Rare Earth Deposits of North America

Rare earth elements (REE) have been mined in North America since 1885, when placer monazite was produced in the southeast USA. Since the 1960s, however, most North American REE have come from a carbonatite deposit at Mountain Pass, California, and most of the world’s REE came from this source between 1965 and 1995. After 1998, Mountain Pass REE sales declined substantially due to competition from China and to environmental constraints. REE are presently not mined at Mountain Pass, and shipments were made from stockpiles in recent years. Chevron Mining, however, restarted extraction of selected REE at Mountain Pass in 2007. In 1987, Mountain Pass reserves were calculated at 29 Mt of ore with 8.9% rare earth oxide based on a 5% cut‐off grade. Current reserves are in excess of 20 Mt at similar grade. The ore mineral is bastnasite, and the ore has high light REE/heavy REE (LREE/HREE). The carbonatite is a moderately dipping, tabular 1.4‐Ga intrusive body associated with ultrapotassic alkaline plutons of similar age. The chemistry and ultrapotassic alkaline association of the Mountain Pass deposit suggest a different source than that of most other carbonatites. Elsewhere in the western USA, carbonatites have been proposed as possible REE sources. Large but low‐grade LREE resources are in carbonatite in Colorado and Wyoming. Carbonatite complexes in Canada contain only minor REE resources. Other types of hard‐rock REE deposits in the USA include small iron‐REE deposits in Missouri and New York, and vein deposits in Idaho. Phosphorite and fluorite deposits in the USA also contain minor REE resources. The most recently discovered REE deposit in North America is the Hoidas Lake vein deposit, Saskatchewan, a small but incompletely evaluated resource. Neogene North American placer monazite resources, both marine and continental, are small or in environmentally sensitive areas, and thus unlikely to be mined. Paleoplacer deposits also contain minor resources. Possible future uranium mining of Precambrian conglomerates in the Elliott Lake–Blind River district, Canada, could yield by‐product HREE and Y. REE deposits occur in peralkaline syenitic and granitic rocks in several places in North America. These deposits are typically enriched in HREE, Y, and Zr. Some also have associated Be, Nb, and Ta. The largest such deposits are at Thor Lake and Strange Lake in Canada. A eudialyte syenite deposit at Pajarito Mountain in New Mexico is also probably large, but of lower grade. Similar deposits occur at Kipawa Lake and Lackner Lake in Canada. Future uses of some REE commodities are expected to increase, and growth is likely for REE in new technologies. World reserves, however, are probably sufficient to meet international demand for most REE commodities well into the 21st century. Recent experience shows that Chinese producers are capable of large amounts of REE production, keeping prices low. Most refined REE prices are now at approximately 50% of the 1980s price levels, but there has been recent upward price movement for some REE compounds following Chinese restriction of exports. Because of its grade, size, and relatively simple metallurgy, the Mountain Pass deposit remains North America’s best source of LREE. The future of REE production at Mountain Pass is mostly dependent on REE price levels and on domestic REE marketing potential. The development of new REE deposits in North America is unlikely in the near future. Undeveloped deposits with the most potential are probably large, low‐grade deposits in peralkaline igneous rocks. Competition with established Chinese HREE and Y sources and a developing Australian deposit will be a factor.     

Zircon M257 ‐ a Homogeneous Natural Reference Material for the Ion Microprobe U‐Pb Analysis of Zircon

We introduce and propose zircon M257 as a future reference material for the determination of zircon U‐Pb ages by means of secondary ion mass spectrometry. This light brownish, flawless, cut gemstone specimen from Sri Lanka weighed 5.14 g (25.7 carats). Zircon M257 has TIMS‐determined, mean isotopic ratios (2s uncertainties) of 0.09100 ± 0.00003 for ²⁰⁶pb/²³⁸U and 0.7392 ± 0.0003 for ²⁰⁷pb/²³⁵U. Its ²⁰⁶pb/²³⁸U age is 561.3 ± 0.3 Ma (unweighted mean, uncertainty quoted at the 95% confidence level); the U‐Pb system is concordant within uncertainty of decay constants. Zircon M257 contains ～ 840 μg g^?1 U (Th/U ～ 0.27). The material exhibits remarkably low heterogeneity, with a virtual absence of any internal textures even in cathodoluminescence images. The uniform, moderate degree of radiation damage (estimated from the expansion of unit‐cell parameters, broadening of Raman spectral parameters and density) corresponds well, within the “Sri Lankan trends”, with actinide concentrations, U‐Pb age, and the calculated alpha fluence of 1.66 × 10¹⁸ g^?1. This, and a (U+Th)/He age of 419 ± 9 Ma (2s), enables us to exclude any unusual thermal history or heat treatment, which could potentially have affected the retention of radiogenic Pb. The oxygen isotope ratio of this zircon is 13.9%o VSMOW suggesting a metamorphic genesis in a marble or calc‐silicate skarn.     

邵于庄煤炭勘查区新生界松散层水文地质特征

邵于庄煤炭勘查区新生界松散层厚度较厚,下伏为二叠系含煤地层,可采煤层多。区内含、隔水层组成复杂,由四个含水层和三个隔水层组成。通过对含水层水文地质条件分析,提出了第一、二含水层是矿区的主要供水水源,为保证未来建设和开采时的生活用水和工业用水,应做好水源的保护工作;同时指明了第四含水层是浅部煤组开采的主要补给水源,在煤矿设计和开采过程中,应重点予以防治。     

鄂尔多斯盆地靖边气田马五_(1+2)气藏储集单元研究

综合地震、地质、测井等信息,考虑沉积、成岩、地貌、生产动态等多因素,在沟槽识别和致密带研究基础上,通过井间干扰、油层压力变化和试井边界响应分析,按照局部、就近原则对靖边气田马五1+2气藏进行了储集单元划分。共划分出111个储集单元,其中独立型69个,复合型42个。这些储集单元的面积多介于10～50km2之间,单个储集单元的井数一般少于6口。在对气藏储层特征综合认识的基础上,确定流动单元划分思路与流程,并认为关键环节包括古沟槽识别、致密带研究、动静结合确定储集单元等3个方面。储集单元一方面受控于被致密岩相包围的有利成岩相带,宏观上与弱—中等充填泥粉晶白云岩相对应性好;另一方面又受各级古沟槽夹持,在两个一级古沟槽之间往往共生多个储集单元,而这些储集单元边界又严格地受二级或三级沟槽切割控制。     

浅谈测井方法在工程勘察中的应用

地球物理测井应用于工程勘察中,能够较好地解决用钻探不易解决的问题,如有效判别薄夹层、寻找井旁隐伏断裂破碎带、判断孔内土层稳定性以及测定土层的速度等。其中自然伽马测井曲线在判定含砾粘土夹层及软弱薄粘土夹层等方面具有较高的准确性;声波、井径、自然γ、视电阻率等测井方法可有效查找井旁隐伏断裂破碎带,特别是声波测井曲线异常更为明显;另外跨孔实测剪切波速还可进行地基土加固效果检验。     

Towards a nonperturbation transport theory in hetereogeneous aquifers

A large body of existing theories of flow and contaminant transport in aquifers ignore the presence of recharge, eliminate the boundary conditions, neglect transient conditions in groundwater flow, conceive hydraulic gradients as linear, and require parameter variability to be stationary and Gaussian. The most outstanding and difficult to justify assumption is the subjective small size of the stochastic terms (i.e., small perturbation methods), which usually is forced by considering the logarithm of the hydraulic conductivity. Several problems in flow and contaminant subsurface hydrology, such as the enhanced dispersion parameters with plume size or time after injection, remain to be observed in the light of a stochastic theory that allows a more realistic consideration of physical and hydrologic properties. In this article, an attempt is made to reformulate a contaminant transport equation (the variable dispersion equation, VDE) with transport parameters in terms of regional hydrologic and aquifer hydraulic properties, such as recharge rate, spatially random transmissivity, hydraulic gradient, aquifer thickness, and soil porosity. Subsequently, a general analytic procedure, the method of decomposition, is used to derive a solution to the VDE. This procedure does not require small perturbation, logarithmic transformations, or specific probability law assumptions. Comparison tests with existing theoretical and field results are given. The tests illustrate the enhanced dispersion and shifting concentration effects produced by the variable dispersion equation. Finally a generalization of the method to nonstationary dispersion in three-dimensional domains is proposed.     

Laboratory simulation of geogas microbubble flow

Preliminary laboratory tests provided first data on the behavior of gas microbubbles through porous media in the framework of the geogas theory. Under experimented conditions with laboratory equipment arranged for pressure controlled gas-tracer injection and sampling, gas microbubbles moved up to ten times faster than singlephase flow in dry media under the same injection pressure. Microbubbles were determined to be very sensitive to changes in injection pressure and their terminal velocity seems to be described with good approximation by the Stokes formula. The capability of microbubbles to pick up and transport upward for short distances solid ultra-small particles (metallic and radionuclide compounds) has been proved. Results are consistent with a time-dependent process linked to the transport properties of microbubbles (e.g., flotation), such as that reported by some authors.     

Semi-analytical solutions of a contaminant transport equation with nonlinear sorption in 1D

A new method to determine semi-analytical solutions of one-dimensional contaminant transport problem with nonlinear sorption is described. This method is based on operator splitting approach where the convective transport is solved exactly and the diffusive transport by finite volume method. The exact solutions for all sorption isotherms of Freundlich and Langmuir type are presented for the case of piecewise constant initial profile and zero diffusion. Very precise numerical results for transport with small diffusion can be obtained even for larger time steps (e.g., when the Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy (CFL) condition failed).     

PDC钻头切削齿破岩载荷规律的分析

对PDC钻头冠部形状及不同的布齿密度和切削齿在不同的磨损状态下对PDC钻头切削齿受力的影响进行了分析；用相邻的3个切削齿之间的关系(不同的切削齿与切削齿之间的径向距离和切削齿之间的高度差)来分析PDC钻头冠部形状和切削齿布齿密度对切削齿受力的影响，以及将切削齿的磨损状态简化成与切削齿在钻头上装配方向垂直的平面来分析切削齿磨损状态对切削齿受力的影响。     

自重湿陷性黄土地区桩基设计探讨

根据自重湿陷性黄土的特点、《湿陷性黄土地区建筑规范》（GB50025—2004）和《建筑桩基技术规范》（JGJ94—94）中关于桩基设计的对比分析，通过自重湿陷性黄土场地工程实例分析计算，依据负摩擦产生的机理——中性点理论，论述了自重湿陷性黄土场地中桩基设计应考虑中性点，而不应全部计入负摩阻的观点。