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By Mendeckl A. J

Anglo American Corporation has always viewed technological development as vital and as such has placed research and the implementation of new technological practices high on its priority list. Support is given to a number of research institutes but a significant degree of reliance is placed on in-house research carried out at individual companies and at the Group's main laboratory complexes. The Corporation's interests are diverse with advanced practices and innovative technology ranging from new battery technology with wide application to deep level shaft technology with very specific application. In this paper, we aim to concentrate on a particular system developed primarily for use in seismically active deep mines. The system has proved to have far wider application and has the potential to be further enhanced to meet the needs of users across a broad range within the industry and even beyond. As the nature of this conference is to inform delegates of advanced mining practices, we should simply mention that we could have talked on subjects relating to the advances made in deep level winding technology including winder drive and brake control to alleviate dynamic rope loads, shaft steel design for high pay load high speed winding and shaft safety systems such as slack rope devices and moving lip loading facilities to cater for rope stretch. Other areas of interest relating to refrigeration using ice technology or non-explosive rock cutting using diamond wire or saw technology could also have been of interest. As the South African gold mines become deeper and the problems associated with depth become more acute, answers had to be found and systems developed to cope with very high rock stress and the related seismicity. The fundamental understanding of the behaviour of the rock mass has always been important but became critical on our mines to ensure the safe extraction of the orebody. Basic research into and the application of physics, applied mathematics, seismology, rock mechanics, electronics and computer technology have helped us to develop the Integrated Seismic System - Integrated because of the system's abilty to monitor seismic and non-seismic sensors simultaneously and because it encompasses data acquisition, processing and interpretation into one system. The system which is in use at all our gold mines has found application not only in South Africa but also in such locations as Australia, Chile, Canada, Europe and Japan. A highly motivated team of scientists under the leadership of Aleksander Mendecki developed the majority of the hardware and software needed for the system. In essence, the system allows us real time monitoring of energy release and stress transfer data that with the aid of modern computers is turned into useful information. The information so obtained has allowed us to improve our mine and extraction designs to minimise the inherent hazards. The system has proved to be an extremely useful management tool as substantiated by the demand for the product. The paper is intended to convey to the reader the technical concepts and the presentation is intended to demonstrate the usefulness of the system.

Jan 1, 1995

`WELL HE WOULD, WOULDN'T HE?' Public Relations people have something in common with advertising people and politicians: there exists a perception that their whole Raison d'Etre is to create, mould, and maintain images which are far removed from reality

Jan 1, 1994

By A C. Robertson

Over the past decade there has been continual change in the way that mines have been managed and the component roles of those people who make up the total mine management system. Major issues have included the change in the business structure of mining companies, the change in on-site infrastructure, increased personal liability of managers for the safety and health of employees and increasing social and environmental pressures on managers and their staff. This paper looks at the changing roles of two of the many groups of professionals associated with the mining industry - the equipment supplier and the mining consultant. The profiles of the ACME Group Pty Ltd, suppliers of ventilation equipment and ancillary canvas and plastic products to the mining and construction industry, and Tennent, Isokangas Pty Ltd, Consulting Mining Engineers, are presented.

Jan 1, 1998

By Moskovits EE

Spodumene was recovered from pegmatite by flota.ticn in lAoretory tests and ;pilot-plant, operation using an anionic collector e1 ulsi3.n. i sir_tilar process applied to beryl pegmatite g^.ve encouraging results.

Jan 1, 1963

By Pak DL

Over the last decade computers have become an essential element in assessing the economic feasibility of mining new mineral deposits and in assisting a variety of related support functions. A broad overview is given of the many technical application areas where computers are contributing to the mining industry with reference to work being done on the evaluation of drill hole information, mineral inventory modelling, ore reserve estimation, financial analysis, process simulation, process control, workshop job scheduling, PERT applications, and com- puter aided drafting. In all these areas the computer has greatly reduced the manual effort involved in looking at alternatives. It has had a significant effect in eliminating delays in revising calculations, or rescheduling activities to incorporate new data or cater for changing conditions, while at the same time providing more accurate and prompt information for the management decision making Process.

Jan 1, 1980

Byproduct coking is practised in three of the major Australian ironmaking centres, the Newcastle and Whyalla works of the Broken Hill Proprietary Co. Ltd. and the Port Kembla works of Australian Iron & Steel Pty. Ltd. Coking first commenced at Newcastle in 1915 and at Port Kembla in 1938. The installations established at these centres include coal cleaning facilities and com- plete byproduct streams. The Whyalla plant, because of its location is somewhat less extensive, having no coal cleaning plant and a comparatively restricted byproduct section. As new batteries have been built every opportunity has been taken to incorporate modern design features and improved operat- ing techniques. This has included the provision of equipment to reduce atmospheric and water pollution. A marked reduction of markets for byproducts has had serious repercussions on the profitability of this section of the Industry.

Jan 1, 1972

By Wright G. A

The objective of refining in steelmaking is to reduce the concentration of impurity atoms, e.g. sulphur, phosphorus, from an initially high level to a specified low concentration. A two-film theory of refining is presented in which the rate of

Jan 1, 1980

The Rotary Kiln at TeKumi was commissioned in February 2002. The process involves burning limestone at 1000 - 11 000¦C to produce a burnt lime (CaO) product. This paper describes the design and installation of a trifoil system to improve the energy efficiency of the kiln. An energy balance showed that 32 per cent of the energy was being lost through the flue gases, compared to 5.8 per cent in shell losses and 2.5 per cent lost as heat in the product. The trifoil proved to be the best way to tap the energy from the flue gases. Drying tests showed that a trifoil improved the drying time of limestone by 37.5 per cent, compared to only 25 per cent for a lifter system. The trifoil system increases the surface area for heat transfer in a Rotary Kiln by 180 per cent. The overal energy efficiency of the Rotary Kiln was improved by 15 per cent, resulting in a 15 per cent increase in production and an 80¦C reduction in flue gas temperature. This has reduced dust build up in the ducting while reducing maintenance costs through a reduced fan speed. The trifoil hub was designed with tooths at the centre to prevent shifting. Each trifoil leg has an anchor block on the down side to prevent downward movement of the trefoil legs.

Jan 1, 2003

Almost all the countries of the south-west Pacific and the Australian states have recently completed or have commissioned mineral royalty reviews. The prime reasons for this widespread and consistent action is the desire of the governments of these entities to redress perceived effi- ciency and equity imbalances and to ensure that the revenue raising motive does not override the necessity to maintain mineral exploration and development incentives. Governments are tending to adopt royalty systems comprising a com- bination of base royalty and a profit component. Resource rent royalty and royalty holidays have been introduced and anomalies, such as royalty free gold production, still exist but appear to have uncertain futures. Tasmania ranks as the Australian state with the lowest aggregate royalty levy/production value ratio whilst Papua New Guinea has the highest royalty objective achievement level in the south-west Pacific region.

Jan 1, 1988

By B F. J Kelly

Multiple-point simulation is a family of methods used to generate conditional facies simulations that present the same spatial dependence as a user-defined training image. The main advantage of using a training image is the easy integration of geological concepts in numerical subsurface models. The strength of multiple-point methods is that it allows making the best use of geological expertise when data are too sparse for inferring a model of spatial continuity. However, despite being appealing to geologists, the multiple-point methods are often not used in practice due to the difficulty of building complex 3D training images that contain realistic features.A new framework for multiple-point simulation is presented that involves small and simple training images. The main idea is to use random transformations to expand the range of structures available in the simple training image. The training image is not regarded any more as a global conceptual geological model, but rather a basic structural element of the subsurface. Complex geological structures are obtained, whose spatial structure can be parameterised by adjusting the statistics of the random transformations, based on field data or geological context. In most cases, such parameterisation is possible by adjusting two numbers only. One advantage is that the training images are so simple that they can be easily built even in 3D. The method allows building 3D models that reproduce shapes corresponding to a desired prior geological concept and are in phase with different types of field observations, such as orientation, facies or geophysical measurements. The flexibility of the approach allows for naturally integrating different types of data. This is demonstrated on an example involving seismic data assimilation. Examples where complex 3D folded structures are built from a simple training image and a few orientation data are shown.

Sep 26, 2011

By P Townsend, F Russell

Palabora Mining Company operates an integrated open pit mine, concentrator, smelter and refinery complex located in the Northern Province of South Africa. The Palabora open pit went into production in 1966, mining 30 000 t/d to produce some 62 000 tpa of copper. With continuous modification and improvement, a mining rate of 82 000 t/d, producing up to 135 000 tpa of refined copper, has been achieved. While these improvements have also enabled the mine life to be nearly doubled, the open pit will reach the end of its economic life by 2003. The Palabora orebody is vertical and the reserve extends to a depth of 1800 m over an area of 700 m by 200 m. Studies to assess the economics of mining the orebody by underground means began in the mid-1980s. These studies indicated that block caving is the lowest cost underground mining method that would generate a suitable return. In March 1996, a decision was made to develop a 30 000 t/d block cave mine that will extend the life of the Palabora Mining Company by a further 20 years. In terms of the relatively high rock strength and the resultant coarse fragmentation that is expected at the drawpoint, the Palabora cave can be considered rather unique when compared to other block cave operations. This paper describes the project in broad terms and details the mining method, particularly with respect to the cavability of the orebody and the design features to deal with the coarse fragmentation. The project commenced in July 1996 and final development of the undercut and drawbells is scheduled for completion in November 2003. This paper describes the status of the project and planning as of April 2000.

Jan 1, 2000

By M Simanjuntak, A M. Supomo

PT Freeport IndonesiaÆs copper/gold operation disposes of approximately 222 000 dry metric tonnes of tailings per day via two thickeners. Reduction of the flocculant dosage rates in each of the tailing thickeners has been achieved with the installation of Clarometers«, modifications to the existing operating DCS control strategy and a change in plant flocculant. This has reduced the flocculant consumption rate in the last twelve months by approximately 20 per cent. It has also highlighted the disparity in the settling rates of the two thickeners. Collaborative efforts between Cytec technical site engineers and Freeport operational personnel have made possible the overall gains achieved in the tailings thickener optimisation.

Jan 1, 2003

The world is getting flatter through internet, mobile phone technology, relatively low cost travel, massive outsourcing of manufacturing to China and the transfer of company backroom operations to India. In the iron and steel industry, however, things will remain relatively the same with slow gradual improvements in technology; only the geographic location of plants may change over time. Or will it? The blast furnace smelting process has remained largely unchanged since 1828 when James Neilson came up with the idea of preheated air being delivered to the tuyeres. Likewise, oxygen steelmaking that takes molten iron from such blast furnaces has remained conceptually unchanged since Sir Henry Bessemer invented an air-based system in 1856. These two processes are the core of integrated steel mills that we know today. Typically such mills consist of coke ovens, sinter plant, blast furnace, oxygen steelmaking, continuous caster, rolling mills and metal coating lines. In the intervening 150 years the only real disruptive technology to the integrated steel mill has been the minimill. Based on the use of the electric arc furnace (EAF), in conjunction with a continuous caster and rolling mill, the term minimill is used because steel products are produced at down to one-tenth the scale required for economic operation of an integrated mill, with the EAF producing molten steel using largely scrap steel as its feed, as against transforming coal to coke (coke ovens), iron ore, coke and limestone into molten iron (blast furnace) and molten iron to steel (oxygen steelmaking). There are, however, a number of technologies in development that may cause a paradigm shift in the way steel products are produced and perhaps push the evolution of the minimill as a disruptive technology. Two examples are direct iron smelting, where iron is produced in a matter of seconds by injection of ironmaking feed materials into a molten bath, and thin strip casting, where molten steel is cast into 2 mm strip or less, in similar time. Both have Australian connections. A leading iron smelting technology is the HIsmelt« process, which has its first commercial application at Kwinana, Western Australia, where a joint venture of international parties, consisting of Rio Tinto and the Nucor, Mitsubishi and Shougang corporations, are in the stage of ramping up commercial production. The leading strip casting technology is the Castrip« process that arose from development work done by then BHP Steel, with IHI of Japan, at Port Kembla, New South Wales in the 1990s. Nucor followed this work up, building the first commercial plant for the technology at its Crawfordsville site in Indiana in 2001 and has recently announced an intention to build a second plant in the USA. While both technologies are only into the early stages of commercialisation they are likely to change the face of iron and steelmaking as we know it over the next 20 years. This paper elaborates on the technology of the two processes, why they could change the face of the iron and steel industry forever, what might drive the rapid change and what the changes may look like.

Jan 1, 2006

By R G. Alford

Braeside Borefield, located 120 km southwest of Mackay, is owned by BHP Mitsui Coal Pty Ltd (BHP Mitsui). The borefield provides water to BHP MitsuiÆs South Walker Creek and Riverside Coal Mines and communities in the northern portion of the Bowen Basin. Braeside Borefield has also provided water for other users in the region, including the Peak Downs, Goonyella and Saraji Coal Mines owned by BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA). Water is sourced from alluvial sediments at the confluence of Nebo and Denison Creeks, and transferred a distance of almost 100 km to Riverside Mine and other users. Since commissioning in 1983, monitoring and maintenance programs have been key elements in borefield management. The impact of pumping on groundwater resources is monitored at the borefield, upstream and downstream over a distance of about 50 km. Current annual pumping is of the order of 4000 ML, and in excess of 50 000 ML has been pumped since the commencement of borefield operations. Detailed reviews of borefield performance are conducted every two years. BHP Mitsui actively participates in community consultation on groundwater issues arising from operation of the borefield. Declining groundwater levels from prolonged drought conditions have increased community interest in management of the borefield. Rehabilitation of existing production bores and augmentation of the borefield is currently being investigated to more evenly distribute pumping rather than to increase overall capacity.

Jan 1, 2003

By S Nowosad, A Binder, O Langefeld, M Bothe-Fiekert, F Apollo

The mining industry faces complex and urgent challenges driven by an increasing demand for raw materials, and a socially demanding globalised world. The extraction of primary raw materials is today more important than ever as one of the cornerstones towards a sustainable future since the increasing demand for the raw materials required for the energy transition. In the last three years, leading countries as USA, China, Canada, Australia, and the European Union (EU) have developed and adopted strategies to enhance domestic extraction capabilities, diversifying sources, fostering innovation in recycling, and promoting international collaboration related to critical raw materials. On 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law in the USA, in June 2023, the Australian Critical Minerals Strategy 2023–2030 was published and in March 2024, the Council of the EU adopted the European Critical Raw Materials Act. On the other hand, raw materials extraction is facing higher environmental and safety standards and regulations, as well as scrutiny from the broader public. Regrettable environmental accidents as tailing dam failures or acid mine drainage occurrences have led to a general distrust of mining activities leaving mining companies with the dual imperative of increasing output while implementing sustainability, decarbonisation, and circularity as a core value in their production processes. This challenging environment offers the opportunity to enhance ‘blue mining’ (BM) as a sustainable holistic approach that integrates the principles needed to plan sustainable, reliable, and responsible mines for today’s and future generations by implementing the principles of circular economy (CE). This requires a fundamental shift from the traditional linear economy approach to a sustainable, circular economy strategy. At its essence, BM encapsulates four crucial aspects – energy, ergonomics, water, and circularity and integrates these four aspects into integrative mine planning, defining clear goals and objectives from the ‘blueprint’ of a mine towards a beneficial post-mining activity. Its implementation can lead to maximisation of resources beyond the life of the extractive mine and sustainable use of materials by integrating the principles of circular economy and multiuse mine, see Figure 1. These concepts complement and recognise the need to minimise environmental and social impacts while advancing economic development. Finally, this contribution explains the requirements and challenges of moving from linear to dynamic planning approaches under the BM concept. This way, BM stands as an approach that can contribute to the mining industry receiving necessary approvals and support from society leading to a long-term transformation of the industry’s image.

Sep 1, 2024

Lihir Gold Mine is situated in a dormant volcanic caldera on a small island off PNG. Not æextinctÆ but dormant. Current ground temperatures are up to 150 degrees Celsius with active geysers in the workings of the mine, pools of boiling ground water adjacent to low-grade dumps and hydrogen sulphide gas emissions. It is a unique mining environment by world standards. This paper will deal with the following issues encountered and managed by the operation:blasting in hot and reactive ground; management of sulphide gas emissions; disposal at sea of all mining waste rock; one dear to all Australian minerÆs hearts û dealing with landowner groups; and unusual human resource issues.

Jan 1, 1999

By BLAKE DAWSON WALDRON

I must acknowledge my strategic adviser, Mr Lance Grimstone, who contributed to the development of this paper, and collated the text and figures.

Jan 1, 1994

During October 1947 an Authority to Prospect was granted by the Minister of Mines to lVIount Isa Mines Limited over an area of approximately 75 sq. miles to the north of Mount Isa.Application for the Authority to Prospect had been made after Zinc Corporation Limited had been granted prospecting rights over two areas, one of 1,265 acres immediately to the north of the Mount Isa Mines leases and the other of 1,960 acres adjoining the south end of Mount Isa Mines leases.METHODSAs a means of providing a cheap map of sufficient accuracy on which to plot geological features, both Mount Isa Mines Limited and Zinc Corporation Limited agreed upon aerial photographs and the two companies shared the cost of an aerial photographic survey by Adastra Airways of 130 sq. miles which covered the prospecting areas held by both companies.The photographs were on a scale of 800 ft. to I in. with 60% overlap on the north-south runs and 25% overlap east-west. A set of alternate prints enlarged to 400 ft. to 1 \in. were obtained for field work. The 400 ft. to 1 in. scale unglossed photographs (size 18 in. x 18 in.) were taken On to the field and rock outcrops, and uncorrelated structures were plotted directly on to them in red crayon pencil. The geological observations were then transferred in the office to a tracing on which accuracy of azimuth and scale was controlled by use of a photo mosaic and ground surveys.

Jan 1, 1953

By S Bouzalakos, W Timms, H Malli

Combining ultramafic mine tailings and acidic mine drainage via mineral carbonation to sequester carbon dioxide, presents an opportunity to minimise waste on mine sites. Low pH mine water with trace element concentrations can be effectively treated by high magnesium mine tailings, a useful source of finely ground reactive matrix. By using milled tailings for mineral carbonation, there are negligible energy requirements for communition of ore rocks to reduce particle size. This study aimed to assess the technical applicability of reacting ultramafic tailings and acidic mine water through mineral carbonation technology in the mining industry. Dissolution has been identified as the rate limiting stage in mineral carbonation; hence the study focused on identifying optimal dissolution conditions. Ultramafic tailings (particle size <100 µm) derived from serpentinite ore, were reacted with a typical mine water that was synthesised in the laboratory. Through variances in the solid to liquid ratios and temperature of dissolution, a maximum five per cent magnesium dissolution efficiency was reached at 50 g/L and 100°C. The acidic mine water was neutralised (from pH <2 to pH ~6) and iron, copper and zinc ion concentrations reduced significantly during the formation of solid precipitates. Carbonation was undertaken by injecting carbon dioxide into the magnesium-rich solution to form stable carbonates. The experimental work demonstrated proof of concept; however, dissolution efficiency and carbon dioxide sequestration was low, indicating that further research would be required before larger scale implementation.CITATION:Malli, H, Bouzalakos, S and Timms, W, 2015. Ultramafic mine tailings to treat acidic mine water and lock away carbon through mineral carbonation, in Proceedings Tailings and Mine Waste Management for the 21st Century , pp 133–136 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 27, 2015

By Y Gu, W McCallum

Mathematically sophisticated methods are now in common use for metal balancing of complex separation flow sheets at many concentrators. These balances usually entail minimisation of the sum of weighted squares of data adjustments subject to flow sheet constraints. The adjusted data provides numerical consistency across the complete flow sheet to facilitate performance calculations. A mine with multiple ore sources can be considered as a flow sheet with the end node comprising the concentrator and its products concentrate(s) and tailings. If the mass transfer and grade estimates for each ore source are sufficiently reliable, a similar metal balancing approach can be used for combined mine and concentrator data. Comparison of balanced and measured assays and mass movements provides useful guidance to security of marginal grade ore and possible dilution problems. This paper includes a summary of results from a case study based on a mine with multiple ore sources.

Jan 1, 2002