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By Thomas Brunsing

The program was carried out to develop deep kerfing and core breaking techniques to be incorporated into the design of a field prototype hard rock mining machine. The field machine is designed to mine non-abrasive bedded deposits up to 20,000 psi in uniaxial compressive strength. The mining technique involves cutting approximately 2 ft deep parallel kerfs spaced 2 ft apart in either a horizontal or vertical direction and subsequently breaking out the cores so defined. The prototype machine is intended for demonstration of the technique in a quarry or equivalent field environment. The program was aimed at minimizing the required kerf width, obtaining reliable breaking within that kerf width and determining cutter blade requirements necessary to achieve a mining rate of 20 ft3/min. Full scale breaking experiments and 1/2 scale kerfing experiments were employed to evaluate the system. High strength concrete test specimens were used to simulate the rock being cut and broken. The test results indicate the kerf/break technique can achieve the desired mining rate by utilizing two 7 ft diam blades to cut 2 in. wide by 24 in. deep kerfs. A lateral load applied at the base of the kerf (base shear) was selected at the core breaking technique to be employed by the full-scale prototype machine.

Jan 1, 1983

By L. C. IlsLey

The United States Bureau of clines has been conducting Investigations of electrical equipment during a period of more than 25 years in an endeavor to encourage the development of safer electrical equipment for coal mines. In order to conduct these investigations in an orderly manner they are carried out under a published schedule of tests known as Schedule 2C, which specifies detailed requirements for motors, controllers, etc., and fees covering the various inspections and tests made as part of a routine investigation.

Jan 1, 1937

By Sandeep K. Sharma

The U.S. Bureau of Mines has been investigating new techniques to improve the of mineral to recover water lost in the waste slurry, and to produce dewatered solid dewatering s suitable for disposal. As part of this investigation, a study was undertaken to investigate the feasibility of dewatering Alaska placer effluent. Based on the laboratory tests, preliminary field tests were conducted on three placer mines in Alaska. At these mines, the water recovered from the placer effluent (250 to 23,000 NTU) exhibited turbidities of 20 to 240 NTU. In the second year of the project, a large-scale dewatering unit was set up at a mine located in the Livengood district. The feed, at flow rates up to 935 gpm, was mixed with dilute PEO solution in a flexible plastic hose with and without static mixers. Feed to the dewatering unit generally ranged between 300 and 26,500 NTU and required PEO dosages of 0.02 to 0.14 lb per 1,000 gal to produce water from the screen underflow with turbidities of 20 to 50 NTU. During this period, a small unit was also operated at Dow rams of 10 to 25 gpm at sewn sites throughout Alaska, with the effluent from four of the sites being dewatered successfully.

Jan 1, 2010

By Donald J. Keefe

The Remote Working Level Monitor (RWLM) is an instrument used to remotely monitor the Rn-daughter concentrations and the Working Level (WL). It is an ac powered, microprocessor based instrument which multiplexes two independent detector units to a single central processor unit (CPU). The CPU controls the actuation of the detector units and processes and outputs the data received from these remote detector units. The remote detector units are fully automated and require no manual operation once they are set up. They detect and separate the alpha emitters of RaA and RaC' as well as detecting the beta emitters of RaB and RaC. The resultant pulses from these detected radioisotope; are transmitted to the CPU for processing. The programmed microprocessor performs the mathematical manipulations necessary to output accurate Rn-daughter concentrations and the WL. A special subroutine within the program enables the RWLM to run and output a calibration procedure on command. The data resulting from this request can then be processed in a separate program on most computers capable of BASIC programming. The calibration program results in the derivation of coefficients and beta efficiencies which provides calibrated coefficients and beta efficiencies.

Jan 1, 1977

By S. P. Sandoval

The U.S. Bureau of Mines investigated the separation of aluminum from copper dump leaching liquors using a supported liquid membrane. Aluminum was selectively transported through porous polypropylene impregnated with di (2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid in an aliphatic diluent. The effects of variables, such as solution composition, temperature, and extractant concentration, were measured with a three-level fractional factorial experimental design. Experimental results were used to derive equations for predicting transport rates for aluminum, iron, and copper. The major variables influencing aluminum transport were solution temperature, feed solution pH, aluminum concentration in the feed solution, and extractant concentration. Copper and iron transport rates were almost zero when aluminum transport rates were high. Measured aluminum transport rates under the best conditions of 55° C, pH 3.0, 16 g/L A13+, and 65 pct extractant solution confIrmed the predicted value of 210 f.'g/(cm2.h). Transport rates for iron and copper were less than 5 ug/(cm2.h) under these conditions. Aluminum was recovered from the stripping solutions by sparging with gaseous hydrogen chloride to crystallize aluminum chloride hexahydrate, which was calcined to alumina. Sparging crystallization regenerated the stripping acid for recycle.

Jan 1, 1989

By C. W. Elder

"INTRODUCTION This report describes a method of horizontal drilling in an oil-producing formation underlying a 400-acre, approximately square plot of land in the Franklin Heavy oil field in Sugar Creek Township, Venango County, Pa. The method, which was developed on two previous projects in Ohio, 3/ consists of sinking a shaft to the bottom of a shallow oil sand and drilling holes in a general horizontal plane outward from the chamber in a pattern similar to that of the spokes of a wheel. The project was undertaken by the Venango Development Corporation in an attempt to find an efficient method of recovering oil from partly depleted sand formations.The Venango Development Corporation is composed of the following oil-producing and oil-refining companies and individuals: South Penn Oil Co., Forest Oil Corporation, Kendall Refining Co., Minard Run Oil Co., Quaker State Oil Refining Co., The Pennzoil Co., Alliance Oil Corpo¬ration, United Refining Co., Franklin Creek Refining Corporation, Canfield Oil Co., Pennsylvania Refining Co., Page Oil Co., Freedom Oil Co., D. W. and D. S. Grant, and J. P. Herrick, C. M. Davison and N. V. V. Franchot. Engineering features of the project were supervised by a committee off three engineers A. J. Saxe, chairman, W. M. Shoemaker, and C. N. Pfohl, who supervised the excavation of the shaft and the drilling of the first two holes by alternately spending a week at a. time at the project. The drilling method was under patent license from Leo Ranney, who served as technical advisor to the Venango Development Corporation; in addition, he furnished the design for the shaft and work chamber."

Sep 1, 1944

By D. B. Taliaferro

[Recovery of core specimens from subsurface formations and their subsequent analysis are important aids in efficient development and operation of oil and gas fields. Core specimen first were obtained mainly for the geologic information they revealed; now they are on analyzed to determine many of the physical characteristics and conditions of the subsurface formations as well. Cores recovered from the producing formations may be analyzed for porosity, permeability, oil content, "connate" water content, and other physical and chemical properties of the formation, all to the end of furnishing enough data for making reliable estimates of the quantity and availability of oil and gas within reservoir and in devising efficient means for their withdrawal.]

Jan 1, 1939

By King K. Mak

The objectives of this study are to: (1) Assess current signing regulations and practices; (2) Develop effective signing guidelines; and (3) Evaluate the applicability and appropriateness of the proposed signing guidelines through field demonstration at representative mines. A literature search was conducted to determine the state of the art for signing applicable to surface mine haulage roads as well as survey of existing MHSA regulations and review of MSHA accident records. Nine representative mines were visited to gather information on current signing practices. Preliminary signing guidelines were then developed based on the abovementioned data. Field demonstration of the preliminary signing guidelines was conducted in which signing programs were implemented in two selected mines. Signing requirements were first assessed at each of the two participating mines. Subsequently, the necessary signs were designed, purchased, and installed at the two mines. Evaluation of the signing program as to its adequacy, appropriateness, and effectiveness was solicited from both mine management and operations personnel. Experiences gained from field evaluation were then incorporated into the final signing guidelines as presented in this final report.

Jan 1, 1981

By George A. Burrell, G. W. Jones, Frank M. Seibert

In this bulletin, the style of Bulletin 42 has been closely followed. Much of the material is reprinted on the following pages in its original form, and changes have been made only where manifestly neces- St,ry. Laboratory methods have been brought up to date. Some types of apparatus described in Bulletin 42 have now become obsolete and newer designs are described instead. The authors hope that this bulletin will be of as much service as was Bulletin 42.

Jan 1, 1926

By Albert E. Schreck

[THE COMPOUNDS of strontium were confused with those of barium until 1790, when A. Crawford discovered that the mineral strontianite, long believed to be a barium mineral, was a compound of a new element. This discovery was confirmed 2 years later by I. C. Hope. The mineral was named strontianite because it was found near the town of Strontian in Argyllshire, Scotland. In 1808 Sir Humphrey Davy isolated strontium metal by the electrolysis of fused chlorides. Celestite (strontium sulfate) and strontianite (strontium carbonate) are the principal strontium minerals. Because of its more widespread occurrence, celestite is more important commercially.]

Jan 1, 1959

By Paul M. Ambrose

ADVANCES in mining and processing technology made it possible to reopen the De Beers diamond mine in South Africa, originally located in 1871 by Cecil Rhodes and closed in 1908. Radioactive material was used to indicate the efficiency of hydro-cyclones used in diamond concentration. Added interest was shown in recovering diamond from the sea off the coast of South-West Africa. Production of crude artificial abrasives declined because demand was paritally met by withdrawals from stocks. The value of graded grain-coated abrasives and grinding wheels surpassed those of 1962.

Jan 1, 1964

By R. E. Siemens, Gary L. Hundley

The Bureau of Mines has devised and demonstrated a process for recovering Ni and Co from low-grade domestic laterites . The process consists of four mmaajjoorr steps : ( 1 ) reduction roast , ( 2 ) ammoniacal leach , ( 3 ) solvent extraction , and ( 4 ) electrowinning . Several solid - liquid separation steps are required that affect the economics of the overall process . In this study , two techniques for solid - liquid separation , centrifugation and thickening , were investigated . This report presents the results of ( 1 ) laboratory and pilot plant studies to determine parameters for sizing centrifuges and thickeners and ( 2 ) an economic study of the two techniques , based on the requirements of a commercial - size ( 5,000 - tpd ) laterite processing plant . Sizing and other equipment - related recommendations , based on data from the Bureau's studies , were obtained from commercial manufacturers . The costs of thickening and centrifugation , including all the unit operations affected , were determined by the Bureau's process evaluation group . The total operating costs for separation using the two techniques ( including depreciation on the capital cost of equipment ) were found to be quite close : $ 17.26 per ton of laterite for centrifugation and $ 18.15 per ton of laterite for thickening . For centrifugal separation , the greatest cost was found to be the initial capital cost for the separation equipment ; using thickeners , the greatest cost was for reagent recovery .

Jan 1, 1983

By G. R. Fitterer, M. B. Royer

The application of manganese in iron and steel metallurgy is very inter¬ esting historically. In general, ancient- irons and steels contained virtu¬ ally no manganese, probably because the available iron ores contained■only small amounts of the manganese oxides. Occasionally, samples of ancient irons were found to have appreciable amounts of manganese, but their presence is considered accidental and dependent upon the ore available to craftsmen of that time. Two specimens of iron (139;— made in 500 A.D. contained .negligible quantities of manganese. A sample of steel which constituted the base of .the Khan Baba pillar in India was probably processed in 12p B. C. by the1 cementa¬ tion of wrought iron. This material; contained 0.02 percent manganese and 0.70 percent carbon (20) . One Damascus-steel sword forged some time between 11'60 ' and l400 A. D. was found to contain 0.1^-i percent manganese and 0.j6l percent carbon. The manganese content of this bla.de was much higher than that of any other material of this type which has been analysed. In every other instance the manganese content was below 0.02 percent. A cast steel manufactured by the East India. Co. in India in the early nineteenth century, under the name of Wootz steel, contained rather appreciable amounts of manganese. This material was made by melting and refining fairly high-manganese pig iron prepared from high-manganese ore. Heath (106), who was working at the Co. plant between 1S20 and 1S40, was convinced that the manganese content of the steel was the determining fa,ctor in its high quality. He learned of certain difficulties English steel manufacturers were having in making even fair-grade steel, and analyses of the material indicated low manganese contents. This convinced him that.if the use of manganese could be introduced in England its steel would be greatly benefited. In consequence, he moved to England and soon was producing certain grades of ferromanganese for use with the crucible process. He recommended addition of this metallic material to the ingot mold just before pouring. It was soon found that inferior brands of steel containing only traces of manganese could be greatly improved by such additions. All metallurgists of that time became convinced

May 1, 1934

By Theodore M. Katz, W. Stephen Brightwell, David E. LeGrande, Joseph J. Hurrell, Jane A. Lipscomb, Nancy Lessin, Lawrence R. Murphy, Michael J. Colligan, Steven L. Sauter, Richard A. Lippin

Revolutionary changes in the organization of work have far outpaced our knowledge about the implications of these changes for the quality of working life and for safety and health on the job. This gap in knowledge is one of the 21 priority areas for research under the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA)—a framework crafted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and its partners to guide research into the next decade. This report was developed under NORA as the first attempt to develop a comprehensive research agenda for investigating and reducing occupational safety and health risks associated with the changing organization of work. Research and development needs identified in the agenda include (1) improved surveillance mechanisms to better track how the organization of work is changing, (2) accelerated research on safety and health implications of the changing organization of work, (3) increased research focus on organizational interventions to protect safety and health, and (4) steps to formalize and nurture organization of work as a distinctive field in occupational safety and health.

Jan 4, 2002

By L. C. Brichta

The Canyon Diggings zinc-lead deposit is in an area of structural deformation of sedimentary rooks in Newton County, Mo., 14 miles southeast of Joplin, within the southern limits of the Tri-State district. Mining and milling on the several tracts covering the area had been carried on sporadically since 1900, and incomplete records show a production of 1,341 tonsof zinc and lead concentrates. On the northern part of the deposit the predominant metal is which occurs as galena, cerrusite, and pyromorphite in broken chert near the surface. On the southern part, lead is subordinate to zinc, which occurs mainly as carbonate and silicate minerals in brecciated chert to a maximum depth of about 150 feet. Analyses of samples from Bureau of Mines drilling indicate that approximately 77 percent of the zinc and 50 percent of trio lead i8 in nonsulfide minerals resulting from the oxidation of sphalerite and galena. Between August 12, 1948, and October 5, 1949, the Bureau of Mines investigated the deposit by churn drilling and sampling 85 holes aggregating 10,571 feet of bore and sampling two mill-tailings dumps and three mine dumps. Factual data on the investigation and the logs of Bureau of Mines drill holes are presented in this report.

Jan 1, 1950

By L. C. IlsLey

The United States Bureau of Mines has been conducting investigations of electrical equipment curing a period of more than 25 years in an endeavor to encourage the development of safer electrical equipment for coal mines. In order to conduct these investigations in an orderly manner they are carried out under a published schedule of tests known as Schedule 20, which specifies detailed requirements for motors, controllers, etc., and fees covering the various inspections and tests made as part of a routine investigation.

Jan 1, 1937

By E. H. Burroughs

This bulletin is the fourth in the series of petroleum bibliographies being published by the Bureau of Mines, the three preceding, Bulletins 149, 165, and 180, being compilations for the years 1915, 1916, and 1917, respectively. In this bulletin the same general plan has been followed in arranging the references, but a few changes and additions have been made in the classification, the more important changes being in the classes "Geology and Origin" and "Refining and Refineries." Dl1'ring the year German periodicals were not available, and, as in the bibliography for 1917, references to articles in foreign journals that were not available have been taken' from other sources and credit given to those sources.

Jan 1, 1921

By Leonard Obert, Wilbur Duvall

"INTRODUCTION 'The investigation reported herein is part of a comprehensive research program being conducted by the Metal Mining Research Section, Mining Division, Bureau of Mines, on pressure problems in underground mines. This program was initiated in 1937 and for the first 3 years was concerned primarily with measurement of the pressure on mine pillars and supports and their strength. 4/ 5/ During this period, investigations were conducted in both the laboratory and the field in the comparatively shallow load and zinc mines of Missouri and Oklahoma. As a result a seismic method of determining the pressure on mine pillars was developed.Before this research program was initiated, Chas. F. Jackson, chief of the Mining Division, suggested that rock under pressure might give rise to noises inaudible to the unaided ear - that is, subaudible noises. As a result of this suggestion, listening tests were made concurrently with the routine pressure measurements to see if any rock noises were present; with one exception, it was found there were no rock noises in any of these shallow mines. At the same time, pressure measurements disclosed that, with one exception, pillars were not under pressure amounting to more than 10 percent of the crushing strength of the rock. The one exception was a pillar in the Big John mine of the Eagle Picher Mining & Smelting Co. in the Tri-State district, which showed some physical evidence of failure, such as small cracks and spalling; it was reported that the pillar had been heard to crack or snap at intervals. Listening tests in this pillar disclosed that subaudible noises of comparatively small intensity were present and occurred at 1- to 2-minute intervals, on the average. Unfortunately, owing to the shortness of this pillar it was impossible to make any pressure measurements."

Jul 1, 1942

By Albert H. Clough

The West Lynn Canal subarea of the Juneau Mining District (JMD) is defined by Lynn Canal on the east, Davidson Glacier to the north, Icy Strait to the south and the Glacier Bay National Park Boundary to the west (figs. C-l and C-2). This area extends along the main-land west of Juneau (across Lynn Canal) northerly, to approximately 20 miles south of the city of Haines. The only roads in the area are relatively new logging roads at the southern end constructed to support a U.S. Forest Service timber sale. There is also local road access near the community of Excursion Inlet. Access to the remainder of the region is either by boat, aircraft, or 'foot. Helicopters provide the only time effective access to all but the coastal parts of the West Lynn Canal subarea. Coastal areas may be reached by small boat or float aircraft. There is an unimproved dirt airstrip just north of the mouth of the Endicott River. This airstrip is suitable for use by light aircraft. The subarea lies within the Tongass National Forest and is managed by the Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service. Approximately two-thirds of the forest lands are open to mineral entry under the current Tongass Land Management plan. The remaining forest lands comprise the Endicott River Wilderness area, which is closed to mineral entry. Private lands within the study area are sparse, with scattered homestead tracts along the coastal regions and in the Excursion Inlet area. Sealaska (Southeast Alaska Regional Native Corporation) also has land selections in the southern Chilkat Range. Tidal and submerged lands are owned by the State of Alaska.

Jan 1, 2012

By Gary L. Hundley

The Bureau of Mines has devised and demonstrated a process for recovering Ni and Co from low-grade domestic laterites. The process consists of four major steps: (1) reduction roast, (2) ammoniacal leach, (3) solvent extraction, and (4) electrowinning. Several solid-liquid separation steps are required that affect the economics of the overall pro-cess. In this study, two techniques for solid-liquid separation, centrifugation and thickening, were investigated. This report presents the results of (1) laboratory and pilot plant studies to determine parameters for sizing centrifuges and thickeners and (2) an economic study of the two techniques, based on the requirements of a commercial-size (5,OOO-tpd) laterite processing plant. Sizing and other equipment-related recommendations, based on data from the Bureau's studies, were obtained from commercial manufacturers. The costs of thickening and centrifugation, including all the unit operations affected, were determined by the Bureau's process evaluation group. The total operating costs ~or separation using the two techniques (including depreciation on the capital cost of equipment) were found to be quite close: $17.26 per ton of laterite for centrifugation and $18.15 per ton of laterite for thickening. For centrifugal separation, the greatest cost was found to be the initial capital cost for the separation equipment; using thickeners, the greatest cost was for re-agent recovery.

Jan 1, 1984