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By Frank B. Fulkerson

Aluminum production in the Pacific Northwest has a new potential for expansion and increased stability of operation. This new potential results from greater availability of power; lower freight rates on alumina and aluminum; good market prospects for the metal, including western aluminum market expansion following a decline in defense requirements in the 1950's; and possibility of developing bauxite deposits in the Pacific Basin as well as other mineral resources. INTRODUCTION This is a report of a special study by the Bureau of Mines of the primary aluminum industry of the Pacific Northwest. It outlines developments relative to the United States as a whole.

Jan 1, 1962

By H. E. Thomas

[The Bureau of Mines has conducted a field hydraulic fracturing experiment to determine the preferential orientation of induced fractures in oil shale at a depth of about 400 feet in the Green River Basin of Wyoming. The hydraulic fracturing treatment was performed by injecting extremely viscous water-base gel and 8- to 12-mesh sand into the oil shale through straddle packers set in an impermeable section of smooth-walled, 6-1/4-inch-diameter open hole. An impression packer proved that a horizontal fracture, which has an average width of about 1/2 inch at the borehole, was induced. A corehole drilled 100 feet from the fractured well intersected the fracture and confirmed its horizontal orientation. Because a horizontal fracture was successfully initi¬ated, it is inferred that the creation of multiple, closely spaced horizontal fractures may be feasible in Green River Basin oil shale.]

Jan 1, 1972

By Scott A. Stebbins

This Bureau of Mines publication presents a method for estimating capital and operating costs associated with the exploration, mining, and processing of placer deposits. To ensure representative cost estimates, operational parameters for placering equipment and basic principles of placer mining techniques are detailed.

Jan 1, 1987

By William L. Crentz

Floyd County, KY., contains sizable deposits of high volatile bituminous coal. Some of the coals have been blended with higher-rank coals and used in the manufacture of high-quality metallurgical coke. The Upper Elkhorn No. 3, Upper Elkhorn No. 2, and Upper Elkhorn No. 1 beds produce the bulk of the present output in the county and contain the main known reserves of coal. Little information is available concerning the quality and extent of the deposits underlying the Upper Elkhorn No. 1 bed, although small operations in the past have worked a bed that is reported to be; the Lower Elkhorn. Undoubtedly, these lower beds occur in Floyd County, but depth Will preclude their development into a major source of fuel as long as large deposits of more-accessible coal are available. More is known of the occurrence of the beds above the Upper Elkhorn No. 3 owing to sporadic mining ventures in the upper measures. Many of the coal samples from beds above the Upper Elkhown No. 3. were collected in mines that had been abandoned. Almost all of the present production of Floyd County coal is taken from the Upper Elkhorn beds, and it is unlikely that their dominant position as coal producers will be challenged in the near future. Table 1 shows the coal production of the county by beds, during 1950.

Jan 1, 1952

A preliminary study was conducted by the Bureau of Mines to determine the effect of humidity on salt mine airborne dust levels. Results showed less dust where the humidity was elevated. Dust reductions appeared to be dependent on the equilibrium between humidity and salt.

Jan 1, 1980

By N. L. Wimmler

The Metaline mining district was examined in 1942 by Bureau of Mines engineers with the cooperation of geologists of the Federal Geological Survey. Because the demands of war production were rapidly depleting reserves in some of the older zinc-lead producing districts of the United States, it was decided that an attempt should be made to increase the proved or indicated ore reserves of the Metaline district. With this objective, certain areas to be explored by diamond drilling were selected. The Bureau of Mines began work on this program. January 15, 1943; work terminated September 8, 1945. Forty-five holes were drilled in seven areas, The holes ranged from 154 feet to 2,050 feet in length. Their combined length was 38,150 feet. Thirty-three of the holes were drilled in. the North Pend Oreille and the West Bella May areas.

Jan 1, 1949

By J. E. Chilton

Interim performance specifications are presented for carbon monoxide, methane, and air velocity transducers used in the Bureau of Mines intrinsically safe mine monitoring system. These specifications give quantitative values or qualitative descriptions of the transducers, including environmental parameters and monitoring system measurement and maintenance requirements as recommended by the Bureau of Mines. Commercially available transducer modules and prototype modules are listed together with selected characteristics.

Jan 1, 1983

By Paul C. Hyndman

No minerals have been produced from the McGraw Creek RARE II area. During the 1982 U.S. Bureau of Mines study, there were no active mines in the area. Limestone occurrences (fig. 1, no. 2), four copper prospects (fig. 1, no. 1, 4, 5, 6), and a prospect with no significant mineral values (fig. 1, no. 3) were examined. A moderate potential for high-calcium limestone resources was estimated between ocurrences within the study area near McGraw and Spring Creeks (fig. 1, no. 2). There is low potential for copper resources at the Argenta Prospect (fig. 1., no. 1) in the study area, and the McDougall Prospect adjacent to the area.

Jan 1, 1983

By Edward W. Parsons

The transverse force developed by expansion-shell rock-bolt anchors on the wall of a drill hole as the bolt is tensioned was measured by the Bureau of Mines using a device specially designed and fabricated for attachment to a universal testing machine. Load cells equipped with electrical-resistance strain gages provided the data from which the transverse force, in pounds, was calculated. Seven different expansion-shell anchors were tested, and the ratio of transverse force to bolt-tension load was found to range between 0.98 and 1.94 to 1.0. The drag load appeared to be the major cause of the transverse-force variation, but the relative effects of individual factors that affected the ratio between the transverse force and the bolt tension were not determined.

Jan 1, 1968

By Jr. Brinkley

For a theoretical description of power plants that derive their energy from the combustion of a fuel, it is necessary to solve, to an appropriate degree of precision, a hydrodynamic problem that requires for its solution a knowledge of the thermodynamic properties of the working fluid com-posed of the products of the combustion reaction. It is usually a good approximation to assume that the properties of the combustion gas are determined by the conditions of thermal equilibrium, and it is thus possible to employ the methods of Classical thermodynamics for their computation. The thermodynamic properties of fuel gases also are of considerable importance, as they form the basis for the design of appropriate means for their effective utilization. The specification of the operating conditions to produce a gas for use as an intermediate in a chemical process, such as the synthesis of liquid fuels, may be based upon a study of the variation of the composition of the synthesis gas with changes in the various process variables. Although there exists a large number of important scientific and technical applications of the data that can be obtained from the systematic determination of the thermodynamic properties of combustion gases, such application has been greatly handicapped by the extremely tedious and time-consuming computational methods required. The development of large-scale automatic computational equipment makes feasible the initiation of a systematic program for the determination of the thermodynamic properties of combustion gases and for the application of such data to specific problems of scientific and technical importance. As a part of its program of basic research in flame and combustion phenomena, the Explosives and Physical Sciences Division of the Bureau of Mines is engaged in such a program. The present communication is designed to introduce a series of reports presenting the results of this program.

Jan 1, 1951

By Fredrick L. Johnson

The Bureau of Mines, under Congressional mandate, conducted a mineral survey on the Park Range WSA (Wilderness Study Area) in 1984 and 1985. The WSA, located about midway between Tonopah and Ely, encompasses 47,268 acres. No mineral resources were delineated, nor were workings found, during the investigation. There has been, however, exploration in and near the north end of the study area. ASARCO is actively exploring a block of 41 claims for hot-spring type, low-grade, large-tonnage gold deposits. Their claim block is almost entirely in the study area. The Morey mining district, 7 miles southwest of the study area, produced silver and lesser amounts of gold and lead sporadically from the mid-1860's through the mid-1960's. The WSA is underlain by Tertiary rhyolitic and latitic volcanic rocks and by Paleozoic sedimentary rocks. The Paleozoic rocks have been faulted, silicified, brecciated, and hydrothermally altered, and have anomalous concentrations of precious metals and pathfinder elements. Additional exploration in the north part of the Park Range WSA may lead to delineation of gold resources.

Jan 1, 1986

This summary of State laws on explosives was compiled primarily to ascertain what subjects relating to their control have been acted upon by each State legislature and, in general, how they have been treated. It does not include any legislation passed after 1942, or any proclamations, regulations, or administrative orders. It does not purport or attempt to be authoritative. If any problem arises involving interpretation of the statutes of any particular State, the original source must be consulted for the exact words used by the legislature. This summary, however, will be useful in determining whether relevant statutes exist, and in locating them quickly with a minimum of effort. It will be of value also in comparing statutes in one State with similar statutes in other States to determine what construction has been placed upon them by the courts of these jurisdictions or to contrast the varying provisions of many States upon a similar subject. To make these comparisons easier, the statutory provisions for each State have been grouped under several major topics in outline form. Although this sometimes has resulted in disruption of the continuity of individual acts, the increased general clarity and availability of comparable sections have more than justified the procedure followed.

Jan 1, 1943

By Stephen P. Holt

During the spring and summer of 1946, the Bureau of Mines put down 8 churn-drill holes and 9 diamond-drill holes, totaling 3,535 feet of bore, at the Blewett zinc-lead deposit in Jo Daviess County, Ill. Attention of the Bureau of Mines was first directed to this deposit by the Illinois State Geological Survey, which had investigated the Blewett mine. In the opinion of the Survey and the Bureau of Mines, the record of production and results of drilling previously done on the property were considered sufficient justification for continuing investigation to the north and south along a projection of the trend. This report describes the work done by the Bureau on this, property and presents the data obtained.

Jan 1, 1948

By Mark S. Sanders

This report is a review and synthesis of the published literature dealing with personal equipment items used by low seam coal miners. This report reviews the following items of equipment: headgear, outer garments, respirators, cap lamp, gloves, knee pads, footwear, boots, helmets, ear protection, eye protection. Recommendations for further research and development are included.

Jan 1, 1978

By Joseph A. DeCarlo

The rapid growth of the organic chemical industry in the United States and abroad has focused attention on the future raw-material sources for this important industry. Chemical products are essential to modern civilization; and millions of tons of organic chemicals are used annually, ranging from basic raw materials to finished chemical products such as drugs, cosmetics, and soaps. Hundreds of chemical products are made directly or indirectly from coal, but in this report "coal chemicals" will be limited to crude tar, crud light oil, and ammonia recovered in the high-temperature carbonization of bituminous coal and the important principal products obtained by processing these materials. Specifically these include benzene} toluene, xylene, naphthalene, creosote oil, tar acid oil, pitch, and ammonium sulfate. Therefore the term "coal chemicals", wherever used in this report, includes only these products and does not include the secondary or intermediate products such as styrene, synthetic phenol, aniline, phthalic anhydride, or finished products made from these, such as synthetic rubber, plastics, and dyes. The United States leads the world in production and consumption of coal chemicals. In the past five years nearly one-fourth of the total output of coal-tar crudes in the world was produced in the United States. Consumption of some of the more important products derived from these crudes such as benzene, toluene, xylene, and naphthalene, however, ranged from about one-third to one-half of the world total because of imports and production of benzene, toluene, and xylene from petroleum. The synthetic organic chemical industry of the United States was established during World War I on chemical raw materials obtained by the high-temperature carbonization of bituminous coal but this source of supply currently furnishes less than 40 percent. More than 60 percent of the chemical raw materials used to produce organic and inorganic chemical is supplied by the petroleum industry and production of petrochemicals is rising rapidly.

Jan 1, 1960

By C. B. Kenahan

The Bureau of Mines is developing methods for reclaiming the metal and mineral values contained in municipal incinerator residues. This report describes the first phase of the research, in which reliable methods for sampling and analyzing municipal residues were established and the composition and characteristics of the residues were determined. Samples were obtained from a variety of grate-type furnaces and also from a rotary kiln furnace. The samples were processed on a batch basis and separated into their natural categories by a variety of methods including screening, magnetic separation, air separation techniques, and handpicking. The main components of the residues were determined to be metal and metal oxides, glass, and ash.

Jan 1, 1968

By Thomas J. Peters

In 1979 and 1980, the U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological Survey conducted a mineral survey of the 15,600 acre (6,310 ha) Freel Peak RARE II area (No. 5271) in the Lake Tahoe Management Unit. This study by the Bureau of Mines indicates that potential for economic mineral resources in the area is slight. The only mineralized structures in the area consists of two quartz veins. One quartz vein, at the Mountain Top Mine (fig. 1), located by Fred Denner in 1932, is estimated to contain 2,000 tons (1,800 t) of silver and copper-bearing resources. Chip samples from the vein averaged 0.61 oz silver per ton (20.91 g/t), and 1.59 percent copper. The narrow vein is not economically mineable. The other quartz vein is poorly exposed and contains traces of molybdenum. A second reported molybdenum occurrence could not be substantiated.

Jan 1, 1982

By T. L. Joseph

"IntroductionThe efficiency of ore reduction in the blast furnace and fuel requirements depend upon the degree of uniformity with which reducing gases can be distributed through the stock column and upon the permeability of individual pieces of ore and sinter. If the ore is fine, the major problem in reduction is to get the ascending gas stream to the surface of the ore-Hard, dense ores of low permeability, mined in coarse sizes, tend to improve the permeability of the bed, but unless they are crushed to the proper size they reach the hearth unreduced.Surveys by the Bureau of Mines have shown conclusively that the gas distribution in the upper three fourths of the furnace is far from ideal. Furnace lines, top design, and methods of charging are important, but more thorough size preparation of the ore is necessary to eliminate size segregation at the stock line, which inevitably leads to non-uniformities in gas distribution.Because of the quantity of sinter now produced close study of the characteristics which determine its behavior in smelting is warranted. As the use of concentrates increases agglomeration will become more of a necessity. Improvements in the physical character of the ore burden are particularly important to plants using coke of poor physical quality. In addition to aiding reduction, improved physical properties of the ore burden will permit the use of higher blast heats, which is equally important.Reduction Tests on Fine Sizes of SinterPrevious reduction tests on minus 0.742— plus 0.525--inch pieces of commercial sinters revealed large differences in porosity and reducibility. The results have been published in a former report. 3 Although the physical properties of the sinter, particularly porosity, were found to be of major importance in determining the rate of deoxidization, it appeared that certain chemical properties of the sinter appreciably retarded the reduction of sinters high in silica. This was attributed to the presence of fayalite, which has been identified by Schwartz and by Luyken and Kraeber4 as an important constituent of sinter. Although furnace operators and metallurgists have assumed that iron silicate is more difficult to reduce than hematite or magnetite, definite data on the reduction characteristics of this material were not available. Tests were undertaken, therefore, to develop a method for de-termining the amount of iron silicate present in sinters so that its effect upon reduction could be observed."

Jun 1, 1934

By C. E. Wood

A special appropriation made by Congress in July 1940 provided funds for the investigation of methods for recovering manganese from low-grade [ ] domestic deposits. These funds were assigned to the United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Mines. A committee, identified as the Technologic Committee on manganese of the National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences, was appointed to recommend the allocation of the funds for investigation of the more promising projects.

Jan 1, 1942

By R. V. Ramani

This volume is the first of a four-volume final report on research carried out under a contract from the U.S. Bureau of Mines on the development of a computer simulation model for surface mine reclamation planning. The other volumes are titled as follows: Volume II: Dragline Model, Volume III: Mine Coordinate Generator System, and Volume IV: User's Manual for OPMHS/2. This report deals with the development of a geological model for surface mine planning. The most common orebody modeling techniques are described. A brief review of geostatistical theory and concepts is presented. A geostatistical option for orebody modeling is developed and validated. Computer programs and sample outputs are appended.

Jan 1, 1985