Search Documents

By Ian Campbell, G. Austin Schroter

Although there is now an extensive literature on the bleaching clays, not a great deal of material is to be found concerning the geological features of these deposits and their bearing on problems of exploration and development. At the same time, chemical and crystallographic research on the clay minerals during the past few years has laid a suitable foundation upon which to base conclusions of economic value drawn from field observations. All of the criteria and deductions herein presented are based upon extensive field work by the senior author, both in the United States and Canada, and when .subjected to the ultimate tests of development and exploitation they have held up remarkably well, despite the fact that many of these conclusions apparently have not been reviewed in the literature heretofore. The nomencelature of the bleaching clays is rather confusing in the light of present-day commercial standards and has even led to litigation.'" The old term "fuller's earth" is largely based upon trade usage and the definition of the term therefor? is dependent upon the changing standards of commerce. For statistical purposes the Bureau of Mines8' classes as "fuller's earth" all natural bleaching or filtering claylike materials that possess high adsorptive capacity without previous chemical treatment or activation. Conversely, the so-called activated or acid activated clays are now generally recognized as any clay mineral or mixture of the clay minerals whose adsorptive capacity has been developed to commercial standards by chemical or physical treatment. Therefore, without attempting to propose any additions to the nomenclaturc: of bleaching clays, this paper will refer to naturally adsorptive clays and activable clays, respecbively, for the two types indicated.

Jan 1, 1942

By G. Austin Schroter, Ian Campbell

Although there is now an extensive literature on the bleaching clays, not a great deal of material is to be found concerning the geological features of these deposits and their bearing on problems of exploration and development. At the same time, chemical and crystallographic research on the clay minerals during the past few years has laid a suitable foundation upon which to base conclusions of economic value drawn from field observations. All of the criteria and deductions herein presented are based upon extensive field work by the senior author, both in the United States and Canada, and when .subjected to the ultimate tests of development and exploitation they have held up remarkably well, despite the fact that many of these conclusions apparently have not been reviewed in the literature heretofore. The nomencelature of the bleaching clays is rather confusing in the light of present-day commercial standards and has even led to litigation.'" The old term "fuller's earth" is largely based upon trade usage and the definition of the term therefor? is dependent upon the changing standards of commerce. For statistical purposes the Bureau of Mines8' classes as "fuller's earth" all natural bleaching or filtering claylike materials that possess high adsorptive capacity without previous chemical treatment or activation. Conversely, the so-called activated or acid activated clays are now generally recognized as any clay mineral or mixture of the clay minerals whose adsorptive capacity has been developed to commercial standards by chemical or physical treatment. Therefore, without attempting to propose any additions to the nomenclaturc: of bleaching clays, this paper will refer to naturally adsorptive clays and activable clays, respecbively, for the two types indicated.

Jan 1, 1942

By Major William R. King U. S. Engineer

My attention was drawn to this subject just twenty years ago this month, when I was detailed to rebuild one of the bridges in Richmond that had been burned during the evacuation. We took pos

Jan 1, 1886

By Orrin Peterson

THE decision of the Supreme Court of the United States not to review the findings of the lower courts closes an interesting chapter in the mining litigation that has arisen as a result of the extralateral feature of the mining law. The time seems opportune to record some of the important geological features, and also some of the legal features, of the controversy, in the hope that these will be permanently accessible to members of the mining profession. After many rumors of litigation, the Utah Consolidated Mining Co. sued its neighbor for the ore that had been, it was alleged, wrongfully extracted from its so-called Yampa limestone lode. This ore lay beneath Utah-Apex surface and was claimed by virtue of the extralateral rights conferred on the Utah Consolidated Co. through the ownership of certain specific mining claims, one of the principal claims being the Yampa. Previous to bringing suit, the Utah Consolidated Co. had strengthened its position by purchasing the Old Yampa mine and by making an agreement with the Utah Metal & Tunnel Co., which gave it clearer title to the outcrop of the Highland Boy limestone. Access to the workings of the Utah-Apex Co. was secured and reciprocal privileges gave Utah-Apex representatives the right to enter the properties of the Utah Consolidated Co. This resulted in the Utah-Apex immediately bringing countersuit for ore alleged to have been wrongfully extracted from under its surface in the Leadville country, see Fig. 4. Six cases came up for consideration: five related to the original suit and the countersuit, and one related to the Dana extralateral claims of the Utah-Apex Co.

Jan 6, 1924

By Richard T. Newcomb

This paper considers the many problems involved in estimating rates of technical change via productivity indexes. In mining, declining ore grades complicate the measurement of progress considerably. The estimates discussed in this article were made for the United States iron mining industry by means of two techniques: a simple model of production with two inputs, and multiple regression. The results can be used to explain the relation existing on U.S. iron ranges between rates of exhaustion, technical change, output per man and the increase in capital proportions observed since World War I. Similar ob-servations can be made on the mining sector trends in the United States, Canada, and Japan. Formidable problems confront the economist attempting to estimate the influence of technological changes on the progress of mineral industries. Peculiar to these industries is the problem of how to adjust any measure of technological progress for the offsetting influence of exhaustion. Exhaustion has long been recognized in the mining industry as a critical dimension. Empirically, it is usually treated as a problem of declining grades of ore either in production or in reserves. There are studies of the trends in mining industries attempting to relate changes in input requirements to changes in grade and technology over time. Most frequently, the measure used to indicate technological progress is average labor productivity, e.g., output per man-hour. However, although such an approach has the merit of being simple and direct, it ignores the influence of other important factors of production such as capital. Without defining both the nature of technological change and of production, it can be very misleading to identify increases in labor productivity with tech-

Jan 1, 1969

By Fred A. Hale

Owing to the large area included in the Yellow Pine mining district, and the varied nature of its mineral deposits, a detailed geological description of the district could be covered only in an extensive monograph. This paper is intended as a description of the most prominent geologic features only with special reference to those of economic importance. The first mention of the district was in 1903 by J. E. Spurr, who briefly describes the structural geology of the Spring Mountain range. In 1906, H. F. Bain2 briefly described the Potosi mine. James J. Hillla of the United States Geological Survey, visited the district for a brief period in 1912, the result of which is an excellent reconnaissance report, covering the district in some detail but necessarily with brevity. Since that time, articles covering special features of the district have appeared in the technical press, including some by the writer, and a notable description of the Boss mine, by Adolph Knopf,4 appeared in 1915. Development of the district during the past few years has progressed so rapidly and with so many notable discoveries, particularly with reference to the rare metals, that a further description at this time may prove of interest. The writer's acquaintance with the district is based on 7 years' continuous residence in the vicinity, beginning with the spring of 1910. A. Location and Topography The Yellow Pine mining district is situated in the southwestern portion of Clark County, Nevada, about 300 miles northeast of Los Angeles, along the line of the Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad. The district extends from Mt. Olcott on the north to the California line on the south,

Jan 1, 1918

By B. Silliman

The regions of New Mexico referred to are in Socorro, Grant, and Dona Ana counties, and a portion of Lincoln County, embracing in the aggregate a very large area, of most of which our knowledge is as yet very fragmentary and superficial. It is only very recently that large portions of this region have been accessible. It has been full of danger from hostile bands of wandering Apaches, whose murderous raids have slain many adventurous miners and seriously prevented developments. But this evil has now been largely abated, and in many of the mining camp of this region there is no longer any danger from this cause. SOCORRO MINES. About three and a half miles back of the old Mexican town of Socorro, on the Rio Grande, chief town of the County of Socorro, are two or more large veins of heavy spar, cutting across the fat* of Socorro Mountain in a northeast and southwest direction, and dip ping at an angle of about forty degrees into the body of the mountain. These veins are in rhyolite, and, so far as could be seen in openings on the Torrence Mine, which I examined, are without any clay parting or selvage. The average thickness of the Torrence rein may be about five feet, the thickness varying from pne or two feet to thirteen feet. Upon the cleavage planes of the heavy spar occurs, in visible patches, of a waxy Iustre and gray color, silver chloride, which gives value to the vein, from a few ounces up to one hundred and twenty ounces to the ton, averaging about forty ounces, as I

Jan 1, 1882

By David H. Browne, John F. Thompson

The literature dealing with the physical constants of nickel is so fragmentary and unrelated that a synopsis presents unusual difficulties. It is only within the last few years that investigators have understood the importance of placing on record not only the determinations they have made but also the composition, physical treatment, and past history of the material investigated. For this reason much of the earlier literature is valueless. Determinations have been made of the same physical constants on samples differing widely in origin, composition, and treatment, and the results differ widely among themselves. In the first place nickel is almost as flexible a term as steel. Its physical properties are widely influenced by its composition and treatment. It absorbs large quantities of gases and is exceedingly difficult to prepare in a state of chemical purity comparable to gold, silver, or copper. It is vitally affected by thermal and mechanical treatment. Hence in the following pages the recorded literature, where quoted, must be accepted with a certain reserve and used, as far as possible, as a check on later observations, in which these important factors are noted. In every case where new determinations are given, an attempt has been made to record all available information concerning the composition and treatment of the material used so that the data may serve as stepping-stones toward a wider knowledge of the properties of the metal. As this synopsis is an attempt by men of metallurgical training to do what should long before have been done by physicists, it is to be expected that certain errors may have crept in. Any corrections or suggestions

Jan 1, 1921

By David H. Browne

One of the most difficult problems in the chemistry of iron-ore, and one, the solution of which, so far as I am aware, has never been attempted, is the distribution, throughout a given vein, of Bessemer ore, and its relation to the formation of the deposit. In those hematite-mines in which both Bessemer and non-Bessemer ore occur, the sorting of the ore as it lies in the deposit becomes a problem of much economic as well as scientific interest. It would seem, from a superficial examination. or, indeed, from any examination not conducted for this especial purpose, as if high- and low-phosphorus ores were mixed in inexplicable confusion ; and a mining-chemist is very apt to fall into a system of adventitious analyses, taking first-class ore wherever he can find it, and overlooking its relation to the formation and position of the vein. I hope that a few notes which I present on this subject may be found worthy of consideration, as throwing a new light upon this obscure topic. During the last three years, while acting as chemist of the Lumberman's Mining Co., I have made some 3000 analyses of iron-ore from the Ludington mine at Iron Mountain, Michigan. These analyses were necessary in order to separate Bessemer and non-Bessemer ore which occurred intermixed in the deposit. During the last year, I attempted in several ways to find some reason or method in the distribution of phosphorus, and have finally become cognizant of the arrangement herein outlined. I have been obliged to confine my attention to our new mine, and, in that, to that portion wherein

Jan 1, 1889

By Joseph L. Patrick

Geologic exploration, which has experienced an upward trend in the United States since 1962, continued with increasing activity through 1965. New, spectacular discoveries of recent years and continued questionable economic and political climates in many areas of the world have continued to focus the exploration attention of an increasing number of companies on the United States. Traditional geologic field methods are being bolstered by development of new methods, techniques and geophysical instruments. Reports from the states emphasize that successful exploration is dependent upon the combined effort of geochemistry, geophysics and geology, with high quality laboratory support of the field effort becoming increasingly necessary. PROGRAMS NOW UNDERWAY IN WEST During 1965 mineral exploration reached an all- time high in Nevada. Although examinations are being carried on throughout the State, much of the work is limited to two areas. The first area to attract recent exploration interest, initiated by discovery of the Carlin gold mine by Newmont Mining Corp., is an area of windows near the leading edge of the Roberts Mountains thrust fault in northeastern Nevada. Included in this area are the old camps of Mountain City, Battle Mountain, Cortez, Mineral Hill and Eureka. Major mining companies are using a combination of surface mapping, geochemistry, geophysics (largely induced potential surveys), following up with drilling. The second area of exploration is along the Walker Lane, a wide shear zone that parallels the Nevada-California boundary from Virginia City to Las Vegas. Activity has been intense in the Tonopah-Yerington area. Discovery of a large copper-iron deposit following an airborne magnetometer survey first focused recent attention on Walker Lane. Sixteen major companies are involved in exploration in the State.

Jan 2, 1966

By Thomas T. Read

The purpose of the following research, as originally planned, was to investigate the influence of temperature upon the plate-amalgamation process. In order to consider the amalgamation process intelligently, it was first necessary to learn the nature of an amalgam. In the performance of this task it was found necessary to consult a large volume of literature and to perform experimental investigations. The conceptions of the nature of amalgams thus obtained have so important a bearing on the amalgamation-process as a whole, as well as upon the possible influences of temperature, that it was advisable to include them in the treatment of the subject. The broader title is therefore used, even though some features of the amalgamation process have been treated very briefly and others entirely omitted, there being nothing new to present regarding them and their development not required for a clear presentation of the matter in hand. I. Historical Introduction. Gold was one of the earliest metals known to man. Occurring in the metallic state, it could be picked up in nuggets or mashed, as gold dust, from the sand and gravel of streams. Interestiag descriptions of the processes employed in early times for the recovery of gold may be found in Pliny's Natural History and in the treatise by Agricola on ores and minerals. But little progress in the treatment of the ores of gold mas possible until efficient crushing machines were devised. This want was supplied by the introduction, about the beginning of the sixteenth century, of the stamp-mill to treat the ores of Saxony. Blanket-strakes, or similar devices, were used to catch the

Jan 1, 1907

By Walter Renton Ingalls

In addition to the localities in which tin-ores have been found in Mexico, mentioned in my paper on the a Tin-Deposits of Durango," presented to the Institute in March, 1895,* the following should be recorded. I am indebted to Captain Henry Freeman, of Durango, for the notes as to these occurrences. In the Sierra de la Candela, west of the Sierra de Sail Frailcisco and El Promontorio (the Llano de Guatimape intervening between the two ranges), cassiterite is found in veins and stream-beds. The veins are narrow, and the ores have the same characteristics as those of Potrillos. They were exploited by miners from Coneto in 1882-86, the more extensive work having been done on the northern side of the mountains. In the Sierra de las Palomas, on the western edge of the Otinapa, ranch, about 25 miles W.N.W. from the Diablo mine in the Cacaria district, there are several small veins, of which the ore, gangue and country-rock are similar to those of the Cerro de los Remedios, near the city of Durango. The latter are essentially the same as the Potrillos veins. In the Cerritos del Olote, in the Murphy grant, about 50 miles W.S.W. from Durango, there are old mines, now partially filled. The veins are narrow and poor; the ore is highly ferruginous; the country-rock is rhyolite, with some granite; immense quantities of chalcedonic rubbish are strewn along the course of the veins. In the Cerro Blanco, overlooking the pueblo of Mezquital, 48 miles south of Durango, tin-ore is mined by the natives.

Jan 1, 1898

By Ralph H. Kress

Haulage trucks designed expressly for mine service were introduced about 35 years ago. The first models to arrive on the scene hauled about 15 tons and easily outperformed the modified highway trucks that had been used for mine haulage up to that time. The specialized trucks obviously had a greater potential for mining operations, and once this fact was recognized, competitive pressures in both the mining and truck-manufacturing industries drove the new vehicles toward ever more efficient performance. Many changes in truck design resulted, but not all were accepted for a variety of reasons. Often poor design was the reason, but in many cases progressive and promising designs were abandoned only because the truck manufacturer lacked the courage, tenacity, or vision to capitalize on them. There were also many cases where a promising new design was abandoned because the prototypes were initiated in a mine where personnel lacked the patience to prove them. Truck Startup Takes A Team Ally new truck that is to succeed and contribute to lower mine haulage costs must be well conceived and launched with good teamwork on the part of all concerned. Naturally, it is essential to have a good overall truck design at the outset to make this teamwork worthwhile. The design must include the selection of the right components manufactured by suppliers that can each do justice to their particular part of the new truck. Last, but by no means least, the mine operator where the truck is to be launched must be enthusiastic in his efforts to see the new vehicle through to successful operation.

Jan 1, 1971

By C. E. Wood, T. L. Joseph

This paper is a brief report of experimental work undertaken determine whether barium oxide in any quantity increases the desulfur ing action of blast-furnace slags. Industrial furnace operation wi slag containing small quantities of barium oxide, referred to later, intc ested S. A. Sanford of the Commercial Chemical Co., Youngstown, Oh to conduct experiments to furnish comparative results on desulfurizati with normal slag and slag containing small quantities of barium oxic The U. S. Bureau of Mines agreed to assist on the problem because the possible saving in fuel if the desulfurizing action of blast-furna slag can be substantially increased, also because the experiments woi yield new information on sulfur elimination in general, a matter economic importance in furnace practice. A more complete and func mental study of desulfurization of iron by slag is in progress. Distribution of Sulfur iN the Blast Furnace More than 90 per cent. of the total sulfur entering the blast furnz is in the coke. Sponge iron formed by reduction of iron oxides absor part of the sulfur as ferrous sulfide. Kinney's examination of sample taken from various levels of a 3004,011 furnace, shows that the me continues to take up sulfur until it reaches a level near the tuyer Desulfurization must therefore take place as the metal falls through t slag and as the slag and metal exist as layers in the crucible. The relative amounts of sulfur removed while the metal falls throu the slag and while the slag and metal exist as layers in t crucible are not definitely known. Preliminary experiments by t

Jan 1, 1929

By B. M. Bird

DURING the past four years the experimental work in coal washing carried on by the U. S. Bureau of Mines and the University of Washington has been devoted mainly to the development of special methods for the tabling of fine sizes of coals that are difficult to wash. One important outgrowth of this investigation has been the application of hindered-settling classification to coal tabling. Although used for many years in ore dressing, the term "classification" as used here may be new to many readers. It may be defined as the separation obtained when a bed of particles is held in a uniform state of suspension in an upward current of water, either continuous or pulsating, just sufficiently strong to keep the bed in a mobile condition. A common example of this type of separation is a jig in which there is no suction stroke. When the hindered-settling classifier is used with the coal-washing table, the fine-size raw coal, instead of being fed direct to tables, as is the prevailing practice, is first fed to the classifier and grouped, according to the rate of settling against the upward current of water, into perhaps six separate products. After dewatering, each of these except the sixth, a refuse product, is elevated to a seperate feed bin and washed on a separate table. This paper gives a brief discussion of the basis for the use of hindered-settling classification of a table feed; a description of the experimental work; a comparison of the results obtained with and without classification; and a discussion of the application of the classifier in commercial coal washing.

Jan 1, 1928

By R. D. Leitch, W. P. Yant, R. R. Sayers

In 1924, the United States Public Health Service was requested to undertake a special study of stream pollution. The Public Health Service asked the United States Bureau of Mines to take up the study because the training and experience of the personnel of the former was considered not to be as well suited to this type of investigation as that of the Bureau of Mines. Under H. Foster Bain, then Director of the Bureau, field investigations were begun in the spring of 1925. Along with mine-drainage wastes, the problem of gas-house and coke-oven waste was investigated in the laboratory and a method of treatment by sodium hydrate and benzol was found to be promising. The idea was obtained by A. C. Fieldner, chief engineer of the Bureau Experiment Stations, on a trip to Germany in 1924. He saw a practical application of the process, but obtained no information as to definite chemical or mechanical processes. Because of the then pending American patent applications by the German firm, we made no attempt to develop our findings further. Shortly afterward, a similar method of treatment was developed in the United States,' and since that time we have devoted our attention entirely to mine drainage. This paper is a presentation of some general facts and information gathered during the past five years on coal-mine drainage. Scope of Work There was such a diversity of opinion at the time this work was begun, on the whole subject and apparently so little accurately known, that it was decided to undertake a basic study from which first, certain definite information might be evident, and second, what might be considered

Jan 1, 1931

By C. R. Hayward, H. O. Hofman

The aim of instruction in a metallurgical laboratory is to make real the principles on which metallurgical processes and operations are based, and to foster the spirit of investigation. The materials with which experiments are carried out are ores, metals, and metallic compounds. The method varies with the end sought. A class may work as a whole, each member contributing his share to the solution of a problem, or the students may carry on investigations independently; the former exemplifies class-research; the latter, individual research. It is with a branch of the former, with special reference to ore-treatment, that the present paper deals. In smelting an ore by a well-established process, the result is shown by analyzing the products to see whether their compositions correspond to those calculated in making up the charge; by taking account of stock to show the distribution of metal in the different products made and the losses from dust and volatilization; by casting a thermal balance to find the distribution and losses of heat; and by making a cost-sheet to ascertain, as far as possible, the necessary outlay of money. In lixiviation and amalgamation, the mode of operating has to be varied to adapt a process to the individual ore. Here a number of tests become necessary. Each will consist of a series of experiments with one variable, in order to find the conditions under which the variable gives the best result; a summary of several tests will give the best method of operating. Working a number of charges with the best method will furnish the data desired for ascertaining the recovery of metal,

Jan 1, 1910

By Jed H. Mosgrove

One of the most interesting of all the subjects required of persons studying the different facets of coal mining is coal mine gases. Some mine gases have been a real problem since the very beginning of underground mining, and in the early days there was insufficient knowledge to cope with them. The history of mining shows that until about the last 50 years, much work was done primarily by the hand methods which are primitive by today's standards. Miners had to contend with gases without the aid of enclosed lighting, permissible mine machinery, sophisticated testing devices, and high-pressure ventilating fans. In early days the miners were not educated about the different mine gases nor did they have the technical equipment to determine the actual composition of the deadly atmospheres they encountered. They simply applied a descriptive term to each gas or mixture of gases depending on its, effect on a person or the surrounding atmosphere. The gases or mixtures of gases were then referred to as "damps," a term which was probably derived from the German word "damps," meaning vapors or gases. The more common damps encountered were : Blackdamp A condition of the atmosphere in which a miner's light would be extinguished and in which breathing would be difficult, sometimes even resulting in suffocation. An atmosphere deficient in oxygen which could contain a combination of any of the mine gases. Firedamp A flammable mixture of methane and air which would either burn or explode when ignited. White Damp A mixture of gases containing carbon monoxide, most often found in mines during fires or after explosions.

Jan 1, 1981

By Henry Kreisinger

IN evaluating coals as steaming fuel on the basis of chemical and physical properties of the coals, the only properties that can be used are those for which the methods of determination are well established and standardized, and those that affect all methods of burning the coals in the same way. The discussion is written from the standpoint of the coal consumer. The production of steam is the largest field for the use of coal. It includes stations for generating electric power, central heating plants, industrial power plants where steam is used for power generation, factory processes and heating. The field also includes steam locomotives. Small house-heating boilers are not included in this field because such small boilers generally burn specially prepared domestic fuel. The plants using the steam coal are equipped to burn the coal when fired by one of the three general methods: namely, hand, stoker, and pulverized coal. The hand firing is now restricted to small plants and to locomotives. Central stations and larger industrial plants use either stoker or pulverized-coal firing. Some locomotives also use stokers. Pulverized-coal firing has been tried in locomotives but so far its adapta-tion to this use has been handicapped by practical difficulties. The coals used for steaming purposes are generally of the bituminous and semibituminous classes, with volatile matter ranging from 15 to 35 per cent. Coals belonging to these classes are produced in many parts of the United States and form by far the largest part of the total coal production of the country. The value of any coal as fuel for steaming purposes depends on the following factors

Jan 1, 1935

By William A. Vogely

Mining employment in the United States declined from 986,000 employees in 1948 to about 600,000 employees today. This has occurred even though the Index of Physical Volume of Mineral Production (1957-59=100) has increased from 88 to 111 and the value of mineral production measured in constant(1957-59) dollars has increased from $14.7 billion to approximately $19.3 billion. Average unit mine value has increased 24% as compared with a 34% increase in prices in general. Apparent consumption has increased more than domestic production, indicating an increased dependence on imports. The mineral economy presents a complex pattern of development factors in the post-war period. This article presents a technique by which the various forces that have been acting on the market for a mineral commodity may be sorted out and by which the extent of the impact of technological change in use as well as the technological change in production can be measured. If one is interested in delineating fully and completely the impact of technological change upon the mining industries, it is not sufficient to describe the increase in productivity reflected by the above employment and production figures. What is reflected there is only the effect of technological change in the production function of the commodities under concern. These effects are obviously very substantial and have major implications for labor, capital and supplying industries. However, they are not the only effects of technological change and, in fact, may be relatively minor when the impact which arises because of changing technology in the using or consuming industries is considered.

Jan 4, 1965