Search Documents

By Albert H. Fay

This glossary is publi~hed- by the Bureau of Mines as a contribution' to the mining literature in the belief that it will fill a long-felt need. It contains about 20,000 terms; these include both technical and purely local terms related to metal mining, coal mining, quarrying, petroleum, and natural gas, and metallurgical works; names of useful, important, and common minerals and rocks; an<lgeological terms. It presents in one comprehensive volume the available standard, technical terms relating to the mining and mineral industry, as well as provincialisms that have been or are now in use in English-speaking countries. The glossary also includes many terms relating to ceramics and the clay industry, glass making, foundry practice, railway and building construction, electrical installation and power-plant equipment, and chemical terms relating to metallurgical practice. Complete lists of terms for' each of these allied industries are beyond the scope of this glossary. Paleontological terms, although closely associated with geology, are far removed from mining and metallurgical operations, and for this reason have been omitted. In a compilation of this magnitude, it is difficult, within a reasonable time to verify all definitions as to the latest usage. Much verifying was done and it is hoped that the best and latest definitions have been used. Reference to the publications cited will enable the reader to determine approximately the period when the definition was used. Definitions in use by engineers of high national or international reputation are given first preference. When definitions from different sources are the same, credit is given to the earlier author as being the original or nearest to the original source. Immediately following each term the name of the locality wherein the word is presumed to have originated or is widely used is given, where such information is available. The name of the author or source from which the definition was obtained follows the definition, and serves as a key to the publications listed. The terms selected from the various glossaries and publications examined have been compared with the Webster,

Jan 1, 1920

The contribution of minerals to the growth and development of the United States is best demonstrated by the uses which have evolved during the past two centures. During pre-Revolutionary days the colonies were essentially agricultural in character, producing cotton, tobacco, rice, indigo, grains and flour, fish, livestock, dairy products, and timber. Shipbuilding was the major manufacturing industry. In 1763, the total value of exports for Virginia, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts was £2,722,000, of which £55,000, or 2 percent, was for "copper ore, and iron in pigs" (3)1 and £49,000 was for 21,000 barrels or hogsheads of "pot-ash." The value of 75 ships built for sale in 1763 by the colonies was £61,500.

Jan 1, 1976

By Harold Kennedy

Take a good look at this issue of Minerals and Materials. This is the last issue of M&M, as it has been known within the U.S. Bureau of Mines, that you will receive. Fifteen years after it was created to help cope with a growing worldwide mineral shortage, M&M is ceasing publication. In its place will be a bright, new publication called Minerals Today. Like its venerable predecessor, Minerals Today will be a bimonthly magazine that reports on recent trends and issues in the minerals and materials industries. It will be the Bureau of Mines&apos; most frequent periodical presenting an overview of the entire field of minerals and materials.

Jan 1, 1989

Since early July, domestic producer listings in primary aluminum ingot have been at 53¢ per pound. Dealers, however, lowered their August quotes by 1.8¢-2¢ to 47.5¢-48¢ per pound. BITUMINOUS COAL AND LIGNITE -The wildcat strike of UMWA coal miners which began on June 23 in protest of cutbacks in medical benefits appears to have ended. According to the West Virginia Coal Association on September 7, 1977, all mines in West Virginia were back in operation on September 6 and again on September 7. The Kentucky Coal Association reported approximately 2,500 miners were on strike in eastern Kentucky on September 6, but there was full employment on September 7.

Jan 1, 1977

Chromium, a critical mineral for which the United States is largely dependent on foreign sources, is the subject of a new report just issued by the Interior Department&apos;s Bureau of Mines. The report is the first in a new series called "Mineral Commodity Profiles" (MCP&apos;s). Designed to give an updated review of important events affecting critical minerals, it also presents a comprehensive description of industry structure, supply-demand relationships, technology, and outlook for the future.

Jan 1, 1977

By Enzo Palumbo, Joël P. T. Kapusta, François Larouche

In light of the rapid deployment of bottom blowing smelting in China over the last ten years, one has to wonder why it has taken the copper industry so long to adopt ultra-high oxygen enrichment via Savard-Lee type injectors. As early as 1976, Kellogg and Henderson suggested, in their landmark paper on energy usage in the copper industry, that ‘maximum use of oxygen enrichment of process air’ was one of seven ‘energy saving features’ for copper matte smelting and converting. Yet today, shrouded injection and high oxygen enrichment has not been implemented in copper bath smelting outside China and Vietnam. In this paper, the authors explore the reasons why bath smelting processes such as the Noranda Reactor and the Teniente Converter still operate around 40% oxygen enrichment, while the bottom blowing SKS/BBS process typically runs at 65 to 75% oxygen, with all three processes producing white metal. Are there fundamental metallurgical explanations for this striking difference beyond the long-standing skepticism towards high oxygen shrouded injection and its perceived high implementation cost?

Jan 1, 2015

By Keith L. Harris

Economic activity in the United States picked up in the third quarter, according to the latest estimate released by the Department of Commerce. Real gross national product (GNP)--the Nation&apos;s output of goods and services--grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.3%, or $17.6 billion, compared with a rate of 1.9% for the second quarter of 1985 and 1.6% for the third quarter of 1984 (table 1). The 4.3% rate is one percentage point above the preliminary estimate reported in the August/September issue of Minerals and Materials. Most of the upward revision was due to the change in business inventories and Government purchases, while the figure for net exports was revised downward substantially. The 4.3% growth bettered by 1.5% the average rate of growth in GNP from 1974 through 1984 and was 1.1 % above that of the period from 1975 through 1984 and 0.7% above that of 1980 through 1984. Of importance to the minerals industry was the $14.4-billion growth in personal consumption expenditures, $10.2 billion of which was for durable goods (especially domestically produced automobiles) and the growing residential investment. The net export deficit continued to grow, however, and investment in nonresidential structures, producers&apos; durable equipment, and business inventories declined. Prices, as measured by the GNP fixed-weighted price index, increased at an annual rate of 3.1% in the third quarter, compared with 3.9% in the second quarter. The slower rate of inflation resulted mainly from a decline in energy prices, following second-quarter increases. Fourth-Quarter Prognosis Many of the economic data available for October and November indicate that the economy is growing modestly and will continue to grow over the next 3 to 6 months. The composite index of leading indicators, designed to predict economic activity within 3 to 6 months, rose 0.3% in October, the sixth consecutive monthly advance, according to the Department of Commerce. Six of the 11 available leading indicators were positive: Stock market prices rose, as did sensitive material prices, credit outstanding, and manufacturers&apos; new orders for consumer goods and materials; initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased, and firms were getting slower delivery of goods. Four of the indicators were negative: Business formations, homebuilding permits, contracts and orders for plant and equipment, and money supply all declined. The average hours worked per week, already at a high level, remained unchanged.

Jan 1, 1985

By Leon Dominian

(Wilkes-Barre Meeting, June, 1911.) I. INTRODUCTION. THE lack of Aryan roots for the names of metals commonly known among the Aryan settlers of Asia Minor, as well as the later colonizers of Europe, indicates that these races were generally ignorant of the use of metals until they came into contact with Semitic peoples. Practically all mining-terms in current use among the earliest Greeks resemble very strongly their distinctly Semitic equivalents, which can be traced all the way in a broad belt beginning in Lower Mesopotamia, and extending westwardly to the Syrian shores of the Mediterranean. The Greek word " "metallon," for instance, used indiscriminately to designate mine or ore, probably came from the earlier Semitic equivalent, " matal." Again, the Greek words " chrysos " (gold) and " chalkos " (copper) seem to be descended from the Semitic forms " throats " and a chalak." It is a natural inference that primitive mining-methods were evolved by the dwellers in the mineralized areas of Asia Minor, from whom later Greek, Roman, and even North European miners obtained their first notions of the reduction of metallic ores, by virtue of a general westward migration of mining and metallurgy. Some traces of its passage through Turkish territory will be noted in this paper. While European Turkey can boast of one ancient gold-field, the Asiatic dominions of the Sultan may lay claim to at least two well-defined and widely-separated gold-producing districts. These three regions may be distinguished as the Thracian, the Pontic, and the Anatolian gold-fields. II. TURKEY IN EUROPE. . The Thracian Gold-Field. The most conspicuous topographic feature of the lowland between Constantinople and Salonica is the uplifted Archaean

Nov 1, 1911

U.S. producers for more than 5 months have priced 99.5 percent primary aluminum ingot at 486 per pound. Sales by independent dealers in this same period reportedly declined by 0.5$-2.5$ to 43.50- 44.56 per pound. CADMIUM: U.S. producer-published cadmium prices for the last 5 months have been at $3 per pound. Dealer quotes in the same period fell by almost 504 and ranged from $2.45 to $2.55 per pound.

Jan 1, 1977

By E. D. Gardner

Placer mining is the mining and treatment of alluvial deposits for the recovery, of their valuable minerals. The method has been used principally for mining gold, but a large proportion of the world&apos;s production of tin, platinum, and diamonds and other gem stones and minor quantities of other heavy minerals have been won in this manner. In the United States, as in the world at large, gold has been the principal mineral obtained by placer mining. Minor quantities of metals of the platinum group are recovered with the gold in some localities. Important quantities of sapphires have been produced at placer mines in Montana, and tungsten minerals have been obtained on a commercial scale from placer deposits in California and Colorado. Other heavy minerals or gem stones, however, have not been mined to any important extent by this method in the United States. The search for placer gold and the working of the deposits when found have had much to do with the early development of the West. Placer mining has been gradually overtaken and surpassed in importance by lode-gold mining, until in 1932 less than a quarter of the country&apos;s total gold production was from placers or about an eighth, excluding Alaska. In 1932 about 76 percent of the placer gold produced in the United States was recovered by dredging. Although other forms of placer mining still are important, they have been declining for many years, as the richest and most readily mined deposits of gravel along the stream courses have been exhausted. During 1931 and 1932 there was a revival of small-scale mining, but few new deposits were discovered.

Jan 1, 1934

By Richard E. Chism

Jan 1, 1902

By Henry S. Washington

Introduction. It Still Rains On The Choco ! I Well Remember One Evening A Dozen Years Ago, While. Traveling Toward The Town Of Negua In A Small Champa Or Dug-Out Canoe, The Rain Fell So Heavily That I Had To Work My Hardest To Bail Out The Water With A Large Totuma Or Gourd In Order To Keep The Canoe Afloat, The Senegambian Meanwhile Plying His Paddle In The Stern. If Any One Thinks Bailing Is Easy Work, Let Him Scoop Out A Quart Or More At A Stroke, 40 Times A Minute For Half An Hour, And I Venture That He Will Change His Opinion. These Small Canoes Required Only One Paddler, To Make The 3 Miles An Hour Which Is The Standard Rate Of Aquatic Progress On The Choco. Another Time, On The Atrato River, About Six O&apos;clock In The Afternoon, The Rain Fell So Heavily Than An Empty Gourd, 9 In. In Diameter And 4.5 Deep, Was Filled To The Brim In 90 Sec., Timed By A Watch. Such Downpours Are Typical, But Unless Caught In One It Is Not Specially Noticed. These Downpours Seldom Last More Than An Hour, And Frequently Cover Only A Limited Area, Occasionally Falling On One Bank Of A River And Not On The Other. During The Night-Time,&apos; The Rain, If Gentle, Will Usually Last Until Dawn, And Sometimes An Intermittent Drizzle Will Keep Up All Day As Well, Although, As A Rule, It Rarely Rains During The Day. The Rise Of The Rivers, Due To The Rain-Fall, Varies From A Few Inches To Several Feet. One Night In August, 1899, The Spuds Of The Dredge Margaret, Operating On The Atrato River, Showed A, Rise Of 16 Ft., And For 3 Days Thereafter Occurred The Greatest Flood Known In That District For 32 Years. The Dredge Had All Three Spuds Clown, And The 2-Yd. Shovel Dragging On The Bottom. A 0.75-In. Cable Fast To A Stout Tree, 700 Ft. Away, Stretched Tight

Sep 1, 1908

By John W. Taber

The Bohemia mining district is a small but intensely mineralized area in western Oregon . For its size , it has made a substantial although somewhat sporadic production of gold throughout a long period of years . The veins also contain lead, zinc , and copper, but in the past these metals have not been recovered in important amounts . In reviewing the progress of mining activity in the district , an effort has been made to gather under one cover all available information on former operations , including methods of mining , production, and geology pertinent to the ore deposits , problems encountered, and other factual data that may affect future mining in the district . A special effort has been made to assemble as many maps of former workings as possible in order that these may be preserved and readily available to assist in future exploration. The data presented herein are based on brief reconnaissance examinations made during several weeks spent in the field in September 1946. These are supplemented by information obtained from various individuals actively or formerly connected with operations in the district . Only the principal properties and several of the more outstanding prospects were actually examined. Many of the older workings were inaccessible.

Aug 1, 1949

This report describes Phase I of the project --Development of a Mechanized Scaler --performed by Battelle, Pacific Northwest Laboratories for the U.S. Bureau of Mines. The objectives of Phase I were to 1) assess the needs of the industry as related to mechanized scaling; 2) conceive, evaluate and select mechanized scaler concepts; and 3) prepare preliminary designs of the selected machine concepts. To assess the scaling needs of the industry, we reviewed both U.S. and foreign literature, evaluated U.S. scaling accident statistics, reviewed existing mechanized scaling equipment, performed a series of mine visits and telephone interviews with mine operators, and assessed the applicability of a loose-rock detection system. The literature review identified over 25 scaler-related articles. However, little of the information could be used directly in the conceptualization and design portions of the project. Three articles did supply information on a number of machines used in Europe, along with statistics describing their effect on mine safety. For example, the French reported a 50% reduction in the total number of scaling-related accidents and a full 80% reduction in the number of lost-time injuries in the Lorraine mining district.

Jan 1, 1981

Wildcat strikes in the Appalachian coal fields, primarily in West Virginia, have resulted in an estimated 4.5 million ton loss in coal production during July and through the first week in August. Since then, the strike intensified further, and on August 9, nearly all of West Virginia&apos;s 60,000 miners were off the job with another 10,000 miners on strike in eastern Kentucky. The Bureau of Mines estimates that West Virginia&apos;s coal output is currently (8/9) eight million tons below last year when the state produced 108 million tons. West Virginia, the Nation&apos;s second largest coal producer of coal behind Kentucky, has not failed to mine over 100 million tons a year since 1938. At the end of the second week in August, nearly all coal miners in West Virginia remained out. The strike is a protest against a cutback in union health and retirement benefits. An announcement June 23 about the United Mine Worker&apos;s health and retirement fund precipitated the strike, Fund directors said that because of inflation and production losses caused by earlier wildcat strikes and the severe winter, miners would have to pay the first $250 of hospital costs and 40 percent of doctor bills, up to $500 a year. Previously, the funds paid all hospital and doctor bills. According to the West Virginia Coal Association each day of the strike in West Virginia results in a loss of coal production of 500,000 tons, a loss of $3.8 million in miners wages and $1 million in contributions to the UMWA&apos;s health and retirement fund.

Jan 1, 1977

By Richard Belair, John Read

Ask someone what they can tell you about the Royal Canadian Mint and most likely the first thing that they will mention, is coinage. The Royal Canadian Mint manufactures Canada&apos;s one-cent coins, nickels, dimes and quarters - over 1 billion per year. Most of these coins use copper and nickel as base material, and all of this metal is mined, refined and processed in Canada prior to being shipped to the mint for coin production. In 1985 alone, 1270 metric tons of Canadian nickel and 2160 metric tons of Canadian copper were absorbed in circulating coinage. July 1987 will have marked the introduction of Canada&apos;s new one dollar coin, an important new addition to Canada&apos;s monetary system. The first phase of this program will consume about 2,235 metric tons of Canadian nickel in the initial production run. Annual requirements in subsequent years are estimated at 225 metric tons. The Royal Canadian Mint is also a major producer of circulating coinage for foreign countries. Since the state-of-the-art Winnipeg plant swung into full production in 1976 the Mint has struck more than 5.2 billion coins for some 35 nations around the world. 1985 sales have increased almost 6 fold over 1984. 1987 already shows commitments for a further significant increase in volume in this business. The use of Canadian metals in export to foreign nations as coinage adds still more to the Royal Canadian Mint&apos;s key role as a major market maker for Canada&apos;s mining industry. The success of the Mint in this realm can be directly traced to it&apos;s 75 years as one of the world&apos;s most important refiners of gold. Today, the Royal Canadian Mint is the largest refiner of gold in the Western Hemisphere, and the third largest, by volume, in the world. The R.C.M. hallmark on kilo bars, 100 troy ounce comex bars

Jan 1, 1987

By Thomas T. Read

I. INTRODUCTION. WHEN so much has been written upon a subject on which so little definite information is available as upon this, some reason must needs be assigned for adding to the volume of literature. A sufficient reason is found in the probable great future importance of China as a producer of mineral wealth. The present undeveloped state of mining in the Empire is due to many causes, among which the most important are the relatively simple needs of the population, the lack of transportation-facilities, the inelastic regulations governing the industry, and the superstitious reluctance of the people to make excavations which might disturb the spirits of the earth and air, or of ancestors. Iron is the metal most in demand, yet the needs of the population, until recently, only made necessary a production of approximately 0.5 lb. of iron per capita per year. The present annual production of iron for domestic consumption, in the United States, is nearly 600 lb. per capita. The curious state of development of transportation in this interesting country has been a greater handicap upon the mining industry than upon any other. The point upon which it hinges is the absence of a road-system. Except for a few military roads, now almost impassable, there are no roads in China; that is to say, there is no land which is set aside as a right of way, belonging to the commonwealth. Throughout the agricultural districts, generally speaking, the entire area is in private ownership, and the lines of travel are between fields. There is a constant struggle for existence between the owners of the land and the traveling public, with the natural result that the so-called roads usually

Mar 1, 1912

By John A. Davis, David W. Brunton

During the past few years great progress has been made in the United States toward safer, more efficient, and more economical tunneling methods. This advance is partly due, no doubt, to the recent increase in the number of tunnels and adits driven for devel- oping and draining mines and transporting ore. The Bureau of Mines during 1911 and 1912 made a special examination of this phase of mining operations, in connection with an investigation of mining methods and means for preventing accidents. The details especially studied were the provisions for the safety of employees, the kinds of equipment, the methods of driving, and the costs of con- struction. The results and conclusions obtained from that investi- gation are discussed and summarized in this bulletin. Up-to-date information concerning tunneling methods is difficult to obtain. There are few books on the subject; and much of the material they contain, although interesting and of value historically, is now obsolete. The engineering periodicals, it is true, endeavor to keep abreast of the times, and several in nearly every issue present some article bearing upon tunnel work. But the very multiplicity of these articles prevents one from reading them all, and the foreman or superintendent in charge of a tunnel, or the mining engineer designing one, and especially the business man financing the project, has no time for a lengthy search after scattered articles in order to determine the present status of tunnel work. Then, too, knowledge of new methods travels slowly. Valuable inventions and improve- ments in tunneling as well as in all the other industries frequently remain in the notebook of the investigator, or as theses are buried in university libraries, or are published only in journals of small scien- tific societies. New tunneling methods and equipment that are prov- ing safe, efficient, and economical may be totally unknown outside the district in which they originate. This paper, based on a special examination both in the field and in engineering literature, is in- tended to supply data concerning modern and recent tunneling practice in the United States, and to make suggestions that, it is hoped, will result in a saving to the mining industry of energy, capital, and life.

Jan 1, 1916

By D. Harrington

This circular presents Part III-A of a series reviewing the literature on effects of breathing dusts with special reference to silicosis; it deals with the economic and legal aspects of dust diseases in industry; Part III-B will contain data on the status and cost of compensation for silicosis, Parts I and II of the series have been issued as Information Circulars 6835, 6840, and 6848; Part I defines and classifies dusts, indicates sources of exposure, and describes the physiological effects of breaching dusts; Part II-A discusses the principal dust factors producing pulmonary pathology and methods of determination of dust in air; and Part II-B presents data on the engineering and medical control in the prevention of dust diseases and general recommendations for their control in industry. A summary and general conclusions will complete the series.

Jan 1, 1935

By Joseph H. White, DR. JAMES G. CUMMING

This report presents the results of an investigation of hookworm infection in the deep gold mines of the Mother Lode, California. In this investigation 1,440 miners of the Mother Lode have been examined for hookworm infection; 444 miners were found to be infected; and 91 miners have taken the treatment and have gotten rid of the infection. ·Within a short time after this preliminary examination, an industrial strike started, which gradually scattered the miners and made it difficult to institute the treatment of many of those who had been found infected. ·With the completion, however, of the State survey all these will eventually be identified and treated. In 1906 Dr. F. F. Sprague, of Jackson, Cal., and formerly of the Philippine Islands, recognized the prevalence of hookworm infection in the gold mines of California. He treated many cases of the infection and brought the prevalence of the disease to the attention of his colleagues. Following closely this pioneer work of Dr. Sprague was that of Dr. E. E. Endicott, health officer of Amador County. In 1911 Dr. Endicott a related his experience in a paper before the American Medical Association. In 1909, Dr. Herbert Gunn, under the auspices of the California State Board of Health, made an investigation to determine the prevalence of the disease among miners. b He reported on the blood and stool examinations of groups of men from three large mines in Amador County. The high eosmophilia verified by stool examinations in many of the cases, and the demonstration of larvae in soil from the workings led Dr. Gunn to the following conclusions: 1. Hookworm disease is endemic in certain mines of California. 2. From 50 to 80 per cent of those working in these mines are infected. 3. The infection undoubtedly is present in practically all the gold mines of California and in those of Nevada just over the border. vYhen it was definitely determined by the California State Board of Health to make an investigation, in cooperation with the Industrial Accident Commission of the State of California and the Federal Bureau of Mines, as to the prevalence of hookworm infection among the miners of California, the following procedure was planned: (1) To encourage the superintendents of the various mines to cooperate in the campaign; (2) to diagnose fecal specimens from the miners and determine the percentage of infected miners; (3) to reach an agreement with the superintendents that all infected men must be treated; (4) to make reexaminations of all treated men; (5) to issue "hookworm certificates"; and (6) to eventually reexamine all California miners. A visit to several of the mines on the Mother Lode made it evident that the mine operators would cooperate most cordially in this campaign; in fact, several superintendents had already considered the advisability of such an undertaking.

Jan 1, 1917