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By C. Richard Tinsley

INTRODUCTION Project financing has been defined by various authors in this book. It is founded on reliance upon the project's own future cash flows and secondarily on the collateral value of the asset base developed. It is chiefly provided by the banking community who, after an assessment of the risks involved (See Chapter 9) analyse the company's presentation (See Chapter 10) in order to structure a financing package often at a leverage of up to 80% debt. This paper describes the various support and structuring techniques used to delimit and abate the risk components perceived from the banks' experience on project development especially for the period before cash flow is generated (pre completion). ADVANTAGES The advantages of project financing extend beyond the offloading of risks to banks. Among the advantages are the following: 1. Longer loan maturity than conventional, unsecured financing; 2. Loan disbursement and repayment tailored to specific mine; 3. Ability of a joint venture without a "track record" to raise financing; 4. Obtain financing where further direct borrowing (corporate credit) limited by existing indentures; 5. Possibility of arranging finance off-balance sheets; 6. Leverage return on equity; 7. Obtain tax savings with certain project financing structures; and 8. Obtain flexible loan repayment conditions. It can also be said that from the point of view of the company, project financing has certain disadvantages which can be summarised as follows: 1. Perceived higher cost (risk premium) compared with straight corporate credit; 2. More documentation; and 3. Need to negotiate risk-sharing aspects. The main attraction of project financing is the ability to pass certain risks on to the lenders within a flexibly funded transaction. (For a more detailed description of the specific risks see the author's paper at the beginning of Chapter 9. The same risk system is followed here.) The typical project financing has corporate support prior to completion and will usually carefully control the resultant cashflow after completion to ensure the bank does not unnecessarily assume further risks of an equity nature. WITHIN THE COMPANY'S CONTROL Operating Risk This is broken into three interrelated segments for ease of description. Technical Component: This must be specifically addressed if new technology or unproven adaptations are to be used. The banks will have scrutinized the sampling and bulk testing work, perhaps grilling the geological, mineral processing, metallurgical, and mining engineering staff or consultants directly. A number of supports are available such as: TECHNOLOGY GUARANTEE: Either the company itself or the process developer will guarantee that the technology will work for a period of, say, six months to two years after startup. If not, then financial penalties will apply although these are rarely sufficient to repay the loan. Many process developers are weak financially and may have little substance to back such a guarantee.

Jan 1, 1985

ASIDE from the John Fritz Medal, in which the Institute participates through its representation on the John Fritz Medal Board, the Institute itself has four awards it may make annually, as follows : the Robert W. Hunt Medal and Prize, the J. E. Johnson, Jr., Award, the James Douglas Medal, and the William Lawrence Saunders Medal. ROBERT W. HUNT MEDAL AND PRIZE The partners of Robert W. Hunt established a fund which was presented to the Institute at a fitting ceremony on May 27, 1920, to establish an annual medal and a sum of money to be awarded under the following rules 1. The award shall consist of two prizes: first of a gold medal, second of a sum of money; a certificate to accompany each prize, The money prize shall not be awarded to a member over 40 years of age, but under unusual circumstances, both prizes may be allotted to one person provided that he is not over 40 years of age. In general it will be understood that the Committee shall award the money prize to the younger men, rather than the medal. 2. The awards shall be made not oftener than once a year to that person or persons contributing to the Institute the best original paper or papers on iron and steel. The scope of the term "iron and steel" shall be determined by the sub-committee considering the awards. In general, papers dealing with the practical side of the subject have preference over those dealing with the theoretical side in recognition of the fact that Captain Hunt's main contributions to the industry have been in the improvement of production and quality of material. 3. A sub-committee of three to five, including the Chairman of the Iron and Steel Committee, shall be appointed by the Iron and Steel Committee annually to adjudge the award subject to approval. 4, The awarding committee shall submit its report to the Iron and Steel Committee at its October meeting, and the award shall be certified to the Secretary of the Institute in time to permit the presentation to be made at the Annual Meeting of the Institute, 5. The recipient of the award shall be designated "The Hunt Medallist," This prize is administered by the Iron and Steel Committee. Awards of the medal have been made as follows 1920-Robert Woolston Hunt. 1926-Charles Lewis Kinney, Jr. J. E. JOHNSON, JR., AWARD This award is made from the income of a fund of $3000 donated by Mrs. Margaret Hilles Johnson in memory of her husband, J. E. Johnson, Jr., who was a prominent engineer, author of two valuable volumes on iron blast-furnace construction and practice, vice-

Jan 1, 1928

By H. G. Doll

An earlier paper on the general subject of the SP log has analyzed the limitations of that log, in particular when dealing with thin permeable beds enclosed in thick highly resistive ones. Under such conditions, the SP log does not give a good definition of the permeable beds. Selective SP logging is a new method which gives an accurate determination of the permeable beds; even in highly resistive formations, except when the salinity of the mud is extremely high. It also permits a close approxi. mation of the static SP to be obtained. The method consists generally in controlling the potential of auxiliary electrodes located in the drill holes in the vicinity of the measuring electrode. In this manner. the flow of SP current along the drill hole is modified to counterbalance the effect of highly resistive strata. Several procedure; and arrangements used to record selective SP curves and static SP curves are explained. Field examples illustrating these methods are given and discussed. INTRODUCTION In an earlier paper,' the shape of the SP curves and the amplitude of the SP peaks were analyzed, considering how the circulation of the SP current is influenced by the subsurface media as a function of their geometrical configuration and their resistivities. It was shown, in particular. that the permeable beds situated between highly resistive formations are sometimes indistinctly indicated by the deflections of the SP log. It is the purpose of this paper to dircuss a new method now being developed, namely selective SP logging, whose principal feature is to enable a more accurate determination of the depths of the permeable beds present in highly resistive formations, such as occur in limestone fields. It will be shown also how an addi-tional curve called the static SP log can be derived from the selective SP log, or recorded directly, to facilitate the interpretation. Another purpose of the static SP log is to provide an approach toward the determination of the value of the static SP, where this value is not readily given by the SP log. This application. although less important at the present time than that mentioned above, nevertheless is of interest, inasmuch as, according to laboratory and field experiments conducted by several investigators, the determination of oil saturation of reservoirs from the data of the electric log implies the knowledge of the resistivity of the connate water,2,3 to which the static SP seems to be related.4,5,6,7 PRINCIPLE OF SELECTIVE SP LOGGING The method of selective SP logging of the formations traversed by a bore hole consists in recording two curves under the following conditions: The measuring device comprises one measuring electrode M and two additional electrodes G-G', connected to each other. located above and below

Jan 1, 1950

By L. H. Robinson

A proposed method of drilling utilizes sequential detonation of two types of explosive charges delivered to the hole by a conventional drilling fluid through pipe. A shaped charge first produces a long thin hole. A second charge, called a gauging charge, is pumped into the thin hole, explodes, and enlarges it to full gauge. In one suggested configuration, the explosives are contained in cylindrical capsules 4- to 5-ft long. A drilling head is positioned 2- to 3-ft off bottom. When a capsule is pumped to the bottom of the hole and stops, pressure inside the drill pipe increases and differential pressure detonates the explosive. Primacord along the length of the capsule disintegrates the capsule. The debris circulates out of the hole with the drilling fluid. The gauging-charge action was examined using 2-ft cubes of Berea sandstone. The sandstone (18 per cent porosity) was vacuum-saturated with water and surrounded by concrete. To prevent reflected tensile pulses, the acoustical impedance of the concrete matched that of the sandstone. A 750-psig pressure was applied to a drilling fluid within a shaped-charge-formed hole before detonating the gauging charge. In these tests, 190 gm of rock were removed for each gram of explosive detonated. A similar series of experiments on low-porosity (0.40 per cent) metamorphic limestone provided a more rigorous test. Extensive fracturing from the gauging-charge action prevented an estimate of the volume of the expanded hole. The diameter of the hole was irregular, ranging from about 2 to 4 in, or about fivefold larger than the hole created by the shaped charge. INTRODUCTION In the past, explosives have found a varied but somewhat limited use in the oil field. An early well stimulation technique, still in use today, in vo lves shooting ni troglycerin to en large the borehole and to increase matrix permeability near the wellbore. Bullets and jets are now the conventional method of perforating casing and tubing. Detonations are frequently used to "back off" or "shoot off" stuck pipe and, of course, seismo-graphic work has long depended on explosive-generated pulses to find attractive earth structures. Efforts to use explosives in drilling operations have received limited examinations1-3 which, in one respect, is surprising because explosives offer one way to transmit large amounts of energy directly to the bottom of the hole. Recently, Ostrovskii l described a Russian method of drilling with explosives that utilizes small capsules containing explosives which are pumped into the mud stream to the bottom of a borehole. As the capsules leave the end of the drill pipe, a detonation mechanism is armed. Impact detonates the explosive. In another configuration, two liquids (an oxidizing agent and fuel) in the capsule are separated by a frangible membrane. Separately, the liquids are nonexplosive. Near the bottom of the drill pipe, the capsule passes through a narrow constriction which ruptures the membrane. The mixing of the liquids produces an explosive. Impact is again used to detonate the explosive. About the time Ostrovskii was developing his method, Humble Oil & Refining Co. was independently doing research on another explosive drilling concept based on the sequential detonation of two types -of explosive charges. The proposed technique consisted of alternately pumping a shaped charge and then a "gauging charge" down a well. The shaped charge should drill a long, tapered hole, and the gauging charge should expand it to full gauge. This paper presents the visualized drilling concept and gives results of laboratory work which showed that sequential firing of charges can form hole at an attractive charge-to-rock removal ratio. An important finding was that increased environmental pressure, which is to be expected in wells, increases rock removal efficiency of the gauging charge.

Jan 1, 1966

By J. H. Mallery, J. H. Keeler

THE crystal structure of Zral, the compound richest in zirconium (91.03 pct Zr by weight) in the system Zr-Al, has been found to be ordered face-centered-cubic. This compound is of particular interest, since it is encountered as the precipitated phase in potentially useful zirconium-rich alloys. It forms peritectoidally from body-centered-cubic zirconium and Zr,Al at about 975°C. The Zr-A1 constitution diagram has been reported by McPherson and Hansen.' For the primary determination a 100 g ingot was prepared by arc-melting in a water-cooled copper crucible under purified argon. The raw materials were crystal-bar zirconium (a purity of better than 99.7 pct) and spectroscopically pure aluminum. The ingot was double melted, examined metallographi-cally, and found to be quite uniform as shown in Fig. 1. The hardness of the as-cast button was VHN 390 to 445. A 20 mil diam specimen was prepared from annealed (900°C) filings of Zr,Al. The specimen was mounted in a 5 cm radius powder camera and an 8 hr exposure was taken using copper radiation with a nickel filter. The structure of the compound Zral was found to be ordered face-centered-cubic of the Cuau type, with an a,, value of 4.37220.003A. Its calculated density is 5.976e0.013 g per cu cm. The relative intensities for the lines were calculated using the formula 1+cos2 20 I oc----------------- • p • /F7 sin2 0 cos 0 1 + COS' 20 where----------------is the Lorentz polarization fac- sin2 0 cos 0 tor, p is the multiplicity factor, and F is the structure factor. The X-ray data are given in Table I. The compound has exhibited plasticity when present as particles in a matrix of a zirconium. During hot working at about 900°C, the compound has been found to deform plastically to the extent that some of the particles exhibit a length-to-width ratio greater than 4:1 as shown in Fig. 2. In answer to the discussion of ref. 1, McPherson and Hansen pointed out that the compound may be cold rolled and reduced as much as 33 pct. Zr,Al has also been found2 under certain conditions to precipitate in lamellar form at grain boundaries of the a phase of hexagonal-close-packed zirconium. Acknowledgment This work was carried out under Contract W-31-109-Eng 52 for the United States Atomic Energy Commission.

Jan 1, 1956

By Joseph L. Jernegan

The Whale Lode occurs in the main range of the Rocky Mountains, Park County, Colorado Territory, at Hall Valley. It has been opened up and worked to some extent by the Whale Mine, situated some 11,300 feet above the level of the sea. The mine, with 700 feet of the lode on either side of the discovery shaft, is the property of the Hall Valley Silver-Lead Mining and Smelting Company. The adjacent country rock is a compact, fine-grained gneiss; its general strike is about north and south, dipping steeply to the west. In the immediate vicinity of the mine, the strata are very nearly vertical. The gneiss incloses numberless veins of a reddish granite, in which the feldspar largely predominates over the quartz and mica, the latter oftentimes being scarcely perceptible. As a general rule these granitic veins seem to more frequently follow the lines of stratification of the gneiss than otherwise. They are of varying width, some large, some small; the larger are from 5 to 6 feet wide. Gash veins of feldspar and quartz are also of very frequent occurrence. The general trend of the lode is about northeast. and southwest, intersecting the country rock at about an angle of 45 to its stratification. It dips to the northwest at an angle of 65. I am unable to state accurately how far this lode has been traced upon the surface, but it is at least well known to extend entirely through the mountain upon which the mine is situated, and is traceable over the ridge by a hollow extending for some distance along the surface, in which the lode crops out. This hollow in the surface rock has probably been formed through decomposition of the vein matter by atmospherical influences. The width of the crevice is variable, generally between 5 and 10 feet; the pay vein varies from an inch, or less, to 36 inches. The vein is generally accompanied both on foot and hanging walls by a whitish, semi-decomposed fock, composed of quartz and decomposed feldspar, and in some places—where the process of decomposition has not reached as advanced a stage—a lightgreenish or black mica. This rock, therefore, is in places composed of all the constituents of gneiss, and is undoubtedly nothing more or less than the same in a decomposed condition. It is often very strongly impregnated with iron pyrites, generally crystallized in minute cubes, and it is probably owing to the presence of this min-

By Andrew Corry

GEOPHYSICAL investigations based on radioactivity have been applied to the earth's crust for the purpose of discovering bodies rich in radioactive substances, or for the location of solutions with high emanation or radioactive-salt content, or for the detection of oil, which, in virtue of colloidal properties, has strong powers of radioactive absorption. RADIOACTIVE SUBSTANCES Radioactive substances are distributed in all rocks, waters, and gases in the earth's crust in small quantities. Granites and similar acidic rocks are richest in uranium and thorium, two chief radioactive substances; yet the quantities present in such rocks are of the order 10-12g., this concentration being expressed in grams per gram of the whole substance per cubic centimeter. In granites the uranium yields, according to Haddock, 3 X 10-12 g. of radium per gram of rock. In basalts the uranium yields 1.19 X 10-12 g. per gram per cubic centimeter. Of thorium the granites yield -2 X 10-5 g. per gram of rock; the basalts, 0.77 X 10-5 g. per gram. Certain series of alkalis of low atomic weight, like potassium and rubidium, show weak radioactivity; this property has no significance so far for geological research. The uranium is esti-mated indirectly from the electrical properties of one of its derivatives as a -gas (emanation) into which it is transformed. The thorium is expressed directly, though it is measured as a derivative, thorium emana-tion. There is a measure for the gaseous radium emanation, the curie, which is that quantity of radium emanation, or radon, which stands in equilibrium with 1 g. of radium. The concentration of the emanation is the Mache unit corresponding to 3.64 X 10-10 curie per liter. When gases become permeated by alpha, beta, and gamma rays, plus and minus ions are produced in them by the decomposition of neutral gas molecules, and under the influence of an electrical field these ions are given opposite motions. The measurement of the alpha rays and the bisection thicknesses of the beta and gamma rays is a means of analyzing unknown radioactive substances. These rays accompany the disintegration of radioactive substances and arise from "spontaneous internal changes

Jan 1, 1929

By Donald W. Scott

GENERALLY speaking, there is nothing very difficult about taking good micrographs of photogenic thin sections or grains with a petrographic micro-scopecamera setup. However, sometimes it is desired to show some detail that cannot be illustrated satisfactorily by the usual micrographs taken with parallel polarized light, with crossed nicols, or even with two micrographs. A simple procedure giving good results has been used at Battelle Memorial Institute for subjects falling into this classification, and it is believed to be of interest, especially to research people who must sell a point to executives through the medium of well-illustrated reports. The following problem illustrates a typical application: It is desired to photograph a thin section of an iron ore to illustrate the character and association of the iron oxides and the individual quartz crystals. A magnification of 75 dia. is acceptable. A micrograph of the field in question (Fig. I[a]) was taken with parallel polarized light. Due precaution was taken to provide critical illumination, correct exposure, a sharp focus, a good darkroom technique, and other essential conditions. It illustrates correctly the iron oxides, but it fails to show the individual quartz crystals. A micrograph of the identical field (Fig. I[b]) was taken under the same precise conditions, but with crossed nicols. It gives a better idea of the character of the individual quartz crystals but is likely to be misinterpreted unless accompanied by a lengthy descriptive note. This micrograph suggests that the centrally located, large black area is composed entirely of iron oxides. That this is an incorrect interpretation is evident by reexamining the micrograph of Fig. I[a]. The correct interpretation is that the dark area contains quartz crystals oriented with their optical directions parallel to, or nearly parallel to, the vibration directions of the polarizer and analyzer of the microscope. Thus, the executive, or anyone who had not done the work personally, would get no more than a fair interpretation, even if two micrographs were included; and in the interests of both brevity and clarity, one micrograph usually is more desirable. Exactly how many quartz crystals occur in this region cannot be told from the two micrographs, and a printing of the two negatives in register would likewise not show the detail desired. Thus, it is evident that some subjects cannot be satisfactorily illustrated by the usual procedures. In photographing Fig. is the light was subdued and, during the entire exposure of 75 sec., the analyzer nicol was rotated uniformly in its mounting from a crossed position to 45° uncrossed position to introduce the desired amount of contrast in the various individual quartz crystals. The true reproduction of the character and association of the iron oxides, and the additional structure and detail in the quartz areas, is apparent. It might be

Jan 1, 1946

By Frank M. Brooks

Endeavoring to meet the requirements of more oil created by the war effort, the oil industry of Kansas in 1944 maintained a level of exploratory and development work well above the average of previous years. During the year, 1866 test wells were drilled, of which 838 were completed as new oil wells, 89 as new gas wells and 939 as dry holes. These figures compare with 895 new oil wells, 32 new gas wells and 834 dry holes for a total of 1761 tests in 1943. Thus, there was a marked decrease in the number of new oil wells, and an increase in the new gas wells and dry holes. The total daily initial potential of production discovered by the successful wells amounted to 494,689 bbl. of oil as compared with 736,297 bbl. in 1943. The increase in unsuccessful tests and decrease in the daily initial potential of production has caused considerable comment and speculation among the oil operators of the state. This tends to confirm the fact that each year it is becoming harder to find the remaining oil fields. The total number of wildcats drilled in Kansas was 651 in 1944, including the so-called "extension wildcats" (more than 1/2 to I mile from known production). Of this number, 410 are classified as "rank wildcats," being more than one mile from production. The total of 651 compares with the total of 577 for 1943, showing an increase in wildcat drilling of 74 test wells: Of these tests, 81 were successful in finding new oil fields or substafitially extending known areas of production, and 20 either found new gas pools or extended old ones. The ratio of dry holes to producing wells among the "rank" wildcats was approximately 10 to I (372 dry and 38 successful). This compares with a ratio of 10 to I in 1943, 11 to I in 1942, and 6 to I in 1941. A compilation of the results obtained by 34 active companies, including all of the major companies, reveals that their efforts accounted for 286 rank wildcat wells, of which-37 found oil or gas, making a dry-hole percentage of 87. Approximately 55 per cent of all, tests (pool and wildcat) were failures. Thc Kansas Nomenclature Committee of the Kansas Geological Society named and classified 43 new oil fields and 8 new gas fields during the year. The discovery wells of the new oil fields had a total initial potential of 18,358 bbl. for a per well average or' 427 bbl. The average initial potential per well in 1942 and 1943 was 894 and 419 bbl., respectively. With nearly all wells producing at their economic capacity, the total production for Kansas during 1944 totaled 101,896,704 bbl., which compares with total runs of 107,709,679 bbl. in 1943. Production of natural gas during 1944 reached a new high record of 135 billion cubic feet. This compares with 122 billion cubic feet for 1943, and 98 1/2 billion cubic feet for 1942. The large Hugoton field of Southwestern Kansas accounted for about half of the total gas produced. Highlights OF the Year Although 51 new fields were found in the state during 1944, it is apparent that the

Jan 1, 1945

By D. V. Edmonds, C. J. Beevers

Tensile tests were carried out on a! titanium containing 850, 1250, and 2700 ppm 0, and up to -500 ppm H. The tests were performed at -196", -78", 20°, 150°, and 300°C at a strain rate of -1.0 x 10??3 sec-1. Increasing oxygen content, increasing grain size, and decreasing test temperature resulted in enhanced embrittlement of the a titanium by the hydrogen additions. Metallographic observations showed that this can be correlated with the influence of these parameters on the introduction of cracks into the a! titanium by fracture of titanium hydride precipitates. CRAIGHEAD et al.1 reported that the hydrogen content normally found in commercial-purity a! titanium (60 to 100 ppm) was sufficient to cause a substantial lowering of the impact strength, and they attributed this embrittling effect of hydrogen to the precipitation of titanium hydride. Lenning et al.&apos; found that in commercial-purity a titanium there is an almost complete loss of impact strength at about 200 pprn H, which is approximately half the value needed to eliminate the impact strength of high-purity a titanium. They also showed that the presence of 3000 ppm hydrogen reduces the room-temperature tensile ductility of commercial-purity material to a value of the order of 10 pct; the corresponding hydrogen concentration for high-purity titanium is over 9000 ppm. It thus appears that the detrimental effect of hydrogen on the mechanical properties of commercial-purity titanium becomes evident at much lower hydrogen contents than for high-purity titanium. The main difference between the two types of a titanium might be expected to be the higher level of interstitial impurity in the commercial-purity grade. Jaffee et a1.3 studied the influence of temperature and strain rate on the hydrogen embrittlement of high-purity and commercial-purity ! titanium. In general, the behavior was the same for both materials; embrittlement was enhanced by decreasing temperature and increasing strain rate. Recent results from tests on commercial-purity a titanium containing 850 ppm O and varying amounts of hydrogen up to -500 ppm showed that the degree of embrittlement by hydrogen is intimately related to the fracture characteristics of titanium hydride precipitates.4 The present paper considers the interrelationship between the mechanical properties and micro-structural features of commercial-purity a! titanium containing 850, 1250, and 2700 ppm 0 and varying amounts of hydrogen up to -500 ppm. 1. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Three types of commercial-purity titanium supplied by IMI* were used in the investigation, and for the *Address: Witton, Birmingham 6, United Kingdom. purpose of this paper are designated Ti 115, Ti 130, and Ti 160. The principal impurity elements are given in Table I. The material was received in the form of 12.7 mm diam bars having a fully recrystallized structure. Tensile specimens with a round cross-section of 4.5 mm diam and a gage length of 15.2 mm were machined from the bars. In order to develop the same grain size (mean linear intercept of grain boundaries) in each of the three types the specimens were annealed under a dynamic vacuum of <10?5 mm Hg, Table 11. Specimen hydriding was carried out in a modified Sieverts apparatus;&apos; hydrogen was taken into solution at 450°C and after holding the specimens at this temperature for 24 hr they were furnace-cooled to room temperature at an average rate of -100 C deg per hr. By this method nominal hydrogen contents of 0, 50, 100, 250, and 500 ppm were introduced into specimens of Ti 115, Ti 130, and Ti 160 (100 ppm (wt) -0.5 at. pct). The actual hydrogen contents were calculated from the weight differences obtained by weighing the specimens before and after the hydriding treatment. Tensile tests were carried out at temperatures of -196", -78", 20°, 150°, and 300°C on a 10,000 kg In-stron machine at a nominal strain rate of -1.0 x 10-3 sec-1. Fractured specimens were sectioned in planes parallel to the tensile axis, mechanically polished to 0.25 µm grade of diamond paste, and then attack polished using a solution containing by volume 99 parts H2O, 1 part HF, and 1 part HNO3. Although the latter treatment unavoidably opened out cracks and voids visible after mechanical polishing, it did reveal the grain structure, titanium hydride morphology, and deformation twinning structure.

Jan 1, 1970

By Frederik P. Agterberg

This paper deals with frequency distributions in the field of mineral resource evaluation when a grid is superimposed on the study area and metallogenetically significant attributes are coded with respect to the cells of the grid. It is shown that the parameters of a negative binomial distribution for frequency of mineral deposits per cell can be derived from the parameters of a gamma distribution for the coded attributes. It is also shown that an exponential model for spatial correlation of cell values and Matheron&apos;s discrete Gaussian model for indirect transfer functions may provide a suitable methodology for relating cell value distribution to cell size.

Jan 1, 1977

By O. Cuscoleca

The Austrian plants at Donawitz and Linz were the first to blow steel with high purity oxygen. The paper shows how the process was developed and gives a survey of the results achieved to date. Compared with open hearth steel of equal quality, the obvious advantages of oxygen steel are the low investment and conversion costs. The nitrogen content of oxygen steel is not higher than that of good open hearth steel. Rimmed and killed steel products made by the oxygen process are superior to rimmed and killed steel products made by the best open hearth process. TWO new steel plants using the principle of making steel with high purity oxygen went into operation in Austria, one at Linz (Vereinigte oster-reichische Stahlwerke) in November 1952 and the other at Donawitz (dsterreichisch-Alpine Montan-gesellschaft) in May 1953. An estimated 330,000 metric tons were produced by the two plants in 1953, the first year of operation. In 1954 production by Austrian plants- using the high purity oxygen approach will be raised to 450,000 metric tons. This will be in addition to facilities in Huckingen (Man-nesmann A. G., Düsseldorf, Germany), those planned and under construction at Hamilton, Ontario, Canada (Dominion Foundries and Steel, Ltd.), and elsewhere. It is expected that by 1955 a total capacity of one million tons of high purity oxygen steel will be available. At the close of the last century, because of increasing availability of scrap, open hearth steel production forged ahead at an ever increasing pace. This caused world steel production to rise faster than pig iron production and finally to overtake it. In 1911 65 million tons of steel were produced against 64 million tons of pig iron. World steel production was 209 million tons in 1951, while pig iron output was only 147 million tons. The 1951 breakdown for steel shows 118 million tons made from pig iron, while the balance, 91 million tons or 44 pct of the total tonnage of steel produced, was made from scrap. This increase in crude steel production on a basis of high scrap consumption led to the world market scrap shortage and soaring scrap prices. In the United States and other nations, production of converter steel has fallen far behind that of open hearth steel. The surplus of processing scrap, un-absorbable by converting mills and thus a welcome source for open hearth and electric melting shops in the past, together with regular scrap purchases, no longer can meet requirements of both open hearth and electric steel production in Europe. In addition, recent modification of the basic bessemer process, blowing with oxygenated blast, substantially raised the scrap capacity of these plants. Any further expansion of world steel production will necessitate utilization of self-containing processes in regard to scrap because of the shortage.

Jan 1, 1955

By Donald W. Scott

Generally speaking, there is nothing very difficult about taking good microgrztphs of photogenic thin sections or grains with a petrographic microscope-camera setup. However, sometimes it is desired to show some detail that cannot be illustrated satisfactorily by the usual micrographs taken with parallel polarized light, with crossed nicols, or even with two micrographs. A simple procedure giving good results has been used at Battelle Memorial Institute for subjects falling into this classification, and it is believed to be of interest, especially to research people who must sell a point to executives through the medium of well-illustrated reports. The following problem illustrates a typical application: It is desired to photograph a thin section of an iron ore to illustrate the character and association of the iron oxides and the individual quartz crystals. A magnification of 75 dia. is acceptable. A micrograph of the field in question (Fig. Ia) was taken with parallel polarized light. Due precaution was taken to provide critical illumination, correct exposure, a sharp focus, a good darkroom technique, and other essential conditions. It illustrates correctly the iron oxides, but it fails to show the individual quartz crystals. A micrograph of the identical field (Fig. Ib) was taken under the same precise conditions, but with crossed nicols. It gives a better idea of the character of the individual quartz crystals but is likely to be misinterpreted unless accompanied by a lengthy descriptive note. This micrograph suggests that the centrally located, large black area is composed entirely of iron oxides. That this&apos; is an incorrect interpretation is evident by reexamining the micrograph of Fig. Ia. The correct interpretation is that the dark area contains quartz crystals oriented with their optical directions parallel to, or nearly parallel to, the vibration directions of the polarizer and analyzer of the microscope. Thus, the executive, or anyone who had not done the work personally, would get no more than a fair interpretation, even if two micrographs were included; and in the interests of both brevity and clarity, one micrograph usually is more desirable. Exactly how many quartz crystals occur in this region cannot be told from the two micrographs, and a printing of the two negatives in register would likewise not show the detail desired. Thus, it is evident that some subjects cannot be satisfactorily illustrated by the usual procedures. In photographing Fig. Ic the light was subdued and, during the entire exposure of 75 sec., the analyzer nicol was rotated uniformly in its mounting from a crossed position to 45° uncrossed position to introduce the desired amount of contrast in the various individual quartz crystals. The true reproduction of the character and association of the iron oxides, and the additional structure and detail in the quartz areas, is apparent. It might be

Jan 1, 1949

By Donald W. Scott

Generally speaking, there is nothing very difficult about taking good microgrztphs of photogenic thin sections or grains with a petrographic microscope-camera setup. However, sometimes it is desired to show some detail that cannot be illustrated satisfactorily by the usual micrographs taken with parallel polarized light, with crossed nicols, or even with two micrographs. A simple procedure giving good results has been used at Battelle Memorial Institute for subjects falling into this classification, and it is believed to be of interest, especially to research people who must sell a point to executives through the medium of well-illustrated reports. The following problem illustrates a typical application: It is desired to photograph a thin section of an iron ore to illustrate the character and association of the iron oxides and the individual quartz crystals. A magnification of 75 dia. is acceptable. A micrograph of the field in question (Fig. Ia) was taken with parallel polarized light. Due precaution was taken to provide critical illumination, correct exposure, a sharp focus, a good darkroom technique, and other essential conditions. It illustrates correctly the iron oxides, but it fails to show the individual quartz crystals. A micrograph of the identical field (Fig. Ib) was taken under the same precise conditions, but with crossed nicols. It gives a better idea of the character of the individual quartz crystals but is likely to be misinterpreted unless accompanied by a lengthy descriptive note. This micrograph suggests that the centrally located, large black area is composed entirely of iron oxides. That this&apos; is an incorrect interpretation is evident by reexamining the micrograph of Fig. Ia. The correct interpretation is that the dark area contains quartz crystals oriented with their optical directions parallel to, or nearly parallel to, the vibration directions of the polarizer and analyzer of the microscope. Thus, the executive, or anyone who had not done the work personally, would get no more than a fair interpretation, even if two micrographs were included; and in the interests of both brevity and clarity, one micrograph usually is more desirable. Exactly how many quartz crystals occur in this region cannot be told from the two micrographs, and a printing of the two negatives in register would likewise not show the detail desired. Thus, it is evident that some subjects cannot be satisfactorily illustrated by the usual procedures. In photographing Fig. Ic the light was subdued and, during the entire exposure of 75 sec., the analyzer nicol was rotated uniformly in its mounting from a crossed position to 45° uncrossed position to introduce the desired amount of contrast in the various individual quartz crystals. The true reproduction of the character and association of the iron oxides, and the additional structure and detail in the quartz areas, is apparent. It might be

Jan 1, 1949

By John R. Riede

Most beneficiation plants utilize automatic controls to varying degrees-some have the bare minimum of controls, others qualify as semi-auto- mated operations; a very few are nearing what may be termed "fully-automated" status. But for those plants that produce a filter cake product, the lack of suitable instrumentation for measuring and con- trolling the moisture of the filter cake has been a major stumbling block to fully-automated operations. Today in many cases, this bottle-neck can be removed because various moisture measuring devices are now available to permit automation of the filtering stage. What are these devices? . . . Where can they be used? To answer these questions, two types of operating plants-one, semi-automated and the other, almost fully automated-can be examined. Both plants employ disc filters from which is produced a magnetic concentrate for pelletizing. (The control schemes and equipment depicted in this article are similar to those usable in drum filter plants.)

Jan 3, 1967

Roger A. Markle was sworn in as director of the US Bureau of Mines on September 27, 1978, ending a 20-month period during which the Bureau was without a leader. Some Bureau observers wondered out loud if this delay was a signal that Interior was slowly pulling the rug out from under the agency. When Markle was finally tapped for the director&apos;s position-coal industry executive to lead an agency that had been stripped of its fossil fuel R&D functions as well as its safety and health enforcement role--the speculation was fast and furious: One camp had it that Markle was brought in to phase out the Bureau; others said that Markle&apos;s directive was to revitalize the organization by charting a new Bureau course. In March, with the proposed Department of Natural Resources making headlines, ME went to Washington to interview Markle about his first six months as director and the goals he has set for the Bureau&apos;s future.

Jan 4, 1979

By E. H. Bronson

PROPERTY of Malartic Gold Fields Ltd. is situa-ated in the great clay belt in the northern part of the Province of Quebec. This belt represents the floor of the glacial lake Barlow-Ojibway. The clay blanket has a gently rolling, almost flat surface, with here and there projecting knobs and ridges that outline the large irregularities of the surface on which the clay was deposited. At irregular intervals glacial eskers dominate the landscape. The ore-bearing country rock is covered by strata of clay, sand, and silt to a depth varying to 40 ft. There are serious structural problems when it is necessary to place loads of unequal intensities on this surface to support buildings and machinery for a modern mining plant. Earlier mining companies and their engineers paid little attention to the science of soil mechanics, partly because they believed it unnecessary and partly because they knew little of the subject. The results are evident in some of the tottering structures in older camps. Careful analysis of soil problems is well worth-while, since cost of foundations may vary from 20 to 50 pct of the final cost of a structure. Low operating and maintenance costs can be achieved only in this way. If it is definitely established that a plant will be in operation for only a few months, this limited time factor will probably influence the design of the foundation, and rightly so. If sensitive and complickted equipment is to be mounted on these foundations and the plant is to operate for several years, there should be a thorough study of foundations and a very careful design. A familiar problem is presented by the difficulty of operating a permanent plant originally designed for a few months&apos; work. The engineer must beware of these hazards and disassociate himself from them if he cannot prevail on the promoter to spend the proper amount for a thorough foundation study. Laws of certain provinces and states hold the engineer equally responsible with the contractor for any &apos;damage that may be caused to building through inadequate study-ignordnce of the facts is no excuse in the eyes of the law. Types of Soil: The engineer should be familiar with such terms as silt, clay, peat, and varved clay, as well as perpafrost, especially if he is to work in the far northern reaches of the country. He should also be familiar with soil attributes such as porosity, texture, consistency, permeability, compressibility, consolidation, and shearing resistance. The design of any foundation requires an accurate knowledge of the physical properties and location of the soils involved. Older textbooks on the subject outline various empirical methods to determine the carrying power of soil. Tables are given in reference books. The modern ehgineer should be wary of these modes of thinking. He should analyze his problem carefully, calculate to what depth of soil the loads may be transmitted, and then check the bearing value of all soils to that or greater depths. If the strata are water-carrying, he must determine the possibility of this water being accidentally re-

Jan 1, 1958

By S. R. B. Cooke, Y. S. Kim, I. Iwasaki

lron oxides or the gangue minerals of iron ores can be made to float, depending upon the choice of collector. The selectivity of the separation is controlled by the accompanying chemical and operating conditions. In this report the findings on the general flotation characteristics of magnetite are summarized and the results are compared with those obtained for other iron oxides. Depending upon the choice of collector, either the iron oxides or the gangue minerals of iron ores can be made to float, the selectivity of the separation being controlled by the accompanying chemical and operating conditions. The mechanism by which a collector exerts preferential affinity for either group of minerals has been a subject of extended discussion. Previous investigations on the electrokinetic properties and flotation characteristics of hematite,&apos; goethite,2 and quartz3 have demonstrated the electrical nature of the interaction of the collector with these oxide surfaces; anionic collectors are effective on positively charged surfaces and cationic collectors on negatively charged surfaces. Thus, from the differences in the electrokinetic properties of the above-named oxides, a theoretical basis has been provided for their separation by some typical collectors. Examination of the results reported for hematite and goethite shows that their electrokinetic properties and flotation characteristics are remarkably similar. It is of considerable interest, therefore, to examine similar information for magnetite, another common iron oxide, in order to consolidate the flotation characteristics of the three principal minerals of oxide iron ores. Such information is practically significant in the up-grading of both natural and artificial mag- netite produced from taconite, and in the treatment of partially oxidized magnetite ores. Information on maghemite and lepidocrocite, polymorphs of hematite, and goethite, respectively, is also of some theoretical interest in ascertaining the effects of crystal structure and of hydration in the iron oxide group. This article reports the findings on the general flotation characttxistics of magnetite, and compares the results with those obtained for other iron oxides. Experimentally, tlhe surface properties of magnetite were investigated by electrophoresis, and by measurement of the aclsorption of some typical flotation collectors. Its flotation behavior was tested by contact angle measurements and by simple flotation tests using a modified Hallimond tube. The basic information thus gathered was shown to be directly applicable to the interpretation of the results of batch flotation tests made on an artificial mixture of magnetite and quartz. EXPERIMENTAL MATERIALS Magnetite: Magnetite concentrate from Port Henry, N. Y., was further purified by fine crushing and magnetic separaiion, and was used throughout this investigation. For flotation tests the 150/200 mesh fraction was iso1ated and was cleaned by leaching briefly with warn 0.1 N HC1 followed by repeated washing with demineralized water. The final sample analyzed 71.71 pct Fe, 22.37 pct Fe" and 0.47 pct insoluble, and was stored in demineralized water. For e1ectrophoresis and adsorption measurements, the —400 mesh fraction of the magnetite concentrate was ground dry in a pebble mill. The surface area of the ground sample, as determined by the gas permeability method, was 70,000 sq cm per g. Since artificial magnetite has been reported to possess somewhat different physical properties than those of natural magnetite, it also was briefly examined. Preliminary flotation tests on a sample of artificial magnelite, prepared by reducing Brazilian hematite in a C0/CO2 mixture and analyzing 71.94 pct Fe and 23.78 pct Fe&apos;&apos;, gave, however, nearly identical results with those using natural magnetite. It was concluded that artificial magnetite behaves similarly to natural magnetite. Samples which had been magnetically separated showed a tendency to cluster together due to residual

Jan 1, 1962

By Arthur F. Wendt

The earliest knowledge of copper-ores in the Southwest was derived from the Mexicans, who, in the latter part of the last century, discovered and worked the Santa Rita copper mines, now situated

Jan 1, 1887

By Gary E. Butts, Paul R. Smith

Introduction The design of a mineral processing flowsheet involves many factors. The importance of the sample can not be overemphasized. Competent and thorough mineralogical examinations are important as an aid in designing the test program. Designing and conducting the laboratory test program is basic to the design of the flowsheets. In the project under consideration a flotation pilot plant was conducted to prove the process and to provide a realistic prediction of metallurgical results. Moreover, the pilot plant operation provides important pilot plant design data. Finally, accurate and clear reporting is essential so that the information developed can be utilized advantageously by the client and the engineering firm. The design of a minerals processing flowsheet is a team effort. Engineers from the mining company, the research organization, and the engineering firm all contribute to the effort.

Jan 1, 1978