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bauma 2004 will feature a couple of firsts for one of the world’s largest construction and building materials machinery exhibitions. The event is scheduled for March 29 through April 4 of next year at the New Munich Trade Fair Center in Munich, Germany. For the first time, bauma will feature an exhibition area dedicated to mining equipment and technology. Also for the first time, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) will be a partner region of bauma.

Jan 1, 2003

By W. P. Arnott

This paper presents real time photoacoustic measurements of diesel-soot black-carbon (BC or EC) and Dusttrak nephelometer total carbon (TC) concentrations in a Nevada gold mine. Comparisons with time-integrated filter-based measurements of EC and TC accomplished using the NIOSH 5040 method were found to be 50% smaller than the integrated real time measurements. This work was initiated primarily as a demonstration project for the usefulness of photoacoustic instruments in measuring BC in the mine environment. Real time black carbon measurements are very useful for determining miner exposure, for providing feedback in mine ventilation systems, and for quantifying machine specific emission rates to understand the operating conditions for specific machines that produce greatest black carbon concentrations. This paper reports real time measurements of DPM from a loaded and empty hauler as it is operated in a drift with a 12% grade. The photoacoustic instruments were demonstrated to be satisfactory for BC measurements in the mine environment.

Jan 1, 2009

By L. Adler

To properly analyze and apply mining equipment, a systematic, current, inclusive, and simple classification scheme is required. This paper provides such a classification for Roadheaders. This Roadheader classification is based on factors, such as the rock cutterhead, the boom type, and the chassis configuration. It first assigns Roadheaders as an equipment type within the larger group of Integrated Excavators. The Roadheader type is then delineated into the following subtypes: the standard, the extended boom, the tunnelers, and the miscellaneous. Next, these subtypes are devolved into kinds, and finally variants and attachments are considered. To resolve inconsistencies in characterizing the Roadheader, cross-referencing is employed within the classification scheme.

Jan 1, 1996

By S. S. Klima, H. Jiang, T. W. Beck, Y. Zheng

Researchers at NIOSH’s Pittsburgh Mining Research Division (PMRD) performed comparative testing of six different water sprays at pressures ranging from 689 kPa (100 psi) to 6,895 kPa (1,000 psi) in a 14.5-m3 (512-ft3) confined dust chamber. Testing was conducted to determine the effect of various pressures on each spray’s respirable coal dust knockdown ability. It is known that higher water pressures are typically preferred for lowering airborne dust concentrations, but it was important to determine at what pressure range the dust knockdown ability of each spray plateaus or reaches its minimum dust concentration. Results from this testing showed that several sprays saw up to 100% decrease in dust concentrations during the five-minute water spray testing period, with some occurring well below the maximum 6,895 kPa (1,000 psi) spray pressure.

Feb 1, 2023

By Nathaniel Arbiter

In contrast to pyrometallurgy's 6000year history in metals production, hydrometallurgy is of relatively recent origin. The earliest reference to it was in the 16th century, with the first applications to copper in the 17th and 18th centuries. In the 19th century, increased demands for pure metal resulted in the development of electrolytic refining, and early in this century electrowinning. The rapid growth in copper production in the 20th century, particularly in the United States and Chile, stimulated the development of new technology for leaching and for the recovery of copper from leach solutions. In the past 25 years, solvent extraction has become a major factor by permitting novel leaching technology that produces dilute or complex solutions. In addition, solvents other than sulfuric acid, and chemical methods for precipitating copper metal are now of increasing interest. These are trends that should grow in importance with the need to process lower grade and more complex materials. The evolution of copper hydrometallurgy is reviewed. Key factors in recent major developments are presented with details of specific operations and with trends for the future indicated. The relative importance of copper hydrometallurgy is compared with that of pyrometallurgy in the light of probable changes in ore supplies and character.

Jan 1, 1994

By Christian Maguire

Tunnel contracts in New York have in recent years had few bidders with the bids received being much higher than anticipated. Since 9/11, security has become a key issue in planning key infrastructure projects in New York. This is especially true in the case of large water supply tunnels. Striking the right balance between cost and security was the major factor in determining the best configurationfor the Kensico-City Tunnel. This paper outlines the efforts made to determine realistic probable bid costs for the tunnel contracts, and the innovative approaches taken to deal with security issues.

By G. A. Grandy, P. F. Thomas, C. D. Danecki

When considering the mill drive system for a grinding application, a large number of questions must be answered. Depending on the mill size and type, the mill can be driven by several configurations of drive systems: a single low-speed motor connected to a pinion driving a ring gear, two low-speed motors connected to two pinions and driving a ring gear, or a gearless motor mounted directly. In addition, a gear drive system can have a reducer placed between a high-speed motor(s) and pinion(s) or a power path splitting pinion stand. In some designs the reducer is integral with the pinion stand driven by a high-speed motor. The technical and commercial implications of several mill drive options are presented. Initial cost, cost of installation, cost of commissioning, and cost of operation and maintenance are presented for each drive option considered. The impact of each drive system on the design, cost and operation of the overall plant electrical system is discussed. Also, consideration is given to mill drive availability, and the potential cost resulting from delays in plant production.

Jan 1, 2001

By W. H. Dickinson

The performance of seven antiscalants spanning a range of chemistries was evaluated for control of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) formation in gold processing applications. Three preferred chemistries were identified which provided up to 100 percent inhibition in static jar tests when applied at 30 ppm dosage. The three products were further evaluated using a model carbon extraction circuit developed for this application. The test circuit enabled direct measurement of calcium carbonate formed on the carbon from a supersaturated solution under dynamic conditions. The antiscalants lowered CaCO3 buildup on the columns by 15 - 26 percent compared to untreated controls. Impact of the antiscalants on the rate and extent of gold loading onto a carbon adsorbent was evaluated in laboratory carbon-in-pulp (CIP) studies. The antiscalants generated a 25 - 35% increase in gold loading at gold extraction efficiencies up to 65%. On-site testing at a gold processing facility demonstrated that 10 ppm of the preferred antiscalant was able to fully suppressCaCO3formation in thickener overflow water.

Feb 27, 2013

As metal prices fluctuated over the years, so too have the fortunes of many of those mining in Canada?s Yukon province. With a rich mining history that dates back to the Klondike gold rush of 1896 to 1898 and continues to thrive today, Yukon has experienced several ?boom-and-bust? cycles. However, during the world?s most recent mining ?bust? Yukon has held strong and has re-mained one of the world?s hottest destinations for mineral exploration. In fact, the area even exceeded forecasts in 2009, more than doubling last year. And the near-future looks just as bright.

Jan 1, 2010

By Thomas E. Finch

Coal produced from surface mines in the Western United States is becoming a more important part of this nation's economy as other types of fuels become scarce. This paper reports the investigation of alternative methods of handling the parting between two coal seams. The results of this investigation are presented as the engineering-economic aspects of alternative parting handling methods involving stowing or back filling techniques. The coal and parting characteristics were selected as being representative of those under consideration or actively mined in the West. The basic philosophy of evaluation is to establish a mine-within-a-mine where equipment selected for minimal capital investment can remove the parting and second seam nearly independent of the ongoing, present production. With proper consideration of design, this parting-coal removal is evaluated as a second operation within the first and has its own profitability measure. The Fort Union Area of Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas contains large reserves of low sulfur sub-bituminous coal. In many locations, several coal seams are close to the surface and are separated by relatively thin layers of parting. The removal of overburden and the mining of the upper seam is accomplished effectively with conventional mining methods and equipment. Mining a second seam of coal and handling the parting in accord with economic and environmental controls presents a number of problems. Typically, mining companies have adapted the conventional strip mining techniques used in the East. However, the extreme thickness of the western coal seams offers alternative mining method possibilities for parting and second seam removal.

Jan 1, 1976

By R. Leithner

The need/wish to sequestrate CO2is based on the assumption of the International Panel of Climate Change (IPCC), that CO2 maybe the major driver in climatic changes, i.e. especially the anthropogenic CO2emissions due to the combustion of fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas will increase the atmospheric CO2-content, which will lead to higher temperatures in the atmosphere. The 0.03% CO2in the atmosphere have a 22% share of the natural greenhouse gas effect of 33 K necessary for life on earth. The main share of 62% has the water vapour in the atmosphere. Only if one concentrates on the greenhouse gas effect of the gases beside water vapour, CO2 becomes most important with 58% influence. In addition there are other influences on the climate like: • Eccentricity of earth’s orbit, precession of orbital plane, obliquity and precession of earth’s rotation axis (Milankovitch’s theory) • Sunspots and magnetic field of the sun • Changing streams in the ocean • Volcanic activities • Distribution of continents on the surface of the earth • Impact of meteorites • Change of insulation by interplanetary dust [Muller, R.A. 2000] etc. To answer the question, if the CO2-content in the atmosphere has an important or exclusive influence on the earth atmospheric mean surface temperature, one should look into history. Figure 1shows the mean temperature of the atmosphere and the atmospheric CO2-content time histories 1 billion years back; no correlation can be found between them. Nevertheless a lot of countries have committed themselves to reduce their CO2-emissions.

Jan 1, 2004

By Kyoosang Yoo

The report presents the results corresponding to the analysis of a lining system for tunnels in soil and soft rock in creep-active ground. The purpose of the analysis is to evaluate the performance of a lining at each construction stage. The steps include: 1. Accurate representation of the initial undisturbed state of stress 2. Excavation, 3. Lining installation 4. Injection of mortar and its curing, and 5. Short-, medium- and long-term creep behaviour in the surrounding soil/rock. The response of a prototype tunnel is simulated using the computational finite element framework MSC.marc2008.

Jan 1, 2010

By Yong Pan, Srivatsan Jayaraman Sridharan, Purushotham Tukkaraja

Block cave mining method poses unique ventilation challenges compared to other underground metal mining methods. This research study focuses on assessing the airflow behavior in regulated airflow distribution systems by developing a 1:100 scaled block cave experimental model and a numerical model. This study also investigated gas flow behavior under various airflow conditions. Based on our findings, we observed that reduction in particle size and porosity of caved materials, decrease in cave footprint, and closure of undercut drifts would increase cave airflow resistance. The increased airflow is found beneficial for gas dilution regardless of its source locations, while the regulated airflow distribution system might deteriorate gas dilution situation when the source is located in the extraction drifts.

May 12, 2022

By J. Sottile, V. Androulakis

Operators of underground coal mine shuttle cars are exposed to numerous hazards including noise, dust and musculoskeletal trauma. The repetitive nature of shuttle car operation leads to fatigue-related incidents and soft tissue injuries. The poor visibility conditions, and dust and noise increase the occupational hazards to the operator, as well to other miners. To reduce the risks for all miners, towards providing a safer working environment for all workers, the introduction of autonomous shuttle cars is essential. This paper introduces a project to demonstrate the feasibility of incorporating autonomous shuttle cars in the underground coal mining cycle. The autonomous shuttle car will be able to localize itself, to map its surroundings and to navigate in an underground GPS-denied environment. It will also navigate efficiently by fusing different on-board sensor modalities, autonomously planning the optimum path and traversing around the mine while avoiding collisions with humans and other static and dynamic obstacles. This will be achieved by exploring and testing different state-of-the-art techniques and off-the-shelf components, and integrating them into existing equipment, i.e., retrofitting an actual shuttle car. Moreover, a modified mining system will be demonstrated which will incorporate the autonomous shuttle car, capable of making real-time decisions, into the mining cycle. The system will regulate the interactions between the autonomous machinery and the human dynamic, with emphasis given to the safety of the workers, and enable the real-time, remote supervision of the mining process. The focus will be on coal mines, where the room and pillar mining method is used. INTRODUCTION The growing demand for mineral supplies combined with the steady decline in the available surface reserves has driven the mining industry to mine deeper underground deposits. These deposits are difficult to access, and the environment may be hazardous to mine personnel (e.g., increased heat, difficult ventilation conditions, etc.). Moreover, current mining methods expose the miners to numerous occupational hazards such as working in the proximity of heavy mining equipment, possible roof falls, as well as noise and dust. In recent decades, the utilization of autonomous machines has evolved in the mining industry to provide increased health and safety to mine personnel and reduce their exposure to adverse conditions. Automation aims to remove the workers from the hazardous conditions which may be present in an active mining area and place them to a more comfortable and safer environment at a distance from the active mining face. Examples of incorporation of autonomous machinery in the mining industry include the fleet of more than 100 autonomous mine trucks that are employed at the Rio Tinto’s iron ore mines in Western Australia for material haulage. There are also semi-autonomous, teleoperated LHD machines employed at several mines around the world (e.g., Sweden, USA, China). However, the operation of the autonomous machinery in these cases is either partial (semi-autonomous, teleoperated vehicles) and of small-scale or occurs at surface mines where GPS significantly facilitates the autonomous navigation of them.

Jan 1, 2019

By J. A. Farinelli

In the Appalachian region of the United States, approximately 40% of the underground coal reserve base exists in seams 0.7 - 1.1m thick. These seams are, in general, often of premium quality and are frequently accessible through above-drainage drift-type openings. Unfortunately, there are no apparent advantages to mining thin seams, if quality is disregarded. The thin-seam mine is faced with the same legal and economic pressures as any other underground coal mine. But in addition to these common problems, thin-seam operations must also deal with the unique problems associated with mining at such a restrictive height. Small-scale, short-lived operations appear to be the most feasible means of mining these reserves. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the production and safety potential of various thin-seam mining systems. Recommendations will be made regarding present and future thin-seam operations.

Jan 1, 1987

By J. C. Motz

With ore grades continually decreasing and finer mill feed requirements, it becomes increasingly important to have the capability to handle the larger tonnages economically. With the 10 ft. Standard capable of reducing 1,633 metric tons per hour (1,800 short tons per hour) to 80 percent passing 50 MM (2 inches) and the 10 ft. Short Head following to produce a mill feed of all minus 12 MM (1/2 inch) at a rate of 608 metric tons per hour (670 short tons per hour), we feel significant savings will be realized in installation and operating costs. The largest concentration of cost in the secondary and tertiary crushing stations is the building itself that houses the process equipment. An example of the savings to be attained can be seen from an examination of a 40,820 metric ton (45,000 short ton) per day crushing plant. A total of nine 7 ft. Symons Cone crushers is used to generate 12 MM (1/2 inch) ball mill feed. The average center distance between units is 6.1 M (20 feet) and allowing a 6.1 M (20 feet) nominal distance from the centerline to the wails, the building becomes 61 M (200 feet) long. For this production rate, four 10 ft. Symons Cone crushers would be required. With the 10 ft. crushing plant requiring a center distance spacing of 7.6 M (25 feet), the building length totals approximately 38 M (125 feet). Construction costs vary depending on location, but a reduction in building length from 61 M (200 feet) to 38 M (125 feet) will result in estimated savings of between $2,500,000 and S4,000,000. While the 10 ft. Symons Cone has been involved in a number of feasibility studies for some time, the Process Machinery Division of Rexnord commenced detail design work on the 10 ft. Cone crusher in 1972. For comparison purposes, the 10 ft. and 7 ft. capacities are given in Table 1.

Jan 1, 1978

By K. D. Luxbacher, E. C. Jong

Perfluoromethylcyclohexane (PMCH), a member of the perfluorocarbon tracer group of compounds, has been shown to be a viable supplement to the widely used tracer gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). This viability stems from the fact that PMCH can be used concurrently with SF6 while maintaining adequate chromatographic separation and comparable sensitivity during analysis. However, the release of PMCH in an underground mine ventilation system is challenging due to its physical characteristics. While SF6 exists as a gas at room temperature and pressure and can be accurately released by a variety of means, PMCH exists as a volatile liquid at room temperature and pressure, preventing it from being deployed in a similar manner. One method to release PMCH is to use a permeation plug passive release vessel (PPRV), which allows for the controlled release of the gas. This paper presents the results of a study evaluating various preparation techniques, plug thicknesses and plug materials of an aluminumvessel PMCH release source, so that a source appropriate for the mine scale may be developed.

Jan 1, 2015

By James F. Kvitkovich, George V. Weisdack

Editor’s note: This is the second part of a two-part series on longwall mining in the United States. Part one was published in the December 2005 issue of ME (pp. 21-26). It provided a history of longwall coal mining in the United States. It also discussed the technology involved in the productivity gains and operational improvements. Boyd anticipates that U.S. coal production will increase by 61 Mt (67 million st) (6 percent) from 2004 to 2010. A combination of higher surface and underground mine production will be required to meet the projected market demand. Boyd’s projections of coal production by major mining methods are shown in Table 1.

Jan 1, 2006

By Timothy Batchler, Khaled Mohamed

Standing supports have been used in coal mines for decades to enhance roof support capability. Sometimes standing supports are used as a tool to resist the lateral movement of spalled ribs. Researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) are conducting a testing program for different types of standing supports (steel and timber) to investigate the effect of lateral loading on their vertical loading capacities and the factors affecting their lateral loading capacities. In this paper, the mine roof simulator (MRS), at the NIOSH Pittsburgh research facility, was used to determine the response of steel props to vertical and horizontal loadings. Finite element models (FEMs) were developed and verified using the tested steel props. To justify the testing program for testing standing supports with end-conditions of rock-like materials, the verified prop models were used to study the effect of a wide range of roof and floor materials (gray shale, shale, and claystone) on the critical buckling loads of the steel props. Also, several lateral loading scenarios were evaluated in which the steel props were laterally loaded at different heights. The critical buckling load for steel props setting up against a claystone roof and floor was found to be one-half of that shown by the MRS test where roof and floor platens are made of steel. Minimum prop performance was observed when the lateral load was applied at the mid-height of the steel prop, especially at small lateral displacement (less than 2 in).

Sep 10, 2022

By G. Kosick, G. Dobby

CEET, an acronym for Comminution Economic Evaluation Tool, was jointly developed by MinnovEX Technologies Inc. and 13 major mining companies for the purpose of designing and predicting the performance of grinding circuits. It fundamentally differs from other methods by using as its’ data set a geostatistically significant population of hardness data distributed across the mine block model. Historically the characterization of an orebody for the purpose of either designing a grinding circuit or predicting the performance of an existing circuit has been done with a relatively limited number of discrete samples. In addition to power selection, shell sizing, and costing for multiple circuit options, CEET also outputs tons per hour, P80, and operating cost on every mining block for subsequent integration back into the block model. This paper will provide an overview of what CEET is and how it works.

Jan 1, 2001