The Iron Age 1915-07-22: Vol 96 Iss 4

THE IRON AGE New York, July 22, 1915 855 VOL. 96: No. 4 upola Operation for Continuous Pouring A Detailed Statement of Preparation, Schedules, Charges and Materials Handling Costs at an East Moline, Ill., Foundry J. FRANKLIN ERVIN meiting oO ll in tne plant scales ars piaced for weigning ro? ound! ind f J ere & Co., East Moline, Lil., is based on sprue scrap. The slag from the cupolas lropped one cupola continuously through while hot through the tapping floor int slag out a 10-1 lay. The cupola building is located § ladle on the first floor, while the pola drop i in the center and at one side of a two-story foundry retained upon the second floor unt sorting 1S con in THE [RON AGE, Jan. 7, 1915. The tapping floor tapping floor into a special dumping car in which is at the level of the molding floor, which is 15 ft. the refuse is taken to the dump heap above grade, and the charging floor is 25 ft. above The tapping floor is reinforced concrete covered the tapping floor. The cupola building, 36 x 40 ft., with 4 in. of clay. On a mezzanine floor supported accommodates two 90-in. cupolas with ample addi- by column brackets is the 7200-cu. ft. direct-driven | tional space for daubing, baking and storing ladles. centrifugal blower which supplies air at 16 oz The first floor is not inclosed and here the maximum pressure to the cupolas at the rate of 4500 cu. ft. per min. This floor has space for two iring Level of Two 9$0-in. Cupolas for Continuous Melting, John Deere & Co., East Moline, Il! 183 60 ft. wide and 600 ft. long, as described plete, when the refuse is then dropped through the Beam dee 3 Slows a = oe ale “< é i 184 THE IRON AGE Charging Level of the Cupolas such machines and is totally inclosed, so that the air is drawn from the outside of the building, the enclosure being necessary to prevent slag wool from getting into the fan and motor bearings. The third or charging floor, shown in the second view, is designed for a load of 600 lb. per sq. ft. and is covered with 15-in. diamond rolled, steel plate. The charging floor is served by a 3-ton, electric elevator platform, 5 x 8 ft., which operates at a speed of 100 ft. per min. CONSTRUCTION OF CUPOLA LINING The cupolas are installed to melt continuously for a 10-hr. day and produce 70 tons with a 21- lining and 130 tons with a 12-in. lining. The foun- dry is now operating at 72 tons (average) per 10-hr. day, and the continuous melting calls for the op- eration of each cupola on alternate days. The cupolas are lined from the bottom to the charging floor with Mitchell extra, cupola blocks. The two outside courses are made up of cupola blocks 6 in. thick, having outside and inside radii of 45 in. and 39 in. and 39 in. and 33 in. respec- tively. The inside lining is made up of a 9-in. block with an outside radius of 33 in. and an inside radius of 24 in. This additional lining was placed for the reason that the cupolas are designed to feed a foundry 600 ft. long rather than 340 ft., which is the length at present. This inside lining of 9-in. brick will be removed when the building is extended, making a cupola of 66 in. inside diam- eter fitted with a 12-in. lining applicable for con- tinuous melting. The bricks are laid closely and grouted with stiff fire clay. The tuyeres are constructed with detachable sections, extending inward from the 12-in. lining. These sections can be removed when the inner lin- ing is removed, which will allow the main tuyeres to remain intact. The tuyeres are a continuous ring with the exception of 12 in. on each side of the slag opening, and the safety tuyeres are in the rear, one on each side of the slag opening. The ratio of tuyere opening to cross-sectional area of the cupola is as 510 to 1800, or the tuyere equals 28.2 per cent of the cupola cross-sectional area. PREPARATION OF CUPOLA FOR HEAT Repairs are started on the cupola at 7 a. m. One man is required to clean up the cupola drop, Jul Gee. lO. sort the iron and coke, daub and put up ‘je by until 5.30 p.m. The melting zone is dau With fe clay, about 600 lb. being required for cull The entire melting zone is daubed ‘Doren mately 36 in. above the tuyeres. The cupolg tom is made up by sifting the cupola drop throes a 14-in. riddle which supplies about had barrowsful daily for each cupola. T} weil ings are placed upon the bottom. | creates part is placed at joints between the d and lin ing to allow a free vent. The bottom is a] up of two wheelbarrowsful of a mixture of by molding sand, mixed with silica sand in the py, portion of three of molding to one of silica. 7 bottom is approximately 5 in. thick on th and slopes to the center and — hole, the thickness decreases to about 31% in. The slag hole is 12 in. above the bottom of bed and is kept open through a 21-in. lini; inserting a cast-iron breast 15 in. deep, 10 in. wig and 18 in. high. This makes a large opening 4 the slag aperture, thus preventing the slag fron chilling and plugging the outlet. The slag hole ha a diameter of 11% in. and is plugged with clay untj the cupola is ready to slag, which is about the ting 6 the fifth 1-ton ladle is tapped. The tapping outlg is chamfered from the inside to give the appex. ance of a large funnel and is lined up with fire cl mixed with some clayey molding sand. The tot labor cost of cleaning and daubing each cupola pe day is equal to 10 hr. for one man at 22'4c. per hr or a total of $2.25 per cupola. wid OPERATING SCHEDULE The daily heat is taken with wind on at 7 a. m., and the bottom dropped at 5.30 p. m. Th cupola tender and charger begin on the cupola g ia Gh 5 a. m. by putting in the bottom and starting th charge and fire at 5.30 a.m. This burns during the time of charging up to the door, or 7.30 a. m. the wind is put on and the cupola tender comes t the tapping floor, taps and slags off, his helper tinuing the charging. The charges are 2700 lb., made up of 1200 I No. 2 foundry iron, 1200 lb. of implement and rai: road gray iron scrap, and 300 lb. of foundry scrap sprues, steel and remelt. Two hundred and fit pounds of wood is put on the bottom and then 15" lb. of coke, which makes a bed 36 in. above ane te eres. This is followed by a charge of 3500 | iron. The second charge of coke is 300 lb., then 2 250 lb., until the last charge, which is 200 lb. Begin ning with the fourth charge, 60 lb. of limestone is charged and continued throughout the entire heat Limestone charged in this manner equals about 22 per cent of the total iron charged. Approximate 375 lb. of coke is reclaimed from the daily drop ani is used to fire the ladle oven. The iron is draw intermittently into 1-ton worm geared ladles whit! are handled to the molding floor by an elect! nonorail crane. when COST OF HANDLING MATERIALS The material yards are arranged with industri track and yard scales for the weighing of all m terials. Flat top, balanced type trucks are used 10 delivering pig scrap and remelt to the chargilt floor. Pig iron is handled in 5000-Ib. trucks. The weight is taken on the grade floor and the ange is done by pig weight. The sprues are taken or scoop pans which hold from 400 to 500 Ib. each a are charged into the cupola by an overhead trolls which allows the pans to be dumped directly 10 the cupola. The coarse scrap is handled on flat balanced trucks from which it is dumped into the is handled to the charging floor in lding 1350 lb. each from which it is Soe cupola by hand forking. Limestone Pal a trucks of 500 lb. each and shoveled . : rom the truck. ost of handling materials from the ipola is 144oc. per ton of melt. Pig ed at the yard in box cars and is un- ed by hand at a cost of 6c. per ton. received in box cars and is unloaded by at a cost of 20c. per ton. Scrap is ndolas and is unloaded from car by a ° : of 8c. per ton. T.. Labor Cost Pe Ton Metal to Molding Floor Aue per ton metal charged, 72 tons 10Ps ging floor per ton metal, 72 tons Terre Tet Te ee ee aan 10.44 ! om, charge up until wind time egulate blast, 12 hr. @ 32%%c..... 3.90 g, 12 hr. @ 6c. per ton... ‘ 4.32 ring cupola, 10 hr. @ 22%c. 2.2 i pusher, 10 hr. @ 174 1.75 ide tor, 10 hr @ 25c 2.50 $32 36 ™ 0.4 Lifting Device for Oil Switch Tanks let General Electric Company, Schenectady, ’ as developed a tank-lifting device for small switches. The arrangement, which is made 4 widths, one for single and the other for ier ible-throw switches, will lift the tank through the if listance between the switch frame and the either direction. fo fasten the device to the switch frame and wer the tank, two hooks attached to the inner ends the longer pair of operating arms are placed over he the ribs of the switch frame. After this the operat- at ng arms are raised and the supports fitted under ne the tank. The wing nuts that secure the tank to the ne frame are next loosened and the arms lowered to the on floor. Two catches on the cross rod between the er set of operating arms are then released, and ‘arms raised until the tank reaches the floor. replace the tank the operation is reversed. i Has Recently Been Developed for Lowering the Tanks Used in Connection with Oil Switches THE IRON AGE 185 Gas Turbines Brought to Practical Efficiency BY C. A. TUPPER During a visit which the writer paid to the works of Brown-Boveri & Co., in Baden, Switzerland, he learned of experiments which they were making, in a carefully guarded chamber, on the designing of a com mercially effective gas turbine. Trials at that time were not wholly successful, owing to the destructive effect of gases at the high temperatures of combustion on the turbine blading and similar difficulty with the valves sticking which prevented the proper operation of the explosion chambers. Recent correspondence, however, indicates that this turbine has finally been brought to a state of practical working efficiency. It is designed and operated on the impulse principle. In the internal combustion engines of existing types, however, the cylinder is an explosion chamber and power! cylinder combined, while in the impulse gas turbine the explosion chamber is separate from the power mem- ber. There is a group of bottle-shaped explosion cham bers arranged radially around the shaft of this tur bine. Each chamber has inlet valves for air and gas and an exhaust valve for the product of combustion. The operation bears points of resemblance to a two cycle gas engine, and may be described in general as follows: Air is forced into each explosion chamber in turn. The gas entry valves are then successively opened and gas is also forced in under pressure. When volatile liquid fuel is used a spraying apparatus worked by com- pressed air, on similar lines to the Diesel engine, is re sorted to. As the explosion chambers become filled with the predetermined proportions of gas and air, the mixture in each is fired by electric sparks passing be tween the contacts placed in several strategic parts of the chamber. On the combustion of the charge the tem perature rises sharply, with the pressure closely follow ing. The exhaust valve in the neck of the explosion chamber is then opened and the hot gases are forced out through a conical nozzle similar to that used in the two best known types of impulse steam turbines. From the nozzle the now cooling and expanding gases impinge on the rotor. A fan keyed on the shaft is placed at the exhaust to assist in drawing the hot gases through the rotor and accelerate the reduction of temperature. When the pressure in the explosion chamber has been spent an independent blast of air is forced through to perform the office of scavenging, as in the two-cycle reciprocating gas engine after the com- pletion of the power stroke. In the case of the turbine, however, the time available for scavenging is longer, and with perfected design the results will undoubtedly be very satisfactory. A fresh supply of fuel is next forced into the explosion chamber and the process con tinues. The exhaust gases can also be used to raise steam in a small boiler, the steam being used to drive the air and gas pumps, and also for the producer. A gas turbine would occupy only one-third of the space required for a gas engine of equal power, and will average not more than quarter of the weight; hence a wide field of usefulness will be immediately open to this machine. Even before the outbreak of war it was being considered for aeroplanes and dirigibles, and the first successful trials which come to the attention of the engineering world are likely to be in connection with military service; but such developments may not become well known until long after they have occurred. The commercial exploitation of the gas turbine will in all probability not take place until the readjustment of industry following the conclusion of peace. The average wage paid union workmen in Wisconsin in 1914 was $705, compared with an average of $683 in 1913, according to the annual statistical report of labor conditions prepared by J. J. Handley, secretary of the Wisconsin Federation of Labor. The figuré is based on reports received from 253 unions, or 60 per cent of the total number. The average wage for the metal trades is given at $750. pret > ant ahha mee EL Shells from European Battlefields A German Study of the Composition and Structure of Some of the French, English and Russian Projectiles A captain in the German army, who in his’ cooling in the air, which is the usua academy school days studied metallography, among The English shells, Nos. 2 and 3 in other subjects, sent to the metallographic laboratory as well as the English shrapnel steel, N of the Charlottenburg high school a piece of a_ sist of ferrite and pearlite. Samples No: French shell for examination. The piece, Fig. 1, were sorbitic, as expected in the case ot was smooth, sharp and about the width of a knife, alloy steels. The analyses do not revea and had the chemical composition shown in the table purity of the metal; polished surfaces such as } as sample No. 1. An investigation of its structure 5, however, show the quantities of slag revealed that shown in Figs. 2 and 3. There was’ so much so that one might be led to thin a noticeably high slag content. The fine structure was dealing with wrought iron. Such consisted of close-grained sorbitic pearlite and little content was found in all of the first five sam; ferrite. The high slag and phosphorus content, The uniform manganese content, detern which would render the material unsuitable for chemical investigation, and the uniformit } | ef other purposes, was in this case apparently admis- inner structure established beyond doubt sible. was dealing with ingot steel. The slag als An unsigned article in a recent issue of Stahl look like the silica slag of wrought iron, but rat} und Eisen, of which the foregoing paragraph is an resembled manganese sulphide. Apparent! introduction, gives also a description of some Eng- haste necessary in the manufacture, no el lish and Russian shells and shrapnel which the’ was paid to slag content and besides the impur author states were sent to him. The chemical com- did not apparently, in these cases, influence the n position of the various pieces is given in the table. terial as to the purpose for which it was mad The analyses show noth ing striking; both alloyed and plain carbon steels are used for such steel shells. Special heat treatment is not applied, for all exami- nations showed the fine structure that would cor- respond with the chemica! composition and simple F The English shells of fer, however, a few good examples for study under large magnification. | Fig. 4 the magnification js 1200 diameters, at which the ferrite and pearlite “an be easily differenti- ated. The crystals are de. Mc | 4a Geek a Weenies Mae cidedly smaller than one is Figs. 2 and 3 are Photomicrographs of the Steels in the Piece of French Shell of Fig. 1 The analysis of this steel is given as sample No. 1 in the table. Fig. 4, 1200 diameters. is a photomicrograph of a piece of English shell Fi 5—Slag Inclusions and Streaks in an English Shell, . with a Decided Contrast in the Size of “ry n the Right with Those on the Left. This photograph is reduced the Cryatala © about one-quarter from an original magnification of 35 diameters 186 n such steels. They show a kind The pearlite and the ferrite in ntertwined so that one can speak te nor a pearlite net. Both are rained and worked together, an ex- extensive mechanical manipula- of Pieces of Shell and Shrapnel Sil Sul Phos- Chro- Ar , ics phur, phorus, mium, senic, Per Per Per Per Per Per Cent Cent Cent Cent Cent 6» 0 2 0.030 1.170 0.05 16 0.31 0.040 0.056 76 «0.21 0.053 0°4 0.054 0.040 0.084 9 024 0.025 0.16 samples ; streaks, from the lower right hand hand, parallel with the slag inclu- e streaks the grains are appreciably ntervening darker portions. The rain can perhaps be a result of still ke, slag than that visible in the (he difference is striking between the right and those in the left of the teel. The grains at the right in area ousand times as large as those at the discern here the effect of the local the drawing out of the metal, caused pression of the projectile. UPOLA MELTING EXPERIMENTS nproven n ¢ { ol rents in an Old German Cupola Insur- ing Satisfactory Results nteresting article appears in Stahl und ipola melting. The writer, Oskar d’Asse, cupola on his hands that was not giving n. In cupola practice the greatest sav- is striven for with good product and test possible output. This is attained e complete combustion of the carbon to xide and the presence of sufficient ex- to prevent the reduction of this carbon the column of the cupola. For this following conditions should be observed. dense coke that offers the smallest possible r the formation of carbon monoxide. m blast with pressure not too high. zone, also to avoid the reduction of yxide. elocity of the ascending gases. agreement with these conditions the whole mny 4 A ‘ t ey are les mn + LOW IT g & ng n of the cupola is arranged, its charging, ‘and section of the tuyeres and the blast. Pe Cr measurements of the old cupola re- ere: Height, 7300 mm.; diameter, 900 nt to charging door, 4300 mm. There ws of tuyeres, the lower 640 mm. from and the upper 1000 mm. They were ‘\) deg. toward the hearth. This cupola e satisfactory results, either in regard ‘ke consumption, or quality of material. ement was first sought by increasing the revolutions of the blower and the amount before the change the blower made 280 gave 94 cu. m. per min. ng to Buzek’s formula for each square section in the smelting zone, 100 cu. m. needed per min. For the cupola in ‘ corresponds to 75.6 cu. m. per min. per cent for loss, the cupola was re- igh blast according to this formula. ) {) THE IRON AGE 187 The total tuyere section, four lower and three upper tuyeres, was 805 sq. cm., which equals one- eighth of the cross section at the smelting zone, and was about equal to the section of the blast pipes and openings. Under these conditions, shown in column 1 of the table, the cupola gave cold iron and melted much too slowly. The blast was, there- fore raised to 114 cu. m. per min., and the pressure from 17 or 18 oz. to 20.5 oz. per sq. in. The re- sult was a considerably quicker melting. The typical carbon monoxide flame was only seen just after charging the coke. The smelting zone was found to be at its regular height, but the results, shown in column 1 of the table, were not satis- factory. Tabl / Numbe ries Number davs Tuyeres, upper, No Ti es bh r, cn Tuyeres, Ww Ni T it =, iOWe!l cg! Tuve S tot Sq Weight of cl g Output in Kg. per Bed coke, in per iron { Total coke, in per nt « iron Limestone charge mestone, pe harge Rejections i foundry: . . It was now thought that improvement could be brought about by lowering the melting zone, so the upper tuyeres were blocked up, and a fifth tuyere placed in the lower row, so as to keep the same tuyere area. The coke consumption, as shown in the table dropped to 13 per cent, but the results still left much to be desired. The output was very low, and the carbon-monoxide flame was continuous. A further bad result was that the lining was burned completely through, and the relining took many hours. The former tuyere conditions were, there- fore, quickly replaced. The next tests were made by gradually reducing the tuyere area. The best results were obtained with 586 sq. cm. (see column 3), which equals one- tenth of the cupola section at the smelting zone. The iron was good, the output sufficient, and the carbon-monoxide flame was seldom seen. After the day’s run the cupola was clean, and often no patching was necessary. The high coke consump- tion alone was bad. By gradual amounts the amount of iron in the charge was increased (see column 4). The coke charge was, therefore, re- duced in percentage, and, when the charge of iron was 1500 kg., had dropped to 9.4 per cent, with a total with the bed coke of 12.68 per cent, and an output per hour of about 7000 kg. The daily out- put was 35 tons, and the rejections for a time of 24 days were only 0.99 per cent. Careful chemical tests showed that the iron was very uniform in composition. The coke consumption was recognized as not extraordinarily low, but with denser and harder coke still better results were to be expected. G. B. W. The Vilter Mfg. Company, Milwaukee, Wis., ice and refrigerating machinery and Corliss engines, has booked contracts in the past three weeks which require an indefinite continuance of the night and day operat- ing schedule made effective in May. s+ Seek rege The Future of Germ Economic Possibi in the Status of German and French Lorraine and of BY H. H. In the last issue of THE IRON AGE it was shown that the Minette district in German and French Lorraine and in Luxemburg furnishes the raw ma- terial for nearly seventy per cent of the total iron and steel production of both Germany and France, and about 90 per cent of that of Belgium, thus accounting for more than half the iron and steel made on the continent of Europe. It was also shown that this ore is about equally divided be- tween Germany and France. It is not easy to put into a few words the move- ment of ore in Germany, because that country both imports and exports considerable quantities. It im- ports from Luxemburg and French Lorraine, and it exports to Belgium and France, but these imports and exports just about balance one another. Ger many imports something less than 10 per cent from Spain, and about the same amount from other countries; most of it from Sweden, but a little from Hungary. Four-fifths of its total supply comes from Lorraine. We all know that France has declared its inten tion of annexing German Lorraine if the allies are successful in this war, and we must consider what the effect would be on the general economic situa- tion if this plan were carried out. There is now free trade in iron ore between the countries of western Europe. France gets a considerable quan- tity of calcareous ores from Germany to mix with its silicious ores; while Germany gets silicious ore from France to mix with its calcareous ores. Bel- gium is able to get all it needs because there is a free market, owing to the competition of France, Germany and Luxemburg. If France should annex German Lorraine it might put an export duty on iron ore and make this duty so high that it would be prohibitory, and thus France could monopolize the whole supply, providing, of course, it could con- trol Luxemburg. It might do this merely as an economic measure to build up its steel industry, and it might deny that it was influenced at all by the desire to injure Germany, although the result would be disastrous to that country. THE HUMAN FACTOR IMPORTANT It is to be regretted that there is so much ill feeling between these two nations that this desire might play an important part in the situation. Some vears ago the writer of this article visited a steel works in German Lorraine which is owned and man- aged by men who speak French and who employ onls French speaking workmen. As soon as he was greeted by the manager of the works, it was evi- dent that it was the proper thing to speak French, but unfortunately the visitor’s command of that language was more than limited. Therefore his first question was in his native tongue, “Do you speak English?” The answer was, “Non, monsieur,” which was delivered with a courteous smile. The next question was “‘Sprechen sie Deutsch?” There was no answer in words, but there was a gesture signifying indignation, and a shake of the head as *Author of “The Manufacture and Properties of Iron and Steel.”’ any’s Steel Indu lities of Changes German Poland CAMPBELL + ? if to say that he did not understand a word, py was restored by a simple remark in pitiable Frey Here was a man who for years had carried e big industry on German soil and who sold his uct in that country. When he traveled on ¢ Ne tr 8 ne the guard, acting without doubt under orders, y decline to recognize the French name of the ton where he lived. He was in contact all the tin, German Officials and German people of yet he could not make any concession to a } stranger within his gates and looked upon a %& words in the German tongue as a declaration war. This bitterness must be considered solution of the problem. It is the opinion of many Americans that» should take a vote of the people in Lorraine ¢ find out which country they would prefer to live According to the Almanac de Gotha, 74 per coy of the population of Lorraine “speak Germar their mother tongue,” while 22 per cent French, the remaining 4 per cent being Italiag and Poles who work as laborers in the factories and mines. In Alsace there are few foreigners and § per cent of the total population speak German anj 5S per cent speak French. Considering the tw provinces as a whole we find 87 per cent speak Ger. man and 11 per cent speak French, while 2 per cent are foreigners; so that if France had her way there would be 87 Germans ruled by eleven Frenchmen These figures were sent to a French Alsatian engineer and he was asked what he had to say about them. He replied that without doubt a large m- joiity of the people in those provinces do speak German, but he claimed that a great number ¢ those would vote for union with France. This is entirely a matter of opinion; but we can say that so far France has said almost nothing about taking a vote in Alsace-Lorraine. If the Allies shoul decide that this was the right thing to do, it is to be presumed that a vote would be taken in Egypt, India, Ireland, Finland, Morocco and Constant nople. > und 1S kes Z CALIFORNIA AS A PARALLEL It is not an answer to say that ‘Germany t k this province away from France forty years ag for at that time no one considered this ore to be « any great value and very little of it was used for making iron and none at all for making steel. We may compare Lorraine with California. No Ame ican wishes to discuss the merits of the Mexical war and the less we say about the matter the bette. At the close of that war we demanded and receive California, but at that time it was considered 0 little importance. Soon-afterwards we discovert gold there, just as the Germans discovered the vallt of the Minette ores in Lorraine. We have built ® an empire on our western coast and California * day is not in any sense the California that we by force and contrary to all principles of justice from a weak and defenceless nation. So Lorraine to-day is not the province that was taken [ro France in 1871. - Since that time it has become the center 0! ™ 188 n of Germany, for these Minette orm the basis of its iron and steel so of its agricultural life, for Ger- basic slag from its Bessemer con- farm land and is thus able to raise re than twice the quantity of wheat, notatoes to the acre than we raise in tes. If Germany is able to sustain this war by the output of its own ause of the use of this slag as a the world knows of Germany’s vir- the aniline dye industry and this he manufacture of coke in connec- peration of blast furnaces. We have mits the process of distraint and pro- way from a mechanic the tools by his living. Germany might well cite the bar of all the nations if an attempt eprive it of Lorraine. SS another possibility, for it is conceivable Dleg will dictate the terms of peace and it ie t it will demand a few miles more of tory. This would give it complete an f the Minette field, and it would also thirds of the iron and steel plants of By putting a prohibitory export duty on any could paralyze the whole iron and of both France and Belgium and rtual monopoly of the steel manufacture Europe. It is to be hoped that there be a chance to do this, and that Germany t be so unwise as to ask it if it did have - cc. ~ nance, It will not do for any nation to try and make ist demands at the close of this war. Twenty- five hundred years ago Etruria conquered Rome ind stipulated in the treaty of peace that Rome should not use iron except for agricultural imple- ents. We know how much good this did and there be some readers of this article who can not » Etruria on the map. A century ago Napoleon ht he had rendered Prussia helpless by im- liating conditions limiting its military ment; but we know that these very con- and limitations created the Prussian army If France claims German Lorraine or if aims French Lorraine we may strike | peace from our lexicon. Such a provision ir. This may come in twenty years or in the one sure thing is that it will come Europe will see again this struggle of and continual preparations for war. The irces of the Minette district are divided to give the nations of Europe a fair share to their needs and it would be a crime to equilibrium. Alsace is of little eco- portance and the arguments above given J t apply there in the least, but however the , Germany should retain Lorraine. FUTURE OF STEEL IN GERMAN POLAND + ; e extreme southeast of Germany, in the . Silesia, there is a district about fifty re which has eight steel works, over thirty naces and nearly 300 puddling furnaces. ' al ore supply is scanty and very poor. Some one of the blast furnaces was carrying as ts burden a pulverulent Blue Billy made roduct from zine reduction works having ing composition: Iron, 36 per cent; : per cent; zine, 1 per cent. The fact that re was used at all shows that good ore can ad at very high prices; most of the ore ed from Hungary and Sweden. strict possesses one advantage in a supply THE IRON AGE 189 of cheap coal, which is well adapted for heating furnaces and for boilers, but which does not give good coke. The coal bed extends from the province of Moravia in Austria through Silesia into Russian Poland. The best coke is made in Moravia, but even here the quality is not good; in Silesia it is worse, while in Russian Poland it is not fit for use in blast furnaces. The greatest advantage is the supply of cheap labor. For centuries Poland was under the rule of an oligarchy of a few Polish landowners who treated their tenants and workmen almost as serfs, while by misgovernment they made a Mexico out of their country. The condition of the farm labor- ers and tenants to-day is very bad and the general scale of living is far below that of Western Europe. Under German rule the people have learned the methods of modern agriculture, while German cap- ital and German enterprise have built up indus- trial enterprises of all kinds throughout Silesia and Russian Poland. This district has received paternal care from the German Government, which has established low freight rates and has spent a great deal of money in building canals. Silesia profits by the cartel sys- tem under which almost all German industries are conducted and thus is able to share in the business of supplying the iron and steel requirements of the German railroads and also in the export trade of the country. We must now ask what will happen if Poland is made into a separate government. Silesia will find itself surrounded by nations which do not need its steel. It will make more steel than it can use: but Germany, Russia and Austria have all committed themselves to a protective policy, while it will be impossible for Poland to undersell Germany abroad. Moreover, if Silesia wished to export by sea the freight to Hamburg would be very high, while com- merce through the Baltic Sea is carried on with great difficulty in the winter. In addition to this, Poland would be without the advantage of the cartel system and would be unable to keep in touch with the markets of the world. If Poland becomes independent and Silesia is taken from Germany, it will not be a serious blow to the German state. It will be a great loss to the owners of the factories in German and Russian Poland; but it will be a far greater loss to the common people of Poland. Politics will not buy bread. Compensation to Workmen in Illinois The report showing the results of operations under the Workmen’s Compensation Act in Illinois during the first eighteen months has been made public. Orphans and disabled employees received during that period $1,590,041, the average allowance of $2,081.77 in fatal cases being somewhat larger than if the claims had gone through the courts. Disputed claims of all kinds totaled 2314. Of these 1372 were heard by arbitration committees in Chicago, 456 outside the city and 486 are pending. Undisputed claims, which do not come before the board, and which are being paid, largely exceeded the number of those disputed. Of the $1,590,041 al- lowed by the board more than $500,000 was paid in instalments to families of workmen disabled by acci- dents, while $1,000,000 was paid in lump sums for deaths and permanent injuries. As a part of the report are 200 decisions by the board, which will be useful to lawyers in future pro- ceedings. The board was overruled in only one case, in which the Supreme Court held that employees of rail- roads engaged in interstate commerce are outside its jurisdiction. The law was amended at the recent ses- sion of the Legislature by increasing the weekly benefits for disabled workers from $5 to $6 a week. ee eee ; a <sere aah | pene == Rear en mee Internal Stresses and Quenching Mediums Their Relative Magnitude Determined in Different Portions of Fiber Stress Greatest When Water Is Used BY H. The exact nature of the changes which take place within the critical range, or at the three transformation points of steel, is still a subject of discussion, but it is a matter of common knowledge that profound changes do take place, changes so profound that all of the physical properties are affected. Within this range steel undergoes the following: 1. Loss of the property of magnetism 2. A pronounced evolution of heat. A distinct change in the rate of increase in elec tric conductivity. 4. A curious and abrupt change in the linea mensions. ] } 5. The tensile strength no longer falls with an in crease in temperature, but suddenly increases. These changes all take place at approximately the same temperature, in grades of steel with suffi- cient carbon to warrant quenching them for the purpose of improving their tensile strength and elongation, and the coincidence of these changes in properties is almost perfect at the critical tempera- ture of an eutectic steel. 30th the. microstructure and the _ tensile strength, however, are affected by the rate of cool- ing, and the rate of cooling is in turn governed by the cooling power of the quenching medium and the mass of the quenched objects. The surface of the quenched objects may also influence these prop- erties; Benedicts’ experiments, however, indicate that the surface has little influence. QUENCHING POWER OF A _ LIQUID The classical work of Benedicts demonstrates that the quenching power of a liquid depends largely on the latent heat of vaporization, and refutes the views commonly held that it depends upon the initial temperature or the heat conductivity of the medium. The addition of salt to increase the quenching power of water is also proved fallacious, and the experiments of Le Chatelier that the con- ductivity for heat is no measure of the cooling power of a liquid are confirmed. *From a paper presented at the eighteenth annual meeting of the American Society for Testing Materials at Atlanti City, June 23, 1915. The author is assistant to the superin- tendent, Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, Pa 190 a Steel Cylinder— WILLI Mercury has a heat conductivity « times that of water, but both of these able phy. sicists demonstrate that it is decidedly weaker a cooling medium. Le Chatelier considers that + specific heat of the cooling medium governs + cooling speed—and this is confirmed by Benedicts providing the temperature of the body is low, py the latent heat of vaporization is the controlling factor when the temperature of the body is hig This theory is tenable considering the larg: of heat which can be carried off by a relative small weight of vapor, and accounts for the ciency of water as a quenching medium. Water is the oldest known cooling m« quenching steel. Subsequently, various anir vegetable oils were employed, and man artisans using them are still under the belief tha: carbon is added to the steel by these liquids a the properties thereby improved. In this countr mineral oil, because of its low cost, has al entirely displaced the animal and vegetable oils and for many years was used almost exclusivs quenching spring plates and large objects. Wat however, possesses manifest advantages of cheap- ness, cleanliness, freedom from odor, freedom from Tal Fibe Stress Due to Rapid Cool Fiber § Fahr Lb. PerS fire hazard, and above all, efficiency. It is true that a higher elastic limit, tensile strength elastic ratio for a corresponding elongation and r duction of area, or a higher reduction of area and elongation for a corresponding elastic limit, be obtained on a water-quenched steel than can be secured by the methods of oil quenching generalli practised. Opposing these manifest advantages the danger from fractures as the result of the lag in the temperature of the steel. FIBER STRESS DUE TO RAPID COOLING Table 1 shows the fiber stress induced by th difference in temperatures between the inside an¢ outside of a heated piece of steel, subjected to raj id cooling. These figures were so startling that severa years ago the author made a number of exper! ments to determine the internal stresses in oi! and water-quenched forgings of diameters from 6 ¢ 12 in. In recent years many different grades of oil have been proposed as being more effective tha! the high flash-test mineral oil generally employed and which could be used without danger of pre ducing a fracture in the steel, and the experiments were extended to include such oils. Full-size spec! mens, 914 in. in diameter, cut from a driving axle, were employed, and a conservative method of co0l- ing was followed such as is used in practice, since it was not the intention to determine the maximum stress obtainable, but simply those which would result under usual commercial conditions of quench- ing. The quenching mediums employed were wate!. ' i de y oil, heavy tempering oil, fish oil . vil. rs were heated to 1550 deg. Fahr. the foregoing mediums at initial 70, 150, 212, 300 and 400 deg. tions were made of the rise of the the quenching medium and of the on required to cool the forgings to Cf 2 three rings was then cut from each vn in the illustration. These rings micrometered before they were de- re again accurately measured after m the forging and the fiber stress the deformation of the rings. From t will be noted that 1% in. of metal ed so that the first ring represents in. from the surface of the forg- Bn t d ring gives the result 15¢ in. from d the third ring 2%4 in. therefrom. ring in all cases increased in diameter. in. under the surface the fibers | in compression. ination is simple. If a cylindrical ob- to 1500 deg. Fahr. and suddenly ome cooling medium, the surface con- it the outer fibers are in tension and ers in compression. It is interesting the volume of all the cylinders was de- juenching. The fiber stresses induced ferent quenching mediums are given in EATEST STRESSES INDUCED BY WATER table shows that the lowest fiber stresses iced by the heavy tempering oil very gen- erally used, and these stresses are never above the t mit of the material. The greatest fiber ses are induced by water, and the immersion rature appears to have but little influence in ng the internal stresses. It must also ned Induced by Different Quenching e of Fiber Stress, Lb. Per Sq. In Immetr it Distance from Surface of sion, : ninutes 2 in 1% in 2% it 12,600 29,500 16,500 16.800 15,300 8,100 10,200 1,000 15.700 12,300 16,800 1500 10,500 10,800 2 S00 17,650 15,300 1.600 2 $90 12.999 6.000 that the pieces were not rapidly iter, and that they were withdrawn tained a temperature of about 600 deg. he stresses were reduced by slow is temperature. Stresses can be THE IRON AGE 191 produced by water quenching equal to the calculated stresses given in Table 1, s'mply by increasing the rate of cooling. It would be unsafe to increase these stresses beyond those produced in the water- quenched specimens, notwithstanding the fact that the tensile properties would be increased thereby. The analysis of the steel used was as follows: Carbon : 0.41 Manganese Phosphorus 0.036 Sulphur 0.024 Silicon ; (The original paper gives the physical prop- erties of test bars cut from specimens, quenched in the different quenching mediums. ) These internal strains are the primary cause of internal fractures and their magnitude is clearly dependent on the rate of cooling, but they are aggravated by segregation of impurities or any inequalities in the structure of the steel. A forging made from a perfect bloom can be fractured, if the rate of cooling is sufficiently rapid. The rate of cooling also depends upon the chem- ical composition of the steel, and Doctor Benedicts’ experiments show that a high-silicon steel has a very much lower rate of cooling than the usual grade of low-silicon steels. It has been observed that the high-silicon steel is more amenable to water quenching than low-silicon steels, but this has been attributed to the fact that such steels are generally denser, more uniform and more free from segregation than the low silicon steels. The prop- erties no doubt influence the superior results ob- tained by water quenching this grade of steel, but the primary cause must be sought in the fact that such steels have a lower rate of cooling, and the internal stresses are therefore less than in a simi larly quenched low-silicon steel. CONCLUSIONS The results of these experiments are as follows: 1. That the tensile properties of water-quenched steel are superior to those obtained by quenching in any other of the usual quenching mediums. 2. The internal stresses induced in a_ water- quenched object are of much greater magnitude than those developed by quenching in any other of the usual quenching mediums. 3. They confirm the laboratory experiments of Doctor Benedicts, that the efficiency of the quenching mediums is not dependent to a marked extent on the initial temperature of the cooling mediums. 4. With but few exceptions, which can no doubt be explained by some inequality in the steel, the induced internal stresses are affected by the initial temperature, except in case of water. 5. Internal stresses induced by quenching in water are independent of the initial temperature. 6. The small difference between the temperature of the cooling mediums, before and after quenching, con- firms Doctor Benedicts explanation that large quan tities of heat are carried off by the latent heat of vaporization. 7. Light oils have a greater quenching speed than heavy oils but not markedly so. A good tempering oil, however, should be free from tar and should not be- come thick from the precipitation of the burnt tar Producing tungsten powder of remarkable fineness is the claim of a patent granted to Robert Rafn of Porsgound, Norway. The production of amorphous tungsten powder by the reduction of tungsten trioxide is usually difficult because a crystalline product more often results. The inventor claims that by making the reduction in two stages a fine powder is obtainable. The first reduction is with ammonia gas at a red heat producing the so-called blue tungsten oxide; the second is with hydrogen at a cherry-red heat. a Heating Furnaces at Right, with Waste-Heat Boilers; Finishing Mills Engine at Left New Rolling Mill Near Salt Lake City Bar Mill at Midvale, Utah, to Utilize Iron and Steel Scrap Not Needed for Non-ferrous Smelters i rolling mill to produce general merchant and and 128 ft. wide for the greater part of gt! te reinforcing concrete bars has been under construc- It contains busheling furnaces and heating fur. t tion for several months at Midvale, about twelve naces, and in both cases waste-heat steam boiler ' niles south of Salt Lake City, Utah, and at this installations are provided to utilize the products of writing is substantially completed. It represents an combustion for steam raising purposes. The mills expansion of the business of the Utah Junk Com- are accordingly driven by steam engines. There pany, or more accurately, perhaps, a new venture are two busheling furnaces, as indicated, and a by the principals in the Utah Junk Company—Na- 260-hp. Stirling boiler in each case. This has its than Rosenblatt, Simon Rosenblatt and Morris S. own firebox so that coal may be burned in the boiler Rosenblatt. Besides being located to meet a de-_ itself when a furnace is not in operation, or to sup- mand now supplied chiefly by shipment from with- plement the furnaces if the waste heat is insufi- out the State, it also has been projected to utilize cient. Near the busheling furnaces is a squeezer, a considerable volume of iron and steel scrap ma- driven by an 18 x 24-in. Porter-Allen engine anda \ terial which is particularly well suited to melting 19-in. muck bar mill direct-driven by a 26 x 48-i and re-rolling into bar products and yet not wanted Rarig Corliss engine. The 19-in. mill is composed by the smelters of the district. The consumption of two stands, three high, and there is a jib crane of scrap as a fluxing medium in the smelting opera- for changing rolls. tions and the utilization of the remainder of the The finishing mills comprise a combination 1é- scrap by the new mill is regarded as a happy solu in and 10-in. mills with three stands of 16-in. rolls tion of the problem of readily absorbing scrap of three high, and four stands of 10-in. rolls, three . a wide range. Another consideration affecting the higk. As indicated, the heating furnaces are located venture is the existence of relatively cheap fuel. It near these mills and also arranged with respect to is estimated that on the basis of three shifts, the the piling bench so that the charges for the heating mill will produce 2500 tons a month. It is likely furnaces may be pulled up on the tracking shown to that a $500,000 corporation, to be known as the’ the heating furnaces. A telpher system takes the Utah Iron & Steel Company, will be formed to oper- product from the heating furnaces to the finishing ate the mill. mills. The accompanying drawing gives a general plan Each heating furnace is a four-door construc yf the new mill. The main building is 360 ft. long tion and the waste-heat boiler provided with each # y £ ; ie i 192 ‘= y a ioe ei 1 ok at Sb ft . Stirling boiler. The finishing an 18 and 28 x 36-in. Lane & » Cor ine, direct connected to the 16- to the 10-in. mill. The location | shipping platform, alongside of from the Oregon Short Line, is liately beyond the mill is a ma- ‘shot iipment of which includes a 650 planer, two lathes, drilling ma- cial Shrapnel Cutting-Off Machine A spe itting-off machine designed for fac- or closed end and cutting off the e} {'5-in. shrapnel shells has been the Williams Tool Company, Erie ine is built exceedingly strong to vere work and for the rapid produc- it is intended, its strength being in- weight which is 3800 lb. as compared dard pipe machine of same capacity 2500 lb. It is stated that it is equally for facing a forged shell or a shell steel bar stock. Government specifica- ns usually require that a cross sectional area of | shell be left for breaking so that the frac- be inspected and this prevents the use of for cutting off a forged shell. chine has a massive bed with a pan cast to catch the chips and cutting lubricant. The histock bearings are very strong to assure idity and have length to prevent heating and to tuce wear to a minimum. The gears are machine and of coarse pitch and the pinions are of steel. e spindle, which has a 514-in. bore, is extra heavy | strong to prevent chatter. An adjustable stop fitted to the inside of the spindle to facilitate juick setting of the work. An extra heavy ee-jaw universal chuck designed especially for -off work is fitted to the spindle by a flange ired by keys and bolts. The carriage is very . being stiffened by cross ribs. Underneath irely gibbed to the ways and has a small ' travel along the ways by a screw and neel. The tool block is massive and slides on across the carriage. The tool is fitted to ge nearest the chuck and is held firmly by a él cap secured by extra heavy studs. e are two speeds controlled by a friction s pointed out that this is a decided ad- ie facing operation for when the cut Tr Has Been Developed for Facing the off the Ragged End of 414-In. Shrap- nel Shells THE IRON AGE 195 is half finished the speed can be doubled to make the cutting on the smaller diameter more rapid. If desired, a two-speed countershaft can be fur- nished, giving four speeds. Both hand and power feed are provided, the power feed being operated through a worm gear. The machine has an auto- matic knockout that can be set to stop the feed at any desired point. Based on a c