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By Robert T. DeGavre

The $650 million financing for Into Ltd.'s Soroako nickel project is a story worth telling-not only because the project itself represents a significant achievement but also because there are certain important lessons that can be derived from our experience in financing the project. A critical appraisal of the methods and successes in the financing plan is presented in this article, in light of goals which Inco sought to achieve. A technical assessment of the project is not included, since Inco Ltd. has submitted a series of papers on this subject at the International Laterite Symposium as part of the 108th Annual Meeting of AIME in February 1979. Progress in developing and financing the project is encapsulated in the accompanying project factsheet.

Jan 3, 1979

By F. W. Miller

A brief history of byproduct coking in Alabama with short general descriptions of plants and the state's production of beehive and byproduct coke. PRIOR to the Civil War, there were several small charcoal furnaces for smelting the brown limonite ore that is found, in comparatively small bodies, throughout the central and north-central portions of the state. During the Civil War, these furnaces furnished charcoal iron to the Confederate Government. No attention was paid to the large bodies of lime-bearing hematite ore that now supplies the bulk of the ore used in the various blast-furnace plants of this district until the latter part of the 19th century. Red Mountain, which is the southernmost and one of the smaller ranges of the Appalachian Chain, lying immediately south of the Birmingham and Bessemer, is the principal source of this ore. The orebody outcrops on the northern face, extends through the mountain, and underlies Shades Valley on the southern side. When it was found that these ores could be worked satisfactorily in the blast furnaces, there was a comparatively rapid growth in the blast-furnace industry in the Birmingham district. As these ores are far more refractory than the limonite ores, this blast-furnace development was accompanied by the construction of beehive ovens to carbonize the coal, in order to supply the necessary fuel. The state's production of bee-hive coke in 1880 was 60,781 tons; ten years later this had increased to 1,072,942 tons; and, in 1897 the production had reached 1,443,017 tons. In 1898, the first byproduct oven built in the state was put in operation. This plant consisted of 120 horizontal-flue Semet-Solvay ovens, three flues in height by thirty flues in length with an average width of 16 in. The plant was constructed by Semet-Solvay Co., for the Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Co., and was located adjacent to the blast-furnace plant of that company at Ensley. Coal was delivered from the Pratt mines, by gravity tracks, directly into bin's of the ovens after having

Jan 9, 1924

By David Cole

AT the time flotation appeared upon the metallurgical horizon in Arizona, the writer, under the direction of Dr. Ricketts, was engaged in remodeling and enlarging the No. 6 Concentration Plant of the Arizona Copper Co. at Morenci, and the work had been in progress nearly a year before the Inspiration experiments with flotation had disclosed the revolution in concentration that was at that timè impending. The simplified flowsheet worked out for the remodeling of the Morenci plant had been based upon the removal of the freed metal in a minimum number of stages by treatment upon tables equipped with Butchart riffles, the latter being adapted to accomplish both classification of feed and removal of the metal at one operation, substantially as described in my previous paper.1 The scheme of treatment for the slime was based upon the well-known fact that after copper sulphides, such as chalcocite and chalcopyrite, etc., are reduced to a certain extremely fine state of comminution they are definitely beyond the reach of separation upon any of the concentrating devices then known. By using drag-belt classifiers (which served as conveyors as well as separators), the overflow would be of the usual "slimes" class. Experiment had shown that when these drag-belt overflows were, properly diluted (that is, to about 5 to 7 per cent. solids in the feed under treatment) . the very fine sand, and especially the very fine but still granular sulphide particle's, would, if given a short distance to fall, quickly settle out in prime condition to yield an excellent recovery on vanners; a further valuable feature would be that the very fine non-separable final overflow tonnage might be discharged direct to tailing, thus conserving space requirements so as to permit within the old building, without embarrass-ment, the increase of capacity required.

Jan 9, 1916

By R. W. Ph. D. Raymond, Anton Filers, O. H. Hahn

THIS paper will treat of such works only as beneficiate ores directly in the mining districts. And when it is said that more than twenty furnaces exist in Utah, about as many in Nevada, five in Montana, and four in Cerro Gordo, Inyo County, California, it is obvious that a business so extended deserves attention. Wide apart as these different works are located, they have nevertheless to deal in nearly every case with the same or very similar circumstances and conditions, so that, with very few exceptions, virtually the same system of smelting is followed in all these establishments. This is the so-called method of reduction and precipitation in blast-furnaces. As the principal reasons for the employment of a blast-furnace process are to be considered : the low percentage of lead in the ores, the high price of the only available fuel, charcoal, and the exorbitant rates demanded for labor. The reasons why the reduction and precipitation process is preferred to a roasting, reduction, and precipitation process are the high prices of labor and materials, and the preponderance of oxidized ores over sulphurets, though in some cases the latter are quite abundant. The weight of these reasons will be better understood when the character of the ores to be treated and the object of the smelting are more minutely stated. The ores are in nearly all cases a preponderating mass of oxidized lead ores, such as cerussite, anglesite, and leadhillite, in which nests and nodules of undecomposed galena occur. Associated with these are : in Eureka, Nevada, arseniate of iron and arsenical pyrites, hydrated oxide of iron, quartz, and calcareous clay ; in Little Cottonwood Canyon and American Fork, Utah, iron oxide, and in some cases a combination of antimony, the nature of which I have not ascertained; also dolomite and quartz in widely varying proportions; in Bingham Canyon, Utah, only quartz and comparatively little oxide of iron, or iron sulphurets; in Cerro Gordo, California, oxide of iron, iron pyrites, antimonial compounds, copper ores, and, as gangue, carbonate of lime and quartz. In Argenta, Montana, occur, besides the above-named lead ores, pyromorphite, and molybdate of lead. The preponderating gangue of the Argenta ores is quartz, and there is here a larger proportion of galena than elsewhere in the West. In most of the localities named, the lead ores themselves contain sufficient silver to render its separation from the ore the main object of the smelting; but in some of the districts, and especially in Montana, the lead ores serve only to furnish the extracting agent for the silver of true quartzose silver ores, which at the same time contain a sufficient percentage of lead to make amalgamation impracticable. They are therefore beneficiated by smelting, although the lead itself has no market value.

Jan 1, 1873

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. C. Canby

JUDGE GRANT, in a delightful satire of his, says: "Boston is a state of mind." I think that this same statement might well be made of the metallurgy of lead. I was particularly impressed with this when about thirteen or fourteen years ago I prepared a paper on "Development of the American Water- jacket Lead Blast Furnace." Dividing the time, as I did into ten-year periods, from the commencement of lead smelting at Eureka, Nev. (1870), and showing the tendency for each of the five decades it was evident that the progress had been through a succession of states of mind from the rule of thumb through the ultra scientific, or from what I might call the slag type period up to the present highly developed art. Conservatism has been characteristic of the metallurgist. This may have been most natural, especially with the lead metallurgist, the development of whose art was so entirely in the custom smelting plant, where the metal contents of his ores were paid for in cash and therefore excessive metallurgical losses could mean nothing short of financial bankruptcy. The metallurgist himself was held to a personal account, in these smelting plants. It was the metallurgist who was accountable. In the concentrating plants, if undue losses occurred remodelling of the plant was discussed, but if there were excessive metallurgical losses in the custom smelting plant, a new metallurgist was considered as the remedy. For this reason the tendency was to adhere to recognized practice and to be wary of unusual methods, using the word unusual in the sense in which it is used in Article VIII of the Constitution of the United States, as to punishments and modes of death. This conservatism of the metallurgist was reflected as other branches of metallurgy were developed. We have heard of the wonderful development of flotation, but it had to be introduced over the dead metallurgical bodies of its opponents.

Jan 1, 1926

By K. C. Sclater

GAS as a factor in the efficiency of oil production, might be a better title for this paper as it deals in general with the significance of the gas-oil ratio as an index of the efficiency of oil production and briefly discusses oil production methods with reference to the gas-oil ratio in wells, particularly during the early life of a field. In the recent hearings held at Washington before the Federal Oil Conservation Board the fuller utilization of the energy contained in the gas occluded in or associated with the oil underground was stressed by some of the speakers when referring to greater ultimate recovery of oil. One speaker commenting on this point said in part, "There is ample evidence indicative that if the gas associated with the petroleum in our fields were conserved and elevated gas pressure maintained in the oil sands during their productive life, the ultimate production of oil could be greatly increased."

Jan 1, 1926

By R. M. Leibrock, J. E. Huzarevich, R. G. Hiltz

The various factors considered in recommending the initiation of a gas injection project in the southern portion of the Cedar Lake Field are discussed. Performance history under gas injection operations is reviewed and these data are analyzed, utilizing both the material balance method and the fractional flow and frontal advance expressions. Results of the analysis of the performance data indicate that the injected gas has contacted and affected at least 60 per cent of the reservoir and a substantial increase in ultimate recovery can reasonably be expected. By holding the reservoir pressure appreciably above the bubble point, the well productive capacities have been maintained substantially above the level predicted for primary operations. The analysis of the Cedar Lake project suggests that in certain limestone reservoirs, at least, the probable success of gas injection cannot be predicted simply from ohservation of permeability distribution throughout the pay section, as indicated by core analysis data, on either one or a number of wells. Further, the performance of this particular project fails to indicate any basis for classifying carbonate reservoirs in general as being inherently unsuited to a dispersed type gas injection program, thus indicating that each reservoir should be considered on its own merits, regardless of the composition of the reservoir rock. INTRODUCTION Early in the life of the Cedar Lake Field, an extensive data gathering program was initiated to provide an accurate record of reservoir performance characteristics. From the study of these data it was apparent that there was a critical need for supplementing the natural reservoir energy in order to maintain well productivities and obtain the maximum ultimate oil recovery. Accordingly, detailed engineering studies were made of the various methods of secondary recovery which might be applicable. As a result of these investigations, the decision was made to initiate a gas injection program of sufficient intensity to maintain reservoir pressure at approximately 600 psia, or some 274 lb above the bubble point pressure of 326 psia. A full scale dispersed type gas injection program has been in operation on leases of the Stanolind Oil and Gas Co. in the southern portion of the field for nearly five years, and sufficient performance data are now available to evaluate the benefits which have been derived from this project. It is the primary purpose of this paper to analyze the performance data for the Cedar Lake gas injection project and to point out the significance of the ohserved behavior with respect to certain hypotheses which have been advanced in recent years concerning the probable success of gas injection projects in limestone reservoirs. This paper properly should be regarded more on the order of a progress report, inasmuch as some revision in interpretation will undoubtedly be required from time to time as additional performance data are obtained, although the satisfactory performance of the project to date leaves little doubt as to the ultimate success of gas injection in the Cedar Lake Field. As a result of the success of the project to date, a unit was formed in the southern part of the field, effective March 1, 1951, for the purpose of continuation of the gas injection program. Participants in this unit are the Mid-Continent Petroleum Co. and Stanolind Oil and Gas Co. GEOLOGY AND STRATIGRAPHY The Cedar Lake Field is located in the northern portion of the Midland Basin area as shown in Fig. 1. The southwest portion of the field lies within a playa, or dry salt lake, which covers an area of approximately eight square miles. As might be expected, it was this lake which furnished the inspiration for the name of the field. Except for its value as a salt water disposal pit, this lake has succeeded only in magnifying the difficulties in developing this portion of the field. Typical of this section of West Texas, the area in general is relatively flat and has a semi-arid climate. The localized structure which favored the accumulation of oil is an anticline with approximately 100 ft of closure. The major axis of the structure extends in a general southeast-northwest direction. Originally this structure was defined by seismograph data, which have been subsequently confirmed by development. In general, the geologic column is typical of that found throughout the basin. From the surface to depth of approximately 1,800 ft, surface sands and undifferentiated red beds. probably Triassic. are encountered. Below this point to the producing horizon, all formations are of the Permian age.

Jan 1, 1951

By J. E. Huzarevich, R. M. Leibrock, R. G. Hiltz

The various factors considered in recommending the initiation of a gas injection project in the southern portion of the Cedar Lake Field are discussed. Performance history under gas injection operations is reviewed and these data are analyzed, utilizing both the material balance method and the fractional flow and frontal advance expressions. Results of the analysis of the performance data indicate that the injected gas has contacted and affected at least 60 per cent of the reservoir and a substantial increase in ultimate recovery can reasonably be expected. By holding the reservoir pressure appreciably above the bubble point, the well productive capacities have been maintained substantially above the level predicted for primary operations. The analysis of the Cedar Lake project suggests that in certain limestone reservoirs, at least, the probable success of gas injection cannot be predicted simply from ohservation of permeability distribution throughout the pay section, as indicated by core analysis data, on either one or a number of wells. Further, the performance of this particular project fails to indicate any basis for classifying carbonate reservoirs in general as being inherently unsuited to a dispersed type gas injection program, thus indicating that each reservoir should be considered on its own merits, regardless of the composition of the reservoir rock. INTRODUCTION Early in the life of the Cedar Lake Field, an extensive data gathering program was initiated to provide an accurate record of reservoir performance characteristics. From the study of these data it was apparent that there was a critical need for supplementing the natural reservoir energy in order to maintain well productivities and obtain the maximum ultimate oil recovery. Accordingly, detailed engineering studies were made of the various methods of secondary recovery which might be applicable. As a result of these investigations, the decision was made to initiate a gas injection program of sufficient intensity to maintain reservoir pressure at approximately 600 psia, or some 274 lb above the bubble point pressure of 326 psia. A full scale dispersed type gas injection program has been in operation on leases of the Stanolind Oil and Gas Co. in the southern portion of the field for nearly five years, and sufficient performance data are now available to evaluate the benefits which have been derived from this project. It is the primary purpose of this paper to analyze the performance data for the Cedar Lake gas injection project and to point out the significance of the ohserved behavior with respect to certain hypotheses which have been advanced in recent years concerning the probable success of gas injection projects in limestone reservoirs. This paper properly should be regarded more on the order of a progress report, inasmuch as some revision in interpretation will undoubtedly be required from time to time as additional performance data are obtained, although the satisfactory performance of the project to date leaves little doubt as to the ultimate success of gas injection in the Cedar Lake Field. As a result of the success of the project to date, a unit was formed in the southern part of the field, effective March 1, 1951, for the purpose of continuation of the gas injection program. Participants in this unit are the Mid-Continent Petroleum Co. and Stanolind Oil and Gas Co. GEOLOGY AND STRATIGRAPHY The Cedar Lake Field is located in the northern portion of the Midland Basin area as shown in Fig. 1. The southwest portion of the field lies within a playa, or dry salt lake, which covers an area of approximately eight square miles. As might be expected, it was this lake which furnished the inspiration for the name of the field. Except for its value as a salt water disposal pit, this lake has succeeded only in magnifying the difficulties in developing this portion of the field. Typical of this section of West Texas, the area in general is relatively flat and has a semi-arid climate. The localized structure which favored the accumulation of oil is an anticline with approximately 100 ft of closure. The major axis of the structure extends in a general southeast-northwest direction. Originally this structure was defined by seismograph data, which have been subsequently confirmed by development. In general, the geologic column is typical of that found throughout the basin. From the surface to depth of approximately 1,800 ft, surface sands and undifferentiated red beds. probably Triassic. are encountered. Below this point to the producing horizon, all formations are of the Permian age.

Jan 1, 1951

By H. H. Stoek

A STUDY of American coal mine practice shows two of its distinctive features to be: A greater number of accidents per thousand employees than in any of the other leading coal-producing countries; a much greater percentage of the coal lost than is the case in any of the other leading coal producing countries. Although our subject is mainly concerned with the second feature, any consideration of mining methods should include safety, efficiency, and economy or costs. If in defense of our wasteful mining the argument could be offered that it was necessary on account of safety, and that it is carried out with less loss of life than is the case in other countries the plea for conservation of coal could not be so strongly urged. But when we are wasteful of both life and property, the subject merits more consideration than it has received. Some coal operators will doubtless say that the unit of accidents should be the number per million tons produced rather than per thousand employees, for by adopting this unit America probably stands in the lead rather than the lowest among the countries. However, vital statistics are not usually so expressed by other governments, by life and accident insurance companies, or in other industries, and it is merely begging the question and attempting to bolster up a bad condition to adopt a peculiar unit for the statement of our accidents. For many years the statement was made by various agencies, and was unchallenged, that "For every ton of bituminous coal mined in the United States a ton had been lost in the way of pillars left in the mines." This statement was undoubtedly true for many years, and although some progress has been made in the past decade looking to a higher extraction, and in some districts very decided progress, the loss is still great; and, although no exact data can be given, it is probable that for the United States as a whole at- least one ton is lost for every two mined.

Jan 2, 1922

By S. M. Purdy

Under certain conditions of hot rolling and air cooling from the hot-rolling temperature, bars of a high carbon (0.40 pct C) chrome-nickel austen-itic alloy were found to show magnetism even though no ferrite or martensite could be detected by microscopic or X-yay methods. The appearance of magnetism in such alloys may come from chromium impoverishment of the austenite grains near the precipitated carbide particles. SPORADICALLY, hot-rolled bars of Silchrome 10, an exhaust valve steel, have been found to be magnetic. Because of the analysis of the alloy—0.40 pct C, 18 pct Cr, 8 pct Ni, 3 pct Si —magnetism is unexpected. Preliminary investigation showed neither martensite nor ferrite to be present; only austenite and Cr23C6. Since a literature search was fruitless, a brief study was made of the appearance of magnetism in this alloy. The only basic difference between the two heats is the nitrogen content. Permeability was measured using a Severn magnetic gauge. This instrument consists of a magnet mounted on a counterbalanced arm. A set of calibrated plugs is placed in contact with one pole of the magnet. The specimen is placed close to the other pole of the magnet. If the specimen pulls the magnet away from the plug, it has a permeability greater than that marked on the plug. This technique is swift and reproducible. Previous experience has shown that the permeabilities obtained corresponded to those obtained on a permeater with a field strength of 100 oe. Specimens from both heats were annealed at temperatures between 1700 and 2300°F. One set of specimens was water cooled and another furnace cooled. All the water-quenched specimens were non-magnetic; the furnace cooled ones were magnetic as shown in Table I with no difference being observed between the two heats. Microstructural examination of the specimens showed the expected increase in carbon solubility with increasing temperature. Carbide solution was complete at 2200°F. The specimens heated to 1900°F or below showed some carbide precipitation from the hot-rolled structure. A furnace cooled specimen from a given temperature showed less carbide out of solution than the water-quenched specimen from the next temperature below; e.g., the specimen furnace cooled from 2100°F showed less carbide out of solution than the water-quenched specimen from 2000" F. These studies indicated that the appearance of magnetism was not related to the quantity of carbon in or out of solution and it was related to precipitation at temperatures below 1700" F. A set of samples annealed and water-quenched from 2100° F was aged for 4 hr at temperatures between 1000" and 1600°F; all were non-magnetic. A second set of samples, similarly annealed, was aged 1 to 24 hr at 1200°F with the results shown in Table II. None of the latter set of specimens showed magnetism until they had been aged about 8 hr. Magnetism was quite strong after aging 24 hr. X-ray diffraction studies on several of the magnetic specimens showed that the austenite had a lattice parameter of 3.58A and that the carbide was Cr23C6. Several of these samples were electrolytically digested in 10 pct HCl in ethanol, with a current density of 0.1 amp per sq cm. None of the particles in the residue were magnetic. Accidentally, one cell was run at 1 amp per sq cm; e.g., magnetic particles were found in this residue. After careful separation, the magnetic particles were mounted on a quartz fiber and their diffraction pattern determined using a 5.73-in. Debye-Sherrer camera with CrK radiation. These particles showed a fcc structure with a lattice parameter of 3.57A. Prolonged exposure, up to 16 hr, produced no other lines on the film. The following facts seemed to be established at this time: 1) Austenite was the magnetic phase. 2) Neither ferrite nor martensite could be detected. 3) Magnetization could be produced by aging at 1200°F. One explanation of these data is that the carbide precipitation impoverishes the region immediately around the carbide particle of carbon and chromium and increases the proportion of nickel. All of these serve to increase the Curie temperature of the region around the carbide particle. If the composition change is enough, the Curie temperature will rise above room temperature. If the volume of the affected region is great enough, the magnetism will become detectable. At low aging temperatures, composition changes are great enough but the overall volume of impoverishment is quite small

Jan 1, 1962

By V. H. Gottschalk, R. S. Dean

In the theoretical study of metallurgical reactions, it is necessary to make certain assumptions concerning the nature of metal-gas systems. The assumption usually made is that the reaction in such systems takes place predominantly with gas that is in "solution" and that the amount of solution follows the rules which have been developed for aqueous solutions; namely, Henry's law. The purpose of this paper is to inquire whether these assumptions are the best ones that present knowledge of gas-metal systems permits us to make. In the first part the extent to which a gas will dissolve in a metal and still follow Henry's law is considered. The conclusion is believed justified that the number of molecules of gas that can dissolve in a metal and have the system follow Henry's law must be small indeed. It is therefore improbable that the first assumption concerning the predominance of these dissolved molecules in reaction is correct. It is suggested that some improvement in the correlation of the probabilities with the assumptions made in the mass law equations would be made by the use of the dp law of Sieverts in place of Henry's law. However, the amount of gas that may be held in a metal so that it follows either Henry's or Sieverts' law is considerably outweighed in most metallurgical reactions by that held in gas-metal systems of entirely different structures and concerning which little experimental evidence is available. Some speculation concerning the nature of these is offered. The conclusion is that attention should be given to the determining of the nature of gas-metal systems and that the really fruitful application of the mass law and its connected calculations will have to await a more complete knowledge of these systems than we now possess. DISCUSSION (Paul D. Merica presiding) P. D. Merica, New York, N. Y. (written discussion).—The solubility relations of gases in metals, in so far as they are known from the pioneer work of Sieverts and others, have from the first presented certain challenging peculiarities. The authors have emphasized the significance of these characteristics and suggest that they point

Jan 1, 1933

By F. V. Hicks

THE similarity of mining practices in bituminous coal fields through-out America is due to the fact that certain fundamental conditions are encountered in all fields. The problems of labor, housing and mining are somewhat similar whether the mine is in Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wyoming or the State of Washington. Each field has had its particular problems, resulting in advantages or disadvantages over a competing field. This might take the form of a wage differential, a better natural condition more favorable to cheap production, or proximity to a market that allows freight rate advantages, etc. In any event, no matter how favorably situated, the mining companies that have been slow to recog-nize and accept the advantage of mechanization, clinging too long to the old hand methods, have found themselves unable to meet competition. Throughout the Wyoming coal fields, production methods have so changed in the last decade as to be almost unrecognizable to an old-time coal miner who has had no connection with the industry during; that period. The old contract system, with its peculiar labor relationship between employer and employee, based upon the long-established custom that the miner's working place was his castle, and that it was his privilege to carry on operations within that place largely in his own way and to his own liking, is a condition that has passed away. The present-day, 100 per cent mechanized mine bears but little resemblance to the old. A change -in system has naturally altered the old-time labor relationship. Contract labor has been almost entirely eliminated and a straight day-wage basis established, with certain classes of work calling for different rates, which places the entire personnel of the underground operating force more directly under the direction and supervision of the mine foreman and his assistants. The transition from the old order to the new has gradually done away with the system of penalties, personal- rights and privileges existing under the contract system, which were so controversial in the past that the average mine management was constantly involved in labor disputes in fields where organized labor was employed.

Jan 1, 1936

Discussion of the paper of A. P. WATT, presented at the St. Louis meeting, October, 1917, and printed in Bulletin No. 130, October, 1917, pp. 1476 to 1563. THE CHAIRMAN (0. M. _BILHARZ, Miami, Okla.).-Mr. Watt's reference to sorting or hand-picking of the ore in the lead district, which is being introduced at Mine La Motte, is especially interesting. I believe, from my former experience in the district, that hand-picking should be practised to some extent by all the companies in the Lead Belt. I know that a great many thousand tons containing only very small amounts of lead are passed through the mills, which, of course, is not to the advantage of milling machinery. That procedure may be Warranted at times of high prices, but I think that hand-picking should ordinarily be adopted to some extent: ERNEST GAYFORD, Salt Lake City, Utah.-On page 1525, speaking of the settling of slime previous to treatment either on slime tables or by flotation, Mr. Watt states: "The settling area allowed per ton of dry slime varies from 11 to 16 sq. ft.-an average for the district would be about 13 sq. ft. of settling area per ton of dry slime. This figure applies when the, discharge contains 20 per cent. solids." Mr. Ramsey, of the Dorr company, is here and I would like to ask him whether a settling area of 13 sq. ft. per ton of dry slime per 24 hr. is not considerably above the average area of Dorr settling tanks, and whether 20 per cent. solids is not above the general dilution for that' capacity? I should also like to know what is the general average on slimes of that character. E. R. RAMSEY, Denver, Colo.-An allowance of 13 sq. ft. per ton does seem rather large. I am not familiar with the settling characteristics of the dolomitic gangue, but as an average over the country, I should say that 6 or 7 sq. ft. would be nearer correct for discharge at that consistency. L. A. DELANO, Bowie Terre, Mo.-We have had an opportunity to try our tanks at the highest capacity, and-find that by thickening the slime to 30 per cent. solids we average 12 sq. ft. per ton of dry slime. ERNEST GAYFORD.-DO you find any definite ratio between the thickness of the discharge and the settling capacity of the tank? Do you consider that the tank has a larger capacity if the discharge is 3 to 1 than if it is 50 per cent. solids? L. A. DELANO.-I think it has greater capacity with the thinner discharge. It depends a good deal on the density of feed to the tanks; in our case the feed contains 2.5 per cent. solids.

Jan 1, 1918

By R. F. Mehl, B. Lustman

THE formation of intermediate phase layers in cementation processes has been subjected to extensive qualitative investigation though to relatively little quantitative study; this work has recently been fully summarized by F. N. Rhines.1 It is necessary here only to enumerate the general conclusions drawn concerning the kinetic laws governing the growth of intermediate layers and to state what is known concerning the structural changes accompanying the generation of phase layers. I. When the intermediate phase is protective in type-i.e., when its density is less than that of the base metal, so that a continuous coating is formed and maintained the isothermal growth of the phase follows a simple parabolic equation: X2 = kt [I] where X is the thickness of the alloy layer, k the reaction rate constant, and t the time. The applicability of this equation to diffusion processes is tested by plotting the square of the thickness versus time, or by plotting the thickness versus the square root of time; the resultant achievement of a straight line in such. a plot has been con¬sidered sufficient proof of the validity of this equation. Exceptions have been found where liquid phases are involved in the reaction, where the diffusion layer is cracked,2 and where thin semimetallic oxide and sulphide coatings are formed on metals.3 In the first two cases the thickness increases linearly with time, and in the latter it is a logarithmic function of time. 2. The rate of thickening varies with temperature according to the Arrhenius equation k = Ae-Q/RT [2] where k is the parabolic rate constant of Eq. I, or some other rate-descriptive function, A is the action constant, e the base of natural logarithms, Q the heat of activation, R the gas constant, and T absolute temperature. This equation has been found to be generally valid except when transformations occur during reaction in either the base metal or in the reaction layer; in such instances Eq. 2 is still applicable with different values for the constants A and Q above and below the transformation temperature. 3. All phases that are stable at the temperature at which diffusion occurs will appear in the interdiffusion of two components. In some cases certain of the phases may be too thin to be observed and identified easily. Nonequilibrium phases have never been noted in thick reaction layers; i.e., layers of a thickness that may be discerned microscopically. The relative, thickness of each phase in a diffusion layer is proportional to the concentration gradient and to the rate of diffusion in that phase .4 The reaction layers tend to have a

Jan 1, 1942

By S. J. Matas, R. F. Hehemann

The existence of two distinct forms of bainite—upper and lower bainite—in hypoeutectoid steels is confirmed by a systematic study of the structure of the product resulting from this mode of austenite decomposition. The transition between these two forms occurs at about 650° F regardless of the alloy content of the steel and their structural differences can be interpreted in terms of the kinetics of carbide precipitation from supersaturated ferrite. In the past few years, a renewed interest has been displayed in the kinetics and mechanism of the bainite reaction in steels. Several rather divergent models for the transformation mechanism have evolved from these studies,'-' however, it is difficult to evaluate these models critically on the basis of the existing experimental data. In particular, a more detailed knowledge of the structure of bainite should be helpful in providing a framework for the construction of an appropriate model. Metallographic studies7-l4 have led to a recognition of at least two distinct forms of bainite—frequently termed upper and lower bainite. Although the morphology of bainite changes with reaction tem- perature, there appears to be a relatively sharp transition between the two forms. This occurs in a narrow temperature range near 650° F. Transformation at temperatures below about 650° F results in the presence within the bainite of small plates of carbides oriented at an angle of 60 deg with respect to the direction of growth of the plate, while at higher temperatures carbides are oriented parallel to the growth direction. There is no generally accepted view regarding the significance of this structural transition. Some authors feel that carbides precipitate from austenite at all reaction temperatures1' while others claim, at least for low-temperature bainite, that carbides precipitate from supersaturated ferrite.14.15 It was recognized many years ago that the nature of the carbide in bainite depends on the reaction temperature. The carbide hase in upper bainite is unmistakenly cementite.16-19 The exact nature of the carbide in low-temperature bainite is less certain. Magnetic measurements of lower bainite reveal no cementite Curie point21'22 and dilatometric studiesz0 produce total expansions which are larger than those predicted on the basis of a ferrite-plus cementite structure. These effects have been attributed to the

Jan 1, 1962

By Marvin Lee

Kansas retained, for the eighth consecutive year, the fourth position in the list of oil-producing states. The total crude-oil production during 1934, as reported by purchasers to the State Corporation Commission, was 45,538,564 bbl. on 97 per cent tank table calculations of the purchasers, or 46,946,973 bbl. as carried on 100 per cent measurement in U.S. Government reports. The corresponding figures for 1933 are 40,008,940 and 41,236,021, respectively. The increase of production over 1933 was due to the rising demand for oil from Kansas, caused principally by three factors: the continued regulation of the producing branch of the industry by Federal and State authorities, which had the effect of reducing illegal production that has been so destructively competitive with Kansas crude and refined products; the normal decline of production in other areas; and, last and best, general increased demand of the public for petroleum products. The price level remained unchanged for the first time in oil history for so long a period. Kansas 36" gravity crude remained at $1 per barrel from September, 1933, and throughout 1934. Price stability and the confidence in the regulation of production to meet the consumer demand, which is increasing, brought greatly renewed interest in Kansas fields. Drilling activity has been largely in the western part of the state where expiration of leases, on large blocks of acreage, assembled before the depression, is forcing either action or loss of the lease investment carried for a long period. The drilling of these many blocks of acreage, previously assembled on geologic information, has caused the opening of more fields than during any previous year of Kansas oil history and is proceeding faster than anticipated a year ago. Interest grows within a successful enterprise, and the momentum caused by the successes of 1934 will continue in 1935 unless unusual conditions arise and end the apparently good opportunity for financial return. Geological exploration methods used in new field discoveries are shown in the tabulation of new discoveries (Table 3).

Jan 1, 1935

By C. H. Mathewson, H. M. Day

The constitution of the system silver-mercury has attracted the attention of many investigators during the last two decades, but since their results are for the most part in poor agreement, there is little need for a review of their individual contributions. It remained for the very careful thermal and microscopic investigation of Murphy1 in 1931 to give the constitutional diagram in its present and unquestioned form, which is shown in Fig. 1. He devised methods for taking cooling curves on alloys under high pressures and for the microscopic observation of alloys which contained liquid mercury as a structural constituent at ordinary temperatures. The compositions of the intermediate phases were confirmed and supplemented through X-ray analyses by Preston2 and Stenbeck.3 According to Murphy, at 2760 C. silver is able to dissolve 44 to 45 weight per cent of mercury, which may increase at lower temperatures to about 50 per cent. Preston concluded that the saturation boundary occurred at 46 ± 2 per cent at 100° C. From the values reported in the literature, these are the only ones that may be accepted as lying even in the right region. Preparation of Alloys The silver used in the present investigation was supplied by the United States Metals Refining Co. through the courtesy of the Committee on Industrial Uses of Silver and, since a complete spectrographic and chemical analysis was furnished, no attempt was made to purify it or to further establish the impurities present. The analyses reported by the company are shown in Table 1. Milligan4 has found that the magnesium content is probably less than 0.0005 per cent.

Jan 1, 1938

By H. M. Day, C. H. Mathewson

The constitution of the system silver-mercury has attracted the attention of many investigators during the last two decades, but since their results are for the most part in poor agreement, there is little need for a review of their individual contributions. It remained for the very careful thermal and microscopic investigation of Murphy1 in 1931 to give the constitutional diagram in its present and unquestioned form, which is shown in Fig. 1. He devised methods for taking cooling curves on alloys under high pressures and for the microscopic observation of alloys which contained liquid mercury as a structural constituent at ordinary temperatures. The compositions of the intermediate phases were confirmed and supplemented through X-ray analyses by Preston2 and Stenbeck.3 According to Murphy, at 2760 C. silver is able to dissolve 44 to 45 weight per cent of mercury, which may increase at lower temperatures to about 50 per cent. Preston concluded that the saturation boundary occurred at 46 ± 2 per cent at 100° C. From the values reported in the literature, these are the only ones that may be accepted as lying even in the right region. Preparation of Alloys The silver used in the present investigation was supplied by the United States Metals Refining Co. through the courtesy of the Committee on Industrial Uses of Silver and, since a complete spectrographic and chemical analysis was furnished, no attempt was made to purify it or to further establish the impurities present. The analyses reported by the company are shown in Table 1. Milligan4 has found that the magnesium content is probably less than 0.0005 per cent.

Jan 1, 1938

By E. W. McAllister

THE decision of the California Oil Umpire's1 office to accept well potentials established from subsurface-pressure data has brought to the attention of many operators for the first time the application of such data to production problems. This paper reviews the development and application of subsurface-pressure data in Kettleman Hills, where these data have been used in production work since 1932. The Kettleman Hills field was discovered in October 1928. The first subsurface-pressure surveys were made early in 1932 and by the middle of 1933 the two major operators in the field were making routine pressure runs in their respective wells. Shortly thereafter, these companies agreed to exchange pressure data, and later a third company entered into the agreement. This made it possible to analyze the effects upon the reservoir pressure of past production practices, which are discussed in the latter part of the report. It is interesting that many of the applications of subsurface-pressure data discussed herein were anticipated by C. L. Clarks and C. B. Kimberlin‡ in a reports dated March 1933. PRODUCTIVITY INDEX In the majority of individual well problems involving the use of subsurface pressure data, it is necessary to use a factor known as the "productivity index," which indicates the ability of a well to produce and represents the number of barrels of oil or oil and water per day that will enter the well bore for each pound per square inch pressure drop made opposite the producing interval of the well. The productivity index may be determined from pressure and production data for one or more rates of flow and a static or shut-in pressure survey or from production and pressure data for two or more rates of flow. Productivity indices may be based upon either net oil or total fluid production. All indices referred to in this report are based upon net oil. The value of the productivity index for Kettleman Hills wells decreases generally with time and it is not uncommon for the index to vary in value at any specific time for various rates of flow. The decline of the productivity index may be attributed partly to the loss of reservoir pressure. As. the reservoir pressure decreases, gas originally in solution is released from the oil, congesting the flow of fluids through the formation and increasing the viscosity and surface tension of the oil; thus the flow resistance of the fluids through the formation is increased, resulting in a decrease of the productivity index. For convenient reference, the productivity indices for each well are plotted against time and a curve is drawn through the points showing the trend of the average index value. Plotted on Fig. I are index values for five

Jan 1, 1941