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By Cornelius Kelley

THE American producers of silver are keenly alive to the importance of the silver problem and its vital effect on the mining industry in Montana and other States where precious-metal mining constitutes a basic industry. There are so many ramifications to the subject that one is tempted, no matter from what angle an approach is made, to digress along lines that inevitably lead into a maze of social, economic and financial problems, through which no clear pathway is marked, and regard¬ing which no definite opinion can be expressed, as the ultimate solution is dependent upon the policies adopted and carried out by the more important Governments with reference to their fiscal requirements and currency systems. The situation may be summarized in two questions First, what, if any, plan have the silver producers, as being the most directly interested, to offer in meeting the situation which will confront the industry upon the termination of purchases of domestic silver under the Pittman Act? Second, what, if any, assistance can be extended by the Government in connection with the problem? In answer to the first inquiry, while the matter has been the subject of discussion among the principal producers, they have been unable to formulate a defi-nite plan, principally because they have been and are dealing with a subject embracing many unknown fac-tors; and second, it has been felt that before any plan is adopted there should be indicated the extent to which cooperation on the part of the Government may be depended upon to enable a proper study of the situation to be made. In order to explain these rather cryptic statements, a general review of the situation may aid. Whatever differences of opinion there may have been in the past upon the subject of bi-metallism or the establishment of a fixed ratio between the coinage value of gold and silver, it will probably be conceded that it would be neither wise nor expedient to attempt a revival of this discussion, nor to undertake to solve the question by the adoption of such a remedy. Issues of contro-versial economics must be avoided, if possible-political economics will destroy rather than assist constructive effort.

Jan 2, 1923

By B. A. Joyce, R. W. Bicknell, R. J. Bennett, P. J. Etter

Epitaxial layers of silicon have been grown on single-crystal quartz and alumina by two types of chemical reaction the hydrogen reduction of trichlorosilane and b) the pyrolysis of silane. These reaction systems are described. The cqsfallography of the two systems, as determined by electron and X-ray diffraction, is discussed, and epitaxial mechanisms suggested. The electrical behavior is briefly considered, and the design and properties of field-evert devices fabricated in the epilaxial material are also discussed. RECENT work carried out in these laboratories" has shown that it is possible to obtain epitaxial deposits of silicon on single-crystal quartz and alumina. The purpose of this paper is to describe the method of preparation of these layers using both the hydrogen reduction of trichlorosilane and the pyroly-sis of silane, to compare the crystallographic behavior of films on the two substrates, and to present some initial results of the electrical behavior of silicon layers on alumina. The structural study has been carried out using electron and X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. The electrical assessment has been made in terms of conductivity and mobility determinations by the van der pauw3 technique, and by measurements on metal-oxide-semiconductor assemblies. 1) FILM PREPARATION Both quartz and alumina substrates, approximately 1 sq cm in area and 0.4 mm thick. were prepared from slices cut parallel to within a few degrees of (11.0), (10.0), and (00.1), and polished mechanically down to about 0.3 p diamond grade. Chemical polishing of alumina slices, using phosphoric acid at elevated temperatures, has also been used; epitaxial silicon layers have been grown on these substrates, but the process is not entirely reliable, possibly because the large strain present in the Verneuil-grown alumina crystal affects the chemically prepared surface. The two reaction systems are fairly conventional and are described briefly below. a) Trichlorosilane-Hydrogen System. The apparatus is shown schematically in Fig. 1. The substrate was heated by induction, with a fused-quartz encapsulated graphite hemicylinder as susceptor. The procedure for carrying out a deposition was to heat the substrate to reaction temperature in a stream of

Jan 1, 1965

By Arthur Hixson

ALTHOUGH a few engineers have recognized the problem of the mechanism of filtration it has never been studied in a quantitative way. A background for a better understanding will be afforded by a survey of certain fundamental principles of filtration. In recent years, authorities have become practically unanimous in saying that the actual filtering should be done, not by the cloth itself, but by a layer of solid particles deposited upon it. Thus, a cloth may be used in which the openings are considerably larger than the particles to be filtered, provided that groups of particles form an arch or bridge over each opening. This can be accomplished if the initial pressure is so low that the arch will not be broken while it is still thin. According to Wright,1 the chief advantage of this method of filtration is that the open-weave cloth does not become clogged as easily as does one of closer weave, where the fine particles often work their way into the interior of the cloth and become caught there. If the character of the material to be filtered is such that it will not form a good film, then it becomes advantageous to use "filter aids" for pre-coating the cloth with a desirable layer of solids, and the coating need be only of a very slight thickness for good results. Until the film is formed, the first runnings of the filtrate may be cloudy, often necessitating refiltering this portion. A factor which has considerable effect on the performance of filters is the concentration of solids in the pulp. According to Wright, a. high concentration of solids gives a porous cake, since the flow is then slower than with- a thin pulp. The porosity of the cake is also affected by the pressure: a high initial pressure tends to compact the cake, and the same effect results from fluctuations of pressure. In his studies of the relation between pore size and particle size, Hatschek2 observed that the particles in a pulp tend to arrange themselves with maximum cross-section parallel to the direction of flow and that this is more marked at the higher velocities. Thus, at high pressure and high velocity, a certain pulp

Jan 2, 1926

By Beeby Thompson

ALTHOUGH the exclusion of foreigners and private owners from participation in the development of the. Russian oil fields prevents first-hand information being obtained, both official and private news indicate a growing appreciation of the value of the country's oil resources. Notwithstanding the suppression of that initiative and energy which only ambition can adequately stimulate, the industry is progressing and exports of products are assuming an importance that cannot be disregarded as an economic factor in the world's oil business. The following notes and observations must be regarded mainly as the views of one who has closely followed the fortunes of Russian oil, when considering the changes that have taken place in geological knowledge and oil-field technique, which have so profoundly modified oil-fields methods. Russia is fortunate in having retained the services of. a few scientists and technologists whose devotion to science has superseded their personal inclinations, and to these few men must be attributed the slow, but nevertheless striking, progress that has been made. The productive oil fields of Russia are centered around the Caspian Sea which, with its connected river system, constitutes such an ideal means of internal distribution for products. From the group of oilfields of which the. city of Baku forms a center, oil is pumped to Black-town, a suburb of Baku, where all the refineries are situated. The next important group of oil fields is located in the Terek district near Grosny, where refineries are erected and the products are piped or carried by tank cars to Petrovsk for the internal Russian market, or sent to the Black Sea by rail. A third oil field is spread over the province of Uralsk, north of the Caspian, Sea, the main port of outlet being Gourief, at the mouth of the River Ural. In Trans-Caspia there are two oil-field centers, one near Krasnovodsk on Chelekan Island, and one in Central Asia at Ferghana. The product of the former fields is transported to Baku for treatment, while the output of the Turkestan field is refined and consumed locally, mainly by the railway.

Jan 3, 1925

By A. R. Anderson

UNTIL recently all discussions directed at justify-ing the use of mechanical-loading equipment and conveyors have referred chiefly to tons per man and cost per ton. But there is another consideration that ? will speed the adoption of mechanical loading in mines even though tons per man on present day stand-ards were not increased nor the cost per ton decreased. With restricted immigration, improved facilities for education in our mining communities, and increased opportunities for recreation, the type of man who can or will throw 20 tons of coal per day over the side of a mine car is disappearing. Whether we will it or not provision must be made to replace muscular effort by mechanical means. Fortunately, indications are that the process will be accompanied by increased output per man and lower production cost, and though the outlook may now be a bit clouded in spots, all should profit by the change. The operator should enjoy a more stable business with more assured profit, the miners should get a better livelihood with less arduous effort and under safer and pleasanter working conditions, and the consumer should gain the assurance of a supply of coal always available at reasonable prices. That sounds like the millennium in the coal business perhaps. Of course, it is not, but there is just enough of that millennium stuff in it to encourage those of us who are working with today's problems of applying loading and conveying equipment to underground opera-tions. If we discern clearly that there can be no back-sliding, and that all will share in whatever advantages accrue, we will carry on more vigorously, and may right-fully expect to have the necessary cooperation of all the elements within the industry. As nature does not seem to have followed a definite plan in the formation of coal deposits it is not likely that any one standard method or type of equipment can be evolved for mining the coal. The method of mining that maybe most advantageously employed with load-ing machines and conveyors depends on the character of the strata overlying the coal as much as anything else.

Jan 4, 1927

By Sherwin F. Kelly

In presenting this brief historical perspective, it is not my purpose to address myself to the geophysicists, to most of whom the story is already well known. My objective is to draw the attention of those who hold the belief that geophysics is something new, typically twentieth century, to the fact that fundamentally, whether it was known by the name of geophysics or not, the science is an ancient and an honorable one. It began many centuries ago, and our modern civilization and its commerce owe a great debt to its founders, who today are likely to be overlooked and their names forgotten. The word "geophysics" means the physics of the earth, and is descriptive of a science that in many ways bears the same relationship to geology that astrophysics does to astronomy. When dealing with distant stars or deeply buried rocks, the experimenter cannot reach them to obtain samples, which can be taken to his laboratory for study. He therefore exhibits the resourcefulness of Mahomet in the mountain episode, and makes the terrestrial globe or the cosmic universe his laboratory, studying the effects of distant bodies on certain "fields of force" which come to him across interstellar space, or through the rocks that make our earth. The application of these- techniques of the physics laboratory to the study of the stars is the science of astrophysics, and to the investigation of the earth is geophysics. Yet the origin of the most valuable contribution to the world's trade and commerce ever made by geophysics remains lost in deep obscurity. Unknown even is the country wherein lived the unsung genius who invented the first geophysical instrument, the mariner's compass! Worse yet, it is not certain whether this invaluable guide of man had its beginnings in Europe or in Asia. A Chinese legend tells of the Emperor Hwang-ti, who attacked his enemy Tchi-yeou on the plains of Tehou-lou in the year 2634 B.C., whereupon the latter magically raised such a fog that the Emperor could not pursue the retreating troops. Not to be outdone, the mighty ruler constructed a chariot that indicated the cardi-

Jan 1, 1940

By Reginald S. Dean

Manganous oxide is readily soluble in concentrated ammonia solutions containing ammonium salts. Lixiviants of ammonia and ammonium carbamate permit ready extraction of manganese from reduced ores and the manganese in such solutions may be precipitated by heating to transform the carbamate to carbonate. THE widespread occurrence of manganese in low grade oxide and carbonate ores not amenable to mechanical concentration has led to extensive investigations of hydrometallurgical methods for producing a pure manganese compound suitable for further treatment. Manganese carbonate is the preferable compound. This product when fully crystalline and of not too fine crystal size is easily filtrable and stable in air. It can be converted to other compounds such as the oxides by heating in air or can be reacted with acids for producing salts. A useful hydrometallurgical process must produce relatively concentrated solutions that can be purified easily, reagents must be cyclically used, and heat requirements must be small. Neither the ammonium sulphate nor sulphur dioxide leaching processes that have been tested extensively fulfill these requirements. Other heretofore proposed processes have obvious limitations and have not been tried on a large scale. The present process is based on the discovery by the writer of a new group of aqueous manganese-ammonia complex solutions highly concentrated in ammonia, which permit rapid solution of manganous oxide to concentrations of 80 to 100 g Mn per liter and from which a fully crystalline, easily filtrable manganese carbonate is precipitated by the addition of carbon dioxide and partial ammonia removal. Although the process may be carried out with many ammonium salts, commercial advantages dictate the use of ammonium carbamate, which is obtained when CO2 is passed into concentrated aqueous solutions of ammonia. If the carbamate is used, the only reagents, ammonia and CO2, are volatile and may therefore be recovered from solutions and residues by heating, thus eliminating washing and extensive evaporation. Impurities are controlled easily as most metal oxides are either insoluble in the lixiviant or fail to precipitate with the manganese carbonate. Others are controlled by sulphide addition. The process has been tested extensively on a small scale on a wide variety of ores, including Three Kids, Artillery Peak, Cuyuna, and Chamberlain, as repre-

Jan 1, 1953

By James Kitson, Abram S. Hewitt

I HAVE now the duty—the very pleasant duty—to perform, of presenting to the Hon. Abram S. Hewitt the Bessemer gold medal for distinguished services to the iron and steel trade. When this matter was brought under consideration in London it was well known that, as Mr. Hewitt would be the first to acknowledge, there is more than one man in America upon whom we would gladly have cm ferred this distinction, and to whom this merit might be justly at tributed ; but Mr. Hewitt has been long known to our distinguished members on the other side of the Atlantic as one of the most active minds in the investigation of new methods of manufacture, and one of the most enterprising metallurgists on this side of the Atlantic. Well, gentlemen, we proposed to Mr. Hewitt that he should receive this gold medal, but I think it is quite right, and is his due, that I should state that he at once declined to receive it; and he declined in a manner which rendered it impossible to any one but very per sistent friends and very obstinate Englishmen to refuse. When we heard that our American friends had conferred once more upon Mr. Hewitt the distinction of President of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, and particularly with reference to our contem plated visit, and when we heard that he had been elected unani mously to that position, we felt that we had received the stamp of approval from this side. Gentlemen, as I said before, Mr. Hewitt has long been known to many of us in England as an advocate of scientific education. A report which he made of the metallurgical products at the Paris Exposition in 1867 was one of the matters which drew very clearly and distinctly the attention of the English iron and steel trade to the necessity of further improvement in our technical education as to iron and steel; and it was one of those beginnings which led ultimately to the foundation of the Iron and Steel Institute. The development of the ideas which 'he there investigated undoubtedly led

Jan 1, 1891

By Sherwin Kelly

IN presenting this brief historical perspective, it is not my purpose to address myself to the geophysicists, to most of whom the story is already well known. My objective is to draw the attention of those who hold the belief that geophysics is something new, typically twentieth century, to the fact that fundamentally, whether it was known by the name of geo-physics or not, the science is an ancient and an honorable one. It began many centuries ago, and our modern civilization and its commerce owe a great debt to Its founders, who today are likely to be overlooked and their names forgotten. The word "geophysics" means the physics of the earth, and is descriptive of a science that in many ways bears the same relationship to geology that astrophysics does to astronomy. When dealing with dis-tant stars or deeply buried rocks, the experimenter cannot reach them to obtain samples, which can be taken to his laboratory for study. He therefore exhibits the resourcefulness of Mahomet in the mountain episode, and makes the terrestrial globe or the cosmic universe his labora-tory, studying the effects of distant bodies on certain "fields of force" which come to him across interstellar space, or through the rocks that make our earth. The application of these techniques of the physics laboratory to the study of the stars is the science of astrophysics, and to the investigation of the earth is geophysics. Yet the origin of the most valuable contribution to the world's trade and commerce ever made by geophysics remains lost in deep obscurity. Unknown even is the country wherein lived the unsung genius who invented the first geophysical instrument, the mariner's compass! Worse yet, it is not certain whether this invaluable guide of man had its begin-nings in Europe or in Asia. A Chinese legend tells of the Emperor Hwang-ti, who attacked his enemy Tchi-yeou on the plains of Tchou-lou in the year 2634 B.C., whereupon the latter magically raised such a fog that the Emperor could not pursue the retreating troops. Not to be outdone, the mighty ruler constructed a chariot that indicated the cardi-

Jan 1, 1938

By Sherwin F. Kelly

In presenting this brief historical perspective, it is not my purpose to address myself to the geophysicists, to most of whom the story is already well known. My objective is to draw the attention of those who hold the belief that geophysics is something new, typically twentieth century, to the fact that fundamentally, whether it was known by the name of geophysics or not, the science is an ancient and an honorable one. It began many centuries ago, and our modern civilization and its commerce owe a great debt to its founders, who today are likely to be overlooked and their names forgotten. The word "geophysics" means the physics of the earth, and is descriptive of a science that in many ways bears the same relationship to geology that astrophysics does to astronomy. When dealing with distant stars or deeply buried rocks, the experimenter cannot reach them to obtain samples, which can be taken to his laboratory for study. He therefore exhibits the resourcefulness of Mahomet in the mountain episode, and makes the terrestrial globe or the cosmic universe his laboratory, studying the effects of distant bodies on certain "fields of force" which come to him across interstellar space, or through the rocks that make our earth. The application of these- techniques of the physics laboratory to the study of the stars is the science of astrophysics, and to the investigation of the earth is geophysics. Yet the origin of the most valuable contribution to the world's trade and commerce ever made by geophysics remains lost in deep obscurity. Unknown even is the country wherein lived the unsung genius who invented the first geophysical instrument, the mariner's compass! Worse yet, it is not certain whether this invaluable guide of man had its beginnings in Europe or in Asia. A Chinese legend tells of the Emperor Hwang-ti, who attacked his enemy Tchi-yeou on the plains of Tehou-lou in the year 2634 B.C., whereupon the latter magically raised such a fog that the Emperor could not pursue the retreating troops. Not to be outdone, the mighty ruler constructed a chariot that indicated the cardi-

Jan 1, 1940

By J. R. Eckel

It has long been known that mud properties affect drilling rate and that drilling with water is as much as six to .seven times faster than with mud. However, it is not known why drilling rates with mud are lower. Recent studies show what fluid properties govern microbit drilling rate and also provide a quantitative correlation of these fluid properties and hydraulics with microbit drilling rate. All the microbit tests reported in this paper were made with a low permeability (about 10 md) limestone. They were conducted at constant bit weight and rotary speed with varying fluid properties, flow rate Q and nozzle dinnteter d. The tests showed that (1) drilling rate in a given system with constant circulating rate and nozzle velocity is a function of the kinematic viscosity [viscosity /density, (cp)/ p (density)] of the drilling fluid measured at near bit nozzle shear rates; (2) the combined effect of fluid properties and hydraulics on microbit drilling rate is defined by a Reynolds number function (kQp/dp); (3) for the same kinematic viscosity, drilling rate is independent of solids content; and (4) for the same kinematic viscosity, drilling rate is independent of fluid loss. INTRODUCTION The fact that mudding up reduces rate of penetration is well known, but the reduction varies from well to well. The rate with mud may be 80 percent of the water rate or it may be as low as 15 percent. Since this reduction of up to seven-fold takes place under conditions of constant bit weight, rotary speed and mud circulating rate in a uniform formation, it can only be a result of the change in fluid properties. Previous work1-" both in field tests and in laboratory microbit tests) showed that drilling rate with mud is lower than with water (Figs. 1 and 2). Microbit tests also confirm, at least qualitatively, the field observation that drilling rate slows with increased pressure differential from borehole to formation (Fig. 3). The qualitative effect of drilling rate of bit weight, rotary speed and rate of mud circulation are also the same for the field and microbit rig. For these reasons, the industry generally accepts microbit results as being qualitatively meaningful in terms of field application.

By D. R. Walker, M. C. Shaw

The laws of Kick and Rittinger are explained as functions of particle size with metal cutting theory. Comminution is shown to be basically the same process as metal grinding. The machine shop type of grinding operation is used to study mineral crushing. Evidence indicates that plastic flow occurs in comminution. THE laws of comminution of Kick and Rittinger have been debated for many years. Certain data obtained from ball mill and drop tests are found to be in approximate agreement with Rittinger's law while other data would seem to support Kick's law. In all these tests the energy required to produce a wide variety of particle sizes has been studied. Surface area has also been measured with considerable difficulty, at first because it was thought that the energy associated with crushing was that required to create new surface, later because of precedent and because a more fundamental variable was unknown. Tests made with the machine shop type of grinding process show that normally brittle materials that are usually crushed can behave like the more ductile metals. Brittleness is then a relative prop- erty largely dependent on specimen size and stress state. The machine grinding operation offers a convenient means for studying the comminution of materials in which the important size variable retains its identity. The energy required to grind a certain volume of material is shown to be strongly dependent on size. Kick's law is found to hold very well for particles below 1 micron in size, while Rittinger's law holds approximately in the comminution of larger particles. While a physical origin of Kick's law is established in terms of the theoretical strength of materials having a perfect lattice structure, there is found to be no physical basis for Rittinger's law. Because of its industrial importance, comminution has commanded considerable technical attention and has been the subject of continuous study for nearly a century. A number of empirical rules have been proposed to make it possible for grinding energies to be predicted. Of these so-called laws of comminution those bearing the names of Kick and Rittinger have been most widely applied and debated.

Jan 1, 1955

By C. W. Hill

FLUXES, in general, may be classified according to their use as soldering, foundry or casting, and metallurgical and the chemistry of their action follows quite closely this division. The term foundry or casting fluxes, as used here, refers to the substances added to molten metals, preparatory to casting into molds or ingots, with the object of removing small amounts of impurities that have been introduced in handling or melting the metal, which was placed in a fair state of purity by the previous refining or metallurgical processes. The sources of these impurities are the oxide coating on the surface of the ingots, material extracted or mechanically removed from the crucible or furnace wall, and those formed by the reaction of the molten metal with the heating gases or furnace atmosphere. As commonly used, the term fluxes is applied to such materials as ammonium chloride, zinc chloride, salt, borax, and boric oxide. A second class of materials, usually called deoxidizers, includes substances, such as metallic phosphides, sub-oxides, carbides, and bo-rides, that reduce the metallic oxides present in the metal. A third class includes various compounds that are molten and non-volatile at the temperature of the molten metal and are used primarily to protect the surface of the metal from the action of the furnace or exterior atmosphere; to this class belong such mixtures as lime and fluorspar, lime and soda ash, various minerals, etc. In some cases these protective layers may act in a manner similar to the metallurgical fluxes and dissolve or unite with the oxide impurities of the metal, but as generally employed this latter action is negligible since there is little opportunity for the coverings to come into contact with more than the surface of the metal, and hence they are without action on the body of the molten mass. The use of fluxes is the result of factory experience and tradition, but an extensive study has not been made of the chemical, and physical actions that occur or the effects of these actions on the properties of the metal. It would seem necessary in any successful study of metal fluxes

Jan 10, 1920

By Howard Hughes

IN drilling for water and oil to reasonable depths through the generally soft yielding clay and sand formation of the Coastal Plain of Texas, . Louisiana, and Mississippi, the rotating method of drilling was adopted, principally on account of the easy and quick penetration, and the low cost of the drilling plant. In favorable ground, free of heavy gravel and rock strata, as much as 1,000 ft. has been drilled in less than 36 hr., although such performances were of course rare. Hydraulic rotary drilling, or, as it is now called, rotary drilling, was used in the above States as early as 1880. The plant consisted of an ordinary derrick, a 25-h.p. boiler, a small hoist, a steam pump, and a water swivel with hose attachment, and an ordinary flat diamond-pointed bit. The successful drilling in of a phenomenal oil well by this process on Spindletop, near Beaumont, Texas, on Jan. 10, 1901, and the ascertained impracticability of drilling subsequent wells in the same locality by other methods (owing principally to heavy quicksand under pressure from below), brought rotary drilling into great prominence, practically to the exclusion of any other process throughout the Coastal Plain, and later on elsewhere. The method, as its name implies, involves the rotation of a pipe by means of machinery placed on the derrick floor. A drill bit attached to the lower end cuts a clearance for the drill pipe, with much the same motion and effect as an auger. Water forced through the drill pipe by means of a pump, and escaping through the bit, removes the cuttings and returns to the surface outside the drill pipe. In this manner the hole is kept open, permitting the drill stem to rotate freely. The pressure of the column of muddy water holds up the walls of the hole until it has been cased. Practically all the wells of the Gulf coast region, numbering nearly 10,000, have been drilled with this system. During the last five years its use has been extended to many other States and countries.

Jan 3, 1915

By Reginald S. Dean

Manganous oxide is readily soluble in concentrated ammonia solutions containing ammonium salts. Lixiviants of ammonia and ammonium carbamate permit ready extraction of manganese from reduced ores and the manganese in such solutions may be precipitated by heating to transform the carbamate to carbonate. THE widespread occurrence of manganese in low grade oxide and carbonate ores not amenable to mechanical concentration has led to extensive investigations of hydrometallurgical methods for producing a pure manganese compound suitable for further treatment. Manganese carbonate is the preferable compound. This product when fully crystalline and of not too fine crystal size is easily filtrable and stable in air. It can be converted to other compounds such as the oxides by heating in air or can be reacted with acids for producing salts. A useful hydrometallurgical process must produce relatively concentrated solutions that can be purified easily, reagents must be cyclically used, and heat requirements must be small. Neither the ammonium sulphate nor sulphur dioxide leaching processes that have been tested extensively fulfill these requirements. Other heretofore proposed processes have obvious limitations and have not been tried on a large scale. The present process is based on the discovery by the writer of a new group of aqueous manganese-ammonia complex solutions highly concentrated in ammonia, which permit rapid solution of manganous oxide to concentrations of 80 to 100 g Mn per liter and from which a fully crystalline, easily filtrable manganese carbonate is precipitated by the addition of carbon dioxide and partial ammonia removal. Although the process may be carried out with many ammonium salts, commercial advantages dictate the use of ammonium carbamate, which is obtained when CO2 is passed into concentrated aqueous solutions of ammonia. If the carbamate is used, the only reagents, ammonia and CO2, are volatile and may therefore be recovered from solutions and residues by heating, thus eliminating washing and extensive evaporation. Impurities are controlled easily as most metal oxides are either insoluble in the lixiviant or fail to precipitate with the manganese carbonate. Others are controlled by sulphide addition. The process has been tested extensively on a small scale on a wide variety of ores, including Three Kids, Artillery Peak, Cuyuna, and Chamberlain, as repre-

Jan 1, 1953

By R. M. Hays

Prior to use of this model siphon finisher, the only means of evaluating metallurgical performance of the siphon finisher was by pilot plant studies. These are costly and require large quantities of material. A model siphon finisher and a test procedure which permits the evaluation of siphon finisher metallurgical performance has been developed. Metallurgical results between the model siphon finisher and pilot plant or commercial units show fairly good correlation. The upgrading of magnetic taconite concentrates by hydraulic concentration has been practiced for several years. In the 1940's, Braund1 used a multistage upflow classifier to upgrade magnetized magnetic concentrates. In present taconite plants, the SiphonSizer, marketed by Dorr-Oliver, Inc., has been particularly suitable for upgrading magnetic concentrates. When the hydraulic SiphonSizer is used to upgrade the concentrates in the finishing portion of the overall flowscheme, the unit will be called a siphon finisher to distinguish this application from classification. Prior to this work the only means of evaluating the metallurgical performance of the siphon finisher was by pilot plant studies which are costly and require large quantities of material. Therefore, it was desirable to develop a model siphon finisher and a test procedure which would simulate siphon finisher performance and require only small samples of material. This model would permit the evaluation of small samples such as drill core samples and be useful in evaluation of commercial siphon finisher design and performance. THE SIPHON FINISHER The siphon finisher, as shown in Fig. 1, is a tank equipped with a system of water jets which distribute the hydraulic water uniformly across the bottom of the vessel with an energy release for agitation in the teeter bed. The feed to the siphon finisher is intre duced through a feed well in the center of the unit. The silica and middling particles overflow a peripheral weir into the overflow launder. The magnetite fraction is discharged by a siphon or a modulated discharge valve. The siphon or the discharge valve is usually operated automatically by a float assembly which is responsive to the depth of the teeter bed. Various interface sensing devices have also been

Jan 1, 1968

By E. G. Woodruff

(Butte Meeting, August, 1913.) FEW authors of treatises and papers on engineering subjects have . given adequate attention to topographic maps.. The statement applies especially to mining engineering in all branches. Even those who have discussed such maps have treated the subject only in a general way. Therefore it is proposed to outline in this paper a few of the uncommon, yet important relationships which topographic maps and their by-product, structure-contour maps, have to modern methods of mining investigation and development when the facts depicted on such maps are properly interpreted. Topography, as suggested by the etymology of the word, menus a detailed description of particular places. Written descriptions have been found less effective than the pictorial representations, therefore attempts have been made in various ways to picture the surface features of places. Lines and shading have been used, hachures drawn, and, finally, the contour topographic map. To a large extent this style of snap is the result of the demands of engineers. It is designed to meet their needs far more than those of the man untrained in engineering. In fact, the average man obtains a better idea of the topography of an area from the hachure system than from contour maps. . Since the maps. have been made chiefly for the use of the engineer, they ought to meet his demands on the one hand, and, on the other, should be used by him to the fullest extent. Such maps, when properly made, accurately portray a portion of the earth's surface and should present the topography better than a personal examination of the area without a map could present it, because the person making such examination views only a limited portion of the surface at a time, and estimates distances only roughly with his eye. Let the engineer consider carefully the fact that in many instances the topographic map is superior to a personal examination of the surface features of a property because the map is based on careful instrumental measurements, whereas the eye gives imperfect data because it can be used merely for the estimation and

Jan 6, 1913

By J. F. McLaughlin

The installation of the Chance flotation system for the preparation of anthracite demonstrated the need for some means by which the specific gravity of the fluid mass in the separating cone could be determined with a fair degree of accuracy. The means used (with the original cones) was a set of wooden balls attached to ropes or chains, each with a different specific gravity. In the Northern Anthracite field, where the cones are generally operated with the specific gravity at 1.65, these gravity balls are provided with a range of 1.6, 1.65, 1.7 and 1.75. The operator of the cone from time to time would place one or more of these balls in the cone and estimate its specific gravity by the action of the balls. The margin of error with this system was very great, because there was the possibility that the test ball might be held in suspension and carried around by material floating beneath the surface of the cone in what is known as "island " formation—a formation resulting from a low sand line in the separating cone. The inaccuracy of this system of determination of specific gravity was indicated also by periodic tests of the final refuse bank, which showed excessive losses of coal to the refuse. Further evidence of the unsatisfactory operation of the cone was the uneven appearance of the market product, which caused spasmodic condemnation. Maintenance of Even Preparation With the critical market condition of today, it is essential that the preparation units operate consistently to maintain an even preparation. If a plant wishes to maintain a 1.65 specific gravity preparation, which means that all material of a specific gravity greater than 1.65 is classed as "reject," if the specific gravity of the fluid mass runs to 1.70, the market product will not be satisfactory; or if the specific gravity of the fluid mass is 1.60, the market product will be entirely satisfactory but the losses at the slate ends will be excessive. The desired specific gravity of the fluid mass in the Chance cone is maintained by agitating the sand within the separating cone by means

Jan 1, 1931

By C. A. Mitke

The United Verde Extension mine is located in the Jerome mining district, on the eastern slope of the Black Hills, approximately northeast of the town of Jerome, Yavapai County, Arizona. The ore deposit may be termed a replacement in Yavapai schist. This schist is one of the oldest formations in the district, being probably of volcanic origin, and has been folded and faulted and contains intrusions of diorite and quartz porphyry. It is believed that the mineralization followed the porphyry intrusions and replaced the country rock; this was followed by erosion and a period of secondary enrichment, all completed in pre-Cambrian time. Later sediments of sandstones and limestones, to the depth of approximately 600 ft. (182 m.), were laid down, followed by volcanic flows. Faulting and erosion again took place, resulting in the present complicated arrangement of the strata. Prospecting, therefore, is very difficult, because the sediments practically cover the mineralized areas. This necessitates the sinking of deep shafts, cross-cutting, and, in some instances, diamond drilling to learn something of the various relations of the different formations and the occurrences of intrusions associated with ore deposition. The locating of new orebodies, therefore, is beset with innumerable difficulties. EARLY MINING METHODS The two orebodies constituting the principal resources of the company are known as the small orebody and the Bonanza, or large orebody. These are about 150 ft. (45 m.) apart, and while they appear to be distinct orebodies may later prove to be connected. The character of the ore, the general associations of the porphyries adjoining the orebodies, and other characteristics, both in the ore and general environment, are very similar. The small orebody was the fist to be discovered and was mined for some time before the Bonanza was found. At first, a large amount of ore was extracted by means of development work, but as the smelters treating this class of ore were located from 60 to 400 mi. (96 to 643 km.) away, only the highest grade yielded a fair profit and it became necessary to do selective mining. The main workings

Jan 1, 1920

By Isaac H. Odell, Arthur W. Hixson, Lincoln T. Work

Although a few engineers have recognized the problem of the mechanism of filtration it has never been studied in a quantitative way. A background for a better understanding will be afforded by a survey of certain fundamental principles of filtration. In recent years, authorities have become practically unanimous in saying that the actual filtering should be done, not by the cloth itself, but by a layer of solid particles deposited upon it. Thus, a cloth may be used in which the openings are considerably larger than the particles to be filtered, provided that groups of particles form an arch or bridge over each opening. This can be accomplished if the initial pressure is so low that the arch will not be broken while it is still thin. According to Wright,' the chief advantage of this method of filtration is that the open-weave cloth does not become clogged as easily as does one of closer weave, where the fine particles often work their way into the interior of the cloth and become caught there. If the character of the material to be filtered is such that it will not form a good film, then it becomes advantageous to use "filter aids" for pre-coating the cloth with a desirable layer of solids, and the coating need be only of a very slight thickness for good results. Until the film is formed, the first runnings of the filtrate may be cloudy, often necessitating refiltering this portion. A factor which has considerable effect on the performance of filters is the concentration of solids in the pulp. According to Wright, a high concentration of solids gives a porous cake, since the flow is then slower than with a thin pulp. The porosity of the cake is also affected by the pressure: a high initial pressure tends to compact the cake, and the same effect results from fluctuations of pressure. In his studies of the relation between pore size and particle size, Hatschek2 observed that the particles in a pulp tend to arrange themselves with maximum cross-section parallel to the direction of flow and that this is more marked at the higher vclocfiies. Thus, at high pressure and high velocity, a certain pulp

Jan 1, 1926