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By L. D. Frink

THOSE actively interested in mining are fully aware of the ever-increasing difficulty of making conditions such that efficient work can be clone in underground openings, especially as higher rock temperatures are encountered in depth. This is also true where an effort is being made to cut down the burden of overhead expense by working headings 24 hr. in a day if blasting is done as often as is possible in that time. That the conditions resulting from both these causes have driven the native-born Americans from the mines and that their places have been taken by less efficient foreigners is a fact that we must all admit. The great war now being fought in Europe and the educational qualification clause written into our immigration law by the last Congress will probably limit very materially the supply of labor, such as we are now using in our mines, and will force upon mine operators the necessity of making this work appeal again to Americans. Metal tubing, with blower or exhaust fans, has long been used in supplying air to dead ends where natural ventilation is impossible, or in driving the smoke from such places, or in doing both, as the need might be. Here in Butte we have now come to use canvas tubing very extensively and find that it has many advantages not possessed by the metal. The use of flexible tubing is not new, but it has not been generally used in mining operations. Recent improvements, however, in the canvas itself and in the jointing of sections and manner of suspension have so increased its usefulness that it promises to add much to the efficiency of mining. There is now on the market a product that is impervious to air, is fireproof, and has a system of jointing which, permits it to be put up or taken clown in a few seconds. In this article an effort will be made to explain the manner in which canvas tubing is being used in the North Butte company's operations at Butte, Mont. The accompanying photographs will, I hope, help make clear what may be done with this material.

Jan 1, 1918

By E. P. Pfleider, W. G. Pariseau

Even as the rational selection of excavation equipment requires a matching of machine performance capabilities to rock response characteristics, the functional features of transportation systems must be matched to the characteristics of the materials handled in order to secure optimum, trouble-free operation. In particular, ore passes and chutes must be designed for flow in order to insure controlled draw whenever a chute is opened. The alternative to quantitative design is, of course, the well known ad hoc procedure of freeing plugged ore passes, cleaning up spillage from flooded chutes, etc., after installation of the system. Since the voluminous empirical work sporadically undertaken through the years evidently had not led to reliable design methodology, it seemed worthwhile to attempt a rational and complete description of the movement of material through ore passes. The concepts of de- formable body mechanics applicable to gravity-induced flows of granular media or "soils" were involved. Accordingly, the mathematical theory of soil plasticity was adopted as a working hypothesis, and a two-dimensional laboratory model of an ore pass constructed in order to investigate the appropriateness of the theory. The general experimental strategy consisted of formulating the movement of material in ore passes as a boundary value problem in soil plasticity, determining the required boundary values of stress and velocity experimentally, and then using these data for the initiation of a theoretical solution for stress and velocity throughout the moving mass of material. A comparison between the theoretical and experimental constituted the test of the original hypothesis.

Jan 6, 1968

By AIME AIME

EDWIN W. KEMMERER, professor of international finance at Princeton, in a speech before a banking conference at Urbana, Ill., on Nov. 26, stated that the increase in the store of gold held by the United States is not so alarming as it appears on the surface. Excerpts from his address, as reported by The New York Times, follow: "It is significant . . . that the value of gold as expressed in its purchasing power in the United States during the last half-dozen years has been higher than at any other equivalent period since our records began 140 years ago. Our so-called 59-cent dollar today buys about 25 per cent more goods at wholesale than did our old dollar in the prosperous year 1926, and an ounce of gold will now buy considerably more than twice what it did then. This present high value of gold is one reason for its recent large production.

Jan 1, 1941

By M. H. Loveman

THE orebody described below has been rediscovered and developed within the last 3 years. It has, however, been known and worked by the Chinese for hundreds of years. When assay values and size are considered, it contains what is probably one of the largest single bodies of zinc and lead sulphides yet found. The tonnages developed at other places, as at Broken Hill, are much greater but the average zinc and lead sulphide contents are considerably lower than at Bawdwin. Bawdwin is situated in the semi-independent State of Tawng Peng, one of the numerous units which make up the Northern Shan States. These States are under British rule and are generally considered as a portion of Burma. They are governed as a separate administrative unit, however, under the Lieutenant Governor of Burma. Each State is under its own chief, or Sawbwa, who has considerable power over his own subjects. Bawdwin is approximately in latitude N 23°6', longitude E 97°20', about 50 miles south of the nearest point on the Chinese border and 450 miles north of Rangoon (Fig. 1). The period at which mining was first begun at Bawdwin is unknown. The most reliable records have been obtained by deciphering local Chinese inscriptions and from these it is concluded that the work dates back to at least the beginning of the 15th century. The first undoubted reference to the mines by a European is by Symes in 1795. Crawford in 1827 estimated the output of silver from the mines at $600,000 annually. At about the middle of the 19th century the rebellion of the Chinese Mohammedans in the neighboring Chinese province of Yunnan so weakened the power of the Chinese that the incursions of hostile tribes (Kachins) made work extremely dangerous. The mines were finally abandoned by the Chinese about 1868. The closing down of the mines was probably not entirely due to outside causes but may have been influenced somewhat by the increasing difficulty of handling the water, as the workings gradually descended below the water level of the district. Several attempts were made by the Burmese kings, Mindon Min and Thebaw, to resume operations, but because of a

Jan 12, 1916

By N. A. D. Parlee, I. D. Shah

ThIS reports on some work done on the solubility and diffusivity of oxygen in liquid silver. Solubility. Improvements in the measurement of the solubility of oxygen in silver and silver alloys were made because precise data were needed for calculating diffusion coefficients of oxygen in these alloys. The apparatus and the procedure used were similar to those of Parlee and Sacris.' The main improvement was in the temperature-measuring technique. A MV30 mullite protection tube containing a calibrated Pt-Pt, 10 pct Rh thermocouple was inserted in the reaction tube from the top through a vacuum-tight swage-lok fitting. The protection tube was well-immersed in the liquid silver, which was heated by induction. A Leeds and Northrup potentiometer was used in connection with the thermocouple. All runs reported were made at 1 atm. The temperature range investigated varied from 940" to 1200°C. The ternary point in Ag-0 phase diagram2 is at 939°C and 0.32 wt pct O. This point was reinvestigated using the above-described apparatus and was found to be at 939°C and 0.315 wt pct 0. It was determined by observing the sudden evolution of oxygen at this point while the solubility measurements were made. The point was easily reproducible if precautions were taken to keep the liquid silver essentially in equilibrium with oxygen and to lower the temperature very slowly. All of the results of this new solubility investigation are plotted in Fig. 1. They are represented by the "least-squares" line shown in the figure and the following equation for solubility at po2 = 1 atm: log% O =695.4/T - 1.086 This equation differs only slightly from that proposed by Parlee and sacrisl and that of Diaz, Masson, and Richardson.3 The points of Parlee and Sacris, using an optical pyrometer, are shown for comparison.

Jan 1, 1968

By Frank H. Probert

The mining laws relating to winding-ropes in some of the German provinces are very strict, and severe tests have to be periodically made to see that the ropes in use come up to the prescribed standard. A few notes on the method of testing the ropes and the results obtained may be of interest to the members of the Institute. Permission must be given by the Inspector of Mines to put up a winding-plant; and previous to installation a full report made by the manager, clearly setting forth all details of the shaft, the pit-head, engines and appliances appertaining thereto has to be sent to the mining officials. Accompanying each subsequent report, further details, such as the name of the firm supplying the rope, construction, quality of steel, date of installment, weight per meter, length, particulars of the safetycatches, cages, etc., must be given. At least one spare rope must be kept at ever? shaft ready for use in case of emergency. The rope must hang in the shaft, with cage attached, not less than twenty-four hours before it is used for winding; and it must have undergone a severe test in the manner hereafter described. The laws prescribe that when a rope is continually in use it must be tested every three months; but if the rope is only used every few days it must be tested at least every six months, in the presence of the superior officer; and notification of the date of testing has to be sent to the Bergrath two days before the test is made, in order that he can personally superintend the operation if he chooses. Should winding have been stopped for a long time, it is not necessary to test every six months; but before the rope can be used again it must be tested.

Jan 1, 1901

By R. E. Wade

The Butte, Anaconda & Pacific electrification is of peculiar interest, in an incidental way, to the entire mining fraternity, and especially the engineering branch, not only in this great Northwest country but throughout the entire Western mining country, which is rich in minerals and water power. It is probably fair to say that the prime object of mining and smelting engineering is to reduce the cost of production, and in the case in hand the relative location of mines and smelter brings the cost of transportation of ore to the front. While some might assign this item to the railway people, it is inseparably a part and parcel of the general scheme of the production of metal from the ore. In considering the electrification of the B., A. & P. railway the mining and smelting engineer, above all, wants to know what saving will be effected by the change in motive power. Unfortunately the new power has been in use during a very limited period and on the Smelter Hill section of the road only, and no reliable data, from actual service conditions, can be obtained until the entire electrified section has been in service for a reasonable length of time. Any remarks on this subject at the present time, therefore, must of necessity be general in nature and more or less descriptive. The railway, electrical and mining worlds and the country in general are indebted to the B., A. & P. railway for the pioneer work it is now doing, as it undoubtedly marks the beginning of the electrification, within the comparatively near future, of all transcontinental roads between the Missouri river and the Pacific coast. Together with this goes the development of an untold wealth in water power and all natural resources within the same territory. For the first time in the history of electric railway work, in this country, direct current at a potential of 2,400 volts is being used. With this potential there is a great saving in transmission of energy to the locomotives and there are only two substations, one at either end and 26 miles apart, for supplying the power for the movement of trains of heavy tonnage over the main line and for switching movements at terminal and intermediate yards, and comparatively little feeder copper is required.

Jan 1, 1914

By L. A. Bromley, A. W. Petersen

The van Arkel-deBoer method for producing ductile titanium by thermal decomposition of Til, vapor and deposition on an electrically heated filament is modified by film boiling Til liquid on a heated filament, resulting in similar titanium deposition on the filament and liberation of gaseous iodine. The deposition rate is higher and the energy requirement smaller than in the van Arkel process. Many problems must be solved before the process is commercially feasible. TITANIUM of 99.9 pct purity, called ductile titanium, has been produced by a modification of the van Arkel-deBoer&apos; method. In the van Arkel-deBoer method, an electrically heated wire is suspended from two electrodes, which are placed in a container holding TiI, vapor at a low&apos; vapor pressure (usually <5 mm Hg). The vapor diffuses to the hot wire, usually maintained at 1100" to 1600°C,&apos; and decomposes according to the reaction liberating gaseous atomic iodine and depositing solid crystalline titanium on the wire. Estimations based on the data of Runnalls and Pidgeon,&apos; indicate that the rate-control ling step is the diffusion of atomic iodine away from the wire. There appears to be nearly thermodynamic equilibrium at the wire with TiI, and iodine as the main gaseous species. TiI, is almost certainly an important gaseous species in the cooler regions.&apos; The liberated iodine diffuses to a heated source of crude titanium and reacts to form more TiI, vapor, which again diffuses to the hot wire and completes the cyclic process. The foregoing process may be modified by suspending the hot wire in liquid TiI,, instead of the vapor, and obtaining film boiling. This type of boiling is characterized by the formation of a continuous film of vapor over the wire surface. Since only vapor contacts the wire sul.face, the temperature of this surface may be raised as high as desirable, within the limit of mechanical strength requirements for the wire. By properly adjusting the input voltage. the temperature of the wire may be maintained above U0C"C; and by evacuating the vessel holding the liquid TiI, and maintaining a suitable condenser temperature, the vapor pressure of TiI, may be held low. Thus, the conditions of operation of the van Arkel-deBoer method may be approximated with film boiling; and hence, it is postulated that ductile titanium may be produced by this method. Preparation of Til, There are many methods available for the preparation of TiI,; that used in this research was prepared by the direct reaction of titanium sponge in controlled amounts with liquid iodine. Although no difficulty was encountered with this reaction, it has since been pointed out that this method is sometimes dangerous and should be used with caution. The resulting TiI, was purified by distillation. First Film Boiling Experiments Apparatus: The apparatus shown in Fig. 1 was used for film boiling TiI, on short wire filaments. The current to the filament was supplied through a bank of three 5 kva transformers connected in parallel. The current was controlled by adjusting the voltage over a 0 to 67.5 v range with a 7 kva variable transformer on the low voltage side of the bank of transformers. The current and voltage were measured by Weston meters. The sealed-in-glass tungsten electrodes were hard-soldered to the filament for the film boiling of TiI,. The bottom part of the reactor, containing TiI,, was wrapped with ni-chrome heating wires to maintain the TiI, in the liquid state. An ice or liquid nitrogen trap, for solidifying I, vapor and any TiI, not condensed, was attached to the low pressure side of the air-cooled condenser. A Megavac vacuum pump was used. Procedure: A 0.010 in. diam tungsten filament was hard-soldered to the tungsten electrodes. TiI, was melted (mp 156°C) and poured into the reactor chamber; the top of the reactor chamber, containing the electrodes, was replaced. Freezing of the TiI, was prevented by controlling the current to the ni-chrome wires wrapped around the reactor with a 1 kva variable transformer. The mechanical vacuum pump was started and the system evacuated to about 2 mm Hg TiI, vapor pressure. The current to the filament was turned on and the impressed voltage slowly increased with the variable transformer. A sudden drop in current at nearly constant im-

Jan 1, 1957

By M. F. Williams, L. G. Hendrickson

IN classification of pulps bearing magnetized ferromagnetic particles, depolarizing is of great importance. If size separation is to be effective, particles must be individual rather than in floes. Depolarizing is also practiced in heavy medium separations in which ferrosilicon or magnetite is the medium. When particles of ferromagnetic material have been removed from a magnetic field, residual magnetism causes agglomeration. The term depolarizing refers to the operation of reducing or eliminating this residual magnetism and may thus be considered magnetic deflocculation. The terms demagnetizing and randomizing are also used. At the Research Laboratory of Oliver Iron Mining Div. in Duluth a method was developed for measuring depolarization of the pulp of ferromagnetic material. Experiments were made with Mesabi taconite,&apos; a natural magnetite of low coercive force. Ferromagnetic materials of higher coercive force, such as lodestone or the artificial magnetite produced by reduction roasting of hematite, present a more difficult problem, which was not within the scope of this investigation. It is possible, however, that some of the techniques evolved for measuring and calculating electrical characteristics of alternating current coils would be of use in depolarizing high coercive force material, particularly in conjunction with high-frequency alternating current, as proposed by Hartig and others.&apos;," Properties of Ferromagnetic Materials:&apos;7 Experimental work, described below, has shown that if a sample in the magnetized state is heated above the Curie point and cooled, much of the preferred orientation is destroyed and the sample is substantially depolarized. It has been thought that when the sample cools below the Curie point the domains cancel each other, leaving a zero net moment. However, such particles still exhibit a tendency to cohere, and undoubtedly this is caused by the forces of residual magnetism. -AS measured by the percent depolarization, this tendency is reproducible for any sample upon repeated heating above the Curie point and subsequent cooling and is independent of the initial state of magnetization. It is postulated, therefore, that as the material is cooled below the Curie point the domains in any particle do not completely cancel each other, but rather are preferentially oriented to some extent. Mechanism of Depolarizing with Alternating Current Magnetic Fields: It is believed that when ferromagnetic material is passed through an alternating magnetic field, depolarizing occurs in the decaying portion of the field. As the particles pass through the portion of highest intensity they become magne- tized. If the particles are not free to move, the polarities of the particles will be reversed (by a mechanism similar to that described above for magnetism) at a frequency equal to that of the applied field. As the material moves through the decaying field, intensity levels become such that a domain does not completely reverse, but stops on an axis of easy magnetization. By the time the material reaches the point of zero field intensity, a state of fairly random orientation of domains is achieved. If conditions are such as to give a completely random orientation, the particle will have little or no external magnetic field, and a pulp of such particles will be depolarized. Previous Work In 1918 E. W. Davis was granted a patent for demagnetization of magnetite pulps.&apos; His method consisted of passing the pulp through a tapered coil, activated by alternating current of normal frequency (60 cycle). This method, with minor modifications, has been used almost universally in all pilot plants and commercial installations in which depolarization of low coercive force materials has been required. Hartig, Onstad and Foot2,3 avd made a detailed study of the factors involved in depolarizing both low (below 100 oersteds) and high (above 100 oersteds) coercive force material. They developed a method for evaluating the relative degree of depolarization of any pulp based on the settling characteristics of the pulp. Their standard of comparison was a sample heated to above the Curie point and cooled in a zero field, all in a neutral atmosphere.* For low coercive force material they found treatment.Thisprocedure is subsequently called, in this report,theCurie that results equivalent to Curie treatment could be

Jan 1, 1957

By Zárate G. E.

Practical and statistical considerations concerned with the sampling, sample preparation and chemical analysis of precious metal ores are reviewed. The principal requirements related with the characteristics of sample cutter, sample preparation, equipment and methods are discussed. The main errors introduced in the different stages of the sampling systems are defined. The application of statistical techniques to evaluate these errors to determine the ore grade variation and to design the number of increments needed to get an accurate assay are presented. Finally, results obtained with the application of this method to gold and silver ores are analyzed and some recommendations are given.

Jan 1, 1984

By J. E. Pollock, W. R. Hicks, E. Camp

IN the oil-refining industry, steel comprises by far the greatest proportion of the materials used in construction work, but with an enormous number of alloy steels and nonferrous alloys available, and a greater knowledge of their properties and corrosion resistance, a substitution first in the "hot spots" and then in locations of moderately severe corrosive conditions will be made as the greater expense can be justified. In new construction work, advantage is taken of the experience already gained and appropriate materials used, whether for high temperatures and pressures demanding additional strength or for corrosive conditions. The locations, however, where equipment in operation constantly requires replacement will soon become evident, as will the necessity for replacement in more resistant materials, if considerable down-time is to be avoided. In what direction and how far to go in the matter of alloys then becomes a question of the highest importance. Obviously, any replacement with more costly material must be justified economically by the promise of longer life, thereby saving both material and installation costs besides the reduction of loss of production. Where the equipment is overcapacity and a regular schedule of cleaning periods is in force, the last item frequently must be ruled out and justification made on the basis of the first two only. Installation of material that will outlast the remainder of the equipment and have no recovery value must also be avoided; this is particularly important in temporary construction or in old equipment that will soon become obsolete. TEST METHODS Either one Of two methods or a combination of both, in the absence of reliable data in similar services, may be adopted to determine to what extent replacement with other, and perhaps more expensive, materials is justified. A unit may be constructed incorporating different metals or alloys so that comparative service may be obtained under the same service conditions; this has been applied in many instances, such as condenser and tank construction, but the opportunities for inspection may be few and

Jan 1, 1935

By C. L. Thornburg

FLANKING the Valley of Mexico on the northeast is a mountain range known as the Sierra de Pachuca. This northwesterly-trending range is about 30 miles long and 5 miles wide, its summit attaining an elevation of more than 10,000 feet above sea level, or 2000 feet above the valley floor. Pachuca, a town of 50,000 inhabitants, lies nestled at the southwest base of the range, 60 miles northeast of Mexico City. Three miles to the east, just over the summit and on the northeasterly slope, is the mountain town of Real del Monte with a population of about 20,000. These are the two principal towns in a 40-sq mile area whose yield has brought the district to its high rank among the world&apos;s silver producers. Total production probably exceeds 1.25 billion ounces of silver and 4.5 million ounces of gold. Exploitation by the Spanish was under way by 1530. As the mines were deepened operations became handicapped by the inadequate method of handling water with horse whims and bull skins. To offset this disadvantage a two-mile drainage tunnel was started in 1749 and completed ten years later. John Taylor of London acquired the mines from the third Count of Regla in 1824 and formed the Compania de Real del Monte y Pachuca. Two years later Cornish pumps were brought from England. A Mexican company purchased the British interest in 1848 and within a few years resumed an old project of driving a second, lower three-mile drainage tunnel, completing it in 1857. After American interests acquired control of the property in 1906 operations expanded to an unprecedented scale, despite periods of political strife, unstable prices, labor problems, and a growing burden of taxation. An idea of the scale of operations may be gained from records of the last two decades prior to 1947, the last year for which production information is at hand, during which time production ranged from 1.4 million to 1.1 million tons per year, and the combined development and exploration, exclusive of diamond drilling, amounted to about 18 miles annually. Pachuca differs from Zacatecas and some other Mexican silver vein districts that flourished and declined in earlier centuries in that a substantial part of its total production was made after 1900. While the district&apos;s accelerated activity in this century was largely due to the successful application of the cyanide process to the treatment of the ores, improved pumping methods, and new mechanical equipment, it was at the same time stimulated by the opening up of important new orebodies as a result of active and extensive exploration of the vein system. Some of these orebodies were found on veins which terminate upward far below the surface, and though these particular veins do not crop out, they show relationship with a type of alteration which may be their surface expression. The district has been studied by many able geologists, and a large store of information has been accumulated, much of which is recorded in published as well as private papers. Wall Rocks Extrusive Rocks: The Sierra de Pachuca is a thick accumulation of Tertiary eruptive rocks consisting mainly of flows, breccias, and tuffs. Numerous recognizable volcanic vents within the range itself manifest that the range was built up by material ejected from these vents. The maximum thickness of the volcanic pile is not known, but from deep exploration and from relationship with Mesozoic sediments to the north and east it is inferred that the average thickness in the main part of the district may be at least 6000 ft. The extrusive rocks comprise four general types, which in ascending order of age are: andesite, rhyolite, dacite, and basalt. The veins are confined largely to the andesite, the dominant rock of the region. Characteristically this rock is augite andesite, but it includes comparatively acidic as well as basic layers, the acidic strata being

Jan 1, 1952

By A. M. Lovelace

Introduction One area of engineering utilization of materials in which the requirements are especially rigorous and demanding is that of aerospace systems, including aircraft, helicopters, missiles, and space satellites. Materials used in these systems must reliably perform many critical functions in a broad range of adverse environments. Some of the most critical functions are performed by polymeric nonmetallic materials such as elastomers (rubber), coatings, fibrous materials, and reinforced plastics. These types of polymeric materials have some common characteristics that make them attractive to aerospace system designers: light weight, corrosion resistance, and relative ease and low cost of processing and fabrication. Each type also has its own special characteristics that enable it to perform certain required functions better than other competing materials can (Table 1). The desirable properties of polymeric materials, which in some applications make them the only practical candidates, are partly offset by their principal limitation, which is degradation by exposure to high temperature. [ ]

Jan 1, 1971

By WALTER VOIGTLANDER

FOR nearly 100 years wire rope has been fabricated in much the same way. To the great majority of mine superintendents wire rope is just wire rope, little or no semblance of individuality or identifying characteristics. Such an impression was fairly justified until three or four years ago when a practical means was found of performing or preshaping the wires and strands. This discovery permitted a revolutionary change in wire rope manufacture. Instead of merely twisting a number of wires into a strand, then twisting several strands into a complete rope (which twisting would naturally result in great internal strain, thus reducing the resiliency and over-all efficiency of the completed rope), the preformed wires and strands were laid in place without force or twisting. The obvious result was a rope more nearly approximating mechanical perfection. The applied loads are more evenly distributed throughout the component wires and strands, thus reducing unbalanced wire stresses. This results in a higher safety factor. The fact that preformed rope will not unravel when untied at the ends proves the absence of a torsional stress that exists in ordinary rope. A greater useful allowable stress in the wires is therefore possible in actual operating service.

Jan 1, 1926

By Bruce A. Kennedy

In recent months, public hearings held by the Senate Subcommittee on Minerals, Materials and Fuels on the Stillwater copper-nickel complex in Montana have been reviewed at great length in the press. Although the meetings were well managed by the Subcommittee and questioning was kept in line with the aim of the hearings-namely, how can re- sources be developed in a manner compatible with the preservation of the environment-it was alarming to read the apparently uninformed and questionable arguments presented by some witnesses who were attempting to prohibit mining in the area altogether. One spokesman even went so far as to urge that mining of the area be rejected be- cause, even if the mining operation did not pollute the areas, the effluent and waste produced by the people themselves could constitute a hazard to the environment and to themselves. This, of course, would be true to a point. However, if this or similar types of reasoning were used to reject mining of a large number of orebodies in the future, how is the United States going to meet its future mineral demands and what effect could this have on the economic strength of the country? Fall of the Roman Empire An interesting article in a recent issue of Time magazine came up with a new theory to explain the fall of the Roman Empire. Claire Patterson of CalTec, during a recent study of air pollution, investigated the historical worldwide distribution of lead. As lead was a by-product obtained from silver mining during historical times, he turned his attention to studying the production of silver during those eras. He discovered a very interesting fact-that, I unless the stock of metal is continually being replenished from the mines, accidental loss diminishes a country&apos;s stockpile of silver at a rapid rate, as much as 2 per cent per year. Patterson, a geochemist, theorized that with an accidental loss rate of 2 per cent per year, if the country&apos;s silver supply dried up, the entire existing stockpile could disappear in about a century.

Jan 1, 1971

By Norman J. Sather

LOCATION AND HISTORY The Bunker Hill Mine is situated on the south side of the Coeur d’Alene River in Shoshone County of Northern Idaho near the City of Kellogg. Kellogg, the largest in the Coeur d’Alene District cities, is at an elevation of 2,300 feet and has a population of approximately 7,000 people. It can be reached by air, railway or highway. The history of the Bunker Hill Mine dates back to August 26, 1885, when Noah S . Kellogg found the outcrop of the Bunker Hill ore body on the hillside above the present town of Wardner, Idaho, in Milo Gulch. A small concentrator was erected in 1886. Before the railroad came, the mine output was transported by mule teams to the head of navigation on Coeur d’Alene Lake. After ten years of production, an interest was purchased in the Tacoma Smelter at Tacoma, Washington, to which the entire output was shipped. In 1916 and 1917 a modern lead smelting plant and refinery was erected and in 1927 and 1928, a modern Electrolytic Zinc Reduction Plant was built and put into operation by the Sullivan Mining Company which was 50% owned and now totally owned by The Bunker Hill Company. GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY The Bunker Hill ore bodies are found in gray and greenish gray quartzite and argillaceous quartzite of Precambrian age and are known as the Revett and St. Regis formations. Most of the ore bodies are found in the St. Regis formation.

Jan 1, 1970

By W. A. Bates, R. J. Miller

Although cresylic acids have been standard frothers in flotation for many years, there has been little discussion of their nature in the metallurgical literature. Aside from references in the patent literature, the paper by Landolt, Hill, and Lowyl in 1930, which resented a study of the frothing and collecting properties of some of the constituents of crude cresylic acids, represents the only contribution of this type. The close froth control required in the delicate selective separations of present-day flotation operations have required the flotation metallurgist to choose his frothers with care, and have caused him to require of the manufacturer a closely controlled, uniform product. A background of knowledge of the chemical composition and physical and chemical properties of the frothers, by which their action may be correlated, should aid in selecting frothers for particular flotation requirements. Further, the recent almost complete replacement in flotation of coal-tar cresylic acids by those derived from petroleum makes it especially desirable to review the flotation behavior of the acids from the old and the new sources. In view of these facts the Milling Methods Committee of the A.I.M.E. suggested to the Oronite Chemical Co. of San Francisco the preparation of a paper on the subject, and this paper has accordingly been prepared as a contribution by the California Research Corporation, the research affiliate of the Oronite Chemical Co. The discussion is from the following aspects: (I) constitution and properties; (2) sources; (3) comparison of coal-tar and petroleum cresylic acids; (4) characteristics as frothers, with particular reference to the effect of the substitution of petroleum acids for coal-tar acids. Constitution and Properties Cresylic acids are commonly regarded as mixtures of orthocresol, metacresol and paracresol. This was, indeed, the former meaning of the term, but in recent years it has been loosely applied to any mixture of alkyl phenols boiling above 190°C.; that is, excluding only phenol itself. This means that cresylic acids, as they are known today, may consist of mixtures, not only of the three isomeric cresols, but of six xylenols and of a variety of higher boiling homologues. Generically the constituents of cresylic acids are alkyl phenols, and they are often so designated in the literature to avoid the more indefinite term, "cresylic acids." They form an homologous series starting with phenol, which has the familiar benzene ring, with an hydroxyl group in place of one of the hydrogen atoms. The series of alkyl phenols is formed by the substitution of alkyl side chains, such as methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, etc., for hydrogen atoms of the benzene ring of phenol. Some

Jan 1, 1947

By R. J. Miller, W. A. Bates

Although cresylic acids have been standard frothers in flotation for many years, there has been little discussion of their nature in the metallurgical literature. Aside from references in the patent literature, the paper by Landolt, Hill, and Lowyl in 1930, which resented a study of the frothing and collecting properties of some of the constituents of crude cresylic acids, represents the only contribution of this type. The close froth control required in the delicate selective separations of present-day flotation operations have required the flotation metallurgist to choose his frothers with care, and have caused him to require of the manufacturer a closely controlled, uniform product. A background of knowledge of the chemical composition and physical and chemical properties of the frothers, by which their action may be correlated, should aid in selecting frothers for particular flotation requirements. Further, the recent almost complete replacement in flotation of coal-tar cresylic acids by those derived from petroleum makes it especially desirable to review the flotation behavior of the acids from the old and the new sources. In view of these facts the Milling Methods Committee of the A.I.M.E. suggested to the Oronite Chemical Co. of San Francisco the preparation of a paper on the subject, and this paper has accordingly been prepared as a contribution by the California Research Corporation, the research affiliate of the Oronite Chemical Co. The discussion is from the following aspects: (I) constitution and properties; (2) sources; (3) comparison of coal-tar and petroleum cresylic acids; (4) characteristics as frothers, with particular reference to the effect of the substitution of petroleum acids for coal-tar acids. Constitution and Properties Cresylic acids are commonly regarded as mixtures of orthocresol, metacresol and paracresol. This was, indeed, the former meaning of the term, but in recent years it has been loosely applied to any mixture of alkyl phenols boiling above 190°C.; that is, excluding only phenol itself. This means that cresylic acids, as they are known today, may consist of mixtures, not only of the three isomeric cresols, but of six xylenols and of a variety of higher boiling homologues. Generically the constituents of cresylic acids are alkyl phenols, and they are often so designated in the literature to avoid the more indefinite term, "cresylic acids." They form an homologous series starting with phenol, which has the familiar benzene ring, with an hydroxyl group in place of one of the hydrogen atoms. The series of alkyl phenols is formed by the substitution of alkyl side chains, such as methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, etc., for hydrogen atoms of the benzene ring of phenol. Some

Jan 1, 1947

By Pual M. Tyler

BLIZKRIEG tactics in the present war have consumed metals on such a profligate scale that some of the best-laid procurement plans for civilian and military needs of even a year ago seem in retrospect incredibly meager. Conservation of raw materials has reached an all-time climax in Germany, where metals are worth more than human life and throwing away an empty toothpaste tube may be legally punished by death. Even the United States and the British Empire, proud masters of nine tenths of the world?s known mineral reserves and processing plants, are being driven to metals and feverishly expanding production facilities that not long ago were deemed overbuilt. After the war is over and inevitable postwar readjustments are completed, it is reasonable to expect that purchasing power ? or at least the ability to procure the comforts and luxuries of life ? will be distributed among vastly larger population than ever before, accelerating the rising trend in demand for industrial raw materials in ever greater quantity and variety.

Jan 1, 1942

By R. J. Miller, W. A. Bates

ALTHOUGH cresylic acids have been standard frothers in flotation for many years, there has been little discussion of their nature in the metallurgical literature. Aside from references in the patent literature, the paper by Landolt, Hill, and Lowy1 in 1930, which presented a study of the frothing and collecting properties of some of the constituents of crude cresylic acids, represents the only contribution of this type. The close froth control required in the delicate selective separations of present-day flotation operations have required the flotation metallurgist to choose his frothers with care, and have caused him to require of the manufacturer a closely controlled, uniform product. A background of knowledge of the chemical composition and physical and chemical properties of the frothers, by which their action may be correlated, should aid in selecting frothers for particular flotation requirements. Further, the recent almost complete replacement in flotation of coal-tar cresylic acids by those derived from petroleum makes it especially desirable to review the flotation behavior of the acids from the old and the new sources. In view of these facts the Milling Methods Committee of the A.I.M.E. suggested to the Oronite Chemical Co. of San Francisco the preparation of a paper on the subject, and this paper has accordingly been prepared as a contribution by the California Research Corporation, the research affiliate of the Oronite Chemical Co. The discussion is from the following aspects: (I) constitution and properties; (2) sources; (3) comparison of coal-tar and petroleum cresylic acids ; (4) characteristics as frothers, with particular reference to the effect of the substitution of petroleum acids for coal-tar acids. CONSTITUTION AND PROPERTIES Cresylic acids are commonly regarded as mixtures of orthocresol, metacresol and paracresol. This was, indeed, the former meaning of the term, but in recent years it has been loosely applied to any mixture of alkyl phenols boiling above 190°C.; that is, excluding only phenol itself. This means that cresylic acids, as they are known today, may consist of mixtures, not only of the three isomeric cresols, but of six xylenols and of a variety of higher boiling homologues. Generically the constituents of cresylic acids are alkyl phenols, and they are often so designated in the literature to avoid the more indefinite term, "cresylic acids." They form an homologous series starting with phenol, which has the familiar benzene ring, with an hydroxyl group in place of one of the hydrogen atoms. The series of alkyl phenols is formed by the substitution of alkyl side chains, such as methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, etc., for hydrogen

Jan 1, 1946