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By C. A. Pierce

UNDERGROUND operations of the United States Potash Co. at its mine near Carlsbad, N.M., have been continuous since the property was opened about five years ago. Approximately one million tons of potash has been mined and two shafts have been sunk, each to a depth of about 1000 ft. Outstanding in the company's operations is the fact that not a single blasting accident has occurred during the aforesaid period. The purpose of this paper is to describe the blasting practice that has made possible the achievement of this accident-prevention record. The mining method employed in extracting the thick horizontal bed of potash may be described as a double-entry room-and-pillar system. Mine development is kept well in advance of extraction operations, and a three years' supply of ore, at least, is always available. Limits of the orebody have not been determined, and in the present system of mining headings are advanced by a "shortwall" method. This was the first potash ore bed developed in the United States. The nature of the deposit, therefore, was unknown, and it was deemed expedient to outline a conservative mining policy. Later, when more is known about the deposit and certain control ascertained, a "longwall" panel retreating method may be found advisable. The necessity for a domestic supply of potash became a national issue previous to and during the World War. The United States Govern-ment came to realize that this country should not be dependent upon foreign sources of potash, and began extensive explorations in many parts of the country, seeking an orebody that would meet the exacting require-ments of the domestic market. The Department of Interior, through the Geological Survey and Bureau of Mines, made every effort to determine the location of potash deposits and encouraged their exploitation by private capital. Through the combined efforts of the Department of Interior and private industry, the deposit now being worked by the United States Potash Co. was discovered and brought into production.

Jan 1, 1936

AIME 1953 DIRECTORY SUPPLEMENT OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES OF LOCAL SECTION; COUNCIL OF SECTION DELEGATES Linwood Thiessen, Chairman H. D. Vaughan, Vice-Chairman John H. Melvin, Secretary EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE L. E. Thelin, Connecticut J. B. Cunningham, Arizona W. L. Penick, San Francisco G. L. Yates, Kansas DELEGATES Adirondack - C. DeWitt Smith '54 Alaska - Robert 11. Chapman, ?54 Arizona J. B. Cunningham, '53 Black Hills - Sidney M. Runke, '54 Boston -R'. Schuhmann, Jr. ?54 Carlsbad Potash - W. P. Wilson, '54 Central Appalachian - Charles T. Holland, '54 Chicago - H. A. White, '54 Cleveland - Milton Tilley, '54 Colorado - J. Paul Harrison '54 Columbia - Harold Kirkemo, '54 Connecticut - Lewis E. Thelin, ?53 Dallas - Kenneth F. Anderson, '54 Delta - Roy S. Sullins '54 Detroit - F. P. Bens, '53 East Texas - Joseph A. Morris, '54 El Paso Metals - E. M. Thomas, '54 Florida - W. O. McClintock '54 Fort Worth - Ray Elner, '51 Gulf Coast - H. E. Treichler, '53 Kansas - G. L. Yates, '53 Lehigh Valley - H. R. Gault '54 Lima, Peru - R. P. Koenig, ?54 Lou-Ark - A. H. Crawford. '53 Mexico - W. G. Kane, '54 Mid-Continent - J. H. Beesley, '53 Minnesota - J. R. Stuart, '54 Montana - F. W. Strandberg, '53 Nevada - Albert Silver,'53 New York - P. Malozemoff, '54 North Pacific - A. H. Mellish, '54 North Texas - K. F. Anderson, '54 Chio Valley - J. H. Melvin, ?53 Oklahoma City - Charles Miller, '53 Oregon - T. C. Matthews, '54 Penn. Anthracite - D. C. Helms, '54

Jan 1, 1953

By A. Keith Brewer

RECENT advances in the fields of chemistry, biology, and metallurgy have confronted the analytical chemist with an entirely new set of problems. Development of plastics and synthetics has brought about a need, not only for adequate methods for their analysis but also for the various raw materials entering into their manufacture. The remarkable advance made in biochemical and agricultural research resulting from the use of isotopes as tracers or "tagged atoms" has established the necessity for the development of methods for the concentration of natural isotopes and for a means for their analysis. Similarly the advent of new and complex alloys calls for accurate analytical methods. Fortunately the analytical chemist has been able to meet some of these new demands by adapting to his purposes an instrument which has long been the most exclusive toy of the physicists. Solubility and the chemical properties of the atoms, which have always served as the basis for chemical analysis, do not enter into this new technique. Instead, momentum, defined as mass times velocity, is utilized as the means for the separation of atoms or mass groups.

Jan 1, 1946

By G. S. Hume

Activity in geological exploration and drilling continued in Canada in 1945 at about the same rate as in the previous year, but with disappointing results as far as new production is .concerned. Both in the foothills and on the Plains of Alberta, however, there are wildcat wells that have either given encouraging shows or some production, which are very important in relation to future developments. The normal decline of Turner Valley, the largest producing field in Canada, has continued, and this decrease has not been offset by new discoveries. In addition, the closing of the Canol pipe line on March 31, 1945, isolated the Norman Wells field in the Mackenzie River valley, and the outlet at present. is confined to supplying the relatively small local requirements. This

Jan 1, 1946

By K. Thirumalai

Rock response to heating depends on properties of rock material and varies widely between different rock types. By dissipating energy, surface melting limits rapid heating and fragmentation of rocks achieved by surface heating methods. This study advances a concept of rock fragmentation by rapid internal heating of a localized inner volume of rock. The working of the method to achieve fragmentation of rocks (Charcoal granite and Dresser basalt) having poor response to surface heating is analyzed. Experimental data on elevated temperature rock properties required for the study are presented. Based on the properties of test rocks, a high frequency (50 MHz) dielectric heating method of generating localized internal heating was selected for experimental study. The test rocks were fragmented without melting under localized heating below 600ºC. The heated volume required for fragmentation was observed to be less than 2 percent of the test block volume. A practical application of the method for in situ fragmentation of rocks is suggested.

Jan 1, 1971

By O. A. E. Jackson

In all three principal dunite dikes, minute disseminated grains of pyrrhotite are to be seen in the fresh rock in amounts less than 1 pct. Traces of nickel have been reported from many such specimens. Nickeliferous pyrrhotite is the principal nickel-bearing mineral, although olivine contains very minor amounts of nickel in solid solution, substituting for magnesium and iron. Such occurences are of no economic significance. Nickel analyses of possible economic significance (up to 3 pct Ni) have been returned from samples taken near the margins of the two large western dunite dikes. These samples were from schistose zones along and within the dike walls. The mineralized shear zones, up to 30 ft wide, strike N 30 W and dip from 65" to 90" west. They consist of layers of hard, fresh, green-gray dunite, mineralized with finely disseminated pyrrhotite. These layers alternate with layers of soft, black, oxidized schistose dunite up to 1 ft wide, well mineralized with pyrrhotite and tabular-fractured pentlandite in crystals up to 1/4-in. diam. Sulfides identified in polished sections were chiefly pyrrhotite and pentlandite, with much smaller amounts of chalcopyrite. There are two varieties of pyrrhotite. One develops a fine polish and conforms to published descriptions. The other is slightly darker and browner, does not polish as well, and displays flamelike growth or intergrowth structure when etched with nitric acid fumes. Pyrrhotite and pentlandite crystallized contemporaneously in the form of veins in the olivine and as fillings of the interstices of euhedral olivine crystals. Chalcopyrite replaces the other sulfides. The most striking feature of the deposits is their occurrence in intimately fractured and schistose zones in the dunite where faulting has been localized along the contacts of the sediments and the dunite dikes. Though far too little detailed work has been done to be certain, there appears to be a higher concentration of sulfides in the shear zones along the margins of dike apophyses, sediment reentrants, and strike and dip irregularities. Much more study would be required in order to submit a plausible theory of formation of the nickel deposits, supported by laboratory and field evidence. Results of the present study, especially localization of the metals by fracturing, certainly indicate that the nickel concentrations were brought about by precipitation of nickel sulfides from fluids that used the fractures as a means of ingress. Studies of nickel sulfide deposits throughout the world have demonstrated that such sulfides were deposited at considerable depths and at temperatures of several hundred degrees. This would rule out the possibility of groundwater as the transporting medium. The two possible sources of hot nickel-bearing fluids are quartz diorite and gabbro. The first possibility is that large volumes of fluids, expelled from the quartz diorite magma during its crystallization, obtained a supply of nickel by altering the nickeliferous olivine of the dunites. The likelihood of this process is lessened by the recognition that, although the dunites show some alteration to serpentine, talc, and trem-olite, they are for the most part remarkably fresh outside the schistose zones. The worldwide association of nickel with basic rocks, together with the presence of pyrrhotite in thin films on joint planes of the gabbro on Jumbro Mountain, favors the gabbro source. The writer extends thanks to C. Phillips Purdy, Jr., project chief of American Metal Climax Inc., for giving him the opportunity to study these deposits. He is also indebted to the officers of American Metal Climax Inc. and Discovery Mines Inc. for permission to publish this article.

Jan 1, 1961

By A. N. Rogers

Jan 1, 1883

BUFFALO C E Moyer, Chairman (Buffalo, N Y I R M Jordan, Vice-Chairman H A Morlock, Secretary CHICAGO M E Nickel, Chairman (Chicago, Ill ) A M Kroner, Vice-Chairman W R McLain, Secretary-Treasurer

Jan 1, 1959

By J. R. Dawson, A. B. Kinzel

THE purpose of testing is to determine whether the material in question is identical in all essential respects with similar material which has given satisfactory service. The most common method of securing such information is to select samples as representative of the entire material and subject them to destructive tests. As the welding industry grew, service data were accumulated and tests of welds took on new significance. New tests were devised and old tests modified so as to be more pertinent to welding. Moreover, in some cases the generally accepted procedure of testing by sampling is not accorded the same degree of confidence when applied to welds as in the usual applications. Thus, in instances where great hazard would be involved should the material fail, means of non-destructive testing have been sought with favorable results. Accordingly, tests used today may be divided into two groups, destructive and non-destructive tests.

Jan 1, 1930

By Robert H. Holgers

Eveleth Taconite Co. was chartered on July 29, 1963, and is 85% owned by Ford Motor Co. and 15% by Oglebay Norton Co. The latter also serves as managing agent. The location of the company's facilities is depicted in Fig. 1. The Thunderbird mine is located midway between the cities of Eveleth and Virginia, Minn. (Fig. 2). The Fairlane plant and General Office are located approximately 10 miles south on the St. Louis River near the community of Forbes (Figs. 3 and 4). The crude ore and the finished pellets are transported by a common carrier railroad, the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railway Co. The facilities are also serviced by the Duluth, Winnipeg & Pacific Railway Co. Pellets are hauled year around by the DM&IR to its docks 60 miles south in Duluth, Minn. Ford Motor Co. consumes its share of the high grade pellets at its Rouge plant in Dearborn, Mich., and Oglebay Norton Co. sells its share in the open market. HISTORY Following six months of preliminary engineering by the initial staff of Eveleth Taconite Co. and the Western Knapp Engineering Div. of Arthur G. McKee & Co., the project was approved by Eveleth's board of directors on Apr. 17, 1964. On May 1, 1964, contracts were awarded to McKee for the mine, coarse and fine crushing and concentrating facilities, and to Allis-Chalmer for the pelletizing facilities. The pre-production surface overburden stripping contract was awarded to Skubic Brothers Co., Virginia, Minn. Ground-breaking ceremonies were held at the Thunderbird mine on

Jan 1, 1969

BUFFALO J R Atkinson, Chairman (Hamilton, Ont, Canada) C E Moyer, Vice-Chairman H A Morlock, Secretary CHICAGO H Erler, Chairman (Gary, Ind ) M E Nickel, Vice-Chairman A M Kroner, Secretary-Treasurer CLEVELAND C W Cravens, Chairman (Cleveland) E J Sobey, Vice-Chairman E Kondas, Secretary Leo Svete, Treasurer

Jan 1, 1958

By Richard A. Hawkins

O the American coal man, Australian coal mining most appear to have little, if any, influence on American coal-mining practice and to bear little relation to it. Actually, the relationship has been close, for Australian operators have carefully studied American practice by reading American technical publications, by consulting American engineers, and by visits to Ameriean operations. They have leaned heavily on America for their supply of mechanization equipment and many American mining-machinery manufacturers are active in that country, supplying its needs and furnishing technical assistance. Australia's influence on American coal mining has been obscure and probably negligible. However, it seems reasonable to assume that this influence will increase. The wartime development of air transportation will inevitably bring these two countries into much more intimate contact than existed in recent years. American servicemen. many of them former miners and coal-mining technicians, have visited Australian operation, while stationed in that country, have talked with operators and men over there, and undoubt-

Jan 1, 1945

By A. M. Beebee

IN the present century the coal and manufactured gas industries have been eclipsed in public interest by oil, natural gas, and hydro- electric energy, which have had the benefit of rapid development and novelty. I sometimes wish that our social- order were such that hydro power had been developed first, that the use of gas from coal had never been seriously considered, and that our domestic energy requirements were supplied by other fuels. Sup- pose the manufacture of gas from coal should then come on the scene at the present time with the current plight of the railroads, coal regions, and labor generally, presenting the fact that it could increase the amount of coal mined and shipped by the railroads by some 16,000,000 tons, and increase the coal used at existing u plants five times. Imagine the great public interest that would be manifested; it would supply the cooking and water-heating requirements of a community with a superior character of service at a cost to the customer approximately half that which had obtained previously. Would not such a situation be heralded as the salvation of our country and all help be given it?

Jan 1, 1940

By C. S. Herzig

In the Engineering and Mining Journal of Jan. 27, 1900, there appeared an article by Fred T. Greene, describing a method of measuring stopes by the use of strings, a clinometer and a tape. In the early part of 1899 I had occasion to use a somewhat similar method, for the purpose of accurately ascertaining the volume of a very irregular drift connecting two mines. This drift was an important factor in a lawsuit for $150,000, in which it was necessary to determine accurately the volume originally occupied by the material extracted from the drift. While it is unnecessary to give all details of the controversy, some explanation of the conditions is required for a clear understanding of the following description. This drift was started by the a E." Co. from its workings, in about 7 ft. of ore, and headed toward the " G " property, the plan being to extract all the ore between foot- and hanging-walls, but to take out nothing but ore. As the " G." workings were approached; the ore-body became very irregular and much thinner. It was, however, very closely followed, and where the drift broke through into the " G." workings, the hole was only 11 inches high by 14 inches wide, or just about the size of a man-hole in a boiler.. Thus, this connection-drift tapered sharply; and the very irregular foot-wall sloped toward the " G." workings, and entered them at a place where the stope was only about 3 ft. high, and the ground had already commenced to cave. It may be added that the ore-body was a nearly flat deposit of lead carbonate in limestone, the ore and gangue being quite soft. I was called upon by the " G." people to make the survey

Jan 1, 1901

COUNCIL OF SECTION DELEGATES A J Duff G H Ruggles E D Gardner E H Torgersen F W Strandberg, Chairman W I Garms H C Weed R D Chapman, Vice-Chairman H M Lavender J A Wilcox F T Moyer. Secretary W C Lawson C F Willis EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE J E Kastrop L Thiessen Past Chairmen R H Smith E H Wisser P D I Honeyman R W Hughes C H Kuzell

Jan 1, 1951

By ROBERT R. ABUOTT

(Cleveland Meeting, October, 1912.) THE practice of carbonizing steel for the purpose of case-hardening has assumed great commercial importance within the past, 10 years. Formerly, case-hardened steel was held in more or less contempt, since it. was considered a cheap substitute for tool-steel. This is no longer the case. The development of the motor-car industry, and coincidentally that of modern alloy-steels, has resulted in overcoming many difficulties formerly experienced in case-hardening. This result has been accomplished by increased knowledge regarding the analysis of the steel which would respond most readily to case-hardening, and by more careful methods of treatment of the carbonized steel. The ordinary method of carbonizing consists in packing the steel with the carbonizing-material in cast-iron boxes and placing them in a furnace at a temperature of from 1,500° to 1,900° F. for a time sufficient to give the required depth of cc case." The steel is then either quenched directly from the box, or is allowed to cool without unpacking, and finally given a single hardening-heat., or, for special work, two or three heats. During the year 1911, more than 100,000 tons of carbonizing-material was sold in the United States, at an average price of probably $55 per ton. More than 85 per cent. of this material consisted of granulated bone. Within the past four years, many manufactured compounds have been placed on the market, consisting largely of some form of carbon or carbonaceous material, with or without the addition of chemicals. Steel will absorb carbon placed in contact with it at the temperature of the atmosphere. The reaction is exceedingly slow, but. increases rapidly with increasing temperature. Below * Metallurgical Engineer, The Peerless Motor Car Co.

Dec 1, 1912

By R. Laird Auchmuty

The A. I. M. E. Subcommittee on Bituminous Mining has been trying for several years to secure the information that was collected by the Marquette Cement Manufacturing &. on the subsidence of its property caused by mining coal beneath it. The Marquette company was willing to have these data used, but it was impossible to obtain them because the records had been filed away. About two years ago these records became available and the engineering data presented herewith were compiled from them by R. L. Auchmuty, assisted by L. E. Young, who was connected with the collection of the information. On account of the cost, it is impossible to reproduce all of the data here, although the original information is on file with the records of the Committee on Ground Movement and Subsidence. The accompanying charts show representative and average data and give only the engineering information with enough description to tell how it was obtained. It is hoped that all of those connected with the original case will participate in the discussion that this will bring forth. Howard N. Eavenson, Chairman, Subcommittee on Bituminous Coal Mining. PRobably the most complete records of subsidence due to coal mining in the United States are those compiled by the Marquette Cement Manufacturing Co. at LaSalle, 111. These records, covering a period of more than three years, were compiled and used as evidence during the suit of the Marquette Cement Manufacturing Co. vs. the Oglesby Coal Co. at Oglesby, LaSalle County, Ill., in which the cement company successfully endeavored to stop the coal company from mining under its property. Fig. 1 shows a typical section of the geological formation. The cement company was mining the LaSalle limestone which lies about 125 ft. under the surface. The limestone is 30 to 35 ft. thick and underlain by about 15 ft. of shale. The cement company was mining about 20 ft. of the limestone, and in some places 10 to 12 ft. of the underlying shale, by the room and pillar method. The mining of the limestone always preceded the mining of the shale. The coal company was mining by longwall advance methods the NO. 2 seam of coal 42 in. thick underlying the limestone bed by 435 to 470 ft. The coal mine, a very old one, had largely mined out its original property

Jan 1, 1931

By Henry N. McCarl, John J. Dran

The academic community and the larger and more sophisticated mining companies have largely rejected the older mineral valuation methods such as the Hoskold and Morkill concepts and replaced them with "discounted cash flow" (DCF) techniques. The relevancy and usefulness of the older methods have been questioned primarily on the basis of their underlying assumptions that mining companies do not have numerous alternative investments and must use sinking funds deposited at market or "safe" rates of return to recover the purchase price of mineral reserves. The ability to reinvest in numerous (often nonmining) alternative business ventures, the changing purchasing power of the dollar, corporate income and other taxes, depreciation and depletion allowances, and modern financial management practice all militate against the continued use of the older valuation methods, especially for the larger mining companies. Small mining companies and individuals still use these methods largely out of habit and familiarity. The Hoskold Mineral Reserve Valuation Method The Hoskold method was developed prior to the evolution of modern accounting practices and before the days of the corporate income tax. At the time of its development, annual earnings of the firm were represented by the difference between cash revenues and cash expenses and were not subject to taxation by the government. Thus, earnings at that time were equivalent to what is today known as cash flow.

Jan 7, 1974

By Anderson, Burton E.

FOR several centuries diamond mining has been an adventurous, profitable and enticing industry in Brazil. Some of the world's most valuable diamonds have been found in this country. Two of the most famous stones are the "Estrella do Sul" (Southern Star), weighing 2541/ karats, and the "Branganca," weighing 1680 karats in the rough and 367 karats cut. For a great number of years the stones extracted and sold were mostly the white diamonds used for jewelry. Within the last thirty years black diamonds have been developed as an abrasive cutting material and in these black diamonds the State of Bahia, Brazil, has a monopoly of the world supply. Carbons, as they are commonly called, are being used for core-drilling, polishing, cutting, wire-drawing, and vari-ous other applications in which such a hard substance is required. Bernard Bandler & Sons, of New York City, have selected, graded and delivered these carbons to the United States markets.

Jan 1, 1932

By Bedrand L. Johnson

THE phosphate-rock industry is built upon natural deposits of rocks and minerals in which the element phosphorus is present as a phoshate. The term ?phosphate rock? is a general one, applied to certain rocks of different degrees of consolidation and of diverese origin, charater and occurrence, composed of intimate mixtures of several phosphate minerals, largely submicrocrystalline, usually calcium phosphates, in commerical quantities, with various impurities. This term includes phosphatized limestones, sandstone, shales, and igneous rocks; nodular phosphates ; residual weathered phosphatic limestones ; vein phosphates ; and phosphatic sediments, both consolidated and unconsolidated.

Jan 1, 1944