The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-08-08
BLASTING WITH AIR.
CAPTAIN Jacques Has a Substitute For
Dynamite in Mining.
Denver News)


Captain William H. Jacques, secre-
tary the section in the American AS
sociat3n for the Advancement of
Science devoted to mechanical engl-
neering, is preparing a paper TO De
read att the annual convention in Den
yer this month on the subject of liquid
air as an explosive. Captain Jacques,
aside from being the leading expert IN
this country on matters pertaining TO
the making of armor for battleships,
has made a long study of questions
connected with explosives and has at
tanned considerable fame for original
Investigations Ever since the advent
Of liquid air in the scientific world and
the demonstration of its being readily
produced on a commercial scale, the
hopes of military experts and of min
ing men have been raised as to its ulti-
mate value along the lines of their
operations.
Mining men have long hoped for
something in the nature of what liquid
air seemed to indicate for safety in
handling and in blasting. In liquid air
they seemed to see an explosive that
would not vitiate the air like gunpOw-
der or dynamite by the gases of igni-
ton. BY far the most systematic and
interesting experiments have been car
ried on in Europe. Officials at Wash
ington have kept a close watch on the
results. Recently Consul General Ma
son reported from Berlin the results of
the experiments of the Vienna Crystal
Ice company in the presence of experts
from the Austrian technical committee
for the war department.
His report read:
The conclusions Of the military ex-
perts were cOncisely as follows: Both
-HHara. l-EaE
were pronounced wasteful and in con-
sequence of the rapid evaporation Of
the liquid air they must be used i'm
mediately after being prepared; beyond
fifteen minutes the evaporation will so
affect the cartridge that it is likely to
miss fire and its strength cannot be
even roughly guaranteed. On the other
hand, the cartridges when freshly pre-
pared are powerful and well adapted
to coal and other mining, and while the
large amount of oxygen set free by the
firing of successive charges might in
crease the danger of explosion in the
air and bases of the mine itself, the
quality of the air for breathing pur-
poses would be definitely improved
'"The net conclusion" says Consul
General Mason. Ito be derived from
these and preceding experiments in Eu-
rope is that, Notwithstanding the OBJ
vious advantages of liquid air as an
rapid deterioration of the cartridges
and thin, varying and uncertain
strength are obstacles so serious that,
until they can be overcome, its value
and application to that use viii re-
main experimental and comparatively
limited"
Since that report was made Captain
jacques has overcome some of the more
important objections raised by the for
eign experts as well as made some new
discoveries So far as could be learned
from the local mining engineers, prac-
teal experiments have never been made
in the mines of Colorado. The knowl-
edge that Captain Jacques intends VS.
fting some of the coal mines near Den
yer to make some practical tests before
members of the section who will dis
cuss his paper has excited much in
terest The coal mines of Colorado and
some of those in Wyoming, all acces-
sible to Denver. have natural condl-
tons that are favorable to the tests:
The advent of liquid air would be or
the greatest benefit to the coal miners,
particularly because of the cheapness
of the product. In some of the mines
that are lily ventilated it would be a
gOdsend.