Search Documents

By Thomas Egleston

The process of lixiviating silver ores, which do or do not contain gold, by means of hyposnlphite of soda is likely to assume a very great importance in the West, the conditions being such that while it is applicable to very rich ores which do not contain lead enough to smelt, it is also equally applicable to many ores that are either too poor or too impure to be treated by any other process. Western ores are generally divided into four classes: those which contain copper enough to be smelted for copper, from which the gold and silver is extracted in the wet way, as is the practice of the Boston and Colorado works; those in which there is a large quantity of lead, which can be smelted for lead, and the gold and silver extracted from it; ores in which there is neither copper nor lead enough to allow of a process of smelting, but which can be treated in pans, these ores being " free milling " if they require no metallurgical treatment, or '(rebellious" if they have to be roasted with or without the addition of salt; and ores which do not contain enough either of lead or copper for smelting, which are poor both in silver and gold, contain large amounts of sulphur, arsenic, and antimony, and cannot be treated in many places in the West by any of these processes. Roasting with salt would convert the base metals as well as the silver into chlorides, and would give in the amalgamation a very base bullion, and the expense of the process would be SO great that the margin of profit would be very small, the reason being that for the ordinary process of pan-amalgamation, which is the only one suitable for ores containing small amounts of the base metals, and poor in silver and gold, the cost of a plant for milling is so large as not to justify the expense of treating such ores. The electrolytic processes which have been partially successful in Europe have not been tried 'here. While in the near future they will undoubtedly be used, it is hardly possible to consider them now.

Jan 1, 1884

By W. A. Straw

IN the manufacture of telephone apparatus a number of nonferrous sheet metals are blanked and formed to produce a wide variety of parts, which are generally small in size because of space and weight requirements. Many are given sharp bends in forming, so that they may be assembled into compact units. This study covered sheet metal of the alloys of brass, phosphor bronze and nickel silver that are most extensively used by our company. In general, the sheets range from 0.005 to 0.100 in. in thickness and from 1/4 hard to extra spring temper in hardness. As many parts function as flat springs, and others require the maximum stiffness for structural reasons, a large percentage of the metal is used in the hard and spring tempers. So, because of the necessity for the minimum radius of bend consistent with the maximum in hardness, there has been a need for information as to the forming characteristics of these sheet metals in the various alloys, tempers and thicknesses. The literature yields relatively little regarding such forming characteristics, so that designers of apparatus and tools have been largely dependent upon past experience or tool tryouts for guidance. In presenting tabular data intended as a basis for selecting the temper of the metal and radius of the bend, we recognize the influence of many other factors which are not covered in this study. For example, the angle of the bend and conditions of the metal, such as grain size and presence of impurities, as well as conditions of the fabricating process, such as rate of forming and adjustment of the tools, may all affect the result. In addition, a bumping operation subsequent to forming, which is frequently used to set the bend, increases the strain on the metal. We wish to emphasize the fact that this is not considered a scientific investigation of the formability of materials or an attempt to correlate forming, characteristics with various other properties of the metals, except in so far as such properties are controlled by commercial limits on composition and temper.

Jan 1, 1931

By Clarence Merritt

STAINLESS iron, as mild stainless steel is usually called, an alloy ranging from 11.50 to 15.00 per cent chromium with carbon under 0.12 per cent, has been considered to be not appreciably affected in respect to corrosion resistance by heat treatment. This metal, while one of the most widely used of the "straight" chromium stainless alloys, has failed in many applications because of insufficient information regarding heat treatment. These failures have been attributed to many possible causes from an inherent lack of resistance to corrosion and misapplication to mysterious electrolytic effects or comparatively minute non-metallic inclusions. Many uses for a steel with such excellent physical properties is are latent in this alloy have been lost on account of corrosion failures which could have been avoided by applying proper heat treatment. The alloy has not received the recognition or attention it should because of the fact that' the details of its metallurgical behavior were not thoroughly understood. Response to heat treatment of the steel is well known as regards tensile properties, 1,2 but its application has been for improvement in tensile characteristics or on account of machining considerations rather than for corrosion prevention. The potential user of this steel has not been clearly advised in papers, either technical or commercial, that have been written about it in the last 10 years or more, of particular features that are of prime importance in developing the excellent properties of this metal. The data to be presented in this paper are concerned mainly with the effect of heat treatment on the corrosion resistance, but a study has also been made of the concurrent microstructural changes and an explanation developed for the phenomena revealed, as well as a correlation to the other physical properties-hardness, tensile characteristics and impact strength. Stainless steel, largely used for cutlery purposes, an alloy of approximately 13.00 per cent Cr with 0.30 per cent C, must be hardened and the surface prepared by polishing or pickling for best resistance to staining and corrosion.3 Monypenny reports that a loss of hardness is

Jan 1, 1932

By Adrien Berton

For nearly a century, the Corocoro deposit has been renowned among geologists from the fact that it shares with the Lake Superior deposits of the United States the distinction of being the only important copper districts where native copper is worked commercially. The Corocoro district, named after the city of Corocoro, the capital of the Province of Pacajes (Department of La Pas, Bolivia) is situated towards the western edge of the Bolivian high plateau, at an altitude of a little over 13,000 ft. The most interesting part of the district is that immediately surrounding the city of Corocoro, at a distance, by railway, of 65 miles from La Paz and 210 miles to the Chilean port of Arica on the Pacific Coast. The climate of the region is that of the semi-desert, dry and relatively cold, with big differences of temperature between day and night. The rainy season begins in December and ends in March. The cupriferous lodes of Corocoro have not attracted as much interest as the silver mines of Potosi but they have been known for a long time. In the precolonial period the Indians were using the charquis, or natural native copper sheets, to make small brass objects, and the beautiful pale green brochantite of the outcrops as a source of green pigments. During the colonial period, the oxidized ores of the outcrops were worked for copper, which was used by the mint at Potosi for making currency. The native copper ores were neglected because the Spanish miners were at a loss how to concentrate and smelt them. About 1830, work by rudimentary processes, which were improved little by little, was begun on the native copper ores. The total production of native copper in the following hundred years amounted to 100,000 tons. This native copper, which was remarkably pure, was much appreciated on the European markets before the introduction of electrolytic copper. It was useful for making special ornamental brass or bronze and the granular concentrates of native copper, called barrilla, containing 80 to 85 per cent copper were suitable for making copper sulfate by direct oxidation and subsequent leaching with sulfuric acid.

Jan 1, 1937

By C. G. Bieber, J. R. Mihalisin, R. T. Grant

A growing demand for longer service life of gas turbines has placed increasingly rigorous requiret~rents upon superalloys employed for that application. Long-titne testing at high temperature has revealed that phase transformations occur in all superalloys. A common one of particular interest is o formation. Presented here are studies made to identify a and to characterize its formation and effect on properties in three cast nickel-base superalloys—IN 100 alloy, alloy 713C, and alloy 713LC. Methods are discussed by which o can be eliminated or inhibited in IN 100 alloy and alloy 713C. Evidence was obtained to indicate that some types of o may be more detrimental than others. Limitations in the electron vacancy approach to o prevention are pointed out, and it is shown how alternative approaches, such as reducing a complex superalloy matrix to the form of a pseudo-ternary system permitting equilibrium diagram treatment, lead to additional insights into the formation of in these alloys. AROUND 1960. Beiber1 developed IN 100 alloy, which still remains one of the strongest commercially available nickel-base superalloys. The principle used in the design of this alloy was to produce large quantities of y' phase in a y matrix through the use of copious amounts of aluminum and titanium. In 1963, ROSS' showed that when certain heats of this alloy were held for a long time at 1650°F they formed an acicular phase, subsequently identified as a.3 a is a hard and brittle phase first discovered in the Fe-Cr system by Bain and Griffiths.4 They termed it the "B" constituent. Subsequently this same phase was found in other systems, primarily those of the transition elements, and acquired the name "a" by which it is now known. The crystal structure of the a phase was first determined in the Fe-Cr system in 1950.5 It was shown to be tetragonal with a c/a ratio of about 0.52. as is the case with a found in other systems. This characteristic crystal structure is now the means by which a is identified. In superalloys, such as IN 100 alloy. large amounts of o impair the high-temperature creep strength and drastically reduce room-temperature tensile ductility. Discovery of o phase in some heats of IN 100 alloy quickly led to investigations of other superalloys for similar transformations. It was found that many of the stronger, more highly alloyed. super-alloys were indeed susceptible to o formation. This investigation has been concentrated on three commercial alloys: IN 100 alloy, alloy 713C, and alloy 713LC. J.R.MIHALISIN,MemberAIME, and C.G.BIEBER are with The International Nickel Co., Inc., Paul D. Merica Research Laboratory, Sterling Forest, Suffern, N. Y. R. T. GRANT, Member AIME, is with The International Nickel Co., Inc., Pittsburgh, Pa. Manuscript submitted May 22. 1968. IMD A detailed study has been made of the phase transformations and their relation to a formation along with a consideration of electron vacancy approaches for predicting a-forming propensity in these alloys. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Phase transformations were studied by light and electron microscopy, electron diffraction, microprobe investigations, and X-ray diffraction. Specimens for light micrographic examination were prepared by conventional grinding and polishing followed by etching with glyceregia (2:l HC1/HNO3 + 3 glycerine by volume). Photomicrographs of stress-rupture specimens were taken adjacent to the fracture unless otherwise noted in the text. Negative replicas for electron microscopy were taken from surfaces electropolished with a solution of 15 pct H2SO4 in methanol. For carbon extraction replication, a solution of 10 pct HC1 in methanol was used. A Siemens Elmiskop I was used for all electron microscopy. Selected-area diffraction studies were made at 80 kv using evaporated aluminum for standardizing the patterns. A nondispersive electron microprobe attachment was used to analyze the extracted precipitates chemically. The fluorescent X-rays were recorded using a flow counter containing P10 gas (90 pct Ar-10 pct methane) with a beryllium window and a single-channel pulse-height analyzer. The pulses from the analyzer were passed to a scaler-ratemeter and differential curves of counting rate vs pulse amplitude were obtained. The base line of the analyzer was driven with a synchronous motor at 0.5 v per min and a channel width of 0.5 v. The time for 105 counts was printed out for each 0.5-v increment. The microscope was operated at 80 kv with beam currents of 1 to 20 pa. This equipment detects elements from atomic number 13 to 40. X-ray diffraction studies were usually made on residues electrolytically extracted in 10 pct HC1 in H2O, although in one case a pattern was obtained from an etched surface of a metallographic specimen. A Siemens Crystalloflex IV was used with iron-filtered CoKa radiation. X-ray patterns were recorded using a goniometer speed of : deg per min. The scintillation counter and pulse-height analyzer operated at a channel height of 10 v and a channel width of 12 v. The equipment was calibrated with a powdered gold standard. The residues usually contained a number of phases. several of which could not be found in the ASTM card file. In addition, as is shown for the case of a phase in IN 100 alloy, other phases had a somewhat different lattice parameter from that reported in the ASTM card file, making it difficult to separate and identify constituents by comparison with ASTM d spacings. For these reasons, phases were identified on the basis of the lattice parameter obtained by indexing the ob-

Jan 1, 1969

By S. R. Krogh, T. O. Olsen

Analytical expressions for the breakage rate as functions of mill charge, mill speed, particle size, ball diameter, and ball load are derived, using idealized models for probability of breakage (Gaudin and Meloy), energy distribution (Mempel), and arithmetic mean of effective ball energy (Langemanns). Computational results using the theoretical equations are compared to experiments. The equations enable simulation of ball mill grinding at different grinding conditions.

Jan 1, 1973

By I. Iwasaki, K. A. Smith

A chlorination process for treating metal sulfide flotation concentrates is described. The process involves low temperature chlorination combined with sulfur chloride conversion and selective oxidation to produce nonferrous metal chlorides, elemental sulfur, and ferric oxide in a three-stage fluidized bed reactor. The nonferrous metal chlorides may then be water leached, separated, purified, and electrolyzed to recover copper and nickel metals and to regenerate chlorine for recycling.

Jan 1, 1986

By S. K. Ghosh

This paper discusses how the information on ash composition, ash-fusion temperatures, and ash-slag viscosity can be used to predict slagging and fouling potentials of a particular coal. A review of several empirical parameters that are commonly used for determining such potentials is given. Also, some guideline values for interpreting the relative propensity of slagging and fouling of various types of coal are provided.

Jan 1, 1986

By C. W. Ryan

THIS paper contains a brief sketch of the geology of soapstone in the Piedmont section of Virginia, in the southern portion of Nelson County; also a description of methods of prospecting, developing quarries, quarrying and and milling methods in that section. The paper is intended for those who have little information regarding soapstone; undoubtedly men of practical experience will find many points for criticism.

Jan 1, 1929

By J. Fred, Johnson

THIS TALK is a digest of some of the information contained in tables, one on practices and one on costs of shaft sinking, in Bulletin 357 of the U. S. Bureau of Mines written by E. D. Gardner, Supervising Engineer of the Bureau at Tucson, and myself. The table of practices contains information on 43 shafts and the table of costs contains information on 25 shafts. These various shafts were sunk between 1917 and 1930 so they may be termed modern practice with costs applicable in the United States, Canada and Mexico. In the compilation of this material the statistics on shafts which were concreted have been eliminated, as these figures were entirely out of line with corresponding figures for timbered shafts. It is my experience that where costs are divided between sinking and concreting the tendency is to load the costs onto the larger item of concreting. Thus a shifting of costs making an addition of 10 per cent in concreting costs may suffice to make a deduction of 40 per cent in sinking costs. Fine work is done (on the books) and everybody is happy. Most shafts are sunk with three shifts of men per day. Each shift consists of men who are miners, muckers, or timbermen, as chance may call for during their shift. Where pumping or high fixed costs do not necessitate three shifts it is cheaper to sink on two shifts. It is desirable for speed and economy in any case to work out a cycle of operations for each 24 hours. In this way men are hired for their ability as machinemen, muckers, or timbermen; they know exactly what to do and there is no passing the buck to the next shift.

Jan 1, 1933

By Luther W. Bahney

(San Francisco Meeting, October, 1911.) LIME is the alkali that is almost universally added to the solutions in the cyanide process of gold- and silver-extraction for maintaining the so-called, protective" alkalinity. It is produced by the burning of limestone. The value of lime for this purpose depends upon the percentage of calcium oxide contained, which is determined by three factors : 1, purity of the limestone used; 2, degree of the burning-temperature and the period of burning; and 3, length of time of storage of burned material and the condition stored, and whether it has been damp or wet during the storage. These three factors render uncertain the quality of lime bought in the open market. In the United States, lime bought from reliable manufacturers, who thoroughly burn a pure limestone and deliver at once to the consumer from the kilns, may be of a fairly-high and uniform composition ; but in Mexico and Central America, where it is purchased from many small producers, who often start with a poor grade of limestone and burn it in small crude kilns with as little fuel as possible, the quality of the product is quite variable. In consideration of the foregoing, it is apparent at once that there is a great need for a rapid technical method for the valuation of the lime to be used in a cyanide-plant. The determination of calcium by the gravimetric method, with the necessity of determining also the proportion of carbon dioxide, silica, and iron, requires too much time, and is usually out of the question for an isolated plant unequipped with a skilled chemist and, the necessary apparatus. The calculating of all the calcium so found to calcium oxide, although sometimes done, is manifestly very inaccurate.

Nov 1, 1911

1. Healthy and active Local Section organizations are vital factors in promoting the vigor and growth of the Institute. 2. Activity on the part of Local Sections should be recognized and stimulated by appropriation of funds from the Institute's treasury; and these appropriations should be as large as is consistent with the relative needs for other activities. 3. As between different Sections, the amount of such appropriations should be based primarily on the extent of activities as reflected in the number and character of meetings held and the attendance of the members at such meetings. 4. In making a request for funds for any year, the officers of a Local Section should submit a report on the printed form approved by the Directors at their meeting on November 19, 1937. 5. A standing Committee on Local See-

Jan 1, 1943

POSITIONS VACANT (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) Two metallurgical chemists for permanent positions in Siberia; one man to have charge of laboratory dealing with the products of a mill working silver-lead-zinc ores, the other to have charge of laboratory in connection with smelting these products. Established camp; living conditions and climate good. Married men preferred. No. 57. An electro-metallurgist for small zinc plant now under construction. Moderate salary to start but likelihood of substantial increase if plant proves successful. No. 58. Assistant engineer in office of consulting engineer for large mining and smelting company. Man desired with technical education and broad experience in mechanical line in connection with mining and smelting operations, capable of taking charge of office and drafting room. No. 59.

Jan 1, 1916

1 Healthy and active Local Section organizations are vital factors in promoting the vigor and growth of the Institute 2 Activity on the part of Local Sections should be recognized and stimulated by appropriation of funds from the Institute's treasury, and these appropriations should be as large as is consistent with the relative needs for other activities 3 As between different Sections, the amount of such appropriations should be based primarily on the extent of activities as reflected in the number and character of meetings held and the attendance of the members at such meetings 4 In making a request for funds for any year, the officers of a Local Section should submit a report on the printed form approved by the Directors at their meeting on November 19, 1937 5 A standing Committee on Local See-

Jan 1, 1952

EXPLORATION U.S. 4,065,972 - Exploration for subsurface ore bodies of uranium. mercury or other inorganic or organic minerals having specific gases associated thereto Small gas sample containers are planted in a plurality of shallow holes in the surface of the earth in a predetermined pattern and left in place for a period of time sufficient to collect migrating gases. Each container includes a gas collection chamber and means for admitting gases at a predetermined flow rate. Strips of detector material which is sensitive to specific gases are mounted in the collection chamber. Recovered containers are subjected to qualitative and quantitative analysis. F. W Holub and H. W. Alter, assigned to Terradex Corp Jan. 3, 1978. 9 pp (73-421 5R) Filed 5-24-76 (689,710) Same. British 1,498,737, dated Jan. 25, 1978

Jan 1, 1979

1. Healthy and active Local Section or¬ganizations are vital factors in promoting the vigor and growth of the Institute. 2. Activity on the part of Local Sections should be recognized and stimulated by appropriation of funds from the Insti¬tute's treasury; and these appropriations should be as large as is consistent with the relative needs for other activities. 3. As between different Sections, the amount of such appropriations should be based primarily on the extent of activities as reflected in the number and character of meetings held and the attendance of the members at such meetings. 4. In making a request for funds for any year, the officers of a Local Section should submit a report on the printed form approved by the Directors at their meeting on November 19, 1937. 5. A standing Committee on Local Sec-

Jan 1, 1944

At its meeting on February 21, 1933, the Board of Directors passed the following resolution defining and expressing the policy of the Institute with respect to official participation or action in controversial matters: WHEREAS, the Board of Directors at its last meeting passed the following resolution : "The Board of Directors, having been appealed to by several Local Sections for advice concerning the attitude and policy of the Institute relating to the endorsement of candidates for public office, the following statement of policy is formulated: "Whereas, the American Institute of Miming and Metallurgical Engineers is organized for purely professional and scientific purposes, and whereas diversity of opinion among its members on partisan or political questions is inevitable, it is the ex- pressed policy of the Institute to refrain from official participation or action in political and semi-political matters."

Jan 1, 1946

POSITIONS VACANT (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) Metallurgist wanted for research in iron and steel. Man with experience in mills preferred. Salary $4,000. No. 13. Opening for a few technical graduates to act as instructors in mining to men at the mines under the supervision of the State mine inspector. Salary $1,800 per year. No. 14. ENGINEERS AVAILABLE (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) Mining engineer and metallurgist open for engagement, as superintendent of mines or constructing engineer. Technically educated, with 14 years' experience in United States and Latin America in concentration, amalgamation, cyaniding, constructing. Just finished building large modern all-sliming cyanide mill in Central America. No. 18.

Jan 4, 1914

By W. L. Falke, A. A. Cochran

Vast deposits of low-grade manganese ore exist in the United States, yet domestic production is insignificant compared to the more than 2 million tons of ore imported yearly into this country.1 A basic problem in connection with manganese is to find economical ways to utilize domestic resources.2 As a part of its program to conserve domestic mineral resources and to reduce dependence on foreign sources, the U.S. Bureau of Mines has conducted extensive research to broaden manganese technology and to find economical processes for recovering manganese from these low-grade resources. Although a great many processes have been proposed for treating domestic manganese resources, a failing of many of them is that too many steps are involved for economical operation.2 Some of the major processes that have been proposed were reviewed by Norman and Kirby.3,4

Jan 3, 1967

NOTHING makes the run-of-the-hall Congressman feel quite so secure as to be on an investigating committee. It's sure fire publicity for one thing and is a convenient excuse for absence from Congressional sessions when controversial issues are being balloted. The minerals procurement program has just had a thorough investigation by Congressmen of the House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee who heard valuable testimony from men like John D. Morgan, director of materials procurement, DPA. He listed over 40 government agencies concerned with mineral affairs. Testimony disclosed the justification for many of the agencies but Congressmen and mine operators have been regarding the defense minerals program in the same light as did the mining student who remarked to the descriptive geometry prof "it's not the intrinsic difficulty of the problem which gives me trouble; it's the multiplicity of detail."

Jan 9, 1951