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i;;ii ;iiul process change can sometimes produce important sav- ings in production costs, while increas- ing output and improving quah't\'.

This is demonstrated in the case of a reinforced bus pillar, fabricated from 13 .separate stampings by Hawthorne Metal Products company, Detroit, and design- ed originally for single spot welding. This in itself resulted in a rather low fabricating cost. When the job was re- leased for production, however, the sup- plier of the welding equipment Pro- gressive Welder company of Detroit recommended the forming of a series of projections in five of the stampings at the time that these were produced.

The new stampings were then attacli- ed to the pillars by projection welding, using a pre.ss type welder. As a result. only one operation was required to join each of these five stampings to the pil- lar proper instead of ,v? indi\idual spot welds.

Moreover, by using simple locating dies in the press welder it was possible to get accurate locating and alignment without clamping of the parts prior to welding. The net result of the changes wa,>- to double the productivity of the welding equipment, 100 completed as- semblies being produced per hour in comparison to 50 per hour by straight spot welding, and at the same time cut the fabricating cost in half.

"Knee-Action" Front Wheels

The latest innovation in tractor de- sign was announced recently by the John Deere Tractor company, of Mo- line, Illinois. The idea consists of adapt- ing the knee-action wheel idea to farm tractors. Manufactured under the trade name of "Roll-O-Matic," the knee- action principle applied only to the front wheels results in increased smoothness and safety of operation along with longer tire life.

As shown in the accompanying illus- tration, the fundamental principle of operation of the "Roll-O-Matic" knee- action front wheels is readily seen. Me- chanically, a gearing system is included so that the slightest up or down move- ment of one wheel is instantly transfer- red to the other which automaticalix

The latest addition to the "flying laboratories" is the B-29 whose space permits engineers and designers to study the gas turbine in actual use

equalizes the load. -At the same time the up and down movement of the front end of the tractor as it goes over bumps and clods is reduced to 50 per cent that of the conventional wheel arrangement. By minimizing this up and down movement of the front end, and by automatically equalizing the load on each tire, the "Roll-O-Matic" front wheels promise a safer, more comfort- able ride and greatly increased front tire life.

Diagramotic sketch showing how "knee-action" limits the front end motion by 50 per cent.

Flying Test Stands

Working (jii a tliglu testing project sponsored jointly by the Army Air Forces and the (General Electric com- pany, engineers and designers have been able to gain invaluable assistance in the design of aircraft gas turbines through utilizing army bombers which have been converted into flying laboratories.

Inaugurated in 1942 when the P^light Test Division obtained a B-23 for flight investigations of the turbo-supercharger, the division has since used many differ- ent types of army aircraft to serve in the role of "papa" to experimental equipment. The most recent and largest of the planes to be used for this purpose is the B-29, shown in the accompanying illustration as it is being equipped for service.

Since the jet power plants are in- stalled as auxiliary equipment rather than substitute engine, the method has proved to be a safe and expedient wa\ of conducting the tests under altitude conditions. Although used at the pres- ent time mostly for tests on the power- tid 1 Cj-180 gas turbine, the fhing lab- oratories have proved quite successful in the testing of new gas turbine units prior to actual installation aboard air- craft.

In addition to these advantages the method has also enabled important com- ponents to be tested with older engines before the completed unit is ready.

THE TECHNOGRAPH

No, this picture isn't faked. It shows white-hot molten metal being pour- ed into a little glass dish resting on ice. This is Coming's "Vycor" brand 96^ silica glass, a result of the first really new glassmaking process in over 2000 years. It can withstand sudden extremes of hot and cold without breaking, and tem- peratures up to 2000 F. without melt- ing. It is one of the hardest, most acid- resistant, and electrically-resistant glasses known. And it has already open- ed up new fields in many industries. Now it is ready to go to work to make cooking easier, cleaner, and safer for millions of women ... as a burner plate on a modern gas range, soon to be announced. The smooth glass plates will

distribute heat more evenly and give firm support to even smallest utensils. And they will keep spilled food from clogging burners.

Corning began its search for heat-resis- tant glasses years ago when it was asked by railroads to supply a glass for brake- men's lanterns that wouldn't shatter when a gust of cold rain hit it. This was the forerunnerof the famous Pyrex brand glasses which have since found their way into thousands of industries in such di- verse form as glass piping, laboratory ware, and ex-ray tubes, and into millions of homes as Pyrex Ovenware and Flameware cooking utensils. Corning not only knows glass, but knows how to make it work. It has

the finest glass research organization and the finest group of skilled workers in the world ... a hard-to-beat combination that will be at your service whatever career you choose. In the meantime, learn all you can about glass and if we can help answer any questions, call on us. Corning Glass "Works, Corning, N. Y.

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ORNING

means

Research in Glass

MAKERS OF PYREX OVENWARE AND FLAMEWARE AND 37,000 OTHER GLASS PRODUCTS

OCTOBER, 1947

Get off to a better start in engineering . .

WITH A BETTER KNOWLEDGE OF TIMKEN BEARINGS

TIMKEN

TAPERED Toller Warihcs

A. good start is half the race. The more you know when you graduate, the better your opportunity for success.

Your professors have your best interests at heart, but what you learn outside the classroom will be a plus advantage of great value when you toe the mark for the start of your career.

Take bearings for example. No form of mechanical equipment with rotating parts can operate without them. By acquiring now a thor- ough knowledge of Timken Tapered Roller Bearings their design, application and possibilities you will be in position to meet and beat any bearing problem you ever may encounter.

For Timken Bearings have proved their ability to serve in machin- ery throughout all industries and have received the universal ac ceptance and preference of engineers everywhere. They are the bearings experienced engineers specify more than any others.

Our engineers will help you to become a bearing specialist. Write us today and tell us what course you are studying. The Timken Roller Bearing Company, Canton 6, Ohio.

THE TECHNOGRAPH

EDITORIAL STAFF

George R. Foster Editor

Francis Green issistant Editor

Ed Witort Assistcmt Editor

Harbara Schmidt l/c;X-(/> Editor

R( porliny

Robert Bills John Dick Don Hornbeck Donald JohiiMHi Karl Higendorf Ralph Lendinfj Tom Moore Martin Sabatli Carl Sonneiivchcin

Ruth Bone Phil Doll Charles Jansen Ronald Johnson Jim Lecming Herbert Mazer Melvin Reiter John Shurtleff Arthur Welcher

Photography

Gene Roh'uKon, lU iistratioiis Editor Robert VanWinkle

lUSINESS STAFF

Robert A. Johnson Bus. Mt/r.

Jan Henjjston hs't Bus. Mt/r.

Toby Lexiiison -Iss't Bus. Mgr.

Frank Mitch Ass't Bus. Mgr.

John Bogatta Don Halperin

Rudy Vergara George Kvitek

Mitchell Cassidv

Faculty Advisers

J. A. Henry A. R. Knight L. A. Rose

MEMBERS OF ENGINEERIN'G COLLEGE MAGAZINES ASSOCIATED Arkansas Engineer, Cincinnati Coopera- tive Engineer, Colorado Engineer, Cornell Engineer, Drexel Technical Journal, Illinois Technograph, Iowa Engineer, Iowa Transit. Kansas Engineer, Kansas State Engineer, Kentucky Engineer, Marquette Engineer, Michigan Technic, Minnesota Technolog, Missouri Shamrock, Nebraska Blueprint. New York University Quadrangle, Ohio State Engineer, Oklahoma State Engineer, Penn State Engineer, Peinisylvania Tri- angle, Purdue Engineer, Rose Technic, Tech Engineering News, Wayne Engineer, and Wisconsin Engineer.

Published Eight Times Yearly by the Students of the College of En- gineering, University of Illinois

Pulilished eight times during the year (Oc- li'her, November, December, January, Febru- ^uy, March, April, and May) by The Illini Publishing Company. Entered as second class matter, October 30, 1921,, at the post office of Urbana, Illinois. Office 213 Engineering Hall. Urbana. Illinois. Subscription $l..iO per year. Single copy 25 cents. Reprint rights reserved by The Illinois Technograph.

National Advertising Representative Littell Murray-Barnhill. eOS North Michigan Ave- nue, Chicago 11, III. 101 Park Avenue, New York 17, New York.

Volume 63

No. 1

The Tech Presenis

ARTICLES

Look Before You Leap ^

Carl Sonncnschein. M.E. '4S

The Gyro-Compass 8

Elcrhcrt Mazer

The Pier Branch 9

Francis Green, E.E. '48

Industrial Ceramics Grows L p 10

Karl Ullf/cidorf. E.E. '48

Quality Control Industry's Watchdog - 12

Jerry Matheus. M.E. '47

DEPARTMENTS

New Developments -

John Dirk. E.E. '49

Illini In Action - ^-^

Florian kaitis

Engineering Societies - '*^

Introilucing '^

John Shurtleff

Editorial 20

Crossword Puzzle 9

Technocracks "fO

OUR COVER

Typical of the problems faced by many veteran students is this picture of "Study Hour." Dont laugh, it could happen to you.

FRONTISPIECE

Shown assembling a new television antenna, these two workmen are perched high on the Empire State building. (Court- esy of General Electric company).

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look Before You leap

Itfi t'arl SnnnvnMf-hfin. 31. K. 'lit

Some people are adaptable to any sit- uation or job, but most are not. All too often a man, or woman, finds nut, too late, that he has accepteil a position which does not appeal to him and for which he is unable to show the proper interest. Are you going to be one of this misplaced and misled group?

It is a generally accepted fact that one reason people go to school is to increase their ultimate earning power. As a group, engineers are not the high- est paid of the professional men and women, although there are exceptions. However, in order for a person to be able to accept greater responsibilities anti Shence a larger remuneration, he must ^have a real and vital interest in the work which he is doing.

There are several basic considerations which enter into the acceptance or re- jection of a job offer, and for the most part the\- are predicated upon personal desires, likes, and dislikes.

Let us now consider the average stu- dent as he approaches the ultimate goal, graduation.

Needed^A Job

Having completed almost four years of constant and intensive study he finds that very shortly his period of incuba- tion, as an engineer, will end. It is us- ually at this time that the prospect of having to choose a job is first brought forcibly to his attention. There are a few persons who already have a course of action laid out for themselves, but they are the lucky few.

Now that the realization of the ne- cessity of getting a job has become mani- fest, the student arranges, through the college office, to have several interviews.

The number of interviews the student has will vary according to the indivdual. Some persons may need only one or two in order to make their decision, while others will require a half dozen or more.

Advice from the Dean's office indi- cates, that the greatest difficulty that the interviewers find with the students is that they do not know what they want, nor do they come to the inter- views equipped to ask intelligent ques- tions.

All too often, due to this unprepared- iie.ss and indecision, a man may either pass up a good offer, or he may accept a job for which he is mentally unquali- fied. This can onh' lead to a condition

OCTOBER, 1947

of unhappiness and discontent with his work.

The purpose of this article is not to tr\ to tell anybody which job the\- should or should not accept, but rather it is an attempt to point out a few of the factors which should be considered by all persons seeking employment. Neither is the article intended only for those seniors who expect to graduate

This article is the first of a se- ries designed to impress upon the student the realization that the ultimate goal of all education lies in the proper selection of a job in which he can best utilize his talents and training. Although space does not permit a complete discussion on the subject of select- ing a job, the article at least sug- gests many lines of investigation that may be followed by the stu- dent who is truly interested in fitting himself into a more than just adequate job. In attempting to help open up one line of investi- gation, the subsequent articles in this series will deal with specific descriptions of several small in- dustrial organizations located in the State of Illinois. They have been chosen because they are also representative of a group of em- ployers with whom the engineering student has had little direct con- tact.

in the near future but is applicable to freshmen and .sophomores as well. This will become more evident as we pro- ceed.

Most of the engineering curricula in the junior and senior years provide op- portunity for the student to take op- tions which give him a chance to de- velop any special interests he may have.

This line of attack is of utmost im- portance but its significance is complete- ly lost to the student who has not put forth any effort toward developing spe- cialized interests.

We must accept the fact that engi- neering today is such a broad and com- prehensive field that no one man can possibly be accomplished in all of its ramifications. As a result of this condi- tion, engineers have become a group of specialists. When a man decides to be- come a specialist, he automaticallv nar-

rows his future into a well defined path ; and, once having made the choice, it will be very sad and disillusioning for the person who then finds that he does not like and enjoy the work he is doing.

For the most part, freshmen are ex- cluded from extra-curricular activities until they have qualified themselves scholastically. For those who are quali- fied the numerous engineering societies and other school activities are a deep well for the accumulation of an insight into the various phases of engineering. The student should take full advantage of these opportunities that are offered to him t(j learn about his and other pro- fessions.

Summer Jobs Valuable

The accumulation of practical experi- ence of various types, through the me- dium of summer jobs, is another fine way of acquiring this diverse knowl- edge.

Unfortunately for the student, most of the trade publications are far too technical for all but the seniors and some juniors to be able to read and understand. However, mere perusal of these publications is, or should be, of interest to all engineering students.

All of these things which have been mentioned will help to prepare a person to make up his mind when the time comes.

In the final analysis, the true proof of the pudding is in the eating, so it is impossible to be absolutely sure that >our choice is the right one luitil after \ou have worked at the job for a while. Nevertheless, prior to employment, an honest consideration of all factors shovild greatly increase the chances of making the correct choice.

Now let us consider the senior who has accomplished his formal educational program and is about to set forth on the real business of living. Let us assume that this particular individual has thought over the prospects and has de- cided upon what type of work he wants to do. The only question he has yet to answer is, "Whom shall I work for?"

As we have already mentioned, the college office arranges for interviews be- tween representatives of industry and the students. This is one of the finest services, of many, that the office does provide.

Analyse the Problem

When our student approaches his in- terview, there are a number of impor- tant questions to which he should desire the answers.

The locale of the employment is al- wa\s an important consideration, espe- cially in these days of housing short- ages. Should it not be possible to obtain adequate housing it would be absoluteh' foolish for a person to try to accept a (Continued on Page 22)

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As lati* as till- iiiiiliik- of thf 19th cen- tury, there were people that still clunji to the belief that the uni\erse rotated around a stationary earth. Scientists had attempted to disprove this lallacy as early as the I7th century, but could not decisively do so. In 1851, Jean Bernard Leon Foucault, a prominent French sci- entist of the period, threw some light on the situation by showing that the earth was actually rotating on its axis.

Incorporating theories developed by Galeleo, Newton, and Kepler, he mounted a wheel in a frame on very del- icate bearings so that it could maintain its spinning axis in a fixed direction. Hy conducting a series of experiments with this apparatus, he proved that the earth turned relative to the stationary direction of the spinning axis of the wheel. Foucault called his delicate ap- paratus a gyroscope from the Greek word "gyros" (revolution), and "sko- pien," (to view), and he predicted that some day it would be used to navigate ships.

At the turn of the 2llth century. Dr. Elmer A. Sperry, founder of the Sperry Gyroscope company, became intrigued with the many possibilities of mechani- cal applications of the gyroscope and

Even though the principle of operation of the Sperry gyro- compass may be well known to the reader, you will find in this article a clear description of not only liow it functions but also some of the problems encountered in its design.

tlcdicatcd himself tf) the development of gyro-statics.

Before going into the problem con- fronting Dr. Sperry in the development of the gyro-compass, it would be best to define the gyroscope and briefly state its properties.

A gyroscope consists of a solid wheel with its mass concentrated about the rim. It is so suspended that it may ro- tate about its spinning axis and turn about its vertical and horizontal axes. These axes are mutually perpendicular and coincide with the center of mass at the geometric center of the wheel. Its physical properties are : ( 1 ) the ability to hold its position in space unless acted upon by an external torque, and (2) if such a torque were applied, action would take place about an axis 90 de-

A cut-away view of the Sperry gyro-compass showing details of the internal assembly

grecs from the applied torque. In cjtlui words, if a torque were placed on the vertical axis, the gyroscope would turn about its horizontal axis. This peculiar property is known as "precession."

Dr. Sperry had a scries of obstacle- to hurdle before he could build his first g\ro-compass. The first, the prob- lem of a continuoush' spinning rotor, was easily overcome by evacuating the center of the gyro-wheel and installing a set of induction windings; thus mak- ing the gyro-wheel the rotor of an in- duction motor. Rotors in the most com- monly used Sperry compasses weigh 35 lbs. an'.

rhiciplcs /{xftlaituul

The Federal Products corporation, a manufacturer of precision measuring in- struments, has published a "primer" ex- plaining the theory of quality control in the layman's language. The following is a condensation of this explanation of the principles of quality control.

"If SO pieces are taken from the work of a machine where the o.d. has been turned and if the pieces are measured individually with an indicating gage for this outside diameter and then cla.ssified by actual dimension (a sort of selective assembly operation), in other words laid out in rows by actual dimension, a re- sult similar to th;it shown in Fig. 1 will be obtained.

"A group of pieces dimensionally clas- sified in this manner make what is known as a Frequency Distribution, il- lustrating the frequency of occurrence of certain dimensions and their distribution among the whole. The curve itself is called a Frequency Distribution curve.

"It is characteristic of pieces classified

12

A relative newcomer to indus- try, the field of quality control is the subject of this article. Devel- oped by means of statistical mathe- matics, quality control is proving itself to be as effective as 100 per cent inspection and yet is much less expensive and troublesome.

and distributed accoriling to their di- mensions that the largest group would fall close to the mathematical average of the entire assembly.

"Furthermore, it has been found that a Frequency Distribution can be divided into six zones mathematically equal in width. Thus a practical use of the Fre- quency Distribution becomes available because it has been determined that the number of pieces ordinarily lodging within each of the strips represents per- centages of the total. Carried to an ex- treme, the Frequency Distribution pro- cedure could resemble or equal 100% inspection.

"In the actual application a sampling procedure is adopted and a chart sys- tem replaces the frequency distribution. Rather than sort over the entire 50 pieces, small samples, such as five pieces .-it a time, are taken more or less regu- larly from the work as it progresses, and

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Figure 1 A Frequency Distribution Curve

critain resulting observations are piur- ted on a control chart, as shown in I'igs. 2 and .1

"In Older to determine the \aiue ol M, mathematicians have developed for- mulae by which the .35 value can be cal- culated from a quantity known ;in "range" is the difference between the greatest and smallest dimensions observ- ed in each sample taken. Fig. .? shows a chart on which the 3 readings from each of the samples are plotted in pro per position. It illustrates for each sam- |ile taken the highest and lowest readin;: and the spread, or range, between them, as well as the variation in range from sample to sample."

7 he A pplica/ioii of Theory

From the foregoing principles qualit\ control has come into existence. To sec how these principles are put into actual practice, consider the following example.

Usually five pieces are selected at ran- dom during definite intervals by an in- spector or operator right at the machine. Kach piece is measured and the meas- ured value recorded. An average of the fixe readings, called X, is recorded along with the largest and smallest readings. The difference between the largest and smallest readings is called the range ami represented b\ R. Generally between 10 and 23 such samples are taken from which the overall averages of X and R are obtained. From these values it is then possible to calculate the control limits by means of the following formula:

c.l.=XAJi and X-{-J.7R where A . is obtained from the table below

No. Pieces 5 8 10 12 13

A .377 .373 .308 .266 .223

To obtain the control limits for the range, the following formula is used :

Uffcr c.1.=:D^ Loivcr ,-./.=D,^ where /) ; and D^ are found from the table below :

8 10 12 13 .S()4 1.777 1.717 1.6S2 .1.^6 .Hi .284 .348

With the control limits set up then, the process of measuring fi\e pieces of work periodically is continued .ind the averages of X and R are plotted on a control chart. When either of these av- erages falls outside the established limit, it means that that particular sub-group of five has gone "ovit of control" ; and either a readjustment of the machine or a recalibration of the measuring instru- ment is necessary. At least it is known that something has gone "haywire" with the process and that it's time to make a check. It also means that a 100% in- spection of all the parts produced after the preceding sub-group is necessary.

That the speed and quality of pro- duction is directly dependent upon the method of inspection is not difficult to

THE TECHNOGRAPH

\o. Pieces 3 /), 2.114 /).,

see. It should also be apparent that the quality control method of inspection based on the principles of Frequency Distribution permits a considerably greater production speed than the lOO^f inspection method. In actual practise the inspection method adopted is a compro- mise between the required accuracy and economical operating speed. For exam- ple, in a process with fairly large limits a 10 or 15% inspection method may be adopted with reasonable accuracy which

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also permits the process to be operated at a speed consistent with economy. As the limits of the process become smaller, the method of inspection must, of neces- sity, become correspondingly larger to insure the qualit\' of the product. For limits smaller than a certain value a l(lf)% inspection method is mandatory, because the increased production speed gained by any lesser method is more than offset by the number of defective parts which are undetected. By the use of the principles of quality control the necessity for 100% inspection is elimi- nated and at the same time the accuracy of the work is maintained. Of course this is the big selling point of quality control "accurate guess work." With the formulae and constants developed by mathematicians for the quality control method, however, the guess work is re- duced to about a 99.99% calculated risk.

Mathematical Angle

One of the more prominent mathema- ticians responsible for the development of quality control is Dr. Walter A. Shwart of the Bell Telephone Labora- tories. Mr. Shwart was graduated from the University of Illinois in 1913 and received his Master's degree here in 1914. He completed his work for a Ph.D. at the Uni\ersitv of California in 1917.

It is very likely that Mr. Shwart be- came interested in the subject of quality control through his work with Bell Tel- ephone, for in 1918 it became his duty to establish head sizes for aviation radio helmets. In 1924 he actually began studying sampling plans to be used in the inspection of quality. His problem then was how large a sample should be taken in order to justify the acceptance or rejection of a given production lot on the basis of these samples? The sta- tistical control chart, described previ- ously, was introduced for this determi- nation and is now used both here and abroad by many corporations.

OCTOBER, 1947

The British have added a new section to the Royal Statistical society concerned entirely with quality control. In the L nited States the war department dur- ing World War II requested the Amer- ican Standards association to organize a committee for the purpose of sponsoring the application of statistics to quality control. It was this action that has been largely responsible for the present day interest and popularity. As a further supplement to the original training of- fered h\ the war production board, a series of papers called "Quality Control Reports" were also published in which were shown many illustrations of the application of quality control.

Quality Control Succeeds

In one report the John Deere com- pany published an interesting account of the direct application of quality con- trol to a production problem arising in their shops. In the maiuifacture of piston pins the three final operations in the production procedure consisted of:

sidered absolutely necessary because of the inertia in getting the operators to change over from the old procedure to the new one.

After the system had been set up, it was found that the plunge centerless grinder was turning out the pins on the high side of the tolerance; and as a result a number of them were oversize. By proper adjustment of the machine the average size was brought down closer to the mean dimension, but the range still continued at an unsatisfac- tory level. A control chart placed on the preceding, rough centerless grinders indicated that this operation was not functioning properly, and a check-up re- vealed that the operator was not making the prescribed number of passes through the grinder. After correcting this condi- tion and making a few machine adjust- ments, the operator was then able to easily turn out the pins according to specifications with only sub-group check- ing.

As a check on the accuracy of the

Figure 3 A sub-group control chart shown in actual use on the machine floor

1. rough centerle;.;. grinding

1. plunge (or stop) centerless grind- ing and lap

3. polishing.

It was found that after leaving the rough centerless grinding operation con- siderable trouble had arisen with uneven flow of parts and scrap work. To cor- rect this trouble, it was decided to uti- lize the principles of quality control ; and to do this, necessitated a conference with the superintendent and supervisors.

Next it was necessary to select and train individuals for patrol inspection and thoroughly acquaint everyone in- volved with the procedure required to carry out the quality control method. This preliminary preparation was con-

quality control method, 1800 pieces were given 100% inspection and found to all fall within the specified tolerance. The control charts, however, showed that four points fell below the lower control limit for averages. This down- ward trend in the averages indicated that even though all of the pieces were within the tolerance, some operation was still "out of control." When that par- ticular trouble was located and correct- ed, complete control was maintained for the rest of the run ; and all of the pieces produced were found to fall more closely to the mean specification.

From the foregoing discussion it can readily be seen that the advantage of (Continued on Page 26)

13

Tin: STOICV OF 4 AIIL ^IFXXFL

Do yoii know that tin- iiumbi-r ot small air bubbles in concii-tc (k'tfiiiiini's tlu- durability of that coiicn-te? Con- crete with less than a certain amount of air weathers badly. Concrete with greater amounts of air resists frost ac- tion, but its strength is decreased. A problem is raised how to get enough air into the concrete without getting too much. Putting the air into the concrete is simple. Controlling the amount of air is tricky. Uefore you can control it, you have to measure it. That is the assign- ment Mr. Carl Menzel, research engi- neer of the Portland Cement Associa- tion, received.

After my discharge from the Army, I went to work for the Portland Ce- ment .'\ssociation. That was when I met Mr. Menzel I became his assistant. In the next few days I learned a great deal about air-entrained concrete. I learned that between three and five per cent of air is best for durability and strength. I learned that it is easy to adjust the amount of air in concrete by adjusting the mix. I also learned to qualify that last sentence it's easy to adjust the amount of air in concrete, if we know how much air was in the last batch mixed. Then I learned that measuring the amount of air in the concrete was hard, and that our job was to devise a "Practical Field Method for the Deter- mination of the Air Content of Fresh Concrete."

Initial Difficulties

Theic were three general metiiods in use a year ago for measuring the air content of fresh concrete. In one, the "gravimetric" method, the weight of a cubic foot of the fresh concrete was ob- tained and compared with the theoreti- cal air-free unit weight of the same concrete. This comparison gave an "air content." In another method the air was removed from the concrete by "wash- ing," and the loss of volume in the process represented the air content. In the third method the concrete was put luider pressure, and through measure- ment of the volume change under that pressure, the air content of the concrete could be found.

Serious objections to each method were made, the most serious of these being inaccuracy. An experienced man could judge air content more accurately "by guess and by gosh" than by any of the three.

For instance, with tiie most higliK approved method, the most "exact" method the gravimetric the weight of an accurately measured volume of fresh concrete was needeii. To be fairly cer- tain of the amount fair, an accuracy of about 3 in 10,000 was needed ^ an accuracy common in the laboratory, but impossible in the field where the test was to be used.

Mr. Menzel sat down and diil some thinking. First he listed the disadvan- tages of each method (at that time there were few advantages for any of them). Then he started devising ways of re- moving the faults.

The almuni department, IllinJ in Action, has been devoted this time to the story of one man, Carl Menzel '17. This story deals with the problems he encountered in handling an assignment he re- ceived as a research engineer for the Portland Cement Association. The outcome of his work a pres- sure testing unit for detennining the air content of concrete was reported in the May 1947 issue of the Technograph. This story is the saga of headwork, elbow-grease, and grief behind its development.

The gravimetric method was discard- ed at the start. The composition of each tested batch had to be known the exact amounts of water, sand, cement and gravel in the batch had to be known with an accuracy that is impossible on a road job where conditions seem to change without apparent reason. The gravimetric method also involves compu- tations which are too lengthy for the field, where test results are needed "im- mediately" if not sooner.

'Washing' Method Cumbersome

Now let's follow his reasoning with one of the other methods, the "washing" method. The accepted technique of the washing type of test was devised by Mr. Henham of the Indiana Highway de- partment. It consisted of measuring the weight of a cubic foot of fresh concrete and then immersing the sample in a large amount of water. The concrete was stirred around until the mortar from the fresh concrete became so thin and diluted with water that it couldn't hold any of the air, and the air escaped.

Since the air was released, the volume of water and concrete decreased. With a careful volume measurement and an- other weighing, sufficient data had been gathered to determine the air content. After about fifteen or twenty minutes ot pencil work (slide rule isn't accurate enough), the inspector might be able to ralculate the air content.

In all, three weighings and three vol- ume measurements are needed with the "Indiana" method. The scales must be rugged enough to take the abuse found on a construction job. Scales rugged enough to withstand the hard usage are not accurate enough to be used with this test. Two of the volume measurements are on a water surface with a hook- gage. The last of these measurements is always confused by the presence of a thick scummy foam composed of cement particles and the air-entraining agent used. Combining the inherent inaccura- cies of the hook-gage and the scales with the probable errors in calculations, the Indiana method was little better than guess work.

The Plot Thickens

Carl Menzel considered the difficul- ties and their solution. The scales led to inaccuracies. Discard it. The hook- gage gave incorrect answers. Discard it. The scum caused difficulties. Remove it. Mixing the concrete and w^ater was hard physical labor labor the average inspector might shirk. Lessen it. Compu- tations were difficult. Eliminate them.

The general solutions of the problems were easy. The details of the problems were not. Easy to say "remove the scum." But how? Well, the thing that held the scum and foam together was the air-entraining agent. There must be something to dissolve it. Scores of sol- vents were tried. Finally one was found that almost "ate it up." There w-as a problem solved after only a month or so. At the same time others were being investigated and whipped. Finally the "rolling method" was e\olved. There was little resemblance left between the rolling method and the Indiana method.

While research was proceeding on the "washing" type of test, the "pressure" method was taking shape. Boyle's law- gave a relation which should easily tell the air content of the fresh concrete if its change in volume under a pressure change was measured. Boyle's law seem- ed to be incorrect in this case at least there seemed to be no correlation. The sand and gravel used in making con- crete is full of small pores. These pores are usually filled with air air which has no affect on the durability, but which has a varying affect upon the indicated air content of the concrete. After a "porosity correction" factor was determined and applied, the pressure method became a possibility.

(Continued on Page 30)

14

THE TECHNOGRAPH

a TELEPHONE engineer

Here we see his tools

His head

And his hands.

He may have emphasized electronics or mechanics

Or some oilier of the manv engineering specialties.

But. more imjtortanl.

He knows his mathematics and science.

He has the engineer's > iewpoint and approach

The ahilitv to see things through.

He's a lot of engineers rolled into one.

OCTOBER, 1947

He's hap]>v in his work And his future looks good. He's a telephone engineer.

BELL TELEPHONE SYSTEM ^J^

15

rr

oilll'CI

'iines

l.A.S.

Tlu- amiiial spring picnic was lu-ld on May 16 at Hessel park in Cham- paign. Rain kept the attendance down to 40 members, wives and girl-friends, but tailed to dampen the spirits and ap- petites. Baseball was the main form of recreation. Following the game, a pic- nic supper was served.

The officers elected for tiie summer semester were: Jack McCnnre, presi- dent ; Louis Cirlover, vice-president ; and Paul Klevatt, secretary-treasurer. Prof. R. W. McCloy is the faculty adviser.

The first meeting of the summer was held July _' on Diamond No. 3. A base- hall game was the main topic and Paid Klevatt's team outpointeil Prof. Mc- Cloy "s team. Refreshments were ser\ed following the game and a short business meeting was held. The following men were named to the meetings committee: l.oLu's ("ilo\er, chairman; Ralph Fidler, R. S. Chubb, and Robert Kelly.

The second meeting was held August 6. Prof. H. S. Stillwell, head of the department of aeronautical engineering, spoke on the topic, "The Aircraft In- dustry." He pointed out that the air- craft industry reached the low point of employment in 1947 due to cut backs on government appropriations and small commercial requirements. Even so, there will be enough jobs for all who want them. Next year points to an increase in employment. He also discussed the new training facilities to be inaugurated at the U. of I. These include a super- sonic wind tunnel, an engines lab, a structures lab, and a graduate program, all to be in operation soon.

The third meeting was held August 20 on Diamond No. 3. The sole object was baseball. Ed Spuhler's team downed Paul Klevatt's team by a score of 1 1 to ill the game ending in darkness.

The last meeting of the summer was held Sept. 10 with movies and election of officers for the fall semester. At that time the points of the proposed Engi- neering Council was brought out.

M.I.S.

With plans under way to hold a membership drive right after registra- tion, the Mineral Industry Society will have their first meeting for this purpose during the first week of school. Al- though inactive during the summer, the society plans to start off the fall pro- gram at the first meeting with a dis- cussion of plans to send as many mem- bers as desire to the National Metals

16

l!\hibini)n ami Congll^^ iii C'lm.i;;ii on ( )ctober 11 and li.

The activities of the society will In- guided by the following officers who were elected at the last meeting of the spring: Leland House, president; Lynn Row ells, vice president; Margaret O'Donnell, secretary; and W. W. Berkey, treasurer.

A.S.G.E.

"The (iolden Ciate Bridge" wa> the title of the movie shown on June 19, at the first meeting of the summer term. The film portrayed some of the con- struction and maintenance problems of the bridge.

A smoker was held at Latzer Hall on July 17. Prof. Babbitt gave a short talk and introduced the faculty. Jim Keith, president, then introduced our guest speaker, Frank M. Amsbary, who spoke on the advantages of belonging to a professional society.

Prof. Shedd gave an explanatory lec- ture in connection with the film "The Tacoma Narrows Bridge," at a meet- ing in Gregory Hall on August 7. The movie was very spectacular and almost unbelievable. As Prof. Shedd comment- ed at the begiiming of the meeting, "I've seen this film over 30 times and I still can't believe it possible."

On September 17, the student chap- ter and the central section of the A.S.C.E. held a joint meeting at a din- ner banquet in Latzer Hall. Air. Hast- ings, president of the parent societ\ , was the guest speaker.

The officers for the summer term were James IVL Keith, president; James M. Wolfe, vice president; Barbara Schmidt, secretar\ ; .-uui Robeit K. Kronst, treasurer.

A.LE.E.-LR.E.

The combined student branches of the American Institute of Electrical En- gineers and the Institute of Radio Engi- neers will open the fall activities with an orientation program. All sophomore, junior, and senior electrical engineers are cordially invited to attend this meet- ing to familiarize themselves with these organizations. Dr. William L. Everitt, head of the electrical engineering depart- ment, will address this meeting on the importance and advantages of member- ship in technical societies.

Past experience has shown that elec- trical engineering students often have not become acti\e in the A.LE.E.-LR.E. imtil late in their junior or senior year.

ThiN ijiirntatKin piograin will attempt to >tiniulare interest at an earlier time so that uiulerclassmen will a\ail them- selves of the opportunities offered b\- an extra-curricular engineering activity.

Eta Kappa Nu, electrical engineering honorar\ fraternity, will participate in the program by presenting an award for scholastic achievement to the highest ranking, first-semester junior in the de- partment. The purpose and function of Eta Kappa Nu will also be explained to ac(iuaint students with the opportuni- ties of association with this group.

During this past summer the com- bined A.LE.E.-LR.E. sponsored several events. A pre-war custom was revived when over two hundred students and faculty attended a department picnic. Highlighting the afternoon's activities was the traditional student-faculty soft- ball game. The winner was awarded the A.LE.E.-LR.E. trophy which is now on display in the electrical engineering laboratory. The awarding of this trophy will be an annual event at the depart- ment picnic each spring.

Another open program sponsored by the A.LE.E.-LR.E. was the "Previews of Progress" demonstration given by (jeneral Motors corporation in the (jregory hall theater on July 24. Over four hundred students, faculty, and guests attended the show which demon- strated examples of current scientific re- search.

Programs planned for the fall semes- ter include speakers from technical or- ganizations such as the General Electric company. Bell Telephone company, and others. In addition A.LE.E.-LR.E. members will travel to Chicago early in November to attend the A.I.E.E. and electronics conferences. Several social ac- ti\ities have also been proposed for the semester but are not yet scheduled.

A.LCh.E.

Since the summer enrollment did not warrant an\ meetings, the student brancii of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers remained inactive. The final meeting last spring was the annual picnic held on May 10 at the County Fair grounds. At this meeting the officers elected for the 1947-48 school year were Donald Hornbeck, president; John R. Mitchell, vice presi- dent; Dale Glass, secretary; and Edwin F. Dyer, treasurer.

During registration a membership drive will be conducted among the stu- ( Continued on Page 39)

THE TECHNOGRAPH

^

2. The tower was timber-cribbed and floated, to wed up New York Harbor and the Hudson River, across New York State by canal. A tug took over the tow- ing job through Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan, riding out a storm en route. Then the tower was loaded on a barge to complete its journey via tiie Illinois, Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. This win- ter at Sugar Creek, the cat cracker of which this tower is part goes on stream, joining similar units already operating at other Standard refineries. It has a charging capacity of 25,000 barrels a day!

3. Like our Burton Stills in 1913 and continuous units of 1932, catalytic crackers are milestones in petroleum progress. Today at Standard, the indus- try's ablest engineers and research men are develop- ing new . . . and better processes and products. Men of the same type are coming from leading colleges of science and engineering to start work at Standard. Here they find unexcelled technical facilities for re- search and design. If you want a career with splen- did opportunities to advance and make real contri- butions, you should get to know Standard better.

Standard Oil Company

(INDIANA)

910 SOUTH MICHIGAN AVENUE, CHICAGO 80, ItllNOIS

STANDARD SERVICE

OCTOBER, 1947

17

Olii^U^JUuMiJCf, . . .

WILL J. WORLEY

L'p three flifihts of stairs in Talbot laborat-, the name Worley can be ff)unci on the door of room 32 la. Inside sits quiet, sandy-haired Will j. Worley. an instructor of T.A..M. 1, 2, 3, and bi. He seems to be right at home with a testing lab down the hall, a slide rule in his hand, and the sound of machines at work.

.\Ir. WorU'\ is a native of Illinois, being born in (jibson City, August 2, 1919. After spending eight year? in a country school and one year at Drum- mer Township High School in Gibson City, he came to Champaign. Finishing higii school here, he enrolled in the L ni- versity in mechanical engineering and graduated in 1943. He received his M.S. in Theoretical and Applied Me- chanics in 1945. At the present he is working for his doctor's degree in engi- neering while teaching.

Outsitle of his regular work, he is interested in radio circuits and also in the application of electrical and elec- tronic equipment to industrial control. He devotes the rest of his spare time to hunting and a stamp collection.

-Mr. Worley is now helping with tests of plastics and plastic laminated mate- rial. He has spent the last two years on steel, making tests of static tension, high velocity impact, impact tension, etc. The purpose of these tests is to determine the effects of temperature, rate of straining, strain aging, stress concentration, and state of stress in producing brittle frac- ture of steel.

His most recent development in the field of testing devices is an adoption of the Baldwin Southwark portable strain indicator to dynamic tests. Mr. Worley explains, "This adaptation was devel- oped to obtain an easily available com- mercial unit for repeated dynamic strain

18

hif 'iithn Shurllt'tf

measurements. The procedme involves the use of a standard Baldwin South- wark portable strain indicator and a cathode-ray oscilloscope. The oscillo- scope is \ised in the circuit as a null bnl.mce indicating device."

Mr. Worley is a member of I'i Tau Sigma, Sigma Xi, Pi Mu Epsilon, the American Society of Mechanical I'ngi- neers, the American Society for Testing Materials, the Society for Experimental Stress Analysis, and the American So- ciety for Engineering Education.

When asked for some comment on his teaching, he replied, "I alwa\s rec- ommend to my students that they read an article called 'The Unwritten Laws of Engineering' by W. J. King. Every prospective engineer will get something out of it." He also stated that his favor- ite subject from the standpoint of teach- ing is T.A.AL 2.

Well liked by his students and fellow engineers, Mr. Worley is making some leally fine contributions to the field of engineering.

(Graduated from New Canton High School, Mrs. Welch spent most of her married life in Rockport near New Canton. After the death of her hus- band, she attended the Illinois Business College at Springfield and worked a little in Springfield after graduating.

Coming to Champaign-L'rbana in De- cember, 1940, Mrs. Welch worked in Dr. Bailar's office until August, 1943, on the records of freshmen chemistry stiulents. She then began her present po- sition as senior record clerk for the College of Engineering. Although an occasional engineer uses "damn" or "hell," they impress her as being well- mannered and knowing what they want out of school.

Mrs. Welch h;is played quite a bit of bridge, but for relaxation she enjoys reading most of all, with gardening running a close second. But we are sure if you ever go into 300 Engineering hall, you will agree that Mrs. Welch's graciousness shows an intense interest in people too.

WILBUR TUGGLE

"When the other boys wanted to be firemen. I wanted to be an engineer . . . always did," quietly stated Wilbur Tug- gle. As a junior in civil engineering, Wilbur is rapidly approaching his boy- hood goal.

He came to the University of Illinois because he belie\es that it is one of the finest engineering schools in the countr\ and because it is far enough awa\' and still close enough to his home town, Chicago.

After graduating from Wendell Phil- lips High School in February of 1941. Wilbur worked for a year to finance his education. However, Uncle Sam had other ideas for him, and after complet- ing his freshman year, he left for serv- ice. The next thirty-one months found Wilbur in the Pacific Transportation Corps, stationed in New Guinea, the Philippines, and Japan. After his re- ( Continued on Page 32)

MARY E. WELCH

There is probably not a single stu- dent in the College of Engineering who has not looked many times across the desk in 300 Engineering hall at Mrs. Welch's smiling face. And across this desk she is asked any conceivable ques- tion on engineering.

While waiting just a few minutes to see her, we heard a student ask whether he had enough hours to register with sophomores or juniors; another needed her help in making out his study list for the following term; yes, even a tele- phone caller wanted to know if he was still on probation. Only part of the in- quiries, however, need the use of her complete files on each student's scholas- tic record.

WILBER TUGGLE THE TEGHNOGRAPH

Ultrasensitive RCA Telccision camera tube cuts itudio light requirements 90%

Television finds drama in tite daric

witit new RCA studio camera

Now television becomes even more exciting as lights are dimmed, and the camera reaches deep inside stu- dio shadows to capture action as dra- matic as any on stage or screen . . .

A new studio television camera de\eloped bv RCA scientists and en- gineersneeds only 1 10th the usual amount of light.

The super-scnsiti\ e eve of the new camera is an improved Image Orthi- con Tube ... of the type once used only outdoors. With it, studio broad- casts are sharper, clearer and since

so little illumination is needed, heat in the studio is sharply reduced. No more blazing lights!

Such improvements come regu- larly from research at RCA Labora- tories, and apply to all branches of radio, television, electronics, and re- cording. These improvements are part of any product bearing the name RCA or RCA \'ictor.

\\lien in Radio City, .\>w York, be sure to see the radio and electronic wonders at RC.\ Exhibition Hall, id West 49th St. Free admission. Radio t'oriwnition of America, RCA Buildiiig, Radio ( it;. \cw York 20.

Continue your education with pay at RCA

Graduate Electrical Engineers: RCA

\'ictor one of the world's foremost manu- facturers of radio and electronic products offers you opportunity to yain valuable, well-rounded training and experience at a good salary with opportunities for ad- vancement. Here are only five of the many projects which offer unusual promise:

Development and design of radio re- ceivers ( including broadcast, short wave and FM circuits, television, and phono- graph combinations).

Advanceil development and design of AM and FM broadcast transmitters, R-F induction heating, mobile cumniunicatioiis equipment, relay systems.

Design of component parts such as coils, loudsi>eakers, capacitors.

Development and design of new re- cording and reproducing methods.

Design of receiving, power, cathode ray, gas and photo tubes.

M'rite today to National Recruiting Divi- sion, RCA Victor, Camdcit, \cu: Icrseij. Also many opportunities loi Meihanical and Chemical Engineers and Fhysie.'sts.

RADIO CORRORATION of AMERICA

! OCTOBER, 1947

19

GEORGE R. FOSTER Editor

FRANCIS P. GREEN Ass't Editor

EDWIN A. WITORT Ass't Editor

f^S-^

STOP! LOOK! THIiK!

Do yoii rcmeiiiber how many laborious hours you haw spent from time to time try- ing to decide on what kind of a job you want? The process started 'way back when you were in knee pants and insisted that the life of the corner poh'cenian directing traffic was the one for >ou. Since then it probabh has run through quite a gammut of jobs until, as you grew older, \our taste in type of work finally settled into a more practical field.

Of coLuse, some people never reach a final decision, and others do not decide definitely until after they graduate and start hunting for jobs, but in any event most people have at least a general idea as to the type of work they want. Having made this momentous de- cision the average person then sits back with a self-administered pat on the back and be- gins to prepare himself for the job by going to school. Since the item of deciding on the appropriate technical preparation has already been considered in planning the \arious cur- ricula, the average student is fortunateh spared the necessity of deciding what technical courses his education should include. Instead, most people promptly pitch into four years of hard work and equally promptly become lost in a maze of details relating to their particu- lar line of study. An occasional few may even be far-sighted enough to realize the value of the experience to be gained from participation in e.xtra-curricular activities.

In any event it is indeed rare that a stu- dent will have even considered let alone reached a decision on the third great prob- lem which visually rears its surprising head about the last half of the senior year; i. e., "Whom shall I go to work for when I\e finished school ? "

Whether the student decides that he wants to work for himself or someone else is, in

itself, unimportant. What is important is that the student should not leave this problem for a last-minute decision based solely on the con- sideration of remuneration. The answer to the question is, of course, up to each individual, but happiness and satisfactory performance in one's job is not achieved unless all the factors affecting the choice are considered.

To try to cover all the phases of future job prospects and point out all of the criteria used in making a sensible selection of em- ployer is a pretty tough order, but the Tci h- noi/idph is going to attempt to tackle part of it. Since the larger, nation-wide companies are not onh well known to most students, but also well publicized in our pages, it is going to be our additional aim in this year's issues to publicize a hitherto little-used and less well-known field of employers the local manufacturers located throughout the State of Illinois.

It is true that many men eventualh work into these smaller industries, but as yet, very little has been done to establish contact be- tween them and the graduating engineer. It is felt that the student, in considering all the possibilities in selecting a suitable employer, is overlooking a fairly large, potential field just through lack of knowledge and publicit\. To accomplish this purpose, the Teiknogra/'li is planning a series of articles about several representative industries designed to acquaint the student with the type of work found in smaller organizations.

It is sincerely hoped that this series will not only open up a new field to you, but will also help to overcome mental inertia so that vou will begin to consider this svibject with more than just a passing thought and will be able to walk into an interview with other questions on your tongue than "How much will \ou pay me?"

20

THE TEGHNOGRAPH

Du Poiit Digest

Items of Interest to Students of Science and Engineering

Fundamental Engineering Studies

Studying Kamack, B. S. Chei

IN A company like Du Pont the diversity of chemical operations is great and the investment in equipment is high. In addition to the en- gineering work done in the ten industrial departments, the responsibility for design and construction of manu- facturing plants is under- taken by the central engi- neering department, which also maintains an engineer- ing research laboratory. This laboratory is staffed by chemical, metallurgical and mechanical engineers, and physicists, whose func- tion is to carry on funda- mental and pioneering-ap- plied research to develop new methods of processing and equipment designs; im- prove equipment, materials of construction, and method.s of meas- urement and control; and establish fun- damental relationships in unit opera- tions and unit processes.

For example, a broad project was undertaken to study the fundamentals of rotary drying. A principal objective of the study was to learn the effect of the operating variables on the volu- metric heat transfer coefficient. Of the numerous variables that affect the dry- ing rate of such a dryer, the more im- portant ones studied were: (1) feed rate, (2) dryer rotation rate, (3) air rate, (4) air temperature, (5) number of flights, (6) direction of airflow, and (,7) dryer slope.

Studies on a Laboratory Scale

Fundamental studies of heat transfer and mass transfer were made in a lab- oratory scale rotary dryer, 1 ft. in di- ameter by 6 ft. long. To determine the true heat transfer coefficient, special methods were devised to measure the material temperature along the length of the dryer and to measure continu- ou.sly the temperature of the rotating shell. These determinations permitted an analysis of all the heat transfer ef- fects in the dryer; namely, from air to solid, from shell to solid, and from air to shell.

From a knowledge of the material

product development in on experi B. S. Chemical Engineering, Georgii nical Engineering, Penn State '40.

temperature along the dryer, it was possible to calculate the air tempera- ture at each point in the dryer and thereby to determine point values of the heat transfer coefficient. This pro- cedure permits the calculation of a more accurate average temperature differ- ence, which gives more accurate heat transfer coefficients than can be ob- tained from terminal conditions only.

During the course of the study, every opportunity was taken to obtain heat transfer data on large-scale plant dryers in order to establish scale-up factors. This procedure permitted the correla- tion of heat transfer coefficients from a 1 ft. diameter dryer with those of full plant size.

Paralleling the work on the funda- mentals of rotary drying operation, problems involved in product and proc- ess development received continuous attention. These usually require an in- vestigation of the important auxiliary problemsof: (1) materialhandlingtoand from the dryer, (2) removal of dust from the air, (3) sealing the space between the rotating shell and stationary breech- ing, and (4) corrosion of the dryer shell.

How the Results are Applied

The findings of the effect of holdup on dryer capacity were applied to an 8 ft. standard rotary dryer producing 300

|||f^r|^

Inspecting the interior of experi- mental spray dryer after a run.

ental

rotary dryer. H. J.

W. R. Marshall, Jr., Ph.D. Chem-

Tech.

41; F. A. Gluckert,

ical Engineering, Wisconsin Ml; R. L. Pigford, Ph.D. Chemical Engineering, Illinois *41.

Ib.'hr. of granulated material. The in- formation obtained on this factor alone permitted an increase in capacity of 75 to 100 "^ ; . This meant an increase of over a million pounds annually. Further, one dryer could now handle the load of two, releasing second dryer for other work. The information developed in such fundamental studies permits more ac- curate design of equipment for future operations resulting in lower cost of manufacture and lower investment.

Questions College Men ask about working with Du Pont

WHAT KIND OF TRAINING WILL I GET?

All new employees receive on-the-job training. Men who .Tre engaged in re- search, development or engineering have the opportunity to add continu- ally to their knowledge and experience in specific fields. This practical train- ing is supplemented at many Du Pont plants and laboratories by training courses and lectures. Write for booklet, "The Du Pont Company and the Col- lege Graduate," 2.')21 Nemours Build- ing, Wilmington 98, Delaware.

More facts about Du Pont l\sim to "Cavalcade of America," Motidays, 8 P.M. EST, on NBC

OCTOBER, 1947

21

LOOK ...

(Coiuiiuicii trom Page 1) job ill till" locality where his services are wanted.

Of course, the question of remuner- ation is an important one at all times. It would be advisable for the student to consider this in its broadest aspect.

In its truest sense, remuneration means more than just a pay check. With our present advances in group insurance and health benefits it would be well to have an understanding of these matters. Many companies, through the group in- surance policy, provide health, accident, and life insurance. This should certainly be of interest to any prospective em- ploye.

Do you, the employe, e.vpect to have a vacation with pay? If .so, it would be a good idea to inquire as to the coni- pan\ s policy regarding vacations and also overtime work. These arc both important questions and the student would do well to get a clear cut answer to both of them.

Whenever it becomes necessary to work closeh' with other persons, the problem of personnel relations is sure to crop up. W^hat, if any, social obliga- tions will fall to the new employe? If there are an\ , will the\ be an added financial burden upon that person's in- dividual income or will the company

provide an expense account? To what extent will the work itself require con- tact with different people and different situations? These questions should all be answered to the satisfaction of the individual seeking emploNinent. Some people enjoy traveling anil entertaining, others do not. Some people are good salesmen, and again, others are not. Therefore, failure to get these answers at the interview may lead to an unpleas- .int or difficult situation after employ- ment.

It is not the purpose of this article to attempt to discuss the pros and cons of labor unions. However, since almost everybody has his own opinions on this matter, it would be a very wise thing to become acquainted with the vmion and labor policy of the company.

Every compan\', with a few excep- tions, has a very definite policy regard- ing advancements of position and in- creases of salary. A knowledge of these facts should be a good indicator to the prospective employe of what his future should hold. Not that he can necessarily better himself otherwise, but when a definite plan of advancement is follow- ed, it affords a partial basis for planning his life.

Lasth', and most important, is the type of work that will be required of the employe. Some persons want to do

design work, others production manage- ment, and still others desire outside con- tact work such as selling or mainten- ance. For the neophyte engineer the opportunities are somewhat limited in so far as original design work is con- cerned. The great majority of work is merely the re-design of proven items or the making of detailed drawings that the older engineers have already sketch- ed ovit. This system of apprenticeship is an old and well established custom; and there are few men who can circum- vent it.

In the field of production manage- ment there is also an apprentice period in which the engineer works in the plant. Usually this process takes several years and carries to all parts, depart- ments, and phases of the work of the organization.

Selling and maintenance require train- ing which is provided by the company. Sometimes this requires six to twelve months after which the employe is as- signed to a territory of his own or one with another more experienced man.

Unfortunately, too few persons are able to decide beforehand, exactly what kind of work they desire.

Due to their financial resources, the large, well established companies, and the governmental agencies, have, up to ( Continued on Page 24

Jay it oil tint (m

xe.

THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD OF EXCEUENCE

SINCf 1880

VjcpJilli odmoAp unm. HIGGinS L\h CUJM. aUi^gS

Fresh Flowers

with Personal Attention

in our shop . . . Every order, large or small, receives extra care in handling . . . For Quality, Freshness, Packaging, and Prompt Delivery.

Flowers by Wire

fiont

laytl< St

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TAPES -RULES -PRECISION TOOLS

NOVEMBER, 1947

What Every Student Engineer Should Know About Bearing Functions

TRACTOR FRONT WHEEL in which both thrust and radial loads are carried on single row Timken Bearings. From whichever way the load may come, it will be handled with minimum friction and wear.

APPLICATION of Timken Bearings on the worm shaft of a worm gear drive. The load on the worm shaft bearings, due to the operation of the worm, is primarily thrust. There is considerable radial load however, arising from the separating force of the gears and also possibly from overhung driving loads. This is another application for which the tapered roller bearing is ideal.

1.

HOW TO CARRY

COMBINATIONS OF

RADIAL AND THRUST LOADS

Practically every bearing application in equip- ment of all kinds involves the carrying of radial and thrust loads in varying degrees. These draw- ings show how Timken Tapered Roller Bearings effectively perform both functions.

Because it is a roller bearing, the Timken Bearing can carry the heaviest loads. Because it is a tapered roller bearing it can carry both radial and thrust loads separately or in any combination.

From whichever direction loads may come, its tapered design enables the Timken Bearing to carry them all with full efficiency and safety. The cost and complication of a separate type of bearing for each kind of load are eliminated. Bearing housings and mountings are simplified with savings in cost, weight and space.

The more you learn about Timken Bearings now, the better prepared you will be to solve any bearing problems you may encounter in the future.

TIMKEN

TAPim Toller Wabihcs

THE TIMKEN ROLLER BEARING COMPANY, CANTON 6, OHIO

4 THE TECHNOGRAPH

EDITORIAL STAFF

George R. Foster Editor

Francis C^irfen Assistant Editor

Va\ W'itort .hsist/int Editor

Barbara Si.linil Editor

Ri ftortiiu/

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Pick

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P.m

H(iriibt-.-k

Phil n,.ii

n.ui

lUi lohnsnii

Ronald lohnsnn

Krir

Hileiuiu,-t

Herbert Mazer

Rnll

h l.eiulli.f;

Melvin Reiter

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John Shurtleff

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till Sahatli

Arthur Welcher

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Shirlev Smith

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Fisher

Sam Jefferies

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(;ienn Massie

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tienrge Ricker

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lUSINESS STAFF

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iTt A. Johnson Bus. Mgr.

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..Ass't Bus. Mgr.

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lies lanseii.

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Fred Seavev

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Robert C ox

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Robert Levin

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William Anderson

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i-^ Chapman

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Advisers

J. A.

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MEMBERS OF ENGINEERING COLLEGE MAGAZINES ASSOCIATED Arkansas Engineer, Cincinnati Coopera- t-e Engineer, Colorado Engineer, Cornell Engineer, Dre.xel Technical Journal, Illinois Technograph, Iowa Engineer, Iowa Transit, k,. s.s Engineer, Kansas State Engineer, K ' Kky Engineer, Marquette Engineer, '1 ';:^,^-ln Technic, Minnesota Technolog, M -. .iiri Shamrock, Nebraska Blueprint, New York University Quadrangle, Ohio

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Published Eight Times Yearly by the Students of the College of En- ; gineering. University of Illinois

Published eight times during the year (Oc- tober, November, December. January, Febru- ary, March, April, and May) by The Illini i Publishing (Zompany. Entered as second class matter, October 30, 1921,, at the post office of Urbana, Illinois. Office 213 Engineering Hall, Urbana, Illinois. Subscription, $1.50 per year. Single copy 25 cents. Reprint rights reserved by The lUhiois Tcchnograph.

Publisher Representative Littell Murr.ay- I Barnhill, (i05 North Michigan Avenue, 'Chicago 11, III. 101 Park Avenue, New

York 17, New York.

ARTICLES

Vanishing Resotirces 7

Don llornhcrk. Ch.E. '4S

.Mining and Metalhirgy ^i

R/i/ph Lending. E.E. '4S rind Francis dreen. E.E. '4H

The Betatron 9

Industrial Sightseeing A. O. Smith 10

Aeronautical Engineering Laboratories 12

Don Johnson. E.E. '4^)

Cemented Carbides 1 -I-

DEPARTMENTS

New Developments 2

John Diek. E.E. '49

Introilucing - to

John Shurtleff

Illini In .'\ction LS

Don Johnson. E.E. '49

Etlitorial - 20

OUR COVER

An(d still the construction continues. This time it's the new me- chanical engineering laboratory on the corner of Green and Mathews streets. Gene Robinson.

FRONTISPIECE

This startling ecJifice is the home of A.O.Smith's engineering and research departments at Milwaukee. Built over fifteen years ago, its ultra-modern lines defy time. (Courtesy of A. O. Smith Co.)

itil Iton HnrMln>i-h: f'h.E. ^tS

I .li

4-

()ui' natural resources, once thouy;ht he \irtuall\- inexhaustible, have he- me depleted to the extent that some nur most common metals, metals for iich we may ne\er find satisfactory ll^titutes, will run out within the life- iie of today's college student. The iiited States, great as was its pioneer neral wealth, has had to import the Ik of its manganese, chromium, nickel, 1 1 tin supplies for years. Now, since r end of the recent war, we note with ic concern that this war cost us large nentages of our waning mineral ,ilth, e.g., during the years of 1941- , one-fourth of our present proved tidleum reserves, 20% of our com- rcial copper reserves, and more than |] one-fourth of the nation's lead and zinc were consumed. A total of five billion tons of American-mined minerals were thrown into the war effort.

Although a small fraction of the com- mercial iron reserve was consumed dur- ing the war years, we are now faced with having to mine ore of lesser qual- ity; for experts are predicting that the Mesabi range, noted for its high-grade, low-cost ore, may begin to play out in another ten years others predict that the red hematite of those mammoth sur- face mines of Duluth will be exhausted within 17 years. However, we have ample iron ore in other localities, prob-

ably more than enough for our needs. The total proved reserves will last through the year 2050, with an addi- tional amount of lower-grade, but usa- ble, ore sufficient to last 400 years be- yond that date. Further, there are vast amounts of nearby Canadian ores which lie buried rather deep beneath the the ground, too deep for economical re- covery at the present time.

Native copper supplies have been in- adequate for several years, necessitating

This Shell Oil company derrick is the tallest in the world

Two "tong men" breaking the

drill-stem joint to add another

section on the stem

importation of one-half of the required ore. The Anaconda mines, mainstay of the home copper mining industry, are nearing the outer limits of their copper- producing veins; and no large discov- eries are expected by the geologists. At the present rate of consumption of a million tons annually, our resources may last i?) years, or until about 1980. Since the U. S. has the greatest production and reserves of copper, lead, and zinc, it appears that our foreign sources may not be able to support American indus- try for any extended period of time.

Lead and zinc mines have been work- ed quite completely our remaining na- tive supply being enough to last only about 11 and 18 years, respectively. As it is, the mines are down to producing about one-half of the quantity of ore

In this article will be found some rather startling revelations on the limitations of our suppos- edly unlimited natural resources. Easily read in a short time, the article points out several interest- ing facts with which every engi- neer, present and future, should bestir himself to become ac- quainted.

that was produceii twenty years ago. The most noticeable effect of the lead scarcity will be in the scarcity of good paint, lower quality gasoline, and in the higher prices of household goods.

Many metals have been largely im- ported for many years. U. S. mines furn- ish only slightly more than one-half of our aluminum, cadmium, mercury, and potash, and somewhat less than half of our antimony, manganese, asbestos, mica, platinum, and tungsten needs. For years we have imported nearly all of our tin, nickel, chromium, graphite, industrial diamonds, and quartz. In less than 20 years, our native supplies of nearly 20 essential minerals will be exhausted.

Since sulfur is one of the most abund- ant of our adequate non-metallic re- sources, agriculture will not want for sulfate fertilizers. The agricultural wealth is probably the only resource of a nation capable of being increased. With sulfate and phosphate fertilizers a\ailable, a vast supply of potash avail- able in New Mexico, nitrates being made synthetically, and with improved erosion control methods and greater knowledge concerning optimum care of soil through crop rotation and fertilizer application, the overall fertility of the nation's food-proilucing medium is slow- ly increasing.

In the days of the early pioneer set- tlers, 800 million acres of this country's 1 ,903 million acres were covered by for- ests, containing 4,760 billion board feet of lumber. Today, 630 million acres of woodlands remain, 460 million acres be- ing of a commercial nature. At present there is an annual cut of 48 billion board feet, this amount exceeding the annual growth by 16 billion. Most of this de- pletion is in the Northwest forests of softwoods. In the Northeast, the growth equals the small annual cut. With effi- cient management, this country could have lumber sufficient to meet its needs.

The future of our natural fuel supply is somewhat brighter. While our 2(1 bil- lion barrels of petroleum may not last much beyond 1975, we will not want for gasolines and oils since we have am- ple coal, from which they can be made synthetically. Last December, the U.S. Bureau of Mines predicted an average daily consumption of 5,500,000 barrels of petroleinn products. In April, the (Continued on Page 22)

NOVEMBER, 1947

Miiiiiio ami lIHalliiroy ll|)|i(ii'liiiiilii's I iirmiilcil

lti Ital/th l.i'iiilinfi. K.K. ' tH ami Fruin-is Urot'ii. li.H' lit

In the far iiorthcastcrn part of our campus lifs the department of luim'iii; anil metallurjiical engineering. The de- partment was originally created in 18(i7 and consequently is one of the oldest departments in the University. It was discontinued in 1893 due to lack of in- terest among the student hody, but was re-created in 19(18 because of the neces- sity for having a scientific study of min- ing and men able to conduct this stud\. Although originally only mining was taught, in 1934 metallurgy became a part of the department, and e\entuall\ tlie major part of it.

I'crhaps because \ou tinkered witli old

automobiles, \ou ileculeil to become a mechanical engineer; or perhaps you built radios and decided to become an electrical engineer, but there is no such attraction to the field of mctallurg). You see a cake pan or perhaps a car gear and accept them. The composition of the material, its hardness, and other pro|U'ities are extremely important to our present da\ civilization and our progress, and yet we have too few men entering this very important field.

The present head of the departmeiit, Professor H. L. Walker, has been very active in this field and has a nationwide reputation. At the moment he is the active head of the Illinois State Depait- ment of Mines.

Duruig the war m;ui\ funis had con- tracts with the government for armor piercing projectiles. The specifications

In this day and age of high- powered electronics and atomic bombs the average student regards the subjects of mining and metal- lurgy with something only slightly more than disinterest. For those students, and also students who are as yet undecided on the type of work they want, this article is strongly recommended. It deals with several of the more salient features in the two fields of work and clearly points out (hat the ro- mance of research and develop- ment is by no means restricted to nuclear fission.

required that so mail) inches of steel of a certain grade be pierced by these |irojectilcs. Several of the firms had dif- ficult) in filling the specifications re- cjuired by the go\ernment. In order to obtain the required qualit\' of produc- tion. Professor Walker was calle' and engineers of the Al- lis-Chaliners Manufacturing company of a 2((-million volt industrial betatron used for \-ra\ purposes in arsenals.

The medical application, held up b\' war work, came closer to realization in July, 1Q46, when University of Illinois scientists brought a beam of free elec- trons out of the University's 22-million \olt betatron. This promises spectacular value for cancer treatment but the forces involved are so powerful and little- known that three to five years of careful laboratory study must precede any clin- ical use of this device on patients.

The scientific application is the great- est of all, giving opportunity to study the inside of the atom, the behavior of electrons, artificial radioactivit\-. and the mysteries of the cosmic raw

New Betatron Laboratory The University of Illinois is now building a betatron of .?()()-niillion volts energy which will open entirely new-

doors to science b\' producing cosmic rays in the laboratory. The new betatron will be 23 feet long. 13 feet high, and 6'/2 feet thick. The hollow "donut " vacuum tube in which electrons will be accelerated to the speed of light will be 9 feet in diameter. The instrument will weigh more than 400 tons.

A new research laboratory in which it and the L niversity's other smaller beta- trons are housed has been built on south campus. A special appropriation of :?!. 500,000 was provided for the build- ing, the new instrument, and associated equipment.

Professor Kerst is heading work on the new 3(H)-million volt machine. His first betatron had an output of 2'/2-mil- lion volts. A second betatron, ha\ing an output of 20-miIIion volts, was complet- ed in 1941. Now increased to 22-mil- lion volts, it is the prototype of commer- cial betatrons being built for industrial x-ray use.

A 70-million \olt betatron is under construction as "pilot model " to try out new ideas for the big machine. The University also was the scene of war- time development of a 4-nullion volt, portable "baby betatron."

All of these instruments are housed in ( Continued on Page 28 )

Development of the Betatron

Year Developed _ 1940 1044

Power in volts 2'/2-million 22-million

Size: Length 19 inches 5 feet

Height 10 inches 3 feet

Thickness 8 inches 2 feet

Weight 200 pounds 4 tons

Diameter of vacuum tube 8 inches 19 inches

Electrons travel (>() miles 250 miles

Power consumption ^ kw 30 kw

r)47

3(i(l-million

2}i feet

13 feet

6>4 feet

400 tons

9 feet

700 miles

1=^0 kw

NOVEMBER, 1947

Iiidiistriiil Siiilitseeiiiii

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From miili .ti.LE.y. fuhlivi/if IHrvvtitr

A ^'iS.OOU.OOt) postwar iiuliistrial plant is in full swii)}! these clays at Kankakee, III., turning out approximately 1,3011 water heaters daily and giving employ- ment to more than 1,500 persons. Less than two years ago the site of this iww industry was a cornfield a mile south of the city on Highway 49.

The heaters are one of the postwar products of the A. O. Smith Corp., of Milwaukee, Wis. They are distinguish- eil from other water heaters by an inner lining of tough glass which is fused to steel. A container is thus formed which is practically impervious to the corid- sive effect of hot water and in which the water cannot be contaminated b\ rust or any other impurity.

The company is nearly 75 years old. It has branch plants in Houston, Texas, and Los Angeles, Calif., and it has dis- trict administrators in New York, Chi- cago, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles and Seattle. It also has an International division which supervises foreign sales.

A. (). Smith's primary functions are the fabricating and welding of steel products. The latter include pressed steel automobile frames, of which the company was the pioneer manufacturer; large diameter welded steel pipe for the transmission of petroleum products and natural gas; pressure vessels for the oil refining, chemical and paper industries; domestic coal stokers; glass-lined bever- age storage tanks; and welding elec- trodes and equipment. The companv did about ,^60,000,000 of business in 1946.

Growth of an Idea The .story of how the company got into the water heater business will be of particular interest to students of the University of Illinois. In the late 1920's A. O. Smith was seeking a new way to protect steel pipe against corrosion. The search led into the field of ceramics and a method was evolved of literally fusing a very thin coating of true glass onto steel. It was not worked out, how- ever, until much consulting had been done with Dr, Andrew I. Andrews, head of the ceramics department at the College of Engineering, University of Illinois. Dr. Andrews' a.ssistance was of incalculable value and he is still active in the work which the company's Ce- ramics Research department is doing. The ceramics department is now headed by Wayne A. Deringer, who graduated from Illinois in 19.?2. Other Illinois

men who are on his staff include A. (.'. Harzdukas '40; AL K. Hlanchard '.^S ( Ph.D. in 1942); I.. K. Hree/e '40; (). K. Mulvane '28; E. \\ .Murphv, jr. '44.

.After the glass-fused-to-steel method was perfected, the company began to seek other uses for it. One of the first successful applications was the glass- lining of large steel tanks for storing beer. In the late .lO's the company's research engineers turned their attention to domestic water heaters and by 1940 the company was ready to enter the field on an extensive basis. The plans were interrupted by the war, although the government asked the company to manufacture a limited number through the war years. When V-J day came, however, plans were already well fomi- ulated for an intensive effort in the water heater field.

A water heater has been described la- conically as one tin can inside another with insulation between the two. And that described with some accuracy the methods used by a good many small manufacturers of heaters. It is a far cry, however, from the research, engineering and quality control that has gone into the making of the heaters in the new Kankakee plant.

A steel especially adapted to the glass- fusing process is used for the inner tank of the heater. It is rolled into a cvlin-

In this article the Teehnograph presents the second in a series de- signed to stimulate in the student an active thinking on the subject of employment and work. Al- though last month's article dealt quantitatively with the subject of job-seeking, this is the first to cover a specific company. The companies which have been se- lected for this series were picked with a view towards variety not only in location throughout the state, but also in type of work offered.

der and automatically flash welded. The cylinder, and the stamped out top and bottom heads and flues, are sprayed or slushed with finely ground glass mixed in water and clay. The parts go into a furnace especially designed for the job. These furnaces are the result of the combined work of mechanical, ceramics, electrical and metallurgical engineers. The furnaces combine such features as roller hearth, radiant heating and at- mosphere control and, through an intri- cate electrical control system, are vir- tually automatic in operation.

After going through the furnace, the inner cylinder and parts move to an au- tomatic welding operation where top and bottom heads and flues are welded

Kankakee Plant of A. O. Smith Company

10

THE TEGHNOGRAPH

Left: Heat treating furnace used for sealing glass liners to the metal case. Right: View of the overhead conveyor system for moving parts through the plant

into position. The resulting assembly is then tested under 300 pounds air pres- sure and is then ready for final assem- bly.

Meanwhile the other parts of the heater, outer shell, skirts, tops, etc., have gone through a bonderising operation and spray painting, and move to the as- ^sembly line on overhead conveyors. Final assembly consists of six lines which give flexibility in assembling various types and sizes of heaters at the same time. All unloading of raw materials and loading of finished heaters is done in- side the plant.

Plant Located for Efficiency

So much for the process. Why did A. (). Smith pick Kankakee? The com- pany approached that problem from an engineering sta