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By H. J. Wasson, E. B. Hopkins

Throughout 1928, production of oil from Venezuela steadily increased, and at the close of the year, the output was at the rate of nearly 400,000 bbl. a day. The total for the year was approximately 106,500,000 bbl., representing an increase of about 66 per cent. over the 63,000,000 bbl. produced in 1927. Venezuela now stands next to the United States as the second largest oil-producing country in the world; and there is abundant evidence to suggest that this relationship will endure for a number of years. Reserves were notably increased in the Lake shore fields, and the potential output of the Maracaibo Basin is much greater than the current production. In spite of this, the percentage of production increase was comparatively moderate, and the rate of this increase continued to fall off slightly, as has been the case for the last three years. This does not suggest that further annual increases in Venezuelan output will not materialize; only that the rate of these increases appears to be on the decline, and that with every succeeding year the future tendency will be in the direction of a stabilized level of output. The following table shows the production trend of the country since 1925: 1925 increase over 1924, 132 per cent. 1926 increase over 1925, 80 per cent. 1927 increase over 1926, 75 per cent. 1928 increase over 1927, 66 per cent. Many factors will work to prevent a reversal of this trend, but the principal ones are strong ownership in large-acreage units, and the probable indisposition of the world market to absorb a more rapidly increasing Venezuelan output at prices profitable to the producers. The distress oil element is not a factor in Venezuela; also, any unforeseen jump, such as results in the United States from the discovery of a Seminole or a deep sand at Long Beach, or Santa Fe Springs, is impossible in Venezuela, on account of lack of means for transporting a sudden surplus of oil, and the slowness with which additional transportation equipment in the form of shallow-draft tankers can be obtained.

Jan 1, 1929

By L. A. Willey, William L. Fink

TWO of the aluminum-alloy systems previously studied—the aluminum-titanium and the aluminum-chromium—exhibit a peritectic reaction at the extreme aluminum end of the diagram. Preliminary work indicated that the aluminum-zirconium and certain other aluminum systems were similar in this respect. The present paper, the twentieth of a series from the Aluminum Research Laboratories, reports the results of a recent investigation of equilibrium relations in aluminum-zirconium alloys of high purity, which confirm the preliminary observations. Previous Investigations There has been only one investigation of the aluminum end of the aluminum-zirconium system. Sykesl prepared and studied alloys containing 0 to 70 per cent Zr. The lowering of the freezing point of aluminum by the addition of zirconium was found to be very little, if any (less than 2" C.). He placed the solid solubility of zirconium in aluminum at room temperature between 0.57 and 0.97 per cent. A few other investigators have attempted to determine the composition of the intermetallic compounds occurring in this system. Honigschmid2 obtained the compound ZrAla as a by-product during the preparation of ZrSi2. He made no attempt to prepare other aluminum-zirconium compounds. Weiss and Newmann3 prepared an alloy by heating aluminum with a double fluoride of potassium and zirconium. When this alloy was treated consecutively with caustic soda and hydrochloric acid, there was a residue, which contained approximately 72 per cent Zr and 28 per cent A1 (Zr3AI4). Marden and Rich4 prepared an alloy in the same way, treated it with caustic soda, and obtained a residue of silver-white crystals, which contained 70 per cent Zr and 30 per cent A1 (Zr3A14). Alloys Materials Used.—Electrolytically refined aluminum was employed for thc preparation of all alloys used in this investigation. The chemical

Jan 1, 1939

By William L. Fink, L. A. Willey

TWO of the aluminum-alloy systems previously studied—the aluminum-titanium and the aluminum-chromium—exhibit a peritectic reaction at the extreme aluminum end of the diagram. Preliminary work indicated that the aluminum-zirconium and certain other aluminum systems were similar in this respect. The present paper, the twentieth of a series from the Aluminum Research Laboratories, reports the results of a recent investigation of equilibrium relations in aluminum-zirconium alloys of high purity, which confirm the preliminary observations. Previous Investigations There has been only one investigation of the aluminum end of the aluminum-zirconium system. Sykesl prepared and studied alloys containing 0 to 70 per cent Zr. The lowering of the freezing point of aluminum by the addition of zirconium was found to be very little, if any (less than 2" C.). He placed the solid solubility of zirconium in aluminum at room temperature between 0.57 and 0.97 per cent. A few other investigators have attempted to determine the composition of the intermetallic compounds occurring in this system. Honigschmid2 obtained the compound ZrAla as a by-product during the preparation of ZrSi2. He made no attempt to prepare other aluminum-zirconium compounds. Weiss and Newmann3 prepared an alloy by heating aluminum with a double fluoride of potassium and zirconium. When this alloy was treated consecutively with caustic soda and hydrochloric acid, there was a residue, which contained approximately 72 per cent Zr and 28 per cent A1 (Zr3AI4). Marden and Rich4 prepared an alloy in the same way, treated it with caustic soda, and obtained a residue of silver-white crystals, which contained 70 per cent Zr and 30 per cent A1 (Zr3A14). Alloys Materials Used.—Electrolytically refined aluminum was employed for thc preparation of all alloys used in this investigation. The chemical

Jan 1, 1939

By AIME AIME

BORN a Chicagoan, on Aug;. 31, I879. Oscar Johnson lived in that city until young manhood. As a youth delivering newspapers he set his sight on the l university of Chicago and at sixteen years of age he began working summer vacations in the foundry of the Pullman Company. Misfortune came to his family during the summer of 1898 when tuberculosis took his only sister and brother. His mother, apprehensive of Oscar's health, urged him to try the West at least for awhile. So late summer found Oscar in Salt Lake City, employed by the Trent Engineering & Machinery Co. At that time it was busy building equipment for use in the war with Spain. Though he did not know it then, Oscar war was laying the groundwork for his present membership on the Mining Equipment Industry Advisory Committee of the W.P.B., a post which keeps him commuting between Denver and Washington.

Jan 1, 1944

By H. W. Krotzer

ADOPTION on a commercial scale of electrolytic deposition of metals brought with it the problem of providing an acid-proof cell or tank. Where the electrolyte contained only a dilute solution of sul-furic acid, wooden, tanks with lead linings were gen-erally adopted. There were cases, however, where a lead lining was impractical as a result of the presence of nitric acid in the electrolyte or because of the method of handling the current for deposition. purposes. Wherever lead was unsuitable for this work, asphaltic mastic was used in its place. This material, in addi-tion to possessing acid-proof qualities and being an insulator for electrical current, is also cheaper than lead. The only reason that prevented the common adoption of mastic for all work of this type was that it was still an unknown, unproved. material; while lead, although more costly, could be relied on. There are several electrolytic tank-houses equipped with acid-proof mastic linings now in operation. The first large one was the series tank-house of the Balti-more Copper Co., where the mastic used was composed of natural asphalts and a silica aggregate. These lin¬ings are now seventeen years old and still in service. The next large plant was that of the Chile Exploration Co., at Chuquicamata, Chile, ,and it is with this that this article deals. Another plant of more recent date is that of the Nichols. Copper Co., Laurel Hill, L. I., and specifications for the new electrolytic tank-house of the Union Miniere du Haut Katanga call for mastic lining. It is also being tried out on a smaller scale or for experimental purposes by many of the larger metal-lurgical companies. Thus while mastic linings were adopted originally to meet operating conditions that prohibited the use of lead, they are now in a position to compete successfully with the standard lead linings that are in general use. The Chile Exploration Co. plant, with a total area of over a million square feet, giving satisfactory ser-vice under the most adverse climatic and metallurgical conditions can be truly called the pioneer in this work. ,This article will deal with the development of the acid-proof mastic linings in Chuquicamata from the original experiments begun in 1912 up to and including the final successful installation that has now been in service for a number of years.

Jan 4, 1927

At all business meetings of the Institute the President, or, in his absence, the First Vice-President, or, in the absence of both of them, any other Vice-President or Director, chosen by the meeting, shall preside. At all other meetings of the Institute the President, or, in his absence, one of the Vice-presidents shall preside. If none of these be present the meeting shall elect a Chairman. The President shall do and perform such other duties as may from time to time be assigned to him by resolution of the Board of Directors of the Institute. II. ORDER OF BUSINESS. At each business meeting of the Institute the order of business shall be as follows: 1. Reading of minutes of preceding meeting. 2. Report of the President. 3. Report of the Treasurer. 4. Report of the Secretary. 5. Election of Directors. 6. Reports of Standing Committees. 7. Reports of Special Committees. 8. Special Orders. 9. Miscellaneous business. This order of business may be changed at any meeting, by a vote of a majority of the Members and Associates present. At all sessions of the Institute, other than business meetings, the order of proceedings and the time of adjournment shall rest in the discretion of the presiding officer. III. SECRETARY OF THE INSTITUTE. The Secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of all the meetings of the Institute, He shall be custodian of the corporate seal, of the minute books and of all the legal documents belonging to the Institute. He shall have charge on behalf of the Institute of all correspondence. He shall notify all Officers and Directors and all members of committees of their election and appointment; shall issue notices of all meetings of the Board, and of the annual and other business meetings of the Institute; and shall, in calling special meetings of the Directors, specify the objects of such meetings. He shall act as clerk at all the meetings of the Board of Directors and at all meetings of the Institute. The Secretary shall be custodian of all technical or scientific papers submitted to the Institute for its consideration and shall have general charge and supervision of the editing and proof-reading of all material published by the Institute, and of the distribution thereof. The Secretary shall be the custodian of all back numbers of the Transactions and other publications of the Institute. There shall be kept under his direction an account in ledger form of all such back numbers. He shall on the first day of January of each year submit to the Library Committee a statement of the number of copies of Transactions, magazines and other publications printed during the preceding year, giving the number distributed and remaining undistributed; also a statement covering additions to and withdrawals from the total stock of Institute publications, with the number remaining on hand at date of statement.

Jan 1, 1928

By Bernt Ellingsaeter, Terkel Rosenqvist

IN the silicothermic reduction of magnesia, burned dolomite is treated with high grade ferrosilicon in an evacuated steel retort at temperatures between 1150° and 1200°C. The following reaction is assumed to occur MgO + CaO + 1/2 Si (Fe) - Mg(g) +- & Ca,SiO, + Fe with the equilibrium constant on the basis of thermodynamic data for the substances involved and assuming unit activity for all solid constituents, Kubaschewski and Evans' calculated the magnesium pressure as a function of temperature logp,, (mmHg) = 15.06-1.61 T- log T- 13,16O/T. Pidgeon and King," who measured the magnesium pressure by means of a flow method, found values about three times the calculated ones. This may be caused by uncertainties in the thermodynamic data, but may also be caused by the formation of other reaction products, such as Ca,SiO,, which is known to be the stable silicate in equilibrium with lime. Whatever the exact reaction may be, it is evident that as long as all other factors are maintained constant the magnesium pressure will vary with the silicon activity, viz: p,, = &,. (p,,) ", where (p,,)" is the magnesium pressure by the reduction with silicon of unit activity. In the present investigation, p,,, was therefore measured for various grades of ferrosilicon and their silicon activities were calculated. The experimental method was similar to that used by Pidgeon and King. Briquettes of burned dolomite and Fe-Si alloys were placed in a 1 in. heat resistant steel tube and were heated to 1200°C. By means of a flow of purified hydrogen, the magnesium vapor was swept into a condenser filled with steel wool. From the amounts of hydrogen used and magnesium condensed the magnesium partial pressure was calculated. First a tube of 28 pct Cr steel, and later a tube of Kanthal D (a ferrous alloy with 22.6 pct Cr, 2 pct Co, and 4.5 pct Al), was used as a heat resistant tube. The latter tube showed the best heat resistance. The dolomite used had the following composition: 43.6 pct MgO, 55.5 pct CaO, 0.2 pct K,O + NalO, 0.2 pct Fe,O,, and 0.3 pct insoluble. The ferrosilicons were prepared from 98 pct Si of technical grade (0.7 pct Al, 0.3 pct Ca, and 1 pct Fe) by melting with various amounts of electrolytic iron of high purity. The alloys thus obtained were analyzed on their iron and silicon contents, which added up to between 99 and 100 pct. The amounts of reactants were chosen so that there would always be an excess of the oxides, and the average decrease in silicon content during the experiments would be about 1 pct. Most of the reaction occurred in the part of the reaction mixture facing the gas flow. The change in the silicon concentration in the part facing the condenser was, therefore, negligible. To facilitate the reaction, about 1 pct fluorspar was added to the briquette mixture. Fluorspar does not enter the reaction, but is known to act as a

Jan 1, 1957

By James Norman, E. W. Gieseke

SPODUMENE is a lithium-bearing pyroxene, and is an important source of lithium compounds. Because of its high alumina and lithia content. it might be a desirable constituent of glass batches. The use of spodumene in ceramics will undoubtedly increase, as it has been shown that a mixture of the proper proportions of this mineral with soda feldspar and potash feldspar has a much lower maturing temperature upon firing than has any one of the three components.1 The mineral spodumene seldom occurs as pure mineral, but ordinarily with feldspars, mica and quartz. All spodumene-bearing rocks tested contained these minerals as gangue. Small amounts of iron and manganese oxides also were present, usually as stains on the silicate grains. Mica associated with the spodumene carried a considerable amount of lithia. This was discovered in flotation tailings, which, although virtually free of spodumene grains when examined microscopically, showed 0.4 to 0.5 per cent Li20 on chemical analysis. The lithia content of micas picked from the North Carolina spodumene rock was variable. Some samples contained little lithia, others more than 3 per cent. In 1938, under the supervision of Oliver C. Ralston, [t] the Bureau of Mines, in cooperation with the Tennessee Mineral Products Corporation, undertook to study the beneficiation of North Carolina spodumene by froth flotation. The Bureau had previously published investigations on the beneficiation of spodumene.2, 3 The methods described in the second publication3 did not give good results with badly weathered spodumene rock, so that more thorough investigation of the subject was warranted. STUDY OF METHOD OF FLOTATION SEPARATION Most of the work on concentration of spodumene was done with rock from near King's Mountain, North Carolina. Rock from two

Jan 1, 1940

By A. G. Weber, K. H. Coats, M. H. Terhune, R. L. Nielsen

Two computer-oriented techniques for simulating the three-dimensional flow behavior of two fluid phases in petroleum reservoirs were developed. Under the first technique the flow equations are solved to model three-dimensional flow in a reservoir. The second technique was developed for modeling flow in three-dimensional media that have sufficiently high permeability in the vertical direction so that vertical flow is not seriously restricted. Since this latter technique is a modified two-dimensional meal analysis, suitably structured three-dimensional reservoirs can be simulated at considerably lower computational expenses than is required using the three-dimensional analysis. A quantitative criterion is provided for determining when vertical communication is good enough to permit use of the modified two-dimensional areal analysis. The equations solved by both techniques treat both fluids as compressible, and, for gas-oil applications, provide for the evolution of dissolved gas. Accounted for are the effects of relative permeability, capillary pressure and gravity in addition to reservoir geomety and rock heterogeneity. Calculations are compared with laboratory waterflood data to indicate the validity of the analyses. Other results were calculated with both techniques which show the equivalence of the two solutions for reservoirs satisfying the vertical communication criterion. INTRODUCTION Obtaining the maximum profits from oil and gas reservoirs during all stages of depletion is the fundamental charge to the reservoir engineering profession. In recent years much quantitative assistance in evaluating field development programs has been provided by computerized techniques for predicting reservoir flow behavior. Because of the spatially distributed and dynamic nature of producing operations, automatic optimization procedures, such as those now in use for planning refining operations, are not now available for planning reservoir development. However, present mathematical simulation techniques do furnish powerful means for making case studies to help in planning primary recovery operations and in selecting and timing supplemental recovery operations. A number of methods have been reported which simulate the flow of one, two or three fluid phases within porous media of one or two effective spatial dimensions>-4 However, applying computer analyses to actual reservoirs have been limited mostly to two-dimensional areal or cross-sectional flow studies for two immiscible reservoir fluids. To obtain a three-dimensional picture of reservoir performance using such two-dimensional techniques, it has been necessary to interpret the calculations by combining somehow the results from essentially independent areal and cross-sectional studies. To the authors' knowledge, the only other three-dimensional computational procedure, in addition to those presented here, was developed by Peaceman and Rachford8 to simulate the behavior of a laboratory waterflood. Two computational techniques which may be used to simulate three-dimensional flow of two fluid phases are described in this paper. The first method, called the "three-dimensional analysis", employs a fully three-dimensional mathematical model that treats simultaneously both the areal and cross-sectional aspects of reservoir flow. The second method, called the vertical equilibrium (VE) analysis", is applicable

By C. L. Dake

Discussion of the paper of. C. L. DAKE, presented at the San Francisco meeting, September, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 103, July, 1915, pp. 1429 to 1436. A. C. LAWSON, Berkeley, Cal.-It appears that our bog-iron ores are due in a large measure to the activity of certain iron bacteria, and a paper dealing with this subject that makes no reference to that particular agency strikes me as rather curious. C. L. DANE, Rolla, Mo.-Mr. Lawson's criticism that this paper makes no reference to the activity, of iron bacteria is scarcely true. On p. 1430 I stated: "Certain bacteria precipitate iron by building the hydrated oxide into their body cells," and again, "There are many other means by which, under special conditions, iron may be precipitated in nature. Oxidation, evaporation of CO2, and iron bacteria have been held to be the most important." Thus the activity of bacteria receives as extended mention as the action of any other agency in precipitation of iron. The paper makes no pretense of covering exhaustively the origin of bog ores, but, as its original title suggested, refers to Some Principles Controlling the Formation and Distribution of Bog Iron Ores. Mr. Lawson seems to have entirely missed the main thesis of the paper, which attempts to establish some relation between glaciation and abundance of bog ores now forming. Unfortunately, I have no immediate access to the literature of the subject, but my best recollection is that the data regarding iron bacteria throw no light whatever on the cause of bog ores being so much in ore abundant within the limits of the glaciated regions, and being reported much less frequently from the tropics. This lack of data is suggested in the following (p. 1434): "It has already been shown that bacteria aid in the precipitation of iron. Whether tropical conditions increase or decrease the activity of such bacteria is unknown."

Jan 12, 1915

By A. R. Denison

To those who are unfamiliar with the nomenclature in common use among operators in the Mid-Continent, the Permian Basin is a term to cover several widely separated productive areas. It includes what is designated in trade journals as the Panhandle fields, the West Texas fields and Southeastern New Mexico fields. It is bounded roughly on the east by the 100th parallel, on the west by the 104th parallel, 011 thr south by the Rio Grande River and various mountain ranges and on the north by the north line of the Texas Panhandle. The name is derived from the location of these three widely scattered areas which are all in a broad geosyncline which is chiefly filled with sediments of Perrliian age. The oil fields as now known and the approximate limits of the Permian Basin are shown in Fig. 1. The major part of the production in these areas comes from liniestonc or dolomite of Permian age. Some granite wash and sandstone production has been developed but ordinarily does not yield as large initial production as the limestone or dolorliite. Introduction During 1926, Texas, exclusive of the Gulf Coast, produced 12G1SS-1,-952 bbl. of oil,' of which 40,727,877 bbl., or 32 per cent., was produccd in the West Texas Permian Basin. During 1927 the same area in Texas produced 167,176,000 bbl. %f oil, of which 89,779,000 bbL13 or 52 per cent., was produced in the West Texas Permian Basin. The increase in the total production of Texas is about equivalent to the increase in production in the Permian Basin. Since production in the Panliandle District declined during the entire year, the increase of production in the West Texas Permian Basin, and also the increase in Texas, is due to the enormous increase from the West Texas fields. Daily average pl-oduction in the West Texas fields increased from 68,211 bbl. on ,Jan. 8 to

Jan 1, 1928

By Basil B. Zavoico

The developments in the Russian oil industry during 1935 marked a very definite turning point from the time when the industry was being educated to the modern methods of oil-field finding and development, refining, transportation and marketing, to the time when the industry has thoroughly assimilated the modern technique and is now firmly standing on its own feet, as is shown by the remarkable qualitative, if not quantitative, progress in 1935. The oil industry promises that 1936 will be a record year in every respect with both quantity and quality approaching the desired high levels and standards. More particularly the Soviet Government is beginning to be successful in the development of new fields and such new production in geographically strategical points of the country will be in the coming years a factor of great importance in the industrial life of the country. The most notable achievements of the last year have been: the very successful development of the Ishimbaevo oil field in the Lower Oural-Permian Basin; the discovery and development of several promising oil fields in the Puta district of Azerbaijan, while large flush production of Baku area was extended 50 miles due southwest into the Saliani-Aliat district, where a 3000-bbl. well was completed early in 1936 at Pirsagat. Also, an apparently important discovery was made at Zikh, on the Apsheron Peninsula proper. These discoveries, as well as several important strikes in the deeper producing sands in the older fields of the Apsheron Peninsula, have greatly augmented the proven reserves of Russia and made them available either at the points where transportation facilities were already present or at points not too far distant from major industrial centers of the country. Of course, not all objectives were achieved during the past year, and several major difficulties remain to be solved in the coming years, the more important of which are: (1) supply of equipment and of parts; (2) the unavailability of competent technical men in sufficient numbers, which more particularly affects the distant fields; and (3) the problem of distribution of oil products throughout the country, especially the question of handling the needs of small consuming areas, which, while individually unimportant, in the aggregate require huge distribution.

Jan 1, 1936

By Basil B. Zavoico

The developments in the Russian oil industry during 1935 marked a very definite turning point from the time when the industry was being educated to the modern methods of oil-field finding and development, refining, transportation and marketing, to the time when the industry has thoroughly assimilated the modern technique and is now firmly standing on its own feet, as is shown by the remarkable qualitative, if not quantitative, progress in 1935. The oil industry promises that 1936 will be a record year in every respect with both quantity and quality approaching the desired high levels and standards. More particularly the Soviet Government is beginning to be successful in the development of new fields and such new production in geographically strategical points of the country will be in the coming years a factor of great importance in the industrial life of the country. The most notable achievements of the last year have been: the very successful development of the Ishimbaevo oil field in the Lower Oural-Permian Basin; the discovery and development of several promising oil fields in the Puta district of Azerbaijan, while large flush production of Baku area was extended 50 miles due southwest into the Saliani-Aliat district, where a 3000-bbl. well was completed early in 1936 at Pirsagat. Also, an apparently important discovery was made at Zikh, on the Apsheron Peninsula proper. These discoveries, as well as several important strikes in the deeper producing sands in the older fields of the Apsheron Peninsula, have greatly augmented the proven reserves of Russia and made them available either at the points where transportation facilities were already present or at points not too far distant from major industrial centers of the country. Of course, not all objectives were achieved during the past year, and several major difficulties remain to be solved in the coming years, the more important of which are: (1) supply of equipment and of parts; (2) the unavailability of competent technical men in sufficient numbers, which more particularly affects the distant fields; and (3) the problem of distribution of oil products throughout the country, especially the question of handling the needs of small consuming areas, which, while individually unimportant, in the aggregate require huge distribution.

Jan 1, 1936

By Walter Rose

Theoretical expressions are presented to describe wetting and non-wetting phase relative premeability relations. These expressions have then been compared with existing published data, the conformance noted being sufficiently good to satisfy the requirements of some engineering use. As a consequence, it may be supposed that relative permeability characteristics of porous media now can be inferred from basic core analysis data, in a manner more convenient (although less direct) than presently available methods of experimental evaluation. INTRODUCTION This paper presents a new approach to the problem of relative permeability evaluation. A classification of published discussions of relative permeability concepts which have appeared in the petroleum literature will show that previously emphasis has been placed on methods of experimental measurement, on the interpretation of the data so obtained with respect to the variable properties of the system, and on theoretical and practical considerations which relate relative permeability to gross fluid behavior in petroleum reservoirs. Essentially, no detailed examination has appeared which treats the fundamental factors controlling the quantitative features of the relative permeability relation*, although cer- tain references can be Cited where a qualitative awareness of their existence and nature is indicated. This condition is explainable in terms of the recognized complexity of the problem, and in order to provide some basis for theoretical development, the general emphasis has been placed in the past on experimental procedures of evaluation, the validity of which, in principle, could be confirmed by the analysis of well and reservoir performance. However, because of the experimental difficulties which have been encountered (notably, difficulties due to the so-called "end effects"), and because of the general unreliability of field performance tests required to study the applicability of the data, relative permeability phenomena continue to be incompletely understood and described.? In this paper is examined the possibility of predicting relative permeabilities entirely from fundamental considerations. In addition, attention is called to certain important factors, previously unemphasized in the published literature, which now can serve as a basis for the eventual experimental confirmation of this and similar theoretical approaches, as well as the experimental solution of the problem in general. Therefore, the analysis presented herein has the dual purpose both of orienting future experimental activity and also of providing an immediate solution for the relative permeability porblem, sufficiently adequate for some engineering use. It will be seen that the conclusions reached are supported by theoretical and intuitive considerations, and they are not contradicted insofar as gross features are concerned by existing concepts and interpretations of published experimental data, except as specifically noted. Darcy's law, expressed simply as: k dp q = k/u dp/dx .......(1) where q is linear rate of flow (assumed horizontal), k is the † The poor comparison usually obtained between laboratory and field gas-oil ratios (c.f.. Fig. 4 of paper by L. E. Elkins) is illustrative of conditions which dimcourage unqualified acceptance of the results of previous studies except as presently useful approximations. In this connection, Evinger and Muskat have discussed in detail the discrepancy observed between field well productivity values and values obtained from the analysis of laboratory flow data.

Jan 1, 1949

By Walter Rose

Theoretical expressions are presented to describe wetting and non-wetting phase relative premeability relations. These expressions have then been compared with existing published data, the conformance noted being sufficiently good to satisfy the requirements of some engineering use. As a consequence, it may be supposed that relative permeability characteristics of porous media now can be inferred from basic core analysis data, in a manner more convenient (although less direct) than presently available methods of experimental evaluation. INTRODUCTION This paper presents a new approach to the problem of relative permeability evaluation. A classification of published discussions of relative permeability concepts which have appeared in the petroleum literature will show that previously emphasis has been placed on methods of experimental measurement, on the interpretation of the data so obtained with respect to the variable properties of the system, and on theoretical and practical considerations which relate relative permeability to gross fluid behavior in petroleum reservoirs. Essentially, no detailed examination has appeared which treats the fundamental factors controlling the quantitative features of the relative permeability relation*, although cer- tain references can be Cited where a qualitative awareness of their existence and nature is indicated. This condition is explainable in terms of the recognized complexity of the problem, and in order to provide some basis for theoretical development, the general emphasis has been placed in the past on experimental procedures of evaluation, the validity of which, in principle, could be confirmed by the analysis of well and reservoir performance. However, because of the experimental difficulties which have been encountered (notably, difficulties due to the so-called "end effects"), and because of the general unreliability of field performance tests required to study the applicability of the data, relative permeability phenomena continue to be incompletely understood and described.? In this paper is examined the possibility of predicting relative permeabilities entirely from fundamental considerations. In addition, attention is called to certain important factors, previously unemphasized in the published literature, which now can serve as a basis for the eventual experimental confirmation of this and similar theoretical approaches, as well as the experimental solution of the problem in general. Therefore, the analysis presented herein has the dual purpose both of orienting future experimental activity and also of providing an immediate solution for the relative permeability porblem, sufficiently adequate for some engineering use. It will be seen that the conclusions reached are supported by theoretical and intuitive considerations, and they are not contradicted insofar as gross features are concerned by existing concepts and interpretations of published experimental data, except as specifically noted. Darcy's law, expressed simply as: k dp q = k/u dp/dx .......(1) where q is linear rate of flow (assumed horizontal), k is the † The poor comparison usually obtained between laboratory and field gas-oil ratios (c.f.. Fig. 4 of paper by L. E. Elkins) is illustrative of conditions which dimcourage unqualified acceptance of the results of previous studies except as presently useful approximations. In this connection, Evinger and Muskat have discussed in detail the discrepancy observed between field well productivity values and values obtained from the analysis of laboratory flow data.

Jan 1, 1949

By Vito J. Colangelo

The primary object of this study was to determine the effect of ferrite and its orientation upon the mechanical properties of a precipitation -hardening stainless steel with particular attention to the short-transverse properties. The investigation consisted of Jour major parts : the preliminary investigation of billet properties, the effect of forging reduction and ferrite content upon mechanical properties, the effect of notch orientation upon impact strength, and the relationship of heat composition to ferrite content. Low ductility and impact strength in the short transverse direction were found to he associated with the orientation and shape of- the ferrite plates. It was also determined that impact strength varied with notch orientation. The test values obtained with the notch perpendicular to the plane of the ferrite plate were lower than those obtained in the notch-parallel condition. The over-all investigation showed that high ferrite contents in general had a deleterious effect upon mechanical properties and that the ferrite content could he minimized by exercising rigorous control of the heat composition. A careful balance of elements, nitrogen in particular, must he maintained in order to reduce the formation of ferrite. THE precipitation-hardening stainless steels were developed to fulfill a need for high-strength corrosion-resistant alloys. In the annealed condition they are soft and ductile and possess many of the desirable characteristics of the austenitic stainless steels. In the hardened condition, the alloys exhibit the high strength and hardness of the martensitic stainless steels. The alloy under consideration in this investigation has a nominal composition as follows: C Mn Si Cr Ni Mo N 0.13 0.95 0.25 15.50 4.30 2.75 0.10 The hardening mechanism is identical to that of other hardenable steels in that it depends upon the transformation of austenite to martensite. This alloy because of its annealed structure and its ability to be hardened combines the desirable forming and corrosion properties of the austenitic grades with the high hardness and strength levels attainable with the hardenable grades. The reason for this apparent duplicity of proper- ties can be explained by considering a basic metallurgical difference between the hardenable stainless steels and those of the austenitic group. Both types are austenitic at 1800°F but, while the martensitic grades transform to martensite upon rapid cooling to room temperature, the austenitic grades remain austenitic even when cooled to temperatures below room temperature. The major difference then is in the degree of austenite stability. This stability can quantitatively be described by the Ms temperature. The Ms is defined as that temperature at which austenite begins to transform to martensite. The austenitic grades for example may be cooled to -300°F without producing significant quantities of martensite. The hardenable stainless steels on the other hand have an Ms temperature in the vicinity of 400" to 700°F. In cooling to room temperature, these alloys traverse the entire Ms-Mf range and show almost complete transformation to martensite. The semiaustenitic stainless steel, however, occupies an intermediate position with respect to its austenite stability. The analysis is so balanced that the Ills temperature lies at or slightly above room temperature. The resulting alloy retains much of its austenite at room temperature and yet responds to hardening heat treatments. Achieving this delicate balance of elements is therefore of great importance. Slight imbalances of the equivalent Cr-Ni ratios frequently result in the presence of 6 ferrite. It is the effects of this ferrit with which we are concerned, more specifically the effect of the quantity and ferrite orientation upon mechanical properties, particularly ductility. PROCEDURE A) Preliminary Investigation of Billet and Forging Properties. In order to determine the effect of ferrite on billet properties, billet stock from three heats with various ferrite contents was utilized. Tensile specimens were obtained in the transverse and longitudinal directions from this material and heat-treated as shown in Tables I and 11. Forgings were made from these same heats, the purpose being to determine what effect, if any, the ferrite might have upon the mechanical properties. These forgings were made in such a manner as to elongate the ferrite in the longitudinal and transverse directions. The method of forging was as follows. A section was cut from a 6-in.-sq billet of Heat A and flat-forged to 1-1/2 in. thick. Working was done from one direction only with no edging passes as shown

Jan 1, 1965

Lawrence Addicks, Perth Amboy, N. J. (communication to the Secretary*): The excellent series of photo-micrographs given in this paper shows clearly the relation between micro-structure and cuprous oxide in refined copper. The authors suggest that this method of examillation might be substituted for the " button " method now used to control the refining of cop

Jan 1, 1904

By T. D. Thomas

In this paper, major attention is given to misfires in mines where electric multiple shot-firing is the system used. Misfires are sometimes caused by one action or condition and at other times by a combination of two or more. They may be divided into two classes: (1) those caused by workers in the mines, (2) mechanical or manufacturer's causes. The second cause will be discussed first. Misfires Caused by Faulty Detonators The important part of an electric blasting cap, to the user where multiple shot-firing is done, as in the steep-pitch, thiek-vein, anthracite mines, is the bridge wire. In single shot-firing this factor is not apparent, but in mines where multiple firing is done any variation in the resistance of the bridge wire, where full or even rated battery capacity is required, will most likely cause a misfire. The reason for this is obvious. If the resistance in the bridge wires is not the same, some of the detonators will fire because of their greater comparative resistance. Variance in resistance of bridge wires is caused by a slight difference in the diameter of the bridge wire, also by a difference in the composition of the bridge wires. Again, where the bridge wires have become rusted, there will be a variance in resistance. About the year 1922, one of the large coal companies was greatly alarmed by the number of serious and fatal accidents caused by misfires. The general manager issued an order that these accidents must be greatly reduced, and if possible, entirely prevented. The officials at the mines had to determine the various causes of misfires and have them corrected. The rock contractors who use large quantities of 60 to 80 per cent. explosives and do all firing electrically were thoroughly instructed as to the proper methods of doing their work, and closer supervision was given to their work. The manufacturer's representatives stressed the importance of the use of galvanometers; accordingly these were purchased and used. Larger firing lines were installed under the supervision of a demonstrator of the company manufacturing the caps and explosives. However, misfires again occurred and it was evident that the source of the trouble was not wholly

Jan 1, 1930

By J. R. Lucas, H. E. Rutherford

The primary objective of this research was to evaluate the feasibility of ultrasonic testing for the purpose of analyzing the structure and properties of rock material. A secondary objective of this study was to determine experimentally the elastic wnstants of various rock specimens with the use of ultrasonic equipment. Elastic constants can definitely be determined quickly and accurately by ultrasonic investigation. With proper equipment there are indications that ultrasonic waves could be utilized in the detection of flaws, such as fractures and planes of weakness, measurement of thickness, and the study of structure of rock material. Ultrasonic principles have been applied in many industries for the purpose of determining the structural characteristics of various materials. The principal applications of interest here are detecting flaws, measuring thicknesses, and determining elastic constants. The main advantage of ultrasonic analysis is that it is nondestructive. It also has extreme sensitivity, high penetrability, good accuracy, rapid response, and the necessity to have access to only one side of the specimen. These various applications and advantages lead one to think that ultrasonic principles might be applied to rock material in situ for purposes of analyzing its structural characteristics. Therefore, the primary objective of this research was to evaluate the feasibility of ultrasonic testing for the purpose of analyzing the structure and properties of rock material. A secondary objective of this research was to determine experimentally the elastic constants of various rock specimens with the use of ultrasonic equipment. The term ultrasonics is given to that branch of acoustics dealing with periodic sounds whose fre- quencies are above the audible range or above approximately 15,.000 to 20,000 cps. The first practical production of this high frequency sound was made possible after World War I due to developments of electronically controlled sound wave sources. At the present, the maximum practically attainable ultrasonic frequency is approximately 1000 megacycles per sec. Sound waves of sufficiently high frequency can be made to travel in a beam with little spreading. Therefore, such a beam can explore a material and detect nonhomogeneities in it by reflection. This is the principle of the ultrasonic reflectoscope invented by F. A. Firestone' in 1942. An ultrasonic beam, on pulse-penetratink a solid material medium, produces an echo when it strikes a flaw which has different acoustical properties than the surrounding medium. This echo can be detected by the same transducer which sends out the original pulse. This principle is the basis of the important industrial techniques of nondestructive ultrasonic testing of metals and other solid material. Later developments in the field of ultrasonic testing of solid material have been mostly improvements in equipment and instrumentation. To date, most of the industrial applications of ultrasonic analysis of solid bodies have been in the aircraft, electrical, and nuclear energy fields on the nondestructive testing of metal. The one solid material similar somewhat to rock material, upon which some work has been done to apply ultrasonic testing techniques to study structural integrity, is concrete. Jones and Gatfield3 briefly summarize this work on concrete. Their basic conclusion was that the strength of concrete was a function of the change of the longitudinal sound wave velocity in the concrete. Only recently has any extensive study been made to apply ultrasonic testing techniques to rock material. Lutsch studied rock material by an ultrasonic pulse method to determine the extent and degree of fracture of rock faces. Lutsch states that the number of observed reflections is a measure of the degree of fracture and that only ultrasonic waves are able to detect fractured zones subjected to high pressure. Suzuki, Sasaki, and Siohara5 studied the characteristics of the sonic wave in rock for propagation over a wide range of wave lengths. They indicated that, in rock, the propagation constant and attenuation of the

Jan 1, 1962

By John R. Keith

Lead and zinc contents of elm, maple, and oak trees and of soils in which the trees grew were determined in samples from the Upper Mississippi Valley mining district, and from an area outside but contiguous to the district. The lead and zinc analyses of plant materials served to differentiate the mineralized and nonminer-alized areas. Stems contained about two times as much lead and about two to five times as much zinc as did leaves taken from the same stems. Lead and zinc analyses of all soil horizons could be used to differentiate between the two areas. Soils at most sample sites in the mineralized district seemed to be more reliable than plants for geochemical prospecting and are a more practical sampling medium. Soil samples from areas with thick loess cover, however, failed to indicate the presence of mineralized bodies whereas tree samples from the same sites contained anomalous amounts of lead and zinc. It is suggested that in areas of thick loess cover, plant samples could be used in prospecting for lead and zinc. The important part that plants play in the cycling of elements through the soil horizons is well-known. The concentration of elements in the upper soil horizons by the action of plants has been called the Goldschmidt enrichment principle.' The fact that plant species vary greatly in their ability to concentrate particular elements in their tissues is also well-known.' Agricultural literature has dealt extensively with relationships of the major nutritive elements in soils and plants3 The extent, however, to which plant actions cycle the minor nutritive and the nonmetabolic elements in the soil has not been adequately investigated. Lead is non-nutritive and toxic to plants, whereas zinc is a micronutrient in low, but toxic in high, concentrations.4 This report presents the results of a biogeochemical study concerned with the amounts of lead and zinc in some plants and soils that occurred both within and adjacent to the Upper Mississippi Valley lead-zinc district. Field work for this study was done in the summers of 1961 and 1962. SAMPLE TARGETS AND CHEMICAL ANALYSES Geologic and physiographic descriptions of' the district have been made by Heyl 5 and several other authors in a series of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reports and quadrangle maps.6-I Sedimentary rocks, mostly dolomite, limestone, shale, and sandstone, of Cambrian, Ordovician, and Silurian age predominate in the area. Mineral deposits are of the vein and cavity-fill type; the principal ore minerals are galena and sphalerite. Vegetation of the area was characterized by Curtis1 6 as southern hardwood forest interspersed with patches of oak savanna and prairie. Plant genera typical of the eastern United States Temperate Zone, including ash, cherry, dogwood, elm, hackberry, hickory, maple, oak, and other woody and herbaceous genera, are present. The natural vegetation has been greatly modified by agricultural, logging, and mining operations. The species of the original flora are present, but not in their former relative abundance. Soils of this district belong, for the most part, to the Brunizem and Gray-Brown Podzolic great soil groups. The Brunizems are the soils developed under prairie vegetation.'' The Gray-Brown Podzolics are the soils developed under deciduous forests,18 They are derived from both bedrock and from loess parent materials, and

Jan 1, 1970