Search Documents

By A. C. Fieldner

Much activity is called for in the present period of hightened national effort, and wise direction of such a program must always be conditioned by positive knowledge gained in years of slow and painstaking study and development. Research and technologic investigations on coal by the Bureau of Mines have been described in a series of annual

Jan 1, 1941

By Melissa S. Beauregard, Randall A. Pietersen

This study focuses on quantifying the effects of water infiltration on a full-scale energy pile system’s ability to meet the thermal demand of an HVAC system. Theoretically, an energy pile system should increase its thermal capacity after a rain event due to increased moisture content creating an increase in thermal conductivity of the surrounding soil matrix. The United States Air Force Academy has an energy pile research site consisting of 8 full-scale energy piles located below a shower facility. The local colluvium surrounding the piles allows for relatively high water infiltration during rain events. This study uses an 11kW Precision Geothermal Geocube to apply a thermal load on two single-loop piles. A weather station located south of the structure records atmospheric conditions. Results indicate that moderate rain events can caused up to a 23% increase in the system’s thermal exchange capacity. This change is due to the increase in moisture content near the surface, which penetrates to deeper soil layers with time. The time required for moisture to penetrate to greater depths and then dissipate in the soil matrix, explains why increased system performance is seen for over a week following the passing of a singular rain event. 1 INTRODUCTION With a “future-forward” focus, there is an ever-pressing economic and environmental need to use sustainable sources to meet growing energy needs. HVAC is typically responsible for 34% of the overall energy required by commercial buildings and 48% of the energy required by residential buildings (USEIA, 2009; USEIA, 2012). Energy piles are a low cost, sustainable technology that have been used to offset this energy demand incurred by a building’s space heating and air conditioning requirements. An energy pile consists of heat exchanging elements in a closed loop system integrated into a building foundation and connected to a ground source heat pump (GSHP). It is most common for these heat- exchanging elements to be constructed within a drilled shaft foundation due to both construction practices and geometric considerations. This system operates based on the principle that at a certain depth below ground (typically 4 meters) subterranean temperature remains constant at a value equal to the mean annual air temperature at a given location (Kavanaugh et al., 1997). This allows the soil to function as a heat sink for cooling operations and a heat source for heating operations when exchanged within this zone of relatively constant temperature. For the past 25 years, the implementation of energy pile technology in public, residential, and even large-scale architectural complexes has slowly expanded which has created an increase in research into the topic as a result (Brandl, 2006; Hamada, 2007; Sekine et al., 2007; Gao, 2008; Bourne-Webb, 2009; Stewart and McCartney, 2013; Murphy et al., 2014). When pile construction takes place beneath the groundwater table, soil is under fully saturated conditions, maximizing thermal exchange for a GSHP system. Under unsaturated conditions, however, changing moisture contents change thermal conductivity values in a soil, which affect a GSHP system’s ability to meet a thermal demand. The observational data presented in this paper apply to GSHP systems in unsaturated soil conditions.

Jan 1, 2019

By AIME AIME

THE annual fall meeting of the Institute of Metals and the Iron and Steel divisions, in conjunction with the American .Society for Steel Treating and the Metal Congress and Show, at Boston was from many standpoints the most successful we have had to date. While many faces were missing from the various gatherings, the Institute registration reached the high mark of 324 members and guests. Cooperating with the Steel Treaters were also the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Society of Automotive Engineers and the American Welding Society. ,The meeting was, as usual, a three-ring circus with technical sessions 'galore, plant .trips, visits to the Exposition, social events such as lunch- eons and dinners as well as entertainment for the ladies present.

Jan 1, 1931

By T. G. Mayhew, A. A. Bergeron, R. J. Mahany

This report describes an operational communications system which provides remote intra-terrestrial wireless transmission of environmental information. Design and modification specifications of requisite equipment are included along with a detailed description of system operation

Jan 9, 1976

By Karl J. C. Harries

"5.1. INTRODUCTIONThis chapter is intended as a general overview of the subject of royalties between private parties – royalties extracted by governments are not dealt with. This same subject is covered in detail in Volume II, which critiques many sample provisions taken from agreements, giving both pros and cons. If you find something that interests you in this chapter, check Volume II for extra information. Detailed cross-referencing to Volume II has not been attempted, however, most subjects mentioned in this Chapter will also appear in Volume II, usually in greater detail. Reference should be made to the Index.A Brief History of Royalties1In the early days of mining in Canada, the tendency was to sell a claim for cash and to move on, using the stake to look for and stake more prospects. As prospectors became more sophisticated and Canada’s North opened up, the market for properties and the number of mining properties available increased dramatically. Speculation and the practice of consolidating several small properties into one large holding entity became common. In “hot” areas, the speculators2 could far outnumber the prospectors, many of the former having little or no prospecting expertise but lots of market and promotional savvy. However, to consolidate a number of small parcels into one large project can be expensive, and many of the parcel owners became interested in keeping a share in the project, rather than giving up everything. Speculators who were trying to consolidate small parcels wanted to minimize cash payments to parcel holders (usually they did not have much cash and preferred it flowing in their direction rather than away from them). Accordingly, non-cash transactions were developed to meet the aspirations of both owners and speculators."

Jan 1, 2003

By Justus B. Deen, Randy Peterson

INTRODUCTION The General Chemical Soda Ash Operation located near Green River, Wyoming produces about 4.5 Mt of trona per year. In July 1989, Mine Ventilation Services Inc. performed a ventilation survey of this complex trona mine which had thirteen active panels spread over 36 square kilometers. The ventilation survey and subsequent study showed that the intake shaft air velocities were at their practical limits (Wallace and Rogers, 1987). The need for additional intake capacity was immediate. The ventilation network modeling delineated the best location for this new intake shaft as it applied to the 5 year ventilation plan. Unfortunately, this location, 6.5 kilometers from the soda ash processing plant, would make heating this intake air very costly. Presently, the intake air is heated by heat exchangers which use waste heat from the plant. Air heating during the winter months is necessary for miner comfort and to prevent potential freezing of water lines in the mine. It was decided to examine the feasibility of heating the air geothermally by coursing it through an old production panel. This method of air heating has been used in this region with good results at the Stauffer Chemical Operation (now Rhone-Poulenc) (Moore, 1985). In 1990, a geothermal heating study examined four different production shaft/panel configurations and a workable design was found. The operators at the General Chemical Soda Ash Operations acted on this design and began raise boring a ventilation shaft in the Spring of 1991. This paper describes the ventilation system, briefly, and the geothermal heating studies performed. Findings of the 1990 geothermal studies are then compared to field data acquired in the Winter of 1992. THE VENTILATION SYSTEM The ventilation system at General Chemical had four shafts serving the mining horizon in July 1989; three of these shafts are located at the Northwest end of the mine. The active work areas had progressed to the South over the past years and supplying ventilation has become increasingly difficult. The 6.1 meter diameter #3 Production shaft and the men and materials compartment of the 6.1 meter diameter #2 Split Shaft had reached their air velocity limits. Conversely, the 4.6 meter diameter #5 Exhaust Shaft was under utilized. Ventilation studies showed the conversion of the 3.7 meter diameter #1 Exhaust Shaft to an intake would provide adequate intake capacity for two years. The next option to improve ventilation was the addition of an intake shaft at the southeast part of the mine at the intersection of H Mains South(H-M-S)and J Mains East(J-M-E) (See Figure 1). A service shaft has been planned for the extreme Southeast end in the late 1990's. Ventilation network analyses showed this interim intake shaft would have to be at least 2.5 meters in diameter to postpone the service shaft construction beyond 1995. The greater the size of the borehole, the further the construction could be postponed. In October 1991, General Chemical commissioned the 4.57 meter diameter #4 Ventilation Shaft near the junction of H-M-S and J-M-E as shown in Figure 1. The L95 panel would be used for air heating as described in the geothermal heating section to follow. GEOTHERMAL STUDIES Geothermal heating studies were performed by MVS Inc. in May 1990. Using a modified code of CLIMSIM, an underground mine climatic simulation model, several different shaft/panel configurations were examined to see which would provide adequate air heating during the winter months. CLIMSIM simulates heat flow into a single underground airway. The program was used to evaluate the heat flow to and from the airway surface and to calculate the resulting change in dry bulb temperature of the ventilating air. CLIMSIM uses inlet air conditions, airway characteristics, and rock thermal properties input by the user to predict the variation of psychrometric and thermodynamic parameters along an underground airway.

Jan 1, 1993

By H. Oterdoom, S. Pilger, T. P. Bui, J. Rotarius

"Most FeNi furnaces used to rely on post-combustion and off-gas cooling inside the furnace to eliminate the produced CO gas, and control the off gas temperature. As furnace load, capacity, and thus gas volumes increased over the years, this led to increased instabilities that can cause problems in controlling the operation. Some of the large capacity furnaces nowadays work with partial or full combustion outside the furnace, more similar to the steel industry. Forced combustion with or without enriched air and other additions can support in controlling post-combustion, stabilizing and even reducing off gas amounts, and affecting composition. This paper presents some of the possibilities and advantages of having a specially designed post-combustion system for the FeNi laterite industry, but that could also be applied to other processes as well.Large Scale Furnaces In the FeNi industry, the Rotary Kiln Electric Furnace (RKEF) process is still going strong in spite of continuous hope that hydrometallurgical processes will one day make the RKEF plant obsolete. Within the pyrometallurgical plants there is a continuous trend for larger scale furnaces. The development for a number of furnaces that were started before 1985 and increased capacity by “natural growth” is given in Figure 1. Natural growth refers to the development of the plants that after having mastered a certain level of operation, were ready for a higher load that could be installed either with a new furnace on the same site, or during a revamp. The advantages of natural growth are numerous, for example: •,Deep knowledge of the ore and its’ behavior, no need for testing, and little risk of surprises. •,Mining, laboratory, equipment, etc. is all proven technology for the conditions on site. •,Starting a furnace with increased capacity is a re-start, not a green-field commissioning. •,Typically, when increasing the production capacity of an existing plant, not the entire plant is commissioned for the first time, but only a part. In the FeNi laterite industry for example, the kilns may already have had the capacity to provide enough material."

Jan 1, 2017

By J. A. Wilcox

A NEW LINE of specialists has arisen as a result of the trend toward labor socialization and collectivism in all branches of industry. These men are the ones who will govern the destiny of many companies and the labor policy of our government in coming years. They must be men of integrity and of rather exceptional qualifications; men who can foresee the trend of labor relations with business, and who are willing to sacrifice the immediate fruits of technical training for manual labor and study. They must take their place in industry, not with the idea of following the orthodox line of advancement, but knowing that they must stay at the bottom until they have learned to understand the viewpoints, the work, the advantages and the disadvantages of each classification of labor. They must not be of a radical nature or become easily biased, and they must study. You will say I am looking for a superman and in one sense that is true, but the business man and our government are both in the market even now for this type of man, and with the proper training and background, many of our young technicians can readily enter this field of work.

Jan 1, 1942

By Marsh A. Cooper

THE THEME of my remarks provides a great deal of latitude. I shall therefore take advantage of the scope it offers to look at our industry across a broad spectrum. My observations reflect a Canadian mining man's varied career as a geologist, mine operator, geological consult ant and company executive in Canada and overseas ... under differing cultures, business environments and political jurisdictions. I was fortunate to come into this industry in the mid-1930's when it was characterized by great enthusiasm, drive and resourcefulness. It was the beginning of a burgeoning era of some 30 years' duration in which the individualist, the entrepreneur and the builder found ample room for expression. As I contemplate the environment in which we now have to operate and try to perceive what lies ahead, I find myself deeply disturbed. Something serious has happened to this industry along the way. It appears that our very success has been the source of our undoing. I believe it is useful to summarize our industry's basic strength at home as a take-off point f or assessing its position in world terms. I hope that I can focus on some of the things that, in my view, must be done for this industry and by this industry to restore Canada's historic role in the world mining community. The Canadian mineral industry provides 140,000 jobs. It pays the second -highest average weekly wages and salaries among the country's major industries. The output per employee in the mining industry is estimated at about three times that for the economy as a whole.

Jan 1, 1977

By James Westfield

Following is a brief history of Bureau of Mines Division of Coal-Mine Inspection activities that have favorably effected health and safety and reduced Injuries at coal mines: The Federal cline Safety Code for Bituminous Coal and Lignite Mines of the United States was issued originally by the Director of the Bureau of Mines on July 24, 1946, after consulting with management and labor representatives of the coal-mining industry. The code has been used by Federal coal-mine inspectors while inspecting bituminous-coal and lignite mines for the existence of unhealthful and unsafe conditions and practices in these mines. A revised code was issued by the Secretary of the Interior on October 8, 1953, after further consulting with representatives of management and mine workers, and was incorporated in the 1952 and subsequent bituminous-coal wage agreements. The agreement of May 29, 1946, betweeen the Secretary of the Interior, acting as Coal Mines Administrator under authority of Executive Order 9728, and the United Mine Workers of America, covering bituminous-coal and lignite mines in Government possession, charged Federal coal-mine inspectors with the responsibility of making periodic investigations of the mines and reporting to the Coal Mines Administrator any violations of the Federal Mine Safety Code. Federal coal-mine inspectors also had temporary authority to close mines considered imminently dangerous, but authority under Executive Order 9728 was removed on June 30, 1947, when Government control of the mines was terminated.

Jan 1, 1962

By S. L. Ausmus

The work covered in this report is a continuation of an earlier feasibility study by the Federal Bureau of Mines and points out improvements in the skull-melting method for casting reactive metals such as titanium, zirconium, and hafnium. Machined graphite molds with laminated sections can be reused many times. Large tube sections can be produced by spin casting. Graphite powder is the best expendable mold material, but binders for this use must be compounded carefully. The effects of current and furnace atmosphere on the dependent variables of the casting technique are shown. Because of developments in casting technology for titanium which eliminate the basic problems of melting and pouring the metal, opportunities for improvement in the method have increased. The mold material and gate and riser configurations require particular attention. The limits of application of the casting method have yet to be defined. New knowledge in anyone of these areas could result in marked improvements and simplifications in casting methods.

Jan 1, 1960

By A. G. Darnley

"IntroductionTHE PURPOSE of this paper is twofold. Firstly, to drawn attention to recommendations which have been accepted by the International Atomic Energy Agency concerning radiometric reporting methods and calibration in uranium exploration, and secondly to emphasize the benefits that- will stem from adopting them. These recommendations are contained in an IAEA Technical Report, No. 174, which has been prepared with the intention of serving as a general guide to the subject. The existence of this specialized report is likely to be unknown to most of those who can benefit unless it is given some publicity by an organization such as the CIM. The recommendations were prepared by a small international committee consisting of Dr, P. H. Dodd , U.S .A. , Dr. R. L. Grasty. Canada, Dr. L. Levborg, Denmark, Dr. M. Matolin, Czechoslovakia , Dr. S. D. Simov, Bulgaria, and the writer.The fact that there are standard scientific units of mass, distance and time is taken for granted, It is also accepted that the type of instrumentation used to measure one of these parameters is irrelevant to the way the measurement is reported. Geophysical parameters such as magnetic field strength and gravity have generally accepted units, the gamma and milligal, which are defined in SI terms. These units are employed irrespective of the operating principle, or manufacturer or organization involved in the measurement."

Jan 1, 1977

By Carl Lausen

Within recent years several mining companies have sent expeditions co the east end of Great Slave lake co determine the mineral possibilities of that area. Little was known of the geography of the region, and even less of the geology; and, not until Blancher's survey was made and the results published, was an accurate map of the lake available. Early explorers followed the Inconnu channel and the north shore of McLeod bay to Port Reliance, and, just prior to Blancher's survey, Hornby showed that the southern passage was feasible. Apparently, but few geologists have ? travelled through the country, for geological information is meager. In 1900, Robert Bell, of the Geological Survey, made a trip to Fort Reliance by way of the north shore of McLeod bay, and he gives a brief description of the geology. The present paper is the result of an expedition into this little-known region by Mr. Geo. M. Douglas and the writer in the summer of 1928. The south shore of Great Slave lake was followed to the east end of Tochatwi bay, and an extensive exploration was made of Kahochella and Pethei peninsulas. The prime object of the expedition was co determine the presence or absence of the copper-bearing Keweenawan basalts.

Jan 1, 1929

By J. J. Shields

With the increased use of mechanized equipment in mining bituminous coal, production panels are mined out rapidly. To keep current with the rapid completion of production panels, development work must be speeded up also. Although the same type of equipment usually is employed in development as in production places in the same mine, past output per man for development usually was less than from production panels. A study of development practices in 14 mines reveals a tendency toward equalization of the output per man between development and production.

Jan 1, 1957

By R. B. Moore

The story of helium is one of the romances of science . Probably nothing , except perhaps radium , compares with it in human interest . Helium is one of the best examples of a discovery in pure science that has wide commercial application . In 1868 , an eclipse of the sun was visible in India , several scientific men who were in India making observations of the eclipse turned a spectroscope for the first time on the solar chromosphere - that part of the atmosphere of the sun , about 10,000 miles deep , which merges into the corona . A bright yellow line was observed and was thought at first to be due to sodium . Janssen showed , however , that this line was not just the same as either the D or D₂ line of sodium, although it was extremely close to these lines , hence he suggested that the new line have the designation D₂ . Frankland and Lockyer decided that Dz was due to an element in the sun not previously discovered on the earth , and suggested for it the name "Helium" from the Greek work " Helios " the sun . For several years nothing more was done in connection with this element . In 1894 , Sir William Ransay , in conjunction with Lord Rayleigh , made his memorable discovery of argon in the atmosphere , which was announced at the British Association meeting in the same year . After this discovery , Ramsay looked for other sources of the element . Through Sir Henry Miers , he learned that Dr. W. F. Hillebrand , of the United States Geological Survey , had obtained an inert gas from certain uranium minerals , which gas he had decided was nitrogen . Ramsay believed that part of it might be argon ; he obtained from Hillebrand for experimentation , a sample of the mineral , cleveite , one of the uranium minerals , and after extracting gas from the mineral and purifying it , he ran it into a spectrum tube . The lines obtained ' were , however , different from those of argon; among them was the bright yellow line noted by Janssen . Thus was terrestrial heliun discovered .

Jun 1, 1922

By R. K. Jonas

"Pressure leaching and pressure oxidation in autoclaves are important alternatives in the extractive processing of gold, copper and nickel ores. The application of advanced control to pressure leach and pressure oxidation autoclaves could achieve significant benefits as has been shown in alumina pressure leaching. This paper compares and contrasts alumina digestion autoclaves to other mining autoclaves with respect to advanced controls. The application of advanced control in alumina with over 30 units controlled worldwide, and its benefits will be reviewed. The design and potential benefits from advanced control for pressure oxidation and leaching will be presented.INTRODUCTIONIt is this author's position and the purpose of this paper to propose that advanced control could be effectively applied to autoclaves in the nickel, gold, and copper mining processes. This is based on the proven effectiveness of advanced control on autoclaves used in the alumina industry for pressure leaching of bauxite ores. Incremental, but significant increases in production could be realized by applying advanced control to autoclaves, as evidenced by the alumina industry, and this not being implemented in other autoclaves in the mining industry.In addition, today the mining industry is being challenged to improve their production methods. In some markets like nickel, there is pressure to improve productivity and reduce the cash cost per ton. While in other markets like copper and gold, demand is vigorous with favourable pricing, and there are advantages to increase production and productivity given limited plant capacity. Advanced control has proven its capability to improve mineral processing operations through increases in throughput, recovery, as well as reducing variability. In today's mines, autoclaves are being used to a much larger scale and with much larger importance, thus it would be beneficial to improve operational performance through the use of advanced control.Accordingly, it is the author supposition that an opportunity exists in the mining industry to use a proven advanced control technology to improve the operations and financial performance of mines using autoclaves."

Jan 1, 2012

The Nak?azdli First Nation and the municipality of Fort St. James are located in the Stuart Lake/Nak?al Bun area and are not unfamiliar to mining. These northern British Columbian communities have been associated with the historic Pinchi Lake Mercury mine and today are closely linked with British Columbia?s newest mine, the Mt. Milligan mine. Prior to the construction of Mt. Milligan, community health and social service providers were concerned about potential impacts that would occur from new mineral development activities. This concern has led to a partnership between the above communities and researchers with expertise in the area of mining and health. This paper describes: the current mining and health environment with a focus on British Columbia; mining trends in the Stuart Lake/Nak?al Bun area; the current community-based health research project funded by the Vancouver Foundation and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and; a suite of community-based health recommendations to mining companies on key issues to consider when developing projects near municipalities and Aboriginal communities in Canada, based upon one of the newest mines under development in Canada.

Aug 1, 2013

By J. T. Ryan

FIGURES for the first 11 months of 1935 indicate that the total coal production of the United States for 1935 will be approximately 416,000,000 tons, or almost identical with the production figures for 1934. Bituminous production will show a gain of about six million tons, and anthracite production a loss of about the same tonnage, compared with the previous year. This does not take into account so-called "bootleg" anthracite coal amounting to approximately 5,000,000 tons. Twenty-nine years ago, in 1906, the production of coal was almost identical with this year's production. At that time, 626,000 men were employed in producing this tonnage, which took a toll of 2138 lives from accidents. In 1935, approximately 540,000 men were required to produce the same tonnage with an estimated loss of 1155 lives. This shows definite safety advancement in the industry, but even so accidents are still costing an average of 3c. a ton more than they should.

Jan 1, 1936

Geophysical Abstracts 1 - 86 wore issued in mimeographed form by the Bureau of Mines; Abstracts 87 - 111 were published in bulletins of the Geological Survey; Abstracts 112 - 119 were issued in mimeographed form by the Bureau of Mines as Information it ion Circulars 7256, 7257, 7267, 7273, 7285, 7292, 7303, and 7310. 1. GRAVITATIONAL METHODS 7786. Barton, D. C.3/ Case Histories and Quantitative Calculations in Gravimotric Prospecting. Am. Inst. Min. and Meat. Eng., New York, Tech. Pub. 1760, 1944, 49 pp.

Jan 1, 1945

By AIME AIME

CERTAINLY in point of attendance, and doubtless in several other ways as well, the 147th meeting of the A.I.M.E. was the best ever held. In times of depression, mining engineers and metallurgists have plenty of time to come to the Annual Meeting but money is scarce; at the height of industrial activity they have plenty of money but no time. "The current period of transition seemed to provide ideal conditions for' both the preparation of papers and attendance at their presentation. The weather made even the Californians present envious though the weather man gets no credit, for rain and snow was what he willed. Among the elevator men, the miners have the reputation of being the toughest crowd to handle, though the best natured, withal, of all the engineering groups that meet in the Engineering Societies Building. This year Your inquiring reporter was told, "it was the damnedest meeting I ever saw; they

Jan 1, 1937