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By Swayn G. P, Floyd J. M

BHAS, together with the G.K. Williams Laboratory, and Ausmelt Pty. Ltd., has examined a number of possible alternatives to conventional silver cupellation in gas fired reverberatory furnaces. Of these alternatives, a Sirosmelt furnace was preferred for both technical and economic reasons. Small scale work on Sirosmelt processes was carried out at the G.K. Williams Laboratory at Melbourne University in 1985/86. Pilot scale work was carried out at the Ausmelt plant in Melbourne in July 1987. Board approval for construction of a full size plant was received in October, 1988, and construction of the plant is currently underway. The plant is expected to provide significant savings in operating costs and silver inventory. Hygiene around the furnace should also be greatly improved. An increase in cupellation rate of at least ten times is expected, compared with the conventional reverberatory furnace.

Jan 1, 1989

By D Brereton, C J. Moran

Intensive resource extraction, in the form of multiple mining operations, presents significant assessment and management challenges for resource developers, governments, community and the environment. Cumulative impacts, ie the successive, incremental and combined impacts (both positive and negative) of an activity on society, the economy and the environment, can place significant pressure on social, economic and environmental capital and render conventional mine-by-mine approaches to management ineffective. Cumulative impacts can be what are most important to environments, communities and economies surrounded by multiple mining operations because cumulative impacts are what they experience. There is much to gain from increased consideration of cumulative impacts. Unmitigated impacts have the potential to delay or even prevent expansion of mining in existing and prospective areas. On the other hand proactive management of cumulative impacts can benefit regional environments and communities and contribute to the industryÆs social license to operate. Resources are often not the limiting factor to better cumulative impact management. More effective coordination of existing resources may go a long way toward mitigation and enhancement, and better planning and assessment may help avoid impacts and exploit opportunities for efficiency gains through reduced duplication. In this paper we draw from working examples to present five practical assessment and management strategies applicable to resource companies to enhance positive, and avoid and mitigate negative, cumulative impacts. The strategies are presented based on their capacity for achieving outcomes, ease of implementation and cost effectiveness and are drawn from a multi-year study on the assessment and management of cumulative impacts in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales and a follow-up study to improve cumulative impact assessment and management practice in the Australian coal mining industry, both reported elsewhere.  

Jan 1, 2009

By P Holt, M Allen

On the first of July, 2012, the Australian GovernmentÆs Clean Energy Act commenced. From this point, a price of $23/t of CO2-e will apply to facilities that trip the liability threshold. This first part of this paper concentrates on the mechanics of the Clean Energy Future legislation and how it will be applied to the mining and mineral processing industry.The second part of this paper contains analysis of the data presented for typical mine operations. Methodologies for constructing a carbon strategy are also presented. This will entail determining what the objectives of the carbon strategy are, and defining what the strategic priorities for a business should be. An action plan to address the risks identified from the Clean Energy Act is also developed as part of the strategy.Details such as the advantages and disadvantages of opting into the carbon price scheme for liquid fuels are shown. Other considerations such as the ability to acquire permits through the carbon farming initiative or through overseas clean development mechanism projects are explained.CITATION:Allen, M and Holt, P, 2012. Implications of the carbon price and developing a carbon strategy, in Proceedings International Mine Management 2012, pp 105-114 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 20, 2012

By S M. Denn

The Cawse nickel-cobalt operation is situated 50 km NW of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, at latitude30o22'30'' south and longitude 121o08'30'' east on the Kalgoorlie 1:250 000 geological map sheet (SH 51-9) (see Figure 1). The project is owned and operated by Centaur Nickel Pty Ltd (CTR) and was the first in Australia to commercially produce nickel metal and cobalt sulphide through pressure acid leach (PAL) technology. Cawse has a total resource base (all categories of resources + reserves) of 213 million tonnes Mt at 0.7 per cent Ni and 0.04 per cent Co, comprising 127 Mt at Cawse Central which is 100 per cent owned by CTR and 86 Mt at Cawse Extended where CTR has a 80 per cent equity. Cawse Extended is located immediately to the northwest of the Cawse Central leases. All current reserves (proved and probable) of 30 Mt at 1.0 per cent nickel are contained within Cawse Central. In addition the Siberia project area 20 kilometres to the NW has a resource of 63 Mt at 0.7 per cent Ni. Cawse is a dry laterite deposit, with nickel and cobalt hosted by iron and manganese oxides. Cawse Central mineralisation extends over a ten kilometre strike length, with three pits currently being mined. The Bunyip pit has the premier nickel and cobalt grades within Cawse Central. There are seven dominant lithology types forming mappable units within current pit exposures. Four of these units are host to nickel and cobalt mineralisation. Ore types are defined as Upgrade, Grind and Non-upgrade, depending on their physical characteristics with respect to the treatment route. Mining commenced in February 1998. To the end of calender 1999 the operation has produced 2100 tonnes nickel plate and 470 tonnes of cobalt as a cobalt sulphide product. Future production will target 9000 tonnes per annum Ni metal and up to 2000 tonnes per annum Co, based on processing 500 000 tonnes of ore per annum.

Jan 1, 2000

By S H. Burgmans, B Anderson

This paper aims to define the specific challenges relating to dredging fine tailings from an above ground storage facility for transferral to a mined-out pit. In addition, it compares dredging and mining perspectives on dredging of fine tailings.

Jul 1, 2021

By J Loeb, J Dampney, P Cameron

Optimisation of Blast Design and Execution must be done right the first time. It is too late after the ore is broken. Consequences of poor design and execution negatively affect productivity from load and haul through the primary crusher to processing and hence reduce mine site profits. Harnessing and utilising ‘big data’ from geology, geometallurgy, drill hole location, powder loading, blast timing, blast movement and fragmentation to close the loop in blast design and optimise the blast increases productivity across the entire value chain from Mine to Mill. As the internet of things and artificial intelligence increases the quantity of data available, being able to capture and utilise this data to advantage is a challenge. Recent advances in software and hardware together with the increased power of cloud computing allows engineers to close the blasting loop to increase mine site productivity. Numerous case studies over the years detail significant gains from implementing the innovative technologies available to Mine to Mill projects. The opportunity is available for all members of the multi-discipline teams at each mine site to actively ensure productivity improvements are realised and maintained not only in their area, or silo of responsibility but across the entire mine site. This paper refers to recent case studies which outline how significant improvements in productivity are available to all mining operations to increase mine site profitability and dividends to shareholders.

Jun 22, 2022

By D Kahler

Modern gold production from the Gympie Goldfield commenced in 1995 with the first production from the Monkland Mine. The primary ore target was the 2.5 m wide Inglewood Fault ore zone, which was initially mined using traditional narrow-vein shrink stoping. This manuallyintensive mining method allowed the mine to re-open with minimal capital cost, however the trade off was low productivity and high operating costs. As the mine has developed, access through 100-year-old, timber-lined, small shafts, and the high cost of delineating reserves, has restricted modernisation of the operations. In early-2000 a stockwork lode was discovered adjacent to the existing workings with an economic width of 40 m. In order to maximise the benefit of such an orebody, mining needed to be approached in a new way. This paper summarises the many changes implemented at the Monkland Mine, including the necessary cultural change, implementing long-hole stoping, de-bottlenecking and the application of mechanisation. The result has been a significant improvement in safety performance, higher productivity and a more secure future for all those involved in the project.

Jan 1, 2002

By L Nagy, K P. Juhasz

The authors were engaged to optimise a traditional rebar cage reinforced concrete segmental lining by means of finite element analysis (FEA) using macro synthetic fibres for the Shanghai metro extension. The aim of this study was to reduce or entirely replace the original steel reinforcement of the segmental lining, in order to make the precast production process faster and more economic. The outer diameter of the tunnel was 6200 mm, the thickness of the segments was 350 mm.The numerical calculations were performed by Atena Finite Element software, which is based on the combination of Menétrey-William and Rankine failure surfaces on the compression and tension sides respectively. The effect of the macro synthetic fibres was modelled as tension stiffening on the tension surface.A one-to-one full scale model of an assembled tunnel ring using the original reinforcement cages was tested at Tongji University in Shanghai, July 2013. The ring was tested to differing load levels where load and displacement were measured until failure. The author’s first step was to calculate the real displacement characteristics of the original reinforced concrete (RC) ring, then calculate the numerically modelled version, so as to compare them. The material parameters of the concrete and rebar used had been determined through basic material tests conducted at the Tongji University. (Bi, Liu and Wang, in press).The numerical modelling undertaken has shown good correlation with the full-scale physical test results. Optimisation of the lining reinforcement was achieved through the addition of fibres, resulting in a substantial reduction of the steel rebar cages. Several results have been computed with the numerical model using different dosages of macro synthetic fibres, showing that the mass of steel reinforcement could be reduced by 50 and 75 per cent respectively.CITATION:Juhasz, K P, Nagy, L and Winterberg, R, 2014. Full-round numerical modelling of a macro synthetic fibre reinforced tunnel boring machine tunnel in the Shanghai Metro extension, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 477–484 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

The paper continues an account, begun in a previous paper, of experimental work carried out by the author whilst a member of the metallurgical staff at the Cockle Creek Works. The general method of the description of the plant and works practice adopted previously has been followed.The paper is a short account of the methods used in and the results of an investigation of the fume losses from the various parts of the plant.MEASUREMENT OF VOLUMETwo independent methods were used. The first depended on a number of pitot-tube measurements of velocity. These readings were taken in the stacks leading from the various furnaces at a considerable height above the ground so as to obtain as regular conditions as possible at the points where the readings were taken.Three openings were made in each stack and the pitot tube inserted into each opening in turn and readings taken at the centres of imaginary areas of equal size. The average velocity in the stack was thus obtained.After four tests had been made at the smelter stack, which removed the gases from all blast furnaces in use, the centre of velocity of the gases for each test was calculated and was found to be practically constant in position. The previous procedure was varied in subsequent tests on this stack by taking a succession of readings at the centre of velocity instead of at various points...

Jan 1, 1925

By G McCullough, J Els, J Bassan

Integrated Remote Operations Centres (IROCs) have a crucial role in optimising a mine’s carbon emissions, especially as industry faces an imperative to achieve net-zero emissions on an accelerated timeline. To meet this time pressure, operations must adopt a comprehensive approach to energy-related carbon management and history has proven that modern technologies cannot be simply bolted into existing operations. An IROC is the most dependable solution to enable a swift transition from strategy to operational tactics that support carbon optimisation. Achieving net-zero emissions requires addressing significant energy management challenges such as fleet electrification, integration of renewable energy sources and large-scale energy storage. These challenges demand a profound change in planning, managing and executing work at large operations. The key to overcoming these challenges is an integrated approach incorporating collaborative decision-making across the value chain and more sophisticated planning approaches. Additionally, closer integration with downstream processing offers opportunities for carbon optimisation across the value chain. This includes the ability to supply tailored products that meet more varied feed-requirements of customers transitioning to less carbon-intensive processes and developing collaborative decision-making across the entire steelmaking value chain (by incorporating steelmakers, transport, coal/natural-gas/hydrogen supply, energy supply and iron-ore supply). However, this requires significant improvement in collaborative maturity and integrated decision-making capability. Finally, the imperative to reduce carbon emission demands the introduction of a range of new technologies into existing operations. The new technologies will increase the operational complexity of the mines and IROCs will need to evolve capabilities to manage the increase complexity and support the effective operationalisation and integration of these new mining technologies. This paper outlines the new capabilities required and the role of IROCs in effective integration across the demand value chain. The focus is on building on the mining industries’ existing IROC experience and augmenting with processes, technologies and lessons from other industries.

Sep 18, 2023

By S McKnight, L Koroznikova, S Hall

Mineral sands represent an important new resource being developed in the Murray Basin, including parts of western Victoria. This paper will outline a simple methodology for mineral sands characterisation, developed as part of the AMIRA-managed project P777 æThe Development of Heavy Suspension Techniques for High Density Separations (Replacement of ClericiÆs Solution)Æ. This project is currently sponsored by three multinational mining companies (De Beers Consolidated Mines, Iluka Resources Limited and Rio Tinto Limited) and is developing an innovative laboratory mineral characterisation procedure that will allow the replacement of the currently employed highly-toxic chemicals.Mineral sand resources almost always contain more than one valuable (and relatively heavy) mineral. Titanium minerals are found with a large range of titanium contents, giving rise to density variation and often subjective mineralogical descriptions. Companies tend to rely on laboratory heavy liquid separation in the evaluation of samples arising from exploration, mining or metallurgical processes. Unfortunately, there are only a limited number of high density (æheavyÆ) liquids and these tend to be more toxic as their density increases. Low-toxicity inorganic solutions, based on tungsten compounds, have been developed that can be utilised at relative densities (RD) up to 3.0. However, beyond this value currently only organic liquids can be used. Diiodomethane (methylene iodide) having a relative density of 3.31 is commonly used; however, this presents significant health and safety hazards. Mixtures of thallium formate and thallium malonate were found in the early 1900s by Clerici to provide liquids having specific gravities between 4.0 and 5.0, hence æClericiÆs solutionÆ. For the characterisation of the heavy components of mineral sand deposits (eg anatase sg 3.9, rutile sg 4.2, ilmenite sg 4.4 û 4.7 and zircon sg 4.6 û 4.8) there is currently no heavy liquid alternative to ClericiÆs solution. ClericiÆs solution is highly toxic and testing is now conducted by very few laboratories worldwide with costs reflecting the chemical costs (though extensive efforts are made to recover and reuse the liquid, plus the requirement of its removal from the mineral samples), the infrastructure costs and health and safety regimes (eg blood testing of exposed staff, inventory management). A simple laboratory technique of density fractionation is being developed, employing suspensions of fine tungsten carbide particles in lithium heteropolytungstate (LST) solutions, that can replace ClericiÆs solution in the evaluation of fine mineral sands samples (eg -250+150 microns). The developing methodology that can achieve low-cost, low-toxic separations at relative densities above 5.0 will be outlined and the comparison of results with ClericiÆs solution presented.

Jan 1, 2006

By Wilson R. G

The Bulli and Wongawilli Seams, the two principal sources of coking coal for the Port KKembla steelworks of Australian Iron and Steel Pty. Ltd., vary in rank and in type over the Southern and -South Western Coalfields. The Bulli Seam, ranging widely in type, produces coke varying from weak to strong. The Wongawilli Seam, more consistent in type, produces coke of more consistent strength, but considerably less strong than that from the best Bulli Seam coal. Plans of seam variation show the regional trends in rank and type for each sear. The strongest coke is derived from coal containing between 45 and 55 per cent vitrinite, m.m.f. This is obtainable from the Bulli Sean in a zone embracing Bulli and Appin Colleries.

Jan 1, 1969

By D Frost, G Harbort, T Lipiec, N Deonarain

"The use of flotation columns has remained a contentious issue among mill operators. There are those who consider them an essential part of any mineral processing operation, while others consider them a necessary evil, which should only be installed if there is no alternative. Lastly, there are those who believe they should not be installed, no matter how great the perceived benefit.This paper provides an analysis of over 4000 installed flotation columns, contained in the Amec Foster Wheeler flotation database. Changing trends in column flotation use by type, commodity and geographical region are discussed. The effect of changing commodity prices and the China ‘phenomenon’ are reviewed. Special reference is made to the changing face of column flotation in Australia.Of note is the fact that after falling to a 20 year low in installed flotation column capacity in 2014, flotation columns during 2015 went through a resurgence in popularity. This resurgence was in direct contradiction to depressed metal prices and was driven by brownfield optimisations to reduce off-site costs, particularly in base metals. A case study is presented comparing the benefits of column flotation at high commodity prices with low commodity prices.Citation:Harbort, G, Deonarain, N, Frost, D, Lipiec, T and David, D, 2016. Changing Trends in Column Flotation Use - Their Impact for Australian Mill Operators, in Proceedings 13th AusIMM Mill Operators’ Conference 2016, pp 93–104 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Oct 10, 2016

In recent years there have been many changes in mine ownership due to the on-going rationalisation towards larger mining companies. Larger companies inevitably find it hard to manage small mining operations and in many cases smaller mines do not fit corporate resource, production and profit criteria. Smaller companies are more suited to managing these medium or small scale mines and are tendering for the purchase or lease of mines that larger companies wish to dispose of. In addition to these factors there has also been a trend (especially in Western Australia) for mines to continue operating at ever increasing depths. This in turn has led to more mines operating in high stress environments and experiencing damaging seismicity. Assessing the viability of seismically active mines from a takeover or purchase point of view should involve analysing the risk profile of every aspect on mining that could be affected by adverse seismicity. This includes assessing current and alternative mining methods, mine designs, support systems, extraction sequencing, monitoring and blasting. This paper includes discussion on items that need to be assessed when considering the purchase of seismically active mines, with experience gained from some recent studies in Western Australia. In these cases it was apparent that quantification of previous seismic history on itÆs own was a totally inadequate method of assessing minewide seismic risk potential. A more holistic approach is required, taking into account all aspects of relevant data, all the minewide effects of seismic activity and all possible means of mitigating those effects.

Jan 1, 2002

By H Zhang, A Lawrence

To accommodate the fast growing need for services in Singapore’s Marina Bay downtown area, Marina South, the construction of a common services tunnel (CST) was required. The CST includes various services such as telecom cables, power lines and water pipes. A deep excavation and temporary earth retaining system (TERS) was required to facilitate the construction of the tunnels. Marina Bay is reclaimed land over thick soft marine clay which is likely to be still consolidating. The deep soft marine clay poses a big challenge for deep excavations in downtown areas where highways and sensitive structures are close by. This paper presents a case study of part of the CST Phase 1B and 2 at Marina South, in particular a 26 m deep excavation supported by a 46 m diameter temporary caisson. The construction started in late 2006 and the basic structure was completed in early 2011. The caisson was formed by 1.0 m thick overlapping diaphragm wall panels with a capping beam and three ring beams at different depths. Two-dimensional finite element analyses were conducted to predict the ground settlement, lateral displacement, bending moment and hoop stresses in the diaphragm wall and ring beams during different excavation stages. A comprehensive instrumentation and monitoring scheme was established to verify the design predictions, control excavation safety and trigger the contingency plan to protect public safety. The impact of construction activity, unbalanced temporary stockpiles and adjacent deep excavation for a mole removal will be discussed.CITATION:Zhang, H and Lawrence, A, 2014. A case history of a deep excavation in a big circular shaft in Singapore marine clay, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014, pp 581–588 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

By N Elith

The explosives demolition of a post-stressed, steel reinforced, concrete road bridge in Australia’s capital city, Canberra. The bridge was 50 m from the new replacement bridge, 320 m from community structures and within five kilometres of the national parliament buildings. The job required multiple overlays of risk assessment, public relations, safe work procedures, specialised blast design, environmental predictions and flyrock controls. Project stakeholders included Worksafe, Roads ACT, bridge owners, consulting structural engineers, community groups and road users. The bridge precincts, including a major road underneath, had to remain operational to peak traffic in the days leading up to the demolition. The break-up and removal of debris had to be executed in just two days from Friday to have the road beneath re-opened for Monday morning city-bound traffic.In Canberra, all explosives demolitions are now viewed with particular caution after a demolition in 1997, during which a young girl was killed. Any approval requires that Explosives Regulations, AS2187 2006 and Worksafe processes are satisfied, and a convincing case presented for blasting as a safe and viable option.Our design used specialised shaped cutting and blasting charges to sever in situ concrete beams and tendons and to shatter components of the stressed concrete bridge assembly. We include comments on structural engineering reports dealing with pre-weakening mechanisms. The benefit of pre-weakening is that it reduces the amount of explosives needed to safely complete the job and facilitates quick removal of debris after the shot. The complementary skills of the team, each one an expert in his field, resulted in a highly successful demolition, praised by authorities as an outstanding example of controlled use of explosives.

Nov 8, 2011

By W Assibey-Bonsu

The paper provides a brief review of the multivariate uniform conditioning and the localised multivariate uniform conditioning techniques and presents a case study based on a porphyry copper gold deposit in Peru. Two other important scenarios have been investigated and will be particularly emphasised: The recovered selective mining unit (SMU)s depend on a combination of copper and gold content, which can be expressed by means of ænet smelter returnsÆ (NSR). Two approaches are compared. Firstly, the application of a composite cut-off on NSR on the joint distribution of each grade and the application of uniform conditioning to three variables is investigated, ie for the first approach NSR is used as the main variable. The second approach considers copper as the main variable. In the case of multiple domains the procedure used to apply the technique to process mixed panels is clarified and recommendations are made.

Sep 26, 2011

By L Lorenzen, H Muller

"Every year a large number of projects are evaluated by small listed and unlisted mining companies that are hoping to find the ideal project, which will catapult them from a mining junior status to that of a mid-tier mining company. Usually this includes finding the æidealÆ or ærightÆ orebody and then developing a process which will allow cost-effective recovery of the valuable metals and the production of a saleable product. These dreams are seldom realised and there are a number of good and obvious reasons for this. Issues that are generally high up on the agenda for the smaller companies are: cost of developing a project before the feasibility study stage finding a suitable, or optimum processing technology financing of the project dealing with risk.The most expensive part of the development process for the small miner is often the exploration side of the business and finding the æidealÆ orebody. However, finding the right orebody will not be discussed in this paper. The æidealÆ orebody does not necessarily solve the problems of the mining junior, as much of the uncertainty lies in the process required to recover and produce the final metal product. Once a mineralised deposit has been identified and the grade at least reasonably qualified, the development of a suitable process becomes the driver to convert the deposit into an orebody. This paper proposes that a small exploration company has a very limited opportunity to succeed if it does not do sufficient homework before it identifies the æidealÆ orebody. The risk profile for the small mining company, by its very nature, has to be different to that of a major company and as a result the opportunities often lie in managing different and often new process options, which may be the key to bring such projects on line successfully.CITATION:Muller, H and Lorenzen, L, 2012. Project selection and process development for mining juniors, in Proceedings Project Evaluation 2012, pp 149-158 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

May 24, 2012

Production sharing and cost apportionment in joint ventures is commonplace in Australasia today and elsewhere. It is a recognised convention that, with the exception of a free carry situation, joint venture participants usually share the proceeds of the joint venture in direct proportion to their respective participating interest, after having first paid its respective cash calls, in advance, to cover the projectÆs ongoing operating and capital cost requirements.In surface mines, the parties simply pay their way and take their proceeds in this manner. In underground mines, the situation is no different, though treatment of capital, depreciation and tax may differ between the parties. A common feature in many cases is the creation of a joint venture entity to conduct the business. This entity then collects cash from the parties, banks it, employs the staff, runs the operation, provides reports and pays out the proceeds. This convention appears to be relatively simple in application. In practice, it has been known to be complicated in the situation where the participants take their product at the mine gate and undertake their own marketing and selling arrangements. A more complex situation presents itself where the joint venture tenement boundary with an unrelated third party straddles an economic deposit. In this scenario, both the joint venture parties and the third party may wish to mine the deposit, sharing some infrastructure and costs, yet taking their own product as it is produced. A case study outlining such a situation is presented in the paper, outlining firstly how the major cost categories were identified and treated for cost apportionment purposes. Secondly, a mechanism for the equitable apportionment of product is suggested. Finally, issues such as timing and cost reporting are dealt with, together with a checklist of points which should be considered when a similar situation might arise in the future.

Jan 1, 2002

By H von Blottnitz, J L. Broadhurst

Eco-efficiency has been proposed by the World Business Council on Sustainable Development as an environmental performance indicator framework that contributes to sustainability by assisting corporate decision makers improve the environmental performance of their operations and processes, while also extracting additional economic value. Given that the recent engagement of the minerals industry with sustainability has highlighted the need for requisite tools and methodologies, it is therefore of interest to assess whether eco-efficiency indicators can drive sustainability performance improvement during process design within the minerals industry. Previous work indicates that the choice of sustainability performance indicators to be used for decision making needs to be governed by the decision context; ie the performance indicators need to be fit-for-purpose. Here, the strengths and weaknesses of eco-efficiency indicators are analysed using case studies. First, a more rigorous definition of eco-efficiency indicators for the minerals industry is proposed based on indicators currently offered in the literature. Two case studies are then selected to reflect typical decision situations encountered within minerals process design. For each case study, eco-efficiency indicators are computed and are compared to more traditional graphical representations of the economic and environmental performance of process design alternatives considered. The sensitivity of these indicators to various process design parameters is also investigated. Results confirm that the meaningful application of eco-efficiency indicators is strongly dependent on the decision context in which the process data is generated. Results also show that eco-efficiency indicators can be related to technical process design parameters to allow for richer communication of performance information for various decision trade-offs; however, in some cases, graphical approaches that provide more insights into the environmental-financial trade-offs should be preferred. The research thus contributes to guiding the selection of the appropriate tools for more environmentally sustainable design of minerals beneficiation processes.

Jan 1, 2009