| Show Moves Rapidly Ahead On 25 Million Expansion Job BY DON ROBINSON Uranium U Uranium Reduction Company 25 million dollar doUar conversion project moved ahead rapidly this week approaching fifteen per cent of physical completion n nand and reaching teaching an employment of nion Construction of the r r g facilities for the carbonate leach circuit is contracted to Western Knapp Engineering company with Chicago Bridge and Iron sub contracting the installation of three huge thickener tanks The new circuit Is designed to process more economically the high lime type of or ore oro pres- pres WORKMEN SURVEY FOUNDATION for giant thickener now being erected by Chicago Bridge and Iron at t the Uranium Reduction company m mn n Moab Tanks Tank will bo be used o for reagent t recovery as a. part of leach circuit now being mined in the Big Dig In In dlan dian mining district of San Juan county Completion will give 1 two completely separate separate separ separ- ate circuits Two Operations The present acid leach circuit will be retained complemented by a n carbonate leach circuit be- be i I y w tt m C Pf tl 6 F being Installed First tank Is I. sixty slaty per cent I complete this week Three of the foot tanks tanka will be built similar In structure but butt butI t I having different t uses i w 1St r r f z I- I THOUSANDS OF FEET of pipe will be used I the conversion proJect proJect pro pro- Stockpiled here a portion of that to bo be used undo escaped es es- escaped steel teel strike grief by having material on order So much piping Is Involved that engineers estimate the highest working force of one type will be the Over will ba be needed when construction reaches reach the proper stage r t r F wat lw l- l w CARBONATE LEACH CIRCUIT completion will give two compute complete and nd separate circuits circuit when added to the acid leach cir clr cult Here workmen prepare footings that will virtually split spilt the plant In half hlf and Isolate one circuit from the other by a concrete wall Work In wet areas reas of the plant was Wit accomplished hed during annual maintenance shutdown prior to July 15 IS It FORMS COME OFF a tank foundation Approximately ISO cubic yards of concrete have been poured to date In its the mill conversion project Concrete and excavation work have composed competed bulk of construction In first stages In tanks portion portions of the fluids fluid will willbe willbe be b. separated from solids Solids Solid go 10 Ito to to process the fluids fluid after buildup g II back through circuit that officials predict will substantially substantially sub sub- reduce processing costs costa for high lime ores At present lime content of ores Is la running very high much of the time lime In general terms It takes one pound of acid to neutralize one pound of lime in a ton of ore At the present time Is processing processing sing 1500 tons of ore oro per day Does DOli Not Affect Tonnage The conversion will vill not affect tonnage In any way The 1500 ton per day figure is set by con cess tract Also mill officials have repeatedly said that the conversion conversion con con- version will wild not mean any Increase Increase increase in In- crease In the number of personnel per per- Heavy employment now la 13 the result of f construction underway un un- derway Construction employment employment employment employ employ- ment is not expected to exceed men at its peak Most of tha force foree Involves skilled workers workers wor wor- kers and amI quite probably wilt will continue to do so An AnSO 80 to 20 ID skilled to unskilled ratio exists now January Completion Project Engineer for Bob Dob Curfman reviewing the first weeks of construction said sald that the fifteen n per cent completion completion completion com com- estimate docs does not reflect time Work thus far has moved quickly due to the nature of construction The contract calls for completion by January 1 1960 and much technical work must follow the excavation and concrete work that has been done to date Major phase underway this week is the erection of the three 85 foot thickener tanks by Chicago Bridge and Iron One tank is approximately sixty percent per percent percent cent complete since the subcontractor subcontractor subcontractor sub sub- contractor moved on the job less lesa than han two weeks ago iNo i No Steel Strike Worries I All steel for the project has has- been on order for some time allowing allowing al at al- al lowing to avoid the complications of the present steel strike The first load of structural steel arrived Monday and formed steel for the tanks has been here for more than one week A tremendous amount of piping pIping pip pIp- ing will be needed In the new circuit For that reason the largest largest largest lar lar- lar- lar gest work force will probably be composed of pipe fitters although al although although al- al though construction has not yet reached that stage The two circuits are being beIng- separated by a n concrete wall that will the plant virtually in half Much of that phase was completed during the annual maintenance shutdown between June 27 and July 14 Areas normally normally normally nor nor- mally wet during the operation of the mill were allowed to dry during the shutdown facilitating the separation of ot circuits Designed In New York The design of the carbonate leach circuit planned In the conversion conversion conversion con con- version Is the work of ot Knowles Associates Inc o New York City the original designers of the mill under the direction of ot J J. W v. v Burgess Durgess Salt Lake City general manager for construction construction construe construe- tion for Uranium Reduction company For contractor Wes Wes- tern-Knapp tern A W. W Edson is Job superintendent Cl Chicago cago Bridge and Iron superintendent is Grover Gro Gro- ver vet Main Mein Features Listed The main maln features of the construction are as follows 1 The Installation of a six by nine foot loot ball mill for regrind regrind- ing Leaching with carbonates requires grinding to a Q finer fraction so 50 ore will be ground in the existing mills then reground reground re re- ground in the tha projected mW mill 2 Three 85 foot thickener tanks now under construction that will separate portions of the fluids from the solids Ina Ina in ina a reagent recovery process that will wOl send the fluids back through the circuit and the solids Into intI process 3 The Installation of twelve foot 12 autoclaves or pressure leach lead vessels This ThU method o of at carbonate leaching is U done under tinder under un un- der pressure supplied by air The Tha pulp within Is also heated with steam 4 1 Concentric pipe heat exchangers exchangers ex ex- ex changers Installation In this phase the heated pulp enters the tha autoclaves In a inch five i pipe system that surrounds a smal smaller ler er three inch pipe leaving the autoclave I The heat from froes the tha discharged pulp preheats preheat In coming pulp and at the same time is cooled by the dissipation of heat into the tM cool awl fn Incoming Continued en tt Pas Paga 8 t u RECO Continued from Page Paga 1 k pulp going In the opposite dir N Nw Naw w U Used d Features of the carbonate leach circuit Include the addition addition addi addi- tion lion of the leaching soda so da ash during grinding That Tha could not be done aone with the acid leach circuit where the powerful powerful power power- ful sulphuric acid would eat away metal on contact The leaching reagent also can by byUse byuse byuse use of ot the thickener tanks be recovered After recovery and the addition of mill solutions to brim firine bring It un up to In Atren strength th It can cnn be recycled l This This Is not possible with acid as the leaching reagent reo re re reagent agent At Although though there will be two separate circuits each complete and utilized some existing fa fa- fa duties will have dual use The separation of uranium bearing I solutions from the barren sand will be done In the existing esperanza es es- peran a drag classifiers Ing will be necessary so that the new circuit can reach that stage of processing The recovery of ot uranium from the uranium bearing solutions will wIIl be done in existing resin resin- pulp In-pulp portions of the circuit going from Irom there Into n a new flew precipitating system for Cor treatment treat treat- ment by different reagents The new system m is part of present construction In the completion of the preparation pre pro of the product the tho exIsting existing ex ex- fisting drier will be used Inthis In Inthis Inthis this phase the two separated separated se entirely to this point come together for the end pro pro- due duc of the mill mUt |
