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By Richard C. Corson

"Modern microprocessor systems make it possible to use several variables to anticipate changes in the process and to react with responses before upsets can be magnified by the process or by control action.Through tighter control, ""insurance"" can be eliminated from process set points without affecting product quality. In actual operation with a traveling grate furnace this control philosophy has produced savings of up to 20% in fuel consumption and 8% in fan power usage while producing a more consistent quality product.IntroductionA straight grate indurator, or pelletizing machine, consists of a continuo us moving train of pallets on which a feed stream of unfired, ""green"" pellets is deposited on a hearth layer o f fired pellets. This bed moves through several zones in the furnace where it is dried, preheated, fired and cooled by streams of gases which are pulled or blown through the bed by a series o f large process fan s. Control systems for straight grate plants are designed to maintain gas flow through the machine to ensure that sufficient time and heat are available to raise the temperature of the entire green bed to 1300°C where hematite bonding take s place.For the pas t two year s a new approach to control systems using microprocessor-based instrumentation has been designed and tested in an existing plant with a straight grate indurating furnace processing magnetite ore. The purpose of the test was to determine the most efficient operating setpoints for all levels of production above fifty per cent of design capacity. Through a combination of feed forward control, variable setpoints and additional loops, significant savings have been realized. Thus far the project has taught us much about control systems design and operation, energy utilization, and the process itself."

Jan 1, 1983

By Carl Sonnen

Reading the newspapers, you will know that opposition to ratification on economic grounds always points to the view that action will result in major price increases for energy (to both industry and households) with consequent severe losses of energy production and a loss of competitiveness for energy-intensive producers (i.e., in your kinds of industries). You might think of this as the ?carbon tax? fear, and you should note that many of the initial policy development experiments included variations of this theme. Analysis reported in late 2000 and into early 2002 reported reductions in energy production in the long run of between 10% and 20%. At the upper end of that view, these were the kinds of numbers reported in the Industry Canada study ?leaked? to the Press last week. The consequences of this approach included significantly uneven negative effects for some provinces (e.g., Alberta, but also Saskatchewan and Newfoundland). It had been agreed by the First Ministers of Canada, however, that the policy should not yield those results so development in recent months has focused on eliminating sector and therefore provincial ?sore thumbs?. Although an emissions trading system, which represents this type of approach and directly impacts costs of production, continues to be featured in the new or current policy and is applied to the Minerals Industries among others, it is designed to be implemented in such fashion that the costs are more moderate than before. And because the industries covered by permits are almost all price takers, there is no device for moving an increased price signal forward to ?consumers?. What this does do is even out negative effects among sectors in the economy and for provinces, but at the expense of government financial results.

Nov 1, 2002

By W. D. Robbson

DR. G. W. RAMSEY (l): A study of our non-treatment silicosis autopsy material for the years 1940-43 inclusive, in addition to the common findings of fibrosis, nodules, and emphysema, shows marked thickening of the alveolar walls. This change is due to one or more of the following factors: congestion, edema, accumulation of both small and large monocuclear cells within the interstitial tissues and large monocuclear cells attached to the lining membrane of the alveolar sacs. This alteration in the alveolar walls, we believe, is one of the most important factors in producing impaired pulmonary function. Comparison of our first autopsy material of a case receiving twenty aluminium treatments beginning June, 1943, shows a striking change in the alveolar walls. In all areas free of silocotic nodules and fibrous tissue, the alveolar walls approach normal thickness and are free of cellular deposits. No change was noted in the old processes and none was expected. We believe that these changes in the alveolar walls were brought about by the aluminium therapy and that they constitute a major factor in the improved pulmonary ventilation noted in treatment cases.

Jan 1, 1945

By K. Sakai, M. Miyaue, T. Aoki, T. Tani, S. Tanaka, N. Kudo

In the planning stage of a tunnel, due to limited technology in the geological survey and the financial restriction, tunnel supports are often designed from unsatisfactory information, and the tunnel construction is started. Therefore, "Information-oriented construction" is carried out in the construction stage, in which the design is rationally verified and modified by observations/measurements. Moreover, the ground conditions ahead of a tunnel face must be predicted for efficient and safe tunnel construction. The authors have examined effective prediction methods to the ground conditions ahead of a tunnel face under construction of mountain tunnels (Aoki et al., 2010) in view of the established method (Schubert et al., 1995). Though the prediction method of Schubert requires the displacement in the direction of tunnel axis, it is difficult to obtain its accurate data by the electronic distance meter. Then, we have proposed a method that uses tilt sensors installed at the tunnel crown near the face to obtain the slight tilting information. To measure inclination of the tunnel crown, this inclinometer was originally developed as a daily control measurement, such that the geological condition and its possible change behind the face could be detected early, and a steady advance and construction safety could be ensured. This paper describes the method of forward prediction mechanism and advantages of this suggested method. It then presents the typical results of a field verification test at a tunnel under construction and an example of evaluation of the ground conditions ahead of the face based on the 3D numerical analysis in three types of condition changes of ground deformation moduli.

Jan 1, 2015

By Ray Collier

MINING TODAY l EXTENSIVE AND EXPENSIVE PERMITTING PROCESSES WITH UNKNOWN RESULTS l GENERAL AND IMPASSIONED RESISTANCE TO RESOURCE BASED INDUSTRY l SOPHISTICATED, ORGANISED, AND WELL FUNDED OPPOSITION l MOST LOCAL GOVERNMENT DOESN?T WANT MINING TODAY?S TALK l FOUR SPECIFIC OPERATIONS ON WHICH OUR EXPERIENCE IS BASED ? SECHELT ? CADMAN ? GRANVILLE ISLAND ? LEHIGH CEMENT DELTA PLANT l OUR APPROACH TO COMMUNITY RELATIONS

May 1, 2002

By A. Ghasemi

An alumina-silica coating was deposited on a nickel substrate by sol-gel process, and the structures and composition were evaluated, The sols were made from aluminium and silicon alkoxide, and an acid catalyst including HCl, To produce adherent silica coatings on nickel, various additives such as surfactant, viscose additive and drying control chemical additives were introduced to the system, and appropriate drying and firing cycles were applied after dipping in solution. The hot corrosion and oxidation resistance of the coating at different temperatures were investigated, The structure and uniformity of the coatings were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), The results indicate that a uniform coating of alumina silica can be produced on a nickel substrate by optimizing the composition and process variables of the sol. Coatings can protect substrates from oxidation and hot corrosion at different temperature up to 1000°C, but is not very effective for hot-corrosion resistance at 1000°C.

Jan 1, 2005

By A. Desbiens, M. Maldonado, R. del Villar, Aguilera. R.

This work details the application of a multiple model approach to estimate frother concentration in flotation processes. The methodology consists of identifying a set of linear dynamic models representing the effect of gas rate on the collection-zone gas holdup at different known frother concentrations (calibration step). An adaptive law is then obtained using Bayes' rule to evaluate the conditional probability that each model represents the observed system behavior. In this way, a frother concentration estimate is calculated as a weighted sum of model probabilities and their associated (known) frother concentrations. Experimental results conducted in a two-phase system using Dowfroth250C are promising. Modeling and analysis for MIBC frother are also provided.

Jan 1, 2009

By Z. Gostynski

The paper is a historical cross-section through a 28-year period of operation of the direct-to-blister Flash Smelting Furnace in the KGHM Glogów Copper Plant. It presents the origin of the furnace as well as the path of numerous changes and modifications both in technology and process introduced in the furnace in response to the production and cost-reduction challenges. The authors provide justification of the statement that continuous improvement of the "Polish" Flash Smelting Furnace has ranked it among the most modem smelting units in the world.

Jan 1, 2007

By Karen M. Moffitt

Developments in mining methods and rates have led to an increase in the frequency and size of waste dump failures that have not been adequately predicted or explained in terms of conventional slope stability analysis. Monitoring data and visual observations suggest a unique mode of failure responsible for large runout events. A numerical model has been developed to capture commonly observed patterns of deformation, and investigate the formation of the ensuing failure mechanism. The analyses have yielded a good correlation with observed field behaviour and have provided significant insight into the coincident stresses and deformations within the dump. Results indicate that while creep effects in the waste dump could have a significant effect on the magnitudes of displacement, the overall dump stability is governed by the strength of the foundation soils underlying the toe region. Consideration of both the stress and velocity fields leads to factors of safety for various dump heights and foundation slopes that are considerably less than predicted from limit equilibrium analysis. The results suggest that conventional limit equilibrium analysis techniques may not be adequate when assessing the stability and design of waste dumps on steeply sloping terrain.

May 1, 2001

By J. M. Cormie

"The orebodies of the East Malarcic mine are interesting from a geological standpoint because of the very small amount of vein quartz, the occurrence of much of the ore in soft greenstone schist, the presence of innumerable bodies of porphyry and diorite, and their obvious relationship to structural features .The property lies in the northeast part of Fourniere township in western Quebec, and within the important fault zone that geological mapping in recent years has shown is traceable wesrward through the Noranda and Kirkland Lake camps and eastward to beyond the Val d'Or region . The claims included in the property were staked by J.P. Norrie and L. K. Coffin in 1932, but gold was not discovered until i934. Production began late in 1938. The total amount of ore milled up to the end of 1945 was 2,837,091 tons from which gold having the value of $16,631,758 was recovered.The region is underlain by an alternating series of Early Precambrian sediments and volcanics cut by innumerable intrusives. These are more fully described in the works of Gunning, Ambrose, and Norman. The East Malanie property is underlain by three formations, which, named from north· to south, are : the Cadillac sediments, the Blake River volcanics, and the Kewagama sediments. In addition, there are countless intrusions of porphyry and diorite, particularly in the greenstone, occurring in all sizes up to those measurable in hundreds and even thousands of feet . These constitute a large proportion of the greenstone in places. In many parts of the ore zone there is more porphyry and diorite than schist. The greenstone itself is not homogeneous but includes peridotite, andesitic lava, and soft talcose schist.Orebodies have been found in both the Blake River volcanics and the Kewagama sediments. They are not known to occur in the Cadillac group. The ore occurs in a zone of pyrite mineralization in which almost no other metallic minerals and very little vein quartz are present. Generally, the grade varies directly with the amount of pyrite. The mineralization is later than all the rocks of the area. Diorite was a particularly favourable rock for mineralization and contains the highest grade of ore, but any rock in the fault zone may be ore-bearing, whereas the same type away from the zone is not."

Jan 1, 1954

By C. E. Cartwright

That the construction of the Pacific Great Eastern railway has not been accompanied by an immediate and great development of traffic is not due to lack of natural resources in the district traversed, but to conditions that have delayed their development. Prior to the commencement of construction of the railway there was no inducement to prospect for any other mineral than gold, on account of lack of transportation. The war began soon after the commencement of construction; diverting practically all capital that might have been available for opening up the country; and since the war, capital has continued shy of new investments. If the war had not occurred it is probable that prospecting and development would have been carried out concurrently with the railway construction. Moreover, much of the district is covered deeply with drift, marine and alluvial deposits, rendering prospecting for lode mines a more expensive and slower proceeding than can generally be undertaken by the ordinary prospector, without capital. On the other hand, the presence of large porphyry dykes, granitic intrusions, and the finding of rich float in places are indications that rich miIY.ral deposits probably exist in several localities in the Lillooet district, in the Cariboo proper, and also nearer the coast. Two or three mines producing the tonnage of the? Britannia would materially alter the earnings of the railway and pay interest on the bonds. There are, however, other possibilities, in addition to large metaliferous mines, in the non-metallic minerals of the district.

Jan 1, 1925

By E. R. Landry

This paper reviews the current state of electric furnace technology, with emphasis on some of the more recent developments. A large section of the paper is devoted to the use of increasingly high power inputs by arc furnace operators. Operating practices are then covered, including some of the newer techniques which have been tried.

Jan 1, 1967

By C. V. Corless

THE origin of various types and groups of ore deposits was some years ago a subject of much controversy. To this statement the copper-nickel deposits near Sudbury afforded no exception. Not since the Report of the Ontario Nickel Commission, in 1917, has there been any serious discussion of the origin of this very important group. This may be because, from the opening-up of Murray mine by the British America Nickel Corporation until the recent work at Frood mine, no new ore-body of importance has been developed in the district. The controversy fifteen or twenty years ago between those who favoured the theory of magmatic segregation, among whom Dr. A. P. Coleman was the leading exponent, and those who considered that most, if not all of the Sudbury deposits could more satisfactorily be accounted for by the theory of replacement, will be remembered by many members of the Institute. Perhaps, as too often happens in controversial discussion, each side tended to overemphasize the importance of those geological phenomena which seemed to be most easily accounted for by the theory it favoured. A more balanced view would perhaps admit that replacement was probably predominant in the formation of most of the offset deposits, and magmatic segregation in that of most of the marginal deposits . But there is danger in generalization. Each body of ore should be studied by itself, and no general conclusion of this kind should be allowed to warp the judgment in making such a study.

Jan 1, 1929

By O. Benavente, M. C. Hernández

Selenium is obtained mainly from copper anode slimes, which is a by-product of the copper electrorefining process. Selenium is present in copper anode slimes as silver and copper selenides. Traditionally, selenium has been obtained by pyrometallurgical processes; however, hydrometallurgy has now been incorporated either full or partial to the conventional process. Some hydrometallurgical processes are been developed and used at laboratory level an industrial scale. This document describes theoretical background and results of characterization and dissolution of selenium from a decopperized anode slimes in an alkaline oxidizing system. The results have indicated that the oxidizing leaching process reaches a practically complete dissolution of selenium (up to 90 %); the undissolved portion is due to the generation of a AgCl around the particle surfaces that delays the progression of the reaction. The results indicated that 90% of selenium extraction can be obtained by dissolution under moderate conditions of pH, temperature and reagent concentration in oxidizing medium. INTRODUCTION Selenium is distributed in the earth's crust in most rocks and soils. Selenium is essential, as it has wide range of applications in the medical and food industries as well as, used in semiconductor, sensors and photochemical devices. Selenium is rarely found in the native state, 90% of selenium is obtained from copper anode slimes, which is a byproduct of the copper electrorefining process (Lu, Chang, Yang, & Xie, 2015; Xiao et al., 2017; Yang et al., 2018). In anode slimes, selenium is present as an intermetallic compound, as Ag-Cu selenides. Currently, selenium is recovered from the anode slimes via hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical processes (Lu et al., 2015). The traditional pyrometallurgical method recovers selenium effectively, but faces difficulty as a result of increased energy costs and strict environmental regulations associated with the process (Li, Yang, Jin, Chen, & Tong, 2017). Therefore, hydrometallurgical processes are proposed in oxidizing medium such as nitric acid, alkaline leaching with sodium nitrate, wet chlorination and pressure leaching, amongst others (Hait, Jana, & Sanyal, 2012; Kim & Wang, 2010; Xiao et al., 2017; Yang et al., 2018).

Jan 1, 2019

By M. Lghoul

Acid mine drainage (AMD) remains one of the major environmental problems for the mining industry particularly for many abandoned mine sites. The production of AMD as is commonly known can significantly affect the surrounding groundwater and surface water of the mine site. With the objective to investigate the impact of the AMD produced at the abandoned Kettara mine site (Morocco), groundwater sampling campaign was performed at this site. The sampled waters were analyzed to determine the hydrogeochemical composition, and then results were analyzed using different studied methods such as multivariate statistical analysis and geochemical modeling techniques. Investigation results show that the hydrochemistry of sampled waters is characterized by the relatively significant enrichment of Ca2+, Mg2+ and SO4 2-. The typical mine waters belong to the (Ca2+ +Mg2+)-SO4 2-type. Seasonal variations in major ion concentrations were partly attributed to dissolution/ precipitation processes. The saturation index (SI) calculation of the representative dissolved minerals in waters show that groundwater samples are undersaturated with respect to most potential sulphated secondary minerals.

Aug 1, 2013

By R. C. Wallace

It was to be expected that the convening of the first Empire Mining Congress in June, 1924 in the city of London would turn men's thoughts very definitely to the question of exploring the mineral resources within the British Empire, the examining of her strength and her weakness in mineral material, and the consideration of steps that might advisedly be taken to strengthen her trade in minerals. That expectation was in part realized, though in the British way of presenting the case, and permitting the inferences to be drawn by implication. The opening address by the President of the Congress, to whom the Empire meant so much, gave a résumé of the contributions to the mining industry which were being made by the constituent parts of the Empire. The papers from the Institutes in Australasia, South Africa and Canada provided the details of resources and practice: while the individual contributions to the proceedings dealt with those phases of the mineral industry which are fundamental to the economic strength of British people, or to the health and well-being of the workers. While the subject matter thus presented was British mineral resources, and while the first consideration was the co-ordination and co-operation of British enterprise throughout the world, there emerged very clearly the wider viewpoint that the discussions had to do with a world industry, and with the contributions that that industry was making, and could further make, to the advancement of civilization irrespective of national boundaries, the world over. The invitations to representatives of the mining industry from the United States to participate in the Congress, and the warmth of approval which that participation evoked, were indications that such a congress cannot to-day be merely national in scope, and that trade in minerals, as in other natural resources, cannot be confined within national boundaries, but will seek its channels, unless artificial obstructions are too great, where the natural channels already exist.

Jan 1, 1925

By Weiren Lin

The Mw 9.0 Tohoku-Oki, Japan earthquake occurred on 11 March 2011 produced a maximum coseismic slip of >50 m near the Japan Trench. To investigate why the plate boundary fault between the subducting Pacific Plate and overriding North American Plate which caused the earthquake had such unprecedented large coseismic displacement and slipped to the trench, Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Expedition 343 called Japan Trench Fast Drilling Project (JFAST) drilled three boreholes at Site C0019 through the earthquake fault about one year after the earthquake. Borehole C0019B dedicated to loggingwhile- drilling (LWD) penetrated ~850 meters below seafloor (mbsf) at a water depth of approximately 6890 m. The plate boundary fault is located at ~820 mbsf in the borehole and has been identified as the slip zone during the Tohoku-Oki earthquake. Borehole wall resistivity images obtained from LWD show that drilling induced borehole breakouts are available in a wide depth range above the fault but are not available below the fault. Breakouts are reliable indicators of the orientations of current maximum and minimum horizontal stresses and can also be used to constrain the horizontal maximum and minimum stress magnitudes. As results of breakout analyses, the maximum horizontal stress orientation highly varied in the upper part of the borehole, but has a clear preferred orientation in a northwest – southeast direction in the deeper part just above the fault. This orientation is approximately parallel to the direction of the Pacific Plate subduction. Stress magnitude constraints indicate that the post-earthquake stress states in the hanging wall are either in or close to the normal faulting stress regime. By inferring the pre-earthquake stress state and comparing with the constrained post-earthquake stress state, a significant coseismic stress change was interpreted. The stress change suggests an active slip of the frontal plate-interface consistent with coseismic fault weakening and a nearly total stress drop.

Jan 1, 2015

By P. Tracy

An advanced real-time monitoring system, called a "Tapblock Diagnostic System" is under development to help furnace operators manage the operation and maintenance of their tapblocks. The life of a water-cooled tap block in a smelting furnace ranges from several months to several years, depending on the operating conditions. Tapblocks are typically replaced at regular maintenance intervals; a strategy based largely on historical records and not on the actual condition of a particular tapblock. The Tapblock Diagnostic System monitors the tapblock throughout its life and accumulates probable wear events to help the operator assess the residual integrity of the tapblock. Benefits of this system include the ability to provide early warnings of tap block wear to provide improved safety and maintenance planning. Using cooling-water flow together with copper and water temperature measurements, the system performs calculations that compare the present tapblock performance with the expected operating envelope using a multivariate statistical method (Principle Component Analysis). The operating envelope is pre-calculated for a wide range of operating conditions using transient thermal modeling (Computational Fluid Dynamics). A state indicator in the form of a green, yellow and red light is used to inform operators of the tapblock performance and health status.

Jan 1, 2007

By D. F. Sangster, P. J. Hood, G. A. Gross

"Some results are presented of an integrated geological and geophysical study of Precambrian magnetite-quartz iron-formation in the Kapiko Iron Range north of Nakina, Ontario. Detailed geological and topographical mapping was carried out in conjunction with detailed geophysical investigations such as vertical magnetic field, vertical magnetic gradient, hammer seismic, horizontal-loop electromagnetic and magnetic susceptibility surveys. In addition, oriented drill cores were obtained for magnetic polarization studies.Vertical-force magnetic anomalies within individual rock units showed a strong positive correlation with topographic relief. Moreover, magnetic intensity was found not to be quantitatively proportional to the magnetite content in the rocks, due to the presence of high remanent magnetization of the magnetite. Also, the remanent polarization direction was sub parallel to the plunge of the fold structure and mineral lineation in associated rocks.Vertical magnetic gradient measurements were found to be more accurate in locating buried contacts between magnetite-quartz iron-formation and country rock than the vertical magnetic force data.An in-situ magnetic susceptibility meter was used to measure the magnetite content of iron-formation, and the measurements were subsequently compared with vertical-force magnetic results.The results of the EM survey were inconclusive; some magnetite-rich zones produced anomalies in the out-of-phase component. whereas others did not. The reasons for such inconsistencies are not yet apparent.Longitudinal seismic wave velocities measured parallel to the bedding in magnetite-quartz iron-formation ranged from 10,600 ft/sec. to 14,500 ft/sec. The seismic velocity appears to increase with an increase in deformation of the rocks."

Jan 1, 1966

By D. Nie, M. Ren, T. Mo

This paper studied the phenomenon of room temperature creep deformation at crack tip and its effect on fatigue crack growth rate of a X-70 pipeline steel using compact-tension (CT) specimen on a MTS 810 testing machine. Time-dependent deformation at the crack tip under constant load was observed in this steel at room temperature and the amount of deformation produced was seen to depend on loading rate and the magnitude of stress intensity factor. It is found that there exists a critical stress intensity factor below which the deformation decreases with time when the applied load remains constant. It is also found that the occurrence of room temperature creep obviously affects the subsequent fatigue crack growth rate. The observed behavior was explained based on dislocation theory.

Jan 1, 2005