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By Gerry Roblesky

"IntroductionWestar Mining Ltd. is Canada's largest producer of metallurgical coal for the export market. It currently operates two mines, the Balmer Mine at Sparwood, British Columbia producing 6 000 000 tonnes per year and the Greenhills operation at Elkford, producing 2 100000 tonnes per year. Approximately 1600 people are employed between the two mines which operate independently but share common administrative services.Like most mining companies in Canada over the past three or four years, Westar has faced rising production costs along with flat or declining prices and demand for its products. In order to survive under these conditions it has become necessary to strive for decreased costs in any way possible. Over the past two years there has been a widespread introduction of microcomputers across the company. In order to satisfy increasing demand for accurate and pertinent information while at the same time increasing productivity, the microcomputer has become an invaluable tool.This paper describes some of the problems faced by a mine maintenance department in this operating climate and how they were solved with the help of a microcomputer. It also describes some of the problems that may be encountered both with equipment and people and recommends some ways that these might be minimized or avoided. Finally, an assessment of whether or not the move to microcomputers was a current and economical one, and a brief description of future plans and projects is given.The Maintenance OrganizationIn order to appreciate fully the role that microcomputers are playing within the Maintenance Department at Westar Mining, a little background on the organization and operating philosophies is in order. Most of the comments apply directly to the Balmer operations, however, the Greenhills operation is similar in concept.The mine maintenance organization operates on a fleet based concept with these departments reporting to the maintenance superintendent: haulage trucks, shovels and drills, loaders and Caterpillar equipment, maintenance services, and rebuild services.Each of these departments is headed by an assistant superintendent and is responsible for all maintenance on the equipment on the respective fleet. Shift foreman, planners, specialists and clerical staff are assigned to each fleet. A central engineering and administrative group consisting of one engineer and three clerical positions is responsible for maintenance engineering and centralized administrative services"

Jan 1, 1988

By J. Gray, J. Peck

As the turn of the century approaches, traditional open pit mining methodologies and processes are being modified through the introduction and use of new technologies. As in other industries, the personal computer is dramatically changing the traditionally conservative mining industry by allowing mines of varying size and capacity to increase their productivity and efficiency through the use of easy to use, office software. Computer-based monitoring and control systems are also being used more frequently to measure and optimize, in real-time, the performances of operating equipment. When communicated to an end-user, this information can provide accurate and timely answers to questions of how much, where, when, and by whom. This capability forms the foundation of a more comprehensive, proactive management and planning facility where, ultimately, information acquired from the producing equipment will be used to optimize and control machine and human activities. As these technologies mature and become essential tools in a mine, they will eventually serve as the basis for more robotic and autonomous mining operations.

Jan 1, 1999

By Eric Johnson

"IntroductionHistoricalCyanidation is a leaching process, in world-wide use, to extract gold (and silver) from ores and concentrates. The process has many inherent advantages on account of its adaptability:a. to any scale of operation;b. to a wide range of ore types and mineral associations;c. to a wide range of physical characteristics of the gold particle size, alloy (electrum) or mineral (telluride);d. to relatively simple plant controls and operating procedures;e. to simple marketing procedures and quick cash return.The basic idea for cyanidation was first described and patented by a German chemist, L. Elsner, in 1846. Some forty years later, J.S. McArthur, a metallurgical chemist and R.W. and W. Forrest, medical doctors, all of Glasgow, Scotland, came to realize the import of the discovery and accordingly, registered patents in Great Britain in 1887 and in the United States in 1889. The keystone of the McArthur-Forrest patent registration was the use of weak (0.05o/o) instead of strong (1.0%) solution.The years 1890-1910 saw much progress in equipment design and the advance from batch to continuous processing to increase efficiency and reduce operating costs.In later years, technological progress followed advances in materials of construction and control systems. Current innovations include large-scale equipment, high-capacity thickeners, belt type filters and Steller, candle-type filters for plants using zinc dust precipitation. As well, environmental protection is increasingly a major concern.The technology of gold adsorption from cyanide solution onto activated carbon has made rapid strides in recent years. This has followed the initial efforts of Potter, Salisbury, Zadra and their colleagues of the U.S. Bureau of Mines Research Station in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the field work of Homestake Mining Company personnel, in Lead, South Dakota."

Jan 1, 1989

By S. Sopher, C. Barsotti

"Inco Gold Company was created in 1987 as an unincorporated business unit of Inco Limited. In 1988, Inco Gold Management Inc. was incorporated to supply management, exploration and engineering services to this unit. The first new project, at Casa Berardi, Quebec, was brought to production in September 1988, less than two years after completion of exploration. For 1989, Inco Gold's exploration and capital expenditures have been budgeted at approximately $94 million, a record level. Inco Gold holds interests in more than 80 precious metals ventures and prospects in Canada, the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and France. The most advanced projects, in addition to Casa Berardi, are at Mineral Hill, Jardine, Montana, where initial production is anticipated in the third quarter of1989, and Crixas in central Brazil, where production is scheduled to begin during the fourth quarter of the same year.BackgroundTraditionally, Inco Limited's mineral exploration has concentrated on nickel and other base metals but since the early 1980s Inco's exploration activity has focussed strongly on precious metals, principally gold. As a result, three deposits have been discovered and developed . In order to accelerate the establishment of a strong gold mining enterprise with its own specific growth and profit objectives, Inco Gold Company was created in 1987 as an unincorporated business unit. At the end of 1988 Inco Gold's share of drill-indicated gold reserves was approximately 14 million short tons containing 3.4 million ounces of gold.At Casa Berardi in northwestern Quebec, one mine is in production and another is planned to open in 1990. Properties at Crixas in Brazil and at Jardine, Montana, U.S.A., were being readied for production in 1989. By 1991, Inco Gold's share of gold production is expected to be 125 000 ounces with a target of 400 000 ounces annually by the mid-1990s."

Jan 1, 1990

By Scott L. Ewart, William M. Bryden, Donald E. Wakefield

"Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt develops commentaries from time to time on topics of legal interest. These may deal with new legislation, changes or developments in government policy or recent judicial decisions of importance to its clients. The commentaries are, of necessity, general in nature. Because the law which they deal with is often new and untested, it is hard to arrive at precise statements of the way in which the principle s discussed in a commentary might be applied in specific circumstances. When further guidance is needed , consult a solicitor.The purpose of the Bill is to simplify, modernize and standardize the regulation of mineral exploration and development in Ontario. Many of the changes proposed by the Bill are of an administrative nature and move much of the detail with respect to staking, assessment work, prospecting work, surveys, quarry permits and leases contained in the existing Mining Act to the Regulations contemplated under the Bill.The Bill will undergo revision and be re-introduced and therefore it is not the intention of this present article to detail the specific changes contemplated by the Bill; however , its more significant changes are as follows:1. Provision is made for a lifetime prospector's licence with the elimination of annual renewals;2. Perimeter staking of a block o f claims is permitted to reduce the cost of staking;3. Assessment work requirements are expressed in term s of dollars spent rather than days worked;4. Persons doing exploratory work are required to furnish notice to owners of surface rights of intention to perform assessment work;5. Annual work summaries will be available to the industry to lessen duplication in exploration work;6. The option of continuing assessment work rather than applying for a lease is provided;"

Jan 1, 1984

By Mario A. Morin

Mine design, planning and scheduling is a very complex, iterative process comprising several interrelated and interdependent activities. Understanding how this process works, identifying the critical pieces of information and the decisions to be made is key to initiating business process improvements (BPI) or business process reengineering (BPR) activities. Fundamental to most BPI and BPR work is some form of systems analysis. Structured Analysis is a powerful systems analysis technique that is well suited for modeling and analyzing complex process activities. Through a series of diagrams, this paper presents a vertical slice through the analysis work performed for formally describing the underground hardrock mine design and planning process. These diagrams illustrate how simple graphic constructs can be used to decompose the most complex situations into easily understandable diagrams that facilitate understanding, communication, improvement and reengineering.

May 1, 2002

By E. H. Hall

"Perhaps .I should start this talk on Arsine poisoning, by giving a brief background and history of the Bralorne Mill.The present Bralorne company started milling operations in 1932, with amalgamation and flotation, and operated continuously until 19 61 . In 19 59, it was decided to change over to cyanidation, and to use double filtration rather than counter current. The cyanide portion of this new plant was completed and went on stream in August 1961 utilizing the grinding circuit of the old flotation plant. The new grinding circuit was completed and started operating December 15, 1961.The grinding circuit consists of a 7 1 x 101 Hardinge Rod Mill, and a 7 1 x 101 Hardinge Ball Mill. In series with the rod mill is a 16"" x 24"" Denver Duplex Jig, and two of these jigs are also in parallel with the ball mill. The rod mill product is classified by a Kreb cyclone, the oversize going to the ball mill. The ball mill is in closed circuit with this same cyclone. The jig products are amalgamated daily, and the amalgam barrel tails are returned to the ball mill for regrind. Arsenious oxide (As203) is one of the reagents used in amalgamation. Approximately 39 ozs. per day is used.The cyanide circuit consists of a 481 x 121 thickener, three 24' x 24' agitators, two 141 x 161 drum filters and a Merrill Crowe precipitation unit.The Krebcone overflow is thickened to 60 - 62% solids. Hydrated lime, along with a settling agent is added to the thickener. Some of the overflow water from the thickener is returned for use in the jigs. The balance of this overflow water goes to waste. To the thickened pulp entering No. 1 agitator, barren solution is added, along with sodium cyanide and hydrated lime. Cyanide strength is held at 0. 9 - 1. 0 lbs/ ton solution and lime at 0. 8 lbs/ ton solution. The lime content usually drops to 0. 5 lbs/ ton in No. 3 agitator. The two drum filters are in series and are washed with barren solution. The discharge of No. 3 agitator is fed to No. 1 filter and the discharge of No. 1 filter is repulped in barren solution and feeds No. 2 filter. No. 2 filter discharges to tails, The filtrate is clarified, deaerated and the gold precipitated. One hundred to two hundred tons of barren solution are bled to waste each day. The ore contains 1 % Arsenopyrite and 1. 5% Pyrite."

Jan 1, 1964

By George Kellock

Introductory The Alberta Provincial Government has contemplated a revision of the Mines Act for some time past, and it is understood that a definite decision has now been made to do this at the next session of the Legislature. The Operators' and Miners' organizations of the Province have been asked, or at least have been given the opportunity, to submit their views and ideas relative to the proposed changes. The operators have already drafted out a number of changes which they feel would improve the Act from the standpoint of safety and practicability, and this paper has been prepared so that the general membership of the Rocky Mountain Branch of the Institute, which is composed largely of the operating and certificated officials of the mines, might have an opportunity to discuss, criticize, and improve upon the suggested changes which the operators are putting forward.

Jan 1, 1929

By R. L. Christie

"THE ISLANDS lying north of the Canadian mainland, and the large Boothia and Melville peninsulas, form one of the great archipelagos of the world; this sparsely vegetated and nearly unpeopled region extends about 1,500 miles east to west and 1,200 miles from the mainland to the northern tip of the northern-most island. Sea access to most of the islands is restricted by ice to the summer season, and the 'polar pack' ice of the Arctic Ocean presses the year round against the northwest margin of the archipelago. Although the region is remote, the accessibility has greatly increased through a network of weather stations, airfields and air routes connecting with southern centres.The area considered in this paper is that part of the island region underlain mainly by sedimentary rocks. In broad terms, this includes the land and sea areas of the archipelago and the adjacent continental shelf, but excludes the dominantly 'Shield' terrain of Baffin Island, and of Melville and Boothia peninsulas. An impression of the size and potential of this sedimentary region may be gained by comparing some areas: the land area of islands underlain mainly by sedimentary rocks is over 300,000 square miles or about 50,000 square miles greater than the area of Alberta. The total area of the region, including the continental shelf and the inter-island areas, may be double this figure, and may approximate one-seventh of the land area of Canada."

Jan 1, 1970

By F. J. Hrach, K. P. Flynn, P. J. Miranda

"ST Equipment & Technology, LLC (STET) has developed a processing system based on tribo-electrostatic belt separation that provides the mineral processing industry a means to beneficiate fine materials with an entirely dry technology. In contrast to other electrostatic separation processes that are typically limited to particles greater than 75 µm in size, the triboelectric belt separator is ideally suited for separation of very fine (<1 µm) to moderately coarse (300 µm) particles with very high throughput. The high efficiency multi-stage separation through internal charging/recharging and recycle results in far superior separations that can be achieved with a conventional single-stage free-fall tribo-electrostatic separator. The triboelectric belt separator technology has been used to separate a wide range of materials including mixtures of glassy aluminosilicates/carbon, calcite/quartz, talc/magnesite, and barite/quartz. Separation results are presented for selected industrial mineral sources. An economic comparison of using the tribo-electrostatic belt separation versus conventional flotation for barite / quartz separation illustrates the advantages of dry processing for minerals.INTRODUCTIONThe lack of access to fresh water is becoming a major factor affecting the feasibility of mining projects around the world. According to Hubert Fleming, former global director for Hatch Water, “Of all the mining projects in the world that have either been stopped or slowed down over the past year, it has been, in almost 100% of the cases, a result of water, either directly or indirectly” (Blin et al., 2013). Dry mineral processing methods offer a solution to this looming problem."

Jan 1, 2016

By C. M. Campbell

IN 1934 Newfoundland, after extravagant operation based on exaggerated ideas of what she had to work with, became bankrupt, ceased to be a self-governing Dominion, and passed into the hands of a Commission. Since the days of Dawson, Canadians have been taught that no country in the world is as rich as their own. This idea has become a religion; contrary views are heresy, and are suppressed even by technical organizations and government departments. Following the alleged habit of the ostrich, we have buried our heads in the sand and have refused to face the facts. This policy of "to have today and to hell with tomorrow" is now bearing fruit. After forty years of operation on the basis of unlimited natural wealth, with resulting over-expansion, wholesale depletion of capital assets, and huge borrowings, we are, now that our wealth has been shown to be very limited, face to face with the status of Newfoundland. Already, in this Province, commission government of bankrupt municipalities is not uncommon. The ostrich is referred to as the most foolish bird in the world. That is not the case-no ostrich ever hid his head in the sand. In the clear air of his home on the South African veldt, an area characterized by low bushes, he is a conspicuous object. When danger approaches, he lowers his head; matches his background, the bushes; and danger passes him by. This leaves the Canadian, with his head still in the sand, to fill the r61e cast for the ostrich. Fortunately, a few Canadians never did get their heads covered; others are getting them out far enough to see what is going on. Their comments are very much to the point. "Nowhere in the world," says Mr. Meighen, "has more harm been done to any country by an exaggeration of its resources and potentialities than has been done in Canada&apos;.

Jan 1, 1941

By Bruce Macdonald

Operational monitoring of slope stability can be achieved by space based InSAR monitoring platforms. Natural and man-made rock slopes are monitored using a novel stack-based InSAR method that exploits both persistent point scatterers (PS) as well as coherent distributed scatterers (DS) such as areas of pavement and sparsely vegetated surfaces. The new method, Homogenous Distributed Scatterer (HDS)-InSAR identifies InSAR targets by using adaptive multilooking of statistically homogenous pixel neighbourhoods combined with thresholding the differential temporal coherence of each target candidate with respect to its surroundings. HDS-InSAR preserves PS and therefore forms a direct generalization to our proven DualScale-PSI method. The density of HDS exceeds that of PS by more than an order of magnitude often providing essentially continuous coverage over urban and industrial landscapes featuring a mix of infrastructure with mostly bare soils or rock surfaces. The improved coverage enables better definition of surface motion and underlying geology, which will lead to superior interpretation of the geophysical mechanisms causing the surface deformation, e.g. through improved integration with 3D deformation modeling. We illustrate the performance of our new HDS-InSAR method compared to DualScale-PSI using displacement results from Vancouver, Canada; Bingham mine, USA; and the Palabora mine, South Africa.

Jun 1, 2012

By S. Shairp

At the Hudbay zinc pressure leach plant, filtration and washing of the second stage leach slurry takes place on a vacuum belt filter prior to disposal to tailings. Due to periods of poor filterability, laboratory studies were undertaken to investigate the effect of temperature of the filter feed slurry, and to compare filterability to the resulting cake particle size distribution.

Jan 1, 2014

By J. S. DeLury

Introduction The problems of metallogenesis are largely related to those concerning the origin of igneous rocks, which, in turn, are involved with the question of crustal mechanics. Many ore-bodies are genetically related to associated intrusive and there is an equally close association apparent between igneous intrusion and crustal deformation. The problem of ore-deposition is concerned, therefore, with the fundamental problems of geology. For a long time speculations regarding crustal movements rested largely on the contraction theory and its associated conceptions. Vertical movements were considered to be all important and horizontal movements secondary to them. Magmas were pictured as rising more or less vertically in the crust and were believed to form in vertically disposed magma-chambers or reservoirs. The principle of magmatic differentiation seemed to offer the best explanation of the origin and association of diverse rock types and it seemed also to require the existence of quiescent magma-chambers for the admittedly slow process of differentiation. Accumulating evidence of the importance of horizontal movement in the crust, has, along with other considerations, discredited the contraction hypothesis and many of the inferences that go with it. The same evidence may require some change in the prevailing conception of the origin of the various types of igneous rock and of the mechanics of intrusion. Geologists are now at sea concerning some of the vital and fundamental problems of the crust, and the field is open for speculation. The writer is developing a hypothesis which seems to permit an explanation and? a correlation of earth structures and phenomena. If it rests on a firm foundation, the hypothesis, because it is fundamental, is certain to have a profound bearing on the problems of economic geology. It is for this reason that an outline of the hypothesis is offered at this time. Only a few of its economic bearings are foreseen at this time and these will be indicated.

Jan 1, 1932

By L. Tikasz

The primary purpose of ore hauling model studies is to capture the variability of the ore delivery ? stockpiling process in order to improve the estimation of equipment capacities and achievable throughputs. The operation of a mine-to-site ore delivery system is the subject of a number of challenges. Typically, ore is hauled by a given combination of trucks, conveyors and trains. In addition, ore loading, ore transferring to another means of delivery, stockpiling, reclaiming, and further deliveries involve many other types of equipment. The concurrent operation of all these units is scheduled; nevertheless, they are subject to planned maintenance and random breakdowns. To support our engineering design work on ore hauling operation, discrete event type models were built for each specific task. Then, due to recurring demands, an ore hauling library was gradually compiled. The now available model library allows fast and efficient simulation of various mine-to-site hauling arrangement, adaptable to various mining and mine construction operations (e.g. bauxite, iron ore, copper ore and coal).

Aug 1, 2013

By Elbasher M. E. Ahmed, Indresan Govender

"A mechanistic model of axial charge segregation in rotating drums is presented. We show that granular material composed of different frictional properties diffuse into axial bands as a consequence of concentration fluctuations in the free surface layer that is caused by friction-limited mobility. A Bagnoldian stress assumption ensures an asymmetric free surface profile thereby providing the essential ingredients for the evolution of axial bands and the subsequent band coarsening observed in the literature. The formulation is sensitive to the boundary conditions of tumbling mills, including particle size and density, mill speed, inter-particle bulk friction, end wall friction and drum geometry (length and diameter).INTRODUCTIONA mechanism to fully describe the axial segregation of charge in a rotating drum remains elusive to the mineral processing industry. With regard to low aspect ratio mills (like ball mills), current thinking favours the use of closed circuit mills with correspondingly low residence times to offset the completely random contact probabilities between particles and balls (Wills & Napier-Munn, 2006). Conical end caps are argued to exploit the centrifugal force to achieve a regular gradation of ball size along the mill with larger sizes at the feed end and smaller ones closer to the discharge. However; segregation along the length has been observed in the absence of conical end caps (Oyama, 1939; Levine, 1999): In these investigations, sufficient differences in the particle’s mechanical properties (particle size, density, shape, surface roughness) was enough to successfully achieve axial segregation. Figure 1 shows the segregation of a bimodal distribution (by size) into bands of larger (darker colour) and smaller (lighter colour) particles."

Jan 1, 2016

By Martin P. O'Connell

"IT IS INDEED A PRIVILEGE to address a group representing a sector of the Canadian economy so important as is the mining sector. Important, not only today, but certainly of great importance for the future development of Canada, for employment, for our trade balance and indeed, when one looks at what we are calling increasingly an industrial strategy, for the future. Surely mining will have a very significant role to play in fulfilling that. It's of special interest to me, as the Minister of Labour - and I ought to confess at the very beginning that I am just two months into this function - of special interest for me to know that you are giving such attention to labour-management relations. I think it is timely that, from my point of view at least, you do this, because for the first time in twenty four years major revisions of the Canada Labour Code as it relates to industrial relations and disputes settlements are currently in the House of Commons going through their second reading, after an easier introduction and some changes which I would be very pleased to describe later this morning. It is very timely too, I think, that we should be looking at this area because public interest is certainly at a high level. It is not only at a high level but it expresses a good deal of irritation with the current status and procedures and results in collective bargaining and there is some urgent search for more sophisticated or modified procedures for settling differences in labour-management relations. The public wants different kinds of results. I think that is apparent to all of us. They want results in terms of justice and equity on both sides. And it means that a Minister of Labour and certainly governments who often are representing, or are the third party in discussions, have a very important and complex role to play in attempting to create a balance as these two parties come to contracts and come to agreements."

Jan 1, 1972

By Wallace R. Horn

"MR. CHAIRMAN AND GENTLEMEN :I begin this talk by making a couple of comments which are of the nature of disclaimers.Firstly, and as the Chairman has otherwise indicated, I was neither ""born into"" nor have I spent more than a few years of my professional life in the mining industry. I mention this because many might, and perhaps rightly, consider that an added qualification in presenting a report of what the industry has accomplished. Indeed, I am not here to blindly defend all of its actions and inactions in respect to environmental control over the years. Nor am I here to seek absolution of the industry's past transgressions - if indeed that is the word. Mistakes might be a better one. I concluded some time ago that the effects of those mistakes are too difficult to assess against the sea of errors of our total society. I should mention too that I am not an environmental engineer or specialist - only a portion of my interest is involved with this field. Perhaps this permits a perspective which allows a more accurate and objective view.One further comment here. My job today, as I understand it, is to generally report upon the nature and extent of the response of the metals mining industry to control of the environment. In the case of an industry operating at more than a hundred locations and for various reasons at various stages of progress, it is not an easy job. On the other hand, I wanted to avoid the use of generalities because, especially within the context of environmental or ecological opinion and of the practice of condemnation of industrial segments, I think we've had about enough of generalities until we know far more than we do.Finally, I am quite aware that a statement of future plans to achieve environmental control does not impress or satisfy as many people as it may have done some years ago. Public opinion demands to know what is currently underway, today."

Jan 1, 1972

By A. S. Dawson

"IntroductionTHE PURPOSE of this paper is to describe the results of a preliminary investigation of a method thought to be useful in interpreting geological structures in un-metamorphosed sedimentary rocks. The writer is not aware of the method having been described or investigated previously, although no thorough search of the literature has been made.The method to •be described is based on the assumption that, in argillaceous sedimentary rocks, certain ceramic properties are diagnostic for certain beds within areas of variable limits.Two ceramic properties• have been investigated: pyrometric cone equivalent (P.C.E.), and bloating characteristics of shales. The enquiry has been directed toward testing the usefulness of these properties in determining the following:A -The correlation of shale beds and, by inference, of coal seams, sandstone beds, or other such structures associated with them.B.-The location of contacts between marine and non-marine shales where lithological, palaeontological, or other evidence is lacking.Limitations of time and facilities have prevented a thorough investigation of this problem. The results given in the present paper are preliminary only. It is hoped, however, that they will occasion discussion or even lead to more thorough investigation of the method by individuals or organizations.There are, admittedly, various limitations to the proposed method. It is thought to show some promise when used in conjunction with the well-known and established methods used in stratigraphic correlation and, more particularly, when the conventional methods are not applicable."

Jan 1, 1952

By J. K. Armstrong, C. Feyerabend

"As mines are constantly growing and expanding, so do the challenges for emergency response teams. They have to keep up with the pace set by current and future production techniques. Although mines have now reached depths of several kilometres and their dimensions and complexity are that of an entire city, mines rescue still must be able to reach the most remote areas within the mine in a swift and safe manner. The duration of breathing apparatus and physical human capabilities are limitations. Therefore, alternative methods have to be explored to extend the time under oxygen for mine rescue teams without putting additional stress on the team members. To address this global trend, Dräger, Goldcorp and PAUS have partnered to develop a mine rescue vehicle that allows mine rescue teams to travel for an extended period of time through a contaminated atmosphere without the use of breathing apparatus, thus extending the range of their mission. By applying currently available techniques, the safe expansion of mine production can be ensured, giving mine rescue teams the ability to respond to accidents in a safer and faster way. INTRODUCTION With the reduction of easily accessible natural resources, there is a global trend toward searching for higher ore grades underground and/or continually expanding mines underground to extend their lifetime. While in some areas this trend has just begun, in other countries mines are reaching depths or horizontal dimensions that pose extreme challenges (Codelco, 2016). These challenges include safety relevant topics, such as rock stability, heat and seismicity, but also more basic issues such as distances to the working face, which can become crucial considering the cost to develop a new shaft or decline. To overcome this, there is a growing interest in collaboration among various stakeholders to drive the development and support of deeper mines and tackle the complexity of underground mining. This is evidenced by the fact that several industry and research groups and networks have formed, e.g. the I2mine project in Europe and the Ultra-Deep Mining Network by the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation in Canada. Due to commodity pricing and the trend toward renewable energy, metal/non-metal mining will be the driving force behind this development."

Jan 1, 2019