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By J. A. McAllister

In the course of a study of domestic Manganese resources, 2-ton representative samples of ore were taken by Bureau of Mines' engineers from the Payday claim, Weber County, and the Newcomb-claims, Rich County, Utah. The Payday No. 1 deposit is situated 13 miles northeast of Huntsville, Weber County, Utah. The manganese ore is a. replacement deposit in limestone and consists of manganese oxides imbedded 'in clay and also as the cementing agent consolidating small pebbles and pieces of quartz and limestone.

Jan 1, 1949

By Graham W. Marks

This report is the fourth of a series concerning the development of spectrochemical methods for the analysis of ore samples and related Metallurgical materials by the total-energy method. In this report, the application of this method to the determination of thallium is discussed. This element lies in group III of the periodic tale; one other Clement of this group; indium, has already been investigated.

Jan 1, 1949

By Howard P. Hamlin, John W. Sweeney

Shales from 14 locations in Indiana were sampled , tested , and evaluated to determine feasibility of producing lightweight aggregates by rotary - kiln and sintering methods . Sampling procedures and the geology of the significant shale units are discussed . Preliminary testing was conducted in a muffle furnace , and continuous tests were made in a 16 - inch by 14 - foot rotary kiln . The aggregate weighed 37.0 to 47.2 pounds per cubic foot . Concrete cubes employing the aggregate were tested to determine the qualities of the concrete . Compressive strength of the concrete using seven bags of cement per cubic yard , after autoclave curing for 6 hours , ranged from 3,600 to 5,850 pounds per square inch . Four samples made suitable lightweight aggregate in the laboratory rotary kiln . Four samples tested by sintering methods made unsatisfactory aggregate .

Jan 1, 1965

By Fred C. Turin, Jasinder S. Jaspal, Alan G. Mayton, William J. Wiehagen

This report describes serious injuries occurring to bulldozer operators working at U.S. coal, metal, and nonmetal mines. The period covered is 1988-97. The data were collected by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). A total of 873 injury records are examined. These injuries resulted in 18 fatalities and 31,866 lost workdays. All of these injuries occurred to dozer operators while they were doing common production tasks. An injury classification system was developed to code the narrative information that describes the circumstances surrounding the injuries. Injury records are categorized by activity (task being done), incident result (what apparently happened to the dozer), and operator impact (how the operator was injured). Where information is available, contributing factors are identified. This classification system supplemented the standard injury/illness data classification system compiled by MSHA. The results of the study indicate that, from 1993 to 1997, the number of serious injuries to dozer operators declined by 30%. The reduction in serious injuries was accompanied by a decrease in days lost due to injury. Although the number of reported injuries has decreased, dozer operators being jolted and jarred accounts for the largest percentage (70% of the incidents) and severity (75% of the workdays lost) of serious injuries while operating the equipment. Vertical jars (while backing up the dozer) resulting in injury to the operator accounted for a sizable percentage of jolting and jarring injuries. Working near an edge carries significant risk for fatal injuries. Of 116 incidents where the dozer fell over an edge, rolled over, or fell into a hidden void, 14 (12%) resulted in fatal injuries. In cases where the dozer operator either jumped or was thrown out of the cab in a fall over or rollover, 7 out of 26 were killed. Overall, 80% of the fatalities occurred while working near an edge or hidden void or on a steep slope. Further reductions in injury risk will require more widespread use of seatbelts, field and laboratory research interventions to better assess the effect of alternative engineering (e.g., seat and seat suspension) designs to dampen or isolate the effects of shock and vibration, and continued focus on hazard awareness, recognition, and response.

Jan 4, 2001

By W. J. Kroll

The production of beryllium metal and its alloys is one of the most difficult tasks in metallurgy. In this report we shall examine the progress made in this work- in the last 15 years; taking into account the outstanding publications, including; those of the patent literature, and the information obtained during our 20 years? experience with this metal. The difficulties experienced' in producing elementary beryllium derive from the physical nature as well as from the chemical behavior of the metal and its compounds. Its oxygen affinity is about the same as that of calcium and a little higher than that of magnesium. Its chlorine affinity is much lower than that of magnesium, about equal that, of manganese, and little higher than that of aluminum. The sulfur and nitrogen affinity is probably almost the same as that of calcium for these elements, and beryllium carbide is probably more stable than aluminum carbide, A14C3. The intermetallic affinity of beryllium may be given in descending order, as follows: Nickel - copper - iron. It forms eutectics with -aluminum and silicon as well as with silver. It does not alloy with magnesium and only partly with calcium. Its oxide melts at 2,570° C., but CaO and BaO form readily fusible eutectics with BeO(65).3/ No igneous solvents are known for BeO, which behaves id this regard like Mgo. The beryllium silicate is a strong compound, the aluminete much less so; however, CaO easily displaces Be in the heated mixtures. The Anhydrous chloride hydrolyzes, and it cannot be made from aqueous liquors. It sublimes at 488° C, and melts at 405° C., The fluoride, which, is very Soluble in water, hydrolyzes also, but a kind of oxyfluoride of the approximate formula 2 BeO?5 BeF2 can be made from solutions by dessication. The fluoride melts at 800° C, and boils above 1,100° C. It forms very stable double fluorides with alkalifluorides, which have very low melting points and are fairly soluble in water. They are more stable than the analogous fluosilicates and the sodium fluoaluminate cryolite.

Jan 1, 1945

By R. H. King

A very simple cold-bend test was devised and tested for evaluating thermoplastic jackets used on mine-power-feeder cables. A test sample is bent into a semi-circle whose radius is equal to the minimum bend radius recommended by IPCEA and then cooled to the, desired test temperature (-35°C). While at temperature, the sample is straightened by pulling the cable ends with a winch arrangement. The results show that of the jackets tested, those which cannot withstand the test literally burst when the sample is straightened.

Jan 1, 1978

By Thomas Fraser

About 24 per cent of our total production of bituminous coal is used in industrial power plants. As regards fuel conservation, therefore, the recovery of unburned fuel from furnace refuse presents interesting possibilities. Considerable attention has been given to this problem in the past, but because of the comparatively low initial cost of power plant fuel in the pre-war period little progress, has been made in this direction in the United States. Because of the higher price of coal in Europe more attention has there been given to the problem. In Germany a process has been developed for separating unburned coal in refuse by using an electromagnetic separator In the United States the use of mechanical stokers enabled low-priced screenings of high ash content to be used, so that even with relatively high percentages of combustible material remaining in the refuse, the loss in money is not excessive. If the price of screenings returns to the pre-war level around $1.00 per ton the process proposed here will probably not be especially interesting, except where the freight charges are very high. However, if the price of delivered coal continues high, such a process should result in considerable saving. The cost of continuous operation of such a refuse treating plant should not exceed 75 cents per ton of fuel recovered.

Jan 1, 1921

By David Schlain

"INTRODUCTION Electrolytic manganese is produced by electrolysis of a solution of manganese sulfate and ammonium sulfate in a diaphragm-type cell, metallic manganoese being deposited on the cathodes and sulfuric acid produced at the anodes. The spent electrolyte is used to leach fresh ore that has previously been subjected to a reducing roast; the resulting leach liquor is purified and returned to the cell.The leach liquor produced at the Bureau of Mines pilot plant 3/ at Boulder City, Nev., contains 135 to 140 grams of ammonium sulfate and 32 to 36 grams of manganese (as sulfate) per liter, and has a pH of about 2.5. After neutralization to a pH of 6.4 to 6.6 with ammonia and thickening, 0.10 to 0.15 gram of hydrogen sulfide per liter is added to the liquor to precipitate the heavy metals, and after 15 to 30 minutes the precipitate is filtered off. Residual sulfides and colloidal material are removed by ferric hydroxide formed by adding a small amount of ferrous sulfate to the solution at a pH of 6.5 to 7.0 and passing air through it. The solution is then filtered and clarified as a precoat filter. Finally, 0.1 gram of sulfur dioxide per liter is added, and the solution is electrolyzed in an anode-in-diaphragm cell. The spent electrolyte coming from the cell contains approximately 10 grams manganese, 135 grams ammonium sulfate, and 45 grams sulfuric acid per liter."

Oct 1, 1946

By R. Burrell, N .. L. Lapp

"Except for asthma and pulmonary infections, the types of lung disease that have been of immunologic interest the longest are the various mineral pneumoconioses. Because of their chronicity, type of pathology produced, and well-known immunotoxic properties associated with the dusts inciting them, the pneumoconioses have long drawn attention to the possibility that the immune system has not only been modulated but that its effectors have possibly contributed to their pathogenesis. All of the mineral dusts reviewed here have definite immunomodulating properties and act on various cellular and molecular components of the immune system. Further, each has an immunotoxic potential to induce either hypersensitivity (as in the case of beryllium) or other types of immune injury. This article reviews the immunologic aspects of the four major occupational minerals that have an immunologic impact on the lung: asbestos (particularly chrysotile), silica or quartz, beryllium, and coal mine dust.These agents have many things in common, yet each is distinctive. Although the possibility still exists that these mineral particles can adsorb intrinsic tissue antigens or extrinsic organic antigens to their surfaces and initiate immune responses to the adsorbed antigens, only one, beryllium, can act as an antigen itself. Silica is a profound macrophage toxin and thereby exerts many effects on those factors controlled by macrophages. Asbestos has undergone the most immunologic studies resulting in a much dearer picture of how it may contribute to immunopathology. Coal mine dust is the agent about which least is known immunologically, partly because there is no such thing as purified coal mine dust or a standard by which coal mine dust can be defined. Indeed, there are studies that use only the dust from the ground coal itself, whereas other studies use the total dust collected from air samples of a working mine in the belief that other types of dusts (e.g., silica from roof bolt drilling, from sand ground on the rails by cars, and from surface drilling) contribute to the disease (Figs. 1 to 5). This properly is coal mine dust and is poorly characterized. Yet, workers exposed to these dusts share similar reactive characteristics and they may be considered collectively as well as individually."

Mar 1, 1992

By Earl W. Waay

"Since the beginning of the petroleum industry in 1839, up to within two or three years ago, these has been a dearch of engineers who have had the fundamental technical training also sufficient practical experience so that they could compete with practical men. Need for Technical Investigations in Industry: As in the early stages of the mining industry, the petroleum industry has been rather slow in realizing the need for technical assistance and investigators in the development and production of oil lands. The rapid increase in consumption, however, during the past few years has accentuated this need more than anything else could have done. When it is realized that our production cannot longer keep pace with the demand, it is easily understood why it is imperative that be instituted which will tend to conserve and prolong the supply of oil from the fields now known. It is interesting to note from preliminary production figure given cut by the U. S. Geological Survey, for the year 1919, that the United States produced about 430,000,000 barrels, an increase of 22,000,000 or 6 per cent over 1918 production and also there was imported, chiefly from Mexico, a little over 52,000,000 barrels, making a total of 430,000,000 barrels, to satisfy the trade demand in the United States of which almost 6,000,000 barrels was exported. Stocks were not materially increased.Other significant facts regarding our petroleum industry, are that just recently the U. S. Shipping Board in soliciting bids for 24,000,000 barrels of fad oil to meet prospective needs, received bids for only 1,500,000 barrels at prizes ranging from 75 to 90 per cent higher than was paid last year. One large company on the Pacific Coast has stopped its export trade, and has notified consumers,of gas-engine distillate that they will no longer make deliveries of this product. This will materially affect the farmer, in many instances, through his use of the truck and tractor."

Apr 1, 1920

By Michael S. Miller

In 1985, at the request of the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Mines studied a 50,57U-acre portion of the 90,345-acre Twin Peaks Wilderness Study Area (CA-020-619A) in order to evaluate its identified resources. The area studied is located about 45 miles northeast of Susanville, CA, in Lassen County, CA, and Washoe County, NV. The area is underlain by Tertiary volcanic, volcaniclastic, and intrusive rocks. Quaternary stream, lake, and landslide deposits overlie the older rock. There are no mines or mining claims in the study area. One mineral resource, pozzolan, was identified. Mining claims, inactive in 1985, have been staked adjacent to or near the northwest corner of, and also southeast of, the study area. Examination and sampling of 17 mineralized sites, delineated mostly by prior geochemical surveys, showed at least 30 million tons of subeconomic pozzolan resources and small or low-grade occurrences of gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, nickel, molybdenum, zeolites and clay.

Jan 1, 1986

By D. I. Bleiwas

The Bureau of Mines determined the costs associated with lithium production (in various products) from demonstrated resources in seven market economy countries (MEC's). This analysis evaluated the relative economic and resource position of 16 mines or deposits, including 6 producers and 1 (Bernic Lake) operating at pilot scale. The demonstrated resource of recoverable lithium within the deposits studied is approximately 2.2 million metric tons (mt). Virtually all known MEC resources and production were covered, including resources in Chile (59 pct of the total), the United States (13 pct), Australia (11 pct), Canada (10 pct), and Bolivia, Zaire, and Zimbabwe (combined 7 pct). In addition, the large potential of lithium-enriched brines is assessed, especially those in the Atacama Basin, Chile, where production began in 1984. The lithium resource consists of lithium in spodumene, brines, and to a small extent lepidolite and petalite. Most MEC lithium trade originates from the United States, though development of brine deposits in Chile, and potential development in Bolivia, could threaten the U.S. position. Economic analysis indicated that all lithium being recovered from producing properties could be produced at less than the published market price, and that MEC resources from these properties are adequate to supply any foreseeable demand.

Jan 1, 1986

By Henry E. Perlee

In a Bureau of Mines study two-dimensional mathematical equations were solved that describe the transient thermal response of a rock dust particle in a cloud of similar particles in a gas flame's preheat zone subject to a radiant field from the approaching flame. The description includes both radiant energy absorbed and emitted by the particle and thermal conduction inside the particle and into the surrounding gas environment moving relative to the particle. Two situations were studied; in one the radiant energy incident on the particle is converted to thermal energy at the particle surface, and in the other the radiant energy is converted to thermal energy uniformly over the volume of the particle. The result of the study showed that for a 10-µm-radius particle, a 200-mg 1-1 loading density, and a flame approach velocity of 30 m sec-1, the particle temperature rise was twice that previously calculated by Singer and Cook based on the model of Essenhigh and Csaba. It was further established that under the conditions examined a rock dust particle temperature never increases more than about 200 K before crossing the flame front.

Jan 1, 1976

[RESULTS OF THE PRIMARY CONVENTIONAL PERFORMANCE AND COST MODEL OF THE UNIT OPERATIONS OF UNDERGROUND PERCUSSIVE DRILLING AND BLASTING]

Jan 1, 1977

By A. D. Mah

To assist Bureau of Mines research in extractive metallurgy and to add to the thermodynamic data base useful to others, energy calculations were made for 63 reactions relating to investigations on the production of anhydrous aluminum chloride from chlorination of clay.

Jan 1, 1982

By R. D. Groves

Techniques were developed for preparing metallurgical-grade copper powder from industrially produced cement copper. Flotation was used for rejecting discrete gangue particles, acid leaching to remove residual iron and aluminum, hydrogen reduction to eliminate oxygen, sintering to consolidate the fine-sized copper, and grinding to obtain copper powder. Powders prepared from six different cement copper samples contained, in percent, 98.5 to 99.0 Cu, 0.10 to 0.05 Fe, 0.10 to 0.08 insoluble material and the remaining individual impurities less than 0.15 percent. The apparent density, flow characteristics, and other physical properties were suitable for powder metallurgy applications. An economic evaluation showed that this process was economically feasible. Processing costs appeared modest when considering that copper powder commands a price normally about 17.5 cents per pound over that of electrolytic copper.

Jan 1, 1971

By S. P. Kinney

The efficient operation of a blast furnace is primarily dependent upon efficient contact between the descending stream of solid materials and the ascending stream of gas. The United States Bureau of dines is conducting a program of research dealing with the interior of the present-day furnace. The work is being carried oat by.(1) observations on commercial furnaces end (2) experiments in the laboratory. Through the courtesy of the officials of the Illinois Steel Co. it was possible to make a detailed investigation of the interior of the shaft of Number.4 furnace at the company's South Works, South Chicago, Ill. The experimental work is to be reported in a U. S. Bureau of Mines bulletin which will include the results of several thousand observations on the interior of the shaft of this furnace. Such of the data as are presented later in this paper constitute only a brief summary.

Jan 1, 1929

By d&apos, Kathleen J. Amico

THIS SUMMARY is identical to the summary given in volume III of this series of mineral production in the United States (including Alaska and Hawaii), its island possessions, the Canal Zone, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and of the principal minerals imported into and exported from the United States. For further details on production see commodity and area chapters. A summary table comparing world and United States mineral production also is included. Mineral production may be measured at any of several stages of extraction and processing. The stage of measurement used in the chapter is normally what is termed "mine output." It usually refers [ ]

Jan 1, 1958

By R. H. Lien

The Bureau of Mines developed a flue gas desulfurization process as part of its goal of minimizing the undesirable environmental impacts associated with energy and mineral-processing plants. The modified citrate process involves absorption of sulfur dioxide (S02) in a buffered citric acid solution. The S02-loaded solution is regenerated by countercurrent contact with steam in a packed tower. The wet S02 product is then dried and can be liquefied or further processed to make sulfuric acid. Test data from process investigation unit studies are presented. Material balances, flowsheets, and cost estimates are given for recovering S02 from copper smelter reverberatory gas, lead smelter sintering machine tail gas, and power-plant stack gas. Operating cost estimates show the process will add $0.04 per pound of copper, $0.01 per pound of lead, and $0.015 per kwhr to the cost of the respective operations. These costs could be substantially reduced if a source of waste heat was avail-able to provide the process steam requirements.

Jan 1, 1982

By W. H. Blackburn

This paper describing the milling practice at the Tybo concentrator is one of a series of similar papers being prepared by the United States Bureau of Mines on milling methods and costs at the various mills in the United States. ACKNOWLEDGMENT A large part of this paper way prepared by H. M. Lewers, mill superintendent of the Tybo plant of the Treadwell Yukon Co., Ltd.

Jan 1, 1931