Search Documents

By C. W. Lawr

The ores mined by the Santa Gertrudis Co. at Pachuca, Mexico, arc mainly silver-bearing; they also yield some gold and carry a little copper. Strong cyanide solutions are used to dissolve the silver and gold, and the mechanical loss of cyanide at the tailings filter has been considerable. Prior to the year 1923, the pulp, after agitation, was given a 35 to 37-min. wash with barren solution in a Butters-type leaf filter; the discharged slime cake was repulped and pumped into eight Merrill self-sluicing slime presses in which the slime was given a further wash with barren solution for 25 to 35 min., followed by a 10-min. water wash. At that time the barren solution titrated around 0.350 per cent. free KCN and 0.500 per cent. total KCN. (Aero brand cyanide is used.) It can readily be seen that a 10-min. water wash would leave considerable cyanide in the filter cake, which of course was a total loss. This averaged 0.522 kg. (1.15 Ib.) KCN per ton of solution. As the daily discharge to the dam was 1600 tons' of slime of a 2:1 ratio of liquid to solid, the value of this mechanical loss of cyanide was an important item and it's recovery held alluring possibilities. Principle of Cyanide-recovery Process As it had acquired the patent rights to theLayng (H. R.) and Halvor-sen (A. L.) processes, also those of Mills (L. D.) and Crowe (T. B.) after considerable experimental work in its own laboratory and at Tonopah, Nev., The Merrill Company of San Francisco early in 1923 notified the Mexican Corporation and compania de Santa Gertrudis of its process for the recovery of cyanide from weak wash solutions, or for the transference of cyanide from a foul mill solution to a clean alkaline solution. This method is known as the Mills-Crowe process, the principle of which is as follows: The solution from which the cyanidc is to be removed is made acid by bringing it into contact with sulfur dioxide (SO2). The acidified solution is the; transferred to a closed tank in which air and solution are brought into intimate contact. The air leaving the tank charged with HCN is then passed to another tank in which it is mixed with an alkaline solution,

Jan 1, 1930

The members of the Institute will recall the account given in the March Bulletin of the inauguration exercises of the Engineering Foundation which was inhibited by an initial gift of $200,000 by Mr. Ambrose Swasey, to be administered by the United Engineering Society as trustees. The Engineering Foundation Board is now constituted as follows: GANG DUNN, Chairman, EDWARD D. ADAMS, Vice-Chairman FREDERICK R. HUTTON, Secretary, JOSEPH STRUTHERS, Treasurer, American Society of Civil Engineers. J. WALDO SMITH, CHARLES WARREN HUNT.

Jan 12, 1915

Jan 1, 1930

By Henry M. Stanley

The methods about to be described have been tested in practice, and are believed to be specially adapted to such extended topographical surveys as mining engineers in particular are sometimes called upon to execute. The assistance of Mr. H. 0. Flipper in the preparation of this paper, and his practical authorship of the second part, is hereby acknowledged. I. Photographic SuRveying. The writer was recently employed; together with Mr. H. O. Flipper, to survey the properties of the Plata-Reina de Sonora Mining and Milling Company, situated in the mining district of Las Planchas, District of Magdalena, State of Sonora, Mexico. These properties, now owned by an American corporation, of which M. W. Evans, of New Orleans, is president, and Richard A. Pomeroy is resident superintendent, are famous in the history of Mexican mining, as the place where planchus, or bolas de plata were foulld about the beginning of the last century. Ward, the English CILargh d7Affaires in Mexico from 1826 to 1828, writing at that epoch, says: "The idea [that the ores in the north of Mexico were richer than those in the south] probably originated in the discovery of the famous bolas de plata [balls of silver] of Arizona [Planchas de Plata de Arizona, a stock-ranch in northern Mexico], in the beginning of the last century, which was, and probably still is, believed in Europe to be one of those fables with which mining countries always abonnd. But the attention of the present government of Mexico having been drawn to the subject, a search was made in the viceregal archives, by order of the president, for the correspondence which was known to have taken place respecting it in the year 1736. This correspondence I have seen, and I have in my possession a certified copy of a decree of Philip the Fifth, dated Aranjuez, 28th May, 1741, the ohject of which was to terminate a prosecution, instituted by the Royal Fiscal, against the discoverers of Arizona, for having defrauded the treasnry of the duties payable upon the masses of pore silver found there. The decree states the weight of the balls, sheets and other pieces of silver discovered (bolas, planchas, y otras piezas de plata), to have amounted to 165 arroba, 8 pounds, in all, 4133 pounds; and mentions particularly one mass of pure silver, which weighed 108 arrobas (2700

Jan 1, 1892

By Nath S. Parate

Emphasis on publications related to coal mining subsidence and damages is appropriate at present in view of the energy crisis and increased coal production and public alertness. I have worked in Harrisburg with the state government Public Utilities Commission on energy-fuel matters and issues (Parate, 1978-80). I have participated in the communication on subsidence/ damage reviews and status with the Bureau of Mines Liasion Office (Kebblish, 1978-79). I have done research (Parate, 1965) and published papers (Parate, 1972; Parate, 1967) in Britain on coal mining subsidence and damages around Sheffield-Nottinghamshire coal fields. I have a few comments on the recent paper titled, "Pennsylvania Subsidence Control Guidelines," by C.J. Bise. 1) What is the basis of the empirical formula or guideline, LD _ (0.27 x D) ± 4.6, defining the support area? 2) The particular structure may not be damaged due to vertical uniform displacement caused by mining beneath unless the displacement is differential (King, 1964). 3) The author mentions the limited subsidence research in the US, and quite rightly so. But he fails to quote any work reference by continental investigators except the British or review work by the US. What are the reasons? 4) The author has not mentioned the importance and role of angle of draw for Pennsylvania, Kentucky, or Illinois coal fields. Is there any current research investigation on the relationship between subsidence research investigation, damage, and transference of strains to structures? There have been a number of newspaper reports on subsidence damage in Wilkesbarre and other areas in Pennsylvania. Is the author aware of such instances and traditional attitudes to such issues? Many times government agencies--due to lack of funds, technical expertise, and public policies--are unable or do not find it interesting to keep updates on these issues, as per the author's knowledge and experience with state governments. 5) What is the net effect and role of the D.E.R. Insurance Office on the monitoring, reducing, or controlling subsidence damage, particularly in Pennsylvania?

Jan 1, 1983

By O. O. Laudig

It is a well-established fact that some ores do not reduce as readily in the furnace as others, thus seriously affecting out-put, and consequently, cost of product. With the object of obtain ing some information upon this subject, the following experi ments were made in the laboratory of the Buffalo Furnace Company. Efforts were made to obtain, as nearly as possible, represent ative ores from some of the most important mining districts in the United States. The ores received were from the Mesabi, Marquette, Gogebic, Menominee and Vermilion ranges of the Lake Superior district and from Southwest Virginia. Requests

Jan 1, 1897

By M. E. Wadsworth, J. S. Cho

Colloidal silica dissolved in aqueous suspensions of high surface area thoria was permitted to adsorb on the thoria surface. Silica in three forms was identified by means of infrared spectroscopy and characterized by Si-O vibrational modes in the 9.0 to 10.5 region. A band at 9. 1 was attributed to free unad-sorbed silica, while adsorbed silica resulted in bands of greatest absorbency at 9.4 or 10.3p, depending upon the character of the surface bonding. Size considerations, the amount of silica adsorbed, and the character of the infrared spectrum for strongly adsorbed silica has been interpreted as evidence of formation of chain or layer silica linkages on the thoria surface. Infrared spectroscopy has been used successfully in recent years for the identification of minerals and synthetic inorganic substances. Unfortunately, infrared studies of silicate minerals have not proceeded to the point that unambiguous assignments may be made for Si-O vibrational modes as affected by lattice substitutions and structures. Several investigators have presented infrared spectra of silicate minerals, 1,7 and their work has pointed to the potential value of infrared to identify minerals as well as to note the sensitivity of various Si-O modes to structural and substitutional environments. The strong infrared absorption of various Si-O vibrational modes makes the infrared method a very useful tool for the study of silica adsorbed on the surface of solids of high surface area. Spaepen et a18 studied the adsorption of silica on thoria surfaces from aqueous solutions of silicic acid up to 300°C. A general review of the application of the infrared method to the study of surface adsorption has been presented by Pliskin and Eischens.9 EXPERIMENTAL Du Pont colloidal silica, Ludox SM (16.36% SiO2) and Ludox HS (30.25% SiO2) in aqueous suspensions were used as the sources of silica for the adsorption studies. The thoria used for this study was supplied by Union Carbide Nuclear Co.* under the preparation *Chemical Technology Div., Union Carbide Nuclear Co., Oak Ridge, Tenn. . number D-16-650. It was fired from the oxalate at 650°C and had a surface area of 32.4 ± 0.6 m2 per g measured by nitrogen adsorption. The chemical analysis of the D-16 thoria in ppm was: CO3= (5500), NO3- (< 4), so4±PO4 (100), and Si (20). The Ludox silica was placed in contact with the thoria in a two-liter autoclave10 between room temperature and 250°C. Slurries were made by placing 1 g of thoria in one liter of distilled water containing various additions of the silica sol. Samples were removed from the autoclave by opening a small stainless steel valve. Extracted samples were centrifuged for 10 min and excess solution was decanted. The sample was then dried for several hours at 80°C. Infrared samples were prepared by thoroughly mixing 10 mg of the thoria with 400 mg KBr in polystyrene vials on a "Wig-L-Bug" amalgamator. Pellets were pressed under vacuum and had final dimensions of 1.2 cm diam and 1.2 mm thick. Infrared spectra were

Jan 1, 1963

By N. O. Johnson, J. Boyer, D. H. Sargent, R. B. Frahme

Although the Western bentonite industry has grown rapidly, it is facing major challenges to sustained growth. The fundamental penalty of costly overland transportation to both domestic markets and to US seaports is of increasing importance; as both substitute materials and foreign bentonites present more formidable competition in the historic market areas of drilling muds, foundry sands, and iron ore pelletizing; and as foreign demand grows more rapidly than domestic demand. The Western bentonite industry is facing these challenges by altering its transportation patterns, by upgrading of products, and by emphasizing customer service and stringent quality control.

Jan 9, 1979

By Harlan A. Walker

Rock-drill steel has an important bearing on costs in many mining operations, both directly and indirectly. Direct factors include such items as shop expense, steel consumed per ton of ore produced, cost of distribution and the dust hazard. The latter, although no specific amount may be assigned to it, is an ever-present problem, and is receiving increased attention as the science of mining progresses. Indirectly drill-steel performance affects consumption of compressed air, maintenance of drills and drilling speed. The latter, in turn, increases or retards the tempo of mining and development. These factors, while not all inclusive, are preponderant in their importance. Thus it is evident that in an extensive operation drill-steel expense may run to many thousands of dollars and that thoughtful research leading toward more efficient practice is warranted. Experimental Work During the late spring of 1939, experiments were undertaken at Homestake in reducing changes in drill-steel gauge from ? in. to 1/16 in. In drifts and crosscut headings mounted machines were set up and holes were drilled with ?-in. bit-gauge changes and other holes a few inches

Jan 1, 1940

By Harlan A. Walker

Rock-drill steel has an important bearing on costs in many mining operations, both directly and indirectly. Direct factors include such items as shop expense, steel consumed per ton of ore produced, cost of distribution and the dust hazard. The latter, although no specific amount may be assigned to it, is an ever-present problem, and is receiving increased attention as the science of mining progresses. Indirectly drill-steel performance affects consumption of compressed air, maintenance of drills and drilling speed. The latter, in turn, increases or retards the tempo of mining and development. These factors, while not all inclusive, are preponderant in their importance. Thus it is evident that in an extensive operation drill-steel expense may run to many thousands of dollars and that thoughtful research leading toward more efficient practice is warranted. Experimental Work During the late spring of 1939, experiments were undertaken at Homestake in reducing changes in drill-steel gauge from ? in. to 1/16 in. In drifts and crosscut headings mounted machines were set up and holes were drilled with ?-in. bit-gauge changes and other holes a few inches

Jan 1, 1940

By C. R. Boyd

WITHOUT attempting to do more than give a preliminary or skeleton report upon the geology and minerals of Southwestern Virginia at this time, I am led to hope that the great commercial importance of the sixty miles of cross-section here crudely treated of

Jan 1, 1877

Jan 1, 1932

By R. Stratton-Crawley

Flotation-related processes utilizing an oil phase for processing fine mineral particles have been described and various applications discussed. The problems associated with the techniques are varied, but may be summarized by the following areas; (1) applicability to fine particle beneficiation, e.g. collector extender and emulsion flotation. (2) major &apos;mechanical&apos; problems, e.g. emulsion breakage and oil recovery in oil flotation. (3) complex interfacial chemistry, e.g. empirical nature of pigment flushing .

Jan 1, 1979

By J. W. Cuthbertson, R. A. Cresswell

THE constitution of Cu-rich alloys with 1.5 to 13.5 pct Sn and 0.25 to 3.0 pct Be and the precipitation-hardening characteristics of alloys with 1.5 to 13.5 pct Sn and 0.25 to 1.0 pct Be have been examined. The hardness and tensile strength of the alloys examined increase markedly after solution treatment at 700°C followed by heat treatment at temperatures between 200" and 450°C. By a combination of cold work and heat treatment, hardness values similar to those exhibited by commercial Be-Cu alloys containing 2.25 pct Be can be obtained with ternary alloys containing 9 pct Sn and 0.75 pct Be and containing 10 pct Sn and 0.5 pct Be. Marked hardening effects occur with alloys containing even less beryllium. By heat treatment alone, a hardness value of 310 diamond pyramid hardness can be obtained from an alloy containing 10 pct Sn and 0.75 pct Be. Preliminary tensile tests have shown that an ultimate tensile strength of 110,000 psi with an elongation of 23 pct is obtainable by precipitation hardening an alloy with 8 pct Sn and 0.75 pct Be. The precipitation-hardening process has been followed microscopically for certain alloys and the inference is that, while the initial hardening effect is probably explained by the precipitation of the ß phase of the Cu-Be system, further hardening, proceeding at a much slower rate, also occurs, apparently as a result of precipitation of phases of the Cu-Sn system, particularly precipitation of the 6 phase at temperatures below 350". The presence of the e phase of the Cu-Sn system in certain alloys at temperatures below 350°C has been confirmed. Tin-bronzes are widely used in engineering applications where a combination of high strength and good resistance to corrosion is wanted. The maximum strength is induced in these alloys by cold working, and it would be an advantage for many purposes if high strength could be achieved alternatively by an age-hardening process. While Cu-Sn alloys have a good fatigue resistance they can be surpassed in this respect by Cu-Be, but the use of the latter alloy is limited by its high cost. If, by adding beryllium to tin-bronze, the properties of the respective binary alloys could to some extent be combined, a most attractive alloy should result. As pointed out by Raynor,¹ beryllium is on the borderline of the zone of favorable size factors for copper, and the solid solubility of beryllium in copper is consequently much more restricted than if the size factor were strongly favorable. The size factor is sufficiently favorable, however, to permit an increase in solid solubility with rise in temperature, and there is thus a composition range in which CU- Be alloys are susceptible to hardening by precipitation heat treatment. Although the a phase of the Cu-Sn system is similarly susceptible to precipitation treatment, the time necessary to establish equilibrium in commercial alloys of this type is usually so great that age hardening becomes impracticable. The addition of beryllium to Cu-Sn alloys would appear to offer a means of conferring on the latter useful age-hardening properties. Masing and Dahl² and others have, in fact, shown that the addition of beryllium to Cu-Sn a solid solutions renders these alloys susceptible to precipitation hardening and after such hardening confers on them an encouraging improvement in physical properties. If this improvement could be achieved by the addition of substantially smaller amounts of beryllium than are customarily found in binary Cu-Be alloys, the ternary alloys should possess economic advantages which might make them more attractive than the binary alloy for some applications. Binary Systems Copper-Tin: The constitution of these alloys is now reasonably well known and is summarized in the equilibrium diagram published by Raynor.³ The following observations, due to Raynor,¹ on the structure of those phases of the Cu-Sn system that are likely to be found in the ternary alloy system will facilitate the subsequent discussion on the examination of that system. The ß phase is an electron compound at the electron-atom ratio 3:2 and has a body-centered cubic crystal structure. This phase is stable only down to 586°C, at which temperature it decomposes eutectoidally into the a and y phases. The y phase has a structure that is also based on the cubic system. This phase is stable down to 520°C, at which temperature it decomposes eutectoidally into the a and d phases. The d phase is an electron compound (Cu³¹Sn8) which has a crystal structure analogous to that of 7 brass. This phase is stable from 590" to 350°C; on prolonged annealing at the latter temperature it breaks down into a mixture of the a and E phases. The e phase is an electron compound (Cu³Sn) having the electron-atom ratio 7:4. Its structure may be regarded as a superlattice based on the close-packed hexagonal system. This phase is stable from 676°C to room temperature. The primary solid solubility of tin in copper increases to a maximum of 15.8 pct as the temperature falls from that of the peritectic reaction to 586°C. The solid solubility remains constant from 586" to 520°C. At lower temperatures the solubility decreases progressively. Below 350°C the fall in solubility is pronounced and is associated with the precipitation of the e phase. This precipitation is very sluggish and does not normally occur under service conditions. Copper-Beryllium: The Cu-Be system has been investigated by Borchers&apos; and others. Raynor5 summarized the present state of information on it.

Jan 1, 1952

By Paul Hunt

UP to June, 1923, the Park-Utah mine had shipped about 94,000 tons of a direet-smelting ore of a gross value of $4,200,000, or about $45. a ton. These values were in gold and silver only, although the ore carried small amounts of lead, copper and zinc. Freight, treatment and deductions had averaged $15.40 a ton. At the expiration of the Pittman Silver Act there was in sight about 30,000 tons of a similar ore with a gross value of about $15 a ton in gold and silver, and a large body of partly developed lead-zinc ore of a gross value of about $20 a ton, 40 per cent. of which was represented by the lead-zinc content and the balance by the silver and gold. Mine costs had been high during the life of the Pittman Act, but as a large part of the profits had gone into equipment of the mine and the orebodies were large and had good walls, we knew that mine costs could be greatly reduced. We were therefore faced by the necessity of getting lower freight and smelter rates or of concentrating the ore. We did obtain better freight rates on lower grade ore, and a favorable smelting rate on the small tonnage of siliccous silver-gold ore, but this smelter rate could not be applied to the lead-zinc ore with any profit to ourselves. The Judge mill of the Park City Mining & Smelting Co., with which we were affiliated, was running to capacity; if we built our own mill it ineant a 5-mile freight haul to a satisfactory millsite and a year&apos;s delay. Fortunately, the International Sillelting Co. had just inherited a mill at Tooele which, with some changes, was about double the catpscity required for its own ores. Flotation tests were run on Park-Utah ore and a contract entered into with a low base treatment charge per ton, the tariff being largely fixed by the metallurgical deductions. This contract has been admirably calculated so that the miner can follow a lean orenbody to its limit. Such a procedure has no doubt made it difficult for the smelting company at times, but it has resulted in finding ore extensions that otherwise might have been missed, so In the long run it has profited too. A flat rate per ton would have been like mining up to the claim endlines in a great many of the stopes. In order to offer such a contract it can be inferred that the smelting company must have been able to make high reeoveries and high-grade products on a very lean ore.

Jan 1, 1928

Jan 1, 1891

By Homer Turner

COALS, other than anthracite, have been so thoroughly studied under the microscope during recent years, that we now know what kinds of plants and what parts of plants form the bulk of lower rank coals from peat to bituminous coal. The microscope has also shown the state of preservation of such vegetation as well as the nature and distribution of products of plant decay. These and further details have been ascertained mainly through the employment of two methods of attack, section cutting and maceration. Anthracite has failed to respond to these methods, so well adapted to the study of lower rank coals and, therefore, has been neglected by investigators to such an extent that there is much doubt as to its microscopical characteristics. The object of this paper is to lift anthracite from its realm of obscurity by demonstrating the wealth of microscopical detail that is revealed when reflected light is used on a properly polished and etched surface and, further, to show the relationship between anthracite and bituminous coal.

Jan 2, 1925

By Axel Sahlin

Having no business interest in any of the various machines used for granulating ores, my remarks on the subject are prompted solely by my desire to contribute towards the determination of the best apparatus such information, as I have been able to gather,

Jan 1, 1893

By R. V. Wheeler

A MATTER of much concern at present to the coal-mining industry of-Great Britain is the effect of the working of the Coal Mines Act, 1930. This Act, which received the Royal Assent on Aug. 1, 1930, contains five parts: (I) production, supply and sale of coal; (II) the reorganization of the coal-mining industry; (III) hours of work; (IV) the Coal Mines National Industrial Board; (V) general. The first three parts are of major interest and discussion can be confined to them.

Jan 1, 1931

By Charles H. Jacoby, Leo E. Read

IN diamond coring salt beds to evaluate deposits, special techniques are applied to standard slim hole drilling to obtain a representative sample of the water soluble sodium chloride. Industrial consumers generally require a run-of-the-mine material of 98.0 pct sodium chloride. Since no commercial beneficiation has yet been devised to upgrade the lower quality salt beds, the only processing is crushing and screening to the size required by the customer. Coring salt sections has recently become important not only in dry mining, but also in the development of brine cavities by hydraulic fracturing and the formation of jugs for storing liquid petroleum products. Drilling Fluid: The fluid used in coring salt beds in New York, Ohio, and Michigan is a thoroughly saturated brine made from 3.0 lb rock salt per gal of make-up water. This mined rock salt, -4 mesh +10 mesh, is dissolved in a lixator, a double-bottomed cone hopper that turns fresh water to fully saturated brine.

Jan 5, 1957