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By Donald E. Crowell

Due to falling metal prices and depletion of ore reserves, lead- zinc mining in the Leadville, Colo., area gradually came to a halt in the 1950's. Exploration work continued, however, and by 1969 sufficient ore had been blocked out to warrant sinking a shaft and erecting a new concentrator to treat 700 tpd. The new shaft and concentrator were to be located in Iowa Gulch several miles east of Leadville at an elevation of 11,100 ft. The Leadville project is a joint venture between Newmont Mining Co. and Asarco, with Asarco being the operator. Design work began in the fall of 1969. Engineering was done by Torkelson Engineering Co. of Salt Lake City in conjunction with the central engineering department of Asarco. The plant was constructed by Stearns-Roger Corp. Construction began in the spring of 1970 and the plant went onstream in April 1971.

Jan 11, 1972

By J. S. Ross

Few Canadians realize the role of their domestic industrial minerals industry because it is over-shadowed in production value by a large metallic minerals industry. But since 1960, Canada has had a reasonably well balanced, mature industrial minerals industry; and although the nation's sparsely scattered population has not been able to support an industrial minerals industry in a manner comparable to the domestic and foreign support given the metal mining sector, Canada is, nevertheless, exporting large quantities of higher priced nonmetallic minerals. Production of many of the basic minerals had been firmly established long before 1960, but it was not until the late 1950's that the output of cement, salt, titanium dioxide pigment and slag, sulfur, gypsum and sodium sulfate reached relatively high levels. Shortly after 1960, the significant potash and lithium chemicals industries were established and their effect is just now being realized.

Jan 11, 1964

By E. A. Holbrook

AT the meeting of the Committee on Engineering A Education of the Institute at the New York meeting last February, it was brought out that the number of men graduating in mining engineering from our colleges at the present time is not sufficient to meet the ordinary needs of the mineral industries. Following the meeting, Samuel S. Wyer, consulting engineer of the Fuel-Power Transportation Educational Foundation of Columbus, Ohio, prepared a pamphlet called "Mining Engineering's Appeal to High School Seniors." Under the auspices of this Foundation the pamphlet is being sent to every high school in the United States. The pamphlet does not in any way paint glowing word pictures of the profession; rather it is a statement of the importance of mining engineering in our present-day civilization, together with the requirements in young men who are looking forward to an engineering career.

Jan 1, 1930

NEW MEMBERS The following list comprises the names of those persons who became members during the period of Septa 10, 1917, to Oct. 10, 1917. ALDER, ALFRED 1020 Kansas City St., Rapid City, So. Dakota. AUBEL, VERNE WALLACE, Night Supt. of Works, Broken Hill Proprietary Co., Ltd., Newcastle, N. S. W., Aust. BAKER, ROBERT EARL Works Mgr., Keokuk Electro-Metals Co., Keokuk, Iowa. BALLAMY, JOHN H., Min. Engr., Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Co,Scranton, Pa. BRADLEY, ALLEN PALMER, Met., American Smelting & Refining Co., Murray, Utah. BRIGGS, WALTER M Pres. Regal Mines Co. Dedham, Mass. BRONSON, EDMOND B., Pres., Bagdad Copper Co., 120 Broadway, New York, N. Y. BROOK, NILES WINFIELD, District. Mgr., Cleveland Min. Co., 625 Bank & Insurance Bldg., Dubuque, BUSKETT, EVANS 1V., Assayer, Custom Assay Office, 620 Joplin St., Joplin, Mo. CAMPBELL, JOHN HATES, Chem. Engr., Robert W. Hunt. & Co., 2200 Insurance Exchange, Chicago, Ill.

Jan 11, 1917

By R. V. Mrazek, F. E. Block, S. B. Knapp

The mixed homogeneous and heterogeneous kinetics of the thermal decomposition of tungsten hexacarbonyl were studied by employing a batch reactor. The system was such that a sample of tungsten hexacarbonyl could be injected into the preheated reactor, and the progress of the reaction followed by a simple pressure measurement. Both the homogeneous and heterogeneous reactions were found to be first order, and approximate activation energies were determined for each reaction. It is shown that the dis-proportionation of carbon monoxide to give carbon and carbon dioxide cannot be the source of carbon in tungsten deposits prepared by this reaction. The kinetics of the thermal decomposition of tungsten hexacarbonyl have been investigated as part of a continuing study by the U.S. Bureau of Mines on the decomposition of organometallic compounds. Reactions involving the thermal decomposition of metal carbonyls have a potential application in the preparation of pure metals and fine metal powders. Indeed, it was these applications which provided the impetus for much of the early work involving the carbonyls of nickel1 and iron.' The relative lack of study of other metal carbonyls can be traced to the comparative difficulty in synthesizing these compounds. The most common use for tungsten hexacarbonyl has been as an intermediate in vapor-phase plating.7'8 However, attempts to obtain a carbon-free deposit of tungsten by this method have not been successful, and some investigators have taken advantage of the carbon contamination and used this process to form tungsten carbide deposits.lo Other investigators have studied the thermodynamic properties11"14 and molecular structure of tungsten hexacarbonyl. However, very little is known about the kinetics of this thermal decomposition, the mechanisms involved," or the source of carbon in the resulting plate. In contrast, studies have been made of the kinetics of the thermal decomposition of nickel tetracarbonyl, iron pentacarbonyl, and molybdenum hexacarbonyl.'l It has been found that these thermal decompositions occur by a mechanism which is partially heterogeneous in nature. Information available on the equilibrium constants for the decomposition of tungsten hexacarbonyl was used to determine a temperature range, 500" to 560°K, in which the reaction could be expected to be essentially complete. APPARATUS The apparatus used allowed the injection of a sample of tungsten hexacarbonyl into a preheated batch reactor and the use of a simple pressure measurement to follow the progress of the reaction in the sealed reactor. The pressure was sensed by means of a pressure transducer (Consolidated Electrodynamics Corp., 0.3 pct)* capable of operating at the *Reference to specific products is made to facilitate understanding and does not imply endorsement of such brands by the Bureau of Mines._______ reaction temperature. This type of sensing element was chosen to avoid the problem of condensation of the sublimed carbonyl in the capillary tubing leading to any type of remote pressure-sensing device. stirring was provided by rotating the entire apparatus. Glass beads placed in the reactor provided a pulsating agitation. To minimize thermal gradients in the reactor walls, the reactor was constructed of aluminum. The support tube which held the reactor in the furnace was thin-walled stainless steel to minimize heat conduction out of the reactor. As a result of these measures, a nearly uniform temperature (°C) was maintained throughout the reactor. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the apparatus. The small gear motor rotated the entire apparatus at about 200 rpm. The bearings shown at the ends of the air cylinder were perforated to allow air to be fed to the charging piston and to allow inert gas to be fed to the reactor during the preheating period. The sample was simultaneously injected and sealed inside the reactor by operation of the air piston. Fig. 2 shows a cross section of the air cylinder and the adjoining portion of the support tube leading to the reactor. The sample carrier is shown in place at the right-hand end of the injection rod extending from the air piston. The piston is shown in the retracted position, as it would be prior to the start of an experiment. The small Teflon gasket which encircled the sample carrier at the end of the injection rod sealed the reactor when the sample was injected. This seal was maintained throughout the test by maintaining air pressure on the piston. The sample carrier was a 2-in. section of thin-walled, -in.-diam nickel tubing with an internal blank about 1 in. from the base and with the base end sealed.

Jan 1, 1969

By W. J. Keep

Those who have observed the influence of various elements upon cast-iron will be interested in the methods used by us to form the several series of test-bars, which form the basis of the conclusions presented in this paper. We found that we could not, by adding ordinary white stickphosphorus to molten iron, produce bars which would exhibit to the eye the peculiar influence of phosphorus. By melting wrought-iron drillings with red phosphorus, Mr. H. S. Fleming produced in his laboratory 10 pounds of phosphide of iron, containing 10.22 per cent. of phosphorus. With this we made two series of test-bars, the first with our white-base iron, and the second with our FLM gray-base iron. Before the time of making these bars we had been unable to procure regularly made pig-iron which contained enough phosphorus to permit of the production of

Jan 1, 1890

By R. L. Sebastian

ALUMINUM'S war history is the record of a successful race to expand facilities fast enough to meet the multiple increases in military requirements, principally for aircraft. From the beginning of the war program in 1940 through 1942, requirements estimates were repeatedly lifted to new high levels, and plans for increasing capacity had to be constantly revised. In 1943, basic metal supply caught up with and exceeded requirements, and by 1944, the surplus of primary production was large enough to force reduction in output and plant closings. In the past two years, ingot capacity has been ample, though periodic critical shortages have been experienced for a few fabricated shapes as a result of sudden shifts in demand. And now with all controls lifted we are faced with surplus capacity, surplus stocks, and surplus scrap. In 1938 the Aluminum Co. of America was the only U. S. producer of primary

Jan 1, 1946

By John McCaslin

ONE of the most common technical terms in the U. S. today is automation-a word not listed in the 1946 dictionary. The influence of automation on the national economy has been tremendous. It has even been the subject of congressional investigations. Automation, writes Aronson, substitutes mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, and electronic devices for human effort and decision? Automatic devices and instruments are used extensively in some industries, but many others have yet to take full advantage of these great discoveries. The petroleum industry has been a leader in using automatic controls-some refineries are almost completely controlled by automatic devices. The field of geophysics is entirely dependent on instruments and has progressed at almost exactly the same rate as improvements in instrumentation. In metallurgy and mineral dressing use of instrumentation is increasing very rapidly. Mining engineers throughout the country are beginning to think in terms of instruments and controls.

Jan 3, 1958

U.S. Signs Pact With Miami Copper Miami Copper Co., of Arizona has agreed to mine lowgrade copper ores in an extension of its Globe-Miami mining district operations at a guaranteed price of 27.35[] per lb, under a contract signed with defense Materials Procurement Agency. Terms of the contract call for delivery of 230 million lb of refined copper between 1955 and 1962. DMPA said highgrade ore in the de posit will soon be exhausted and it is considered advisable to have Miami continue the operation. The Government has an option to buy 120 million lb of refined copper from present production at market prices. Miami will develop the new ore- body at its own expense-estimated at $3 million. If losses under the new contract reach a specified point, Miami may cancel the agreement. The company plans to use the block caving method in the underground operation.

Jan 4, 1953

By Charles Sanford, William B. Schmidt, Eugene Moroni, John Murphy, Richard Bullock

An industry/government team sponsored by the Dept. of the Interior completed a study tour of the underground coal mining industries in Great Britain and Germany to review new and emerging coal mining technology. The group found that differences in tradition, mining conditions, and industry capabilities have led to different approaches in technological developments, many of which have the potential for application in U. S. mining. Both countries are working to improve materials and procedures for roadside pack wall. The British are developing a pump-packing system in which bentonite, water, stone, and a special cement are pipelined to the pack area to form a low strength compressible pack wall. The German industry is using anhydrite or blotzdammer to form a high strength pack wall. Both countries are using full-face tunnel-boring machines. The German industry has had considerable success with shield-type longwall supports.

Jan 1, 1977

By Frank C. Frischknecht

Most early development and application of electromagnetic prospecting methods took place in Scandinavia, where geological conditions favor their use. In other parts of the world these methods have aroused cycles of interest, but in Scandinavia they have been used continuously and successfully since the 1920's. Electromagnetic methods may be classified into two general groups. One group includes methods in which the source of the electromagnetic field remains stationary while the receivers are moved about to explore the area. The other includes procedures in which the energizing and receiving systems are moved together. Other classifications could be based on the size of the energizing source, the particular components of the electromagnetic field which are measured, or the mode of trans- porting the equipment. The difference between fixed-source and moving-source methods, however, is of such great fundamental importance that it will be emphasized in this discussion.

Jan 9, 1959

A. W. AMBROSE, Washington, D. C.-Did you make any analysis of the amount of emulsion at the well and after you flowed it through a lead line to the storage tank? E. A. TRAGER.-B. S. can be formed in passing through a lead line by the friction due to the roughness of the pipe and the irregularities at the joints. R. W. MOORE.-Did you find the percentage of water to be limited to the percentage of oil in the emulsion which formed? E. A. TRAGER.- Yes, the percentage is about 67 percent. water and 23, per cent. oil. R. W. MOORE.-If you added more water would the emulsion be permanent? E. A. TRAGER.-Yes, it would be permanent, but the excess water would separate out. THE CHAIRMAN. (C. W. WASHBURNE, New York, N. Y.).-Did you use hot or cold water in these experiments?

Jan 12, 1919

By Bernard Moore

THE last few decades have witnessed the introduction of many new nonmetallic mineral products and changes in the use of many of those already well known. Among these is diatomite, formerly employed as a mild abrasive and, at one time, as the absorbent material in dynamite. Now nearly 100,000 tons a year are mined and milled into such things as filter aids, cement admixtures, insulants, fillers, absorbents, cosmetics, cleansers, etc. Pumice, commonly regarded as only an abrasive, is now also employed as an insulant, as light-weight aggregate and as a concrete admixture. With increasing use of insulants, light-weight aggregates, and acoustic stuccos and plasters in the building trades, both these mate-rials should find increased application. Very large deposits occur in eastern Oregon and have been studied by the U. S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Oregon State Mining Board.

Jan 1, 1934

By A. V. Henry, W. Harry Vaughan

THE kaolins of the southeastern United States were known to civilization as early as the latter part of the eighteenth century-and yet the [ ] commercial history of Georgia kaolins may be said to begin in the year 1900. The U. S. Bureau of Mines reported for that year a production of 6885 tons of "miscellaneous" clays in Georgia. A comparison of these figures with those of 1934, when the production rose to 284,556 tons (65 per cent of the domestic production), indicates the growing economic and technologic importance of this raw material. Fig. 1 clearly shows that a part of the increase is due to a normal growth in the use of kaolinitic clays and a part is due to replacement of clays formerly imported. Occurrence Georgia kaolin occurs in an irregular belt extending diagonally across the middle of the state, a distance of approximately 225 miles. This belt

Jan 1, 1937

More than 400 members and guests registered for the 146th General Meeting of the Institute held in Mexico City Nov. 9 to 15, inclusive. Of these, 250 came by special train or automobile from 24 states of the Union, and the others were resident in Mexico. Mexican Government officials, headed by Manuel Santillan, Sub- secretary of the Department of National Economy, acting in. behalf of the President of the Republic, and including the Secretary of Foreign Relations and the Governor of the Federal District, were most hospitable in their official welcome and provided splendid entertainment of various kinds. A reception was tendered by Hon. Josephus Daniels at the U. S. Embassy. Among other hosts were officials of a number of large operating companies, including M. H. Kuryla, of the Real del Monte company; Jules Lacaud, of the CompaiLia Minera de Chontalpan; and Harry Wright, of the Consolidated Steel company.

Jan 1, 1937

By L. D. Lash

The key to successful liquid-liquid extraction is the solvent. First, and most important, it must be highly selective for the metal desired and yet reject other metal ions present; second, the ideal sol- vent is completely insoluble in the aqueous feed liquor; third, it has rapid phase separation and will not form emulsions; and, fourth, low cost is desirable, since losses occur even though the solvent is recycled. For this application a solvent known as DDPA (dodecyl phosphoric acid) was chosen since it closely met these requirements. DDPA is a long-chain alkyl phosphate developed for AEC by Oak Ridge National Laboratories, Dow Chemical Co., and the U. S. Bureau of Mines. The long chain contributes to low solubility in the aqueous phase and to high extracting power from acidic sulfate solutions, whereas the alkyl phosphates generally exhibit high selectivity for uranium solutions.

Jan 11, 1958

By John W. Sweeney

Florida is blessed with some of the worlds greatest phosphate rock deposits, and doubly blessed in that those deposits are uraniferous. Until recently, the uranium con¬tained in phosphate rock had been ignored, but spot mar¬ket prices in the $40-per-pound range have spurred actions which will soon transform the state into a major uranium supplier. In 1978, two plants in Florida and one in Louisiana went it on- stream to recover uranium oxide from phosphoric acid, and construction began on three other extraction facilities. Together, these six plants will be cap¬able of recovering 1940 t/y (2140 stpy) of yellow cake from Florida phosphate in the early 1980s, equivalent to 15% of the projected US requirement. By the year 2000, Florida phosphates will have produced a projected 49 000 tons (54,000 st) of uranium oxide to fuel the nation's nuclear reactors.

Jan 9, 1979

B. R. Coil (Electrical Installations at the Miami Mine are Cheaper with Flexible Cable, P. 356) was born in Higginsville, Mo., and attended McKinley High School and Missouri School of Mines. He received a B.S. in mining engineering. Mr. Coil has worked for the Braden Copper Co., Rancagua, Chile as junior engineer and foreman. He was employed by Miami Copper Co. as a jigger boss, shift boss, development engineer and mine foreman. He worked as mine superintendent and general superintendent of the Castle Dome Copper Company, Inc. Mr. Coil may be reached at Box 100, Miami, Ariz. He is an AIME Member. Mr. C. R. Ross was co-author with Mr. Coil in the preparation of this paper. His paper covers the present installation of electrical equipment in block caving stopes along with background data. In this paper he has given one solution to wiring problems in heavy stopes.

Jan 1, 1952

The Pennsylvania State College, Mineral Industries Experiment Station, State College, Pa For publications address the Director The Pennsylvania State College through the Minerals Research Experiment Station has issued 10 Bulletins and three Technical Papers, from which the following have been selected as of greatest interest to mining engineers and geologists: Bulletin 1, An investigation of the properties of smitliing coals (1922), free; 2, Petrography of the Mica Pendotite Dike at Dixonville (1926), free; 4, The Helderberg Group from cen¬tral Pennsylvania to southwestern Virginia (1929), 25 cents, 5, Bentonite in Pennsylvania (1929), 10 cents, 6, Production data on Appalachian oil fields (1930), free; 8, Oil field waters of Pennsyl¬vania (1930), free; Technical Paper 2, Condition of water in coals of various ranks.

Jan 1, 1933

By R. M. (Mike) Robb

Introduction The requirements to investigate a wide range of alternatives and analyze a variety of ‘what if’ questions make the automation of pit design a requirement in today’s rapidly changing mining industry. The wide-spread application of computers has relieved the engineer of much of the tedious and error-prone work related to mine design. He is thus free to do the creative and innovative thinking for which he is trained. It is now possible to investigate a large number of alternative pit designs in a reasonably short time period. In the past it was very easy for a team of engineers to consume 12 to 14 man-months in the detailed hand design of a large open pit. The pressure of today's mining industry, the desire to investigate a variety of alternative designs, and the shortage of qualified engineers make the slowness of hand design less preferred.

Jan 1, 1979