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By Fred E. Fiedler

A demonstration project investigated the feasibility and effectiveness of two management interventions, Management Training and Organization Development, for improving productivity and safety in metal/non-metal mines. The management training intervention was conducted at Texasgulf Company's trona mine, using three nearby trona mines as controls. The Organization Development intervention took place in Hecla Mining Company's Lucky Friday mine, using the highly similar Star Mine as control. The two management interventions seemed about equally effective in reducing accidents and injuries, as well as MSHA citations, and the management intervention at the Texasgulf mine also appeared to have led to substantial improvement in mine productivity.

Jan 1, 1983

By Wilton Johnson

Native asphalt was produced by three companies in two States, Texas and Utah. Bituminous limestone, used primarily as a paving material for street and road repair, was produced by one firm, R. L. White Co., Uvalde County, TX. Gilsonite, a solidified hydrocarbon found only in Colorado and Utah, was mined by two firms, American Gilsonite Co., a division of Chevron Resources Co. (a subsidiary of Standard Oil Co. of California), and Ziegler Chemical and Mineral Corp. Hydrocarbon Mining Co. (a subsidiary of Oberon Oil Inc., a Utah corporation) closed its mining operation during the year.

Jan 1, 1988

By David J. Kusler

This Bureau of Mines study is an appraisal of the demand for platinum, should this strategic metal be used as a. catalyst in the National abatement of automobile exhaust pollution. The Clean Air Act 0f 1970, as amended, requires that automobiles produced in 1975 and thereafter be provided with antipollutive measures to control automotive exhaust emissions. The study considers the need for automobile pollution control, the methodology for such control, the annual primary (new) platinum demand for automobiles produced from 1975 to 1990, primary platinum availability, and supply-demand forecasts and outlook. The correlative demand for platinum for the production of the required unleaded gasoline is also considered. Methodology for the study included a forecast of new automobile production from 1975 to 1990, development of automobile survival and retirement data, estimates of new platinum demand under various conditions of salvage, and data on recycling the precious metal from the catalytic converters of scrapped vehicles and existing vehicles when their spent converters are exchanged for replacement units. The new platinum demand for automobile exhaust converters, based on a converter service life of 50,000 miles, is estimated to be 1.41 million troy ounces initially in 1975, rising to 1.68 million in 1980, and declining curvi-linearly to 0.94 million in 1990. The platinum demand for converter longevities other than 50,000 miles can be derived from the tabular data presented. An appendix to the report presents a comparison between longevities of 50,000 miles and 25,000 miles. The petroleum industry's demand for new platinum for the production of lead-free gasolines could total as high as 1 million troy ounces between 1972 and 1981, just for expansion of isomerization and reforming capacity, and is in addition to normal operating demand for this metal.

Jan 1, 1972

By McHenry Mosier

The Bureau of Mines, United States Department of the Interior, has established a testing adit on the Government reservation at Mount Weather, Virginia, to facility to research on the fundamental tats of mining under actual metal-mining conditions. A number of sites in several Eastern States were investigated, out Mount Weather was selected because the rock seemed best suited for rock drilling and other mining tests and because the ground was already owned by the Federal Government, the site having been acquired in 1902 for use of the Weather Bureau. The testing edit has an advantage over en active metal mine for certain investigations because variable conditions affecting any particular research problem can be controlled and maintained in a fixed status, whereas in an operating mine this seldom is feasible. Operations were begin September 1935, with a crew of four laborers under a resident engineer. The laborers were recruited from, nearby farms, and. although they had no previous mining experience, they have developed into satisfactory miners.

Jan 1, 1939

"D bed, Ky., coaL, washing characteristics RII 5140coking coal, reserves, estimate RI 5037Pa., coal, washing characteristics RI 4834, 4941D bed mine, Ky., coal, washig characteristics"

Jan 1, 1960

By Mark P. Meyer

During 1991 through 1993, the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Bureau) -Alaska Field Operations Center (AFOC) in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) -Arctic District Office and the State of Alaska, Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys (ADGGS), conducted exploration, geological, geochemical, geophysical, mineral resource, and mineral potential investigations in the 6.7 million hectare Colville Mining District (CMD) study area. This mining district study area, located in northern Alaska, includes the Colville River drainage basin as well as 0.35 million hectares of the southern part of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA). This investigation was conducted as part of the Bureau's continuing Mineral Land Assessment (MLA) mining district program. The Bureau's MLA mining district program is designed to provide reliable and comprehensive mineral resource information that supports mineral resource policy and land use decisions made by Congress and Federal land management agencies.

Jan 1, 2011

By Shail J. Butani

In 1986 the Bureau of Mines conducted a probability sample survey, Mining Industry Population Survey, to measure such employee characteristics as occupation; principal equipment operated; work location at the mine; present job, present company, and total mining experience; job-related training during the last 2 years; age; sex; race; and education. The population estimates are necessary to properly analyze the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) injury (includes illness and fatality data) statistics; that is, to compare and contrast injury rates for various subpopulations in order to identify those groups that are exhibiting higher than average injury rates. This report uses the survey's results to characterize the U.S. nonmetallic mining workforce from March through September 1986. Similar reports have been prepared for the metallic, stone, and sand and gravel mining industries, as well as for the entire metal and nonmetal mining (includes metallic, stone, sand and gravel, and nonmetallic industries) sector and the cool mining sector.

Jan 1, 1988

By O. C. Blade

Studies on more efficient utilization of petroleum have been made for 50 years by the Bureau of Mines. As part of this work, the Bureau has analyzed thousands of samples of crude oil by its standardized routine method, and many of these analyses have been published, sometimes in special compilations, other times in connection with reports of research on petroleum. This report is a finding index for all analyses published from 1921 to 1959, and brings up to date the information in Information Circular 7470 3 and in the appendix of Bulletin 490.4 The routine method of analysis and the equipment originally were described in a report by Dean and associates. 5 This report has long been out of print, but Bulletin 490, bringing the procedure and its modifications to date, was published in 1951. 6 Briefly, the procedure consists of testing, by standard methods, small samples of a crude oil for gravity, sulfur, color, viscosity, pour point, and (more recently) nitrogen; and, by a standardized procedure, distilling a portion of the crude oil and determining certain properties on the separated fractions and residuum. Careful records are made during the procedure, and the distillation data obtained are used to compute the approximate amounts of products present in the sample--such as percentages of gasoline, kerosine, gas oil, and lubricants. The principal data and results are recorded on a standard analytical report form. An analysis of a sample of crude oil from a recently developed field is shown in table 1. Compilations of these analyses, sometimes in tabular form and usually for specific geographic areas, are published from time to time. Analyses often are included in connection with other studies, such as engineering field reports.

Jan 1, 1959

By John H. Johnson

Diesel tailpipe CO, C02, NO, and N02 concentrations by the Emissions Measurement Apparatus (EMA) were found to compare satisfactorily with simultaneous concentrations by instruments in the MSHA engine certification laboratory in Bruceton, Pa. The EMA was then applied to the measurement of LHD vehicle diesel tailpipe gases and smoke opacity in the White Pine and Brushy Creek Mines. A general experimental approach was developed by which instruments could be compared for the measurement of diesel exhaust pollutant concentrations in the 1/2 to 5TLV range. The concentrations are changed by varying engine speed, dynamometer load, and the portion of the exhaust which enters the dilution tunnel. Dräger detector tube diluted exhaust CO, CO2, NO, and NO2 measurements were compared with simultaneously taken portable instrument measurements. Diesel exhaust interference inaccuracies were separated from inaccuracies due to detector tube calibration by comparing the instrument readings with both actual detector tube readings and detector tube readings corrected by recalibration of the detector tubes alongside NBS traceable calibration gases. The detector tubes' accuracy was found to be only slightly affected by diesel exhaust interferences and it was concluded that most measure within certification limits established by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The effects of 2 exhaust system configurations on the pollutant concentrations in a dead-end heading were studied. Both of the configurations exhausted the gases near the roof, directing them toward the crosscut, and both improved the stratification of the air in the heading, due to the bouyancy of the hot exhaust gases. One of the configurations was a pair of Fume Diluters which diluted the exhaust with air by a 10:1 ratio, and the second system was simply a pair of exhaust pipes, bent to direct the exhaust similarly to the fume dilutors. By redirecting the exhaust, the concentration of C02 measured on the LHD vehicle was reduced by as much as 507, in dead-end headings up to 200 ft long. The Fume Diluters showed no improvement over the simple redesign of the exhaust system.

Jan 1, 1980

By S. R. Crane

One Bureau of Mines goal is to minimize the undesirable environmental impacts associated with industrial plants emitting waste gases containing S02. To help meet this goal, a regenerable flue gas desulfurization process was developed. This process, known as the citrate process, uses a buffered weak acid solution to absorb S02 from the waste gas. The absorbed S02 is reacted with H2S to precipitate elemental sulfur and regenerate the solution for recycle. The H2S feedstock for the process, if not otherwise available, may be produced by reacting two-thirds of the recovered elemental sulfur with natural gas and steam. Laboratory investigations and pilot plant operations were conducted by the Bureau to determine if H2S from the natural gas, sulfur, and steam reaction was suitable for the citrate process. The laboratory investigations, in which an H2S generator was integrated with other citrate process operations, provided a basis for design and operation of the pilot plant. The objective of the pilot plant was primarily to provide H2S for the citrate pro-cess pilot plant at the Bunker Hill Co. lead smelter in Kellogg, Idaho. The design capacity of the pilot plant was 0.4 to 1.25 tons of H2S per day. The operation demonstrated that (1) a 77-to 79-dry-volume-percent H2S product could be produced from pilot-plant product sulfur, natural gas, and steam; (2) the product R2S regenerated the SO2-loaded citrate solution; and (3) under certain conditions over 95 percent of the natural gas could be converted to H2S.

Jan 1, 1981

By James M. Link

A program was initiated tinder sponsorship of the U. S. Bureau of Mines to investigate pipeline behavior of raw and spent oil shale slurries. Slurries were recirculated in pipeline loops with 150-mm and 200-mm diameter horizontal test sections and a 150 -mm diameter vertical test section. Slurry concentrations from 10 to 60 weight percent were investigated. Critical and deposition velocities were observed. Head losses were measured at various velocities. Rheology measurements were made on representative homogeneous samples from the pipeline. From these data, pipeline energy requirements were predicted by computer and compared to pipeline data. Computer programs were also used to analyze pipeline data for two flow models: 1. Heterogeneous flow regime for coarse, settling slurries 2. Homogeneous flow regime for nonsettling suspensions The economics of slurry transport of raw and spent shale were examined. Cost estimates encompassed a range of pipe diameters to transport a wide range of throughputs of both raw and spent shale. Similar estimates were made for conveyor belt systems to provide a valid cost comparison. Economic comparisons are valid in a general sense, but a specific study must be made to determine the cost advantages of hydraulic transport for a given mine.

Jan 1, 1977

By H. G. Hammon

Uranium miners have been shown to develop lung cancer in direct proportion to the time of exposure in the mine and the concentration of radioactivity (cumulative working level).1 Radon gas is continually evolved from the uranium ore, but because of its shoe half-life, 3.82 days, it is soon decomposed into particulate daughter products, which along with the dust in the mine, become deposited in the miners' lungs. At present, massive ventilation is the only effective method of reducing the radioactivity concentration in the mines. However, the Bureau of Mines is evaluating the possibility of using coatings on the mine wall that will have sufficiently low permeability to radon that the gas will decompose into the particulate daughter products before it can permeate the coating. Permanently trapped in the coating, the daughter products would be prevented from dispersing in the mine atmosphere. Lawrence Livermore Laboratory was asked to aid in this investigation. The direct determination of radon permeability is more difficult than that of the other noble gases because of the short half-life of the gas and radioactive contamination of the apparatus. We felt that it should be possible to estimate radon permeation coefficients from other noble gas permeation coefficients. It was noted that the log of the diffusion constants for helium, neon, argon, and krypton, as reported by Meares2,3 plotted to a straight line-against the square of-the gas molecularddia meter. The log of the permeation coefficients also plotted to a straight line against the square of the gas molecular diameter. Thus, by determining the permeation coefficients of such gases as argon and krypton through various films and coatings, it appeared likely that radon permeation coefficients could be estimated. In addition we felt it should be possible to find some relationship between polymer structure and he noble gas permeation coefficient that would aid in the selection of coatings materials as radon barriers.

Jan 1, 1975

By G. R. Fitterer, E. A. Krockenberger, B. E. Sockman, R. B. Meneilly, J. F. Eckel, E. W. Marshall

"Steel manufacturers have noticed a decided tendency on the part of many of their customers to become more exacting in their steel specifications. Under these conditions, the steel must not only meet the specifications of physical properties (tensile strength, reduction of area, elongation, impact strength, grain size, normality, etc.) and the chemical analyses, but must also pass the inspection test of ""cleanliness.""By cleanliness is commonly meant the absence of oxide and sulphide inclusions. Other foreign particles such as furnace or ladle slag, ladle and runner brick, etc., must also be absent. The determination of cleanliness at present is usually made by microscopic inspection or macroetching.The rejection of steel for lack of cleanliness is increasing, out cleanliness is one of the most difficult requirements for the manufacturer to fill. The reason for this is that every steel inspector has a different conception of a. clean steel. A material which does not pass the examination of one inspector way be regarded as entirely satisfactory by the metallurgist of an¬other company. The cause of this confusion and disagreement concerning the definition of a clean or a dirty steel is simply that as yet no standardized procedure for the determination of impurities has been proposed and generally accepted, since many variables are encountered which interfere with the development of a satisfactory method. An idea of the complexity of this situation will be obtained from the following pages.A Survey of Proposed Analytical MethodsAlthough no analytical method has been accepted, many procedures have been proposed, as may be seen in Table 1. Therein are listed 16 of the better-known processes, pith references to the work of their originators, their mechanisms of determination, and their applicabilities. Among these is included the electrolytic method developed by one of the present authors, and some comparison between this and previously proposed procedures may be obtained by a study of the table. It appears that this new method Las many advantages over the others, and this paper presents a critical Study of its value."

May 1, 1933

By T. A. Raczek

Materials for stronger ventilation tubing for underground use in hardrock mines were developed. The new material composites were evaluated in performance characteristics and compared to currently used materials. The materials were compared on tear, tensile, puncture and flammability properties. Based on cost versus performance data, a polyester film bonded to a polyester fabric was selected as the candidate material for field testing. Ventilation tubing fabricated from the selected material was field tested in two underground uranium mines for four-month periods. The test results indicated that the new composite showed an increase in useful life in the majority of applications, However, the cost performance ratio was not significantly improved to warrant commercialization of the product. When connected directly to some blowers, the material in close proximity to the blower deteriorated. However, material which was punctured or torn by mechanical means did not have further propagation of the tear. The high tear strength of the material prevented further damage. Improved methods of repairing inflated ventilation tubing were investigated and developed. All the repair methods were portable and self-contained. Repair kits based on adhesives, pressure sensitive tapes, and mechanical means were evaluated. Plier staplers and patch systems based on pressure sensitive adhesive proved to be most functional.

Jan 1, 1980

By John D. Foulkes

A study to categorize and characterize underground metal/non-metal mining operations from the viewpoint of telecommunication requirements and practices. The objectives were to: ? Gather and analyze data; ? Identify communication requirements; and ? Recommend systems for operational emergency and post-disaster telecommunications.

Jan 1, 1979

By A. D. Hahn

The Federal Bureau of Mines examined ilmenite-bearing sands in southern Texas as part of a program to discover sources of supply for the domestic titanium industry. Deposits were examined from May 1956 through January 1959 in the outcrops of sandstone beds in the Jackson group of Eocene formations in Lee, Burleson, Fayette, and Starr Counties on the Gulf Coastal Plain; in alluvial valley fill in Brewster County in southwest Texas; in the sand beaches of Matagorda Peninsula and the Galveston, Padre, and Brazos Islands--part of the offshore chain of barrier islands along the Texas coast; and in unconsolidated sediments in Willacy County on the Rio Grande delta in the southeast Texas.

Jan 1, 1961

By D. R. Corson

The Bureau of Mines instrumented an operating stope in a deep vein mine to determine the amount of wall closure and the magnitude of loads imposed on a backfilled stope. Hydraulic pressure cells used to monitor pressures in the fill) with bolt closure points to measure vein-wall movement and the procedure for their installation) are described) and the results of the laboratory calibration analysis of the reliability of these cells are given. An attempt to monitor density and moisture changes in the backfill with a nuclear density-moisture device was only partly successful) owing to either deformation of access tubing or relative displacements of the vertical vein walls relative to the emplaced tubes. Data from the instrumentation indicate vein-wall closure in excess of 20 inches and pressures within the fill approaching 600 psi. Analysis) incorporating field data with results of laboratory tests of the compressibility of timber and tests defining the constrained moduli of the fill) points out the limited restraint to vein closure offered by timber sets. Ground movement induced by mining activity could be more effectively con-trolled by the use of densely compacted backfill.

Jan 1, 1967

By Z. J. Fink

Ultraviolet-visible and infrared emission spectra from propagating methane-coal-dust-inhibitor mixtures have been obtained in a 0.2-by 0.2¬by 5.3-m vertical duct over a range of flame speeds from 2 to 100 m/sec. Results serve as a basis for the design and evaluation of thermal radiation detectors for triggered barriers that suppress ongoing mine explosions. Of particular significance is the large continua superimposed on the methane-air spectra when small amounts of coal dust are present and the variation of emissivity with infrared (IR) wavelength in dust flames. In conjunction with the spectral measurements, studies of flame speed, particle size, gas sampling plus thermodynamics, and dust sampling are presented and discussed in order to gain insight into the more fundamental aspects of propagating explosions. Sampling results have shown that only a near-stoichiometric amount of dust is consumed in the flames studied even though initial concentrations are five times stoichiometric. Difficulty in propagating coal-dust inhibitor flames of realistic mine characteristics in a cold-walled laboratory duct has been encountered. A simplified analysis of the flame zone utilizing spectral and sampling results indicates that the stability of slowly propagating flames is more dependent upon thermal radiation than upon convection losses to the walls. It is predicted that thermal radiation losses will make any measurements of coal dust burning velocities, "quenching diameters," or flammability limits more apparatus dependent than those corresponding to gaseous fuels.

Jan 1, 1974

By Virginia E. Gleason

In this report, recommendations are made for programs to develop workable techniques to stop or prevent acid mine drainage formation in those underground coal mines where acid production could take place. These recommendations include development of mine closure technology, development of surface water infiltration control procedures, study of the effect of roof collapse on mine water characteristics, evaluation of the long-term effects of flooding underground mines above drainage, investigation of the effectiveness of section sealing in active mines, development of a simple model for predicting mine water quality and quantity, preparation of a manual on mine drainage abatement procedures, and development of a program to disseminate information on mine drainage abatement to the coal industry. These recommendations are based on an in-depth evaluation of information acquired over years of research on acid mine drainage formation, on numerous laboratory and field studies of methods of preventing or minimizing acid mine drainage formation, and on review of the geological, hydrological, and mineralogical factors involved. There are 772 references.

Jan 1, 1978

By E. Morrice

As part of its efforts to maximize process efficiency and decrease energy requirements in mineral processes, the Federal Bureau of Mines has investigated methods for beneficiating bastnäsite ores from Mountain Pass, Calif. The results of a bench-scale study on the flotation of bastnäsite ore are presented. Flotation at a pulp temperature of 40° to 45°C yielded a cleaner concentrate containing 58.7 pct RE203 at a rare-earth recovery of 67 pct. These results are comparable to those reported for the commercial beneficiation method in which the pulp is heated to boiling before flotation. An attempt was also made to recover a barite flotation concentrate from the bastnäsite rougher tailing. Concentrates containing only 70 pct barite were obtained.

Jan 1, 1982