall4 and co-workers. Utilizing these techniques, Radcliffe et a1.5 and Hilliard6 etermined the pressure dependence of phase equilibria in the Fe-C system. Hilliard and cahn7 examined the pearlite transformation rate in an AISI 1080 steel and also in a high-purity 0.92 C Fe-C alloy at 1 atm and at 34 kbar and found a 700-fold reduction in rate at pressure in the 1080 steel but only a fivefold reduction in the high-purity alloy. In agreement with the shift of phase equilibria under pressure, the microstructures were hypereutectoid at 34 kbar pressure, whereas they are eutectoid at 1 atm. Determination of the effect of pressure on carbon diffu-

Jan 1, 1968

By Frederick M. Becket

SHORTLY after the Armistice there appeared a few references to numerous attempts that had been made to produce steel without the aid of manganese, or at least with manganese in abnormally low percentage. Some years later, during two consecutive days of train travel, I had excellent opportunity to read Sir Robert Hadfield's book, entitled "Metallurgy-Its Influence on Modern Progress," and also his paper, "The Metal Manganese and Its Properties : Also the Production of Ferro-Manganese and Its History," presented at the spring meeting of the Iron and Steel Institute, 1927. Both the book and the paper are most interesting historically to makers of alloy steels and

Jan 1, 1931

By AIME AIME

TWO weeks ago the writer was lunching in the Engineers` Club in New York with a man who has perhaps the widest acquaintance among engineers of anyone in the country a member of another of the Founder engineering societies. "By the way," lie asked. "who have they nominated for your next president."' "Doctor Becket," I told him- "Oh. that's line," he replied, in a heartfelt tone that rang with sincerity. "I have come in contact with him occasionally and he is just the right type.' And that is the way Dr. Frederick M. Becket impresses everybody. The right type. Most Institute members of the western group of hard-rock minors do not know him, but then they meet him in his swing around the circle next year they will not require a long acquaintance to sense his kindly and outstanding personality, to realize that he is a gentleman in the bet meaning o1 that word, a man of wide sympathies and interests.

Jan 1, 1932

By S. A. TAYLOR

THERE is probably no other mineral industry of which the public has as much information and misinformation as it has of the coal industry. Unfortunately, however, the general public's knowledge of the coal industry, outside of the particular kind of coal it is accustomed to, by reason of use, is largely made up of information received from newspaper and popular magazine articles, in which the mine workers are depicted as overworked and mistreated men, and the coal operators as "coal barons." Those who have any specific knowledge of exact conditions in the coal industry know how unjust and un- fair such an opinion of the coal industry is, not only to the miner but to the operator as well. Many reporters and writers of magazine articles are misled by statements regarding the condition of the miners that are exaggerated and not founded on facts and, if an investigation of the conditions of the miner's work, his habitation and surroundings were fairly made, it would at least compel more truthful statements by those who write for public reading. That such an investigation would not reveal anything that was wrong, or anything to be censured or cured, no one, I think, would maintain, but I do think that any fair investigation of the facts would show that conditions in and around the newer and later-developed coal mines and communities would compare favorably with those of manufacturing districts, and that where the mines and com- munities are old and not very attractive places to work, or live in, they carry with them other considerations, compensating for these conditions, and cannot be remedied by reason of a lack of sufficient coal to warrant economically any costly changes.

Jan 1, 1926

By Eckley B. Coxe

IN the anthracite coal regions of Pennsylvania the custom has been to sight either at an open light (generally a mine-lamp), or at the string of a plumb-bob. If the station was intended to he a permanent one, a spud, as it is called, that is, a nail resembling a horseshoe nail with a hole in the head, is driven into the timbers over the station, or, if there be no timber, a hole is drilled in the coal or rock roof, into which a wooden plug is driven, which serves to hold the spud. The first operation in making a survey is to lay out the stations, that is, to mark the place where the holes are to be drilled for the plugs or the points on the timbers where the spuds are to be driven in. This should be done before any instrumental work is begun, as much labor can generally be spared, and the use of very short sights can often be avoided, by carefully laying out the stations beforehand. When the stations were laid out, a plumb-bob was hung from the innermost spud, which I will call No. 1, the instrument was put in position at No. 2, by plumbing down and putting a centre-pin under the spud, and then setting up over the centre-pin, and another plumb-bob was suspended from No. 3. If great accuracy was not required, a mine-lamp was set up under the plumbbobs, at No. 1 and No. 3, and the engineer sighted at them. If great accuracy was required, a lamp or some white sbface was held by an assistant behind the strings of the plumb-bobs. To work with any speed by the latter method (i. e., the accurate one), it was necessary for the engineer to have three assistants on whom he could rely even when the chaining was done afterwards; viz. : one to hold the light behind the string at No. 1, one at No. 3, and an assistant at the instrument to hold the light while levelling, reading the in

By Eckley B. Coxe

IN the anthracite coal regions of Pennsylvania the custom has been to sight either at an open light (generally a mine-lamp), or at the string of a plumb-bob. If the station was intended to be a permanent one, a spud, as it is called, that is, a nail resembling a horseshoe nail with a hole in the head, is driven into the timbers over the station, or, if there be no timber, a hole is drilled in the coal or rock roof, into which a wooden plug is driven, which serves to hold the spud. The first operation in making a survey is to lay out the stations, that is, to mark the place where the holes are to be drilled for the plugs or the points on the timbers where the spuds are to be driven in. This should be done before any instrumental work is begun, as much labor can generally be spared, and the use of very short sights can often be avoided, by carefully laying out the stations beforehand. When the stations were laid out, a plumb-bob was hung from the innermost spud, which I will call No. 1, the instrument was put in position at No. 2, by plumbing down and putting a centre-pin under the spud, and then setting up over the centre-pin, and another plumb-bob was suspended from No. 3. If great accuracy was not required, a mine-lamp was set up under the plumb-bobs, at No. 1 and No. 3, and the engineer sighted at them. If great accuracy was required, a lamp or some white surface was held by an assistant behind the strings of the plumb-bobs. To work with any speed by the latter method (i. e., the accurate one), it was necessary for the engineer to have three assistants on whom he could rely even when the chaining was done afterwards; viz.: one to hold the light behind the string at No. 1, one at No. 3, and an assistant at the instrument to hold the light while levelling, reading the in-

Jan 1, 1873

By AIME AIME

On Nov. 11, 1909, M. Alexandre Pourcel, of Paris, France, upon the proposal of a large number of distinguished members, and the unanimous recommendation of the Council, was elected by the Board of Directors an Honorary Member of the Institute. M. Pourcel has devoted forty-three years to the metallurgy of iron and steel ; and the work which he did between thirty and forty years ago constitutes an important part of the founda¬tion of the practice of to-day. Among his striking contribu¬tions are : (1) his perfection, in 1869, of the manufacture of high-grade ferro-manganese in a carbon-lined open-hearth furnace, instead of the costly crucibles previously used; (2) his discovery, in 1874, of the method of making solid steel cast¬ings; (3) his manufacture, in 1875, of ferro-manganese and silico-spiegel in the blast-furnace; and (4) his anticipation, in 1875, of modern American blast-furnace practice, by the pro¬duction, in a very small furnace, of Bessemer pig containing 2.5 per cent. of silicon, from a burden yielding only 46 per cent. of iron, and with a consumption, per ton of pig, of only 1,8401b. of coke, containing 15 per cent. of ash. These brilliant pioneer achievements, together with his contributions to cur¬rent technical literature, won for him the Bessemer gold medal of the Iron and Steel Institute ; the great" medal of honor," which is the highest award of the French Society of Mineral Industry, and other gold medals, as well as the distinction of honorary membership of the Comité des Forges de France, which was conferred upon him in 1891. In recent years, M. Pourcel has been instrumental, as consulting engineer of the Société de Commentry-Fourchambault, at Decazeville, France, in an extraordinary development of the manufacture of special steels. The Invar plant, of this company, is said to make a greater variety of such steels (includ-

Dec 1, 1909

By Anthony F. G. Lucas

BORN on Sept. 9, 1855, in the city of Spalato, Dalmatia. Austria, Antonio Francisco Luchich was the son of Francis Stephen Luchich, a prosperous shipbuilder and ship-owner of Lesina. His mother, Johanna Giovanizio, was known to the people of Trieste as a woman of unusual learning and piety. After receiving his high school training in Trieste, Antonio Luchich entered the Polytechnic Institute at Gratz in the year 1875, graduating two years later as an engineer. He then entered the Naval Academy of Fiume and Pola as a Midshipman, receiving his commission as a Lieutenant in 1878. In 1879, then 24, Antonio Luchich obtained a leave of absence from the Austrian Navy and came to Saginaw, Mich., to visit an uncle. He remained in this country and on May 4. 1885 at Norfolk, Va.. he became Anthony Francis Lucas. an American citizen.

Jan 1, 1945

By Chikaosa Tanimoto

INTRODUCTION The committee on Rock Mechanics, Japanese Society for Civil Engineers, has been discussing 'soft rock engineering in Japan' and presented several papers concerning dam, tunnel, bridge and slope constructions to International Symposium on Weak Rock, Tokyo 1981. This is the summarized paper based on References of Okamoto et a1 (1981), Iida et a1 (1981), Working Group on Tunneling-JSCE (1981), Working Group on Bridge Foundations-JSCE (1951) and Kikuchi et a1 (1981), which can convey general view on engineering experiences with weak rocks in Japan. From the point of view to the origin and/or distinctive physical properties, weak rocks in Japan may be classified into (1) sedimentary, (2) weathered, (3) low welded-pyroclastic and (4) fractured ones. Their typical characteristics are summarized in the following section. Concerning dam foundations on soft rock, several hundreds have already been constructed and, at present, nearly one hundred are under construction or at planning stage. These dams, almost without exception, have some problems such as site selection, material selection for fill-type and concrete dams, design of dam and its foundation, and construction procedures, requiring special ingeneous and cautious measures to cope with the local geotechnical difficult situations. In tunneling, for the decade of 1970s, the number of tunnels in soft rock either completed or under construction was at least 160, including Seikan Tunnel of 53.9 km long, Nakayama Tunnel of 14.8 km long and so on. Most of these tunnels are distributed in the northern half of Mainland, consisting of a basement of Paleozoic strata and Plutonic rocks, overlayed by Neogene Tertiary formations which include large

Jan 1, 1982

THE first session of the production engineering group on Wednesday, morning, with J. B. Umpleby as chairman, recorded the principal developments since the Fort Worth meeting. Added to this was a lively discussion of pressure maintenance. Recent advances in the air-gas lift have resulted from the need of applying the method to smaller wells at lower costs. In many places intermittent flow has given excellent results, and numerous mechanical de-vices for its automatic control have been, developed. Papers by C. V. Millikan on the Mid-Continent field and by A. H. Bell on California, fields formed the basis for discussion. The maintenance of initial sand pressures was ably discussed for two Texas fields by t. V. Foran in a paper that not only outlined the technic of operation and the results obtained but also contained noteworthy cost data in terms of increased ultimate production. Mr. Foran recommends the use of air in the first stages of pressure maintenance as a means of determining sand conditions and directions of flow, later turning to gas, if available, because of its greater solubility on oil. A round table discussion on petroleum engineering educational problems, with H. G. George as chairman, brought out much interesting discussion that is difficult to summarize. The other Wednesday morning session was a refinery engineering symposium with T. G. Del-bridge as chairman and the economical application of heat for the general topic. A paper on the modern pipe -still, by H. S. Bell, and another by C. W. Stratford on the modernization of the cylindrical still elicited a lively discussion.

Jan 3, 1928

By J. T. Ryan

POISONOUS, irritating, or explosive gases are found in almost every industry, and manufacturers of gas masks are called upon to provide gas mask protection for a great variety of conditions, such as operators in horseradish factories, fumigators of homes and ocean liners, and men engaged in the manufacture of tetra-ethyl-lead, the new motor fuel. The modern type of gas mask and respirator, to provide protection against all such industrial gases, is an outgrowth of the gas mask developed during the World War to protect the soldiers against the poisonous war gases. So far, it has been possible to develop ample mask protection from all known noxious gases and fumes present in atmospheres encountered in mines, metallurgical works, and chemical and other industries, so long as there is sufficient oxygen present to support the flame of an oil lamp. The most important development of the gas mask was in providing protection against carbon monoxide- which is the noxious gas that mining men are most concerned with and, in fact, is the noxious gas that man is most frequently exposed to. This paper will be con- fined largely to the discussion of masks for underground use in metal mines. Gases that contaminate the normal air in mines can be divided into two classes: those that are given off normally by the workings, and those that are produced in mine operation.

Jan 1, 1926