ZINC
BY FREDERICK B. HYDER
USES OF ZINC
Metallic zinc, or spelter, as the commercial metal is often known
in the trade, is chiefly used in the form of rolled sheets; in
galvanizing; in alloys forming brass and bronze; and in the
desilverization of lead bullion. Rolled sheets are used for roofs,
tanks, conduits, and protective linings. Iron and steel objects are
dipped into baths of molten spelter and coated with the metal or
galvanized, being thereby protected from oxidizing agencies. Other
methods of applying this protective coating are also in use.
Zinc and copper unite in all proportions, forming alloys known as brass
which are of widespread industrial application. There is only one
definite alloy; it corresponds approximately to CuZn₂, contains 33 per
cent. copper and 67 per cent. zinc, is hard and brittle and of little
practical value. All other brasses may be considered as solid solutions
of this definite alloy in an excess of one of its constituents. Brasses
in use vary in zinc content from 20 to 85 per cent. and differ greatly
in their properties according to the composition. Alloys of zinc and
aluminum have valuable properties, especially those containing 25 to
35 per cent. zinc. Other alloys used contain, besides copper and zinc,
either lead, tin or nickel.
The Parkes process of desilverizing lead bullion has superseded the
older Pattinson and cupellation process, except where bismuth is
present, owing to the avidity with which zinc robs the bullion of gold,
silver, copper and tellurium. This purification may be made as perfect
as desired or only to a commercially profitable point, generally being
brought down to a content of one-half ounce of silver per ton of lead.
Among the miscellaneous uses of zinc are these: ornamental castings;
in galvanic batteries; in photo-engraving; in plates hung in boilers
to prevent formation of scale; precipitation of gold in the cyanide
process; in the form of powder, as a reducing agent in organic
chemistry, especially in the reduction of indigo-blue and in a paint
for structural steel. Zinc is also used in the form of numerous salts,
such as the chloride as a wood preservative, and the sulphate, employed
in medicine, dyeing and glue manufacture.
Zinc oxide, produced both from the metal and from ores, is used as
a pigment both in combination with white lead and barytes, and as a
competitor of them. Considerable amounts of oxide are also used in the
rubber manufacturing industry. Lithopone (an intimate mixture, obtained
by chemical precipitation of zinc sulphide and barium sulphate) is of
growing importance as a pigment.
All the chief uses of zinc, comprising galvanizing, rolled sheets,
brass-making and the desilverization of lead bullion, may be considered
essential. Brass belongs with steel in the category of indispensable
materials of modern industry. No satisfactory substitute as regards
both physical qualities and cost is available for many important parts
of machinery and for manufacturing purposes. Its wide use depends on
a number of qualities. The excellent sharp castings made from certain
brasses are readily machined or otherwise finished and electro-plated
if desired. The electrical conductivity of brass is good. Certain
brasses are easily rolled into sheets and cut and stamped in desired
shapes. Lubricated surfaces of steel on brass make satisfactory and
durable bearings.
The other large uses of zinc depend on its resistance to oxidation and
on the possibility of rolling it into fairly thin sheets. In both these
qualities, however, it is surpassed by other metals, notably nickel and
tin. Alloyed with lead it may be rolled into a substitute for tin-foil.
It is in some cases a fairly satisfactory, cheap substitute for metals
of higher quality. In times of scarcity or high prices, substitution of
metals of inferior quality is feasible, and in many cases zinc may be
temporarily dispensed with altogether. Its field is therefore largely
fixed by commercial conditions of supply and price, which determine
broadly the total consumption and especially the percentages devoted
to the various uses. It may be assumed, however, that the percentages
for the domestic consumption in the United States in 1910 represent
approximately those of normal peace times. In that year, of the total
consumption, 60 per cent. was used in galvanizing; 20 per cent. in
brass-making; 11 per cent. in rolled sheets; and 1 per cent. in lead
desilverization; leaving 8 per cent. for miscellaneous uses. During the
war the percentage used in galvanizing was greatly reduced and that
used for brass-making much increased. The use of rolled sheets will
increase.
A large part of the European production in normal times is rolled into
sheets used chiefly for roofing.
CHANGES IN PRACTICE
In the extraction of zinc from its ores the most important changes in
practice during recent years have been adaptations of retort smelting
for the purpose of utilizing zinc concentrates from complex ores,
the increased production of zinc oxide and lithopone through the
application of volatilization methods to the re-treatment of retort
residues and base ores, and the electrolytic and electro-thermic
processes of extraction of the metal.
The most revolutionary advance has been the development of the oil
flotation, the electro-magnetic, and electro-static processes for the
concentration of ores. These processes are being widely introduced and
in connection with electrolytic reduction are particularly adapted to
the production of spelter of the highest quality from complex ores. As
the electrolytic and electro-thermic processes find their field only
where power is relatively cheap, the tendency is to put installations
where hydro-electric power is available, effecting a redistribution of
zinc-smelting centers.
GEOLOGICAL DISTRIBUTION
Zinc and lead are commonly associated in mineral deposits, sometimes
intimately mixed, sometimes so segregated that one metal predominates,
but ores of one are seldom free entirely from the other. The geological
and geographical distribution of the two metals is therefore nearly
identical.
The sulphide ores, chiefly sphalerite or blende, are the most
important, but in the oxidized zone they are often altered
to carbonates--smithsonite, calamine and hydrozincite. The
oxides--franklinite, willemite and zincite--are important in only one
district in New Jersey. The carbonates, although they carry a low
percentage of zinc, often occur in concentrated ore bodies, and yield
readily to metallurgical treatment. Therefore, calamine-smithsonite
ores form a large proportion of the production of many important
districts, but blende will hereafter be of increasing importance in the
world production.
Zinc ores occur in deposits of several distinct genetic types. In the
order of their importance they are:
(_a_) Deposits formed in sedimentary rocks, without apparent connection
with igneous rocks, as bedded replacements usually of limestones and
dolomites. The ores of this type usually contain lead (galena) and iron
(pyrite or marcasite) minerals, often those of manganese and cadmium,
sometimes those of arsenic, cobalt and nickel, but seldom gold, silver,
copper, or antimony. Barite and fluorite are sometimes present.
The deposits of this type are of world-wide distribution. Their greater
purity and the simplicity of the treatment necessary, particularly of
the ores in their oxidized zones, have caused them to be exploited
first and most extensively and to be until recently the dominant factor
in the world production of zinc. To this type belong the deposits of
the Mississippi Valley and Silesia, which together produced 34 per
cent. of the world’s output in 1913.
(_b_) Veins associated with igneous rocks and disseminated sulphide
replacements of igneous rock. In this group come the deposits of Butte,
Leadville, and the Coeur d’Alene, and the disseminated deposits of the
Bawdwin (Burma Mines Co.), Ridder (Siberia) and Salmon River (B.C.).
These ores are usually complex, comprising minerals of zinc, lead,
copper, iron, gold and silver, and often arsenic, antimony and other
metals. In one group, the silver-lead deposits, zinc seems a minor
factor, but with depth replaces lead as the predominant metal. Deposits
of these complex ores have in recent years become important sources
of zinc through recognition of the zinc ores in their oxidized zones,
through zinc becoming the dominant metal with increasing depth at many
mines, and especially through improvements in methods of concentrating
complex ores and extracting metal from the concentrates. Ores of this
type will be of increasing importance in the future because of their
world-wide distribution.
(_c_) Igneous metamorphic deposits containing franklinite, willemite,
zincite, a little blende, and a gangue of calcite, rhodonite,
garnet, pyroxene, hornblende, magnetite and tremolite. This type
is characteristic of the Franklin and Adirondack deposits of the
northeastern metallographic province of the United States and is also
found at Magdalena and Hanover, New Mexico and the Horn Silver mine, in
Utah.
(_d_) Metamorphosed deposits. Originally these may have been of any of
the preceding types but are now disguised by regional metamorphism.
The best example is the important deposit of Ammeberg, Sweden. Blende
there occurs disseminated in bands in gneissoid granulite, which also
contains bands of disseminated pyrrhotite and arsenopyrite.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
The chief zinc ore deposits of the world are in the countries listed in
the table below; the order of the countries is that of their importance
in the industry in 1913, as nearly as can be estimated from incomplete
data.
The three major metallographic provinces of the world as indicated by
present exploitation are those of Broken Hill, N.S.W., Silesia, and the
Mississippi Valley.
The condition of the zinc industry in the principal countries, in 1913,
is shown in Table 59.
=United States.=--The zinc deposits of the United States may be
assigned to three metallographic provinces, which in the order of their
present importance are: the Mississippi Valley province; the Western
province; and the Northeastern province.
Judged by present knowledge, the _Mississippi Valley province_ is
one of the three major zinc-bearing metallographic provinces of the
world. It occupies an area underlain with slightly disturbed Paleozoic
limestone, ranging from Ordovician to Lower Carboniferous in age, that
comprises most of the great mid-continental valley of the Mississippi
in the states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Illinois,
Kentucky, Wisconsin, Iowa, also Tennessee and the western part of
Virginia. Igneous rocks are generally absent. There are three principal
subprovinces: the Ozark province, comprising Missouri, Oklahoma,
Kansas, Arkansas; the upper Mississippi valley, comprising Wisconsin,
Northern Illinois, and Iowa; and the regions of Tennessee and Virginia.
TABLE 58.--CHIEF ZINC-ORE DEPOSITS OF THE WORLD
-----------+---------------------------------+------------------
Approximate| | Percentage of
order | Country |world’s production
| | in 1913
-----------+---------------------------------+------------------
1 |United States | 35.0
2 |Germany | 25.0
3 |Australia | 15.0
4 |Italy | 5.0
5 |Algeria | 3.0
6 |Japan | 2.0
7 |Spain | 2.0
8 |Russia (including Russian Poland)| 2.0
9 |France | 1.5
10 |Greece | 1.0
11 |Sweden | 1.0
12 |Mexico | 1.0
13 |Austria | 1.0
14 |Tunis | 1.0
15 |Indo-China (Tonkin) |
16 |Great Britain |
17 |China |
18 |Bolivia |
19 |Canada |
20 |India (Burma) |
21 |Egypt |
22 |South Africa |
23 |Peru |
-----------+---------------------------------+------------------
In the Ozark subprovinces the Joplin district is most important.
The ores lie at three horizons in flat-lying lower Carboniferous
limestones. In the upper horizon, below the surface, the ore lies in
clayey chert breccias, and galena predominates. The middle horizon,
or “sheet ground,” carries mixed galena and blende, which cements
brecciated chert. The ore is low grade, the average recovery of zinc
being 1.9 per cent. This horizon has been the most important source of
ore. The third and lowest horizon, as yet little exploited, contains
disseminated ores. Thirty mills were busy in the Joplin district in
1918. The Athletic Mining & Smelting Co. was the largest producer,
operating the Athletic mine, at Duenweg, the Bertha A., at Webb City,
and Mutual mine, at Oronogo. Miami Zinc Syndicate, affiliated with the
Butte & Superior and American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co.; the Commerce
Mining & Royalty Co.; the Century Zinc Co.; and the Tri-State Mining
Co., are large operators. Much of the production is by lessees and
small operators.
TABLE 59.--ZINC INDUSTRY IN 1913
------------------------+-------------------------------------++
| ||
| Available zinc in ore ++
| (short tons) ||
+---------+---------+--------+--------++
| | | | ||
Country | Produced| Smelted |Exported|Imported||
------------------------+---------+---------+--------+--------++
United States | 305,500| 310,500| 8,500 | 13,500||
| | | | ||
Australasia | 206,000| 4,000| 202,000| ... ||
British Isles | 50,000| 65,000| ... | 15,000||
Canada | 24,000| ... | 24,000| ... ||
Burma, Indo China, etc. | 18,000| ... | 18,000| ... ||
France and French Africa| 69,000| 63,000| 6,000| ... ||
Italy | 40,000| ... | 40,000| ... ||
Belgium | 11,000| 218,000| ... | 207,000||
China | 5,000| 2,500| 2,500| ... ||
Greece | 12,000| ... | 12,000| ||
Japan | 10,000| 8,000| 2,000| ... ||
Russia | 35,000| 13,000| 22,000| ... ||
Holland | ... | 27,000| ... | 27,000||
Mexico | 30,000| ... | 30,000| ||
Norway | 15,000| 10,000| 5,000| ... ||
Spain | 50,000| 15,000| 35,000| ... ||
Sweden | 10,000| 6,000| 4,000| ... ||
Austria-Hungary | 24,000| 24,000| ... | ... ||
Germany | 163,500| 312,000| ... | 148,500||
Other | ... | ... | ... | ... ||
+---------+---------+--------+--------++
Total |1,078,000|1,078,000| 411,000| 411,000||
------------------------+---------+---------+--------+--------++
------------------------++-------------------------------------------
|| Spelter (short tons)
++-----------------+-------+-------+---------
|| Produced | | |
++---------+-------+ | To be | Annual
|| | Sec- | For | im- | con-
Country || Primary | ondary| export| ported| sumption
------------------------++---------+-------+-------+-------+---------
United States || 310,500| 50,000| 21,000| | 339,500
|| | | | |
Australasia || 4,000| ... | ... | ... | 4,000
British Isles || 65,000| 6,000| ... |143,500| 214,500
Canada || ... | ... | ... | 20,000| 20,000
Burma, Indo China, etc. || | | | |
France and French Africa|| 63,000| 20,500| ... | 5,500| 89,000
Italy || ... | ... | ... | 12,000| 12,000
Belgium || 218,000| 3,500| 7,500| ... | 84,000
China || 2,500| ... | ... | 7,500| 10,000
Greece || | | | |
Japan || 8,000| ... | ... | 4,000| 12,000
Russia || 13,000| ... | ... | 23,500| 36,500
Holland || 27,000| 3,000 | 25,500| ... | 4,500
Mexico || | | | |
Norway || 10,000| ... | 10,000| |
Spain || 15,000| ... | 8,500| ... | 6,500
Sweden || 6,000| ... | 6,000| ... |
Austria-Hungary || 24,000| 3,000| ... | 17,500| 44,500
Germany || 312,000| 18,500| 75,000| ... | 255,500
Other || ... | 1,500| ... | 45,000| 46,500
++---------+-------+-------+-------+---------
Total ||1,078,000|106,000|283,500|278,500|1,179,000
------------------------++---------+-------+-------+-------+---------
In Arkansas the ores are of similar character and mode of occurrence
and are found in the same formation and also in the Ordovician
limestone. The Lavender Mining & Milling Co. is the largest operator
and the production has been largely carbonate ores.
The Upper Mississippi region comprises deposits in nearly horizontal
limestones of Ordovician age. Three-fourths of the output of this
district is made by five companies: the Mineral Point Zinc Co., a
subsidiary of the New Jersey Zinc Co., with seven mines; the Vinegar
Hill Zinc Co., with six mines; the Wisconsin Zinc Co., a subsidiary of
the American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co., with four mines; the Frontier
Mining Co., with five producing mines; and the Cleveland Mining Co.,
with two mines. Other important companies are Burr Mining Co., Block
House Mining Co., M. & A. Mining Co., B. M. & B. Mining Co., and Oliver
Mining Co., a subsidiary of the U. S. Steel Corporation. All of the
mines are equipped with milling plants. The production of the district
shows a steady growth.
The zinc deposits of southwest Virginia and northeastern Tennessee
occur as disseminated replacement breccia along crushed and faulted
zones in folded Cambro-Ordovician limestones, and also as oxidized
ores in clays residual from the weathering of the same limestones. The
gangue is calcite and dolomite. The American Zinc Co. is the largest
operator in Tennessee; it has a milling capacity of 3,000 tons daily
and zinc-blende ore reserves greater than 6,000,000 tons averaging
between 4 and 5 per cent. zinc, from which 60 per cent. zinc-blende
concentrates are made. This company is a subsidiary of the American
Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co.
The _Western province_ comprises most of the western states; it
extends north into British Columbia and south into Mexico. The chief
subprovinces are those of Leadville, Butte, and Coeur d’Alene.
The Leadville deposits are found in strata varying in age from Archean
to Cretaceous, which have been intruded by igneous rocks. The ores
are mainly replacements of limestone and occur in large masses.
This district first became of importance in zinc production upon
the recognition of smithsonite and calamine in the large masses of
oxidized ores. Of recent years sulphides form an increasing part of the
production, now coming largely from deeper levels. The ores carry gold,
silver, manganese, copper and sometimes bismuth. The United States
Smelting Refining & Mining Co., the Empire Zinc Co., a subsidiary of
the New Jersey Zinc Co.; the Western Mining Co., the Downtown Mines
Co., the Wellington Mines Co., at Breckenridge; and the Mary Murphy
mine, at Chalk Creek, are the largest operators in this region.
The Butte ores occur as veins in igneous rocks. The area in which zinc
ores predominate surrounds that of important copper veins on three
sides. On the border of the two areas, zinc-silver ores predominate in
the upper levels and copper in the deeper workings. Many of the present
zinc mines were formerly worked for silver. These complex zinc ores
have been made available by the successful application of oil flotation
and electrolytic deposition. The Black Rock mine of the Butte &
Superior Mining Co., the Elm Orlu of W. A. Clark & Son, the Alice, and
several other mines of the Anaconda Copper Mining Co., and the North
Butte Mining Co. are among the most important producers. The twelve
mines yielding zinc in 1915 together have immense reserves. The ores
all carry lead and silver and some pyrite, and many contain copper and
gold.
The Coeur d’Alene subprovince comprises a number of mining districts in
Idaho, at least five being zinc producers. The Interstate-Callahan, in
the Beaver district, is the largest zinc mine in the state. The ore is
remarkable for the small percentage of minerals other than sphalerite,
averaging 28 per cent. zinc.
The _Northeastern province_ comprises important deposits at Franklin,
New Jersey, and in the Adirondack Mountains in New York, and others
of minor importance in the New England states. It is characterized
by deposits of igneous metamorphic origin in Pre-Cambrian limestone.
The Franklin deposits, in New Jersey, consist chiefly of franklinite,
willemite and zincite in a gangue of calcite, rhodonite, garnet,
pyroxene, magnetite and hornblende. Willemite is separated magnetically
from these ores and used to produce a very high-grade spelter free from
lead and cadmium and therefore in great demand for certain purposes.
The other classes of ore are smelted for the production of zinc white
and spiegeleisen. These mines, owned and operated by the New Jersey
Zinc Co., have produced more than 1,500,000 tons of zinc in the form of
spelter and zinc oxide. The Edwards-Balmat district, in St. Lawrence
County, New York, comprises an area two to three miles wide and fifteen
miles long, of Pre-Cambrian limestone. The ore occurs in lenses and is
a mixture of sphalerite, pyrite and a little galena with a gangue of
dolomite. Separation is effected by magnetic tables. The typical ore
contains: sphalerite, 25.5 per cent.; galena, 1.43 per cent.; pyrite,
12.4 per cent.; barite, 3.9 per cent. The ore reserves of the Northern
Ore Co., the largest operator, are known to exceed one million tons.
=Germany.=--Imperial Germany comprised most of one metallographic
province of major importance, Silesia, and other districts ranking as
follows: Upper Silesia; Rhenish Prussia; Westphalia; Saxony; Hanover;
and Nassau.
The major part of the mineral province of Upper Silesia lay within
the boundaries of Germany in 1914. Once it was part of the Kingdom
of Poland, except for portions included in the old empires of Russia
and Austria. The pre-war production of zinc ores from Russian Poland
was entirely from this metallographic province. The deposits,
which contain lead and zinc together, occur in Triassic formation
overlying Carboniferous rocks that carry important seams of coal. This
juxtaposition of ore and fuel has furnished an ideal basis for the
great smelting industry that has been developed, and facilitates the
smelting of low-grade ores. The ores are said to average 17 per cent.
zinc and 5 per cent. lead. They come from two ore horizons. The lower
is characterized by blende, with a little galena and marcasite; the
upper or lead horizon comprises a very persistent sheet of galena 0.05
to 0.30 meters thick, which generally is underlain by red calamine. The
blende deposits are extensive and will be productive for a long time.
In Rhenish Prussia, zinc ore (smithsonite) deposits are found in strata
of Devonian age. These deposits are approaching exhaustion. The chief
zinc deposits of Westphalia are in Devonian strata. The historic mines
at Freiberg (Erzgebirge), in Saxony, produce a small quantity of blende
from the concentration of galena ores. The blende carries considerable
iron and silver and some of it contains traces of tin. These mines are
controlled by the Saxon government.
A considerable quantity of blende ore is concentrated as a by-product
in the dressing of the lead ore of the Upper Harz, Hanover. The ore of
Rammelsberg, in the Lower Harz, occurs in a bed interstratified with
lower Devonian slates and sandstones; it is an intimate mixture of
blende, galena, pyrite, chalcopyrite, and barite and some calcite and
quartz. Zinc is produced as a by-product of lead ores in the valley
of Lahn (Nassau), where a series of strong veins are found in Lower
Devonian strata.
=Australia.=--The zinc resources of the Commonwealth of Australia are
chiefly in New South Wales and Tasmania. The former has been the chief
source of zinc in the past, but the Tasmania deposits are now being
rapidly developed and equipped for production.
The most important source of zinc ore in _New South Wales_ is the great
Broken Hill lode, where operations began in 1884. The country rock
comprises crystalline schists and gneisses. Between the oxidized and
primary sulphide ores was a thin zone of secondary sulphides. The early
operations in the district were for lead, and immense dumps accumulated
of zinc-bearing ores sorted out or of zinc-bearing tailings from the
concentration of the lead ores. In 1903 these dumps were estimated
at 5,687,400 tons carrying 18.6 per cent. zinc. With the development
of demand for zinc sulphide ores and of oil flotation methods of
separation and concentration these dumps became important sources
of zinc concentrates, but many of them are approaching exhaustion.
The sulphide ores are a close mixture of galena and zinc blende,
carrying silver. There are two classes of these ores, distinguished as
silicate-gangue ore, and calcite-gangue ore. The silicate gangue ore
bodies carry rhodonite, garnet and quartz and are richer in zinc and
silver than those of calcite gangue.
Eight mining companies are now at work. In the order of the importance
of their output and ore reserves, these companies are: Broken
Hill South Silver Mining Co.; Broken Hill North Mining Co.; Zinc
Corporation; Sulphide Corporation; British Broken Hill Proprietary Co.;
Broken Hill Proprietary Co., Block 10; and Broken Hill Proprietary
Co., Block 14. The estimated ore reserves of all the mines approximate
12,000,000 tons.
The Broken Hill South Silver Mining Co. has ore reserves estimated
at 3,350,000 tons, and is the largest producer. Broken Hill North,
Amalgamated Zinc (de Bavay), Zinc Corporation, and Barrier South
Ltd. are controlled by Govett and associates, a group of Australian
capitalists. The Amalgamated Zinc Co. in 1913 treated 498,289 tons of
tailings, obtaining 140,098 tons zinc concentrates, carrying zinc, 48.9
per cent.; also lead concentrates amounting to 1,584 tons, carrying
57.1 per cent. lead. The Zinc Corporation, a company formed by Bewick,
Moreing Co., has ore reserves estimated at 1,504,211 tons, averaging
14.8 per cent. lead, 9.2 per cent. zinc, and 2.5 ounces of silver per
ton. The mine of the Broken Hill Proprietary Co. is, according to last
reports, nearly exhausted.
The principal deposits of Tasmania are those of the Primrose, Hercules,
and Tasmania Copper Mines, all owned by the Mount Reed Rosebery
Co., affiliated with the Mount Lyell Mining & Railway Co. The state
geological staff estimates reserves at 1,272,500 tons averaging 29.79
per cent. zinc, 8.89 per cent. lead, 12.16 ounces of silver and 0.17
ounces of gold per ton.
=Italy.=--The zinc production of Italy is derived from the Iglesias
district of Sardinia, and the Province of Bergamo. The Iglesias
district is in the southeastern part of the island of Sardinia. The
ores are oxidized and mostly worked by open pits. They are mined and
milled by two Italian companies, Societa di Monteponi, and the Societa
di Pertusola. The ores have usually been smelted in Germany, England or
Belgium. The Bergamo mines, in the Province of Lombardy, are worked by
the English Crown Spelter Co., which ships the ore to Swansea, Wales,
for smelting.
=Algeria.=--Algeria produced 82,256 tons of zinc ore in 1913. Of the
78,973 tons whose origin is known, 31 per cent. of the total was
extracted by Belgian companies and the remainder was produced by French
operators.
=Japan.=--The only important zinc-producing district in Japan is the
Province of Hida. The principal companies are the Osaka Zinc Mining
& Smelting Co., Takata & Co., the Rhuara Mining Co., and the Mitsui
Mining Co. The largest producer is the Kamioka Mine of the last named,
which produces annually about 10,000 tons. The Osaka Mining Co. also
produces from Korea (Chosen) about 15,000 tons of ore annually.
The annual smelting capacity in Japan, with all projected construction
completed, is estimated at 300,000 tons of zinc ore, whereas the
domestic output of ore is about 50,000 tons. The difference has been
imported chiefly from Siberia, China, Tonkin and Australia. In the
future it is expected that the foreign ores will come chiefly from
China and Siberia. The domestic spelter production has reached about
60,000 tons annually and the domestic consumption 29,000 tons.
=Spain.=--Zinc ores are produced in the provinces of Santander, Murcia,
Tereul, Biscay and Guipuzcoa. The only district of importance is that
of Santander, where there is a zinc smelter owned by the Compagnie
Royale Asturienne des Mines (French). Some of the ore is smelted in
France. Most of the Spanish ores are calamine and occur almost without
exception in limestone. Eighty per cent. of the Spanish production
comes from Santander and Murcia. In the latter the mines are worked
primarily for lead.
=Russia.=--The zinc output of the Russian Empire was derived from
Russian Poland, eastern Siberia, the Altai Mountains in southwestern
Siberia, and the northern Caucasus Mountains. The Polish deposits
are part of the Silesian field. The ores are largely carbonates and
silicates. Some of the mines and plants were owned by the Russian
government, others apparently by French companies. In eastern
Siberia, the Tyuticha mine has a calamine orebody containing at least
200,000 tons averaging 48 per cent. zinc. Some ore has come from the
Ussurisk district. It is believed that the Mitsui Mining Co. has made
arrangements to ship ores from this district to Japan for treatment.
In the Altai Mountains of southwestern Siberia the Ridder Mining Co.,
controlled by the Irtysh Corporation, Ltd., of London, has developed
two large deposits on the same mineralized zone, with ore reserves
estimated in 1917 at over 3,500,000 tons. The possibilities of this
property are immense. The company has acquired the Ekibastus coal
fields, constructed about 165 miles of railroad and provided river
transport, thus bringing the ore and coal together at a smelting plant
having a capacity of 15,000 tons lead and 5,000 tons spelter annually.
In the northern Caucasus Mountains, the Sadon mine, belonging to the
Société d’Alagir (French), has been worked for a long time. The ores
from this mine are smelted locally.
=Other Countries.=--The zinc-ore production of _France_ comes from
several scattered districts. Of the 45,929 long tons reported in 1912,
nearly all came from six mines which are all controlled by French
capital with perhaps some Belgian participation.
The only important source of zinc in _Greece_ is the famous Laurium
deposit, which was worked in ancient times. The ancients, however,
rejected, as far as possible, the zinc ores. These deposits are now
controlled and operated by a French company, the Compagnie Française
des Mines de Laurium, which also has reopened the ancient workings of
Gebel Rosas, near the Red Sea, in Egypt.
The chief zinc mines of _Sweden_ are the Ammeberg, the Rylls Wytland
and the Sala. At the Sala immense piles of tailings made in centuries
of operation, containing quantities of zinc, can now be treated,
as well as zinciferous areas left in mining silver-lead ores. The
important Ammeberg deposit consists of bands and lenses of disseminated
blende in gneissoid granulite and is exploited by the Société de la
Vieille Montagne (Belgian).
The zinc production of _Mexico_ has come chiefly from the states of
Nuevo Leon, Chihuahua and Sonora. Various zinc deposits have been
worked in Nuevo Leon by German and American capital. Most of them are
within 50 miles of Monterrey. Zinc-producing districts are scattered
over the State of Chihuahua. In the Santa Eulalia district, El Potosi
Mining Co., controlled by Americans, works the mine of the same name,
which has carbonate ores to a depth of 1,700 feet. The Buena Tierra,
in the same district, is controlled by British capital. The principal
mines in the Parral district are owned by Americans and British
companies, including the American Smelters Securities Co., American
Zinc Extraction Co., and San Francisco Mines of Mexico, Ltd. (British).
The Carnegie Lead & Zinc Co. owns the largest zinc mine in Sonora,
located near Cananea. The Calumet & Arizona Co. and the Mexican Metal
Co. own zinc deposits in the Arizpe district. All of these companies
are American.
Zinc ores are produced in Austria in the provinces of Carinthia,
Styria, Carniole, Tyrol and Galicia. The Raibl and Schneeberg
mines of Carinthia are government owned, and the ores are smelted
at the government works at Cilli. Tyrolean ores were shipped to
Frankfort-on-Main and Aix-la-Chapelle. Styrian ores were shipped to
Silesia and Rhenish Prussia for smelting.
The considerable production of calamine with some blende from _Tunis_
is under French political and commercial control. The chief zinc ore
producers appear to be French companies, in general paying a royalty of
5 per cent. of the net proceeds to the government of Tunis. The total
production for 1916 was 12,544 tons.
Four districts of _Indo-China_ produce zinc ores with an aggregate
total annual output of about 46,000 tons.
The largest zinc mine in _Great Britain_ is the Nenthead, in
Cumberland, worked by the Société de la Vieille Montagne (Belgian). The
second largest producer is the Carshield mine, in Northumberland. With
the exception of the Nenthead mine all the important producers are, so
far as known, owned and operated by British capital.
The chief mine in _China_ is the Shui K’ou Shan, under control of the
Hunan Board of Mines. Prior to the war this mine was dominated by
German capital, which had provided machinery and shipped the product
to Europe. Japanese have sought diligently and with partial success to
secure control of this mine.
The chief zinc-mining district in _Bolivia_ is Huanchaca, the
production of which has recently decreased because of great quantities
of water entering the workings. The largest operator is the Compañia
Huanchaca de Bolivia, the capital and control of which is French. Its
zinc production is incidental, the principal metal produced being
silver.
The zinc production of _Canada_ is chiefly from British Columbia, but
a small amount is from Ontario and Quebec. The only production of any
moment is from the southern part of British Columbia, where the Slocan
district is of greatest importance. British, Canadian and American
capital are largely interested. In 1915, the mines of the Slocan
district were estimated by the management of the Trail smelter to be
capable of producing 10,000 to 15,000 tons of ore carrying 40 to 45 per
cent. zinc. Apparently this was in addition to the possible production
from the Sullivan mine, owned by the Consolidated Mining & Smelting
Co., Ltd. (Trail smelter), which had proved reserves of 3,500,000 tons
of galena-sphalerite ore. The principal mines of Ontario and Quebec
produced 580 tons of zinc, or one-thirtieth of the production of
Canada. These are operated at least in part by American capital, and
the ores are smelted by the Zinc Co., Ltd., owned by Americans.
The chief deposits of _India_ are those of the Bawdwin mines, located
in the Northern Shan States (Burma). There was estimated December 31,
1917, 4,033,000 tons lead-zinc ore assaying 24.7 oz. silver, 27.4 per
cent. lead, and 19.1 per cent. zinc. The essential constituents of the
ores are galena and sphalerite with a little pyrite and chalcopyrite.
The lead and zinc concentrates are available for the customary methods
of smelting. A zinc-distilling and sulphuric acid plant is being
constructed at Sakohi, with the aid of the Indian government, to treat
the table zinc concentrate. The company operates a lead smelter at
Nam-Tu, 11 miles from the mines. The Bawdwin deposits may be expected
to be an important factor in the world’s production of zinc in the
immediate future. They are owned by the Burma Mines, Ltd., an English
corporation of the R. Tilden Smith-Govett-Hoover interests, in which
some American capital is interested.
The only zinc deposit of note in _Egypt_ is the Gebel Rosas, operated
by the Compagnie Française de Laurium. This deposit is located near the
Red Sea and was worked in ancient times.
The only deposit of importance in _South Africa_ is the Rhodesia Broken
Hill. The large ore bodies are, so far as developed, almost wholly
oxidized. One ore body is estimated at 250,000 long tons, averaging 26
per cent. lead, 22¹⁄₂ per cent. zinc, and another at 300,000 long tons,
averaging 32 per cent. zinc, with little lead, but much iron oxide
and carbonate. They are controlled by British capital. Considerable
difficulty has been experienced in developing a commercial treatment.
In _Peru_ a French company, the Association Minière, has interests in
the Compagnie des Mines de Huaron.
DEVELOPMENTS AND CHANGES IN KNOWN GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION IN THE NEAR
FUTURE
So far as information is available no marked change in the rate of
production in the countries of _Europe_ and northern _Africa_ seems
probable. Most of the districts in those countries have been exploited
over a long period and have passed their zenith of production; many are
approaching exhaustion. The decrease in most of them will, however,
be gradual. The most important change in Europe probably will be the
transfer to Polish jurisdiction of the whole of the Silesian field,
making the new state of Poland, if established as proposed, the largest
single source of zinc ore in Europe.
In the _United States_, which will continue to be the largest producer
of zinc in the world, the greatest increase in relative importance may
be expected from the western metallographic province, particularly in
the northwest, in the Butte and Coeur d’Alene districts. The Leadville
district has already passed the zenith of production and has dropped to
second place after Butte, which is capable of still further increase.
In _Australia_ the Broken Hill district may be expected to yield about
450,000 tons of concentrates annually for some three years, after
which the output should drop to about 300,000 tons. The increase of
production from Tasmania will largely depend upon the construction of
electrolytic zinc plants, but the island will be a factor in production
in the immediate future.
The greatest new factor in the world’s output of zinc will be the
Bawdwin mines, in _Burma_, which within a short time will be equipped
to produce about 300,000 tons of ore annually or about 75,000 tons of
high-grade zinc concentrates and 100,000 tons of low-grade concentrates
or middlings for treatment by the Ganlin process. The extent to which
the zinc concentrates from this ore will be treated in India will be
determined by the development of the local market for sulphuric acid.
The remainder of the concentrates will be treated in England.
Recent developments in the Altai Mountains of southwestern _Siberia_
have proved immense bodies of complex zinc-lead ores. The extent of
their exploitation will, however, be determined largely by the extent
of the Russian market as affected by social and political conditions.
Removal of the stringent tariff on importations from abroad to the
manufacturing centers of Warsaw, Petrograd and Moscow might greatly
restrict the market for the output of these mines. Their extreme
geographic isolation will prevent the deposits from becoming an
important factor in the world market for a long period, notwithstanding
their large size and excellent grade.
The utilization of the Rhodesia Broken Hill deposit in _South Africa_
will be delayed by the difficulty of separating the oxidized lead
and zinc minerals, the lack of fuel, and geographic and commercial
isolation.
POLITICAL CONTROL
Political control of the zinc resources of the world up to the
outbreak of the war in 1914 seems to have had only a minor effect
upon the industry. Economic factors made ineffective any control not
international in scope. A very large percentage of the zinc ores of
the world were transported from the country of production to another
for treatment, in some cases even being re-exported, sometimes after
calcination, for the purpose of utilizing the sulphur content in the
production of acid. Tariffs were imposed by some countries, as, for
example, by the United States, on certain classes of zinc ores. Such
measures had some effect on production in Mexico and Canada. Russia had
imposed heavy import duties which subsidized domestic production and
stimulated exploration and development. The chief European countries
importing and smelting zinc ores admitted them free of duty.
During the World War, however, political jurisdiction was largely
invoked to restore control of national resources to citizens of the
given country or its allies. This movement was particularly marked in
the British Empire, wherein there now exists a joint political and
commercial control. Alien interests have been eliminated by government
action and the government retains a share in the control through
interests in marketing organizations or through financial participation
in treatment works. Canada has established a small bounty on zinc
produced in Canada from domestic ores and given financial aid to
attempts to establish domestic smelting and refining plants.
In the United States the Alien Property Custodian has been active in
eliminating all alien enemy control. His appointees will control many
important companies for several years. Such action as has been taken
does not appear to have disturbed such centralization of control as had
been effected.[138]
[138] See Chapter on Copper, pages 232-235, for discussion of German
interests in the American metal trade.
COMMERCIAL CONTROL
Copper, lead and zinc form a class by themselves as regards industrial
utility and tonnage produced, ranking after iron, which far outclasses
them, as the most important base metals. The annual production
of each is considerably more than a million tons. In view of the
industrial importance of zinc and the fact that brass, an alloy of
copper and zinc, is an indispensable material in modern industry, it
is not strange that the great industrial nations have contrived many
expedients in the endeavor to control the zinc industry.
The ownership and operative control of the mines has been a minor
factor in the commercial control of this industry. Economic factors
force the location of retort smelting plants in industrial districts
adjacent to coal fields, the most important factors being availability
and cost of fuel and labor, and proximity to a market for spelter. A
lack of fuel and scarcity or high cost of labor has prevented smelting
in some regions producing considerable ore. On the other hand, the
smelting done in some countries has been entirely disproportionate to
their ore output. The revival of nationalist sentiment as a result of
the World War may make ownership and operative control a more important
factor in the future.
Electrolytic and electro-thermic reduction of ores makes possible the
economic production of spelter where previously impossible and may
bring about some decentralization of the industry.
Ownership or control of the reduction plants has been an important
basis for control of the industry. The most effective control has
been exercised through marketing organizations or trade combinations
of reduction works, ore-buying and metal-selling agencies, with
interlocking directorates, joint ownership and long-term contracts for
ores, concentrates and metals. In recent years these became world-wide
in their scope and completely dominated the industry.
=United States.=--Below are listed the most important zinc smelting
companies in the United States, together with the percentage of the
total reduction capacity that each controls:
Percentage of
production controlled
New Jersey Zinc Co. 13.4
American Metal Co. 15.2
Grasselli Chemical Co. 10.1
Anaconda Copper Mining Co. 10.0
United States Steel Corporation 7.7
American Smelting & Refining Co. 7.2
American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. 5.7
Beer, Sondheimer & Co. 4.7
L. Vogelstein & Co. 1.7
Various independents or of unknown affiliation 24.3
The close affiliations of L. Vogelstein & Co., Beer, Sondheimer & Co.,
the American Metal Co., and their subsidiary companies, comprising
27.3 per cent. of the smelting capacity, and various ore producers,
with their metal-selling contracts with other smelters, enabled them
to dominate the American metal market in the interest of the German
“Trio.” The Alien Property Custodian took over all three companies
during the war and eliminated all alien-enemy ownership and control by
disposing of German-owned stock at auction.
The American Metal Co. completely owns the American Zinc & Chemical
Co., South American Metal Transport Co., Bartlesville Zinc Co., and
South American Metal Co.; it has large holdings of stock in the Ohio
and Colorado Smelting & Refining Co., Compañia Minera de Peñoles,
Compañia de Minerales y Metales, Compañia Metalurgica de Torreon,
Compañia Minera Palmo y Cabrillos, Fundicion de Guayacan, Balbach
Smelting & Refining Co., and Nichols Copper Co., some of which operate
in Mexico and South America. The capital stock of the American Metal
Co. comprised 70,000 shares, of which 34,644 were owned by aliens
affiliated with the German “Trio”; 18,620 shares belong to American
citizens who have had control of the management, and the remainder
belonged to the Merton interests, of London, which has been reorganized
by the British government, eliminating alien ownership. The alien-owned
shares have been sold by the Alien Property Custodian and the control
of the business for a period of five years was vested in a board of
five trustees named by him.
The National Zinc Co. was owned by Beer, Sondheimer & Co., one of the
German “Trio,” which also owned other metal-producing companies in the
United States and Cuba.
The operative control of the American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. has
been acquired by the Butte & Superior Mining Co., dominated by Hayden,
Stone & Co., of New York and Boston. A large interest in the American
Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. was held by L. Vogelstein & Co., formerly the
representative of the German Metallgesellschaft in the United States.
The American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. controls the Wisconsin Zinc
Co.; the American Zinc Co., of Illinois; the American Zinc Co., of
Tennessee; and the American Zinc Ore Separating Co.
The New Jersey Zinc Co., an American concern, controls the New Jersey
field, and, through its subsidiary, the Empire Zinc Co., owns and
operates a number of mines in the western states and Mexico, and
the Mineral Point Zinc Co., of Wisconsin, one of the three largest
producers in that region, and four zinc smelters.
The Anaconda company operates a number of zinc-producing mines in the
Butte district and has erected electrolytic plants for the treatment of
its own concentrates, one of 25-tons’ capacity as an experimental plant
at Anaconda and a plant of 200-tons’ daily capacity at Great Falls,
Montana. It has treated some of the production of other companies,
notably of the Butte & Superior Mining Co. It is an American company
under American control but has many European stockholders.
=Germany.=--The ambition of German commercial interests to control the
metal markets and resources of the world was more nearly realized in
the case of zinc than of any other metal.
The German Zinc Syndicate (Zinkhüttenverband) was organized in 1909,
by three powerful interests: (1) The Merton group, comprising the
Metallgesellschaft, the Metallbank and Metallurgische Gesellschaft,
all of Frankfurt, and the Merton companies of London; (2) Beer,
Sondheimer & Co., which through the Tellus stock company controlled
over a dozen metal and chemical concerns; and (3) Aron Hirsch & Sohn,
at Halberstadt; and was immediately joined by all the important
Silesian and Rhenish-Westphalian zinc concerns. The organizers were
made exclusive selling agencies for the syndicate and purchases from
any foreign sources were made in unison. The syndicate immediately made
agreements with Austrian and Belgian producers including the Vieille
Montagne, which has mines, works and agencies in many parts of the
world. It was also joined by a Dutch concern, Zincs de la Campine.
The syndicate embraced altogether 18 firms and regulated both their
output and prices. By the end of 1912 this German syndicate controlled
directly one-half of the world’s output of zinc and three-fourths of
the European production.
Two Belgian and some French works formed another syndicate. A third
was formed by six English works, and the competition of United States
firms drove all three into the International Zinc Syndicate, which
endured up to April, 1914. The International regulated the output
of its members but did not fix exact prices. Through the American
Metal Co., and affiliated companies, the German syndicate was rapidly
becoming a factor of importance in the control of American, Mexican,
and Australian zinc production at its source. The German syndicate
maintained its dominancy and was rapidly extending and strengthening
it throughout the world through banks, holding companies, affiliations
with syndicates and cartels, interlocking directorates, and joint
shareholdings.
As a result of the war, the Australian zinc concentrates are
permanently diverted from German reduction works, and all German
control is eliminated. The activities of the Alien Property Custodian
have tended to eliminate German interests in the United States. The
re-establishment of the nation of Poland may take from Germany all
the Silesian deposits and reduction plants, leaving only those of the
Rhenish-Westphalian, Harz and Erzgebirge regions, with only one-third
the former domestic production of ore. Poland should be twice as
important as Germany in the zinc industry, unless Germany should be
able to import ores and concentrates on a large scale.
=Australia.=--At the outbreak of the World War the Australian zinc
industry was in the grip of the great German zinc syndicate, described
in more detail above under “Germany.” This controlled the world’s
spelter market, determined output and prices and manipulated the market
in the interests of Germany. This was possible through long-term
contracts for zinc concentrates, in which form nearly the whole zinc
product was exported for reduction in Belgium and Germany. Only 10 per
cent. of the concentrates was smelted at Port Pirie or in England.
During the war these contracts were cancelled by the Australian and
British governments and the work of reconstructing the industry on a
purely Australian and British basis was undertaken, the idea being
to provide for the treatment, so far as possible, of all ores in
Australia, so that they could be marketed in their finished state.
The Australian government first formed a metals exchange, through
which all metals produced in Australia must pass for sale. The Zinc
Producers’ Association Proprietary, Ltd., was registered May 20, 1916,
in Victoria, Australia, to market products of the member companies
producing zinc ores, concentrates, and metals in the Commonwealth of
Australia and Tasmania, all of which have sold their entire output
to the association for fifty years. The shares, 100,000 of £1 each,
are held by the following companies: Amalgamated Zinc (De Bavay’s);
Broken Hill Proprietary, Block 14; Zinc Corporation; Broken Hill
Proprietary; Electrolytic Zinc Smelters; Junction North; North Broken
Hill; Sulphide Corporation; British Broken Hill; Broken Hill Associated
Smelters; Broken Hill Junction; Broken Hill South Silver; Broken Hill
Proprietary, Block 10; Mount Lyell Mining & Railway Co.
The Australian federal government, acting through the Zinc Producers’
Association, contracted to sell to the British government the whole
output of zinc concentrates in Australia for the period of the war and
ten years thereafter. Previously the Prime Minister had contracted
for the sale to the imperial government of 100,000 tons of zinc
concentrates and 45,000 tons of electrolytic zinc and spelter for ten
years. The arrangement provided for the British government taking the
stocks of zinc concentrates on hand December 31, 1917, less a definite
percentage reserve, and thereafter 250,000 tons per annum for the
period of the war, and 300,000 tons annually for the following nine
years. Provision was also made for supplying the requirements of the
Australian zinc-refining works and the fulfilling of Japanese contracts
during the period covered by the British contract. Under normal
conditions the Australian output of zinc concentrates, averaging from
46 to 48 per cent. zinc, is about 450,000 tons per annum, valued at
$25,000,000.
The effect of the above arrangements is to transfer permanently the
control of the Australian zinc industry from German to British citizens
under a system jointly commercial and political. The mines and works
always were owned by British and Australian capital.
The Zinc Producers’ Association is co-operative in character,
guaranteeing to all members equality of treatment irrespective of
tonnage. The commonwealth is represented on the board. The federal
government is also encouraging in every possible way the establishment
of reduction works, particularly electrolytic zinc works. It has been
reported that the Burma Corporation was a stockholder of the Zinc
Producers’ Association, but this report has not been satisfactorily
confirmed. In case it should be true the association may ultimately
control the sale of 85 to 95 per cent. of the zinc ores of the British
Empire. Having smelting capacity for a considerable part of their
production and acting as a unit in selling the surplus, the Australian
zinc producers should hereafter be in a strong position in dealing with
German, Dutch and Belgian smelters. The smelting capacity will not be
largely increased in the near future.
=France.=--The nationalist movement in France during the war resulted
in the formation of trade associations known as “consortiums,”
comprising the principal factor in each industry.[139]
[139] For a description of the consortium covering the mineral
industry, the Société Minerais et Metaux, see the Chapter on Lead,
pages 284 and 285.
POSITION OF THE GREAT NATIONS
Since the elimination of the alien-enemy interests in the American
Metal Co., L. Vogelstein & Co., and Beer, Sondheimer & Co., the
industry in the _United States_ is controlled and the mines and works
are owned by American capital, which also controls some zinc production
in Mexico, Canada and Peru. Future production and consumption will
probably balance as before the war. There is now excess smelting
capacity, but it has been conclusively demonstrated that the country
is capable of supplying the ore for even greater capacity. The United
States will retain first place as a producer. During the period of
readjustment some concentrates may be shipped to Belgium and Holland.
With the permanent diversion of the Australian concentrates, and the
probable loss of the Silesian deposits and reduction works, _Germany_
will lose its second place in the industry. With only the Rhenish,
Westphalian, Harz, and Erzgebirge districts as sources of domestic
ores, the supply will be reduced to one-third of that produced before
1914, which was only two-thirds of all the ore smelted in the country.
Unless ores or concentrates can be imported, Germany will be only a
small factor in zinc production. Whereas in 1912 Germany had 50,000
tons of spelter available for export, importation may now be necessary.
As a result of the treaty of peace the Polish industry may be dominated
by French capital.
Not over 5 per cent. of the ore smelted in _Belgium_ is of domestic
production. The mines are owned by French and German companies.
The works are owned by French, Belgian and Germans in about equal
proportions. Part of the Australian concentrates will be allotted
to Belgium for smelting. The largest single factor in the Belgian
industry, the Société de la Vieille Montagne, owned and worked mines
in Belgium, Moresnet, Germany, Sweden, England, Algiers and Tunis and
reduction works in Belgium, Germany and France. Although formerly
a member of the German zinc convention this company seems to be
controlled by Belgian capital affiliated with the strongest Belgian
financial interests. Several other Belgian companies have important
interests in France, Spain, Algiers, and Tunis. Close affiliation seems
to exist, and may be expected to continue, between French and Belgian
capital in the zinc industry.
Let us now consider the _British Empire_. The domestic production of
zinc ores in the British Isles is insignificant, but the smelting works
have made England an important factor in the industry, although before
1914 they produced only 32 per cent. of the zinc consumption of the
empire. The capacity of these works, which are British owned, has been
largely increased and new plants are being constructed to treat the
concentrates from Australia and Burma, from which sources a supply more
than sufficient is assured by the contracts of the imperial government
with the Zinc Producers’ Association of Australia. The imperial
government is interested in some of the plants. Reduction plants will
also be in operation in Australia, Tasmania, India, and Canada. The
excess Australian concentrates are to be allotted to French and Belgian
works. With the organization now in effect, British domination of the
European zinc industry seems certain.
The mines and works of _Australia_ are entirely controlled by English
and Australian capital. An organization under Australian government
control has been made the sole marketing agency for the producers.
The mines of _India_ and _Burma_ are English controlled and the
smelter being constructed at Sakchi is partly financed by the Indian
government. The mines of _Canada_ are mostly British owned, although
there are some American interests. The potential capacity of the mines
is large. In spite of government subsidies, the capacity and future of
the reduction works is uncertain.
French capital controls all the domestic works and mines of _France_;
also those of Greece, Indo-China, Tunis, most of the mines of Algiers,
where some Belgian capital is also interested, part of the Belgian
and Polish mines and reduction works, some of the Spanish mines and
smelters, and probably the Caucasus mines in Russia. France should be
an important factor in the industry during the near future.
The largest mines of _Italy_ are owned by Italian companies and some
domestic reduction works are under construction by them. The chief
producing company in northern Italy is English.
In _Japan_, Japanese capital owns all the domestic mines and works;
also those of Chosen (Korea), and is rapidly securing control of the
deposits of China and eastern Siberia. The present smelting capacity is
greater than domestic consumption and much larger than the domestic ore
supply. Ore is imported from China, Siberia, Indo-China and Australia.
As to _Russia_, the ownership of deposits in the Polish regions was
divided between Russians and French before 1914, and this condition
presumably will be restored, modified by Polish political control. The
Russian interests were doubtless under German influence. The Altai
Mountains region is controlled by British capital and its development
depends wholly upon how internal social and political conditions affect
the domestic market to which the product of this region is limited by
geographic isolation. Eastern Siberia seems to be rapidly coming under
the commercial control of the Japanese.
_Holland_ has no mines but has considerable smelting capacity. It is
dependent on its neighbors for coal also. Its future is difficult to
forecast. The mines and works of _Spain_ are largely under French
and Belgian control, which may be modified by contracts with English
interests. The control in _Norway_ and _Sweden_ is not definitely
known. It is nominally by local capital but some English and German
interests are probable. The Sulphide and the Zinc corporations, both
British, are reported interested in the Hydraulic Power & Smelting Co.
The mines and works in _Austria_, which were owned by the Austrian
government and Austrian companies, perhaps under German domination,
will now be distributed among two or three political jurisdictions.
Little ore is imported or exported, and the region as a whole is not an
important factor in the industry.
The mines in _Mexico_ are largely owned by Mexicans and Americans.
German control is reported to be strong and growing. The possibilities
of ore production are large.
SUMMARY
The essential uses of zinc are: in brass, the alloy with copper, an
indispensable material in modern industry; in galvanizing as rolled
sheets; and in desilverizing lead bullion. The consumption is greatest
in galvanizing. The amount used in the form of rolled sheets will
increase.
Zinc and lead are commonly associated in their ores and are widely
distributed over the world, but the countries of largest ore production
are, in order, United States, Germany, and Australia. Burma will soon
be of importance. Siberia can produce much ore in the near future, but
exploitation will be retarded by political conditions and geographic
isolation. Canada, Mexico, Chile, Peru and Bolivia may be expected to
increase their output.
The successful commercial application of electro-magnetic,
electro-static, and more especially oil flotation processes to the
separation and concentration of complex ores has made available vast
resources, adding to the list of regions of ore production and
materially affecting their relative importance.
Economic factors, particularly availability and cost of fuel and
skilled labor in retort smelting and market for spelter, determined the
location of reduction works in populous industrial districts adjacent
to coal fields. The mineral resources, however, in many instances occur
in countries either undeveloped industrially or without abundant and
cheap fuel, and a large percentage of the zinc ores are transported
from the producing country to another for treatment. In the order of
their importance the countries making the most spelter are: the United
States, Germany, Belgium, Great Britain and France.
Commercial control of the industry has been based chiefly on the
control of reduction plants and ore-buying and metal-selling
organizations rather than on ownership of deposits, and to be
effective it necessarily became international in scope. Before 1914
an organization, apparently international in character, but really
dominated by Germans, had through control on this basis achieved
a commanding position in the industry, influencing output and
prices quite effectively. During the World War, however, political
jurisdiction was largely invoked to restore control of the resources
of a country and industries to citizens of that country or its allies.
This movement has been particularly marked in the British Empire,
wherein there now exists a joint political and commercial control
through the Zinc Producers’ Association and contracts in which the
governments are participants, and in France, where the Société Minerais
et Metaux, under government auspices, comprises all the principal
mining and metallurgical companies controlled by French capital and is
the arbiter of the metal industry.
A decentralization of the industry and redistribution of reduction
works is to some extent resulting from the successful application of
electrolytic reduction and to the dissemination of knowledge of the
practice of retort smelting.
The _British Empire_ as a unit should be able to dominate the industry
in Europe during the near future. _France_, through political and
commercial control of Algeria and Tunis, and large financial control
in Belgium, Spain and Poland, will be in a strong position. _Belgium_,
with minor but widespread financial interests in mines and works in
France, Germany, England, Sweden, Spain, Algiers and Tunis, is an
important factor in the European situation. Its interests appear
closely affiliated with those of France. The _United States_,
with large reduction capacity and ore reserves, while maintaining
its position as largest producer, is expected to supply domestic
consumption but to export little, as was the case prior to the war. The
position of _Germany_ will depend mainly upon the supply of foreign
ore, which may have to be imported largely from Mexico and the United
States.