Search Documents

By Phillip N. Yasnowsky

"In this Bureau of Mines report, the Federal income tax treatment of mineral exploration and development expenditures is summarized, and changes in the tax treatment of these expenditures since 1951 are detailed and analyzed. Although no attempt is made to establish causal relationships, major tax changes favorable to exploration and development activities did occur in 1951 and 1966 when the Nation was engaged in military actions and the economy was expanding. More recent changes have been unfavorable to exploration and development and were parts of major tax reform efforts. INTRODUCTIONThis Bureau of Mines report discusses the Federal tax law provisions relating to mineral exploration and development expenditures. These provisions, contained mainly in sections 616 and 617 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (Title 26 of the U.S. Code), apply specifically to minerals (other than oil and gas), and thus are of interest to the Bureau of Mines.Bureau of Mines involvement in this subject stems from the legislative mandate in the 1913 amendments to the Organic Act of 1910 (the Act creating the Bureau) to conduct economic investigations of the mineral industries. Congressional concern with the financial conditions in the economic and mineral industries was expressed more recently in the Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 and in the National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research, and Development Act of 1980. The General Accounting Office recommended in 1976 that the Department of the Interior ""identify and evaluate laws and agency programs that affect maintaining and developing a sound and stable domestic mining and minerals industry"" (17, p. iii). 2Taxes, a source of revenue to governments, are a cost to private firms. Thus, taxes directly affect private sector profits, and unique tax provisions are designed to encourage (or discourage) activities such as agriculture, construction, or mining. Even the international competitiveness of the domestic mineral industries may be affected by taxes because many minerals are traded in world markets."

Jan 1, 1985

In 2005, a total of 263 metal mining operations reported employment to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Metal mines were the smallest mining commodity sector, comprising 1.8% of all mining operations. ? Gold mines comprised 46.0% (n=121) of all metal mining operations. Other common types of metal mines were iron ore (n=32; 12.2%), copper ore (n=31; 11.8%), and lead and/or zinc ore (n=16; 6.1%). ? Nevada had the largest number of metal mines (n=52; 19.8%), followed by Alaska (n=27; 10.3%).

Sep 1, 2008

By C. C. Stevenson, Thomas Varley, E. P. Barrett, ROBERT H. BRADFORD

The art of treating ores by the chloride volatilization process is still in the experimental stage. The process has not been sufficiently developed along metallurgical lines to warrant a definite statement as to the exact place it will occupy in the industry. The basic theory of the process has received the attention of prominent metallurgists for 20 years, and considerable research and experimental work have been carried on. Much of the experimental work done has never been published; if the accumulated results were made known, they would greatly aid,. the further development of the process. This bulletin aim~ to bring the salient features of the process to the attention of metallurgists for the purpose of furnishing information to and receiving comments from interested parties with the ultimate hope that the process will be a commercial success. If commercially utilized, the process will fill a long-felt want in metallurgy, especially in the treatment of oxidized and semioxidized or" carbonate" ores of copper, lead, and silver. Such ores are difficult to treat by gravity concentration or by flotation: in the former their tendency to slime upon crushing and their being of lower specific gravity than the sulphide minerals cause serious losses; in the latter much has been done in sulphidizing oxidized ores and subsequently recovering the artificial sulphides by flotation. Difficulties in proper sulphidizing and the low recoveries obtained have not balanced the cost of the treatment in many plants and in very few has it proved successful. Evidently there is a big void to fill in the treatment of these ores. No radical changes in present methods are forecast, but it is obvious that chloride volatilization can have a distinct place as a method of treatment for ores that are not readily amenable to present methods. In many plants it might replace concentration methods, especially where part of the mineral content in the ores exists in forms other than sulphides.

Jan 1, 1923

By Franklin H. Persse

Domestic bismuth supply was projected from production figures for the ores in which it occurs--copper, lead, zinc, and tungsten. Published and unpublished data concerning host ores were examined to determine bismuth reserves and resources, and mine production. Potential recoverable bismuth occurring with reserves and resources of copper, lead, and zinc was estimated to be 36.3 million pounds. A bismuth availability diagram was developed from quantity estimates and ratios of production cost to value for these host ores. Additional recoverable bismuth occurring with domestic tungsten reserves was estimated to be 1.5 million pounds. Domestic byproduct production of bismuth will approximate 1.3 million pounds annually by 1980. This quantity will provide about 37 percent of the 3.5-million-pound estimated requirement for that year. Known world supply of bismuth appears to be sufficient for world demand to the end of this century. The study indicates that bismuth reserves and potential resources in the rest of the world have not been adequately reported.

Jan 1, 1970

By R. H. Nafziger

The Bureau of Mines evaluated 18 domestic titaniferous materials with widely varying compositions, mineralogy, and physical properties in electric-arc furnaces, Techniques were devised to recover both the titanium and iron values contained in these materials so that the reliance of the United States on foreign sources of higher grade ilmenites and rutile might be decreased. Most of the tested titaniferous materials responded well to lower grade or byproduct reductants, such as bituminous coals, charcoal, and coke breeze. Sufficient slag fluidity was realized by maintaining from 8 to 12 wt-pct iron in the slags; no contaminating fluidizers were required. Fluid slags containing up to 79, 70, and 54 wt-pct Ti02 were realized from east coast ilmenites, a rock ilmenite, and a titaniferous magnetite ore, respectively. A carbon-lined furnace shell is recommended for minimum slag contamination. Good results also were obtained during extended submerged-arc furnace tests.

Jan 1, 1980

By M. R. Geer, H. F. Yancey

"INTRODUCTION With the advent of war in 1941, military operations in Alaska were enlarged on such a scale that the demand for coal in the Territory more than doubled. Coal was needed urgently for heating forts and other military establishments, for use on large construction projects, and for handling the greatly increased volume of traffic on the Alaska Railroad. -The additional tonnage required, estimated at perhaps 250,000 tons per year, probably could have been supplied by the United States, but shipping space between Pacific Coast ports and Alaska was already overburdened with military supplies and construction materials. Moreover, although of only secondary importance in wartime, the cost of coal shipped into the Territory is reported to have been as high as $40 per ton. The alternative to importing coal was, of course, to increase the Production of the Alaska mines.Production of coal in Alaska reached, 350,000 tons in 1944, or more than double the prewar' output. The responsibility for increasing coal production was assumed largely by the Army, A Coal Commission attached to the Alaska Department arranged financial assistance for some mining operations, aided the operators in producing equipment for mechanization, and provided most of the labor necessary to operate the mines. The Bureau of Mines contributed to the program in several ways. First, exploration by the Bureau in the Moose Creek district revealed a substantial tonnage of coal of better grade than any currently mined in the Territory, 4/ and drilling in the Broad Pass district, where a mine to supply coal for the army had been started, revealed that the reserves were far less than had been supposed; this operation was abandoned. Second, coal-preparation practices were studied, and recommendations for improvements made, at two of the operating mines at which the quality of the coal makes preparation a factor of vital importance. Some of the information obtained in these studies forms the basis for the present report."

Jan 1, 1946

By K. L. Williams

The Bureau of Mines laboratory tested the response of a commercially available real-time aerosol monitor (GCA RAM-1) to various dusts. Monitor measurements were recorded, averaged, and compared with simultaneous gravimtric measurements of each test dust. Tests usually lasted several hours. The test dusts of various particle size distributions used included coal, limestone, and a commercially available test dust. For each particular dust, the monitor response was linear and correlated well with mass concentration over the range of about 0.5 to 10 mg/m3. The monitor can estimate a 2.0-/m3 respirable coal dust concentration within as little as 26 pct with 95 pct confidence. The monitor must, however, be calibrated with the dust to be measured because the instrument response is affected by the type of dust particle. The average monitor response to same mass concentration of coal dust was approximately twice the average monitor response to the same mass concentration of limestone dust.

Jan 1, 1984

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) defines an independent contractor as “any person, partnership, corporation, subsidiary of a cor-poration, firm, association or other organization that contracts to perform services or construction at a mine.” Contractors that perform specific types of work are required to report the number of employees who work at coal mines and noncoal mines.

Sep 1, 2007

The production and processing of crude petroleum and natural gas are the dominant economic sectors of the Middle East, providing more than 80 % of the region's foreign exchange. In 1992, the 15 countries that constituted the region accounted for 29.5 % of world crude petroleum output, 20 % of world natural gas plant liquid production, and 5 % of world dry natural gas production. Only Cyprus and Lebanon were not crude petroleum producers. A fairly wide range of non fuel minerals is also produced in the region. The most significant are boron minerals, bromine, chromite, gypsum, phosphate rock, potash, strontium, and sulfur. However, the variety of minerals produced, output levels, and the size of the overall non fuel mineral economy of the region is dominated by Iran and Turkey. Turkey, with a diverse mineral production and strategically situated between Europe and the Middle East, was first in world production of run-of-mine boron minerals, second in strontium behind Mexico, and fourth in pumice. It was also a significant world producer of chromite, magnesi'lm compounds, mercury, and sodium sulfate. Turkey was also the Middle East's largest cement and steel producer. Iran continued to expand output of most mineral commodities following the war with Iraq from 1980 to 1988. It was a significant world producer of gypsum and strontium and on its way to becoming a major iron and steel producer in the region. Despite a very small domestic mineral industry, Israel was second in world production of bromine and a significant producer of phosphate rock and potash. In terms of processed minerals, Israel was a major world diamond cutting center and exporter of cut diamond. Jordan ranked sixth in world production of phosphate rock. Saudi Arabia was eighth in world production of sulfur.

Jan 1, 1994

By Robert V. Spencer

"This report describes an examination and preliminary exploration of the Magnet Cove Rutile Co. property in Hot Spring County, Ark. The company in 1944 was producing titania for use in-the welding-rod and metallurgical industries but later ceased operations. The deposit appeared to contain potential reserves of rutile ore, and the Bureau of lanes in 1945 conducted an examination designed (1) to obtain samples for ore-dressing tests and (2) to gather information regarding the grade, character, and size of the deposit. This report presents the data obtained by geologic mapping, geophysical surveying, churn drilling, and core drilling. Beneficiation tests are being made at the Bureau of Mines Rolla, No. station, on the samples taken and will be discussed in a later report.The Magnet Cove operation had been called to the attention of the Bureau of Mines, and in view of the potential reserve of titanium-bearing material, it was decided to obtain samples for ore-dressing tests. Churn drilling was selected as a means of obtaining representative samples, and geologic mapping and geophysical surveying were done to throw more light on the nature of the deposit. Subsequently, a few holes were core-drilled.The property contains the NE1/4, W1/2 fractional NW1/4 and 82 acres of the N part of SE of sec. 18, and -29 acres of the SW1/4 NW1/4 sec. 17, all in T. 3 S., R. 17 W., Hot Spring County, Ark. The mine and mill are about 1 mile by graveled road northeast of U. S. Highway 270, a paved road connecting Malvern, 10 miles south and Hot Springs, 12 miles west. The area is served by two railroads, the Missouri Pacific, which passes through Malvern and Hot Springs and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific,,has a line connecting Malvern and Hot Springs an passes about 2 miles south of the property. A natural-gas pipe line and an electric power line reach the property."

Sep 1, 1946

By Ronald A. Munson

Samples of the naturally occurring zeolites phillipsite, clinoptilolite, erionite, and chabazite have been surveyed for their gas adsorption, ion exchange, and other characteristics. Chabazite and erionite, which are generally more stable, also have higher methane adsorption capacities than do the other natural zeolites. Both natural erionite and natural chabazite are classified as small-port zeolites on the basis of their inability to adsorb chlorotrifluoromethane. In the range of 8 to 100 mesh, the adsorptive capac-ity of natural zeolites is improved only slightly by a decrease in particle size. The capacity of natural clinoptilolite to adsorb methane is increased by cation replacement by the hydrogen ion and decreased by exchange with calcium ion. Natural phillipsite, which is easily decomposed by heat, adsorbed methane to a limited extent.

Jan 1, 1973

By F. X. Tartaron

Behavior of hard-burned quicklime was compared with that of soft-burned quicklime in an oxygen converter utilizing oxygen blowing in a rotating cylindrical vessel, set at a 30° to 60° angle to the horizontal and operated at a predetermined speed of rotation. Four pairs of tests were made) each comparing hard lime with soft lime. Three of the pairs differed from one another in the quantity of lime employed) and the fourth differed in blowing time, All four pairs showed an increase in yield when soft lime was used. Three of the pairs revealed that the ratio of the oxygen consumed with soft lime to the oxygen consumed with hard lime was the same as the ratio of metal yield with soft lime to the metal yield with hard lime. The fourth pair contained an error and could not be included. Finally, a close inverse relation was found between the combined iron in the slag and the combined lime in the slag, which can be expressed by the equation pct Fe = 52.67 -0,906 (pct CaO).

Jan 1, 1967

By L. Kaufman

A range of processing conditions and compositions have been evaluated in order to optimize the properties of TiB2-(Ni,Cu) composites for application as a non-sparking tool material for use in coal mining operations. Fifty billets containing from 70 to 9S weight percent titanium diboride were hot pressed at 3000 psi between 2400°F and 2650°F. Samples which were cut from these billets were used to measure hardness, bend strength and impact strength so that composition/processing optimization could be effected. Eight compositions selected on this basis were evaluated by incendivity tests in order to choose the best composition. The best results were obtained for an 85 w/o TiB2-12 w/o Cu-3 w/o Ni composite hot pressed at 2650°F and 3000 psi. This material appears to be the best choice for fabrication of coal cutter bits to be evaluated in field tests.

Jan 1, 1973

By CDC CDC

In 2004, a total of 251 metal mining operations reported employment to the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Metal mines were the smallest mining commodity sector, comprising 1.7% of all mining operations. • Gold mines

Sep 1, 2007

By Allan E. Martin, George Glocker, C. E. Wood

"INTRODUCTION As part of a comprehensive investigation of the mechanism of defurization of iron and steel by slags, the Blast Furnace Studies Section, Metallurgical Division, Bureau of Mines, in cooperation with the Institute of Technology, University of Minnesota, has made a study of the forms in which sulfur occurs in blast-furnace slag. This report presents data on the three sulfides most important in iron smelting, namely, ferrous sulfide, manganous sulfide, and calcium sulfide. The tendency of these sulfides to form colloids in the molten slag was determined by an examination of quenched samples with an ultramicroscope.Vogt/ conducted experiments on sulfide silicate melts and examined synthetic blast-furnace slags in a partly crystallized condition. His conclusions were that FeS, CaS, and MnS, or isomorphous compounds, such as (FexCay)S and (MnxCaa)S, were precipitated from the melt, depending on the composition of the slag. In all specimens sulfides were visible and were spherical.Coloration of glass by sulfur also provides indirect information on the nature of sulfur in blast-furnace slags./ There seems to be a general agreement at present among the workers in the field of colored glasses that ferrous sulfide is a strong color producer. Colors that have been attributed to this compound include yellow, orange, brown, blue, and black. Apparently the ferrous sulfide is considered to be dissolved in these glasses. There is no indication that any of them have been examined for a colloidal phase.Lorenz 7/ investigated a single manganese slag in the glassy state and observed a Tyndall beam in an ultramicroscope. His conclusion was that either a manganese compound had precipitated in a finely divided condition or that metallic manganese had volatilized and penetrated into the slag as a vapor and thus formed colloidal particles."

Feb 1, 1941

Overexposure to noise is a widespread, serious health hazard in the mining industry, and causes hearing losses to a large percentage of the mining population. Recognizing this fact, the Bureau has a major on-going research effort to address this problem area. These proceedings include an overview of the Bureau noise control program and summarize nine selected noise control research programs.

Jan 1, 1984

By Charles L. Kimbell

The year 1977 generally was a year of growth in overall world mineral industry activity, although there were downturns in major elements of the world's iron and steel industries. The sharp upturns in market economy nation activities that were noted in 1976, following the reduced performance levels of 1975, were moderated, and in the centrally planned economy nations, overall mineral industry activity apparently continued to increase, but at a pace in keeping with that of 1916 rather than at the higher rates of the earlier 1976's. Noteworthy during the year, if only in a negative sense, was the inability of world powers to reach any significant agreement on issues relating to deep seabed mining. Interest from a commercial viewpoint centered around deposits or so-called manganese nodules. These materials, which indeed are chiefly manganese in terms of their content on a quantitative basis, really were of commercial interest primarily far their copper, nickel, and cobalt content. Participants at the Third United Nations Law of the Sea Conference looked into seabed mining rights, but reached no mutually agreeable decisions.

Jan 1, 1981

By Kenneth G. Skinner, Hewitt Wilson, Thomas L. Hurst

Although chromite deposits occur in California , Oregon, Washington, Montana, Wyoming , Pennsylvania, Maryland , New Mexico , North Carolina, Alaska, and the Phillippine Islands , less than 1 percent of the ore used in the United States is obtained from these deposits . Most of the ore in peacetime has been supplied by imports from South Africa, New Caledonia, Turkey, and Cuba . The mineral chromite , the most important chromium ore , is an isometric spinel with an ideal composition of FeO Cr2O3 , but commercial chromite has the variable composition (Fe , Mg) Oʻ (Cr , Al , Fe) 203. Chromite has a black color , a specific gravity of 4.4 , and a hardness of 5.5 . In thin section the color is reddish -brown to black . Chromite occurs in dunite and pyroxenitic ultrabasic rocks , which are composed of iron- magnesium silicate minerals such as olivine , saxonite , serpentine , and enstatite . These are also the gangue minerals . Com mercial ore occurs at random in the country rock in kidney- or lens - shaped deposits , which have no apparent relationship to each other . Stringers , veins , and bands often cut the country rock without regard either to fracture or to other deposits . Some beach sands , such as those in southern Oregon, contain chromite .

Mar 1, 1943

By J. A. Pile, Virgil Miller, R. G. Peterson, F. B. Petermann

"INTRODUCTION As virtually no published data are available on the sintering of fine, minus-100-mesh, ferrograde manganese ores, it is most opportune to present data on the amenability of various fine ores and mill products to the sintering process. These data cover the sintering or nodulizing of finely crushed, high-grade pyrolusite and rhodochrosite ores, sintering of manganese carbonate flotation concentrate, sintering or nodulizing the calcine from the deleading of a manganese oxide flotation concentrate, and sintering the calcines made in a Herreshoff furnace from the treatment of manganese sulfate products.If finely sized products are to be smelted in the present electric or blast ferromanganese furnaces, they must be sintered or nodulized. The only specification as to the size of the sintered or nodulized product is that it must pass a 6-inch screen and not contain over 1t-1/2 percent minus 20-mesh material. The minimum-maximum size has not been established. Undoubtedly this opti mum size will be set by the ferromanganese industry when ample quantities of manganese oxide sinters have been smelted."

Mar 1, 1942

By Michael D. Balen

During the years 1987 through 1989, the Bureau of Mines Alaska Field Operations Center (Bureau) in cooperation with the Western Field Operations Center and the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys (ADGGS), conducted mining, geological, and geochemical investigations in the 5.7 million-acre Valdez Creek Mining District (VCMD). This investigation was conducted as part of the Bureau's continuing Mineral Land Assessment (MLA) mining district studies program. The Bureau's MLA program is designed to provide reliable and comprehensive mineral resource information that supports mineral resource policy and land use decisions made by Congress and Federal land management agencies. The information also provides the basis for decisions that would expand the domestic supply of important mineral resources, primarily strategic and critical minerals. Much of the MLA work is done jointly with cooperating State or U.S. geological surveys.

Jan 1, 1992