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By Stephen Esposito

Outline ? Brief Overview of Solid Energy New Zealand ? Need for Integrated Risk Management at Solid Energy New Zealand ? Overview of Solid Energy?s IRM program ? What are the results and key learnings? Overview Of Solid Energy New Zealand ? 100% NZ Government Owned ? Produces 95% of New Zealand?s Coal ? Sales turnover USD150 million per year ? Sold 4 million tonnes of high quality coal in 2003 ? Coking and Thermal coals ? Exported 2 million tonnes of coal ? Significant international and domestic growth expected going forward

May 1, 2004

Concentrator Improvements -1990-1995Back to Basics ?pilot plant versus plant opportunities identified ?understand process fundamentals & baseline -1996-2000Point ?C?Projects ?strategy to improve global competitiveness ?structure implemented to generate & drive ideas ?capital investment for life of mine asset renewal - 2001-200?Six Sigma Methodologies ?emphasis on data, measurements & analyses ?dedicated, highly trained personnel on projects 1990-1995 Improvement Phase??Philosophy??back to basics?approach?understand what each piece equipment needed to do?understand reagents, control variables?confirm operating strategies ??probe, stabilize, institutionalize??test theories, confirm with lab and plant trials?process stability (equipment reliability, controls)?enhanced operator guidelines, operator training?focus on continuous improvement?optimize existing equipment capability?stop looking for ?magic?solutions 1990-1995 Improvement Phase??Technical?finer grind, same equipment?optimize media size/shape to grinding application?balanced available ball mill power to applications?lowered cyclone feed densities where possible?improved selectivity, same equipment?balanced available cells to applications?streamlined process (eliminate process steps)?added cleaning stages where required?understanding pulp/mineral surface chemistry?lowered flotation pulp densities 1990-1995 Improvement Phase??Effort?numerous studies to understand process?liberation and mineralogical characterization?pulp and mineral surface chemistry?flotation kinetics and entrainment?extensive internal and external manpower?Brunswick, Noranda Technology Centre?CanMet, AMTEL, MinnovEx, Lakefield Research, McGill University?small capital expenditure

May 1, 2002

By Xu Feng, Han Shufeng, Zhu Bin, Wang Mingming

Due to urban subway tunnels mostly built in the cities with highly density buildings, the geological and construction conditions is complex, especially certain sections of the subway tunnel will pass through from the foundation of the overpass, therefore the stability and surface deformation control of that section’s tunnel excavation is particularly important. Taking Xi'an Metro Line Three interval tunnel as a research object, we have used FLAC3D simulation to analyze the tunnel’s surrounding soil deformation and tunnel lining stress distribution under bridge foundation with shallow buried covered excavation method. Analysis results show: (1) After the excavation of the tunnel right line, due to the bias of the upper bridge foundation the right of the tunnel showed relatively large deformation. In order to ensure the construction safety, we recommended using the grouting anchor reinforcement on the right side wall to further control the deformation zone. (2) The maximum vertical displacement of the ground occurred in the right wall of the tunnel portion which was due to the intensity of soil outside the grouting range of the arch is low, as a result the deformation is larger; this position requires special attention, strengthening the monitoring measurements of this part is necessary to avoid the large deformation and other adverse effects of the upper portion of bridge foundation. (3) The maximum vertical force area of the initial lining of the tunnel is in the middle of the side wall, while the second lining in this part of forces is smaller, thus at the beginning of the construction of the liner, attention should be paid to this area. On-site grouting or steel bracing reinforce support may be used if necessary.

Jan 1, 2015

By Yongfeng Jia, Shaofeng Wang, Danni Zhang

Ferrihydrite is ubiquitous in soils, groundwater and aquatic sediments and is usually classified as "2-line" or "6-line" according to the number of diffuse XRD peaks. It has high surface area and reactivity; therefore, it may serve as a sink for sequestering trace metals, metalloids and organic matters via adsorption and co-precipitation. Although considerable attention was paid to the transformation process of this thermodynamically metastable solid, there are still some controversies on the mechanisms of the formation of goethite or hematite from the ferrihydrite precursor. This work systematically investigated the transformation of 2-line ferrihydrite produced by using different neutralization regent (CaO vs. NaOH) into crystalline products at different pHs (4, 7 and 8), three temperatures (25, 40, 75 °C) and in different media (sulfate vs. nitrate). X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and chemical extraction were employed to characterize the transformed solids as well as the redistribution of Fe between the amorphous and more crystalline phases. The results showed that the transformation product in nitrate media was hematite (major) and goethite (minor), which was independent of pH, temperature or neutralization reagent. In sulfate media, goethite was the dominant solid under slightly acidic conditions (pH 4) with 6-line ferrihydrite as the intermediate product, whereas neutral to slightly alkaline conditions still favor the formation of hematite. Chemical extraction results indicated that there was only ~3 % of amorphous phase detectable after aging at 25 °C for 280 days at slight acidic pH. In contrast,~70 % of the iron remained as an amorphous phase under neutral to slightly alkaline conditions. The results suggested that the pH as well as the reaction media (sulfate ion) plays an important role in the 2-line ferrihydrite transformation process.

Jan 1, 2016

By Kosei Ishida

To achieve renovation work without noise, the authors developed techniques of manufacturing pre-cut interior finishing components for renovation work. In this paper, to achieve the system of pre-cut interior finishing components, the authors describe a measuring method of reinforced-concrete structure by 3D laser scanner and then describe a method of making a design of pre-cut interior finishing components with the polygon model. Using these two methods, the steps of manufacturing pre-cut interior finishing components consist of the following four steps: First, measure the building shape using a 3D laser scanner. Secondly, integrate a point cloud data and retrieve the markings on the floor. Then, create a polygon model of the building based on the point cloud data. Lastly, make a drywall design using a polygon model. To evaluate the technique feasibility of manufacturing pre-cut interior finishing components, the authors have conducted an experiment of the finishing interior work of the drywall. Using pre-cut interior finishing components, the authors have been able to achieve interior finishing work without noise.

Aug 1, 2013

By Margarete Kalin

Mine Waste Management ?Reduction of Sulphideoxidation or inhibiting weathering of rocks Geologist - broken or ground rocks Hydrologist - sources of contaminants Mining engineer - waste sites Consulting companies - income units People - Ugly, bad, dead Ecological Engineer Landscapes which contain building blocks of an emerging ecosyste

May 1, 2013

By K. Tsuchihashi, A. Kishimoto, T. Uda, Y. Kado, S. Maruyama

We recently proposed a continuous production process for titanium metal with some experimental results. In the process, titanium tetrachloride is reduced by Mg in the presences of Bi to form a Bi-Ti alloy at 900ºC. At this temperature, the obtained alloy is liquid and allows for the continuous removal of product and heat from the reaction vessel. The obtained Bi-Ti alloy was vacuum-distilled at 1000ºC for 24 hr, and 98 at % (92 wt %) titanium, which was easily crashed to powder, was obtained. Bi solvent was selected because of the highest titanium solubility at 900ºC and the moderate vapor pressure among the candidate metals (Bi, Sn, Pb, Zn, and Sb).

Jan 1, 2014

By Gaétan Bourdages

A clarification technology used by municipalities to produce high-quality drinking water, polish sewage treatment plant effluent and handle combined sewer overflows has recently found new applications in the mines and iron and steel industry. This patented process, known as ACTIFLO®, utilizes microsand in a ballasted flocculation process to enhance the settling characteristics of suspended solids, increasing the efficiency sufficiently to achieve a clarifier footprint that is smaller than the one of a conventional clarifier. ACTIFLO® rise rates vary from 40 to 170 m/h with a total system hydraulic retention time of about 10 minutes. The result is a clarification system so compact that a full-scale system can operate as a trailer-mounted unit for temporary applications or as a permanent installation in facilities with space limitations. This paper explains the process and presents case studies in which this innovative technology was used at mines and steelmaking facilities to meet compliance requirements.

Feb 1, 2008

Who is ArcelorMittal Mines Canada ?One of Canada's leading suppliers of iron ore to steel markets around the world ?Past company name = ??Quebec Cartier Mining?? ?Operator of one of North America's largest open-pit mines ?Mont Wright Mines ?Fire Lake Mine ?Largest ArcelorMittal iron ore mining subsidiary ?Annual production of 15 million tonnes of concentrate ?Major expansion program to 24 MT/Y ?Internationally competitive pellet plant ?9.0 million tonnes annually

May 1, 2011

By Tong Gao, Jingyu Qin, Xiangfa Liu, Zengqiang Li, Yaoxian Zhang

"The recycling of aluminum materials is a green industry while Al–Si–Fe is a typical scrap aluminum alloy. The key point of recycling Al–Si–Fe alloys is to separate Al and Fe. A method by introducing Al–Si–Fe alloy into Mg melt has been investigated in this work. A separation layer with gathered Fe–rich and Al–poor Fe3Al0.7Si0.3particleswereobtained at the bottom of the cooled ingot, indicating that ß–Al5FeSi phase evolves to Fe3Al0.7Si0.3,and quantities of Al are released to the upper Mg matrix simultaneously. However, the evolution of Al3Fe by adding binary Al–Fe alloy into Mg melt is different. It is supposed that element Si plays an important role in the phase evolution procedure, thus affects the performance of this method.INTRODUCTIONThe rapid development of aeronautic, automotive and aerospace technologies strongly depends on the consumption of materials while sustainable development is the future direction. Aluminum is a recyclable material and Fe is one of the most common impurities. Fe can be introduced into Al alloys by adding low–purity alloying materials and by using unprotected ferrous crucible, tools, or equipment (Belov, Eskin, & Avxentieva, 2005; Lu& Dahle, 2005).For instance, wear–resistant rings are usually inserted into piston head when producing Al–Si pistons and an infiltration procedure by putting the cast iron rings into Al melt before casting is always essential. As a result, both the re–melting of pistons and the reuse of Al melt for infiltrating rings lead to the enrichment of Fe element, which can be even high to5 wt.%(Viala, Peronnet, Barbeau, Bosselet, & Bouix, 2002).It is widely known that coarse ß–Al5FeSi particles will form in high Fe–contained Al–Si–Fe alloys which is harmful for the mechanical properties. In the past decades, several methods to eliminate the harmful effect of ß–Al5FeSi have been investigated which can be widely referred (Munson, 1967; Lee, Kawamura, Inoue, Cho, & Masumoto, 1997; Suárez–Peña& Asensio–Lozano, 2006; Eidhed, 2008).These methods can be divided into two kinds. One is to aggregate and remove the Fe–rich phase through the methods of centrifugation, gravity filtration or magnetic separation. The other way is modifing the morphology of flake–like ß–Al5FeSi by overheating the melt or adding neutralized elements. However, these traditional methods are rarely used due to respective disadvantages, while the commonly used method in industries is using primary aluminum for dilution. However, only less than 30wt.% of scrap Al can be added into primary Al melt for each melting work while it also results in the decrease of product quality simultaneously(Zhang, Liu, & Liu, 2016)."

Jan 1, 2018

By E. Ghali, N. Sorour, G. Houlachi

"The binary Fe53Mo47 and ternary Fe54Mo30P16 coatings have been electrodeposited from citrate-based electrolyte on mild steel (MS) substrates. The electrodeposition has been conducted for 6 hours at 20 mA cm-2 and 30°C. The electrochemical tests were carried out in chlorate solutions containing 300 g L-1 NaCl and 4 g L-1 K2Cr2O7 at pH 6.4 and 80°C. A number of surface characterization techniques such as SEM-EDS, XRD and EMP were used to study the microstructure of the alloys. The electrocatalytic activity of these coatings was investigated using steady-state polarization and galvanostatic technique. This study revealed that the Fe-Mo-P coating could be considered as a promising cathode material for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The results showed an important decrease of hydrogen overpotential for Fe-Mo-P alloy as compared to that of Fe-Mo and especially MS which is a traditional cathode in chlorate industry. The HER overpotential for Fe54Mo30P16 at current density of 250 mA cm-2 was decreased by 30% in comparison to that of MS (1029 mV), and by 16.5% to that of Fe53Mo47 coating (857 mV).INTRODUCTIONSodium chlorate is used for manufacturing of several daily consumption products. This chemical is mainly employed for the production of chlorine dioxide (ClO2) that is a bleaching agent used in the pulp and paper industry. The ClO2 is also consumed for generation of perchlorates, chlorites and other chlorates, as an herbicide and in uranium processing (Cornell, 2002). Sodium chlorate is produced industrially via following overall formula in un-divided electrochemical cell (Nylén & Cornell, 2009):"

Jan 1, 2016

By David G. Dixon, Ahmad Ghahremaninezhad, Edouard Asselin

"Atmospheric leaching of chalcopyrite in sulfuric acid solutions is a slow process due to the mineral’s passivation. We have investigated the nature of the passive film in this work. Electrochemical reduction and oxidation of chalcopyrite over the potential range of -0.5 to 1.2 VSHE were investigated in 0.5 M sulfuric acid solution (pH 0.3) at 25 ºC by multicyclic voltammetry and open circuit potential measurement. The influence of scan limits on the evolution of current peaks was studied with both stationary and rotating electrodes. It was observed that the anodic oxidation of chalcopyrite begins at potentials above 0.6 VSHE, most likely by preferential dissolution of iron atoms over copper atoms. The selective electro-dissolution process results in formation of a metal-deficient sulfide passive film (i.e. Cu1- xFe1-yS2, y > x). The passive film dissolves at 0.9 VSHE. Elemental sulfur is one of the products of chalcopyrite dissolution above 1.0 VSHE. Cathodic reactions within the potential region of 0.1 to 0.6 VSHE and anodic reactions at potentials lower that 0.5 VSHE are associated with at least one soluble species from solution. The soluble species involved in the cathodic reactions are likely ferric and cupric, while the soluble species involved in the anodic reactions is likely H2Saq."

Jan 1, 2014

By L. Sun

A numerical model has been developed to study the air flow in the flow plate and gas diffusion layer assembly on the cathode side of a PEM fuel cell. The flow plate in this type of fuel cell often has serpentine channels and the porous layer is adjacent to the flow plate to diffuse the air to the catalyst layer. Flow cross-over of air through the porous diffusion layer from one part of the channel to another can occur. This flow cross¬over is a result of the pressure differences between different parts of the channel, and it causes the flow rate through the channel to vary with the distance along the channel. A numerical study of pressure distribution and flow cross-over through the gas diffusion layer (GDL) in PEMFC flow field using a serpentine channel system has therefore been undertaken to compare the cases of a single channel and two parallel channels, with the channels having a trapezoidal cross-sectional shape. The purpose of the present work was to study the effect of the flow plate geometry on the basic fluid flow through the plate. The flow here has been assumed to be three-dimensional, steady, incompressible, isothermal and single-phase. The flow through the porous diffusion layer has been described using the Darcy model. The dimensionless governing equations have been solved by using the commercial CFD solver, FIDAP. From the results obtained, it can be found that the single channel systems have greater maximum flow rate difference than the parallel channel systems under the conditions considered in the present study. Also, the size ratio R of trapezoidal cross-sectional shape has a significant effect on the flow cross-over and pressure variation in the flow field.

Jan 1, 2005

By J. -M. Bosgiraud, G. Armand, S. Dewonck, L. Richard-Panot

"The Meuse/Haute-Marne Underground Research Laboratory (URL) is located on the eastern boundary of the Paris Basin. The URL started to be built in 2000 (shaft sinking operations) in the framework of ANDRA’s (French national radioactive waste management agency) research program aimed at determining the feasibility of a reversible deep geological disposal of high-level and intermediate-level long-lived radioactive waste (HLW, IL-LLW). Its underground drifts are used to study the Callovo- Oxfordian claystone layer between 420 m and 550 m in depth.The ongoing research program (started in 2006) following the “Technology Readiness Level” (TRL) Scale is more dedicated to technologies improvement and demonstration issue of the different disposal components, even if characterization and monitoring studies are still ongoing.In rock mechanics, at the main level of the URL (located at 490 m), construction and evolution of disposal cells of different size are studied for HLW and IL-LLW packages. A step by step approach, started in 2006, is carried out based on comparison of HM behavior of parallel drifts excavated/supported by different construction methods. These various configurations give insight of the influence of construction method on the EDZ extent and evolution and on the progressive loading of the support, which are key issues to design the Cigéo disposal drifts and excavations.The concept of disposal cells studied for HLW consists in horizontal steel lined micro-tunnels 80 m long and 70 cm in diameter. Several campaigns of tests have been carried out since 2009 in order to demonstrate the feasibility of excavating such micro-tunnels and study their behavior under different conditions (with and without back filling the annular gap between the rock and the casing, watertight or not casing). A full scale demonstrator representative of the benchmark concept has also been excavated, to study its behaviour under thermal loading with heat produced by electrical heaters."

Jan 1, 2015

By G. Bimpilas, G. N. Anastassakis

"Today, one of the most intense problems in mineral processing systems is referred to the treatment of fine (–100 µm), and even smaller size, particles. Fine mineral particles possess specific properties (small mass, high specific surface area, and high surface energy per unit area) that render their separation inefficient with conventional methods (physical, physicochemical) and equipment. As a result, it is not feasible to obtain a concentrate both of high grade and recovery in mineral value and a considerable amount of mineral fine particles is lost to the tailings. As evidence, we could cite numerous examples from industrial practice with considerable loss of mineral values to the tailings because of the fine particles size, e.g. phosphate, tungsten, tin, etc.The objective of the current paper is to investigate the possibility to separate magnetic gangue minerals and rocks (serpentine, ilmenite, and olivine) from magnesite by co-agglomerating all the gangue components and subsequent magnetic separation of the agglomerates.To meet the target, hydrophobic agglomeration tests were initially carried out on single minerals to define the favorable conditions for selective hydrophobic co-agglomeration of the gangue minerals. In this respect, the effect of the following factors was examined: pH, collector dose, conditioning time, and settling time of the agglomerates. Among the combinations examined, the most favorable proved that with amine in the basic pH region. The use of non-polar oil proved beneficial. The preliminary results were confirmed by tests on mineral mixtures. The application of magnetic separation resulted in the removal of gangue minerals and the recovery of magnesite concentrates of commercial grade (magnesite content 95% approximately) and high yield.The current paper contributes to the development of mineral processing, since it successfully copes with a very important problem of mineral processing, such as the efficient separation of fine particles."

Jan 1, 2016

By L. A. Melis, A. R. Marchbank, S. A. Webster

"Certain northern Saskatchewan uranium ores have a high content of nickel and cobalt which offer the potential for recovery as a by-product to uranium. A nickel/cobalt recovery process has been developed as a viable method of recovering a marketable concentrate from typical uranium raffinate solution.Impurities are first removed from the raffinate and the pure solution is then treated with sodium carbonate to recover a bulk nickel/cobalt carbonate precipitate for sale to a primary nickel producer. All contaminants of concern are removed to very low levels and the product is free of radioactive contamination with gamma emissions significantly below natural background. Cost estimates have shown that installation of a nickel/cobalt recovery circuit within a uranium process plant is economically feasible.The testwork that led up to the selected process is described along with recommendations for further investigations such as additional testing of hydroxide precipitation as a possible viable alternative to carbonate. The selected process is described and project economics are briefly reviewed.PROCESS TEST PROGRAMBackgroundExtensive metallurgical research has been performed over the years to develop a process for recovering uranium from the Midwest deposit in northern Saskatchewan. During the course of this research, a certain amount of information became available which suggested that recovery of nickel and cobalt from uranium raffinate could be economically feasible. It was decided to undertake a test program which would investigate methods of separating nickel and cobalt from radioactive and other metal contamination to permit production of a saleable product.Available technology suggested that three general approaches could be taken to recover nickel and cobalt. The first and simplest approach would be to selectively precipitate the impurities of concern, primarily arsenic, iron and radium, and then recover a bulk concentrate from the purified raffinate. The second approach would be to purify the raffinate and then remove cobalt from solution by solvent extraction producing pure nickel and cobalt solutions for further treatment. The third approach would be to precipitate all metals from solution and then selectively re-dissolve nickel and cobalt in ammoniac solution which would be further treated by solvent extraction for nickel recovery, leaving cobalt for further treatment."

Jan 1, 1993

By R. O. Grieve

"IntroductionCALEY (1945) and Evans (1950) pointed out that certain instances of convergence between Devonian and Silurian horizons, frequently evident in wells drilled for oil and gas in Ontario, appear to be related to local thinning of salt beds in the Salina formation and they suggested that leaching of the salt beds may have occurred. Exploratory drilling by Imperial Oil Limited since 1945 has brought to light several examples of structures similar to those discussed by Caley and Evans. The writer has had the opportunity to examine cuttings and data from wells which penetrated these structures and the attempt to interpret them in the light of the theory of leaching and subsidence proposed by Landes ( 1945a) to explain the marked brecciation and deformation of Upper Silurian and Middle Devonian sediments which crop out in the Mackinac Straits region of northern Michigan has led to the observations presented in this paper."

Jan 1, 1955

By Zygmunt Wegrzyk

Poland is rich in hard and brown coal reserves, which have become the most important, and steadily developing, primary source of energy. With 192.6 mill. t of hard coal production and 40 mill. t of exports in 1978, Poland is fourth and second in the world respectively. The paper discusses the various mining methods adopted in the country's history of mining. Particular emphasis is placed on longwails, their mechanization and equipment assembled in the form of fully mechanized face complexes suited for varied geological conditions. Measures to improve the recovery ratio of coal resources are dealt with. investment efforts undertaken in the coal industry are outlined. An account is given of the ever improving techno-economic results of coal mining. The country also exports a wide range of mining equipment and transfers its well-founded technical know-how to others. There are strong cooperative links with many foreign partners.

Jan 1, 1979

By C. Han, S. J. Zhou, Y. B. Shen, D. Z. Wei, P. Fang

"Collecting property of two hydroxamic acid collectors have different type of nonpolar structure to hemimorphite has been comparatively studied via monomineral flotation test, and the reason causes different collecting performance has been discussed from the view of relationship between molecular structure and collecting property. The flotation tests results show that C5-9 hydroxamic acid has an unbranched linear alkyl nonpolar group shows better collecting property to hemimorphite than cyclohexyl hydroxamic acid which has a naphthenic nonpolar group. FTIR detecting results show that the adsorption type of collector adsorbed on hemimorphite surface is chemical adsorption. Calculation results of polar group’s geometric structure parameters, polar group’s electron density distribution, octanol-water partition coefficient (logP) and molecular frontier orbital energy show that the key factor caused different collecting property of two collectors to hemimorphite is the logP; unbranched linear alkyl nonpolar group is more conducive than naphthenic nonpolar group to make hemimorphite particle more hydrophobic.INTRODUCTIONZinc-bearing mineral recovered from lead-zinc ores is the main source that people can obtain zinc resource from nature. However, natural sulfide ores are currently getting depleted steadily for the primary zinc source. In order to satisfy the future demand of zinc resource, there is an obvious recognition that the recovery of zinc oxidized minerals from the ores is a crucial alternative (Hosseini & Forssberg, 2007; Navidi Kashani & Rashchi, 2008).But the fact that can’t be ignored is the flotation of zinc oxidized minerals is much more difficult than that of zinc sulfide minerals, which is mainly due to the flotation characteristics of these zinc oxidized minerals such as lower selectivity and higher reagent consumption, as well as complex and variety of lead-zinc ores. Presently, there have been many various beneficiation technologies used for recovering zinc oxidized minerals and dealing with ores for recovering metallic zinc such as flotation and hydrometallurgy (Abkhoshk, Jorjani, Al-Harahsheh, Rashchi, & Naazeri, 2014; Önal et al., 2005). But from an overall perspective, flotation is the most common method used for the beneficiation of zinc oxidized minerals, and there have been extensive investigations conducted on the flotation of zinc oxide ores (Ejtemaei, Gharabaghi, & Irannajad, 2014). Until now, the most well-known method used commercially for the flotation of zinc oxidized minerals is sulfidization with sodium sulfide and flotation with a cationic collector of amines containing from 8 to 18 carbon atoms. However, a major problem for this method is the large amount of fines and slime results in the increase of reagent consumption and promotes the phenomenon of slime-coating. For preclude this negative effect, the de-sliming and processing optimization is indispensible (Peres, Borges, & Galery, 1994; Salum, de Araujo, & Peres, 1992)."

Jan 1, 2016

By K. Thuro, S. Schneider, H. Kasling, P. Ellecosta

"One of the most important methods for material testing is the characterization of the hardness, which is defined as the resistance of a material to the penetration of another one. The methods according to Brinell, Vickers, Rockwell and Knoop are today the most common and standardized tests for metal. As they are developed for predominantly ductile materials like steel, they can’t easily be applied to rocks which react much more brittle under indentation. But just as steel, rock is composed of different minerals and has a specific microstructure. Its mechanical parameters are connected with the particular grains, their cohesion and interlocking, just like steel.The abrasivity of rocks and the accompanied wear of drilling tools today are mainly determined by simple and fast laboratory tests such as the Cerchar abrasivity test or the rubber wheel test. Such laboratory tests are good tribological tests, but there are limits. The Cerchar abrasivity test for example has weaknesses in extreme cases, that mean soft or very hard rock types. This leads to an underestimation of abrasivity, e.g. in poorly lithified sandstones or very hard, fine grained and extremely abrasive rocks. As mentioned, hardness characterizes, depending on the type of deformation, predominantly plastic (metal) or elastic properties (rubber). Rocks are in the range between these two extremes. Since the rock drilling process can be seen as a kind of penetration process on macroscopic and microscopic scales, we picked up the idea to characterize the interaction of rock materials and TBM-disc-cutters with hardness tests. In addition, this supports for a better understanding of the wear process on disc cutters. We used the hardnessdisparity concept after Cardu & Giraudi (2012) because wear can be understood as the interaction between the wear part and the material which causes the wear (tribological system). Several rock-forming minerals and some fine to coarse-grained monomineralic and polymineralic rocks were tested. In contrast to Cardu & Giraudi, we used in the first step of investigations the method after Vickers with loads up to 294.2 N (HV 30), depending on the estimated hardness to get bigger indentations and therefore as well information about the cohesion and interlocking of the minerals/grains. We also tested several associated disc cutters. First results show that with higher loads (HV 5 - 30) and at least 15 indentations, we get a structural hardness in fine-grained rock samples, which allows a good characterization of the elasticity and brittleness. Nevertheless, for the coarse-grained rock samples we need up to 40 indentations for a good characterization. Using this method, a prediction of disc cutter wear is feasible taking into account the hardness of the disc cutter steel. In this paper, we would like to present this approved method in material sciences to derive an additional parameter for the characterization of rock abrasivity and wear."

Jan 1, 2015