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By G. C. Mackenzie

At the last Annual Meeting of the Institute, Dr. C. V. Corless sketched the potential mineral wealth of Canada so clearly, graphically and with-all so entertainingly that one's imagination was fired with the promise held out to future generations for the tremendous expansion of the mining industry in the Dominion. Posterity will undoubtedly witness the fruit of much of the geographical search and survey that is now carried on by our government mining departments. Year after year the work advances, slowly but surely, new areas are . explored, older areas are surveyed in detail, the information being compiled in maps and reports of incalculable value to the prospector, the engineer and the general public. The immensity of the task of exploring, geologically, the outlying portions of the country, with the ultimate view of making valuable mineral discoveries, may be visualized from a study of Dr. Corless' paper and the subsequent discussion which took place and one becomes impressed with the fact that three-quarters or more of the problem can be included under the word "transportation". For instance Dr. Corless said, "The few geological explorers who have penetrated to these remoter regions . . . . . . have as a rule been compelled to stick closely to canoe routes,"; Dr. Goodwin remarked, "This barren Laurentian granite, which is put down on the maps as covering the greater part of this area, is the best guess the geologist could make from travelling along watercourses Within the next few years . . . . . . the Timiskaming and Northern Ontario railway will undoubtedly be extended to James Bay . . . . . . In order that we may be prepared for the probable influx of prospectors when transportation facilities to tidewater are provided, I think all available information on this district should be gathered together in handy form." All three-Corless, Goodwin and Cole-emphasize the well-known fact that explorers, geologists and prospectors working in new country must stick to the watercourses and that transportation by rail, road or water has always been the all-important deciding factor in facilitating the exploration and development of remote districts. Dr. Corless did, however, suggest other means of transportation in stating, "The aeroplane will be of assistance in future study of some parts of these remote areas."

Jan 1, 1924

By F. W. Gray

IN 1922, the writer communicated to the Institute a paper entitled The Development of the Coal Industry in Canada (1), which summarized the considerations set out in a series of papers (2) concerned with coal-mining in Canada which he had presented in 1920 and 1921. This paper contained a forecast by decades, commencing 1920, of Canadian coal production, importation, consumption, and exports, based on anticipated rate of population increase, and continuation of the gradual increase in the per capita rate of coal consumption in Canada that had taken place every year up to 1920. The following comparative statement brings our the differences between the forecast and actual experience:

Jan 1, 1936

By P. H. Jennings

Commercial tellurium commonly contains heavy basemetal impurities such as lead, copper, iron, etc., as well as selenium and oxygen. The base metals may be removed by vacuum distillation or by zone melting. Vacuum distillation is a convenient method for treating moderate quantities (~ 100 kg.) for the production of a material having a total content of heavy metals in the 10-30 ppm range. By zone melting, it is possible to lower all the heavy metal impurities tm below the limits of spectrographie detection. Neither vacuum distillation nor zone melting is effective for the removal of selenium, but treatment of molten tellurium with hydrogen converts selenium to hydrogen selenide. This procedure is too s low to be considered except as an adjunct to zone melting. In the course of air-melting, many of the more easily oxidized impurities form a dross and may thus be readily removed. Substantial refinement with respect to iron, tin, chromium, aluminum, sodium, silicon, magnesium, calcium and manganese can be achieved in this way. Although tellurium can be electrodeposited from either acid or alkaline solutions of the dioxide, various factors militate against successful electro-refining, amongst which may be mentioned the brittleness of cast tellurium anodes and the tendency for the metal to be deposited in dendritic form, even at low current densities.

Feb 1, 1966

By P. H. Jennings, J. C. T. Farge

Commercial tellurium commonly contains heavy base-metal impurities such as lead, copper, iron, etc., as well as selenium and oxygen. The base metals may be removed by vacuum distillation or by zone melting. Vacuum distillation is a convenient method for treating moderate quantities ( 100 kg.) for the production of a material having a total content of heavy metals in the 10-30 ppm range. By zone melting, it is possible to lower all the heavy metal impurities tm below the limits of spectrographie detection. Neither vacuum distillation nor zone melting is effective for the removal of selenium, but treatment of molten tellurium with hydrogen converts selenium to hydrogen selenide. This procedure is too slow to be considered except as an adjunct to zone melting. In the course of air-melting, many of the more easily oxidized impurities form a dross and may thus be readily removed. Substantial refinement with respect to iron, tin, chromium, aluminum, sodium, silicon, magnesium, calcium and manganese can be achieved in this way. Although tellurium can be electrodeposited from either acid or alkaline solutions of the dioxide, various factors militate against successful electro-refining, amongst which may be mentioned the brittleness of cast tellurium anodes and the tendency for the metal to be deposited in dendritic form, even at low current densities.

Jan 1, 1966

By R. R. Bassermann

THE property of Howey Gold Mines, Limited is situated at Red Lake, Ontario, one hundred and seventy-five miles east of Winnipeg and eighty miles north of the Canadian National Railway line. The mine has been a continuous producer since April, 1930, and at present is hoisting 1,350 tons of ore per day. The shaft consists of three compartments (see Figure 1, sketch B). Hoisting is done by two skips in balance, one of which is interchangeable with a cage. Sinking had been carried out at three different periods. From the surface to the 550-foot level, the sets had been spaced at seven-foot intervals, from the 550-to the 1,060-foot level at six feet, and from the 1,060-to the 1,500-foot level at five feet. During the five years of operation, the shaft had become so badly worn, due to spill from the tipples and, to a certain extent, from the loading pockets, that re-timbering was considered necessary. It should be explained that no crushing is done underground because of the ad verse effect this would have on the efficiency of the sorting. The grizzly rail clearance above the ore pockets is fourteen inches and consequently the ore hoisted is extremely coarse. More than average spill from the loading pockets and tipples under such conditions is inevitable, and it is debatable whether underground crushing with consequent increased sorting costs would not be justified. The cost of complete re-timbering according to standard practice would have been prohibitive both directly and indirectly: A lengthy shut-down of the shaft, with the consequent disorganization of the staff and workmen, could not be considered. Accordingly, it became necessary to devise some method of repair that could be carried to completion in a very limited period of time. The shaft timber for the first 250 feet was not in need of repair. From the 250-foot to the 1,060-foot level the wall plates, posts, and blocking were in good condition. These had been protected by a one-inch plank lining put in at various periods during the past three years without interfering with hoisting operations. The end plates and dividers, however, could not be protected in this manner because of the lack of skip clearance. It was decided that, if the dividers in this section could be replaced, the shaft would be as satisfactory as if completely re-timbered. Several factors had to be taken into consideration in deciding on a suit-able method of repair. In the first place, the tipple plates had to be re-designed. To complete the job in a reasonable time, not only had work to be done on the tipple, but simultaneously from several points in the shaft itself. Since all power cables, pipe lines, etc., were in the manway compartment of the shaft, this compartment had to be left undisturbed.

Jan 1, 1935

By W. Graham

"IntroductionEFFLORESCENCE is herein considered to be any deposit of salts on the surface of a masonry structure that is brought from within or through the structure by capillarity and deposited by evaporation. Usually, efflorescence is white although green, yellow, and brown efflorescence is sometimes observed.The common white efflorescence almost always consists of sulphates of the alkali and alkaline earth metals and calcium carbonate, although sodium chloride is frequently present in structures erected near the sea shore.The first and most obvious result of the presence of soluble salts in masonry is the unsightly accumulation of these salts on the surface. This is particularly noticeable early in its life and is frequently fugitive ( 1), as much of the salt is soluble and is gradually washed away by rain. This removal can usually be facilitated by scrubbing; the structure with dilute hydrochloric acid.A more serious effect is the continuous accumulation of soluble salts as a result of ingress of sulphur acids in rain water or water from the ground. This may eventually cause spalling and disintegration by crystallization of salts in the pores of brick and mortar. An example of this type of failure, resulting from the crystallization of calcium sulphate, is discussed by Hardesty (2). Butterworth (3) describes similar failure resulting from •crystallization of magnesium sulphate."

Jan 1, 1954

By A. McLean, X. Men

"With high quality sulphide ores diminishing, nickel production from low-grade oxide ores becomes increasingly important and a major concern is the high sulphur level in the resultant ferro-alloy. So, desulphurization of the ferronickel becomes an important consideration. Red mud is a waste product of alumina industry and causes adverse effects on environment. In the present study, experiments were conducted to determine feasibility of using red mud as a major ingredient of refining fluxes for ferronickel desulphurization. In view of their influence on slag-metal separation, contact angle measurements between ferronickel alloy and molten slag made from red mud were also determined. INTRODUCTIONNickel is a very important metal that finds a variety of applications including consumer products, building, automotive and electronics. There are two kinds of ores containing nickel, namely oxide and sulphide ores. Anthony and Flett [1] reported that about 55% of the world’s nickel production originates from sulphide ores while the balance of new nickel is derived from oxide ores. However, oxide ores count for about 70% of the worldwide reserves. Apparently, oxide ores will play a significant role in the production of nickel in the future. Most of nickel produced using oxide ores is from pyrometallurgical processes namely ferronickel smelting or matte smelting. So, we can draw such a conclusion that using nickel oxide ores to produce ferronickel will become more and more important .Before used to make stainless steel or other materials, the ferronickel need pretreatment to remove impurities especially sulphur and phosphorus that will cause negative influence on the properties of steel product. Red mud is a by-product during alumina production. Usually, about 1 to 1.5 tons of red mud will be produced when we get 1 ton of alumina. About 90 million tones of red mud are produced every year in the world [2].Red mud is deemed as a toxic industrial waste which needs treatment before discharge because of alkalinity and chemical and mineralogical properties. Until now, the main means to deal with red mud are to store it in impoundments or dump it in the sea depending on local environment. Nowadays, how to recycle red mud has become a pretty hot topic around the world. The last 40 years have witnessed a lot of patent applications concerning the ways of red mud utilization. However, a little amount of red mud is consumed until now due to the limitations of recycling red mud."

Jan 1, 2012

By Carol A. Pilon

"IntroductionRECENTLY, the Saskatchewan Research Council (Saskatoon ) marked the completion of one of its coal-related projects with the publication of the Bibliography and Index of Coal in Saskatchewan and Adjoining Provinces and States, hereafter referred to as the Bibliography and Index of Coal. Over a two-year time period, literature was surveyed and indexed and bibliographic data were compiled using a computer-assisted information retrieval system called FAMULUS. The final publication contains 1150 bibliographic references, which are cross-referenced by six indices.The project was initiated in September 1974, in support of Saskatchewan's Coal Resources Evaluation Program , an ongoing research program sponsored by the Department of Energy, Mines and Resources (Ottawa) and the Province of Saskatchewan. This program places emphasis on such areas of concern as the occurrence of deposits, chemical and physical properties, calculation of reserves and computer-assisted applications for the evaluation of lignite resources in the Province. Attention is also given to aspects of geophysical exploration, mining conditions and economics, by-products and the transporting of lignite. These are the subject areas .covered by the Bibliography and Index of Coal.The over -all objectives of the literature indexing project may be enumerated as follows: (1) to build a specialized resource library by surveying established public and specialized libraries, and commercial data bases; (2) to enter library data into the FAMULUS information retrieval system, to be used to generate bibliographies and indexes, and to retrieve information by the use of specified searching techniques; (3) to make this library data available to interested persons."

Jan 1, 1977

By T. N. MacAuley

"The Ingerbelle and Copper Mountain deposits are located near Princeton in southern British Columbia. They are owned by Newmont Mining Corporation's wholly owned subsidiary, Similkameen Mining Company Ltd. The property includes the Copper Mountain mine, a former producer. Ore reserves recoverable by open-pit mining are estimated to be 76 million tons containing 0.53% copper. Production commenced during 1972 at a rate in excess of designed capacity (15,000 tpd). All of the known major copper deposits in this area lie in a 14,000- by 3,500-foot belt of Triassic volcanics (Nicola Group) that is situated between a well-defined syenitemonzonite- diorite stock on the south and a variable intrusive complex on the north. The Nicola rocks consist of andesitic tuffs and agglomerates with lesser amounts of flows and some lensy siltstone layers. The orebodies are essentially disseminated sulphide deposits, although fracture-fillings are also important in many areas. Total sulphide content is usually less than 5%. At lngerbelle, and at Pit 2 and most of Pit 1 at Copper Mountain, the sulphides are chalcopyrite-pyrite. In part of Pit 1 and most of the former underground mine they are chalcopyrite-bornite. At lngerbelle the predominant alteration associated with mineralization is a pale greenish-gray bleaching of the dark andesitic rocks. This has been identified as albitization, with lesser amounts of epidote, chlorite, biotite, scapolite and calcite. This bleaching is plentiful at Pit 2, but K-feldspathization is also evident here. These orebodies can better be classified with pyrometasomatic deposits than with typical porphyry coppers. Their relationship to intrusives, the probably extensive metasomatic replacements, the evidence of pneumatolytic activity, the formation and redistribution of magnetite, and the irregular distribution of mineralization are all characteristic of this class. Deep-seated faults probably acted as channelways for mineralization; fracturing, faulting and rock contacts influenced ore localization in detail."

Jan 1, 1973

By R. Tervo, G. Ellie

"Automated information systems are being developed very rapidly in Europe. In France, Belgium and West Germany, more than 70% of the coal production is controlled by these installations. Information on both product ion and the mine environment is produced. For example, at one mine in France the system records the operating times of the compressors and of the refrigeration pumps, counts the number of coal cars passing the unloading point, and controls the principal conveyors and the loading /unloading of the storage bins. In addition, the ventilation air velocity, the methane content and the carbon monoxide content in the return air entry are recorded; an alarm is triggered and the current to the conveyors cut when the gas content exceeds a critical level. The recorded information is used at four levels: (1) for immediate action, (2) for daily reports, (3) for monthly reports and (4) for long-term studies. For example, when any conveyor is stopped for more than 10 minutes, the system controller immediately telephones to learn of the reason. At the end of a shift, the load factor of the conveyors is computed; then monthly an analysis of the causes of low load factors is made. The presentation describes in detail the system that has been installed in more than 20 mines in France."

Jan 1, 1973

By C. O. Stee

Introduction The property of Siscoe Gold Mines, Limited, is located on an island of three hundred and forty acres in lake Kienawisik, about fifty-two miles east of Noranda and forty-three miles south of Amos, Quebec. Lake Kienawisik is a part of the Harricanaw drainage system and is crossed by the main line of the Canadian National railway at Amos. This waterway is navigable for boats with a draught of six to eight feet. Diesel engines have been the source of power at the property since milling operations were commenced in January, 1929. The power plant as first designed and built was for a milling capacity of 100 tons. Two Polar-Atlas units, each of 200 h. p., comprised the original installation. With the growth of the 'mine, more engines were added until, at the present time, there is installed at the Siscoe what is rated the largest Diesel plant at any mining property in Canada. Definition of a Diesel 'The Diesel engine is an internal combustion engine which works with liquid fuel introduced after, and independently of, the air charge at a time when communication between the cylinder and the outside atmosphere is cut off, and which ignites the fuel by compression-beat and stored combustion-heat unassisted by heat sources outside the cylinder itself while the engine is in stable operating condition"(1).

Jan 1, 1934

By A. Shaak

The town of Hedley is some 200 miles due east of Vancouver and lies in the bottom of the Similkameen River valley, at the junction of Twenty Mile creek, at about the 1,700-foot elevation above sea level. The Nickel Plate mine camp is on Nickel Plate mountain at an elevation of about 5,600 feet, four miles slightly east of north from Hedley, to which it is connected by 9 miles of road, and by 10,000 feet of tramway and electric railway. The latter is used both to transport the ore to the 275-ton mill at Hedley and to furnish the mine with supplies. History The Nickel Plate claim was staked in 1898 to cover the sole outcrop of the Nickel Plate system of orebodies. Soon afterwards it was optioned by the Marcus Daly interests of Butte and underground exploration commenced. Early exploration was successful, and a power plant, tramway, and mill were constructed. The mill began operations in 1904. Production under Daly control ensued from June, 1904, to August, 1909, and amounted to 167,000 tons. The Hedley Gold Mining Company was organized and commenced operations in 1909. The capacity of the mill was increased by stages to 200 tons and a steady production, except for short periods in winter, was maintained until 1930. By 1930, gold to the value of nearly $10,000,000 had been produced since the discovery in 1898. The South American Development Company optioned the property in 1932. Active exploration was conducted during 1933 and 1934 by the Kelowna Exploration Company, a subsidiary of the South American Development Company. This work was sufficiently successful that, coupled with the increase in the price of gold from $20.67 to $35.00 per ounce, production re-commenced in December, 1934, and continued uninterrupted until July, i946, when, along with all B.C. gold mines, a strike closed operations. Under the present ownership, the mill capacity was increased to 275 tons.

Jan 1, 1946

"Conveyed coal flows have been diverted on the basis of real time ash analysis since the 1980s. Many coarse particle separation methods are available through screens, jigs, heavy media separation, particle sorters, to name a few, however bulk diversion requires a representative, continuous analysis to ensure diversion decisions can be made with confidence. Sensors also need to be able to provide measurements at useful time increments so that small tonnages can be diverted for maximum selectivity. Particle separation typically requires high capital costs and there are limitations either in throughput tonnage or particle size or both. Few techniques are able to provide robust and representative analysis of conveyed flows in a useful time basis. Prompt Gamma Neutron Activation Analysis provides multi-elemental analysis of conveyed bulk materials and has been proven in the minerals industry since 2003. This paper outlines the success of this technology in minerals applications in iron ore, phosphate rock and most recently in copper-gold ores, including its use in bulk diversion.INTRODUCTION Naturally occurring quality variability, or heterogeneity, in mineral deposits enables separation and recovery of the valuable components through mining and processing operations. There are distinct advantages in processing the minimum quantity of material to achieve the highest possible yield. Unfortunately, declining ore grades has resulted in larger scale operations and a subsequent loss in selectivity for mining operations. As limits are approached on the practical size of equipment, there is more motivation to investigate alternative solutions. Mining companies are subject to increasing social resistance to growing waste disposal requirements in addition to higher energy and transport costs. Major savings are available by reducing the quantities of material processed where pre-concentration can be effectively applied at early stages in the process. One of the simplest ways to pre-concentrate is to measure the bulk material and reject waste soon after mining so that minimal expense is incurred and that only higher quality material is sent to processing operations. This bulk sorting can occur within the mining operations and has major benefits through energy and other consumables savings. This paper discusses the application of real time analysis technologies suitable for bulk sorting within the minerals industry. Technology that has proven representative for conveyed material bulk analysis and its successful applications to date is explained. Analysis using a sensing technique is only one component of a successful bulk sorting process; the importance of effective diversion systems and a bulk sorting strategy are also discussed. The bulk sorting stage may be one component of a system that could include additional downstream technologies such as particle based sorting systems on a diverted stream."

Jan 1, 2018

By M. Peshko, J. C. Gingerich, L. W. Matthews

"Noranda has successfully developed and implemented two leading-edge mineral exploration technologies — hyperspectral remote sensing and 3-D seismic surveying. Airborne hyperspectral imaging provides detailed geological and mineralogical mapping capability at both a regional and project scale that facilitates improved selection of prospective terrain and an accelerated exploration cycle. Noranda, in partnership with Falconbridge, has licensed the exclusive use of the Earth Search Sciences Inc. (ESSI) Probe-1 hyperspectral scanners (128- channel, 0.43 µm to 2.5 µm spectral range) that are capable of mapping in excess of 3500 km2 per day at 10 m pixel resolution. The technology has been successfully deployed on four continents over a broad range of terrain from desert to boreal forest and the high Arctic.To augment the company’s deep search initiatives, Noranda has successfully modified and implemented existing 3-D seismic technology to help targeting massive sulphides located at depths ranging from 500 m to 2000 m. In the fall of 1998 and early 1999, Noranda completed an 18 km2, 3-D seismic program in eastern Canada by successfully drill testing acoustic impedance anomalies locating massive sulphides at depths in excess of 1100 m."

Jan 1, 2002

By P. Clinton Milne

Uranium mines in Washington State include the producing Midnite and Sherwood mines and several mined-out deposits, the most productive of which was the Daybreak mine. The Midnite mine is generally classified as a hydrothermal deposit consisting of tabular orebodies in Precambrian pelitic and calcareous metasedimentary host rocks. The host rocks occur as roof pendants in a Cretaceous porphyritic quartz monzonite intrusive; the quartz monzonite averages 12 ppm U308 The uranium deposit appears to have undergone a complex genesis, involving a series of depositional and enrichment stages. The Sherwood uranium deposit, approximately 4 miles south of the Midnite mine, occurs near the bottom of a basal Late Cretaceous to Paleocene arkosic conglomerate. The conglomerate lies nonconformably on the porphyritic quartz monzonite that is associated with the Midnite deposit. The Sherwood and Midnite uranium deposits may have had a similar genetic history linked by a common uraniferous pluton source, ground-water action, and/or leaching of uranium-rich ash flows from now-eroded, overlying, Eocene volcanics. The Daybreak deposit, in northeastern Spokane County, consists entirely of secondary uranium mineralization (metaautunite) in a quartz monzonite pluton. Mineralization is confined to a low-angle fault zone and is most highly concentrated at the intersection of primary and secondary shears. Both hydrothermal and ground-water origins are feasible. Besides the Midnite-Sherwood area, 14 other areas in the western Okanogan Highlands physiographic province and Cascades region have favourable characteristics for uranium potential. Criteria include the existence of uranium occurrences, Tertiary basin sediments with intercalated volcanic and volcaniclastic rocks, favourable geochemical data, alkaline plutons associated with uranium occurrences or borders of Tertiary basins, and structural controls.

Jan 1, 1979

By D. R. Schmitt, Q. Jia, R. Kofman

"Tests were carried out on clear glass blocks containing borehole aligned with and at an angle to applied principal stress states in order to study the growth of drilling induced tensile fractures. The samples were illuminated such that photoelastic fringes could be video recorded during the measurements; this was useful in assessing states of stress and in determining fracture initiation. Axial drilling induced fractures were observed at the azimuths of the applied uniaxial stress as would be expected from the concentrated stresses. En echelon fractures were observed from the borehole deviated at 45° to the direction of the compression. These preliminary and currently qualitative results show that glass blocks serve as a useful test medium for studies of stress concentration and drilling induced fracture creation. INTRODUCTIONWith the increasing exploitation of unconventional oil/gas reservoirs using deviated drilling in recent years, the effects of the in-situ stress on the success of energy production have become more critical than ever before. Knowledge of the state of stress in the earth enables us to determine well trajectories, well locations, hydraulic fracturing design and production rates, but knowing the crustal stress is always challenging. Strictly, it can only be obtained to varying quantitative degrees by accessing the earth through drilling. Failure of the rock at the borehole wall produces borehole breakouts (e.g., Bell & Gough, 1979; Haimson & Herrick, 1986; Zoback et al., 1985) and drilling-induced tensile fractures (DITF) (e.g., Aadnoy, 1990; Aadnoy & Bell, 1998; Barton et al., 1997; Brudy & Zoback, 1999; Davatzes & Hickman, 2010; Peska & Zoback, 1995). Thus, it is important to understand the failure mechanism of the rock in the vicinity of the borehole. A number of closed-form expressions have been developed that allow the stress concentrations to be calculated in the vicinity of a borehole including Kirsch’s (1898) 2-D plane strain solution and 3D formulae for elastically isotropic (Hiramatsu and Oka, 1962) and anisotropic (Lekhnitskii, 1981; Amadei, 1983) continua. These solutions have been applied in numerous studies (e.g., Ong, 1994; Ong & Roegiers, 1996; Vahid & Ghassemi, 2011; Jia & Schmitt, 2014; Ito et al., 2001) to analyze the failure mechanisms of drilling-induced tensile fractures (DITF) on the borehole wall."

Jan 1, 2015

By D. A. Livingstone

Abstract Golden Manitou Mines, Limited, nine miles east of the town of Val d'Or in northwestern Quebec, are presently milling, at the rate of 1,000 tons daily, a relatively complex 3.11-phide ore and producing, in decreasing order of value, zinc, silver, gold, lead, and copper. The products are a zinc concentrate, a silver-lead-copper concentrate, and a silver-gold precipitate from cyanidation. Although several independent pre-production metallurgical investigations into the treatment of the ore were carried out, current practice is different from any of the recommended methods and, while still leaving room for improvement, is considerably more effective than earlier performance. Flow-sheet developments from the commencement of operations in 1942 are dealt with briefly, showing the reasons for making numerous changes, the shortcomings of the various schemes tried, and, finally, covering data pertinent to present-day practice. From the recovery standpoint, silver has presented the greatest difficulty. The writer's association with the Company coincided with the start of production. Characteristics of the Ore The predominant metallic minerals present in the ore, in decreasing order of their abundance, are: pyrite, sphalerite, galena and chalcopyrite, with lesser amounts of argentiferous tennantite-tetrahedrite, arsenopyrite, covellite, bornite, and chalcocite. The sphalerite is mostly light in colour, sometimes colourless, and practically free from combined iron. Some of the sphalerite is very closely associated with minor amounts of pyrite, chalcopyrite, and galena. Pyrie is abundantly disseminated as medium to fine grains; more rarely it is massive and contains occasional grains of sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite.

Jan 1, 1952

By P. G. Rueffel

"Natural deposits of sodium sulphate are the result of normal geological processes. They are world-wide in occurrence and are found in depressions in arid and semi-arid regions. Primarily, the sodium sulphate deposits of the prairies are post-glacial and differ from rock salt deposits, which originated from connate water (fossil sea-water). Sodium sulphate on the Canadian prairies occurs as brine or in beds of intermittent and/or permanent crystals. Most beds are contaminated with various amounts of silt, sand and decayed organic matter. Soluble impurities such as chlorides, carbonates and bicarbonates of sodium and sulphates of magnesium and calcium are leached out from the soil of the surrounding run-off area of the deposits.In this paper, the origin of sodium sulphate, and the physical and chemical aspects related to the development of the Ingebrigt Lake deposit are dealt with. The problems of garnering raw material, and of refining and de-hydration are discussed, with emphasis on the Ingebrigt Lake plant. The utilization of the ""Total Power Concept"" in a sodium sulphate plant is described. The principal uses of sodium sulphate are also discussed."

Jan 1, 1968

During the past 10 years, research work to improve the survey of stope limits after mining supplied useful information, particularly for large open and sub-level stopes, regarding waste dilution caused by differences between final production limits and planned stope limits. However, the efficiency of this information to improve the overall efficiency of the mining process is limited, given that the impacts of inaccurate ore limits leading to dilution (sensu stricto) and ore losses haw not been considered adequately. Geological/sampling information should be optimized in terms of quantity and/or quality for the deposit characteristics and the constraints of the mining method used. As industry practice regarding the definition and recording of dilution is flexible and as ore losses frequently am poorly doc-umented, the use of these terms is reviewed. Simulations were carried out on two typical narrow gold deposits, based on an earlier study at Inco's Thompson mine regarding the impacts of wide to narrow delineation grids using recorded variations of vein geometry. Vertical to sub-vertical deposits of 3 m and 6 m widths mined by long-hole open stopes were considered. Deposits delineated by 7.5 m (25 ft) grids were taken as a base case and the impacts of less accurate limits in conjunction with long hole mining based only on a 15 m (50 ft) delin¬eation grid. The impacts of overestimation (dilution) and underestimation (metal losses) were considered separately, using the average error of +/-0.62 m recorded in the Inco study. The impact of less accurate information was much stronger on the narrower deposit: both dilution and ore losses diminished the net present value of the 3 m wide deposit by 39.27% and 45.41%, respectively, and that of the 6 m wide deposit by 12.84% and 11.55%. As the impacts of ore loss and those of dilution on the net present value am almost identical in these simulations, we could, in practice, assume a 50/50 split between dilution and ore losses in such a case. These results do no take into account the effects of local optimization measures taken at the mine production level (blasthole sampling near stope limits, etc.) The potential impacts of geological and sampling uncertainties in terms of lower NPV justify and require more systematic efforts to ensure that deposit appraisal work and feasibility studies are adequate to optimize company revenue and competitive returns to investors from mine production activities.

Jan 1, 2005

By B. K. Ayres

Modern management of uranium mine or mill waste storage facilities (WSFs) often requires that they be remediated or decommissioned with a cover system. In addition to creating a self-sustaining landscape that supports the end land use, cover systems are intended to reduce long-term risks to human and ecological receptors from the stored waste to acceptable levels. The performance and longevity of a cover system will be strongly influenced by the features or shapes of the WSF final landform. Hence, cover systems and landforms must be thought of as an integrated design. Based on the author’s experience, the most important elements of the design process for maximizing the potential of WSF final landforms / cover systems being sustainable over the long term are noted in this manuscript. Several key items that must be considered and addressed during the planning phase of constructing a WSF final landform are also described. Various methods for monitoring performance of a WSF final landform are also reviewed. Key aspects associated with decommissioning a tailings WSF and waste rock pile at the former Cluff Lake uranium mine in northern Saskatchewan are included to illustrate many of the practical insights provided in this paper.

Jan 1, 2020