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By Unal Artan

It is well known in the robotics community that the ability to determine the position of vehicles in real time is a key enabling technology required for automation, traffic management, and to ensure safety in the presence of multiple vehicles. Because of this, the introduction of global positioning systems (GPS) has had a remarkable impact on the surface mining industry, enabling real-time tracking of mobile assets, improved safety, and production optimization. Unfortunately, satellite-based GPS is not available underground. This paper reports on the preliminary results of a study to develop a robust method for globally consistent mapping of large-scale underground mine environments. We believe that this may additionally become the first step towards the development of a novel underground positioning technology. Presented are preliminary results from data collected at two underground mines using an Atlas Copco ST14 LHD machine.

Oct 1, 2009

By L. Hanschar, C. Bwalya, E. Mokola, K. Musonda, A. Makayi

This paper describes the installation, commissioning and operation of porous plugs featuring nitrogen gas purging in both Anode Furnaces at the Kansanshi Copper Smelter (KCS), a greenfield copper smelter which commenced operation in March 2015. The decision to install porous plugs was taken in November 2016 and the facilities were successfully commissioned on both anode furnaces in October 2017. The project was successful and has demonstrated the following process improvements: 12.2% reduction in main burner fuel consumption Larger average charge size, due to fewer accretions; 17 minute decrease in average refining cycle times Improvements in slag skimming operations Improved casting rates INTRODUCTION Porous plugs The application of porous plug technology in copper smelter anode furnaces is well established around the world. Vukovic and Gamweger (2017) and Wallner (2004) noted that the stirring and mixing action induced by the injection of inert nitrogen gas into the molten copper via porous plugs has potential benefits in the following areas: Homogenization of the temperature and composition of the molten copper resulting in Reduced fuel consumption Less tendency to overheat slag (reduced risk of refractory attack) Less slag produced with a lower degree of oxidation (lower rate of refractory wear) Less tendency for buildups to form Improved environmental performance (produce low sulphur blister at Peirce Smith converters) Elimination of buildups inside the furnace and potential for larger charges per cycle Reduced processing times and potential for shorter cycle times More efficient skimming of anode slag Shorter skimming time Less copper carry over to Peirce Smith converters Very little slag remaining in the furnace (reduced potential for buildups to form)

Jan 1, 2019

By Michel Doyon

Canadian Context: Exploration ??Space Exploration is within the unique mandate of the Canadian Space Agency ??Global partnerships ??Maintain close relationship with our partners ??New knowledge in S&T ??Retain and attract highly qualified personnel ??Participation in missions leads to design roles in industry and academia ??Collaboration between government laboratories, industry and academia

May 1, 2009

By K. Bartholomew

The Functional Performance Equation for ball milling circuits provides plant staff with a new means to improve circuit performance. However, successful execution of a plant processing performance improvement project, with verifiable improvements, requires a significant number of accompanying steps beyond using this equation. In order to identify and articulate all these steps, a study was undertaken with the metallurgical staff from two milling operations and process application specialists from a grinding media manufacturing company. “Task analysis” of improving plant grinding performance was carried out. This analysis identified the required steps, and ultimately yielded a “Plant Grinding Circuit Processing Performance Management/ Improvement System.

Jan 1, 2015

In 2009 Newmont Mining Corporation?s annual global spend on grinding media reached $94M USD, having doubled in the five years since 2004. The major contributing factor to the spend escalation during this period was unit consumable price, with total media consumption also rising as a function of annual ore tonnes milled. In an effort to better understand and manage the growth of this expenditure a significant supply chain management program was implemented. This was complemented by a series of technical initiatives focussed on grinding media specifications, quality management and the prediction of grinding media wear rate as a function of physical ore characteristics. This paper discusses the methodology and outcomes of these activities.

Jan 1, 2012

By Pierre Roy, Claude Gosselin, Maryam Sadeghi, Michel Bourassa, Christian Rochefort, Claude Bazin, Gautier Mahieu, François Lavoie, Marilène Renaud, David Cataford

"Spirals are gravity concentrators used for the concentration of iron oxide minerals from ores. This paper presents the mineral size recovery curves observed for spirals operating in two Canadian iron ore processing plants. The size recovery curves are presented for rougher, cleaner and re-cleaner spirals. The partition curves observed for the spirals are significantly different than those observed for typical gravity concentration devices such as hydrocyclones or hydraulic classifiers. The size recovery curves show the complex behaviour of the minerals as they flow down a spiral and are analysed with a view toward process modelling and simulation. Initial simulation results show that gains in the iron recovery can be achieved by increasing the recovery of coarse iron oxide particles in the rougher spirals.INTRODUCTION Spiral concentrators are gravity based separation devices used for the preparation of coal, iron and different heavy minerals ores (Wills, 1992). The classification of the particles in spirals is based on the combination of gravity, centrifuge, drag, lift and Bagnold forces (Atasoy and Spottiswood, 1995; Burt, 1984; Bouchard, 2001). Several papers are dedicated to the analysis of the forces acting on the particles flowing down a spiral (Das and al., 2007; Sivamohan and Forssberg, 1985; Holland-Batt and Holtham, 1991; Holtham , 1992). Most of these papers aim at the development of a general model for the simulation of the classification of the particles for coal ore processing. Few papers deal with the operation of spirals for processing iron ores (Hyma and Meech, 1989; Srivastava, 2001; Dallaire et al., 1978) and fewer papers present results for spirals used as cleaners following a rougher stage. Since the classification in spiral classifiers is dependent on the particle size and specific gravity a partition or performance curve commonly applied to classifiers (Mai Manga et al., 2012) is used here to analyse spiral operation. Few papers were found to describe the operation of spirals in terms of partition curves (Atasoy and Spottiswood, 1995; Holland-Batt and Holtham, 1991; Richards et al., 2000). Most of the investigations presented the application of a model to simulate the position of coal particles of various sizes and specific gravities along the trough of a spiral (Kapur et al., 1996; Holland-Batt and Holtham, 1991). In addition most of the available literature on spirals deals with one stage of concentration by spirals (Dallaire et al., 1978; Das and al., 2007; Sivamohan and Forssberg, 1985) while industrial circuits usually consist of rougher and cleaner spirals."

Jan 1, 2014

By Júlio C. Lúcio

Consider the case of a mining company with N investment opportunities in projects of different commodities. The problem is: since the company has limitation of capital, equipments, technical staffs, etc, what is the best portfolio of production projects in order to maximize expectations from shareholders? In the no-longer past, the traditional method for the selection of portfolio of projects was the rank-an-cut method. But, this does not properly account for the risk to which the company is exposed. The Markowitz?s Mean-Variance is an advance because the risk of the NPV can be estimated at the level of the company or even division of the corporation. The final product of the Markowitz?s model is the efficient frontier, in which, the manager can clearly understand the maximum return from existing assets and the associated risk level - but this model does not recommend which one is the best portfolio. In this paper we present a model to select the best portfolio considering not only economic indicators, but also requirements of production, constraint in investments, etc. We show that if investors are diversified, managers should select projects with highest return, regardless of risk. However, in practice, if bonuses of managers are tied to their performance, the choice for portfolio with lower return and risk can happen. Numerical application considering typical portfolio of large mining company is used as example.

May 1, 2009

By M. Lahtinen, P. Latostenmaa, I. Kojo, E. Peuraniemi, M. Lindgren, S. Jyrkönen, M. Jåfs

The year 2019 marks the 70th anniversary of Flash Smelting. The technology was operated on industrial scale for the first time at the Outokumpu Harjavalta copper smelter in Finland in 1949. Since then Flash Smelting technology, now owned and developed by Outotec Oyj and the first plant, now owned by Boliden Harjavalta Oy, have been evolving throughout history by optimizing the process for various feeds and raw-materials, as well as through developing the equipment and operating practices. Even though sustainability was not a popular theme during the first days of Flash Smelting, it has still been the key principle in guiding the development. This is well proven by the wide adoption of Flash Smelting for the processing of copper and nickel concentrates, mostly due to its ability to fulfil the economic and resource efficiency criteria demanded by its operators. This paper describes the history and improvements of the Outotec® Flash Smelting process by looking into the early days of operation and how the development of the process and equipment has taken place over time as a joint effort between the technology provider and the users of the technology. INTRODUCTION In the 1940s, Outokumpu Oy refined the concentrate produced in the Outokumpu mine into metallic copper initially in Imatra, and later from 1945 to 1949 in Harjavalta, based on the most modern electrical melting process of the world at that time. After the war, Finland lost a significant part of its hydropower production, and due to the increasing use of electricity, the availability of electricity weakened, and the price rose. To maintain Outokumpu's profitability, it was forced to look for a melting solution that was not based on electricity.

Jan 1, 2019

By J. Miettunen

"The lining of a grinding mill has an important role in creating the conditions for the grinding process. The main purpose of the lining is to transfer the energy taken by the mill motor to the contents of a mill. The power draw curve of the mill, if measured with sufficiently short intervals, describes how well the lining works in lifting and mixing the material to be ground.The power draw curve can also be used for determining the volumetric filling of a mill. This new measuring technique was developed at the Pyhasalmi concentrator in 1989-90. The measuring device with its PC-connections offers an excellent tool for controlling volumetric mill filling, for maximizing throughput and for research purpose (e.g. process studies, mill linings design).The paper describes the new method and the results achieved at Outokumpu's concentrators.INTRODUCTIONVarious methods have been developed for measuring mill load; weighing, noise, etc. Weighing is one of the most reliable methods but installing the sensor to existing mills is often difficult. Besides the load measurement does not indicate the volumetric filling if the specific gravity of the mill feed fluctuates. Noise measurement has often failed with its sensitivity to various disturbance sources.As known, the power draw measurement is one of the most accurate measurements in grinding circuits and therefore it has been utilized in sophisticated control, e.g. in power peak seeking algorithms for maintaining maximum grinding efficiency.About 10 years ago power oscillation measurement was developed at Pyhasalmi concentrator. In this method the amplitude of the oscillation caused by the lifters was measured. The oscillation amplitude and the mill filling has quite a good correlation and together with the power draw measurement it could be used for maximizing mill throughput (Koivistoinen and Miettunen, 1989). The main difficulties in this method were that the dependence between mill filling and the amplitude is unlinear and that the dependence also is individual for each mill.The method developed during 1989-90 is also based on the power oscillation but on its phase shift. In principle level of the material in a mill is measured. The method has been successfully used for maximizing throughput at Pyhasalmi and Enonkoski concentrators and at Harjavalta slag concentrator."

Jan 1, 1991

By Alan D. Curtis

A standard planning block model for Phelps Dodge North America Operations has been developed to improve mine planning efficiency and performance in a skill starved environment. The model saves time on software management and training, consolidates data and standard information/output, enhances evaluation and strategic process, and improves communication between sites.

May 1, 2007

By Rita Michael

"The Marmara Ironworks was not the earliest ironworks in Ontario, but it was distinguished from other early works in a number of ways. It was established on an ambitious scale as a self-sufficient and, for the time, sophisticated community. In effect it was an iron plantation on the scale and scope of those at Hopewell, Pennsylvania and Saugus, Massachusetts(1). It was, besides, the only one of the few early ironworks in Upper Canada which operated almost to the end of the nineteenth century, albeit in fits and starts, and which used magnetic ores rather than bog iron ores (limonite). Furthermore it is the only works which has produced archaeological interest over a number of years. The ironworks is on the east bank of the Crowe River near Highway 7, on Lots 7 and 8, Concession 4, Marmara Township, Hastings County, Ontario. It is the property of the Village of Marmara, and the extant remains encompass about 2. 5 acres of the original 2000 or so which made up the original grant. The mineral riches of the Canadian Shield had been known since the days of the Jesuit missionary-explorers. A consortium headed by Alexander Henry and the Duke of Gloucester planned to exploit the copper near Sault Ste. Marie during the last part of the eighteenth century, but nothing came of the venture(2). This attempt may have grown out of Lord Dorchester's suggestion that private enterprise be encouraged in order that the iron ore which ""abounds"" in Canada might be exploited(3). John Graves Simcoe, the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada was also anxious to see iron working develop. Simcoe was eager to encourage many enterprises, among which ""the development of iron mines""(4) - Governor Gore had been approached by John Mason for help with his ironworks in Norfolk County (5). Three Americans had applied for permission and support to erect an ironworks on the Gananoque River at the falls to become known as Furnace Falls. They were granted 1000 acres of land in fee simple to encourage their endeavor(6). Sir Peregrine Maitland, only a few months after taking up his duties as Lieutenant Governor in 1818, intended to visit the ""bed of iron ore on the Crow River"" (7) - Maitland was to provide a good deal of support, both moral and substantive, to Charles Hayes when he came to Canada in 1820."

Jan 1, 1999

By Don Langlois, Udo Weber

"The effect of grinding media performance on milling and operational behaviour was demonstrated under different selected milling conditions of calcium carbonate. A variety of grinding media material and bead sizes, along with 2 different stirrer tip speeds, were used in the grinding process to generate a particle size reduction of the calcium carbonate (CaCO3). To determine the optimum milling parameters the collected test data was used to calculate and evaluate specific energy as well as stress intensity under different milling conditions.INTRODUCTIONAs a result of increasing energy costs and raw material prices it is important to look at the efficiency of the manufacturing process. Wet grinding and ultrafine wet grinding in stirred media mills are now a possible cost-effective production step for the processing of industrial minerals and precious metals. The generation of smaller particle sizes (down to micrometer scale) can be advantageous for further production steps – i.e. better liberation of precious metals or improved industrial mineral qualities.In the following, the wet grinding process is investigated under different milling conditions of calcium carbonate. Different grinding media materials varying in specific weight, bead size and stirrer tip speeds are used to determine optimal energy consumption for the milling process.DESCRIPTION OF TEST CONDITIONS AND PARAMETERSMill ParametersTests were performed in a Drais Laboratory Perl Mill PML H/V with an installed electrical motor power of 3 kW. The mill chamber is silicon carbide where as the stirrer and discs are made of yttria stabilised zirconia. The mill working volume is 0.9 l. A screen cartridge with a screen size of 0.2 mm is used to separate the beads and slurry at the outlet of the mill. All tests were performed with a grinding media filling grade of 80% (Mill working volume). The stirrer tip speed was set at 6 m/s and 10 m/s."

Jan 1, 2009

By Éric Létoumeau, Julie Fournier, Sylvain Caron, Yves Breau, Martin Plante, Dominique Girard, Luc Tardif, François Robichaud

"Since 1999, COREM (formerly the Centre de Recherche Minérale) has conducted and coordinated research and development activities for a consortium of mining companies that uses the benefits and advantages of collaborative pre-competitive research. In particular, COREM’s “In Situ Optimization Group” is involved in the development and implementation of modem information technologies related to process optimization and control.The POP Project was launched in order to increase and consolidate the use of such technologies applied to mineralurgical and metallurgical processes. To ensure a successful transfer to the industry, there are a number of essential activities that have to be undertaken. These activities have been identified by COREM’s members and are grouped into three main modules:- R&D Module: research and development in universities and research centres;-Technology Transfer Module: integration of new tools into the POP Software, industrial applications and technical support;- Training Module: education of new engineers in universities and continuing education of plant personnel through on-site workshops.This paper outlines the opportunities that led to the definition of the POP Project, presents its main objectives and describes its main modules. The main features of the POP Software are outlined, the first applications at COREM’s member plants are presented and, finally, future developments are discussed."

Jan 1, 2002

By Janis A. Shandro

The mining sector is a major economic driver for Canadian, and British Columbian communities. In parallel strong commitments have been made by industry to the well-being and sustainability of associated communities. However, these dimensions are the least understood. Especially lacking are focused regional investigations that compare the well-being and sustainability of communities dependent on different resources sectors. It is hypothesized that this type of comparative analysis will help to foster a greater understanding of what makes a resource or mining community healthy and sustainable. This paper describes research that examined community-level indicators associated with well-being (e.g. education, income and employment) and sustainability (e.g. economic diversity). The indicators were derived from Canadian Census data for 31 British Columbia resource-based communities (with a focus on mining) during a period of time (1991 to 2001) when resource sectors experienced an economic downturn. Our findings identify that during this decade, mining communities differed significantly from other resource-based communities, and comparative analysis of census derived indictors illuminate challenges that mining communities in British Columbia face with respect to wellbeing and sustainability (such as economic diversity, unemployment, and population loss). To contribute to the mining sector?s efforts towards meeting their commitments to communities, this paper concludes by proposing strategic opportunities aimed at the enhancement of mining community sustainability for policy-makers, communities, and the mining industry to consider.

May 1, 2011

By Donald E. Wakefeld

"The pace at which mining will occur in Northern regions and Arctic lands will depend on the answers to a number of questions. Who are the local aboriginal participants? What land uses are they pursuing? What are their objectives? What is their understanding of the process of mining development? This paper will focus on the last question, communicating the process of mineral development to local aboriginal communities.IntroductionIn the environmental impact hearings for the BHP-DiaMet diamond mine, the smaller Dene Treaty 8 Nation argued for the settlement of its Land Claims as a pre-condition to development. However, the larger Dene Treaty 11 Nation were prepared to permit the mine to proceed on the basis that their people would receive benefits during the construction and operation of the mine.Wherever mining is the significant basis for tax revenues and economic development expectations may be encouraged beyond the realities of the situation. Izok Lake has been known for several decades as a significant mineral deposit but because of its size and the transportation costs involved, it is now a “frozen” ore body. The extent of its mineralization at current metal prices will not support the mining and processing costs without substantial government support for infrastructure and roads. At the opposite side of Canada, Voisey’s Bay clearly satisfies all technical criteria but, nonetheless, two Inuit groups, the Innu, and Métis, have all made LandClaims relating to the mine area.Contrasting the mineral deposits at Voisey’s Bay and Izok Lake emphasizes that the timing of production is dependent on factors such as the grade and amount of reserves, their market price, location and availability of government support. Nonetheless, it is this author’s thesis that given an economic orebody the next most important factor is good communications. It is his view that Arctic mineral development will occur quickly only where good communication has resulted in the trust and mutual respect necessary to implement the mammoth cultural changes required."

Jan 1, 1996

By S. Nikolic, G. M. Stieper, D. P. Mallah, B. J. Hogg, P. B. Voigt

Copper feed materials processing is becoming more challenging, due to an incremental increase in the mineralogical and compositional complexity of these feeds. These complex and polymetallic feeds are now becoming more common and many sites have been forced to re-evaluate their operating strategies to process these materials at cost competitive rates, whilst meeting ever more stringent environmental regulations. Most operations must first evaluate the merits of pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical treatment routes. Although there are multiple copper smelting technologies available, only top-submerged lance (TSL) technology, supplied by Glencore Technology as ISASMELT™, has been applied in the real world to consistently and successfully smelt complex materials in integrated metallurgical facilities such as Glencore’s Kazzinc Ltd. operation in Kazakhstan, Umicore Precious Metals Refining in Belgium and Aurubis AG in Germany. Glencore Technology also offers hydrometallurgical processing, through the Albion Process™ technology, opening up viable flowsheet options previously not possible for these complex feeds. This paper describes a number of real world process flowsheets at global operations and Glencore’s own operations at Mount Isa and Kazzinc Ltd., which process complex feeds. These flowsheets integrate the ISASMELT™, Albion Process™, ISACONVERT™, ISAKIDD™ Tank house, and bottom blown oxygen cupel (BBOC™) technologies to provide an effective process solution for the treatment of complex polymetallic feeds to produce metallic copper and associated by-products. INTRODUCTION Traditional smelters and those built in recent times within the bulk smelting hubs of the world have been designed to treat standard/clean concentrates. In recent years the processing of complex polymetallic sulfide concentrates and the recycling of secondary copper and derivatives of waste electrical and electronic equipment, such as e-scrap, have become a focus for numerous companies (Alvear & Nikolic, 2013). Processing of these complex feeds, characterized by relatively high levels of minor elements (over 5% of elements such as arsenic, antimony, bismuth, lead and zinc) is more challenging. Facilities not designed for these types of materials may require significant modifications or a change in smelting technology to treat them. Often operations find themselves re-evaluating the merits of pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical treatment routes for their sites through a number of factors:

Jan 1, 2019

By J. S. Brock

Magnetic, electromagnetic and gravimetric surveys have played an important role in the mineral exploration leading to the discovery of three major massive sulphide deposits in the Anvil-Vangorda area of the Yukon Territory. During 1964 and 1965 a saturation prospecting program, relying heavily on the integrated use of airborne and ground geophysical survey techniques, led to the discovery of the Faro deposit, which was subsequently proven to be a 63-millionton lead-zinc orebody. Locating the Faro deposit, the largest found to date in this overburden-covered region, involved an exploration sequence requiring the selection of a favourable geologic environment, aeromagnetic and electromagnetic surveys, property acquisition of anomalous areas and detailed ground geophysical surveys, followed by rotary drill testing, detailed gravimetric surveys and diamond core drilling.

Jan 1, 1973

By Philippe Angers

This article analyzes the social acceptability process of a mining project located in an existing city. It will explore how the principles of sustainable development have been integrated in the project of the Canadian Malartic open pit mine held by the Osisko Mining Corporation, and the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives proposed to strengthen the social acceptability of the project. This mine is located on the ancient south quarter of Malartic and has required the displacement of hundred of houses and five institutions. The location and the inherent social impacts generated by the relocation of the citizens of the south quarter makes this case particularly interesting to understand social dynamics in an era of environmental consciousness. These major constraints of the mine generate high expectations within the urban population with regard to the social and economic benefits it will receive from the project. In a context where society demands higher CSR from the corporation, Osisko is closely followed regarding their actions toward the sustainable development principles to see if they respect the environment and the desires of the community. From the beginning, the company had to be a model of sustainable development in various aspects reflected by the manifold interest of the population. To understand the endeavor made by the company to fulfill the demand of CSR, we will analyze how the company understood sustainable development principles and what CSR initiatives Osisko company put forward. We will explore the involvement of the company in various social aspects like employment, employee satisfaction, and the level of commitment to non-discrimination policy in employment, notably with the native populations. We will also take a closer look at the relationship built by the company with the community and the level of commitment with the various stakeholders of the community. In this way, we will be able to seize the level of involvement of the company in the fulfillment of the principles of sustainable development toward a higher CSR, and to specify the trajectory adopted to build social acceptance.

Aug 1, 2013

By A. R. Barnes, N. O. Lotter

Recoverable economic copper sulphide minerals such as chalcopyrite, bornite, chalcocite and covellite often occur together in varying proportions in the major copper-bearing ores, and have individual flotation requirements and characteristics. Pyrite also occurs in these ores to varying extents as the sulphide gangue, and is problematic because of its natural tendency to float quickly and easily. In a bulk sulphide float, selectivity against pyrite is desirable, particularly if it does not host other paymetals such as gold or silver. At the same time it is a requirement to float all of the copper sulphides despite their electrochemical differences. The electrochemistry and semiconductor properties of these minerals are reviewed, together with implications for flotation with and without collector addition. Mixed collector systems for the improved flotation of these sulphides are proposed as a solution. The use of xanthate and dithiophosphate in the collector suite allows the co-existence of dixanthogen and free dithiophosphate radical because the latter has a higher redox potential requirement than xanthate to oxidise to the dithiolate. Because some of these minerals require dixanthogen, and others, free thiolate, to generate surface hydrophobicity, a bulk flotation of all the species becomes possible in the overlapping area of Eh and pH between the two dithiolate equilibrium lines on the Pourbaix diagram. The arsenic-signature copper minerals are added to the study, since many copper operations encounter arsenic as a penalty element in the saleable concentrate. It is shown that the addition of arsenic to the copper and iron sulphides alters the semiconductor and electrochemistry properties, and in turn, its flotation characteristics. The degree of mineral association and liberation between these minerals can be a complicating factor due to textural associations, and should also be considered in the process as a next step.

Jan 1, 2016

By L. Li

The rock quality designation (RQD) was initially introduced by Deere (1963) for civil engineering. But, its application has been largely extended to rock mechanics and has become a fundamental parameter in geotechnical engineering (e.g., Hoek & Brown 1980; Milne et al. 1998). The success of this definition is due, in great part, to its simplicity. However, this index includes a number of limitations. Among these limitations, a critical one is associated with the arbitrarily selected threshold value (e.g., Priest & Hudson 1976). Consequently, the RQD value would vary with different threshold length for the same core. Also, using the customarily and universally adopted but very arbitrarily selected threshold value of 10 cm (for NX cores) in the assessment of RQD, the RQD values usually tend to be either high or low in most rock engineering. Some intermediate values (50%) are less frequently encountered (Harrison 1999). The original definition of RQD does not well represent the actual quality of rock masses. In this paper, an improved definition of rock quality designation (RQDc) is given.

May 1, 2009