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Blasts should be designed so as to maximise the percentage of charges which shoot to a free face (Le, to a pronounced rock/air interface).Free faces should be rough, parallel and reasonably near to blastholes and, very importantly, concavely·biplanar relative to the charges (see Fig. 6b). The presence of biplanar free faces requires that each charge fragments and detaches its quota of the burden rock before the detonation of:1. later-firing adjacent charges in single-row blasts, and2. dependent charges in multi-row blasts.In multi-row blasts, biplanar faces are best achieved:1. by drilling blastholes on equilateral triangular grids,2. by selecting a VI, V2 or V3 initiation sequence, and3. by using down-the-hole delays.Biplanar faces start to be created only when the conventional value of effective blasthole spacing/effective burden distance (Se/Be) increases beyond about 2.4. Values of Se/Be less than about 2.4 result in planar free faces. Where biplanar faces are created, conventional values of Se/Be are invalid and appreciably greater than real values of Se/Be.

Jan 1, 1986

By John G. Hall

The unstable metal market during 1949, with resulting lower metal prices, has focused every mine operator's attention on the problem of reducing operating costs. Improvement in mining methods, use of modern mechanical mining equipment, and increasing the efficiency of the labor force are the tools with which we will have to work. Careful planning is necessary to coordinate all phases so that no one phase is overdone. A mine may become over-mechanized if, for instance, capital charges against new equipment exceed the savings in labor costs, or where a large enough tonnage is not produced. The cooperation of labor is essential to any mechanization program. There have been too many instances where mechanization and improvements have done nothing more than make up for a decrease in labor efficiency, thus bringing the production of labor back to its old standard. The operator has gained little and labor has gained only a "softer job." In any mechanization program there are gains to be had by both the operator and labor. By the efficient application of modern equipment and improved mining methods the operator should gain by decreased costs, and labor may profit by receiving a share of these decreased costs.

Jan 8, 1950

By William Fink

THE investigation of the phase relations of high-purity aluminum-base alloys is a part of the fundamental research program of the laboratories of the Aluminum Company of America. The results of a number of binary and ternary systems have previously been published in the transactions of this society. The aluminum end of the binary aluminum-titanium system has been studied. This system has received relatively little attention. To the authors' knowledge, there are two previous papers on this subject. E. van Erckelens1 determined the constitutional diagram reproduced in Fig. 1. .According, to this diagram, the liquids represents the separation of TiAl4 (Ti = 30.7 per cent.). He concluded that this is the composition of the compound, because in his work the eutectic horizontal terminated at 30.7 per cent. titanium and the metallographic examination of a sample of this composition revealed only one phase. According to the constitutional diagram developed by W. Manchot and A. Leber,2 reproduced in Fig. 2 from data given in their article, the liquidus represents the separation of the compound TiAl3 (Ti = 37.2 per cent. ). The composition of the compound was derived in a manner similar to that utilized by van Erckelens. Moreover, Manchot and Leber confirmed the composition of the compound by analysis of the constituent left as a residue after dissolving the alloys in weak sodium hydroxide solution. Although these are the only publications describing the constitution of the system, other investigators have studied the composition of the titanium compound. L. Wöhler3 says that there is a compound TiAl3 which was later confirmed by W. Manchot and P. Richter4 and by

Jan 1, 1931

By Joseph L. Gillson

Bentonite, designating a distinct type of clay, is a young name in mineral nomenclature in the light of the age-old names of most other useful nonmetallics. The earliest references in literature are to "soap clay" (1873) "taylorite" (1888) and finally "bentonite" in 1897, from its occurrence in the Fort Benton series of rocks near Rock Creek, Albany County, Wyoming. Bentonite is a rock term and consists largely of montmorillonite clay. The latter name was proposed in 1847 for a plastic clay found at Montmorillon, France. A clay of apparently identical properties was described by Cronstedt of Sweden in 1788 and a number of other similar clays found in France were given other names in publications from 1853 to 1856. The mineral name montmorillonite was recognized by Dana in 1892. The recognition of "clay mineral" distinctions which led to the present-day classifications of clays by their chief mineral content, dawned in the early part of the twentieth century. Grim6 has aptly said: About 1924, Ross10 and some colleagues of the U. S. Geological Survey began a study of the mineral composition of clays that led to a series of monumental papers on the subject. By the early 1930's what has come to be known as the clay-mineral concept became firmly established in the minds of a great many people actively studying clay materials. The clay mineral concept designates the major clays as kaolins, montmorillonites and illites and by this concept bentonites are now defined as "fine-grained clays containing not less than 85 pct montmorillonite" and a wide variety of clays found all over the world are included in that classification. They could all properly be called "montmorillonite clays" but the common commercial name is bentonite. For a period of over forty years from the time of the earlier discoveries, bentonite was thought to be only the sodium type highswelling clay produced principally in Wyoming. By the clay mineral concept, non-swelling montmorillonite clays also became known as bentonite. In the trade there are two broad divisions-sodium bentonite, often called Wyoming or "western," which expands in water and carries sodium as its predominant exchangeable ion, and calcium bentonite often called "southern," which has negligible swelling and carries calcium as its principal exchangeable ion. There are many intermediate gradations. Properties The mineralogy and chemistry of the clays are so complex that the subject cannot be summarized briefly. The reader is referred to Chapter 12 of this volume in which the subject is treated at some length. Grim6 gave the formula for montmorillonite as (OH)4Si8AL4020.nH2O. He wrote: Montmorillonite is composed of units made up of two silica tetrahedral sheets with a central alumina octahedral sheet. . . . Exchangeable rations occur between the silicate layers. . . . The words "tetrahedral" and "octahedral" refer to the coordination number of the cations in the unit cell in the crystallographic lattice. Carroll5a stated: That the montmorillonite structure is the same as that of mica, but the layers are not held together by K+ ions; and water and other polar molecules, such as organic molecules, can enter between the unit layers and cause expansion. Ex-

Jan 1, 1960

By Horace Freeman

The sulphur consumed in Canadian pulp mills and acid plants is worth approximately three million dollars annually and amounts to one hundred and fifty thousand long tons, all of which is imported from the United States. Concurrently with a decline in the value of newsprint there has been a gradual increase in the price of this raw material. Most pulp mills in Canada are situated within reasonable distance of domestic pyrite deposits; nevertheless it has not yet been found possible to mine these deposits and utilize the contained sulphur in competition with the imported material. It is the purpose of this paper to elucidate the reasons therefor, and to describe? a commercial-scale experiment undertaken with the object of introducing a native raw material into the Canadian pulp industry on the purely economic basis. Reasons for the Preferred use of Sulphur The known sulphur deposits in the United States are very large, so that at least a twenty-year supply of this material is assured. It is recovered cheaply and in pure condition. Although large deposits of pyrite are known in Canada, nothing has yet been developed to compare in size, cost of mining, or purity with the United States material. It has been necessary to handle and transport more than two tons of pyrite to equal a ton of sulphur.

Jan 1, 1930

By Paul Staples, Chris Morley

"The development of the Cerro Verde, Amplats Mogalakwena and Boddington projects over the last few years has helped to establish the use of high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR) in comminution circuit designs in large-scale hard-rock applications. The increasing acceptance of this innovative and sometimes controversial technology has had the natural effect of prompting many other new projects to examine HPGR as an alternative to the established, usually SAG-based, comminution circuit design approach.At the current stage of development of the technology, HPGR-based circuit capital costs are generally higher than for the equivalent SAG-based circuit, so that HPGR must offer sufficient operating cost benefits to offset the additional capital costs over an acceptable pay-back period. It is usually necessary to undertake comprehensive project-specific trade-off studies to quantify this effect.This paper describes the processes involved in the execution of a typical SAG-HPGR trade-off study, from the preliminary assessment of ore characteristics and project criteria, through testwork, circuit modelling, equipment selection and cost estimates, to a project-economics comparative assessment of the options. The trade-off study determines both the technical feasibility of the respective technologies and their commercial viability in the given project setting.The paper concludes with a cautionary note to the effect that, while HPGR has many potential benefits, it is not a panacea, and that, for some ore types and project conditions, the more established conventional technologies are often more appropriate."

Jan 1, 2010

By Tatsuo Itou

Both sales volume of Aluminum Can and its recycling rate are remarkably increasing here in Japan. In 1993, recycled can volume was 11.78 billion cans ( 116,258 metric tons ) and its recycling rate 57.8 percent. We, MITSUBISHI MATERIALS CORPORATION. the leading manufacturer of aluminum can in Japan and our affiliated companies are very deeply involved in recycling used beverage cans ( U.B.C ) and recycling them back to can stock. In this paper. I would like to present the following; 1. Recent trend of beverage can consumption in Japan. 2. Trend of aluminum can and its recycling rate in Japan. 3. Future of aluminum can business in Japan.

Jan 1, 1995

By R. E. Boni, G. Derge

Application of surface tension measurements has been made to molten silicates in order to determine the effect of sulphur upon the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags. In melts with the same molar ratios of AI2O3 + SiO2 to the basic oxides BaO, CaO, and MgO, the surface tensions increase in the order of oxides listed. Sulphur lowers the surface tensions of the basic BaO, basic CaO, acid BaO, acid CaO, and acid MgO slags in that order; and the concentration of excess sulphur at the slag surface increases in this same order of slags. The rate and amount of desulphurization of iron by these slags is favored by a low excess surface sulphur in the slag. IN a previous paper,1 the authors discussed the applications of surface tension measurements of molten silicates to problems of metallurgical interest. Of major importance is the aid that such studies lend to forming a working concept of slag structure. Since the ability of a slag to desulphurize metal depends strongly upon its composition,2"4 fundamental information about the structural differences between various slags which contain sulphur should aid the development of better desulphurizing media. For that reason, the present investigation concerns the effect of sulphur upon the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags. Experimental Procedure , The maximum bubble-pressure method was used to measure the surface tensions of synthetic blast furnace slags in the temperature range 1300° to 1600°C. The method is based upon the equation which was developed by Schrödinger5 from a consideration of the forces of hydrostatic pressure and surface tension of a liquid which oppose bubble formation when a gas is forced through a tube immersed in the liquid. where y is the surface tension between argon and slag in dynes per centimeter; g is the gravitational constant, centimeters per second2; H is the manometer reading in centimeters; s2 is the density of manometer fluid in grams per cubic centimeter; S1 is the density of the medium in grams per cubic

Jan 1, 1957

By Donald L. Anderson

Presence of hot water brought on by volcanic action nearby has severely complicated mining in the Limon gold mine in Nicaragua. Routine pumping problems have been multiplied and ventilation is a major problem. Enclosing rock is so hot that 20 pct of all power generated at the mine is consumed by forced ventilation. But hot water underground, however disagreeable and troublesome, may be handled and surmounted like any other difficulty if the estimated profit margin permits. Empresa Minera de Nicaragua's Limon mine is a 400-ton gold-silver producer located in western Nicaragua about 60 miles northwest of the capital city, Managua, and some 45 miles from the Nicaragua-Honduras border. Limon is situated in a low- lying district with a nearby chain of active and semi-active Tertiary volcanoes.

Jan 6, 1959

By J. F. Shirley

"Very seldom, if ever, is a molybdenite by-product plant operated exactly the way the process design engineer visualizes it. The best thing the design engineer can do is provide a sound, basic circuit with enough room and flexibility in order that the operating staff can make the necessary modi fi cations to optimize the process. The plant, with minor modifications, should be capable of handling more than one process. This is especially true when the client is having the plant designed for a new process.The writer would like to propose the following ten ""rules-of thumb"" for designing by-product molybdenite plants where the molybdenite is floated out of a copper concentrate. The term rules-of-thumb is used, because there are probably valid reasons for not using one or more of them in a particular plant design. In fact it was 1980 before the writer was all owed to start up a plant where all of these rules were honored in the plant design. This was after 19 years of experience in the design of molybdenite by-product processes and plants. The main reasons for not following the rules are available capital, available space, and the client's experiences based on pilot plant and laboratory test results."

Jan 1, 1981

By P. Karimi, G. Mollataheri, A. Amini, H. Abdollahi, A. Mirzaeian

"Chah-Palang tungsten deposit is one of the two tungsten indexes in Iran. Based on ore characterization techniques (including optical mineralogy and XRD analysis), quartz, chlorite, atacamite, azurite, malachite, ferberite, illite, goethite and calcite were distinguished as major minerals. The representative sample was analyzed qualitatively by using X-ray fluorescence and chemical assay. Results showed that grade of tungsten oxide and copper were 1.76 and 7%, respectively. Also precious metals such as gold with grade of 1 ppm was reported in the sample. By using the mineralogical studies on the prepared sample, the liberation degree of tungsten minerals in –0.6 mm size fraction was obtained 80%. Several tabling tests were carried out on the original sample which at the optimum conditions and as a result, the grade and recovery of tungsten in concentrate reached to proximately 23 and 59%, respectively. To increase the grade of tungsten in the final concentrate, acidic leaching were performed on the tabling concentrate and its appropriate results indicated that the grade of tungsten increased to 27%. Also more than 90% of copper was extracted as a byproduct in the fallowed process.INTRODUCTIONTungsten, a unique hard, heavy heat-resistant metal, is distributed erratically in economic concentrations throughout most continents, occurring mostly as small irregular deposits that are not readily adaptable to large-scale, low-cost mining methods. The diverse physical characteristics and mineral composition of tungsten ores also present problems in beneficiation, requiring complex hydro- and pyrometallurgical treatment to yield high-purity concentrates suitable for the production of ferro alloys, carbides and super alloys in the steel industry (Hausen, 1989; Kholmogorov & Kononova, 2005). Tungsten is most frequently used as tungsten monocarbide, which has hardness close to diamond, in cemented carbides. The most well-known use of tungsten is in lighting filaments, and other important applications include improving steel properties and use in tungsten alloys, electronics, and chemical products (Hausen, 1989; Kholmogorov & Kononova, 2005)."

Jan 1, 2016

By Timothy Ross

The Pittsburg & Midway Coal Mining Co.'s Kemmerer Mine is one of the deepest surface coal operations in the world, with the highwall extending to approximately 1,000 ft above the pit floor. To increase recovery, auger mining is being evaluated beneath the highwalls of several seams representing the current economic limit of pit development. The primary augered seam is over 50 ft thick, can approach 100 ft thick, and dips into the highwall at an average of 17 degrees. The seam thickness and dip present many geotechnical design and operational challenges for multiple Sup to five) lift augering. This paper presents the design criteria and methodology applied to determine appropriate web and septum thicknesses for the various cover depths anticipated, as well as operational measures that can be taken to increase overall coal recovery. The primary tool used in the design was the finite difference code FLAG. Models incorporating typical strata sequences associated with the coal seam were run at several different cover depths corresponding to the maximum anticipated auger penetration. Web and septum thicknesses were varied until the minimum thickness satisfying a given safety factor criterion was determined. Using this procedure, design curves were developed for web and septum thickness versus cover depth. Operationally, several recommendations were developed to ensure that overall coal recovery is maximized. By angering across the scam dip, auger penetration per hole can he increased dramatically, and by carefully planning maximum planned auger penetration versus hole spacing, increased coal recovery can be safely attained.

Jan 1, 1999

By Robert F. Chaiken

The U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted an experimental and theoretical study of coupled chemical kinetic and mass transport processes during leaching of pyrite from coal in a counterflow, "trickle-bed" column reactor. Spatial and temporal data on reactant and product concentrations were used as solutions to appropriate continuity equations, which in turn define chemical kinetic reaction rates. Data from four 180-by 30-cm column leaching experiments using coal, coal waste, and air-water and air-FeC13 lixiviants have been analyzed. The rate of leaching was found to be diffusion limited (probably by Fe3+) and not controlled by bacterial action. Rates of pyrite oxidation were found to vary with elapsed time (80 to 225 days) and followed a bell-shaped curve, sometimes with a delay before start of reaction. Maximum rates of reaction ranged from 3 to 10 (mmol/d)/L (column) for coal waste and 0.4 (mmol/d)/L (column) for coal. Reaction was 30 to SO pct complete, probably due to precipitation of product salts (e.g., jarosites), which impede transport of oxidant through the coal. An absorption-desorption model of solids leaching, which considers the role of heterogeneous porosity in solids leaching, was used to describe time-dependent leaching rates.

Jan 1, 2010

By A. J. Kraemer

For a number of years the Bureau of Mines has been conducting an investigation of crude petroleum from producing fields in the United States and the Western Hemisphere and has published a series of reports on these fields. Analyses of crude-oil samples tom some oil fields of Louisiana are given in Bulletin 291.4/ Analyses of 26 representative crude oils from various producing formations of southern Louisiana are given in is report. These.samples are from 14 field's in 10 parishes in the southern part of the State, usually designated as the "Louisiana Gulf Coast area." ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thanks are due the representatives of the various companies from whom samples were obtained for their cooperation and assistance in helping to secure representative samples. The samples were analyzed under the direction of E. C. Lane at the Bartlesville station of the Bureau of Mines.

Jan 1, 1934

By B. D. Cullity, S. S. Hsu

The stress distribution at the surface of a twisted cylinder is analyzed along the boundary of a slip plane of arbitrary orientation and this analysis is applied to the torsion of cylindrical crystals of magnesium. A criterion for slip is developed and the critical resolved shear stress of magnesium in torsion is found to be 0.038 kg per sq mm. The mechanism of torsional deformation in magnesium and aluminum is described, as well as the relaxation of a twisted crystal at elevated temperatures. THERE has been considerable fundamental study A of the mechanism of slip occurring during deformation in tension and compression but comparatively little attention has been paid to the mechanism of torsional deformation. This paper is concerned with the way in which a single crystal deforms in static torsion and with the phenomenon of untwisting which a twisted crystal undergoes during annealing. Particular attention is paid to the application of the critical resolved shear stress law to torsional deformation. Probably the most likely mode of torsional deformation that can be imagined consists of rotation of one part of the crystal relative to another on the active slip plane. Here the most interesting feature is the slip direction. If a cylindrical single crystal is twisted about its axis and if, to consider the simplest case, the active slip plane is normal to the specimen axis, then the direction of gross slip at any point must always be at right angles to the radius drawn to that point. It follows that the crystallographic direction of slip must be continually changing, in sharp contrast to slip in tension which occurs in a crystallographically constant direction. Extensive investigations of slip in torsion have been made by Gough and his associates.' They made torsional fatigue tests on metal single crystals belonging to a number of different crystal systems and observed, with a microscope, the appearance of slip lines on the surface and of strain markings on the transverse cross section of cylindrical specimens. They concluded that the critical resolved shear stress law was just as valid in torsion as in tension, in the sense that slip occurred on that plane and in that direction in which the resolved shear stress was a maximum. They also established that the operative slip planes and directions were the same as in tension. They did not, however, measure the critical resolved shear stress in torsion nor, in fact, did they establish that a critical value of the resolved shear stress was necessary for the initiation of slip. Their investigations were, moreover, restricted to torsional fatigue tests which necessarily involve small strain amplitudes. Wilman,' studying crystal growth and the abraded surfaces of crystals, observed crystal fragments

Jan 1, 1955

By Gary Watters

PORTS AND ARCTIC CONDITIONS ?Large ice forces ?Standard designs fail in the arctic ?Specialized construction methods for ice PRESENTATION OUTLINE 4 Example Projects ? 2 Alternative Construction Methods ? Advantages & Disadvantages ?Controlling costs

Oct 1, 2010

By A. W. Khair, J. A. Organiscak, M. Ahmad

This paper describes research that seas conducted on bit wear and respirable-dust generation. The investigation was performed by the US Bureau of Mines (USBM) and West Virginia University (WVU), a member of the Generic Technology Center on Respirable Dust. The USBM investigated wear, energy and dust characteristics of various conical bit designs when cutting rock. WVU studied the functional relationships between wear, cutting force, energy and dust of one type of conical bit cutting coal. The objective of the USBM study was to identify qualitative bit-selection guidelines. The objective of WVU's research was to determine optimum bit-replacement guidelines. Both research studies found that bit geometry (a function of bit design and wear) influences energy consumption and dust generation. Bit selection and replacement recommendations are given.

Jan 1, 1996

By Fred C. Bond

SIZE of grinding media is one of the principal factors affecting efficiency and capacity of tumbling-type grinding mills. It is best determined for any particular installation by lengthy plant tests with carefully kept records. However, a method of calculating the proper sizes, based on correct theoretical principles and tested by experience, can be very helpful, both for new installations and for guiding existing operations. As a general principle, the proper size of the make-up grinding balls added to an operating mill is the size that will just break the largest feed particles. If the balls are too large the number of breaking contacts will be reduced and grinding capacity will suffer. Moreover, the amount of extreme fines produced by each contact will be increased, and size distribution of the ground product may be adversely affected.

Jan 5, 1958

Michigan College of Mining and Technology, Houghton, Mich W. O Hotchkiss, President. Copies of the Engineering Research Bulletins of the College of Mining and Metallurgy are sent free upon request to those who ask to be placed on the mailing list. From the complete list

Jan 1, 1933

By P. B. Marchant

"Considerable gold and silver values are lost to flotation tailing from both the South ern Tail orebody and the Main Zone orebody,The underlying mineralogical assemblage of the two ore types is quite different. This paper describes the research strategy employed to determine an economical method to scavenge gold and silver from flotation tailing.Much of the unrecovered gold in the Southern Tail ore is associated with arsenopyrite while silver losses are probably as unliberated tetrahedrite and minor silver-bearing sulphosalts. Processing alternatives tested include bulk sulphide recovery by flotation and gravity, selective pyrite-arsenopyrite separation, cyanidation, and oxidation pretreatments such as pressure leaching and bioleaching to enhance cyanidation response. Gold losses in the Main Zone ore are more closely associated with silver-bearing minerals, pyrite, and siliceous gangue and consequently respond more readily to conventional tank cyanidation. The 5 300 tid carbon-in-leach circuit to treat Main Zone flotation tailing is described in detail.IntroductionEquity Silver Mines Limited's open-pit silver mine, a 70% owned subsidiary of Placer Development Limited, is located 37 km southeast of Houston in north central British Columbia. The deposit consists of two major ore zones, Main Zone and Southern Tail (Fig. I). These zones are within a sequence of Cretaceous volcanic and sedimentary rocks striking 015 degree s and dipping 45 degrees west. Feasibility ore reserves were 28 million tonnes grading 106 g A g/t, 0.96 g Au !t and 0.38% Cu a strip ratio of 2.2 to I. A detailed mineralogical description has been presented and a comparison of the two ore zones is shown in Table I."

Jan 1, 1986