The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1921-12-29

. English china clay At the same sta
ton it has been demonstrated that
better graphite crucibles can be made
with the use of domestic bonding clay
than have hitherto been made with
imported clays.
ripe Line and Other Oil Losses.
All investigation OF losses Oh crude
on through evaporation IN storage and
al transportation, conducted curing the
year Oy the bureau, disclosed losses OF
startling magnitude. II was found
that IN the lew days in which crude
OH Is stored on the lease before being
taken by the pipe line, the aggregate
loss per year from evaporation amounts
10 about 1z2.OOO00O gallons of gasOlene
IN the Mid Continent alone rms has
a value, at y cents per gallon, OF $40,
$4,000 ana represents about per
cent OF the total gasolene produced in
the United States from all fields and
ali sources. The bureau found that a
large part OF this loss could be pre-
vented BY the use OF efficient equip
ment.
The bureau OF mines has pointed out
1he considerable losses which have re-
suited from the failure of many refin-
cries to recover gasoline from uncon-
densed vapors. The significance of
this investigation is shown by the fact
that one refinery in the Mid Continent
field is now recovering from still va
pOrs approximately 400 barrels of gas
olene daily that before the installation
oil this equipment was either lost or
burned as fuel Under the boilers and
stills.
Large quantities of gas are now be-
ing wasted in the Usage Nation reser-
walton in Oklahoma because of low
pressure conditions, and the bureau of
mines is investigating the feasibility Of
utilizing this waste gas by the use OF
low pressure burners for oil-field boil
ers. The demand of the export market
for sweet gasoline led to the develop
ment of a process for treating gaso-
lene to remove the Objectionable sui
phur compounds. by which treatment
some grades OF American gasoiene
heretofore Objectionable were made
suitable for export.
Government Royalty.
Under the arrangement by which
supervision Of the drilling and produc-
ton of oil and gas on the public lands
is vested in the bureau of mines, the
bureau has supervision of about 100
oil properties which are producing at
the rate of about 100000 barrels of
oil per annum. Even at the present
reduced price of oil, the government
royalty from this should total perhaps
81. 600, 900 per annum. A special pro-
cess, devised at the San Francisco
station of the bureau, for cracking
heavy oils and tars, promises the re-
covery Of large yields of gasoline and
other lighter products hitherto regard
ed as unrecoverable. Investigations
made by the bureau in Colorado and
Utah Indicate that the oil-shale de-
posits of the Rocky mountain states
contain a potential fuel supply of al
most unequaled Importance.
Experiments in Explosives.
More experimental work on mining
explosives, with reference to increased
safety and efficiency was performed.
Plans were initiated for an interna-
tional conference on the STANDARDIZED
ton of mine-rescue apparatus. Meth
DDS for reducing losses of anthracite
in mining operations were studied.
Timbering methods for metal mines
were investigated. A special study
was made of the ventilation of metal
mines and of the rock dust problem in
such mines.
In the course of the year the bureau
trained 12,525 miners in rescue and
iirst-aid methods, the largest number
so trained in any fiscal year since the
leginning of the training work