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By David Griffiths

I am' not an orator and have never said a word in public during my thirty years' experience in the coal mines of Colorado; but, being requested to speak by our worthy chairman, and as I am deeply interested in the future welfare of this organization, I will make an effort to say a few words in behalf of the Rocky Mountain Coal- Mining Institute, which we are about to organize. As I understand it, it is the object and intent of this organization not merely to assemble occasionally for the purpose of discussing various problems in coal-mining, and thus to obtain the best possible results in economic operations, but its especial duty will be to devise ways and means whereby accidents in coal mines will be minimized. Figuratively speaking, we are about to plant a tree in the State House of Colorado, and desire its roots and branches to extend over Wyoming on the north, New Mexico on the south, and Utah on the west. So we expect this tree to bear fruit over a vast area. .We must remember that the planting of a tree, even in good soil, is useless unless we cultivate, prune, and nurture its development. If we will not do so, the tree will not bear the desired fruit. So, in order to make the Rocky Mountain Institute a success, we must not only start it off in good shape, but we must keep on adding to its strength in various ways, so that it will become a known factor and a recognized power over this broad teritory. In other coal-mining states and countries of the world much has been accomplished through similar organizations to reduce loss of life among, men engaged in the production of coal, and there is no reason why our institute in the West should not be equally useful and attain the same results. There are many ways by which this organization can be made beneficial to the men engaged, in various capacities, in handling the "dusky diamond.' I will endeavor to confine my brief remarks to the necessity of a crusade of an educational nature among three classes of men that are directly and indirectly connected with coal mines. First-We need to educate ourselves. It is amazing how few of our number, holding positions of trust, and having charge of men in and around coal mines, are conversant with our brief mining laws and cognizant of our duties in enforcing them. Going down the line to our company men and miners, I think I can safely say that not over 5 per cent of them are in any way familiar with the statutes

Jan 1, 1913

By C. P. Crawford

Bureau of Mines Technical Paper 172, by S. H. Katz and H. C. Porter, entitled "Effects of Moisture on the Spontaneous Heating of Stored Coal", says at the outset, "Spontaneous fires in storage piles of bituminous coal' have been the source of trouble and loss since the industrial utilization of coal began. In Europe the idea arose that spontaneous combustion is more liable to happen during wet weather than during dry. Statements favoring or opposing this idea have crept into the literature. Conflicting conclusions, based on experiment as well as opinions based on observations of various degrees of reliability, are given in most of the recorded discussions of the subject. "Because of the uncertainty of the effect of moisture and its seeming importance among the conditions that affect spontaneous combustion in stored coal, the work described in this paper was undertaken by the Bureau of Mines. The experiments showed that a coal from Illinois oxidized faster when dry, whereas a sample of Pittsburgh coal oxidized faster when moist. These discordant results and similarly inconsistent results from the observations of different investigators may be coupled with the fact that under actual conditions of, storing, both coal and air always contain a considerable amount of moisture." The foregoing report of the investigations of the Bureau demonstrates that the mystery of spontaneous combustion has not yet been solved. This fact adds to the fascination of the subject. I became interested in the matter about ten years ago in observing what was probably one of the best exhibitions of this phenomenon. The old dump at Castle Gate No. 1 Mine contained boney coal and track cleanings generally. In winter when snow fell upon this old dump, the snow was soon melted by the heat of the dump which was comparatively warm at all times. Within 48 hours afterward little blue flames were in evidence on the surface of the pile. Few of the gas feeders were sufficiently constant to maintain a steady flame at any given point, but shifting emissions of gas were ignited one by another, resulting in a continuous popping and apparent running about of the flames. Another interesting exhibition of spontaneous heating was to be seen a few years ago in the storage coal piles of the local sugar factories. This coal was piled in concrete lined pits and the latter were filled with water. However, or this occasion the coal extended above the surface of the water. At every plant where this condition existed the coal was affected heating, and in each case the affected area was in a plane horizontal to and from 8 to 1.4 inches above the water level. The height of the hot area above the surface of the water appeared to be affected by the fineness of the coal. It is well known that oily rags have a tendency to heat when allowed to accumulate in some location protected from free air circulation. For some reason, as yet unknown, this does not apply to petroleum or its derivatives. Now, the most common explanation of spontaneous combustion is that the combustible material oxidizes by being brought into contact with air in the presence of moisture, the theory being that the moisture acts as a catalytic agent. My theory is that spontaneous combustion is due to oxidation of combustible matter by free oxygen carried in solution by a liquid, the oxidation taking place only as, when, and at the place where this oxygen is released from solution by the evaporation of the liquid. Also, this oxidation takes place to some degree regardless of the condition of the combustible-whether it be lump coal, coal dust, straw, wheat flour, coke, or any other combustible but, as the speed of oxidation is directly influenced by temperature, it follows that spontaneous combustion only becomes noticeable or serious in cases where the resulting heat' cannot escape as fast as it is generated.

Jan 1, 1925

FEBRUARY 20TH. MORNING SESSION: The fourteenth regular meeting of the Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute was called to order in the Magnolia Room of the Albany Hotel. Monday, February 20th at 11 o'clock A. M., with the President, Mr. R. M. Magraw, in the chair, sixty-two members being present. The first number upon the program was the reading of the minutes of the previous meeting by the Secretary. There being no corrections or alterations, the minutes were approved as read. As Mr. Dan Harrington was unavoidably absent, his paper, subject: "Coal Mine Accidents and State Mining Law" was, by request of the President, read by Mr. J. Q. Lalor. Following this was a short discussion. There being no further business the meeting adjourned. AFTERNOON SESSION: The meeting was called to order in the Magnolia Room of the Albany Hotel at two-thirty o'clock P. M. with President R. M. Magraw presiding, fifty-eight members being present. Mr. Ben Shubart and Prof. J. C. Roberts were appointed a committee to draft and telegraph a message of condolence to Mr. E. S. Brooks of Rock Springs, Wyoming, on account of the recent death of his daughter. The com¬mittee submitted a copy of the following telegram, which was read by the Secretary: "E. S. Brooks, Rock Springs, Wyoming. We extend to you and your family our sincerest sympathies in your deep affliction. (Signed) THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN COAL MINING INSTITUTE." The following resolution was next presented by the Secretary and upon motion, duly seconded was carried by a unanimous vote: WHEREAS, it has come to the knowledge of this Institute that the Coal Mining Course of the Colorado School of Mines has been abolished; and

Jan 1, 1922

By C. A. Allen

In presenting a summary of the uses of fine and pulverized coal the writer has borne in mind that we are not trying to determine what a combustion engineer should know but we are only trying to find out in what ways the consumption of slack can be stimulated. First discussing the use of powdered coal it can be stated that it has passed the first experimental stage but is still capable of much development and improvement. It has already found successful application in stationary and locomotive boilers, cement kilns, calcining furnaces, reverberatory smelting furnaces and many other types of furnaces, such as open hearth furnaces and annealing furnaces. For stationary boilers it seems to have been thoroughly demonstrated that powdered coal is more efficient than stoker installations. Over-all efficiences of boiler and furnace in stoker installations of the best type run from 70 to 76 per cent; whereas the efficiency of powdered coal installations averages slightly over 80 per cent. However, due to the increased cost of pulverized coal, the increased efficiency of these installations over stokers, from a money stand-point, will not be more than 1 or 2 per cent. The fusing of the ash in pulverized coal installations has given some trouble but apparently is easily overcome, on the other hand the fine ash, which is carried along with the draft, causes trouble both in the boiler and by settling on surrounding buildings or ground. Offsetting the disadvantages the great advantages of pulverized coal for stationary boilers seem to be: First-the ease with which a change in the load on the boiler can be taken care of. Second-when a boiler is cut out for a short period the "stand-by" losses are much less and, Third-a much poorer grade of fuel can be used. In many cases where pulverized coal has been used it has replaced slack coal which is of little advantage to the coal operator. However,, in other places it has replaced gas or oil and this is where the coal man is interested. Pulverized coal has the same advantages as the liquid or gas fuel but the question as to which is preferable depends on their relative cost at the point of use. In small stationary boilers where stokers are not used, very frequently the larger sizes of coal are, and it would be an advantage to the coal industry for them to be converted so as to burn pulverized coal, but so far there are only records of a few of such small installations having been a success and there is apparently room for a large amount of experimentation. In furnaces, such as smelting and assaying furnaces, annealing furnaces, etc., slack coal is not used and where pulverized coal has been installed it nearly always replaces fuel oil or gas. Just how much increased consumtion of coal can be made by pulverizing it for use in furnaces of this type can not be determined but it seems worthy of investigation. For locomotive boilers pulverized coal has found some application up to date but where it was being used in the United States it was stopped when we entered the war. In Brazil, however, the Central Railway has been using pulverized coal for locomotives with excellent results. If it could be possible to apply it to locomotive use where fuel oil is now used, or the larger sizes of coal, it would certainly make a big difference in the slack situation. Now as to the uses of slack coal without pulverizing. The writer's investigations lead him to believe that the greatest opportunities in this direction are in the line of increasing its use by apartment houses and small home owners. In fact in looking into the subject I found that a number of men in Salt Lake City are using run of mine coal in the usual type of house furnaces, some of them by separating the fines and wetting them down before feeding to the furnace claim they get no loss whatever through the grate. However, for best results with fine coal different types of furnaces must be installed and for apartment houses it would seem necessary to have either a small automatic stoker or else spray the fine coal in with an air blast from

Jan 1, 1922

Jan 1, 1941

Jan 1, 1952

Jan 1, 1958

Jan 1, 2005

Jan 1, 1967

Jan 1, 1958

By Christopher Blazek

Presentation Overview ?2005 Train Derailments ?BNSF Investigation and Remediation ?BNSF Test Program ?Test Results ?BNSF Dust Control Goals ?National Coal Transportation Study ?Comparison of Different Topper Agents ?What Constitutes a Topper Program

Jan 1, 2008

Past President Shirl McArthur opened the meeting at 9:30 a.m. He called on the Auditing Committee to give its report. Stan Shubart, who checked the financia1 report of the treasurer, read the report. He asked that it be approved. A motion was made, seconded and carried. Shirl thanked all the committees for an excellent job in making this meeting a most successful one. Special thanks to Park Lamborn for a fine program and to Gussie Whiteside for all her efforts in behalf of the Institute. An increase in salary was voted for the secretary-treasurer. It was decided to return to Vail for the 1979 convention. The Resolutions Committee was called upon to give its report. Roy Coulson, Chairman, submitted the following: (I) RESOLVED, Whereas, in the year since the last convention of The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute, the Institute and the coal mining industry have suffered the loss through death of the services of: O. F. Bridwell C. L. Book O. F. Lewis Frank Kolar O. H. Littrell L. B. Phillippi Weston L. Potter George C. Trevorrow

Jan 1, 1978

Jan 1, 1938

CHAIRMAN ALLEN: Gentlemen, I have been asked to call this meeting to order by Mr. Marchant, and am acting here temporarily in the absence of Mr. Nyman, who is unable to be with us. Mr. Nyman sends the following telegram: "Will not be able to be present at the Institute meeting. Serious illness of my father has made it necessary for me to remain in Salt Lake Please arrange substitute. Very sorry." In addition to having to pinch-hit for Mr. Marchant and President Nyman, I am here representing the Governor of the State of Colorado also who is unable to be here. The Governor of Colorado is a very busy man. His appointments are made months ahead. We only got word of the possibility of his addressing this meeting yesterday morning, and I went over to the Governor's office this morning to see if there was any possibility of getting him here, but he had been booked up for two months ahead of this time to appear at the convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Trinidad, Colorado, where he is today, and which makes it impossible for him to attend this meeting. I know that he would have liked to have been here with you, as there is not any doubt but what the Governor of Colorado has the interests of the mining industry at heart. This was manifested last week when he called a meeting of representative men of the different lines of industry so that we could arrive at some results and some arrangements to see if it was possible to get at the bottom of the condition causing our bad times, and the appointment of commit- tee groups to find out what these problems were and to see if they could get any possible solution to them. The meeting was adjourned with the suggestion that those who were present would among themselves select such committees to investigate the conditions of the coal mining industry, and offer suggestions for betterment.

Jan 1, 1938

The Friday morning session of, the Forty-seventh Meeting of the Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute was called, to order in the junior Ballroom, Hotel Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, at 9:20 o'clock a. in., with Mr. Paul L. Shields presiding. CHAIRMAN SHIELDS: Let us get started, gentlemen. We are late now. From the looks of this agenda we are going to have a busy forenoon. The first item on this program is a talk on "The Second Underground. Gasification Experiment at Gorgas, Alabama," by Mr. James L. Elder.

Jan 1, 1951

By Gary Carmack

Overview: Public awareness of the drug abuse problem within the government and industry is growing each day. The economic cost to industry is staggering-estimated to be more than $50 billion per year. Employee drug testing programs are one way to combat the problem, yet they are not without legal and scientic pitfalls. Some of the issues and needs that should be considered before implementing or continuing a testing program are: Why test? What do you test for? Are the results accurate? What impact will the new Federal Rules have? Accuracy of the testing continues to be controversial, especially when the "poppy-seed" and "cold-medications" issues are mentioned. The new Federal laboratory certification program which is about to start, should reduce or eliminate the question of lab error. Determination of on the job impairment will, however, continue to be a problem.

Jan 1, 1988

PRESIDENT BUBB: Gentlemen, this gathering marks the thirty-third mile- stone of the Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute. The Chair earnestly hopes our discussion of valuable papers which have been prepared so painstakingly by our members and friends of the Institute will assist us in the solution of problems common to our industry. The reading of the minutes will be the next order of business. For your guidance it has been customary in the past to dispense with the minutes on motion from the floor, inasmuch as the minutes are printed. May I have a motion to that effect? MR GILBERT DAVIS (Dawson, New Mexico): I move that the reading of the minutes be dispensed with. (The motion was regularly seconded, voted on and carried).

Jan 1, 1935

Jan 1, 1929

The Morning Session of the Forty-Eighth Meeting of the Rocky. Mountain Coal Mining Institute convened in the Little Theater of the Broadmoor Hotel, Colorado Springs, Colorado, at 9:30 a.m., June 3, 1952, Howard B. Crandell, President, presiding. PRESIDENT CRANDELL: Gentlemen, the meeting will come to order, and I would like to introduce to you your Chairman of this meeting, Mr. John B. Hughes, General Manager of the Union" Pacific Coal Company, Rock Springs... (Applause) CHAIRMAN HUGHES: From the activities around last night, I supposed there would be quite a few that would be unable to attend this morning. I am sorry there are not more here because I am sure we have some interesting papers. First on the program this morning is, The Effect of Continuous Mining on Today's. Coal Industry by Mr. William Wearly, Vice President of the Joy Manufacturing Company. Mr. Wearly: (Applause)

Jan 1, 1952

President Robert E. Murray opened the meeting at 9:30 a.m. He called on the Auditing Committee to give its report. Jack Leech read the report and asked that it be approved. A motion was made, seconded and carried. The Resolutions Committee was asked to present its report. Mr. J. F. Ratchye submitted the following: (1) RESOLVED. Whereas, in the year since the last convention of The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute, the Institute and the Coal Mining industry have suffered the loss through death of the services of: James L. Elder William T. Gibbs Julian E. Tobey John H. Plehn NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that there be spread upon the minutes of The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute recognition of the passing of these members, who have so greatly contributed to the advancement of the industry, both nationally and in the Rocky Mountain area, and that a copy of this resolution be sent to the next of kin as evidence of the sincere regard and sympathy of the members of the Institute. (2) RESOLVED: that in recognition of faithful service to the coal industry generally, and to this Institute, Life Membership in The Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute be hereby con¬ferred upon the following members:

Jan 1, 1979