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By Bill Linville

Producing oil, gas, and coal in sufficient amounts to satisfy U.S. demands for fuels, electrical power, and chemicals promises to be one of the country's major challenges during the 1970's. Adding significantly to this challenge is the urgent task of satisfying soaring fuel and power demands without destroying the natural environment or jeopardizing long-range requirements for resources. The Bureau of Mines, U.S. Department of the Interior, is engaged in a comprehensive program of research to help industry meet this challenge. This report reviews the aims of the research program and accomplishments in 1970; the first 11 sections cover coal programs, nine sect ions are then devoted to petroleum, and the concluding five sections deal with oil shale research. Figure 1 shows the nationwide distribution of Bureau of Mines energy research installations; Full addresses are given in appendix A. Many of the publications resulting from the Bureau?s energy research efforts are discussed throughout the report; others are listed in appendix B.

Jan 1, 1971

By W. J. Fene, G. W. Grove

An important activity of the Safety Division of the Bureau of Mines , in its efforts to reduce accidents , is the safety inspection of mines . Inspections are made at the request of the operators and are not connected with the inspections by the various State departments of mines . The operating management is furnished with a confidential report of the results of the Bureau's inspections , with recommendations for elimination of the hazards found . These mine - safety inspections include a study of mining practices , conditions , and equipment and in some cases the sampling and analysis of mine air and coal dust . The Bureau of Mines has no regulatory powers , therefore the recommendations made in these reports are merely suggestions , and operators are not required to adopt them . Mine inspections are a check on safety standards , methods , and practices and are essential to any accident -prevention program . A foreman or superintendent may be sincere in his efforts to operate a mine safely and believe that he has done everything possible to attain this end . However , experience has shown that because of his familiarity with the mine and the consequent " nearness " of its various features many unsafe conditions may be , and in most cases are , overlooked ; an inspector , particularly an outsider who is trained to look for hazards , can point out the unsafe conditions overlooked by the foreman or superintendent . Some companies employ safety engineers who make regular inspections of their mines , report substandard conditions and hazards found , and make recommendations for correcting them . Unless these recommendations are carried out the inspections have little value . In making recommendations , due consideration should be given to the feasibility of carrying them out ; the management may and very often does consider a recommendation impracticable because of the

Mar 1, 1935

"INTRODUCTION These inspection standards have been prepared for use as a guide for the Federal inspection of anthracite mines. They are a revision of ""Tentative Inspection Standards for Anthracite Mines,"" published as Bureau of Mines Information Circular 7231 in January 1943 and used as a guide for Federal inspections. Numerous changes in the original standards have been made, due in part to recognition of shortages of some types of safety equipment due to the war, in part to need of additional standards to cover certain mine conditions and practices, and in part to conditions not foreseen when the original standards were prepared.Throughout these standards reference is made to determining the methane content of the mine air by using a permissible flame safety lamp. The Bureau has approved various electrical devices for the detection of methane, but it is recognized that new devices for determining the percentage of combustible gases as well as the percentage of oxygen, might be perfected for general use in mines, and therefore it may be necessary to revise certain standards to include the use of such equipment if and when the device is accepted as being permissible.About one-fourth of these standards are marked with an asterisk (*) as being of particular importance in preventing accidents in many coal mines; however, failure to carry out the suggestions made in such of the other standards as are applicable may also lead to loss of life.With continuing change in mining methods, some of these standards may become inapplicable, and further revision will be advisable. Therefore, question regarding these standards and suggestions regarding new standards should be brought to the attention of the Bureau, so that changes may be made from time to time. Numerous changes proposed by mine operators and by State mining departments have been incorporated in these standards."

May 1, 1944

This manual provides instructions for installing, operating, and maintaining a protective canopy on the Galis Mfg. Co. face drill. The instructions are based upon an actual installation made in the mine on face drill model 460-S. The parts list and engineering drawings for the protective canopy are included at the end of the manual. And a discussion of some alternative design concepts is also included. The manual can also be used for retrofitting other face drills with similar protective canopies. Skilled mechanics can determine if the instructions herein would be applicable to the other face drills and can determine any necessary modifications if they are not.

Jan 1, 1973

By E. P. Carman

In this report, the Federal Bureau of Mines presents a summary of the occurrence, properties, and uses of some natural bitumens, using the layman's or dictionary definition of bitumens - that is, naturally occurring hydro-carbons. Emphasis is on the less common solid and semisolid bitumens, particularly those occurring or used to some extent in the United States. This comprises data from many sources and references to these sources for more detail than is given in this summary. This paper was prepared primarily to answer questions about some of the less known bituminous materials. The word hydrocarbons could just as well have been substituted in the title for bitumens, but bitumens was used, since an abstract of the paper was presented at a meeting where the major emphasis was on bituminous materials. The reader will realize that coals, of which only the more unusual such as the cannel coals and torbanites are discussed in this paper, are primarily mixtures of bituminous materials and carbon. The amount of bituminous material, or volatile matter, in coals is greatest in the lower rank coals and the unusual types described in this paper, and decreases as coal rank increases. However, since no method other than destruction of the original coal substance by heat is known that will separate the volatile matter from the carbon, it appears reasonable to classify the coals with other bituminous materials, particularly since bituminous coal - the most widely used coal - by its name indicates the combination of bituminous materials and carbon.

Jan 1, 1961

By Bernadette C. Michalski

THE RAPID GROWTH of the small Albanian mineral industry in the 1950's began to taper off by 1961 and slackened sharply in 1963. The abandonment of Soviet and East European technical assistance programs in mid-1961 greatly affected Albania's mineral development, since four-fifths of all technical aid personnel were engaged in mineral activities. Chinese assistance apparently has not been able to fill the void. Overall mineral production increases during 1961-63 averaged 1 percent per year in value, as compared with 3 percent in 1959 and 5 percent in 1960. Although by world standards Albanian mineral output, except for chromite, is insignificant, it is vital to the country's domestic economy. The mineral industry generated about 14 percent of the gross industrial product in 1962 and employed a notable share of the industrial labor force. In recent years, mineral products have provided about three-fifths of the country's exports by value. Chromite and iron-nickel ores together constituted from one-fourth to one-third of the total export value. In 1963, total trade turnover increased 12 percent over 1962.

Jan 1, 1964

By Richard L. Rains

In 1992, the Bureau of Mines evaluated mineral resources of the 34,043-hectare Caribou City and 41,943-hectare Stump Creek study areas in southeastern Idaho. No resources were delineated. The areas had been proposed for wilderness. Rocks underlying the study area are part of the Idaho-Wyoming Thrust Belt. At Caribou Mountain they have been intruded by diorite-monzodiorite. Where the intrusive rocks contact calcareous members of the thrust belt, skarn bodies have formed that host metal deposits. Gold, both placer and lode, occurs in the Caribou City area, and salt occurs in the Stump Creek area. Production records show 73.5 kg (2,363 ounces) of placer gold were produced; however, field studies indicate more than 2,000 kg (67,000 ounces) probably were recovered. Minor amounts of lode gold, silver, and copper were recovered from the hard rock mines. Production of salt from the Stump Creek study area in the 1860's was used by emigrants on the Oregon trail and also shipped to various mining districts for use in silver recovery. Oil and gas were drilled for, but all holes are plugged and abandoned. There are no current leases. Examined workings consisted of 25 adits, 3 shafts, 50 prospect pits, and extensive placer workings all in the northern tip of the Caribou City area, Current BLM records show 168 placer and 146 lode claims; 14 claims are patented.

Jan 1, 1993

By D. J. Parker

On Thursday, March 18, 1937, the country was shocked by news of a terrific explosion at the New London, Tex., school, which caused the death of 280 pupils avid 14 teachers. The explosion occurred at about 3:05 p.m. in the largest of the 11 school buildings on the campus. Fire 1 shows this building, marked "Main high school building", with respect to other buildings, pipe lines, oil wells, and gas lines or the property.

Jan 1, 1937

By Donelson A. Robertson

Literature was searched and cases of alleged water well damage were investigated. Occurrence of ground water in Appalachia is primarily in low yield, fractured, water table aquifers. Four test sites were chosen based on geographic and geologic diversity. Test wells were drilled at each site and base line data on water quality, static water level, and drawdown characteristics were obtained before surface mining commenced. Blast induced ground vibrations were measured at the surface by the wells at levels up to 5.44 inches per second maximum resultant particle velocity. Measurements made at the bottom of wells indicated that vibrations were considerably attenuated at depths of 140 to 160 feet. No direct evidence of change in water quality or well performance was produced by blast vibrations, but removal of downslope support by excavation does cause lateral stress relief which permits the water-bearing fractures to become more open. This additional storage capacity causes the static water level to drop and for well-bore permeability to improve. Static water level recovers if sufficient recharge is available and well performance is

Jan 1, 1980

By H. W. Gillett, A. E. RHOADS

In its study of methods for reducing metal losses in the non- ferrous metal industry, the Bureau of Mines has conducted a long series of experiments on electric brass melting and collected much data on the experiments of others. Reports bearing on this work that have already been published by the Bureau of Mines are Bulletin 73, "Brass-furnace practice in the United States," and Bulletin 77, "The electric furnace in metallurgical work." A comprehensive report describing the design and operation of all types of electric brass furnaces and showing their performance in experimental tests on a commercial scale is in course of preparation. However, commercial tests of several new and promising types of furnaces are still under way, the results of which should be included in any general discussion of the subject. For this reason it has seemed desirable to issue a preliminary bulletin giving the data on a type of furnace developed in one stage of the bureau's work.

Jan 1, 1918

After nine years of negotiations, the U.N. Conference on the Law of the Sea approved a Law of the Sea Treaty text in April. Israel, Turkey, the United States and Venezuela voted against the text and 17 other nations including Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and West Germany abstained. These nations still have the option of joining the treaty when it is opened for signing in December. However, the Reagan Administration has stated that several provisions of the deep seabed mining portion of the text are unacceptable and it seems unlikely that the United States, at least, will change its position. ALUMINUM Reynolds Metals Co. has criticized an Oregon state plan to relax air pollution standards for aluminum plants. The company feels that relaxation of the rules does not go far enough. Reynolds officials say that they have spent about $31 million at their Troutdale plant for state-of-the-art pollution control equipment, and if they are required to make the pollution reductions called for in the 1986 rules, Reynolds would be forced to close the 40-year-old plant.

Jan 1, 1982

PURPOSE: Evaluate practical technological advances in hearing protective devices for use in different mining environments RESEARCH SUMMARY: Previous NIOSH research shows that miners develop hearing loss much more quickly than nonoccupationally noise-exposed individuals and that miners experience a greater severity of hearing loss than would be expected for nonoccupational noise-exposed persons of the same age and sex. As described in the National Occupation-al Research Agenda, problems created by occupational hearing loss include(1) reduced quality of life due to social isolation and unrelenting tinnitus,(2) impaired communication with family members, the public, and coworkers, (3) diminished ability to monitor the work environment (i.e., warning signals, equipment sounds, etc.), (4) lost productivity and increased accidents resulting from impaired communication and isolation, and (5) expenses for workers? compensation and hearing aids.

Jan 1, 2001

By W. P. Haynes, J. W. Mulvihill, G. B. Taylor, S. Katell

Capital and operating costs have been estimated for separating methane and hydrogen in gas - separating plants designed to produce 90 million scf per day of product gas containing a minimum of 90 percent methane . After a preliminary literature review of various separation techniques , three different processes --moving - bed adsorption using active carbon , oil absorption , and liquefaction -- were chosen for the cost estimates . Three different methane feed gas concentrations , 5 , 20 , and 50 percent ( cases 1 , 2 , and 3 , respectively ) , were chosen as representative methane concentrations for the separation estimates . Capital and operating costs were lowest for the moving - bed adsorption process in all three cases investigated . Operating costs declined from $ 0.24 to $ 0.06 per 1,000 cu ft of product gas , and capital costs declined from $47,490,800 to $7,411,200 as the percentage of methane in the feed gas increased from 5 to 50 percent .

Jan 1, 1964

By Edwin B. Cook

Studies of flame and combustion phenomena at the Bureau of Mines have been facilitated by computer evaluation of the thermodynamic properties of gases formed by constant-pressure burning.4 5 This report is the sixth of a series6-10 presenting results of such calculations; it deals also with constant-volume deuterium-air flames.

Jan 1, 1961

By D. G. Puglio

This Bureau of Mines study covers 25 underground mines that were active in the Upper and Lower Freeport and Lower Kittanning coalbeds in 1976. The coal ranges from low to medium volatile in rank; its primary use is for steam generation. Seven mines emit more than 100,000 cfd of methane gas; those mines are the deepest and largest producers. The methane gas content of three core samples of the Lower Kittanning coalbed was estimated by the direct method. A sample from a depth of 320 feet contained 0.5 cu cm of gas per gram, at 620 feet there was 0.8 cu cm of gas per gram, and at 1,060 feet there was 11 cu cm of gas per gram. These results suggest that methane control problems will be encountered in the future as deeper coal is mined.

Jan 1, 1979

By J. M. Goris

The U.S. Bureau of Mines is conducting research on cable bolt ground supports to assess their material and support properties, to provide design criteria for using cable bolt supports as roof control systems under various types of underground mining conditions, and to provide a mathematical model of cable bolt support systems. Part 1 describes laboratory studies of the support properties of cable bolts made of conventional steel cables and provides recommendations on such topics as the use of thick grouts, selection of breather tubes, and reduction of water bleeding in cement-based grouts. The studies evaluated both single and double cables; effects of different embedment lengths, water-cement ratios, and grout curing temperatures on support strength; effects of use or nonuse of breather tubes; pumpability and water-bleeding properties of grouts; and the strength properties of sand-cement grouts. Part 2 will cover the strength characteristics of birdcage cable bolt supports, epoxy-coated cables, and cables with steel buttons attached.

Jan 1, 1990

By C. H. Riggs

This petroleum-engineering study of the Healdton oil field in Carter County, Okla., describes the geology and production history of that field and estimates the oil reserves that could be produced by efficient secondary-recovery methods. The Healdton field, in western Carter County approximately 20 miles west of Ardmore, Okla., was discovered in 1913 and was one of the early important oil-producing areas in the State. Although the volume of oil recovered from the Healdton sands has been comparatively high, studies show that a large reserve remains in the pressure-depleted sand, which can be recovered by efficient water-flood operations. In making this study of the Healdton-sand reservoir, the writers utilized many data already available in company and Government offices. Most of the fluid samples were collected by Bureau of Mines personnel and analyzed in the Bureau's laboratories at Bartlesville, Okla.; but other data, including logs, core analyses, and production records, were obtained from outside sources. These data were examined critically but were not verified, and possible errors in the original data may be reflected in the conclusions. In this study, attempts were made to consider only those aspects of the available information that would contribute to a clear and concise engineering report on the Healdton-sand reservoir. Other phases of the data, as well as those concerning associated reservoirs, were eliminated from consideration as being irrelevant to the particular problem. Cores and drill cuttings of the Healdton sands were analyzed and studied to determine the nature of the reservoir rocks. Analyses of samples of produced oil, water, and gas were studied to fix the different types, the limits of their occurrence, and the suitability of different waters for injection into the Healdton sands. Records of oil, gas, and water produced and of gas and water injected were studied to interpret the production behavior of the field and of certain individual leases. Theoretical calculations were made to predict the probable water-flood behavior and oil recovery, at constant water-injection rates, for individual sands on two leases.

Jan 1, 1953

By David E. Kaslow

In sampling dust laden air by drawing the medium into an inlet, some larger particles fail to follow the air and a true sample is not obtained. Inertia prevents particles from accelerating with the air as well as from turning sharp bends; also the particles' weight causes them to fall relative to the air. An analytic solution to the sampling efficiency calculation by Levin gives particle paths and sampling efficiencies for various particle sizes when the inlet can be treated as a point sink. However, the flow field in the neighborhood of an aspirating tube is quite different from a point sink flow. Employing Levin's solution in the outer field, trajectories in actual flow fields have been calculated by computer to locate the critical trajectories separating the entering particles I paths from those paths where the particles hit the tube wall or escape. Sampling efficiencies are presented in terms of 3 variables--a dimensionless particle size coefficient, a dimensionless orifice size coefficient and the tube orientation--for the no-wind case. Over most of the range of sampling conditions, the Stokes drag law can be used and dependence on the variable--particle Reynolds number--can be ignored. A procedure for achieving maximum efficiency in design of a sampler is proposed. Whether these results apply when typical room-sized eddies constitute the ?calm air? environment is not known.

Jan 1, 1974

By Floyd G. Anderson

This report reviews and summarizes information on prevention and suppression of dust in mining, tunneling, and quarrying published in the United States from 1961 through 1967. Unpublished pertinent data developed or assembled by the Bureau of Mines during this period also are included.

Jan 1, 1969

By H. C. Fuller

This paper discusses 105 production runs at Boulder City, Nev., in which titanium metal was made in 200-pound batches. It describes the equipment and techniques used in preparing raw material, the reduction process, and the removal of the reaction mass from the reaction vessel. Also, some data on man-hour requirements are presented. The main emphasis was on producing ductile-grade titanium and developing a standard procedure for obtaining a consistently pure product. Some departures from techniques used before were found to be desirable. The most important of these was the use of a sealed room with a controlled dry atmosphere in which the reaction vessel was opened and the reaction mass removed. This minimized the moisture taken up by the magnesium chloride in the reaction mass, and it could be purified successfully by vacuum distillation. Using the dry room also made it possible to leave al-inch shell of the reaction material on the walls of the vessel, which lowered the iron contamination and eliminated the labor and time-consuming job of cleaning the vessel after each reduction. Another change was lowering of the temperature during reduction to 750° C. instead of 850° C. This was found to give good results more consistently. The first poke to break the crust during reduction was eliminated, as it was found to be unnecessary and only added more work and was another possible way of introducing air. A rotating feed arm was installed in the reaction vessel to distribute the titanium tetrachloride over a larger area and, thus, prevent local overheating. The process, conducted in a batchwise manner as described and followed by good purification and fusion, produces a metal adequate in quality for nearly all purposes.

Jan 1, 1952