Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-12-12
NATURAL GAS DIMINISHING.
some Of the Interesting PsculIaFitiss of
the Invisible Fuel.

the AuNislDlo EueA-
What is known as rock pressure is the
carrying power of the gas It must
come from the wells under a pressure
great enough to prope it through long
line of pipe. The principal supply for
Pittsburg comes from distance Of from
thirty to forty miles, some of it as much
as sixty miles away.
1t might be supposed that simple
algebraic problem would give the amount
of flow through given sized pipe under
a known initial pressure and for a known
distance. It would be easy enough to de-
termine the quantity of water delivered |
under such circumstances, but it is not |
at all possible to determine the amount |
of gas.
In the first place, there Is an astonish-
ing difference in volume in gas under
differing pressures and different temper
atures. A change of As degs. in temper
Ature of the gas will increase or decrease
the volume of natural gas 80 per cent.
A difference in pressure of 200 pounds
will make a difference of at least one
sixth in volume. Remarkable as it may
seem, no formulas have been made to
show the resistance of flow, so that it Is
only possible to guess at it by isolated
cases,
What Is known as the Acme natural
gas pipe line, ten inches in diameter,
which was one of the tightest and best
ones ever laid, started with gas at 900
pounds pressure from the wells and
brought it to the low pressure lines at
the city limits at sixty-fve pounds press
ure-an enormous waste. A sixteen
inch line from Murraysville, reasonably
tight, left the we'll at 200 pounds press
ure, and thirty miles distant gave only
fifteen pounds pressure. Such figures
as these simply prove nothing. 1t is
known that the carrying capacity of
pipe ten inches in diameter is much more
than twice that of pipe only five inches
in diameter, when it is water that is car
ried-and the resistance is known under
certain pressures at the initial point with
the pipe discharging freely at the end
but water is not subject to the great
changes in volume that gas is.
These unknown quantities have not
, been made subject of so much study
by the natural gas companies as they
g would have been had there been more
4 time to study them. The whole business
8 is done with rush. 1t is singular fact,
Z but nevertheless fact, that no reliable
e test has ever been made of the tempera-
ture of gas as it comes from the sand
!" rocks, and then what it is when it enters
S the pipe. Several German scientists who
were over here recently seemed especial
i ly anxious to get such tests.
1t was impossible to crafty them SIM
. ply for the reason that all the wells are
l. drilled by contract, and no contractor
@ would allow the six hours loss of time
IL which would result by the stoppage oi
3 work each time such test was made
n in order to allow the sand to regain itE
,r normal temperature after the heat made
l. by the friction of the drill had subsided
No known method has been devised
81 for driving natural gas. 1t must carr.
IL itself or it does not go at all. Taking tn
o. two instances named out of many tha
y might be given, it follows that witt
~ small pipes there must be high rocl
eS pressure from the wells, or the gas can
IN not be piped for distance of thirty O
" forty miles.
N Another question equally important il
a. determining the problem of stability i
W the character of the sand in which tn
u gas is found; whether it generates gas o
sr is simply a storage house which may, il
~ time, become exhausted. Gas is neve
ie found in solid granite; it invariably come
% from loose, porous rock.
u Sometimes this sand is actually pebbly
IL as is found in some sections of the Mul
raysville field. In other cases it may hav
~ the appearance of greater density; but
~, nevertheless, it will be found to beporous
=, ~ No gas sand that will produce payin
~ well is of greater density than will adm
o. of one-sixth of its volume in gas. Th
~ ~ gas is contained in the interstices of th
y, stone, possibly in a liquid form, becaus
90 40 of the high pressure. It certainly
~ ~ greatly condensed at any rate. The boz
w ,sS ing of the hole allows it to escape; but
=, escapes from store house, and whe
liz it is all out there is and can be no imm'
,as diate or early process of regeneration
Of restoration; it is gone.
ii "Always taking out of the meal tn
as and always putting in will soon exhau
nd the supply" is an old saw which is a.
nv iomatic. AS there is no replacing of tt
m. gas, as it cannot now be replaced, ha'
,,s ing been generated and stored countle
les years ago, it follows that there must
III exhaustion of fields in time. How lon
M, Well, we shall all come very close
knowing, later on.
The dependence, then, for future su
plies must be on new territory. As Il
'he cost of pipeage is now as $50 to every
ses invested in drilling we'll (Which in
Inc self reaches as high, in cases, as Sc, ,OO(
led the opening of new territory must nece
Ike sarily become more and more expensiv
SO &C. T. Dawson in Pittsburg Dispatch.
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Of A New Mode of Cooking.