Search Documents

By P. F. Kinyoun

MANY interesting new features are embodied in the latest extension to the open-hearth department of the Bethlehem Steel Co., at Lackawanna, N. Y. Automatic control of the important factors in furnace operation-fuel, air, draft, pressure, slag composition, and of the temperature in various regions of the furnace-has been carried out to a remarkable degree; the human factor is minimized, and the chances for mishaps and irregularities in operation are greatly reduced.

Jan 1, 1937

By C. G., Fink

The dissolution of gold by cyanide solutions was studied by determining the time required for the solvents to dissolve gold leaf. Minute traces, even 0.5 ppm, of sulphide ion retard the dissolution of gold, and this behavior cannot be accounted for by the presently accepted hypotheses involving oxygen-depletion or thiocyanate formation. On the other hand, traces of the salts of lead, bismuth, mercury, and thallium considerably accelerate the dissolution. The beneficial effect of lead is dependent upon the pH and cyanide ion concentration of the solution.

Jan 1, 1950

By Charles Catlett

(Chattanooga Meeting, October, 1M.) THE terms " developed " and " undeveloped " are necessarily relative and cover a wide range; but the latter is here applied to cases in which the information at hand falls short of a clear demonstration of values, and conclusions must be reached from a study of the geological conditions of the particular deposit, interpreted in the light of similar and closely related deposits. Such an inquiry might be characterized as an effort to reach reliable conclusions from insufficient data. But the engineer engaged in commercial work finds himself often face to face with apparently such problems; and while he may realize with regret that a small amount of intelligent development would add enormously to the value of his conclusions, he is compelled to recognize the demand of a business situation for a prompt decision as the basis of immediate action. In a case within my knowledge, the question involved was the purchase of 50,000 acres of coal-land, and 10 days was the limit within which this question must be decided. Of course, it was impossible to make a satisfactory examination within that time; but the 'instructions were "to make the most complete examination and the most positive recommendation possible." Such instructions are often given; for, no matter how much time an investor may have, he is likely to put of his decision until the last moment, and then discover that he needs more light and advice. It does not follow that engineers, after full explanation and mutual understanding of the situation, should decline to undertake examinations thus limited. In the case just mentioned, while only the broadest view was possible, half the time available was sufficient to show that the property was a good purchase. The timber alone was subsequently resold for more than the entire purchase-price of the

Mar 1, 1909

(Members are urged to send in for this column any notes of interest concerning themselves or their fellow-members.) Members and guests who registered at Institute headquarters during the period Feb. 10 to Mar. 10, 1915: W. R. Van Liew, Batoum, Russia. Edward S. Jones, Scranton, Pa. Olof Wenstrom, Boston, Mass. Scott Turner, Tromso, Norway. D. G. Miller, Denver, Colo. A. H. Boyd, Denver, Colo. E. E. Olcott, New York, N. Y. M. M. Thompson, Morsemere, N. J. Francis R. Pyne, Elizabeth, N. J. F. C. Merry, Brooklyn, N. Y. Charles W. Goodale, Butte, Mont. Charles A. Filteau has been appointed General Manager for the Inca Mining & Development Co., Province of Carabaya, Department of Puno, Peru. Charles T. Kruse has been appointed Superintendent of the Jones & r, Loughlin mines in the Marquette and Menominee ranges.

Jan 4, 1915

JAMES GAYLEY (President), R W RAYMOND (Secretary), FRANK LYMAN Treasurer) T A RICKARD NEW YORK, N Y CHARLES H SNOW NEW YORK, N Y R W RAYMOND NEW YORK, N Y (Terms expire February, 1906 ) JAMES GAYLEY NEW YORK, N Y FRANK KLEPETKO NEW YORK, N Y FRANK LYMAN NEW YORK, N Y (Terms expire February, 1907 ) JAMES DOUGLAS NEW YORK, N Y JAMES F KEMP NEW YORK, N Y ALBERT R LEDOUX NEW YORK, N Y (Terms expire February, 1908 ) Council PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL JAMES GAYLEY VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE COUNCIL GEORGE W MAYNARD NEW YORK, N Y JULIAN KENNEDY PITTSBURG, PA CHARLES D WALCOTT WASHINGTON, D C (Terms expire February, 1906 ) WILLIAM P BLAKE TUCSON, ARIZ THOMAS F COLE ,DULUIH, MIFF IRVING A STEARNS WILKES-BARRE, PA (terms expire February, 1907 )

Jan 1, 1910

By S. D. Warriner

ONE of the most, if not the most, difficult of the problems associated with the mining and distri-bution of anthracite is to get clearly into the minds of the consumers and of the editorial and reporto-rial writers in the public press the relationship between the cost of production, the price at the mine and the price that the consumer pays for his coal, delivered in the cellar. One sees in his morning paper a statement to the .effect that out of the $12 or $13 per ton that his dealer charges him, the miner gets only $2 or even less, and he asks himself or the paper asks for him, "Who gets the difference?" Not infrequently the amount that the miner gets is given for run-of-mine bituminous coal while the price quoted is that of prepared anthra-cite, egg, stove, or chestnut, as the case may be, delivered to the bin of the consumer; and the difference stands out with all the more prominence; and it sticks in his memory with a persistency which no manner of explanation is able to efface. A recently published official report for the year. 1921 of one of the State Bureaus stated the total production of anthracite in net tons of 2000 lb., and included not only the output recovered by washeries from old culm banks and by dredges from creek and river channels, but also the colliery consumption;, i.e., the coal used by the companies in the operation of the collieries. This resulted in a total production of 90,509,075 net tons for which the labor cost was stated at $283,961,300, or $3.13 per net ton, equivalent to $3.50 per gross ton. This figure of $3.50 was immediately seized upon as representing the labor cost per gross ton of fresh-mined commercial coal. It is almost a hopeless task to try to correct such errors of statement in the first place, and, in the second place, to correct the misapprehen-sions that arise from them. As a matter of fact, the report was misleading in regard to the labor cost of the entire production shipped, as the coal used for colliery consumption should be deducted. Correctly stated, the report should have shown, calculated in terms of gross tons of 2240 lb., the legal weight in Pennsylvania, as follows: Gross production 80,607,359 tons Less colliery fuel 8,757,137 tons Commercial production 71,850,222 tons Total labor bill $283,961,300.00 Labor cost per ton...: 8 3.952 The foregoing figures" of tonnage are obtained from the State Department of Mines. Even these include the quantity recovered from calm, banks by washeries, and consequently the $3.95 arrived at as the average labor cost is somewhat less than that actually involved in the mining of fresh-mined coal. Unfortunately, the figures of washery production and the cost of producing it are not available.

Jan 7, 1922

By F. F. ESPIE

Giving the keynote address in the final session of a conference dealing with closely related topics has a disadvantage in that much of what can be said has been said. It also has an advantage, however, because it presents the speaker with the opportunity to integrate and analyse the material presented by the various speakers. I would like to look to the near future in Australia and the United States of America, to the risks, problem areas, and changes of a rapidly evolving post-industrial era-an era we are beginning to experience where industry no longer 'calls the tune'. We miners have been quick to point out and emphasize, that ours is a 'high-risk' industry in the world of business and commerce. Yet, clearly those who have survived, and been successful, have learned to anticipate and cope with risk and change. This ability has been a 'distinguishing feature of the industry's leaders who, in market studies and commodity selection, exploration and development, mine planning, metallurgical pro- cessing, and general administration and operation 1. identify areas-of risk or inevitable change, 2. analyse, test and quantify those factors of risk or change, and 3. design methods, systems, equipment to eliminate, moderate, or control or economically compensate for predicted risks or changes.

Jan 1, 1978

By Hiland G. Batcheller

HISTORY shows that the nation which makes the most steel is the most likely to win wars. Today the course of war shows that the nations which get there first with the most steel of the right kind will be the ones to win. Not only the most steel, mind you, but the right kind. Adequate production, which was enough for victory before the days of totally mechanized warfare of 1943, must now be accompanied by still better quality as well as more effective distribution. Further, both production and distribution must be flexible enough to permit rapid shifts from one weapon to another for use in varying elements in varying geographical areas. Thus the problem of making enough steel of the right kind at the right time in the face of changing requirements dictated by experience has been and will remain highly complex. This does riot permit us to ease our restrictions on nonessential use. War is a complex business, like the job of making steel for war. Each time we solve one problem, another pops its head up. Yet we are making some progress.

Jan 1, 1943

By E. H. Rose

IN a year of sober reflection and stocktaking after the mineral-squandering spree of World War II, the role that beneficiation of low-grade must henceforth play in American mineral industry has become unmistakable. From the volume of research and development progress in mineral engineering during 1946, mineral dressers evidently have ample resoluteness to meet the challenge. Perhaps ,the most conspicuous trend of the year was the renascence of interest in gravity concentrating methods and more serious effort than ever before to make them effective in finer size ranges down to 200 mesh. This has been forced by the problem in iron ores where the low value of the product will not support a high flotation reagent cost, however good flotation pilot plant results may have been and however well the acute problem of variable feed may be met. The race is on between rabbit flotation and tortoise gravity methods and a surprising amount of betting money is being laid on the tortoise which already is showing previously unsuspected talent for speed. Mostly, however, a wait-and-see attitude prevails during the present preliminary heats. As evidence of the latter, two magnetic plants are now on the boards for magnetic taconites on the eastern Mesabi to establish a reprieve against the time when nonmagnetic taconites must be addressed. Incidentally, these operations will force the blast-furnace issue on preparation of fine material since a minus-100-mesh grind is contemplated.

Jan 1, 1947

By C. K. Leith

THE interdependence of nations in regard to mineral supplies has grown apace with the expanded needs of industry, with depletion of reserves, and with advances in technology. This increased mutual dependence raises many questions of foreign economic policy of special importance in our postwar planning. Realization of the urgent need for the development of a general mineral policy broadly based on national requirements led to discussions of the problem between officials of the Department of State and myself, as a result of which it was suggested that I make an informal and unofficial canvass of the views of mineral specialists of the country on foreign mineral policy.

Jan 1, 1946

By Charles H. Behre

KEYNOTE of the mining geology sessions was the preparation for an extensive war with all that this implies as to the need for strategic minerals, both metallic and nonmetallic. Nevertheless the sessions also included many papers of less urgent, more theoretical interest. The stress of wartime production had the effect of giving an unusually full and rich program, the longest in recent years, with sessions continuing virtually throughout the meeting. Some papers dealt with geophysical prospecting as applied to mining geology; others were concerned with the grand strategy of mineral reserves and thus involved the industrial minerals; such "borderline" subjects were presented before sessions held jointly with the Geophysics Committee or the Industrial Minerals Division.

Jan 1, 1942

By Arthur B. Foote

THE ball mill has superseded stamps for the reduction of gold ores in most of the recently designed plants, partly because stamps are not suited to die fine grinding required for flotation, and partly to save space and construction cost. Experience with these new mills seems to confirm the idea that it is more difficult to recover bold from a ball-mill product than it is when stamps are used for crushing. Microscopical examination of particles of gold that have passed through a ball mill show that the gold has been pounded into exceedingly thin flakes coated with a talcy surface, making it more difficult to save by amalgamation, flotation, or concentrating. Bearing in mind that gold is extremely malleable, it seems reasonable that this should be so. Contrast the action in a stamp battery, where the crushing is by impact in the presence of mercury, to the grinding and rolling under pressure in a ball mill. It is well known that a better recovery can be obtained by panning or amalgamation from a sample of ore that has been crushed by mortar and pestle than from one reduced on a bucking board.

Jan 1, 1937

By W. A. Clark, E. H. Dresser

ORE from the Minnesota iron ranges is transported from the mines to the loading docks on Lake Superior over four different railways: the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, Soo Line, and Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range, with hauls varying from 60 to 110 miles. For this service a large amount of specialized equipment is used. The steel ore cars are of the hopper type, 24 ft. long, to dump into alternate pockets of the docks, these pockets being 12 ft. long to correspond with the 12 or 24-ft. spacing of the boat hatches. The more recently con-

Jan 1, 1941

By Charles W. Frey

COMPRESSED air is one of the most useful tools that the mine operator has at his disposal. It is clean, nontoxic, easily handled, and can be distributed anywhere that a man can drag a length of rubber hose. Without it a great deal of drilling would still be a laborious hand process, and although the John Henry of legendary fame could beat a mechanical drill, John Henrys are few and far between, and in the long run the air drill is the victor. As a general rule, horizontal compressors are lubricated by mechanical lubricators, which furnish oil to the cylinder walls, whereas vertical units are splash lubricated. In most horizontal machines oil is introduced at the top center of the piston, from which point it can run down and lubricate the rest of the piston. Some large units introduce oil at more than one point on the cylinder wall, the necessity for this and the number of points of introduction depending upon the size of the cylinder.

Jan 1, 1938

BUMPS in No. 2 Mine, Springhill, N. S., furnished the main feature for discussion at the morning meeting* on Ground Movement and Subsidence on Feb. 18. Walter Herd, the author of the paper by which the discussion was introduced, not being well, was unable to be present. The paper was presented by T. L. McCall, who laid stress on the presence of sand- stone as the cause of bumps, on the value of retreating longwall in eliminating such phenomena at the coal face and on the advantage of wide headings with packs on either side, leaving space behind them for any coal that bumps might dislodge. George S. Rice, who presided, referred to his visits to the Nova Scotia mines and said that bumps usually occurred only where the coal was thick and strong and the roof and floor both more than usually hard. If any of the three were weak, bumps were not likely to occur. In the Nova Scotia mine, to which Mr. Herd referred, there was no material for packwalls and for this reason as well as for safety he had been convinced that long- wall retreating with a small percentage of pack walling was the most feasible plan.

Jan 1, 1929

By AIME AIME

AN enthusiastic crowd, cheerfully confident that the upturn in the oil industry has arrived, gathered in Los Angeles on Sept. 29 for a Petroleum Division meeting arranged by the Southern California Section. The assembly room of the California Oil and Gas Association was the place of meeting. H. Norton Johnson was in the chair for the morning session, with about eighty members and guests present. Four papers were presented before lunch and a fifth, on electrical coring, was withdrawn as the work on which it was based is still confidential. Joseph Jensen read his contribution on the "Kettleman Hills Middle Dome Unit Plan" and, as he had an active part in framing the plan, his outline and discussion of it was authoritative and informing. J. H. Woods asked concerning the operation of the casing-head gasolene plant under the plan and was informed that one company would operate the plant and royalties would be paid participating companies

Jan 1, 1933

The following officers were elected by the Pennsylvania Anthracite Section of the A. I. M. E. on the evening of June 28th. Chairman, R. V. Norris; vice-chairmen, C. F. Huber, W. G. Whildin, W. J. Richards, Eli Conner; executive committee, Douglas Bunting,. W. W. Engle, Chas. Enzian, J. M. Humphrey, A. B. Jessup, R. A. Quinn; secretary and treasurer, Paul Sterling.

Jan 9, 1919

"The power development at these falls, three miles below the city of Great Falls, was made in 1891 by the original Great Falls Water Power & Townsite Company, and the Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining company, the predecessor of the Boston & Montana Reduction Department mentioned above.The dam is 746 feet long, placed a short distance above the crest of the falls, and giving an effective head, as now constructed, of from 42 to 44 feet. There are power houses on both banks, those on the south bank belong to the Great Falls Power company, the successor of the Great Falls \!\Tater Power & Townsite Company, and the Great Falls Electric properties. The water is led from the dam to these power houses through sheet iron pen-stocks the water wheels are of the horizontal turbine type, and of various sizes.The water is here carried from the dam to the power houses by an open canal or headrace, the walls of which are concrete. This headrace is 100 feet wide at the widest point. The available head was originally less than 40 feet, but this was increased to about 44 feet by means of flashboards and tailrace wall, seperating the tailrace from the main river and delivering the water to the river at a considerable distance below the power house, thus taking advantage of a considerable fall in the river below the sheer fall at Black Eagle.A total of about 12,000 horse power 1s developed at these falls, the Great Falls Power Company, and Great Falls Electric properties developing about 2,000 horse power, and the Anaconda Copper Mining Company developing the balance."

Jan 1, 1913

By H. C. Babbitt

The Effect of Arsenic.—A question involving the temperature of precipitation of ammonium phospho-molybdate, which was brought to my attention some time ago, led to the following experiment :*

Jan 1, 1893

By James Aston

A PROPER consideration of this subject is not confined to the technical channels of production and metallurgy. It concerns an industry, and should cover economic aspects which are of material importance in any program of development. The discussion may logically be treated under three subdivisions, as follows: (1) manufacture, (2) characteristics related to quality of material; (3) adaptability and exploitation of product. MANUFACTURE OF WROUGHT IRON The manufacture of wrought iron is the most ancient art of the ferrous metal industry. The eighty years or less of existence of processes identified with our modern "Age of Steel" is a relatively brief interval compared with the several thousand years associated with the production of wrought iron by man. From the primitive early methods of production, manufacture for many centuries followed the line of direct reduction. There were developments as experience was gained through the years; but man's needs for a strong, ductile, forgeable product were met by reducing the ore to metallic iron in a single-stage operation. Following the development several centuries ago of what has become our modern blast-furnace operation, manufacture of wrought iron was gradually transformed into a two-stage method of first producing cast iron and then refining this to the desired degree of forgeability; the forerunner in principle of today's scheme of manufacture of steel. The product retained the essential characteristics of highly refined base metal with iron-silicate slag incorporation, which were associated with the material resulting from direct reduction methods. Cort's invention of the puddling process in 1784 is a landmark in wrought-iron manufacture. It consisted essentially in adapting a coal-fired reverberatory furnace to the refining operation; thus lifting the industry out of the slough of

Jan 1, 1935