The Iron Age 1922-04-13: Vol 109 Iss 15

THE IRON AGE New York, April 13, 1922 STABLISHED 1855 VOL. 109, No. 15 ro 2 SSS Oe OE, 2 Solving Sand Probl S I i Vil ‘obiem a Steel Foundry iY SOL In? an ~Fropiem Na. O I } ’ 7 A 5 eit, Mechanical Equipment Shakes Out Castings and Prepares Pe Old and New Sand With Minimum of Labor i —Other Features BY EDWIN F. CONE ik BE it te NE of the most difficult problems in a steel foun molders There is also the incidental problem of bt () dry, large or small, is the handling of the sand shaking out and handling of the castings. The featu x — Particularly troublesome is the disposition of the of the Lebanon solution is that all of this is being don { or burnt sand which comes from the flasks after the in a small space by a much smaller number of mer stings have been poured and shaken out. In some than formerly. ’ indries it has been the custom to load this sand into Several years’ experience with electric furnaces ha irs and deliver it to dump heaps. Part of it has been demonstrated to the satisfaction of the owners of t reened by hand through large screens, the cleaned Lebanon Steel Foundry that a general high stand ind being used over again as the main portion of the ard of foundry molding practice is quite as important ‘ids. The disposition of the sand as a whole is often as good steel. This, of course, presupposes prope in expensive problem. equipment for the mixing of facing and heap sand The Lebanon Steel Foundry, Lebanon, Pa., believe and their tempering. Study of the problem convinced it it has developed and perfected a solution to this them that this should be done in one place if possibl roblem which fits not only its own conditions but also and as completely by mechanical means as circum ntributes valuable information to the general prob stances would permit. This would also eliminate the of molding sand mixtures and the disposition of personal equation which frequently results in non-uni sand—both live topics among American foundry formity of facing and heap sands. en, Only small light steel castings are produced by this ! The problem which was faced by the Lebanon com company. For a given tonnage they cover in thei pany was much the same that confronts similar foun handling a large area of floor space. From the stand es, except that only small castings are produced. A point of economy in operations this prohibits the use good facing sand must be mixed and delivered to the of grab buckets and travelling cranes to handle both ders, and the old sand must be reconditioned to the the sand and the castings as in large foundries. Even fullest possible extent before being supplied to the tually the following plan was worked out. The Mechanical Shake- Out Grid and the Method of Transporting Molds and Sand to Va- Castings rious Parts of the Foundry ~ 986 THE IRON AGE April 13, 1922 The Magnetic Pulley at the Top of the Sand Handling yut rid and a of it flows over this pulley, which se; Most of the castings being molded in molding ma- chines at one side of the main building, it was decided that these could just as well be shaken out at the sand handling center as anywhere else, and that this could be done mechanically better than by hand. The fin- ished molds are placed by the molders on metallic skids, on which they remain while being baked, when neces- sary, and during pouring. These steel skids are made available wherever needed. They are then taken by means of electric lift trucks to the central shaking out grid or platform, as shown by one of the illustrations, on which the y are dumped, flasks and all. This shake grid operates like a jolt machine which jars th nd and castings out of the flasks The castings ar then deposited on the skids to be taken by an elect f | | i line for cleanin: | and n rds are put | on the sk a ~ gS ' ° a Ph , -R o& A * Q 40 é 5 Q. : aot ~ ? a yw / STORAGE Apparatus. The old sand comes directly from the shal trates out all the metal. This falls to the floor bel they came down on and are taken back by elect f trucks to the molder from which they came. The sand from the flasks and castings falls th the grid into a boat which elevates it mechanic¢ally the top of the building. There it falls upon a which passes over a Cutler Hammer magnetic pu which, as shown by an illustration, removes any scrap, nails, core wire or other ferrous material. The magnetically separated metallic matter falls through a chute to a box on the main floor, where by s the useful part is saved. In some foundries th« from this source is by no means a small item, b of a lack of economical means of separation. From the belt the sand flows into a ré reen, which breaks up lumps and delivers int age bin. In its travel through this apparat ind has become sufficiently well aerated S Cnr a B , A April 18, 1922 THE IRON AGE 987 Entire Apparatus Are Located the Grinding M (Left) for Preparing t Facing Sar Mixer Tempering the Heap Sand. The old sand falls b es £ rol t drops into the storage bin it is cold and Machine ( d e to the orage r ‘overed old sand, thus a imulated in a fron h the nd flow by gravity The facing onstitutes the heap sand and the mai and, wW f irse argely new sand, is mixed f the facing sand. vith the proper 1 eria ind ground in an Amer sand needs furthe r eatme Vi These rredient r is done in a No. 4 Standard Sand & f ced 1 Jaeger nerete mixer, witl AIR COMPRESSOR BUILDING S| MACHINE “i : [: 2| SHOP " PATTERN mane er tetons fees fae af , / STORAGE ay} a7 Anneatind SHIPPING x 7c¢ DEPT lf af J PATTERN rs : s , _? i Ls r Say We agente 1 anh nena iat i REE ES ETE OOS TOIL EI - sn atahiX ack nae Pree ag - anne ede, i ae ee pn ot wee ee ns poe Gon. ded to eon "” e * aes aie cc oO om loading device, before they enter the grinding mill to insure absence of dampness when the mixing is com- pleted. To regulate the proportions of sand used daily there is a measuring device of the company’s own design im- mediately under the sand gate of the storage bin. The prepared heap sand and the properly mixed facing sand are both mechanically loaded into wooden bins or boxes which are placed on the steel skids and deliv- ered to the various molders by the electric lift trucks. The castings are shaken out and the sand put through all necessary processes in this compact appa- ratus by means of two. electric trucks and_ six men. The facing and heap sands are also delivered the molders without any extra labor. To accomplish the same results be- fore this ap- paratus was per- fected, 35 to 40 men were neces- ry. The _ effi- ciency of this ap- paratus as a whole can be bet- ter appreciated when it is real- that the ca- pacity of this electric steel foundry is_ be- tween 450 and 0 tons monthly f castings aver ig less than aping 20 lb. each. The . s Mixing the Facing Sand, Which Is carrying out of Other Inere nt This is also under sucl a scheme transports this and the othe presupposes easy transportation conditions. The entire foundry, the scope of which may be appreciated from the repro- duced plan, has a concrete floor in the molding depart- ment and a wood block and concrete floor in the clean ing and finishing departments. Eleven years ago the Lebanon Steel Foundry was incorporated. A little later, on the present site, it was. established as a crucible steel foundry with a small capacity. For the first two years it continued yroduce crucible castings. In 1914 a one-ton Heroult THE IRON AGE The Special Apparatus, Including a Concrete Mixer, Which Is the Starting Point April 13, 1929 electric furnace was purchased, th one by the United States Steel Corpor; yea a 2-ton furnace of the same typ instal two years later an additional 2-ton unit. It safely claimed that this company was one of { neers in the production of electric steel casting: its organization the company has specialized manufacture of small castings for motor truck mobiles, machine tools and railroad car casting ing the war its entire output was devoted to wa rial, much of it ordnance and navy work. As illustrating the progress of the indu company that W creased ence wit} furna: castings ing mad tremely tion or would ha considere yond the the practice or thre ago. Mar in Zs u motor tr railroad struction, have _heret been mac f malleable are being cessfully duced in « steel. Mentior be made annealing Made Up of Old Sand, New Sand and : the entire apparatus. The electric truck ment, = sand to the molding department sists Ol M lr ¢ Equipment Co.’s car type annealers, two cars nace. With this equipment, it is possible to su castings, all of which are annealed, to any of t prevailing heat treatments ordinarily given: ‘| down in the closed annealer; cooling in the a red heat; double annealing. The plants of the Whitin Machine Work machinery manufacturers, Whitinsville, Mas on a five-day per week schedule on April 1. 1 pany employs about 3500 persons. Fe -a - PR eRe a The Present Expanse of the Lebanon Steel Foundry Eleven years ago as a crucible foundry it occupied only tl building at the extreme left Steel Direct from Ore by Basset Process Its Chief Features and Advantages—Critical Discussion of Claims for French Process by a German Engineer -Cost of Plant ’ DISCUSSION of the Basset direct reduction process by Fritz Wuest of Diisseldorf appears in A Stahl und Eisen, Dec. 22, 1921. It gives more ation regarding this proposed new French than has been available up to the present time. omes a review of the general subject of direct tion of steel and workable iron from ore. There less than 75 German patents on this matter, first English patent was taken out by Samuel in 1792. The more important processes are reviewed, including that of Blair in this country, which the writer passes to the Basset process. en Basset, a French engineer, claims to have the old problem of making steel direct from ore Lavocat cement works at Mantes near Denne- vhich is in the neighborhood of Paris. Accord French daily paper, Journee Industrielle, a > i ; a oe a 43 ceva - = } sg oo | i S = mT j % 2 26 ul 3 raw I I vy has been organized with a capital of 60,000, incs. The inventor receives half these shares 275,000 fr. as compensation for his tests. The itically discusses the Basset process, as made n the patent papers and contributions to the pers. An abstract follows: ises a rotary kiln and believes that he to use such a furnace for the reduction of The furnace used in the tests has a lengtl 50 m. (131 ft. 2.7 in. to 164 ft. 0.5 in.) and a of 2.5 m. (8 ft. 2.4 in.) At the lower end he fuel is burned it is widened in diamete1 ble for taking up the molten metal and slag 1). Powdered coal is used for fuel. The air for tion is heated in a suitable blast-heating appa- to 1000 deg. C. At the throat of the furnace rround ore is charged together with the neces mestone and the coal needed for reduction. So process presents no surprises. Re-oxidation of etal is prevented according to the inventor. He ses to be able to burn the powdered coal to car- oxide, not to carbon dioxide, whereby re-oxida- ' the reduced iron is completely avoided. belief of the inventor that he is the first to use ‘tary kiln for the production of iron is not correct. erman patent No. 15356, taken out in 1882, an an, G. Duryee, protected a rotary kiln for the tion of iron and steel, and the patent shows his furnace possessed all the characteristics of f Basset. As may be seen in Fig. 2 it is a rotary vith a collecting chamber for the fluid metal and ar the fuel end. The air for combustion is the outgoing gases, the heating is carried out lucer gas and oil, so that the flame should be as il as possible. Operating results are not known. iracteristics of the Basset process, rotary kiln, iting of the air and neutral flame are already in the Duryee process. Emil Fleischer, in patent No. 157582, Oct. 13, rotected a process in which two rotary kilns are ised, situated one over the other, for the reduc- 1 melting of the iron. The Eisenwerk Jagstfeld, man patent No. 282574, Class 18a, Group 3, ted a process by which iron ore is reduced in a kiln and the reduced iron melted in an annexed 989 haft furnace. In addition to these three mentioned methods there are many German and other patents which for many years have proposed the use of rotary furnaces. From the foregoing it is clear that the ro- tary furnace had been proposed long before Basset for the production of iron and steel. Chief Feature of the Basset Process The outstanding feature of the Basset process con- sists in the combustion of the carbon to carbon mon- oxide instead of carbon dioxide. Further he leaves the hydrogen of the coal unburned. Should the assumption of formation of carbon monoxide exclusively prove cor rect, then Basset has made a most important discovery The burning of carbon to carbon monoxide requires high temperature and an excess of carbon. Both these ‘equirements are fully met in the gas producer, but t is nevertheless impossible to make producer gas free from carbon dioxide. With powdered coal firing, the blast serves not only for combustion of the ceal but also for dispersion of the coal powder, so that a certain minimum amount of air must be used. The require- ments for the formation of carbon monoxide are there- fore much more unfavorable than with the gas producer; and from this standpoint, therefore, it is altogether inexpected that the combustion will be carried out such a way that practically only carbon monoxid produced. If vevel assumed that this is possible and alculations are made of the theoretical temperature ymbustion, the following results are obtained: ] ( j ( t (*d) t a ' cle I I eR I ru ) ¥ 1 ISS] w { té D i I h i mbu f droge co 2 ) i leg If +t} 000 eg ‘ r 1 ota ‘ I coy » | { to) ‘S90 deg. ¢ Ab ‘ I } i O wit bu f hvdrogen leg. { » of hvdroge ) , ‘ CO vit : oO I i 2 x60 leg ‘ ‘ nt f ] ge } leg. C From the foregoing figures we can assume that Basset with a good low volatile coal and combustion to carbon monoxide, and hydrogen to water (notwith- standing his assumption) can reach a theoretical com- bustion temperature of 2195 deg. C. This in no way predicts the actual temperature. To throw light on this question determinations were made on an open-hearth furnace where the gas com- position was known. The gas temperature was 1215 deg. C. and the air 1227 deg. C. This gas gave a theo- retical combustion temverature of 2560 deg. C., and the optical pyrometer showed it to be 1710 deg. C This can be taken as the required theoretical combus- tion temperature, namely 2560 deg. C.; and a limit of 2500 deg. C. may be assumed as absolutely necessary to melt the produced iron. To produce this tempera- ~~ Sw ae . av Fai le oe = res Ay oot > £ ae * road 990 THE IRON AGE ture enough carbon must be burned to CO, to produce a gas that contains at least 30 per cent CO., because with the carbon burned to CO, and even all the hydro- gen burned, only 2195 deg. C. is produced. These cal- culations show that the Basset supposition regarding his combustion process is not correct, as otherwise the reduced metal in his rotary kiln would not be melted nor a continuous operation be possible. This gas mixture of three parts CO, and seven parts CO will be of great influence on the process in the rotary kiln, and renders impossible the aim of Bas- set to prevent re-oxidation of the reduced metal. The equilibrium diagram between carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and ferrous oxide shows that at 1000 deg. C. the CO, amounts to only 23 per cent. At 1600 deg. C. this drops to 6 per cent. In our gas mixture the CO, is 30 per cent and it is clear re-oxidation would take place and lead to loss. If the sponge contains carbon a part of this oxi- dized material will be again reduced on melting, but the amount will only be noticeable if every pure ore is used. If the ore contains much gangue the silica slags with the ferrous oxide and the loss will be very great. The carbon of the metal produced will depend on the amount of re-oxidation of the iron, the compo- sition of the slag and the temperature in the collecting chamber. Only with very high temperature and the use of pure low silica ore will it be possible to produce soft steel. If ores high in silica are used a steel-like product will be the result, between steel and pig iron, that must be refined in a second process. This will be the case under all conditions if ores high in phosphorus are used because considerable phosphorus will be taken up by the metal. Advantages of Basset Process } the correctness of which will bear investigation, the process offers the following advantages: 1. The coal consumption per metric ton of steel should amount to only 10 kilos (1120 Ib. per gross ton) Labor costs should be reduced 75 per cent Plant « be 80 pe nt le 1. The st of production hould be 0 per cent le These assertions are taken up in order and care- fully discussed. In Table I is given a balance of ma- terials for the Basset process under the most favorable possible conditions, namely, under the assumption that with direct reduction carbon monoxide alone is pro- duced. The analyses of the materials used is as fol- lows: Rio Tinto Ore: Fe,O;, 87.80; MnO, 0.13; CaO, 0.30; MgO, 0.20; SiO:, 6.60; S, 0.33; P.O;, 0.138; CuO, 0.31; PbO, 0.55 and H.O, 3.65 per cent. Limestone: Fe.0;, 1.00; Al.O., 0.60; MgO, 0.50; SiO,, 1.40; CaO, 53.50, and CO,, 42.90 per cent. Coal: This analysis is the low volatile coal mentioned before with C 86.22 per cent, etc.. Analysis of the coal ash showed Si0O,, 52.00; Al.O;, 16.00; CaO, 10.00; Fe,O,, 22.00 per cent. mane Table I Balance of Materials, Basset Process Oxygen of Ironas Fe:O; CO:zin Water in Fee) in Ore Stone, Charge, Kg Keg Keg Keg Ke Rio Tinto ore 1.620 1.000 0.428 0.059 Limestone 0.17 0.0735 Coal ash 0.017 Total 1.812 Coal for reducing 0.372 0.005 For heating 0.510 Total . 0.882 1.000 0.428 0.0735 - The amount of slag is 1.812 minus (1.000 0.0735 + 0.064) 0.246 Kg. The slag figured as a bi- silicate. From this balance sheet it is seen that for heating the rotary kiln 510 kg. of coal per metric ton of steel are needed. This agrees with the figure of 500 kg. given in the newspapers but it must be remembered that for reducing the metal 372 kg are also needed, giv- ing a total coal consumption of 882 kg. per metric ton (1975 lb. per gross ton). In Table II is given a heat balance based on the figures of Table I and the assumption that the rotary kiln has an efficiency of about 60 per cent, a figure that is certainly extremely favorable when it is re- April 13, 2? membered that the open-hearth has an efficiency about 30 per cent. Table Il—Heat Balance of the Basset Pro (Based on a theoretic al combustion temper: deg. C. and a loss of heat through radiation i0 per cent.) Units, Per Incoming Heat Cent Outgoing © x la io l. Heat consul of 0.572 1 in reductior reduction coal 1.000 ke. i to CO é l l Combustion of 2. Heat content 70 per cent of 1.000 keg I the heating at 1600 deg. coal (0.357 xe) te ©)... F486 265 Combustion of Heat content 30 per cent of 0.246 ke the heating coal 0.153 kg to CO: visickiogs. £2.35 4. Combustion of {!. Heat consum«e hydrogen of in expelling the heating 0.0735 kg. CO coal, 0.0169 keg from limestor to water : 190 10.1 Combustion of 5. Heat consun hydrogen of in vapor ‘ the reducing 0.064 kg. wat coal 0.0123 ke to water , 357 7.9 6. Combustion of 6. Heat lost witl the total sul- the 4.553 phur, 0.007 ke m. waste ga to SO 15 0.4 at 300 deg. ( 7. Heat content of 1.Heat lo the necessary through ra iir for com ation and bustion, 3.342 duction cu m pre- heated to 1009 deg. C 11909 24.5 $556 100.0 From this heat balance it is seen that 4556 units are needed for the reduction of 1 kg. iro though pure ore was taken; while the results of G hausen, (Metallurgie, Vol. 7, p. 421) with th furnace, have shown that 3506 heat units are ne This shows that the Basset process is less econ than that of the blast furnace due to the fact that duction is brought about by solid carbon, while blast furnace about two-thirds is the result of r« tion by carbon monoxide. Table III gives a compa of the waste gas situation of the Basset proc the blast furnace, the latter being based on Gilll tests. Table IIl Waste Gas Practice Calculated on 1000 Kg. Iron Basset ] Amount of gas (cu. m.)........ ; a 4,107 COs, 7.0 i CO, 28.5; ¢ COMPOSITION, DEP GORE. oc ccccvccceuseve 4 N, 64 ( Pet WIRED x 5 os caawee cc tak wales ; 560 Theoretical combustion temperature, deg. C. need bike obs wales s - ; 1,450 Amount of blast cu. m., per 1000 kg. iron, 0 deg. C. and 760 m.m. pressure 3,342 Loss cu. m., through reversals, etc., 30 PAP GORE cvkessretaeee eee es. a ‘ 1,003 Daily blast requirements cu. m., 0 deg. As, SE Sew SRM 6 hae cee snes ete eas 4.345 Blast temperature entering furnace, WON a LS Ghd ade nhs bs NTRS OR em wee mis 1,000 Blast temperature leaving stoves, deg. C 1,100 Heat Consumed in heating blast (heat RR eee eee oe er ee ah tee rey ee 1,596,250 With 75 per cent stove efficiency....... 2,128,330 1 Waste gas consumed in heating blast Re eee ee eee eee ee ee eee 2,460 Consumption of waste gas of total re eae 60 Total gas lost in the mains, per cent... 10 Necessary for the operation, per cent... 7 ee ee ee 23 Ae ee Ms sain peaee cea cwmawe. 950 AWRsEmee 8 ROME WRIED. 6 ice ce cencsaicas 821,750 Available in hp. hours, assuming, 3000 heat units per hp. hour.............. 244 Available hp. for each metric ton pro- RE 2. Be Bi kswiad shennan tae oe eee 11.4 “ue TT ou v TOUEERESUCEOOODDONEEDOOENDREEODDDOEDOOOTTOTTOTETT NED EL EOEDO CA LEE rneRnapEEeeneaneMearerTy (rere From Table III it is seen that the Basset proc« not economical regarding waste gases compared the blast furnace. The available horse power-hou! each ton of iron produced in 24 hr. is 15.6 for the furnace while it is only 11.4 for the Basset proc: The next claim is comparison the blast regarding labor costs, and furnace and basic Besseme! plants are combined, and it may be mentioned that April 13, 1922 st figures are taken from a large plant in Westphalia 1 based on the gold mark: ractice: furnace labor costs per ton pig i n £0) fessemer per ton steel Total marks .... 6% ‘ “a 4( process tary kiln vDlant requiring 12 men each shift at narks 72 wre pe ton steel with production of 12% tons ich shift eee 16 From this comparison it is seen that the labor costs the Basset process are somewhat higher than with id methods, so that the statements in the daily ers cannot be agreed with. Cost of Plant The next point is the cost of plant. A blast fur- plant in the Rhine-Westphalia district, producing 000 metric tons pig iron yearly, costs 12,000,000 rks excluding the cost of the ground. The steel int to work this iron requires a further cost of 2,000,- 0 marks. A rotary kiln plant in a plant in the same trict to agglomerate flue dust costs 320,000 marks. rom these figures the following comparison can be rawn: , ai plant: ist furnace (330,000 tons year), 12,000,- 10 marks. Per year ton... 36.41 c Bessemer (290,000 tons year), 2,000,000 marks. Per year ton.. 7.00 GE. | Mbiue bes 866 btee be Uh mn $3.40 vy plant (Basset): tary kiln to handle flue dust ; 320,000 marks » this add blast stoves, gas cleaners, dry- ng and grinding for the coal and the nelting chamber .. j 190,000 mark Total — ‘ ; $20,000 marks output, 25 « 300 7.500 tons cost per year ton.. : 6 marks The results show an advantage in favor of the old actice of 12.60 marks per ton per year, and it is ssumed that Basset can make finished steel in his int, which is not yet established. The assertion in e papers that 80 per cent of the plant cost would be ed is therefore shown to be incorrect. The blast furnace with its stoves produces each hour and cubic ter 21 kg. pig iron. With the Basset process only 4 iron would be produced. Five rotary furnaces ld be needed to give the same tonnage as a blast rnace of equal interior capacity. The last item remaining is cost of production, and the basis of the material balance sheet the follow- ng comparison is worked out: process: quid steel per metric ton.... 65 marks w process: 1620 ke. ore at 16 m. per ton - 26.92 ‘82 kg. coal, ground and dried, at 20 m. DO TO deaiseutinesa 17.64 aimestone ..... es : 0.50 We wKanines 5.76 [GPG cabucws a 2.80 WDOPPOGINCIONE 5 ok ki vce eS ccemes ; ; 5.60 TE i een oe 58.22 marks The amount in favor of the new process is 6.78 marks per ton. This comparison favors the new process, but the figures of daily production which affect 50 per cent of the cost cannot be agreed with. It must be remembered that Basset can only pro- luce finished steel in his furnace if he commences with ery pure ore. Usually a product between steel and ig iron will be the result, which must be further re- fined, whereby the cost of production will be increased, ind the new process will not be advantageous com- pared with the old process. As a conclusion the Basset process cannot be car- ried out without a part of the reduced iron being lagged, and his process is not better than former lirect processes regarding complete utilization of the re. The statements in the daily papers regarding sav- ng in labor costs, production costs and plant cost are t substantiated on examination. G. B. W. The Sanford Riley Stoker Co., Worcester, Mass., manufacturer of automatic stokers for power boilers, eports more business for the first three months of the present yéar than it received during the whole 12 months of 1921. THE IRON AGE RECONSTRUCTION HOSPITAL Restoration of Men After Accidents in Industries an Important Feature As a direct result of the world-wide experiments in rehabilitation of men injured in war, America has now a hospital dedicated solely to the care of industrial diseases and accidents and the restoration of industrial casualties to active useful life again. The Reconstruc- tion Hospital, with the breaking ground Sunday, April 2, for its new 1l-story addition at 100th Street and Central Park West, New York, now enters upon a na- tional career, prepared to offer a unique service to in- dustry. The beginning of the new building marks the end of the first year at the present location, during which time the hospital’s space and facilities have been taxed to their utmost. It is a new idea to have a hospital where men suffering from any of the many casualties of industry may receive the benefits of an intensive study of their cases by surgeons specializing in all the newest forms of therapy, combined with the complete after-care of the patient until he is fit to earn a liveli- hood. Yet, in the brief life of the present hospital, men have been sent from all over the country to take advantage of its unusual treatment, and many suffer- ing from seemingly incurable physical ailments and distortions have been returned to useful industrial life again. The addition to this new style hospital will be of limestone and brick. It will have besides the usual equipment of a modern hospital the most extensive and complete physio-therapy plant in existence. There will be rooms for occupation therapy, especially designed equipment embodying the latest principles in rehabili- tation, electro-therapy, and mechanical apparatus, whirlpool baths, so successfully developed by the mili- tary surgeons during the war, and a gymnasium where a score of mechanical devices assist the patient in re- covering the fullest use of stiffened joints and weak- ened muscles. The plans provide for space for 175 beds in small wards and semi-private rooms where women and cuil- dren may be treated as well as men, and recreation and reception rooms for the older patients. There will be a radiophone to help in keeping the patients’ mind toned upward as well as their bodies. The total cost of the new annex will be $1,500,000. It is hoped to complete the first two stories at once to relieve the pressure on the present hospital in which an average of 175 cases receive treatment daily, half of that number being sent by the Government. An interesting feature of the ground-breaking cere- mony was the participation of two men who were patients in the hospital a year ago. At that time one of them was totally paralyzed below the waist as the result of a fall and the other was unable to use his arms. Both have since been restored completely and were chosen to represent the hundreds of other men who, crippled through accidents in industries, have been restored and sent back to fields of productivity. C. L. Lingo, traffic manager Inland Steel Co., Chi- cago, acting on behalf of his own company, the Acme Steel Goods Co., the Interstate Iron & Steel Co., the Keystone Steel & Wire Co., the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association and the Chicago Association of Commefce, has filed a brief with the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion relative to the application of certain railroads who are asking authority to establish a blanket rate on iron and steel commodities of $1 per 100 Ib. from all points in transcontinental groups A to J on shipments destined to Pacific Coast terminals, with higher rates to intermediate points. The brief opposes a blanket rate covering the various points of origin and insists that shipments of iron and steel articles from Chicago to Pacific Coast terminals for domestic consumption should be transported at rates at least 10c. lower than those applying on the same commodities from Pittsburgh and points taking the same rates to the same destina- tions. as. Se en he Pekan oe = Z Be eee te ea Dn etc, nase ceh-aes hate penne ans - ie 7 4 . ' < ’ & . re, aes i . ; af % , «'t * aa i i i - . oe - P ' B ol F j > F ‘ ‘ o ‘ * * ; . » ‘ > ’ rf : Ss ee A tikar ~ Rina 2% wy oF AR see pega) . Je} bo Planer Arranged for High Speed The accompanying illustrations show a 26 in. by 32 in. by 18 ft. planer of the Whitcomb-Blaisdell Ma- THE IRON AGE April 13, 192 couver, B. C., from Wales with 2500 tons of tin p which will be used in the manufacture of cans fo) salmon canneries of British Columbia this year. chine Tool Co., Worcester, in which the feature is the high cutting speeds attained. The machine operates at 150 ft. per min. on both cutting and return strokes. The unusual speed attained is pointed out as dem- onstrating the advantages of the Whitcomb second-belt drive, the construction of which may be seen in the accompanying phantom view. In the other illustration the machine is shown operating on composition-brass Gear Makers’ Meeting in Buffalo The sixth annual meeting of the American © Manufacturers Association will be held April 20 and 22 at the Lafayette Hotel, Buffalo. This ass; tion, through a sectional committee, has been wo) in close co-operation with the American Engine: Planer Arranged to Operate at 150 Ft. Per Min. on Both Cutting and Return Strokes View to leftshows mounting of work l screen plates approximately 13 by 30 in. in size, which are held two abreast in a special quick-acting fixture. Deviations from standard construction include two single heads on a double cross-rail, both heads run- ning on the lower screw. The bed is cast in one sec- tion and the table has T slots but no holes. The dis- tance between the tools is about 12 in. A steel rack runs the full length of the table. Thirty inch driving pulley and shipper motion are provided. Plan to Change Shipyard to Pipe Plant SEATTLE, April 3.—The Western Steel & Pipe Co., San Francisco, has taken an option of purchase on the Patterson-McDonald shipyard, built during the war to construct wooden ships, and it is announced will estab- lish a steel and iron pipe manufacturing plant on the property. The purchase price is given at $140,000. Robert D. Plageman, sales manager, conducted the trade for the Western company. Plageman says that his company expects to secure the contract for the manufacture of 17 miles of 66-in. by 5/16 in. piping for the municipal Cedar River water project for which the San Francisco company was the lowest bidder. In the event of securing this contract the work of converting the shipyard into a pipe factory will begin this week, Mr. Plageman said. A total of 200 men will be employed. In entering the North Coast pipe field, he said it was the intention of the company to establish here a plant of sufficient capacity to take care of requirements in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Alaska. There is some f controversy over the kind of pipe to be used for the water project, lumber interests Grant Smith & Co., contractors of Seattle, bid $1,467,911, covering both the cost of the pipe and installation. The contro- versy will be decided by the board of public works at its Friday meeting this week. Grant Smith & Co. sub- mitted another bid for $1,468,602 for riveted steel pipe, lemanding that it be of wood staves. promising to fabricate the material here. The steamship Mongolian Prince arrived at Van- the phantom view at the right show- Ing arrangement of second belt irive Standards Committee, and the report of this and ot! committees on standardization promises to be of isual interest. Special emphasis will be given to business \ tions in the gear industry and the outlook for th« mediate future. Among the subjects to be discus are “Good Hob Practice,” by H. E. Harris, H. E, Ha ris Engineering Co.; “The Use of the Projector | parator in Testing Gear Teeth,” by Ralph E. Flat Jones & Lamson Machine Co.; “Proportions of I trial Gears,” by G. E. Katzenmeyer, R. D. Nuttall | “The Grinding of Gear Teeth and Its Future Industry,” by R. S. Dummond, Gear Grinding Mach Co.; “The Gleason Works System of Bevel Gears,” F. E. McMullen and T. M. Durkan, Gleason Wor and “Conditions in the Industry,” discussed fron standpoint of the industrial member companies u! the leadership of George L. Markland, Jr., Philadelp Gear Works, and from the automotive standpoint w R. P. Johnson, the Warner Gear Co. An informal banquet for representatives and gu will be held on Friday evening, April 21, the pri speaker being John C. Bradley, Pratt & Letchw Co., Buffalo, whose subject is “What’s Ahead.” Du: ing the meeting four members will be elected to se) on the executive committee for a term of three yea The Richmond Iron Works, Richmond Furna Mass., charcoal pig iron, because of its large sto ore above ground, has discontinued mine pumping erations in the interest of economy. The compan) duces a high grade and high cost pig iron used tensively in the production of rolls for steel mills other special products. The company’s furnace been out of blast several months due to busiress tions and to the fact it has sufficient iron stock« supply orders. It will not be a serious matter t water its mine and resume operations when bus conditions warrant. Samuel G. Colt, president treasurer, states the company is in a position to st making pig iron on two weeks’ notice. The ful has been relined and put in first class condition. The eighth annual convention of the American 4 sociation of Engineers will be held at Salt Lake ‘ Utah, on June 5, 6 and 7. Development of Continuous Rolling Mills Wire Rod Mills of Two Types Took Form Simultaneously Belgian or Looping Mill Compared With Continuous —Mills for Skelp and Strip Steel BY JOHN W. SHEPERDSON (Continued from page 794, THE IRON AGE, March 23) HILE billet and sheet-bar mills are the first / continuous mills to work upon the steel, after the cast ingot commences to undergo mechan- treatment, the rod mill was the first of the con- is mill family to be put into operation—not be- wire rod presents the easiest continuous rolling em, but because it was in its production that litions were first found which justified a specialty These conditions were a large demand for a size and section, and a premium on length. ge Bedson showed great courage in putting into tice such an advanced form of rolling on such a iit product. \ny discussion of rod rolling almost necessarily ves a comparison of two mills which took form simultaneously. These are the continuous mill e Belgian, or looping, mill, both of which are in lay. e continuous rod mill has changed but little in ple sinee its inception. The improvements made have been largely in details and in the collateral iries, such as heating furnaces, shears for crop- process, and equipment for coiling, cooling, sposing of the finished rod. In the looping mill, ‘ other hand, there have been a gradual evolution lecided tendency to approach continuous rolling. looping mill had, in early form, an 18-in. or three-high, hand roughing stand, which reduced a billet to a square of approximately 13/16 in. quare was next passed three times through an iediate roughing mill, running at higher speed. the material passed to a finishing mill arranged trains, each having four pairs of rolls, and each lriven at a different speed. The rolls in each vere progressively increased in diameter, to re- ie extent of the loops. The loop between the ups was of course under full control, and did ‘w appreciably, but between stands in the same the growth of the loop to large dimensions could trolled only silghtly by manipulating the roll rs. This increase in roll diameters, moreover, orly lined up transmission. regarding the auxiliary equipment and confin- attention to changes affecting the rolling , the first siginficant improvement in the looping is borrowed from contemporary merchant-mill The three-high roughing stands were aban- favor of a continuous roughing train. The gnificant change was the division of the finish- er, Morgan Construction Co Worcester Mass was read before the Engineers’ S etv of Western i 993 ing mill into three trains, so that there might be more points of loop control than obtained in two-train con- struction. Continuous rolling is usually regarded as a process in which the rolls are arranged in tandem, and the steel passes from one pair of rolls to another through a short intervening space. The reductions are per- formed simultaneously by the several pairs of rolls, each successive pair driven at an increasing speed to care for the elongation. This should be termed “straight continuous rolling” and should not be granted the general definition of “continuous rolling.” Con tinuous rolling, in its broadest sense, is that form of rolling in which the material in the process of reduc- tion, passes but once through each pair of rolls, and where the speeds of the rolls are so related that they are proportional to the elongation taking place. Under this definition, the rolls need not be arranged in tan dem, but may be so placed that a loop is formed. If this definition is accepted, then, in justice to the con- tinuous principle of rolling, it must be said that the looping mills, by the splitting up of the trains into smaller groups whose speeds are adjusted for loop con- trol, are constantly approaching the continuous mill in principle. In justice to the looping mill, on the other hand, it must be said that recent continuous rod mills have been divided into groups with intervening 180-der. loops, to secure some of the freedom and flexibility which the looping mills possess. The continuous prin- ciple, however, is preserved, because the speed relation between groups is maintained for full control of loops. The inevitable result of long loops in Belgian mills, together with their necessarily slower finishing speed, governed by the limit of manual skill, is se*ious loss of temperature. This loss of temperature is reflected in higher power consumption, to the extent of about 35 per cent. Finishing temperatures can be keot within reasonable bounds only by rolling small bundles in which, since crop losses are the same per bundle, the yield is from 1.5 to 2 per cent, smaller than with 300-Ib bundles. This reference to looping mills has been made for purposes of comparison not because these mills are a part of the subject matter of this paper, but be- cause both forms of rolling are practised, and un- doubtedly both are of interest in discussing rod rolling Continuous Rod Mills The straight continuous rod mill shown in Fig. 8 has been brought to a high state of development by advanced details of construction and the introduction ake ares s . ane: 5 ali wey 2 Oa Ks meee cate aE Shae =e Boils BBG S. oe eS se 4 ne ei ®, . : * iy . ‘ ui ' ! 5 » : 7 . “ 7 : . . « : + .t3 > > ‘ : _y° e : : : . ? * 7 « -* * * ih d ; v 4 # 4 “ * : . .. ba : ‘ * : f : i? ri * : 1 ., 4 = 994 THE IRON AGE of very efficient auxiliaries. It usually consists of 16 stands of two-high rolls, divided into two groups. The first group consists of six stands of rolls, the first pair located immediately in front of the furnace. The fur- nace, of the side-discharge type, feeds uniformly heated 30-ft, billets, 1.75 in. square, to the first stand; and the entire installation is so compact that when the product begins to come onto the reels, two-thirds of the billet is still in the furnace being heated. a 1 . : Consisting of 10 stands of rolls, the second group 1s separated from the first group by a space of about 20 ft., in which a flying shear is installed. This flying shear crops the front end of each bar as it issues from No. 6 stand, so that a clean end is presented to the finishing mill, where the high-speed rolling begins. An additional function of the gap between the two groups of mills is to provide a space where a little slack can be formed. This insures absence of tension in the material at this point, and makes possible the adjust- ment of the passes of the finishing mill, without cor- responding adjustment of the roughing mill. To secure the best results, the roll passes in the Fig. 10. Continuous Skelp Mill in Thre finishing mill require accurate turning and skillful ad- justment. If excessive tension develops at any point in the mill, finned ends will result. The factors in this equation, under control of the operating crew, are the accurate turning of the grooves and the proper choice of roll diameters for the various stands. It is surpris- ing, in view of the precision required, what good rods the straight continuous mill is producing, and how skill- ful the rollers have become in detecting the smallest irregularities. The skill of the roller and his crew is a large fac- tor in the successful operation of straight continuous rod mills. If we stop to consider that two strands of rod are rolled simultaneously, with all that this implies in the way of delicate adjustment of rolis and guides, and that the finishing speed is 3200 ft. a minute, it will be clear that in the rod-mill crew there is oppor- tunity for team work of the high order of major league baseball. Recent installations of continuous rod mills have taken a form, shown in Fig. 9, which makes the work April 13, 1 of the roller easier and gives him additiona] fr and flexibility. The continuous finishing mill is up into three groups, connected by 180-deg. rep, The groups are separately driven at correct spex prevent almost completely the growth of the loops they are formed. The exposure of the steel on th ing floor is extremely short, and is uniform unit of length of the rod, so that there is no diff in temperature between the first and last end rod in the finishing pass. This form of cont mill has reduced the fin at the back end of bundle to between 24 and 18 in. A continuous rod mill of this type gives a n production of slightly over 10,000 gross tons 5 rod, with a yield of 97 to 97.5 per cent, a fu sumption of 127 lb. of coal, and a power consu of 90 kwhr. per ton of output. Mills for Rolling Flat Finished Products Under this classification come skelp, strip, hoo; cotton-tie mills. Since the same problems are inv in each case, these mills may be treated as a ind Finishing Sets: Roughing, Edging subject. The rolls of such mills are, with few tions, of plain cylindrical form without grooving use of such rolls affords a maximum of flexibi producing flats of a variety of widths. The w the rolled product is controlled by vertical edging therefore, tongue and groove passes are not nec: The use of vertical rolls, with center which adjusted, avoids the difficulties encountered tinuous trains in edging flats in horizontal rolls fixed centers. The delivery speed of an edging substantilly the speed at the bottom of the g ind Apron Conveyor Leading to the Reels The grooves in a horizontal rol] must necessarily varying depth for the varying widths, and obvio there is no common delivery speed for all width flats to which drafts can be related. As a consequ the draft becomes absurdly light for wide flats, impossibly heavy for narrow flats. This is ent avoided when, with a fixed groove depth, the center vertical rolls can be adjusted for the variation 1 width of flats. Billets for conversion into flat products in April 18, 1922 ious mills are usually of slab section, the width rving to suit the product. The thickness of the bs is maintained around 1.75 and 2 in. When nar- flats are to be produced, 1.75 and 2-in. square ts are used; and for the very narrowest flats, such cotton-tie and hoop, these billets are reduced to ller squares in grooved passes before the flatting ess begins. [he roll stands of continuous flat mills are arranged traight continuity, and are divided into roughing, rmediate, and finishing mills, each driven by a irate motor. The advent of adjustable-speed motors flexibility that is highly desirable in flat rolling. tical looping is induced immediately after the bar ves the roughing rolls. In this way, the necessary liom to obtain accurate sections from end to end ired. In all cases, the first stand of the roughing is placed immediately adjacent to the discharge of the heating furnace, so that the temperature e entire rolled length may be maintained uniform. Flat mills differ from one another chiefly in their the total number of stands, and in the disposal the product. The principles involved are identical all their products. Two types illustrated in s. 10 and 11. Skelp must be cut into lengths not exceeding 22 ft.; sequently, skelp, after it leaves the finishing rolls, ses through an automatic flying shear which cuts nto the desired lengths. These lengths are collected hanically into piles on the cooling bed, which piles, are Electric Power in the Steel Industry Under the above title, W. S. Hall, electrical engi- eer Illinois Steel Co., Chicago, has read a paper before Association of Iron & Steel Electrical Engineers ringing out a number of important points which are nmarized below. Among other things, he shows the electric load in a great many plants is carried lay almost entirely on the use of fuel, in one form another, which was formerly wasted. That is, the eel plant station gets for its use what is left of the after the iron and steel making processes get ugh with it. The first waste fuel made available in the manu- ture of iron and steel is the gas produced in con- ting coal into coke. If the coke ovens are not lo- ted in the plant where the coke is used, or at least irby, this gas is not available, on account of the ransmission distances involved. If the coke plant is located that the coke-oven gas is available, its most eady use is found in the making and reheating of |. Any surplus after such demands are taken care f can then be used as fuel for electric power produc- The next step in the process of the manufacture ‘ iron and steel, from which waste fuel is derived, is ist furnace operation. A modern 600-ton blast fur- nace uses approximately 560 tons of coke each 24 hr. the production of 600 tons of iron approximately 70 llion cu. ft. of gas are produced. This is equivalent, the rate of 90 Btu. per cu. ft. to about 6 billion Btu., approximately 250 million Btu. per hr. The next largest source of waste fuel is the steel iking furnace. In the ordinary open-hearth furnace perating on producer gas, the stack temperatures run m 1100 deg. to 1400 deg., depending somewhat upon practice. Gases at these temperatures, when al- wed to go free to the atmosphere, represent a con- lerable energy loss. It has now become common ractice to pass these gases through waste heat boilers. With these boilers operating in connection with an en-hearth furnace, the temperature of the gas enter- g the boilers, is say, 1400 deg., and as it leaves the tack may be about 550 deg., without economizers. his difference in temperature represents the heat ven off to the boiler to produce steam. A 75-ton en-hearth furnace with a properly designed boiler ll produce in ordinary practice about 350 boiler hp. \t a boiler efficiency of 75 per cent, the coal equivalent the steam produced on a 75-ton furnace waste heat oiler installation is about 18 to 20 net tons per day. THE IRON AGE 995 each representing the product of one or two billets, are advanced across the bed to the bundlers and weight scales. A 10-in. skelp mill, consisting of eight pairs of horizontal rol!s and two pairs of. vertical rolls, one pair driven by an independent motor, produces skelp from 15§ in. up to 8 in. wide, and makes from 12,000 to 14,000 tons of finished product per month. Strip steel, hoop and cotton-tie are customarily fin- ished in coils. These coils are formed on ribbon reels, two of which are usualy sufficient to receive the product of a mill. After leaving the last stand of rolls, the material passes through a vibrator. This is a machine which lays the finished flat in a serpentine form upon a slowly advancing conveyor, where it stands on edge until its front end is picked up and entered into one of the reels by hand. The reel runs at a considerably greater speed than the mill, so that there is ample time for starting, coiling and discharging the bundle before the next strip is due. Straight continuous rolling at high speed brings the steel to the finishing pass hot, with the result that thin gages can be produced. Each unit length of billet starts at the same temperature and undergoes each reduction at exactly the same period in the rolling cycle. Because of these conditions, the finished piece is of absolutely uniform gage and temper from end to end. These conditions are in