El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-09-16
Uncle Sam Losing Millions

million tons of anthracite have been
redeemed from the waste This coal,
at the retail prices which now prevail
in Washington, would be worth some
thing like 80 million dollars, although
it would hardly sell for one-fourth
that at the mines.
Some of our great naval vessels are
now using briquetS. They can carry
more of this fuel in a smaller com
pass; and it has less smoke and
greater power-producing value The
government has briqueting machines
in its experiment stations at Pitts
burg and Denver, and it may be that
the cost of making these bricks of coal
will be much less in the future. 1t is
also testing peat in briquets and is
taking advantage of the machines of
France. Germany, Belgium and Eng
land, where briquets are commonly
used on the railroads and for domestic
heating as well.
Testing Government Coal.
During my stay in the bureau of
mines 1 was taken to the laboratory in
the top of the building where the sci
entists were at work testing the heat
and power values of coal sent in from
all parts of the country. They were
analyzing the samples sent in by bid
ders for the government contracts and
finding out just how much moisture
and ash and heat or power each con-
tanned.
At the present time about 40 of the
and 800 other buildings belonging to
the government scattered over the
country are supplied with coal on such
tests. 1t is the same with the Panama
railroad and our navy yards. All the
fuel is bought direct through compe-
tive bids and it must be up to the
specifications. A premium is paid for
any decrease in the amount Of ash be-
low the standard and deductions are
made when the ash exceeds the stand
ard by more than percent.
The samples of coal when they come
in are ground to a dust as fine as face
powder. and thimbleful of this, or
one gram, is enough for a test This
amount is first examined for moisture
1t is put in a little cup of bone ash
and then left in furnace which reg
listers just the amount of moisture that
comes out of the coal After this the
thimbleful of coal is put into another
furnace, which is exceedingly hot. 1t
burns it to ashes, and the ashes left
in the cup show proportionately the
amount of ash in the coal.
An even more interesting process is
the discovery of how much heat or
power the coal has. This is more i'm
portant than anything else. The gov
eminent does not want to pay for wa
ter nor ashes, both of which it must
cart away. 1t is buying heat and
power, and it watches the scales as
you watch your grocer when weighing
some sugar or meat. The power is
tested by placing a thimbleful of coal
inside a metal cylinder which is then
charged with oxygen. This cylinder
is placed in a tin can of water and by
means of electricity the coal is ex-
ploded. According as it is rich or poor
the explosion is greater or less, and
the quality is known by the rise in
the temperature of the water caused
by the explosion. The temperature of
the water is taken before the explo-
sion occure and Immediately thereafter
the difference in the number of de-
grees giving the figures which deter
mine the heating value. 1t is only a
matter of time when all coal will be
bought in this way.
Frank G. Carpenter.