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By Perry Sisk

In order to protect nearby structures during a blasting project, a peak particle velocity limit is often stipulated by a government agency or the owner of a particular structure. At the start of a blasting project, a preliminary estimate for the minimum scaled distance is often determined using a vibration prediction equation before any site-specific data have been obtained. Reasonably conservative assumptions are typically made for the unknown input variables in the vibration prediction equation until site-specific blasting data have been obtained and evaluated. Although this approach is prudent, it provides no assurance that the peak particle velocity values generated during the initial phase of the project will be below the specified limit.

Jan 1, 2013

By D J. McLane, J T. Rathbun, B T. Lusk

The dynamics of explosive detonations are understood, however recreating a real-world, full scale scenario is costly. The use of a shock-tunnel allows testing to be done on a smaller scale, with the simulated effect of a large explosion. Analyzing explosive waveforms using this method can greatly reduce cost in testing blast resistant products, such as anti-terrorism devices, mine safety products, and military equipment. The purpose of this paper is to better the understanding of how the waveform characteristics resulting from an explosive detonated within a shock-tunnel differ from those in an open-air arena test. The variables of comparison between an open-air arena test and those conducted within a shock tunnel are peak pressure, impulse, shock wave velocity, and cross sectional shape of the shock front. Understanding how these variables differ, tests utilizing a shock tunnel can be conducted with a higher degree of accuracy and repeatability.

Jan 1, 2013

By Mike Muchard

STATNAMIC load testing augmented with embedded instrumentation has been successfully used to obtain structural and geotechnical design information on large diameter spun cast concrete cylinder piles on many large marine construction projects. The paper focuses on one particularly interesting large marine project involving a new bridge to St. George Island, Florida where instrumentation and STATNAMIC load testing was used in conjunction with static load testing on high capacity piles. The information presented includes embedded instrumentation measurements taken during pile fabrication (post-tensioning), during pile driving, during static load testing, and STATNAMIC load testing. As much of this data is the first of its kind on concrete cylinder piles, it is exciting to present the foundation industry with this additional insight as to the behavior of this pile type and the accuracy of the methods used to test them.

Jan 1, 2013

By O. Babak, J. G. Manchuk

ABSTRACT A significant factor in evaluating bitumen recovery from an oil sands mine is the particle size distribution (PSD). Increased understanding of mined ore quality and improvement in predictions of recovery can be achieved through PSD modeling. This paper addresses PSD modeling using geostatistics. PSDs may be described using many discrete particle sizes, making this a challenge. The approach parameterizes PSDs with a few statistics. A lookup table is used to reconstruct the PSDs based on models of the statistics. The workflow is applied to Total E&P Canada’s Joslyn Lease and yields good results that reproduce input statistics without introducing artifacts.

Jan 1, 2013

By P. J. Petit

Changing mining conditions, legislative issues, rising costs, and the constrained supply of skills and electricity in South Africa, have been some of the criteria forcing mine operators and engineers to review the traditional use of compressed air to power underground hand-held drilling operations in narrow-stope, hard-rock mines. In answering the question, 'What is the best way to power this mine?', they have resorted to trade-off studies with results of limited usefulness, because they are site-specific, and use only a few comparative parameters, based on a small data set. This paper aims to provide definitive, objective, and quantitative decision-making approaches to evaluating alternative energy-delivery systems for stoping in narrow-reef hard rock mines, based on primary and relevant criteria. These include quantifiable criteria such as capital expenditure, operating costs, resulting financial returns, energy and water usage, production performance, life-of-mine, etc. Other important criteria with qualitative aspects are integrated. These are safety, health, and environmental concerns, legislative requirements, business risk, technology change, etc. The paper begins with a review of decision-making processes available, and proposes the use of the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method as a multiple-criteria decision-making tool and the decision tree based on milestone-driven uncertainties, to validate the selection of the energy delivery system. The results of a multiple-criteria questionnaire completed by a variety of industry experts and professionals, such as production and operation managers, consultants, suppliers, and techno-financial analysts, are discussed. The evaluation indicates the potential for hydropower to be the best solution for narrow-reef hard rock mines, based on current information, mine design layout and production.

Jan 1, 2013

By R. Boom, B. Kraaijveld, H. Kuntzel, Y. Meteleva-Fischer

"Alloying refining with rare earth elements followed by acid leaching was examined for the potential of upgrading of metallurgical grade silicon. Microstructure study of silicon alloyed with small additions of rare earths showed behavior relatively similar to the influence of calcium addition. After alloying with neodymium the phosphorus content was detected in various intermetallic silicides containing neodymium and iron. The content of lanthanum and neodymium in refined silicon was by several times lower than that of aluminium and calcium. Alloying with lanthanum and neodymium at smaller additions than calcium reduced the phosphorus content down to the same level. The efficiency of lanthanum and neodymium in removal of boron and phosphorus at the 1-2 wt% of their additions and their low solubility in silicon make the alloying with these metals followed by acid leaching an attractive option for the refining route of metallurgical grade silicon up to solar grade.IntroductionA striving for a cheap ""green"" energy directs the research interests in silicon solar cells towards new efficient refining routes for metallurgical grade silicon (MG-Si, -98% purity). The silicon price determines up to high extent the solar module's price, so that cheap and efficient metallurgical process is awaited. The research challenge is to fulfil the purity requirements of solar grade silicon (SoG-Si, 6N) by competing with the energy-consuming and environmentally unfriendly Siemens process. Most difficult impurities to remove are boron and phosphorus, so technologies dedicated to their efficient removal attract an attention of industry and academia.Alloying refining (also known as solvent refining) is one of the most promising refining options, which is based on a principle of solid-liquid extraction using limited solubility of impurity elements in solid silicon [ 1]. Various elements were proposed for alloying refining: aluminium [2], calcium [3], tin [4], iron [5], copper [6] etc. The attractiveness of the alloying refining is in decreasing a melting point of the metal mixture and an affinity of the alloying element to the most harmful impurities, especially to boron and phosphorus. However, the difficulties are still faced due to self-solubility of the alloying elements, their low affinity to boron and/or phosphorus, silicon losses and necessity of removal of the silicide impurity phases in an additional step, using acid leaching [7], fractional melting [ 8] etc."

Jan 1, 2013

By D. Wolfe, R. Cleminson

"The Aurora North mine has been operating for more than ten years, and is the source of over half of Syncrude’s bitumen production. The slurry systems at Aurora experience high rates of wear, and mission lengths on current slurry pumps are nominally 1500-2000 hours. Recent work has enabled a better understanding of the significant adverse effect of large particle impingement damage to impeller vane leading edges - which is the known life determining issue for Aurora hydrotransport pumps. A new pump design has been developed with a larger diameter impeller and increased vane lengths, and is expected to triple Aurora’s mission length for hydrotransport pumps.INTRODUCTIONSlurry Pumps are Critical Equipment at SyncrudeSlurry pumps are a critical component in Syncrude’s operations. In a typical Aurora application, each pump stage helps move over 8000 dry tonnes per hour of oil sand, plus an equal volume of process water that has been added to create the slurry. The average impeller life in oil sand hydrotransport service at Aurora has been nominally 1500-2000 hours, or 12-16 million tonnes of oil sand pumped. Generally, the slurry pump application at Aurora has proven very difficult to improve due to the unique combination of high sand abrasivity, 125 mm (5”) large particle top size (lumps), and high flow rate relative to basic pump size; a factor that results in higher than optimal impeller vane speeds for the service conditions.PROJECT BASISSlurry Pumps are the Reliability Bottleneck at AuroraSlurry pumps are currently the shortest-lived components that determine the overall system run length at Aurora, in Hydrotransport, Extraction and Tailings. Vibrating screens and piping had been previous bottlenecks, but their reliability has been improved through upgrades in equipment design and wear materials. Both vibrating screens and piping can now achieve 4000 hour mission lengths."

Jan 1, 2013

By Filippo Leoni, Wesley Schmutzler

"The LPV-111 East Back Levee Improvement Project lies along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) in Orleans Parish of New Orleans, La., and is an essential component of the New Orleans Hurricane Protection System. The Hurricane Protection Office of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) attributed failure of the New Orleans East levees system to overtopping, erosion and subsequent breaching of LPV-111 along the GIWW, as well as other sections of flood protection during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The existing levee suffered extensive damages from Hurricane Katrina, such that the USACE elected to provide earth stabilization and to rebuild the levee sections. Due to the adverse geotechnical properties of the foundation soils, the Corps deemed ground improvement necessary to stabilize the new levee and to limit its footprint. Wet Deep Mixing Method (DMM) was selected as the most suitable technology for this task.ChallengesDesign: This reach specifically protects East New Orleans and the Bayou Savage National Wildlife Refuge, the largest urban wildlife refuge in the U.S. and home to several threatened or endangered species of birds as well as many reptiles, amphibians and small mammals. The Corps chose DMM due to the sensitivity of the protected marshlands and because the method limits the footprint of the raised levees. The increase in the load bearing capacity of the treated soil significantly decreases the footprint necessary to attain the required height increase. This limitation required the new levee to have steep slopes, drastically increasing the surcharge on foundation soils characterized by overall poor geotechnical properties (soft clays and peats). The design also considered the increased horizontal stresses on the levees due to the extreme storm surges during a hurricane.The design of the 1.6 m diameter (5.25 ft) DMM elements called for overlapping them to form a double auger element that formed buttresses perpendicular to the levee alignment. The contractor installed the buttresses at a maximum on center spacing of 4.7 m (15.5 ft). One additional double auger DMM element was midway between consecutive buttresses at the centerline of the levee to further help prevent settlement (Figure 1)."

Jan 1, 2013

By M. Rakoma

Following the blasting fatality on 17 December 2009, Landau Colliery was forced to change from the blasting practices that had been utilized since the start-up of the mine. Since then, attempts have been made to optimize blasting results. The challenge is rooted to the mining environment - during the early life of the mine, mining took place in virgin areas, whereas currently mining is taking place in areas overlying old underground bord and pillar workings. The underground bord and pillar workings aggravate phenomena such as spontaneous combustion, hot holes, and sinkholes. The 2009 fatality was attributed to hot holes causing premature detonation. Landau has been struggling with poor results from their overburden and coal blasts; leading to poor fragmentation of overburden and the PI parting that lies between the No.1 and No.2 coal seams. An extensive literature survey was completed in order to identify possible alternative solutions that could be evaluated for this unique mining environment, which demands a high degree of caution during mining to ensure factors such as dragline stability and personnel safety. The literature survey confirmed that the previous blasting technique, which was mainly characterized by air decking, was indeed the more efficient, although it was deemed unsafe because of the possibility of hot holes and the high sensitivity of detonators. Potential modifications to the blasting technique were modelled in a Microsoft Excel simulation that was available from the mine, and pit visits were conducted in order to determine whether implementation would be a problem. From the model it is evident that results can be improved by changing the current burden and spacing ratio. Visiting the pit revealed that the tie-in pattern and drilling inaccuracies are contributing to problem areas.

Jan 1, 2013

By S. Gopalan, J. D. Milshtein, S. N. Basu

Production of syngas is proposed utilizing the W/W03 redox system and employing a solarpowered two-step thermochemical cycle. Three chemical reactions occur in two chambers. Assisted by a solar concentrator, a high temperature reaction reduces W03 powder to metallic tungsten in both chambers. Subsequently, the temperature in one of the chambers is lowered and H2(g) is produced via re-oxidation of the tungsten powder using steam. The temperature in the other chamber is simultaneously lowered to an intermediate temperature and CO(g) is produced via oxidation of the tungsten powder using C02(g)· The gas streams coming out of the two chambers result in the syngas production. A complete thermodynamic analysis of the system is described. The W/W03 redox cycle offers greater gravimetric fuel productivity compared to previously proposed systems, and the entire cycle can be operated below 1273K.

Jan 1, 2013

By Mike Lovitt

New Gold Inc. had commissioned Orica to assist with the design of the drawbell blasting at New Afton Underground copper/gold block cave at Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. Orica have had much success in developing the single-shot drawbell method at Freeport Indonesia in 2001 in the Deep Ore Zone and they will be using it exclusively in their new Grasberg Underground Operation. RioTinto Northparkes have also used the single shot drawbell blasting in their Second Lift E26 Project and even in the E48 orebody which is a post undercut block cave, realising the safety and operational benefits of this blasting method.

Jan 1, 2013

By Richard E. Sylwester

Evaluating surface and subsurface conditions for marine foundations (bridges, causeways, terminals, etc.) is often done with a limited amount of data. Subsurface information for these projects is primarily acquired using traditional methods, such as boreholes, test pits or divers, which tend to be expensive and limited in the area of coverage. A number of geophysical methods, including precision bathymetry, sidescan sonar, and seismic reflection or subbottom profiling are extremely cost-effective and obtain significantly more data than can be acquired using traditional intrusive methods. These geophysical methods provide detailed surface images and continuous profiles of the subsurface stratigraphy. This information can be invaluable for selecting the best location for geotechnical boreholes and to map potential geohazards such as submarine slides and filled or open scour holes. Offshore investigations conducted for a proposed highway bridge (Knik Arm Bridge, Cook Inlet, AK), the retrofit of two existing bridge (Antioch and Dumbarton Bridges, CA) and a proposed cruise ship terminal (Ketchikan, AK) used a combination of geophysical methods to map water depth, detect and map debris on the seabed, map the thickness of unconsolidated sediment, determine the depth to bedrock and identify potential geohazards such as scour holes. The results of the geophysical investigations will be used to select locations for obtaining geotechnical borings, to extrapolate geologic information between existing or proposed boreholes, evaluate the potential depth of scour and design a pile support pier. Geotechnical engineers, offshore contractors and bridge designers are realizing the importance of the early use of offshore geophysics for (i) site characterization, (ii) to reduce the uncertainty of geotechnical conditions thus avoiding designs that may be overly conservative and thus more expensive and (iii) to assist in selecting locations for geotechnical borings.

Jan 1, 2013

By Andrew P. Gize

The analytical approaches used to solve a specific problem are dependent upon the information required, coupled with limitations imposed by available facilities, costs, and time. The organic matter associated with ore deposits has the potential to yield information for two problems. Information can be obtained to provide guidelines for prospecting, and, secondly, to solve genetic problems. A major potential of organic matter in providing prospecting guides lies in the high thermal sensitivity of organic matter in sediments which are metamorphosed at grades lower than greenschist facies. The organic matter can then be used to map thermal anomalies potentially associated with mineralization. The analytical approach is to determine the thermal maturity of the total organic matter, or of specific fractions, using techniques which are relatively quick and inexpensive. Consideration of genetic models (for example, reduction, complexing, involvement of oil field brines) generally requires more specific information than the overall thermal maturity of the organic matter, necessitating infor¬mation on molecular composition and structure. The facilities, time, and cost of this information are greater than for mapping thermal anomalies. The analytical techniques discussed include elemental analyses, spectroscopy (infra-red, visible and ultra-violet), Fourier Transform infra-red, nuclear magnetic resonance, extraction, pyrolysis techniques, chromatography and mass spectrometry.

Jan 1, 2013

By Guo Chen, Yifeng Shi, Xiaobiao Shang, Nanshang Shen, Bangqi Zhang, Jinhui Peng, Junruo Chen

"The energy is introduced directly into the volume of the honeycomb ceramic regenerator due to the complex interaction of microwaves with minerals in microwave gas heating system. A three-dimensional numerical model is developed to simulate the electromagnetic field by solving Maxwell's equations using finite-difference time-domain method. Computational result is presented for the microwave power absorption of the regenerator. Effects of the dielectric constant and the effective loss factor on the microwave power absorption in the regenerator are studied as well. Numerical results show that the heating pattern strongly depends on the dielectric property of the regenerator. The demonstration of the model of electromagnetic field distribution can be applied effectively and efficiently to optimize the fundamental parameters in the microwave heating processing.IntroductionIn recent years, microwave energy has been utilized in many fields, such as food processing, chemical engineering and mineral processing [l]. In contrast to conventional heating, where heat is transferred from a surface to the interior, microwave energy is introduced directly into the volume of minerals due to the complex interaction of the microwave with the mineral. Based on volumetric heating effects, microwave heating has several advantages such as pollution free, rapid heating technique, internal heating, high efficiency over conventional heating [ 1-4]."

Jan 1, 2013

From 2009 to 2012, Aker Wirth, in cooperation with the BGR (German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources), developed a concept for the deep sea mining of manganese nodules, which it also examined by means of a profitability analysis. The study was undertaken for the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology. The increasing scarcity of resources, coupled with the continuous rise in resource prices, drive the search for new raw material deposits. As a result, the deep sea is coming increasingly under the spotlight. At depths of more than 1,000 m (3,280 ft), large deposits of ores and precious and high-tech metals, such as manganese, cobalt, nickel, copper and gold, along with rare earths (which are important for the high-tech industry), can be found. The extreme deep sea conditions ? enormous water pressure, ice-cold temperatures and complete darkness ? present huge financial and technical challenges to the mining industry when extracting these materials. Aker Wirth has recognized the potential of this important future market early on and advances the development of relevant products.

Jan 1, 2013

By Gary Cavanough, Stuart Addinell, Hector Parra

Drilling deep, straight, accurate holes in hard rock to achieve efficient blasting is a challenge for the mining/quarrying industries with short holes normally drilled using “top hole hammer” (THH) and deep holes using “down the hole Hammer” (DTH).

Jan 1, 2013

By E. Onal, C. Craddock, A. Chapman, M. R. Endsley

ABSTRACT Mining equipment operators must interpret and respond to complex information delivered by technology-centric rather than user-centric systems. The ability to achieve high situation awareness (SA) in the face of this data overload is a key challenge to effective decision-making and information exploitation. Incidents attributed to human error that compromise safety and result in loss of revenue, or even life, are often the result of system designs that overload human cognitive capabilities. This paper defines SA as it relates to the operation of mining equipment and describes the design and preliminary evaluation of a new electric shovel operator user interfa

Jan 1, 2013

By Mohammed Alkazimi, Katie Grantham

The purpose of this paper is to quantify the risk to both the environment and surrounding infrastructure from a pipe sealing implosion. Both accuracy and the precision in determining how a submerged infrastructure damaged by underwater explosions performs provide better decision-making capabilities for managers facing impending oil spills. This determination is vital, especially for both emergency and crisis management teams, as categorized consequences based on both the nature of the structural layout and the surrounding marine environment assist in identifying whether or not the utilization of this technique is applicable. Thus, the decision maker’s aim, in a crisis, is to minimize any associated risk that might result in aggravating the situation by endangering both the infrastructure and marine life. Therefore, the resulting risk matrices will enable technical personnel who are not experts in explosive technologies to be armed with the information necessary to determine if this mitigation technique is applicable to their situation.

Jan 1, 2013

By Lon Santis, Michael Swisdak, John Tatom

The Institute of Makers of Explosives (IME) and A-P-T Research, Inc. (APT) have developed a quantitative risk assessment tool called IMESAFR (IME Safety Analysis for Risk) for managing risk from various activities undertaken in the commercial explosives industry. The first version was completed in 2006 and Version 2.0 of the software was completed in 2012, incorporating several major new features. The platform is now based on a Geographic Information System (GIS), providing a bird’s-eye-view to help visualize facility layouts and risk. Spatial data on potential explosion sites and exposed sites can now be automatically transferred from the images to ease users’ data input. Use of GIS data provides the ability to check facility compliance with quantity-distance (QD) standards such as the American Table of Distances (used by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, ATF), the NATO standard (used by Natural Resources Canada and other nations), or a user-defined table. Research conducted and knowledge gained over the last 10 years enabled changes in the algorithms and models that provide greater fidelity and reduce conservatism. Expert users can change global settings to more accurately match actual site conditions and the program runs using either Imperial (English) or SI (metric) units of measure. These changes and other new features are discussed and demonstrated.

Jan 1, 2013

By Tianzu Yang, Weifeng Liu, Shu Bin, Lin Chen, Wanda Bin

"Vanyukov Process has been mainly applied for processing copper and nickel sulfide ore for more than 30 years. Based on the understanding of the Vanyukov Process, researchers from China introduced the technology into the areas of lead, antimony and bismuth extraction by changing the furnace structure and technical flow, which greatly extended the application area and raised the processing efficiency, thus developed the oxygen-rich side-blow bath smelting (OSBS) technology in 2000. This contribution reviews the history of OSBS technology from four respects: the quantity, the furnace structure, the process flow and the application area. Its potential research direction and industrial application are also summarized.IntroductionVanyukov bath smelting furnace and related bath smelting technology were developed by researchers from Soviet Union who devoted comprehensive research on fundamental theory as well as engineering technology [1,5]. Vanyukov process has been applied for large industrial production since the 1970s and it is still one of the major methods in modem pyrometallurgy process. The appearance ofVanyukov double district furnace and joint double furnace in the past ten years, which are applied for copper smelting, is the most valuable advances of the Vanyukov process [7,8,9]. However, the application ofVanyukov process was limited in copper and nickel sulfide ore smelting, and few countries adopted this process except Soviet Union."

Jan 1, 2013