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By Robert E. Barieau

In the design of plants to separate helium from natural gas, it is necessary to estimate the enthalpies of the various streams at various positions in the process. This Bureau of Mines report surveys the various methods that have been used to determine enthalpies and gives information on the organizations with such capabilities. The minimum information required for developing an enthalpy diagram is presented, and the relative merits of the various methods are discussed. It is concluded that methods that require no mass flow rate or energy measurements are to be preferred.

Jan 1, 1965

By Roy L. Soderberg

Ground support for metal, nonmetal, and coal mines was examined through fill placement with a pneumatic stower to increase extraction, reduce ground pressures, and improve general mine safety. Several pneumatically stowed stope-fill products were tested to determine the effects of specific gravity, gradation, moisture, and impact velocity on the in-place density of the stowed fill. Hydraulic sand filling has now served the mining industry for several decades but because of the low density does not always provide ample support to the hanging wall; therefore, the sill and crown pillars sometimes build up excessive stresses that are detrimental to mining. Cementation of a dense fill adjacent to a pillar to allow 100-pct extraction of the pillar, or a fill that can be placed without the use of water and where water is a detriment to rubber-tired mining equipment, was found to be a possible use of pneumatic fill. Placing of coal mine washery products into abandoned underground workings is another possibility in order to completely eliminate surface impoundments.

Jan 1, 1976

By Frank J. Wiebelt

Under a general program to extend the resources of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines examined the Quien Sabe antimony mine in October 1948. The preliminary evaluation demonstrated that a diamond-drill program was warranted co establish the tenor and persistence of the veins and permit an estimation of antimony reserves. The Bureau of Mines conducted a diamond-drilling program on the property from December 1949 to May 1950. Ten holes aggregating 2,483 feet were drilled. Nine of the holes encountered antimony-bearing vein material.

Jan 1, 1956

By G. B. Gait

This report is the fourth in a series concerning the Bureau of Mines program for microfilming maps of abandoned mines in the Pennsylvania anthracite region; a catalog of the microfilmed maps of 70 mines in the Western Middle field is presented. Previous reports were catalogs of microfilmed maps of mines in the Eastern Middle field and in the Wyoming and Lackawanna Basins of the Northern anthracite field. Additional catalogs will be published as the microfilming of significant mining areas is completed.

Jan 1, 1971

By J. M. Stuve

Thermodynamic properties were determined by the Bureau of Mines for the intermetallic compound, TiA13. Heat capacities were obtained from 5 to 303 K by adiabatic calorimetry. The derived value of S2 1s is 22.08±0.07 cal/deg¬mole. Enthalpies relative to 298 K were obtained from 298 to 1,413 K by copper-block drop calorimetry. No anomalous thermal behavior was noted in the temperature ranges investigated. Low- and high-temperature data were combined with a known enthalpy of formation at 298 K to give values of enthalpy of formation and Gibbs energy formation, 0 to 1,400 K.

Jan 1, 1974

By Joseph J. Wallace

The 1952 Annual Report of the West Virginia Department of Mines lists seven beds that are being mined in Mingo County, of which the Cedar Grove is the most important. The Cedar Grove, Alma, and Coalburg contain the largest remaining known reserves. 2. Known measured and indicated reserves in all beds, based on a minimum thickness of 14 inches and 1,800 tons per acre-foot of coal in place, are estimated at 3,007 million short tons as of January 1, 1953. Of this total, 2,396 million short 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 for making 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, such reserves should be added to the total estimated reserves.

Jan 1, 1954

By Michael E. Henderson

The U.S. Bureau of Mines (BOM) constructed the Hydraulic Transport Research Facility (HTRF) to investigate the hydraulic parameters relating to the transport of coarse coal. To achieve these goals in a timely and efficient manner, the Bureau contracted to Boeing Services International, Inc. (BSI) the responsibility of operating the HTRF and providing technical support. This data report is a summary of the testing and data results for the period from 16 September to 1 November 1983. The testing covered herein is for coarse 2-in by a (minus 50 mm) Pittsburgh Seam coal in a 12-in (3 00 mm) pipeline, at velocities ranging from 5 to 18 ft/s (1.5 to 5.5 m/s) and at concentrations ranging from 15 to 55 pct.

Jan 1, 1985

By Bertrand L. Johnson

Langbeinite, a comparatively rare mineral that has been reported from only five countries in the entire world, has recently attained considerable economic importance in the United States and Poland. Since September 1940, several hundred thousand tons have been produced in one of the Carlsbad (N. Mex.), potash mines for chemical and fertilizer use. As it is a newcomer in this field, and as it is the source of fertilizers possessing special advantages, notably for soils deficient in magnesium or requiring sulfate fertilizers, a discussion of its properties, occurrences, uses, mining, and treatment is appropriate at this

Jan 1, 1944

By Sabri Ergun

This report gives the result of investigations of coals of different rank, coal com¬ponents, chemically and thermally treated and irradiated coals, and sedimented organic matter. In most studies the arbitrary parameters obtained from the usual quantitative profile analyses are not given largely because they lack physical meaning. Instead comp interpretations are offered. X-ray patterns of high-volatile bituminous and lower rank coals are not self¬-sufficient for structural interpretation by the methods of analysis developed to date. The patterns of hydrogenated and dehydrogenated coals indicate that the basic change in the structure of bituminous coals with increase in rank is the conversion of alicyclic structures into aromatic layers. In low-rank anthracites the aromatic layers are about 10 A in size. The increase in rank is the result of coalescence of layers. High-rank anthracites have layer sizes of 25 to 40 A and exhibit the development of three-dimensional (hkl) reflections of graphite, indicating ordering of adjacent layers. In meta-anthracites the layers are > 1000 A and the basic structure is that of defective crystalline graphite. The well-known petrographic components in low-rank coals have different structures; the differences dissappear in low-volatile bituminous and higher rank coals. The patterns of sedimented organic matter, except impsonites, differ from those of coal hydrogen contents are high, and their X-ray patterns are consistent with those of structures. In contrast to normal coals, the patterns of uranium-bearing coals show increased diffuseness with decrease in hydrogen content. The diffuseness is accompanied by increase in the uranium content of the coal. It is very likely that high uranium-bearing coals have predominantly tetrahedral structures.

Jan 1, 1968

By H. B. Freaman, C. L. Colburn, C. M. Bouton

"The mine telephone has been perfected to such an extent that it is giving satisfaction in most mines were the wiring is well insulated. Very often the telephone cannot be depended upon on account of falls of rock, grounding due to worn insulation or extreme dampness. In the event of a disaster it frequently happens that the mine telephone system is put out of commission by the agency that causes the disaster, at the time when it is most urgently needed. On this account the mining industry is interested in any kind of telephone system that can be counted upon in an emergency. Many requests have been received by the Bureau of Mines to devise means of utilizing wireless methods for this purpose.The results of some preliminary experiments conducted by the writers at the Bureau of Mines experimental mine at Bruceton, Pennsylvania, in the ordinary sending and receiving of radio waves through earth strata are described below. The experiments were made in cooperation with the Westinghouse Electric end Manufacturing Co., which assigned to this work three of its radio engineers, C. A, Boddie, E. C. Douglas, and F. D. Fessler,The preliminary experiments consisted first in receiving signals from without the mine by means of a receiver located inside the mina, and second, both sending and receiving messages underground through the strata. It was found that with a receiving instrument set at a point 100 feet underground, signals from KDKA station, of the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Co. East Pittsburgh, Pa., could be heard distinctly. Station KDKA is at a distance of about 18 miles from the experimental mine. About 50 feet from the receiving station used in this test was a 6-inch bore-hole from the surface, lined with iron pipe and containing electric light wires which extended therefrom through-out the mine. The presence of these wires evidently assisted greatly in the reception, for when the receiving set was carried to another point in the mine removed from wires and tracks the signals were barely audible through 50 feet of cover. The fact that signals were detected, however, even though faintly, is sufficient evidence of transmission through the ground to encourage further experimenting.In sending waves underground the Westinghouse 20-watt B.T. model T.F. transmitter was used in such a manner as to send out continuous waves of 200 to 300 meters length."

Oct 1, 1922

By Leo A. Schrider

This report analyzes the successful low-pressure gas drive in the Keener sand of the Bonds Creek oilfield, Pleasants and Ritchie Counties, W. Va.) and predicts its future performance. Core analysis from two wells and electrical and radioactivity logs were used to evaluate the reservoir characteristics. Production records over a 37-year period indicate that over 240,000 barrels of oil have been produced from the Keener sand by low-pressure gas injection. Decline-curve analysis shows that 165,000 additional barrels should be recovered from 108 acres of productive sand by continuing this secondary-recovery method.

Jan 1, 1966

By R. S. Dean

The development of metallurgical processes may be divided into periods : First , the discovery of a basic reaction which brings about the production of the desired product from the available raw material ; second , a long stage of mechanical development during which little or no attention is paid to the reaction itself ; and third , a careful study of the reaction . Most metallurgical processes are to -day approaching the end of the second period . This we may illustrate by the steel process . The reaction of carbon with iron ore to produce pig iron and the subsequent refinement of the pig iron by an oxidation reaction is very old . Development in modern times has been almost entirely mechanical , the development of the blast furnace , furnace , the Bessemer process , the Siemens process , and even the Aston process for wrought iron being mechanical improvements almost entirely . Metallurgy is now entering a phase where the reactions are being considered . The question of how far can they be made to proceed is being repeatedly asked . As mechanical processes are improved , we approach a limit to which our basic reactions can be pushed which is determined by the nature of the reactions themselves . We want to know : How far can iron be decarbonized by iron oxide ? How low can the oxygen of copper be reduced by any given reaction? How efficiently can the fuel in a zinc reduction process be used ? The demand for purer metals and lower production costs has forced these and similar questions upon us . How are we to answer them ? The determination of these equilibria or end points of metallurgical reactions by direct means is fraught with difficulty because here we must overcome mechanical difficulties which too often become the limiting factors even in the laboratory and we do nottherefore get the actual limit to which the reaction itself may be carried . Further , there are so many reactions of metallurgical materials that to survey each separately is a job to give pause to any experimenter or group of experimenters .

Dec 1, 1930

By L. D. Tracy

"This paper represents work conducted by the Bureau of Mines in cooperation with the Illinois Geological Survey and the Engineering Experiment Station of the University of Illinois.IntroductionThe present report covers conditions and mining royalties in District VIII of the coal fields of Illinois, as designated by the Illinois Geological Survey. The various districts have been described in the reports on the Illinois coal-mining investigations, carried on cooperatively by the Illinois Geological Survey, the engineering experiment station of the University of Illinois, and the U. S. Bureau of Mines. This district includes Vermilion and Edgar Counties, but as the coal-mining operations in Edgar County amounted to only 827 tons in 1923, the data here given have been confined to Vermilion County.A similar report on District VI (Williamson and Franklin Counties) has been issued as Serial 2722 of the Bureau of Minos.A description of geological and mining conditions, and a discussion of market and transportation facilities, have been included because these have an important bearing on the royalties specified and the general conditions of the lease.Mining ConditionsDistrict VIII is better known as the Danville district and in 1923 produced 4,177,000 tons of coal, or approximately L per cent of the total output for the entire State for that year, which was 79,300,000 tons."

Apr 1, 1926

By R. G. Knickerbocker, C. T. Baroch, A. W. HACKWOOD

The difficulties inherent in the production of alumina by the formation of potassium alum and its subsequent thermal dehydration and decomposition have been overcome , to a large extent , in a process developed at the Boulder City Station of the Bureau of Mines . This process is applicable to the reserves of alunite known to occur in several Western States and , possibly , to certain clay and low-grade bauxite deposits known to exist in this country . The operations sequence of the process is shown in the flow sheet (fig . 1) . Only those steps included within the heavy line are considered in this report . Four different procedures for dehydration of alum were investigated ; ( 1 ) Spray drying , ( 2 ) rotary - kiln drying , ( 3 ) dry grinding in a thermal ball mill , and ( 4 ) dehydration in the vertical- column flash dehydrator . Based upon fuel requirements and other practical considerations , the vertical- column dehydrator , or some modification of its operating principle , offers the botter possibility for commercial use .

Feb 1, 1946

By Earl T. Hayes, W. M. Sternberg, F. P. Williams

"INTRODUCTION The limited domestic demands for lithium salts and metal before the war were met readily by the use of minerals particularly lepidolite (lithium mica) and amblygonite (a lithium phosphate), from which lithium can be recovered relatively easily. New wartime uses, however, created such a demand that it became necessary to turn to spodumene (a lithium feldspar) as the principal source of supply. Although very large deposits of spodumene occur in South Dakota and in North Carolina, it much more difficult to extract lithium from spodumene than from lepidolite or amblygonite.During the spring and summer of 1942 a study was made in Salt Lake City laboratory of the Bureau of Mines on the recovery of lithium from spodumede. Preliminary tests were made on two processes - roasting with potassium sulfate 4/ 5/ and roasting with calcium chloride and calcium carbonate 6/ -,which appeared to be the most promising of the various processes that had been proposed. By roasting spodumene with approximately its own weight of potassium sulfate at 1,050º C. and leaching the product with water, about 70 percent of the lithium could be extracted. Consumption of the relatively expensive potassium sulfate, however, was high; much of the potassium was found in the insoluble leach residue, end large amounts were lost by volatilization and dusting. By roasting the spodumene with calcium chloride and calcium carbonate, nearly 90 percent of the lithium was chloridized temperatures of 850° to 1,050° C. Much of the lithium could be extracted from the calcine by leaching with water after roasting at the lower temperatures, but volatilization of lithium chloride was appreciable, amounting to 20 to 25 percent in a direct gas-fired furnace at temperatures of 800° to 850° C. At 1,000° to 1,050° C., volatilization was far from complete. Thus, it would be necessary to use both fume collection and leaching of the calcine, unless the roasting temperatures were sufficiently high to volatilize all the lithium chloride. Because of the well-known difficulties of collecting chloride fumes, it was decided to search for a better process."

Mar 1, 1946

By F. W. Wessel

Manganiferous carbonate slates of the Cuyuna range, which are part of the unoxidized thin-budded iron formation, represent a large potential source of manganese. This report details recent bench-scale research by the Federal Bureau of Mines in applying mineral-dressing techniques to these materials in order to investigate their potential uses. Work outlined in the report was directed toward the production of concentrates usable as iron-blast furnace feed, but an equally important objective might have been to furnish an enriched feed for extractive processes for recovering manganese. Flotation concentrates were prepared that contained 11.1 percent manganese, 27.8 percent iron, and 12.2 percent silica, with recoveries of 73 percent of the manganese and 48 percent of the iron. Calculated analysis for a simulated sinter suggests a product containing 16.0 percent manganese, 40.2 percent iron, and 17.6 percent silica, with 31 percent recovery of the dry weight of the ore. The silica in the flotation concentrates was due to quartz and iron silicates. Substantial quantities of the iron silicates (stilpnomelane and smaller amounts of minnesotaite) were present in the slate, and the need to reject these minerals limited the recovery of iron. The sintered flotation concentrate would be usable as ferruginous manganese ore for iron blast-furnace feed because of its favorable manganese silica ratio. The unsintered flotation concentrates, representing 45 percent of the feed weight and containing manganese enriched in the ratio of 1.6 : 1, also could be used as feed to processes for extracting manganese.

Jan 1, 1961

By F. B. Tough

"INTRODUCTION Organizations formed for the purpose of conducting conservation work in oil fields, in order to conserve and prolong the supply of crude petroleum are rare and novel. Such an organization is the Rocky Mountain Petroleum Association, Denver, Colo, As our production of petroleum can no longer keep with the consumption, the plan of organization, character of work, and results obtained by this association are well worth considering. It is hoped that the results achieved in the Wyoming fields will serve to stimulate similar organizations among operators in the state or other oil fields of the United States, The Rocky Mountain Petroleum Association, Danvers Colo., was formed in May, 1919. It comprises the Midwest Refining Co,. The Ohio Oil Co., and the Continental Oil Co. These three companies entered into a cooperative agree¬ment with the Federal Bureau of Mines whereby $30,000 would be spent under the direction of the bureau, which agreed to furnish competent men, and to furnish the work and expenditure of funds. Although the financial burden for the first year's work, now drawing o a close, was carried by only three companies, they stipulated their desire that the benefit of the work should accrue to the industry, and that the personnel employed should be as zealous to assist one operator as another, without regard to whether ha was contributing to the support of the work or not."

Apr 1, 1920

By R. H. Bedford

"The El Dorado copper mine is situated in the foothill copper-zinc belt of California, which traverses the western slope of the Sierra Nevada with unusual persistence from Butte County to Kern County, a distance of more than 300 miles. Although this area contains such important past producers as the Penn mine, Union, and others, a great part of the current production has been derived from smaller properties, which depend largely on premium metal prices for economical operation. The El Dorado mine is in the latter group, which constitutes an important source of metal in a national emergency.Exploration by the Bureau of Mines by means of eight diamond-drill holes Indicated narrow, intermittent lenses of copper ore along structures boo feet in length. The copper occurs in massive sulfides composed of chalcopyrite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, and minor quantities of bernite. The sulfides have evidently replaced tuffs, which are interbedded with the Mariposa slates and shales.H. A. Weiler and Hal T. Hall, owners of the El Dorado copper property, requested an examination by the Bureau during the latter part of 1914. In December of that year an engineer of the Bureau of Mines visited the mine and recommended the project work undertaken. The purpose was to aid the owners in bringing the property into production of copper and zinc, which at that time was critically essential to the war industries.Complete factual data obtained by the exploration are embodied in this report.In its program of exploration of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. It is the policy of the Bureau to publish the facts developed by each exploratory project as soon as practicable after its conclusion. The Mining Branch, Lowell B. Moon, chief, conducts preliminary examinations, performs the actual exploratory work, and prepares the final report. The Metallurgical Branch, R. G, Knickerbocker, chief, analyzes samples and performs beneficiation tests. Both these branches are under the supervision of Dr. R. S. Dean, assistant director.Acknowledgment is made to A. O. Johnson, chief, Reno Division, Mining Branch, and Lowell B. Moon, chief, Mining Branch, for their aid and direction."

Jun 1, 1946

By D. Harrington

Approximately 2,000 persons are killed annually in the coal mines of the United States. There is no question that this number is at least double and probably treble what it should be and by all means the least excusable of the fatalities are those caused by explosions and fires. Fatalities from explo- sions and fires in coal mines are almost invariably caused by carelessness or negligence. Table 1 indicates that the fiscal year ending June 30, 1931, ras by no means a satisfactory one as regaris either the number of explosions or the number of persons killed by them. This tabulation lists all ignitions to which the attention of the personnel of the safety division was called and in- cludes not only major disasters, but also explosions in which fewer than five were killed, as well as several explosions from which no fatalities resulted. It will be noticed that last year there were 26 explosions in mines in 10 States of the United States, resulting in 217 deaths. In the previous year there were 34 explosions with a death list of 199, and in the year before there were 38 explosions with a death list of 139. Hence, the past fiscal year had distinctly a poorer record of fatalities from mine explosions than either of the two previous years. Of the 26 explosions in the past fiscal year, Pennsylvania had 7, West Virginic 4, New Mexico and Ohio 3 each, Alabama, Oklahoma and Washington 2 each, and California, Illinois and Indiana 1 each; the one in California was in a tunnel being driven for water purposes but giving off explosive gas (methane). In fatalities Ohio had the worst record with 38, Oklahoma came next with 45, then Indiane with 38, and Pennsylvania with 23; although Alabama had 2 ignitions and Washington 1, they caused no fatalities. Utch, Colorado, and Kentucky had no explosions reported by the safety division of the Bureau of Mines during the past fiscal year, but were on the list for the previous year, though in the case of Colorado there were no fatalities. On the other hand, Indiana and New Mexico, neither of rhich was charged with an explosion in the two previous years, were on the list for the past fiscal year; New Mexico had the bad record of three explosions, though fortunately with but a total of eight fatalities. Ohio reported 3 explosions to the safety division of the Bureau of Mines in the past fiscal year, 2 in the pre- vious year, and 3 in the year before that, or 8 in the past three fiscal years with 92 fatalities; all of these eight explosions were in open-light mines.

Dec 1, 1931

By David J. Kusler

This report describes a rapid, reliable, and relatively simple method developed by the Bureau of Mines Pyrometallurgy Laboratory at Bruceton, Pa., for determining lime (calcium oxide) and magnesia (magnesium oxide) in various materials containing these constituents in greater than trace amounts. Optionally, titania (titanium dioxide) may be determined for the same sample. The accuracy of the method, suitable for most purposes, is shown by comparing the Bureau results with those obtained by accepted procedures. The method has been applied satisfactorily to the routine analysis of blast-furnace slags, for which purpose it was primarily developed, and to other calcareous compositions. In the Pyrometallurgy Laboratory it has replaced the standard methods previously used to determine lime and magnesia, and has been in general use by that laboratory for the past several years. The analysis time, generally under 3 hours, is considerably less than required by standard methods.

Jan 1, 1960