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By D. P. Harris

The construction of a model to associate probability of occurrence of some measure of mineral wealth with the geology for each subdivision (cell) of the area is postulated. The questions (1) are the observations made in reconnaissance geology sufficiently related to mineral wealth to distinguish the cells of high value from those of low value, and (2) can this geology be related mathematically to mineral wealth and probability are answered in a case study of 97,000 square miles in Arizona and New Mexico. Measurements on mineral wealth and geologic variables of 243 cells were made. The geologic variables, valued in counts, percentages and lengths, quantified the theoretical concepts of the model. It was found that multiple discriminant analysis and classification analysis by Bayesian statistics and multivariate normal probability function constitute a two-phase probability model that associates probabilities with geologic information and mineral wealth. The cells of explored area must be allotted the value class indicated by their cumulative production and estimate reserves (given well-defined geological relationships in a mineral wealth area), and a discriminant and classification analysis must be performed in which probabilities of the cell belonging to each of the value groups are generated as a function of the geologic variables. This determines whether high value cells can be distinguished from low value cells by their geology as well as indicating those cells misclassified by the model into a higher value group than warranted by their known mineral wealth. The second use of the model is for extrapolation. It is demonstrated how geologic information on an explored area can be utilized in guiding exploration in an unexplored area. Exploration decisions can be predicted on explicitly determined measures of uncertainty (the probabilities). SUMMARY This study postulates the construction of a model to associate probability of occurrence of some measure of mineral wealth with the geology for each subdivision (cell) of the area. Such a model will distinguish those cells deserving further exploration on the basis of their geology: The basic postulates of this study are as follows: v = Q(R,S,F,A) P(V) = G(R,S,F,A,V), where V = a measure of mineral wealth P(V) = the probability of occurrence of V R = age and type of rock F = rock fracturing A =age of igneous activity and contact relationships. There are really two questions to be answered: 1) are the observations made in reconnaissance geology sufficiently related to mineral wealth to distinguish the cells of high value from those of low value, and 2) can this geology be related mathematically to mineral wealth and probability? In order to answer these questions, an area of about 97,000 square miles situated chiefly in Arizona and New Mexico was selected as a case study. This case study area was divided into 243 cells, each 20 miles square, and measurements were made on mineral wealth and geologic variables. Crude geologic variables valued in counts, percentages and lengths are constructed to reflect the above postulated variables. These measurement variables thus provide quantified values defining the theoretical concepts of the model. It was found that multiple discriminant analysis and classification analysis by Bayesian statistics and the multivariate normal probability function constitute a two-phase probability model that associates probabilities with geologic information and mineral wealth. Given the availability of an area that is well explored and upon which the relationships of mineral wealth to geology can be adequately defined, there are two ways in which the analysis outlined in this paper can prove beneficial. First, the cells of the explored area must be allotted the value class indicated by their cumulative production and estimated reserves, and a discriminant and classification analysis must be performed in which probabilities of the cell belonging to each of the value groups are generated as a function of the geologic variables. Such an analysis determines whether cells of high

Jan 1, 1967

By Whitman E. Brown, Louis J. Erck

L. A. ROE*—This paper is one of great value to the iron ore industry. The Humphreys spiral is a relatively new tool and gives promise of being quite useful in solving certain problems of iron ore beneficiation. Spirals have been tested on a martite ore at the Benson mine of Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp. in northern New York State. Our New York ore is considerably different, physically and mineralogically, than the one mentioned in this paper, and contains only 25 pct iron. This ore can be processed on spirals to give a concentrate containing 62 pct iron with an 85 pct recovery. On our particular ore we found operating difficulties when the spiral feed was coarser than 14 mesh. These were chiefly due to excessive "build-up" of locked middlings in the spiral circuit. In extreme cases these middling particles would accumulate to such an extent that the plant had to be shut down and the spiral surge tanks cleaned out. It is interesting to note that there exists a close relationship between the results of tabling a given iron ore and concentration of this same ore on Humphreys spirals. The size range of the ore must, of course, be within those limits acceptable to spiral concentration. Comparative tests on several of our mar-tite ores showed tabling results to be the same as spiral results. The authors make no mention of the use of a tailing stream splitter (now available from the spiral manufacturer) which is a useful tool in studying iron losses in the tailings stream. 011 our particular martite ore we found a considerable accumulation of fine-sized iron ore particles in the outside portion of the tailings stream. This fraction may be amenable to further treatment. E. H. ROSE*—The authors have concluded an interesting piece of work and this paper is an excellent factual account of a rapid and somewhat unusual transi-;ion in practice in the plant described. Perhaps it was modesty on their part which caused them so casually to limit to one sentence the fact that "several other methods of concentration on the fine ores representative of the Hill Trumbull group . . . failed to produce consistently an acceptable grade and recovery of finished product." The fact is that they were confronted by a difficult mineral-dressing problem and they are to be congratulated on their courage and persistence in staying with it until a satisfactory solution was evolved. A visitor to the plant might have been mildly astonished, as I was, to see one type of concentrator handling that part of the load early in the 1947 season, its experimental replacement by another a little later, and then in 1948 to see that both types had simply disappeared and their place taken by the spirals which were operating as placidly as though they had been there all the time. In working out economic methods of beneficiating Alabama red ore, most of which development is still ahead of us, it is likely that we also will pass through a period of successive disappointments, for we too have a problem where it is next to impossible either to "guess 'end right in the first place," or, because full-scale operating cost is such an important factor, to lay the ultimate answer on the line in advance by means of laboratory experimentation. Iron ore being what it is instead of what it used to be, it is encouraging to have the example the authors have given us today that a tough nut that will not crack on the first blow or the second is apt to do so on the third or fourth.

Jan 1, 1950

By B. F. Zwick

No new fields have been discovered in Ecuador during 1945, though Shell. Company of Ecuador's Vuano No. 1, near Arajuno in the Oriente concession, which was reported to have drilled to .5281 ft., tested a small, noncommercial quantity of 13° gravity oil. In the upper section, the well tested large flows of fresh water and has been abandoned. Shell is preparing to move to another location.

Jan 1, 1946

By Karl D. Libsch, Modesto E. Erneta

Both battery design and environmental pressures are forcing the secondary lead industry to consider new and different processes. Trends in battery design are making normal decasing increasingly difficult. Lead in air, sulfur dioxides, and solid/liquid waste heavy metal restrictions are tightening. There is no clearly defined industry trend toward a given process, but it is clear that plants will be larger, less labor-intensive, and automated.

Jan 1, 1977

By J. F. Pierce, S. M. Enterline

Since January 1959 a zinc refiner of novel design has been in operation at Blackwell, Okla., producing 99.995+ zinc from the output of the Blackwell horizontal retort smelter. The refiner is a continuously operated, pyro-metallurgical unit with principal dimensions horizonhl permitting one floor operation. It is very ruggedly constructed. Furthermore it is not subjected to deterioration from high concentrations of iron in the feed metal because the boiling units are separate from the rectification columns and constructed with silicon carbide brick arches through which the heat is transferred radiantly to the zinc. A zinc refiner of novel design has been in operation since January 1959 at the Blackwell, Okla. plant of the Blackwell Zinc Co., Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of American Metal Climax, Inc. Developed by the company's technical and operating staffs, the new refiner produces special high-grade zinc (nominally 99.995+ pct Zn) from the prime western1 slab output of the Blackwell horizontal retort smelter. The refiner is a continuously operated, pyromet-allurgical, high-capacity unit employing fractional distillation to separate zinc from its impurities, consisting principally of lead, cadmium, and iron. In prime western slab, these elements may vary in concentration from 0.005 to 1.6 pct. Table I shows the impurities usually encountered in the Blackwell prime western metal fed to the refiner together with their boiling points and vapor pressures at 907oC. The commercial pyrometallurgical smelting processes for extracting zinc from ore include distillation from retorts and a limited degree of refining can be accomplished by redistillation in similar retorts. To achieve special high-grade purity, an impractical number of batch redistillations would be required, however, with an accompanying loss of much metal. A continuously operated and integrated unit is required in which fractional vaporization and condensation can take place in a large number of stages. The first commercial continuously operated unit was developed by the New Jersey Zinc Co.4 In the separation of any two substances the degree of separation is limited if a mixture exists having a constant boiling point. The Zn-cd5 and Zn-pb6 systems contain no constant boiling points and hence these metals may be separated to any degree of purity. Basically, the pyrometallurgical refining of zinc involves three steps: a) iron, copper, and other metals having no appreciable vapor pressures at 907ºC concentrate in the bath when the impure zinc is boiled, b) lead, bismuth, antimony, and other metals having boiling points above but closer to that of zinc are selectively condensed from the vapor boiled from the bath, and c) cadmium and other metals having lower boiling points than zinc are fractionally distilled by reboiling and subsequent condensation of the zinc from the vapor. The boiling and condensation of zinc must be conducted in vessels constructed of materials which are refractory at the temperature involved (907 ºC) and it is highly desirable that they also be resistant to attack by the various metals. This requirement dictates construction from relatively small, simply shaped pieces which limits the pressures which may be employed to avoid leakage through the numerous joints. Stresses induced must be limited essentially to compressive ones and suitable provision must be made to permit thermal expansion of the components in order to minimize these stresses. Where heat is to be added for boiling or removed for condensation, refractory material through which the heat flows must have a high thermal conductivity. Silicon carbide is highly conductive but is subject to attack by iron and is expensive compared to other commonly employed refractories. A hard, dense aluminous fireclay is well suited to contain these metals where high thermal conductivity is not required. Zinc will penetrate the pores of fireclay brick but only to a limited depth in an exterior wall and has little effect other than an increase in weight and conductivity. The design objectives of the Amax refiner were: a) to achieve a long life by heavy, rugged construction and by employing silicon carbide refractories only where required for heat conductivity and not in contact with liquids of high iron concentrations, b) to simplify operation, manning and control by essentially horizontal construction, and c) to obtain high capacity in a single unit. DESCRIPTION Flow of metal through the Amax refiner is shown diagrammatically in Fig. 1 and schematically in Fig. 2.

Jan 1, 1963

By C. A. Doh, R. Q. Fields, M. Lebourg

A formation tester run on logging cable is now available to the oil industry. It offers a method of safely and rapidly testing possible producing formations in uncased holes. These tests can be made up the hole after running the electric log. Reservoir pressure data is continuously recorded at the surface as the fluid sample is extracted. The tester may be assembled with a reservoir of 1-, 2.75-, or 5.5-gal capacity. A retaining pad on the body of the tool is expanded against the wall of the hole at the exact depth desired; this depth is determined by electrical log control. Two bullets are then fired through the center of the retaining pad which create a connection between the formation and a flow line to the sample chamber. When the chamber is filled, a valve is closed and the fluid sample sealed at maximum pressure. The tool is retracted to minimum diameter and brought out of the hole. Electrical circuits permit a complete recording at the surface of the mechanical operations of the tool as well as the formation pressure build-up and the hydrostatic mud pressure. The tool was introduced commercially during the latter part of 1955 in the Gulf Coasts of Louisiana and Texas. Over 1,000 operations have been made to date (Sept. 1, 1956); 50 per cent of which resulted in successful tests. Failures have been due mostly to ineffective sealing in unconsolidated sands. One major company had 41 successful tests out of 80 attempts with 23 ineffective pad seals. Results for this company were very gratifying as to pinpointing gas-oil ratios, indicating productive permeabilities and aiding in determination of fluid content where electrical log and side-wall coring information were inconclusive. Eight typical pressure curves are discussed (including misruns). Six types of fluid recoveries are interpreted. Eight actual field examples of electric logs, showing the problems solved by the formation tester, are illustrated. The present applications of the tool are discussed: 1. Determination of productive fluid—varticularlv differentiating between gas and oil. 2. Determination of reservoir pressure as an aid to: (a) safety in completion technique, (b) reduction in drilling costs, and (c) reservoir analysis. 3. Determination of minimum gas-oil ratios. 4. Location of gas-oil or oil-water contacts. 5. Recovery of samples for examination and analysis: oil (gravity); gas (hydrocarbon content); water (salinity). Additional applications envisioned for the future are also given: (I) subsurface exploration based on accurate pressure, (2) recovery of fluid samples from the undisturbed reservoir for PVT work, and (3) possible quantitative study of permeabilities or productivity index. Running the formation tester requires no special pre-cautionary measures. Because full hydrostatic mud pressure is maintained at all times, well depth is no problem. Thus, the method allows safe, economical testing in wells which heretofore could only be tested by setting casing. INTRODUCTION A new method of safely and rapidly testing possible producing formations in uncased holes is achieving considerable success. The method offers promise of further advances in reservoir study. Called the formation tester, the new instrument is unique in that it operates on logging cable. It thus offers all the advantages of wire-line operations and becomes an important adjunct to present logging and side-wall coring services. The tester is operated against the wall of the hole at any depth desired. Zones to be tested are usually determined by a study of the electrical and the micro-caliper surveys. Reservoir data, as well as the operating cycle of the tool in the hole, are continuously recorded at the surface during the operation. The tester, as it was originally designed, was capable of recovering a 1-gal sample of reservoir fluid per trip in the hole. Tools with reservoirs of 2.75- and 5.5-gal capacity are now available. The 5.5-gal reservoir is equipped with a segregating system, set before going in the hole, so that the last portion of the recovery (usually 1 gal) is automatically separated from the first portion. This makes it possible

Jan 1, 1958

By E. O. Wagner, V. F. Parry, W. S. Landers

Development work has shown that the yield of primary tar from coal is proportional to the heat in the volatile matter of the coal and that the yield of tar from noncoking coals may vary from 10 to 45 gal per ton on the ash-free and moisture-free basis. Pilot plant operations have proved that 100 to 135 pct of the bench-scale carbonization-assay yield of tar can be obtained. FOLLOWING investigations by the Denver Bureau of Mines on drying fine coal in the entrained state,'. ' Texas Power & Light Co. employed the fluidized technique to upgrade Texas lignite for use in power plants. Because of the rapidly rising cost of natural gas in Texas the company agreed to cooperate with the Bureau of Mines in studying further the upgrading of lignite by low-temperature carbonization, since potential value of the tar would help offset the cost of fuel. Considerable interest was aroused, therefore, when Aluminum Co. of America decided to use dried lignite in its 240,000-kw power plant at Rockdale, Texas, operated by Texas Power & Light. Carbonization of coal before burning in a power plant is not new. Plants in Germany have been operated for many years on carbonized brown coal and lignite briquets produced in large integrated plants. Large-scale experiments in carbonizing pulverized coal with hot flue gases were made 30 years ago at Milwaukee," and many inventors have proposed other processes. In the U. S., technical and economic problems have prevented successful operation of large plants on carbonized coal. but new techniques of handling solids in fluidized beds may overcome these difficulties, particularly if the higher volatile noncoking coals are used. Any bituminous material will decompose when heated to about 900°F to yield primary tar, gas, and char. The quantity of tar obtained from various coals depends on their rank and volatile content and to some extent on rate and method of heating. The liquid products derived from thermal decomposition of peat, brown coal. lignites, oil shale, and noncoking bituminous coals can be easily liberated by rapidly heating these materials in a fluidized bed at about 500°C (932°F). Since it takes only a few minutes to heat small particles of fuel to carbonizing temperature in a fluidized bed, processing plants can be built to handle up to 50 tph at relatively low cost. The pioneering development work being conducted at Rockdale, Texas, by Alcoa and Texas Power & Light will solve many engineering problems of such operations. The Bureau of Mines at Denver has studied the carbonizing properties of several hundred coals by small scale assay at 500°C, deriving a simple correlation between the potential yield of tar and the proximate analysis. This correlation, shown in Fig. 1, compares the heat in the volatile matter of the coal with the potential yield of primary tar. The yield of primary tar varies from 12 to 50 gal per ton of pure coal." About the same amount of heat is needed to * MAF equals moisture-and-ash-free basis. distil any dry coal at 500°C, and the time required to carbonize a given particle size is about the same for any coal. It is therefore obvious that coals rich in volatile matter will show the greatest profits when processed. Texas lignites are rich in volatile matter, which contributes some 5700 Btu per lb of MAF coal, and the potential primary tar and oil yield from this lignite averages 12 pct by weight or 27 gal per ton from the pure lignite. Texas lignites are considerably richer in potential tar than lignites of North Dakota and Montana. During 1950 the Bureau of Mines conducted many experiments on carbonizing fine dry coal in the entrained state, publishing a report4 n major features of pilot and commercial-size units required to carry out the process. Additional experimental work has been done at Denver and the pilot plant has been improved, particularly the facilities for studying removal of fine dusts from tar vapors and gases at high temperatures by electrostatic precipitation. A number of materials have been carbonized, including sawdust, peat, brown coal, Brazilian oil shale, lignites, and the lower rank bituminous coals having noncoking properties. Straight coking coals cannot

Jan 1, 1957

By T. C. Atchison, W. I. Duvall

Over the past ten years a series of investigations have been conducted to determine some of the pnysical processes involved in breaking rock with confined concentrated charges. Detailed discussions of many of these investigations have been published elsewhere.1-6 Laboratory experiments made by other investigators using Hopkinson pressure-bar techniques have shown that solid materials are fractured in tension by the reflection of an incident compressive stress pulse at a free surface.7-12 In these tests a small charge of explosive is placed in contact with one end of a bar. Detonation produces some plastic flow and crushing of the bar near the charge and generates a compressive stress pulse that travels along the length of the bar. At the free end of the bar the compressive stress pulse is reflected back into the bar as a tensile stress pulse. If the tensile strength of the bar is exceeded during this reflection process, a tensile fracture normal to the length of the bar is produced, and the broken end of the bar moves forward with a constant velocity equal to the average particle velocity trapped in the broken fragment. The new surface formed by the fracture becomes the new free end of the bar that reflects the remaining portion of the incident compressive stress pulse. This process is repeated any number of times until all of the incident stress pulse is reflected. Hino has demonstrated this kind of breakage for three rock types—marble, granite, and sandstone." He has defined a blastibility coefficient, B, as the ratio of compressive strength, C, to tensile strength, T, thus: C The quantity B is the maximum number of slabs that can be produced by reflection breakage. Normally fewer slabs are produced because of loss of energy as the stress pulse travels through the rock. Fig. 1 illustrates reflection-type fracture for a triangular compressive stress pulse. The number of slabs produced by the reflection breakage process is the first whole number less than the ratio of the peak stress of the incident pulse to the tensile breaking stress of the solid. Thus the number of slabs is given by the thickness of each slab is given by and the total length of rock broken is given by N = number of slabs S - peak stress in incident pulse T = tensile strength of the rock F = fall length of incident stress pulse h = thickness of each slab D = total length of rock broken During the reflection process the particle velocity at the free surface is twice the particle velocity in the incident stress pulse. Thus the velocity with which the broken fragments move forward is given by where v, = velocity of broken fragment, and v = average particle velocity contained in that portion of the incident pulse trapped in the broken fragment. Results of these laboratory experiments cannot be applied directly to rock blasting where the explosive charge is placed in a drillhole. In laboratory tests the charge is unconfined and in contact with the rock in only one direction. In a drillhole additional confinement is offered by the rock surrounding the charge and by the stemming placed above it. This additional confinement may be enough to allow the explosive gases to do additional work on the rock during their expansion. Other writers have discussed possible effects of gas expansion'on rock breakage.13-10 However, very few experimental data are available to determine to what extent expansion of the gases is responsible for rock fragmentation. The USBM has studied the physical processes involved in breaking rock with confined concentrated charges by using simple crater tests breaking to one free surface. Crater tests have been performed in four rock types: granite, sandstone, marlstone, and chalk. Table I gives some physical properties of these rocks. Fig. 2 shows plan and section drawings of two typical crater tests and illustrates some of the test variables measured. For these tests the charge was placed at the bottom of the drillhole and primed with an electric cap. The hole was stemmed to the collar with sand and the charge detonated. Size and shape of the crater were measured after it was cleared of broken rock. As a given charge size was buried deeper in a drillhole, the crater depth usually was equal to or

Jan 1, 1960

By W. D. Forgeng, P. F. Wieser

MnSi alloys containing from 2 to 24 at. pct Si have been investigated by metallographic and X-ray methods. Contrary to published data, the temperature of the ß-manganese to a-manganese transformation is lowered by the addition of silicon. The existence of two additional intermediate phases E and ( is demonstrated. E, ranging in composition from 12 to 15.5 at. pct Si, forms by a peritectoid reaction between ß manganese and the second new phase, (. The latter phase is homogeneous at silicon contents from 16.2 to 18 at. pct and forms peritectically from the 0 phase and liquid. The eutectic reaction occurs between the ( phase and MnsSi rather than the ß phase and Mn3Si. As a result of this investigation, a modification of the manganese-rich section of the MnSi equilihrium diagram is proposed. The binary diagram of Mn-Si, according to Hansen,' Fig. 1, exhibits in the low-silicon region (below 24 at. pct Si) a peritectic transformation at 900°C of 0 manganese + Mn3Si to a manganese as determined by R. Vogel and H. Bedarff2 as well as a thermal effect at 980°C between 16.2 and 22.6 at. pct Si reported by the same authors. The nature of the latter transformation was unknown. K. Amark, B. Boren, and A. westgren3 reported indications that possibly four more phases existed in the range of 10 to 27 at. pct Si. The present investigation deals with the phase relations in the range of 2.1 to 17.7 at. pct Si. A few spot checks were conducted up to 23.84 at. pct Si. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Small experimental heats were prepared by induction melting in a vacuum furnace using argon as a protective atmosphere. The crucible was of commercial-quality magnesia. The furnace charge consisted of silicon metal and dehydrogenated electrolytic manganese. The typical analysis for these materials is shown in Table I. The molten alloy was tapped into 2-in.-square, 7-in.-long ingots. After visual inspection, a small quantity of alloy in the middle portion of the ingot was separated for use in this investigation.MnSi alloys containing from 2 to 24 at. pct Si have been investigated by metallographic and X-ray methods. Contrary to published data, the temperature of the ß-manganese to a-manganese transformation is lowered by the addition of silicon. The existence of two additional intermediate phases E and ( is demonstrated. E, ranging in composition from 12 to 15.5 at. pct Si, forms by a peritectoid reaction between ß manganese and the second new phase, (. The latter phase is homogeneous at silicon contents from 16.2 to 18 at. pct and forms peritectically from the 0 phase and liquid. The eutectic reaction occurs between the ( phase and MnsSi rather than the ß phase and Mn3Si. As a result of this investigation, a modification of the manganese-rich section of the MnSi equilihrium diagram is proposed. The binary diagram of Mn-Si, according to Hansen,' Fig. 1, exhibits in the low-silicon region (below 24 at. pct Si) a peritectic transformation at 900°C of 0 manganese + Mn3Si to a manganese as determined by R. Vogel and H. Bedarff2 as well as a thermal effect at 980°C between 16.2 and 22.6 at. pct Si reported by the same authors. The nature of the latter transformation was unknown. K. Amark, B. Boren, and A. westgren3 reported indications that possibly four more phases existed in the range of 10 to 27 at. pct Si. The present investigation deals with the phase relations in the range of 2.1 to 17.7 at. pct Si. A few spot checks were conducted up to 23.84 at. pct Si. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Small experimental heats were prepared by induction melting in a vacuum furnace using argon as a protective atmosphere. The crucible was of commercial-quality magnesia. The furnace charge consisted of silicon metal and dehydrogenated electrolytic manganese. The typical analysis for these materials is shown in Table I. The molten alloy was tapped into 2-in.-square, 7-in.-long ingots. After visual inspection, a small quantity of alloy in the middle portion of the ingot was separated for use in this investigation.

Jan 1, 1964

By F. Bonaccorso, G. Venturello, C. Antonione

A study of the effect of small amounts of interstitial impurities on recovery and re crystallization in high-purity iron (99.995 pct) has been undertaken. This paper gives results on the effect of carbon, introduced in small-dosed amounts @om 0.0005 to 0.0086 wt pct) by heating iron specimens of high purity m a static atmosphere of CO + ,. The materials prepared in this way, cold-worked 80 pct and subjected to a series of isochronal and isothermal annealings, were submitted to examinations by X-rays, micrographs, and hardness tests. It was observed that effect of carbon is remarkable in the sense of blocking recovery of mechanical properties up to the temperature at which re crystallization begins. On the contrary, carbon has a negligible effect on primary re crystallization temperature, when compared with the known effect of substitutional impurities. This is in agreement with the high mobility of interstitials. In effect, only a slight decrease, -20 pct, of the grain-boundary motion rate was noted, due to the interaction between the grain boundary and the carbon atoms. On the other hand, in the samples in which the carbon content is above the solubility limit at the temperature at which re crystallization occurs, a slight increase of nucleation frequency is noted due to the presence of precipitated carbides. ThE effect of purity on recovery and recrystalli-zation phenomena has been known for a long time; however, recently, new attention has been given to the problem since new methods for obtaining metals with extremely low impurity contents have become available. Most of this research work essentially concerns the effects of impurities which cause precipitates or give rise to substitutional solid solutions. The works of Bolling and winegard1 and Aust and utter' on lead, and Vandermeer and orddon' on aluminum, 01sen4 on nickel, and Abrahamson and Blakeney on iron should in particular be referred to. On the effect of this type of impurities a quantitative theory has been formulated by Detert and Lucke6 and has lately been discussed critically by Cahn7 and Gordon and vandermeer.' Interstitial solid solutions in iron have not as yet been studied. As the study of the effect of interstitials is of great interest both from a theoretical and practical standpoint, it was deemed useful to examine the effects of carbon, nitrogen, and boron on recovery and primary recrystallization of iron. There already is some work by Chaudron et al.,1-" on the effect of interstitials on iron; their work, however, mainly concerns secondary recrystallization. The present paper refers in particular to the effect of carbon. EXPERIMENTAL PART Preparation of Materials. The pure iron used for this research was obtained from FeCIS recrystal-lized and purified by extraction with isopropylic ether. From the ferric chloride purified in this manner, hydroxide was precipitated with a solution of very pure ammonia, and, by calcination in pure sintered alumina crucibles, oxide was obtained. Reduction of the oxide to iron sponge was performed in sintered alumina tubes with very pure hydrogen at 650°C; at the end of the operation temperature was increased to 900°C. Specimens for the experiments were obtained by sintering the sponge at 1480°C in pure Hz after a pre sinter ing treatment at 900° C. It is important to note that the treatment at 1480°C in Ha produces a further purification from more volatile elements such as zinc, cadmium, arsenic, lead, and tin. Details on the preparation and characteristics of this type of very pure iron are given in a previous work.'' Only the complete analysis performed by neutron-activation methodsz3 is given here, Table I. Some of the specimens prepared in this way were carburized in the 0 region with very low amounts of carbon by treating them at 700°C in a static atmosphere of Ha containing a definite amount of CO. The set-up used is described in Fig. 1. A gas-tight quartz tube containing the specimen to be carburized and an internal friction control specimen, after being evacuated, was filled with Hz

Jan 1, 1963

By Edwin A. Zink, Gerald P. Zink, John E. Wolgamott

Recent advances in high-pressure water technology can be effectively employed in underground mining. The new equipment is based on standard industrial water cleaning hardware and is compatible with conventional mining techniques. Three viable applications are addressed: rock drilling, hole notching, and rock bolting. Highlights of test results are presented that were obtained in several underground mines during the last two years of development work.

Jan 1, 1982

SECTION I Page Page Manuscript Closing Date, Febru- Forthcoming Meetings xxvii ary Meeting v . Library xxviii New York Section War Meeting on Membership xxxii Ferro-Alloys v Biographical Notices: Minutes of Meeting, Board of Robert Bell, by F. D. Adams. xlix Directors xvii H. J. Cantwell, by H. A. Members in Military Service xviii Wheeler 1 Personal xxiii Institute Committees Iii Employment xxv Officers and Directors Ix

Jan 11, 1917

By E. J. Haug, K. L. Clifford, K. L. Purdy

St. Joe’s Minerals Corp.’s Southeast Missouri Mining and Milling Division produces lead, zinc and copper sulfide concentrates at three of its operations. The Viburnum and Fletcher mills have been described in previous papers. The new Bushy Creek mill, dedicated in May of 1973, is an updated version of the Fletcher mill incorporating 8.5m3 (300 cu ft) lead and zinc

Jan 1, 1980

By C. H. Snyder

The paper deals with details of construction of the Colmol, including improvements in design that will be incorporated in new models. These improvements are results of problems encountered and worked out in experimental operation with the unit. Also included is a descriptive plan of operating where roof and air conditions are of the worst. A summary of production results from the machine is presented.

Jan 6, 1950

[EDMUND M. WISE, Chairman ROBERT H. LEACH, Past-Chairman D. K. CRAMPTON, Vice-Chairman CARL E. SWARTZ, Vice-Chairman W. M. CORSE, Treasurer LOUIS JORDAN, Secretary 29 West 39th St., New York, N. Y. Executive Committee 1941 1942 E. A. ANDERSON FRANCES H. CLARK D. L. COLWELL W. L. FINK W. P. SYKES J. T. NORTON 1943ERIC R. JETTE LOUIS W. KEMPF GEORGE SACHS]

Jan 1, 1940

By R. E. Stewart

The major mining companies of the world all face the problems associated with investing in new mining ventures. In particular, investment in foreign countries - whether these are advanced or developing countries - requires careful consideration. A thorough analysis of all the possible risks must be undertaken, so that realistic decisions can be made. Some of the points to be considered are outlined in this paper.

Jan 1, 1977

A remarkable industrial renaissance is underway in the People's Republic of China (PRC), says USBM's Dr. K. P. Wang in his recently released 96-page report on "The People's Republic of China-A New Industrial Power with a Strong Mineral Base." Dr. Wang's summary of the current mineral position of the PRC includes many insights into its future potential and trade possibilities with the West.

Jan 2, 1976

By Wm. R. Dotson

Forty years ago the atom was split and the Age of Fission dawned. Uranium was the element used in this earth-shaking accomplishment. Thitherto almost unknown to the man in the street, uranium soon became widely and persistently sought. And the quest for this unique material is not likely to diminish during this century. To find is one thing; to own is another. Who owns uranium in the ground? Where no mineral rights in the land have been severed by devise, grant, reservation or lease, the uranium belongs to the fee simple owner of the land. But where there has been a conveyance or reservation of all or part of the "minerals", determining WHAT a substance is has been the traditional way of determining WHO owns it. What, then, is this element called uranium? The 1907 edition of Watts Dictionary of Chemistry calls it "a lustrous, hard, silver-white metal". Of nature's three prime divisions it falls within the embrace of the mineral kingdom - substances neither animal nor vegetable. In its natural state uranium always is combined with other elements or substances in the form of an ore mineral. May we, then, put to rest any doubt or question as to the nature of uranium and classify it for all purposes, including that of ownership, as mineral? Not quite! That self-same logic would find oil and gas primly ensconced in the animal or vegetable kingdom. Technically, oil and gas are not minerals but legally they have been classified as such. Why? The Supreme Court of Tennessee sought the answer in 1897 in the case of Murray v. Allard, 43 S.W. 355. After citing authorities pro and con, and while admitting their origin to be "decomposition of marine or vegetable organises" that court firmly concluded that since they were obtained by a form of mining, oil and gas were minerals. From the above example two elementary truths emerge. First, for purposes of ownership, uranium is and will be whatever the courts say it is. Secondly, the courts historically and currently favor a practical rather than technical test to determine the "mineral" character of a substance. So now we turn to the jurisprudence for enlightenment and definition. EARLY CASES ALLOT URANIUM TO MINERAL OWNERS Two early cases involving the ownership of uranium followed what had been well-settled mineral within the meaning of the conveyances involved, confirming ownership in the mineral owners. In 1956 the U. S. District Court for New Mexico in the case of New Mexico and Arizona Land Company v. Elkins, 137 F. Supp. 767, appeal dism'd 239 F.2d 645 (10th Cir. 1956), found that a 1946 deed reservation of "all oil, gas and minerals underlying or appurtenant to said lands" included uranium and thorium. The court reasoned that uranium and thorium, being minerals within the scientific, geological and practical meaning of the term, would certainly constitute minerals within the purview of the reservation. While agreeing that uranium and thorium were "minerals", defendants argued that at the tine of execution of the conveyance it could not have been the intention of the parties to reserve them because they had no commercial value in the locality and were, in fact, not known to there exist until their later discovery in 1950. The court re¬jected, as a matter of law, this "lack of knowledge" theory citing the Supreme Court of Kentucky holding in Maynard v. McHenry, 113 S.W. 2d 13, that: "The mere fact that a particular mineral has not been discovered in the vicinity of the land conveyed or is unknown at the time the deed is executed rules of construction and held that uranium was a does not alter the rule . . ." that a grant or exception of "mineral" in a deed includes all mineral substances which can be taken from the land unless restrictive language is used indicating that the parties contemplated something less general than all substances legally cognizable as minerals. Further, argued the defendants, the only feasible mining procedure for such substances was open pit or strip mining, which would destroy the value of the land for grazing or agriculture. Finding that the language of the reservation was clear and unambiguous, the court would not permit the admission of extrinsic evidence as to mining procedures required. Elkins is the first uranium case construing the granting clause involved. In 1958 the Texas Court of Civil Appeals at San Antonio, in Cain v. Neuman, 316 S.W. 2d 915, no writ, held that a 1918 lease conveying "all of the oil, gas, coal and other minerals in and under" the land involved covered uranium. The lease provided a royalty of 1/10th on "other minerals." "We find no Texas precedent which discusses uranium," said the court, "but the usual arguments that uranium is not embraced within a lease are that the ejusden generis rule excludes uranium from the meaning of the lease

Jan 1, 1979

By G. Borelius

ABOUT the turn of the century, Gibbs' thermo-dynamic theory of heterogeneous equilibrium, on the one hand, and the experimental methods of thermal and microscopic analysis, on the other, gave to the physical metallurgist his first scientific tool, the equilibrium diagram. The classical equilibrium diagram of a binary alloy system shows the boundaries between ranges of homogeneous and heterogeneous equilibrium in their dependence of concentration and temperature. A homogeneous solid sohtion which on cooling passes such a boundary is assumed to precipitate, forming a mixture of two phases with different concentrations. The equilibriunl diagram and the equilibrium theory, however, give no information about the time scheme of the process or the intermediate states passed during precipitation. For this reason it satisfies neither the practical need of the metallurgist nor the curiosity of the physicist. As a matter of fact, in the heat treatment of alloys for technical use the objective very seldom is the equilibrium state. Thus good mechanical properties of construction material are connected, for the most part, with some intermediate state. As these intermediate states are thermodynamically unstable, there is, from a theoretical point of view, always to be expected a decay of the good properties with time; and it is a matter also of practical interest to know whether this natural life time of a material is of the order of, say, ten or thousands of years. Thus, for many reasons, there is a current demand to complete our knowledge of equilibrium through knowledge of the kinetics of the precipitation phenomena. From the point of view of the physicist, the most interesting question in this case is whether there are any general laws governing the kinetics. According to a generally accepted view, precipitation is ruled by two more or less independent phenomena, the formation of nuclei of a new phase and the growth of these nuclei. It is also commonly accepted that there is a tendency for the velocity of growth to increase with increasing temperature because of the increasing mobility of the atoms. There is also a tendency for the velocity of growth to decrease in the neighborhood of the two-phase boundaries. So far, however, very little is known quantitatively about this fundamental phenomenon in the case of solid metallic systems. In our laboratory attention has been directed especially toward the nucleation phenomena, and a series of measurements have been carried out with the guidance of a work- ing hypothesis (based on experiences from previous work on order-disorder transformations in alloys) about the influence on the nucleation of thermo-dynamic potential barriers. However, before discussing the experiments, the theoretical ideas will be considered. In a binary solid solution the arrangement of atoms on the lattice points approaches with increasing temperature a state of full randomness, as illustrated by the ball model of Fig. 1, that might represent a [111] plane of a face-centered alloy with 30 pct "black" and 70 pct "white" atoms. In reality the atoms are changing places continually with their neighbors so that the picture should rightly have been a moving one. On account of this thermal motion the concentration of black atoms within a certain group of, say, a hundred or a thousand lattice points fluctuates with time around the bulk concentration of 30 pct in a manner governed by statistical laws. With decreasing temperature two independent changes in this state grow more and more important. First, the mobility of the atoms decreases, and second, the forces between the atoms will have an increased influence on the fluctuations. In alloys with a tendency for precipitation, which are the concern of this lecture, the distribution function of concentration fluctuations will broaden, so that the relative probability of great local variations from the bulk concentration increases. Fig. 2 gives an example of such a fluctuation. When the alloy is supercooled below the solubility limit into the range of two-phase equilibrium, the fluctuations will now and then at some point give rise to a state that resembles the equilibrium state and thus will form a stable nucleus that is capable of growing by diffusion processes. In discussions with colleagues and in the literature, I have often encountered the idea that three or four atoms of the dissolved metal could form a nucleus of the new phase. A look at the ball model might be enough to indicate that this cannot be true. If it were true, there should be nothing but nuclei, whereas we know from experiment that nucleation must be a rather rare occurrence. In fact we have, as will be mentioned later, certain reasons to believe that the nuclei are formed by fluctuations containing some hundreds of atoms, which should be the order of the number of black balls in the fluctuating group of the figure, if it were extended into three dimensions. As a working hypothesis we have assumed that the fluctuations producing nuclei, though large and rare, still are ruled by the distribution laws of fluctuations of the supercooled solid solution in its initial state. Thus the probability of nucleation will be connected to the thermodynamic properties of the solid

Jan 1, 1952

By J. H. Polhems, R. B. Brackin, D. B. Grove

THE heavy media separation process plays an outstanding role in the concentration of 4000 tons of zinc ore per day at the Mascot mill of the American Zinc Co. of Tennessee. Of the total tonnage, 72 pct is treated in the heavy media separation plant to reject 56 pct of the ore as a coarse tailing, which has a ready market. Concentrates from this separation are beneficiated further by jigging and flotation. Approximately 25 pct of the total zinc concentrate production is made in the jig mill. Jig tailings are ground and pumped to the flotation circuit where the balance of the production is made. Fig. 1 shows a generalized flowsheet of the mill. The Mascot ore is a lead-free, honey-colored sphalerite in dolomitic limestone, with lesser amounts of chert and some pyrite. A mineralogical analysis is given in Table I. After 10 years of successful operation with galena medium and treatment of nearly 10,000,000 tons of ore, a decision to convert to ferrosilicon was made early in 1948 because of the increasing price of galena and consequent high operating costs. The conversion was made on Nov. 6, 1948, and the results obtained since that time have shown remarkable improvement over those made with galena. The Table I. Mineralogical Analysis of Mill Feed, Pct Calcium carbonate 49.5 Magnesium carbonate 35.2 Iron oxide and aluminum oxide 1.5 Zinc sulphide 4.5 Insoluble 9.3 100.0 Table II. Comparative Data, Galena and Ferrosilicon Ferro- Diner-Gelenaa siliconb ence Operating costs per ton milled, ct. 21.21 9.12 12.09 Medium consumption per ton milled, lb 0.80c 0.15 0.65 Reagent consumption per ton milled, lb 0.45 0.02 0.43 Tailing assay, pct Zn 0.310 0.297 0.013 Concentrate. oct Zn 12.08 10.33 1.75 Heavy medla ieparatlon recovery. pct 89.38 90.22 0.84 Mill feed rate, tons per hr 153 166 13 Heavy mesa separation feed rate. tons per hr 100 10 0 Tons milled per heavy media separation man shift 350 620 270 Mill feed to coarse tailings, pct 51.0 56.7 5.7 Lost mill time, pct 5.6 5.0 0.6 Power consumption, kw-hr per ton 2.06 1.92 0.14 a 1947. " First 6 months of 1950. c Net consumption after deducting credit for reclaimed waste galena. Consumption of new galena was 1.320 lb per ton milled. For entire life of galena operation, a credit of 40 pct of the value of the new galena added was realized from the sale of waste galena. comparisons given in this report cover the first 6 months of 1950 as representing the ferrosilicon operation, and the year 1947 as representing the galena operation. This was the last full year in which galena was used exclusively and is representative of the best work done during the 10 years of operation with this medium. After only 2 years' operating experience, with ferrosilicon and treatment of 1,807,585 tons many advantages have been revealed and are summarized in Table 11. Development Prior to the introduction of the heavy media process, all the mill feed was crushed through 5/8 in. and treated by jigging. A finished tailing assaying 0.66 pct Zn was made on rougher bull jigs, and cleaner jig tailings were ground for treatment by flotation. The first test work on the sink-and-float method of mineral beneficiation was carried out at Mascot in 1935, using a 3-ft cone and galena medium for batch tests. The following year a 6-ft cone was installed for pilot-plant work. This unit became a part of the mill circuit on March 1, 1936, and handled a gradually increasing tonnage in the next 2 years as the process developed to the point where it could treat all the + 3/8-in. material in the mill feed. Coarse jigging was then discontinued on March 1, 1939, and all coarse tailings have been made by the heavy media separation plant since that time. Feed Preparation: The original feed preparation plant consisted of a drag washer followed by two 4x10-ft Allis-Chalmers washing screens. A surge bin and two additional 5x12-ft AC washing screens were added in 1943. Use of primary and secondary washing screens was found essential to provide the cleanest possible feed for the cone and thereby avoid excessive contamination of the galena medium. Improved washing was obtained by replacing the drag washer with a 7x20-ft Allis-Chalmers scrubber, shown in Fig. 2, which has been in service since May 1944. Throughout the life of the galena operation, delivery of extremely muddy ore to the mill overloaded the medium cleaning system, and it frequently was necessary to cut off the feed and clean the medium for several hours until its normal viscosity had been re-established. The cleaning circuit

Jan 1, 1952