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By A. P. Fletcher, K. Croteau

The intent of this paper is to cover some aspects of preventive maintenance methods which have come into wider usage in recent years as a means of increasing operating efficiencies. Particular emphasis is placed on lubrication and related servicing.

Jan 1, 1967

By F. Hosseini

Shaping of metals by thixoforming relies on the unusual flow behavior of semisolid slurries containing nondendritic solid phase. The Flow behavior of metallic alloys containing both solid and liquid phases is investigated in the low solid fraction range (, 55%). This behavior depends on both the solid fraction and the shear rate. Four different shear rates is applied using back extrusion technique and flow stress versus true strain in different solid fraction is compared. It is well accepted that the flow stress s of alloys in their semi-solid state obeys to a thixotropic behavior, due to agglomeration and dissagglomeration phenomena during forming. The load-displacement curves produced from the tests may show an initial peak, believed to originate from a skeletal structure which rapidly breaks down under shear. Apparent viscosity obtained from this method is compared with other works and the proper power law of pseudo plastic state is introduced.

Oct 1, 2011

By James McMahon

Although doubt has been expressed many times as to who first brought self-contained breathing apparatus to this side of the Atlantic, there is none whatever that the first organized station was established at Glace Bay, N .S., by the Dominion Coal Company, in 1907. This station was started with 20 sets of 1907 "Draeger" apparatus and all necessary station equipment and supplies. After the fire at No. 1 pit, Sydney Mines, in 1908, the Nova Scotia Steel Company installed 15 sets of "Draeger" and sup-plies, which were housed in a rescue car (a converted pull-man.) In 1909 or '10 a fire occurred at the Back Pit, Stellarton, where the apparatus from Glace Bay was used, and subsequently the Acadia Company erected a station and in-stalled 10 sets of "Securitas" apparatus. In 1912 the station at New Waterford was opened and equipped with "Draeger," and the same year the station at Springhill was built and equipped with the same type. Sometime during past years the Nova Scotia Steel Company acquired a couple of "Proto" machines, and after the explosion at the Allan shaft in 1918 the Acadia Coal Company added some "Gibbs" to their station. From this it will be seen that when the coal-fields were organized under the British Empire Steel Corporation the equipment was rather mixed, therefore steps were taken by the executive to stanardize the whole of the rescue and recovery work.

Jan 1, 1924

By Michael T. McCaffrey

The wide range of potential feed materials, process steps, and products in metallurgical facilities means that standard equipment might not be available to adequately meet the project technical and economic needs. Custom designed equipment should be considered only after rigorous research precludes purchasing standard equipment. However, the decision to use custom equipment introduces a new element of risk into the project. To manage the risk, custom equipment design should be developed through the same front end loading (FEL) phases as project development. If more than incremental development of custom equipment is required, appropriate test work or pilot trials are required to test key uncertainties. Important activities during custom equipment design include maintaining clearly defined performance objectives, conducting appropriate reviews, carefully crafting commercial and intellectual property agreements with design and fabrication partners, and assembling a multidisciplinary team with sufficient development expertise.

Jan 1, 2015

By C. A. Pickles, K. Mackowiak, D. Gajonera

"Shake-flask oxidation tests were performed on Red Dog mine waste to study the initial dissolution behaviours of lead, zinc, and iron. The conditions for accelerated acid generation in terms of Eh and pH were determined. Each mineral behaved distinctly, with galena dissolving first, followed by sphalerite, then pyrite, although there was some overlap in behaviour. Iron was not detected in solution until approximately day 40 and was present at low concentrations. The experimental conditions and the theoretical model results indicated the formation of iron oxyhydroxides at low weathering times and jarosite at longer times.RÉSUMÉ Des tests d’oxydation par agitation en flacon ont été effectués sur les déchets miniers de l’exploitation Red Dog afin d’étudier les comportements initiaux de dissolution du plomb, du zinc et du fer. Les conditions entraînant la production accélérée d’acide en termes d’eH (potentiel d’oxydoréduction) et de pH (potentiel d’hydrogène) ont été déterminées. Chaque minerai se comportait différemment ; la galène a été la première à se dissoudre, suivie de la sphalérite, puis de la pyrite, mais un certain chevauchement des comportements a été observé. La présence de fer en solution n’a été détectée qu’après environ 40 jours et ce, à de faibles concentrations. Les conditions expérimentales et les résultats du modèle théorique signalaient la formation d’oxyde-hydroxyde de fer sur de courtes périodes d’altération atmosphérique, et de jarosite sur des périodes plus longues."

Jan 1, 2017

By D. W. Boydell

The response of reclaimed gold tailings to acid leaching was investigated in the laboratory, followed by a pilot-plant program in which the operations of CCD, CIX and SX were tested with plant feed material. These results formed the basis for the design of the extension to the existing uranium plant at Blyvooruitzicht Gold Mine, commissioned in July 1977. This circuit consists of slimes-dam reclamation by bucket-wheel excavator at a rate of 100,000 t solids per month, acid leaching in pachucas, a five-stage CCD washing section, two parallel C1X absorption columns and two elution columns, SX and an ADU precipitation section. Barren solution is recycled to the CCD section as wash and to the repulper at the slimes dam. The performance of the plant during the first year of operation is compared with the predictions on which the plant design was based. Rated capacity was achieved within three weeks of start-up at a nominal dissolved uranium recovery in the ion-exchange section of around 98%. Owing to recycle, the over-all recovery in the ion-exchange and solvent extraction sections is somewhat higher than this figure.

Jan 1, 1979

By R. D. Studer

"The Snow Lake massive sulphide deposits are hosted by Aphebian volcanic rocks of the Flin Flon - Snow Lake greenstone belt, which in this area were deformed and metamorphosed to the amphibolite facies during the Hudsonian orogeny. All the known deposits occur in felsic rocks a short distance below the contact with an overlying mafic rock unit.The Stall Lake copper deposit occurs close to the top of an explosive felsic volcanic sequence. Rocks stratigraphically underlying the deposit have been hydrothermally altered by the mineralizing fluids. The sulphides were probably deposited from submarine volcanic vent(s) on the flanks of a felsic dome. The ore has been tightly folded, flattened and elongated parallel to the northerly trending lineation of the surrounding rocks during the several periods of deformation. Strike lengths of the lenses range from 60 to 300 feet and plunge-to-strike ratios are as much as 15:1.Ore lenses I to 4 typically consist of massive coarse-grained pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite and pyrite. A stratigraphically higher lens differs in that it contains fine-grained pyrite and chalcopyrite, with an increase in sphalerite toward its hanging wall. The No.4 orebody has a distinct footwall alteration zone characterized by brecciation and abundant chlorite-staurolite- garnet schist, with minor kyanite, anthophyllite, cordierite and anhydrite, as well as sulphide minerals. Chemically, the alteration zone is distinguished from the unaltered felsic rocks by Na20 depletion and Mg-Fe enrichment"

Jan 1, 1982

By Robert P. Dufresne

Electrolytic cells are used in electrowinning (EW) and electrorefining (ER) of non-ferrous metals such as zinc and copper, and are a critical part of the purification process. The cell is a large basin and has an electrolyte or aqueous solution, an anode and a cathode, an insulator, and incoming high amperage. Cells are exposed to unfavourable internal and external factors that have a direct impact on their lifespan. Their deterioration can be caused by incorrect polarity, insufficient magnitude, their construction, tension stress, thermal shock, corrosion and other, and their maintenance and replacement can be time-consuming, costly, difficult and environmentally unsafe. Occupational health hazards and dangers posed by the maintenance and removal of the cell should also be taken into consideration. Modifying the design and fabrication method of the cell, using chemical-resistant reinforcement, and increasing tensile and mechanical strength will defer maintenance for a very long time. This can be achieved by a double hull system that comprises full-length composite reinforcement, polymer concrete reinforced with fiberglass pultruded rods and rebars, fiberglass structural layers, and special resin matrices. This will provide protection against thermal shocks, corrosion, leakage, cracks. The design of this cell incorporates a lifting system that will afford quick and easy install without having to move a great number of cells in close proximity, since it is strong enough to stand on its own and not have to be bonded to adjacent cells. As well, the cell can be anchored with ease as it remains stable. This is especially important because space is limited to lift and manoeuver between the cell and the double-girder overhead travelling cranes. The lifting system can also prevent electrocution and loss in product quality, while increasing efficiency and safety in the workplace. Considerable savings in terms of production downtime are also part of the equation. INTRODUCTION Maintenance and replacement of electrolytic cells in electrowinning and electrorefining are operations that pose many challenges, health and safety concerns, and give rise to substantial operational costs. These problems have existed since time immemorial. Electrolytic cells are made of conventional concrete or polymer concrete, and because of the very nature of their composition and their exposure to severe and environmental conditions, their lifespan is short. Although polymer concrete is composed of high-quality materials, and has good thermal stability and resistance to chemicals, nonetheless, maintenance is frequently required in order to maintain the integrity of the cell and to ensure the quality of refined metals. Repairing concrete is a non-permanent solution as cracks will reappear, and every repair weakens the integrity of the cell a bit more, until it reaches a knock- down point and the structure is compromised. The cell needs to be replaced, otherwise the cell will collapse.

Jan 1, 2019

By Gilles Bonin

Structures and serpentinization patterns in the Thetford Mines peridotites are important characteristics indicating the necessary geological conditions which led to the development of chrysotile orebodies in Early Ordovician limes. These structures and serpentinization patterns are reviewed in this paper using the geology of LAB Chrysotile orebodies as a model. Structural aspects include parallel and transverse faults, parallel and transverse granite slabs, and orebodies, some of which trend clearly north-westward parallel to the accretionarymovement. Serpentinization patterns in the peridotite belt, particularly in the harzburgite, include primary pervasive mass serpentinization and secondary complete serpentinization. Listwaenites layers appeared along some faults and along some granite slabs as a result of hydrothermal alteration of the serpentine, following the emplacement of the devonian plutons to the south. These plutons as we/1 as other important lineaments, align with the structural pattern of Thetford Mines ophiolites. It is believed that these plutons are part of a heavy magma tic corridor resembling the Pilote-Mont-Louis corridor in the Gaspe (Doyon and Berger, 1997), and the Buchans' structure in Newfoundland (Hutchinson, 1984), both intersecting the Brompton-Baie Verte line.

Jan 1, 2001

By R. Mulligan

"The Cordilleran tin belt extends from the Seward Peninsula in westernmost Alaska to Mexico. Throughout the Canadian section, tin occurrences are mainly confined to a belt along the northeastern fringe of the Western Cordilleran sub-region; the boundary of this sub-region with the Eastern Cordilleran sub-region is most simply defined as the practical eastern limit of granitic and metamorphic rocks. The stratified rocks underlying this restricted belt are mainly late Precambrian and early Paleozoic miogeosynclinal sedimentary rocks, which are more or less metamorphosed but otherwise are generally equivalent to the less severely deformed rocks underlying the Eastern Cordilleran sub-region. They contrast with Late Paleozoic - Mesozoic eugeosynclinal volcanic-sedimentary assemblages farther west, but the granitic intrusions throughout are mainly of Late Mesozoic age. Thus, narrowly defined, the tin belt largely coincides with a lead-zinc-silver metallogenic province, whereas copper deposits characterize the eugeosynclinal regions to the west. In addition to the tin occurrences, which include the Sullivan lead-zinc-silver mine, Canada's only significant producer, the belt contains all the beryllium, most of the tungsten and many Iithophile-type molybdenum occurrences. Several types of occurrences of each metal are represented. Lithium occurrences in the Canadian Cordillera are notably rare, and these few are insignificant."

Jan 1, 1971

By Ronald E. Pike

"PREFACEAt the CIM Annual General Meeting in Quebec City, R.E. Pike of The Toronto-Dominion Bank described how the Canadian banking industry worked with the minerals industry to assemble the large capital requirements for resource projects in Canada and overseas. He developed a profile of the mining industry and Canadian banking, both being important sectors of the Canadian economy and global in context. He also outlined the banking and financing partnership that existed in the past. In looking to the future and challenge that lies ahead f or each industry, Mr. Pike questioned whether the financing practices of the 1970s will be acceptable over the next decade. In that regard, he highlighted the risks that impact on each industry and illustrated how that financing partnership might evolve in response to those forces. The folio wing is a synopsis of his paper.IntroductionThe Canadian mining and metals industry is prominent in the domestic economy and respected internationally. Any measure of its performance illustrates that status-percentage of GNP, employment, exports, capital investment, size relative to other producing nations, etc.Energy, Mines and Resources Canada has forecast that the non-fuel minerals industry will grow in real terms by an average annual rate of 3.0% over the period 1981 to 1991. Using the GNP as reference, that growth in non-fuel mineral production will represent 7.7% of GNP. In translating that growth to capital expenditure, the EMR Canada estimates the aggregate amount at $43.8 billion ('79 dollars) or approximately 12% of total business investment in Canada during the 10-year period.About half of the $43.8 billion will be devoted to the ferrous sector-$8.4 billion in iron ore mining and $12.4 billion in the steel industry. Capital investment in nonferrous s projects is estimated at $13.3 billion, and it is projected at $6.7 billion for industrial minerals. The residual $3.0 .billion is exploration spending."

Jan 1, 1982

By J. A. Haskin

The Engineering Department at Flin Flon has the following responsibilities: 1. Underground Surveying. 2. Open-Pit Surveying and Supervision of Blasting. 3. Mine Geology and Examination of Prospects. 4. Design of Plant Additions and Improvements. 5. Miscellaneous Field W ork, Reports, etc. The entire surface plant, as well as the underground workings, are located by co-ordinates based on a triangulation system covering an area approximately one mile long by one-half mile wide. The origin of this system and one end of the base-line is the southwest corner of Township 67, Range 29, west of the Principal Meridian. The bearing of the base-line was determined from the township boundary, which runs true north, so that all other bearings are almost astronomical. This is a great convenience when our surveys must be tied to mineral claims, rights-of-way, and land subdivisions. As the base-line extends across Flin Flon lake, its measurement across smooth ice was simple and accurate. The length, slightly over 1,600 feet, has been adjusted for the temperature and tension of the standard tapes used and checked sufficiently to ensure a maximum error of 1 : 15,000. Each angle was repeated ten times, but as no special refinements were used, errors of as much as four or five seconds are possible. The elevation of the origin of the triangulation system was approximately 1,050 feet above sea level. The use of this true elevation in our surveys would have resulted in negative elevations underground as soon as the mine reached a depth greater than 1,050 feet. To avoid this complication we therefore added 4,000 feet to this elevation. The collar of the Main shaft, for example, which is actually 1,072 feet above sea level, appears in our records as at elevation 5,072. Underground surveying, which follows standard practice, is done by two mine surveyors who share three helpers. The meridian is taken underground from two wires hung in either of the two vertical shafts.

Jan 1, 1935

By Ellie Condolios

Hydraulic hoisting offers a number ~f attractive features over conventional hoisting methods: small shaft space requirements; great flexibility of layout, including pick-up or delivery of the material at points distant from the mine shaft; low investment and operating costs. However, limited practical experience with this type of hoisting dictates that careful design and, frequently, extensive testing be done by competent engineers before large-scale installations are built. This paper covers the following: basic laws and design criteria for hydraulic hoisting installations; a description of a coal hoisting installation which has been in industrial operation since 1960, with a vertical lift of 600 feet and an annual capacity of 500,000 tons of -3 ~-in. coal; and a tentative appraisal of the process, including cost estimates. THE transportation of solids in water flowing through a pipe-line has, for a number of years, been common practice in dredging, public

Jan 1, 1963

By B. R. Rakishev

Balanced development of mining works at all the benches of a working zone by use of the excavator-automobile complex is achieved by transition to the technology of the bench excavating with cross panels by the two-sub-bench scheme with the changing levels of the working platforms (is patented in Kazakhstan). In deep quarries realization of this technology will allow to reduce the current volumes of the stripping ore excavation by 10?15 % and more, to increase the opened reserves of minerals by 20?50 % to decrease volume of mining-capital works for construction of stripping excavations by 2?4 times and to provide efficient use of powerful excavator-automobile complexes.

Aug 1, 2013

By Deborah McCombe

"By now, most geologists and engineers in the Canadian mining industry are familiar with National Instrument 43101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, which are incorporated by reference in NI 43-101. In recent years, significant progress has also been made in establishing standard reporting practices internationally that recognize the globalization of the industry and enable investors to compare projects anywhere in the world and make informed investment decisions. This article is part of a series that will summarize the background and development of international resource and reserve reporting standards by the Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards (CRIRSCO), highlight its current activities and provide insight into international mineral reserve and resource reporting issues. CRIRSCO was formerly the Mineral Definitions Working Group of the Council of Mining and Metallurgical Institutions (CMMI), an organization representing professional bodies in all of the major mining and mining investment countries. In 2002, CMMI disbanded and CRIRSCO continued as a volunteer committee with limited funding from those professional bodies and increasingly from other sources, such as mining companies and regulatory bodies. CRIRSCO was adopted as a Task Force of the International Council of Mining and Metals (ICMM) in 2007. The ICMM is an influential industry body representing all of the major mining companies and many junior companies through its associated members, such as the Minerals Council of Australia, the Chamber of Mines of South Africa and the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. CRIRSCO now has funding to pursue its objectives."

Jan 1, 2003

By Pim van Geffen, Dave Lawie, James Cleverley

A growing problem facing geoscientists, metallurgists and process engineers is the lack of knowledge transfer between the exploration and production teams. This siloing is generally unintentional, as a typical project may change ownership several times over several decades before it reaches the feasibility and operation stages. Many exploration projects generate vast amounts of high-quality, quantitative data with great spatial resolution, but unfortunately these data are often ignored in subsequent deposit modelling. Instead, deposit models tend to rely on subjective, non-standardized, qualitative classification of geological materials (e.g. rock type, mineral abundance) and processes (e.g. alteration style and intensity), obtained through visual logging of drill core. When projects advance to feasibility studies, the required quantitative data are obtained through expensive metallurgical test work and detailed quantitative mineralogical analysis, such as QEMScan or qXRD. These detailed tests are generally only performed on a small number of large composite samples and the results are extrapolated throughout the deposit, inherently underrepresenting their true variability. Geochemical data obtained during all stages of the project provide comprehensive data coverage at much greater detail and spatial resolution, which allows for the estimation of key metallurgical performance parameters that are required for accurate deposit modelling and domaining.

Jan 1, 2015

Mining Association of Canada ! Represent base and precious metal, diamond and oil sands producers as well as nonferrous metal smelting and refining ! Member companies account for the vast majority of Canada?s mineral and metal production ! Mining is a major economic sector in Canada ! 13% of total exports ($47 billion) ! Employment near 400,000 ! 4% of GDP The Kyoto Protocol ! November 18, 2004 -- Russia deposited its instrument of ratification with the United Nations ! The Kyoto Protocol entered into force on February 16, 2005 ! The Kyoto Protocol is now an international and legally binding agreement to reduce GHG emissions world wide ! Canadian GHG target = 6 percent below 1990 ! First Commitment period 2008-2012

Apr 1, 2005

By W. H. De Blois

Introduction In the contact process for ?the manufacture of sulphuric acid, sulphur dioxide gas - produced by the burning of sulphur or of sulphur-bearing ores, or as a by-product in the treatment of sulphide ores - is made to combine with the oxygen of the air to form sulphur trioxide, which then only requires the addition of water to form sulphuric acid. The substance, as for example platinum, causing this combination is usually referred to as a catalyst, a convenient term, in the definition and explanation of which many pages have been written. Catalysis is now a comparatively common means of effecting chemical combination, but if the question were raised here tonight as to what actually goes on when this apparently innocent third party unites the parties of the first and second . part, without itself being altered in any way, I am afraid even our most learned members would have to confess their inability to entirely explain the phenomenon; for although the subject is under investigation, there is still much to learn. The contact process, however, is one of the outstanding achievements in chemical engineering. ? From the standpoint of the difficulties involved and the time absorbed in their solution, it probably stands alone in the field of technical chemistry. In fact, the manufacture of sulphuric acid has, from the earliest days, been surrounded with problems which have interested the ablest chemists. The Chamber System Although this paper has particularly to deal with the contact process, it may not be amiss to refer briefly to the chamber system, which was, and still is, a most important factor in the sulphuric acid industry.

Jan 1, 1927

By W. A. Toohey

Introduction From the earliest times it has been an inherent trait of man to build or create something for his own use or convenience. The need of some form of shelter other than that of the caves led him to bind together stones and other materials to form walls for his abode. Moistened clay which hardened upon drying was no doubt first employed. The Assyrians and Babylonians appear to have employed it or the bitumen found in their country. The early Egyptians and Greeks used some form of lime in their construction work. In addition to these shelters, other structures received attention, and, long before the Roman Empire was established, the Carthaginians made use of a natural cement as binding material. Portions of an aqueduct, seventy miles long, in Northern Africa, built in those early days, are still in use. The Etruscans were the first people in Italy to employ a mortar in their buildings. The Romans, learning the art from the Etruscans, improved the mortar by using a mixture of lime and volcanic ash, called 'puzzolan', and built not only roads but those famous structures, the ruins of many of which exist to this day. The Pantheon at Rome, built by Hadrian about 120 A.D., is perhaps the finest example of the early use of cement in building construction. With the decline of the Roman Empire, the art of making cement seems to have been lost, and for centuries the builders of Europe used only lime mortar. Pure limestones were selected for making the lime and great care was taken in the preparation of the mortar, the supply for one year being made the previous season and left to thoroughly slake or 'ripen' in pits covered with earth. The mortar thus produced gave excellent service above ground or where it was exposed to the hardening action of the air, but would not harden under water.

Jan 1, 1927

By Sub-Committee of the Committee on Research

"THE FOLLOWING REPORT was compiled by a sub-committee of The Metallurgical Society of CIM, Committee for Research, and represents a viewpoint of the steel industry in Canada. The objective was to define those areas in which the industry considers that external sources of Research and Development are a necessary function in supporting the in-house R & D conducted by the industry.On future occasions, the viewpoints of other metallurgical industries, such as those of nickel, copper and aluminum, will be presented. The report is divided into several sections: 1.-R & D Spending by the Steel Industry (a) Memberships in Recognized Steel Research Centres (b) Memberships in Recognized Industry Associations (c) Sponsored Research at Recognized Centres (d) Sponsored Research at Universities(e) Sporadic Research 2.-Areas for Research and Development(a) Instrumentation (b) Environment Control (c) Refractories (d) Sponsored Research at Universities(e) Electric Furnaces (f) Continuous Casting"

Jan 1, 1970