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By E Mroczek, M Climo, B Carey, M P. Simpson

"An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation. The composition and volume of geothermal fluids in New Zealand offers considerable potential for the extraction of various metals and minerals, as well as being a source of heat energy, steam and gases, and for use in generating electricity. While extracting products from geothermal fluids is technically feasible, positive economics is the key driver for commercial success; however, there is no assessment of this opportunity that identifies simple, cost-effective processing technologies and provides a greater understanding of the economic viability and barriers for implementing such technologies. The methodology that will be used to evaluate the commercial opportunities for New Zealand is discussed.CITATION:Mroczek, E, Simpson, M P, Climo, M and Carey, B, 2015. From waste to wealth – mineral extraction from geothermal brines, in Proceedings PACRIM 2015 Congress, pp 133–138 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Mar 18, 2015

By Tyler MA

If the record of maj or proj ects in Australia is taken into account, it is apparent, the proper planning of an industrial relations strategy for many such projects has been ill considered by project developers. The recognition of the need to develop a plan from the initial feasibility study has been forced on those promoting new projects by the publicity given to the Australian industrial relations record. The delays in delivery caused by factors supposedly out of the project's control are often given for non-performance of contract and used as an excuse for limiting further development. Many of the problems experienced in project development can be overcome with sound industrial relations planning. The promises given in the euphoria of the early stages of a project relating to price and delivery often become a burden for the future because the complexities of the Australian Industrial Relations Systems are not understood or considered. The recognition by senior executives of their responsibilities in this area will contribute greatly to a new era of project development.

Jan 1, 1983

By N Green

The production of approximately 550 000 tonnes of æwhiteÆ or chrysotile asbestos fibre between 1972 and 1983 at the Woodsreef Mine in New South Wales left behind 24 million tonnes of tailings and 75 million tonnes of waste rock and overburden. The Woodsreef Magnesium Project is designed to extract the 23 per cent magnesium content of the tailings to produce magnesium metal and magnesium alloys, the latter with aluminium from the New South Wales smelters. Further value will be added to the tailings waste with the downstream production of magnesium alloy sheets and cast products for the transportation, electronics and other consumer goods industries. The mine opened in 1918 and closed in 1983 becoming derelict. There has been minimal expenditure on rehabilitation compared with that recommended in reports commissioned by the New South Wales Government. The tailings dump has been designated æasbestos wasteÆ by the EPA and will be eliminated through the magnesium refinery process of the Project with the dissolution of the remaining chrysotile fibres. The benign waste from the refinery process will consist principally of silica with some iron. Significant energy savings are expected from innovative new processing technology, in the alloy formation and in the application of the light weight, cast and sheet metal products, particularly in the transportation industries. Globally, there are very large resources of similar tailings with hundreds of years of useful productive lives that could be converted into the metal of the 21st Century, magnesium, and its alloys, to assist pollution and greenhouse gas reduction from transportation industries. No new mining and minimal feedstock preparation is required. Unlike potential producers using carbonate rocks such as magnesite and dolomite that have to be mined, the asbestos tailings composed principally of non-fibrous serpentinite do not contain any carbon dioxide.

Jan 1, 2002

When preparing an appraisal, valuation or feasibility study for a new mining project it is difficult to imagine the technical, economic, social and environmental context that the project will occupy in ten or 15 years time. This paper is about our ability to foresee the future, the choices available now in matching the project to that future context, and about the flexibility that exists in adapting the project to a changing environment. The author draws upon his experience of project reviews, valuations and feasibility studies in the mid to late 1980s in Australia and New Zealand to explore how the project context has changed since key decisions were made and what this tells us about decisions made today for future projects.

Jan 1, 2004

Some fundamental aspects of recent single-particle fracture studies are reviewed. Findings from this research shed new light on the utilisation of energy during comminution operations and provide useful pointers to new research directions that could lead to significantly better comminution machines. Two methods for quantitatively predicting mineral liberation during comminution are reviewed. These methods have been developed into useful practical procedures, but they are almost unknown in the mineral processing community. Their use should promote the consideration of mineral liberation as an important variable to be considered during the design and operating control of comminution circuits.

Jan 1, 1993

By McNabb K. E

Significant coal reserves in New South Wales lie under areas with steep topography such as valley slopes and cliffs. Subsidence predictions are difficult to make for these locations as existing empirical databases cannot cover all permutations of topography and mining geometry. Two dimensional numerical model alternatives are of limited applicability. Consequently a novel three-dimensional numerical model is developed including the detailed panel layout, realistic rock mass properties including the full stratigraphy, goaf behaviour and actual surface topography. Model results show the same trends as subsidence measurements from Baal Bone Colliery in the Western Coalfield of New South Wales.

Jan 1, 1992

AustraliaÆs current interest in renewable energy is based on a desire to reduce the countryÆs greenhouse gas emissions. Wood from sustainable sources offers a unique opportunity to combine greenhouse gas benefits with other significant environmental and social benefits, including salinity mitigation, carbon sequestration, soil replenishment and rural industry. The challenge is to make renewable energy from wood in a cost competitive manner, so that this broad range of benefits may be best realised. Bioenergy and carbon products are of great interest as new, commercial forestry products that can drive large-scale environmental tree planting:In Western Australia, Enecon has worked with Western Power Corporation to build the first full-scale plant for integrated processing of mallee eucalypts, to produce activated carbon, renewable power and eucalyptus oil. It is intended that this plant is the first of a number of such plants to help catalyse environmental tree planting in Western Australia. New technologies being developed overseas may provide competitive bioenergy in areas where traditional markets for wood do not exist. For example, pyrolysis converts wood into a bio-oil that may be transported to remote sites for power generation in gas turbines. Pyrolysis also produces wood char. Pyrolysis and wood-to-ethanol technologies, coupled with short rotation coppicing trees, offer the long-term prospect of large-scale production of renewable fuels around the country.

Jan 1, 2006

After the last world war, management tended to change from an acquired skill more associated with experience than formal training, to a specific widely-recognised specialism requiring an involved formal education process.That process, of necessity, required the development of business schools, M.B.A. courses -indeed the setting up of professional chairs to deal with the intricacy of general management development.Management research burst forth bringing forward new and exciting theories which developed new techniques, tools and terms.

Jan 1, 1985

The majority of coke in Australia is made in by-product slot ovens at steelworks in Port Kembla, Newcastle and Whyalla. Most of the coals for these plants come from New South Wales but a regular proportion of Queensland coals may be introduced. The plants and the coals are reviewed in the paper.

Jan 1, 1975

By Kubik K

This paper reviews the historical data on relative height changes of landmasses with respect to sea level for Pacific Rim countries.It discusses existing theories of the Greenhouse effect, and the interaction with the vertical movements of the continental plates which leads to different effects for different places. Possible future scenarios are described and directions for future research and measurement programs are given.Relative sea levels are governed not only the increase of water from deglaciation but also by a range of other factors such as variable water storage in lakes and the atmosphere, thermal expansion of the ocean, ocean currents, and the shape of the ocean and the continents. Sea floor spreading, for example, is ultimately more significant than deglaciation in sea level control but is generally much slower.

Jan 1, 1990

In an industry that is data-hungry and increasingly international in its outlook, the role of the New Zealand Government in facilitating exploration and mining activity here presents unique challenges. All things being equal, the Regime itself should result in æefficient outcomesÆ, however central to this rational economic tenet are the assumptions that the regime is in keeping with the times, other legislation works in tandem with it, and that those who administer the regime have the knowledge and experience to apply the rules wisely. Following the Crown Minerals review in late 2003, a shift in emphasis from Crown Minerals æmanaging the ActÆ towards proactively æmanaging the mineral estateÆ for greater benefit for all New Zealanders means that these assumptions are being increasingly challenged and addressed through a variety of initiatives. These include improved access to relevant data sets, minimisation of red tape and compliance costs, increasing emphasis on permit holder compliance with work programme obligations, changes to the Minerals Programme and regulations, closer collaboration with and representation to other government departments and councils, and additional recruitment of industry-experienced staff. This presentation will highlight aspects of these initiatives, and examine how they will collectively contribute to facilitating future exploration and mining activity in New Zealand.

Jan 1, 2004

The paper describes the development leading to the bucket wheel excavator systems now used in the Latrobe Valley and refers in particular to the new S.E.C.V. dredgers Nos. 14 and 15 which will be employed in the Loy Yang open cut. The design concept and operating possibilities of these dredgers are described in detail with reference to the machine characteristics designed for the operating conditions in the Latrobe Valley. The design is compared with units of similar capacity in open cuts of other countries.

Jan 1, 1982

A report is given of the problems of finance and physical resources that currently affect The University of New South Wales, and of some of the measures adopted to alleviate them. Partly as' a result of review procedures, a School of Mines was formed to amalgamate Applied Geology and Mining Engineering, and to add the skills of extractive metallurgy to produce a group to match the needs of the minerals industry. A review of courses within the School indicated a need for enhanced computer teaching, which is partially negated by a lack of resources. It also shows an overcrowded course whose structure could possibly benefit from a split into managerial and specialist streams.

Jan 1, 1986

There are many types of environmental audit: compliance, impact, risk and management audits; internal and external audits; single and multiple-project audits. All are becoming increasingly important in corporate management as new legislation confers increasing personal liability on directors, executives and staff of corporations and agencies in both private and public sectors.

Jan 1, 1990

By Browning E. J

The application of conventional dust control systems in British Coal mines has considerably reduced the incidence of pneumoconiosis. A number of new techniques have been developed involving extraction close to the cutting heads of mining machines which will be capable of controlling airborne dust with the greater intensity of production necessary in the present economic climate.

Jan 1, 1988

This opportunity to present a few thoughts on the question of professional education and training comes at a most appropriate time. In Britain, a great deal of energy is being expended in this, so-called, post-Finniston era, to create a new look for the status of engineers and engineering by the Engineering Council. Naturally, the tune and the tempo are being called by the big institutions which essentially serve the manufacturing industries. However, the Engineering Council in Great Britain also includes the mining and processing institutions such as the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy (IMM) and so there is a chance - if it is taken - for us to contribute to the debate and the determinations that emanate from it. The IMM, of course, caters for the professional status of those engaged in the mining and minerals industries and includes many who do not see themselves as engineers. Nevertheless, the debate is important to these other groups whose livelihood is inextricably bound up with those who are engineers and there are many facets of the engineering policies being shaped that will, I am sure, eventually be enshrined in the requirements for professional status across all the various disciplines in our industry.

Jan 1, 1986

Australia has a long and successful record in mineral processing technology extending over 100 years. This has included the development of new processes and equipment and new analytical techniques. These developments have added greatly to the efficiency of mineral processing and thereby to Australia's national wealth. Demands on mineral processing engineers in the future show no signs of diminishing, in fact they will increase considerably as more difficult areas must be treated and the requirements for quality control become more stringent. These demands must be met successfully since mineral processing must continue to be one of the most important technologies in Australia's economic future.

Jan 1, 1989

Contract mining is an integral part of the underground and surface hard rock mining industry in all states of Australia. Contract mining is now makes a major contribution to the opencui coal industry in Queensland and New South Wales with Thiess alone producing over 16 million tonnes per annum with safety performances that most coal companies would be proud of. Contract mining is now attracting interest in the underground coal sector.

Jan 1, 1998

In the mining and minerals industry, development, introduction and construction of new plant designs, to meet sustainability objectives, face a series of major hurdles. Typical are the long investment cycle times, the designer does not normally control the spending (the owner does), and the industry is inherently technologically conservative or risk adverse while accepting the often more significant geological, market and political risks.æSustainable Plant DesignÆ is an approach to plant and facility design that drives the necessary culture change and acceptance by minimising technical risk and maximising potential returns. The approach forces consideration of sustainability objectives and risks early in the project, where cost saving and efficiency improving opportunities can be maximised.In Hatch, we are using three proven tools under the ærisk managementÆ umbrella to drive sustainable development principles into our projects:Sustainable Plant Design, FutureWatchTM Reviews, and Clean Plant DesignTM . These proactive practical, not theoretical, techniques for driving change from within and reducing whole of life cycle costs will be discussed and illustrated with case studies.

Jan 1, 2004

By Johnston G, Joyce C

The permitting of new mining projects has evolved into a highly complex process that must be carefully managed. Only by developing a thorough understanding of the issues involved and stakeholder interrelationships can successful strategies be developed that integrate the often competing demands of: ò regulatory requirements, ò commercial requirements, ò social/cultural needs, and ò technical issues. Properly implemented, this approach can result in: ò shortened approval timeframes, ò better project definition ò broad based community support, and ò favorably disposed government departments.

Jan 1, 1997