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By G. C. Hambleton

"The author has had wide experience in the reclamation of coal from coal mine waste dumps in the United Kingdom.The paper includes such topics as the processing decision and factors affecting processability; method of testing and appraisal; test data interpretation; historical influences in apppraisal; special contaminants and processing difficulties; methods of treatment; review of systems in use and their comparative economics; over-all system economics including excavation, handling methods, recovery system and shale disposal; effluent treatment; environmental considerations; alternatives to processing for coal recovery; light aggregate and cement usage; burned shale heaps; land reclamation; shale deposition for encouragement of vegetation by natural or artificial means; use of tailings fines; the environmental argument for action."

Jan 1, 1972

By W. A. Toohey

Introduction From the earliest times it has been an inherent trait of man to build or create something for his own use or convenience. The need of some form of shelter other than that of the caves led him to bind together stones and other materials to form walls for his abode. Moistened clay which hardened upon drying was no doubt first employed. The Assyrians and Babylonians appear to have employed it or the bitumen found in their country. The early Egyptians and Greeks used some form of lime in their construction work. In addition to these shelters, other structures received attention, and, long before the Roman Empire was established, the Carthaginians made use of a natural cement as binding material. Portions of an aqueduct, seventy miles long, in Northern Africa, built in those early days, are still in use. The Etruscans were the first people in Italy to employ a mortar in their buildings. The Romans, learning the art from the Etruscans, improved the mortar by using a mixture of lime and volcanic ash, called 'puzzolan', and built not only roads but those famous structures, the ruins of many of which exist to this day. The Pantheon at Rome, built by Hadrian about 120 A.D., is perhaps the finest example of the early use of cement in building construction. With the decline of the Roman Empire, the art of making cement seems to have been lost, and for centuries the builders of Europe used only lime mortar. Pure limestones were selected for making the lime and great care was taken in the preparation of the mortar, the supply for one year being made the previous season and left to thoroughly slake or 'ripen' in pits covered with earth. The mortar thus produced gave excellent service above ground or where it was exposed to the hardening action of the air, but would not harden under water.

Jan 1, 1927

By A. D. Misener, L. G. D. Thompson

"IntroductionIt was shown by work previously reported that reliable geothermal gradients representative of various regions of the earth's, surface could he obtained from extended surveys of the rock temperatures in operating mines. These surveys showed the presence of anomalies in the isothermal levels and the existence of regions of regular behaviour. Below about 3,000 feet the temperature gradients became quite regular over the areas stud1ed. It is these regular gradients which are taken as representative of the region, wherever possible.The present paper describes the extension of this work which was undertaken to obtain further temperature gradients with a view to correlating them to other geophysical properties determined for the same regions. The additional data obtained have indicated possible reasons for the temperature anomalies. The experimental procedure was similar to that already described and was again made possible through the wholehearted co-operation of the management and the assistance of the personnel of the mines concerned. The research was entirely supported by a grant from the Research Council of Ontario.The equipment was a distinct improvement over that previously used and made it possible to take many more accurate temperature readings in a given time. Thermistor resistance thermometers were used, encased in silver sheaths and protected against damage by heavy copper casings. These were calibrated with a standard platinum resistance thermometer.The bridge used with these thermometers was one of a number designed and built by the Meteorological Service and designated M.S.C. Thermometer Indicator Type C-3. This very convenient and portable instrument operated from batteries in the instrument case. Multiple thermometer connections were provided so that rapid readings• of a number of thermometers was possible to accuracy of the order of 0.1°F. All electrical connections on the panel are covered with Dow-Corning ignition compound to prevent; electrical leakage due to moisture condensation. This, together with the high resistance of the thermometers and components of the bridge, gave much more reliable results than previously obtainable."

Jan 1, 1950

By J. D. Allan

"IntroductionThe purpose of this paper is to present a general picture of the Lynn Lake nickel area of northern Manitoba. The geology of the area will not be discussed in great detail, nor will the mining op; rations presently being conducted. Both subjects will be treated briefly and, in addition, mention will be made of some of the problems encountered in mapping in the area. some of the questions which still remain unanswered, methods of prospecting that have been applied and the future possibilities of the area.For present purposes, the Lynn Lake area will be considered as extending from west of Lynn lake to east of Barrington lake. Thus, more correctly, it should be termed the Lynn Lake-Barrington Lake area. It comprises five 15-minute map-areas, or a total of 800 square miles, in a block 47 miles east-west and 17 miles north-south.Lynn lake itself is about 120 miles north of Sherridon, Manitoba, the closes t rail terminal. The area is part of the Granville Lake sheet which was mapped by the Geological Survey of Canada in 1932, 1933, and 1935, the results being published in Summary Report 1933. Part C, and as Maps 343A and 344A on a scale of four miles to o.ne inch. In 1940, the McVeigh Lake area was mapped by the Geological Survey of Canada on a scale of 1,500 feet to 1 inch and a map was issued in 1945."

Jan 1, 1950

By J. W. McCammon

WHEN times are booming and metal prices are high, most mining men pay little attention to the industrial mineral industry. However, when metal prices drop and mines close down, many mining eyes begin to scan the less glamorous non-metallic field. For some this proves a temporary diversion, but others find this branch of mining, with its generally more stable conditions, to their liking and enter it permanently. The resulting gradual influx of trained mining men into the industrial mineral industry ?has been one of several factors responsible for the rise in production of non-metallic materials in our Province. Another and ?perhaps the most important factor influencing the production of industrial minerals has been the growth in the population of British Columbia. Because most industrial minerals .are low priced and either heavy or bulky commodities they are normally sold on relatively local markets. Thus the extent of the development of the industrial mineral industry of a region is largely governed by the size of the population and the level of industrialization of that region. This point is well shown by com-paring population and industrial mineral production statistics for 1936, 1946, and 1956 (see Figure 1)9. Note that not only has the overall production rate grown with the population increase, but that the per capita production has risen greatly.

Jan 1, 1958

By Alex Rown

"THE SYDNEY COAL FIELD has long been afflicted by high costs and low productivities. However, a distinct possibility now exists that improvements can be made in costs, productivities and revenues. If these hopes materialize, the Sydney coal field will once again be regarded as a valuable asset in our national inventory of energy and metallurgical coals. The economic possibilities for the Sydney collieries depend on performance at the pits and in the market place. Because this audience is already well informed about colliery planning, I would like to start with an assessment of the modern coal market insofar as it may relate to the Sydney field. Since 1950 we have seen a vast growth in the population and industrial empires of the western world which has resulted in an enormous and escalating demand for energy. If the energy supply pattern of the first 50 years of this century had been followed, this would have led to an immense demand for coal."

Jan 1, 1972

By Robert Dickson

Princess colliery is operated by Old Sydney Collieries, Limited, a direct descendant of the General Mining Association of London, England, which, in the first quarter of the nineteenth century, pioneered in coal mining in Nova Scotia. The coal worked is a 5 ft. 6 in. seam known generally through the Sydney coalfield as the Harbour seam but referred to locally as the Sydney Main. Entry is made by shafts, 680 feet deep, sunk in 1871 on a headland forming the northern entrance to Sydney harbour. From them extend the main roadways of the colliery, a distance of 700 feet to the shore line and a further distance of 14,700 feet in submarine areas to a total length of 15,400 feet. It was the first colliery in Nova Scotia designed to work submarine areas. Lateral development extends across a frontage of 16,000 feet and the submarine area from which the coal has been extracted is slightly over 6 square miles. There yet remains sufficient territory ahead of the workings to assure a future life to this colliery estimated at over 80 years at the current rate of production. In this area the seam dips at 6 to 7 per cent and face workings have reached a depth of 1,690 feet below the sea level. Until 1923 extraction of the coal was by room-and-pillar, followed by the drawing of the pillars. At that date the superincumbent strata had reached a thickness of 1,400 feet, resulting in heavy weighting on the roof and severe side pressure on the coal ribs. In combination with a soft, heaving pavement this created a set of conditions involving great difficulties and expense in keeping open places driven in the solid sufficiently long to permit recovery of the coal in the pillars by methods and equipment then available. The operator was forced to resort to extraction by longwall as the only economical method of winning the coal.

Jan 1, 1948

By C. Harold Riches

This article is directed co a commentary on the patent system in its relation to the public interest. As man gained supremacy over his environment, he could devote progressively increasing portions o his time to improving his standards of living. In the history of the human race, we have advanced from the hollowed floating log to the modern steamship of the present age; from the sickle and flail to the reaper and combine; from the trumpet and drum as a means of communication co the telegraph, telephone, and radio; from the horse and ox cart to the automobile, truck, aeroplane, and train; and so on ad infinitum through the list of inventions on which are based the industrial and political economies and standards of living we enjoy today. It has also been a long road from the day of the alchemist and his closely guarded secrets to the era of the patent system and its storehouses of knowledge open to the world. The alchemist and the craft and merchant guilds closely guarded their secrets. In fact, they largely opposed innovations on the grounds that they might injure profits and restrict employment. In these days of unrest, with great clamour out of doors for radical changes in our political and industrial economies, it may not be untimely to examine one of the keystones which support the economic structure we know as the free enterprise system, the system which is predicated upon the right of the individual to own property. Many, through impractical idealism, ignorance, confused thinking, or blind political prejudice, advocate the substitution of ownership by the State ? for the right of ownership by the individual. As civilization has advanced to the high standards of living we enjoy today through the efforts of a comparatively few inventors, the patent system which has provided the incentive that created the inventions on which our industries and our employment are based is fully understood and appreciated by a comparatively small percentage of our people. As a result, the patent system, as a keystone in our free enterprise economy, is an apt target for destructive criticism, with the thought, possibly, that by eliminating or drastically restricting the several rights to individual ownership one by one, ownership by the State will progressively replace ownership by the individual.

Jan 1, 1949

By Staff

The Tetreault mine, operated by the British Metal Corporation (Canada), Limited, holds a unique position in Canadian mining, being the only steady producer of zinc in Canada east of the Rocky mountains. Its importance in Canadian zinc production may be gauged with some accuracy, since, in 1927, it was responsible for over 13 per cent of the zinc output of the Dominion. In addition, it also made valuable contributions to the production of lead, silver, and gold. Location: Situated in the foothills of the Laurentian mountains, 600 feet above sea level, 20 miles from the St. Lawrence river, and 52 miles due west from the city of Quebec, the property is in the township of Montauban, county Portneuf, Province of Quebec, as shown in Figure I. The municipality of Montauban, immediately adjoining the mine, has a permanent population of 700 people and is six miles by road from Notre Dame station on the main line of the C.N. Rys. between Montreal and Chicoutimi-Notre Dame being n6 miles by rail from Montreal. Connection by 19 miles of dirt-and-gravel road with the Provincial highways' system of Quebec Province, the city of Quebec, which is distant 78 miles, can be reached by automobile in less than three hours, while the distance to Montreal by road is 16o miles .

Jan 1, 1928

By L. L. Bolton

The Department of Mines as at present constituted has evolved from the organization which came into existence following the passage of the Geology and Mines Act by the Dominion Parliament in 1907. At the outset, it may be said that it is not a function of the Department of Mines, nor of any of its branches, to administer the mining rights vested in the Crown. The title to Crown lands in the provinces of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia ( with the exception of certain specified areas, such as Indian Reserves, Ordnance Lands, the Railway Belt of British Columbia, and the Peace River Black) is vested in the respective provincial governments ; the title to Crown Lands in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, the Yukon and Northwest Territories, and in the Canadian Arctic, is vested in the Dominion Government, and matters pertaining thereto are (with a few exceptions) administered by the Department of the Interior, Ottawa. Nor are statistics of mineral production at present collected and published by the Department of Mines. This function did belong to the Geological Survey from 1886 to 1906, and to the Mines Branch from 1907 to 1920; but commencing with 192l this duty was transferred to the Dominion Bureau of Statistics, consequent upon the decision of Government to place the collection of all statistics under the direction of one officer.

Jan 1, 1929

By R. Ichimura

This paper summarizes the results of a five-year project, which aimed at improving the current method to process the arsenic-bearing smelter dust of El Teniente. This project, which was started in 2001, was carried out jointly by JOGMEC (Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation) and CIMM (Centro de Investigación Minera y Metalurgica, Chile), and was financially supported by the Japanese and the Chilean governments. In the new process, the smelter dust is leached with sulfuric acid to dissolve arsenic, which is subsequently precipitated as crystalline ferric arsenate (scorodite) at ambient pressure by controlling the crystallization and crystal growing stage. As a result, a stable form of ferric arsenate is obtained, which passes the U.S. E.P.A. TCLP limit of 5 mg/L As. Copper and zinc are subsequently recovered from the arsenic-free solution. The copper product can be fed into the main copper production circuit at the Las Ventanas Smelter and Refinery, whereas zinc is recovered as a marketable product. A demonstration plant was installed and operated at CODELCO's Las Ventanas Smelter and Refinery. The basic and detailed engineering design was prepared by Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. Ltd (MMS) on the basis of a joint study done by JOGMEC, CIMM and CODELCO's Las Ventanas Division.

Jan 1, 2007

By MaryAnn E. Crichton, David G. C. Clarry

"Environmental risk is becoming more important in debt and equity financing decisions in the mining industry worldwide. Demonstration of good environmental management practices and management systems has a direct impact on the ability of mine developers, operators and investors to raise financing. Based on experience in providing due diligence services, there are a number of factors that are important in assessing financial risks related to environmental issues in either new projects or existing facilities. A frame-work for understanding the importance and priorities of each element of environmental management is presented.IntroductionIn the context of lending money to a corporation, environmental issues represent another aspect of credit risk (Henry, 1989). These issues, because of their nature, represent the potential for large unforeseen expenditures if they are not known or acknowledged and are not being proactively managed. Lenders, other investors and their advisors, are becoming increasingly aware of the potential financial impact of environmental issues. Consequently, they are increasing their requirements for environmental audits to review the environmental issues, management practices and systems when they are considering financing mining and/or metallurgical processing operations worldwide.Many banks have signed the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Statement by Banks on Environment and Sustainable Development. Banks in this category include National Westminster Bank, the Union Bank of Switzerland, Deutsche Bank, and the Royal Bank of Canada."

Jan 1, 1997

By Lawrence Bragg

WE associate metals with hardness, toughness, and strength. But a curious paradox lies at the root of the valuable mechanical proper-ties of the metallic state: in order to be strong, a metal must be weak. This paradox, and the equally surprising fact that, in a sense, metals are not true solids at all, are among the topics here discussed by Sir Lawrence Bragg. (1) WHAT METALS MEAN TO US We employ various materials to build or fabricate the many objects we use in everyday life, choosing those whose properties are most suitable for the purpose which the object has to serve. Certain of these materials have been used from the earliest times, such as stone, wood, leather, and animal or vegetable fibres, each with its own peculiar valuable properties. Stone resists crushing and is very durable and permanent, as indeed it must be, since it has so long resisted change as a part of-the earth's crust. It is there-fore ideal for walls and buildings, and very early in his history man discovered how to make artificial stones by burning clay, with the advantage that they could be given any desired shape, and made into bricks or given elaborate forms as pottery. Wood is strong and tough and light, it resists tension as well as compression, and is nor brittle like stone. It forms beams and furniture and parts of tools or weapons. Leather is tough but at the same time iris flexible; it is ideal as straps or sheers. Vegetable fibres such as linen or cotton, and animal fibres such as wool and silk, owe their value to their flexibility and strength in resisting extension. They can be spun into yarn or rope, and woven into cloth. The technological age in which we are now living is replacing the natural products used by early man by a series of artificial products, but it is remarkable to see how in nearly every case we are copying Nature's materials. The wide use of concrete represents a developed art of making artificial stone. Artificial fibres such as rayon or ?nylon replace cotton, wool, and flax. Plastics are coming very much to the fore; they correspond to early man's use of horn, another substance with peculiar properties of roughness in all directions without the 'grain' of wood. For the most part we are following in the footsteps of our remote ancestors, though we can make for ourselves what they had to cull from wood and field. There are exceptions; for instance, we have discovered comparatively recently the number of uses to which natural rubber can be put, and are now making it artificially. This is a really new discovery; our ancestors had nothing with such remarkable powers of elastic stretching without breaking, and resistance to being abraded.

Jan 1, 1943

By P. V. Golde, R. A. Poole, G. R. Baiden

"INCO is committed to proceed into the next century using automation and robotics to achieve safety and productivity goals necessary to enhance its competitive position. Stobie Mine, decades old, is the first of its mines to change from labour-intensive to automationassisted techniques. This paper is a synopsis of the progress made during the transition period including overviews of some of the projects as well as some of the difficulties in the assimilation of the technology. BackgroundThe ObjectiveThis paper is an update on remote control and LHD automation installation at Stobie mine. The communications system installed at the mine and the ability to remotely control underground equipment from surface is reviewed (Poole et al., 1996, 1997). It discusses some of the experiences and processes required to further the concept to consolidate the operation of multiple machines under a single operator. It considers the communications systems requirements and their focuses, particularly on the development of systems for the tele-operation of LHDs and drilling machines from surface."

Jan 1, 1998

By MacKenzie Dickson

"INTRODUCTIONGold is found in many natural states, native nuggets, loose grain in river sands, veins in rock, as well as associated with sulphides, oxides, etc., disseminated more or less minutely.Its high value in recent years has spawned new technologies to win values from sources once considered too lean for commercial recovery. Cyanide leaching from fine milled ore or tailings, from upstream recovery operations, coupled with adsorption onto relatively coarse granules of activated carbon, concentrate the gold enough to be converted to bullion by time-honoured methods.The carbon granules are fragile. Size degradation in handling must be minimized not only to prevent loss of gold on fine fragments of carbon that could pass with the barren tailings, but to maintain adsorption efficiency. Besides, the granulated carbon itself is costly. Circular Vibroscreens are winning acceptance for dewatering carbon granules thanks to their gentle yet effective performance in gold recovery systems around the world. The system at Equity Silver is illustrative.BackgroundEquity Silver Mines Ltd., Houston, British Columbia, first began production in September 1980. In 1984, a feasibility study showed that additional gold and silver could be economically recovered through cyanide leaching of the flotation tailing.Although the carbon-in-pulp (ClP) or carbon-in-leach (CIL) process is commonly used for extracting precious metals from slurries, the use of circular vibrating screens, and Vibroscreens in particular, for the carbon circuit is an innovation that cuts costs.Rectangular vibrating screens have been the conventional separation mechanism of choice across North America. In contrast, the use of Vibroscreens has been proven to be less costly for the initial purchase and installation. Also, these circular vibrating screens require less power and less space. A description of Equity Silver Mines' process shows how these screens have been successfully integrated into the system."

Jan 1, 1989

By E. L. Martheleur

Introduction In October, 1945, the Coal Division of the Institute appointed a Committee on The Use of Electricity in Coal Mines, with the following terms of reference: ?To study under which conditions in each deposit the use of electricity can be brought closer to the coal face and which types of electrical machinery can be recommended?. It was not until the beginning of this year (1946) that the Committee had a chance to convene and .discuss the conclusions which are embodied in this report. Mr. McLeod, as Chief Electrician of the Dominion Coal Company, is intimately concerned with that Company's installations, and Mr. McIsaac, as Electrical Inspector of Coal Mines for Nova Scotia, is well acquainted with installations in all coal mines in the Province. The knowledge of both has been very valuable in helping to draft this report.

Jan 1, 1946

By W. H. Miller

Introduction In this paper we have endeavoured to present a general description of the electrical applications underground at Copper Mountain, including types of equipment used, problems encountered, and methods by which they were overcome. No attempt has been made to outline in detail the wiring of various circuits. Until recent years, the main use of electrical energy underground at Copper Mountain consisted of direct current for locomotives, trolley systems, .and signal and communication circuits. The prohibitive cost of equipment and distribution systems prevented any extensive use of a.c. beyond that commonly used for essential lighting purposes. However, in 1943 the shortage of manpower and the increased cost of labour and supplies necessitated a general mechanization programme.

Jan 1, 1951

By R. Hammen, J. Lifton

"The purification of rare earth elements (REE) at mining operations is traditionally accomplished by multiple chemical phase-transfer processes including precipitation, solvent extraction, and ion exchange. We describe REE purification results with Solid Phase Extraction (SPE) columns that were developed to improve the speed and economy of REE purification. The SPE columns have the properties of enhanced equilibration kinetics, so that residence time of a few seconds will accomplish selective chemical transfers from solution phase to solid phase. We describe the separation of REE’s as a class from leach solutions and the further purification of REE salts. INTRODUCTIONHistorically the rare earths were first chemically separated from each other and purified by fractional crystallization. This slow, cumbersome, and laborious process was not suited to commercial production. Solvent Exchange (SX) technology was applied to the problem of separating and purifying the rare earth elements when it was determined in the late 1960s that there might be commercial uses for them individually. At the same time the very slow and expensive technique of ion exchange was applied either for ultra-purification of the desired “light” rare earths, or for the recovery and purification of the tiny amounts of higher atomic numbered, “heavy,” rare earths. Solvent Exchange (SX) has today become the standard for separating the rare earths across their atomic number spectrum. Whereas the separation of the light rare earths commercially may take 30 “cascades’ in a modern Chinese plant, the total separation of all of them from each other may take up to 80 such “cascades,” and is only even “practical’ with preconcentrated feed stocks, such as those produced in China by heap-leaching techniques performed in situ on very low grade radio-nuclide free ionic absorption clays.. Ultra-pure materials of all types are produced today by ion-exchange processing of ionic species already separated by solvent exchange.Hard rock deposits and refractory residues of tin mining and residues from uranium mining have been identified outside of China with very high ratios of dysprosium and other heavy rare earths to the majority lighter ones. Several issues face those who wish to process these materials so as to separate the heavy rare earths commercially:"

Jan 1, 2012

By Donald P. MacKinnon

"This paper is a commentary on selected trends within the transportation industry.In general, innovations are taking place within all modes of transport (road, rail and water) serving the industrial minerals industry which will affect future distribution patterns, methods and costs. Significant technical innovations in the transportation of solids by• pipeline will also appear, perhaps in the near future, permitting the transport of specific commodities, including some industrial minerals. However, the timing and magnitude of the commercial exploitation of solids pipelines are heavily dictated by marketing factors and distribution system logistics, as well as by the innovations likely to take place within competitive modes of transport. Competitive technological developments will include increased ship capacities, improved bulk-handling facilities, larger and specialized bulk-handling rail equipment, unit trains, containerization, larger ""off-highway"" vehicles and greater inter-modal integration. Equally significant are some ""soft-ware"" techniques such as the growing interest in total distribution cost concepts. However, the impact of the developments will not be spread uniformly over all Canadian industrial minerals."

Jan 1, 1967

By Clemens Kuhnert

"Nickelhütte Aue GmbH is specialized in the recycling of waste materials containing non-ferrous metals. We treat nickel, copper, cobalt, vanadium, molybdenum and precious metal containing materials like spent catalysts, ashes, dusts, grindings, liquids, slurries and sludge's as long as they contain one or a combination of the above mentioned metals. In our pyrometallurgical works we produce non-ferrous metal concentrates suitable for further treatment in our hydrometallurgical plant where we refine Ni-, Cu-, Co- and V-chemicals. Our production is based on synergy effects due to the combination of pyro- and hydro-metallurgy. As an example we can mention our heat recovery system and internal recycling of by-products. Furthermore, the use of alternative fuels instead of fossil fuels contributes to the economic and environ-mentally friendly treatment system.INTRODUCTION Nickelhütte Aue GmbH (NHA) can look back on nearly 400 years of tradition as a pyrometallurgical works and recycling company. The existence since its foundation in 1635 as a blue dye works shows responsible and successful action in the past. Therefore, we see highest customer service, minimization of interferences with nature by closing material cycles and maximized health and occupational safety protection by avoiding injuries and diseases, still as our future duties. These duties are evaluated and monitored by an integrated management system that meets the standards of DIN EN ISO 9001, 14001, 50001 and BS OHSAS 18001. We commit ourselves to the observance of all juridical and customized demands. The management and the department managers perceive their model function. We require responsible action from all employees. To protect the continuity of our enterprise, we will also perform in future continuous improvement of products and their quality, as well as steady progress in the areas of environment protection, health protection and industrial safety. Equally the effectiveness and propriety of the management system is checked and developed regularly. In order to obtain the objectives resulting from this policy, our company determines activities and measures by involving all employees."

Jan 1, 2017