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By J. Stiksma, K. Buban, J. Oftsie, R. Kalanchey, S. Sadykov, E. McConaghy

The Kazakhmys zinc refinery in Balkhash, Kazakhstan, which employs the Dynatec Zinc Pressure Leach Process, officially launched autoclave operations on December 27, 2003. The Kazakhmys plant is the world's first greenfields zinc refinery based on Dynatec's two-stage pressure leach technology. Production of zinc was realized on February 9, 2004, when the first cathode was stripped. Currently the plant start-up is ongoing, with progression to two-stage zinc pressure leach operation and ramp-up to full design capacity continuing through 2004.

Jan 1, 2004

By Donald O. Downing

"IntroductionThis paper provides an overview of the coal mining industry in Canada with a description of current circumstances. The Canadian industry is placed in a global context and the future prospects of the industry are described. The export market is very important to the future of Canadian coal production and the essential aspects of the market are explained. Future prospects are very much tied to metallurgical coal exports and some key characteristics of that market are discussed, including major technological changes in the industry. Stability in 1996The Canadian coal industry enjoyed another strong year in 1996 continuing a trend established over the last four years. The strength of the industry is based on a stable domestic industry and a relatively healthy inter- national market. The figures bear out these statements. In 1996 total production reached 75 million tonnes and consumption was 52 million tonnes. The major markets for coal in Canada are electricity generating stations (Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia) and the steel industry in southern Ontario. Approximately 11 million tonnes of coal were imported and exports reached a new record of 34.5 million tonnes, mainly from western Canada. Canadian Coal FlowsCanada represents a unique case in the coal world because we both import and export coal (Fig. 1). The reason for this apparent dichotomy is Canada’s geography. Eastern Canadian coal markets are located closer to the eastern United States coal fields and are basically served by them. This is true for both thermal and metallurgical coal. Major imported coal users are the steel industry, electricity generators and other industry including the cement industry in southern Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, with a little coal imported into Manitoba. Only about 2.2 million tonnes of western Canadian coal move into the east, including both lignite and bituminous coal."

Jan 1, 1997

By O. D. Maurice

Feldspar mining in Canada came to an end during 1972 after many years of continuous activity. The deposits are not exhausted and the domestic demand for this product is expected to continue at about the same level as in recent years. The size of the industry does not justify the installation of expensive equipment in the mills, but it is believed that a modest profit could be made by a small operation using rudimentary methods of separation. Largescale and accurate mapping of the pegmatite dykes could help in planning mining operations for a better recovery of a uniform product.

Jan 1, 1973

By Richard J. Kolada, Ian R. Muirhead

"This paper reports on a CANMET-funded examination of less conventional underground coal mining methods. These methods are documented and those that show the most promise for application to western Canadian conditions are discussed in detail.IntroductionIn recent years, mining considerations and economics have encouraged a transition from underground mining to surface mining. However, a change in market conditions or the development of superior underground mining methods may reverse this trend . Should this happen, the industry must be quick to respond and have information available on the latest developments of underground mining technology. In time, deposits of high-quality coal, which are easily accessible to surface mining, will be depleted and a change to underground mining methods will require consideration. The economic transition point between surface to underground will be a major determinant in maintaining a competitive edge. For these reasons, it is important to keep abreast of improvements in underground mining methods. To meet this objective, CANMET awarded a research contract to Monenco Consultants Limited, to investigate unconventional underground mining methods that show a potential for western Canadaoi. This paper presents the results of this investigation."

Jan 1, 1988

By Suzie Nantel

Crystalline igneous rocks, known commercially as granite, are exploited in Quebec f rom more than twenty-five quarries for building, ornamental and monumental purpose$. Quebec is the main Canadian producer of construction granite, accounting for nearly 90 per cent of total production. Jn the last three years, this industry has experienced an important growth due to improved marketing and use of modern equipment in rock-cutting and polishing. Jn /983 a 35 per cent sales increase is forecast. The main rock varieties extracted are the following: porphyritic pinkish grey granite and green charnockite from Riviere-dPierre, mahogany brown granite and black anorthositic rock f rom the Lac Saint-Jean area, fine-grained pink granite from Guenette, coarse-grained brown quartz monzonitefrom SaintA lexis-des-Monts. All these rock types occur in the Grenville tectonic province whereas a medium-grained, light grey granite, Devonian in age, is extensively being quarried in the southern part of the Appalachians. In the Superior province a greenish black diabase and a deep red granite are extracted. Search for new varieties and deposits is actively being carried out by prospectors and by the minis/ere de /'Energie et des Ressources du Quebec following growing demand for granitic and gabbroic rocks as dimension stone.

Jan 1, 1984

By John Stubbles

Data are presented on the global warming issue to reinforce the decision by the U.S to reject the Kyoto protocol. The evidence that CO2 is a problem rather than a benefit is inconclusive and will be discussed in this paper. Nevertheless, for economic reasons alone, the US steel industry will continue to minimize CO2 emissions (and the release of real pollutants) per ton of steel through energy reduction programs. However, relative to inevitable increases in absolute CO2 emissions from the utility industry and the transportation sector, future reductions by the steel industry will be inconsequential in the "big picture."

Jan 1, 2004

By Carl Edmunds

Talk Outline Deposit?s Vital Statistics and Economic Environment Regional Geologic Setting Deposit Geology UBC Research Search Model and Current Exploration Plans Kemess Operations Kemess South Mine Mining rate (2006) ?135,000 tonnes / day Mill throughput (2006) ?52,000 tonnes / day Average Annual Production ?300,000 oz gold and 75 million lbs copper ?Production until mid-2009 Kemess North > Open pit reserve 423.8 million tonnes @ 0.3 g/tgold and 0.18% copper > 4.1 million ounce gold reserve (127 tonnes) > 1.45 billion pound copper reserve (636,000 tonnes) > 0.75:1 Strip Ratio

May 1, 2006

By J. P. Nicoud

"The Frog's Leg project is located in the Kundana mining centre 22 kms West of Kalgoorlie, in Western Australia. The Mines and Resources Australia (MRA) Dioro Exploration Joint Venture has had considerable exploration success centred on the high grade Frog's Leg discovery. A gold resource of 930,000 ounces has been defined. At Frog's Leg there have been three discrete resource domains recognised - Supergene, Contact, and Quartz Lodes. This paper describes the metallurgical test work undertaken.The selection of the drill core was a joint effort by the MRA Senior Geologist and Mineral Engineering Technical Services (METS) to ensure the samples were representative of the ore body. Optimisation of gold recovery was essential as both the Contact and Quartz Lodes have exceptionally high percentages of free gold as well as significantly higher grades than the typical open pit ores found in Western Australia. The metallurgical scope of work included documenting all of the metallurgical test results, establishing the comminution characteristics, determining the percentage of gravity recoverable gold, evaluating the cyanide leach characteristics and determining the tailings characteristics. These studies were used as the basis of flow sheet design to treat both ores and to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of alternative flowsheets. Investigations also included toll milling options at various plants as well as second hand and transportable plants. Considerable technical effort has been put into ore characterisation by way of test work aimed at managing the process risk at each stage of project development, including mitigation. MRA also carried out detailed mineralogical analysis of the ores."

Jan 1, 2005

By O. D. Maurice

"This paper will essentially update the information that is already known and published on the limestones of the Province of Quebec. The excellent report by M. F. Goudge (1935)m is difficult to improve upon and the areas of limestone quarrying are generally the same as they were at the time of Goudge's report. Our knowledge of the limestones of Quebec has been improved considerably in recent years by the publications of T. H. Clark, 2 who, since 1938, has been mapping and reporting on these lime-stones and has discussed their stratigraphy, their structural features, their history and their economic value. One economic aspect is the presence of natural gas in these formations and the possible occurrence of oil. A total of 150 test holes had been drilled to a depth of more than 500 feet by the end of 1967 and, in addition, at least 256 more shallow holes had been put down in the St. Lawrence Lowlands. The information from these test holes has greatly improved our knowledge of the thickness and extent. of the various formations of Paleozoic limestone and shale in Quebec.This paper will then review briefly the limestone occurrences in Quebec, using the old as well as the more recent reports as principal references"

Jan 1, 1970

By E. LaRocque

Denison Mines Limited has been processing uranium ore in the Elliot Lake area for the past 20 years. As the original concept of uranium processing has been modified somewhat over this period, the present paper will describe the current recovery practices at the Denison mill from crushing through concentrate drying and packing . Special emphasis will be placed on the leaching, ion exchange and precipitation sections of the process, with consideration being given to the entire circuit. Descriptions will be given of equipment now being used and control strategies will be discussed.

Jan 1, 1979

By A. Lee Barrett

"THE COAL INDUSTRY of the United States• and Canada has made great progress in recent years. Coal mining in •the old days represented one of the most arduous tasks for labour and industry, but over the years great progress has been made in reducing the effort required from labour. Also, the tonnage produced per man, the cost of the coal per ton, and the overall safety of the operation, have been greatly improved.Looking back over the past fifty years:, the era can be divided into four principal parts: (a) hand-loading, (b) track mining methods, (c) off-track mining methods, and (d) continuous mining. For many years, all of the coal was won by hand-mining methods. The first forms of mechanization •resembled the move from the horse •and buggy to the automobile. Early track mechanical mining methods were usually adaptations of the direct methods involved in hand-mining, with each improvement directed toward some specific process. A revolutionary development came about with off-track mining methods. The first efforts in this direction were provided by off-track mechanical loading machines, which loaded the cars •on track and differed from conventional track mining methods only in that the loading machines themselves operated on the mine floor. With the advent -of the shuttle car about ten years ago, true off-track mining came into being, and real progress in this direction began to be made.At the present time we •are at the beginning of a new era -.the era of continuous mining. There will be a period of development with some time needed before the system is generally applied throughout the industry, but -already enough •has been done to indicate rather dearly what the future holds in this direction."

Jan 1, 1953

By S. R. McCutcheon

"The regional stratigraphy of the Lower Carboniferous Windsor Group in the Moncton Subbasin indicates that evaporites could be present in the Marysville Subbasin, part of what was formerly called the Central New Brunswick Platform. The Windsor Group consists of basement-fringing, algal build-ups (Gays River Formation), in places with intercalated siliciclastics (Parleeville), which are laterally equivalent to deeper-water, very thin to thinly bedded, euxinic limestone (Macumber). The Macumber is overlain by stratiform, nodular to mosaic anhydrite (Upperton) that is hosted by carbonate or calcareous siliciclastics. The sulphate also is equivalent, in part, to the algal buildups. Deep-water salts (Cassidy Lake) which overlie and in places are laterally equivalent to Upperton rocks have a basincentre distribution. The Windsor Group is overlain by shallow water evaporites and mudstones (Clover Hill) or by greenish grey mudstone (""transitional beds""). The paleogeographic distribution of these rocks provide important clues that help predict where deposits of salt and potash can occur.IntroductionCurrently there are three known potash deposits in southern New Brunswick (2, 3 and 4, in Fig. I). All three deposits occur in the Windsor Group of the Moncton Subbasin, but until recently their exact stratigraphic position within the group was not known.The Windsor Group is a cyclic sequence of carbonates, evaporites and red beds that is up to 1.0 km in thickness (Schenk 1969, p. 1038). It is Late Mississippian (Visean) in age and the type area is near Windsor, Nova Scotia. The group was named by Dawson (1873) but the rocks were described earlier by Hartt (1867). Dawson (ibid.) was the first to assign rocks in southern New Brunswick to the Windsor Group."

Jan 1, 1983

By W. S. Hegler

Introduction The San Antonio mine is on the north shore of Rice lake, thirty miles east of lake Winnipeg and 120 miles northeast of the city of Winnipeg. Since production was started in 1932, about 2,000,000 tons of ore have been mined. Currently in progress is an extensive development programme which involves 11,500 feet of crosscuts, 3,800 feet of raises, 1,753 feet of shaft sinking, and 160,000 cubic feet of slashing, all in footwall waste rock. It is the purpose of this .paper to indicate the necessity for this work and to describe the methods employed to carry it out. Where unknown factors are as prevalent as they are in the average Canadian gold mine, a definite answer cannot be given as to what is the most economical and efficient system for mining dipping deposits. At San Antonio, the host rock for the orebodies, locally termed basalt, occurs as a sill some hundreds of feet in width and dipping at approximately 45 degrees from surface to an unknown depth. It may be assumed that it continues well below the lowest depth established to date by diamond drilling. At present, a vertical winze (No. 3 winze) hoists the ore from the 2,360-foot level to the 1,600-foot level, on which it is hauled about 900 feet to No. 3 shaft, also vertical, and there hoisted to the mill bins on surface. To maintain ore reserves at a five-year figure, at full production, additional deep exploration was required immediately. It was decided to sink No. 4 winze, a vertical opening of the same size as the other operating shafts, to provide ten additional levels (17 to 26) at 150-foot intervals, with additional depth to allow for an underground crusher installation and usual loading-pocket facilities for three-ton skip-hoisting. The winze was bottomed at 1,753 feet below the collar, at a depth of 4,117 feet below surface, and is the deepest man-sized opening in Manitoba.

Jan 1, 1949

By Jean-Luc Collins

"This new tool can be used as a quick guide f or the assessment of the potential economic wealth of any risky capital project. It does provide an unambiguous recommendation of the type ""go or no go"" to the decision-maker simply by comparing two different ratios profit/investment. One ratio determines the minimum value required to at least break even while the other measures a probable value based on the asymptotic theory of statistical extremes.Its application is briefly illustrated by means of an underground gold mine extension project, an oil sands mine project and a polymetallic open pit project.Once a favourable recommendation has been obtained then a detailed ""cash flow after taxes"" analysis can be carried out for the project.IntroductionMany tools are used in financial decision-making such as the payback period, the discounted cash flow, the internal rate of return and the wealth growth rate (Berry , 1971).These tools are useful and meaningful in evaluating normal projects closely related to regular business where the number of assumptions made is usually very small and where the cost of capita! is usually selected as a discount rate or a hurdle value. In situations where a significant number of assumptions have to be made,two problems can emerge, namely:I. the risk involved is underestimated leading to a potential financial disaster; or2. a good opportunity is lost because the approach used in evaluating the project is too conservative.Each assumption has its own degree of uncertainty and it is well known that combining uncertainties together can lead to a total uncertainty of critical proportion. The easiest way to account for risk is to increase the discount rate or the hurdle value, but this approach alone is quite subjective and can easily lead to the problems described above."

Jan 1, 1993

By B. R. Boardman

Project Environmental Approval is a multi-faceted issue. From a mining perspective, it is a costly item because of avoidable time delay. The government perspective is that the approvals are a necessary part of meeting departmental requirements to ensure that the wellbeing of other uses of the environment is maintained. This paper outlines some of the problems inherent in the environmental approvals process and makes recommendations to both the proponent and government about improving the efficiency of the process.

Jan 1, 1978

By John H. Walsh

"ForewordThis paper is to be published in two parts in succeeding issues of the CIM Bulletin. In Part I, the problem of global climate change is explored together with a summary of the government's present policy in this field. Implications for the steel industry are examined as are possible strategic responses. Part II of the paper will present a new possibility - the joint production of iron and liquid fuels useful for transportation purposes. In the joint production case, the objective is to use carbon for more than one purpose in what might be termed a 'carbon cascading' technique. ABSTRACTIt is becoming increasingly probable that emissions of carbon dioxide from the fossil fuels will have to be reduced to deal with the threat of global warming. This issue is likely to be resolved one way or the other in the period 1995 to 2000 which does not leave much time to develop responsive options. In the intervening period, the policy of the Government of Canada is to stabilize emissions of greenhouse gases at their 1990 level by 2000, by encouraging greater efficiency in the use of energy. Should further reductions prove necessary, economic instruments would probably be employed but these would not be applied before a comprehensive international agreement is reached.There are three main themes in this paper: it is assumed that measures to control carbon dioxide emissions will in fact be necessary by the tum of the century; that there will be a rising need for liquid fuels to supply the world's steadily growing fleet of motor vehicles for many years to come, and that the future niche for Canada 's industry in such a carbon-constrained world will be the operation of the energy-intensive industries with efficiency and environmental sensitivity.The steel industry, as a large user of both coal and energy in other forms, would be significantly affected by a need to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. This paper first examines what might be called the conventional responses open to the industry in such a situation and then explores a new possibility for making better use of carbon by the co-production of iron and liquid fuels."

Jan 1, 1992

By M. Yao, D. Thibodeau

"Selective mining, such as post pillar cut and fill, is used in large, flat, irregularly shaped ore bodies where ground stability is to be maintained. This selective mining is used to open the stope to the full lateral extent of the ore body in order to minimize the dilution and maximise the recovery. For increased mining depth, design of the post pillar becomes more challenging since those pillars will eventually fail as mining progresses upwards. The post pillar should be designed such that failure does not occur at the early mining stage, such as at the first cut. After mining progresses upwards, the post pillars are expected to fail but be confined by backfill. In order to maximise ore recovery, both drift width and post pillar size must be designed adequately with a consideration of all geomechanic parameters. This paper will describe the process used to design post-pillar cut and fill for one of the ore bodies in Vale’s Copper Cliff Mine using a combination of both empirical deterministic and numerical modelling techniques. By utilizing both empirical deterministic and numerical modelling techniques drift width and post pillar size can be effectively designed. Current post pillar cut and fill design in the existing Vale operations are used to validate the design for Copper Cliff Mine. INTRODUCTIONCopper Cliff Mine is located within the Copper Cliff Offset in the limits of City of Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, as shown in Figure 1. The Copper Cliff Offset extends about eight kilometres south from the Sudbury Igneous Complex into the footwall rocks. Until 2008, the current Copper Cliff Mine was operated as two separate mines i.e. North Mine and South Mine. However, as part of restructuring of Vale Ontario Operations, the North and South Mines were merged in 2009 to form the “Copper Cliff Mine”."

Jan 1, 2015

By David E. Pearson

"Western Canadian coking coals are located in the Rocky Mountains arid foothills of British Columbia and Alberta. They are typical of non-marine coals, characterized by total sulphur contents of less than one per cent and with ash contents of 10-30 weight per cent. This mineral matter is composed principally of kaolinite and quartz.The petrographic compositions of most of the coking coals which constitute the 2.065 billion tonnes of British Columbia's measured reserves, and the compositions of the metallurgical coal currently exported from Alberta, show them to be rich in the inertinite macerals, macrinite, fusinite and semifusinite. When the mean maximum reflectance of vitrinite in oil/Romax) is used as the coal rank parameter, this high inertinite content is reflected in the lower volatile-matter yields, but the relatively inert character is also displayed by lower free swelling indices (PSI), lower maximum dilatations, lower maximum fluidities and lower coke strengths than other coals of the same rank, but richer in the reactive macerals, vitrinite, exinite and semifusinite. Despite these reduced values in the so-called caking tests, inertinite-rich coals produce strong coke.A system of classification of coking coals is introduced which is based on rank, as indicated by Ro max, and either petrographic composition, maximum dilatation, maximum fluidity or, to a lesser extent, PSI and volatile-matter yield. Six principal coal groups can be distinguished among coking coals using this versatile classification. Inertinite-rich coals are assigned to the Keystone Group (GI), Balmer Group (G3) or Moura Group (G4), each group being named for a coal typical of that population ofcoals. Reactive-rich coals are assigned to the Pittston Group (G2), Kellerman Group (G5) or Big Ben Group (G6). A multiple-regression analysis of coal quality versus price shows how the value of coking coal in the Japanese market appears to be related to reflectance and the free swelling index, and confirms the economic viability of the classification.British Columbia's measured reserves of coking coal contain representatives of four of these groups; Balmer Group (73%), Moura Group (/6%), Pittston Group (3.4%) and Kellerman Group (7.6%).This analysis of the quality of Western Canadian coking coal indicates that despite the need for large proportions of inertinite-rich coking coal in blends produced in the Japanese steel industry, there is nevertheless a demonstrated overabundance of Balmer Group and Moura Group coals available to the international coking coal market."

Jan 1, 1980

By W. A. Lang

"IntroductionCARBONIZATION, gasification, and chemical utilization of coal are interrelated topics, which makes it difficult to review one without indicating its connection with the others. Hence, in Progress in Coal Technology, Series No. 5: Carbonization, reference was made to gaseous products recovered in the carbonization of coal, and .to a number of chemicals made from the tars, light oils, and ammoniacal liquors which are by-products of coal carbonization.In this, the sixth paper in the review series, prime consideration will be given to the complete gasification of coal to give a fuel for domestic industrial, or power purposes and a synthesis gas suitable for the manufacture of gasoline, Diesel oil, and chemicals. The hydrogenation of coal, an alternative source of liquid fuels and of chemicals, will be reviewed, as will be a number of processes for •the recovery of chemical products from coal by extraction and chemical treatment."

Jan 1, 1952

By Barry W. Schmitke, J. M. Marino

"Cigar Lake Mining Corporation is presently operating an underground test mine in northern Saskatchewan, with a view to developing a high grade uranium deposit. The mining test is intended to demonstrate that the innovative mining methods designed are safe and economical. Two vertical mining methods are considered for the test:• box hole boring from the lower level;• blind boring from the upper level.In both cases, it is anticipated to freeze the ground before excavation to ensure hole stability and limit the inflow of water. Special care will be taken to minimize radiation exposure of personnel.Remote controlled equipment will be used where applicable.The access to the orebody was an important component of the test. After shaft sinking to a depth of 500 m, development work commenced at the 420 level in fractured sandstone which was grouted to restrict the inflow of formation water. The drifting continued in a section of poorly consolidated sand, clay and sandstone; this area was frozen to allow stabilization prior to excavation. At the 480 level relatively little water was encountered in the altered basement gneiss and grouting was not necessary; however, extensive ground support was required in the soft ground areas."

Jan 1, 1992