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By W. F. Shinners

Ozark Ore Co.'s Iron Mountain mine utilizes optimum mechanization to provide ever increasing output from underground as production declines from open pit. Trackless equipment gave flexibility to meet varied mining conditions-required minimum of pre-production development.

Jan 4, 1953

By Clarence R. King

Diamond drilling of Cove Creek deposits and development of flotation-refining process may lead to commercial operation of property worked sporadically for almost a hundred years.

Jan 4, 1953

By A. M. Gaudin

OLEIC acid, a standard flotation reagent, has generally been preferred to other fatty acids. Because oleic acid differs from saturated fatty acids by the presence of one carbon-to-carbon double bond and because the flotation operation is one in which extremely intimate exposure of the reagent to oxygen is obtained, it appeared possible that the value of oleic acid as a flotation collector was related to the oxidizability of its double bond. To test this hypothesis, the floated mineral, fluorite, was leached with a solvent capable of extracting the adsorbed reagent and the extract was analyzed.' Results show that oleic acid is not oxidized during flotation, although some oxidation can be obtained if the flotation operation is repeated many times and if oxygen in place of air is employed as the gas during flotation. Incidentally, it was found that linoleic acid which has two nonconjugated double bonds is not affected appreciably more than oleic acid. Linolenic acid which has three nonconjugated double bonds is measurably altered even during one flotation step, using air.

Jan 4, 1953

By P. W. Allen

Here are the facts and the figures on how Tahawus cut costs and improved safety in solving their secondary breakage problem - A dropball crane entirely eliminated secondary blasting.

Jan 4, 1953

By E. A. Jones

THE Southeast Missouri division of the St. Joseph Lead Co. normally hauls and hoists over 5 million tons of lead ore each year. This ore is mined in the stopes and headings of 20 mines, hauled to a main line system, see above, and transported up to 6.4 miles to ore-hoisting shafts. Average haulage distance is 2.16 miles. A few years ago a distinguished mining engineer visiting this area for the first time remarked, "You do not have a mining problem; yours is a haulage problem." Its relative importance may be gaged by the fact that mine haulage represents about 25 pct of the total cost of mining ore, the most costly single underground operation

Jan 4, 1953

CLEAR sunny skies that prevailed all through the 175th General Meeting of AIME were not the 1east of the details that resulted from the many months and man-hours of p1anning by the Southern California Local Section. Some 2600 persons left the 1953 Annual Meeting technically enlightened, having had a choice of over 300 papers presented by 400 authors to listen to, learn from, and criticize. During the meeting, Mike Haider turned over the Presidency of AIME for 1953 to Andrew (Drew) Fletcher.

Jan 4, 1953

By H. A. Doerner

METALLURGICAL problems relating to manganese and chromium ores have striking similarities. Ferroalloys, essential to the steel industry, are produced from both ores. Most of these alloys are obtained from imported ores, as domestic deposits have not yielded enough ore of metallurgical grade to meet more than a small fraction of vital needs. A survey of domestic manganese and chrome de- posits reveals numerous small, dispersed bodies of fairly good ore, none of which appears to be capable of yielding significant amounts of marketable products. To stimulate development of such deposits and to increase Government stockpiles, General Services Administration is offering $115 per long ton for limited amounts of chrome ores and $110 per long ton for 48 pct manganese ores that meet metallurgical specifications, with bonuses or penalties for grades above and below specifications.

Jan 4, 1953

By Henry F. Hebley

This paper brings within the compass of one comparatively brief article a general description of the situation concerning the nation's water resources. It touches upon the phenomenal growth in the demand for water supply and emphasizes the problems facing the coal industry both with regard to acid mine water drainage discharged from active and abandoned mines and the suspended solids discharged to the stream system from wet coal preparation plants.

Jan 4, 1953

U.S. Signs Pact With Miami Copper Miami Copper Co., of Arizona has agreed to mine lowgrade copper ores in an extension of its Globe-Miami mining district operations at a guaranteed price of 27.35[] per lb, under a contract signed with defense Materials Procurement Agency. Terms of the contract call for delivery of 230 million lb of refined copper between 1955 and 1962. DMPA said highgrade ore in the de posit will soon be exhausted and it is considered advisable to have Miami continue the operation. The Government has an option to buy 120 million lb of refined copper from present production at market prices. Miami will develop the new ore- body at its own expense-estimated at $3 million. If losses under the new contract reach a specified point, Miami may cancel the agreement. The company plans to use the block caving method in the underground operation.

Jan 4, 1953

By William B. Plank

PRESENT enrollment of 182,361 students in the engineering schools of the United States and Canada represents an increase of 6.6 pct over the enrollment in these schools in 1951-52. Thus is brought to a halt the steady decrease in engineering enrollment that began with the close of the 1947-48 academic year, five years ago. The mineral engineering student picture is similarly encouraging. In the United States schools, 9453 students are preparing themselves for positions in the Mineral Industry. This is an increase of 8.3 pct over last year as compared with an increase of 6.6 pct in the total United States engineering enrollment. The rate of recovery for the mineral engineering group is thus more rapid than for the engineers as a whole.

Jan 4, 1953

Rep. William S. Hill (R.- Colo.) will preside over a Congressional hearing investigating the problems of the mining industry to be conducted in Phoenix, Ariz., late in April. Rep. Hill has expressed the desire to hear from the industry itself all possible testimony on the needs of domestic mining and how Congress can help. Rep. John J. Rhodes of Arizona is also expected to attend the hearing. Two new features are incorporated into an SO2 process for treatment of low grade manganese ores disclosed by Chemical Construction Corp. The new approach includes a high temperature autoclaving step and a sintering operation. Data was given for work performed on Cuyuna Range ores.

Jan 4, 1953

By R. V. Lundquist

Leaching manganese-bearing materials with NaOH to remove caustic-soluble silica has been demonstrated as a method for up- grading manganese. Those materials containing opaline varieties of silica respond most readily. Spent leach liquors are regenerated by treatment with lime to precipitate calcium silicate and to reactivate the NaOH for leaching.

Jan 4, 1953

Jan 4, 1953

By John V. Beall

AMONG electrical manufacturers, interest in the outlook for copper supplies has not diminished despite signs of a healthier market following price decontrol. Reason: Electrical utility industry output is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 6 pct for the next 15 years. A more graphic description of the growth ahead is given in the Eighth Quarterly Report of the Director of Defense Mobilization as follows: "Power generating capability, which amounted to 63 million kw at the time of Korea, now stands at more than 81 million. The established goal for installed capability at the end of 1955 is 116 million kw. Orders already on the books of power equipment manufacturers, if fulfilled on schedule, will bring installed capability to over 123 million kw by the end of 1956-and more orders for equipment are yet to come." These statistics portend an impressive requirement for copper, not only for power plants and distribution lines themselves but for the multitude of industry and domestic end-uses.

Jan 4, 1953

By R. L. Stephenson

A sampling technique has been developed for procuring a sample of sinter representative of the entire depth of the sintering bed. The sampling method involves the use of an open-bottom metal basket that rides on the grate of the sintering machine and when removed contains a sample of the sintered product. Additional data have been obtained to indicate that the tumbler test is a suitable means of measuring sinter strength.

Jan 3, 1953

New Products Equipment

Jan 3, 1953

By C. V. O. Hughes

DIATOMACEOUS earth is probably the most widely used, and certainly the least well publicized, of the important non-metallics of the United States. The very multiplicity of the names by which this whitish earthy sediment is described has served to confuse its identity, and to dissipate a realization of its full importance.

Jan 3, 1953

Objective stockpile goals have been met for antimony, bismuth, fluorspar, and iridium, while those for bauxite, cadmium, copper, lead, zinc, manganese, mercury, platinum, tin, and vanadium have not, according to a report by the Munitions Board. Total materials under inventory and contract represent about 78 pct of entire stockpile goals, the report stated. Frobisher, Ltd., of Canada has been given permission to survey power possibilities in certain lake and river basins in the Yukon believed to have a potential of 5 million he. Canadian Resources Minister, Robert Winters, also announced that his Government has rejected a bid by Aluminum Co. of America concerning use of Canadian waters to power a proposed Alaska aluminum project. Alcoa is reported hopeful of resuming negotiations.

Jan 3, 1953

By Harold Powers

THIS paper presents geophysical and subsurface data observed in the vicinity of Shafts No. 1 and and 5 of the National Lead Co. lead mines at Fredericktown, Madison County, Missouri, see Fig. 1. The area selected is an excellent example to illustrate the close correlation between geophysical data and geological facts as revealed by drilling and mining. Such close correlations make geophysical applications appropriate to the development of known ore-bodies as well as the exploration for new orebodies.

Jan 3, 1953

By A. D. Bryant

APPROXIMATELY 2 1/2 million tons of silica sand and ground silica with a value of $7.25 million is produced annually from the Ottawa, Illinois, district. These silica products come from the well known St. Peter sandstone formation which covers part of the Mississippi Basin extending from St. Paul on the north to the central part of Arkansas on the south and from Muncie, Ind., on the east to Kansas City on the west. Practically the whole state of Illinois is underlain by this formation except where removed by erosion. Sand produced from the St. Peter sandstone in the Ottawa district is noted for its purity, uniformity, and quality. In addition to various screened grades for industry about 10 pct of the total production of the Ottawa district is ground into silica flour for use in glass, abrasives, enamel, porcelain, tile, for foundry and filter sand, and other uses.

Jan 3, 1953