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By E. Turner

This is the 3rd Paper in a series by this author, the first two being published at the two previous International Conferences. Since the Aachen Conference, Rio Tinto has carried out an extensive benchmarking exercise to see how we are positioned with respect to other leading companies (in our sector and other sectors of major economic importance). We need to be sure that Rio Tinto is at the forefront of best practises in Sustainable Development (SD) and is using the most effective tools and methods. This paper will present key findings from this work. Rio Tinto Minerals, working as representatives of IMA-Europe was a leading contributor to the European Commission DG Enterprise Voluntary Reporting Scheme for SD Indicators in the Non-Energy Extractive Industry. In Rio Tinto Minerals we have been using these SDIs in the management of our business and the paper will report on how they contribute to the management of our business and the paper will report on how they contribute to business value in: deepening customer relationships, eco-efficiency of operations, land use planning and permitting for new and expanding facilities, community relations, policy engagement with government authorities and strengthening the bond between the company and employees. We continue to support the Voluntary SDI Reporting Scheme, considering it to be important in the expanding EU and as a model for other regions globally. For example we have ore suppliers in developing countries and we use these SDIs in assisting them to better their performance, for we have an obligation to use our influence for continuous improvement. The paper will describe this work. Over the last 12 months our company has created a new Industrial Minerals unit called Rio Tinto Minerals which brings together all the borates, talc and salt operations, R&D, marketing, sales and customer care worldwide. The paper will present also the new Sustainability Policy of Rio Tinto Minerals.

Jan 1, 2007

By B. M. Sadashiva Murthy

Increasing quantities of nutrients and pesticides in agricultural runoff in recent years has caused the more developed western nations to become concerned about diffuse agricultural pollution. Thus, the problem of diffuse pollution is of greater importance and concern for any integrated water quality management programme. The above mentioned sources and activities causing pollution to groundwater cannot be completely avoided. The best solution is to entail a firm understanding of the principles of solute transport through porous media. The complex factors that control the movement of contaminants in porous media and the resulting behavior of contaminant plume are usually intricate to assess because of interaction of many factors such as dispersion, advection, sorption, degradation, volatilization, etc. As accurate quantification of solute under field conditions is inherently difficult, the fate of nitrate and phosphate have been analyzed in laboratory column and channel studies. From the analysis of the breakthrough curves, the dispersion co-efficient for nitrates and phosphates through sandy soil was found to be 0.262 m2/d and 0.114 m2/d for column studies, 0.321 m2/d and 0.231 m2/d for channel studies respectively. The column studies revealed that the concentration of nitrates and phosphates increased steadily in the first few days (around 5 days) and then it increased rapidly after 8 to 10 days. However, it attained equilibrium after 20 days. Similarly, the channel studies revealed a steady increase in concentration of nitrates and phosphates in the first few days (1 to 2 days) and rapid increase up to 15 days and there after it attained equilibrium. In the study, one-dimensional analytical model has been developed which include the advection, dispersion, and a characteristic term called ?total elimination rate?. The comparative study of column and channel studies, and model output (in which the term total elimination rate ?K? is considered as zero) exhibited a variation of 30 to 50 % in leaching characteristics of pollutants (nitrates and phosphates).

Jan 1, 2008

By Keivan PakIman, Maziar Pasdarpour

Transportation tunnels are highly sensitive to ground movements and are required to be stable and secure for safe operation. In urban areas, the interaction between tunnels and adjacent piles, which are widely used to support buildings and other structures, requires careful consideration. The seismic response of tunnels may vary depending on the lateral stiffness and strength of the tunnel walls, while the axial loading and seismic impact of adjacent piles may cause soil displacement and stress changes that can damage the tunnel lining. As a result, tunnel owners often impose strict limits on the design of new piles lying close to existing tunnels including maximum allowable tunnel deformation, stress change limits, and minimum tunnel to pile separation distances. This paper describes a numerical analysis of the inuence of the axial loading and seismic impact of bored pile foundations on subway tunnels, undertaen using the nite element software laxis D. ased on the results of the numerical analysis, the paper suggests a more realistic and less conservative approach for designing piles in close proximity to transportation tunnels. INTRODUCTION The interaction between tunnels and adjacent piles can cause stress changes and displacements in the soil and structures which may adversely impact structural performance and tunnel safety. It is therefore important to take account of relative load transfer and piling conguration when designing new piles in

Jun 23, 2024

By Harleigh V. S. Tingley

Investment in the mining industry has increased substantially throughout the world in recent years. So have acquisitions, divestitures, and financial restructurings. The return of outside investors to the industry is welcomed. The trend toward stockholder litigation is not so welcomed. Both have provided the impetus for commissioning outside professional due diligence studies of potential minerals transactions. For a number of reasons, some unique to the industry, evaluation of mining investments is a challenging task for the investor. Investments in exploration prospects and undeveloped properties have a high speculative content. Buyers pay for uncertain future prospects. Alternatively, most developed mining investments are large and long-lived and cannot easily be modified during that life. Even so, to be successful, they must compete in an environment in which their reserves - the source of their profits - are often imperfectly known. And markets, competition, technology, and politics are among the many continually changing factors that affect investment performance. Minerals investment evaluation is further complicated because each minerals investment has its own singular combination of risks and opportunities. Each ore type and each ore body presents different problems in reserve evaluation, mining, and extraction. Each minesite has its own often unique combination of mine, infrastructure, political, environmental, and other risks. And the key requirements for commercial success differ substantially among various minerals.

Jan 1, 1990

By Michael Drozd

The operation of an activated charcoal system has five separate unit operations. These unit operations have common points for CIP, CIL and CIS system, which vary widely in application. a. Absorption b. Desorption (Stripping) c. Acid Washing d. Reactivation e. Carbon Handling ( carbon transportation, sizing, de­watering, etc.) Cost optimization starts with the basic operating parameters (design philosophy) set down at the time of engineering design. This parameters undergo almost immediate change due to site specific ore requirements, throughput changes, operator requirements or reagent availability. Activated charcoal is sometimes viewed as simple, uncomplicated reagent that requires not optimization. To some extent, this statement is true, but under most circumstances, if the time necessary to optimize the use of activated charcoal is available, the effort is rewarded with significant savings. CPL-Carbon Link has embarked upon a program of supplying technical support with its activated charcoal. Several operation in the United States have under taken to have CPL-Carbon Link do an operational survey to determine if potential savings are possible. CPL-Carbon Link has offered to do these surveys for projects that are clients or simply would like to have CPL-Carbon Link review their operation. The information accumulated by CPL-Carbon Link is being used to attempt to fashion industry standards so that a common reference point came be establish for activated charcoal usage.

Jan 1, 2000

By Gary W. LaChapelle

Cyprus Miami Mining Corp. has a history of overcoming adversity through innovation and adaptation to changing conditions. Requirements to remain profitable in the 1990s include a combination of advanced technology, employee involvement and training, attention to customer satisfaction, environmental awareness and quality management. The Miami property is located in the Globe-Miami area of Arizona, 130 km (80 miles) east of Phoenix and 160 km (100 miles) north of Tucson. The complex is located in a high desert environ¬ment at an elevation of 1065 m (3500 ft). The region receives about 480 mm (19 in.) of precipitation annually. History Mineralization at the Miami property was first discovered in the 1880s, which led to underground mining of copper by the 1890s. In 1911, the Inspiration Consolidated Copper Co. was formed by combining the Inspiration and Live Oak Mines. Full-scale production began in 1915. Block caving methods were used at both mines. Open-pit mining commenced in 1948. Underground mining had ceased by 1954, and all production was obtained from surface operations. Innovation has been the key to Miami's success. Development of sulfide flotation and the ferric cure process for vat leaching were advanced at Miami. In situ leaching of oxide material, remaining after block caving had removed the sulfide ore, was also used.

Jan 1, 1993

By Walter G. Steblez

The countries of Eastern Europe are former members of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA). Geographically, they are located in Central Europe (Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia) and Southeastern Europe, largely in the Balkans (Yugoslavia*, Bulgaria, Romania and Albania*). It is important to remember that all of the countries of Eastern Europe had central planning imposed on them by the Soviet Union during the years following World War II. "Stalinist" policy for industrial development had three important tenets: • central economic planning, or a nonmarket-based command economy with administratively set prices; • economic priorities that stressed the development of heavy industries such as mining, metallurgy (steel) and heavy machine building; and • self-sufficiency at all costs, which was aimed at abolishing reliance on the world capitalist market, or reducing it to a minimum. Essentially, the system of industrialization that was used in the Soviet Union in the 1930s and 1940s was imposed on Eastern Europe. Organic market economic development in Eastern Europe ceased during this period. The flaws of this experiment became apparent when mineral processing facilities were set up in many areas of Eastern Europe that did not have reliable resources. Poland, Hungary and Romania are good examples of this situation. The Soviet Union became the principal supplier of iron ore and other minerals and mineral fuels, not only to these countries but to the Bloc as a whole.

Jan 1, 1992

By Donald E. Dickie

At Sifto Canada's Goderich salt mine near Goderich, Ontario, the stress control method of mining was introduced to overcome increasing roof failure problems. After successful testing, the conventional room-and-pillar mining method was converted entirely to the stress control method. This conversion has successfully stabilized the ground, increasing the extracton ratio from 38% to 50%. At the same time, it reduced the ground control and rehabilitation cost by more than 80%. The success of the conversion is due to the quantitative technique of mine analysis that was developed to ensure that the conversion was safe and reliable. A finite element model of the ground was constructed to predict and validate the safety of the stress controlled mine opening. A system of in situ stress-property measurement instruments was developed to obtain input data for the computer model as well as to evaluate its output quantitatively with regard to time and location. History of roof problems Severe roof safety problems have been encountered at Goderich Mine since it opened in 1959. These problems continued into the 1980s. Following excavation, the roof strata started to deteriorate by slabbing. Even after roof rehabilitation, deterioration continued to progressively higher roof elevations, requiring repeated rehabilitation. The operational impact of these roof failures was severe, ranging from a considerable safety hazard to major production interruptions.

Jan 1, 1993

By J. M. Tranquilla

EMR Microwave has developed several unique processes for the pretreatment of refractory gold and copper ores. This report describes a recent large scale pilot project involving a carbonaceous gold-bearing whole ore. Pilot plant testwork conducted jointly by EMR and Bateman Engineering Inc. has shown that 90+% cyanide soluble gold recovery is obtainable from refractory (sulphide and carbonaceous) Carlin, Nevada gold ores. Typical cyanide soluble gold recoveries for untreated material is 20%. AC energy consumption was found to be between 58.l kWh/ton and 15.5 kWh/t for an assumed heat recovery of 50% and 80% respectively. The plant was operated at reduced temperatures ( 400°C) from previous testwork on similar ore at 600°-700°C.

Jan 1, 2000

By David E. Peterson, F. Merz

The Waihi Gold Mining Company Limited, Martha Hill Project was the first major hard rock mining operation following the resurgence of the mining industry in New Zealand. Because of its location adjoining a town and at the southern part of the sensitive Coromandel Peninsula, the operation received a high level of public scrutiny. Very srrict limits for effluent criteria had to be met and led to the necessity for advanced wastewater rreatment technology. The process technology selected was the copper catalysed oxidation of cyanide using hydrogen peroxide, with subsequent removal of heavy metals by precipitation and filrration. This paper discusses the adoption of environment limits together with the detailed description of the plant and design criteria. Data of the one year's operational history is also presented.

Jan 1, 1991

By H. N. McLeod, M. J. Thom

The use of cyanide in gold mining requires the careful handling and storage of cyanide rich tailings. Cyanide in groundwater can frequently be both persistent and mobile, so that tailings basins need to be designed to limit and collect seepage. Assessment of the potential environmental impact requires an understanding of the hydrogeologic regime, both before, during and after mining. Groundwater monitoring wells provide a basis for monitoring tailings pond behaviour and for assessing the impact of mitigative measures to reduce or control seepage. A case example of Cheni Gold Mines Lawyers Project in Canada is presented to illustrate the use of groundwater monitoring to determine the amount of cyanide degradation and attenuation between the tailings pond and the receiving environment.

Jan 1, 1991

By Harrie van Dijk

Feeding laterite nickel slurry into high pressure acid­leach (HPAL) autoclaves in an aggressive environment with slurries heated up to 200°C requires a special pump design. For decades the GEHO piston diaphragm pumps have been used for autoclave feeding at gold ore pressure oxidation plants with slurries up to l 77°C. Lessons learned from these installations have been instrumental in designing second generation feed pumps for processing laterite nickel with operating temperatures of 200°C and a flow rate of 400 m3/h. The Australian nickel industry is using momentarily 8 GEHO positive displacement piston diaphragm pumps. For this application six GEHO ZPM 900 "dropleg" pumps have been supplied to the Murrin Murrin project and two to Bulong.

Jan 1, 2000

By William E. Bedal, Richard S. Kunter

Artech Recovery Systems, Inc has developed a low pressure and temperature chloride leach process called the "Caslumu1 Process" to extract metals from arsenical flue dusts and residues and fix the arsenic in an environmentally stable form as ferric arsenate (scorodite). The process was pilot tested at Hazen Research in an integrated plant including continuous recycle from August 1989 to October 1989 during which several tons of flue dust were processed. Based on this pilot program, the process was deemed technically feasible and produced commercially salable products. Residues from this pilot program were subjected to a long-term stability test jointly designed by Prl environmental services and the USEPA. The process, its versatility, and the nature of the products ls discussed in some detail.

Jan 1, 1992

By Kathleen A. Altman, Kevin Hegerle

FMC Gold Company start.ea processing ore at their Paradise Peak Mine in 1986. Gold, silver and mercury haye been produced from the Merrill-Crowe milling circuit and from heap leaching. There are three heap leach circuits, Paradise Peak, Ketchup Flat and County Line. The Paradise Peak and Ketchup Flat heap effluent solutions are routed into the zinc precipitation plant which is associated with the mill for recovery of the precious metals. The County Lne hea lech circuit is a stand-alone operation, again with a zinc precipitation recovery circuit. The mill was shut down in May, 1993 due to depletion of ore reserves with the remainder of the heap leach ore due to be placed on the leach pads by late summer of the same year.

Jan 1, 1993

Magnetic separators are commonly used as an effective and low-cost method to concentrate paramagnetic or ferromagnetic minerals. These versatile separators are often used in multistage circuit configurations to further improve concentrate recovery and/or grade. Although these circuits are generally very efficient, field studies suggest that the layout of multistage circuits can be less than ideal for many industrial operations. To illustrate this shortcoming, a theoretical analysis has been conducted to compare different circuit configurations for magnetic separators. The resulting knowledge base has been used to establish generic engineering guidelines for the layout of multistage circuits. The potential improvements in separation efficiency that may be realized through the application of these guidelines have been demonstrated using a simple case study.

Jan 1, 2004

By Gh. Crutu

The handling of radioactive waste deposits from factories that produce chemical fertilizers is a difficult problem, but has a great significance for soil quality and for the environment. The Romanian legislation has produced law and normative acts concordant with EU regulations for prevention and protection, and also for environmental contamination control with radionuclides. The soils and agricultural plants in the vicinity of phosphogypsum deposits are radioactively contaminated; the annual variability of the respective radioactivity values is demonstrated by annual records. Residual radioactivity monitoring determines the presence of radioactive ions in the soil and cultivated plants: wheat, maize, sunflower, as well as the spontaneous flora. The results obtained lead to the conclusion that ecological restoration works must be executed for degraded soils due to impacts of radioactive materials.

Jan 1, 2007

By M. Galetakis

This paper proposes a new approach for calibration of dual gamma-energy transmission (DU-ET) ash analyser for improved online analysis of run-of-mine lignite. An adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) was developed to model the relationship between the intensities measured by the scintillation counter of the analyzer and the measured ash. Samples collected from Megalopolis lignite mines were measured for their ash content by using standard laboratory methods as well as by DUET. Obtained data was divided into training, testing and validation sets. A first order Sugeno type ANFIS was used in conjunction with early stop training. The calibration performance obtained by this approach was significantly better compared with that obtained by standard calibration methods based on multiple linear regression analysis.

Jan 1, 2006

By George Munro

Heavy water inflows of up to 1350 1/sec in the 19.6 km Moawhango-Tongariro Tunnel section of the Tongariro Power Development Scheme in New Zealand gave rise to severe operating problems, particularly in the equipment stripping stage when pumping installations had to be removed. Due to the necessity to commence stripping from the upstream side the contractors. Codelfa-Cogefar (NZ) Limited, took the decision to install a steel bulkhead some 5000m in from the lower. Tongariro, portal. The article lists the considerations taken in the placement of the bulkhead, and gives details of its design, installation and final removal. A brief description of the geology of the tunnel. together with water flow sources, rates and pressures is also included.

Jan 1, 1981

By N/A

finally, but not least, the staff of Vaal Reefs Chemical Laboratory for their assistance and patience with the introduction of a new technology,

Jan 1, 1991

By Jr. Gambrell

Support characteristics of in-cycle trusses are analyzed using a photo-elastic model loaded by tightening a truss in the sequence normally used in an underground mine. Stresses in the roof at its center point and at the junction of the roof and rib are examined. Effects of zero tension and unequal tension in the inclined anchor rods are presented. Effects of simulated subsidence on stress in the roof surface and on tension in the separate truss members are examined. Conclusions are drawn relating to (1) the effects of tension in the inclined anchor rods on uplift and compressive stress parallel to the roof surface, (2) the effects of subsidence on stress in the roof surface and, (3) the effects of subsidence on tension in the truss members.

Jan 1, 1989