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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 Colman Goldberg

IT is customary to plot crystallographic planes or axes on a Wulff stereographic net which is ruled with parallels of latitude and meridians of longitude. If a single crystal is placed at the center of a sphere, the coordinates of a crystallographic plane or axis are the coordinates of the point where the axis intersects the sphere. The standard (HKL) projection is the projection for which the sphere is rotated so that the (HKL) pole is at the center of the projection. Schiebold and Sachs' and many others have published standard projections for the more important planes of a cubic crystal. With Tables I and 11, it is possible to plot any plane (HKL) of a cubic crystal on a standard (001) projection if the absolute values of the individual H, K, and L are nine or less, which is almost always the case. Using the methods outlined by Barrett,' the standard (001) projection can be rotated so that any arbitrary plane is at the center of the projection. The tables are believed to be important for two reasons: 1—The heretofore published standard projections usually are not of the proper size to fit the stereographic nets available. With these tables a standard projection can be made which will be of exactly the proper size for the available stereographic net. 2—With the tables, planes that do not appear on the previously published standard projections can be easily plotted. For these reasons, the tables are especially useful in the study of optical reflections from etched surfaces and can also be used to make a standard projection for the axis which is normal to the macroscopic surface. (This axis can be found by X-ray or optical methods.) Then if the crystal is etched, the effect of the etchant can readily be determined by comparing the latitude and longitude of the reflecting planes (as determined with an optical goniometer) with the standard projection that has been prepared. Use of the Tables Fig. 1 shows the meridians and parallel which have been designated as zero longitude and latitude. The tables themselves are self-explanatory. The

Jan 1, 1953

By Edward W. Parker

This plant was built in 1907 at the Bankhead mines to manufacture briquettes by the Zwoyer process under license from the Zwoyer Fuel Go., of New York, N. Y. The building was constructed to contain two units, each of a capacity of 10 tons per hr.; one unit was installed at the time the building was constructed, and the second unit is now being built. The coal used is an anthracite, which is more friable than that of Pennsylvania, and, as a consequepce, a larger percentage of dust or waste is produced, which was formerly thrown upon the slack-pile as waste, but is now passed to the " dust-bin " in the breaker, from which it is conveyed to the briquette-plant. An average analysis of the coal, published by Lewis Stockett and 13. R. Warden,' is as follows: Per Cent. Moisture,.........0.50 Volatile,..8.00 Fixed carbon,... 83..50 Ash,.......8.00 Total,.100.00 Sulphur,.........0.40 per cent. Specific gravity,...... 1.40 Color of ash,.white Heat value,.......14,000 B.t.u. The plant is run under two 12-hr. shifts, the force consisting of 1 superintendent for both shifts, 1 engineer for each shift, 1 briquetter for each shift, 1 helper for each shift, 1 laborer cleaning up for each shift. In the pitch-melting house, 2 men are on duty for one shift. The steam for the engine is furnished from a central boiler-plant, which also supplies steam for the breaker, the electric light and power-plant, machinery-shop, and boiler-shop. During March, April, May, and half of June, in 1907, the

Jan 1, 1909

By D. A. Livingstone

Abstract Golden Manitou Mines, Limited, nine miles east of the town of Val d'Or in northwestern Quebec, are presently milling, at the rate of 1,000 tons daily, a relatively complex 3.11-phide ore and producing, in decreasing order of value, zinc, silver, gold, lead, and copper. The products are a zinc concentrate, a silver-lead-copper concentrate, and a silver-gold precipitate from cyanidation. Although several independent pre-production metallurgical investigations into the treatment of the ore were carried out, current practice is different from any of the recommended methods and, while still leaving room for improvement, is considerably more effective than earlier performance. Flow-sheet developments from the commencement of operations in 1942 are dealt with briefly, showing the reasons for making numerous changes, the shortcomings of the various schemes tried, and, finally, covering data pertinent to present-day practice. From the recovery standpoint, silver has presented the greatest difficulty. The writer's association with the Company coincided with the start of production. Characteristics of the Ore The predominant metallic minerals present in the ore, in decreasing order of their abundance, are: pyrite, sphalerite, galena and chalcopyrite, with lesser amounts of argentiferous tennantite-tetrahedrite, arsenopyrite, covellite, bornite, and chalcocite. The sphalerite is mostly light in colour, sometimes colourless, and practically free from combined iron. Some of the sphalerite is very closely associated with minor amounts of pyrite, chalcopyrite, and galena. Pyrie is abundantly disseminated as medium to fine grains; more rarely it is massive and contains occasional grains of sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite.

Jan 1, 1952

By R. J. Campbell

[The steady increase of aluminum production means a corresponding increase of carbon consumption in the alumina-reduction cells. Improved petroleum techniques constantly reduce the amount of byproduct petroleum-coke production. These, trends threaten the alumina-reduction works with possible shortages of carbon, which must be supplied from some other source. In anticipation of this shortages, an investigation into the possibility of using coal as an alternative source of carbon was begun at the Northwest Experiment Station of the Federal Bureau of Mines. The investigation lit has developed bench-scale methods that produce carbon of higher purity than is required by specifications for anode carbon. Additional work will b required to bring these processes to pilot-plant seals and to prove the suitability of the carbons, produced or aluminum-anode consumption.]

Jan 1, 1956

By H. H. Schrenk

[A colorimetric method5/ for the determination of benzene in amounts as low as 0.001 mg has been developed recently at the U.S. Bureau of Mines Pittsburgh Experiment Station by the authors, with the assistance of chemical personnel fro a the Allegheny County (Pa.) Relief Works Division. The method is based on the direct nitration of either liquid - or gas - phase benzene, followed by neutralization, extraction with butanone, and final treatment with sodium hydroxide which produces a violet color. The color is matched with color standards of known values. Although the method is adaptable to many conditions the primary objective was a procedure that would be suitable for hygienic investigations. The development worth included a study of possible interference by chemicals that be present in those situations in which the method. would be employed. In this study it was found that a specimen of hexane prepared by the Gulf Research Laboratory, Pittsburgh, by fractionation of West Virginia natural gas gave positive result for benzene, whereas a specimen of pentane prepared in the same manner showed only a trace, and specimens of n -heptane and octane (2,2,4 trimethylpentane) supplied by Eastman Kodak Co. save a negative result. According to information obtained from the Eastman Kodak Co. the latter two compounds were highly purified, the n-heptene being prepared from line and the octane synthesized in the laboratory. On nitration of a larger amount of tae natural hexane a visible quantity, of needlelike crystals which resembled those of m-dinitrobenzene was obtained. The hexane from this nitration was recovered by distillation and again nitrated, but no crystals or colorimetric indication of benzene was obtained. This imitated that the specimen of natural hexane contained a substance which at least had the chemical behavior of benzene.]

Jan 1, 1935

By D. R. Nagaraj, Napoleon Tercero, Raymond Farinato

"Dialkyl dithiophosphinates are a unique class of collectors used in the flotation processing of Cu- Au, complex polymetallic, and precious metal ores. They are known to exhibit higher selectivity and flotation rates for Cu sulfides, galena, and precious metal values in the presence of other gangue sulfides, than the traditionally used collectors such as dialkyl dithiophosphates and xanthates. They also have an attractive HSE profile. Historically, for most reagents used in flotation, practical methods of chemical usage have preceded detailed scientific understanding of how they work; this applies also to dithiophosphinates. Recently, however, the research community has shown significant interest in this chemistry, and numerous studies have been conducted to understand the fundamentals of interactions of dithiophosphinates with several base metal sulfides and precious metals. A critical overview of fundamental studies, laboratory ore flotation, and plant practice of dithiophosphinates is given in this paper. The findings from these studies are rationalized by drawing on concepts and insights from coordination chemistry. A comparison between the interactions of dithiophosphinates and dithiophosphate analogues with various minerals and metals is also made throughout. We believe that such a critical analysis/overview will be invaluable in identifying gaps in knowledge regarding this important set of compounds, which in turn may provide a basis for the design of studies that can advance understanding of their flotation performance. INTRODUCTIONDialkyl dithiophosphinates are an important member of the class of thiophosphorus compounds that are widely used in flotation beneficiation of base metal sulfide and precious metals ores. Ore flotation studies and plant practice experience have demonstrated their unique properties compared to the traditionally used sulfide collectors such as dialkyl dithiophosphates (their closest analogues) and xanthates. The predominant dialkyl dithiophosphinate used in the industry today is sodium diisobutyl dithiophosphinate (a.k.a. DIBDTPi; AEROPHINE® 3418A1 introduced by American Cyanamid in the late 1970s; Figure 1). The widest application of AEROPHINE 3418A is found in complex polymetallic ores of Cu-Pb-Zn-Ag, Pb-Zn-Ag, and Cu-Zn where it has demonstrated improved recoveries (and flotation rates) of sulfide minerals of Cu, Pb and Ag and selectivity against sphalerite, iron sulfides, and penalty elements (Mingione, 1991). More recently, it has also been used as a collector in the processing of Cu, Cu-Ni, and Ni ores (Guitard et al., 2015) and Cu-Au ores (Dunne, 2005). In general, it is considered to possess the collecting power of xanthates together with the selectivity (against pyrite) of dithiophosphates (Hope et al., 2003a, 2003b), while requiring lower dosages than those reagents (Guitard et al., 2015). AEROPHINE® 3418A has also found an important place in several targeted formulations to improve flotation performance. Other benefits of this reagent include higher flotation rates, having a better HSE (health, safety and environmental) profile2 compared to xanthate, and exhibiting resistance to hydrolysis and oxidation (Guitard et al., 2015). Compared to diisobutyl dithiophosphate (DIBDTP), which is known to contribute significantly to frothing (often leading to over-frothing), AEROPHINE® 3418A is observed to be froth neutral (i.e. it does not alter the existing froth characteristics). As is the case for other flotation reagents, the design and application of AEROPHINE® 3418A has preceded understanding of its behavior at a fundamental level. Recently, there have been numerous fundamental and application studies designed to develop a better understanding of its interaction with sulfide minerals and precious metals. This should help in optimizing its application in flotation and provide a basis to better rationalize its unique selectivity and activity characteristics. Past studies on the interacti"

Jan 1, 2016

By Henry E. Keniston

In every business today costs come under almost microscopic scrutiny. It's hard to conceive that less than 30 years ago there was no such cost consciousness apparent in overall industry. Railroads, through their almost absolute monopoly on freight handling, were one of the industries where little thought was given to overall costs. True regulation kept rates in line, but railroads did very little in the area of supplying equipment intended to help the shipper minimize his costs and at the same time result in savings to the rail carrier. During this period, except for isolated cases, railroads placed standard cars for loading. Most railroad car fleets consisted of box cars, hopper cars, flat cars and low side gondola cars certain roads having unique movements developed special cars to accommodate the particular product, but seldom did these cars move in general interchange service. Most of you are aware that several large companies built railroads of their own as an integral part of raw materials handling from remote sources to production plants located near concentrations of usage. On these railroads special cars were built with little thought to inter-change service. Examples of such railroads are the Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range, the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern, the Union Railroad, the Bessemer and Lake Erie and the Birmingham Southern.

Jan 1, 1972

By J. A. Russell

AS THE LOCAL electric generating plants increased in size and capacity and costs of producing electricity came down, it became apparent that it was no longer good economy to operate individual boiler plants at the Company's various collieries to power steam hoists and compressors. Great economies could be made by burning the Coal at central power plants and using electric power at the collieries. During the period after the end of the war, a steady and continuing programme of replacing first the smaller steam-driven units, and later the steam-driven compressors, was undertaken, and finally the larger hoists, those at No. 12 Colliery in New Waterford and No. 20 Colliery in Glace Bay, were the last units operated by steam.

Jan 1, 1958

By Henry C. Meeves

The nonpegmatitic sources of beryllium in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and four adjacent states investigated by the Bureau of Mines are described. The investigations included 155 properties from which over 6,200 rock samples were collected; more than 5,500 samples were analyzed by the nuclear beryllium-detection technique. Twenty-four of the properties examined had rock containing more than 0.10 percent BeO. Many of the beryllium determinations were made in the field with portable detection instruments by direct scanning of outcrops and by testing samples of rock brought to the instrument. The large domestic resources of low-grade nonpegmatitic beryllium ore in Utah, which were discovered by private enterprise and which respond favorably to small-scale treatment processes, may come into commercial use and thus reduce the dependence of the United States on imported beryl.

Jan 1, 1966

By Donald Carlisle

"IntroductionTHE OPINION is held by many persons outside the mining industry, and by some within it, that mine •operators customarily find it advantageous to mine •only the richer parts of orebodies and to leave behind, perhaps permanently, leaner material which could be mined only at a lesser profit. This opinion and the inference which might be drawn from it that 'gutting' of mineral resources is a common feruture• of the mining industry are prejudicial to the intertsts of the industry and deserve careful scrutiny. Oddly enough, a theory of mine economics which gives much support for the opinion was advanced first by members of the mining profession itself, has been repeated •several times in mining literature, and to my knowledge has never been adequately refoted.According to the theory, selective mining of the rich ore first on a large scale will yield substantial gains and these gains do not merely reflect the desire of 'money minded investors' for a quick return but derive from the logical application of compound interest rates and the concept of ;present value. W. O. Hotchkiss and R. D. Parks (1) illustrate the reasoning with a hypothetical example in which an orebody of 4,000,000 tons may be mined either in its entirety in forty years at $1.00 per ton profit or selectively with the recovery of only the richest half in twenty years at $1.50 per ton profit. They show that, with Hoskold rates of 4 and 8 per cent, the present value of profits from mining only the richer 2,000,000 tons exceeds the present value of profits :from mining the whole orebody by about 20 per cent."

Jan 1, 1953

By Chris L. Powell, Russell J. Denny.

"The remotely located Cockatoo Island iron ore mine off the Kimberly coast in Western Australia, which has been in operation since 1951, was recently expanded up to 50m below sea-level using staged construction of a rock-filled seawall around the open cut mining operation. The most recent stage of the seawall expansion required a seepage reducing cut-off barrier to be installed through the seawall into underlying seabed sediments. A line of grout holes at 1m centres was proposed to form the seepage barrier, with grouting extending 17m below the top of the seawall. Top hammer drilling techniques were used to penetrate the 12m deep rockfill to seabed level, and permeation grouting carried out within the rockfill to fill voids and stabilise material around grout holes. The local 10m tides meant that tidal washout of fines and grout would be a major risk, and so a combination of cementitious and chemical grout was used to create rapid gel times. Following permeation grouting, holes were re-opened to allow jet grouting to hydraulically mix and grout permeable seabed sediments below the seawall. Using the duplex jet grout system in a single pass to 17m below platform level, the jet grouting was extended upwards into the seawall fill itself to overlap with the earlier permeation grouting. Finally a soil/cement mixed capping trench was installed using slurry trenching techniques with soil/cement/bentonite mixed backfill in order to complete the grout treatment. The approach taken allowed considerable onsite flexibility in technique. An automated slurry batching plant allowed adjustment of mixes to suit the varying subsurface conditions which were encountered during the works.IntroductionLate in 2013 Wagstaff Piling was engaged to install a seepage barrier through a rockfilled seawall built to allow expansion of sub-sea iron ore mining operations on Cockatoo Island off the remote Kimberley coast in the North West of Western Australia. Earlier stages of seawall construction had used a variety of different construction techniques with varied success, and the history of sub-sea mining on the island had been plagued with failures, including failures in the slope of the seawall itself, hanging wall failure underneath and inside the seawall, and footwall failures as the ore was mined leaving the rock face inclined at 55 degrees, parallel to the bedding. The current expansion, known as the Stage 4 expansion, was more tightly constrained by the pit geometry and available materials than previous seawall expansion stages that adopted clay core and sheet pile seepage barrier solutions. In Stage 4, an innovative grout curtain seepage barrier solution was selected to ultimately provide the necessary cut-off to allow access to high grade ore, while protecting the mine from inundation by the sea."

Jan 1, 2016

By Paul F. Kerr, Donald M. Hausen

Fine colloidal gold near Carlin, Nevada is disseminated in leached carbonate strata of the Roberts Mountains Formation in the Lynn "window" of the Roberts Mountains thrust fault. The ore body is generally stratiform and is more or less conformable to altered beds near the top of the formation, underlying Devonian limestones. Two sequences of mineralization are recognized: ( 1) an earlier base metal-barite assemblage related to early Cretaceous intrusives (121 ± 5 m.y.), and (2) a later low temperature Au-As-Hg-Sb assemblage of near surface emplacement. The earlier sequence consisting of sparse galena and sphalerite in barite with anomalous amounts of zinc, lead, nickel and copper, associated with dikes of dacitic composition, is of little economic importance. The later sequence of gold, realgar, cinnabar, and stibnite associated with extensive silicification and argillic alteration of limestone beds, has resulted in important deposits of gold. Argillic alteration of hydrothermally leached carbonate strata has provided the environment in which the most prominent gold deposition took place. Carbonate minerals in the limestone host rock have been replaced by microcrystalline quartz and chalcedony to form stratiform silica masses and recrystallized lenses of euhedral quartz. Zones of porous silicification are light gray to white, elliptical in shape, and more or less follow bedding. Silicification is bordered by argillic alteration and pyritization. Deposition of gold usually lies in a zonal pattern that encircles chimney areas of silicification.

Jan 1, 1968

By Zhongxue Li, Cuiping Li, Xiaoyun Hu, Yiqing Zhao, Huaying Wang

"Under the auspices of World Federation of Engineering Organizations’ Committee on Engineering and the Environment (WFEO-CEE) and Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) Task Force on Sustainability and Mining (TFSM), and aimed at helping raise global understanding on and promote capacity building of risk management, this paper presents a framework and prototype of toolbox or knowledge warehouse for facilitating the application of risk analysis, mitigation and management techniques (RAMT) in the mining and minerals sector. The conception, design and implementation of the intended system of knowledge warehouse of risk analysis, mitigation and management techniques (KWoRAMT) are outlined. The system architecture of KWoRAMT is based on a browser/server (B/S) structured platform with web oriented interfaces and composed of data base, knowledge warehouse, searching mechanisms, and risk assessment methodologies. The knowledge sources for KWoRAMT will come from the TFSM expertise and Internet, including laws and regulations, codes of practice, standards, guidelines and best practices. The functions and outcomes of KWoRAMT consist of guided navigations with web links, categorized risk tools, annotated best practices with cases, and integrated risk approaches and solutions based on typical risk methods. Risk categories include those impacting on mine safety, mine occupational health, and mine community environment throughout the whole of mine life cycle from exploration, construction, and exploitation and processing to post-mining closure. Mining associated hazards will be identified and linked by vulnerability onto risk receptors through pathways. Risk management techniques for assessing impacts and consequences of mining induced hazards will be categorized with their pros and cons or strengths and weaknesses. Best practices and significant cases including experiences and lessons with problems, solutions, and recommendations on how solutions would be derived will be illustrated. Integrated risk approaches based upon typical methods will be developed for alternatives and actions."

Jan 1, 2014

By Sibson RH

The gold province of Otago occupies an area of upwarped basement, the Otago Schist, comprising predominantly quartzofeldspathic and volcanogenic metasediments. This assemblage is the product of collisional tectonic deformation and associated metamorphism, mainly to lower greenschist facies, during the Rangitata Orogeny (200-100 Ma). Historically this region has produced 240 tonnes of gold, 4% (10 t.) of which was from the mining of Cretaceous gold- quartz mineralised vein systems. Auriferous vein systems in the Otago Schist are mainly hosted within NW trending normal fault-fracture arrays, however NW trending reverse fault-hosted vein systems also occur. We propose that the Late Cretaceous-mid Tertiary Otago Schist structure represents a regional anticlinorium containing flexural folds of at least two wavelengths. The anticlinorium structure has been quantified by determining variations in angular discordance between schistosity and the Otago Peneplain, a Late Cretaceous-mid Tertiary erosion surface covering most of the Otago district. A structural model for the evolution of the post-collisional anticlinorium requires the cooling surficial zone (carapace) of a retrograding metamorphic belt to behave as an elastic lid. Erosion of topographic load on the carapace drove isostatic uplift, which was greatest in the tectonically thickened core of the orogen. In this way differential uplift produced flexural deformation in the elastic carapace, expressed as a large scale arching of the orogenic belt. Flexure created tangential longitudinal strains in the outer-arc, leading to extension and the formation of mineralised normal faults. These structures are separated by a neutral surface from shortening and associated mineralised reverse faults in the inner-arc. Our structural model predicts that the distribution of auriferous lodes should be localised about zones of maximum flexural curvature, where the tangential longitudinal strains are highest. As a result, NW-SE hinge regions separating schistosity dip domains in the Otago gold province may have new found significance as potential exploration targets.

Jan 1, 1995

The purposes of defining the mining environment for underground mass mining and the uses of characterisation data are outlined. The requirements for data in the areas of geology, surface and groundwater hydrology, topography and environmental constraints and geotechnical studies are identified. Emphasis is then placed on the collection and interpretation of geotechnical data for establishing the in situ stress regime and for rock mass characterisation. Methods used for diamond drilling, core logging, borehole logging, data analysis and presentation, rock mass modelling and rock mass classification are outlined. Finally, recent and potential advances in the state-of-the-art are identified in areas such as geophysical methods, measurement while drilling, computerised data collection and analysis, rock mass modelling, in situ stress measurement data presentation and interpretation, and some applications of rock mass characterisation data.

Jan 1, 2000

By Thomas W. Chapman, Shi-Chern Yen, I-Min Lu

"An electric field was applied to a metal-bearing kaolinite specimen to investigate the efficiency of electro-osmosis in removing heavy metals from contaminated soils. The electric field induces a flow of water through the porous medium, called electro-osmosis, which is superimposed on the hydraulic flow. Because the electro-osmotic flow is relatively stronger in smaller pores, it can enhance the displacement of contaminated solution by fluid convection. Furthermore, local changes in pH caused by the electrode reactions can affect adsorption equilibria and the distribution of solutes between the solution and the solid surfaces.The electro-osmosis experiments were conducted by applying either a constant current or a constant voltage across 8-cm inside diameter, 25 to 30-cm long specimens of kaolinite clay with graphite electrodes. Samples of the pore fluid and of the clay were analyzed to determine metal content, pH, and conductivity as functions of time and position. Results show that removal of heavy metals from soil can be accomplished effectively by electrokinetic treatment of sufficient duration. Approximately 95% of the lead was removed after 189 days.IntroductionRemediation of soils contaminated with toxic chemicals is a difficult and expensive task. Washing or leaching are not particularly effective if the contaminate is sequestered in small pores; hydraulic flows of water pass through larger pores leaving the smaller pores relatively untouched. Electro-osmosis appears to be the most promising new technology for removing heavy metals and organic substances from contaminated soils (Segal, 1980; Hamed et al., 1991, Masliyah, 1994).Electro-osmosis is one of several electrokinetic phenomena that occur through the interactions among an electric field, fluid motion, solute adsorption, and the existence of a net charge on a solid-fluid interface (Newman, 1991, Masliyah, 1994). Electro-osmosis refers to the fluid flow in a porous medium that results when an electric field acts on the mobile region of the electrical double layer, the solution-side region of charge separation that exists at the pore walls."

Jan 1, 1996

By J. N. Van der Merwe

The South African coal-mining industry uses a uniform safety-factor formula for non-squat pillars, incorporating a coal-strength constant that was derived empirically by Salamon and Munro in the 1960s. The constant is 7,2 MPa. Since that time, collapses of pillars at relatively high safety factors have occurred in the Vaal Basin. Analysis of the post-1960s' collapses indicated that the strength constant for the Vaal Basin is 4,5 MPa. A crude method for the prediction of the minimum life span of pillars in the Vaal Basin is presented.

Jan 1, 1993

By Herty, C. H.

Iron oxide (FeO) plays an extremely important part in the manufacture of iron and steel. In the three major processes- blast-furnace, open-hearth, and Bessemer converter-iron oxide is the chemically predominant compound and controls to a large ex- tent the operation of the furnaces and the composition and quality of their respective products. In order to emphasize the importance of iron oxide in each process, they will be considered individually in some detail. THE OPEN-HEARTH FURNACE. Iron oxide is introduced into the open-hearth furnace in four ways : 1. The scrap charged into the open hearth is oxidized by the furnace gases, the amount of oxide formed depending primarily on the amount and type of scrap charged. It has been found' that with large scrap, 1.7 Ib. of FeO is formed per 100 Ib. of scrap charged, whereas with scrap of medium size about 5.3 Ib. of FeO is formed per 100 Ib. of scrap charged, when the period between the charging of the scrap and the addition of hot metal is 3 hours. 2. The decomposition of the limestone sets free CO, by the reaction

Jan 1, 1957

Prof. Henry M. Howe, New York, N. Y. (communication to the Secretary*):—The results presented in Mr. Mathewson's paper are of very great interest. Perhaps the most interesting is that shown in Table I. and Fig. 1, in which the arsenic decreases in 10 min. from 0.22 to 0.07 per cent. This is such a large decrease that it is to be hoped that Mr. Mathewson will verify it by repeating his tests with a matte of similar composition. This is particularly to be desired, because the simultaneous removal of sulphur appears to be very small. All three blows further agree in showing that the removal of arsenic is in the very early part of the blow. The fact that the removal of arsenic then ceases abruptly cannot be explained completely by the fact that the arsenic has fallen so low as by its lowness to resist further removal, because in the first blow the arsenic becomes stationary at 0.06 per cent., whereas in the third blow it does not become stationary until it has fallen to 0.034 per cent. The abrupt ending of the removal of arsenic is more likely to find its explanation in the composition of the slag, and it is to be hoped that Mr. Mathewson will supplement these extremely valuable data with others in which the composition of the slag at the same time shall be given. The sudden rise of arsenic toward the end of the third blow I suppose must be referred to an error in sampling or analysis.

Jan 1, 1908