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By John W. Buch

Hydraulic cutting tests made on samples of Pennsylvania anthracite (3,700 psi and 260 gpm) were promising enough for the Bureau to establish a full scale experiment in an anthracite mine. Water pressure and quantity for mining anthracite were arbitrarily established at 5,000 psi and 300 gpm (1,000 hp). For full-volume flow, hydraulic pressure is controlled by orifice size with the displacement pump. The hydraulic jumbo was designed for maneuvering on pitches from 0° to 20° in any direction and for a coalbed ranging in thickness from 10 feet 6 inches to 15 feet. All motions of the jumbo are by oil hydraulics. Jet flow is controlled (start-stop) at the face, through an interlocked pushbutton system. One button is in the operator's cab; one, at the pump station; and one (a safety shutoff), near the mining face. To December 1962, 7,400 tons of bed material had been mined at an average rate of 0.800 ton per minute, with an average power requirement of 14.125 kilowatt-hours per ton. In January 1963, the objective was changed from an engineering-development basis to a research basis--to determine, ultimately, the most efficient level of operating characteristics for maximum response, as measured by mining-out rate. This research phase of the project is not yet complete, but conclusions, and the method of arriving at them, will be made the subject of another Bureau publication. It should be noted that as of December 1963 nearly 13,000 tons of bed material had been mined, at rates as high as 1. 3 tons per minute for a complete face advance.

Jan 1, 1965

By P Pieterse

Kumba Iron Ore Ltd is currently commissioning the Sishen Expansion Project (SEP) û a brownfields project on the Sishen Iron Ore Mine located in the Northern Cape Province, South Africa. SEP is designed to produce 13 Mtpa of product from 21.7 Mtpa of ROM feed. The beneficiation section of SEP employs jigs to process narrow size fractions in the 25 x 0.8 mm size range. The -0.8 mm fraction is screened out ahead of the jig plant and rejected as waste without any prior beneficiation. The processing of this fraction was not included in the early stages of SEP development because no suitable beneficiation or dewatering technologies could be identified within the time-frame required to implement SEP. This paper presents the SEP 1B project, ie the metallurgical and process engineering study that was done to evaluate the techno-economic viability of processing the -0.8 mm material of SEP. To support this evaluation, metallurgical bench scale testwork was done on selected samples characterising the material types used in the SEP for gravity concentration beneficiation. Subsequently, pilot testwork on a 300-ton bulk sample demonstrated that an integrated teeter-bed/spiral circuit could be used to successfully beneficiate the -0.8 mm fraction. The study has established the viability of the proposed process and has concluded that approximately 390 000 tpa could be produced and added to the SEP fine ore product without violating the applicable product specifications. The proposed process has been designed to be implemented in modular units in order to facilitate implementation and ensure future expandability. Based on the recommendations of the study, approval has been granted for the detail design feasibility study. Production is scheduled to commence in the first quarter of 2010.

Jan 1, 2008

By A. L. Hauff

As US Coal producers are looking more and more to the international markets, they face the complex job of planning and managing transportation logistics which make effective use of production capabilities, considers the various contract requirements to be fulfilled, Train, Truck and Vessel capacities, port restraints, etc. Pulling all the necessary pieces of information together to allow proper planning throughout the supply chain is often a time consuming, manual but necessary task. This paper will discuss the various constraints, requirements and considerations to supplying coal to a global market.

Jan 1, 2012

By Jr. Gabler

Because of concern over the availability and reliability of an uninterrupted supply of manganese and other materials, the U.S. Congress requested that the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) study the /low of strategic and critical materials in the economy to delineate and quantify the production areas where metal values are lost. As a result, the USBM developed a generic computerized commodity flow model that is readily amenable to updating. The original model developed for cobalt, with slight modifications, was used to track the flow of manganese. This report follows the flow of manganese through its metallurgical and chemical applications and highlights areas where significant losses occur owing to downgrading, export, or disposal. The study indicates that materials containing 695,000 short tons (st) of manganese were consumed domestically in 1990. Scrap recovery specifically for manganese recycling was insignificant. However, considerable manganese was recycled through processing operations as a minor component of ferrous and nonferrous scrap and steel slag. The major loss category is manganese lost in steel processing, 323,156 st or 46 pet of the 1990 apparent consumption. Most of this loss reports to steelmaking slags. Recovery from slags is technically feasible, but is not economically feasible.

Jan 1, 1995

By Steven J. Page

The Bureau of Mines used fiber-laden air to test two identical fibrous aerosol monitors (FAM) in order to establish the FAM-optical count correlation. The FAM is a unique instrument developed by GCA Corp. (GCA) to measure real-time fibrous aerosol concentrations. It will also respond to particulates that have sufficient shape irregularities to possess fiber characteristics such as the 3:1 length: diameter (L:D) aspect ratio. Results of the Bureau's laboratory tests showed that the FAM response is linearly correlated to concentration data obtained using the optical membrane filter count technique approved by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. A plot of the FAM-optical count correlation showed that FAM concentration readings are generally well within ±25 pct of the optical membrane filter count. Initial tests to estimate the best ratio control setting of the FAM for 5-µm fiber-length discrimination were performed using one instrument only (the ratio control setting determines the minimum threshold fiber length that will be detected by the FAM). The estimated setting was then used to correlate both FAM units. The result was a 65 pct difference in correlation between the two units. It appears that the major factor responsible for this difference was the internal adjustment of the photomultiplier detector sensitivity for each of the two FAM units.

Jan 1, 1980

By David B. McWhorter

Conventional analyses of seepage through saturated media do not apply when tailings impoundments are located above a partially saturated zone. Three stages of seepage are identified and methods for estimating the seepage rates and duration of each stage, based upon flow in partially saturated and saturated porous media, are demonstrated. The effectiveness of earthen liners is discussed and procedures for estimating the required properties of the porous media are provided.

Jan 1, 1978

By Yoichi Takeda

The CaO-FeOx-Cu20 slag has been practically applied to continuous converting of copper, and also has potential for refining of copper. Liquidus lines of the slag system and phase stability diagram for the liquid slag and the existing solid compounds under copper saturation are presented. Liquidus composition was determined by chemical analysis of slag sample saturated primary solid. The temperatures of invariant equilibria were investigated by thermal analyses. Oxygen potentials on the liquidus lines, the univariant and invariant equilibria were estimated from the relation slag composition and oxygen potential that relation was confirmed in separate experiments.

Jan 1, 2003

By T. A. Rickard

The key-note of good writing, as of good manners, is B natural. Sincerity is the first requisite for effective writing. When a man says what he knows or believes, he is likely to be interesting, because each human being possesses an individuality, a point of view, or a range of sympathy that makes him different from his fellows. To say or to write what you do no6 think, for the mere sake of talking or writing, is a verbal exercise that must be performed with extraordinary skill if it is to be attractive. Affectations are rarely attractive, rarely effective. To be natural is to be yourself, not a poseur; to give the reader the best of yourself, instead of re-warming the baked meats of yesterday. Quotations-which are second-hand thoughts-will serve occasionally when the thing you want to say has been said so well by another that it would be waste of energy to try to say it better; but, as a rule, the utterance of the writer himself is more interesting than the quotation, because the writer brings something of himself to bear on the subject, and for the moment is more in touch with the reader than any dear departed author. Therefore, say things as best you can in your own way, neither in borrowed words nor in the phraseology that mimics another. Write as if you were speaking to a person whom you desire to persuade or convince. You will then write better than you speak, because, in the first place, you can be more deliberate, and, secondly, you can revise what you have written. Speaking and writing are similar mental acts, with a difference: the difference between eating food raw and eating it cooked. Some kinds of food gain nothing by being cooked; likewise some kinds of utterance are not bettered by being written down first; but most expressions of thought, especially

Jan 1, 1931

By Shuchen Sun, Ganfeng Tu, Chuan Liu, Xiaoping Zhu

The hydrometallurgical residue generated during the hydrometallurgical processing of waste automotive catalysts is valuable as a secondary resource. In this study, a process of platinum recovery from the hydrometallurgical residue by high-temperature smelting process was proposed. Results of lab- and pilot-scale experiments show a high recovery of more than 98% of platinum and glass slag was successfully obtained by controlling the Fe3O4 addition, C/Fe3O4 mass ratio, CaO/SiO2 mass ratio, smelting temperature, and holding time at 15 wt%, 0.4, 0.6, 1500 °C, and 120 or 60 min, respectively. Results from the pilot-scale show that the platinum contents in the glass slag and alloys were less than 4 g/t and more than 0.6 wt%, respectively. Therefore, the process proposed in this study is a prospective and effective approach for reutilization of hydrometallurgical residue containing platinum.

Oct 12, 2020

By Dipak C. Talapatra

This report describes the development of guidelines for design, inspection and maintenance of automatic couplers. In order to devise the guidelines, performance requirements for automatic couplers were carefully established. This was done through a comprehensive survey of coupler manufacturers and extensive observation of automatic couplers in service in a broad spectrum of mines. The capability of the couplers to withstand the demands of the mining environment in terms of strength characteristics, gathering range, curve negotiability, and other factors were all carefully evaluated. An analysis of coupler related accidents for the years 1972-1976 was carried out to provide information on the safety and reliability of existing automatic couplers. This formed an important input to the development of the guidelines. It is expected that these guidelines will be useful to coupler manufacturers for establishing designs for improved automatic couplers, and to mine operators for maintaining their couplers in a safe and good operating condition throughout their expected lifetime. This report is in two volumes: Volume 1 Technical Report Volume 2 Design, Inspection, and Maintenance Manual

Jan 1, 1977

By Hana Livia Frota Coelho

Durante a laminação a quente a superfície de aço é exposta ao ar e água, sendo esta última utilizada para controlar a temperatura dos rolos e/ou a taxa de refrigeração do aço. Esta exposição leva à formação de uma camada de óxido na superfície das barras, que pode facilitar ou dificultar a corrosão, servindo como uma barreira ou como um caminho para íons presentes na atmosfera e, além disso, causar modificações nas propriedades mecânicas. O objetivo do presente estudo é avaliar o efeito do processo de resfriamento após laminação a quente sobre o desempenho de vergalhões de aço microligado frente a propriedades mecânicas e a formação da camada de óxidos. Os vegalhões produzidos com diferentes métodos de resfriamento tiveram análise de microestrutura, tração, microdureza, dobramento, espessura da carepa formada, análise de corrosão e foram expostos à atmosfera. O progresso da corrosão foi avaliado pela observação visual do produto de corrosão formado sobre a superfície das barras. A morfologia da camada de óxido após o processo de laminação foi estudada por microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV). As amostras que tiveram uma taxa de resfriamento maior, 63%P e 100%P, tiveram também um aumento nas propriedades mecânicas. A amostra 100%P foi a que obteve melhor comportamento frente ao ensaio de corrosão. Além disso, verificou-se que a camada de óxido inicial nas barras de aço, que são relacionados com o processo de fabricação, possuiam aderência diferente ao vergalhão, sendo a melhor condição observada nas amostras 63%P e 100%P.

Oct 30, 2017

By H. J. H. Pieterse

Agitation requirements in oxidation autoclaves can vary widely depending on the mineralogy of the feed material and the specific process selected. Before selecting an agitation system it is important that the client specify the desired throughput, mineralogy, chemistry, kinetics, compartments, overall retention time, and the desired oxygen utilization. In selecting the agitation system, the factors mentioned above as well as oxygen solubility, oxygen mass transfer coefficients, and specific power are evaluated. Much research effort has been directed toward open tank systems for fermentation and oxidation processes. However, for high pressure autoclave oxidation processes little information is available. In this review the author's experience in the autoclave industry and some of the available literature are utilized to compare the installed power per unit volume with some of the methods proposed for open tank oxidation. Equations that appear to give results close to that experienced in the industry have been identified. Further work is required in this area to develop a higher degree of confidence in the ability to predict the power required for any given case.

Jan 1, 2004

By S. k. Kim, H. B. Trinh, R. R. Srivastava

"Spent auto-catalyst is a promising secondary resource of platinum group metals (PGMs), which are being extensively used in automobiles catalytic converters to control the hazardous gaseous emissions (CO, NOx and hydrocarbons). Several pyro or hydrometallurgical routes has been employed to recover PGMs from such spent materials but there is no proper process for recovering the other constituents metals. Therefore, it causes the loss of other major constituents like, Al and Mg along with rare earth metal Ce. In the present study, we investigate the dissolution of Al and Mg using sodium hydroxide (NaOH) roasting followed by a sulfuric acid (H2SO4) leaching; thereby concentrating the PGMs and Ce in leached residues. The effect of roasting temperature, time and amount of NaOH were varied. Subsequently, the dissolution behavior of metals in H2SO4 as a function of acid concentration was investigated from the roasted samples. At an optimal condition for roasting at 600°C with 1:1 NaOH-to-catalyst ratio and 60 min duration, the maximum of Al and Mg were dissolved in 1 M H2SO4 solution at ambient temperature (~25°C). Thus obtained leached residues containing enriched PGMs and Ce content can be treated separately for the recovery of these high-value metals.INTRODUCTION Spent auto-catalyst has been considered as a potential resource for recovering the platinum group metals (PGMs) (Jha et al., 2013). The commonly used auto-catalyst is made of cordierite (2MgO.2Al2O3.5SiO2) in which the chloro complexes of PGMs are impregnated onto the surfaces of porous washcoat of alumina substrate (Aberasturi et al., 2011). The average concentration of PGMs in ore are 2-4 g/ton for Pt, 7-2 g/ton for Pd and 0.2-0.5 g/ton for Rh, whereas, an individual catalytic converter weighing about 1 - 2 kg contains on average 1.56 g Pt, 0.62 g Pd and 0.156 g Rh (Upadhyay et al., 2013). Moreover, recovery of PGMs from spent auto-catalyst offers other advantages like, simple process, low cost and less pollution, as compared to recovery from primary resources (Dong et al., 2015).Therefore, technologies to recover PGMs from spent auto-catalyst has become attractive in the recent past and their recycling contribution has been accounted for 35% Pt, 26% Pd and 36% Rh of the quantity consumed in the production of auto-catalysts (Johnson Matthey, 2016)."

Jan 1, 2017

By R. Sakthivel

Blue dust is a high grade soft haematite material containing 96.14% Fe2O3 transformed into magnetite (Fe3O4), when it is subjected to planetary ball milling in the presence of iron powder as reducing reagent. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and Laser particle size analyser have been employed to characterize various samples collected at various milling times to know the phase evolution, particle size distribution and morphology of particles. X-ray diffraction studies reveal the formation of magnetite phase at the optimum milling time of 40 hours. Vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) study demonstrates, that sample obtained at 40 hours of milling time exhibits saturation magnetisation of 14.757 emu/g whereas the starting material used in this study shows only 1.0425 emu/g. Keywords: Blue dust, reaction milling, magnetite, saturation magnetization

Sep 1, 2012

By Scott W. Hazen, Richard F. Link, George S. Koch

The Mi Vida mine , Big Indian district , San Juan County , Utah , is in an ore deposit of uranium and vanadium minerals disseminated in certain sedimentary beds of the Triassic Chinle formation . Statistical analysis of assays of samples taken from the ore body affords an estimate of the grade of the ore body and provides a prediction about the direction of best mineralization beyond the sampled area . The basic data analyzed are assay results for uranium ( Uз Og ) , vanadium (V₂O ) , and lime (CaO ) from 225 channel samples cut at 79 sample points . Through the use of appropriate statistical methods , particularly regression analysis , the grade of ore may be estimated more precisely than by conventional means , and the most favorable direction to extend the mine may be predicted . Frequency distributions of assay residuals for uranium , vanadium , and lime are compared to frequency distributions of assays without regard to trend . Correlations among these variables are obtained and interpreted . The statistical methods employed illustrate certain techniques that may be used to analyze assay data from ore deposits in general .

Jan 1, 1964

By Earl R. Maize

Epoxy and polyester-type resins were injected into coal-mine roof strata of the thick Freeport coal seam in Allegheny County, Pa., at test sites in roof that had been exposed several weeks, in newly exposed roof, and in strata over solid coal. Test results indicate that the method of strengthening bituminous-coal-mine roof by injecting a bonding material into the roof strata can be developed into a safe, efficient support system. If roof bonding will become a standardized method of roof support and reinforcement or if it can be effective when used with other types of roof support can be determined only by extensive experimentation in various coal beds. Observations and conclusions are shown at the end of this report.

Jan 1, 1959

By Yoichi Takeda

The CaO-FeO,-Cu20 slag has been practically applied to continuous converting of copper, and also has potential for refining of copper. Liquidus lines of the slag system and phase stability diagram for the liquid slag and the existing solid compounds under copper saturation are presented. Liquidus composition was determined by chemical analysis of slag sample saturated primary solid. The temperatures of invariant equilibria were investigated by thermal analyses. Oxygen potentials on the liquidus lines, the univariant and invariant equilibria were estimated from the relation slag composition and oxygen potential that relation was confirmed in separate experiments.

Jan 1, 2003

By Torn H. Okabe

A fundamental study was conducted with the purpose of establishing an environmentally sound recovery process for recycling of valuable metals, by combining scraps containing such metals. As an example, direct extraction and recovery of neodymium (Nd) in magnet scraps was investigated by utilizing liquid metal as an extraction medium. It was found that liquid magnesium (Mg) is a suitable extraction medium and can extract Nd from iron alloys with high efficiency at around 1100 K. The newly developed extraction apparatus for Nd is a mechanically simple and static device without moving parts, where the Mg extraction medium circulates due to differences in the temperature inside the reaction vessel. This developed device can simultaneously accomplish continuous extraction of metal Nd from scraps, re-extraction of Mg from Mg-Nd alloy and the eventual recovery of pure Mg. As a result, metal Nd with 98 % purity was directly recovered from magnet scraps under certain conditions. It was also shown that the extraction agent Mg could be reused. The results of this investigation show the possibility of establishing a new process for the direct extraction of Nd in pure metal form without oxidization.

Jan 1, 2003

By F. J. Palumbo

An electronic color-sorting machine was tested for recovering colorless glass concentrates from mixed glass products. The tests were made using glass recovered from unincinerated (raw) urban refuse and residues resulting from the incineration of refuse. The results of the study revealed that concentrates analyzing about 86 percent colorless glass could be recovered from mixed unincinerated glass containing 54 percent colorless glass material. Recovery of the colorless glass was about 62 percent. Color sorting the incinerated glass was somewhat more difficult. Multiple-stage processing was required to recover 59 percent of the colorless glass material in a product analyzing 89 percent colorless glass. The feed material analyzed 41 percent colorless glass.

Jan 1, 1971

By Jr. Hazen

This report documents 653 sets of sample data involving 78,366 assays obtained from past exploration for various minerals and metals. Most of these data have been taken from published reports describing exploration projects, conducted jointly by the Bureau of Mines and the Geological Survey, for the Strategic Minerals Program from 1940 through 1949. Means and standard deviations have been computed for the exploration assay data and have been plotted on graphs for 22 minerals and metals. A mathematical model, based on the binomial distribution, has been developed to explain the configuration of the plots of the exploration means and standard deviations. The two statistics, mean and standard deviation, which describe assay data, have been used for simulating probability models. These probability models then have been combined with the binomial model of the exploration assays and related to the sequential decision process associated with exploration drilling for mineral deposits. These probability regions can be used to form the basis for sequentially predicting the probable range of the average grade of mineral or metal that may be expected as an exploration drilling program is continued after the initial discovery of mineralization has been made.

Jan 1, 1966