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By B. S. Butler

AN understanding of mineralizing solutions and how they carry and deposit metals is of prime importance to students of ore deposits. Lindgren states: "The whole problem surely is very complicated. One difficulty is that we know so little about the stability field of ore minerals."1 Lindgren further states: It is believed that they [the solutions] were in small part oxidized to sulphates, for instance, but in large part they were composed of hydrogen sulphide, alkaline sulphides and various halogen compounds. Doubtless, however, free carbon dioxide was present. Becker's view of the double sulphides as important constituents of the solutions probably holds good. In the fourth edition of Mineral Deposits2 Lindgren had changed his views somewhat: From the work of Day, Allen, Shepard, and others, it would seem probable that many of the volcanic gases are acid when given off but are in unstable equilibrium, and could not have preserved this acid character after having been long in contact with the surrounding rocks. It is believed that they were in small part oxidized to sulphates, for instance, but in larger part they were composed of hydrogen sulphides, alkaline sulphide, and various halogen compounds. Doubtless, however, free carbon dioxide was present. Becker's view of double alkaline sulphides as important constituents of the solution probably holds good. The writer wonders if progress would not result from an attack on the problem in steps, the steps to contribute to the attack on the whole. The initial step would deal with the simpler bodies of supposed magmatic (hydrothermal) origin, that is, those composed essentially of silicates, oxides, sulfates, and sulfides. The following discussion attempts to develop one step of a method that was proposed on a more comprehensive scale in 1929 by the writer and W. S. Burbank.3 The accompanying partial table (Table I) of the electromotive series is from a table distributed by Merck & Co. Inc., manufacturing chemists, prepared in turn from Fundamental Chemistry.& The electromotive arrangement brings together elements that in hypogene ore deposits occur: 1) in oxygen combination only; 2) in combination with sulfur as well as with oxygen; and 3) as sulfides, arsenides etc., and as native metals, see Table 11. The writer clearly recognizes that he is not qualified to discuss the formation of ore deposits as a chemical problem, but he feel that some of the relations that are met by the geologist can well be stated with the hope that the chemical explanation will be forthcoming. By consideration of a group including mainly the elements oxygen, hydrogen, sulfur and iron, complications are avoided, especially with elements of the lower electromotive group. The results can only contribute to the solution of the problem, not to the completion of it. The pH and Eh of the solutions and also temperature probably determine what minerals form. The mineral groups that contain elements high in the electromotive series are alumino-silicates, titanites, simple silicates, spinels, oxides, carbonates and sulfates, in all of which the elements are combined with oxygen. These groups are also recognized as the general order of temperature at which the minerals start to form, see Table 11. At low temperature are sulfides, arsenides, antimonides, sulfo-salts, and native metals, in all of which the elements are characteristically not combined with oxygen. The intermediate temperature group contains elements that form both oxygen compounds and sulfur compounds.

Jan 1, 1957

By Michael Chender

INTRODUCTION The project financing described elsewhere in this book is available to major mining companies on the basis of a strong balance sheet, a significant equity position in a project of proven feasibility, and a demonstrated ability to bring ore deposits into production. "Junior" mining companies, which are most active in Canada, Australia, the US, and South Africa, by definition do not meet these criteria. In many cases, junior companies will need to raise money simply to cover the costs of acquiring and exploring potential deposits. In what follows we will look primarily at junior financing practices in the US and Canada, although the same general principles will apply in Australia and South Africa. The principal vehicles for junior mine company financing are limited partnerships, the private placement of securities and debentures, and public offering of securities, and property deals with stronger companies, in the form of leases, earn-ins and co-ventures. The cost (in terms of dollars or equity) and, to some extent, the applicability of using these difficult approaches varies with the stage of development of the property and with the corresponding degree of risk to the investor. Much junior company fund raising is, in fact, "interim" financing in that it allows the company to improve its properties and develop its assets to the stage where more favorable financing arrangements may become available. Companies will therefore often use several of the approaches described above during the development life of a specific property. LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS Limited partnerships and syndications are a popular way of structuring the initial private financing of mine developments because of their attractive tax consequences for the well-to-do investor. Costs of exploration and development can in many countries be passed through as deductions to the limited partners, who are thus able to gamble on a possible windfall at little real cost. In addition to private Canadian funds, much German money flowed into Canadian exploration ventures on this basis, but stopped in 1982 due to economic conditions in West Germany. In the US, recent regulations have, in the great majority of cases, taken away the ability to "shelter" income in mining limited partnerships. Deductions taken by the individual investor cannot exceed the amount of money he actually has at risk. Nevertheless, the allowable deductions are still attractive and some of the major mining companies are now beginning to look at limited partnerships as a vehicle for attracting additional exploration funding. Ranchers Exploration and Development has successfully put together several drilling funds on this basis. THE PRIVATE PLACEMENT Initial funding for the acquisition and preliminary exploration of prospects is often accomplished through a private placement of unregistered securities or, where it is not a problem to carry debt on the statement, by a private placement sale of debentures. A fledgling company wishing to do a public offering may well be advised by an underwriter to accomplish a small private placement as a precondition of the larger offering. In this way, the sale of the registered securities is not inhibited by the company starting out with a debt-ridden balance sheet and no demonstrated ability to secure the additional financing generally necessary beyond the proceeds of that offering. In the US, the securities offered in a private placement are not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (S.E.C.) but are restricted as to their resale, and could be further restricted by a underwriting agreement

Jan 1, 1985

By J. F. Gormley

Drill pipe, and the connections used to join the pipe together, have had a long history of development and improvement. With the growing use of high tensile-strength pipe, the rotary shouldered connections used to join the lengths of drill pipe have become more critical. Fatigue-type failures of rotary-shouldered connections, or tool joints, have become a cause of much conern to operators and manufacturers. Most fatigue tests on tool joints have been made on the basis of bending moment applied vs number of cycles, rather than on the basis of stress vs cycles. A desire to learn more about the nature of stress in a tool joint due to bending caused a rather intensive experimental study to determine what actually happens to cause fatigue failure. It was known that a tool joint with insufficient make-up torque was subject to early fatigue failure. Therefore, the establishment of the relationship between make-up torque and allowable bending moment would enable a testing engineer to better correlate the results of various tests. The problem of calculating the stress in a tool joint due to an applied bending moment was complicated by: the effect of unknown stress concentrations; the applicability of the well known formula S = Mc/I; and the question of whether to use the combined cross section of the pin and box in calculating the moment of inertia I. TEST EQUIPMENT The test equipment consisted of the following. 1. A lathe modified to act as a fatigue machine for full-size tool joint or drill-collar specimens. 2. An adapter plate bolted to the headstock of the lathe and into which a short adapter was screwed. 3. Tool-joint pins on sections of drill collars bucked into the adapter. 4. A hydraulic load cylinder which rested on the bed of the lathe and applied bending moments to the joints. 5. Paper-backed strain gauges (FAP-12-12, 1/8-in. gauge length and A-5-1, 1/2-in. gauge length). 6. Eastman 910 contact cement for bonding gauges to joint and Epoxylite 222 waterproofing. 7. A 12-position switchbox, SR-4 bridge balancing unit connected to an SR-4 strain indicator to read the gauge output. 8. A four-channel Sanborn recorder, Model 150, was used as the readout instrument for part of the testing. The fatigue machine was well suited as a loading device. Because of the long lever arm available, the change of moment with distance was small; consequently, the vertical shear stress was small, less than 300 psi. Some difficulty was experienced with the hydraulic load cylinder at high bending moments due to leakage. The strain gauge equipment was simple and quite reliable. A 41/2-in. extra hole (E. H.) joint with "as machined" threads and shoulders and a 2 7/8-in. internal flush (I. F.) joint with copper-plated threads and shoulders were selected for testing because of their common usage in the field. In addition, the 4 1/2-in. E. H. was suitable because it had an inside diameter large enough to permit the insertion and accurate positioning of strain gauges without using special jigs, while the 2 7/8-in. I. F. joint required much lower bending loads to cause separation of the shoulders of the joint when made up to the recommended torque. The joints were made to standard API specifications, except for very small bevels on the box and pin shoulders and cylindrical stress-relief grooves added to the pins. Larger bevels would have

By T. Lane Carter

It is a curious fact that while in our Transactions there are papers dealing with mining-districts in all parts of the world, in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia, there is not one which describes the mining possibilities of Nicaragua, our near neighbor. To be most interested in distant objects, like the moon, and to neglect what lies at our feet, appears to be a trait of human nature. The neglect of Nicaragua is not confined to the American Institute of Mining Engineers. In no other transactions am I able to find papers dealing with mining in Nicaragua, some parts of which are as much in need of discovery and research as the North Pole. I hope this paper will be the precursor of many others to be printed in our Transaclions, dealing not only with the miniilg possibilities of Nicaragua, but with the whole of Central America, where there are vast areas a,waiting skill and capital for their development. Much of this capital and skill should come from the United States in the future, although it is probable that European capitalists, when they appreciate fully the possibilities, will investigate more and more the mining-resources of Nicaragua and ot'her Central American republics. Fig. 1 is a sketch-map of Nicaragua showing the principal mining-districts. 11. History. Mining in Nicaragua did not begin yesterday. It was commenced by civilized man when the Spanish conquerors pene-' trated into the interior and forced the natives to procure the precious metal for them. It is strange that the Spaniards did not find more gold, and work on a scale as extensive as in Colombia and other parts of South America. Probably in Nicaragua the Indians covered up most of the rich prospects

Jan 1, 1911

By R. D. Pehlke, J. V. Gluck

A study was made of the effect of small additions of metallic solutes on the thermodynamic activity of zinc in dilute solution with molten bismuth in the range 450o to 650°C. The experimental measurements were made in a multielectrode galvanic cell using. a fused LiCl-KCl electrolyte. The activity of zinc in binary solution exhibited a strong positive deviation from Raoult's law and obeyed Henry 's law to at least 0.050 mole fraction. The ternary addition of lead, gallium, or indium increased the activity of zinc. Cadmium or tin additions slightly decreased the zinc activity. Copper, mercury, silver, or antimony caused moderate decreases, while gold strongly decreased the zinc activity. The results are expressed in terms of Wagner's interaction parameter ejZn and a second-order cross-interaction parameter. The interactions for copper, gold, silver, and antimony showed a linear dependence with reciprocal absolute temperature, while the other interactions were essentially independent of temperature over the experimental range. Since tin and antimony decreased the zinc activity, the hypothesis of a purely periodic variation with atomic number was rejected. A semiquantitative explanation was possible with a free-electron model when relative electronegativities were used to express changes in the electron/atom ratio caused by the solute addition. Random solution and quasi-chemical models correctly predicted the majority of the interactions for which binary data were available to apply them. A knowledge of the thermodynamic interactions in liquid (and solid) metallic solutions is of considerable theoretical and experimental interest in the formulation of quantitative thermodynamic relations for metallurgical processes. The approaches to defining the interactions may be either phenomenological (i.e., "What mathematical function adequately describes observed behavior and permits extrapolation to new situations?") or theoretical, such as a specific model

Jan 1, 1968

By Edward Chapman

IN the Leadville district toward the close of the "intermediate mesothermal period" of mineralization, there occurred a stage of ore deposition marked by a rather complex mineral association. As bismuth minerals formed in many places during this period, it is here called the "bismuth stage" for convenience of description. The minerals so far identified with this stage, listed roughly in the order of prominence, are: chalco-pyrite; several varieties of galena, differing slightly from one another in their small contents of silver, bismuth and tellurium; altaite; hessite; galenobismutite; alaskaite; aikinite; gold; tennantite; argentite; and perhaps sphalerite and arsenopyrite. With the exception of gold, the age relations of these minerals are difficult to determine. As shown in their descriptions, they all appear contemporaneous and hypogene. Gold may be in part contemporaneous, but most of it is distinctly later. Where minerals of this stage occur so that they can be mined alone, as at the Tucson mine, they constitute high-grade ore. Elsewhere their presence in small amounts has served to increase greatly the value of what otherwise would be low-grade pyritic or zinc-lead sulphide ore. The distribution of the bismuth ores corresponds closely to the distribution of gold ores, though not so general. It seems probable that most of the gold in the district was deposited during the "bismuth stage." These ores occur relatively near the supposed centers of mineralization in Breece and Printer Boy Hills or deep down along the Tucson-Maid fault, which is one of the well recognized channels of mineralization in the Iron Hill and Graham Park areas- Consideration of the high-grade nature of this mineralization and the fact that it appears to be found relatively close to the source of mineralization suggests that prospecting along some of the known channels, even deeper than they have yet been prospected, may offer hope of commercial success.

Jan 1, 1939

By Oscar E. Harder, H. A. Grove

It is now just a quarter of a century since Fred W. Taylor§(23) pub-lished his classical paper On the Art of Cutting Metals, describing his researches in which he, in cooperation with Maunsel White, had developed what is essentially the modern method of heat-treatring high-speed steels. Regarding this research, Dr. Sauveur,(22) in his address on Steel Wizards, Past and Present, at the annual banquet of the American Society for Steel Treating in Philadelphia in 1920 said, "The discovery of high-speed steel, or if you prefer, of the treatment imparting high-speed properties to certain steels by Taylor and Maunsel White I am inclined to consider as our one epoch-making contribution to the metallurgy of steel." It was at about that same time (1900) that Taylor exhibited high-speed steels, heat-treated by the improved process, at the World's Exposition in Paris and attracted much attention by showing that the steels would operate at such feeds and speeds that the tips of the tools were visibly red hot. This observation must have started metallurgists to wondering regarding the relative hardness of the various steels at red-heat temperatures. Considerable work has indeed been done in an effort to measure the hardness of high-speed steels and related materials in the red-heat range, using various methods. The result's, however, have been only partly satisfactory, owing to experimental difficulties. The present investigation had as it's immediate inception an address by J. V. Emmons, of the Cleveland Twist Drill Co., to the Columbus Chapter of the American Society for Steel Treating in 1931, in which he deplored the fact that comparatively little was known with regard to the hardness of high-speed steels at elevated temperatures, in spite

Jan 1, 1933

By H. H. Evinger, M. Muskat

Although the shooting of oil wells for the purpose of increasing production has been practiced since 1866, present-day shooting technique has been arrived at almost wholly by a process of trial and error. The difficulties attending either a theoretical analysis of the problem or an experimental attack become apparent when one actually embarks on a theoretical investigation or attempts to formulate an intelligent experimental program. The literature on the subject consists mainly of descriptions of current practice, scattered eye-witness accounts of events following the shooting of a well, and vague speculations on the mechanical processes involved. In contrast to quarry blasting, the results of oil-well shooting cannot be determined by means of visual inspection, and it is perhaps for this reason that only one attempt at what approaches a direct experimental attack has been reported in the literature.' In these experiments, charges of liquid nitroglycerin were exploded in holes drilled in a sandstone outcrop. In order to observe the character and extent of the resulting fractures, the rock was blasted away so as to expose the original shot holes. After all this had been done it was found impossible to distinguish the fracturing due to the original shots from that due to the subsequent blasting. The enlargement of the holes due to the pulverizing action of the shots was measured and an attempt was made to determine the effectiveness if sand tamping. Only five shots were made and few definite conclusions could be drawn. Some small-scale experiments to deter-mine the effect of tamping were performed by Snelling and IIalL2 Small charges (zo grams) of dynamite were detonated at the bottom of a cylindrical hole in a lead block and the resulting enlargement of the hole was taken as a measure of the effectiveness of the explosion. It was found that when the shot was tamped with a sufficient amount of sand or clay, the volume enlargement was approximately double that found when no stemming had been used. The properties of the explosives have been the subject of much study by the manufacturers, the U. S. Bureau of Mines, and various other agencies. For example, velocities of detonation for many commercial explosives are to be found in the Blasters' Handbook, issued by the Du Pont company. Many other properties are given in a treatise on the subject by Naoum.~ The shock wave that accompanies the detonation of high explosives has been studied photographically by Payman4 and others. The hydrodynamical theory of the shock wave has received much attention, and an extended theoretical treatment is given by Bateman.6 Two aspects of the well-shooting problem will be considered in this paper; namely, the fracturing of subsurface strata, and possible damage to casing. With respect to the former of these, several calculations have been made giving the stresses in the rocks surrounding the shot. In order to arrive at numerical results at all, however, it is necessary to introduce a great many simplifying

Jan 1, 1941

By George R. Elliott

Methods are presented for measuring and comparing "degree" of water drive, and for observing the control that rate of withdrawal exerts over decline of reservoir pressure. Degree of water drive is studied from pressure-production curves of 10 reservoirs; the method used to present these comparatively is to convert cumulative oil production from barrels to percentage of ultimate. Degree of water drive is also represented by a "water-encroachment factor," representing barrels of water influx per pound-month per acre-foot of oil reservoir. Pressure-production curves for the water-drive reservoirs after a period of declining pressure show a diminishing angle of slope, in some cases to the point where pressure ceases to decline or where it even increases; the shapes of these curves are in marked contrast to the dissolved-gas type of curve, which shows a general trend toward zero pressure at ultimate oil recovery. Yearly rate of oil production in percentage of ultimate oil recovery is correlated with pressure decline. The correct rate of production of oil with its associated gas and water sustains pressure in reservoirs having a high water-encroachment factor. For reservoirs having a low water-encroachment factor, it is necessary to inject the produced water and even inject large volumes of water from an outside source. The discussion of the actual reservoirs is preceded by a general review and is followed by a substantial bibliography. It is now generally accepted that water drive is capable of yielding 60 to 80 per cent of the original oil in place in most reservoirs, as compared with 20 to 40 per cent for dissolved-gas drive. There is no need to question the importance of controlling a reservoir in order to take advantage of such an efficient mechanism. What is a water-drive reservoir? Oil reservoirs usually combine two or more of the four basic mechanisms: dissolved-gas drive, gas-cap drive, water drive, gravity drainage. A water-drive reservoir is one in which water advances to take the place of the oil and gas produced. When the oil withdrawal rate is sufficiently low, the water will tend to maintain pressure. The maximum effectiveness is attained when the water follows the oil withdrawal so closely that little or no decline in pressure occurs. Oil in its underground reservoir is associated with water. This water is significant in the production of the oil according to the source of supply and the permeability of the surrounding formation. As oil is produced and the pressure is lowered, water can move in to replace the oil. With adequate supply and sufficient permeability, actual movement takes place on an extensive scale. The first movement of water takes place by expansion of the water and its associated fluids. While this expansion is of little importance in some fields, in others it is sufficient to supply all of the energy required for the production of oil. When a pressure differential has been established

Jan 1, 1946

By J. S. Bryner

INTRODUCTION IN the study of metallographic specimens in the electron microscope, there is need for a method of locating the same field in both the light microscope and the electron microscope. This need arises chiefly from the fact that in the electron microscope the magnification and degree of resolution are so much higher, and the field so much smaller than in the light microscope that it is often difficult, if not impossible, to identify positively what is being observed. The difficulty is increased by the fact that, because a transparent film replica of the metal surface must be used in the electron microscope, micro-constituents can be identified not by their color but only by their texture and contours. For these reasons it is desirable to obtain a series of photographs showing the same field in both microscopes in order that the appearance of common microstructures and micro-constituents in the electron microscope may be identified and catalogued for future reference. The need for a method of locating the same field in both microscopes arises also when it becomes desirable to enlarge in the electron microscope for more detailed study a particular interesting structure observed in the light microscope. Using the standard polystyrene-silica1,2 replica technique, in which the silica film replica is fished from the ethyl bromide on a 1/3 in. diam 200-mesh specimen screen, the possibilities of locating a particular area on the film in the electron microscope are rather remote. The desired structure may be obscured by the wires of the specimen screen or unrecognizable at the high magnification. A solution to the problem would be provided if a specially designed specimen screen, containing an opening which could be absolutely identified and quickly located in the electron microscope, could be fastened to the silica film replica in such a position that the desired field on the specimen would be located at the identifiable opening in the specimen screen. The design for such a specimen screen, a method for producing it, and a technique for fastening it to the silica film replica are described below. DESCRIPTION OF METHOD The Specimen Screen A simple design for a specimen screen containing an opening easy to identify and locate in the electron microscope is one with two lines of openings at right angles in the form of a cross. Such a screen is shown in Fig I. The opening at the center of the cross is identified easily and can be located quickly in the light microscope and in the objective image of the electron microscope. The specially designed specimen screens for this work were produced in quantity by electroforming. On both sides of a polished strip of copper 1 X 3 X 1/8 in., twenty patterns of the cross of openings were punched with a diamond point micro-hardness tester, using a load of magnitude

Jan 1, 1948

By F. L. Kadey

The petrographic microscope is a well known tool in nonmetallic materials research. Its utility in the study of perlite is, therefore, not surprising. Valuable information has been derived on samples smaller than those needed by most other methods of analysis. Relatively little has been written about the petrographic analysis of perlite for two chief reasons: perlite is a material of relatively new commercial interest; and the independent prospector or expander, responsible for most studies, attacks the problem from an immediately practical viewpoint. Hence, petrographic studies of perlite have been limited to academic aspects. Rapid development of commercial interest in perlite has changed the situation. Mining and expanding companies now have effective research tools; and such instruments as the petrographic microscope have added materially to practical knowledge about this mineral. Petrographic techniques employed in the search for suitable deposits screen worthless samples rapidly and inexpensively compared with large-scale expanding tests. Hence, only samples of potential quality are selected for further testing. Field appearance of perlite reveals little about its true identity and practically nothing about its commercial significance. Consequently, any method that can be used to separate the "wheat from the chaff" is valuable. In addition to the conventional thin-section and immersion methods used in evaluation of crude perlite, petrographic microscope techniques have contributed to the study of expanded perlite. When apparently similar materials behave as differently in use as perlites, the internal structure of the individual particles becomes a subject of great interest. The purpose of this paper is to discuss some of the petrographic techniques used to characterize this material. WHAT IS PERLITE AND WHERE IS IT FOUND? Perlite was at first described as a glassy rhyolite possessing a pearl-like luster and exhibiting numerous concentric cracks resembling an onion skin appearance.' Fig. 1 is an illustration of perlite in this classical sense. Recently, its definition has taken on a commercial connotation: an acid volcanic containing 2 to 5% of combined water that, when heated rapidly to the softening point of the glass, coincident with the volatilization of the combined water, expands or "pops". Fig. 2, although hardly fitting the classical description given by Johannsen, is an excellent perlite in the commercial sense. It may occur as a breccia in rhyolite, (Fig. 3) and sometimes it is associated with obsidian nodules, as illustrated in Fig. 4. The term perlite includes the expanded product also. In the United States, perlitic rocks are restricted to the western part of the country. 2 Elsewhere in the northern hemisphere, European occurrences follow a belt beginning in Iceland and extending in a southeasterly direction through Scotland, County Antrim in Northern Ireland, and through the Massif Central of France, Germany, and Hungary; thence, into Italy and Sardinia, and through some of the Aegean Islands. A general oriental belt extends from Japan through Australia and New Zealand. Rhyolitic areas elsewhere in the world undoubtedly contain perlite.

Jan 1, 1963

By George R. Elliott

Methods are presented for measuring and comparing "degree" of water drive, and for observing the control that rate of withdrawal exerts over decline of reservoir pressure. Degree of water drive is studied from pressure-production curves of 10 reservoirs; the method used to present these comparatively is to convert cumulative oil production from barrels to percentage of ultimate. Degree of water drive is also represented by a "water-encroachment factor," representing barrels of water influx per pound-month per acre-foot of oil reservoir. Pressure-production curves for the water-drive reservoirs after a period of declining pressure show a diminishing angle of slope, in some cases to the point where pressure ceases to decline or where it even increases; the shapes of these curves are in marked contrast to the dissolved-gas type of curve, which shows a general trend toward zero pressure at ultimate oil recovery. Yearly rate of oil production in percentage of ultimate oil recovery is correlated with pressure decline. The correct rate of production of oil with its associated gas and water sustains pressure in reservoirs having a high water-encroachment factor. For reservoirs having a low water-encroachment factor, it is necessary to inject the produced water and even inject large volumes of water from an outside source. The discussion of the actual reservoirs is preceded by a general review and is followed by a substantial bibliography. It is now generally accepted that water drive is capable of yielding 60 to 80 per cent of the original oil in place in most reservoirs, as compared with 20 to 40 per cent for dissolved-gas drive. There is no need to question the importance of controlling a reservoir in order to take advantage of such an efficient mechanism. What is a water-drive reservoir? Oil reservoirs usually combine two or more of the four basic mechanisms: dissolved-gas drive, gas-cap drive, water drive, gravity drainage. A water-drive reservoir is one in which water advances to take the place of the oil and gas produced. When the oil withdrawal rate is sufficiently low, the water will tend to maintain pressure. The maximum effectiveness is attained when the water follows the oil withdrawal so closely that little or no decline in pressure occurs. Oil in its underground reservoir is associated with water. This water is significant in the production of the oil according to the source of supply and the permeability of the surrounding formation. As oil is produced and the pressure is lowered, water can move in to replace the oil. With adequate supply and sufficient permeability, actual movement takes place on an extensive scale. The first movement of water takes place by expansion of the water and its associated fluids. While this expansion is of little importance in some fields, in others it is sufficient to supply all of the energy required for the production of oil. When a pressure differential has been established

Jan 1, 1946

By M. Muskat, H. H. Evinger

Although the shooting of oil wells for the purpose of increasing production has been practiced since 1866, present-day shooting technique has been arrived at almost wholly by a process of trial and error. The difficulties attending either a theoretical analysis of the problem or an experimental attack become apparent when one actually embarks on a theoretical investigation or attempts to formulate an intelligent experimental program. The literature on the subject consists mainly of descriptions of current practice, scattered eye-witness accounts of events following the shooting of a well, and vague speculations on the mechanical processes involved. In contrast to quarry blasting, the results of oil-well shooting cannot be determined by means of visual inspection, and it is perhaps for this reason that only one attempt at what approaches a direct experimental attack has been reported in the literature.' In these experiments, charges of liquid nitroglycerin were exploded in holes drilled in a sandstone outcrop. In order to observe the character and extent of the resulting fractures, the rock was blasted away so as to expose the original shot holes. After all this had been done it was found impossible to distinguish the fracturing due to the original shots from that due to the subsequent blasting. The enlargement of the holes due to the pulverizing action of the shots was measured and an attempt was made to determine the effectiveness if sand tamping. Only five shots were made and few definite conclusions could be drawn. Some small-scale experiments to deter-mine the effect of tamping were performed by Snelling and IIalL2 Small charges (zo grams) of dynamite were detonated at the bottom of a cylindrical hole in a lead block and the resulting enlargement of the hole was taken as a measure of the effectiveness of the explosion. It was found that when the shot was tamped with a sufficient amount of sand or clay, the volume enlargement was approximately double that found when no stemming had been used. The properties of the explosives have been the subject of much study by the manufacturers, the U. S. Bureau of Mines, and various other agencies. For example, velocities of detonation for many commercial explosives are to be found in the Blasters' Handbook, issued by the Du Pont company. Many other properties are given in a treatise on the subject by Naoum.~ The shock wave that accompanies the detonation of high explosives has been studied photographically by Payman4 and others. The hydrodynamical theory of the shock wave has received much attention, and an extended theoretical treatment is given by Bateman.6 Two aspects of the well-shooting problem will be considered in this paper; namely, the fracturing of subsurface strata, and possible damage to casing. With respect to the former of these, several calculations have been made giving the stresses in the rocks surrounding the shot. In order to arrive at numerical results at all, however, it is necessary to introduce a great many simplifying

Jan 1, 1941

By William Campbell

In the olden days the making of alloys was an art, and the secrete of the craft were jealously guarded. To-day it has become a science, though the old ideas in regard to the secrets and formulæ are dying hard. Modern progress may be attributed to scientific research and testing of materials, and the substitution of chemical analytical control for " cook-book " methods. We know to-day a great deal about the constitution of alloys, the reasons of the change in structure and physical properties by heat and mechanical treatment; and this new knowledge is due for the most part to the physical chemist and metallographist, who have shown us that alloys are simply solutions, and as such obey definite laws. The application of the theories of solutions and of the phase rule tells us what ought to happen when our alloys are in a state of equilibrium. The working-out of the temperature-composition diagram (thermal diagram) for numerous alloys has thrown a light on the structure and constitution which has dispelled most of the darkness in which we labored before the advent of metallography. The work began with the determination of the freezing-point curves, and here the research of Le Chatelier,' Gautier,2 Roberts-Austen,3 and the other pioneers broke the ground. Next the physical chemists, Tammann,4 Rooseboom,5 Bancroft,6 and their colleagues, showed us the complete thermal diagram and its meaning. Then the researches of Heycock and Neville7 on the Cu-Sn series and of Shepherd 8 on the

Jan 1, 1913

By George Holderer

THE Enos Coal Mining Co. owns an area underlaid by coal, of approximately 5000 acres. This property is situated 9 miles from Oakland City, in the southern part of Indiana. The mine has been in operation 5 years, during which time some 350 acres have been stripped, and stripping is now proceeding at the rate of about 100 acres per year. TOPOGRAPHY These coal lands consist of gently-rolling agricultural fields which in times past were farmed for wheat. There is no timber and but very little brush to contend with. The overburden varies from 10 to 60 ft. in depth. A thin bed of slate overlies the coal, followed by limestone, which varies from 3 to 15 ft.; this, in turn, is followed by sandstone, slate, shale and clay. There is a very wide variation in the thickness of all of these beds. The coal has an average thickness of 5 ft., and is a good grade of high-volatile bituminous. MINING OPERATIONS Briefly, the sequence of operations is: drilling holes with churn drills; blasting with L. 0. X.; stripping overburden to, uncover coal and, finally taking up the coal, which is sent to a tipple for cleaning and sizing. In order to show what is being accomplished by the use of L. 0. X., results will be shown from May to November, 1926, inclusive, and compared to the same period in 1925. No work was done in No. 1 pit during May, 1925, hence all figures are unduly low for this month.

Jan 2, 1927

By S.H. Ash, P.S. Miller

Extensive and diversified resources justify large populations and great industries. To carry on the business of commerce and meet the demands of large populations, the utilization of tunnels in some form for transportation purposes constitutes an important link in modern civilization. The driving of tunnels has been appropriated by the tunneling branch of the heavy-construction industry, and the progressive steps taken by modern tunnel builders were not even dreamed of 50 years ago. Great strides have been made toward more rapid progress in tunneling in the United States during the past I0 years. Tunneling consists of a definite cycle of operations developed from ideas that are crystallized and translated into action programs through various engineering phases that begin with the first preliminary survey and do not end until the job is completed. Once the line of the bore is established and a time set for the completion of the work, the face must advance according to estimates prepared before the work commences. This schedule must be followed in regular sequence from the moment the drills start against a new face of rock until they are ready again to drill the Succdeding face, constituting a round. Mining is largely tunneling carried on under conditions often more inherently hazardous than actual tunnel construction, but for various reasons" tunne1ing is more hazardous than mining in any branch of the mineral industry. On the other hand, obstacles are sometimes encountered in heavy-construction tunneling projects that when met in mining enterprises do not offer comparable tasks to avoid or overcome them. One is the existence of water under high pressures. In mining enterprises, various alternatives offer a solution in driving a tunnel, even to the extent of its discontinuance or the abandonment of the mine, but a "construction" tunnel usually must go forward because some important project depends largely if not entirely upon it. This paper describes an unusual method of driving a water-supply tunnel through rock carrying water under pressures and conditions that did not permit the use of ordinary tunneling methods. The Delaware Aqueduct The new Delaware aqueduct is a Manhattan project of some magnitude; when regular it will contain what probably will be, for some time to come, the longest tunnel in the world. Various features in its construction are currently described in the trade journals of the construction industry, and informative engineering details are given in the Delaware Water Supply News, published twice a month by the Board of Water Supply of the City of New York. Work was begun on this project on March 24, 1937. The tunnel will convey water from reservoirs at the headwaters of the Delaware River to the City of New York.

Jan 1, 1943

By John L. Ham, Robert M. Parke

THE melting point of molybdenum is 2625° ± 50°C. Heretofore the metal has been considered too refractory to be melted in commercial quantities; hence, it has been formed into rod, wire, and sheet by the methods of powder metallurgy, wherein the temperatures do not exceed 90 per cent of the melting temperature. The manipulation of liquid metals at temperatures of about 2000°C. and above presents some difficult problems in heat transfer, in purification, and in container materials. For metals melting at such high temperatures, it is generally regarded as expedient to circumvent the more common melting and casting process by resorting to powder metallurgy. This circumvention is not accomplished without some penalties, the more notable of which are the relatively high cost of the powder metallurgy method and particularly the size limitations of its product. In an effort to overcome the inherent disadvantages of the powder metallurgy method, especially in respect to the limit of size, a project was begun in 1943 at the Climax Molybdenum Co. laboratory to develop a method of melting and casting molybdenum capable of producing larger bodies of molybdenum than were then obtainable. Later, from Feb. 1, 1944, to Aug. 31, 1945, the project was under the supervision of the National Defense Research Committee, Division One. In peacetime, too, there are needs for molybdenum, which make consideration of another process desirable; for example, large parts for heat engines generally, the omnipresent demand for metal of higher quality and lower cost, and the development of molybdenum-base alloys. This paper describes methods for melting and casting molybdenum, with details of the special process needed to make molybdenum castings ductile, and reports some of the properties of what may be regarded as a new, or at least modified, form of the metal. FIRST PROCESS FOR MELTING AND CASTING MOLYBDENUM The maintenance of a temperature greater than 2625°C. in a space large enough to melt several pounds of molybdenum may involve the loss of heat at a very considerable rate. For melting molybdenum, therefore, the source of heat must be of high potential and of fairly high power. Evidently, also, the source of heat must not impair the purity of the product. The electric arc operating in vacuum appeared to meet these requirements and was accordingly the first choice as a source of energy. A number of arc devices for melting molybdenum were examined, and several were tried. In the first experiment, a 20-kw., 60-cycle-per-second alternating-current arc was operated between two horizontal and opposed electrodes of molybdenum. In this arrangement the falling droplets of molybdenum solidified below the arc in an irregular mass. This experiment did not produce a useful casting, but the data obtained indicated that

Jan 1, 1946

By P. S. Miller, S. H. Ash

Extensive and diversified resources justify large populations and great industries. To carry on the business of commerce and meet the demands of large populations, the utilization of tunnels in some form for transportation purposes constitutes an important link in modern civilization. The driving of tunnels has been appropriated by the tunneling branch of the heavy-construction industry, and the progressive steps taken by modern tunnel builders were not even dreamed of 50 years ago. Great strides have been made toward more rapid progress in tunneling in the United States during the past I0 years. Tunneling consists of a definite cycle of operations developed from ideas that are crystallized and translated into action programs through various engineering phases that begin with the first preliminary survey and do not end until the job is completed. Once the line of the bore is established and a time set for the completion of the work, the face must advance according to estimates prepared before the work commences. This schedule must be followed in regular sequence from the moment the drills start against a new face of rock until they are ready again to drill the Succdeding face, constituting a round. Mining is largely tunneling carried on under conditions often more inherently hazardous than actual tunnel construction, but for various reasons" tunne1ing is more hazardous than mining in any branch of the mineral industry. On the other hand, obstacles are sometimes encountered in heavy-construction tunneling projects that when met in mining enterprises do not offer comparable tasks to avoid or overcome them. One is the existence of water under high pressures. In mining enterprises, various alternatives offer a solution in driving a tunnel, even to the extent of its discontinuance or the abandonment of the mine, but a "construction" tunnel usually must go forward because some important project depends largely if not entirely upon it. This paper describes an unusual method of driving a water-supply tunnel through rock carrying water under pressures and conditions that did not permit the use of ordinary tunneling methods. The Delaware Aqueduct The new Delaware aqueduct is a Manhattan project of some magnitude; when regular it will contain what probably will be, for some time to come, the longest tunnel in the world. Various features in its construction are currently described in the trade journals of the construction industry, and informative engineering details are given in the Delaware Water Supply News, published twice a month by the Board of Water Supply of the City of New York. Work was begun on this project on March 24, 1937. The tunnel will convey water from reservoirs at the headwaters of the Delaware River to the City of New York.

Jan 1, 1943

By M. J. Mullikin, J. B. Conway

Several different equation forms were studied to determine the extent to which each particular equation type yielded an accurate representation of a given set of first-stage creep data. Specially developed least-squares computer programs were employed to obtain unique solutions for the creep-equation constants. In studies of creep data for lead at 14.5"C, nickel at 70OCC, and arc-cast tungsten at 2400°C consistently good representations were afforded by a third-degvee polynomial in t113. Other effective correlations were obtained with the Andrade, Cottrell-Aytekin, and de Lacombe equations along with a third-degree polynomial in t112. A newly proposed creep equation involving a hyperbolic-sine term in t1'3 was also found to yield very satisfactory results. This appears to be the first use of such a functional relationship in the analysis of transient creep behavior. In general, the deformation behavior of a material subjected to a tensile load is described in a strain-time plot. Experiments have shown that, following the instantaneous elongation which results on loading, the instantaneous slope (i.e., creep rate) of the strain-time curve decreases gradually with time and approaches what appears to be a constant value. Equations, therefore, which are proposed to provide an analytical representation of such first-stage or transient creep behavior must be consistent with these observations. In other words, at time zero, these equations must yield a finite deformation value corresponding to the elongation on loading. Furthermore, the first derivative of these equations must exhibit a fairly high although finite value at time zero, and then values which decrease with time. It is also preferable, in general, that the derivative eventually assume a constant value at high time values. Although many studies of first-stage creep behavior have been made and numerous equation forms have been proposed for expressing this type of deformation behavior, it is still not possible to state with any assurance which functional relationship will be adequate for a given set of measurements. Parabolic relationships have been employed most extensively although logarithmic expressions have been shown to be applicable in some instances. Combined forms1 have been studied in considerable detail and have on occasion been found to be very effective. One such expression is that of iXndradea and involves a modified parabolic expression: where 1 is the instantaneous length, lo is the length immediately following load application, t is the time, and p and k are constants. Another combined form has been proposed by weaver3 as follows: where E is the instantaneous strain, is is the linear creep rate, t is the time, and a and b are constants.

Jan 1, 1967

By John R. Low

A number of cases of low-temperature, intergranu2ar brittle fracture of metals containing small amounts of certain impurities, have now been identified. Some degree of understanding of this phenomenon exists for the simpler binary systems of a metal and a single impurity, but the profound effects of other impurities and alloying elements in modifying this type of behavior remain unexplained. Current research in this area is reviewed and some of the newer techniques of investigation which should make possible a more quantitative study of the structure and composition of grain boundaries in impure metals are described. To indicate the subject matter of this lecture, we may begin by reviewing the experimental observations concerning low-temperature intergranular brittleness in impure metals, particularly those examples in which the embrittlement appears to result from what has been called "equilibrium grain boundary segregation."' These are the systems in which it has been impossible, at least up to now, to detect the presence of any second phase film at the brittle interfaces. When second phase films are present they are usually readily detectable by fractographic methods, often appearing as epitaxial films in geometric or dendritic patterns. An example is shown in Fig. 1 for the case grain boundary carbides in a sensitized stainless steel which failed by intergranular brittle fracture at 78?k2 In contrast to this type of embrittlement there are numerous examples of low-temperature intergranular embrittlement in which the fractographs are essentially featureless, for example, that of an oxygen-embrittled iron shown in Fig. 2. The only second phase particles visible are the small, widely separated, round oxide particles typical of the bulk material. The fracture surface is extremely smooth and the fracture path appears to follow the intergranular interface without deviation. This type of fractograph also implies that crack propagation has occurred without plastic deformation at the crack tip, since localized slip or twinning ahead of the crack would be expected to distort the interface and be readily visible in the fractograph. Such indications are occasionally seen in these fractographs, but are not characteristic. A second example of this type of fractograph is shown in Fig. 3, which is from a temper-embrittled, carbon-free, Fe-Cr-Ni alloy containing Sb, broken at 1OO?C.3 The similarity to the oxygen embrittled iron case will be apparent. In the case of the temper embrittled Cr-Ni ferrite containing antimony, it is possible to remove the embrittlement by suitable thermal treatment. The grain boundaries may then be examined by thin film transmission in the electron microscope for the material in both the nonembrittled condition and in the embrittled condition. Two boundaries are shown in dark-field transmission in Fig. 4, one in the nonembrittled

Jan 1, 1970