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By M. B. Shongwe, R. K. K. Mbaya, C. K. Thubakgale, P. Mendonidis

"A low-grade nickel-bearing ore was pre-concentrated on a SB40 laboratory model Falcon Concentrator. Three size fractions, -212+125, -125+75 and -75 µm were tested with the intent to upgrade the nickel content by reducing their content of fine silica, which becomes amorphous during leaching. Separation of silica from nickel-bearing magnesium silicate minerals; hornblende, clinochlore and talc, was more efficient in the finer particle sizes, -125+75 and -75 µm, and at high G-forces. For these two size fractions, nickel was upgraded from 0.06 to 0.07%, with a reduction in silica content from 52.12 to 50.71%. Leaching of feed samples prior to pre-concentration resulted in the formation of amorphous silica, indicative of the presence of fine silica in the samples. Leaching of nickel from the -125+75 µm fraction increased with increasing G-force and feed pulp percent solids, while that of -75 µm was not influenced. The optimum nickel recovery was 15.68% to the Falcon underflow, using the feed size fraction of -75 µm, 30 G and a feed pulp solids content of 10% solids, after 120 minutes of treatment.INTRODUCTION A low-grade South African nickel-bearing ore with about 0.06% Ni was previously studied for atmospheric pressure acid leaching using sulphuric acid. The study was motivated by the continuing search for methods to treat of low-grade ores, which appear to be an increasingly important source of valuable metals as a result of a declining production from rich sulphide ores. Nickel is a base metal that is used as an alloy in steelmaking and chemical industries because of its resistance to corrosion (Haudet et al., 2015). Nickel laterite ores with grades lower than 1.50% Ni are considered to be complex ores, accounting for 70% of the global nickel reserves (MacCarthy et al., 2016). Their complex nature may be attributed to the indefinite mineralogy of these ores, in which nickel may occur in more than one mineral host. In some cases, nickel may be finely disseminated in the ore. The grade of such an ore and complex mineralogy do not justify the application of pyrometallurgical methods for extraction of nickel (Zhu et al., 2012). This suggests that there is a need for less expensive alternative methods of extraction. This study investigates the application of centrifugal gravity concentration, using the Falcon concentrator, followed by leaching to determine the effect of pre-concentration of the ore prior to extraction by atmospheric pressure leaching with sulphuric acid."

Jan 1, 2017

By A. L. Valdivieso

"The correlation obtained by plotting pH of maximum adsorption of dextrin versus the isoelectric point of involved metal hydroxides can be used to predict the depressing effect of dextrin on flotation in ""pure"" sulfide mineral systems. Sulfides are strongly depressed by dextrin whenever their surfaces are coated by the corresponding metal hydroxide. The efficiency of dextrin as a depressant is affected by the adsorption of the sulfhydryl collector. Hydrolyzable cations modify this relationship in flotation of sulfide ores. This type of deviation of the real-life systems from the predictions based on the behavior of the pure systems shows the possible ways that could be followed to further improve the obtained correlations. Advances in Mineral Processing Science and Technology Proceedings of the 48th Annual Conference of Metallurgists ofCIM Sudbury, Ontario, Canada Edited by"

Jan 1, 2009

By D. Ferrand, C. Villeneuve, N. Bensalah

"La conciliation entre l’expansion de l’industrie minière et les exigences du développement durable représente un grand défi. Face aux différentes controverses touchant cette industrie, la dernière décennie a été marquée par une plus grande mobilisation de l’ensemble des parties prenantes. Cependant, plusieurs carences persistent en matière d’opérationnalisation du concept de développement durable. Ce défi met en cause la responsabilité partagée entre les parties prenantes. Il exige le renforcement des responsabilités gouvernementales et l’instrumentalisation de bonnes pratiques de responsabilité sociale des entreprises. En aval, s’impose la gestion intégrée de l’usage des produits miniers et la promotion de l’innovation et de la recherche.ABSTRACT Conciliation between expansion of the mining industry and sustainable development requirements represents a great challenge. With regards to the various controversies touching this industry, the last decade was marked by a great mobilisation phase of all stakeholders. However, there are still many shortcomings regarding operationalization of the sustainable development concept. This challenge involves shared responsibility between the stakeholders. It requires strengthening government accountability and instrumentalization of good corporate social responsibility practices. Further down the chain, the use of mining products and the promotion of innovation and research must be achieved through integrated management."

Jan 1, 2015

By Larry J. Hulbert, Louis J. Cabri, John L. Campbell, Gilles Laflamme, Chris G. Ryan, Soey H. Sie, Rolando Lastra

"Abstract- The mineralogy of samples from the Wellgreen Cu-Ni-Pt-Pd deposit, Yukon Territory, is complex and the metals of interest are contained within fme-grained minerais which vary in size and mineral associations from sample to sample.The major Ni carriers are pentlandite and violarite; the major Cu carrier is chalcopyrite. About 700Jo of the major Ni carriers and 78% of the major Cu qmier will be liberated at a grind of 80% -'}f,.7 J.Uil (-500 mesh) for typical low-grade gabbro (West zone, sample No. 1). For typical ""clinopyroxenite"" (West zone, sample No. 2) and typical ""clinopyroxene-rich peridotite"" (East zone, sample No. 3) the liberation would be 71""lo and 65% for Ni, 74% and 60% for Cu, respectively. Fine grinding, however, cannot liberate the Ni contained in silicates and pyrrhotite, estimated to total24.5% for typicallow-grade gabbro (West zone, sample No. 1), 15% for typical ""clinopyroxenite"" (West zone, sample No. 2), and 12% for typical ""clinopyroxene-rich peridotite"" (East zone, sample No. 3).The principal Pt carrier (sperrylite) varies considerably in grain-size between samples and fme grinding, required to liberate the major Ni and Cu carriers, may be counterproductive in samples where sperrylite is relatively coarse-grained, as sorne would then be unrecovered (e.g. sample No. 1). In addition, sperrylite in samples No. 2 and No. 3 is closely associated with magnetite.Palladium occurs in diverse ways. It occurs in the form of several Pd minerais (e.g. sudburyite, testibiopalladite, merenskyite), as a replacement for Ni in several tellurides, antimonides and tel­ lurantimonides (e.g. melonite), or as very low concentrations in pentlandite (up to 34 ppm), chal­ copyrite (up to 9 ppm), and pyrrhotite (up to 5.6 ppm). Palladium minerais and Pd-bearing minerals are strongly associated with chalcopyrite in sample No. 1 and will thus report to a Cu concentrate. However, 22% of the total Pd is in solid solution in pentlandite in this sample and will thus report to the Ni concentrate. In samples No. 2 and No. 3, less Pd occurs in solid solution in pentlandite, and the PGM are distributed mainly among pentlandite, chalcopyrite, and magnetite in sample No. 2, and among pentlandite, pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, and magnetite in sample No. 3. Therefore, the feasibility of magnetic concentration should be investigated for samples like No. 2 and No. 3, in order to improve Pt and Pd recoveries.Rhodium was found to occur as rare hollingworthite, in sparse cobaltite (up to 2.7%) and, as low concentrations in chalcopyrite (to 10 ppm) and pentlandite (to 12 ppm) by proton microprobe. Iridium occurs in hollingworthite (up to 7.8%) and very rarely as the native metal or in an undefmed Re-Ir-Os-Ru alloy. Ruthenium was determined by proton microprobe analyses to occur in pentlandite (up to 13 ppm) and chalcopyrite (up to 10 ppm), in addition to rare laurite and Re alloy."

Jan 1, 1993

By M. Fall

The progressive depletion of ore available at shallow depths in several underground mines around the world means that underground mining operations would increasingly be carried out at greater depths and therefore at higher temperatures. However, our understanding of the effect of hot temperatures on the response (mechanical, economical, environmental) of cemented paste backfill (CPB) is still limited. Hence, an extensive laboratory investigation was conducted to study the performance of young and aged CPB, in response to deep mine temperatures. Several CPB samples with different compositions, cured at different temperatures (20 to 50°C) and different times (7 to 160 days) were tested regarding their mechanical properties, economical performance (binder consumption) and microstructural properties. The results show that hot temperatures significantly affect the performance properties of CPB at young and advanced ages. An increase in the curing temperature leads to a considerable improvement of the rate of gain of CPB strength and also to a significant increase of the strength of CPBs studied. CBP samples cured at hot temperatures show lower binder consumption and finer pore structure. Results of this study could serve as background information for the development of optimal mine backfill design procedures.

May 1, 2007

By Richard Q. Fox, Joe L. Pinson

This paper provides guidelines jo1• analyzing and selecting electric power demand controlled. Error calculations, load selections and timing criteria are identified as the three key functions which affect the suitability of a demand controller for any particular application. The advantages of simulating the demand control application on a computer are described, and applications of a demand controller to an iron ore concentrator and a copper refinery are shown. Finally, the paper studies the return on investment for a demand controller.

Jan 1, 1976

By Charles J. Zablocki, Robert J. Kamilli

"Buried, possibly mineralized granite cupolas at the Silsilah tin deposit in Saudi Arabia (lat. 26°06' N, long. 42°40' E) have been successfully located using a closely spaced electric-field-ratio profiling technique. In this study, electrical fields at 27 and 270 Hz across grounded electrodes spaced 50 m apart were measured along six traverses. This method is interpretable by inspection, unlike the dipole-dipole technique, which requires mathematical modeling for interpretation.In the study area, the technique allowed the authors to identify and distinguish among unroofed granite cupolas, cupolas with their aplite-pegmatite apical contact zones intact, strong (quartz-rich) and weak (relatively quartz-poor) greisens, dikes, faults, and pervasively argillized rocks.This method should be useful in the valuation of other shallow mineral prospects in similar settings in other parts of the world, especially deposits for which the location of vertical contrasts is important, such as veins or mineralized zones associated with the apexes of small igneous cupolas."

Jan 1, 1993

By Jose Alberto Gonzalez, Said Sharif Mahboob, Jeffrey L. Shepherd

"During the industrial electrowinning of zinc, uneven growth can cause short-circuits and make the deposits more sensitive to the presence of impurities that can significantly impact current efficiency. To produce levelled zinc deposits, additives such as glue, licorice and sodium silicate are often added to the electrolyte. Even in the presence of additives, uneven zinc growth still takes place because of the combination of hydrodynamic and electrolysis conditions in the cell house. Recent advancements in imaging spectroscopy and scaling analysis have opened an avenue to further study the effects of additives on zinc growth morphology. In this study, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and scaling analysis have been used to monitor zinc growth characteristics including roughness, periodicity, aspect ratios and growth mechanisms as a function of electrolyte composition as well as deposition time. Zinc was electrodeposited from an industrial electrolyte containing a host of additives onto an aluminum cathode with a platinum wire serving as the anode. AFM images of the samples were collected to obtain 3D topographical information on which scaling analysis was performed to extract details on root-mean-squared (rms) roughness, periodicity (grain size), aspect ratio of surface features and growth mechanism. This analysis provided information on the mechanism by which the previously mentioned variables can impact short term growth and also provided a prediction of expected growth at long deposition times.INTRODUCTIONElectrowinning is one of the final stages in the industrial production of zinc metal. It is during this process where dissolved zinc ions undergo electro-reduction from an acidic electrolyte onto an aluminum cathode and are later recovered by stripping the zinc metal from the substrate. However, due to the nature of zinc growth as well as the various operating conditions, zinc deposition may occur unevenly, sometimes causing short-circuits that can cause electrode damage and reduced zinc production."

Jan 1, 2016

By Robert D. Brown

"On April 22, 1980, the Ontario government introduced a totally new incentive program for mineral exploration in the province to be effective September I, 1980. Replacing the former Mineral Exploration Assistance Program (MEAP) and also the assistance formerly provided to the mining sector under the Small Business Development Corporations Act, the new Ontario Mineral Exploration Program (OMEP) promises to offer a valuable benefit to certain eligible applicants.Unfortunately, the program is not without its shortcomings: the eligibility for grants or tax credits under the program is comparatively restrictive, and an October 1980 federal budget provision to amend income tax legislation would blunt some of the originally intended attractiveness of the grants and credits.IntroductionIn his budget of April 22, 1980, Ontario Treasurer Frank Miller introduced a new incentive program to encourage mineral exploration in the province.The Ontario Mineral Exploration Program (OMEP) replaces the Mineral Exploration Assistance Program (MEAP), which will be phased out by March 31, 1981. Exploration programs approved under MEAP will continue to qualify for incentives under that program, but will not qualify for OMEP."

Jan 1, 1981

By M. K. Jain, Z. T. Xu, M. Bruhis, V. Hegedekatte

"Strain rate and temperature dependent deformation conditions are present during elevated temperature forming of aluminum and other metallic materials. While many constitutive laws have been proposed to represent such deformation conditions, a closer investigation often reveals their limited applicability in terms of fit to the experimental data, and interpolation within and extrapolation outside of the range of experimental stress-strain curves. This is often because material-specific primary deformation mechanisms of temperature-dependent strain and strain rate hardening are poorly captured. In the present work, the Voce-Kocks constitutive model based on mechanics of dislocations storage and annihilation has been found to be suitable for many metallic materials. The model was modified to include the effect of temperature dependent shear modulus. The modified model is then employed to represent the experimental data obtained from uniaxial tensile tests on AA7075-O sheet at elevated temperatures and strain rates. Also, hot gas bulging tests were conducted to verify the applicability of this model. Further, finite element simulation of the hot gas bulge test was performed by incorporating the model as a user material subroutine. Good general agreement was observed between the experimental and FE model predicted results. Some sources of discrepancy in the prediction are also discussed.INTRODUCTION There has been much interest in light-weighting of automobiles from automotive related industries to reduce overall carbon footprint and increase energy efficiency of the vehicles. Aluminum alloys, and especially the medium-strength 5xxx and 6xxx series alloys, have been the primary focus in the last 3 decades to reach the above environmental goals (Huo, Hou, Zhang, & Zhang, 2016) whereas aerospace industry has traditionally focused on high strength 7xxx series aluminum (Al-Zn-Mg-Cu) alloys for structural components (Deng, Yin, & Huang, 2011). Recently, there has been much interest in high strength 7xxx series aluminum as a replacement for heavier steel automotive structural parts such as A-pillar, B-pillar, side impact beams etc. (Harrison & Luckey, 2014). This is both interesting and challenging since the above aluminum structural parts will need to not only meet impact safety standards but also possess sufficient formability for manufacturing such complex parts. Since the formability of high strength 7xxx series materials is quite poor at room temperature, much interest has focused on improving both formability and final part strength via high rate hot stamping, in-die quenching, and subsequent artificial ageing process steps (Kumar & Ross, 2016)."

Jan 1, 2018

By Cedric E. Gregory

"A study of model rectangular mine shafts has been made in the wind tunnel, with the aim of reducing air-flow resistance elements to a practicable minimum. An analysis of Table 7 shows an indicated average decrease in resistance of 28 per cent by adopting the over-all modifications involved in the configurations actually tested. Much greater reductions (up to 68 per cent) are indicated by extrapolating beyond the test results directly achieved. Intermediate partial reductions in aerodynamic resistance are shown for individual modifications, such as: (1) about 3 per cent for locating the lagging in the No. 4 (inside flush) position as against the No. 1 position - 8 per cent as against the No. 2 position - and 23 per cent as compared with position No. 3; (2) about 12 per cent for using lagging instead of steel meshwork along the divider separating the skipway from the service compartment; (3) about 14 per cent for using steel gridwork ladder stagings at 3-set intervals instead of similarly spaced wooden stagings; (4) about 12 per cent for using steel gridwork ladder stagings at 3-set instead of at 1-set intervals; (5) about 13 per cent for fitting a streamlined fairing (see Fig. 5) to the upstream face of the skipway divider. Contrary to expectations, an advantage of only 3 per cent is indicated for lagging in the inside flush (No. 4) position over the outside position (No. 1). This slight gain does not appear to warrant the cost of moving the lagging. However, if the lagging is already in the No. 2 or No. 3 position, there is an 8 and 23 per cent advantage respectively."

Jan 1, 1973

By J. Grant Spratt

THE Turner Valley gas-field, situated some thirty miles southwest of Calgary, Alberta, has been the topic of much discussion, particularly from a geological viewpoint. Several papers (1, 2, 3, 4, and 7) dealing with the structural and stratigraphical geology have already been published and are available for reference(l). In this article, the geological conditions will be treated only as they directly refer to the crude-oil prospects along the west flank of the anticline. HISTORY During the past twelve years, Turner Valley has been known mainly as a field which has produced a high-gravity naphtha from relatively large quantities of gas. For about ten years prior to the discovery of this naphtha-bearing gas, which is produced within the upper 450 feet of a dolomitic limestone of Carboniferous age, a minor production of light crude-oil was obtained from overlying sands of Cretaceous age. Up to June 1st of the present year, the field had produced 9,473,582 barrels of naphtha from approximately 829,000,000 M.c.f. of gas. For the past four years, the total daily production of 80 to 90 wells has averaged about 3,200 barrels of naphtha from 250,000 M.c.f. of gas. This is an average of 13 barrels per million cubic feet. The naphtha is extracted from the gas by ordinary gas-oil separators and absorption plants. After the naphtha has been recovered, about ten per cent of the gas is marketed for fuel to supply the cities of Calgary and lethbridge and intermediate cowns. The remaining ninety per cent is burned to the atmosphere, with the exception of some four to five million cubic feet per day which the Calgary Gas Company score in the depleted Bow Island gas-field.

Jan 1, 1936

By D. A. Le, T. S. Nguyen

"In Canada and other countries, several types of rock formations are being considered for the geological disposal of radioactive wastes. In order to better understand the ability of these rocks to contain and isolate the wastes, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission collaborates with different international research organizations and has access to experimental data from Underground Research Laboratories (URLs) in the world. Such an URL is situated in Opalinus Clay, at Mont Terri, Switzerland. An experiment, consisting of the excavation of a tunnel followed by water and gas injections in a test section of the tunnel, was performed at the URL. The authors have developed a mathematical model, based on the poromechanics theoretical framework, to simulate those phases of the experiment. The constitutive relationship for the stress-strain behaviour of Opalinus Clay takes into account its inherent anisotropy due to bedding. The model was able to capture the main features of the experiment such as the prediction of the shape and extent of the excavation damage zone and its influence on water and gas migration.INTRODUCTIONIn Canada and many other countries, several types of rock formations such as crystalline rocks and sedimentary argillaceous rocks, are being studied for the disposal of used nuclear fuel from nuclear power plants. Geological disposal relies on multiple natural and engineered barriers for the long-term containment and isolation of the wastes. The host rock is a major natural barrier and is the subject of extensive research. The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), Canada’s nuclear regulator, will be responsible for the licensing of future deep geological repositories. In order to evaluate the safety of deep geological repositories, CNSC staff keep abreast of scientific developments by collaborating with national and international partners on experimental and theoretical research on the long term performance of those engineered and natural barriers. Through that collaboration, the CNSC has access to data resulting from experiments performed at different Underground Research Laboratories (URLs)."

Jan 1, 2015

By C. E. St. Denis

"Training Program at Sherritt Gordon's Ruttar:. ConcentratorA formal training program for mill operators is being developed and employed at Sherritt Gordon's Ruttan Concentrator. The program was set up to fulfil the needs created by a shortage of skilled reliable labour, a 200% turnover of personnel within the first six months of operation and the rapid advances in mineral processing technology. All new employees are introduced into the Mill Department through an orientation program designed to familiarize them with the operation of the plant. All training and orientation of new employees is the responsibility of a. small training section consisting of two training foremen and one assistant. Using a combination of classroom and supervised on the job training, the training times have been cut by at least one half. High operating standards have been set and are maintained through the use of detailed manuals for each work area and competent instruction at all operating levels. The major portion of training costs arise from the salaries of the training staff but are negligible when compared to the improved recoveries, smaller turnover and less downtime. Government assistance is available to all industrial employers to offset the costs of training employees."

Jan 1, 1974

By H. Golzarpoor

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) is a methodology for evaluating the environmental impacts associated with a product during its life cycle. LCA is identified as the most reliable method for verifying environmental impacts; however, current LCA-based approaches have certain limitations for environmental analysis of construction products. Integration of the LCA methodology with Discrete Event Simulation (DES) provides a sound framework for modeling and analysing the environmental impacts of construction products. LCA and DES is one possible combination for analysing the cause and effect of various scenarios where time, resources, and randomness of input variables affect the outcome and, therefore, has the potential to address the shortcomings of LCA in construction. Recent studies in disciplines other than construction such as manufacturing systems have revealed positive effects on evaluation of environmental metrics while integrating LCA with DES; however, this integration has not yet been applied for environmental analysis of construction products. By implementing LCA data in a DES model, this research proposes an environmental model of earthmoving operations in a case study. Environmental variables are simultaneously assessed with production variables in the same simulation model and the integration of DES and LCA is discussed.

Aug 1, 2013

By G. P. Gu, B. Fang, R. W. Revie, M. Elboujdaini

Stress-corrosion cracking (SCC) tests were conducted in the near-neutral pH standard solution, NS4, and in an actual soil solution, using four-point bending at high a stress ratio and low frequency conditions very similar to those of operational pipelines. Pitting incubation appeared first and then pitting initiated and grew in both solutions although there were many more pits on the specimen tested in soil purged with 5% CO2 + 95% N2 than in the specimen tested in NS4 solution purged with the same gas. These observations show that samples in soil solution are more susceptible to pitting than those in NS4 solution. When the pit reached a critical size, the increased stress concentration around the pits, resulted in the transition to a crack.

Jan 1, 2005

By Steve Piercey

Introduction ? VMS Deposits: The Target ? Key points for every belt: heat flow and extension. ? Good felsic rocks ? Good mafic rocks. ? Petrochemical assemblages. ? Summary Key Points Throughout ? Common themes: ? Heat ? driver of the hydrothermal system ? Extensional geodynamic setting ? conduits to focus fluid flux ? (e.g., Lesher et al., 1986; Swinden et al., 1991; Barrie et al., 1993; Lentz, 1998; Syme et al., 1999; Piercey et al., 2001, etc.) ? We must identify rocks, belts and tectonic environments that encompass these two criteria (among others but?) ? e.g., forearc rifts, intracontinental rifts, arc rifts, and back-arc basins.

Apr 1, 2005

By F. Mackay, S. A. B. da Fontoura

"The theoretical solution for a viscoelastic well was presented by Gnirk and Johnson in 1964. From this an exercise was executed to validate the numerical simulation of a cemented salt well. The exercise comprised the geomechanical behavior through time of a cemented salt well, this was achieved using a finite element commercial software. This simulation showed the accuracy of the theoretical solution for viscoelastic materials such as salt rock. The theoretical solution presented elastic and viscoelastic analytic equations for the tangential and radial stresses. The equations for the elastic material (casing and cement) and for the viscoelastic material (salt rock) are presented here: Where equations 1a & 1b are the radial and tangential stresses of the elastic material; equations 2a & 2b are the radial and tangential stresses of the viscoelastic material; and a, r and b are the geometrical parameters explained in Figure 1. These equations are function of Pb, a stress time dependent factor that comes from the Burgers model of viscoelasticity. This is well explained in Gnirk and Johnson (1964) and for the sake of simplicity is not disclosed here. Po is the stress at section A-A’ dependent of the depth h."

Jan 1, 2015

By Georges Houlachi, Akram Alfantazi, Michael Mahon, Maysam Mohammadi

Corrosion resistance of the lead-based anodes directly influences the purity of the final product in the zinc electrowinning process. The anodic MnO2 layer that is electrodeposited on the anodes during this process can protect the anodes against corrosion. Sand-blasted anodes generate a uniform, adherent and shiny MnO2 layer, which gradually blisters and eventually sloughs off after several weeks. In this study, we attempted to develop a new method to stabilize the MnO2 protective layer on the anodes during the electrowinning process by providing suitable nucleation sites for electrodeposition of this layer. MnO2 particles (P80=40µm) were used as seed material for this purpose. Different techniques of galvanostatic and cyclic voltammetry polarizations, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS) were employed to investigate the performances of the MnO2-seeded lead anodes. The experimental results showed that growth of the MnO2 layer is influenced by the MnO2 seed particles on the anode surface. The MnO2 layers electrodeposited on the MnO2-seeded lead anodes were uniform and strongly adherent to the substrate. This layer was more stable than those formed on the PbAg anode without MnO2 seeding. This could provide the anode with a higher level of corrosion protection. Moreover, formation of undesirable MnO2 mud in the electrolyte and the rate of manganese consumption were decreased when the MnO2-seeded lead anodes were polarized. These observations could be attributed to the different properties of the electrodeposited MnO2 layer on this anode in comparison with that formed on the PbAg anode.

Jan 1, 2016

By Jean-Pierre Birat, François Hanrot, Gérard Danloy

Global warming presents an enormous challenge to the steel industry, which is both carbon-intensive and energy efficient. Lean production can provide some short-term emission mitigation, at the level of the Kyoto requirements. In the middle term, more use of scrap will also help alleviate emissions. But to reach much larger reductions in GHG emissions, on a par with the likely targets that will be set after the Kyoto period, the steel industry will have to imagine new production paradigms, which constitutes its most formidable challenge for the years to come. Carbon capture and sequestration, processes leaner in carbon use, electricity and hydrogen from green sources will have to be added together in a patchwork of process routes, which will have to be developed at great risk in the next decade, hopefully through broad international cooperation.

Jan 1, 2004