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By D Hart

In 1944 some ten or so pieces of legislation impacted on the mining industry. Today in excess of 80 in one way or another apply to the Northern Territory miner. This paper will look at the nature of the legislation that has been introduced and the reasons for its introduction. During the Second World War the mining of resources such as iron, tin etc for the war effort set the platform for the subsequent expansion of the industry in the post-war years. Thereafter, the change in attitudes over the years that have resulted from a more conscious public and more responsible governments and developers associated with the recognition of the legal rights of others and the threat of litigation, will be traced. With a major review of the Northern Territory Mining Act currently in progress, this paper will view ANZMEC's foreshadowed preference for a National Code and the NT's intent of drawing some commonalities with other states of Australia to achieve this aim. Finally, the questions of over-regulation and whether existing legislation is complete will be addressed. From this it is foreshadowed how legislation may develop during the lead into the 21st century.

Jan 1, 1994

By C P. de Jager, J J. Taljaard

Over the past 75 years, the mining of platinum has predominantly focused on the Merensky Reef horizon in the western Bushveld region of the Bushveld Igneous Complex (BIC) of South Africa (Figure 1). The orebody is relatively flat dipping at 10¦ to 25¦, narrow tabular in shape and has been mined to a maximum depth of some 1600 m within Anglo Platinum. This has resulted in the installation of up to four generations of shaft systems as mining progressed into reserves at greater depth. In recent years, with the improvement in processing technology and improved economics, in particular with the improved price of palladium, the mining of the UG2 Chromitite Reef is proving economically viable. The UG2 Chromitite Reef occurs below the Merensky Reef in the succession and the normal separation varies from 15 m to 400 m, with the largest separation between the reefs occurring in the eastern region of the BIC. The UG2 Chromitite Reef horizon is now being accessed from existing Merensky mining infrastructure by cross-cutting back through the stratigraphy where appropriate, or by establishing new decline cluster systems from surface, along the extensive strike length of the various mining properties. These declines are generally established utilising mechanised mining techniques. This paper gives an overview of the techno-economic approaches considered and evaluated for the selection of the optimum mining and shaft systems. More specifically, the paper reviews the design parameters used, techno-economics, conveyor versus haul alternatives, logistics simulations, capital costs, system performance, time to market or ramp-up success, important system differences and lessons learnt.

Jan 1, 2005

By T Higuchi, K Fukada, K Takehara, Y Iwami, S Fujiwara

Following the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015 and the SDGs, reduction of CO2 emissions has been taken up as an issue worldwide, and the steel industry, which has a particularly large emission, is required to significantly reduce it. Most of the CO2 generated in the steel industry is generated from the ironmaking process, due to the use of coke and its raw material coal in the ironmaking process. JFE Steel Corporation has been considering the use of hydrocarbon-based gaseous fuels and liquid fuels as a partial alternative to coke breeze used in the sintering process since 2006, immediately after the Kyoto Protocol came into effect in 2005. In a laboratory study, a pot test was used to investigate the effect of the type of fuel, its amount and its injection method on the heat pattern in sinter bed. As a result, the authors developed a technology, in which a predetermined amount of gas fuel or liquid fuel was injected from the surface of sintering bed to extend the holding time of 1200°C or higher at which liquid phase sintering occurs in the layer, to improve the sinter strength while reducing the amount of coke breeze. The authors succeeded in putting this technology to practical use using hydrocarbon-based gas fuel in 2009 and achieved a maximum annual reduction of 60 000 tons of CO2 per sintering machine. In this report, the authors introduce the results of laboratory studies on the use of various energy sources, the practical application of the technology for injecting hydrocarbon-based gaseous fuel into the sintering machine, and the operational results.

Nov 8, 2021

By Hosking IA, Mirkov P

Among the solutions currently being considered for improving traffic flow in Sydney are the construction of major road tunnels, principally the Eastern Distributor Tunnels, leading from the end of the Cahill Expressway to Drivers Triangle and South of Taylor Square and the Sydney Harbour Tunnel, which incorporates sections of driven tunnel at the northern and southern sides of the harbour. The Eastern Distributor Tunnels, known as Stages 2 and 3 of the Eastern Distributor Scheme comprise: Stage 2 - A south bound two lane tunnel from north of William Street to Driver's Triangle. The southern end includes two Y junctions (locally 3 to 4 lane widths) with exits into South Dowling Street, Anzac Parade and Moore Park Road. Stage 3 - A north bound, two lane tunnel from Taylor Square to Palmer Street just north of William Street. Further details of the Eastern Distributor Tunnels are given in the paper by Baxter, Chappel and Fishburn (1986) which is included in this conference.

Jan 1, 1987

This paper describes the new legislative regime that will apply to the regulation of the minerals industry in New Zealand.The reform of New Zealands minerals legislation was initiated in January 1988 when the Minister for the Environment, Rt Hon Geoffrey Palmer, announced the Governments intention to review all the major laws governing New Zealands resources. The Resource Management Bill is scheduled for to the House in December 1989 and its date of enactment is scheduled for June 1990.With some matters still to be determined (at the time of writing), this paper cannot be a definitive review and description of the new legislation, it is instead an attempt to outline the major features of the Bill, to date, that are seen as important to the mining industry.

Jan 1, 1990

By T C. Hughes, R Hughes

Ausmelt has developed and commercialised high temperature reactor technology that has been applied to waste processing in the form of a catalytic waste converter (CWC). Ausmelt Technology uses a top submerged lance system within a versatile converter containing an oxidised molten siliceous slag. Metals and other valuable products can be extracted from wastes for recycle into the community. Non-valuable components such as toxic organochlorinated compounds are destroyed and prevented from reforming. The slag produced is inert and can be safely used in building and concreting. The CWC can be applied to practically all types of wastes and examples from Ni-Cd batteries to toxic wastes are discussed. Additional benefits can be derived from large-scale operations if the surplus heat generated is exploited to produce steam and electricity.

Jan 1, 2000

Industrial relations on Australian and New Zealand resource projects can be volatile. Therefore investors have become increasingly aware over the years that sound industrial relations during construction is vital to the overall success of their project. There has been a wide range of actual industrial relations performance, project by project, and the degree. of success often directly correlates with the degree and thoroughness of pre-project planning. However, although many projects have been crippled by delays and cost overruns because of labour disputes, good results are achievable. Total commitment to the project by all parties involved is essential and it is up to the employers to seek out this commitment and not just trust mother luck. Industrial relations must be taken very seriously as the price of failure can render a resource project unviable.

Jan 1, 1983

By Roberts I. R

The movement of materials is normally associated with a number of problems, some more easily overcome than others. Orebodies are frequently located in remote areas to which transport lines have to be opened. In the case of Mount Isa Mines Limited, the geographical isolation from the major consumer areas necess- itates long lines of transport and communica- tion. The problems associated with transport of metals and minerals vary from time to time because of the changing industrial environment. The increased size of vessels, changes in handling methods, and the economic pressures brought on by increased costs of transport without any guarantee of aligned increase in metal prices all contribute to difficulties which have to be faced by the mining companies in their effort to reach the markets with their products.

Jan 1, 1974

By Y Potvin

Underground mines in Australia are progressively operating at greater depth, sometimes in conditions where mine induced stresses are very high. In such conditions, the seismic activity often becomes intense and violent and in response, mines must develop and implement a sound rock burst risk management strategy to continue operating safely.This paper discusses the latest techniques successfully used in Australian mines to mitigate the risk of rock bursts. In particular, the paper describes how the analysis of data collected from seismic monitoring systems can provide an understanding of the seismicity and be used for quantifying seismic hazards in the mine. Once an adequate understanding and assessment of seismic hazard has been achieved, the associated risk can be mitigated using different layers of protection.Strategically, modifying the mining method, the extraction sequence and/or the mining layout can alleviate the seismic hazard, but these solutions generally cannot be implemented rapidly. In the short-term, seismic risk can be mitigated tactically using an energy absorbing support system or to remove personnel from being exposed to rock burst damage by implementing exclusion zones.

Mar 21, 2011

Self Advancing or "Poweredtt supports are a successful means of supporting roof and designs have reached the stage where adequate support capa- bility is available for all conditions. Some designs have resulted in equipment being too difficult to transport underground and too complex to maintain. Current trends are reducing those problems and simplicity in hydraulic systems is now the keynote of both supplier and user. There is a good possibility that the "Shield-Chock" support will be the universal design of the future. So-called t'shortwall supports" have been developed to the point where they can be applied with a high degree of confidence to conditions of great variety. Develop- ments by manufacturers and practices of users related to maintenance should result in consistent achievement of designed performance.

Jan 1, 1974

By M Warren

The professional geologist or engineer on a mining operation has a particular view of their operation. This is based on the factors of the operation that have a direct impact on the daily work program of the professional, such as production rates and grades. The view that would be taken by a financier who is called upon to support the project may be somewhat different. The value of the operation to the financier is in its ability to generate surplus cash for its owners and thus repay the debts to the financiers, with as low risks profile as possible. A number of tools are used to test the sensitivity of the project to variations in the key cost/revenue drivers. The Financier may call on a team of technical specialists to assist with the assessment of the cash flow and risk profile and to monitor the development of the project. The ability to offset this risk, as all projects have some degree of risk, may be a key factor in determining the level of financial support to be offered.

Jan 1, 2002

By B Tadesse, L G. Dyer, K Ward

The Golden Mile ore deposit in Western Australia is one of the largest gold telluride deposits in the world. Approximately 20 per cent of the contained gold in the deposit is present as gold telluride minerals, the most prevalent being calaverite (AuTe2) and petzite (Ag3AuTe2). Telluride mineralogy in the Golden Mile orebody is fine grained and complex having formed due to hydrothermal deposition in the late paragenetic sequence. Nineteen tellurium bearing minerals have been identified including gold and silver as well as mercury, lead and nickel tellurides (Shackleton, Spry and Bateman, 2003). Extensive work has been completed on the flotation of gold, gold-silver alloys and gold ores however there is a lack of information detailing the difference between flotation of native gold and individual gold minerals (Dunne, 2016). Studies on the flotation behaviour of gold ores have focused primarily on the flotation of free gold and refractory sulfides (Teague, Van Deventer and Swaminathan, 1999).

Aug 24, 2022

By T E. Jeffries, M Zentilli, J STguel, C C. Wilkinson, B G. Rusk, V H. Vry

Laser ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS) analysis of fluid inclusions trapping mineralising solutions in major porphyry-copper deposits indicates that copper concentrations can reach 103 - 104 ppm in both dilute, CO2-bearing fluids and in high salinity brines. Non-Cl transport of Cu is implicated. Au has been determined at 0.2 - 0.4 ppm in the low salinity fluids and may be co-transported with Cu. In contrast, high concentrations of Fe, Mn, Zn and Pb are only attained in brines and correlate strongly with Cl-indicating chloride transport. Physical and/or temporal separation of these fluid types can therefore producemetal fractionation within porphyry systems. Evidence concerning the behaviour of Mo is less clear but brine transport appears to be favoured; phase separation is one mechanism that may account for the fractionation of Mo from Cu and the formation of quartz-molybdenite veins. An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation.

Jan 1, 2008

Geotechnical practice combines the site engineering geological model with engineering design and operations to control risk. The responsibility of the geotechnical professional is to present relevant engineering geological information to an engineer to effectively impact an outcome. Return is enhanced by understanding expected operating and capital cost due to ground conditions.   Risk is effectively communicated by a successful geotechnical practitioner. In a mining environment the need is to assess ground conditions accurately and quickly, and to effectively communicate expected ground response due to mining. A good engineering geological model includes a description of geotechnical engineering parameters to design assuming reasonable expected soil, rock and water conditions. Pit slopes are steepened, stope spans widened and waste foundations and land forms are constructed all under geotechnical control.   The responsibility of the geotechnical professional is to collect, assess and disseminate relative engineering geological information. The geotechnical professional is a person advising on ground related engineering, and generally operates within geology and engineering end members.   Return is better assessed on an understanding of ground cost. In operations the goal is to meet production at lower cost. In evaluation, regional and exploration geology, mine design and expected operational factors influence expected cost and project return. Return allows companies to meet shareholder expectations, attract equity to develop and add value to the community.   This paper presents a discussion with some examples to present an approach and design philosophy for geotechnical practice in the mining industry.

Jan 1, 2004

By P Hanna

In an effort to improve returns to shareholders, the Australian Mining Industry has consolidated considerably over the past decade or so. Technical services at mines have been re-structured, whilst those at corporate offices have been all but eliminated. A recent study of the role of the geologist in BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd (BMA), showed the adverse impact on the companyÆs performance due to a lack of geologists. With an education campaign, to demonstrate the contribution of geologists to the æbottom lineÆ and in increasing the options available to the company, the value of the geology role became better understood. The implications of the loss of invaluable corporate knowledge, when long serving geologists left the company, also became clear. Steps have since been taken to increase the numbers of company geologists, particularly on mine sites. In common with other sectors of the mining industry, the Australian coal industry is experiencing a critical shortage of experienced coal geologists, as companies have found in recent recruitment efforts. This is further evidence that the recommendations from the recent study by World Competitive Practices, commissioned by The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, æRising to the ChallengeÆ have not been adopted. People, and the mineral resource base, are the assets from which mining companies gain a sustainable competitive advantage. Geologists, as the nexus between the resource base and people, are in a unique position to enhance the profitability of their companies. To maximise their contribution to the industry, and ensure that they receive due recognition, geologists must adopt a more commercial approach in their work and take a front foot stance in promoting their value to management. Geology is a core competency for all mining companies. The tendency for companies to outsource this function, to the detriment of the company geologist role, is not sustainable in the longer term. TodayÆs geologists need to work closely with management, technical and human resource professionals, universities and schools to ensure their significant value is well understood, and that the industry can attract, train and retain new recruits through the implementation of graduate programs and company career paths.

Jan 1, 2003

By B Roberts

The Department of Industry and Resources (DoIR) is responsible for several sets of legislation, which, among other things, regulate the storage, handling and transport of dangerous goods as well as every aspect of the life cycle of explosives in order to prevent explosions, fires and spillages. The legislation with particular relevance to explosives includes: The Explosives and Dangerous Goods Act 1961; the act deals with the storage, manufacture, sale, import, authorisation and use of explosives. It is primarily framed for use of explosives and fireworks in the general community but also has relevance for storage on mine sites. The Dangerous Goods (Transport) Act 1998; this act regulates the transport of explosives on public roads, but not on mine sites. The Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 (MSI Act); this act and supporting regulations deal with the full spectrum of occupational health and safety in the mining industry. There is a substantial section in the regulations dealing with the use of explosives at a mine site.DoIR has identified the need for security upgrades of the Government Explosives Reserves, the need to tighten security measures at mine sites, the need for improved security checking for licensed shotfirers and the need to restrict the availability of explosives to authorised people who have had appropriate security checks. It is also clear that we need restrictions on the sale and use of ammonium nitrate (AN). A number of additional security measures are being proposed and all proposals are being refined by ongoing industry consultations. These will be adopted into new explosives regulations in association with the new Dangerous Goods Safety Act 2002 (DGS Act). Government finalised the act in June 2004. The act remains dormant until new explosives and dangerous goods regulations have been prepared. When the DGS Act and a suite of regulations are proclaimed as a package, sometime between December 2004 and April 2005, the old legislation consisting of the current two acts, will be automatically repealed. It is also proposed that all explosive regulation, including those under the MSI Act will be consolidated in one place under the DGS Act for user friendliness.

Jan 1, 2004

Three transient phenomena have been observed and experienced in the operation of large solvent extraction mixer-settlers. These relate to the ability of the settler to discharge streams with low entrainments arising from different phase separation æproblemsÆ. The operation of large-scale laboratory and commercial solvent extraction settlers has been shown by a number of workers to be a dynamic process, especially at the feed end. Circulating flow patterns are common in all three organic, aqueous and emulsion phases. The circulating patterns in deep dispersion bands in long settlers are believed to form roll fronts that can travel down the settler length within the bounds of the dispersion band. Various physical models are proposed to illustrate the formation and movement of roll fronts within the dispersion band. Another transient phenomenon has been observed in commercial settlers operating without any dispersion band. Entrainment of the continuous phase in the advancing dispersed phase is at high and erratic levels. This supports the conventional separation model, which recommends the presence of a significant depth of dispersion band to æfilterÆ the secondary haze from the bulk separated phases. The third transient is the position and shape of the dispersion band within the settler. Large commercial settlers have been shown to exhibit high variability in both these aspects of the dispersion band. The elimination of all three transient phenomena in commercial settlers has been shown to be effective with an in-settler media of coarse size and moderate specific surface area. The effect of the media is two-fold: it dissipates both the circulating flows and the forward velocity of any roll fronts, and creates a stable deep dispersion band at the feed end that serves to trap secondary haze from the primary coalescence process. It is effective in treating both types of transients involving non-existent or excessive dispersion band depths. The media serves to enhance coalescence by providing a static surface of intermediate surface tension on which droplets can collapse. The random nature of the media also provides multiple stream splitting and re-combination, that presents further drop to drop and drop to media impingement, which in turn promotes coalescence.

Jan 1, 2000

By Hefter G. T, Singh P

The use of sulphur dioxide (SO2) as an anode depolarizer in place of traditional oxygen evolution reduces the energy costs of copper electrowinning. This paper reports the effect of various metal ion impurities, which are usually present in th

Jan 1, 1998

Sixty years after its inception, after an alternation of periods of admiration and rejection by the industry, Sampling Theory can now be seen as going through its golden age. A brief history of its successive transformations and progresses achieved by its author, Pierre Gy, and his followers, reveals the theoretical as well as practical difficulties that had to be vanquished to reach this point. Its current level of acceptance and corresponding trends are discussed and illustrated, with an insight on its increasing real role in the industry and future prospects for its further development.

Jan 1, 2008

By Biswas AK, Hayes P

During the reduction of iron oxide pellets in the blast furnace it has been found that catastrophic swelling (up to 300% volume increase) can occur. Although the burden preparation conditions can be designed to avoid this phenomenon the exact reason and mechanism of the swelling has yet to be clearly identified. Swelling of the burden is undesirable since it reduces the interparticulate voidage in the blast furnace thus reducing gas flow through the stack resulting in low production rates of iron. The present study differs significantly from previous experiments in that reduction is carried out on single crystals of wustite thus the problems of control of gas composition and specimen preparation are minimised. The microstructures formed on reduction have been examined by optical and scanning microscopy. Pure wustite and wustite doped with various levels of CaO have been examined after reduction in controlled CO-CO 2 gas mixtures at 968¦C. The catastrophic swelling on reduction coincides with the formation of an unusually open iron structure in which the iron appears as whiskers or needles as previously reported. The spacing and thickness of the needles are shown to vary with impurity content and gas composition. Metallographic examination has shown in addition, however, that the whiskers do not necessarily constitute the only product form of the iron produced and in CaO containing wustites with less than - 2% CaO there is a transition from needle growth to porous growth of iron. Thus the % swelling of the oxide particles is dependent on the initial size of the oxide grains. Samples of FeO - 10% CaO exhibited a previously unreported product inorphology associated with the nucleation of 2CaO.Fe203.

Jan 1, 1980