Search Documents

By L. Dudley Stamp

The years 1935 and 1936 have been momentous ones in the history of oil exploitation in Burma. While the possibilities of the discovery of an important new field in the country have become increasingly remote, there have been surprising and to some extent unexpected developments in and near the old established fields. Further, these developments have not only an important bearing on the future of the industry in Burma, but they point to conclusions of, world-wide significance in connection with the disposition of oil pools. BC'rma Independent of India According to the Government of India Act, passed by the British Parliament in 1935, Burma becomes independent of India, of which it was formerly a province. In future, therefore, statistics for Burma will be quoted separately from those of India. In 1934, 1935 and 1936 the oil production in India (including Burma) reached new high levels— though only a few per cent above the totals for 1919, 1920 or 1930. Part of the increase came from Assam, so that Burma's total is apparently below that of 1921. It must always be remembered, however, that Burma's largest potential producer—Singu—is used essentially by the Burmah Oil Co. as a reserve and its production is varied from year to year, and indeed from week to week, according to local market demand or the requirements of the Rangoon refinery. The figures of Table 1 must therefore be viewed in the light of these remarks.

Jan 1, 1937

By Keith C. Hendrick

The mining industry of Canada, stretching from coast to coast and reaching into the most remote regions of the country, is of fundamental importance to the national economy and the well being of many communities outside the main urban areas. The production, processing and transportation of a host of mineral products provide employment for about 9% of the country's labour force; and their shipment to export markets provides an important contribution to the balance of payments. In 1976 Canada's metal and mineral production had a value of $5.24 billion, of which zinc and lead accounted for $862 and $129 million respectively, or 19% of the total. By all standards the Canadian zinc and lead industry is large and, therefore, important to the country as a producer and the world as a supplier. This report will review the development, describe the present status and discus current problems and future potential of the industry. The discovery and successful development of the major lead-zinc deposits at Kimberley, British Columbia, provided Canada with a solid base from which to grow. The breakthrough in metallurgical technology using differential flotation to separate the lead and zinc sulphides and the refining of high purity metal by electrolytic methods not only helped Canada to compete with other world producers but also provided a new source of these metals at prices and qualities that encouraged the development of new end uses.

Jan 1, 1977

By J. T. Ryan

WITH J. T. Ryan, of Pittsburgh, in the chair, 40 men on Monday afternoon were attracted to the first meeting of the new Health and Safety in Mines Committee. The speakers were well received and the discussion was good and virile. The field and scope of the new Health and Safety in Mines Committee was reviewed briefly, yet concisely, by Scott Turner. This committee is to cover the whole mining industry, in which much progress in reducing accidents has been made in recent years. Members of the A.I.M.E. can considerably assist in this important problem.

Jan 1, 1933

By J. L. Rodda

The desirability of a uniformly sized abrasive for metallographic polishing has probably been recognized in a general way for a long time. Certainly all metallographers have recognized the damage that can be done to a polished surface by a piece of grit, especially if one of the softer metals, such as zinc or aluminum, is being polished. It is to be doubted, however, whether many metallographers have had any adequate idea of the particle size of the abrasives they were using or of the range of sizes encountered in any given grade of abrasive. At any rate, the descriptions of abrasives for metallographic work found in the literature are generally very meager. It was with the idea of securing an abrasive with a limited range of particle size that a study of this problem was commenced. Commercial abrasives, even when recommended for metallographic work, are made up of particles of varying sizes. One such abrasive contains some particles so fine that they remain in suspension for days and other particles so coarse that they settle at the rate of 3 in. per minute. It is evident that the coarsest particles are over 100 times the diameter of the smallest ones, or over 1,000,000 times the volume. The hopelessness of avoiding scratches under these conditions is evident. Vanderwiltl has described a laboratory method for grading abrasives in which the elutriator is used. Le Chatelier's method, described by Goereq2 also makes use of an elutriator. However, the elutriator is too slow for this purpose and requires too delicate a control for the range of sizes desired. The method of stirring up the abrasive in water, allowing it to settle for a given time, then drawing a measured depth off the top of the suspension, has been finally adopted as the simplest procedure. The largest particle in a given portion is then determined by Stokes' law:3

Jan 1, 1932

By J. H. Allen

The air lift method of pumping water is discussed. A review of several large diameter hole drilling projects that used reverse- circulation air-lift techniques is presented. Proposals are made for reverse circulation flow rates for slow rates of bit penetration (5 fph) as well as reverse-circulation flow rates for faster rates of bit penetration (10 fph). The Ingersoll-Rand air lift equations are modified for rotary drilling operations. By establishing minimum reverse circulation flow rates and utilizing the modified air lift equations, the establishment of minimum circulation equipment sizes and a more definitive requirement for improved bit body design should result.

Jan 1, 1978

By Roy A. Lindgren

Since the year 1643, when the first blast furnace in America for treating iron ore was built at Saugus, Mass., out of mica schist quarried in the neighboring district, the procurement of a suitable refractory for furnace lining has been a problem of concern to the operators of furnaces. The stacks built of mica schist continued to smelt iron ore until about 1836, when, according to F. H. Norton, the first firebrick were produced1, at Queens Run, Pa. Other writers speak of brick having been molded and burned in Massachusetts about the year 1834. In 1841, Andrew Russell began to produce medium refractory plastic clay brick near East Liverpool, Ohio, that were used for lining blast furnaces1. The well-known Kentucky clay-producing district was not opened up until the year 1871, but since then it has produced a large percentage of the linings for iron blast furnaces. While some strides have been made by the refractories industry during the 100 years that have passed since the first firebrick were produced, it has been only during the last two decades that any real progress has been made towards bettering the product, even though the method of production had improved. Perhaps the fault lies with the user of the brick rather than with the producer, for not sooner demanding a superior product. During the past 15 years the tonnage produced per lining has increased from 500,000 gross tons to 1,000,000 gross tons, and now some furnaces are producing 1,600,000 gross tons and better on a single lining. It is true that enlarged capacity of furnaces and improved practice have accounted for some of this increase in tonnage, nevertheless better quality in firebrick must be given credit for its share. However, we are not yet ready to say that we have reached a maximum life of furnace lining. We believe that a better product can be produced and that the refractories industries of America will, through their extensive research depart-

Jan 1, 1937

By Clement K. Chase, F. Milton Lewis, Roshan B. Bhappu

In situ extraction for copper, gold and uranium, generally involves several common alternative processes and techniques. These include dump leaching, heap leaching, leaching of fractured ore in-place or bore hole mining and unit operations such as cementation, solvent extraction, ion-exchange or carbon-in-pulp. Since the metallurgical effectiveness and economics of such processes and unit operations are well established, it would be possible to select the optimum alternative for extracting either copper, gold or uranium from their ores using in situ extraction technology. In this paper, efforts have been made to provide metallurgical evaluation as well as capital and operating costs for the various processes and unit operations. Attempts have also been made to utilize the above costs in preparing feasibility studies for in situ extraction of these metals.

Jan 1, 1976

By Wilber Stout

In Ohio, the annual output of coke made from native coals has averaged not more than 70,000 tons, or about enough to run a 200-ton blast furnace. Raw coal locally mined from the Sharon, or No. 1, bed was used for iron smelting in Mahoning furnace at Lowellville, Mahoning Co., as early as 1846. This practice was continued in the Youngstown district until the coal became scarce and the Connellsville coke more popular. At present, the Sharon bed contributes a part of the fuel for the production of ferrosilicon iron at Jackson, Jackson CO. About one-third native coal and two-thirds soft coal are used. In this state, coke, on a commercial basis, was first made in Jefferson County probably about 1861 or 1862. The coals used were the Steuben-ville Shaft, or Lower Freeport, and the Strip Vein or Middle Kittanning. The practice, however, was discontinued before 1880 because of the competition of superior foreign cokes. Beehive ovens, later built at Leetonia, Columbiana Co., were operated for only a few years; the coal used at this place is the Lower Kittanning or No. 5. In a desultory way, slack from the Pittsburgh coal has been coked at a few places in eastern Ohio, and attempts, either for experimental or for commercial purposes, have been made in other parts of the state. Small quantities of coke were made from the Upper Freeport coal at Salineville, Columbiana Co., and near Nelsonville, Hocking Co.; the results were poor. Tests were made of the Middle Kittanning coal near Zanesville, Muskingum Co., at Moxahala Furnace, Perry Co., and at Washington Furnace, Lawrence Co.; the cokes were all high in sulfur and ash. Attempts were made to coke the Clarion coal at Vinton Furnace, Vinton Co.; a small battery of molding ovens and a pile of high-sulfur coke yet remain to tell the story. The Pittsburgh coal was coked on a commercial scale at Utley and at Lathrop, Athens Co., but the operations were not successful and were soon abandoned. These failures and indifferent successes are not to be attributed to a lack of demand for a first-class coke, as Ohio has held a commanding place for many years in iron smelting; nor to a deficiency of coals, as the state has a vast reserve of such material. They are to be ascribed to the inferior quality of the native products offered to the trade. The cokes

Jan 1, 1920

By Eugene Guccione

For at least a decade, the energy crisis was accurately predicted by a small number of industry people who were ignored until last year, when they suddenly found themselves accused for their "lack of planning" and "greed." With the worsening shortage of natural gas and oil, the current scramble is for alternate energy sources-which means: a big rush into coal and uranium mining. (Some big plans are also on the drawing boards regarding geothermal steam, oil shale, tar sands, and even solar energy. But developing such new industries from scratch would be difficult enough even in a healthy economic climate-which is not exactly what the country currently enjoys.)

Jan 8, 1974

By H. S. Chiang, D. F. Lu, S. S. Peng

INTRODUCTION The most important element in a successful lingual mining is a good roof control. The modern longwall mining employs hydraulic powered supports for roof control at the face area. The application of hydrau¬lic powered support requires the knowledge of over¬burden strata behavior for proper selection of sup¬port type and capacity. Failure to do so could lead so serious loss. There are several methods available for determining the required support capacity (1-3). While these methods are simple for application, they do not include the complicated roof behavior observed in longwall mining. As research progresses and operational experience accumulates (4,5), the concept about the designing and selection of powered support improves. The design of a longwall powered support consists of three major phases: 1. structural integrity and stability of the powered support, 2. external loadings induced by the movements of the overburden strata, and 3. interaction between the support, roof and floor. Phase 1 involves structural analysis (5) and full-sized testing (6) of the supports. Its validity is limited by the accuracy of the assumed external loading because of the uncertainty about the actual loading underground. The third phase includes the reaction of the support and the floor to the movements of the overburden strata and vice versa. Among the three phases, the second phase concer¬ning the external loading seems to be the least known because of the complicated behavior of the roof strata. There are many unresolved problems. For example, does the main roof break periodically and cause periodic roof weighting in the face area? If so, are there any rules governing its behavior? How does the roof load on the support canopy! Finally, how can one determine the required support capacity and select a proper type of support to meet a certain roof behavior? In order to answer those questions, underground instrumentation and observations were performed at 4 longwall panels in 3 separate mines for the past two years. This paper summarizes the current findings. PANEL LAYOUTS AND EQUIPMENT EMPLOYED The three mines selected are all located in West Virginia; two in northern and one in southern West Virginia. As shown in Table 1, seam conditions (i.e. seam, depth and thickness) and panel layouts are different among the three mines. The most significant difference in equipment is the face powered supports. Three mines used three different types of shield; 2-leg caliper, 2-leg lemniscate, and 4-leg lemniscate chock-shield. (Fig. 1) UNDERGROUND INSTRUMENTATION AND OBSERVATION PROGRAM Two events were instrumented in each observed longwall face: one was the hydraulic pressure (resistance) of the powered supports and the other was the canopy load distributions. In addition, the gob caving conditions were visually observed and recorded. Leg and Support Resistances One or two automatic Weksler Pressure Recorders were installed at the designated shield support,. In most cases, the daily charts were used to record the pressure variations in both the front or the rear legs (for the 4-leg shield), or in both the leg and the fore-pole ram (for the 2-leg shield). The recorded pressure w a s then converted to load or resistance by multiplying it by the cross-sectional area of the hydraulic leg or canopy ram piston. Fig. 2 shows the typical pressure-recorded charts for the 4-leg and 2-leg shields in a 23-24 hour period. The support resistance is the summation of the resistance in each of all the legs for that support. Generally, the resistance of the fore-pole ram will not be considered in determining the capacity of the support because of its rather small vertical compo¬nent force at the tip of the fore-pole. Canopy Load Distribution External load distribution on the canopy as exer¬ted by the roof was monitored. The measurements employed 12-14 pieces of pressure cells (6-inch square) that were uniformly arranged in two rows on the canopy. After support setting, the pressure changes in the cells were monitored at various stages of the mining (supporting) cycle while the support leg pressures were recorded continuously by the pressure recorders. Based on the calibration chara¬cteristics of each pressure cell as performed in the laboratory before and after each underground test, the cell pressures were converted to actual loadings. From these load measurements the canopy load distri¬butions and the relations between measured canopy loadings and support leg resistances were determined. Accordingly, the supporting efficiency of the shield support can be determined.

Jan 1, 1982

TO WE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF MINING AND METALLURGICAL ENGINEERS Gentlemen:-The following report covers briefly some of the more important activities of the Institute during the year 1923. In my report for the year 1922, I drew attention to the falling off in membership of the Institute due to the depressed condition of the mining industry in several lines and the inability of many of our members to find profitable employment in mining or its associated branches. A number who were unemployed during 1922 established connections during 1923, but a still greater number have been forced to resign or drop their membership during 1923. Fortunately, the number dropped is not so great as in the previous year. The Employment Service conducted by the four Founder Societies bears witness to the trend in business. For the young men just out of college, there are plenty of opportunities at small salaries, there are plenty of opportunities for them as laborers; but for the mature members, those of experience, there are few calls. During the last eighteen months, our Employment Service has been able to place only six of our members out of every hundred engineers for whom it has found work. Another loss which this Society has suffered, but which is not felt so keenly by our sister societies, is in its foreign members. The A. I. M. E. has always had a large foreign membership, but of recent years exchange has been so heavily against many European and South American countries that a large number of members residing abroad have been compelled to relinquish their membership. Almost invariably these members express keen regret because of the necessity that confronts them, and almost invariably the writers express hope that present conditions will not last long and that they will soon be able to ask for reinstatement. Having stated the darkest side of the picture first, it may now be drawn to your attention that in spite of these losses the number of persons applying for membership was decidedly encouraging. From the quality point of view, the membership has not gone backward. The Membership Committee has declined to recommend many

Jan 1, 1925

By Z. T. Bieniawski

The efficient and safe design of room-and-pillar coal mines still remains as one of the pressing problems facing the mining industry in the United States. Present day design is a trial-and-error approach based mostly on experience. Although much research has been directed to stability of mine roofs and coal pillars, no generally-accepted design method has been formulated. This paper reports on a three-year research effort directed to an improved design of room-and-pillar coal mining in the U.S.A. Essentially the study consisted of three aspects: (i) determination of stable roof spans; (ii) determination of the strength of coal pillars; and (iii) determination of safety factors for room-and-pillar coal mining in the United States. Furthermore, three novel approaches were utilized during this research: i) the "petite sismique" technique was assessed for possible determination of coal pillar deformability ii) the "Geomechanics Classification" was extended for determination of safe roof spans in room-and-pillar coal mining. iii) a national survey of the current design practice and mining dimensions was performed with the aim of assessing factors of safety for room-and-pillar coal mining The outcome of this work, which is summarized in this paper, is a design code for room-and-pillar mining in the United States.

Jan 1, 1983

By James C. Word, R. M. McLouski

This paper will describe the development and application of large-scale integration techniques employed in the fabrication of a germanium multielement array. The array consists of 100 by 228 PNP bipolar transistors fabricated on 5 mi1 centers. Back-biased p-n junction techniques are used for electrical isolation of the individual elements. The end use of the array is a high resolution, large area IR sensor. The monolithic array is fabricated in 1 ohm-cm p-type germanium epitaxially deposited on 6 ohm-cm n-type substrate. Epitaxy was accomplished through the hydrogen reduction of germanium te trachloride. Di-borane was used as the dopant. Base regions are achieved by the diffusion of arsenic from doped oxide or arsine sources. Oxide-masking of the arsenic im-pzlvity was achieved by the chemical deposition of a boron doped glass. The emitter is formed by an aluminum alloy diffusion technique. Vacuum deposited aluminum is used for the emitter, interconnections, and for the contact and bonding pads. ALTHOUGH a great volume of literature pertaining to the development of large scale integration techniques (LSI) has been published for silicon and in particular silicon imaging applications,' to date only a small number of similar devices have been constructed using germanium technology.' Since the physical and chemical properties of germanium are vastly different from those of silicon, the fabrication technology for integrated structures in germanium is also different from that of silicon. In particular germanium does not possess a stable oxide as can be grown on silicon by heating in an oxidizing ambient for masking of dopants and passivation. This paper describes the application of germanium LSI techniques employed in the fabrication of a multielement infrared sensor array. The array is used in a high resolution, large area infrared sensor for operation in the 0.8- to 1.5-u spectral range. Back biased p-n junction techniques are used for electrical isolation of individual elements. Discrete germanium devices have been fabricated routinely for some time. However, mainly due to the lack of a suitable mask for selective doping and the high current leakages inherent in germanium p-n isolation, few monolithic germanium structures have been constructed. THE INFRARED MOSAIC A cross-sectional view of the array is shown in Fig. 1. The monolithic structure consists of 12,800 PNP transistor elements in a 100 by 128 matrix fab- ricated on 5 mil centers. The emitters of each line of transistors are connected together using aluminum interconnects while the strip collectors are connected together in series at right angles to the emitter lines. The selection of this structure is dictated by the readout technique involved. Access to each element transistor is obtained by applying a bias voltage to a particular collector strip and separately interrogating each emitter row. A charge storage, i.e., an integration mode is used for reading out this particular array Construction techniques available for use with germanium do not include a selective p-type diffusion capability for surface concentrations greater than 10" per cu cm and junction depths greater than about 10 u. This fact limits the type of structure that may be used. Therefore, an array of PNP transistors that did not employ p-type diffusions was chosen. The structure was fabricated by growing a 1 ohm-cm p-type epitaxial layer on a carefully prepared 6 ohm-cm n-type substrate. N-type dopants were used for the isolation and base diffusions and alloyed aluminum was used to form the emitter junctions. The array was then completed by evaporation of aluminum interconnections and contact pads. SUBSTRATE AND SUBSTRATE PREPARATION Germanium substrates of (111) orientation grown by both Czochralski and zone leveling techniques were utilized for mosaic fabrication. Czochralski substrates were preferred because of the lower dislocation densities available in this type of material. Dislocation densities for the Czochralski material were typically less than 3000 per sq cm, while those for the zone leveled material were typically less than 5000 per sq cm. All substrates were uncompensated to minimize thermal conversion problems in subsequent epitaxial and diffusion processing. Both in-house and vendor polished wafers were used. The in-house polishing technique employed consisted of an initial gross chemical etch in CP4 to remove saw damage from both surfaces. This was followed by a chemical-mechanical polishing operation of one side of the wafer. The chemical-mechanical polishing solution used was Lustrox 1000 (Tizon Chemical Co.), and consists of zirconium dioxide, sodium hypochlorite, water and a surfactant. The wafer thickness before and after polishing was typically 0.020 and 0.010 in, respectively. THERMAL CONVERSION The problem of thermal conversion of both the substrate and epitaxial layer was particularly acute because of the relatively low carrier concentrations employed in both regions. This problem has been encountered by other workers in the past.3 Without special treatment before epitaxial growth substrate conversion (n-type to p-type) and changes in the re-

Jan 1, 1970

By Michael B. Moolman

Both conventional and nonconventional process alternatives for gold recovery from cyanide heap leach solutions are discussed in terms of possible flowsheets. Conventional process alternatives include carbon adsorption and zinc dust precipitation, while nonconventional process alternatives include resin ion exchange, solvent extraction, and direct electrowinning. These strategies for gold recovery are compared on the basis of technological features and on the basis of process economics: Review of the technology status and process economics suggests that improvements for conventional process alternatives are possible and that further development of nonconventional process alternatives is warranted.

Jan 1, 1984

By O. Jay Myers

The war effort has furnished the necessary impetus for better magnesium foundry practice. Four or five years ago, there were but a few formulas in general use for core-sand mixtures for magnesium castings. Certain sands, binders, and inhibitors were specified and the proportions of these materials in each mixture were maintained between very narrow limits. As more and more war industries entered the field, much research was carried out and methods and practices were improved. Magnesium founding is still in a state of flux; therefore it is not uncommon to find one foundry spraying inhibitors on its cores, and another foundry using sand mixtures with incorporated protective agents. The basic core or dry-sand mold mixture for magnesium in use today is compounded with sand, core oil or resin binder, cereal, and moisture. Core oil or resin binder are added for baked strength while the cereal binder and moisture are for green strength. The normal mixtures (based on the weight of the sand) contain from o.5 to 1.5 per cent of both cereal binder and core oil, and the moisture content variesbetween 1.5 and 5 per cent. The ratio of core oil to cereal binder varies from 60:40 to 40:60, while the correct amount of moisture depends upon the method of coremaking. Protective Agents In all magnesium practice, protective agents are used in conjunction with the core and molding sands to prevent oxidation of the metal. The use of these inhibitors is not novel, but publications covering this field are not entirely adequate. Beck1 says: Magnesium alloys decompose water to form magnesium oxide, hydrogen being liberated in the process (Mg + H2O ? H2 ?+ MgO). This reaction results in the blackening of the skin and the appearance of areas of porosity on the casting surface, the cavities of which are filled with a grey oxide powder (these are termed 'burns'). Although sand cores for magnesium castings are thoroughly dried during the baking cycle, burning will take place on the casting5 unless the metal is protected properly. This type of burning is more difficult to define than the "water-magnesium" reaction cited by Beckl A possible explanation may lie in the following equation: 2Mg + O2—> 2MgO Here, the source of the oxygen is not water, but the air in the mold cavity, together with the chemically combined oxygen in the core-binding media. Generally, two methods are used to prevent this reaction from taking place.

Jan 1, 1945

By Fred Bond

THERE is acute need for a method that will measure the size distribution of finely di-vided materials, particularly when the par-ticle sizes are smaller than the openings of the finest screen cloth regularly available for testing. Several methods and types of apparatus are in common use, but none are entirely satisfactory for all purposes. The commonest methods are microscopic grain counts, elutriation by liquids or air, and sedimentation. Valuable results have been secured by air elutriating devices, typified by the Haultain Infra-Sizer and the Pearson Air Analyzer. These are especially useful in obtaining sized fractions that can be examined and analyzed separately. They are particularly advantageous because the sizes of the sam-ples produced are adequate for a consider-able amount of subsequent manipulation and testing. The sedimentation methods, such as the Wagner and Klein turbidimeters, and the sedimentation balance, do not deliver sized fractions, but they do provide a means for reasonably rapid comparative determina-tions of fineness and surface area, which are important in many industries. The sedimentation balance consists essen-tially of a balance pan suspended in a liquid that contains falling particles. These are weighed as they settle onto the pan, and the time rate of settling is determined. The size distribution is computed from the set-tling rate. The balance appears to be in-herently more accurate than any of the other methods, and it has served a useful purpose in the study of numerous problems, but there have been limitations which have re-stricted its scope of application. Because of the essential simplicity of the method, it was felt that intensive investiga-tion might lead to modifications that would make it a valuable tool for the operators in industries that require precise information regarding the results secured from grinding equipment. A large number of size-distribu-tion determinations below 200 mesh were required in connection with a particular research problem in fine grinding. The sedimentation balance was used, in this investigation, and a technique was gradually developed that ultimately gave good results. A serious difficulty appeared, early in the work. It was discovered that less material always settled on the sedimentation pan and more on the bottom of the containing jar than could he accounted for by calculation, and also that the material that settled to the bottom of the jar outside the edges of the pan was considerably finer than that on the pan. This segregation was so great that the dis-tribution obtained for the finer sizes was obviously very much in error; material ground to about the degree of comminution of cement might have only 60 per cent of the calculated weight actually settling on the pan, and the error increased with the fine-

Jan 1, 1939

By R. E. Delavault, H. V. Warren

In normal soils there are usually 10 to 50 parts of copper in every million parts of .soil. Only 0.2 to .5 pct of this copper can be found by any simple cold chemical attack. Now, with rubeanic mid reagent paper, a prospector or field geologist can detect as little us 4 ppm of readily available copper ill soil. This degree, of sensiticity is enough to determine the presence. of copper anamalous an as and, ecentually, to discouer copper mineralization. Circumstances determine whether it is better to make analyses in the field or in a permanent laboratory. The rubeanic acid test described in this article has been designed primarily for field use: it is simple and virtually foolproof, and it requires a minimum of field kit." It is sensitive, easily de- • Ed. Note: Persons Interested in purchasing kits suitable for rubeanic acid prospecting can obtain information by writing Eldrico Geophysical Sales Ltd., 633 Hornby Street. Vancouver 1, B.C. The University of British Columbia does not produce these kits for sale and has no financial interest in their production tecting 4 ppm of readily extractable copper in a soil. This is by no means a quantitative test, but it is accurate enough to provide a valuable indicator of copper anomalous areas for both prospectors and field geologists. The easiest method for detecting metal deposits that do not produce visible float or stains is to make a simple chemical test for the metal in overlying soil, or in the silt of a stream that may have picked up metal farther upstream. In Brief: Testing for copper may be done easily by shaking a soil sample with strong acetic solution in a small test tube and pouring the mud into a small filter, the tip of which rests upon a strip of reagent paper impregnated with rubeanic acid (di-thio-oxamide). When copper is present—and only when it is—a blue spot develops. The more copper, the darker the spot. If the copper content is merely the small amount present everywhere, there is a pale blue or hardly visible spot; if it is abnormally high, the spot will be dark. There are, of course, intermediate cases where the experienced geochemist cannot tell offhand whether a medium-strength spot represents rich agricultural soil, weak copper mineralization, or distant rich copper mineralization. Reagents and material are inexpensive; the test may be readily done on the spot with a simple kit easy to pack and handle. Anyone interested in general problems of soil sampling as applied to prospecting may refer to an article recently presented to the AIME. In exploration work it is the contrast between the metal content of anomalous and background areas that is important; absolute values become of greater interest when an anomalous area is being investigated in detail. With specific reference to copper, it has been the authors' experience that the amounts of metal extracted from anomalous and normal soils with buffer solutions of decreasing pH show better contrast if an acid reagent is used. This contrast tends to increase with increasing acidity until 3 to 4 pH is reached. Using a short cold attack on unheated soil, it has been found that further increases in acidity do not produce better results, and only increase the hazards involved in carrying strong acids. An acidity of about pH 4 is satisfactory for direct determination of copper by dithizone. But dithizone itself introduces some problems: it must be made up fresh at frequent intervals, and with some soils, notably those with much ferric iron, oxidation mag take place before all the copper has reacted with the dithizone. Rubeanic acid keeps its strength unimpaired for long periods, is unaffected by oxidation, and is practically specific for copper at pH 4. Consequently it seems an ideal reagent to use in prospecting for copper. History and Background: Rubeanic acid (systematic name: dithio-oxamide (SC-NH2) has long been known as a spot test reagent for some heavy metals with which it gives a number of compounds. Only copper and some metals of the platinum family are believed capable of providing any ru-beanate compounds under conditions of moderate

Jan 1, 1959

By B. Zondek, W. T. Cardwell, J. W. Sheldon

The fundamental equations that are used to describe two-phase fluid flow in porous media are Darcy's law for each phase and an equation of continuity for each component. The special case of one-dimensional, incompressible, two-phase flow has received much attention in the petroleum engineering literature.1-10 The basic paper on the subject is that of Buckley and Leverett.2 Buckley and Leverett showed that one could eliminate the pressure and obtain a single partial differential equation for the saturation. They solved this equation for the case when gravity and capillary forces are negligible. A frequently encountered property of the solution of the basic partial differential equation is that, as time progresses, the saturation becomes a multiple-valued function of the distance coordinate, x. Buckley and Leverett interpreted the formation of multiple values as an indication that the saturation-distance curve had be-come discontinuous. They developed a method of determining the position of the discontinuity from a material balance. We solve the Buckley-Leverett partial differential equation using the method of characteristics and the concept of shocks. Our treatment is analogous to treatments used in the theory of supersonic compressible flow." Although the numerical results obtained are the same as those obtained by previous methods, we believe that this approach is more logical and has broader applicability. It can, for example, be generalized to treat the case when the fluids are compressible. It is not clear how one would go about doing this using the method of Buckley and Leverett. To illustrate the power of the method of characteristics with shocks, we solve a problem in gravity segregation which has not been treated previously in the literature. A special case of the general method developed here was used by Welge, to solve a particular fluid displacement problem. We consider two-phase incompressible flow along the vertical direction x in a porous medium. We assume that there is no flow transverse to .x. We measure positive in the upward direction. The fundamental equations are obtained from Darcy's law and the mass conservation law. Since the two phases are incompressible, mass conservation is equivalent to volume conservation.

By R. L. Wiegel

This article proposes a physical model for an idealized binary mineral system and for the process of liberation by size reduction. Based on this model, equations are derived relating the amount of each component liberated as a function of the ratio of the volumetric abundance of the two mineral components and the ratio of the mineral grain size to particle size. A definite relationship is shown to exist between the mineral concentration within a locked particle and the frequency of occurrence of such a particle. These relationships are used to obtain theoretical expressions for the concentration-recovery diagram. Physical mineral beneficiation processes are based on breaking a mineral aggregate to liberate the dissimilar mineral grains and then making use of their physical properties to separate the mixture into its components. The effectiveness of the process is therefore dependent on how well the minerals are liberated and how efficiently they are separated. Although a substantial amount of work is being done to improve our understanding of mineral separation processes, the study of mineral liberation itself has been almost completely neglected. The purpose of this theoretical study is to shed some light on the liberation phenomenon by: 1) proposing a physical model for an ideal binary mineral system, 2) treating mathematically the fracture of this system into liberated and locked particles, and 3) deriving an expression for the liberation characteristics of this system. The results of this study are useful in understanding the effect and importance of various parameters in liberation, and provide a basis for comparison with real mineral systems. 'RANDOM' MODEL It is recognized that liberation can be caused by detachment which results from fractures occurring at the mineral grain boundaries, or by size reduction which restricts the occurrence of dissimilar mineral locking to a portion of the resulting particles. The detachment effect is dependent on the relative strengths of the mineral grains and the bonds between them, and must be treated empirically for each mineral system. The size reduction effect, however, can be treated analytically if certain assumptions are made concerning the shape and geometrical arrangement of the mineral grains.

Jan 1, 1968

By P. V. Roundy, G. R. Mansfield

PUBLIC lands in Florida were first withdrawn from entry by President Taft on July 2, 1910, as a conservation measure because of their possible phosphate content. The reserve thus established was subsequently modified by further withdrawals and by restorations, so that on Jan. 1, 1934, it contained 66,796 acres, of which only a small part had been definitely classified. The reserved land was in scattered parcels, ranging from less than 40 acres to 320 or more, distributed in many counties. For administrative purposes and for final disposal of any of the numerous parcels, mineral classification of the land is legally necessary. In 1934 and 1935 the United States Geological Survey, under two successive grants from the Public Works Administration, prospected some 83 tracts of these lands in Polk County, comprising in all about 3300 acres, and six tracts comprising 240 acres in Citrus and Marion Counties. The tracts in Polk County were all in the so-called land-pebble field and the others in the hard-rock field. The Survey field party was under the direction of P. V. Roundy, from whose unpublished report the material in this paper is largely taken. The foreman of the prospecting crew was J. H. Wingate of Zephyrhills, Fla. The individual tracts were identified through the cooperation of the General Land Office, by transitman Hugh B. Crawford. This prospecting work fitted well the classification adopted for Public Works projects in general: it could not be done on any considerable scale under the Survey's usual appropriations; it gave employment to unemployed labor; and it may be expected ultimately to repay the Government in royalties more than the cost of the exploration. COMMERCIAL PROSPECTING METHODS Commercial methods of prospecting for phosphate in Florida have been briefly described by Mansfield.1 In the hard-rock field, where the floor of the phosphate deposit is extremely irregular, it is customary to drill as

Jan 1, 1937