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By U. C. Tainton

THE world-wide continuation of low prices for zinc in 1934 has militated against any striking changes in the position of the metal. The price of zinc in London at the end of the year, about £11 5/8 per long ton, or 2.5c per pound at the existing rate of exchange, is more than 25 per cent below the average price for last year. In these circumstances probably the most significant event of the year was the putting into operation of the new electrolytic plant of the Giesches company at Magdeburg, Germany. This plant is designed to have an initial capacity of 20,000 long tons per year, and it is planned to increase this to 40,000 tons annually. This development is significant not only as indicating a continued swing of zinc metallurgy towards electrolytic methods, but also because it will make Germany virtually independent of foreign sources of zinc. This will mean that the zinc tonnage normally exported to Germany from Belgium and Poland will. become available for other markets, and it is feared may lead to lower prices unless the production of Bel-

Jan 1, 1935

By ALFRED KAUFFMAN

NO matter what position we hold, workman, foreman, superintendent, manager, president, or what not, let us fail to give or to make good products, then see how quickly we'll be called to account for- our work by the buying public. The waves of progress taught us that millions were wasted in unnecessary strikes-we also learned that many losses were due to neglect on the part of manufacturers to give the same consideration and attention to the human element of their factory as they gave to their machinery. The employees learned also that the employer was their agent who found purchasers for the product of their labor. So between the two we learned that many years of labor were needed in order for a worker to recover his wasted savings, or for the manu¬facturer to replenish his loss. Treat 'em rough, and tell 'em nothing, was not very far from the true relationship between management and employees in manufacturing plants in the early days. Today just exactly the opposite views are held by executives whose function is the handling of employees. Men today want to know what it is all about. They are intelligent enough to comprehend the facts, and to use them constructively, and it is good business to give them the information.

Jan 1, 1929

By AIME AIME

WHEN "Chief" Buehler in mid-September set out on his official 10,000 mile swing-around-the-circle visiting Local Sections he decided not to tell his audiences how to organize and operate a state geological survey. As the director for 28 years, of the Missouri Bureau of Geology and Mines (which, he concedes, is the best in existence) lie could have done this to good advantage; but he preferred to discuss affairs of the Institute. In 25 speeches made to member and student groups, he dwelt on sonic or all of the following phases of activities. He stressed the vital importance of the Local Sections in providing the opportunity for members to associate under pleasant auspices with others in their profession. The benefits of Institute membership he classified as tangible and intangible. Of the two lie felt that the latter were more important. A man's progress in his profession depends in large measure upon a broad acquaintance and friendship with others. The Institute is incomparably the best medium for meeting fellow engineers. The primary, function of the new enlarged Membership Committee is to obtain a comprehensive list of engineers eligible to be members, always hearing in mind that the standards of membership must not be lowered in any degree. These men are to be invited by individual letter to apply for membership. Whether they become members or not is of less importance; but it is vital that no qualified man should be outside the fold for the reason that membership had never been suggested to him. Dr. Buehler emphasized repeatedly his feeling that the younger man that had never had Institute membership brought specifically to his attention had been cheated:

Jan 1, 1935

By George C. Bravner

WITH the great expansion currently being made in the aluminum output of the United States, not only by the company that has heretofore been the sole producer but by a now organization in the field it is only natural to wonder to what degree the; ore reserves of the United States can contribute to the growing consumption. For the three-year period 1937-'39 the U.S. Bureau of Mine's figures indicate that the annual domestic production of bauxite averaged about 370,000 long tons, compared with average, annual import of about 194,000 long tons. About 85 per cent of the imports came from Surinam, nearly all of which went into aluminum manufacture. Not all of the or -kipped from mines in the United States is used to make alumimun however as Bureau figures indicate that in these three years an average of only 48 per cent of the domestic ore shipment were so used the abrasive chemical and other industries taking respectively 27, 21, and 4 per cent of the output. The recent increase in the demand for bauxite has been of course in it use for aluminum manufacture. This as is well known is largely attributable to the world race for supremacy in

Jan 1, 1941

By AIME AIME

WILLIAM ("BILL") EMBRY WRATHER, recently elected to a second term as Director of the Institute, is widely known as petroleum geologist, gentleman, and scholar. Born in Brandenburg, Ky., he was early endowed with a Southern accent which has remained with him strongly flavored by his later life in the oil-fields of Texas and the Mid-Continent region, and only thinly concealed by a Middle Western burr acquired during his student days at the University of Chicago. After graduating there with the Ph. B. in 1908, young Wrather (the adjective still fits!) joined the Gulf Production Co. Soon afterwards he married a charming Chicago girl, Alice Dolling, who, with their two daughters, has been his companion on many of his more distant trios.

Jan 1, 1945

By C. McCulloch

OPEN-PIT mining of coal is relatively a recent innovation; men still active in the industry can trace its development. Re- viewing the growth of operations from the original horse-drawn scrapers, through the various stages of power equipment to the huge strip- ping shovels of today, one also notes changes in the methods of what the coal man calls preparation at the face. We really should not call it face preparation because, in contrast to underground mining, a face does not exist in strip mining. Further, preparation of the coal for market at the loading point has already, in but a few years, become largely of historic interest only and modern mines as well as old mines recently modernized rely almost entirely on separate and elaborate preparation plants to produce marketable coal. This practice was not voluntarily adopted by the producer but was forced upon him by the inadequacy of previous

Jan 1, 1939

By F. B. Plummer

PETROLEUM ENGINEERING deals with the production, transportation, and refining of crude oil. Refining is chiefly the work of the chemical engineer; production, that of the petroleum engineer. Production engineering only is discussed in this paper. Petroleum production engineering is closest related to and, in fact, is a branch of mining engineering. Formerly, many petroleum engineers were trained as mining engineers or mining geologists. The profession is related also to mechanical and civil engineering to about the same extent that mining engineering is. Petroleum production draws upon the mechanical branch for drilling and pumping machinery and upon civil engineering for the construction of transportation lines, water supplies, and water-disposal plants. Fundamentally, petroleum production engineering deals with the removal of the oil from the reservoir rocks, just as mining is concerned with the removal of ore. The process of oil production demands a specialized knowledge just as distinct from mechanical and civil engineering as mining is distinct from operating a Diesel engine. Even though the chief tools of the petroleum engineer are the drill and the pump, these may be of little avail, and certainly not efficient, if their selection and use is not based on a knowledge of the physical chemistry of oil, the geology of the formations, the structure of the oil sand, the hydrodynamics of the reservoir, and the interrelation of all these many factors.

Jan 1, 1936

By COREY C. BRAYTON

PACIFIC COAST steel and iron industries can now take care of all the western and export demands except for heavy structural shapes, thick plates, rails, alloy tool steels, and a few other items. In. 1902 all of our steel came from St. Louis and Milwaukee and points still farther east. A small quantity at that time came from foreign countries. Early mining in the West was, broadly speaking, prior to the steel age. 'Wood for structures and iron for castings were almost exclusively used. Forgings were made of rolled iron that came from the East and foreign countries. San Francisco was, from the early days of mining, the manufacturing center for mining and milling machinery of all types and held that position until the .nineties, when eastern competition began to be felt. Even today in the old mining camps of the West, and many abroad, you will find machines and equipment with familiar San Francisco manufacturers' names. ..Iron, either rolled or cast, entered into their manufacture, for steel castings did not come into general use :until the nineties.

Jan 1, 1929

By AIME AIME

PROBABLY no man has been of greater service to the Institute and has kept more in the background than Henry Krumb. A Vice-President continuously) for the last eleven years, apparently neither his picture nor a biographical sketch ever have adorned these pages and were he forewarned in the present instance he would order us to "forget it." He is a Columbia School of Mines man, Class of '98. He worked underground at Rossland, B. C. for a time, then for a year and a half a. chief engineer of the famous Camp Bird at Ouray, Colo. For three wars he was examining engineer for the Guggenheims and since 1901 has been an independent consulting engineer with experience throughout the Americas.

Jan 1, 1939

By O. M. Schaus

GRATIFYING progress continues towards the elimination of the hazards confronting health and safety in and about mines. Employers and employees are diligently co-operating. One of the outstanding movements towards this end is the National Safety Competition conducted by the U. S. Bureau of Mines. William W. Adams, of the Bureau, has stated that "Through 1936 there has passed by a dozen years of this National Safety Competition, as it started in 1925 with an enrollment of 210 mines and quarries in 28 states and 68 million man-hours of employment. For 1936 it covered 328 mines and quar-

Jan 1, 1938

By Carle R. Hayward

LEAD ore smelting plants have been operating in general at reduced capacities and secondary lead has assumed relatively more importance during the last year. Present smelting practice results in a large amount of dross, often over 25 per -cent, from blast-furnace lead. This is usually treated at a fairly high temperature in a reverberatory furnace to remove part of the lead and produce a matte-speiss product which is shipped to a copper plant. Few smelters are satisfied with this 'treatment. The fume losses are high and the matte-speiss contains considerable lead. It would seem that a fruitful field for research was open here.

Jan 1, 1934

By Ramón Noriega

Al mes de mayo de 2022 en nuestro país se han reportado 205 conflictos sociales, de los cuales 130 son socioambientales y se encuentran vinculados al sector minero energético; este alto número nos ha llevado a analizar los procedimientos y mecanismos que los actores dan a estas demandas sociales y verificar su efectividad. El articulo además propone la aplicación de la gestión de riesgos en los conflictos sociales como una herramienta que podría mejorar la adecuada gestión de la conflictividad social.

Sep 30, 2022

By Howard N. Eavenson

DURING the past year, as in the preceding ones, prices continued to fall, production to decrease, and more mines were closed. Much attention is being given by the industry to suggested plans for betterment of its position, and if the scheme recently brought out for consolidation of sales agencies into district agencies is loyally carried out, it cannot but help to improve conditions. The progress in the anthracite industry is shown in the report of its chairman, E. H. Suender; changes in coal preparation are outlined in the report of J. B. Morrow, chairman of Committee on Coal Preparation, while increased mechanization of the western mines is described by Eugene McAuliffe, chairman of the Committee on Machine and Strip Mining. In spite of the depression, interest in the Coal Division has been increasing, its meetings have been well attended, and its committees are active and have been doing excellent work.

Jan 1, 1932

By Don Masson

MUCH has been written and many prophecies made on the subject of plastics as a replacement for metal, and the extent to which these materials will compete with each other for peace- time markets. (Metal is used in a broad sense to include all types.) But although certain synthetic resin materials have made considerable headway in war production, this change to plastics can hardly be regarded as a serious threat to the mining and metallurgical industries. Even today, the total yearly tonnage of plastic materials is approximately only 1 per cent of that of steel, and only a small fraction of this might be considered as actually replacing steel. However, these figures must not be taken as indicating that the importance of plastics in fields hitherto considered exclusively the territory of metals is negligible-far from it. Considering the comparatively minute tonnage of plastics now being produced in comparison to the output of metals, the number of applications where plastics have augmented or aided the sale of metals is considerable.

Jan 1, 1944

By AIME AIME

READERS of a technical paper, or the audience if the paper is presented orally, judge the paper on several counts. The September 1940 issue of MINING AND METALLURGY contained an excellent short article by S. Marion Tucker en- titled "Are You Going to Present a Paper," which considered the general subject of presentation. In it Dr. Tucker referred to the large number of poorly prepared and badly delivered papers that are presented annually before the large number of technical and other societies that meet regularly, and he stressed the point that good delivery, length of paper, content, and composition are of great importance. All of Dr. Tucker's points were well taken; however, good illustrations are equally important in explaining certain phases of some papers.

Jan 1, 1941

By AIME AIME

WHEN a local man has attained high position in business and civic affairs at home, his fellow citizens feel elated if his attainments are given recognition in the form of election to office in an organization of national scope. Eugene Ainsworth White, a new Director of the Institute, is one of the must prominent citizens of Tacoma, where for the past thirteen years he has managed the Tacoma Smelter of the American Smelting and Refining Co. A list of the civic duties he has carried with distinction would be a long one; for recent years it would show that he has been chairman of the Community Chest, vice-president of the Chamber of Commerce. and a member of the Pierce County Taxation Bureau.

Jan 1, 1945

By George A. Hill

WE of the oil industry, devoted to freedom of initiative, free competitive enter- prise, and free American institutions, applaud, with one voice, affirmation by the President of the national will and purpose to preserve and to protect, against all aggressors, "our American way of life with our individual and national freedom." We subscribe utterly and completely to this guiding declaration and seek its further definition as applied to the oil industry. Fortunately for all, the policy of the Government, after adequate study and deliberation, has been given precise definition. The National Defense Advisory Commission, with its patriotic, highly qualified, and distinguished personnel, has unanimously agreed to and adopted twelve general principles governing national defense contracts and also fair labor standard requirements. The President of the

Jan 1, 1940

By Dewey J. Sabin

THE Rio de Canada Honda placer property is situated at an altitude of 5500 ft. above sea level in the San Luis Mountains of the Province of San Luis, Argentina. The mine is reached by 70 km. of fair truck road, from the nearest railway station on the Ferrocarril Buenos Aires al Pacifico. The Pan-American airport at Villa Mercedes, 1.40 km. distant, serves as the most convenient point for shipment of gold. Placer mining in the Rio de Canada Honda dates from the time of the Incas and the present native population depends on the gold washed from this river and the adjacent arroyos as a means of livelihood as did the many generations before them. They dig pits to bedrock where they are not driven out by water, and mine the bedrock gravel by means of tunnels and caves. No timber is available and the ground is supported by rock cribs carefully built with the boulders encountered; or with angular blocks of slate rock taken from quarries on the surface.

Jan 1, 1936

By AIME AIME

THOUGH the dust-control systems in the crushing plants and other buildings at Morenci do not differ materially from similar installations in other large copper reduction works, it is probable that in few other plants has as much attention been paid to the dust problem. Possibly the most striking feature of the Morenci installation is the manner in which the necessary equipment has been built into the various structures, and the absence of unsightly pipes, ducts, and fan houses. That this result has been attained is due, in no small part, to the basic conception that the control of the dust in a milling plant should be an essential part of the process itself and not something to be tacked on later after the plant is in operation. The control systems were designed and developed along with the general plant construction program and when the first car of ore was dumped into the crusher the dust-control equipment was ready.

Jan 1, 1942

By Eugene McAuliffe

THE last obtainable figures of the value of the coal mining investment are those contained in the U. S. Census Reports, from data gathered in 1919. The values shown therein and set forth below cover lands and equipment and do not include distribution and marketing facilities. The working capital necessary to meet pay rolls to purchase material and supplies and workmen's compensation insurance are likewise excluded.

Jan 1, 1926