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By Ricardo Oliveira Gallart de Menezes, Claudio Gerheim Porto, Reiner Neumann

This study presents the results of the mineralogical characterization of Ti-Zr ore from the Jiboia deposit, located in the municipality of Brejo Grande, Sergipe State, Brazil. The goal is to identify the main Ti, Zr, and REE carrier phases in the different particle size fractions in order to subsidize the development of a cost-effective processing route for the production of heavy minerals concentrate. The mineral resources are estimated at 31.5Mt @ 3.5% of total heavy minerals (THM) for the Jiboia Ti-Zr deposit, of which 5 Mt @ 3.39% THM were classified as measured and indicated. The mineralogy of the heavy mineral concentrate recalculated to 100% is represented by 22% pseudorutile, 20% ilmenite, 15% zircon, 5% rutile, 2% monazite, and 36% gangue. The ore minerals are preferably concentrated in the 150 × 53-μm granulometric fractions, which represents 80% of the THM and only 27% of the ROM (Run-of-Mine) ore. Therefore, by cutting the ore to 150 μm, it is possible to discard 73% of the ROM mass and recover 80% of the THM, including 100% of the zircon and monazite which are the most valuable minerals present in the heavy mineral concentrate. The global recovery of THM starts to decline rapidly in the fractions finer than 106 μm and the mass disposal (tailing) does not follow in the same proportion. Higher zircon contents in the concentrates of the fractions finer than 150 μm imply a significantly lower recovery of heavy minerals like ilmenite, pseudorutile, and rutile that make the fractions coarser than 150 μm.

Jan 9, 2024

By REHMAN ATTA UR, Kwame Awuah-Offei

This work evaluated the effects of bucket orientation and operating parameters on resistive forces and penetration for rubber-tire loaders (RTLs), such as load-haul-dumps (LHDs) and front-end loaders (FELs). The work used a 1:16 scale LHD model to test an RTL bucket operating at different levels of traction (tractive effort), speed, digging height and rake angles in a full factorial design experiment. The test was repeated on two muck piles with different particle sizes, and generalized regression modeling was applied to test the association of rake angle, tractive effort, speed and digging height on penetration and resistive forces for RTL buckets. The results show that speed and tractive effort are more important in explaining RTL penetration and resistive forces than height above the floor and rake angle. Speed, tractive effort and height above the floor are positively correlated to bucket penetration, whereas the rake angle is negatively correlated to penetration. Similarly, speed, tractive effort, rake angle and height above the floor are all positively correlated to resistive forces incurred during initial penetration. The results show that the combined effect of speed and tractive effort is negatively correlated to penetration and resistive forces — a novel finding that enhances our understanding of RTL loading. The results also show that the effects of speed, tractive effort and height above the floor all change with changes in particle sizes. This work provides insights into the effects of rake angle, height above the floor, tractive effort and speed on penetration and resistive forces for RTLs to facilitate better design and efficient use of these loaders.

By PETER ROBINSON, KEVIN BARBER, OLIVER WHATNALL

The investigation and uptake of filtered tailings continues to grow around the world, but cost and scalability are deterrents for mining companies. Filtration technology that is currently in use is unable to meet the needs of many operations and projects that would otherwise adopt filtered tailings. For tailings to reach the desired moisture content for dry stacking, the majority of processes require pressure filtration, with significant upfront and ongoing maintenance costs. Given the comparative lower costs associated with low-pressure Viper vacuum belt filtration, this technology has the potential to alleviate dependency on high-pressure applications and make efficient dewatering and handling of tailings a more economic and sustainable solution.

When studying minerals degrees at university, all the emphasis is towards sending the graduates into the bush to work at a remote mine; however, that is not the only option available to new graduates. There are positions in equipment supply companies, commercial laboratories, research organisations, engineering companies and contractors of many types. The aim of this paper is to show metallurgy graduates that there are non-mine site based career options available to them that offer outstanding career development. This is illustrated by outlining the research being undertaken by Magotteaux Australia and by telling the story of a graduate metallurgist working in MagotteauxÆs small research group. Magotteaux is an international supplier of grinding media and wear resistant components for the mining industry. The Australian research group is focused on determining the effects that the choice of grinding media has on subsequent processing, for example flotation and leaching, by using newly developed tools and techniques.

Jan 1, 2006

By W. R. Ingalls

THE following chronology presents the history of lead-mining in the United States in a brief form and is a useful reference in connection with the statistics of production 1621. Lead was mined and smelted near Falling Creek, Va., to supply the local demand for bullets and shot. This was the first mining and smelting of lead in what is now the United States. 1632. In a report made on the minerals of New England, lead-ore is mentioned. (Bishop, I., 470.) 1650. Supposed beginning of mining by Jesuits in Pima county, Ariz. 1651. Grant of lead-mine at Middletown, Conn., to Gov. John Winthrop.

Jan 9, 1907

As the high-grade copper deposits in the world become depleted, there is an increasing focus on developing lower-grade ores which contain problematic impurities such as arsenic. Indeed, many high-arsenic ore bodies remain undeveloped because of their high arsenic levels. Separation of arsenic from copper at the beneficiation stage is difficult using the current processing techniques and invariably copper concentrates produced from these ores contain high arsenic levels, sometimes so high as to make them unacceptable to copper smelters. New, sustainable approaches are needed to allow development of high-arsenic copper ores while at the same time minimizing arsenic dispersion into the biosphere. The most promising route for separating arsenic from copper at the flotation stage centers on the use of pulp potential control. In recent years CSIRO has demonstrated at laboratory scale, for a number of high-arsenic copper ores, that crude flotation separation between arsenic-bearing minerals and copper-bearing minerals can be made. The differences in specific minerals responses to changes in pulp potential and pulp pH are exploited for this separation. Such separations nominally produce a low-arsenic high-copper concentrate and a low-copper high-arsenic concentrate. The former can be smelted without penalty, while the latter requires further treatment to capture and stabilize the arsenic and to recover the residual copper. Consideration has now been given to treatment options for the high-arsenic low-copper product. A pyrometallurgical option, involving a low temperature roast to selectively fume off the arsenic and leave a high-copper calcine, coupled with an arsenic stabilization step, has been demonstrated in the laboratory, and a preliminary techno-economic evaluation shows the process to be economically favorable. These results were recently published. CSIRO has now investigated an alternate hydrometallurgical option, involving atmospheric alkaline sulphide leaching of the high-arsenic product, where the arsenic is selectively dissolved leaving a copper-rich leach residue. The leaching testwork was carried at on the same high-arsenic low-copper material used in the roasting studies, enabling a techno-economic comparison of the alternate roasting and leaching treatment options to be made. The alkaline leaching work is briefly described and the results of the process option comparison presented and discussed. Keywords: arsenic, copper, economics, enargite, ore flotation, tennantite INTRODUCTION

Sep 1, 2012

By Ekin Güngor, Berkant Ozdemir, Erkan Bayrak, Serdar Ergün, Sedat Esen

"This paper presents the final wall blasting practices at Eldorado Kisladag Gold Mine in Turkey. Benchmark and improved wall control designs were explained in detail. Kisladag Mine has been implementing a high quality slope stability program on-site. The quality of pit walls is generally considered excellent, with very few wall failures being evident and with presplit hole barrels prominent in most areas of the pit. However, a minor scale slope failure occurred recently at the north-east section the pit. A project was initiated to diagnose the cause of the crest loss and evaluate ways to limit its effect on final walls. Final wall blasting practices and geotechnical designs were evaluated. The work presented in this paper showed that changes to the blasting and geotechnical parameters are required atthe north-east section of the pit. Geotechnical design changes were 10 m bench heights with 70 ° slope face angle at that specific area. Having implemented several geotechnical and blast design changes (elimination of the subdrill for the catch bench, appropriate primer location, more favorable blast tie-up and delays), the crest loss was minimized significantly (<1.5 m) (<5 ft)."

Jan 1, 2017

By B Hawkins, S Durkin, V Lawrence

The requirement for secondary egress from underground workings has long been regulated in Australia. Escape way systems have evolved from simple airleg rising ladders and timber ladders to steel galvanised ladders and more recently fully enclosed polyethylene ladders.The polyethylene ladder, Safescape Laddertube, was introduced to the underground mining industry in 2010. It is an enclosed cylindrical modular plastic ladder designed for use in underground escape ways and access ways. Since its first installation in May 2010, the Laddertube has been installed in 43 mines across four countries, totalling 8800 m of ladders installed to December 2013.The Cracow Gold mine is one operation using Laddertube, located 500 km north-west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Upon discovering and developing both the Empire and Roses Pride orebodies, a safe and economically viable secondary egress system and surface primary ventilation exhaust shafts were necessary to support development and production activities to these workings. The need arose to merge these two critical requirements together between surface and underground mine workings some 200 m and 400 m respectively for each orebody. Neither egress has intermediate access points within their full service length from top to bottom. Several options were considered, the preferable and most feasible method adopted was Laddertube.The longest egress length requiring Laddertube within the two vertical surface exhaust shafts was 400 m long, within a 3.5 m diameter shaft. Due to the length of the vertical Laddertube system in both egresses, personnel are to be assisted by mechanical means using the Extended Ladder Climb Assist system.The Gossan Hill mine also uses Laddertube for their escape ways. Part of the Golden Grove operation, Gossan Hill is an underground sublevel open stoping mine located in the mid-west of Western Australia.With a considerable mine life remaining and a history of acidic water and stress related deterioration in vertical openings, the mine operators sought an escape way solution that would provide for the long-term needs of Gossan Hill. Laddertube was selected due to its non-corrosive properties and the ability to fill in around the ladder way to provide stability to the raise opening.Laddertube is a recent development in escape way systems, and is effectively being applied in a variety of operations, meeting the specific needs of underground mines.CITATION:Durkin, S, Hawkins, B and Lawrence, V, 2014. The application of Safescape Ladders at the Cracow and Golden Grove operations, in Proceedings 12th AusIMM Underground Operators’ Conference 2014 , pp 311–318 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Mar 24, 2014

By Emily Wortman-Wunder

As the 2010 president of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc., I am pleased to present the 2010 issue of Transactions of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Vol. 328. A significant portion of the contribution that we as a professional society make is the publication of professional and technical papers that accelerate the advancement of scientific knowledge and enable transfer of technology. Communication within the mining community is the key to a successful society. Through books, magazines, meetings and electronic media, we accomplish the technology exchange that is fundamental to the existence of the Society. This technology exchange continues a tradition that dates back to the 1871 meeting of 22 mining engineers in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, that resulted in the founding of AIME; those individuals envisioned that these transaction volumes “would form a most valuable and greatly needed addition to our professional literature.” This volume certainly fulfills that pledge. The 2010 Transactions is the first Transactions to take advantage of new publication technologies. It appears solely as an e-book. The decision to go to an all-digital format for this longstanding publication was a difficult one, but one which will certainly better serve the mining community. I am excited about this development and the opportunities it presents. The 2010 Transactions also contain some of the most exciting research from the past year, including new developments in mineral processing, safety and exploration. Be sure not to miss the two Minerals & Metallurgical Processing issues on the subject of gold hydrometallurgy. This 2010 Transactions comprise of a total of 78 technical papers (582 pages including index), including all 21 papers (136 pages) that were published in 2010 in the Technical Papers Section of Mining Engineering magazine (Vol. 62) and all 34 papers (231 pages) that were published in 2010 in Minerals & Metallurgical Processing (Vol. 27). Addition, this volume contains 23 papers (194 pages) that are being published for the first time in this issue. The papers presented in this volume were written by some of the most distinguished professionals in the industry worldwide. All 78 technical papers were peer-reviewed. The process of review and publication requires much hard work by authors, reviewers and our publications staff. As the 2010 president of SME and on behalf of all our members, I would like to extend our gratitude to all whose volunteer efforts contributed to the publication of this volume.

Jan 1, 2010

By William Gleason

"Caterpillar is the largest manufacturer of mining equipment in the world. In hundreds of surface mines around the globe, Caterpillar’s flagship 793 haul trucks can be found moving material for copper, coal, gold, iron ore and other mines. Likewise, its iconic yellow bulldozers are at mine sites the world over — the company recently announced the sale of its 40,000th large dozer. And since its acquisition of Bucyrus in 2011, Caterpillar has positioned itself to become a worldwide leader in the underground mining sector as well.But don’t think that the company is resting on its reputation. As evidence of its commitment to the global mining sector, as well as its confidence in the future of mining, Caterpillar invited mining trade press, including Mining Engineering, to its Tinaja Hills Training Center near Tucson, AZ in November to introduce the latest editions to its mining portfolio. The two-day event focused mostly on the newest electric drive haul trucks, the Cat 796 AC, which will operate in the 326-t (360-st) class, and the 798 AC in the 360 t (400 st) weight class.Caterpillar representatives also spoke about new offerings in the underground space as well as the newest version of the D11 large dozer.“It has been 10 years since we launched the F Series,” Jean Savage, Caterpillar’s vice president, surface mining and technology said. “Since then, we have been on a journey to serve our mining customers and we wanted to have trucks in every application. Today, we are launching two new trucks that will allow us to fill out our portfolio.”While Caterpillar previously offered the broadest range of off-highway haul trucks to the mining industry, it was noticeably absent from the 326-t (360- st) and 360-t (400-st) weight classes."

Dec 1, 2018

By SIMON DIAZ-QUEZADA, HUMBERTO ESTAY

The heap-leaching process is widely used for recovering different metals. In Chile, copper production by heap leaching has been accounting for between 30 and 40 percent of annual copper production over the last 10 years. This level of production has been achieved through and supported by the use of a mathematical relation known as the leaching ratio (LR), which correlates operational parameters with metal extraction in a heap-leaching operation. In spite of the widespread industrial use of this relation, few scientific studies mention it. This disparity between industrial practice and scientific research could lead to operational decisions that lack substantial theoretical support and to scientific studies with limited industrial impact. This study describes the LR and its current uses and limitations.

By Steve Kral

The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) was established in 1932 in response to proposed regulations that would have threatened prospectors in Ontario. From there, the association grew to represent the interests of Canada?s mineral exploration and development industry. The PDAC?s mission statement reads: ?The PDAC exists to protect and promote the interests of the Canadian mineral exploration sector and to ensure a robust mining industry in Canada. The PDAC will encourage the highest standards of technical, environment, safety and social practices in Canada and internationally. ?Today, the PDAC?s 6,000 individual members include prospectors, developers, geoscientists, consultants, mining executives and students. In addition, the association?s membership includes 950 corporate members, representing senior, mid-sized and junior mining companies in addition to organizations that provide services and equipment to the mining industry. In 2010, the PDAC adopted its e3 Plus principles, a framework to guide its membership in responsible exploration.

Jan 1, 2011

By L. Simpson

South African is a repository of significant deposits of a variety of minerals. The Citigroup confirms this assertion with an estimate of in-situ valuation of US$2.5 Trillion. The mining sector plays an important role in the South African economy. In addition to the mineral resource base South Africa has other comparative advantages. Firstly, South Africa retains major mining companies that participate globally, including Anglo American, Goldfields and De Beers. Their global involvement offers much to the local mining sector and the broader economy. Secondly, government established research councils. The Council for Geoscience (CGS) was established to manage the Geological Survey of South Africa, including the reduction of geo-scientific investment risk. The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) promotes industrial development, including mining technology development. Mintek undertakes mineral research from mineral examination of ores, to extraction and refining technologies and manufacture of end products. Thirdly, South African universities teach and conduct research along the mineral value chain. They have increased their minerals graduates? capacity, thus advancing knowledge and skills. Knowledge and technical progress are behind productivity growth and emergence of competitive advantage. The research and development (R&D) capabilities of industry, science councils and universities, working in unison, will enhance the competitiveness of the South African mining industry. The National System of Innovation (NSI) requires multi-disciplinary, collaborative research. Key R&D elements, including skills and expertise, funding and facilities, must be available to implement a long-term national strategy or programme. Improved international collaboration and partnerships between government, academia and industry driven human resource development (HRD), ultimately develop the critical mass for inter-generational skills requirements. This trend requires an expansion of research collaboration programmes. Decisions involving investments and collaborative actions pertaining to R&D in the sector necessitate an analysis of the South African mineral value chain R&D capability. This paper analyses the evolution of R&D capability from exploration to refining, tertiary education, science councils and industry. The political economy of the evolution of this capability is analyzed in relation to the central role that the South African government plays in creating an appropriate supporting environment and related initiatives to enhance R&D and innovation. Keywords: research and development (R&D), science councils, universities, industry, innovation policy, South Africa

Sep 1, 2012

By N. Kumar, A. K. Dhawan, A. Varughese, S. K. Khullar

Abstract The in-situ stress field is one of the primary parameters influencing the performance of underground structures particularly in the Himalayas where there is strong influence of topography and geology on in-situ stresses. It is always advisable to measure the in-situ stresses, in whatever best way possible. Hydrofracturing is one of the methods by which in-situ stress can be measured. This paper briefly describes details of the concept of Hydrofracturing in arriving at the in-situ stresses of the rock mass at Pancheswar Project. The data obtained from the tests has been analysed, interpreted and the results are presented in this paper. Kurzfassung Das Spannungsfeld an Ort und Stelle ist einer der wichtigsten Parameter, die das Verhalten der Untergrund-Struktur beeinflussen, insbesondere in den Himalayas, wo die Topografie und die Geologie einen grossen Einfluss auf die oertlichen Spannungen ausueben. Es empfiehlt sich stets die Spannungen an Ort und Stelle so gut wie moeglich zu erfassen. Die Hydrofraktur bzw hydrografisches Zerstueckeln ist eine der Methoden, die bei den Messungen der oertlichen Spannungen verwendet werden koennen. Diese Abhandlung beschreibt kurz Einzelheiten ueber das Konzept von Hydrofraktur bei der Bestimmung der Spannungen an Ort und Stelle von der Felsmasse bezueglich des Projekts Pancheshwar. Die gewonnenen Daten aus den Messungen wurden analysieret und ausgewertet. Die Ergebnisse werden dabei vorgelegt. Sommaire Le champ de contraintes in-situ est un des paramèters principaux influencant l’exécution des structures souterraines particulierèment en Himalaya où les forces in-situ sont fortement influencées par les caractéristiques topographiques et géologiques de la région. La fracturation hydraulique est une technique qui permet de mesurer des forces in-situ des massifs rocheux. Cet article décrit brièvement le mécanisme de fracturation hydraulique et présente les résultats de mesure des forces in-situ des roches au site du projet hydroélectrique de Pancheswar.

Jan 1, 2003

By P. James

"INTRODUCTION Control of target stream acidity is widely used in MIW (mining influenced water). Tailoring pH (a measure of acidity) finds application for controlling key chemistry in both process and waste streams. Traditional lime addition for neutralization and precipitation is most often used but has high reagent costs and results in large amounts of mixed metal sludge requiring costly disposal. A new adaptation of BPS’s patented DEMET™ technology (Dynamic Electrolytic Metal Effluent Treatment) platform offers a potentially improved and “reagentless” alternative to traditional chemical addition for pH adjustment. Electricity rather than chemical addition utilized in BPS’s proprietary approach controllably tailors target stream pH. The method offers a simple, low-cost processing technique yielding cleaner treatment chemistry. BPS’s “green” approach may yield lower operating (OPEX) and life cycle costs and significant reductions (up to 50%) in sludge generation compared to conventional lime treatment. It can also allow new opportunities to generate revenue via selective recovery of valuable processing byproducts. Specific savings and revenues depend on the target site chemistries, details, and processing goals. A more detailed discussion of the process and its operational principles may be found in Reference One.[1] Here application of the BPS treatment to POx (Pressure Oxidation) leaching as an alternative to traditional chemical addition is examined. An example operation process flow for gold mining is considered.[2] Promising processing points for potentially replacing conventional processes with DEMET are noted. The possibilities for lowering OPEX costs, lessening sludge creation, and capturing various valuable byproducts and residuals are examined. Financial life cycle benefit estimates of the principal gains provided by DEMET application to the example operation are noted. Extension and generalization of the analyses to a wider range of scenarios is explored."

Jan 1, 2016

By H. Wallin, I. G. Wallace, J. Akhavan, E. Nilsson

Over the past three years the UK together with Sweden, Norway, Finland, Italy have been taking part in a EU funded Leonardo da Vinci programme. More recently EFEE have participated in the project known as the EU15/10/200715/10/2007Excert project which is aimed at addressing the perceived loss of explosives expertise in several EU nations. This could have implications for explosives safety and industrial competitiveness. The paper outlines the work that has so far been done in phase 1 and describes the work planned for the second phase of the project. The paper will describe work in the UK to develop competencies for all explosives workers in both the civil and defence sectors. These competencies in the form of National Occupational Standards have now been approved in the UK and are accompanied by a range of 24 new National Vocational Qualifications launched in May 2006. The paper will show how the standards define knowledge and skills and how these form the basis for vocational qualifications as well as higher education awards and professional qualifications. This UK initiative is now being considered in other EU countries and the project has now been extended to also include Germany, France, Portugal, Czech Republic, Lithuania and Estonia. To support the occupational standards and qualifications work is also being carried out to improve learning provision in the explosives area. In addition to formal educational and conventional training courses a series of workplace learning initiatives are being pursued as well as internet learning packages. Examples of these initiatives will be given.

Jan 1, 2008

By M. J. Farrell

Mining is a significant emitter of greenhouse gases and is the focus of increasing attention from green groups and regulators. Miners need to know their own carbon emissions and how they compare with the rest of the industry. Miners and mining companies need to know where they fit in the emissions curve. Who is in the bottom quartile? This article updates data from minecost.com which detail the specific carbon dioxide emissions for over 200 mines producing 90% or more of western world copper, zinc, lead and nickel in 2009. This data shows the potential impact on mine economics of proposed carbon taxation regimes and emissions trading schemes proposed at COP 15 in Copenhagen during December.

Jan 1, 2010

By C Dick

Over the past three decades, mining operations have seen a significant increase in the use of contractors for mining, camp management and catering, recruitment, maintenance, power management, and commissioning. More recently contractors have been engaged for stores and logistics, OH&amp;S, environmental, exploration, training etc. In some countries, such as South Africa, the trend is towards total outsourcing of all aspects of a mining operation which is coordinated by the owners’ management team.During the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) more Australian companies considered and/or took on this approach to recruiting for both projects and operations as mining companies were forced to rethink their corporate strategies as commodity prices plummeted to low levels, pushing operations and projects into potentially financially unviable territory.This paper discusses the labour recruitment, commissioning and operating strategy of Western Areas NL (WSA), with the assistance of Independent Metallurgical Operations Pty Ltd (IMO), as it progressed construction, commissioning and operation of the Cosmic Boy nickel concentrator at the Forrestania Nickel Project during and post GFC. The use of IMO contractors allowed Western Areas to mitigate labour cost risk during the uncertainty caused by the GFC and let their management team focus on the task of bringing a new operation into viable and profitable production.

Aug 8, 2011

Since mid-July, most domestic producers have been marketing 99.5 percent unalloyed aluminum ingot at 53-57 cents per pound. Dealers in the United States have recently quoted ingot at 52.3-52.8 cents. On October 2, London Metal Exchange will trade aluminum, selling contracts on a cash and a 3-month basis. New York dealers were quoting August ingot at 52.3 52.8 cents. The Bonneville Power Administration announced that, effective December 20. 1978, electric power rates charged primary aluminum producers in the Pacific Northwest would be increased The increase (equivalent to about 4 cents per pound of aluminum produced) will raise the average rate to about 8.7 mills per kw-hr compared to 3.2 mills per kw-hr.

Jan 1, 1978

By P K. Banerjee, S Kumar

Indian iron ores with less than 62 per cent Fe are currently unexploited, except for a few sectors which export them to foreign countries. It is anticipated that by 2012 the countryÆs domestic steel production is likely to rise to the tune of 60 million tonnes per annum. To meet this requirement, it is necessary to utilise not only the existing high-grade deposits but it is also necessary to look into exploiting the leftover iron ores of lower grades. Hence, reserves with Fe content 62 per cent and below (particularly the ores with In the present paper, an attempt has been made to beneficiate three different types of low-grade iron ores selected from three different parts (states) of the country. In the paper, alternative routes for beneficiation and effective utilisation have been tested using different techniques in the laboratory in an attempt to match their (Al2O3/SiO2) ratio after thorough characterisation and liberation studies. The paper also encompasses the geological formations, occurrences and distribution of Indian iron ores as well as highlighting the problems associated with the fines, possible metallurgical routes, and their market segregation from the perspective of end users.

Jan 1, 2007