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By Arturo M. Morales

INTRODUCTION Manganese carbonates are nodulized by Cia. Mineral Autlan, located in Ongongo in the state of Hidalgo in Mexico. This kiln is fed minus 15 mm material at the rate of 1870 tpd. About 920 tpd is nodulized into a commercial product having a size range of 15 mm to 12 mm. The kiln also produces about 320 tpd of minus 12 mm fines and 40 tpd of chimney dust. Currently, the minus 12 mm fines are being recirculated to the kiln and the chimney dust is not being utilized. It has been found that there exists a market for manganese to be used as feed to the ferromanganese and silicomanganese furnaces. However, a coarse, lumpy feed can only be used in these furnaces. Accordingly, it has been proposed to screen the fines at 6 mm and agglomerate the minus 6 mm fraction along with the chimney dust and suitable binders. This paper presents the results of a feasibility study and test work aimed at producing an acceptable agglomerated product from the kiln fines for use in the ferromanganese and silicomanganese furnaces. Since the agglomerated product will have to be handled and loaded into trucks in the kiln area and transported over long distances, a minimum strength of 200 N is expected to be necessary. They should also have enough initial strength to be stockpiled and result in a minimum of breakage. A third important requirement is that the agglomerates should be resistant to disintegration during combustion. The recirculating fines were to be agglomerated in their original state, if possible, that is, without grinding. This eliminated the possibility of pelletizing as an agglomeration method. Based on a few laboratory trials, the briquetting method seemed most attractive, and a test program was initiated to explore the briquetting process.

Jan 1, 1977

By Thomas Watson

Introduction THE occurrence of zircon in pegmatites of acidic composition is recorded by many observers both in this country and abroad, and they form one of the most important geologic modes of occurrence of the mineral.' As is well known, commercially the most important American locality for zircon is near Zirconia in Henderson County, North Carolina, where many tons of the mineral have been obtained from a kaolinized pegmatite dike 100 ft. wide and traced for 1 ½ miles along the direction of strike N. 50° E. Zircon may be developed in pegmatites as inclusions in the principal rock-forming minerals, chiefly quartz and feldspar, and as a separate megascopic constituent in the form of grains and crystals not exceeding, as a rule, 2 in. in size, and usually smaller. In the Henderson County, North Carolina, pegmatite, zircon occurs in prismatic crystals with pyramidal terminations measuring up to 30 mm. in diameter, associated chiefly with the feldspar. In some of the apatite veins of Canada, which are closely allied to pegmatite dikes, zircon is reported in crystals upward of 6 in. in length and 2 in. 'and more in thickness. Zircon in large masses occurs in Virginia in the well-known pegmatites near Amelia in Amelia County, and near Gouldin in Hanover County. Both localities are in the middle eastern portion of the Piedmont Plateau province, and are separated by a distance of about 40 miles in a northeast-southwest direction. The rocks of both areas, including the pegmatite bodies, are in an advanced stage of decay, and, the hard and moderately fresh rocks are concealed beneath a cover of variable thickness of rock decay derived by the normal processes of weathering. Exposures, there-

Jan 7, 1916

The following is an incomplete list of members and guests who called at Institute headquarters during the period Sept. 10, 19188 to Oct. 10, 1918. Thomas J. Adams, Rahway, N. J. A. N. Mackay, London, England. Henry M. Ami, Washington, D. C. A. W. MacNichol, San Francisco, Cal. Chester Atkinson, Peru, South America. Ernest Marquardt, Casper, Wyo. Bennett R. Bates, Berkeley, Cal. Lieut. S. A. Mewhirter, Denver, Colo. Robert S. Botsford, Petrograd, Russia. William A. Nelson, Nashville, Tenn. Juan Felix Brandes, Santa Barbara, Cal. Robert W. Olinger, Bahia, Brazil, So. G. A. Collins, Seattle, Wash. Amer. C. V. Corless, Coniston, Ont., Canada. G. Preumont, La Paz, Bolivia, So. Amer. F. T. Eddingfield, Washington, D. C. William H. Rettie, Yonkers, N. Y. C. Mason Farnham, Barre Plains, Mass. . Julius Segall, Minneapolis, Minn. F. N. Flynn, Trail, B. C., Canada. Robert Y. Seip, Franklin, N. J. Duncan D. Forbes, Humboldt, Ariz. H. M. Schleicher, Boston, Mass. Alexandre Gouvy, Paris, France. Chester Steinem, Ft. Monroe, Va. Henry G. Granger, Cartagena, Colombia, A. L. Sweetser, Pittsburgh, Pa. So. Amer. . H: E. Treichler, Creighton Mine, Ont., E. Harms, El Paso, Tex. Canada. Alfred G. Heggem, Tulsa, Okla. Frank A. W. Tullock, Yumbo, Colombia, H. B. Henegar, Mascot Tenn. So. Amer. A. M. Kivari, Denver, Edward I. Williams, Ft. Monroe, Va. T. M. Kniffin, Brookline, Mass. Alfred W. G. Wilson, Ottawa, Canada. Charles Lehman, London, England. Donald H. McLaughlin, Camp Meade,Md. C. E. Addams, who recently resigned as general manager for the Arizona Hercules Copper Co., has leased the Ray silver-lead property three miles from Ray, Ariz. Bennett R. Bates has resigned his position as general superintendent of the Cubo Mining & Milling Co., in order that he may take the examination for an officer of engineers.

Jan 11, 1918

By Horace Pops

ThE shape of the primary solid-solubility limits in copper-rich Cu-Si-Zn alloys has been discussed recently1 in terms of the atomic size effects and the electron concentration, e/a. Although these limits are parallel to lines of constant e/a near the Cu-Zn binary system, they deviate and become sharply restricted near the Cu-Si binary system. Hence, it appears that the primary solid solutions with higher silicon contents are restricted by the presence of the intermediate phases, [, X, and p, which follow them in the ternary system. owever, a similar restriction in solid solubility might also result from an interaction in the copper matrix between silicon and zinc. Evidence for such possible interactions has been observed, for example, in the Al-Mg-Si systion.A where a contraction of lattice spacings in the ternary solid solution appears to correspond to an electrochemical interaction between the two solute elements, magnesium and silicon. The observed contraction is associated with restricted solid solubility. It was also shown1 that the extent of the primary solid solubility did not follow the trends predicted by the lattice-distortion oncept." This again suggested that the solubility limits are strongly affected by the stability of the intermediate phases, I, 1, and X . In order to test the above hypotheses, lattice-parameter measurements of the fcc @-phase alloys were determined within the ternary system at a constant electron concentration (e/a = 1.30) and also at a constant zinc content. Alloys of predetermined composition were prepared from high-purity metals and melted and cast under reduced pressures of helium in quartz capsules. Since the weight losses were very slight and did not exceed one part in 2000, the nominal compositions listed in Table I were accepted without chemical analyses. The ingots were homogenized

Jan 1, 1964

The official Institute reports for the year 1929 were distributed in pamphlet form at the Annual Meeting, February, 1930, and were later included in Section 2 of Mining and Metallurgy, June, 1930, and thus made available to the entire membership. Membership In its report the Admissions Committee set forth the changes in membership during 1929, as follows: Total membership, Jan. 1, 1928, 8582; elected and placed on rolls in 1929, including 59 reinstatements, 509; loss by resignations in 1929, 88; loss by death in 1929, 110; loss by suspension in 1929, 37; membership at end of year not including Student Associates, 8856. Distribution of membership: Honorary Members, 16; Members, 6590; Junior Members, 38; Associates, 1041; Junior Associates, 1033; Rocky Mountain, 138; total membership, Jan. 1, 1930, 8856; Student Associates, 150; total including student associates, 9006. Treasurer's Annual Report, Year of 1929 Statement of Receipts For the year ended December 31, 1929 Dues: Arrears............................................ $ 3,501.75 Current............................................ 97,257.12 New Members...................................... 5,721.50 Advance........................................... 1,970.79 $108,451.16 Initiation Fees.................................................. 7,436.00 Magazine Receipts: Advertising Gross Receipts........................... $40,610.81 Magazine Sales..................................... 3,799.84 44,410.65 Sale of Transactions Current........................... $ 2,985. 15 Sale of Special Editions Current........................ 5,147.82 Sale of Back Transactions and Special Editions........... 4,186.93 Sale of Year Book..................................... 65.50 Sale of Authors' Reprints.............................. 2,585.40 Sale of Pins and Fobs.................................. 14.73 Sale of Technical Publications.......................... 1,451.55 Sale of Bindings...................................... 3,949.13 20,376.21 Net Interest Received: On Bank Balance and Temporary Investments......... $ 2,595.04 On Lie Membership Fund........................... 3,223.43 On James Douglas Library Fund...................... 5,425.61 On General Reserve Fund............................ 2,015.58 13,259.66 Miscellaneous Receipts........................................... 335.80 Total Receipts................................................ $194,269.48

Jan 1, 1930

A price list of publications of the Geological Survey, complete to May, 1931, and with separate monthly notices of publications to (late, will be sent upon application to The Director, United States Geological Survey, Washington, D. C. A leaflet is issued each month listing new publications; it will be sent upon application to the Director, as well as Circulars containing information about topographic maps. Book publications of the Survey include (1) Annual Reports, (2) Monographs, (3) Professional Papers, (4) Bulletins, (5) Water Supply Papers, (6) chapters and volumes of Mineral Resources of the United States, (7) Folios of the Geologic Atlas of the United States and the World Atlas of Commercial Geology, (8) Topographic Folios and Topographic Maps that bear descriptive texts. Monographs, Folios of the Geologic Atlas of the United States and the World Atlas of Commercial Geology, and Topographic Folios and Topographic Maps, are not distributed free. A publication of one of the other classes can be distributed free only until the end of the fiscal year following that in which it was issued. No person can obtain more than one free copy of the same publication, and general requests for free publications, such as all of any series or all on any subject, can not be granted. In ordering publications one is requested to give both the series designation, as Bulletin 738 or Professional Paper 122, and the title. Give full address, plainly written, including county. Prepayment is required and may he made by postal, or express money order payable to the official charged with the sale of the publications. requested, as indicated in the discussion of each classification following; or it may be made in cash-exact amount -at sender's risk. Postage stamps are not accepted in payment for publications.

Jan 1, 1933

By William Wraith

At the Washoe smelter, Anaconda, Mont., the blister-copper from the converters is transferred, by means of a crane, to a re-fining-furnace, in which it is brought to proper pitch by means of air and poles. From this furnace the refined copper, containing gold and silver, is poured into cast-iron molds placed on a platform-convejor, giving an anode 36.75 in. long, 35 in. wide, and 2 1/16 in. thick. By reason of a disagreement between the smelter and the refinery, in reference to the silver-content of the anodes, it becanle necessary to investigate the methods of sampling used. 11. SMelter Method of SampliNg. At the smelter the sampling is done by " shotting " into water a small portion of the molten stream of copper as it flows from the furnace, by " batting " the stream'with a wooden paddle. The first sample is taken 30 min. after the pouring i.: started, three other samples being taken at 1-hr. interrals, each sample Weighing from 4 to 6 oz. The samples are dried, esamined for particles of burnt wood, screened on a 10-mesh screen of NO. 8 wire to remove the fines, the oversize then screened on a 4-mesh screen of No. 20 wire to remore the coarse, the undersize of this screen being taken as the sample. The four portions thus obtained are thoroughly mixed and split in half by passing over a 16-slot splitting-device, slots being 0.5 in. wide. One-half of the sample is sent to the laboratory for analysis and one-half kept as a duplicate. 111. Refinery Method of Sampling. The method used at the refinery and also used in this in1-estiyation is the one developed by Dr. Edmarcl Keller, of

Jan 1, 1911

By William Kranz

THE increased service demands on some of the products of the National Malleable Castings Co. prompted it about eight years ago to investigate the electric furnace, both in America and in Europe. The process bad' already been sufficiently developed in Europe to lead us to believe that the electric furnace would most nearly meet our requirements. After further investigation and consultation with the highest authorities on the subject, we decided upon the Heroult type as the simplest and most practicable. In 1910, we built a furnace of this type, of 300 lb. capacity, for experimental purposes, and although it was crudely constructed the quality of the material we were able to make justified the installation of a 6-ton Heroult furnace in 1912. This furnace has three electrodes, 17 in. in diameter, uses three-phase, 60-cycle current, and is equipped with Thury regulators, which give us good regulation and a uniform load on the line even when cold melting. The power factor of the furnace is 94 per cent. Since July, 1912, the furnace has been in continuous operation, producing up to the present time, over 20,000 tons of both carbon and alloy steels of varying analyses and of exceptional quality. Both cold-and hot-metal charges have been used, with a power consumption of about 150 kw-hr. per ton in the case of hot-metal charges and from 500 to 600 kw-hr. per ton in the case of cold charges. The electric energy consumed varies according to the final analysis of the steel and the amount of refining required. Too much cannot be said about the refining possibilities of the electric furnace, for no other method of steel manufacture can compete with the electric in this respect.

Jan 5, 1915

(Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons introduced by members.) Mining Engineer. Graduate of Colorado School of Mines, 1912, experienced in coal, lead manganese and limestone mining, wishes execu¬tive position. A-2146. Graduate Mining Engineer.-Discharged, reserve officer, age 32, single, 7 years' experience holding responsible executive positions, in iron, copper, and talc mining. Well recommended. A-4913. Mine Manager, Superintendent or Engineer. Age 41, graduate of Michigan College of Mines; 20 years' experience in responsible positions in connection with large operations; in iron, copper, pyrites, lead and zinc mines; successful in finding and developing orebodies, increasing production, and reducing costs. Desires a position with a future. A-4081. Mining Engineer.-Graduate from Polytechnicum, Stockholm; 14 years' practical experience in Sweden, United States, Belgium, and Spain, in iron-ore development, mining, and milling; thorough knowledge of English, French and Spanish; desires position as superintendent or assistant manager. Good references; member; now in Sweden. A-4914. Research Engineer. Now in Chile on the erection of a 50-ton mill with modern machinery for the treatment of Chilean nitrate. Desires connection from the first of next year; with firm operating in South or Central America. A-4915. Metallurgical Engineer. Junior member, age 26, single, graduate Columbia School of Mines; recently discharged as lieutenant in the heavy artillery. A-4916. General Superintendent. Technical graduate, age 35, desires position over a group of four or five mines or as assistant general superintendent for a large. company. Has had experience in superintending mines, construction work, opening new and abandoned mines, safety and effi-ciency engineering and handling organized labor. At present employed by a coal company in the middle West. A-4917.

Jan 11, 1919

By Arthur S. Dwight

The profeseional career of Thomas Septimus Austin, who died at El Paso, Tex., Aug. 23, 1906, was contemporaneous with the growth of the silver-lead smelting-industry of the Far West, to which his talents and zeal contributed in no small degree. Born at Stratford, Conn., Dec. 7, 1853, he was the seventh son in a family of thirteen. His parents were well-to-do; and he received a thorough preliminary training at the Hopkins Grammar School, New Haven, Colin., passing thence to the Columbia School of Mines, in New York, where he was graduated in 1876. His first professional work was that of analytical chemist with a Cuban sugar company. In this position he spent a year, and, whatever else of benefit he may have acquired during that year in Cuba, he gained a facility of speech in the Spanish language which was of inestimable value in his subsequent work in Mexico and the southwestern United States. In 1877, he went to the Rocky Mountains, and, under the firm name of Murphy & Austin, opened an assay-ofice in Lead-ville, Colo., which was just then coming into public notice as a rich silver-lead camp. The next year, however, he entered the service of the Germania Smelting & Refining Co. at Salt Lake City, Utah, where he remained until 1882, first as assayer and chemist, and later as Assistant Superintendent. The Germa-nia bears the honorable distinction of being one of the first of the large " custom" lead-smelters erected in the West. Its founders may be called the pioneers of the modern lead-smeltr ing practice, and the Germania served, to a large extent, as a model for the many plants that sprang into existence during the next few years in Utah, southern Idaho, Colorado and other lead-producing districts. The formulation, for the first

Jan 1, 1908

By J. W. Gilbert

DuriNG the sinking of the Needmore shaft, on one of the leases of the Eagle-Picher Mining and Smelting Co north of Webb City, Missouri, a very strong flow of water was encountered at a depth of 140 ft. Because OF the speed at which the water rose in the shaft after pumping was discontinued, and in order to speed up sinking operations, a new type of shaft bar and drilling equiprnent was devised, which saved approximately one hour on each shift This bar is made of an ordinary scren type shaft bar with a common drill arm attached to the bar by clamps and welded Into place To this drill arm is attached an ordinary arm clamp with set collar below Through this clamp is attached another drill bar of ordinary length so constructed that it slides back and forth and rotates around the perimeter of the shaft on the set collar A tripod saddle with legs removed is welded to the rotating bar, which enables the drill operator to drill holes at any angle completely around the shaft and also, after an arm extension, permits the drilling of the corner holes without removal of the rig from the saddle Upon completion of the drilling of a shaft round, all that is necessary for the complete removal of the drill machine and shaft bar is to engage the hoist hook through a. ¾-in. eye provided for that purpose on top of the bar and disconnect the air and water lines from the machine, thereby making it possible to pull the whole apparatus out in one piece. At no time is it necessary to remove the machine from the saddle Screw jacks are installed on the vertical bar to further ensure the rigidity of the shaft and bar arm. The accompanying sketch illustrates the details and method of setting up.

Jan 1, 1946

By George A. Packard

The experiments here described were made under my supervision while temporarily acting as head of the Department of Metallurgy at the Missouri School of Mines, at Rolla. The work was done by Messrs. W. E. Brown, W. C. Richards, and F. L. L. Wilson, and the description of the results forms a portion of a thesis presented for the degree of Bachelor of Science. These results are submitted because I have seen no description of the application of pot-roasting to the treatment of a copper-concentrate. This work followed that already described in the discussion of the Lime-Roasting of a Galena-Concentrate,' and was similarly occasioned by the lack of a furnace of the reverberatory type in which the copper-concentrates could be smelted. The material for the tests was a mixture of three lots available. The first consisted of 8-mm. ,jig-concentrates and the second of 0.5-mm. table-concentrates, from the San Juan district, Colo. Both contained pyrite, chalcopyrite, and galena. The third was a lot of copper-ore, found in the laboratory, which had been crushed through 8-mm. screen, and had at some previous time, before the laboratory roasting-furnace was torn down, received a partial roasting. The analyses of these ores are given in Table I. In order to determine the applicability of pot-roasting as to each lot of ore, and the effect of varying proportions of lime, six preliminary tests were made in a " size N " Battersea crucible, 9 in. high by 6 in. in diameter at top, with a 5/8-in. hole bored through the bottom. The crucible was set in the upturned elbow of a 2-in. pipe, the joint being luted with clay; and air was obtained from a receiver supplied by a compressor. The

Jan 1, 1908

By E. W. Henderson

Development work in the state of Utah in 1935 consisted of additional work done on wildcat tests started in previous years and on a number of new wildcat tests started during the year. No effort was made to extend areas or to discover deeper productive horizons in proven fields. Principal areas of development were in Daggett County, northeastern Utah; Grand and Emery counties, east-central Utah; and in Washington County, southwestern Utah. Daggett County Clay Basin.—The Mountain Fuel Supply Co. deepened Murphy No. 2, sec. 21, T.3N., R.24E., from 6030 to 6790 ft. for a test of the Sundance formation. Two sandstone members at 6520 to 6644 ft. and 6737 to 6790 ft. contained water. The hole was plugged back to 5860 ft. and left as a future gas supply for the Salt Lake City-Ogden pipe line. The failure of the Sundance formation to produce in this test, in view of the recent Sundance discoveries in Colorado arid Wyoming, was disappointing Emery County Last Chance.—-Thc wildcat test of the Rainsey Petroleum Corporn-tion, Well No. 1-X, sec. 18, T.26S., R.7E., completed plugging back from total depth of 3168 ft. to 2771 ft. and was shut in as a gas well. A gas sand at 2724 to 2771 ft. produced approximately 21 million cubic fert. A deep test of the structure will be started upon approval of a wit plan of development. Grand County Cisco.—-The wildcat test of the Utah Southern Oil Co., sec. 33, T.22S., R.22E., of which the total depth was 1720 ft. on Dec. 31, 1935, is the most interesting operation ill the state. Location of the test was deter-

Jan 1, 1936

By Arthur C. Spencer

In extension of a suggestion already made to account for certain features observed in the Juneau gold-belt in southeastern Alaska,' it is the object of the present paper to indicate in detail certain conditions in which deformation of rocks under their own weight might lead to the production of fractures in which veins could be deposited. A direct, uniformly-distributed pressure of sufficient intensity, applied to an elastic brittle mass offering strung resistance to deformation, produces rupture. In a material of ideal properties the surfaces of rupture under such pressure would be shearing planes inclined at 45' to the line of force, unless there be preliminary deformation, in which case this angle would be greater than 45. This general conclusion, resting upon analytical mechanics, is completely supported by the results obtained by DaubrBe2 in experiments upon the deformation of wax and resin prisms under compression. Let us then first consider one of Daubree's diagrams. In the case illustrated in Fig. 1, four sets of fractures in two approximately right-angled pairs (that is to say, in conjugate sets) were produced by endwise compression of a square cross-sectioned prism. These fractures cut the axis of compression at approximately equal angles, not varying greatly from 45o. The location of the four sets of fractures is obviously determined by the shape of the prism, since the material in each corner acts in a way as a buttress, permitting the bulging to take place most readily on the sides. By limiting the directions in which bulging may take place, results of a more simple nature could be obtained. Take, for instance, a square prism, and place it between two fixed and

Jan 1, 1906

By Robert M. Dreyer

Although lateritic ore deposits are relatively flat-lying, surficial ore bodies, the evaluation of lateritic bauxite and nickel deposits is among the most difficult problems confronting an economic geologist. Laterite is a soil formed under tropical conditions resulting in the concentration, within the soil zone, of certain trivalent metals-principally iron and aluminum, but also, locally, nickel and manganese. The soil zone is divided into two parts: (a) the true soil or lateritic zone and (b) the zone of partially altered bed rock or saprolite. Whereas bauxite generally is confined to the lateritic zone, some nickel deposits occur in both the laterite and saprolite zones. The evaluation of bauxite and lateritic nickel deposits thus has both similarities and differences. These ores have been formed by supergene, soil-forming solutions moving downward through zones of widely varying permeability within the weathering rock. Because the permeability varies widely, both vertically and laterally, the extent of weathering may vary greatly within short distances. Because the weathering process varies widely, the degree of metal concentration may also vary widely. It is not at all uncommon for a laterite to change, within a few centimeters, from a virtually valueless rock to a high grade ore. Moreover, the depth of weathering, and hence the depth and form of the ore profile, vary greatly. Obviously, for this type of deposit, a few grab samples or a few drill holes are virtually worthless. The evaluation of such a deposit requires a sophisticated statistical study based on thousands of carefully selected samples. As a rule of thumb, the cost of evaluating a large bauxite or lateritic nickel deposit will be about one cent per ton of ore in the ground. Thus, the cost of evaluating a several hundred million ton deposit may be considerable.

Jan 8, 1978

By Chester Washburne

AT present it is impossible to estimate closely the amount of oil obtainable from a given area of land. However, after the completion of a few properly distributed prospect wells, one can calculate the approximate yield of the sands penetrated, with a probable error of say 50 per cent. Even rough predictions of this kind are of value in, large operations. Without wells upon it, one can never be absolutely certain that an area will produce any oil whatever, and one can only indulge in wild guesses of the probable productive area, before the geological structure has been carefully contoured and the top of the basal water plotted on a map. This requires wells. At times it is desirable to form an idea of the possible yield of oil in advance of drilling, as in cases where the price asked for undeveloped land seems too high, but where the probability of finding oil is furnished by neighboring development, supported by the geology. In such cases the most one can do is to make an estimate of possible maximum yield, which may of course far exceed results, and which is of use mainly in the prevention of excessive initial investment. The method is very significant in a general way, as in regions like the Bighorn Basin, Wyoming, where the productive sands in the Cretaceous shale are so few and so thin and fine that they cannot develop very great production, although the high quality of the oil probably will counterbalance this defect sufficiently to give local profit in favorable areas. Reservoir Capacity of Sands.-The porosity of a stratum is the measure of its maximum reservoir capacity for liquids and gases. The porosity may be determined experimentally and must be used in connection with the total volume of the sand.

Jan 2, 1915

By C. V. Millikan

Production engineering has continued its rapid progress during the past year. Many engineering efficiencies long practiced in other industries are being rapidly accepted by the oil industry, and every branch of development and production work is undergoing study that is reducing the time and hazard in the drilling of wells even for greater depths, is securing better service from equipment, and is obtaining greater ultimate recovery from the reservoirs. Deviation of Drill Holes Deviation of drill holes probably has attracted greater and wider study than any other subject. Until about one year ago it had been given little attention. Some California operators knew the common magnitude of deviation, but Mid-Continent operators hesitated to believe that holes could be drilled so crooked. The great emphasis and publicity given to the seriousness of the problem resulted in the design of many instruments to record the deviation by chart or photograph. Instruments which would give the direction as well as deviation were not generally favored because of the grave fears of the legal complications which might result if the bottom of a producing well should prove to be on a neighboring lease. With all the instruments available for determining deviation, the use of etching on a glass bottle by hydrofluoric acid is still the most common method employed. The beneficial result of this earnest effort to drill straighter holes is proved by a comparison of deviation of wells completed recently with those completed over a year ago. The time of this change is arbitrarily taken as Jan. 1, 1929, as at that time the operators were aware of the deviation which usually occurred, and most of them were making some effort to reduce it. Table I shows averages of wells completed by several companies. Data on a few wells outside the greater Seminole area are

Jan 1, 1930

By O. K. Riegger, L. H. Van Vlack

The median angle of relatively few two-dimensional observations provides a satisfactory value for dihedral angle determinations. Those data that contain bimodal or non-equilibriated dihedral angle distributions are readily detected. THIS paper is concerned with a statistical simplification for determining dihedral angles in solids. Microstructures are partially controlled by relative energies of interphase boundaries and grain boundaries. smith1 has shown rather conclusively that such boundaries may be equilibrated to give a vectorial balance at grain and phase edges. Thus if an accurate measurement is made of the dihedral angle associated with grain and phase edges, an accurate calculation of the relative energies may also be made. The accurate measurement is difficult because the dihedral angle involves two planes in three dimensions, and only a two-dimensional cut through the dihedral angle is usually observed. Such a two-dimensional cut is statistically random provided there is no preselection or orientation. Harker and parker2 have shown that the mode of the frequency distribution of observed angles is within 5 deg of the true angle if the true dihedral angle is 120 deg. smith1 had calculations made to show that the same generalization could apply to dihedral angles of 30, 60, 90, and 150 deg. This procedure of requiring the determination of the statistical mode is time consuming because experience has shown that more than 200 angle observations are necessary before the mode is clearly indicated. It is possible to determine the dihedral angle with equal accuracy with only 25 angle observations if the median angle is used in place of the mode angle. Use is made of Harker and parker's2 basic equation tan =2 sin x cos

Jan 1, 1961

By L. Dudley Stamp

On April 1, 1937, Burma, formerly a province of the Indian Empire, was formally separated from India and became an independent unit of the British Commonwealth. In future, therefore, statistics of oil production in India will exclude Burma and those for Burma will be separately published. The last few years have been marked by noteworthy, almost spectacular, developments in the oil fields of Burma and the Punjab. In Burma these developments have been the proving of unexpected extensions of the existing fields and not the discovery of entirely new fields. The new extensions are important not only to Burma in giving a new lease of life to her fields, but also in general as stressing some interesting geological aspects hitherto neglected. Production The production of crude oil in Imperial gallons has been: Burma India 1934 254,760,070 67,265,210 1935 251,338,974 . 71,323,362 1936 265,656,393 69,241,504 1937 (eat.) 270,000,000 70,000,000 The Chindwin Fields.—The small field at Indaw continues to produce steadily about 3,000,000 gal. a year, but no really deep test has yet been successfully carried out and resources are thus not yet fully known. The remote location of the field, inaccessible except by river and situated 22 miles from the Chindwin 270 miles up that river from its junction with the Irrawaddy, has not encouraged active exploitation. The field is worked exclusively by the Indo-Burma Petroleum Co., Ltd. (I.B.P.), using now an automatic gas-lift system, and the company formerly refined the oil at a small refinery at Pantha on the river near by. The chief market was for kerosene in upper Burma. The refinery has now been closed. The oil is stored on the field during the low-water season

Jan 1, 1938

By G. S. Hume

ACTIVE drilling operations for oil were carried on during the summer of 1923 in various parts of, western Canada, particularly in Alberta. During the early part of the summer, interest centered in southern Alberta, in the Coutts area, just north of the producing Kevin-Sunburst field of Montana; but on Nov. 14 a strike of oil by British Petroleums Ltd. at its well near Wainwright, 120 mi. east of Edmonton, diverted public attention to a new field. According to present estimates, this well has a possible production of from 60 to 100 bbl. a day; the oil is 15° Be. with an asphaltic base and is obtained from a sand at the depth of 2019-2036 ft. The oil stands at 1700 ft. in the casing and there is sufficient gas pressure to cause it to flow when the well is opened. The oil horizon is in a sandstone in rocks of Colorado age. It is known that there is a terrace structure of which the western edge extends in a northwesterly direction from the vicinity of Hardisty to Viking, where it probably swings more to the north. At Viking a small dome-like structure on this terrace gives rise to an important gas field. Wainwright lies directly northeast of Hardisty. The exact structure in the Wainwright field is unknown. At Fabyan, 6 mi. northwest of Wainwright, the Imperial Oil Co.1 last year brought 1n a large gas well estimated at 14,000,000 cu. ft.; the escaping gas sprayed a small amount of heavy black oil over the derrick. The gas was obtained at a depth of 2727 ft., deeper drilling encountering a water sand. The results of drilling in the Wainwright field are encouraging for future development.

Jan 3, 1924