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By J L. Carpenter, S M. Iveson, K P. Galvin

Wet beneficiation of iron ore fines less than 1 mm typically involves a desliming stage ahead of the fine gravity separation such as spirals. The desliming is achieved using a bank of cyclones. The reject ultra-fines emerge in the overflow stream at relatively low pulp density, contain high proportions of low-value slimes, but also well-liberated iron ore ultra-fines below 0.045 mm in size; however, recovering the valuable iron ore ultra-fines from this overflow stream presents a significant challenge due to the need to remove such a large amount of water and slimes.The REFLUX™ Graviton consists of distinct 3D-printed modular units, based on REFLUX™ Classifiers, which are rotated at high speed in a large centrifuge. This system has previously been investigated under semi-batch conditions, demonstrating the potential for precision separations with significant capacity. It has been shown that the throughput advantage of the inclined channels and G forces multiply. This is the first paper presented showing the performance of this system under continuous steady-state conditions. Ultra-fine silica in the size range of 0 to 0.045 mm was fed to the Graviton at different volumetric rates, fluidisation rates and pulp densities ranging from 2 wt per cent to 30 wt per cent, in order to develop a fundamental understanding of the system’s performance. Experiments were then repeated using ultra-fine iron ore.CITATION:Carpenter, J L, Iveson, S M and Galvin, K P, 2017. Separation of ultra-fine particles using the REFLUX™ Graviton, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2017, pp 141–148 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 24, 2017

Much of the coal and gold mining industry of New Zealand is small scale. Funding is tight and mechanisation limited. The country has many well documented small coalfields (some with significant outcropping) and alluvial gold deposits. These are generally remote, difficult to access (physically and otherwise) and of submarginal value (largely a consequence of size when viewed for extraction by traditional techniques). The industry is also burdened by environmental and bureaucratic constraints. The above over simplified setting suggests to the Author, a newcomer to New Zealand, the opportunity to consider some novel concepts based on technology and techniques developed overseas or borrowed from other industry sectors. The objective being to make viable in economic and environmental terms projects that might otherwise be stillborn if considered for exploitation by conventional means. The paper mainly discusses 2 concepts focusing on the application of augers for exposed high wall or outcrop coal and micro-tunnelling augers for alluvial gold extraction. These may be considered high mobility 'container' (as in shipping container) packaged, or 'non invasive' mining systems. It is stressed that these are but concepts and have yet to be subjected to rigorous financial or engineering scrutiny. This could only follow their acceptance by, and input from, New Zealand miners. There will also be brief mention of a new modular conveyor system which might have application within the concepts or existing small scale mineral extraction operations and mention of a project currently in progress to apply tangible 'sustainability' to underground coal mining.

Jan 1, 1996

By I Ross, C deWolfe

Block caving has been the favoured mining method for large underground hard rock mines for the last few decades. The orebody must be of a size large enough to cave and generally amenable to a caving method. Typically, these mines ranged from 15 000 to 50 000 tonnes per day (50 kt/d) and have been some of the largest and most productive underground mines in the world.Now mining companies, in the quest for improved shareholder return, are looking for higher production rates from new underground mines. Whether a ‘Greenfields’ development, or a replacement for ageing large open pit mines, minimising capital and maximising production has been a focus of project teams. These new block cave mines are what have become known as ‘super caves’. These caves range from 80 kt/d to over 150 kt/d and are being planned or constructed by several major mining companies including Codelco, Freeport-McMoRan, Newcrest and Rio Tinto.Issues facing these super caves include high initial capital costs, very long development periods and significant technical challenges. These issues tend to make it difficult to present an attractive business case for such a project.This paper will discuss some of the potential benefits as well as the technical challenges and risks of operating a mine with the block or panel caving method at these very high tonnage rates. Considerations including geotechnical conditions, development rates, panel widths and ore column heights are discussed. The risks associated with these technical challenges and potential benefits for successful approaches will also be discussed.CITATION:deWolfe, C and Ross, I, 2016. Super caves – benefits, considerations and risks, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 51–58 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016

ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE INSTITUTE (MR. J. G. SYMONS) IN PRESENTING THE MEDAL TO LAURENCE CHARLES BRODlE-HALL, C.M.G.The Institute Medal is awarded to a select band of people who have rendered great service to the mining industry and the community. Tonight it is my privilege to present the 1976 Institute Medal to one of our members, Mr L. C. Brodie-Hall, C.M.G.Laurence Charles Brodie-Hall, as chief executive in Western Australia for Western Mining Corporation Limited (WMC) from 1958 to his retirement in 1975, had a profound influence on the company's growth and development which had a significant influence on the prosperity of the State of Western Australia and, in turn, Australia.Following the company's decision in 1952 to diversify from gold mining, he took a leading part in the exploration and development of the bauxite deposits in the Darling Ranges by a subsidiary company, Western Aluminium N.L., and the subsequent formation of Alcoa of Australia Limited, the development of the first long term export contract for iron ore from Western Australia, the development of the nickel deposits at Kambalda and the subsequent establishment of a nickel refinery and nickel smelter in Western Australia.

Jan 1, 1977

By Wilson G. L, Lord J. H

A detailed analysis of faulting indicatcs that blocks of "greenstone" have been thrust beneath the southern end of the Mt. Isa orebodies.This "greenstone" basement is considered to be a major structural control in the localization of these orebodies.INTRODUCTIONThis paper is based on exploration carried out by Mining Corporation (Aust.) N.L. from 1956 to 1960 in the area immediately south of Mt. Isa, Queensland. During this period over 20,000 ft of diamond drilling was completed together with costeaning and geochemical exploration.Early in 1959, it became apparent that diamond drill information could not be correlated with the current geological concepts of this area and a detailed geological appraisal became necessary. In all, sixty square miles were mapped at a scale of 1 in. to 500 ft, using enlarged aerial photographs. All drill core was logged and sections re-interpreted.Professor K. C. Dunham of the University of Durham consulted on this project and contributed through valuable discussion. Dr. A. Day of the University of Sydney carried out a gravity survey in February 1960 and Dr. H. Wilshire of the same University undertook microscopic examination of rocks from the area. Certain sections of the area were investigated geochemically by Mr. K. K. Hughes of New Consolidated Gold Fields (Asia) Pty. Limited in 1960.In outlining a theory of ore genesis in the area the writers have drawn heavily on the invaluable data published by many previous workers on the Mt. Isa field, in particular...

Jan 1, 1963

By P Oikkonen

Sprayed concrete has played an integral role in underground rock support for nearly a century. However, concrete is also considered to be one of the biggest environmental problems in construction and mining, largely because of the high carbon footprint of cement and aggregates production. This is driving the industry to find ways to cut concrete usage where possible. Improving sustainability by cutting concrete material consumption also reduces application time and costs. Improving concrete properties can make it possible to design thinner linings, but as awareness of safety and longer design lifetimes are driving developments in the opposite direction, it is not realistic to see this as a major factor in cutting concrete consumption. More accessible solutions are focusing on layer thickness control and minimising rebound and wastage. Digital technology and innovation offer excellent tools for improving sustainability while optimising other aspects of the spraying process at the same time. A digital layer thickness control system gives near-real-time information to the sprayer operator with full coverage of the sprayed surface. This enables the operator to achieve consistent layer thickness on the first pass, in comparison to the traditional methods of overspraying with the aim of achieving sufficient layer thickness, probe drilling after the concrete has set, and respraying at a later stage if needed. Operator competence is the single biggest variable in a successful sprayed concrete process, affecting rebound and wastage levels. Unfortunately, the learning curve to become a master sprayer is quite steep and training on a real sprayer and real concrete requires a significant amount of time and money. Training in a virtual reality (VR) environment enables operator training to be carried out in a low-risk environment and provides a way of measuring performance and assessing and certifying the operators. After the VR training period, a novice nozzle operator has the basic understanding to start working on a real sprayer, and an experienced nozzle operator can benefit from the possibility of assessing their performance.

Mar 29, 2023

By Gerasimenko MP

The authors consider the features and advantages of a new promising trend in mineral processing - column flotation. Design aerohydrodynamic and process characteristics of pilot-scale columns are studied. Optimum process parameters for various ores and operations are studied. Flow patterns in cells of various cross-sections are investigated and the relationship between Peclet criterion and specific capacity of cell is determined. On this basis options were developed for optimisation of hydrodynamic characteristics of large capacity cells, including longitudinal sectionalising of the collection zone. It is shown that advantages of high column cells (10 - 13 m) produced in the West can be implemented in a sectionalised machine of smaller height (5 - 6 m). Investigations on the influence of slurry and air bubbles flow patterns indicated that to increase flotation rate of particles of various flotabilities it is expedient to combine co- and counter-current flows of phases in a single column. The proposed designs allow tailings to repeatedly return tailings to the collection zone and alternate co- and counter-current slurry and air flows. For the first time columns with alternating slurry flows (combination of co- and counter-current flows) are developed and commercialised. Unique multi-sectional cells having a number of essential advantages compared to monocells are developed. Design features of the cell allow: implementation of different flotation process flowsheets in a single unit, improved beneficiation process results, reduced specific power requirement, and elimination of sludging of the aerator and cell bottom part. Operational problems restricting introduction of column cells are connected with the aeration unit. The new cells are supplied with pneumohydraulic and stepped airlift spargers, allowing control of bubble size distribution with a service life of not less than three years. Successful operation of the new generation of columns with cell volumes of 15, 25, 40, and 80 cu m and the height of 5 - 6 m in copper, molybdenum, antimony, tungsten and nickel ores and coal slurry processing at different plants in this country illustrated their considerable process and operational advantages and verified the proposed options and relationships. A simulation technique of the flotation process and models for the solution of various problems are developed. A modular model of column flotation is constructed taking into account the kinetic relationship of the process and the hydrodynamic regime in the cell. Based on this, a technique of calculating the column parameters based on laboratory tests is developed (scaling-up), and applied for calculating the design of commercial-scale columns is developed.

Jan 1, 1993

Interest in mining narrow, vein-type ones has increased world-wide during the last few years despite the fact that prices of metals have not risen in proportion as production costs of mining, such as labour and energy. In many mines, where narrow ones are mined, the mining technique and equipment used have been poorly mechanised. The mining methods have been cut-and-fill or shrinkage stoping. Pneumatic jack-legs have been used for drilling and slushers have been used for loading. The methods that have been used can be called the 'first-generation' methods. Work has been very hard for miners. It has been dangerous and exhausting. Production volumes of mines, and a s a result of that, also profits have been low.

Jan 1, 1990

Permitting, engineering and evaluation, detailed design and construction aspects of the Golden Cross goldmining project in New Zealand are briefly reviewed. The extremely lengthy and complicated governmental approval process together with the delaying tactics of opponents of the project are outlined and comment is made on aspects of the draft legislation proposed as part of the overhaul of New Zealand's resource management laws.

Jan 1, 1990

Attention is drawn to the largest eruptions with dense rock equivalent (D.R.E.) volumes approx-imating 50 km3. These have been strongly clustered during the last 40 000 years, with 11 recognised in the period 35 000 to 22 000 years ago, and 10 in about the last 9000 years, but none in the period 22 000 to 9000 years ago. With the latest such eruption, at Tambora, only 175 years ago, it is likely that we remain in a period of increased activity. During the last 100 000 years, roughly the period during which modern Homo sapiens has existed as a species, there has only been one eruption an order of magnitude larger (>_ 500 km3 D.R.E.). This took place at Lake Toba, Sumatra, about 75 000 years ago, and is estimated to have deposited ash to a thickness of a centimetre or so in parts of Ethiopia, Somaliland, Saudi Arabia and Iran, and to a thickness of a few millimetres in the eastern Mediterranean. The average interval between global eruptions of this magnitude is probably about 40 000 to 50 000 years. Insufficient work on the Quaternary history of volcanoes has been carried out to suggest where the next such eruption might occur. At Yellowstone, which has been well studied, the average interval between very large explosive eruptions is about 700 000 ¦ 120 000 years.As a prerequisite for magnitude-frequency analysis of eruptions, and hazard and risk impact assessments, it is important to classify past eruptions in a consistent manner. In an attempt to find a universally applicable method to estimate order of magnitude D.R.E. volumes from the distribution of airfall tephra, an empirical correction has been derived for the elongation of tephra dispersal fans due to wind. Dispersion distances for various thicknesses of tephra, recalculated for windless conditions, have been obtained from a study of about 40 tephra isopach maps for which D.R.E. volumes have been calculated, and a range of distances derived, equivalent to D.R.E. volumes from 106 m3

Jan 1, 1990

By F F. Pitard, K J. Ehrig

The Olympic Dam iron-oxide copper-gold (IOCG) uranium-silver deposit is second in size only to Norilsk, the gigantic metalliferous deposit. Olympic Dam is the largest publicly declared uranium, fifth largest copper and third largest gold resource. The deposit is typified by texturally destructive brecciation and intense iron metasomatism of the Roxby Downs Granite, bedded clastic facies rocks and mafic-ultramafic dykes. The deposit contains over 100 minerals. Copper mineralisation consists of chalcopyrite, bornite and chalcocite. Uraninite, coffinite and brannerite are the dominant uranium-bearing minerals. Gold mineralisation consists of electrum, tellurides and Au-Cu alloys. Hessite is the major silver-bearing mineral. The economic minerals are disseminated throughout the breccia matrix where the average grain sizes of the Cu-sulfide, uranium, gold and silver minerals are ~50, 20, <5, <5 microns, respectively.A significant number of sampling theory-based test programs have been completed since the mid-1990s to establish sampling nomographs, select appropriate sampling (ie split versus chip and interval lengths) and sample preparation protocols, quantify the errors associated with each subsampling stage, determine the practical uncertainty limits of Olympic Dam matrix-matched standards, and identify improvement opportunities related to the ongoing assaying quality assurance / quality control (QA/QC) program. Invaluable knowledge and unexpected insights gained from sampling studies at Olympic Dam have helped to improve our understanding of the distribution of economic and deleterious elements within the Olympic Dam deposit.CITATION:Ehrig, K J and Pitard, F F, 2017. Underground bulk sampling, uniform conditioning and conditional simulation – unrealistic expectations?, in Proceedings Eighth World Conference on Sampling and Blending , pp 21–28 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2017

By A Chadwick, J de Ross, C Adams

Imagine a æshinyÆ new mine, $1 B in the bank and record commodity prices. So how does a company and its management team create enough tension to maximise profit and to establish a culture that can weather the good and bad times?That was exactly the situation the team at OZ MineralsÆ world class Prominent Hill mine in South Australia faced in 2009.Three years later, the harder times have come - lower though still healthy commodity prices, rising industry costs, fierce competition for talent, geological and technical issues (common to developing mines). However, the company was able to maximise profit during the good times and equip the culture to deal with the tougher times with minimal turnover.Through the combination of simple systems and processes, people development, application of commercial technical acumen and a combination of yin and yang leadership, OZ Minerals has achieved something quite rare - sustainable continuous improvement.The journey started with a vision. The EGM Operations created the æsparkÆ. The dream was to create a æfranchise mineÆ that could be rolled out to new mines and acquisitions as the company grew. However, the real leadership came from his lieutenants who provided the important yin and yang. The GM commercial provided the tools, processes, systems and the bottom line focus. The GM operations focused on culture, leadership, training and sustainability. This powerful combination (along with some good old persistence) was able to create the critical mass required to make continuous improvement go æviralÆ.This paper explores this unique case to uncover the essential ingredients that were created and mixed together. It will touch on the key human, technical and system elements that helped achieve significant improvements in plant recoveries, mine throughput and operational efficiencies, while overcoming human capacity, geotechnical and contractual challenges.CITATION:de Ross, J, Chadwick, A and Adams, C, 2012. How to create a perfect storm, in Proceedings International Mine Management 2012, pp 239-250 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 20, 2012

By S Morgan, A Jakowetz, S Taylor, B Weekes, S Litson, P Bourke, T L. Do

In the current tough mining environment with lower commodity prices, operators need to improve operational profitability. Optimised equipment asset management is a sustainable way to achieve this objective. The increased efficiency of installed process equipment positively contributes to the circuit performance, affecting metallurgical performance, plant availability and operating costs. Nui Phao Mining Company Limited (NPMC) operates a polymetallic mine located in Vietnam. The circuit produces four main products, tungsten, fluorspar, bismuth and copper. Tungsten is the major revenue producer. The operation experienced the following equipment inefficiencies in its copper and bulk sulfide flotation (BSF) circuits:• lower than expected metallurgical performance - the BSF rougher flotation tails contained coarse (+106 µm) sulfur minerals which affected the downstream tungsten gravity circuit. The unrecovered sulfur competed with tungsten minerals affecting both tungsten recovery and product grade. • structural integrity and safety - the flotation circuit structures experienced excessive vibration beyond the acceptable tolerance levels. The vibration was attributed to the flotation mechanism design and impeller tip speeds. • equipment reliability and wear life issues - the flotation mechanisms were being replaced every six months, with reported failures at three months. This resulted in high operational costs. A mineralogical evaluation of the ore indicated that the coarse sulfur minerals were well liberated and relatively rich in pyrrhotite and pyrite. It was predicted that these particles should be recoverable by flotation under optimum conditions. NPMC worked collaboratively with Outotec to investigate options to improve the metallurgical performance of both sulfur and tungsten. A review of the copper and BSF rougher circuit infrastructure was also undertaken and focused on reducing the structural vibration and improving mechanism wear life. Prior to the circuit upgrade, laboratory and pilot testing was conducted to validate the circuit improvements. The final solution included the installation of Outotec FloatForce® mechanisms in the existing copper and BSF rougher circuits, and a new flash circuit (SkimAir®) treating the rougher tails stream ahead of the tungsten gravity circuit. The flash circuit is unique, as typically these types of cells are installed in grinding circuits. By March 2016, all circuit upgrades were complete, however the initial metallurgical performance was below expectations. NPMC and Outotec worked together to investigate and improve performance through further equipment modifications. Since October 2016, the metallurgical performance has improved significantly. Coarse sulfur mineral recovery has improved, resulting in an overall increase in recovery of sulfur and tungsten of 4.7% and 2.7% respectively. The Outotec FloatForce mechanism has also delivered operational benefits, with a reduction in structural vibration to within acceptable levels (<4.0 mm/s) and an improvement in mechanism wear life by 150%. This paper discusses the BSF circuit upgrades and compares operational data before and after the upgrade to quantify the improvements in metallurgical performance, structural vibration and mechanism wear life. CITATION:Morgan, S, Weekes, B, Jakowetz, A, Litson, S, Taylor, S, Do, T L and Bourke, P, 2017. Nui Phao mine – flotation circuit upgrade, in Proceedings MetPlant 2017, pp 230–253 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 11, 2017

Natural Gas has been available in New Zealand for twenty years. During that time the gas share of the energy market has grown and now natural gas forms a significant part of New Zealand's energy scene, helping consumers to achieve a higher standard of living, and reducing dependence upon imported oil. Natural gas is now used for petrochemical manufacture and power generation in addition to direct supply to consumers. As concern for the environment continues to build, natural gas will have an increasingly important role to fill in these markets. This paper sets out the background to the development of natural gas in New Zealand and identifies the current markets. It then looks at those matters which are likely to influence the role of natural gas in the 1990s.

Jan 1, 1990

By J Light

Since 2019, the mine planning team at Olympic Dam has been establishing and maturing a shift from deterministic to probabilistic scheduling techniques. This paper outlines this journey undertaken by the mine planning team, key learnings from implementation and further work required to increase the level of planning maturity. Olympic Dam (OD) is a highly variable, polymetallic orebody with a vertically integrated value chain from operations to final product. The processing plant has a tight set of quality constraints which are managed through timing of stopes from varying parts of the orebody. Value is eroded for the operation when forecasted quality of the mine feed encounters disruptions from unplanned changes to the timing of stope starts. As production has moved from the historic Northern Mining Area into the more geologically complex Southern Mining Area, average stope size has reduced, resulting in increased mining fronts required to meet production targets. This has created a problem of increased schedule complexity and difficulties in identifying and communicating resource priorities within a large set of individual stope critical paths. The problem was approached by considering each stope as an individual project constructed by teams working across multiple projects at any one time. The operation could then be considered a multi-project environment with shared resources and enables the application of Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM) to the mine plan. Key to CCPM is the addition of time buffers to protect the critical path of a project form upstream or downstream processes. Implementation of time buffers protects the stope start date against compliance to plan variance. The monitoring of each time buffer consumption, as a proportion of total construction activities completed enables proactive prioritisation of resources. This resulted in an increase in the number of stopes starting in accordance with the mine plan, simplified communication of priorities to all levels of the operation, increased compliance to plan and a clear measure of schedule risk during planning routines.

Mar 29, 2023

By S Hapugoda, A Poliakov, E Donskoi, L Lu

A significant amount of metallic iron in the world is produced in blast furnaces from iron ore pellets. To control the quality of pellets and to optimise pellet production, characterisation of both green and fired pellets is required. Optical image analysis (OIA) allows identification of different minerals, binder, remaining fluxes and porosity within pellets.For proper identification of the mineralogy, porosity and texture in pellets a high magnification is required, therefore each individual image covers only a very small portion of the pellet. At the same time the characterisation of pellets requires that the whole pellet is represented as a single object, so the size of the resulting overall image at high magnification can make it difficult to handle. A solution to this problem has been implemented within the CSIRO OIA package Mineral4 by combining images at different levels. Namely, to average out local irregularities, individual frames can be stitched during imaging into larger MosaiX images. Mineral4 further combines these MosaiX images into a single panorama image of the whole pellet.The proposed procedures allow the calculation of mineral and porosity spatial distributions, local gradients and abundance graphs based on the distance from the centre of the pellet. The ‘Pellets’ module of CSIRO OIA software also allows for characterisation of large irregularly shaped particles of lump ore and sinter.CITATION:Poliakov, A, Donskoi, E, Hapugoda, S and Lu, L, 2017. Optical image analysis of iron ore pellets and lumps using CSIRO software Mineral/Recognition, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2017, pp 583–592 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 24, 2017

The Harmonious Design on the Beneficiability for the Pt-Pd Ores Containing High MgO Gangue in Yunnan

Sep 13, 2010

By J-M Huizenga, Q Shu, Y Lai, J Hammerli

"An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation. The Baiyinnuo’er Zn-Pb deposit is a typical skarn deposit in NE China. Skarn and orebodies mainly occur between different units of the Lower Permian Huanggangliang Formation carbonates-sandstone-mudstone or within the contact between intrusions and marble. Skarn minerals are dominated by prograde garnet and clinopyroxene, and the main ore minerals are sphalerite and galena. We conducted single fluid inclusion compositional studies using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry on clinopyroxene (pre-ore-stage mineral) and sphalerite and calcite (syn-ore-stage minerals). The results show that the Baiyinnuo’er fluids are distinctly different from basinal brine but similar to magmatic fluid, thereby indicating that the deposit has a dominantly magmatic origin. This interpretation has also been supported by the Cl/Br mole ratios, which remain stable (~500) in different fluid stages. The decreases for most of the elements in the fluid inclusions from pre-ore-stage clinopyroxene to syn-ore-stage sphalerite and calcite suggest that mixing with groundwater has occurred during mineralisation, with significant Zn, Pb and Ag deposition.CITATION:Shu, Q, Hammerli, J, Chang, Z, Lai, Y and Huizenga, J-M, 2015. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry study on fluid inclusions of the Baiyinnuo’er skarn Zn-Pb deposit, north-east China, in Proceedings PACRIM 2015 Congress, pp 451–456 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Mar 18, 2015

By L Barro

There is currently a worldwide interest in coal-oil technology as the search continues for alternative energy sources to reduce the consumption of petroleum crude. An important aspect of this coal-oil technology study is to obtain information on the flow properties of coal-oil slurries. While some work has been reported on the flow behaviour of black coal-oil suspensions, very little work on brown coal-oil suspensions has been reported. In this paper flow characteristics of brown coal-oil suspensions for various coal concentration and temperatures have been presented. A capillary rheometer, designed to handle settling suspension, has been used for determining rheological properties. Brown coal of 0.0725 mm average particle diameter has been used in this work. The oil was a coal derived product having a boiling point range of 234¦C - 319¦C. Apparent viscosity of all suspensions was found to increase on storage due to ageing. Ageing might have occurred due to physicochemical interactions between coal and oil. Flow behaviour of some suspensions changed from Newtonian to non-Newtonian on storage. Apparent viscosity increased sharply with increase in solids concentration and suspensions at higher concentration behaved as non Newtonian liquids. Viscosity decreased with increase in temperature; rate of decrease slowed down with increase in temperature.

Jan 1, 1980

By K Faure

At Sams Creek a gold-bearing, peralkaline granite pophyry dike intrudes Ordovician-Silurian metapelite and quartzite. These metasedimentary rocks have undergone three phases of folding: a first phase of recumbent folds (F1), a second phase (F2) of northerly-trending inclined folds with a prominent crenulation cleavage, and a third phase (F3) of steeply plunging folds. The granite porphyry dike has a thickness of up to 40 m and intrudes thin lamprophyre dikes along its contacts. Deflection of the crenulation cleavage around the granite dike, shearing within the dike and its sinuous outcrop pattern indicate that the granite dike has been deformed during F2 and F3. The granite has been hydrothermally altered, with a first stage of magnetite-ankerite alteration. This first stage is cut by a second stage of quartz-pyrite veins and a third stage of sulphide, quartz and ankerite veins, accompanied by pervasive silicification represented by quartz-perthite-albite-rutile¦pyrite-ankerite-sericite assemblages. Lamprophyre is altered to an ankerite-chlorite-sericite assemblage. The sulphide veins are composed of arsenopyrite + pyrite ¦ gold ¦ galena ¦ sphalerite ¦ chalcopyrite ¦ pyrrhotite. The altered granite and the veins have been deformed and recrystallised. The competent sulphide minerals pyrite and arsenopyrite are fractured and brecciated, with fractures locally filled by galena, a ductile sulphide mineral. Vein quartz shows local cataclastic and mortar textures and develops pressure shadows around arsenopyrite. Alteration and mineralisation are confined to the granite porphyry and adjacent lamprophyre. These features together with the style of veining and the sulphide mineralogy indicate that the mineralisation was formed from a magmatichydrothermal fluid that was sourced from the granite. Oxygen, carbon and sulphur isotope values of the vein minerals (quartz, ankerite and sulphides) are also consistent with a magmatic source.

Jan 1, 2003