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By R. P. Smith

PRIOR to June, 1937, the employees of Hollinger Consolidated Gold Mines, Ltd., at Timmins, Ontario, received medical care for themselves under a contract system developed through an agreement between the employer, employee, and a contract physician. This form of practice is common to the mining industry in Ontario. But with the improvement in mining methods and conditions of living, and through an increasing demand for provision of a complete medical care, it was not any surprise when the employees of the Hollinger mine approached organized medicine and indicated their desire for a plan to provide their families with a more or less complete medical service in addition to that supplied for themselves. In April, 1937, this approach was made, and on June 18th, 1937, the Hollinger Employees' Medical Services Association was formed and started to provide medical services. A review of five years' experience is now presented. The Association provides complete medical service for the employee, his wife and family, as well as those dependents who are the total responsibility of the employee. The employee membership is limited to employees at the Hollinger mine in Timmins who reside in the immediate vicinity. The employee is examined by a Company doctor on application for employment and is subject to further examination by a specialise in chest diseases under the direction of the Workmen's Compensation Board of Ontario. The wife and family are not subject to examination but have to be registered when the employee is accepted for employment. The dependents, other than the immediate family, are subject to medical examination and approval after the employee has applied for such dependent or dependents to be admitted. Membership in the Association is obligatory when the employee is hired, but at the end of any Association year he may drop out if he so wishes.

Jan 1, 1943

By Witold J. S. Ostrowski

Stabilization of water-bearing sediments by the freezing method for shaft sinking has been used for over 80 years on the European Continent. The real application of this method in Canada started with the development of the potash mines in Saskatchewan during the past fifteen years. The great depth to which it is applied creates a number of problems which have to be seriously considered by engineers in order to produce a safe and economical design. Freezing depth, thickness of the ice wall, number of the freeze holes, capacity of the freezing plant, pre-freezing time, etc., are the most important points which have to be established. Recent field experience in freezing to great depth in the Saskatchewan area is immensely interesting and important for further development of our potash mining and the application of the freezing method.

Jan 1, 1967

By The Staff

Introduction It is the purpose of this paper to discuss a number of the metallurgical improvements in the technology of copper-nickel ore treatment which have been introduced during recent years in the plants of ?the International Nickel Company of Canada, Limited. In common with other ore treatment processes, the procedure for extracting nickel and copper is changing almost continuous! y. These changes are necessitated by reason of changes in ore grades and characteristics, rising material and labour charges, and the constant drive to maximize metal recovery and to minimize production costs. It is not possible to present a comprehensive list of all the changes made, and only a selected number of the improvements in the milling, smelting, and refining operations are covered. It should be clearly understood that some phases of the procedures described have been pioneered by others in kindred fields and due acknowledgment is given to their foresight and efforts. Articles have been published over the years describing the operations of the International Nickel Company plants and the reader is referred to the Engineering and Mining Journal, Vol. 130, No. 9, November 10th, 1930, and to the Canadian Mining Journal, Vol. 58, No. 11, November, 1937, and Vol. 67, No. 5, May, 1946. Other references are the Transactions of this Institute, 1932, 1938, and 1946; Metals Technology, American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, February, 1938, and Canadian Chemistry and Process Industries, April, 1940.

Jan 1, 1948

By F. P. Agterberg

"IntroductionTHE KNOWLEDGE about the mineral resources in a region ranges from relatively precise ore-reserve estimates for known deposits to probabilistic estimates concerning the speculative resources which may be discovered in future at greater depths and in the less-explored parts of the region. Previously developed probabilistic methods for regional resource evaluation (1) are based on the following two assumptions.(1) The probability that a specific block of rock, or part of a region close to the topographic surface, contains undiscovered deposits can be estimate d by weighting selected geological, geophysical or geochemical parameters for that block. The weights are computed by considering similar environments which are known to contain deposits.(2) Some of the characteristics of the undiscovered deposits, such as ore tonnages and average grades of metals contained in the ore, can be evaluated by considering probability distributions f or known deposit data. These methods were initially applied to Precambrian deposits in the Abitibi Volcanic Belt of the Canadian Shield (1).Since 1972, statistical methods for quantitative resource evaluation have been applied to the occurrences of the mainly Paleozoic base metal deposits in t he Canadian Appalachian Region. The objectives of this project (Project Appalachia) have been discussed by Leech (2) in a paper that introduces 8 papers with results of the exploratory data analysis. Project Appalachia represents an effort to develop and apply methods of combining information and concepts from regional geology, metallogeny and geomathematics for computer- aided regional mineral resource evaluation."

Jan 1, 1977

By E. Esmaeilzadeh

There arc 8 primary ball mills in the concentrator plant and their task is material crushing. At the time of balls charge to mills, a lot of noise is produced. This noise would affect all grinding areas. The aim of this research was a reduction about 16 dB at source sound power level (SWL was 129.1 dB). With considering two noise control principles, noise producer sources and propagation paths were specified. For removing and reducing of noise producer sources, rubbers with a thickness of 5-20 mm were used on the all inside surfaces of charge box, ball transferring box and exit canal. For increasing transmission loss and damping coefficient of charge box body, rubber with thickness of 1 cm at outside surface of box was used. For reduction of noise propagation a secondary metal cover was designed and made. This cover includes two parts and was set around the charge box. Glass wool (75 kg/m3) with 10 cm thickness was used as acoustical absorbent between free space of two body's layers and from secondary cover side. The of the rest space was left empty. After installing of secondary cover on the ball charge box no.4, SWL showed a reduction about 16 dB. For studying of control system effect on noise reduction at points far from of charge place, measuring results at these points showed the maximum reduction 12.1 dB and the minimum 11.8 dB.

Jan 1, 2007

By Donald P. MacKinnon

"This paper is a commentary on selected trends within the transportation industry.In general, innovations are taking place within all modes of transport (road, rail and water) serving the industrial minerals industry which will affect future distribution patterns, methods and costs. Significant technical innovations in the transportation of solids by• pipeline will also appear, perhaps in the near future, permitting the transport of specific commodities, including some industrial minerals. However, the timing and magnitude of the commercial exploitation of solids pipelines are heavily dictated by marketing factors and distribution system logistics, as well as by the innovations likely to take place within competitive modes of transport. Competitive technological developments will include increased ship capacities, improved bulk-handling facilities, larger and specialized bulk-handling rail equipment, unit trains, containerization, larger ""off-highway"" vehicles and greater inter-modal integration. Equally significant are some ""soft-ware"" techniques such as the growing interest in total distribution cost concepts. However, the impact of the developments will not be spread uniformly over all Canadian industrial minerals."

Jan 1, 1967

By W. A. Dixon Edwards

Industrial mineral production in Alberta, worth $468 million in 1997, comes from a dozen types of industrial minerals, mined by about 400 producers. Cement and lime from Paleozoic limestone formations exposed along the Rocky Mountains account for the greatest production value. Sand andgravel is the primary source ofmineral aggregate. Almost two-thirds of this aggregate is consumed in the Edmonton and Calgary regions. Sulphur produced at 48 sour gas processing plants and two oil sands plants was valued at $84.8 million in 1997 and accounted for 80% ofCanadian sulphur production. Four companies solution mine the Elk Point salt beds to produce chlor-alkali chemicals, industrial salt and sodium chlorate. Natural brine is also produced as a dust control product. Al $22 million, peat moss is a major industrial mineral product in Alberta. Other minerals with noteworthy production include shale, stone, silica and ammolite. The commodities with the greatest development potential are diamond, silica and oil sands tailings by-product minerals.

Jan 1, 2001

By Pierre O'Dowd

"The southern Abitibi Belt is the major source of gold in Quebec. Although the northern part of the belt is quickly being developed, the area under study will not be downgraded in the near future because it still contains more than 75% of the known reserves in the belt.Gold is found in a variety of geological environments which are part of a small number of distinct structural patterns. For the exploration geologist, outlining such patterns might be easier and more productive than defining, when it is possible, the exact genetic nature of the gold mineralization.Exploring in the right place has always been one of the main concerns of explorationists. This paper briefly describes the various favourable geological settings, and outlines areas, types of structure and lithologies of high potential for gold exploration in the southern Abitibi Belt.IntroductionThe southern part of the Abitibi Belt is a profilic mining area for precious and base metals (Lulin 1990). Although mineralizing processes and controls of polymetallic deposits are well known and understood (Lydon 1984), almost every gold occurrence is a unique case and numerous models have been proposed (Roberts 1987; Hodgson and McGeehan 1982; Hodgson 1990).This study does not define new genetic models for the formation of gold deposits, neither is it meant to elaborate on the existing ones. A genetic approach, is by definition, theoretical and, to some extent, universal. It helps geologists define types of targets and exploration tools but does not outline or quantify target areas. To tentatively summarize the complexity of a genetic approach, a brief discussion on the various genetic models in vogue in Abitibi and the problems related to their use in exploration can be found at the end of this paper."

Jan 1, 1991

By Mehmet Guney

This article is based on a detailed heat investigation conducted at the Rokana Division of Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines Limited while both authors were employed in Zambia. Mindola Mine is one of the three underground mines comprising the Rokana Division on the Copperbelt of Zambia, producing about 270,000 tons of ore per month at 1.9% Cu and 0.14% Co. The total volume of air being circulated by means of five primary fan installations slightly exceeds 1,000 m3/sec at standard density. Sectional bulk cooling is practised where air cooling coils are installed at primary splits some considerable distance from the stoping operations. Total capacity of the refrigeration complex is 10,500 kw (3,500 R. tons), of which about 7,000 kw is available as effective cooling power after losses, but the heat removed from the coifs is about 3,500 kw with 61% over-all plant performance. An extension program is planned for a further five production levels with the re-deepening of a sub-vertical shaft. Thermal heat will become a major problem at increased depth associated with higher rock temperature, higher thermal conductivity of the rock groups encountered and fissure water flowing into working areas through the strata with increased rock temperature. This paper describes the ventilation and refrigeration practices in Mindola Mine, with special reference to future thermal heat problems. These are discussed with a view to mining at depth.

Jan 1, 1979

By Dharmendr Kumar, Pradip, Sivakumar Subramanian, Beena Rai, Venugopal Tammishetti

The separation efficiency in a mineral processing plant is generally assessed and reported in terms of elemental assays constituting the minerals of interest. However, different minerals comprising of same elements behave differently under similar process conditions. Thus, it is imperative to track the mineral composition thank elemental composition of different streams in a processing plant. The availability of automated mineral analyzers such as QEMSCAN and TESCAN in recent times has made it possible. However, due to the high cost and expertise required, their adaptation in day to day monitoring of operations is not yet a common place. X-ray diffraction (XRD) profile fitting (Rietveld Refinement) is another technique which can provide estimates of mineral proportions in a sample. The results of Rietveld Refinement however are affected by coating of fines on coarse particles, method of sample preparation, particle size distribution of sample, elemental substitution in mineral crystal lattice. In the present work, we propose a simple and efficient method for quantitative estimation of minerals in iron ores using elemental assays and thermo-gravimetry analysis data. The minerals (hematite, goethite, gibbsite, kaolin and quartz) are identified using powder XRD analysis. It is also observed that goethite contains Al substitution in the crystal lattice. The samples were analyzed for %Fe, %Al2O3 and %Silica using chemical analysis. The measured Loss on Ignition (LOI) in the sample is contributed from goethite, gibbsite and kaolinite phases. LOI from gibbsite and goethite occur in temperature range 250–350°C and LOI from kaolinite occur in temperature range 400–700°C. According, LOI are determined in two different temperature ranges that are 100–400°C and 400–850°C. We have used the data to successfully determine the mineral compositions of iron ore samples. We have also employed a data reconciliation algorithm on the calculated data for further improvement and consistency of our results. Our method is very convenient for quick estimation of mineral proportions in a sample. The proposed method can also be used for quantitative phase estimation in bauxite ores and red muds.

Jan 1, 2016

By Gerald S. Cole

It used to be that a science/engineering presentation on "light weight" at a metallurgy conference, would relate to the materials science, processing, component fabrication and applications of aluminum, magnesium and titanium. Within the automotive industry, light weight now includes how to "lighten up", how to lightweight, or how to mass reduce vehicle components and systems. Increasingly stringent global emissions-reduction requirements require increasing vehicle fuel efficiency; mass reduction is an enabler to achieve this. While light metals certainly are the basis, a host of other materials can be used to optimize mass reduction while meeting vehicle performance, safety and cost requirements. New grades of ultrahigh strength steels and even nanosteels can be thinned down and save over 1/3 the mass vs conventional mild steels. A compacted graphite cast iron engine can be made lighter than an aluminum one. Aluminum components in vehicles were only castings; now aluminum stampings, forgings and extrusions are becoming more visible components of mass reduction. Lower mass high temperature polymers, and carbon fiber polymer composites now replace aluminum and steel. These materials often require specialized processing and manufacturing techniques to produce a component, including superplastically formed twin roll cast sheet aluminum and magnesium, and hot stamped/in-mold quenched steels. The assembly of hybrid structures requires unique joining/bonding, and corrosion-inhibiting techniques that might include sophisticated structural adhesives. This thinking "light" presentation, will conclude with a discussion of U.S. and Canadian government engineering and research support for mass reduction, including the proposed $148 M American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute.

Jan 1, 2014

By P. A. Gonzalez Contreras

Scorodite is considered as a secondary mineral formed from the product of weathering of primary minerals by chemical or biological reactions. In the case of biological scorodite formation, microorganisms mimic and accelerate what in nature takes a very long time, i.e. biocrystallisation. The goal of the biological scorodite formation is to form very stable arsenic crystals suitable for long-term and safe disposal. The biological formation of scorodite is a novel combination of biological oxidation, biocrystallisation, and proper bioreactor design to achieve the biological formation of scorodite crystals in one step. We have explored simultaneous biological arsenic and iron oxidation at 30ºC and at 70ºC leading to arsenic-jarosite phases and scorodite, respectively. As biologically formed scorodite crystals are very stable (TCLP < 1 mg/L As (V)), the risk of arsenic toxicity is minimized when leaching takes place. This process is suitable for arsenic concentrations above 0.5 g/l As achieving up to 20 mg/l As in the effluent. This biological scorodite formation system is a selfsufficient bio-oxidation system and therefore many new applications can be explored such as reprocessing of arsenic trioxide, orpiment or calcium arsenate to scorodite crystals for a stable and safe disposal.

Jan 1, 2014

By N. J. Contini, R. W. Knopp

"In March 1988, old Denver flotation cells were removed from Dickenson's Arthur w. White Mill, and a new flotation circuit, consisting of four Prochem rougher cells and a Hydrochem agitated cleaner column, was commissioned. The refractory portion of the gold in the ore is associated with arsenopyrite, therefore the flotation circuit is set up to produce a saleable sulphide concentrate. Tailings from the leach circuit are conditioned prior to being pumped as feed to the flotation circuit. The prototype Hydrochem agitated column has been in operation as a single cleaner stage for rougher concentrate. The effect of flotation circuit changes on gold recovery data, as well as cleaner concentrate production, and development work to achieve the target results, have been investigated. Flowsheet modifications and the resulting circuit performance data, along with test results to date, will be presented.INTRODUCTIONThe mill is capable of treating 1000 stpd of ore averaging approximately 0.30 oz/ton Au. The ore is crushed and ground to 75% - 200 mesh. Gravity concentration, cyanidation, and Merrill - Crowe precipitation yields 84% gold recovery. Detailed descriptions of the comminution, gravity separation, and leaching circuits, as well as background information have been presented elsewhere (Suttill, Van Weert et al). The target cleaner concentrate grade is 1.0 oz/ton Au for custom smelting and refining. Historical gold recovery values of the old circuit was approximately 20% of the gold present in the float feed at the target grade. The recovery value objective set for the new circuit during the planning stages was 50% of the gold present in the flotation feed at 1.0 oz/ton Au in cleaner concentrate."

Jan 1, 1989

By J. Scrimgeour

"The word ""instrumentation"" has expanded from its original meaning, which in engineering perhaps referred to measuring apparatus alone. In its broadest form, it now includes sensors, display instrumentation, standard pack-aged controllers and, most recently, the use of stored program computers for on-line process control. The paper traces the evolution, in tutorial form, of the successive application of mechanization, measurement instrumentation, automatic control, central operating systems, programmed control, process computer control, direct digital control and, finally, hierarchies of computers used for process control and corporate management as a fully integrated business system. In the field of industrial minerals, the cement industry has seen the most widespread acceptance of these techniques. Computer control has been accepted as the way of life for the blending of chemical materials and for on-line control of the cement kiln. Accordingly, the cement application is selected for further presentation in the paper. This illustrates the trend progressing from control of single loops on process variables toward the objective of total control of the product quality. The economic justification for instrumentation, centralized control, automatic control and computer control is .discussed with reference to savings in fuel, maintenance, operating labour, depreciation, power and product quality improvements."

Jan 1, 1967

By Sylvie Poirier

This paper focuses on new developments regarding thermal rock fragmentation applications. The technology consists in a strong burner powered by diesel fuel and air. The thermal reaction, which is created, allows for the enlargement of 125-mm to 450-mm holes by breaking the rock in a spalling effect. It has been used for over 30 years in Russian open pit mining. Following an agreement between Dynamitage T.C.G. Inc. and the owner of the technology, major improvements have been brought to this technology, allowing for the fabrication of a prototype suitable for the Canadian industry. In Russia and Ukraine, thermal rock fragmentation is actually used to drill large diameter holes in surface mining. Upon having acquired a better knowledge of this technology, it seems that it presents a great potential for selective mining in narrow-vein operations, for either surface or underground mining. Rocmec International Inc., a subsidiary of Dynamitage T.C.G. Inc., and Natural Resources Canada are technical partners in the evaluation of the operational parameters and environmental aspects, such as gas, heat, dust and fog emissions. Furthermore, Canada Economic Development is a financial partner in this project. This paper presents the technology and its history. It also reports on the changes brought to the equipment to adapt it to North American environments. A summary of the tests realized since 1995 is provided, along with the main conclusions obtained. The anticipated applications for the use of this technology in both surface and underground environments are described, such as open pit mining, bulk sampling and narrow-vein ore extraction. An estimate showing a comparison between the thermal fragmentation mining concept and the long-hole mining method is presented and, finally, the future developments planned are listed.

May 1, 2002

By L. Garrigues, M. Jarvis, M. Halhead, O. A. Bascur

"Large variability of ore types, escalating variables operating costs and increased throughput require large investment in sensors and systems in mineral processing operations. Mining and mineral processing plants collect and manage more data than a small city with much in real-time. The data is changing rapidly as internal and external conditions evolve. As corporations buy and sell assets, and reengineer their staff, the structure and tools that were used to understand this data is lost. This results in significant deterioration in the ability to maintain a smart operation. When data is recognized as a critical asset and managed as part of an infrastructure, it become a key enabler to help transform the entire operations. In many situations, all partners in business collaboration—such as join ventures, contract manufacturer, expert service providers, and operations and maintenance companies—need access to production and asset data. The emergence and maturation of Cloud technologies make it possible to easily connect the plants to external equipment suppliers and operational support service.This paper will share examples of how mineral processors have adopted new data strategies such as self-service business intelligence, cloud computing and internal/external collaboration.INTRODUCTIONOne of the main challenges in mineral and metallurgical processing plants is effective energy and water management. The lowering of ore grades requires higher throughputs while the ores are getting more complex with variable mineralogical compositions. Electrical energy supply is becoming a restriction in many countries. Rising water management costs has a direct impact on the profitability of the operations. Grade recovery versus energy consumption in copper production for both open pit and underground mines has been described by Fuerstenau (2001). Comminution uses over 55% of the energy to produce nonferrous metals while other operations require much less energy (Nelson, Richins, & Lelinski, 2013)."

Jan 1, 2016

By D. F. Machuca-Mory

The new algorithm for high-order simulation of ore deposit grades termed HOSIM is based on the concept of spatial cumulants. The algorithm is tested using data from Apensu, a structurally controlled gold deposit in Ghana. The required high-order spatial structures are obtained from a training image or analogue of the deposit. Using the available drillhole data and training image, HOSIM realizations are able to model well the grades and geometry of the large and well sampled mineralized structures. However, under-sampled small structures remain difficult to model. HOSIM offers a promising alternative for the spatial simulation of complex non-Gaussian orebody attributes of interest.

Jan 1, 2011

By R. Lovat, J. A. Hunter

"The design, development, and verification of the Lovat 7.6metre diameter full-face tunnel-boring machine is reviewed. Programmatic and technical challenges are outlined with a review of the specifications and the design to meet these requirements. Subsystem designs are presented for the waste material removal, ventilation, cutter head, structural support, advance technique, water removal, and interfaces with the Donkin-Morien Mine. The techniques used to verify that the design meets the requirements is by testing in the Lovat factory and in the field. Certification of the machine for use in a methane environment is discussed.IntroductionStudies have concluded that the average annual worldwide tunnel construction is 500 kilometres at an estimated average co st of $3,400 U.S . per linear metre. The total market value of the tunnelling industry is estimated as approximately $1.7 billion U.S. per annum. Of this, the current market for tunnelboring machine excavation is approximately $270 million U.S. per annum worldwide with a further potential of $250 million if more contractors are convinced that Tunnel-Boring Machines (TBM) are more suitable than conventional techniques. The worldwide civil tunnelling market has the potential to double each year in the next 5 to 15 years. Growth has been identified in the energy and mineral resources sectors of the economies of many nations and a significant volume of machine tunnelling studies and trials are presently underway for the extraction of coal, uranium , heavy oil or oil sand fuels, metallic and non-metallic industrial minerals and base metal or rare earth ores. Further tunnel projects for regional transportation, waterpower, irrigation , high density urban transportation, storm water sewers and water supply purposes are continually being implemented with new concepts like military security facilities and underground storage schemes being considered.Lo vat Tunnel Equipment of Rexdale, Ontario, the only Canadian manufacturer of TBMs was incorporated in 1973 to manufacture so ft ground tunnel-boring machines to satisfy this growing market demand. Lovat has produced an average of 5 machines per annum during the period 1972 - 1982 and has established an international reputation for competitive costs, quality of construction, after-sales service, and reliability. As of June 1982 Lovat TBM&apos;s have been used to tunnel over 240 km in projects throughout the world."

Jan 1, 1984

By H. Tan

The effect of carbonaceous matter on gold extraction was investigated in cyanide systems with pure gold as well as pre-robbing sulfide gold ores. Auger studies demonstrated that the carbonaceous matter preferentially smeared on iron sulfide rather than aluminosilicate surfaces during wet or dry grinding. During mechanically mixed leaching, coating of sulfides and silicates and stripping of carbonaceous matter occurred simultaneously. TEM and XPS studies indicated preferential coating in the form of elemental (graphitic) carbon at the edges and the defect sites of particles. Interestingly, carbonaceous matter extracted from the gold ore was predominantly graphite and not preg-robbing in a solution with a high KCN concentration. However, the carbonaceous coating had a significantly detrimental effect on gold dissolution when gold was pre-ground with the gold ore. Artificial coating on gold surfaces with the natural carbonaceous matter from the ore was also found to substantially retard gold dissolution. With the addition of the natural carbonaceous matter from the gold ore, gold extraction from two non preg-robbing sulfide gold ores was inhibited owing to carbonaceous coating. The presence of carbonaceous matter significantly reduced the current density for gold oxidation and increased the current density for pyrite oxidation. This could explain the fact that carbonaceous coating hindered gold dissolution while enhanced sulfide preg-robbing.

Jan 1, 2005

The control of AG mills fed by ores with harder and softer components can be challenging due to the sensitivity of the mill to the ratio of hard to soft components. The mills at LKAB?s iron ore operations are generally well controlled, but there are periods when the throughput falls off dramatically, due to a loss of mill filling. As the ore is upgraded in the sorting plant through magnetic separation prior to milling, this presents an opportunity to manipulate the feed blend in advance. In order to assess this opportunity, a fullscale mill charge was dumped and assayed by size to quantify the build-up of competent waste in the mills. This was supplemented by pilot and locked-cycle laboratory tests at a wide range of feed blends in order to facilitate the development of an appropriate multi-component AG mill model. This paper reports the experimental campaign requirements and methodologies, as well as the major outcomes from analysis and modelling exercises using the industrial, pilot and laboratory multi-component data.

Jan 1, 2012