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L82L82L82andThe Manganese Mines on the northern coast of the Isthmus of Panama, about 40 miles from Colon, are being worked by an American company in which the Carnegie Steel Company and the Illinois Steel Company are reported to be interested. Preparations are being made for the erection of a shipping-dock. A narrow-gauge rail way, about 7 miles long, will be laid to connect tne mines with the dock. ,Manganese-copper was first, in 1849,* produced by Herr V, Gersdorff, of Schldglmvthl, near Wiener -Neustadt, according to an Austrian paper.* Later Schrotter, Percy, Parkes, Valenciennes, and Allen interested themselves in the article. At present man-ganese-metal, manganese-copper, and manganese-bronze are manufactured at the Isabellenhiitte, Dillenburg. The alloys of manganese with copper or copper and zinc are easily hammered and rolled, and serve for the production of household utensils and fancy articles.Chemical Investigation of Steel, t—Phosphorusdeterminations in steel are only correct if all phosphorus be oxidised to phosphoric acid. This is done quickest and best by a concentrated hot chameleon solution. For this purpose 2 grammes of steel are dissolved in 30 cubic centimetres of 1 *2 specific gravity; to the boiling-hot solution 2 cubic centimetres of chameleon solution are added, rendered turbid by manganese-super-oxide, then some drops of iron-vitriol solution for clarifying, and filtering is performed. To the filtrate are added 60 cubic centimetres of molybdic-acid solution, heated to 80°, filtered, washed, dissolved by ammonia in' a crucible, carefully heated until the ammonia - salts are driven off, and weighed ; 12 milligrm. of the deposit corresponds to 0 01 per cent, of phosphorus in the steel. Iron-ores and slags are decomposed with hydrochloric acid, sulphuric acid, and hydrofluoric acid before treatment with nitric acid. The titrimetrical methods frequently give a too low phosphoric content. The method of E. A. Emmerton approaches the weight-analysis nearer than the process of Th. v. a. P forten.Chromium in Steel.—A volumetric method for determining the amount of chromium in a specimen of steel has become a great metallurgical desideratum since the good qualities conferred upon steel by its addition have become generally known. Such a method is described by Signor G. Giorgis, of the University of Rome, in the Atti of the Accademia dei Lincei. It is founded upon the formation of potassium chromate and hydrated manganese sesquioxide on adding a solution of potassium permanganate to a solution of sesquioxide of chromium in potassium hydrate. Ten grammes of the steel are dissolved in a mixture of sulphuric and nitric acids (3 to 1); the solution is made up to 1 litre with distilled water, and 250 c.c. are made just alkaline with sodium hydrate, and treated with ot permanganate of potash till the solution assumes a ted colour. After cooling, the whole is poured into a flask of 500 c.c. capacity, filling up with water ; 400 c.c. are filtered through a dry filter, acidified with sulphuric acid, reduced by S02, and concentratedi1to 200 or 100 c.c., according to the quantity of chromiumbn’s method may ployed, consisting in the addition of the chromium saltprobably present. Donath’s method may then be em-prepared as above described, to a measured quantity of a standard permanganate solution, and watching for the golden yellow colour assumed by the mixture when the permanganate is all dissolved, i.e. when all the chromium exists in the form of a chromate, from which the amount of chromium is easily calculated. ' It is said that this process is extremely accurate, and requires only a small fraction of the time required by gravimetric methods.Diamond Manufacture and Diamonds in Meteoric Iron.—Mons. Henri Moissan has recently contributed some interesting papers to the Paris Acad^raie des Sciences with reference to the manufac-ture of the diamond. The author refers the varieties of carbon to three chief types : diamond, graphite, and amorphous carbon, and he lays before the Academy an account of the preparation of carbons of a high specific gravity. As a preliminary he has studied the composition of the ash of the diamond, of bort, ana of carbonado. He shows the existence of graphite, of carbonado, and of microscopic diamonds in the blue j earth of South Africa, and the existence of the diamond in the meteorite of Canon Diablo. He has studied the solubility of carbon in magnesium, aluminium, man ganese, chrome, uranium, silver, platinum, and silicon. Operatiug on a mixture of diamond, graphite, and amorphous carbon he has removed all matter except diamond by successive treatment with hydrochloric or nitric acid, boiling sulphuric acid, hydrofluoric acid, and a mixture of potassium chlorate with nitric acid. He succeeds by these means in separating from the blue earth a variety of carbon hard enough to scratch ruby, and of the specific gravity of diamond.In burns in oxygen, yielding 3—3 5 carbonic acid. Regarding the Canon Diablo meteorite, Mons. Henri Moissan says that the composition of the meteorite is very variable from point to point. In the fragments examined the percentage of iron varied from 91-09 to 95-06, and that of nickel from 1-08 to 7‘05. Diamonds were also found, both transparent and black, and a brown form of carbon of feeble density. The largest diamond measured 0-7 mm. by0-3 mm. It had a yellow tint and a rough surface, and was transparent to light. Respecting the same subject, Mons. Friedel observed that a small quantity of a silver-white fragile compound occurring in the meteorite in the form of plates disseminated through the niekeliferous iron and■ Oesterr. Jahrb. d. Bergakad., 1892, p. 479, thro’ Berg-Huttenm. Ztg. of Feb. 24, 1893.f Herr Leopold Schneider in Oesterr. Ztschr. f. Berg-Hiittcine., 1893, 41, 15, thro’ Chem.-Ztg. of Feb. 18, 1893.'v.itaccompanied by schreibermte, was ______- ,its composition found to correspond to tilbable formula FesS. The mixtures ofcarbon, graphite, and diamond were found chieflvaSKmated with nodules of yellow troilite. With reJaiw.'.the presence of graphite, carbonado, a__diamonds in the bine earth of the Cape, Mons. Monwu.« marked that after repeated and lengthy treatmSHSh boiling sulphuric and hydroflnorie acids, 250 gr. of blueweighing only 0094 mgr. fa residue brilliant hexagonal crystals of graphite we™ found, giving rise, when treated with potassium chloral to a graphitic oxide of a colour passing from green yellow. The portions of the residue unaffected hS potassium chlorate and heavier than methvlenn induk (density 3*4) .comprised an amber-coloS^,, S diamonds, microscopic true diamonds, and small trans parent crystals in form of elongated prisms, which did not bum in oxygen and were not fluorescent in violet light. The first, which contains a large proportion of iron, and the last, which contains silica, can bedestroyed by treatment with fused potassium hisulphateand then with hydrofluoric and sulphuric acids. The bine earth, which was taken from the Old de Beers Mine, thus contained all the carbon compounds found in the iron matrix employed for their artificial production,—See Note, “ Moxssan’s Discoveries,” page 180.[ We do not hold ourselves responsible for opinions expressed bycon'espondents.']BASIC STEEL IN 1892.To the Editor of Iron.Sir.—Enclosed please find copy of my annual statement of basic steel produced for the year 1892, which I hope may interest your readers.—Yours, c.,Percy C. Gilchrist.101, Palace Chambers, 9, Bridge Street,Westminster, London.February 23, 1893.Progress of the Basic or Thomas-Gilchrist Process during the Twelve Months ending December 31, 1892.The total make of steel and ingot-iron from phosphoric pig-iron daring 1892 amounted to 3,202,640 tons, Mug an increase over the make for the previous twelve months of 322,105 tons. Of this the basic Bessemer output was 2,591,374 tons, and that of the basic open-hearth 611,266 tons. Of the steel containing under 0'17 per cent, of carbon, the basic Bessemer process produced 2,043,767 tons, and the basic open-hearth 428,225 tons. With the steel, 770,000 tons of slag were roduced, containing about 36 per cent, of phosphate of ime, nearly the whole of which was used as a fertiliser. The make of the various countries for the years ending December 31, 1892, and December 31, 1891 respectively, are as follows :—1England ... Germany• • •andAustria and Hungary ......France ......Belgium, Russia, and U.S.A. ...1892.11891.With under^ f _With underTotal.0-17 perTotal.017 percent. C.cent. C.406,839317,583436,261350,818,013,4841,616,7831,779,7791,314,781288,122212,408221,21295,907287,528196,190255,401173,880206,667129,028«187,882111,172,202,6402,471,9922,880,5352,046,558ALUMINIUM.To the Editor of IRON.that alum contains * by weight: — Alumina, 10-76 ; potassa, 9-95; sulphuric acid, 33 74; water, 45-55 per cent. T n.lnn find that if a solution of ammonia is addedSir,— In an old copy of Brande’s Dictionary I find dum contains t, 9-95 ; sulphui I also find that if a solntion of a to dissolved alum (alum dissolves in 5 parts of water) a white precipitate falls which is pure alumina (oxide of aluminium) and from which the pure metal can be pro-chiced §Now, alum sells at £5 per ton or thereabouts, so that 10 tons of alnm would give about 21J cwt. of alumina. How much aluminium that would produce I do not know; but it is quite evident that aluminium ought not to cost so much as it does. But this is not all. For after the alumina falls the waste product evidently contains materials for producing sulphate of potash, an article which sells at £10 per ton, and as the materials for it are nearly four times the weight of the alumina, it is evident that it would go a very long way towards paying for the first cost of the alnm. Twopence per pound is £18 13s. 4d. per ton. The present price of aluminium, 3s. 6d. to 4s. 6d. per lb., seems quite ridiculous (£392 to £504 per ton !). I am not a chemist, and know nothing about the way to procure the pure metal aluminium from its pure oxide alumina, nor do I know what percentage of tne oxide would be pure metal. It is quite evident that a ton of pure alunnninm could not cost more than £50, and if the waste products were utilised the cost would probably be veiy much less. Perhaps some ot your readers who are chemists and metallurgists will dissect the figures I have given above. _As to soldering of aluminium (Iron of February 17, page 142), Mons. Novel at Paris named no flux to use, ana I believe that is the great difficulty. Might I suggest that if solder must be used then pure tin would be tne best, scraping bright each side of the proposed j°mt an tinning it instantly ? Then when tne whole of not sides is tinned the pure tin will adhere. The suppo
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Fri, Mar 03, 1893
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