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By David M. Mchaina, Allan E. Hall, Siegfried Rohr, J. D. Botsford

Incidents associated with secondary dust ignitions in the mining of massive sulphide ore deposits are of major concern in Canadian underground metal mines. During stope or development blasting, a highly concentrated cloud of sulfide dust is created and may be ignited, resulting a secondary explosion which releases a considerable volume of sulphur dioxide and possibly other sulphur gases. The consequent pressure, heat and toxic gases can result in loss of life, significant damage to equipment and loss of production. These losses are expensive and should be prevented. Explosions of this type have occurred at the H-W mine of Westmin Resources mainly in the development headings and cut and fill stapes. This paper presents the results of a study conducted at the H-W mine to compare dust sampling methods for explosivity tests. The associated benefits and pitfalls of each sampling technique are examined. The investigative work conducted to develop and test preventive and control methods against sulphide dust ignitions is also discussed. The techniques which will minimize the risk of sulphide dust ignition in metalliferous mines are outlined. A review of current preventive and control measures practised at the H-W mine is also presented.

Jan 1, 1989

By K. C. Heald

THE places where, yesterday, oil was unknown contain tomorrow's fields. Unquestionably, some states that now yield little or no oil have great potentialities, and developments in these states, although perhaps of less immediate interest than those in regions where great pools now exist, may easily be of greater ultimate importance than the results of exploration closer to known fields. Not long ago, Montana had only a quarter of an oil pool, and that was regarded by many as an accident that had strayed from Wyoming. More recently, the northern line of Louisiana was a dead line that would not be crossed by any Louisiana operator who valued his reputation for sanity. Within the past few months, Colorado has shown that it is far from being a negligible factor in the oil supply of the Rocky Mountain states, and it is now known that western Kansas, long shunned by many reputable geologists and operators, should be reckoned with. There may be a vast difference between what a wildcat well yields and what the well signifies. The fact that no commercial production is encountered may be lamentable and may well be disastrous to an individual or a company, but the same well that spells ruin to one may convey to another the information that will result in opening a new field. In presenting the conclusions, in this paper, the writer recognizes fully the possibility of erroneous deductions, particularly since he has had contact with only a few of the wells that are mentioned. Information comes principally from the scout. maps and files maintained at the Geological Survey by M. E. Latimer and G. K. Drach, without whose cooperation this summary would not be possible, supplemented by some personal contact and second-hand information gained by. conversation and correspondence. However, it is felt that the data contain few errors, and that the conclusions are at least reasonable.

Jan 3, 1924

By R. C. Ellman

Since successful industrial lignite-burning equipment was developed in 1925, the commercial use of lignite as a fuel for power plants has increased. It has proved an entirely satisfactory fuel for generating power and can be burned efficiently by various methods.4/ Equipment to fire pulverized lignite was installed and used successfully at the Trinidad Station of the Texas Power & Light Co. as early as 1926. The lignite was predried in steam-heated grid driers before pulverizing.5/ This method of firing was used later in the Comal Station of the San Antonio Public Service Commission.6/ Both stations, however, have since been converted to use other fuels. Units for pulverizing and drying lignite are relatively new in the lignite-consuming region of North Dakota. The air which sweeps the pulverizer and transports the pulverized product to the burners is preheated to dry the lignite during pulverization. The first unit was installed in 1948 in one of the two boiler units of the Crookston Station, Otter Tail Power Co., Crookston, Minn.7/ In 1951 the 30,000-kw. W. J. Neal Station, Central Power Electric Cooperative, Inc., Voltaire, N. Oak., was designed and constructed for firing pulverized lignite exclusively. It is the largest lignite-fired, power-generating station in North Dakota. The 44,000-kw. Lewis and Clark Station of the Montana-Dakota Utilities Co., Sidney, Mont., is fired by a similar pulverizing system. Operation of this plant was begun in October 1958. At Fergus Falls, Minn., the 53,500-kw. Hoot Lake Station of the Otter Tail Power Co., also using a pulverized lignite-firing system, began operating in September 1959.

Jan 1, 1961

By F. R. Cattoir

This report presents the results of preliminary studies for the evaluation of some fused-salt electrolytes for refining tungsten metal, and describes the equipment used. Some impurities could be eliminated with electrolytes composed of sodium chloride, sodium iodide, or sodium tetraborate in combination with tungstic oxide or sodium tungstate. Electrolytes composed entirely of chlorides were unusable because of the volatility of tungsten chloride. Refining 96-to 98-percent tungsten to produce a commercial grade was more successful than further refining of 99.9-percent tungsten. No electrolyte tested yielded a product pure in all respects. Electrolyte temperatures of about 900° C were necessary to maintain a good dissolution rate at the anode and acceptable cell operation. Cathode current densities at the beginning of a deposition cycle were limited to approximately 1 ampere per square inch. Higher current densities resulted in a finely divided product that frequently failed to adhere to the cathode. The most conspicuous impurities in the tungsten produced were carbon, iron, and molybdenum; the former two came from the iron cell and the graphite cell liner. Electrolytes com-posed of tungstic oxide or sodium tungstate in sodium iodide, or 2Na, 0.B203, were capable of producing tungsten carbide.

Jan 1, 1963

By G. H. Turner, R. C. Bell, E. Peters

Zinc oxide activities in a typical lead blast furnace slag have been calculated from plant operating data. These activities were used to assess the probable effect of fuel composition, oxygen enrichment, and air preheating on the efficiency and capacity of the slag-fuming operation. THE physical chemistry of zinc fuming has been examined with three objectives in mind: 1—to predict conditions favorable to increasing furnace capacity, 2—to predict the changes required to fume zinc more economically, and 3—to explain reported differences in the efficiencies of various slag-fuming plants. This study, made at ail in the plants and laboratories of The Consolidated Mining and Smelting Co. of Canada Ltd., developed from a program undertaken some three years ago on behalf of the AIME Extractive Metallurgy Div. subcommittee on slag fuming. Lead metallurgists first became interested in the recovery of zinc from lead blast furnace slags in 1905 and 1906. An excellent review of the early experimental work has been made by Courtney,' who described blast furnace, reverberatory furnace, and converter methods of fuming zinc from slag. Some of the investigators did not appreciate the importance of reducing the zinc oxide content of the slag to metal in order to fume it, since they tried compressed air blast without fuel in their earliest attempts. However, by 1908, the importance of reducing the zinc was established.' In 1925, the Waelz process for the recovery of zinc oxide from oxidized zinc ores was developed in Germany.' This process was not readily adaptable to lead blast furnace slags because of the difficulty in handling fusible charges in a kiln. What appears to have been the first slag-fuming operation as it is known was commenced by the Anaconda Copper Mining Co. at East Helena, Mont. in 1927." The first Trail furnace was completed in 1930, and this was followed by the construction of several other slag-fuming plants. During the period in which slag fuming has been extensively employed, little development of the chemistry of this process as a whole has taken place. Several good papers on the petrography of lead blast furnace slags have been published,""= but these studies could do little more than establish the forms in which lead and zinc occur in the initial charge and final products of the slag-fuming operation. In recent years, zinc-smelting problems have been ap- proached from a thermodynamic point of view. Maier has published an excellent thermodynamic treatment of zinc smelting." The important thermodynamic properties of zinc and its compounds have been determined and checked by other investigators.' However, to the best of the authors' knowledge, no thermodynamic treatment of the fuming of zinc from slag has been published. A thermodynamic study of any process requires that the essential chemistry of that process be known. In slag fuming there appear to be some differences of opinion as to whether the active reducing agent is elemental carbon or carbon monoxide. Furthermore, some observers have noted that high volatile coals appear to be more efficient than low volatile coals, indicating that hydrogen is also an important factor in the reducing efficiency of a fuel. That both hydrogen and carbon monoxide are effective reducing agents for the zinc oxide content of lead blast furnace slags can be demonstrated readily by introducing these gases into a slag bath held in a neutral vessel at 2100°F (1150°C). Elemental carbon also will reduce zinc oxide, but it is improbable that much free carbon is available for reduction of zinc, as the reaction between the finely powdered coal and air should be largely completed before the solid coal particles reach the slag. Some large-scale fuming experiments using gaseous hydrocarbons have been carried out by other investigators, but, as far as is known, these have not been developed yet into operating processes. The thermodynamic treatment in this paper is based on the following reactions: 1—to supply the thermal requirements C+V2O2- CO [1] C + 0,-CO, [2] H2+ ~z0,-H,O 131 and 2—to reduce ZnO ZnO + CO + Zn + CO, c41 ZnO + H, e Zn + H,O. [51 The furnace-gas composition also is controlled by the equilibrium constant of the familiar water-gas reaction H,O + CO + CO, + H2. C6l In order for the thermodynamic calculations to be quantitatively applicable, it is necessary that the chemical reactions to which they are being applied

Jan 1, 1956

Presentation Overview Corporate Overview Kutcho Project History Exploration Development Permitting Capstone -Pursuit of Value Building a mid-tier copper producer focused in the Americas Two operating copper mines; Cozamin& Mintomines High grade and low cost 2010 forecast: 80-85 million pounds of copper in concentrates Total Cash Costs* of ~US$1.10/lb to US$1.20/lb of payable copper produced Significant by-products of gold, silver, lead & zinc Growth potential Further expansions at existing Cozamin& Mintomines High grade copper development: Kutcho project, BC Investments in Nevada Copper & Silver Wheaton 100% North American assets Low risk ?Canada & Mexico ?Conventional operations

Oct 1, 2010

By C. W. MacGregor

IN the testing of materials there exist various methods of recording graphically the behavior of a material subjected to tensile stress. Prob-ably the most common method is to plot the tensile stress So, obtained by dividing the load P by the original area of cross section AO at the start of the test, as a function of the strain ?o, which is obtained by dividing the ?Lo or the change in the gauge length by the original gauge length Lo. A list of the symbols used here is given in Table 1. This method, while it has proved useful in the routine testing and comparison of various materials, does not have a very sound physical basis, as was first pointed out by P. Ludwik1, and consequently does not afford a very deep insight into the true physical behavior of the material under stress. Among the objections to this method may be mentioned: (1) that by dividing the load P at any stage of the test by the original area Ao a fictitious stress is obtained, which does not actually exist; (2) that the strain ?o = ?Lo /Lo is not an exact expression for the true strain for large values of ?Lo in per cent of Lo; (3) that when necking starts the strain varies considerably along the gauge length and the above expression no longer gives the true strain existing at any point on the outside of the bar; and (4) that the axial strain varies over the cross section of the necked portion and ?o does not represent an average of these strains over the cross section. Stresses taken from such a diagram would be only approximate and, if used to compare results of a test on a given material under simple tension with results obtained under combined stresses, certain errors would he thus introduced. In order to overcome some of these objections, various methods have been suggested, both as to the quantities to be measured and as to their graphical representation. In some cases the so-called "true stress," obtained by dividing the load P by the actual area of cross section A existing when the load P was applied, is plotted as a function of the strain

Jan 1, 1937

By I. C. Watson, J. W. Klokow, A. F. Knoetze, R. G. B. Pickering

In the late 1970s and early 1980s there were a number of attempts to use Tunnel Boring Machines in deep level gold mines. These attempts must be regarded as unsuccessful. Since then there have been comprehensive developments in tunnel boring equipment and tunnel support technology. This paper defines the problems experienced in those early trials, reviews the technology development, and concludes that tunnel boring in deep level goldmines can be justified in today’s environment.

Jan 1, 1999

By Wilfrid Comeau

Since 1967 Hydro Quebec has undertaken the control of blasting and its effects at its power development sites. Blasts have been monitored using a commercially available three component seismograph. Initially, vibration records were used to establish the relationships between vibration level (resultant of three components), explosive weight and distance for various blasting operations.

Jan 1, 1977

By George C. Trevorrow

It is a pleasure to appear on this program and discuss a subject which is of particular interest to me. In my regular duties as Safety Director of Bituminous Coal Operators' Association, I am called on by member companies to discuss matters affecting face ventilation. As a member of the Joint Industry Safety Committee, as I will later describe, I have a part in processing requests for the use of auxiliary fans for face ventilation. The use of auxiliary fans in bituminous coal mines for this purpose came into rather wide use in the late. '20's when conveyor mining was introduced. In this application, the equipment consisted of a chain conveyor with a face chain conveyor parallel to the face on which the coal was loaded by hand and, in turn, was discharged onto the room conveyor and thence to a loading point on the entry at the mouth of the room. Another method was to use a shaker conveyor with a duckbill which was maneuvered across the face of the room from which the coal was loaded and transported by the shaker to the loading point. In either case the equipment did not readily lend itself to driving crosscuts or breakthroughs with the result that rooms were driven to depths of 250 or 300 feet without adequate means of ventilating the face area with the main split of air. It was, therefore, necessary to use other means of ventilating this area as the rooms were being driven and during retreat work if pillars were extracted. Auxiliary fans of the blowing type were utilized for this purpose. They were of very small capacity using small diameter tubing. By the time the room was driven half way to its projected limit ventilation was very poor or practically nonexistent. To compound the problem the fan was usually set up at the mouth or neck of the room and in many cases the intake air to the fan was the return air from the room. It is small wonder, therefore, that there is on record 12 cases where auxiliary fans were given as the cause of explosions. In 9 of these occurrences, arcs or sparks from open-type motors or accessory equipment on these fans were given as the primary ignition source. They fell into such ill repute that in a number of cases they were blamed as the ignition source even though smoking was strongly suspected as the primary cause.

Jan 1, 1967

By R. Tyreman, G. Ritson

"The Red Lake Mine is situated in Balmer Township, Red Lake area in northwestern Ontario. It is an underground mine that has been in production since 1948. The property was originally known as the Dickensen Mine and was shut down in 1996.A feasibility study was carried out in 1998 and it was determined that a new mill should be constructed with a throughput rate of 600 stpd. The life-of-mine average gold grade was projected to be 1.35 oz/t with gold predominantly associated with arsenopyrite and pyrite. Metallurgical testwork indicated that the optimal flowsheet for gold recovery would include an autoclave for oxidation with a carbon circuit for adsorption. To limit capital cost and establish cashflow, the mill was constructed without an autoclave. The recovery by gravity and cyanidation was projected to be 83%. A flotation plant was constructed at the tail end of the circuit to recover the additional gold associated with sulphides from the leach circuit tailings. This material is being stockpiled onsite for future oxidation treatment.Detailed engineering was started in early 1999 and the first gold was poured in August 2000. One feature of the project was the use of Contact Lake equipment from Cameco’s Contact Lake project. The entire mill was purchased and equipment re-used where possible. The capital cost for the process facilities was C$3 1.5 million."

Jan 1, 2001

By Persio P. Rosario

Crushing has proven to be of fundamental importance in mine mill integration at Highland Valley Copper (HVC). Highland Valley Copper has achieved large throughput and good quality control through the gyratory crushers by proper blast design and better gap control. The next step, in optimizing the mine mill relationship, is evaluating the crusher liner wear and its shape influence on performance and product size reduction. To do this a laser measurement device has been developed and data is being recorded on the concave and mantle liner wear. This paper will outline the work to date and indicate specific objectives of the work.

May 1, 2002

By E J. Gardiner, C M. Hogan

Acidic drainage has long been recognised as the largest environmental liability facing the mining industry, and to a lesser extent, the public, through abandoned mines. The Canadian Mine Environment Neutral Drainage (MEND) initiative was the first international multi-stakeholder program to develop scientifically based technologies to reduce the effect of acidic drainage. The original MEND Program extended over a nine-year time frame ending in 1997, with technology transfer activities continuing to the end of year 2000 under the MEND 2000 program. Both programs have contributed enormously to the understanding of acidic drainage and how to prevent it. MEND3, launched in 2001, intends to further this effort with a strong, research-driven program. The successes of the MEND initiative have come through the collaborative efforts of the partners, the sharing of experiences, the thorough evaluation of technologies and their incremental improvements. As a result, the knowledge base on acidic drainage has grown considerably. An international model of alliance between the various worldwide initiative involved in acidic drainage is being formalised at this conference. This global alliance will enhance technology transfer capabilities and will lead to improved environmental performance for the industry. It is through collaboration that we have achieved the most progress in environmental performance, and this formal relationship will further expand these benefits.

Jan 1, 2003

By Bora Derin

Optimization of slag composition has great importance on effective and clean metal production technologies. Reddy-Blander (RB) model, a priori, is very useful tool for prediction of impurity capacities of industrial slags. In this study, sulfide capacities (Cs) of 19 lead smelter slags indicated in the literature were calculated and effects of Cs values on sulfur content of lead bullions were discussed.

Jan 1, 2006

By M. J. Beus

The Bureau of Mines, under a cooperative agreement with Hecla Mining Co., is conducting a rock mechanics study of the 6,200-ft-deep circu-lar, concrete-lined Silver Shaft in northern Idaho. The objective of the project was to instrument and evaluate lining behavior and rock de-formation when a deep shaft is constructed in a high in situ stress field and anisotropic rock mass. Rock mass displacements were moni-tored with multiple-position borehole extensometers. Liner stress and strain were measured with concrete pressure cells and embedment strain gauges. Field data from the 5,955-ft test level show that rock displacement is controlled by rock mass anisotropy. Liner stress and strain levels reflect the high in situ stress field as well as nearby station and raise construction. Maximum stresses measured in the lining, as a result of shaft excavation, are about one-third of its compressive strength. Subsequent loading pocket excavation resulted in signifi-cantly increased stress and strain levels in the liner. Continued monitoring and preliminary analysis of the data indicate that concrete-lined, circular shafts are stable for the high, unequal horizontal stress fields and rock anisotropy encountered in deep-level mining. Adjacent development work can be expected to significantly alter the initial stress and displacement conditions.

Jan 1, 1984

The Tavua Power Proprietary Ltd. was created in 1936 for the purpose of supplying electric power, compressed air and water to the mining field.The original share capital was subscribed on a two-third:one-third basis by the Emperor Gold Mining Company Ltd. and Loloma (Fiji) Gold Mines, N.L. In 1940, Fiji Mines Development Ltd. (later changed to Dolphin Mines Ltd.) was admitted as a shareholder, and, in 1950, a further change occurred. The present shareholding in the Company is as follows:A central power station was decided upon to reticulate power and compressed air over the whole field and building commenced in May 1936.The original plant comprised three Belliss and Morcom diesel generating sets 770 b.h.p. 525 kW 3,300 V, 3 phase, 50 cycle; one Belliss and Morcom diesel compressor set 2,09'0 cu. ft. of free air per min. at 90 lb. gauge 300 r.p.m., and two small Ruston-Holman diesel compressor sets each of 525 cu. ft. capacity taken over from Loloma (Fiji) Gold Mines, N.L., and the then existing Koroere Gold Mining Company.BuildingThe original building was 130 ft. long by 47 ft. wide with an elevated switchgear annex on the west side from which a clear view of the engine room is available.

Jan 1, 1953

By Koppe J. C

This paper describes the methodology developed to establish a sequentia mining plan applied to a coal mine, using computers. Firstly, isocontou. maps were generated from the drill holes and outcrop description information, representing the thickness and depth of the rock formation: present in the mine site. The procedure relies on the repeated application of the cross validation techniques, until the standard deviation of thi estimation is reduced to a minimum.From this map the coal reserves of the two coal seams, the overburdet (separated in hard and soft material) and the interburden were calculated After that, the maps were transferred in digital files to AutoCAI software, where different mining plan simulations were performed. 7b ore evaluation in each case was done automatically, including tonnages volumes and stripping relations. The final mine configuration consider the economic aspects of the operation.

Jan 1, 1993

By P. J. Morgan, E. Wolmarans

The selection of the main mineralised zone (MMZ) concentrator milling circuit has followed a comprehensive route over the preceding 10 years. Many knowledgeable parties have contributed and assisted in developing the milling circuit according to the best available information. The final selection of the flow sheet was completed after DRA conducted a techno-economic study on four possible comminution circuits ranging from conventional crushing and ball milling to fully autogenous (AG) milling. The results from all the above mentioned work indicated that it is possible to treat the MMZ ore at the desired throughputs to the desired grind sizes in a fully autogenous grinding circuit. The flow sheet was designed to treat the main mineralised zone (MMZ) arising’s from both underground and open cast operations and incorporates a fully autogenous grinding (AG) circuit. Commissioning of the 375ktpm concentrator at Nkomati Nickel began in August 2009 with the first ore reporting to the mill on the 15th of September 2009.

Jan 1, 2012

By H. J. Handewith

This paper explores the state-of-the-art of mechanical rock drilling and boring methods in use in the year 2000. It covers the basic mechanisms of cutting tool design and outlines the current understanding of related rock fracture methods. It provides suggestions for future research needs and discusses the mining and construction markets that are driving these needs.

Jan 1, 2001

By Villanueva G. Julio

El presente trabajo describe el método de muestreo para la evaluación y cubicación del tajo a cielo abierto en Cerro de Pasco. Para ello, primero se describe la geología general de la zona de Cerro de Pasco para conocer y resolver los problemas encontrados en la explotación, encontrándose una irregularidad en la distribución de valores, como en la concentración de minerales. En consecuencia, se elaboró una serie de medidas que respondan al sistema de evaluación utilizado, tales como: la necesidad de efectuar una reevaluación de la zona en cuestión, el remuestreo de la mina, la impracticabilidad de hacer una exploración a través de sondajes, el empleo de algún medio mecánico para la extracción de las muestras, la implantación de un sistema especial para el archivamiento de los resultados de los ensayos y así evaluarlos rápidamente, y la necesidad de conocer los pesos específicos de los diversos tipos de minerales concentrados para calcular el tonelaje con precisión.

Jul 20, 1960