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By G. W. Murrie

A geologic study of the Mary Lee Group of coalbeds in the Black Warrior coal basin was undertaken to examine coal stratigraphy and determine regional trends and extent of the coalbeds. The area investigated encompasses 835 square miles in Jefferson, Walker, and Tuscaloosa Counties, Ala. More than 700 core logs were used to construct a structure map, coal, interval, and overburden isopachs, and cross sections. There is evidence that structure affected sedimentation. Coalbed isopachs indicate the Mary Lee Group was deposited in fluvial-deltaic and low-lying coastal plain environments. The Mary Lee coalbed is the only coalbed which is continuous throughout the area, commonly with two benches which have a combined thickness of 2 to 12 feet. The Mary Lee coalbed changes rank in the basin from high-through medium-to low-volatile coal. The methane gas potential of the Mary Lee Group coals is estimated to be greater than 1 trillion cubic feet. There is an excellent correlation between the orientation of surface cleats with those measured underground in the Mary Lee coalbed. The face cleats roughly parallel the axes of the area's folds and trend northeast-southwest.

Jan 1, 1976

By Denis Labrie

Le minage en profondeur sous contrainte modérée à élevée présente de nombreux défis aux opérateurs et aux ingénieurs de mine notamment au niveau du contrôle de terrain et de l?environnement minier souterrain, pour assurer la sécurité des travailleurs sous terre et la continuité du cycle d?opération. Des conditions de contrainte élevée signifient une pression accrue au front de taille et sur les structures minières tels les piliers de mine et les fins de zone, un risque de rupture violente ou de coup de toit plus élevé, des zones de rupture plus grandes au pourtour des excavations, des charges accrues sur le support de terrain, etc. Le présent article fournit un aperçu du travail fait à l?intérieur du Programme de Contrôle de terrain de CANMET au cours des sept (7) dernières années, entre 1995 et 2001, pour comprendre et suivre l?évolution des niveaux de contrainte à l?intérieur des structures minières. Les propriétés déterminées en laboratoire sur des échantillons rocheux et les prévisions effectuées au moment de la conception sont comparées avec les observations effectuées en chantier à la paroi des excavations et à l?intérieur de la masse rocheuse. La plupart des cas discutés ici montrent une corrélation satisfaisante entre les observations effectuées en chantier d?une part, et les résultats d?essai obtenus en laboratoire et les calculs réalisés lors de la conception d?autre part. Ces observations peuvent donc être considérées comme des moyens relativement sûrs pour vérifier et suivre l?évolution des niveaux de contrainte présents à l?intérieur des structures minières.

May 1, 2002

By Margaret R. Lickes

Mercury was produced originally at the Idaho Almaden mine from 1939 to 1942. When the ;.nine was shut down, more than 100,000 tons of ore, containing from 2.5 to 3 pounds of mercury per ton, was known to be adjacent to old workings but had been considered too low grade for commercial operation. Later, detailed, systematic exploration by Rare Metals Corporation of America increased and delimited enough minable reserves for further operation to be foreseen for several years. The average grade of the ore is estimated at slightly more than 3.5 pounds of mercury per ton. Open-pit mining and installation of the largest rotary kiln in the United States furnacing mercury ore have made possible profitable exploitation of these reserves (fig. 1). The bulk of the exploration was by percussion drilling, although some diamond drilling was done to check the results. When enough reserves were indicated to assure a successful operation, stripping and plant construction were started simultaneously. Figure 2 is a general view of the plant. The ore bodies, although irregular in size, shape, and grade and covered by essentially barren cap rock, are amenable to low-cost, trackless, open-pit mining. Development consists of stripping the overburden and removing, barren cap rock. Ore is being mined at approximately [5],000 tons per month and treated in a 175-ton-per-day furnacing plant.

Jan 1, 1957

By Jos. R. Guiteras

This paper is one of a series published by the Bureau of Mines on mining and milling methods and costs. It describes operations in the Alma district of Colorado in September 1937, supplemented by some additional data collected in July 1938. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express his appreciation of the friendly cooperation extended him by the mine operators in the district. The greater part of the information was obtained from mine and mill superintendents to whom individual acknowledgment is made in the text.

Jan 1, 1940

By A. Ignatieff

"Demonstrations of Automatic Coal Burning EquipmentAT THE 1951 and 1952 Annual Coal Research Conferences sponsored by the Dominion Coal Board and attended by delegates from the Dominion and Provincial governments as well as industry, the importance ,of encouraging the co-operative interest of Canadian coal and equipment industries in •promoting the use of equipment types best suited to burn given Canadian coals was emphasized. It. was suggested that this idea •be enlarged upon at forthcoming C.I.M. meetings that would be .attended largely by coal mining engineers.With this in view, a Domestic Heating Forum (1) was featured in the Coal Division programme at the 1951 Annual Western Meeting of the Institute in Calgary, and a much more ambitious programme, highlighted by live demonstrations, was •staged at the combined Annual Western Meeting and Fourth Meeting of District 4 held in Winnipeg in October 1952.With the excellent co-operation of a number of equipment manufacturers and coal companies, and with facilities kindly provided •by the University •of Manitoba authorities, burning demonstrations were• arranged in the Agricultural Engineering Building, on October l 7th. These demonstrations were a fitting sequel to the Coal Division sessions held in the Royal Alexandra Hotel on October 16th, at which the combustion of coal was specially featured in a series of papers by prominent Canadian and United States specialists.The primary purpose of the demonstrations was to •show that all coal, regardless •of rank, can be satisfactorily used provided that proper application is made with equipment suited to its purpose."

Jan 1, 1953

By O. Celep, T. Uslu, Savas

This study investigates the enrichment of a low-grade colemanite concentrate (-3 mm) using a Knelson centrifugal gravity concentrator. Due to its low boron content, the concentrate is unsaleable and has to be stored under appropriate conditions to avoid potential environmental problems. The low-grade colemanite concentrate was comminuted to size fractions of-1 mm, -0.5 mm, and -0.15 mm before treatment in the Knelson Concentrator. The effects of particle size, fluidizing water velocity, and bowl speed on the enrichment process were examined. The B2O3content of the concentrate was increased from 33.96% to a maximum of 45.52%. B2O3recovery increased with increasing bowl speed and particle size, and decreased with increasing fluidizing water velocity. The enrichment process also rejected arsenic and iron to some extent, with a maximum reduction of arsenic from 1360 g/t to 765 g/t and iron from 0.88% to0.33%.

Jan 1, 2015

By J. W. Thompson, M. N. RICH

That there is wide interest in the preparation and properties of metallic zirconium and its salts is indicated by the many articles recently published in scientific and technical journals and the many patents issued. The compounds of zirconium have numerous important uses and more uses will doubtless be found. In the course of the special work on rare metals that were of military importance during the war, the authors of this bulletin were detailed to the Golden mining experiment station of the Bureau of Mines to prepare metallic zirconium and to investigate its properties. A number of investigations in recent years have indicated that sintered or coherent zirconium metal is very resistive to acids; that it can be used for electrodes, and it probably will find metallurgical uses. A steel containing zirconium has been proposed for use in armor plate and automobile parts, and nickel-zirconium alloys have been suggested for high-speed cutting tools and for cutlery. Numerous articles in scientific journals have recommended the use of zirconium oxide as a refractory, an abrasive, a pigment in paints, and as an opaquing agent in enamel ware. The salts have been used in the textile industry' as a mordant and also for weighting silk. When the authors began their investigation, they found it necessary to collect all of the available literature on the general subject of zirconium and its compounds. Pure salts could not be obtained on the market, and in order to get these, as a preliminary step to the preparation of the metal, the literature had to be classified and the methods of preparing the salts investigated. Also, there was much difficulty at first in making satisfactory analyses, and this phase of the work received careful attention. As it was necessary to begin with a historical review of the literature, such a review is given as Part I of this report, and a bibliography is included as Part IV. References to the numbered items in this bibliography are made throughout the text, the usual footnote references being omitted. Analyses of the products and conclusions as to their purity are given under the descriptions of methods of preparation. A table showing the properties of the amorphous metal, and another showing the properties of the coherent metal, will be found under appropriate headings in Part II. No attempt has been made in the historical review to discuss fully all the published information about zirconium and its compounds, but only such material has been assembled as has a direct bearing upon the present work. Considerable difficulty was experienced in collecting this material because of the confusion of terms by various authors who perhaps did not thoroughly understand the chemistry of zirconium.

Jan 1, 1921

By Shelby Z. Palya

"The Bureau of Mines was established in the public interest to conduct inquiries and scientific and technologic investigations concerning mining and the preparation, treatment, and utilization of mining-substances; to promote health and safety, in the mineral industries; to conserve Material resources , and prevent their waste; to further economic development; to increase efficiency in the mining, metallurgical, quarrying, and other Mineral industries; and to inquire into the economic conditions affecting those industries. The organic act of the Bureau, as amended by Congress and approved February 25, 1913, made it the province and duty of the Bureau to ""disseminate information concerning these subjects in such manner as will best carry out the purposes of this Act.""In accordance with this directive, the Bureau reports the findings of its research and investigations in its own series of publications and also in articles that appear in scientific, technical, and trade journals; in proceedings of conventions and seminars; in reference books; and in other non-Bureau publications. The number of these reports, the wide range of subjects they cover, and the variety of mediums in which they appear make the kind of list and index presented in this special publication both necessary and valuable. This issue describes reports and articles published during the period January 1, 1975, to December 31, 1979. It supplements the 50-year list of Bureau publications issued from July 1, 1910, to January 1, 1960; 2 the 50-year list, of articles by Bureau authors published outside the Bureau from July 1, 1910, to January 1, 1960; 3 the 5-year lists of publications and articles, from January 1, 1960, to December 31, 1964,, from January 1, .1965, to December 31, 1969,5 'and from January '1, 1970, to December 31, 1974; and the annual ,lists of Bureau publications and articles from January, 1 to December 31, 1975,7 from January 1, to December 31, 1976,8 from January 1 to December 31, 1977, and from January 1 to December 31, 1978."

Jan 1, 1981

By A. W. Frolli

This paper, describing the mining and reduction methods and costs at the Oceanic quicksilver mine, is one of a series of similar reports being prepared by the Bureau of Mines on various mines in the United states. The property, which is owned and operated by the Anglo American Mining Corporation, Ltd., is 5 miles east of Cambria, San Luis Obispo County, Calif. It lies in a region of steep hills and sharply incised canyons on the west slope of the Santa Lucia Range at an elevation of about 500 feet above sea level. The climate is ideal for living and operating conditions. A 40-mile paved highway connects the mine with San Luis Obispo, the nearest convenient railroad town.

Jan 1, 1937

By Oliver C. Ralston

[The NOJ'l..metals Division deals wi tt mi:leral n t inte .ded to be used a ra\o,f materials for extraction of metals. ~ _ ereas, a. materinl containing a chromite, if used' for production of c~1r()rrti1..1r.'l ::tetE' .. l or fcrrochromiu"1, 1,oJould be a chromi te ore, if used as 8. rcfrn.cto~J or for prod .1.ction of chromium chemicals, it is a chromi te-beari [. ~?oCl... Li;{eHise, a r:1a&neti te used for production of iron is a metallifero"'..ls ~in8re..i; if used 8.S a water-filtration granule in .:l magne.tically cleaned filter bed, it 'ould be a nonmetallic in-dustrial mineral.]

Jan 1, 1940

By R. L. Castro

The extraction of ore in panel caving operations also involves the coextraction of non-economic material, known as dilution. Forecasting, avoiding, and understanding the mechanics of dilution is critical to longterm planning. The models of dilution that are currently in use in panel caving operations are those by Laubscher (1994), who postulated that dilution is due to gravitational flow and depends on the height of interaction, the column height, and the draw uniformity. This paper presents a back-analysis of extraction and dilution behaviour at Codelco?s El Salvador and Andina Divisions, which use panel caving as a mining method. This analysis was conducted in order to review the existent dilution entry mechanisms and calculation methods. Three sources of dilution were identified. The first source is ?gravitational dilution?, which is due to gravitational flow and mixing as dilution migrates by gravity from a sector located above the panel under analysis. The second source of dilution is ?caving dilution?, which occurs when an air gap is formed in a large area and a sudden propagation of a hang-up occurs, inducing early ingress of waste into the production level from a level above. The third mode observed is ?lateral dilution?, which occurs when the panel is located next to an exhausted sector and the broken material enters the draw column early during draw. In the last two cases, dilution could migrate large distances horizontally. The mine data indicated that draw and caving strategy are key for long-term planning of large panel caves.

Jan 1, 2014

By C. W. Owings

"Coal may be and has been hauled safely at approximately the same cost with permissible2 storage-battery locomotives as with trolley, cable-reel, crab-reel, or nonpermissible storage-battery locomotives. While in general, thinking mining men readily admit the relative safety of the permissible storage-battery locomotive there are some persons who question the safety of this type; however, the greatest opposition to the widespread use of storage-battery locomotives is from those who believe them to be more expensive to operate and to be more expensive in first cost than the trolley or cable-reel locomotive. Data collected during a comprehensive study- of storage-battery and wired transmission of power in some Pennsylvania and West Virginia coal mines indicate that there is but little difference between the cost of hauling with cable-reel or with storage-battery locomotives. It would appear that if this fact were mere generally known mine operators of the more progressive type would install such equipment and avail themselves of greater safety in hauling coal.The need for greater safety in haulage in coal mines is readily understood when it is considered that during the 12 month period, July 1, 1929 to June 30, 1930, trolley or cable reel gathering locomotives caused four explosions in which 407 lives were endangered, 11 persons were injured, and 30 lives were lost. Still another disaster was averted by the vigilance of a fire boss, who discovered a stratum of gas 3 feet thick at the top of an entry into which a gathering locomotive was about to enter. Other explosions not resulting in any fatality probably have not been reported. In addition numerous fires have been caused by trolley or cable-reel locomotives, and these fires probably would have been avoided had permissible storage-battery locomotives been used."

Nov 1, 1930

By William O. Vanderburg

This paper gives the results of a reconnaissance of the mining districts of Mineral County, Nev., made during the month of June and the first 10 days in October 1936.3/ During the field work virtually all the mining districts in the county were visited and many data were obtained relative to active and inactive properties. The report covers the location of the various mining districts, nature of deposits, ownership, information on past and current activity, data on economic conditions, and general information likely to be useful to operators and investors and others interested in mining. The geology of the deposits is discussed only in a general way. For nearly three-quarters of a century mining tin Mineral County has been the principal if not the only industry of importance. At times it has reached a very low ebb, and at other times it has been attended by the wild excitement that usually accompanies valuable discoveries of precious metals.

Jan 1, 1937

By H. G. Miller

The success of any project in which gas is injected into oil-producing sands to increase the current rate or the economic ultimate production of oil or in which surplus gas from oil-producing operations is stored temporarily in reservoir sands that have been wholly or partly depleted of their producible oil depends mainly upon an understanding of the underground movements of oil, water, and injected gas and the ability to control their speed and direction of migration through the reservoir sends. Many operators believe that injected gas always travels up the structure and drives oil to wells structurally higher than the injection wells, because the specific gravity of the injected gas is less than that of the fluid substances in the formation. Consequently, many injection wells are located on the flanks of oil-bearing structures with the idea of utilizing the energy of the injected gas to drive the oil to producing wells higher on the structure. It is true, under certain conditions of pressure and fluid depletion of the reservoir sands that injected gas will move in an up-structure direction, but the theory that injected gas always moves up the structure is based on an erroneous conception of the laws that pertain to the expansion of gases. By definition, "a gas is distinguished by its property of infinite expansion and is limited in volume only by the walls of the vessel which contains it." The expansion of gas that is injected into reservoir sands also is limited by "walls" that surround the space influenced by the injected gas. The walls of the majority of undrilled or virgin oil-bearing reservoirs in California are the impervious shales overlying and underlying the productive strata and the "dams" or effective barriers of edge water around the rims of the reservoirs. When gas is injected into the sands of a producing reservoir, regardless of the location of the injection well on the structure or the degree of depletion of oil from the sands, one of the walls which confine the gas in the structure about the injection well is fluid. This wall will be edge water in a nearly depleted reservoir, where the drainage cones or regions of reduced pressure about injection and producing wells intersect; and, where there is no interference of drainage cones and the injection well is structurally above the edge water, the wall will be oil. In some producing reservoirs bottom water may be the lower wall of the space that confines the gas about injection wells, but the effect of bottom water on limiting the expansion of gas is the same as if the water was not present and impervious formation separated the producing from the underlying nonproducing strata. Therefore, since compressed gas always seeks regions of reduced pressure and its final volume is limited only by formation and fluid barriers and since the force exerted by the gas under pressure is equal in all directions, the course of migration of injected gas in reservoir sands in California and the effect of the gas pressure on fluid movement does not depend necessarily upon the up-structure location of low-pressure regions.

Jan 1, 1932

By William O. Vanderburg

[This circular is one of two papers on the tungsten industry in the United States end contains general information on the subject. The second paper which will be issued in the near future deals with the methods ailed costs of mining and milling tungsten ores. These two papers are abstracts from the general bulletin on tungsten which will be issued at some future time Modern civilization and progress depend largely on tools wherewith the forces of nature are brought under control and directed toward human comfort. These tools are made chiefly from metals derived from the earth's crust. During the present century powerful tools have been made available through the development of ferrous and. nonferrous alloys containing such elements as molybdenum, vanadium, titanium, tantalum, and tungsten, which were little used before 1900. One of the most important of these so-called rare elements is tungsten; its use ins alloys for high-speed cutting tool is partly responsible for the era of mass production. So widespread has the use of alloys become that the period may be termed an "Alloy Age".]

Jan 1, 1935

By E. Adam, B. Milkereit, M. Salisbury, L. E. Reed, G. Perron

Integrating seismic reflection, borehole geophysical, and physical rock property studies is an effective means of mapping lithological contacts and structures in the crystalline crust. At Les Mines Selbaie in the northern volcanic zone of the Late Archean Abitibi Subprovince, a high-frequency seismic reflection profile has provided the first images of deep crustal structures of this important polymetallic mine site. Physical rock property and borehole geophysical studies confirm that prominent seismic reflections can be caused by lithological contacts, faults and sulphide mineralization. At Les Mines Selbaie, the first two of these are shown by this study. Clearly identifiable reflection images from sulphide mineralization have not been demonstrated in analysis of the profile. The seismic images provide useful information about gross structure in the vicinity of Les Mines Selbaie. They can also place important constraints on the sequence of tectonic events and, therefore, can aid future deep exploration programs.

Jan 1, 1997

By Donald R. Alvic

For electric utilities serving the aluminum smelter industry in the United States, sulfur oxide (SOx) abatement legislation could bring about increases in the costs of generating electricity. This paper documents the method and assumptions used in estimating these increases, and the contains the results of the estimation. 1.2 SMELTER INFORMATION The smelters used in this study were identified by the Bureau of Mines (BOM) and are listed in Table 1.1. Also included in Table 1.1 are the electric utilities that serve these smelters. Compliance costs were estimated for these utilities. Some of the utilities are unique in the way that the information is handled or in the way the utility is operated; these are discussed below. 1.2.1 Big Rivers and Associated Co-ops, Data for Big Rivers and Associated Co-ops were gathered by George Mason University (GMU) students for BON and are included in this study.

Jan 1, 1988

By A. E. Raddatz

In an attempt to develop technology to use domestic resources in place of imported bauxita, the Bureau of Mines investigated sulfurous acid leaching to extract alumina from kaolin. The process consists of leaching the calcined kaolin with a 30 wt-pct S02 solution at 60° C and 160 psig for 17 hours, fil¬tering the leach slurry, precipitating monobasic aluminum sulfite from the filtrate at 110° C and 60 psig, a& decomposing the sulfite in the spent liq¬uor at 150° C and 55 psig to produce crude alumina. Purification of the crude alumina was accomplished using a modified Bayer process. Results from closed-circuit tests employing the sulfurous acid process showed that overall extraction of alumina from kaolin was 67 pct. Production of 1 ton of alumina would require 3.6 tons of calcined kaolin, 0.7 ton of sul¬fur dioxide, and 8.4 tons of water. After purification by a modified Bayer process, the alumina product contained the following; impurities, expressed in weight-percent: Fa203, 0.009; S, 3.6; Si02, 0.07; Ti02, 0.002; K20, 0.017; and P205, 0.03.

Jan 1, 1981

By Ulrich Neumann

Mining coal by employing a method called longwall mining is gaining more and more popularity in the United states since it offers many advantages over the conventional deep mining methods. Those advantages are a higher productivity, an almost total extraction of the mineral since no pillars must be left behind for support, and an increase in safety since the personnel are protected by the shield supports and rarely have to work near unsupported, exposed root. However, on some longwalls, the dust levels liberated by various equipment such as belt conveyors, chain conveyors, crushers, longwall shearers, and moving shield supports can exceed the maximum permissible limits and therefore have an adverse effect on productivity. Many attempts have been made over the past years to reduce the dust liberation by changing designs, installing various types of sprays or scrubbers, treating the mine water with wetting agents, or even using foam to catch dust before it becomes airborne. In the year 1984, the Bureau of Mines awarded Eickhoff Corporation a contract to demonstrate a water-jet-assisted cutting system for the multiple purposes of reducing dust levels, improving bit consumption, and increasing material size. During the previous phases of this contract, various trials were conducted aimed to design, build, and test d shearer loader to meet the objective of the contract. In the early stages of the research program, it was expected to see a reduction in the overall power consumption of the machine due to the fact that the high-pressure water jet would pre-cut the mineral in front of the bit. This, in turn, would then reduce the bit wear. Since there is less cutting action performed by the bit, a reduction of the dust liberation and a reduction of product fines was sought.

Jan 1, 1991

By William W. Odell

In Europe and in certain other foreign countries studies have been made, extending over a period of years, relating to the winning of oil from oil shale. More work has been done in these countries than in the United States, for the reason that a supply of natural petroleum has not been so generally available there as here. Information has been obtained relating to present practices in these foreign lands in the development of a shale-oil industry. It is realized that in the past there has been very little inducement to invest capital in shale-oil enterprise in the United State's because the supply of petroleum has been plentiful; however, the time possibly is not far distant when the utilization of oil shale may be cons¬idered a desirable and financially sound venture, as it may be necessary before long to augment our supply of oil with that recovered by processing shale. The data presented herein portrays at least some of the thoughts of those engaged in obtaining oil from oil, shale in Europe, and they depict some of the results thus far obtained as well as certain plans for further efforts to win oil from shale; it is hoped that those who undertake the development of a shale-treating industry in this country will find useful information in this report.

Jan 1, 1946