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By D. G. RUNNER

Information Circular 6148R, " Selected Bibliography of Minerals and Their Identification ," was issued in June 1929 , revised in July 1937, and again in October 1938. The popularity of this circular , combined with the desire to make it more comprehensive , has occasioned the preparation of this compilation of references . Where possible , date of publication , publisher, current price , and number of pages are given, although prices are subject to change at intervals . The references are grouped under the following headings : minerals , gems , rocks , geology, geomorphology, engineering geology , prospecting, mining . engineering, microscopy, technical dictionaries , and miscellaneous . For ready reference, the authors ' names are arranged alphabetically under each grouping . This list is not comprehensive, but contains only those references in most common use and which are generally available in public college libraries .

Sep 1, 1949

By Walter R. Storms

This paper , which describes the mining methods and costs at the Atwood copper mine in the Lordsburg ( Virginia ) Mining District of Hidalgo County , N. Mex . , is one of a series being prepared by the Mining Division of the Bureau of Mines on mining practices , methods , and costs in various mining districts of the United States . The mine and surface plant are situated in the west half of sec . 7 , T. 23 S. , R. 18 W. , about 3 miles by road southwest of the center of Lordsburg , near the old abandoned townsite of Valedon ( see fig . 1 ) . The main line of the Southern Pacific Railroad passes through Lordsburg , as does the paved eastwest U. S. Highway 70-80 . A spur line of the Southern Pacific ends near the mine . A good graded road connects the mine with Lordsburg . The following pages present a brief history of the district , describe the geology , and outline methods of prospecting and exploration, including sampling and estimations of tonnages and values . Development, and mining methods are explained , and transportation , ventilation , drainage ,. safety measures , and organization are described . The wage scale and costs of development and mining comprise the corrcluding sections of this circular .

May 1, 1949

By J. J. Bourquin

"The Keely mine at Dagger, Indiana, is one of the few mines that is being operated successfully on a cooperative basis. This shaft mine is developing 133 acres of coal in the Indiana No. 6 bed, which here averages 5-1/2 feet thick and. lies about 110 feet below the surface. Thirty seven (37) miners and twenty (20) company men or day man are employed, and the daily output is around 300 tons. Practically the entire production is sold by contract for railroad use. No mining machines are used and all coal is produced by pick work.The mine was originally owned and operated by the Stockton Coal. Co. of Dugger, but about eight years ago it was leased to Mr. Roy Price. He sub-leased the property to ten miners, who formed an association known as the Dugger Mutual Coal and Mining Co., to work the mine cooperatively.At first many difficulties were encountered; the cooperative idea is an old one, but the practice was new to those interested. Some of the men were energetic, ambitious workers; others were inclined to let their associates produce the coal but wanted to share in the profits. In time, after a hard struggle and many changes in the personnel of the company, business-like methods were adopted and the mine was put on a paying basis."

Feb 1, 1983

Provide ear protection which allows normal, unaltered hearing at low noise levels, yet protects the wearer from excessive noise. The Approach: A commercial earmuff with integral speakers has been adapted with a special amplifier so that low sound levels are not affected, but higher noise levels automatically reduced. How It Works: The discriminating earmuff developed by the Bureau of Mines has two modes of operation. In the first mode, where input sound levels are less than or equal to 83 decibels, the wearer will perceive noise at its actual level. For inputs in excess of 83 decibels, the second mode of operation begins and the sound perceived by the wearer is progressively attenuated, or reduced, as the input level is increased. A recognizable difference still exists between two adjacent sound levels enabling the wearer to differentiate between them.

Jan 1, 1975

Predict the spontaneous combustion potential of a mining operation using an expert system computer program.

Jan 1, 1994

By Lloyd A. Morley, Robert Stefanko

This report was prepared by The Pennsylvania State University, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, ' Department of Mineral Engineering, University Park, Pennsylvania, under USBM Grant No. GO-133077. The grant was initiated under the Coal Mine Health and Safety Research Program. It was administered under the technical direction of the Pittsburgh Mining and Safety Research Center with Mr. G. J. Conroy acting as the technical project officer. Mr. J. A. Herickes was the grant administrator for the Bureau of Mines. This report is a summary of the work recently completed as part of this grant during the period 19 June, 1973 to 17 June, 1975. This report was submitted by the authors on 18 July, 1974. This technical report has been reviewed and approved.

Jan 1, 1974

"INTRODUCTIONThe information compiled in this volume initially formed the response by the Generic Mineral Technology Center for -Respirable Dust (GTCRD) to a review of its research and technology transfer programs performed in 1990 by the Advisory Committee on Mining and Mineral Resources Research. This review for each mineral technology research center is accomplished, as required of the Bureau of Mines by the House/Senate Joint Conference Committee, through site visitation to the research institutions of the GTCRD and an in-depth questionnaire. The information provided by that questionnaire becomes an important factor in their recommendations concerning future directions of the program.The site visitations took place during January and February 1991 at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center~ The Pennsylvania State University, West Virginia University, University of Minnesota, and Michigan Technological University, in addition to an in-mine visit conducted at the Loveridge Mine in West Virginia. The questionnaire was prepared and made available to the Advisory Committee and the Research Council for their review at the GTCRD annual project review meeting in Hershey, Pennsylvania, in April 1991.The comprehensive nature of the questionnaire and the scope of the information contained therein make it an excellent retrospective of the Center. Having a clear vision of where the Center has been and knowing where it is now helps to guide it into the future. It is believed that such a detailed view of the Center's facilities and research program will be of value to Center personnel and Advisory Committee members. Each aspect of the questionnaire was examined, answered in detail and documented thoroughly. With the completed questionnaire as a guide, this review of the Center's activities provides an update to Respirable Dust Center Research Program Review 1988, published in 1989 as the seventh of the Generic Mineral Technology Center for Respirable Dust volumes. As does that volume, this review presents the complete General Mineral Technology Center questionnaire, with the GTCRD's expanded responses and supporting documentation appended. An examination of the research program, Center personnel currently active on GMTC projects, the number of graduate degrees granted with GMTC supports GMTC publications, the degree of individual interaction, technology transfer activities, the reference center, GMTC equipment and facilities, and envisioned plans for future research directions provides updated information in these areas. In addition, this year, information has been included to demonstrate the interaction between the Center's goals and its research projects, with thorough consideration of actual research needs as specified by the National Academy of Sciences. This volume serves as a review of the years 1989 through 1990, the sixth and seventh years of the Center's operation."

Jan 1, 1990

By Isaac A. Zlochower

This paper presents data on the limiting (minimum) oxygen concentration (LOC), in the presence of added N2, of methane (CH4), propane (C3H8), ethylene (C2H4), carbon monoxide (CO), and hydrogen (H2), and some of their binary mixtures. It also addresses the issue of the flammable concentration (flammability) limits of these pure gases in air. The study is based on spark ignited explosions in large, spherical laboratory vessels (120-L and 20-L) using a 7% pressure-rise criterion for explosion propagation. The results of the study are compared with the older values which used long flammability tubes with a diameter >5 cm together with visual evidence of substantial upward propagation. They are also compared to results reported recently using a 12-L spherical flask with a visual flame propagation criterion. Finally, they are compared to results reported in Europe using more modest flammability criteria and smaller chambers. The findings reported here show excellent agreement between the 120-L and 12-L results, good agreement with the 20-L results, and reasonable agreement with the earlier flammability tube values for the lower flammability limits. They disagree, however, with the more conservative European values. These results and those from the 12-L experiments also feature lower LOCs than are given by traditional flammability tubes. A model for the LOCs of such fuel mixtures based on the Le Chatelier mixture rule for lower flammable limits is seen to reasonably fit the observed results on binary mixtures and can accommodate more complex mixtures as well. One such set of ternary mixtures containing CH4 and 1:1 CO:H2 is well fitted by the model.

Jan 1, 2009

By Alex C. Smith

This report describes laboratory studies conducted by the Bureau of Mines to evaluate the effectiveness of 10 additives to inhibit the self-heating of coal. Aqueous additive solutions were applied to a bituminous coal with a high spontaneous combustion potential, and the minimum self-heating temperatures (SHT's) of the dried coal-additive mixtures were determined in the Bureau's adiabatic heating oven. The relative effectiveness of the additives was determined by the observed changes in the minimum SHT's of the mixtures, or by the time required for the sample temperature to reach 150" C, compared with the untreated coal and a coal-water blank. Sodium nitrate, sodium chloride, and calcium carbonate were found to be the most effective inhibitors, followed by ammonium dihydrogen phosphate, calcium chloride, ammonium chloride, sodium acetate, and potassium chloride. Two additives, sodium formate and sodium phosphate, promoted the self-heating process. Differential scanning calorimetry experiments on the coal-additive mixtures showed that reactions occurred between the coal and some of the additives, but these reactions did not influence the self-heating process.

Jan 1, 1988

By Joseph A. DeCarlo

This information circular presents data for 1960 on individual coke plants in the United States. All oven-coke plants in existence, whether active or idle at the close of the year, are listed in this report. With two exceptions, only beehive plants on which reports were submitted to the Bureau of Mines are included. Although the Bureau was unable to obtain reports from these two active plants in 1960, the number of ovens and annual coke capacity are estimates, based on previous reports filed with the Bureau of Mines. Accordingly, there were 73 oven-coke plants in existence at the end of 1960 of which 70 were active. Reports were received on 44 beehive plants of which only 13 were in operation at year end. Oven-coke plants are listed alphabetically by States in table 1 which shows the name and address of the company, location of plant, classification or type of ownership, number and type of ovens, annual coke capacity, and coal-chemical materials produced. The terms "furnace" and "merchant" plants used in this and all other reports of the Bureau of Mines designate the type of ownership. Furnace plants are those owned by iron and steel companies whose main business is production of coke for use in their own blast furnaces. Merchant plants are those associated with chemical companies, gas utilities, as well as those that produce for sale on the open market metallurgical, industrial, and residential-heating grades of coke and coal-chemical materials. The annual coke capacity shown for each plant in this table is based on the minimum coking time necessary to produce coke with qualities suitable for its intended use. Therefore, the annual capacity of a plant may change from year to year, depending on age and condition of ovens, the character and quality of coal carbonized, the grade of coke required, and other factors. For example, annual coke capacity of a coke plant primarily making foundry coke with longer coking cycles would be lower than one making blast-furnace coke. Also some ovens must be operated at slightly lower than normal flue temperature because of the condition of the refractories and maximum capacity would be somewhat lower than designed capacity. For this reason, the capacity reported to the Bureau of Mines may differ from the designed or rated capacity estimated by the coke-oven builders at the time of construction. For example, if the generally accepted standard coking rate of one inch per hour were used on all ovens to calculate total annual capacity, it would have been 80.4 million tons or 2 percent higher than the capacity reported to the Bureau. Because of the factors mentioned above, the annual coke capacity shown in this table is believed to be a reliable measure of the practical operating capacity of the industry.

Jan 1, 1961

Reduce longwall shearer operator's dust exposure by selecting the best drum water spray sys-tem for minimizing dust generated durinq cutting. Approach Three of the most commonly-used drum water spray systems were installed on the same set of shearer drums and compared to determine which system best suppresses dust. The spray systems studied were: ? pick-point flushing ? cavity filling ? water-through-the-it Instantaneous and gravimetric sampling instruments were used to measure the respirable dust exposures of the shearer operators and dust concentrations downwind of the shearer. The Three Systems: Longwall shearer drums are routinely equipped with internal drum spray systems since these systems have been shown to be more efficient than external systems in terms of dust suppression per gallon of water applied. All U.S. longwall shearer faces utilize some type of internal water delivery spray system. The two most common systems are bit-or pick-point flushing and cavity filling. Pick-point flushing uses nozzles mounted in the bit blocks or in special blocks immediately in front of the bits. Cavity filling utilizes spray nozzles installed in a pipe manifold mounted on the drum hub between the scrolls or along the edge of the vane scrolls; water is sprayed radially from the manifold towards the adjacent vane scroll.

Jan 1, 1986

By Noel N. Moebs

The Bureau of Mines conducted five reconnaissance magnetometer traverses across a small abandoned chromite mine in the State Line district of Pennsylvania and Maryland to determine the geophysical response of the area. The results indicate that more extensive geophysical surveys of the region might establish some worthwhile guidelines for chromite exploration. While chromite only rarely can be detected directly by magnetic methods, there is a possibility that geophysical signatures in the adjacent host rock could provide some guidelines for further exploration. Prior to 1875, all the chromite produced in the United States came from the State Line district, and the potential for discovering additional podiform deposits could be significant. Virtually no state-of-the-art geuphysical or geochemical studies have been conducted in this district since World War II and sizable areas remain undeveloped and suitable for exploration. While the results reported in this paper are not supported by drilling, it may encourage others to investigate the area more fully for improved methods of detecting subsurface podiform chromite deposits. New theories on the emplacement of ophiolites also could contribute to an assessment of the chromite potential of the serpentinite belt.

Jan 1, 1991

By F. W. Benn

The Bureau of Mines investigated flotation methods for recovering fluorite and byproducts from two samples of the Fish Creek deposit in Eureka County, NV. The preferred method for tre.ating a fluorite-beryllium sample included (1) fluorite rougher and cleaner flotation, (2) desliming at 20 um, (3) muscovite flotation, (4) silicate flotation, (5) sodium hypochlorite wash of silicate concentrate, and (6) beryllium rougher and cleaner flotation from the silicate concen-trate. Laboratory results showed that over 94 pct of the fluorite was recovered in a recleaner concentrate containing 98 pct CaF2, Beryllium flotation produced concentrates containing in excess of 5 pct BeO with recoveries over 70 pet. The preferred method used for a fluorite-mica sample consisted of (1) fluorite rougher and cleaner flotation, (2) desliming at 20 um, and (3) mica flotation using an anionic-cationic collector system. Laboratory results showed that 84 pct of the fluorite was recovered in a recleaner concentrate containing 96 pct CaF2, Mica flotation produced a concentrate containing 95 pct mica at 85-pct recovery.

Jan 1, 1986

By R. V. Ramani, K. V. K. Prasad

"This paper was the subject of a cross-disciplinary presentation under the chairmanship of Dr A.M. EdwardsManagers need quality information for effective decision making. This demand, at the present time, is being fulfilled by the increased use of computers via information systems, decision support systems and management information systems. The idea of incorporating intelligence into computers to aid decision-makers has been evolving for over two decades. In recent years, significant progress is reported on applications to business and sciences. In engineering functions, the Artificial Intelligence approach that seems to have great potential is the application of Knowledge Based Systems.The primary objective of this paper is to identify domains in mining engineering where application of knowledge based systems could be beneficial. Incorporation of the expertise required during the analysis and interpretation stages of an engineering design problem through knowledge based systems is recognized as an area of significant benefit. To this end, the components of knowledge based systems for mine ventilation and strata control design are described. The potential applications and limitations of knowledge based systems are outlined. IntroductionCorrect decisions are the key to success in any enterprise. Scope of decisions varies with the echelons of management hierarchy. The decisions of top management are strategic, relating to the long-term future of the organization. In a mineral organization, these deal with such issues as the acquisition of a new mineral property or the diversification of the business to exploit additional markets. At the operational level, a manager is concerned with decisions pertaining to day-to- day eventualities related to production activities and other short-term needs. In either case, the prerequisite is the timely availability and use of information. The difficulty involved in decision-making depends on the situational aspect. In. many cases, the decisions to be made under given conditions are fairly straight-forward and standard. This may be due to experience gained from decision-making in similar situations in the past. In fact, many decisions in operations management are either repetitive or routine."

Jan 1, 1989

By R. V. Ramani, K. V. K. Prasad, M. Swaminathan

"INTRODUCTIONMine ventilation planning is an engineering design process requiring a substantial amount of qualitative knowledge obtained through experience. A concept for a knowledge-based ventilation expert system was developed by Ramani and Prasad (1987).1 11 An expert system based on the above scheme was conceived with the motivation of providing a tool to facilitate decision making for ventilation engineers in the context of computer assisted ventilation planning. Options for the implementation of the system were then examined and several commercial, personal computer (PC) based shells assessed toward this end. The options considered, the evaluation criteria and procedure arc discussed in Prasad ·and Ramani, (1989).Cll Following the above study, a scheme was developed to represent the components of the expert system.<3> Evaluation of several commercial shells indicated that there was none available which permitted interfacing with a large external algorithmic program. It was therefore decided to develop the KBS in LISP and custom build the necessary interfacing routines to ""hook out• to the network analysis program (NAP). Due to this choice of development strategy, the computer implementation aspects of the KBS arc important as all the interfacing components had to be developed with the basic tools offered by LISP.In this paper, the implementation of the knowledge based system (KBS), in terms of its component, the interfaces among the various components of the KBS and between the KBS and the user arc described. The ventilation KBS consists of an AES (analysis expert system), an IES (interpretation expert system)' and an algorithmic NAP (network analy5is program). The AES analyzes the input to the NAP considering the legal 5tipulations governing the various mine ventilation network parameters and principles of good ventilation, helping the ventilation engineer develop and represent represent the problem for solution by the NAP. The IES diagnoses the output from the NAP in terms of the critical parameters in the context of the given problem. Thi5 loop is continued till a satisfactory salution is obtained. The implementational details of the AES, the IES and the approaches to the validation of the expert system arc also discussed."

Jan 1, 1990

By S. P. Howell

The Bureau of lines as repeatedly called attention to dangerous practices in the transportation and opening of kogs of black blasting powder. In 1914 Diwin Higgins (Prevention of Accidents from Explosives in Metal inos, Miners' Circular 19, Bureau of Mines, p. 15) stated "canisters should always be opened by removing the bung. To use a pick or other sharp tool for cutting a hole in the canister is dangerous. After the necessary amount of powder has boon taken out, the canister should be kept closed. The powdor should always be handled at a safe distance from an open light." In 1919, Geo. S. Rice (onthly Statement of Coal line Fatalities for June, 1919, Bureau of Mines, pp. 16 to 18) calls attention to the dangers that arise in underground transportation and handling of explosives, and calls special attmtion to the danger of hauling explosives in motor trips; the unnecessary risk involved in hauling men on the trip at the same time, and the necessity of keeping open lights away from black blasting powder. In 1919 the writer (Sensitiveness of Explosives to Frictional Impact, Tech. Paper 234, Bureau of Mines, pp. 13, 15) called attention to the fact that black blasting powder is not as sensitive to frictional impact as the nitro-glycerin dynamites and the gelatin dynamites. Black powder may be ignited by direct impact and the writer believes that this may occur without presupposing a preliminary spark. It is well known, however, that black blasting powder is very sensitive to ignition by spark flame, or heated materials, and these may be produced by an electric current, by an open light, by incandescent particles from a pipe, cigar, or cigarette, by the tearing of metal sheets or scraping of metal against metal, and possibly, by other means. -- The above discussion will serve to introduce a newly recognized hazard the ignition of black blasting powder by the forcible opening of kegs with wodden tools. The details of three accidents in which kegs of black blasting powder ex- ploded instantly when a wooden tool was driven forcibly through the top of the kegs are as follows: 1. In 1915, a powder man employed by a coal mining company stated that he was opening a 25-pound log of black blasting powder by driving a hole in the top with a wooden sprag when the powder in the leg ho was opening ignitod. This caused the ignition of fifty-two additional 25-pound logs of the powder, and the fatal burning of this and another powder man. The ono making this statement lived five hours after the explosion.

Sep 1, 1920

By Joseph Cervik

Coal is a soft and brittle material. Drilling rates in the Pittsburgh coalbed using a drag bit exceed 3 ft/min at 2,500-pound thrust. However, maintaining the bit on a horizontal trajectory or parallel to bedding planes to attain lengths of 1,000 feet is difficult. This Bureau of Mines report presents a drill string configuration that can be guided through the coalbed. The angle of the borehole is measured periodically and by proper combinations of bit thrust and rotational speed (r/min), bit trajectory can be lifted or dropped to keep the bit in the coalbed. An example of a hole drilled to 2,126 feet is presented to show levels of thrust and rotational speed used to lift or drop the bit, the seemingly unexplainable events that occur, and the strategy used during drilling. Thrust levels during drilling range from 600 to 2,500 pounds. Hydraulic motors powered by a 30-hp, 440-volt motor provide ample power for drilling horizontal holes 2,000 feet long.

Jan 1, 1975

Objective: To devise a passive means to detect overheating insulators on mine trolley/track haulageways.

Aug 1, 1998

Through 1986, Kentucky was the nation&apos;s largest coal producer. Currently it ranks third in production, behind Wyoming and West Virginia. Because of the size and variety of Kentucky&apos;s coal industry, virtually every kind of surface coal mining and reclamation activity takes place in the state. Extensive coal deposits occur in two separate areas: the eastern coal field, which is part of the Appalachian coal field, and the western coal field. Kentucky&apos;s reserves are estimated at 65 billion tons, with 27 billion tons in eastern Kentucky and 38 billion tons in western Kentucky. Kentucky coal is high in volatile matter, low in sulfur and ash, and relatively high in heating value. Coal from Kentucky&apos;s eastern coal fields contains a sulfur content of less than 1 percent. Conditional primacy was granted to Kentucky May 18,1982. Since then, all conditions have been removed; final regulatory approval was granted on May 30,1985. The Abandoned Mine Land Program was approved with the regulatory program May 18, 1982.

Jan 1, 1992

By W. Blake, J. Whyatt

Sixty years of rockbursting in the Coeur d’Alene district has taught painful lessons and led to a number of practical advances in controlling rockburst hazards. This paper summarizes those lessons, concentrating on practical measures that have been successfully adopted to reduce hazards. These lessons are explained in the context of district mining history and current understanding of rockburst phenomena. Overall, the paper provides the practicing mine engineer with an appreciation of rockburst hazards and an overview of practical measures that can be used to control these hazards in the context of Coeur d’Alene district experience.