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By A Hekmat, M Fuentes, F Armijo, R Castro, F Rodriguez

Interpreting the behaviour of granular material and simulating the gravity flow are complex processes in cave mining methods. In this paper, a new Cellular Automata based code – FlowSim – is used as a flexible tool to simulate the gravity flow and subsidence zone in block caving mines. The simulation results of the gravity flow model in a real scaled mine as well as a scaled physical model are presented in this study. In this research, FlowSim was first calibrated at a mine, based on the information obtained from smart markers. These markers were located in five points of the second block of the Esmeralda sector, at the El Teniente copper mine, Codelco, Chile. The calibration was performed with the objective of reducing the discrepancy between the extraction zone defined by markers in the mine and FlowSim outputs. Regarding the mine data, FlowSim was calibrated with the minimum error of ten per cent between real and simulated results. Then, the calibrated FlowSim model was used to simulate the flow behaviour of a scaled physical model. This model was constructed in the Block Caving Laboratory of the University of Chile to scale down the same block of the Esmeralda sector with the scale of 1:200. The FlowSim outputs show that this software enables the simulation of the gravity flow of the scaled model with less than five per cent discrepancy in grade and dilution entry to the drawpoints. According to the obtained results, this paper recommends FlowSim as an appropriate tool which can improve the design of production level in block caving and can enhance the prediction of the subsidence zone and dilution entry.CITATION:Castro, R, Hekmat, A, Fuentes, M, Armijo, F and Rodriguez, F, 2016. FlowSim – a versatile flow simulation tool to quantify extraction and design alternatives for block caving, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 645–652 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016

The recent paper by Dr. Edwards upon the copper deposits of Australia furnishes a perspective upon that portion of the Commonwealth's mineral deposits which is the more welcome because it has been long overdue. The paper yields in compressed form and in handy arrangement for reference the more relevant data to end of 1938 for all of Australia's important copper deposits 'past"and. present, and for many of the lesser ones. The information supplied 'obviously' has 15een collected' painstakingly and compiled with discrimination.Such published surveys of a national character have been far too few.The Mineral Resources Survey branch of the Department of Supply and Shipping at Canberra has been engaged for several years upon comprehensive compilations of data concerning each of the more important minerals used in industry. Presumably the results will be published after the war. The group will constitute an impressive and valuable series.As yet the work has not been completed, and, for security reasons, much of that which has been finalized is not publicly available. This makes the paper by Dr. Edwards the more timely.In the compilation of data by those not acquainted at first hand with many of the districts involved it is inevitable that, from reading of the literature alone, certain misconceptions will arise relationships become confused; and some of the more recently acquired information unavoidably fail to be taken into account. One need only compare his own impressions of a district, gained from reading the published literature prior to inspection, with the impressions later arrived at following a visit, to realize the difficulties in appraising the various features,in their proper relationships.On the whole, Dr. Edwards has, kept such misinterpretations at a minimum, which is a tribute to the care he must have exercised in analysing the vast fund of data perused. A few errors of statement, mainly concerning, Queensland deposits, have been noted. None is vital, but in the interests of accuracy it seems well to point them out.QUEENSLANDMount IsaOn page 108 Mount Isa's prospective output of 12,000 tons of copper per year is stated as coming from the Doherty section (O'Doherty, Black Rock mine, R.B.),- the copper ore-body is said to occur in dolomitic limestone (-Page 110)-, and Mount Isa's copper output for 1938 from that source is given as 22 tons. On page 145 the same prospective copper output is stated as coming from a body lying out in the hanging-wall of the silver-lead-zinc...

Jan 1, 1943

Hatches Creek has been inactive since 1961, but with better metal prices, interest in the field is reviving.The mixed gravity concentrates which were unsalable in 1951 have been experimentally separated into salable wolfram, scheelite, and bismuth-gold concentrates, and a flow sheet incorporating magneticseparation and flotation has been developed.

Jan 1, 1965

By C Placzek, E Beattie, K Blake

Channel iron deposits (CID) consist of ferruginous chemical sediments, and are an unusual subset of Phanerozoic ooidal ironstone deposits almost unique to the Pilbara, where they constitute around 19 per cent of the Pilbara’s iron ore exports. These deposits occupy many of the ancestral river channels of the Pilbara region, especially the Robe River palaeochannels, incising and meandering through the Precambrian banded iron formations (BIF) of the Hamersley Group and the underlying Fortescue Volcanics.This paper explores the factors underlying geochemical variation in CID, particularly the chemical properties of goethite. The selected deposits in the western Robe palaeochannel and its tributaries show little or no secondary reworking by later water tables. There is a total absence of aluminosilicate clays with all the deleterious elements such as aluminium and silica. Instead, these are associated with the goethite mineral lattice, either within or adsorbed to the cortices of pelletoids.A thickly vegetated environment, and the presence of the Maddina Volcanics as potential source rocks for these western Robe CID is offered as an explanation for relatively high aluminium in the deposits studied, and, in turn, as the reason most parts of the palaeochannel are preserved as inverted topography.CITATION:Beattie, E, Placzek, C and Blake, K, 2017. Dirty goethite – a geochemical characterisation of some western Robe River channel iron deposits, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2017, pp 489–502 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 24, 2017

Landscape interpretation, geology and mining history is being successfully used to explore options for sustainable community tourism product development. Recent work by the author in Europe and Australia has indicated the value of adding and producing interpretive information about mine and quarry locations - both active and inactive. This work has allowed for the branding and development of new sustainable community tourism products based on the landscape, folklore, mine and geological heritage.   Communities in rural areas are seeking new opportunities to sustain their local economies. Using a relatively new phenomenon called geotourism as a starting point; they have developed themed products connected to walking/cycling guides, interpretive panels and visitor centres. These themes can be linked to geology, archaeology, botany, local history and to industrial heritage sites such as old mines, to generate local employment. This new geotourism approach has successfully brought a new and greater audience to discover the value of geology and mining history.   Communities have established a unique place for themselves within the tourism marketplace using the geotourism brand. Other communities with an established tourism product are also now using geological and mine heritage via geotourism to rebrand and meet changing global trends. The pooling of resources under the banner of geotourism has led to cost effective marketing, targeting and promotion of products.   Geotourism has emerged strongly in Europe, North America and China in the last decade. The Australian minerals industry now has an opportunity to implement this new branding concept to assist and benefit the communities in which they run their activities. Communities can also take advantage of the potential to develop a sustainable geotourism business around a past or present mineral industry in their vicinity.

Jun 1, 2010

By W J. Rankin

A study was carried out to compare the environmental impacts of a number of process routes for lead and zinc metal production from sulphide ores using Life Cycle Assessment methodology and based on average industry data derived from the literature. The processes investigated were:blast furnace production of lead; Imperial Smelting Process for lead and zinc production; and electrowinning of zinc with the mining and mineral processing stages common to all three routes. The effect of a number of process variables, namely ore grade, fuel source for electricity generation and efficiency of generation, on the environmental impacts was also examined. The environmental impact categories considered in the study were:total (or full cycle) energy consumption; Global Warming Potential (GWP); and Acidification Potential (AP). The results of the study show that when produced separately, zinc production is more than twice as energy intensive as lead production (viz 48 and 20 MJ/kg respectively), however when produced jointly by the Imperial Smelting process, the energy intensity of the two metals is not all that dissimilar (viz 36 and 32 MJ/kg respectively). The metal production and refining stage was found to make the greatest contribution to the overall environmental impacts for all three processes. The study also highlighted the importance of taking a life cycle approach when comparing the environmental impacts of different processes.

Jan 1, 2002

E. W. Stutchbury (Internationa~ Oombustion Aust. Ltd.) : Mr. Callcott made particular mention in his paper of erosion in primary air fans which are placed after the mill discharge. He adds that subsequent reduction in plant performance and resulting increased maintenance costs occur. It is generally assumed that this statement is substantially correct as the fan handles the complete output from the mill, but with modern materials, reduction in performance and subsequent .maintenance are not now a problem. This consideration of handling the pulverised coal in the fan is more than offset by the advantage of operating the mill under suction which results in cleaner operating conditions, simpler feeder arrangements and elimination of complicated seals on the mill.and feeder unit. It should be specially noted that whereas mill exhausters in the past have used chequer plate blades (sometimes with the addition of hard facing by electrode deposit) it is modern practice to provide fan blades of up to 1 in·. thick Ni-hard suitablyheat treated, with the circumferential section of the fan also in Ni-hard. By the use of this material large power...

Jan 1, 1957

Samples weighing 0·5 g are decomposed with hydrofluoric and other acids. Most elements are extracted ftom the acid, aqueous solution by Alamine 336 (tricaprylyl tertiary amine) and thorium is determined in an aliquot taken from the aqueous phase by means of its reaction with arsenazo III. Concentrations down to 4 p.p,m. may be determined at a rate of 100 samples per man-day of 8 hr.

Jan 1, 1971

Predicting Flotation Response from Liberation Information

Sep 13, 2010

By A B. Christie, R L. Brathwaite

Since the first occupation of New Zealand in 800 - 900 AD, various useful minerals, rocks, and energy resources have been identified and extracted. The Maori prized greenstone for ornaments, tools, and weapons, used argillite and obsidian for tools, and decorated their carvings and bodies with colours made from clays, limonite, and vivianite. They were aware of coal (waro), but are not known to have used it for fuel. Before 1840, visiting whalers used coal from Shag Point to heat their trypots. Mining activities got underway in the 1840s, with the finding of manganese oxide deposits in the Bay of Islands, Kawau Island, Waiheke+ Island, and Taieri Mouth. Secondary copper ore was mined on Kawau Island (1846 - 1869), and native sulphur was exported from White Island to Europe. The discovery of gold at Coromandel in 1852 and a few years later in Northwest Nelson and Otago opened the way to gold rushes in these areas and subsequently in Marlborough and Westland. Mining of alluvial gold evolved through sluicing to the invention of gold dredges; first (1863) was the simple spoon design, but later (1881) large steam-powered bucket-ladder machines weighing around 3800 tonnes were built. Most of the gold dredges had gone by the early 1960s, following a revival in the 1930s, but one large dredge operates today on the Grey River. Other mining events included: underground mining of coal from 1849 and underground mining of lode gold from 1863 in the Coromandel, Reefton, and Otago fields. Most outcropping coal deposits had been discovered by 1870. Building stones were used by the early settlers for construction of houses, churches, banks, public buildings, and some universities from 1836. Aggregate for roads, railway ballast, and concrete, and limestone for cement and fertiliser, and clays for bricks and china have been quarried for many years.

Jan 1, 1993

Technologies are receiving a lot of 'press' - and rightly so; as they are seen as the means for achieving quantum leaps in productivity and cost reductions. A point of concern for Caterpillar is that we do not believe there is enough understanding of the infrastructure needed to support some of the future technologies, as well there is not enough utilisation of the current systems.

Jan 1, 1997

The purpose of this paper is to outline current research on the Paparoa and, at the request of conference organisers, to present a general introduction to the geology of the Greymouth Coalfield as background to more specialised papers. Few results of my present work will be given; these can be presented at the next conference. Briefly, the research aims for an understanding of the controls which depositional environment has exerted on coal character, to be reached by a study of coal type and thickness, shape and extent of seams, integrated with a basinal analysis of the coal measures. An accurate description of the coalfield in these terms should facilitate prediction of subsurface trends, with possible application to the planning of drilling programs, and to mine development. Although study of Paparoa coal types is included here as only part of the research, coal type should be recognised as an important concept which has until revently been almost entirely neglected in New Zealand.

Jan 1, 1979

By Sparrow G. J

The effect of polyelectrolyte flocculants on the de-watering of a tailing suspension of very fine clay was investigated.Sedimentation and filtration experiments were carried out in the labqratory to characterise the de-watering properties of the tailing. The results were used to calculate the effect of flocculant additions on the drainage and vaporation components of the de-watering of a clay suspension ponded on to a sand drainage bed.A flocculant increased the drainage rate, but decreased the volume of water that could be removed by drainage leaving more water to be lost by evaporation.The sorptivity values measured in the laboratory were used in the de-watering equation previously established for the tailing to estimate the effect of flocculant additions on the time required to de-water the suspension from 18.2 to 60 per cent solids w/w. The calculated de-watering times were found to increase or decrease depending on the volume of water removed by drainage and the prevailing evaporation rate.

Jan 1, 1980

By T Hirsi, M Weatherseed, T Ritasalo

Cooling tower design has not advanced significantly in the last decade. Recognising this, Outotec has developed an innovative horizontal outflow cooling tower with increased performance compared to conventional design cooling towers.Outotec® Cooling Towers operate today in applications such as spent electrolyte cooling in zinc plants and for gypsum removal before copper solvent extraction. In such applications the use of this latest design has enabled increased production and lower maintenance costs in the downstream operations.In actual operations, the cooling performance has been confirmed at start-up, and has demonstrated that the towers operate in accordance with the CFD modelling. In the last three years these towers have proven themselves in commercial operation to operate with high efficiency and availability.This case study will outline comparative data, collected over two years at a site where both Outotec and conventional cooling towers are operating. The data shows that Outotec cooling towers require less than half the maintenance time of conventional cooling towers, when adjusted to a total solution flow basis. A close partnership approach with the site has allowed continual development, ensuring high availability and high performance.Experience with previous cooling tower installations guided the development of maintenance philosophies and procedures; this resulted in a design where maintenance intensive components were accessible from the top of the cooling tower. This allows safe access to components and maintenance with little or no downtime.CITATION:Hirsi, T, Ritasalo, T and Weatherseed, M, 2015. Improving cooling tower performance with innovative horizontal outflow design, in Proceedings MetPlant 2015, pp 396–402 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 7, 2015

By R G. Skirrow, M Cooper, J Claoué-Long, K Czarnota, H Dulfer, J Thorne, D C. Champion

"An EXTENDED ABSTRACT is available for download. A full-length paper was not prepared for this presentation. Tholeiitic intrusion-hosted nickel (PGE-Cu) sulfide deposits are under-represented in Australia’s inventory of known resources of this deposit type, relative to regions globally with comparable geology. To support discovery of major new deposits, a continental scale analysis of Australia’s potential for tholeiitic intrusion-hosted nickel (PGE-Cu) sulfide deposits is being undertaken. The analysis applies a mineral systems approach to map the four essential components of the ore-forming systems:1. sources of ore constituents2. crustal and mantle lithospheric architecture3. energy sources or drivers of the ore-forming systems4. gradients in ore depositional physico-chemical parameters.The results reveal several regions of Australia with potential for discovery of large tholeiitic intrusion-hosted nickel (PGE-Cu) sulfide deposits, mostly around the margins of Archean and Proterozoic lithospheric blocks. These include the south-east and northern margins of the Yilgarn Craton, the south-west and south-east margins of the Kimberley Block, the southern margin of the Arunta Province in central Australia, the western flank of the Gawler Craton in South Australia, and possibly some areas within the Palaeozoic Lachlan Orogen of eastern Australia.CITATION:Skirrow, R G, Dulfer, H, Czarnota, K, Champion, D C, Thorne, J, Cooper, M and Claoué-Long, J, 2015. Australia’s potential for nickel sulfide ore systems – a new continental-scale time-space framework for exploration, in Proceedings PACRIM 2015 Congress, pp 679–684 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Mar 18, 2015

In a modern economy there is a compelling case why governments should not own property rights to mineral deposits. Assuming they do, however, governments will use these constitutional rights to raise revenue. They have two basic instruments to achieve this; a royalty charge on price or a rent tax on income/profits. On the one hand, a royalty charge creates a 'deadweight loss' to society by increasing cut-off grades and decreasing the life-of-mine. They are also regressive. However, they are easy to administer. On the other hand, a rent tax avoids the problem of 'deadweight loss'; it does not impact on the life-of-mine because the tax structure is neutral. But, they are difficult to administer correctly, particularly in the determination of rents and the definition of mining per se. If rents are incorrectly determined capital markets are distorted. And, if mining activities are incorrectly defined, downstream activities could be adversely affected.

Jun 1, 2010

Influence of Grinding Media on the Flotation of Carbonate Using Sodium Oleate as Collector

Sep 13, 2010

Processing of Hard-to-Treat Copper Ore and Flotation Middlings Using Chemical Treatment

Sep 13, 2010

Beneficiation of Coal Fines from Tailing Ponds of Tuntbilek Washing Plant

Sep 13, 2010

By Y Lanwin

The Australian mining sector is undergoing a significant transformation with the adoption of advanced technology to the operational landscape. This has highlighted a critical disconnect between our traditional educational systems and the skill requirements of working with these advanced technologies. This paper aims to provide a behavioural science analysis of how the traditional manufacturing mindset, deeply rooted in our educational frameworks from primary to tertiary education, registered training organisations (RTOs), and in-house learning and development, is misaligned with the needs of today’s technologically advanced mining operations. Originating in the industrial revolution, the manufacturing mindset prioritised efficiency, mass production, and the division of labour. In educational institutions, this translated into an emphasis on rote learning, linear examinations, and a rigid adherence to processes and procedures. Such a system, while effective in producing a workforce suited for repetitive and predictable tasks, falls short in fostering skills like problem-solving, adaptability, flexibility, and coping with change – skills that are increasingly vital in a mining sector dominated by automation, robotics, and AI. The paper discusses how the focus on disciplined adherence to standard work procedures and processes in educational and training programs has inadvertently stifled creativity and autonomy in learners. This issue is compounded in the workplace, where employees, having been conditioned to operate within strict guidelines, now face the challenge of adapting to environments where autonomous decision-making and creative problem solving are crucial. In essence, the traditional approach to education and training has prepared individuals for a world of work that no longer exists. This paper advocates for a whole of pipeline approach, grounded in behavioural science, to revamp mining education and training. It highlights the importance of understanding and influencing the behavioural aspects of learning and recommends for an approach that promotes diversity, critical thinking, and adaptability, preparing the workforce to excel in the rapidly changing landscape of the Australian mining sector.

Sep 1, 2024