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By M. J. Duggin

Evidence is produced below to show that the carbide "Mn,C," reported by Kw,and ersson' is really a mixture of two carbides. One is an Fe-Mn carbide which is probably isomorphous with hexagonal Mn15C4, reported by Bouchand and Pruchart.' The othev is a tetragonul Fe-Mn carbide with cell dzmensions close to those reported previously by the author3 for an Fe0.1Mno. carbide. IN a recent investigation several Fe-Mn carbide specimens, each weighing about 5 g, were prepared in a manner previously reported.3 Debye-Scherrer X-ray photographs were taken of at least two samples from different parts of each specimen using a 114.6-mm-diam camera. The exposure time was 2 hr using filtered chromium radiation, a tube voltage of 35 kv and a tube current of 10 ma. In the case of one specimen, which contained nominal weight percentages of iron, manganese, and carbon of 9.40, 84. 6,, and 6.0, respectively, duplicate chemical analyses indicated f1.2 and 5.5 wt pct C to be present in the two samples taken of the specimen: no graphitic carbon was detected. One powder-diffraction pattern of this specimen indicated the presence of the tetragons: carbide reported earlier,3 (a = 6.772A, c = 9.427A), plus cementite (O), plus an unknown structure. The second powder-

Jan 1, 1970

By G. Ferrara

In process and plant simulation, more reliable prediction of industrial results and evaluation of data for designing purposes may be attained by the combined use of (a) modeling and simulation of ore characteristics and (b) modeling and simulation of integrated plant operations. The systems for modeling and simulation of ore characteristics are discussed as well as the conditions in which their use may be necessary (complex structure of the ore-body and variability of the ore fed to the plant). Two examples, for coal and bauxite run-of-mine (ROM), are reported. The procedure of linking the process unit models and the approaches for the solution of integrated systems are indicated. A general-purpose program for the simulation of integrated plant operations is described, and some examples of its use are reported.

Jan 1, 1984

By D. Harrington

TheRe has been, during the past year, a wealth of report data and discussion relating directly or indirectly to various phases of ventilation of metal mines, and many of the data are from foreign sources. The phase of the subject most generously accorded the attention of the technical press is that of cooling mine air, with much less attention to other fairly intimately associated features such as fan performance, friction factors, fires, mine gases, mine lighting, health of miners, and ventilation standards. Cooling Mine Air South Africa, with its very deep mining on the Rand and with fairly high working temperatures, 'contributes the most definite data on the subject of cooling mine air, and undoubtedly the most interesting issued are those from a paper by J. H. Dobson,' in which he gives a comprehensive review of the subject as gleaned largely by analyzing the data in three papers.2 Dr. Dobson's summation is decidedly interesting. In general it is recognized that the introducing into the mine and circulating to the working places of large volumes of pure air is the most effective method of giving deep, hot metal-mine workings reasonably efficient working conditions. A tabulation as to the cost of securing various amounts of cooling by circulating various volumes, from 230,000 to 760,000 cu. ft. per min., indicates that there are cost limits beyond which increase of quantity of air in circulation is impracticable, as the annual cost of circulating 230,000 cu. ft. of air per min. in a certain mine at a depth of

Jan 1, 1928

John Eliot Allen has been made acting head, dept. of geology, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, N. Mex. He had been associate professor of geology. Robert B. Anderson has accepted a position with the U. S. Steel Co., Gary, W. Va., as assistant to the superintendent, No. 2 mine. [ ] Donald L. Archibald has joined the sales dept. of the Ellicott Machine Corp., Baltimore. He formerly had been associated with the Joy Mfg. Co., St. Louis. J. C. Boswell has been appointed manager of the Fairbanks dept., United Smelting Refining & Mining Co. J. B. Metcalfe has been appointed assistant to the president. G. Howard LeFevre was elected vice-president and general manager of metal sales and R. N. Hunt, vice-president and chief geologist was elected a director. R. B. Earling, vice-president and general manager of Alaskan operations, has retired but. will con¬tinue to serve on the board of directors. J. D. Crawford has been appointed general manager of Alaskan operations.

Jan 1, 1952

By Sooi P. Chong

Expansion of concentrator capacity at Iron Ore Company of Canada's Carol Lake plant resulted in a dramatic increase in the production of fines. With iron recovery from the fines running only 18%, Carol Lake engineers initiated an extensive test program which resulted in the installation in July 1977, of a full-scale plant utilizing Reichert cone concentrators. Results to date have indicated a 100% increase in iron recovery from the concentrator's fines product. Carol Lake is located near the western boundary of Labrador, Newfoundland, some 960 km (600 mi) northeast of Montreal. Concentrator operations began in 1962 with a design capacity of 7 million t/y (7.7 million stpy). The bulk of the concentrate was pelletized at a 6 million t/y (6.6 million stpy) pelletizing plant completed in 1963. The remaining concentrate was sold in the international market. The concentrator was first expanded in 1966 to 10 million t/y (11 million stpy) capacity. In 1967, the pellet plant was expanded to match the increase in concentrate production. Sales increases led to a further expansion in 1973. By 1977, more than 40 million tons (44 million st) of crude ore were processed to recover in excess of 17.42 million tons (19 million st) of concentrate and 10.4 million tons (11.5 million st) of pellets.

Jan 12, 1978

Calendar of Events

Jan 11, 1961

By Osamu Fukuta

The geological and geochemical characteristics of the Japanese iodine-rich brines are outlined. The iodine-rich brine in Japan is primary in its origin and its occurrence is limited in the younger marine sediments. The iodine-rich subsurface water is saturated or over- saturated by natural gas, but the water saturated by natural gas is not always rich in iodine. The iodide and bromide contents decrease with time. The bromide content decreases much more rapidly than that of iodide. It should be emphasized that the genetic environment of the Japanese type of dissolved gas and iodine deposit is not peculiar to the Japanese islands.

Jan 1, 1985

By John Patek

KNOWLEDGE of the relative floatability of silicate minerals is increas-ing in importance as flotation is being applied to the concentration of nonsulfides. Many silicates are in themselves commercial products amenable to concentration by flotation. Moreover, the selective flota-tion of other nonsulfide minerals, such as cassiterite, depends largely upon the floatability of associated. gangue silicates. Differences in floatability existing between the various silicates have not been suffi-ciently appreciated; for example, the feldspars that differ greatly in floatability have generally been merely treated as "feldspar." It was the purpose of the work described in this paper to determine by experi-ment the differences in floatability between silicates; to investigate the causes for such differences, and to discover a means of predetermining approximate floatability without the necessity of experimentation.

Jan 1, 1934

The Library of the above-named Societies is open from 9 A.M. to 10 P.M. on all week-days, except holidays, from September 1 to June 30, and from 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. during July and August. The Library contains about 55,000 volumes, including sets of technical periodicals and the publications of scientific and technical societies. Members of the Institute, with few exceptions, are forced to spend a portion of their time in localities isolated from sources of information. To these the Library can render valuable service through correspondence; letters requesting information will receive special attention. The Library is prepared to furnish references and copies of articles mining and metallurgical subjects; to determine the existence of mining maps, and to furnish general information as to the geology and mineral resources of all countries. All communications should be made as definite as possible so that the information received may be what is desired and not include collateral matter which may not be of interest. The time spent in searching for such collateral matter will be saved, and the information will be sent more promptly and in more usable shape. The members of the Institute can be of service to the Library by forwarding copies of mining reports, maps privately issued, and similar material, which will be classified, indexed, and made available to other members. Suggestions for additions to the Library, either by purchase or personal solicitation as gifts, will be welcomed. It is hoped that members while in the city will use the Library freely, and assurance is given that most careful service will be rendered to them.

Jan 4, 1915

By M. G. F. Sohnlein

IN a Bolivian tin concentrator an appliance was needed to furnish a suitable product for fine jigging from a pulp of the following composition: Mesh Per Cent. +20 8.0 +40 36.5 +60 9.0 +80 10.5 +100 5.5 +150 4.51 -150 25.0 99.0 Loss 1.0 IN the jigging process, particles of cassiterite as small as 0.1 mm. can be recovered, provided they are not present in excess, that is if the material treated on the jigs contains sufficient coarser sands to keep the interstices between the grains open. Removing the fine material from the pulp by screening, to prepare the jig feed, is impractical, because that means the use of an 80-mesh screen or finer, and is not as effective as hydraulic classification. A screen would eliminate mineral grains from the feed which can be recovered by jigging, and in addition would throw more gangue and low-grade middling on to the jig. Formerly a one-spigot Richards vortex classifier had been used to accomplish this separation, but the tangential openings through which the hydraulic water enters became clogged by fine vegetal matter with which the water was contaminated, and which it was impossible to remove from the water. Consequently the work of the classifier was imperfect and a good deal of slime was sent to the jig. When designing the plant referred to in this paper it was decided to use a hydraulic classifier as shown in Fig. 1. The essential features had been copied from the Anaconda classifier.1 This remodeled classifier consists of a truncated pyramidal wooden hooper A with an attachment of cast iron

Jan 4, 1916

By William L. Grube

PECIMEN preparation for electron metallography involves several steps, such as polishing, etching, replicating, mounting, and shadowing. Although each step must be done with care, the operation requiring the utmost attention is etching. Proper etching is important because the relief pattern developed on the surface of the specimen by the etchant, and reproduced as minute differences in thickness of the replica, determines entirely the amount of detail seen in the final micrograph. The characteristic colored stains, sometimes used in light metallography to simplify identification of certain microconstituents, cannot be tolerated because there is danger of introducing artifacts in the replicating operation. It is also quite difficult to remove plastic replicas from stained specimens. A suitable etchant for electron metallography must, therefore, in all cases exhibit a preferential attack upon each of the microconstituents present sufficient to result in a difference in surface elevation. When only two microconstituents are present, it is not too difficult to find a suitable etchant since their physical or chemical properties are generally sufficiently different to result in a marked difference in attack by the etchant. For example, picral (a saturated solution of picric acid in methanol used as an immersion etch) is a satisfactory etchant for the specimen shown in Fig. 1 consisting of iron carbide particles embedded in a ferrite matrix.'

Jan 1, 1952

By Augustus Locke, Edward H. Perry

In the exploration of a copper deposit by drilling, obvious advantages are to be gained from a distinction between primary and secondary ore.' Perhaps the chief of these is the aid which such a distinction renders in determining where a given hole should stop. The copper assay, often a sufficient guide, cannot always be exclusively relied upon. Primary ores may extend downward indefinitely and may fluctuate in value independently of depth: if primary ores are consistently lean for a considerable vertical distance, there is little reason to expect that, still deeper, they will increase to the commercial grade; on the other hand, rich primary ores may persist uninterruptedly downward or may come in again below a lean interval. Secondary ores, however, have a comparatively limited vertical extent; in a large way enrichment decreases with depth and finally gives out. It follows then, that when a hole descends from profitable ore into ore of less than the commercial minimum, the practical significance of the situation depends upon whether this decrease results from a decrease in secondary enrichment or is a variation in primary content: if the copper of the ore passed through has been chiefly secondary, little is gained in the average case by extending the hole much below the point at which the commercial limit is reached; but, when copper is chiefly primary, due weight must be given to the possibility that, still deeper, the ore may again improve. The distinction between primary and secondary ore may of course be effected through an examination of the drillings. It has been found, however, to be facilitated by curves made by plotting assays against

Jan 1, 1916

By Glenn Alvey

THE measure of value of an oil property is approximated by the length of time it takes to "pay out;" viz., the time required for it to return the original investment. This time varies in different fields. In the Appalachian and Mid-Continent fields, a good investment pays out in about four years; in California, it requires a slightly longer time; and in the Gulf field about two years. The two principal methods for establishing these values are based on acreage, as in California, and on production, as in the Appalachian field. The method of establishing values based on production1 was worked out in the Appalachian fields and approximates the value remarkably well in some fields; but it is a rule of thumb and should be used intelligently. Briefly, the method is as follows: An arbitrary number of dollars (called the barrel-day price) multiplied by the number of barrels of settled daily production of the property gives the value.. In its crudest application, the barrel-day price is determined by the "$10 to $.01" rule, which means that the barrel-day price is one thousand times the prevailing price of oil. For instance, with oil at $3.50 per bbl. the barrel-day price would be $3500 per bbl. This rule, however, is not strictly applied, for the, barrel price is varied according to whether or not the wells "hold up." But when a barrel price for a district has been fixed it is quite general to raise or lower the price with the fluctuation in the price of oil; here the" $10 to $.01" rule is used extensively. However, the prospective purchaser takes into account tangible equipment upon the property, the extent to which the drilling program has been carried out, whether or not the wells are "shot" or natural, depth of wells, spacing of wells, paraffin trouble, etc.

Jan 1, 1921

By E. J. Fasiska, L. Zwell

PREVIOUS investigations 1,2 of Fe3P described by pearson3 and schubert4 show that Fe3P has a bct unit cell having four Fe3P tetrahedra centered around each lattice point. The space group is 14, No. 82, and all atoms occupy general positions 8(g). The cell dimensions3 are: a = 9.090, c = 4.446 kX, with an axial ratio of c/o = 0.4891. We have measured the lattice parameters of Fe3P, using a Fe as an internal temperature standard, at 23°, 414°, and 678°C and computed the thermal expansion over this temperature range. The Fe,P was prepared by melting under vacuum (after flushing with argon) a commercially pure iron and "ferrophosphor" in a high-frequency induction furnace. Part of the ingot was crushed for X-ray examination and for chemical analysis. X-ray diffraction and light microscopy indicated iron phosphide (Fe3P) present as the major constituent and a small amount (about 5 pct) of a Fe. Chemical analysis showed 0.05 wt pct Si, 0.008 wt pct N, 0.018 wt pet C, and less than 0.02 wt pct each of other metallic elements. X-ray diffraction powder patterns were obtained from a mixture of iron and Fe3P sealed in an evacuated quartz capsule using a Unicam high-temperature

Jan 1, 1968

By S. E. Piper, E. M. Buchalter, R. P. King, E. T. Woodburn

The problems involved in an optimum decision making model for flotation circuit are, first of all, to characterize the feed material in terms of parameters which can quantitatively describe the network flotation action in terms of a feasible set of control actions. Once the characterization has been postulated, it is then necessary to devise tests relating to parameter sensitivity, in order that credibility of the model predictions can be assessed. Once a credible model is available, the optimum control set is determined by a hill climbing technique. Details will be reported as to the credibility of model predictions using the stochastic flotation model on a network and further, computational problems associated with hill climbing for a complex objective function are reviewed. Discussion is presented on use of the Rosenbrock technique with constraints and use of a modified objective function with constrained derivatives when employing Fletcher and Powell technique.

Jan 1, 1969

By G. W. Elger, H. E. Bell, J. E. Tress, J. B. Wright

This paper describes laboratory techniques and subsequent results of US Bureau of Mines (USBM) research to produce chlorination-grade feed- stock from an abundant, low-grade, domestic, rock ilmenite ore. The research is part of the Bureau effort to devise technology that may help decrease US dependence on imported raw materials. A rock ilmenite containing about 46 wt % TiO2 was smelted in an electric arc furnace with coke, wood-chips, and Na2CO3 to separate most of the iron as pig iron and to form a low-iron, titanium-enriched slug. The slug was ground, pelletized, oxidized, and then sulfated with mixtures of SO2 and air in a continuous 4.5- to 9.1-kg/h (10- to 20-lb per hour) apparatus at 1023° to 122J0 K (1380° to 1740° F). The sulfated slug, containing 60% to 65% TiOb, was reground and leached in water at ambient temperature to decrease the combined levels of the troublesome calcium, magnesium, and manganese impurities from 7.0 to 1.7 wt 70. The final product was upgraded to about 8.4 wt % TiO2. This material is potentially suitable for chlorination in a fluidized bed reactor. The most favorable results were achieved with leached slug sulfated at a feed rate of 4.5 kg/h (10 lb per hour) and at temperatures of 1073° to 1123° K (1470° to 1560' F).

Jan 1, 1986

SMELTING is a thing essential to the end for which ores are sought, for without it every ore is a useless stone. This art is especially needed by those who, drawn on by hope, have mined ores in large quantities with great expense and effort. For this reason it is worth while to use one's wits and, if ordinary ways should not suffice, to consider how to find new ways of smelting the ores in order to extract the metals and to purge them of their earthiness. For this reason I shall now tell you of blast and other furnaces, and I shall also tell you, in order that you may be warned, that whoever wishes to do this well must first look at the nature and quality of the ore. You will already have had enlightenment on this from the experiments on assaying and with this as guiding star it is necessary to make ingenious structures and to provide for-the other needs as necessary, for one ore requires iron and another lead. Since I have already spoken of these in their own places on their ores, it is not necessary at present that I repeat, but here I wish to speak only of copper ore as a companion of silver and gold, and of where art is most required and where difficulties chiefly appear. For these things a machine must be built that is convenient to a good water supply in order to continue the work more easily. Its wheels should be large and easily moved, constructed in such a way that the force of the water lifts the bellows that are placed at the tuyère to direct the blast inside the furnaces that are to smelt the ores. For this, attention must first be given to the site of the machine, the quantity of water, and its fall; then to the wood for building the machine and for making charcoal; then to the stones that are used for the blast furnaces; then to the provision of good bellows that are wide, long, and full in their sides and made of cloth, for the better these are, the more they quicken the power of the charcoal

Jan 1, 1942

By [Dipl. -Ing. ] Karl Angerer

The "New Austrian Tunneling Method" is one of the most significant developments in European tunneling in the last 15 years. I hope this report will show the significance of this tunneling method, which was developed in Austria exactly 18 years ago and which is now used in many European countries. In Austria from 1948 to 1953, the Moll tunnel with a length of 11.6 km (about 7.3 miles) was constructed as a part of the Kaprun power plant. Depth of overburden varied from 1000 to 1400 m, and there were many rock bursts in calcareous-schist formations. Here for the first time it was found that a thin concrete lining would help to prevent rock bursts if it was sprayed on the rock soon after blasting. During construction of the Prutz-Imst tunnel in Austria from 1953 to 1956, the shotcrete lining was sprayed on the phyllite surface a certain distance behind the blasting face to prevent rapid rock decomposition. This method was also tried in soft-rock sections of the tunnel where steel and wood supports usually were necessary. To prevent loosening of the rock, application of the sprayed concrete was tried immediately after blasting. This method made it possible to tunnel through very soft ground. Where necessary, the shotcrete was supplemented by steel arches and mesh reinforcement. At that time (1953-1956), the machines and equipment for guniting or spraying concrete were being improved rapidly and it became possible to spray aggregates up to 25 mm in diam. Hardening accelerators brought quicker strength and better adhesion of the shotcrete-this also made it possible to use the method in wet tunnels. If the tunnels are extremely wet or flowing with water, it is necessary to seal off the wet rock or drain the water, using, for instance, the Oberhasli method. After these first successful steps with the new Austrian method, large portions of the Schwarzach power plant in Austria were designed and built. At this operation, shotcrete was used almost exclusively for tunneling work. It was on this site where, for the first time, a tunnel 120 m long with a 45-sq- m section was driven through overburden without one piece of timber

Jan 1, 1970

By Hans W. Brodbeck

The main problem in tunneling without the use of explosives lies in the development of tools capable of continuous mechanical destruction of rock, resulting in a fragmentation which lends itself to a smooth, uninterrupted transportation of the broken rock away from the tunnel face. While all moles of U.S. design mainly achieve this by crushing the rock by means of "disk cutters" or "roller bits," a boring system based on the principle of cutting the rock came into being in Europe, whereby the rock is worked in a manner very similar to the milling of metals. For tunneling purposes, this principle was first developed by the late Austrian engineer Wohlmeyer. Between late 1962 and the spring of 1965, the first experimental machine was tested in a German coal mine, working in coal and shale over a distance of some 3000 ft, divided over two runs separated by a period of time to allow for equipment modifications. In 1964, a collaboration was started between Wohlmeyer and the Habegger engineering firm of Thun in Switzerland. The normal Habegger range of equipment consists of aerial ropeways, ski lifts, and certain tool machines, to which in later years have been added monorail passenger-transport systems. One of these was installed as the main mode of transport at the 1967 World Fair in Montreal. After taking over the Wohlmeyer patents, Habegger further developed the original cutting principle, aiming at more robust machines in order to be able to tackle harder rock. A first machine was built and tested at a site near Thun in sandstone averaging 17,000 psi compressive strength and limestone of 25,000 psi. In May 1966 this machine was delivered to Japan for the boring of a pilot tunnel for the Honshu-Hokkaido railway connection under the sea. A second machine, incorporating many improvements based on experience gained with this first mole, was built during 1966 and tested in the same limestone as mentioned previously (25,000 psi), before being installed to bore the head race tunnel of the Julia hydroelectric power scheme near St. Moritz, Switzerland, in the early summer of 1967 (Fig. 1 ) .

Jan 1, 1970

By W. Rostoker

A STUDY of the titanium-oxygen system' involved an associated series of measurements of the lattice parameters of the a and TiO phases. The results permit some interesting deductions which are herein reported. A comprehensive survey of the physical PI-operties of the phases in this alloy system has been made by Ehrlich.2 However, only impure titanium was available at that time, so that some revision of his measurements is to be expected. The lattice parameters were calculated from the high angle lines of Debye-Scherrer patterns taken in a 14 cm camera and using filtered CuKa radiation. The specimens were prepared largely by crushing and screening of lump samples which had been quenched from elevated temperatures. Only in the case of low oxygen contents was it necessary to resort to filing and annealing. The results of the lattice parameter studies are graphically presented in Figs. 1 and 2. It will be seen that oxygen produces a pronounced distortion of the c parameter of the a phase (hexagonal close-packed). The trend is in general agreement with Ehrlich's work, although the divergence of actual parameter values strongly suggests that his titanium was very impure. It will be noted that the a phase of titanium can tolerate the unusually high saturation solubility of about 34 atomic pct 0. By virtue of this unique effect, it is possible to make a calculation of the effective atomic diameter of oxygen when dissolved in a lattice with metallic bonding. This has not been possible before. Ehrlich's2 density measurements demonstrated that oxygen occupies interstitial positions in the a lattice and the trend of the lattice parameters would certainly support this. In a hexagonal close-packed unit cell the largest interstitial positions lie at (2/3, 1/3, 1/4) and (2/3, 1/3, 3/4). Accordingly, if both of these positions were occupied, the ratio of titanium to oxygen would be 1:1. The extrapolated c parameter may be taken as between 4.93 and 4.99?. The a parameter appears to reach a constant value of 2.955? at low oxygen contents. The distance of the center of a titanium atom site from the [vc2/16+a2/3-1.448] Then the atomic diameter of the oxygen atom is represented by the function: where the radius of the titanium atom is 1.448A,

Jan 1, 1953