Casting Titanium Zirconium and Hafnium
The work covered in this report is a continuation of an earlier feasibility study by the Federal Bureau of Mines and points out improvements in the skull-melting method for casting reactive metals such as titanium, zirconium, and hafnium. Machined graphite molds with laminated sections can be reused many times. Large tube sections can be produced […]
Volatilization of Tin Chlorides
More than 95 percent of the total tin in Bolivian mine-run ores can be volatilized and recovered as tin chlorides at temperatures ranging from 520° to 565° C. Equally high percentage recoveries of tin can be obtained from low-grade Bolivian concentrates at temperatures of 565° to 600° C. Minus 35-mesh ores and concentrates can be […]
Crushing Chestnut to Produce Buckwheat
The crushing of chestnut-size (1-5/8 by 13/16 inch) Pennsylvania anthracite in four commercial crushers (impact, jaw crusher, hammer mill, and gyratory types) was studied by the Bureau of Mines to determine which could produce the largest proportions of buckwheat Nos. 1 and 2 sizes (9/16 by 3/16 inch). Single pass dry and wet crushing techniques […]
Radioisotopes Applications
Many factors contributed to the decision to build a radiochemical laboratory at the Salt Lake City Metallurgy Research Center to investigate the application of radioactive isotopes and chemical compounds in extractive metallurgy. These reasons included the notable success achieved in biological sciences with radioisotopes, the development of reliable instruments and methods for identifying the isotopes […]
How to Determine Trace Impurities in Helium
An apparatus for determining trace impurities in Grade-A helium by mass spectrometer methods was designed and built by the Federal Bureau of Mines. Grade-A is the designation for helium commercially produced by the Bureau. Its nominal purity is 99.995 percent. The device, following a suggestion by Deaton, concentrates the impurities in the helium by freezing […]
How to Design an Underground Mine Opening in Rock
The design and stability of underground openings are problems of paramount importance in mining. Insuring the safety of employees, protecting equipment, mining in a prescribed and efficient manner, and (in mineral mining) achieving an optimum recovery from the deposit depend upon the ability of engineers to design and excavate underground openings that will remain open […]
How Impurities Affect Titanium Properties
The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effects of the impurities, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and iron (in low percentages) on the mechanical properties of electrolytic titanium. The strength and hardness of binary Ti-O, Ti-N, and Ti-C alloys are linear functions of alloy content in the composition range investigated. Compared to oxygen and carbon, […]
How to Increase Tensile Strength Titanium
Antimony up to 10 percent increases the strength of titanium by solid-solution hardening. The general relationship of hardness, strength, and elongation in these alloys is similar to that found in several grades of high-purity and commercial titanium. Tensile strength (annealed condition) appeared to be a linear function of Vickers hardness regardless of composition. For equivalent […]
Electrorefining Beryllium
Results of the preliminary tests have demonstrated the possibility of electrorefining beryllium in KCl-LiCl-BeCl2 baths. Qualitative spectrograph analyses of the starting material and the products indicate the following estimated percentages of reduction of metallic impurities: Magnesium was reduced by at least 50 percent. Iron, copper, silicon, and manganese were reduced by at least a slight […]
Fine Screening using Sieve Bend
The cleaning of fine coal, particularly for metallurgical use, is receiving greater attention. An increase in the proportion of fine coal in the run-of-mine product has been created by changes in mining practice, and a concurrent deterioration in the quality of the fines has occurred because of more widespread full-seam mining. These two factors, augmented […]