The Iron Age 1906-08-09: Vol 78 Iss 6

THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, August 9, 1906. A Buffalo Foundation Problem. The New York State Steel Company’s Solution. The selection of Buffalo, N. Y., as the site for large steel and iron plants has presented numerous difficult engineering problems, owing to the nature of the land in the southern section of the city where these plants are located. While the situation is most advantageous com- mercially, the unstable character of the ground gives rise to unusual expense and trouble in laying secure foun- dations for the heavy equipment of a modern rolling mill or for large furnaces. The Lackawanna Steel Company, whose plant is situated directly on the shore of Lake Erie, has a site which was originally almost entirely swamp land or low meadows, the surface consisting of varying depths of decayed vegetable matter. Below this lies a body of quicksand and clay. The foundations for Fig. 1.—Sinking the Test Hole in the Space to Be Occupied by the 55 x 60 in. engine which drives the 48-in. universal mill, and the 48 x 60 in. engine which drives the 32-in. slabbing mill, rest on bed rock, or rather on the dense hard pan which overlies the rock, and which cannot be turned by a pick. These foundations were very expen- sive, entailing the most careful excavation work for a depth of 35 ft. and requiring probably 2500 cu. yds. each of concrete in a monolithic mass. The Buffalo & Sus- quehanna Iron Company, the immediate neighbor of the Lackawanna Company, was much more fortunate in its site, as the rock lies within 10 ft. of the surface where the company’s ship canal enters, and the Pennsylvania Railroad Company’s ore dock, on the other side of the same canal, was made by stripping the surface to rock and building concrete retaining walls, thus eliminating forever the question of a settlement under the heaviest load that could be placed upon it. The New York State Stee] Company. whose plant is situ- ated northeast of the above mentioned properties and in- land on the Buffalo River, was confronted with practically the same conditions as those obtaining at the Lackawanna Steel Company's works in regard to foundations for the 4s x 60 in. engine which is to drive the 36-in. blooming mill, with the addition of a serious detrimental feature which the Lackawanna escaped—namely, water. This was owing to one marked difference in the underlying strata of the two sites. The ground elevation of the New York State Steel Company is about 10 ft. higher than that of the Lackawanna Steel Company, and the top soil of the larger part of the property is much better, consisting of from 8 to 12 ft. of firm yellow clay. But at the point where the blooming mill and engine are located this top soil sud- denly failed, and a test pile and test hole developed very different conditions. The test hole was 11 ft. square, protected by a 9-in. wooden casing made of three walls of 3-in. plank, sunk to a depth of 19 ft., in the center of the space to be occupied by the 48 x 60 in. engine. This is shown in Fig. 1. An examination of Fig. 2 will show the different strata which were encountered. The shelf of gravel, which was probably river bottom formerly, is firm, but the New York State Steel Company's 48 x 60 In. Engine. admits water freely in places. As the test pile showed solid rock to be in the neighborhood of 60 ft. down, the expense necessary to reach it was prohibitory, so it was decided to rest the foundation on piles driven at 4-ft. centers. and followed from the surface 18 ft., so that the cut-off would occur in the gravel stratum, which would form the bottom of the concrete block. As it was necessary in excavating to pass through a 4,-ft. layer of quicksand, the next question was how to preserve the lines of the excavation and prevent an in- flux of sand and water. The company decided to try steel sheet piling, and as it was desirable to do the work in sections it was necessary to obtain piling sufficiently strong to ve driven, drawn and redriven. The section offerer by the United States Steel Piling Company was considered to answer these requirements, and the mill foundation was begun. The piling drove easily and was battered only slightly, although no head block was used. Fig. 3 shows the mill excavation where the first set of shores was put in, 4 ft. below the surface. A small centrifugal pump was placed at one end of the excavation and easily took care of the water, which ‘~, entered ¥rg¢ly, however, as soon as gravel was encoun- tered. ASNt appeared only in several spots, like so many springs, the*water was piped from each spring to the iia ete tnene © YELLOW CLAY Si ccbidlias> edu nicide un disetaic ss A + SWAMP SOIL y 9 BLACK MUCK wPecwmenntecrerasaremens “® = QUICKSAND gil natenneinan asian tpaevateianii miami “k * GRAVEL Rb nbbieitns dunckuinn satin BLUE CLAY tid. ——— a ee ee . HARD PAN THE IRON AGE Fig. 2.—The Different Strata Encountered in Preparing Founda- tions for the New York State Steel Company's 48 x 60 In. Engine. pump pit, and when the concrete was placed the water took its course through these pipes. which were plugged as soon as the concrete had set, leaving a solid bottom. THE IRON AGE August 9, 1906 driving rig, and was found to be very little the worse for wear. The same course of procedure then followed with the engine foundation. To make a common block of the two sections a series of steps was formed back in the mill foundation which would eventually make a huge key when the concrete of the engine foundation was brought up. The latter foundation was much more intricate than that of the mill, having three tunnels from which the bolt alleys lead, instead of one. Fig. 4 shows this part of the work ind the mill foundation. The number of bolts required in the engine and mill foundation was 126. In addition to these, four 4-in. bolts steady the pinion housing, the bolts being anchored to heavy 15-in. I beams which cross and are buried in the mill foundation at a depth of 16 ft. These steady bolts are plainly seen in Fig. 4. The excavation for the entire foundation amounted to 2000 cu yds., and the block of concrete consists of 3300 cu. yds. Trig. 5 shows the finished work, which is a very stable and handsome foundation. The success of the method employed may be judged from an engineering standpoint by the fact that no disturbance whatever can be noted in the adjoining work, everything exterior to the excavations being held in iine by the steel piling. The success of this plan led to its being fol- lowed in sinking the company’s coal tower pit. This pit, whieh is 2 ft. deeper than the engine foundation, has walls and floors 3 ft. thick, parted in the middle by a waterproof felting, and the work was so successfully accomplished that the concrete base was placed and set without any cement washing out of the form, although a t-in. centrifugal pump was in constant use. The work was planned and directed by R. R. Hillman, superinten- dent of construction for the New York State Steel Com- pany, and was executed by A. F. Chapman & Co., con- tractors, of Buffalo. —_+o-—___—_ A brick chimney on a concrete foundation has recent- ly been erected in Newark, N. J., its hight being 350 ft. and outside diameters 27 ft. 6 in. at the bottom and 9 ft. 10 in. at the top. The inside diameters are, respectively, 20 and 8 ft. The ground was covered with 4 in. of filling, underlaid with 6 in. of semipeat and 18 in. of clay. Below this are 10 feet of sand, on top of 50 ft. of soft clay. The concrete base is 14 ft. thick and contains about 800 cu. yd. of material. It rests upon 324 yellow Fig. 3.—The Mill Excavation of the New York Staté Steel Company, Showing Steel Sheet Piling. To facilitate drawing the piling 3-ply tar paper was placed against it, so that the concrete was not in direct contact with it. When the surface was reached the piling was drawn by making some simple changes in the pine piles, 50 to 57 ft. in length, and spaced 30 in. cen- ters over a square of 45 ft. to the side. The tops of the piles were left projecting 12 in. above the earth, this portion being then embedded in the concrete of the base. August 9, 1906 THE IRON AGE ee s ~— ™ ‘c * ~S - ~ Keying the Mi!l Foundation to the Engine Foundation of the New York State Steel Company. a %: 4: Seat: Fig. 5.—The Completed Foundations for the Mill and Engine of the New York State Steel Company. 338 THE Two Large Tod Engines. Recently Installed in the New Bessemer Steel Piant of the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company. The last issue of The Iron Age contained a description of the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company’s new Besse- mer plant and finishing mills, at East Youngstown, Ohio. IRON AGE August 9, 1906 with twin tubular piston valves. The general appearance of the engine, as seen from the side, is shown in Fig. 1. It is of heavy construction throughout and is capable of developing 25,000 hp. at full speed. The crank shaft is 26 in. in diameter and is arranged with a return crank on the mill side to provide for direct attachment to the rolls. The cranks are of cast steel and are thoroughly counterbalanced to secure absence of vibration at high speeds. It will be noticed that no flywheel is provided. Fig. 1.—Side View of a Large Blooming Mill Reversing Engine Built by the William Tod Company, Youngstown, Ohio. Fig. 2.—The 54 x 66 In. Twin Cylinder Tod Blooming Mill The views herewith show two large engines which are installed in this plant, furnished by the William Tod Company, Youngstown, Ohio. The first, a blooming mill reversing engine, shown in Figs. 1 and 2, drives the bloom- ing mill, which is described in the previous article and shown in Fig. 6 accompanying it. Fig. 2 herewith shows the engine and is very nearly a continuation of the view oe given in the Fig. 6 referred to, if placed to the left of it. The blooming mill engine has twin cylinders, 54 in. in diameter by 66 in. stroke. The cylinders are fitted Engine in the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company's Plant. Similar engines have demonstrated that none is required, the heavy cranks and counterweights providing all the inertia necessary for smooth running. The cranks and pins are forced into place by hydraulic pressure. The main bearings are 26 in. in diameter by 50 in. long. The trank pin on the outside is 15 in. in diameter by 13 in. long, and on the mill side the pin is 25 in. in diameter by 13 in. long. The frames are of flat guide type, offering easy access by an overhead crane. The crossheads are of steel with the pins cast in, these pins being 14 in. in diameter by 14 in. long. August 9, 1906 THE IRON AGE 330 SECTION Fig. 3.—Elevation, Plan and Section of a Tod Cross-Compound Blowing Engine. Fig. 4.—The 44 and 84 x 76 x 72 In. Blowing Engine in the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company’s Plant. 340 The conical steel pistons are carried clear of the cylinders on 14-in. hollow forged piston rods, which are supported between the main and tail crossheads. The pistons are fitted with sectional cast iron packing rings, and the rods have metallic packing throughout. The reversing gear is of the Stephenson type, with special parallel motion for supporting the link block. The links and all of the rockers and arms are of cast steel. The reverse is operated by means of horizontal steam and oil cylinders having floating piston valve gear, enabling the links to be graded at any point desired and permitting of maximum speed in reversing. The throttle valve is of the double-ported piston type, operated by steam and oil cataract cylinders. The oper- ating gear extending to the pulpit is specially designed to be free from back lash. The engine has a continuous oiling system, all bearings being provided with sight feeds and oil catchers. Figs. 3 and 4 show views of the blowing engine in- stalled at the Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company’s plant, Fig, 3 including an elevation, plan and section of the engine, and Fig. 4 showing it as it appears installed. The engine has cross-compound steam cylinders, 44 and 84 in. in diameter, with a pair of 76-in. air tubs placed tandem. The engine has a stroke of 72 in. for all cylin- ders. It is of extremely heavy construction throughout, and accessibility has been earefully considered in every fetail. The engine is designed to run at 40 rey. per min. against 25 Ibs. per sq. in. blast pressure, with a maximum blast pressure of 30 lbs. and a maximum speed of 50 rev. Under the latter conditions the piston displacement is 37,500 cu. ft. of free air per minute. The general design of the engine is shown in the il- lustration. The frames are of the usual heavy duty bored guide type, with guides and bearings cast in one piece. The bearings are of the babbitted quarter box type, having removable shells. The shaft is 24 in. in diameter in the bearings and 28 in. in diameter through the wheel. The 24-in. flywheel is made in halves, secured with bolts and sbrink links and keyed to the shaft with two tangent keys. The crank arms are steel castings with pins 13 in. in diameter. The crossheads are of cast steel, with adjustable babbitted shoes, and are secured to the rods by taper keys. The crosshead pin is 11% in. in diameter by 13 in. long. A heavy cast iron sole plate is secured to the main bed plate and extends back under the steam and air cylinders to the rear of the tail rod supports. This bed plate is very deep and rigid, and provides a pan to catch all drip from around the cylinders. The steam cylinders are firmly bolted to the engine frames, and slide freely at their rear ends on adjusting wedges, while the air cylinders are rigidly tied to the steam. cylinders and rest on thin vertical plates, secured transversely to the sole plates, so as to permit free expansion in a longitudinal direction while preserving correct alignment of the engine. The 44-in. high pressure and 84-in. low pressure cylin- ders are each provided with a single wrist plate valve gear with Reynolds detaching gear and single plunger dash pots. The steam and exhaust passages are double ported for both cylinders. An overhead receiver is pro- vided and forms the connection between the high and low pressure cylinders. The conical steel steam pistons are carried by cambered steel piston rods, which are sup- ported at both ends.by crossheads in such a manner that the pistons iioat clear of the cylinder walls. The pistons are fitted with steel followers and a special type of follower studs, designed to prevent any possible acci- dent from breakage of studs. The air pistons are of cast steel, of hollow drum shape, cast in two parts and riveted together. They are fitted with cast iron junk rings with soft metal strips and with cast iron sectional packing rings. The air cylinders are equipped with Tod patented double-ported piston inlet valves and automatic outlet valves. The air valves are all driven from a single wrist plate on each cylinder, which has a corresponding eccentric on the main shaft. The outlet valves are of pot form and have their stems extended to the outside so that they are extremely accessible for adjustment. The operation of the gear is such as to secure the full capacity of the blowing tubs, THE IRON August 9, 1906 there being no special difference between the atmospheric pressure and the pressure in the tub during the inlet stroke. The valves being placed in the heads, a remarkably small clearance space is secured. The engine is fitted with an automatic safety stop governor. Suitable sheet steel oil guards over the cranks and eccentrics provide for catch- ing all waste oil, which is returned to a filter for con- tinuous use. All main bearings throughout are provided with pressure sight feed oilers, and the smaller pins have grease cups. AGE —_———_d-e______- Drafting Room Ventilation. An Air Washing Equipment Installed at the Illinois Steel Company’s Works by the Buffa'o Forge Company. In many cases there is an objection to the fan system of direct heating and ventilating, due to the fact that dust and soot and occasionally foul gases are in- troduced into the rooms, especially when it is neces- sary to locate the air intake near to the street level or a neighboring chimney. This feature would be espe- cially unpleasant in a drafting room, where the deposit of dust on the drawings would be a serious annoyance to the draftsmen. Recently there has been installed in the drafting room at the Illinois Steel Company in Chi- cago an interesting equipment in which provision is made for washing the air, the equipment being one furnished by the Buffalo Forge Company, Buffalo, N. Y. Details of the apparatus are shown in the accompanying en- graving. The entering air passes into the tempering coils through a grating placed near the corner of the building. The tempering coils contain 1000 ft. of 1-in. pipe and serve in cold weather to raise the temperature of the air to 70 or 80 degrees F., whence it proceeds directly to the air washer, which it is the particular purpose of this article to describe. The washing chamber, which contains all of the ap- paratus for washing and afterward removing the free moisture, has a capacity of 10,600 cu. ft. of air per min- ute, and is 4 ft. 10 in. wide, 4 ft. 8 in. high and 7 ft. long. This is indeed a small space when compared with that required for coke screens or cheesecloth filters. The saving of space is not, however, the only advantage, for the device has shown itself after several installations to be entirely automatic and satisfactory in the perform- ance of its duty, which was not true of the old type filters. The washing itself is accomplished by spraying the incoming air from 76 specially designed nozzles, the water being projected parallel to the direction of the air travel. Each of the nozzles will atomize between 1% to 2 lb. of water per minute, the water being sup- plied by a pump, as will be explained later. The nozzle is unique in that the water passing is atomized by cen- trifugal force acquired by its own circular path in leav- ing the nozzle exit. So complete is this atomizing action that the spray can. sgearcely be seen. It will readily be appreciated that thie. air contact offered such an im- mense amount of water surface as would represénted by 125 lb. of atomized water per minute would readily accomplish the cleansing of all the air that could be drawn through the washer at speeds usable in ven- tilating. This allows approximately 1 lb. of water per pound of air. The washing being accomplished, the next difficulty is to remove the free moisture. This is done in the next foot of air passage, which allows approximately 1-5 sec. to dry each particle of air passing, yet the eliminator reduces the moisture to 70 per cent. relative humidity. The washing is completed and the free moisture re- moved by drawing the air through what have been styled ‘eliminator plates,” consisting of a system of vertical baffle plates. The first part of each plate presents to the air merely a water covered surface, to which the solid particles originally present in the air will cling and be left by the air as it passes to the second or rear part of the plates, which are provided with gutters running August 9, 1906 lengthwise to break the continuity of the water film and prevent it from being blown from the far side of the plates by the onrushing air. The water removed from the air drains to a settling tank built beneath the elim- inator in the concrete foundation, and above which the eliminator plates are supported on 4-in. galvanized I- beams. Provision is made in the settling tank for draw- ing off the accumulated water, and then the clearer water is led to a well, with which the suction of the small brass centrifugal pump, belt driven by a 2-hp. alter- nating current motor, is connected, and then this water after straining is supplied again to the nozzles. The nozzles are readily taken apart by removing a knurled cap, and any scum that may have been deposited may then be removed. It is unique that the degree of humidity is controlled through the agency of a thermostat, a heat indicating instrument. ‘““he amount of moisture which the air will absorb in the form of water vapor has’ been found after careful test to depend more upon the temperature of al Air Valves Wit / Door, » ' w F Pa ' — : 0 y — ' — “ ba = ‘ ' Oo ; . - ' =—p | 1 to | Am 3, ' - ' a = = | = <! ' = ' a) ~ r ' a “= ' 4 _ i ' eae - ' = ' = = i Sule \ 1 © 4 : > ~ EZ : = ' RQ Suction , = } ' fe | ~ ' = i : t 8 ; . a ' ' o i . ' t Sa ' eH ' P 2 Overflow o er ' ' Nay ' | Window~ 2" Drain © poor § y Door | CO "ere Strainer a he 2 psi gag Wy ple Cock Doot Ye. g i | Motor | _ fi ' ; ' Centrifugal Pump | De te - , ee *_ ty City Water =—f-s..... Plan THE IRON AGE ' By Pass 341 The contract as accepted by the Buffalo Forge Com- pany included the furnishing and erecting of all of the apparatus. —_— > oe The Passing of Missouri’s Iron Mountain, The Iron Mountain Company, which for many years mined and sold ore from the famous [ron Mountain in Missouri, by the Cireuit Court of St. Francois County, Mo., on July 12. The assets having been divided the stockholders unanimously petitioned for dissolution. It is stated by St. Louis papers that the Iron Mountain mine paid more than $7,000,000 in divi- dends on its capitalization of $3,600,000. Fifty years ago Government experts considered the iron ore in the moun- tain practically inexhaustible, but in 1893 the Iron Moun- tain Company was compelled to suspend operations on the extensive scale of the preceding years. There is still ore left in the remains of the mountain, but not enough was dissolved ! ox) | Door , - ’ fs Ee ' f Fan : i Motor f Door 2. fl + Door "lo Elevation Plan and Elevation of the Buffalo Air Washer and Associated Apparatus for THE IRON AGE Ventilating the Drafting Room at the Illinois Steel Company’s Works. the water exposed to the air than upon the air tempera- ture. Therefore if the thermostat be set and calibrated by trial and it controls a steam jet playing into the water supplied to the spray nozzles it can control the spray water temperature, and hence the humidity, which is kept at a constant percentage of the saturation point at all temperatures. The washing chamber and eliminator plates, which are of galvanized iron, are housed in the same material; stifly braced, riveted and soldered so as to be water tight. In the washer casing is placed a water tight door and two plate glass windows, to allow inspecting the action of the apparatus while it is in operation. Con- necting with this housing on the washer end is the inlet conduit, and the other end connects with the heater coils. After leaving the latter, which contain 1500 ft. of 1-in. pipe, and passing through a 70-in. blower pro- vided with a double set of curved blades, the air is forced through a system of ducts to the various parts of the drafting room. The blower is belt driven by a Westinghouse 5-hp. alternating current motor, and makes 475 rev. per min., at which it has a capacity of 10,600 cu. ft. of air per minute. for any paying operation. The Iron Mountain belonged to an original grant from the Spanish government, and the adjoining knoll was called “ Little Iron Mountain.” Six miles south was the Pilot Knob, the ores from which were well known in the Central West 25 years ago. The Iron Mountain first began to yield ore in 1845, when the American Iron Company was formed. In 1869 the Iron Mountain Company was organized to work the Iron Mountain mines exclusively, Pilot Knob being ac- quired by another company. On the ores from this dis- trict the iron industry of Missouri was based. In 1883 the number of blast furnaces in the State had reached itsmaximum, there being nine charcoal] furnaces and eight coke furnaces. To-day the blast furnaces of the State consist of one coke furnace at South St. Louis, which has been using Iron Mountain and West Plains ores and one charcoal stack. For many years the shipments of ore from Missouri to other States averaged 100,000 tons, con- siderable quantities going to the Pittsburg and Wheeling districts by way of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. The town of Iron Mountain in its prosperous days contained 6,000 inhabitants, but at present the number is scarcely 100. 342 THE A New Nutter-Barnes Cutting-Off Machine. One of the principal changes in the No. 3% improved metal saw cutting off machine built by Nutter, Barnes & Co., Boston, Mass., is the locating of the main spindle driving gears centrally, where formerly they were over- hung on the ends of their shafts. These gears are all of 50 carbon crucible machinery steel forgings, solid on their shafts and supported between adjustable cap boxes, with ‘provision for taking up wear between the shaft centers to prevent the saw from chattering. These gears have 4-in. face and are fully inclosed to protect them from chips and dirt in a casing, which is also an oil receptacle, so that the gears run in oil. The gear re- duction from the driving pulley of the belt-driven ma- ehine, a front view of which is shown in Fig. 1, is 10 to 1. A rear view of a similar machine intended for motor drive is given in Fig. 2. In the latter the driving pulley bracket is removed and a back gear bracket substituted with gearing, which requires 40 turns of the cone pulley shaft to one of the saw spindle. These machines are all equipped with oil pumps and Fig. 1.—Front View of the No. 5% Cold Saw Cutting-Off Ma- chine Built by Nutter, Barnes & Co., Boston, Mass. piping systems to lubricate the saws; with large base drip pans to catch the chips and used oil, from which the oil is drained to a reservoir to be used over re- peatedly. The No. 54% machine has a capacity for work up to 7 in. in diameter. The carriage is 22 in. long by 17 in. wide and has a movement of 12 in. The saw is 18 in. in diameter by 5-32 in. thick and is designed to run at about 13 rev. per min. A positive automatic belt feed is provided with eight changes from \% to 1 in. per minute. The stock support has adjustable screw elevation. The machine is very heavy and compact, weighing 2300 Ib. and occupying a floor space of 2 ft. 6 in. by 4 ft. 8 in. When equipped with a high speed steel saw it is capable of doing a large amount of rapid, accurate and heavy eutting of steel of most any shape and size within its range. —_— +—-e- The Lloyd Metal Company is a new corporation which is to have headquarters at Houston, Texas, for the sale of iron and steel castings, and will deal in new and second-hand machinery, new and relaying rails and scrap metals. The company is capitalized at $10,000. W. H. Lloyd is president; W. H. Norris, vice-president, and Joseph H. Eagle, secretary. IRON AGE August 9, 1906 The National Metal Trades Association. With the possible exception of one plant the nine Indianapolis machine shops at which a strike was or- dered by the International Association of Machinists on May 3 are now running with forces equal to their re- quirements and are all operating on the open shop plan. The strike was taken charge of by Robert Wuest, acting commissioner of the National Metal Trades Association, and the nine firms involved, none of which was pre- viously a member of the N. M. T. A., participated in the organization of an Indianapolis branch of that associa- tion. Of this branch the six Indianapolis firms originally members of the N. M. T. A. and whose shops were not involved in the strike are also members. The demand of the men was for a minimum of 32% cents an hour, with a flat advance of 2% cents for all journeymen machin- ists. The strike at Lynn, Mass., the fight against which has also been in charge of Acting Commissioner Wuest, has resulted in favor of the employers. This strike was undertaken to force a demand for an eight-hour day and was the initial struggle of the Machinists’ Union .n its Fig. 2.—Rear View of a Similar Machine Provided with a Contained Countershaft for Motor Drive. campaign for the shorter day. The seven firms involved, though previously outside of the N. M. T. A., were organ- ized as a branch of the association. Owing to the con- spicuous strength of labor unions in Lynn the contest was harder fought in some respects than that at Indian- apolis, but with one exception all the shops involved are now running practically full. Commissioner W. P. Eagan, who has been in the Southwest for some months in the hope of regaining his health, returned to the offices of the association at Cin- Ginnati recently. He expects again to go to New Mexico in the near future. The next meeting of the Administrative Council of the association will be held at Cincinnati in October. This meeting will decide as to the time and place of the next annual convention. Twenty-one applications have just been secured at Syracuse, N. Y., for membership in a local branch of the N. M. T. A. which will be formed there. S. D. W. Cleveland will be local secretary. Here- stofore the N. M. T. A. has had 13 members in Syracuse, so that the branch starts with a membership of 34. A. C. Allen, who has heretofore been secretary of the Indianapolis Employers’ Association, has been appointed secretary of the Indianapolis branch of the N. M. T. A., with office at 219 State Life Building. August 9, 1906 The Carlin Portable Contractor’s Pumping Outfit. The value of hand power diaphragm pumps for hand- ling dirty or gritty water in large quantities is so well established that it will readily be appreciated that one arranged for power drive, as shown in the accompanying illustration, would constitute a convenient, durable and economical pumping outfit. The outfit illustrated con- sists of a gasoline engine rated at 2 hp., a 3-in. suction diaphragm pump and a circulating water tank, all mount- ed on a small, substantially built four-wheel truck. This portable pumping outfit is now being placed on the mar- ket by the Carlin Machinery & Supply Company, Alle- gheny, Pa., and is designed especially for the use of contractors on foundations and sewers. The Loud pump, used on this outfit, is of the rubber diaphragm type, which is not subject to cutting from dirt and grit, as is a cylinder pump, and is especially designed for this class of work. It operates by the raising or lowering of the diaphragm, displacing a certain amount of water at each movement, and rubber seated check A Portable Gasoline Engine and Pump Built by the Carlin Machinery & Supply Company, Allegheny, Pa. valves above and below the diaphragm cause the water to move in the forward direction only. A 2-hp. horizontal, four-cycle gasoline engine supplies the motive power. The rating of 2 hp. is conservative, as the engine will develop more on actual test. A small feed pump attached to the engine delivers the gasoline to the glass cup or mixing valve, which serves as a sight in- dicator to the operator. The mixing valve supplies the explosive vapor in amounts proportional to the work done, the surplus gasoline returning to the tank through an overflow. The gasoline is entirely inclosed, eliminat- ing danger of its explosion. The machine work is high class, the cylinder, piston ring, valve, &c., being accu- rately ground in, and cut gears used exclusively. The cast iron cylinder water jacket is removable, making it easy to repair in case of freezing through neglect. A pendulum governor controls the speed, which can be regulated while the engine is running. Large wearing surfaces add materially to the life and reliable operation of the engine. The engine and pump are mounted on a light, durable hand truck, designed to insure stability and avoid the possibility of upsetting. A small circulating water tank completes the portable equipment. The regular size pipe or hose necessary is that conforming to a 3-in. suction, giving the outfit a capacity of 3000 to 4000 gal. of water per hour. The total weight of the outfit is 930 Ib A similar equipment is also furnished with a pump having a 4-in. suction, which is rated to handle 6000 gal. per hour. In connection with pipe line laying the outfit is especially adapted for draining the trench. For testing the line a piston or pressure pump is added and so ar- THE IRON AGE 343 ranged that the two pumps are operated singly for either service—namely, draining the ditch or testing the line by water pressure. a Oe The American Boiler Manufacturers’ Con- vention. Following is the programme of the approaching con- vention of the American Boiler Manufacturers’ Associa- tion: The convention will meet on the morning of Septem- ber 18 at 10 o’clock in the Hotel Schenley, Pittsburgh, and will be called to order by Robert Munroe, Jr., chairman, who will introduce Mayor George W. Guthrie of Pitts- burgh to make an address of welcome to the delegates. He will be followed on behalf of the Pittsburgh boiler manufacturers by Col. H. P. Bope, vice-president of the Carnegie Steel Company, and that address will be re- plied to by Col. E. D. Meier of the Heine Safety Boiler Company, New York City. The first session will ad- journ at noon and at 1 p.m. the members and their ladies will be taken by special trolley cars to the foot of Wood street, where the steamer Island Queen will be boarded and the party taken for a daylight ride up the Monongahela River to allow a view of the Mononga- hela Valley, which is conceded to be the greatest manu- facturing center in the world. The party will return at 11 p.m. and will be given a night view of the almost countless mills and furnaces in the valley when they are lighted up. For the second day’s session the convention will meet at 10 a.m. for the reading of papers and transaction of business. While this session is in progress automobiles will be provided to take the ladies for a ride through Schenley and Highland parks and the East End resi- dence district. The ladies will be served with luncheon at the Country Club at 1 pm. At 8 p.m. the delegates and their ladies will visit Luma Park, one of the chief amusement attractions in Pittsburgh. The third day will be given over entirely to pleasure, the entire party taking a trolley trip around the belt line in Pittsburgh and will visit the Heinz pickle establish- ment in Allegheny, where luncheon will be served, the party returning to the Hotel Schenley at 5 p.m. At 7.30 p.m. a reception will be held in parlor A of the Hotel Schenley and at 8 p.m. the annual banquet will take place. Some noted speakers will be present, including Congressman John Dalzell, James F. Burke and Mayor Guthrie. A vaudeville entertainment will also be pro- vided. The American Boiler Manufacturers’ Association ex- tends a cordial invitation to all boiler manufacturers in the United States and Canada, whether members of the association or not, to attend this convention, which prom- ises to be one of the most interesting ever held by the association. Any visitors desiring to remain in Pitts- burgh after the sessions are ended will be taken care of by the local committee and will be given escort to any manufacturing plants or other points of interest in Pitts- burgh that they may desire to visit. ——__~--e—_____ The growing popularity of plunger elevators over the older types has given rise to a demand for special ma- chines for boring the holes into which the plunger sinks. This is especially the case where plunger elevators are used in tall office buildings and for this service the Star Drilling Machine Company, Akron, Ohio, is manufactur- ing a special machine known as the No. 25 elevator ma- chine. This machine, by virtue of special features in its design, is claimed to be superior to the ordinary types ef churn drills for this class of work. The Star Drilling Machine Company reports that 31 of these special out- fits have recently been sold. The National Association of Cotton Manufacturers, successor to the New England Cotton Manufacturers’ Association, will hold its eighty-first meeting at Hotel Champlain on the lake of that name on September 12 and 13. 344 THE IRON AGE August 9, 1906 The Ehrhardt & Sehmer Gas Engines. In the production of large gas engines Germany with- out question leads the world. The pioneer work was done there, and nearly all of the large engines since built in other countries have been patterned after Ger- man designs or at least show their influence. ‘Inthe issues of The Iron Age for June 22, 29, July 13 and 20, 1905, was printed a series of articles on “ Large .Ger- : man Gas Engines,” and the present article may. be re- . garded in a sense as supplemental, since it deals with the work of another firm of notable German builders not referred to in the previous articles, Ehrhardt & Sehmer, Schleifmiihle, near Saarbriicken. Fig. 1.is a sectional elevation of a 525-hp.. blast. fur- nace gas engine recently delivered to the Cargo Fleet Iron Works, Southbank, England. The engine is of the double acting four-cycle type, with two cylinders in tandem, and is direct connected to a direct-current dynamo. The cylinders are 253-16 in. in diameter, .and 4 the stroke is 29% in. At 150 rev. per min. the normal load of the engine is 500 b.h.p., while the maximum load is 600 b.h.p... With the last mentioned load, taking into consideration the diameter of the piston rod and assum- ing an efficiency of 82 per cent., the mean pressure in the engine is 71 lb. per square inch. Six days after the engine was first started it was given a 30 days’ ful! load trial run and showed a very satisfactory performance. It will be noticed that in its design the engine closely follows the lines of: a steam engine. On account of the arrangement which allows the main parts of the engine to ‘be concentrically fitted together the chief working stresses are evenly distributed and parallel to the niain axis of the cylinder; Another advantage of this ar- rangement is the accessibility of all parts, which: facili- tates examining the engine and the proper working of its various parts. Great care has been taken to make it easy to clean or replace those parts which are liable to suffer from dust or dirt. The engine in Cargo Fleet is an exact copy of a gas engine at the Government mines in Heinitz, near Saar- briicken, shown incompletely in the foreground in Fig. 2. This engine, working with coke oven gas of 500 to 560 B.t.u. per cubic foot, has been running day and night = ES h for nearly a year. The average load on the engine has (| fs ol ilies Ss ah : been about 500 to 550 hp., while it has often carried WO 650 to 750 hp. for several hours. Although the engine has been running for such a long period it has not been cleaned since the day it was started. Even the cylinder covers have not been removed for inspecting the cylinders and pistons, and the engine still carries overload as easily and safely as when first started. A second engine of the same type, shown in the background of Fig. 2, but having four cylinders and giving: 1200 hp., has been in- stalled in the same power house, and began to work under full load four days after it had been ‘started for the first time. Both engines, driving alternating current generators, are working in parallel with an existing steam plant. Ehrhardt & Sehmer have already delivered or in hand 14 units of the same size, which is the smallest they have so far built. Of the six of these which are running five are working with coke oven gas and one with blast furnace gas. The firm builds gas engines of all sizes from 200 to 1250 hp. in one cylinder, so that the largest unit, a four-cylinder twin tandem engine, de- velops 5000 hp. The largest two-cylinder tandem engines built up to now are three with 45% x 51% in. cylinders, the maximum output of which at 90 to 94 rev. per min. is 2500 hp. The heaviest piece, the frame, weighs 40 tons. Fig. 3 shows a two-cylinder tandem gas blowing engine of the following dimensions: Diameter of gas cylinder, 8211-16 in.; diameter of air cylinder, 8854 in.; stroke, 39% in.; normal output at 100 rev. per min., 26,400 cu. ft. of air per minute against 7.1 lb. pressure per square inch. The ability to carry an overload of about 20 per cent. above the normal output is a feature which is very im- portant in the application of gas engines for driving blowers, especially blast furnace blowing engines, which =a aaa Fig. 1.—Sectional Blevation of a 525-Hp. Blast Furnace Gas Engine, Built by Ebrhardt & Sehmer, Schleifmtihle, Germany. August 9, 1906 unlike engines driving dynamos have to run most of the time with a heavy load. When the resistance in the blast furnace increases the wind pressure also increases, and it is a great advantage if the wind pressure can be THE IRON AGE 345 ning engine it has been the firm’s aim to build high speed blowing engines. None of them run at less than 100 rev. per min., though most of these engines have 43-in. Ehrhardt & Sehmer stroke. Such speeds are possible only An Ehrhardt & Sehmer Two-Cylinder Tandem Gas Blowing Engine. increased without reducing the quantity of air blown into the blast furnace. If the engine were not able to run with overload it would stop and the consequences would be serious. As a high speed engine is cheaper than a slow run- signed air valves, such as are shown in Figs. 4 and 5. These air valves have been tested at speeds from 120 to 200 rev. per min. and up to 71 Ib. pressure per square inch. To build absolutely reliable gas engines for powers with specially cde cataslag ale oh hee cone ae rn 346 such as have been mentioned and secure their good working it is necessary in designing the various parts to take into consideration the stresses to which they will be subjected on account of the working pressures and the influence of heat. The stresses have to be carefully calculated, as they very often become greater on account of preignition, &c. The cylinder being the most important element of the machine, calls for the greatest care and attention in its design and construction. The cylinder and water jacket are cast in one piece, so that some of the stresses on the cylinder walls are taken by the jacket. The water cool- ing space is usually large and all parts are made acces- sible, so that cleaning and inspecting are rendered easy. The cylinder covers are identical, back and front, and as the internal diameters of the distance piece, frame and back guide connection are larger than the flanges of the cylinder covers the latter can easily be moved along the piston rod, thus allowing inspecting or removing the piston at either end of the cylinder. It being very im- portant that the cylinder should be a sound casting with- out internal strains great care must be taken in ‘the foundry, not only to choose the right mixture of cast iron, but also in molding and casting the cylinder. An ex- perienced metallurgist is employed to select the right brands of. pig iron, &c., to analyze the various metals and the finished casting and to test the test bars cast THE IRON AGE August 9, 1906 the piston rod, are kept well lubricated and need no spe- cial attendance. The mixing valves, worked by a trip gear, are so designed that they work well even with dirty gas. As soon as the engine on account of overload begins to run slower the valve gear admits a bigger charge to prevent the engine from suddenly stopping altogether. In a similar case other gas engines have the tendency to THE IRON AGE 5.—Detai!l of the Air Intake Valves. Fig. 4.—Air Valve Casting for a High Speed Gas Blowing Engine. with the cylinder. By a special method the finished cylinders are also tested under water pressure. To prevent the cylinders from béing worn by dirt or dust getting between the cylinder and the piston the friction between cylinder and piston must be minimized. Consequently the piston rod must be strong enough to earry the whole weight of the piston, so that only the piston rings press against the cylinder walls. The piston being cast in one piece is made as light as possible to prevent great deflection of the piston rod, which is guided and supported by cross heads in the frame, dis- tance piece and the back guide. The effectiveness of this arrangement is indicated by a cylinder which had been working continuously day and night for a year and only showed a wear of 0.004 in. The stuffing boxes are fitted with white metal packing rings to keep them tight. The rings, which are free to follow the movements of stop, unless the load is suddenly thrown off the engine, while the E. & S. gear causes the engine to recover as soon as the load on the engine is normal again. A second order for England has been placed with these builders by Albright & Wilson, in Oldbury. This engine, which is to be driven by Mond gas, will have 37%-in. cylinders and a stroke of 435-16 in. At 105 rev. per min. it will develop 1300 hp. Although Ehrhardt & Sehmer only began to build gas engines in 1903 they have delivered or in hand engines representing a total of 50,000 hp. ———_9-+@— The profits of the Colorado Fuel & Lron Company for the fiscal year ending June 30 are stated by a Denver dispatch to have been over $1,000,000. In the year end- ing June 30, 1905, the company showed a deficit of $341,992. August 9, 1906 Marvelous Growth of the Iron Industry. In his presidential address at the opening of the Iron and Steel Institute meeting in London, on July 24, R. A. Hadfield, Sheffield, England, presented some statistical statements calculated to show with what rapid strides the iron industry has gone forward in the United States since the first visit of the Iron and Steel Institute to this coun- try in 1890. He also alluded to the splendid proportions of Great Britain’s foreign trade. We make the following extracts from this portion of the address: On an occasion like this one cannot but draw some comparisons between the present time and that when we first visited you. In 1890 America had commenced to pass us in its production of pig iron, making what must seem now the modest total of about 9,000,000 tons, we having made 8,000,000 tons. American imports and ex- ports were then, I believe, about £300,000,000, against our £684,000,000. To-day your production of pig iron has increased to the enormous figure of about 23,000,000 tons [now 25,000,000 tons.—Ep.]. You almost startle us with your proposals for the Gary plant, an expenditure of over £15,000,000, and 80 60-ton basic open hearth fur- naces. I, for one, congratulate you most heartily, as in the advancement and prosperity of one country the world generally must benefit. In this expression of opinion Ienglish members of the institute will specially join me, as they know much of this remarkable progress has been brought about by members of your institute. We, in our turn, have prospered not a little, for if this year our trade returns continue to expand, or even remain on the same footing as for the first six months, it is prob- able that the total trade of this country, imports and exports, will amount in 1906 to the gigantic total of not tar short of £1,090,000,000 sterling—or, to express it “ Americanly,” $5,000,000,000. If our colonial and foreign exports, which are of course valuable and profitable, are included our grand total should be nearly £1,100,000,000 sterling. If exports represent the desideratum in the iron and steel trade, then, as that excellent American technica! paper, 7'he Iron Age, points out, in the first four months of 1906, as compared with 1905, Great Britain’s exports of iron and steel have been considerably more than those of both the United States and Germany put together. In face of these enormous figures on every hand one “an but speculate upon the future. Prophesying before you know is always dangerous, notwfthstanding Benner’s remarkable record ; but there is no doubt that in the not far distant future, unless some very important source of iron ore is discovered, we shall have to husband our ore supplies or iron may some day be as dear as, for example, copper. : In my presidential address last year I indicated that it was probable that by the year 1950 100,000,000 tons of pig iron would be produced annually, so that, as com- pared with 1800, when only about 5,000,000 tons were used, at least 300,000,000 tons of ore would be wanted annually. According to trustworthy authorities only about 10,000,000,000 tons of iron ore are available in known workable iron fields, yet by the end of the twen- tieth century a grand total consumption of probably 450,- 000,000 tons of ore a year will be called for. Whence are the supplies to come? If this probably serious position of affairs is applied practically to ourselves of to-day we realize that the man who makes 1 pound of iron go as far as 2 pounds now do is a public benefacator of the highest order. The world’s production of pig iron has doubled in the short space of 15 years—that is to say, it has ad- vanced from 27,000,000 tons in 1890 to 54,000,000 tons in 1905, approximately of the value of £160,000,000. We re- gard the production of gold as enormously important, yet the total value of the whole of this precious metal pro- duced in the world last year—and it is well known—only amounted to £77,000,000, Such colossal outputs of iron and steel demand colossal organizations, and therefore it is natural to find that you have now a company in America—the United States Steel Corporation—which has on its payroll nearly 200,000 employees, its distribution annually in wages being the THE IRON AGE 347 sum of about £530,000,000. But what is this in a country which has over 200,000 miles of railroads and 150,000 locomotives ? ——_-+e____- The Busey Babbitt Melter. A new type of gas melting furnace known as the Busey Babbitt smelter, for melting Babbitt, lead, solder and sim- ilar metals which fuse at low temperatures, is illustrated herewith. In this furnace the use of a fan blast or com- pressed air is entirely dispensed with, the type of burner used being so constructed that sufficient heat is devel- oped without either. The air enters the burner tube at the base and is warmed by th