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By J. Duarte Neto, V. M. Torres, A. Viana, G. S. P. Pereira, P. M. Andrade

There are technical and commercial limitations to using high fluorine copper concentrates in industrial copper smelters. The presence of more than 1,000-ppm fluorine affects the sulfuric acid units generally integrated to copper smelters. Price penalties are normally applied to copper concentrates with high fluorine contents. Several process alternatives to resolve this issue were studied at the Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) Technology Center, Santa Luzia, Brazil. These alternatives included modifications to conventional sulfuric acid plants so that they can use high fluorine concentrates; removal of fluorine-containing minerals by flotation using depressants; selective leaching of fluorine minerals; and sulfuric acid leaching of the copper concentrates. As a result of this research, a hydro¬metallurgical process to remove fluorine and upgrade copper concentrates was developed by the CVRD.

Jan 1, 1999

By Joseph W. Kupfner

It is a recognized fact that a good maintenance program is a pre-requisite for minimum delay costs and maximum availability of equipment. To develop such a program and to make it effective, one must establish detailed instructions pertaining to inspections, lubrication, servicing, and/or replacing of various parts. A schedule must also be established for these maintenance checks, whether they be weekly, monthly, or whatever period is essential for the equipment. The number of tasks to be performed becomes monumental, and the administration is beyond error-free human capacity. It is for this reason that the computer must be an essential element in any efficient and economical preventive maintenance program. The evolution of a computerized maintenance program began some 18 years ago in the Mining Division of USSteel. It started with a manual system of preparing cards containing preventive maintenance instructions that had to be performed on some regular basis. We were very quickly overtaken by the massive task of administration and distribution of instruction cards to the users. The task became insurmountable as more mines were added to the system, mines that were spread over a large geographic area. It also became evident that the ability to make changes in equipment assignments and in the "what to do" instructions would require more time than had been anticipated.

Jan 1, 1986

By Christian Jeger

After recalling the principles underlying fire-damp flow in coal and the essential part played by permeability (Darcy's law) in the intensity of flow, a few theoretical and experimental results showing the possible causes and range of variation of coal seam permeability are presented. The study of firedamp flow into gate roads and of residual gas concentrations in coals as a function of the gate road distance, shows that, in French mines, coal seams in a virgin zone have a very low permeability, but they become permeable when destressed by mine workings, in particular overlying workings. This is the case not only in the fractured zone round a mine excavation in which the gas is released, but also beyond the limit of the zone degassed by the excavation. In the floor of flat seams, upward boreholes can be used for predegassing seams that have been relaxed but not degassed, as the result of an overlying coal face. In this respect we shall describe the predrainage experiment carried out in the Marienau district of the Lorraine coalfield. Predrainage can contribute considerably to the reduction of methane emission in the ventilation of newly opened longwall faces. But to be efficient and useful predrainage should meet certain conditions.

Jan 1, 1980

By Peter A. Burger

The Greenvale Orebody comprises a series of contiguous lateriteprofiles developed terrace-like during the Cainozoic over a serpentinized harzburgite intrusive emplaced within Proterozoic schists. Each terrace displays individual characteristics of metal distribution. Topographically higher (older) profiles have been partially eroded and metal concentrations reworked. Within the laterite profile, metals have been concentrated or depleted according to their relative solubilities. At tropical temperatures, acidic meteoric waters have progressively depleted the ultrabasic parent rock of Si and Mg, leaving A1 and Fe to form a surface duricrust. Ni, Co, Mn and Cr have accumulated in the lower and middle levels of the weathering mantle. Only Ni and Co have accumulated to exploitable grades. Lateritization has evidently proceeded over a considerable portion of the Cainozoic and may be still continuing.

Jan 1, 1979

By Stefano Colombelli, Nicola Bona, Gabriele Eccher, Luca Schiavinato, Paolo Cucino, Domenico Nave

"BIM technologies provide tools and processes to effectively support the entire life of an infrastructure, from strategic planning to maintenance. As a consequence, infrastructure design processes currently make frequent use of BIM tools. This paper describes the BIM oriented design of the underground railway extension in the metropolitan area of Catania. The paper highlights the design process and the chosen BIM tools considering the boundary conditions characterizing the project, i.e. basic information missing in the final design project, need of coordination between different design disciplines and designer companies, and, finally, need for a flexible design approach able to adapt to changes occurring during design development. INTRODUCTION The underground railway extension in the metropolitan area of Catania is composed of two lots of approximately two km each, namely “Stesicoro-Aeroporto” and “Nesima –Misterbianco”. Works to be realized are: •,Main tunnel: mechanized tunneling using a TBM-EPB machine, for the entire length of the lot; •,Underground stations: San Domenico, Vittorio Emanuele and Palestro, conventionally excavated as enlargement of the TBM tunnel after the partial demolition of precast segments; •,Ventilation and emergency shafts: connecting seven tunnel levels to road level on Stesicoro-Areaposto lot, six on Nesima-Misterbianco lot; •,Additional structures such as technical rooms and parking lot; •,Electric Substation at Monte Po' stop; •,Temporary works: TBM launching and arrival pit to be dismantled at the end of the works."

Jan 1, 2016

By A. A. Peshkov, N. A. Matsko, K. N. Trubetskoy

It is possible to divide the general objectives of a company into two components: maximum expected profits and viability over time. These components are designed to maximize the companies value over time. The evaluation of a project includes both a discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis and a risk analysis. The DCF analysis determines whether the project should be accepted or rejected, and the risk analysis helps to forecast possible deviations from the original estimates. However, the results of both methods do not allow for a quantitative comparison between the main objectives of the venture, and they do not resolve the issue of whether it is advisable to sacrifice immediate profits for future profits. This paper attempts to resolve this issue. The present research was carried out on mining projects with different waste-extraction schedules. Calculations were made using the US Bureau of Mines' usage-of-costs model. Russian experience in open-pit mining is reflected in this paper.

Jan 1, 1996

By E. L. Smyth, A. Button

The apparent absence of significant Tertiary auriferous palaeoplacers in the Yilgarn Block of Western Australia can be explained by the dissolution of the placer gold into the highly saline, acid, oxidising ground waters which currently occur in upper portions of the palaeochannels proximal to the gold sources. The dissolved gold has then been redeposited in redox fronts further downstream. The placer gold is preserved in more distal portions where the ground waters are reducing. Exploration for these placers can be effective using the gravity contrasts that exist between the Tertiary sediments and the Archaean bedrock and SIROTEM which can detect the highest salinity zones which occur in the deepest parts of the channels. Final assessment of the gold content of the sediments must be determined by drilling.

Jan 1, 1989

By Guiseppe Bonifazi

This work applies the definition of "separation function" already introduced in the paper presented at the XVIII IMPC. This 'function" (defined for a certain size distribution after comminution of an ore) refers to the recovery distribution of a mineralogical species in a product made up of all the particles having at least a given content of that species. Many tests would be required to determine the liberation function for each mineralogical species, particularly for complex ores. Several stages of comminution would need to be examined and the mineralogical composition of the particles of each grain size class would need to be analyzed for each process step. A quick and dirty method is shown for obtaining the "separation function". It is based on the processing of data from topological maps of polished and/or thin representative sections of ore. By superimposing grids of different sizes over these maps and with appropriate combinations of mesh sizes, it is possible to simulate the grain size distributions linked to different stages of comminution and then evaluate the mineralogical composition of each grain. The procedure is carried out full automatically and can simulate a complete treatment circuit, imposing cut-off grades for the products at each separation phase. It is also possible to predict the results of treatment processes that involve grinding phases. The procedure has been successfully applied to complex ores containing several useful components.

Jan 1, 1995

By Karel SPIRKO

The one-dimensional mathematical model of unsteady-state heat conduct ion through multilayer (wall and floor of airway consist of several layers of material and rock) and two-surface (dry and wet surfaces) airway wall and airway floor with convective heat and moisture transfer between their surfaces and mine air with time dependent changes of temperature and humidity has been developed on the basis of introduction of acceptable simplifications of description of heat and moisture transfer between rock mass and mine air. The analytical solutions for calculation of the surface temperature of any type of surface of airway wall/floor and for calculation of water vapour pressure near the wet surfaces at given time are obtained by means of the model presented. These solutions are illustrated for the case of general harmonic course of air temperature and humidity. Balance of heat and moisture transfer between surfaces of airway wall and floor and mine air is solved by an iterative method in the partial sections of airway. The temperature and the humidity of mine air on the outlet of each partial section of airway at given time are its resolutions and they are the input data for following partial section. By this way it is possible to solve complicated dynamic changes of mine air temperature and humidity in an air way system by relatively simple mathematical apparat.

Jan 1, 1991

By SAMUEL A. LOLON, ADITYA JUGANDA, JURGEN F. BRUNE, JR. GREGORY E. BOGIN

Historically, there have been many events of mine fires and explosions recorded in the United States and other countries that have demonstrated the existence of explosive methane-air mixtures, herein referred to as explosive gas zones (EGZs) [1]. The risk of mine explosions can increase if these EGZs migrate out from the gob into the surrounding mine entries — a phenomenon known as gob breathing. A number of 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations using various magnitudes and periods of barometric pressure variation have indicated that the EGZ outgassing potentially occurs due to lags in pressure, which are strongly influenced by mine conditions and ventilation systems. Early-warning systems with real-time pressure monitoring and the application of gob ventilation boreholes are recommended to detect and mitigate explosion hazards from gob outgassing.

By T. A. P. Sankar, S. Gundiah, Pradip, R. A. Kulkarni

Two modified polyacrylamide flocculants, namely polyacrylamide with glycolic acid functionality (PAMG), and a copolymer of acrylamide with N-acryloyl-[T]- aminobutyric acid (HPVP), were synthesized, characterised and evaluated for selective separation in apatite/quartz and apatite/dolomite/calcite systems, respectively. PAMG flocculant was found selective in the separation of tricalcium phosphate (TCP) from its mixtures with quartz at acidic to neutral pH range. The selectivity deteriorated at alkaline pH. In contrast, polyacrylic acid (PAA) flocculant was found most effective only in the alkaline pH range. HPVP flocculant (even though flocculating all three minerals namely apatite, dolomite and calcite) was observed to be quite selective for the separation of calcite from apatite-dolomite minerals in single mineral tests in the presence of sodium hexametaphosphate dispersant at neutral pH. There was, however, no selectivity observed during tests on synthetic mixtures. This loss in selectivity is attributed to the phenomenon of hetero-flocculation, as reported earlier, for separation in an apatite-dolomite system with polyethylene oxide.

Jan 1, 1993

By D. E. Munson, T. M. Torres, D. A. Blankenship

The Thermal/Structural Interactions (TSI) In Situ Tests are a series of large scale, well instrumented tests that have been constructed at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeastern New Mexico. As a precursor to the TSI tests, a ventilation drift (Room D) was mined, drilled and instrumented. This room provided the contractor an excellent area to practice controlled construction methods and was a proving ground for construction monitoring and documentation methods. All gages in this first room have been monitored since their initial installation, which has provided a small, but representative, data base. These data also were the first to be available from any TSI area for analysis. This paper discusses the construction activities in Room D and the data generated from the construction and drilling. Deformation of the room is compared briefly to numerical calculations that used a rather simple creep model as a reference. The constitutive model for salt, it appears, must be improved before it can predict the underground deformations.

Jan 1, 1986

By James S. Hanson

Existing models proposed for the bacterial leaching of metal sulfides generally fail to predict solubilization rates at times greater than a few tens of hours. The reasons for this may be that these models are empirically based and use first order bacterial and chemical oxidation rates. This type of model is satisfactory for short time predictions (on the order of 20 hours) when the bacterially catalyzed dissolution is relatively minor. However, when bacterial action becomes more pronounced, these models consistently predict higher dissolution rates than those commonly observed in laboratory experiments. The present model uses several fundamental chemically and biologically based assumptions to predict the dissolution rate of a chalcopyrite concentrate for extended leach times up to the precipitation of jarosite. The main assumptions made are that Monod growth kinetics prevail, T. ferrooxidans adsorb onto the surface of the mineral (not necessarily mineral specific), and that during periods of high growth oxygen transport may become rate limiting. The model also relies on the energy efficiency of the bacteria in fixing carbon (growth yield) and correlates this value with available surface area of the mineral particles and the bacterial growth rate.

Jan 1, 1989

By G. A. Munoz, J. D. Miller

Gold leaching of an auriferous pyrite ore from the Portovelo deposit in Ecuador indicates that noncyanide leaching systems, such as thiocyanate and thiourea, are not as effective as the traditional cyanide system. For example, whereas approximately 95% of the gold can be leached from the ore with cyanide, only about 50% gold dissolution can be achieved with a thiocyanate leaching system. Electrochemical measurements indicate that gold is not cathodically protected by pyrite in these systems. Based on the results of preliminary diagnostic experiments, it appears that gold dissolution in thiocyanate and thiourea systems is limited by passivation due to the formation of either elemental sulfur or sulfur compounds on the gold surface.

Jan 1, 2000

By A. B. Cecala

The US Bureau of Mines performed a study to determine optimal locations for longwall face methane monitoring equipment. Longwall face ignitions continue to be a concern to the US coal mining industry. Gains in ignition control technology have been somewhat negated by advances in longwall productivity. More reliable, heavy duty longwall face systems generate higher production rates and increase methane liberation rates. These rates will likely continue to rise as further coal production increases occur. Efforts will continue in the areas of methane drainage, methane containment and methane dilution. In addition, more effective face methane monitoring is needed. As technology continues toward automated longwall panels, the importance of monitoring for methane at the shearer becomes even more significant. Since the primary face ignition source is the shearer mining machine, the Bureau ran tests to determine the best location to take methane readings on the shearer. This information, in conjunction with data obtained from field studies, provides a knowledge base for selecting optimum face methane monitoring locations.

Jan 1, 1995

By Christopher Haycocks

Successful ground control is an essential part of all viable underground mining operations. To a large extent ground conditions influence the choice of mining methods, percentage and cost of extraction, and often the degree of safety that can be achieved. Utilizing the computer for ground-control planning offers great potential under many diverse conditions as not only are computations facilitated, but also details of the often complex geologic and structural framework of the mine can be readily stored and retrieved. Two basic approaches have been developed for applying the computer in solving ground-control problems. The first uses an analytical method, such as the finite element technique, for solving a specific problem. The second is more general and involves storage of geologic data and application of general design equations. The latter has found wide application in stratified deposits. It is the purpose of this chapter to describe both approaches as they are used for improving the ground-control aspects of mine planning.

Jan 1, 1979

By D. G. Krige

Sampling data from large mined out areas of, existing Witwatersrand mines is split into areas accepted as 'mines' and used to provide for each mine the equivalent of a number of sets of borehole values as well as the follow-up 'actual' value. This data is used to establish the spatial structures on a macro scale between 'mines' for grade as well as variance and the suitability of the three-parameter lognormal model Is tested for the borehole and 'mine' frequency distributions. A comprehensive range of borehole valuation techniques is then applied to a large number of borehole sets on an individual mine basis. The results for each technique are then compared with the corresponding follow-up 'actual' values for these mines. After normalisation via the three- parameter lognormal model the estimates are also correlated with the 'actuals' to define any conditional biasses and to establish the observed error distributions and error variances of the estimates. On this basis the various techniques are rated for their relative efficiencies and the significance of the advantages gained.

Jan 1, 1992

By Thomas P. Meloy

As the importance of particle shape in mineral processing is increasingly recognized as an major variable in predicting the behavior of both individual particles and particle systems, whether it be in dense media, froth flotation, comminution or the flow of particles, new method of shape characterization are being developed, particularly for use on image analyzers. These shape characterization methods may be broadly classified into the analytical, empirical and physical formation methods. Discussed are approaches and the strengths and weakness of each of these methods. Moreover old and new shape measuring techniques are reviewed, particularly the new image analysis methods techniques such as Fourier, Haar, Fractal, Walsh and Delta as well as a variety of other techniques such as tabling, the Cascadograph, settling and L/D ratios. Also discussed are the problems of doing shape research, current progress and the future of the field.

Jan 1, 1990

One of the major objectives of cost analysis is to enable the manager to predict the financial outcomes of decisions. To accomplish this, the future costs and benefits of alternative courses of action must be determined. If care- fully used, information about past financial performance can be helpful in this analysis despite the fact that, by definition, financial reporting information is historical. In many cases, both revenues and costs need to be estimated for decision- making. For the production manager, additional revenue is a result of increased throughput or recovery of valuable material from the stream of mined material. A reduction in operating cost, although similar to a revenue increase in its financial impact, is estimated using slightly different techniques. Generally, the estimation of cost is more difficult than the estimation of revenue. Most cost estimates have two components: an estimate of fixed costs and an estimate of variable costs. As discussed in chapter 5, the total cost of an activity during a specified period can be expressed as: Total cost = (Variable cost per unit of activity) x (Units of activity) + Fixed cost or TC = VX+F

Jan 1, 1999

By J. Partyka, J. S. Stachulak

Dust produced during blasting in a copper/nickel based mine was studied and characterized. A stope utilizing the crater blasting technique, or the vertical retreat mining (VRM method), was examined. Two dust monitors were used to measure an airborne dust produced during blasting operations. The data collected in situ was primarily used to formulate the boundary value problem for a generalized equation that describes the transportation process of airborne dust from all places where dust is produced by the VRM mining method. The field data was also used to define the analytical forms for the initial and boundary conditions, to provide a simple and reliable equation for flow of dust in a stope vicinity, and to identify the non-measurable constants. The effects of the amount of blasting material and of the ventilation system in use on dust concentration are also discussed.

Jan 1, 1995