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By T. F. Petty

During 1935 there were drilled in North Central Texas 1071 wells, of which 565 were dry holes, 469 were oil wells with an initial production of 43,766 bbl. and 37 were gas wells with an initial production of 129,332,000 cu. ft. Production has been 14,180,042 bbl., or a daily average of 38,849 bbl. In Table 1 are listed the various pools of the district. Most of the smaller pools are of minor importance and are merely productive spots. Numerous other similar spots might have been listed as pools but their production is included in other fields. There are a few flowing wells but practically all of the wells are being pumped. The estimated potential is about 50,000 bbl. and the allowable production is based on the Texas Marginal Well Law. In Table 2, wildcat wells that have resulted in the discovery of pools or important extensions to old pools or that have contributed to the geological information of the area are listed.

Jan 1, 1936

By Roger W. Dewey

The opposition is all kinds. There are extremists. There are quiet, sensible sounding folk who can twist numbers and facts to make their point. But they are all out to shut you down! Some of them are genuinely concerned about miners' impact on the environment. Others are just anti- society, anti-big business - small is beautiful - live naturally. The opportunity for them to make those statements on television was provided by us, the Uranium Public Affairs Task Force, as part of a media tour of the State of Idaho in May. We fielded four representatives of the industry and got 25 hours of television coverage, 22 hours of radio coverage, and print coverage by every paper in Idaho. The tour included several debates, and these clips are from two of them. Our folks creamed them! This one was so upset that he ran off the set while his mike was still plugged in, trailing studio equipment behind him. But we don't always have the opportunity to rebut them. They are making these statements all the time, everywhere they can. They have learned their trade well. They use the hearing process like A1 Hirt uses the trumpet. If the process of intervention should shut us down or prevent us from getting a license, so much to the good. But even if it doesn't - they win - for it causes delay - delay costs money and so does complying with regulation. If they can make us uneconomic, and that's not too hard to do these days, they have won. Regulation restricts the decision process. Any time the decision process IS restricted, you face the possible loss of a more economic alternative. They are out to pile every regulation on you they can and every delay they can. Initiatives! They came after us - the uranium industry - in South Dakota and Montana last year. They won in Montana. We tried to reverse it in the legislature, but they were too frightened of public reaction to do it. They did put it on the ballot for reversal in November of '82. That puts it squarely up to us to influence the public so we can win a campaign. There will be more initiatives, and at local levels as well as at state. We must join together and win! The public generally supports the continued operation of nuclear power plants. They about split on whether to build more. But they strongly support regulating the industry more stringently. Every survey reflects concern about safety and the desire for the government to take responsibility and regulate. You and I know that regulation nearly always adds cost, and only sometimes increases safety. We need to influence the creation of regulation. We need to accept responsible regulation and fight that which is counter-productive. To win in hearings, to win initiatives, to win in getting responsible regulation, we need public support. We need an informed, understanding, and supportive public. To accomplish this, we need two kinds of efforts. The first is to reach the people at the local level with local representatives of our industry. Informal conversations at church, PTA, cocktail parties, whatever. Presentations to Kiwanis Clubs, League of Women Voters, church groups - wherever we can. Facts, information in printed form, to these same local audiences with the credibility of the local sources. The second is to reach mass audiences through the media. Positive media. This can be done by advertising, but it is very expensive. We have to look to influencing the reporters and editors to get more balanced and accurate reporting. We need to get free time - interviews, debates, letters to the editors, etc. The Uranium Public Affairs Task Force was created last year to provide tools for you to use to reach these audiences (it is affiliated with the Atomic Industrial Forum). Twenty-two companies provided money and man- power. A consultant, Denver Research Group, was retained to produce materials. In this Phase I effort, we first researched what issues were of greatest concern and what were felt to be the greatest needs in materials. We determined that we did not have the funds to go out and do the job for the industry, so we decided to develop tools for the Industry to go out and do the job for itself. From the research, we determined what tools we should develop for you to use. We first developed a set of the quest- ions most likely to be asked of you and the issues most likely to be thrown up to you. We have developed a loose-leaf notebook. Each page contains one of those questions or issues, a short verbatim response that you can use, a short discussion of the subject, and references you can cite or research for further information. It is organized by subject: tailings, water radiation, etc. This book is an extremely handy tool for anyone in the industry. Each uranium location should have at least one.

Jan 1, 1982

For more than 100 years, the Republic of Chile has been one of the leading copper-producing countries of the world. Between 1877 and 1880 Chile accounted for over 50 pet of total world copper production. Today it has the world's largest known reserves of copper ore and a capability of producing over 600,000 tons per year. This capacity can and will be increased as the world demand for copper grows steadily during the remaining years of this century. The Potrerillos mine of Andes Copper Mining Co., a subsidiary of The Anaconda Co., was developed in the rugged, high Cordilleras in the early 1920's, and the townsite, concentrator, leaching plants, smelter, railroad, power and port facilities were completed so that it came into full production in 1927. Since then and until the closing o f the mine in June of last year, 1,762,192 tons o f copper were produced.

Jan 4, 1960

By AIME AIME

MEMBERS of the Engineering Education Committee held two meetings at Joplin preliminary to the opening of the main meeting there. The first was held on Sunday afternoon. It was attended by all who had arrived early enough and as among the dozen or' fifteen who were present the heads of a half dozen schools of mines were included it was a representative gathering. C: H. Fulton, chairman of the Committee presided and T. T. Read acted as secretary of the meeting. The chair., man reminded those present that last year there had been some discussion as to the advisability of the proposal, made by Edward Steidle, that a, separate society, devoted to education in the mineral industry, he organized. Many .people had felt that there are already so many societies in existence to demand one's time and attention, that it would be a mistake to add to their number and the counter suggestion had been made that the work of this committee could be so reorganized as to meet all the needs that a separate society could fill. He therefore presented for discussion these four' questions: (1) Shall a subcommittee .be appointed to study, and report in February, 1932, the possibility of the reorganization of the work of the Engineering Education Committee into the equivalent of an' Institute division; (2) if the work is so reorganized what shall be the relation of the work of the Committee (division) to the work of the-Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education; (3.): what are the, cardinal objectives of education for the mineral industry; and (4) what should be done as regards the movement in some institutions to plan their work-in the light of that being done in other institutions, for example, in geophysics?

Jan 1, 1931

G. McMEANS*—This paper is a very good demonstration of the use of a new tool for the solution of industrial problems of a physical nature. To have solved this problem without the use of radioactive tracers would have required a far greater amount of investigation and work. The authors have described their work in such detail and in such a manner as to suggest the possibilities of the use of such tracer studies in the solution of many perplexing problems of industry. R. E. BREWER †—The authors are to be congratulated on this very excellent paper, which describes the results obtained by utilizing radioactive tracers in investigating the complicated reactions in the coking process. The paper has especial merit because the study was made under typical operating conditions in a commercial coke oven. Considering all the difficulties involved, the results obtained are excellent. My brief comments will relate primarily to the method used for determining the sulphur in the gas and to the value of the data obtained in stimulating further research. In discussing their results, the authors state (p. 17) that "Of the total sulphur charged to the oven in the coal 95 pct was accounted for in the coke and gas. Most of the sulphur unaccounted for is believed to have been lost in the gas, since the gas sampling system removed all the H2S but probably only part of the organic sulphur compounds present in the gas. Although sulphur in the acid-insoluble tar residue in the gas scrubbing bottles was determined and added to the total sulphur determination of each sample, it is doubtful whether an aliquot portion of tar for each sample was obtained." The reviewer believes that the authors might have obtained a better sulphur balance had they used an improved procedure for determining sulphur in the gas. The absorption train should have included a trap to remove the tar and am-moniacal liquor and a wash bottle containing 5 pct sulphuric acid to remove ammonia in the coke-oven gas before it entered the gas scrubbing bottles containing the ammoniacal cadmium chloride solution. Sulphur in the tar and

Jan 1, 1950

By R. F. Krueger, L. C. Vogel, P. W. Fischer

Previous studies have shown that the permeabilities of sandstone cores are markedly reduced following exposure to drilling fluid and subsequent clean-up with oil at high-pressure gradients. Laboratory experiments reported in this paper indicate that permeability damage from drilling mud or water can be substantially avoided through use of an initial low-pressure gradient followed by gradually increasing gradients during clean-up by reverse oil flow. On the other hand, attempts to improve the permeability of damaged Berea and oil formation cores with high-rate oil backflush (simulated well stimulation) and low-rate clean-up gave erratic results. Essentfully complete permeability repair was achieved in most of the fresh water-damaged cores from Miocene and Pliocene oil-producing formations; only minor improvement was noted generally in tests with both water-and mud-damaged Berea sandstone. Field well stimulation treatments using high-rate back-flush resulted in long-term productivity improvement when production was brought in at gradually increasing production rates and then restricted to a steady value less than the maximum possible rate. Wellbore plugging at high production rates correlated with increasing solids content in the produced oil. Observations and results from these tests agree with current concepts that formation damage in water-sensitive rocks results from movement and bridging of formation fines, rather than from clay swelling alone. INTRODUCTION Many laboratory studies1-g have shown that the permeabilities of sandstone cores are often markedly reduced following exposure to fresh water or water-base drilling mud filtrate. However, work with cores in the restored state has demonstrated that, although permeabilities to water may be very low for sandstones containing hy-dratable clays, flow of oil can often restore a substantial portion of the effective permeabilities to oi1.Neverthe- less, water invasion into water-sensitive sandstone cores results in varying degrees of permanent reduction in permeability to oil.24' Based on field data, Wade's statistical study" of well completion effectiveness also indicated a correlation between productivity damage and water invasion during completion. Similar damage can result from fluid invasion during workover. Nowak and Krueger' and Bertness4 observed in their early work (1951-53) that formation damage in water-sensitive sandstones was associated not only with swelling of expandable clays but also with movement of dispersed particles. Subsequent work by Monaghan et al." (1959), Atwood'' (19641, Mungan" (1965) and Gray and Rex'" (1965) has led to general acceptance of the hypothesis that permeability damage in water-sensitive formations is caused by migration of finely dispersed minerals and bridging in "brush heap" arrangements at pore constructions. In laboratory studies, Monaghan et al.' found the use of chemicals to be of only minor value for repairing formation damage. Atwood? however, was successful in substantially repairing damage in a number of low-permeability cores using an n-hexanol flush. In the field, except for treatments with acids, the use of chemical washes to reduce wellbore damage has had limited and sporadic success and generally is unpredictable. A statistical analysis of stimulation treatments in silt-blocked wells has shown that physical manipulation of wash materials is more important than chemical composition." The recent work reported on formation damage in water-sensitive sands brings to mind the results of some unpublished exploratory work done in 1954 in connection with drilling fluid studies.' This laboratory work and subsequent field stimulation treatments indicated a beneficial effect of controlled pressure drawdown and the associated production rate on formation clean-up. This paper reports the results of this work and more recent supplemental experiments on the clean-up of water-sensitive sandstones damaged by water or filtrate invasion. PERMEABILITY RECOVERY AFTER DAMAGE BY DRILLING MUD APPARATUS AND TEST SAMPLES A drilling mud circulating system was used to expose cores to simulated wellbore conditions. The mud flow system is the same as that described by Krueger and Voge17 except that no provision was made for scraping

By S. L. Hoyt

Some of the more important properties of finished materials are strength, ductility, toughness, resistance to alternating and repeated stresses, etc. Of these, the property that appears to have received the least consideration, at least in this country, is toughness, which is due, possibly, to our regarding toughness as a qualitative property or, at any rate, as one that parallels ductility. This arises out of our greater experience with the simple carbon steels in the rolled or forged (non-heat-treated) condition which, qualitatively, are tough if ductile and are not tough if brittle. In this way we have erroneously become accustomed to judging the toughness of a material from its behavior in the tensile or similar test. The point of view presented in the present paper is that toughness, like hardness or tensile strength, should be regarded as an independent property and of sufficient importance to require, in so far as that may be possible, quantitative determinations. If such be true, it becomes at once necessary to devise experimental means for measuring or valuating toughness, and the notched-bar impact test (the Charpy test) is advanced as the most logical test that has so far been developed for this purpose. It is further advanced, with particular emphasis, that we have two kinds of toughness to deal with and, accordingly, they will be dealt with independently. Classification of Materials According to Toughness Toughness has been defined somewhat as follows: Tough materials are those that offer considerable resistance to permanent deformation but which, once such resistance has been overcome, may be deformed plastically, but only by the expenditure of considerable energy. In other words, tough materials may be deformed plastically but they absorb a considerable amount of work in the process. This kind of toughness may be called "static" toughness when the rate of loading is reasonably slow or "dynamic" toughness when the rate of loading is comparatively rapid, as in impact testing, but in all cases the stress distribution is essentially uniform. However, static toughness does not

Jan 1, 1920

By J. E. Brantly

In October 1939, a drilling program was commenced on the Atlantic seaboard of Brazil, with three steam rotary rigs of medium capacity. One of these was assigned to the State of Alagbas and the other two to the State of Bahia. During the remaining few months of 1939 and during the year 1940, some eight wells were drilled, two in Alagbas and six in Bahia. Two small producers were found in the latter state. In early 1941 three medium-weight Diesel rigs were added to the equipment, thus permitting the drilling of some 15 wells during the year 1941. The two small producers found in 1940 in the State of Rahia were near the city of Silo Salvador. In 1941 three additional small wells were brought in, in the same area, and a further producer on an isolated structure some 75 km. to the northwest of this production. No commercial production has been found in the State of Alagbas. Approximately 26 wells have been drilled or are drilling, six of which are producers— five in one area and one in another. The program for 1942 calls for the development of the two areas in which wells have been found and also the drilling of several wildcat structures located either by geophysics or surface geology. All production in the area of the several producing wells is somewhat less than 2000 ft. and in the other area about 3800 ft. The area of the several wells is known as the Lobato field, and is practically within the city limits of Sao Salvador. The area 75 km. northwest of the city will be known as the Candeias field.

Jan 1, 1942

By J. E. Brantly

In October 1939, a drilling program was commenced on the Atlantic seaboard of Brazil, with three steam rotary rigs of medium capacity. One of these was assigned to the State of Alagbas and the other two to the State of Bahia. During the remaining few months of 1939 and during the year 1940, some eight wells were drilled, two in Alagbas and six in Bahia. Two small producers were found in the latter state. In early 1941 three medium-weight Diesel rigs were added to the equipment, thus permitting the drilling of some 15 wells during the year 1941. The two small producers found in 1940 in the State of Rahia were near the city of Silo Salvador. In 1941 three additional small wells were brought in, in the same area, and a further producer on an isolated structure some 75 km. to the northwest of this production. No commercial production has been found in the State of Alagbas. Approximately 26 wells have been drilled or are drilling, six of which are producers— five in one area and one in another. The program for 1942 calls for the development of the two areas in which wells have been found and also the drilling of several wildcat structures located either by geophysics or surface geology. All production in the area of the several producing wells is somewhat less than 2000 ft. and in the other area about 3800 ft. The area of the several wells is known as the Lobato field, and is practically within the city limits of Sao Salvador. The area 75 km. northwest of the city will be known as the Candeias field.

Jan 1, 1942

By Emery C. Olsen

Most coal mining areas of the Western United States are characterized either by thick beds, steep pitches or heavy cover. Individually, each of these may present inherent safety hazards that influence mining. When all are met at one location, the combined effect is to make the safe operation of the mining property a challenge to management. These combined conditions are met in the coal mines of the Columbia-Geneva Steel Div. of the United States Steel Corp., in southeastern Utah. This coal bed measures up to 16 ft in thickness, the pitch is as much as 25 % and mining is under a cover approaching 3000 ft. The Sunnyside coal bed is found in the Book Cliff Mountains, a great escarpment extending from west of Castle Gate, Utah, some 180 miles to Grand Junction, Colo. West of Green River, Utah, the Book Cliffs swing sharply to the north because of the domelike uplift of the San Rafael Swell to the south- west. It is in this northerly extension of the Book Cliffs that the Sunnyside coal in the Blackhawk Formation of the Mesa Verde Group, Upper Cretaceous Age is found. The strata are transected by numerous faults with from a few inches to as much as a hundred feet of displacement. All of these faults have had some effect on the mining operation, either in roof control or, in the case of major faulting, the pattern of mine development.

Jan 10, 1963

By F. L. Sizer

THE mining regulations of British Columbia and Mexico present some features which might well be copied in the United States, if we are to have a complete revision of the laws governing mining titles. 1. First and foremost is the "square" location, which would mean the abolition of extralateral rights. This is a condition in both of the countries above named which has seemed to work no hardship upon any one, and certainly the limitation of underground rights by vertical planes through all lines makes a locator's rights clear. In view of the long and costly litigation which has involved so seriously many of our most important mining districts, it would seem to be the part of wisdom to avoid a repetition of similar trouble on titles of lode mining claims, by the enactment of a law similar to that in force in British Columbia. Objections have been raised by representatives of English companies to the investment of large amounts of money in mining operations in the United States, because of the insecurity of title under the present apex law; and the statement has been made to me personally by one of the largest English operators, that he would never again consent to the purchase of mines in the United States, preferring Mexico with all its revolutionary troubles to the danger of encroachment upon his underground rights by an unscrupulous neighbor. Without going into further argument as to the desirability of the "square location," it should be sufficient to say to those who are inclined to "let well enough alone." and still stick to the "law of the apex" that there have never been any serious objections raised to this feature of the square location in either British Columbia or Mexico. There are well founded and logical reasons for abandoning the doctrine of extralateral rights since it is so difficult of interpretation; the most natural substitute being a law similar to that of British Columbia, giving to each locator an area 1,500 ft. square.

Jan 3, 1914

By J. O. Whiteley, C. Dietz

It is difficult to give a refining outline that may be followed for any and all combinations of the platinum metals; different combinations require different methods of attack. This paper does not pretend to go into all of the reactions of the metals of the platinum group, but will outline the commercial refining of platinum scrap. Typical Platinum Scrap As a concrete case, let us take 100 oz. of miscellaneous scrap, made up of jewelry scrap, dental scrap and laboratory ware. This lot will contain some platinum, palladium, iridium, ruthenium, rhodium, gold, silver and copper. The first problem is to get all of the metals in solution. If the scrap is principally platinum, palladium and gold, a treatment with aqua regia is the course to pursue; but if the scrap contains alloys high in iridium or ruthenium, aqua regia will act too slowly. In the case in hand, we are going to presume that we have scrap high in iridium and ruthenium, and proceed accordingly. Obtaining Residue A Place the scrap, together with six times its weight of granulated test lead, in a solid carbon crucible. This crucible may be placed inside a clay graphite crucible packed with charcoal, to prevent the excessive oxidation of the carbon crucible by the furnace blast. Place a tight cover on the carbon crucible; heat gradually to a good red heat and allow it to soak in the heat for 4 or 5 hr. After the leaded mass is cool, dissolve in dilute nitric acid (1-6) on a steam plate or sand bath. This dissolves practically all of the lead and most of the palladium, silver and copper, together with seme of the platinum and rhodium, and leaves the iridium, ruthenium, gold, and most of the rhodium and platinum as a finely divided residue. Siphon off the clear solution and treat the residue with another portion of dilute nitric acid to insure the solution of the lead and copper. The second nitric acid solution is added to the first, and the residue is filtered on suction and washed thoroughly with hot

Jan 1, 1928

By R. W. Hertzberg, F. D. Lemkey, J. A. Ford

The effect oj unidirectional solidification upon the microstructural, crystallographic and mechanical characteristics of high -purity A1-A13Ni eutectic a1loy specimens has been investigated. varying the growth rate caused the morphology of the Al3Ni phase to gradually change from platelets to rods. In addition, the effect of increasing the rate of planar liquid-solid interlace movement is to decrease the Al3Ni rod diameter and inter-rod spacing. The platelets and rods grow approxinlately parallel to each other and are aligned in a faulted substructure. A single unique crystallographic relationship hetween the A1 and ASNi phases was found and may he descrihed as : interface {001} Al3Ni {331} Al and growth direction <010>Al3Ni || <110> Al The platelet interlace and the aligned rows of rods are both uniquely defined by the above statements. Alignment of the Al3Ni phase by unidirectional solidification has given rise to a threefold increase in strength over that exhibited by specimens with an as-cast microstructure. These results illustrate the possible use of this eutectic alloy as a zohisker -reinforced structure. It has been demonstrated by Winegard et al.,1 Kraft and Albrighht,2 Chilton and winegard,3 Chad-wick,4 Yue,5 Tiller,6 and others that a planar liquid-solid interface may be established in binary eutectic alloys by proper control of heat flow during the solidification process. The unidirectional movement of such an interface results in a eutectic mi-crostructure consisting of an essentially parallel array of the two phases over an entire ingot. Two dominant phase micromorphologies have been produced using this technique: that of substantially parallel alternating lamellae of each phase or long thin parallel rods of one phase imbedded in a continuous matrix of the other phase. While not all eutectics can be controlled in this manner, it has been shown that a "normal" eutectic may, under properly controlled conditions of purity, liquid and solid thermal gradients, and solidification rate, be forced to solidify with essentially parallel phase particles. Kraft and Albright2 have demonstrated that, when the growth rate is too rapid or when the thermal gradient in the liquid at the growing interface is too low, a layer of constitutionally supercooled liquid, formed by impurity build-up, will stabilize a cellular rather than a planar interface. The unidirectional movement of the cellular interface forms the macrostructure of eutectic colonies.7 Chilton,3 Chadwick,4 and Tiller,&apos; studying eutectics of zone-refined Pb-Sn, A1-CuAl2, Zn-Sn, and Cd-Zn systems, noted that in the absence of impurities a planar interface is stabilized even when rapidly solidified. Although it is generally agreed that impurities break down a planar interface to form the eutectic-colony macrostructure, at present the origin of the varying micromorphologies (i.c., plates or rods) in a given normal eutectic alloy is not completely understood. Tiller8 has predicted that the micromor-phology produced may be dependent on solidification rate (i.e., at fast rates a rodlike structure is preferred whereas at slow rates a lamellar structure should form), and also suggested that rod formation may be favored at large phase-volume ratios. yue5 has experimentally verified Tiller&apos;s prediction in the eutectic Mg-Mg17Al12 by observing a lamellae-to-rod transition with increasing growth rate where the phase-volume ratio was approximately 2.3:1. However, Hunt and chilton9 more recently unidirec-tionally solidified over a wide range of growth velocities six different eutectic systems with phase-volume ratios between 12:l and 2.7:1 and observed no lamellae-to-rod transition. chadwickl0 has proposed that the change in micromorphology in some eutectic alloys is due entirely to the presence of impurities and further states that the lamellar structure is the characteristic structure of pure eutectic alloys even when the phase-volume ratio is as great as 12:l. Kraft11,12 has shown that the parallel lamellae in certain eutectic alloys assume a unique crystallographic relationship during unidirectional growth. This preferred crystallography may be developed

Jan 1, 1965

By R. P. Abendroth

The hydrogen-water vapor ratio at which Fe-Cr alloy, chromium oxide, andiron chromite coexist in equilibrium was determined between 900" and 1200°C. A thermogravimetric method was used to determine equilibrium conditions. The results fit a straight-line relationship in the temperature region studied, and are given by Reduction experiments were also performed to confirm the results of the equilibrium investigation. ThE oxygen pressures at which Fe-Cr alloy, chromium oxide, and iron chromite coexist in equilibrium have been previously determined by Boericke and angert,&apos; Morozov and Novokharski,&apos; and Katsura and uan. Only one determination (at 1300°C) was made by Katsura and Muan, but it agrees with the results of orozov and Novokharski. The results of Boericke and Bangert, however, differ appreciably from the results of these investigators. Previous studies have assumed that the equilibrium metallic phase is pure iron, but Dahl and Van vlack have shown that the iron contains from about 1 wt pct Cr at 1000°C to over 2 wt pct above 1300°C. The chromium oxide also contains a small amount of iron in solid solution. In the present study, hydrogen-water vapor mixtures were equilibrated with the condensed phases, using a therrnogravimetric method to determine equilibrium conditions. The reaction can be written EXPERIMENTAL General Procedure. The starting material was a sintered pellet of Fe2O3-Cr2O3 solid solution with a hole in the center, and was placed on a fused silica hook. This assembly was raised into the preheated hot zone of the furnace in a helium atmosphere, hooked onto a fused silica hangdown suspended from one arm of an Ainsworth Model RV-AU-1 recording balance, and the starting weight determined. A flowing hydrogen-water vapor atmosphere was then exchanged for the helium by evacuation, and the sample reduced until the weight loss indicated the sample composition to be in the alloy-Cr2O3-chromite field. The tem- perature was adjusted incrementally until constant sample weight was achieved for several hours, to within 0.02 mg. A hydrogen-water vapor atmosphere of different composition was then admitted, and the same procedure carried out. At the end of a series of determinations, the sample was examined by X-ray diffraction to verify the presence of the desired phases. Microscopic examination of the silica hook showed no interaction with the sample, nor did it lose any weight. Several criteria were used to insure equilibrium besides constancy of weight. For a given hydrogen-water vapor composition, equilibrium was approached from both oxidizing and reducing sides by varying the furnace temperature slightly. The resulting slow weight loss or gain was observed for several hours. Constant weight could be re-established by returning to the original furnace temperature. The last criterion used was varying the relative amounts of the phases by further reduction or oxidation, and observing any changes in temperature required for constant weight for a given hydrogen-water vapor atmosphere. None were observed. This procedure was essentially the same as approaching the equilibrium from oxidizing and reducing sides, but larger weight excursions were carried out. Sample Preparation. Reagent-grade Fe2O3 and Cr83 powders were mixed in the desired proportions and heated in air at 1250°C for 2 hr. The mixture was re-ground and heated in air overnight at 1250°C. X-ray diffraction showed complete solid-solution formation as a result of this procedure. The solid solution was then pressed into l/2-in.-diam pellets using Carbowax 4000 as a binder. The hole was drilled in the center, and the pellets were sintered 24 hr at 1250°C in air on a bed of Fe2O3-Cr2O3 of the same composition, contained in an alundum boat. After cooling, the pellet surfaces were abraded with 310 paper to remove any surface compositional differences, such as loss of Cr2O3. Chemical analysis of the sintered pellets was 67.16 wt pct CrP3 and 33.02 wt pct Fe203. Atmosphere Generation and Control. The hydrogen-water vapor atmospheres were generated by passing Matheson ultrahigh-purity hydrogen, with no further purification, through two water bubblers contained in a constant-temperature water bath. Since the water-vapor dew points required in this study were below room temperature, the bath was insulated, and was cooled by thermoelectric-immersion devices. The bath temperature was controlled to 0.0l0C. Since rather high flow rates of about 900 ml per min were used through the furnace tube, an independent check of the dew point was made to insure saturation of the hydrogen by the water vapor. Although the dew point could only be determined to within 1/2"C, the determined dew points agreed with the water-bath temper-

Jan 1, 1967

By S. K. Ruggieri, R. A. Jankowski

Airborne respirable dust levels on longwalls can be reduced if operators approach the dust control problem in a logical and fundamental manner. This can be accomplished through the proper application and continued use of effective dust control techniques. The Bureau of Mines is currently assessing the effectiveness of longwall dust control techniques in use today to provide mine operators with guidelines for selecting the most appropriate control technology. This paper presents a fundamental approach to the problem of shearer dust control. Three dust control techniques to be discussed are: deep cutting/increased pick penetration for reducing the amount of respirable dust generated; drum water sprays/improved water supply system to suppress the amount of airborne respirable dust; and improved external water spray system, the “shearer-clearer, "to push the dust close to the face. The techniques have been evaluated infield trials and have been shown to be both practical and effective in applications to control shearer generated dust.

Jan 1, 1985

The Telfer Project, one of the world&apos;s newest gold mines, is located about 300 km (190 miles) northeast of the Mt. Newman iron ore project in the northern part of Western Australia. The first mineral claims were staked in 1972; and by mid-1975 ore reserves of 3. 8 million mt (4. 19 million st) of 9.6 g per mt (0. 28 oz per st) ore had been indicated. It is interesting to note that Newmont spent more than 10 years and A$10 million in Australia for extensive mineral exploration before finding the Telfer deposit, and then spent approximately A$3 million in exploration and feasibility engineering on Telfer. Including this A$3 million, a total of A$27 million was spent to complete construction of the mine, village, gold treatment plant and associated roads, airport, water and services. Over 50% of the capital cost is in the metallurgical facility, or approximately A$10, 000 per ton per day. All economically significant gold mineralization at Telfer occurs in a series of layered quartz-limonite reefs in which the former pyrite has been oxidized to limonite to a depth of 100 m (330 ft). The most important gold reef occurs at the base of the siltstone-shale horizon within the enclosing sandstone dome -like structure. At the Main Dome structure the dipping ore horizons will be mined to a vertical depth of about 60 m (200 ft) by open-cut methods. The waste-to-ore ratio is approximately 12:1. Eventually 44 million mt (48. 5 million st) of ore and waste will be mined. Mining of the waste is by contract; however, the ore and a thin layer of waste is company-mined. Dilution from mining the geological ore reserve is about 10%. The ore is completely oxidized and the gold occurs free within the reef, material as discrete particles of varying but mainly fine grain size. Most of the gold is "free milling"; that is, over 50% of the gold is coarse enough to be recoverable by gravity concentration. Two duplex mineral jigs receive the two cyclone underflows from the grinding circuit. The rougher jig concentrate is up-graded on a continuous strake from which the concentrate is tabled to produce a final free gold product. Jig tailings are returned to the ball mill and the concentrates are amalgamated. Gold amalgam is pressed, retorted, and melted into gold bars. The gravity gold recovery circuit is the same as was used in many of the gold mills in California in the 1930s.

Jan 1, 1981

By Strathmore R. B. Cooke, Robert E. Brandt

EARLIER work1,2 has shown that the strength developed by fired magnetite pellets containing silica or silicates is due to three separate effects. Two of these are associated with the formation of slag in the interior of each pellet at temperatures above 1000°C, where the atmosphere is substantially though temporarily neutral. The third is independent of the silica content and is responsible for the development of a hard shell around the pellet during the initial stages of firing, a condition which permits the pellet to assume the increasing load of the overlying burden and prevents extrusion of the slagged and semi-liquid interior. Pellets made from hematite concentrates do not show these effects unless specific additives are incorporated, and it is these differences in behavior which in large part account for the difficulty in producing satisfactory pellets from such concentrates. Elsewhere it has been stated that "the most important factor responsible for the development of strength in fired magnetite pellets containing no additive is the oxidation of magnetite to hematite and the subsequent recrystallization and grain growth of this constituent."1 The object of the investigation reported in the present paper was to study in detail the mechanism described above and to evaluate its contribution to the strength of the fired pellet compared with other possible mechanisms, excluding slag bonding. This was effected by placing together polished faces of two cubes prepared from specific minerals and then heating them under constant pressure at different temperatures both in air and in nitrogen.

Jan 4, 1954

By Edmund Newton

THE steel industry of the United States has depended in the past almost wholly upon imports for its supplies of manganese. Many of the important domestic sources yield ores leaner in their natural condition than the foreign ores the steel industry has been accustomed to use. To make them available, therefore, either&apos; the ores must be concentrated or the practice of the steel industry modified. Roughly 25,000 T. annually of high-grade manganese ores are used for dry batteries, for chemical purposes, and in other ways; while approximately 750,000 T. are required for making steel. By present practice, every ton of steel takes an average of about 14 lb. (1.8 kg.) of metallic manganese. This is generally added to the steel in the form of an alloy, the standard alloys being the 80-per cent. ferro-manganese and the 20-per cent. spiegeleisen. During the year 1917 286,000 T. of ferromanganese and 193,291 T. of spiegeleisen were made in this country, the former largely from imported ores; and 45,381 T.

Jan 2, 1919

By D. A. J. Swinkels

The problem of determining oxygen levels in liquid steel to aid in deoxidation control has received general attention for a number of years. Work in this direction started at the B.H.P. Central Research Laboratories early in 1967 with an evaluation of sampling techniques followed by vacuum fusion analysis to determine the oxygen content of the samples (1). It was found that these techniques had a number of drawbacks if they were to be used for deoxidation control. The method of analysis was rather too slow to allow effective control and measured total oxygen level rather than dissolved oxygen. Furthermore, the results were found to be very variable due to slag entrainment in the samples. Attention therefore turned to the galvanic cell method using a solid oxygen ion conductive electrolyte such as cubic stabilised zirconia. The ionic conductivity properties of electrolytes such as (ZrO2) 85 (CaO).15 had been studied by a number of investigators and had already been applied to the measurement of oxygen activity in gases, in lower melting metals such as copper, lead, tin, silver, alkali metals and indeed the first studies in steel had been made (2,3). Since then the results of a number of studies in the development of an expendable oxygen probe for steel have been reported (4-9).

Jan 1, 1972

By Eugene A. Stephenson

NUMBER of noteworthy events in the petroleum industry may be reported for 1941, of which the most spectacular was doubtless the rise in the daily rate of crude-oil production to a peak of approximately 4,300,000 barrels. This enormous daily rate did not ensue from the furor of flush pools but represented for the most part merely a slight additional daily delivery from many wells that had previously been operated on a more restricted basis, in line with good conservation practice and also from the adroit increase in the number of days per week by the Texas Railroad Commission. Another important fact was the increase in price throughout the Mid-Continent area from the static level of $1.02 for 36°, A.P.I., crude, to $1.17 per barrel. Efforts to elevate the price above this point have met with severe opposition from the O.P.A.. as has also a similar effort by the PennsyIvania Crude Oil Producers&apos; Association, but the vastly increased costs for materials and labor may shortly give the industry the enhanced price which it has long deserved.

Jan 1, 1942