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By Donelson A. Robertson

Includes a review of the state-of-the-art of explosives loading in the crushed stone and cement industries of South Florida and the development of a field test program for alternatives. Emphasis is on the loading of small diameter (2 1/4" or less) explosives. Test results ire evaluated for operational and economic feasibility. Details are described of an explosives loading method which involves placing cardboard tubes with external couplings through the hollow drill steel and then Loading explosives into the tube casings after the drill rig has moved off. This method eliminates the hazards peculiar to loading explosives Through the kelly bar. The alternative method can be performed by existing drill rigs with or without minor modification. With modification, improvement in yield per blasthole and/or primary crushing rate provides opportunity so offset some or all of the additional cost.

Jan 1, 1978

By William J. Krisko

This contract final report summarizes the design, fabrication and testing of canopy air curtain devices under Bureau of Mines Contract H0232067. The canopy air curtain device is designed to reduce the level of respirable dust exposure to a continuous mining machine operator while having a minimum effect on operator safety, mobility and comfort and being compatible with mining equipment. This contract was devoted to the development of a device which utilizes an invisible curtain of air to envelope a mining machine operator's breathing zone with filtered air to provide respiratory protection. Various concepts were evaluated by means of laboratory tests. One concept was selected and was tested on various mining machines at underground sites by means of MSA personal samplers. The canopy air curtain was found to be effective. The percent reductions over the ambient dust concentrations were about 30 to 75 percent depending on the amount of time the operator spent under the air curtain. At one test site, the device enabled the mining machine to operate within compliance. Donaldson Company is presently working on the commercial production of the device.

Jan 1, 1975

By K. E. Robinson

Appendix A is an abridged extract of the report prepared by the Geotechnical and Structural Engineering Society of Idaho, and presents the results of their one-year study to evaluate the feasibility of disposing mill tailings by landfill construction. Appendix B describes the field and laboratory testing program completed by RDM to assess the effectiveness of a soil (slimes) liner as a means of seepage control to reduce the introduction of contaminants into the local ground water regime. Appendix C presents a summary of a thesis by Lawrence Martin on the analysis of the acid production potential of mill tailings, and the results of geotechnical testing of mill tailings completed by ROM. Appendix D describes potential landfill sites identified within the study area, the development of these sites to meet the present needs of the mining industry and the future requirements of the community is described. Appendix E summarizes the main legislation impacting on tailings disposal. Appendix F discusses the environmental and socio-economic factors that should be considered.

Jan 1, 1981

By Frank E. Cash, John A. Johnson

"INTRODUCTION The operators of the Lake Superior district iron-ore mines have made tremendous progress in the past 25 years in the transportation of broken ore from the working places to the surface. This progress has paid divi¬dends in increased production and in lower accident-frequency rates. The trend has been toward more efficient use of mechanical and electrical power and abolishment of many of the backbraking tasks formerly required of min¬ers and trammers.ScopeTransportation of iron ore as described in this paper covers (1) movement from the working place to ore raises by scrapers, shaker,conveyors, and belt conveyors, and, loading underground cars from chutes or-by scraping from loading drifts; (2) underground haulage, which includes underground cars trains, locomotives, and tracks; (3) shaft station's and hoisting shafts, which. Includes dumping cars, storage-pockets; auxiliary storage trenches, and shafts; (4) hoisting, which consists of skips, cages and hoists; and (5) head frames, loading into railroad cars, and stock-pile haulage.The 19 underground iron-ore mines discussed in this paper, situated in the Menominee, Marquette, Gogebic, Guyana, Mesabi, and Vermilion iron ranges of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota., shipped about 9,000,000 tons of iron ore in 1945, which constituted 56 percent of the underground iron ore taken from the Lake Superior district."

Nov 1, 1947

The U.S. Bureau of Mines has been concerned for many years with the general problems of underground coal mining and the particular problems due to the methane content of the coal. The Bureau and others have worked diligently to improve the health and safety conditions for underground coal miners. It has been recognized for many years that the methane in coal would have some value if it could he recovered and used, Also its removal before coal mining began or during the mining cycle itself would make mining safer and more economic due to a potential saving in ventilation costs. The work covered in this report was carried out to review methods of removing methane from active and inactive regions of operating coal mines and to determine how the methane could be concentrated and utilized economically.

Jan 1, 1975

As a part of its overall wealth in fuel resources, the United States possesses large reserves of coal of ignite rank. According to recent estimates of the Federal Geological Survey (3, 5),l/ the assured lignite reserves of this country amount in total to over 463 billion tons, equivalent to 24 percent of our total national coal reserve on a tonnage basis and 15 percent on a heating-value basis. Distribution and relative amounts of United States coal and lignite reserves are indicated in figure 1. By far the largest proportion of our lignite reserves, over 95 percent is found in North Central States, principally in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana, in the vast coal-bearing structural grouping designated as the Fort Union formation. Of the remaining United States reserves, all but a fraction of 1 percent are found in a series of relatively scattered deposits in Texas.

Jan 1, 1954

By WILLARD W. CUTLER

This bulletin reviews, in the light of recent experience, the use of production-decline curves in estimating the future production of oil from wells. It deals with the estimation of the reserves of recoverable oil in properties already producing or in those adjacent to them, takes cognizance of the physical laws governing expulsion of oil from oil sands, and shows how the production-decline curve can be made to utilize these laws in estimating reserves and rates of production. The valuation of oil properties should be based on the total amount of oil recoverable from a property by the methods in use, the rate of recovery, the cost of production, and the selling price. Numerous other curves besides those for reserves and rates of production may be formed from the production-decline curve and will present desired information in a convenient time-saving form. These curves also are described. Methods developed before the production-decline curve method was used are briefly discussed in order that the principles on which estimations of oil reserves are based may be made plain. The construction of curves and tables for estimating future production of individual wells and of average wells in most of the important oil districts of the United States is described and operating problems that may be solved by the use of production-decline curves are discussed. The bulletin does not deal with costs, oil prices, or the methods of evaluating oil properties. Many engineers have amply demonstrated the value of the production- decline curve method by forecasting within reasonable limits the production of many thousands of wells and tracts. The value of similar estimates depends however, on (1) the application of trustworthy methods; (2) the care and judgment of the estimator; and (3) the length and reliability of the records and the accuracy of ofher information used in estimating future production. When adequate records and information are available, experience has shown that It qualified engineer can forecast production far more accurately than has been deemed possible, except where the usual conditions governing the expulsion of oil from a sand have been radically changed by applying compressed air or by flooding with water, or, to a less degree, by using vacuum. In general, the production-decline curve method, though there are limits to its accuracy, is far more trustworthy than any other.

Jan 1, 1924

By Donald L. Siebert

This profile study of the commercial secondary aluminum industry examines not only the elements that form the industry but also the technological contributions of each toward industrial growth. Concise descriptions of processing methods trace aluminum scrap from generating sources to marketable industrial and consumer goods. Economic and marketing appraisals are used to illustrate the impact that recent technology has had upon the secondary aluminum industry. Price, supply, demand, competition, and substitutes are selected as components of an economic model of the secondary industry and are used to illustrate the aggregate effects of technological changes. The final section is a conceptual look at the future in which sensitive economic indicators (such as die casting in the automotive and appliance industries) are examined as well as the problems of conserving mineral resources by retrieving secondary aluminum from solid waste.

Jan 1, 1970

By J. O. Merritt

The primary objective of this research program was to recommend ranges of minimum luminance for safety in underground metal and nonmetal mining. Visual tasks critical to safety were identified and rank-ordered. Realistic, full-scale, dynamic task simulations encompassing the most important visual components of the critical tasks were installed in a large simulated workspace. Five trained observers performed the six simulated mining tasks under varying levels of luminance. Over 13,000 measurements of visual task performance were used in developing minimum luminance recommendations for the on-foot underground worker and the mobile equipment operator.

Jan 1, 1983

By Hugh M. Wolfin

This Information Circular is an abstract of a manuscript which was completed in June 1933, by Mr. Hugh M. Wolflin, formerly of the U. S. Bur eau of Mines. This abstract has been prepared by Charles Will Wright for presentation at the February meeting of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers in New York. It has been necessary to omit many of the details and most of the cost data and tables, as well as the illustrations in the original manuscript. As the use of airplanes in mining developments is making such progress and as a publication on this subject to be of greatest value should include the most recent information, it is unfortunate that, due to a lack of printing funds, it has not been possible to publish this manuscript. The purposes of Mr. Wolflin's paper are: (1) To describe briefly what has been accomplished in some outstanding examples by the use of aircraft in the mining and petroleum industries, (2) To record costs, (3) To present available information and suggestions to assist in solving future air-transportation problems in the industries under consideration.

Jan 1, 1934

By Earl C. Redman

The Juneau Gold Belt, centered on Juneau and approximately 120 miles long by 10 miles wide, stretches from Berners Bay on the north to Windham Bay on the south (fig. D-l). Access within the Juneau Gold Belt is provided by the Glacier, Thane, and North Douglas Highways. The Glacier Highway extends northwest from Juneau for approximately 40 miles to Echo Cove, and the other two roads end 5.5 miles southeast and 12.6 miles west from Juneau, respectively. None of these roads connect with other highway systems and access to other areas is restricted to airplanes, the State ferry system, and commercial barge lines. BUREAU ACTIVITIES The majority of lode gold produced in Alaska came from the Juneau Gold Belt portion of the Juneau Mining District. To evaluate the economic potential of the Gold Belt, the Bureau located 173 mines and prospects within the area. A total of 263 ad its and shafts were found and 56,650 feet of underground workings were mapped. The Bureau collected and analyzed 1,557 samples during the study. In addition, considerable detailed geologic map-ping was done in the vicinity of the mines and prospects from which ore control models were developed.

Jan 1, 2012

By Bertrand L. Johnson

Barite, the natural sulfate of barium (BaSO4), is the most important barium mineral. Normally it is white (opaque to translucent), but impurities sometimes render it yellow, gray, blue, brown, red, or black. Brown or red stains are commonly caused by iron oxide. Barite is unusually heavy (specific gravity, about 4.5); in fact, it is one of the heaviest of the nonmetallic minerals. It is brittle and fractures unevenly. The hardness of barite ranges from 2.5 to 3 but is usually about 3. It can be scratched by a copper coin. Pure barite contains 65.7 percent BaO and A.3 percent S03. Much of the crude barite ore mined, however, contains impurities; thus it has a lower content of barite and consequently less barium oxide. Commercial analyses show its total BaSO4 content. Barium also occurs in nature as the mineral witherite (BaCO3), which, however, is not common in the United States, and commercial deposits have been found only in California. Witherite is a yellowish-white, light-gray, or Kite mineral with a specific gravity of about 3, a hardness of 3 to 4, and an uneven to subconchoidal fracture.

Jan 1, 1941

By M. W. Von Bernewitz

The Bureau of Mines receives frequent requests for information on the treatment of mercury ores, but as its own and almost all other publications on mercury are out of print, the Bureau has prepared this circular on the metal for the prospector and operator of small mines and plants. Mercury, commonly though improperly termed ?quicksilver?, is the only common metal that is liquid at ordinary temperatures. Mercury is used in the amalgamation of gold and silver, in power boilers, explosives, friction-less bearings, laboratory apparatus, lamps, medicine, paint, rectifiers, and for ?silvering.? The last mentioned is being superseded by silvering with silver. The use of mercury boilers may increase when they are thoroughly understood, but amalgamation is -being replaced to some extent by the use of corduroy and other collecting mediums, such as jigs and flotation cells.

Jan 1, 1937

A compilation of papers presented at the Fourth WVU Conference on Coal Mine Electrotechnology in Morgantown, West Virginia, on August 2-4, 1978. Papers cover areas of electric power, electronic communications, detection and location of trapped miners, and electronic sensors and monitoring systems.

Jan 1, 1978

By P. M. Ambrose, A. C. Fieldner

This , the 11th annual report of research and technologic work conducted by the Bureau of Mines on coal and coal products , is issued following the closing of the Bureau's war work on fuels and contains references to most of the published articles containing results of war investigations . The few remaining papers will be discussed in next year's report . The trend in coal research in the Bureau of Mines was discussed in Mechaniza- tion . This publication , covering the period from the close of armed con- flict to resumption of normal coal -research activities , includes a section never previously presented . There is included for the first time a discussion of the Bureau's activities in the Liquid Fuels and Lubricants and the Solid Fuels Subcommittees of the Technical Industrial Intelligence Committee . This report does not replace the more comprehensive ones prepared by individual authors and listed as footnote references in this publication . purpose is to bring to the reader a résume of the work for the fiscal year ended June 30 , 1946. The material presented herein is based largely upon publications , but the results of some research and testing, which would not otherwise be published in the near future, are presented in detail .

Jul 1, 1947

By George W. Toth

Uranium in situ leach mining has recently emerged as a viable alternative to conventional miring techniques. The cost implications of in situ mining are therefore of increasing interest to mining paracticioners as well as public officials. This report presents the results of an assessment of uranium in situ leach mining costs through the application of process engineering and discounted cash flow analysis procedures. A computerized wasting technique, termed a cost model, was developed through this effort to facilitate rapid cost analyses. Application of this cost model will generate mine life capital and operating costs as well as solve for economic production cost/lb. U308. Conversely rate of return may be determined subject to a known selling price. The data bases of the cost made! have been designed to reflect variations in Texas vs. Wyoming site applications. The results If applying the model under numerous ore deposit, operating, wellfield and extraction plant conditions for Texas and Wyoming are summarized in the report. Sensitivity analysis of changes in key project parameters have also been tested and reported.

Jan 1, 1981

By P. M. BIDDISON, G. G. Oberfell, George A. Burrell

The Bureau of Mines is conducting a series of investigations, with a view to ascertaining the most efficient methods of obtaining gasoline from petroleum and natural gas. This report deals with a method of extracting gasoline from natural gas by absorbing the gasoline in oil and subsequently separating it from the oil by distillation. The process is quite different from those of compression and condensation which have been used for a number of years for extracting gasoline from casing-head natural gas, and has not heretofore been described in the literature. MANUFACTURE OF GASOLINE FROM CASING-HEAD GAS. The extraction of gasoline from casing-head natural gas by compression and condensation methods has become a large and lucrative industry in this country. In the year 1915 about 65,000,000a gallons of gasoline prepared by these methods was placed on the market. In addition, in marketing this gasoline, at many plants an equivalent quantity of naphtha was blended with the gasoline, thereby utilizing for automobile fuel and other purposes a large quantity of naphtha that otherwise would have been unsuited for these purposes. The increase for the year 1915 over 1914 was about 22,000,000 gallons. For the year 1916 the production should be more than 100,000,000 gallons. The quantity of casing-head gas treated in the year 1915 by compression and condensation methods amounted to about 24,000,000,000 cubic feet; the average yield of gasoline was 2.57 gallons per 1,000 cubic feet. b This casing-head gas represents natural gas that formerly went largely to waste; hence the process represented a distinct and important step in the utilization of the natural gas produced in this country.

Jan 1, 1917

By G. M. Kintz, Charles B. Carpenter, G. W. Jones

"INTRODUCTION At 9:12 a. m. on April 16, 1947, the ammonium nitrate cargo in hold 4 of the S. S. Grandcamp, a 7,176 gross-ton Liberty ship owned by the French Government, detonated at pier 0 of the Texas City Terminal Railway Co., Texas City, Galveston County, Tex.This detonation was the first of a series of explosions and fires that took the lives of approximately 600 persons, injured 3,000 other persons, and caused a property damage and business loss that will exceed $58,800,000. It has been estimated that the life, accident, and workmen's compensation insurance loss will be $8,200,000.At 1:10 a. m. on April 17, 1947, the ammonium nitrate cargo in hold 5 of the S.S. High Flyer, a 6,214-gross-ton Liberty ship owned and operated by the Lykes Bros. Steamship Co., Inc., detonated at pier L. This explosion materially increased the property damage caused by the first explosion, in between 50 and 100 persons, and is believed to have taken the life of only one person.The exact number of casualties resulting from the Texas City disaster may never be known. On June 22, 1947, 65 days after the explosions, the red Cross and the Texas Department of Public safety repoted:,""Identified dead, 405; unidentified dead, 63; believed missing, 100; injured, 3,000; hospital¬ized, 600; still in hospitals, 37."""

Feb 1, 1948

By Donald F. Reed

In the Coastal Plain sedimentaries of northeastern Mississippi, high-alumina clays and kaolins, which are bauxitized locally to varying degrees, are found in many places along the contact between the Midway (Paleocene) and the Wilcox (Eocene) series. The trace of the contact extends from Tippah County, on the Tennessee border, south to Winston County, thence southeast to Lauderdale County, and into Alabama. Its length within Mississippi, disregarding sinuosities, is 185 miles (fig. 1). Commercial production of bauxite from the region has amounted to about 400 tons, shipped from one outcrop in Komper County. In December 1941 and January 1942, the Bureau of Mines and the Federal Geological Survey made a reconnaissance survey of the contact zone and selected the most promising areas for further study. In 1942, four areas in Benton, Union, and Pontotoc Counties were investigated by auger and rotary core drilling, and in 194, core drilling was done on five areas in Kemper, Noxubee, and Winston Counties. The present report records the work done by the. Bureau of Mines and the factual data obtained from the investigations of the nine areas in the two projects.

Jan 1, 1952

By Wallace W. Key

This report concerns types, quantities, specifications, and uses of non-metallic minerals as a basis for improving their supply, conservation, and utilization. Supply-demand details concerning mineral fillers, rooting granules, and roofing rock used in asphalt are incorporated in this report, along with highlights on production and sales of rooting, floor tile, and other related asphalt products of California. Comparable data for the United States are included. Although large quantities of commercially prepared mineral fillers are used in asphalt for paving and related applications in other States, addition of commercial fillers for these uses rarely is required in California because of the natural tines available. On the other hand, California manufacturers of asphalt products other than having utilize about 300,000 tons of asbestos, diatomite, limestone, mica, soapstone, and other nonmetallic minerals as filler, mainly for reeling and flooring. Also about 500,000 tons of roofing, granules is produced in California, most of which goes into roofing manufacture in California. In addition. A significantly large and growing tonnage of relatively coarse mineral aggregates Ire used on low-angle, built-up, asphalt roofs to produce in attractive surface and offer protection against the clements. Clearly ill minerals used in asphalt products manufactured in California come from local sources, except asbestos and mica--and there are indications that local deposits of those commodities could be utilized in some use categories.

Jan 1, 1966