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By F. H. Parsons

At the time that converting or bessemerizing of copper matte first began to be practiced by the smelters in the copper industry, converters were lined by tamping the flux, usually siliceous ore, into the steel shell. About 1910, practice in several plants had demonstrated the superiority of a basic lining of nonfluxing material and the addition of flux through the mouth of the converter. Adoption of the new method by nearly the entire industry followed. Basic linings are made of refractory "magnesite" brick manufactured, usually, from imported dead-burned magnesite. Either the linings are laid up in the shell dry or the bricks arc bonded with some mortar dictated by the preference of the user. Foreign, usually Austrian, magnesite was the main source of supply for these bricks, although there were domestic sources, but it was not until costs began to rise a few years after the first use of basic linings that these domestic sources were investigated to any great extent. Exigencies created by the World War necessitated the use of the domestic magnesite during this period, but the brick manufacturers reverted to the use of the foreign product after the war, because the impurities therein made a brick with a better fire bond than the purer domestic magnesite. Therefore the domestic product became available at a favorable price for any metallurgical process that permitted its use. The United Verde converting practice using magnesite linings has resulted in a high consumption of magnesite because of the zinc content of the low-grade matte. It was realized that the cost of these linings represented a large portion of the cost of converting, and an investigation was started to find means by which these costs might be lowered. In the neighboring state of California rather pure magnesite was being mined and treated for the market. The product, however, was purposely made to simulate the dead-burned grain magnesite product from foreign sources by the addition of fluxing impurities before burning. It was learned that this dead-burned California grain magnesite could be laid down in Arizona at a price one-third that of the same tonnage of "magnesite" brick manufactured from foreign magnesite. It was also learned that at least one California producer was ready to supply the market with periclase, which was a grain magnesia produced by burning the

Jan 1, 1934

[NOTE.-The names of authors of papers are printed in small capitals, and the titles of papers, in italics. Casual notices, giving but little information, are indicated by bracketed page numbers. Large Roman numerals are volume numbers; small Roman numerals after volume numbers following titles indicate the page on which the presentation of the paper is mentioned; Arabic figures refer to the text of the printed papers.] A Use Classification of Coal, (ASHLEY) LXII [xiv]; LXIII, 782; Discussion: (HALL), 794; (ZERN) , 795; (ASHLEY), 795 Absorbent material, liquid-oxygen explosives, LXXI, 1251. Absorbents for liquid-oxygen explosives, LXIX, 292, 299. Absorption : cupellation : gold, special cupels, LIX, 194. primary and secondary, LIX, 213. ratio of silver to gold, LIX, 212. silver, specla1 cupels, LIX, 195. Absorption method, gasoline from natural gas, LIX, 584, 585. Absorptzon of Sulfur from Producer Gas zn Open-hearth Furnaces (NEAD), LXX, 176; Discussion: ( WATERHOUSE), 184 ; (REYNDERS) , 184; (KINNEY), 184 Accelerated wearing tests, bearing metals, LXIX, 973. Accident prevention, results, Utah, LXVIII, 360 Accident Prevention, 1919 (SINN), LXIII, [xiii] Accidents: causes in coal mines, LXXI, 1229. classification, Anaconda Copper Mining Co., LXVIII, 9. coal mining: comparison with metal mining, LXVIII, 360. pillar mining, LXVIII, 323. relation to method, LXVIII, 323 shafts, LXVIII, 207, 209 Utah, LXVIII, 363 - concentrating mills, Utah, LXVIII, 362 liquid-oxygen explosives, LXIX, 330, 339 losses through, LVIII, 65 metal mining, LXVIII, 361, 363. mine: causes, LIX, 652. curve of decrease, LIX, 655 days of greatest frequency, LIX, 657 human element as cause, LIX, 652, 653. intemperance as cause, LIX, 658 labor relation, LIX, 652 prevention, LIX, 653. record, New Jersey Zinc Co., Franklin mine, LIX, 655 time of greatest frequency, LIX, 657, 658 Utah, LXVIII, 360 prevention, LVIII, 65 report blanks, Anaconda Copper Mining Co, LXVIII, 13, 15. statistical base, Anaconda Copper Mining Co, LXVIII, 9 time lost, LVIII, 70 transportation, Clifton-Morenci district, LXX, 851.

Jan 1, 1926

By AIME AIME

JOHN HUNTER NEAD, chief metallurgist of the Inland Steel Co., Chairman of the Iron and Steel Division for 1939, a native of Missouri and graduate of the University of Michigan, first taught chemistry after graduating from college and then decided to follow the field of his college specialization and be a metallurgist. In succession he was associated with the H. H. Franklin Co., Syracuse, N. Y., the Watertown Arsenal, the Racine Steel Castings Co., and the Minneapolis Steel and Machinery Co. During the World War he held a commission as Captain in the Ordnance Department and served both overseas and on the technical staff in Washington. Returning to civilian life, Hunter Nead was research metallurgist and then chief metallurgist of the American Rolling Mill Co. from 1919 until 1931, when he went to his present position with Inland.

Jan 1, 1939

By Paul H. Rydlund

Substantial priming was a considered necessity for proper initiation of ammonium nitrate-fuel oil mixes as ANFO began to carve its niche in the mining industry in the latter fifties. Heavy priming accompanied the introduction of prills and oil to many blasting operations, large charges of high explosives were commonly used at the bottom, top and frequent intervals throughout the column. As the quality of ammonium nitrate improved and operators became more experienced, primer costs began to diminish. Increased experimentation continued with reduced primer costs a main objective. Cast primers were introduced and became accepted as an excellent companion for ANFO. Although the trend toward larger diameter boreholes became increasingly popular, emphasis on lower and lower priming costs continued. A primer was simply required to produce any type of initiation within the ANFO column to be considered adequate. Suddenly ANFO priming had digressed from excessive to marginal. Early experimental data from test site and laboratory indicated that ANFO had a tendency to react inefficiently in the initiation region of the column unless substantially primed. This was evidenced by the presence of unstable reaction rates detected with newly developed detonation velocity measuring equipment. These low order or "transient" velocities were believed to originate because of inadequate primer strength or a primer diameter to column diameter mismatch. However, the nature of this experimental work was generally confined to small diameter column charges detonated in iron pipe simulated bore-holes. It was questionable whether the smaller scale laboratory data was applicable to large 12 1/4 and 15-in. boreholes.

Jan 3, 1973

The North American Coal Corp. Increasing demand for coal, stimulated by the national energy shortage, and complicating and often conflicting, demands by government and ecology groups for better land reclamation methods continued to propel advances in surface mining technology during 1974. To meet current demands for coal (estimated at more than 700 million t for 1975 and 1.5 billion t in 19851, equipment manufacturers and coal operators concentrated on increasing the productivity of all surface mining equipment. The trend towards larger equipment, particularly in overburden removal, loading, and haulage machinery, prevailed during the year, notwithstanding the perennial debate over the economics and practicality of using large, inflexible equipment. Increasingly, the industry called on computers to monitor productivity and help design more efficient production systems

Jan 2, 1975

By AIME AIME

FROM birth, Charles Camsell's life has typified everything that leads a boy, imbued with the spirit of adventure, to decide to become a geologist or mining engineer. His father was a chief factor of the Hudson's Bay Co. when Charles was born at Fort Laird, in the south-western corner of Canada's North West Territories, 63 years ago. At eighteen he had a B.A. from Manitoba University, and the next 25 years he spent pioneering in geological exploration in the Canadian Northwest -Mackenzie River, Great Slave Lake, Great Bear Lake, Coppermine River, Moose River, Peace River, the Athabaska country. At that time the region was largely unmapped and really wild, with occasional Hudson's Bay posts the only oases of civilization.

Jan 1, 1939

By J. S. FINLAY

OPERATING a "muck stick" never appealed to me. It always seemed a terrible waste of energy to "put rocks in the box" by hand-particularly when my own personal energy was involved. But during the past forty years, there have been periods-more or less extended when I was compelled, against my finer instincts, to muck or quit eating. For about the same length of time, I have devised schemes to make mucking faster and more painless. There was always something mechanically wrong with these designs-too many;" parts to wear out and need replacement, and excessive cost incidental to a complicated mechanism. The idea of a shovel unit comprised of a single, rigid assembly which would roll from a digging to dumping position solved the problem of simplicity and durability. Ingersoll-Rand's utility engine provided a splendid power plant, small enough and powerful enough for the job. In the machine finally developed, known as the Eimco-Finlay loader, roller chains are preferred to gears for power trans-

Jan 1, 1935

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

Inflation, fuel shortages, environmental restrictions, and a worldwide recession that sharply curtailed the demand for goods and services, were the main causes for the poor performance & virtually all industrial minerals in 1975. This poor showing was not a surprise. As Felix Shay correctly predicted in his introductory remarks to last year's industrial Minerals Review (ME, Feb. 1975, p. 70), ". . . the minerals industry will soon be facing falling demand as a consequence of sharp declines in auto production, housing, appliances, and other consumer goods. Moreover, when sales weaken. the high-volume, low-priced industrial minerals will incur sharply.

Jan 3, 1976

By AIME

HAPPILY, a large group of the non-ferrous fraternity have long valued a personal association with the new Chairman of the Institute of Metals Division. Many others who will meet him, either officially or unofficially this year, will find themselves sharing the enthusiasm with which he has been welcomed to his new office. Albert A. Smith, Jr., was born at Butler, N. J., on Dec. 28, 1904, and moved to New Haven in time to initiate his preparation for Yale University on the home grounds. After receiving a B.S. degree cum laude in 1926, he stayed on for graduate work at the Hammond Laboratory under C. H. Mathewson, and was awarded an M.S. degree in 1928.

Jan 1, 1948

At Asarco's Mission mill. located near Sahuarita, Ariz., the 20 500-t/d (22,500-stpd) throughput of highly abrasive and corrosive copper ore can play havoc on equipment wear parts. To minimize frequent replacement work and extend life on key components, Asarco engineers have over the past five years utilized liners made of "Towniprene" in the secondary grinding and flotation area of the plant. Results to date have indicated that these liners last between three and five times longer than those made of metal or ordinary rubber.

Jan 8, 1978

By A. A. Berk

LAGGING technology and the slow spread of in- formation have been the chief obstacles to wide- spread participation in minimizing the industrial pollution load. These obstacles can be conquered by fact finding and applied research. There are three aspects to the problem of waterborne mineral waste: to minimize the amount being thrown away, to select a predisposal treatment, and to use the products or dispose of them.

Jan 7, 1957

By Douglas R. Piteau, Dennis C. Martin

Instability of rock slopes may occur by failure along pre- existing structural discontinuities, by failure through intact material or by failure along a surface formed partly along discontinuities and partly through intact material. Although certain fundamental failure modes are recognized, the mechanisms of slope failure are varied and complex. Such mechanisms are governed by the engineering geology conditions of the rock mass, which are almost always unique to a particular site. An understanding of failure mechanisms requires a knowledge of the physical, mechanical and strength properties of the intact material and discontinuities which make up the rock mass, as well as the structural geology and hydrogeology. These engineering geology parameters also must be evaluated with respect to the slope geometry to determine failures which are kinematically possible. Only after obtaining a reasonable appreciation of the possible failure modes can a rational mechanical stability analysis be carried out. Both two-dimensional and three-dimensional failure mechanisms should be considered in assessing the design of rock slopes. Simple analyses methods are used initially to identify those possible failures which could control slope stability. More complex and detailed analyses usually are required for a few critical failure modes which could control stability, or where a more complex type of failure mechanism is envisaged. Complex failure mechanisms are usually identified when assessing previous slope failures. More detailed information concerning slope geometry and engineering geology parameters must be acquired where analyses must be more rigorous.

Jan 1, 1983

By Gene Long

10.4-1. Load Design and Construction. Surface mine haulage roads are used for transporting raw products to the mine site, preparation plant, or loading facilities, and to provide personnel and equipment an access to the pits and mine area. All of the aspects of highway engineering, including minimum slope inclines, properly banked curves, and adequate drainage, must be followed to facilitate construction of safe and efficient haulage roads for fast and economical transportation of the mined product to its destination. By maintaining good haulage roads, both truck and equipment maintenance will be kept to a minimum, resulting in reduced mining costs and subsequently higher profits. [ ] There are several basic considerations in haulage road planning. Most important, one must follow all safety procedures in both design and construction of the roadway. A maximum effort should be made to follow current mining plans when laying out and planning haulage roads (aerial photographs can be extremely useful in planning and routing of roadways). Grades, road widths, and curves must be maintained within limits of present and/or planned haulage equipment specifications, since all these factors can limit speed, and hence production (Table 10.4-1). Grades in most mining operations are adverse (against the loaded haul), which increases haul cost per mile. Operators must balance these increased

Jan 1, 1968

By J. A. Ryder

TRANSIM II is a general purpose mining-oriented transport simulation program. It features the accurate modelling of locomotive tramming systems involving interferences and queue build- ups, as well as inter-level transport facilities linking bunkers of finite capacity. Features of the program are described, and a number of practical applications briefly reviewed including studies of optimal train capacities, pulling schedules, tip and bunker capacities, and operation of simple traffic-light systems.

Jan 1, 1977

By Mason K. Banks

A process has been developed which produces spodumene concentrates assaying 6.0 pct Li20 and 0.45 pct Fe203, with 70 to 75 pct recovery of spodumene. Two flotation separations are required: the simultaneous removal of mica, feldspar, and quartz as a froth product using a cationic collector, and the subsequent removal of iron-bearing minerals as a froth product while spodumene is depressed as a tailing.

Jan 2, 1953

RECORDING that the latest annual meeting was the largest and most successful ever held has be-come almost a habit, but when, as this year, the registration on the first day exceeded any other first day by two hundred, the annual dinner attracted nearly 1200, as compared with 750 at the previous largest one, and the number of technical sessions was larger than ever before, there seems no escape from so regarding it. In spite of the third day being a legal holiday (Washington's Birthday) no slackening, in attendance and interest was noted, and throughout the four days the greatest problem was to find enough meeting rooms and chairs to provide for the sessions, of which as many as twelve were in progress at one time. Solution of the problem would not have been possible (since the Engi-neering Societies building, was designed to provide only three general meeting rooms) except that a part of the eighth floor happened to be temporarily vacant. As these extra rooms will not be available next year, it may become necessary to adopt measures to keep the annual meeting down to the limit of facilities for handling it. The meeting opened on Monday with simultaneous sessions on iron and steel, geophysical prospecting, mine ventilation, non-metallic minerals, and milling, methods. The first four, which were continued after the usual recess for lunch, are reported in more detail elsewhere.

Jan 3, 1928

By Victor Homerberg

A STUDY of the correlation of the mechanical properties, and of the microstructure with the heat treatment of 60-40 brass has been confined, heretofore, to the rolled or extruded material as received from the manufacturer. The results obtained by Babson and Buhler,1 Bengough and Hudson,2 Stead and Stedman,3 and Brayton4 have been confined to the treatment of the material as received. No attempt was made to get the material into a given condition and then to work from this basis. To start with a given structure would have the decided advantage of making the work independent of the original condition, hence, to make the results reproduceable. In a previous paper, it was shown, in connection with the study of the transformation that occurs at about 470° C., that if specimens were quenched to produce the beta structure and then reheated, the beta would begin to break down, at approximately 200° C., into a very finely divided alpha. It was predicted that important results might be obtained if test pieces were to be given a similar double heat treatment and then tested for the mechanical properties as well as a study of the microstructure. The material used in the present investigation was a ¾ -in. round bar of extruded muntz metal of the following composition: Copper, 61.05 per cent.; zinc (by difference), 38.90 per cent.; lead, 0.05 per cent.; iron, trace; tin, nil.

Jan 3, 1924

Oct. 8-13, 1917 The St. Louis Meeting of the Institute will be held Oct. 8-13, 1.917. Various committees are being organized to perfect the arrangements for the meeting. A number of excellent technical papers have already been secured end an attractive series of excursions has been outlined. The following is the outline plan for the meeting. More detailed announcements will be made as the plans mature. MONDAY, OCT. 8 Morning: Registration and Technical Session. Afternoon: Boat ride to Herculaneum, Mo., to visit smelter. and Evening: Dinner on boat and social evening.

Jan 4, 1917

By J. E. Schiller, S. E. Khalafalla

Due to its unique surface properties, magnesium oxide (MgO) is an excellent medium to filter asbestos and other suspended solids from water. MgO operates up to twice as long as a sand filter before backwashing is required while flow rate and filtrate clarity are as good or better with MgO.

Jan 1, 1984