The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-08-15
IT MAKES PIC COPPER
An Important Factor in the In
dustries of Butte.
THE WORK OF CONVERTING
Operations and Equipment OF the Butte
81 Boston Smelter in Meader-
vile - improvements
Under Way.

Besides it's numerous mining proper
ties, some of which We're made the sub
ject of outline description in the Stand
ards mining issue of last week, the
Butte & Boston company is also the
owner Of large and thoroughly ap-
pointed concentrating and smelling es-
tablishment, known generally as the
Butte & Boston smelter.
These works lie to the eastward of
Silver Bow No. /, in the Meaderville
district, and close to Silver Bow creek.
They differ materially from the Colo
RADIO and the Butte Reduction Works
in carrying the process a step farther
and converting the matte into pig cop
per. They also differ from the Great
Falls and the Anaconda works in not
having refining department. These
| works are therefore intermediate be-
| tween the two classes named. All of
| these different establishments are es-
| sentially the same in principle down to
| the operation by which the matte is
| produced. The material differences come
| in later
These works are of somewhat greater
| capacity than either the Colorado or the
| Butte. The concentrator will handle
| $50 tons of ore each "a hours, while the
! smelter can reduce all of the concen-
| trates from this ore and about $50 tons
! of green ore besides, making the total
! capacity about 800 tons a day. This
smelter has blast furnace, but it is
| not in operation, all of the blast fur
mace work being done at the Great
| Falls smelter of the Boston & Montana
! company. For various reasons it is
| considered cheaper to operate a blast
furnace at Great Falls, even with the
cost of transportation added.
| No very minute description of the
| works is necessary for. as already stat
| ed, the principles are the same in all
| of these establishments. First, as of
| course, comes the cencentrator where
| the ore is received. crushd and concen-
trated. 1t is provided with two sets of
| crushers. After passing through the
| first set the crushed material is carried
| over coarse screens which catch the
| coarser material. This is run through
! the second set of crushers. The fine
| material then passes through trummels
as in the other works, and thence to
! the jigs.
There are four Huntington mills for
| grinding middlngs from the jigs. and
after being thus ground they pass over
! the Frue vanners. By these various
| processes the lighter and poorer por-
| tionS of the ore are worked off and run
away as waste, while the heavier and
| richer parts are the concentrates which
| are sent 20 the calciners for roasting.
The reader who is not familiar with
| these processes will understand that
the work of concentrating is designed
| for the double purpose of getting the
! ore into proper shape for roasting and
| at the same time throwing off the
| poorer portions of the rock which con-
tain no mineral, or not enough to pay
the expense of saving it. The jigs and
| vanners are in constant motion, work
! ing off the poorer and lighter material,
| the poorest of all being, as before stat
ed, carried away as waste.
There are eight O'Hara calcining
| furnaces where the ores are roasted to
rid them of the most of the sulphur
| contained and other volatile matter.
| After being Calcined they are passed to
! the matte furnaces, where they are
| melted and much of the worthless ma
terial run off in the form of Stag, while
| the matte, which is from 80 to 90 per
cent. copper, is saved. The purpose of
| the converting process is to get rid Of
| substantially all the iron. sulphur and
| other waste material in the matte, saw
| ing the copper and whatever of silver
| and gold may accompany it. In some
| works the matte is run off in molds,
cooled and then remelted for the con-
verters. But at the Butte & Boston the
| molten matte is carried directly from
the matte furnaces to the converters,
| without cooling and remelting, thus saw
ing labor, time and fuel. This part of
| the work is done with travelling crane.
| The converters are different in shape
from those generally in use. They are
| horizontal and called barrel converters,
being simply cylinders lying on their
| sides with an open mouth to receive
| and discharge the material. The matte
| having been poured into the converter,
| a blast of compressed air is turned on.
The effect is that the oxygen of the air
| unites with the sulphur in the matte
and both intensifies and maintains the
| combustion until the iron and other
solid matter of no value can be run Off
| in Stag and the copper purifled OF al
| most everything but the sulphur In a
state of combustion. This being done
the air is turned on in such way as
to blow off the sulphur itself, and what
remains is pig copper some 9s or ~
| fine. That is to say, the impurities con-
| stitute from one to two parts in 100.
| At these works the pig copper consti-
tutes the finished product. The pigs
of copper, as run here. weigh about
225 pounds each.
This plant is admirably equipped
with engines, boilers and air compress
| sors. Many improvements are in prog
| ress. the most notable being the Install
| ing of three new electric motors OF con-
| siderable power. These are to be used
| in running the blaSt furnace, Wnen IL
| is run at all, the calciners and the re-
yerberators. The motors will probably
be ready for the transmission of power
this week Heretofore the electric pow
er at these works has been furnished
| from the electric plant at the Leonard
shaft. A new trestle is also being con-
| structed to carry off the tailings or
waste from the concentrator. and de-
| post them at a sufficient distance from
| the works.
In the hands of the able and energetic
men who control the properties of this
| company, the mines of the Butte u
| Boston are certain to rank among the
| great properties of the district. and as
| they grow the reduction works will be
more than likely to grow with them
and become a more and more conspic-
nous factor in the industrial system of
| Butte.