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By I. J. Jansen

Introduction The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (PL 95-87) lays a new challenge before the surface mining industry by requiring that prime farmlands must be reclaimed to equivalent or higher levels of yield as nonmined prime farmland in the surrounding area (section 510d). We must now evaluate the situation and plan a mining and reclamation program that will achieve that objective. We must recognize that soil and land needs vary with intended land use and climatic setting. Also, various site conditions determine the potential for constructing a productive soil and the best procedures to accomplish that end. It is necessary to plan the land reconstruction program on a site by site basis in order to achieve the best results. Discussion The Prime Land Concept Terms like prime agricultural land have been used loosely for many years to refer to lands that are highly productive and well suited to agricultural use. The concept of what qualified as prime land varied considerably from one geographic area to another and from one person to another. The term prime farmland, as used in PL 95-87, has recently been defined quite

Jan 1, 1982

By K. P. V. Lei

The Bureau of Mines investigated molten-salt electrorefining as a practical method for reclaiming vanadium from vanadium scrap. An electrolytic process utilizing a KC1-LiC1-VC12 electrolyte at 615° C was developed for producing ductile vanadium with a purity over 99.9 percent. The recovery of the vanadium in the cell feed ranged from 88 to 93 percent with a current efficiency from 83 to 95 percent.

Jan 1, 1967

By Arnold J. Farstad

The Location Group conversed in the Petroleum Room of the Green Center with the purpose of addressing the following list of topics in light of the Bureau of Mines' requirements for detecting and locating trapped miners by electromagnetic methods. These topics include: Noise, Sources, Antennas (transmit and receive), the Propagation Medium, Signal Processing, Optimum Frequency, Receivers, Pulse vs. CW Techniques, Passive Location Techniques, and Obstacles. Practical constraints such as equipment size, weight and power requirements, cost and intrinsic safety were kept in mind during these discussions. It was emphasized that in-mine equipment must be inexpensive, rugged, simple and lightweight. Otherwise, the mine operators probably would not buy it nor would the miners be able to effectively use it. Present techniques for experimentally detecting and locating trapped miners were discussed, along with techniques to improve their location accuracy. Analytical, numerical, and scale modelling methods were considered as a means of giving further insight into measurement, anomalies caused by terrain variations, conductivity contrasts, and obstacles. After discussion of these topics, conclusions were drawn and existing problem areas were identified. These problem areas were addressed in developing guidelines for future efforts. Following the discussion period, the Chairman gave a summary of the Location Group report and comments were solicited from the entire group. 2.0 GROUP DISCUSSION HIGHLIGHTS 2.1 Noise W. Bensema asked the group whether the noise data provided by NBS was adequate. It was determined that for location systems analysis, the most important form of noise data was the frequency spectra of vertical and horizontal magnetic fields on the surface, and the answer to his question was affirmative. Drs. Wait and Frischknecht pointed out the difficulty in accurately measuring the true vertical magnetic field since these measurements are heavily influenced by the loop setting and the local geology. Nevertheless, these measurements are important since the same perturbations would also affect a receiving loop oriented to receive the vertical magnetic field. Dr. Rankin pointed

Jan 1, 1973

By Frank Clemens Smith

The occurrence of the tellurides of gold and silver, even in small quantities, is so rare that their metallurgical treatment has engaged little attention. A residence of several months at one of the few mines in North America the product of which consists entirely of such ore, has led me to arrange a method for its economical treatment. The mine referred to is the Huronian, situated a few miles distant from Jackfish Lake, in Ontario, Canada. The plan proposed is for this peculiar case, and is put on record as possibly suggestive and helpful .in any similar instance, should it occur. Since freight-rates from the mine to the nearest railroad-point were extremely high, and for other economical reasons, the method proposed is modified by the use, as far as possible, of the machinery already at the mine, and is so arranged that bullion instead of concentrates would be obtained as a final product. The ore-vein at the Huronian mine varied in width from about 4 feet at the surface to 2 feet and less at the lowest level—125 feet —and dipped southeast about 88. The rock consisted, on both foot- and hanging-walls, of soft, green Huronian slates carrying much highly crystalline but barren pyrite. The ore carried an inconsiderable amount of galena with iron and copper pyrites, argentite, hessite, sylvanite (or petzite), and probably altaite, the telluride of lead. Near the surface the ore showed considerable native gold, but this disappeared with greater depth. Two complete analyses of minerals containing tellurium are here attached, as they establish the presence of two important compounds: I. Analysis of a mineral supposed at the mine to be sylvanite, but agreeing more closely in composition with petzite (Ag, Au)2 Te: Ag = 41.062 Au =23.691 Te =32.007 Pb = 0.071 SiO2= 0.097 Fe = trace 96.928

Jan 1, 1890

By O. Jay Myers

THE war effort has furnished the necessary impetus for better magnesium foundry practice. Four or five years ago, there were but a few formulas in general use for cores and mixtures for magnesium castings. Certain sands, binders, and inhibitors were specified and the proportions of these materials in each mixture were maintained between very narrow limits. As more and more war industries entered the field, much research was carried out and methods and practices were improved. Magnesium founding is still in a state of flux; therefore it is not uncommon to find one foundry spraying inhibitors on its cores, and another foundry using sand mixtures with incorporated protective agents. The basic core or dry-sand mold mixture for magnesium in use today is compounded with sand, core oil or resin binder, cereal, and moisture. Core oil or resin binder are added for baked strength while the cereal binder and moisture are for green strength. The normal mixtures (based on the weight of the sand) contain from 0.5 to 1.5 per cent of both cereal binder and core oil, and the moisture content varies between 1.5 and 5 per cent. The ratio of core oil to cereal binder varies from 60:40 to 40:60, while the correct amount of moisture depends upon the method of coremaking. PROTECTIVE AGENTS In all magnesium practice, protective agents are used in conjunction with the core and molding sands to prevent oxidation of the metal. The use of these inhibitors is not novel, but publications covering this field are not entirely adequate. Beck1 says Magnesium alloys decompose water to form magnesium oxide, hydrogen being liberated in the process (Mg + H20 -+ H21 + MgO). This reaction results in the blackening of the skin and the appearance of areas of porosity on the casting surface, the cavities of which are filled with a grey oxide powder (these are termed `burns'). Although sand cores for magnesium castings are thoroughly dried during the baking cycle, burning will take place on the castings unless the metal is protected properly. This type of burning is more difficult to define than the "water-magnesium" reaction cited by Beck. A possible explanation may lie in the following equation: 2Mg + 02 -s 2MgO Here, the source of the oxygen is not water, but the air in the mold cavity, together with the chemically combined oxygen in the core-binding media. Generally, two methods are used to prevent this reaction from taking place.

Jan 1, 1945

By Jerry E. Olson

In 1984, the U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted a mineral survey of the Pahute Peak Wilderness Study Area (WSA) (NV-020-621), which covers 57,529 acres in Humboldt County, NV. About 90 percent of the WSA is underlain by Tertiary volcanic and shallow intrusive rocks. Of the remainder, metasedimentary rocks of unknown age are in contact with Cretaceous intrusive rocks in the northwest corner of the WSA. The entire WSA is within an upthrown fault block of the Basin and Range physiographic province. Portions of the WSA, especially south of Pahute Peak (Big Mountain), may be part of an eroded caldera structure. No mines or evidence of major exploration were identified within the WSA. Workings in Copper Canyon, claim blocks along the northwest boundary, and zones of anomalous character as defined by the Bureau of Land Management were examined. No mineral resources were identified, but sample results indicate three significantly mineralized sites, one with indications for zinc skarns in Copppr Canyon, another favorable for precious metals 2 miles south of Copper Canyon, and another area near the northwest boundary with geologic conditions characteristic of molybdenum deposits. Further investigation of these sites is warranted. Petrified wood is present in small amounts near the west central range front.

Jan 1, 1986

By E. Pardo-Igúzquiza, R. A. Olea

The bootstrap is a computer-intensive resampling method for estimating the uncertainty of complex statistical models. We expand on an application of the bootstrap for inferring semivariogram parameters and their uncertainty. The model fitted to the median of the bootstrap distribution of the experimental semivariogram is proposed as an estimator of the semivariogram. The proposed application is not restricted to normal data and the estimator is resistant to outliers. Improvements are more significant for data-sets with less than 100 observations, which are those for which semivariogram model inference is the most difficult. The application is illustrated by using it to characterize a synthetic random field for which the true semivariogram type and parameters are known.

Jan 1, 2015

By D. Shishin

Continuous integrated experimental and thermodynamic modelling work is conducted in Pyrometallurgy Innovation Center (PYROSEARCH). The target is to develop a tool, which is capable to predict the compositions of phases, phase equilibria and enthalpy balance for pyrometallugical processes with higher accuracy. All these can be achieved by thermodynamic calculations based on Gibbs energy minimization algorithm. Recent developments made it possible to predict important factors, such as the chemical solubility of Cu in slag as a function of matte grade, temperature, P(SO2), Fe/SiO2 ratio in slag, wt% Al2O3, CaO and MgO in slag. In industrial practice, it is not only chemical solubility, but the overall amount of slag, which affects the recovery of copper and other valuable metals. It will also impact the energy balance. The presence of solids in the slag matrix influences the physical entrainment of matte in slag. Oxygen enrichment which is sometimes used to control the temperature of the furnace, may also affect the volatilization of minor elements into the gas phase. Same is true if additional fuel is used to compensate for heat balance. In other words, all key process parameters mentioned above are interrelated. Present study demonstrates the ways thermodynamic modelling can be used to link those process parameters on the example of copper smelting. INTRODUCTION Research methodology involving integrated thermodynamic modelling and experimental approach has been recently reported by the authors (Shishin, Hayes, & Jak, 2018 Shishin, Hidayat, Jak, Decterov, & Belov, 2016). Present paper reviews the updates and discusses challenges in the development of a large self- consistent thermodynamic database. The database covers the Al-Ca-Cu-Fe-Mg-O-Pb-S-Si-Zn-(Ag, As, Au, Bi, Ni, Sb, Sn) chemical system. The database works in the environment of FactSage software Bale et al., 2016 and related family of products: ChemApp (Petersen & Hack, 2007), ChemSheet and SimuSage. A list of phases, and thermodynamic models is shown in Table 1. For the copper industry, most important phases are Gas, Slag, Spinel and Liquid matte/metal/speiss. Black-colored elements represent the base system, elements in green can be considered as slag modifiers (slagging elements), and elements in red are minor. Ni is highlighted because it was included recently, in 2019, and currently under development. In addition to copper, the database covers the conditions typical for lead and zinc pyrometallurgical extraction. It is developed in consistency with the experimental results for high concentrations of Pb and Zn. Examples of applications in the present study include the thermodynamic analysis of fluxing for an agitated copper reactor to show the effect of Fe/SiO2, and calculations of copper slag cleaning using reductant.

Jan 1, 2019

By Megan N. Witkowski

The purpose of this study is to investigate the susceptibility characteristics of domestic and agricultural water supplies that may be vulnerable to diminution or total loss of supply when active longwall mining is in the vicinity of the potable aquifer systems of southwestern Pennsylvania. The study focuses on water supplies in Greene and Washington Counties with reported losses or reductions in supply that were attributed to the seven active longwall mines in operation between 2003 and 2008. The undermined water supplies represent a variety of hydrogeological settings and mining conditions prevalent in the southwestern Pennsylvania longwall coalfield. The susceptibility characteristics investigated include hydrogeological setting, proximal location to mining, and climatic conditions at the time of impact. The investigation considers the relationship between geological and mining characteristics. Geological characteristics include overburden composition and geomorphology of the surface; mining characteristics include mining method, depth, and extraction thickness. It was determined from the study that the average overburden thickness at each mine site is indicative of hydrological changes to potable aquifer systems, with the overall impact frequency at each site decreasing as depth to mining increases. However, depth to mining was not the governing factor when hydrological responses were determined on a case-by-case basis. To fully analyze and hopefully predict potential impacts by longwall mine subsidence, it is necessary to consider additional factors including topography, distance to mining, mining method, and climatic conditions at time of undermining. The investigation serves the purpose of enhancing our understanding of hydrogeological responses to longwall mining and will aid in predicting potential impacts to southwestern Pennsylvania?s wells and springs in proximity to future mining.

Jan 1, 2011

By O. Jay Myers

The war effort has furnished the necessary impetus for better magnesium foundry practice. Four or five years ago, there were but a few formulas in general use for core-sand mixtures for magnesium castings. Certain sands, binders, and inhibitors were specified and the proportions of these materials in each mixture were maintained between very narrow limits. As more and more war industries entered the field, much research was carried out and methods and practices were improved. Magnesium founding is still in a state of flux; therefore it is not uncommon to find one foundry spraying inhibitors on its cores, and another foundry using sand mixtures with incorporated protective agents. The basic core or dry-sand mold mixture for magnesium in use today is compounded with sand, core oil or resin binder, cereal, and moisture. Core oil or resin binder are added for baked strength while the cereal binder and moisture are for green strength. The normal mixtures (based on the weight of the sand) contain from o.5 to 1.5 per cent of both cereal binder and core oil, and the moisture content variesbetween 1.5 and 5 per cent. The ratio of core oil to cereal binder varies from 60:40 to 40:60, while the correct amount of moisture depends upon the method of coremaking. Protective Agents In all magnesium practice, protective agents are used in conjunction with the core and molding sands to prevent oxidation of the metal. The use of these inhibitors is not novel, but publications covering this field are not entirely adequate. Beck1 says: Magnesium alloys decompose water to form magnesium oxide, hydrogen being liberated in the process (Mg + H2O ? H2 ?+ MgO). This reaction results in the blackening of the skin and the appearance of areas of porosity on the casting surface, the cavities of which are filled with a grey oxide powder (these are termed 'burns'). Although sand cores for magnesium castings are thoroughly dried during the baking cycle, burning will take place on the casting5 unless the metal is protected properly. This type of burning is more difficult to define than the "water-magnesium" reaction cited by Beckl A possible explanation may lie in the following equation: 2Mg + O2—> 2MgO Here, the source of the oxygen is not water, but the air in the mold cavity, together with the chemically combined oxygen in the core-binding media. Generally, two methods are used to prevent this reaction from taking place.

Jan 1, 1945

By Thomas J. Peters

At the request of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological Survey conducted a mineral investigation of about 85,470 acres of the Diablo Mountain Wilderness Study Area, to determine mineral resources and mineral resource potential. The study area is in Lake County Oregon, about 45 miles northwest of Lakeview. Fieldwork was conducted in 1986, 1988, and 1989. Geologically, the study area lies on the northwest edge of the Basin and Range physiographic province, a region of fault block-formed mountains and basins characterized by interior drainage. Consolidated rocks are mostly Tertiary basalt and tuffaceous sedimentary rocks. Low-lying areas are covered by Quaternary alluvial-fan, sand-dune, playa, lacustrine, and landslide deposits. The principal structural features are normal faults that have large vertical offsets; these faults are typically concentrated at the margins of large horst and graben. The 34,310-acre "additional," or western part of the area was mainly studied in 1988 and borders the east shore of saline Summer Lake. In this portion of the study area there is potential for undiscovered resources of soda ash, boron compounds, and sodium sulfate as well as by-products, which include magnesium compounds, salts, potash, bromine, lithium, and tungsten associated with brines. No energy or mineral resources were identified in the study area, but brines within lake and playa sediments contain concentrations of chemical components suitable for the production of soda ash, boron compounds, and sodium sulfate. Possible by-products include potash, salts, bromine, lithium, magnesium compounds, and tungsten. Limestone from the study area could be used in the recovery process of brine components or agricultural uses. The study area includes thermal springs and lies within 2 miles of the Summer Lake Known Geothermal Resource Area. Local production of geothermal power by the binary process may be economically feasible. Soda ash, soda ash products, and boric acid are widely used in fluxing metals, and have important applications and markets in the aluminum industry in the northwest and the developing Chinese counterpart. Evaporite commodities are essential to many "backbone" industries, and to many new applications and advanced materials. Markets for brine mineral products appear to be undergoing steady and strong growth, especially in the Pacific Northwest and in Pacific Rim countries. Soda ash produced near the study area would be 55 percent closer by rail to marine export at Portland, Oregon, than trona deposits of the Green River District (Wyoming). Soda ash and a daughter product, caustic soda, and sodium borohydride will receive increased application in the bleaching of paper pulp for environmental reasons. Caustic soda, used in many industrial processes, is more environmentally friendly when derived from soda ash than when produced from sodium chloride salt, because of the absence of a chlorine by-product. Producing soda ash from brines, a type of in situ" mining, can be done with minimal environmental degradation, and mining natural soda ash is environmentally as well as economically preferable to synthetic soda ash production.

Jan 1, 1995

By S. S. Churchill

Introduction Amidst the apparent chaos of the final push to complete a major construction project, a small group of specialists works with great intensity. Armed with yellow "in test" and green "turned over to operations" tags, these startup engineers follow detailed preoperational test procedures to confirm that a plant is ready to operate. They follow a test schedule designed to complete individual process system in the order they will be needed by operations. After extensive preliminary testing, the startup engineers begin the truly exciting part of their work - initial operations. The thrill of engaging the clutch for the first time on a 10,000 horsepower grinding mill makes all the long hours worthwhile. Preoperational testing and startup are of critical importance to the success of a project. No other aspect of a construction project allows such opportunities for success or failure, and no other aspect is so critically influenced by careful planning. At Bechtel, the tasks of preoperational testing and startup are among the responsibilities of the Mine and Plant Operations group. The Preoperational Testing Process Preoperational testing is the transition phase between constructon and startup on a new plant. It includes the preparation of detailed test schedules and procedures. The schedules are used to coordinate construction completion activities, so that systems are available for startup and operations in a rational sequence. The procedures form the basis for performing the testing and documenting its completion. Tests include instrument calibration, wire insulation tests, wire termination verification, mechanical alignments and inspections, and system cleaning and flushing. Where possible, the systems are then operated on water and their performance recorded. Normally, either the construction contractor or a team of specialists has the responsibility to perform preoperational testing. Witnesses to the testing may be owner operations and maintenance personnel, engineers from the design firm, or specialists assigned to the project who provide assistance and guidance to the contractor in addition to witnesing the work.

Jan 1, 1986

By W. B. Mather

A RKANSAS is not only a geologist's paradise, but Ait is also particularly fortunate in possessing a wide variety of mineral resources. The future mineral production and mineral industry of Arkansas, like the other states in Mid-America, will probably depend to a large degree on efforts to increase the exploitation of the non-metalliferous deposits of the state. The term nonmetalliferous, as used in this paper, embraces all types of mineral deposits, except fuels, water, and those deposits from which, after bene-ficiation, metals are ultimately derived. For example, bauxite is the ore of aluminum, but a considerable portion of the bauxite mined eventually is employed in the production of nonmetallic alumina, an important oxide in the abrasive and ceramic industries. The bulk of the production, however, becomes metallic aluminum and therefore this type of mineral resource is considered metalliferous and is omitted from this paper. Arkansas' nonmetalliferous deposits are of many different types, too numerous to discuss in detail in a single paper; therefore, only their salient features are presented. Many types of deposits such as limestone, glass sand, novaculite, shale, and sandstone are exposed over wide areas, providing inexhaustible reserves. Other types of deposits, such as barite and tripoli, contain large reserves which certainly are not unlimited. Still other types of deposits, such as celestite, kaolin, and vermiculite, appear to occur in small isolated deposits containing relatively small reserves. Of course, all of Arkansas' nonmetalliferous deposits probably have not as yet been recognized, nor have all of the known deposits been prospected, tested, and evaluated. Various types of deposits are too low grade or too limited in extent to be profit- ably produced by today's standards. In the case of other deposits, the known uses are few in number, thus acting as a retarder to their development. Due to anticipated technologic advancements, the future demands of industry are not expected always to be the same as they are today, and therefore idle deposits or those of current limited production may readily become the important revenue producers of the future. The types of nonmetalliferous deposits discussed here include: clays, shales, and slates; silica deposits including glass sand, novaculite, tripoli, sandstone, chert, and quartz crystals; limestone and dolomite; barite; gypsum; celestite; nepheline syenite; green-sand; phosphate; vermiculite; fuller's earth; ben-tonite; diamonds; sand, and gravel. The location of the various types of deposits are presented on the accompanying map (fig. 1). Symbols indicate the general area of occurrence. Many deposits, such as limestone, shale, novaculite, and so on, are represented by formations which could only be properly shown on a geological map. In these instances only active deposits or those of exceptional merit are indicated by symbols on the map. A general northeast-southwest line divides the interior highland from the Gulf Coastal and Mississippi Alluvial Plains of south and east Arkansas. The data presented in this paper are only a surnmary of a portion of a more comprehensive survey and study of the natural resources of the entire state.' The study was sponsored and underwritten by the Arkansas Power and Light Co., Little Rock, as a public service to the state and its residents. Permission to present some of the data and conclusions resulting from the survey is gratefully acknowledged. Table I, prepared by the Arkansas Geological Survey from state severance tax records, presents the annual production secured from Arkansas nonmetalliferous mineral deposits. Clays, Shales, and Slates Clays: It is realized that each method of classifying clays is prone to criticism. In this paper, Arkansas' clays of potential value are arbitrarily

Jan 1, 1951

By W. B. Mather

A RKANSAS is not only a geologist's paradise, but Ait is also particularly fortunate in possessing a wide variety of mineral resources. The future mineral production and mineral industry of Arkansas, like the other states in Mid-America, will probably depend to a large degree on efforts to increase the exploitation of the non-metalliferous deposits of the state. The term nonmetalliferous, as used in this paper, embraces all types of mineral deposits, except fuels, water, and those deposits from which, after bene-ficiation, metals are ultimately derived. For example, bauxite is the ore of aluminum, but a considerable portion of the bauxite mined eventually is employed in the production of nonmetallic alumina, an important oxide in the abrasive and ceramic industries. The bulk of the production, however, becomes metallic aluminum and therefore this type of mineral resource is considered metalliferous and is omitted from this paper. Arkansas' nonmetalliferous deposits are of many different types, too numerous to discuss in detail in a single paper; therefore, only their salient features are presented. Many types of deposits such as limestone, glass sand, novaculite, shale, and sandstone are exposed over wide areas, providing inexhaustible reserves. Other types of deposits, such as barite and tripoli, contain large reserves which certainly are not unlimited. Still other types of deposits, such as celestite, kaolin, and vermiculite, appear to occur in small isolated deposits containing relatively small reserves. Of course, all of Arkansas' nonmetalliferous deposits probably have not as yet been recognized, nor have all of the known deposits been prospected, tested, and evaluated. Various types of deposits are too low grade or too limited in extent to be profit- ably produced by today's standards. In the case of other deposits, the known uses are few in number, thus acting as a retarder to their development. Due to anticipated technologic advancements, the future demands of industry are not expected always to be the same as they are today, and therefore idle deposits or those of current limited production may readily become the important revenue producers of the future. The types of nonmetalliferous deposits discussed here include: clays, shales, and slates; silica deposits including glass sand, novaculite, tripoli, sandstone, chert, and quartz crystals; limestone and dolomite; barite; gypsum; celestite; nepheline syenite; green-sand; phosphate; vermiculite; fuller's earth; ben-tonite; diamonds; sand, and gravel. The location of the various types of deposits are presented on the accompanying map (fig. 1). Symbols indicate the general area of occurrence. Many deposits, such as limestone, shale, novaculite, and so on, are represented by formations which could only be properly shown on a geological map. In these instances only active deposits or those of exceptional merit are indicated by symbols on the map. A general northeast-southwest line divides the interior highland from the Gulf Coastal and Mississippi Alluvial Plains of south and east Arkansas. The data presented in this paper are only a surnmary of a portion of a more comprehensive survey and study of the natural resources of the entire state.' The study was sponsored and underwritten by the Arkansas Power and Light Co., Little Rock, as a public service to the state and its residents. Permission to present some of the data and conclusions resulting from the survey is gratefully acknowledged. Table I, prepared by the Arkansas Geological Survey from state severance tax records, presents the annual production secured from Arkansas nonmetalliferous mineral deposits. Clays, Shales, and Slates Clays: It is realized that each method of classifying clays is prone to criticism. In this paper, Arkansas' clays of potential value are arbitrarily

Jan 1, 1951

ENGINEERS AVAILABLE (Under this heading will be published notes sent to the Secretary of the Institute by members or other persons introduced by members.) Member, technical graduate, aged 36. Experienced copper metallurgist and mining geologist. Familiar also, through 15 years' broad practical experience, with mining, cyanidation, concentration (including oil flotation), metallurgical accounting, and mine and plant management. Best references. No. 237. Member, graduate engineer with 10 years' experience in malleable, gray -Iron, and steel, as chemist., metallographist, and metallurgist. Researches and investigations by laboratory methods and under works conditions. No objection to some routine. No. 243. Member, technical graduate, broad experience in coal, oil, and clay. Will go anywhere as mining geologist after Sept. 1, 1915. No. 244. Member, technical graduate, aged 30, married, with over 10 years' experience as chemist, engineer on construction, superintendent and general superintendent of bituminous coal and coke plants. SpeaksSpanish. References. No. 245. Member, open for engagement as mine safety inspector or as superintendent of bituminous coal mine. No. 246. Member, graduate mining engineer, with five years' experience in coal mining as mining engineer, construction engineer, pit boss, and superintendent, open for engagement. Best references. No. 247.

Jan 9, 1915

By Heribert Wiedemeier, Ali Khan

The tetnperature-conposition phase diagram of the syste,n MnS-CdS has been investigated over a range fro)n 600° to 1000° C. The small degree of solid solution on the MnS rich slde cornpared to the large CdS rich single-plzase region could be esplained by the difference in strzrctures of the cotnponents and the relative sizes of the metal ions. The change in lattice parameter as a function of cot)zposition is linear atzd jollous Vegavd's rule within experittzental limits of error. Mns and CdS have gained considerable attention in recent years because of their interesting solid state properties. In order to investigate such properties and thermodynamic quantities of mixed compositions of transition metal chalcogenides, it is necessary to establish their phase diagrams. Two earlier publications are concerned with the MnS-CdS system. Schnaase' found complete miscibility when MnS and CdS were co-precipitated in aqueous solutions at room temperature. However, there is evidence that the mixed crystals were not stable over the entire range of composition. roger's' investigation of the ternary system ZnS-CdS-MnS at 900" C indicates a solution of 48 mole pct MnS in CdS. During the course of this work which covers a temperature range from 600" to 100O° C, emphasis has been placed on the use of high-purity materials and well-defined modifications of starting products. EXPERIMENTAL Starting Materials. The stable green modification of MnS with NaCl structure was prepared by direct fusion of the elements and by chemical transport reaction. Stoichiometric amounts of manganese of 99.99+ pct purity and of sulfur of 99.999 pct purity from Gallard-Schlesinger Corp. were sealed in an evacuated quartz tube at a pressure of 10"5 mm Hg and annealed for 48 to 60 hr at 800°C. The quartz tubes used throughout this work were outgassed under high vacuum at a temperature of 90OU to 1000° C for 12 to 18 hr. For the synthesis of MnS by chemical transport3 stoichiometric ratios of elemental manganese and sulfur and small amounts of iodine were sealed under vacuum in a quartz tube, which was placed in the temperature gradient, 900/800-C, of a two zone furnace. Single crystals of MnS in form of platelets and octahedra were deposited at the cooler end of the tube. The manganese content was determined by EDTA titratin. A typical result of several analyses was 63.05 pct Mn which agreed well with the computed value, 63.14 pct. Commercially available CdS of 99.9+ pct purity, a mixture of the cubic and hexagonal forms, was converted into the hexagonal high-temperature modification by annealing CdS under vacuum in quartz tubes at 700° C for about 36 hr. As a second method, cadmium sulfide was transported in a temperature gradient, 70O° /650" C, with in vacuo sublimed iodine from the hot to the cooler zone of the tube. Large sized crystals in form of hexagonal columns and some platelets were obtained. An average result of the cadmium analysis by EDTA titration4 was 77.93 pct in good agreement with the computed value, 77.81 pct. Only the NaCl modification of MnS and the wurtzite modification of CdS were used for the solid solutions. Preparation of Solid Solutions. Finely powdered MnS and CdS samples were thoroughly mixed in molar ratios and compressed into pellets of about 6 mm diam and 2 mm in height at a pressure of approximately 13,500 atm.

Jan 1, 1969

By D. H. Wertz, R. R. Furlong

Dry room equipment at Donora Zinc Works is of the design which prevailed at the time the plant was built in 1915. It consists of 11 adjoining rooms, each being 99 ft long, 11 ft wide, and 7 ft high and having a capacity for 1040 retorts. Heat is supplied by steam coils beneath the slatted wood floor and by warm air ducts at the ceiling. Drying practice is about the same as that generally followed in the industry except that, under normal zinc furnace operations, the maximum drying time is 45 days. During certain seasons of the year the drying process was seriously affected by varying weather conditions which frequently resulted in a scrap loss of 5 to 7 pct. Because of these unfavorable conditions, which caused uneven drying and strains in the retorts, increased retort failures in the zinc furnaces were recorded. Regulation of temperature and humidity under all conditions appeared to be the logical solution of this problem. Controlled drying had been developed for a number of ceramic products and investigation of several such drying processes in this area revealed favorable results. Along with control of drying conditions and the attendant decrease in scrap losses, plant operators also reported a material reduction in drying time. Another factor affecting the decision to proceed with this development was the drastic change in market conditions for retort clay. Curtailment of shipments from the chief source of supply made it necessary to proceed with blending of other available clays, but quality of these clays was questionable for adequate retort life in the 24 hr furnace cycle. Rapid furnace testing of new mixtures was desirable but impossible with the prolonged drying schedule. Therefore development of a controlled drying process for zinc re- torts offered the solution to the problem of rapid testing of retort mixtures. Description of Process and Equipment The freshly extruded retort is cylindrical in shape, 58 in. long, 9 in. id and has 1 1/8 in. side walls. One end is closed and approximately 2 in. thick. The moisture content of this "green" retort is about 17 pct which means a necessary removal of 30 lb of water per retort. Retorts are set on the slatted floor of the dry room with the closed end down. The controlled drying process depends upon the circulation of a large volume of conditioned air at low velocity. To provide for uniform distribu-

Jan 1, 1950

After the close of the Revolution, settlers began to pour over the mountains, to settle in the western parts of Pennsylvania, of Virginia, to move down the Ohio into Kentucky, and in the late seventeen-eighties to settle on "the Indian side" of the river, now Ohio. With the growth of population the interest in coal increased and it was not long before the production of coal west of the mountains was larger than that east of them. Foreign nations, too, became interested in the young republic and in 1783, at the instance of the Swedish government S. A. Hermelin, an engineer, visited this country to investigate its iron industry. He made a very interesting report, not published until 1931, in which he gave many details of the iron plants in the eastern United States; apparently he was not west of the mountains, but was well informed about conditions there. He says, "that some coal near the first branches of the Schuylkill River has been mined and utilized by the blacksmiths," referring, of course, to anthracite; again that "coal mines have also been worked for several years near Pittsburg," and that "great supplies of iron ore are available at the Ohio Falls and further to the west, at Coney Creek, a part of the Green River, where there is also coal."' In 1788, Dr. Johann David Schoepf, who came to this country with the Hessian troops, visited Pittsburgh. He was an intelligent man and acquainted to some extent with minerals and methods of working them. In speaking of Coal Hill on the south side of the Monongahela he mentioned several strata of marble in the lower part and that

Jan 1, 1942

By C. M. Jones

Cyprus Sierrita Corp. has developed a training program that has led to several significant improvements in safety performance and productivity. Truck productivity has increased 6% as measured by truck cycle times. Increased skill levels and awareness on the part of the mine's operators are due to the new training effort. Costs associated with productivity training have been about $185,300. This includes program development and execution costs, as well as lost productivity during the training itself. These costs are offset by $1.9 million in savings attributable to the increased skill levels of technicians due to the training effort. Cyprus Sierrita is a subsidiary of Cyprus Amax of Englewood, CO. The company operates a copper and molybdenum mining and processing facility south of Tucson, AZ, near the town of Green Valley. The Cyprus Sierrita operation produces about 109 kt/a (240 million lbs/ year) of copper, 11.3 kt/a (25 million lbs/year) of molybdenum, 31.1 t/a (1 million oz/year) of silver and 1.8 t/a (4,000 lbs/year) of rhenium. The opera¬tion employs 770 people at the site. About 200 of these employees work in the mine operations. Mining at Sierrita uses standard open-pit techniques. Crews of 43 people rotate on 12-hour shifts. Hourly technicians are nonunion and do not use rigid job classifications to define pay. Rather, the system is designed to pay employees for what they are able to do. Administering this effort requires that training opportunities are provided to those people who desire them. Successful training opportunities al¬low people to gain skills. The more skills an employee can demonstrate, the higher his or her "tech level." A technician's pay is commensurate with his or her tech level. Much of Sierrita's training in past years concentrated on building basic

Jan 1, 1998

By I. Zaplatynskyj, G. C. Kuczynski

SINCE the excellent studies of metal powder compaction executed by Kamm, Steinberg, and Wulff, no work on the subject has appeared in the technical literature. Kamm et al. were the first to investigate quantitatively the distribution of density in a powder compact, as a function of pressure, height and diameter of the die, powder particle size, etc. For this purpose they devised a very ingenious method. They inserted a thin lead grid into a die and then filled the die with powder. During cold pressing, the lead grid -moved downward. Due to its deformability it followed closely the downward descent of the adjacent powder. The die was then radiographed and, from the deformations of the grid openings measured on the radiographs, the density in the vicinity of each opening was evaluated. Their findings led them to the conclusion that the friction on the side walls of the die is a major controlling factor of the density distribution inside the cold pressed powder compacts. However, it is difficult to conduct tests similar to those of Kamm, Steinberg, and Wulff in a processing plant laboratory, which usually lacks the necessary expensive radiographic equipment. The purpose of this note is to describe a method which makes it possible to determine the density distribution in green powder compacts with the same accuracy as the lead-grid method but which is far simpler and faster and requires only standard laboratory equipment. Instead of using a lead grid, the hardness at selected points of the sectioned compact is determined. If the relationship between hardness and density is known the density distribution is readily obtained. This relationship is easily found from measuring hardness and densities of thin compacts. In such compacts the density, for all practical purposes, is constant throughout. The method was tested on a Plast nickel powder, grade FlA-A20, kindly supplied by Plast Metals Co. Thin compacts (height to diameter ratio 0.2) were pressed in a single action cylindrica1 die at various pressures. The density of the compacts was determined by weighing and by measuring the height and diameter with a micrometer. Subsequently the Rh hardness was determined. Up to ten readings were taken on each specimen. The difference in hardness readings on each compact was never greater than three corresponding to about 0.1 g per cu cm uncertainty in density. By varying the compaction pressure of the samples, a whole scale of densities was obtained allowing construction of a set of density-hardness calibration curves. To test the method several compacts of different height were pressed under varying pressures. Die walls were always well lubricated. After pressing, the compacts were mounted in bakelite and halved by grinding, and hardness readings taken along the diameters of the specimens. The distance between adjacent indentations was about 2.5 mm. After hardness readings were translated into densities, contour maps of densities of the compacts were prepared. One of them is reproduced in Fig. 1. The areas encompassed by the curves are labeled with numbers representing the density in g per cu cm of those regions. In Fig. 2 the same results are re-plotted to emphasize the radial density changes at various depths. The results thus obtained confirm the findings of Kamm, Steinberg, and Wulff kentioned previously. They are recapitulated here briefly. 1—The densest part of a compact pressed from one side is at the outer circumference at the top and the least dense part at the bottom, at the outer circumference. Figs. 1 and 2 show this clearly. 2—The density near the cylindrical surfaces of the compact decreases uniformly with height from top to bottom. 3—The density variation increases with the height to diameter ratio. References R. Kamm, M. A. Steinberg, and J. Wulff: Trans. AIME (1941) 171,'R. p. 439 ;MetaLs Technology (February 1941). R.p. Kamm, M. A. Steinberg, and J. Wulff: Trans. AlME (1949) 180, 2R.P. 694; MetalS Technology (December 1948).

Jan 1, 1957