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By Henry Mulryan

DIATOMS are microscopic aquatic plants of the order Bacillariaceae. They are unicellular plants with skeletons made up of amorphous opaline silica. The skeletons show highly ornate, complicated geometrical designs. Diatoms live in water virtually everywhere. They are found in clean sea water, brackish water, and fresh-water lakes and ponds. When conditions are right, diatoms propagate by subdivision in huge numbers. Alkalinity, temperature, and the presence of high concentrations of silica in the water largely control diatom life. When the diatoms die the skeletons drop to the bottom of their habitat to form oozes of vary-ing thicknesses. DIATOMITES Diatomite, or diatomaceous earth, is composed essentially of the siliceous remains of the diatoms, although other organic skeletons are also present, especially in sea-water deposits where radiolaria, sponges and silico-flagellates are common. Impurities are generally carbonaceous material, fine-grained silt, volcanic ash and dust, and occasional coarse grains of sand. Diatomites are marine, brackish, or fresh-water, depending upon types of diatoms and their method of deposition.

Jan 1, 1939

Jan 1, 1915

By Nathaniel Arbiter

There is a history in all men's lives, Figuring the nature of the times deceas'd, The which observ'd, a man may prophesy, With a near aim, of the main chance of things. W. Shakespeare, Henry IV; Part 2 Introduction This nation's first century embraced two stages of the Industrial Revolution. During one, what had been a colonial agricultural economy began to industrialize; water power, then steam after 1794, were the energy sources; coal and iron were the essential ingredients. The second stage started after 1850; aided by rich and diverse mineral resources, the country began its transition from the Iron Age to the Age of Metals. Early civilizations had been built on stone, and fairly high levels were sustained on iron. But the spectacular advances in the past century in communication, in construction, in transportation by sea, rail, land and air, and in much that characterizes modern civilization have depended increasingly on the use of the complete metallic and nonmetallic resources of the earth's crust. Thus it was appropriate to define the Industrial Revolution as “the period during which man's relationship to natural resources became utterly changed”, 1 with minerals playing a major and indispensable role. But we are now becoming aware that the relationship of man to natural resources must change again. On every hand the dangers inherent in the contamination of land, sea and air by the wastes of civilization are becoming apparent. And from the growing realization that mineral wealth is finite must eventually come other far reaching changes in mineral use and distribution. For on the scale of centuries we cannot continue to exploit mineral resources even at present rates, let alone at expanded rates, without eventual depletion of the more abundant resources, and early exhaustion of the less abundant. In the past our problems were relatively easily met by the development of new and improved machinery and processes. But the future will

Jan 1, 1971

By Donald A. Dahlstrom

In 1961 it became increasingly more evident that significant technological changes must be made in minerals beneficiation. The status quo in technology in today's competitive markets will not be tolerated. Higher productivity, greater recoveries and newer and better products must be sought and incorporated with lower operating costs. In other words, "when you build a new mill, don't build an old mill." Recommended reading for proof of the vital necessity of new methods and techniques is in the September 1961 issue of MINING ENGINEERING. The article by one of MBD's cherished and true veterans, E. H. Rose, is entitled "Iron Ore: The BIG Picture". Because of new beneficiation methods for iron ores, nearly 47 million tons of plus 60% iron concentrates will be produced and another 40.1 million tons of capacity will be under construction or committed. Thus in a relatively short period, 87 million tons of this high-grade iron concentrate with record low silica will be available. As Mr. Rose also points out, "in gross tons, without allowance for better grade, this is the equivalent of almost exactly two-thirds of all iron ore used for all purposes in the U.S. and Canada in the peak years of 1953 or 1957." Needless to say, improved mineral beneficiation methods have had far more reaching effects than just the production of higher grade iron concentrate.

Jan 2, 1962

By D. J. McAdam

As shown in three recent papers by the author, in two papers by McAdam and Mebs, and in a paper by McAdam, Mebs, and Geil," the technical cohesive strength of a metal, in any particular state as regards mechanical treatment and heat-treatment, cannot be represented by a single stress value, but must be represented by a diagram with the principal stressest as coordinates. Each point on the boundary of such a diagram represents a technical cohesion limit. The technical cohesive strength thus comprises an infinite number of technical cohesion limits, each representing fracture under a specific stress combination. Moreover, neither the yield strength1 nor the ultimate strength can be represented completely by a single stress value, but must be represented by a diagram with the principal stresses as coordinates. All combinations of the principal stresses may be classified in three groups as illustrated by Fig. I. Fig. Ia shows three typical stress combinations with no two principal stresses equal. The magnitude of each principal stress is indicated qualitatively by the length of the arrow. Arrows pointing away from the cube indicate tensile stresses; arrows pointing toward the cube indicate compressive stresses. Typical stress combinations with two principal stresses equal are illustrated in Figs. rb and Ic. Such stress combinations would be produced by subjecting a cylinder to combinations of uniform axial and radial stresses. The uniform radial stress may be resolved into two equal principal stresses. with the mutually perpendicular directions rotatable around the axis of the cylinder. Fig. ib shows stress combinations with Sz equal to The greatest principal stress is in the axial direction, and the stress combination tends to cause either absolute or relative increase in length.* Fig. u shows stress combinations with S2 equal to St. The greatest principal stress is in the radial direction, and the combination tends to cause either absolute or relative decrease in length. The complete representation of either technical cohesive strength, yield strength, or ultimate strength generally requires a three-dimensional diagram. When two of the principal stresses are kept equal, however, the strength of a metal may be represented by a two-dimensional diagram with the coordinates representing the axial and radial stresses.6-II In this paper, attention will be confined almost entirely to stress combinations with two of the prin-

Jan 1, 1945

By AIME AIME

IN many countries the lack of liquid petroleum supplies has centered interest upon the hydrogenation of coal and coal tars for the preparation of motor fuel. In the United States, hydrogenation has been of greater interest for grading up low-value petroleum fractions to the more valuable volatile fuels and for the preparation of a variety of premium products, including aviation gasolines, solvents, Diesel fuels, and lubricating oils. Chemically, the basic reason for this process is that, as shown in Table 1, the ratio of hydrogen to carbon (H/C ratio) in available raw materials is quite different from that characterizing the products sought.

Jan 1, 1936

By John M. Cigan

Samples of copper-lead concentrates from the mine of Cia Minerals Santander, Inc., a Peruvian subsidiary of the St. Joseph Lead Co. were recently subjected to special analysis. This concentrate was known to contain bismuth which, under some circumstances, might have incurred a smelter penalty. In this case, customers for the concentrate accepted it and requested a higher concentration of bismuth. Although chemical analysis would disclose the presence of the metal, it was not possible with equipment available at the mill in Peru to determine the mode of occurrence in the fine grained ores.

Jan 11, 1964

By Stephen Krickovic

THERE is today no proven continuous mining machine that can be used under all the varying conditions found in most bituminous coal mines. During the last five years, however, both the machines and methods of using them have been improved. Coal operators can now exercise a fair degree of selectivity, except those who must struggle with thick and hard partings and operate in seams less than 40 in. thick. It must be realized, then, that more than one type of continuous miner may be used advantageously in the same coal mine. Although this appears to violate the standardization generally sought after, the gain can more than offset added maintenance and, to a lesser degree, operating problems.

Jan 12, 1957

AT the fall meeting of the Iron and Steel Division, Oct. 4, 1934, in New York, a symposium was held on Slag Control in the Making of Iron and Steel. The chairman was J. H. Nead and the vice chairman, G. B. Waterhouse. The latter presided at both morning and afternoon sessions. The papers and discussions were presented in the order in which they appear on the following pages. To meet space requirements, much of this material has been considerably condensed. CONTENTS [ ]

Jan 1, 1935

By J. W. Leonard, J. C. Anderson, C. T. Holland

PREPARATION CONTROL IN UNDERGROUND MINING Selective Mining According to district Depending upon the particular geographic loca- tion or seam characteristics, modern raw coal preparation practices can be used to obtain improved product quality and uniformity. Nevertheless, certain coal markets may require only marginal quality while others may require very high quality, and these objectives may be sought by commencing the preparation of coal underground at the "working face." Under- ground preparation involves choosing those portions of the seam which can be cleaned to satisfy predetermined market requirements involving ( 1 ) maintenance of uniformity in chemical quality, (2) elimination of removable impurities, (3) control of sizes and size ratios, and (4) control of moisture. The methods employed to attain these objectives vary widely with the (1 ) seam under development, (2) mining equipment available, and (3) changing trends in the consuming markets. When a mining property is opened and development progresses from one section to another, the (1) petrography of the coal in the seam does not remain uniform, (2) character of roof and floor are subject to change, and (3) character and prevalence of mineral impurities are subject to considerable variation. The quality of coal shipped to market from any mine depends upon intelligent foresight, planning, execution, and supervision. Mining becomes a highly technical art. The quality of coal as determined by chemical and petrographic analysis is without question one of the most important considerations in the development and life of any coal-mining property. Variations in such proper- ties as volatile matter, ash, sulfur, Btu content, and petrography are of considerable interest, and to a limited extent so are such properties as phosphorous content, free swelling index, plasticity, hardness, pressure formation during coking, and ash composition. The maximum and minimum specifications of these characteristics as established by competitive market conditions place definite limits on the marketability of a coal.

Jan 1, 1979

By Albert E. Wiggin

PagE I. Early History of Boston & Montana Mill at Great Falls (1891 to 1905). 210 a. Original Mill Built in 1891.........210 b. Coarser Concentration Tried...211 c. Screen Sizing of Fine Jig Feed Introduced..211 d. Installation of Finer Grinding.......211 e. Steam Stamp Tried in Place of Blake Crushers..... 211 j. Mill Increased from Three to Six Sections........ 213 g. Tonnage Increased from 300 to 450 Tons per Section... 212 h. Round Tables Replaced by Wilfley Tables....212 I1. Hancock Jig Replaces Evans Jig...212 a. Description of Hancock Jig...213 - b. Tests Made on- Hancock Jig..213 1. Treating Natural Feed..215 2. Treating Sized Feed..215 3. Treating Classified Feed .215 c. Tests Made on Evans Jig...216 III. Richards Pulsator Classifier System...218 a. Experimental Work.....218 b. Installation of System in Section No. 4,....... 220 IV. Woodbury Classifier and Jig System.............222 V. The Great Falls System................ 222 a. As Installed at Anaconda............ 224 1. Coarse Crushing and Jigging Division...... 225 2. Hancock Jig Division........... 226 3. Fine Middling Division.......... 229 4. Table Division............. 230 5. Slime Division.........230 b. Special Features of Great ails Flow sheet....... 231 1. Development of Hancock Jig Flow Sheet..... 231 2. Development of Finishing Table Flow Sheet.... 232 3. Treatment of Coarse Middling Table Products .. 232 4. Results of Test Made on 500-Ton Section at Great Falls Mill...........234 VI. Comparison of Great Falls and Evans System at Anaconda.... 236

Jan 1, 1914

By Mazany, M. S.

THE Caletones copper smelter of the Braden Copper Co. is in the " Teniente" mining district about SO km. (49.7 mi.) southeast of Santiago, Chile. From the seaports of San Antonio and Tralparaiso, the property is reached via the Chilean State Railway (66-in. gage) to Rancagua, whence the Braden railroad (30-in. gage) leads to the smelting plant at Caletones, 60 km. away at 5100 ft. elevation, and continues on to the mine and concentrator at Sewell, at 7000 ft. elevation, 12 km. farther into the Andes. The smelting plant was completed and put into commission in February, 1922. At the start, it smelted daily 750 tons of concentrates produced at Sewell from 10,000 tons of ore; later, its capacity was increased to 900 tons of concentrates from 12,000 tons of ore per day; and it is now being increased to 1100 tons of concentrates from 15,000 tons of ore per day. The smelting plant production is governed chiefly by the

Jan 1, 1925

By Earl Bardwell

THE determination of suitable and safe annealing temperatures is one of the most important problems arising in the operation of a copper rolling mill. Certain of the larger mills have worked this problem out for themselves and in these mills the operation has become more or less standardized. In some of the mills pyrometers are used to measure the temperature of the annealing furnaces and careful watch is kept to see that overheating does not take place. In a considerable number of the mills, however, dependence is placed entirely on the judgment of the operator. The almost total lack of literature bearing on this subject seems sufficient warrant for the publication of this paper. The discussion of this subject naturally divides itself into two parts: (1) The effect of annealing temperature on physical properties; and (2) changes in the microstructure of refined copper due to cold rolling and annealing. I. THE EFFECT OF ANNEALING TEMPERATURE ON PHYSICAL PROPERTIES For the purpose of investigating this phase of the subject six test bars were selected, varying in oxygen content between the limits of 0.036 and 0.070 per cent. The chemical composition of each of these test bars was as follows:

Jan 8, 1914

By Arthur West

It is the purpose of this paper to describe briefly some recent large power stations for blast furnaces, where the blast is exclusively supplied by gas engines using furnace gas. The stations are given in the chronological order in which they were designed, in order to indicate the various improvements suggested by experience. Fig. 1 shows the blowing-engine station of the Bethlehem Steel Co. at Bethlehem. Although the picture shows only five blowing engines, the house now contains 11 engines. In the diagrammatic plan the arrow shows the position and direction of camera. This station handles five modern blast furnaces of 450 to 500 ions capacity each. In this, as in all the other stations described in this paper, each furnace is blown by two single tandem gas engines. Ten engines are thus required for five furnaces, leaving one single tandem spare engine. This spare capacity has been shown by several years' experience at Bethlehem to be adequate to insure continuous operation. The engines in the Bethlehem station are right hand and left hand, arranged in pairs. The outboard bearings of each pair are close together so that there is not room for passageway between them. On the right of the picture are shown the inclined drums communicating with the cold-blast lines outside of building, so that any engine may be operated on any furnace. The illustration shows four cold-blast gate valves with pipes passing through wall, but since the photograph was taken the drums have been extended to take care of a fifth valve for a fifth furnace. At the extreme back of the picture can be seen the tubs of three twin vertical-horizontal Southwark steam blowing engines, which, although of modern design and as good as new, are not operated because of the greatly reduced blowing cost shown by the gas blowing engines. The next station built is shown in Fig. 2. This is the plant of the Minnesota Steel Co. at Duluth, Minn., and is at present constructed for five engines, to handle two furnaces, with one spare engine. The engines are of practically the same size as those at Bethlehem. Instead of being arranged in right-hand and left-hand pairs, as at Bethlehem, all the engines are of the same hand; this arrangement has some ad-

Jan 1, 1915

By AIME AIME

MONDAY evening a reception, supper and bridge in honor of the guests of the Woman's Auxiliary was given by the New York Section in the Engineering Woman's Club. After supper, tables were made up for bridge. Some tried jig-saw puzzles, while others merely visited. On Tuesday morning the annual business meeting was called to order by President Bassett. Mrs. Bassett read a note from Mrs. Hoover regretting her inability to be present, and then gave her welcome and message: It gives me much pleasure to welcome you in this annual meeting, and I hope you will be able to come next year, and those who are not able to come this year I hope will be here next year.

Jan 1, 1933

[Aalde, Kaare, ('40) New Mexico School of Mines, Socorro, N. M. Abadesco, Enrique A., ('39) Univ. of the Philippines, Manila, P. I. Abdul-Ahad, A., ('39) Montana School of Mines, Residence Hall, Butte, Mont. Abreu, Ovidio M., ('38) Univ. of Nevada, Reno, Nev. Acker, Voscoe, . ('39) Agricultural & Mech. College of Texas, College Station, Tex. Acosta S., Gonzalo, ('40) Univ. of Texas, Univ. Sta., Box 1785, Austin, Tex. Adams, Albert, ('38) New Mexico School of Mines, Socorro, N. M. Adams, Charles W.,' ('39) Michigan College of Min. & Tech., Houghton, Mich. Adams, Hugh T., Jr., ('39) Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla. Adams, Jack L., ('39) Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman Okla.]

Jan 1, 1940

By Charles W. Goodale, William A. Akers

The treatment of silver-ores of too low a grade to justify either smelting or preliminary roasting, and yet not " free" enough to permit of raw amalgamation, has ever been a serious problem. As bearing upon it, the operations of the Combination Mining and Milling Company of Black Pine, Deer Lodge county, Montana, during the past year may not be without interest. It is not claimed that the process to be described is not susceptible of great improvement, nor is any claim of originality made for it; but its use is, as yet, not very general, and it seems to offer a means of profitably working the large class of partially-decomposed argentiferous ores which, by reason

Jan 1, 1890

By C. A. Hansen

The furnace used for experimental work is shown in Fig. 1. One fireclay sagger, or pot, was set within another and the space between the two filled with Silox heat insulation. The hearth is a cast-iron plate with an imbedded ribbon of nichrome wire; this wire heater is connected to a potential regulator, which permits a very close voltage control. A mechanically driven arm is fitted with rabble blades so arranged that a uniformly thick ore bed may be maintained indefinitely. This arm is usually driven at about one revolution per minute but its speed of rotation can be varied as desired. Compressed air is led into the furnace through a meter, and it was found necessary to preheat the air in order to secure the definitely isothermal conditions sought. With this arrangement, it is possible to maintain any desired temperature constant within about 5" C. for any desired length of time and to

Jan 1, 1921

By John H. Bassarear, A. A. Dor

INTRODUCTION Primary grinding mills as defined in this paper, are autogenous or semi-autogenous rotating, tumbling mills having a coarse feed with a top size usually varying from 150 to 300 mm (6 to 12 inches). Most frequently, the feed to these mills is the product of primary crushing plants but in some cases run of mine ore is used as feed such as at Benguet, McDermitt, L-Bar Sohio, Bear Creek and others. The size of the largest lumps in the mill feed is principally determined by limits set by the mill feed trunnion diameter and by the type and size of conveying equipment used for handling and of bins and stockpiles used for storage. The use of primary mills in mineral processing plants has expanded very significantly in the last twenty years, and they have been successfully applied to the treatment of a wide variety of ores in both wet and dry grinding applications. In the present state of technological development for primary grinding mills, there is a wide choice of acceptable options with respect to type and size, grinding flowsheet and grinding media. The choice of the optimum combination which would result in the most satisfactory condition of operation, from the standpoint of both metallurgical results and costs, depends on the nature of the ore, the required characteristics of the grinding products and on various geographic and economic circumstances. The effects of such factors and considerations on the choice and sizing of primary grinding mills and flowsheets are reviewed and discussed in the following pages. PRIMARY MILLS SELECTION Inherent Characteristics of Primary Grinding Primary grinding is complex because it involves several comminution mechanisms which occur simultaneously and to some degree interfere with one another. These mechanisms of impact, attrition and abrasion have been described earlier. The relative importance of these three main grinding actions and their mutual balance resulting in a continuous uniform operation of the mill depend to a very large extent on the nature of the ore and its physical properties. Homogenous, single mineral ores will behave quite differently from heterogenous ores consisting of different minerals bound together along defined

Jan 1, 1982