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By M. A. Rodrigues da Silva Enríquez

One of the rare consensual points among different resource-based economic analytical approaches refers to the strategic role of rent from mineral extraction, as a decisive tool to ensure that the temporary wealth generated in the present can turn into permanent income in the future. For this reason, evaluation, distribution and use of mining rent plays a central role in the sustainable development of mining cities. Brazilian legislation provides for this at the municipal level by means of participation in the financial results of mineral extraction accomplished in these municipalities, with the Financial Compensation for Mineral Exploration (CFEM). CFEM is a type of ad valorem royalty, which charges taxes of up to 3% of the net revenue of mineral production. However, legislation does not establish how these resources should be used. Therefore, there is wide variation in the use of CFEM income among Brazilian mining cities. A study from a sample of the 15 largest mining cities in eight Brazilian states made possible identification of two main patterns with regards to the use of CFEM which were labeled "sustained use" and " the pitfall of the single treasury." In that regard, this article discusses the pressuring factors that contribute to these patterns, as well as the institutional arrangements which may be more favorable to inducing more sustained use of CFEM.

Jan 1, 2011

By G. T. Adel, P. E. Richardson, R. Pazhianur

Cathodic protection using impressed current was employed to reduce mill wall wear during ball milling. Wear rates were determined from weight-loss measurements made on four 1-in.-diam mild steel coupons that were installed flush with the interior surface of the mill wall. Grinding tests were conducted on quartz, pyrite and quartz-pyrite mixtures at pH levels of 4.6, 7.1 and 9.2. Cathodic protection was shown to reduce mill wear by 30% to 60%. An examination of the coupon surfaces using scanning electron microscopy showed that cathodic protection greatly reduced pitting corrosion. The presence of a sulfide mineral, such as pyrite, was found to increase the wear rate significantly, possibly due to galvanic interactions. It was also found that the wear rate is significantly higher than the sum of abrasive wear and the corrosive wear, due to a synergistic effect.

Jan 1, 1998

By G. H. Thomas, M. C. O’Riordan, S. Rae

INTRODUCTION The British mining industry comprises 228 nationalised coal mines producing some 113 million tonnes of deep mined coal and employing 242,600 persons of whom 185,200 work below ground. There are in addition 174 small privately-owned coal mines employing 1500 persons underground and producing 1.5 million tones of coal. In the non-coal sector there are 108 privately-owned mines producing some 20 different minerals, including tin, wolfram, fluorspar, potash, rock salt, china clay, ball clay and fireclay. There are currently 4,100 persons employed in these mines of whom 2,346 are employed below ground. One mine producing potash employs 870 persons of whom 465 are underground workers. Since 1975 all matters relating to the health and safety of persons at work and of the general public who are exposed to industrial hazards have come within the purview of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The Mines and Quarries Inspectorate (MQI) is a constituent part of that organisation and enforces legislation applicable to all mines and quarries. The National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) is a statutory and independent body that was established in 1970 to advance knowledge and provide information and advice about radiological protection. The NRPB has an agency agreement with HSE to provide advice and services relating to radiological protection, including protection against exposure to radon decay products in mines. There are as yet no statutory requirements controlling exposure to this source of radiation in Britain. Investigations for the presence of radon in British coal mines were begun in the mid 195Os. The concentrations found were of low order, typically around 2 pCi/l (Duggan et al., 1968). This was not surprising since big coal mines are well ventilated to control methane and airborne dust and it is now generally accepted that radon and its decay products do not constitute a health hazard in British coal mines. At one or two small mines where igneous intrusions were in close proximity to the coal workings, slightly higher readings were recorded. The MQI then commissioned NRPB to make investigations at metalliferous mines and in these much higher readings were detected. It was later agreed that the NRPB should undertake a survey of all non-coal mines in Britain to establish the extent of the problem. This survey was conducted mainly in 1973, (Strong et al.,1975) and follow-up surveys at various mines have since been conducted by the MQI. These investigations revealed that radon readings could be high in mines producing tin, haematite and fluorspar. Some small mines working other minerals in the same localities also showed high readings. More recently owners have been making environmental measurements at mines where there was some cause for concern. LEGISLATION AND RADIATION STANDARDS As a result of the survey work for MQI the Board in 1975 recommended an occupational limit of 4 WLM in a year from radon decay products together with a programme of radiological supervision (Strong et al., 1975). The MQI accepted the recommendation and advised employers and employees that the 4 WLM limit should be adopted. The limit corresponds to a concentration of 0.3 WL, equivalent to 30 pCi/l of radon-222 in equilibrium with the decay products, and was in accordance with an earlier recommendation by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP, 1959). ICRP recommendations are usually endorsed in Britain. It was recognised that some years would probably be required to achieve general compliance, and this is proving to be the case. Some confusion has been caused in Britain by the conflict between successive Euratom Directives on this and other standards of safety. As relative newcomers to the Community, we were not affected by earlier Directives, but the situation is different now. In 1959, the Commission of the European Communities provisionally recommended a maximum permissible concentration for radon-222 and daughters of 3 x 10-7 µCi/cm3, which corresponds to 300 pCi/l (CEC, 1959). The number was affirmed in 1962 (CEC, 1962) and reaffirmed in 1966 (CEC, 1966) but without any specification of the state of equilibrium. In 1976, the CEC again recommended 300 pCi/l, but on this occasion, the daughters were assumed to be present in the same quantities as in unfiltered air (CEC, 1976): this implies 40 WLM a year in poorly-ventilated mines. The formula is repeated in the latest version of the Directive (CEC, 1980), but the value is now said to be an interim one because it might not ensure compliance with the appropriate dose limit. ICRP (1955) recommended 300 pCi/l in equilibrium with the decay products in 1955 and reduced this value to 30 pCi/l for unfiltered air in 1959 (ICRP, 1959), endorsed it for equilibrium conditions in 1976 (ICRP, 1976), and held to it until 1980: these values imply respectively 40 and 4 WLM a year. The recent recommendation of the ICRP (1980) that the annual limit of intake for the decay products should be 0.02 J in a year corresponds to 5 WLM, but there is a rider that reduction should be made for exposure to gamma rays and long-lived airborne radioactivity. An allowance of 20% is suggested for uranium mines, implying 4 WLM a year for the decay products. The

Jan 1, 1981

By A. Hoath, V. Paul, F. Haslam McKenzie

This paper considers mining ventures occurring in rural communities in Galicia, Spain and Western Australia, Australia. It compares and contrasts the communities where mining is taking precedence over other industries, examining the potential land use conflicts and the future of both the communities and the mines currently operating there. The Galician case study, Trevinca, is located 200 km inland and was once a primary producing area, notable for its scenic alpine landscapes, which have since been developed for small scale tourism purposes. The Australian case study, Boddington is located 100 km inland in what has been a highly productive farming area. Mining was a marginal industry in the case study areas but due to the comparative devaluing of agriculture and tourism and the increased value of mining outputs, mining has increased in scale and economic importance. This paper will consider the environmental, social and economic impacts that have occurred in both the case study localities. Where there have been land use conflicts, strategies for minimising the adverse outcomes will be considered.

Jan 1, 2011

By Knezicek Zeljko, Knezicek Tihomir

Lignite open cast mine "Dubrave" is the largest lignite mine in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The open cast mine was designed with two external waste dumps. Waste dump "West" is the major dump, while "Cajici" dump is used for dumping waste taken from leveling the terrain. The major waste dump contains 14.6 million cu.m. of waste, while the side waste dump contains 3 million cu.m. of waste. Existing situation with available sites for depositing the waste shows that additional space for dumping the waste must be provided. Three options can be taken into consideration. The fact is that none of the three options are suitable for the current production situation. This article deals with the optimization process for obtaining the optimal variant where a waste dump can be located and selection of the most valuable option.

Jan 1, 2002

By John C. Ruckmick

Elemental sulfur deposits generally can be classified as either volcanogenic or biogenic. The latter can be divided into biosyngenetic and bioepigenetic deposits. Essentially all economically important sulfur deposits are bioepigenetic replacements of anhydrite or gypsum in basins containing evaporites and hydrocarbons. Anaerobic bacteria utilize the oxygen of sulfate ions to oxidize hydrocarbons to C02 and reduce the sulfate to H2S. Sulfur deposits are formed by concomitant and subsequent oxidation of the H2S. These bacterial systems can operate on enormous scales, producing deposits containing over 200 million tons of elemental sulfur. There are no known "old" sulfur deposits; almost all known deposits are younger than Miocene and most are still actively forming today. Therefore, it is probable that, with burial and time, sulfur deposits are converted to sulfide deposits. Perhaps more important, bacterial oxidation of hydrocarbons and resultant production and trapping of large quantities of H2S appears to be the logical explanation for the location of many important metal sulfide deposits such as the Mississippi Valley type lead and zinc deposits.

Jan 1, 2013

By David B. Cook, James R. Bieke

I. INTRODUCTION Lawyers are a cautious breed; and it might be expected that a paper concerning a broad and complex area of legal regulation, prepared by lawyers for presentation to a predominantly non-legal audience, would commence with several caveats. Ours are the following: First, we have written a broad (and, in some instances, simplified) overview of the regulatory system and of some of the more important requirements generally applicable to uranium mine and mill wastes in the United States. Our paper is not a legal opinion setting forth all of the governmental requirements that would have to be met by any particular mine or mill. Similarly, we do not imply that the requirements we mention are necessarily applicable to each and every mine and mill in the country; depending on the facts, some of the requirements may be inapplicable or avoidable through exemption or variance proceedings. Compliance decisions and strategies for particular facilities must be considered on a site-specific basis. Second, we have undertaken merely to describe the regulatory framework and some of the generally "applicable" requirements which have been promulgated and proposed by administrative agencies. We express no opinion on whether, under the U.S. Constitution and statutes, the existing and proposed agency regulations are valid in general or as applied to any particular mining or milling operation. There are, of course, procedures for judicial review of agency action; and newly promulgated environmental regulations have frequently been challenged, with varying degrees of success, before the courts. For us even to begin to consider such issues would expand an already forbiddingly long paper to totally unmanageable proportions. Third, in light of the subject of this Conference we have limited our paper to the legal framework and requirements applicable to uranium mine and mill "wastes" -- primarily mine overburden and waste rock and mill tailings (including waste tailings solution). We treat operating discharges (e.g., emissions from yellowcake drying) only peripherally. Fourth and finally, it is important to note that this paper, at least in so far as it concerns the specific requirements of particular regulations, will likely soon be out of date in some important respects. Despite

Jan 1, 1980

By J. Helton, J. L. Bellanca, M. McNinch, L. R. Swanson

DISCLAIMER The findings and conclusions in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mention of company names or products does not constitute endorsement by NIOSH. ABSTRACT Accident data indicates that mobile haulage poses a significant pinning, crushing, and striking risk. Proximity detection systems (PDSs) have the potential to protect mineworkers from these risks. However, unintended consequences of mobile PDSs can undermine the safety benefit they provide. Soliciting iterative user input can improve the design process. Users help provide a critical understanding of how mobile PDSs may hinder normal operation and endanger mineworkers. Researchers explored users’ perspectives by conducting interviews with mineworkers from seven mines that have installed mobile PDSs on some of their haulage equipment. Mineworkers reported that mobile PDSs affect loading, tramming, section setup, maintenance, and general work on the section. Mineworkers discussed the operational effects and increased burden, exposure, and risk. Mineworkers also suggested that improved task compatibility, training, logistics, and PDS performance might help address some of these identified issues. This paper also gives additional insights into mobile PDS design and implementation. INTRODUCTION Pinning, crushing, and striking accidents are a large problem in underground coal mines, especially for mobile haulage. Between 1984 and 2014 there were 179 non-fatal and 42 fatal pinning, crushing, and striking accidents involving mobile haulage vehicles, including coal hauling machines and scoops [1]. Proximity detection systems (PDSs)—automated systems that decelerate and stop a vehicle in order to prevent a collision—have the potential to protect mineworkers in these situations. In fact, PDSs are now required on all place change continuous mining machines as of March 16, 2018, as a result of the final rule published in January 2015 (30 CFR 75.1732) [2]. To address mobile haulage, later in 2015 the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) also proposed a new rule that would require PDSs on mobile haulage vehicles [3]. Though there has been no additional actions related to the proposed rule and it is not currently required, mobile PDS can still help to save lives. MSHA estimates that the adoption of mobile PDSs could prevent approximately 70 injuries and 15 fatalities over the next 10 years [4]. As of June 2015, the underground coal industry had already equipped 155 of the 2,116 mobile haulage vehicles in use [1]. In order to capitalize on the projected safety gains afforded by PDSs, it is important that the systems are designed and implemented effectively. Along with others, researchers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have been exploring PDSs for more than two decades [5-7]. Throughout this time, NIOSH has also held several stakeholder meetings (2010, 2014, 2016, and 2017) in order to disseminate information and provide an opportunity to discuss on ongoing issues and concerns. Despite some progress, human factors remain a key concern. Previous research examined mineworkers’ attitudes towards PDSs on continuous mining machines [8] as well as how continuous miner operators’ perceptions of risk have changed as a result of PDSs [7]. However, stakeholders have still expressed a need to better understand how mobile PDSs affect the mining process, the mineworker, and whether and how they may present previously unidentified risks.

Jan 1, 2019

By Michael Fahey, Ravi M. Damodaran, Brij M. Moudgil

The flotation behavior of Florida phosphates was studied using statistical design of experiments to evaluate conditioning parameters and their effect on flotation performance. The solids loading, conditioning time and agitation speed during conditioning were identified as the important variables affecting the reagent coating onto particles. Flotation of the conditioned slurry was carried out at fixed collector dosage and flotation conditions. Phosphate recovery upon flotation was statistically modelled as a function of the conditioning variables. The results indicated that the conditioning variables had an interactive effect on the phosphate flotation performance. Statistical optimization revealed two conditioning regimes in which optimum flotation recovery was obtained. It was determined that optimal recovery can be obtained at lower conditioning energies.

Jan 1, 1995

By Georgios Kafantaris, Carsten Bonde, Nataša Katic

Within the investigation works for the Copenhagen Cityring metro, Geo/CMT have carried out 90 geotechnical boreholes. Together with the previously available investigation, this resulted in more than 15 km of vertical drillings and several thousands of laboratory tests. The design is made for 17 stations, four shafts and two parallel 16 km long tunnels. The geotechnical investigation and design have been carried out in several stages comprising appropriate refinement of structural design and design of excavation operations, including TBM break-in and launching operations at each station shaft. Acceptance of the solution and / or refinement of the investigation and design schedule in the next stage were based on the geological conditions, area availability at surface level, planning and cost-control criteria. The applied recursive design refinement is presented herein with an example of the Østersøgade shaft location.

Jan 1, 2016

By A. W. Khair, S. S. Peng

Discussion by J. Parker Gentlemen; Rainy day in Upper Michigan, a good time to catch up on reading. Am doing that, and have a couple of questions concerning the K and P paper on roof problems and supports. I wonder if the authors can enlighten me. The compressive strength of the coal was reported as 4.4 MPa (633 psi) and compressive stresses measured in the coal seam were reported at around 27.6 and 48.2 MPa(4000 and 7000psi ). Can such a soft coal actually contain such a high level of stress? Can it be measured as if the material were elastic, or does the coal behave plastically? Can that stress level be confirmed with hydraulic load cells? And if the coal is so soft, and if it is plastic, why is the stress field not hydrostatic'? The intact roofrock appears to be unusually strong, with compressive strength reported at around 145 MPa (21,000 psi), and some failures were noted as soon as the rock was exposed. Were tests run to find out how that rock responded to the addition of moisture, from sprays or from humid air? Did moisture weaken the rock? Did it cause the rock to expand quickly, thus to induce internal compressive stress? How can the near-vertical cutters, as shown in the photographs, be attributed to primarily horizontal stresses? Did the cutters follow any particular pattern in the development panels, which might be related to a particular stress pattern? For example, did they always appear alongside the stiffest pillar? Or always along the northwest rib? Was there any evidence of the pillars and entries "rotating" under the influence of differential horizontal stresses? How much did the entries and pillars rotate as the longwall face approached and passed? After rooffalls, did the openings assume shapes which would indicate a preferred shape in that stressfield and geology? Did crosscuts always survive without damage, as shown in the sketch?

Jan 1, 1992

By R. S. Shoemaker

It is said that there is nothing new under the sun and this is certainly true about refractory gold Ores. Ores which have been refractory to treatment have been the bane of the Metallurgist's life ever since gold has been recognized as a metal valued for its indestructability, malleability and beauty. Webster's Dictionary defines "Refractory" as; "Resisting control or authority, stubborn, resistant to treatment or cure, unresponsive to stimuli, difficult to corrode or draw out," And gives as a synonym the word "unruly." I don't think any metallurgist would disagree with these definitions as they quite accurately describe refractory gold ores as we know them and I wouldn't be a bit surprised if many of you in this room today had applied far stonger language to your own refractory ores in the course of your metallurgical test programs. Pliny the elder put it very well when he wrote in 79 A.D., Gold is the first of man's follies, Silver the second." Perhaps Pliny was speaking of "unassayable gold" or "incipient gold." These are truly refrac tory ores which probably existed before Pliny's time and although many people have claimed to have solved their metallurgy the untold wealth that lies within them has never been bankable. On the other hand, Virgil is his Aenead, could very well have been speaking of refractory ores when he wrote; "Quid non mortalia pectora cogis, auri sacra fames!" which translates as, Accursed thirst for gold! What doest thou not compel mortals to do. Certainly, gold was extremely rare at that time because it had to be recovered by much labor from the then refractory ores and their refractoriness caused the early metallurgists (or alchemists if you will) to seek an easier way to produce it; thus the long and fruitless search for the "philosopher 's stone" which would aid in turn-

Jan 1, 1990

By Thomas D. Kaufmann, Robert C. Drury

Few factors are as important as fluctuations in aggregate economic activity and exchange rates in determining the profitability of mineral investments. Macroeconamic theory explains how the two factors are interconnected in today's world and in tomorrow's. We can use macro¬economic theory to lessen some of the risks in mineral investments. And in the current state of the world the risks are high. The above paragraph summarizes our argument. Our goal in this paper is to examine the nature of contemporary business cycles so as to explain their implications for the metal industries, particularly the implications for capacity. Thus, our first section examines the workings, causes, and history of the recent economic fluc¬tuations. In doing so we must understand how current world economy is interconnected, that is, how economic events in one country are trans¬mitted to the rest of the world. Our view is that governments and central banks are key actors in the creating of economic fluctuations. Then, in section two, we work out the implications of section one for the metal industries focussing on comparative advantage, trade, and capacity decisions. Over the last fifteen years the world economic system has had slow overall economic growth and has had strangely unpleasant recessions. While future business cycle will not repeat the de¬tailed pattern we have seen, there will be similarities. The similarities need to be under¬stood before investment occurs. The slow growth in the world economy since the early 1970s has aggravated the problems from business cycles, created its own problems, and has partially hidden the effects of other events. Major realignments of currencies are likely to take place over a business cycle. The nature of the causes of the cycle will determine the direc¬tion of change in the exchange rates. For example, whether a USA recession will be accompanied by a weaker or a stronger dollar will be determined by the cause of the recession. The realignment of currencies over a business cycle leads to a realignment of comparative advantage in the metal industries. Thus, not only will world metal consumption vary over the business cycle but the impact on various countries' metals industries will differ consi¬derably. Competitiveness often depends more on the value of the dollar than it does on inherent efficiency and wage rates. Capacity decisions are inherently riskier due to the country specific nature of exchange rate risk. A realignment of currencies changes the pattern of trade if and only if the country with the cheaper currency also has idle capacity. The importance of our topic is indicated by Table 1 which shows the impact of cyclical and exchange rate shocks on the USA metal industry. In the cyclical downturn, from the peak of 1979 to the trough of 1982, consumption dropped by a fifth to a third. Metal price moved in the same

Jan 1, 1989

By Slobodan Vujic, Goran Cirovic, Dragan Radojevic

Mine production systems (MPS) are characterized, more or less, by the following properties: uncertainty, subjectivity, impreciseness, polysemy, instability, indefiniteness and lack of data. From modern study aspect these MPS mathematically belong to the class of fuzzy systems. With this in mind, the usage of fuzzy sets is recommended as a methodology that treats impreciseness, indefiniteness and complexity of mine production systems in a satisfactory manner. Fuzzy modelling, discussed in this pa- per, is applied as a mathematical implement. The objective of the paper was to show production optimization in practice on the ex- ample of bauxite open pits where fuzzy linear programming (FLP) was used following the criterion per income. The variables in criterion function are linguistic variables while both variables and variable restrictions are presented by triangular fuzzy numbers (TFN). The term "satisfactory income" presented through triangle fuzzy numbers was introduced instead of "maximizing the income". sensitivity of the obtained solutions has been analysed

Jan 1, 1996

In 1992, United States mine production of barite decreased 8.5%. Barite consumption, sold or used by grinding plants, decreased by 36.9% and imports decreased by 61.6% vs. 1991. World mine production decreased 1.5%, according to the US Bureau of Mines. The value of domestically produced barite, f.o.b. mine, decreased 11.9% according to the Bureau. The declared value, c.i.f. United States port, of all imported crude barite during 1992 decreased from $42.35/t ($38.42/st) in 1991 to $40.09/t ($36.37/st). Nevada continued to be the leading producer of barite with 88% of the total, followed by Georgia and Missouri. It is estimated that 80% of the domestically mined barite was used as a weighting agent in drilling fluids. The remaining 20% was used in barium chemicals, glass or as a filler. Most of the production from Missouri, Georgia and Ten¬nessee was used in the non-oilfield sector. Of the total barite used by grinding plants and chemical manufacturers, it is estimated that 90% was used in drilling fluids and 10% in the non-oilfield sector. This included barium chemicals and fillers in paper, plastics and glass. The tonnage consumed in the drilling fluids market decreased due to the lower average rig count during 1992. The average number of rotary rigs operating (717) was 16.6% less than the 1991 average of 860 in the United States. Crude barite imports were 518 kt (571,000 st), 61.6% less than in 1991. Imports accounted for 44.7% of the barite consumed (apparent) in the United States. During the year, China continued to be the leading exporter of crude barite ore to the United States with 67.2% of total crude ore imports. India followed with 31 %, and others with 1.8%. About 90% of the imported barite ore was used in the oilfield sector. Ground barite imports decreased from 46.3 kt (51,000 st) to 30.9 kt (34,100

Jan 1, 1993

By Andrzej Walentek

This paper presents the results of numerical modeling of the fractured zone around longwall gateroads. The numerical computations have been based on the results of underground measurements of the fractured zone around longwall gateroads, which were performed for various geological and mining conditions and measured with the use of the endoscopic method with a digital camera. Having results of the underground investigations, trials of duplicating them by the Finite Element Method using software PHASE and the Hoek-Brown failure criterion were performed. In order that the fractured zone predicted by the model-based computations closely simulate that measured underground, some selected parameters in the Hoek-Brown failure criterion were modified based on the earlier determined relations used for prediction of the roof-to-floor convergence in longwall gateroads. As a result, the model-based computations produce results very close to those obtained from the underground measurements. Determination of the fractured-rock zone around the mine roads is of great importance to mining practice, especially in planning and designing supports for longwall gateroads. The influence of the front abutment pressure causes the fractured rock zone around the roads to increase and results in an increase of support load. Moreover, proper determination of the fractured rock zone is one of basic elements in the process of planning roof bolting for mine workings.

Jan 1, 2009

By Dell H. Adams

Coal exploration may be defined as the acquisition of data necessary to define and acquire a block of coal which can be mined at a profit. Unlike ore minerals, coal resources are widespread and relatively abundant with supply exceeding demand in almost every case. Thus simple discovery of coal is generally not enough. The chemical and physical variability of individual coal seams, the capital intensive nature of coal mine development, and the changing patterns of utilization require that a multiphase, three-dimensional evaluation be made of each potential reserve. Factors which must be investigated include not only the quantity and quality of the coal but also the geologic, hydrologic, and engineering characteristics of the seam and its surrounding strata. Acquisition of property to provide a secure base for exploration and mine development is equal in importance to the geologic and engineering programs. The successful development of a coal reserve requires that control of coal and, in the case of a strip mine, the surface be in the form of contiguous blocks of sufficient size to support mining.

Jan 1, 1981

By Jamal Rostami, Alireza Salimi, Christian Moormann

"Rock mass classification systems are often applied in many empirical design practices in rock engineering, some contrasting with the original intent and applications of these classification systems, for example, estimation of TBM performance in various ground conditions. While accurate estimation of machine performance is significantly impacted by rock mass properties, parameters used in many of the existing classifications are more related to ground support design and not rock mass boreablity. The results of many investigations on this issue have shown a weak correlation between TBM rate of penetration and rock mass classification. This limitation can be overcome by fine tuning the rock mass classification input parameters to represent influence of rock mass properties on TBM performance as has been the objective of RME or QTBM. This paper will offer an overview of the impact of rock mass on TBM performance and introduces an empirical equation for predicting performance of rock TBMs based on rock mass classification. The results of the preliminary analysis of a new model has revealed that the use of the proposed system can offer a reasonable accuracy for estimation of TBM performance in various rock masses. 1. INTRODUCTION Hard rock tunnel boring has become more or less the standard method of tunneling for tunnels of various sizes with lengths over 1.5–2 km. Estimating the performance of TBM is a vital phase in tunnel design, and for the choice of the most appropriate excavation machine. During the past three decades, numerous TBM performance prediction models for evaluation of TBM rate of penetration and advance been proposed. In brief, all the TBM performance prediction models can be divided into two distinguished approaches, namely theoretical and empirical ones (Rostami et al., 1996). The most common and recent works on this topic are summarized in Table 1. Currently, two models including Colorado School of Mines or CSM (Rostami and Ozdemir, 1993; Rostami, 1997) and Norwegian University of Science and Technology or NTNU (Blindheim, 1979; Bruland, 1998) models are the most recognized TBM performance prediction and prognosis models in use around the world."

Jan 1, 2016

By S. Vogely, J. Trescot, D. Connor, F. Beloy

In 2001, the Minntac Division of US-Steel retrofitted one of their Grate-Kiln Iron Ore Pelletizng lines with a Ported-Kiln Air Injection System (PKAIS) the first of it’s kind in the world for oxide pellets. The Ported Kiln System injects air under the bed of pellets in the rotary kiln, causing rapid oxidation of the magnetite pellets. This rapid oxidation allows for lower kiln temperatures, reducing fuel demand; less heat load on the annular cooler; and higher pellet quality. Both the process and the equipment are patented developments by Metso Minerals. This paper discusses the process, the key equipment, and the benefits to the pellet plant and the downstream blast furnace operations.

Jan 1, 2004

By Mustafa Yalçin, Ali Ihsan Arol

Coconut shells are the most widely used raw material for the production of activated carbon used in the gold production by cynanide leaching. There have been efforts to find alternatives to coconut shells. Shells and stones of certain fruits, have been tested. Although promising results to some extent were obtained, coconut shells remain the main source of activated carbon. Türkiye has become a country of interest in terms of gold deposits of epithermal origin. Four deposits have already been discovered and, mining and milling operations are expected to start in the near future. Explorations are underway in many other areas of high expectations. Türkiye is also rich in fruits which can be a valuable source of raw material for activated carbon production. In this study, hazelnut shells, peach and apricot stones, abundantly available locally, have been tested to determine whether they are suitable for the gold metalurgy. Parameters of carbonization and activation have been optimized. Gold loading capacity and adsorption kinetics have been studied.

Jan 1, 1995