The Iron Age 1921-12-15: Vol 108 Iss 24

ESTABLISHED 1855 THE IRON AGE New York, December 15, 1921 VOL. 108: No. 24 Tramrail Reduces Labor Force to Half Japanning Department of Globe Machine & Stamping Co. Uses One Oven in Place of Seven —Old Elevator Shaft cently been effected by the Globe Machine & Stamping Co., Cleveland, by the installation of a new conveying system and japanning equipment. The conveying equipment includes a _ transportation system for the handling of sheet metal stampings from the press room on the first floor to the japanning de- partment on the second floor, through a continuous baking oven and on to the final assembling, shipping and storage departments. The new equipment includes a japanning oven, rather unusual in construction, and its arrangement shows a practical use for a discarded elevator shaft in reapportioning a plant to cut produc- tion costs. The company’s product consists largely of metal tool and battery boxes and other stampings used chiefly in the automobile field and requiring a japanned finish. The plant is equipped for operation on a high produc- tion basis and the handling of the product from one department to another has hitherto not only entailed a high labor cost, but has to some extent been a re- tardant to maximum production. With the new arrangement of conveying equipment, all parts that are to be japanned are carried on electric | MARKED reduction in production costs has re- from two Cleveland Crane standard carriers After Dipping, the Parts Are Placed on Hooks on Cross Bars, Etc., on a Slow Moving Conveyor for Dripping and a Cross Bar with Its Load Is Transferred to the Tramrail Rack, Eliminating the Necessity of Handling Parts Individually, and the Rack Goes to the Oven The workman shown in the photo is loading the rack, which is suspended 1523 Carries Away Fumes trucks from the manufacturing departments on the first floor to the washing room, where they are fed by hand to a Niagara washing machine. Tool and battery boxes are delivered from the machine onto an endless con- veyor, 42 ft. long, inclined to about 45 deg. This con- veyor delivers them onto a table in the japanning room on the floor above. Small stampings are taken from the washing machine, piled on trucks, and are carried up in an elevator to the japanning room. Work car- ried up on the conveyor is diverted by an inspector to wipers, cleaners and polishers or directly to the japan dipping tank. The japan dipping tank is arranged with connections to three 10-barrel japan storage tanks on the floor below. These contain the three grades of japan that are used, one for the first coat, one for the second, and the third for the finishing coat. The japan is forced from the storage tanks to the dipping tank under air pressure. The supply is drawn off each night and pumped back in the morning. With this arrange- ment the japan has a chance to settle in the tank over night. The material is thoroughly mixed when being pumped up to the dipping tank and fire hazard is re- duced. If during the day a change from one to another ae FD = =— - = 5 ee Key po ee out. nan grade of japan is desired, it takes but little time to empty the dipping tank by allowing its contents to drain back into a storage tank and then to refill the dipping tank from another storage tank. After dipping, the work is hung on hooks on cross bars suspended from a slowly moving overhead con- veyor, directly back of the dipping tank. This con- veyor is 67 ft. long and 10 ft. wide. It takes approxi- mately 30 min. for the work to pass from one end of the conveyor to the other, during which time the surplus japan drips off and the preliminary drying takes place. The conveyor is roofed over and partially inclosed at the sides to prevent floating dust from ad hering to the work. After leaving the drying conveyor work is handled through the oven and on to its destination on a tram- rail system installed by the Cleveland Crane & Engi- neering Co., Wickliffe, Ohio. hand-operated carriers and eight racks or cages, espe- This system consists of cially designed for holding the work, and the necessary monorail tracks and switches. The racks are con- structed of angle iron, being virtually steel frames with They are 10 ft. long, 6 ft. wide and 4 ft. high. When running on the monorail, the bottoms of the racks are 2 ft. above the floor. open bottoms. In transferring work from the drying conveyor to the conveying system that is to carry it through the oven, the cross bar is carried with its load of several small parts to the rack, on which the cross bar with its load is suspended, avoiding the necessity of handling the parts individually. Each rack is suspended from two standard carriers of 2000-lb. capacity each. Two tracks run into and through the oven, which holds four racks at a time. The racks are pushed into the oven and, after the work is baked, pass through doors on the opposite side and are pushed along the trolley system and through switches are diverted to the various departments on the second floor for further assembling operations, to the chutes for loading on cars, to the shipping department or to the warehouse for storage. When a rack is emptied it continues its circuit around the floor back to the place for loading in front of the baking oven. While a carrier, with its rack and full load, weighs approximately two tons, the design of the tramrail system makes it so easy of operation that one man ean push the load along on the rail. The tramrail system is designed for hard service. The wheels on the carriers run on a double row of ball bearings. The wheel serves as an outer race for the bearings and is chilled at two points—where the wheel comes in contact with the rail and where the balls come in contact with The race is ground on the chilled the wheel or race. THE IRON AGE December 15, 1921 surface of the wheel. The inner race is of hardened high carbon steel, the seats for the balls being ground on the race after hardening. Although the carrier with the rack is 10 ft. long it can be operated on a curve with a 4-ft. radius. To the rail is attached a rail clamp at regular intervals and these clamps, in connection with hanger rods of various lengths, suspend the system from overhead supports. The hanger rod can be screwed either in or out of the rail clamp so that the rail can be suspended perfectly level, regardless of whether the ceiling or overhead support is level. The method of suspension makes the rail flexible instead of rigid, permits the easy movement of the rail under the wheels of th carrier, thereby avoiding the danger of having the carrier so loaded that the load is carried on the wheels on one side of the carrier. It is stated that the rai will twist under the load sufficiently to permit an even pressure under every wheel. In order to prevent th rail swinging under the load, side strain brackets ars used to limit the side movement. The switch is so designed that the carrier can pass over it smoothly and it has a safety stop that prevents the carrier from running off the rail at the open end of the switch. The japan baking oven is located in an elevator shaft which was no longer being used for its original purpose. The oven is 14.ft. wide, 20 ft. long and 8 ft. high. It is oil-fired through Ray burners on the lower floor, 12 ft. below the oven. The heat is carried through a 2 x 2-ft. brick flue to the floor of the oven, where it passes around a baffle plate and through the oven. With this arrange- ment the burners do not connect directly to the oven chamber. Two outlets, 10 in. in diameter above the oven, run into the elevator shaft and the fumes are carried up the elevator shaft to the roof and are dis- charged through openings in the sides of the pent house. A damper is provided in the basement at the bottom of the flue to provide and regulate the fresh air supply. Connected to the oven is a Wilson-Maeulen Co. thermo electric temperature indicating instrument. The temperature is taken at three points in the oven, including the warmest spot, or directly above the flue, and at one corner where the temperature is likely to be the lowest. The efficiency of the oven is such that the heat variation at different parts of the oven is less than 5 deg. Fahr. and the oven has proved unusually efficient in fuel economy. Before installing the new equipment the parts to be japanned were carried into the oven by hand and with the time required to cool the oven after a heat sufficiently for the workmen to go inside and with the Two Tramrail Tracks Run Through the Baking Oven Shown in the Background, the Capacity of the Oven Being Four Racks. The rack in the foreground is being loaded while the others are in the oven December 15, 1921 4 Loaded Rack That Has Come from the Oven Is Here Being Assembly time taken for loading, only three heats could be taken during a day. With practically continuous operation by pushing in the four loaded racks as soon as the four others are taken from the oven, and with no cooling of the oven being necessary, ten heats can be taken in a day. With the old system, seven ovens were used, one of the same size as the present oven, the total oven capacity being more than double the amount pro- vided by the one oven now used. Then the japanning department was unable to turn out work as rapidly as it came from the other manufacturing departments. Now this department can handle work faster than pro- duced in the stamping department. From the stand- point of labor efficiency with the economy of handling by means of the tramrail system, more pieces can go through the japanning department with less than half the number of men formerly employed. The conveyor system was laid out to meet the special requirements of the plant by the engineering department of the Cleveland Crane & Engineering Co. in conjunction with the engineers of the Globe Machine & Stamping Co. The baking oven was designed by R. R. Root, superintendent of the Globe plant. Attaching Wire Rope to a Socket When wire rope is used with a socket attached, is important that the socket be attached in such a way that the full strength of the rope may be de- veloped. It is a common thing in factories where there is not enough work of this kind to employ an ex- perienced hand on cables, to have the engineer or repair man do the best he knows how. In discussing the subject, E. J. Edwards, superintendent of foundry maintenance of the General Electric Co. at Erie, Pa., says he has seen lead, solder, soft babbitt, etc., used n sockets, and, upon inquiring, finds the man who did the job was a good mechanic but had no idea just what should be used and what should be done to pre- pare the cable for the operation. When the work is done in the ordinary way, Mr. Edwards points out, the wires are bent back on each other and the basket of the socket filled with lead, babbitt, etc. Sockets attached in this manner under no circumstances should be used on elevators, cranes or hoisting machinery, as many times they result in the socket’s pulling away from the rope. The wires are not all engaged and some of them creep back into the rope preventing a perfect contact between rope and socket. He considers one of the most important operations in attaching a wire rope to a socket is to clean both socket and part of rope to be attached. The end of rope should be served securely and the socket cleaned well with gasoline or kerosene oil. Then the rope is IRON AGE Pushed by One Man Along the Track on Its Way to the Department passed through the socket and served again for a distance from the end equal to the length of the basket or socket, being very careful not to let the strands or the lay of the rope open. After this is done, the hemp center should be cut off the length of the open- ing and the wires in the strands separated. This can be done by using a small piece of pipe or a marline spike. Then the wires are cleaned well with gasoline, and dipped in a solution of one half muriatie acid and one half water for five minutes’ soaking. The wires are then dipped in a solution weakened by the addition of one part more water. After wiping dry, the socket is pushed over the wires until they are even with the top of the basket of the socket. Friction tape is wrapped around the rope at the bottom of the socket to serve as a shield and melted zine is poured into the basket of socket. German Bauxite Supplies Germany’s bauxite production before the war was so insignificant as to render her virtually dependent on French supplies, the total requirements in 1913 amounting to about 38,000 tons valued at more than 2,000,000 m. With a view to becoming independent of foreign bauxite, steps were taken, during the war and since, to explore domestic bauxite fields. Valu- able deposits worth working were found in Hessen. They are being exploited by the Bauxitwerke Aktien- gesellschaft at Giessen and represent the only mines in operation in Germany. The principal consumer of the ore is the state-owned Lauta works with an an- nual output capacity of 14,000 tons of aluminum while the rest is taken by other electric smelting works, emery works and the chemical industry, used by the latter in the production of aluminum salts. The present average monthly output, representing the pro- duction of 15 mines employing about 300 men, is 1200 tons but there is claimed to be nothing in the way of increasing output by sinking new shafts and employing additional labor. In accordance with the growing de- mand, it is planned to bring production to 20,000 tons during 1922. Over 30 proposals for adoption as standards in automobile manufacture will be presented at the meet- ing of the standards committee of the Society of Auto- motive Engineers in the Engineering Societies Build- ing, New York, on Jan. 10. Sixteen divisions repre- senting different fields in the automotive industry and parts or material manufacturers will be represented. The iron and steel division will submit a complete re- vision of the present iron and steel specifications which have been used widely in industries other than the automotive industry since they were first published in 1911. 1525 en en ey wie aa nse re Se ne eee eer Mee eee re se ane sear wr rnp ms re Piette By-Product Coke Ovens at St. Louis Simplicity and Substantial Construction Are Features Modification of Design, Just Patented, in the Inter- est of Fuel Economy Through Better Combustion coke ovens are in commercial operation in Europe, but the first battery to be constructed in this country was recently completed at the Caron- delet oven station of the LaClede Gas Light Co. of St. Louis. This installation of eight ovens was built for experimental purposes at the expense of the Franco- Belgian Coke Oven Corporation, Brussels, Belgium. The design is an adaptation of the European oven to American practice, giving recognition to differences in coking methods and to the quality of coal used, as well as to the wider utilization of silica brick in this coun- N | ORE than fifteen hundred Piette-type by-product try. The results achieved were so favorable that an American company, known as the Belgian-American Coke Oven Corporation, was formed to market the ovens in the United States. This corporation controls also a recently patented Piette oven which will give a still more perfect combustion of gas and air for heating the ovens and will obtain greater constancy in the tem- perature throughout the length of each oven chamber. Styled by the designers as Type C, the St. Louis ovens are of the horizontal type, with vertical flues and transverse regenerators. The regenerator chambers extend the whole length of the battery, at right angles to the heating walls and oven chambers. Although arranged in longitudinal chambers, the regenerators are actually of the transverse type, and the products of combustion pass through the checker work in a di- rection parallel with the axis of the ovens, taking a longitudinal course only after reaching a free space in the outlet chambers. There are four parallel regenerat- ing chambers—a pair of primary and secondary re- generators in each half of the battery, arranged con- versely, the primary regenerators being adjacent to the outside walls. Galleries have been placed under the regenerators, as well as between the oven soles and the secondary regenerators, for the passage of air prior to its intro- duction into the regenerating chambers. This arrange- ment permits the air to absorb heat which would other- wise be lost by radiation through the chamber walls. Tests have shown that the air heated in this manner reaches a temperature of from 200 to 280 deg. Fahr before entering the regenerators. The sections of the flues connecting each pair of primary and secondary regenerators are so designed as to compensate for the effect of the drop in pressure in the secondary chamber, where, after leaving the checker work, the burnt gases pass lengthwise of the battery to the stack. The total resistance is lowered to %4 in. of water gage, instead of 1 in. or more, as is often the case with longitudinal regeneratcrs which do not operate transversely. Thus the pressures in the oven chambers and heating flues are more nearly equalized, making for a maximum of gas tightness and a maximum recovery of by-products. While the passage of air and burnt gas through the regenerators is at right angles to their axis, the fact that each regenerating chamber is continuous from one end of the battery to the other insures a uniformity of temperature throughout the entire bat- tery, and prevents the possibility of differentiation of heating between ovens, as happens when separate re- generators are used for each oven. In this connection, the designers of these ovens contend that the amount of gas required per hour in heating by-product ovens is so small as to make it exceedingly difficult to regu- late the heat of individual regenerators for so many ovens. Continuous longitudinal regenerators, they assert, are the only insurance against irregularity in the various oven temperatures. An outstanding feature of the Piette ovens is the stability of their construction. The regenerators are at right angles to the ovens, and the intersection of Coke Side and One End of the Piette Ovens at St. Louis, Showing Coke-Receiving Car in Position for Drawing an Oven 1526 December 15, 1921 THE IRON AGE 1527 Pusher Side of St the two series of walls makes for solidity throughout the entire structure. The expansion of the linings and of the arches of the regenerators, as well as of the flues connecting the primary chambers with the sub- sole flues, is completely independent of the sustaining mass of the battery. Consequently, the refractory material which constitutes the sole-oven walls and the ovens rests on a rigid monolithic block, which cannot be deformed. An allowance of 2 in. for expansion has been allowed on both the pusher and coke side of the Primary £ nntie tind Gaul --Secondan, Regenerator — Regenerator Longitudinal, Transverse and Plan Sections of Piette Ovens. as featured in the new design. through the heating flues and regenerator chambers. The variations shown around the reversing valve are of interes: Louis Ovens ovens, as well as on top; but the construction is such that the chambers remain tight, and no cracking re- sults. When, however, the oven walls rest on the re- generator walls below them, and are really a part of those walls, as is the case in some types of construc- tion, it is contended that unequal expansion is bound to obtain, because of the different temperatures to be found from the foot of the regenerator walls to the top of the oven walls. The axis of the battery divides the heating walls rT Pe PER RRRIPRT | | SELES RREE E th aed i LOwe j 2499999 99% a779 ¢ TPA | ' a4 4 a0 i ahi 4 me vide OdAZ PERECECEEEBSESTELER f Oven f Ove (é th cbemegecd +? >>, basiuend aimee « Me reeerey LALA ALIA AAS 4 a : 4, ah % y y WY, ae Z Wy s ’ it 7 v . 5 Y ’ vy PrIMary “ZA + a Primar Regenerator Zi : Iegenetator Second ry a) ** regenera tor The installation at St. Louis has no upper burners, Upper view at right is a section through the oven chamber; bel~w it is a section ave eeaprag, Yortrseneet ayer eminence aetna ar ' t roe reer we QOS. en ene Sad eee ‘ 1528 of the ovens into two symmetrical parts, reversals be- ing made from one side to the other every 30 min. Each oven wall is divided into eight chambers, four in each half of the battery. Each chamber is equipped with burners for three or four vertical flues. The area of the air nozzle for each burner, and the number of flues per chamber, have been carefully calculated to make for uniformity of temperature throughout the oven. Thus, the chambers at each end of the oven contain only three flues, to counteract the cooling effect of the outside atmosphere. The second chamber from the coke end of the oven also contains only three flues, greater intensity of heat being required per wall area at that point to compensate for the greater width of the oven on the delivery side. As a result of this arrangement—with two small chambers at one end of the wall and one small cham- ber at the other end—the reversing axis of the battery does not coincide with its metrical axis. The same amount of gas is fed to the short or coke side of the oven wall as to the long or pusher side. Gas is fed to the chambers by individual tuyeres, each provided with a regulating cock. Independent of these cocks is also a control cock common to each half-wall. The air supply for each half of the oven wall is regulated by a damper located at the junction of the sole canal with the primary regenerator. Fixed sections, determined by calculation and confirmed by practise, are used to regulate quite closely the discharge of burnt gases from the top of the vertical flues, thereby rendering the use of dampers unnecessary. ‘Numerous dampers, the Piette engineers contend, are always difficult to handle, and often stick to their seats after having been in use for some time; furthermore, they put regu- lation at the mercy of the indifference or incompetency of the heaters. The separation of the flues, with an upward flow of gas from the half of the oven wall containing the flues, with a concurrent downward flow, reduces the possibility of leakages or short circuits of the heating flames. Reversal of the draft and operation of the burner valves are accomplished by the operation of a single lever. The reversing valve alternately connects one of the two secondary regenerating chambers with the chimney, at the same time effecting the entrance of air into the opposite secondary chamber. While noi essential, the use of a blower to drive the air tends to establish an equilibrium of pressures between the oven chamber and. the heating wall flues, thereby serving to prevent the springing of leaks for the escape of gas, even when an oven is being overworked. Regulation of the battery is facilitated by sight- holes which permit the inspection of the interior throughout the route of the flames and gases. Sight- holes placed at the ends of the primary regenerators permit a view of the top of the checker work for the full length of the chambers. Sight-holes on top of the ovens permit inspection of each vertical flue in the oven walls. If any chamber is being insufficiently heated, due, for instance, to an accidental obstruction of a cock or of a gas pipe, this immediately becomes apparent. Modification in Design Just Patented Although gratified by the results obtained from the battery at St. Louis, the engineers of the Belgian- American Coke Oven Corporation have designed and patented a slight modification in the construction of the ovens which, they believe, will result in greater economy in gas consumption and increased uniformity in oven temperature. The change will also permit the use of a larger proportion of high volatile coal than is- now used. In heating oven walls by means of vertical flues, one cause of loss of efficiency has heretofore proved un- avoidable: Any air admitted to the heating flues, in excess of that strictly required for the combustion of the gas, involves a loss in efficiency, because it carries away heat which can be only partially recovered. Yet in vertical-flued ovens it has been necessary to mix more air with the heating gas than theory requires, for two reasons. The theoretical mixture of gas and air, THE IRON AGE December 15, 1921 burning within the necessarily short, spage of the vertical flue, would overheat those portions of the flue lining nearest the burners, so that even the silica bricks of which it is made would melt. It is also necessary to use an excess of air to insure short flames which will not extend above the height of the verticai flues. It is essential that each flame give the whol of its heat to the vertical slice of coal which corre sponds to the combustion flue; if the flame were tuo extend into the horizontal inversion flue, local over- heating of the wall would result, and efforts to obtain uniformity in heating the distilling chamber would be nullified. These obstacles are believed to have been overcome in the new design. The superstructure of the oven alone has been modified, a channel having been pro- vided above the refractory top of each oven wall and above the horizontal inversion flue. Within this chan. nel, which is open to the air at both ends, two gas pipes with burners are laid—one in each half of the oven wall. So as not to interfere with the inspection of the combustion flues through the sight-holes, the pipes are placed on one side of the channel, instead of in the middle. The purpose of the burners in this channel is to consume the oxygen remaining in the burnt gases discharged from the combustion flues. Under this plan, the upper burners are active at the same time that the lower burners are operating in the opposite half of the oven wall. Thus the design not only makes for more complete use of the air, but also provides for combustion throughout the length of the oven at all times, the lower burners of one-half of the oven wall being in operation at the same time as the upper burners of the other half of the wall. The same control cock which admits the gas to the lower burners also introduces the gas into the upper burners, gas being fed simultaneously to the upper and lower burners of opposite halves of the oven wall. According to the engineers, the new design will insure maximum efficiency as the result of perfect theoretical combustion. At the same time, the whole surface of the oven wall is made available for inten- sive heating; whereas, in the ordinary reversing sys- tem, in which gases burnt in one half-wall are sent through the other half-wall, nearly 50 per cent of the heat-transmitting surface is lost, as the burnt gases, upon reaching the horizontal inversion flue, are cooled to such a degree that they have few calories left to yield to the flues in their downward flow. Another possible material advantage of the intensive heating will acerue from a substantial reduction in the time necessary for carbonization. The new design also will permit a considerable in crease in the height of the ovens, and thus allow much larger loads to be handled without, in the opinion of the engineers, lengthening the coking time or increas- ing the length of the ovens. Using the new type of construction, the corporation expects to build ovens which will coke over 25 tons of coal per 24 hr. The ovens now in operation at St. Louis are 37 ft. long between doors, and are 18% in. wide on the pusher side and 21 in. wide on the coke side. Their height under the arch is 9 ft. 105% in. Under normal condi- tions they are heated by 37 per cent of the gas given off by the coke—in terms of B.t.u. Results of Tests at St. Louis A 30-day test of the ovens in operation at St. Louis was begun three months after their completion. The following data show in detail the results obtained: The mixture of coal charged consisted of 65 per cent high volatile Elkhorn coal from the Consolidation Coal Co. mines in Kentucky, and 35 per cent low volatile Pocahontas from the Cleveland-Western Co. of West Virginia. The average analysis of this mix- ture was: Moisture 1.43 per cent Volatile hydrocarbons 29.06 per cent Fixed carbon 61.37 per cent Ash : ; , as Cuwiet 5.14 per cent 100.00 per cent The load of one oven was weighed daily and was then screened, following which samples were submitted December 15, 1921 to laboratory tests. The screening was done on an in- clined screen with 2%%-in. roller grizzly. The results of the tests follow: Ovens and Coal Total number of ovens charged and pushed.. 282 Total quantity of coal charged in 30 days... 7,549,400 Ib. RVG TORE. BE C0 ccc ccccesaciaass Average coking time............<. pfael Ih a Average quantity of coal charged in 24 hr. per OGHS OVER accececeveseesoeseeeteeseuces Average temperature of smoke at outlet of heat regenerators, corresponding to 3.8 per cent oxygen pr an excess of 25 per cent of BI ecoeeceeeeseseseeeseseeeseesesesssese 20 hr. 18 min. 31,455 Ib. 624 deg. Fahr. Coke Total quantity of coke produced in 24 hr. in G4. We aca néesc ad Ge ud bs Kars er ee 21.764 Ib Total yield of dr y coke, calculated on coal Se MIE we bidisatataene ct <b eederteseey 69.19 per cent Proportion of foundry coke in total coke... 38.15 per cent Proportion of other cokes in Skeid es 61.85 per cent Average analysis of the total coke obtained: ee ee a ‘nae ee en 1.94 per cent Volatile matter .. ; 0.96 per cent Fixed carbon ... ‘ . 90.33 per cent AM. <i 6.77 per cent Specific gravity sae Apparent ...... Séae 0.973 ee rer ee 1.906 Porosity Coke substance by vo'ume. 51.03 per cent Air spaces by vo.ume..... 48.97 per cent oe a Pe 55.57 per cent Heating Gas Cu. ft. of gas burnt during the 30 days, at 30 in. pressure and 60 deg. Fahr............. 20,332,000 — Volume of gas burnt per lb. of coal charged. . 2.693 Heating value of this gas (B.t.u. per cu. ft.) 479.3 B.t.u, consumed per Ib. of coal charged...... 1,290.7 Gas Produced and B.t.u. Available Total cu. ft. of gas produced during the 30 days, at 30 in. and 60 deg. Fahr.......... 44,159,000 Volume of gas produced per pound of coal : Ce Re oe eae rer eee 5.849 Average calorific value of this gas (B.t.u., per GU. RR. kee db aves OOS tbe eee cde e Demeuceses 564.5 Total quantity of B.t.u. available per lb. of es coal charged (non-debenzolized gas)...... 3,301.7 B.t.u. (surplus) available per Ib. of coal COMERS nck e cede ceckesin ee avwrees eohewns cue 2,011.0 Average analysis of the gas produced: Cle acevennacs 1.7 percent CO 6.1 per cent Ms ae: 5 tig mite esos 3.4percent CH, 29.8 per cent ere 0.4 per cent eI 6.8 per cent Serre rer ee 51.8 per cent Average specific gravity at 30 in. mercury and 60 deg PS 3 bw ws cia ard ain eae atieen oe ie ape dca a ae a wa atc, Gee Yields of By-Products Per Net Ton of Coal Carbonized Ammonis (NEs) ..6.ceeces : Sore er 5.63 Ib. SP GE i oe be bb ede ween eed 4 6s desc aus 7.01 gal Benzol (product distilling below 200 deg. C.) .. 3.42 gal These figures show that the yield in available B.t.u. would be—after deducting the B.t.u. needed for heating the ovens—60.9 per cent of the total B.t.u. produced. This satisfactory proportion does not, however, represent the real power of this system of ovens, the engineers declare. A small number of ovens cannot give the same yield as a bigger battery—say 50 or more ovens of the same type. In a big battery the gas used for the heating of an end-wall is distributed over a larger number of ovens, and as matter of course over a larger quantity of the coal distilled. If the heat lost in one end-wall is distributed over a battery of 50 to 60 ovens—the average number in a modern battery—the reduction in B.t.u. consumed would be, it is asserted, fully 6 per cent. Taking this into account, the calorific balance sheet of the Piette ovens at St. Louis would be: B.t.u. produced per pound of coal 3,301.7 100.00 per cent B.t.u. in the surplus gas... oe one 63.25 per cent B.t.u. consumed in the heating gas 1,213.3 36.75 per cent This consumption is said to be the smallest yet realized in the United States, considering the condi- tions imposed by the tests. The purchasing agents of factories of Marion, Ind., have formed an organization with Raymond M. Oaks chairman and Ancil Witmer, vice-chairman. The asso- ciation is for the exchange of ideas and the consolida- tion of shipments of raw material and supplies. It is believed the movement will result in a large saving of money for the industries. The Velie Motor Co., Marion, Ind., has begun oper- ations with 150 employees. The Western Drop Forge Co. has resumed operations with excellent prospects, and the Indiana Truck Works has added to its force of employees. THE IRON 26,770 Ib., AGE 1529 HELPING BUSINESS Secretary Hoover and Director Klein Tell of Progress and Plans WASHINGTON, Dec. 13.—Though the report of the Department of Commerce is for the entire fiscal year ended June 30, 1921, Secretary Hoover points out that it covers but four months of the administration of the department under his direction. Summarizing the ac- tivities of the new Administration during these four months, the Secretary said that the time had been de- voted to two primary questions: “First: Reorganiza- tion. of the departmental expenditures. Second: Re- organization of those bureaus concerned with industry and trade, that they may become of more effective service to the community. “The results of reorganization enabled a revision of the estimates of expenditure for the fiscal year 1921- 22, so that while the total appropriations available for the department for this period are $24,222,192, yet it now seems probable that the expenses during this fiscal year will approximate $20,200,000, showing a total saving of about $4,000,000, or 16 2/3 per cent of the available appropriations. “The results of reorganization of the bureaus con- cerning industry and trade are in part indicated by the increase in volume of demand upon the department for helpful action or information. These demands have now reached a rate of over 500,000 per annum. “The further practical results to American com- merce and industry will be more evident later in the year and comment upon them can best be deferred until results have been further realized. “The establishment of a real Department of Com- merce, effective in service to the producers, manufac- turers, and distributors of commodities, able to give economic interpretation of importance to the American public generally, to stimulate American trade and merchant marine, requires a thorough reorganization and entire regrouping of the Federal functions bear- ing upon these problems. Inasmuch as these matters are not actively before Congress and the Administra- tion, it is not necessary on this occasion to enter upon discussion of them.” Director Julius Klein of the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce has the following to say: “The bureau requires great additional strength if it is to serve the purpose really intended by Congress and meet the demands that are made upon it by the business men of the country in their present distress. Not only should more attention be given to trade pro- motion, with which the bureau has been almost ex- clusively concerned in the past, but it should be pos- sible to make the more detailed economic surveys that are now so indispensable because of the enormous financial interest we have in foreign fields. There never has been a time in the past, and perhaps may never be in the future, when accurate economic data on the situation in foreign countries was so vital to our material well-being. “Before the close of the fiscal year under review, Congress provided funds for the establishment of com- modity divisions in the bureau, and shortly after the beginning of the new year a sufficient number of high- class men were found to organize some twelve or four- teen such divisions. These divisions will not only or- ganize and direct the collection of information abroad concerning their commodities (such as textiles, coal, machinery, etc.), but will set up, with the active help of the industries themselves, the machinery for the best possible distribution of such information. These divisions are revolutionizing the methods of the bureau and should be considered a long and important step in the right direction. Next year another long step should be taken and money should be forthcoming to expand the work along logical lines. “Congress has also very wisely provided a new technical division to handle the difficult subject of foreign commercial laws. The bureau should have more technical divisions of this sort to provide really expert advice on such subjects as foreign credits, pack- ing, and transportation.” iy ie i | . yee a 1 . 1530 THE IRON AGE ABSORPTION METHODS Federal Trade Commission Discusses Practices Tending to Lessen Competition WASHINGTON, Dec. 13.—That the Federal Trade Commission issues only a small number of formal complaints and a still smaller number of orders com- pared with the number of cases it handles in which unfair competition is charged is indicated by its sixth annual report. The report states that it has handled some 3000 cases of this kind, and has issued 788 formal complaints and 480 orders. The commission states that it is significant that with very few excep- tions these cases have been brought to its attention by business itself, but it apparently overlooks the obvious fact that in the vast majority of instances the charges are not well founded, for otherwise more complaints and orders would ensue. The commission, realizing it has no punitive powers by way of assessing fines against or imprisoning of- fenders, but may merely issue cease and desist orders, subject to review by a court, makes it plain that it would like to have its authority broadened. This is seen in the statement that ineffectual features of the Clayton Anti-Trust Act have been brought to the at- tention of Congress. It is stated that activities of the commission under this act have developed the fact that frequently the effect of a tying contract may be to enable the seller to hinder competition without STANDARDIZATION IN INDUSTRY Its Significance to Industry and to the Federal Government A. A. Stevenson, chairman American Engineering Standards Committee, in an address before the Amer- ican Society of Mechanical Engineers, Washington Section, Dec. 9, expressed the belief that the present is “a particularly opportune time for the launching of extensive cooperation between government and indus- try. The United States Government is probably the largest purchaser of materials in the world. It main- tains an unrivaled group of research organizations, the one object of which is the furthering of the de- velopment of our industries. In addition to the con- tinuing work of the Government in promoting the national welfare through such aids as it may properly give to industry, the efforts of the present Administration have shown a keen appreciation of the importance of standardization and of its bearings upon industry as a whole, and constitute a most significant development in the relation of the Government and industry. “In both Great Britain and Germany,” he contin- ued, “national standardization is being carried on in- tensively. The German industries are carrying out a far-reaching program of standardization as a nec- essary step in building up an unprecedented industrial structure which must rest in large measure on an ex- tensive foreign trade. It is being woven very inti- mately into the industrial fabric of the country, under the guidance of an organization which functions very much like the American Engineering Standards Com- mittee, and in its work 5000 German industrial firms are cooperating. “A recent event of unusual importance was the organization of the Federal Specifications Board for the purpose of unifying the specifications for all pur- chases to be made by the Government, military as well as non-military. This board has been charged with the duty of compiling and adopting standard speci- fications for materials and services, and bringing specifications into harmony with the best commercial practice wherever conditions permit, in order to broaden the field of supply. If common standards are arrived at for the Government and the industries of the country, might it not be advantageous to have a common agency charged with the duty of determining December 15, 1921 bringing himself within the prohibitive terms of the law. This practice is referred to as one of four methods which the commission says it has handled in cases under the Clayton act relating to the absorption of competing companies by a single unit and other prac- tices tending to lessen competition and to create monopoly. These practices, other than the one men- tioned, deal with the acquisition of shares of capital stock, to interlocking directorates, and to discrimination in selling price, and wider authority to control them is sought. “The commission has found,” says the report, “that corporations frequently now absorb competitors, not by acquiring capital shares but by acquiring the physical assets which the Clayton act does not forbid. Like- wise the commission has found that a great business unit lessens competition more often by the device of discrimination in price in buying its raw material than by discrimination in price in selling its product. Simi- larly, it has been found that concentration of control of supposedly competitive units in the hands of a few is accomplished more often by ownership of capital shares by that few by control through common directors. The Economic Division of the commission discusses briefly the situation as to receiving reports from steel interests, mentions the injunction restraining the com- mission from compelling reports to be made and says that because those received were not considered suit- able for publication of average results, the. commis- sion last November advised those reporting to stop. what materials and services do meet properly the standards adopted? It is understood that, in at least two of the most important industries of the country, plans are now under consideration for the establish- ment of such a common bureau of inspection. “It cannot be too often repeated, that a national standardization program means almost unlimited ad- vantage to the manufacturer in cheapening the pro- cesses of production and stabilizing his market; to the distributor in clarifying and simplifying his problems; and to the ultimate consumer by lessening costs and expediting deliveries, with whom the Government as a purchaser is to be included; and to the Government as a body of great research agencies, by selling the results of its researches to industries in return for an increased prestige with the general public and an in- creased support from industry.” British Pig Iron and Steel Output Increased in November (By Cable) LONDON, ENGLAND, Dec. 13. The production of pig iron in Great Britain in November was 271,800 gross tons and that of steel ingots and castings, 442,800 tons. These compare with an output of 235,500 tons of pig iron and 405,400 tons of steel in October, with 158,300 tons of pig iron and 429,300 tons of steel in September and with 93,600 tons of pig iron and 432,600 tons of steel in August. The average pig iron output for the 11 months of this year has been 212,400 tons per month and that of steel 294,- 890 tons per month. In 1920 the production of pig iron averaged 667,300 tons per month and of steel] ingots and castings 754,700 tons. Unemployment still is decreasing in Pennsylvania, according to the semi-monthly report of the State De- partment of Labor and Industry, which shows the num- ber registered for work at the various district offices as of Dec. 1, to have been 269,322, as compared with 271,430 on Nov. 15 last. The figures by districts fol- low: Altoona, 13,020; Erie, 13,100; Harrisburg, 11,292; Johnstown, 9260; McKeesport, 3940; New Kensington, 3750; Philadelphia, 128,000; Philadelphia, women, 11,- 600; Pittsburgh, 51,400; Scranton, 17,725; Williams- port, 6235. Double Helical or Herringbone Gears Use of Long Addenda in the Pinion and Short Addenda in the Driven Gear, to Increase the (Concluded from page 1473, Dec. 8) ET us investigate now the possibility of using i long and short addenda, so as to reduce the are of approach and increase the arc of recess. | As before, K'T = arc of approach and KT = arc of recess; and AT is greater than K’T. Also, to insure ' B “} , _0\ | «20° ‘A conditions of continuous contact, etc., total are of con- tact KTK’ should be at least as great as the circular pitch—better, a little greater. (Fig. 13). Assume the addendum of the pinion as long as would be considered good practice; i.e.: equal to stand- 1 dp This would produce a standard dedendum on the gear or driven pinion. Inasmuch as, for pinions having comparatively few teeth meshing together, the base circle usually comes between the pitch line and the dedendum circle, and since the tooth curves below the base circle are radial lines, we would have weak teeth, in the driven pinions at the root, if we made the de- dendum greater than standard to suit a longer than standard addendum of the driving pinion. If the driven gear is larger, it would be possible to increase the dedendum, say to a point where the deden- dum circle would approach the base circle, with corre- sponding increase in addendum of the driving pinion. This increase of addendum is limited to that causing interference, or giving an undesirable degree of tooth pointedness. ard ‘for the tooth section normal to the axis, or *Chief engineer Woodard Machine Co., Wooster, Ohio. “Follow BY HOWARD H. TALBOT* Through” It may be desirable in certain instances to increase the addendum, thus, over the standard, with these lim- itations. For given circular pitches, then, the arcs of action should be maintained as before. It remains then to determine the length of addenda of the driven gear, add. B, (Fig. 13) to make the arc of approach K'T = previous total are of action minus TK. This addendum would be equal to that referred to the driving pinion, were 7K made equal to TK’. Then K'T = (previous are for given circular pitch) — TK. And, substituting in the original equation for addenda relative to arcs of action, we obtain the ad- dendum for condition of equal addenda which will equal add, B. This addendum + the usual clearance of 0.157 _ dedendum, ded. A. dp Referring to Fig. 2.* TK — TK’ V (PA)* — (MA)* — AT sin 20° cos 20° Taking again the example of a 20 in. pitch diameter pinion, 20 deg. involute, let previous are of action = P.A.A. TABLE VI —_————-Number of Teeth ——_—, 8 12 16 20 30 i—-Diametral pitch 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.5 2—Circular pitch. 7.85in. 5.24in. 3.93in. 3.14in. 2.09 in Standard ad- dendum 1 (5 ) 2.5 in. 1.67in. 1.25in. 1.0 in. 0.67 in 4—FPA.A.Y 2,2 ve. 7.8 in. 5.65in. 4.35in. 3.65in. 2.50 in Are of action.. 10.28in. 7.42in. 5.88in. 4.9 in. 3.46 in. 6—AT (% arc of . paeeen yt §.14in. 3.7lin. 2.94inm. 2.45 in. 1.72 in. {(4)— (6)] 2.66in. 1.94in. 1.4lin. 1.2 in. 0.78 in. For condition of equal addenda:** S a nach d ale 11.01 in. 10.68 in. 10.44 in. 10.36 in. 10.22 in 9—Addendum B.. 1.0lin. 0.68in. 0.44in. O0.36in. 0.22 in 157 10—Clearance ("3 ~ 0.5 in. 0.33 in. 0.25 in. 0.20in. 0.13 in dp l1li—Dedendum A (9) +°(10)] 1.51lin. 1.01Lin. 6.69 in. 0.56in. 0.35 in. 12—Height [(11) + (3)] 4.01lin. 2.68in. 1.94in. 1.56in. 1.01 in. 13—Dedendum B [¢(3) + (10)] 3.0 in. 2.0 in. 1.5 in. 1.2 in. 0.79 in, *From curve 1 of Fig. 5, and line 8 of Table II *For addendum of line 3, the ares of action being taken from curve 1 of Fig. 5. °eKT K'T ; solve for resulting addendum (of the driven gear); PA V TK cos 20° + AT sin 20°) (MA)* and AT 10 in pitch radius. Line 9 gives the addenda of the driven gear to give the ares of action (line 4) with the pinion standard addenda as in line 3 for the circular pitches of line 2. For curves based on this table see Fig. 14, These proportions of the pinion tooth, where we have short dedenda, will, in practically all cases, give good width, without undercut at the root of the tooth, since the root or dedendum circle is very close to the base circle. As previously mentioned, in the case of a driven gear having a small number of teeth (say, the same number as in the pinion), although there is the same thickness at the root of the tooth as in ordinary stand- ard gearing where the dedendum = portions may give too much undercut. It may then be desirable to re-proportion the teeth to provide standard stub tooth length of dedenda, or to a condition of equal addenda for driving pinion and driving gear. Where there are two pinions of equal pitch diam- eter and number of teeth, as in the case of rolling mill pinion housings, it is desirable that the pinions be in- *Tue Iron Aop, Dec. 8, page 1469. , these pro- 1531 i 1532 THE IRON AGE December 15, 1921 N ; terchangeable as to position, and also as to driver and used, and corresponding pinion addenda, give the fol- a driven; hence, tooth forms of equal addenda are essen- lowing minimum pitch diameters of the gears. ! tial. : ‘ : dp 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.5 2 i For appreciable ratios, however, the base circle of ldd, 2.5 in 1.67 in 125in. 1 in. 0.67 in 0.5 i ' the gear usually lies well inside of the root circle and ’? %7-9in. 55.29in, 41.46in. 33.17im, 22.11inm. 16.58 ir . no undercut exists. However, since the pitch line of Or for the nearest whole number of teeth: the gear is so much nearer the outside circle than in Pitch : diameter SO in. 53.33 in {0in. 382in. 21.33 in. 16; bs Number of teeth 32 32 32 32 32 32 Thus we find that for any dp, 32 teeth constitutes the least number for the driven gear, using the fore- going method of