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By J. A. Bakken, M. T. Jonsson, G. A. Saevarsdottir, H. Palsson

The electrodes of a Submerged Arc Furnaces carry a high current and are subject to enormous stresses caused by both the electric arc itself, and the current distribution within the electrode. The external effect of the arc on the electrode is treated in a different paper at this conference, The purpose of this paper is to analyze the thermal effects of ohmic heating within the electrode at the arc attachment on the carbon based electrode, using data for Søderberg electrodes. The thermal conditions are then used to examine stress conditions in the vicinity of an arc. Two types of models of an electrode are presented in the paper. The first type is an accurate finite element model, based on both two and three dimensional elements and the second type is an one dimensional model, providing better insight into the problem. For the second type, a spherical model of thermal conditions in a semi-infinite solid has been developed. Results show that the electrode surface is heated quickly up to a maximum temperature and for a specific test case, the surface can only withstand the load for about 10 seconds. Also, the thermal stresses on the surface are very high which will increase erosion on the surface in addition to normal evaporation.

Jan 1, 2007

By M. Paricheh, M. Rahmanpour

"The cost efficiency and high reliability of semi-mobile or combined in-pit crushing-conveying (IPCC) and truck systems, compared to conventional truck-shovel systems alone, make them more attractive for use in modern mining operations. Semi-mobile systems, which are the most common systems in open-pit mining, combine the advantages of both systems such that fewer trucks are required, operating costs are lowered, and the operation is environmentally sound. One major aspect of utilizing this system is determining the location of the in-pit crusher and the timing of relocations. Facility location models are rarely used in the mining sector, but these models may be used for solving the in-pit crusher location problem. To this end, the main parameters affecting the IPCC location in open pit mines are reviewed and examples given of how they are applied to a dynamic location-relocation problem. Subsequently, the model is implemented for Sungun copper mine in Iran and the number and the exact time of relocations of the IPCC units determined. IntroductionNowadays, compared to the last century, metal prices are more volatile, average and cut-off grades have decreased, and stripping ratios increased. From a mining engineering point of view, many ore deposits with simple access and low capital and operating costs have been exhausted. The remaining deposits are located at depth, with no easy access, which requires high initial capital costs (Osanloo, 2012). Mining at great depths and high tonnages is possible only through open pit mining. Today, more than 80% of open pit mines in the world use a shovel-truck system for loading-hauling operations (Osanloo, 2010).With increasing depth, haulage distances increase and the number of loads per truck decreases. As a result, fuel, tyre, and depreciation costs per ton increase. Owing to these factors, open pit mining at great depth (300 to 1000 m) using shovel-truck systems faces some technical and economic problems. In-pit crushing-conveying (IPCC) systems have been known in the mining industry for many decades. The idea was introduced in 1956 in Germany. Today, the cost efficiency and high reliability of IPCC make it more appealing than conventional shovel-truck operation, especially in longer life projects with lengthy transportation distances and high production rates (Koehler, 2003). Since 1956, different aspects of this system have been reviewed by many researchers. Barua and Lanergan (1985) developed a computer program that compares the tonnage aspects of various conveyor layouts. They believed that to maximize the economic benefit of lower haulage costs associated with in-pit conveying, one must first minimize the cost of the flatter slope, which is expressed in terms of additional stripping or tied-up ore. Dos Santos and Stanisic (1987) evaluated the design of a high-angle conveyor at the Majdanpek copper mine. Then, Sturgul (1987) applied GPSS (general purpose simulation system) to find the best location of an in-pit crusher."

Jan 1, 2017

By J. F. Brand, J. C. van Dyk, F. B. Waanders

"Syngas from Africary’s Theunissen underground coal gasification (UCG) project will be used for power production and synthesis of liquid fuels and commodity chemicals. However, some of the coal components, especially condensable water, oils, tars, inorganic trace elements, and a small fraction of fly ash and particulate matter, make their way to the surface via the production well and can cause adverse impacts on downstream processes. Africary’s standard design incorporates a cold gas clean-up system that relies on relatively mature techniques based on highly effective wet scrubbers and acid gas removal (AGR) systems such as Rectisol®, but with the downside of low energy efficiency and waste water generation. In this paper, novel technologies for removing contaminants and species separation from the hot (T > 300°C) raw syngas are compared. Comparisons are made between supersonic gas separation (SGS), Ranque–Hilsch vortex tube (RHVT), vortex gradient separation (VGS), and inertia vacuum filtering (IVF), and a vortex-based gas separation concept is proposed for UCG applications. IntroductionImpurities in gasification feedstock (coal, biomass, waste, etc.), especially sulphur, nitrogen, chlorine, and inorganic mineral matter, often end up in the syngas and can cause adverse impacts on downstream processes. Africary’s standard design incorporates a cold gas clean-up system that relies on relatively mature techniques based on highly effective wet scrubbers and acid gas removal (AGR) systems such as RectisolR, SelexolR or aMDEAR; but with the downside of low energy efficiency and waste water generation.Hot (T > 300°C) gas clean-up technologies are attractive because they avoid cooling and reheating of the syngas stream. Some available warm gas cleaning technologies include traditional particulate removal devices such as cyclones, candle filters, membranes, and molecular sieves. The warm gas desulphurization process technology developed by RTI LLC (2018) requires hot syngas to remove sulphur and has become commercially ready. Many other hot gas cleanup systems are still under development, given the technical difficulties caused by extreme environmental and operating conditions."

Jan 1, 2018

By I. Matsunaga, K. Aoki, W. -j. Jung

Blasting is widely used in mining and basic construction because of its speed and economy to destroy the rocks. Blasting has the advantages of reduced excavation costs and shorted construction time when compared to the use of heavy machinery for excavation and cutting such as that with a tunnel boring machine. There are numerous problems with blasting, including the noise, vibration and fly rock. So it is necessary to accurately evaluate fracture mechanics of rocks on the dynamic loading condition to control the fracture process of the blasting. The tests using Hopkinson's effect for the dynamic condition using the precise detonators were performed for various strain rates on three different kinds of rocks. In the tests using Hopkinson's effect for the dynamic condition, the high-speed camera was used to observe the fracture process of the test sample rocks. As the results of experiments there was an increase in the tensile strength of rock with an increase in the strain rate for three kinds of rock on the dynamic loading. The tensile strength of rocks with high porosity on the water saturation condition was decreased on the both static and dynamic condition. It is clear that the strain rate and water saturation were influenced to the tensile strength of the rocks.

Jan 1, 2003

By C. J. H. Steenkamp

Theoretically, the main driver behind a mining operations? sourcing decision should differ from company to company, and within a company from project to project, but in reality it often relates to cost. Research confirms that there are a number of factors, including cost, to consider when choosing between in-house and outsourced mining. While the literature is rife with factors to consider, little information exists on how to apply these in practice and the relative importance of the different factors to be considered. A study was conducted to determine whether mining is truly a core competency for a mid-tier commodity specialist mining company. Furthermore, a decision-making framework for mining operations sourcing was developed, and the critical success factors that should be adhered to if outsourced mining is chosen were determined. The research showed that owner mining is not a core competency for the mining company investigated. A decision-making framework was developed using the order winner/order qualifier structure, which can be used to facilitate the mining sourcing decision. The most important tools at the disposal of a mine owner?s team to manage a contractor miner are the social and output control mechanisms, according to the critical success factors study.

Jan 1, 2014

By D. C. Andersen, G. L. Smith, J. Pearson-Taylor

Following a restructuring of Anglo Platinum Limited in 2004 the strategic long-term planning function has been centralized. This paper describes the revised strategic long-term planning process covering aspects of the planning cycle, systems and methodologies, categorization of capital expenditure, corporate governance and planning tools.

Jan 1, 2006

By D. Ksinsik, R. Boisvert, D. Leblanc

Casting, cooling and crushing/sieving of ferroalloys has followed a well-established pattern in the whole ferroalloys industry for many years. Usually liquid metal or alloys are cast into flat open moulds of various shapes and forms, and after solidification the product is removed from such mould to further cool down to a temperature where subsequent handling steps are feasible. Common to all mechanical product fractioning is the generation of dust and fine size material with lower product value. For almost 10 years, Bécancour Silicon has investigated alternative roads to improve technology and/or reduce or solve problems related to those disadvantages. Since 1995 Bécancour Silicon operates a special silicon granulation plant targeted to product for the chemical treatment/conversion of silicon for silicones production. Prior to the development of the granulation process, various systems had been evaluated, among others the vibrating casting bed, now in operation elsewhere but judged inappropriate because of the tapping volumes to be handled at Bécancour Silicon and other disadvantages. After evaluation of all aspects of heat transfer, radiation, and conductivity in relation to transfer media and within the product, a novel system was designed and built.

Jan 1, 2004

By G. Apsey

Eutectic freeze crystallization (EFC) is a novel technique for the recovery of pure salt and pure water from hypersaline waste brines. It is therefore a promising technology for the treatment of industrial waste waters. The impurities caused by crystallizing salt out of multi-component brines by EFC have not yet been investigated, however. To these ends, the selenium impurity found in sodium sulphate, produced from the waste brine of a platinum operation, was investigated. It was believed that the similarity between sulphate and selenate ions allowed isomorphous substitution of selenate ions into the sodium sulphate crystals, which was the likely cause of impurity uptake. It was found that the presence of sodium chloride in the industrial brine promotes the uptake of selenium, while ionic strength of the brine and mass deposition rate of sodium sulphate did not have a significant effect on the selenium uptake. Isomorphous substitution is predicted to be the most significant mechanism by which all impurities will be taken up when applying EFC to other industrial waste brines.

Jan 1, 2013

By C. Sarkar

Increased competition in today’s global economy has put mineral industry under excessive pressure to effectively manage production assets to generate business wealth. Capital intensive industry (CII) organizations are seeking ways to manage skill resources, internal processes, and organizational networks with a view to reduce the cost of ownership of assets and increase efficiency of operations and service. The emerging concept of Enterprise Asset Management(EAM) is a collection of business processes that allow CII with right focus on return on investment on assets, to make right decisions on planning, acquisition, maintenance, operation, rehabilitation, and disposal of assets. Information technology (IT) can drive significant returns if the infrastructure covers seamlessly all business processes and all systems, like geographic information system, maintenance management, investment management, laboratory information management, and supervisory control and data acquisition system. The simple approach to IT in the past with disconnected silos of technology, information, and business processes cannot deliver the expected benefits under the modern business environment. Identification of business and application component is a prerequisite for the development of an asset management system that links effectively disciplined processes having characteristics of agility, speed, and integration. This paper discusses various issues and outlines the steps for developing an asset management roadmap in an organizsation. It also presents major business and application components of the system. Keywords: Enterprise asset management, Business architecture, Business component, Application component, Asset ownership, Asset operations, Information technology, Capital Intensive industry

Jan 1, 2003

2nd CONGRESS OF THE INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR ROCK MECHANICS The 2nd Congress of the International Society for Rock Mechanics will be held in Belgrade, 21-26 September, 1970. The Congress will include: working sessions, study tours, receptions, excursions introduced in the working sessions and post-congress excursions and special programme for accompanying persons. Anyone interested in rock mechanics and its applicarion may take part in the 2nd Congress. Official languages of the Congress are: English, French and German. Simultaneous translation service will be provided during the Congress. All the correspondence concerning the 2nd Congress of the International Society for Rock Mechanics should be addressed to: Sekretarijat 2. kongresa Medjunarodnog drustva za mehaniku stena Institut za vodoprivredu "Jaroslav Cerni" Bulevar vojvode Misica 43, Postanski fah 530 Beograd - Jugoslavija NINTH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM TECHNIQUES FOR DECISION MAKING IN THE MINERAL INDUSTRY The Symposium which is to be held in Montreal during the week of June 14-19, 1970, follows the Computer Symposium held in Salt Lake City this year. The purpose of the Symposium is to define the role of decision making techniques within the mineral industry and to stimulate the development of specific applications. The subject of the Symposium-mathematics, operations research and computers as applied to the mineral industry-allows a complete picture of the mineral industry in its public policy, corporate, financial and technological environment to emerge. This is another of the series of symposia on this and related subjects started in the early 1960's at the University of Arizona. Sponsorship has included a number of Universities and the Society of Mining Engineers of the American Institute of Mining. This 1970 symposium is the first to be held outside of America, and is being sponsored by the Canadian Institute of Mining, McGill University and Ecole Polytechnique. A number of delegates from South Africa have participated in these symposia and several have already arranged to attend this symposium in Montreal. Enquiries should be directed to: Secretariat, The 9th International Symposium, Department of Mining Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique, P.O. Box 50l, Snowden, Montreal 248, Quebec, Canada. 24th INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS This Congress is to be held in Montreal, Canada, from August 21 to 30, 1972. A very detailed and extensive programme has been proposed, and includes a number of excursions. Copies of the first circular are obtainable from: The Organizing Committee, 24th International Geological Congress, 601 Booth Street, Ottawa 4, Ontario, CANADA. SYMPOSIUM ON THE RECOVERY OF PYRITE The proceedings of the Symposium on the Recovery of Pyrite, held in Johannesburg on 12th to 13th June 1969 are now available. Copies may be ordered from the Secretary, S.A.I.M.M., P.O. Box 61019, Marshalltown, Transvaal at a cost of R10.00. Papers and addresses presented at the Symposium were: Opening Address by Mr J. K. E. Douglas (President). 'The world sulphur position,' by W. C. J. van Rensburg (Member). 'The South African sulphur position,' by D. L. Taylor (Member). 'The recovery of pyrite at Government Gold Mining Areas Limited,' by R. J. Westwood (Member), G. S. Stander (Affiliate) and H. R. Carlisle (Member). 'Recovery of pyrite concentrates from colliery-waste discards-A preliminary assessment,' by W. A. Gilbert (Visitor) and E. A. Nugent (Member). 'The role of pyrite in upgrading the uranium content of Witwatersrand conglomerate ores by means of the heavy-medium separation process,' by D. J. Tutt (Associate Member). 'Pyrite recovery by jigs at Durban Roodepoort Deep Limited,' by E. J. Dominy (Affiliate), F. Diamond (Affiliate) and A. D. Graham (Affiliate). 'The storage of pyrite concentrates,' by Joan C. Campkin (Visitor) and P. J. Lloyd (Member). 'The flotation plants of the Anglo- Transvaal Group,' by L. A. Bushell (Member). 'Pyrite flotation with amines and cyanidation of the products,' by E. H. D. Carman (Member). 'Gold recovery by cyanidation from mill products obtained after pyrite flotation,' by P. G. Mrkusic (Graduate), M. Sciarone (Visitor) and H. E. Simonsen (Visitor). 'The influence of sulphydral and cationic flotation reagents on cyanidation of native gold,' by K. G. Ashurst (Visitor) and W. P. Finkelstein (Member). 'Laboratory tests on the flotation of pyrite from Witwatersrand gold ores by cationic collector,' by J. Levin (Member), and M. L. Veitch (Visitor). Closing Address, by Dr R. E. Robinson (Director, National Institute for Metallurgy).

By N. Barton, E. Quadros

This paper addresses the prediction of groutable joint apertures, grout penetration limitations, and possible grout take volumes per cubic metre of rock, as a result of 5 to 10 MPa pre-injection pressures ahead of tunnels. Joints are obviously opened more than in the preceding Lugeon tests, and many rock mass properties can apparently be improved if stable micro-cement based materials are used. Cet article concerne la prédiction des ouvertures des fractures injectables, les limites de pénétration du coulis et les volumes injectés par mètre cube, d’après les résultats des injections à l’avant tête des tunnels sous pressions de 5 à 10 MPa. Evidemment les joints s’ouvrent plus que dans les essais Lugeon précédents. Maintes propriétés du massif peuvent apparemment être améliorés si l’on emploi des coulis a base de micro-ciment stable. Die Publikation widmet sich der Prognose injizierbarer Kluftöffnungen, Grenzwerte für Injektionsreichweiten und erreichbarer Injektionsvolumen pro Kubikmeter injizierter Fels, durch die Anwendung von 5 bis 10 MPa Vorinjektionsdrücken vor der Tunnelfront.Die Klüfte werden offensichtlich weiter geöffnet als in den vorhergegangenen Lugeon Versuchen und mehrere Felsparameter können durch die Verwendung von stabilisierten Micro-Zement basierten Injektionsmaterialien verbessert werden.

Jan 1, 2003

By Arun Vathavooran, Adrian Singh, Michael Fletcher, Rainer Imhof

The Imhoflot G-Cell, a new development in the pneumatic flotation technology (which incorporates centrifugal forces in the separating vessel) is a recent innovation in the mineral processing world. The G-Cell was invented by Dr Rainer Imhof and commercialised by Maelgwyn Mineral Services Ltd. In a short time span a number of plants and units have been successfully commissioned in the mineral processing industry. In addition, a number of industrial G-Cell flotation plants are in the process of construction for the purpose of coal preparation and environmental remediation. In this paper two industrial installations have been highlighted together with a pilot plant test programme investigating ultra fine flotation recovery for a base metal operation.

Jan 1, 2007

By M. M. Makhofane

Anhydrous zirconium tetrafluoride can be used as a precursor for the manufacturing of nuclear-grade zirconium metal. This can be done by fluorinating plasma-dissociated zircon with ammonium bifluoride in a batch reactor. This paper describes the batch process. It was proved that anhydrous zirconium tetrafluoride can be manufactured by this route as confirmed by X-ray diffraction. The process shows potential for scaling up to the kilogram scale and possibly the tonnage scale.

Jan 1, 2012

By K. Richardson

Although the De Beers group has a long history of placer mining on land, the group only became actively involved in deep water marine diamond exploration and mining in 1983 with the formation of DeBeers Marine. Full-scale commercial mining commenced around1991. Since then, the group marine mining capability has grown into a formidable fleet of 8 large deep water (>70 m) mining vessels, as well as other special purpose geosurvey platforms. Marine diamond production by the group is expected to be just short of 1 million carats in 2006. De Beers operates across the entire value-chain spectrum from geology and geosurvey, through sampling to mining, and finally ore processing into high value concentrate. Supporting these operations involves significant service activities such as maintenance, security, logistics and environmental management. Specific challenges exist in terms of developing or acquiring appropriate technology for marine mining. These challenges have resulted in De Beers operating extensive in-house R&D and projects departments, as well as drawing extensively from technology partners. An array of computational and test facilities is also available to support R&D and projects activities. Hydrotransport in various guises is key to the current approaches to marine mining and ore processing. Use is made of airlift and centrifugal pumping for hydraulic hoisting of very coarse gravel, while splitters, launders, dewatering, elutriators, jet pumps, centrifugal pumps, dense medium circuits, pipeline systems, and instrumentation for coarse abrasive particles are used extensively in the ore processing plant.

Jan 1, 2007

By K. S. Liddell

The Kell Process has been developed for the extraction of platinum group metals (PGMs) and base metals from sulphide flotation concentrates. The process has been successfully tested on several different sulphide flotation concentrates, including those from the UG2 chromitite horizon and the Platreef mafic/ultramafic layer. It has been shown to provide high (>95 per cent) and selective extraction efficiencies for the key valuable metals, i.e. Pt, Pd, Rh, Au, Ni, Co, and Cu. The Kell Process consists of several commercially proven unit operations. S, Ni, Co, and Cu are first selectively removed by use of a pressure oxidation step during which the dissolution of PGMs is minimized. The residue from pressure oxidation is subjected to a thermal treatment to ensure efficient PGM recovery by subsequent chlorination. All the core steps are very similar to well-proven conventional unit operations in common use, as are the subsequent metal recovery steps to provide marketable end products. Typical metallurgical responses of flotation concentrates from UG2 and Platreef to the Kell Process are provided, and key outcomes of an energy comparison study with smelting are summarized in this paper. Kell presents a potentially substantial improvement in PGM concentrate processing technology, in terms of economics via much-reduced power costs, ease of processing, and various environmental benefits. It allows for the treatment of high-chromium low-grade 'dirty' concentrates, such as secondary concentrates from the platinum industry's 'mill-float-mill-float' (MF2) flotation circuits and concentrates from retreatment of tailings. It allows greater concentrate mass pulls, has higher tolerance to gangue intergrowths in concentrates, and its use can provide substantial increases in overall PGM recovery. Its adoption would be a step change in the platinum industry, and given the commercially proven unit operations embodied in the Kell Process, at much-reduced risk compared with other more experimental technologies. Since the initial process development work, significant improvements and refinements have been introduced as a result of further compre¬hensive testing and process modelling. Pilot-scale testing and engineering study work is in progress for several selected sites.

Jan 1, 2012

By T. A. Muhlare

"Large quantities of slag are produced every year and dumped on slag heaps around the world, posing a potential environmental threat due to contained heavy metals content. Slags are waste minerals produced during furnace smelting of minerals. The contained values of base metals may be released into the environment under natural weathering conditions polluting ground and underground water. Copper losses into slag are a continuous problem in pyrometallurgical smelting operations. Due to shortage of ore concentrate, various mining operations have initiated the recovery of copper from dumped slag. The typical process uses crushing, milling and flotation. These operations create excessive liner wear rates during crushing and milling because the bond work index of copper slag is 22 kWh/t and this is considered a very hard slag. The process also has reduced flotation recoveries and requires high flotation reagent consumption. The present work shows that digestion of the milled copper slag slurry with concentrated sulphuric acid at a temperature of 250oC forms a solid cake and leaching of the solid cake with water is a possible option. However, the consumption of sulphuric acid can have a considerable cost on the recovery process. This can be limited by producing a leach residue containing gypsum and silicate materials as amorphous silica which are suitable for use as an additive for Portland cement. Laboratory results show that 90% copper recoveries can be achieved. The leaching is conducted to prevent silica gel formation and iron co-extraction. Leaching is optimum if silica gel-free solutions and good filterable residue are obtained. INTRODUCTION Slag is a waste by-product of smelting and converting operations in metallurgical plants. Both smelting and converting operations are aimed at iron separation from base metal sulphides in non-ferrous metallurgy. The iron sulphide component of the ore or concentrate is oxidized to iron oxide at higher temperatures in the molten form, and then fluxed with silica and other oxide rock minerals to produce fayalite (2FeO•SiO2) slag (Schlesinger et al., 2011). Slags are generally deposited on dumps and considered to be unreactive materials. Smelter copper slag contains significant concentrations of several potentially toxic elements, including arsenic, lead, cadmium, barium, zinc and copper. These elements can be released into the environment under natural weathering conditions and cause pollution of soils, surface waters and groundwater (David, 1998)."

Jan 1, 2015

By L. Arnberg, E. Ott

The microstructure of ferrosilicon is important since it controls the disintegration of the material during crushing and thus the generation of fines. Therefore a study of the microstructure formation during solidification of pure FeSi(75wt%Si) and FeSi(75wt%Si) containing 1.2wt%Al and 0.2wt%Ca has been initiated. The material has been cast into rods of 8mm diameter, which have been remolten by induction heating and directionally solidified in a Bridgman apparatus. This allows the temperature gradient and the growth rate to be controlled independently. The temperature history during solidification has been recorded by a thermocouple in the melt. Growth rates have been varied between 5 and 400µms-1 and temperature gradients between 3 and 14°Kmm-1. The microstructures show a large dependence on the solidification conditions. The crack formation in the alloys has been studied and found to be strongly related to the microstructure.

Jan 1, 2004

By J. van Deventer

Ion exchange is widely used in hydrometallurgical operations for the recovery and purification of valuable metals. Special chelating resins have a high affinity for specific elements, allowing the selective removal of low levels of impurities from a background of highly concentrated valuable metal. Solvent-impregnated resins have been added to this group more recently, expanding the treatment options. These products find application in the purification of cobalt-rich liquor prior to the production of high-purity metal or metal salts. Impurities in copper-cobalt circuits that are typically targeted by ion exchange include iron, uranium, copper, zinc, nickel, bismuth, and antimony. Ion-exchange resins can also be used to treat tailings, thereby recovering additional valuable metal and improving the Environmental and Social Governance credentials of the operation. This article takes a look at various applications of ion exchange in copper-cobalt operations

Jan 1, 2023

By M. van Schoor

Coal remains South Africa?s most abundant and cheapest source of energy, and there is an ever-increasing necessity for optimal and safe extraction of the remaining reserves. Increasing focus on cost-effective mining and zero harm to the environment and miners has resulted in a shift in attitude towards the application of geophysics in local coal mining and exploration. Furthermore, technological advances have contributed to geophysics being embraced more readily by the coal mining industry, compared to a decade or two ago. Predictably, the growing interest in geophysical technologies has also created a need for education and training in the basic principles and application of geophysical methods, as local coal mining companies generally do not have in-house geophysicists. Consequently, the Coaltech Research Organisation?s Geology and Geophysics working group forum compiled a textbook aimed at addressing this need: to produce a guide for applying geophysics to coal mining problems in South Africa. The target audience for such a book would be coal geologists, mine surveyors, mine planners, and other mining staff with limited or no geophysics background. This paper provides a very brief overview of the book by summarizing key sections and selected examples. In doing so, the value of geophysics to solving a range of coal mining and exploration problems is highlighted.

Jan 1, 2014

By H. H. Einstein

This paper reviews how uncertainty has been dealt with over the past 40 years using the decision making cycle as a frame of reference. The review of the phases of this cycle, as applied to rockmechanics and rock engineering, namely characterization, performance analysis, updating and decision making shows that in each, progress has been made over the past 40 years, although most of the basic concepts existed already in the 1960’s. Characterization is the area in which the greatest scientific steps were taken, this phase and performance analysis also gained from the tremendously expanded computational capabilities which allow one to use both more complex and more practically oriented models. The greatest practical advance is without using any doubt in risk based decision making although its acceptance shows interesting differences between different professions. Dans l’article suivant on utilise le cycle de décision pour illustrer le développement du traitement des incertitudes en mécanique des roches et en construction en roche dans les quarante années passées. La revue des phases du cycle de décision montre qu’on a fait du progrès dans chaque phase du cycle de décision, c’est à dire dans la caractérisation, dans l’analyse et la prédiction du comportement, dans l’actualisation et dans l’acte de décision, même si les concepts fondamentaux existaient déjà dans les années 1960. Les plus grands avancements scientifiques se trouvent dans le domaine de la caractérisation tandis que l’analyse prédictive profitait du développement de l’informatique qui a mené à des modèles plus complexes mais aussi plus pratiques. Le plus grand progrès est sans doute dans le domaine de l’acte de décision sur la base des risques. Ce procédé est devenu assez commun même s’il y a encore des différences d’acceptation entre différentes professions. Im vorliegenden Artikel wird der Entscheidungszyklus gebraucht, um darzustellen wie sich derUmgang mit Unsicherheiten im Felsbau während der letzen 40 Jahre entwickelt hat. DerÜberblick über die Phasen des Entscheidungsprozesses zeigt, dass bei der Anwendung in derFelsmechanik und im Felsbau, in allen Phasen d.h. bei der Charakterisierung, bei der analytischenVorhersage, beim Aktualisieren und bei der Entscheidungsfindung Fortschritte gemacht wurden,obwohl die grundlegenden Konzepte bereits in den 1960er Jahren existierten. Im Gebiet derCharakterisierung gab es wohl die grössten wissenschaftlichen Entwicklungen, während dieanalytische Vorhersage vor allem von den Fortschritten der Informatik profitierte, welchekomplexere wie auch praktischere Modelle möglich machte. Der grösste Fortschritt ist ganz sicherin der Entscheidungsfindung zu beobachten, wo Risikobetrachtungen gang und gäbe sind, obwohlhier noch einige Unterschiede zwischen verschiedenen Berufsgattungen zu finden sind.

Jan 1, 2003