Search Documents

By C. E. Baltzer

This paper highlights the electric power situation in Canada, and introduces brief explanation of the salient differences between electrical practice in the United States and Canada. The availability of bask energy in the two countries is touched on, also the hydro versus thermal outlook as applying to Canada. De-v2lopment of thermal-electric power is dealt with in some detail, followed by Canada's thermal-electric power requirements, present and future. The fuel requirements for steam-electric generating plant are assessed on the basis of a survey recently made, and the location and size of the major thermal plant operations are given. Fuel contractual obligations on the part ?of suppliers and consumers are mentioned. Finally, an opinion is expressed in regard to the types of f.uel in ?demand on a regional basis with emphasis on the need for coal in the several areas dealt with.

Jan 1, 1958

By G. A. Gross

"The Soviet Union has enormous reserves of iron ore in many different kinds of deposits that are widely distributed in this vast land area. The present iron ore industry is based mainly on deposits in Precambrian cherty iron-formation at Krivoy Rog, Kursk and Murmansk. Extensive reserves of both naturally enriched hematite ore and magnetite iron-formation in these areas alone could sup-ply all the domestic ore required for several hundred years.Many contact metasomatic magnetite deposits discovery in recent years in the eastern Ural Mountain belt and east of the Kusnetsov basin in Siberia are being developed, with ore reserves measured in billions of tons. Oolitic limonite-chamosite-siderite ores of Cretaceous and younger age at Kerch on the Black Sea and around the east and southern perimeter of the West Siberian basin constitute some of the largest concentrations of iron in the world. These sedimentary ores are low grade, of poor quality and difficult to beneficiate. Banded jasper magnetite and hematite iron-formation in volcanic rocks of Devonian age in Kazakhstan and along the Mongolian border are of special geoloica1 significance.Iron deposits in the Krivoy Rog and Kursk areas were examined and a large number of geologists discussed their work on deposits in many other parts of the Soviet Union during the writer's seven-week study tour of mines and research institutes in Moscow, Leningrad, Novosibirsk in Siberia and Kiev in the Ukraine. The descriptive geology of iron deposits of useable ore and of marginal material has been well documented in the course of systematic work and a large number of scientists are studying fundamental problems on the origin and treatment of iron ore."

Jan 1, 1967

By S. A. L. Read

"The intact rock constant, mi, is one of the three basic input parameters required for the widelyused Hoek-Brown failure criterion. Values for the constant should ideally be determined by statistical analysis of laboratory test data. In this paper the influence of the inclusion or exclusion of tensile test data on derived values is discussed. We firstly investigate the relationship between direct tensile strength (DTS) test values and Brazilian tensile strength (BTS) test values based on a literature search, finding that the correlation between the two test types is DTS = 0.9*BTS, independent of the lithology being tested. Secondly, using the shear strength database of Douglas (2002), we examine the influence of confining pressure range and the inclusion or exclusion of DTS and BTS test values on calculated values of mi.Chief amongst the influences was the exclusion of tensile data in the calculation procedure, particularly when the Hoek triaxial confining stress range requirement (?3?max = 0.5?c) was not satisfied. Based on a reasonable 1:1 relationship between R (the ratio of unconfined compressive to tensile strength), use of actual tensile data in the calculations for the Hoek brown failure criterion is considered to be a simpler and more robust approach to the use of a tensile cutoff based on empirical criteria such as that of Fairhurst (1964). We advocate the fitting a failure curve using compressive and tensile test data as the most reliable means of calculating mi, while at the same time satisfying requirements as originally advocated by Hoek relating to the appropriate triaxial confining stress range (?3?max = 0.5?c) and sufficient (>5) evenlyspread data points. In the absence of triaxial data the use of R provides a practical means of obtaining estimates of mi that are more robust than guideline values."

Jan 1, 2015

By S. Shrestha

Magnesium-based alloys are of growing interest for many industrial applications due to their favourable strength-to-weight ratio and excellent castability. Mass reduction has advantages in many industrial sectors for example, in automotive, a reduction in mass improves fuel economy and can lead to more efficient mechanical systems by reducing the weight of moving parts like wheels, gears, pistons. However, the relatively poor corrosion and wear resistance limits the use of magnesium and its alloys in many potential applications. The patented Keronite® plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) process enables manufacturers to overcome such problems and, in its latest generation equipment has been developed to industrial realisation for high volume production. This paper presents microstructural characteristics and corrosion performance of two most widely used high pressure die-cast magnesium alloys AZ91D and AM6OB with a duplex corrosion protection coating system that comprised a thin Keronite pre-treatment followed by a subsequent automotive grade final powder coat.

Jan 1, 2006

By M. A. Kessick

Current treatment and disposal procedures are compared for clay slimes resulting from the extraction of Alberta oil sands, the extraction of Florida phosphate matrix, the recovery of diamonds from kimberlite deposits in South Africa, the recovery of kaolin from clay deposits in southwest England and the upgrading of bauxite ore. Published research in the area is reviewed, and common trends which are emerging in the disposal of clay slimes are discussed.

Jan 1, 1978

By N. J. Duncan

"Coal mining, whether surface or underground, has hazards that make it unique in the field of industrial safety and health. The often soft, faulted and folded sedimentary strata make wall or roof movement a risk to the safe and economic removal of the coal, while the extraction and handling of coal may create an explosion hazard even in surface operations, In Canada, these problems are compounded by the situation of the coal fields which range from deep undersea deposits in Nova Scotia to steeply pitching thick coal seams high in the Rocky Mountains. Climate too can create its own problems, particularly the effect of metals of minus 40°C temperatures, as crumpled dragline booms at prairie strip mines witness. Because of the difficult and sometimes hazardous conditions, Canada's underground colliery managers, in common with those of other Commonwealth coal-producing countries, must have a government ""certificate of competency"" before being appointed as mine managers. Certification of assistant managers (""under-managers"") and foremen (""fire-bosses"") is also a legal requirement for all of Canada's underground collieries, while the province of Alberta requires certification of surface management personnel. Electricians and mechanics who install and maintain the specially designed equipment underground and in hazardous areas of surface mines and processing plants, and mine surveyors who ensure accuracy of the location of underground workings, must also hold government certificates of competency. The requisites for all certification include a minimum work experience and knowledge of coal mining technology and mine safety and health legislation. Despite recognition of the hazards and increasing knowledge of methods of preventing explosions of flammable gas and coal dust in Canada's underground mines, there have been several disastrous explosions such as those at Springhill Colliery in Nova Scotia in 1891 with the loss of 125 lives, at Hillcrest Colliery in Alberta in 1914 with 189 dead, and more recently · explosions and fires in No. 20 and No. 26 Collieries in Cape Breton. Preventing explosions has required developing optimal ventilation techniques, reducing ignition potential, suppressing ignition at source, draining flammable gas before it can enter the air courses, and preventing, or sealing off, autogenous heatings with their associated carbon monoxide or explosion dangers."

Jan 1, 1985

By J. Walker, G. E. Kim

Since May of 2000, Mogas Industries, in partnership with F.W. Gartner Thermal Spraying Co. and using the services of Perpetual Technologies, has invested time, energy, and resources towards developing novel ball valves for high-pressure acid-leach (HPAL) service. In addition to developing new valve designs, an aggressive coatings development effort has been undertaken to improve the protective quality of the coatings so as to enhance the performance and extend the life of valves in severe HPAL conditions. In 2001, Mogas Industries qualified and applied a nanostructured titanium oxide (n-TiO2) coating for gold and nickel/cobalt HPAL services. The n-TiO2 coating provided dramatically superior protection against abrasive and erosive wear, fared very well against high-pressure autoclave corrosion testing, and has performed well in HPAL service.

Jan 1, 2004

DOME MINES, Limited, is a gold producer situated in the Porcupine area of Ontario, 500 miles north of Toronto. During the year 1960, '71 4,600 tons of ore were milled, yielding gold bullion valued at $6,025,370. Prior to conversion to natural gas, an average of 3,200 tons of coal was consumed annually, one third of which was obtained from Canadian sources with the remainder coming from the United States. Due to the distances involved, the freight charges increased the pithead cost by as much as ISO per cent. Steam is generated at a central boiler plant and used for timber treatment, plant heating and process steam. Until August, 1960, steam was supplied during the winter months by two water tube coal-fired boilers, each rated at 200 boiler horsepower at 100 per cent output. Steam requirement was as high as 150 per cent of boiler rating in the colder periods. The summer load was

Jan 1, 1962

By R. C. Becker

Welding is playing an important role in the manufacture of construction equipment as used in the mining industry. It provides design possibilities which are unique to this method of manufacture, and normally makes possible lighter weight but stronger products, which can be a definite advantage to a user. Welding is an industry that has experienced major developments over the past decade, all of which have improved our capability to make better welds and make them more economically. International Harvester Company has been introducing these newer welding methods into its manufacturing plants, particularly those producing construction equipment, just as fast as their value has been proven. This paper discusses how modern welding methods are contributing to the manufacture of strip mining equipment.

Jan 1, 1966

By Réal Tanguay, Mathieu Piché, Jacques Carignan, Charles Beaudry, André Bonenfant

"Le gisement Isle-Dieu est situé sur le flanc sud de l'anticlinal de Galinée. La stratigraphie locale comprend, de bas en haut, la rhyolite du Groupe du Lac Watson surmontée par le basalte du Groupe de Wabassee. Un horizon repère, siliceux et sulfure, d'origine sédimentaire, appelé ""Tuffite Clef', est présent au sommet du Groupe du Lac Watson et pend à 45° vers le sud.Le gisement Isle-Dieu est constitué par une lentille qui recoupe, en partie, la ""Tuffite Clef"". Elle est séparée en deux trorçons par un dyke de tonalite. Les données obtenues à partir des forages effectues à travers la rhyolite sous-jacente permettent de définir les zonations chimiques et pétrographiques de la cheminée d’altération.Ces transformation minéralogiques et chimiques sont caractérisées par un enrichissement en MgO, Fe2O3, MnO et un appauvrissement en CaO, SiO2 et Na2O. La zonation spatiale de ces altérations permet de mettre en évidence la géométrie et l'extension des conduits hydrothermaux. L'épaisseur maximale des sulfures massifs au sein de la lentille est en étroite relation avec l’importance des zones d'altération. Les patrons de variations chimiques dénotent une orientation préférentielle WNW des conduits hydrothermaux. Les parties les plus altérées et les plus déformées présentent localement de fortes variations positives en Zr, Nb, et terres-rares; ces concentrations sont vraisemblablement imputables a /' enrichissement résultant de la diminution du volume lors de l'altération.L'étude pétrographique montre que la porosité et la perméabilité du milieu ont joué un rôle important dans la circulation des fluides car les roches de la cheminée présentent des phénomènes de dévitrification, de bréchification et de microfracturation très prononces. La nature magnésienne de certaines chlorites et la perméabilité accrue du milieu semblent en accord avec le modelé propose par Roberts et Reardon, ( 1978 )"

Jan 1, 1990

By E. Busse

"Heath Steele Mines Ltd. operates a lead-zinc-copper mining and milling complex in New Brunswick.• During the past seven years, as ore reserves increased, the mill capacity was first expanded to 1,600 tpd and then to 3,000 tpd. In the last expansion, instead of building a completely new 3,000-tpd mill, or adding to existing installations, Heath Steele retained service facilities, buildings, ore bins, Jab, etc., and removed and replaced almost all existing process facilities. Requiring a complete mill shutdown, the expansion had to be carried out in minimum time. Also, new equipment had to fit into existing space. Critical path networks of the project were prepared, a tight schedule for construction was mapped out and progress charted daily to detect problems before they could interrupt the schedule. Heath Steele supervised the purchasing, handling and storage of new equipment, maintained liaison with the engineering contractor and became a sub-contractor, using its own staff to install all flotation equipment and process piping. The 1,600-tpd installation was dismantled and a 3,000- tpd unit was successfully put onstream in 5 months - on time and within budget. One benefit stemming from the expansion: production increased 87 per cent while operating and maintenance labour rose only 8 per cent."

Jan 1, 1972

By Robert E. Wood

Engineers have known for some time that the efficiency of filtering iron ore concentrate slurry can be significantly improved by pre-heating the slurry ahead of the filters. However, heating such large quantities of dense slurry by conventional means has proven to be inefficient and high-maintenance. Recently though, submerged combustion was considered by Altos Hornos de Mexico SA (AHMSA), an integrated steel producer in the state of Coahuila, Mexico, as a means of pre-heating their iron ore concentrate. The company toured many iron ore facilities in Brasil and Labrador, reviewing their heating processes, and concluded that submerged combustion could provide a competitive advantage through operational efficiency and lower capital cost than steam boilers. Inproheat was retained by the company to design and manufacture a SubCom slurry heating system to heat 403 m3/h of iron ore concentrate slurry from 25°C to 60°C. The 60GJ/h SubCom system consists of five natural gas combustion chambers mounted in an iron ore concentrate storage tank. The system features a heat recovery unit whereby the exhaust gases are used to preheat the incoming slurry stream, giving the system an overall thermal efficiency of 95%. As a result, the steel company expects to realise significant improvements in filtering efficiency which will enable them to increase the capacity of their pelletising plant without installing additional filters.

May 1, 2010

By M. Muinonen, R. Pandher

Royal Nickel Corporation is developing the Dumont Nickel Project, a large nickel sulphide deposit located near the town of Amos, Québec. The nickel occurs as pentlandite, heazlewoodite, and awaruite. The relatively low grade ore can be processed to a very high grade nickel concentrate, containing 29% Ni. The absence of copper and precious metals in the ore renders this concentrate amenable to processing by dead roasting in a fluid-bed roaster and smelting in an electric furnace to produce ferronickel for sale to stainless steel producers. Laboratory test work and conceptual engineering design was completed to demonstrate the amenability of Dumont concentrate to produce ferro-nickel.

Jan 1, 2015

By L. E. Djingheuzian

IN 1953, Lewis (1) published an article which brought forth a great amount of discussion by grinding engineers. In his contribution to discussion the present writer (2) suggested that, for the most efficient performance of a ball mill, there must be a .definite relationship between Cn, per cent critical speed, and V p, per cent mill volume occupied by the ball charge. Later, he ( 3) was able to publish some grinding data from Wright-Hargreaves milly which appeared to bear out this contention. It is with this view to establishing a fundamental relationship between Cn and Vp that the idea of this Forum was conceived. Accordingly, a questionnaire was prepared and copies of it were mailed to over eighty Canadian mill operators. This questionnaire did not include a question on dilution on the assumption that each mill operator was using the most efficient dilution for his operation, nor was a question on efficiency of classification included since it was thought that the inclusion of efficiency of dassification in the questionnaire at this preliminary stage might render the forum discussion,. while everybody was trying to find his bearings, too unwieldy. However, it is evident that, as discussions develop, this forum will have to define a uniform method for establishing most efficient classification in grinding circuits

Jan 1, 1957

By Rhual L. Guerguerian

MINING has been practised by mankind for over sixty centuries (1). In 1876, the "ball mill" was patented, and during the century that followed rotary grinding developed to the state where individual machines are treating tens of thousands of tons of ore per day. This paper gives a brief description of design practices prior to the availability of advanced facilities, followed by modern analytical design development at Dominion over the past ten years.

Jan 1, 1978

By T. Ivankina, T. Lokajícek, H. Kern, T. Svitek

The knowledge of 3D velocity distribution of P- and S-waves in rocks is very important parameter for interpretation and understanding the nature of seismic anisotropy observed in the earth’s crust and upper mantle. A new high-pressure measuring head was designed and constructed to enable ultrasonic sounding of spherical rock samples in 132 independent directions under up to 60 MPa of acting hydrostatic pressure by means of simultaneous longitudinal and transversal sounding. New measuring system enables ultrasonic sounding of spherical rock samples by using a pair of P-wave sensors and two pairs of perpendicularly polarized S-wave sensors (TV and TH) see Fig.1. Shear wave sensors polarization is oriented according to rotation axis of the sample. Special shear wave gel was used to transfer shear waves between the sample and sensors under acting hydrostatic pressure. An isotropic glass sphere was used to check and calibrate the new measuring setup. A spherical sample of a biotite gneiss from the Outokumpu scientific drill hole was used for testing measurement. There is shown that both, P- and S-wave velocities, can be measured simultaneously up to 70 MPa, respectively. We report data of the 3D velocity distribution of P- and Swaves measured for the first time on a sample sphere of biotite gneiss. We rely, in particular, on the directional dependence of compressional and shear wave propagation and their relationship to the crystallographic (CPO) and shape preferred orientation (SPO) of major rock-forming minerals. The 3D seismic measurements revealed a strong foliation-related directional dependence (anisotropy) of P- and Swave velocities. Ultrasonic measurements were compared with 3D velocity calculations based on neutron diffraction measurements of crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of major minerals. Comparison of 3-D velocity distribution (P, S1, S2 and S1-S2) determined by two completely different methods ultrasonic sounding and neutron diffraction is presented. Measurements showed that the intrinsic bulk anisotropy is basically caused by the CPO of biotite constituting about 23 vol.% of the rock.

Jan 1, 2015

By J. O. G. Sanderson

THE Brazeau river is a relatively short foothills stream in western Alberta and its drainage area is limited to approximately 2,400 square miles. It rises near the head of the North Saskatchewan river, about two-thirds of the way from Banff to Jasper, and is confluent with the North Saskatchewan at a point about 40 miles north of Rocky Mountain House. It is not the purpose of this paper to describe the geology of all of this area. Only the central portion, which lies east of the outer limestone ranges and takes in the outer folds of the foothills belt, will be dealt with. This area is shown on Figure 1. A small portion of the area described lies in the drainage basin of Pembina river, which flows into Athabaska river. The area to be discussed may conveniently be termed the 'Brazeau area', since Brazeau is the name of the river basin referred to above, of an out-lying limestone range, and of the only large settlement or community in the region, the mining town Brazeau. One of the first Factors of the fur trading post of Rocky Mountain House in the early years of the nineteenth century was Louis Brazeau. Coal mining during the past 25 years, and more recently exploratory drilling for oil, have brought the district into some prominence. The Brazeau area was visited by D. B. Dowling for the Geological Survey of Canada in 1906 and 1907 (1). His traverses and reports dealt mainly with the Kootenay coal deposits. It is doubtful if he traversed the outer foothills area with which the present paper deals. His reports on rich coal deposits in the Bighorn Basin area attracted commercial interests, and in 1908 large tracts were leased as coal lands. James McEvoy mapped and studied the coal seams in that year, and G. S. Malloch, of the Geological Survey of Canada, made a complete survey of the whole of the Bighorn basin. His report (2), published by the Survey in 1911, describes the stratigraphical geology and names the formations. Further references to the geology of the district, mainly in relation to coal, are made by D. B. Dowling (3) and by J. S. Stewart ( 4). In the period between 1913 and 1920, the area was traversed by private interests in search of likely oil structures. A well was started in 1914 along the Saskatchewan river about 19 miles west of Rocky Mountain House, and drilling was undertaken by Imperial Oil, Limited, in 1921 at Coalspur.

Jan 1, 1939

By Delio J-J Tortosa, Fred F. Langford

"The Cenex orebody occurs at the intersection of northwest and northeast-trending fault zones that formed during post-Hudsonian uplift. The ore is localized in breccia zones, along faults, and in veins and adjacent wallrocks. The host rocks are Tazin quartzo-fe/dspathic mylonites and ultramylonites and chloritesericite- quartz-graphite-feldspar mylonite schist. The uraniumbearing minerals are finely disseminated pitchblende and uraniferous titanate.The earliest mineralization may have been associated with /ate-stage retrograde metamorphism in the mylonite schist. The main stages of mineralization were associated with brecciation, hematization, carbonatization, and chloritization of the mylonites and ultramylonites. Uranium mineralization was clearly much later than any igneous or metamorphic activity associated with the Hudsonian orogeny.Late post-orogenic uplift, erosion, and deposition of the Martin continental clastics in fault basins were coeval with uranium mineralization. The deposit is consistent with a meteoric-hydrologic system constituting a source for orebearing fluids, hence the close spatial relationship of the uranium deposits in the Beaverlodge area with the basal unconformity of the Martin Group."

Jan 1, 1986

By N. T. Oo, L. D. Hutton

"The Banora Point Upgrade Project is a 2.5km long six-lane divided freeway in northern New South Wales, Australia. The geology at the project area comprises a volcanic succession of variably weathered basalt flows and agglomerate deposits that reach 48m in thickness and overlie Mesozoic sedimentary rocks. A site specific rock classification system was developed that characterised all the rock units based on the engineering properties governing the rock mass behaviour i.e. intact rock strength and defect characteristics (spacing, aperture, infilling, wall roughness and weathering) irrespective of the geological origin. This approach simplified the design and the on-site verification processes. Based on this classification system, rigorous quantitative statistical assessments of the available geological information including various laboratory and field testing were performed to derive the geotechnical design parameters for various rock classes. These parameters were used to complete geotechnical designs of retaining wall systems. INTRODUCTIONThe Banora Point Upgrade Project is a 2.5km long six-lane divided freeway in northern New South Wales, Australia. The key features include two interchanges, a 300m long viaduct, a large cutting through Sexton Hill with an associated 100m wide Land Bridge and retaining walls reaching 490m long and up to 22m high. This paper focuses on the derivation of representative geotechnical parameters for geotechnical design of the retaining structures supporting Sexton Hill Cutting including bored pile retaining walls and soil nail walls. The geology at the project area comprises a volcanic succession of variably weathered basalt flows and agglomerate deposits that reach 48m in thickness and overlie Mesozoic sedimentary rocks. Due to the complex geological nature of the site, an understanding of the regional and local geology, the typical behaviour of individual geological units and the implication of onsite variations from design intention are the ultimate challenges to the geotechnical engineer in order to select representative geotechnical parameters for design."

Jan 1, 2015

By John A. Teeter

"A SHORT WHILE AGO I enquired about The Mining Society of Nova Scotia. In all honesty I was apprehensive about addressing such a body if it was highly geared to the technical aspects of discovering and obtaining mineral resources. I was told that this would not be the case. Rather, there would likely be in attendance a broad cross section of people from business, industry and government and from across Canada and the U.S.A. Thus there would be an interest in a free-wheeling discussion of the prospects for industrial development in Cape Breton. Accordingly - being one who hates to miss an opportunity - I intend to exploit the invitation of your executive by being, over the next short while, frankly promotional. I would like to talk about what I consider to be some of the most important attributes of Cape Breton for industrial development and identify some of those prospects. Secondly, I will quickly review some of the things the Cape Breton Development Corporation is doing these days to stimulate some of that industrial development."

Jan 1, 1972