The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1915-08-14

called rafaelite, At Talcuna in the province
OF CoQumbo in Chilli vanadium is found
yellow earth in connection with copper
The principal and almost the only commercial
source of supply Of vanadium at present is from
Peru.
There numbers OF asphaltite deposits in
Peru. among the best known Of which those
OF Yauli. When burned. the ash from these de-
posits yields "a to 40 per cent vanadium oxide
Other mines located at Matucan and Casapal-
the Central railroad of Peru near Calao.
at Huari, and at Huancayo but the greatest OF
all deposits, now known and worked. are at
Minas Ragra.
The Ragra mines are about fifty miles from
the celebrated Cerro de Pasco copper mines and
are in the same mining district. Mnas Ragra
had been frequently denounced and again aban-
doned coal mines The fuel of poor
quality to be hardly worth the mining.
Some years ago on the abandonment by c. Weiss
& Co of Lima. Senior Eulogio f. Fernandini. who
engaged IN mining at Cerro de Pasco and
who owned the Qusque hacienda. about six
miles from Minas Ragra. denounced the mines
anew. Senior Fernandini had process for
making coke in which he proposed to use the
output OF Minas Ragra. Senior Antenor RHO
Patron the technical director Of the Fernan
DIM works. and his attention being directed
of black mineral which accompanied
the coal he became interested and made chem
cal analysis He thereby discovered that II
contained vanadium in greater proportion than
any of the Heretofore known ores OF this metal
The material looks like slaty coal is very hard
with 30 per free sulphur. IA per
silica per cent iron sulphide, and about
l Il per cent each nickel and molybdenum sui
phides. and about 40 per cent vanadium sulphide
After burning out the free sulphur the con
tans about SO per cent vanadium oxide.
The distinguished Peruvian scientist. Senior
Jose j. Bravo. made a very thorough examination
of the locality and published the results in a
bulletin OF the Society OF Engineers The sui
phide OF vanadium. not having beenN Heretofore
known as natural product. named RIO
patronite by Senior Bravo in honor OF the original
dscoverer OF the mineral. This II still
bears although ordinarily shortened to patronite.
Rizopatronite. according to Senior Bravo. appears
in the form of a compact mass, dark in color
and two meters thick (about 6 feet s
inches), and In his opinion is disseminated over
a large extent OF country around Minas Ragra.
The earth surrounding the rizo-patronite veins
is highly impregnated with vanadium solutions.
and In small catch basins this impregnated earth
is being extensively worked.
Until the recent development OF vanadum in
the steel industry its commercial more
less confined to ink making and coloring
fabrics and leather. The ink is made of mix
ture of peutra solution OF ammonium vanadate.
gum water. and a solution OF gallo acid. This
ink is not destroyed by acids alkalines. nor
can it be bleached out with chloride. The ink.
however is not very permanent. 1t dyeing fab
RIGS vanadium chlordes combined with anaine
hydrochloride form brilliant and permanent
black. In coloring leather per cent solution
of neutral ammonium vanadate is used with
leather which has been tanned with nutgall
The first recorded use Of vanadium in steel
was in 1896. in France. In the production OF ar
NOR plates. Tests Of theses showed that they
were much tougher and more highly resistant