Search Documents

By Thais Cristina da Costa Caldas, Alline Sardinha Cordeiro Morais, Carlos Maurício Fontes Vieira, Sergio Neves Monteiro

"This work has as its objective to evaluate the firing behavior of a kaolinitic clayey body from Campos dos Goytacazes-RJ incorporated with flat glass waste (FGW) from civil construction. Incorporations of the waste, with a particle size less than 74 µm (200 mesh), were performed in the red ceramic in the following amounts: 0, 2.5, 5 and 10 wt%. Specimens were prepared by uniaxial press-molding and then fired at 850 and 1050°C. The characterization of FGW was done by X-ray Fluorescence. The physical and mechanical properties evaluated were: linear shrinkage, water absorption and flexural rupture strength. The microstructure of the fired ceramics was evaluated by optical microscopy (OM). The obtained results showed that the flat glass waste can be used as a component of ceramic bodies once it was noticed tolerable modifications of technological behavior.IntroductionBrazil is one of the world’s largest producers and consumers of clayey ceramic. Campos dos Goytacazes is located in the north of the State of Rio de Janeiro, southeast of Brazil, it’s known as a large producer of red ceramics. It is estimated that the production of bricks can reach 1 billion pieces per year [1].Nowadays, recycling processes became more and more important, due the generation of wastes in large scale and the preoccupation with environmental. The amount of glass waste has been exponentially growing with the growth of the population. It is estimated that the amount of discarded glass as bottles, construction windows, packing and other glass waste represented in 2006 an amount of 7.5% of the total weight of the world´s domestic garbage [2]."

Jan 1, 2012

By S. Uddin

Microsegregation manifests its effect on microstructural evolution of cast or welded alloys which in turn influences their important mechanical and electro-chemical properties. In the above context, mathematical models of microsegregation have proven to play an important role in estimating the nature and predicting the effects of this phenomenon in wide varieties of solidification processes. Microsegregation models are useful in designing new commercial alloys, in estimating the homogenization time for the post-process heat treatments and in many other practical applications. In this study, two semi-analytical models of microsegregation were developed to predict the concentration field of solute in the liquid and solid regions for dendritic solidification of binary metallic alloys. Both models assume that the growing dendrites are cylindrical in shape. This assumption is more realistic compared to the common assumptions of plate like dendrites that most of the earlier researchers employed in their microsegregation modeling study. The solute redistribution profile, in the developing solid layer, necessary to determine the back diffusion parameter was derived from Fick's second law for the model without coarsening. The application of this parameter in a wide range of conditions and the use of its basic form in the model with coarsening has been verified. The concept of coordinate transformation and enhancement of back-diffusion Fourier number were used in deriving the model which took into account the coarsening of dendrites. The models are then extended to deal with rapid solidification and peritectic transformations and the results were compared with relevant experimental data for Aluminum and other alloys. A good agreement between model predictions and experimental results was found.

Jan 1, 2007

By M. D. Quinn

THE sand and gravel used for backfilling at the Hollinger mine is obtained from deposits in a low range of hills some three miles north of the mine, where the Company owns a number of claims. The material is transported to the mine by aerial tram. Shipments from these deposits to the Hollinger mine commenced in June, 1927, and since May, 1936, sand has been supplied also to the McIntyre mine. During 1942, Hollinger requirements were 1,700 tons per day, and 900 tons per day was delivered to McIntyre. For the past seven years production has averaged 900,000 tons annually, and total deliveries to the end of 1942 were 13,129,022 tons, of which 11,075,339 tons went to Hollinger and 2,053,683 tons to McIntyre. Some years ago, when the original pit was approaching exhaustion, new workings were opened on claims east and south of the tramway terminal. It soon became apparent that the sand varies considerably in character from place to place. The weight per cubic foot was found to range from 85 to 130 lb., and the water percolation rate from 2 to 50 inches per hour. As the mine requirement is a sand with percolation rate of 6 inches or better per hour, it was evident that in certain parts of the deposits the material was not suitable for use as backfill. As a consequence, it was decided to carry out a programme of systematic sampling of the claims in order to select the areas containing suitable material for back-fill and at the same time estimate the tonnage available.

Jan 1, 1944

By Geology Staff, C. H. Stockwell

"The Flin Flon base metal mine, owned and operated by the Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Company, is on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan interprovincial boundary at a point 400 miles north of the International boundary. The deposit was discovered in 1914 by Thomas Creighton and the Mosher and Dion brothers. Since production commenced in 1930, 25,000,000 tons of ore have been mined. On January 1st, 1946, reserves were estimated to be 26,000,000 tons, averaging 2.99 per cent copper, 4.i4 per cent zinc, and 0.089 oz. gold and 1.25 oz. silver per ton. In addition to the four metals named, others recovered from the ore include- cadmium, selenium, and tellurium. The mine workings extend to the 3,750-foot level, but little development work has yet been carried on below 3,250 feet.The known ore occurs in six lenticular to irregular bodies within a zone 500 feet wide. These bodies average 900 feet long, 70 feet wide, 1,500 feet in vertical depth, and 2,500 feet in length along the plunge. They were formed by replacement of the country rock and include ore of two types, solid sulphides and disseminated sulphides. Seventy per cent of the total known ore is of the solid sulphide type. This consists essentially of metallic sulphides- chiefly pyrite- with included remnants of the host rock, and additional quartz and carbonate. In places, the ore exhibits banding, inherited from pre-existing structures. The disseminated ore occurs usually on the footwall side, and along the bottom of the plunge, of the solid sulphide bodies."

Jan 1, 1954

By Jorge Alberto Soares Tenório, Flávia Paulucci Cianga Silvas, Denise Crocce Romano Espinosa, Ivo André Homrich Schneider, Erika Gusmão, Daniella Cardoso Buzzi, José Roberto de Oliveira

"This study evaluated the Salvinia sp action on metals biosorption in a synthetic sample of acid mine drainage (AMD) in order to determine the time and amount of metals uptake. Biosorptives tests were realized varying the contact time of 5, 20, 60 and 240 minutes. And keeping constant the follow parameters: pH (2.6), biomass concentration (1g.L-1), temperature (25°C) and agitation (175rpm). In order to quantify the metals concentration captured by biomass, the AMD samples will be analyzed by ICP. Biosorbent, Salvinia sp., will be characterized before and after the biosorptives tests through analysis of SEM and IR. The micrographs indicate the occurrence of micro-precipitation and changes in biomass physical structure. The infrared spectra indicate changes in functional groups present in the biomass before and after the biosorptives tests.IntroductionThe current emphasis on environmental sustainability leads the industry in general, to treat their waste. The human activities are increasing, highlighting the industrial and mining activities, and have promoted the contamination of soil, waterways and groundwater by metals (1). The waste must undergo treatment processes aimed at reducing pollution, and therefore, less aggression ecosystems.This means the importance of studies of economic and effective methods to eliminate these metals from wastewater generated. The bioindicators are good investments in this area. The aquatic weeds are plants that inhabit swamps up from truly aquatic environments. They have several morphological and physiological adaptations that enable them to colonize the various aquatic environments. They are used as bioindicators of water quality and have also been used in decontamination of aquatic environments, production of biomass for livestock feed, fertilizers, soil and fish tanks (2)."

Jan 1, 2012

By L. O. Cooper

IN THE operation of most mines, hoisting ropes, made of steel, play a very important part in the conveying of men and material between surface and the underground workings. It is obvious that, in order to maintain a maximum degree of safety, certain restrictions must be placed on the loads that may be carried by hoisting ropes, as well as on other factors that may affect the life of the rope. It is the purpose of this paper to suggest ?a new method of defining the necessary restrictions. The three main stresses in a hoisting rope are the static stress, bending stress, and dynamic stress. Crushing stresses, which are also present, are largely indeterminate and may best be allowed for by proper grooving of drum and sheaves, by adequate inspection of cross-over points, and by limiting the number of layers on the drum. They will, therefore, not be considered in this analysis. In the ?recent Ontario regulations, the limiting conditions for the main stresses are specified separately. The static stress is limited by setting a minimum static safety factor of 5.0 The dynamic stresses are allowed for by specifying a minimum capacity factor of 8.5, which has the effect of increasing the safety factor required at smaller depths in a uniform manner. The bending stresses are limited by calling for a drum-dia./rope-dia. ratio of at least 60 for ropes up to 1 inch in diameter and 80 for ropes greater than 1 inch in diameter. One disadvantage of this method is that the controls are too rigid and do not allow the operator sufficient freedom of action within safe limits.

Jan 1, 1951

By Jorge Alberto Soares Tenório, Flávia Paulucci Cianga Silvas, Bianca Medeiros, Denise Crocce Romano Espinosa, Ivo André Homrich Schneider, Daniella Cardoso Buzzi, José Roberto de Oliveira

"AMD is one of the main problems associated with mining activities and the techniques used in their treatment may be the biosorption. The aim of this work was to study the rice husk as a biosorbent for the AMD treatment keeping constant: pH (2.6), biomass concentration (1g.L-1), temperature (25°C) and agitation (175rpm). And varying the contact time of 5, 20, 60 and 240 minutes. Rice husk samples will be characterized before and after the biosorptives tests through analysis of SEM and IR. The micrographs indicate the occurrence of micro-precipitation and changes in biomass physical structure. Since the infrared spectra indicate changes in functional groups present in the biomass before and after the biosorptives tests. AMD synthetic solutions will be analyzed by ICP in order to quantify the metals concentration captured by biomassIntroductionThe preoccupation for the environment has led the industry in general, to treat their waste. As the only industrial activity is increasing, the pollutants generated must undergo treatment processes aimed at reducing pollution, and therefore, less aggression ecosystems.In mining there is waste water with accumulation of heavy metals, and these are harmful to health of living beings, thus being one of those industries responsible for some pollution of the environment. These wastewater in contact with oxygen to generate an acidic water is called acid mine drainage (AMD). This aqueous solution has a pH below 3 and varieties of dissolved metals. When this solution comes in contact with water, generates a series of environmental problems, so there is a need to recover the metals present in the DAM."

Jan 1, 2012

By F. McIntosh Galbraith

EMPLOYING geophysics to find ore was for a long time considered by the Canadian mining fraternity to be a performance of dubious value: in a category somewhere between the practice of sorcery, and using a divining rod to locate underground water. With increasing knowledge, however, and with constantly improving instruments, a solid speaking acquaintance with this adolescent science is becoming an integral part of the mining geologist's stock in trade. And quite properly so: for, in the established mining districts, the ore deposits which could be easily found, by ordinary prospecting methods, have already been located. There remain; however, in almost all of the principal mining camps, areas which are covered to varying depths by glacial debris; and it is here that the obvious opportunities exist for the successful application of geophysical methods. Geophysical results must always be considered in the closest possible relation to the local geology; and, in reality, the 'doodle-bugs' are simply additional tools for the geologist (in the same category with a plane table or a microscope). The Sudbury Basin is a shining example of precisely this state of affairs. Detailed geological mapping has not significantly altered the position of the outer norite contact as placed on Dr. Coleman's original map of the district. What detailed examination has done, of course, has been to reveal the accuracy with which the contact can be placed in different parts of the district, and to show up, in consequence, areas in which further work might reasonably be expected to disclose hitherto unknown or unsuspected ore. Viewed in this light, the proportion of the norite contact which is covered by substantial quantities of overburden is astonishingly large.

Jan 1, 1939

By John Gross

"Introduction.Southern Illinois and Kentucky are credited with approximately 90% of the fluorspar production of the United States. A small amount of high-grade acid, spar is obtained from the ore by band sorting; the greater part, however, is recovered by jigs and tables as gravel spar containing approximately 85% calcium fluoride. In the jigging and tabling operations, galena is recovered, and enough silica and calcite are removed to raise the calcium fluoride content of the gravel spar to 85%. However, the removal of silica and calcite results in a large loss of spar. With increasing depth in the mines, zinc sulphide, sphalerite, is encountered in increasing quantity and the removal of this has become a serious problem. While the sphalerite can be fairly well removed from the spar by present milling methods, a marketable zinc concentrate can not be made. The experiments described below were made on fluorspar ore from Southern Illinois, by the mining experiment station of the U. S. Bureau of Mines, at Rolla, Mo., in cooperation with the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy.The ore tested contained. 7.3% lead, 27.9% zinc, 35.7% calcium fluoride, 9.5% silica and 4.7%. calcite.Tests and Results. In some preliminary tests it was noticed that a portion of the finely crushed ore adhered strongly to the sample pans, and upon investigation it was found that the adhering material was practically clean spar. By utilizing this property of adhesion 46.8% of the spar was recovered as a product containing 98.3% calcium fluoride. This suggested the possibility of using electrostatic separation."

Jul 1, 1921

By Hylton R. Brown

Although extensive research has been carried on to determine the factors affecting the explosibility of carbonaceous dusts, as much has been published on coal-dust and grain-dust explosions recent reports of loss of life and property in explosions if metal dusts emphasize the lack of information on the extent of the dust-explosion hazard in plants manufacturing or handling; aluminum, magnesium, or zinc powder, as well as other metal or mineral dusts. Early investigators believed that only the carbonaceous dusts formed explosive mixtures with air, and it was not until near the beginning of the present century that the explosibility of certain metal and mineral dusts was recognized generally. In his book, entitled "Fire and Explosion Risks," published in 1904, Von Schwartz called attention to such hazards. Many vague references to metallic-dust explosions are found in the literature, such as "a severe explosion of aluminum dust occurred in the Middle West several years ago," but very little information seems to be available on the extent of the hazard, the number of explosions, or the amount of loss caused by explosions in pants handling metallic or mineral dusts or powders other than those of a carbonaceous nature. A search of the records of insurance companies, rating bureaus, fire underwriters,and fire-protection associations as well as the files and records of Government agencies has been made to obtain authentic data on explosion losses. To indicate the extent of the hazard a summary of laboratory tests covering the explosibility of certain metal dusts, with brief reference to their uses and Methods of manufacture, and the data compiled from the information available on losses are presented in this publication.

Jan 1, 1941

By D. P. Pope, T. Vreeland

Observations of dislocations in zinc using Berg-Barrett X-ray micrography confirm the validity of a dislocation etch for (1010) surfaces. A technique for measurement of the depth in which dislocations can be imaged in X-ray micrographs is given. This depth on (0001) surfaces of zinc was found to be 2.5 µ using a (1013) reflection and CoKa radiation. BUCHANAN and Reed-Hill (B & RH) have recently questioned the ability of a dislocation etch to reveal all of the basal dislocations which intersect (1010) surfaces in annealed zinc crystals.' This etch was developed by Brandt, Adams, and Vreeland who conducted a number of different experiments to check its ability to reveal dislocations.2,3 B & RH prepared (0001) foil specimens for transmission electron microscopy from annealed crystals and observed dislocation densities of about l08 cm per cu cm in the foils, while the etch indicated densities of the order of l04 cm per cu cm in their annealed crystals. As this etch has been used in a number of studies of dislocations in zinc, it is of considerable importance to reassess its validity in the light of the B & RH results. The X-ray work reported here was undertaken to check the ability of the etch to reveal dislocation intersections on (1070) surfaces of zinc. The X-ray technique was chosen for this check because it could be applied to the as-grown crystals with a relatively small amount of specimen preparation. We believe that the possibility of accidental deformation in preparation of the bulk specimens is considerably less than that for thin foil specimens suitable for transmission electron microscopy. Unfortunately, basal dislocations are not visible on Berg-Barrett topo-graphs of (1010) surfaces, which are the surfaces on which the etch is most effective. Therefore, a one-to-one correspondence between the etch and X-ray observations could not be made. Basal dislocations near (0001) surfaces have been observed by Schultz and Armstrong4 using the Berg-Barrett technique, but they did not report the as-grown dislocation density observed in their crystals. We have applied the X-ray technique in this study to surfaces oriented from 1 to 2 deg of the (0001) to determine the basal dislocation density, and have compared this density with that observed using the etch on a (1070) plane of the same crystal. The X-ray observations permit determination of the depth in which basal dislocations can be observed under the diffracting conditions used. SPECIMEN PREPARATION High purity zinc crystals are very soft, so a good deal of care must be exercised in the preparation of observation surfaces. As-grown crystals approximately 2.5 cm in diam and 20 cm long were acid cut into 1.25 cm cubes. A thin slab was cleaved from an (0001) surface to produce an accurately oriented reference surface on the specimen. Some of the cubes were examined in the as-machined condition while some were annealed in argon at 410°C for 2 hr. Heating and cooling rates were less than 2°C per min. Some of the specimens were scratched on a (0001) surface with a razor blade to produce fresh dislocations. Approximately 2 mm of material was acid lapped from one face of a cube to produce a surface oriented between 1 and 2 deg from the basal plane and parallel to the [1210] direction. A (1070) surface was also acid lapped. The lap used a 1 to 3 pct solution of HN03 in water to saturate a soft cloth which was backed by a stainless steel plate. The cloth was moved over the crystal surface at a rate of 20 cm per sec while a normal force of about 4 g was maintained between the cloth and the specimen. As-lapped surfaces were examined as were surfaces which were chemically and electrolytically polished after lapping. The small angle between a lapped surface and the (0001) plane was measured to 0.1 deg using a Unitron microgoniometer microscope (the cleaved surface was used as a reference in this measurement). The microscope was modified so that the intensity of reflected light could be continuously monitored on a meter. This modification produced nearly a ten-fold increase in the reproduceability of orientation readings. OBSERVATIONS The Unitron Microgoniometer observations indicated that the lapped surfaces had a terraced structure with the terraces quite rounded and spaced about 0.1 mm in the [1010] direction. The maximum change in slope between terraces was 0.25 deg, indicating a terrace height of about 0.1 µ. A Unitron measurement of the average angle between (0001) and a lapped surface was checked by micrometer measurement of the specimen and found to agree within 0.1 deg. The Berg-Barrett micrographs using (1013) reflections and CoKa radiation5 revealed subboundaries, short dislocation segments, spirals, and loops near the surfaces which were oriented from 1 to 2 deg of the (0001). Micrographs of surfaces prepared by lapping appeared very similar to those of the chemically and electrolytically polished surfaces. The loops and spirals were not extinct in (1013) or (0002) reflections, indicating that they have a nonbasal Burgers vector. Extinctions of the short, straight dislocations indicated that they belonged to an (0001)(1210) system. Fig. 1 is an example of a micrograph which shows a subboundary, and dislocation segments which are pre-

Jan 1, 1970

By K. W. Nelson, John N. Abersold

INDUSTRIAL hygiene has been defined by Patty' as "the science and art of recognizing, evaluating, and controlling potentially harmful factors in the industrial environment." This definition implies thorough study of operations, evaluation of potentially harmful factors through air sampling, micro-analyses and other means and finally, appropriate medical and engineering control wherever indicated. The prevention of industrial health injuries is a vital part of operations of American industry today. Progress and interest in this field has increased steadily for many years, the most rapid progress having been attained, perhaps, during the last three decades. It is significant to note that there are now official agencies in 46 states actively concerned with industrial health problems and that a western field station has been established recently in Salt Lake City by the U. S. Public Health Service to augment its industrial hygiene services directed from headquarters of the National Institute of Health, Bethesda, Md. Many of the larger industries have found it advantageous to establish their own industrial hygiene departments. The American Smelting and Refining Co. is a world-wide organization engaged in the mining, smelting, and refining of lead, copper, zinc, silver, gold, by-product metals, including cadmium, arsenic, and others. In the United States there are 13 smelters and refineries, 11 secondary smelters or foundries, and a number of mines. Approximately 9000 workers are normally employed. It has long been the established company policy to seek out occupational hazards and provide safeguards for employee health. Protective equipment has been supplied to individual workers and exhaust ventilation installations have been in use in some operations for more than 40 years. All of the major units have their own medical departments which provide employees with excellent medical and hospital care. In 1937 full scale industrial hygiene studies were undertaken at the Selby Plant and were extended to most of the other smelters during the next three years. In 1945 the Department of Hygiene was organized with Professor Philip Drinker of Harvard University as Director and with Dr. S. S. Pinto as Medical Director. The department is responsible for coordinating and maintaining a program for the good health of all employees from top management down to the lowest paid day worker. It is essentially a service organization serving all of the United States plants regardless of location or size. Full and part-time physicians employed in all of the company's American plants and working in close cooperation with the Medical Director are responsible for de- termining the state of health of all the employees and giving treatment when necessary. In general, medical care is confined to accidents or illnesses occurring while the men are on the job. Among the duties of the doctors is the making of careful physical examinations of new employees and routine check-ups of old employees. In addition to medical care a primary responsibility of the department is the prevention of occupational illnesses. In this the main concern is with the working environment in relation to its effect on the worker. Environmental factors may be dusts, fumes, gases, toxic materials, heat, humidity, radiation, or noise. The objectives are: (1) Immediate control of these factors through the education of the worker, through providing the wearing of respirators or other protective devices, and through careful medical examinations and regular analysis of urine specimens; (2) a long range control program which may be accomplished by local exhaust ventilation, wetting of materials, changes in metallurgy, changes in methods of handling, or by use of special devices and special equipment. To accomplish these objectives a fine industrial hygiene laboratory was built in Salt Lake City and equipped to do routine and experimental work. Trained and experienced industrial hygienists obtain the facts by making frequent hygiene surveys. These surveys include tests of the air, studies of all processes, and careful investigation of ventilation, lighting, and general working conditions. Except in emergencies, the air contaminants and often the substances handled by the worker are sent to the laboratory for analysis by chemists and technicians specially trained in industrial hygiene methods. The findings are evaluated in terms of limits recommended by various State and Federal agencies, and in light of all available medical data. The methods used for studying the working environment involve all of the usual chemical and physical procedures employed in industrial hygiene. The Impinger, electric precipitator, thermal pre-cipitator, and filter paper sampler have been used to collect atmospheric dust and fume samples. Of special interest here is the filter paper sampler, shown in Fig. 1, which was developed by Dr. Silver-man at Harvard University. The instrument has been improved and is used very extensively in field studies. A water manometer connected behind an orifice is used to determine the rate of air flow. Calibration is effected by use of a standard gas meter or rotameter. The dust or fume is collected on a filter paper clamped between two rings, as shown in Fig. 2. The filter paper, such as Whatman No. 52, collects both dust and fume with a very high efficiency. The instrument is very convenient and easily transported. The solids collected on the filter paper are analyzed in the laboratory usually by use of a polar-ographic procedure. By this procedure it is possible to measure quantitatively in a single analysis the

Jan 1, 1952

By LeRoy Scharon

EACH year it becomes apparent that geophysical activities in the fields of mining and engineering are increasing in the number and variety of applications. Many mining companies are including, as part of their exploration programs, geophysical surveys. The value of geophysics in highway and structural foundation investigations has been realized and is now an important part of subsurface investigations in conjunction with soil and rock borings. United States of America One of the major orebody discoveries of the year is that of the Grace mine near Morgantown in Berks County, Pa. This orebody, now under development by the Bethlehem Steel Co., was discovered by an airborne magnetometer survey carried out by the Aero Service Corp. of Philadelphia. The orebody, the geological occurrence of which is similar to those existing at Cornwall, Pa., was found at a depth of 1500 ft under a cover of Triassic sediments and is reported to have a reserve of well over 100 million tons. Shaft sinking and other construction work has started at the site. Resistivity work was carried out at proposed dam sites in New York and in connection with the search for fluorspar veins in Kentucky. Spontaneous polarization investigations were pursued in the Appalachian region at various localities from North Caro¬lina up into Virginia. This work was done in connection with the search for sulphide-bearing structures. Several indications were proven by subsequent drilling to correspond to unknown sulphide deposits, a few of these occurring in the vicinity of properties long under exploitation. Refraction seismic methods applied to bedrock depth determinations as related to water problems on the Marquette Range and the extension of the. regional gravity survey on the Menominee Range to learn the major structural features of the area have been reported by, Lloyal O. Bacon. A gravity survey has been completed in the vicinity of Tioga, Bradford County, Pa. with a gravity profile being observed from Tioga east to the Delaware basin. The Indiana Geological Survey is concerned with a state-wide gravity survey. Judson Mead, University of Indiana, reports that the bulk of the State Survey's geophysical work, however, has been "seismic refraction work in connection with drift thickness problems. The survey has made almost 1000 determinations in areas of moderately thick drift. The results of this work are of interest to both the coal mining industry and to the stone industry." In the southeastern Missouri lead belt, magnetic electrical resistivity, and electromagnetic applications for the discovery of new lead deposits have been used with success. A gravity survey of the residual-barite deposits in Washington County, Mo., was made during the summer season with preliminary computations of tonnages checking with tonnages mined. Robert M. Dryer, of the University of Kansas has had considerable success in mapping structural features in southwestern Kansas with the gravity meter and is now engaged in tracing shoestring sands in eastern Kansas by resistivity surveys. Several, foundation sites were investigated in greater St. Louis using electrical resistivity and seismic refraction methods with success. A minimum amount of drilling data was available for checking and interpreting the geophysical results (Fig. 1). It is to be noted that geophysical methods are finding a place in subsurface investigations for highway and foundation problems. Interest has been so keen in this field that the American Society for Testing Materials, at its annual meeting in June of this year, devoted one session of its symposium on surface and subsurface reconnaissance to geophysical papers involving the application of the electrical resistivity and seismic refraction methods to subsurface studies. At least three major mining companies in the United States have entered the field recently in geochemistry. The program of research and development of geochemical techniques by the U. S. Geological Survey continues. Experimental field projects were conducted over lead-silver, cobalt, copper and zinc deposits in Idaho, Oregon, California, Wisconsin and Montana. Similar experiments were carried on by M. P. Nackowski in the Illinois-Kentucky fluorspar district and in the Tri-State Zinc district by R. Maurice Tripp with favorable results. Geophysical activities of the U. S. Geological Survey for 1951 were extensive and varied. About 21,000 miles of airborne magnetic and 10,000 miles of airborne radioactivity traverse were flown in 1951 by the U. S. Geological Survey. A total of 35,000 miles of aeromagnetic traverse were compiled, 57 aeromagnetic maps were published and 14 preliminary maps were placed on open file. Airborne surveys were made in Aroostook County, in the Katahdin and Dead River areas in Maine; in northwest Washington; over the Mother Lode district in California; in northeastern and northwestern Minnesota; and in the New York-New Jersey highlands. Of special interest were the surveys in Washington, where highly magnetic Eocene lavas gave information on structures in the overlying Miocene sedimentary rocks and in northeastern Minnesota over the Duluth gabbro. The latter survey was made following the discovery of nickel-copper mineralization in the gabbro near its contact with the Virginia slate. The principal ground geophysical surveys for metalliferous deposits and related purposes were made in the Colorado Plateau region, where electrical surveys assisted in prospecting; in Aroostook County, Maine, where ground magnetic surveys, following aeromagnetic surveys, have permitted tracing

Jan 1, 1952

By A. W. McReynolds

One characteristic of plastic deformation which distinguishes it from elastic strain is the essential inhomo-geneity of plastic strains. Elastic strain varies continuously through a material, and average relative displacements of initially adjacent atoms are only small fractions of their initial spacing, (strains of the order of 0.01 or less). On the other hand, plastic flow corresponds to the appearance of discontinuities in strain of the lattice, such as dislocations or slip bands, where local strain, on an atomic scale, is several orders of magnitude higher. These discontinuities are visible on a microscopic scale as the familiar slip lines (Fig 1). In spite of this obvious microscopic inhomogeneity, however, macroscopic measurements almost invariably show a smooth curve of stress vs. strain (Fig 2b) even if measurements of linear strains be made to an accuracy of one part in 107. This macroscopic homogeneity of strain indicates that the discontinuities in strain on slip planes occur in increments too small or too slow to be recorded individually, and further that they occur sufficiently independent of one another so that the small increments add at random to a smooth stress-strain curve. The present paper describes observations of plastic strain in aluminum of commercial purity and in high purity Al-Cu alloys, where there exists a strong coupling between slip in various regions of the specimen such that once initiated it spreads rapidly through a large volume. The total effect is that of relatively large, rapid, and regularly spaced steps of strain followed by periods of only elastic strain. Fig 2a illustrates the type of "stair-step" stress-strain curve which results. The properties of this cooperative slip phenomenon will be described further in the section on results: in par- ticular it will be shown that each step corresponds to the propagation of a wave of plastic deformation through the specimen. Some interpretations of the mechanism by which it occurs will be made in the following section. Although the type of plastic wave phenomena to be described has not previously been reported, there are numerous cases of related effects in the plastic yielding of metals: YIELD POINT PHENOMENA The most familiar of such effects is the "yield point" observed in low carbon steels, brass, duralurninum, and the like. It consists in the sudden termination of the elastic portion of the stress-strain curve by a large plastic strain. Since the usual tensile machine is such that yielding of the specimen relieves the load, the resulting curve is as shown in Fig 3. As the strain continues, deformation occurs at a lower stress for some time, then follows a rising curve, but with no further sudden yielding. This effect has been observed in brass by Sachs and Shojil and later by many others. Edwards, Phillips and Jones2 made extensive studies of the effect in steel, and of the role of various alloying elements. Although there seems to be fairly clear evidence that the yield point is caused by a hardening of the material by precipitation of impurities, no satisfactory explanation for the sudden yielding has been given. Winlock and Leiter3 have shown that the strain. level of the upper yield point depends strongly on the rate of loading, the yield point increasing by almost a fac- tor of two as the strain rate goes from 0.002 in. per in. per min. to 4.4 in. per in. per min. This effect would seem to imply an incubation period before yielding is initiated at a certain stress. On the other hand, by going to very slow loading rates, Edwards, Phillips and Jones2 showed that the yield point does not become lower and eventually disappear as might be expected, but, on the contrary, begins to rise at loading rates below about 25 Ib per in. per min. becoming much higher than at rapid loading rates. STRAIN AGING If, instead of continuing straining of a specimen after occurrence of a yield point, the load is removed and the specimen aged, resumption of the test results in occurrence of another yield point as shown by the dotted curve of Fig 3. The new yield stress is generally higher than the previous maximum applied stress. This hardening of the material by straining and subsequent aging is undoubtedly related to quench age-hardening resulting from the aging of a specimen quenched from high temperature. Since neither effect is observed in pure metals, it is generally accepted that quench-aging in all cases is the result of hardening by precipitation of a supersaturated alloying element, and that strain-aging is probably a similar precipitation, accelerated by disruptions of the lattice by previous strain. Pfeil4 has shown that strain-aging does not occur in iron from which all of the carbon has been removed, but that only a very small carbon content, around 0.003 pct, is necessary to cause strain-aging. In accord with this observation is recent work by Dijkstra5 in this laboratory showing that the solubility limit of carbon in iron is extremely low, less than 0.001 pct at 400°C. Edwards, Phillips and Jones2 have shown that the strain-aging effect is also removed by the addition of small quantities of elements such as Mo, Mn, Ti, and the like, which readily form carbides. Their results demonstrate the

Jan 1, 1950

By E. T. Turkdogan, M. T. Hepworth, R. P. Smith

The permeability of oxygen in 0 iron in the tempera-ture range 700" to 900 C and in 6 iron at 1450°C was determined by the rate of internal oxidation of iron, containing -0.1 pct Al. The solubility of oxygen in zone-refined iron was determined by equilibration with hydrogen-water vapor gas mixtures at 1450" and 1510°C; oxygen solubilities , for iron in equi1ibriu.rn with molten oxide, are found to be 66 and 83 ppm for these two temperatures, respectively. The diffusivity of oxygen in iron at 14500C3 as calculated from the permeability and solubility data, is (4.1 * 0.6) x 10 "B sq cm per sec. OXYGEN is one of the most common impurities present in iron or steel, mainly in the form of oxide inclusions. In the study of many metallurgical problems concerning solid iron, it is often desirable to know with a reasonable accuracy the solubility and diffusivity of oxygen over a wide temperature range. The solubility of oxygen in solid iron has been the subject of numerous studies yielding highly discordant results as seen for example from the literature surveys made by Meijering &apos; and Schenck et a1.&apos; As shown by Kitchener et aL3 and by Sifferlen, the high oxygen solubilities reported by many investigators are the result of oxidizable impurities which are often present in iron. In addition, there have been experimental problems associated with icaccuracy of oxygen analysis of iron containing less than 100 ppm 0. A number of studies have been made on the permeability of oxygen in a and y iron using Fe-Si, Fe-Mn, and Fe-A1 alloys in the internal-oxidation experiments.1&apos;2&apos;5&apos;6 However, no direct measurements have been made of the diffusivity of oxygen in iron. In the present work two sets of experimental measurements were made: permeability and solubility studies at 1450" and 1510°C and permeability studies only in the range 700 to 900°C. In both sets of permeability measurements slab-shaped specimens containing small predetermined amounts of aluminum in solution were exposed at constant temperature to gas mixtures of hydrogen, water vapor, and argon for varying times. These specimens were quenched, sectioned, and examined for oxygen penetration by metallographic observation of aluminum oxide particles which formed. From these data, it is possible to calculate the ratio of the diffusivity of oxygen in iron, D, to the equilibrium constant K for the reaction Hz(g) * O (dissolved in iron) = H,O(g). EXPERIMENTAL Permeability Measurements at 1450°C. An ingot of vacuum-carbon deoxidized iron containing 0.086 pct A1 was prepared, using commercial "Type lO4A Plas-tiron"; after hot rolling, specimens were machined into slabs a by 2 by 2 in. The impurity contents were: S, P < 0.002 pct; C, Mn < 0.01 pct; each of all other Usual impurities < 0.004 pet. The amount of oxide inclusions in this material, determined by a bromine-methyl acetate extraction, corresponded to about 20 ppm 0 in the iron which agreed well with the results of vacuum-fusion analysis. Each specimen was annealed at 1450°C for 1 hr in purified hydrogen, polished to a smooth surface, and then introduced into a controlled oxidizing atmosphere in a recrystallized alumina tube at 1450°C. The constant temperature zone (*3"C) was about 3 in. in length. The gas composition was controlled by mixing argon with hydrogen (using calibrated constant-head flow meters) and passing the mixture through a column of a mixture of oxalic acid dihydrate and 10 pct anhydrous oxalic acid, to establish a required water-vapor content in the gas mixture. The temperature of the oxalic acid dihydrate column was controlled by a thermostat. The total gas flow was in the range 800 to 1000 cu cm per min. The exit gas from the reaction tube was passed through a weighing bottle containing a desiccant, to cross-check the degree of water-vapor saturation, which for all experiments was about 97 pct of those derived from the data of Baxter and Lansing.1 For a typical experiment, a specimen was introduced into the furnace in a stream of dry argon and hydrogen. The specimen was then rapidly raised by a Pt-Rh alloy wire into the hot zone and allowed to reach the reaction temperature, at which time the oxidizing gas mixture was introduced. The oxygen potentials employed were sufficient to oxidize aluminum but not to cause liquid iron oxide to form. After a specified time, the experiment was ended by dropping the specimen onto a water-cooled copper block at the bottom of the reaction tube. The depth of the internally oxidized zone, hereafter called the "case", was determined by sectioning the specimen at right angles to the long direction. The section was then examined under a microscope equipped with a micrometer stage. In general, the oxide particles were fairly uniform in size and distribution, forming a reasonably well-defined interface between the oxidized and unoxidized region. A typical cross section as observed at X30 is shown in Fig. 1. A thermal macroetch was used in one selected specimen to delineate the case. A cross section of a previously oxidized slab was polished and reheated at 1450°C in a hydrogen atmosphere for about 10 min. Upon quenching, the surface relief shown in Fig. 2 was produced; causes of this effect are unknown. Permeability Measurements Below 900°C. A slightly

Jan 1, 1967

By Alex Chapman, Cam Thomas, Bryan Karney

"During the early summer of 1989, Ontario Hydro removed a concrete portion of the North Channel Dam at Crystal Falls Generating Station by blasting and excavating in marine conditions. Because of the severity of underwater blasting and because the site was in close proximity to the replacement dam, there was concern that hydraulic shock waves generated by the detonation could damage either the new dam or its control structures. This paper examines the data associated with the hydraulic shock waves generated by underwater blasting, and studies the effectiveness of an air curtain in reducing the peak pressures. In previous trials using the air curtain technique, a rule-of-thumb factor was used to estimate that only 10% of the original pressure pulse would propagate across the air curtain. However, this value had little basis in theory. A theoretical formulation of the problem by Karney in 1989 indicated a provisional value of 0.18 for this factor, but was heavily dependent on confirmation from in-field testing. Data provided by Ontario Hydro from an actual blasting procedure indicate that a more conservative value of 0.32 may be more appropriate. Thus.although the air curtain did provide considerable reduction of peak pressures, the data at Crystal Falls indicates its performance was below the anticipated level. However, due to problems with the instrumentation and some inconsistencies in the resulting data. it is recommended that this value be further refined as additional data become available."

Jan 1, 1992

Large mining operations need equipment that consistently performs as expected. The most effective way of ensuring this is to have a defined life cycle with an optimised maintenance strategy. The determination of this life cycle is an economic decision, influenced by the construction and utilisation of the equipment. An effective life cycle costing (LCC) tool must be able to process the many variable factors involved.Many factors influence the costs that are associated with a machine over its life. The most variable of these are the costs of maintaining the equipment. Maintenance costs are dependant not only on the utilisation of the machine, but also on the strategy that has been developed to support the machine through its life. A combination of supplier support, component changes, regular servicing and unscheduled maintenance needs to be modelled, based on a variety of drivers. Traditionally spreadsheets have been used to model these factors, but the increasing complexity of the situation can make spreadsheets unwieldy and difficult to manage. A database solution that breaks each activity into its constituent components, links them to an associated mine plan driver and then aggregates the result is the ideal tool to provide a time based cost profile. The evaluation of a number of scenarios, representing different maintenance strategies/life cycles can be rapidly undertaken. Auditability through inbuilt tools is required to provide easy tracing of data. Use of the host company&apos;s account structure allows for reporting against the standard chart of accounts.

Dec 6, 2010

By Rob D. Morrision, Paul W. Cleary

"The best accepted method for design of autogenous and semi-autogenous mills is to carry out pilot scale test work using a 1.8 m diameter by 0.6 m long pilot scale test mill. The load in such a mill typically contains 250,000-450,000 particles larger than 6 mm, allowing correct representation of more than 90% of the charge. This scale of DEM model is now within the practical range of standard workstations running an efficient DEM code.This paper describes various ways of extracting collision data from the DEM model and translating it into breakage and wear estimates. Account is taken of the different breakage mechanisms (impact and abrasion) and of the specific impact histories of the particles in order to assess the breakage rates for various size fractions in the mills. These impact histories have the potential to be directly related to breakage as they most resemble the single particle breakage tests which are used by the JKMRC to calibrate more traditional population balance models for variations in ore behaviour. However, the specific impact histories also show a background of many low energy collision events within the mill. This Background may constitute what is usually regarded as “abrasion” breakage. As might be expected, high impact events are concentrated in the toe of the charge and near to the mill shell where the forces associated with the load bearing on each particle is more concentrated."

Jan 1, 2003

By G. R. Hopkins

One of the largest items in the expense of operating a refinery is the cost of the fuel used in distillation and for miscellaneous purposes such as in the heating of buildings and in the generation of electricity. On a B. t. u. basis, the average refinery consumes approximately one-tenth as much fuel as it produces. Theoretically, the fuel consumption at refineries should be much smaller than this, but furnaces can not be designed to be 100 per cent efficient and, in addition, a large part of the waste heat is low-temperature heat which would not pay for the expense of recovering it. Annual surveys of fuel consumption at refineries have been made by the United States Bureau of Mines, beginning with 1925. During the 5-year period, 1925-1929, the refineries made steady progress in fuel economy. This is evidenced by the computed figures of heat requirement per carrel of crude oil refined, which show a decline from 829,000 B. t. u. in 1925 to 639,000 B. t. u. in 1929 (see fig. 1). In 1930, however, &apos;the trend in fuel economy was reversed and the quantity of heat utilized in refining the average barrel of crude oil rose to 672,000 B. t. u. There were undoubtedly a number of reasons for the apparent decrease in fuel economy at refineries in 1930, chief of which were the tendency to carry the distillation farther instead of merely topping the crude and a gain in the consumption of waste oils, such as acid sludge, which in actual practice yield less heat per unit consumed than has been theoretically assigned to oil.

Jan 1, 1931

By Kevin Phelan, Gary Johnson, Peter Sperring

The vast majority of tailings in the Western Australian Goldfields are deposited in purpose-built storage facilities. At mine-sites with open-pit mining operations there is also the requirement to mine and stack large volumes of waste rock, usually into surface waste dumps. As these dumps have typically 30% of their gross volume present as voids, there is the potential to use this void space for the storage of tailings. The concept of co-disposal is to store the tailings material in the void space of the waste dumps, eliminating the need for a separate tailings storage facility. Dominion Mining Limited have been investigating the possibility of using co-disposal as a means of tailings storage. Laboratory testwork has been used to understand some of the issues associated with the concept, and assist in the design of an on-site demonstration of the concept. Co-disposal offers a number of potential advantages, and despite a number of practical hurdles to overcome, considerable economic and environmental benefits could be realised if this concept can be demonstrated on a commercial scale. The major advantage of such a system is to remove the need to build, operate and rehabilitate a separate tailings storage facility. Rehabilitation can be incremental throughout the mine life as the co-disposal site will be virtually indistinguishable from a current waste dump in both size and form. Other potential advantages include more stable waste dumps, less land area disturbed on the project site, and better water recovery from the tailings.

Jan 1, 1995