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By Donald W. Scott

THE year just ended was the 50th anniversary of that first flight at Kittyhawk, N. C., in 1903. In this 50-year period the aviation industry made startling developments from flight distances of 120 ft-at snail's pace-to speeds of over 1300 mph and flights that circle the globe. And 1953 also was the 50th anniversary of the Utah Copper Co., the Father of our mass production porphyry copper ventures. How do developments in the mining industry stack up with the aviation industry? The mineral industry can be as proud of developments over the past 50 years as the aviation industry. Only for the developments of the mineral industry could aviation and other allied industries advance as they have. The year 1953 made its contribution to this progress, with the normal number of process and equipment developments and an abnormally high amount of activity in new plant capacity, particularly copper. Tonnages are on the increase and operating troubles are becoming more and more problems in materials handling and control. We're approaching molecular dissemination of ores with hydro and pyro methods coming to the front to take over where flotation leaves off.

Jan 2, 1954

By Eckley B. Coxe

THE plummet lamp, to which I called the attention of the Institute, at the Bethlehem meeting, in August, 1871, with the improvement of the compensating ring, suggested by Mr. Heller, having come into general use for mine surveying in this country, and my attention having been called to the fact that it could not be employed in mines in which there was danger of meeting with fire-damp, I have so modified it that it can be used in all cases with safety. Mining engineers, who are in active practice in those districts where fire-damp is met with in the mines (and I am sorry to say it is becoming much more common in the anthracite regions), know how dangerous their work is when they are called upon to survey such mines, particularly when they are obliged to run lines in those parts of a mine which have been unworked, since by opening of doors, brattice, etc., to get the sights, they are liable to disarrange the currents of air, and cause any fire-damp that may have accumulated in the old workings to find its way into the levels, etc., where the party is at work. It is, therefore, very dangerous to leave an open light (such as the original form of plummet lamp) in an old breast or gangway, even when the safety lamp has shown that no fire-damp is present, for the opening of the doors, etc., may drive the fire-damp to the light, and thus endanger the lives of the engineers. The improved form of plummet lamp, now shown to you, can be used either with or without the safety apparatus. Upon the top of the plumb-bob portion of the old lamp a screw is cut, upon which a ring A is screwed. (See Plate II.) On the external cylindrical part of this ring two small conical holes are drilled, 180° apart. The compensating ring, by which the plumb-bob part of the lamp is suspended, passes over the ring A, and is fastened to it by two small screws having conical points, which fit into the conical holes in the ring A. The safety apparatus resembles, to a certain extent, that of the Mueseler lamp. It consists of a ring B and plate C, which are united by four rods. The plate C has a cylindrical hole in the middle, and four apertures distributed radially around it. In the central cylindrical hole is fitted a conical brass chimney, which projects below the plate C, and is fastened to the latter, being kept ver-

Jan 1, 1875

By Harold J. Bennett

A comprehensive knowledge of the availability of mineral resources to evaluate and assure a dependable supply is a prerequisite in establishing and maintaining a viable national economy. Since no nation is self-sufficient in all its mineral needs, its prosperity depends to a great degree upon its developing and maintaining an effective national minerals policy. This must be preceded by a systematic inventory of mineral resources that may be available to that nation. The U.S. Bureau of Mines is implementing a mineral deposit inventory program of domestic and foreign mineral occurrences, with initial emphasis on the domestic. In order to provide an in-depth appraisal of minerals availability, the approach includes not only realistic estimates of quantity and quality, but other essential factors such as costs, technology, environmental constraints, and development-time requirements. Analysis of this information provides usable relationships of quantity, price, time, and associated degrees of confidence of the occurrence of identifiable mineral resources. Keeping pace with a changing minerals industry and handling the large volume of information required in this undertaking demands that computer methods be employed.

Jan 1, 1977

By AIME AIME

THE second blast furnace of the Azov steel mill was blown in on Feb. 17, says the Economic Review of the Soviet Union. This furnace, the 111th in the U. S. S. R., has a volume of 930 cubic meters, and a daily output of 775 tons of pig iron. The 1934 program at the Azov plant includes three 250-ton-open-hearth furnaces, two coke-oven batteries, a repair shop, mine and agglomeration plant at Gamysh-Burum, and two ports, one at the latter town and one at Mariupol. On Feb. 21 the sixth open-hearth furnace of the Stalinsk (Kuznetsk) mill started operations; on Feb. 12 the fourth open-hearth furnace at the Liebknecht mill at Dniepropetrovsk, produced its, first steel, 47 tons of high-grade boring steel. The fourth open-hearth furnace

Jan 1, 1934

By Pieter W. Greeff, Graeme W. Mitchell

INTRODUCTION This paper describes the underground environmental planning parameters developed for Pancontinental Mining Limited's Jabiluka uranium deposit. The deposit is located 230 km east of Darwin in the Alligator Rivers region of the Northern Territory, Australia. The deposit is situated within land subject to an Aboriginal land claim, adjacent to a National Park and within a proposed extension to that National Park, as well as being close to a long- established Aboriginal reserve. In addition, being the first large underground uranium mine planned in Australia, the environmental considerations, both on surface and underground are considerable. Pancontinental is committed to the highest practicable standard of environmental management in the operation of the mine. In addition, Government regulations and requirements are particularly stringent by world standards. The underground environmental problems are discussed later in the paper with emphasis placed upon radiation aspects, both gamma and radon daughters, and dust. Consideration has also been given to heat and humidity due to the location of the deposit in a sub-tropical region 12° south of the equator. The paper explains how these environmental factors influence the design and selection of stoping methods. GEOLOGY AND ORE RESERVES The Jabiluka Two orebody is completely overlain by flat-bedded Kombolgie Sandstone with a thin layer of surficial colluvial sands. The orebody occurs in an east-west striking folded succession of Lower Proterozoic metasedimentary rocks of the Cahill Formation. Uraninite and pitchblende constitute essentially all the uranium mineralisation and are contained in the four lithological series, as shown in Fig. 1. - ,Upper Graphite Series - Main Mine Series - Lower Mine Series 1 - Lower Mine Series 2 The succession at Jabiluka has been folded and forms an east-south-east striking, asymmetric syncline-anticline which dips south and plunges to the east. A major fault bisects Jabiluka Tw8 having a north-south trend and dipping about 80 to the west. A near vertical tourmaline granitic pegmatite dyke up to 30 m in thickness has intruded the Jabiluka Two orebody at the western end. Current drilled ore reserves for Jabiluka Two are 52.0 million tonnes at 0.39% U308. Included in these reserves are 1.1 million tonnes of gold ore at 10.7 g/tonne. A large proportion of the orebody can be mined in thick sections (over 80% of tonnage) either as single sections or by bulking a number of thin sections which are close together.

Jan 1, 1981

By Paul Weir

Bleaching clays have been used extensively in the oil-refining industries for a number of years. Their use in water purification is relatively recent and less extensive. They are frequently classified as (1) those naturally active and (2) those active after artificial activation with acid. Fuller's earths fall within the general group of bleaching clays and gradually the commercial term "fuller's earth" has been applied to natural clays originating, for the most part, in the southeastern section of the United States. Bentonitic clays are usually classed as activable and are prevalent in the southwestern section of the United States.l Bleaching clays vary considerably in chemical and physical properties throughout the country, or even in different parts of one deposit (Table 1). The fuller's earth type of clay is characterized by a lack of plasticity, relatively adsorbent, foliated structure, and does not swell to form a

Jan 1, 1942

By Paul Weir

Bleaching clays have been used extensively in the oil-refining industries for a number of years. Their use in water purification is relatively recent and less extensive. They are frequently classified as (1) those naturally active and (2) those active after artificial activation with acid. Fuller's earths fall within the general group of bleaching clays and gradually the commercial term "fuller's earth" has been applied to natural clays originating, for the most part, in the southeastern section of the United States. Bentonitic clays are usually classed as activable and are prevalent in the southwestern section of the United States.l Bleaching clays vary considerably in chemical and physical properties throughout the country, or even in different parts of one deposit (Table 1). The fuller's earth type of clay is characterized by a lack of plasticity, relatively adsorbent, foliated structure, and does not swell to form a

Jan 1, 1942

By David B. Reger

Widespread wildcatting for new supplies of natural gas and the beginning of importation from the southwest characterized the petroleum industry of West Virginia during 1944. Within the state, drilling for oil did not increase but. more gas wells were completed than in any previous year since 1937. Out of 40 wildcats drilled there were 25 gas discoveries and 15 dry holes. No commercial oil was found in the 40 wells. The proved limits of several oil pools were slightly extended by marginal drilling, resulting in 1300 acres of new oil territory, although no distinctly new pools were found. At least four new gas pools were assuredly discovered and various successful wildcats indicate future pools or wide extensions. The new proved gas territory, in definite new pools and definite extensions, is about 34,000 acres. A considerable net decline of proved oil has occarred and probably a slight decline of proved gas reserves. The account of operations, as gathered from trade journals and other reporting services, shows that 918 new wells were drilled, resulting in 71 oil wells with 613 bbl. of daily new production; 577 gas wells with 305,372,000 cu. ft. of daily open flow, and 142 dry holes. Also, 107 old wells were drilled to deeper sands, with 22 bbl. and 12,327,000 cu. ft. of added production. On the new wells the oil average was 8.6 bbl. per well per day, and the gas average was 529,241 CU. ft. per well per day. On new wells the ratio of dry holes to completions was 15.47 per cent. On deeper drilling the ratio of failures was 19.63 per cent. Production of oil for the year was estimated by the Oil Weekly as 3,069,000 bbl., as compared with 3,349,000 bbl. in 1943. Production of natural gas for the year is estimated by the author as 200,000, 000,000 cu. ft., as compared with the U. S. Bureau of Mines final figures of 223,789,000,000 cu. ft.t in 1943.

Jan 1, 1945

By J. B. Austin

In considering so complex a process as the smelting of iron in the blast furnace, there is obviously no single method of calculating efficiency that gives a complete appraisal of the performance of the furnace in all its several functions; such a comprehensive view as is required to evaluate producing ability and manufacturing costs for a given furnace is obtained only by considering a group of efficiencies, each of which measures the performance of the furnace from a specific point of view. For instance, there is the rate of consumption of coke per ton of iron produced, which is probably the most frequently considered, and is certainly one of the most important of the group; there is the efficiency of recovery of iron charged; and there is the efficiency of utilization of energy, both chemical and thermal, in some respects related to the former two yet in other ways independent of either. In each of these cases, the calculation can be made on the basis of the actual input of material or energy, or it may be based upon a comparison with the minimum amount of material or energy that would be required by a "perfect" furnace; that is, an imaginary ideal furnace analogous to the perfect steam engine used in thermodynamic calculations, when this furnace is operating under optimum conditions. Moreover, the furnace itself can be considered either as an apparatus for smelting iron or, taking a somewhat less common point of view, as a gas producer yielding iron and slag as by-products. Some of these efficiencies are more useful than others, yet all are instructive; for a knowledge of them not only leads to good engineering practice from the standpoint of control but also discloses limits to possible improvement in performance and indicates the lines along which improvement is most likely to be profitable. Estimates of some of these efficiencies have appeared from time to time in the literature, but many of them are open to objection because they are based on data of uncertain accuracy or because they have been caleulated without due regard to the thermodynamic principles involved. Moreover, so far as the author is aware. no general survey of the blast furnace comparing its performance in all the aspects mentioned has been made.

Jan 1, 1938

By J. B. Austin

In considering so complex a process as the smelting of iron in the blast furnace, there is obviously no single method of calculating efficiency that gives a complete appraisal of the performance of the furnace in all its several functions; such a comprehensive view as is required to evaluate producing ability and manufacturing costs for a given furnace is obtained only by considering a group of efficiencies, each of which measures the performance of the furnace from a specific point of view. For instance, there is the rate of consumption of coke per ton of iron produced, which is probably the most frequently considered, and is certainly one of the most important of the group; there is the efficiency of recovery of iron charged; and there is the efficiency of utilization of energy, both chemical and thermal, in some respects related to the former two yet in other ways independent of either. In each of these cases, the calculation can be made on the basis of the actual input of material or energy, or it may be based upon a comparison with the minimum amount of material or energy that would be required by a "perfect" furnace; that is, an imaginary ideal furnace analogous to the perfect steam engine used in thermodynamic calculations, when this furnace is operating under optimum conditions. Moreover, the furnace itself can be considered either as an apparatus for smelting iron or, taking a somewhat less common point of view, as a gas producer yielding iron and slag as by-products. Some of these efficiencies are more useful than others, yet all are instructive; for a knowledge of them not only leads to good engineering practice from the standpoint of control but also discloses limits to possible improvement in performance and indicates the lines along which improvement is most likely to be profitable. Estimates of some of these efficiencies have appeared from time to time in the literature, but many of them are open to objection because they are based on data of uncertain accuracy or because they have been caleulated without due regard to the thermodynamic principles involved. Moreover, so far as the author is aware. no general survey of the blast furnace comparing its performance in all the aspects mentioned has been made.

Jan 1, 1938

By Frederic P. Dewey

At the Seventh International Congress of Applied Chemistry I presented a paper,' The Assay and Valuation of Gold-Bullion, in which are briefly mentioned a few illustrations of different methods of sampling gold-bullion, particularly cyanide-bars. Since then I have carried on an extensive investigation upon the sampling of gold-bullion in relation to its effects upon the assay-results, in connection with the statement of accounts between the smaller assay-offices of the United States which purchase gold-bullion and the mints where the purchases are re-deposited. Under the name of gold-bullion are included metals of widely different composition. We may have practically pure metal, 999.75 fine or even more in gold; alloys of .gold and silver with only trifling amounts of base metal; alloys of gold and copper with trifling amounts of other metals; ternary alloys of gold, silver, and copper, or gold, silver, and lead; and most complex alloys of from five to eight or more constituents of ordinary occurrence, besides some of the rarer metals occasi'onally. In any one or all of these classes we may have one or more of the metalloids, which may add to our difficulties. Of course, with metal 999.75 fine in gold there is only slight opportunity for different samples to differ in fineness, but on such fine metal we expect the assays to agree very closely, and the sampling must be done with the utmost care. When possible, dip- or granulation-samples of the molten metal should be taken; but when it is necessary to sample bars, the chief point to guard against is surface-dirt.

Jan 1, 1913

By Morgan Walker, C. D. Watson, Reid W. Bond, D. L. Trax

Common practice in the Mid-Continent until recently was to prolong the natural flow of oil wells as long as possible by agitation, and then swab for a short period until the well was put on the pump. Comparatively recently the gas-lift has superseded the swabbing and agitating period and in some cases encroached on the natural flowing life, particularly where it was evident that the potential oil capacity of the well was greater than the gas supply, or lifting medium. The majority of wells are finished with either 6¼, 65/8 or 8¼-in. casing and connected to a separator through a flow line which is usually 65/8 in. The flow line is generally designed to eliminate sharp turns and has reduced the gas-oil ratio and therefore increased the efficiency in a good many instances. Until recently all wells were allowed to flow without restriction against the possible trap pressure until it was deemed advisable to put them on gas-lift. This resulted in a fairly efficient flow during the early life of the well if the well was rather large but was usually inefficient in small wells and in the later flowing life of large wells, on account of the large area in the casing and therefore excessive slippage. Recently, considerable effort has been made to increase the efficiency of small flowing wells by running tubing to eliminate as much slippage as possible. With large wells there is a considerable trend toward back-pressuring, or beaning to find out whether it is possible to reduce the gas-oil ratios and increase the flowing life. The greater number of fields that have been back-pressured have been produced in that manner through necessity, either to restrict production for proration purposes or, in fields producing by hydraulic pressure, to reduce water encroaching. The recent Cromwell sand development in Little River is an example where both back-pressuring by means of high-pressure traps and beans and flowing through tubing were used to conserve gas, reduce the high gas-oil ratio and prolong the flowing life. It

Jan 1, 1930

By J. C. Griffiths, D. W. Bennion

A mathematical model, which does not assume a priori that stratification exists, but was designed to test for the stratification was developed. The model segmented the reservoir horizontally into areas of common variance, then divided it vertically into strata (if strata were present). Next, trend surface techniques were used to determine the lateral extent and variation of each stratum. The model was tested on two reservoirs (sandstone and limestone) using porosity as the reservoir rock property. The sandstone reservoir contained approximately 60,000 samples from 2,000 cored wells, while the limestone reservoir had approximately 24,000 samples from 430 cored wells. Within the areas of common variance tested, the model was able to distinguish four separate lithological units or zones in the sandstone reservoir, four in the Marly section and seven in the Vuggy section of the limestone reservoir. INTRODUCTION To accurately predict the movement and production of fluids from a reservoir rock, it is necessary that the reservoir engineer have a knowledge of the rock properties and their distribution throughout the reservoir. For this study, a reservoir rock is defined as a solid containing interconnecting holes or voids which occur relatively frequently and are dispersed within the rock in a regular or random manner. The fraction of bulk volume that these interconnecting voids occupy is called porosity. The rock must also possess sufficient permeability to allow fluids to move through it and it may be composed of one or more strata or lithological units. A stratum or lithological unit as defined in this study is a body or volume of reservoir rock whose properties are so distributed that its lateral and vertical extent can be traced throughout or through a portion of the reservoir. Operationally, the existence of strata are question- able unless the variance within strata is less than among strata. Within the past few years computers have been widely used as a tool for calculating movement and production of fluids from reservoirs. Most prediction models require some type of a mathematical description of certain reservoir rock properties. In the past, most of these models have been relatively simple. Some have assumed vertical variation but no lateral variation, while others have assumed lateral variation but no vertical variation. In general, most of these models have not used functional relationships to predict reservoir rock properties as functions of position. The object of this study was to develop a model which would predict lateral and vertical variations of reservoir rock properties. Since samples are usually available from only a small portion of the total reservoir rock, it seemed logical that if measurements from these samples were to be used to infer the properties of the actual reservoir, the data should be treated statistically as a sample from the total population (reservoir). Therefore, the model developed in this study to predict reservoir rock properties was a stochastic model. The model was tested using porosity (a macroscopic reservoir rock property) measurements from two reservoirs — the first, a sandstone reservoir from which 60,000 samples were obtained; and the second, a limestone reservoir with 24,000 samples. Several investigators have proposed methods to determine the vertical and areal variation of a reservoir rock property. Stiles: Dykstra and Parsons 2 and Suder and Calhoun3 have all developed waterflooding prediction techniques which assume vertical variation but no lateral variation. Stiles developed a method to segment a reservoir arbitrarily using frequency distribution. Law4 suggested that porosity has a normal frequency distribution and that permeability has a log-normal frequency distribution. Elkins and Skov 5 proposed that when a reservoir is segmented vertically, the

Jan 1, 1967

By D. W. Rudd, D. W. Vose, J. B. Vetrano

In an earlier paper the permeability character of Mo-0.5 pct Ti to hydrogen was described.' It was shown that this alloy is a more effective barrier to the passage of hydrogen than previously studied systems, i.e., copper,2 nickel,3 and several stainless steels.4 The permeability of Hastelloy B to hydrogen was investigated as a material having promising high-temperature structural properties which might have a low permeability to hydrogen. The general theory of permeation has been previously discussed,' and here only a summary of the more important results are given. It is found that except for very thin membranes, at low temperature, permeation of a gas through a metal barrier is determined by the rate of diffusion of the gas through the crystal lattice of the specimen, and that for hydrogen and the common diatomic gases, this passage involves dissociated particles as the diffusing species. The rate of permeation for hydrogen is therefore proportional to the square root of the pressure. It has also been found that the rate of permeation is inversely proportional to the thickness of the barrier. The apparatus used in this investigation was fundamentally the same as that employed in previous studies,' except that several simplifications result in the case of Hastelloy, since oxidation at the temperatures investigated is no longer a problem and welding of the specimen is relatively easy. A cross section of the membrane assembly is shown in Fig. 1. When finished, the assembly is about 5 in. long. The wall thickness is about 6 times the membrane thickness. The membrane (A) can be maintained at

Jan 1, 1963

By E. Miller, K. L. Komarek, M. Ettenberg

The activity of aluminum in solid Co-A1 alloys has been measured by an isopiestic technique between 850° and 1200°C from 45 to 80 at. pct Al. The activity shows a Precipitous decrease around the stoichzornetric composition of CoAl. Free energies of mixing have been calculated over a limited composition range. Considering an antistructure-vacancy defect mechanism, the degree of intrinsic disorder, a , in CoAl was related to the alunminum activity. Excellent agreement between the calculated and experimental activity curves was obtained for a = 1.25 x 10-4. ThERMODYNAMIC properties of solid aluminum-transition metal alloy are being studied in an investigation of disordering in ordered compounds. In a continuing series of investigations, activities of solid Fe-1,' Ni-A1, kd r-A13 alloys have been measured. From the results for Fe-A1 and Ni-A1, the degree of intrinsic disorder for the equiatomic compounds was calculated2 using equations derived by Wagner and chottk. From the results for Cr-A1 the degree of intrinsic disorder was calculated from equations derived by Orr.' In this paper, the results of the study of Co-A1 alloys are described. Published activity data in the Co-A1 system has been limited to liquid alloys at 1600°C.° A heat capacity study7 of stoichiometric CoAl indicated that a second-order phase transformation occurs at 790° C, attributed to an order-disorder reaction. Oelsen and Middel,' employing the calorimetric mixing of pure liquid metals, obtained heats of formation for compositions from 6 to 90 at. pct Co. Heats of formation for 50 and 78 at. pct Co alloys have also been measured by acid solution calrimetr. The Co-A1 phase diagram, as compiled by Hansen and Anderko,lo is in good agreement with more recent X-ray evidence. The method for measuring activities of aluminum in this study is essentially that employed in the studies of the Fe-1,' i-Al, and r-A13 systems. This isopiestic method entails placing cobalt specimens, in a temperature gradient, in a sealed alumina system containing a pure liquid aluminum source of fixed vapor pressure. The specimens are equilibrated, cooled to room temperature, and their final compositions determined. From the measured temperature of the specimens and the known vapor pressure of pure aluminum the activities of aluminum in the alloy can be calculated. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE The cobalt was 3-mil-thick sheet of 99.9 pct purity (herritt Gordon Mines Ltd., anada). The major impurities were 0.1 pct Ni, 0.014 pct C, 0.018 pct Fe, 0.004 pct S, and 0.005 pct Cu. The aluminum metal had a purity of 99.99 pct (Aluminum Corp. of America) and all alumina parts were 99.7 pct A1,O3 (Triangle RR Grade, Morganite Refractories, Inc.) with major impurities 0.05 pct SiOz, 0.1 pct Fe203, 0.2 pct NazO, and 0.05 pCt K20. Runs 1 to 3 were made with annular cobalt specimens (12 mm ID by 21 mm OD) punched from the sheet. The specimens were deburred and degreased in carbon tetrachloride and in acetone. The samples, each weighing about 150 mg, were then positioned along an alumina rod, a in. OD by 14 in. long, separated by alumina spacers, i in. ID by | in. OD by & in. long. The lower end of the rod was placed in a hole drilled in the center of an 80-g aluminum cylinder. This assembly was put into an alumina crucible, 1+ in. ID by 13 in. OD by 3+ in. high, and the position of each sample was measured to within 50.5 mm relative to the bottom of the crucible. An alumina tube, 28.5 mm ID by 35.5 mm OD by 14 in. long, closed at the top, was slipped over the whole assembly, so that it fitted snugly into the bottom crucible. The entire reaction assembly was tied with molybdenum wire and lowered into a mullite tube, closed at the bottom. A quartz thermocouple tube, closed at one end, containing a t/Pt-10 pct Rh thermocouple, calibrated according to the specifications of the National Bureau of standards,'' was placed along the reaction assembly inside the mullite tube. The temperature of each specimen could be determined by gradually raising the thermocouple and measuring the temperature gradient along the reaction assembly. The combined error in temperature measurement and sample position resulted in a total error of Q°C in the recorded temperature of each sample. The mullite tube was sealed at the top by a water-cooled brass head, connected to a conventional glass vacuum system. The aluminum reservoir is heated to its melting point sealing the alumina system containing the samples. During this process the pressure is maintained below 0.01 li Hg. During subsequent heating to establish the proper temperature gradient and throughout the entire run the pressure is maintained below 2 1 Hg by means of a two-stage mechanical pump. Equilibration runs lasted from 4 to 6 weeks and were terminated by air cooling. The temperature of the liquid aluminum reservoir was brought below its melting point in less than 20 min. For runs 4 and 5, alloy buttons with 49 and 69 at. pct A1 were prepared from the initial high-purity metals by arc melting under purified argon. The alloy buttons were comminuted to powder with an alumina mortar and pestle until the powder passed through a 400-mesh screen, particle size 0.0014 in. Portions of this powder weighing between 50 and 200 mg were placed in small alumina trays, 25 by 15 by 5 mm, which were then

Jan 1, 1969

By C. Dalton, H. L. McGill

The purpose of this study was to develop a method for predicting the time delay created by metering a fluid through an annular restriction with translational motion of the boundaries. This time delay is utilized to control the opening of valves in various down-hole oilfield tools and forms the basis for the "hydraulic jar". The hydraulic jar is used to give upward impact forces to tubing or other tools that become lodged down-hole. The design of these jars has primarily been by trial and error; varying the clearances, fluid viscosities and dimensions of the jar until a satisfactory time delay was achieved. Obviously, a better understanding of the fluid flow characteristics is required to produce designs that are satisfactory and to eliminate the trial-and-error approach. Previous studies of flow in annular spaces were based on constant length of the annular restriction. Any motion of the boundaries of the annular space was confined to a rotational motion, like that encountered in journal bearing design. Consideration of the effect of translational motion of one boundary with respect to the other was necessary in applying this previous work to a time delay device. A prediction method was developed that takes into account this relative translational motion. Equations were developed to predict the relative velocity, the flow rate, and the time delay in a concentric annular space. The effect of eccentricity also was included. Experimental data were obtained and closely correlated with the prediction method. This correlation is presented graphically in terms of predicted and actual relative velocities for various annular clearances and pressure drops. This extension provides design equations which predict the performance of the hydraulic jar, thereby eliminating trial-and-error solutions and reducing the development time required for satisfactory designs. INTRODUCTION The design of down-hole oilfield tools which use hydraulic delay systems based on flow through annular orifices with relative motion of the boundaries is usually a trial-and-error process. The annular clearances, fluid viscosities and dimensions of the mechanisms were varied until satisfactory delay times were obtained. The development of these tools has been expensive, and a better understanding of the characteristics of annular flow with relative motion of the boundaries could result in superior and less expensive designs. The purpose of this investigation was to provide a method of predicting the performance of down-hole tools which use annular flow and, in particular, the performance of a down-hole tool known as the "hydraulic jar". The hydraulic jar is used to free pipe, packers and other tools that become lodged down-hole. The jar, located in the tubing string between the surface and the object which is stuck, releases the object though the repeated application of upward impact blows. The jar is basically a slip joint that is restrained in a collapsed condition until the desired tubing tension has been developed. The slip joint is then released and accelerates rapidly until it shoulders, delivering an impact blow or jar to the object. The delay obtained by metering the fluid through the annulus formed by the jar valve and housing provides the time delay necessary to stretch and apply tension to the tubing or pipe. Fig. 1A gives a schematic diagram of the hydraulic jar and brief details of its operation. The metering of the hydraulic jar begins when the tension force being applied to the jar by the pipe creates a pressure differential across the valve that is approximately equal to the force divided by the displacement area of the valve. This pressure differential induces flow through the annular restriction formed between the valve and housing. The valve moves with respect to the housing as the

Jan 1, 1969

By C. W. Merrill

The price records of seven representative mineral commodities for the 68-year period 1890 through 1957 have been compiled and analyzed for significant trends. When these records are reduced to real prices in terms of dollars of constant purchasing power or to the purchasing power of industrial wages at average rates, a substantial overall fall in prices is revealed. This downtrend contradicts the widely held concept that heavy drafts on a mineral resource must lead to scarcity, reflected in rising prices. Three metals (aluminum, copper, and pig iron), two fuels (bituminous coal and petroleum), and two nonmetals (sulfur and cement) have been chosen because of their pre-eminence in their respective categories, their significance in an industrial economy, and the ready availability of their price records. It might be added that these seven commodities were selected before any price figures were compiled; none was selected or rejected to substantiate any preconceived notions as to price trends. The overall importance of the seven is demonstrated by the fact that, taken together, they composed over three-fourths of the value of all minerals produced in the U. S. in 1957. The first step in the analysis was to reduce the price records to a basis for significant comparisons. Two such comparisons have been made: 1) The quantities of each of the commodities that could have been purchased for an average hour's wage in each year, and 2) the unit price of each commodity through the years in terms of deflated dollars. These data are set forth in the accompanying table and two charts. The quantities of the mineral commodity purchasable with the average wage for one hour's work in all manufacturing industries through 1926 were based on annual average prices and on average annual wage rates determined by Paul H. Douglas and published in his "Real Wages in the United States, 1890-1926." The series was extended through 1957 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U. S. Department of Labor. Calculations based on these data show that the average worker could have purchased 1.28 lb of copper with his hourly wage in 1890, whereas his hourly wage would have purchased 8.11 lb in 1957, an increase of 633 pct in the 68-year period. An average hour's wage would have bought 10.85 gal of petroleum in 1890, compared with 33.04 gal in 1957. Even more spectacular is the increase in sulfur, of which 25.25 lb could have been purchased with the 1904 average hourly wage; 223.08 lb were purchasable with the wage in 1957—an increase of 883 pct. Comparable price data for sulfur are not available for years earlier than 1904. For every commodity, the calculations show an improvement in the wage earner's purchasing power in 1957 compared with the early years. Measuring purchasing power in terms of wages does not give an entirely fair picture of the availability of a commodity in an economy. When the efficiency of an economy changes and the balance shifts among such elements as raw-material production, manufacturing, and service trade, the economic significance of an hour's work changes. Partly to meet such criticism, but mostly to present another interesting measure of the response of minerals to changing market conditions, a second set of calculations has been made to deflate unit prices for the seven commodities into terms of 1954 dollars. To accomplish this adjustment to a common 1954 parity, the Gross National Product Price Deflator, developed by the Office of Business Economics, U. S. Department of Commerce, was used. Although the results of these calculations are not as striking as those based on labor's increasing purchasing power, nevertheless the declines outweigh the rises in the prices of the mineral commodities. In terms of these deflated prices, aluminum and sulfur are much cheaper today than in the early years; copper was substantially cheaper in 1957 than in 1890; pig iron and petroleum are little changed; and only bituminous coal and cement have increased substantially. Strangely, the two mineral commodities with the strongest reserve positions are the two to exhibit rising real prices. Now this apparent overall downtrend in prices has taken place during a period of almost fantastic increase in the demand for mineral products. The value of minerals consumed in the world during the period greatly exceeds all mineral consumption up to 1890. A stage has been reached in the U.S. in which 95 pct of the energy used is of mineral origin and in which machines, structures, roadways, communication facilities, and most other elements in the industrial economy are primarily of mineral origin. Even agricultural fertility is maintained, in large measure, by mineral fertilizers. A series published in Minerals Yearbook shows that the value of U. S. mineral products has risen from $615 million in 1890 to $18,000 million in 1957, a 29-fold increase. Even in deflated dollars, the increase has been eightfold, while population has expanded less than threefold. Not only are demands of the industrial nations— the U. S., countries of Western Europe, and Japan— increasing at rapid rates, but those countries with agrarian economies are calling themselves underdeveloped and clamoring to industrialize. The ever-expanding mineral requirements in the U. S. and throughout the world show no abatement. Mineral reserves frequently have been described as wasting assets. Much concern has been shown for future users, who have been pictured as finding themselves on a plundered planet. Conservationists have viewed the future with alarm and have demanded legislation and regulations to reduce the drain on mineral reserves.

Jan 1, 1960

By Robert M. Dreyer

Population growth in industrialized economies constitutes an automatic stimulus for expansion of the construction and chemical processing industries, which are a big market for industrial minerals. Of the total value of mineral production in the United States, excluding fuels, about 70 % results from the production of industrial minerals. The value of industrial mineral production rose more than 10 % between 1961 and 1962. A similar growth has occurred during 1963. During the decade 1952-1962, the production of industrial minerals increased in value by 98%, in contrast to an increase of 60% in the value of the gross national product. The accompanying table shows the percentage change in the production of various industrial minerals from 1952-1962, as well as from 1961-1962.

Jan 2, 1964

By Hans W. Brodbeck

The main problem in tunneling without the use of explosives lies in the development of tools capable of continuous mechanical destruction of rock, resulting in a fragmentation which lends itself to a smooth, uninterrupted transportation of the broken rock away from the tunnel face. While all moles of U.S. design mainly achieve this by crushing the rock by means of "disk cutters" or "roller bits," a boring system based on the principle of cutting the rock came into being in Europe, whereby the rock is worked in a manner very similar to the milling of metals. For tunneling purposes, this principle was first developed by the late Austrian engineer Wohlmeyer. Between late 1962 and the spring of 1965, the first experimental machine was tested in a German coal mine, working in coal and shale over a distance of some 3000 ft, divided over two runs separated by a period of time to allow for equipment modifications. In 1964, a collaboration was started between Wohlmeyer and the Habegger engineering firm of Thun in Switzerland. The normal Habegger range of equipment consists of aerial ropeways, ski lifts, and certain tool machines, to which in later years have been added monorail passenger-transport systems. One of these was installed as the main mode of transport at the 1967 World Fair in Montreal. After taking over the Wohlmeyer patents, Habegger further developed the original cutting principle, aiming at more robust machines in order to be able to tackle harder rock. A first machine was built and tested at a site near Thun in sandstone averaging 17,000 psi compressive strength and limestone of 25,000 psi. In May 1966 this machine was delivered to Japan for the boring of a pilot tunnel for the Honshu-Hokkaido railway connection under the sea. A second machine, incorporating many improvements based on experience gained with this first mole, was built during 1966 and tested in the same limestone as mentioned previously (25,000 psi), before being installed to bore the head race tunnel of the Julia hydroelectric power scheme near St. Moritz, Switzerland, in the early summer of 1967 (Fig. 1 ) .

Jan 1, 1970

By H. N. Kalia, J. B. Gresham

Several attempts have been made in the past 60 years to commercialize the vast oil shale deposits of the US. However, the industry has yet to become economically viable. To date, it has not been possible to produce oil from oil shales at a competitive price compared with oil produced by conventional methods. The development work, nevertheless, has been fruitful in furthering the art of thick bed mining and technology of in situ retorting. The in situ method has the potential of recovering oil from thick beds, and the resource recovery potential is much greater than that from underground mining and surface retorting. In situ methods require that the shales/marlstones be fragmented in place to induce adequate porosity and permeability to allow in situ heating of the fragmented shales. This can be accomplished by using explosives. However, it has been found that the existing blasting systems, though very efficient, have some drawbacks. The explosives become insensitive when shot in multiplevertical decks. They can also become insensitive when spaced horizontally at close proximity to other charges. Also, since the blasting is done in a very limited free face, the delay time that can be allowed between charges is also quite limited. Consequently, it is not always possible to routinely predict the performance of the blasting system. Furthermore, since it is not possible to undertake secondary blasting, it is imperative that the blast design function properly. Recent successful retorting by Occidental Petroleum Co. Of Retorts 7 and 8 suggests that some of these problems may have been overcome. This paper addresses some aspects of in situ retorting and problems that have impeded the development of a viable oil shale industry in the US.

Jan 1, 1986