Search Documents

By J. A. Herdlick

Under authority of the Strategic Materials Act of June 1939, the Federal Bureau of Mines, in cooperation with the Geological Survey, began a broad program of investigation of the strategically important chromite deposits in Sweetgrass, Stillwater, and Carbon Counties, Mont. Extensive occurrences of chromite along the Stillwater Complex in Stillwater County were investigated. The two principal deposits, The Mouat-Sampson and Benbow mines, ultimately were developed and placed in production by the Federal Government. As a part of this general development program, the Carbon County chromite deposits near Red Lodge were examined by Bureau of Mines engineers in 1940, and by the Geological Survey .1-1 1942. The district was examined earlier by Schafer, and the Four Chromes area is mentioned briefly by Westgate. Although the Red Ledge deposits were considered to be of minor importance as compared to those of the Stillwater Complex, several of the ore bodies were adaptable to open-pit mining' methods, and one large deposit on Line Creek Plateau was readily accessible to the Red Lodge-Cooke highway. In 1941, the U. 3. Vanadium Corp. began mining crude lump-chrome ore from the deposit on Line Creek Plateau to supplement national stockpiles, which were being depleted by the rearmament program and the disruption of chrome-ore imports by the European war. Access roads gore constricted to Hellroaring Plateau, and the mining operations were extended to that area. A gravity concentrator with a capacity of 200 tons per day was built and operated at Red Lodge to beneficiate lower-grade ore from the district.

Jan 1, 1948

By K. C. Dean

The Bureau of Mines, following passage of the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, was authorized to conduct research on methods for utilizing, stabilizing, or reclaiming mineral wastes. This report summarizes laboratory research conducted by the Bureau and cooperative field studies made with the mineral industry to reduce the environmental impacts of air and water pollution deriving from mineral wastes. Utilization research showed that both dry-press and steam-cured building bricks and ceramic tile could be made from copper mill tailings and other discarded mineral wastes. Sponge iron was produced from steel mill and amination industry wastes, and valuable mineral products were extracted from such diverse sources as flue dusts and uranium tailings. Mineral wastes were combined with agricultural and/or sewage wastes to make artificial soils that have the potential of resolving several disposal problems by production of a useful commodity. Physical, chemical, and vegetative stabilization methods were evaluated, singly and in combination, for reclamation potential on copper, uranium, lead-zinc, and asbestos tailings. Suitable methods were developed in the laboratory for overcoming major adverse conditions of these wastes such as salinity, heavy metal toxicity, acidity, basicity, lack of nutrients and organics, and unstable surfaces. Field testing of these methods was performed on a variety of mineral wastes. Costs for the various stabilization and utilization-procedures developed were also determined.

Jan 1, 1986

By Clarence A. Wright, JAMES T. NORTON, JAMES G. PARMELEE

The object of this paper is to give to mining companies and to all others who are interested some idea of the possibilities in the treatment, by differential flotation, of lead-zinc ores of the Coeur d'Alene region and other districts. The purpose of these investiga.. tions is not to evolve a differential flotation process that would replace present methods of gravity concentration but rather one that could be applied to the relatively fine material and slime produced in the mills and treated unsuc_pessfully by gravity methods or by flotation. It is expected, of course, that the products to be obtained by differential flotation would be of much better grade than those now produced by flotation in the Coeur d'Alene mills. In view of the fact that it has been difficult to obtain representative samples of flotation feed from the mills, owing to the necessity of shipping the material wet and free from oil or other foreign matter that might be deleterious to the differential separation of the sulphides, the writers have felt justified in running flotation tests with the mill feeds in order to ascertain whether a differential separation of the sulphides could be effected. However, two different lots of flotation feed were tested for differential flotation, and the results of tests of one of these are given in this report. It is hoped that it will be possible later to test out the flotation feed for differential flotation on a large scale in some of the mills. This paper covers part of the investigations carried on by the United States Bureau of Mines in cooperation with the Idaho Bureau of Mines, the University of Idaho, and certain mining companies of the Coeur d'Alene region. Although the results of the tests included in this report are not to be considered final, they indicate possibilities and may suggest others leading to a solution of the problem of separating lead and zinc sulphides by differential flotation in the treatment of certain ores.

Jan 1, 1921

By Wilbert J. Huff

The Explosives Division of the United States Bureau of Mines makes certain laboratory and field investigations that deal with explosions, explosives, ignition, and combustion, together with many related problems, such as the cause and prevention of fires, and certain fundamental scientific questions bearing upon the determination of the chemical and physical mechanisms underlying some of the important phenomena encountered. Its work on explosives has been particularly directed toward determination of the chemical and physical characteristics of explosives designed for use in coal mines and in a more limited way to those used in metal mines, tunnels, quarries, and other engineering operations. This testing is handled by two units of the Explosives Division, as follows:

Jan 1, 1937

By Jack E. Fraley

Because of their noncombustibility, silicate and magnesium oxycements are desirable for sealing shale in underground coal mines. In this Bureau of Mines investigation, cement samples were cured and tested (nonstandard tests) for submersion to note resistance to dissolution (breaking into parts), which is an important property for a coating. Nonappreciable dissolution during 1 week of submersion was set for passing the test. Over half of the coatings passed the test.

Jan 1, 1977

By C. Golumbic

Most early research on solvent extraction of coal has been concerned with the molecular structure of coal. Although rush work is continuing, practical aspects of the subject also are being emphasized. For example, development of the Pott-Broche extraction process resulted from the discovery of very efficient solvents for the pressure-extraction of coal. Recently, Orchin and Storch reported the use of even more efficient solvents under similar conditions. In addition to the discovery of more effective solvents, the possibility of efficient extraction at atmospheric pressure is obviously of practical interest. H. J. Rose observed that phenanthrene at its atmospheric boiling point readily dispersed 80 percent or more of Pittsburgh-bed bituminous coal. This fact served as the starting point of the present investigation, ill which determination of the chemical specificity of this solvent and the chemical nature of the resulting extracts was undertaken. This paper represents a progress report of the results obtained to date.

Jan 1, 1950

By John R. McWilliams

This is one of a series of reports being published by the Bureau of Mines on mining methods and costs at various mines throughout the United States. Including the Holden mine in this series is particularly appropriate at this time. The mine was operated on a low-cost, large-scale production basis to compensate for low-grade ore. Even with the best conditions and the most efficient methods, the margin of profit was small. Under the present situation of rising costs and lowering metal prices, the profit margin vanished. On June 28, 1957, the mine operations ceased; therefore, this report can review the entire life span of the mine.

Jan 1, 1958

By E. M. Frost

"Helium has great value to the oil and as industry as a tracer gas, according to tests just completed in the Elk Hills Field, Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1, Kearn County, California. When used as .a tracer gas, small percentages of helium are mixed with natural gas pumped into a reservoir for conservation, repressuring, or cycling purposes. Because minute quantities of helium added to natural gases can be detected by analytical methods and accurately determined, the variations of the helium content of gas withdrawn from various parts of a field when helium has been added to the injected gas give interesting and long-sought data on the movement of injected gas through reservoirs.The Bureau of Mines engineers began their studies of the use of helium as a tracer material in gas-injection operations in the Elk Hills, California, oil field, Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 1, in response to a request by the Navy Department for assistance in connection with an expanded oil-production program instituted in that field. This report discusses the Bureau's work on the problem of determining the direction and extent of migration of injected gas in the Elk Hills reservoir by the use of helium as a tracer gas,The Bureau appreciates the cooperation and assistance of Commodore W. G. Greenman, U.S.N., director, and Commander R. Walling, U.S.N.R., Assistant director, Naval Petroleum .and Oil Shale Reserves, Washington, D. C., Captain H. P. Stolz, U.S.N.R., commanding officer, and Commander F. G. Taves, U.S.N.R.., of the Navy's Elk Hills staff. The Bureau also appreciates the cooperation and assistance given by V. O. Wankowski, F. C. Tratt, Marray Putnam, Dana Champion, and other personnel of the Standard Oil Co., of California, operators of the Elk Hills field.R. A, Cattell, chief, and C. C. Anderson, assistant chief, Petroleum and Natural Gas Division; C. W. Seibel, supervising engineer, Bureau of Mines Helium Plants; and H. H. Hinson, petroleum engineer - all of the Bureau's staff - furnished valuable advice and assistance during the course of the work. H. C. Miller and G. B. Shea of the Bureau's San Francisco Office contributed valuable liaison work. The writer wishes to express appreciation to all these people for their cooperation and assistance."

Jun 1, 1946

By C. P. Bowie

For years many oil producers have believed that often low-pressure oil- and gas-bearing strata have been over coked in fields where the rotary system of drilling has been used. Collom3/ gave as a reason for this con¬dition that because the mud fluid was thick, the oil or gas stratum was plastered and sealed as the tools passed through it and no oil showed at the surface. Although this observation was made 15 years ago, it may often still be true notwithstanding modern developments in coring and electrical logging. Operators have believed, also, that mud fluid does not solidify behind the casing. Lewis and McMurray4/ stated: "All the evidence obtainable from practical experience points to the fact that the mud fluid properly mixed and employed does not solidify behind the casing, even in deer wells and after long periods."

Jan 1, 1937

By Arne Landsberg

A study of the chlorination kinetics of germanium, silicon, iron, tungsten, molybdenum, columbium, and tantalum has been made to determine the effects of temperature, chlorine concentration, geometric surface area and gamma radiation. The reaction products were volatile at the temperatures used this making it possible to follow the reaction rates by weight loss of the solid. Chlorination rates of germanium, silicon, and iron were found to be directly proportional to chlorine concentration while the rates for tungsten, molybdenum, columbium, and tantalum were proportional to the 0.5 to 0.6 power of chlorine concentration. A good correlation of reaction rate and geometric surface areas was not obtained because the true surface area of the samples could not be measured. Intense gamma radiation had no effect on reaction rates. The Arrhenius activation energies determined over the temperatures used are as follows: Germanium, 27 kcal/mole (233°-241° C); silicon 33 kcaL/mole (375°-517° C); iron, cold rolled, 20 kcal/mGle (259°-325° C) annealed, 21 kcal/mole (293°-337° C); tungsten, 43 kcal/mole (617-776° C); molybdenum, 37 kcal/mole (445°-4910 C); columbium) 34 kcal/mole (229°?255° C); and tantalum, 29 kcal/mole (370°-449° C).

Jan 1, 1965

By John R. Troxell

"INTRODUCTION The Ahles iron mine, also known as the Pequest mine, in Warren County, N. J., was operated continuously for 15 years and was still in ore when it closed in 1916.Tie property was examined by an engineer of the Bureau of Mines in March 1943. 3/ This examination led to an investigation of the deposits by the Bureau by diamond drilling two holes under the old workings to determine whether the extends downward.This report describes the work done at the Ahles mine by the Bureau and presents the data obtained.ACKNOWLEDGMENTSIn its program of investigation of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. The Mining Division, Lowell B. Moon, chief, conducts preliminary examinations, performs the actual investigative work, and prepares the final report.The Metallurgical Division, O. C. Ralston, chief, analyzes samples and performs beneficiation tests.The investigation was under the general supervision of J. B. Zadra, acting regional engineer, and under the immediate supervision of G. D. Jermain, district engineer for the States of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware. The author was in direct charge of the project.The chemical analyses for the project were performed at the College, Park, Md., laboratories of the Bureau of Mines under the direction of M. S. Sheftel. The ore-dressing tests were conducted at College Park under the direction of Frank Lamb. Preston E. Hotz, of the Federal Geological Survey, logged and interpreted the drill cores."

Apr 1, 1948

By M. Hertzberg

This Bureau of Mines report describes experimental and theoretical studies of diffusion flames in free convection. The cross-coupling between buoyancy-induced flows and the combustion process is explored as it relates to the size, structure, and radiative balance of flames. New data are presented for the size-dependent radiance oscillations of diffusion flames and for the angular distribution of the total radiant intensity from a small methanol pool flame. Both amplitude and frequency of the measured oscillations are compared with theoretical predictions that are based on a new view of the structure of diffusion flames. This new view, which is at variance with the traditional one, assumes uniform reaction in the diffusive mixing zone, and recognizes the significance of the role played by convective buoyancy and its duality in both aiding and impeding flame propagation. Buoyancy quenches propagation at low burning velocities, introducing a real discontinuity in the combustion rate. A "flammable volume" is thus defined as that bound between lean- and rich-limit contours. However, in the flow disturbances generated by combustion waves that consume that volume, buoyancy aids propagation by promoting the convective mixing of a new flammable volume. The measured radiance oscillations are manifestations of these propagation and remixing cycles.

Jan 1, 1978

By James H. Scott

Well-logging techniques that have been used to evaluate various types of mineral deposits are discussed briefly, and many pertinent references are cited. Information is categorized by mineral commodity to make it easy to determine what logging techniques have been used for evaluating specific metals and nonmetals. Part 1 discusses logging techniques applied to deposits of the following metals: aluminum, antimony, beryllium, boron, copper, iron, lead and zinc, maganese, mercury, nickel, silver and gold, tin, tungsten, and uranium. Part 2 covers the following nonmetals: coal, evaporites, fluorspar, oil shale, rock salt, and sulfur. Separate bibliographies are given for English and foreign language references.

Jan 1, 1974

By George S. Rice

This bulletin traces the growth in the belief in the explosibility of coal dust, summarizes the experiments and mine investigations that have established this belief, and gives the present status of pre- ventive measures. It has been prepared in accordance with the pro- visions of the acts of Congress authorizing investigations relating to the causes of mine explosions, and contains references to and descrip- tions of experiments made at the Federal testing station at Pittsburg, Pa. This station was inaugurated under the United States Geo- logical Survey, and was transferred to the Bureau of Mines on the establishment of the latter on July 1, 1910. Only within comparatively few years has the dry dust of bitumi- nous and lignitic coals been generally recognized as an explosive agent more insidious, threatening, and deadly to the miner than fire damp. Fire damp carries its own flag of warning-the "cap" in the safety lamp-but coal dust, though visible, does not attract attention until present in large quantities. Fire damp is of local occurrence, and except in notable and very exceptional cases is controllable by careful manipulation of ventilating currents. If by mischance a body of fire damp is ignited in a mine, the force of the explosion may be terrific, but the effect is local unless dry coal dust is present, or unless (as it very rarely happens) an explosible mixture of methane gas and air extends through large areas of the mine. In a dry mine dust accu- mulates everywhere, and the blast from the ignition and combustion of bituminous dust may traverse miles of rooms and entries and wreck structures at the entrance to the mine. The comparative potential destructiveness of gas and of bituminous dust is strikingly shown by the history of the Pennsylvania anthracite mines. These mines not infrequently have large inflows of gas, and the resulting mixtures of gas and air have sometimes been ignited, yet no such wide-sweeping explosions have taken place, despite the presence of dry anthracite dust, as have happened in excellently ventilated bituminous mines.

Jan 1, 1911

By K. L. Paciorek

The aim of this program was to develop a reliable and meaning-ful basis for assessing certain safety aspects, namely fire and, in particular, toxicity hazards of articles employed in underground coal mining operations. The present investigation was concentrated on the thermal oxidative degradation of representative hydraulic fluids. To achieve this goal all products formed on thermal oxidative degradation of the fluids studied were analyzed, identified I and the amount of each individual species present was determined quantitatively on a weight of product per weight of material basis. The weight/weight data thus obtained can then be factorized to reflect the relative toxicity of each individual species present, using for example the Threshold Limit Values adopted by the American Conference of Governmental and Industrial Hygienists, whereby an overall "toxicity index" can be arrived at which makes it possible to compare the different fluids and/or classes of fluids in a quantitative manner insofar as their toxicity is concerned.

Jan 1, 1976

By Gopala N. Krishnan

The most promising candidate for the recovery of alumina from non-bauxitic sources is the leaching of clay by HCL acid followed by crystallization of aluminum chloride hexahydrate (ACH) by hydrogen chloride sparging. Hydrothermal precipitation of boehmite ( ?-A100H) from aluminum chloride solution will simplify the process, will reduce energy consumption and will eliminate corrosion problems involved in calcination of ACH to obtain alumina. This report summarizes the results of Phase I of a program to study the precipitation of boehmite from AlC13 solutions. The amount of boehmite precipitation from dilute A1C13 solutions (5 wt%) is . negligible below 200°C. Above 200°C the precipitation increases with increasing temperature approaching 40% at 300°C. Addition of HCl acid to the dilute A1C13 solution even in small quantities drastically reduces boehmite precipitation. Solution impurities such as Fe, Ca, Mg, or Na substantially promote the precipitation of boehmite. No precipitation is observed from concentrated A1C13 solution (30wt%) representing the leach liquor.

Jan 1, 1980

By Robert J. Hundhausen, Robert M. Gammell

"INTRODUCTION Several mining properties in the Pine Creek area of the Coeur d'Alene mining region of Idaho were examined by engineers 3/ of the Bureau of Mines in 1942. As a result, a broad program of exploration was recommended for the area, particularly in the eastern end, where chances for the discovery of new ore shoots seemed favorable. This report describes the work done and the factual information obtained by the Bureau of lanes.ACKNOWLEDGMENTSIn its program of exploration of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. It is the policy of the Bureau to publish the facts developed by each exploratory project as soon as practicable after its conclusion. The Mining Branch, Lowell Be Moon, chief, conducts preliminary examinations, performs the actual exploratory work, and prepares the final report. The Metallurgical Branch,. C. C. Ralston, chief, analyzes samples and performs beneficiation tests.The exploratory work at the Sidney mine was part of the activities of the Albany Division of the Mining Branch, S. H. Lorain, chief. Field work was under the direction of R. M. Gammell.Chemical analyses included in this report were performed at Reno, Nov., under the direction of A. C. Rice, acting engineer in charge, Rare and Precious Metals Experiment Station, Bureau of Mines. The ore-dressing tests were made under the direction of S. R. Zimmerley at the Bureau of Mines laboratory in Salt Lake City, Utah.The cooperation and assistance given by the owners of the Sidney Mining Co. is gratefully acknowledged."

Feb 1, 1948

By Larry A. Haas

A major problem encountered in dump leaching operations is the plugging of both the dump and the piping by precipitated iron compounds. Bureau of Mines research to obtain basic data on agitation leaching and dump leaching methods has shown that the addition of organic chelating reagents can significantly enhance the lixiviant permeability through the ore and the concentration of the metal values in the liquor. For example, the addition of 5 giL citric acid (CA) to a conventional sulfuric acid lixiviant almost doubled the fluid flow rate through 5-cm-diameter laboratory columns containing copper ore. After 185 h of per-colation leaching, the metal concentrations with (and without, in parentheses) CA were 1.7 (1.5) giL Cu, 200 (70) ppm Mn, 160 (40) ppm AI, and 6 (3) ppm Co. The enhancement of metal concentrations with chelating reagents such as CA was confirmed by determining the solubil-ity of several metal ions as functions of pH and chelating reagent con-centration. When ferric ions became insoluble at pH values above 3, the concentrations of other ions also decreased. The addition of che-lating reagents kept iron, as well as the other dissolved metals, in solution even at pH values as high as 5. Citric acid was a more effective chelating reagent than gluconic acid, oxalic acid, or sodium lignin sulfonate.

Jan 1, 1985

By D. O. Hamiltion

The ISMS program provided for the development and demonstration of equipment modifications in both conventional and continuous coal mining systems. This report describes activities during the demonstration of the conventional equipment and includes machine performance, results of data gathering, system evaluation, and recommendations for implementing improvements.

Jan 1, 1976

By Thomas J. Albin

This U.S. Bureau of Mines report identifies potential causes of slip-and-fall accidents occurring during surface mine equipment maintenance and describes the relative roles of direct worker behavior and machine design. The relative roles of human behavior and machine design in the causation of slip-and-fall accidents were determined through analysis of accident records, observations of maintenance worker behavior, and evaluation of mine machinery. From these data, relative risk ratios were calculated. Behavior had a relative risk ratio of 1.5; machine design, specifically access systems design, had a relative risk ratio of 2.2. Of the access systems, ladders had the highest relative risk ratio, 7.0. This study suggests that accident intervention would be most profitably made in improving the design of systems used to access maintenance worker areas of mining equipment.

Jan 1, 1990