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By T. Kawai

Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) has started an exploration program for Seafloor Massive Sulfides (SMS) in the EEZ of Japan, and launched an investigation program for mining, processing and environmental impact on SMS development. With regard to the mining aspect, the mining system consists of three units: a mining unit on the sea floor, an ore lift-up unit to surface, and a mining support vessel unit which has an ore unloading system that unloads onto a shuttle ship. Regarding the mining unit, JOGMEC and certain Japanese mining and machinery companies developed two types of state of the art mining testing tools. Excavation tests on the actual SMS site in the Okinawa Trough, south-west of Japan, were conducted in 2012. In these tests, the functions of the testing tools, such as cutting ore, moving on the seafloor and climbing up slopes having steeper than a 25 degree gradient, were confirmed. The physical characteristics of the ore, which are key parameters for establishing a mining system, are yet to be fully understood as the exploration program has been undertaken simultaneously. Hence, those examinations have been carried out by ground cutting experiments, analysis of drilling core data, and the like. This paper describes the outline of a proposed mining system, mining testing tools and results of the on-site mining testing.

Aug 1, 2013

By E. C. Perkins

This report describes a ferric chloride trap, based on formation of a low-melting sodium chloride-ferric chloride mixture of near-eutectic composition, and its use in chlorination of impure titaniferous materials. The trap is placed in the hot gas stream between the chlorination reactor and the condenser. Virtually all of the iron is removed by the trap. The condensed titanium tetrachloride is free of suspended solids and contains only a trace of iron. Four examples are given of the use of the ferric chloride trap in chlorination of impure titaniferous materials. INTRODUCTION In the Kroll process, ductile titanium metal is produced by reducing titanium tetrachloride with magnesium metal.4/ In commercial practice, titanium tetrachloride is produced by chlorinating titaniferous materials in the presence of carbon.2/ In 1957 most producers were using rutile, and virtually all plants were designed for its use. About four-fifths of the domestic consumption of rutile was imported from Australia. The Bureau of Mines, under provisions of contract DMP-116 with the General Services Administration, studied electrosmelting of domestic ilmenites and titaniferous magnetites to produce high-titanium slags with pig iron as a byproduct. Under the same contract, chlorination studies also were being made of these slags. Smelting was done at the Northwest Electrodevelopment Experiment Station, Albany, Oreg., and chlorination at the Electrometallurgical Experiment Station, Boulder City, Nev.

Jan 1, 1958

By L. D. Tracy

Many bituminous coal-mining companies have inaugurated extensive safety programs, but the failure to have approved or permissible equipment or safe practice in only one part of a mine has resulted in disaster. The necessity of using only equipment bearing the U. S. Bureau of Mines approval plate is emphasized by the fact that many accidents are the direct result of carelessness on the part of trusted employees using non-permissible equipment. A concrete example is found in the case of an explosion on October 26, 1926, in a mine in the Pittsburgh district, Pennsylvania. Story of the Explosion At about 10 o'clock on the night of the explosion an examination was made in No. 2 butt left and parallel off No. 14 north, and was found to be clear of dangerous accumulations of gas. (See figure). Several hours later a crew of two men brought a self-propelling rock-dusting machine within 50 feet of the face of No. 2 butt parallel before they examined for gas. The machine operator found an accumulation of explosive gas about 13 inches from the roof. He began to wave his arms thoroughly mixing the gas and air. Undoubtedly a highly explosive mixture was created, and as the men attempted to run the machine back to fresh air as explosion occurred.

Jan 1, 1927

By B. K. Shibler, W. G. Sandell, G. M. Potter, H. D. Snedden

"INTRODUCTION During the course of the investigation of the occurrence of manganese deposits in the western United States, examining 'engineers of the Bureau of Mines collected samples from seven manganese properties in Grand and beery Counties, Utah. These were supplemented by five samples submitted by property owners. Since all of the ores were too low-grade for use in producing ferromanganese for steel manufacture, some means of beneficiation was required to produce marketable concentrates, and metallurgical studies were made on each of the samples.Most of the ores Investigated are similar in one respect: At least part of the 'manganese oxide areas contains minute inclusions of gangue. This occurrence materially enhances the complexity of the ore, partly by .increasing the complexity of mineral association, but largely through making manganese-quartz liberation more difficult. In such ores, there is a marked tendency for the manganese minerals to be retained as shells or coatings on the surfaces of quartz particles when crushed. Particles of this type represent considerable loss of manganese in tailing, if gravity-concentration methods are employed, or tend to' float, thus carrying an appreciable quantity of gangue into the concentrate, if treated by flotation.Plus 48-percent manganese sinters were made from some of the ores tested, but, in general, intimate association of manganese minerals with silica limited the degree of beneficiation attainable."

Dec 1, 1947

By Amr Al Degwe, Walid Jaber

"INTRODUCTIONNSCC International Ltd. carried out the enabling works and constructed the foundation system for the Emirates Pearl Tower and Bab El Qasr Hotel in Abu Dhabi. Emirates Pearl Tower is a joint venture project of TDIC- Tourism Development and Investment Company and ATLAS group, a leading telecommunication company in the UAE. Bab El Qasr Hotel is a project of EMROC Emirate-Moroccan General Trading & Investment Company. The combined enabling project is executed under the combined management of JACOBS International Holdings Inc. and NASSAR Engineering Services.The project is located to the south-east of Emirates Palace and west of Etihad towers, at about 20m away from the sea shore. Since the two projects are located next to each other a combined shoring system was constructed for the entire area. This decision was based on an agreement with clients and consultants of the two projects and resulted in significant savings for both parties. The shoring system consisted mainly of diaphragm wall with ground anchors and steel struts. Cantilever secant piles were used on the eastern side of the plot, adjacent to Etihad Towers` basement.PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF WORKNSCC International Ltd. was responsible for the design, procurement and construction of strutted and anchored diaphragm walls and cantilever secant piles. The shoring layout and a summary of shoring sections are shown below."

Jan 1, 2017

By David E. Siskind

The Bureau of Mines studied environmental blast effects in six occupied residential structures. Airblast, ground, and structure vibrations were measured both inside and outside residences for seven quarry production blasts. Walls and floors responded to the blast noise and vibration by shaking at their own natural frequencies, often with greater peak particle velocities than the ground outside the structures or their foundations. The vibrations of the houses generated noticeable internal noise, correlating with the arrival of the groundborne energy. The later arriving airblast wave was predominantly at low infrasonic frequencies (1.0 to 1.5 Hz) and had similar amplitude and frequency characteristics both inside and out-side the structures. Significant structural motions resulted from the air-blast overpressures for at least two of the seven blasts. The most severe airblast effect occurred at a house 1,800 feet from a 5,047-pound (200-lb/ delay) blast. This stucture was subjected to a peak 0.16-in/sec particle velocity and 130 dB(L) airblast. The wall of the second floor responded to the ground vibration and airblast by shaking at particle velocities of 0.15 and 0.28 in/sec, respectively. Analysis of these data and those from additional field studies will be used to identify appropriate, safe, and reasonable impulsive noise levels, measurement techniques, and factors of design applicable to minimizing the adverse environmental effects of blasting.

Jan 1, 1976

By AIME AIME

TUESDAY afternoon the annual meeting was devoted to a general session, in the auditorium, on production control. George Otis Smith presided and in opening the meeting recalled that the session in 1920 on the stabilization of the coal industry was the first time this subject had been discussed by Institute members in a general session and then introduced Carl Snyder, of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, who spoke on "Long-time Growth and the Factors In Its Variations." He spoke without notes and a full presentation of his views must be deferred until the stenographer's report is available. He said that of the total production some 80 to 90 per cent represents goods for consumption and the other 20 to 10 per cent for construction. He discussed various indices of production, concluding that bank clearings are the best, and showed by charts that when they are plotted, allowing for various disturbing factors, they are seen to increase quite regularly at the rate of about 4 per cent per year. The production curve rises at only 3y2 per cent per year, because agricultural production does not in- crease as fast as manufacturing postal revenues in- crease at the rate of 5 per cent per year while the use of electricity increases twice as fast.

Jan 1, 1929

By Charles Y. Clayton

THE general public does not know that there is such a thing as metallurgy and it is very seldom that you see the word metallurgy in print except in technical magazines. Perhaps it is more to the front now than in former years; the Dee. 30, 1929, issue of Time mentioned under the heading of "Science7' certain new achievements in metallurgy, which may be cited as a rare instance of the use of the word in anything but the technical press. Too often the part the metallurgist plays in the advancement of the different branches of engineering is overlooked. To say that the public does not know there is such a profession as metallurgical engineering seems to be a bold statement, but had there beep time a questionnaire could have proved this beyond doubt. Suppose a carefully-planned questionnaire had been sent to all high school students asking them, among other questions, to list the different branches of engineering, I believe that the several professions would have been listed in this manner: (1) Electrical engineering; (2) mechanical; (3) civil, and (4)' mining. One in each hundred might have listed metallurgy as an engineering profession. Even the Society for the Promotion of Engineering Education in its Bulletin No. 10-"Investigation of Engineering Education" lists Civil, Mining, Mechanical, Electrical, and Chemical, leaving out Metallurgical Engineering.

Jan 1, 1930

By Y. L. Tian

Low-grade bauxite with A/S of 4.4 from Henan province was used as raw material and the selec-tive grinding of bauxite, grinding efficiency, particle size and Al2O3 and SiO2distributions of ground products were investigated using ball and vibration mills. The results show that the selective grinding can be used to realize the separation of aluminum from silicon within a certain particle size. The optimal grinding conditions of the ball mill with bauxite are as follows: grinding material to charge ratio, 1.2, charge volume ratio, 40%, pulp con-centration, 70wt%, medium size distribution, F30mm:F20mm:F15mm=20%:50%:30%. Under the conditions, the weight rate of ground product with A/S over 7.5 is 27% and the recovery of Al 2O3is 30%. The optimal grinding condition of the vibration mill with bauxite are as follows: grinding material to charge ratio, 0.9; charge volume ratio, 70%; concentration, 70%; medium size distribution, F40mm:F30mm:F20mm=20%:30%:50%. Under the conditions, the weight ratio of ground product with A/S over 7.5 is 25% and the recovery of Al 2O3is 27%. The research is significant for the rational and economical utilization of the low-grade bauxite.

Jan 1, 2014

By AIME AIME

THE meeting" of the Rare Minerals and Metals Committee was held Monday afternoon, Feb. 17; Donald M. Lidclell, chairman, presiding. The first paper (T. P. 279), "Progress in the Use of Tantalum," by George W. Sears, was read by Mr. Smyth. Dr. Sears' paper contains an interesting summary of the uses, alloys and ores of tantalum and a resume of present method of reduction. The uses of tantalum is based on its extreme rise to the reaction of even the strong mineral acids, its great avidity for the common gases and its capacity for transforming alternating to direct current. Tantalum, as an alloy material, has received considerable study and many alloys have been reported. Among them three types appear to .be most prominent, alloys of high melting point, hard alloys and acid rising alloys. As the estimated quantity of tantalum in the earth's crust is less than that of gold, it must be looked upon as n rare metal. Australia is the greatest producer and the Black Hills of South Dakota produce minor amounts. As the one type of mineral available contains both tantalum and columbium, the extracting and metallurgy of tantalum are difficult chemical processes. Greater simplicity in this and the development of a market for columbium would undoubtedly be of great benefit to the tantalum industry, andl make for a greater use of tantalum produced.

Jan 1, 1930

By Marting J. Gavin

The twentieth century has often been spoken of as the age of petroleum, and from many viewpoints it can be justly considered so. Certainly the petroleum industry is one of enormous importance to this country, industrially, financially, and economically. The United States, however, at present producing over 60 per cent of the world's total output of petroleum, is not producing petroleum at a sufficient rate to provide for its own domestic, consumption. For several years this country has been importing increasing quantities of crude and partly refined oils from Mexico, and has been drawing heavily on domestic stocks of petroleum. Production in the United States is increasing, but it is not increasing at the same average rate as domestic consumption, nor is it probable that in the future domestic production will increase sufficiently to satisfy the demands of domestic consumption, but on the contrary, in the opinion of those best qualified to know, the peak in the curve of domestic production of crude petroleum will be reached in a comparatively few years, whereas the consumption of petroleum and its product will increase at a continually growing rate. This country, then, must turn, and as the increasing imports from Mexico indicate, is turning to other sources than the crude petroleum, produced in this country to make up the deficit between domestic production and domestic consumption of petroleum and its products,

Jun 1, 1920

By J. H. Schloen

"One of the most important phases in Canada's relatively rapid development of its metal mining and refining industries was launched in 1928 when the directors of Noranda Mines Limited decided to establish an electrolytic copper refinery ""somewhere in Eastern Canada”. Noranda's president, J.Y. Murdoch, had already evolved the company's ""mine to market"" policy and was determined to prove the economic feasibility of refining Noranda copper in Canada. The time appeared to be ripe as buoyant business conditions continued into 1929. In addition, proven ore reserves at the Horne Mine in northwest Quebec had virtually tripled and the price of copper had reached a healthy 15 cents per pound. Letters Patent incorporating the company bearing the date February 6, 1929 had been granted by the Secretary of State in accordance with an application that specified a capital structure of $2 million divided into 20 000 shares with a value of $100 each. Noranda assumed 70% of the original investment in the proposed refinery, while the Nicholas Copper Company of New York (which later became Phelps Dodge Corporation) and British Metal Corporation Ltd. of London, England, each were responsible for 15%. Nicholas Copper Company agreed to supply the design and to supervise the construction of the refinery and British Metal Corporation would act as sales agent and market the refinery's products."

Jan 1, 1999

By W. W. Adams

Three hundred and twenty-eight mines and quarries, representing 36 States, took part in the twelfth yearly accident-prevention contest conducted by the United States Bureau of Mines and known as the National Safety Competition. Four underground mines and one open-cut mine (which represents the quarry and open-cut mine group), each the leader in its group, were awarded the ?Sentinels of Safety? trophy. Relative standing in the contest" was determined by the number of days lost from accidents in proportion to the total number of man-hours worked. Since 1925, when the National Safety Competition was inaugurated, an increasing interest has been taken in it by mining and quarrying companies as a means of stimulating mine and quarry safety by competition among similar plants. Each participating plant can, on a basis of its standing and record in the contest, determine to what extent its safety program is succeeding or to what extent it needs strengthening. With this information, each company that has a low standing in the contest can intensify its safety-promotion efforts the following year to obtain a lower rate and possibly win the trophy or achieve honorable mention in the competition. Except for 1929, the National Safety Competition of 1936 represented more man-hours of employment than any other year since the yearly contests began.

Jan 1, 1937

By W. W. Adams

Three hundred and twenty-eight mines and quarries, representing 36 States, took part in the twelfth yearly accident-prevention contest conducted by the United States Bureau of Mines and known as the National Safety Competition. Four underground mines and one open-cut mine (which represents the quarry and open-cut mine group), each the leader in its group, were awarded the ?Sentinels of Safety? trophy. Relative standing in the contest" was determined by the number of days lost from accidents in proportion to the total number of man-hours worked. Since 1925, when the National Safety Competition was inaugurated, an increasing interest has been taken in it by mining and quarrying companies as a means of stimulating mine and quarry safety by competition among similar plants. Each participating plant can, on a basis of its standing and record in the contest, determine to what extent its safety program is succeeding or to what extent it needs strengthening. With this information, each company that has a low standing in the contest can intensify its safety-promotion efforts the following year to obtain a? lower rate and possibly win the trophy or achieve honorable mention in the competition. Except for 1929, the National Safety Competition of 1936 represented more man-hours of employment than any other year since the yearly contests began.

Jan 1, 1937

By E. J. Freech

In this part of the two-part paper we discuss briefly the adaptation of the comminution model to describe the observed behavior of an industrial grinding circuit. Although reported verification of comminution models for continuous systems is limited, some interesting work has been reported 1,2 recently. The data acquisition and modeling efforts are described first, followed by discussion of some of the simulation results. Observations pertinent to steady-state operation are presented followed by a description of the application of a dynamic model of the grinding circuit for synthesis and evaluation of grinding-circuit control. The pilot-scale work indicated the comminution model should be capable of describing an industrial size-reduction process. Recognizing the broad utility of a process model based on first- principles, the Industrial Nucleonics Corporation of Columbus, Ohio, embarked on a joint program with the Duval Corporation of Tucson, Arizona, to evaluate the industrial applicability of the models described in Part I. This program was conducted in a grinding circuit, which included a rod mill 12.5 feet in diameter and 16 feet long and a ball mill 12.5 feet in diameter and 14 feet long, at Duval Corporation's Esperanza property3. The rod mill was operated in open circuit and the ball mill in closed circuit with cyclone classifiers.

Jan 1, 1970

By Sam Palombo, James José Varela

"Washing can be defined as the process used to eliminate or reduce the dirt (presence of fines or slimes) of one material. It is also the basic and oldest process applied to ore preparation for further concentration. This process, in combination with commnution and screening, form the so called washing plant and in many cases produce end products. This work describes the factors that influence the performance of the washing process and main washing technologies used in the mineral processing industry.The Hydro-Clean represents, since 1998, a state of the art technology in this area and is comprised of one of the most innovative solutions developed at HAVER & BOECKER. HAVER & BOECKER design and manufacture technology for mining and related industries. Today the Hydro-Clean is manufactured and sold throughout the Haver Screening Group (HSG) which is comprised of HAVER & BOECKER Maschinenfabrik Münster, HAVER & BOECKER Latinoamericana – Brazil and W.S. Tyler Canada.The Hydro-Clean is a washing technology based on utilization of high pressure water jets. To follow we will discuss how the Hydro-Clean’s different modes of operation result in several advantages related with mine waste reduction, recovery of saleable product, lower capital costs, superior washing results, less stress for the material, a wider range of application and less maintenance cost. Aside from these positive factors, its lower operation costs related to the consumption of energy and water are presented. It is important to note that the quantities, tonnages, data and management concepts presented in the paper are accurate for the time of writing and are subject to change and modification as operations progress."

Jan 1, 2009

By D. Komljenovic, V. Kecojevic

Selection of the best possible truck type (model) is of crucial importance for the mine decision-makers. In this paper, authors contribute to the body of knowledge by developing a novel methodology for the selection of mining truck. Both the Coefficient of Technical Level (CTL) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methods were used in this study. The CTL represents a mathematical function which takes into consideration the interrelations among the main technical parameters of mining trucks. The authors developed a hierarchical structure where both attribute categories and their importance, i.e. priority or weight in the selection process were determined. For each category, a number of sub-attributes and their priorities were assigned, and a pairwise comparison among them was performed using the AHP method. In the final part of the study, the CTL was integrated into the AHP and represents a holistic approach in the selection of mining trucks. A case study on 180 tonnes truck category offered by five manufacturers was carried out. A sensitivity study of obtained results was also performed indicating a very stable solution. The methodology presented in this paper may be used by mining operators to help in the selection of a specific type when acquiring a new truck. It may also be used by equipment manufacturers to help in analysis of potential benefits of envisaged modifications concerning an existing truck type and/or development of a new type.

Jan 1, 2007

By J. A. Dos Santos

High angle conveyor (HAC®) systems in open pit mining offer many advantages over the traditional, truck only, haulage systems, including: (1) superior energy efficiency, (2) less dependency on petroleum products, (3) less sensitivity to inflation, (4) less labor, (5) less excavation for the amount of ore recovered, and (6) less ramp construction and maintenance costs. Previous studies had revealed the technical and economic feasibility of high angle conveyors. This paper presents the Sandwich Belt HAC® as the vital link to optimization of in-pit conveying systems. HAC development to date is discussed, beginning with studies in 1979, to the first large scale prototype in 1983, to the first commercial unit in 1984, into "the latest commercial installations. Discussion continues with the HAC systems to suit the various open pit mining operations and the corresponding characteristics of the system components, particularly the high angle conveyor. The range of HAC systems from the low capacity (up to 1,814 t/h), low lift (10.7 to 36.6M), highly mobile to the moderate capacity (1,814 to 3,629 t/h), moderate lift (36.6 to 76.2M), intermittently mobile to the high capacity (greater than 3,629 t/h), high lift (greater than 76.2M), semi-mobile, are discussed along with some possible combinations of these.

Jan 1, 1989

By C. M. Bartley

In world-wide mining circles countries become known by the principal minerals they produce. The production of iron, copper, phosphate and sulphur in the United-States-has-been particularly significant and has provided the base for aggressive developments in heavy industry, agriculture and chemicals. Mention diamonds and gold-and you will think--South Africa; silver-Mexico; nickel and asbestos--Canada. The main purpose of this paper is to point out that potash mast be added to the list of minerals by which Canada is known in the mining World. The potash deposits of western Canada must be classed as a major world source of chemical fertilizer raw material. We believe that they are both the largest and the richest of all known deposits in the world. The most knowledgeable people in the industry avoid making estimates of reserves because even where the arithmetic is correct the total is so large that it appears to be ridiculous. In 1957 Marion Goudie made a carefully qualified estimate of 6 billion tons of recoverable potash above 3,500 ft, and grading 25 per cent K20 or better. This figure can now be increased by the amounts available through solution mining. No one has bothered to estimate how much this is because it is so large that the actual amount is not significant.

Jan 1, 1966

By S. A. J. Hopper

"The Golden Manitou mine is in the northeast quarter of Bourlamaque township, Abitibi county, Quebec. During the summer of 1937 a body of gold-silver-zinc ore was outlined in a series of diamond drill holes located to the west of an old copper-zinc showing in the property of Quebec Manitou Mines, Limited. In 1938, a shaft was sunk and the orebody further explored from levels at depths of 210 and 360 feet.In 1941 the western half of the Quebec Manitou property was acquired by a new company, Golden Manitou Mines, Limited, and the installation of a mining and milling plant was at once undertaken. Milling started in August 1942. The following is a summary of production to December 31, 1946:The orebodies are sulphide replacements in a sericite schist shear zone. They vary in width from 8 feet to 65 feet and range in length up to 850 feet . Much of the ore is of the 'massive sulphides' type . The sulphide minerals in the ore are pyrite and sphalerite with minor quantities of .galena, tennantite, chalcopyrite, and arsenopyrite. Native silver (as wire and leaf silver) has been found in vugs and as coatings along fractures. In one section of the mine a few specks of gold were observed. Spectrographic analysis of ore samples has indicated the presence of zinc silicate."

Jan 1, 1954