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By U König, N Norberg

Traditionally, quality control of iron sinter has relied on time-consuming wet chemistry. However, the mineralogical composition that defines the physical properties, such as strength or reducibility, is not monitored.X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis in combination with Rietveld quantification and statistical data evaluation using partial least squares regression (PLSR) has been successfully trialled to determine the mineralogical composition and process parameters such as the FeO (Fe2+) content and basicity of iron sinter within an analysis time of less than eight minutes per sample. The results were compared with wet chemistry data.PLSR does not require pure phases, crystal structures or complex modelling of peak shapes. The analysis is therefore easy to set up and ideal if only one property needs to be analysed. PLSR results show an accuracy for the FeO content of ±0.3 per cent for the samples analysed in this case study.Both the PLSR and Rietveld methods take the full XRD pattern into account and can be simultaneously applied on the same measurement. PLSR was found to be the more robust method if only FeO and basicity results are required. The Rietveld method helps to predict other parameters, such as the compression strength of the sinter, by monitoring all existing phases (eg larnite C2S or silico-ferrite of calcium and aluminium phases).CITATION:König, U and Norberg, N, 2015. Iron sinter process control using x-ray diffraction, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2015, pp 53–60 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 13, 2015

By S W. Houlding

The Certificate in Mining Studies program at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada is a collaborative initiative between mining schools and industry to provide accessible, cost-effective, accredited continuing education and training, designed to address the future needs of the global mining community. Content is provided by industry specialists and delivered through an integration of online learning, short courses and interactive webcasts. Accreditation is provided by a network of mining schools. In 2011, the program will deliver close to 100 short courses and interactive webcasts and provide 24/7 access to more than 130 online courses in six mining streams, to participants from as far afield as Tanzania, Argentina and Mongolia. The program is proving adaptable to corporate and mine site engineer-in-training and graduate-development programs, as well as providing accessible professional development opportunities for individuals. It also provides opportunities for cross-training from other disciplines and integration with mining school curricula.

Nov 22, 2011

By A Giblett, B Putland

This paper provides a simple guiding framework for grinding circuit optimisation, focussing on common themes in past optimisation success stories, the conditions for success and techniques that can be employed to identify and define opportunities. Many significant grinding circuit improvements have been reported for operating plants, based on recurring themes such as the optimisation of mill feed size, mill liner design, process control, critical size, grinding media and classification. The paper condenses these experiences into a set of simple questions for the operator to ask, and provides guidance towards identifying and achieving the optimisation goals.CITATION:Giblett, A and Putland, B, 2018. The basics of grinding circuit optimisation, in Proceedings 14th AusIMM Mill Operators' Conference 2018, pp 129–140 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 29, 2018

By V Kumar, A S. Venkatesh, R K. Upadhya

The enormous iron ore deposits of eastern India are part of the volcano-sedimentary basins containing iron and to some extent manganese deposits that belong to the Iron Ore Group (IOG) of Archaean Singhbhum Craton, occurring as western and eastern limbs of a broad synclinorium. The eastern iron basin contains typically huge amounts of blue dust and powdery ores. There is a remarkable difference between the western flank ores and the eastern flank ores and the present study is part of the eastern flank ores from Noamundi. Demand for sintered fines as blast furnace feed coupled with the higher export price for lumpy ores that produce enormous amounts of fines during processing has created a situation whereby both primary and secondary fines, such as classifier fines, are being increasingly used as sintered feed for blast furnace. Systematic mineralogical and geochemical characterisation indicates that in many cases the ROM and classifier fines have to be processed to increase their Fe content and at the same time reduce their Al, Si and P contents. The fines which are already at micron sizes are amenable for beneficiation using the Mozley mineral separator and sink float test. It was observed that beneficiation was better and significantly greater by the sink float method than the Mozley mineral separator. Mineralogical and chemical studies of the fines reveal that around 80 per cent of alumina bearing minerals (gibbsite, clay and silicates) are present in the liberated form. Microscopic studies confirmed that the iron minerals are well liberated by controlled grinding to -300 mesh sizes with the beneficiation of iron ore fines and low-grade ores carried out using the Mozley mineral separator and sink float test. Beneficiation using the Mozley mineral separator increased the grade of concentrate with increasing flow rate of water as well as increase in amplitude of oscillation of the tray, but not very significantly with the increase in slope of the tray. In this method, though, iron concentration improved from 47 to 63 per cent with a recovery of around 67 per cent. It is not suitable for industry scale operation as only a small quantity of ores can be handled at a time. Beneficiation using the sink float test produced a better result with the Fe content increasing from 47 - 49 per cent to 66 - 68 per cent with a recovery of approximately 58 per cent. Initial feed Al2O3, SiO2 and Fe contents of 9.85 per cent, 15.3 per cent and 49.8 per cent respectively were beneficiated to 2.13 per cent Al2O3, 1.5 per cent SiO2 and 67.5 per cent Fe in the concentrate, with a recovery of 54.1 per cent. In contrast, using the Mozley table resulted in beneficiable contents 66.3 per cent Fe, 3.01 per cent alumina and 2.05 per cent silica. The combined alumina and silica content for the Mozley Table was >5 per cent, which exceeds the industry requirement of

Jan 1, 2005

By T Atchison

The Vale Ferro Carajßs S11D project in northern Brazil is based on the movement of unprecedented volumes of waste and ore for mobile in-pit crushing and conveying or ætrucklessÆ systems. In peak years, the system is intended to handle a combined 160 Mt of material.The planning and implementation of the first such system for Vale, in a remote greenfield site, utilising the services of a range of international study, design and supply partners has provided a unique set of technical and project delivery challenges. The lessons from these are of value to the industry as the trend to remote and high-volume operations continues.This paper describes the key features of the mining system and documents the challenges and mitigations for important technical, cultural and project delivery issues that have arisen. It is a combined description of the journey taken by both Vale (as owner) and SKM (as delivery partner) over the course of many years.CITATION:Atchison, T, 2013. Lessons from the S11D truckless mining project, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2013 , pp 177-184 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 12, 2013

The BHP Billiton Cannington mine uses sequential flotation to treat a silver, lead and zinc ore supplied from an underground mine. The final products from the process plant are a silver rich lead concentrate and a zinc concentrate. Operational history of plant performance highlighted that the majority of valuable metal losses to final tailing occurred in the -5 ¦m fraction. Research completed on the flotation characteristics of this size fraction in plant feed resulted in the development of a split flotation process to improve the silver and lead mineral recoveries. Construction of a $A 9.5 million brownfield project to install the new split flotation circuit at Cannington was completed in July 2002. The circuit consists of three stages of cyclone classification to recover the ultra fine material to a final cyclone overflow stream, conditioning of this pulp to achieve optimal process conditions, and conventional rougher and three stage cleaner flotation to produce a silver rich lead concentrate. The rougher tail from the new circuit is recombined with the cyclone underflow streams and processed through the original lead-zinc flotation circuit. This paper discusses the circuit design, material properties, material selection for components of the circuit, operational practices and requirements to ensure the circuit succeeded in meeting production targets. The technology is subject of a number of patent applications including international application No PCT/AU02/00400.

Jan 1, 2003

By E Ben-Awuah

Mine planning is the backbone of all mining enterprises and determines the profitability or otherwise of any mining investment. Providing high quality ore and tailings containment at the right time are the main drivers in oil sands mining. Recent environmental and regulatory requirements also makes waste management an integral part of mine planning in the oil sands industry (Directive 074). Due to the limitation of lease area, the pit phase advancement in oil sands mining is carried out simultaneously with the construction of tailings dykes in the mined out areas of the pit. These in-pit dykes are constructed to hold tailings that are produced during the processing of the oil sands ore after an initial external tailings facility. Most of the materials used in constructing these in-pit and ex-pit dykes come from the oil sands mining operation, making it necessary to have a plan for supplying the dyke material. The research problem here is categorised as: determining the order of extraction of ore, dyke material and waste to be removed from a predefined ultimate pit limit over the mine life that maximises the net present value of the operation û a strategic schedule; anddetermining the destination of dyke material that minimises construction cost depending on the construction requirements of the various dykes as per their designs û an operational schedule. There has been developed, implemented and verified a theoretical optimisation framework based on mixed integer goal programming (MIGP) to address the oil sands long-term production scheduling and waste management problem. The research introduced the development of multiple material types and multiple destination optimisation techniques using MIGP in the context of mine planning. This study presents an integration of mixed integer programming and goal programming in solving large-scale mine planning optimisation problems using clustering and pushback techniques.

Sep 26, 2011

By C McCracken, R Landers, B Hesse

Minnovare identified the potential to improve production drilling outcomes in underground long-hole stopes through the adaptation of new technology which was under ongoing development. An approach to Evolution Mining resulted in the companies agreeing to a collaborative agreement to further develop the technology for use on underground long-hole drilling equipment. During a period of six months in FY2018, a series of trials were conducted to compare drilling accuracy using two different methodologies and the subsequent impact this had on ore dilution. Testing was conducted at Cracow underground gold mine in Queensland, Australia. The drill rig’s existing setup/alignment process was compared to the new technology system with the following observations: • Using the existing process only 20% of holes surveyed recorded toe points within the +/ 300mm (11.8in) tolerance blast-hole deviation. • The new technology was proven to limit rig setup/alignment error, reducing average blasthole deviation and increasing the number of holes drilled within tolerance by 160%. The increased accuracy reduced stope dilution by reducing over-break of subgrade ore: • Stopes drilled using the new technology recorded 62.6% less average dilution. • This contributed to an overall reduction in dilution for the full year (FY18) of 5 percentage points compared to FY17 - from 22% to 17% (a net decrease of 22.7%). • With the system implemented as standard practice following results of the FY18 trial and continued success, overall dilution for full year FY19 showed continued reduction to 12% Evolution has continued use of the new technology at Cracow, where the improved accuracy has allowed the extraction of narrower stopes where drilling accuracy is critical. Evolution has also deployed the technology at the Mungari operation and has stipulated that the contractor use the technology at the Mt Carlton operation, which is currently under development. Future implementation of the Development Optimiser system should be verified by commencing additional trials to include a larger data base for validating the initial trial results.

Mar 15, 2021

By D Hunter

A production information management system (PIMS) was recently implemented at Queensland NickelÆs Yabulu Refinery. Although a strong business case was developed to justify the significant investment in PIMS some potential beneficiaries remained sceptical of the anticipated benefits. The decision to install PIMS was justified as the on-line availability of continuous production data enabled the optimisation of some crucial operations resulting in significant cost savings, improved throughput and final product quality. Furthermore the rapid access to extended historical data has allowed the cause of repeated failure of equipment to be determined. The investment is expected to pay for itself within two years and has already contributed towards significant savings. This paper focuses on some of the diverse production improvements gained and compares the anticipated benefits in the business case to those achieved. A brief outline of the phased implementation of the OSIsoft PI data historian and complementary client software at Yabulu is included, along with details of the lessons learned.

Jan 1, 2003

By R E. McIvor, K M. Bartholomew

Classification system efficiency (CSE) is a simple, powerful metric that provides a comprehensive measure of classification system performance. CSE directly quantifies the amount of coarse solids in the mill, and as a result, also directly quantifies the percentage of mill power being used effectively. In this manner, it is an effective, practical grinding energy efficiency metric.Three independent variables drive CSE: circulating load ratio, sharpness of classification, and classifier bypass. Due to practical downstream constrains on per cent solids, improvements realised by increasing circulating load reach diminishing returns as sharpness of classification and bypass deteriorate in the most commonly used classification device, the hydrocyclone. This combination of effects leads to the use of CSE, and its relationship to operational economics, as an objective circuit optimisation criterion.Its simplicity in measurement makes CSE a useful tool for the plant metallurgist, and it is not subject to a great amount of experimental error. CSE provides the plant operator a fast, simple, and effective means to evaluate the performance of the plant classification system. Improvements in CSE relate directly to circuit throughput and energy efficiency. This paper, through description and plant case studies demonstrates the power and utility of this emerging grinding system optimisation metric.CITATION:Bartholomew, K M and McIvor, R E, 2013. Classification system efficiency - a comprehensive closed-circuit grinding optimisation metric, in Proceedings World Gold 2013 , pp 389-394 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 26, 2013

By J P. Sykes, T C. McCuaig, M Jessell, A Trench

The election of Donald Trump and the Brexit referendum herald a shift towards a tighter definition of economic value, at the expense of the broader value concept of sustainable development; as well as a rise of protectionism, reversing a long-term trend of globalisation. However, the situation is complex, especially over the longer term in which mine project development and exploration operates. The minerals sector should proceed with caution. A greater focus on the local impacts of mining may be strategically beneficial, not only to mitigate against a potential protectionist future, but also because sustainable development has become more ‘localist’ via the concept of ‘social licence to operate’, whilst globalisation also seems to provoke increased ‘localist’ sentiments (known as ‘glocalism’). Localist strategies, therefore, seem a good hedge against multiple political futures. By contrast, moving away from sustainable development appears strategically riskier. Not only are ‘unsustainable’ activities, such as pollution and civil rights infringements harder to reverse, but a movement towards a more sustainable global economy may already be predetermined, even if the journey there may seem oblique. It appears that the increased economic development that is coveted globally is intrinsically linked to a rise in environmental and social consciousness.CITATION:Sykes, J P, Trench, A, McCuaig, T C and Jessell, M, 2017. Charles Dickens on the (potentially) changing role of globalisation and sustainability in the long-term future of mining and exploration, in Proceedings Tenth International Mining Geology Conference 2017, pp 239–256 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 20, 2017

By X Zhang, Y Zhu, P E. Ngoepe, P P. Mkhonto, W Xiong, L Han, L Lu

The triazine molecules have not been given much attention and they are potential collectors that may positively impact the mineral processing industry. The adsorption of triazine as collectors such as sodium 2,6-dithio-4-butylamino-1,3,5-triazine (SDTBAT) on pyrite form a basis in design of flotation collectors that may be applicable in a wide range of sulfide minerals. The SDTBAT collector was compared with the sodium normal butyl xanthate (SNBX) and sodium normal butyl dithiocarbamate (SNBDTC). All collectors were adsorbed in their neutral form containing sodium on the pyrite (100) surface. The computational calculations found that the adsorption energies followed the order: SDTBAT (-300.35 kJ/mol) > SNBX (-186.10 kJ/mol) > SNBDTC (-163.78 kJ/mol). It was observed that the SNBX and SNBDTC adsorbed through the S atoms, while the SDTBAT adsorbed through the S atoms and N atoms onto Fe atoms. It is clear that the SDTBAT had a strong binding energy which is attributed to the presence of the triazine group that is electron depositing to the active S atoms compared to the SNBX which possessed the oxygen that is electron withdrawing. Moreover, the SDTBAT collector was found to bind stronger than the xanthate. This was complimented by microflotation tests that showed fast floating and higher recoveries of pyrite when using the SDTBAT collector than the xanthate and DTC. This clearly demonstrated that the SDTBAT is a potential collector to replace the xanthate collector due to its high selectivity and flotation power.

Aug 24, 2022

This paper presents the near-field rock damage owing to production blasting in limestone quarry in the western region of Japan. The study's purpose is to learn the mechanism of crack development due to blast vibration. In this study, blast vibration's magnitude was expressed with peak particle velocity (PPV) which was obtained based on seismographs recorded database. In attempt to pursue a research's purpose of this study, there were two considerable interests: near-field blast vibration propagation and prediction, and crack observed and prediction. Furthermore, with regards to considerable interest of the study, there were three essential aspects which were challenged, such as: monitoring and interpretation of seismic wave propagation in a rock mass near large explosive charge of production blast scale, measurement of blast rock damage in adjacent to blasthole, and determine critical value of PPV which may produce significant rock damage. In order to determine precision critical PPV, understanding correlation between rock damage with vibration level is firstly important to be done. This paper also discusses how to measure, detect and quantify near-field blast vibration and blast rock damage in adjacent to blasthole.

Dec 6, 2010

Quite often the reserve assessor becomes enamored with the numbers gen- erated and forgets the basis for his assessment. The quality of the assess- ment can only be as good as the quality of the input data. The use of seismic data from the Gippsland Basin in assess- ing Esso/BHP's oil and gas reserves is an excellent example of this principle. By significantly improving the quality of seismic data, a much more reliable estimate of a field's reserve potential can be made. In addition, it provides the basis for further delineation drill- ing which, as recent experience in Gippsland has shown, often leads to increased reserves.

Jan 1, 1979

By D L. Head

Critical risk management (CRM) has become one of the latest safety buzz terms in mining. Everyone seems to be doing it, everyone seems to know about it, yet we are still having fatalities in our industry from well understood hazards such as mobile equipment amongst others.

May 5, 2022

By P W. Wypych, D Curry, A P. Grima

The market has become highly competitive for engineering and equipment vendors, who are challenged to reduce costs while improving efficiency and productivity of mine operations through plant improvements and expansions. Although conveyor transfer systems account for a small percentage of the infrastructure cost of a mine, they form an integral part of the process supply chain. Malfunctions or suboptimal performance can result in substantial financial cost from delayed start-up, unscheduled downtime, reduced throughput and increased maintenance costs.Discrete element modelling (DEM) is a powerful simulation method used to virtually prototype and test the performance of transfer equipment throughout a design cycle. When developed and applied correctly, DEM can provide insight into performance that exceeds the traditional analytical methods, especially when dealing with complex ore properties, behaviour and/or situations.Using case studies sourced from the authors’ recent research and industrial project work, this paper will address the industry goal to increase efficiency and productivity as well as the methods available to the engineers responsible for delivering designs that meet the aims of this strategic approach.The main focus of the paper will be the new calibration technology, which has been developed by the authors to generate DEM material models that are linked to real-world properties and flow behaviours via unique dynamic testing and innovative parameter calibration methods. These calibrated DEM material models can be deployed by engineers into their existing workflows, whether it be for feasibility studies, concept or final design, plant troubleshooting or optimisation.This new technology allows engineers to gain greater insight than that provided by traditional approaches to the design of transfer chutes and other process equipment and also allows informed design decisions to be made that meet industry efficiency and productivity requirements.CITATION:Grima, A P, Curry, D and Wypych, P W, 2015. New discrete element modelling calibration technology to facilitate the increased efficiency of ore handling and processing operations, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2015, pp 449–464 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 13, 2015

THE area dealt with in this paper is included within a radius of about 3 miles of the Poimena township. Several thousand tons of tin have been won from this field, and probably £200,000 spent in exploiting it.PREVIOUS LITERATUREThe field has been reported on by Government geologists on four occasions and several ,articles on it have appeared in the mining journals. The work done by Government geologists is summarized below:-"Report on the Blue Tier Tin Mining District and its Tin Deposits", 1886.Speaking of the tin-ore occurrences, this paper states:-"In the primary granite the lodes of tin ore occur, also dykes and belts of more recently obtruded porphyries. The really valuable metalliferous deposits may be classified as follows :-1. Lodes (of which the Lottah mine is typical).2. Dykes- (a) Indurated or hard (as shown by the formations at the Anchor and Cream Creek mines). (b) Soft (eg Hayley's Lease).

Jan 1, 1912

By N L. Turner, K Ehrig, V Liebezeit, D J. Robinson, L L. Kuhar, N Francis

Conventional industry tests used to determine leach recoveries are often fully monitored and may be time-consuming and expensive. Such tests may be limiting in geometallurgical applications where large numbers of samples are required to be processed for characterisation of an ore deposit. BHP Billiton currently use a fully instrumented leach test for characterisation of Olympic Dam uranium-rich samples. Researchers at the Commonwealth Scientific Research and Industrial Organisation (CSIRO) were approached to develop an alternative to these full-scale leach tests that could allow for the ranking of samples in terms of their leachability. The novel geometallurgical test was required to use samples of small mass and be affordable and rapid.Three leach test protocols were pursued in developing the small-scale tests. Kinetic leach tests were performed using mild conditions at higher pH, low temperature and low oxidation reduction potential, moderate conditions at intermediate pH, temperature and oxidation reduction potential and aggressive conditions at lower pH, higher temperature and higher reduction potential.This paper presents results from 44 leach tests on 11 samples with varying uranium mineralogy. The developed small-scale tests correlate well with data from the more costly conventional industry laboratory tests, indicating the possibility of using this alternative test as a geometallurgical leach proxy. Simple regression analysis confirmed the importance of pH, reduction potential and temperature on uranium extraction. Experimental data were fitted to published leach models to predict uranium leach extraction for a range of operating conditions.The ultimate aim of the test work is to combine a limited number of large-scale calibration tests, a large number of small-scale geometallurgical tests and leach models for geometallurgical sample characterisation and evaluation of a wide range of scenarios or processing options.CITATION:Turner, N L, Kuhar, L L, Francis, N, Liebezeit, V, Ehrig, K and Robinson, D J, 2013. Development and testing of a small-scale uranium leach for geometallurgical applications, in Proceedings The Second AusIMM International Geometallurgy Conference (GeoMet) 2013 , pp 345-350 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 29, 2013

By T Baumgartl, D Mulligan, R Haymont

Mining at the Mt Leyshon Gold Mine in semi-arid north Queensland stopped in 2002. Newmont Australia has recently initiated a thorough post-closure water management study of the site by revisiting the existing information and conducting new water-related investigations. The focus of this paper, which is the first publication on post-closure environmental management of the site, is an overview of the site water quality in view of the sources and spatial distribution of polluted mine water, and also the performance of cover systems in controlling water flux though mine wastes. Since the mine closed the rehabilitation of waste rock dumps and tailings dams have significantly improved water quality in the surface receiving waters. However, the Scats Stockpile, the Heap Leach and Old Plant areas, which can potentially produce acidic waters, enriched with heavy metals and arsenic, are the top management priority. Modelling of the potential transport of contaminants in groundwater needs further investigations. A detailed examination of the waters in seepage sumps showed high concentrations of manganese, cobalt, nickel and selenium, which were previously overlooked. The study also showed distinctive chemical signatures for waters at different locations: the waters draining from scats, supergene materials and waste rocks have distinctly lower pH and higher concentrations of dissolved iron, sulfate, heavy metals, Mg, Mn, U, Se and As. While, the tailings sumps are more alkaline, and are enriched in Na and Cl. The southern tailing sump is characteristically As rich. The waters draining from the supergene materials have higher Cu concentrations. Assessment of the cover monitoring systems showed that although covers pass the design criteria, automated recording of data may ignore any failure of the monitoring system. Recalibration of the moisture sensors not only showed realistic moisture values compared to rainfall data but also showed that the permanently installed system records values that are higher than those of the mobile system. Event-driven recording of data overlooks infiltration events. Besides, with a higher time resolution (daily measurements) the breakthroughs could be clearly detected. Modelling of the water balance in covers is underway and an example is given here. Newmont is currently reviewing water management options and is willing to share the lessons learned.

Jan 1, 2006

By A Jäger, J L. Lett, J Rachocki and B Mobilio

The Newcrest Mining Limited Cadia East Panel Cave mines near Orange, New South Wales, Australia commenced production 1200 m below the surface in May 2014. Understanding the mine-wide impact caving had on excavation stability was a primary objective to ensure a safe working environment as production ramped up in the Panel Cave 1 operation and establishment activities were implemented in Panel Cave 2. The impact of cave interaction between Panel Cave 1 and Panel Cave 2 and establishing monitoring systems to assist mine planning and production as both caves joined is explained in this paper. Monitoring tools such as a microseismic system, open holes, HI-cells, extensometers, fibre optic sensing, cave markers, closure monitoring, underground observations and damage mapping were used to characterise the performance and position of the cave back. The data and observations collected were compared to predictions from numerical and empirical methods and used to calibrate the numerical models for forward prediction and to develop site empirical design tools. The results and methodology for monitoring deep high-output caves are the key discussion points in this paper.CITATION:Lett, J L, Jäger, A, Thornhill, T, Rachocki, J and Mobilio, B, 2016. Geotechnical challenges in cave monitoring – a modern approach, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 203–216 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016