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By C. Daniel Kealy

Dissolved and suspended solids are present in the free water of tailings ponds. This Bureau of Mines study was designed to identify the influences of the slime zone in preventing these solids from reaching the environment outside the tailings pond. The finite-element method was used to determine the rate of discharge of subsurface water from the Van Stone tailings pond in northern Washington. The slime zone was sampled and tested for the first time, and results were interpreted and incorporated into the mathematical model. Computer results were verified by installing and monitoring piezometers in the field and by a simulated (16- by 1/2- by 3 foot) laboratory model. Output from the numerical model defined critical seepage zones and revealed that proper pond design and maintenance can reduce pond seepage losses to a minimum. Minimization of seepage requires maintaining the pond water level over the slime zone. Sufficient physical, chemical, and limnological data were collected and analyzed to conclude that the only realistic reflection of synergistic effects is obtained by study of the indigenous biota in combination with quantitative chemical and physical data. Proper planning and management of the milling and waste disposal operations are the key to minimal pollution.

Jan 1, 1974

By Thomas J. Peters

The Goat Rocks RARE II further planning areas contain no known mineral resources and have very low mineral potentials. County mining records show only one mining claim area; however, no mineralized material was found at the described location. Andesite suitable for building stone may be present, but similar material can be quarried more economically elsewhere. Several anthracite coal prospects are near the area, but the likelihood of finding an economic deposit of coal or other fuel is very low.

Jan 1, 1981

By J. P. Morris

The Bureau of Mines investigated the mechanics of fuming of iron-carbon melts during top-blowing with oxygen. Melts weighing 45 lb were prepared in an induction furnace and blown with oxygen by means of water-cooled lances. The rate of fuming was measured and correlated with the operating variables. The data showed that the primary cause of fuming was a boil at the bath surface in the impingement zone of the oxygen jet. Nucleation of the carbon monoxide bubbles producing the boil was apparently brought about by the precipitation of an oxide phase. The actual fuming mechanism involved partial oxidation and vaporization of bubble films and fine metal spray generated by the bursting of the bubbles. Bubbles that formed outside the impingement zone produced little fume. The distribution of trace elements between the metal and fume strongly indicated that the fume contained fine spray particles as well as particles that had condensed from vapor. The rate of fuming was found to be proportional to the carbon content of the metal) the concentration of oxygen in the jet) and the bath temperature) provided that a continuous boil occurred. In the absence of a boil) very little fume was produced.

Jan 1, 1967

By John H. Johnson

White Pine Mine section designated for exhaust emissions studies. The MTU Mine Air Monitoring Laboratory was used to gather temperature and C02 concentration data at 10 locations. The data substantiate the presence of strong buoyant forces of the hot exhaust gases which result in stratification in dead end headings. Diesel mine-vehicle tailpipe emissions were monitored in the laboratory by a portable tailpipe emissions measurement apparatus (EMA) assembled for in-mine use. The results were compared with simultaneous measurements by standard laboratory exhaust monitoring instruments. These results indicate that accurate field source quality control measurements can be obtained for CO2, CO and NO but NO2 results were low for all engine conditions. Diesel pollutant concentration data from the Orchard Valley Mine were analyzed and compared with data collected earlier in the White Pine and Brushy Creek mines. Lognormal frequency distributions and CO2-based concentration ratios and correlations were calculated. In the three mines compared, pollutant concentrations were distributed similarly, and concentrations appear to be controlled to present standards.

Jan 1, 1979

By David A. Hill

This volume contains a summary of the results of past analyses on U.S. Bureau of Mines Contract No. 80122061 which are relevant to electromagnetic location in mine rescue situations. The analytical results indicated that detection of a trapped miner equipped with a special transmitter is feasible in most situations. Location of the miner by surface measurements is also generally feasible within certain errors. The feasibility of miner detection and the accuracy of miner location have been examined theoretically for a wide variety of situations. Agreement with experimental results is generally good in cases where measurements are available. Personnel involved in the investigation include J.R. Wait (Principal Investigator), D.A. Hill (Co-Principal Investigator), K.P. Spies, A.Q. Howard, and Lana Slusher (Administrative Assistant).

Jan 1, 1974

By V. R. Spironello

The Bureau of Mines is involved in research directed toward the utilization of municipal solid waste. One of the primary objectives is the recycling of the magnetic fraction of municipal solid waste (raw refuse). This is consistent with one of the Bureau's goals, which is to minimize the requirements for mineral commodities by maximizing metals recovery from secondary domestic resources, In this investigation, cupola trials were made using combinations of refuse scrap with shredded automobile scrap under basic and acid slag practices. Furnace operating information and the behavior of alloying and tramp elements was obtained. The research showed that it is possible to utilize up to 60 percent refuse scrap in the cupola under basic practice and 30 percent under acid practice, Aluminum in refuse scrap, present in bimetallic cans, increased the recoveries of silicon and manganese charged to the cupola. Increased use of refuse scrap provided iron of lower sulfur. The alumina resulting from oxidation increased the slag volume. The aluminum and tin contents of the iron increased with increasing levels of refuse scrap in the charge. Lead was not a problem with respect to contamination of the iron. In basic practice, operation of the cupola was satisfactory since all slags were adequately fluid. In acid practice, operation became troublesome above the 45-percent level. Under both practices, the cupola iron melting rate decreased. Particulates in scrubber water and stack condensate samples contained lead, zinc, and tin, and the dust load increased. The tensile and transverse strengths of the iron produced under both practices are reported.

Jan 1, 1980

By Roy S. Nutter

The automation of coal mining must occur in a manner that is economically beneficial to the industry and that enhances the safety of the underground and surface workplaces. The work at WVU over the last five years in applying expert systems and neural network controlled autonomous robotics provides the mining industry with tools that when properly applied should clearly lead to mine-wide management and operational improvements and should also contribute to a higher awareness of safety issues by all work crews. This work includes the development of MMSS (Mine Management Support System) and the detailed development of autonomous robotics utilizing neural networks for mining systems.

Jan 1, 1993

By J. M. Pugliese

The Bureau of Mines, in support of its overall goal of helping to meet future U.S. demand for minerals, undertook this study to aid the quarry entrepreneur and/or operator in developing quarries near urban areas. In response to increased environmental concerns, the quarry operator often must take steps beyond those required in the last decade toward gaining permits for quarrying near metropolitan areas. Following the steps suggested in this report should increase the chances to obtain the permits to open and develop a quarry. Each task and question in the general plan flow diagrams are described in detail, with the flow diagrams aimed at the goal of acquiring the necessary permits. The appendixes include (1) types of projects for which Environmental Impact Statements (EIS's) may be prepared and Federal agencies responsible for preparing them, (2) State contacts for information regarding environmental impact assessment requirements and mining and mineral land reclamation laws, (3) a checklist of environmental inventory factors, (4) a tabulation of different regulations that affect mining in Michigan and the number of townships and counties that have each of the listed regulations, and (5) environmental logic associated with site selection. A central recommendation is that the quarry entrepreneur and/or operator coordinate plans at the beginning with local government officials (such as township supervisors and/or city and county planning board members), State and Federal officials, and public groups that will be affected.

Jan 1, 1979

By H. B. Carroll

The performance of commercially available portable instrumentation for detecting nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide was evaluated. Length-of-stain detector tubes from several manufacturers were included in the study. The instruments were evaluated in atmospheres with 50-and 80-percent relative humidities at 75° F and containing test gas concentrations of 0.1, 0.25, 0.50, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 times the threshold limit values. The results from the gas analyzers were correlated with the known contaminant concentration by calculating and plotting an estimated line of regression, confidence limits, and correlation coefficient for each detector system. An increase in the relative humidity from 50 to 80 percent at /5° F changed the instrument response to the contaminants. The uncertainties in detection precision reported are for the observer-instrument system. The main difference or inconsistency in toxic gas concentrations determined with length-of-stain tubes resulted from the observer's interpretation of the results rather than from a predominant difference in the tubes.

Jan 1, 1975

By Ernest J. Conway

This report presents engineering drawings for six material handling devices for underground coal mines. The devices were designed under a U.S. Bureau of Mines program to reduce injuries from material handling during mine and equipment maintenance. The six devices are (1) scoop-mounted 1411: boom, (2) swing-arm boom, (3) heavy-component lift-transport, (4) mine mud cart, (5) container-workstation vehicle, and (6) timber car. Each device is described briefly, and recommendations are made concerning the design of new devices.

Jan 1, 1989

By D. R. Dolinar, A. T. Iannacchione

Limestone formations in the United States can be subject to relatively high horizontal stresses owing to the existence of tectonic loading of the limestone strata. Underground limestone mines use the room-and-pillar method, in which 12- to 18-m-wide rooms are typically excavated. The stability of these excavations can be compromised by the horizontal stress, resulting in a rock fall hazard. Rock falls are the cause of 15% of all reportable injuries in underground limestone mines. Horizontal stress related damage can occur in the form of guttering along one or more sides of an excavation, roof beam buckling or oval shaped roof falls, with the long axis perpendicular to the major horizontal stress. Numerical analyses show that the pillar layout and orientation of the mine workings has an effect on the horizontal stress distribution within the roof. The effects of high horizontal stresses can be mitigated by orienting the heading development direction parallel to the maximum horizontal stress, reducing the number of cross-cuts and off-setting the cross-cuts to limit the potential lateral extent of horizontal stress related roof falls. The modeling approach described in this paper can be used as a tool to evaluate potential roof failure and optimize the stability of room and pillar layouts.

By C. R. Sponsler, O. C. Blade

"INTRODUCTION This report on the properties of motor fuels sold through service stations in the United States is a continuation of a series of reports made in accordance with a cooperative agreement between the Coordinating Research (CFR) Committee of the Coordinating Research Coouncil (CRC) 4/ and the Bureau of Mines of the United States Department of the Interior. The first of these reports presented data on motor gasolines sold during the winter of 1935-36. 5/ Further reports were issued describing motor gasolines sold during the succeeding summers and winters to and including the summer of 1941. 5/ reports were made on motor gasolines sold during the winter of 1941-42 and during the summer of 1942. However, starting with the winter of 1942-43, the semiannual reports were resumed. 5/The present report presents analytical data for samples, representing the products of approximately 100 companies. Most of the samples represented in this report were obtained during December 1)55 and January 194o. As in previous surveys, the companies covered by the survey include both large and small suppliers. Conforming to former reports, the data cover three groups of samples - regular-price, premium-price, and third-grade gasolines.As the number of analyses submitted for samples of third-grade gasoline are not considered adequate to represent this type of motor fuel, data for the analyses have not been averaged, but the individual items are tabulated. The number of samples, items, and brands comprising each group is as follows:Regular-price, 1,958 samples, 317 items, and 96 brands; premium-price, 1, samples, 292 items, and 85 brands; third-grade, 58 samples, 22 items, and 14 brands. The meanings of these terms as used in the surveys are as follows;"

Jul 1, 1946

By J. W. Thompson

The term "minerals" when employed in a conveyance in the State of West Virginia is understood to include every inorganic substance which can be extracted from the earth for profit, whether it be solid, as rock, fire clay, the various metals and coal, or liquid, such as salt, and other mineral waters and petroleum oil and gas. Horse Creek Land & Mining Co. v. Midkiff (West Virginia), 95 Southeastern 26, p. 27. TERM INCLUDES OIL AND OAS. The term "minerals" used to describe the interest in land granted or reserved bona fide includes petroleum oil and natural gas. Horse Creek Land & Mining Co. v. Midkiff (West Virginia), 95 Southeastern 26, p. 27. INJUNCTION TO PREVENT RElllOVAL. The removal of ore from the premises of another without his consent will be enjoined. Barnes v. Esch (Oregon), 169 Pacific, 512, p. 518. TITLE TO MEXICAN BULLION-JURISDICTION OF FEDERAL COURTS TO DETERMINE. Where bullion within the jurisdiction of the Mexican Government was seized, condemned, and sold for war supplies by the Constitutionalist forces in the revolution acting under authority from Gen. Carranza, claiming to be the provisional President of the Republic of Mexico, a United States district court of Texas, into which State the bullion has been imported from Mexico, has jurisdiction to try and adjudge as to the validity of the title acquired by and through the seizure, appropriation, and sale by the Carranza forces as against an American citizen claiming ownership of such bullion prior to its seizure.

Jan 1, 1919

By H. F. Feldmann

This work was done to provide thermodynamic, electrical, physical, and compositional data on the seeded combustion plasmas of seven coals for the design of MHD generators. The systems were assumed to be at equilibrium, and the design data were generated by solving for the composition of both gas and liquid phases with a digital computer. The coals reported in this study include a western subbituminous, a Pennsylvania anthracite, and five representative bituminous coals. The data include dewpoint temperatures of both slag and seed. A Mollier diagram for each coal is given to allow graphical generator calculations.

Jan 1, 1970

By John H. Johnson

Diesel tailpipe CO, C02, NO, and N02 concentrations by the Emissions Measurement Apparatus (EMA) were found to compare satisfactorily with simultaneous concentrations by instruments in the MSHA engine certification laboratory in Bruceton, Pa. The EMA was then applied to the measurement of LHD vehicle diesel tailpipe gases and smoke opacity in the White Pine and Brushy Creek Mines. A general experimental approach was developed by which instruments could be compared for the measurement of diesel exhaust pollutant concentrations in the 1/2 to 5TLV range. The concentrations are changed by varying engine speed, dynamometer load, and the portion of the exhaust which enters the dilution tunnel. Dräger detector tube diluted exhaust CO, CO2, NO, and NO2 measurements were compared with simultaneously taken portable instrument measurements. Diesel exhaust interference inaccuracies were separated from inaccuracies due to detector tube calibration by comparing the instrument readings with both actual detector tube readings and detector tube readings corrected by recalibration of the detector tubes alongside NBS traceable calibration gases. The detector tubes' accuracy was found to be only slightly affected by diesel exhaust interferences and it was concluded that most measure within certification limits established by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The effects of 2 exhaust system configurations on the pollutant concentrations in a dead-end heading were studied. Both of the configurations exhausted the gases near the roof, directing them toward the crosscut, and both improved the stratification of the air in the heading, due to the bouyancy of the hot exhaust gases. One of the configurations was a pair of Fume Diluters which diluted the exhaust with air by a 10:1 ratio, and the second system was simply a pair of exhaust pipes, bent to direct the exhaust similarly to the fume dilutors. By redirecting the exhaust, the concentration of C02 measured on the LHD vehicle was reduced by as much as 507, in dead-end headings up to 200 ft long. The Fume Diluters showed no improvement over the simple redesign of the exhaust system.

Jan 1, 1980

By Charles T. Baroch

RESEARCH strengthened the position of cesium as the preferred material (commonly but erroneously called "fuel") for ionic propulsion engines. Its use as an element of the plasma thermocouple for generating electricity also seemed more likely. Domestic Production.-No domestic ore of cesium and rubidium was produced. San Antonio Chemicals, Inc., San Antonio, Tex., and Maywood Chemical Works, Maywood, N.J., continued to produce cesium and rubidium compounds including carbonate, chromate, hydroxide, nitrate, sulfate, and all four halides. Rocky Mountain Research, Inc., Denver, Colo., began producing various cesium and rubidium salts. American Potash & Chemical Corp., Los Angeles, Calif., offered cesium and rubidium for sale.

Jan 1, 1960

By R. S. Olsen

Although aluminum is easily leached from calcined clay with boiling mineral acids, the presence of fines and slimes in the leached residue has hindered the application of acid leaching processes. A feed preparation method was, therefore, devised that provided a dense, smooth-surfaced, fine-grained clay. The important factors affecting feed quality were determined to be (1) crushing the raw clay to the size desired for the leaching process, (2) moistening the crushed clay with a fine mist of water while tumbling on a rotating disk, (3) drying the misted clay, and (4) calcining the dried clay at 750° C in a fluidized bed. Clay treated by this method was leached with HCI, and its residue was washed by water displacement in 4-ft-deep beds. Bed permeabilities on the order of 47 darcys or 4.6 x 10-7 cm2 were obtained with the leached residues.

Jan 1, 1983

"Status of the Mineral Industries" provides a written and graphic view of the Nation's mineral position and its mineral industries. The report, issued annually by the Bureau of Mines, U.S. Department of the Interior, describes recent activities in mineral production, consumption, imports, exports, and uses of significant minerals and mineral raw materials. Charts profile trends for the past 28 years in supplies and uses of iron, steel, major nonferrous metals, primary nonmetallic construction raw materials, fertilizers, and plastics. Also included are current and historical financial data on the mineral industries, such as debt-equity ratios, asset-to-liability ratios, and plant and equipment expenditures.

Jan 1, 1979

By Robert P. Bruno

This report covers the study of the feasibility of using a hand-held infrared viewer as a methane indicator to observe methane gas at the face of an underground coal mine. The objective of this program was the development of a hand-held device to remotely detect the presence of concentrations of methane gas in underground coal mines. Convenient "mapping" of methane from a remote location would allow rapid and safe corrective procedures for working personnel. Modified commercially available equipment was evaluated both in the laboratory and in a working mine. Although readings were obtained and the general principle of operation demonstrated, the power levels necessary, and protective enclosures required, would raise the weight of the instrument beyond practical limits of portability. Based on currently available technology, it is the conclusion of the investigations that a practical, portable, hand-held visual methane indicator is beyond the state-of-the-art. The recommendation was, therefore, made that work be suspended, and the results and data compiled and presented in a final program report.

Jan 1, 1979

By Terry S. Cory

This report describes the results of a measurement and analysis program to characterize wireless radio transmission In metal/non-metal mines over a wide frequency range from 0.2 -1000 MHz and over a variety of mine environments. Six mines were chosen based on the relative economic significance of their product to the U.S. economy. Mine types Include 01 f shale, uranium, potash, lead/zinc, copper, and silver. Particular mines were chosen so that the group would embody the most Important mining techniques. The results show that transmission at medium frequencies are optimum tor wireless mine communications, In agreement with extensive testing previously performed by the authors in coal mines, and that mine-wide wireless systems are feasible with a minimum requirement for new dedicated wiring. At least one need for such a wireless system was identified in each mine visited.

Jan 1, 1981