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By Thom Mambe, Angelo Fernando

The objective of this work was to identify key parameters related to the reduction of the sulphur content in ammonium diuranate (ADU), and the identification of solid products being formed under various operating conditions. A laboratory-scale, continuous ADU precipitation circuit was assembled using a glass reactor vessel immersed in a temperature-controlled water bath. A pre-prepared uranium feed solution was fed continuously using a peristaltic pump. Anhydrous ammonia mixed with compressed air was metered and pumped using a double-headed peristaltic pump. An over-head mixer was used to keep the solids in suspension. The precipitated ADU slurry was removed from the reactor at the same flow rate as the feed solution. The slurry was sampled to generate ADU solids for chemical and physical analysis after four hours of continuous operation to ensure steady-state conditions. The following variables were studied to determine their influence on the sulphur content in the resulting ADU. (a) sulphate:uranium molar ratio in the reactor (1:1, 1:5, 1:10 and 1:20) (b) precipitation pH ( pH 6, 6.5, 6.9, 7.5 and 9) and (c) precipitation temperature (40C and 60C) A total of 18 tests covering the above parameters were conducted, and the results indicated that the sulphur content in the resulting solids was highly dependent on the reaction pH. Out of the pH levels tested, tests completed at pH 6.9 and 7.5 generated solids containing the lowest sulphur contents, between 0.5 to 1.5% S uranium basis (UB). The sulphur content in solids was found to vary linearly with the sulphate:uranium ratio in the feed solution, showing a statistically valid correlation. The impact of temperature was minor between 40°C and 60°C, with a slight advantage at higher temperatures. Tests at a sulphate:uranium ratio of 1:1 produced solids with the lowest sulphur contents. The influence of pH or temperature on sulphur content in solids was almost non-existent at this sulphate:uranium ratio. Precipitation pH is the major factor influencing ADU sulphur content, followed by the uranium to sulphate ratio.

Jan 1, 2020

By B Wu, B W. Lei, B J. Duan

When a coalmine fire occurs, it is crucial to judge the developing trends inside the fire area by analysing the changes of gas concentration in order to formulate the proper rescue measures. At present, few researchers have focused on the relationship between the changing trend of gas product and basic characteristics of fire in the coal fire extinguishing process. To study the relationship of basic characteristics of coalmine fire during the extinguishing process, an experimental platform for coal combustion in a confined space was built, and gas production, flame image and coal temperature during the extinguishing process were monitored and analysed by an online continuous gas analysis instrument, camera and thermocouple. Research shows that during the burning phase of the coal sample in the confined space, the flame zone decreases gradually due to insufficient gas supply. The size of the flame zone fluctuates and shares a positive correlation with CO concentration, while sharing a negative correlation with O2 and CO2 concentrations. Then, in the extinguishing phase, the increasing rate of CO2 concentration and the decreasing rate of O2 concentration both decrease gradually, but CO concentration would rise for a period before it eventually decreases. Coal temperature continues to rise in the open flame stage and does not go down until the flame is extinguished.CITATION:Lei, B W, Wu, B and Duan, B J, 2015. Experimental study on extinguishing characteristics of coal fire in confined space, in Proceedings The Australian Mine Ventilation Conference, pp 279–284 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 31, 2015

By K. Anand Rao

Extensive exploration for uranium metal by the Department of Atomic Energy in India led to the discovery of new carbonate host rock uranium deposits Tummalapalle and Gogi, which are located in southern part of India. Alkaline leaching at elevated temperature and pressure using autoclave is the central unit process in the overall strategy for extraction of uranium from these new ore deposits. Autoclave leaching is affected largely by intrinsic nature of the ore and by the process variables and the equipment settings. In order to understand such a complex process and also to be able to predict the process performance under randomly (ore grade, uranium mineralogy, gangue mineralogy etc.) and consciously perturbed variable settings (partial pressure of oxygen, temperature, concentration of leachant, stirring speed and time), sound and robust mathematical models are needed with analytical and/or numerical solutions. Present investigation attempts to develop a variant of kinetic correlation based on shrinking core model for batch alkaline leaching process in an autoclave. The leaching model incorporates particle size distribution according to popular Gates-Gaudin-Schuhmann equation, rather than assuming a single mean size for all the particles participating in the leaching reaction. Kinetic experimental data generated in autoclave leaching of Gogi uranium ore was used to evaluate various constants of the model developed. The ore sample used for experiments assayed 0.21 per cent U3O8. The partial pressure of oxygen was varied between 0.15 to 6.5 atm, temperature from 343 K to 438 K, concentration of sodium carbonate leachant in the range 0.47 g mol/L to 0.94 g mol/L, and the stirring speed from 573 rev/min to 900 rev/min in the experiments. The goodness of fit of the leaching process model is found to be >0.95. Morphological studies carried out on leached and unleached particulate matter using Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X ray analyses are included in the present study.

Sep 1, 2012

By R. A. Price

The base of the biozone of Olenellus is accepted as the most universally applicable criterion for defining the base of the Cambrian System. The use of this definitive criterion is restricted by important practical considerations. In the southeastern Canadian Cordillera this zone appears to truncate the basal ortho-quartzite of a west to east marine -transgression. This transgression began in Interior British Columbia in the Late Proterozoic and terminated in the region of the present Rockies in the Late Waucobian. Most of the material deposited by the transgressing sea originated in the eastern positive element 'Laurentia' and was transported over the intervening low Proterozoic-Windermere erosion surface. The configuration of the advancing shoreline and the distribution of the sediments were controlled by the tectonic activity of positive elements in northwestern Montana (Montania) and in the Fairmont Hot Springs-Radium area of British Columbia.

Jan 1, 1956

By Ernest M. Spokes

Starting in 1980, a committee of the National Research Council studied the question of why some underground coal mines are safer than others and what could be done to improve the ones with poorer performance. The results indicated that safety is improved by management commitment to safety, by cooperation between labor and management on safety matters, and by quality training of employees and managers. Younger mines have higher accident frequencies, but are less likely to be killed or permanently disabled by a lost-time accident. Methods for improving safety performance are proposed.

Jan 1, 1983

By Joshua Hoffman, Braden Lusk, David McLane, John Rathbun

The dynamics of explosive detonations are understood; however recreating a real-world, to-scale scenario is costly. The use of a shock-tunnel allows testing to be done on a smaller scale, with the simulated effect of a large explosion. Analyzing explosive waveforms using this method can greatly reduce cost in testing blast-resistant products, such as anti-terrorism devices, mine safety products, and military equipment. The purpose of this project is to better the understanding of how the waveform dynamics of an explosive detonated within a shock-tunnel differ from those in an open-air arena test.

Jan 1, 2011

By E. Naesgaard, Brian E. Hall, A. Amini, Advanced Geosolutions, A. Azizian

"A 2 km section of the Evergreen Line Rapid Transit Project is supported on improved ground consisting of cement deep soil mix (CDSM) panels because of highly variable and challenging soil conditions, especially the potential for seismic liquefaction-induced lateral spreading. CDSM was used as an alternative approach in place of driven piles for reducing the seismic lateral spreading displacements. An additional significant aspect of obtaining owner acceptance for CDSM was demonstrating that both seismic and non-seismic performance would equal or exceed that of using driven piles. It was recognized that, to demonstrate adherence to the seismic performance requirements, seismic design should be based on dynamic analyses (using FLAC) to estimate likely displacements and stresses/strains in the CDSM panels. One focus of the analyses was investigating the potential for cracking of the CDSM panels and the resulting displacements. This was simulated using the Ubiquitous-Joint and UBCSAND constitutive models.INTRODUCTIONThe Evergreen Line Rapid Transit Project (ELRT) is an 11 km extension of the SkyTrain system through Burnaby, Coquitlam and Port Moody in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada (Figure 1). The ELRT project is being delivered through a Design/Build/Finance model by Evergreen Rapid Transit Construction (EGRT), an SNC-Lavalin Inc. company, to the Province of British Columbia (the Province).This paper discusses the ground improvement design for a 2 km section of the alignment through Port Moody, a historic city at the head of Burrard Inlet. The alignment is located in a right-of-way of restricted width with many pinch points close to residential and commercial properties, and directly adjacent to the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) mainline tracks. The ground slopes from south to north across the alignment towards Burrard Inlet at inclinations of up to about 6%. Design and construction of the Port Moody section was subcontracted to SNC-Lavalin Constructors (Western) Inc. (SLCW) and SNCLavalin/ Graham Construction Joint Venture (SGJV). Construction included single- and double-track slab guideways, pocket track (where up to four to six tracks were present), and Moody Centre Station."

Jan 1, 2015

By José J. Suárez

As pressure grows for commodity pricing, new mines are more difficult to develop, the stock markets demand better financial returns from mining companies, resources for the developing and operations are scarce, and developing countries in Asia, and Africa demand more metals, it is important that mining companies effect better utilization of capital to develop capital projects. In the last few years, the costs for Capital projects have been impacted by the following factors:

May 1, 2013

By Q. J. Liu

The flotation circuit and the reagents of the all-sliming flotation about low grade and hard operation on zinc oxide ore are researched in the paper. The results indicated that there are many types of zinc minerals in this ore, and the composition is very complex. They include hemimorphite, smithsonite, hydrozincite and so on. The ore is seriously sliming. In light of the ore properties, three kinds of flowsheets have tested. They are gravity concentration (cleaning tables), flotation, combined process of gravity concentration and flotation. The test showed that the recovery of zinc is only 17.08% in the gravity separation. In combined process of gravity separation and flotation, the recovery of zinc concentrate is close to 70%. But the flow-sheet is complex and hard to control in the production. The floatation circuit is feasible. In the test, it pay attention to investigate the new combined reagent which is used in selective all?sliming flotation process. The effects of slime are eliminated by the multi-loop treatment of middling. In flotation, the final recovery of concentrate is 88.76%; the grade is 29.50%. The recovery of physical ore is 93%; and the recovery of -10mm fraction is more than 65%.

Jan 1, 2014

By J M. Fletcher

The responsibility and scope of the Industrial Engineering Department, as organized at the Jeffrey mine, has been broadened to include any study, project or report that could result in more effective use of men, materials and equipment. Although still emphasizing wage incentives and co t reduction, much more varied work is now done, consistent with the in-.creased complexity of industry. Additional activities now include production, maintenance and inventory control improved job evaluation, packaging, labour utilization studies, technical sales liaison, mining, milling and service department n1ethods, plant layout, and specialized project analysis. Additional techniques include the extensive use of work .sampling and standard data. A recent trend has been toward increased emphasis on industrial relations, both in introducing change to the men and in providing requested explanations to Union stewards and officers. These new responsibilities have resulted in the development of specialists in some rather narrow industrial engineering fields, as well as the necessity for industrial engineering assistance in supervisory and job training.

Jan 1, 1963

By Richard Klimpel

The influence of selective chemical dispersants on the hydrocycloning of a copper ore slurry is illustrated. In the % solids and slurry feed rate ranges associated with industrial practice, desirable changes in both d50 and Sharpness Index values of classification were measured with the use of chemical as compared to tests with no chemical usage.

Jan 1, 1981

By M. Rahman, P. C. Kapur

The fixed-time locked-cycle grinding test is employed to simulate the industrial closed grinding circuit on the laboratory scale. A mathematical algorithm for 'cyclewise' computer simulation of the locked-cycle test has been derived and used to study an idealised laboratory-scale model of a closed ball-mill circuit. The agreement between simulated and experimental results is reasonably good, except when the grinding times are relatively long

Dec 1, 1971

By J. F. Smith

ELASTIC constants of yttrium and eleven of the rare earth elements have been measured. This has been accomplished by measuring the propagation velocities of ultrasonic pulses. The velocity measurements were made by noting the elapsed time between an applied pulse and the appearance of successive echoes. The pulse-echo technique has become relatively common, and the basis of the measurement is outlined in several standard tests, e.g., Heuter and Bolt.1 Two important assumptions are made when using this method for the determination of elastic moduli. First, the pulse is assumed to propagate as a plane wave. To justify this assumption, the cross section of the test specimen should be large compared to the wave length of the transmitted pulse. For these measurements on the rare earth elements the minimum cross section wave length ratio was about 20. A second assumption which must be made when using polycrystalline specimens is that the grains are sufficiently numerous and randomly oriented so that the specimen may be approximated as elasti-cally isotopic. The grain size in the as-cast specimens which were used is believed to be sufficiently fine for this approximation, and the degree of preferred orientation is believed to be small. Supporting this viewpoint is the fact that elasticity measurements by the pulse-echo technique on as-cast specimens of other metals give results which are in satisfactory agreement with values obtained by other techniques. Hence, it is believed that the measured elasticity values for the rare earth elements are not apt to be seriously in error due to the assumption of elastic isotopy. The apparatus used in this determination was a modified Sperry Reflectoscope with a precisely calibrated time base circuit. Piezoelectric transducers were used both to generate the pulse and to detect the echoes. X-cut quartz crystals were used for the longitudinal modes, and Y-cut quartz crystals were used for the shear modes. Frequencies of 2.25 and 5 megacycles per sec were employed. Most of the specimens were 2.5 to 5.0 cm in length. Results Table I is a tabulation of the measured propagation velocities of longitudinal waves and of shear waves, together with densities obtained by Sped- ding, Daane, and Herrmann2 from lattice parameter measurements. The shear modulus, Poisson's ratio, and Young's modulus were calculated from the data in Table I through use of the following relationships: µ = pv32 [1] s=2-(vb/vs)2/2[1-(vb/vs)2] [2] and Y= 2µ(l+s) [3] where s is the shear modulus, Y is the Young's modulus, s is Poisson's ratio, p is the density, V0 is the longitudinal wave velocity, and v, is the shear wave velocity. The calculated quantities are shown in Table 11. Compressibility values can be computed from the relationship and the computed values may be compared with measured values obtained by Bridgman.8 Table III lists the data for such a comparison. The agreement is satisfactory, being particularly good for neodymi- um and gadolinium, poor for samarium, and intermediate for the other elements. Some variation is expected since Bridgman's measurements are isothermal, whereas the present measurements are adiabatic. In addition there may be some effect due to small variations in purity. Though most of the rare earth metals measured by Bridgman and all of the metals used in the present measurements were prepared at this laboratory, minor purity variations might exist since the samples came from different lots. Also, any imperfections such as dislocations, vacancies, voids, grain boundaries, microcracks, etc., should contribute to the volume change of a com-

Jan 1, 1958

A decision by joint-venture partners Anglo American, Gencor, and the Industrial Development Corporation to proceed with the expansion of the Columbus Stainless Steel plant in Middelburg will contribute significantly towards the economic growth that South Africa needs so desperately. The expanded facility, expected to come on-line in 1995, will be the largest single-plant producer of stainless steel in the world, and the company will rank sixth overall in world production.

Jan 1, 1993

By Matthew Hirsch, Jason Connot, Nathan Rouse, Srivatsan Jayaraman, Akash Adhikari, Brent Meins, Purushotham Tukkaraja

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is a world-class particle physics research project currently being constructed 4,850 ft, 1,478 m underground at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF), former site of the historic Homestake Gold Mine in Lead, SD. Construction for the project involves drill and blast excavation of 800,000 tons of rock to house neutrino detecting cryostats adjacent to on-going particle research and sensitive lab areas. To protect nearby labs during the planned 4 years of blasting operations, project specs required installation of six steel, heavily reinforced blast doors designed to withstand 20 psi blast loads. This research aimed to quantify the pressure reduction across the blast doors and more accurately model underground blast wave propagation. 827 blasts to date have been monitored at eight locations on the 4850 level of SURF with some locations behind blast doors and some in front. Additionally, pressure measurements directly in front of and behind one blast door were taken during 94 blasts.

Feb 6, 2023

By Yaxiong Wang, Yong Li, Yuedong Wu, Haigang Dong, Jiachun Zhao

A roasting-leaching process has been developed for concentrating platinum group metals (PGM) from a PGM-containing ferroalloy. The optimized roasting conditions used a NaOH-to-ferroalloy mass ratio of 1.2 at 600 °C for 2 h. The roasted product mainly comprised Na4SiO4, NaFeO2 and Fe2O3. The iron oxide and sodium silicate associated with the roasted product were leached in water and dilute sulfuric acid solution, while the PGM was concentrated in the acid-leached residue. A PGM concentration of 23.4% was obtained with assaying, and the concentration factor of PGM from the ferroalloy to PGM concentration was greater than 9.

Jun 14, 2021

By Ronaldo Santos Sampaio

This paper call attention to increasing ratio of oxygen depletion from atmosphere besides the global worries about CO2 concentration increase in the atmosphere. It highlights the big mistake in considering Carbon Capture and Storage, CCS, as a way to reduce the increasing concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. As a hypothetical example it presents an existing pseudo-ecosystem of manufacturing that has real windows of opportunity to increase its share in the global materials production industry, even in highly industrialized countries. As a suggestion and example the author point out possibilities to almost fulfill the proposed simple rules to be considered inside an ecosystem of manufacturing utilizing the production of steel via biomass versus fossil coal. A relevant and difficult rule to be attained in a quasi-ecosystem of manufacture is to be a near zero atmosphere oxygen depletion integrated process. The industrial alternatives that utilizes the actual photosynthesis are the ones that can reach a higher ecosystem of manufacture’s index. It is presented an ideal integrated steelmaking process where the gaseous, liquids and solid residues generated in one part of the system are or can be utilized in the other parts of the same system. A potential ecosystem of manufacture to produce primary iron is illustrated in the paper.

Aug 17, 2017

By F. D. DeVaney

The supply of manganese is a subject of much interest. The idea of obtaining it from rhodochrosite-MnC03 is attractive because the carbonate is supposed not to be so contaminated with impurities as the commonly utilized oxides. Large bodies of rhodochrosite-bearing rock have been known for a long while to exist at Butte, Mont. Hence samples were obtained from that place. In the two samples examined quartz was the chief diluting substance. The leaner sample was about one half quartz; some copper, lead, zinc, and iron sulphides were also present. The rhodochrosite amounted to about 40 per cent, so that the sample had a tenor of about 20 per cent manganese. This sample was the subject of the examination reported herein.

Jan 1, 1928

By L. Juteau

"""The north coast of the St. Lawrence River will be the scene of an industrial development during the coming decades"". The facts which underlie this statement are the occurrences of iron and titanium ore, the abundance of hydro-power and the availability of deep-water ports in this region. Havre St-Pierre, Sept-Iles, Port Cartier and Baie Corneau already exist as major ports and urban centers. The huge quartz deposit at Baie Comeau will be a decisive contributing factor in the development of a metallurgical plant in this area. Due to its purity, it lends itself, first of all, to the manufacture of glass of different kinds, being comparable to the quartz sands now used by the plate glass and glass container industries in the Montreal area, Moncton, N.B., Trois-Rivieres and - in the future - at Bécancour, Quebec. However, its high quality will also make it possible to use it as one of the main basic materials for the production of silicon carbide and ferrosilicon, and as a flux in metallurgical processes. It is intended, in this report, to offer conclusive proof of the economical importance of this large quartz deposit by presenting the results of the studies made to date."

Jan 1, 1971

By Eric Pirard

Theoretical studies carried out on shape analysis supply mathematical tools to analyze the influence of grain shapes on ore beneficiation. In the case of statistic images like those encountered in applied mineralogy parametrical and harmonical analysis methods are used. It is important that the shape parameters are adapted to the specific processes involved in ore beneficiation, while remaining easy to manipulate. The inertia parameters are considered in the scope of granulometric and gravimetric processes It appears that they are able to distinguish between the resulting products where very popular shape parameters are not. The measured statistics are analyzed through discriminant analysis procedures in order to estimate the importance of morphological differentiation and the aptitude of shape parameters to account for this.

Jan 1, 1989