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By M Barkh, F X. Spachtholz

The mining industry faces significant environmental challenges in managing tailing ponds and wastewater treatment, including the risk of contaminated water, breaches of tailing dams, and energy-intensive treatment processes. Traditional methods involve pumping water to secondary treatment facilities for neutralisation, which is costly and poses operational and environmental risks. In response to these challenges, the Professional Mine Water Action Plan (PMAP) introduces a revolutionary approach that combines cutting-edge AI technology and environmentally friendly reagents for in situ neutralisation of acidic wastewater. PMAP leverages magnesium-based slowrelease reagents and AI-driven intelligent dispensing systems to optimise treatment processes within the tailing pond itself. The unmanned smart dispensing vessel (USDV) conducts bathymetry to gather data on water quality and hydrography, allowing the system to determine the appropriate reagent quantity and injection strategy. This approach transforms the tailing pond into virtual reaction columns, enabling individual and simultaneous water treatment while optimising efficiency. PMAP’s novel reagent demonstrates exceptional efficacy in removing critical metals like cobalt, nickel, and copper, as well as reducing harmful metals such as mercury and manganese to undetectable concentrations. Unlike traditional lime-based treatments, PMAP’s reagent prevents gypsum formation and reduces waste volume significantly, improving reagent utilisation and solid waste handling. Furthermore, PMAP technology offers benefits beyond environmental stewardship. By reducing water treatment costs and improving resource management, it enhances operational efficiency and aligns with broader corporate sustainability goals. Additionally, PMAP expedites permitting processes by eliminating the need for traditional water treatment infrastructure and mitigating risks associated with hazardous reagent transportation. Integrating PMAP as a pre-treatment for existing lime facilities provides further benefits, including optimisation of treatment operations, reduced reagent consumption, and the recovery of valuable metals from generated sludges. Overall, PMAP represents a groundbreaking advancement in mining wastewater management, showcasing the transformative potential of AI and environmentally friendly solutions to foster sustainable and responsible mining practices globally. Its inaugural project in the Yukon Territory aims to demonstrate its capability to remove contaminants from mine water, paving the way for widespread adoption in the industry.

Sep 1, 2024

By Elpatyevskaya VP, Arzhanova VS

Main geochemical problems concerning the environment and mining industry interrelation are connected with the transformation of natural water chemistry by mining wastes. The investigation of many mines in Primorye, the southern part of the Russian Far East, showed that their mining waters have high concentrations of heavy metals and aluminium. Water acidity is primarily connected with the amount of acid-forming sulphide minerals in ores and also depends on the neutralising capacity of rocks. Considerable quantity of metals occur in the waters in dissolved form. Metal concentrations in mining waters exceeds the natural levels by 2-5 orders of magnitude and can't be reduced to the background levels even after multiple dilution. It is necessary to develop and put into practice new technologies so that to reduce the geochemical impact upon the environment.

Jan 1, 1995

By W R. Adamson

Cerro Vanguardia SA (CVSA), property of AngloGold Ashanti, mines gold and silver from a system of vetiforme orebodies located in the south of the Argentine Patagonia, in the Province of Santa Cruz.Surface mining techniques are applied to develop a series of narrow pits with an average waste to ore ratio of 26:1. This quite unique constraint brings into focus the need to maximise inter-ramp and final wall angles, leading to a strong need to optimise wall control drilling and blasting in order to reduce back-break damage to an absolute minimum.The paper describes a program of applied investigation and design modification implemented during?2008?and?2009 in?two?separate pits of Cerro Vanguardia. Three distinct yet complementary damage mechanisms were identified and observed during the field components of the work; vibration induced strain fracturing, surface cratering around blasthole collars and quasi-static loading and unloading of the surrounding rock mass as a consequence of poorly controlled confinement.With these mechanisms identified, a measurement, modelling and modification campaign was conducted in order to reduce the incidence of each source of damage. Interactive design analysis and modelling, near-field vibration measurement, video capture and the application of electronic initiation technology were supported by seed wave modelling and topographic evaluation of the achieved results.Results point to the usefulness of simulation techniques for determining optimum delay timing to reduce vibration impact, while the visualisation of explosive energy distribution produced by drilling and explosive loading decisions assists in reducing the probability of over-confinement.This paper presents relevant aspects of the two fieldwork campaigns:1) describing the application of the techniques, and2) summarising the results obtained.

Nov 8, 2011

A recently discovered high temperature (22G-2800°C) reaction between glycerol and the oxides and hydrous oxides of iron produces a green, well-crystalline complex glycerato-iron, whereas hydrous nickel oxides an) reduced by the glycerol to metallic nickel. When nickel isomorphously substitutes for iron within the goethite lattice this high temperature glyceration allows a separation of the two metals whereby the nickel can be extracted by solution techniques.

Jan 1, 1971

Hard rock TBMs are very often open machine layouts, with just a part roof shield over the front of the machine. The whole system is designed for fast face advance and the economy of the project often depends entirely on the rate of advance. Typically, hard rock conditions will demonstrate stable and good ground for a major part of the tunnel. However, short sections of crushed shear zones with clay and gouge material may cause serious time delays. Spiling rock bolting has been proven to be very efficient under such circumstances, provided the fully grouted rebar bolts can be placed in a controlled and practical manner.Environmental restrictions are becoming more and more a part of tunnel excavation projects. Even hard rock TBM tunnelling may require a strict ground water control, because of consequences on the ground surface from lowering the ground water level. Such consequences may be surface settlement, negative influence on ground water resources or damage to vegetation.Pressure injection ahead of the advancing tunnel face (in this paper named pre-injection), using microfine cement and chemical grouts, is today a proven technology. As examples can be mentioned (Garshol, 1997) about 100 km of pre-injected tunnels below Oslo City and about the same length of subsea tunnelling elsewhere in Norway. Examples from other parts of the world are also available, like below Stockholm, Sweden, the Inland Feeder project and Hollywood Metro both in Southern California.To take advantage of spiling rockbolts and pre-injection, it is an obvious prerequisite to be able to drill the necessary boreholes in the right positions and at the correct angle. In drill and blast excavation this is simple, but in TBM projects it has repeatedly turned out to be difficult. More than once owners have accepted bids containing reassurance from the contractor that the drilling method will be sorted out later. Experience shows that if ælaterÆ means after start of the TBM operation, it is often too late.

Jan 1, 1999

By V Louchnikov

Ever increasing depth of mineral extraction presents a challenging environment for hard rock underground mines. High in situ stresses and associated seismicity with potential rock burst hazards are the major decisive factors contributing to the choice of a ground support regime. Conventional ground support systems, designed primarily for static loads, are not always capable of providing safe working conditions for underground personnel in seismically active mines. Systems specifically developed to resist dynamic loading and allowing for larger deformations are therefore preferred alternatives. High-tensile chain-link mesh has a proven record of successful use in open cut operations in various rockfall barrier installations due to its high energy absorption capacity. It has also been used in underground operations in various parts of the world. Its application in Australian underground mining, however, is limited due to the high labour intensity. This paper describes a method of mechanised installation of a chain-link mesh as trialled at Golden Grove, a base metals underground mine in Western Australia. A purpose-built mechanised roll mesh handler, developed in Australia, was used in this trial. The handler is compatible with all standard multi-boom underground drill rigs and is operated utilising the hydraulic circuit normally used for the feed arrangement.A number of operational benefits have been identified during the trial, the main two being:•improved safety of underground personnel due to the reduced amount of manual handling, and•increased productivity due to the decreased cycle time (the trial suggests a 40 - 50 per cent reduction in time over the weld mesh installation method).Although the energy-absorbing mesh combined with yielding rock bolts is a ground support system of choice for rock burst prone conditions, the operational upsides recognised during the trial imply that this product can also be competitively used in less demanding ground conditions where customarily weld mesh or shotcrete are used as a primary surface support.

Mar 21, 2011

By E Bouchard March, F Lavoie, B Legare, K Bourassa

Quebec Iron Ore (QIO), a subsidiary of Champion Iron Limited (Champion), completed the restart of the Bloom Lake iron ore mine located in the heart of the Labrador Trough region of Northern Quebec, Canada in February 2018. Prior to its restart, the concentrator flow sheet underwent major upgrades which brought the iron recovery to the highest of all Labrador Trough operations. After two profitable years of production, QIO, supported by Soutex, started to look at technologies to improve its current performance and integrate into its expansion project flow sheet. From the lessons learned while optimising Phase 1, the addition of a scavenger-cleaner processing stage was identified as an improvement opportunity to increase recovery, produce a higher-grade product, and further improve the stability of concentrate quality. In 2019, the NI-43101 feasibility study for the Phase 2 expansion, aiming to double the production of high-grade iron ore concentrate, was published. Based on the metallurgical test work, the hydraulic classifier was selected to perform the scavenger-cleaning duty for its well-established performance and known behaviour at the cleaning step in the Phase 1 plant. To validate laboratory results, a pilot scavenger-cleaning hydraulic classifier was installed in Phase 1. Although the hydraulic classifier was selected for the feasibility study, metallurgical test work performed with the REFLUX® classifier showed interesting potential. It was thus decided to also install a pilot RC300 Reflux classifier at the scavenger-cleaning stage in Phase 1. Despite their apparent great similarities, the metallurgical performance was significantly different, and many dozens of sampling campaigns highlighted the different performance of both pieces of equipment considering the feed material particle size. This article presents the pilot plant results in terms of recovery, selectivity and stability for both the Reflux classifier and the hydraulic classifier operated in a scavenger-cleaner stage at the Bloom Lake iron ore concentrator.

Nov 8, 2021

By L D. Munro, S A. Jackson

This paper provides a logical approach to developing a TSF design concept through: • Identifying key properties of tailings and containment structures; • Reviewing underlying principles for effective operation; • Showing how these apply to select an appropriate TMS; and • Demonstrating how to align the TMS to site-specific constraints and TSF design. This approach follows a path of rigorous data analysis independent of discharge parameters (whether low-density slurry, paste or cake disposal) to select the most cost-effective and sustainable approach for any given material or site.

Jul 1, 2021

By R Dunne, G Lane, S Ha, D Dreisinger

The paper outlines the 17 Mt/a Telfer Project plant process design from sample selection to feasibility study design. The 366 Mt Telfer mine reserve consists of a diverse range of copper and gold mineralisation, from massive sulfide reef ores to stockwork ore, oxide copper minerals to chalcopyrite, siltstone to competent quartzite, all with relatively high levels of gravity recoverable gold. The complexity of the orebody demanded a flexible plant that could recover copper and gold values by a combination of gravity recovery, flotation and concentrate leaching. The demands of treating ore from a high grade underground mine and a variable grade open pit (that includes underground old mine workings) necessitated a dual train approach from primary crushing to concentrate production in order to minimise the requirement for campaigning of different ore types. An extensive sampling, testwork and technical evaluation program was undertaken to identify processing characteristics and the optimum process route for each ore type. The design experience included: the development of robust primary stockpiling and pebble crushing concepts; detailed review of scale-up of SAG and ball mill pilot plant data to plant scale; the selection of two 15 MW SAG mills and two 13 MW ball mills for the grinding circuit; and detailed modelling of the pyrite concentrate carbon-in-leach (CIL)/sulfidisation acidification recovery thickening (SART)/acidification volatilisation recovery (AVR) process to optimise design for copper and cyanide recovery from leach liquors. The Telfer plant design also measures the development of process design based on experiences at the Cadia Hill Cu/Au concentrator, commissioned in 1998. The differences between the two plants are compared and contrasted.

Jan 1, 2003

Newcrest Mining Limited (NML) owns and manages the Ridgeway Gold Mine (RGM) located outside Orange in the state of New South Wales. RGM is a new underground sublevel caving (SLC) operation that is ramping up production to 4 Mtpa. The success of the SLC method at RGM is strongly influenced by production drill and blast practices. Distinguishing features of the Ridgeway SLC operation include choke blasting against broken rock, drawpoint brow preservation, loading of blastholes with different in-hole bulk emulsion densities, precharging of production rings and routine drawpoint fragmentation assessment. These areas are described in the context of RGMÆs required blasting objectives, production drilling and charging activities and innovative practices.

Jan 1, 2002

Current NSW Government policy requires searching for more than just minerals during an exploration program û add endangered fauna and archaeological relics for a start.

Jan 1, 1995

There is very little in Australian mining law that sets out the rights of mining tenement and exploration licence holders as against other parties who wish to carry out ground or aerial surveillance over those areas.There have already been several legal actions arising out of this lack, and more can be expected as the public places more rigorous constraints on corporate and individual behaviour. Field personnel, who are mainly fairly junior and less experienced, are entitled to some guidance from the minerals industry, guidance which up to now appears to have been either lacking or covering such a wide range of standards from corporation to corporation as to be virtually useless.Because each State writes its own laws there is no consistency, and the laws generally are lagging behind developments in the industry. In particular, the practice of granting mining tenements for sporadic exploration, a practice that is a leftover from much earlier mining law, has dotted the Australian continent with unattended and unmarked or poorly marked tenements that are difficult to find but confer on the holder prior rights to the minerals under them. Entry onto those areas in most jurisdictions is an offence and their existence compromises the efforts of regional explorers.This clearly unsatisfactory situation requires remedying, which is the purpose of these proposals. A more systematic approach to the granting of reconnaissance, regional and detailed exploration, mining, and retention rights will eliminate much of the problem. For the rest, a code of practice needs to be adopted as soon as possible.

Jan 1, 1996

The paper sets out the context for water and the challenges that have to be faced in the battle to alleviate global poverty. It acknowledges that the world has been blessed with abundant water but because of population and development pressures, and the projected changes in climate, avoiding serious water shortages in some places will be difficult. MiningÆs use of water is placed in context and the paper then considers the specific threats to the industry in terms of availability and price and the need to find mechanisms to deal with the issue of resource degradation caused by abandoned mines. Rio TintoÆs use of water is then set out and three examples are given of how different water challenges have been addressed. The paper goes on to consider each element of a water strategy designed to move Rio TintoÆs performance towards excellence. This strategy incorporates improved management procedures (policy, principles, standards and targets), performance enhancement (through use of the Rio Tinto Water diagnostic and technology changes) and working with others in the academic and NGO community who seek to address the same global issue.

Jan 1, 2003

By G S. B Karunatillake

Following a pre-feasibility study, Mount Isa Mines commenced a feasibility study on the deposit of the George Fisher Mine in May 1997. Board approval was granted in May 1998 to construct a 2.5 million tonne per annum mine and to upgrade existing concentrator and smelter facilities. The world-class George Fisher zinc-lead-silver deposit is located approximately 22 kilometres north of the city of Mount Isa, in north-west Queensland and is 2.6 kilometres north of the existing Hilton Mine. It will be a large-scale underground mine, sustaining a profitable zinc-lead-silver business in Mount Isa for at least ten years. This paper will outline the details of the mine that was developed during the feasibility and design phase. It will include a description of the mining methods, ventilation, fill, ore handling, services and infrastructure. The utilisation of existing assets and the development of innovative ideas were essential to the successful economic development of the George Fisher Mine.

Jan 1, 2000

By G Harbort

The use of geological data for optimisation of operating plants has become a significant part of the modern process mindset. The underlying principle is to convert spatial geological data into metallurgical information to drive production and mine planning, blast design, blending strategies and plant set-up. Increasingly the process designer is required to interface with geological and mining staff to propose the best investment strategy for a project’s benefit.The geometallurgical model development for the Zafranal copper-gold project commenced in March, 2010, several months after the start of a major drilling campaign by AQM Copper Inc. The initial evaluation stage required review of historical Teck RC data to determine areas of metallurgical interest within the project. As drilling transitioned from RC to diamond drilling, core that was considered representative of the resource was selected and subjected to MLA mineralogy analysis. When coupled with sequential copper analyses this allowed calibration of an assay derived mineralogy model, allowing process concept options and a preliminary test program to be developed. This Phase 1 test program provided a preliminary process design, operating costs and anticipated concentrate grades and recoveries. Both this data and resource estimation were used to generate a preliminary Whittle pit optimisation based on maximising net smelter return, which in turn fed into a preliminary mine plan. The preliminary mine plan, in conjunction with geological logs and core results was used to develop a phase 2 metallurgical test program, where variability tests were conducted throughout the resource and composites formed to investigate specific years of the mine plan in locked cycle flotation. In addition comminution tests were modelled against geometallurgical domains allowing comminution components values to be calculated for 36?000 m of core. A flotation geometallurgical model was developed and incorporated into the resource model allowing concentrate grades and recoveries to be estimated on a block-by-block basis.

Sep 5, 2011

The Western Australian Mining and Petroleum Research Institute (WAMPRI) was established in 1981 by the Western Australian Government as a funding and co-ordinating Institute to foster research into the mining and petroleum industry within this State. To June 1984, the Institute has sponsored 34 projects with a total notional value of $2.5 million and an actual cash commitment of $1.5 million. Strong support for WAMPRI has come from Industry with 60 companies contributing half the money needed for the research grants.The 34 WAMPRI projects funded so far cover all aspects of the mining and petroleum geosciences.Several WAMPRI projects are concerned with gold including processing technology and the development of exploration models and techniques, they are providing successful results.Although well supported by Industry there is a surprising lack of applications being submitted to the Institute in the area of mining engineering, where it is felt there is much scope for research projects.

Jan 1, 1984

By McElrae AJ, McTaggart SM

The recent rapid escalation in computer use by mining companies, particularly in technical applications, can in part be traced to a growth in the availability of specialist packaged software. Such software, often developed by independent software companies provides economies of scale, end user orien- tation and breadth of scope imposed by market forces. This paper reviews the emergence of these companies and current software econo- mics before extrapolating present trends to consider the effect of future fourth gen- eration languages upon productivity.

Jan 1, 1983

The relative importance of magmatic and metamorphic fluids in Archaean gold mineralisation has long been a subject of debate. Computer simulations can be used to explore the interaction between competing fluid flow drivers, thus providing insight into their role in mineralisation. This approach has been applied to Archaean gold mineralisation in the Yilgarn craton, Western Australia. A simple model representing regional metamorphism in a granite-greenstone terrane indicates that fluid produced during a regional metamorphic event in the Yilgarn was unlikely to have been involved in mineralisation, because it would have escaped from the crust long before the main gold event. Another model illustrates the competition between magmatic fluid production, convection, and deformation. The model shows that the timing of deformation relative to fluid production is important in determining the fate of magmatic and metamorphic fluids, and hence their potential to play a role in mineralisation. An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation.

Jan 1, 2008

By N Boughen

This paper synthesises the findings of five studies undertaken by the CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship in 2009-10. This research explores the concerns, expectations, and information needs of a range of stakeholders, (ie government, seafloor exploration and mining industry, other marine industries, environmental non-government organisations (NGOs), community members) in relation to the possible exploration and mining of minerals and aggregates from the seafloor, as well as the conditions for meaningful engagement with communities regarding seafloor exploration and mining (SEM) activities. The SEM industry has been described as the ‘next minerals frontier’, as incentives to explore and mine seafloor resources increase because of diminishing reserves of easily accessible onshore mineral and aggregate deposits. However, the conditions (if any) under which SEM would be acceptable to stakeholders (notably the public and regulators) have not been established. This work seeks to address this gap and ascertain the levels at which potential environmental and social impacts become unacceptable to those stakeholders. The research follows an earlier phase of studies undertaken in 2006 - 2008 that: identified the opportunities and barriers to the development of SEM in Australia, took the first step towards understanding the public and political contexts surrounding the industry, and mapped the positions of key stakeholders and captured their major issues and concerns. Together, these two phases of research confirm that environmental concerns dominate stakeholders’ responses to the idea of an expanded industry. However, the most recent phase of research has also found that, similar to current onshore scenarios, reservations due to environmental concerns do not completely outweigh social and economic objectives. This is provided stakeholders feel confident that there are systems in place (regulatory frameworks, watchdogs, independent research, and stakeholder consultation) to ensure that all interests are protected. When making decisions about the social acceptability of potential seafloor mining, stakeholders favour a precautionary approach, supported by rigorous scientific analysis of the potential environmental impacts, transparent and socially responsive management processes, and meaningful stakeholder engagement. This paper outlines the details of these findings, which may also be relevant to understanding the social acceptability or ‘social licence to operate’ for other future mining scenarios featuring a new approach or technology.

Nov 22, 2011

By P Hawkes

Within the mining industry computers have made their most significant impact with 3D design, visualisation and resource modelling/ optimisation. Recently, the application of computers to data gathering and accounting functions has also started to reap benefits. These two areas of application cover the beginning and end of the mining process. There has been limited use of computers on the middle section, the actual mining process. This is interesting when considering the relative proportion of overall mining costs that this section produces. There is a certain amount of irony in the lack of mining application software for developing accurate budgets compared to the systems/software then used to review performance against budget. Computers have been used extensively in the manufacturing industry to design, model and simulate the manufacturing process. This has not been extended to the mining process. But, we all strive to have an open pit that replicates a manufacturing plant û smooth, efficient, optimal production. If we could model mining operations with the confidence of plastic box makers we would reduce risk by an order of magnitude, improve planning and focus on value drivers. Cost û benefit analysis would be easy. The extrapolation of manufacturing to mining process models is difficult. The variables in the manufacturing process are fewer in number, have low volatility and are highly predictable. The time between a box falling on a conveyor belt and falling off is very consistent. Mining is quite the opposite. It has large numbers of variables, some of which are unpredictable and volatile. The time to fill an excavator bucket could vary by 30 per cent and the frequency distribution is unlikely to be a mathematically simple normal distribution. Further, each of these variables can be distorted by one-another û they are interrelated. The mining process is a disjointed flow of parcels whereas manufacturing is a controlled continuous feed. A loaded truck might join a ramp and follow a slow water cart up. This is the equivalent of a localised voltage drop on equipment in a manufacturing plant. The manufacturing plant is quite likely to rapidly recover to full capacity. Whereas the slow truck might throw the mining fleet cycle out of balance for hours û trucks queuing at the ROM bin and so on. A mining process simulation has been created that addresses these mining variable issues to produce a highly accurate model of the open pit mining process. The number of uses for such a model is growing rapidly as it is being utilised for a variety of projects within the industry. This paper discusses the need for and application of mining process models.

Jan 1, 2003