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The mine surveillance and communication system hereafter described provides continuous local and remote monitoring of several parameters critical to normal mine operation at each of ten underground sites in the Bruceton Research Mine. The techniques employed are well proven and have been care-fully chosen to provide the best solution to the technical problems involved while giving special attention to economic considerations.

Jan 1, 1973

By VlNTON H. CLARKE

Diamond-drill blasthole sloping has now been used for a long enough time to permit us to discuss fairly its problems from the ore-breaking angle and to attempt to peer into its future. To do this we have gathered information from many properties through questionnaires. The operators have indicated fairly well in their answers what they think of the method. The many variations of methods have by now been fairly well developed, and performance rates and. mining costs are well established at each property. All this can be laid down on paper with fair completeness. Now. knowing all this, what will the future of the method be? To attempt to look into the future of a mining method immediately brings to light many problems and variables. For instance: why were diamond drills used in the first place? What has the cost trend been? In what type of deposit has the method proved most advantageous? What will the future cost of diamonds be? What are the possible substitutes?

Jan 1, 1949

By Mark S. Sanders

This report is a review and synthesis of the published literature dealing with personal equipment items used by low seam coal miners. This report reviews the following items of equipment: headgear, outer garments, respirators, cap lamp, gloves, knee pads, footwear, boots, helmets, ear protection, eye protection. Recommendations for further research and development are included.

Jan 1, 1978

By Paul M. Tyler

MARKETWISE the year 1935 was rather a good one for most of the rare and minor metals; as a class they climbed out of the depression much faster than the common metals. The diamond market, too, was better than it had been for years, attributable only in part to investment buying, as there was a genuine pick-up in consumer demand. Wars and rumors of war tended to speed up purchases of certain metals, but consumption for peaceful purposes was the principal factor. Significant was the important role played by new industrial uses. New discoveries during the year were disappointingly few, considering the broad extent of this research frontier. Scientific developments were far from being at a stand-still, of course, but the dominant note was the cashing in on research consummated in former years. With even a moderate upturn in general business a surprising number of laboratory ideas donned overalls and found jobs in industry.

Jan 1, 1936

By James A. Robertson

"In the Blind River area Proterozoic clastic and sedimentary rocks and minor volcanic rocks (The Huronian Supergroup) uncomformably overlie and trangress northwards over dominantly granitic Archean terrane (2500 + Ma) and are intruded by Nipissing Diabase (2ll5 Ma). Later deformation and metamorphic events are recognized. The developing depositional basin was controlled by the incipient Great Lakes Tectonic Zone marginal to the Algoman Craton.The Matinenda Formation (basal Huronian) comprises northwards-derived fluvial arkose, quartzite, and pyritic, uraniferous oligomictic conglomerate which contained in 1981 some two-thirds of Canada's uranium resources. Production to December 1981 from Elliot Lake totalled 98.3 thousand tonnes U for an average recovered grade of 0.1% U with an additional 671 tonnes U recovered by leaching at Agnew Lake. The remaining resources are at lower grades. Some thorium and yttrium have been produced. Minor amounts of gold reflect the paucity in the source area. Gold is better-developed in the Huronian north of Sudbury reflecting the local source area.The conglomerate beds lie in southeasterly-striking zones controlled by basement topography down sedimentation from uraniferous Archean granite. Uraninite textures, the distribution of monazite, and local enrichment by reworking indicate a syngenetic, probably placer, origin of the mineralization. ""Brannerite"" has formed by solution of uranium from the margins of the uraninite grains and redeposition on the original titaniferous minerals. Penecontemporaneous volcanics may have been a source for sulphur in some of the pyrite and of trace amounts of Co, Ni and Au. Some pyrite may be detrital, some may be authigenic and some introduced.Drab coloured rocks, uranium and sulphide mineralization, the presence of hydrocarbon (thucholite) and a post-Archean regolith formed under reducing conditions have been cited as evidence of an early Precambrian reducing environment extended to the atmosphere. Sedimentary features indicating fast-flowing water and possibly a cold climate imply that the uraninite would be exposed to whatever oxygen was present in the atmosphere under conditions which would inhibit complete solution. In the upper Huronian, red beds and in the Lorrain Formation a monazite - iron oxide assemblage and copper mineralization indicate more oxidizing conditions. . Similar uranium deposits occur at Agnew Lake and in the basal Huronian north of Sudbury there are minor uranium and gold values.Provenance, lack of complete oxidation, transportation and depositional processes, redistribution during diagenesis and possibly low grade metamorphism, and the lack of post-depositional destructive processes are the dominant factors in the formation and preservation of the ores. The modified placer theory of genesis is well entrenched and an exploration model for such deposits throughout the world is well-documented.Research continues on mineralogy and textures of the ores, detailed sedimentology of the ores and their host rocks, with particular emphasis on: provenance area, the influence of early Precambrian mineralization patterns on the mineralization present in the Huronian both in space and in time, fluvial sedimentation and diagenesis. Expansion and reopening of the mines of the Elliot Lake camp should facilitate further studies."

Jan 1, 1986

By J. Holtzhausen

"An analysis of operating costs for underground mining operations in the current global economic climate considers the financial burden for a ventilation system to be in vicinity of 30–50%. These operating costs are often overlooked by management teams in the greater scale of things when looking to save money in the procurement phase. This oversight to operational costs can be as little as the effective delivery of ventilating air to the work zone. One of the biggest opportunities for substantial savings and improvements can be realized in the selection of a quality vent duct that is suitable and fit for purpose. The key component to the selection process for quality products is a solid selection criterion that is followed during the tender process. This allows the management team to filter out unsuitable suppliers and products. The case study identifies some of the key components that were considered in the procurement and selection process for lay-flat ducting products. These included the characteristics and strength of the materials. The selection criteria also considered a ducted performance comparison that offers the best aerodynamic performance with some of the following components. • Airflow at Duct Face (m³/s or cfm), Fan Pressure (Pa), Air Power (kW or hp), Assumed Fan Efficiency, Annual Running Costs, K – Factor or Lambda, Leakage Factor, Joining Method and available Duct Lengths with weights. • Critical components considered were the current Testing standards available for: o Bursting Strength AS 4878.5, Mass AS 2001.2.13, Tensile Strength AS 4878.6, Tensile Strength AS 2001.2.3.1, Tear Strength AS 2001.2.10, Tear Strength AS 4878.7 • Other key considerations were: o Warranty Claim, Damage claims, Local storage / operations, community engagement and relationships, current testing data, previous issues, after sales service with technical assistance, etc. Hidden costs associated with product failures and operational stoppages are often not quantified during the tender process. Buyer beware. INTRODUCTION The largest constraint underground mining operations currently face are their operating efficiencies and electrical costs. The overall cost of an operations ventilation system and its components requires more focus to identify what opportunities exist to maximise efficiency and effectiveness. This tender process may not always be clearly understood and it should be broken down into fewer components to achieve quantifiable results."

Jan 1, 2019

The STATE MINERAL SUMMARIES publication provides estimated data and summaries of mineral activities at the State level for 1990. Most of the estimates are based on nine months data. These summaries have been prepared in cooperation with State geological surveys or related agencies. Individual State summaries are published separately as State Mineral Industry Surveys and copies can be obtained from the appropriate State Activities field office.

Jan 1, 1991

By J. J. Jakosky

THE method of electrical mapping of oil structures to be described possesses certain limitations, as well as certain definite advantages. It, in common with other geophysical methods, is not a panacea for the solution of all subsurface geological problems. It operates on differences in electrical conductivity of the geological strata, whereas the other most-used methods operate on (1) differences in magnetic properties, (2) differences in gravimetric properties, or (3) differences in seismic properties. This modification of the resistivity method is therefore able to obtain subsurface information under conditions not favorable to the other methods mentioned. Where the other methods have been employed with ambiguous results it may act as a complementary method.

Jan 1, 1936

By R. W. Raymond

THE sudden death of Dr. Drown, on Nov. 17, 1904, brought to multitudes the pang of personal loss. Of all those who, as students at Lafayette College, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Lehigh University, were brought under his influence, not one can have forgotten him, and all will now acknowledge, with an unfading gratitude, what they owe in professional equipment to his wise, clear, skillful guidance, and in character to his sympathetic, stimulating personality. Outside of this wide circle, the experts of both hemispheres will lament the departure of one who, in his department of scientific inves¬tigation, both knew what work was needed, and how to do it so that it needed not to be done again. The older members of the American Institute of Mining Engineers will remember with gratitude the part he took, as Secretary from 1873 to 1884, in promoting the interest of that organization, and in shaping the plan and policy which it has followed with such noteworthy success. And, in addition to all these (though partly included among them), there are a host of friends; who can scarcely think of the public loss by reason of their own. Thomas Messenger Drown was born March 19, 1842, at Phil¬adelphia, Pa. His parents were natives of New England; and. he was the youngest of their three sons. He received his preliminary education in the public schools and the High School of Philadelphia, from which he was graduated in 1859. Be-

Jul 1, 1905

By K. L. Paciorek

The primary objective of this program was to determine the toxic fume and fire hazard of elastomeric noise abatement materials with a limited effort expended on the evaluation of specific treatments applied to mine timbers. Under the conditions employed, for a dimethyl silicone rubber, formaldehyde presented the major toxic threat; acrolein was the main toxic species for both polyester and polyether urethanes and an acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene resin; in the case of flame-retardant styrene-butadiene rubber compositions, hydrogen chloride, and in the case of PFA-treated timber, furfural, were the major toxic compounds. Of the materials studied, the flame-retardant styrene-butadiene rubbers presented the greatest toxic hazard. The generated data have been reduced to toxic load tabulations amenable to employment for potential hazard assessment.

Jan 1, 1982

By R Goater, P Kirsch, S Goater, I Goater

With staff productivity and retention a crucial factor in the longevity of AustraliaÆs mining industry, some mining companies are increasing their focus on the health and well-being of their people, to minimise the risks of deteriorating health in an ageing workforce. Many of AustraliaÆs mining operations rely heavily on long distance commuter (LDC) rosters, which are argued to have a significant impact upon worker health, wellbeing and lifestyle choices. The potential impact of workforce health on mine safety performance, efficiency and operating practice is an interesting additional line of enquiry. Food choice, exercise and recreation initiatives offer living and working conditions that æempower healthy choicesÆ in the shift worker community, but do not guarantee improved worker wellbeing. This paper explores first-hand the experiences of one individual over two and a half years of employment at different mine sites, under different shift conditions and across different operating crews. Novel insights and recommendations concerning the LDC lifestyle are offered through integrating reflections on one individualÆs fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) experiences in open pit mining operations from personal, family, professional and academic perspectives.CITATION:Goater, S, Goater, R, Goater, I and Kirsch, P, 2012. This life of mine - Personal reflections on the well-being of the contracted fly-in, fly-out workforce, in Proceedings Eighth Open Pit OperatorsÆ Conference , pp 31-40 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 18, 2012

By R. D. Currie

"INTRODUCTION Compressed air for operating coal-mining equipment is seldom considered in conjunction with modern methods and appliances. But the Jamison Coal & Coke Co. has proved the economy and efficacy of compressed air for this purpose at its Mine 8 near Farmington, 8 miles west of Fairmont, Marion County, W.. Va., and the mining industry as a whole concedes its superior safety in gassy or dusty coal mines.The uses for compressed air in coal mining are now generally associated with such equipment as coal punchers, chain-breast machines, and to a lesser extent the ""radialaxe"" type of mining machines.Electricity has rapidly superseded compressed air for power in coal mines during the past 20 years; and in the last few years the general, and often unwise, use of electricity at the face region has taken on added impetus through the widespread use of mechanical loading equipment.Some of the unfavorable results of this increased use of electricity are shown in the growing number of mine explosions and fires of electrical origin. In the past four years 59 explosions of this type took the lives of 672 men, or 74.8 per cent of the total number of deaths from explosions were due to explosions of electrical origin.3In 1926, an explosion in Mine 8 of the Jamison Co. killed 19 men. The exact source of ignition was not determined, although it was definitely decided that it was of electrical origin and probably was at an electric coal-cutting machine.Prior to this disaster the company had done some experimenting with compressed-air-driven mining machines, and its Mine 9 had been completely equipped with air-driven chain-breast machines; a few of these machines were also in use in Mine 8. The explosion, however, gave impetus to the adoption by this company of compressed air for operating face equipment. The chain-breast machines were as satisfactory as electric machines of the same type; but the trend in the industry was toward faster cutting machines, which required less physical exertion on the part of the operating crews. A track-mounted machine of the arcwall type was found to be suitable for the conditions and system of mining, so that one of these operated by compressed air was developed by the Jeffrey Manufacturing Co. working with the officials of the Jamison Co.The first of these machines was installed in the latter part of 1926 and additional machines were delivered from time to time, until at present there are nine of them in the mine. Necessary improvements have been made, with the result that a fast-cutting, easily handled, efficient, and safe mining machine has been developed for cutting the hard Pitts¬burgh bed coal of the Fairmont field."

Oct 1, 1932

By Jos. R. Guiteras

This paper is one of r series published by the Bureau of Mines dealing with the mineral resources of western South Dakota. The mining of pegmatite minerals is described mainly from the standpoint of the feldspar industry, as most of the other .pegmatite minerals produced are recovered as byproducts from the mining of feldspar. Feldspar is shipped from the Black Hills by three companies, all operating in the southern Hills. Because the pegmatites of the northern Hills, represented by tae Tinton area, have been described in other papers3/ of this series, the present paper is confined to the pegmatite dikes of the southern Black Hills. Emphasis is placed upon the current activity in pegmatite mining; little attention is given to the history of many famous mines in the district, and information concerning them may be obtained by consulting resorts cited in the bibliography. The field work was carried on from July 28 to October 15, 1938. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The geology of the Black Hills has been studied almost continuously during the last half century. A wealth of literature has attempted to explain the geology and mineralogy of the pegmatite dikes of this region. The writer acknowledges his indebtedness to all earlier investigators, as well as to the following men, whose assistance in the field was of particular value: F. C. Lincoln, professor of mining, South Dakota School of Mines; Mont Heumphreus, State mine inspector, South Dakota; Harold. H. Eyrich, superintendent, and Batemen Eilbeck, mine foreman, b. E. Schundler Feldspar Co.; J. W. Mitchell, field man, Consolidated Feldspar Corporation; John Wells, mine operator and local mineral buyer, Ouster, S. Dak.; Frank Hughes, general superintendent, and Harry Wasson, nine foreman, Hugo mine; D. W. Peterson, mine superintendent, Etta mine.; Lon Walker, Mine superintendent, Peerless

Jan 1, 1940

By King K. Mak

The objectives of this study are to: (1) Assess current signing regulations and practices; (2) Develop effective signing guidelines; and (3) Evaluate the applicability and appropriateness of the proposed signing guidelines through field demonstration at representative mines. A literature search was conducted to determine the state of the art for signing applicable to surface mine haulage roads as well as survey of existing MHSA regulations and review of MSHA accident records. Nine representative mines were visited to gather information on current signing practices. Preliminary signing guidelines were then developed based on the abovementioned data. Field demonstration of the preliminary signing guidelines was conducted in which signing programs were implemented in two selected mines. Signing requirements were first assessed at each of the two participating mines. Subsequently, the necessary signs were designed, purchased, and installed at the two mines. Evaluation of the signing program as to its adequacy, appropriateness, and effectiveness was solicited from both mine management and operations personnel. Experiences gained from field evaluation were then incorporated into the final signing guidelines as presented in this final report.

Jan 1, 1981

By Dozier Fircley

SOME nonmetallic minerals and their products, such as portland cement, common brick and hollow tile, sand, gravel, crushed rock, vitrified salt-glaze clay pipe, and the like, are a necessity in every community. They are mineral in nature but the establishment of plants for their production is usually a local and elementary problem. Yet it is probable that an economic study of the problem in every locality will show that such nonmetallic mineral commodities are not always obtained in the most economical way, or in the best quality. Other nonmetallic minerals are of such value that they may be shipped for long distances and sold in sufficient quantities to establish prosperous commercial ventures. Among these are phosphates, barium compounds, borates, nitrogen compounds, magnesium compounds, sulfur, asbestos, and potash. Success in marketing such products depends on quality, production cost, transportation, and similar conditions.

Jan 1, 1932

By D. Harrington

The record of fatalities from mine explosions during the past 2 fiscal years has been anything but encouraging; more men were killed by explosions (379) than were killed from the ante cause during to' preceding 6 years combined (368). The reason for the large increase in the number of explosion fatalities during the past 2 years as compared with the previous 6 years is not entirely clear. In some instances, there has been laxity in the enforcement of State mining laws; in others, both workers and operating officials is have failed to observe recognized precautionary measures to prevent explosions. In many of the explosions that lave occurred within the asst few years in mechanized mines it has been evident that speed of operation and a demand for maximum tonnage at minimum cost resulted in neglect of ordinary safety measures.

Jan 1, 1942

By A. B. Parsons

DOWN in Washington an army of individuals constituting the government of a so-called "'democratic" nation is trying to manage the conduct, in its rnultifold phases, of the greatest war in history for the country that is potentially, at least, the strongest in the world and on which, consequently, the major responsibility rests. The enterprise is one of unprecedented magnitude and complexity. That individuals and groups have made and are making serious blunders, both as to the establishment and execution of policy, is to be expected.

Jan 1, 1942

By C. E. Lapple

To improve mine health and safety conditions, there is need for a portable instrument that mine inspectors can use routinely for rapidly checking concentrations of dust in mine atmospheres. On October 23, 1969, Stanford Research Institute was authorized by the U.S. Bureau of Mines to conduct a study aimed at developing such an instrument under Contract No. H0100186. The results of that study are reported in Technical Report No. 1, "Development of Portable Instrument For Measuring Coal Mine Dust Concentration," August 1970. In that study it was demonstrated on bench-scale that a near-forward optical scattering device gives a linear correlation between mass concentration and optical readout over a range of 2 to 200 mg/m3 with excellent reproducibility. The same correlation was obtained for the Respirable* dust fraction of three different coal dusts within ± 10% and an extreme spread of ± 30%. Based on these results a prototype instrument was designed which was expected to meet all the necessary requirements of a portable instrument for mine use. Because of the excellent results obtained, a further study was authorized by the Bureau of Mines on May 10, 1971 under Contract No. H0111688. The prime objective of this study was to build, calibrate, and deliver to the Bureau of Mines two prototype instruments based on the design previously developed. The emphasis was to be on providing instruments which would meet certain minimum standards of size, weight, response time, sensitivity, ruggedness, reproducibility, permissibility, and cost (ultimate); optimization of the design was to be considered only insofar as it would not significantly delay the development. One instrument was to be delivered after initial calibration of both instruments with Coal Dust PGH. The second instrument was to be used for further calibration with a number of other coal and rock dusts and for assessing other relevant performance characteristics. This report summarizes all the results of this second study.

Jan 1, 1972

By J. Bootle

Marrow vein deposits will continue to be an important source of valuable minerals. Productivity per manshift is not keeping pace with operating costs. Increased mechanization of stoping operations must be obtained to create greater productivity at a reduced cost per ton. This application of mechanization may be to either present methods or to newly developed concepts. The total mine unit operations will be effected by increased productivity. Two approaches to increasing the mechanization of narrow vein stoping were studied with the intention of increasing stope productivity and decreasing stoping costs. A method of bringing efficient rubber-tired equipment into narrow cut and fill stopes was designed. It proposes to provide stope access by way of a ramp constructed on the stope fill. Impact breaking equipment was studied and specific applications proposed.

Jan 1, 1977

By Richard E. Thill

Engineering properties of rock are essential in most phases of mining from site reconnaissance through mineral processing. Review of the literature indicates, however, that property data is scarce for most coal measure rocks in the United States. The Bureau of Mines, U.S. Department of the Interior, has undertaken a wide-ranging testing program to provide more complete property data for coal strata in the U.S. coal basins. The property data are expected to have application in geophysical exploration, the development of pre- mining and hazard detection probes and instrumentation, mine design, engineering and rock mass classification, subsidence engineering, and ground control. This paper describes the comprehensive program encompassing in situ geological, geophysical, and geotechnical properties and laboratory determinations of acoustic, electromagnetic, physical, mechanical, and index properties and discusses results for 500 ft of coal measures at a minesite in the Northern Appalachian, Eastern Coal Province.

Jan 1, 1982