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Author Biography William Poole was born in Sydney, NSW in August 1868. He was educated at Sydney Grammar School. William spent two and a half years as a cadet in the Railway Construction Branch of the NSW Department of Public Works doing office and field work. He then undertook a civil engineering course at Sydney University. Following this he was employed for six years as assistant and resident engineer at the Water Conservation Branch, NSW and was in responsible charge of various field operations, surveys, river gaugings and works of constructions including a large timber weir and also a concrete weir on the Macquarie River, NSW. He then undertook a mining and metallurgical course at Sydney University and became a graduate (BE) with honours in civil engineering, mining engineering and metallurgy. He then spent four and a half years with BHP Co, one and a half years at Broken Hill in the mining and concentration works and three years at the smelting works in Port Pirie, SA, in the latter case he was metallurgist and night superintendent and during that time had responsibility and control at night of the blast furnaces and, during the last 15 months, of the whole of these large works. The author left the Port Pirie, SA works to assume the position of Director of the State School of Mines at Charters Towers and had responsible control of the establishment and also lectured in mining, surveying and structure. William Poole was honoured to hold membership in the following organisations: Assoc M Inst C E, L S of NSW, M Aus Inst M M, Assoc Inst M & M (London).

Jan 1, 2006

By W Mackinnon

Coal mining operations require the expenditure of appreciable start up and working capital in order to produce saleable coal for domestic or export markets. The competitive nature of the coal business restricts margins, and so it is imperative that downside risks, in terms of production outcomes, are minimised. The major risks identified for a coal mining operation, aside from sales volumes and coal price, are generally thought to be confined to the geology of the deposit and the mining process. However, the impact of product quality and yield can be very significant. If product coal is inferior to projections, then it will need to be sold at a discounted price and this can dramatically impact on margins. Equally, if yield is five to ten per cent less than planned, then this will have a huge effect on profitability. This paper will look at issues relating to in situ moisture and density, resource quality evaluation, modelling of washability and dilution, and simulation techniques, and how best practice approaches can be incorporated into mine planning and feasibility studies. Risks are best modelled and understood by adopting a detailed approach that is fully documented and auditable. This is particularly needed for multi-seam and multi-product operations. Once a well defined systematic approach is established the potential risks can be evaluated by testing different scenarios, carrying out sensitivity analyses, variability modelling and examining extreme operating conditions. These have been discussed in the paper, along with some related issues such as the cost of quick fixes and the value of spending a little more in the coal preparation area.

Jan 1, 2003

All minerals contain radioactive elements, from the uranium ores of the Gabon, which contained sufficient uranium to initiate a natural nuclear reactor, to the very low levels of some recent evaporites. The commonly occurring heavy minerals such as ilmenite, rutile and zircon are no exception to this and contain varying qualities of radionuclides, depending on the source. With recent changes in legislation many natural minerals may become officially classed as radioactive. Such moves can inhibit the sales and exploration of many minerals in the heavy minerals suite. The many negative perceptions associated with the word radioactivity can produce an over cautious reaction from regulators and users. This paper presents a method of managing the radioactivity issues associated with minerals such that the safety aspects of workers and public are not compromised, whilst allowing the commercial use of such minerals to continue in a sensible manner. The paper focuses mainly on the mineral zircon and its uses. However the legislation changes particularly in Europe and the USA have the potential to affect all minerals imported into or produced in those countries. The model developed for addressing the issues of zircon radioactivity may be readily applied to other minerals since legislation governing such matters is not mineral specific. There is a strong need for education of both regulators and users of minerals. Regulators are usually not aware of the specific properties or uses of individual minerals. Similarly mineral users are not aware of the radioactive nature of their materials or how to manage this property. The paper concludes by recommending strong cooperative action by both producers and users of minerals to protect the future of their industry.

Jan 1, 2001

By G C. Lukey, J S. J van Deventer

The disposal and subsequent encapsulation of mine tailings in a cost-effective and environmentally secure and responsible manner is one of the principal issues facing any modern mining project. A careful assessment of all options available for the capping and subsequent remediation of tailings is important because it can result in large capital, operating and closure cost-savings. For these reasons, the technology of geopolymerisation is receiving increasing attention for the stabilisation and solidification of waste materials produced from mining operations. The first part of the current study investigates the application of geopolymer technology to the capping of hypersaline mine tailings. It has been found that suitable geopolymeric materials which have satisfactory compressive strength, durability as well as low permeability, can be formed using between 60 - 75 per cent of mine tailings as the main ingredient. It has been established that geopolymeric materials have the ability to suppress dust generation and prevent salt precipitation on the surface of the mine tailings. The slurry-like consistency of geopolymers would promote efficient application procedures through established tailings disposal techniques. This is a possible close-out technique for hypersaline tailings storage facilities such as those commonly found in Western Australia, which meets both regulatory requirements and community expectations. The immobilisation of contaminant metals within geopolymers has been investigated in the second part of the present study. In particular, the leaching characteristics of Cu and Pb from geopolymeric matrices derived from different fly ash sources have been examined. Potential breakdown of each geopolymer containing metal contaminants due to the leaching of Si and Al from the geopolymeric matrix has also been investigated.

Jan 1, 2000

Much has been written about leadership over the years. It is probably one of the most written about but least understood and defined concepts in business. Leadership and management are often confused and blurred, and inspirational words such as mentor, coach, motivator and the like, are often interspersed when describing a leader. There are a few things we do know about leadership:The only thing common to all leaders is that they are different.Leadership is not the sole domain of business; it applies to every aspect of human endeavour. We are all required to lead at times, and we all have it in our ability to lead. There is no set of predetermined competencies, which a leader must possess to be effective. Hence there is no course in the world that can teach you to become a leader. There is no such thing as the perfect leader. Leadership is a verb, not a title; you actually have to do it to be judged a leader. All leaders no matter how you define the term, must leave a legacy. Thus in the busy world we all live in, what are the lessons in leadership that we can all learn from, that will assist us all in our pursuit of leadership. The purpose of today is to put forward a framework for leadership that I have been researching and working on for many years. It is not the definitive framework, merely a framework. Out of today you will take your own collective thoughts, learnings, observations, experiences, education and training, and collective wisdom, and apply it to yourself.

Jan 1, 2004

North Broken Hill Limited came into prominence as a producing mine at· the commencement of the present century, when a great many of the disabilities experienced in earlier mining operations th:rough lack of adequate stope filling had been overcome.The northern or narrower ore-body was first mined in the upper levels and, in the early stages, no great difficulty in mining was experienced. In depth, under the influence of its northerly pitch,. the wide southern ore-body entered the North mine between the 400 and 500-ft. levels. Owing to its flat dip and the relatively weak nature of the hanging wall and footwall, the value of close filling was recognized and this policy has been followed throughout the life of the mine. This feature undoubtedly contributed to the freedomfrom "creep" action to which some of the older mines had been subjected.The Broken Hill lead-zinc-silver ore-bodies occur as well defined replacements of favou:rable horizons, in intensely folded Pre-Cambrian sedimentaries. In the North mine two main replacement zones occur, the Gre being found where the beds are involved in a certain set of minor folds. The resulting ore-bodies are roughly elliptical in cross-section, the long axis of one being north-east of, and somewhat offset from the long axis of the other. The ore-bodies pitch eastwards at 40° and dip northwards at 60° in a fairly regularmanner. The southern Ore-body has an average length of 700 feet and an average width of 90 feet with a maximum width of 230 feet, whilst the nonhern ore-body on the lower levels averages 500 feet long and 40 feet wide.

Jan 1, 1940

By J N. Moncrieff

The resource estimation process for the underground Mount Isa Copper Mine has undergone significant change. Block models are now created using a commercial software package as opposed to the in-house software that was previously used. With mineralisation occurring over a strike length of more than 4 km, Mineral Resources for all categories totalled 190 Mt at 2.7 per cent Cu at 31 December 2002. Estimation is by ordinary kriging with two separate models generated to cover the X41 and Enterprise orebodies respectively. The underlying Upper Basement Contact and the silica-dolomite alteration envelope are both used as hard boundaries to constrain the modelling. From a validated block model, grade shells are generated at the appropriate cut-off grade for a given area. The grade shells are depleted for mined voids and subdivided into 30 metre strike length blocks. Application of a SMU criteria and crown and pillar constraints results in failed blocks being culled from the resource inventory. Mineral Resource blocks are further subdivided into resource categories (Measured, Indicated, Inferred) by the Competent Person on the basis of geological confidence, taking account of geological and grade continuity, drillhole spacing and structural complexity (JORC, 1999). A geostatistical æconfidenceÆ category is incorporated into the block model as an additional tool for the categorisation process. The shapes are assessed in concert with a mining engineer to determine whether a reasonable expectation of mining potential exists and if not they are removed from the resource. The final categorised blocks constitute the Mineral Resource inventory and form the basis for conversion to Ore Reserves. The resultant Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves are reported on an æinclusive ofÆ basis.

Jan 1, 2003

A blast is designed to completely break competent rock such that it can be economically extracted, and efficiently handled or processed. Efficient breakage of the rock is critical to the success of an operation, and in many operations blast design is optimised to achieve fragmentation, muckpile profiles, and material that is easily excavated. There are inevitably other issues, such as damage to adjacent rock, that should be taken into account when designing a blast to achieve overall optimisation. Some of the key issues with respect to the integrity of the in situ materials adjacent to a blast are identified and briefly discussed in this paper. The potential for damage and the effects of a blast will be strongly influenced by the rock mass properties. This makes it important that site specific conditions and their response to blasting are known. Practical techniques that allow the disturbance adjacent to a blast to be measured with minimum disturbance to operations are described in the paper. Experience shows that, during the blasting process, there is considerable potential to disturb the in situ rock mass adjacent to the blast. In some circumstances a very important objective must be to minimise disturbance outside of the immediate blast area. Measured and observed disturbances caused by blasting to adjacent rock, for various common types of blasting, are discussed in this paper. Blast induced disturbances to the rock mass have been observed in both the near and far fields. These disturbances have the potential to impact on geotechnical design. The geotechnical significance of blast disturbance on a rock mass that is to remain in situ is explored and suggestions with respect to design are given.

Jan 1, 2004

South Africa is a semi arid, water scarce country that has undergone recent major political and social transformation. This transformation has ensured that water management has become a primary environmental concern in the South African mining industry, raising the status of water from an ancillary service to a fundamental factor in mine planning. The coal mining industry has been involved in the development of integrated catchment management plans since the late-1980s when a series of initiatives commenced in catchments where collieries operated. The plans focused attention on water supply and water demand management, the equitable access to water supplies, and intersectoral approaches to decision making, before the promulgation of new legislative and policy frameworks. Development of an integrated watershed management plan for the Olifants River basin, located in the Mpumalanga province, commenced in 1990. The Olifants River is an international river basin of 54 570 square kilometres and shared by South Africa and Mozambique. The upper watershed, locally called the Witbank Dam catchment, will be the focus of this paper. It has an area of 3400 square kilometres and is the major coal mining, power generating, and maize-growing region of the country. The processes embodied in the integrated watershed management plan had no formal guidelines but rather developed in an ongoing fashion over time. The plan commenced with a situation analysis involving the major stakeholders that identified principal technical shortfalls. These shortfalls were investigated under the guidance of multisectoral committees. The Olifants River Forum was started to extend awareness of the initiatives on an informal level throughout the whole watershed. The results of the investigations enabled water quality guidelines to be established for the upper catchment. To achieve the guideline levels additional initiatives were developed including a scheme to manage mine water discharges into the river system, the development of a standard four-step water management process, investigation and development of innovative mine water treatment processes, specifically sulfate reduction technologies, the use of gypsiferous mine water for irrigation, river and dam hydrological models, groundwater models and biomonitoring. Significant outcomes from the process have been achieved including the improvement in water quality in the Witbank Dam catchment. Equally significant have been the development of partnerships between businesses and between businesses and the community specifically in the use of mine water for irrigation. The plan realised a number of requirements for success including, the development of trust, openness and transparency with information, the essential need for consultation and negotiation and the involvement of third parties to validate information. The future still holds the potential for disputes between upstream and downstream water users but understanding, transparency and accountability between all players have, and will in future, enable the matching of the increasing demands on a scarce water resource to the needs of all.

Jan 1, 2003

Natural gas from the south west Queensland gas fields is now available in north west Queensland to fuel the development of many Carpentaria Mineral Province projects. Like these projects, the south west Queensland gas project, developed under the operatorship of Santos Ltd, has its own æMining CycleÆ. While the project is entering its third expansion phase, it is at the same time actively extending its discovery phase, with large programs of gas exploration and reserves definition. This paper outlines the history of the south west Queensland gas project, with particular emphasis on the relationship of the project to north west Queensland.

Jan 1, 1998

By Fry P. R

Dragline operations have played a major and successful role in coal mining around the world for more than 30 years. Because of this long history, many of the operating draglines are reaching an age where maintenance and downtime costs are prohibitive, and decisions need to be made to either replace or refurbish them.In the current economic climate, refurbishment is a popular choice and this usually involves major structural repairs above and below the roller circle, together with replacement of the roller circle components. Often, the dragline tub is also replaced by a completely new one.

Jan 1, 1992

One of primary causes of poor blast performance is the improper relief of explosive energy. Under or over-confined blasts modify the explosiveÆs path of least resistance, which changes where and when the explosive energy is applied resulting in less than optimum blast performance. During the research for this paper the overbreak characteristics of five full-scale blasts were quantified using high speed cinematography and borehole cameras. The effectiveness of various overbreak control methods was also evaluated to guide design refinement. The results of this research along with general recommendations for reducing excessive damage are included with this paper.

Jan 1, 1999

Mill liners provide the wear-resistant surface within grinding mills, they also impart motion to the mill charge, ie the grinding process, by providing the key between the charge and mill shell, and, at the discharge end, they remove the ground contents of the mill. As semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mills have grown in size the process aspects of liner design and their impact on mill performance have become particularly important. While feedback from practical experience is critical to good mill liner design, increasingly sophisticated computer-based tools are being developed to assist in mill liner design.

Jan 1, 2007

of the multitude of physiographic problems of immediate interest in volcanic terranes, it is the origin of the magma forming the magnificent volcanoes that is perhaps the most mysterious. Unlike anywhere else on earth, the possible locations of magma production beneath the convergent margins are strongly limited in depth and areal extent. Yet the exact process by which magma is produced still stands elusive, even in light of tremendous gains in analytical and physical insight. The principal aim here is to discuss some of what has been revealed about the physics and chemistry of the origin and evolution of island are magmas.

Jan 1, 1987

The port of Townsville is situated on the main north/south rail system of the Queens- land Government Railways and is the eastern terminus of the east/west rail link from Towns- ville to Mount Isa. With a stable beef and wool producing area along the east/west rail route, the expanding mineral industry development at its western end and the continuing growth of the Townsville region the administrators of the port are continually'keeping abreast and ahead of port development to ensure an effective and economic growth of port facilities to meet the needs of the area served by Townsville.

Jan 1, 1974

By Fleming GJ

The Miwah prospect lies on the dilational 070¦ trending Miwah Lineament near its intersection with northerly oriented fractures within Pliocene volcanic rocks exposed between a NW trending segment of the dextral transcurrent Sumatra Fault, and the more northerly trending Samalanga-Sipopok Fault to the east. These faults reflect the continued interaction between stresses from the India-Australia plate located to the southwest, and spreading within the Andaman Sea to the north of Sumatra. A system of deep seated faults is believed to have facilitated emplacement of post-Miocene magmas and Quaternary volcanic centres at shallow crustal levels throughout northern Sumatra.

Jan 1, 1995

By Leigh J. H

A history is given of the dust control techniques developed and applied by the mining companies at Broken Hill. A history of the regeneration works undertaken since 1936 is out- lined. Particular emphasis is placed on the stabilization of mine residue dumps which are located throughout a belt of mining leases in the middle of the city and which began in 1937. The establishment of vegetation for dust control techniques is discussed in detail and a case study is given of the successful revegetation of the sides of a 650 metre long, 350 metre wide and 35 metre high residue dump.

Jan 1, 1976

By Ooms M, Scott OJ

This paper is concerned with the design and operation of storage and discharge facilit- ies for bulk solids handling. It presents an overview of the basic design philisophy emphas- ising the influence of bulk solid flow propert- ies and bin geometry on the flow patterns developed and how these, in turn, affect the reclaim efficiency and the bin structural in- tegrity and wear characteristics of both bins and chutes. The salient aspects of feeder design and operation will be discussed and the need to consider feeders as integral parts of the bin discharge system will be stressed.

Jan 1, 1978

By R Terracciano, J Schneider

Willemite (Zn2SiO4) is one of the main zinc carriers in several Neoproterozoic carbonate-hosted non-sulfide deposits ofNamibia and Zambia. Willemite commonly replaces sphalerite, but it may also replace the carbonate host rocks. Fluid inclusions, cathodoluminescence petrography and trace element geochemistry are crucial to distinguish between hypogene, high temperature and low temperature (possibly) supergene willemites. A global period of willemite mineralisation, extending from Cambrian to Lower Ordovician has been proposed for the southern hemisphere. An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation.

Jan 1, 2008

British Coal has made a practical progressive approach to improving the reliability of its mining equipment. Reliability must be addressed at the specification stage but does not end there and routine procedures are used to procure equipment of adequate reliability. The techniques used to monitor and improve reliability during the operational phase of the equipment, providing engineers and operators with detailed printouts, together with the types of maintenance employed, ensure high levels of availability. Finally, the methods of repair and overhaul of British Coal equipment and systems ensure that the initial reliability targets outlined on the specification, can still be achieved.

Jan 1, 1991