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By Sabina Brady

Investment in the ferrous sector between 1981 and 1985 will total about $9 billion, or 7.6% of the state budget for capital assets. The money will primarily go to complete the first stage of the Baoshan Iron and Steel complex and to increase steel production by 3 Mt* (3.3 million st) and seamless tubing by 0.5 Mt (551,000 st). Investment in 1983 will be about $3.5 billion, a 28% increase over 1981. Although data on nonferrous investment is less specific, the Chinese announced early this spring that the country's investment would be 2.6 times greater than the average spent during the previous five year plans. Geological surveying will also be stepped up. The Ministry of Geology and Minerals recently announced it will incorporate a search for metal and mineral resources into its second round of oil and gas surveys. The Sixth Five-Year Plan desig¬nates some actual production targets. Steel is to increase to more than 72 Mt (79.4 million st). The country's production of 10 priority nonferrous metals - aluminum (and bauxite), copper, lead, zinc, nickel, tin, antimony, mercury, magnesium, and titanium - is to increase 12.7%. Top priority is to develop aluminum production. Renewed efforts are to be made to develop gold and silver production and to increase rare earth and rare metal production. By April 1983 when the China Nonferrous Metal Industry Corp. was established, some five months after publication of the Five-Year Plan, the goals for nonferrous development had already been upgraded and changed to include: • development priority status equal to that of coal's; • an increase of more than 150% in the 1985 projected production level for the 10 top nonferrous metals (a move from the Sixth Five-year Plan's production increase of 12.7% to one of 34%); and • modification of the top 10 nonferrous metals list to include tungsten, molybdenum, and rare earths. Aluminum, copper, lead, and zinc maintained primary importance, while mercury, magnesium, and titanium were deleted. It is likely that the modification will be taken one step further and titanium will be substituted for antimony. China has already indicated its intentions to stabilize rather than expand its antimony industry, while press reports play up the titanium industry's importance to the country's development. In addition, the China Nonferrous Metal Industry Corp. announced that it expects to register a progressive annual increase of 4% in foreign currency earnings through export. China's nonferrous development efforts, therefore, appear two-pronged. First, the country's efforts will be directed toward self-sufficiency in its four major process and primary metals - aluminum, copper, zinc, and lead - and a number of other nonferrous metals that are in increasing demand by its light industry sector. At present, 96% of China's non¬ferrous consumption is composed of aluminum, copper, lead, and zinc. Substantial portions of that must be imported to meet rising demand. Second, efforts will concentrate on those metals that can be developed the fastest and are in "urgent demand" on the international market. Metals such as tungsten, tin, molybdenum, titanium, nickel, and rare earths will be given freer use of foreign capital and technology to increase production levels and raise quality. Examples of some projects in the area include upgrading the country's carbide industry and developing new high speed and tool steels to meet international standards. Foreign involvement and sales have been reported in each area, particularly with regard to sales of deposition equipment and presses by Swiss and West Ger-

Jan 8, 1983

By R. A. Jankowski

The U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) conducted a series of laboratory tests to investigate the effectiveness of using a flooded-bed scrubber with exhaust ventilation in deep-cut faces of up to 12.2 m in length. An experimental test program to determine the impact on respirable dust levels resulting from changes in face airflow, curtain setback distance, operator positioning, and operating parameters of the external spray system on the miner was completed. Gravimetric sampling was conducted in the immediate return and at three sampling locations on the off-curtain side of the entry. Statistically significant differences in dust levels on the order of 0.5 to 1.2 mg/m3 were observed between specific sampling locations and changes in several test parameters. Dust sampling results indicated that a flooded-bed scrubber and exhaust ventilation can be a viable dust control system for extracting deep cuts up to 12.2 m in length. The impact on methane was not evaluated.

Feb 24, 1997

By C. C. Jobes, J. J. Sammarco, D. L. Anderson

Computer-aided control of a mining machine places its operator in a safe, remote location, thus reducing health and safety risks. Sensing systems that provide machine position (xy coordinates) and heading (yaw) are extremely useful in aiding remote positioning of mining machines. The US Bureau of Mines (Bureau) developed two sensing systems for position and heading information: a scanning laser system based on the Lasernet sensor and a mechanical position and heading system based on linear-position transducers. The Bureau is also investigating a system from Honeywell, the modular azimuth and positioning system (MAPS), that employs ring-laser gyroscopes (RLGs). This paper presents a brief background and status of these sensing systems as applied to a continuous mining machine (CM). Included are field test results off each system operating in a room-and-pillar research section at a cooperating West Virginia mine.

Jan 1, 1993

The Sandvik DE710 diamond core drill has become one of the most popular exploration drills available. It is operated on exploration and mining projects in locations around the world. The compact nature of the DE710 allows a small footprint on site. This has proven to be a great benefit in difficult access areas where site preparation can be limited. The DE710 drill is available in a range of con-figurations to suit global operational and environ-mental demands. It can be truck-mounted for greater maneuverability and ease of relocating the drill between sites. The drill can also be fitted to crawler tracks, powered from the rig hydraulic system, making it a small, self-propelled unit for areas with difficult site access. And the DE710 is available in a shack-mounted configuration for cold weather applications, ensuring a protected working environment for the drill crew. The DE710 is powered by a 6.7-liter engine that produces 141 kW (190 hp) at 2,200 rpm to power the rig hydraulic system. The engine complies with the Tier 3 emissions standards that are being introduced in many countries. The hydraulic system design for the Sandvik DE710 is based on the company?s philosophy of selecting the best available products to suit the application. The main hydraulic pumps and motors are the variable displacement design. This allows for greater fl exibility and precise control of critical drilling functions. The cooling system has also been designed for operation in ambient temperatures up to 50° C (122° F) to cope with varying global operational demands.

Jan 1, 2009

By W. Z. Rogers

U.S. feldspar output sold or used in 2005 was an estimated 760 kt (838,000 st), valued at $44 million free-on-board plant. This was below the 2004 volume and was the second year of decline in a row. Output included flotation concentrates, feldspar content in feldspar-silica mixtures, potash feldspar and aplite. The strong housing market in the United States maintained demand for ceramic tiles, plumbing fixtures and fiberglass insulation requiring feldspar. Shipments of glass containers were about the same as in 2004. Imports of ceramic tiles and plumbing fixtures continued to increase, taking the place of U.S.-produced goods and the feldspar required to make them. For 2005, 80 percent of the ceramic tiles sold and 50 percent of the plumbing fixtures sold in the United States were imported. Since 2000, manufacturing plant closures in the plumbing fixtures industry have reduced the demand for feldspar and feldspar-silica mixtures by 100 kt (110,000 st). Increased demand from the ceramic tile industry has partially offset the lost volume.

Jan 1, 2006

Scattered north and south along a 161-km (100-mile) stretch of Interstate 80, Newmont Min¬ing Corp. owns four active mining properties in Nevada?s northern high desert ? Carlin Trend Operations, Midas, Twin Creeks and Phoenix. Among the four, there are nine openpits, five underground mines and 14 processing facilities. While gold is the predominant ore, silver and copper are also produced. And in a move to hold down energy costs, Newmont built and owns the 200-MW (net), coal-fired TS power plant. This plant provides about 65 percent of the power used for Newmont?s own operations, while the rest is sold to NV Energy, which services Nevada and northeastern California. Bringing the Phoenix Mine ? Newmont?s newest in Nevada ? on-line presented many developmental and operational challenges. Located about 19 km (12 miles) southwest of the town of Battle Mountain, the general area had been home to prospectors and other mining companies since the 1860s. But any profitability in developing the lower grade gold, copper and silver deposit at Phoenix proved elusive, with Battle Mountain Gold being the last company to make an attempt. When Newmont acquired Battle Mountain Gold and its Phoenix reserves in 2001, the lower grade of ore was not a deterrent. Newmont found Nevada-wide cost savings synergies for maximizing profit during the depressed gold market of the late 1990s. The new property was aptly renamed the Phoenix Mine, a nod to its rising from the ashes of the dreams and efforts of previous mine owners.

Jan 2, 2010

By H. Richard Eisenbeis, Donna M. Watkins

Many technical professionals (tp)* desire to occupy upper level management positions. But career paths for most scientists and engineers do not extend beyond their specific disciplines. This is unfortunate. Our technical frontiers are expanding so rapdily that it is difficult, if not impossible, to make sound top management decisions without understanding the technical complexities involved. Technical professionals often are not considered for upper level management positions because they lack the managerial and interpersonal skills necessary to become successful administrators. You've heard this before, but a key component of these skills is the ability to communicate. Technical professionals are often unable to communicate as well as they should with nontechnical professionals and nonprofessionals within the organizations that employ them. Communication is important for managerial success Communication is the network of interactions whereby knowledge and understanding are conveyed from one social set to another (Flippo and Munsinger, 1982). In order to be successful, managers must not only be "good" communicators, they must be "effective" communicators as well. Good communication occurs when managers are able to formulate and transmit their messages in such a way that they are received and understood. Effective communication goes one step further: It occurs when recipients accept messages as legitimate and respond to these messages in the manner desired. Before promotion into upper level positions, managers must have developed organizational skills (planning, decision making, organizing, and controlling) and interpersonal skills (directing, influencing, and motivating). Applying these skills effectively is difficult without a highly refined ability to communicate. Effective communication, then, is basic to managerial success. Nowhere, perhaps, has the importance of being able to communicate effectively been emphasized more than in Mintzberg's landmark study of managerial roles (Mintzberg, 1973). Mintzberg's results indicate that executives typically averaged 36 written and 16 verbal contacts a day. These contacts were both important and trivial. They generally occurred in a random manner. Time spent on each varied. Scheduled meetings averaged over an hour. Desk work, telephone calls, and unscheduled meetings required an average of 15 minutes or less. Why technical professionals have difficulty communicating Three reasons why technical professionals do not communicate well are: • The work motivational patterns and personal attitudes of technical professionals are not conducive to effective communication. • Students in technical professions are not encouraged by educational institutions to develop their communication skills. • Organizations do not insist that all technical professionals be able to communicate in the language of business. The work motivational patterns of most technical professionals are indicative of internals and high achievers (Hunt, Salisbury, and Whittington, 1968). As internals, they believe they control their own destinies. As high achievers, they believe that task accomplishment is a primary indicator of success. To ensure a task is completed in the manner desired, tp's attempt to structure and define work situations so they alone are responsible for results. TPs consider the task accomplished when they, and perhaps other tp's, are satisfied with the results. From the tp's perspective, the task may have been completed. From a communication standpoint, two other factors may apply. First, solving the problem required very little interaction (and thus, communication) with others. Second, the tp's, considering the task accomplished, have little concern for how their "technical" answers will be translated to nontechnical persons needing

Jan 8, 1987

By Terry M. Tilley, Gregory P. Sherry

Purpose This is a unique project because the mining and tunneling industries have become highly mechanized and cannot normally accommodate a project where surface disturbance must be minimized or eliminated when there is less than 10 feet of ground cover. More traditional less mechanized methods must be employed and the skills and techniques for accomplishing the work have become all but non-existent. Therefore, this article highlights those areas of specialized skills and techniques. Methods The article will describe the design approach, the method(s) of ground support selected, the method(s) of excavation selected, the planning, scheduling and materials selection process. In addition, the article will describe the actual production characteristics and the results of the project. This approach will concentrate on productivities, adaptations to actual conditions and the quality of the end product. The design approach basically was to insure that the temporary support methods were adequate for the excavation and shoring stage of the project. The final concrete liner was designed using conventional structural design methods with the goal of constructing a tunnel that will last 100 years. The methods of support were spiling and variations of spiling in order to provide advance temporary ground support. In this project spiling is steel channel cantilevered and driven into the ground ahead of the working tunnel face which supports the ground allowing the face muck to be removed with overhead protection’. Conclusion This will be a discussion of the applicability of the methods. The actual performance of the excavation and shoring methods will also be evaluated. The final concrete liner completion results, the actual production rates and the conformance with budget and schedule will be addressed.

Jan 1, 2005

By E. Ashworth

A thermistor probe has been developed to measure in situ temperature profiles underground. A full description of the probe is given. Data collected from the probe has been used to compare the actual profiles with those predicted from a finite element analysis using laboratory measured thermal properties of the different rock types. This comparison indicates the applicability of laboratory measured parameters in modeling the real conditions. Factors such as applied pressure, moisture content and anisotropy on laboratory measurements is discussed.

Jan 1, 1983

By H. Lyn Bourne

This is the fourth annual tabulation that gives mineral royalty information. The table presents previous information plus about two dozen new entries. In addition to the royalty information, some entries show the cost of purchased reserves. Last year's tabulation appeared in two issues, to accommodate all of the information. This year the format has been changed slightly so the table can be printed in one issue. This year's table presents the commodities in the same sequence as last year. Sand and gravel information appears first, followed by: crushed stone for aggregate; other stone; industrial sand; other industrial minerals; energy minerals (coal, oil shale, uranium); and finally metals. As always, a caveat relates to factors that influence the reserve values. The data should serve only as a general reference. The table is not intended to present an absolute scale of reserve costs. Several factors influence the value of mineral commodities. These factors include: • location and transportation costs (especially significant for most industrial minerals); • market conditions for both the commodity and the company acquiring the right to mine it; • quality or grade of the deposit as it reflects the amount of processing and beneficiation necessary to produce the finished product; • and legislative restrictions and conditions for mining a given material at a given site. These and other factors will influence reserve costs of reserves. The table shows the range of royalties and the variations in the basis of computing the fees. In a few instances, it gives the cost of acquired reserves based on purchase price and quantitative estimates of the material in place. The table lists the commodity; the location (either by state, US geographic area, or Canadian province); the cost (R for royalty and P for purchased cost); and the year in which the lease or purchase agreement occurred. The last column offers either comments or gives a footnote number for more information. The cost column requires more explanation. The units may refer to cubic yards (/yd), cubic feet (/cuft), tons (/T) (2000 lbs) or acres (/A). 1 cu yd = 0.76m3 1 cu ft =0.28m3 1st = 0.9 t7 1 acre = 0.40 ha or m2 In several cases the royalty is a percentage of the finished products, sale price and is levied against either the amount produced or the amount sold. We thank those who contributed information for the table: J. Dunn, T. Eyde, K. Loda, L. Morgan, F. Nix, H. Sorenson, and L. Williams. Several people have said they would like this to be an annual tabulation. That can happen if new information comes to the writer. What appears in the table is only a very small fraction of the cost information relative to the various commodities and the geographic areas for which there is royalty information. If you find this column of interest and possess information write or call: H. L. Bourne, c/o Neyer, Tiseo & Hindo, Ltd., 38955 Hills Tech Dr., Farmington Hills, MI 48018, (313) 553-6300. Only with new information can this become an annual and current source of reserves costs.

Jan 8, 1986

By B. Burke, R. Colquhoun, K. Thomas, R. Walton, D. Fentie

The new Roasting Facility at Barrick’s Goldstrike Mine in Nevada, U.S.A. was developed to process 12,000 tons per day of refractory gold ore. The process consists of crushing, dry grinding, roasting, extensive gas purification, calcine quenching and leaching in the presence of activated carbon. The new plant is integrated into the existing Goldstrike facility, treating ore from both open pit and underground sources. The process design, procurement, construction and commissioning of the Roaster facility was performed successfully over a 3½ year period with peaks of 400 engineering personnel and 950 construction personnel supporting the project. The US$330,000,000 project was completed ahead of schedule and under budget. The commissioning was well planned and proceeded smoothly through a rapid start-up to achieve all primary goals within three months of the start of processing of ore.

Jan 1, 2001

By A. Adu-Acheampong

The Mid-Tennessee Zinc (MTZ) mines, comprised of the Gordonsville, Elmwood, and Cumberland sites, last operated 4 years ago and are undergoing rehabilitation to begin production in 2008. The mines utilize a random room-and-pillar mining method that results in complex ventilation networks. Upon decommissioning, the mechanical ventilation units were removed and disposed of and several shafts sealed. In an effort to re-open the mines and operate in compliance with imminent Mine Safety Health and Administration (MSHA) diesel particulate matter (DPM) regulatory limits of 160TC µg/m3, a new ventilation system was required. The new ventilation system was developed primarily based on the diesel equipment required to meet production. Particular emphasis was placed on the DPM, diesel equipment utilization, main fan sizing, and fan locations to enable the mines to meet MSHA?s ventilation requirements in a cost efficient manner.

Jan 1, 2009

By C. D. Anderson

A variety of processing technologies exist for recovery from both primary and secondary sources of rhenium. Currently, there are no known primary rhenium deposits, thus, the method in which primary rhenium is produced is dependent on the commodity of which it is a byproduct, e.g., copper, molybdenum, uranium, etc. In addition, focus on the recovery of rhenium from secondary sources, such as alloy scraps and catalysts, is continually growing. This paper presents a review of both primary and secondary processing technologies for the recovery of rhenium. Key Words: Rhenium, Ammonium Perrhenate, Extractive Metallurgy

Feb 27, 2013

By J. P. H. Steele, T. Vincent, C. Debrunner, M. Whitehorn

For a variety of reasons, the need for automation of underground mining equipment is growing dramatically, e.g., improved safety and health, availability of labor, deeper mines, and desire for more focused excavation. While there has been tremendous progress made in this direction, much needs to be done to reach the holy grail of an autonomous mining machine. This paper reviews a number of technological developments and presents research and development needs for future development. A report on our current project for the Western Mining Resource Center at CSM is included.

Jan 1, 2000

By Brian Fulcher, Michael Bell, Shimi Tzobery, Werner Burger, John Bednarski

The Arrowhead Tunnels Project represents the final portion of a 70 km (44-mile) long water conveyance facility that will bring up to 28 m3/sec (1,000 ft3/sec) of water into Southern California. The 13 km (8-mile) tunneling project is well underway and consists of two, 5.8 m (19-foot) diameter TBM bores through extremely variable geological conditions. The tunnels lie near the base of the San Bernardino Mountains and several significant faults including the San Andreas Fault run within one kilometer (0.6 miles) of the tunnel alignment. Numerous other significant faults cross the tunnel alignment and water pressures in the tunnel have been recorded as high as 20 bar (300 psi). This paper describes some of the problems and challenges encountered and the solutions implemented to advance the two hybrid TBMs under conditions that ranged from hard rock with no water inflows to full-face granular material under 10-bar pressure and in excess of 32 l/sec (500 gpm) inflows. Due to the range and severity of ground and water conditions actually encountered, the Owner-Contractor-Designer team eventually found that adjusting the means and methods to be more responsive—virtually on a day-by-day basis—was needed to suit the conditions

Jan 1, 2007

By Wern-ping (Nick) Chen

The Florida Department of Transportation District 6 (FDOT D6) began a study in 1987 for a master plan to improve the traffic circulation and congestions between the Port of Miami (POM) and downtown Miami, FL. This study included a tunnel connection between two man-made islands, the Watson and the Dodge islands. Though a finding of no significant impact (FONSI) was completed in 1992, the project remained on hold for about 10 years. In 2002, Florida Turnpike took over this project, re-evaluated its benefits to the lo-cal communities, determined its feasibility (specifically the tunnel options) and established a probable cost. In 2005, the FDOT D6 regained its charge over the project and concluded that a bored tunnel under Biscayne Bay is feasible. Its primary components are: ? Widening of the MacArthur Causeway Bridge, to accommodate truck traffic to the Port of Miami. ? A tunnel connection between Watson Island and Dodge Island, where the POM is located. ? Connections to the POM roadway system, either for the traffic from the city of Miami or for the truck traffic from I-395 to the POM. The project will improve access to and from the POM and provide a dedicated roadway connector linking the POM with the MacArthur Causeway (State Route 41/1) and I-395, specifically for the trucks in and out of the POM without going through downtown Miami. As identified in the project information memorandum (PIM), its primary objectives are to: ? Improve access to the POM, helping to keep it competitive and ensuring its ability to handle projected growth in its cruise and cargo operations. [ ] ? Improve traffic safety in downtown Miami by removing POM traffic, trucks and buses from the congested downtown street network and, in doing so, facilitate ongoing and future development plans in and around downtown Miami.

Jan 1, 2009

By Robin Burgess-Limerick

The introduction of automation to mining has great potential to reduce safety and health risks by removing people from hazardous situations. However, automation changes the tasks performed by people and may introduce new tasks. For the system to function optimally, these tasks must be designed taking human abilities and limitations into account. Humansystems integration refers to systems engineering processes that ensure that human-related issues are adequately considered during system planning, design, development, and evaluation. During procurement of automated systems, a human-systems integration program plan should be prepared that describes the human-systems integration activities that will be performed to address each of the six core domains of human-systems integration: staffing, personnel, training, human factors engineering, safety, and health.

Jun 16, 2020

By K. T. Brashear

Since the MINER Act of 2006, the minimum static load of in-situ underground mine seals has been increased from 20-psi to either 50-psi if monitoring is conducted or 120-psi if left unmonitored. These minimum strength requirements in seals must be designed, built, and maintained throughout the lifetime of the seal. Due to this, it has become necessary to assess the effectiveness of non-destructive testing (NDT) technologies to determine seal integrity, which in this case, are explored using sonic waves and tracer gases. Through both small and large scale testing, two NDT methods will be evaluated for their abilities to determine integrity of the seal. A sonic wave technique to observe a change in wave velocity to identify faults within the seal material. As a NDT method, tracer gases may be used as a potential indicator of a connection between both sides of the seal material through a series of faults and cracks within the material itself. This paper reviews the history of underground mine seals and discusses the overall assessment of sonic waves and tracer gases to serve as NDT methods for estimating the integrity of these seals.

Feb 23, 2014

By James J. Brady, Joginder S. Bhore, Robert B. Gordon, Jimmy W. Honeycutt

The authors of this paper have a combined construction experience of 70 years. They have served as engineers and managers on projects throughout the United States and Canada. Approximately 50 shafts have been sunk under their direct and daily participation. Several shafts have been selected from each of their experiences and have been briefly summarized here. SHALLOW SHAFT SINKING Sinking shallow shafts in highly urbanized areas adds an additional set of problems to those encountered in normal sinking operations. During the time between July, 1975 and early 1981, a series of shafts were sunk for The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority. All of these were located along the "A" line, starting soon after the route departed from its path along Connecticut Avenue, proceeding to Wisconsin Avenue and then along Wisconsin Avenue to the city line at Western Avenue. (See WMATA System Map, Figure 1) The first three shafts were subcontracted from Morrison-Knudsen & Associates, Contract A9a, in July, 1975. They were: Albemarle Street - 27'6" diameter, 78'O" deep Brandywine Street - 30'6" diameter, 88.6' deep Ellicott Street - 33'0" diameter, 110'0" deep

Jan 1, 1985

By D. R. Wilburn

This summary of international mineral exploration activities for 2006 draws upon avail-able information from literature, industry and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) specialists. The summary provides data on exploration budgets by region and mineral commodity, identifies significant mineral discoveries and areas of mineral exploration, discusses government programs affecting the mineral exploration industry and presents analysis of the mineral industry based upon these data. Two types of information are reported and analyzed in this annual review. They include budgetary statistics provided by Metals Economics Group (MEG) of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and information on regional and site-specific exploration activities that took place in 2006 compiled by the USGS.

Jan 1, 2007