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By W. M. Corse

I bring this investigation to your attention to emphasize the needless waste attendent upon the use of tin plate with an unnecessarily heavy tin coating. With our present knowledge, we are unable commercially to produce coatings as light as the lower weights used in this test. If, however, future research should develop means to this end, the resultant product would meet all practical requirements, and a very considerable saving in pig tin would result. DISCUSSION G. H. Clamer.-—The National Canners' Association is studying the action of fruit juices, etc., on solders. Of course these tests will take quite a long time, and we hope by that time the war will be over and there will be no need for conserving tin for war purposes. Germany for a great many years has prohibited the use of more than 37 per cent. of lead in alloys used in contact with food products. The eutectic composition is 37 per cent. of lead and 63 per cent. of tin; alloys containing more than that percentage of lead have some free lead. J. W. Richards,' South Bethlehem, Pa.—A great deal of conservation can result from the packing of dry foods in cartons and in fiber packages instead of using sheet tin. Many of the boxes used for packing things other than food are frequently made of sheet tin because it prints and lithographs well; these could be made of sheet iron coated with copper or some other substitute metal which prints equally well. The Aluminum Bronze Industry W. M. CORSE,† Mansfield, Ohio.—The conservation of tin, in view of the shipping situation, is one of great importance. Several methods of conservation can be employed: 1. Reduction of the amount of tin in an alloy or compound. 2. Substitution of an entirely different metal or compound for tin. 3. A combination of the first and second methods. The second method is the one that I wish to discuss. Metallic aluminum, has been known for a long time, and its use in copper alloys was discovered about 1855 by Lord Percy. The high cost of production of metallic aluminum retarded its commercial development, and it was not until the discovery of the electrochemical processes for its production that it came to be known as a common metal. I have been particularly interested, for the past few years, in working with the alloy known as aluminum bronze, which is usually composed of approximately 90 parts of copper and 10 parts of aluminum, by weight.

Jan 1, 1919

By Paul Hatmaker

Lime was a highly useful commodity thousands of years before the simple chemistry of its manufacturing process was known. The employment of lime for agriculture, building, and even certain essentially chemical purposes is so old that its origin is among the unrecorded details of man's first ventures into the manufacture and use of prepared substances. Lime is a most versatile material and consequently has come to be widely utilized in modern civilization. Immediately before the depression of the early 1930's the annual production of lime in the United States was more than 4 million tons, valued at 33 to 42 million dollars. This output was sold to many industries, so many that mere enumeration becomes tedious. In addition to agricultural and building lime the sales statistics compiled annually by the Bureau of Mines include lime sold to the steel and other metallurgical industries as refractory and fluxing material, as well as that used by paper mills, glass works, tanneries, and water-treatment plants. These major uses normally consume about 86 percent of the domestic sales. The remaining 14 percent includes lime sold for use in the manufacture of alcohol, alkalies, bleaches, calcium acetate, calcium carbide, coke gas and byproducts, glue, insecticides, oils and fats, paints, and rubber, in the refining of salt, in the manufacture of sand-lime and slag brick, in the disposal of sewage and garbage, in the manufacture of silica brick, in the refining of sugar, in the textile industries, and in wood distillation. Many other uses are also known for which complete sales data are not available.

Jan 1, 1934

By G. L. Oldright

The first Report of Investigations of the present series (No. 4562) was on the fundamental properties of lead compounds, and the manner in which they set limits to the richness of lead products treated in the usual sintering-blast furnace units. These properties of the compounds were emphasized, as' it was desired, also, to learn the limitations of smelting the same compounds in present ore hearth practice; the hearth has a competitor in these "usual" units, even with the rich lead feeds best adapted for the hearths. Operating conditions that were followed in older metallurgical processes, when rich products, were treated, were outlined. The second report of the series (R. I. 4563) was on the development of the ore hearths of the types now used in the Tri-State from the viewpoint of the features, functions, and dimensions of the earlier hearths that had been most changed. Experimental data, for both well and poorly desulfurized charges being considered, were given to show the relative changes in the sizes and compositions of the charges after they were added to the ore (Scotch) hearths. A general picture was given of the charge column and of the conditions prevailing there when the operation was satisfactory. In this third paper, the composition of the gases prevailing in the charge column at various elevations will be correlated with what has been learned of the nature of the charge column in order to trace the steps of operation by which lead sulfide is converted into metallic lead. The metallurgical factors that govern operation and the lines along which improvements may be made will be noted.

Jan 1, 1949

By J. T. Hollow

The Fort Knox Mine is located in Alaska?s interior, where the average ambient air temperatures range from -24°C (-11°F) in January to 16°C (61°F) in July. The mill processes a free-milling gold ore utilizing both a gravity recovery circuit and conventional cyanide leach/carbon-in-pulp circuits. Mathematical models have been developed to accurately predict the impact of leach circuit slurry temperature on gold leaching, carbon adsorption and cyanide destruction kinetics. Additionally, an energy-balance approach has been used to model the seasonal variations in slurry temperatures throughout the Fort Knox mill. The energy-balance model, combined with the kinetics models previously developed to predict plant performance, was used to justify a tailing thickener installation at the Fort Knox Mine. This paper describes the development of the energy-balance model and its prediction of plant performance assuming a tailings wash thickener to reduce heat loss from the mill. Also presented is an analysis of the post-project plant performance that validates the model and shows that the mine produced an additional 596 kg (19,155 oz) of gold while reducing mill reagent costs by $6,302,000 during the first 38 months of operation.

Jan 1, 2007

By J. D. Bliss, G. J. Orris, W. O. Menzie

"Analysis of gold placer data from gold placers throughout the world suggests that gold grades and volumes cannot be used to distinguish between most types of gold placers. Only the alluvial plain and fan placers are significantly different among the types of gold placers considered. Gold grades and volumes change when working gold placers go from small-volume methods to large-volume methods. The small-volume methods are either of the surface or subsurface (drift mining) type. The odds that a gold placer will be dominantly worked using small volume methods at the surface are about 5:3. Once small volume mining has occurred, the odds against subsequent large-volume mining are about 4:1. If a placer deposit is suitable for large-volume mining, and the amount of gold produced from small-volume mining was reported, an estimate of the remaining gold (log10kg) can be made using the following equation:The relationship shown by this equation suggests that very large gold placers have over half their total gold content in the rich gravels appropriate for small-volume mining. These relationships in conjunction with other data and computer simulation can be used to estimate placer gold resources for an area targeted for mineral resource assessment. IntroductionGold placers have been an important source of gold throughout man's history and may have been one of the first sources-dating back to around 6000 B.C. (Gregory, 1980). From the primitive basket to the modern floating dredge, a variety of methods have been used to work gold placers. Placers are found in a wide spectrum of geologic and climatic settings. They have been classified by using a mixed set of criteria including age (Recent, Tertiary), climate (desert), fluvial position (modern channel, bench, alluvial fan), environment of deposition (eluvial, alluvial, residual, beach), type of transport (stream, wind, glacier), and whether the placer is buried or at the surface (Boyle, 1979; Wells, 1969). Several mining methods have usually been used to extract gold from anyone placer."

Jan 1, 1987

By J. C. McKinnell

The appraisal of an oil lease may often be mad,? through production decline analysis, which requires description of the functional relationship between the oil production rate and either cumulative production or time. Heretofore, attempts to define the function appropriate to a given set of production data have depended to some extent on subjective procedures. The purpose here is to introduce an objective solution, obtained by combining the principle of least squares with the theory of equations. MATHEMATICAL ANALYSIS The fundamental differential equation appropriate to a general class of decline curves may be written. Solution of Eq. 1 for general boundary conditions may be written in terms of either the cumulative oil production or time: These equations constitute the mathematical expression of the so-called hyperbolic decline. Their complete description for a given set of production data requires the numerical evaluation of the three parameters1.', n, D, and (go),. For the special case of n = 0, Eq. 2 becomes q. = (q.), - DiN with the corresponding expression in terms of time being q. = (qa),e...........(5) Similarly, for the special case of n = 1, Eq. 3 becomes with the corresponding expression in terms of cumula- tive oil production being q. = (q.),e " '.......(7) Eqs. 4 and 5 constitute the mathematical description of the so-called exponential decline; Eqs. 6 and 7 are the mathematical description of the harmonic decline.',' Returning to the hyperbolic expressions, Eqs. 2 and 3 may also be written, q: = sNp + b........ (8) and where a = 1 - n; s = (n— 1)D,(q0);"; b = (go):-"; a'=-n;s/= nD,(qo);"; and b' = (go);-. Note that both Eqs. 8 and 9 are linear in either time or cumulative production with respect to an exponential function of the production rate. In other words, a straight line relationship results for both variables when associated with the appropriate power of q,. This fact is of prime importance in the application of statistical analysis. . STATISTICAL ANALYSIS For a given oil lease, the time, production rate and cumulative production are recorded records. To establish predictive formulas from Eqs. 2 and 3, it remains to determine numerical values for the three parameters [n, D, and (q,) .] through an investigation of the past history. Upon interpreting a, s and b as parameters, Eq. 8 may be expressed for every time interval of interest, i, over the past history as follows. (q,): = s(Np), + b........(10) In general, Eq. 10 will not be satisfied exactly, because of the assumptions in the expression of Eq. 1, and the errors and anomalies universally associated with production data. It will instead define the residual, s(Np), + b- CO=d......(11) Squaring both sides and summing over all the data points, m, under consideration yields

By Ana Maria Pérez Ceballos

Os aços inoxidáveis duplex e superduplex são caracterizados por uma estrutura bifásica contendo ilhas de austenita precipitadas numa matriz de ferrita. Estes aços possuem boas propriedades mecânicas e boa resistência à corrosão. No entanto, estes aços podem apresentar fragilização por hidrogênio. No desenvolvimento deste trabalho se estudou a difusão e fragilização por hidrogênio de um aço inoxidável superduplex SAF 2507 nos estados como recebido e tratado térmicamente. Para avaliar a influência da microestrutura sobre a difusão do hidrogênio foram realizados ensaios de permeação electroquímica de hidrogênio. Observou-se que o coeficiente de difusão aparente aumenta em função da temperatura de recozimento. A influência de hidrogênio na resistência à fratura do material recozido a 1300°C foi estudada a partir de ensaios de tenacidade à fratura (CTOD). Determinou-se que a resistência à fratura do material diminui consideravelmente quando o mesmo é submetido a uma carga de hidrogênio. A presença de hidrogênio também modificou o mecanismo de fratura do material, observou-se uma fratura completamente dúctil no material que foi testado em ausência de hidrogênio e uma fratura frágil, caracterizada por clivagem, foi observada no material hidrogenado. Determinou-se que a fase austenítica pode ser fragilizada sob certas condições de carga de hidrogênio.

Aug 17, 2017

Members Dues Resignations, Suspensions and Expulsions Institute Meetings Board of Director?s Meetings Directors and Officers Duties of Officers Committees Nomination and Election of Officers Publications Divisions, Local Sections, Affiliated Societies Amendments [As REVISED FEBRUARY 21, 19281 ARTICLE I MEMBERS-QUALIFICATIONS AND ELECTION , SEC. 1. The membership of the Institute shall comprise six classes, namely: 1. Members; 2. Honorary Members; 3. Senior Members; 4. Associates; 5. Junior Associates; 6. Rocky Mountain Members. All shall be equally entitled to the privileges of membership, excepting that Junior Associates, and all Members and Associates whose residence shall be outside of the United States of America, Mexico and Canada shall not be entitled to vote. SEC. 2. Members: A person to be eligible for election or transfer into the class of Member must be at least 27 years of age and must have had at least six years' employment in the practice of engineering, mining, geology, metallurgy, or chemistry, during at least three years of which he must have held positions of responsibility in one or more of these fields. This shall not apply to Rocky Mountain members.

Jan 1, 1928

By Paul W. Mayne

Axial pile performance can be rationally evaluated within an elastic continuum framework using field results from seismic piezocone tests (SCPTu). Adopting a versatile Randolph-type elastic pile model, the approach can be applied to either traditional top down loading using an anchored reaction beam or the newer Osterberg cell that simultaneously pushes the base and shaft in opposite directions. The axial load distribution within the shaft is also evaluated. For site-specific data at a given site, the SCPTu is an optimal means for collection of subsurface information because it combines penetrometer readings and downhole geophysics in one sounding. The results obtained are at opposite ends of the stress-strain-strength curves, specifically the peak strength for capacity interpretations and the small-strain stiffness (Emax) for evaluating the initial deformations. Axial pile capacity can be analyzed using both direct and indirect CPT methods. As such, the approach allows for a complete representation of the axial load-displacement-capacity curve for pile response. Case studies are presented for deep foundations situated in stiff clays at two national geotechnical test sites located in Houston and College Station, Texas, using top down loading, as well as a third case study of a drilled shaft in clay till loaded by O-cell in Alberta.

Jan 1, 2009

New Zealand depends on foreign investment for economic development. This also applies to the development of New Zealand's mineral resources. For this foreign investment to happen there must be some incentives to attract the investment. While prospectivity is the dominant parameter considered by investors it is not a variable that can be changed, only the perception of New Zealand's prospectivity. Other parameters likely to be considered are sovereign risk, red tape, green tape, land access, civil unrest, land claims, social risk, labour relations, infrastructure and natural disasters. Regulators and political will can vary some of these parameters. Where New Zealand fits internationally can be measured by investors' perceptions of these parameters. Following on from these perceptions New Zealand can be seen to have advantages in some areas and be disadvantaged in others. How to deal with the disadvantages to give investors confidence is not easy in the New Zealand environment where the development of mineral resources plays a small part in an economy dominated by agriculture. Added to this is the current global state of the minerals industry which offers even more of a challenge to attract foreign investment to develop New Zealand's mineral resources.

Jan 1, 2000

By A. C. Fieldner, SIDNEY GOTTLIEB

This report summarizes the research and technologic work of the Bureau of Mines on coal and coal products from July 1, 1947, to July 1, 1948. It is the thirteenth of a series presenting resumes based largely upon publications issued during the year . In some instances , research and testing results , not otherwise available in published form , are presented . The individual publications given as footnote references herein will provide further detail to the interested reader . The period covered by this report was marked by an ever -mounting concern for the adequacy of the Nation's fuel resources and for fuel shortages arising from an increasing demand for fuels at home and abroad . Several reports appeared which delineated the place of synthetic liquid fuels in the future fuel technology and economy of the Nation , emphasized the fact that eventually the principal raw material for the production of such fuels will bet,5,6 coal, and described the progress made by the Bureau of Mines in developing processes for the production of synthetic liquid fuels . heard testimony along similar lines . Increased awareness of the fuels problems confronting the Nation led to an authorization by the 80th Congress for the erection of an anthracite research laboratory at Schuylkill Haven , Pa . , to house expanded Bureau of Mines research on anthracite . Design of the structure was well under way by the end of the fiscal year . ( See fig . 1. ) Looking forward to expansion of Bureau research on lignite , the 80th Congress heard testimony on the problems and programs of lignite research10, 11 as a prelude to authorizing the construction of a lignite research laboratory in North Dakota .

Aug 1, 1949

By F Shi, W Huang, D Seaman, K Runge

High Voltage Pulse (HVP) technology is a novel process that could potentially be the step-change needed in ore processability in the mining industry. The propensity of high voltage pulses towards mineral-enriched ore particles during treatment makes this technology selective and has the potential to enable ore pre-concentration by size separation. In this study, the potential for pre-concentration of a low grade copper-gold ore sample subjected to HVP pretreatment is investigated and compared to that achievable after mechanical breakage in JKMRC’s rotary breakage tester (JKRBT). The data show that a better pre-concentration result can be achieved after HVP processing than conventional breakage. The gold pre-concentration potential is much better than that observed for copper. 4D HVP pre-concentration characteristic curves were produced to assess the metallurgical performance possible as a function of energy input. The case study shows that when targeting a nominal metal recovery of 90 per cent for gold, the HVP pre-concentration technique can split the low grade ore (0.9 ppm gold and 0.28 per cent copper in the feed size 26.5-37.5 mm) into two components – a low grade oversize material (0.3 ppm gold and 0.15 per cent copper) and a high grade undersize material (1.0 ppm gold and 0.3 per cent copper). The mass split to the low grade is 23 per cent. Under this mass split scenario, gold recovery to screen undersize is 90 per cent and copper recovery is 85 per cent. The HVP treatment of this feed size requires a specific energy (spark) of 2.8 kWh/t.There is further research that would be required before industrial uptake of the HVP pre-concentration technology would be possible. This paper also outlines the research challenges that need to be overcome.CITATION:Huang, W, Shi, F, Antonio, C, Runge, K and Seaman, D, 2018. High-voltage pulse pre-concentration study using a low-grade copper-gold ore, in Proceedings 14th AusIMM Mill Operators' Conference 2018, pp 327–338 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 29, 2018

By P Voulgaris

The Osborne Mine commenced production from an open pit in December 1994 with the first ore being hauled from underground one year later. Currently all ore is hauled up a decline by trucks until the shaft system is commissioned in early-1998. The mine is hosted within a multiply deformed and complex sequence of metamorphic, igneous and metasomatic rocks of mid Proterozoic age that are concealed beneath 20-40 metres of Mesozoic sedimentary cover. Epigenetic and largely hypogene copper - gold mineralisation occurs in a close spatial relationship with quartz - magnetite ironstones and is an important example of a significant mineralisation style in the Mt Isa inlier. Life of mine concentrator production, to year end 1997, totals 3.2 Mt of ore at 3.40 per cent Cu and 1.13 g/t Au. Total metal produced was 97 000 tonnes of copper and 2900 Kg of gold (95 600 oz) from some 348 000 tonnes of dry concentrates averaging 28.01 per cent Cu and 6.99 g/t Au. At the start of 1998 OsborneÆs total measured and indicated resource was stated at 11.38 Mt at 3.24 per cent Cu and 1.21 g/t Au with an ore reserve of 11.42 Mt at 2.90 per cent Cu and 1.09 g/t Au. Exploration efforts in and around the mine have been increased since 1996 and have resulted in an early success, with a 28 per cent increase in ore reserves since mine start-up, and the establishment of a 1.5 Mt inferred resource open to depth. During 1997 the performance of the concentrator has exceeded expectations with throughput having been increased to 1.45 Mt per annum. The Mining Cycle at Osborne has proceeded from discovery through feasibility and is currently seen to be in the latter part of the development stage and/or the early part of an expansion stage. This paper will describe the role of geology and exploration within these stages and will highlight how a number of key interpretations and decisions based on geology have both favourably and unfavourably affected the project.

Jan 1, 1998

By J. E. Metcalfe

Proceedings of the Fourth Empire Mining and Metallurgical Congress, Great Britain 1949. Part II published at the Offices of the Congress in London, England, 1139 pp. The price of these proceedings is £ 2. The parts may be purchased separately at a cost of £ 1 each.-Part I of this book covers a report of the organizing committee, the inaugural meeting and presidential address, banquet at Guildhall, welcome by Sir Richard Livingstone at Oxford. and final session. Technical session and papers are also covered in Part I. Part II covers such topics as coal, present-day trends in mineral dressing and metallurgy. Mining Engineer's Survey Manual. By J. E. Metcalfe. Published for "Mine & Quarry Engineering" by Electrical Press, London, 1951. 341 pp., illus., charts, diagrs., tables, 8 ¾ x 5 1/ in., cloth, 30s., available from Percival Marshall & Co., Ltd., London, and British Book Centre, 122 East 55th St., New York 22, N. Y. Beginning with a brief treatment of surveying fundamentals and a discussion of the correlation of surface and underground surveys, this practical manual continues with descriptions of surveying practice both above and below ground including stopes, inclined shafts; etc. Space is devoted to sampling and valuation, geological considerations, and descriptions of modern surveying instruments. The organization of survey operations is covered in the last chapter.

Jan 1, 1952

By Hengwei Yan, Zhanwei Liu, Wenhui Ma, Ping Xiong

The sulfur in high-sulfur bauxite not only pollutes the environment but also harms alumina production. This study investigated the removal of sulfur from high-sulfur bauxite by adding Zn or ZnO during the Bayer process. The results showed that the different valence sulfur (S2−, S2O3 2−, SO3 2−, and SO4 2−) in sodium aluminate solution can be effectively removed by adding Zn during the digestion process. Adding ZnO removes the S2− in liquor, but the other sulfur compounds (S2O3 2−, SO3 2−, and SO4 2−) are not affected. The mechanism of sulfur removal has been elucidated, where the S2O3 2−, SO3 2−, and SO4 2− are first reduced to S2−, and after adding Zn, the S2− enters into red mud in the form of ZnS. The ZnO then reacts with S2− to generate the ZnS that enters into red mud. Thus, this is a new and effective method of sulfur removal by adding Zn during the digestion process. The results shed light on the removal of sulfur from high-sulfur bauxite during alumina production.

Jun 24, 2020

By Richards J. W.

J.W. RICHARDS, South Bethlehem, Pa. (communication to the Secretary?).-Mr. Howland's paper, data and conclusions have interested me intensely, and have led me to study carefully the record-of his 26 furnaces therein given. Mr. Howland is undoubtedly right in his conclusion that when expressing the amount of carbon burned at the tuyères in percentage of the total

Jan 1, 1917

By R. Shuttleworth, R. Smith

A Knudsen effusion tnethod I~as been used lo measure the vapor pressure of pure iron in the temperature range 1000° to 1500°C. Neutron-irradiated , natural iron was used and the Mn'~proclzdced by the (n, p) reaction removed by evaporation at high temperature. The results can be represented by the equation: where pM - 1.088 x 107 atm and T, = 20,890°K. A value of 100.2 kcal per g- atom was obtained for AH;. THE vapor pressure of pure iron in the temperature range 1000" to 1500°C has been measured. Radioactive iron and a Knudsen cell technique were used and the Mn' produced by an (n, p) reaction removed by evaporation at high temperature. From the variation of vapor pressure with temperature values of the enthalpy and entropy of solid iron have been found. Previous workers2 used a Lang-muir method and measurements were made over a smaller temperature range than that in this work. EXPERIMENTAL The apparatus used was similar to that of Pyle and Shuttleworth, and McLellan and Shuttle worth. However, because of the higher temperatures the Knudsen cell was machined from tungsten bar and the flanged furnace tube was beryllia. Heating was by passing a high current (70 amp at 7 v for 1500°K) through a strip of tantalum foil laid across the top of the cell and through a turn of molybdenum wire around the furnace tube. This method of heating ensured that the top of the cell was slightly hotter than the base and prevented condensation and re-evaporation from the orifice. The temperature was measured by means of a pt/Pt 13 pct Rh thermocouple spot-welded to the base of the crucible. To ensure accurate temperature measurement the iron was in the form of a thin disc (0.75 cm diam by 0.075 cm) which lay on the base of the cell. The high-purity iron was irradiated in the Harwell pile for a week at a neutron flux of 1.2 X 10" neutrons per sq cm per sec. The isotopes fe'~ and Fe" are produced by (n! y) reactions but only Fe", half-life 45.1 days, is a emitter; Mn which is also a y emitter, half-life 300 days, is produced simultaneously by an (n,p) reaction.' Immediately after irradiation of natural iron the ratio of ~e" to Mn y activity was 100:l. However, manganese is very much more volatile than iron and almost all the y activity of the condensate is due to Mn'~. Thus it was essential to eliminate all the manganeses before any measurement of the vapor pressure of iron was made and this was done by preliminary heating for 20 hr at 1400°C. For each determination the iron was dissolved from the target with acid and the y activity compared to a known weight of iron. By means of a y-ray spectrometer the y-activity measurements were made at the 1.09-mev peak of the 17e5' spectrum where the background was of the order of 3 cpm. Despite the low specific activity of ~e" a mass of 10- " g of iron could be determined corresponding to a vapor pressure of about l0-'' atm. RESULTS The vapor pressures were calculated from the equation: Where m is the mass of iron effusing in a time t through an orifice of area a2, r is the radius of the target, Z is the distance from the orifice to the

Jan 1, 1965

By Alexandre Passos, Giorgio De Tomi, Tatiane Marin, Dennis Cremonese, Jacopo Seccatore

"In the mining industry, rock excavation is the first phase of the comminution process. Downstreamoperations such as secondary breaking, crushing and milling terminate the process, reducing the size of the grains down to the desired particle distribution. In such a cascade process, every process upstream heavily influences all the downstream operations. When rock excavation is carried out by drilling and blasting, a very economic source of energy (the explosive) is used at the utmost upstream; a more expensive source of energy (electricity) is employed for all the downstream phases. This means that managing the correct employ of the explosive energy is a form of managing the whole process, controlling the operational costs and therefore the profitability of the whole business. We simulated this cascade behavior, using as a starting point the experimental data obtained from small-scale block blasting, evaluating the influence of blasting on the grindability of the blasted material. This study showed the reduction in visible (particle size) and invisible fracturing (micro-cracking, resulting in a reduction of the Work Index WI). The particle size distribution for full-scale blasts was estimated by means of algorithm simulation, then we simulated the behavior of the comminution plant fed with the material possessing the characteristics previously estimated. All the costs (drilling, blasting, electric energy for the engines of the crushers and mill) were calculated and charted. The results show a clear curve that allows to estimate the minimum operating expenditure (OPEX) for the whole mine+plant framework. Being the WI dependent on the output on the blast, one can manage the performance and the expenditure of the whole comminution process by adjusting drilling and blasting parameters For any given mine, it is possible to perform a simulation and encounter the minimum OPEX scenario for the comminution process and managerial choices can be oriented accordingly. In a cascade productive chain as mining is, responsible strategic choices must be taken looking at the entire production framework. Compartmentalized managerial staff and budgets for separated production areas are not acceptable anymore. Somehow higher costs upstream can lead to effective decrease in costs and increase in efficiency and productivity of the processes downstream."

Jan 1, 2016

By H. William Zeller

The U.S. Bureau of Mines evaluated the effects of two iron-based fuel additives on diesel particulate matter (DPM) emissions. The 5.6-L, six-cylinder test engine is typical of engines used in underground mines. One additive, ferrous picrate, did not measurably affect exhaust emissions. This report is mainly about a ferrocene-based additive that reduced DPM between 4 and 45 pet., depending on engine operating conditions. The report concludes that the DPM reductions were caused by the catalytic oxidation properties of a ferric oxide coating that developed inside the engine's combustion chamber. The ferric oxide coating also decreased gas-phase hydrocarbons and O2, but it increased CO2 and NOx, The increase in NOx, of about 12 pet, is considered the only adverse effect of the ferrocene-based fuel additive. The results suggest that the effectiveness of ferrocene was partially offset by increased sulfates because of the high-sulfur fuel used. Recommendations for continuing fuel additive research are presented.

Jan 1, 2010

By D. Tepavac, S. Simmonds

"The high virgin horizontal in situ stress field in the Sydney Basin and its impact on civil engineering projects is a well-known and accepted phenomenon found in significant literature (e.g., Pells, 2013). The prevailing high-stress effects depend on many factors — rock quality, tunnel orientation, proximity of geological features to tunnel crown, size and shape of opening, depth of excavation and stress magnitude. The behavior of the rock mass under high in situ stress conditions can cause stress fracturing and consequent dilation of the tunnel periphery, resulting in rock spalling at the tunnel crown/ invert or raveling of rock blocks on the tunnel sidewall. This type of failure is of a brittle nature and may create construction and safety risks during tunnel excavation, if it occurs behind the excavation face where ground support has already been installed. Therefore, the associated risks need to be managed during construction. This paper presents the design strategy adopted to mitigate these adverse tunneling conditions for the WestConnex Project to-date. Overview of the WestConnex M4 East and new M5 tunnel projectsWestConnex is one of the New South Wales government’s key infrastructure projects. This 33 km (20.5 mile) project aims to ease congestion and connect communities and is the largest integrated transport and urban revitalization project in Australia. It was a key recommendation of the State Infrastructure Strategy released in October 2012. It brings together a number of important road projects, which, together, form a vital link in Sydney’s Orbital Network. These road projects include a widening of the M4 east of Parramatta, a duplication of the M5 East, and new sections of motorway to provide a connection between these two key corridors. The WestConnex project includes a number of stages: Stage 1a: M4 Widening; Stage 1b: M4 East; Stage 2: New M5; and Stage 3: M4–M5 Link. The tunnel design referenced in this paper relates to Stage 1b and Stage 2 of the WestConnex Project (Fig. 1)."

Dec 1, 2018