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By N. Pajunen

The basic objectives of current EU waste policy are to prevent waste and promote re-use, recycling and recovery to reduce negative environmental impact (2008/98/EC). In this paper, we focus on drivers and barriers for sustainable development by decreasing amount of waste and increasing material efficiency. Main target is to understand what are the most efficient drivers for environmental friendly decision making for reasonable consumption and use of raw materials. Environmental control instruments usually mean those actions the regulatory authority uses to control and limit environmentally harmful behavior of companies. A major change in the environmental control system took place in the 1980s with the focus moving from specific environmental issues to the environment as a whole. The environmental control system i.e. the legal (administrative), economic and informative instruments focuses on prevention. Before and still, the legislation is one of the main drivers in improving material efficiency. In this paper, we focus on drivers and barriers for effective industrial material use, and mainly on drivers. The objective of this study is to analyze how the drivers are working and are there any possibilities to influence on those. Our aim is also to introduce few examples of the existing supply chains and the drivers for better environmental performance and material efficiency. These examples are also compared with ideal reference scenarios. Our main research question in this article is: ?Are the financial issues the most important driver for environmental friendly strategic decisions?? In addition, retell the story from another perspective: ?The most important barrier for environmental friendly innovations seem to be the investment cost, the high risk involved in committing capital to unproven technology.? Other drivers, like the corporate social responsibility, stakeholder pressure, and general public pressure, will also affect the final decision. This article is based on research projects and literature. Keywords: drivers, decision-making, environmental management, saving primary raw material, material efficiency, sustainable production, critical raw materials

Sep 1, 2012

By SAM YOUR

PROCESSING, technology and application of non- ferrous metals-copper, lead, zinc, aluminum, nickel, precious metals, foundry metallurgy, less common metals, secondary metals-are the special field of the Institute of Metals Division. New developments in this field during 1930 are more or less briefly out- lined in this review prepared by the papers and publications committee of the Institute of Metals Division as follows:

Jan 1, 1931

By Kwang Soon Moon

Liquid ? liquid reactions such as solvent extraction in hydrometallurgy and BTX extraction in petrochemical industry has long suffered from the long retention time mainly due to the limited interfacial area caused by the immiscibility between water and oil phase, requiring typically very large perfect mixer type reactors and tall adsorption towers. A novel spray reactor for immiscible liquids; that is the KISEI Nozzle Reactor (KNR) was introduced, enabling the drastic increase in the interfacial area between the reacting immiscible liquids. Various spray mechanisms were applied in materials processing, e.g. spray drying, powder metallurgy, and aerosol industry, but not in hydrometallurgy. The KISEI Nozzle Reactor(KNR) was fully developed and used in production of biodiesel from the immiscible triglycerides and methanol. An experience with a full production plant facility is briefly discussed in the current paper. With the fog-like methanol spray in oil medium, the trans esterification reaction was almost instantaneous, and transformed the traditional batch trans esterification process into a continuous production process. And above all, with no moving parts in the KISEI Nozzle Reactor (KNR), the process requires minimal operation and maintenance costs. Keywords: immiscible liquids reaction, nozzle spray reactor, continuous biodiesel reactor, hydrometallurgy, organic extraction, micro emulsion

Sep 1, 2012

By Raymond Derzay

This publication is intended to be of value to the mineral industry in establishing and maintaining effective programs for preventing noise-induced hearing loss. Factors involved in this loss and the need for and the requirements of an effective hearing conservation program are discussed. The legal and legislative history of compensation for hearing loss is briefly reviewed. A review of statutes is not attempted since several States have recently modified) or are in the process of modifying their laws regarding permissible noise exposures) required hearing protection) and/or compensation for hearing loss. A review of other aspects of the problem of industrial noise in terms of medical, physiological) and psychological frames of reference is included. A hearing conservation program is described in detail. Appendixes detailing the names and addresses of a few equipment suppliers are included. References are provided for those who may wish to delve more deeply into the medical, technical, and scientific considerations of noise and its effect on man.

Jan 1, 1972

By B Kilgariff

Flotation has been in use at Broken Hill for nearly 100 years, and the process has gone through many different optimisation studies over that time. This paper reviews the current flotation practice at the Perilya Broken Hill Mine, and details one of the recent optimisation studies conducted using mathematical modelling and simulation tools. The optimisation study consisted of surveys of the lead and zinc circuits, mapping of the floatability components of the ore and developing models of the lead and zinc circuits. The models were then used to conduct simulations to simplify the circuit. The study allowed plant personnel to identify optimum operating conditions for their current flotation cells, as well as possible improvements in circuit configuration and cell capacity.

Jan 1, 2005

By M. Carrales

This Bureau of Mines publication presents short-range projections of domestic liquid hydrocarbon production through 1980. Appraisal of future crude oil production was made by evaluating the relationship between primary and enhanced oil recovery and the total crude oil producing trends in each of the oil-producing areas of the United States. Future natural gas liquid production was generally estimated by projecting historical production. Estimates of production were prepared for each of the oil producing areas and summarized for the Petroleum Administration for Defense (PAD) districts and total United States. From 1975 to 1980, crude oil production for the conterminous United States is expected to decline from 7.8 to 6.4 million barrels of oil per day (BOPD), and it is expected to increase from 8.0 to 8.2 million BOPD for the total United States. However, these estimates do not include additional production expected from the Elk Hills field in California and the Yates field in Texas. If included, 1980 production for the conterminous United States would be 6.7 million BOPD and 8.4 million BOPD for the total United States.

Jan 1, 1977

By F. Calizaya

A booster fan is an underground fan installed in series with a main surface fan and used to boost the air pressure of the ventilation air passing through it. To accomplish this objective, the fan is installed in a permanent stopping and equipped with airlock doors, a monitoring system, and interlocking devices between main and booster fan controls. The stopping and doors are used to prevent flow recirculation, and the monitors to ensure safe operation of the fan. A booster fan, properly sized and sited, can be used to create safe work conditions and allow the extraction of minerals from areas that would otherwise be uneconomic to mine. In deep and large mines with heavy emissions of air contaminants, the required quantities of air can only be supplied by using high pressure fans. These fans will inevitably induce significant losses of fresh airflow through the stoppings and doors. For well defined ventilation circuits, booster fans can be used to decrease the main fan pressures and reduce the leakage flows. However, this will require a good understanding of the correct ventilation practice, from planning to operation and maintenance of booster fans. The objective of this study is to investigate the conditions under which booster fans can be used safely and efficiently in underground coal mines. Specifically, the study is directed at (1) collecting reliable information on airway resistances and flow requirements from two large U.S coal mines, (2) collecting fan performance data from one or more existing coal mine where booster fans are used regularly, (3) monitoring the performance of booster fans in a laboratory model and an experimental mine, (4) developing a booster fan selection method to assist the ventilation engineer at the planning stage, and (5) training six M.S. or Ph.D. graduate students in advanced mine ventilation.

Jan 1, 2010

Opening AddressThank you for inviting me here today to open what promises to be a significant conference on the technological aspects of extractive metallurgy. I would especially like. to welcome delegates who have travelled great distances in order to contribute to, and be participants in, this examination of the technical innovations which have always been a crucial part of our industry.

Jan 1, 1992

By Q. Xiao, R. Naidu, W. Li, S. Song

Acid mine drainage (AMD) derives from the oxidation of sulfide minerals, primarily pyrite (FeS2), and is the most severe environmental issue facing the minerals industry. The most common short-term approach to AMD treatment is migration control, such as acid neutralization and metal/metalloid and sulfate removal, through the addition of alkaline materials, including lime (Ca (OH)2), limestone (Ca CO3), gangue minerals and industrial wastes. This requires the continuous input of materials and may result in the production of a vast amount of secondary sludge requiring further treatment and disposal. Addition of chemicals is usually more important in metal/metalloid removal than in sulfate removal unless the sulfate is present in very high concentrations. A more promising long-term strategy for AMD prevention is source control through the complete removal of pyritic minerals and encapsulation of potential risk minerals by coating with impermeable surface layers. This is regarded as the most cost-effective approach, although the mechanisms underpinning this and the implementation procedures are yet to be fully elucidated. It is likely that long- and short-term practices can be combined to optimize the remediation of contaminated mining sites. Some factors such as differing geological and mineralogical characteristics and transportation costs must also be considered for the successful implementation of AMD prevention and remediation strategies. This review also considers some implications for AMD remediation, but the promising bioremediation of AMD is not discussed as it has been extensively reviewed.

By C. J. Walker

The ever-increasing use off natural underground formations for storing natural gas has focused attention on the behavior of such storage formations under varying operating conditions. The need for a means of evaluating in¬dividual wells and groups of wells has become manifest. It is essential that industry and others be able to determine the rates of flow that can be ex¬pected from a given well or group of wells under different conditions and to ascertain whether certain wells are deteriorating. Such questions need more exact answers now than ever before because of the vital role underground gas storage plays in the industrial and domestic consumption of natural gas. The Bureau of Mines--in cooperation with the American Gas Association--has main¬tained an active interest in gas-well testing because of the implications of such test procedures on the consumption and efficient production of natural gas. A basis for testing gas wells was provided by the back-pressure method of Rawlins and Schellhardt (12).4/ They showed that for normal gas wells there is a consistent relationship between rates of delivery of gas and corresponding pressures when the formation pressures are used as the basis of interpretation, The equation for this relationship is as follows: Q = C (Pf2 - Ps2)n where; Q = rate of flow, generally expressed in cubic feet per 24 hours. C = a coefficient.

Jan 1, 1960

By Negar Elhami Khorasani, Anthony Tessari, Nan Hua

Fire hazards can cause severe and irrecoverable damage to reinforced concrete (RC) tunnel linings, threatening the serviceability and resilience of transportation networks. This paper first examines the existing methodologies that are used to classify damage to tunnel linings from fire. These approaches are then supplemented with the results of advanced modeling and inputs from industry experts to propose new fire damage/ repair classifications with the associated thresholds. The results of the presented research can be used to guide fire risk assessment as well as the performance-based design of tunnel fire protection.

Jun 13, 2023

By W. P. Campbell

Foreword At the outset, it should be stated that this paper does not pretend to present a panacea for the ills that 'frozen' wells are heir to, but rather is an attempt to bring to the attention of those whose special concern it is, a little theory and some facts, which have been brought to light recently, in connection with the problem of 'freezing' as it applies to naphtha-producing wells in the Turner Valley field, and to draw some conclusions that follow from the facts discovered. It should also be stated that the investigation is not to be regarded as in any sense complete, but in progress. Doubtless new facts will be brought to light from time to time which may modify present ideas on the subject, but whether favourable or contrary, these will be welcomed, as the purpose of the Department is to secure as complete information as possible of the factors contributing to 'freezing', since this must be the first step to an intelligent attempt to remedy or prevent its occurrence, if such can be done. It is possible, too, that the cause or causes of freezing may not be the same in all cases, but whether this be so or not will have to be determined later as new information comes to hand. Introduction One of the worries which must constantly confront the operators of gas-naphtha producing wells in Turner Valley-although all, fortunately, have not met with it-is the possibility of the occurrence of what is commonly called 'freezing' (going off production).

Jan 1, 1930

By J. Petersen, M. Reuter, E. Asselin, M. Becker, N. Uys

In order to meet society’s ever-increasing demand for metals and address the numerous technical, economic and environmental challenges within the current mining context, a holistic approach to process design, which is grounded in mineralogy, is needed. This would ensure that the impact of varying process mineralogy (and associated chemistry) on technical considerations and the associated economic implications and environmental consequences are taken into account upfront. This investigation focuses on the commodity zinc due to its strategic value coupled with limited resource availability and the wide variety of substantially different process technologies in existence. As the most commonly processed zinc ores contain zinc sulphides, the mineralogy/chemistry of these ores and their associated process routes will be discussed. The findings have been generated through the analysis of two case studies, Teck’s Trail Operations (British Columbia, Canada) and Hudbay Minerals’ Flin Flon Operations (Manitoba, Canada). The flotation of zinc sulphide ores to produce concentrates with varying mineralogy, represents the starting point for both case studies. The hydrometallurgical process routes for the further refining of zinc and other valuable metals include roast-leach-electrowinning (RLE), and zinc pressure leaching (ZPL). The effect of process route choices on primary metal recovery (Zn), coproduction of other base metals (Cu, Pb), potential for other valuable metal production (Ag, Au) including less well known, but increasingly important trace elements (In, Ge), and the production of other by-products (H2SO4, S0) are discussed. The economic and environmental implications of these aspects will also be considered. It is concluded that a quantitative modelling approach must be taken where waste management is integrated into process system design and simulation as a key unit operation. Keywords: Zinc Sulphide Processing; Design Decisions; Mineralogy

Jan 1, 2020

By R. H. King

Suboleski and King (1990) analyzed the reasons for the dramatic increase in underground coal mine productivity during the last 10 years. This paper examines whether this increase can be extended. The paper forecasts whether the mix of technological, procedural and other factors that produced the increase will change in the future. The forecast is based on the base case and spreadsheet production model described in the previous paper.

Jan 1, 1991

By Philip D. Wilson

WHEN the United Nations win the war and the decision has been made to control future armament in the Axis countries, plans for the extent and operation of such control must have been prepared, to be ready to put into immediate execution. Such control to be effective must be premised upon complete military occupation of the two countries for a substantial period, with an arrangement at the end of such occupation for continued supervision of these industries into an indefinite future.

Jan 1, 1944

By E. L. Fosse, W. S. Wright

"INTRODUCTION Preliminary and detailed exploratory examinations of iron and copper ores on Prince of Wales Island have been conducted by the Bureau of Mines from early in 1942 until the end of 1944. Among these investigations was that of the Jumbo magnetite deposit, which was visited by Stephen P. Holt, an engineer of the Bureau of Mines, during a preliminary examination of the Copper Mountain and Jumbo properties September 15 to 18, 1943, During the months of June, July, and August 1944, a more detailed examination, which consisted essentially of mapping and sampling, was made by the authors working in conjunction with George C. Kennedy of the Geological Survey, Geological, topographical, and dip-needle contour maps were made of the area, and 97 channel samples were cut.ACKNOWLEDGMENTIn its program of exploration of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. It is the policy of the Bureau to publish the facts developed by each exploratory project as soon as practicable after its conclusion. The Mining Branch, Lowell B. Moon, chief, conducts preliminary examinations, performs the actual exploratory work, and prepares the final report. The Metallurgical Branch, R. G. Knickerbocker, chief, analyzes sam¬ples and performs beneficiation tests. Both these branches are under the supervision of Dr. R. S. Dean, assistant director.Special acknowledgment is made to R. D. Stewart, Territorial Commissioner of Mines and former general manager, and to Duncan Campbell, Ketchikan, Alaska, former mine superintendent of the Jumbo mine. Acknowledgment is also due to George C. Kennedy of the Federal Geological Survey for extending cooperative assistance in topographical mapping, dip-needle surveying, and geological study of the deposits. Further acknowledgment is made to C. Travis Anderson, chief, Rolla Division, Metallurgical Branch, and other members of that division for conducting beneficiation tests on Jumbo Basin ores."

Oct 1, 1946

By H. O. Hofman

At the Lake Superior meeting, September, 1904, Messrs. A. Gibb and R. C. Philp presented a paper entitled " The Constitution of Mattes Produced in Copper-Smelting,"' in which they concluded that ferrous and cuprous sulphides formed the chemical compound, 5 Cu2S, FeS. They arrived at this inference from the observed fact that a matte containing Cu,S, 90.4, and FcS, 9.6 per cent. (or, in round figures, Cu2S, 90, and FeS, 10 per cent.), did not contain any metallic copper, while one with more than 10 per cent. of FeS readily dissolved copper, and with less than this amount retained copper in mechanical suspension. Although they determined the melting-points of five mattes containing from 32.6 to 80.1 per cent. of copper, they did not draw a freezing-point curve, as the necessary apparatus was not available. A microscopical examination of 11 polished samples gave them a grayish-black field of very uniform appearance, except that five of the specimens showed the presence of metallic copper. The object of the present investigation was to supplement the above paper by drawing the freezing-point curve of the ferrous sulphide-cuprous sulphide series, and to see how the constitution could be further revealed by microscopical work. The results obtained lead to conclusions very different from those of Gibb and Philp. While their paper bears the date 1904, it was published only in 1906.2 In the meantime, Bolles3 had presented his paper, " The Concentration of Gold and Silver in Iron-Bottoms." The raw material which formed the basis of the research was a matte containing Fe, 61.68, and Cu, 11.20

Jan 1, 1908

By S Strong, L I. Sanz Vivanco, T Brown

One of the most significant technical and practical challenges facing the tunnel construction team on the Legacy Way road tunnel project in Brisbane, Australia was how to erect the prestressed precast concrete slabs to form the smoke duct in the tunnel boring machine (TBM) tunnels.An essential part of the tunnel ventilation system, the smoke duct extends the full length of the 4.6 km-long twin two-lane tunnels. The vast majority of the tunnels (approximately 4.3 km) were constructed using two 12.4 m diameter double-shield TBMs. The refurbished Herrenknecht machines broke several world records on the way to completing the tunnel excavation works in just over nine months. With the excavation complete the focus turned to solving the complex civil tunnel fit-out challenges. A key component of the civil fit-out of the tunnels was constructing the smoke duct in the TBM tunnels, which was designed as a precast solution.The slabs, which each measure 8.62 m long × 2.0 m wide × 200 mm thick and weigh close to 9?t, need to be erected above cast in situ corbels whilst other tunnel finishing works continue. The space-proofing clearance offered by the design to the support corbels below and the precast segmental lining above was in the order of only 100 mm.This paper tells the story of how the Transcity Joint Venture (JV) tunnel fit-out team comprising some of Europe and Australia’s leading tunnel construction specialists drew upon the global strengths of the existing JV member companies and the global reach of leading TBM manufacturer Herrenknecht to develop an innovative system in solving this challenging problem. This globetrotting story, which starts in Australia, visits Europe and mainland China before returning to Brisbane where it all began.CITATION:Brown, T, Strong, S and Sanz Vivanco, L I, 2014. How the global experience and reach of tunnelling’s true multinationals helped solve a road tunnel fit-out challenge, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 507–512 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

By S. E. Stallibrass, A. M. McNamara, J. P. Panchal, Leonardo M. LaLicata

Urban development in congested cities requires a better exploitation of the available surface, leading to taller structures. These buildings are usually founded on piles that have to be increased in dimension to accommodate the larger loads. Consequently, both the cost and the carbon footprint of the pile foundations rises. An alternative option is to improve pile performance by enhancing shaft capacity, which is commonly the most important factor in determining the ultimate capacity of a pile constructed in a clay soil subjected to axial load. For piles in stiff clays, such as London Clay, the soil/pile friction may be increased by profiling the side walls of a bored cast in situ pile with small discrete “impressions” such that the latter form nodules on the shaft of the concreted pile. The results from centrifuge and full scale field tests showed that the impression pile represents a viable technology to enhance the shaft capacity as they provide an increase in capacity of 40%. Alternatively, reduced length impression pile can be used. This paper explores the implications of the impression pile technology on the potential carbon saving.

May 1, 2022

By William O. Vanderburg

This report3/ gives the reconnaissance of a reconnaissance of the mining districts in Churchill County, Nev., made in the fall of 1938 and spring of 1938 All of the mining districts in the county were visited, but no attempt has been made to include all the mines and prospects within the area; inclusion or omission of a property in this paper has no bearing on its merits, The report gives the situation of the various districts, mineral production, and ownership of properties; describes the ore deposit, mines, and prospects; contains information on past and current activity; and includes other data likely to be useful to those interested in the development of our mineral resources. The various district, were named when they were organized for purposes of record and regulation. When established, the districts embraced large areas n without well- defined borders, so that the names have little geographical significance.

Jan 1, 1940