Referee's report by Francis Henry Neville, on a paper 'The properties of Aluminium-Tin alloys' by W Carrick Anderson and George Lean

Description

Sectional Committee: Physics and Chemistry

Not recommended for publication in Philosophical Transactions and feels some difficulty in expressing an opinion as to the value of the paper. The time is almost past in this branch of metallurgy for a paper so vague as this in its aims, results, and use of known theory. Regards this as a preliminary paper for the 'Proceedings', it has some value.

Discusses some points that should be attended to before publication. Explains why the upper curve of diagram one should not be called a 'cooling curve'. For the lower curve he can find no account in the paper of the values of the experiments by which this curve was determined and no clear explanation of the meaning of the curve. Seeks clarification on a point on page four regarding whether it is the aluminium rich part of the alloy which is attacked and destroyed. Asks if at the bottom of page five Neville and Heycock mean 'saturated liquid solution'. The authors leave many of their photographs without any reference or description. Neville thinks photographs without careful explanation and discussion are useless. Thinks photographs two and six, which appear to indicate a recrystallisation of the solid chilled alloy during annealing, might be described and published, as well as numbers nine, twelve and fourteen which show another kind of recrystallisation. Figures fifteen to eighteen do not give any information of value. Presumes the Society would leave it to the authors to select the photographs, provided only one plate was needed.

Thinks the authors are very far from having proved the results of what they say on the last page of their paper, but have obtained results which give the hope that this group of alloys, when more minutely studied, will be brought into line with others that are already understood.

[Published in Proceedings of the Royal Society, 1903].

Endorsed on verso as received 2 July 1903.

Reference number

RR/16/2

Earliest possible date

01 July 1903

Physical description

Letter on paper

Page extent

4 pages

Format

Manuscript