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By Hani Henein

Most metals and alloys processed undergo a solidification processing step. Increasingly, there is a growing number of solidification processing routes that involve rapid solidification of the alloy. These include strip casting, high pressure die casting, 3D printing, and atomization for the production of powders or spray formed parts. By contrast, there are few experimental techniques developed to study the solidification path of alloys during rapid solidification. Amongst these laser melting and solidification, Electromagnetic Levitation (EML) and Impulse Atomization (IA) are the most prominent. Of relevance is the formulation of the solidification path of an alloy and the resultant identification and quantification of metastable phases and their relationship to processing conditions. This typically involves the understanding of the interplay between undercooling and cooling rate for the various phases that form. This presentation will outline some of the methodologies developed to quantify phase fractions and their solidification path as a function of processing conditions using EML and IA.

Jan 1, 2016

By G. T. Fisher

A continuous process is used at Phelps Dodge Sierrita Inc. to produce copper sulfate pentahydrate via a solution extraction ? crystallization approach to supply the animal feed market. A review of the fundamental concepts of the process and unit operations is presented. Improvements in the process are aimed at achieving a controlled size distribution of product crystals (-40+80 mesh) with minimization of fines by primary nucleation and crystal breakage. An independent temperature control design was implemented for the heat transfer medium (water) in each crystallizer, albeit using common headers in and out of the chiller. This design was developed to maintain a controlled degree of supersaturation in each vessel while preventing localized spontaneous nucleation of fines and reducing encrustation of the heat transfer surfaces in each crystallizer. A model was developed to calculate the heat load and heat transfer coefficient of each crystallizer along with the saturation copper tenor as a function of temperature and free acid.

Jan 1, 2007

By G. A. Campbell

This paper looks at how changes in the economies and demographics of the eight largest copper-consuming countries have been affecting their consumption of copper. The period of 1976 to 2005 is considered. Annual changes in measures like intensity of use of copper, per capita consumption of copper, copper consumption based on per capita income, and copper consumption from industrial production for each country and in aggregate are calculated. Other factors like the change of industrial production relative to total GDP and population/age trends are also considered for the individual countries. Non-parametric and parametric statistical tests are used to determine the significance of observed trends and relationships for individual countries and in aggregate. The results give insights into how copper consumption is changing for the countries and what economic/demographic factors are driving these changes. These insights provide some guidance about where copper consumption trends are headed in the future.

Jan 1, 2007

By R. A. L. Drew, F. Edelmann

Brazing is a low-cost process used extensively in the manufacturing and repair of aircraft gas turbine engines. Components within the compressor stage of the engine experience relatively low temperatures (600-700°C), therefore joints of stainless steels are typically employed. In such joints, a Pd-Ni-Cr-Si-B (PalNiCroTM) brazing alloy is used as a sealant, however brazing procedures are not well understood. The wetting behavior of PalNiCroTM on AISI 347 was evaluated with respect to contact angle. A microstructural evaluation was carried out with variable joint clearances. Microhardness profiles were performed to investigate the presence of hard secondary phases, which were later confirmed by electron microscopy. The results indicated an equilibrium contact angle of 10° within 100 seconds. The average microhardness of the braze layer and base metal were approximately 550 and 205 VHN, respectively. At the interface, a diffusion zone was present containing carbides and borides.

Jan 1, 2004

By F. Schulz

NA's primary smelter has continually increased its production output in the past decade, making it necessary to improve the lifetime of the casting moulds for copper anodes. The current throughput of more than 1,100,000 tonnes per year of copper concentrates amounts to an output of about 450,000 tonnes per year of anode copper at NA's Hamburg plant. The anodes are cast on a single casting wheel with 24 anode moulds. Besides the stable chemical analyses, the reproducible geometry of the anodes is an important precondition for the success of the subsequent electro-refining process. The anode moulds are subjected to thermally-induced alternating stress and side reactions with the melt. Typical signs of wear will be shown and discussed. Different processes to produce anode moulds will be introduced and the results in terms of their lifetime and the quality of the anodes themselves will be discussed. Finally an outlook is given on possible efficiency improvements.

Jan 1, 2007

By Ch. Wenzl

Anodes must have a certain physical and chemical quality in order to provide uniform anodic corrosion and meet the requirements of electrorefining, i.e. to achieve a high current efficiency, low energy consumption, low amount of anode scrap and low effort together with high cathode quality. Various properties of the anodes can be influenced directly by the casting process, which is the interface of pyro- and hydrometallurgy of copper. The aims of anode casting ? high output and long mould lifetimes ? are not consistent with good physical anode quality. The physical requirements of an anode are smooth surfaces, uniform weight and thickness, minimal edge effects, minimal distortion of the body and the lugs, as well as a homogeneous microstructure, in order to achieve uniform dissolution behaviour. The chemical quality of the anode copper is a task of electrorefining operations, but the elemental distribution within the anodes, which should be as homogeneous as possible in order to provide uniform anodic corrosion, can be influenced by the casting process.

Jan 1, 2007

By R. Abel

During the last eight years, the Ventanas electrolytic refinery has been improving its results by applying a series of new operational practices, such as the reduction of electrode spacing from 115 mm to 105 mm., raising the current density to 305 A/m2, modification in the operators shifts to about 70% of the workers, reducing the pulling cycles by two hours, and the erection of a new anode preparation machine. These improvements allowed an increase in the refinery capacity from 323,000 to 382,000 metric tons of electrolytic copper per year. In the same period it has obtained certification under the ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004 standards. All of these developments have been achieved using conventional technology with copper starting sheets. The continuous improvement that is covered in this paper has allowed Ventanas to optimize its production, costs, and operational results. For the next years, it is planned to follow the same tendency, bringing the productivity of the plant to higher levels.

Jan 1, 2007

By L. V. Volkov

The equilibrium of the CuO-Cu20-Cu+-Cu2+ system with various chloride ion concentrations in solution in the presence or absence of an oxidant was investigated. It is shown, that, regardless of the presence or absence of chloride ions or oxidant (oxygen) in the system, the process can be divided into three stages, which are characterized by differing rates and mechanisms of metallic copper cementation and cuprite precipitation and, hence, lead to differing rates of the dissolution of nickel into solution. The effect of the concentrations of chloride ion and oxidant on the phases in the process residues is also discussed. The addition of an oxidant increases the amount of cuprite (Cu20) in the leach residue. With increasing chloride ion concentrations, the rate of copper cementation increases, even without an oxidant in solution. The results of these laboratory experiments and the mechanisms developed are consistent with analysis of samples of industrial cement copper obtained from the Severonickel Combine.

Jan 1, 2007

By K. Madi, E. Yeugo Fogaing, S. Forest, M. Boussuge, L. Massard, M. Huger, Gaultm C.

This study has been carried out owing to the French research program PROMETHEREF, which aims to improve the knowledge of thermal and mechanical properties of industrial refractories at high temperature. In this frame, this paper relates a collaborative study between Saint-Gobain CREE, R&D Centre for Saint-Gobain Ceramics & Plastics in Europe (Cavaillon), the Materials Center P.M. Fourt of Ecole des Mines de Paris (Evry) and the Research Group on Heterogeneous Materials (GEMH) of ENSCI (Limoges). Data collected at high temperatures by using different means (bending tests, ultrasonic measurements,...) allows the identification of the high temperature behavior of two fused cast materials, produced by Saint-Gobain group for the glass manufacturing industry. The results emphasize the importance of the transformation of zirconia and of the viscosity of the glassy intergranular phase on the mechanical behavior. Damage under the form of microcracking caused by thermal expansion mismatch between the phases is also observed during cooling down at low temperature, when the material is elastic.

Jan 1, 2004

By D. Harris, S. Murugesan, G. Ye, G. Oprea, J. Rigby, T. Troczynski

The spinel-added and in-situ spinel bonded castables have been developed and widely used in steel industry. It is challenging to develop magnesia-based castables for the non-ferrous industry because the temperatures in industrial furnaces are significantly lower than those in the steel industry and therefore the binding systems of these castables must have the capability to develop a ceramic matrix below 1300°C. It is also challenging to develop a good binding system without addition of fume silica, because the hydration of magnesia may take place during installation, curing and firing of the castables. This work presents the experimental results on developing magnesia-based cement-free, silica fume-free refractory castables using hydratable alumina as the hydraulic binder and a spinel phase as the final ceramic binder. In order to activate the sintering and have a ceramic matrix well developed at the relatively low required temperatures, ultrafine aluminas, chromia, magnesium-aluminate spinel and aluminum titanate powders were used as components of the binding system.

Jan 1, 2004

By S. Parada, P. T. Jones, M. Guo, S. Smets, E. Boydens

The corrosion behaviour of a pitch-bonded MgO-C refractory in contact with a vacuum oxygen decarburisation slag with high Al2O3 content (12-17 wt%) is investigated under VOD process conditions by rotating finger tests in a vacuum induction furnace. The refractory degradation mechanisms are studied by the characterisation of the corroded microstructures using scanning electron microscopy, equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy. The influence on the refractory wear of the process temperature, corrosion time and the Al2O3 content in the slag is discussed. The degradation mechanisms include slag infiltration, direct MgO dissolution from the refractories into the penetrated slag, erosion of magnesia grains at elevated temperatures, removal of carbon through the MgO-C reaction, and finally, oxidation of refractory carbon by reducible slag components. Both a porous MgO layer and a dense (Mg)(A1,Cr)2O4 spinel at the slag/brick interface were observed. Their formation mechanisms and industrial relevance are discussed.

Jan 1, 2004

By R. Liu

As Building Information Modeling (BIM) becomes widely adopted by the construction industry, it holds undeveloped possibilities for supporting Facility Management (FM). Some FM information systems on the market claim to address the needs for FM requirement. However, the question of whether the functionalities provided by the current BIM-based FM software companies are those actually required by the FM Professionals still need to be answered. The data is required by FM professionals in the operation and maintenance phases of facilities and type of maintainability problems that frequently occur, which can be solved early in design phase, have not yet been addressed. The aim of this paper is to clarify the frequently occurring maintainability problems and to investigate the potential areas that can use BIM technology to solve the maintenance problems in early the design phase. A survey was conducted to collect perspectives from the industry practitioners for the maintenance problems and their frequency. The survey results indicated that maintainability considerations should be taken into consideration during the facility design phase. The results also address the perceived areas by practitioners that need maintainability consideration in design phase.

Aug 1, 2013

By Patrick R. Stephenson

The Australasian Code for Reporting of Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the ?JORC Code?) has been operating successfully for 14 years, and has an ancestry dating back over 30 years. Together with complementary developments in stock exchange listing rules, the Code has brought about substantially improved standards of public reporting by Australasian mining and exploration companies. The Code is regarded as a world leader in its field, and has been used as a basis for the development of resource/reserve reporting standards in other countries. The reasons for its success are varied, foremost amongst them being its adoption in full by the Australian and New Zealand Stock Exchanges, and the ability and willingness of mining industry organisations to bring Competent Persons to account when necessary. The latest revision of the JORC Code was undertaken in 2002/03, based in part on releases of upgraded reporting standards in Canada, United Kingdom/Western Europe and South Africa, and the 2003 edition is expected to be released mid-year. Two of the more significant changes are: the introduction of a requirement for a Competent Person to be responsible for the documentation upon which Exploration Results are reported; and inclusion in the definition of a Competent Person of a reference to ?Recognised Overseas Professional Organisations?, being overseas professional organisations to which Competent Persons may belong for the purpose of preparing documentation for the submission of reports to the Australian Stock Exchange.

May 1, 2003

By Chan-ho Park

As the building has recently become bigger, higher, and freeform, a technology called BIM(Building Information Modeling), which is a key technology that integrates construction and IT(Information Technology), has been rapidly introduced and expanded. Because BIM technology offers various benefits, countries that introduced BIM early has been actively promoted. However, misperceptions of BIM are prevalent in countries such as South Korea that have adopted it relatively late, with lack of awareness of its fundamental purposes. Under these circumstances, transparent and quantitative performance assessment needs to be executed in order to eliminate the misperceptions, and to explain and revitalize the BIM introduction. These quantitative performance measure KPI (Key Performance Indicators) to be measured should be prioritized. As derive performance indicators in terms of the four types (financial, customer, internal processes, learning and growth), and performance management systems, Uses the BSC to seek a balance between short-term financial goals, values and the value of long-term goals. Uses the BSC(Balanced Scorecards) to derive performance indicators in terms of the four types (financial, customer, internal processes, learning and growth), and performance management systems, seeking a balance between the value of short-term financial objectives and the value of long-term objectives. Through this, the KPI (Key Performance Indicators) which is used for measuring the effect of the BIM will be generated and also the method that can determine whether the generated KPI figures are objectively inter-connected will be suggested as well.

Aug 1, 2013

RISKGATE is an interactive online risk management system developed by the Minerals Industry Safety and Health Centre (MISHC; University of Queensland) to assist the mining industry in implementing continual improvement in management of major unwanted events, and so maximising health and safety performance. A comprehensive body of knowledge has been compiled from diverse mining industry experts for risk management of tyres, collisions, fires, isolation, strata underground, ground control open cut, explosions, explosives, manual tasks and slips/trips/falls. This paper presents an overview of the body of knowledge captured from diverse mining industry experts for the management of unwanted strata incidents, and explosions in the underground environment. This knowledge is divided into a series of initiating events within both topics (as listed) with further degrees of classification based on design, operation, and management concerns. Strata Underground Initiating Events: Explosions Initiating Events Loss of strata control at longwall face Fire or ignition in a sealed area Loss of strata control in outbye roadways Fire or ignition in an unsealed goaf area Loss of strata control in roadways under development Fire or ignition in an extraction face Loss of control of overburden and caving behavior Fire or ignition in outbye Loss of pillar system stability Loss of control of goaf edge in pillar extraction Fire or ignition in a development panel or first working Loss of strata control in shafts The system guides the user in generating substantive and leading edge controls to assist industry stakeholders in the design, management and reporting of organisational and regulatory compliance requirements. From a broader industry perspective, RISKGATE provides an environment for knowledge capture and knowledge exchange to drive innovation and best practice in the identification, assessment and management of risk. By capturing operational knowledge from industry experts, RISKGATE provides a cumulative corporate memory at a time of high personnel turnover in the coal industry.

Aug 1, 2013

By Lou Covello

Bow Valley Industries Limited i conducting an on-going exploration program for gold in Archean, turbidite-hosted iron formations near the Lupin mine on Contwoyto Lake, orthwe t Territorie . Exploration philosophy and practice are modelled on the Lupin deposit where 70% of the gold occurs within laminated pyrrhotitechert. sulphide facie iron formation. Thi i intimately associated with barren to low-grade silicate facie iron formation which i enclosed by predominantly argillaceou meta ediment . This type of mineralization i amenable to exploration through an integrated program of geological and geophy ical surveying, consisting of the following: i) Geological urvey both regional and local to outline area of turbidites and a ociated iron formation. Structural and tratigraphic trends documented during this phase are useful in determining eventual grid configurations. Grids are then mapped and ampled at 1:2000 cale. ii) Magnetometer and gradiometer urvey at the ame scale define strongly magnetic diabase dyke and erratically magnetic portions of iron formation. iii) VLF-EM survey are u eful in outlining conductive trend invariably as ociated with sulphidic or graphitic phase of iron formation. iv) Geological updating and ampling of iron fom1ation based on the geophysical su rveys. This is necessary for the production of a final geologic map and a an adjunct to drill target election. In problematic instances self-potential urveys have documented the pre ence of non-conductive sulphide accumulations, and horizontal loop EM surveys have been used to determine conductor geometry and quality. Target selection is based on a synthesis of the information from all of the above surveys with the results of no single survey being critical to drill decisions. The program is designed to provide first-pass, detailed , cost-effective ground coverage of large areas of highly prospective geology.

Jan 1, 1986

By Edward R. T. Tiekink

Metal complexes continue to find therapeutic applications for the treatment of a wide variety of human ailments. Amongst these, gold(I) thiolates are used to treat rheutmatoid arthritis but, usually in combination with other treatment or as a last resort. New therapeutic uses of gold, both as gold(I) and gold(III), are being sought, including against cancer, the focus of the present contribution. It will be demonstrated that certain gold(I) complexes show exciting cytotoxicity profiles, rivalling those of cisplatin and standard chemotherapeutic agents. More importantly, anti-tumour activity is demonstrated in vivo, albeit in a mouse model. The presentation will give a brief overview of ?metals in medicine? with a focus on gold and will summarise some recent advances in the development of goldbased anti-tumour agents.

Oct 1, 2003

By H. Stillman

The International Copper Association, Ltd. (ICA) is responsible for guiding strategy and policy, and funding international initiatives that help deliver the benefits of copper around the world. ICA's technology initiative supports this mission by funding pre-competitive technology development and accelerating the commercialization of new copper-related technologies. The R&D portfolio includes some projects that defend existing applications such as plumbing tube and data cabling, but the majority of projects are designed to enable new applications for copper. The current technology portfolio is focused on leveraging copper's unique electrical, thermal, mechanical and antimicrobial properties to define and expand the role of copper in areas poised for future technological growth: reducing disease transmission, sustainable energy generation, reducing the environmental impact of production processes, and in increasing energy efficiency. Projects related to these areas are conducted at qualified external organizations including universities, early-stage firms, and large OEMs worldwide. This talk will provide an overview of ICA's technology initiative's principles, projects and partnerships to stimulate the audience to think about copper-related innovations.

Jan 1, 2007

By K. L. Eastwood

The ISA PROCESSTM cathode plate is characterised by its copper coated suspension bar, coupled with a blade employing austenitic stainless steel alloy 316L. The blade material has become the mainstay of the technology and has been closely copied by competing cathode designs. Improvement to the cathode plate design remains a key area for research, and ongoing developments by Xstrata Technology's ISA PROCESSTM have recently been commercialised. Two such developments are the ISA Cathode BRTM and ISA 2000 AB Cathode. The ISA BR cathode is a lower resistance cathode that has proven to enhance operating efficiencies. The AB cathode was designed to improve stripping inefficiencies in the ISA 2000 technology. These developments have now had time to mature and their long term performance will be discussed. Rising material costs and the desire to extend the operating boundaries of the standard 316L cathode plate has triggered a number of significant advances. These involve the use of different stainless steels as alternatives in some operational situations. The technical aspects and results of commercial trials on this development will also be discussed in this paper.

Jan 1, 2007

CI, Data and Data Systems Road Analysis Control Quick and simple manual Analysis Case study Visual relation of analysis

May 1, 2013