Search Documents

By L. W. Kempf

THE thermal expansion characteristics of aluminum alloys have been examined by several investigators, among whom may be mentioned Shakespear,1 Schulz,2 Hidnert,3 Hidnert and Sweeney4 and McCullough.5 Shakespear compared the expansion of a series of aluminum alloys containing 14 per cent copper, with separate additions of about 1 per cent each of manganese, tin and zinc with that of pure copper. Schulz examined the expansion of aluminum and zinc and some aluminum-zinc alloys. Hidnert determined with a high degree of precision the expansion characteristics of pure aluminum, some aluminum-copper, aluminum-zinc, aluminum-silicon and some commercial alloys. Hidnert and Sweeney examined the expansion characteristics of aluminum-beryllium alloys. McCullough, by an interferometer method, determined the expansivity of some aluminum-copper, aluminum-magnesium, aluminum-iron, aluminum-nickel, aluminum-silicon and aluminum-manganese alloys. Incidental to an investigation carried out during the past six years and leading to the development and exploitation of an aluminum piston alloy of relatively low thermal expansivity, the expansion characteristics of a wide variety of alloys were examined. Some of the data which might be of general interest are gathered in this paper.

Jan 1, 1933

By J. Wright, R. J. Tyler

Changes in the pore structure of hematite pellets during reduction to iron were investigated under a variety of experimental conditions. Pore structures were determined by a mercury penetration technique. The reduction temperature was found to be the major influence on structure, the pore system being bimodal below 7.50°C and unimodal above 900°C. Pore sizes ranging front 0.04 to 20 m were observed in complete metabolized pellets produced over the temperature range 650 - 1050°C. Gas composition and reduction rates also influenced the pore structure of the metabolized pellets, although to a lesser extent than the reduction temperature. An apparent activation energy of 24 kcal/mole was derived for the pore formation process.

Jan 1, 1979

By C. D. Broadbent

Open pit blasting can be a low cost routine or a high cost bottleneck depending on geology, environment and the operator's ability to master site conditions. Because blasting is a repetitive operation, there should be ample opportunity to optimize the process; but ordinarily this optimization is rarely achieved and then only if conditions remain consistent and predictable. Often, however, and particularly with porphyry coppers, hidden differences in rock characteristics nullify the operator's best efforts. At a porphyry copper deposit being mined by Kennecott Copper Corporation, all of the following rock types occur; oxidized and fresh porphyry, altered and silicified limestone, explosion breccia, rhyolite, sandstone, shale and several others. The units can cover large areas or be limited to a few tens of feet in maximum dimension. They are rarely visible on the bench surface and often do not show up in the bench slope. Even though the blastability of these rocks varies substantially, a generally-uniform blasting pattern was formerly used with disappointing results. Secondary blasting was often required and high bottoms occurred frequently, overblasting wasted drilling time, and explosives caused excessive throw.

Jan 4, 1974

By Frank C. Appleyard

Southwest of the town of Saltville in western Virginia is Plasterco, a small village that has been a source of gypsum production since 1815. Boasting the deepest underground gypsum mine in the world, Plasterco has been the site of mining operations by United States Gypsum Co. for more than half a century. And although its own ore supply is dwindling, Plasterco's position as a source of gypsum and gypsum products has been ensured by the recent opening of the nearby Locust Cove mine, one of U.S. Gypsum's newest projects. In the early days, production of gypsum at Plasterco was very small, the primary use of the mineral limited to that of "land plaster"-ground gypsum spread on the land to sweeten the soil. Initial mining was confined to surface outcrops containing gypsum, but the construction of a local plaster-producing calcining plant in the late 1800's coupled with al- most total depletion of the surface rock spurred the start-up of underground operations.

Jan 3, 1965

By Stanley J. LeFond, Neal Davis

Drilling an oil well or most other types of drilling or coring is no longer a simple and uncomplicated operation. Drilling today at depths which exceed 30,000 ft is hazardous and requires personnel with long and varied experience in drilling. It also requires extensive experience and knowledge in the use of materials which are added to the drilling fluid or "mud," more often than not materials utilizing an industrial mineral. The drilling fluid can vary from a simple mixture of water and "mud" to a very sophisticated, scientifically compounded drilling fluid. Industrial Minerals Used in Drilling Fluids Industrial minerals which are commonly used in oilwell drilling and completion are listed on [Table 1]. The most important minerals, determined by sales, are bentonite and barite. The other minerals listed are either used to achieve a specific purpose or are used regularly but in limited quantities. The main suppliers of drilling fluids internationally are Magcobar Div., Dresser Industries, Inc.; Baroid Div., National Lead Co.; IMC Drilling Mud Co., (a subsidiary of International Minerals and Chemicals Corp. and Halliburton Co.) ; and Milchem, a division of Baker Industries. Most of the industrial minerals are found in North America, with barite mines and processing plants located in Nevada, Arkansas, Missouri, and Arizona, and bentonite mines near Graybull, Wyo. Other mines, such as those in Nova Scotia, are capable of shipping to South America and to the European and Middle East countries. Most of the materials processed by any of the suppliers must conform to specifications set by the American Petroleum Institute (API) or the Oil Companies Material Organization (OCMA). These specifications provide for uniform physical and chemical properties of the materials to be sold on the open market.

Jan 1, 1975

By Richard Moldenke

A. E. OUTERBRIDGE, JR., Philadelphia, Pa. (written discussion).¬ The fact that iron castings improve with age has long been known. Many years ago the late Sir Frederick Bramwell, a distinguished engineer, formerly in charge of the metallurgical and gun-making department of the Woolwich Arsenal, England, determined to break up a large number of cast-iron mortars of an obsolete type that had been in stock for years. It was then reported to biro that it was found to be much more difficult to break these old gun castings under the "drop" than it was to break similar gun-castings recently made, under his own supervision; he changed the.. composition of the iron and still found that whenever castings made recently were broken up (on account perhaps of superficial defects) great disparity was observed in apparent strength between the old and new castings. Sir Frederick then made many other comparative tests, such

Jan 4, 1917

By L. R. Gremillion, G. H. McClellan

Chemical and mineralogical data on 25 apatitic phosphate ores of diverse origins from commerical deposits around the world were widely variable. From 14 to 18 chemical constituents of each sample were determined, and each sample contained four to ten mineral phases. Altogether there were 34 different mineral phases, many of which occurred in only one sample. Samples contained varieties of francolites, fluorapatites, and mixed hydroxyfluorapatites. The apatite compositions calculated from chemical data showed that certain types of substitutions were characteristic of different apatite varieties, but every variety had some degree of substitution of (CO3)2- for (PO4)3-, and the P205 contents of the apatites ranged from 35.1 %for a North Carolina apatite to 41.9% for a Missouri apatite. In a concentrate with a grade of 32% P2O5, the North Carolina sample should contain about 8.7% gangue and the Missouri sample about 23.7% gangue. To optimize the digestion process of a phosphate ore, it is necessary to consider the dissolution behaviors of different mineral phases during acidulation and their possible effects on chemical properties of a fertilizer intermediate. In the production of wet-process acids or superphosphates, acidulation of certain minerals may cause foaming and formation of sludge, filtration, corrosion, and handling problems.

Jan 1, 1982

By H. W. Turner

Lying to the east of the Rio Grande, in central New Mexico, is a long N. and S. mountain range, broken into separate ridges at several points. These have received separate names; the mountains at the south end, near El Paso, being known as the Franklin mountains, and then, following successively, to the north, the San Andreas range, Sierra Oscura, Manzano and Sandia mountains. At the eastern base of the Sierra Oscura there are several low ridges, remarkable for their red color. All of these red ridges contain reefs of copper-ore. The eastern flanks of the Sierra Oscura are composed of limestone. Some fossils in the limestone were examined by Prof. J. P. Smith of Stanford University, who says they are Fusulina and indicate an Tipper Carboniferous age. The sandstones and shales containing the copper-reefs directly overlie this limestone (Fig. I), and are very likely of Permian age, like the similar beds in Texas, described by Mr. W. F. Cummins.* Overlying the copper-beds are red sandstones and shales in which very little copper has been found. The cupriferous zone and the red sandstones and shales are everywhere associated, and as one stands on a high point, he will see that these rocks form three main belts or lines of hills. These may be referred to as the northern, middle and southern belts. The northern belt was not visited by me, but is known to contain copper-deposits. The middle belt has a trend of N. of W. and S. of E. The copper-reefs have been traced for a distance of more than 2 miles. The southern belt has a trend of about N. 30' W. and S. 30°

Jan 1, 1903

By K. J. Miller, R. E. Hucko

The Coal Reparation Division of the Pittsburgh Mining Technology Center conducted an investigation to assess and compare the pyritic sulfur reduction potential of coal-pyrite flotation and high-gradient magnetic separation (HGMS). Tests were run on three coals - an Upper Freeport bed coal, a Lower Kittanning bed coal, and a Pittsburgh bed coal - to establish grade-recovery relationships characteristic of both processes. Representative portions of each coal sample were crushed to two top sizes-nominal - 500 pm (-35 mesh) and nominal - 149 pm (-100 mesh)-and subjected to conventional froth flotation. The froth product was then beneficiated by coal- pyrite flotation or HGMS, to provide a direct technical companion of the two processes. At - 500 pm (- 35 mesh), the size normally employed for coal flotation, both coal-pyrite flotation and HGMS effectively separated pyrite from coal, and the performance of the two processes was essentially the same. At a - 149 pm (- 100 mesh) sire, however, the performance of HGMS exceeded that of coal-pyrite flotation. The separation effected by HGMS were more efficient at - 149 pm (- 100 mesh) than at - 500 pm (- 35 mesh). On the other hand, it was concluded that either the effectiveness of coal-pyrite flotation decreases with diminishing top size or the process has not been optimized to treat material finer than 500 pm (35 mesh).

Jan 1, 1983

By L. G. Huntley

Points out differences between the new, more liberal, law passed by the Colombian Congress and the law passed in 1919, gives a few facts about the pipe-line concession granted to a Canadian company, and tells of new drilling developments. PROBABLY the most important development in the Colombian oil situation during the past year was the passage by Congress of a new petroleum law, which went into effect Jan. 31, 1923. The principal points of interest in which this new law changes or improves the previous one are as follows: Law 120 of 1919 provided that one person or corporation could not acquire more than three exploitation zones. of 5000 ha. each, and royalties were based on a sliding scale, to wit: 6 per cent. royalty on lands 400 km., or more, from the ocean; 8 per cent. on lands 200 but not over 400 km. from the ocean, and 10 per cent. royalty on lands located less than 200 km. from the ocean. Rentals were fixed at 10 centavos per hectare for the first year; 20 centavos for the second year; 50 centavos, third year, and $1 (one peso) yearly thereafter. Under this law the term of the lease was fixed at 20 years and, at the discretion of the government, could be extended for 10 years additional. After the expiration of the lease and its corresponding extension, the machinery and other material placed upon the property would vest in the government. A bond of 20,000 pesos was also required of the lessee to guarantee faithful performance of his contract.

Jan 3, 1924

By C. W. Crispell

THE four nomograms presented in this article were designed to simplify and make more, rapid the calculations connected with the compression and transmission of air. The formulae involved are rather complicated, but the graphic solutions are simple; their use requires an ability to follow explicit directions and to interpolate values on a logarithmic scale. ? For the sake of convenience, the nomograms will be divided into two classes, and the purpose and accuracy of each will be discussed. Compression It is frequently desirable to determine the horsepower necessary to compress a given amount of free air from atmospheric pressure to a certain final pressure. The nomograms in Figs. 1 and 2 present a rapid method of calculating the horsepower required to compress 1 cu. ft. of free air per minute by single or two-stage compression. The general formula for the horsepower required to compress air adiabatically is: HP = S X 144/33,000 PVn/(n-1) [(P'/P) n-1/Sn -1] (1) where: P = absolute atmospheric pressure at compressor, in pounds per square inch. P' = final absolute pressure of compressed air, in pounds per square inch. V = volume of free air compressed per minute, in cubic feet. S = number of stages. n = exponent of the compression curve.

Jan 6, 1917

By W. C. Dickerman, J. F. Thornton

TOTAL global war is making extraordinary demands on the oil industry. Huge quantities of 100-octane gasoline, extreme service lubes, toluene and other miscellaneous products are required. 100-octane gasoline is blended from isopentane, base stock, and alkylate. Isopentane is fractionated from natural or refinery gasoline; but since only limited quantities of base stock can be made in this way, catalytic cracking is rapidly becoming the major source of base stock. Alkylate, the most important component, is synthesized from isobutane and an olefin. Extraordinary demands are forcing the full utilization of all present sources and the development of new supplies of feed stocks. Fortunately, the United States finds itself with well-developed processes already available, and this is true of the manufacture of lubricating oil as well. Toluene is now being produced by new methods from special cuts fractionated from selected crudes or from catalytically processed naphthas. Designers of refinery equipment are modifying past practices to conserve every bit of material possible.

Jan 1, 1942

By H. D. Dahl, Roger C. Parsons

In order to improve roof stability, Continental Oil Co.'s research program, initiated in 1969, was directed toward defining the geological parameters that affect the severity of roof conditions in any particular area of the mine. In addition, the program was seeking to define why roof falls in the Humphrey No. 7 mine (and in northern West Virginia-southwestern Pennsylvania coal mining areas) are oriented so that they occur primarily in north-south rooms or entries. Conclusions and recommendations from this study of roof fall orientation are given.

Jan 1, 1973

By A. Lee Barrett

The Maintenance Committee of the Coal Division of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers is presenting with this report the first of a series of cost comparisons which it plans to present the Institute. The plan is to assemble maintenance cost on all equipment connected with mechanical operations at the face of coal mines, to arrange these costs by districts, to make comparisons between districts, and within districts. This particular report covers data with respect to mobile loading machines, including both "on-track" and "off-track" equipment. It is anticipated—in fact, considerable data have already been accumulated—that next year complete maintenance costs by districts can he presented for complete loading units, including the various classes and combinations of on-track and off-track equipment. Data have also been collected with respect to some phases of maintenance methods and certain recommendations of the committee are included dealing with maintenance problems. In the assembly of these data more than 120 questionnaires were sent to operating companies throughout the United States. At the time the report was written 33 questionnaires had been returned with completed information and an additional group of companies had written that the information requested was not at present available but that they hoped to have such information available in the not far distant future. The replies as

Jan 1, 1947

By H. J. Winters

Position of the Porphyries in US Copper Supply The United States continues to be the largest producer and consumer of copper in the world. [Table 1] shows several production statistics for 1974, the most recent year that the non-communist world copper industry might consider a good year, and for 1976 and 1977. In 1974 an estimated 24% of the non-communist world's newly mined copper was mined in the US, and 87.89% of that was from the western porphyry coppers. In 1976 US new mine production was down to 22% of the non-communist world's newly mined copper, and the percentage of US new mine production supplied by the porphyry coppers had risen to 89-91%. In 1977 the statistics remained the same as in 1976. US porphyry copper production represented about 65% of US refined copper consumption in 1974, rose to 75% in 1976, and dropped back to 61% in 1977 as imports of foreign copper into the US began to swell. The financial situation of the porphyry copper mining industry continues to be very unhealthy. To see why; we can take a quick look at costs and prices.

Jan 1, 1982

Dr. Wadsworth's discussion of leaching is straightforward and certainly points out some of the critical areas in regards to the fundamental aspects of leaching. I will address myself to the more practical aspects of leaching. As a couple of general comments, very fine particles are often dealt with only when necessary. In many processing applications the sands and slimes are separated with the sand portion being treated by common metallurgical techniques and the slime portion being treated essentially by any technology that will recover some of the values. Ore treatment techniques such as leach/precipitate/float (LPF) have been used in the copper industry to take advantage of leachable copper preferentially reporting to the fine fraction. The second advantage, of course, is the improved metallurgy associated with the treatment of the sand fraction. Cases can be made for sand/slime separations in the aluminum and uranium industry where most of the value reports to the slime fraction and the sand fraction is rejected In the agitated leach systems, fine particles are often the most readily attacked and leached. In dump, vat and in-situ leaching, fine particles cause considerable problems. The fines will tend to restrict the solution flow from portions of the leach feed. This either causes a significantly reduced solution flow or, more probably, the solution will channel, by-passing much of the ore. In either case the result is a decreased metal recovery from ore. The fine particles of principal concern are clays of a flat plate-like shape which can very effectively compact, swell and cause a decreased solution flow. Discrete silica grains or sulfide grains due to their shape, even though they may be very fine, will not cause nearly the problems clays and secondary precipitates can cause.

Jan 1, 1979

By Raymond Sanford

IT IS difficult to know just when a hoisting rope should be removed from service and a new one substituted. It is desirable to utilize the full life of a rope but, on .the other hand, the damage and possible loss of life, resulting from delay in replacing it may amount to many times the cost of a new rope. In the present methods of inspection the inspector must rely upon accumulated experience and a certain sixth sense or intuition in addition to any rules that may be laid down regarding the number and distribu-tion of broken wires. This condition does not neces-sarily arise from lack of interest among users or makers of rope, but is due rather to the lack of satisfactory or adequate methods for testing ropes to determine their exact condition. The main difficulty in devising a physical test lies in the fact that a number of causes, all operating in different ways, contribute to the deterioration of a rope in service, and affect not only the external conditions but also the inner structure of the material of which the rope is constructed. Wear and broken wires on the outer part of the rope are not difficult to detect, but a test is needed which will clearly indicate the presence of broken wires in the interior portions and the change in strength due to alterations in the structure and properties of the material itself.

Jan 7, 1923

By I. Iwasaki, K. Adam

During wet grinding the electrochemical interactions between grinding media and pyrrhotite not only accelerate media wear but also adversely affect the suede mineral's flotation response. A possible remedy of the adverse effects on floatability by applying electric potentials to grinding media was examined. Flotation tests, Auger electron spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to study pyrrhotite surface properties. Although anodic polarization of the steels increased metal loss by corrosion, pyrrhotite flotation recovery was increased. In the case of cathodic polarization, flotation recovery improved somewhat in a narrow range of overpotentials. At higher cathodic overpotentials, however, mineral floatability was progressively lowered although the corrosive wear of grinding media might be reduced.

Jan 1, 1985

By B. Pitchumani, D. Venkateswarlu

INTRODUCTION The characteristics of feed and product of any size reduction operation are normally expressed as mean size, the size corresponding to 80 percent undersize or the percentage below a specified size or specific surface area. But the feed has a distribution of sizes and quite often it becomes essential to obtain a product of desired distribution. In such cases, size distribution of feed is related to product by matrix methods. The technique of matrix representation of crushing operation was proposed by Broadbent and Calcott (1 to 4). They divided the complete crushing mechanism of coal into breakage, selection and classifying functions for a closed-circuit system to establish relations between the feed and product distribution. Ellis, Ray and Venables (6) suggested an empirical method of determining the breakage matrix by combining the characteristic functions and proposed the following hypotheses: 1. The breakage of individual size fractions passing through the mill at a given rate is the same whether passed separately or as part of a mixed feed. 2. The breakage of a mixed feed may be estimated from the products of individual size fractions passed through the mill separately at a rate at which they would be crushed as part of the mixed feed. This method is stated to be applicable when there is no interaction between the individual sizes.

Jan 1, 1980

By A. E. Outerbridge

It has been generally accepted as a fact that cast-iron, under the influence of repeated shocks, becomes brittle, and will finally break under a blow which otherwise it would have withstood. It will probably surprise metallurgists, therefore, to learn that experiment disproves the supposed fact, and establishes exactly its opposite. The result of about a thousand tests of bars of cast-iron of all grades, from the softest foundry-mixtures to the strongest car-wheel metal, enables me to assert with confidence that, within limits, cast-iron is materially strengthened by subjection to repeated shocks or blows. It is very well known that the usual process of annealing castings—such, for example, as car-wheels—increases their strength by relieving cooling-strains. But it is not well known (if known at all prior to this announcement) that the molecules of cast-iron are capable of movement—for they do not touch each other*—without the necessity of heating the casting, and that they can thus rearrange themselves in comfortable relation to their neighbors, and relieve the overcrowding near the surface of the casting. In more technical words, a molecular annealing may be accomplished at ordinary temperatures which will release the strains in the castings, precisely as does annealing by slow cooling in heated pits or ovens. A statement so surprising should not be made without sufficient data to establish its correctness beyond cavil, since it is contrary to former

Jan 1, 1897