The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1914-07-11
CHILE HAS IMMENSE
COPPER RESOURCES
MINES AT CHUQUICAMATA ARE
BEING DEVELOPED ON
GIGANTIC SCALE

erations of the Chile Exploration
company at Chuquicamata, by f. A.
c. Smith, chief metallurgist of the
company, gives but a slight insight
into the immensely of the mines or
plant. The company is said to have
over 100000 tons of ore in sight.
says the Mining and Engineering
World.
The first unit of the plant now
building will have a daily capacity
of 10000 tons. The electrolytic re-
finery will have a capacity of about
$4,000 pounds of copper per day.
The ore will be mined by steam
shovels, practically no stripping be-
ing necessary. The ore will be trans
ported to the mill, distant about two
standard American gauge railroad
cars of sixty tons capacity each.
Arriving at the plant, the ore will
first pass through gyratory c%rushers,
thence through 4S-inch Symons disc
crushers and finally through Garfield
III uhtll d plOuuCl 10 ODtdlltu VI
about " Inch mesh. The ore will be
carried on conveying belts from the
crushing plant, after sampling, to the
teaching watts. Each of the teaching
watts has the following dimensions:
10 feet wide, 100 feet long and 16
feet high. The teaching watts, six in
number. will be placed end to end.
The belt delivering the ore from
the crushing plant will be discharg
cd into the teaching watts with the
aid of an electric travelling bridge.
spanning and travelling the entire
length of the leading tanks. The
leached and washed residue will be
removed from the teaching tanks by
a 15-ton grab bucket, travelling on
an unloading bridge and, after sam
ping, will be delivered onto a con-
veying belt for disposal to the tail
ings dump.
The tanks are being built of heav-
lily reinforced concrete, and will be
lined with mastic asphalt / Y inches
thick. This tank lining has been de-
veloped by the Vulcanite Paving com
pany of Philadelphia. and consists of
a specially refined Trinidad asphalt
mixture, to which is added crushed
quartz or granite.
From the bottom of the teaching
tanks the solution will be removed
through eight siX-inch openings
equally distributed over the tanks. A
filter-bOttom, consisting of two lay
ers of two-inch planks with a layer
of cocoanut mating between, will be
employed. This filter-bOttom will be
raised four inches above the bottom
OF the tank.
For the main solution circuits.
nine and sixteen mel lead-lined iron
pipe will be used Open boot hori-
zontal centrifugal pumps, made of
type metal, will be used for pumping
the solutions. The pumps will have
a capacity of $50 cubic feet per min
ute, elevating to a height of sixty
feet.
In the teaching plant the cycle of
operation will require approximately
six days, of which one will be oc-
cupied in filling the tank, two days
in teaching, two days in washing and
draining and one day in discharging.
The solutions will be conducted tn
to tile teaching tanks by gravity from
nine solution storage tanks. The
dimensions of these solution storage
tanks are as follows: Two tanks
Il by 139 by $50 feet; seven tanks
II by 70 by $50 feet.
From the strong solution tank the
solution will flow by gravity through
the dechlorinating plant, consisting
OF t%wenty-one thirty-foOt long by
four-foot inside diameter revolving
steel drums lined with earthenware.
These drums will be half full of shot
copper. From these drums the sOlu-
ton, containing the cuprous chloride
in suspension, will flow to seven DorT
thickeners made of concrete lined
with mastic asphalt. The clear solu-
ton overlooking will travel by gravity
to the electrolytic refinery. while the
thickened cuprous chloride, together
with approximately 1 per cen of the
original solution, will go to filter
presses.
The electrolytic refinery will con-
sist of SO electrolytic tanks of the
following dimensions: Nineteen feet
long, three feet six inches wide, four
feet ten inches deep. They will be
made of concrete, lined with mastic
asphalt, and will be set through the
floor, having inspection aisles under
meath and a concrete working plat
form beneath the rows of tanks. The
tank house will be of concrete and
steel construction.
Gives Judgment
Judge Tabor of ElkO recently gave
judgment for $4,000 to C. J.. Hahn
and II Eai1ino on accipnad claims