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By Andrew Young

A Question Murray Dodge ?Inco Stobie Maintenance ?I visually inspect my hoist ropes every day and seldom find anything. Is there a better way to do the inspection?? Based on HRIA research activities, the answer would seem to be ?yes?.

May 1, 2006

By E. H. Holm

"This paper is a market-oriented review of the industry's present and forecasted performance, considering some of the principal factors influencing natural resource development. The author illustrates the steady consumption growth of nickel, and stresses the need for a quantitative long-range approach to production, consumption and the supply/ demand balance on a worldwide basis. Objective consideration of this data exposes some popular misconceptions. The possibility of near-term undersupply of nickel is discussed in relation to historically rapid changes in inventories and demand patterns. What is the significance of the increasing reliance on lateritic sources? New• facilities, new processing methods and new product forms are illustrated as further evidence of the industry's determination to satisfy the needs and preferences of nickel consumers. Examples indicate how product forms must accommodate to fast-evolving end-use technology. A review of nickel's price performance is used as a base from which to explore tomorrow's price trends."

Jan 1, 1972

By Frank D. Shepherd

THE Gunnar Gold Mines property is on the west shore of Beresford lake, in the Rice Lake mining division, southeastern Manitoba. Gold was first discovered in place in the Rice-Beresford Lakes area in 1911 on the Gabrielle claim, now included in the San Antonio Mines property at Rice lake. Following an eastward trend of favourable prospecting ground, promising showings were next staked in the vicinity of Long lake during the years 1915 and 1916. At that time, William Walton and associates, among them Gilbert LaBine, staked the Eldorado vein, north of Long lake, and Eldorado Gold Mines, Limited, was formed to develop the property a Company that, later, was to become widely known through successful operation of its radium-silver mine at Great Bear lake, Northwest Territories. Continuing eastward from Long lake, Walton and his partners, Gunnar Berg, Leo Seaberg, and Wm. Quesnel, staked claims during the years 1920-24 in the vicinity of Beresford lake which, later, were to become incorporated into the Gunnar Gold Mines property. The presence of gold-bearing quartz on these claims had been known from the time they were staked, but an opportunity to consolidate them into a group was not forth-coming until early in the year 1933. Although promising gold showings had been disclosed during the performance of assessment work on individual claims, no continuous mineralization having mine-making possibilities was discovered until after the consolidation of the entire group. From this stage onward, progress was rapid. Active exploration was begun on August 1st, 1933, and late in October James Houston reported favourably on the property. On October 27th, Gunnar Gold Mines, Limited, was incorporated in the Province of Ontario to develop and operate the property. The Company is also registered in Manitoba. The authorized capitalization is 3,000,000 shares of $1.00 par value. Gilbert LaBine was appointed president of the Company, with James Houston as mine manager. Following completion of a diamond-drilling programme, planned in 1933, it was decided to install a mine plant capable of carrying development to a depth of 1,000 feet. A transmission line, 5 miles in length, was built to the Great Falls-Central Manitoba line of the Manitoba Power Company, Limited.

Jan 1, 1939

By Hani S. Mitri

Strainbursts in brittle rock are common to deep underground mines. The state of stress at the boundary of mine openings is dictated by a biaxial stress/loading condition. This paper reports the results of a series of biaxial compression tests carried out on 100 mm cubic samples of norite rock, under different horizontal-to-vertical stress ratios. The results indicate that the biaxial compressive strength is considerably higher than the uniaxial one. It is found that the norite sample behaviour under biaxial loading mirrors field behaviour where shearing and progressive spalling of the opening boundary are observed prior to strainbursting. Sample failure is initiated by rock spalling at the sample free faces, i.e. in the plane of biaxial loading. Finally, it?s the out-of-plane shear failure mechanism that causes the sample to collapse. Shear failure takes place violently and abruptly and is accompanied with considerable audible noise.

Apr 1, 2005

By A. Plugatyr, C. P. Baxter

"Bessemer matte iron content is a critical process parameter that needs to be closely monitored and controlled in order to achieve optimal Ni/Cu smelter returns. Current process control practices during Ni/Cu converting often rely on visual observations and typically involve matte sampling to confirm that target composition was reached. A high-level techno-economic analysis study was carried out to evaluate potential direct benefits of advanced process control during the final stages of Ni/Cu matte converting. The results indicate that the magnitude of direct benefits will largely depend on matte iron control practices already implemented as well as matte iron set point. Preliminary assessment suggests that under the assumptions used in this study, implementation of advanced process control can potentially result in additional revenues ranging from several hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of US dollars per year per converter producing about 200 tonnes of Bessemer matte per day based on Ni, Cu, and Co metal recoveries alone.INTRODUCTION Real-time measurement of molten metal elemental composition, arguably, remains one of the key unresolved issues impeding full automation and real-time optimization of pyrometallurgical operations in different industrial areas, including non-ferrous metals and ferro-alloys. In particular, current process control practices during Ni/Cu matte converting often rely on visual observations and typically involve matte sampling in order to confirm target matte composition. In addition to being time consuming, this approach relies heavily on operator experience and diligence, and, therefore, requires continuous performance and quality control efforts. For instance, the need to improve quality of the Bessemer matte (BM) at the Copper Cliff smelter has prompted an impressive staff engagement and training campaign that was carried out by Vale’s team in the late 2000’s (Zanini, Wong, & Cooke, 2012). This training exercise was executed to address the compounded effect of several operational challenges, namely demand for higher throughputs, changes in the feed concentrate composition, increased feed variability, loss of process knowledge and expertise due to retirement, as well as lack of a comprehensive approach to improving the overall performance of the flowsheet rather than meeting production targets for intermediate products. Although the campaign was very successful and has resulted in significant improvements in the Bessemer matte quality, it has also highlighted the need to move away from “the-art-of-converting” and develop analytical tools that would enable real-time process monitoring."

Jan 1, 2018

By C. -S. Xie, J. -H. Kong

The microstructure and mechanical properties of X80 hot-rolled thick steel strips with a thickness of 17.5mm produced in Wuhan Iron & Steel Company (WISCO) are introduced in the paper. The steel strips as fabricated through proper thermomechanical processing (TMP)/ on-line accelerated cooling (OLAC) processing have shown high strength and toughness, low brittle transition temperature, good weldability, and high Shear Area (SA) percentage in Drop Weight Tear Test (DWTT). The microstructure of the steel strips is characterized with mainly acicular ferrite, and fine dispersed Martensitc-Austenite (M-A) phases. It is determined that the mechanical properties are improved due to the presence of the fine M-A phases and precipitates, which could be formed by reducing the finish rolling and coiling temperatures.

Jan 1, 2005

By C. Matthews, A. Vo

Australia is one of the world’s leading exporters of bulk commodities and the extensive use of sampling equipment is key to the successful management of each mining operation. At the process plant, without a full understanding of the feed, product and tails, it is impossible to fully optimise the performance of the plant, such that the metallurgical balance is often open to error. At the port, a statistically correct, bias free and compliant sampling system is crucial to ensuring exported minerals are reflective of their true value and to avoid penalties. Over the last decade, as a result of the iron ore boom, there has been high demand for reliable, representative and standard compliant solids sample systems in Australia. This paper reviews several solids sampling applications at Australian mine sites, the challenges and experience gained and how the implementation of reliable representative sampling systems has provided better understanding of plant process performance, improved plant control and overall benefits to the operations. INTRODUCTION Mining is the primary contributor to the Australian economy with Australia ranking in the top 4 in economic resources for 21 primary industrial minerals in 2016 (Britt, et al., 2017). Australia is one of the world leaders in the export of the majority of its commodities including gold, copper and iron ore (Britt, et al., 2017). Therefore, a suitable and standard compliant sampling system is essential for evaluating plant performance and content verification. At the mine and at the port, the larger iron ore miners in Australia have developed stockpile models to predict the grade of their ore down to individual blocks of the stockpile. This allows the miner to create the right blend of material for sale to their customers and ensures they are not underselling their product or at risk of penalties for impurities or low grade. As an example, the average difference between the benchmark 62% Fe and low grade 58% Fe fines at the time of this report averaged US $20/tonne according to the Metal Bulletin Iron Ore Index (Fastmarkets MB, 2019). At a shipload of 180kt this would be a variation of US $3.6M. Whilst this is an extreme example, it highlights the economic importance of producing the correct grade product and a recognised representative sample of said product.

Jan 1, 2019

By D. A. MacFadyen, J. J. Brummer, C. C. Pegg

The early identification of a kimberlite dyke and the occurrence of pyrope garnet grains along a section of the Munro Esker north of Kirkland Lake encouraged the search for kimberlites. Subsequent exploration using data from aeromagnetic surveys completed for the Kirkland Lake Initiatives Program (KLIP) resulted in the discovery of five kimberlite diatremes in the area north of Kirkland Lake and another one to the south. These are only a portion of the cluster of pipes found so far that probably occur in the area. Recovery of the diamonds present in four of the pipes yielded 16 stones, the largest being 0.17 carats. Unfortunately evaluation of the pipes is a problem due to the cover of glacial drift, up to 92 m in thickness, which makes it difficult to obtain an adequate bulk sample. A study of their ages, mostly from drill hole samples, suggest that the kimberlite diatremes and other alkaline ultramafic rocks were emplaced along a northwesterly zone of rift structures. These alkaline ultramafic rocks cut across all earlier rock types and have ages ranging from 121 Ma to 173 Ma. The zone of deformation, along which these rocks occur, has been named the Lake Timiskaming Structural Zone (LTSZ), a modification of Lake Timiskaming Rift Valley (LTRV). Ultramafic intrusions which were emplaced along the LTSZ can be traced from the James Bay Lowlands in the northwest to past Belleville on the north shore of Lake Ontario in the southeast, a distance of about 1070 km. As the emplacement of these rock types become known more are certain to be found by drilling selected aeromagnetic anomalies. The project has demonstrated that aeromagnetic surveys can be used successfully to identify covered kimberlite targets.

Jan 1, 1992

By A. M. Cormie

Introduction The purpose of this paper is to give a brief, general outline of mining practices at Torbrit Silver mine. The geology of the mine is touched on as it is felt that a rough picture of the geology will result in a clearer understanding of the mining methods employed. The main part of the paper deals with mining methods and a section is included on haulage. Development practice is mentioned only briefly. Torbrit Silver Mines, Limited, a subsidiary of Mining Corporation of Canada, is located in the Alice Arm area of northern British Columbia. Access to the mine is by boat to the village of Alice Arm at the head of Alice arm, then truck road, following the course of Kitsault river for 18 miles in a northerly direction to the plant site. The main portal is a further two-thirds of a mile along the course of the river, at approximately the same elevation as the plant, 1,014 feet above sea level. Geology The ore occurs in a massive, irregular-shaped quartz-barite body replacing a folded area in a series of volcanic breccias, tuffs, and flow rocks locally referred to as 'green-stones'. A series of parallel, nearly vertical, fine-grained basic dykes cut across the formation at right angles to the strike of the ore belt over a horizontal distance of 140 feet. The whole of the quartz-barite vein material, which ranges up to several hundred feet wide in places, carries silver values but commercial grade is confined to lenses and shoots where there have been more than usual concentrations of native silver and silver-bearing minerals. The ore-bearing structure plunges at approximately 25 degrees along an axis striking roughly N.65°W.

Jan 1, 1951

Introduction ?MT involves the measurement of naturally occurring magnetic and electric field oscillations. ?The ratio of E/H (wave impedance) is measured as a function of frequency to give resistivitydepth information. ?The ratio of vertical and horizontal magnetic fields (tipper) gives information about the location of (channeled) current systems.

May 1, 2008

By F. L. Pellet, S. Maiolino

"The determination of rock bolt contribution to reinforced joint shear strength is still a challenge, especially for assessing reinforced rock mass stability. For this purpose, several experimental studies have been performed during the last decades, mostly on small scale rock joint and bolt specimens. However, to accurately assess the rock bolt contribution, scale effect has to be accounted for. For this reason full scale lab tests are required as an alternative to in situ tests for which boundary conditions are more difficult to control.In this paper the results of an experimental program carried out with a large shear box, dedicated to test bolts in full scale conditions is presented. Different rock bolt diameters and different rock bolts inclination with respect to the shear plane were tested Experimental results were satisfactorily compared with an analytical model which is able to compute the contribution of the rock bolt to the shear strength of the joint as well the associated displacement of the joint. These conclusions allows us to validate the model in order to help the designer of reinforced rock engineering structures, such as slope or underground openings, to precise the optimum installation of rock bolts. INTRODUCTIONFully grouted rock bolts are commonly used for rock masses reinforcement to ensure the stability of rock slopes and underground cavities. For this purpose, the determination of rock bolt contribution to reinforced joint shear strength is of the utmost importance. During the last decades, several experimental studies have been performed to investigate the behavior of bolted rock joint. For obvious reasons, almost all the experiments were achieved on small scale bolted rock joint specimens (Bjurström, 1974; Azuar, 1977; Dight, 1983; Egger & Fernandes, 1983; Schubert, 1984; Spang & Egger, 1990; Egger & Zabuski, 1991). These studies made it possible to assess the influence of different parameters such as the bolt’s diameter, the number of bolts, the angle between the bolt and the joint, the nature of the rock, the friction and the dilatation angle of the joint. However, to accurately assess the rock bolt contribution, scale effect has to be accounted for (Vallier et al., 2010). For this reason full scale lab tests have been performed as an alternative to in situ test for which boundary conditions are more difficult to control."

Jan 1, 2015

By J. Bardinas

"The use of autogenous mills has become widespread, owing to their capacity and favorable capital and operating costs. Optimal operation of these systems is critical, given their high energy consumption and effect on downstream processing. A considerable effort has been spent over the years in the development of advanced control systems to achieve a better performance in this regard. However, despite significant advances, the problem still remains challenging, owing to the nonlinear behaviour of the system with respect to the mill variables, and, the unmeasured ore variability come from the mine.The mill load, in particular, can be seen as a state variable of the mill, which could be important for; modelling and control, and, important insights into the mill behaviour. In this investigation, time series cluster analysis was performed using online mill load measurements in order to identify the different control states of the mill. More specifically, this time series was divided into short non-overlapping segments. A distance matrix was set up for each segment and the information was captured by means of textural features, similar to that used in multivariate image analysis. These wavelet and grey level cooccurrence matrix features could subsequently be used to rapidly identify the normal operating conditions from the feed disturbances in the mill.In principle, the methods and models presented here, once suitably validated and calibrated, could be used in online process monitoring of autogenous mills. They also could serve as a foundation for developing more advanced process control models."

Jan 1, 2016

By Paul M. Lévesque

The Dome Mine has been in production for nearly 100 years and throughout the years many different mining methods were used to extract the ore. An exploration program late in the 1990s outlines new resources requiring the mine to extract the rock and some previously placed backfill (alluvial sand and/or classified tailings). It is therefore imperative to separate the backfill from the rock to reduce the negative impacts of handling the backfill on the ore pass, crushers and mill processes. Separating the backfill from the ore at the source would also reduce and/or eliminate the cost of handling this waste stream. The paper will touch on the backfill removal criteria, the risks, the alternatives and the selected method, screen decks, for backfill removal at the Dome Mine. The 155549 bulk zone case study will illustrate how the screen decks are in use at the mine. The paper will also illustrate how the lessons learned and conclusions of the work done for the 155549 bulk zone were applied to the second screen deck installation for the 257260 bulk zone.

May 1, 2009

By Chen Bang, Xia Xiao’ou, Zhang Feng

"Ores with compressive strength lower than 150 MPa are usually easy to be crushed by conventional jaw crushers and cone crushers. However, for hard ores with compressive strength exceeding 150 MPa and 200 MPa and even up to 250 MPa, such as andesite, hard basalt and olivine, it is difficult to reach satisfactory crushing size and yield or difficult to meet service life and stability use requirements of quick-wear parts by using conventional crushers. As continued increase in ore mining depth and constant generation of new type materials, equipment demand for crushing hard ores becomes increasing high. A new type inertia vibrating crusher is designed. It is powered by a high-speed rotating vibration exciter and can obtain required crushing force by adjusting eccentric mass, eccentricity and rotating speed so as to crush various ores with high hardness. This paper introduces the design process of its structure and working principle, discusses the design calculation methods of vibration excitation system, vibration damping and energy storage system and other key mechanism and provides technical references for this type of vibrating crusher.DESIGN PHILOSOPHYThe conventional jaw crusher mainly acquires extrusion force from crank motion to realize crushing. The motor drives the eccentric shaft via the transmission device to bring the moving jaw to swing relative to the stationary jaw. When the moving jaw moves close to the stationary jaw, ores between them are crushed by extrusion; when the moving jaw moves away from the stationary jaw, crushed ores are discharged from the discharge gate at the lower end between the moving jaw and the stationary jaw.The conventional spring cone crusher and the hydraulic cone crusher mainly acquire extrusion force from cranking motion to realize crushing. The motor drives the eccentric sleeve via the transmission device, the moving cone shaft generates an eccentric distance to make cranking motion under the action of the eccentric sleeve. When the moving cone moves close to the stationary cone, ores between them are crushed by extrusion. When the moving cone moves away from the stationary jaw, crushed ores are discharged from the discharge gate at the lower end between the moving cone and the stationary cone under the action of dead weight."

Jan 1, 2016

By R. E. Phelan

Introduction The Flin Flon deposit was discovered by Tom Creighton, an experienced prospector and trapper, who in 1914 made his headquarters at The Pas, Manitoba, and still lives there. The discovery was made in the fall of 1914, and Creighton and his associates spent the next summer in investigating the find. In August of 1915 the first claims were located. The property was optioned to Hayden Stone & Company, and in the spring of 1916 they started a diamond-drill campaign. Hayden Stone spent $50,000 on the property and, among other things, completed over 7,500 feet of diamond drilling. The ore not being as high grade as expected, and also being complex in character, Hayden Stone then abandoned their option. In the spring of 1917, Messrs. Earle, Faskin and associates took an option on the property and started an extensive drilling campaign. This campaign accomplished approximately 18,000 feet of drilling and secured for the Faskin interests a 32 per cent interest in the property. In 1920, W. B. Thompson and The Mining Corporation of Canada secured an option, and, while this option was in force, sunk two shafts in the ore-zone and did a considerable amount of drifting and cross-cutting in the ore to study the manner in which it occurred in place, and, by actual channel sampling, to check the grade indicated by the previously accomplished diamond drilling. All of this work had indicated that an ore-body existed on the property containing at least 18,000,000 tons of ore, assaying as follows: gold, 0.074 oz./ton; silver, 1.06 oz./ton; copper, 1.71 per cent; and zinc, ). 45 per cent (1). Complete analyses of composites from the drill holes showed that the ore was very complex in character. It contained the above values in gold, silver, copper, and zinc, as well as large amounts of sulphur and iron, and traces of lead, arsenic, antimony, cobalt, and various other metals. Although the ore was obviously pyritic in character, pyritic smelting, the usual method of treating this class of ore, could not be used to beneficiate the ore with any reasonable expectation of making such a venture a financial success, since coke and coal landed at Flin Flon would be expensive, and siliceous flux was known to be scarce locally and low in grade. The property therefore lay idle until 1925.

Jan 1, 1935

By Dirk Claessens

The term ?cost? is too small when describing the destructive power of safety incidents for mining companies. Breaches in employee or environmental safety are felt way beyond the bottom-line: human life can be taken; ecosystems tarnished; the ire of peoples, media and government inflamed; significant halting of production; and high levels of legal and financial challenges. According to a recent survey of Mining executivesi, ?ensuring workforce safety? was the most important issues identified above any other, with a plurality of 31 percent, reigning above capital projects, product efficiency, and equipment reliability. We accept that safety is a most paramount issue, yet for many reasons we keep approaching the problem the same way we have in the past. We need to stop doing the same things decade over decade and try something new. New innovations are significantly changing the fundamentals of how mining companies explore, excavate, produce, refine and distribute their valuable commodities. Technologies such as visualization, analytics, location awareness, and gaming simulation are making these enterprises smarter. Now, attention turns to an area we?ve long held as integral to our business: safety. By using the same breakthrough technologies that are changing our business, we can now boldly imagine ? and credibly strive for ? a world of zero incidents.

Aug 1, 2013

Caterpillar Inc The world's largest manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines and industrial gas turbines. Technology leader in logistics, construction, transportation, mining, forestry, energy and electric power generation.

Aug 1, 2013

Thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems provide thermal insulation to high temperature for aero¬propulsion. A fracture mechanical model developed earlier for multilayer systems is applied on TBC to realize superior performance by enhancement of fracture resistance. Functionally gradient materials (FGM) solution concept is the basis of approach followed here. A few realistic FGM TBCs are considered in the analysis in addition to a conventional TBC as the base case and a hypothetical worst case with YSZ-YSZ interface. Parameters like number, composition and thickness of graded layers and elastic modulus are considered for the analysis and quantitative improvement of fracture resistance of TBCs. The analysis is confined to deep crack with crack size to width ratio as 0.5.

Jan 1, 2010

By J. W. Griffith

"The mines in the Bancroft area of southeastern Ontario, a few kilometres west of the town of Bancroft, are in Faraday and Cardiff Townships. Three companies, known as Canadian Dyno Mines Limited, Macassa Gold Mines Limited (Bicroft Division) and Madawaska Mines Limited (formerly Faraday Uranium Mines Limited), with plants capable of handling a total of 4,()()() tons (3,629 tonnes) of ore a day, were at one time in production. A fourth company, Greyhawk Uranium Mines Limited, operated a small mine whose ore was shipped for custom treatment to the nearby Faraday mill. Canadian Dyno Mines Limited ceased operations in June 1960. In June 1963 the Bicroft Mine was closed and a year later Faraday closed because of contract completion. But in 1975, Faraday (now called Madawaska) was re-opened but closed again in 1982. During 1959, the peak year, these four mines produced an estimated 1,100 tons (998 tonnes) of uranium precipitates, which represented nearly 7 per cent of Canada's output for that year(Fig. 1).The deposits occur in pegmatitic granite dykes in a region of high-grade metamorphic and metasomatic rocks. Uranium distribution is usually controlled by the distribution of mafic minerals, particularly hematite and magnetite, and by late fractures. The best visual indicators for uranium concentration are hematite staining in the pegmatite, followed by the amount of mafic inclusions or crystals. The Bancroft area orebodies are the only known deposits of the general pegmatitic class in Canada that contained economic deposits of uranium. The principal radioactive minerals are uraninite and uranothorite. By comparison with many other pegmatitic occurrences, some of the ore bodies are unusually large, persistent in depth and relatively rich in uranium minerals. At the end of 1981, total ore reserves were estimated at 1,500,00 short tons (1,360, 000 tonnes) averaging 0.11 % U3O8."

Jan 1, 1986

By K. Hawboldt, J. E. Halfyard, C. Bottaro

The removal of sulfur from leach residues has been practised in the zinc industry using a combination of flotation and hot melt filtration. The process is highly dependent on the nature of the concentrate and the subsequent residue. When the mineral constituency of the residue alters, the process can encounter significant operational challenges. An alternate method of converting elemental sulfur to water-soluble polysulfides was applied to leach residue from Vale's nickel demonstration plant in Argentia, Newfoundland. Reaction parameters, sulfur purity and other key indicators are discussed as is the potential commercial application.

Jan 1, 2011