Search Documents

By M. C. LYNN

RECENT completion of a $40,000 lubricating oil plant will make it possible for students in the School of Petroleum Engineering at the University of Oklahoma to carry out on a large scale the entire process of refining crude oil, from the time it is received in tank cars and pumped through the 1/4-mile University pipe line to storage tanks on the campus until the various products appear in finished form. This plant is part of a $100,000 expansion program which this school has been carrying out during the past year. Two years ago the Oklahoma State Legislature appropriated $50,000 for the School to use in improving its laboratory facilities. A few months later a $30,000 PWA grant was ob-

Jan 1, 1937

By Tell Ertl, Ernest E. Burgh

INTRODUCTION THE Bureau of Mines is operating an oil-shale mine 10 miles west of Rifle, Colo., as part of its Synthetic Liquid Fuels program. The purpose of operating this mine is twofold: First, to supply oil shale to an experimental processing plant; and second, to develop practices and select methods for mining oil shale on a commercial scale at the lowest practicable cost. The second purpose-that of finding out how to mine oil shale most cheaply-entails considerable mining research. Since the drilling of oil shale probably will be one of the major items of the mining cost, factors that influence drilling speeds were investigated. One phase of the drilling program was the development of a successful hard-surfaced rock-drill bit1 that can be used for drilling long holes in oil shale without changing bits. During that phase, drilling speeds were measured and drill cuttings were collected for assay and for screen sizing. When the cuttings from the individual tests were compared, a definite relationship was shown to exist between the drilling speed and the coarseness of the drill cuttings. PROCEDURE Measurement of Drilling Speeds All drilling in the tests was done with a Model UMB-D-99W Gardner-Denver wagon drill. Round-lugged drill steel, 1 ¼ in. in diameter was used in 6, 12, and 18 ft lengths with 2 1/8 -in. Timken H-type bits hard-faced with acetylene tube borium. The tests were made in the lower adit of the Bureau of Mines oil-shale mine; the grade of the oil shale drilled ranged from 18.6 to 42.7 gal per ton. During the experiments air pressure varied between 75 and 90 psi while water pressure remained fairly constant at 75 psi. All holes were drilled almost horizontally. Each drill hole was thoroughly cleaned of cuttings after being collared. The advance of the drill along the carriage was measured and recorded as the drilling speed in inches per minute. Method of Collecting Cuttings To facilitate the collection of cuttings, each drill hole was collared in a smooth, vertical portion of the oil-shale breast (Fig 1). A galvanized-steel sheet was fastened to the breast below the area in which the hole was to be drilled. The cuttings washed out of the drill hole by the drilling water were guided by the steel sheet into a wooden box. The cuttings that remained in the drill hole after the drill was withdrawn were scraped out and placed in the same box as the cuttings washed out of the hole. After the cuttings from a 1-min. drilling interval were collected, they were placed in flat metal pans. The fines were allowed to settle and the clear water was decanted. The cuttings then were dried in the sun.

Jan 1, 1947

By R. R. Templeton

THE year 1924 was particularly notable in the petroleum industry of California as it was a period in which extensive town-lot drilling, with attendant overproduction and allied problems, virtually ceased and the industry returned to a nearly normal condition. Nearly all major field operations were conducted by large operating and marketing companies; in contrast to 1922 and 1923 field operations, when small promotion companies set the pace and forced the large companies to follow. The outstanding features of petroleum development were: 1. The three major fields of 1923, namely Huntington Beach, Long Beach, and Santa Fe Springs, declined from a production of 13,042,939 bbl., in January, to 6,764,417 bbl., in December, a drop of nearly 52 per cent: During this period, Huntington Beach declined 35 per cent., Long Beach 42 per cent., and Santa Fe Springs 63 per cent. 2. Methods of pumping deep wells were improved in some particulars; this contributed toward sustaining the productions of these three famous fields above what was predicted. 3. Of the fields producing previous to 1924, only three increased in production to any appreciable degree, during the year, as the result of bringing in new wells. These fields are Dominguez, Torrance, and Wheeler Ridge. Dominguez, discovered in September, 1923, produced 56,851 bbl. in January and increased regularly to a production of 1,641,042 bbl. in December. Torrance increased from a production of 972,261 bbl. in January, to 1,783,670 bbl., in May, and then declined to 1,393,215 bbl. in December. Wheeler Ridge, discovered in January, 1923, produced 23,254 bbl., in January, 1924, increased to a high of 33,678 bbl., in September, and declined to 27,430 bbl. in December. 4. Nearly all the production that had been shut-in during 1923 was opened in 1924, except some wells chiefly in Coalinga, Fullerton, and Santa Maria districts. The opening up of this shut-in production, combined with the increased productions from Dominguez and Torrance, were the chief factors that held the rate of decline for the state to a gentle slope.

Jan 7, 1925

By George W. Toth

This paper describes the features of a computer cost model developed to estimate requirements and costs of individual coal mining projects. Detailed cost analysis procedures for both coal mining and preparation are incorporated into the model. This model has been developed over a period of seven years through funding provided by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The model follows a process engineering approach for the estimation of all project capital and operating costs. A discounted cash flow analysis procedure is also designed into the model to allow for the solution of cost/ton or cost/MMBtu of clean coal production. The model can be applied to most surface or underground mining deposits and can accommodate a wide variety of coal washing situations. This flexibility makes the model a particularly useful tool for preliminary project analysis, property screening, investment analysis, mining technology assessment, coal cleaning level assessment, and general property valuation.

Jan 1, 1983

By L. W. Casteel

This is a story of progress through research, invention and innovation-progress that made a small mine in Missouri into a large and prosperous corporation. The St. Joseph Lead Co. was founded in Borne Terre, Missouri, in 1864. At that time, the mine consisted of a narrow trench eight feet deep; the mill was a hand-operated jig; and the smelter, a charcoal oven with a sloping hearth. During the first year, production was suspended for two months because of an invasion by the Confederate army. There have been few interruptions since that time.

Jan 7, 1964

By Paul M. Tyler

MUCH information concerning pegmatites which was thought to be true a few years ago has been proved false, and what is now actually known about some pegmatites is not true of many others. The erratic and seemingly unpredictable structure and variable composition of this class of mineral deposits has been widely emphasized. Even parts of the same pegmatite body exhibit marked differences in texture, mineral composition, width, and attitude. Constructive geological thinking in respect to pegmatites now aims to establish general laws rather than to stress the confusing diversity of features having no special economic significance.

Jan 9, 1953

By R. T. McLamore

Lack of sufficient native permeability or skin damage caused while drilling wells for in situ leach mining projects may necessitate stimulating injection and production we1ls to increase the leaching rate to economic levels. Such stimulation processes could include acidization, hydraulic fracturing, or explosive fracturing. This paper describes an explosive fracturing process that is being developed primarily to stimulate the production of oil and gas wells, but may be useful in in situ leach mining projects as well. The process utilizes a liquid explosive that has unique safety features. The chemicals that form the explosive are subdivided into two pumpable, non- detonable components. Technology has been developed to pump these two components independently but simultaneously into the well and blend them together downhole to form the explosive. As such, surface facilities and personnel are not exposed to explosive hazards. The explosive formulations utilized in the process have been subjected to numerous safety and characterization tests and been qualified for use in deep wells with temperatures and pressures up to 250°F and 10,000 psi. The explosive composition can be varied to produce an explosive ranging, energetically, from a blasting agent to a high explosive that can be detonated after injection into a borehole, a porous media or into thin naturally occurring fractures within the roc

Jan 1, 1974

By Gloyd M. Wilkes

The eastern section of the Park City district is drained to an elevation of 6300 ft, by means of the Ontario drain tunnel owned and maintained by Park Utah Consolidated Mines Co. This elevation represents a depth of 920 ft, in Park City Consolidated Mines Company's property. When development below the 900-ft. level was commenced, sinking was attempted through an incline winze in the fissure. The intensely fractured quartzite forming the walls of the vein could not be held after water was encountered, so it was decided that further sinking should be done in a vertical winze far enough in the foot-wall to be in the more solid quartzite outside the fractured zone containing the vein. Progress was good until a depth of 200 ft. below water table was reached, where the flow of water became serious. Sinking progressed 300 ft., to the 1200-ft. level, and there approximately 750 gal. of water per minute was being pumped. The last 20 ft. of sinking cost more than $200 per foot direct charges, whereas the over-all cost for the 300 ft. was $100 per foot. This high last cost was caused by excessive lost time in pumping. Crosscutting to the vein disclosed the fact that the 1050-ft. level had been developed only after drainage had been effected from the 1200-ft. level, but that the 1200-ft. level could not be opened because of the great amount of water encountered when the fractured zone was intersected. The ground in the fractured zone is so finely crushed that it precludes any possibility of economic support when it is wet. Furthermore, mining costs were found to be prohibitive after caving of vein walls had taken place as a result of an attempt to drive drifts before complete drainage had been effected. More than 3000 gal. per minute was pumped from the 1200-ft. level and the water table remained 75 ft. above this plane even after five crosscuts were driven to the fractured zone at 50-ft. intervals along the strike of the fissure from a footwall drainage drift. It was evident, therefore, that complete drainage must be effected before the fractured zone could be opened in any future development. After extensive investigations in this connection, a well-drilling campaign was decided upon to effect drainage of the fissure in advance of sinking and level development, so that all mining operations would be carried on in dry ground. Drilling Procedure A crosscut was driven through the hanging wall of the fissure on the 1050-ft. level, which was the deepest dry level at the time, to a predetermined location from which a vertical hole should reach the fractured zone at about 400 ft. below this level. A drill station was made and a raise was driven over the location for the hole, to act in lieu of a derrick or drill tower. This raise

Jan 1, 1943

By Gloyd M. Wilkes

The eastern section of the Park City district is drained to an elevation of 6300 ft, by means of the Ontario drain tunnel owned and maintained by Park Utah Consolidated Mines Co. This elevation represents a depth of 920 ft, in Park City Consolidated Mines Company's property. When development below the 900-ft. level was commenced, sinking was attempted through an incline winze in the fissure. The intensely fractured quartzite forming the walls of the vein could not be held after water was encountered, so it was decided that further sinking should be done in a vertical winze far enough in the foot-wall to be in the more solid quartzite outside the fractured zone containing the vein. Progress was good until a depth of 200 ft. below water table was reached, where the flow of water became serious. Sinking progressed 300 ft., to the 1200-ft. level, and there approximately 750 gal. of water per minute was being pumped. The last 20 ft. of sinking cost more than $200 per foot direct charges, whereas the over-all cost for the 300 ft. was $100 per foot. This high last cost was caused by excessive lost time in pumping. Crosscutting to the vein disclosed the fact that the 1050-ft. level had been developed only after drainage had been effected from the 1200-ft. level, but that the 1200-ft. level could not be opened because of the great amount of water encountered when the fractured zone was intersected. The ground in the fractured zone is so finely crushed that it precludes any possibility of economic support when it is wet. Furthermore, mining costs were found to be prohibitive after caving of vein walls had taken place as a result of an attempt to drive drifts before complete drainage had been effected. More than 3000 gal. per minute was pumped from the 1200-ft. level and the water table remained 75 ft. above this plane even after five crosscuts were driven to the fractured zone at 50-ft. intervals along the strike of the fissure from a footwall drainage drift. It was evident, therefore, that complete drainage must be effected before the fractured zone could be opened in any future development. After extensive investigations in this connection, a well-drilling campaign was decided upon to effect drainage of the fissure in advance of sinking and level development, so that all mining operations would be carried on in dry ground. Drilling Procedure A crosscut was driven through the hanging wall of the fissure on the 1050-ft. level, which was the deepest dry level at the time, to a predetermined location from which a vertical hole should reach the fractured zone at about 400 ft. below this level. A drill station was made and a raise was driven over the location for the hole, to act in lieu of a derrick or drill tower. This raise

Jan 1, 1943

By AIME AIME

THE report of the united. States Steel Corporation for the' year 1928 gives the, following ,figures of raw materials and' finished products . Raw materials, tons :

Jan 1, 1929

By R. C. Mahon

During the early history of the Lake Superior district, tamarack timber was used almost exclusively in the wines. It had the strength and lasting qualities necessary for a satisfactory mining timber. But about fifteen years ago the tamarack trees were attacked by a blight which killed nearly all of them so today no tamarack timber is available. Hemlock, spruce, and poplar have neither the necessary strength nor the lasting qualities for mining timber, but a large supply of maple and birch is available. These have ample strength but, when placed underground, fail by decay in about three years. This means that, instead of replacing the timber sets once in fifteen years, it must be done five or more times in the same space of time which involves not only incraesed timber costs but more important, an increased labor cost.

Jan 1, 1949

By Frank H. Skelding

Still the world's largest producer, consumer and importer/exporter of minerals, the United States has, in recent years, become more and more aware of the many diverse forces that increasingly affect its ability to maintain free access to and trade in minerals, both domestically and abroad. The nation's growing dependence upon foreign sources of minerals in the face of mounting competition is causing many changes, not only in the mineral industries, but in national attitudes and policies as well. This paper examines the position of the United States in the world mineral economy relative to the significant trends that have and are developing. It attempts to define and evaluate the major present and future impact of these trends and to anticipate the probable effects upon the U.S. and its mineral economy.

Jan 1, 1976

By D. F. Hewett

ALTHOUGH most persons will agree that an individual or a nation can profit from the experience of other individuals or nations, there is always room for debate over the degree of similarity of their past and present conditions and of their future problems. Noting the increasing interest that Americans are showing in our mineral problems, I have felt that we could profit from reviews of the experiences in mineral exploitation acquired by the industrial nations of Europe. Whether we can learn much from Europe's experience in exploiting such minerals as petroleum may be debatable, but certainly, with a record of metal production extending back nearly 3000 years, Europe should hold much of value for America. A trip to Europe in 1926 permitted me to visit 28 mining districts, of which about half are now or have been in times past outstanding sources of several metals. The districts range from England to Greece and from Spain to Poland. To summarize briefly my impressions of these mining districts, as well as such reactions to the thought and life of Europe as so short a visit permits, I shall only venture the opinion that Americans can review with great profit the ideas and actions of Europeans, with regard not only to the production of metals but to many expressions of life. I believe that America has made and is making new contributions to the art of living, as well as to the arts of mining and metallurgy, but in so far as Europe is and has been a laboratory of economic, social and political experiments, the results she has attained deserve the thoughtful attention of America. I have come to believe that many of the problems that harass Europe lie in our path not far ahead. I have therefore hoped that a review of metal production in Europe in the light of its geologic, economic and political background may -serve to clear our vision with regard to our own metal production.

Jan 1, 1929

By L. VOGELSTEIN

OUTSTANDING among the year's events in copper has been the reimposition of an import duty of 4r. per pound in this country which became effective June 21. In consequence of this action by Congress, the Ottawa Empire conference recommended a duty of 2d. per pound equivalent at normal rate of exchange to our 4c. duty, on all copper originating outside of the Empire. Lip to the middle of this year only Russia and Japan had a closed market; the import duty on copper in Russia is 30 per cent ad valoremm and in Japan about 2c. Russia's consumption has always been in excess of production and she has imported from 2(1,000 to 40,000 ton, of copper per annum. Japan, with a production of 6,000 to 7,000 tons per month, has absorbed, in normal times, its production, but during recent: sears has exported varyiug quantities in 1929. 2,200 ton-: in 1930, 2,700 tons, and in 1931. 3,600 ton-. Aside from the-e two countries, the international market has heretofore been free. It and when the British Empire duty become, effective the world's markets will be divided into four unit: 1. Russia and Japan, 2. United States. 3. British Empire. 4. Rest of the world. The world's production at present is rennin it the rate of 930.000 tons per annum. This year's production will be over 1,000,000 tons because the several curtailment did not become effective until the second quarter. consumption will be slightly in excess. Deducting from 30,000 tons Russia's and Japan's production of 121.000 tons, 806,000 tons is left divided a, follows:

Jan 1, 1932

By Emery R. Hayhurst

SILICOSIS has been described in a report of the American Public Health Association as a disease due to breathing air containing silica, characterized anatomically by generalized fibrotic changes and the development of miliary nodulations in both lungs, and clinically by shortness of breath, decreased chest expansion, lessened capacity for work, absence of fever, increased susceptibility to tuberculosis (some or all of which symptoms may be present), and by characteristic X-ray findings. ... The disease is divided arbitrarily into first, second, and third stages for convenience of description and possible compensation purposes. At least two distinct types of silicosis are recognized, acute and chronic. The acute form was reported as early as 1713, when a British patent for grinding flint by wet methods was granted because the dry powdered material "proved very destructive to mankind, so much that any person, ever so healthful, working in that business cannot possibly survive over two years."

Jan 1, 1936

NEW MEMBERS The following list comprises the names of those persons who became members during the period Dec. 10, 1915 to Jan. 10, 1916. ANDERSON, FRANK BASIL, Min. Engr., Sampler, Copper Queen Cons. Min. Co., Bisbee, Ariz. BAILEY, LEWIS NEWTON, Min. -Engr 4227 St. James Place, Sail Diego, Cal. BELL, JAMES E., Min. Engr., Care Chile Exploration Co., Chuquicamata, Chile, South America. BONILLAS, YGNACIO SAFFORD, Min. Geol., Copper Queen Cons. Min. Co., Bisbee, Ariz. BRADLEY, GEORGE OLIVER, Mech. Engr Hobart Bldg., San Francisco, Cal. CLARK, GEORGE L., Min. Engr Vipond Mine, Schumacher, Ont., Canada. CONKLING, RICHARD A., Geol., Roxana Petroleum Co. of Oklahoma, Tulsa, Okla. GOHRING, W. B.. Geol., Supt. of Mines, Calumet and Arizona Min. Co., Warren, Ariz.

Jan 2, 1916

By Robert B. Fulton

Staurolite, an iron aluminum silicate mineral, is used industrially as a high value-in-use sand-blasting agent, as a premium grade foundry sand, and as the source of aluminum in portland cement manufacture in areas where the aluminum constituent is not economically available from shale or argillaceous limestone. It is produced by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. as a coproduct in titanium mineral production in Florida where it was first recovered on a commercial scale in June 1952 from the Pleistocene sand deposit known as Trail Ridge. In the Trail Ridge deposit it comprises about one-fifth of the heavy minerals, the principal other heavy mineral constituents being ilmenite, leucoxene, rutile, zircon, kyanite, sillimanite, and tourmaline. Staurolite and the other silicate nonconductive heavy minerals are separated from the conductive titanium minerals on high-tension separators. The silicates are then separated from one another magnetically, the staurolite being relatively magnetic. In the total processing, 200 tons of raw sand yield 7 tons of heavy mineral concentrate from which about one ton of staurolite is recovered. This process yields staurolite concentrates of the characteristics given in Table 1. These concentrates are sold as three products with the size distribution of subrounded particles shown in Table 2. All three grades are used in sand-blasting for cleaning metal, for paint removal, and for cleaning buildings. Staurolite compares favorably with lower unit cost abrasives, such as boiler slags and mineral aggregates, in applications where the abrasive is used only one time and is not recovered. Because it is hard, fine, clean, and dense it can reduce blasting time, with less material reportedly being required [ ]

Jan 1, 1983

By M. B. Holt

At this time, when electricity in its various applications is attract- ing so much interest, and with such good reason, it has been suggested to me that, as the Aspen Mining and Smelting Company, of Aspen, Pitkin county, Colorado, was the first mining company in America to employ electrical power for hoisting, a record of what has been accomplished by this company would be of interest. Early in the year 1888 the question of power for the development of the ore-horizon lying below the level of the tunnel through which the property is worked, became one of importance. The conditions under which it was proposed to use power were as follows (See Fig. 1): The company's mines lie upon the northwestern slope of a mountain, the ascent of which is at an angle of 28' from the horizon. The ore, consisting of argentiferous galena and other silver-bearing mineral, is found at or near the plane of contact of a superincumbent mass of blue limestone, with an underlying bed of dolomite. This contact plane dips north 30° west, at an angle of 60' with the horizon. A tunnel 1000 feet in length, driven south into the mountain near

Jan 1, 1892

By Thomas V. Falkie

The use of operation research and computer techniques in the mineral industries continued to gain acceptance during 1966. There are generally at least five sources of information for researchers and practitioners in the field: (1) Technical periodicals like MINING ENGINEER- ING, Mining Congress Journal, etc. (2) Proceedings of the Symposium and Short Course on Computers and Operations Re- search in Mineral Industries, held last year at Penn. State University and jointly sponsored by the University of Arizona, Stanford University, Colorado School of Mines, Penn. State University and the Society of Mining Engineers of AIME. (3) Various local conferences, such as the 1966 Rocky Mountain Minerals Conference held in Denver. (4) United States Bureau of Mines publications. (5) The AIME annual meeting in New York and the SME Fall Meeting in Tampa.

Jan 2, 1967

By H. E. McKinstry

MOVEMENT on a fracture of irregular shape can cause local widening of the fissure and thereby offer freer channelways for circulation of ore-depositing solutions. This influence, coupled with large areas of wall rock available for reacting with ore solutions in brecciated and shattered ground can account for locally active deposition of metals and the resulting ore shoots. Such irregularities in the fracture system may be caused by local variations in the strength of rocks and by pre-existing lines of weakness, especially if these stand at favorable angles to certain components of the fracturing stress. Therefore correct interpretation of the mechanics of fracturing should permit deductions as to structurally favorable places on unexplored portions of the vein system. INTRODUCTION IT has long been recognized that movement on a curved or irregular fault surface is capable of separating the walls in certain portions of the fault, but until very recent years the importance of this mechanism as a factor in localizing ore shoots has escaped proper recognition. A short time ago W. H. Newhouse' presented a careful analytical study of displacements and their corresponding open spaces. For reasons that will be discussed later, it frequently happens that portions of the vein which are favorably oriented are not merely wider but also richer than the average. In many cases the widening with its accompanying richness coincides with very minor changes in the dip or strike of the vein, irregularities that commonly escape notice unless the vein is mapped in detail and a careful geometrical analysis made. While the relationship between the width of the vein and the changes in dip or strike has been recognized as a matter of observation, the irregularities have been accepted as more or less the result of accident. There has been very little effort except in isolated cases to find out the causes of these changes in dip or strike. Yet it is clear that if the causes can be recognized and expressed in terms of geologic structure the geologist will know where to look for repetitions of these favorable conditions either on extensions of the same vein or on adjoining veins. Any lack of understanding of the causes is due to the limitations of our ability to interpret our observations and not to the sheer capriciousness of

Jan 1, 1941