Search Documents

By Thomas V. Falkie

4.3-1. Introduction. DEFINITION OF PRODUCTION SYSTEMS ENGINEERING. Surface mines, like most other mining and manufacturing operations, are usually organized along functional departmental lines. Frequently a mine manager will have his responsibilities divided among production, maintenance, administrative, and engineering functions. Often these are separate departments, but various combinations and variations of these functions can be found in mining companies throughout the world. The production function is responsible for physically removing the ore from the ground, processing it, and shipping the product to its market. The production manager supervises and is responsible for all man-machine systems necessary to extract and process the ore. The maintenance function, which is sometimes included within the framework of production, has the task of insuring the maximum availability and longevity of equipment needed to produce the ore. The administrative function is responsible for accounting, personnel, industrial relations, purchasing, public relations, property, and other related staff functions. For purposes of this chapter, engineering can be described as the function which plans, designs, and supervises construction of physical plant and equipment. In this context engineering includes mechanical, civil, chemical, electrical, and mining engineering. However, another phase of engineering is to prepare plans to insure that the various man-machine components function in an optimum way towards the single most important goal of any enterprise-the maximization of return on the investors' money. Along with the planning, another duty of engineering is to audit all phases of the operation for the purpose of recommending improvements toward this same general goal. These latter two ideas form the basis for a discussion of production engineering and systems engineering. Production engineering is a catchall, problem-oriented function whose duties can include: 1) solution of day-to-day production problems, 2) short-

Jan 1, 1968

By J. A. Collins, C. H. Mathewson

The process of plastic extension of face-centered cubic single crystalline rods is so well understood, since the notable studies of Taylor and Elam,1 that the change in orientation of any crystal by slip and rotation may be predicted from the measured elongation. It is customary to assume a very homogeneous deformation, wherein gliding lamellar arc free to rotate so that their slip direction continually approaches the axis of the rod, until a second slip system comes into operation; whereupon conjugate slip proceeds quantitatively to an end adjustment with the [121] direction in the axis of the rod. This process has been checked in malty face.-centered cubie materialsand and readily permits the preparation of specimens that have been subjtvted to various determinable amounts of shearing action. It is elearly of interest to study in such measurably strained speeimens the, development of a recrystallized structure on annealing and if possilble detect the source of nuclei from which the new crystals grow. Strain-:~nneali~ig experiments of this charactcr have been performed by others but not in detail sufficient to permit a study, for example, of the number of recrystallized grains vs. the amount of shear. In the experiments now reported, this was done with a wide variety of orientations covering nearly the entire range of slip on a single system and corresponding to amounts of shear (ratio of shearing distance to distance between lamellae at the conclusion of a test of from 0.08 to 0.57. A particular point wa-made of determining the crystallite rotation, or small angular range. assumed by the octahedral slip plane after these various amounts of shear. The, mechanism of reerystallization and the magnitude and effeet of recovery on the recrystallization process was investigated.

Jan 1, 1940

By Walter Harvey Weed

In a previous paper upon the enrichment of mineral veins by later metallic sulphides,? the writer has shown that certain masses of rich ores, such as are found in many mines, either near the water-line or as bonanzas in depth, are of secondary origin, and are due to a leaching of lean ore and the concentration of the material by reaction between the solution and the unaltered ore below. The geological and mineralogical evidence is believed to form an adequate basis for a chemical and physical explanation of the phenomenon. In the present paper the writer will give a brief synopsis of this theory, and will apply it more particularly to deposits of the precious metals, laying special emphasis upon the dependence of such enrichments upon the presence of iron sulphide (as pyrite, etc.) in the primary ore, and upon structural features which control the circulation of the enriching solutions below the water-level. It is believed that many, though not all, of the bonanzas arid pay-shoots of rich sulphide ores, especially those carrying gold and silver, which are encountered in ore-deposits, are of such secondary origin. Apparently it is essential that the occurrence and structural relations of such ore-masses should be understood, as the success of the mine is often dependent upon the finding and extraction of these ores. A legitimate deduction, too, is that such ore-deposits decrease in value With depth. As my own studies have been mainly in Montana, my illustrations must be drawn from the ore-deposits of this and adjacent States, with such as I have noted in hurried visits else-

Jan 1, 1901

The first mention of the occurrence of native copper near Lake Superior is found in a book by Lagarde, published in 1636. The letters of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth century refer to the use of this copper by the Indians. Francesco Bressani, an Italian friar, says, in 1653: "There is a copper ore, which is very pure, and which has no need of passing through the fire; but it is in places far distant and hard to reach. We have seen it in the hands of the barbarians".* Father Jerome Lalemant, writing in 1659, says that the coast of Lake Superior is "enriched with copper of such excellence that pieces as large as one's fist are found, all refined.† These pieces of copper were hoarded by the Indians as mascots. The mention of the metal as having been already refined by nature recalls the fact that the old Greek historians spoke of gold-dust as being apuron, or not needing the fire. Father Claude Allouez,‡ writing in 1666, says: "One often finds at the bottom of the water [of Lake Superior] pieces of pure copper, of ten and twenty livres [pounds] weight. I have several times seen such pieces in the savages' hands; and since they are superstitious [as if the padres themselves were not!], they- keep them as so many divinities, or as presents which the gods dwelling beneath the water have given them, and on which their welfare is to depend. For this reason they preserve these pieces of copper, wrapped up, among their most precious possessions".

Jan 1, 1932

By John B. Porter

Within the last year or so, a great deal has been heard about Southern iron ; even the Eastern markets have felt the effect of the cheap Alabama ores and coals, and public attention has again been drawn to what is now getting to be an old story—the great mineral wealth of the South. The following paper is based on a report prepared several years ago for a special purpose; but since then, through association with Mr. C. B. Going in a large analytical practice and as chemists to the Queen and Crescent Railway, I have had opportunity to increase my material so greatly that the present paper is really a completely different work. I am under very great obligation to Mr. Going, without whose assistance my work would have been very incomplete, and have also been materially assisted by Mr. F. P. Dewey, of Washington, and a host of gentlemen connected with the railroads and furnaces of the South. The arrangement of this paper is not all that could be desired. Some localities of importance are very poorly represented, both in the description and the tables of analyses. This, however, was in most instances unavoidable, as the study has been done ill the intervals of professional work. I have visited almost all the localities described, and, in all cases possible, have taken my own samples, and have made careful per-

Jan 1, 1887

By J. P. Carson

(Read at the Wilkes-Barre Meeting, May, 1877.) THE works of the Tula Iron Company are in the Republic of Mexico, State of Jalisco, twenty-eight leagues southwest of Guadal¬ajara, ten leagues northwest of the town of Sayula, through which passes the projected line of the Mexican National Railroad. Its geographical position would be about: latitude, 20° 10' N., longi¬tude, 4° 35' W. of Mexico City. The surrounding country is a roll¬ing plateau, 6000 feet above the sea, enjoying the most magnificent climate in the world, the average temperature being about 70°. The works were commenced in 1850 by a company with very small capital, having not the least idea of the undertaking. They soon fell into the hands of the money-lenders, and after changing

Jan 1, 1878

By C. B. E. Douglas

In an interesting article on evaluation of the water problem at Eureka, Nev., W. T. Stuart describes how a difficult water problem, or one phase of it, may be evaluated by means of a small scale test. Test data are plotted by a method rendering, under certain conditions, a straight-line graph that can be projected to show how much the water table will be lowered by pumping at any specified rate for a given time. A formula is then used to determine the size of opening, or extent of workings, necessary to provide sufficient inflow to enable pumping to be maintained at that rate. At first glance this might seem the answer to a miner's prayer, but a word of caution is in order. It may not be the whole answer. Moreover, results obtained by the method described are reliable only for conditions approximating those assumed. Even where conditions do not meet this requirement, however, it may be possible to draw helpful inferences from the results, perhaps enough to facilitate another approach to evaluation of a problem.

Nov 1, 1955

By M. Vallée

This case study compares the actual production figures for the No. I and No. 2 copper orebodies of the Société Miniére Louvem, Val d'Or, Quebec, with the preproduction estimates and a postmortem geostatistical estimation using kriging techniques. The deposits considered are small subvertical sulphide orebodies which were mined from August 1970 to April 1973, producing 648,000 tons at 2.04% Cu versus the 1968 computed reserves of 671,000 tons at 2.51% Cu (with 20% dilution), thus showing a 25% overestimation of the copper contained. The postmortem geostatistical estimation based on the same 44 D.D.H. intersections available in 1968, shows 2.24% Cu (no dilution), compared to 3.23% Cu (no dilution) given by the conventional section method. Block by block kriging techniques were used, but within the ore contours as determined by the geologist. In this case, Characterized like many sulphide deposits by highly dispersed sample values, geostatistical kriging techniques permit a more realistic estimation of the metal contained within a given volume, than the conventional methods which overestimate it. This study has been conducted by the Mineral Exploration Research institute (IREM-MERI) for SOQUEM, and is one of the few case studies released with all pertinent data. More postmortem of this kind are required for geologists and geostatisticians to improve their methods and their "batting average".

Jan 1, 1977

[ ]

Jan 1, 1938

By E. C. Rudolphy, M. E. Potter, J. R. Mitchell

The effects of 0.006 to 0.20 pet Sn ml the hot workability and the annealed mechanical properties were investigated for Types 302, 410, and 430 stainless steel. The hot workability of these steels was not significantly affected by their tin content within the range studied, although some effects on mechanical properties were noted. Apart from the effect of tin, optimum hot-working temperatures and V-notch Charpy impact transition temperatures for these grades were determined. HIGH tin residuals in some heats of stainless steel have been blamed for the poor hot workability, particularly during secondary mill rolling. However, very little quantitative information has been available. Previous work1"6 with carbon steels indicates that tin increases tensile strength and hardness but de- creases tensile and impact ductility. Halley,7 in reviewing the sources and effects of residual elements in carbon and alloy steels, concluded that much of the surface checking (hot shortness) encountered in rolling was caused by copper, and that tin, arsenic, and antimony combined with copper to form low-melting constituents which further increase the steel's sensitivity to hot shortness. These elements had little effect in the absence of copper. A more recent paper by Langenberg and Johnson8 concluded that tin reduces hot workability but that researchers disagree concerning the amounts which will cause trouble. They state that laboratory investigations with small ingots seem to indicate a higher tolerable level of tin than do statistical studies of mill data, and also that statistical analysis of mill data indicate that small amounts of residual tin are detrimental to the surface quality of stainless sheet. The accumulative increase in the general level of tin and other tramp elements in steelmaking materials will present greater problems to steelmakers in the future. The purpose of the present study was to obtain quantitative information on the specific effects of tin on the hot workability and mechanical properties of such common stainless steels as Types 302, 410, and 430.

Jan 1, 1962

By C. F. Cornell, R. C. Emmett, D. A. Dahlstrom

FOR many years the disk-type and cloth-covered drum filters have found widest application in liquid-solids separation, which uses continuous filters. The disk type is less expensive, occupies less floor space per square foot of filtration area, and re- quires negligible down time for filter media changing. However, because filter cloth is billowed out by the blowback in the cake discharge, it is very short-lived if the scraper blades are set too close. Consequently cake weight is very important in assisting cake discharge, which normally necessitates a minimum cake thickness of 3/8 to ½ in. Also, the vertical position of the disks eliminates the possibility of efficient cake washing for removal of soluble values. The disk-type filter is generally limited, therefore, to applications that require no cake washing and form relatively thick cakes within the normal range of filter cycle times. The conventional cloth-covered drum filter is a more flexible unit, permitting wider variation in the percentage of cycle time devoted to cake formation, dewatering, or washing, as required by the application. Thinner filter cakes can be discharged be- cause a horizontal line across the filter medium at the location of the scraper blade is equidistant from the edge of the blade at all points. The scraper blade therefore may be set a short distance from the filter medium or, where wire winding is not used, a floating scraper can be utilized so that the contour of the cloth can be followed. The drum filter is generally employed when there are difficult filtering slurries with resultant thin cakes or when cake washing to recover soluble values must be practiced.

Jan 2, 1958

The Mississippi river was discovered by French explorers that came southwestward, by way of the Great Lakes, from eastern Canada. Vignan, Joliet, De Champlain, and others of the French pioneers in the first half of the seventeenth century, dreamed of a short cut to China by means of the great waterways they explored. In a geographical book published in London in 1726 by Daniel Coxe an account is given of "a new and curious discovery and relation betwixt the river Meschachebe [Mississippi] and the South Sea, which separates America from China, by means of several large rivers and lakes". Louis Joliet, a fur-trader, and Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit missionary, reached the Mississippi and paddled their canoes on its broad waters on June 17, 1673.* They descended the river as far as the entry of the Arkansas tributary, and then returned overland to Canada, being deterred from going farther south by reason of Indian hostility. Several years later Robert de La Salle, a French trader, starting from Quebec, went westward to Lake Michigan and thence to the Illinois river, which he and his comrades descended in their canoes to the junction with the Mississippi, and then followed it to the sea. They reached the Gulf of Mexico on April 9, 1682. Thus the great central waterway of North America was made known. These French-Canadian voyageurs, or boatmen, traded with the Indians for furs in the Upper Mississippi valley, and when in need of bullets they noticed the outcrops of lead ore, from which, probably in the last decade of the seventeenth

Jan 1, 1932

By W. W. Simpson, W. L. Staker, R. G. Sandberg

The Bureau of Mines investigated selective extraction of Au and Ag from a low-grade Au ore containing Hg. Gold and silver were extracted from the ore in cyanide slurries, and Hg extraction was suppressed with sodium or calcium sulfide. Maximum Au extraction and minimum Hg extraction were obtained using solutions containing 17 kg NaCN/t of solution (0.34 lb NaCN/st). Increasing the cyanide concentration increased Hg extraction without increasing Au extraction. Mercury extraction from the ore was suppressed with 0.5-2.9 kg CaS/kg Hg (0.5-2.9 lb/lb) in the ore. Gold-to-mercury ratios of 100:1 to 400:1 were obtained in the leach solution, and on the activated carbon in a CIP circuit.

Jan 1, 1985

By B. Yarar

Samples of coal from an adit in the Fording River District of British Columbia showed hydrophilic properties between depths of 0-24.5 m (0-80 ft) and was naturally hydrophobic at greater depths. Laboratory experiments indicated that weathered samples (i.e., those mined at 0-24.5 m) could be upgraded by froth flotation at pH32 following slimes removal. The i.e.p. of samples varied regularly between pH = 1.6-4.1, the weathered fractions being at the lower end of the pH scale. These values followed a pattern comparable with the flotation behavior of samples. A patchwise structure for coal surfaces determining the resultant disjoining pressure which in turn determines flotation-non-flotation relationships is postulated.

Jan 1, 1983

US 4,192,852-Precipitation of iron values as a jarosite from a sulfate solution obtained as a byproduct in the hydrometallurgical processing of zinc sulfide ore The solution is cooled, partially neutralized, and clarified. The clarified solution is heated to a temperature of 80 to 100°C in the presence of sodium, potassium, or ammonium ions to precipitate substantially all of the ferric iron as jarosite The precipitate is thickened, filtered, and washed The residual solution may be processed for zinc or other nonferrous metal values R V. Pammenter and C J Haigh, assigned to Electrolytic Zinc Co of Australasia Ltd. Mar. 11, 1980. 16 pp. (423-42) Filed: 5-8-78 (903,524). Priority- Australia, 5-9-77 (PD0030) (Drawings below.)

Jan 1, 1982

By R. M. Schuster, F. M. Benavides

A plan is prepared to develop and operate a four mine complex over a 30-year period. The mining complex is in the vicinity of two existing processing plants and the most economical means of transporting the raw minerals to either or both of these processing plants is sought. The mines and processing plants are all within a radius of 5.6 km (3.5 miles). Existing transportation facilities consist of county and state roads and federal highways as well as haul roads in some areas. A navigable river meanders through the area under study and there are two railroad systems servicing the area. The analysis shows the economic and operational feasibility of using an overland conveyor in lieu of other means of transportation.

Jan 1, 1983

By M. T. McDonough

THE data relative to the effect of metal depth on slag volume was obtained from the operation on two acid electric furnaces in which heats of various sizes were produced. The furnaces used were of 3 and 5-ton rated capacity; the heats investigated ranged from 6 to 8 tons. Heats of 7 and 8 tons were made in the larger furnace; heats of 6 tons in the smaller one. Bath depths and diameters were measured on the furnaces when cold and each is accurate to one inch. Both the metal charge and the slag were weighed on a track scale accurate to ± 25 lb. All other components added to the furnace were weighed on a wheelbarrow scale accurate to ±5 lb.

Jan 1, 1947

The Engineers Society of Western Pennsylvania, William Penn Hotel, Pittsburgh, Pa. K. F. Treschow, Secretary Since 1880 this society has been publishing Proceedings containing papers on a wide variety of engineering and related subjects The Proceedings are issued monthly throughout the year (except for the months of August and September each year) and the monthly Proceedings from February of one year to and including January of the next are also collected in volumes The latest is vol 47, for 1931 The rate of subscription for the monthly Proceedings is $5 per year throughout the Postal Union, single copies (monthly), 50 cents each The price of the yearly volumes from vol 17 to date is $5 each, unbound. The Secretary will quote prices for

Jan 1, 1933

By D. Turnbull, J. H. Hollomon, J. C. Fisher

Application of the concepts of nu-cleation and growth to the analysis of experimental transformation data has led to valuable descriptions of phase transformations, an outstanding example being the transformation austenite —* pearlite which has been examined with particular care by Mehl and co-workers.&apos;-5 In addition to the pearlite transformation, the proeutectoid fer-rite and proeutectoid carbide transformations are known to proceed by nucleation and growth. Martensite, on the contrary, until recently was thought to form by a mechanism involving neither nucleation nor growth; however, extension of standard nucleation theory6 suggests that martensite, bain-ite, and the other products of austenite decomposition all grow from nuclei in the parent phase. The theory that martensite forms by nucleation and growth is strongly supported by recent experimental work of Kurdjumov and Maksimova.7 The concepts of nucleatioli and growth have been fruitful also in providing a sound basis for quantitative theoretical treatments of the kinetics of phase transformations. For example, Volmer and Weber8 and Becker and Döring9 developed the theory of nucleation from fundamental considerations to a point where excellent agreement was obtained with the results of experiments on the condensation of supercooled vapors. As a result of their analysis, the kinetics of vapor-liquid transformations now can be predicted. It seems probable that application of the theories of nucleation and growth to a quantitative study of austenite decomposition similarly will clarify the nature of the individual transfor: mations involved, and will enable the calculation of austenite transformation kinetics. In the present paper, the theories of nucleation and growth are applied to the austenite ? martensite transformation in steels. The analysis begins with a discussion of nucleation in single component systems. Martensite appears to be coherent with the parent austenite, hence the nucleation theory is modified to include the effects of elastic distortion. Nucleation in the two component iron-carbon system then is discussed, for most steels are primarily alloys of these two elements. Finally, M. temperatures and martensite transformation curves are calculated for each of several alloy steels of varying carbon and chromium content, and are compared with those determined experimentally by Lyman and Troiano10 and Harris and Cohen.11 Nucleation Theory NUCLEATION IN SINGLE COMPONENT SYSTEMS6,12-14 The work required for reversible formation of a region of phase within the parent a phase is expressed conveniently as the sum of two terms: W1 = Aa, the product of the area of the interface and the interfacial free energy, and W2 = VAf, the product of the volume of the region and the free energy increase per unit volume associated with the transformation. The total work is therefore W = Aa + VAf. When a is more stable than ß, Af is positive and W increases without limit as the volume increases. The transformation a ?ß does not occur. It is nevertheless true that small regions of phase ß enjoy temporary existence here and there in the a. The equilibrium number of ß regions of given size is proportional to exp(— W/kT) per unit volume of a, assuring that larger (ß regions occur with diminishing probability. When a is less stable than ß, Af is negative and W passes through a maximum as V increases. Assuming for simplicity that regions of ß are spherical, as is true when the interfacial tension is isotropic and there are no elastic strains, W = 4r2a + (4/3)*r3Af The maximum value of W is W* = 16iro3/3Af2 [1] for regions with radius r* = -2o/Af. [2] For single component condensed systems it has been shown14 that the steady rate of nucleation of 0 per unit volume of untransformed a is nearly proportional to exp[- (W* + Q)/kT] where Q is the activation energy for the unit processes of adding or removing one atom from an embryo or nucleus. If To is the temperature at which a and ß are in equilibrium, the rate of nucleation is a maximum at a temperature 0 < T < To where (W* + Q)/kT is a minimum. P regions smaller than critical size are called embryos; they tend to grow smaller and disappear, only exceptionally growing larger. Regions equal to or larger than critical size are called nuclei. A critical size nucleus may grow indefinitely large or may shrink back to a, either process decreasing the free energy of the region.

Jan 1, 1950

By R. J. Keene

The South Works high-tonnage billet caster was started in late March 1971, with the first heat being successfully cast to completion. Currently, over 31,500 tons per month are being produced. U. S. Steel designed and built this caster with the objective of producing quality-steel billets for critical bar, rod, and wire applications. The essential design parameters were based on studies conducted on the Research Laboratory&apos;s pilot caster, also located at South works. 1,2,3)* The caster is a four-strand, straight-mold machine that produces 7.5-inch- square billets at rates exceeding 300 tons per hour. An in-line-reduction mill reduces each strand to either 6-inch-, 5-inch-, or 4-inch-square billets.

Jan 1, 1972