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By F. D. Everett

Thermoelectric and metal alloying applications have changed the status of tellurium from oversupply to under supply . In a search for new sources of this element in Arizona , Colorado , New Mexico , Utah , and neighboring states , the Bureau of Mines analyzed more than 200 samples and obtained the results of tellurium determinations by private companies on more than 500 samples from a wide variety of mineral - bearing deposits . The About 40 minerals containing tellurium have been reported , mainly tellu- rides of gold , silver , bismuth , mercury , lead , copper , iron , and nickel . minerals usually occur in small quantities and identification in ores is extremely difficult . Samples containing more than 0.1 percent tellurium were taken from the Hilltop and Memphis properties in Dona Ana County , N. Mex . , and the Silver King property in White Pine County , Nev . , where development was chiefly for base metals . The Lone Pine mine in Catron County , N. Mex . , and the Bambolla mine near Moctezuma , Sonora , Mexico are potential sources of native tellurium occurring in small but high- grade pods . Much of the production of tellurium has come as a byproduct of electro- lytic refining of copper and lead- zinc ores in Arizona , Colorado , New Mexico , and Utah . Base -metal ore deposits will continue to be the most important pri- mary source of tellurium , although the concentration in ores is nearly always less than 10 parts per million . Any significant increase in output of tellu- rium probably will be related to production and improved efficiency in smelt- ing and refining base - metal ores .

Jan 1, 1964

By Lloyd A. Morley

This final report concludes the documentation under Grant G0155003 and details research not covered under foregoing report volumes. The first chapter lists all other reports. The following chapters are divided into three major research tasks: Continuous Safety Monitoring Systems, Battery and Battery-charging Safety, and Mine Power System Transients. The monitoring chapter discusses the prediction of power-system failures. The battery chapter details work on battery-box stresses, battery chargers, and the elimination of electrocutions. The final chapter covers transient instrumentation, distribution transients sources and suppression, and utilization transients on mine power systems.

Jan 1, 1981

This publication summarizes, for all interested parties, the research, development, and demonstration in-house projects programed by the Bureau of Mines for fiscal year 1981 (October 1, 1980 - September 30, 1981) under its Minerals Health and Safety Technology program. The objective of these projects is to provide an ordered and sequenced series of advances toward the Bureau's overall goal of providing the system technology required to create a healthier and safer working environment for the Nation's mining and minerals processing workers.

Jan 1, 1981

By J. W. Paul

This report is one of a series of papers on coal mining methods and costs which are being prepared through the sponsorship of the U. S. Bureau of Mines for the purpose of bringing to the industry a knowledge of methods as they are used at the present time, and data on certain features which govern costs, safety, and conservation. The methods employed are, influenced by local conditions with respect to the character and dip of the coal, the nature of the, roof and the thickness of the overburden, and the means employed for roof support and its control.

Jan 1, 1929

By Robert J. Hundhausen

This information circular is one of a series of Bureau of Mines reports dealing with mining and milling methods and costs . It describes the operations at the Little Pittsburg mine in the Pine Creek area of the Coeur d'Alene mining region near Kellogg , Idaho . The mine and mill have been operated successfully from 1942 to the present .

Feb 1, 1948

By F. R. Cattoir, D. H. Baker

Fused - salt electrorefining has been successfully applied to the purification of vanadium metal . The electrolyte used in this refining technique was sodium chloride to which had been added 3 to 6 percent vanadium as vanadium dichloride . The average deposition current efficiency was 91 percent . Oxygen and nitrogen , the impurities in commercially produced vanadium metal , were reduced by two - thirds of the amount contained in the feed material . Hardness of the vanadium- metal product was reduced from an initial 97 Rockwell B ( RB ) to a minimum of 35 Rg . The reduction of these impurities markedly improved the plasticity of the final product obtained by melting the crystalline cell metal into small ingots . These ingots could be given a 99 - percent cold reduction by rolling before edge cracking appeared . Growing interest in high - purity vanadium and the industrial need for purer metals and improved alloys for use under high temperatures and high speeds have demanded the elimination and/or control of impurities . Accordingly, research to eliminate or control the undesirable impurities has been expanded .

Jul 1, 1960

By R. G. Meara, O&apos

[P.F? bmit e-ninirq ir.3.l r;tq: in the Znited State :; was u~irlyortant p~ior to the Torld ;Jar, ?-.lt with the c~r,sxti~rl of imports d11rln.c thr World 'Jar tke Rmericnn mar~factu~er:. of 1itkopone mcl Sayiun c;~oai?als forced tile tl~veloor?.ent of domertic bar,i$e dqosit9. Pr%~~,n-ily bcca-lse of tho increasing dc.n;;nl'i for lit,hupone3 by the pr?i:~t, Tlocr-covcrin~;, ,md rt1tbe.r indl~stries, ~3c.vs1o~:rnc2t of cto~entic de~onits has cr~ntim~ed to c-cpand. 13 1914, the salnr! oC doxegtic c~l~.dt? t,m-it~ ;u~cr-~nteii. to 52,91? tons, in 1237 ???,1!.1 tons nmre so1.d; thc 12:t~r rcyrprcntcd 77 .E;T pmccnt of the tot,:rl, dr??;ectic and imortcd., haritd US~C in the Cnited State? di7rinz t,hat :.vXr. C,f +he total 193,3:& ton? coy.1~-ed in the United 4 Steter ir. 135, 3E.X percent v;as usec? as groi.z.ld ~rai.te? , "0.3 percent arr lithopone, and 17 .:A ].ercc?t in the rnx 11fact,ure of b;~riim chs:nicals ]

Jan 1, 1938

By R. G. Meara, O&apos

[P.F? bmit e-ninirq ir.3.l r;tq: in the Znited State :; was u~irlyortant p~ior to the Torld ;Jar, ?-.lt with the c~r,sxti~rl of imports d11rln.c thr World 'Jar tke Rmericnn mar~factu~er:. of 1itkopone mcl Sayiun c;~oai?als forced tile tl~veloor?.ent of domertic bar,i$e dqosit9. Pr%~~,n-ily bcca-lse of tho increasing dc.n;;nl'i for lit,hupone3 by the pr?i:~t, Tlocr-covcrin~;, ,md rt1tbe.r indl~stries, ~3c.vs1o~:rnc2t of cto~entic de~onits has cr~ntim~ed to c-cpand. 13 1914, the salnr! oC doxegtic c~l~.dt? t,m-it~ ;u~cr-~nteii. to 52,91? tons, in 1237 ???,1!.1 tons nmre so1.d; thc 12:t~r rcyrprcntcd 77 .E;T pmccnt of the tot,:rl, dr??;ectic and imortcd., haritd US~C in the Cnited State? di7rinz t,hat :.vXr. C,f +he total 193,3:& ton? coy.1~-ed in the United 4 Steter ir. 135, 3E.X percent v;as usec? as groi.z.ld ~rai.te? , "0.3 percent arr lithopone, and 17 .:A ].ercc?t in the rnx 11fact,ure of b;~riim chs:nicals . ]

Jan 1, 1938

By Max J. Spendlove

The Federal Bureau of Mines has been a leader in resource recovery research since it was founded in 1910. Until the early 19601s, most of the projects were concerned primarily with the task of extending and improving conventional technology oriented to secondary metals and minerals upgrading and processing for marketable products of highest value. By the mid-1960's with the passage of the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, all resource recovery research programs were increased in scope and intensity as an effort to solve the growing number of environmental problems and the rapid depletion of domestic energy and mineral resources. Many new materials were investigated including urban refuse, manufacturing, industrial wastes, and stockyard wastes. The objective was to promote maximum recycling as the most practical answer to problems of waste disposal, pollution control, and the short supply of minerals and energy. The new research projects ranged from the conversion of animal manure and other organics to oil, to the recovery of precious and common metals from demolished aircraft and electronic scrap. This profile includes brief descriptions of many selected research projects that typify, the total spectrum of Bureau of Mines research in the important field of resource recovery.

Jan 1, 1977

By A. C. Fieldner

In 1927 the Carbonization Committee of the American Gas Association proposed cooperation with the Bureau of Mines in the development of suitable methods for determining the carbonizing properties of American coals. It was further proposed to apply these methods in the testing of representative coals and to make the information obtained available to the public through Government publications. A cooperative agreement was signed whereby the Gas Association contributed part of the funds necessary for beginning the project and appointed a committee to consult and advise the Bureau in the work. The Advisory Committee has been reappointed each year, and the Bureau has had the benefit of its advice. The composition and carbonizing properties of 33 coals previously tested have been given in technical papers of the Bureau of Mines and in short reports published for the most part in the Proceedings of the American Gas Association. A complete list of publications on the work previous to 1937 is appended to this report. The present report gives the composition and carbonizing properties of seven additional coals from West Virginia. The data include results of blending tests in which Beckley led low-volatile coal was used with all the high-volatile coals except the Alma coal, with which Pocahontas No. 4 coal was used.

Jan 1, 1938

By W. W. Adams

Lower accident rates were the outstanding feature. of the second annual sand and gravel safety competition conducted in 1930 by the United States Bureau of Mines in cooperation with the National Sand and Gravel Association. Both the frequency and, severity rates for accidents were greatly reduced as compared with those shown by the first year's contest, that for 1929. Three times as many plants were enrolled, and the number of man-hours of work represented wad more than doubled. Seventy-six sand-and-gravel plants, situated in 20 States, participated in the competition, as compared with 26 plants, located in 13 States, in the year before. The number of man-hours of employment, which indicated the amount of exposure to occupational hazards, was 4,915,592 an increase of more than 100 per cent over, the previous year's total of 2.259,572 hours. The frequents of accidents declined from 74.4 per million hours for all plants enrolled in the first year's contest to 42.7 per million man-hours for all plants enrolled in 1930. The accident-severity rate was reduced from 9.7 days of disability per thousand man-hours of exposure in 1929 to 5.9 days of disability per thousand man-hours of exposure in 1930.

Jan 1, 1931

By McHenry Mosier

This is the fourth progress report in the series on the use of detachable rock-drill bits in the metal mines of the United States. It contains comparative statistics and costs or drilling at eight mines not reviewed in previous reports, comparison of the use of detachable bits at small mines and large mines, a discussion on the life of drill rods, and general conclusions derived from an analysis of the rock-drilling practice at all the mines investigated on this survey. This paper completes the descriptions of operating practice in rock drilling at individual mines. Data on drilling practices at 28 mines are given in appendices I and II and drilling costs are shown in appendix III. Research in the fundamentals of rock drilling, including the use of detachable bits, has been undertaken by the Bureau of Mines in its testing adit at Mount Weather, Va. Reports on the progress off this investigation will be issued when results warrant their publication.

Jan 1, 1937

By M. J. Beus, B. Stewart, S. Iverson

Synopsis U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) accidents statistics have identified ore-pass hazards as a significant safety problem in U.S. underground metal mines. The statistics show that nearly 75% of injuries are directly or indirectly related to pulling or freeing of ore-pass chutes, the use of hand tools in ore passes, fails of broken rock in ore passes and structural failures of chutes or gates and ore-pass walls. Researchers at the Spokane Research Laboratory of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) are investigating hazards in and around ore passes in hard rock mines. Risk assessment methods, such as fault-tree analysis, have been employed to identify the most probable causes of orepass failures, define research priorities and analyse the factors that result in malfunctioning and unsafe ore passes. Static and dynamic loads are being measured in a laboratory setting with the use of a reduced-scale orepass mock-up. Field tests are being initiated in mine ore passes to determine static and dynamic loads. Data from the test ore passes are being compared with data from the mine to characterize true system behaviour. Computer modelling with the use of closed-form solutions, finite-element analyses and a newly developed particle flow code predicts static and dynamic leads from the flow and the impact of ore and waste in the ore pass. Preliminary results indicate that dynamic impacts from ore and waste rock might be considerably greater than expected. The total static load is substantially less than is typically used fur the structural design of chute and gate support members. It is suggested that damping factors, normal and shear stiffness and mass frictional characteristics have a significant effect on particle flow and resulting impact loads. This is being verified with the use of results from laboratory tests, field tests and particle flow analyses. Ore passes are vertical or steeply inclined openings in a rock mass through which ore and waste are transported and where they mar also be stored. A typical underground mining system is shown in Fig. 1. The arrows indicate the locations of ore passes and loading pockets and their relative configurations. The control of material flow is potentially one of the most hazardous operations in underground mining. According to MSHA data. most of the ore pass-related accidents in the U.S.A. are associated with the loading-unloading cycle and removal of blockages from ore passes. In particular, attempts to free ore hang-ups have resulted in multiple fatalities. The hazards are obvious; there is uncertainty as to when the ore will break loose and miners are unable to escape falling rock to a safe location. Although ore passes and chutes and gate systems for underground metal and non-metal mines roust meet the requirements specified in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). Parts 57 and 75, recent structural failures of ore-pass linings and gates have underlined the lack of adequate ore-pass design standards available to both MSHA enforcement staff and mine engineers. Because of the importance of an ore pass to the safe operation of a mine design criteria need to be assessed and new guidelines developed. Researchers at the Spokane Research Laboratory of the Nationals Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) are investigating hazards in and around ore passes in hard rock mines and studying design criteria for ore passes. The near-term goal is to conduct laboratory and field experiments and computer modelling to evaluate the ore-pass design criteria currently used. Literature searches, field site

This report, the second in an annual series, summarizes information on latest technological developments and advances, and identifies trends in mining and metallurgy based on a review of activities in the minerals industry in 1971. Exploration and mining data obtained from an annual canvass are presented for 1971 and are compared with similar data obtained over the past decade.

Jan 1, 1973

REFERENCES AND FOOTNOTES 1. U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining. Surface Coal Mining Reclamation: 10 Years of Progress: 1977-1987. Washington, D.C. August 3, 1987.48 pp. (For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C. 20402.) 2. The Rural Abandoned Mine Program (RAMP), authorized by Section 406 of SMCRA, provides for the control and prevention o f erosion and sediment damages from unreclaimed abandoned mine lands. 3. The Small Operator Assistance Program (SOAP), authorized by Section 401(b)(1) and 507(c) of SMCRA authorizes up to 10 percent of the fees collected for the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund to be used for technical assistance to help qualified small mine operators obtain techincal data needed for permit applications. Operators who produce fewer than 300,000 tons of coal per year are eligible for assistance. 4. OSM regulations 30 CFR 816.42 and 817.42 require water from areas distrubed by mining activities be in compliance with all applicable state and federal water-quality laws and effluent limitations for coal mining established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 5. Sourse: Abandoned Mine Lands Fee Collection System, Data from OSM-1 form. 6. Sourse: Abandoned Mine Lands Fee Collection System, Data from OSM-1 form. 7. Source: OSM Field Office Annual Reports. 8. Johnson, W. and G.C. Miller, Abandoned Coal-Mine Lands: nature, extent, and cost of reclamation. U. S. Bureau of Mines, 1979,29 pp. PHOTOGRAPHIC CREDITS Front cover, pp. i, 1, 2 bottom, 7 right, 10 bottom left, l 1 top, l l bottom right, 12 top, 13 bottom, 14 bottom right, 15,16 bottom, 17 top, 17 bottom right, 18 bottom, 19, 20 bottom, 21 top, 22, 23, 24 bottom, 25 bottom, 26 bottom left, 26 bottom right, 27, 28, 29 top, 30 bottom, 32 bottom right, 33 top, 34 top, 35 top left, 35 bottom left, 35 bottom right, 36 top, 37, top right, 37 bottom, 38 bottom, 39, 41, 42 top, 43 bottom, 44 bottom left, 44 bottom right, 45, 46, 47, and 53: Chuck Meyers, OSM. Page 2 top and center: Tony Fuhs. Page 3: John Sharkowicz, OSM. Page 6 left: North American Coal Corp. Pages 6 right, 7 left, l l bottom left, 13 top left, 13 top right, 17 bottom left, 21 bottom, 25 top left, 25 top right, 29 bottom, 30 center, 32 top, 32 bottom left, and 38 top: Bob Welch, OSM. Page 10 top left: Donald Stump, OSM. Pages 10 right, 14 top right, 14 center right, 18 top, and 44 top: Ron Hill, EPA. Page 12 bottom: Texas Utilities Co. Pages 16 top, 20 top, 24 top: Tennessee Valley Authority. Page 26 top right and 26 center left: Richard Dick, U.S. Bureau of Mines. Pages 30 top, 33 bottom left, 33 bottom right, 35 top right, 36 bottom, 37 top left, 40 top, 40 bottom, 42 bottom, 43 top left, and 43 top right: Jim Boyer, OSM. Page 31 top left, and 31 top right: Bruce Wage, Western Energy Co. Page 31 bottom: Rex Wilson, OSM. Page 34 bottom: West Virginia Division of Abandoned Mine Lands. Page 35 center: William Weist, Jr., OSM.

Jan 1, 1992

By Michael Rieber

Rail cars are referred to as "yellow-balled" when they are sufficiently old or damaged to preclude their efficient operation on long-haul or main line routes. For most coal carrying railroads, their alternative value is salvage. This, however, does not necessarily preclude their effective use, on a limited basis, by small mines located near existing trackage. Because of age, the sizes of these hopper and gondola cars ace currently 50 and 70 tons rather than the 100 tons commonly built at the present time. As a gathering system, yellow-ball rail could provide an alternative, particularly in Kentucky, western Pennsylvania and west Virginia, to coal trucks, conveyor belts and pneumatic pipelines [4, p.17], belts and pneumatic pipelines. Rail service of this type provides a limited alternative to track abondonment, a possible financial return to a railbank [3], a direct contribution to service demand on main lines, and a means by which many small eastern coal mines could retain or regain competitive viability [4]. In terms of energy efficiency, compared to trucking coal, the total direct energy impact (fuel) of yellow-ball rail can be expected to range from 280-990 Btu/ton-mile while that for trucks ranges from 1850-3120 Btu/ton-mile [2].

Jan 1, 1977

By John J. Mulligan

The creeks draining Cape Mountain, on the western tip of Seward Peninsula, Alaska, comprise the Cape Mountain tin-placer district. Because of the war-caused shortage of tin, the Bureau of Mines in 1943 conducted a churn-drill placer reconnaissance to explore the district. Favorable indications were found, and plans were made for further investigation of the deposits; the plans were abandoned when tin again became plentiful. In July 1951 the Zenda Gold Mining Co. was granted a Defense Minerals Administration (Defense Minerals Exploration Administration after October 1951) loan to continue exploration of the more favorable areas indicated by results of the Bureau's investigation. Equipment was moved to the area in the fall and winter of 1951-52. During the 1952 field season, 209 churn-drill holes totaling 7,521 linear feet and 10 test shafts totaling 96 linear feet were sunk on the Cape Creek drainage. Work was resumed in 1953, when 56 churn-drill holes totaling 3,157 linear feet were drilled on Boulder Creek. The company planned to drill Goodwin Gulch and Goodwin Creek, but no further work was done owing to lack of capital.

Jan 1, 1959

By R. B. Krog

As part of its mining health and safety research program, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted a longwall methane emission and mining time study at a mine operating in the Pittsburgh Coalbed to access the methane emission consequences of mining a longer face. The methane emission contributors from the mining of a longwall face are: 1) gas released from the coal broken by the shearer, 2) gas emitted from the coal on the face conveyor, 3) gas emitted from the coal transported on the belt, and 4) background gas emitted from the coal face and from the adjoining ribs. Based on the results of the study, a set of site-specific mathematical formulas and constants were developed to characterize each of the four longwall emission contributors. The mathematical formulas were then applied to longer longwall face mining scenarios to predict the methane emissions from these faces.

Jan 1, 2006

By J. Howard Bird

The purpose of this publication is to discuss grounding mediums and the phases of grounding related to corrosion and cathodic protection. The material presented is believed to contribute to a better understanding of this subject. It also indicates more effective methods of reducing corrosion damage to metal structures and equipment in the mining industry by cathodic protection. The authors do not intend to discuss technical aspects but rather to explain the general principles of this method of inhibiting corrosion. The relationship between soil resistivity, protective grounding, and corrosion is presented. Corrosion causes the annual loss of billions of dollars; which can be greatly reduced. Losses in the mineral industry can be excessive owing to the extensive use of direct-current power, the presence of considerable dampness, and the frequent, indiscriminate use of dissimilar metals.

Jan 1, 1958

By Phillip R. Moyle

A mineral survey of 19,350 acres of the Gooding City of Rocks Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs) in the north-central Snake River Plain was conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Mines in 1984. No formal mining districts are known in or near the study area. Forty-two placer claims within and adjacent to the study areas cover the Clover Creek diatomite deposit. Minor production from four pits was reported by the owners. The diatomaceous sediments are underlain by dacitic welded tuff and capped with basalt. Five exposures or blocks totaling 416 million tons of the diatomaceous material comprise the Clover Creek deposit; four of the blocks are in the study areas, out are predominantly covered by basalt. The North Clover block, just west of the areas, is only partially capped, and could be mined by open pit methods on the western flank of the exposure. The minable wedge contains an inferred marginal reserve of 35 million tons of diatomite possibly suitable for filter aid, filler, insulation, and other applications. At a production rate of 150,000 tons/year, total mining and milling costs for high-grade filter aid diatomite would be about $100/ton. The deposit is classed as marginal because products from this deposit may be inferior to currently marketed diatomite products. The market is well supplied by developed sources.

Jan 1, 1985