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By A. Mukherjee, C. Kelly, B. Markovich, G. E. Agar, G. E. Robertson, F. Khan, B. Shea

"Laboratory batch flotation tests were performed on a sample of bulk slow cooled converter matte (Cu:Ni = I) to optimize the time in each of the separation stages. Numerical simulations were carried out to estimate a continuous circuit material balance for the conditions selected. An experimental simulation of a continuous circuit (locked cycle test) readily came to steady state and there was reasonable agreement between the numerical and experimental results. The use of nitrogen as the flotation gas and the addition of collector to the grinding mill minimized the oxidation of chalcocite, which has previously resulted in increasing circulating loads, and led to a stable circuit with very low weights in the recycle streams.IntroductionINCO Limited developed a flotation process for separating the components of copper-nickel matte [Sproule, Harcourt and Rose 1945; Sproule, Harcourt and Renzoni 1960] in 1945 to replace the Orford process and continues to use the flotation process in almost the original mode to this day. Initially the matte processed was the result of smelting a nickel concentrate that analyzed about 12% nickel and 2% copper and all of the recycle material that was generated in the smelting process. The matte generated analyzed about 25% copper and 53% nickel, roughly 2: 1 nickel to copper. This matte was blown in Pierce-Smith converters to be sulfur deficient in order to produce a metallic phase that collected the precious metals contained in the smelter feed [Wilson and Stratton-Crawley 1991]. This process continued with little change until 1994 when the separation of chalcopyrite from pentlandite in the Copper Cliff mill was discontinued after 63 years of operation. As a consequence of the elimination of the primary separation of chalcopyrite from pentlandite in the milling process a bulk concentrate was produced for smelting. Bulk concentrate smelting came into practice in 1994 as part of the initiative to meet government legislation that restricted the emission of sulfur dioxide to the atmosphere. Previously, the copper concentrate was smelted in an INCO oxygen flash furnace which resulted in the capture of a high strength sulfur dioxide stream from which liquid sulfur dioxide was produced. Nickel concentrate was smelted in reverberatory furnaces that produced low strength sulfur dioxide gases which were difficult to treat. The action taken by INCO to meet the environmental constraints was to smelt a bulk concentrate in oxygen flash furnaces which would produce gases suitable for the production of liquid sulfur dioxide and another stream that was high enough in sulfur dioxide to be readily converted to sulfuric acid [Bell et al 1990]. The end result of this decision was that all the copper-nickel separation would be done in the matte separation plant."

Jan 1, 1996

By Bruce W. Downing, Philip G. Claridge

"The availability of environmental data is a major concern in the development of an exploration project through the permitting and feasibility stages. The collection of these data should ideally start very early in a major exploration program. Although a large proportion of the environmental data can also be used for exploration purposes, (e.g. stream-sediment, soil, and rock analyses), environmental sampling will rarely have been initiated at an early date. For the Windy Craggy project, a major environmental concern is the potential for generation of acid rock drainage from waste-rock piles. The project is reviewed with respect to the environment of the deposit, deposit geology, mineralization and reserves, the sequence of exploration activities to the present, the potential for the development of acid rock drainage, the geochemistry and water quality, and the integration of exploration and environmental databases and their application to environmental planning. IntroductionIn the classical sense of exploration of a mineral deposit, the efforts throughout exploration are routinely directed at confirming the existence of the deposit and defining its extent, grade and continuity. Environmental issues are usually tackled separately, possibly by different personnel at a later date. When that is the case, an opportunity is lost to build, from an early date , a comprehensive database that (I) will satisfy the needs of conventional exploration and environmental monitoring, and (2) is usable as a predictive tool for environmental impact assessment.The concept of environmental geochemistry is not complex. The availability of environmental data is a major concern in the development of an exploration project to the feasibility and permitting stages. The collection of data should ideally start very early in any major exploration program. In many cases a significant proportion of the geochemical exploration data gathered early in the life of a project will also be used later for environmental purposes (e.g. stream-sediment, water, soil, and rock analyses). Rarely, however, will the data gathered in a geochemical exploration program provide information as complete as that attainable if environmental objectives had been considered in scoping the work.A knowledge both of local and regional geochemical processes can lead to a better understanding of environmental impacts. This understanding is the basis upon which good environmental management practices may be built. Geddes Resources Limited has undertaken a major study of the natural environment in the Windy Craggy area which includes geology, surface and underground waters, soils, stream sediments, glaciers and geomorphology (Geddes Resources Limited, 1990). This paper deals with the building and integration of the exploration and environmental databases."

Jan 1, 1993

By Pingchao Ke, Zhihong Liu

Fe(III)-As(V) precipitates were synthesized from the Fe(II)-As(V)-SO42--H2O system at 90°C in initial Fe(II)/As(V) molar ratios of 4.0 and 5.0, respectively. The synthesis were carried out by introducing oxygen gas into the system to oxidize Fe(II) ions into Fe (III) ions, and at the same time, adding aqueous sodium carbonate solution into the system to neutralize the acid released by the hydrolysis reactions, with the purpose of keeping the pH constant at 1.5±0.05. The precipitates obtained were characterized by XRD, chemical composition analysis, SEM, XPS, and Raman spectrum. The results indicated that the particles in the precipitates were in the morphology of irregular aggregation with their sizes in the range of about 1–4 µm. The precipitates consisted of scorodite, ferric arsenate and amorphous hydrated ferric oxide, of which amorphous hydrated ferric oxide formulated as Fe(OH)x(SO42-)y. The characteristic XPS peaks of Fe-AsO43- and Fe-O in the precipitates located at 711.8 and 713.3 eV, separately, and the existence of amorphous hydrated ferric oxide led to two series of shake off lines developed over the end of high binding energy of Fe2p XPS. The precipitates were stable in TCLP tests at pH 4.93 for 60 hours with the arsenic concentrations in the leaching solutions being 0.27 mg/L and 0.59 mg/L for the precipitates prepared in the initial Fe(II)/As(V) molar ratios of 4.0 and 5.0, respectively. The tests for the long-term stability of the precipitates were carried out by leaching them for 40 days at 25°C under various media in the pH range from 9.50 to 10.57, and the results showed that the precipitates synthesized in this study were much more stable than those by previous researchers.

Jan 1, 2017

By Andrew Dobson

The assessment and control of environmental noise from mines has become increasingly important in recent years, due to urbanization and population growth, increased regulation of environmental factors, and overall awareness and sensitivities to noise exposure. Minimizing adverse effects on communities and achieving compliance with local ordinances is now commonplace, and consideration of noise during the design and/or operation of a mine cannot be ignored. Ventilation equipment can represent the loudest and most bothersome equpiment at mines, however there are complexities when attempting to control the assocaited noise, due to the acoustical nature of mine vent fans. In fact, the utilization of traditional and/or industry standard methods can intensify the noise impact, or simply not work as intended. This paper provides recommendations on specific noise control methods that are suitable for mine ventilation equipment, based on recent assessment work and field experience.

Oct 1, 2024

By S. Jeon, T. H. Kim

"Understanding the frictional properties of discontinuities is crucial to ensure the stability of underground structures. In particular, the frictional behavior at depth depends on the complex interaction among mechanical, hydrological, thermal and chemical characteristics and their coupled effects. In this study, a series of triaxial compression tests were carried out to investigate the behavior of rough shear surface of synthetic rocks. The frictional behavior showed little variation at different confining and water pressures. The test results were analyzed using Coulomb’s failure criterion. In addition, numerical analysis was carried out using PFC2D to simulate the test.INTRODUCTIONUnderstanding coupled behavior of rock at depth is of great importance in design, construction and operation of underground structures such as a disposal facility of radioactive waste, hot dry rock geothermal system and oil reservoir. In particular, many uncertainties are involved in characterizing deep rock mass deformation in the designing process and interactions among fluid flow of groundwater, high temperature and stress disturbance should be considered. Many independent studies have been carried out to investigate the thermal, hydro, mechanical and chemical coupled effects in numerical and experimental methods. They include the researches by Lockner, Summers, Moore and Byerlee (1982), Jafari, Amini Hosseini, Pellet, Boulon and Buzzi (2003), Tembe, Lockner and Wong (2010), Lee, Lee and Jeon (2012), Indraratna, Premadasa, Brown, Gens and Heitor (2014)."

Jan 1, 2015

By R. A. Horn, S. M. Telfer

"Canada has a per capita GDP second only to Japan among the G7 countries and a positive trade balance which ranks third among the world's major economies. International trade represents a very large part of the national economy and as a proportion of GDP is larger than that of all the other G7 countries with the exception of Germany. On the negative side the Canadian current account deficit relative to the size of the economy is significantly worse than that of all major industrial countries, due mainly to the cost of servicing an immense foreign debt and to a large and worsening negative trade balance in manufacturing.The outflow of money may be reduced by increasing the productivity and competitiveness of those sectors of the economy in which Canada already has a leading competitive position and which have the potential for further growth. The mining industry is uniquely qualified in this respect in that Canada is the western world's largest producer of metals and mineral products and has the geology and the exploration skill to replenish reserves assuming that an adequate level of investment is maintained. In 1989 the minerals industry contributed $8 billion to the country's balance of payments and with the exception of forestry is the only sector of the economy which has shown consistently increasing foreign earnings over the long term.In recent years there has been a decline in exploration in Canada and a significant increase in countries such as Chile. The demand for hard currency to finance the development of the newly emerging capitalist economies of the CIS and Eastern Europe is also driving these countries to seek foreign investment to allow them to exploit their natural wealth more efficiently. Canada is therefore facing growing international competition for risk capital and in the future its trade surplus will probably decline in the face of lower cost foreign production.Canada rightly exercises a high level of environmental control on its mining operations; however a significant deterrent to investment is the fundamentally unjust application of the many provincial and federal environmental laws, under which a mining company, even if it takes every measure to protect the environment, runs the risk of eternal and unlimited future liability. If this situation is not rectified the effect will be an increase in global pollution as mines in countries with more lax application of law and regulations controlling environmental damage replace those of Canada. Tax benefits and incentives are a more efficient means than arbitrary regulations in minimizing environmental damage."

Jan 1, 1994

"The technical report form provides the headings to be used and content required when a completing a technical report to be filed in accordance with NI 43-101. The technical report is meant to be a summary of the scientific and technical information on the mineral property. The Instrument (NI 43-101) requires that technical reports be filed with Canadian provincial or territorial securities regulators to support certain disclosure of mineral exploration, development and production activities and results in order to permit the public and analysts to have access to information that will assist them in making investment decisions and recommendations. FORM 43-101F1 TECHNICAL REPORT INSTRUCTIONS (1) The objective of the technical report is to provide a summary of scientific and technical information concerning mineral exploration, development and production activities on a mineral property that is material to an issuer.This Form sets out specific requirements for the preparation and contents of a technical report. (2) Terms used in this Form that are defined or interpreted in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (the “Instrument”) will bear that definition or interpretation. In addition, a general definitioninstrument has been adopted as National Instrument 14-101 Definitions that contains definitions of certain terms used in more than one national instrument. Readers of this Form should review both these national instruments for defined terms.(3) The qualified person preparing the technical report must use all of the headings of the items in this Formandmay create sub-headings. If unique or infrequently used technical terms are required, clear and concise explanations must be included. (4) No disclosure need be given in respect of inapplicable items and, unless otherwise required by this Form,negative answers to itemsmay be omitted. Disclosure included under one heading is not required to berepeated under another heading. (5) The technical report is not required to include the information required in Items 6 through 11 of this Form tothe extent that the required information has been previously filed in a technical report for the property being reported on, the previous technical report is referred to in the technical report and there has not been any material change in the information. (6) The technical report for development properties and production properties may summarize the information required in the items of this Form, except for Item 25, provided that the summary includes the materialinformation necessary to understand the project at its current stage of development or production. (7) The technical report may only contain disclaimers that are in accordancewith section 6.4 of the Instrument and Item 5 of this Form."

Jan 1, 2003

By Robert B. Parsons

"In this period of improved metal prices and reported profits, valuable lessons should be recalled from the 1970s when a similar cycle lured the federal and provincial governments into thinking that they could grab bigger pieces of the pie without harming the minerals industry. It took years for the industry to recover from the damage inflicted by that unprecedented scramble for higher tax revenues. It is hoped that the current policy makers will have learned from the lessons of the seventies, and will realize that mining companies need to keep a reasonable share of profits realized during the good years in order to prepare for the inevitable downturn in the cycle.INTRODUCTION"", «. We have made clear to industry that super profits... will no longer be tolerated "".With that assertion, the Honourable David Barrett , Premier and Minister of Finance of the Province of British Columbia, announced the introduction of a new mining tax regime in his February 17, 1974 bud get papers . British Columbia producers would face a basic royalty and a royalty on so-called ""super profits"", resulting in some instances in tax rates exceeding 100070 of pre-tax profits.The ball started to roll. Mining tax changes knew no political or geo graphical boundary. On April 9, 1974, Ontario's Treasurer John White stated in his budget speech:""Increased demand by major industrialized countries has resulted in sharply higher metals prices and substantial wind fall gains for the mining industry in Ontario. With the prospective demand for minerals likely to sustain current price trends into the future, it is only fair that we secure for the people a higher return from our natural resources""."

Jan 1, 1989

Evolution of Maintenance Practices. Mechanization processes in underground mining operation became stronger in the 70?s - 80?s. Did maintenance practices changed over the years ? What are the the major differences of today?s practices? Speaker, Robert Hamilton Working at different positions into maintenance organization since over 25 years, Robert has accumulated a various and rich experience of ways to maintain equipment. He started as mechanic on construction projects and open pit mines. Early in his career Robert had supervision's responsabilities. He started in open pit operation (QCM) and after in underground operation with Lac Minerals, working at Bousquet, Doyon and Louvicourt mines, as U/G mechanical foreman and mechanical general foreman, and Maintenance superintendant with Cambior . He also experienced the underground mines equipments supplier's side working with Sandvik Canada.

Feb 1, 2008

By G. I. Mathieu

"An experimental study was carried out to evaluate the performance of column flotation versus conventional flotation for the recovery of molybdenite from a Newfoundland ore. The objective was to verify the claims made by the inventors of the flotation column, Messrs. Pierre Boutin and Remi Tremblay, that their apparatus reduces the entrainment of fine gangue and other mineral impurities in the froth product. The research included a factorially designed series of tests to determine satisfactory operating conditions of the column. These provided a basis for comparative flotation tests with column and Denver cells. In the course of the work, the action of a few depressants was studied. Results indicated greater selectivity in the column and reduced reagent consumption."

Jan 1, 1972

By G. Ozbayoglu, Z. Ozdemir

Turkey is the main boron minerals producing country in the world. The most important boron minerals are tincal, colemanite and ulexite. All mining, beneficiation and handling operations generate fines which cause ecological and economical problems. Utilization of this accumulated material requires both upgrading and agglomeration. The aim of this research was to exploit the ulexite fines by improving their grade and size. Attrition-scrubbing followed by washing and screening was employed for upgrading the fines. It was found that the grade can be increased from 23-25% B2O3 to 29% B2O3 with 73% recovery. Briquetting was applied as the size enlargement process. During the briquetting, the effect of moisture content, pressure, amount and type of binder, and drying on the quality of briquettes were investigated. The tests showed the possibility of production of strong briquettes by adding water alone, but the briquettes had no resistance to abrasion and water. Binders, namely boric acid and borax have been added to improve the properties of briquettes. The results showed that the compressive strengths and abrasive resistances of briquettes obtained with both binders were acceptable. However, the briquettes have no water resistance properties.

Jan 1, 2004

By A. R. Trusiak, C. Bazin, D. Hodouin

"The On-Stream Analyzer has proven, and is still proving to be, an extremely valuable tool for the control of flotation circuits. This paper examines the possibility of going further in the utilization of the analyzer results by using a real-time material balance program to calculate the mass flow rates within the streams of a circuit for process control, analysis and optimization as well as for the detection of sensor malfunction. The material balance algorithm improves measurements and give good estimates of unmeasured variables during normal operating conditions. The potential and limitations of the method are illustrated using results of an application to the Line 3 flotation circuit of Brunswick Mining and Smelting, New Brunswick.IntroductionThe On-Stream Analyzer (OSA) has gained, over the last two decades, the status of key instrument for the control of flotation plants. The OSA is currently used in almost every sulphide flotation plant and its application in oxide mineral flotation plants isincreasing. Commercial OSAs include a sampling system that collectssamples from various streams of a circuit and exposes thesamples to an X-ray beam. The sample then generates X-ray pulsesthat are converted into assays using multilinear regression programs(Leroux and Franklin, 1994). The estimated assays arepassed to the flotation operators via operator consoles, or to controlloops of various degrees of complexity (McKee, 1991), whichmanipulate reagent addition, aeration rate or froth thickness toensure an adequate operation of the plant. Although this applicationrapidly pays for the purchase of the OSA, one should ask:""Could we get more from the OSA?"""

Jan 1, 1995

By G. Bylapudi, K. Mondal, J. Hirschi

ABSTRACT: Rock bolts are the main form of defence against rock falls in mines. Conditions under-ground are conducive to corrosion. A perception exists about American coal mines that bolt corrosion is not an issue, especially when bolts are fully grouted. This perception is not necessarily accurate due to the formation of micro-cracks as the resin sets and to subsequent rock movement that breaks the resin column’s continuity. Corrosion should be considered when designing rock bolt support in long-term excavations. This paper explores the problem of corrosion, outlines a method to determine the corrosion potential of bolts, and suggests ways to mitigate such effects.

Jan 1, 2010

By Jürgen Antrekowitsch, Gerardo R. F. Alvear Flores, Mehmet Ayhan, Christoph Zschiesche

Synergies between copper and lead extractive metallurgical processes enable the processing of a broad range of polymetallic materials. However, this complexity also brings some challenges expressed in terms of complex intermediates and final products. For instance, based on the limited solubility of Cu and Ni in crude lead bullion additional phases will appear during the crystallization of the melt. Beyond the need for continuous optimization of metallurgy the control of phase solidification is a further important pillar to achieve a more efficient process by minimizing the amount and cycles of reverts. This paper describes the microscopy study of one of the most relevant intermediate in the Cu and Pb metallurgy, the Cu based alloy and highlights the importance of applying a well-controlled cooling sequence to improve the overall process efficiency. INTRODUCTION One of the key aspects in Aurubis’s 2025 vision is to move towards the implementation of a multi metal recovery strategy. The implementation of this new multi metal vision is supported by the long tradition of the company, founded in 1866 as Norddeutsche Affinerie, and further developed by adopting modern copper smelting and lead smelting technologies for the processing of primary and secondary materials. The combination of these assets have already build the basis for processing of complex materials in the copper and lead circuits implemented in Aurubis’s facilities. The addition of a new smelting facility, will enhance these capabilities. Aurubis current flowsheet combines Cu, Pb and Zn metallurgy. This includes primary smelting of copper concentrate, processing of secondaries (residues, slimes, slags) and recycling materials (scrap, shredder material, e-scrap). These broad range of materials contain not only the mentioned base metals but also a number of minor metals that requires to be properly managed to ensure efficient recoveries and quality of the targeted metals.

Jan 1, 2019

By G. A. Fenton, A. Vervoort, M. Alvarez Grima

"High-risk underwater mining operations necessitate characterizing spatial heterogeneity and resource uncertainty. Local average subdivision is a method of simulating spatial deposit variability inside a cell through a sequence of discretization stages, during which a cell is further subdivided into four or eight cells. New developments are presented to validate simulated deposit models and deal with point measurements of geotechnical and ore-grade properties. This paper illustrates the relevance of translating spatial deposit variability into financial or operational performance indicators during underwater resource exploitation. Two synthetic case studies highlight the challenges of underwater mining in relation to production plans and equipment selection.RÉSUMÉ Les opérations d’extraction minière subaquatique à risque élevé exigent une caractérisation de l’hétérogénéité spatiale et de l’incertitude de la ressource. La moyenne locale de subdivision est une méthode de simuler la variabilité spatiale du gisement dans une cellule par une séquence d’étapes de discrétisation durant lesquelles une cellule est subdivisée en quatre ou huit cellules. De nouveaux développements sont présentés afin de valider les modèles de simulation des gisements et de traiter des mesures ponctuelles des propriétés géotechniques et de teneur du minerai. Le présent article illustre la pertinence de traduire la variabilité spatiale du gisement en indicateurs de rendement financier ou opérationnel durant l’exploitation subaquatique de la ressource. Deux cas synthétiques soulignent les défis de l’exploitation minière subaquatique par rapport aux plans de production et de choix des équipements."

Jan 1, 2015

By M. R. KEYS

"The property is about 120 miles north of Red Lake in the Favourable Lake area, district of Kenora ( Patricia part) , Ontario. The original discovery was staked by K. Murray in December, 1927. The first development work was done by the Favourable Lake Mining and Exploration Company. In 1936 Newmont Mining Corporation acquired control of the property and developed it to production by September, 1939. Production to the end of 1945 had a value of $7,534,656 from 441,457 tons of ore, an average value of $17.04 a ton . This production was mainly from gold and silver, with lead and zinc of subordinate importance.The rocks in the vicinity of the mine trend in a north-south direction. From east to west the sequence is: (1) A dark-coloured, massive rock, presumably a flow, composed mainly of quartz and biotite. ( 2) A buff- coloured, scricitized rock locally containing quartz phenocrysts and black hornblende. This is an alteration product of the dark variety and is later than the folding. It occurs mainly within the dark rock. (3) A series of sediments comprising thin beds of greywacke, grit, quartzite, conglomerate, and iron formation. ( 4) A gabbro sill, now largely altered to amphibolite.With the exception of the buff type, these rocks dip 80°E. The buff rock has a very irregular outline in comparison with the other rocks and appears to dip somewhat more flatly east. Felsite and diorite dykes are also present. These have a general strike of S.60°E. and dip 65°S .W. A post-ore diorite dyke trending N.15°E. occurs about 2,000 feet east of the mine area."

Jan 1, 1954

By J. Bednar, R. R. Rogers, W. Dingley

"Zinc is by far the most important metal used for protecting steel from the ravages of corrosion, and cadmium is also used extensively for this purpose. These metals are applied by electrodeposition in cyanide baths when a particularly good appearance and high throwing power are required. One great disadvantage in using these baths has been the decrease in cyanide concentration and the increase in carbonate concentration that takes place during the plating. Another disadvantage has been the development of serious embrittlement in high-strength steels. The present authors have developed new cyanide baths for electroplating both zinc and cadmium on steel. These baths are stable in composition during plating, they have not produced appreciable embrittlement in the high-strength steels that have been investigated up to the present time, and they permit the use of considerably higher plating current densities. In addition, they produce extremely fine grained coatings that are attractive and have excellent adherence and covering properties. Brighteners can be used in the plating baths if bright finishes are required."

Jan 1, 1967

By S. K. Sharma, Sanket Bacchuwar, Prabal Kumar Agrwal, G. V. Rao

"Iron ore processing industries play a vital role in the Indian economy. At present Iron ore of around +64% Fe is used for production of Iron through blast furnace. To produce +64% Fe from low/medium grade ores, crushing & beneficiation is compulsory. But during these processes, large amount of slime is generated. It is estimated that 18% -25% of tailing is generated during the processing of iron ore. The iron ore slime is discarded because of its particle size and chemical composition not being suitable as feed to the blast furnace. Although the fines/slimes can be agglomerated to larger particle, the alumina to silica ratio which is normally more than one pose serious problem during sintering process and subsequent smelting in blast furnace. The alumina content in the slime needs to be reduced for it to be used as the feed for blast furnace. The sample assayed 61.40% Fe, 7.68% SiO2, and 1.52% Al2O3, LOI 2.63% and all other elements were found in critical limit. A series of 27 tests were conducted by using a spiral for optimisation of process parameters to produce a pellet grade concentrate from the stacked slimes obtained from Kirandul. This paper deals with the optimisation studies of various parameters of a spiral concentrator and helps to utilize the fines from tailing ponds.INTRODUCTIONReserves of high-grade iron ores are diminishing all over the world at an alarming rate. As a result, alternative ways of augmenting and conserving precious and non - renewable natural resources are being seriously considered. One such attractive option is the recovery of metal values from slimes / tailings. Iron ore tailings containing around 48 - 60% Fe are generated from the iron ore washing plants and are disposed into tailing ponds without any further utility. These tailings in the form of slimes are not suitable in iron and steel making due to the presence of higher amount of gangue constituents. Several beneficiation techniques have been tried from time to time to reduce the gangue so that the beneficiated products could be effectively used."

Jan 1, 2016

By J. Warner, K. A. Hughes, P. E. R. Blanchard, J. Esslifie-Dughan, J. W. Reid

Tailings management plays an important role in reducing the environmental impact of Orano Canada’s uranium mining operations in Northern Saskatchewan. Uranium ores mined from Northern Saskatchewan are often associated with large amounts (10-20 wt%) of other harmful elements, such as arsenic and nickel. The JEB Tailings Management Facility (TMF) located at McClean Lake, Saskatchewan is designed to prevent potentially harmful water-soluble elements, particularly arsenic, from contaminating the surrounding environment by promoting the formation of water-insoluble minerals. It is therefore important to determine which arsenic-containing mineral species are present in the TMF and how they evolve over time. Researchers at the Canadian Light Source (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) were successful in identifying the arsenic mineral species present in tailings samples collected from the TMF in 2013 using X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectroscopy. XANES analysis verified that the majority of arsenic species in the TMF existed as amorphous and crystalline ferric arsenates with minor amounts of arsenite and arsenide species. Herein, XANES is again used to analyze a new set of tailings samples collected from the TMF in 2018, specifically focusing on the difference in the distribution of arsenic species in old and new tailings.

Jan 1, 2020

By F. Prescott, D. Hiam-Galvez, J. Hiam

Mines are frequently located in remote areas with little conventional employment and few opportunities for the existing population. The development and operation of the mines results in several years of intense activity followed by a near-complete reduction in employment and opportunities after the mines are closed. Designing Sustainable Prosperity (DSP) is a method for rectifying this situation by designing for long-term growth in areas that host mines. This process involves the participation of local and national governments, local community, mining companies, investors, academics and those with sector expertise. The mines will be the catalyst for regional sustainable development. If successful, long-term economic and environmental prosperity should be the result for the areas affected by mining and, in some instances, promoting the regions as centres of excellence for a particular industry. This paper will describe how the concept works using the copper producing region of Peru and Chile as an example. Designing sustainable prosperity starts by looking at regions based on the natural resources and skills available, the infrastructure and possible energy sources. Integrated natural resource models and innovative market studies, followed by education and skills requirements, are then established to determine the potential for the region and what needs to be done to realise the possibilities. INTRODUCTION Industry 4.0, or i4.0, dubs the fourth and current industrial revolution. Where previously they have been founded on ever-increasing consumption and production, i4.0 distinguishes itself by its partial focus on reducing resource intensity; lightweighting, energy efficiency, sensors and automation to improve resource efficiency. Industry 4.0 is an era of artificial intelligence, genome editing, biometrics, renewable energy, 3D printing, autonomous vehicles and the Internet of Things (Lu, 2017). These drivers represent key opportunities for the economic future of nations and regions.

Jan 1, 2019