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By J. C. White

"During the early development of the Mattabi Mine in 1970, discussions with the Ontario Government revealed their policy of prohibiting, as much as possible, the development of new, isolated, single-industry townsites. Subsequently, Mattabi located its first housing in the Township of Ignace, which is situated 50 miles from the site of the mine and plant. Over 200 employees now commute 100 miles daily to and from work.This paper describes the experience gained and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of a remote townsite."

Jan 1, 1976

By X Dai

This paper investigated the loss of cyanide via oxidation in CIP or CIL processes by relating the cyanide oxidation to its major oxidation product, cyanate. The results showed that the oxidation of both free cyanide and copper cyanide complexes are substantially enhanced by the presence of carbon. The rate of cyanide oxidation was found to occur in the order: Cu(CN)32- > CN- > Cu(CN)2-. The cyanide oxidation rate in the presence of copper and carbon increased significantly with increasing dissolved oxygen concentration, typical of CIL vs. CIP conditions. Cyanide oxidation rate of iron, zinc or nickel cyanide complexes was minimal.

Jan 1, 2011

By G G. Suffel

T HESE remarks on the occurrence of strata-bound massive sulphide deposits are submitted be-cause the writer recently visited the principal Cyprus deposits (in January, 1965) and has also a back-ground of many years spent largely in detailed observation and map-ping of the Horne and Amulet ore-bodies, now largely inaccessible. They are particularly related to the Symposium papers (September Bulletin) by Hutchinson and by Roscoe. Some comments are offered on the cupriferous pyrite deposits of Cyprus. As the writer is currently reviewing the published literature on the related deposits in Turkey, a brief account of some characteristic Anatolian sulphide occurrences is given. The discussion is closed with some thoughts on the relationship between these Mediterranean sulphide deposits and those of northwestern Quebec and the Superior province in general. The geology of Cyprus, as it relates to the sulphide deposits, is well summarized by Hutchinson (1965). After visiting Mavrovouni, Skouriotissa and Limni and after much thought on the possible ge-nesis of these ores, it seems quite logical to me that he is right. They are indeed closely related to late-stage submarine volcanism.

Jan 1, 1965

By I. Farr, H. Wittens

"In 1989 and 1990 abnormally high levels of arsenic in ore from the Thompson Open Pit Mine threatened Manitoba Division's electro-nickel production. The paper will discuss our development of a flotation process to separate pentlandite and gersdorffite (the prime nickel and arsenic bearing minerals).The presentation will focus on the development of the process from conception, through lab and plant test work, to plant optimization and full scale production. The paper will conclude with the benefits and cost of the completed project.INTRODUCTIONRejection of arsenic from nickel sulphide ores was not a primary concern in the Manitoba Division until 1989. At that time increased production in the Thompson Open Pit mine, which contains high arsenic ore zones, resulted in excess amounts of arsenic in the Thompson Refinery affecting electro-nickel quality. This problem was resolved through extensive efforts by Mill personnel. The purpose of this paper is to familiarize the reader with- the Thompson Mill.- the mineralogy of the Thompson orebody.- the evolution of Ni/As separation in the Mill.- the metallurgical impacts of the separation on the Mill.- the importance of the separation to the Manitoba Division."

Jan 1, 1991

By M. W. Wadsley

"Physical and chemical property models are widely used in process engineering. There exist, in the published literature, completely empirical models of ''thermodynamic properties"", that is, property models that are not consistent with the laws of thermodynamics. There also exist property models that purport to be thermodynamically consistent but are flawed in their implementation. There are also published property models that are consistent with the laws of thermodynamics but that do not reproduce property values with an acceptable accuracy. A practicing engineer might be asked to assess very different property models for which there are a variety of claims. This paper discusses features of thermodynamic and empirical property models that may assist in their practical evaluation and implementation."

Jan 1, 2005

By Michael E. Charles, Jaroslav J. Vocadlo

"The hydraulic transport of solids through pipelines can have many advantages over other modes of transport. Numerous successful applications both within plants and over longer distances have demonstrated the technical and economic feasibility of slurry pipelining. Solids successfully transported include kaolin, coal, iron ore, gilsonite and limestone, and others, such as sulphur and potash, are likely to be transported in Canada in the near future. However, though the technology of solids pipelining is quite advanced the underlying principles have not yet been formulated past the semi-empirical stage. The main objective of this paper is to present a discussion of the important technical and economic considerations in the design of so lids pipeline systems by reference to typical data. The Worthington slurry pumps and pilot facilities are briefly described."

Jan 1, 1972

By W. J. Bennett

"I AM very happy to have this opportunity of speaking to the Montreal Branch of the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.I have selected as the subject of my remarks transportation in that area which is at present our only source of uranium -Northwest Canada. Considering the widespread interest in atomic energy, the end-product of uranium, it may be wondered why I have not chosen to speak of a more spectacular aspect of the development. I hope it will be evident from what I have to say that transportation plays a very dominant role in our effort to maintain a continuing supply from Eldorado's producing property at Port Radium on Great Bear lake and from its coming producer at Beaver lodge Lake in Northwest Saskatchewan. Moreover, transportation has such a bearing on the entire mineral development of the Northwest that it cannot help but be of concern to an organization of this kind. Finally, the transportation problem, of which I shall try to tell you something, is quite unique and the story of its solution or partial solution is, I believe, an interesting one.Transportation experience on this continent indicates that the cheapest method of moving freight is still by water -with •rail, highway, and air transportation following, and in that order •of economic significance. Excluding rail transportation, since the area has as yet no railway lines, this order also applies in the Northwest. I shall direct my remarks to the two kinds of transportation which serve our uranium producers -water and air."

Jan 1, 1952

By G. S. Hume

Introduction Core drilling of the bituminous sands of northern Alberta has been carried on by the Mines and Geology Branch, Department of Mines and Resources, under the supervision of the Director, W. B. Timm. This was part of the Dominion Government's wartime investigations, which included an agreement with Abasand Oils, Limited, for the study of commercial possibilities of obtaining oil from the bituminous sands. The drilling programme, commenced in 1942 by the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada, was continued in 1943 and subsequently by Boyles Bros. under contract with the Mines and Geology Branch. Several areas have been investigated and one of these, the Mildred-Ruth Lakes area, ' herein described, is of special importance in that it contains a sufficiently rich and large deposit of bituminous sands and bitumen beds to warrant consideration of commercial developments for the production of oil. The Steepbank Area, East Side of Athabaska River The Steepbank area, on the east side of Athabaska river in township 92, about twenty-two miles north of Fort McMurray, was selected for drilling in 1942 because previous investigations by Ells indicated it was one of considerable promise both from the standpoint of having reasonably rich bituminous sands under relatively light overburden and also having an excellent tailing disposal and plant site for large-scale operations in proximity to Athabaska river. The drilling done in 1942 and 1943 was largely exploratory, and, when it was found that the southerly part of township 92 had only low-grade material, closer drilling was done in 1944-45 in the richer, more northerly part.

Jan 1, 1947

By V. N. Mackiw, H. Veltman

"A process is described which permits the separate recovery of lead and zinc from complex low-grade sulphide concentrates such as are produced from the New Brunswick type of disseminated pyrite ores. This process calls for the preparation of a lead-zinc bulk concentrate from the original ore by flotation. The bulk concentrate is then oxidized under pressure in autoclaves in aqueous sulphuric acid solution, such as return electrolyte from zinc electrolysis. This yields a zinc sulphate solution and a residue containing lead sulphate, unaltered pyrite and elemental sulphur generated during the oxidation. After the oxidation, the leach slurry is briefly heated to above the melting point of elemental sulphur and then cooled. Thus, pellets containing pyrite and elemental sulphur are formed, and they are separated from the lead sulphate by screening and/or flotation. Laboratory tests have shown that about 95 per cent of the zinc and lead can be separately recovered from complex bulk concentrates. Process possibilities are discussed."

Jan 1, 1967

By K. L. Azinger

Successful relationships between mining companies and local stakeholders are now an essential part of the social contract of “doing business” (Prescott, 1995). The methodology presented in this paper is designed to assist mining companies in understanding and building relationships with diverse stakeholder groups. The methodology starts by recognizing that mining projects have a natural life cycle which can be used to identify when new external affairs strategies are required. In designing an external affairs strategy, the first step is to set objectives that are compatible with the overall objectives of the mining project. The management team then identifies the main stakeholder groups and seeks to understand the priorities and inter-relationships of the individual stakeholders. The result of this stakeholder analysis is an understanding of the Degrees of Influence of each of the stakeholder groups along with a relationship map which illustrates the strong interactions between stakeholders. The company is then prepared to take a proactive approach to building relationships with the primary stakeholders. This methodology was developed by BHP to assist with the federal government environmental approval process for the development of Canada’s first diamond mine. BHP has successfully used the methodology in three different phases of the NWT Diamonds Project and is now applying the methodology to mining and development projects around the world.

Jan 1, 1998

By R. Bainbridge

THE cinnabar deposits of the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company's Pinchi Lake property, situated near Fort St. James, B.C., were discovered and reported on by a Dominion Government geological party in 1937. Claims were staked by a group of local prospectors and, later, the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company of Canada, Limited, took an option on the property. By the fall of 1939, exploration work had indicated ore of commercial quantity and grade, and laboratory tests had shown that standard methods of reduction, namely, roasting of the ore, followed by condensation of the mercury vapour produced, would result in satisfactory recovery. In June, 1940, construction of a 50-ton unit arranged for wood firing was completed and operation commenced. The installation consisted of a 46 in. by 60 ft. rotary kiln (see Figure 1) followed by a 14-in. Sirocco cyclone, a cast-iron condenser unit, and a 1,700 c.f.m. fan, exhausting to a stack. Other equipment included a 9 in. by 18 in. Denver jaw crusher with the necessary bins and feeders. As the need for mercury was urgent, because of war requirements, construction of a duplicate unit was begun almost immediately. This first extension started operation in January, 1941, and the plant was then capable of treating about 150 tons of ore daily.

Jan 1, 1945

The introduction consists of back-ground information, of an historical and statistical nature, relating to the Thompson mine. The geological presentation is based on illustrations that are intended to provide a progressively closer look at the ore occurrence. The illustrations consist of an index map, a geological map of a 15-by 85-mile area including the Thompson mine, a series of four maps dealing with the geophysics and geology of a 6-by 4\f.j-mile area at Thompson, a mine level plan and corresponding section, two sto11e 11lans and corresponding sections, and photo-graphs and photomicrogra11hs of the various one types. T HE Thompson mine is located about 400 miles due north of Winnipeg. The ore deposit was dis-covered in February, 1956. Five years later on March 25, 1961, the Thompson production facilities were officially dedicated with the shearing of the first nickel produced at the Thompson refinery. Full production, at an annual rate of more than 75,000,000 lbs. of refined nickel, was attained later in the year.

Jan 1, 1963

By Atul Bhatnagar, M. P. Sinha, Md Zahid Ahmad, Pallav Garg, Sanjay Kumar Singh, Shashi Ranjan, An Ecolab Company Nalco Water

"Froth Flotation is undoubtedly one of the most critical processes in coking coal washing plants. This work was carried out at Bhelatand Coal Preparation Plant of Tata Steel was with an objective of cost optimization in fine coal processing. The sources of raw coal for the plant include coal from underground mines of Jharia coalfield and procured open-cast raw coal. Coal from different sources vary in quality and possess different floatability characteristics.Synthetic collector is being used in plant as a flotation reagent. An alternate collector with new chemistry was developed for reducing total treatment cost without compromising product yield and quality. A series of laboratory tests were conducted to assess the performance of various sources of raw coal and plant scale trial was started. At first, the new generation coal collector was entirely substituted with the existing collector in the laboratory scale. However the plant scale trial data was not in accordance with laboratory results and indicated inferior flotation performanceThe issue was studied and data based conclusions were drawn that the new generation collector aids faster and uncontrollable kinetics. A decision was taken for co-dosing of the synthetic and new collector for the second phase of the trial. A detailed laboratory analysis was done again and few dosing ratios that predicted optimum results were selected for plant trial. The dosing ratio was optimised as per flotation yield and product ashes during the plant trial. The results showed significant improvement from the first phase and optimum dosing rates were decided based on plant observations and data collection. The influence of various process indicators including water quality, feed and product ashes and process yield was studied during all the trials and promising results were established. The co-dosing of both the collectors conferred cost advantage and enabled to achieve superior performance."

Jan 1, 2016

By M. W. Grabinsky, B. D. Thompson

ABSTRACT: Use of cemented paste backfill (CPB) offers economic and environmental advantages over other backfill methods. However, many operations have limited knowledge of how their CPB behaves in situ. Therefore, to avoid over-pressuring containment barricades, backfilling strategies necessarily tend to be conservative. In situ monitoring at Barrick Gold Corporation’s Williams Mine and Inmet Mining Corporation’s Cayeli Mine has been conducted and factors controlling barricade pressures are demonstrated, including rise rates, binder content, stope geometry, and tailings properties. The application of barricade pressure monitoring on a stope-by-stope basis can increase backfilling efficiency and, thus, reduce stope cycle times, while maintaining optimal safety.

Jan 1, 2011

By M. B. Dusseault, A. Pirayehgar

"There is concern that hydraulic fracturing (HF) near an existing critically stressed fault could trigger slip and generate a seismic event of significance. To this end, a mathematical discontinuum model representing a naturally fractured rock (NFR) mass containing a fault is created, and fault slip response to fluid injection is studied. UDECTM is used as a Discrete Element Method (DEM) approach to define the seismic moment, and also to assess the influence of injection and slip on further shear slip propagation. In most of the simulations, slip and dilation take place along a number of oriented fracture surfaces, so it is reasonable to assume that in a real case, microseimic emissions would accompany each slip “event”. The moment magnitude scale (Mw) is used to measure the size of the microseismic event in terms of the energy released. Seismic moment is a measure of the total energy (work) released during a seismic event and is used to measure its size. From another aspect, the injection energy is calculated as the total energy required for achieving the hydraulic fracturing; this is viewed as energy to open fractures against the ambient stress field and much of it is potential stored energy that can be released and create discontinuities (work of fracture), deformations (W=F·d), heat and radiated seismic energy. A small amount of the total released energy is transformed to radiated seismic energy and another small amount results in tensile fractures. Fracture energy is used to calculate the work required to create fracture surfaces. Comparing the energy release by fracturing or seismic events indicates their contribution to the total amount of released energy or total work. The amount of energy associated with the stick-slip event is small compared with the overall work done to generate the distortions (i.e. increases in aperture by forcing them open) in the rock mass, and much of the energy in slip is lost as heat from the plastic deformation, rather than as radiated seismic energy.Microseismic monitoring shows the spatial distribution and magnitude of seismicity associated with slip of bedding planes and natural and incipient fractures. Work calculations have been undertaken to look at the various sources of energy storage (elastic strain energy) or dissipation (slip), and likely the energy losses from viscous dissipation could be addressed as well, helping to clarify HF processes in NFRs."

Jan 1, 2015

By D. Beneteau, L. Feldman, D. Milne, A. Hyett, G. Snell

"Behaviour of rebar bolts subjected to combined shear and bending in underground potash mining applications is not well understood. An experimental investigation compared load applied to resin-grouted No. 25 metric rebar to theoretical load, calculated using elastic bending theory. Distributed optical sensing (fibre optic) technology allowed axial strain measurements at 1.25 mm increments along the length of rebar. Experimental procedure, data processing methods, and equipment improvements are needed for field applications of optical sensing technology. Goals were to adopt procedures for instrumenting rebar bolts, conduct tests, and develop data interpretation methods to measure field deformations and loads. ¦ KEYWORDS Fibre optic, Potash mine, Rebar bolts, Transverse load testing RÉSUMÉ On appréhende encore mal le comportement des boulons d’ancrage pour barres d’armature soumis au cisaillement et au cintrage pour un usage dans des mines de potasse souterraines. Une étude expérimentale compare la charge appliquée aux barres d’armature de diamètre n° 25 (25 mm en mesure métrique) enduites de résine époxy à la charge théorique, calculée à l’aide de la théorie de la flexion élastique. La technologie de détection optique distribuée (fibre optique) a permis d’effectuer des mesures de la contrainte axiale à des différentielles de 1,25 mm sur toute la longueur de la barre d’armature. Pour des applications sur le terrain de la technologie de détection optique, il faut envisager une procédure expérimentale, des méthodes de traitement de données et une amélioration de l’équipement. Les objectifs établis consistent à adopter des procédures d’instrumentation des boulons d’ancrage pour barres d’armature, à effectuer des essais et à mettre au point des méthodes d’interprétation des données pour mesurer les déformations et les charges sur le site. ¦ MOTS CLÉS boulons d’ancrage pour barres d’armature, essai par charge transversale, fibre optique, mine de potasseINTRODUCTION Resin grouted rebar bolts are commonly used in potash mines in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada, in areas where shear deformation is observed in the rock, or where potentially unstable ground is present, including locations such as clay seams. Opportunities to observe deformations of rebar, as shown in Figure 1, are rare because it is unusual in underground potash mining to excavate supported ground. In this situation, a block of potash containing a rebar bolt had failed."

Jan 1, 2019

By T. W. Wlodek

In this paper the relative merits of shot peening, induction surface hardening, spiral-rolling, and the combination of these surface treatments, are evaluated on the basis of their capacity to increase the fatigue strength of drill steel. The S-N relations for plain car-bon steel (SAE 1080) and Ni-Cr-Mo drill steels in the as-rolled condition were determined previously, using the new Canadian method of testing drill steel introduced at the annual meeting of the Institute in Toronto in 1950 (19). S-N curves have now been determined by this method for these two drill steels in the following conditions: shot-peened and drawn, induction hardened, induction hardened and shot-peened, and spiral-rolled. ( S.R.) . The ratios of the fatigue strengths of these steels after surface treatment, to their fatigue strengths in the as-rolled condition, are compared and the most beneficial treatments are thereby pointed out. The expected range of stresses and their distribution during actual drilling operations are estimated from data available, and the mechanism of failure of drill steel in the as-rolled and surface-treated conditions is analyzed. The magnitude of the surface compression stresses and their effect on ?fatigue strength are discussed.

Jan 1, 1958

By C. R. Lattanzi, M. J. Davie, L. D. Smith, J. R. Goode

"The feasibility study determines the technical and economic viability of a project at the level of accuracy required by the owner to make an investment decision. The economic analysis usually includes calculation of the discounted cash flow. Key components of the cash flow include the project capital cost, the operating costs, construction schedule, production rate, product prices and financial details.This paper examines the feasibility study for a typical mining project. The paper discusses acceptable methods for the determination of the geological and mineable are reserves. The prerequisites for the development of suitable designs, and the calculation of capital and operating costs for the mine, processing plant, and infrastructure are reviewed. Important features of the cash flow analysis and its interpretation are presented.IntroductionThe commercial development of a mineral deposit invariably requires the investment of capital in preparing the deposit for production. It has always been necessary, therefore, to demonstrate to the investor of capital that production of a saleable commodity is both technically feasible and economically viable. The instrument typically used to make these determinations is the feasibility study .Traditionally, mining companies have been rather conservative in their approach to financial management. Until about thirty years ago, the capital required to develop a new mine was most frequently provided by internal corporate cash now and virtually all of the necessary technical and economic studies were performed 'in house'. Under these circumstances, there was little standardization as to what constituted an acceptable feasibility study, and even less as to what constituted an acceptable measure of economic viability."

Jan 1, 1991

By Arnfinn Prugger

"The construction of the new Scissors Creek shaft at the Rocanville mine, the first potash shaft successfully completed in Saskatchewan Canada since 1979, is summarized here. Located 15km from the existing Rocanville surface plant, this new 6 m inside-diameter, 1121 m deep service shaft was built for fresh-air ventilation and access. Shaft construction in the Saskatchewan sedimentary basin involves sinking through five different rock-types: glacial tills, shales, sandstones, carbonates and salts. The first four rock- types are all water-bearing, and the salts will dissolve in water. This results in five different sinking challenges and requires five different shaft lining designs. The upper 580 m of rock (the till – shale – sands sequence) was frozen before sinking, and grouting methods were used for water control through deeper carbonate levels. Challenges that were faced and overcome during shaft sinking are reviewed, and ideas that future operators working in sedimentary basin environments might consider in order to avoid these difficulties are discussed.INTRODUCTIONThe Nutrien Inc. (formerly Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc. / PotashCorp) Rocanville potash mine in southeast Saskatchewan, Canada has been in continuous production since 1971. Devonian potash, formed approximately 380 Mybp, is mined in a sedimentary basin environment at approximately 1000 m depth below surface in this area of Saskatchewan. The predominant use for finished potash products is fertilizer: potash fertilizer is concentrated and nearly pure KCl (i.e. greater than 95% pure KCl). Currently 10 potash mines are in operation in Canada, all in Saskatchewan. In 2018 Saskatchewan mines produced ˜ 23 million tonnes of finished potash products, which is approximately 35% of World demand of ˜ 66 million tonnes for the year (e.g. Nutrien Inc., 2019).In November, 2007 it was announced that the Rocanville potash mine would be expanded to increase production from 3.0 Million tonnes per year (Mtpy) to approximately 6.0 Mtpy of finished potash products, requiring an increase in hoisting capability from approximately 9.0 Mtpy to over 18.0 Mtpy. The Rocanville potash mine has historically been accessed through two shafts: a production and ventilation exhaust shaft, and a service and ventilation fresh-air shaft located approximately 200 m from each other. All surface offices, processing facilities, etc. are situated near these original shafts.A very important part of the recent Rocanville expansion involved the construction of a new service shaft (6 m diameter, 1121 m deep) for fresh-air ventilation and access, approximately 15km west of the existing surface plant. Once this third shaft was completed in 2015, the historical service shaft was converted to a second exhaust and production shaft. Three shafts are now available for mine access, ventilation and ore hoisting at Rocanville. As of December 31, 2017, annual nameplate capacity for Rocanville was 6.5 million"

Jan 1, 2019

By D. Groenveld, M. Rozou

"Recent trends move towards automation, smart sensors, internet of things, powerful DCS, and more data. Are those trends already utilized in a real time production environment? Today operators still have to monitor several complex processes at the same time and predict their behavior based on an overwhelming amount of data available.The fact of the operator being overloaded and humans being unable to process multivariable problems shows the need of a tool merging essential data and providing consistent, sound decisions for long-term profitability.This paper shows a successful execution of ABB’s process improvement services in Aitik (Boliden SA), a copper mine located in Sweden. Soft sensors, fuzzy rule blocks and model predictive control were seamlessly integrated in the control system of the grinding area, resulting in proper control of mill loads and particle size without violation of any constraints.INTRODUCTIONDepending on the ore characteristics and the targeted plant capacity, the design of the grinding circuit may vary significantly. Typically, the circuit consists of several mills (rod, ball, SAG, AG) in series and/or parallel with a number of classifiers and sumps at appropriate locations. The goal of the grinding section is to reduce the ore particle size to a level that enables efficient separation between gangue and precious metals in the subsiding processing step. The trade-off between quality and quantity has to be made. It is also crucial to execute this process step at the lowest possible energy and grinding media consumption.An optimal grinding process controller must manage to maintain a given fresh feed level while keeping the product size within a given range without violating any constraints such as power, torque or load limits. To accomplish the aforementioned, it is necessary to manipulate the ore feed rate, water feed rate and the mill speed. The most significant disturbances adding another degree of complexity to this control problem are ore hardness and the amount of circulating load."

Jan 1, 2016