Coal Age : devoted to the operating, technical and business problems of the coal-mining industry, Vol. 29, No. 25

McGr a w- Hi l l

Pu b l i s h i n g Co m p a n y. In c. J a m e s H . H c G r a w . P r e s i d e n t E . J . M e h k e k . V i c e - P r e s i d e n t

D e v o t e d t o t h e O p e r a tin g , T e c h n ic a l a n d B u s in e s s

P r o b le m s o f t h e C o a l-M in in g I n d u s t r y E n g i n e e r i n g E d i t o r^{R . Da w s o n Ha l e.}

Volume 29 NEW YORK, JU N E 24, 1926 Number 25

N o w , M i n i n g I s S o m e t h i n g E l s e A g a i n

M

in th e o th er th e w ork er g o e s to th e m a te ria l. In th e one case, th e r e fo r e, th e m a teria l is m ovable and th e w orker is sta tio n a r y , an d in th e oth er th e w orker is tr a n s ­ ferred fro m place to place and a tta ck s m a teria l in place.

H ow ever, th e w o rk in g fa c e ch a n g es, and th ere a g a in is th e rub. I f it sta y ed w h ere it w as, th e w orker and h is tools w ou ld n ot have to be m oved.

T h is is w h a t m ak es m in in g a difficult in d u stry fo r m ech a n ica liza tio n . It is m a k in g m arvelou s p ro g ress w h erever it can adopt m ech an ical m eth od s. Com pare it w ith th e co n stru c tio n in d u stry , one ju st as old and having sim ila r difficulties and one w h ich has p rogressed m arvelously but n e v e r th e le ss selectiv ely . It still uses trowel, hod, bar, ch isel, w h eelbarrow , ham m er and other like elem en ta ry to o ls. T he eq u ivalen t o f th e hod is the basket. Som e h u n d red s o f y e a rs ago th a t adjunct o f p rim itive tr a n sp o r ta tio n w a s d iscarded in m in in g . The w heelbarrow is ra rely used in th e coal m in es beyond the first 25 ft . fr o m th e su rfa ce . D e sp ite its ad van tages on a sh o rt run such as th is, it h as been q u ite g en erally discarded fo r th e m in e car even th ere.

A sk a m a n u fa c tu r e r to m ove h is to o ls from shop to shop sev era l tim e s d a ily ; deny him th e u se o f an over­

head c r a n e ; dem and th a t no tool shall be m ore th an 6 ft. above th e floor; g iv e h im a floor o f clay in stea d o f firm fo u n d a tio n s and he w ill w on d er i f he can m eet such difficult c o n d itio n s. Y e t th e m a n u fa ctu re r o f m in in g eq u ip m en t is co n fro n ted w ith them , and he is p rep arin g to m e e t co n d itio n s even m ore onerous w ith no sm all d eg ree o f probable su ccess.

W o r t h y o f S u p p o r t

C

tiv e in str u m e n t o f peace. T he tr a n sitio n a l days o f c o stly flou n d erin g, d u r in g w h ich th e o rg a n iza tio n w as tr y in g to a d ju st it s e lf to p o st-w a r co n d itio n s, are h is ­ to r y . D e s p ite th e d raw b ack s o f in ad eq u ate financial and n u m erica l m em b ersh ip su p p ort, th e a sso c ia tio n has su cceed ed in e s ta b lis h in g a d efin ite p rogram resp on sive a lik e to p re se n t-d a y n eed s o f th e in d u str y and flexible and fo r w a r d -lo o k in g en ou gh to m eet th e dem ands o f th e fu tu r e .

W h eth er all th e p o s s ib ilitie s o f th is p rogram w ill be fu lly rea lized r e s ts w ith th e in d u str y its e lf. T he officers and d ir e c to r s o f th e a sso c ia tio n g iv e fr e e ly o f th e ir tim e , th e ir ju d g m e n t and th e ir e n e r g ie s to th e fo r m u la ­ tio n and ex e c u tio n o f c o n str u c tiv e p o lic ies. B u t th e y can tr a v e l no fa r th e r th a n th e fin an cial reso u rc es o f th e o r g a n iz a tio n w ill c a r r y th em . T h ey can m ake th e

in sig n ific a n t m ill per ton paid by each m em ber do its u tm o st— b u t no m ore. I f m ore is to be done— and m ore should be done— th ere m u st be m ore m ills p er ton and m ore m em bers to sh are th e financial load.

E v en th e m ost im placable critic o f th e a sso cia tio n m u st adm it th a t organ ization is n ecessa ry in th e con­

ta c ts b etw een the in d u stry, th e public a t la rg e and th e fed eral governm ent. The N a tio n a l Coal A sso c ia tio n is th a t p oin t o f contact, w h ich m u st be preserved . T h ere is too m uch at stake, and in d ivid u al op erators are too b ig to p etty jea lo u sies, old w ounds, p a st m ista k e s or p resen t griev a n ces stan d in th e w a y o f a ctiv e affilia­

tio n w ith th e con stru ctive w ork o f th e a sso cia tio n .

G o g g l e s L e s s e n E y e I n j u r i e s

S

g erou s but tru ly in con ven ien t and fr e q u e n tly p a in fu l.

O f all h is se n se s m an depends m o st upon s ig h t.

U n fo rtu n a tely th e eye is one o f th e m o st d elica te o rg a n s o f th e en tire body, and b ecau se o f th is d elicacy and its exposed p o sitio n it is rea d ily lia b le to in ju r y i f n ot p rotected by som e a rtificia l m ean s. T h e m ore p r o g r e s­

siv e com panies h ave long m ade th e ir em p loyees w e a r g o g g le s w hen p er fo rm in g ce rta in k inds o f o p era tio n s, n otab ly ch ip p in g and g r in d in g on b r ittle or a b ra siv e su b sta n ces. U su a lly g la ss g o g g le s e ith e r w ith or w ith ­ ou t w ir e rein fo rcem en t h ave been used. N on -b reak ab le tra n sp a ren t su b stan ces, su ch as celluloid, h a v e also b een adopted to som e ex ten t.

A n y g o g g le h a s it s obvious sh o r tc o m in g s; all req u ire th e w ea rer to look th ro u g h so m e th in g w h ich a t b e s t is n o t en tirely tra n sp a ren t, and th u s o b stru cts s ig h t m ore or less. T h ey put an added str a in upon th e e y e s th e y protect. I f m ade o f g la ss th e y are fr e q u e n tly broken or sh a ttered by p ieces o f fly in g m a teria l.

A som ew h at recen t ty p e o f g o g g le is one th a t em p lo y s no g la ss or oth er tr a n sp a r e n t su b sta n ce th a t th e v is io n o f th e w ea rer m u st p en etra te. It c o n s is ts sim p ly o f a n e ttin g o f sp r in g -ste e l w ir e o f su ita b le m esh , fo rm ed to fit th e fa c e . T h is is h eld in p lace by a str a p arou n d th e head. T h is n e ttin g e ffe c tiv ely p ro tects th e e y e s fro m fly in g p a rticles o f an y ap p reciab le siz e or th o se la r g e enough to do h arm . T h e n e ttin g is, o f co u r se ,

“out o f fo c u s” and h as th e effect o f o b scu rin g th e o b ject view ed to only a s lig h t d egree.

Som e m in in g com p an ies h ave m ade th e w e a r in g o f g o g g le s com pulsory fo r all u n d ergrou n d w o rk ers. A t one group o f o p era tio n s a c e r ta in ty p e o f g o g g le s h a s been adopted a s stan d ard , and no m an a llow ed to g o to w ork u n d ergrou n d u n til he h as procu red a p a ir and

8 9 9

k n o w s h o w to w ea r them . The s a fe ty in sp ector a t th ese w o rk s s ta te s em p h atically th a t th e num ber o f eye in ­ j u r ie s rep orted to h im sin ce th e w e a r in g o f g o g g les h a s been m ade com pulsory h as been g r e a tly reduced.

900 C O A L

T e s t t h e L a t c h

O

I t w ould seem th a t no ca m p a ig n fo r s a fe ty is adequate th a t is lim ited to p u ttin g sa fe g u a r d s around th e p lacin g o f th e m in e product upon th e car. O f course, cars should be in proper con d ition w hen placed on th e m in e sid etra ck , bu t t h a t th is care is n ot a lw a y s tak en is eloq u en tly a tte ste d by th e p iles o f ex tra doors and th e b ales o f ex celsio r th a t m ay be seen a t m a n y m in es.

A f e w m in u tes sp en t in p u ttin g th e g a te -la tc h in g m ech ­ a n ism o f a car in w orkable con d ition b efo re load in g m a y be th e m ean s o f a v e r tin g a se v ere a ccid en t a t d e stin a tio n . N e x t to p r o tec tin g its own em p loyees every coal producer should endeavor to p rotect th o se o f its cu stom ers.

P r e p a r a t i o n f o r W i n t e r

W

road tra ck s. T h ree m eth od s are u se d : S tea m pip es laid on th e tie s , la id between th em a t sw itc h e s and la id in m e ltin g p its b etw een th e track s. T he first m eth od is n e w ; th e oth er tw o have been u sed on p a rts o f th e com ­ p a n y ’s term in a l lin es.

A la r g e d evelopm ent o f th e p ra ctice is b e in g in sta lled in C hicago. In one place w h ere th e re are in c lin ed track s on a 3-per cen t g ra d e to p a ss under a r ig h t o f w a y th e in c lin e is p ro tected fo r 365 f t . b y a stea m ra d ia to r sy ste m w ith am ple d ra in s to carry off th e m elted snow in a d d itio n to ord in a ry su r fa c e d ra in a g e. T h e m ain stea m p ipe and it s h ea d ers w ill rem ain in p o sitio n p er­

m a n en tly , b u t th e r a d ia to r p ip es and retu rn h ea d ers w ill be placed early in th e w in te r and rem oved in th e sp rin g .

I t is n eed less to r e fe r fu r th e r to th e p ip es b etw een t ie s a t sw itc h e s b u t so m eth in g should be sa id as to snow - m e ltin g p its. S n ow could be sh oveled in to cars b y hand sh o v els, b u t fr e q u e n tly th a t is n ot p racticab le b ecau se traffic w ou ld be blocked w h ile th e sn o w w a s b e in g re­

m oved. O nly too o fte n th e sn o w h a s to be ca rried in sh o v els b y hand and dum ped a t som e co n v en ien t p oint.

T h a t p ra ctice is both d an gerou s and ex p en siv e.

S n o w -m e ltin g p its, 3 x 6 i f t . w id e and lo n g r e ­ sp e c tiv e ly and 20 in. deep are placed b etw een som e o f th e tr a ck s a t in terv a ls o f 95 ft . In th e se are laid p ip es w ith sm all h oles d rilled in th em so th a t je t s o f liv e ste a m aid in m e ltin g th e snow . T he v a rio u s p ieces o f h e a tin g eq u ip m en t d escrib ed receiv e stea m fro m th e b o iler o f a locom otive w h ich is ru n onto a sid e tra ck fo r

- d P " \

h /

th at ex p ress p urpose, w h en ev er c o n d itio n s dem and it.

The la rg e num ber o f people tr a v e lin g on urban and suburban roads ju stifie s th e ta k in g o f e x p en siv e m eans to a ssu re th a t th e tra ck s w ill be a v a ila b le a t all tim es.

H e a tin g is tim o ro u sly m o v in g o u tsid e o f b u ild in g s into th e open air. It w ill in volve too la r g e an exp en d itu re, how ever, i f care be n ot ta k en to keep th e convection and ra d iation fr o m h e a tin g th e a ir in ste a d o f th e snow.

The h e a tin g o f th e a ir e n te r in g th e s h a ft a t Glen R ogers to p reven t th e fr e e z in g o f th e s h a f t is another exam ple o f th is u se o f steam . In t h e s e d ays w h en sky­

scrap ers are m an y tim e s a s h ig h a s th e s tr e e ts are wide, and w h en th e people in th e h ig h b u ild in g s are so n um erous th a t i f th ere w ere a fire th e y could n ot all co n g reg a te on th e sid ew a lk s in fr o n t o f th e b u ilding, so m eth in g m u st be done, and w ill b e done, to make p ossib le th e e lim in a tio n o f snow . Som e day a sn ow fall in a crow ded c ity w ill be u n th in k ab le.

A G E \ * V ol . 29, No. 25

O n P r o b a t i o n

T

A t noon on th e fo u r th day th e ru sh fo r jo b s a ttain ed its g r e a te st im p etu s. T he N e w O rien t s h a f t s are sunk on th e o u tsk ir ts o f W est F r a n k fo r t on a h ard road w hich m akes ea sy tra v el to and fro m B en to n ( s ix m ile s a w ay) and oth er n earb y to w n s. T he su r fa c e b u ild in g s and ya rd s at th e p lan t a re fen ced in and a d m issio n to th e in closu re is th ro u g h a g a te on th e road. Im m ed iately w ith in th e g a te is an em p loym en t office.

Scores o f m in ers tr a v el to w ork in a u to m o b iles. On th e day noted th e road-end o f th e in clo su re w a s crowded w ith a u tom ob iles to th e n um ber o f 198, b y a ctu a l count, ex clu siv e o f th o se b e lo n g in g to th e em ployed m in ers who park th e ir m a ch in es fu r th e r w ith in th e g a te . Many oth er m a ch in es w ere parked on th e o u tsid e a lo n g the road. T he ow n ers o f th e se a u to m o b iles and th e ir com ­ pan ion s fo rm ed in a lin e w h ich ex ten d ed th r o u g h th e g a te and backed on to th e h ig h w a y . T h ere w ere prob­

ably m ore th a n th ree h u ndred o f th em . T h ese m en rep­

resen ted one d a y ’s crop o f idle m in e r s o f so u th ern Illin o is in search o f w ork.

U n le ss th e local ch a p ter can e n fo rce d isc ip lin e w ith in its ranks to th e e x te n t o f se c u r in g an h o n e st d a y ’s w ork from each o f its m em bers, in a d d itio n to th o se n o w idle, about eleven h u ndred m ore m en, th e a p p ro x im a te n u m ­ ber n ow em ployed a t N e w O rien t m in e, m a y a lso find th em selv es jo b less. T he d aym en m u st ea rn th e ir w a g e s and th e co n tra ct m in ers m u st load e a s ily m erch a n ta b le coal, i f N e w O rien t or a n y o th e r m in e u n d er th e Ja ck ­ so n v ille scale is to com p ete s u c c e s s fu ly w ith n o n -u n io n m in es.

T h ese m en are on p ro b a tio n and fro m n o w u n til th e te r m in a tio n o f th e p r e se n t c o n tr a c t w ill d em o n str a te to th e p oin t o f fin a lity th e p o s s ib ility o f o p e r a tin g un d er th e u n ion sy ste m . O nly b y p r o d u cin g a la r g e r to n n a g e per m an th a n th e n o n -u n io n m in e r s w h o re c e iv e le s s p ay, r.nu b y m e e tin g c o m p e titiv e co n d itio n s, can th e y sh ow tn a t th e ir d em an d s fo r a h ig h -w a g e ra te are reason ab le.

Ju n e 2 4 , 1 9 2 6

C O A L A G E 901

P re -H e a t A ir a t G len R o gers M ine C hiefly to P re v e n t

Ic e F o rm a tio n in W et S h aft

E x h a u s t S t e a m f r o m F a n E n g i n e P a s s e s T h r o u g h R a d i a t o r s a n d I s T h e n D i s ­

c h a r g e d I n t o I n t a k e — P r e - H e a t i n g S a v e s C o n c r e t e L i n i n g b y E l i m i n a t i n g F r o s t

B y A lp h o n s e F. B ro sk y A s s is ta n t E d ito r, C o a l A g e ,

P itts b u rg h , P a.

A S A M E A N S o f h u m id ification , th e p re-h ea tin g o f a ir by ra d ia to rs and th e in trod u ction o f th e X J L h ea ted a ir and stea m to g e th e r into th e m ine a f t e r th e stea m h as lo st m uch o f it s h eat, is an old sch em e. B u t at th e G len R ogers m in e in W yom in g

€ o u n t y , W. V a., th e p ra ctice w a s p r im a rily adopted n ot fo r h u m id ifica tio n b u t to p reven t th e fo rm a tio n o f ice in th e in ta k e com p artm en t o f th e h o is tin g s h a ft w h ich is e x c e e d in g ly w e t and, con cu rren tly, to avoid d eteriora­

tio n o f th e con crete lin in g in cold w ea th er. Steam rad iators w er e in sta lled a t th e head o f th is s h a ft fo r t h is pu rp ose la st y e a r w h en th e m in e w a s ow ned by the R a le ig h -W y o m in g Coal Co. R ep orts declare th a t b y v ir tu e o f a recen t deal th is p lan t becam e th e prop­

e r t y o f th e Old B en Coal C orporation, o f C hicago, 111.

The afore-m en tion ed sh a ft, th o u g h used a t th e p res­

ent tim e as th e m ain h o istw a y , is in ten d ed ev en tu a lly to serve as th e second op en in g. A 1 0 x 2 0 -ft. s h a ft h as been sunk and Tined, w h ich ev en tu a lly w ill serv e a s th e sole h o istw a y fo r coal. B oth s h a fts m ade m uch w a ter d uring th e sin k in g op eration s and w ere ex te n siv e ly grou ted b efo re th e lin in g s w ere placed. T h e g r o u tin g in th e s h a ft w h ich w ill serv e fo r h o is tin g in th e final plan th u s fa r is h o ld in g back th e w a te r ; b u t th a t in the s h a ft now b ein g u tilized fo r h o is tin g h a s n ot acted so effectively. It served its purpose fo r a w h ile, but grad u ally leaked under th e h y d r o sta tic p ressu re b eh in d t y o i tn e u ia c e n o u a i o u rp u iu u u n , u i Wn M6U, it to th e ex ten t alread y sta ted . T he id le s h a ft is now

T h e seam b e in g w orked se r v in S as a dow n cast, as-

- - — ’ s is tin g in th is M rvicitv

a t t h is m in e is th e B eck- ley, w h ich lie s a t a depth o f 640 f t . as m ea su red in th e h o is t in g sh a ft. T he la t t e r is o f th r e e com p art­

m e n ts, tw o o f w h ich are eq u ip p ed w ith sk ip s. T he th ir d se r v e s a s an u p cast to th e fa n . T h e lin in g is o f co n cr ete o f a 1 :2 :3 m ix , th e in sid e m e a su r e ­ m e n ts o f w h ic h over-all a r e 14x28 f t . T h e sk ip

■com partm ents w h i c h m e a su r e in a g g r e g a te 1 4 x 1 8 f t ., se r v e a s a d ow n ­ c a s t .

F r o m th e su r fa c e to

s o lid rock is 300 ft ., t h is ... — in t e r v a l b e a r in g w a te r in

su c h q u a n tity and o f su ch p ressu r e th a t about 100 gal.

p e r m in u te seep th r o u g h th e lin in g , th o u g h th e la tter is o f ric h co n crete and h a s back o f it d ra in s o f gen erou s p r o p o r tio n s w h ic h h an d le ab ou t 400 g a l. per m in u te.

B e lo w th e 3 0 0 -ft. lev e l th e str a ta are d evoid o f w ater.

In c id e n ta lly , it m a y be sa id th a t th e w a te r w h ich is c a u g h t b y th e d r a in a g e a t th e back o f th e lin in g is p u m p ed to th e su r fa c e fo r d o m estic u se and fo r p ow er- p la n t p u rp o ses.

T H E S C H E M E W O R K S

A T G le n R o g e r s it h a s b e e n p r o v e d a s a X jL f a c t th a t e x h a u s t s te a m c a n b e u s e d n o t o n ly t o h u m i d i f y t h e a ir w h ic h p a s s e s in t o a m in e d u r in g t h e w in t e r m o n th s b u t a ls o e f f e c t i v e l y to h e a t th a t a ir t o t h e d e g r e e at w h ic h n o ic e w i l l f o r m o n t h e s id e s o f t h e s h a f t a n d o t h e r in ta k e p a s s a g e s . T h e i n ­ s t a lla t io n g r e a t ly in c r e a s e s t h e r e la t iv e h u m id it y o f t h e a ir , a n d b y e lim in a t in g th e ic e it a ls o p r e s e r v e s t h e c o n c r e t e l i n i n g a n d a s s u r e s u n if o r m v e n t ila t io n b y m a in t a in in g a n in t a k e o f c o n s t a n t a rea o n w a r m a n d c o ld d a y s a lik e . T h e p la n is s u c c e s s f u l e v e n t h o u g h a n u m b e r o f e x p e r t s p r e d ic t e d t h a t it w o u ld f a il o f it s p u r p o s e .

in th is ca p a city th e tw o sk ip com p art­

m en ts o f th e p resen t h o is tin g sh a ft.

Glen R o g ers lie s h ig h in th e m o u n ta in s o f W yo­

m in g C ounty w h ere in th e w in te r m o n th s th e th e r ­ m om eter r e g is te r s m an y d eg rees lo w er th a n it does a t p laces w h ich are n ot fa r d ista n t b u t lie a t low er levels. T h e te m ­ p era tu re o fte n h o v ers arou n d 10 deg. below zero fo r d a y s a t a tim e . O ccasion ally th e m ercu ry drops to -— 20 deg. L a s t w in te r th e w e a th e r a t th is place w a s u n u su a lly

T h e h ea d p ie c e show s th e c o lla r of th e s h a f t a t G len R ogers w ith som e o f th e h e a tin g pipes w h ich w a rm th e a ir in w in te r t h u s p re v e n tin g th e fo rm a tio n of ice a n d th e in ju rio u s effect of i r o s t on th e s h a f t lining.

severe. P r io r to 1925 m uch difficulty w a s ex p erien ced in h o is tin g coal on v e r y cold days, b ec a u se som e o f th e w a ter w h ic h leaked th r o u g h th e lin in g in to th e dow n ­ ca st sk ip com p artm en ts fr o z e on m e e tin g th e cold in ­ tak e air. In con seq u en ce, m uch tim e w a s lo s t in rid d in g th e s h a f t o f ice, and in e x tr e m ely cold w e a th e r th e m in e so m etim es rem a in ed idle th r o u g h o u t th e day so rap id ly did th e ice fo rm in t h is sh a ft.

A s a r e su lt n o t on ly w a s h o is t in g a t a s ta n d still p a rt o f th e tim e , b ut, a s m ig h t b e exp ected , v e n tila tio n w a s im p aired to th e d eg ree to w h ich th e in ta k e w a s con­

str ic te d b y ice. F u r th e r m o r e , th e fr e e z in g a c tio n cau sed d ete r io r a tio n o f th e lin in g , p a r tic u la r ly a s th e

902 C O A L A G E V ol . 29, No. 25

Fig. 1— Shelter in Which Air Is Pre-Heated

T h e s h e e t - i r o n s t r u c t u r e a n d t h e b o x - l i k e a n n e x o n t h e l e f t i n c l o s e a b o u t 2 5 , 0 0 0 c u . f t . o f s p a c e i n w h i c h i s i n s t a l l e d t h e r a d i a t o r s o r h e a t e r s . A i r i s d r a w n o v e r t h e s e h e a t e r s t h r o u g h t h e s k i p o p e n i n g i n t h e r o o f o f t h i s h o u s i n g . I n t h e w i n t e r t i m e t h e d o o r s s h o w n a r e k e p t c l o s e d . T h e c h u t e o v e r t h e c o n t r a c t o r s ’ s i d e - d u m p c a r s e e n o n t h e l e f t i s f o r r o c k . I t i s i n c l o s e d a n d h e a t e d s o a s t o k e e p f r o m f r e e z i n g a n y w a t e r w h i c h m i g h t a c c o m p a n y t h e r o c k .

w ea th er h as proved to be ch an geab le a t th is place. A cold day is fre q u en tly follow ed by com p aratively w arm w eath er.

T h ese are th e p rim ary fa c to r s w h ich com pelled th e m an agem en t to in sta ll a com b in ation sy stem b y w h ich th e in tak e a ir is both pre-heated and hum idified b efore e n te r in g th e h o is tin g sh a ft.

To th is end a se r ie s o f rad iators are located in a h o u sin g over th e m outh o f th e sk ip -h o istin g s h a ft, and th ro u g h th em e x h a u st stea m fro m th e fa n e n g in e is conducted. A fte r p a ssin g th ro u g h th e se r a d ia to rs th is stea m is ex h a u sted in to th e s h a ft w h ere it fu r th e r a s­

s is t s in r a isin g th e tem p eratu re and also h u m id ifies th e in tak e air.

Sh e e t-Me t a l Ho u s i n g Pr o t e c t s Sh a f t

A s in d icated in F ig . 1, a sh eet-m eta l h o u sin g h as been con stru cted over and around th e m outh o f th e sk ip com ­ p a rtm en ts o f th e sh a ft. T h is stru ctu re sh e lters about 15,000 c u .ft. o f air and is provided w ith an o p en in g a t th e top th ro u g h w h ich th e sk ip s tra v el, and w ith doors on th e fr o n t th ro u g h w h ich m en, cars and su p p lies are ad m itted .

A som ew h at sim ila r ly inclosed sh elte r lie s on one sid e o f th e s h a ft and con n ects w ith th e m ain h o u sin g . It is covered by can vas and roofing paper in su ch a w a y a s to sh e lte r a rock ch u te lea d in g from th e tip p le. T h is ch u te m u st be th u s p rotected to render it op era tiv e on cold days b ecau se m uch o f th e rock w h ich is d ep osited in th e ch u te is w et. In ad d ition to sh e lte r in g th e rock ch u te, th is w in g or an n ex in closes 10,000 c u .ft. o f space in w h ich p ip es can be in sta lled clear o f th e s h a ft and it s approach. T he p resen t c o v erin g o f can vas and ro o f­

in g paper is to be replaced w ith sh e et iron.

In th e se tw o c o n n ectin g sh elters are in sta lled th e ra d ia to r s w h ich p re-h eat th e a ir as it en te r s th ro u g h th e top op en in g fo r th e sk ip s. T he fa n en g in e (s e e F ig . 2 ) w h ich fu r n is h e s th e e x h a u st steam is a 1 4 x l4 -in . re c ip r o c a tin g u n it w h ich d riv es a 1 4 x 6 -ft. fa n . It h as a sp eed o f 120 stro k es per m in u te and a w o rk in g p r e s­

su r e o f 170 lb. per square inch.

T he e x h a u st stea m fro m t h is en g in e is conducted th r o u g h a 6-in . p ip e w h ich is run around th ree sid e s o f th e s h a ft. F ro m th is pipe is tap p ed a tie r o f e ig h t

3-in. p ip es, each 14 ft . lon g, on each o f tw o sid e s and a tie r o f s ix 3-in . p ip es, each 28 f t . lon g, on th e th ir d sid e. T he g e n e ra l a rra n g em en t o f th e se is sh ow n in th e h eadpiece.

On each sid e o f th e m ain h o u sin g , b etw een th e e x it doors and th e s a fe t y g a te s o f th e sh a ft, is a ra d ia to r w h ich is m ade up o f seven 2-in . p ip es, each 10 f t . long.

One o f th e se tie r s o f r a d ia to rs is sh ow n in F ig . 3. In th e an n ex h o u sin g w h ich in clo ses th e rock ch u te are th ree se ts o f h e a ters, each o f w h ich is com posed of seven H -in . p ip es, each 16 f t . long.

Pi p e s Go Do w n In t o Sh a f t

T h ese p ip es are in a co n tin u o u s c ir c u it, fr o m w h ich th e steam is ex h a u sted th ro u g h tw e n ty 1-in. p ip es w h ich p ro ject v e r tic a lly in to th e s h a ft in th e m an n er sh ow n in F ig . 4. T h e lin e s are con n ected so th a t liv e steam fro m th e b o ilers m ay be tu rn ed in to th em on e x trem ely cold d ays to a s s is t th e e x h a u st stea m fro m th e fa n en g in e in h e a tin g and h u m id ify in g th e air w h ich e n te r s th e m in e. A s now a rra n g ed th e h e a tin g sy ste m c o n sists ap p ro x im a tely o f 56 ft . o f 6-in . pipe, 392 f t . o f 3-in . pipe, 336 ft . o f 2-in . p ipe and 140 ft . o f l j - i n . pipe.

A t th e tim e o f m y v is it th e m in e m a n a g em en t e x ­ p ressed its in te n tio n o f in c r e a sin g th e siz e o f th is h e a t­

in g p lan t to tw o to th ree tim e s it s p r e se n t cap acity.

T he a d d ition al h ea te r s w ould be in sta lled in th e a n n ex w h ich in closes th e rock ch u te. T h e proposed p lan s call fo r a 6 -ft. slow -sp eed fa n w h ich w ould be in sta lle d in

Fig. 2— This Fan Engine Supplies E xhaust Steam

T h i s i s a 1 4 x l 4 - i n . r e c i p r o c a t i n g e n g i n e w h i c h o p e r a t e s a t 1 2 0 s t r o k e s p e r m i n u t e u n d e r 1 7 0 l b . o f s t e a m . I n e x t r e m e l y c o l d w e a t h e r l i v e s t e a m i s i n t r o d u c e d w i t h t h e e x h a u s t f r o m t h i s e n g i n e i n t o t h e r a d i a t o r s .

th e fa r w all o f th is a n n ex so a s to draw a ir fro m th e o u tsid e and blow it over th e h e a te r s and a t th e sam e tim e m in im iz e th e q u a n tity o f a ir w h ich w ould find its w ay d ire ctly in to th e s h a ft th ro u g h th e sk ip o p e n in g s in th e ro o f o f th e m ain h o u sin g .

E ach h ea ter or ra d ia to r w ou ld be con trolled b y a valve so th a t any o f th em could be cu t ou t sh ou ld a leak occur. A ll o f th e e x h a u st fro m t h is en la rg ed u n it w ould be d isch a rg ed in to th e s h a ft w h ere it w ould m ix w ith , and be absorbed by, th e w arm a ir o f low re la tiv e h u m id ity w h ich w ou ld en ter th e m ine.

It is b elieved th a t som e a d v a n ta g e w ould be d erived by in c lo sin g th e h e a d fr a m e le g s to a g r e a te r h e ig h t.

Ju n e 2 4 , 1 9 2 6

C O A L

th a t w h en th e th erm om eter r e g iste r e d 20 deg. below zero a r ela tiv e h u m id ity o f 90 to 100 per cen t w a s m a in ­ ta in ed in th is m ine.

T h is practice h as not caused any n oticeab le sla ck in g o f the roof a t th e sh a ft bottom , as it is said to do m other like cases. The in trod u ction o f m uch steam in to a s h a ft w ill cau se a fo g u n less th e a ir is sufficiently h eated to m a in ta in a fa ir ly u n ifo rm and h ig h tem p era ­ tu re w ith in com paratively w id e lim its as m easu red from th e s h a ft bottom . The m an agem en t a t Glen R o g ers e x ­ pects to m a in ta in th is con d ition a fte r th e h e a tin g plant is in creased in size.

9 0 3

A G E

C om m u tator R efillin g Is N ot a M ine Shop Job

A m ong th e fa c to r s th a t h ave been resp on sib le fo r red u cin g th e m ain ten a n ce co st o f d irect-cu rren t m otors,

“b etter com m u tators” holds an im p ortan t place. N o doubt th e m a n u fa ctu rers o f electrica l eq uipm ent are xp. q One of the Radiators for Pre-H eating Air

F i g . 3 One OI i n s t a l l e d o n e a c h s i d e o f

T h i s i s o n e o f t w o h e a t e r s w h m 0 u t h o f t h e s h a f t . T h e m a n a g e m e n t ^ t s ^ f a l t e r a n d « l a r g e t h i s ^ n y y s - v a l v e 1 r t £ t d£ £ i o g j " c u t o u t f r o m t h e s t e a m c i r c u i t s h o u l d a p i p e o r f i t t i n g l e a k .

T h e proposed ch a n g e s w ould be m ade m ore to :in ­ crease th e ra d iation su rfa ce and th ereb y b oost th e tem - D erature o f th e in tak e a ir w ith a m in im u m d isch arg

tom even w h en th e o u tsid e tem p era tu re fa lls as low a 2 0 Gdieen R ogeT sZisr°extremely g a ssy , and th ou gh rock d ust is b e t , ap p lied to a tte n u a te th e coal dust, th e m a in ­ t a i n i n g o f a h ig h r ela tiv e h u m id ity in its atm osphere by

t h i s C o n d itio n in g p lan t g iv e s a ^

s a fe ty to ^ e Be” » n c r e t e

S S, T u t ° r e d “ dow n tfce du st. It is sa id

F ig . 4- E x h a u s t Steam Discharging Into Shaft

A f t e r p a s s i n g t h r o u g h t h e r a d i a t o r s m a c o n t m u o u s s h a f t .

s f i S S ”. . “ ■*>'»■

¿ " t h e ^ ^ T h i f e a U ^ s ^ t e ^ b y e l i m i n a t i n g i c e i n t h i s e x t r e m e l y T V / ^ f n r ^ i c ^ w S ' c a u ^ d ^ y 6 f r e e z i n g p r i o r t o t h e f n q t a U a t i o n o f t h e h e a t i n g p l a n t

Courtesy Jeffrey Mfg. Co.

p ig i Refilling with N ew Mica in a Mine Shop

c o m p a r a b l e t o t h a t a f f o r d e d b y a f a c t o r y j o b .

la rg ely resp on sib le fo r th is im p rovem en t. N e v e r th e le ss, th e ten d en cy o f th e u sers to do le ss com m u tator re­

p a ir in g or rath er, “p a tc h in g ,” h a s re su lte d in a m arked d ecrease in arm a tu re fa ilu r e s.

T he com m u tator is m ore th a n sim p ly “a lin k m th e ch ain o f p a r ts,” m a k in g up th e com p lete m otor. F or exam ple, a sh o rt c ir c u it b etw een tw o a d ja cen t b a rs h as a m ore se r io u s effect th a n to ca u se a sh u td o w n o f th e m otor fo r th e pu rp ose o f rem o v in g th e sh o rt. U su a lly such trou b le is not d etected u n til one o r m ore arm a tu re co ils are dam aged or com p letely b u rn ed out. B eca u se o f th e difficulty en cou n tered in r a is in g co ils in w in d in g s th a t have been dipped and baked, a n y a tte m p t to rep a ir or ren ew one or tw o co ils is lik ely to end in a com plete rew in d in g o f th e e n tir e a rm atu re.

It is sig n ific a n t th a t m a n y o f th e la r g e coal prod u cers do th e ir ow n r e w in d in g b u t a n u m b er h a v e p ra ctica lly abandoned all co m m u tator r ep a irs. T h ey m a y in an em erg en cy ren ew a fe w in s u la tin g se g m e n ts or a m ica V -rin g , b u t as a rule, th e y e ith e r b u y a n e w com m u tator or sen d th e dam aged or w o rn one back to th e m a n u ­ fa c tu r e r or to a co m m u tator sp e c ia lty com p an y fo r re­

filling.

I t is in th e sh op s o f th e sm all to m e d iu m -sized com ­ p a n ies th a t com m u tator r e p a ir in g is s till th e ru le. I f, how ever, th o se resp o n sib le fo r th e w o rk in su ch sh o p s could see th e sp ecial eq u ip m en t u sed and th e ca re ta k en in b u ild in g up a com m u tator a t th e fa c to r y , th e y too w ould rea lize th e sh o r tc o m in g s o f th e ir r e p a ir m e th o d s, and w ou ld fo llo w th e lea d o f th e la r g e r coal co m p a n ies in se n d in g th e ir co m m u ta to rs a w a y fo r r e fillin g .

904 C O A L A G E V ol . 29, No. 25

Fig. 2— Factory Views of Building a Mine Locomotive Commutator

A t t h e l e f t i s a r o u g h c o m m u t a t o r a f t e r i t h a s b e e n b u i l t u p , h e a t e d i n t h e e l e c t r i c o v e n , a n d t h e c l a m p i n g - b o l t s d r a w n d o w n t i g h t . T h e c o m b i n a t i o n o f h e a t a n d p r e s s u r e d r i v e s o u t a l l e x c e s s b i n d e r f r o m t h e i n s u l a t i n g s e g m e n t s . T h e t h r e e r o u g h c o m m u t a ­ t o r s , i n c l a m p s , p i l e d o n t h e b a l l b e a r i n g s t a n d , a r e b e i n g g i v e n

Courtesy Jeffrey Mfg. Co.

a f e w d a y s t o “ s e t ” d u r i n g w h i c h t i m e t h e c l a m p i n g b o l t s a r e t i g h t e n e d a t r e g u l a r i n t e r v a l s . A t t h e r i g h t i s a c o m m u t a t o r a f t e r i t h a s b e e n b o r e d a n d t h e e n d s f a c e d . T h e t r u e i n s i d e s u r f a c e a s s u r e s a p e r f e c t s e a t f o r t h e b a r s o n t h e m i c a V - r i n g s a n d a s s u r e s t h a t a l l p a r t s w i l l b e i n p r o p e r p o s i t i o n .

Fig. 3—P ress and Oven

H y d r a u l i c p r e s s u r e i s a p p l i e d i n a s s e m ­ b l i n g t h e c l a m p e d c o m m u t a t o r w i t h t h e m i c a V - r i n g s o n t h e s h e l l . A f t e r t h e V - r i n g b o l t s are

t i g h t e n e d u n d e r p r e s s u r e t h e c l a m p i s r e m o v e d a n d t h e w e a r i n g s u r f a c e t u r n e d . I n t h i s p h o t o g r a p h a c o m ­ p l e t e d c o m m u t a t o r w a s p l a c e d i n t h e p r e s s t o i l l u s t r a t e h o w t h e b o l t s m a y b e t i g h t e n e d w h i l e t h e c o m m u t a t o r i s u n d e r p r e s s u r e . I n t h e l e f t b a c k g r o u n d i s a c l a m p e d com­

m u t a t o r r e a d y t o b e l o w e r e d i n t o the

e l e c t r i c o v e n .

F ig . 1 is ty p ica l o f com m utator rep a irs in th e or­

d in a ry m in e shop. In th is case a com plete se t o f new m ica seg m e n ts is b ein g in stalled . A fte r th e assem b ly is com pleted, th e com m utator w ill be tig h te n e d by d raw ­ in g up th e V -r in g bolts w h ile h eat from a blow torch is applied to th e bars.

Common fa u lts o f th is m ethod in clu d e: (1 ) f r e ­ q u en t use o f m ica o f im proper th ic k n ess or o f m ica th a t has been dam aged by h a n d lin g ; (2 ) unbalanced a rm a­

tu res as th e resu lt o f com m utators b ein g assem b led s lig h tly out-of-round or eccen tric on th e in sid e ; (3 ) com m utator bars not properly sea ted r e su ltin g in op er­

a tin g trou b les from h ig h or low se g m e n ts; and (4 ) m ica seg m en ts n ot sufficiently com pressed to p reven t oil or oth er fo r e ig n m a tter fro m w o rk in g in to th e com ­ m u tator, co llectin g d u st or oth er im p u rity and e v en tu ­ a lly c a u sin g sparkover.

A m arked co n tra st to th e procedure depicted in F ig . 1 is p resen ted by th e typ ical fa c to r y m ethod illu stra ted in F ig s . 2 and 3. A fte r th e bars, w h ich are in th e rough so fa r as th e ed ges are concerned, are assem b led w ith th e m ica se g m e n ts, th e w hole com m u tator is put in to a fo u r-se ctio n clam p, as sh ow n in F ig . 2. N e x t th e e n tir e assem b ly, clam p and all is h eated in an oven and th e heavy b olts o f th e clam p tig h te n e d as m uch as

possib le. T h is co m p resses th e m ica se g m e n ts so tig h tly th a t all su perfluous b in d er is squ eezed out.

A fte r th e in itia l h e a tin g and tig h te n in g , it is th e u su al p ra ctice to le t th e com m u tator sta n d sev era l days d u rin g w h ich tim e th e b olts o f th e clam p a re tig h te n e d a t reg u la r in te r v a ls. N e x t com es th e b o rin g and end- fa c in g op eration , w h ich is done w ith th e clam p in place.

F ig . 2 ( r ig h t) sh o w s th e ap p earan ce o f th e com m u tator a fte r th is m a ch in in g h as been com pleted. T he in sid e is p e r fe c tly tru e, a ffo rd in g an o p p o rtu n ity fo r u n ifo rm se a tin g o f th e b ars a g a in s t th e V -rin g .

A ssem b ly o f th e com m u tator and V -r in g s on th e shell is done in a h yd rau lic p ress. T h is r e su lts in im p a rtin g th e sam e tig h tn e s s to th e se in su la tin g r in g s a s w a s im ­ parted to th e se g m en ts. T h e clam p is n o t rem oved u n til a fte r th e final tig h te n in g o f th e V -r in g bolts.

T u rn in g o f th e w e a r in g su r fa c e and m illin g o f th e lead slo ts com p letes th e job.

It is e a sy to se e th e d ifferen ce th a t w ill lik e ly e x is t betw een a com m u tator a ssem b led b y fa c to r y m eth od s and one pu t to g e th e r in a m in e rep a ir shop. T h e use o f special clam ps and th e p ra ctice o f b o rin g th e in sid e a fte r a ssem b ly o f th e b ars are p r e r e q u isite s o f a h ig h - g rad e com m utator. T h is w ork is n o t o f a kin d th a t can be handled econ om ically in th e m in e shop.

Courtesy Jeffrey Mto. Co.

«

J u n e 2 4 , 1 9 2 6

C O A L A G E

W h a t O ils C an B e O b ta in e d fro m C oal

By L o w -T e m p e ra tu re D is tilla tio n , a n d

W h a t W ill Be T h e ir C o m m e rc ia l Uses?

B y R . L. B ro w n a n d R. B. C o o p er A S L O W -T E M P E R A T U R E carb on ization w ill fu r -

n ish u s w ith a sm ok eless h ousehold fu el, w ill broaden th e u se o f th e low er gra d es o f coal and w ill reduce w a s te s , it is a su b ject w ell w o r th y o f stu d y . B y lo w -tem p era tu re d istilla tio n a com b u stib le can be m ade fro m b itu m in o u s coal th a t w ill replace our d im in ­ is h in g a n th r a c ite su p p lies, g iv in g a fu e l th a t is le ss difficult to fire th a n coke. In fa c t, resp on sib le en g in e e r s h ave p roposed d is tillin g coal a t a lo w tem p eratu re, reco v erin g th e oil and p a ssin g th e resu lta n t coke d irectly in to th e b o ile r fu r n a c e s o f a pow er plant.

L o w -tem p era tu re ca rb o n iza tio n w ill con vert coal in to coke and g a s and, w ith t h is p rocess, coal could be u sed th a t w a s n e ith e r su ite d to th e m a k in g o f m eta l­

lu rg ica l coke nor p a rticu la rly w ell fitted fo r g a s m ak in g.

H ow ever, fo r th e m a n u fa ctu re o f g a s th ere seem s to be no a d v a n ta g e in lo w -tem p era tu re carb on ization . T h e h ig h -te m p e r a tu r e p ro c ess g iv e s 11,000 c u .ft. g ro ss o f 575 B .t.u . g a s, w h ere a s low -tem p eratu re carb on iza­

tio n g iv e s ab ou t 4,000 c u .ft. o f about 950 B .t.u . T he volum e o f t h is la tte r g a s could be in crea sed i f th e price o f g a so lin e and, th e r e fo r e, m otor fu e l, becam e su ch as to m ake it profitable to crack th e low -tem p era tu re ta r under p r essu re , th u s o b ta in in g an in crea sed y ield o f th e lsttcr.

The th ir d p rod u ct o f lo w -tem p era tu re d istilla tio n is liquid or se m i-liq u id b od ies, n am ely oils and ta r s. The value o f a n y p ro cess o f t h is k in d depends la r g ely on the profitable u tiliz a tio n o f

the products so ob tain ed . In E n glan d and in G er­

m any som e p r o g r e ss h as been m ade in a sc e r ta in in g the co m p o sitio n o f th is class o f m a te r ia l, b u t in th is co u n try th e ta r s h ave had only lim ite d stu d y . In ­ q u irie s in to th e p o s s ib ility o f u tiliz in g lo w - tem p e r a ­ tu re o ils and ta r s sh ou ld in clu d e a stu d y o f th e ir p o s­

sib le u se as m o to r fu e l and a s fu e l o ils and a s to th e ir a v a ila b ility fo r u se a s creo- s o tin g m a te r ia l a n d in D ie se l e n g in e s.

A s a co n seq u en ce o f th e c r e a tio n o f a F e d e r a l O il C o n serv a tio n B oard , t h e B oard o f D ir e c to r s o f th e A m e ric a n P e tr o le u m I n s ti-

A rtic le e n title d “H u n tin g fo r th e B lem en ts P ro d u c e d b y th e L o w -T e m p e ra tu re D istilla tio n of C oal” p re s e n te d b y R . B. Cooper, a t th e n in th a n n u a l m e tin g of th e N a tio n a l C oal A ssociation, C hicago, J u n e 9. M r. B ro w n is a c h e m ist w ith th e B u re a u of M ines, a n d M r. C ooper is th e N a tio n a l C oal A sso ciatio n G ra d ­ u a te R e se a rc h FeU ow a t th e C a rn e g ie I n s titu te o f T ech - nnloe-v. P itts b u rg h , P a .

tu te h as in v e stig a te d th e q u a n tity o f oil in reserve and h as reported th a t th ere are 5,300,000,000 bbl. o f proven reserve recoverable from e x is tin g petroleum w ells and fields by p resen t m ethods, and th a t th e annual p etro ­ leum consum ption is about 800,000,000 bbl. A s in d i­

cated by M. L. Requa, head o f th e Oil D iv isio n o f th e U. S. F u el A d m in istra tio n d u rin g th e w ar, and by oth ers, it w ould appear th a t in a r e la tiv e ly sh o rt tim e new sou rces of m otor fu e l m u st be fo u n d to replace th o se rapidly b ecom ing exh au sted .

I f th e deficiency is to be m et by oil fro m fields under A m erican control o u tsid e th e borders o f t h is country, th e co st m u st n ecessa r ily be h ig h e r th a n a t p resen t, and i f th e oil required is to com e fro m o u tsid e fields under fo r e ig n control, th e co st w ill be s till g rea ter.

It m u st be rem em bered, h ow ever, th a t th e d epletion o f th e oil su p p ly fro m w ells w ill p o ssib ly be paralleled or follow ed by developm ents in th e p rod u ction o f sh ale oil, th o u g h oil th u s ob tain ed m ay n ot be cheap b ecau se th e sh ale w ill be o b tain ed only b y th e developm ent o f an enorm ous m in in g in d u stry . I t m u st also be r e ­ m em bered th a t th e oil-sh ale in d u str y w ill be h am pered by th e fa c t th a t th e resid u e l e f t a fte r th e p roduction o f oil from th is source is p ra ctica lly w o r th le ss, so th a t th e oil w ill n ot be obtained w ith o u t difficulty fro m th e sh ales w h ich con tain it.

F or th ese reason s th e price o f oil is lik ely to be h ig h , and th e production o f oil fro m th e d istilla tio n o f coal

w ill d ou b tless a ssu m e th e d im en sio n s o f a la r g e in ­ d u stry . W e sh a ll probably have a g r e a tly in crea sed recovery o f lig h t oils fr o m coke-oven g a s in th e m a n u ­ fa c tu r e o f w h ich h ig h te m ­ p era tu res are b e in g used . P r o c e sse s h a v e b een d evel­

oped th a t y ie ld about 4 gal.

o f m otor fu e l p er ton , w h ich figu re can be n ea rly doubled b y su b je c tin g th e ta r fr a c tio n to cra ck in g under p ressu re. Coke is an ea sy b u r n in g d o m estic fu e l and, m oreover, tim e w ill prob ab ly sh o w t h a t i t is w ell su ite d fo r u se in pow er p la n ts.

D u r in g recen t y e a r s th e tech n o lo g y o f th e p e tr o ­ leum in d u str y , and p a r ­ tic u la r ly o f p e t r o l eum refin in g , h a s m a d e g r e a t str id e s. O nly a fe w y e a r s ago g a s o l i n e w a s all str a ig h t-r u n . A s th e d e­

m and h a s in c r e a se d and in d u str y h a s developed te c h n ic a lly , c ra ck in g , or th e

906 C O A L A G E V ol . 29, No. 25

b reak in g up of h ea v y oils in to ga so lin e, has made so m uch p ro g ress th a t now it is reported th a t n early 90 per cen t o f certa in oils is converted in to gasoline. A sh o r t tim e back, g a so lin e s w ere b ein g u n iversally treated w ith con cen trated su lp h u ric acid to rem ove the d efin e

hydrocarbons. R esearch h as show n th a t th e se olefines are actu ally d esir­

able as th e y g iv e ga so lin e its an ti-k n ock p rop erties.

O ther co n d itio n s b ein g th e sam e, th e h ig h e r th e tem p eratu re in th e crack in g p rocess, th e g rea ter the p roduction o f lig h te r oils, and w ith still g r e a te r in crea se s in tem p era­

tu re, th ere is a g rea ter production o f olefines and arom atic hydro­

carbons. B oth o f th e se ty p es of hydrocarbons are o f an anti-knock q u ality. In general, th e sam e p r in ­ cip les hold in th e d istilla tio n o f coal.

T he lig h t oil from high -tem p era- tu re carb on ization is arom atic. The

n atu re o f th e products obtained at various tem p eratu res is w ell understood bu t th e character o f th e products d erivable from low -tem perature d istilla tio n are only slow ly b ein g discovered.

T hough our rich h erita g e o f petroleum is rapidly b ein g exh au sted , w e hold about 60 per cent o f th e w orld ’s supply o f coal w hich w ill be adequate fo r th e needs o f m any c e n tu r ie s ; so coal w ill u ltim a tely and in ev ita b ly be our principal source o f m otor fu el. It fo llo w s th a t b efore m any years the U n ited S ta te s m u st discover how b est to convert its coal in to m otor fu el.

A t p resen t th ere are th ree paths w hich research has blazed to th a t goal. T hese are b ein g sed u lou sly fo l­

low ed by in v e stig a to r s in the hope th a t a com m ercial process m ay be developed.

T he first o f th e se is th e conversion o f coal in to w a ter g a s and th e con version o f th e w a ter g a s in to liquid fu e ls. T he second is th e h yd rogen ation o f coal to g iv e h ea v y o ils; and th e th ird is based on th e carbonization o f coal a t both h ig h and low tem p eratu res. T he first o f th ese th ree m ethods is under in v e stig a tio n , both in th is cou n try and abroad; in q u iries in to th e second are b ein g conducted solely in E urope. The th ird is certain to play an im portant part in a u g m en tin g our m otor-fu el supply. One o f th e first tw o m u st com e or w e shall be, sooner or later, serio u sly sh o rt o f such fu el. In looking fo r th e valuable elem en ts o f coal, as released or gen erated by low -tem perature d istilla tio n , th e au th ors o f th is paper have looked, am on g oth er th in g s , fo r m otor fu el.

R esearch is alw ays exp en sive, p o ssib ly b ecau se it can never be put on w h a t is com m only called a production b asis. It dem ands, and in h er en tly m u st dem and, in d i­

vidual brain and hand w ork, in fa c t, special piece w ork. In our in v e s tig a ­ tion , w e w ere able to ta k e ad van tage o f an oth er in q u iry in p ro g re ss a t th e B ureau o f M ines, and w h ere, th e r e ­ fo re, ap p aratu s, r e to r ts, coolin g sy stem s, coal and a ssista n c e w ere availab le. T h e m in ia tu r e p la n t w a s such th a t th e ex a c t co n d itio n s e x is t ­ in g in th e d istilla tio n o f coal could be duplicated. T h e d istilla tio n p rod ­ u cts fro m a w e ig h e d q u a n tity o f coal

totalled 31 gal. and w ere sta te d a s in th e low er box.

A com plete stu d y h a s been m ade o f th e lig h t oils recovered from th e g a s. C h em ically, th e oil b o ilin g betw een 20 deg. and 200 deg. C., w h ich is 68 deg. and 392 deg. F ., w a s a m ix tu r e o f th e ch em ical com pounds recorded in th e upper box. T h is m ix tu r e h a s th e sam e p h y sic a l ch a r­

a c te r is tic s as c a sin g -h ea d g a so lin e, bu t h as, in a d d itio n , th e g r e a t ad van ­ ta g e o f c o n ta in in g over 50 per cen t o f olefine h yd rocarb on s. C onse­

q u en tly, i f u sed a s m otor fu e l it w ould p o sse ss in a h ig h d eg ree th o se a n ti-k n ock p ro p e r tie s th a t are so m uch d esired b y m o to r ists. It w ould, th e r e fo r e , be ex c e p tio n a lly valu ab le fo r b le n d in g w ith oth er g a so lin e. It is a m o st in te r e s tin g fa c t th a t in c o n tr a st to sim ila r m a te ­ ria l fro m h ig h -te m p e r a tu r e d is tilla ­ tio n , it is r e la tiv e ly low in diolefines, w h ich o th e r w ise w ould h a v e to be rem oved by a refin in g p r o c e ss; also, it is fr e e fro m carbon bisu lp h id e, a m ost o b jectio n a b le c o n stitu e n t o f g asolin e, w h ich is p re sen t to a con sid erab le d egree in sim ila r m aterial produced by h ig h -te m p e r a tu r e d is tilla ­ tion. The in c rea sin g sc a r c ity o f c a sin g -h ea d g a so lin e fo r b len d in g p urposes p u ts p a rtic u la r em p h asis upon th ese fa cts.

The p resen ce o f such a h ig h p ercen ta g e o f an ylen e s u g g e sts a p ossib le sou rce o f su p p ly fo r th e production o f am yl alcohol and its e ste r s by chem ical sy n th e sis.

T hese com pounds are e x te n s iv e ly u sed in th e fields of p la stics, lacq u ers and sm o k e less p ow d er. T he oils and ta r s from lo w -tem p era tu re c a r b o n iza tio n p ro cesses d if­

fe r from h ig h -tem p era tu re ta r s in h a v in g a g rea ter resem blance to p etroleu m . T h ey c o n ta in no benzol, toluol, n ap h th alen e, a n th ra cen e or carb olic acid . H o w ­ ever, in stea d o f th e o rd in a ry carb olic acid , a lo w -tem ­ p eratu re ta r co n ta in s sim ila r b o d ies o f a m uch h ig h e r m olecular w e ig h t.

W e all know th a t h ig h -te m p e r a tu r e ta r can be u sed n ot only as fu e l b u t in tim b e r p r e se r v a tio n , th e m a n u ­ fa c tu r e o f ta rr ed f e lt or ta r r e d p ap er fo r b u ild in g p urposes, and a s p a in t fo r sto n e , b rick or iron w ork . It is used e x te n siv e ly fo r road b u ild in g , both a s a b in d er and a s im p r e g n a tin g m a te r ia l fo r w ood blocks.

It finds a p lica tio n a s w a terp ro o fin g and r o o f p a in ts.

It y ield s oils, benzol, tolu ol and carb olic a cid , w h ic h are used fo r d yes, e x p lo siv e s and m e d icin á is.

W h eth er lo w -te m p era tu re ta r c o n ta in s su ch a w ea lth o f p rim a ry m a te r ia l can be d iscovered on ly b y resea rch or by fu r th e r ch em ical in v e s tig a tio n . I t is p rob ab le th a t p h en olic b od ies are p resen t, th e s e b e in g m em b ers o f th e ca rb olic-acid fa m ily . T h is s u g g e s t s th a t, fro m coal, w ood p r e se r v a tiv e s m a y b e m a n u fa ctu red .

T he p h y sica l p ro p e r tie s o f th e n e u ­ tra l m id d le o ils should be d eterm in ed in order th a t th e se o ils m a y be a p ­ plied to u se s fo r w h ich th e y a re fitted. T h e th o u g h t n a tu r a lly o ccu rs th a t, as th e lig h t o ils are e n tir e ly a lip h a tic or p etro leu m -lik e in c h a r ­ a cter, w ill n ot a lu b r ic a tin g g ra d e o f oil be p r e se n t in th e le s s v o la tile o ils?

L ight O ils R eco v ered fr o m Gas in L ow -T em p eratu re

D istilla tio n

P e r C e n t

___ 2

. . . . 8

. . . .30

Hexanes . . . 10

. . . .17 Heptenes ...

Cyclic olefines of seven bon a t o m s ...

Octanes and above...

Octenes and above...

. . . . 5i car- . . . . 3}

n . . . . 91

L o w -T em p eratu re D is tilla tio n Y ield s per Ton o f Coal Resin condensate ... 100 lb.

W ax condensate ... 110 lb.

Medium oils ... 8 gal.

Light oils, recovered from gas ... 2 gal.

Of the medium oils slightly over 2 gallons were suitable for motor fuel.