The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-06-03
TREATING ZINC ORES.
Experiment of Wide Importance to
the Silver Camps.

the Silver Camps.
About the middle of this month the
new process for the treatment of ores
containing zinc will blow in at the ole
Elgin smelters in Leadville. says the
Denver News. The inventor of the
process, Martin Rustenburg, E. E.. j:
| himself on the ground and will expert
ment, which means a great deal TO the
mines of Clear Creek and Lake coun-
ties, in many of which Zinc-bearine
ores are prominent. The smelter al
Canyon City deals with this class OF
ores, buying largely in Georgetown
Leadville and New Mexico. Its bull
lion output is close to $500, 900 per year
but as the market for its zinc product
has shown small disposition to increase
its capacity the process about 20 be
tried at Leadville is thus described IN
the Herald-Democrat of that city:
There is a mistaken notion that the
process is a wet one, but this is not
the fact. The fire process is used, the
furnace being a combination OF the
cupola blast and settler. For very OBJ
vious reasons the details of the process
are not made public. but the results
are said to be such as to almost effect
a revolution in ordinary smelling meth
DDS. AS mining men well know, a
zincous ore is one of the most undeSir-
able products that mother earth Yields
Zinc is classed with silica, and when
it runs over to 10 per cent the miner
pays a penalty TO the smelter. Up TO
the present time no process has yet
been found which eliminated the zinc
satisfactorily. It formed wall accre-
tons on the inside of the furnaces. and
unless great precautions were taken
freeze" them up until they were rem
dered practically useless.
1t is proposed, however. at the fur
mace now under construction, to take
ore Carrying say 10 ounces silver, 8 per
cent lead and 80 per cent zinc. and TO
successfully and economically smelt it.
By this method the properties of the
zinc are themselves utilized in the
smelling process thus compelling that
refractory, disagreeable and altogether
baneful mineral to aid in the work
which it had hitherto refused 10 per-
form. 1t is certainly a most striking
example of the ingenuity of man in
Harvesting a powerful force TO do his
bidding.
The values are saved in two forms,
the gold in an iron sponge and the sill
yer and lead in bullion. Metallurgists
will appreciate the good work of the
furnace when it is stated that the Stag
carries so per cent OF silica. In fact,
Mr.. Rutherburg states that the per-
centage of iron and silica in the Stag
of his furnace is exactly reversed in the
ordinary lead furnace
While the present plant is a small
one, and custom work is not solicited,
the possibilities of the furnace are well
worth the most thoughtful considera-
ton. No estimate has ever been at
tempted of the great reserves of zinccus
ores in the camp 1t is well known
fact, however, that in many of the
large mines of the camp, notably the A
Y. and Minnie there is an almost
boundless supply, that is now of no
more value than porphyry dump. In
the Small Hopes. the Marian and in
many of the mines of Fryer hill these
zincous ores abound, while the mines
of the Wasatch range would contribute
their share.
1t has been stated in connection with
the new process that it was designed
to save the zinc and render il COM
mercially valuable as spelter. While
the zinc is saved it is not used as
commercial product for the simple rea-
son that there is no market for it.
There is only limited demand for
spelter. and the furnaces that produce
it more than keep up the supply, conse-
quently there will be no attempt to
market any spelter that may be pro-
duced. In time. however, this may be
done.