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By Phil Patton, Bill M. Stewart, Curtis Clark

Handling materials in underground mines continues to be a major safety problem. To help reduce materials-handling injuries, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) at the Spokane Research Laboratory is developing, modifying, and testing equipment to replace the necessity of doing lifting tasks manually. To reduce single-event lift injuries, equipment having mechanical automatic weight sensing and balancing control was investigated. The Coleman manipulator was selected for testing. Modifications to the Coleman manipulator to make it more suitable for underground mine use included mobilization, self-containment, all-purpose gripper attachment, and support jacks. To reduce or eliminate the need to clean off manually the materials that commonly plug grizzly openings (timbers, wire mesh, roof bolts, and other debris), a track-guided pincher arm device was developed. The TGPA attaches to an impact hammer head, and the pincher arms are controlled by the operator of the hammer. Oversized rock can be broken with the pincher arms in the up position; the arms can then be lowered to grab and remove debris. Sweeping action to remove cohesive fines bridging grizzly openings is also greatly improved. This device is especially useful in recessed grizzlies. An industrial gun was tested to evaluate its effectiveness in breaking oversized rock. Boulders up to 76 cm in diameter were successfully broken to minus-33 cm. Although methods to control fly rock need to be developed, an industrial gun may be a safe and inexpensive alternative to breaking oversized rock in certain underground mining situations.

By R. H. Fernald

In 1900, as far as available records show, there were only two producer-gas power installations in the United States. In June, 1915, the number probably exceeded 1,000. Of this number, some 84.5 per cent comprised small plants using anthracite, and only about 15 per cent of the total number utilized bituminous coal and lignite. In addition to these, two plants used wood, and three or four used oil. In the main, however, the larger sized units are operating on bituminous coal and lignite.

Jan 1, 1916

By Robert H. Bedford

As a result of the Bureau's general survey of quicksilver deposits in California, the Guadalupe mine area was among those chosen for exploration. Exploration, such as that at the Guadalupe, was aimed primarily at maintaining or increasing production of quicksilver during the critical wartime period. The project as originally planned contemplated sampling the dumps and prospecting some promising surface exposures by bulldozer trenches. Salvage was the objective in the first case and new ore in the second. Later, a program. of diamond drilling was added, designed to add both to ore reserves and to geological information. This report summarizes the history, notes the location and physical features, mentions property and ownership, and presents a brief description of the mine. The geology is outlined, and the work done by the Bureau of Mines is explained and supplemented with accompanying maps. The work involved repairing 1-1/4 miles of roads; bulldozing 13 trenches by removing 2,345 cubic yards of dumps to provide for sampling; digging and sampling 9,284 linear feet of hand trenches, digging and sampling numerous test pits; and drilling 7 diamond-drill holes, totaling 1,000 feet. A total of 419 samples, including 10 percent check samples, were taken. Exploration work in California at the time of this project was under the direction of Spangler Ricker, supervising engineer of the California field office, the late Robert Bedford was in charge of the fieldwork on this project.

Jan 1, 1950

By G. W. Jones

In cooperation with the Edison Electric Illuminating Co. of Boston, Mass., and the Boston Consolidated Gas Co., a survey has been conducted continuously since 1929 by the Bureau of Mines to determine the general hazards of combustible gases and vapors in manholes of the Edison Electric Illuminating Co. The New England Telephone & Telegraph Co. also has cooperated in the investigation, and tests have been made in its manholes since May 1, 1933. Yearly reports6/ on the results obtained since the beginning of the survey have been published. The method and procedure of conducting the survey in 1936 were the same as heretofore.

Jan 1, 1938

By W. R. K. Wu

Studies are reported on the structure of coal and coke with the graphical , statistical densimetric method based on the relation between the molecular volume per carbon atom ( M / C ) and the atomic hydrogen - carbon ratio ( H / C ) . Previous work , mostly from chemical and physical investigations , is critically reviewed . Difficulties in evaluating the ring increment are demonstrated for coal and coke for the statistical densimetric method based on the additivity of atomic volumes of constituent elements . A new diagram is presented for the graphical method . Methods are introduced for correcting M /C and H/C for the presence of minor constituents in coal and coke . With the graphical method , the fractions of aromatic carbon atoms in the total carbon atoms are estimated for a coal , a resin , and 5 petrographic components ; the types of condensed structure in the fundamental units of molecules are discussed for these substances , 28 coals , and 6 " average " cokes at 500 ° to 1,000 ° C. It is also shown that the number of rings in the fundamental units of coal generally increases with increasing rank and that of coke , with increasing carbonization temperature .

Jul 1, 1960

By G. W. Jones

In cooperation with the Edison Electric Illuminating Co. of Boston, Mass., and the Boston Consolidated Gas Co., a survey has been conducted continuously since 1929 by the Bureau of Mines to determine the general hazards of combustible gases and vapors in manholes of the Edison Electric Illuminating Co. The New England Telephone & Telegraph Co. also has cooperated in the investigation, and tests have been made in its manholes since May 1, 1933. Yearly reports6/ on the results obtained since the beginning of the survey have been published. The method and procedure of conducting the survey in 1936 were the same as heretofore.

Jan 1, 1938

By E. J. Babcock, W. W. Odell

The Bureau of Mines since its establishment has always taken an active interest in the utilization of lignite and in the development of the lignite dep'osits of the United States. Extensive lignite fields occur in the west central States, notably in North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and Texas; there are smaller areas in several other States, some of which are widely separated. The total area of the deposits and the total amount of lignite in these several districts are so enormous that the economic value is seldom recognized. To the people of ·the west and west central regions, however, the larger utilization of lignite, in whatever form it may be, is of fundamental importance, and any new methods or uses that promise to open these great lignite fields for more general and more efficient use deserve careful study. Although these lignite deposits underlie areas of thousands of square miles, their development and general utilization has been rather slow. This is no doubt partly because many of the districts are not thickly settled or highly developed in manufacturing industries, but is largely because lignites, from their peculiar physical and chemical characteristics, are low-grade fuels. Most of the lignites in these areas are imperfectly developed coals; many have a more or less woody structure; some belong to the brown-coal type; and others are darker, denser, and more homogeneous, approaching subbituminous coal. The people living in the regions in which these vast deposits occur, especially in the west central part of the United States, are vitally interested in every effort toward bettering lignite as fuel and aiding its wider utilization.

Jan 1, 1923

By R. S. Dean

The original flotation reagents were certain oils selected for a combination of properties that occurred fortuitously. It was recognized quite early in the study of flotation mechanism that, in order to function, an oil must have an active group-one that differs from the remainder of the molecule in its affinity for water or the mineral particle. Wark4 gives credit for recognition of this elementary chemical principle to the senior author of this report.5 However, it was soon found that simple hydrocarbons could not be used as flotation reagents and that two of the functions, which were combined in the early flotation oils such as pine and eucalyptus, could be obtained in separate compounds and their relative intensity controlled to advantage. These two functions were called collecting and frothing.

Jan 1, 1944

By J. F. Barkley

Under the procedure of the American Standards Association, with the American Society for Testing Materials as sponsor, the Sectional Committee on Classification of Coals has arrived at the classification of coals by rank as shown in Table 14/. The standard explains the term "agglomerating" used for classification under physical properties, as follows: Agglomerating Index. - Coals which in the volatile-matter determination produce either an agglomerate button that will support a 500-g weight without pulverizing, or a button showing swelling or cell structure, shall be considered agglomerating from the standpoint of classification.***. Pending the adoption of a method by the American Society for Testing Materials, the coke-button grading test5,/ afforded by the examination of the residue in the platinum crucible incident to the volatile matter determination, shall be used.

Jan 1, 1937

By W. W. Adams

The safety record established by the coal-mining industry of the United States during 1934, although not as favorable as that for the previous year, was better than the record for any other year during the period 1930-34 for which complete figures covering fatal and nonfatal accidents at the mines are available. The number of accidents was 89.98 per million man-hours of employment compared with 86.74 for the year 1933, the latter being the lowest rate in any of the 5 years referred to. The rate was 105.60 for 1930, the first year covered by available data. Employment increased in 1934; the number of workers represented an increase of 8 percent over the year 1933, man-shifts of labor increased 16 percent, and the number of man-hours of labor increased 7 percent. The total number of man-hours of employment also exceeded the number reported for 1932, and was almost equal to the record for 1931.

Jan 1, 1936

By Jeffrey Y. Foley

Chromite deposits along the Border Ranges Fault in southern Alaska were investigated by the Bureau of Mines. This report, part 1 of a two- part series, describes the deposits. Part 2 describes the mineralogy and the results of metallurgical tests. Fieldwork began in 1981 and continued through 1983. Ninety-four subeconomic podifom chromite deposits in eight mafic-ultramafic complexes were investigated. Previously unreported chromite deposits at Red Mountain on Kenai Peninsula, on Kodiak Island, and near Tonsina are described. Deposits range in size from less than a thousand tons to over 1.25 million tons of contained chromic oxide (Cr203). Grades range from about 5 to 10 pct chromite. Excluding all deposits more than 10 miles from tidewater or existing roads and all deposits containing only chemical- or refractory-grade chromite, about 2,200,000 tons of Cr203 are contained in 41 hard-rock deposits. A placer deposit contains an additional 556,000 tons. These 42 deposits constitute a subeconomic indicated and inferred reserve sufficient to meet the Nation's chromite demands for about 4 yr, or the metallurgical industry's demands for over 5 yr, at 1981 consumption rates.

Jan 1, 1985

By T. Ruff

Researchers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Spokane Research Laboratory, studied technology and methods that could reduce accidents involving surface mining equipment that collides with other vehicles or workers, or drives over an unseen road edge. These accidents are partially attributed to the lack of full visibility around these large pieces of equipment. Blind areas can be extensive and this report presents plots of blind areas for five pieces of surface mining equipment. Several technologies designed for detecting obstacles in blind areas and providing a warning to the operator were evaluated on off-highway dump trucks. These proximity warning systems included radar, sonar, GPS, radio transceiver tags, and combinations of radar and cameras. A summary of test results is presented in this report, along with guidance on effective proximity warning technology, installation and maintenance considerations, and recommendations for effective implementation. This study found several commercially available systems that could effectively warn an equipment operator of an impending collision. Several new technologies also show promise for reducing these accidents. In most applications, it is recommended that sensor-based systems be combined with video cameras to provide important alarming functions along with an actual view of the blind area.

Jan 6, 2007

By Wilbur I. Duvall, S. L. Windes, Leonard Obert

"Previous investigations, too numerous to be listed in entirety, have been performed to determine the physical properties of rock. When considered according to their objectives, most of these investigations can be grouped as follows: First, the geologic group (1,2),4/ in which the purpose was to obtain information on the physical properties of the rocks that make up the earth's crust. Particular emphasis has been placed on the determination of the elastic constants--that is, Young's modulus, the modules of rigidity, and Poisson's ratio – as these quantities determine the propagation characteristics of seismic waves. Second, the structural properties group (3 - 11), in which the physical properties of architectural or monumental stone, concrete and aggregate rock, road blocks (cobblestone), and the like were desired. The tests have been quite general and include, besides the elastic properties; the compressive and tensile strength, and the toughness, hardness, and weathering properties of many types of rocks.To .a lesser degree, investigations have been carried out to determine the physical properties of mine rock. A few reports (12 - 14) present data on the crushability and grindability of mine rock, and a large number of papers discuss grinding and crushing procedures and methods of analyzing the data (for example, see references 15 - 17). Some of the latter group also have given the results of tests on mine rock; however, comparatively few include an adequate petrographic description or information on other physical properties of the rock. A few papers,(18 - 22) have reported studies of the strength of rock specimens in respect to the strength of parts of mine structures, such as pillars, roof, arches, etc. Other papers (23 - 26) have discussed investigations on such subjects as primary and secondary crushing, diamond and pneumatic rock drilling, explosive breaking and shattering of rock, rate of drifting and miring, and other allied problems. The majority of these reports have given no more than a cursory, description of the rocks and have included no statement regarding the physical properties. When statements have been given regarding the physical properties, they have usually referred only to isolated tests, making correlations between variations in the physical properties and variations in the .test under consideration difficult, if not impossible. Some reports have included handbook values on such characteristics as the crushing strength, hardness, and toughness. This practice is not satisfactory, because these values are usually given for col¬lective types of rocks, such as granites, limestones, and marbles, and it is known that the variations of the physical properties within these groups is often larger than the differences between the groups."

Aug 1, 1946

By George F. Dana

Oil yields, lithology, and stratigraphy have been evaluated for 15 cored wells and two sampled wells representing 10 square miles of the Tipton Member of the Green River Formation near Green River, Wyo. The area evaluated is being used by the Bureau of Mines for experimental production of oil from the oil shales in place. Lithology and oil yields were correlated to produce a stratigraphy diagram for the in situ study area, permitting precise designation of comparable sections. Because of lateral uniformity of oil shale, oil yields from eight cores and two sets of drill-cutting samples within a quarter section show the range of variation in average oil yield arising from experimental error. Variation in average oil yields from the seven cores representing the 10-square-mile study area lies within the expected experimental error. No difference in oil-shale richness across the study area is indicated. Average oil yields for three Tipton sections in the study area were deter-mined as follows: (1) The entire Tipton Member oil shale (about 145 feet thick), 13.3 gallons per ton; (2) the 40-foot upper rich zone, 21.0 gallons per ton; and (3) the 21-foot zone in which the Laramie Energy Research Center is conducting in situ experiments, 22.4 gallons per ton. One acre of the 21-foot experimental section represents 34,300 barrels of oil in place, and 1 acre of the Tipton's 40-foot rich upper layer represents 62,000 barrels.

Jan 1, 1972

By H. Britton

This bulletin is the seventh in the series of petroleum bibliographies published by the Bureau of Mines, Bulletins 149, 165, 180, 189, 216, and 220 being compilations for the years 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, 1919-20, and 1921, respectively. In this bulletin the same general plan of classification of references has been followed, but several additions have been made. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Acknowledgment is made to the following organizations for the use of their libraries in the preparation of this bulletin: University of California, Stanford University, California State Mining Bureau, Union Oil Co. of California, Standard Oil Co. of California, and the Mechanics Mercantile Library of San Francisco; acknowledgment for their assistance is also made to H. H. Hill, C. P. Bowie, A. L. Foster, M. J. Gavin, H. C. Miller, E. B. Swanson, and Miss Louise Janssen, all of the Bureau of Mines, and to Miss Elizabeth H. Burroughs of the Union Oil Co. of California.

Jan 1, 1929

By A. J. Kraemer

This report on the physical and chemical properties of typical crude oils of California is the 'eighth in a series on the producing districts of the United States. It includes discussion of results, tabulated data, and individual analyses of typical California crudes. Additional analyses of crude oils from the fields of Fresno, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, end Ventura Counties will be published later in another Serial of the Bureau, but the summary tabulations are presented here. The samples represented in this report were collected over a rather wide interval of tine, the early samples having been obtained during the fall of 1919, and the most recent ones dating from the summer of 1923. It is thought that the samples are fairly representative, both of the older settled production and of the new flush production of the southern California fields.

Jan 1, 1924

By J. Cooperman

THE INVESTIGATION was carried out in three stages, depending on the objectives of the work and the kind of equipment used. The first stage involved testing of 11 representative Alabama coals, the source of which is given in table 1. The objective was to find whether these coals could be gasified raw by the Lurgi method, and the equipment used was a 4-inch batch generator (to be described later). This generator proved too small and difficult to control to provide adequate amounts of products under continuous operating conditions for testing. For the second stage, a 6-inch batch generator was used, which was provided with facilities for superheating the steam-oxygen mixture and for synthesizing additional methane from the residual carbon monoxide and hydrogen in the primary Lurgi gas. Selected Alabama coals, Pittsburgh-bed coal from West Virginia, "Disco," and anthracite were used. For the third stage of the work, a continuous generator of 1 square foot grate area, following closely the design of the industrial generators operated in Germany, was provided. This generator was designed by 0. Hubmann, engineer for the Lurgi company, and was expected to give results closely simulating industrial-scale apparatus. The purpose of this equipment was to test prepared materials shown to operate smoothly in the 6-inch generator under conditions approximating as nearly as possible those prevailing in industrial practice. Work of the first stage showed that Alabama coals could not be used in the Lurgi process without first destroying the coking power.

Jan 1, 1951

By E. H. Burroughs

This bulletin is the sixth in the series of petroleum bibliographies published by the Bureau of Mines, Bulletins 149, 165, 180, 189, and 216 being compilations for the years 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918, and 1919- 1920, respectively. In this bulletin the same general plan has been followed in arranging the references, but one or two additions have been made in the classification.

Jan 1, 1921

By K. K. Kelley

The first bulletin (245)3 in this series, which appeared in 1932, summarized the entropy values then available for the elements and inorganic compounds, results being listed for some 150 substances. In the interim advances in the realms of spectroscopy applicable to the determination of thermodynamic properties and in the development of methods of calculation therefrom have added many highly accurate values. Moreover, through the efforts of Prof. W. M. Latimer (286) and his coworkers, satisfactory entropy values are now available for all but a few of the common inorganic ions in aqueous solution. At the same time rapid progress has continued in the study of low-temperature heat capacities in several laboratories, In addition, compilation and correlation of data pertaining to vapor pressures (247), thermodynamic properties of carbonates (258), thermodynamic properties of sulfur and its inorganic compounds (250), and the thermodynamic properties of metal carbides and nitrides (251), which were published as members of this series, have yielded many values. As a result, over 500 usable entropy values for inorganic substances may now be tabulated. This bulletin originally was planned as a second revision of the first member of this series, the first revision (249) having appeared in 1936; however, because of requests for the explanatory section of the first bulletin from those teaching thermodynamics, it was decided to com¬bine the information in the first bulletin and its revision with the data that have appeared since 1935 and to repeat the explanatory material in somewhat more detail. The purpose of this bulletin is therefore to give the available values of the entropies at 298.1° K. of the elements and inorganic compounds, together with enough explanation of the methods employed in calculating entropies to make the results comprehensible.

Jan 1, 1941

By Lloyd Williams

1. The investigation shows that the Sewanee bed is the only bed of major importance in Marion County, 97 percent of the coal mined in the county having come from this bed. There are coal reserves in minor quantity in the Battle Creek bed, and production from this bed depends on a few small truck mines. The Richland bed, or Lower Sewanee, has been mined in the past, but no coal has been produced from it in late years. There are no production records of any other beds in the county, although same coal has been produced from them. 2. Known measured and indicated reserves in all beds, based on a minimum thickness of 14 inches and on 1,800 tons per acre-foot of coal in place, are estimated to be 61 million short tons as of January 1, 1953. Of this total, 55 million short tons is in beds 28 inches and more thick. Areas in each bed were omitted from the estimate where available data relative to the bed characteristics are too meager to permit 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, 1955