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By Vernon Read, John K. Hayes

Generally speaking, drilling equipment and techniques presently in use are not capable of meeting the complex technical-and economic-requirements of deep core drilling. Drilling to great depths involves increasing risk, time, and money. And it is especially true that costs increase with depth when conventional core drilling methods are used. Introduction of wire-line drilling techniques has been a great boon to deep core drilling, and is rapidly gaining general acceptance. But, in spite of recent progress, there remains a great need to improve productive drilling time and penetration rates, and still maintain high core recoveries.

Jan 1, 1959

By D. T. MacRoberts

A simple disturbance in a gas reservoir travels with a finite velocity which is nearly independent of the amplitude of the disturbance. As a result very complex transients may be set up which seriously affect observation at a well. The time of transient is much longer than commonly supposed. INTRODUCTION A change in pressure at a gas well is not propagated through the reservoir instantaneously but with a definite fin- ite velocity. Knowledge of the period ! of this transient is of value because: 1. Observations of pressure and flow-rate during the transient may affect interpretation of back-pressure tests. 2. Interference effects between wells may be used to determine continuity of formation. 3. Additional information concerning the physical characteris- tics may possibly be deduced from the behavior of a well during the transient. MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT It will be assumed that the well is initially closed in and that the pressure is constant throlughout the reservoir. As the initial disturbance passes outward from the well it is further assumed that a logarithmic pressure distribution is established between the most distant point reached and the well, so that: <l> = ((/)r-<t>w) I ------------ + (/) . (1) Manuscript received at office of the Branch September 15. 1948. Paper presented at Branch Fall Meeting, Dallas. Texas. Oct. 4-6, 1948. r. = distance to any point between r and rw r = radius of drainge iw= radius of well (/) = potential (P for incompressible fluids, P2 for perfect gases) Up to the time the effect reaches the point r the production from the well will be: W= (Pr-P,,,) . (2) i b W = volume produced t = sand thickness F = fractional porosity Pr = reservoir pressure Pm = average pressure between r and rw Pb = atmospheric Pressure All pressures will subsequently be stated in atmospheres and the constant Pb will be omitted. This will be produced at a rate: dw t k (Pr³-PW2) do d 0 - . (3) log — Pw = pressure at the well k = permeability 0 = time = viscosity

Jan 1, 1949

By D. T. MacRoberts

A simple disturbance in a gas reservoir travels with a finite velocity which is nearly independent of the amplitude of the disturbance. As a result very complex transients may be set up which seriously affect observation at a well. The time of transient is much longer than commonly supposed. INTRODUCTION A change in pressure at a gas well is not propagated through the reservoir instantaneously but with a definite fin- ite velocity. Knowledge of the period ! of this transient is of value because: 1. Observations of pressure and flow-rate during the transient may affect interpretation of back-pressure tests. 2. Interference effects between wells may be used to determine continuity of formation. 3. Additional information concerning the physical characteris- tics may possibly be deduced from the behavior of a well during the transient. MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT It will be assumed that the well is initially closed in and that the pressure is constant throlughout the reservoir. As the initial disturbance passes outward from the well it is further assumed that a logarithmic pressure distribution is established between the most distant point reached and the well, so that: <l> = ((/)r-<t>w) I ------------ + (/) . (1) Manuscript received at office of the Branch September 15. 1948. Paper presented at Branch Fall Meeting, Dallas. Texas. Oct. 4-6, 1948. r. = distance to any point between r and rw r = radius of drainge iw= radius of well (/) = potential (P for incompressible fluids, P2 for perfect gases) Up to the time the effect reaches the point r the production from the well will be: W= (Pr-P,,,) . (2) i b W = volume produced t = sand thickness F = fractional porosity Pr = reservoir pressure Pm = average pressure between r and rw Pb = atmospheric Pressure All pressures will subsequently be stated in atmospheres and the constant Pb will be omitted. This will be produced at a rate: dw t k (Pr³-PW2) do d 0 - . (3) log — Pw = pressure at the well k = permeability 0 = time = viscosity

Jan 1, 1949

By E. C. Mahan

THE text of my talk was suggested by the invita-tion of your secretary, who said that the excess productive capacity of the bituminous industry was a matter of common concern to engineers and coal operators. Cognizant of the depressed condition of the industry, he tactfully added that in common council we might find wisdom. Certainly it would seem that the application of the best engineering knowledge available would be helpful in solving mining problems. There is no doubt that clear thinking, characteristic of the engineering type of mind, is essential to untangle the shapeless pattern which increased complication, so often mistaken for progress, has developed. There is much thinking today which neither looks forward to a logical combination of ideas nor backward to simple fundamentals. The result of that sort of thinking is hopeless confusion. Lately we have heard much about excess capacity and overproduction, along with their attendant evils. Respecting the bituminous coal industry, these terms have been frequently misused. How many of us have seen them applied to the coal industry but how few of us have understood them. I am reminded of a state-ment which William Green, president of the American Federation of Labor and a former miner from the Ohio field, gave to the Associated Press last month, in which he was quoted as saying: "The coal men must realize that conditions have altered since the World War. To-day they are producing a billion tons a year, with a market for only half that tonnage." I cite this instance as a glaring example of the flood of. loose statements about the bituminous industry with which the public is being deluged. If the general public, or some of the newspapers, had any passion for the facts, this sort of misleading statement would not get very far. Unfor-tunately, in these days, opinions are more sought after than facts, and statements by such a person as Mr. Green and are promptly accepted by a credulous public.

Jan 4, 1928

By B. H. Bergstram, C. L. Sollenberger

When glass spheres are crushed by slow compression loading, the outer lune-shaped fragments resulting from the fracture consistently fly outward at high velocity. About 45 pct of the strain energy fed into the sphere-platen system reappears in the form of the kinetic energy possessed by these fragments. These measurements were obtained from high-speed photographs. This kinetic energy can be utilized for addtional comminution if the fragments are allowed to impact against a suitable structure. Comminution theory has advanced considerably in recent years by the study of this unit operation under laboratory conditions. Some of the parameters have been isolated, but the experimental measurements of the pertinent quantities, such as energy, particle size, etc., are still only made prior to and after the conclusion of a fracture sequence. The catastrophic fracture process itself has not been adequately studied from a comminution point of view. It has recently been suggested by Gilvarry that the fragments which result from the free crushing of a single glass sphere by slow compression contain a considerable amount of kinetic energy after fracture. This kinetic energy, if properly directed, possibly can be partially utilized to cause additional fracture. In this paper a hypothesis will be presented which suggests that this kinetic energy is necessarily present and that its dissipation is the process by which a large part of the thermal energy imparted to the crushed product is generated. Evidence supporting the existence of kinetic energy and its utilization for secondary fracture will also be presented. THEORETICAL A previous paper4 has shown that the load-deformation curve of a system composed of an elastic sphere gripped by a pair of parallel platens, can be predicted by a consideration of the theories of Hertz as summarized by Timoshenko.&apos; The deformation A, of one half of the system is given by which states that the deformation is a function of the mutually applied load, P, the radius of the sphere, R; and the respective physical properties of Poisson&apos;s ratio, v, and Young&apos;s modulus of elasticity, Y. The shape of experimental load-deformation curves conform to this relationship. The energy input to the sphere-platen system, can be predicted from the integral of the load acting through the appropriate distance, dA. Since dA can be evaluated in terms of P from the derivative of Eq. 1, this integral can be integrated between limits of 0 and P. The test sphere, however, is loaded at not one but at two points of contact, i.e., at both ends of a diameter, and hence the total energy input, E, is twice the energy input at each end, or The energy input to the system calculated from this equation corresponds to the energy computed from the measured area under the load-deformation curve. Timoshenko, considering the impact of two perfectly elastic spheres, has shown that the inter-penetration distance A is given by - m f (D (^ * ^t w as modified for the special case where one sphere is of infinite radius, i.e., its surface is a plane; where M is the mass of the finite sphere of radius R, and V is the velocity of approach at the start of an impact and also equals the final velocity of separation for perfectly elastic bodies. Because A is also a function of the load and the elastic properties, as shown in Eq. 1, the velocity, V, can also be calculated in terms of the elastic properties and maximum load, P, or

Jan 1, 1961

By AIME AIME

THE second blast furnace of the Azov steel mill was blown in on Feb. 17, says the Economic Review of the Soviet Union. This furnace, the 111th in the U. S. S. R., has a volume of 930 cubic meters, and a daily output of 775 tons of pig iron. The 1934 program at the Azov plant includes three 250-ton-open-hearth furnaces, two coke-oven batteries, a repair shop, mine and agglomeration plant at Gamysh-Burum, and two ports, one at the latter town and one at Mariupol. On Feb. 21 the sixth open-hearth furnace of the Stalinsk (Kuznetsk) mill started operations; on Feb. 12 the fourth open-hearth furnace at the Liebknecht mill at Dniepropetrovsk, produced its, first steel, 47 tons of high-grade boring steel. The fourth open-hearth furnace

Jan 1, 1934

By Thomas V. Falkie

These are exciting times for the coal mining community. Although the industry is in the middle of a healthy boom, there are strong forces tending to counteract or at least temper the rate of growth. There are many pushing and pulling factors of interest to mining people, and a few salient ones will be mentioned here. Primarily because of a tremendous demand for energy, a demand that can&apos;t be met by other fuels, the coal industry is in boomsville. Another contributing factor to this situation is the increased overseas demand for metallurgical coal. These demands are being counteracted by a lack of people, the lead-time required to develop new capacity and wildcat strikes, among other things.

Jan 1, 1971

By J. C. Kerkering, J. C. Franklin, T. O. Meyer, R. W. McKibbin

Abstract-A continuous survey of radon gas was made in two interconnecting stopes in a southwestern U. S. uranium mine to determine how the various phases of the mining cycle affected the radon concentration. The radon was monitored continuously with five detectors. One detector monitored the intake air, one the exhaust air, and three the stope air. The radon concentrations present during slushing, blasting, and exhaust fan shutoff were compared with concentrations on a nonwork day as a base level. Inside the stope, the radon concentration increased about 40% during slushing and 425% after blasting. Intake air radon increased 1600% and the stope air increased 550% while the surface exhaust fan was off.

Jan 6, 1978

It appears that Utah is about to add another mining district to its already impressive roster. This time it is the Great Salt Lake, whose high-mineral content waters are being subjected to intensive study aimed toward the recovery of potassium, magnesium and lithium compounds by solar evaporation techniques. Among the firms conducting such experiments is Lithium Corporation of America, which, in a joint venture with West Germany&apos;s Salzdetfurth A.G., is operating evaporating ponds and running engineering tests at a site near Little Mountain, about ten miles west of Ogden. Here, on the clay flats along the northern portion of the lake, LCA holds leases and options totalling about 55,000 acres in the Bear River Basin.

Jan 7, 1966

By J. C. Kerkering, J. C. Franklin, T. O. Meyer, R. W. McKibbin

A continuous survey of radon gas was made in two interconnecting stopes in a southwestern U. S. uranium mine to determine how the various phases of the mining cycle affected the radon concentration. The radon was monitored continuously with five detectors. One detector monitored the intake air, one the exhaust air, and three the stope air. The radon concentrations present during slushing, blasting, and exhaust fan shutoff were compared with concentrations on a nonwork day as a base level. Inside the stope, the radon concentration increased about 40% during slushing and 425% after blasting. Intake air radon increased 1600% and the stope air increased 550% while the surface exhaust fan was off.

Jan 1, 1979

By R. D. Gibbs, C. C. Taylor

The gas-lift, or circulation of gas for the production of crude oil, now includes the gas operator in field production activities to a greater extent than ever before. It is the purpose of this paper to show the scope of his activities and to discuss the various means of handling and treating the large quantities of gas which are now of a somewhat different nature than formerly. The extent of the stripping action of circulating gas on oil must be discussed, as this can be governed somewhat by the method of treatment of the recirculated gas. Change in Gas-decline Curve under Circulation Before the advent of the gas-lift, the gas-production curve of a field showed a peak during the flush production with a rapid decline as the wells were put on the pump and then a long steady decline curve of a relatively small volume of rich gas for the life of the field. Under the gas-lift method of production, instead of having the sharp decline at the end of the flush production period, sufficient circulating gas to keep up the required total gas-oil ratio would be turned to the wells. The gas-production curve then assumes a long gradual decline, giving a large volume of gas for treatment for several years to come. The gas-decline curve will not follow that of the oil, as the lowering of the rock pressure by the steady production of oil and gas from the sand will make it necessary to continue using the large tubing and to circulate large volumes of gas in order to keep the back-pressure against the sands as low as possible. A Complicated Distributing System In tracing the flow of the gas from the time it leaves the well until it again enters through the casinghead, under high pressure, we get a very good idea of the complex distributing and regulating system that must be installed and the large treating and compression plants that are necessary (see Fig. I). Gas traps must be large enough to efficiently separate large quantities of gas and oil and should be elevated sufficiently to enable the oil, if

Jan 1, 1928

By Bruce A. Kennedy

Lufthansa flight 497 roared down the runway and climbed rapidly through the early morning mist hanging over Pudahuel airport and the city of Santiago, Chile, into the brilliant sunlight above the clouds. As the plane banked onto course for Lima, Peru, we got what was possibly our last look at the beautiful snowclad mountains that ring Santiago. To the northeast was the massive hump of Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Southern Hemisphere, wreathed in clouds and virtually looming over Rio Blanco, the new mine put into production by Cerro de Pasco just one short year before. Almost a thousand miles to the north lay the massive open pits of Chuquicamata and Exotica, and a little closer to Santiago the El Salvador mine. Behind to the southeast, clinging to the steep slopes of the Andes, was the large and awe-inspiring El Teniente mine at Braden. These mines, once the bastions of such companies as Anaconda and Kennecott, had a new owner-the Government of Chile. On the plane were a number of people who had spent a large part of their lives in Chile operating these mines and plants, and who now were suddenly faced with the necessity of starting new lives somewhere else. To them, this was their last look at the country which not too long ago was their home, a bittersweet moment of reminiscence and a time for questioning what the future held.

Jan 1, 1971

By Dewey J. Sabin

THE Rio de Canada Honda placer property is situated at an altitude of 5500 ft. above sea level in the San Luis Mountains of the Province of San Luis, Argentina. The mine is reached by 70 km. of fair truck road, from the nearest railway station on the Ferrocarril Buenos Aires al Pacifico. The Pan-American airport at Villa Mercedes, 1.40 km. distant, serves as the most convenient point for shipment of gold. Placer mining in the Rio de Canada Honda dates from the time of the Incas and the present native population depends on the gold washed from this river and the adjacent arroyos as a means of livelihood as did the many generations before them. They dig pits to bedrock where they are not driven out by water, and mine the bedrock gravel by means of tunnels and caves. No timber is available and the ground is supported by rock cribs carefully built with the boulders encountered; or with angular blocks of slate rock taken from quarries on the surface.

Jan 1, 1936

By ALEC CROWELL

This brief summary of oil and gas developments in Alabama, Florida and Georgia has been made possible through the courtesy of Stewart J. Lloyd, Assistant State Geologist of Alabama; Herman Gunter, Director, Florida Geological Survey, and Garland Peyton, Director, Georgia Department of Mines, Mining and Geology.

Jan 1, 1946

By Alfred H. Brooks

Less than a decade ago the consumption of coal in Alaska was practically limited to the salmon canneries and the few ode-mines and settlements along the Pacific coast of the The-itory. The sparse population of the interior depended on the forests, that of the shores of Bering sea and the Arctic ocean on driftwood for fuel. All this has changed. The thousands, who have sought and mined gold on the Seward peninsula since 1898, have much impoverished the long-accumulated supply of driftwood, and at the same time the constantly increas-ng demand for fuel, on the part of the placer-camps and steamers, has resulted in heavy inroads being made on the accessible timber of the Yukon and its tributaries. While, on the one hand, the immediately available store of wood has decreased, on the other, the consumption of fuel because of the rapid expansion of the mining and fishery industries, and the attendant growth of population has much in-creased. Alaska, therefore, offers a constantly growing market or coal and other fuels. As the local coal-production has been nsignificant, the demand has been met by importations from Washington, British Columbia, and even from Pennsylvania and Australia. Fuel- Consumption. Mr. D. H. Jarvis, Collector for Alaska, has kept systematic records of the trade of the Territory since 1903. The statis-ics of the coal-importations of the past two years are shown n Table I. If data were available for a longer period of years, he increase of coal-importations would be much more striking.

Jan 1, 1906

By L. P. Teas

As sphalerite is such a common constituent of many types of ore, the present investigation was undertaken to determine what its relations are to the other minerals in the deposits, and also whether these are of any genetic significance. The data presented herewith were obtained from a mineralographic study of about 200 ore specimens from some 43 different localities, represented by suites of specimens in the Cornell University collection. These, grouped according to their genesis, were as follows: I. Contact-Metamorphic Deposits.-Silver City, N. M.; Kelly, N. M.; Silver Bell, Ariz.; Bingham, Utah; Agaguca, Michoacan, Mex.; Matehuala, Mex.; Sombreretti mine, Mex. II. Deep-Vein Zone Deposits.-Mineral, Louisa Co., Va.; Edwards, N. Y.; Chestnut Yard, Va.; Allah Cooper mine, Louisa Co., Va.; Globe, Ariz.; Moyie, B. C.; Rossland, B. C.; Broken Hill, N.S.W.; Weedon, Que.1 III. Intermediate-Vein Zone.-Park City, Utah; Leadville, Colo.; Butte, Mont.; Santa Barbara, Mex.; Red Cliff, Colo.; Burro Mountains, N. M.; Idaho Springs, Colo.; Blue River, Ore.; Rye, Colo.;1 Slocan district, B. C.; Freiberg, Ger.; Clausthal, Ger: IV. Shallow-Vein Zone.-Ouray, Colo.; Goldfield, Nev., Zacatecas, Mex.; Field, B. C.; Kapnik, Austria; Frontenac mine, Kingston, Ont. V. Meteoric Water Deposits.-Joplin, Mo.; Southwest, Wis.; Austinville, Va.; Crittenden County, Ky.; Ridgeburg, Pa.; Moresnet, Belgium. It is not supposed that the investigation of such a limited number of occurrences may warrant conclusive and universal generalizations, but the conclusions reached are believed to be reliable in so far as the specimens, that were examined are concerned.

Jan 11, 1917

By A. R. Jr. Amos

LOG washers have been used for many years in the washing of clay iron ores, phosphate rock and manganese ores, but not until the past 15 years have they been employed to any extent in the preparation of aggregate materials and fluxing stone. For a machine of such importance where tenacious clay or soft rock must be eliminated, there are few data generally available. The purpose of this paper is to set forth the results obtained from several operations, together with a few suggestions for planning a specific installation. Where the material to be washed out consists of loose surface soil, silt, or small amounts of quickly soluble clay, there is little competition with other forms of washers, because greater power and maintenance are required for the operation of log washers, but where the foreign matter is a stiff clay, such as occurs with high-calcium limestones and in marginal gravel deposits, the ability of other kinds of washers to eliminate com-pletely the hard clay balls is at least uncertain. Then the log washer comes into its own field, for with the breaking and churning action of the logs it will clean out the toughest clay. Even with material from the hydraulic dredge, if it contains tough clay, the log washer is desirable unless the gravel is subjected to a costly soaking and rehandling process. Recently there has been a considerable development in other types of machines to accomplish these results but it is not within the scope of this paper to make comparisons between competitive types, but to present the best obtainable data on log washers only. From the primitive design that gave it its name, a long log hewn from a tree, with paddles forged to shape from strap iron and attached by lag screws, the log washer has gradually been developed to the present all-steel type. As now manufactured, the log washer consists essentially of two built-up logs on which are mounted a series of paddles, carried by shafts fitted at the ends of the logs on bearings fastened outside the enclosing steel box, or trough, which is set at an angle of about 5° to 10° and into which the material is fed. Stuffing boxes at the places where the shafts pass through the box at the lower end are equipped with water-

Jan 1, 1936

By W. H. Forbes

As permissible explosives and electric detonators are now generally recognized as the only safe means of blasting in coal mines, this paper is limited to their use. Causes of Misfires There are many different causes of misfires, but the principal ones are as follows: 1. Explosives which have deteriorated through improper storage either at the storage magazine, the distributing magazine, or at the working face. This is not only true of the explosive itself, but also of its detonating agent. 2. Improper priming and charging at the working face. This commonly occurs when the explosives are handled by inexperienced persons. 3. Improper methods of tamping; the leg wires of the detonator may be abraded or broken by the tamping bar or stick, thereby causing a short or broken circuit. 4. Faulty leading wire, or electrical apparatus of insufficient strength to explode the detonator. Prevention of Misfires Storage is an important factor, especially with permissibles of a nitrate or ammonia base. Both explosives and detonators should be stored in substantially built, fire-resisting magazines and should be situated so that the minimum amount of moisture and heat is present. They should be so constructed that a constant supply of fresh air enters; the floor of the magazine should be raised to permit the circulation of air under the stored explosives. Boxes should be stored top side up and in such a manner that the old explosives are used before those of a later delivery. This eliminates chance of deterioration from lengthy storage. Detonators should be similarly handled and stored. The distributing magazine stock should be regulated so that not more than one day&apos;s supply is on hand.

Jan 1, 1930

By O. P. Hood

None of the methods now in use for the transportation of materials underground is entirely free from more or less serious objection.

Jan 1, 1915

By William E. Ford, Edward Salisbury Dana

THIS Appendix contains a series of tables, more or leas complete, of minerals arranged according to chemical composition or to certain prominent crystallograhic or physical characters. These, it is believed, will be of service not only to the student, but ago to the skilled mineralogist. The type used in the printing of the mineral names indicates their relative importance. Table I is a complete list of the species named in this book arranged fist according to the prominent basic elements which they contain and secondly according to their acid radicals. Table II is of Minerals arranged according to their System of Crystallization The other tablets make no claim to completeness, being limited often to common ah important species. For an exhaustive system of Determinative Tables based particularly upon blowpipe and chemical characters, the student is referred to the work of Professors Brush and Pen- field, mentioned on p. 330.

Jan 1, 1922