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By Thomas J. O’Neil

Once again, the United States Congress is debating the minerals depletion allowance. If the past is any indication, the debate will quickly become politicized. Representatives of the densely populated but mineral-poor Northeast will no doubt claim that percentage depletion is sheer robbery of tax dollars perpetrated by corporations to line the pockets of wealthy investors. Many southern and western legislators, on the other hand, will portray the depletion allowance as our only savior from mineral deprivation, blackmail from foreign producers, and a stone-age nonmineral existence. Although this characterization of the usual minerals depletion debate may be overstated, the most unfortunate aspect is that the genuinely important role of the depletion allowance in domestic minerals production is often obscured in congressional hearings. This article will try to provide a basic understanding of the minerals depletion allowance, the underlying rationale, and the increasingly important role the allowance will play in the future. Although the discussions and conclusions can be extended to the metal mining industry in general, most of the examples are drawn from the copper industry.

Jan 10, 1974

By James A. Soles

Concrete is a complex, multicomponent mass whose stability is dependent on three principal variables: quality of the mix, its composition, and environment of the site. The aggregate is only one component, but its constituent minerals may react in unfavorable regimes and, given sufficient time, destroy the concrete. Therefore, besides ensuring that a concrete will meet the strength requirements of a structure, the concrete engineer must be confident that the mortar and aggregates will resist destructive processes. This paper reviews the principal causes and effects of aggregate instability, notes reactions of certain phases, and suggests precautionary measures that can be taken to extend the useful life of concrete structures.

Jan 1, 1984

By Charles J. Lipton

Third World countries have lately taken a variety of actions to improve their revenues from the development of their mineral resources. Increasingly, their governments seek to negotiate production agreements on the basis of feasibility studies and discounted cash flow projections. Developing countries are now more selective in giving incentives to encourage investment in the mining sector. They recognize the value of their contributions to mining projects by way of guarantees and the provision of infrastructure. Third World governments now seek to participate in the basic decision making which determines profitability, such as loan-equity ratios, plant capacity, and processing and sales arrangements. They are alert to the benefits of large-scale development and appreciate their risks. They seek to increase their benefits from foreign exchange earnings and the multiplier effect of mining projects. New forms of arrangements are being used to insure that the mining sector is developed in harmony with the national objectives of the Third World.

Jan 1, 1977

By R. V. Ramani, R. D. Zigmond, R. L. Frantz

In this paper, a computer program for determining the capital and operating costs for coal preparation plants is described along with its applications. The logic of the computer program is based upon the results of a survey of existing preparation plants, operators, plant contractors, equipment manufacturers, and consulting firms. This survey provided information on plant performance, order-of-magnitude costs, and costing procedures. Additionally, an extensive cost data file for the major capital equipment in coal preparation plants has been developed. Using the washability data and the computer program out- puts, the cleaning costs per million Btu can be calculated. Details about the program and its applications can be found in a report by the authors (Zigmond et al., 1979).

Jan 1, 1983

By M. D. Scott

A second generation tailings system, consisting of 8 km (5 mile) of large diameter 914- mm (36-in.) po1yethylene pipeline, the bulk of which was laid on a 0.2% grade, has been successfully operated by Lornex Mining Corp. for the past 2 yr. The system was designed to operate as a partial flow pipeline during average flows with the ability to pressurize itself and operate as a pressure pipeline under high flows, or clean itself out under sanding conditions. The system has exceeded design capacity and has had very little downtime. Polyethylene pipe was easily and inexpensively installed and has exhibited superior abrasion resistance characteristics.

Jan 1, 1978

By David G. Chedgy, Wen L. Chen, Bill S. Taylor

Theoretically the heavy medium cyclone is capable of cleaning raw coal from a top size of about 38 mm (1 1/2 in.) to a bottom size of about 200 mesh. With this idea, plants have been built recently using the heavy medium cyclone without desliming. The full size range down to zero is fed into the cyclone. Products + 28 mesh are removed in the normal manner on drain and rinse screens. The 28 x 200 mesh products are recovered separately from the magnetic separator tailings. Simplicity of flowsheet and plant operation coupled with the high efficiency of the heavy medium cyclone makes this a very attractive approach.

Jan 1, 1980

By Paul A. Bailly

Geology is not the problem. Because of inflation, taxation, and politics more reserves are being reconverted to uneconomic resources than there are new reserves created by exploration and extraction technology.

Jan 1, 1976

Jan 1, 1918

By John C. F. Randolph

THIS mill being now in successful work, it seems proper to record some professional memoranda concerning it. It is intended to handle an unusual ore, in a locality difficult of access, and its arrangement and method of procedure present some novel features of interest. It was prepared for the San Miguel property at Batopilas, State of Chihuahua, Mexico, owned by the Consolidated Batopilas Silver Mining Company of New York, at present under the management of ex-Governor Alexander R. Shepherd. This property contains a large series of more or less parallel veins, worked through a deep cross-cut tunnel 1300 feet in length. The vein rock of these veins is calespar in diorite. While, near the surface, ruby silver, black

Jan 1, 1882

By Raymond B. Ladoo

The Paley report made little attempt to project future production and consumption for any industrial mineral except fluorspar and only about a dozen minerals were mentioned by name. Except for fluorspar the treatment consisted mainly of statistics of production, consumption, imports, and sometimes reserves up to 1950. FLUORSPAR In 1954 the author had occasion to evaluate the Paley fluorspar estimates. At that time a fairly detailed study of the world picture was made and bases for the Paley estimates were studied. Data for later years confirm, in the main, the conclusions reached in this earlier report and it will be drawn upon here.

Jan 11, 1959

By D. M. Wyslouzil

Standard testing methods are described that are presently used for the selection of grinding equipment. Correlation between laboratory batch grinding tests and pilot plant continuous tests are established by means of particle size distributions and flotation results. Conventional and autogenous grinding circuits are discussed showing the relationships of the controllable circuit parameters.

Jan 1, 1982

By M. Cross

The main results from a programme of theoretical work on various aspects of the pelletizing operation are presented. This paper is primarily concerned with the modelling of: (i) The balling drum operation. A model is outlined which clearly demonstrates the characteristic surging behaviour of the balling circuit. It is used first in a control analysis and, subsequently, in the design and testing of various control schemes. (ii)The grate-kiln-cooler induration process. Models describing each of the constituent processes are outlined and a composite model of the whole induration process presented. The main results from each of these models are discussed.

Jan 1, 1977

By R. M. Keeney

Jan 1, 1915

By G. Adel, J. Richard Lucas, C. Haycocks

This paper describes over sixteen computer programs developed at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University during the past twenty years to assist in the design of coal operations. Overall development concepts in the construction of the programs are outlined, commencing with those used in the exploration phase of mining and extending through economic analysis and into the design of specific engineering systems such as belt, rail and power networks, scheduling, rock mechanics problems and simulation of face systems. Summarized information is given for the use of the major programs including user restrictions, input data, typical output and industrial applications and case studies. Analysis has been made of the programs' applications by industry throughout the world. Such analysis is facilitating development of new programs as well as a refinement of existing ones. To date programs have been constructed in four categories: exploration, ground control, economic and simulation. Face production simulations are stochastic in nature and require the use of time study data obtained at sites underground. Future programming efforts currently under development are aimed at interactive programs for use with minicomputers and, where advantageous, with graphical displays.

Jan 1, 1983

By Charles D. Hoyt

T IME studies and cost accounting were combined to increase the efficiency of the overall mining method and thereby reduce costs at the Titania mine of the National Lead Co. in southern Norway about 70 miles southeast of Stavanger. From these studies a more effective drilling system was developed, standards were adopted for setting base pay rates, shrinkage stoping was abandoned for open stoping, a new mechanical loading chute was adopted, and the loading and haulage system was changed. Ore minerals at the Titania mine are ilmenite and magnetite; gangue minerals are plagioclase and hyperstene with accessory minerals of biotite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, and spinel. The average content of the ore is 17 pct TiO2 and from 20 to 25 pct iron. The ilmenite crystals contain microscopic lamels of hematite, making it impossible to obtain a high TiO2 content in the concentrate. An ilmenite concentrate with 44 pct TiO2 and 36 pct Fe, and a magnetite concen-

Jan 9, 1950

By N. Arbiter, J. Steininger, C. C. Harris

Power consumption and operating variables in air-liquid systems for a wide range of operating conditions in the turbulent region have been correlated by two dimensionless groups involving the power ratio and the flow number. The form of the correlation was developed by considering flow balances related to the air-liquid composite density in the impeller zone. Data for two phase air-liquid systems, both from literature and from the present investigation, has been correlated with high statistical significance. Two phase solid-liquid and three phase gas-liquid-solid systems have also been correlated. The quantification of power requirements in the agitation of liquids is well established.1 Rushton, Costich and Everett have shown that, for mixers operating in the fully turbulent region with no vortex, the power number

Jan 1, 1964

By Walter J. Johnson

The coals in northern Wyoming and Montana are free-burning and non-caking and range from lignite to bituminous C in rank. Strip and underground mining are employed to supply railroad, utility, industrial, and domestic fuel. The market area includes Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, North and South Dakotas, Wyoming, Montana, the Pacific Northwest, and western Canada.

Jan 12, 1953

By Morris Muskat

ANALYTICAL calculations have been carried out on the effect of casing perforations on the productivity of wells, and formulas have been derived for general types of perforation patterns. The numerical calculations, however, show that the resultant well productivity is essentially independent of the perforation pattern, but is determined mainly by the total perforation density. Thus, for example, for a density of three perforations per foot of casing, the well productivity will be cut to one third of that of the uncased well for a perforation radius of 1/3 in., and to approximately one half for a perforation radius of 1/4 in,, regardless of the detailed manner in which the perforations are distributed over the casing surface. The analytical theory is also extended to include wells completed with slotted liners. It is shown that the reduction in productivity due to such liners will be relatively small as compared with that due to perforated casings.

Jan 1, 1942

By D. M. S. Bhatia, Richard D. Hagni

Five sulfide minerals from the Magmont mine, southeast Missouri were sampled for 31 trace elements in over 300 samples by laser microprobe spectrographic analysis of polished sections. The concentration of several trace elements shows a pattern of progressive variation with depth (space) and variation with different paragenetic stages (time) of each mineral. Factor analysis of the geochemical data shows sympathetic correlation both in space and in time of Bi, Cd, Ge, and Sn in galena and sphalerite, and Ni and Co in sphalerite and marcasite.

Jan 1, 1981

By Harold R. Wampler, John L. Bolles, Adrian J. Broderick

Phelps Dodge's 60,000 tpd Morenci Concentrator has been in operation since 1942. The integrating of process control applications into the concentrator began in 1972. A process control system is presently on-line controlling 30 primary grinding circuits and all reagent additions. The system consists of a centralized control room process control Computer, on-stream X-ray analyzer, on-stream particle size analyzers and an operator interface. This paper describes the process control system's development, control concepts and its influence on the concentrator performance.

Jan 1, 1978