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By O'Halloran. Gerard F.

"ECSTALL MINING has installed in their plants the most modern equipment in the mining industry. At the minesite, digital blocked frequency controls are used to monitor all crushers, conveyors, ventilation equipment and pumps from underground. Distant pumping stations are monitored and controlled by radio. Modern friction skip and cage hoisting systems have been installed with static power supply designed for automatic operation. Rotary-type compressors of recent design are in service in place of the conventional reciprocating-type units. At the concentrator, the 800- and 1500-hp synchronous motors driving the grinding mills have static field excitation and pneumatic clutches, still meeting modern-day concepts, having been• installed in 1966. The maintenance work load has increased annually for the past eight years. The modern plant, with all the present-day sophistication, must have a welltrained and well-organized force of skilled workers, and a maintenance system which will supply realistic facts and guidelines. This presentation will review the relative location of plants, utilities, maintenance and services, plant maintenance control and mechanical control. It is the hope that enough information will be presented to weigh the size of the job and how the resources are utilized for controlled maintenance."

Jan 1, 1974

Good morning ladies and gentlemen of the AIME. I was doubly pleased when Toby Yu asked me to present to you my thoughts on the past, the present, and the future of bulk transportation by barge. My first pleasure comes from sharing with you the subject that has been my career for many years. I love this industry in the same way Mark Twain loved our rivers. Somehow, I can find in all of the activities that make up this crazy barge business the same sort of excitement that he found in "steam boating." The second reason for my enthusiasm is that Toby carefully pointed out that the presentation had to be kept to a maximum of 15 minutes. I can promise you that I will hold to his maximum time limit.

Jan 1, 1982

By Cleland N. Conwell

The term "tender tundra" is a myth---a well-developed myth, but contrary to the fact. Any area that supports herbivores must have a plant base to supply food, In Alaska, herds of caribou migrate and live north of the Arctic Circle. And, if there is enough growth in the moss and lichens and arctic grass to support a caribou herd, the "tender tundra" can heal after it has been disturbed by mining. Another myth is that Alaska is an ice box. Actually, many areas In the state---particularly the Interior---have a high agricultural potential. Nevertheless, the fact remains: whether it is reclaimed by advancing the productivity from forest to agriculture or is allowed to remain a wild-life habitat, Alaskan land will revegetate. Reseeding speeds reclamation, but left to nature, native species will reclaim the land whether it was disturbed by forest fires, roads, villages, or mining. In fact, it is impossible to find many of the old gold mining camps.

Jan 1, 1975

By Peter C. Hayes

"The high temperature reduction of solids through the use of reactive gas atmospheres has application in a wide range of industrially important processes. Whilst significant advances have been made in understanding and describing these processes, some key aspects of the chemical reactions and reaction mechanisms operating in these systems, for example, the transformation from metal oxide to metal, remain poorly understood. A number of different product morphologies have been identified in these reaction systems and the reaction rates have been shown to be critically dependent on the product structure.Theoretical examination of the elementary process steps taking place in the region of the gas/metal/metal oxide interface, combined with electron microscope studies of the resultant product microstructures, have enabled the key process and material variables responsible for the development of the various product morphologies to be identified. By considering i) established criteria for the stability of moving interfaces in a thermodynamic potential gradient, ii) the relative rates of chemical reactions on the oxide and metal surfaces, and iii) key process phenomena and physico-chemical properties of the solid phases, the mechanisms and conditions for the formation of various product morphologies are identified. Interestingly the analysis points to direct analogies between these phase transformations and, the phenomena and microstructures observed in metal solidification, and the potential to develop generic models of these fluid/solid reaction systems."

Jan 1, 2013

By Saul J. Escalera

Mechanisms involved in the depression of the sulfides: pyrite, chalcopyrite, galena and sphalerite with potassium permanganate have been investigated. Flotation tests were conducted using potassium amyl xanthate, Z-6, and pine oil in the absence and presence of potassium permanganate at around pH = 6. 5 naturally yielded by the sulfides in the pulp. On the basis of crystal chemistry considerations, the amount of xanthate adsorbed by the sulfides depends on the amount of sulfur and metal ions present on the surface; thus, the avidity of the sulfides for xanthate should increase in the order: sphalerite C chalcopyrite 4 galena 4 pyrite, and the ease of depression response to the permanganate action should be in the same order. Depression of the sulfides in the system occurs primarily due to the removal of the collector ions by the permanganate ions to form manganese dioxide and dixanthogen according to the reaction: 3 M(RX)2 + 2 Mn04 + 4 H20 2 ? MnO2 + 3(RX-XR) + 3 M+2 8OH where M represents the metal ion, RX the xanthate ion and (RX-XR) the dixanthogen molecule. Results seem to indicate that the permanganate ions play a triple role in the system: (1) they convert xanthate ions into dixanthogen, (2) they further oxidize the mineral surface and (3) if present in excess, they may oxidize the xanthate beyond the dixanthogen stage with the formation of CO2, H20 and SO4. All sulfides, except for chalcopyrite, showed a depression response in the order predicted regardless of the order of addition of xanthate and permanganate reagents. Chalcopyrite did not depress as easily; this behavior may be due to the avidity of the colloidal MnO2 to adsorb Cu+2 ions on its surface, this would destabilize the colloid making it coalesce with the formation of a layer of precipitated MnO2 on the surface of the mineral. The presence of this layer would prevent further action of the permanganate ions on chalcopyrite.

Jan 1, 1970

By M. N. Barbier

Según la obra del Ministerio de Educación Nacional de Francia existen 112 escuelas de ingenieros que este año formarán total alrededor de 6.000 ingenieros. Sin embargo, surgen algunos problemas en la formación de esta profesión como: aquellos ligados al reclutamiento de los alumnos de las escuelas de ingenieros, para obtener el mayor número posible de alumnos jóvenes y bien preparados, y los relacionados a la actividad misma de las escuelas de ingenieros, tales como programas, métodos de enseñanza y relaciones con la industria. En ese sentido, el presente texto revisa dichos problemas y plantea soluciones respecto a ellos como: diversas mejoras en el régimen de los concursos de las grandes escuelas y duracíón de la preparación, así como una reducción del número de materias enseñadas y la adopción de métodos activos de la enseñanza en lugar de aquéllos que se limitaban a exigir la presencia física de los alumnos.

May 1, 1965

By K M. P Singh, K M. K Sinha, G S. Jha, T Gouricharan, K K. Sharma

The majority of the powerplants in India are fed with non-coking coals, with the coals dispatched from their respective mines via wagons loaded by a rapid loading system or pay loader. The usual top size of coal is 200 mm and sampling is carried out manually from wagons. The manual method of wagon top sampling of large size raw coal is not only difficult, but also violates some of the fundamental principles of sampling. As per sampling requirements, samples are to be drawn from the full depth of the wagons, which is impossible to be done manually. Since the ash distribution in the different size fractions is not homogeneous, the results from the samples, which do not reflect the true size distribution of the lot, are likely to be biased. More importantly, sample collection by shovel from the top is a function of human discretion and not governed by the equiprobability rule. In another case, the sample has been collected by a cross belt-type auto mechanical sampler for 200 mm size coal at one of the super thermal power stations. Test analysis shows that coal collected using a cross belt-type mechanical sampler also has significant deviations from stopped belt coal samples of 200 mm size due to size segregation. Studies carried out on wagon top sampling through specially designed experiments reveal some interesting features. The presence of bias in wagon top sampling is apparent when compared with the ‘stopped belt’ sample. In this paper, a comparative study between manual wagon top sampling/auto mechanical sampling with respect to stopped belt sampling has been conducted for coal of size 200 mm. In addition, precision studies have been performed for wagon top sampling/mechanical sampling for Indian thermal powerplants.CITATION:Sinha, K M K, Sharma, K K, Jha, G S, Singh, K M P and Gouricharan, T, 2014. A comparative study of manual wagon top sampling and auto mechanical sampling of 200 mm size coal with respect to stopped belt sampling of thermal coal at Indian super thermal powerplants, in Proceedings Sampling 2014 , pp 43–48 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 29, 2014

By Mark Ward

The Rincon del Tigre (RdT) complex is one of South America’s largest and best-developed mafic-ultramafic layered intrusions. It is set in the SE Bolivian lowlands, about 50 km from the Brazilian border.The BGS (British Geological Survey) and GEOBOL (Servicio Geologico de Bolivia) carried out an initial investigation of the RdT complex from 1976 to 1986. In this sense, the paper point out the geology background of The Rincon del Tigre, economical potential, typical ore secuence in laterite nickle deposit and pega pega erosional surface (Oligocene).

Apr 24, 2001

By David S. Young

All pigments and extenders or fillers whether organic or inorganic fall into the following broad general classes: I. Colored II.-White III. Black IV. Metallic A pigment- is any particulate matter that is essentially insoluble and chemically unaffected by the media into which it is dispersed. According to this very broad definition, colored pigments, white pigments, fillers, extenders, and functional pigments would all be included. The particulate size range would also be quite broad ranging from very fine colloidal particles (~0.01µ) to relatively coarse particles (~100.0µ). This broad definition is usually subdivided into more practical divisions which tend to relate the classification of the pigment to its primary function in the system in which it is used. Hence, the word extender implies that its major purpose may be to extend the system.

Jan 1, 1985

By Casters B. Foster

The U.S. Department of Energy has undertaken, in a cost sharing partnership with industry and utilities, an extensive coal-oil mixture (COM) combustion program in a number of promising applications. One of these is the injection of COM through tuyeres into a blast furnace in lieu of oil. From work done previously, it has been established that COM can be burned in existing oil, fired facilities. The issues being addressed by the current DOE program are: 1) determination of best available technology to achieve environmentally acceptable operation, and 2) determination of applications for which COM can be utilized economically.

Jan 1, 1978

By C. M. Wai

Metal species in solid and liquid materials can be extracted by supercritical carbon dioxide containing a suitable ligand. This in situ chelation-supercritical fluid extraction technique offers, several advantages over conventional solvent extraction including minimization of organic liquid waste generation and exposure of personnel to organic vapors. One unique feature of this technique is that metal species can be removed from solid materials directly using supercritical carbon dioxide as a solvent. Several ligand systems including dithiocarbamates, ß-diketones, organophosphorus reagents, and macrocyclic compounds have been tested for metal extraction in supercritical carbon dioxide. This novel extraction technique may have important applications for metal recovery and mineral processing.

Jan 1, 1996

By A. Jakobsson

Studies of the rate of interdissolution in oxide systems in the solid state are of importance in materials processing through the powder-metallurgical route. As there is a need for following the rate of the such reactions continuously, a new method based on high temperature X-ray diffraction was developed. Mechanical mixtures of the oxides were placed in a high-temperature X-ray diffraction unit and the changes in the intensity and position of the peaks with highest intensity for both the components were followed as functions of time. A suitable theoretical model has been developed in order to interpret the experimental data and evaluate the diffusion coefficients. The method was applied in the case of the system MgO-NiO. The results obtained are compared with those obtained by another new method, based on solid-state galvanic cell technique with calcia stabilized zirconia electrolyte, developed in the Department of Theoretical Metallurgy. The advantage of the present techniques to monitor the progress of the reaction continuously make them suitable for computer control of such processes.

Jan 1, 1995

By Walter Díaz Cartagena

El suelo es uno de los recursos más importantes del agua -en tanto sustenta la vida natural y fuente de alimento para toda la especie terrestre. Por tal motivo, el presente texto señala los planes y estrategias para el cumplimiento de los estándares de calidad (EKA) de los suelos. En la promulgación de D.S. N°02 2013-MINAM que aprueba dichos estándares, se establece el último componente por norma para conocer la cantidad de contaminación del suelo. Este decreto propone una serie de etapas en la gestión de suelos contaminados que van desde la ecuación de los instrumentos de gestión ambiental, la investigación de situación de estos suelos contaminados en la zona de producción para determinar el estado en el que se encuentran y la recuperación ambiental por parte de un plan de descontaminación de suelos.

Jul 1, 2014

By C. Gosselin, M. Rheault, M. Benoit, Y. Bouroubi, V. Sarago

The last three decades have seen significant mining development in northern regions of Canada, where the freeze and thaw cycle of permafrost and the corresponding surface subsidence and heave represent a significant challenge to the design and maintenance of infrastructures. Identifying areas at risk is of great assistance to reduce the impact of this issue. Over the past ten years, Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (InSAR) has been widely used to monitor ground surface deformation. With this technique, changes in phase between two SAR acquisitions are used to detect centimeter to millimeter surface displacements over a large area and with high spatial resolution. InSAR can be used as a tool to assist the siting and design of new infrastructure as well as highlighting the risk to existing structures in areas of unstable terrain. This paper presents the results of a project carried out by Effigis, which made use of SAR interferometry in the context of monitoring terrain and infrastructure stability in a northern mining environment that is affected by permafrost seasonal and long term changes. TerraSAR-X images acquired during two periods, August to November 2012 and March to October 2013, were used to measure the deformations and/or movement of ground surface, infrastructure and stockpiles caused by seasonal changes in permafrost extent in and around a mining site located in Nunavik, Quebec. The results showed that spatial and temporal distributions of surface displacements are in accordance with scientific and terrain knowledge. Some displacements were observed in loose soil areas while, as expected, none were detected in bedrock and rock outcrop areas. The areas most affected by active layer changes showed surface subsidence in the thaw settlement period. This study confirms that SAR interferometry has a great potential for operational applications related to risks induced by surface deformation in mining environments. It shows that this technique can be used to produce reliable maps of surface movement and monitor the vertical displacement of important infrastructure.

Jan 1, 2015

By M. Westendorf, T. Banerjee, S. Kaushik, D. Tinney

"Cyclones are one of the most extensively used pieces of equipment within the mineral processing industry because of their simplistic operating and maintenance philosophies. They are commonly used as classifiers within the comminution circuit to control the grinding product particle size for satisfactory performance of downstream operations.Cyclones are a key contributor to the effective operation of the plant and have a significant impact on the mineral processing plant operations. If the cyclones are not performing as they should, the results are often a combination of lost recovery, grade, capacity and reduced throughput. Similarly, an inefficient cyclone operation may also lead to low or high recirculating loads that impact the efficiency of the comminution circuit. This highlights the importance of having proper stability in cyclone operation while implementing any plant-wide optimization strategy.One of the key challenges in cyclone operation is that cyclones are highly sensitive to changes in operating conditions and are affected by process fluctuations such as feed pressure, solids concentration and flow rates. Fluctuations in cyclone feed characteristics lead to unstable cyclone performance which affects mineral liberation. For such an impactful unit operation, cyclones have historically been under-instrumented in an otherwise highly instrumented process plant. Traditionally, mill operators have relied on visual observations of the apex discharge to determine the operating state of the cyclones. Visual cues corresponding to the different cyclone operating conditions have been discussed by Neesse et al. (2004) as shown in Fig. 1."

Jan 1, 2014

By Douglas Rudenko PG, Jay Elkin, Siavash Mahvelati Ph. D.

Very little studies have investigated the behavior of cracks in unlined tunnels over long periods of time, especially when such flaws are subjected to blast-induced vibrations. Using a pool of 30+ blast events, a positive correlation was found between the peak particle velocity and peak crack movement.

Feb 1, 2020

By Claudio Lechuga, Carlos Scherpenisse, Juan Rafael Otaiza

From the analysis of drilling process, Block Model information, drilling pattern data and expected fragmentation targets; GBlast® software optimizes the explosive charge design in order to standardize the particle size of each blast.

Feb 1, 2020

By Santiago Gómez, Pablo Segarra, José A. Sanchidrián

In-hole detonation pressure measurements are unusual in the production environment of a mining operation, partly owing to the hostile conditions to which recording equipment and pertinent probes must be subjected and, partly by the constraints of the production cycle. In recent decades, detonation pressure measurement techniques have been developed using low carbon resistors (LCR)-based gauges. They are cheap, relatively easy-to-operate, robust and with a high percentage of success in both open-pit and underground mining. Detonation pressure measurements are extremely important when carrying out numerical modelling to simulate explosive induced vibrations, since simulation results are highly dependent on the pressure-time history applied on the blasthole wall. Analytical equations have typically been used to model the pressure-time history; however, they usually do not adequately represent the behaviour of the explosive in terms of: peak pressure reached, rise time, mean frequency, decay and shape of the signal. Experimental records may be directly used instead of utilizing synthetic signals if they are available. In this work, (LCR)-based gauges are used to measure detonation pressure inside a production blasthole. The operation principle of the gauges utilized and the instrumentation layout is described in detail. A flexible resolution USB oscilloscope with high sampling rate has been used to catch the elusive pressure peak event. Measurements were carried out in production blasts fired with ANFO (0.86 g/cm3) in an underground mine––this also includes velocity of detonation (VOD) records––. A procedure based on the shock impedance matching has been developed to calculate the detonation pressure due to the characteristics of the gauges prevent its direct measurement. Detonation pressures obtained range from 1.71 to 2.97 GPa (248.01 to 430.76 ksi) which are in line with pressures calculated from the VOD records. Mean frequency and rise time analysis shows that 2 of 3 signals cannot be described using typical analytical equations.

Feb 6, 2023

By YONGQIONG YANG, Ning Wang, CHONGGUANG LUO, LI ZHU, Hanjie Wen, SHENGJIANG DU, Hannian Gu

Niobium in kaolin clay from the Late Permian sequences was reported in the range of several hundreds of micrograms per gram and was considered as a potential resource for its high concentrations and large areal distribution. Ti-bearing minerals associated with kaolin clay were identified as the main host phase for niobium in some case studies. However, the correlation between the concentration of niobium and titanium is poor, and the types of Ti-bearing minerals and modes of occurrence of niobium are not clear. Typical kaolin clay samples from the Late Permian sequences from southwest China were characterized, and the final products derived from kaolin clay sample were investigated using XRF, ICP-MS, XRD, SEM, and TEM (EDS). The results reveal that there were three types of TiO2 mineral phases in the clay samples: (a) massive TiO2 minerals and (b) aggregates of nano TiO2 minerals did not contain niobium while (c) granular TiO2 minerals were the source of niobium from the EDS analysis. The granular TiO2 minerals included anatase and rutile, both of which were the sources of niobium in kaolin clay in the current study. The findings are of great theoretical implication for source and origin study of Ti-bearing minerals and guidance for separation and recovery of niobium from kaolin clay.

Nov 30, 2020

By H. S. Venkatesh, G. Gopinath, R. Balachander, G. C. Naveen

Punatsangchu Hydroelectric Project Authority is constructing 1020 MW underground hydroelectric project in Bhutan. The project envisages construction of concrete dam, Desilting Chamber, Head Race Tunnel, Power House Complex and Tail Race Tunnel. Tunneling is one of the major activity in any underground projects as they are driven for multiple activities. By and large the tunnels are a major part of connecting networks from surface to caverns/underground working sites. Many tunnels in hydropower project are part of water conducting systems and one such important tunnel is the Tail Race Tunnel in this project and had to be excavated in thinly foliated rockmass conditions by D&B method.

Feb 1, 2020