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By Lulie H. Crump

Salient information on reserves, production, and consumption of fuels and energy by State is summarized in this Bureau of Mines publication. Reserve and production data are shown for each of the fossil fuels (coal, crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas) and for uranium. The consumption data of each of the major consuming sectors (household-commercial, industrial, transportation, electric power, and miscellaneous) are broken down by energy source (coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower, and nuclear). In addition, total energy consumption in the Nation in 1974 is compared with consumption in 1973 and 1975 (preliminary data).

Jan 1, 1977

By Everard Leland

This paper, describing the mining practices at the Pilares mine, Pilares de Nacozari, Sonora, Mexico, is one of a series being prepared by the Bureau of Mines on mining practices, methods, and costs in the various mining districts. At present (1930) practically all the mineral production from the Nacozari district is from the Pilares mine of the Moctezuma Copper Co., a subsidiary of the Phelps Dodge Corporation. The ore is mined for its copper but contains associated silver in small quantities.

Jan 1, 1930

By Juan Carlos Salas

In this paper, a collaborative R&D model which has been successfully applied by a global mining companies association is presented and analysed both from the conceptual and practical point of view and an example of these collaborative initiatives, the Copper Technology Roadmap recently generated by a group of the most relevant copper mining companies, is presented, including an analysis of strategic opportunities and challenges in the Latin American region.

Sep 9, 2007

By Ralph M. Foecking

The disposal of the phosphate slimes produced by Florida beneficiation operations is perhaps the biggest single problem of the phosphate mining industry. This is an old problem which has not been solved and which is becoming increasingly severe. In a typical phosphate mining operation, the phosphate rock mined is initmately mixed with sand and clay, constituting what is known as matrix. During the beneficiation, the clay and other fine materials are separated usually at -150 mesh, and washed from the phosphate rock in a form of diluted slurry known as phosphate slimes. The quantity of slimes solids and their composition vary considerably with the location but usually represent from 25 to 35% of the ore mined. Because of the affinity that clays have for water, large volumes of water are required to separate the granular material in the matrix forming a dilute slime suspension (1.5 to 3% solids) of colloidal material, which settles very slowly, and thus requires immense impounding areas, which never becomes totally usable land. These ponds also contain about 25 to 35% of the total P205 values mined. The magnitude of the problem represented by the slimes can be appreciated better if we realize that there are around

Jan 1, 1971

By E. P. Youngman

At the time of the preparation of the monograph upon the mining legisla- tion of Newfoundland, by the Imperial Institute of London, the existing local statutory law (as distinct from case laws and the applicable English acts) con- sisted of the following legislation: 1. Chapter 129 of the consolidated statutes, entitled "Of Crown Lands, Timber, Mines and Minerals," as amended by the Crown lands act, 1928. 2. Chapters 131 and 132 of the consolidated statutes (acts relating to mines regulation and rewards for discovery of minerals, respectively). 3. Crown lands act, 1918, as amended by the crown lands (amendment) act, 1921. 4. The Labrador Act, 1927. 5. The Crown royalties act, 1927. 6. Crown lands act, 1928, together with rules and regulations issued thereunder.

Oct 1, 1932

By G. R. Adhikari

Step 4: Selection of explosives and initiation system Various types of explosives are manufactured in India and a wide choice is available among them that include nitroglycerin based explosives, slurries, emulsions, ANFO (ammonium nitrate mixed with fuel oil) and heavy ANFO. The choice is also available between cartridged and bulk loading systems. In Indian mines, much importance is unduly given to the cost of explosives alone which is not conducive to optimization of blast design parameters. The concept of energy per meter of blasthole and the way in which the total explosive energy is partitioned between shock and heave is not considered in the prevailing practices. Besides, very little efforts are made to objectively evaluate the performance of explosives for a given site condition. Tailoring explosives is limited to changing the density of the bulk explosives. Cartridged explosives are still being extensively used in large operations where bulk explosives should be the preferred choice.

Jan 1, 2002

By J. Coxon, G. W. Walker

The paper describes the discovery, location and events concerning three types of heating which have occurred in recent years: a) in a district being salvaged, b) in the shaft pillar at an air-crossing, and c) in the gate side of a production district, all of which have occurred in the Beeston Seam at collieries in the deeper eastern part of the area. The paper describes the precautions, air sampling arrangements, training methods and codes of practice which have been adopted at collieries where spontaneous combustion is, or is likely to be, a hazard. The air samples taken from behind the stoppings following the sealing off of the salvaging district are examined and interpreted. The problem of effectively sealing off where more than two stoppings are required is made apparent. Other lessons have been learned as a result of these heatings and are described in the paper.

May 23, 1905

By S. Todd Mickleborough

The geostatistical technique of conditional simulation is applied to measure the uncertainty in factor of safety predictions for soil slopes where there is incomplete knowledge of the spatial distribution of soil properties. A case study considers a natural clay slope in Canada. The sequential indicator simulation technique is used as a means for generating a series of spatial maps of soil properties for this site. These maps approximate random draws from the conditional probability density function that characterizes existing uncertainty in the spatial distribution. Factor of safety determinations are then made for each simulated map using the simplified-Janbu approach, where the computations are performed with a new computer program that can operate on irregular spatial profiles of soil properties specified on a discrete grid. A unique capability of this approach is the ability to generate the distribution of factor of safety conditional to the type, position, and value of existing site characterization measurements. This capability should reduce uncertainty in FS predictions.

Jan 1, 1993

By Michael Leslie Connor

The paper point out the services of the london metal exchanged on the mining.The investigation is divided at two parts: the tradings sessions and dealing and delivery dates. As well as, the london metal exchanged serves the world metal trade at large in three ways: a daily market price, a physical market and the insurance against market fluctuations.

Nov 20, 1969

By Felix duBreuil

The present sampling procedure for evaluating the rock dusting conditions in a coal mine is time consuming. This study considers means by which this procedure could be simplified. Surveys were conducted in six coal mines in Pennsylvania to determine the in¬combustible content of the deposited dust. Some 2,000 samples were analyzed and statistically evaluated. It is suggested that the mean incombustible content could be obtained with fewer samples and smaller samples without greatly increasing the sampling error.

Jan 1, 1972

By M. E. Gershon

Conventional methods of drill hole site selection are reviewed briefly. Two approaches using geostatistics are then discussed, both of which have been shown to yield improved results. Finally, a branch and bound algorithm is described which will select the best locations for drilling from a user specified number of possible drill sites. Two options are discussed. First, the user can specify a maximum drilling investment or a maximum number of drill holes and the program will select the locations yielding the minimum estimation variance. This amounts to getting the most for a given investment. Alternatively, a maximum tolerable estimation variance can be specified and the program will select the number and location of the drill holes to obtain the desired information at a minimum cost. Another benefit of the approach is the quantification of the tradeoffs between investment and information obtained.

Jan 1, 1985

By J. A. L. Campbell

The Galatia Mine is a dual-seam underground coal mine located in Saline County, IL. In 1984, it became the first coal mine to be permitted by the Illinois Department of Mines and Minerals to operate diesel equipment underground. And it is one of the larger underground coal mines in the nation to use diesel equipment. From the beginning, Kerr-McGee determined that diesel equipment offered the best approach to the safe and productive development and operation of the Galatia Mine. The flexibility of this equipment and its ability to promptly respond to changing conditions and mining locations made its use desirable for building this large dual-seam coal mine. The mine had a planned nominal annual capacity of 3.6 Mt/a (4 million stpy) and would employ more than 500 people. Galatia's current reserves are estimated at 231 Mt (255 million st) of recoverable coal from two seams of high-quality, high-volatile bituminous coal. The Harrisburg No. 5 seam is shipped primarily as a low-sulfur steam coal or as a metallurgical blend stock. It is also used in the pulverized coal injection (PCI) process for steel making. The Herrin No. 6 seam is a medium-sulfur coal. Annual production is shown in Fig. 1. A good indicator of a mine's success is employee productivity improvement. For many reasons - the proper use of diesel equipment, the introduction of longwalls and increased employee ex¬perience - Galatia employees have achieved a steady growth in annual productivity (Fig. 1) while maintaining an exceptional safety record.

Jan 1, 1993

By Dallas Grubbs

Agenda ?Growth Projections ?Economic Indicators ?Mining Equipment Growth ?Tire Supply ?Michelin Actions to Increase Capacity ?Michelin?s Challenges & Recommendations

Jan 1, 2006

By T. B. Acton

There are two types of ore transportation systems in use at Newmont's Magma Copper Co. San Manuel mine in Arizona-rail-mounted, box-type rotary cars and the newer rail-mounted, bottom-dumping ASEA cars. Though the cost per car for the ASEA units greatly exceeds the cost per rotary car, the advantages of the ASEA units, including much faster dump times, have made the ASEA system a successful alternative at the San Manuel mine. The rotary system of ore transportation has been in use at San Manuel since production began in 1956. The system employs 7.9-m3 box-type cars to transport ore by rail to shaft pocket areas. A rotating dumping mechanism turns three cars at a time upside down to empty them, and returns them to an upright position. Trains of 15 cars each are dumped in about six minutes. Each 15-car train is pulled by an 18-t rated trolley locomotive. There are about 400 rotary cars in service at San Manuel and the system is used for the majority of ore haulage. This well-proven rotary method was instrumental in achieving the December 1977 world record of 272 Mt hoisted from an underground copper mine. Magma Copper Co. began using ASEA cars in late 1977. Designed by ASEA of Sweden, the cars are built for San Manuel by Kasper-Hall Manufacturing Co. in Tucson. The cars basic design feature is a hinged floor that opens at the side as the car is pulled through the dump. As it passes over the dump, a fifth wheel attached to the hinged floor (opposite the hinges) travels along a rail in the dump. This rail dips down into the pocket and then returns to track level. As the fifth wheel travels along the rail, the car floor opens, the car dumps, and the floor is then returned to track level. As the car is dumping, the body remains suspended over the pocket by wheel rollers attached to each side of the dump. Trains of 10 cars each are emptied in about 45-50 seconds. Each ASEA train is pulled by an 18-t rated trolley locomotive, adapted at San Manuel to allow it to pass through the ASEA dump. At minimal cost, "wings" are welded to each side of the locomotive. These wings suspend the locomotive over the pocket as the train passes through the dump. Advantages of the ASEA System Major design characteristics of the ASEA and rotary systems are shown in the accompanying table. The comparison points out some of the following advantages demonstrated by the ASEA system. • Faster dumping-An ASEA train dumps in 50 seconds, while a rotary train takes at least six minutes. There is no stopping or starting when dumping an ASEA train. The train enters the dump area, dumps, and leaves in one continuous motion-in contrast to rotary trains which must stop and start five times to dump. With the rotary system, three cars are spotted in the dump mechanism by remote control. When the cars are in place, the train operator activates the dump, the cars are turned over, and then returned to an upright position. This process is repeated until all 15 cars in the train are emptied.

Jan 4, 1980

By Max Hebgen

Within the State of Montana the streams rise in the high mountains at. an elevation of from 5,000 to 8,000 ft. These streams leave the State line both east and west at elevations from 3,500 to 2,400 ft. It is, therefore, apparent. that all these streams have an average fall of 3,000 ft. within the confines of the. State, and many opportunities are presented on all streams. for the development of power, by taking advantage of the natural fall. It is probable that 1,000,000 h. p. can :be developed in the State of Montana. I. NATURAL FEATURES OF STATE AFFECTING POWER DEVELOPMENT. The main. range of the Rocky mountains, forming the Continental Divide, cuts the State of Montana into two parts. The eastern part is drained by the Missouri river and its tributaries, the Madison; Jefferson, Gallatin and Yellowstone, rivers. The western part is drained by tributaries to the Columbia river, the Clarks fork and the Kootenai river. The Clarks fork in turn is formed by the junction of Missoula and Flathead rivers, the latter, draining Flathead lake. The western part of the State. is mountainous and the eastern part is comparatively level. As a natural result the rivers in the western part are capable of generating large amounts of power, while in the eastern part of the State natural power sites are much fewer and farther apart. It also follows that in the mountainous districts large amounts of power are required for the mining industry, while in the eastern part of the State, which is principally devoted to agriculture, power is required in smaller quantities. ?

Jan 8, 1913

By Terry L. Muldoon

The report describes the development of preliminary requirement specifications for standardized operating controls for roof bolting machines used in underground coal mining. According to recent statistics, roof bolting continues to be one of the most hazardous occupations in underground coal mining. The two principal hazards to the roof bolter operator are the machine itself and roof falls during the bolting cycle. The lack of standardization of machine controls is a major contributor to this hazardous situation. Observations of roof bolting operations and discussions with roof bolter manufacturers coupled with detailed analyses of roof bolter control design specifications were performed during this study. Detailed roof bolter operator task analyses, commonality of control analyses, and classical link analyses were also performed. The results of these analyses were then used to produce preliminary requirement specifications for standardized controls.

Jan 1, 1980

S.L. Barua and Y.C. Kim M. Armstrong's paper is very interesting and can be regarded as a pioneering work of applying geostatistics on washed coal. The density levels used in her study are uniformly spaced, which facilitated curve fitting through a proper experimental design. Most of the existing coal washing plants in the US, however, gather washability data at non-uniform intervals which, in turn, affects the goodness of curve fitting. We would like to emphasize the importance of having a proper experimental design, if a similar geostatistical application is to be conducted on washed coal. We, at the University of Arizona, tried the variogram on recovery (Kim, Barua, and Baafi, 1982, SME preprint 82-143) which showed a similar pattern as Fig. 4 of Armstrong's paper. In both cases, the first experimental variogram value is invariably and inexplicably higher than the second variogram value. Although Armstrong ignores the first point because of "small number of sample points," we did not do so because there were 17 sample pairs. As a consequence, we concluded that the obtained experimental variogram was unsatisfactory and that further research is warranted. In other words, this disagreement in variogram interpretation between M. Armstrong and the University of Arizona begs the question whether the experimental variogram of Fig. 4 truly reflects the spatial correlation in washed coal, assuming there is such a correlation. Finally, we wish that Armstrong could have done a similar study on clean sulfur, which is a vital interest to the coal mines in the US. Her implied remark on sulfur in the concluding section of the paper may turn out to be incorrect because our experimental variograms on clean sulfur at different density levels were even less satisfactory than those on recovery.

Jan 1, 1985

By W. A. McKinney

The segregation process consists of heating crushed oxidized or mixed oxide-sulfide copper are with a copper-volatilizing salt and carbonaceous material at about 750° C. to produce metallic copper which is recovered from the furnace calcines by conventional sulfide flotation. The Bureau of Mines made a number of bench-scale laboratory tests on two copper ores to determine the relative merits of using halogen salts, potassium chlorate, or various salt mixtures as volatilizing agents in segregation of the copper. Laboratory investigation of typical siliceous and calcareous oxidized ores revealed that sodium chloride was a better segregating agent than the other salts. Calcium chloride, magnesium chloride, sodium fluoride, or potassium chlorate gave nearly as good segregation as the sodium chloride on the siliceous ore. Segregation of the calcareous ore with calcium chloride was nearly as good as that obtained with sodium chloride, but inferior segregation resulted when magnesium chloride, sodium bromide, or potassium chlorate was employed. The use of sodium bromide or sodium iodide on the siliceous ore, and of sodium fluoride or sodium iodide on the calcareous are, gave appreciably poorer segregation than sodium chloride or the other salts. Other tests of the ores, using mixtures of sodium chloride and the other halogen salts or potassium chlorate, gave segregation approaching that obtained with sodium chloride.

Jan 1, 1962

By E. P. Barret

Differences in the reducibility of iron oxide materials have been recognized for a long time. Limonites are deoxidized more readily than hematites, and unaltered magnetites are the most difficult to deoxidize. Sinters are found between hematites and magnetites and vary considerably in reducibility, depending on the sintering practice followed and on the degree of fusion of the product. The increased activity in the beneficiation of taconite recently has made available a new blast-furnace raw material, namely, iron oxide pellets made from magnetic taconite concentrate. Many of the data in this paper apply to these pellets, or glomerules, as they were called when this method of agglomerating iron ores was first considered. To clarify the terms applied to iron oxide materials in this paper, the following definitions are given. Agglomeration is the general term applied to all methods of compacting or consolidating fine iron oxide materials. Sinter is the product from a Dwight-Lloyd or Greenawalt sintering machine. Pellets are formed by balling fine, moist oxide in a rotating drum at room temperature, followed by heating in a shaft furnace to a temperature below that of incipient fusion to develop a permanent bond. Nodules are formed by heating the iron oxide material to incipient fusion in a rotary kiln. Briquets are formed in a mold under pressure, with or without the addition of a binder, and burned to develop a permanent bond.

Jan 1, 1949

By K. K. Kelley

The first bulletin (269) 3 in this series, which appeared in 1932, compiled the entropy values then available for the elements and in-organic compounds, results being listed for some 150 substances. Elaborations and revisions followed in 1936 (272) and 1941 (280), when over 500 usable entropy values were tabulated. The present bulletin constitutes a further elaboration and revision. The accumulation of data since 1940 has been marked, and 800 entropy values now are available. The present bulletin also contains all the pertinent explanatory matter that appeared in its predecessors. Thus, it retains the same dual purpose of assembling the available values of the entropies at 298.16° K. of the elements and inorganic compounds and giving enough explanation of methods of calculating entropies to make the results comprehensible.

Jan 1, 1950