WorldWide Drilling Resource

He asked them to serve as speakers and counselors, and at the end of the weekend he knew he was onto some- thing. Today, there are over 400,000 students who have attended a HOBY seminar, the first ones are now in their 70s. To learn more about the Hugh O ' B r i an You t h Leade r sh i p , v i s i t www.hoby.org. Robert Robert is an author, humorist, and innovation consultant. He works with companies that want to be more competitive and with people who want to think like innovators. For more information on Robert, visit ww.jumpstartyourmeeting.com or contact him via e-mail to michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com Wilson cont’d from page 28. 52 JANUARY 2018 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® Bismuth is a silvery-white metallic element with a pinkish tint on freshly-broken surfaces. The most common bismuth minerals are bismuthinite and bismite, but most bismuth is recovered as a by-product from lead processing. Bismuth is largely produced from mines in China, Mexico, and Bolivia. Bismuth is a moderately priced metal, costing more than copper, lead, and zinc, but much less than gold or silver. An important part of world bismuth pro- duction comes from the small amounts of bismuth in ores of other metals, which is recovered in Belgium. The United States produces small amounts of bismuth through recy- cling, but recycled bismuth makes up less than 5% of U.S. consumption. Bismuth is used in a number of very different applications. Almost none of the uses are for pure metallic bismuth. The majority is consumed in bismuth alloys, and in pharmaceuticals and chemicals. The remainder is used in ceramics, paints, catalysts, and a variety of minor applications. Bismuth compounds are used in upset stomach medicines; hence, the trademark name Pepto-Bismol. It’s used for treatment of stomach ulcers, soothing creams, and cosmetics. There are also a variety of other industrial applications. Because bismuth is nontoxic, it replaces lead in some ceramic glazes and paints. Boron was named for the mineral borax, thought to come from the Persian name “burah” for the mineral. There are over 200 minerals which contain boron, but only a few, such as colemanite and borax, are commercially important. Borax was first extracted from dry lakebeds in Persia and Tibet, then traded to Arabia and India over a thousand years ago. Today, 75% of all borax production occurs in either the U.S. or Turkey. Most of the major deposits in the world are mined by open-pit methods. In the United States, only one company in Death Valley, California, operates underground at this time. Several mines in Turkey are mined underground using labor-intensive methods. Borax has numerous industrial uses. It is dissolved in water to form an alkaline anti- septic solution which is used as a disinfectant, detergent, and water softener. It is also used in the manufacturing of ceramics, paint, glass, and coated paper. Another important use is as a flux to disintegrate undesired oxide stains on metals, and for this reason, it is also used in welding. Borax is necessary to conduct a bead test, which is an important method of determining the presence of certain metals in a substance, including minerals. The World of Minerals