The Amplifier - v. 12, no. 1

In this issue...Geology, Mineral Club, Homecoming Queen, Pipestone Pass, Parachute club, Tech Band, High Ore Mine, Cheerleaders, Nitrogen Generator

Geochemical Assessment and Separation of Source Waters in the Upper Boulder River Watershed Near Boulder, MT

Environmental samples were collected at three surface water sites between 5/21/2011 and 11/21/2014 along the Upper Boulder River near Boulder Montana. The sites were located at Bernice (within the mountain block), near the High Ore drainage (near the mountain block/basin transition), and at the USGS Gauging Station near Boulder, Montana (within the basin). The parameters measured in the field were SC, temperature, and alkalinity with occasional pH measurements. We collected samples for anions, cations, and stable isotopes in the catchment. We identified endmembers by sampling snow and groundwater and determined from available data an approximate endmember for rain, snow, and groundwater. We used temporal and spatial variations of water chemistry and isotopes to generate an endmember mixing model. Groundwater was found to always be an important contributor to river flow and could increase by nearly an order of magnitude during large snowmelt events. This resulted in groundwater comprising ~20% of total river flow during snowmelt at all sites. At peak snowmelt we observed that near surface water contributions to the river were from a mixture of rain and snow. Soil water, though not sampled, was hypothesized to be an important part of the hydrologic story. If so, the endmember contributions determined in this study may be different. Groundwater may have the highest variation depending on water chemistry of shallow soil water.

Geology and Ore Deposits of the Butte-Highland Gold Mine.

The Butte-Highland mine is situated at the head of Basin Creek, in the Highland mining district, Silver Bow County, about 14 miles south of Butte. The tunnel portal and present surface plant are at an elevation of about 7350 feet above sea level, facing westward across the head of Basin Creek valley. The "ghost" mining town of Highland lies a mile to the east, near the forks of Fish Creek. Access to the mine is obtained at present from Beaudine's siding, 12 miles west. The property may also be reached, with difficulty, over poor roads from Limekiln hill, or from Moose Creek.

Geology and Ore Deposits of the Golden Messenger MIne, Lewis and Clark County, Helena, Montana.

The Golden Messenger Mine which is approximately twenty-three miles northeast of Helena, Montana, near York, on Trout Creek, has long presented several problems of both theoretical and practical interest.

A Study of a Carbonaceous Gold Ore

The presence of graphite in the ore of the Missouri-McKee Mine has made its treatment by the methods now used quite unsatisfactory. The study was undertaken to de­velop a new flow sheet which would give a high recovery and yet be economical enough to handle low grade material.

The Geology and Ore Deposits of the Ruby Gulch Mine

The Ruby Gulch Mine, owned and operated by the Ruby Gulch Mining Company, Zortman, Montana, is one of the most important low-grade gold producers in the state. Sit­uated in the Little Rocky Mountains, the mine has had an interesting history since its discovery shortly before the turn of the century.

Geology and Ore Deposits of the Salt Chuck-Rush and Brown Mine Area Prince of Wales Island, Alaska

The Salt Chuck, Rush and Brown, and adjacent mines and claims form an area of approximately 15 square miles near the head of Kasaan Bay about 10 miles northwest of the village of Kasaan on Prince of Wales Island in southeastern Alaska. It is an area of moderate relief in which the hills rise from the water’s edge to heights of some 500 feet. Most of the area is covered with dense vegetation and muskeg.

Benefication of an Oxidized Lead Ore from the Franklin Mine Lewis and Clark County

This thesis is concerned with the beneficiation of an oxidized lead ore. Emphasis was placed upon concentration by flotation rather than by gravity methods, although some investigation was made with the Wilfley shaking table. The concentration of lead minerals received most consideration in the problem, but wherever possible attempts were made to increase the silver and gold concentration along with the lead.

The Testing and Concentration of a Low Grade Copper-Nickel Ore.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the possi­bility of concentrating a low grade copper-nickel ore, to determine the most effective method of concentration, and to attempt to draw some conclusions to determine whether or not the concentrates produced would be of sufficient high grade to make the recovery of nickel and copper a profit­able enterprise.

Geology and Ore Deposits of the Clinton Mining District

This report includes the results of geological investigation of the Clinton Mining District and the Hidden Treasure Mine.The Clinton Mining District is an unorganized mining dis­trict situated in the Garnet Range two and one-half miles northeast of the town of Clinton, Montana, which is on the Northern Pacific Railway and the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad seventeen miles east of the city of Missoula. The district is in the same range of mountains as the Gar­net Mining District and the drainage from the district covered is to the south into the Hell Gate or Clarks Fork of the Colum­bia River. The main stream is known as Trail creek, which runs in a southerly direction from the area studied.

Report on the Ermont Mine Sec. 35, T. 6 S., R. 11 W., Beaverhead County, Montana

An examination of the Ermont Mine was requested by the owners, Messrs. J. R. Bowles and R. B. Caswell, to determine the amount and grade of ore developed, the advisability of constructing a mill at the present time, and to recommend future development work.

The Testing and Concentration of Lake Chelan Copper Ore

The geologic history of the Holden area and Lake Chelan district is an integral part of the history of the Cascade Mountain Range. The structure is very complex and the rocks, which have been subjected to intense metamorphic action, are portions of a roof pendant and consists of gneisses, schists and quartzites that are often difficult to correlate.

The Recovery of Zinc from Butte Mine Waters

Very little work has been done towards the recovery of zinc from mine water because the zinc content of the water is generally low. As different from copper, which can very easily be replaced by iron in any of its solutions, zinc is very high up in the electro-chemical series and so the few metals above zinc, most of which are rare and hence expensive, cannot be used to replace zinc from its solution.

An Investigation of the Ores of the Big Seven Mine, Neihart, Montana

During the course of this investigation of the ores of the Big Seven mine, Neihart, Montana, the writer has attempted, through a mi­croscopic study of polished sections, to ascertain the hypogene or supergene character of the ore minerals present in the ore suite.

Geochemistry and Stable Isotopes of Surface Water and Groundwater in the Continental Pit in Butte, Montana, USA

The Continental porphyry Cu‐Mo mine, located 2 km east of the famous Berkeley Pit lake of Butte, Montana, contains two small lakes that vary in size depending on mining activity. In contrast to the acidic Berkeley Pit lake, the Continental Pit waters have near-neutral pH and relatively low metal concentrations. The main reason is geological: whereas the Berkeley Pit mined highly‐altered granite rich in pyrite with no neutralizing potential, the Continental Pit is mining weakly‐altered granite with lower pyrite concentrations and up to 1‐2% hydrothermal calcite. The purpose of this study was to gather and interpret information that bears on the chemistry of surface water and groundwater in the active Continental Pit. Pre‐existing chemistry data from sampling of the Continental Pit were compiled from the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology and Montana Department of Environmental Quality records. In addition, in March of 2013, new water samples were collected from the mine’s main dewatering well, the Sarsfield well, and a nearby acidic seep (Pavilion Seep) and analyzed for trace metals and several stable isotopes, including dD and d18O of water, d13C of dissolved inorganic carbon, and d34S of dissolved sulfate. In December 2013, several soil samples were collected from the shore of the frozen pit lake and surrounding area. The soil samples were analyzed using X‐ray diffraction to determine mineral content. Based on Visual Minteq modeling, water in the Continental Pit lake is near equilibrium with a number of carbonate, sulfate, and molybdate minerals, including calcite, dolomite, rhodochrosite (MnCO3), brochantite (CuSO4·3Cu(OH)2), malachite (Cu2CO3(OH)2), hydrozincite (Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6), gypsum, and powellite (CaMoO4). The fact that these minerals are close to equilibrium suggests that they are present on the weathered mine walls and/or in the sediment of the surface water ponds. X‐Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis of the pond “beach” sample failed to show any discrete metal‐bearing phases. One of the soil samples collected higher in the mine, near an area of active weathering of chalcocite‐rich ore, contained over 50% chalcanthite (CuSO4·5H2O). This water‐soluble copper salt is easily dissolved in water, and is probably a major source of copper to the pond and underlying groundwater system. However, concentrations of copper in the latter are probably controlled by other, less‐soluble minerals, such as brochantite or malachite. Although the acidity of the Pavilion Seep is high (~ 11 meq/L), the flow is much less than the Sarsfield Well at the current time. Thus, the pH, major and minor element chemistry in the Continental Pit lakes are buffered by calcite and other carbonate minerals. For the Continental Pit waters to become acidic, the influx of acidic seepage (e.g., Pavilion Seep) would need to increase substantially over its present volume.