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By Harold J. Bennett

This report deals with the processing and marketing of iron and steal scrap in the intermountain States of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming and the northwestern Plains States of Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The quantity and quality of iron and steel scrap consumed in both the steel mills and iron foundries in these States in 1964 were decided by (1) the type of facilities used to produce an end product; (2) the availability of a dependable source of iron and steel scrap at competitive prices; and (3) the, ratio of the cost of iron in iron ore to iron in scrap. In recent years the quantity of scrap used per ton of steel ingot produced has decreased. The major individual. consumers of iron and steel scrap were the steel mills in Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, foundries in Utah and Arizona, and copper leaching, operations in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. About 2 million tons of iron and steel scrap was used by the iron and steel industry in 1964. Although there has been a decline in the amount of scrap used per ton of steel ingot produced because of changes in steelmaking methods, there has been a slight increase in the overall quantity of scrap used because of the increase in ingot production. It is estimated that the scrap consumption in the steel industry will increase by 19 percent by 1980. In addition to the scrap consumed by the steel industry, 273,000 tons of ferrous scrap were used by copper-leaching operations. Thirty-one percent of the ferrous scrap used by the steel industry in 1964 was purchased from dealers and other sources. The CF&I Steel Corp. (formerly The Colorado Fuel and Iron Corp.) at Pueblo, Colo., complemented its blast- and open-hearth-furnace operations with basic-oxygen converters in 1962. The basic-oxygen and open-hearth furnaces were charged with 30 and 90 percent scrap, respectively. Future use of the open-hearths would probably be used to supplement ingot production requirements. Because it was more economical to use less scrap and a high molten-metal charge, the United States Steel Corp. at Geneva, Utah, which uses the open-hearth process to make steel, charges the furnaces with 25 to 35 percent scrap. The Allison Steel Manufacturing Co. at Tempe, Ariz., uses a 100 percent scrap charge in its electric furnace. Although it was estimated that there were 327,000 tons of various grades of motor vehicle scrap generated in 1963, no estimates were made concerning the total quantity and grade of scrap available in the area. Most of the scrap used in the steelmaking industry originated within the area. It was advantageous to sell scrap generated in eastern Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota to markets in the Midwest because of freight costs.

Jan 1, 1967

By Michael Hamilton

Mineral resources have been identified at seven properties in the, Middle Fork Judith study area (fig. 1, and table 1). Commodities consist of silver, gold, copper, lead, zinc, and marble. Eleven properties (fig. 1 and table 2) have potential for discovery of silver, copper, lead, zinc, or sapphire resources. Of principle interest are the mineral deposits within contact zones between the Yogo intrusive complex and the surrounding Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. Contact alteration zones along the southern slopes of Yogo Peak have been prospected in a 2- to 3-mi (3.2-to 4.8 -km) long belt within the study area.

Jan 1, 1982

By L. J. Douglas, A. G. Kim

Methane and other hydrocarbon gases, byproducts of coalification, are emitted from coal at widely varying rates and often present ventilation problems during mining. The air in some coal mines apparently contains no methane. To determine if coals from mines which had no history of detectable gas emission contained adsorbed methane, samples of coal at the shaft bottom and at an active face were obtained and placed in sealed metal cylinders. The atmosphere around the coal was sampled and analysed by gas chromatography. Methane, ethane, ethylene, propane, propylene, and butane were found to have been desorbed from these coals. Hydrogen and helium were also detected. An estimate of the amount of residual gas per ton of coal indicated that coal samples from the active face generally contained more adsorbed gas than coal samples obtained from the shaft bottom, although in both instances the total amount of gas was relatively small.

Jan 1, 1973

By Ronald F. Balazik

[This Bureau of Mines study is intended to identify and evaluate potential effects of impending large-scale U. S. rail line closings (abandonment) on domestic nonfuel mineral industries. This is the first nationwide study of rail abandonment impacts focused on nonfuel minerals. The analyses presented is based principally on a survey of 200 rail freight records and on statistical tests that correlated 2,000 points in the Bureau's Mines Industry Location System (MILS) with 700 prospective abandonments throughout the United States. The conclusions derived from the analysis can be useful in evaluating proposed national rail abandonment policy rind legislation regarding nonfuel miner it shipping. Among these conclusions are the following: (1) Certain mineral materials (especially fertilizers) are likely to account for a large percentage of the rail traffic affected by abandonment in the next few years, but the total tonnage- involved will be small; (2) abandonment will adversely affect some mineral shippers, particularly local smart haulers; and (3 abandonment could significance reduce the opportunity to develop new resources or reopen defunct mining facilities. Despite these problems, however, the data examined in this study do not indicate that current abandonment trends will cause widespread disruption 01 domestic nonfuel mineral shipping.]

Jan 1, 1980

By Peter F. Steidl

As part of the Bureau of Mines methane control program, the Upper Free-port coalbed was studied in Fayette County, Pa., where this coalbed lies about 650 feet below the Pittsburgh coalbed and contains the largest remaining reserves of any coalbed in the county. Its estimated recoverable reserves in Fayette County are between 670 and 800 million tons. Coal and overburden isopachs, structure and joint pattern maps, and a fence diagram were prepared using data from gas and oil exploration logs and coal outcrops. These maps will aid in determining the need and/or feasibility of degasifying the Upper Freeport coalbed in the study area. Much of the coalbed in this area is under 600 to 1,400 feet of overburden. By correlation with data from the Pittsburgh coalbed, the gas content at depths of this order is estimated to be between 140 to 300 cf/ton of coal.

Jan 1, 1977

By P. W. Jeran, M. C. Irani, D. H. Lawhead

The Beckley mine is one of five new mines in a heretofore unmined portion of the Beckley coalbed. The remoteness of these new mines from prior mining and their greater overburden preclude applying methane emission experience obtained in the old mines. Four sections of the Beckley mine were monitored. The data gathered show that variations in methane emission cannot be explained by variations in coal production. Although overburdens varied by as much as 30 pct, no correlation with methane emissions could be determined. The rib emissions increase with increased length of rib from a section advancing into virgin coal and do not decline over a prolonged idle period (32 days) whereas some decline has been measured for a section not mining into virgin coal. The indication is that degasification prior to mining will reduce the hazard of methane emissions in this area of the Beckley coalbed.

Jan 1, 1977

In 2005, a total of 739 nonmetal mining operations reported employment to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). These mines (e.g., potash, gypsum, salt) comprised 5.0% of all operations. ? Mines producing common clay comprised 26.9% (n=199) of all nonmetal mining operations. ? Nonmetal mining operations were located in all states and territories except Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

Jan 1, 2008

By Robert E. Wood

[The temperature dependency of the low-density thermal conductivity coefficients, ?°T, of nitrogen, 100° to 1,200° K, is correlated with the Keyes' equation, ?T ½ -1 -12/T) WT = aT+ bT 10 The equation ?T,P = ?°T +a[ ]ß represented 509 experimental higher V pressure thermal conductivities in the temperature range 131.2° to 973.15° K for pressures to 500 atmospheres, with a mean absolute deviation of 2.35 percent. This equation was used to compute thermal conductivities of gaseous nitrogen for 47 pressures, 1 to 240 atmospheres, and 110 temperatures, 133° to 740° K, which are common to conditions encountered in Bureau of Mines helium purification processes. Isobaric heat capacities, CP, and viscosities, ?T,P, from previous work were combined with the present thermal conductivities, ?T,P, to compute Prandl1 numbers, C?T P / ?T ,P, of nitrogen. Tabular values of Prandtl num¬bers are presented for 49 pressures, 1 to 240 atmospheres, and 75 temperatures, 133° to 740° K. Estimated uncertainties are ±5 percent in the tabulated thermal conductivities and ±15 percent for the computed Prandtl numbers. However, the uncertainty may rise to ±10 percent for thermal conductivities and to ±30 percent for Prandtl numbers as the critical conditions of nitrogen are approached.]

Jan 1, 1971

MFIRE is a computer simulation program that performs normal ventilation network planning calculations, and dynamic transient state simulation of ventilation networks under a variety of conditions. The program is useful for the analysis of ventilation networks under thermal and mechanical influence. MFIRE simulates a mine's ventilation system and its response to altered ventilation parameters, external influences such as temperatures, and internal influences such as fires. Extensive output enables detailed quantitative analysis of the effects of the proposed alteration to the ventilation system Network simulation using digital computers has become widespread throughout the mining industry in recent years. However, as the sophistication of the simulator increases (MFIRE, for example), the complexity of input data requirements and interpretations of results requires more skill and knowledge from the users. Perhaps the most difficult part of using MFIRE is to construct the data set describing the mine's physical layout and its ventilation properties. The initial attempts to get the data set running often reveal unknown or ignored aspects of the mine's ventilation. MFIRE was written in Fortran 77 and compiled with Microway1 Fortran for the Intel 80386 based computers with a 80387 math co-processor. The source code is portable and available for users who wish to modify the source code to operate on other computers. This user manual describes the development of MFIRE, the input format and requirements, the output, common errors, fire parameters, and examples MFIRE application. Valuable reference material is included in the appendices. Knowledgeable users may skip directly to the PROGRAM INSTALLATION AND OPERATION section to begin using MFIRE immediately.

Jan 1, 1995

By B. W. Gandrud

In 1927 Coghill showed that there is considerable liberation of the iron oxide mineral from gangue when the Alabama red iron ores are ground to a size suitable for classification and tabling but that there is not sufficient to make possible a high extraction and a high grade of concentrate. Coghill states: High extraction and 'high grade of concentrate cannot be obtained without grinding to a size comparable with flotation or cyanide practice. If grade of concentrate be sacrificed the grinding need not be so severe. These ores slime readily during grinding, and in most instances the slimes are only slightly higher grade than the original ore. Not only do they carry a considerable percentage of the total iron in the ore, so that to reject them as tailings would result in prohibitively low extraction, but they are too fine to be amenable to ordinary methods of gravity concentration. In 1929 the Bureau of Mines published results showing that certain Alabama oolitic iron ores could be concentrated by classification and tabling after grinding, with rubber-covered rods. This selective grinding produced slimes of much higher grade than the original ore, and they were considered part of the final concentrate.

Jan 1, 1934

By Raymond B. Ladoo

Cne of t·: . .:: i::,portt recent developrr.ents in the feldspar industcy l:.a.s beer. tl:.e r,:ipid. rise of Ne·N H.v-:psr.ire as a. feldspar producing State. Tl:.e unusual size and purity of t: e deposit now 'being worked ne3.r Keene, and tr.a i.nproved metl:.ods ot:' rr.ining srd ir,illing used l:.ave been responsible foe tt.is situation. ti'eldsp'.:l. w'ls occ':tsiona.lly produced sorr.e ye1rs ago in srr.a.ll (tuantities in New Hrunpshi :e, but t::.e State had not been considered a producer of" feldspar ui til lS3l. In the s::ring of tr .. at yea!', t:.e '[eane iic Products co. of Keene, N.H., beg3Il in a srr.9.ll way tl:e production of feldspar fro:n t1eir property in Gilsum, H.H., whicr. l-.a.d long been opera.tei a.s a :tl.ca mine. The purity of the feldspar at enoe '\ttracted f''.lvorai)le attention. and tt.e production of crude ore rapidly in­ cre'.\sed. Early in 1922, a new company, t'he Golding-Keene Co,

Sep 1, 1922

This report includes a short history of uranium and its uses, mineralogy of common uranium minerals, and information on the use of electronic prospecting equipment and tests for detecting the presence of uranium. Details are given on geologically favorable areas and formations and practical methods of prospecting. Some information is given on the staking of claims, what lands are open to prospecting, and methods of securing mining rights. A forecast of the economic outlook for uranium is included. Appendixes give sources of additional information and a list of libraries where unclassified Atomic Energy Commission reports may be consulted. Because the increasing use of uranium by industry has revived interest in prospecting and exploration for this element, the Bureau of Mines has issued this report, which brings up to date and expands the subject matter of a hand- book on uranium exploration and production published in 1956.l

Jan 1, 1968

By J. J. Forbes

The investigation of major and minor coal-mine disasters has been a routine function of the Bureau of Mines since its inception in 1910, and the facts obtained during such investigations have been used as a basis for determining the precautions that the personnel of many mines are observing to prevent similar occurrences, The Bureau has conducted extensive research on roof-control problems, but a comprehensive study of fatal roof-fall accidents was not attempted until February 10, 1950, when the policy of investigating all coal-mine fatalities was approved by Bureau of Mines Director James Boyd. The investigations are being conducted by Federal coal-mine inspectors functioning under the provisions of the Coal Mine Inspection and Investigation Act of May 1941, Public Law 49, and reports covering the investigations are distributed to management, the State mine inspection agency, and representatives of the mine workers organization having jurisdiction at the mine. SCOPE AND PURPOSE OF STUDY This study covers the Federal investigation of 263 of the 315 fatalities from falls of roof, face, or rib that were charged to the bituminous-coal industry during the calender year 1950. The number of roof-fall fatalities investigated is recorded by States in table 1.

Jan 1, 1951

By M. J. Kovalik

Illinois No.6, a high-volatile B coal of low fluidity, was blended with fluidized-bed char and coke breeze to improve the strength of the coke obtained from carbonizing this coal. Twenty-one tests, selected from those made in the small-scale Hanson carbonizer, were carbonized in the BM-AGA 13-inch-diameter, cylindrical retort, with a coal charge of about 90 pounds; the strength of the cokes was determined by the standard ASTM tumbler test. Using the same procedure, 10 tests were made with High Splint, a high-volatile A coal from Harlan County, Ky. Carbonization of the blends produced larger and stronger cokes than did the Illinois No.6 coal singly. The optimum blend contained 6 percent each of char and coke breeze. Further improvement in coke strength was realized by either preheating this blend prior to carbonization or by adding a small pro-portion of a premium blending coal. The former method could possibly eliminate the use of premium coking coals in blends with Illinois No. 6 coal to make an acceptable metallurgical coke. Except for no improvement in coke strength by preheating, results for High Splint coal showed behavior similar to that of the Illinois No.6 coal.

Jan 1, 1973

By Dennis R. Dolinar, Gabriel S. Esterhuizen

In this National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) investigation, numerical modeling is used to evaluate the degree the pillar strength is increased with a rectangular pillar over a square pillar. Three-dimensional models are developed with pillar sizes and geometries typical of underground limestone mines in the United States. Physical properties for the models are based on geotechnical surveys of nearly 30 underground limestone mines. To examine the effects of pillar length on pillar strength with the modeling, a parametric study was conducted where the pillar width was held constant while the length and height were varied resulting in width-to-height ratios ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 and width to length ratios ranging from 1 to 6. There are two aspects to pillar strength and failure. At relatively low stresses, pillars can fail as a result of geologic structure. At greater depths and sufficient extraction ratios, the pillars can also fail as a result of the vertical stresses exceeding the pillar strength. The effects of increasing pillar length regarding both strength aspects are presented in this study. Equations were developed for the increase in pillar strength with both height and length based on the model results. The results from these equations were compared to those from previously developed empirical equations for rectangular pillars. For the more slender limestone pillars with a width-to-height ratio below one, there is little increase in pillar strength for length-to-width ratios above 2 and almost no increase with length for a width-to-height ratio of 0.5. Only with the more squat pillars is there a significant improvement in strength with length. The gain in pillar strength with length for the pillars is explained by the change in the ratio of the area of the pillar affected by the ends to the area of the pillar. For the squattest pillar, the change in strength is also affected by an increase in pillar confinement along the central length of the pillar as the pillar transitions from a square to a long rectangular pillar. With geologic structure, added pillar length can significantly improve the pillar strength, depending on the strike of that structure with respect to the long pillar axis.

By Eric R. Bauer

The ground control aspects of extended depth-of-cut mining are presented in this U.S. Bureau of Mines report. A trend analysis of extended cut approvals was performed. A comparative review of roof fall fatalities for extended and nonextended cut mining is included. Current ground control guidelines for extended cut approval are summarized. The problems and concerns of this extraction system are addressed, and typical extended cutting face operations are described.

Jan 1, 1993

By Nicholas Kyriazi, John P. Shubilla

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Pittsburgh Research Laboratory, has undertaken a study to determine how well self-contained self-rescuers (SCSRs), deployed in accordance with Federal regulations (30 CFR 75.1714), hold up in the underground environment with regard to both physical damage and aging. This report presents findings regarding laboratory-tested SCSRs in the sixth phase of testing from mid-1996 to early 1998. The SCSRs were tested on human subjects and on a breathing and metabolic simulator. These results indicate that most of the apparatus, if they pass their inspection criteria, perform satisfactorily. However, the deployed CSE SR-100s exhibited significantly higher inhaled CO2 levels than new units, as in the previous phase. This will cause higher ventilation rates in most users, which will, in turn, result in higher breathing pressures, possibly causing users to prematurely remove the apparatus. CSE Corp. has developed a noise test that can identify apparatus suffering from chemical-bed degradation causing the early CO2 breakthrough. This test was added to the inspection criteria for the SR-100. In addition, several of the MSA Portal-Packs that passed their inspection criteria were found to have KO2 dust in their mouthpieces. Further investigations by NIOSH and the Mine Safety and Health Administration confirmed these findings, which resulted in the decertification of the apparatus and their removal from service.

Jan 1, 2000

By A. D. Hahn

This report describes reconnaissance by the Federal Bureau of Mines of titanium-bearing sandstone in Kemper County, Miss. The purpose was to determine the ilmenite, rutile, and associated heavy-mineral content of black-sand-bearing Eocene deltaic formations" The investigation was part of a survey of titanium resources of the United States. Ilmenite (FeTi03), an iron-titanium oxide, is the major titanium-bearing mineral consumed in the titanium pigment industry. Rutile (Ti02), titanium oxide, is used mainly in producing welding-rod coatings and titanium metal. The fieldwork was conducted during the first half of November 1959. Seven holes, totaling 304 feet of bore, from which 64 samples of cuttings were taken, were drilled in the north-central part of the county; and two holes, totaling 172 feet of bore, from which 34 samples of cuttings were taken, were drilled in the southeastern part.

Jan 1, 1961

The annual reports of the supervising engineers of the seven sections comprising the Mining Division are assembled in the following pages and constitute the annual report of the division. In planning activities, the aim has been to adapt the work to changing conditions and needs of the mining industries and to avoid becoming bound to any particular type of investigation when others are found to be of more pressing interest.

Jan 1, 1939

By B. W. Gandrud

This is the third report published by the Bureau of Mines concerning the washability of Black Creek coal. Both of the former reports.5/6/ dealt with the Black Creek coal at the Bradford mine, Dixiana, Ala., near the northeastern extremity of the Warrior field, whereas the present report is based on float-and-sink tests of coal from what is presumably the Black Creek bed near the southern extremity of the field. Although the Yolande Coal & Coke Co., owners of the property at Yolande No. 6 slope, consider this opening to be on the Black Creek bed, the authors do not feel that there is as yet positive proof that this correlation is correct. There has been little or no development of the Black Creek bed in the Yolande Basin in the past, and a positive identification of the bed at Yolande No. 6 will have to await further exploration and development. The Yolande No. 6 is an exploration slope 3/4 mile north of Rockcastle, Ala. The slope is approximately 400 feet from top to bottom on a dip of 180. As far as the authors can ascertain, coal has never been produced commercially from the Black Creek bed in the southwestern part of the Warrior field. Exploration work in the past has indicated that the Black Creek coal in this area is extremely friable and high in sulfur. Extreme friability would naturally discourage its use as a domestic and railroad fuel, and high sulfur content would be a disasvantage in its use for coking coal. The present study of this coal has been made with particular reference to sulfur elimination on the assumption that it would make a good coking coal provided enough of the sulfur could be eliminated by washing.

Jan 1, 1939