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The selection of Sydney and Port Kembla for the First Ordinary Meeting of the Institute for 1938 was, no doubt, a recognition of the celebrations marking the 150th Anniversary of the first settlement of this country. In selecting a theme for my Presidential Address, I propose to depart from the precedents of my distinguished predecessors, as I feel that this year of celebration is the natural year for a brief review of the history and progress of the Institute.In July, 1892, the Amalgamated Mining Managers' Association of Australasia held its Annual Conference in Ballarat, Victoria, when Mr. Uriah Dudley, who attended as a delegate from Broken Hill, brought forward the advisability of the formation of an Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr. Dudley was authorised to take such action as he thought fit, and the result was the formation of a Provisional Committee in Broken Hill of men who were mostly members of the American Institute of Mining Engineers. Broken Hill was therefore really the birthplace of the Institute.A circular headed Broken Hill, September, 1892, with the signature of Uriah Dudley, Acting Hon. Secretary, Provisional Committee, which was sent to those likely to take an active part in the formation of an Institute, read as follows:-The Mining Managers' Association of Australasia has suggested that the time has now arrived when an Australasian Institute of Mining Engineers should be established, having objects similar to the American Institute, of which all of the Thirty-one Colonial...

Jan 1, 1938

By Hookings H. J

UNDER a contract relating to the sale of a Broken Hill concentrate, the differentiation between granular and slime concentrate is determined by the proportion of the material which will pass a 200-mesh (I.M.M. standard) screen, and this has led to considerable attention being devoted to the question of laboratory sizing tests with screens of this order.It was found that many of the screens turned out by the makers during the war, and also since its termination, did not conform with the I.M.M. specifications as closely as some supplied in pre-war days. A perfect screen is hardly to be expected, but when the above contract was framed the parties anticipated that, by special care being taken during manufacture, a screen at least as good as the best pre-war screens would be available. This, however, has not proved to be the case, and the large irregularities in screens recently supplied render them useless for sizing determinations under the contract. The makers were approached through the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy, London, with the view of obtaining a few screens conforming as closely as possible to the 200-mesh I.M.M. standard, and in response to a request twelve pieces of screen were...

Jan 1, 1922

Neither the copper orebodies nor the zinc-lead-silver orebodies at Mount Isa were formed syntectonically as has been claimed for the last 20 and 10 years respectively. Both orebody types were cogenetic, coeval, and formed early during the sedimentation and diagenesis of the host formation. The copper orebodies are interpreted as having formed diagenetically at hand specimen scale, syngenetically at formation scale. The zinc-lead-silver orebodies are interpreted as having formed primarily by sedimentary means at both hand specimen and formation scales.

Jan 1, 2000

By Ralph B. J, Sadler W. R

Thiobacillus ferrooxidans was shown to catalyse biodegradation of chalcopyrite concentrates. The process was growth associated at normal temperatures (30°C) in dilute acid solution (pH2, H2SO4) in submerged cultures. Approximately 20% of the copper dissolved in 22 days in the presence of T ferrooxidans while less than 0.6% was released when bacteria were absent. In ore column leachates, the iron and sulphur oxidizing species T ferrooxidans, ranged from I04 to I06 cells/ml while exdusively sulphur oxidizing species ranged from I02 to 104 cells/ml. T ferrooxidans predominated below pH 3 while other sulphur oxidizing bacteria favoured higher pH. Organisms were distributed vertically in ore columns according to pH differences, resulting from gradual acid consumption by gangue, during trickle irrigation.There was a sequential development of bacteria in leachates from fresh ore irrigated with water only. High pH sulphur oxidizers were always present, low pH sulphur oxidizers appeared within a week while T ferrooxidans took 50 days to show up. Routine monitoring of bacteria in dump leachates provided a qualitative indication of events in otherwise inaccessible ore bodies.

Jan 1, 1981

A process was developed, on a laboratory scale, for the removal of iron oxides from Weipa pisolitic bauxite. The technique involves the chemical reduction ofthe iron oxides by carbon, followed by selective removal of the iron species by acid leaching or chlorination.To remove more than 90 per cent of the iron it is necessary to reduce the iron oxides substantially to iron metal by heating the bauxite, pre-calcined at 650-800°C, with reactive carbon at 1040-1100°C. Reduction proceeds via the intermediate formation of hercynite (FeO.Al2O3) and difficulties have been encountered in reducing hercynite formed under less favourable reduction conditions.Following reduction, efficient selective removal of iron species is readily effected by acid leaching using dilute hydrochloric acid at 100°C, or chlorination at 500-750°C using Cl2, Cl2/N2, or Cl2/N2/CO mixtures.After removal of unreacted carbon, the final products contain 0·5-1.0 per cent Fe203 and 87-92 per cent Al203.

Jan 1, 1971

During the past Two years in reef gold mining, "indicators" have received great attention at the hands at the Victorian gold seekers. Many years ago, what was caned the" indicator lode," was struck in Ballarat East, on the course of which extremely rich deposits of gold were discovered but as to its being a .qeneral experience in reefs or leaders no one ever dreamed. Now, however, we find that these "indicators" are frequently to be met with, though they differ very much in different localities, making it, therefore, a difficult matter for other than a careful minel' to follow them. The necessity of following "indicators" for the purpose of developing gold is now recognized, and the policy of following them up has been attended with much success in this field. In the case of Messrs Shaw and Sons, at Wedderburn, those gentlemen began to work on an "indicator" here five years ago, and immediately thereafter more by accident than anything else they being at that time inexperienced as regards "indicators " came upon gold bearing quartz, which continued payable so long as the" indicator" aud the stone were in conjunction with each other, but as soon as they parted company the stone ceasedto be of any value then, by following the" indicator," as the latter intersected fresh bodies of stone they proved again more or less payable, until a fortnight or so ago the Messrs. Shaw turned out 4 tons of stone, which yielded £1,825, with also profitable workingup to the present moment. Where they are now working is a mile north of their original find thus proving that "indicators" travel considerable distances and have something to do with the gold deposits found in reefs. On the direct course of Shaw's "indicator," as high as hundreds of ozs to the ton was obtained from the stone but, just a few inches from either side in the same" leader," not a colour could be got. Whatever the cause-whether by electricity or some unknown force in nature-the gold is found on the course of these" indicators" and nowhere else, and-as each of the Victorian Government Geologists admit-their value to the gold-seeker as a means of leading to' gold cannot be over-estimated.

The 1990s present many challenges, not the least of which is in the area of health and safety. Integrating of safety and health into the management process to suit the overall needs of a company will require commitment. Organisations which consistently perform to high success levels do so because they plan it that way. By using tools of total quality management, the potential to continually improve all safety processes exists. The successful integration of total quality measurement principles used in the improvement of safety processes, and the measurement of performance-based activities allow for prevention of accident causing scenarios and performance improvement.

Jan 1, 1993

A device is described which is suitable for the automatic sampling of dust in dust laden flue gases. This device, called a Venturi Sampler, consists of two pipes each fitted with a suitably designed venturi.Both pipes are placed in the flue where one acts as an open-ended reference tube and the other as the actual sampling tube.The gas sampling rate is automatically controlled so as to maintain a zero differential pressure between pressure tappings in the two venturi throats. The venturies are so designed that under these conditions the gas velocity in the sampling pipe is always equal to the free gas velocity in the flue-that is isokinetfc sampling conditions are maintained.INTRODUCTIONThere is a constant need in industry for regular and accurate assessments of dust losses, both to assist in improving operating efficiencies in order to minimize losses, and to obtain accurate metallurgical balances. In many cases where sampling is carried out in dust laden gases, the existing sampling methods are both laborious and inaccurate, and often make no provision for changes in flue gas velocity while sampling is in progress.In the majority of cases where a measurement of dust losses in a stack or flue is required, a preliminary velocity survey is made with a pitot tube to establish the gas velocity at each of the points at which samples are to be taken. The sample of gas (and dust) is withdrawn through a tube connected via a flowmeter to an exhausting apparatus. Some means of removing the dust from the gas sample is placed in circuit ahead of the exhausting apparatus. This is often an alundum or paper thimble housed in a gas-tight container.The purpose of the flowmeter is to measure the actual flow of gas during sampling so that the sampling velocity at the inlet to the sampling tube may be calculated, and the flow corrected so that the sampling velocity will agree with...

Jan 1, 1959

The paper presents a brief history of endeavours to start a mining education programme which began in the days when Papua New Guinea's first large mine, at Panguna (Bougainville), was coming into production. The status of the Public Investment Programme in Mining Engineering and the facilities being created for the education and training of Papua New Guinean citizens in mining and mineral processing are also described. Future expansion plans are also detailed including those for the commencement of petroleum engineering and geological engineering which would include courses in mining geology, exploration geology, engineering geology and petroleum geology. The paper also looks at the manpower training requirements in the lower levels of mining industry such as pit foreman, blasting foreman and other similar positions. It stresses the need to start mining technical training programs at pre- employment level and at certificate level in a technical college, possibly Lae Technical Colleqe.

Jan 1, 1991

By S Robertson, I Buitrago

Mine life cycle planning and enduring value are taking centre stage to meet corporate goals and deliver socio-economic outcomes for communities over the life of a mine. There is a general agreement in the literature about mining-induced effects on locals adjacent to mining operations and subsequent closure. In response, international regulatory bodies, through the implementation of global agendas, encourage exploration and mining companies to embrace the concept of corporate social responsibility. This concept is designed to provide sustainable outcomes and maintain a social license to operate over the life of a mine. This paper proposes a practical application of the sustainable livelihood approach as a tool for international planning. With this approach as the governing framework, this paper proposes an innovative tool for mine life cycle planning. Based on the findings, this paper discusses the socio-economic impacts of mining and mine closure. It also argues that transferring some of the benefits from mining to create lasting value for communities needs to be considered at the initial stages of planning for the mine and the community. Findings also indicate that conditions such as a strong local government, good governance arrangements, relevant capacity-building for sustainable livelihoods and a diversified economy are important to transferring some of the benefits from mining to create lasting value for communities. The paper is based on a mixed research technique for data analysis and a case study methodology. The case studies were conducted in Australia and Colombia.CITATION:Buitrago, I and Robertson, S, ?2014. Mine life cycle planning – creating lasting value for communities, in Proceedings Life-of-Mine 2014 , pp 301–312 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 16, 2014

Similarities and Dissimilarities in Florida Phosphate Ore Types - Surface and Bulk Property Analysis of the Flotation Feed, Concentrate and Tails

Sep 13, 2010

Same-batch and non-blind as well as blind pulp duplicates are often submitted as quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) control samples to a routine laboratory along with routine assays (and other control samples such as reference material samples). The current ways of interpreting the results of duplicate assays to derive QA/QC conclusions and decisions, however, has not yet been formalised in a scientific manner. The current, prevailing approach and its limitations are reviewed and a new method is proposed as a substitute tool. This new tool should allow for operational error detection on a batch per batch basis (ie batch rejection) as well as laboratory performance assessment with time on reproducibility.

Jan 1, 2008

In New York City, on the walls of the library of the United Engineering Societies are these words:"Engineering-the art of organising and directing men and of controlling the forces and materials of nature for the benefit of the human race," but who, reading the schedules of even our best engineering schools, would infer that engineering is an art or that it should always havejn mind the benefit of the human race? While it must be remembered that our engineering schools exemplify the British cult of the amateur, that cult which lets men who have never attended a lecture on "Education" or perhaps nevereven read a book on it, become enginering teachers by profession (and so educators by inference), the root of the matter is to be found in the fact that our educational aims, and consequently our educational practice, seem suited much better to the position engineering held in the community in 1900 than to the position it holds to-day. This civilization of ours has developed, !;loth for good and for ill, into one based largely on engineering achievement; technical progress is so continuous and so rapid that thevalue of descriptive knowledge of current practice is ever lessening; enough must be imparted to make the young graduate immediately employable, and this amount is sufficient for illustrating the principles on which practice is based and on which its advance depends, but the young graduate's technical progress depends much less on his having acquired additional knowledge than on his ability to acquire knowledge, so, paradoxically, the more useful knowledge there is availabJe the less of it the student should be taught.Less conspicuous but fully as important is the enlargement of the field of work of engineering graduates, especially its extension to the initiating of policies and to the broader problems of administration. At present the road to such positions lies normally through a considerable period of professional work, but it is by no means unlikely that the field will soon include much that requires little professional expel'ience. At all events it is safe to say that the changed. and changing position of engineering in the communitydemands the attention of the engineering schools and that profitable discussion of engineering education demands some understanding of the real nature of education and of the part which engineering plays in the life of the community.THE NATURE OF EDUCATIONUnfortunately "to educate" supplies an example of how words degenerate in meaning; most people regard it as the equivalent of "to instruct"; a small number feel they have gone to. the root of the matter when they say...

Jan 1, 1941

In, one stage of the purification sequence of the zinc sulphate electrolyte used at Risdon, cobalt is, precipitated as cobalt nitroso-,B-naphtholate, which is separated from the solution by filtration. Owing to the method of conducting the purification the filter cake contains much gypsum, unconsumed calcium hydroxide, basic zinc sulphate, and entrained zinc sulphate solution, Small amounts of iron and copper that have escaped previous purification steps are also precipitated with the cobalt as nitroso-,B-naphtholate. Thisprecipitate, normally carrying about 18% cobalt, is the raw material for the production of cobalt oxide, cobalt sulphate and cobalt metal.COBALT OXIDEThe main problem in the preparation of a reasonable grade of cobalt oxide from the filter cake is the economic separation ,of the cobalt nitroso-,B-naphtholate from the gypsum. This was solved by the application of flotation. It was discovered that the cobalt nitroso-,B-naphtholate, under correct conditions, would float without any addition agent, giving a relatively high grade concentrate. A plant, was built and has been in operation since 1936. The filter cake is pulped with water and pumped to one of two mechanically agitated tanks, eath capable of holding one day's output. Sulphuric acid is added until the free acid concentration reaches about 3 gm. per litre. Basic zinc sulphate is dissolved and calcium hydroxide converted to gypsum. The pulp, carrying about 2t lb. of solids per gallon, is pumped at a suitable rate to the first of a series of 10 flotation, boxes.. Each box is 3 ft. by 2 ft. 9 in. by 5 ft. deep, and, all have a common, pulp level, since the...

Jan 1, 1949

Reason Analysis of Impurity Containing and Technology Discussion of Quality Improvement for Low-Quality Iron Concentrate

Sep 13, 2010

By E Apaza, R Neumayr

This paper aims to summarise the discovery of the QTS Central resource, a previously unidentified +1 Mt inferred resource that lies between two major CSA resource systems.The 1.7 Mt at 5.76 per cent Cu, QTS Central ore system represents 1/6th of the CSA mineral resource and was discovered in 2014 based on the accumulation of historic exploration records dating back to 1989.The CSA deposit consists of five ore systems hosted within turbidite-derived siltstones (CSA Siltstone) and lesser sandstones (five per cent) of the Devonian Amphitheatre Group. The host sediments strike approximately north–south with a steep westerly dip and exhibit a well-developed east dipping cleavage. Most CSA mineralisation is hosted within dilation zones at the intersection of cross-cutting structures and is interpreted as epigenetic in origin.Alteration and weak mineralisation, up plunge to the reported QTS Central mineral resource, was initially detected in 1990 during a downhole electromagnetic conductivity (EM) study, where one hole indicated an off-hole conductor, later tested with four diamond holes. One of these diamond holes intersected 3 m at 7.5 per cent Cu at 200 m. Development of the 9070 Subway drive in 2005/2006, linked the QTS North and QTS South workings and intersected structures interpreted to host QTS Central mineralisation. Subsequent drilling proximal to the 9070 Subway in 2007 identified an up plunge extension to the QTS Central zone (UDD07152: 1.8 m at 6.3 per cent Cu from 10.7 m). Work on QTS Central was largely forgotten until 2012 when the mining of a 450 m infrastructure drive provided a platform to test the anomalous grades. In December 2013, drill hole UDD13055A intersected 20.9 m at 7.2 per cent Cu from 378 m. By the end of 2014, the QTS Central inferred resource was 1.0 Mt at 6 per cent Cu and 18 g/t Ag (Hosken and Apaza, 2014). Late in 2016, further infill drilling occurred from two fronts to increase confidence in the QTS Central resource. The results of this drilling are expected late in 2017.The current interpretation indicates the QTS Central system consists of two main lenses hosted within closely bedded sandstones and siltstones. The sandstone in general is not mineralised, being heavily silicified, while the siltstone is mineralised and chloritised. The main mineralised lens is 75–200 m along strike and 450 m high. Massive sulfide feeder structures lie at the core of the two main lenses, although the characteristics of the QTS Central system tend toward the mineralisation being more chlorite-rich than in QTS North and QTS South.CITATION:Apaza, E and Neumayr, R, 2017. The discovery of the QTS Central ore system, CSA mine, Cobar, NSW, Australia, in Proceedings Tenth International Mining Geology Conference 2017, pp 151–156 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 20, 2017

Close spatial relationships between the deposits of the Etheridge Goldfield (23 000 kg of bullion) and various regional geological and geophysical features suggest that genesis of the ore deposits was a multi-stage process that started with magmatic and metamorphic stages in the mid-Proterozoic, climaxed with structural and hydrothermal stages in the late Palaeozoic and terminated with an oxidation enrichment stage in the Cainozoic.This hypothesis permits classification of the Georgetown region into areas likely to contain deposits of the Etheridge type and those unlikely to do so; it is concluded that there is little scope for the discovery of extensions of this field.However, the stratigraphic interval between the postulated source rocks of the Etheridge field and stratigraphically higher host rocks of the Croydon field may contain disseminated replacement gold deposits of the Carlin type. The potential host (Pyritic carbonaceous, and locally dolomitic siltstone of the Candlow Formation) is locally faulted and cut by granitoids and the extension of a mineralised, long-standing zone of structural weakness.

Jan 1, 1981

By M Bannear, C Stanton

Since 2008, Arrium has been developing and commissioning a new low-grade hematite ore benefication plant (or OBP) at its Iron Baron mine site.The Iron Baron mine, which was closed in the 1990s, could not consistently yield the high-grade hematite required for pelletising. However, in todayÆs market, the 12 Mt of waste dumps represent a significant low-grade hematite resource, ideal for benefication.Initially, an internal scoping study and several sampling campaigns were conducted to determine the ability to upgrade the available low-grade dump material to a product suitable for export. Test work was conducted at Mineral Technologies (formerly CPG), and included high intensity magnetic separation, spiralling and jigging. Due to promising results from a wet processing circuit, Arrium engaged Mineral Technologies to design a flow sheet that could provide 1 Mt/a of a mixture of high-grade lump (-32 + 8 mm) and fines (-8 mm) products for export.With construction of the plant completed in late January 2012, Arrium, in conjunction with Mineral Technologies, began two commissioning phases. Each phase ended with a toll gate to prove the plantÆs capacity to reach rate and desired grade. After an initial period of running on water, feed solids were introduced to the plant and troubleshooting of bottlenecks began. The first toll gate, whereby the plant was required to run for 24 hours at an average feed rate of 200 t/h (80 per cent of design rate), was completed on the 1 March 2012. Further troubleshooting and resolving of issues allowed the plant to steadily increase feedrate while maintaining good availability and grade. The second toll gate required the plant to run for 72 hours at an average feed rate of 200 t/h while meeting grade, yield and water consumption targets. Sampling campaigns were conducted during this period to track the performance of key equipment. Completion of the test, and full handover of the plant to Arrium, was completed on the 21 April 2012.Although the formal commissioning phases had been completed, ongoing optimisation of the OBP continued, ensuring that all major equipment was working to produce the optimum yield and grade. Sampling campaigns were conducted on the jigs and spirals, with results and correlations used for operations documentation.Overall, with successful completion of the final acceptance tests, the commissioning of the Iron Baron OBP has been established as a major success achieving all production and quality targets as per the original design intent.This paper will focus on the successful commissioning and ramp-up performance of the plant however reference will also be made to the key development stages involved with the development of the project.CITATION:Stanton, C and Bannear, M, 2013. ArriumÆs Iron Baron hematite beneficiation plant - a success from start to finish, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2013 , pp 547-552 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 12, 2013

By Parker A. J, Grimsey E. J

Studies have been carried out on the dead roasting of a copper-iron and a copper-nickel-iron sulfide concentrate, followed by segregation roasting with coal and leaching with either curpric sulfate in aqueous acetonitrile or cupric chloride in brine solution to preferentially solubilize copper. The effect of dead roasting and segregation roasting conditions on the overall leaching of copper and the separation of copper from iron and iron and nickel is reported. An excellent separation of copper from iron and a good separation of copper from iron and nickel can be obtained provided sulfur is removed to 0.5 per cent or less during the dead roast and provided the coal addition and temperature of the segregation roast are near the minima required for the segregation of copper.

Jan 1, 1983

The presence of gold or tin in a particular place in payable quantities may be suspected from geological and prospE;cting reports. It behoves the engineer by judiciously spaced boreholes or pits to establish whether the place is exploitable with profit, and it is the purpose of this paper to set out the ways in which this is done. The various types of deposit to be considered occur in Malaya, Thafland and Borneo, in which countries the writer spent four years in estimating alluvials.The methods described were used in actual practice both by the writer and previous engineers for the same company. The subsequent exploitation of the alluvials evaluated by the methods given below shows that the recovery was as good as, and sometimes higher than, expected. No claims are made to the originality of the methods, but it is 'felt that they may be new to some engineers and< interesting to others contemplating alluvial testing.

Jan 1, 1942