UTAH ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 199 
of the shales and the mechanism of the thermo-chemical 
process by which the organic matter of oil-shale is con- 
verted into oils and gases; second, the determination of 
certain physical and chemical constants for various oil- 
shales, without which it would be impossible to design 
efficient apparatus for the treatment of this material; and 
third, the determination of those conditions of retorting— 
that is distilling the shale—which will produce the great- 
est yields of the best oils from different shales. This 
phase of the work is now receiving the greatest amount 
of attention at the Boulder and Salt Lake City laboratories. 
It might be remarked that all the work is directed by one 
technologist and that each laboratory is at all times kept 
well informed of the results and progress of the investiga- 
ations in the others. 
In making studies of the effects of different applied 
retorting conditions, it is necessary, of course, to determine 
the quantity and quality of products formed in any test, 
and from these to determine exactly what the effect of 
the applied condition or conditions of retorting has been. 
The quantity of gas recovered during the test is measured, 
and samples are taken at various intervals during the run, 
as well as a sample of the total gas produced. The gas 
samples are then examined in the customary manner. 
Water recovered from the retort is tested principally to 
determine its content of ammonia and other nitrogen com- 
pounds. The spent shale is examined to indicate com- 
pleteness of oil production, and to determine percentage 
of fixed carbon, which gives information as to the nature 
of retorting. A high fixed-carbon percentage in the spent 
shale usually indicates that conditions of retorting were 
not favorable for production of either a maximum quantity 
of oil or oil of good quality. 
Most attention is directed to the quantity and quality 
of oil recovered, as oil is the most important product 
recovered from oil-shale, and the quantity and quality of 
oil recovered differs with different shales, and with slight 
changes in the conditions under which the oil was pro- 
duced. It is not difficult to determine the quantity of 
recovered oil, although shale oils emulsify with water 
with extreme ease, and the percentage of water in the 
oil must be determined by distillation of a portion of the 
