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Flexible hoses with rated working pressures up to 40,000 psi are used when high-pressure water jets are employed to cut rock or improve the performance of mining machines. Hose failures at such high pressures can result in serious injuries to workers. The Bureau of Mines used fatigue and burst tests to investigate the failure modes of high-pressure hoses at their rated working and burst pressures. Fatigue failure, at rated working pressures, occurred when the inner liner of the high-pressure hose broke, allowing water to seep through the wire wrapping, although the reinforcement wires did not break. At the burst pressure, all hoses failed catastrophically when the reinforcement wires broke. Low-pressure hoses placed over the high- pressure hoses for safety failed to contain water released by catastrophic failure.

Jan 1, 1987

By H. J. Maguire

(Presented by invitation at a meeting of the Spokane Local Section, Feb. 17, 1912.) THOSE familiar with mill-practice understand the work required of an average bucket-elevator, but I wish to call special attention to the wear on the buckets. I have been studying in what manner the life and service of the bucket might be improved, and I feel that an adjustable lip, attachable to each bucket without the aid of rivets, will be of material advantage. For illustration, consider the feed-elevator of a typical mill in the Cur d'Alène district. The ore is carried by water in a launder from the feed-rolls and dumped in the "boot" of the elevator, directly in front of the ascending bucket. Middlings from the return-rolls are similarly handled. Under this condition the bucket not only carries the ore, but also picks it up, and this latter requirement determines the life and service of the bucket. It might be said that it would be better practice to convey the feed to the elevator and dump it directly into the bucket, but at one mill at which this plan was tried the results were disappointing and the rubber belt was badly worn. The wear of the bucket is confined to the lip and the corners which have to pick up the material. When the lip on a corner of a 7- by 12-in. malleable cast-iron bucket is worn down about 3 in., the bucket is of no further value as a carrier and has to be replaced. The worn bucket, containing about three¬quarters by weight of the metal of the original bucket, has a scrap value of about 10 per cent. of that of a new bucket. To the cost of the bucket, however, should be added the time-cost of replacing the old bucket by a new one. This time-cost is considerable when the loss per hour, to cease operating the mill, is about $200. It is out of the question to put lips on a bucket unless the latter was originally fitted with this device. For if it is attempted to fit lips upon buckets not originally provided with

Sep 1, 1912

By Leonard Obert

This report describes the development of a dynamic strain gage and a companion amplifier and recording camera -an apparatus designed to pick up and record the strain waves produced in rock by a nearby explosion. Also included in the report is a discussion of the relationships connecting the strain with the displacement, velocity, and acceleration for both plane and spherical waves. The proposed tests for which the strain gages were intended required making measurements in solid rock, a factor that necessitated the development of a gage that could be inserted and anchored in a small-diameter diamond-drill hole. The restriction on the diameter of the drill hole is required so that the presence of the hole in the medium will not influence the propagation of the strain wave. The gage should respond with fidelity to the frequencies present in a wave pulse generated by the nearby detonation of a small quantity of high-velocity explosive. Preliminary tests showed that this frequency range extends from 200 to 10,000 c.p.s. or greater. Also, the gage should be capable of measuring strains ranging from a few micro-inches per inch to several thousand micro-inches per inch. Other desirable design specifications included a low gage output impedance to permit the use of long cables, and a low gage cost, particularly in view of the fact that for the final design none of the gages can be recovered from the medium.

Jan 1, 1949

By Andrzej Warczok

Liquid slags produced in smelting of copper concentrates contain copper in a dissolved form as well as mechanically entrained inclusions of copper matte. Coalescence and sedimentation of inclusions during slag cleaning plays a key role in copper recovery. Liquid matte inclusion in a molten slag presents a system of metallic conductor in an ionic solution. Constant electric field induces migration of the matte droplet along the current lines. Additional phenomena occur in a system under crossed electric and magnetic fields. Electromagnetic buoyancy force acting on the inclusion affects its settling rate. Electromagnetic buoyancy force of insulating and metal spheres has been measured in a liquid synthetic slag. It was found that depolarisation of the metal sphere, related to the electrode reactions occurring in the surface, plays an important role in the determination of the direction and magnitude of the electromagnetic force. On the basis of the existing theories and results of measurements a mathematical model describing the behaviour of metallic inclusions in the liquid slag under the influence of crossed electric and magnetic fields was developed. Simulation of behaviour of copper matte inclusions under crossed fields showed trajectory of motion in a liquid slag as a function of the slag properties and the inclusion size.

Jan 1, 2003

By William G. Wilson

In the U.S. today a number of tentative synthetic fuel plants have been sited by a number of major corporations. Each of these for a number of reasons have deferred construction. The only synthetic fuel plants under active development are those being built with the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) under the authority of the Non-nuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-577). Under this Act in joint sponsorship with industry, a series of coal conversion pilot and demonstration plants are being built to produce environmentally acceptable fuels from high sulfur coals. Before entering into a discussion of the factors associated with the siting of the ERDA coal conversion program, the difference between a pilot plant and a demonstration plant should be explained. The terms pilot plant and demonstration plant iridicate a size of plant rahter than technology. A pilot plant will vary from an "add-on" to an existing facility to an independent unit. Demonstration plants are a wholly independent, self contained plants, capable of independent operation to demonstrate the environmenta1, economic, and technica1 feasibility of a technology. These plants are from one-third to one-tenth the scale of a commercial operation and often described as plus 1000 tons per day of coal consumption. Their purpose is stated in the Act (Section 6, (3)(E),) "to accelerate the commercial demonstration of technologies for producing syncrude and liquid petroleum products from coal: Provided. That the Administrator shall invite and consider proposals from potential participants based upon Federal assistants and participation through guaranteed prices or purchase of the products .... " In site selection and plant design it has been suggested that special interest groups should be allowed to dictate the site and specify the design. Under the present program the industrial partner who is contributing 50 percent

Jan 1, 1977

By C. E. Drennan

Your Chairman and the Program Committee have limited the time allotted to me, and so, with your permission, I will omit the preliminaries, and wade right into my subject. I believe I am safe in taking for granted that you are all agreed that electricity is the most feasible means of transmitting the power used in coal mining. If you are not, then the papers read before the Association in previous years have failed of their object. If you are so convinced, the only question is as to the choice between alternating and direct current, and the voltage. Fundamentally, this is primarily a matter of dollars and cents. With the sole exception of your trolley locomotives, there is no part of your equipment that cannot be operated as well on alternating as on direct current. With your pay rolls at their present high level and the efficiency of the labor you employ at the stage it now occupies, I believe you will agree, first, that everything possible must be done to increase the tons of coal produced per man employed; and, second, that ample power at all times must be available at every machine so that every one of your men can really get out a day's work without any avoidable delay. Speaking Electrically, all this means is a machine instead of a man wherever it is possible for a machine to do a man's work, and full voltage at the machine always, so that there can be no excuse for the work not being done promptly and efficiently-and dependably. The real reason for the selection of one kind of current or the other can best be understood by considering the formula which determines the size of wire required for transmitting electrical energy. The size of the copper required, and, consequently; its weight and cost, depends upon four factors: 1. The amount of energy or power to be transmitted. 2. The distance to be covered. 3. The percentage of loss allowed. 4. The voltage at the receiving end of the line. These factors enter into the problem to different extents, and, briefly, the size of wire depends directly upon the amount of power and the distance transmitted, and inversely upon the percentage of loss allowed and the square of the voltage. From this it will be seen that, with the amount of power and the distance fixed, if the loss is to be cut in two, the wire must be doubled with a given voltage, while if the loss remains constant and the voltage is doubled, the wire may be cut in four; that is, reduced 75 per cent in weight and cost. Now, standard motors are designed and recommended by their builders to run within a range of 10 per cent under voltage to 10 per cent above voltage - 440-volt motor, then, should preferably not be operated on less than 400 volts

Jan 1, 1923

By Launa G. Mallett, Kathleen Kowalski-Trakofler, Robert H. Peters, Charles PH. D. Vaught, Peter Keating, William J. Wiehagen

On-the-job training is a common means of training or retraining workers and the practice may seem simple and straightforward. Doing it effectively however requires more thought and preparation than simply having someone follow an experienced worker around and watch what they're doing. Over the years, various techniques and practices have evolved that pass on the skills and knowledge of a trainer or coach in a manner that leads an inexperienced trainee to really absorb the information being taught. On-the-job training thus becomes less a haphazard show-and-tell and more a real transfer of information. The goal of this document is to describe how to develop or manage an on-the-job training program so that information is passed on from trainer/coach to trainee efficiently and effectively. By efficient is meant the best use of time and resources of all those involved in the training process, and by effective is meant that the trainee truly learns the skills and internalizes the knowledge needed to perform the job well. The first part of the document discusses topics to think about when developing a formal on- the-job training program. A structure based on coaching is suggested. Then a workshop designed to prepare trainers as coaches is described. Workshop materials include an instructor’s guide and trainee workbook. These materials can be used to train coaches and to assist trainees as they go through the learning process. Content related to specific jobs can be added to these materials to create targeted on-the job-training manuals. Structuring a formal on-the-job training program It is likely that some form of on-the-job training (OJT) is being conducted at your workplace. The formality of that training can range from a structured program to an informal “follow Joe around” method. If your program is completely unstructured, it may not be meeting current training needs. Worse, it may perpetuate bad habits and create “trained” employees who are not given the same information or evaluated to the same standards. Wiehagen et al. comment that, “Success in using unplanned OJT is usually dependent on the luck of the draw, that is, whether the informal trainer is competent at the task he or she is teaching, is motivated to teach, can organize the job into logical components, and knows something about good practices in teaching and evaluating” (2002, p. 27). It is only through planning a structured OJT program that consistency can be created and maintained. At the least, all trainees who have successfully completed such a program can be expected to perform at an established level—they will know what they must do to be successful.

Jan 7, 2005

By E. Gaucher, D. C. Gagnon

"The paper refers to methods and concepts used in the computer treatment of banks of geophysical, geochemical and geological data, relating to the exploration of massive sulphides. In particular, a data bank of 400 drill holes on independent conductors can be used to calculate probability levels of intersecting a certain quantity of sulphides according to the characteristics of the conductor. Inversely one can, using the data bank and some cost assumptions, simulate and optimize the cost of intersecting a certain quantity of sulphides by selecting drill targets among conductors according to conductivity, magnetism or gravity. Problems of noise, inherent in any simulation, are illustrated in this paper by the results of a study of the nomenclature of volcanic rocks of 27 drill holes by forty geologists. Compilations of data banks are long and timeconsuming, and it would help to standardize to allow exchange of data. We believe that such efforts may result in the discovery of more mineral deposits and at a lower cost. The present study is supported jointly by SOQUEM The New Jersey Zinc Co. and Cominco Ltd."

Jan 1, 1973

ROBERT PEELE, * New York, N. Y.-I should like to ask Mr. Neale how the members of the production committees at the individual mines, who came from the mine workers themselves, were chosen or appointed; also from what classes of employees they usually came? J. B. NEALE.-In the union fields, they were chosen by a local. In the non-union fields, they were chosen either by the men in mass meeting or by the company officials. The last way was very unsatisfactory because it gave the men an opportunity to say that they were going to be passed upon as to whether they were slackers or not, by men chosen by the company. When they were chosen by the locals or at mass meetings of the workers, the appointments have been very much more satisfactory. R. D. HALL, ? New York, N. Y.-The matter of inefficiency on the part of the operator is one that I think we may well take into account, because there is a very large inefficiency on the part of the coal operator; it has arisen from reasons almost beyond his control and will continue for these same reasons. It is no use arguing a moral responsibility on the part of the operator, when you make efficiency very largely a loss to the operator who puts it in force. If you ask a man working on a clay wage to work with more efficiency. he says, "Well, I may do it or I may not," it all depends how he feels, but he does not lose anything financially by not working hard. If you ask the man who is working by the ton to put out more tons, he makes a profit by putting out more tons. How is it with the operator? If he gives a man all the cars he needs and all the power he needs, if he runs after his working men and waits on them, he does not get his coal out any cheaper than before.. He gives the man a better chance and there is more efficiency, but at the same time he has increased his expenses all along the line. At the end of the year he finds that his profits have been less than if he had had less efficiency. The efficiency is really against him in many ways. Because he gets a larger tonnage, he reduces the overhead to a certain extent; but hiss tonnage may not be any greater because he may work fewer days. As Mr. Taylor remarked some tine ago, supposing he puts in a machine that is very much more effective than any he had before, he has the same scale; the miner gets out more coal, but he himself does not get any benefit out of it because he has a scale fixed, so much per ton.

Jan 4, 1919

By R. K. Young

Producing a sound plant design for a major project requires hundreds of engineers and many drawings. Economical accomplishment of this task is based upon careful and orderly organization of the design team so that at all times there is a complete and workable staff but at no time a surplus of costly talent. This paper will describe the various stages in the development of plant design which normally follow the laboratory and pilot plant investigations discussed in other papers today. An outline of the procedures used in the assembling of a project design group, within an established engineering organization will be presented. Actual procedures may vary according to the size and character of the plant, the special requirements of the owner, and the make-up of the engineering organization performing the design, but most of the points covered will be found to be basic to any plant design project.

Jan 1, 1960

By Victor Himel

This report documents a systematic approach towards implementing an improved ensemble for the mine rescue team system that will protect against the hazards of mine rescue and recovery and will also afford improved performance through increased comfort and maneuverability, lighter burdens, and improved human engineering designs. In the first part (Task 1) the mine rescue team's protective needs were defined along with the test methods required to evaluate whether a particular piece of gear met these needs. Task 2 assessed existing gear against performance criteria and standards developed in Task 1. Task 3 consisted of the conceptual design and construction phases of the MRPE program. Special consideration was given to advanced concepts, materials, and equipment.

Jan 1, 1982

[Trans. No. Place Date Vol. Page 1. Wilkes-Barre, Pa.* May, '71.. 1 3 2. Bethlehem. Pa Aug., '71.. 1 10 8. Troy, N. Y Nov., '71.. 1 1S 4. Philadelphia, PaFeb., '72.. 117 5. New York, N. Y.*May: '78.. 120 5. Pittsburgh, PaOct., '72.. 125 7. Boston, MassFeb., '78.. 128 8. Philadelphia, Pa.* May, '78.. 2 3 9. Easton, POct., '78.. 27 10. New York. N. YFeb.. '74.. 2 11]

Jan 1, 1946

By M. C. Leverett, W. B. Lewis

The dynamic behavior of a multiple fluid system is completely describable in terms of driving forces and resistances to flow. The latter are proportional to the viscosity of the fluid under consideration and inversely proportional to a property of the system termed the " effective permeability " to that fluid, a property therefore defined by this relation. Since three phases are usually present in oil reservoirs, it is essential to know the effective permeabilities to the several fluid phases, and the relationship between the composition of the fluid in the pore space and that of the flowing stream, in order to handle satisfactorily certain problems of oil production. In this regard, there are many unknown factors and parameters, and many that can be evaluated only indirectly. However, it is expected that work along lines similar to this present undertaking will help materially in solving these problems. .. . . Previous workers in this field have investigated the two-phase systems, water-gas,' water-oil2 in unconsolidated sands, and water-gasg in consolidated sands. The extension of the study of the flow of heterogeneous fluid systems from two to three phases involved only slight changes in technique. The apparatus used in the present work, except for slight changes to be described, was that used by Leverett in his water-oil experiments.~ Correlation and interpretation of data were made by methods analogous to those used in two- phase work. The relative permeability to a phase—the effective permeability divided by the permeability of the system to a homogeneous fluid—was employed throughout in correlating the rate of flow of that phase with the composition of the pore space. Quantitative measurements of two independent physical properties of the system were required to determine the composition of the pore space. As in the two-phase work, the fraction of water was determined electrically, The gas fraction was determined by measuring changes in volume accompanying measured pressure changes. Suitable account was taken of the solubility of the gas in the liquid phases, and of the vapor pressure of the water phase. Since this work was exploratory in nature, no attempt was made to obtain highly accurate numerical results. Reasonable precision and reproducibility were sought. Experimental Procedure variables Considered.—Of the properties of the fluids, the oil viscosity is most likely in practice to vary widely. Variations in oil viscosity were therefore included in this work, but variations in other properties of the fluids are as yet unexplored. It appears unlikely that the normally encountered variations will produce significant changes. ~h~ observations were made at fairly high pressure gradients, no attempt being made to detect a variation of the relative permeabilities with pressure gradient. It should be pointed out also that since most of the data were taken on one sand size only, it call Only be assumed at present that changes in

Jan 1, 1941

By Richard P. Schoemaker

INTRODUCTION IN underground mining operations the effects of economic and mechanical factors on costs and profits can readily be appreciated and can perhaps be expressed in exact figures and percentages. Less apparent, but frequently more important, is the influence of physical stress. Stress causes failure of supports, collapse of openings, rockbursts, and other damage which directly affects the costs of maintenance, and also to a certain extent the accident rate. Stress can, however, if properly directed, be an aid to mining operations. The caving methods in metal mining and the long-wall method in coal mining are well-known examples. In large-scale mining operations it is almost impossible to neglect stress-control. A better understanding of the mechanism of rock pressure and the application of its principles to practical mining will inevitably lead to a reduction in operating costs. Many theories have been advanced to give the mining engineer a practical outline for stress-control but, although today most experts agree upon the principles of stress distribution around underground openings, there is still no generally accepted theory that explains all phenomena. The main reasons for this incomplete understanding of the problem are the lack of accurate knowledge of the physical properties of rocks under field conditions, and the great complexity of these conditions due to inhomogeneity of the rock, stratification, tectonic disturbances, and many other unknown factors. The research on the rock pressure problems has, however, yielded some valuable facts which, expressed in practical terms, and adapted to local conditions, may become a valuable aid for mining operations. The purpose of this paper is to give a review of the most important accomplishments of this research with respect to the stress phenomena around small underground openings, such as tunnels and shafts, so as to arrive at an outline of the problem as it stands today. Special emphasis is placed on a new theory by the German mining engineer, Rudolf Fenner, which has never before been published or discussed in English. THE PRESSURE DOME THEORY The formation of a dome-shaped space around underground openings is well known from field observations. When openings are made in rock under stress, the rock in the top of the openings will often fail, and caving will continue until the openings have assumed a dome-shaped form, after which equilibrium apparently is re-established. The oldest theory which attempted to explain the phenomenon is the "beam" theory, which postulates that the hanging wall consists of stratified measures that behave as independent beams with fixed ends and a uniformly distributed load. When failure of the beam occurs, inward shearing at the ends will cause the formation of a dome-shaped space. The pressure dome theory, which more or less evolved from the beam theory, merely

Jan 1, 1947

By W. B. Lewis, M. C. Leverett

The dynamic behavior of a multiple fluid system is completely describable in terms of driving forces and resistances to flow. The latter are proportional to the viscosity of the fluid under consideration and inversely proportional to a property of the system termed the " effective permeability " to that fluid, a property therefore defined by this relation. Since three phases are usually present in oil reservoirs, it is essential to know the effective permeabilities to the several fluid phases, and the relationship between the composition of the fluid in the pore space and that of the flowing stream, in order to handle satisfactorily certain problems of oil production. In this regard, there are many unknown factors and parameters, and many that can be evaluated only indirectly. However, it is expected that work along lines similar to this present undertaking will help materially in solving these problems. .. . . Previous workers in this field have investigated the two-phase systems, water-gas,' water-oil2 in unconsolidated sands, and water-gasg in consolidated sands. The extension of the study of the flow of heterogeneous fluid systems from two to three phases involved only slight changes in technique. The apparatus used in the present work, except for slight changes to be described, was that used by Leverett in his water-oil experiments.~ Correlation and interpretation of data were made by methods analogous to those used in two- phase work. The relative permeability to a phase—the effective permeability divided by the permeability of the system to a homogeneous fluid—was employed throughout in correlating the rate of flow of that phase with the composition of the pore space. Quantitative measurements of two independent physical properties of the system were required to determine the composition of the pore space. As in the two-phase work, the fraction of water was determined electrically, The gas fraction was determined by measuring changes in volume accompanying measured pressure changes. Suitable account was taken of the solubility of the gas in the liquid phases, and of the vapor pressure of the water phase. Since this work was exploratory in nature, no attempt was made to obtain highly accurate numerical results. Reasonable precision and reproducibility were sought. Experimental Procedure variables Considered.—Of the properties of the fluids, the oil viscosity is most likely in practice to vary widely. Variations in oil viscosity were therefore included in this work, but variations in other properties of the fluids are as yet unexplored. It appears unlikely that the normally encountered variations will produce significant changes. ~h~ observations were made at fairly high pressure gradients, no attempt being made to detect a variation of the relative permeabilities with pressure gradient. It should be pointed out also that since most of the data were taken on one sand size only, it call Only be assumed at present that changes in

Jan 1, 1941

By D. A. Poulter

The stability of a liner system is influenced by many factors which can be compiled into four basic groups. They are: 1. the liner system components and physical characteristics; 2. the geometry and slope of the liner system; 3. the loading conditions on the liner system; and 4. the foundation conditions under the liner system. Failures in the liner system that are due to one or more factors from the first three groups usually result in movement relative to the plans of the liner system. Failures associated with factors in the fourth group result in deformation(s) across the liner system section beyond its design limits. For purposes of these discussions a failure in the liner system refers to displacements or movements resulting in physical damage to the liner system such that it can no longer function.

Jan 1, 1995

By Robert E. Frey

Regardless of the mechanical design features of a particular air classifier certain basic principles apply. Specifically , there are two forces at work: 1. An air drag force 2. An inertial or centrifugal force. The air drag force has an increasing influence as particles become smaller. A very small low mass particle is easily carried along with an air stream even when turning a corner. Thus, fine particles follow the air away from the classifying zone. Inertial forces increase as the mass of a particle gets larger. Thus oversize particles tend to obey Newton's laws and respond to centrifugal forces or simply continue in a straight path when the airflow changes direction.

Jan 1, 1985

By D. G. Foot, J. D. McKay, R. A. Ynchausti

The increasing popularity of column flotation as an efficient and profitable mineral beneficiation technique has resulted in the need to perform a study of basic column operating parameters in order to understand mineral behavior in a column. Variation of column rougher flotation parameters on the Nevada Fish Creek fluorite and Utah Collins manganese ores enabled characterization of four beneficiation zones within a column flotation cell. Although specific mineral behavior in each zone was peculiar to the mineral system involved, particle retention time predominantly affected both manganese and fluorite recoveries in the collection zones of the column while enhancing mineral grades in the cleaning zones. Column parameters such as column length, feed injection location, and tailings recirculation velocity were inherently linked to particle retention time and retention time distribution, both of which affected mineral recovery. Froth depth had a discernible effect on fluorite concentrate grades; as froth depth increased, fluorite grades increased. Wash water additions affected both fluorite and manganese recoveries and fluorite grade. Axial mixing drastically reduced fluorite and manganese recoveries due to short circuiting of some of the feed slurry in the column.

Jan 1, 1988

By Ray W. Ballmer

Historically, Bingham is a rail pit, starting with steam locomotives in 1906 and converting to electric locomotives in 1923. Ore production was maintained through an effective utilization of available rail equipment. From time to time as it became necessary to deepen the pit and as stripping ratios increased, various studies were made on alternate material haulage systems. Utilization of diesel locomotives, conveyor belts, and trucks have all been subjects of study, however, conversion from rail haulage utilizing electric locomotives could not be justified. Because of the gradual decline in ore grade, a program was approved in 1963 to raise ore production to 108,000 tons per day. This was designed to return copper production to the 1950 level. Attainment of this production level by expansion of the rail system had definite limitations and built-in inflexibility. Track and trolley wire relocation causes shovel down time in excess of that required for normal maintenance. Instability of the dumps and the resulting additional track maintenance increases greatly as the volume of waste material to be handled daily expands.

Jan 1, 1965

By A. Juganda, F. WILSON, G.E. BOGIN, H. PINHEIRO, N. SANDOVAL, J.F. BRUNE

To evaluate methane explosion hazards in underground longwall coal mines, researchers at the Colorado School of Mines developed a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model along with a 1/40th-scale, optically accessible, physical model of a longwall mining section. In this project, CFD models assisted in the design of the physical model to ensure specifications were met to accurately represent the scaling physics as well as to assist in narrowing the experimental matrix and identifying key locations for sensor placement to measure velocity, pressure and gas concentrations. This research will help develop strategies for methane monitoring to prevent methane ignitions and explosions in longwall coal operations.

Dec 1, 2022