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By Ulf Georg Gwildis

Overexcavation and ground loss events during pressurized-face TBMadvance in soft ground can result in unplanned deformations above the tunnel and damage to existing infrastructure. Successfully managing the risk of this occurring is crucial for any project in an urban area to proceed. Common risk management approaches include a combination of establishing suitable ranges of TBM operational parameters and using geotechnical instrumentation for deformation monitoring. Another risk management tool is material flow reconciliation, which varies depending on the specified mining method and the equipment choices by the contractor. This paper compares recent and ongoing projects in the Pacific Northwest regarding overexcavation risk management.

Jun 13, 2023

By Donald C. Violetta

During 1963 more than 200 million tons of coal was consumed by the public utility industry. Ash residual, from the burning of this coal has caused disposal problems. In order to prevent air pollution, dust collection systems have been installed to suppress the fine ash emitted from boilers before it is discharged into the atmosphere. The collected ash, called fly ash, must be removed from the dust collection facilities and disposed in some manner, usually at a substantial cost to the utility. Many years ago fly ash disposal was not a serious problem because the demand for power was relatively low and coarse coal was burned on stoker type traveling grate machines. The low burning rates utilized on these grates did not produce large quantities of air-borne coal ash while the mechanics of this system of burning resulted in a clinkered residue of cinders. Both of these conditions resulted in the production of only small quantities of fly ash. As the demand for electricity increased, a method of burning pulverized coal was developed and was introduced to the public utility industry in 1918 at Milwaukee, Wisconsin.1 This method of firing was considered a significant advance in steam electric generation as it (1) permitted the use of coals that could not be economically fired by other methods and (2) has generally resulted in improved efficiency, greater generating capacity and lower costs.2 The utilization of larger generating units using pulverized coal substantially increased the quantity of fly ash which resulted in a' more severe disposal problem.

Jan 1, 1966

By John D. Morgan

The U.S. economy annually needs over 4 billion tons of new mineral supplies. The value of domestically produced energy and processed materials of mineral origin exceeds $175 billion annually, but domestic production of both raw and processed minerals is not keeping pace with demand.

Jan 1, 1974

By Tom Learmont

The importance of coal in solving our energy problems has been widely discussed; the world demand for food requires increased fertilizer production and the minerals to produce fertilizer must be mined. We have seen an explosive increase in the demand for large stripping equipment. It is appropriate that we review this equipment and determine what can be done to improve productivity. While we have used coal mining as an example in the study, much of the discussion will apply equally to other forms of stripping.

Jan 1, 1975

By Morley H. Mathewson

The unprecedented demand for capital investment in the mining industry today has intensified management's interest in every known technique which will help to reduce operating costs and increase production. One proven approach leading to the accomplishment of this objective is well known in the mining industry and is gaining added prestige, particularly where keen competitive conditions exist. This approach is in the area of incentives applied to mining productivity. An investigation of many incentive plans now in use throughout the mining industry revealed a predominant number of conventional type plans, Most of these plans are designed to reward the hourly-paid employee on the basis of percent over and above a standard hourly or daily ton rate, By contrast, this search failed to divulge any incentive plan solely and independently developed for production management employees. This does not mean that such plans in the mining industry are nonexistnet, but it does indicate that production management incentive systems are scarce or are being kept under wraps.

Jan 1, 1960

By Alden B. Carpenter

Oil-field brines have been collected and analyzed from Jurassic and Cretaceous rocks in the Mississippi Salt Dome Basin, from Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous rocks, southwestern Arkansas, and from Ordovician and Silurian rocks, southern Michigan. All of these brines are genetically related to evaporites and appear to be brines expelled from halite-bearing rocks, presumably during compaction. The brines in rocks closest to the halite-bearing rocks are uniformly low in lead and zinc suggesting that the metals in metal-rich brines are not acquired within evaporite sequences. The metals in metal- rich brines in Mississippi and in Russia appear to be derived from red beds and may have been originally associated with ferric iron oxyhydroxides. Reduction of these compounds by migrating hydrocarbons appears to release lead and zinc to the associated brines accompanied by the fomation of authigenic ankerite.

Jan 1, 1979

By J. A. Botín

Investment decision for large mining projects imply an enormous financial risk and therefore, require a more complex risk evaluation methodology taking into account all sources of uncertainty from each process in the project value chain. Generally, the main sources of risk are those related to uncertainty on grade and other techical variables of the orebody. In this study, conditional simulation is applied to develop a risk management model to quantify and to manage financial risk associated to uncertainty on the grade of the orebody. The model was validated in case study on a real porphyry copper orebody in Chile.

Feb 23, 2014

By W. M. Hart

The current Automatic Data Acquisition system developed by some support manufacturers makes it possible to continuously monitor and record changes in leg pressure and advancing ram stroke in every shield, and shearer position at any moment during the mining operation. In order to effectively use the massive data obtained from this system for improving production and maintenance managements as well as providing better roof control at a longwall face, the research currently conducted jointly by West Virginia University and Cyprus-Amax Coal Co. attempts to develop a Longwall Management System for mine operators. The LMS software package runs on a MS Windows NT environment and consists of four sub-systems: (1) Data Interpretation and Analysis; (2) Production Management; (3) Maintenance Management; and (4) Ground Control. This paper presents the details of each sub-system.

Jan 1, 1995

By M. K. Boateng, K. Awuah-Offei

"Language barrier in a workplace affects workers’ productivity and safety. The objectives of this paper are to: (1) review the various approaches for breaking language barriers among miners; and (2) analyze the costs and benefits of these approaches, and make recommendations on the way forward. The authors achieve these objectives by reviewing the current approaches in breaking language barriers among miners. The review reveals that some of these approaches can be expensive with less benefits. Thus, it is concluded that mining companies should carefully select the optimal approach to break language barrier. INTRODUCTION Multi-national mining companies have expanded their operations into non-traditional mining destinations to grow and meet market expectations. For instance, Newmont Mining Corporation has about 14 operations and projects located in Africa, Asia, Australia and America (Newmont Mining Corporation Operations and Projects, 2015). Similarly, Freeport-McMoRan operates about 14 mines in North America, South America, Southern Asia, and Africa (Freeport-McMoRan Inc., 2015). Some mining companies have also attracted expatriate workers into their workforce. For example, Ma’aden, the Saudi Arabian mining company, in its 2013 annual report states that 34% of its total employees are expatriates (Ma'aden, 2013). Expatriates constitute a key source of skilled labor and facilitate skill transfer. The success of many international operations relies greatly on expatriate performance (Erbacher, D'Netto & Espana, 2006). Even companies that do not expand their operations into other foreign countries still have to deal with language barriers due to changing language demography of the country and the areas from which labor is sourced. For example, the language composition of the workforce and languages used in South African mines is diverse with miners proficient in Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa and others to varying degrees (Research Focus (Pty) Ltd, 2011). As a result of these trends, most mines today operate with a multinational workforce. This means cultural differences, including language barriers, exist among the miners. Marschan-Piekkari, Welch and Welch (1999) emphasize the fact that language problems become prominent as companies internationalize and grow their operations into more countries. According to a survey by Forbes, language barrier affects operations. For example, business owners acknowledge that language proficiency may promote a safer work environment (Rubin, 2011). A research has shown that language and cultural barriers in a workplace contributes to reducing workers’ productivity, increasing accidents, and hurts employers’ ability to recruit, hire and retain workers (Morris, 2002). Hence, mines are making efforts to break language barriers in their operating environments. Ma’aden, for instance reported in 2013 that 1,506 of its employees received training in English as a second language (Ma'aden, 2013)."

Jan 1, 2016

By Thomas A. Gwynn

When Lewis and Clark first pushed their boats up the Missouri River, Meriwether Lewis reported the presence of coal in the western states by saying in 1802 that it "burnt tolerably well and afforded but little flame or smoke but produced a hot and lasting fire". Lewis would have been amazed and bewildered at the history of coal development in this region and the more recent political-socio-economic-environmental confrontations of today. Certainly without this coal the railroads would not have readily pushed into our western states, and the progress of this region would have suffered. The coal industry has passed from a period when "coal was king" to a period of depression in the industry, but its importance is being revived. A contributing and simultaneous environmental concern has emerged in the nation and in many states during the past ten years, partly caused by newly imposed standards for sulfur content of fuels. Much of the midwest and eastern coal cannot be used because of high sulfur content, shifting attention to the low sulfur coal deposits of the western states. In the western states, lands disturbed by strip mining or even underlain by strippable coal are small compared to the total acreage, and usually mining operations are on lands not under cultivation. There are some farm lands being disturbed by surface mining, but this is often over-emphasized. In states like New Mexico and Arizona the percentage is less. The value of the minerals underlying the surface certainly must be considered along with the value of the surface, and sometimes proper reclamation following mining can result in higher ultimate usage of the land.

Jan 1, 1974

By R. A. Jankowski

The U.S. Bureau of Mines has conducted a study to identify the sources of respirable dust and appropriate dust controls applicable to today's high tonnage longwall faces. The primary source of respirable dust identified is the cutting action of the shearer; however, the pct contribution of dust from coal transport through the stageloader/crusher was significant. This was primarily due to the high rate of mining, requiring rapid and constant coal transport. Techniques implemented for the control of shearer-generated dust included high drum water flow rates, deep cutting, shearer-clearer-type external water spray systems, and radio-remote control. The high water flow rates, and an enclosed stageloader with scrubber, were used to control dust during coal transport. No novel or effective control technology exists to control dust during support advance. Administrative controls for dust avoidance, and manual and batch-activated electro-hydraulic control systems were used to keep support movers out of the dust generated during support advance.

Jan 1, 1990

By Robert D. Harris

In 1958, the coal industry, through Bituminous Coal Research, Inc., and the electric utility industry, through the Edison Electric Institute and the Association of Edison Illuminating Companies, initiated a joint program to study coal pyrite and its removal as a means of lowering the sulfur content of steam coals. It was assumed that significant amounts of pyrite often remained in washed steam coal not because available systems for coal cleaning were inadequate, but because the pyrite was small and widely disseminated, During the first two years, samples of coal were examined petrographically to determine the size, association, and mode of occurrence of the pyrite in the raw coal and in the products of laboratory separation, Samples of coal were also pulverized in different equipment to determine how effectively pyrite was released by pulverization and if the mode of pulverization affected the liberation of pyrite. From these studies, the following tentative conclusions were made (1 ): 1. Much of the coal pyrite is within a 250-70 micron size range, and therefore is too small to be removed by conventional coal cleaning, but relatively large when compared to the size of coal as pulverized for combustion in large boilers. 2. The degree of pyrite liberation is mainly determined by the size of the product and not by the type of crusher. 3. For improved pyrite removal, the coal should be cleaned during or after pulverization at the power station.

Jan 1, 1965

By Thomas S. Nye

Mineral exploration in the United States relies heavily on theoretical geologic concepts and indirect methods such as geophysics and geochemical prospecting, as there are few exposed areas of mineralization which have not already been explored at least once. In Mexico ore-grade samples can be cut at the surface on vein, replacement, and disseminated types of deposits in many areas. Here the problem is not in finding a mineralized area but in deciding which mineralized area can be explored and developed at the least risk and cost, and have the greatest profit potential, within the framework of Mexican mineral economics and government policies. Mexico's min¬eral industry is regulated through a system of permits for various phases of mineral exploitation, and by taxes. This regulation and its effects are not unlike those which may be expected in the United States if present legislative and administrative trends continue.

Jan 1, 1972

By M. A. Giralico

A new generation of hydraulic efficient pumper and auxiliary impeller designs is the result of an extensive research program focused on improving the overall performance of optimized SX/EW plants. Combined with the proper scale-up, these optimized designs will greatly reduce aqueous and organic entrainment losses, reduce or eliminate air entrainment and crud formation, enhance mass-transfer and maximize the overall copper yield. Currently, these new pumper and auxiliary impellers are installed full-scale in numerous plants ranging in flow rates from 90 to 15000 G.P.M. and developed heads up to 51 inches. Operational results reported by the independent metallurgist at each processing plant are reporting the lowest entrainment results in the industry. Further R&D has just been completed on a new mixing configuration that separates the systems mixing and pumping requirements. Results from the system pilot test document further improvements in reduction of both chemical entrainment and crud formation, while keeping mass transfer stage efficiencies.

Jan 1, 1998

By Lewis J. Patterson

In the period of time allotted to this paper, an attempt will be made to cover a great deal of territory, figuratively speaking, as far as our experience with ammonium nitrate is concerned. In giving this subject the "broad-brush" treatment, it will be necessary to generalize on the major points which at the same time will permit me to avoid, to a great extent, any involvement in the purely technical and theoretical aspects of blasting. The practice of theorizing before a new idea is tried has practically been discontinued in our organization simply because experience has shown that, almost without exception, theories have fallen aside as some new development takes its place. In regard to blasting, logic and experience seem to have little place in this phase of quarry operations. As the use of low cost blasting agents was introduced in our operating practice, a man who had no previous experience in the field of blasting but with sound knowledge in safety procedures was given the responsibility of supervising the drilling and blasting operations. A total lack of experience is not ordinarily recommended as a prerequisite to assuming the responsibilities of a supervisory position. However, in this case it was obviously a wise decision because there were no pre-conceived ideas as to what techniques would or would not be successful.

Jan 1, 1958

By C. J. Weiss

"A commercially available Through-the-Earth (TTE) communications system was evaluated at an underground coal mine in eastern Kentucky. This field study was conducted as part of a larger multi-site evaluation of available TTE systems to determine their operational sensitivity. Field testing is being performed along with simulation techniques developed for geophysical surveys. The results of the field test will additionally be used to determine the applicability of these simulation techniques to TTE communications. The mine detailed in this paper was idled at the time of the study, which provided the nearest practical representation of a post-event mine shutdown. For this study, the three following communication modes were tested: surface-to-underground, underground-to-surface and surface-to-surface. Standard deployments of the TTE system using the manufacturer’s recommended procedures were able to achieve clear communications between underground and surface locations. Other arrangements of the units yielded intriguing results, some of which were predicted by computer simulations, others were unexpected. Future experimentation is planned to further evaluate the observed phenomena. INTRODUCTION The ability to establish effective communication between surface and underground personnel after a mine event is essential for both mine evacuation and mine rescue efforts. Current communication technology is reliant on physical infrastructure, such as antennas, cables, and repeaters, located throughout the mine. Such systems are easily disabled during a mine event because of their vulnerability to physical damage. A true emergency communications system would have the ability to function regardless of a mine’s physical state. Through-the-Earth (TTE) wireless communications technology has the potential to provide such a tool. Wireless TTE communications are exceptionally challenging because electromagnetic (EM), or radio, signals are subject to drastic attenuation as they travel through solid strata. In addition to attenuation, EM wave propagation is directly affected by the physical and petrographic characteristics, mineral compositions, metamorphic properties, and the degree of water infiltrations in the strata [1-5]. These strata characteristics are unique to each mine thus making the design of an effective, universally deployable, and reliable TTE communications system very difficult. At present, TTE technology is in the preliminary stages of practical deployment with only a few permissible TTE systems commercially available."

Jan 1, 2015

By Richard A. Thomas, Liming Yuan, Wei Tang, JOHN SOLES

Lithium-ion battery applications are increasing for battery-powered vehicles because of their high energy density and expected long cycle life. With the development of battery-powered vehicles, fire and explosion hazards associated with lithium-ion batteries are a safety issue that needs to be addressed. Lithium-ion batteries can go through a thermal runaway under different abuse conditions including thermal abuse, mechanical abuse, and electrical abuse, leading to a fire or explosion. The NIOSH Mining program is conducting research to prevent and respond to lithium-ion battery fires for battery electric vehicles in the mining industry. In this study, experiments were conducted to investigate the effectiveness of different suppression systems including dry chemical, class D powder, and water mist for lithium iron phosphate battery pack fires. The effects of activation time and release time of the water mist system on the suppression of lithium-ion battery fires were studied. The results of this study may be helpful for developing strategic firefighting and response plans for battery-powered vehicles used in mining.

Feb 17, 2024

By James R. Jones

The tempo of air pollution control regulations has increased dramatically in the past few years. Because coal mining operations are frequently located in remote areas away from urban developments, specific regulations applying to coal mines have received lower priority and are thus only now being promulgated and/or enforced. Therefore, many mine operators are not yet familiar with the regulations and the impact upon their method of operations. Few have been faced with an inspector on the property sighting them for specific violations. Several of the Mid-western states are just now requiring permit applications to be submitted.

Jan 1, 1973

By M. Z. Rashad

The purpose of this paper was to compare the covariance and multiquadric functions in same mining and geological applications. The basic principals of the two techniques are covered briefly. Similarities and dissimilarities of the covariance and multiquadric functions are discussed geometrically, mathematically and practically. A 14 by 16 kilometer square area in Baharia Oasis, Western Desert of Egypt, was selected for a detailed comparative test. The gravity anomalies of forty-eight test stations were computed by using the data of sixty-three control stations. The results indicated that the covariance function is quite better than the multiquadric one. On the other hand, the multiquadric function more simple in computation than the other one, which needs to precalculations such as semivariogram and covariogram. Moreover, multiquadric equations are based on geometrical and physical considerations rather than covariance functions.

Jan 1, 1990

By J. D. Miller

"Bastnaesite is one of the important mineral resources for the production of rare earth materials, and it is typically associated with calcite and quartz as gangue minerals. Fatty acid or hydroxamic acid are recommended collectors for bastnaesite flotation. In this research, potassium lauryl phosphate was expected to provide a stronger flotation response for bastnaesite than for the calcite and quartz gangue minerals. Using potassium lauryl phosphate as collector, the results of captive bubble contact angle measurements, zeta potential determinations and microflotation experiments for bastnaesite, calcite and quartz are reported. Greater selectivity for bastnaesite was achieved using potassium lauryl phosphate than using octyl hydroxamate as collector. These results indicate that potassium lauryl phosphate might be a promising collector in the flotation of bastnaesite ores. The computation results of universal force field (UFF) interaction energies for the mineral-reagent interactions are also reported and were found to correlate well with the experimental microflotation results.IntroductionBastnaesite ((Ce,La)FCO3) belongs to the mineral class of semisoluble salt minerals, whose characteristics include ionic bonding and limited solubility in water. Bastnaesite, for the most part, contains the cerium subgroup or the lighter rare earth elements (Zhou et al., 2014). The Mountain Pass deposit in California in the United States and the Bayan Obo deposit in Mongolia in China are the two major deposits of bastnaesite (Azizi et al., 2016; Satur et al., 2016). Calcite and/ or quartz are common gangue minerals in these and many other rare earth deposits (Jordens et al., 2014)"

Jan 1, 2017