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By H. L. Teichman, E. M. Sipprelle

ENACTMENT of Public Law 290 by the 78th Congress authorized the U. S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines, to conduct an experimental program to develop the technology for obtaining oil from oil shale. In adopting and later extending this legislation, the Congress recognized the impending necessity of supplementing ground petroleum reserves with synthetic fuels. Under the provisions of this legislation, the Bureau of Mines, among other things, was charged with the responsibility of developing mining techniques, methods, and equipment for mining the oil shales of the Green River formation of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.

Jan 10, 1950

By G. E. Pellissier, C. W. Mason

Tin has long been cited as offering a classic example of polymorphism, second in repute only to the allotropy of sulphul.. The notorious "tin disease," which Cohenl has studied so exhaustively in terms of the enantiotropic transformation of tetragonal white P tin to cubic gray a tin, has apparently encouraged the expectation that one or more additional polymorphic modifications might exist. The search for confirnmntion of this idea has, as might be anticipated, led to the accumulation of a body of miscellaneous evidence, much of which would probably never have been sought, or taken seriously even by its discoverers, but fur previous assumptions. The ball apparently was started rolling iii 1880 by Trechmann,2 who reported a new modification of tin (7 tin), which was brittle and found in "hard head," a highly arsenical, slaggy material produced in a certain stage of tin smelting. A mixture of two kinds of crystals was obtained from a Cornish tin furnace, and those thought to be 7 tin were studied crystallographically. The results indicated that these crystals were rhombic and of different density from the tetragonal tin prepared electrolytically by Miller. Their analysis was given as 98.7 per cent Sn, 1.3 per cent Fe, and traces of As, Sb, Bi and S. In 1881 von Foullon4 obtained similar crystals from a Bohemian tin furnace. Headden5 examined crystals similar to those of Trechmann and von Foullon and reported them to be monoclinic, but of analysis corresponding to stannous sulphide. Later, Stevanovic,~ by goniometric measurements, proved that these crystals of SnS were really rhombic. Groth7 pictures and describes both "rhombic tin" (Fig. 9, vol. 1) ant1 stannous sulphide (Fig. 84, vol. 1); their faces and angles correspond within the accuracy of measurement. Spencers in 1921 examined the above evidence critically; lie lound similar crystals from Cornish tin furnaces, proved them to be SnS, and even was able to analyze some of Trechmann's original specimens, finding high sulphur content. (Apparently Trechmann's analysis had been based on :L second lot of crystals, not described crystallographically.)

Jan 1, 1939

By G. E. Pellissier, C. W. Mason

Tin has long been cited as offering a classic example of polymorphism, second in repute only to the allotropy of sulphul.. The notorious "tin disease," which Cohenl has studied so exhaustively in terms of the enantiotropic transformation of tetragonal white P tin to cubic gray a tin, has apparently encouraged the expectation that one or more additional polymorphic modifications might exist. The search for confirnmntion of this idea has, as might be anticipated, led to the accumulation of a body of miscellaneous evidence, much of which would probably never have been sought, or taken seriously even by its discoverers, but fur previous assumptions. The ball apparently was started rolling iii 1880 by Trechmann,2 who reported a new modification of tin (7 tin), which was brittle and found in "hard head," a highly arsenical, slaggy material produced in a certain stage of tin smelting. A mixture of two kinds of crystals was obtained from a Cornish tin furnace, and those thought to be 7 tin were studied crystallographically. The results indicated that these crystals were rhombic and of different density from the tetragonal tin prepared electrolytically by Miller. Their analysis was given as 98.7 per cent Sn, 1.3 per cent Fe, and traces of As, Sb, Bi and S. In 1881 von Foullon4 obtained similar crystals from a Bohemian tin furnace. Headden5 examined crystals similar to those of Trechmann and von Foullon and reported them to be monoclinic, but of analysis corresponding to stannous sulphide. Later, Stevanovic,~ by goniometric measurements, proved that these crystals of SnS were really rhombic. Groth7 pictures and describes both "rhombic tin" (Fig. 9, vol. 1) ant1 stannous sulphide (Fig. 84, vol. 1); their faces and angles correspond within the accuracy of measurement. Spencers in 1921 examined the above evidence critically; lie lound similar crystals from Cornish tin furnaces, proved them to be SnS, and even was able to analyze some of Trechmann's original specimens, finding high sulphur content. (Apparently Trechmann's analysis had been based on :L second lot of crystals, not described crystallographically.)

Jan 1, 1939

By Frank R. Corwin, Selden S. Rodgers

PAGE I. Introduction,........... 383 11. Brief History of Present MacDoUgall Plant,.... 384 III. First Experimental Work on Increasing Capacity of Furnaces, 385 IV. Effect On MacDouRall Plant of IncreaBed Draft from New Smelter Stack,,.......... V. Increasing the Capacity of the MacDouGall FurnaceS,.. 391 (A). Test of Arthur Crowfoot on Increasing Capacity,.... (a). Description of Test,........ (6). Discussion of Results Obtained from Test,... 393 (B). Investigation Carried Out by John A. Church, Jr.,... 395 (a). Advantages of High Speed,......398 (C). Effect on Regular Operation of Department by Applying Results Obtained from Experimental Work ..... 399 (D). Fundamental Principles Involved in Increasing the Tonnage, . 400 VI. Treatment of an INcreased Amount of Ore Screenings,.. 401 VII. Maximum Percentage oF Ore Screenings in a MacDoUGall Feed, 403 VIII. Tests to Further Increase Capacity of Furnaces,... 406 IX. Tests to Decrease PercentaGe of Flue Dust made by MacDouGall Furnaces,............. (A). Repath-Marcy Furnace......... 408 (B). Modified Hepath-Marcy Furnace,....... (C). Crouse Furnace Designed for Dust Prevention,.... 413 (a). Tests on Crouse Furnace,....... X. Concrete Hearths,.......... 419 XI. Conclusion,............ I. Introduction. Since the first installation of MacDougall roasters at the Great Falls smelter of the Anaconda Copper Mining Co., the capacity of the furnaces.has been more than doubled. During the first nine or ten years of the operation of the MacDougall department the tonnage treated by the furnaces remained practically unchanged. Experimental work carried out in 1906, however, showed that increasing the draft of the furnaces would bring about an increase in capacity. In 1909 the MacDougall department was connected to the new smelter stack and

Jan 1, 1914

By H. F. Yancey, O. L. Furse

For several years the Bureau of Mines at its Northwest Experiment Station, in cooperation with the Mines Department. of the University of Washington, has been studying the breakage and degradation of coal. The first phase of the study was devoted to the determination of the friability of many coals of various ranks and comparison of various methods for estimating friability.' A study of the relative ease or difficulty with which various coals are reduced to the fine size required for use as pulverized fuel followed the completion of this work. Baltzer and Hudson2 list twelve research organizations in the United States, two in England, one in Germany and one in Canada that are reported to be engaged on this problem; showing the general appreciation of the need for a simple method of estimating the grindability of different coals. Hardgrove,3 ho has advanced a method for estimating grindability, points out that pulverizer tests of different coals are incomplete and unsatisfactory. He compares such tests to that of a boiler test made without knowledge of the calorific value of the coal. Frisch arid Holder4 also stress the same point. They state that,

Jan 1, 1934

By R. Gilman Brown

Mines are interesting by reason of what they have done for man, or of what has been done for them by nature. Not all are interesting on both scores. Many profitable mines are commonplace to the geologist; and many presenting unique gcological conditions have been sad failures commercially. The Standard group at Bodie has produced in 25 years, $14,500,000, paying $5,000,000 in dividends.' On the other hand, this output has beeu mined (almost wholly above the 1,000-ft. level) from a system of more than 100 veins, ranging in thickness from 0.5 in. of ('specimen rock" to 30 ft, of clay and quartz; distributed through a zone about 2,000 ft, in width, and representing from three to five distinct periods of formation. This group, therefore, by reason of its industrial record as well as its geological features, may fairly be regarded as doubly interesting. The Bodie district occupies an island of recent (Tertiary) hornblende-andesite, surrounded by a complex of igneous rocks and breccias. It lies at the summit of the eastern foot-hills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, and within the Great Basin, a

Jan 1, 1908

By F. W. Hillnhutter

In plant tests with a 9.7 m hearth diameter high top pressure blast furnace the influence of disintegration of sinter during low-temperature reduction on blast furnace performance was evaluated. The blast furnace burden during the test period consisted of 74% self-fluxing sinter with a basicity of CaO/Si02 = 1.3, 15% pellets, 6% lump ore, and 5% recirculated slags. The sinter for the test was produced in a modern sinter plant. By changing the fuel rate and/or the MgO content at a constant basicity CaO/Si02 sinters with different low-temperature disintegration properties could be produced. The blast furnace was equipped with pressure monitoring devices at medium height of the furnace stack wall. This device provided in addition to the normal operating data readings of pressure losses in the upper and lower part of the furnace. The basic physico-chemical factors determining low-temperature disintegration are explained. The testing devices and the extent of quality control measures of sinter during the test period are outlined. Conclusions are drawn from the plant test in relation to sinter properties.

Jan 1, 1977

By Monica Mengoli Chaves, Byron S. Gottfried

For the past several years the U. S. Department of Energy has sponsored the development of a computer simulation program that will predict the performance of coal preparation plants under a variety of different operating conditions. Recently a study was undertaken to transfer the simulation logic from the large scale mainframe environment to a small inexpensive microcomputer operating in a highly interactive "user friendly" environment. This paper describes a program that was written for the APPLE II Plus microcomputer which accomplishes these objectives. The program prompts the user for information in such a manner that it can be used by persons other than computer specialists. This makes the program directly accessible to plant managers, designers and operating engineers.

Jan 1, 1983

By Gunnar Thaning, Goran Mathisson

The iron ores mined by LKAB in the north of Sweden have excellent beneficiation properties. This gives LKAB a favorable position as regards the production of low silica pellets for direct reduction. LKAB has concentrated on developing and marketing grades of pellets for the Midrex-Purofer-HyL process group, i. e., such direct reduction processes carried out in a shaft furnace or a static bed using reformed natural gas as a reducing agent. The paper deals with properties and quality demands of iron ore pellets for such processes. Matters such as the effect of the residual magnetite in the fired pellets on the degree of metallization, the amount and composition of the slag phase in the pellets, the mechanism of the disintegration during reduction, the state of swelling of the pellets during the conditions prevailing in these processes, the importance of the porosity, the improvement of the reducibility and lowering of the sticking tendency of the pellets by small additions of suitable additives, and the influence of the pellet size are discussed. A special test procedure for direct reduction pellets has been elaborated by LKAB. Thus, three metallurgical properties are routinely determined separately, namely reducibility, reduction strength, and sticking. The test methods are described. Finally the present and future LKAB pellets for direct reduction are presented with respect to chemical analyses and metallurgical properties.

Jan 1, 1980

Executive A. R. LEDOUX, Chairman GEORGE D. BARRON SIDNEY J. JENNINGS J. V. N. DORR J. E. JOHNSON, JR.¬ Membership J. E. JOHNSON, JR., Chairman KARL EILERS F. F. SHARPLESS R. M. RAYMOND LEWIS W. FRANCIS Finance J. V. N. DORR, Chairman CHARLES F. RAND J. V. W. REYNDERS Library E. GYBBON SPILSBURY,' Chairman ALEXANDER C. HUMPHREYS GEORGE C. STONE' JOHN H. JANEWAY BRADLEY STOUGHTON Papers and Publications BRADLEY STOUGHTON, Chairman

Jan 1, 1923

By P. Sen, H. B. Barani, P. Sen Gupta

A critical review of the various separation efficiencies reported in literature has been made. Most of the relationships used for evaluating the performance relate to screening, classification, or concentration operations and are applicable to single-stage, two-component systems only. In the present work, a much simpler approach has been used for assessing the separation process irrespective of the type of operation and this has been extended further to obtain an expression for a multicomponent feed and multiproduct (from a multistage operation) system.

Jan 1, 1980

By Allan J. Clark

In his paper on "The Accumulation of Amalgam on Copper Plates,"f Mr. R. T. Baylies records the fact that at the Drumlummon mill, at Marysville, Montana, a series of tests proved that silver, instead of showing a strong affinity with the amalgamated surface of the copper plates, gave evidence of a persistent tendency to escape amalgamation; the fineness of the amalgam, as measured in gold, being highest nearest to the battery, and giving place to a constantly-increasing proportion

Jan 1, 1900

By David H. Browne

The use of coal-dust fired reverberatory furnaces, or indeed of rever-beratory furnaces of any description, was for the Canadian Copper Co. a matter of necessity, and not of choice. For 20 years smelting had been done in blast furnaces alone, and with the Herreshoff furnaces used prior to 1904 there was no trouble in treating fine ores. But little flue dust was produced, and this, following the time-honored custom, was wetted down and put back with the charge. Whether the flue dust really smelted, or whether it was worn out by being chased around in a circle, was a problem that troubled no one. With the installation of modern blast furnaces and high-pressure blowing engines, in 1904, flue dust commenced to assert itself. Evidently more dust was made than could be smelted, but so many vital. problems engaged our attention at that time that this minor question was pushed to one side. In 1906, the details of blast-furnace smelting and the conversion of matte had been worked out to a satisfactory conclusion, and the ever-increasing piles of flue dust and fine ore on the stock yard demanded serious consideration. Numerous experiments in sintering, briquetting, mixing with converter slag, forming blocks of flue dust with green-ore fines and cement, and so on, were undertaken. None of these showed much promise. Our problem was still further complicated by the question of treating converter slag. The ore was basic, the slag was not needed as a furnace flux, and it was felt that under these conditions the old method of pouring slag in molds and resmelting in the blast furnace was an unnecessary expense. If the converter slag could be settled in basic-lined reverberatory furnaces, in which at the same time flue dust and green-ore fines could be smelted, two problems might thus be solved. Reverberatory practice with our ores was, however, an unknown factor. As carried on in the West, on siliceous ores and concentrates, at least 25 per cent. of fuel was required, and even this ratio depended greatly

Jan 1, 1915

By Thomas Kesler

THE Cartersville mining district, 35 miles northwest of Atlanta, Ga., has been of varying but continuous importance in the southern mineral industry during the past century. Noted chiefly for its production of brown iron ore, manganese oxide ores, barite, sienna, and magnesian limestone, the district and its environs have produced brick and tile clays, slate, gold, bauxite, and graphitic schist. Minor deposits of serpentine, sericite schist, copper ore, and red iron oxide have been prospected. The obvious deposits of brown iron ore, together with some associated specular hematite, were mined out years ago, although a little ore was left in the workings. Moderately steady production of sienna reached a peak about 1930, then declined rapidly. Manganese mining passed through a relatively active period from the World War to 1931, but has subsided to a small but rather constant output for the Birmingham market. How-ever, the White Manganese Corporation has prepared for possible increased production by constructing a new washer capable of handling about 300 tons of ore per day. Principal activity in the district proper has centered for some years in the production of barite and magne-sian limestone.

Jan 1, 1940

By G. T. Murray

The aging behavior of a Cu-Ti (3.2 at. pct Ti) alloy has been followed by electrical resistivity, hardness, and metallographic changes. The resistivity data indicate two principal processes, the first causing a sharp decrease in resistivity, and the second, which occurs over a long period of time, a much smaller rate of decrease. Lamellar nodules, Widmanstätten platelets, and homogeneous continuous precipitation was observed. The Widmanstätten platelets grow at the expense of the latter. When this study was initiated, little information was available on the aging behavior of copper-base titanium alloys. Several articles'-3 that appeared in the early 1930's showed that these alloys could be strengthened by precipitation, but a detailed study was not made. Within the past year, however, two other more comprehensive studies4'5 have been reported in the literature, one consisting primarily of an investigation of mechanical properties, the other

Jan 1, 1961

David H. Browne was born June 8, 1864; at Hollymount, County Mayo, Ireland. At the age of 16, after going through the Londonderry Academy; he came to this country, and entered the University of Michigan, where he was graduated in 1885. He began his scientific practice as chemist, under F. A. Emmerton, in the laboratory of the Joliet Steel Co., after which he served some time as chemist at the Ludington mine, Iron Mountain, Mich. But in 1888 he went back for a year to his alma mater as instructor in inorganic analysis. Those who knew him feel sure that he would have been an efficient and popular professor; but his ardent temperament could not brook the rnonotony and confinement of the class- room; and in 1899 he went to work at the Andrews and Hitchcock blast-furnaces, at Hubbard, Ohio, where he remained until 1891, when he entered as chemist the service of the newly organized Canadian Copper Co., operating in the Sudbury district, Canada. This was the beginning of his special professional life-work. For twenty-six years he devoted himself to the numerous and complex problems successively arising in connection with the metallurgical treatment of the nickel-copper ores of Sudbury. One of his notable achievements was the development of an electro-lytic process for the separation of nickel and copper in the ores referred to. This method was successfully employed for several years; but when the Canadian Copper Co. was absorbed by the International Nickel Co., the cheaper Orford process owned by the latter was substituted. . A still more permanently important piece of metallurgical progress credited to Mr. Browne was the successful firing of reverberatory smelting-furnaces with powdered coal-a measure which had been desired, dreamed and attempted by others, but which he was acknowledged as first to put in practice on a large scale. The Engineering and Mining Journal of April 7, 1917, says editorially of this improvement:

Jan 6, 1917

By W. R. Hibbard

IN ref. 1, on the basis of tension and torsion experiments with single crystals of a brass, the values given in Table I were obtained for elastic coefficients. It was pointed out by Zener that the values for the 71.2 pct Cu were not satisfactory, since they resulted in a negative value for the bulk modulus, namely —4.17X1012 sq cm per dyne. In reevaluating the data of this investigation, it was determined that the reason for this negative bulk modulus lay in the extrapolation of the reciprocal Young's modulus to the zero value of the orientation function shown in Fig. 5 of ref. 1. This extrapolation was reevaluated by the method of least squares (50 pct probability) and a new value of the coefficient S,, was determined as 18.9220.42X 10M sq cm per dyne in lieu of the value originally reported of 18.82x10 sq cm per dyne. This new value of S, leads to a new value of S, of — 9.43 X101" sq cm per dyne. The values of the other coefficients are unchanged. results. This value compares with the value of 12.3X10 sq cm per dyne reported by Schmid and Boas? The new results are summarized in Table 11. These results follow similar qualitative trends, previously published,' relative to the effect of zinc content. However, the derived values of C11, C,, C,, and K are so sensitive to the uncertainty in the first decimal place of the S, values that they are probably not useful. This uncertainty must also apply to the previous results of Masima and Sachs," who obtained S, values from a similar extrapolation drawn wholly above their data points. Acknowledgments Advice and assistance on the statistical methods were obtained from R. W. Guard. The calculations were carried out by Miss E. Saacke.

Jan 1, 1958

THE decades immediately before and after the end of the nineteenth century (1890-1910) were a period of increased activity in mineral industry education. One reason for this, undoubtedly, was the rapid increase in mineral production in the decade 1880-1890; pig iron and copper production tripled; coal, lead, and zinc output more than doubled. Most of the other mineral substances followed the same general trend. Aluminum production began in 1886; petroleum output, which in 1888 was less than it was in 1882, almost doubled in the next three years. Gold alone showed no appreciable change until its discovery at Cripple Creek in 1891, followed by the Klondike in 1896, brought to boiling a public interest in minerals that had been simmering for some years previously. The first cyanide plant in the United States was erected at Bodie in 1892, and the first chlorination plant at Cripple Creek* the next year. Silver- lead smelting had already greatly developed, and the metallurgy of copper was almost transformed. The hearth area and smelting capacity of copper reverberatory furnaces more than quadrupled between 1878 and 1894; matte converters were first erected at Butte in 1884. Copper production of the United States in 1899 was 20 times that of 1872. While it was the increased technology used in mineral production that really made the field attractive for educated young men, undoubtedly they did not realize that, and were impressed mainly by the quantitative increase in output. Another factor was the increased general interest in engineering education; three times as many men took engineering degrees in the United States in 1890 as in 1880; 1892 showed almost a 56 per cent increase over 1890. Industry had come to recognize that technical training was worth while. The mineral industry lagged somewhat at first; the total number of mining degrees

Jan 1, 1941

By Earl Bardwell

IN his paper entitled, Development of Hindered-Settling Apparatus, Dr. Richards has related the history of the development of the hindered-settling classifier and given illustrations of the several types of this apparatus which lie has designed.1 An earlier paper,2 Close Sizing Before Jigging, shows the nature of the hindered-settling phenomenon and the results which it produces. In the first-mentioned paper Dr. Richards describes the method of getting hindered settling and shows the relation that the constriction bears to the classifier. The question of proper ratios between the area of the sorting column and the area of the constriction opening Dr. Richards leaves open, aside from certain statements as to the ratios which have been found to give good results in practice. While working with a hindered-settling classifier of the type now in use at the Boston & Montana Reduction Plant of the Anaconda Copper Mining Co. a number of interesting facts were brought out which have thrown considerable light on the question of proper ratio between the area of the sorting column and the area of the constriction and which will be made the subject of this paper. Free and Hindered Settling. -If a, mineral particle be dropped into a vessel containing still water, the particle will sink in accordance with the laws of free settling in water, which are as follows: 1. Of two grains having the same specific gravity but differing in size, the larger will settle in still water at the greater velocity. 2. Of two grains having the same size but differing in specific gravity, the heavier grain will settle at the greater velocity.

Jan 8, 1913

P. Herasymenko (New York University, New York) —The authors' experiments on equilibria between water vapor and liquid synthetic slags represent a valuable contribution to our knowledge of the nature of liquid slags. They can be regarded as a proof of ionic splitting of water molecules dissolved in slags. The assumption that water dissolved in slag was com- pletely ionized was made in my report on hydrogen equilibria in steelmaking as early as 194010. In that paper, the first systematic data were given on the content of ionized hydrogen in acid and basic open-hearth slags. The paper probably escaped the notice of the authors, although they mention the articles published later by other investigators who reported erratic and

Jan 1, 1958