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By AIME AIME

RECENT experiments in reflected sunlight photography in mine shaft's' and. slopes in the McAlester, Oklahoma, coal-mining district have been so satisfactory as to indicate that such a method has definite scientific value. The entrances to abandoned deep shafts and slopes on Choctaw and Chickasaw Indian coal lands in Oklahoma are being filled or bulk-headed by the U. S. Geological Survey under Public Works Project F. P. 63-C&C. Inasmuch as these mines may be reopened at some future time when there is a demand for coal, H. I. Smith, Chief of the Mining Division, suggested that photographs of deep shafts would be of value. Such photographs would show timber details and the general condition of the walls. Photographic records of the exact status of shafts when filled will facilitate operations in reopening.

Jan 1, 1936

By B. Post, D. Moskowitz, F. W. Glaser

Lattice parameters of various hafnium compounds, two borides, a carbide and a nitride were determined. Some physical properties were measured and comparisons with the properties of the corre-sponing zirconium compounds were drawn. A LTHOUGH borides of transition metals have A been extensively investigated in recent years, there are few references in the literature to borides of hafnium. This is not surprising, in view of the extreme scarcity and great cost of the purified metal. Becker' reported the existence of a boride, carbide, and nitride of hafnium; he listed the formulas as HfB, HfC, and HfN. However, in his work no mention was made of chemical analyses of the reaction products. In this paper results of a study of various hafnium compounds, including borides, carbides, and nitrides, are reported. It was expected, of course, that these compounds would closely resemble their zirconium analogues, which have previously been extensively investigated. Three borides of zirconium are known: ZrB,² ZrB,² and ZrB212.4 In addition, one carbide, ZrC,5 and one nitride, ZrN,5 have been reported. It should be noted that ZrB and ZrB12 are stable phases only in relatively high-temperature regions, unlike ZrB2, which is stable from room temperature to its melting point." It was felt that hafnium would yield corresponding borides, carbides, and nitrides with similar stability ranges. Experimental Procedures and Results A quantity of hafnium metal that was better than 97 pct pure, with zirconium as its major impurity, was furnished by the Argonne National Laboratories. The boron powder used was approximately 96.5 pct pure. In general, the procedure involved mixing the metal and boron powders in the desired proportions, and subsequently hot pressing them. The resulting specimens were analyzed chemically and phases present were identified by X-ray diffraction methods. A Philips Norelco Geiger counter spectrometer was used for identification of components and for measurement of lattice constants. Filtered copper radiation was used for all X-ray work. Electrical resistivity and density measurements were carried out at room temperature. The stable diboride, HfB2, will be described first. Stoichiometric quantities of boron and metal were heated to approximately 2000°C during hot pressing. The reaction product was shown by X-ray diffraction methods to be isomorphous with ZrB2 (space group Dlgh; P6/mm). Values of lattice constants of HfB2 compared with those of ZrB2 are shown in Table I. The calculated density of HfB2 is 11.2 g per cc, compared with a measured (pycnometric) value of 10.5 g per cc. HfB2 specimens prepared under a wide variety of conditions (including variations in initial Hf-B ratios) showed only insignificant variations in lattice constants, indicating a very narrow range of homogeneity. Like ZrB2,7 HfB2 is an excellent electrical conductor. The resistivity at room temperature of hot-pressed samples, approximately 85 pct dense, is 12 microhm-cm. This compares favorably with the electrical resistivity of 10 mi-

Jan 1, 1954

By James A. Crookston, William D. Fitzpatrick

Committee C-8 of the American Society for Testing and Materials defines refractories as "material, usually nonmetallic, used to withstand high temperature," and it defines the term refractoriness thus, "in refractories, the capability of maintaining the desired degree of chemical and physical identity at high temperatures and in the environment and conditions of use.” The ability to withstand high temperatures is critical to classifying a material as a refractory. However, as the foregoing definition of "refractoriness" implies, the refractory material may be subjected to and is expected to resist not only high temperatures but a variety of other destructive forces incidental to its use. These include abrasion, impact, thermal shock, chemical attack, and high level loads at high temperatures. The various industrial applications of refractories represent an infinite variety of combinations and degrees of severity of these destructive forces, including high temperatures. Naturally, such a variety of application conditions leads to a need for a wide variety of refractory products to satisfy those conditions. The number of refractory products available is great enough that some form of classification is necessary to a discussion of refractories. Refractories may be classified in several ways, but the most suitable one is based on their general compositions and to lesser degrees on their physical condition and distinctive properties. The primary types of brick include aluminosilicate brick (fire clay and alumina), basic brick (magnesia and chrome ore, alone and in various combinations), silica brick, insulating brick, and special refractories (carbon, SiC, ZrO2, zircon, borides, and nitrides). Brick is, of course, preformed and usually is heat treated at high temperatures before use, but in some instances is unburned and/or chemically bonded, including the relatively new class of tar-bonded magnesia and/or dolomite brick. In addition to preformed refractories, another broad category includes the so-called specialty refractories, which are usually made in the same types as itemized for brick-bonding mortars and high temperature cements, hydraulic setting castables or refractory concrete, plastic firebrick, and ramming mixes. Refractory grains, such as fire clay and high alumina calcines, dead-burned magnesite and periclase, and dead-burned dolomite are also considered refractory products. Bricks are also classified on the basis of physical dimensions, as standard sizes and special shapes. The standard sizes are those which are of definite shape and design and are designated as 228.6 x 114.3 x 63.5 mm (9 x 4 ½ x 2 ½ in.) and 228.6 x 114.3 x 76.2 mm (9 x 4 ½ x 3 in.) straights and series. Bricks of nonstandard sizes are referred to as special shapes. These come about as a result of a particular need for a given furnace or for a particular application. Types and Classes of Refractories Fire Clay Refractories Classification: Fire clay refractories, as the name implies, are composed essentially of fire clay and/or calcined fire clay in varying proportions. The ASTM Standard Classification of Fireclay and High Alumina Refractory Brick, C27-70 (reapproved 1976), gives five classes of fire clay brick designated as super-

Jan 1, 1983

By M. R. Geer, H. F. Yancey

Four coals were treated in the Humphreys spiral concentrator, and the products were examined by float-and-sink and screen-sizing tests to determine fundamental performance characteristics. The efficiency of the separation between coal and impurity was shown to be influenced greatly by particle size.

Jan 1, 1950

By S. Shapiro, R. G. Ames

Background Research on the respiratory health of coal miners has focused predominately on the relationship between coal mine dust exposure and ventilatory function impairment (Lapp et al., 1972; Jacobsen, 1976), on the prevalence of coal workers' pneumoconiosis (Lainhart et al., 1969; Morgan et al., 1973), and on coal miner mortality (Ortmeyer et al., 1974; Rockette, 1977). Lesser attention has been paid to the effects of other mining exposures. For example, underground exposure to diesel exhaust emissions (Reger et al., 1980; Ames et al., 1982,1984). An omission in US coal mining research, however, has been identified by the US Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) as the failure to study the effects of inhaled polyvinyl chloride (PVC) thermal decomposition and combustion products (Seltzer, 1979). These products may be released in the mine environment by cable fires, cable explosions, smoldering cables, and conveyor belt fires. In addition to the OTA concern, recent findings of chronic respiratory conditions and other health complications resulting from exposure to PVC decomposition and combustion products in firefighters (Peters et al., 1974; NBS, 1980; NIOSH, 1982; Wallace, 1982), and in survivors of several large scale PVC-fueled fires (Dyer and Esch, 1976; Wallace, 1981, 1982), add immediacy to the concerns. PVC decomposition and combustion PVC decomposition is initiated at temperatures far below ignition (Hartstein and Forshey, 1974; Wallace, 1981). Hence, exposures to decomposition products from smoldering cables may be important health hazards in addition to cable insulation combustion products. Hydrochloric acid (HCL) appears to be the principle toxic substance from the thermal decomposition of PVC since up to 60% by weight is released as HCL (Barrow et al., 1979). HCL is released both as a gas and as an adsorbant on soot particles (Stone et al., 1973), thus allowing penetration of respiratory defenses. In addition, laboratory results indicate that phosgene (carbonyl chloride), a potentially lethal gas, may be produced in significant quantities from electrical arcing of wires covered with PVC insulation (Woolley, 1971; Brown and Birky, 1980). Health concerns related to PVC Toxic effects resulting from high level exposures to PVC pyrolysis and combustion products in animals (Cornish and Abar, 1969) and in humans (Wallace, 1981) is beyond question. Analyses have reported acute, or short-term, health effects resulting from exposure to PVC decomposition and combustion products (Peters et al., 1974; Polakoff et al., 1975). Recently, however, several studies have found that acute effects are often followed first by apparent healing, and then by delayed chronic effects. This pattern of consequential respiratory involvement among persons involved in major PVC-fueled fires has been noted in firefighters, specifically the 1975 New York Telephone Exchange fire (Dyer and Esch, 1976; Wallace, 1982), and the survivors of the 1977 Beverly Hills Supper Club fire (Wallace, 1981). An obstructive syndrome (low FVC and FEV1) was seen in 15% of workers three months following fighting a PVC-fueled fire (Colardyn et al., 1976). Long-term respiratory symptoms seen in studies of survivors of PVC-fueled fires include the bronchitis symptoms of cough and phlegm, and lung dysfunction (Wallace, 1981). Additional support for the thesis of longer-term respiratory effects resulting from PVC-fueled fires is derived from the finding that four persons who initially survived the Beverly Hills Supper Club fire died within nine months of the fire of severe respiratory impairment (Wallace, 1981).

Jan 1, 1986

By N. V. Peterson, R. S. Mason

The violent explosion of Mount St. Helens in the state of Washington on May 18, 1980 showered volcanic ash over vast areas of the Northwest. It was another eruptive episode in a long history of similar occurrences in the region, which extends from Canada to California and reaches several hundred miles inland from the Pacific Ocean. Pumice, pumicite, and cinders are products of explosive volcanic eruptions. Pumice and pumicite are produced by the violent expansion of dissolved gases in a viscous silicic lava such as rhyolite or dacite. Scoria is the mafic counterpart of pumice. Pumice is a light-colored, cellular, almost frothy rock made up of glass-walled bubble casts. It may occur as coherent, massive blocks composed of highly vesicular glassy lava in either a flow or vent filling, or it may be more or less fragmented by violent eruption. Pumicite, the diminutive of pumice, has the same origin, chemical composition, and glassy structure, differing only in particle size. Particles less than 0.16 in. in diam are designated pumicite. Pumice usually is found relatively close to the vent from which it was expelled, while pumicite may be carried by winds for great distances before settling as an accumulation of fine-grained ash or tuffaceous sediment. Mount St. Helens lofted an estimated 5 billion cu yd of ash and pumicite. The volcano, unlike most of the High Cascade peaks, is composed largely of dacitic material with only minor amounts of andesite and basalt. Volcanic cinders are the reddish to black vesicular fragments which pile up during explosive eruptions of volcanoes of basaltic composition. Most cinder deposits occur as cones or mounds of stratified fragments ranging from a fraction of an inch to several inches in diameter. Individual cones or mounds may be several hundred feet in diameter and up to 500 ft high. Properties and Uses Low bulk density, good heat and sound insulating properties, and excellent abrasive capabilities make pumice and pumicite useful in industrial applications. Cinders, though less cellular and somewhat heavier, also have a variety of industrial uses. The main use of pumice and cinders continues to be in the construction industry as road-surfacing material, railroad ballast, and building block aggregate. Pumicite is used in sizable quantities as a pozzolanic additive to monolithic concrete where it increases workability, strength, and durability of the concrete and reduces the heat of hydration. Volcanic cinders generally are denser and more coarsely cellular than most pumice. Markets for cinders include aggregate for road construction and surfacing and use in lightweight concretes, particularly blocks. Some producers having access to both pumice and cinders offer a variety of blends of the two materials to block manufacturers. Table I lists the principal applications of industrial pumice. Tables 2 and 3 show US sales and uses of volcanic products. Most pumice deposits are unconsolidated and usually have a minimum of overburden. Mining is by open pit and can be easily carried out with conventional loading equipment. Sometimes air drying precedes hauling to a crushing and screening plant which yields the size product desired. Multiple bins at railroad hauling facilities permit blending if desired. Pumice for abrasive use may require more sophisticated processing by fine grinding and air classification before being bagged for market.

Jan 1, 1983

By Morris Cohen

NO slackening of research and development in the physical metallurgy of iron and steel was evident in 1943-our second year since Pearl Harbor. Of course, many of the achievements were of a military nature, and could not be reviewed here even if they were known to the authors. It is an open secret that far-reaching investi¬gations have been undertaken in governmental, industrial, and university laboratories, and it is strongly hoped that much of this work will be brought to light when peace comes. However, despite the metallurgist's wartime assignments and the necessary restrictions on his reports he has still managed to publish substantial contributions to the knowledge of iron and steel. This has been particularly true in the United States; foreign papers have been too uncertain in their arrival to permit a comprehensive appraisal of developments abroad.

Jan 1, 1944

By Edward Ernst, Richard Runvik

AT the U. S. Gypsum Co. mine in Oakfield, N. Y., a flat-lying vein of rock gypsum is mined by the room and pillar method. Averaging only 4 ft thick, this vein is 1200 to 6000 ft in mineable width and many miles in length. Overlying the vein throughout the mine is a 2-ft thickness of distintegrated gypseous shale and fractured limestone which parts easily, falling with little or no warning. This shale, known as ash, varies in thickness from less than an inch to more than a foot. Small veinlets of selenite cut this shaley material, which breaks around timber props. The 18-in. limestone over-lying the ash is fractured vertically into blocks of varying size and will fail if any but the shortest unsupported spans are permitted. Above these two members is a thick layer of competent limestone.

Jan 6, 1957

By W. J. Garmoe

The Carr Fork mine is located approximately 50 kilometers southwest of Salt Lake City, Utah, in the Bingham or West Mountain District, adjacent to the Bingham open pit copper mine. Applied geology at Carr Fork, by Anaconda Minerals Company personnel includes detailed geologic mapping and sampling of underground workings, logging and sampling of drill core and cuttings, and the preparation and posting of geologic maps and cross sections for geologic interpretation, ore reserve calculation, mine operations, and long range planning. Accurate and easily understood graphic recording of Carr Fork geology is essential for optimum use by operating and engineering personnel. The design and implementation of exploration, development and definition drilling programs, research into geological spatial relationships, and analysis of structural complexities of the Carr Fork deposit are a1 so integral parts of the applied geology program.

Jan 1, 1984

By J. E. Schaffer

Drilling activity in Ohio increased slightly in 1939. There were 1020 completions as compared to 910 in 1938. During the past six years the number of completions has varied little (Table 1). Oil production in Ohio has been gradually declining since 1896, when the peak production of 23,941,000 bbl. was reached (Fig. 1). Since that date production has slowly declined to an estimated production in 1939 of 3,144,134 bbl., the lowest in 53 years. This total production is divided approximately into the following grades of crude oil: Pennsylvania, 1,185,456 bbl.; Corning, 1,261,615 Flg 1. bbl.; Lima, 578,500 bbl.; Lodi, Based on figures of U. S. .Bureau of 104,740 bbl.; Cleveland, 13,823 Mines and Oil andGas Journal bbl. Table 2 shows the prices paid for the various grades of crude oil.

Jan 1, 1940

By F. R. Morral

HOT-DIPPED heat-treated zinc coatings on sheet steel were examined with X-rays. The phases identified were compared with those listed in the modern literature of the zinc-iron system. The zeta (FeZn13) phase is shown to correspond to the phase found by Schueler (1925) in heat-treated zinc coatings. An investigation was undertaken to determine the phases present in hot-dipped FIG. I.-SYSTEM IRON-ZINC ACCORDING TO J. SCHRAMM.11 heat-treated zinc coatings on steel sheets and wire. This kind of coating on wire was studied some years ago by Schueler1 by microscopic and chemical methods. He reported a new phase, FeZn10. Later, Clark and Stillwell,2 using X-ray crystal analysis, identified a new phase in ordinary galva-nized wire, which was assumed to be the FeZn10 phase.

Jan 1, 1940

By J. E. Schaffer

Drilling activity in Ohio increased slightly in 1939. There were 1020 completions as compared to 910 in 1938. During the past six years the number of completions has varied little (Table 1). Oil production in Ohio has been gradually declining since 1896, when the peak production of 23,941,000 bbl. was reached (Fig. 1). Since that date production has slowly declined to an estimated production in 1939 of 3,144,134 bbl., the lowest in 53 years. This total production is divided approximately into the following grades of crude oil: Pennsylvania, 1,185,456 bbl.; Corning, 1,261,615 Flg 1. bbl.; Lima, 578,500 bbl.; Lodi, Based on figures of U. S. .Bureau of 104,740 bbl.; Cleveland, 13,823 Mines and Oil andGas Journal bbl. Table 2 shows the prices paid for the various grades of crude oil.

Jan 1, 1940

By Henry F. Collins

The following notes on the cheap milling of a soft lowgrade ore-body in the State of Chiapas, Mexico, may be of interest. The ore-body in question was worked, not by itself, but incidentally in connection with a large extraction of concentrating-ore; and one 10-stamp battery of a 30-stamp mill used for re-crushing tailings, and provided with copper-plates, was set aside for the treatment of this particular ore, of which, during a period of 17 months, 10,274 tons, of 2240 lbs. each, were handled. Description.—The ore-body collsisted of that portion of a mass of decomposed garnet-rock of igneous origin, which, near its contact with another igneous mass, composed chiefly of the mineral wollastonite in a nearly pure state, had been permeated by solutions, depositing irregularly, throughout it, quartz, chal-

Jan 1, 1902

POSITIONS VACANT (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) Metallurgist wanted for research in iron and steel. Man with experience in mills preferred. Salary $4,000. No. 13. Opening for a few technical graduates to act as instructors in mining to men at the mines under the supervision of the State mine inspector. Salary $1,800 per year. No. 14. ENGINEERS AVAILABLE (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) Mining engineer and metallurgist open for engagement, as superintendent of mines or constructing engineer. Technically educated, with 14 years' experience in United States and Latin America in concentration, amalgamation, cyaniding, constructing. Just finished building large modern all-sliming cyanide mill in Central America. No. 18.

Jan 4, 1914

POSITIONS VACANT (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons.) A copper company in Arizona desires a young engineer to assist the superintendent and take charge of the surveying, sampling and assaying. A graduate mining engineer with a few years' experience in mine surveying and sampling preferred. Salary, $125 to start. No. 10. A company in Quebec desires a metallurgist familiar with copper smelting to remodel an old plant and carry on experimental work to determine whether its ore can be smelted profitably in the district. No. 11. A foundry making a specialty of medium and light weight. steel castings of high grade waists a competent man as assistant manager capable of taking complete charge of production in the absence of the general manager. No. 12.

Jan 3, 1914

J. J. CARRIGAN, Butte, Mont. (written discussion*).-I think all who have had experience in the operation of metal mines will agree with Dr. Lanza that many improvements can be made in the underground workings to improve health conditions. Physical examination would no doubt be a good thing and would do a great deal in abating the diseases now so common among metal miners, but I cannot see how it would be possible to put this examination into practical working order. Dr. Lanza says, "For the sake of argument, this physical examination should be under state supervision." I think if, this were attempted it would result in nothing but argument. While such a law possibly could he passed in a few states, I feel certain that in the greater number the miners would fight such legislation with the same determination that they would

Jan 4, 1919

By D. M. Urich

New plant construction for pyrolysis and agglomeration during 1969 has been relatively quiet in the North American scene. U.S. pellet capacity approximates 52 million long tons and that of Canada 25.3 million tons. The foreign scene, however, has been extremely active during 1969, and this is expected to continue for the next several years. Changes in sinter practice have not been reported, other than a few changes towards increased bed depths and the increased use of screening facilities to size the product more closely. Interest in the field of briquetting in fields other than iron ore is high with a new fluorspar briquetting plant under construction at Brownsville, Texas. Considerable research appears to be pointed towards solving the problem of reclaiming steelmill waste products (flue dust, BOF dust, mill scale) by means other than sintering.

Jan 1, 1970

By Richard E. Lounsbury

Coal mine refuse handling traditionally has been the redheaded stepchild of the industry-a problem to be ignored as much as possible. During the past few years, however, mining companies have become more aware of the potential water pollution problem associated with refuse handling and storage. Planning for refuse disposal involves environmental protection and the economics of refuse handling. For over two years, Monterey Coal Co. has operated a non-polluting refuse disposal system at its No. 1 Mine located in Brushy Mound Township of Macoupin County 6 miles south of Carlinville, Illinois. Drainage goes to Spanish Needle Creek and eventually to the Illinois River. The mine produced 3.5 million tons of clean coal during its first two and one-half years of operation and is designed to produce 3 million tpy of clean coal at capacity.

Jan 6, 1973

THERE is at least one concrete indication that Soviet Russia's two most important iron ore producing centers are seriously depleted. While keeping in mind Russia's penchant for reverse propaganda, one piece of evidence indicates that Magnitugorsk in the southern Urals and Krivoi Rog in the Ukraine have been mined to a point where lower grade ores are being recovered. An article in Pravda, Soviet newspaper, by I. P. Bardin. a Russian metallurgist, says that ore presently mined must undergo an expensive enriching cycle before it can be used in blast furnaces. Com- pounding Russian metallurgical troubles is the low quality of coking coals. High ash and sulphur content typifies the coal Badin talks about. Coal from the Ukraine, Eastern Siberia, Kazakhstan, and the Far East requires extensive treatment before it can be used, according to the article in Pravda.

Jan 7, 1953

By D. R. Maneval

The Surface Mining Act of 1977 required a study by the National Academy of Sciences regarding the special mine reclamation requirements of Alaska. The status of mines operating and planned in Alaska will be presented. New mines opening in Alaska must establish a baseline inventory of plants and animals in the mine site area as well as determine pre-mining air and water quality. Current work in these areas will be summarized. Reclamation practices in Alaska and other Arctic countries as practiced currently will be described. A summary of current research in Alaska dealing with revegetation on surface mined lanais, re-establishment of animal populations, and water treatment processes necessary in this pristine environment will be discussed. Included will be future predictions of the direction of mine reclamation in Alaska as more mines enter the industry.

Jan 1, 1984