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By J. W. Thompson, M. N. RICH

That there is wide interest in the preparation and properties of metallic zirconium and its salts is indicated by the many articles recently published in scientific and technical journals and the many patents issued. The compounds of zirconium have numerous important uses and more uses will doubtless be found. In the course of the special work on rare metals that were of military importance during the war, the authors of this bulletin were detailed to the Golden mining experiment station of the Bureau of Mines to prepare metallic zirconium and to investigate its properties. A number of investigations in recent years have indicated that sintered or coherent zirconium metal is very resistive to acids; that it can be used for electrodes, and it probably will find metallurgical uses. A steel containing zirconium has been proposed for use in armor plate and automobile parts, and nickel-zirconium alloys have been suggested for high-speed cutting tools and for cutlery. Numerous articles in scientific journals have recommended the use of zirconium oxide as a refractory, an abrasive, a pigment in paints, and as an opaquing agent in enamel ware. The salts have been used in the textile industry' as a mordant and also for weighting silk. When the authors began their investigation, they found it necessary to collect all of the available literature on the general subject of zirconium and its compounds. Pure salts could not be obtained on the market, and in order to get these, as a preliminary step to the preparation of the metal, the literature had to be classified and the methods of preparing the salts investigated. Also, there was much difficulty at first in making satisfactory analyses, and this phase of the work received careful attention. As it was necessary to begin with a historical review of the literature, such a review is given as Part I of this report, and a bibliography is included as Part IV. References to the numbered items in this bibliography are made throughout the text, the usual footnote references being omitted. Analyses of the products and conclusions as to their purity are given under the descriptions of methods of preparation. A table showing the properties of the amorphous metal, and another showing the properties of the coherent metal, will be found under appropriate headings in Part II. No attempt has been made in the historical review to discuss fully all the published information about zirconium and its compounds, but only such material has been assembled as has a direct bearing upon the present work. Considerable difficulty was experienced in collecting this material because of the confusion of terms by various authors who perhaps did not thoroughly understand the chemistry of zirconium.

Jan 1, 1921

By Vernon C. Davis

"SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONSIn initial attempts to mine taconite by conventional open-pit methods, the material tended to break into tabular blocks that were too large to be handled by conventional shovel dippers and were unsatisfactory in an ordinary crusher feed. A great amount of secondary blasting was necessary, which added considerably to the cost of mining.The Bureau of Mines and others are engaged in studies designed to contribute to the solution of taconite-mining problems. These studies concern problems related to drilling techniques and patterns, types and methods of use of explosives, and other factors relative to effecting maximum fragmentation at minimum cost.This report is concerned with study of the application of shaped charges in drill holes, the effectiveness of shaped charges as compared to capped charges in secondary blasting, and the merits of different drilling patterns and methods of detonation of conventional-explosive charges.Fragmentation of taconite at or near the surface is controlled or strongly influenced by joint and bedding planes. Since all tests in this study were made in a jointed and bedded area, a definite conclusion as to the relative effect of a shaped charge in a drill hole, as compared to a conventional charge at greater depths and tighter ground, is precluded. However, application of shaped charges in primary blasting of taconite appears to be of no advantage.In secondary blasting of taconite, conventional, capped charges produced better breakage than shaped charges of the designs tested.Based on the results of conventional blasting practice in horizontal-, inclined-, and vertical-hole tests, no better fragmentation is obtained from blasting either horizontal or inclined holes, compared to vertical holes.Holes drilled in staggered parallel rows that intersect both series of joint planes at the greatest possible angle, give maximum breakage compared to rows parallel to one of the series of joint planes.Methods of detonation made little difference in breakage; but the millidelay caps produced the best conditions for moving the broken rocks."

Jun 1, 1953

By Lloyd H. Banning

ELECTRIC smelting tests were conducted at the Northwest Electro-development Experiment Station, Albany, Oreg., to develop a feasible process for producing silicomanganese from siliceous manganiferous material. The Jackson County, Oreg., material used was massive and contained rhodonite as the most abundant mineral. Both raw and beneficiated materials were tested; various proportions and types of fluxes and reductants were used to make up the furnace charges. The silicomanganese product was used successfully in manufacturing various steels at industrial plants. The manganese content of the samples ranged from 23 to 28 percent; silica plus alumina content was as high as 55 percent-about four times the maximum specification for Metallurgical-grade ore. Sink-float laboratory tests indicated that the manganiferous material was amenable to beneficiation. Over 2 tons of rhodonite concentrate was prepared for smelting tests in a sink-float operation. Only the minus-3/4-inch, plus-8-mesh fraction was fed to a heavy-medium cone; over 97 percent of the manganese was recovered in the sink product, which contained 32.4 percent manganese and 44 percent silica plus alumina. About 25 percent of the silica was removed in the float product.

Jan 1, 1959

By J. A. Herdlick

Under authority of the Strategic Materials Act of June 1939, the Federal Bureau of Mines, in cooperation with the Geological Survey, began a broad program of investigation of the strategically important chromite deposits in Sweetgrass, Stillwater, and Carbon Counties, Mont. Extensive occurrences of chromite along the Stillwater Complex in Stillwater County were investigated. The two principal deposits, The Mouat-Sampson and Benbow mines, ultimately were developed and placed in production by the Federal Government. As a part of this general development program, the Carbon County chromite deposits near Red Lodge were examined by Bureau of Mines engineers in 1940, and by the Geological Survey .1-1 1942. The district was examined earlier by Schafer, and the Four Chromes area is mentioned briefly by Westgate. Although the Red Ledge deposits were considered to be of minor importance as compared to those of the Stillwater Complex, several of the ore bodies were adaptable to open-pit mining' methods, and one large deposit on Line Creek Plateau was readily accessible to the Red Lodge-Cooke highway. In 1941, the U. 3. Vanadium Corp. began mining crude lump-chrome ore from the deposit on Line Creek Plateau to supplement national stockpiles, which were being depleted by the rearmament program and the disruption of chrome-ore imports by the European war. Access roads gore constricted to Hellroaring Plateau, and the mining operations were extended to that area. A gravity concentrator with a capacity of 200 tons per day was built and operated at Red Lodge to beneficiate lower-grade ore from the district.

Jan 1, 1948

By W. P. Diamond

The Bureau of Mines has been involved in the drilling of vertical, horizontal, and directional coalbed gas drainage boreholes for mine safety since 1964. In that time, boreholes have been drilled in most of the major coal regions of the United States under a wide variety of geologic conditions. Many of the geologic conditions that occur in the coal measures are detrimental to gas drainage; others may be beneficial. Analytical techniques to determine the gas content of coal samples and evaluate regional trends of gas distribution have been developed. Drilling techniques that maximize the acquisition of coalbed gas data and geologic information have been determined. Although some of the geologic factors influencing the placement and potential success of coalbed gas drainage boreholes have been reported in papers on individual projects, a complete, systematic compilation has not previously been available. The objective of this paper is to pro- vide information on specific geologic factors that should be considered prior to, during, and after the drilling of coalbed gas drainage bore-holes. Many of the commonsense considerations that have been learned through many years of Bureau of Mines experience, but have generally not been reported formally, are included for those who may be considering coalbed gas drainage drilling for the first time, or who have not had the opportunity to encounter a substantial number of geologic situations.

Jan 1, 1982

By T. C. Wesson

The need for elemental-analysis information on coal mine dust for use in health and safety research prompted this study by the Bureau of Mines. Neutron-activation and X-ray fluorescent techniques were used to obtain five-element analysis (silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, and magnesium) on 444 samples from 68 coal mines in 10 States. From these analyses, the average composition of the dust in coal mines was determined. The contribution of the primary dusting material (limestone dust) to the makeup of coal mines was shown. Regional differences in mine-dust composition were indicated.

Jan 1, 1974

By G. L. Oldright

The past reputation of zinc as an ingredient in lead blast furnace slags has been bad. Zinc is thought of as a cause of accretions in the shaft of the blast furnace, of hot tops, of the formation of "zinc mush" in the crucible and forehearth, of leach rich slags, of viscous slags, and of low capacity in smelting.

Jan 1, 1934

By Gary M. Larwood

A study was conducted to determine the amount of transportation equipment required to move 1.2 billion tons of coal in 1985. The Federal Bureau of Mines has investigated a majority of the various practices associated with coal transportation and has gathered information on the regional origin-destination patterns, methods of movement, equipment stocks, rate structures, and operational capacities of the most important modes of coal haulage currently in use. Models employing this information were developed to establish the origin-destination pattern for 1985 coal shipments, estimate practical tonnage capacities for selected coal hauling rivers, develop modal shares for both unconstrained (by river capacity) and constrained cases, and present a range of coal transportation equipment requirements for given sets of constraints. Projected transportation shares for rail ranged from 63.7 to 72.3 percent, and for river, from 8.8 to 16.4 percent. Other coal transportation modes (truck, conveyor, Great Lakes, and tidewater) are expected to retain their historic shares of coal traffic. Equipment estimates were made for 1985 rail and water transportation based on 1973 average and best practice. Average practice estimates ranged from 675,000 to 710,000 hopper cars (100-ton) and 3,100 to 5,940 barges (1,400-ton equivalent). Best practice estimates ranged from 126,000 to 142,000 hopper cars and 1,750 to 3,450 barges. Full implementation of 1973 best practice by 1985 is unlikely.

Jan 1, 1976

By Andrew M. Leszcykowski

This report represents the first comprehensive accounting of lode mining sites in the Sheep Mountain mining district, Custer County, Idaho. Twenty-one mine and prospect locations have been added to the Bureau's Mineral Industry Location Subsystem (MILS) data base as a result of initial phases of a mineral appraisal of the River of No Return Wilderness; previously known locations were checked and the updated information added to the data base. The district's deposits are mainly confined to metasedimentary xenoliths in granodiorite and quartz monzonite. Those deposits in the north and west parts of the district are lead-silver-zinc replacement veins in dominantly calcareous facies; those in the southern part of the district are polymetallic fissure-veins containing pyrite, chalcopyrite, arsenopyrite, galena, and sphalerite hosted by micaceous schist and phyllite. The dominant structural trend in the southern part of the district is northwesterly and on strike with major deposits in the adjacent Seafoam mining district.

Jan 1, 1983

By N. O. Johnson

This is one of a series of-Information Circulars dealing with mining and milling methods and costs at mines in various districts in the United States. The Hog Mountain gold mining district is of the northern edge of Tallapoosa County, in the east central part of the State of Alabama. The district is equally close to Goodwater and to Alexander City, both stations on the main line of the Central of Georgia Railroad. From Alexander City the mine is reached by 13 miles of graded road, traveling in a northeast direction. In dry seasons the road is good; in wet weather it is bad but passable. Improvements are being made constantly on the road, so that in the near future the gravel road should be good under all weathered conditions.

Jan 1, 1936

By John M. Devine

The severe corrosion of equipment that is caused by the presence of hydrogen sulphide in oil and gas has been described in detail by several authors. Such corrosion, termed "low-temperature hydrogen sulphide corrosion", presents a somewhat different problem from the "high-temperature hydrogen sulphide corrosion" that is encountered in refinery operation and which has been described by various-investigators of refinery corrosion.

Jan 1, 1932

By McHenry Mosier

Mechanical loading, adopted long ago in open-pit, coal, and non-metal mines, was not used extensively in underground metal mines until the World War. In less than a decade it became standard practice in underground work in many mining districts. In 1924 the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy, in cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Mines, published a bulletin entitled "Mechanical Underground Loading in Metal Mines," which was prepared by Charles E. van Barneveld, mining engineer, Bureau of Mines.

Jan 1, 1940

By A. U. Christensen

THERMODYNAMIC data for many of the common interoxidic compounds are seriously lacking, and appraisal of possible ceramic or metallurgical applications depends upon dubious estimates. In particular, high-temperature heat-content estimates may be invalid because of unknown phase-transformations. This paper reports experimental heat-content values above 298.15° K. for five interoxidic compounds-the aluminates of lithium and sodium (LiAlO2 and NaAlO2), the ferrites of lithium and sodium (LiFeO2 and NaFeO2), and lithium titanate (Li2TiO3), as obtained by the Bureau of Mines. Sodium aluminate, sodium ferrite, and lithium titanate were found to have previously unknown transformations in the crystalline state. The heats and temperatures of these transformations were evaluated as were also the heats and temperatures of fusion of sodium ferrite and lithium titanate. The heat-content results are assembled in both tabular and algebraic-equation form for use in conducting thermodynamic calculations at temperatures in the range 298°-2,000° K.

Jan 1, 1960

By S. P. Kinney, P. H. Royster, T. L. Joseph

"The study described in this paper, on the reactions in an iron blast furnace, is part of the investigation being conducted by the Bureau of Mines on combustion of coke and the reduction of iron oxides in the blast furnace. Previous study of the combustion zone of the iron blast furnace, by means of a series of as samples taken through the tuyeres across the hearths of 13 blast furnaces, showed that the combustion of the coke in the blast-furnace hearth is complete at a distance of 32 to 40 inches from the nose of the tuyere, measured horizontally toward the center of the furnace. The results of this previous work are sum¬marized in the curves shown in figure 1, where it will be noted that practically all of the oxygen disappears at a distance of approximately 30 inches from the nose of the tuyere.In order to determine the height at which oxygen is found in a vertical direction above the tuyeres - it had been suggested that the combustion zone turned upward near the tuyere and to obtain comparisons with the samples taken at the Bureau of Mines experimental6 (5-ton) blast-furnace at Minneapolis, the Bureau extended the gas sampling on a commercial furnace to a number of planes between the tuyere level and the stock line. The sampling was conducted on a 300-ton furnace, making foundry iron, operated by the Central Iron and Coal Co., at Holt, Ala. The furnace was smelting Southern red and brown ores and nodules from pyrite sinter. Figure 3 is a vertical section of the furnace showing the six planes sampled."

Apr 1, 1926

By James S. Browning

[The objective of this project wan to determine the technical feasibility of recovering the associated copper, lead, and zinc from the pyrrhotite axe, of the Great Gossan lead, which has bon pined only for it:, sulfur and iron contents so far. The report constituted a description and discussion of small-scale Preliminary studies. This great pyrrhotite or body has strategic value, inasmuch it contains considerable quantities of zinc, copper, and lead, as well as the iron rend sulfur. The recovery of the: copper, lead, and zinc, associated with certain of the pyrrhotite ore bodies, could augment our domestic supply of these metals.]

Jan 1, 1953

By L. C. Brichta

The Tri-State zinc-lead catalog, compilation of which was initiated by the Bureau of Mines in August 1949, is designed to provide a continuing record of avail-able drill-hole logs and maps of mine developments in the zinc-lead district in southwestern Missouri, southeastern Kansas, and northeastern Oklahoma. The maps and data thus preserved constitute a reservoir of factual information readily available to individuals and firms interested in planning mineral explorations, to Government agencies for formulating estimates or ore reserves, and to the mining industry in the district for general uses. The areas to be included in the catalog embrace the explored and mined tracts within 760,000 acres of the more active western part of the district. The consensus among local mine operators, geologists, and mining engineers is that over 100,000 boles, costing more than $30,000,000, have been drilled in the district. Records of some of the early drilling and mine developments are destroyed or lost, but the Bureau of Mines has copies of about 47,500 drill-hole logs and is accumulating and recording on microfilm those that are currently available. As of May 1, 1954, the logs of approximately 28,000 drill holes had been microfilmed and are available for inspection at the Bureau of Mines office, Joplin, Mo.

Jan 1, 1955

By R. Ward Stahl

This publication is a revision of Report of Investigations 5363 updated to reflect the improvement in fire protection at selected coal mines and contains suggestions on what may be considered good fire protective equipment, suggested methods of organizing the attack on fires at various locations underground, and helpful hints on testing and evaluating firefighting facilities.

Jan 1, 1968

By H. P. Greenwald

For some years past the Safety in Mines Research Board of Great Britain has been making an intensive search for. materials that would be more efficient than rock dust and that could replace it wholly or in part as a moans of preventing the prorogation of coal-dust explosions in mines5/ In the course of this work several rock ducts and numerous inorganic compounds were tested. The results place incombustible substances in two main groups; (1) Those whose effect in suppressing the combustion of coal dust is proportional to their capacity for absorbing heat, and (2) those that shoo much higher effectiveness than would be expected from their heat capacity. The first group includes several inorganic compounds and materials commonly ground for use as rock dust, such as shale, gypsum, and limestone. Outstanding examples of the second group are compounds of the halogens6/ with the alkali metals,7/ especially potasium and sodium8/. British investigators term those salts "inhibitors" because it is assumed that their presence has a hindering or inhibiting effect on one or more of the chemical reactions that together constitute combustion. In other words, the action of an inhibitor is postulated as chemical rather than physical; theoretically, the effect is to prevent liberation of energy instead of to absorb energy already liberated.

Jan 1, 1940

By Richard S. Gaps

The Derby and Alexander Claim, located within the Tunnel Ridge Wilderness Study Area (WSA), has placer gold resources. No lode deposits are known within the area, but lode gold deposits are found within 1 1/2 mi of the WSA. In additon, rock units which contain lode gold deposits north of the WSA are found within the northern portion of the study area. INTRODUCTION The Tunnel Ridge Wilderness Study Area (WSA), CA-030-402, encompasses 4,623 acres of BLM administered public land in Trinity County, California, about 35 mi west-northwest of Redding (fig. 1). Major access to the Tunnel Ridge vicinity is by U.S. Highway 299. Ac-cess to the WSA boundary is by a secondary paved road from Junction City and several light duty dirt and gravel roads (fig. 2). The WSA is on the southwest slope of Weaver Bally Mountain. The topography is rugged with moderate to steep slopes; elevations range from about 1,600 ft to 5,900 ft.

Jan 1, 1983

Comparative tests of four coals used industrially for coke production have been made by three laboratories of the Federal Bureau of Mines, each using its standard equipment and procedures for evaluating coal for coking. Two of the coals were blends used in the western and eastern sections of the United States, the third was a strongly coking coal widely used for producing coke in Alabama, and the fourth was a blend typical of those used for producing foundry coke in the Birmingham district. The coals used and the cokes produced from them covered a wide range of chemical and physical properties. The tests used at all three laboratories for determining the physical properties of the cokes were made according to ASTM (American Society for Testing Materials) methods. The excellent agreement found for the physical properties of the cokes indicated that, for the coals tested, the BM-AGA (Bureau of Mines-American Gas Association) 18-inch circular retort used at Pittsburgh, Pa" the 14-inch slot-type oven used at Denver, Colo., and the 17-inch slot-type oven used at Tuscaloosa, Ala., were substantially equivalent for evaluating coals for production of coke. Thus, added value is given to data obtained previously and independently at these three Bureau laboratories. INTRODUCTION Laboratory equipment to produce coke for evaluation has not been standardized by the industry. The results obtained with anyone design of equipment have been regarded as showing only the relative values of coal to produce coke of the requisite quality. Few systematic studies have been made to correlate results obtained in different types of equipment. Results of one, in which the Bureau of Mines participated, were published recently.2/ This

Jan 1, 1961