f I .I ~ ~SpartaN .... .,,";-... ',..i~"-'~-~' ~. ~j.;,;- SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING ~ MICHIGAN STATE COLLEGE January 1949 Vol. 2 No.2 l \ \ World's first Continuous Seamless Tube Mill -National Tube Company develops revolutionary new mill design 2,000 feet of seamless pipe a minute! That's what the world's first continuous seamless pipe mill will turn out upon completion. Developed by National Tube Company- U.S. Steel Subsidiary - at its Lorain, Ohio Works, the mill has already been referred to as "one of the greatest advances in the steel in- dustry during t!1e past 50 years." The new continuous process it features wiIl eliminate several steps in the conventional method of making seamless pipe and will be comparable to that of continuous strip and sheet mills. Designed to produce sizes ranging from 2 inches to 4~ inches OD, the mill not only wiIl provide quality products at lower cost, but greater service to the consumer. This revolutionary seamless mill design is an- other demonstration of National Tube Com- pany's position of leadership in providing indus- try with both quality and quantity products. Construction view showing 9.stand Rolling Mill and Inlet and Outlet Conveyors. Opportunities The spirit behind this latest National Tube Company development typifies the spirit behind projects being conducted in all United States Steel Corpora- tion Subsidiaries. It is a pioneering spirit-one that requires qualified men in all branches of engineering. See your Placement Officer for a copy of "Paths of Opportunity in U.S. Steel" if you would like to take part in these fascinating and important developments. AMERICAN BRIDGE CDMPANY • AMERICAN STEEL & WIRE CDMPANY • CARNEGIE.ILLINOIS STEEl CORPORATION. COLUMBIA STEEl COMPANY H. C. FRICK COKE AND ASSOCIATED COMPANIES • GENEVA STEEL COMPANY • GERRARD STEEl STRAPPING COMPANY MICHIGAN LIMESTONE &' CHEMICAL COMPANY. NATIONAL TUBE COMPANY. OIL WEll SUPPLY COMPANY. OLIVER IRON MINING COMPANY PITTSBURGH LIMESTONE CORPORATION • PITTSBURGH STEAMSHIP COMPANY • TENNESSEE COAL, IRON & RAILROAD COMPANY UNITED STATES STEEL EXPORT COMPANY • UNITED STATES STEEl PRODUCTS COMPANY. UNITED STATES STEEl SUPPLY COMPANY UNIVERSAL ATlAS CEMENT COMPANY. VIRGINIA BRIDGE COMPANY { • Recently the movie people filmed an oil Dow research is continuous in all divisions. gusher scene, using Methocel (Dow Methyl- This is only one chemical of many chemicals cellulose). This unusual material thickens vital to American industry and agriculture water, giving a solution which, with the right that Dow has developed. color added, resembles oil. Why go to such Dow produces more than five hundred essen. lengths? Because, Methocel solutions are non- tial chemicals from plants located in Michigan, inflammable, harmless to actors and are Texas, California, and Canada. These include readily washed off with water. major industrial chemicals, germicides and This, of course, is not a vital use of Methocel. fungicides, agricultural chemicals and "special" But it does indicate Methocel's great variety chemicals-new products which especially of applications. Countless industries, including reflect Dow's constant efforts to raise still paper, paint, leather, textiles, drug and cos- higher our standards of living. metics, utilize its widely applicable properties as a dispersing, thickening, stabilizing, emulsi- fying, binding and coating agent. ~! THE DOW CHEMICAL COMPANY. New York • Bo5'on • Philadelphia • Washington • MIDLAND, Cleveland • MICHIGAN Detroit • Chicago <--Dow.> ,.~ 1j Los Angeles • Sea"l •• St. Louis • Houston • Son Francisco Dow Chemical of Canatf., Limi.... , T.,.nto, Can .... CHEMICALS INDISPENSABLE TO. INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE Plastics where plastics belong Synthane where Synthane belongs H ERE'S Synthane at work in a channel selector turret .•• the nerve-center of any television receiver. Synthane is employed for a number of the intricate parts to insure extreme electrical and mechanical precision and rugged operation. It's an appropriate job for useful, hard-working Synthane ... a timely example of plastics where plastics belong. In addition, Synthane is moisture and corrosion resistant, hard, dense, easy to machine, and has unusual electrical insu- lating qualities. Synthane is also structurally strong, light in weight and stable over wide variations in temperature. These and many other properties-combined-make Syn- thane adaptable to countless chemical, electrical and mechanical applications. Synthane Corporation, 14 River Road, Oaks. Pa. SYNTHANE TECHNICAL PLASTICS • DESIBII • MATERIALS • EABRICATIDN • SHEETS • RDDS • TUBES • FABRICATED PARTS • MDLDED-MACEUTED • MDLDED-LAMIIlATEI SpartaN ENGINEER EDITOR Table of Contents CARROLL F. AUGUSTINE BUSINESS MANAGER articles • WAYNE F. KARBER The Civil Engineer - 5 EDITORIAL STAFF Professor C. L. Allen Associate Editor Production Line at MSC 6 Henry L. McFalls Leonard Karber Illustrations Editor Harold L. Robinson Detroit Television 8 Sam Berberian Makeup and Design Ronald Randall Much Ado About Rubber 10 Departments Henry McFalls Henry Darlington Henery deGeus Unit Operations Lab 12 Ann Kapp John R. Gregor Harold Fritz Tom Leonard Charles Paul Then and Now 14 Professor M. M. Cory StaR Vernon Baker Sam Berberian departments • Roger Bohl Richard Cade Campus News - 15 John Gregor Irving Katz The Societies 16 Bill Throop We Present 18 Gerald Walter Joseph Whitney New Developments 20 Sidetracked 32 BUSINESS STAFF The Cover This Issue: Tapping the cupola furnace in the Michi- Mark Doty gan State College foundry. Leonard Karber Bob Noren Frontispiece: Storage tank at the General Electric Chemical Frank Siebentritt Department's new silicone plant at Waterford, N. Y. -Courtesy of General Electric. Photographs by The Spartan Engineer is published by the students of the School Steve Bransdorfer of Engineering, Michigan State College. Editorial and Business Bob Swanson offices, Room 512, Electrical Engineering Building, P. O. Box 468, East Lansing, Michigan. Price per issue, 25 cents. THE CIVIL ENGINEER Professor C. L. Allen ENGINEERING . "It has lengthened life; it has mitigated pain; it has extinguished dIsease; II has Increased the fertility of the soil; it has given new secunty to manner; It has furnished new arms to the warrior' it has spanned great rIVers and estuaries with forms unknown to our fathers' II ha~ gUIded the thunderbolt innocuously from heaven to earth, i~ has ltghted up the night with the splendor of the day; it has exte';ded the range oF. the human VISIon; it has accelerated motion' it has an.mhtlated d,stance; . It has facilitated intercourse, correspondence all fnendly offices, all dIspatch of business; it has enabled man to des~end to the depths of the sea, to soar into the air, to penetrate securely mto the noxlO.us recesses of the earth, to traverse land in cars which whIrl ?long WIthout horses, and the ocean in ships which run against the WInd . .:.. : It is a philosophy which never rests, which has never attained, whIch IS never oedect. Its law is progress." -Lord Macauley's Essay on' Bacon, ] 837 Professor C. L. Allen THERE WAS A TIME, a long while ago, early in ~igh~ ~appen when two substances were brought the history of the human race, when there were only mto mtlmate contact, and by the fact that the re- two kinds of engineer. One was an integral part sulting compound could have, and frequently did of the armed forces of those days and did all their have different properties from its ingredients. The engineer who collected facts from the science of engineering. He was called a military engineer. The chemistry and applied them to manufacturing on a other one did all the many kinds of engineering large scale for the use and convenience of mankind needed by the civilian populations of ancient times was called a chemical engineer. whether they were at peace or at war. He was called The list is a long one, of the different kinds of a civil engineer to distinguish him from his colleague engineers who today play their part in our modern in the service. There were just the two kinds of way of life. To name only a few, there are agricul- engineer, civil and military, military and civil. tural engineers, mining engineers, metallurgical en- As the years went by and the centuries rolled past gineers' aeronautical engineers, petroleum engineers, into history, the needs of mankind became more naval enginers and so on through a list of engineers numerous and more diversified, especially in the field all of whom are the children or grand children of their of the civil engineer. And so numerous were these progenitor, the civil engineer, who in the beginning needs and of such widely different characteristics that had no other colleague than the military engineer. no civil engineer could hope to have a detailed knowl- But although the ancient profession of civil en- edge of all the branches of the profession. And so gineering has been divided and subdivided and divided after a while engineers specialized in some of the again, the field of the civil engineer is still a large and man y kinds of civil engineering. important one and the practitioner of the profession There were those who specialized in machines and need never be fearful that "civil engineering" will mechanical devices, and they were called mechanical vanish and he'll be out of a job. engineers. James Watt, for instance, specialized in The City Council of "Smallburg" assembles as pumps powered by steam. He devised the steam pump usual for its Monday night meeting. The Council because the coal mines of Cornwall had reached such has important business to transact tonight. The a depth that they were flooded by ground water and members have heard rumors that a new factory of couldn't be worked any more without the help of a big corporation is to be built near the west city better pumps than were then in use. limits and there is an air of expectancy in their bear- Somewhat later the engineer and scientist, working ing and a suppressed excitement because the coming together, discovered how to use the force of electricity of the factory will mean more wealth for Small burg. to run machinery, and the profession of electrical It will mean more population, more weekly payrolls, engineering was born. more business and an increase in the value of taxable In recent years engineers worked out a system for property. using the explosive power of gasoline to run an So when the prosperous appearing stranger rises engine, and automotive engineering came into being and asks permission to address the council. the mem- and Detroit grew from a small town to a metropolis. Mankind has always been fascinated by what continued on page 22 5 January, 1949 PRODUCTION LINE AT MSC LEONARD KARBER, M.E. '49 EVER YONE LIKES TO BRAG once in awhile. Here at MSC we are proud of the fact that to our knowledge we have the only machine shop produc- tion line at an accredited university in the country. How did this come about? Let us tell you the history and why a production line was adopted. In 1946 after attending a mechanical engineers' conference at St. Louis, Mo., Dean Miller brought back the idea that some sort of production line set-up should be installed in the machine shop at MSC. The basic idea would be to accommodate a larger number of students taking the machine courses and to acquaint the students with the more modern methods, benefits, and problems of production. After due con- sideration in which the pros and cons of the situation were discussed by Professors Miller, Price, and Van- derslice' an air compressor was chosen as meeting all Facing the breather side of the crankcase with a No. 5 Reed- the requirements set forth during discussion in the Prentice vertical mill. Watching (left to right), Professor Van- best possible manner. Included in the discussion were derslice, M. M. Josephonson, E. L. Clark, and E. L. Bell. ease of change-over dependent upon production two more ME 387 classes. machine availability, benefit to the school and to During all this time Prof. Vanderslice had been the students, cost and disposability of the finished getting and arranging war surpl us machinery specific- product dependent upon the demand for the product. ally to help with production. Individually powered A program of change-over was started in which the lathes replaced the older belt drive models. Turret help of Mr. Posthumus was enlisted in making the lathes were obtained. A large vertical milling machine patterns for the crankcase, cylinder, cylinder head, supplemented by smaller horizontal mills completed .flywheel. crankshaft and breather. All patterns were the necessary power tools. Rearrangement of all tools made with an eye to long life and production. For was necessary to get the maximum benefit of the example, the cylinder heads are cast by the use of a limited floor space. With no machine shop courses match plate. Professor Sigerfoos in the foundry being held during the summer of 1948, the time was modified the shop floor and installed regular casting used to complete many of the jigs and fixtures neces- lines for high production. sary to start the classes for fall term and to complete Setting up the Machine Shop the rearrangement of machinery. Professors Vander- In the winter and spring terms of 1947 soon after slice, Flory, McCurrey and a number of students Dean Miller returned, the manufacturing methods worked on the jigs and fixtures while Mr. Watt made course, ME 387, was revised and taught with the the gages. The heat treat department was called upon idea of designing jigs and fixtures for set-up of the to harden many tools and gages and, later, the piston machining operations for the air compressor. During pins when the compressors went into production. the summer of 1947 many problems were settled, Manufacturing Fits of the' Compressor so that by the time the fall term came around serious The tolerances used on the air compressor are in consideration could be given to the designing and general about the same as used in commercial produc- adoption of certain jigs and fixtures. Many senior tion in an automobile engine or in a regular piston students elected the making of dies, jigs, and fixtures displacement air compressor. The closest fit is on the as their senior problems to help get the air compressor bronze main bearing bushing having a tolerance of production started. There were also available by +0.0005" and -0.0000". Other tolerances range the end of spring term the jig and fixture designs of from -0.001" to +0.005". 6 SPARTAN ENGINEER Material of the Compressor against the rough cored hole in the center of the The compressor was designed with simplicity and cylinder. The base of the cylinder is then machined ease of maintenance as the keynote but without the perpendicular to the cored hole and a slight counter- sacrifice of reliability. The crankcase is one piece of bore machined on the bottom of the bore to start cast iron with the top milled flat to receive the cylin- the piston and rings in the cylinder. From the Reed- der, also of cast iron. One side of the crankcase is of Prentice lathe the cylinder goes to a Warner and heavy section to hold the main bearings. Bronze Swazey turret lathe where the squared base is now bushings are pressed into the crankcase for the crank- used as the locater and the cylinder is bored to size shaft. On the opposite side of the crankcase is an with the assurance that the cylinder bore and base aluminum breather. The breather is of the open type are perpendicular. Other machine work dependent in which a tortuous passage is incorporated to reduce upon locating from the base may be performed in the loss of oil. Four drilled ears are cast on the bottom turret lathe thereby saving a number of different of the crankcase, one on each corner, as a means of setting-up operations. bolting to a frame. The crankshaft is single throw with a two-inch stroke and made of cast iron. It is supported by the main bearings in the crankcase. The bearings are lubricated by a wire ring which dips into the oil in the crankcase and carries it up to the crankshaft from where it flows to the bearing. The rod is locked into place on the overhung crank and is lubricated by a drilled dipper which strikes the oil in the crankcase and forces it up to the rod bearing. The rod, a forging, is given special atten- tion during machining to maintain the center dis- tances between pin and crank holes when boring these components. The cylinder is fastened to the crank- case by four bolts screwing into tapped holes in the crankcase. The aluminum piston, carrying two com- pression rings, is lubricated by oil mist thrown up by splash created by the rod dipper striking the sump Three MSC students perform final assembly work in the manu- oil. The cast iron head and cylinder are generously facture of air compressors under the supervision of Professor finned for cooling. The head is fastened to the cylin- Ralph Vanderslice (second from right). Students (left to right) der by four Allen head screws. Into the head are Richard Waggoner, Lester Pond, and Thomas Antzack add parts which go together to make up the finished compressor at far screwed the brass valve inserts which are formed from right hexagon bar stock on a Bardons and Oliver turret lathe. The valves are small steel disks stamped out EHorts for Improvement in a punch press. Atmospheric air pressure is used To make a better product, continuous research is to open the inlet valve and compression pressure carried out by the school staff and students. Almost operates the exhaust valve. The valves are held any day if one passes the machine shop, he will find against the seats by small wire springs. All parts a compressor being test run for oil tightness, long except piston rings, sealing gaskets, bolts and screws life, and the best point of operation. Some senior are made in the machine shop by regular class stu- students have the problem of finding the optimum dents. Standard piston rings are purchased from a operating speed of the compressor and also to experi- ring manufacturer and used on the pistons. ment with varying rates of valve springs and oper- Inspection and Assembly ating pressures. Continuous research is also being Each individual part is inspected by the student carried on as to the best jigs and fixtures to use to during the machining operation. The student has get better and more accurate products with quicker near the tool a number of "go--no go" gages which set-up and tear down times. Improvements are con- are applied to the part if possible. The finished part tinuously being sought as problems come up during from a certain operation has a choice of two routes. class periods. If the machining operation is the last one the part Sale of the compressors is limited to students only. goes to the assembly table. If there is still work to In this way engineering students who have worked be done on the part such as drilling or tapping the on and helped design a product have a chance to use part goes to the next machine to be worked upon. it at home. For example: let us take two steps in the machining The engineering staff and those associated with the of the cylinder. From the rough cast state the cylinder work feel that they have a good product and that goes to a Reed-Prentice lathe. The cylinder is held most of the aims originally proposed by Dean Miller in place by an expanding busning which is forced have been carried out. 7 January, 1949 DETROIT TELEVISION SAM BERBERIAN Mth GRAD Early in 1943, the Evening News Association, The remote installation includes two cameras, and parent of radio station WW J and the Detroit News, auxiliary equipment. A power system is built into became interested enough in television to spend some the truck, so that the entire equipment can be oper- time and money on a survey of its commercial poten- ated in the absence of an external power source. The tialities. Having already pioneered the first commer- selected picture from the remote cameras is beamed cial AM broadcasting station in the country, and the by a microwave relay transmitter to the top of the first commercial FM station in Michigan, WW J was Penobscot Building. where it is received, and piped fitted, at least by precedent, to pioneer in television. by coaxial cable to the master control panel in the After a short pause for nation identification, World main control room. War II, WW J put its plans in writing. The first orders for TV equipment were placed early in 1946. Delivery delays prevented completion of the installa- tion until March 4, 1947, when WWDT (later changed to WW J -TV) began broadcasting experi- mentally on a limited, but regular schedule. The early programming was limited to test pattern, with a musical background. WW J -TV began its adult life as Michigan's first commercial TV outlet on June 3, 1947. The first day's menu included a tele- cast of a Detroit Tigers' baseball game at Briggs' Stadium. WWJ-TV has since maintained a mInI- mum broadcasting schedule of 28 hours per week. which is a condition of its operating license. The Installation WW J -TV uses two studios, one located in the Detroit News Building at Second Boulevard and Lafa yette; the other is located in the WW J Building Paul Williams and the remote cameras follow the puck at a across the street. Each studio has its own control Red Wing hockey game. room, where the pictures from three floor cameras are Still another video cable connects the master control monitored: if a scene is being televised simultaneously panel to the Bell Telephone Building, which supplies by several cameras, which is the usual case, it is the WWJ-TV with shows from the Midwestern tele- job of the director, who is located in the control vision network. room, to select the picture from the camera whose The final step of the selection process takes place perspective is most suited to the sequence being pre- at the master control panel, where the video control sented. The selected picture signal. and its associated engineer has, at his fingertips, pictures from either of sound signal. are piped by coaxial cable to a master the two studios, the film projection equipment. the control panel in the main control room, located also remote-pick-up truck, or the network line. The final in the Detroit News Building. One end of the main selected signal is piped coaxially to the transmitter control room is devoted to film televising equipment, in the Penobscot Building. where the program is "put which is also connected coaxially to the master con- on the air." trol panel. About WXYZ - TV The transmitter and transmitting antenna are Station WXYZ-TV, owned and operated by the located atop the Penobscot Building, rated at 588 American Broadcasting Company, began its com- feet above street level. mercial life on October 9, 1948. It has carried pro- WW J- TV also operates an RCA remote-pick-up grams from the ABC network since its inaugural day. truck. used to televise its out-of-studio programs. which featured the MSC-Notre Dame football game. 8 SPARTAN ENGINEER The station operates one remote-pick-up truck, to present wrestling from Fairview Gardens. Detroit equipped with three cameras, and micro-waved to Lions fotball from Briggs' Stadium, World Series the top of the Maccabees Building. All other equip- baseball from Cleveland, the Catholic Youth Organ- ment. including transmitters and two complete ization football games, ete. studios, is located in the Maccabees Building. In the future, Detroit can be sure of enjoying out- standing baseball games from just about any major- league city; all Notre Dame home football games; all U. of M. home football games; ditto for the Detroit Lions. In particular, barring the unforeseen, this year's MSC- U. of M. game will be telecast to the Detroit area. Sports, of course, haven't been the only fare. Films, puppet shows, election returns, variety shows, sym- phonies, panel discussions, plays, sports demonstra- tions, Michigan State College football, newscasts, MSC football. and many other exciting events have been televised with more or less success. The location of WJBK-TV's studios in the Masonic Temple will bring Detroit's outstanding musical events to the video audiences. As for film, we quote from the October 8 Detroit The WWJ-TV remote cameras will bring the State-U. of M. Free Press: "Hollywood's present decree is that no foot ball game into your home next fall. The Voice of Experience In a recently televised panel discussion of TV employment conditions. Mr. Harry Bannister. general manager of WWJ, WWJ-FM. and WWJ-TV. was asked this question: "Why is it that after years of college training, leading to a B.A. or M.A. degree, the young announcer still has difficulty in securing a position with a TV station?" "Experience!". an- swered Mr. Bannister. and went on to explain in detail what he considered were essential attributes of a good announcer. At the end of the discussion, the camera was switched to the studio announcer, who. in his most professional monotone, and with a per- fectly straight face, made his stock closing statement: Father Flannegan of Boystown was one of Ted Grace's guests on "The opinions expressed on this program do not the WWJ- TV evening news program. necessarily reflect the views of the management. feature films may be used on television until they This is station WWJ-TV ... " have had seven years of theater distribution." What's in It for Me? Educational TV of the future will not very likely "Most New Yorkers who buy television sets do so include college students, owing to make-up difficulties. primarily to see sports events." (Market Research The Detroit News, in its February 1 1. 1948, issue Service. quoted in the Detroit Free Press, October 8, states: "Circles under the eyes are greatly exagger- 1948.) Anticipating a similar reaction in Detroit, ated. " WW J -TV and WXYZ- TV have made sports The Telegenic Correspondent events an important part of their programming. An amusing illustration of the sharp difference WW J -TV has presented: horse racing at the Fair between radio and television techniques cropped up grounds, baseball at Briggs' Stadium, U. of M. foot- at the Democratic National Convention in Phila- ball at Ann Arbor, Red Wing hockey at the Olympia, delphia. stompin' at the Savoy, basketball, bowling, midget The American Broadcasting Co. had arranged for auto racing, swimming, wrestling, boxing, in short, a combined radio and video broadcast from the lobby just about everything except a crap game. WXYZ- of the Bellevue Stratford Hotel at noon on opening TV, showing excellent taste by televising, as the day. Gordon Fraser, veteran ABC war correspondent. feature of its opening day, the football game between had been stationed at the microphone in front of the Michigan State College and a well-known inde- television cameras. pendent operating out of South Bend, has gone on continued on page 31 9 January, 1949 MUCH ADO ABOUT RUBBER HENRY L. McFALLS CHE JR It can be said that chemistry's greatest war-time achievement was that of fabricating the synthetic rubber industry. 1940 WAS A CRITICAL YEAR in the history of free-thinking men, for it was at this time that the Office of Rubber Reserve instituted and guided the stockpiling of rubber in the U. S. In 1940 we had 125,000 tons in excess of our immediate needs. By December 7, 1941. we had stored up 634,000 long tons of that precious material. Now 634,000 tons of rubber does not sound like much to start a war with, but it was hoped that it would be sufficient to carry the country's need until such time that syn- thetic could be produced in quantity. The realization of that goal was to result from the largest industrial undertaking ever attempted by man. Fortunately, the rubber industry had done considerable "test-tube!' experimentation and some small scale production, but the job of expanding to large scale production was a colossal undertaking. Whereas the automobile indus- try came into its own in about 25 years, mass syn- thetic rubber production was afforded no such leisure. Three years was the'limit and that deadline was met to the extent that in 1944' the new industry was Figure 1. Two pressure reactors used in copolymerization of producing 850,000 tons annually. America's rub- GR-S synthetic rubber. ber independence had become an accomplished fact. In production it was found that one of the favor- Most of the rubber produced during these war years able characteristics of American made synthetic rub- was of a single type labeled GR-S (Government ber was that it had less tendency to scorch in process- Rubber-Styrene) and by mid-1945 production of ing than did corresponding stocks of natural rubber. this famous formula marched to the tune of one mil- The manufacturing processes established during the lion tons a year. GR-S wasn't a perfect rubber by any war were on operating speeds best suited for the means, but it was the best to be had at the time for manufacturer of synthetic stocks. Since, however, the general purpose. Other specialties appeared as their re-introduction of natural crude rubber has presented need was felt. a problem in that the operating speeds have to be Problems of the Industry adjusted again to suit both types of raw material. Since the war's end, the main interest within the Outsiders may find it surprising but there still remains synthetic rubber industry has shifted from solving a need for precision control of vulcanization processes. production quantity problems to that of perfecting It has been estimated that this inability has cost at and diversifying the products. To be more specific, least one of the large rubber manufacturers in excess tire manufacturers are looking for special polymers of a million dollars a year in material loss alone. for particular uses, such as treads, heavy duty car- Research must find better vulcanization retarders cases and inner tubes. White sidewall tires have which will, in effect, inact~vate accelerators, or sulfur, always presented a particular problem in that the in such a way as to permit more precise control. wall stock has had a tendency to crack and check in Another major problem research is attempting is service. This latter difficulty can be overcome by the the development of a pigment having all of the ad- use of antioxidants, but the present available anti- mirable characteristics of channel black, but lacking oxidants when used in sufficient quantities to over- that very undesirable high hysteresis or heat build-up come cracking cause the white stock to turn brown. effect which so often results in blowouts. This was one of the first problems taken on by In numerous other industrial products divisions, researchers after the war. it has been found that rubber parts made from most 10 SPARTAN ENGINEER BUTADIENE ANTlQUQANlS COAGULANTS STYRENE Aboue are shown the six major steps of GR-S production. The process beginning with the manufacture of the polymerization monomers. of the commercially available rubbers change proper- man-made elastomers, and any such adjacent sphere ties when subjected to temperatures below _10 0 F. of chemical and engineering curiosity as may be indicating a need for more tailor-made rubbers. This thought worthy of investigation. The plans for this deficiency has 1;>eenespecially prominent in the case new laboratory were originally conceived in 1942, of sealing gaskets for low temperature operations. but before ground was broken in 1946 many vital Conversely, the trend in the industry to higher oper- considerations had to be taken into account. To men- ating temperatures requires more heat-resisting ad- tion a few of the major decisions will illustrate the hesives, tank linings and allied products of sufficient layman's picture of how important proper planning quality to satisfy 'the growing demand. is in such an undertaking. Last. but not least, is the need for more tools so 1. Research at Goodrich was designed to be a long that the development engineer may better evaluate range proposition involving problems not necessarily and make use of new properties not heretofore con- pertinent to present, now immediate future, produc- sidered. Indeed, apparently simple questions such as tion, but none-the-less fashioned to anticipate the these have come to the engineer's attention: What growth of the company into permanent and profit- makes a fan belt squeak. and how can such a belt able activities. be tested to determine whether or not it will squeak? 2. Previously the research department was all These and many other problems are uppermost in the too frequently called upon to go on bug-hunting mind of research chemists and engineers. expeditions along the production lines. To avoid Goodrich Development this inconvenience as well as get away from the un- While these are examples of the more common desirable noise, dirt and vibrations born of the city, variety of everydaY' problem, the rubber industry it was decided that the new center should be located today has its main spotlight focused on an horizon somewhere outside of the city of Akron. of unlimited research. High-powered wartime re- 3. As to the exact location it was found that in search uncovered many new products and processes order to avoid these vibrations. which might easily in the world of organic chemistry and syntheses disturb supersensitive recording instruments, the which are encouraging and necessitating extensive buildings must be at least one mile from a railroad research programs within many fields today. and 75 yards from any highway bearing heavy B. F. Goodrich, alone, has invested a tidy 6,000,- trucks. 000 dollars in the future by building one of the 4. Utilities such as water, gas and electricity had most, if not the most up-to-date research center in to be constantly available in large quantities and ... the world. Its design is such as to accommodate 5. It was necessary to have a location affording multifarious exploitation in the field of natural and continued on page 26 11 January, 1949 UNIT OPERATIONS LAB M S C's Minerature Chemical Engineering Industry JOHN S. GREGOR CHE SR Representative equipment for most of the chemical industry's major operations can be found here. Designed to acquaint the student with industrial equipment and methods, the lab serves also to chan- nel thinking into the practical engineering aspects of chemistry. Industrial scale reactions and tolerances are learned here to supplement and in some cases to supplant the test tube methods learned in the Kedzie laboratories. Actual reports following general en- gineering forms are prepared from work done here and data and calculations are discussed. A tour of the laboratory would reveal that eight of the major unit operations of industry are dealt with. They are: fluid flow, drying, heat transfer, filtration, crushing and grinding, evaporation, dis- tillation, and gas absorption. Fluid Flow In the lab, studies are made of the loss of pressure due to friction in a pipe, the flow of fluid through an expansion and contraction, measurement of flow by a constriction in a pipe, and the measurement of gas flow with a pitot tube. Practical applications of these problems concern every engineer. The simple acts of turning on a faucet, asking for 50 cents worth of gasoline, or ordering a draught beer at the local pub involve fluid flow problems. Manufacturing, delivery, and dis- posal facilities are all concerned. Heat Exchange The new Vulcan 24 plate distillation column located in the Chemical Engineering building. Most people don't think of an automobile radiator as a type of heat exchanger similar to their new elec- THIS IS A SECRET of the chemical engineers which tric refrigerator, but in principle it is. Heat is taken we are now exposing. One of the reasons for the from the engine by water and passed into the air heightened interest in the unit operations laboratory through the walls of the radiator; whereas in the north of the Electrical Engineering building is the heat exchangers used commercially hot water or new Vulcan fractional column. steam is used to heat cold water. This is essentially the same type of distillation In the lab corner devoted to heat exchange units column used in the alcohol industry to refine the there is a Bell and Gossett multi-tube exchanger which product of fermentation. Although it probably fundamentally consists of several pipes surrounded by won't produce bonded scotch, nevertheless there is a a jacket. Cold fluid passes through the pipes and is gleam in the chemists' eyes as they emerge. heated by steam condensing in the jacket. The Vulcan 24 plate fractional column which Another type unit assisting in holding down this operates upon the th~ory of separating a liquid mix- corner is an ammonia type concentric tube exchanger ture by vaporizing the various components at dif- which is a small tube inside a larger pipe. Heat is ferent temperatures and pressures, is only one of the transferred from a hot fluid in the larger pipe to the many industrial units which comprise the laboratory. cold fluid in the tube. This process serves a double 12 SPARTAN ENGINEER purpose: it serves to cqol the hot fluid, as in a to make the yield commercially usable. Hydrogen refrigerator, or it heats the cold incoming feed to sulphide, the familiar "rotten egg" odor, if present process temperature. in gasoline, not only smells bad, but corrodes the Evaporation cylinder walls and other parts of the engine as well. The principle of the multi-tube exchanger serves A gas absorption tower works primarily like another purpose, evaporation. By passing steam "Airwick" and other deodorizers now on the market. through the inner pipe and surrounding it with a In order for a person to be able to smell something, solution, a portion of the solution can be driven off the odor must be in the form of a vapor, and the by evaporation leaving behind a concentrated solution Airwick selectively absorbs the objectionable vapor or a suspension of crystals. This is, in effect, what from the air to the liquid in the bottle. causes boiler scale when water is driven off and the In an industrial absorption tower this effect is less volatile compounds in the water remain behind. achieved by spraying a liquid for which the desired A Vulcan single effect evaporator with a salt filter. gas or vapor has great affinity down the tower. At is used to boil down a liquid to the desired concen- the same time the mixture of gases and vapors is tration after which it is drawn off. This type of passed up the tower, thus obtaining the desired evaporator is used when substances which crystallize transfer. out are involved. The absorption tower in the lab has been set up A multiple effect evaporator, also in the lab, com- to remove carbon dioxide from other gases. The bines several single effect units to concentrate the feed student is asked, through knowledge gained in work- gradually as it moves from one evaporator to the ing with this tower, to design an actual industrial next. This type is used for many jobs which the tower of his own to meet certain given specifications. single effect unit can not handle. When a solid substance is insoluble in a liquid, Differing from the evaporator in that it separates such as clay in water, mechanical separation by filtra- various liquids instead of a solid from a liquid is tion can be accomplished. The action of this process the distillation unit mentioned before. is that of a strainer with the solid particles left behind as a moist "cake" and the liquid passing through the strainer or filter medium. The laboratory experiment covering this operation is built around the economic aspect of engineering. As mentioned previously, three of the most widely used industrial types of filter press, the Oliver rotary drum type, the Sperry plate and frame, and the Sweetland leaf type are run by the student. With the data gathered, plus certain figures given concerning the initial cost of each machine, labor costs, ete., the student is asked to decide which press is best for a given set of conditions. Here, as in all the operations, is a task directl y related to the work that the chemical engineer is required to perform in industry. And, once again, the work required is practical as well as educational. Drying, or the separation of a small amount of liquid from a large amount of solid by vaporization, Mr. LilJingood, of the Chemical Engineering Department, laking plays a major role in many industrial processes. Soap data on the heat exchanger. In the background is the chips and corn flakes are but two of many products multiple effect evaporator. which must be dried before they are ready for public use. Gas Absorption Commercially, a dry gas, usually air, is passed So far, separation of a solid from a liquid and over the material to be dried and takes moisture from separation of liquids have been considered. A look it. The main problem is to have the air at just the into gas absorption, or the separation of a liquid proper humidity so that the right amount of moisture from a gas or the separation of two gases is now will be removed and the product will be uniformly in order. dry. Actually, drying is a specialized form of the In industry it is often economically sound to evaporation principle. recover certain gases from a process and sell them as The operation at Michigan State is performed by-products or use them in other reactions. Carbon with a Koch batch type duct electrically heated dry- dioxide, for instance, retails at sixteen dollars per ing oven and is concerned with the drying of a sand hundred pounds. On the other hand, certain gases are undesirable in a product, and must be removed continued on page 30 13 January, 1949 The salary was 75 dollars a month. The wor~ ,:as THEN AND NOW general. including the mappi~g of the transn:l~s~on and distribution system, checkmg meter test actl':'ltles, installing a water wheel. ete. It was good expenence, but ended very suddenly when the manager and I PROFESSOR M. M. CORY had a disagreement-he won. !:I Two days after the disagreement I went to work as an investigator in the commercial department of the Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light company. A salesman would dig up a prospect and one of us would visit the prospect's plant, collect and analyze all the necessary data in order to find out whether it was feasible to convert from steam to electric power. The man under whom I worked, an Ohio State graduate, was a stickler for facts and wan~ed a true report even if it meant losing a prospective custo- mer. The pay was the same as before but in tho~e days (1912) that was not so bad. It wa~ about t~IS time that I thought seriously about teachmg as a hfe work. I had had a little experience in that line while in college, substituting for the instructor in wood- working who resigned during the school year. The foregoing was THEN. The picture now is different. With the great ad- vances in the theory and practice of electricity the content of the electrical curricula has undergone a decided change. The fundamentals are the same (it Professor Cory is MKS now instead of cgs) but the applications have increased by leaps and bounds, sometimes theory leads IT DOESN'T SEEM so very long ago, although it practice-sometimes trails. Our text books in the old was 40 years this spring, that I started the General days hardly mentioned the electron, complex q~an- Electric Test Course in Lynn, Massachusetts. Having tities were just appearing and differential equations graduated from college the previous June, I had all and hyperbolic functions were for math students, .n~t of the late graduate's convictions about the amount us engineers, unless we took a P. G. course. As It IS of knowledge I had absorbed during the previous now, we are not bothered as to what to give the four years. My ideas soon changed. student, but what to leave out without doing too The starting "salary" was 20 cents an hour and much damage. a week was 55 working hours. That was great- Now our graduates (at least some of them) enter both the pay and the hours. Looking back six years training courses which include some of the things w.e before that, I started out as a machinist's apprentice had, but in addition, electronics with all of the raml- earning seven and a half cents an hour and putting fications, radio, television, highly specialized motor in 60 hours a week. The weekly "take home" pay control systems, transportation equipment for land, was four dollars and a half, and in those days it air and water, and so on to three decimal places. wasn't just peanuts. But to get back to G. E., by And the starting salary expected by our graduates working overtime my average pay was 12 to 14 dol- has gone through the same progressive development lars a week and once it was 19 dollars and 60 cents- until now a mere $250 a month is almost an insult riches! to a college-educated man, even though he does not The two years of the course, completed in 21 know the difference between an ohm sifter and a months by working overtime, were all spent on the pillar impedance. Of course, times and prices have test floor. We were taught all of the standard and changed; then, eggs 15 cents a dozen, now 80 cents; many special tests on small (1 to 20 horsepower) then, milk 6 cents a quart, now 21 cents, and so on. motors and generators, railway motors, arc lighting I even remember buying a mighty good suit in one and arc light photometry, meters and instruments, of Boston's good stores for eight dollars and a half. current potential and current transformers and finally You pay nearly as much for a necktie now. turbines and turbo-generators. That covered nearly I am nearly done rambling, but there are a few all of the main products of the plant. things our seniors should think about when they Graduating from the test course my next job was leave college and here are one or two of them. with the Janesville Electric Company in Wisconsin. continued on page 25 14 SPARTAN ENGINEER CAMPUS NEWS _ Annual Concrete Conference Held at MSC print Record presents news and scientific developments The first annual Michigan Concrete Conference in the field of engineering. Each week some member was held at Michigan State College December first of the Engineering school will discuss topics in his and second. The conference was sponsored by the field. Prof. Chester L. Allen, head of the department MSC School of Engineering in cooperation with the of civil engineering. is supervising the program. Michigan State Highway Department and the Port- James T. Anderson. instructor in mechanical en- land Cement Co. gineering. is representing ASEE in planning programs The conference, first of its kind held in Michigan, and assisting with supervision. was designed for general contractors, road builders. architects, municipal and county engineers, ready- Noted Physicist on Campus mix concrete dealers and consulting engineers. On Friday, Nov. 19, Dr. Joseph Kaplan, widely The welcoming address was delivered by Lorin G. known physicist of the Institute of Geophysics, Uni- Miller, Dean of the MSC School of Engineering. versity of California. spoke on the subject "The Highlights of the Wednesday program were talks by Upper Atmosphere of the Earth" in the auditorium William Lerch, applied research manager of the Port- of the Kedzie Chemical Laboratory at Michigan State land Cement Association, on "History and Basic College. Dr. Kaplan is now head of the physics Principles of Air-Entrained Concrete." "The State department at the University of California. In his Highway System as a Contributor to Education" was lecture he discussed the physical aspects of the upper discussed by Highway Commissioner Charles M. atmosphere and the role that the "V-2" rockets are Ziegler. playing in upper atmosphere research. Included as speakers on the Thursday program The appearance of Dr. Kaplan was sponsored by were E. A. Finney. research engineer of the Michigan Sigma Xi. scientific research fraternity. State Highway Department; Stanton Walder, direc- tor of engineering of the National Ready-Mixed Con- Illuminated "Announcements" Cabinet crete Association, and Harry L. Concord, director of An innovation in the form of a unique artistic the Michigan Chapter of Associated General Con- announcement cabinet attracts attention on entering the Olds Hall of Engineering. tractors. The illuminated announcement board will supply a definite need for publicizing various types of en- Well - - - Water! gineering meetings and facilitate the work of the In an experimental study of the ground water resources in the local area, conducted by Henry College Placement Bureau in making announcements Schwabe, Sr. CE, it has been found that the piezo- as to time and place of meetings with field representa- metric surface has steadily declined. tives from the various industries and employers here Water consumers in this area, Lansing and East to interview M.S.C. engineering graduates and sen- Lansing including MSC, have all greatly increased iors. According to Professor Stanley Radford. part- their pumping of this heretofore unlimited supply time Engineering Placement Counselor. the problem of well water. The steady decline of static levels of "getting the word around" has always been a tends to raise the question, is the area being over- difficult one. especially since representatives from in- drawn, is it unlimited, or has this tremendous in- dustry often come on short notice. crease in pumpage just lowered the static head locally? The idea for an "eye-catching" announcemen t Much interference in pumping has already appeared board started with Prof. C. L. Allen. Chairman of in the local pumpings. between stations. So, it is a the Engineering Publicity Committee. The design condition that exists that should be met with and of the illuminated announcement cabinet was the discussed by those concerned before it becomes a result of "teamwork" by "Norm" Sedlander and "Stan" Radford. both teachers in the Engineering problem. Drawing department. Mr. Sedlander contributed the artistic concept and Mr. Radford worked out the Engineers Now Have Own'Radio Program Every Monday evening at 6:30 over the college construction design of the cabinet by making the station WKAR-FM the School of Engineering pre- necessary working drawings and had general super- sents a 15 -minute radio program entitled, "Blueprint vision of its construction and installation. The construction of the cabinet was made possible Record." by the fine workmanship and coperativeness of Mr. Sponsored in cooperation with the local chapter George posthumus. Patternmaking teacher. of American Society for Engineering Education, Blue- 15 January, 1949 THE SOCIETIES-----------_ The M.S.C. Radio Club transmitter in operation. A smaller 50 Watt trans- The M.S.C. Amateur Radio Club has been mitter is being used for 80 meter C. W. operation. enjoying s some fine lectures and demonstrations This unit is a war surplus transmitter with a self I 'll, ,~ immediately . following the usually brief busi- ness meetings each Thursday evening. One of the demonstrations on types of antennas, propagation, effects was thoroughly given by Mr. Mert Nellis enjoyed. and polarization Recent interesting contained variable frequency ocilator. The 40 meter code transmitter is similar to the 80 meter code trans- mitter. Jim Strang, a senior member of the club, has kindl y loaned his 10 and 11 meter radio phone trans- mitter to the club. Preliminary reports indicate that lectures have included a discussion of the frequency its operation is quite good. The club's communica- response and design of audio amplifiers by Mr. Frank tions receiver is a war surplus BC-348Q on loan Pelton, a lecture on the principle of the Clapp circuit from the E. E. department. by Mr. Reickord, and pulse modulation techniques The club doesn't believe in all work and no play by Mr. Kramer. Mr. Eibert has also given a talk on -plans are now being made for the annual field day his C. W. keying monitor, which was published in and picnic during spring term. QST last year. American Society of Agricultural ~ngineers During Christmas vacation the club room ~~D~ was decorated and furnished. It will be a • iln pleasant place where club members and Farm Machinery short course students can spend those hours between classes. Farmers' Week will take place January 24-28. During this week there will be a display in the club r09m depicting the various fields in Agricultural Engineering, as well as some of the newer develop- ments in those fields. Club members are going to serve as guides in the Agricultural Engineering Build- ing; they will explain some of the new machinery and equipment to be displayed there. At the November 23rd meeting a very interesting talk was given on Lubrication by Mr. Hinkle of the Standard Oil Company. .1 A movie on Sug?r Beet Harvesting was shown to Amateur Radio Club holds weekly meetings. Licensed members the club at their December 7th meeting. and officers are (left to right), Lee Kistler, W8ZCI; Jim Strang, W8Y AP; Bud Chaney, W8UMI; Mert Nellis, W8CNC, Faculty AdvIsor; John Neuman, W 8U EO, Club Station Trustee; Dick Goldfogle, CraIg, W8AGJ, SWL, Club Treasurer; Ken Kortge, W8AHT; Club Secretary, and Ed Nes~man, W8ZKU, Art • The club station, W8SH, is again on the air and il ... open for transmitting radiograms to almost any part of the world. This is a free service on the part of all radio "Hams," the world over. Last year the dub broke its previous records in originating, relay- ing, and receiving messages. Its latest has been the relaying of a message from Peru to a student at M.S.C. The "shack" is now located in the tower of the new E. E. building, and a fresh supply of radiogram blanks is available. Due to enthusiastic response, plans are being made to continue the code and theory classes for those '" ~- .• Jl!: <~ ., .. , in terested. Officers of the ASAE are (left to right), Robe'";;Kieri;, Reporter; James Boyd, Faculty Advisor; Donald Feather, President; Allen At present there IS a 300 Watt, 75 meter phone Gillette, Vice President, and Vernon Clark, Treasurer. ]6 SPARTAN ENGINEER Pi Mu Epsilon Lorin G. Miller, Dea n 0 fEd ngineering, an F .. R The National Mathematics Honorary Soci- Theroux, widely known for his work in sanitary ety at M.S.C. meets approximately every two engineering. n weeks. Officers this year include: President, James • Powell; Vice President, Robert Houston; Sec- retary, Dale Hekhuis; Treasurer, Wendell Grove. Faculty advisors are: Dr. James H. Bell and Mrs. Barbara Houston. Meetings for winter term will be held on the fol- lowing dates in room 105 Berkey Hall: Tuesday, Jan. 18 ; Tuesday, Feb. 1; Tuesday, Feb. 15 (Ban- quet this date) ; Tuesday, March 1. Meetings are open to all persons interested in the field of mathematics. A banquet was held at Hunt's dining room immediately following the formal ceremony. The speaker was Harry C. Coons, Deputy Commissioner and Chief Engineer of the Michigan State Highway Department. Mr. Coons spoke on "The Organiza- tion of the State Highway Department." Sigma Pi Sigma The National Physics honor society at M.S.C. now numbers 34 active members and j.'1p '" ~" is led this year by John Brinkman. President; Har~y Macy, Secretary; Dick Kropschot, Vice PreSIdent, and Robert Houston, Treasurer. Faculty advisor is Dr. Noble of the Physics depart- ment. The SPS's held an outing at the W AA Cabin on Oct. 19 with the American Blue Plate speciaL THE HOT DOG. On Nov. 2 a business meeting was held at which time recommendations were accepted for new mem- bers. The new candidates were received into membership on Nov. 19. Those included as new members were: James M. Marnes, John L. Bottum, Chuan T. Officers of the AIChE: Standing (left to right), Reporter John R. MacKenzie, Treasurer William S. Springer, and Secretary Hsiung, Yu Chi Lin, Marjorie R. Petersen. Mary E. Charles C. Sisler. Seated (left to right), Faculty Advisor Ran- Williamson, and Harlan V. Ogle. dall W. Ludt, and President Wilbur W. Kennett. In addition, at this meeting a lecture and demon- stration was given of a Spark Source which is given oirth from 110 volts via a transformer into 2,000 Tau Beta Pi volts and whose gap is used for analytical work with The Michigan State chapter of Tau Beta Pi, national engineering honorary, initiated the spectograph. The materials being tested is used thirty-eight new student members and two as the electrodes. Mr. Weeks of the Physics depart- faculty members on Nov. 11. The require- ment presented this lecture with the demonstration. ments for admission are a 2.00 or better all- A meeting on Dec. 5 resulted in a demonstration college average as well as high standards of personal by studen ts John Bottum and Bill Warren of some of the more peculiar phenomena of liquid air in which qualifications. The two new faculty members are 17 January. 1949 had been granted. He had been told previously that WE it would be thirty years before his turn would come PRESENT up on the Russian quota. The consul informed him that the regulations had been changed to let the con- suls themselves decide who would make the most desirable citizens, and that Strelzoff had been picked for the next group. Upon arrival in the United States, Strelzoff took a job with a Boston firm of consulting engineers. Later he worked in New York and then in Penn- sylvania. While working for the Pennsylvania Power Co., he took graduate study in power transmission at Lehigh University. He worked on system stability problems while at the Pennsylvania Power Co., and becoming more interested in these problems, he ac- cepted a fellowship at Cornell University. He wrote his master's thesis there on system stability. Finishing that, he was assigned a problem by the General Electric Company on the undeveloped field of grid-controlled thyratron tubes. He presented his solution of this problem as his thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. From there he went to Keystone College where he decided that he enjoyed teaching, and following this he came to M.S.C. Dr. Strelzoff now devotes his time to the instruction of senior and graduate courses as JOSEPHA. STRELOZZ well as advising the local chapters of A.LE.E. and FROM THE BEGINNING Joseph A. Strelzoff, now LR.E. Professor Strelzoff of the M.S.C. Electrical Engineer- ing department, seemed headed for high scholastic attainment. SOCIETIES Born in Russia, his first academic stop was the Alexander III Institute of Technology in Chark~w, continued from page 17 the Russian equivalent of America's M.LT. How- ever, his stay there was not to be long. He was the audience participated after the presentation. Some drafted for military service, and at the outbreak of of these peculiarities include making a lead bell assume the revolution he was in Odessa at the Prince Sergei vibrant tones, and making a "spring" out of solder, Military School for Artillery Officers. or splintering a banana or .a hot dog upon being Strelzoff fought with the Imperial Army and par- dropped to the floor. ticipated in the last Russian offensive against the Plans for winter term are not complete but a Germans during the premiership of Kerensky. This banquet is planned for new members sometime in was followed by two years service in the White February. Army. After the defeat of the White Army, Strelzoff fled ' to Turkey and from there gained admission to Eng- American Institute of Electrical Engineering land. Staying in England a year, he went next to and The Institute of Radio Engineers Belgium where he entered the University of Liege. As acting secretary, Don Morgan, Jr., Being a refugee without any funds whatsoever, he tutored his fellow students to pay his way; sometimes even tutoring students in his own classes. After graduating from the University of Liege in 1923 with a degree in mechanical engineering, he took a position with Constructions Electriquer de + March. E.E., is replacing Mac Doolittle Present plans of the AlEE's and IRE's include: Wednesday, Jan. 12-A film on COPPER who re- cently shipped to England for an English bride. Mac is expected back sometime in at Belgium, where his future looked very promising. By which time a regular business meeting was held. November, 1928, Strelzoff had been promoted to the Chalmers Mfg. Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, spoke ?n Common Misconceptions on Electrical Engineer- position of technical secretary to the chief engineer. Ing. Ten days after receiving this promotion, he was Future plans will include speakers from RCA, notified that his visa for entry into the United States Stewart- Warner, and Michigan Bell. 18 SPARTAN ENGINEER American Society of Mechanical Engineers ' Mr. J. J. Edwards. who is General ~A~ Methods Engineer for Oldsmobile, gave an • interesting talk during the November 3rd meeting. Mr. Edwards explained the type of work his department was doing. which included the ex- planation of the Act Chart, Operator Training Sheet and the layout of the General Methods Department. A slide film was shown which traced a simple opera- tion and then showed how it could be improved. The speaker for the meeting of November 17th was Dr. Ernest J. Abbott of the Physicist Research Company of Ann Arbor. The topic was "Use of the Profilometer." The Profilometer is a direct- PROBLEM-You're designing a radio broadcast trans- reading instrument for measuring surface roughness mitter, The circuit includes condensers and other variable in definite inch units. With the aid of a slide film elements which must be adjusted by the operator. You want and one of the Profilometers. Dr. Abbott explained to place these elements for optimum circuit efficiency and how it worked and how it was developed. where they will be easy to assembly, wire, and service. At the same time, you want to centralize the control knobs at a American Society of Engineering Education point convenIent to the operator. How would you do it? Professor Brattin. as State A.S.E.E. President. announced that M.S.C. would be host for the State THE SIMPLE ANSWER meeting to be held here on May 7th. He stated that Use S.S.Whlte remote control type flexible shafts to couple speakers are being arranged for, and that the local the variable elements to their control knobs. This leaves you chapter will need to organize immediately to carry free to place both the elements and the knobs anywhere you out the program. want them. And you get control At present the State of Michigan requires licensed that is as smooth and sensitive engineers in all state engineering positions except as a direct connection because those of lowest rank. Responsible engineers in posi- S.S,Whlte remote control flexible tions involving public safety must also be licensed. shafts are engineered expressly The testimony of licensed engineers as witnesses in for this kind of service. court cases is more highly respected than that of non- registered engineers. Mr. Hall expects a bill to pass the state legislature soon defining the engineering posi- * * * tions and ranks which henceforth must be held by This is just one of hundreds registered engineers. In his opinion this bill will affect of remote control and power all responsible practicing engineers in a managing. drive problems to whIch planning, designing, supervisory, constructional. S.S.White flexible shafts pro- operational, or maintenance capacity. vide a simple answer. That's Professor McGrady then led a discussion period why every engineer should be during which questions on fees. examination pro- familiar with the range and cedure, and refresher courses were covered. Dean Mil- scope of these "Metal ler stated that the college administration would likely Muscles". for mechanical sponsor a M.S.C. faculty group in a refresher course bodies. to the extent of furnishing space and instruction for "Trademark Reg. U. S. Pat. Off.. the course for prospective licensees. and el.ewhere' Here's how one big radio manufacturer did it. The second general meeting of the year 1948-49 for the local M.S.C. chapter of A.S.E.E. was held WRITE FOR BULLETIN 4501 the eveping of December 2, 1948, in the main audi- It gives essential facts and engineer- torium of the new Agricultural Engineering build- Ing data about flexible shafts and ing; approximately 50 faculty members were present. their application. A copy Is yours for Discussion of registration for professional engineer- the askin9. Write today. / --:; "'-o....J ing brought out the fact that an examination would be given next June and that it would be a good idea to hold an examination here at M.S.C. if a large enough faculty group prepares for it. It would be S.S.WHITE 1H; •.•. :HITI DENTAl MfG. co. INDUSTRIAL ~ DIVISION - Dlr,. C, 10 lAst .00 S1•• HIW YO•• '6. N. Y. _ more convenient than an examination in Detroit and .'1...... "".un • ' .. a'lMl...... tOOt •• A'I(I"''' ,,