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By Glenn C. Reed

This report is one of a series based upon investigations made and being made within the Missouri River Basin in Montana by engineers of the Bureau of Mines , Albany Branch , Mining Division . These investigations are made primarily to provide preliminary information to the Department of Interior agencies and to others concerned with planning the proposed Federal power development within the Missouri River Basin . The present report has been designed to permit public distribution of factual data obtained . The field investigations were made during the late fall of 1947 and the summer of 1948. Information on mineral occurrences in several areas in Sweet Grass County also are included in this report because of their close proximity to Park County . Practically all known metallic mineral deposits within Park County were investigated ; some nonmetallic mineral deposits also were investigated. The investigations of the metallic mineral deposits in Park County cannot be considered complete ; some long inactive mines and prospects on which little or no information is of record may have been missed . Many of the underground openings , especially at the long inactive properties , no longer are accessible ; consequently , much of the information regarding history their and development necessarily has been obtained from available Federal and State publications .

Feb 1, 1950

Empirical methods involve the scientific interpretation of real-world experience. Many problems in ground control lend themselves to an empirical approach because the mines provide us with plenty of experience with full-scale rock structures. During the past 10 years, powerful design techniques have emerged from statistical analyses of large databases of real-world pillar successes and failures. These include the Analysis of Retreat Mining Pillar Stability (ARMPS), the Analysis of Longwall Pillar Stability (ALPS), the Mark-Bieniawski rectangular pillar strength formula, and guidelines for preventing massive pillar collapses. In the process, our practical understanding of pillar behavior has been greatly enriched.

Jan 5, 1999

By D. E. Van Dillen

Three-dimensional structural analyses of three instrumented areas of a deep, longwall coal mine have been performed using the finite element code BMINES. The three Instrumented areas include two single-entry portions and one double-entry portion of the Sunnyside No. 1 Mine, Sunnyside, Utah. The finite element models simulated the sequence of excavation in each test area: the advance of the entry, installation of structural supports, retreat of the longwall, caving behind the longwall, and accumulation and loading of the gob. The structural supports considered in these finite element models include rock bolts, wood cribs, concrete cribs, steel arch sets, and chocks. Mechanical simulation of the geologic environment is achieved through elastic/ perfectly plastic material models employing anisotropy to represent finely layered regions of the medium. The results of these calculations are com-pared with the instrumentation readings from the mine. These measurements include closures, crib loads, rock-bolt forces, and stress growth.

Jan 1, 1978

By W. R. Crane

Mining of the red iron ores of the Birmingham district, Alabama, has _gone on energetically for the past 50 years and has created a large iron and steel manufacturing center, the only important one in the South. The district produces about 10 per cent of all the iron ore mined in the United States and 80 per cent of the Alabama output is red ore ; moreover 43 of the 419 blast furnaces of the country are in the district tributary to Birmingham and produce 7 per cent of the pig-iron output. The rapid growth of the district has been made possible by investigations that have led to radical changes in furnace practice; studies of methods by which the low-grade, highsilica ores may be treated by concentration 1 will give still greater impetus to development. The· mode of occurrence of the ore has made mining practice comparatively simple, but with the rapid extension of the workings underground and the disturbed condition of the ore bed some distance from the outcrop, conditions tend to become more difficult. Stoping, handling, support, drainage, and ventilation are all affected, sometimes favorably and sometimes adversely, by the extended workings and increased depth of cover. Should beneficiatioil make available the high-silica ores of the lower bench of the Big Seam, mining practice must necessarily be adapted to the new conditions and will be rendered more difficult as the weight of cover increases at long distances from the outcrop. The support of workings will require more attention as the weight of cover increases, and the efficient and economical operation of the mines will depend largely upon improvements in mining and handling the ore.

Jan 1, 1927

By Charles E. Larson

Square Butte has no history of mineral development or production. Surface mapping, radiometric surveys and chemical analyses of rock samples reveal no mineral potential. The area has a speculative potential for petroleum and natural gas. INTRODUCTION The Square Butte Instant Wilderness Study Area, in Chouteau County, Montana, consists of 1,946 acres (788 ha) about 35 miles (56 km) southeast of Fort Benton and 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Lewistown (fig. 1). This study was performed under provisions of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (Public Law 94-579, October 21, 1976), in conjunction with the U.S. Geological Survey, which is responsible for regional geological, geochemical, and geophysical investigations, and the U.S. Bureau of Mines, which determines the mineral potential of existing mines, prospects, or mineralized areas.

Jan 1, 1982

By H. W. Gillett

This bulletin is issued by the Bureau of Mines as a contribution to the increase of safety and efficiency in the preparation and utilization of the mineral resources in the United States. Notable among the drains on these resources are the demands made by the nonferrousmetal industries, and in these the losses occasioned in melting brass and bronze are worthy of particular attention. This statement will be better appreciated by a consideration of the size of the brass industry. MAGNITUDE OF THE BRASS INDUSTRY. According to the Thirteenth Census, in 1909 there were in the United States 1,021 fu-ms that dealt mainly in brass and bronze. This total included jobbing foundries, manufacturing plants that both cast and machine a brass or bronze product, and rolling mills, but did not include iron foundries having nonferrous departments nor the numerous large brass-foundry departments of manufacturing plants that produce the castings used in the manufacture of electrical apparatus, cash registers, pumps, and the thousands of machines that require brass castings for their construction. Penton's Foundry List for 1910 gives about 1,150 exclusively nonferrous foundries and about 2,300 iron or steel foundries that also melt brass. If the rolling mills and. jobbing foundries in manufacturing plants be included, and if due credit be given to the rapid growth of the industry in the last few years, largely through the stimulation of the automobile busi¬ness, it is probable that not less than 3,600 plants are to-day melting brass or bronze.

Jan 1, 1916

By Martin J. Gavin

The results of investigations of the oil-shale resources of the United States were first published by the United States Geological Survey in 1915.1 Other reports 2 have followed. These reports, investigations by private individuals and corporations, and the beginning of the development of an oil-shale industry in this country have aroused considerable interest in the possibilities of these shales as a commercial source of hydrocarbon oils. The Bu- . reau of Mines bas appreciated these possibilities, and since 1916 one or more of its engineers have given all or part of their time to investigations relating to the treatment of oil shales. A short pamphlet a containing general information on the possibilities of oil shale in this country, particularly the shales of the Rocky Mountain district, has already been published. This pamphlet gives methods for assaying the shales of oil and ammonia and contains a bibliography for the use of those desiring to search the literature.

Jan 1, 1924

By Janet Torma-Krajewski

Research has shown that an ergonomics process that identifies risk factors, devises solutions to reduce musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), and evaluates the effectiveness of the solutions can lower worker exposure to risk factors and MSDs and improve productivity. A review of the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) injury/illness database indicated that 46% of illnesses in 2004 were associated with repetitive trauma and 35% of nonfatal lost days involved material handling during 2001? 2004. Even though these statistics show that MSDs significantly contribute to occupational illnesses and injuries in the U.S. mining industry, few mining companies have implemented an ergonomics process. Despite the many unique challenges in the mining environment, three mining companies partnered with the MSD Prevention Team at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health?s Pittsburgh Research Laboratory to demonstrate that an ergonomics process could be systematically implemented and effectively integrated with existing safety and health programs. Because these three mining companies were very different in organization, culture, and size, the ergonomics processes had to be modified to meet the needs of each company. A description of how these three companies applied ergonomics and the tools and training used to implement their processes is given. Prior to discussing the case studies, general information on the elements of an ergonomics process is provided.

Feb 1, 2009

Objective: Improve the dust control effectiveness of enclosed operator cabs on surface mining equipment.

Oct 1, 2007

By Henry P. Chandler

TONNAGE of natural abrasives sold or used in the United States in 1959 increased 12 percent. Artificial abrasives produced in the United States and Canada jumped 24 percent. Imports, exports, and reexports of abrasive materials also showed gains. Sales of grinding wheels were up 33 percent and coated abrasives 17 percent. FOREIGN TRADE Imports of abrasive materials totaled $91 million, an increase of nearly 51 percent over 1958. Chief commodities contributing to [ ]

Jan 1, 1960

By Lars G. Olavson

A prototype roof bolt which can be remotely placed by pumping has been developed by the Bureau of Mines. It is known as the "Pumpable Bolt". With the objective of field testing the effectiveness of the pumpable Bolt roof support system a mining machine was developed capable of installing Pumpable Bolts in the normal production cycle of a typical underground coal mine. The machine was built and the pumpable Bolt concept tested and evaluated as a total system in shop and mine tests. The machine was operated in the mining cycle of two mines and pumpable Bolts were installed at both mine sites.

Jan 1, 1976

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 J. H. Hedges

During the World War Leadville was an important producer of manganese and maganiferous ores for then steel industry. Normally, the market for these ores is limited to the requirements of the local steel mill at Pueblo for low-grade ores used in making, basic pig iron containing 1 to 2 percent Mr and spiegoloison containing 20 percent Mn, but during the war and a brief period of postwar readjustment, a good deal of 25- to 40-percent manganese ore qua shipped to in-stern steel-manufacturing centers. Throughout the active life of the camp, manganiferous iron ore carrying a little silver and lead and sometimes as such as 35 percent Mn was chipped to load smelters for flux. The total reordered production is 936,024 tons of metallurgical ore shinned to steel mills and 2,576,514 tons of fluxing ore, much of it of metallurgical grade.

Jan 1, 1940

By D. E. Welcome, T. W. McDowell, R. G. Dong, S. F. Wiker

Workers using vibrating hand tools have the potential for developing health problems associated with repeated forceful actions and exposures to hand-transmitted vibration. Hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) and other hand-arm system disorders have been associated with such exposures.1-2 To better assess health risks, comprehensive evaluations of these exposures must include quantitative assessments of hand-tool coupling forces; unfortunately, no standardized method for quantifying hand forces exists. Handle instrumentation may be ill-suited for some field environments. Psychophysical force-recall techniques may provide alternatives to handle instrumentation. A thorough understanding of the effects of vibration and other factors on force-recall accuracy and reliability is important before such methods are applied in risk assessments. Methods In this study, the effects of vibration and other factors on the accuracy of psychophysical force-recall were explored in two experiments. Twelve male subjects participated in the first experiment. The second experiment employed 20 participants (10 female, 10 male). In each experiment, participants applied specific grip and push forces to an instrumented handle mounted on a shaker system. Participants were exposed to sinusoidal vibration at frequencies that ranged from 0 Hz to 250 Hz. Three levels of applied force (low: grip = 15 N/push = 25 N, medium: grip = 30 N/push = 50 N, and high: grip = 45 N/push = 75 N ) and two levels of vibration magnitude (low: ANSI 4-8-hr limit and high: ANSI <0.5-hr limit)3 were examined. During the vibration exposure period, participants were provided with visual feedback while they attempted to “memorize” the applied grip and push forces. At the conclusion of the vibration exposure/force memorization period and a controlled rest period, the participants tried to duplicate the grip and push forces on a non-vibrating handle without the aid of visual feedback. The effects of different vibration frequencies, vibration magnitudes, and grip and push force levels were tested in a random order from trial to trial. Results Participants tended to overestimate grip and push forces. Depending on exposure conditions, error means ranged from 2 N to 10 N. The ANOVA revealed that force-recall errors for exposures between 31.5 Hz and 63 Hz were significantly higher than those at other vibration frequencies (p < 0.05). The frequency effect is depicted in Figure 1. Error means were greater when participants were exposed to the higher vibration magnitude (mean = 9.1 N, 95% CI = 8.2-10.1 N) when compared with the lower vibration magnitude (mean = 4.9 N, 95% CI = 3.9-5.8 N) (p < 0.05). The effect of vibration magnitude is shown in Figure 2. The average error for

Jan 6, 2006

By B. J. Moore

This publication contains routine analyses and related source data for 528 natural gas samples from 21 States collected during calendar year 1965 as part of a continuous survey of the United States for occurrences of helium in natural gas. This survey has been conducted by the&apos; Bureau of Mines since 1917. The analysis published herein were made by mass spectrometer and a special helium analysis apparatus, which are described in Bureau of Mines Bulletins 4863 and 576.4

Jan 1, 1966

By B. J. Moore

This publication contains routine analyses and related source data for 528 natural gas samples from 21 States collected during calendar year 1965 as part of a continuous survey of the United States for occurrences of helium in natural gas. This survey has been conducted by the Bureau of Mines since 1917. The analyses published herein were made by mass spectrometer and a special helium analysis apparatus, which are described in Bureau of Mines Bulletins 4863 and 576.4

Jan 1, 1966

By George J. Conroy

This Bureau of Mines report summarizes the results of a study of mine inspection records covering 2,200 mining installations over a 3-year period ending December 1974. Tables show the relative frequency of violations of certain provisions of the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 in particular areas of concern, such as circuit breakers, grounding, and permissibility. Examples of past use of the data and analyses are presented.

Jan 1, 1976

By Clarence A. Wright

The Missouri-Kansas-Oklahoma lead and zinc district, better known as the Joplin district, includes the mines in southwest Missouri and in those parts of Kansas and Oklahoma that are directly adjacent. (See PI. I.) This report of investigations carried on by the Bureau of Mines gives the methods used in mining and milling and indicates in some detail the conditions that affect the efficiency of those methods; it does not attempt to discuss the geology of the district, except incidentally, as this has been described in numerous reports by several geologists. Some of the more important recent publications are those of the United States Geological Survey by Smith and Siebenthal, a Bain, b and also those of the Missouri State geological survey by Buckley and Buehler." Other reports are those by Schmidt and Leonard," and Winslow,e of the Missouri geological survey, by Haworth and Crane,! of the Kansas geological survey, and by Jenney.g Although the lead and zinc ores are closely associated, the proportion of zinc ore mined at present is far greater than in former years. For this reason and because the losses in milling zinc ores are proportionately greater than in milling those of lead, the zinc ores are here given most consideration. Only the mines and mills actually examined and tested are discussed in detail, statements of results being restricted to the mines in general, with no special reference to anyone mine. Several mill tests were made to determine in a general way the efficiency of the milling practice in this district and to discover at what stage of the process the losses were greatest. Making these mill tests proved difficult,for, because of the arrangement of the mills and the necessity of estimating the tonnage treated, systematic mill testing and sampling can be done at only a few plants. Many tables giving results of mill tests and screen tests have been omitted because they would serve only to emphasize the important points shown by other data given. The writer has tried to bring out the possibilities of making certain improvements that would effect a greater saving, and has endeavored to avoid the use of technical terms and phrases in order that all statements may be clear and easily understood.

Jan 1, 1918

By W. A. Calhoun

A method for treating high-iron Arkansas bauxites for recovering both abrasive and metal-grade bauxite has been developed by the Bureau of Mines. Present practice usually produces a reject containing appreciable quantities of metal-grade bauxite; however, the processing renders the alumina in the reject unsuitable for the Bayer extraction treatment. Thus the Arkansas abrasive bauxite industry has, in the past, produced little or no metal-grade bauxite. The present investigation was made to determine the possibilities of batter utilization of those particular bauxites through recovery of the wasted metal-grade portion. The large expansion of aluminum-production facilities planned for 1951-53 makes recovery of metal-grade bauxite from presently treated abrasive and marginal abrasive ores en especially timely objective and a welcome addition to our aluminum potential. The quality of the Arkansas bauxites and the inherently associated titania content have made this material particularly attractive to the abrasives industry. however, the gradual depletion of natural abrasive-grade bauxite reserves in this area, the comparative scarcity of high-grade ore, and the difficulty of maintaining adequate reserves have necessitated blending different grades of bauxite calculated to meet specifications. Production of abrasive-grade bauxite from tile, high-iron reserves 13 becoming, increasingly necessary. In one commercial operation, producing abrasive-grade from ores averaging slightly less than 10 percent Fe2O3, approximately 2.7 tons of ore are required to produce 1 ton of abrasive-grade bauxite. The reserves of ore of this grade, however, have been considered inadequate for a long-range production, and ultimately ores averaging 12 to 15 percent Fe2O3 will have to be treated to moot the continued demands of the abrasive industry.

Jan 1, 1952

By Ronald B. Hollenbeck

The value of mineral production in Alabama continued to increase and reached a new high of $260 million, 3 percent above the previous high established in 1967. Record high values were reported for bentonite, crushed marble, lime, miscellaneous clay, portland cement, salt, sand and gravel, and scrap mica. The value of coal, total cement, petroleum, and stone accounted for 87 percent of the State&apos;s total value of mineral production. Alabama ranked second among the States in the production of bauxite and scrap mica and third in kaolin, masonry cement, and native asphalt.

Jan 1, 1970