Search Documents

By Robert L. Jones

The Boston Consolidated mine is situated in the Bingham mining district, Salt Lake County; Utah (fig. 1). The property has had a noteworthy production of cupriferous, gold-bearing, pyritic ore in addition to lead ore. The Bureau of Mines established a diamond-drilling development project on the property in September 1943 with the primary objective of determining the continuity of a mineralized zone in the Commercial limestone below and to the northeast of the 800-foot level (fig.2). Examination of the geologic feature at the property previous to drilling indicated that the mineralized limestone horizon would continue belay the 800-foot level, but with a flatter dip than disclosed above this level. During the project period, 36 holes totaling 4,001 feet were drilled from underground stations outlining the zone below the 800-foot level (figs. 2 and 3).

Jan 1, 1949

By Wilbur I. Duvall

This report presents experimental data on the propagation of explosion- generated strain pulses in rock. Tests were performed in 5 different rock types, employing 10 different types of explosives. Charge sizes ranged from 0.5 to 50 pounds, and travel distances ranged from 2.5 to 70 feet. Analysis of the data shows that the experimental peak strain data satisfy an exponential decay propagation law of the form: ?R/W1/3 = Ke ?aR/W1/3. For a particular rock, parameter K is a linear function of the calculated detonation pressure or the calculated energy density of the explosive. For a particular explosive, K is a linear function of the elastic parameter of the rock, p2, a result, which is at variance with elastic theory. The absorption constant, a, is independent of type of explosive but dependent upon rock type. However, no definite relation between a and the physical properties of the rock could be established.

Jan 1, 1959

By J. E. Hamak

This publication contains analyses and related source data for 151 natural gas samples from 19 States. Of the total samples, 138 were collected calendar year 1989. The remainder were collected earlier, but releases to were not received until 1989. All samples were obtained and analyzed as part of U.S. Bureau of Mines investigations of the occurrences of helium in natural gases of countries with free market economies. This survey has been conducted since 1917. The analyses published herein were made by mass spectrometer and chromatograph.

Jan 1, 1990

By W. A. Stickney, J. W. Town

Batch and continuous - circuit flotation , leaching , precipitation , and electrodeposition studies were made by the Bureau of Mines to determine optimum conditions for treatment of complex mercury - antimony sulfide and mercury- arsenic sulfide ores and concentrates . On the Red Devil ore sample over 95 percent of both the mercury and antimony sulfides were recovered in a flotation concentrate containing 35.6 percent mercury and 21.0 percent antimony . By selective flotation a mercury concentrate containing 71.0 percent mercury and 2.9 percent antimony was obtained with a mercury recovery of 90.4 percent . Leaching results show that , with 150 grams per liter of sodium sulfide and 50 grams per liter of sodium hydroxide , 95 to 99 percent of the mercury , antimony , and arsenic sulfides could be extracted from the concentrates treated . Sodium hydroxide reagent consumption was based on the sulfides generated in the dissolution of the sulfide minerals and on the method of metal recovery used . Selective leaching of the antimony and arsenic sulfides with potassium sulfide dissolved more than 95 percent of either of these two sulfides and 0.5 to 5 percent of the mercury sulfide present . Methods for recovering mercury and antimony from solution were electrodeposition of mercury followed by electrodeposition of antimony , aluminum precipitation of both mercury and antimony , or antimony precipitation of mercury followed by antimony electrodeposition . The method used in recovering the mercury depended on the mercury- antimony content of the solution being treated .Batch and continuous - circuit flotation , leaching , precipitation , and electrodeposition studies were made by the Bureau of Mines to determine optimum conditions for treatment of complex mercury - antimony sulfide and mercury- arsenic sulfide ores and concentrates . On the Red Devil ore sample over 95 percent of both the mercury and antimony sulfides were recovered in a flotation concentrate containing 35.6 percent mercury and 21.0 percent antimony . By selective flotation a mercury concentrate containing 71.0 percent mercury and 2.9 percent antimony was obtained with a mercury recovery of 90.4 percent . Leaching results show that , with 150 grams per liter of sodium sulfide and 50 grams per liter of sodium hydroxide , 95 to 99 percent of the mercury , antimony , and arsenic sulfides could be extracted from the concentrates treated . Sodium hydroxide reagent consumption was based on the sulfides generated in the dissolution of the sulfide minerals and on the method of metal recovery used . Selective leaching of the antimony and arsenic sulfides with potassium sulfide dissolved more than 95 percent of either of these two sulfides and 0.5 to 5 percent of the mercury sulfide present . Methods for recovering mercury and antimony from solution were electrodeposition of mercury followed by electrodeposition of antimony , aluminum precipitation of both mercury and antimony , or antimony precipitation of mercury followed by antimony electrodeposition . The method used in recovering the mercury depended on the mercury- antimony content of the solution being treated .

Jan 1, 1964

By W. H. Young

The thickness of the coal seam is one of the more important items influencing the productivity and general overall efficiency of operation of a coal mine. The average thickness of coal seams mined in the United States has changed very little in the past 40 years. The first measurement of thickness of bituminous coal and lignite seams was made for 1920, when the average thickness was 5.3 feet.2 The average thickness for later years was as follows: 1945, 5.4 feet; 1950, 5.3 feet; 1955, 5.2 feet; 1960, 5.3 feet; and 1965, 5.2 feet.3 Table 1 includes data on number and production of bituminous coal and lignite mines classified by 1-foot intervals of seam thickness mined in 1920, 1945, 1950, 1955, 1960, and 1965. Though bituminous coal and lignite are mined today from seams of exceedingly variable thickness--less than 2 feet to more than 50 feet--a large majority of the production, 62 percent in 1965, came from seams 3 to 6 feet thick. This is not surprising since the coal seam of moderate thickness presents the least mining difficulties.

Jan 1, 1967

By Forrest T. Moyer, J. I. DAVIS, JOSEPH H. SCHUSTER, E. K. ELSNER

The National Safety Competition conducted by the Bureau of Mines, United States Department of the Interior, is held each year for the purpose of promoting safety in the mineral industries of the United States. Since the program was inaugurated in 1925, twenty-three safety competitions have been held. This publication is a report of the results of the contests held in 1944, 1945, 1946, and 1947. The names of plants that have been awarded "Sentinels of Safety" trophies and Certificates of Achievement in Safety dur- ing these years, together with a summary of their achievements in injury prevention, are listed. Statistical data covering the injury experience of all plants entered in the annual contests also are included in this publi- cation. The injury statistics of these plants, arranged in the six groups of the competition, are the only data on injury severity at mineral operations available to the Bureau of Mines. Interest in the National Safety Competition has increased steadily. The number of participating plants has increased from 210 in 1925, the first year of the competition, to the record number of 494 in 1946. The widening scope of the competition means that a steadily increasing number of the mines and quarries in the United States are participating in a program that will supplement their other activities in promoting safety. Safety competitions have long been recognized as instrumental in stimulating and holding the interest of employees and officials in accident-prevention work. During the years covered by this report, conditions in the mineral industries of the United States were hardly conducive to setting records in accident prevention. During the war years, handicaps were especially severe- loss of skilled employees to the armed forces or to higher-wage war industries, greater production by a smaller force of workers, relatively high rates of labor turn-over, the longer workday in effect through 1944 and 1945, and difficulties in obtaining repairs and replacement for badly worn machinery. Even the immediate postwar period has brought no abatement of the tremendous pressure upon the mineral industries for greater production. Although there was a decrease of 18 in 1947 from the record enrollment in 1946, these oper- ations worked 160,525,025 man-hours, the greatest number of man-hours of exposure to mining hazards in any year of the contest except 1942. Despite the accelerated pace at which the mineral industry worked during the 4 years covered by this report, participants in the National Safety Competition have achieved creditable performances in the promotion of safety. In fact, the injury-severity rate in the enrolled plants in the 1947 contest was 7.315 days for each thousand man-hours worked, the lowest by far in the history of the National Safety Competition. The injury-frequency rate of 42.155 for each million man-hours of exposure to mine hazards in 1947 marks a favorable trend downward from the rate of 50.577 in 1946, which was the

Dec 1, 1949

By Robert W. Smith

[In a certain application it was necessary to compute the incomplete beta function, ß(1/2, p, q), for a certain set of values of p and q. Since the set of p and q values was much more finely spaced than those in any published tables, the authors have decided to make their results available in this report. In connection with this application, the function ß(1/2, p, q) was needed at various points in the p, q plane at intervals of 0.05, 0.05 p = 2q < 10.00. Fletcher, Miller, and Rosenhead3/ state that the only tables available in the desired range are those of Pearson.4/ However, the interval used by Pearson was not small enough for the present application. For this reason, it was decided to calculate the function ß(1/2, p, q) for p = q = 0.05 (0.05) 10.00. This table is published because of the fundamental importance in mathematical analysis of the incomplete beta function.]

Jan 1, 1953

By O. C. Blade

This report on the properties of motor fuels sold through service stations in the United States was made in accordance with a cooperative agreement between the American Petroleum Institute and the Bureau of Mines of the United States Department of the Interior. By agreement with the American Petroleum Institute, identification of the items is confidential. It presents analytical data for 4,857 samples, representing the products of 103 companies. The samples were collected during June, July, and August 1955. As in previous surveys, the gasolines covered by this survey include those from both large and small suppliers. The data were obtained by laboratories of various refiners, motor manufacturers, and chemical companies and submitted to the Bureau of Mines for compilation. A list of the National Motor Gasoline Survey reports published during the past 10 years is given on page 5.

Jan 1, 1956

By O. C. Blade

A summary of the characteristics of motor gasoline for the summer 1951 is presented in table 1, and for comparison, a similar summary for the summer 1950 is shown in table 2. Trends of some of the more important characteristics over a period of years are shown in figures 1 and 2. As indicated, octane numbers of motor gasolines sold in the United states decreased approximately one-half to one octane unit from the record levels attained during the winter of 1950-51 and are a little below the octane numbers of summer 1950. However, average vapor pressures of the summer gasolines did not change, and certain distillation temperatures varied only slightly from those of the year before.

Jan 1, 1952

By H. C. Miller

The removal of the mud sheaths that are deposited against the faces of productive oil sands during rotary drilling is one of the important problems confronting operators, especially in semidepleted fields where formation pressures are low. Unless the mud sheaths behind the perforated oil strings and, liners are removed and the sands exposed, oil cannot enter the wells. Consequently much oil that otherwise eight be produced from low-pressure sands is trapped and never recovered. Various types of perforation washers, down swabs, and agitators are used at present for breaking down the mud sheaths and. removing the disintegrated clay particles from wells after the perforated pipes have been inserted. Mechanical methods for removing mud sheaths are quite satisfactory, but prompted by tie request of certain operators in the California oil fields Bureau of Mines engineers have conducted a series of laboratory tests with the view of developing a chemical method for removing mud sheaths in oil wells that will be applicable to field conditions.

Jan 1, 1934

By H. C. Miller

The removal of the mud sheaths that are deposited against the faces of productive oil sands during rotary drilling is one of the important problems confronting operators, especially in semidepleted fields where formation pressures are low. Unless the mud sheaths behind the perforated oil strings and liners are removed and the sands exposed, oil cannot enter the wells. Consequently much oil that otherwise might be produced from low-pressure sands is trapped and never recovered. Various types of perforation washers, down swabs, and agitators are used at present for breaking down the mud sheaths and removing the disintegrated clay particles from wells after the perforated Wipes have been inserted. Mechanical methods for removing mud sheaths are :quite satisfactory, but prompted by the request of certain .operators in the California oil fields Bureau of Mines engineers have conducted a series of laboratory tests with the view of developing a chemical method for removing mud sheaths in oil wells that will be applicable to field conditions. This report describes the laboratory work and deals generally with a chemical method for removing the mud sheath, cake, or plaster deposited against the face of oil sands in drilling wells end in wells that, on being shut in temporarily during periods of overproduction of oil, are conditioned for the shutdown .period by filling the well opposite the producing formations with mud fluid. The method described in this report was devised in the San Francisco laboratory of the Bureau of Mines and, as far as the writers have been able to determine, differs from any chemical method ever used in actual wells. The method proposes to add a small amount of calcium carbonate (preferably pulverized limestone) to the mud fluids before they are introduced into the wells so that the resultant mud sheaths will be susceptible to disintegration by acid solutions when it is desired to expose the faces of the oil sands in the wells.

Jan 1, 1934

By Richard D. Miller, Geraldine P. Norrell

This publication contains routine analyses and related source data for 295 natural gas samples from 18 States collected during calendar year 1963 as part of a continuous survey of the United States for occurrences of helium in natural gas. This survey has been conducted by the Bureau of Mines since 1917. The analyses published herein were made by mass spectrometer and a special helium analysis apparatus, which are described in Bureau of Mines Bulletins 4863 and 576.4 Five previous publications have been made to present the results of 5,998 gas analyses made by the Bureau of Mines Helium Activity , prior to 1963. The first three , Bulletin 486,5 Bulletin 576,6 and Bulletin 617,7/ contain analyses and source data on 5,214 gas samples collected from 1917 to January 1 , 1961. The fourth and fifth publications , which are published as Information Circulars , supplement the three Bulletins and contain 784 analyses of samples collected during 1961 and 1962. The present Information Circular is the third annual publication supplementing the three Bulletins .

Jan 1, 1965

By James C. Barker

Yttrium and rare-earth element. pegmatite dikes are associated with a peralkaline granitic and nephelene syenite complex near Dora Bay on southern Prince of Wales Island. Mineralized dikes were mapped and sampled during USBM investigations in 1987 and 1988. Coarse-grained pegmatite dikes, which emanated as late-stage magmatic fluids from the intrusion, further evolved into vein-dikes and ultimately silica-rich veins. The dikes can be traced up to two miles along a north-south zone. Lithophile elements exhibit a pronounced zonation in vein-dikes and veins that are distal to the Dora Bay complex with increasing values correlating with increasing distance from the complex. The pattern of mineralization suggests very late stage magmatic fluids containing the incompatable lithophile elements were injected into a preexisting north-south fracture zone. REE mineralogy exhibit fine-grained intergrowths of principally thalenite and bastnaesite with lessor monazite and eudialyte. Euxenite contains most of the columbium values and zircon is commonly associated with the dikes. Estimates of inferred and hypothetical resource tonnage range from 1.7 X 1C6 to 8.5 X 106 st for two deposits. Contained RED (including yttrium) averages 0.5 pct and ranges up to 2.0 pct. Deposits are of polymineralic composition and about half of this resource comprises the heavy yttrium subgroup.

Jan 1, 2011

The Bureau of Mines evaluated short-delay coal mine detonators manu-factured by three domestic companies for electrostatic sensitivity, strength, and no-fire current level. Electrostatic sensitivity was studied in pin-to-pin and pin-to-case modes employing lO-kV potential. Strength of detonation was measured in the Bureau&apos;s underwater test fa-cility. No-fire current was measured using a constant-current power supply unit. Test procedures and experimental data are included.

Jan 1, 1985

By J. H. Schuenemeyer

Consider a set of points, some of which are anomalous (larger than a specified cutoff value), located on a plane. Whether some or all of these points are clustered to form one anomaly or more or, alternatively whether these points are scattered at random, may be investigated by measuring perimeters of convex hulls. A convex hull is the smallest convex polygon that will encompass a group of points. (Examples of convex polygons are triangles, rectangles, and all other regular polygons.) A set of anomalous points is selected and the perimeters of the convex hulls of this set and all its subsets are measured and compared with tabulated values of perimeters for each subset size. For a given subset size consider those perimeters which are less than the tabulated perimeter. If the number of convex hulls is greater than the maximum number expected by chance, then the chance that any one of the observed-hulls-is a nonrandom cluster is the ratio of the observed number to the sum of the observed and the maximum number expected by chance. Otherwise, the points are evidently not clustered. If many sample points are anomalous, an alternate model defines various configurations of contiguous points and compares the observed number of configurations per unit area with the expected number. Applications are discussed in several fields of geology and geochemistry-including geochemical exploration surveys and heavy mineral spatial distributions--as well as in mining (dust control) and medical geography.

Jan 1, 1972

"Contained in this chapter is a listing of the publications and reference books which have come about as a result of respirable dust research performed by faculty, staff and graduate students in the Generic Mineral Technology Center for Respirable Dust at The Pennsylvania State University, West Virginia University, University of Minnesota, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Michigan Technological University. These publications have appeared in scientific journals, proceedings of the national and international symposiums, and professional meetings. Complete citations of the publications can be found in Volumes 3 through 6 and Volume 8 of this series. The agenda of the last annual GMTC seminar, held at West Virginia University on February 1 - 2, 1988, follows. The project presentations are organized under the five research areas. All projects currently active were presented to the Advisory Committee. New project submissions were not. The authors were allotted thirteen (13) minutes for their presentations; the remainder of the twenty (20) minutes allotted for each project was used for introductions, transitions, and questioning by the Advisory Committee. Each author used a standard format for presentation of his/her materials for review; handout materials were distributed to the Advisory Committee for reference. Opening remarks were made by Dr. Richard Bajura of West Virginia University and Dean Robert L. Frantz and Dr. Raja V. Ramani of The Pennsylvania State University.The Generic Mineral Technology Center for Respirable Dust is funded by the U.S. Bureau of Mines through the Mining and Mineral Resources Research Institute Program. The opinions and conclusions expressed in these papers are those of the authors alone and do not represent the opinions of the Generic Mineral Technology"

Aug 31, 1989

By James C. Barker

Alluvial cassiterite concentrations are widespread in river gravel and high level terraces within the Ray River watershed. The area lies in unglaciated terrain of Alaska&apos;s northern interior. Cassiterite originates from several calc-alkaline plutons of the Ruby batholith. Extensional stresses resulted in graben-like Tertiary basins that were flooded by a 200 ft thick section of mid-to late- Tertiary basalt flows. Basalt blocked local drainages, and 50- to 100-ft of terrace gravel was eventually deposited on top of the flows. Further downwarping and eventual fluvial downcutting of the flows resulted in cycles of accelerated sediment transport, deposition, and reconcentration. Repeated erosional cycles concentrated heavy minerals and resulted in development of tin placers. Preliminary resource estimates of contained tin in Recent alluvium range from 62 to as much as 172 million lbs-Sn in 300 million yd3. Grade of about 90% of the gravels is estimated to range between 0.2- to 0.5- lbs-Sn/yd3. Associated gold and rare earth elements (REE) in monazite and xenotime may be recoverable. Most of the tin is considered a subeconomic inferred resource, though, at least some of the gravels contain 2-to 6-lbs-sn/yd3. Estimates are projected on the basis of surface sampling and several auger drill holes and are provided for the purpose of land-use management planning.

Jan 1, 2011

By Frederick C. Trutt

A guide to the utilization and development of extensions and modifications to the APL Mine-electrical-system Load-flow Program is presented. These modifications include the development of algorithms to minimize computational operations within the iterative-solution techniques, as well as minimization of the number of required iterations. Extensions to the load-flow program include the development of algorithms for the calculation of balanced faults, simplified specification of fault parameters, optional inclusion of pre-fault currents, and an alternate-solution technique.

Jan 1, 1978

By Dean C. Holt

This work was done to appraise the potential of titanium minerals in known titanium- bearing placer deposits and potential titanium- bearing placer areas in western Montana . Reconnaissance studies were made of more than 225 stream areas . Churn drilling and other placer exploration techniques were used in sampling eight deposits . The sampling results indicate that areas containing more than 10 pounds of ilmenite and other titanium- bearing black - sand minerals per cubic yard occur in the Bitterroot , Upper Clark Fork , and Jefferson River drainages . The chief source for the constituents of the black sands appears to be the Idaho batholith , and the highest black - sand concentrations are generally found near the source . Sample testing methods include gravity and magnetic separation and visual microscopic as well as chemical and radiometric analyses on deposits sampled in detail .

Jan 1, 1964

By Walter R. Storms, Jerry W. FAUST

This paper, which describes mining methods and costs at the Kearney zinc-lead mine, is one of a series being prepared by the Mining Division of the Bureau of Mines on mining practices, methods, and costs in varicus mining districts of the United States. The Kearney mine, which is owned by the New Mexico Consolidated Mining Co., a subsidiary of the Peru Mining Co. (Illinois Zinc), is situated a few miles southeast of the town of Hanover, in the northwest corner of sec. 27, T. 17 S., R. 12 W., in the Central Mining District, Grant County, N. Mex. (Figs. 1 and 2.) This report presents a brief history of the district, describes the geology, and outlines methods of prospecting and exploration, including eampling and estimation of tonnages and values. Development and mining methods are explained, and transportation, ventilation, drainage, safety measures, and organizatich are described. The wage scale and mining costs comprise the concluding sections of the report.

Jun 1, 1949