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By Jack L. Taylor

As expected from similar crystal structures and favorable atomic size factors, titanium, vanadium, and molybdenum are completely soluble in one another above the transformation temperature of titanium. The fl phase parameters of the continuous solid solution are shown graphically. Limiting compositions for retained fl phase have been determined. VANADIUM and molybdenum both have body-centered-cubic structures at all temperatures and, from the atomic diameter comparison factor, 3.9 pct, would be expected to form a complete series of solid solutions. The existence of complete solubility has been confirmed by work' at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Furthermore, vanadium and molybdenum have favorable atomic size factors to form complete binary solid solutions with the B phase, high temperature form of titanium, which also has body-centered-cubic structure. Pietro-kowsky and Duwez' and Hansen et al." have established the existence of the complete series of solutions in these binary systems. It would be logical, therefore, to expect that p-titanium, vanadium, and molybdenum would be completely soluble in one

Jan 1, 1957

By Craig C. Johnson

The purpose of this effort was to investigate the feasibility of employing a piezoelectric transducer for seismic communications applications in mine environments. The transducer, a government furnished device incorporated a high Q, spring-mass resonator to load the air side of the piezoelectric crystal. The resonant frequency was seismic load dependent and fell in the range of 300 to 340 Hz. The effort included a mathematical analysis of the transducer, with corroborative laboratory tests, together with actual communications experiments performed first in an open-formation limestone quarry and finally in an operating iron mine. This work showed that the transducer could be coupled efficiently to hard, competent rock media with power conversion efficiencies of 70 to 80 percent (electrical to mechanical) in typical installations. In the iron mine, when radiating peak power was about 30 W (acoustical) in a gated pulse mode, signals were received at a distance of 760 ft through a massive rhyolite porphyry formation. This represents a 15% radiation efficiency with an input of 200 watts. Despite the high ambient noise level due to operating mine machinery, a signal-to-noise ratio of about 20 dB was achieved using a very narrow band filter to process the received signal, and a data rate of about two pulses/sec was demonstrated.

Jan 1, 1972

While ring-blasting techniques offer substantial benefits, there are intrinsic problems that are exacerbated when large blocks of ore are mined in attempts to improve the production economics. These problems relate to both the convergence of holes around the ring drive and the charging of up-holes. The size and shape of the ore block concerned should be carefully considered so that good drilling, patterns can be achieved. The hole diameters chosen, both affect and are affected by the size of the ore block. The explosive selected depends on the hole diameter and together with the diameter, determines the nominal drilling pattern. Ring-drilling patterns are best derived through the use of computer software together with engineering judgement. The loading of explosive is necessarily high, and charging patterns require careful thought if overcharging is to he minimised and adequate energy is to be available at all parts of the ore block. Initiation systems are critical to the blasting results, but sub-optimal systems must be adopted if collar priming is practised. In view of all these factors, idealised guidelines can be given for ring design, but it should be recognised that developments in technology may in time change some of these parameters.

Jan 1, 2000

By Ronald P. Hollenbeck

Shales in the Appalachian Region of Kentucky and Tennessee were sampled and tested to determine their use as raw materials for the manufacture of lightweight aggregate by the rotary-kiln method. Nine samples were obtained from eastern Kentucky and 143 samples were obtained from eastern Tennessee. As a result of preliminary testing of these samples, two sources in eastern Kentucky and 11 sources in eastern Tennessee were resampled for rotary-kiln tests. The rotary-kiln tests showed the two sources in Kentucky and seven sources in Tennessee contained shale that would produce satisfactory aggregate. Lightweight aggregate processed from these nine sources was tested in concrete shapes and was found to be suitable for use in structural concrete.

Jan 1, 1968

A methodology has been developed and demonstrated to be effective in reclaiming surface-mined land for a forestry post-mining land use. The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) has been applied, almost exclusively, to flat or gently rolling surfaces. One of the primary steps in the FRA is to loosely grade the top 1.22-m (4-ft) of soil or substitute root growth medium to avoid excessive compaction. Concern has been expressed by regulators and the public that loose grading on steep slopes could lead to slope failures, which is one of the issues that SMCRA sought to correct. A field investigation was conducted at a steep-slope contour operation in eastern Kentucky to test the applicability of FRA in this setting. Final grading was performed according to FRA standards. The surface consisted of two distinct substitute rooting media. One was unweathered gray sandstone and the other was a combination of gray sandstone, brown sandstone, and topsoil. A variety of native hardwoods was planted following the FRA guidelines. The slope was instrumented with 70 survey monuments to monitor for mass movement. The reclaimed spoil was also characterized using bulk density and penetrometer resistance methods. The characteristics of both spoils are similar to those observed on flat to rolling surfaces where the FRA has been used and, after one year, approximately 70% of the trees had survived. There has been no major mass movement of the slope and slope stability analyses indicate that the application of the FRA has little impact on the overall stability of the slope.

Jan 1, 2011

By CLAYTON C. BALL

In the year 1948, more than ever before, the coal industry established itself on the threshold of a new and exciting future expansion. While production did not equal the wartime and peacetime peaks of 1944 and 1947, it was, in review, a good coal year. During the latter part of the year a combination of mild weather, record stock piling, and general business slackening reduced coal demand to the extent that marginal mines suspended operations, while mines remaining active found it necessary to renew their attention to producing better products at lower operating costs.

Jan 1, 1949

By W. T. Abel

The rate of the steam-carbon reaction, which is of fundamental importance to coal gasification, was determined by passing steam over graphite specimens suspended in an electrically heated tube. The measurements were made at 1,900° to 2,400° F. and at steam-feed rates of 0.1 to 2.0 moles of steam per mole of carbon per minute. At the maximum steam-feed rate, the reaction rate of carbon ranged from 0.4 percent per minute at 1,900° F. to 7 percent per minute at 2,400° F. Up to about 2,200° F., the steam-feed rate had only a slight effect; above this temperature, it limited the reaction velocity when the final mole fraction of steam in the reaction products was much less than 1.

Jan 1, 1962

By Jerry E. Olson

In 1986, at the request of the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Bureau of Mines studied part of the 20,071-acre South Fork Wilderness Study Area (OR-005-033) and part of the 8,791-acre Sand Hollow Wilderness Study Area (OR-005-034) in order to evaluate their identified mineral resources. The study areas are located in Crook County, OR, about 58 air miles east from Bend. The areas studied are underlain by Tertiary- and Quaternary-age volcanic and tuffaceous sedimentary rocks. No mineral resources were identified in or adjacent to the study area. Except for common opal and agate occurrences along the northern boundary of the study areas, no mines, prospects, or mineralized zones occur within the study areas. Bentonite is periodically mined less than 1 mi southwest of the Sand Hollow study area boundary. Neither of the study areas has geothermal leases, but both areas are under lease for oil and gas.

Jan 1, 1987

By A. S. Odeh

During the last few years, several authors1-6 have advanced mathematical solutions, both exact and approximate, to the pressure behavior of a well producing from a region bounded by a circular discontinuity. The most recent solutions were reported by Carter, and by Bixel and van Poollen. Varter solved the appropriate equations analytically. Bixel and van Poollen reported a numerical solution and provided correlation charts for the interpretation of flow tests; their method uses an overlay technique and is valid for wide ranges of mobility and storage capacity ratios. The mobility ratio is defined as the ratio between k/p of the two zones, and the capacity ratio is defined as the ratio between $c of the two zones. We have developed independently an analytic solution, programmed for the CDC 1604, that agreed with Carter's.'1 The same differential equation, assumptions, boundary, and initial conditions were used. We ran 30 drawdowns and 30 buildups of a unit capacity ratio and of varied mobility ratios. We also varied the radial distances to the discontinuity, and the radii of drainage. We examined the results and obtained correlations that were simple to apply and useful in flow test interpretation. The results and the correlations reported here in graphical form allow the determination of the mobility of the two zones and the radial distance to the discontinuity. They eliminate the need to fit field data to a curve as is required in the overlay technique.6 Thus, the advantages of the present correlations are that they require less effort and they provide a unique answer. They also provide guidelines for selecting the parts of the flow test plot to be used in the interpretations. Moreover, the results obtained from the programmed analytic solution define the time intervals where the approximate solution reported by Hurstl and discussed by Larkin2 are applicable. Normal buildup and drawdown plots resulted in an early straight line, a long transition zone and a late (second) straight line. However, the second straight line will not occur if the drainage radius is not at least 10 times the radial distance to the discontinuity. The mobility of the imer and outer zones can be calculated from the slopes of the first and second straight lines, respectively, by the normal methods of the flow test analysis. We found that the radial distance to the discontinuity may be determined from the abscissa value for the point of intersection of the extensions of the two straight lines. Results similar to some of these were reported by Adams et aL7 The approximate solution compared favorably with the exact one during the first and second straight-line periods. However, during the transition zone, deviation occurred between the two solutions. Discussion of Figures Figs. 1 through 7 summarize the results of this investigation. On Figs. 3 through 7 there appears the equation of each respective plot. In this paper the mobility ratio M is defined as klp2/kzpl, where subscripts 1 and 2 refer respectively to the inner and outer zones, and dimensionless time = t, = 6.32 X In the investigation, M ranged from 0.25 to 50;

Jan 1, 1970

By N. E. Mkadmi

Backfilling increases the stability of underground stopes and may help reduce the environmental footprint from the mining operation. The barricades holding the backfill in place must be designed to prevent failure based on the total and effective stress states, which depend on fill properties, stope geometry, and filling rate. This paper presents results from a numerical study aimed at analyzing the stress states associated with the response of paste backfill following stope filling, with an emphasis on the short term behavior. The simulations illustrate how stresses evolve with backfill drainage and filling rate in a vertical stope.

May 1, 2011

By E. L. Rawlins

The development of commercial natural-gas reserves in the Michigan stray sandstone horizon of central Michigan during the past few years has resulted in expansion of the natural-gas industry in that State. The location of the natural-gas reserves of Michigan in the general vicinity of domestic and industrial markets is of economic importance, and in supplying these markets with natural gas a reasonable knowledge of, the extent and availability of the reserves is needed in formulating regulations for drilling gas wells and producing natural gas in analyzing the feasibility of projects to construct natural-gas transmission lines, in promoting and developing markets for the domestic and industrial consumption of natural gas, and in solving many engineering and economic problems common to the natural-gas industry. The development of the natural-gas industry in Michigan has been related closely to the development of oil production. The potential oil production of Michigan is comparable with that in most of the eastern oil-producing States. The development of oil production probably will continue, especially in the central Michigan Basin area; and as wells are drilled to deep horizons in the search for oil, more knowledge will be obtained of the gas reserves in formations above the oil-bearing horizons.

Jan 1, 1936

By R. F. Droullard

The Bureau of Mines has used gross alpha and gross beta detectors to continuously measure radiation working levels for a number of years. During this time, improvements have been made in the design and performance of continuous working-level (CWL) detectors. This report discusses the improved designs and some of the operating principles and applications of CWL detectors in the measurement of radon daughter products in mines and dwellings.

Jan 1, 1985

The general nature of the special constructional features that are required to provide safety from explosion hazards on machines approved as permissible by the Bureau of Mines is fairly well known to mining men who are at all interested in safety. These requirements are outlined in the schedules under the provisions of which the investigations of such machines are conducted. Also, the method of conducting inspections and tests of such machines has been described in Bureau of Mines Bulletin 305, Inspection and Testing of Mine Type Electrical Equipment for Permissibility, published in 1929. A more detailed knowledge of the special safety features of a particular machine is often useful and sometimes essential for inspectors, safety engineers, maintenance men, and engineers in selecting machines for a particular application. Three bulletins that give information of this nature have been-published by the bureau, viz., Bulletin 313, Permissible Storage-Battery Locomotives and Power Trucks. Bulletin 343, Permissible Coal-Handling Equipment. Bulletin 382, Permissible Coal-Cutting Equipment. Report of Investigations 3309, Permissible Electrically Operated Air Compressors, which contains similar information, was issued in August 1936, and a Report of Investigations 3326, Permissible Electrically Operated Room Hoists, was issued in January 1937. Thus, the present paper is the third to give detailed information concerning permissible machines of types not included in bulletins, and covers all the rock-dust distributors approved prior to October 1, 1936.

Jan 1, 1937

By Frank B. Fulkerson

Mining began in Pend Oreille and Stevens Counties about 1885, Lead and zinc have been the principal products, and the area has supplied nearly all the output of these metals in the State. Fend Oreille County's output of lead and zinc from 1902 to 1956 was 110,700 and 229,600 tons, respectively. The Stevens County total was 54,100 tons of lead and 87,600 tons of zinc. Copper ore was produced mainly from the United Copper mine, Chewelah district, from 1912 to 1920; the principal gold mine was the First Thought, Orient district, which was active from 1904 to 1942. Approximately 225 mines and prospects produced; most of the ventures were on a small scale. The total value of gold, silver, copper, lead, and zinc produced from 1902 to 1956 was $75.2 million in Pend Oreille County and $39.4 million in Stevens County. INTRODUCTION In compiling the figures for this report, use was made of Bureau of Mines permanent records of nine production, the annual tabulations of producing mines, and the Minerals Yearbook. Requests to publish individual data, obtained from the annual production canvass, were made to the latest recorded operators of all mines in the area. Response to this request was good; therefore, it was possible to make the tables nearly complete. In a few instances the producer requested that the production data remain confidential, and in others it was not possible to reach the mine operator at his last known address. The district and county tables combine statistics for all mines, including those mines whose output could not be published separately.

Jan 1, 1958

By G. L. Fitzpatrick

Preliminary results of an experiment in seismic holography indicate that the techniques of acoustical holography may be successfully used with seismic waves to determine the size and general shape of underground objects. This experiment was carried out under field conditions on a moderately large scale compared with the typical laboratory experiments in acoustical holography. The object to be mapped was a 100-foot-diameter, spherical, low-velocity zone of explosively fractured rock in oil shale at an average depth of 80 feet. The seismic wavelength of the Fourier component wave used in making the seismic holograms was 50 feet at a frequency of 140 cps. The hologram sampling aperture was 226 feet square and was sampled by 441 geophones in a 21 by 21 rectangular array. One novel aspect of the experiment was the use of a wide-band polychromatic explosive source of seismic waves rather than a narrow-band quasi-monochromatic vibrator source. A successful laser reconstruction of the object image from a lensless Fourier-transform hologram in the form of a 5/l6-inch-square photographic transparency is illustrated. The size of the underground object measured from the laser reconstruction of the object and the size inferred from a knowledge of the amount of explosives used to fracture the site and the tensile strength of the oil shale are found to agree.

Jan 1, 1972

By Henk E. Brassinga

In Rotterdam a number of underground parking facilities have been built and are under development in the inner city, and in the suburbs. These parking facilities are located at already densely built areas. The design of these constructions has to take into account the impact of the building activities and that of the final construction on the surroundings. In this paper some examples of the different building methods of newly realized underground parking facilities are described, and problems that occurred during the construction are pointed out. In the soil conditions as present in Rotterdam the cost effectiveness of underground facilities can be improved by deepening the parking facility, and at the same time reducing the surface area so that the total parking volume remains constant. In this way the total volume of the diaphragm walls and the costs of the project is reduced.

Jan 1, 2006

By Giovanna Valdivia Málaga

Dado que la comunidad de Michiquillay recibe una gran cantidad del canon minero a través de la gestión de la Municipalidad del mismo nombre, se planteó mejorar las relaciones de parentesco y la inmersión en la modernidad económica y socia de dicha comunidad y pasar de una economía informal a una economía social o solidaria. En ese sentido, el presente texto describe el proyecto de participación colectiva entre los miembros de la comunidad Michiquilllay y La Encañada, con el objetivo de construir una propuesta de privatización del proyecto minero Michicallay. El trabajo de campo se realizó en los ocho sectores y se desarrolló desde hace dos años, alcanzando la comunicación y sostenibilidad del mismo.

Sep 12, 2011

Formation of either sodium jarosite or lead jarosite from concentrated chloride solutions containing small concentrations of sulphate has been demonstrated. Sodium jarosite is precipitated at 95-100°C from FeC13-FeCI2-NaCI-PbCI2 solutions to which was added Na2SO4 or Li2SO4 in amounts greater than 0.05 M. In the absence of alkali metal ions capable of forming jarosites, lead jarosite was precipitated from either FeCI3-PbCI2 or FeCI3-FeCI2-LiCI-PbCI2 solutions to which had been added small amounts of sulphate. Many of the factors affecting jarosite precipitation from chloride solution have been elucidated, and the most critical were sulphate concentration and initial pH. Concentrations of HCI in excess of O. I M essentially suppressed the production of jarosite in chloride media. Alkali jarosite, precipitated in the presence of dissolved lead, incorporates a small amount of this metal into the alkali jarosite lattice. Small but significant amounts of copper can also be incorporated into alkali jarosite and the amount is further increased in the presence of lead. Other divalent base metals such as Zn, Cd or Ni are not significantly precipitated. Sulphate control in either FeCI3 or FeCl3-NaCI leaching systems could likely be maintained by jarosite precipitation provided that the acid concentration of the solution was low.

Jan 1, 1981

By Douglas W. Fuerstenau

A detailed experimental study of breakage kinetics in a batch rod mill indicates that while the system is inherently nonlinear, the feed disappearance kinetics for the finer sizes and the coarser sizes at high holdups is well represented by first-order behavior. The set of breakage distribution functions was found to be normalizable and independent of particle holdup in the mill. The size discretized initial breakage rate functions were found to be inversely proportional to particle holdup and almost directly proportional to particle size. A linearized grinding model that results from the first-order Taylor's series expansion of the breakage rate expression was found to give good simulations of the mill product size distributions without recourse to any parameter improvement routines. Material transport through rod mills was evaluated by investigating the effect of operating variables on the holdup and residence time distribution of particulate solids flowing through the mill. Identical experiments performed in a continuous ball mill helped delineate the fundamental differences in particulate transport through these two types of mills. Mechanistic interpretations of the observed transport phenomena are presented, and their implications in the context of tumbling mill analysis and design pointed out.

Jan 1, 1980

By Harold J. Polta

This Bureau of Mines publication considers the feasibility of augmenting the present transportation system by pipelining taconite concentrates from the Mesabi Range to the Chicago area. The cost of pipelining in the hypothetical system using water as the carrier is estimated to be between $3.66 and $3.97 per long ton. This appears competitive with the 1970 rail-vessel transportation rate of $4.08 even after allowing a few cents per ton for barging from the terminal to existing furnaces. Political obstacles requiring solution before such a pipeline could be built and the feasibility of using crude oil as the carrier fluid are also discussed. FORTRAN routines used to calculate unit transportation cost for specific estimated values of cost items and for a range of values are presented. The effect of deviations from estimated values of cost items on the total unit transportation cost are shown graphically.

Jan 1, 1971