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By Robert N. Roby

"The Moffet-Johnston property was investigated by the Bureau of Mines with the object of determining the presence of ore reserves that might be utilized during the war emergency. Preliminary examination was made during May and Juno 1943, as a result of which the Johnston 'tunnel was cleaned out and repaired, the .mime was surveyed, and a small program of exploration was undertaken. This report describes the work performed and presents the data obtained.In its program of exploration of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. It is the policy of the Bureau to publish the facts developed by each exploratory project as soon as practicable after its conclusion. The Mining Branch, Lowell B. Moon, chief, conducts prelimi¬nary examinations, performs the actual exploratory work, and prepares the final report. The Metallurgical Branch, R. G. Knickerbocker, chief, analyzes samples and performs benefication tests. Both these branches are under the supervision of Dr. R. S. Dean, assistant director.The chemical and spectrographic analyses were made at Reno, Nov., under the direction of A. C. Rico, acting engineer in charge, Rare and Precious Metals Experiment Station, Bureau of Mines. The ore-dressing tests were under the direction of Rollien R. Wells, metallurgist, at the Salt Lake City laboratories of the Bureau of Mines.The author acknowledges the cooperation and assistance of the lessee of the property, H.R. Hakes, who furnished nine reports and other information.The Moffet-Johnston property is in secs. 2 and 3, T. 3 S., R. 5 W., in the Tidal Wave mining district of Madison County, Montana.The portal of the Johnston adit is near the mouth of Bear Gulch, 9 miles northeast of Twin Bridges, Mont. It is reached by an improved dirt road that serves mining properties farther up Bear Gulch. The Moffet mine and the Mountain View shaft are now accessible from the Bear Gulch road over an access road recently completed by the U. S. Grazing Service. The Grazing Service road has also been supplemented by bulldozer trails built by the Bureau of Mines.An electric-power line extends from the Montana Power Co's substation at Twin Bridges to mines at the head of Bear Gulch and passes within 200 feet of the Johnston portal.The claims of the Moffet-Johnston property were located about 1900. A report by H. V. Winchel, consulting geologist, in 1904 indicates that most of the development on the Johnston adit was completed by that date. At the time of the Winchel report, the Moffet workings had just penetrated the first ore shoot (fig. 4)."

Sep 1, 1946

By H. L. Burmeister

This report describes the mining and milling practices used by the Eastern Magnesia Talc Co. at its Johnson, Vt., operation. The report also contains a description of the local geology and all available information on cost and performance data. Since 1925 the mine has produced continuously at an average annual rate of 54,000 tons, and the ratio of ore hoisted to finished product is roughly 2 to 1. Ore is stoped by a combination of shrinkage and sublevel methods. In any 24-hour period the mill produces an average total of 14 grades of finished talc product, 9 by dry grinding and air classification and 5 by wet grinding and flotation methods. The mine operates one shift per day, 5 days per week and the mill operates on a 3-shift, 5-1/2-day-per-week basis. Operating costs for 1958, on a percentage basis, were mining, 22.34; milling, 54.77; ore haulage, 2.89; and all other, 20.00 percent.

Jan 1, 1963

By Henry P. Chandler

COMBINED sales of abrasive materials in the United States during 1956 increased at about the same rate as the value of the Gross National Product in terms of 1954 dollars,3 which was nearly 3 percent. However, some segments of the industry did not follow the general pattern. Sales of abrasive grinding wheels increased 9 percent in value. Sales of surface-coated abrasives declined 5 percent in quantity hut increased 1 percent in value, Production of crude silicon carbide in the United States and Canada advanced both in tonnage and value, but that of abrasive-grade [ ]

Jan 1, 1958

By John C. Holtz

"The Federal Bureau of Mines serves the mining industry by approving equipment that is designed to prevent explosion, fire, shock, or toxic hazards in mines when such equipment is used and maintained in a proper manner, through research, consultation, testing, and inspection, the Bureau studies machinery and component parts submitted by manufacturers and others. Before receiving the Bureau's approval as permissible for safe use in mines, equipment must pass exacting tests and must meet strict requirements established through research and experience and listed in the Bureau's various permissibility schedules. An important phase of the Bureau's research is the testing of diesel engines.Mobile diesel-powered equipment can be used safely in underground noncoal mines and tunnels when mechanical ventilation is provided to dilute and remove the exhaust gas and to replenish oxygen in the underground atmosphere. Safe ventilation is determined by suitable tests of each engine used in a diesel machine. This ventilation cannot be predicted safely, accurately, and economically from any general empirical relationship.In determining safe ventilation, the quantities of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen generated by a diesel engine must be ascertained. These quantities are related to the displacement of the engine, its speed of operation, the design of the combustion chamber, and the fuel:air ratio needed to produce useful power. At overrich fuel:air ratios, all diesel engines generate excessive quantities of toxic carbon monoxide and smoke. The results of engine tests are used to determine a maximum fuel-injection rate at or below which carbon monoxide can be controlled by a reasonable ventilation and smoke is essentially eliminated. Toxic oxides of nitrogen are related to fuel:air ratio and the design of the combustion chamber. Their concentration in the exhaust cannot be controlled by engine adjustments, and each engine appears to have individual characteristics concerning formation of these oxides. Production of oxides of nitrogen frequently is the most important factor in determining safe ventilation."

Oct 1, 1959

By Alan G. Mayton

A prototype end-cab shuttle car (SC) design has been developed to improve protection and address ergonomic concerns of the SC operator in low coal mines. The new design features an end cab transversely mounted to the SC and equipped with a closed-circuit video system. The end cab was retrofitted to a low-coal SC and evaluated in surface trials at the U.S. Bureau of Mines. During surface trials, test operators evaluated the end-cab SC relative to visibility; cab features-space, seating, controls, and operator position; tramming-inby, outby, and turning corners; and dumping. Trials were conducted using 12 test subjects; 6 were experienced SC operators. Results of the trials were promising. Of the experienced operators, the only operator with low-coal experience gave the new design the highest rating. Four experienced operators rated the end-cab design "better" to "much better" than a standard center-driven, side-cab SC for visibility when tramming, protection from roof and rib hazards, and no change in seat position with direction of travel. This report discusses research to modify a used 21SC JOY SC, retrofit the SC with the Bureau-developed end-cab, and evaluate the retrofitted end-cab SC in surface trials.

Jan 1, 2010

By M. A. Elliott

Diesel-powered haulage equipment has recently been tested and approved for permissibility by the Bureau of Mines for use in mining in the United States. Achievement of this advance in safety involved extensive studies, both in the testing station (2, 3, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)3/ and in the field 1, 4, 13, 30), of the operating characteristics of diesel engines in relation to the toe of such engines underground. The results of these studies formed the basis for establishing the requirements that should be met by diesel-powered haulage equipment approved for permissibility. Considerable interest has been manifested in the development of diesel-powered haulage equipment fur mines. The purpose of this paper is to retrace briefly the course of this development and to answer such questions as: What is the history of the use of diesel engines underground? Why has the Bureau of Mines been interested in the development of diesel-powered haulage equipment for use in mines?

Jan 1, 1953

By Donald W. Ross

Petroleum oils of widely different grades have long been clarified or decolorized by contact with fuller's earths. More recently, so-called activated clays have also been used for this purpose. Still more recently ouch clays have been used in the form of nodules termed "catalytic pellets." Clays of varied appearance and from different localities possess the desired bleaching qualities, but evaluation of such clays, so useful to the oil industry, has not been simple. Previous methods of identification and evaluation have largely followed procedures of production methods and were not primarily based upon the fundamental properties of the clays. Thus) a false assumption has grown up that) bleaching clays probably have no common properties on which a-method of comparison can be based. Fuller's earths and activated clays have a large absorptive capacity for the color constituents of petroleum and its products decolorizing is accomplished by bringing the oil into intimate contact with the clay and later separating the decolorized oil from the clay with its load of absorbed coloring matter. Former practice in absorbing "color" was to use the clay as granules or In' powdered form. More recent practice is to use clay pellets that are more abrasion-resistant than the granules. The oil is either filtered through a bed of clay, percolation method, or agitated on contact with the clay, contact method. Viscous oils are decolorized at an elevated temperature, so that their viscosity is lowered to the point at which thorough contact with the clay is insured. Nonhumidifying, nonoxidizing gas, such as dry steam or dry nitrogen, is used to seal such hot oil masses from the atmosphere.

Jan 1, 1948

By J. E. Chilton

A technique for use in underground coal mines measures the response times of machine-mounted methane monitors. This technique uses a calibration cup to deliver gas to the sensor head to measure response times. For comparison, in the current study, response times were measured by placing methane sensor heads in a specially designed test box where they were exposed to an atmosphere containing a constant concentration of methane. Response time readings measured in the test box were shorter than the readings obtained using the calibration cup. The response times measured in the test box were comparable for sensors from three different manufacturers. The effects of dust cap and flame arrestor design on response times were also evaluated using the test box.

By NEFE AEWFW

Changes in the 1980 quantity and value of the sales of various natural abrasives, compared with the data for 1979, were of a mixed nature. Output of garnet and special silica stone products increased in both tonnage and value during the year, while emery and tripoli-type materials production decreased in both tonnage and value. The reported quantity and value of sales of manufactured abrasive material-fused alumina and alumina-zirconia, silicon car-bidet and metallic iron and steel shot and grit-also decreased for 1980. [ ]

Jan 1, 1981

By Floyd G. Anderson

The Federal Bureau of Mines promotes the use of safe and effective dust-collecting devices for rock drilling in coal mines. To insure that such devices are available to the coal-mining industry, the Bureau issues certificates of performance for dust-collecting systems and certificates of approval for dust collectors and rock drills or other mining equipment with integral dust-collecting systems that meet the requirements of an established Schedule.4/ Investigations are conducted under the provisions of the current revision of this Schedule by engineers of the Branch of Health Research. This circular describes briefly the requirements and procedure for obtaining certificates of performance or approval and lists equipment that has been certified as permissible under Schedule 25 or its revisions as of January 31, 1961. The names and addresses of companies to which certificates have been issued are listed alphabetically at the end of this circular.

Jan 1, 1961

By D. R. Tesarik

As part of its research program to investigate ways of improving resource recovery and reducing subsidence, researchers from the U.S. Bureau of Mines placed instruments in the B-North ore body of the Cannon Mine, Wenatchee, WA, to monitor cemented backfill and rock deformation during mining. The vibrating-wire gauges proved to be reliable and versatile, and approximately half of the instruments are providing data after 2 years of use. A two-dimensional, finite-element model was used to analyze the Cannon Mine's multilevel bench cut-and-fill mining method and predict rock and backfill displacements. The model accurately predicted rock displacements, but the predicted and measured displacements in cemented backfill had a correlation coefficient near zero, indicating that the model should only be used to predict rock displacements and not backfill displacements. A finite-difference model was also used to evaluate the stability of a cemented backfill pillar. Results can be used to conservatively predict backfill stresses, but on-site observation of pillar failures coupled with in situ measurements are needed to make more accurate predictions. An ongoing evaluation of the mining system has indicated that filling the primary stopes tight to the back with cemented backfill allowed these pillars to carry overburden loads soon after the cemented backfill was placed.

Jan 1, 2010

By Clarence Hall, S. P. Howell, W. O. SNELLING

The explosives used in coal mines not only occasion accidents such as occur in the use of explosives elsewhere, but they frequently cause widespread disasters by igniting explosive mixtures of mine gas and air and of coal dust and air, or both. In addition, the firing of ex- plosives so shakes the walls and roofs of the mines as to cause falls, with their attendant casualities. Considering the large number of explosives and their wide range in composition and properties, it is obvious that certain of them should prove more suitable for use in coal mines than others. The problem is to determine which explosives are the most suitable for this purpose and the precise conditions under which they may be used with the greatest safety. Of course this problem could be worked out in actual mining, but experimental investigations when accompanying commercial opera- tions are hazardous and slow. To obtain the information sought, in the speediest and most economical manner, laboratory methods must be resorted to. The adoption of such methods began about 30 years ago with experiments in an iron gallery mounted on wheels, at Zwickau, Germany. This laboratory method of attacking the prob- lem has so commended itself that it has not only been repeated else- where in Germany but has at intervals been officially adopted, with many modifications and additions, by the Governments of Belgium, Austria, France, and Great Britain. Such was the status of coal-mine investigations in Europe when in 1904, an organization in the Geological Survey, which in 1907 be- came the technologic branch, was created to investigate the mineral- fuel resources of this country. At that time no division of the Na- tional Government had official cognizance of conditions existing in our mines, but through its system of collecting fuels for tests the technologic branch was forced to recognize that coal-mine accidents are a factor that must be reckoned with in determining the extent and availability of our mineral-fuel resources. This became so apparent, and it was so obviously a function of this branch to make a systematic research as to the cause and prevention of such acci- dents, that in July, 1907, experts were appointed especially to deal with this problem. As a result, not only was Bulletin 333, on Coal- Mine Accidents: Their Causes and Prevention, prepared and pub- lished, but through personal inspection of foreign testing stations, and a study of their reports and the critiques of their methods and operations, definite plans for the establishment of such a testing station in this country were formulated. In the latter part of 1907, four grave disasters occurred in close succession consequent on explosions in the Monongah mines in West Virginia, where 368 men were killed, the Darr mine in Pennsyl- vania, where 160 were killed, the Naomi mine in Pennsylvania, where 34 were killed, and the Yolande mine in Alabama, where 61 were killed. These frightful disasters so quickened the public con- science, and so plainly demonstrated that both humanitarian and economic needs demanded that steps be taken to prevent the re- currence of such accidents, that in 1908 Congress made a special appropriation for an investigation as to the "causes of mine ex- plosions." A similar appropriation was made in the following year. By act of May 16, 1910, the Bureau of Mines was created "to make diligent investigation of the methods of mining, especially in relation to the safety of miners, the use of explosives, the prevention of accidents," and other matters relating to mining. Therefore, these investigations are at present conducted in obedience to an organic act instead of being dependent solely upon special appropriations. The first appropriation became available July 1, 1908. Through the courtesy of the War Department a portion of the grounds and buildings of the arsenal at Pittsburgh was granted for the use of the technologic branch of the United States Geological Survey. Work was immediately begun in procuring and erecting the necessary instru- ments and appliances for carrying out the desired tests and inves- tigations and in adapting the existing buildings or in erecting new structures to contain the apparatus. The Pittsburgh testing station was officially opened and regular work was commenced on December 3, 1908, the apparatus and appliances having been tested, the force drilled in their use, and the equipment and methods inspected and passed upon by foreign experts.

Jan 1, 1912

This report summarizes the cost of U.S, mining and milling industry compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) interim water quality guidelines for waste discharges. Applicable excerpts from Public Law 92-500 are stated and interpreted in conjunction with the guidelines being used for implementation of the law. Over 200 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers applications for discharge permits were used to develop the quality and quantity data base needed to estimate the cost to comply with EPA guidelines, Cost of three basic treatment methods were considered: Aeration, addition of lime, and sedimentation. From the process design, cost-capacity graphs were developed to consider maximum flow rate, maxi lime addition, and average flow rates. The graphical method used in this evaluation should provide a reasonable guide to the effect of waste treatment and, therefore, Public Law 92-500 and corresponding EPA guidelines on the mineral processing industry. The cost of complying with the EPA guidelines will have the effect of prompting the mining industry to minimize the production of waste water and of undertaking some additional treatment, Two case studies are presented to illustrate efforts that might be fruitful for minimizing waste water production and for treatment of combinations of acid mine drainage, mill wastes, and metallurgical process wastes when treatment is deemed necessary.

Jan 1, 1975

By P. V. Fillo

This paper describes Mohave Mining and Milling Co. methods of mining and milling manganese ore in Arizona. It is one of a series of publications prepared by the Bureau of Mines on methods and costs in various mining districts in the United States. Production of manganese ore, as such, in Arizona began in 1915. Before this time manganiferous ores had been mined primarily for silver content and used as a smelter flux. From 1916 to 1918 approximately 69,000 long tons of manganese and mangsniferous ores were mined. After World War I production dropped to almost nothing until World War II, during which period more than 24,000 long tons were produced. A lull in mangonese mining occurred after World War II, having production rates of only a few hundred tons annually through 1952.

Jan 1, 1963

By Robert B. Fisher

[The purpose of this paper is to acquaint manufacturers of various types of asbestos product's, particularly those that specialize in materials used for sound deadening, vibration damping, and filtration, with a recently invested depth deposit of paligorskite, a type of asbestos usually called mountain leather. In the past this mineral has been only a museum curiosity but it possesses characteristics that may adapt it to industrial uses. The deposit is on Lemesurier Island, near this entrance to Glacier Bay, in the northern portion of southeastern Alaska, at approximately latitude 58° 17? N., longitude 1360 05' W. The island is about 4 ½ miles in east- west length and miles in width. The property on which the deposit occurs is owned by the locator Joe Ibach, end it was brought; to the attention of the Bureau of Mines by Col. George B. Norris. A Bureau of Mines engineer, accompanied by the owner and Chris Ellingen, visited the property sand examined the open-cuts from May 7 to 10 in 1944. The purpose of the examination was to determine the approximate extent of the occurrence and to obtain samples of the material for identification end study of its utilization.]

Jan 1, 1945

By George R. Ingham

This paper is one of a buries being prepared by the Bureau of Mines on mining methods and costs at various mines in the United States, and is a description of the mining practice at Ajo, Ariz., where the New Cornelia Branch of the Phelps Dodge Corporation mines copper ore from an open pit, and operates a concentrator for the treatment of the ore thus mined. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors wish to express their appreciation to M. Curley, manager of the New Cornelia Branch of the Phelps Dodge Corporation, for his review of this paper and permission to publish it. They also wish to acknowledge the assistance given by W. C. Lawson, assistant engineer, in the preparation of the paper.

Jan 1, 1932

The State of Washington has a federal program that gives the Office of Surface Mining responsibility for assuring the reclamation of lands affected by coal mining. Most of Washington's coal-bearing regions lie west of the Cascade Mountains. The state's coal reserves are estimated at 1.4 billion tons, about 0.3 percent of the nation's total coal reserve. Steeply dipping. minable seams range from 2.5 to 25 feet in thickness. The occurrence of coal in Washington has been documented since the early days of its settlement; at one time, coal production played a significant role in the state's economy. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, coal was second only to lumber in Washington's industrial production. Coal production declined as other sources of energy were developed. By 1959, production was at 200,000 tons. Regulation of the coal mine operations in Washington is conducted by the Office of Surface Mining's Casper, Wyoming, Field Office and its local office in Olympia, Washington. All permit applications and abandoned mine land reclamation are completed by the OSM Western Support Center in Denver, Colorado. Inspections of mine and reclamation sites are conducted by OSM reclamation specialists located in Olympia.

Jan 1, 1992

By J. H. Jacobs

In late 1946, research was begun at the Bureau of Mines Electrometallurgical Laboratory at Boulder City, Nev., to determine the possibility of electrowinning manganese from chloride electrolytes on a continuous basis. All phases of electrodeposition were investigated on a small scale it the laboratory, and the results were reported by Jacobs and Churchward. These results indicated that a chloride process had certain possible advantages over the sulfate process that made it worthwhile to continue the investigation on a semi-pilot-plant basis, and this paper reports the results of this work. Research and development work on a process for electrowinning manganese from low-grade ores has been carried on intermittently by the Bureau of Mines since 1936. A process was developed, using sulfate electrolyte, that has been extensively described in the literature.

Jan 1, 1951

By P. A. Hendricks

This U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) report identifies and evaluates factors responsible for metal/nonmetal (M/NM) underground mining accidents involving mobile equipment. Information regarding the occurrence and severity of the accidents, the type of equipment involved, the primary and contributing causes, and preventive measures is included. The goal of this report is to provide information that will aid mine operators and safety managers in the recognition of hazards associated with operating mobile mining equipment in an underground mining environment.

Jan 1, 1994

By John W. Sweeney

Shales and clays from Illinois were sampled, tested, and evaluated to determine feasibility of producing lightweight aggregate by rotary-kiln methods. Sampling procedures and the 1 ,,,y of the Pennsylvanian shale units are discussed. Chemical, X-ray spectrographic and X-ray petrographic analyses were run on the samples to determine if a correlation existed between chemical mineralogic composition and expansion. Preliminary expansion testing was conducted in a muffle furnace. Rotary-kiln tests were conducted in a 16- inch by 14-foot rotary kiln. The weight of the aggregate ranged from 27 to 59 pounds per cubic foot. Concrete cubes employing the aggregate were tested to determine the qualities of the concrete. Compressive strength of the concrete using the 7-bag of cement cement per cubic yard mix, after autoclave curing for 6 hours, ranged from 2,950 to 6,750 psi. No correlation was found between the chemical, X-ray spectrographic, and X-ray and petrographic analyses and expansion, Sixteen samples made suitable lightweight aggregates in the laboratory rotary kiln. The expansion temperature range of eight of the samples was extremely narrow, and difficulties would probably be encountered in processing these materials commercially.

Jan 1, 1965