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By P. Seppanen

Cemented fill was first introduced at the Keretti mine in 1952, but entailed high cement costs, the need for stope preparation, slimes handling, clean-up and maintenance, increased mine dewatering, segregation of fill and long setting times. In the 1970s research began into the use of iron blast-furnace slag as a binding agent and by 1989 Pyhasalmi, Vihanti, Keretti, Vammala and Enonkoski had saved US $11 000 000 by using slag binders instead of cement. Viscaria in Sweden and Tara in Ireland also use slag as 90-100% of total binder, although their backfilling methods vary. The main area of interest in slag research is determining the activation methods for initiating the binding reactions; it is also important to achieve other characteristics such as resistance to corrosion by sulphuric ion. New backfilling techniques developed during the 1980s included the use of high-density cemented tailings fill at Vammala and porous cemented rockfill at Enonkoski and Viscaria. Future developments focus on concepts such as integration of mining and milling with backfilling and the achievement of total underground disposal of wastes

Dec 1, 1995

By A. L. W. Lips, T. J. R. Barclay, E. Rothery, S. H. White

Paper presented at the conference Economic geology in Europe and beyond II, models for mineral deposits in sedimentary basins, held in Keyworth, UK, 13-14 April 1994 (originally entitled: The Broken Hill base metal deposit - a tectonically transported and modified basinal deposit within the Proterozoic Willyama fold and thrust belt). A regional structural study was undertaken which incorporated the role of shears. Their positions were identified from earlier mapping, from regional aeromagnetic data and by additional field work. Kinematic studies determined movement histories and petrological studies of the fault rocks formed within the shears identified the relationship between the movements and regional metamorphism. It was found that the shears formed a part of an earlier, major thrust event with transport from NW to SE and a later, minor one in the reverse direction. Neither had any significant effect on the mineralisation apart from local displacement, but the shuffling of the basin stratigraphy adds to the difficulty of recognising the original volcanic and sedimentary protoliths of the metamorphosed sequence. The mineralisation at Broken Hill mine is confined to a single recognisable thrust slice within a shear corridor. It is stratabound with locally transgressive remobilisation due to the high-temperature thrusting and some metasomatic alteration as a result of the retrograde shearing. This variation accounts for the different genetic models applied to the deposits in the past

Jun 17, 1905

By M. P. O'Reilly

A personal overview and assessment is given of the 42 papers delivered over the three days of the symposium. As well as 18 from the UK there were presentations from 16 other countries; 20 were on rock tunnels, 13 on soft ground and 3 on both; there were 17 case histories and 16 discussions of tunnelling machines but, for the first time in the conference series, almost no papers on tunnelling for mining purposes. Some projects, such as the Lesotho Highlands Water Project and the London Ring Main, attracted a number of papers addressing their different aspects

Jun 16, 1905

By M. C. Amiri

The plant produces 130 kg slag per tonne of crude steel, to add to the basic oxygen steel-making converter slag stockpile of around 2 500 000 t. The slags contain 1.81% V2O5, which can be rendered water-soluble by salt roasting with NaCl and an alkali such as Na2CO3. Preliminary tests gave less than 3% V recovery from slag under optimum roasting conditions when NaCl, NaCO3 or Na2SO4 was used, but showed that sodium phosphate could make all the V water-soluble when roasted with slag in a ratio of 3:1 at 1 100-1 200 degrees C. Almost complete leaching was obtained within 2 h with water at boiling point. Sodium vanadate was precipitated by acidifying the leach liquor with HCl to a pH of about 2.2

Jun 21, 1905

By T. From

The organisation's mission is to promote research and technological development in processes relevant to the minerals industry by providing expertise, developing and managing jointly funded projects, undertaking commissions and education and establishing and maintaining research and development networks. It was responsible for the administration of the Mining Technology 2000 national programme to reduce production costs per metallic unit by 50% over 5-8 years, which involved 120 projects in all. Technical areas included ore characterisation/delineation and mine planning, rock fragmentation, rock mechanics, maintenance, energy and ventilation, automation and information systems, cut and fill, bulk mining methods, drifting and production-face development. Other projects have been the Ore Geology Related to Prospecting (PIM) programme to raise the standard of ore geology research in Sweden and promote exploration for volcanogenic massive sulphides in three key regions, and a joint research project on ventilation control according to requirement, including development of fan and gas monitoring systems and an improved, adjustable and intelligent fan

Jun 17, 1905

By J. P. Rees

Describes methods of dust-sampling such as weighing the dust caught on cotton-wool, the sugar tube, konimeter, circular konimeter and the thermal precipitator. Covers the work of mine dust inspectors, the Miners' Phthisis Prevention Committee and the Chamber of Mines Dust Department.

Jan 1, 1947

By W. Doherty, P. C. Lightfoot, V. A. Fedorenko, N. S. Gorbachev, V. I. Kunilov, A. J. Naldrett, Z. Johan

Paper presented at the conference Economic geology in Europe and beyond II, models for mineral deposits in sedimentary basins, held in Keyworth, UK, 13-14 April 1994. A model is presented which regards the Lower Talnakh- and Talnakh-type intrusions as part of the plumbing system for the overlying lavas. As magma ascended along the Noril'sk-Kharayelakh fault it was forced to spread out within sedimentary strata immediately beneath the obstruction of the accumulated volcanic sequence. Here it was severely depleted in chalcophile elements by sulphides, which were then trapped by their high density and remained behind in the main arteries to form the central, elongated zone of maximum thickness. Subsequent magma also lost Ni, Cu and PGE to the sulphides as it flowed through. The Lower Talnakh-type intrusions represent part of the plumbing system that became blocked at an early stage, before the influx of much mokulaevsky-type magma rich in chalcophile elements. The model accounts for the high metal content of the ores in comparison with the size of their associated intrusions, the extensive metamorphic aureoles, the chalcophile depletion of some overlying volcanic suites, the presence of the ore in near-surface intrusions rather than deep magma chambers, and the sulphur isotopic composition of the ore

Apr 1, 1995

It was intended to show a film on Dust Suppression in the South Wales Coal-mines. Unfortunately, owing to a breakdown, only a small portion of the film was shown.

Jan 1, 1947

Discussion of the paper published Trans Inst. Min. E., 1916, vol. li., page 99 comprises a written comment by Bolton H. giving two examples of the faunal evidence for deep-water vs littoral conditions of Goniatites (cephalopods) and Upper Old Red Sandstone fishes

Dec 1, 1916

By T. Bennett

Geothermal energy has the potential to provide 20% of the UK's annual average electricity generation capacity requirement. This article discusses the costs and potential benefits.

Jun 1, 2015