Abstract: The present invention is directed to a class of novel 1-benzoyl-3-thiosemicarbazides which are useful as plant growth regulants. The present invention is also directed to methods and formulations for plant growth regulation.

Abstract: A novel cement composition for the preparation of a novel aqueous slurry useful in cementing casing in the borehole of a well comprising (1) cement, (2) (a) a hydroxyethylcellulose ether or (2) (b) a mixture of a hydroxyethylcellulose ether and a hydroxypropylcellulose ether, (3) a polysaccharide produced as a result of microbial action and (4) a dispersant.

Abstract: A novel cement composition for the preparation of a novel aqueous slurry useful in cementing casing in the borehole of a well comprising (1) cement, (2) (a) a hydroxyethylcellulose ether having a critical viscosity or (2) (b) a mixture of a hydroxyethylcellulose ether having a critical viscosity and of a hydroxypropylcellulose ether having a critical viscosity and (3) a dispersant.

Abstract: A flame front is ignited and passed through an underground oil shale retort to produce shale oil. The flame front is supported by a specially blended feed gas consisting essentially of air, steam and retort off gases. Product yield and quality are increased by varying the volumetric ratio of air, steam and retort off gases in the feed gas during retorting in proportion to the oil yield, or the relative richness, leanness and kerogen content of the oil shale being heated by the flame front, or in proportion to the amount of carbon residue on the retorted shale being combusted.

Abstract: Greater product yield and quality as well as simplified gas recovery can be attained by a huff and puff process for retorting oil shale. The process can be advantageously carried out in in situ retorts under ground as well as in surface retorts above ground. In the process, an active retort of raw oil shale is retorted without prior combustion of oil shale therein with retort off gases, which have been heated in a spent shale retort. In the preferred mode, retort off gases from the active retort and air are alternately injected into the spent retort to cyclically heat the off gases and combust the coked shale. The retort off gases can be deoiled and optionally scrubbed of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide before being heated in the spent retort.

Abstract: A process is provided for forming an in situ oil shale retort which minimizes channeling, explosion gas turbulence and flame front tilting. In the process, explosives are detonated in an underground formation of oil shale to blast the oil shale into a permeable rubblized mass defining a retort, and gases emitted from the explosion are symmetrically vented. In the preferred form, the gases are vented through vertical vent holes and blast holes which extend through the top of the retort, as well as through a lateral access tunnel which extends into the bottom of the retort.

Abstract: An in situ retort and process are provided for underground retorting of oil shale. The in situ retort is formed with at least one flame front-stabilizing layer of minute lean oil shale particles which serves as a redistribution region or grid. When the flame front is ignited and passed through the retort with a feed gas, the flame front-stabilizing layer will stabilize and enhance horizontal uniformity of the flame front to substantially minimize burning of the product shale oil.

Abstract: A fluid bed retorting process is provided in which solid heat carrier material and solid hydrocarbon-containing material, such as oil shale, tar sand and coal, are fluidly moved in a lateral direction until they spill over an upright barrier into an overflow discharge outlet. The solids can be premixed in the retort before entering the laterally moving fluid bed in a premixing fluidizing chamber or with a conical deflector. Upright annular or transverse baffles can be positioned in the fluid bed to minimize lateral backmixing of solids and can also extend above the surface of the fluid bed to minimize wave propagation. Any unfluidized coarse particles can also be moved laterally by gravity flow and jet deflectors.

Abstract: New N-carbamylindolines which are useful in combating unwanted vegetation by both pre-emergent and post-emergent application are compounds having the structural formula ##STR1## in which R and R.sup.3 are hydrogen or methyl, R.sup.1 is hydrogen or N,N-dimethylsulfamyl, N,N-diethylsulfamyl, N-methoxy-N-methyl-sulfamyl, bromo or chloro, X is hydrogen or fluoro and R.sup.2 is hydrogen or dimethylsulfamyl, with the provision that at least one and no more than two substituents represented by R.sup.1, R.sup.2, and R.sup.3 and X are present.

Abstract: A class of compounds having the structural formula ##STR1## in which Ar is substituted phenyl and R is methyl or ethyl possesses improved activity as pre-emergent herbicides and insecticides.

Abstract: A polymer composition is disclosed and consists essentially of 100 parts by weight of an ethylene-alkyl acrylate copolymer and about 1 to 5 parts by weight of a polymer of a higher alkyl ester of acrylic or methacrylic acid. The polymer compositions have a lower heat seal strength than the ethylene-alkyl acrylate copolymer contained therein.

Abstract: Apparatus is provided to size finely divided catalyst particles so that all of the catalyst particles passing through the apparatus are sized so as to have a maximum particle diameter. The apparatus includes:(a) A sealed cylindrical housing having an arcuate opening cut into its lower surface,(b) A fine mesh screen which overlaps the arcuate opening cut into the cylindrical housing,(c) A hemicylindrical housing attached to the lower surface of the cylindrical housing and defining a cavity in communication with the cylindrical housing,(d) An inlet port in the top center surface of the cylindrical housing,(e) An outlet port in the bottom center surface of the hemicylindrical housing,(f) A shaft rotating axially within the cylindrical housing and having brushes attached thereto which force catalyst particles from the cylindrical housing through the screen and break down catalyst agglomerates introduced into the cylindrical housing.

Abstract: A method of regulating the growth of plants, including combating unwanted vegetation, comprises applying to the plants, either on seed, the soil or directly on the plants an effective amount of a novel compound of the class having the general structural formula ##STR1## in which one of Q.sub.1, Q.sub.2, Q.sub.3 or Q.sub.4 is N, X is --OH or --O--(C.sub.1 -C.sub.4 alkyl) and Y is H or X and Y together represent a bond between carbon and nitrogen atoms and R is H or one or two of the following substituents: --Br, --Cl, --F, --I, --CF.sub.3, --CH.sub.3, --NO.sub.2 or --C.tbd.N, or an agriculturally acceptable salt thereof.

Abstract: Novel compounds are disclosed which have utility as plant growth regulators. Use to produce growth regulators is specifically illustrated. The novel compounds of this invention are phthalimidoguanidines of the following general structural formulas: ##STR1## in which R, R.sup.1 and R.sup.5 are hydrogen or C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 are alike or unlike, one of which may be hydrogen but otherwise are substituents selected from C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl, alkenyl or alkynyl, branches or unbranched, C.sub.2 to C.sub.5 hydroxyalkyl or alkoxyalkyl, C.sub.3 to C.sub.5 cycloalkyl, furfuryl, pyridyl, benzyl, phenyl, C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkylphenyl, or --NR.sup.2 R.sup.3 together may be 2,5-dimethyl-1-pyrryl, 4-morpholinyl or 1-pyrrolidinyl, R.sup.4 is halogen, nitro, cyano, trifluoromethyl, C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl or acyl and n is zero, one or two.

Abstract: The products of the invention are high melting, highly insoluble N,N'-bis(arylazo)diimides prepared by reacting 2 mols of an arylazoaromatic amine with pyromellitic acid dianhydride or 3,3',4,4'-benzophenone tetracarboxylic acid dianhydride. The products are colored and useful as pigments in surface coating compositions and plastics.

Abstract: Apparatus for unloading a top unloading mine car that is mounted to pivot about a horizontal axis extending along one side of the base of the mine car includes a hoist chain detachably connected to the mine car at the side opposite the pivotal axis. The hoist chain extends upwardly over a pulley mounted on a positioning crank arm. The pulley moves on rotation of the crank arm from a position substantially vertically above the connection means when the mine car is in an upright position to a position above the pivotal axis. The hoist chain continues around a pulley mounted on a drive crank arm and then to an attachment of restricted mobility. The drive crank arm and the positioning crank arm are rotated in a single direction by drive means which are adapted to rotate the drive crank arm at twice the angular velocity of the positioning crank arm.

Abstract: Novel compounds are disclosed which have utility as plant growth regulators. Use to produce growth regulators is specifically illustrated. The novel compounds of this invention are phthalimidoguanidines of the following general structural formulas: ##STR1## in which R, R.sup.1 and R.sup.5 are hydrogen, C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 are alike or unlike, one of which may be hydrogen but otherwise are substituents selected from C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl, alkenyl or alkynyl, branched or unbranched, C.sub.2 to C.sub.5 hydroxyalkyl or alkoxyalkyl, C.sub.3 to C.sub.5 cycloalkyl, furfuryl, pyridyl, benzyl, phenyl, C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkylphenyl, or --NR.sup.2 R.sup.3 together may be 2,5-dimethyl-1-pyrryl, 4-morpholinyl or 1-pyrrolidinyl, R.sup.4 is halogen, nitro, cyano, trifluoromethyl, C.sub.1 to C.sub.5 alkyl or acyl and n is zero, one or two.

Abstract: Apparatus is provided for blending batches of particulate material that are compositionally heterogeneous into batches of material that are compositionally uniform. The apparatus consists of two vertically aligned cylindrical mixers, including means to transfer product from the first mixer to the second mixer. Each mixer contains six or more vertically aligned partition walls that extend radially from the midpoint of the mixer to the wall to divide the mixer into at least six storage compartments of substantially equal volumetric capacity. The vertical partition walls differ in height in a regular descending order so that as material is charged to and fills one compartment, it overflows the shorter wall to fill the adjacent compartment.

Abstract: In the known operation wherein naphtha-diluted bitumen froth is pumped from a scroll-type centrifugal separator to a disc-type centrifugal separator, an improved pumping system is provided. The system comprises at least two centrifugal pumps in series, each operating preferably at an impellor tip speed less than 4000 feet/minute. The invention is based on the discovery that dilution with naphtha greatly increases the emulsification tendency of the froth components; therefore it is necessary to reduce shearing of this stream to keep the solids and water content of the disc product within a desirable limit. This is achieved by using staged pumping and operating the pumps at a relatively low tip speed.

Abstract: A modified in-situ retort for the retorting of oil shale is constructed by mining an open space having a volume of twenty-five to thirty-five percent of the volume of the retort in the bottom of the retort and thereafter blasting the oil shale that is to remain in the retort as rubble in a manner to cause random free fall of the shale particles onto the rubblized bed. Blasting occurs sequentially from the bottom of the unfragmented shale immediately above the open space to the top of the retort. At each blast, there is an open space below the shale to be broken in the blast having a volume at least one-third the volume of that shale, and the timing of the blasts is such that movement of the broken shale is not interfered with by shale broken in the preceding blast. There is no withdrawal of oil shale that would cause downward movement of the rubble that is to be retorted in-situ. The resultant in-situ retort is characterized by a high and uniform permeability.