Search Documents

By R. W. Stahl

A survey of firefighting facilities and practices in coal mines conducted by the Bureau of Mines3/ showed such variations in equipment and apparent attitude toward fire protection that a comparison with other industry seemed advisable. Although other industry is confined generally to surface operations and the hazards probably are not as great, the same general methods of extinguishment are employed, so that the cost and protection at least should be comparable. An investigation of industry other than mines revealed a generally greater emphasis placed on fire-combating equipment, fire-brigade training, fire-fighting facility inspection, and fire-hazard elimination, as well as a greater average expenditure for fire protection.

Jan 1, 1959

By Elmer W. Pehrson

Minerals have played a prominent role in the affairs of man and nations since time immemorial but with the advent of the industrial revolution, expanding use of the products of the mineral kingdom became synonymous with the material progress of mankind. Individuals and business groups have recognized this fact so have been aggressive in searching for and utilizing mineral resources, with notable success. Indeed, their achievements are primarily responsible for the present Machine Age. On the other hand, until recently the body politic has failed to grasp fully the essentiality of minerals although, at times, access to mineral supplies has been an important factor in the political maneuvers of nations. This chapter is concerned primarily with the broader political and economic relationships of mineral resources to the world economy, and with the internal and external actions of nations in the field of minerals. Many factors that condition the mineral economy of regions and the world as a whole, influence the internal and external affairs of individual nations. The more important of these are: 1. The nature of man's dependence on minerals. 2. The problems resulting from the unique characteristics of mineral occurrence. 3. Geopolitical concepts. 4. Minerals and world power. Actions of individual nations affecting their mineral economy seek two basic objectives : 1. Attainment and maintenance of prosperity. 2. Military security. Other objectives may be cited but on careful analysis they become integral parts or extreme phases of the two points noted above. For example, the twentieth century aggressions of the USSR, Germany, Italy, and Japan might be considered as direct bids for world power but they also can be interpreted as exaggerated or mistaken efforts toward military security and peacetime prosperity. Similarly, trade barriers, nationalization of industries, foreign exchange manipulations, taxation, monopolistic prac-

Jan 1, 1959

By D. Turnbull, R. E. Cech

Small particles, 10-20 microns diameter, of a 28.6 atom pct nickel, balance iron alloy, have been supercooled 186 C with respect to bulk alloy M, temperature. Particles exhibit a marked mechanical shock sensitivity while being held in a supercooled state. The tendency for shock to induce martensitic transformation appears to be a maximum at —140 to —160°. Slow cooling of particles in mechanical contact with one another results in extensive martensite formation. This is prob-ably the same effect as the catalytic effect observed in polycrystals where martensite formation in one grain induces transformation in other grains. AS a result of extensive research over the past decade on the martensitic transformation, a much better though not complete understanding of the transformation has resulted. Recent reviews by Bilby and Christian' and Kaufman and Cohen2 have

Jan 1, 1959

By E. Northcott, F. N. Oberg

By electrostatic separation, course Florida pebble phosphate, too lou-grade to find a ready market, can be upgraded to a satisfactory saleable product. Pebble running from 60 pct bone phosphate of time may be upgraded to 73 to 77 pct BPL depending on the mineralogical. structure of the pebble and the nature of the silica innpurity. High-grade concentrates from Florida pebble phosphate deposits have long been recovered by wet methods. When work was begun in the field, only the coarse pebble (generally +1 mm) was re- covered. In the 1920's a froth flotation process was developed to separate quartz from the finer phosphate fractions, but this method proved unsatisfactory for treating the intermediate fraction (—1 mm +35 mesh). Consequently various other processes were adapted, including agglomerate tabling and spiral separation of reagentized feed. Today the three processes are used—washing and screening for coarse pebble, tabling or spiraling for intermediate sizes, and flotation for —35 mesh material.

Jan 1, 1959

By Van E. Shaw

Bastnaesite is a natural rare-earth fluorcarbonate of the cerium group that affords an abundant and high-grade source of the lighter rare-earth elements. A simple and efficient method has been developed by the Bureau of Mines for extracting rare-earth compounds from this mineral. Digesting of a flotation concentrate with sulfuric acid converts the rare-earth compounds from fluorcarbonates to sulfates. Action of the acid releases gaseous com-pounds of fluorine and silicon, leaving the sulfated material free of these elements; carbon dioxide from carbonate decomposition is eliminated at the same time. Calcining the sulfated material at 1,200° F. renders the gangue constituents insoluble, whereas the rare-earth sulfates are left in water-soluble form. Leaching with water yields a solution of pure rare-earth sulfates. Bastnaesite could become prominent as a source of cerium-group rare-earth elements. It is rich in the light rare-earth elements and comparatively easy to process; reserves of the mineral are extensive enough to supply a greatly expanded market for many years.

Jan 1, 1959

By J. N. Van Sant

Lignite mining in North Dakota was begun about 1884 to supply the domestic needs of settlers. Annual production has grown rather slowly but steadily, exceeding 3 million tons in 1950. The western part of the State has lignite reserves, amounting to 351 billion tons, underlying an area of 28,000 square miles. Contour strip mining has almost completely replaced underground mining as the method of production. Lignite is often found under rather shallow and easily removed overburden, and this is the primary reason for the change in mining practice. Current mining operations are conducted where the overburden is 30 to 70 feet thick. Contour strip mining results in high production rates, at present 27 to 56 tons per man-day. These high production rates result in relatively low production costs.

Jan 1, 1959

From the time of its establishment in 1910, the Federal Bureau of Nines has studied the carbonization of coal, and a considerable part of this effort has been devoted to investigations in the so-called low-temperature carbonization range, 450° to 700° C., in which there is minimum decomposition of primary products and maximum yield of Liquids - a yield two to threefold the amount produced in high-temperature carbonization at 900° to 1,200° C, The solid residue, char, or coke, produced in low-temperature carbonization is 70 to 80 percent of the coal charged and may be used directly as a smokeless fuel or for blending with coals to produce metallurgical coke, Although some thought was given to the use of tar and to the illuminating value of gas derived from lm-temperature carbonization, the main emphasis in early work of the Bureau of Mines was on the preparation of smokeless fuel, especially for home use, For example, a carbonizer was designed and operated for making char and briquets from North Dakota lignite without recovery of by- products; however, the shortage of high-temperature coal-tar products in the United States during World War I had already indicated the potential usefulness of low-temperature tar.

Jan 1, 1959

By M. L. Bleiberg, L. J. Jones

THE changes induced in metals by subjecting them to heavy particle bombardment have received widespread attention in recent years and results of such investigations have been reviewed by Slater, Dienes, Seitz, Siegel, and Seitz and Koehler.1-5 Of particular significance are the property changes that occur in uranium-base alloys due to neutron bombardment. These changes are generally very severe since fission occurs within the sample, resulting in the formation of heavy, highly energetic fission fragments, as well as additional neutrons born in fission, which serve to intensify the damage generally associated with fast neutron bombardment of nonfissionable metals. The property changes in uranium and uranium alloys due to neutron bombardment have been summarized by Paine and Kitte16 and Billington.7 It has also been shown that neutron bombardment of

Jan 1, 1959

By M. Stern, I. S. Servi, W. W. Webb

ZINC has been considered an ideal material for investigations of the behavior of dislocation walls in metals. It has appeared particularly useful for studies of the mechanisms of plastic deformation and the motion of low-angle boundaries under stress, because orientated crystals are easily grown and cleaved. Moreover, the hexagonal structure makes the introduction of controlled tilt boundaries relatively simple. Apparently, another of the many reasons for selecting zinc as a working material is its commercial availability at the 99.999' pct purity level. However, most elements are only slightly sol-

Jan 1, 1959

By C. F. Lucks, W. D. Wood, H. W. Deem

Electrical ad thermal-conductivity measurements have been made on titanium and 6 titanium alloys. The following expression was derived for calculating thermal conductivity from electrical conductivity: K = 0.626 s T x 10-8 + 0.00497 where K = thermal conductivity, cal sec-1 cm-2 cm0C-1 s = electrical conductivity, ohm-]cm-1 T = temperature, deg Kelvin This expression gives calculated thermal conductivities that are not in error by more than 10 pct from the experimental values for A-55 titanium and the 6 alloys measured; namely, A-110AT, C-110M, C-130AM, Ti-6A1-4V, Ti-140A, and Ti-155A, which are representative of the presently available commercial a and a-ß titanium alloys. THERMAL conduction in a gas, liquid, or amorphous solid is accomplished by energy diffusion from molecule to molecule, a relatively slow process. For this reason, such materials have a low thermal conductivity. When a material is crystalline, there is in addition a heat transfer by a vibratory motion of the crystal lattice. It is the contribution of this lattice conduction that makes a crystal a much better conductor than a gas, liquid, or amorphous solid. Lattice conduction, however, does not account for the relatively enormous thermal conductivity of a metal. This is explained by the freedom of movement of valence electrons. These valence electrons drift in a metal in a direction toward a drop in electrical potential and, to a lesser degree, in the direction of a temperature drop in the metal. Since both the electrical and thermal conductivities of a metal depend upon the presence of free electrons, there should be some relatively simple relation between the two. Wiedemann and Franz in 1653 first discovered an approximate empirical relation between the electrical and thermal conductivities of metals at the same temperature. This ratio varies appreciably with temperature, and Lorenz later showed that by adding a temperature factor to the Wiedemann-Franz ratio the value of K/(s T) is constant, where K is the thermal conductivity, a the electrical conductivity, and T the absolute temperature. This Lorenz constant shows a greater variation for alloys than it does for pure metals, the ratio increasing slightly as the proportion of alloying elements increases. It has been found that a closer correlation between electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity can be obtained by means of an equation of the form K - A s T + B [1] where A and B are constants. In this equation the term AsT is the contribution of electronic conduction and B is the contribution of lattice conduction to the total thermal conductivity. EXPERIMENTAL MEASUREMENTS Electrical-resistivity and thermal-conductivity measurements on titanium and 6 titanium alloys serve as the basis for determining an equation of the K = AsT + B type for titanium alloys. Specimens—Table I shows nominal compositions of the 7 metals on which electrical and thermal conductivities were measured. The electrical and thermal-conductivity specimens for each alloy were taken from stock of the same heat and usually from adjacent sections of the same bar. All of the metals measured were in a mill-annealed condition. Methods—Electrical-resistivity measurements

Jan 1, 1959

By Chas. H. Behre, Arbiter. Nathaniel

Two outstanding factors characterize most undertakings in the mineral industries: (1) mineral deposits are not equally distributed over the earth but are localized by natural processes, and (2) the mineral industries are largely based upon wasting assets. Neither of these factors is invariably true, for a few mineral materials, such as water, are essentially world-wide and others are replaced periodically by processes not unlike crop production. Indeed, with some, such as the salts in the sea, the supply is cyclic in short or long periods, whereas others, like water, though locally or periodically in short supply, are essentially inexhaustible. But to the extent that most minerals are limited to certain areas and are "permanently" consumed, any industry founded upon them, by implication, demands great care in planning for the most effective extraction-the essence of wise and conservative expenditure. Several less unusual yet also truly fundamental factors in the economics of the mineral industry are those involving (1) the various kinds and properties of mineral materials, which influence their use; (2) their geo- logic and geographic availability; and (3) the techniques unique to their discovery, exploration, and utilization. This chapter is designed primarily as a brief background for later ones and as a summary of the several un- usual or at least special factors and of their effect upon the economics of the mineral industry. The social and political and especially the economic aspects of the industry are the main subjects of this volume and are dealt with in extended fashion in subsequent chapters. Fundamental Characteristics of Mineral Deposits DEFINITIONS Minerals are naturally occurring compounds of nonliving matter, each technically defined as having (1) a chemical composition that may vary

Jan 1, 1959

By C. M. Harrer

This paper describes the location and general features of iron occurrences in Colorado. Most of the deposits were examined; many are in forested and mountainous areas at altitudes of 5,000 to 13,700 feet. Iron is known to occur in 30 counties of western Colorado. Transporting the ore to market is a handicapping economic factor involving long truck and railroad hauls; the nearest purchaser of smelting ores is the Colorado Fuel and Iron Corp., at Pueblo, Colo. When the ore can be sold locally for special purposes and at higher prices than can be obtained at iron smelters, small-scale operations can supply that market.

Jan 1, 1959

By Joel N. Van Sant

THIS REPORT describes the occurrence, mining, and use of refractory clay in Colorado within Region III of the Federal Bureau of Mines, which includes the States of North arid South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona. Field work by the Bureau of Mines, United States Department of the Interior, included examination of active and abandoned refractory-clay mines as well as a reconnaissance survey and sampling of numerous clay-bearing formations exposed in Colorado. Information from the survey and the sampling will help guide private industry in its search for virgin sources of refractory clay. Library research of published and unpublished reports from various Federal, State, and private sources was conducted during the early phase of the investigation. Most of the refractory clay mined in the Denver-Golden district of Colorado is not used for refractory purposes but is blended with other clays in the manufacture of structural clay products. The predominantly flint-clay de-posits in the Pueblo and Fremont County districts are mined and utilized chiefly in fabricating refractory products.

Jan 1, 1959

By Frank C. Morris

This report presents the results of a Bureau of Mines study to identify clays found in several petroleum-reservoir rocks in the Tejon-Grapevine area, Kern County, Calif., and to determine the effect of water sensitivity of the clays on the permeability of the reservoir rocks. The clays in the porous rocks were examined in detail, and the clay-mineral types were identified by differential thermal analysis, X-ray diffraction, and optical and dye-staining methods. Fresh-water damage to the permeability of the oil-reservoir rocks was indicated by a study of 125 core samples from productive formations. The study indicated that, although clays were generally less than 5 percent of the reservoir rocks, they swelled in water, particularly fresh water, and nearly blocked the flow channels through which oil flows to the well, effectively reducing the permeability of the formations. The average permeability of rock decreased from 1,600 millidarcys in air to 620 millidarcys in salt water and 120 millidarcys in fresh water. The dominant clays in the oil-bearing sandstones were members of the montmorillonite group. They were associated with smaller quantities of clays found to be in the mica or illite group. None of the cores appeared to contain clays of the kaolinite group. In the lower section of the J.V. sandstone indications of what appeared to be the mineral sepiolite were noted.

Jan 1, 1959

By H. B. Humphrey

[EXPLOSION of gas and dust in coal mines, have caused death t lid injure to mines, and destruction of workings in all countries where coal is mined underground. In the United Stales the first reported explosion wits in Min; explosions have continued to the present. The danger to film ill it mine When an explosion occurs in not always measured by the violence created or by their nevi lies, to the area through which flame and Violence extend. As many, perhaps more, risen have died from gases and lade of oxygen (known as "after-damp") than have been killed by the blast and hart. Me explosions often are caused by it combination of factors, including concentration of methane in air, formation of clouds of dust, and the presence of a flame or spark. These explosion factors have varied with changes ill milting method and practises over the years, but the basis causes have always been the salve. Understanding of the causes and to acceptance of ways to guard against explosions and their effects have been slow to spread from investigates to officials and Own to bosses and miners. To a considerable extent there hats lawn a belief that explosions were a joining risk but might hr, put oil hut could not be presented. Such belief is based on the human failure to maintain and observe necessary precautions. These failures, caused by inertia to change, carelessness, or reliance on continuance, of past explosion-free years, are being reduced in number and effect by education of miners and supervisors and acceptance of higher prevention standards.]

Jan 1, 1959

By W. Hodge Caraway

This report presents the results of an evaluation of several indirect methods of measuring the water content of oil-reservoir rocks. The water content of oil-base cores is considered to be most nearly representative of the water content of the undisturbed petroleum reservoir and therefore, the direct method of measuring the volumes of water in cores cut in oil-base drilling fluid was adopted as a standard for comparison. The indirect methods evaluated included (1) displacement through a semipermeable membrane by air, (2) centrifuge, (3) evaporation, (4) mercury injection, (5) chloride dilution and (6) electric logs. Approximately 270 samples of cores from petroleum-reservoir rocks were used in the study. The cores, most of which were cut with oil-base mud in the hole, were taken from oilfields in California, Texas Gulf coast, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Alaska.

Jan 1, 1959

By Oliver Bowles

"Asbestos" is a name applied to a group of naturally fibrous minerals. Because it has the fibrous characteristics of silk or cotton and at the same time will not burn and has other advantageous properties as well, asbestos has specialized uses for which no adequate substitutes are yet available. Asbestos furnishes a major raw material for a great variety of essential products, the manufacture of which constitutes a vast industry. Asbestos generally occurs in irregular veins scattered throughout rock masses. Most of the fiber-bearing rock is mined in huge open-pit or underground workings. The fibers are separated from the rock and sorted into groups, according to length, in large, complex mills. The longer fibers are stripped to textile plants, where they are further fiberized and prepared in special machines and are used for spinning into yarn and weaving into unburnable cloth that has many important uses. The shorter fibers, which are much more abundant than the long ones, are used in asbestos-cement building materials in heat-insulating products and for a multitude of other applications. These processes and uses are covered in considerable detail in later sections of this report.

Jan 1, 1959

By O. C. Blade

Studies on more efficient utilization of petroleum have been made for 50 years by the Bureau of Mines. As part of this work, the Bureau has analyzed thousands of samples of crude oil by its standardized routine method, and many of these analyses have been published, sometimes in special compilations, other times in connection with reports of research on petroleum. This report is a finding index for all analyses published from 1921 to 1959, and brings up to date the information in Information Circular 7470 3 and in the appendix of Bulletin 490.4 The routine method of analysis and the equipment originally were described in a report by Dean and associates. 5 This report has long been out of print, but Bulletin 490, bringing the procedure and its modifications to date, was published in 1951. 6 Briefly, the procedure consists of testing, by standard methods, small samples of a crude oil for gravity, sulfur, color, viscosity, pour point, and (more recently) nitrogen; and, by a standardized procedure, distilling a portion of the crude oil and determining certain properties on the separated fractions and residuum. Careful records are made during the procedure, and the distillation data obtained are used to compute the approximate amounts of products present in the sample--such as percentages of gasoline, kerosine, gas oil, and lubricants. The principal data and results are recorded on a standard analytical report form. An analysis of a sample of crude oil from a recently developed field is shown in table 1. Compilations of these analyses, sometimes in tabular form and usually for specific geographic areas, are published from time to time. Analyses often are included in connection with other studies, such as engineering field reports.

Jan 1, 1959

By James W. Pennington

MERCURY, also widely known as quicksilver, ranks tenth in quantity in world output of nonferrous metals. However, its unusual and desirable combination of properties- liquid liquidity at ordinary temperatures, high density, uniform volume expansion, electrical conductivity, ability to alloy readily, high surface tension, chemical stability, and toxicity of its compounds -gives mercury an industrial and military importance out of proportion to the small physical size of the production industry. Although mercury has been known and used for over 20 centuries, until the 16th century consumption was small and chiefly in medicine. Since then mercury's applications have paralleled scientific advancements, kind current principal uses of mercury are in electrical apparatus, industrial and control instruments, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and the electrolytic prepa¬ration of chlorine and caustic soda. Other materials may be substituted for mercury in come applications; yet, for those uses that require mercury's unusual combination of physical and chemical properties, there is no ideal substitute.

Jan 1, 1959

By A. J. Kraemer

This report on research and experimentation by the Federal Bureau of Mines on technologic and scientific problems of the petroleum and natural gas industries presents a resume of work from July 1, 1953, to June 30, 1956. The preceding report, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1953,3/ indicated continuation of the Bureau's program of petroleum and natural gas research of world-wide significance, which began in 1910. The petroleum and natural gas research of the Bureau of Mines is divided into five main categories: (1) Production of petroleum and natural gas, (2) transportation and storage, (3) petroleum chemistry and refining, (4) thermodynamics, and (5) economics.

Jan 1, 1959