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By Fred W. Johnson

The first section of this circular has been prepared with a view to answering inquiries frequently received by the Bureau regarding laws governing the staking of claims and regulations covering requirements for holding them and obtaining title in fee to placer ground. These laws and regulations were summarized briefly in Information Circular 6796, "Placer Mining in the Western United States." These laws, however, are administered by the General Land Office, Department of the Interior, and it has been considered advisable to combine an authoritative résumé thereof by the Commissioner of that Bureau with information on small-scale placer mining previously published by the Bureau of Mines. The second section of this circular is largely a revised reprint of Information Circular 6611, "Small-Scale Placer Mining Methods", first published in April 1932 for the purpose of answering the many daily inquiries then being received on this subject. This circular has been reprinted repeatedly, and about 30,000 copies have been distributed, most of them in response to applications therefor. At present (June 1937) requests for this publication continue to be received daily.

Jan 1, 1938

By William L. Crentz

This study of the preparation characteristics of the coals in Indiana County, Pa., is the second in a series of Bureau publications appraising the Nation's coking-coal reserves by counties and the practicability of upgrading marginal deposits to metallurgical standards. The first publication dealt with the preparation characteristics of the principal coal beds in Cambria County, Pa. Over 95 percent of the coal remaining in Indiana County is in the Upper Freeport, Lower Freeport, and Lower Kittanning beds. Isolated patches of Pittsburgh-bed coal are present, and the Upper Kittanning bed is found in minable thickness at some locations, but production from these sources is not large. The greatest production is from the Freeport beds, which account for nearly 70 percent of the Indiana County coal output. These beds usually contain two or more shale or hone partings and in many places are high in sulfur. The large proportion of bony coal in the Freeport beds 'produces a relatively high-ash product. Mining practices vary from place to place, but it is frequently necessary to leave certain bony portions of the bed in place in order to load a satisfactory product. Table 1 shows the county's coal production, by beds, during 1948.

Jan 1, 1951

This appendix contains the list of equipment selected for the capitol cost estimate, with the respective quotations from their vendors/manufacturers. A vendor response report along with a separate equipment and motor list has been included in the first part of this appendix.

Jan 1, 1979

By G. S. Scott

In the course of the investigation into the causes, behavior, and control of mine fires, which the Bureau of Mines is now conducting, some attention was given to the subject of spontaneous heating. It is self-evident that the temperature of a pile of broken coal will rice if the rate of generation of heat exceeds the rate of brat dissipation and will fall if the opposite is the case. Factors that affect the rate of generation of heat are:

Jan 1, 1941

By H. C. Fuller, J. H. Jacobs

"Manganese ore from Metals Reserve stock piles at Deming, N. Mex., Cushman, Ark., and Philipsburg, Mont., were processed in the Bureau of Mines pilot plant at Boulder City, Nev., to determine their suitability for the production of electrolytic manganese. Manganese was produced successfully from all of the ores.The ores, crushed and ground to minus 33-mesh, were roasted in a Skinner furnace to reduce the manganese and were then leached with spent electrolyte, from the cells, containing sulfuric acid. Acid-leach extractions of 96 percent on Deming, 89 percent on Cushman, and 97.5 percent on Philipsburg ores were obtained. Neutralization of leaches with ammonia results in the highest manganese extraction; but Cushman and Deming leaches could not be neutralized with ammonia, because the amount required was more than enough to maintain the proper ammonium sulfate concentration. A combination of ammonia and calcine was used. However, ammonia was satisfactory for neutralization of Philipsburg leaches. Sulfuric acid needed for make-up was as follows: Deming, 0.380 pound per pound of manganese extracted when neutralized with ammonia and calcine; Cashman, 0.402 pound per pound of manganese extracted when neutralized with ammonia and calcine; Philipsburg, 0.594 round per pound of manganese extracted when neutralized with ammonia alone.All of the leach slurries settled well enough to be separated and washed in countercurrent thickeners.Impurities were precipitated with hydrogen sulfide and removed by filtration. Cushman ore solution contained only- small amounts of impurities and required 0.055 gram of hydrogen sulfide per liter of solution for purification. Deming and Philipsburg solutions contained large amounts of zinc and required 0.55 and 0.65 gram of hydrogen sulfide per liter of solution, respectively.Electrodeposition was satisfactory on all three ores and current efficiencies of 62 to 66 were obtained.A process for the production of electrolytic manganese has been developed by the Bureau of Mines, first on a laboratory scale4/ and then on a semicommercial pilot-plant scale.5/ At first the- pilot plant operated on ore from the Three Kids mine near Las Vegas, Nev., to determine the practical features of the process on ore of this type. Since completing the work on this ore, the pilot plant has been used for processing other domestic ores to obtain engineering data and other economic information regarding the amenability of such ores to the process."

Sep 1, 1946

By Sabri Ergun

Cost estimates and technical feasibility are compared for six chemical coal cleaning technologies. The comparison is based on conceptual application of the chemical cleaning methods for removal of pyritic and organic sulfur from a utility grade bituminous coal. The process layout includes receipt of 8,000 tpd ROM coal, fine coal pulverizing, desulfurization, and preparation of a compacted clean coal suitable for storage and shipment. The methods are: the Magnex iron pentacarbonyl process, the KVB dry oxidation process, the Battelle hydrothermal caustic leaching precess, the TRW Meyers ferric ion leaching process, the Ledgemont oxygen/water leaching process, and the Bureau of Mines/Energy Research and Development Administration air/water leaching process. Capital costs estimated for the desulfurization operation alone, scaled to 8,000 tpd, range between $14 MM and $122 MM, while estimated operating costs for desulfurization alone on the same scale of operation range between $7 and $17 per ton clean coal produced. Relatively little is known about the chemical cleaning of coal, and present cost estimates indicate that the method might not be competitive at its present state of development when used alone to clean utility grade coals for sulfur removal. The principal attractiveness of chemical coal cleaning lies in its potential for combination with physical cleaning to produce cost competitive compliance coals in a combined process with high-Btu yields.

Jan 1, 1977

By G. S. Scott

In the course of tire investigation into the causes, behavior, and control of mine fires, which the Bureau of Mines is now conducting, come attention was given to the subject of spontaneous heating. It is self-evident that the temperature of a pile of broken coal will rise if the rate of generation of heat exceeds the rate of heat dissipation and will fall if the opposite is the cane. Factors that affect the rate of generation of heat are:

Jan 1, 1941

By Albert L. Toenges

Early in 1944 the Chilean Government expressed a desire for assistance from the Bureau of Mines in a study of the coal deposits, coal-mining methods, and preparation and benefication of coals in Chile. A Memorandum of Understanding setting forth the purpose of the work was executed by the United States Government and the Government of Chile. Parts of this agreement are quoted: On February 4, 1944, the Ambassador of Chile in Washington expressed the interest of his Government in obtaining the loan of a mission of experts to assist in the conduct of a survey looking toward the utilization of the low-grade coals of Chile and the application of such technology as may be developed for the distillation of these coals and the use of oil shales. The matter has since been the subject of correspondence between the Secretary of State and the United States Department of the Interior, and the latter Department has agreed to cooperate with the Government of Chile, through the Bureau of Mines, subject to the following understanding:

Jan 1, 1948

By Robert B. McElwaine

"The demand for barite has increased greatly in the last 10 years, especially during World War II. Depletion of oil reserves and subsequent increase in deep drilling created a heavy demand by the oil industry for barite to be used as drilling mud. The great increase in demand for barite gave impetus to the development of a, deposit of impure barite near, Magnet Cove in Hot Spring County, Ark.The critical condition of the national barite supply early in 1944 led the War Production Board to recommend that the Bureau of Mines attempt to prove the existence of a large reserve tonnage of barite in the Magnet Cove area and arch for new deposits. To carry out this program, the Bureau explored on newly reported. Barite deposits in southern Montgomery County, Ark. The Gap Mountain, Fancy Hill, and Sulphur Mountain barite deposits were investigated. Eight diamond core-drill holes and 1,336 linear feet of surface trenching were completed, and barite samples obtained were analyzed, A study of the Montgomery County barnse district indicates that the lenticular bodies of barite replace a favorable host rock near the base of the Stanley shale formation. Barite is exposed along the side of anticlinal mountains where erosion has truncated the beds on the limbs of the associated synclines. An appreciable amount of barite suitable for commercial use has been indicated by trenching and core drilling. The Gap Mountain and Fancy Hill deposits are controlled by the Magnet Cove Barium Corp. and Baroid Sales Division of National Load Co., respectively. The ore is similar to that of the Magnet Cove area and is amenable to concentration by a flotation process. Mining of these deposits had not been begun by the time the Bureau completed its exploration project."

Nov 1, 1946

By G. R. Hopkins

For several years prior to about the middle of 1928 both the number and capacity of natural-gasoline plants showed a steady increase; this resulted from a material gain in the supply of casinghead has due to the discovery of a number of flush fields with relatively high gas-oil ratios. From 1928 to date some form of proration has been continually in force, with a consequent curtailment in the supply of wet gas. This decline in available gas and a severe decrease in prices, due largely to the increasing competition of light refinery products, has eliminated virtually all of the weaker units during the last 5 years, with the result that the number of plants declined from 1,155 on January 1, 1928 to 19035 on January 1, 1930, to 909 on January 1, 1932, and then to 859 on January 1, 1934, The struggle of the small high-cost producers to exist is illustrated further by the trend in the number of shut-down plants, which has increased from 36 on January 1, 1930 to 100 on January 1, 1932 and to 128 on January 1, 1934. The increase in the number of plants prior to 1929 resulted in a material gain in the total capacity, but the decline in number between 1929 and 1932 was not followed by a corresponding decrease in capacity, as gains resulting from the construction of a few very large plants overbalanced the loss due to the dismantling of a large number of small ones. However, the low prices of 1932 and 1933 supplied little incentive for new construction, and the total capacity declined in approximately the same ratio as the number. Thus the total capacity declined from 11,387,000 gallons daily on January 1, 1932 to 13,060,000 gallons daily on January 1, 1934, Of the latter 9,181,000 gallons (91 percent) represented the capacity of the operating plants and 679,000 gallons (9 percent) the capacity of the idle plants.

Jan 1, 1934

By R. T. Sorensen

Research and testing in a small scale equivalent of a commercial flota-tion plant was completed on four low-grade, iron-bearing materials from the western Mesabi range. Closed circuit-flotation of calcium-activated silica with fatty acid collector developed data for comparison with the batch process and highlighted problems not evident from previous bench testing. The four ore samples contained from 27 to 39 percent Fe and were equally represented by nonmagnetic taconite and semitaconite type materials. Iron concentrates containing 6.0 percent, or less, SiO2 were made 5, all four samples. Of the two material types, the semitaconite was the ore amenable to treatment, yielding iron recoveries of about 90 percent as cc pared with 70 to 80 percent for the other. Pilot plant tests showed that concentrate grade made in batch tests could be duplicated in the closed circuit and demonstrated that the amount of recoverable middling iron varied considerably between ore samples. The continuous tests also showed that water temperature strongly influenced results in the treatment of one ore but apparently was of indifferent consequence in another. Progress in thickening and filtration of flotation concentrates was made through introduction of tapioca flour to serve the dual role of iron mineral depressant and flocculant.

Jan 1, 1966

By Gregory J. Chekan

This Bureau of Mines report presents three methods for designing bulkheads to impound water underground: (1) thin and thick plate design; (2) South African plug design; and (3) single and double bulkhead seal design. Related areas critical to the long-term effectiveness of underground water impoundments are also addressed. These include bulk-head anchorage, concrete specifications and placement, the grouting of permeable strata, and the sizing of barrier pillars. A case study involving hydrostatic tests conducted on a single bulkhead seal constructed in the Safety Research Coal Mine of the Bureau's Pittsburgh Research Center is presented in an appendix.

Jan 1, 1985

By R. J. O'Dea

"The United States hat large reserves of titaniferous iron ores that are a potential future source of both iron and titanium. Although it is not now economically feasible to recover iron and titanium metals from these ores, they may become important in times of stress and, in some instances, already have served as a source of pigment-quality titania.The iron- and titanium-bearing constituents of the ores considered in this report are not completely separable from each other by ore-dressing methods, and chemical (or smelting) procedures must be employed. It is im¬portant, therefore, that information be available concerting their reactivities. The most important titanium-bearing constituent is ilmenite (FeTiO3), the thermodynamic properties of which were discussed in a previous publication.3/ The results of thermodynamic studies showed that both hydrogen and carbon monoxide are relatively ineffective reducing agents for the iron in limonite. On the other hand, carbon theoretically is effective at tempera¬tures above 8510C., at which. point the combined equilibrium pressures of CO and CO2 from the reactionsFeTiO3 + C = Fe+ TiO + COand200 = C+ CO2reach 1 atmosphere.This report gives results of small-scale tests of selective reduction by carbon of the iron in titaniferous iron ores, both with and without addition of sodium carbonate. It is shown that the bulk of the iron may be reduced and separated without serious reduction or loss of titanium. Three Wyoming ores, Iron Mountain, Shanton, and Taylor, wore studied. The principal factors investigated were temperature, time, carbon:ore ratio, particle size, and sodium carbon ore ratio.Two methods of investigation were employed. In the first, intimate mixtures of ore and carbon were roasted and the reduced iron and titanium evaluated by leaching with dilute sulfuric acid and analyzing the leach solution (and, in some instances, the dried residues).Twenty grams of ore were mixed thoroughly with carbon and tamped into an alundum thimble having a loosely fitting cover. The thimble and contents were placed in a test-tube end porcelain tube and heated to the desired temperature in a Globar tube furnace. The open end of the porcelain tube was connected to a bubbler containing sulfuric acid, in a manner that permitted complete shut-off of the tube when desired. This allowed removal of the tube from the furnace at the end of the roast period without exposure of the contents to the atmosphere."

Jun 1, 1946

By Tim F. Dyson

Feasibility of employing automated processing and detection techniques in the mine disaster communications problem is demonstrated. Efficient processing methods are developed. These methods have been demonstrated both in a laboratory and in a field environment. Evalua¬tion of existing computer capacity is given along with recommendations for expansion.

Jan 1, 1981

By J. W. Thompson

MEANING OF TERM, The term "minerals" when used in grants or in reservations or instruments of conveyance is not limited to metals or metalliferous deposits, whether contained in veins that have well-defined walls or in beds or deposits that are irregular and are found at or near the surface or otherwise. Byron v. Utah Copper Co., Utah, 178 Pacific 53, p. 58. The term "mineral" in its commercial sense has been defined as any organic substance found in nature having sufficient value sepa- rate from its situs as part of the earth to be mined, quarried, or dug for its own sake or its own specific use. Rockhouse Fork Land Co. v. Raleigh Brick & Tile Co., - W. Va., 97 South- eastern 684, p. 685. CONSTRUCTION AND MEANING. It can not be said that the term "minerals" includes only such substances as are procured by tunnelling and shafting, as much gold is procured by placer mining and rich deposits of manganese and other like ores are found upon the surface of the earth and are some- times obtained without either quarrying or mining. Rockhouse Fork Land Co. v. Raleigh Brick & Tile Co., W. Va. ——, 97 South- eastern 684, p. 685. GRANITE AS MINERAL. It has been determined that granite was included in a grant of minerals. Rockhouse Fork Land Co. v. Raleigh Brick & Tile Co., -W. Va., 97 South eastern 684, p. 685. See Armstrong v. Lake Champlain Granite Co., 147 N. Y. 495, 42 Northeastern 186.

Jan 1, 1919

By R. A. Cattell

Continuing progress in a petroleum and natural gas research program of world-wide significance makes it difficult to pinpoint accomplishments within definite time limits, and it is helpful to look back as well as forward in attempting to introduce and summarize the petroleum work of the Bureau of Mines in the fiscal year 1953. The 1952 report2 / indicated progress in a long-range program applicable in large part to both defense and peacetime requirements. The present report indicates a continuation of that program, modified partly by new demands and interests of government and industry, and is highlighted by a number of significant contributions to the knowledge of petroleum and natural gas and their production and utilization. The intent of the program was clearly epitomized in a statement made near the end of the fiscal year at a general conference of Bureau of Mines personnel where the record was critically reviewed:

Jan 1, 1955

By H. L. Bibbs, H. D. Snedden

"INTRODUCTION The use of beryllium and its alloys has increased rapidly during the last decade. Further expansion of its use is limited; in part, by lack of adequately developed ore reserves. The principal commercial beryllium mineral is beryl, which is found chiefly in pegmatites and produced for market as a byproduct of the mica and feldspar industries. The coarse beryl is mined selectively, sobbed and sorted by hand, and then sold without further beneficiation. The known reserves of coarse beryl are small. No method has been available for concentrating small disseminated beryl crystals, so ores of this type have not been mined or have been left on waste dumps. Disseminated ore in low-grade unmined areas and waste dumps on developed properties is a potential source of beryl, provided a method is developed for its beneficiation.Published literature on the concentration of beryl is lacking in detail or deals chiefly with tests on artificial mixtures of pure minerals, and procedures as given were not applicable to the beryl ores tested at the Salt Lake Station. The testing procedures described in this report are independent developments. By employing these procedures, beryl was satisfactorily con¬centrated from several run-of-mine and dump ores, although these ores wore low in grade and part of the contained beryl was finely crystalline and disseminated.Beryl, quartz, and feldspar, when ground to flotation sizes, are so alike in color and general appearance that they cannot he distinguished by visual observation. The progress of the work depended on rapid determination of the grade of test products by means of the petrographic microscope. Small samples of concentrates and tailings were often cut after each addition of reagents, dried, and examined under the microscope."

May 1, 1947

By D. Harrington

The record of fatalities from mine explosions in the United States during the past 3 years has been the best in the history of the mining industry. During these 3 fiscal years, mine explosions have resulted in an average of 4I0 deaths per year, as compared with an average of 153 deaths per year for the preceding; 5 years; an average of 542 deaths per year for the 3-year period 1907-09, inclusive, just before the organization of the U. S. Bureau of Mines; and a yearly average of 265 deaths per year for the 20-year period prior to 1929. This remarkable reduction in deaths from mine explosions demonstrates clearly that mine explosions can be controlled; in fact, they can be prevented when or if the mining people of the United States see fit to take the readily available precautions necessary to bring about this desirable objective. Several large coal-producing States, which in the past have had numerous disastrous explosions, have been free from such disasters for continuous periods of as much as 6 years or even longer. The bituminous mines of Pennsylvania, the largest coal-producing State, give a good example of what can be done to prevent explosions; this State has had only one major explosion (and it resulted in 7 fatalities) during the past 6 years, and no explosion occurred in the several hundred bituminous-coal mines of the State during the past fiscal year. This is a truly remarkable record when compared with past performance in any year in the operation of coal mines in Pennsylvania.

Jan 1, 1936

By Gordon Bath

During the summer of 1946, the Division of Geophysical Exploration of the U.S. Bureau of Mines established several primary magnetic base stations near important iron-producing districts in Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Stations were located in groups of four to six in six separate base-station areas, and each position was marked with a concrete monument. Differences in magnetic intensity between stations in these areas, as well as the difference between each area and a magnetic datum at the magnetic observatory of the Coast and Geologic Survey at Cheltenham, Md., were measured with a modified Askania magnetometer. Measurements also were made with a Hotchkiss superdip to study the usefulness of the stations for the calibration of instruments of this type. The work was planned and supervised by F. W. Lee, chief of the Division of Geophysical Exploration, and Edward F. Fitzhugh, Jr., chief of the Minneapolis Division of the Bureau of Mines. Special mention is due Harold B. Ewoldt, Bureau of Mines engineer, for his assistance in the field work, especially in locating and establishing monuments. Special mention also is due Clyde L. Holmberg, of the Bureau of Mines, for the magnetic measurements made with the Hotchkiss superdip. Helpful suggestions were received in the field from H. L. James, of the U. S. Geological Survey. Acknowledgment is made of the cooperation of Stephen Royce, Irving E. Beckwith, Arthur Johnson, and Josiah Royce of Pickands, Mather & Co., and A. E. Matson, of Butler Bros. The U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey furnished daily magnetograms from the Cheltenham Magnetic Observatory as well as calibration equipment and values of absolute magnetic intensity. Short-term forecasts of ionospheric conditions were obtained from the National Bureau of Standards.

Jan 1, 1951

By A. J. Farstad

Characteristics of metal/non metal mines were evaluated to determine the suitability of applying the U.S. Bureau of Mines electromagnetic location system to the problem of locating trapped mines in metal/non metal mines. Statistical distributions of mine depths and overburden conductivities show that the existing USBM EM system is inadequate for most metal/non metal mines. Alternate approaches to trapped miner location in deep mines were identified and subsequent field tests were conducted at six (6) mines to evaluate their feasibility. The approach considered to be the most promising is one which utilizes the existing manpack transmitting system, modified slightly for a dual frequency output, in conjunction with a sophisticated signal processing receiver on the surface. The main advantage of staying with a "through the earth" approach is that the underground equipment can be kept simple, easily maintained, light-weight and inexpensive.

Jan 1, 1979