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By Russell R. McLellan

The Tertiary channel gravel deposits in northern California were selected Or detailed investigation by the U. S. Bureau of Mines as part of a national program to locate potential sources of gold that might be developed rapidly by large-scale mining operations. Five bureau research centers representing mining and metallurgy subsystems coordinated their efforts in a team operation to identify and investigate possible solutions to the problem area, that long have discouraged the resumption of large-scale mining in the deposits. This report summarizes the individual investigations, conclusions and recommendations conducted and prepared by all mining subsystems research groups after the completion of two years of field work at the deposits on San Juan Ridge in Nevada County, California. The studies indicate that modern mining technology can cope with the environmental problems that closed the immense hydraulic mines in 1,884. however, they also indicate that mining can be conducted with only marginal profits its unless the price of gold remains substantially above $70 per ounce or unless sufficient by-products can be recovered and sold to place the average value per cubic yard of gravel into a positive commercial range. The by-product potential of the Tertiary gravels remains to be investigated in more detail.

Jan 1, 2012

By J Hudson

Autogenous (AG) and Semi Autogenous (SAG) grinding mills are the conventional selection for large-scale grinding circuits. It is accepted that these forms of comminution are not the most energy efficient available. This efficiency combined with escalating energy prices, steel prices and the requirement to process larger, lower grade deposits has necessitated that better comminution techniques are found to challenge the dominant position of AG/SAG mills in the grinding circuit. Recent advances in high pressure grinding rolls (HPGR), particularly in terms of roll surface protection have meant that, depending on the application, an economic alternative is available to the large diameter AG/SAG mills. Mining companies now recognise the potential benefits of HPGR and so they need proper assessment in the design of new or upgrade of existing grinding processes. Of course, the answer to the question AG/SAG or HPGR is not straightforward and the impact of the grinding process on the whole metallurgical process needs to be evaluated. Clearly this is a complex decision to make and requires substantial metallurgical knowledge, test work, and objective analysis. The perceived downstream processing benefits will differ between different plants depending on the ore type and processing conditions. The optimal design of the comminution circuit requires that a robust methodology is followed to objectively characterise the ore, size the equipment and determine the downstream processing benefits. The paper gives a brief comparison of the capital and operating costs for both grinding systems, and then outlines the appropriate test work that is required to make an informed decision.

Jan 1, 2006

By Walter R. Storms

"INTRODUCTION The New Mexico potash exploration described herein was begun in February 1944 with the object of determining the amount of potash ore in the United States Potash Reserve in Eddy County by exploring the deposit from the surface with vertical drill holes. The work was completed in October of the same year after 16 holes had been drilled on the Reserve and in the immediate vicinity.The Potash Reserve is in secs. 26; 27, 34, and 35, T. 20 S., R. 29 E., Eddy County, N. Mex., about 14 miles northeast of Carlsbad, as shown on figures 1 and 1A, Drilling was done in secs. 26 and 35 of the Reserve, in section 14 to the north, end sections 2 and 56 to the east. All work was done on Governnent-owned, unleased land.The Reserve may be reached from Carlsbad by traveling to the north-east by automobile for about 14 miles on the paved U. S. highway 62. This highway passes through the southern part of the Reserve. Other parts may be reached by a State highway that passes along the eastern side of the area, then by poor dirt roads to various drilling sites. A branch of the Santa Fe Railroad also passes across the southern part of the Reserve enroute from Carlsbad to the plant and mine of the Potash Co. of America, a few miles northeast of the project and 22 miles from Carlsbad."

Aug 1, 1947

By R. S. Dean

[During the past fiscal year the Metallurgical Division has made important contributions along the lines dictated by the Bureau policy of conservation of domestic mineral resources through Its investigations include determining of fundamental data of metallurgically important materials improvement of standard ore-treatment method to eliminate waste and improve the grade or recovery of the products; and development o new metallurgical processes.]

Jan 1, 1940

In the minerals industry allocating capital for setting up a new project or for upgrading an existing facility usually requires that a compromise be found between the initial cost of equipment, its operating performance and on-going operating costs. To maximise the return on the investment usually requires that various possible combinations and layouts of equipment be assessed. This task is both difficult and time consuming. Computer simulation can be used as a means of determining the expected operating performance of a range of alternate equipment configurations. Simulation is a particularly important technique for analysis as it is one of the few approaches that allows the analyst to take into account the variability inherent in a mining process. While computer simulation is a well established technique its use, until recent years, has been limited to large organisations with access to substantial computing facilities. However, with the current availability of low cost computing platforms combined with easily understood animated displays, simulation is now becoming more widely used across the industry.

Jan 1, 1990

By P. Rosten

US mine production of iron ore in 1984 showed some improvements compared to 1983. But reduced demand from the iron and steel industry caused temporary shutdowns of many iron ore mines and pelletizing plants. US raw steel production in 1984 was slightly above 1983, but still at a depressed level. Production was 83 Mt (92 million st), compared with 77 Mt (85 million st) in 1983 and 68 Mt (75 million st) in 1982. Two major production trends continued in 1984. They were the increased production from electric furnaces and the growing use of continuous casters. Electric furnace production included 33.2% of the steel poured in 1984, compared with 31.5% in 1983. Continuous casting was used for 39% of 1984 steel production, compared with 32.1% in 1983. Statistical Process Control Statistical Process Control (SPC) has taken on new proportions in the iron ore and steelmaking industries within the last year. This mathematical technique is used to monitor, control, evaluate, and analyze a manufacturing process. The technique charts variability of important quality parameters. Training and adaptation of SPC techniaues for process control have been initiated at Inland, Steel's Minorca, Pickands-Mather's Hibtac, Cleveland-Cliff's Empire and Sherman operations, and at Reserve Mining. One of these operations has requested its bentonite supplier provide SPC charts on quality specifications. Some of the steelmaking operations (Inland Steel, Bethlehem Steel, Dofasco, LTV Steel, National Steel, Stelco, Weirton Steel, and Wheeling-Pittsburgh) have set up SPC programs within their operations. And they also have insisted that some of their suppliers use SPC. Plant Shutdowns The permanent closure of Stelco's Griffith mine at Red Lake, Ontario, has been delayed by one year. This gives employees more time to adjust. The mine is now set to close in April 1986, instead of April 1985. Sidbec (Canadian government) and its other partners (including British Steel Corp., Quebec Cartier Mining, and US Steel) closed its iron mining operations at Gagnon, Quebec. The pellet plant has been leased to Quebec Cartier. New Iron Ore Operations The massive Carajas iron ore project in Brazil is scheduled to come onstream in Jan. 1986. It is to achieve full-scale commercial shipments by July of that year. The 66% iron crude ore requires only crushing and screening before shipment. The product consists of 83% sinter feed and 17% coarse ore. Annual production capacity will be 32 Mt (35 million st) when the project is completed. Principal customer for the ore is Nippon Carajas Iron Ore Co., a consortium of Japanese steel mills. The Arab Iron & Steel Co. (AISCO) has started up a $US300 million, 3.6 Mt/a (4 million stpy) iron ore pelletizing plant built by Kobe Steel Ltd., at Al Hidd-hide in Bahrain. By 1986, this grate-kiln-cooler plant will supply high quality iron ore pellets to feed direct reduction plants in the immediate Gulf area and Far East markets. Iron ore supplied from Brazil, Peru, India, and Mauritania provides the feed to the pellet plant. Hydrated lime (2%) is used as a burden.

Jan 5, 1985

By William J. Douglas

This document describes the development of a conventional mining equipment data base, and an approach for conducting industrial engineering studies of arbitrary mining systems employing network techniques. Data was acquired through underground time studies. Each member of a four-man field team was assigned to a specific machine during each shift for which observations were conducted. Using digital wrist watches and networks describing the man-machine interactions, all events occurring luring the course of each shift were recorded on cassette tapes. The tapes were transcribed, coded, keypunched, and validated using computerized editing techniques. The resulting data files were processed to provide statistics relating to activity durations and event frequencies. The results were used to evaluate operator, machine, and system performance for each section which was observed. Equipment, reliability, and maintainability analyses were conducted using the industrial engineering data files in conjunction with historical information collected at the mine site.

Jan 1, 1976

By H. T. Rall

This report summarizes a systematic 20-year study of the organic sulfur compounds in Wasson, Texas, crude oil and, to a lesser extent, of three other crude oils, that has culminated in some 200 individual sulfur-compound identifications. The development and application of special separation and identification techniques generally suitable for the characterization of sulfur compounds in any crude oil are discussed. This report reviews early sulfur literature covering petroleum sulfur compound identifications completed before this study was begun, and cites 58 papers resulting from this work. The sulfur compounds in petroleum, both as to type and quantity, have long been of concern to the petroleum industry, and such compositional data are not only of theoretical interest, but also of practical value.

Jan 1, 1972

By M. Hitch, M. B. Lytle

Resource development conflicts arise largely due to differences in worldview between those who support and those who oppose development. This paper illustrates how societies and civilizations with different worldviews produce different levels of creative and economic energy. A questionnaire was created to build a database of responses to test whether worldview and resource development are correlated. Factor and multivariate regression analysis determined correlations for respondent groupings. Results showed a positive correlation between the respondents\u2019 worldviews and their attitudes toward resource development. Correlations became stronger as the homogeneity of the sample subgroups increased.

Jan 1, 2017

By Richard Hanke

Tunnel construction on the Brightwater Conveyance System?s East and Central contracts required ground modifications of the existing site soils, comprised of sandy alluvium to very dense glacial till, to assist with both hand-mined and TBM tunneling operations at vertical access shafts. The ground modification program was completed with a modified double fluid jet grouting system to construct continuous overlapping soilcrete columns to depths up to 94-ft below existing grade. This paper presents the sequence and methodology for the ground modification work and capabilities of jet grouting for structural support and groundwater control in the challenging soil profile present at the Brightwater Conveyance System Project.

Jan 1, 2008

By ALBERT E. HALL, Arno C. Fieldner, Alexander L. Field

As a safeguard against excessive clinker troubles, specifications for the purchase of coal can be drawn to include the "softening" or "fusing" temperature of the ash. The value of such information has been recognized by the Bureau of Mines and has induced the bureau to investigab~ laboratory methods of determining the fUSIbility of coal ash, and the bearing of the results on clinker formation in fuel beds. The bureau realized that the fusibility of a mixture of oxides and silicates snch as is comprised in coal ash ,'aries according to the conditions under which tests are made, and that in the absence of any generally accepted method, no agreement is to be expected among tests made in differ«:-nt laboratories. Indeed, Marks a has recently called attention to differences as great as 3900 C. that were obtained with the same sample of ash by two different laboratories. Therefore if a fusion-temperature clause is to have any place in specifications for coal, a standard m('thod of t('sting should be adopted in order to insure comparable results by different laboratories and to obtain the softening or fusing temperature of the ash unde:'r conditions similar to those of a fuel bed. After a consistent method has been devised for obtaining comparable:' results at different laboratories, there will remain the correlation of these results with those from the burning of coal in furnaces before the value of fusibility tests in coal specifications can hE' finally determined.

Jan 1, 1918

The value of domestic raw nonfuel mineral output in 1985 was estimated at $23.7 billion, 2% above the 1984 value of $23.1 billion. This crude mineral output was the basis for approximately $244 billion worth of processed materials of mineral origin. [ ] A U.S. company permanently closed its alumina plant in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, reducing domestic alumina capacity by 10%. Another U.S. company sold its 26% interest in an alumina plant in Jamaica to its two U.S. partners. On completion of the purchase agreement, the two remaining partners promptly closed the plant for an indefinite period, citing a world oversupply of alumina and unacceptably low prices.

Jan 1, 1986

By Jennifer L. Bell, PATRICK L. YORIO, Emily J. Haas, Susan M. Moore, Lee A. Greenawald

Although researchers have struggled to replicate Heinrich’s safety triangle findings (Heinrich 1931) for various reasons (e.g., no access to his original database and it is unclear if the database was of a single establishment/operation or for an entire industry), the occupational safety community has continued to adopt and expand the applications of this theory (e.g., McSween 2003). Within the mining industry, the potential exists for operations and companies to use concepts from the safety triangle as a way to inform or challenge the practices employed within their health and safety management systems (HSMS) to prevent incidents (Backlund 2016). This paper considers data obtained from the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s databases and demonstrates the validity of applying the safety triangle theory at the mine level. The results support the use of this theory and demonstrate that lower severity incidents can predict fatalities in a subsequent year where significant nuances and caveats to applying the theory are identified and discussed.

Jul 25, 2020

By Secretary of the Interior

"INTRODUCTION The Bureau of Mines Synthetic Liquid Fuels Program again forged ahead during 1952, and important technical advances led the way to improved methods of converting coal and oil shale into liquid fuels. Marking the eighth year of activities under this program, the pact 32 months brought a new domestic industry nearer realization.The increasing demand for gasoline and oil and the rising cost of finding new petroleum, coupled with America's growing dependence on imports and the unsettled international situation, have continued to emphasize the importance of the Bureau's Synthetic Liquid Fuels Program. Oil, the indispensable material of wartime, likewise has critical importance in peacetime, touching as it does the life of every individual. Supplementing petroleum with synthetic liquid fuels will not only conserve this Nation's petroleum reserves but also will bring into greater use its tremendous reserves of coal, as well as the vast deposits of oil shale for which no other practical use has yet been found.The Bureau of Mines Synthetic Liquid Fuels Program is one of the most important and far-reaching of the Government's research projects. Through development of commercial synthetic liquid fuels, the United States can obtain oil products from its great inland reserves of coal and oil shale to supplement petroleum in any quantity that may be necessary, consistent with economic and other requirements, such as national defense. The use of raw materials from such deposits would be of highest importance in wartime, when shipping lanes are menaced by the enemy. The Synthetic Liquid Fuels Program of the Bureau of Mines and research efforts of industry have advanced. American technology to the point where it is now possible to begin the design and construction of prototype plants. Certainly, significant improvements will be made as the program continues, but this prospect in no way alters the fact that the start of prototype plants should be encouraged. These plants, as the first step in the development of a synthetic fuels industry, would serve a threefold purpose:"

Jan 1, 1953

By C. L. Popp

The scope is to address issues confronted by parties in the mining industry such as: Mine planners, survey and engineering departments, field teams and subcontractors. Describing approaches and best practices for assembling a project team to identify and create modeling requirements and to implement beneficial results. 3D Machine Control and Guidance tools continue to reduce project risk and attract quality resources with skill sets new to the earthmoving industry. These tools increase production, reduce rework and help with government permitting.

May 1, 2013

By E. H. Burroughs

This bulletin is the fifth in the series of petroleum bibliographies publis:\:l.ed by the Bure.au of Mines, Bulletins 149, 165, 180, and 189 being compilations for the years 1915, 1916, 1917, and 1918, respectively. In this bulletin the same general plan has been followed in arranging the references, but a few changes and additions have been made in the classification.

Jan 1, 1923

By Jian Zhou, Shuai Huang, Wenqin Xi, Kun Du

The deep oceans harbor a wide variety of mineral resources that are characterized by their abundance and high quality. Nations worldwide are actively pursuing the exploration and extraction of these resources. This paper provides a concise overview of the mineral resources found in the deep sea, highlighting the challenges associated with their exploitation. Furthermore, it presents a comprehensive analysis of the historical development of deep-sea mining technology and equipment, offering valuable insights into this field. By examining the current issues and obstacles faced in deep-sea mineral extraction, this study concludes that the future of deep-sea mining lies in the direction of automation, intelligence, and standardization. Additionally, it identifies the key technological advancements that need to be achieved in order to overcome the challenges associated with deep-sea mining.

Jan 5, 2024

By P A. Tilyard

There have been enormous changes in mineral processing in the past four decades. For example grinding mill power has increased by an order of magnitude, regrinding is done to -10 microns and flotation machines are 100 times bigger. Operating staff have unprecedented opportunities for online monitoring and performance control of mineral processing plants. Sophisticated instruments can provide a plethora of data characterising the mineralogy and surfaces of particles. Digital computers allow complex calculations on huge amounts of data including modelling and simulation of machine and plant performance. However, all these changes have not necessarily lead to better metallurgical results. An analogy can be drawn with the thoroughbred racing industry in Australia. Significant advances in scientific knowledge in animal genetics, physiology, biomechanics and nutrition applied to the business have resulted in only a two per cent reduction in winning times for the Melbourne Cup and Caulfield Cup since the 1920s. A critical look at some mineral processing metrics suggests similar failures to improve performance despite putting in more resources. In fact certain parameters such as operating times and plant start-up performance are considered to have remained static or even deteriorated. There has been an emphasis on 'process' at the expense of 'outcomes'. The industry's strength has been in finding technical (or 'hardware') solutions while its weakness has been at the people end of the business in maximising and consolidating the gains from the technologies. Some trends in plant design over these years have exacerbated the apparent deskilling of operating and technical staff. Despite unparalleled options for communications, some staff are embarrassingly uninformed about technical developments in their fields. The 'boom and bust' cycles of the industry, together with trends in tertiary education and the effects of fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) operations, raise serious questions about the sustainability of human capital in the mineral processing sector. This paper by two experienced mineral processing engineers, with contributions from other senior practitioners, reviews these trends. While there may be an element of 'the older we are, the better we were', it is an attempt to identify the issues and propose solutions.

Jan 1, 2009

By Jr. Kermit Allen

A study was conducted for the AEC to determine the feasibility of constructing an unsupported 315 foot diameter spherical cavity at a depth of 2,700 feet in a salt dome. A cavity of this size and shape has never been attempted. It was determined that the three basic essentials for solution mining; adequate salt, fresh water, and a means of brine disposal were available at the Tatum Salt Dome in Lamar County, Mississippi. Assuming a large, unsupported mined opening of the size and at the depth required would remain stable, the most practical method of providing the cavity using solution mining techniques is by use of a movable blanket of air to control the water level to properly shape the cavity while removing the insolubles either with jetting or by conventional mining methods. It is estimated that, using the jetting method of insolubles removal, the cavity can be constructed in 24 months for approximately $7 million. Using conventional mining techniques to remove the insolubles and shape the final cavity, it is estimated that the cavity can be constructed in 36 months for approximately $12.6 million.

Jan 1, 1968

By J. J. Forbes

This publication is a revision of the first of a series of four Miners' Circulars originally prepared and issued in 19'29 for use in a course of training designed to prepare mine officials to organize men for rescue and recovery operations. These circulars were revised in 1937 and 1938 and again in 1948. This circular (Miners' Circular 33) discusses mine gases and methods for detecting them. The second of this series (Miners' Circular 34) gives instruction in Bureau of Mines methods of sampling and analysis of mine gases; the third (Miners' Circular 35) describes methods and equipment used for protection against mine gases; and the fourth (Miners' Circular 36) explains procedures used in sealing and unsealing mine fires and in recovery operations after mine fires or mine explosions.

Jan 1, 1954