Search Documents

By J. L. Bray, S. T. Ross

The paper provides electrometallurgical data on the problem of germanium removal from zinc sulphate solutions. Germanium traces have caused much concern to the zinc refiner. Confirmatory evidence of interaction between germanium and cadmium is presented. Statistical analysis of data expands its significance and enhances its value. Further research is outlined. THE literature contains many references to the effects of trace amounts of germanium in the production of electrolytic zinc. One of the authors had experience with this troublesome element as early as 1917 at Trail, B. C. In 1929, Tainton and Clayton' reported that concentrations of as little as one part per million of germanium were sufficient to cause serious losses in current efficiency. Liddell2 reported that trace amounts of germanium cause marked lowering of the hydrogen overvoltage of electrolytic zinc cells, so that commercial production was impaired. Bray3 recorded the history of germanium in relation to electrolytic zinc production, noting that concentrations below 10 ppm have been found to yield low current efficiencies and copious hydrogen evolution. Koehler' stated that germanium "when present to the extent of a small fraction of one part per million per liter, causes serious evolution of hydrogen with a corresponding reduction in current efficiency." Recently, however, S. W. Ross" reported, from Risdon, Tasmania, that "in the course of leaching . .. dissolved traces of germanium... if not removed almost completely ... increase the reversion of cadmium during the filtration of the copper-cadmium precipitate and reduce the current efficiency during subsequent analysis." The copper-cadmium precipitate referred to is the residue from the zinc-dusting purification of zinc sulphate leach solutions. In the face of such conflicting testimony and with the increasing industrial importance of pure germanium and zinc it was decided to investigate the relationship between cadmium and germanium. Furthermore, other work by the authors showed certain discrepancies to exist in the theories of Tainton, et al. In the laboratory, without marked efficiency decreases, the authors have deposited zinc successfully from solutions containing as high as 1 g per liter of germanium. This could be done only when there was no cadmium present. Preliminary investigations of the suspected rela- tionships were carried out by means of emission spectrographic analysis using a beryllium internal standard. Several solutions containing 100 g per liter of zinc, as zinc sulphate, and 1 g per liter of cadmium, as cadmium chloride, were prepared. These concentrations were on the order of those obtained during a commercial low-acid leaching process. Varying concentrations of germanium were added to these solutions so that the range of 0.0000 to 0.5000 g per liter of germanium was covered. A 250 ml sample of each solution was agitated with 2.5 g of zinc dust for 30 min, filtered, and the filtrates were examined spectroscopically. Qualitative evidences of cadmium traces were found in those filtrates which originally contained above 10 ppm of germanium. Reliability of the analytical method did not permit quantitative investigations since cad-Table I. Current Efficiencies Obtained at 0.0000 and 1.5000 G per Liter Cadmium Concentrations Ge Concentrastion,* Cd Concentration,* EtBclenoy, G per Liter G per Llter Pot 0.0000 0.0000 84.270 0.0010 0.0000 94.849 0.0050 0.0000 92.649 0.0075 0.0000 94.039 0.0100 0.0000 96.084 0.0000 1.5000 93.460 0.0010 1.5000 95.158 0.0050 1.5000 92.148 0.0075 1.5000 91.260 0.0100 1.5000 84.546 • Cd and Ge concentrations shown are those existing before zinc-dust purification. mium determination in the concentrations present in zinc-dusted solutions lacks sufficient sensitivity for reproducible results. As a consequence of the inability of the investigators to obtain acceptable results through direct quantitative analysis, an indirect approach was devised. This indirect method involved a study of the current efficiency, in a model zinc cell, as a function of the concentrations of cadmium and germanium. Variables such as cell temperature, voltage, current density, anode spacing, relative electrode area, degree of agitation, cathode preparation technique, time, acid concentration, and solution volume were held constant. Fig. 1 shows the cell used. The current was fur-

Jan 1, 1952

By Nidhi Kumari

This work is based on surface chemical properties of bacteria during adaptation to high grade copper minerals and the projected consequences in Bio-Flotation process. The utility of bio-processing in the beneficiation of copper ore through bio-flotation is demonstrated. An autotroph Acidithiobacillus Ferrooxidans bacterium is adapted to high grade mixed copper ore sample by repeated subcultures. The surface characteristics were studies by analyses at different pH and time intervals. From the studies, it was established that the mineral-adapted cells became more hydrophobic as compared to unadapted cells during bio-flotation. It was also noticed that there was no significant changes in the surface charge of bacteria before and after adaptation. Keywords: bio-flotation, copper, Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, hydrophobic

Sep 1, 2012

By D Reid, A Fourie, J Ayala

This paper discusses cone penetration test correlations for loose gold tailings that were developed within a critical state soil mechanics framework. The development of a new calibration chamber for cone penetration testing that consists of a modified triaxial cell is described. Some of the early development and commissioning issues that were encountered, as well as the solutions adopted are outlined, including the system to prepare the samples and to acquire high-quality data from the testing. Also, the triaxial laboratory testing required to achieve the critical state line is described, including some of the basic precautions considered necessary as good practice. Additionally, the system adopted for volume tracking of the calibration chamber sample is described, which is essential for ensuring a reliable state parameter comparison against the acquired cone penetration test data. Finally, some laboratory test data from the calibration chamber is plotted against the soil behaviour type charts currently available from various authors.

Jul 1, 2021

By B. J. Moore

This publication contains analyses arid related source data for 274 natural gas samples from 20 States. Of the total samples, 269 were collected during calendar year 1985; the reminder were collected earlier, but releases granting permission to publish were not received before 1986, All samples were obtained and analyzed as part of Bureau of Mines investigations of the occurrences of helium in natural gases of countries with free market economies. This survey has been conducted since 1917. The analyses published herein were made by mass spectrometer and chromatograph.

Jan 1, 1987

By Lloyd Williams

1. The investigation shows that the Coal Creek has been the most productive, bed in Campbell County and contains the largest recoverable reserves of coal. The Pewee, Red Ash, and Jullico have been relatively productive beds and contain appreciable recoverable reserves of coal. The Blue Gem also has been productive in the past, but available information indicates that most of the remaining coal is Less than 28 inches thick. The Big Mary has relatively large reserves over 28 inches thick, but the coal is high in ash and sulfur. Thick partings in the Windrock bed have discouraged mining in that bed. The Poplar Creek and Rex beds generally are below drainage, and large areas have been excluded from the reserve estimate, Reserves in the Walnut Mountain bed will be difficult to mine due to the irregu¬lar thickness and lack of continuity of the bed. Estimated coal reserves are- small in the remaining five beds. 2. Known measured and indicated reserves of coal, based on a minimum bed thickness of 14 inches and on 1,800 short tons per acre-Foot of coal in place, are estimated to be 398 million tons as of January 1, 1953, o? this total, 267 million tons is in beds 28 inches and more thick. Areas in each bed were omitted from the estimate because available data relative to the bed characteristics are too meager to make an estimate that conforms with the definitions of measured and indicated coal adopted for this study. Should future drilling or development prove reserves in these areas, these should be added to the total estimated reserves.

Jan 1, 1956

By Gibson G, Jaques L

The Broken Hill Exploration Initiative (BHEI) is a collaborative venture between the Australian Geological Survey Organisation (AGSO), Mines and Energy South Australia (MESA) and the New South Wales Department of Mineral Resources (NSWDMR) to provide a new generation of geoscientific information to promote and enhance the exploration for, and discovery of, new deposits in the Broken Hill region. The area under investigation (Figure 1) exceeds 150 000 square kilometres on either side of the NSW-SA border and is centred on the city of Broken Hill. N.T. I I OL n. WA 8A I Maw. AC,7 !ii oFCU vlc~ ~T. Fia I - Nlap showing the 150 000 square kilometre regwa,. i.i lcr investigation by the Broken HiII Exploration Initiauvr highlighted on the map of Australia. A major impediment to the exploration for, and to the understanding of, the genesis of the world-class Broken Hill Pb-Ag-Zn deposit is the structural and metamorphic complexit\ of the region. Important objectives of the BHEI are therefore: I. the definition of the three-dimensional structure of the province, 2. the deformation history, and 3. the stratigraphic and age relationships of the rock units. Early discussions between the BHEI partners and industry scientists revealed that new geophysical surveys would be a key requirement to help advance the understanding of the province, especially a contiguous high resolution airborne geophysical dataset covering both outcrop and areas of shallow surficial cover. The purpose of this paper is to draw attention to the new high resolution airborne geophysical data and to discuss their interpretation and potential for enhancing the knowledge of the Willyama Supergroup geology.

Jan 1, 1997

By Tomoyuki Moritani, Atsuyuki Mizuno

A concentration of manganese nodule varies areally from 0 to 30 kg/m2 in the central-eastern deep sea bottom of Central Pacific Basin with depth of 5,600-5,900m, but generally it is low, mostly of the abundance order from 0 to less than some kilograms per square metres through the bottom. A high concentration over about l0kg/m is localized to the northwestern basin, besides "St. 414 Deep Sea Hill" and “GH 76-1 Trought”, and also it is likely related with the substratum of deep sea clay. Nodules are tentatively classified into nine types of Sr, SPr, SEr, Db, Ss/SPs, ISs, IDPs and V, in terms of morphology and surface feature. The types may be related with internal structure, nuculeus, mineral composition, chemical composition, occurrence and areal distribution, and might have resulted from various environmental factors of nodule genesis. The abundance of nodule at each station shows the interesting relation with acoustic records by 3.5KHz and seismic reflection profilings. In both the records, thick transparent layer over about 45m thick yield neither any nor significant amount of nodule. The layer less than 45m relates with abundant nodules up to 30kg/m2, though it yield also very little nodule in some cases. The relation suggests that the formation of nodule most likely could be related with the accumulation rate of the post-middle Eocene sedimentary sequence to some extent and also with other controlling factors. The relation can lead us to the tentative delineation of distribution of nodule deposits in the area. The comparative-consideration with the deposits in GH 74-5 area, just east- ward of the present area, shows the areal peculiarity of nodule genesis in deep sea bottom. The results of chemical analyses will be discussed elsewhere.

Jan 1, 1976

By Albert L. Toenges

[sing tho ppsf; few Yomn t!le:.c. hcs beer. p. trqnd away frorn locomotive haulwe of cop2 frorn tile losdiw point to tho prop,nration plant of bitu~i- nnus-cod strip mlncc to a;~to~lzcd. h,71Jlr.:~. The qrostion has arisen rrhethcr this is alwqvs econ~nicd, rxcl the purpcrse or' tnf s investigation is to de- termine, if possible, the econonic limlt for ~~torieod had.we. sing tho ppsf; few Yomn t!le:.c. hcs beer. p. trqnd away frorn locomotive haulwe of cop2 frorn tile losdiw point to tho prop,nration plant of bitu~i- nnus-cod strip mlncc to a;~to~lzcd. h,71Jlr.:~. The qrostion has arisen rrhethcr this is alwqvs econ~nicd, rxcl the purpcrse or' tnf s investigation is to de- termine, if possible, the econonic limlt for ~~torieod had.we.]

Jan 1, 1938

By Albert L. Toenges

[During the past few years there has beer trend away from locomotive haulage of coal from the loading point to the preparation plant of bituminous-coal strip, miner to motorized. haulage. The question has arisen whether this is always economical, and the purposes of this investigation is to determine, if possible the economic limit for motorized haulage. The operators of strip coal mines and of open-pit ore mines have shown great interest in this problem, and it is thought that the findings of this investigation will. Provo helpful to them.]

Jan 1, 1938

The research described in this report was conducted under a cooperative research agreement between the U.S Bureau of Mines Twin Cities Research Center (TCRC), Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CCI), and three operations in Northern Michigan managed by CCI: the Empire and Tilden surface taconite mining operations, and the Central Shops maintenance facility. All of these operations are in or near Ishpeming, MI. The Human Factors Research Group at TCRC is responsible for designing, planning, and conducting the research, and reporting on the findings. This project was carried out in order to investigate the high prevalence of back injuries being experienced by workers employed at the three CCI Northern Michigan sites, In an analysis of Company accident records for workers employed at these sites, it was determined that back injury problems confronting the CCI sites mirror those confronting the entire mining industry.

Jan 1, 1994

By H. Dundar

The first application of High Pressure Grinding Rolls was in 1985 at a cement plant, for the purpose of capacity improvement. Then various circuit configurations were derived to achieve a reduction in overall specific energy consumption, by transferring more of the grinding required to the HPGR. In most circuit configurations, the recycle of fines is required for effective breakage between the rollers. By increasing the fines amount in the feed material to a specific level within the recycling load, a uniform material bed is created and a higher pressure gradient along the roller width is obtained, resulting in compact flakes, including more fines. The fines recycle results in enhancement of the interparticle breakage. This paper will discuss the effect of the feed size distribution on HPGR performance.

Jan 1, 2012

By P. K. N. Raghavan

Bauxite is the principal source for the production of aluminum metal which has gained tremendous importance over the years due to its versatility as a metal capable of substituting almost all of the non-ferrous metals, non metals like wood, plastics, fibre glass, etc. and even steel in many applications. 90% of the high purity alumina needed for the production of this wonder metal in the world comes from bauxite. Even though alternate methods have been developed to produce alumina from non bauxite sources, owing to the high capital and operating costs involved, Bayer process still retains the superiority among all the methods by virtue of its simplicity and favourable economics. Bauxite continues to be the perfect ore for alumina production and its remarkable utilization makes it the most important non-ferrous ore. Most of the Alumina Refineries in the world process different types of bauxite and that too from varied sources. The technology employed in the Alumina Refineries depends on the Bauxite processed, with an ultimate view to produce alumina of required quality in the most efficient manner. Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) had from time to time put forward bauxite specifications for metallurgical and other applications. However, these are found no fully based on alumina technology, present developments and availability of different types of bauxite in the country. The aim of this paper is to provide scheme of metallurgical grading of Indian Bauxite based on the background of alumina processing technologies and availability of various types of bauxite in the country. Efforts are made here to evaluate beneficiation techniques for central Indian Bauxite from the point of view of alumina production. Keywords: bauxite beneficiation, digestion, alumina, gibbsite, bohemite, diaspore

Sep 1, 2012

By D. M. Fermino, C. G. Bastos Andrade, V. F. Justo, F. R. Valenzuela-Diaz, M. G. S. Valenzuela, C. Volzone

The present paper presents the study of light green smectite clay, from Paraiba, Brazil, submitted to mild acid attack under moderated conditions. Usually, clays are subjected to treatment with strong inorganic acids at temperatures near the boiling point and at high acid concentrations and then, widely used as bleaching agents. The treatment occurred under bellow boiling temperature and at short times of reaction (90°C, reaction times of 1, 6, 12, 18 and 24 hours in close reactor, concentration of the aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid 1.5 M, clay/acid solution ratio of 1g/10mL). The purpose of these attacks is to reduce the concentration of impurities providing color, with minimal change in the clay minerals structure, aiming at use in products of high value such as cosmetics and polymer/clay nanocomposites. The raw clay and the attacked samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), cation exchange capacity (CEC), stereomicroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray detector (EDS).

Jan 1, 2015

By V K. Panwar, Sampat Raj

At a Fertilizer plant located in the southern part of India, 74 numbers of pump foundations have shown non-uniform settlements causing the tilting of pump foundations under self-weight primarily due to the presence of varying thickness of the heterogeneous subsoil beneath the pump foundations and soil erosion because of water seepage through deeper excavations in the close vicinity. Various corrective measures have been explored and taking due cognizance of the prevailing subsoil conditions, site constraints, and constructability aspects, micropiling has been adopted. This paper presents the site problem and details of remedial measures adopted for rehabilitation of the distressed pump foundations. The main objective of this paper is to provide guidelines for designer during design and detail engineering stage to avoid similar nature of problems and also to provide a solution concept to tackle similar nature of problem(s) if encountered at site.

Nov 1, 2022

By Zenjiro Asaki, Teruo Tanabe

"To clarify the formation of light rare earth (R =Ce, Pr, Nd or Sm) -Fe compounds in the reduction-diffusion (RD) process, two kinds of experiments were carried out: (a) RD experiment in which briquettes composed of R oxide powder, Fe (particles or wire) and CaH2 were reacted, and (b) immersion experiment, where an Fe plate was immersed into R-Fe melt having the composition of Fe-side liquidus line in Fe crucible. The compound formation was examined by using XRD, SEM and EPMA. The formation rates of RzFe17 measured by the RD experiment were compared with those obtained by the immersion experiment. The growth rates of compounds obtained in the RD experiment for Pr-Fe and Nd-Fe systems were much lower than those obtained in the immersion experiment. This result was explained by the difference of the reduction rates of R oxides by Ca. The parabolic rate constants for the formation of RzFe17 were separated in two groups of (a) Pr-Fe and Nd-Fe systems and (b) Ce-Fe and Sm-Fe systems. This was discussed in connection with the difference of their crystal structures and the driving force of diffusion. The parabolic rate constants for the formation of compounds in Ce-Fe and Sm-Fe systems decreased in the order of RFez, RFe3 and RzFe17.IntroductionTo understand reaction behaviors in the production of rare earth (R) -iron intermetallic compounds, which have excellent magnetic properties, is very important from engineering point of view. And the reduction-diffusion (RD) process<O has recently attracted attention as one of the promising processes to economically produce R-related materials. A few fundamental studies on the compounds formation in the RD process have previously been reported. Qi, Hino and Yazawa(2) observed the formation of R(Nd, Sm)-Fe and R-Co compounds in the process from various view points. Song and Ogawa(3) measured the growth rates of Nd-Fe and Sm-Fe compounds by using Nd or Sm vapor supplied from Nd-Ca or Sm-Ca melts. The authors have also carried out fundamental studies (4)-(8) to clarify the rate and mechanism in the production of R-Fe intermetallic compounds."

Jan 1, 1998

By K. E. Doud

An unusually pure grade of rutile and several grades of aplite rock are produced in a unique mining and mineral dressing operation in Hanover County, Virginia. The ore body is an aplite rock of gnessic structure, having a sari ace exposure extending over several hundred acres, heavily leathered and containing rutile, ilmenite, and other titanium and iron minerals. The physical nature and mineral composition of the ore body has permitted the use of a relatively economical and unusual processing circuit. The flowsheet was designed to take full advantage of the remarkable liberation of the minerals at relatively coarse rinds. It permits flexibility in changing the product mix, and maintains high levels of purity in both rutile and aplite rack. The mineral processing is discussed in some detail below.

Jan 1, 1962

By T Nakamura, M. Itoh

Most of the used cathode ray tube (CRT) glass in Japan, which contains lead oxide, was exported and recycled in overseas factories of new CRTs. However, domestic treatment and recycling of waste CRT glass has become necessary because overseas CRT factories have shut down and exports of CRT glass have stopped. Some of the waste CRT glass recycled domestically is charged in lead blast furnaces instead of silica flux, because there is no local reproduction route for glass that contains lead. However, the mass of CRT glass that can be treated in this manner is limited because of its high silica content. Consequently, additional treatment methods for waste CRT glass are required so that more can be used as a lead smelting material. In this study, waste CRT glass was treated with hydrofluoric acid to dissolve the silica contained in the glass, and the dissolved lead was recovered by precipitation. Lead metal was recovered by electrodeposition from the prepared hexafluorosilicic acid solution.

Jan 1, 2011

By G R. Ballantyne, G Lane

Dry milling circuits that include high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR) or vertical roller mills (VRM) and air classification have replaced dry ball milling in cement production, but how do they compare to wet milling and classification circuits in mineral processing plants? Two case studies are presented that compare the energy efficiency, wear, liberation and capital cost of dry and wet milling circuits. In both case studies the VRM and HPGR consume half the energy of a wet tumbling mill for the same duty. However, the dry classification system tends to significantly erode the energy benefits. A number of improvement opportunities are presented that have the potential to improve the energy and capital efficiency of dry milling circuits. These improvement opportunities focus on the dry classification system that consumes significant energy in heating and fan power requirements and requires a large proportion of the footprint.

Aug 24, 2022

By Jorge Alberto Soares Tenório, Denise Crocce Romano Espinosa, Solange Kazue Utimura, Amilton Barbosa Botelho, Carlos Gonzalo Alvarez Rosario

In this study, the recycling of waste materials is interesting in the environmental aspect to reduce the amount of waste in land fill and attenuate the pollution of groundwater, air and soil due to the liberation of dangerous elements. Recycling materials is an important issue once it represents a potential source of valuable metals. Waste printed wired boards (PWBs) as a principal part of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and it is a fast growing stream with complex composition. The composite materials from PWBs are ceramic, polymers and metals. Biohydrometallurgical route may offer possibilities to recycle PWBs from discarded computers with the order to recover copper. The extraction of copper from PWBs by bioleaching processeswas studied using a mixed culture of acidophilic bacteria fromacid mine drainage (AMD) and the bacteria Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans (A. ferrooxidans). The bioleaching experiments were performed in shaker flasks at temperature 30 °C and 170 rpmwith 10% (v/v) inoculum and pulp density of 35 g/L. Themetals concentration was determined by energy dispersiveX-ray Fluorescence (XRF). The results showed that the maximum copper recovery from PWBs using A. ferrooxidans was approximately 89% and with a mixed culture of bacteria from AMD the copper recovery was 92%.

Mar 1, 2017

By C. W. Davis

This is the first of a series of papers being; prepared as the work progresses in a study of the hydrometallurgy of manganese. The investigation is being made in an endeavor to make possible the utilization of lour-grade domestic manganese ores. The value of a hydrometallurgical process for manganese depends on the present and future uses for manganese products.

Jan 1, 1930