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By D. R. Rice

"The Smoky Valley Common Operation is managed and 50 percent owned by Echo Bay Mine' s Round Mountain Gold Corporation. The other partners with 25 percent each are Homestake Mining Company and Case Pomeroy. The operation in central Nevada includes an open pit, 3-stage open-circuit crushing train and heap leaching on asphalt pads. Presently, about 18,000 tons per day of 0.039 troy ounce gold per ton are transferred to the leach pads, and a similar tonnage of leach residue is transferred to a waste dump. One million tons of ore are being leached at any one time.Gold and silver cyanide are adsorbed from pregnant leach solution on activated coconut shell carbon granules. Pressure stripping desorbs values from loaded carbon to electrowinning solution.Three electrowinning cells are operated in parallel. Each contains six cathodes. Each cathode includes about 40 troy ounces (2.7 pounds) of Number 2 medium coarse steel wool. The wetted area of each cathode is about 24 by 30 inches. Solution flow is 2 to 3 gallons per minute per electrowinning cell. Average current flow is 25 amperes per cathode. The voltage is controlled in the range of 3 to 4 volts to maintain desired amperage.Twice a week two cathodes are pulled from each cell and drained. Each cathode is split into four portions. These are put in a steel pan coated with WD-40 and dried overnight.Each dried cathode portion is put into a paper sack. Each group of four sacks corresponding to a cathode is weighed together. The typical weight ratio of loaded cathode wool to new cathodes is 9 or 10 to 1. To each sack is added 35 troy ounces of silica, 45 troy ounces of anhydrous borax, 35 troy ounces of nitre, and 5 troy ounces of fluorspar. The sacks are taped shut."

Jan 1, 1986

By J. PARK

Discussion of the paper of J. PARSE CHANNING, presented at the New York meeting, February, 1915, and printed in Bulletin No. 99, March, 1915, pp. 529 to 538. FRED H. RINDGE, JR., * New York, N. Y.-It is interesting to note that although this movement was started only seven years ago at Yale, it has spread in that brief time to 200 colleges and technical schools, anti thousands of men are interested in it. There are 3,000 graduates who became acquainted with the movement in college days anti are now promoting the industrial betterment idea all over the country. Some of these men are employed entirely in this work, and the number of such workers is constantly increasing. We feel we are really doing a very fundamental thing in getting so many coming engineers and prospective employers of labor to interest themselves in these things which we have been discussing this morning; these things which are so vital to efficiency and success in any line of business or engineering to-clay. Of course the institutions located in our large industrial centers have the greatest opportunity for practical service. But I have just returned from one college, Pennsylvania State College, where 300 engineering students in three clays signed up as interested in this movement and as anxious to take active part in the work this summer. That is one of a number of colleges situated in towns where there are 110 industrial opportunities. Therefore, their field of service must be where they work

Jan 5, 1915

By Walter Harvey Weed

THE enrichment of mineral-veins as a result of the migration of material from an upper oxidized or disintegrated part of a vein to a lower level, where it is redeposited, is now, I believe, quite generally accepted as one explanation of the occurrence of bonanzas in gold- and silver-veins, as well as that of bodies of high-grade ores in cupriferous deposits.* Vogt has called attention to the fact that there are numerous examples of such rich shoots which are " of exclusively primary character, and dependent upon the laws which governed the original ore-deposition." To this I would add that there are also other examples which are neither of primary origin nor clue to descending waters, but result from a reopening of the veins and their penetration by ascending heated waters whose metallic contents are deposited by reaction with the primary pyrite (and possibly other minerals), forming "secondary" enrichments. My studies of the copper-veins of Butte, Montana, show: That the veins there are of several ages and systems; that the older primary quartz-pyrite veins were reopened by later movements, correlated with a period of volcanic activity; and that they were penetrated by hot alkaline waters carrying copper and arsenic in solution, which were deposited presumably by reaction with the pyrite of the original vein. The enormous development of the Butte deposits, attendant upon the extraction of nearly 10,000 tons of ore a day, has revealed many facts concerning the nature and distribution of the ores. Enargite, the copper sulpharsenate, formerly a relatively rare mineral, is now found to be the chief ore of some veins,

Jan 1, 1913

By T. Winkler, J. Tokarczyk, D. Michalak, W. Chuchnowski, M. Dudek

Engineering Methods aiding Sustainable Development of Mining Systems will be presented, and especially: virtual prototyping for designing of Mining Systems with Health Protection and Safety criteria taken into consideration, modelling and assessment of technical and health hazards that can occur during operation of Mining Systems, creation of knowledge repositories that disseminate safe work methods with consideration of existing language and culture barriers, dissemination of the methods integrating world community and Mining Systems users.

Jan 1, 2011

Cutting strong rock with a drag bit assisted by high-pressure water jets By M. HOOD. B.Sc. Hons. (Min. Eng.). B.Sc. (Mech. Eng.). A.M.I.M.M. (Visitor) Experiments are described that led to the discovery that coherent high-pressure water jets directed immediately ahead of drag bits while they are cutting strong rock reduce the magnitudes of the forces on the bits significantly. Tests were carried out to assess the effects of the pressure of the water jets on bit-cutting performance. The pressure was varied between 10 MPa and 50 MPa, the water flow rate being a constant 30 I/min. Over this pressure range, the force on the bit was reduced to the extent that the depth of cut of the bit was at least doubled with the point of impingement of the jets optimized. Forces on the bit were found to be particularly sensitive to the point of impingement of the water jets relative to the bit. The optimum configuration was found to be with two jets, one directed towards each corner of the bit and impinging on the rock approximately 2 mm ahead of the leading edge of the bit. Experiments in which a drag bit and high-pressure water jets were used to cut strong abrasive quartzite in the underground mining situation have demonstrated a potential increase of up to five times in the average depth of cut due to reduction of the forces on the bit. The results from the underground tests indicate that the life of the bit is improved significantly - by a factor of approximately two - when highpressure water jets are used.

Jan 11, 1976

By D. B. Masson

THE martensitic transformations occurring in ,B AgCd as a result of cold working at room temp.. a-ture and cooling below room ten1erature have been reported by Masson and Barrett.1 These authors found that simple cooling to 127°K caused body-cen-tered-cubic AgCd containing 53.0 at. pct Ag to transform to an orthorhombic structure, while mechanical deformation at room temperature was found to induce a hexagonal structure. Furthermore, they observed that the temperature at which martensite first appeared on cooling, Ms, and that at which the transformation was complete, MI, as well as the corresponding temperatures for the reversion on heating, As and Af, could be ascertained to ± 1°K, although they report these temperatures only for the alloy containing 53.0 at. pct Ag (51.96 wt pct). In the work reported here the temperature range of the transformation on cooling was studied as a function of composition, and further consideration was given to the relationship between the original bcc structure and the transformation-induced hexagonal and orthorhomic structures. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE All samples studied were in the form of annealed 300-mesh powder and were prepared from the constituent metals in the manner described previously.1 The compositions in weight and atomic pct are listed in Columns 1 and 2 of Table I. Method of determination of transformation temperature was the same as utilized previously1—measurement of the intensity of X-rays diffracted by the transformation product. A diagram of the low-temperature sample mount is shown in Fig. 1. This mount was made to fit a GE model XRD-3 X-ray diffraction unit. The powder sample was varnished to a flat surface on a copper sample holder at A. This sample holder was soldered to a brass rod, B, which was in turn soldered to a second copper rod, C. Rod C could be cooled to 78°K by inserting it into a reservoir of liquid nitrogen, D. A heater coil of nichrome wire was wound at E on the sample holder, and by varying the current through the heater a thermal gradient could be maintained along brass rod B. Sample temperatures from 78°K up could be attained and held as long as needed. The sample holder and nitrogen reservoir were insulated by Styrofoam, F, and the sample itself was protected by two radiation shields, G. The X-ray beam entered and left the sample chamber through windoys in the supporting container at H and I. Sample temperatures were measured by a calibrated copper-constantan thermocouple varnished to the sample holder just out of the beam at A. The low-temperature structure had been found to possess orthorhombic symmetry1 and the expected positions of the diffraction maxima were known. Therefore the sample was aligned in the X-ray beam and the Geiger counter of the spectrometer set to receive the most intense orthorhombic reflection without an adjacent interfering cubic reflection. This

Jan 1, 1961

By R. G. Paterson

THE usual procedure in determining the magnetic susceptibilities of rocks and formations has been to take samples in the field and measure their volume susceptibilities in the laboratory, using one of numerous methods available. In none of these methods is the measuring instrument suited for field use. Usually the sample is pulverized; sometimes it is machined to a desired size and shape, and in one method' a cast of the sample is made and the susceptibility of the rock compared with that of a material of known susceptibility of the same size and shape, made from the cast of the original sample. Some writers assert that the difference in susceptibility of a rock sample in powdered and solid forms is negligible, and while doubtless this is true in many cases there are others in which the difference becomes appreciable. Further, the susceptibility of a small specimen may differ from that of the rock from which it is taken, owing to the stresses produced by the hammering or other forces used to obtain the sample and shape it for testing. Wilson2 found that an individual specimen of granite had about the same susceptibility in the solid as in the powdered form, but that pieces from different parts of the rock varied as much as 750 per cent because of unequal distribution of magnetite. The most accurate value of susceptibility would, obviously, be obtained from averaging a number of tests on the undisturbed rock instead of from one or two samples. No such procedures have been published, to the writer's knowledge. It is the purpose of this paper to describe a method by which susceptibilities of rocks may be determined in place by means of a portable instrument. METHOD The principle involved in this new method is that there is a change in inductance of a coil due to the presence in its magnetic field of a paramagnetic or diamagnetic medium. In this case, however, the windings of the coil do not enclose any part of the rock under test. Instead, the coil is circular, being small in cross section as compared to its radius, and consists of several hundred turns of fine wire. It is placed flat on the rock of which the susceptibility is to be measured. Thus only part of the magnetic field from the coil penetrates the rock under test. The relation between the change in field strength or inductance of the coil and the susceptibility of the medium will be developed later. To measure the change in the inductance of the coil due to the presence of a magnetic material an alternating-current inductance bridge was chosen. DESCRIPTION OF APPARATUS Of many alternating-current bridge methods applicable,3 the one shown in Fig. I (Owen's bridge') was adopted for its simplicity and sensitivity. In Fig. I, the test coil is indicated by P1L1. It is connected to the bridge by about

Jan 1, 1941

By Byron R. Berger

Disseminated Au-As-Hg mineralization is localized along the Getchell Fault system at the Getchell Mine in north-central Nevada. Replacement ore bodies occur in Cambrian carbonaceous limestone and limy shale beds. Cretaceous granodiorite, dacite porphyry, and andesite porphyry dikes parallel the fault zone and are spatially associated with the mineralization. Hydrothermal alteration and mineralization occur continuously along 4-5 km of the fault system, and extend more than 1 km down-dip. Alteration consists primarily of removal of carbonate and deposition of quartz, pyrite, and carbonaceous material. Marcasite, sericite, kaolinite, calcite, barite, and fluorite are common. Gold content reaches more than 43 ppm in parts of the altered zones and averaged 9.3 ppm in the mined ore bodies. For the mineralized zones as a whole arsenic averages 0.28%, and occurs primarily as realgar, orpiment, and arsenopyrite. Mercury (22 ppm) is finely disseminated and mercury-bearing minerals are seldom recognizeable. Accessory mineralization includes antimony (100 ppm), copper (47 ppm) , lead (18 ppm) , molybdenum (10 ppm) , tungsten (16 ppm) , and zinc (50 ppm) . Geologic field studies and K-Ar dating suggest that the mineralization is related to a hydrothermal system produced by the granodiorite and related dikes.

Jan 1, 1975

By Martin H. Rogoff

The presence of antibiotic materials extractable with polar organic solvents was demonstrated in coals of various ranks. Since these antibiotics occur in low concentrations, 200 pounds of a high-volatile C coal was extracted with acetone at room temperature to obtain sufficient material for detailed study. The biologically active materials in the extract were concentrated by extracting with aqueous sodium hydroxide. The fractions soluble in sodium hydroxide inhibited bacterial cultures when present in concentrations comparable to those at which other antibiotics are active (5 µg/ml). Steam distillation of the extracts did not yield highly active materials, contrary to the finds of other investigators. Mass spectrometry of the extract indicated, mainly, the presence of 6-ring compounds in the region of mass 324 to 392. The predominance of 3-ring aromatic systems found by ultraviolet analysis suggests compounds such as biphenanthryl or similar structures. The activity of the hydroxide- soluble material decreased markedly when the phenolic hydroxyl groups were transformed into trimethylsilyl ethers. Hydrolysis of the ethers yielded a product having the same activity as the original material, which indicates that phenolic compounds are largely responsible for the antibiotic activity observed.

Jan 1, 1963

By Harold L. Lovell

The extensive heterogeneity of coal is a fact long recognized by scientists and engineers. However, until recent years the practical implications of such heterogeneity have more often been realized from an undesirable experience than from knowledge or forethought. Variations in the properties of coal, even within the same seam, eventually lead to procedural modifications in mining, handling, preparation and utilization. The concepts considered here propose an enhanced application of information, detailing these properties, realizing the uniqueness of any given coal seam but the practicality of a common approach. Coal preparation practice has been designed primarily for the control of ash and sulfur content to meet market specifications which are similarly specified, Other physical characteristics of size and friability are also commonly employed and, to a lesser extent, properties which are implications of rank. The consideration of petrographic data as indicators of origin, thus total physical and chemical properties, has generally been overlooked as a realistic tool in-the exploitation of coal as a resource. The evolution of descriptive techniques, whether petrographic, physical, or chemical, capable of universal application with any rank of coal, is still beset with problems.

Jan 1, 1968

By J. D. Goodrich

Success of The Carter Mining Company's safety program can be primarily attributed to "total immersion" of all operating and staff personnel in program design and implementation. Currently, the Company operates two surface coal mines in Campbell County, Wyoming. Total employment is about 440 and current annual production is about 15 million tons. The safety program has evolved from one which was administered primarily by staff personnel (the Safety Department) to one which requires active participation by line management and operating personnel. Lost time accident frequencies have declined from a high of 1.86 per 200K hours worked in 1978 to zero in 1982. Reportable accident frequencies have declined from slightly over 5 to slightly over 2 during the same period. Analysis of program results indicates that the most important achievement by the company has been to gain strong commitment to safe operation by all employees. It is important that program format and content be frequently changed and modified so that: 1) The requirement for safe job performance is communicated well and often, 2) The safe job performance message is trans- mitted in new and interesting ways, and 3) Operating personnel participate in design and implementation of the program.

Jan 1, 1983

By J. R. Long

The Federal Bureau of Mines has pioneered the work of preparing ductile titanium on a large scale and has also determined the basic properties of this new and most interesting metal. A number of reports (1, 2, 3: 4, 5) have al-ready been published, and considerable interest has been aroused in a number of industrial and research laboratories. Some of these laboratories have also published results of their work on the pure metal. Although the properties of titanium itself are quite promising, it is apparent that considerable improvement may be expected by alloying titanium with other metals. That is, pure metals in general have shown relatively large improvements in properties when alloyed with other metals and titanium is not considered to be an exception to the rule. Therefore, the emphasis of the investigations now under way in the Federal Bureau of Mines Laboratories has been placed on the study of the alloys of titanium, particularly the titanium-rich alloys. While the main interest is in the properties of such alloys, proper direction and evaluation of the work require at least a rough outline of the phase boundaries of the alloy systems involved.

Jan 1, 1949

By Brian W. Mackenzie

"This paper briefly outlines the characteristics which should be considered in assessing the economics of mineral exploration, and illustrates such an assessment by using data from the Canadian base metal sector. Implications for the sector are found to include the following:(1) base metal exploration has the potential to create a substantial amount of new wealth;(2) investment incentive for exploration under current conditions is not unattractive over-all;(3) because of existing taxation policies, there is much more incentive for large companies to explore than for smaller enterprises;(4) succesful exploration is sensitive to the size, financial resources and organizational structure of the exploration entity;(5) the general level of recent exploration expenditures should be adequate to maintain the current rate of production and perhaps to support very modest growth; and(6) there is an important opportunity for growth in the sector.The findings of the study suggest that government policies should be made more flexible, in order to take into account the risks associated with exploration and with price fluctuations in the base metal sector. Recommendations are also made concerning improvements in provincial regulations for disclosure of exploration information."

Jan 1, 1981

At a large meeting of the members of the American Fund for French Wounded it which Mr. Franklin D. Roosevelt presided and at which Mrs. B. Girault Lathrop, President of the Paris Administration A. F.F. W., gave a most interesting address, special rows of seats were reserved for the members of the W. A. A. I. M. E. Those who were unable to be present will be glad to hear that Mrs. Lathrop complimented our organization on having supplied the largest dispensary operated by the A. F. F. W. and the Red Cross in northern France. The A. F. F. W. is going to erect an American Memorial Hospital at Rheims and it is hoped that the one hundred beds in the hospital will be endowed in memory of the men who gave their lives for the liberty of the world. It will be possible not only to endow beds, for which sums of $6000 each are needed, but also to give, as. memorials, sun- parlors at a cost of $10,000 each, two roof gardens at $5000 each, a laundry at $10,000 and a garage at $10,000. The New York Section has undertaken to endow a heel in memory of members of the A. I. M. E. who gave their lives in the Great War. Perhaps other Sections or groups of Sections may wish to do the same thing, or if no other Section cares to assume so much responsibility possibly individuals may like to join the fund already growing in New York, in which case they should send their contributions to Mrs. W. Y. Westervelt, 1 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y.

Jan 6, 1919

By R. H. Lee

So far as I am aware the references to the " kerosene blow-pipe" in the Transactions comprise only a skeptical opinion from Mr. Witherow (ix., 70), and accounts of the use of the blow-pipe by Mr. Witherbee (xiii., 675) and Mr. Gayley (xiv., 779), together with brief remarks by Mr. Weeks and Mr. Kennedy on Mr. Witherbee's paper. The subject can scarcely be considered novel, in view of these references, yet it is not so far exhausted that an additional account of the successful application of the blow-pipe would be out of place, especially if accompanied with some new details and a drawing of the apparatus itself, showing its simplicity and safety. Some time ago, owing to a variety of causes, my furnace was working very badly, the troubles culminating suddenly one morning in a chilled hearth, solid from the bottom to the tuyeres, with the exception of a narrow passage-way from above to the cindernotch, which remained open. Through this we continued to flush and cast, with the prospect of a long and troublesome siege, in working down to the iron-notch. At the end of two days matters had not greatly improved, and we seemed no nearer the desired result than on the morning of the chill, when, at the suggestion of Mr. Farrell, of Glamorgan, I decided to use the coal-oil blow-pipe; the intention being to cut a hole from the iron-notch up to the tuyeres, and then let the furnace melt out the chilled mass. In four hours from the time of starting, the hole was made and

Jan 1, 1887

By Judson G. Brown

In order to filter small amounts of fine slimy solids the reversible cake-filtration process was developed. The filterable solids contents lion in feeds can range from less than 1 ppm up to about 5%. The relative advantages of this process, are usually the greatest in the range of 0.05% to 1.0% filterable solids. Filterable solids that average in particle size about 20 microns& are non-compressible are very easy for this filtration process. Some feeds have been all sub-micron in particle size. A 1/8 inch thick cake is considered to be very thick. The usual cake is between 13/2 and 1/16 inch thick. A new line of injection molded plastic filter plates were developed for use with the reversible cake filtration process. The first commercial sized installation of this system was made 3 years ago in the Wakefield Y.M.C.A. swimming pool. Over 70 filters ranging in size from one plate to 63 plates have been produced. In addition to the process advantages there are the low cost and corrosion resistance advantages of the plastic plates.

Jan 1, 1962

By R. L. Handy

The goal of this research was to adapt the highly successful rock borehole shear test for use in deep, small-diameter boreholes. Operating somewhat on the principle of a rock bolt, the borehole shear test measures both the expansion pressure and pulling force to give discrete measures of rock shearing strength as a function of the applied normal pressure. A new instrument was designed and built to fit into a 2-3/8 inch diameter hole. Unfortunately the design became so complicated, the operation is nut reliable. This is attributed to constraints of the small hole, and added requirements of an in-hole anchor to push against, and a rotating shear plate cleaner for repeated tests down-hole. A clue to the d: vice complexity is its length, which is over 10 feet. Furthermore it employs concentric cylinders and one hydraulic cylinder bored into the piston of another, or it would be even longer. Meanwhile drilling technology has advanced to greatly reduce costs of drilling 5- or 6-inch diameter holes. The downhole tester therefore should be redesigned and simplified for use in a larger diameter drill hole.

Jan 1, 1982

By Jagdish C. Agarwal

Although copper ranks very low in the order of abundance of elements in the crust of the earth, it has been one of the first metals utilized by mar, at his emergence from the Stone Age, about 10,000 years ago. Use of copper for weapons, tools, utensils and ornaments dates back to the twilight of history, 6,000-5,000 B.C. Native copper outcrops and the malleability of the metal explain its very early use by the cave-dwellers. The working, melting and extraction of copper from its minerals are among the oldest metallurgical achievements of the human race. The oldest complete smelting installations for the extraction of copper from its minerals, dated about the fourth millenium B.C., were recently discovered in the Timna Valley, Wadi Arabah, Israel. (1) The history of the developments of the extractive metallurgy of copper has been adequately reviewed recently. (2,3) The center of copper production migrated from the Eastern Mediterranean to Northern Europe (Mansfeld, Germany, Swansea, Wales) towards the end of the Middle Ages (1500 A.D.). The production of the metal was boosted tremendously in North America since the end of the nineteenth century (Fig. 1).

Jan 1, 1976

By D. Ortiz, J. R. Frias, E. D. Mast, J. J. Fañas

Falconbridge Dominicana (Falcondo) has operated an integrated tpy nickel laterite mine and ferro-nickel processing plant since 1972 in the Dominican Republic. The operation includes mining, a processing plant, an oil refinery, and a power plant. Falcondo has improved process efficiency over the years via modernisation and better understanding of the process. The present business environment of high fuel prices and high nickel prices present a challenge and an opportunity to Falcondo's operation. This paper gives an update of Falcondo's process, improvements in energy consumption, factors affecting energy consumption and how Falcondo is facing up to the current business environment.

Jan 1, 2005

By L. Adler

A fairly complex analysis is required to select, or evaluate a piece of excavating and bulk handling equipment and obtain its performance. At present there is little agreement as to what specific points should be considered, and even less on what procedure to follow. This paper provides both of these in a consistent and direct form. The analysis applies to all types and sizes of equipment from the bulldozer and the continuous miner, to the B.W.E. The importance of the equipment characteristics, job activities, and work conditions are stressed and separate analytical stems are established in a flow chart for these. They are combined using suitability tests in the following steps: 1) problem statement, 2) natural conditions, 3) suitability guidelines, 4) appropriate equipment types, 5) operational activities, 6) encumbered space, 7) geometric design, 8) equipment sizing, 9) failure and limits, 10) performance and consumption, 11) public policy checks, and 12) costs and profitability. Public policy and economics while considered throughout receive emphasis towards the end. The procedure is iterative, containing distinct feedback loops. Specifying the steps and sequence provides a necessary structure which has long been overdue.

Jan 1, 1983