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By Rolland L. Blake

The Bureau of Mines investigated the mineralogy, tonnage, and beneficiating characteristics of oxidized (nonmagnetic) taconite iron resources of the Western Mesabi Range as part of its program to insure adequate future domestic mineral supplies. Magnetic taconite currently provides about 95 pct of Mesabi production, but the large tonnages of oxidized taconite between the magnetic deposits will be needed to help meet future domestic demand for iron ore. Three bulk samples that represent large tonnages from the Western Mesabi Range were selected to determine their mineral composition and liberation by light optical microscopy and to test their beneficiating response. This report describes the mineralogy and liberation characteristics of the three samples of the Biwabik Iron-Formation for 26.5 mi (42.7 kID) from Keewatin to Grand Rapids, MN. (Details of response to beneficia-tion were reported previously.) The samples represent mostly material from the Lower Cherty Member of the Biwabik-Iron Formation, although one sample included some Upper Cherty Member. Minerals of all three samples were quartz (chert), hematite, goethite, and minor to trace amounts of magnetite, iron carbonate, and iron silicates. It was concluded that the oxidized taconites of the Western Mesabi Range represent a subeconomic indicated resource that can be selectively mined and beneficiated as a future large source of iron feed for steelmaking.

Jan 1, 1983

By Lucas Monteiro Corrêa e Lopes, Carolina Carvalho Nunes, Nathalia Luiza Nascimento de Carvalho

The characteristics of each ore make it impossible to predict the quality of a flotation concentrate without exploratory tests. The research begins with laboratory batch tests, and then, after advances in the determination of process conditions, the complexity of the tests increases in order to evaluate new parameters. The closed cycle test (LCT) simulate circuits with load recirculation and the greatest difficulty of this test is to stabilize the circuit and achieve equilibrium. Depending on mass availability, the types of tests that offer the highest reliability and informations about flotation in an ongoing process are mini-scale or pilot-scale tests. This work aimed to compare the results of the flotation tests in three scales (batch test, LCT and mini pilot) for the Bonsucesso ore, a new deposit, owned by Nexa Resources, that has sphalerite, zinc ore, and galena, lead ore. In the open flotation circuit of galena was obtained 27.57% content with 26.70% recovery, in the LCT test the content was 31.54% with 64.64% recovery and in the mini pilot reached 51.22 % content with 65.51% recovery. In the open sphalerite flotation the zinc content was 55.51% with 77.35% recovery, in the LCT test the zinc content was 56.71% with 84.42% of recovery and in the mini pilot of 50.02% content with 94.54% recovery.

Oct 3, 2019

By JOE SIERAKOSKI, W. R. Hardwick

This paper , which describes mining methods and practices at the Johnson Camp copper -zinc mine , Coronado Copper & Zinc Co. , Cochise County , Ariz . , is one of a series being prepared by the Bureau of Mines on mining methods , practices , and costs in various mining districts of the United States . Johnson Camp is in the eastern foothills of the Little Dragoon Mountains in secs . 23 , 24 , 25 , and 26 , T. 15 S. , R. 22 E. ( fig . 1 ) . The mining property is in the low, rolling foothills at an altitude of slightly over 5,000 feet above sea level ( fig . 2 ) . The area is covered with scattered grass and small desert shrubs . The climate is mild , with hot summers and mild winters . The average annual precipitation is about 12 inches . The nearest surface water is the San Pedro River , some 12 miles west of the mine . The property is owned by the Coronado Copper & Zinc Co. , Los Angeles , Calif . This report gives a brief history of the property , describes the general geology of the area and of the ore deposits , outlines the methods of prospecting and exploration , and gives the methods of sampling and of estimating ore reserves . Development and stoping methods are explained . Underground transportation , ventilation , mine drainage , and safety measures also are described . The last section gives a brief description of the milling practice .

Jun 1, 1957

By N. Wang, A. I. A. Salama

"An index to evaluate the amenability for processing of different coals is implemented. The index is based on the well-known Mayer-curve or M-curve. The index is superior to other existing indices and is implemented using Microsoft-Excel™. Several coals are used to demonstrate the implementation of the index proposed.IntroductionIn 1950, Mayer introduced a curve that carries the information embedded in the fir s t three curves or ash curves of the conventional washability tables and curves (Peng et al., 1979; Osborne, 1988). The curve was labeled the Mcurve (abbreviation for Mittlewertkurve in German or the Mayer- curve). The main idea behind the curve is to use the ordinate for the cumulative mass and the abscissa for the ash (attribute) mass. Specific slopes on the resulting curve represent the cumulative float, cumulative sink, and elementary ash (attribute) contents (Mayer, 1950, 1953, 1957; Venkatesan, 1975; Osborne, 1988; Salama, 1989). Beyond the ash values, the curve carries graphical information that can be used in evaluating coal processing characteristics. Consequently, it becomes possible to present several raw coals on a single diagram, thus making it easier to compare their processing characteristics. This is particularly useful in comparing various size ranges of raw coal or the same size range from different seams. Therefore, the M-curve is adopted as a vehicle for developing the “processing (washing) characteristics index” implemented in this paper."

Jan 1, 2001

By R. D. Auten

This paper is primarily a report on the process of using oolitic aragonite, as received from Marconi& Ocean Industries, Ltd. without further processing, for a major portion of the raw feed to a rotary kiln producing cement clinker. Oolitic aragonite is a high purity calcium carbonate material, dust free, with the appearance of a course, white sand. It is farmed when under the right conditions of temperature ocean currents, and ocean floor topography. The calcium carbonate will precipitate into small spherical particles on the ocean floor. These oceanic conditions are correct to cause precipitation of the calcium carbonate near Ocean Cay in the Bahama Island chain. The present growing deposit near Ocean Cay is in the billions of tons and is mined by a relatively shallow-operation hydraulic dredge. The aragonite thus formed is en orthorhombic crystaline form of calcium carbonate with a specific gravity of approximately 2.9. At a temperature of 505°C. (940F), the aragonite converts to the hexagonal crystal of calcite with a specific gravity of 2.6 to 2.7. This change in specific gravity weakens the structure of the particles but the individual pieces are still fairly hard. When the material is then calcined at 900°C (1650°F), the particles retain their shape but become soft and will break up under finger pressure.

Jan 1, 1978

By Z Lianbi, Z Yibin, Z Youhong, P Bin

Without adequate soil available, it is difficult to rehabilitate a large area of acid mine waste dump with sustainable plant communities, which has a strong potential acid generation. In the present project, paste tailings capping method has been put forward to reconstruct plant ecosystem on acid mine waste rock dump. This rehabilitation method uses paste tailings as capillary break and plant growth media. The tailings used contained 26.3 per cent of particles of less than 20 ¦m which satisfy the requirement of grain of paste tailings preparation. The tailings are not acid- producing materials. In addition to Cu, total contents of Zn, Pb, Cr, Cd, As and Ni in tailings are lower than those in local soil. Paste tailings concentration 70 per cent ~ 72 per cent was prepared by concentrating ten per cent tailings by using polypropylenecrylic sodium as flocculation. The potential pollution risks are low by using paste tailings as capillary break layer. Plants directly grown in the tailings did not particularly accumulate Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr, Cd, As, Ni in roots, stem and leaves, which were 0.01 ~ 1.6 times of those grown in soil.CITATION:Yibin, Z, Lianbi, Z, Bin, P and Youhong, Z, 2012. Study on paste tailings capping ecology reclamation on acid mine waste rock dump, in Proceedings Life-of-Mine 2012 , pp 243-246 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 10, 2012

The Bureau of Mines has reviewed those portions of the "Tariff Schedules of the United States Annotated 1963" that are of interest to the minerals industry. This study shows to what extent rates of duty were altered (increased of decreased), and provides a bridge where possible from the old Schedule A classification system to the new TSUS system of statistical reporting of import data. In general the new tariff has corrected previous classification defects and inconsistencies, but the rates of duties have not been materially changed.

Jan 1, 1965

By Christopher Mark

This proceedings volume contains papers presented at technology transfer seminars sponsored by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) on New Technology for Ground Control in Retreat Mining. The seminars were conducted at five locations: Uniontown, PA (March 26, 1997), Norton, VA (April 8, 1997), Pikeville, KY (April 10, 1997), Charleston, WV (April 17, 1997), and Evansville, IN (April 22, 1997). The papers presented here describe several new, highly practical technologies developed by the NIOSH Pittsburgh and Spokane Research Centers3 to improve safety during pillar retreat operations. Two central issues are addressed: pillar design and mobile roof supports (MRS's). Proper pillar sizing is essential for safe pillar extraction. The Analysis of Retreat Mining Pillar Stability (ARMPS) program and its large data base of actual mining case histories are presented. LAMODEL, a second computer program, can be used for analysis of multiple-seam and other complex mining situations. Other papers address pillar design to avoid massive pillar collapses and the proper role of coal strength testing. MRS's have greatly improved safety where they are used for pillar line support. We studied the application of MRS's at 20 mines throughout the Eastern United States. Conclusions regarding the most effective section layouts, cut sequences, and support placements are reported. Field and laboratory tests of MRS's are also described.

Jan 1, 1997

By A. E. Raddatz

The Federal Bureau of Mines, as part of its goal to minimize undesirable environmental impacts associated with mineral processing, has investigated a soda-smelting technique for processing ilmenite into pig iron and a titanium slag that is suitable for a feed to a sulfate-process titania pigment plant. By this procedure, the generation of ferrous sulfate waste and its associated disposal problem is obviated. Molten titania slag was quenched, water leached, and filtered to yield a sodium titanate intermediate product containing about 70 wt-pct Ti02, 1 wt-pct Fe, and 20 wt-pct Na20. This intermediate product, high-soda titanate (HST), was mixed with H2S04, calcined, quenched, and water leached to produce a low-soda titanate (LST) product that contained only 2 wt-pct Na20. Both the HST and LST were evaluated as feed materials for preparing titania by the sulfate process. About 95 pct of the Ti02 was extracted from HST and LST by digestion in concentrated or 50-wt-pct-H2S204 solutions. About 95 pct of the solubilized Ti02 was subsequently recovered from the titanyl sulfate solutions by hydrolysis. Barren solutions from hydrolysis, containing about 26-wt-pct H2S04, were upgraded by vacuum-thermal evaporation or electrodialysis. The regenerated acid solutions were used to digest additional HST and LST.

Jan 1, 1979

By Fernando O. Boechat

Com a redução da oferta de minério granulado de boa qualidade no mercado mundial e as restrições ambientais à sinterização, as pelotas de minério de ferro passaram a ocupar um papel importante como matéria prima para produção de ferro primário. Entretanto, embora apresentem maior resistência à degradação, as pelotas ainda sofrem com este problema, embora em menor magnitude, quando comparadas com granulados. Pode-se identificar a degradação das pelotas de minério de ferro em duas etapas, durante o manuseio e sob redução. Uma vez que vários estudos já analisaram a degradação durante o manuseio, a degradação durante a redução torna-se um assunto relevante e pouco explorado. Assim, o presente trabalho avaliou as energias envolvidas no movimento da carga ao longo de um forno de redução direta do tipo Midrex, usando o método dos elementos discretos. Para isso, foi utilizado o software EDEM® para obtenção das energias dissipadas durante as colisões das partículas. Aplicando estas energias ao modelo mecanicista proposto por Tavares e Carvalho [4] para fragmentação das partículas foi possível estimar a taxa de geração de finos no interior do forno. Estes resultados foram utilizados na previsão da degradação mecânica de pelotas no interior do forno, que previu a geração de 1,2 a 2,6% de finos gerados em um forno Minimod®, dependendo das premissas usadas.

Aug 1, 2018

By W. A. Stickney

The Bureau of Mines conducted beneficiation and smelting studies on siliceous offgrade manganese samples to indicate effective methods of manufacturing silicomanganese from materials that cannot be economically beneficiated to meet General Services Administration (GSA) specifications for stockpiling. Laboratory and pilot-plant flotation tests were conducted on 2 samples, 1 from the waste-tailings dump of the Domestic Manganese & Development Co , Butte, Mont., and the other from the Nettie mine in the Butte-Philipsburg area. Smelting tests were made on the combined concentrates from the pilot-plant flotation tests and on part of the tailings sample The flotation scheme found to be adequate in laboratory tests and later in the pilot-plant tests consisted of flotation by a fuel oil-tall oil emulsion in an acid circuit (pH )-1-.8 to 5.0). The oil-emulsion reagent flocculated the manganese minerals and selectively floated them from the siliceous gangue, In the pilot-plant flotation test on Butte-mill tailings 90.1 percent of the manganese was recovered in a concentrate that analyzed 32.6 percent Mn, 4.8 percent Fe and 28.1 percent Si02. In the test on Nettie mine ore 90.8 percent of the manganese was recovered in a concentrate that analyzed 36 6 percent Mn, 5.5 percent Fe, and 26-4 percent Si02.

Jan 1, 1956

By John W. Kopp

Stemming is used in blasting operations to help contain explosive gases as long as possible. Stemming can reduce airblast, improve fragmentation, and reduce the chances of hot explosive gases igniting methane and dust explosions in underground mines. Stemming is required in underground coal mines but is generally not used in underground metal and nonmetal mines. Some underground metal and nonmetal mines are classified as gassy and can require special blasting procedures such as the use of stemming to minsure the safety of miners. The types and amounts of stemming material that are desirable in underground metal and nonmetal mine blasting to ensure good or improved fragmentation while containing the hot gases are largely unknown. This Bureau of Mines research examined the effectiveness of differing lengths of stemming by measuring stemming ejection times as related to burden movement. With properly stemmed blasts, stemming is contained until some burden movement has occurred. Test blasts at two surface limestone quarries were evaluated using high-speed photography. For the conditions of these tests, a stemming length of at least 26 charge diameters was found to prevent premature stemming ejection. In tests with stemming lengths of 16 charge diameters, the stemming was effective but there was early venting of hot gases through fractures in the rock. Further testing with other rock types, hole diameters, explosive types, and stemming materials as they affect incendivity is recommended.

Jan 1, 1987

Obtaining financing for mining and exploration projects has been difficult for the last several years, particularly for junior companies. Today, though, the purse strings of investors appear to be loosening, leaving the industry with many questions about financing in the coming years. How have capital markets and exploration spending changed? Are there signs of improvement? Where has capital been raised in private, public markets, stock exchanges, private equity, etc.? What companies successfully raised capital in the last year? How are they spending it? How are traditional and alternative funding sources investing in mining? What are the issues mining companies need to know about when tapping alternative sources of capital? Those were some of the questions that were answered at the Current Trends in Mining Finance conference, sponsored by SME and the New York Section April 26-28. Held in New York City, the conference attracted 115 professionals who work on the finance and economic side of the mining industry. Three of the conference organizers talked with Mining Engineering about the conference and the state of financing in the industry today. Tim Alch (TA) is managing director with Behre Dolbear & Co. Alan Oshiki (AO) is executive vice president with the Abernathy MacGregor Group. Henry Weingarten (HW) is managing director with the Astrologers Fund Inc. Here is what they had to say.

By Xie Zhang, Jiang Diao, Xin Qiu, Lu Jiang, Bing Xie, Hong-Yi Li

"Duplex converter process, in which the first converter is used for removing phosphorus from hot metal (De-P), is an important way to produce low P-content and ultra-low P-content steels. In order to improve phosphorization removal and formation of slag with high basicity at relatively low temperature during dephosphorization converter process, effects of temperature, silicon content in hot metal and varied compositions of the De-P converter slag on phosphorus distribution between the slag and hot metal were investigated with thermodynamic calculations and by laboratory scale experiments in present work. Results showed that phosphorus distribution ratio between slag and metal was varied in 10.6~26.6 when basicity of the slag was in the range of 1.5~2.1 at 1370, and the distribution ratio was increased with increasing basicity and Fe10 content in the slag.IntroductionIt is known that phosphorus exists in steel in the form of solid solution, which can significantly improve strength and hardness of steel at room temperature. However, the plasticity and toughness of steel, especially the low temperature plasticity is sharply reduced and leads to high ductile-brittle transition temperature. This phenomenon is commonly known as cold brittleness of steel [1~3]. Hence, phosphorus should be removed as much as possible in the steelmaking process, because it is generally harmful to the iron and steel products."

Jan 1, 2013

By J Johansson, B Johansson

The mining industry needs to attract and recruit young talented people. An important task is, therefore, to create an attractive mining workplace that engages with, and motivates youngsters who are not particularly interested in working in the industry. This paper aims to illustrate a way forward for the mining industry to form healthy and safe workplaces honouring key components such as knowledge, skill, co-operation, continual development and acceptance of diversity. This is a way to create a vision of healthy and safe mining work. The mining industry must work towards zero vision; a future without accidents and hazardous environments. In this paper the authors discuss different aspects of an ‘attractive workplace’ and summarises lessons learnt in 26 statements dealing with safety, both physical and social work environments, and social responsibility. The authors hope these recommendations will provide some guidance for how attractive workplaces should be designed for future deep mining.The paper is based on lessons from two large European projects, a Swedish-Polish project: The Smart Mine of the Future; and a European Union project: Sustainable Intelligent Mining Systems (SIMS). One of the authors was the WP leader of health and safety in both projects.CITATION:Johansson, J and Johansson, B, 2017. Attractive workplaces in future underground mining, in Proceedings 13th AusIMM Underground Operators’ Conference 2017, pp 99–102 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Oct 16, 2017

By Ali Dehghani Ahmad Abady

In Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex, a molybdenite floatation concentrate was produced by selective removal of copper impurities with 7 stages of cleaner floatation banks, that contains around 1% copper and 54.5% molybdenum. Mineralogical studies, physical and chemical characterizations showed that the sample contained 91% molybdenite (MoS2), 2.6% chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), 0.2%Covellite (CuS), 1.6% pyrite (FeS2) and 4.6% other nonmetallic impurities. In the present study, the removal of the copper sulfide was investigated by ferric chloride leaching for achieving a molybdenite concentrate with copper content less than 0.3%. Therefore, the application of response surface methodology (RSM) for modeling and optimization of the influence of three control parameters including ferric chloride (FeCl3) dosage, reaction temperature and reaction time, each varying in five levels, were considered, and the mathematical model for prediction of %Cu removal from molybdenite concentrate was derived. This study showed that RSM could effectively be applied for the modeling of ferric chloride leaching, and finding an economical optimum condition to achieve maximum de-coppering efficiency while consuming minimum leaching reagents. The optimum dissolution conditions to maximize Cu extraction were 200 kg/t for ferric chloride dosage, 120 min for reaction time and 80 °C for reaction temperature with a prediction of 83.20% Cu dissolution. Keywords: molybdenite concentrate, ferric chloride, leaching, response surface methodology (RSM)

Sep 1, 2012

By John W. Nebgen

This report contains findings from a U.S. Bureau of Mines study concerning the inhibition of acid mine drainage formation from underground coal mines. A series of experiments was performed in which three different pyritic materials (wastes from coal production plants) were evaluated using several candidate inhibiting agents. Data obtained from the inhibitor-treated pyrites were compared with data from control experiments in which untreated pyritic wastes were used. The experiments were conducted by placing treated and untreated pyrite in columns, passing moist air through the columns to promote oxidation of pyrite, and washing the columns weekly to collect oxidation products for analysis. Experimental results indicate that quantities of acid mine drainage can be substantially reduced if soluble iron III (ferric) ion is controlled. The best inhibitors are neutral or alkaline siliceous materials such as fly ash, blast furnace slag, portland cement, and cement kiln dust. These materials appear to insolubilize iron III species to make them unavailable for reaction with pyrite. The data strongly suggest that the soluble ferric ion aqueous is a key oxidant for pyrite to produce acid mine drainage. The role of aqueous ferric ion as an oxidizing agent is substantiated further by data obtained using metallic iron (nails) as an inhibitor. The iron nails tended to keep the soluble iron in the iron 11 (ferrous) state. Experimental results indicate that sulfate and acidity levels are reduced when pyrite is in contact with the metallic iron.

Jan 1, 1979

By A. A. Dor

Recent developments in the design of concentration plants have reflected the increased recognition that has been given to the economic and metallurgical advantages of autogenous grinding. This has manifested itself in the increasing adoption of primary auto genous grinding in iron ore 'beneficiation plants in North America. Table 1 lists eleven major iron ore beneficiation plants which have either been put in operation since 1961 or are under construction at present. Seven out of these eleven plants have adopted primary autogenous grinding. Four of them have coarse grinding mills (8 to 14 mesh) and three have fine grinding primary circuits (48 to 65 mesh). Their nominal capacity totals 26. 2 million ltpy of concentrates or pellets, representing very nearly 75% of the aggregate capacity 135. 3 million ltpy) of the eleven concentrators listed. For a long time there was a tendency to consider that primary autogenous grinding was only applicable to suitable coarse grained ores, However, extensive testing of a very wide variety of ores, and actual operating performance in several commercial plants, seem to have established beyond reasonable doubt, that the majority of mineral ores which the beneficiation engineer may be called upon to process can be ground autogenously. The basis for the selection of autogenous or conventional grinding mills, becomes principally economic and depends on the liberation characteristics of the ores under consideration and their relative hardness and grindability.

Jan 1, 1965

By V. V. Ivanov, A. I. Khanchuk, E. V. Mikhailik, M. G. Blokhin, P. E. Mikhailik

At present, marine ferromanganese crusts of seamounts are of great interest as a source of high-tech metals. The metals most enriched in these deposits are essential for a wide variety of green-tech, emerging-tech, and energy applications (Hein et al., 2013). There is a grate number data on the content of major and minor metals (thousands analyses). However, information on the content of such elements as platinum, gold and silver in the world literature is limited. The concentrations (N – number of analyses) of platinum, gold and silver in the Pacific are 418 ppb (N = 105), 35 ppb (N = 72), 1.02 ppm (N = 26), respectively, and in the North Pacific Prime Zone - 477 ppb (N = 66), 55 ppb (N = 13), 0.1 ppm (N = 4); in the Atlantic Ocean is 567 ppb (N = 2), 6 ppb (N = 2), 0.20 ppm (N = 18), in the Indian Ocean, 211 ppb (N = 6), 21 ppb (N = 2), 0.37 ppm (N = 9) respectively; (Hein et al., 2013). The northern part of the Pacific is poorly studied in this question. The samples of ferromanganese deposits (FMD) was recovered from the Govorov Guyot (Magellan seamounts), MZh-33 Guyot (Marshall Islands), as well as the Detroit Guyot (Imperor Ridge) and Yomei Guyot (Fe-Mn placer Holes 431 and 431A DSDP, Imperor Ridge).

Jan 1, 2018

By G. J. van der Linde

Foskor operates a mine in the Northern Province of the Republic of South Africa exploiting the igneous complex at Phalaborwa. It produces about 3 million tons of phosphate concentrate per year by means of froth flotation from 26 million tons of ore of which 16 million is mined and milled on site. The remaining 10 million tons originate at the Palabora Mining Company and is pumped as a slurry to Foskor. Two types of ore are mined and milled namely Foskorite and Pyroxenite. (The main mineral content of this ore is Apatite, Phlogopite and Diopside.) After three stages of crushing the ore is milled using 24 rod mills and 5 verti mills. The apatite is then recovered using four stages of froth flotation. The stocks of Foskorite ore are rapidly being depleted and the PMC tailings will also fall away by the year 2002 so that the whole mining operation will then be centered around the Pyroxenite ore. This will lead to substantial increases in production costs. The recoveries achieved in the flotation plant are largely dependent on the successful operation of the comminution section. Parts of this plant are now 35 years old and the advantages of re-engineering, new technology and automation can only be applied to a limited extent in an effort to reduce costs. It was then decided to investigate alternative milling methods, both wet and dry.

Jan 1, 1999