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By M. Vallée

"Geological and technical problems are often considered the most important ones affecting new mining projects. Typical problems and likely causes are reviewed based on current Quality Management and Continuous Improvement (QMCI) perspectives, giving particular attention to the work of W.E. Deming. As the “system approach” is an essential part of these policies, its characteristics are described with particular attention given to cultural- behavioural, organizational and systembased constraints described by J. Gharajedaghi. Given that poor communication and interaction among geologists, mineral processors and mining engineers/operators can seriously affect the adequacy of tests, project planning and execution, and mine profitability, these interrelated processes within the mining systems are analyzed and modelled. The impacts on models and simulations of ignoring typical data, information and knowledge uncertainties are addressed. Adapting W.E. Deming’s Fourteen Points, System of Profound Knowledge and insistence on leadership, and the analysis of mining system constraints, will allow the effective QMCI approach required to reduce geological and technical risks. Whenever we achieve this goal, we will be in a better position to overcome environment-, market-, finance- and community-related problems, achieve higher company and industry profitability as well as more sustained development. RÉSUMÉLes problèmes géologiques et techniques sont souvent considérés les plus importants parmi ceux qui affectent les nouveaux projets miniers. Des problèmes typiques et leur causes sont étudiés dans la perspective de gestion de la qualité et d’amélioration continue (GQAC), en relation avec les travaux de W.E. Deming. Comme l’approche système est au centre de ces méthodes, ses caractéristiques sont décrites en donnant une attention particulière aux contraintes de types culturel-comportemental, organisationnel, et systémique décrites par J. Gharajedaghi. Compte-tenu que les lacunes dans les communications et les interactions entre géologues, minéralurgistes, et ingénieurs/opérateurs miniers peuvent affecter sérieusement la validité des essais, de la planification et de l’exécution des projets ainsi que la rentabilité des exploitations, ces processus connexes font l’objet d’analyse et de modélisation. Les impacts sur les modèles et les simulations de l’incertitude des données, informations et connaissances sont soulignés. En adaptant au système minier les Quatorze Obligations et le Système de connaissance approfondie de W.E. Deming ainsi que l’analyse des trois types de contraintes, nous pourrons développer une approche GQAC permettant de réduire les risques géologiques et techniques des projets miniers et des exploitations. Ceci nous pemettra de mieux faire face aux problèmes reliés à l’environnement, aux marchés, au financement et aux conditions sociales, d’améliorer la rentabilité des exploitations minières et de l’industrie, tout en contribuant de façon accrue au développement durable."

Jan 1, 2003

By M. Pekguleryuz, S. A. Argyropoulos

"The recovery of additions in light metals is an important parameter influencing consistency of the finished product, which ultimately means cost. Recovery is a function of many parameters such as assimilation speed, addition density, addition practice, liquid metal processing conditions, etc. In liquid metal processing operations, it is desirable to have the maximum possible recovery at the shortest possible time.In this paper a new index will be presented, namely, the rate of recovery (RR). This index quantifies the addition recovery and introduces the time dimension in the recovery increase. As such, the RR equips the liquid metal practitioner with an accurate picture of addition assimilation in liquid metals. Results will be presented on how this index is applied to a variety of additions in liquid aluminum. IntroductionThe data on addition assimilation kinetics offer a valuable parameter describing how fast a given addition enters the metal bath. These data may be expressed as gr m-2 s-1 of additive for a set of experimental conditions which might include bath temperature and degree of bath agitation among others. However, the liquid metal processing practitioner is more interested in the recovery of additions. In other words, the point of interest is the percentage of the used addition entering the metal bath. Ideally, the addition recovery can reach the 100% level. However, in practice, the addition recovery never or rarely reaches that level. Many factors can contribute to this. Some of these factors can be slow assimilation kinetics, addition density, addition practice, turbulence of the melt, etc. In some cases, sloppy addition practices can contribute to low recoveries, or even worse, to erratic recoveries.In this paper a new parameter is introduced. This parameter relates the maximum addition recovery observed over the time needed to achieve this maximum recovery."

Jan 1, 2002

By R. Gensemer

A number of state and federal agencies are calling for development of aquatic life criteria for conductivity. These aquatic life criteria or ?benchmarks? are based on observed correlations between conductivity and benthic macroinvertebrate community composition, generally measured by composite metrics or indices. However, development of an aquatic life criterion for a composite variable like conductivity is made difficult by a number of factors. Based on a database from West Virginia, observed patterns of invertebrate community composition versus conductivity may instead be related to a combination of abiotic (e.g., ionic composition, habitat) and biotic (e.g., life history, colonization potential) factors. Many benthic invertebrate taxa also do not respond to increasing conductivity in a consistent relationship. Many states have determined that a composite variable, like conductivity or TDS, is not appropriate for criteria development, as many studies have shown that toxicity varies as a function of ion composition and can be mitigated by elevated hardness. We conclude that the relationships between conductivity and changes in benthic macroinvertebrate community composition are neither strong nor reliable enough to warrant derivation of a criterion based solely on conductivity.

Jan 1, 2011

By Loring A. Wyllie

Preparation, understanding and use of soils reports must be a team effort to be fully effective. The soils engineer must know what is to be built and exactly where. The structural engineer and owner must be fully informed on the foundation problems of the site. There must be frequent team review of information obtained from subsurface investigation and of design as details develop. The soils engineer should be available on a continuing team basis as design proceeds and should be directly involved with inspection and interpretation of site conditions as construction continues.

Jan 1, 1986

By Don Novotny, Dana Spencer

In this workshop our intent is quite simple; that is that we will introduce a relatively new technology that may have applications in blasting applications. This technology is the laser initiation of explosives. This workshop course is not intended to suggest ways in which specific blasting problems can be resolved. That is the purview of experts within each of your fields.

Jan 1, 1994

By M. Newton

Optimization and sensitivity analysis of mineable economic volumes have been standard practise for open pits for many years now, and more recently software has become available to apply techniques for delineating mineable reserves for underground mines. In general these techniques have been applied to a single resource model to quantify mineable tonnes and grade for underground mining. However by using multiple conditionally simulated models both the risk associated with the mining parameters and the risk associated with variations in grade, tonnes and profit can be quantified. Using suitable software the mine planner can then easily and quickly define and compare alternative designs to assess and improve the robustness of and the confidence in the final design.

Jan 1, 2007

By Wenbing Guo

Strip pillar mining method is one of the most important techniques for mining subsidence control in China. Mining depth is one of the most important factors that affect subsidence in strip pillar mining method. Six numerical simulation models were set up in this paper to simulate surface subsidence of strip pillar mining at different mining depths. The mining depth in these models ranged from 300 to 800 m. The simulated results were compared and analyzed. The results showed that the subsidence factor of strip pillar mining is related to mining depth. While other things being equal, the subsidence factor of strip pillar mining increases logarithmically with increase in mining depth. Their quantitative relationship was established based on the simulated results.

Jan 1, 2007

By Dave Bulled, Chris Bennett, Glenn Kosick, Glenn Dobby

"Mining companies around the world are embracing geometallurgical modeling at a rapid rate, as senior executives realize that inputs must be properly measured if the output is to be managed effectively. Geometallurgical modeling is used to scientifically manage risk in project evaluation, for plant design and production forecasting, and optimization of production planning and mineral processing/metallurgical unit operations. The technology also provides a solid foundation for implementing broad corporate strategies with respect to intelligent asset utilization and metal sales. Over the past five years, MinnovEX Technologies Inc. has been actively engaged in developing, promoting and applying geometallurgical modeling technology for major mining companies around the world. This paper describes the methodology for successfully applying the technology for the unit operations of comminution and flotation in the mining industry.INTRODUCTIONGeometallurgical modeling (referred hereon as geomet modeling), in theory, can be applied to its full potential on all unit operations in mineral processing; however, this paper will concentrate on two of the largest unit operations, namely comminution and flotation, where the technology is actually being practiced by many large mining companies. For concept studies and prefeasibility studies, aspects of geometallurgical technology are regularly applied but in a less rigorous manner than for final feasibility studies where justification for funds is sought. This paper will focus on the final feasibility stage of a project and on existing operations or planned expansions, where the full power of geometallurgical technology is brought to bear in a cost effective manner.One of the unique aspects of geomet modeling, when used to its potential, is the ability to design plants, and forecast and plan production with a quantifiable degree of precision, something that was unattainable in the past. This means that when new comminution and flotation plants are designed, the mining companies and financial institutions involved in the project can measure the precision of the design and therefore better understand and manage project risk. It means that for existing and new operations, metal sales personnel can carry out their sales strategies with a much better understanding of the degree of error associated with production forecasts of concentrate/metal and quality of concentrates. For mine and mill managers, geomet modeling allows the effect of the mine plan on the downstream processes to be quantified; thereby allowing the mine plan to be recast in a more optimized manner. Finally, existing concentrator personnel can optimize their unit operations based on a more definitive understanding"

Jan 1, 2004

By R. F. Favreau, P. Favreau

Rock excavation is the first process in the cycle of operation of a mine, and efficient blasting is paramount to the profitability of the mine. The traditional way to design blasts has been by trial and error, based on the experience of the designer. This is probably the only important engineering practice which continues to be done without a precise engineering technique. The efficiency of most other mine processes has been improved by the use of high-tech, while a majority of blast design has not yet profited from the advantages of the computer. However, with the advent of the high-tech blast simulator Blaspa, it has become possible to design the parameters of the blast according to normal engineering practices. Over the last 50 years, the chemical and physical mechanisms which occur during a blast have come to be identified; they are reviewed in section B. Although these mechanisms are complex, they have nevertheless been expressed in terms of mathematical equations which have been assembled together in the computer to create the blast model Blaspa.

Jan 1, 2002

By M. Kwasniewski, M. Takahashi

Prismatic samples of a medium-grained sandstone from Slask Colliery (Upper Silesian Coal Basin, Poland) were tested under uniaxial compression, conventional triaxial compression and true triaxial compression conditions. The conventional triaxial compression tests were carried out at confining pressure (p) equal to 12.5, 25.0 and 37.5 MPa. In the true triaxial compression tests the minimum principal stress (s3) was equal to 25.0 MPa and the intermediate principal stress (s2) was 1.5, 2 and 2.5 times higher than s3. Results of the studies show that confining pressure strongly inhibited dilatant behavior of rock samples tested under conventional triaxial compression conditions; the increasing confinement resulted in the growing compaction of the rock material. The effect of dilatancy was also highly suppressed by the intermediate principal stress. While important dilatant, negative volumetric strain corresponded to the peak differential stress at low intermediate principal stress conditions, at high intermediate stresses the rock material was damaged to much lesser extent. As a result, faulting of rock samples in the post-peak region was much more violent and was accompanied by a strong acoustic effect. Les échantillons parallélépipédiques du grès à grains moyens de la mine ‘Slask’ (Bassin Houiller de Haute Silésie, Pologne) ont subi les essais de compression monoaxiale (compression simple), de compression triaxiale conventionnelle (compression triaxale de révolution) et de compression triaxiale vraie. Les essais de la compression triaxiale conventionnelle ont été effectués à la pression de confinement de 12,5, 25,0 et 37,5 MPa. Dans les essais de compression triaxiale vraie la contrainte principale minimale (s3) était de 25,0 MPa et la contrainte principale intermédiaire (s2) était 1,5, 2 et 2,5 fois supérieure de s3. Il résulte des essais que la pression de confinement inhibe fortement le processus de dilatance dans les échantillons testés dans les conditions de compression triaxiale conventionnelle; l’augmentation de la pression provoquait l’augmentation du compactage du matériau rocheux. Le phénomène de dilatance était également limité de façon significative par la contrainte principale intermédiaire. Alors que l’importante déformation volumique négative correspondait à la contrainte différentielle ultime avec les faibles contraintes principales intermédiaires, dans les conditions de fortes contraintes intermédiaires, le matériau rocheux subissait l'endommagement de façon beaucoup moins importante. En résultat, la rupture des échantillons rocheux au stade post-maximum était beaucoup plus violente et accompagnée d’un fort effet acoustique. Prismatische Probekörper des mittelkörnigen Sandsteines aus dem Bergwerk ‘Slask’ (das Oberschlesische Kohlengebiet, Polen) wurden unter der einaxialen Druckbeanspruchung, konventionellen dreiaxialen Druckbeanspruchung und der echten dreiaxialen Druckbeanspruchung geprüft. Konventionelle dreiaxiale Druckversuche wurden bei dem Manteldruck von 12,5 25,0 und 37,5 MPa durchgeführt. Bei den echten dreiaxialen Druckversuchen betrug die kleinste Hauptspannung (s3) 25,0 MPa und mittlere Hauptspannung (s2) war 1,5-, 2- und 2,5-mal höher als s3. Aus den durchgeführten Versuchen ergibt sich, dass der Manteldruck die Dilatanzentwicklung bei den Probekörpern unter der konventionellen dreiaxialen Druckbeanspruchung stark bremst; die Erhöhung des Druckes rief die ansteigende Kompaktion des Gesteinsmaterials hervor. Die Dilatanz wurde auch durch die mittlere Hauptspannung beschränkt. Während die wesentlichen volumetrischen, dilatanten Verformungen der Grenzdifferenzspannung bei den niedrigen mittleren Hauptspannungen entsprachen, bei den hohen mittleren Hauptspannungen wurde das Gesteinsmaterial viel weniger beschädigt. Im Ergebnis war der Scherbruch der Gesteinsproben im Post-Peak-Bereich viel heftiger und mit kräftigen akustischen Effekten verbunden.

Jan 1, 2003

By C. W. Spencer, J. T. Smith

GRAIN-BOUNDARY surfaces are penetrated by a liquid phase when the liquid-solid interfacial tension is less than one-half the tension of the grain-boundary surfaces. Grain growth may occur in the presence of this liquid phase. burke1 reports that grain growth of this nature has been observed in two-phase ceramic systems. He suggests that the presence of a grain-boundary liquid may accelerate or decelerate the

Jan 1, 1963

By W. Z. Rogers

U.S. feldspar output sold or used in 2005 was an estimated 760 kt (838,000 st), valued at $44 million free-on-board plant. This was below the 2004 volume and was the second year of decline in a row. Output included flotation concentrates, feldspar content in feldspar-silica mixtures, potash feldspar and aplite. The strong housing market in the United States maintained demand for ceramic tiles, plumbing fixtures and fiberglass insulation requiring feldspar. Shipments of glass containers were about the same as in 2004. Imports of ceramic tiles and plumbing fixtures continued to increase, taking the place of U.S.-produced goods and the feldspar required to make them. For 2005, 80 percent of the ceramic tiles sold and 50 percent of the plumbing fixtures sold in the United States were imported. Since 2000, manufacturing plant closures in the plumbing fixtures industry have reduced the demand for feldspar and feldspar-silica mixtures by 100 kt (110,000 st). Increased demand from the ceramic tile industry has partially offset the lost volume.

Jan 1, 2006

Gold mining in Australia and globally has a long and variable history. In recent years, due to ongoing public concern over long-term environmental impacts, the mining industry globally has been moving towards a more sustainable framework, presented as the æMining, Minerals and Sustainable DevelopmentÆ (MMSD) framework at the Johannesburg Earth Summit in 2002. There are a number of fundamental issues and concerns with assessing the sustainability of mining. Firstly, long-term trends show that ore grades for almost all metals and minerals will continue to decline (some rapidly so), increasing waste rock is being produced due to the trend towards large-scale open cut mining and more complex ores are now commonly being developed. The impact of these trends on the resource intensity, or unit cost, of gold production is of major concern as it could lead to an increase in energy, water and reagent consumption and greenhouse emissions per unit gold produced. A detailed compilation of these fundamental sustainability indices for gold mining has been undertaken, and is presented with respect to indices over time, ore grade and ore throughput. A clear observation is that the resource intensity of gold mining is extremely sensitive to the ore grade, with energy, water and cyanide consumption and greenhouse emissions rising significantly as ore grade decreases. Based on the gold ore resources at operating mines and other known gold deposits, it is most likely that the average gold ore grade will continue to decline, leading to increased resource intensity and consequent environmental impacts (assuming no breakthrough new technologies occur). These findings are of major importance to understanding the sustainability of gold mining. The final judgement of the sustainability of gold mining therefore must take into account the sensitivity of the ore grade in the resource intensity of gold production.

Jan 1, 2007

By William L. Rice

This Bureau of Mines Open Pile Report on cobalt is one of a series of minerals availability commodity deposit abstracts. Nonconfidential information from the Minerals Availability Program data base covering domestic and foreign cobalt properties and deposits has been abstracted for use in his report. Abstracts include applicable data on location, published reserves and resources, geology, mine and beneficiation systems, and operation information.

Jan 1, 2011

By R. A. Bergman

"Process descriptions are provided for the following ten plants that treat high-magnesia lateritic nickel ores (saprolite) by pyrometallurgical means: PT Aneka Tambang; Cerro Matoso S.A.; Falconbridge Dominicana C. por A.; Hyuga Smelting Company Ltd.; Larco (Societé Minière & Métallurgique de Larymna); Loma de Niquel; Le Nickel, SLN-Eramet; Nippon Yakin Kogyo Company Ltd.; Pacific Metals Company Ltd.; and PT Inco Indonesia.Flowsheets, equipment information,chemistry and production data have been compiledfor plants based on both information providedby the companies and on calculated massand energy balances.IntroductionNickel is of vital importance to modern society. Without it, we would not be able to enjoy many of the things that we take for granted, such as computers, airplanes and stainless steel appliances in our homes and workplaces, to mention a few.Nickel occurs in nature both as sulphide and oxide ores. Approximately 36% of the nickel reserves in the Western World occur as sulphide and 64% as oxide ores. Sulphide ores respond to concentration processes, whereas, oxide ores do not. Sulphide ores mined at 1% nickel can be readily concentrated to 10% nickel, whereas, oxide ores cannot be concentrated and therefore have to be processed as mined.Laterite ores are normally classified intotwo groups:1. The high-magnesia ores, saprolites or serpentines, are, as a rule, processed by smelting. The main reason for this is that the nickel replaces magnesium in the magnesium-silicate lattice. To be able to recover nickel, the lattice has to be destroyed. This can be achieved by smelting under reducing conditions.Acid leaching is also possible, but in this case, large amounts of MgSO4 or MgCl2 will be produced making it costly to regenerate the acid.2. The high-iron, low-magnesia ores are known as limonite. The nickel is relatively loosely bonded to goethite and hence can be recovered by selective reduction followed by ammonium-ammonium carbonate leaching. In recently developed processes, these ores are also being extracted by acid pressure leaching, with high Ni and Co recoveries.This paper focusses on the production of ferronickel and nickel matte from the highmagnesia ores."

Jan 1, 2003

By Joseph L. Young, Richard A. Bohling

To keep Homestake's Bulldog Mountain silver and lead mining and milling operation in southwestern Colorado workable, natural ground water and decant water from the mine's sand backfilling operation must be continually pumped from the workings. Left untreated, this water exceeds maximum allowable levels for various contaminants that may be discharged to the environment. To comply with regulations, a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit was obtained and a mine water treatment plant for heavy metals removal was constructed in 1977. Due to equipment capacity and operational problems, and the lack of on-site technical personnel and analytic equipment, the first water treatment plant could not consistently meet permit limits. In 1979, Homestake entered into a consent decree with EPA and the Colorado Department of Health, calling for the construction of a water treatment facility to meet NPDES permit limits. Initial construction began in the spring of 1980 and the plant now produces effluent acceptable for discharge.

Jan 12, 1981

By Byron T. Darnton

Gravity concentration at the Pegasus Gold/Montana Tunnels Mine, near Helena, MT, began in June 1991 when a coarse-gold-scalping circuit was commissioned. It processes a small portion of the ball-mill circulating load to reduce the risk of gold particles that are too coarse to float from advancing to flotation. The circuit also cost-effectively enhances overall gold recovery and payable gold ounces. This gravity circuit has been a major success. Since the circuit was commissioned, throughput has increased 30%. Several modifications and improvements were made during the last three years that allowed the gravity circuit to keep pace with the higher tonnage. The overall approach to gravity concentration at Montana Tunnels has always been to optimize production rather than maximize the gold ounces produced. This philosophy has now yielded a circuit expansion and relocation project. It will allow for an estimated 50% increase in gravity gold production, while significantly reducing the unit costs of production.

Jan 1, 1995

By R. Rosenblum, J. Y. Kim, D. Shink, K. G. Stowe

"A small scale continuous flotation cell was designed and constructed at the Noranda Technology Centre to develop a mobile testing flotation circuit located next to the production circuit. This mobile small scale flotation pilot plant can easily and economically be set up at any circuit in a mill and used to evaluate and predict plant performance against a given flotation condition. The main feature of the cell, beside the provisions of automatic pulp level and feed rate control, is to provide a reduced surface to volume ratio approaching to that of an industrial machine.This paper describes the basic design and the results of various testwork carried out to date including aeration, conditioning, reagents, recirculation, flotation gas, etc. are presented in comparison with the plant production results. INTRODUCTIONStudy of the behaviour of an ore during concentration by flotation process starts, in general, with a series of tests in laboratory cells. Given the discontinuous nature of these tests, the information obtained by such a study is somewhat limited. It has long been recognized that laboratory test results are not always reproducible in pilot plant tests and subsequently, the pilot plant results do not always predict plant performance. The differences are often blamed on batch vs continuous operations, grinding media, size distribution, aging (oxidation), water quality, equipment, operator's skills, etc."

Jan 1, 1992

By Pierre Gaucher

It is possible to selectively mine an orebody by combining the use of the SSW probe with any bulk mining methods as well as narrow vein exploitations. In other words, thanks to the use of the SSW probe, mining operators will be able to reduce and control dilution that is generally associated to every mining operation. Already, quick and substantial savings have been obtained. Falconbridge mines have demonstrated in Sudbury and Raglan operations, that the SSW probe can log nickel, copper and iron sulphides in blast holes. They have raised the grade and reduced dilution by outlining the limits of the ore zones before selectively loading explosives in the blast holes. By lowering the probe in a blast hole, a profile of the ore content is instantly measured and recorded. Logging cored diamond drill holes at the mine have demonstrated that the ore content (nickel, copper, cobalt, PGM) as assayed is proportional to the intensity of the probe?s electromagnetic response (EM), probably because the nickel / pyrrhotite ratio is uniform within a given orebody. The probe also measures the intrinsic conductivity of the sulphides and the percentage of magnetite. All probe readings are displayed and automatically stored at a 10-cm interval within the same reading unit. A 30-meter blast hole takes less than 2 minutes to survey. The whole instrument is light (12 kg) and very simple to use. One operator can carry the SSW system and survey either down or up-holes. The probe works from ?40°C to +50°C. Plotting the measurements of the SSW probe in blast holes (2-3-4-6-10 inches in diameter) before blasting allows to determine the exact shape of the orebody within the waste rock and uneconomic low-grade ore. Thus, only the portion of the holes that contains ore is blasted. The dilution is then much reduced and, by leaving the waste and low-grade ore in place, the mine saves on transportation, blasting, crushing, backfilling, milling, etc. Thousands of dollars are thus saved. Some savings may also be achieved during the development of stopes by guiding development drifts and by replacing diamond drilling by percussion drilling. In some circumstances, when the probe shows that some of the rich ore was not drilled-off, additional blast holes will allow to recover pockets of rich ore that otherwise would have been abandoned in the walls of a stope.

Oct 1, 2001

By W. Timothy Adams

The production of natural abrasives varied in quantity and value compared with 1976. Output of tripoli-type materials was approximately the same in both quantity and value. Special silica stone products decreased in quantity and increased in value. Garnet production decreased both in quantity and value. The production of emery increased and the production and value of manufactured abrasive material was approximately the same. Foreign Trade Imports of abrasive materials were 23% more in value than in 1976, and exports plus reexports increased in value 10%. Net imports, the excess of imports over exports and reexports, were $35.3 million. The volume and value of all abrasive materials exported varied.

Jan 1, 1980