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By J. Yue

"Mount Milligan mine is located in northern British Columbia. The concentrator employs conventional SABC grinding circuit with bulk sulphide flotation processes. Commissioning started in September of 2013 and nameplate production of 60,000 TPD was reached in the fourth quarter of 2015. As is typical with many mill ramp ups, bottlenecks developed as throughput increased. Since then, plant modifications and new control philosophies in the comminution and flotation circuits have been implemented and evaluated. The mine-to-mill collaboration played a key role in reaching target throughput rates by improving blast fragmentation and implementing temporary pre-crushing. Results of the projects as well as ongoing challenges/bottlenecks and solutions will be discussed.IntroductionMount Milligan Mine is a copper-gold producer located approximately 253 km northwest of Prince George in British Columbia. Production commenced in September 2013 and reached nameplate capacity of 60,000 TPD in December 2015. Average head grades for the mine life average 0.18% Cu and 0.39 g/t Au.Circuit DesignOriginal process design began with run-of-mine ore from the pit crushed through a 60-110 gyratory crusher, conveyed to a live ore stockpile and fed to the mill via four variable apron feeders. The concentrator circuit employs SAG mill - Ball mill - Pebble Crusher (SABC) grinding configuration to grind the ore down to a target P80 of ~200µm. It is then fed to two parallel trains of flotation tanks, each consisting of five 200 m3 tank cells with the first two being roughers and last three being scavengers. Concentrate streams from roughers and scavengers are separately reground with a closed circuit Tower mill and two open circuit ISA mills operating in parallel, respectively.Three stages of cleaners upgrade roughers/scavenger products to 25% Cu followed by a cleaner scavenger stage. The final concentrate is then thickened and filtered to approximately 9% moisture and shipped off site (Figure 1)."

Jan 1, 2017

By J. I. Schoenherr, G. Schubert, F. Demczenko

The currently known and used plastics and rubber recycling or sorting processes cannot be applied efficiently and economically due to large amounts of fine bulky materials (<3 mm). These wastes are mostly given to specialized landfill sites. Starting out from classical and traditional beneficiation processes a new research project was initiated to work on certain new ways to efficiently separate plastic material mixes. First basic results show that the use of new and improved thermal beneficiation methods is a great implementation in the field of plastics separation. The results can be further increased by a suitable combination with other methods as well. This leads to high-quality and almost pure separated plastics and rubber products, easy to sell on recycling product markets.

Jan 1, 2002

By Leonello Sciacca

Deepening of harbours has become a priority, necessary to the ongoing operation of the wharves in the face of deeper draft merchant vessels and cruise ships. It is now standard practice in many areas to provide for harbours to be dredged to significant depths below mean sea level, in the order of 12.00 m (39 ft) for existing berths and 15.00 m (49 ft) for new wharf construction. The Ravenna Port Authority initiated a project to deepen the harbour bottom at selected wharves to a depth of 12.00 m (39 ft). In preference to reconstruction of the wharves with longer and heavier sheet piling or other equally disruptive reconstruction, they identified the structural reinforcement of the existing wharves by means of deep underwater tie rods as a possible alternative cost-effective solution. Having defined the design concept, effort was concentrated on developing the required technology. A technique, already in use for the installation of tie rods by means of robotics, was identified as potentially suitable for underwater use. It was decided to carry out the fine tuning and the evolution of the technology for a marine environment of the robot unit and of the related remote control software that controls the installation of the tie rods. An experimental test site was set up to refine the drilling, installation, grouting, monitoring and testing of underwater tie rods. The purpose was to confirm the feasibility of the proposed solution and the reliability of these tie rods for use in the reinforcement and construction of wharves. The paper also discusses the theoretical and experimental study of underwater tie rods dealing with the theoretical analysis of the interaction between tie rod and soil, aimed at identifying the correlation between the forces of applied traction and the corresponding measured elongations. A series of tests were carried out with positive results, both at the operating load of 300 kN (67 kips) and at the nominal maximum load of 630 kN (142 kips). The tests were carried out on seven tie rods, of which three were installed at a depth of 5.00 m (16 ft), principally to test the reliability of the operating and remote control systems in the presence of a significant hydrostatic pressure, and four were placed at a depth of 8.00 m (26 ft) to check the load bearing capability of the tie rods positioned at the depth called for by the current project.

Jan 1, 2011

Abbey, Robert Graham, District Mgr., The W. W. Sly Mfg. Co., 50 Church St., New York, N. Y. &apos;21 Abbott, A. N Ave. Morelos 84, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico &apos;23 Abbott, Argyle Campbell, Geol 42 Everett St., Arlington, Mass. &apos;29 Abbott, Clarence E., V.P., Charge of Raw Materials, Tenn. Coal, Iron & R. R. Co., 1242 Brown-Marx Bldg., Birmingham, Ala. &apos;04 Abbott, Louis Benjamin, Chief Engr., Consolidation Coal Co., Watson Bldg., Fairmont, W. Va. &apos;15 Abeel, George H., Jr., Cons. Min. Engr 1281/2 S. Canon Dr., Beverly Hills, Cal. &apos;18 Abel, Raymond L., Asst. Prof., Dept. of Pet. Refin., Univ. of Pittsburgh. .Pittsburgh, Pa. &apos;28 Abel, Walter D., Cons. Engr 650 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, Cal. &apos;82 Abele, Louis T., Min. & Met. Engr., Supt., Texas Hill Mine Coulterville, Cal. &apos;31 Abell, Leo M. Millicent, S. Australia &apos;31 Abernathy, George Elmer, Prof. of Geol. & Min., Kansas State Teachers College, Pittsburg, Kan. &apos;20 Aborn, Robert H., Research Lab., U. S. Steel Corp. Lincoln Highway, Kearny, N. J. &apos;19 Abozeid, Mahmood, Dept. of Mines & Quarries Cairo, Egypt &apos;26

Jan 1, 1932

By H. William Zeller, T. E. Westpha1

The U.S. Bureau of Mimes evaluated the effects of two iron-based fuel additives on diesel particulate matter (DPM) emissions. The 5.6-L, six-cylinder test engine is typical of engines used in underground mines. One additive, ferrous picrate, did not measurably affect exhaust emissions. This report is mainly about a ferrocene-based additive that reduced DPM between 4 and 45 pct, depending on engine operating conditions. The report concludes that the DPM reductions were caused by the catalytic oxidation properties of a ferric oxide coating that developed inside the engine&apos;s combustion chamber. The ferric oxide coating also decreased gas-phase hydrocarbons and O, but it increased CO, and NO,. The increase in NO,, of about 12 pct, is considered the only adverse effect of the ferrocene-based fuel additive. The results suggest that the effectiveness of ferrocene was partially offset by increased sulfates because of the high-sulfur fuel used. Recommendations for continuing fuel additive research are presented.

Jan 1, 1992

By R. V. Ramani

Demands on available lands will continue to increase due to the projected increase in population and industrial expansion. Though there is an upper limit on the available lands, the multi-use nature of the lands will make it possible to meet these demands. However, this will not happen without adequate planning. Land uses can be broadly categorized as non-renewable and renewable. Lands with mineable resources can be dedicated at some point in time to the extraction of resources. Such a dedication, however long-term, is only temporary because of the non-renewable nature of the mineable resources. Implied here is that the land will be available before and after mining for other uses. Planning for such lands must have the objective that, as far as practicable, no non-renewable uses are pre-empted and no renewable uses are permanently destroyed. The primary aspects of this planning process will be addressed in this paper, These aspects include a discussion of planning responsibility, data needs and availability, the integration of mine planning and post-mining land use planning and a long-term plan for resource conservation and utilization. Minerals, together with agriculture and forestry products, are the primary sources of wealth. Therefore, to avoid land development that may pre-empt future mineral resource utilization, the local planning groups must be aware of the mineralization and mining potential. Much work needs to be done to identify and characterize the mineral resources. Even more work is needed in land use planning for lands with mineral deposits.

Jan 1, 1982

By W. J. Kingwell

Where the equipment, technique and materials are available for the construction of large diameter rock socketted piles, this is frequently the most economical and environmentally acceptable method of supporting very large concentrated foundation loads in geoglogically appropriate areas. This paper outlines the current approaches in Australia to design and installation of large diameter rock socketted piles. The equipment and procedures described generally reflect those developed or used by Vibro-Pile (Aust.), a company which, while installing the usual range of driven and bored piles, specializes in the design and construction of large diameter rock socketted piles and possesses special expertise in drilling in high strength rock. A high capacity crane attached drill for large diameter drilling in rock is briefly described. Discussed in detail are the construction techniques employed and structural and geomechanical design methods adopted.

Jan 1, 1989

THE old mill erected by the .Irvinebank Company consisted of 10 heads of stamps (850 lb.), rock-breaker, Hartz jig, two Krupp tables, two Luhrig vanners, three sand-pumps, one mixer; six flotation vessels, and the necessary settlers. Power was supplied by a small colonial-type boiler, and 10-in. x 15-in Tangye engines. The ore was darted from the mines to the mill and hand-fed, into the rock-breaker, and the broken product elevated into the batter bins and fed into the stamps, the pulp from the stamps passing to a classifier, the spigot to jig, tables, and vanners, the overflow from the classifier passing to settlers. After the removal of bismuth-wolfram concentrates, the pulp was pumped to the molybdenite flotation plant and the olybdenite recovered by flotation.A commencement was made with the erection of the first unit (20 heads) of the new mill in August, 1917, and milling and concentrating commenced in February, 1919.

Jan 1, 1920

By P G. Self, M D. Raven, R A. Eggleton

Investigation of an abandoned quarry near Rowland Flat in South Australia identified asbestiform antigorite as the fibrous serpentine mineral mined during the 1940s to 1978 for filler applications, not amphibole asbestos or chrysotile as reported in earlier investigations. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) of individual fibres were used to confirm the identification. Chrysotile is widely regarded as the only asbestos mineral in the serpentine group. Further work was done therefore, on the geology and mineralogy of the occurrence, and the health implications were reviewed. A zone of antigorite alteration, with associated talc, is traceable for 750 m along strike of recrystallised dolomitic siltstone within Woolshed Flat Shale of Neoproterozoic age. The antigorite formed, in part, by replacement of prismatic crystals of probable tremolitic amphibole. The deposit is proximal to the Williamstown Fault and the serpentine-talc alteration is possibly due to fluids expelled along the fault during late-stage deformation in the Early Palaeozoic Delamerian Orogeny. The antigorite comprises white to pale green bundles of lath-shaped fibres that occur either as randomly- arranged equant patches after amphibole or as cross-fibre veins, both intimately mixed with calcite. Highly fibrous product was mined from the weathered zone where calcite was leached during weathering. Gentle grinding releases fibres with a high aspect ratio (&gt;10:1) that show a wide range of fibre thickness, including a significant proportion of fibres &lt;0.25 ¦m width. Toxicological studies on fibrous antigorite from Poland and Italy indicate that the carcinogenic potential of this form of serpentine is similar to amphibole asbestos. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) techniques readily distinguish antigorite from chrysotile. Determination of asbestiform habit and confirmation of antigorite mineralogy is most reliably done using electron microscopy, preferably with SAED capability.

Jan 1, 2008

By John S. Pack

The last 25 years have seen rapid expansion in the use of helical screw pile foundations and tiebacks for new and retrofit construction of buildings and earth retention structures. An estimated $100 million was spent in 2002 on helical foundations and tiebacks in the United States alone. While design information is available in the literature, information regarding quality control, inspection and performance monitoring is lacking. Recognition of at least one manufacturer&apos;s helical foundation material by the Uniform Building Code, Standard Building Code, and BOCA (all three codes now combined into the ICC International Building Code) has given added urgency to the dissemination of reliable and practical quality control, inspection and performance monitoring procedures. This paper describes a set of such procedures that have been followed for 17 years by engineers experienced in the industry who have directly installed or been involved in the installation of over 140,000 helical foundations and tiebacks in divers soil conditions for various types of structures, including earth retention structures. Topics covered include design responsibility, building code listings and requirements, manufacturer ISO certification, manufacturing process, material and installation specifications, installation contractor certification, field placement, installation procedures, field inspection, building code inspection and performance monitoring. The paper concludes with a step by step example of practical quality control, inspection and performance monitoring procedures on a typical helical foundation project.

Jan 1, 2003

By Joseph Ribak

Grunerite asbestos (amosite) has been shown in epidemiological and experimental animal studies to cause lung cancer, mesothelioma and pulmonary fibrosis commonly referred to as asbestosis. An overview of the human and experimental animal studies describing the health hazards of grunerite asbestos (amosite) is presented. Of the many human studies describing the health hazards of asbestos, only three factories using mainly, if not exclusively, grunerite asbestos (amosite) have been studied. The first is a series of reports on a cohort of 820 workers from a plant located in Paterson, NJ. Among this cohort, 18.7% died of lung cancer and 17 mesotheliomas occurred. The Paterson factory closed in 1954 and moved to Tyler, Texas where it operated until 1972. Among the 1130 former workers in the Tyler plant 6 mesotheliomas were reported with 15.8% lung cancer mortality. The third grunerite asbestos (amosite) exposed cohort was an insulation board manufacturing facility in Uxbridge, United Kingdom. Here 17.1% of the workers died of lung cancer and 5 mesotheliomas occurred. The lung content from 48 Uxbridge workers was analyzed by analytical transmission electron microscopy for mineral fibers. The relationship between grunerite asbestos (amosite) concentrations in the lung correlated with grades of fibrosis and asbestos bodies and was lower than the concentration found in the cases with malignant tumors. The lung cancer cases contained more grunerite asbestos (amosite) than mesothelioma cases, and in the cases of non-alignant disease the concentrations were still lower. In both types of malignancies the concentration of grunerite asbestos (amosite) was very high-over a billion fibers per gram of dried lung tissue. Occupational exposure to airborne concentrations of between 14 and 100 fibers of grunerite asbestos (amosite) per milliliter after 20 year latency causes marked increases in lung cancer, mesothelioma and pulmonary fibrosis (asbestosis). © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Keywords: Grunerite asbestos; Amosite; Mesothelioma; Asbestosis

Jan 1, 2007

By Bruce Cavender

Historically, the processing function has been regarded as efficiently managed as long as production costs were kept low, recovery was adequate and sufficient plant capacity was avail-able. In this paradigm, processing is viewed as capable of making only a limited contribution to a company?s competitive advantage. However, the processing function can provide a primary vehicle for building critical competitive capabilities. Processing organizations should be encouraged to become so accomplished they generate new opportunities for other functional groups and thereby influence a company?s overall strategy. This requires a deep shift in processing?s role, in its self-image and in the expectations of it held by managers in other functions. Specific plant improvement techniques ? total productive maintenance (TPM), loss control, etc. ? should be viewed primarily as means for building strategically valuable processing capabilities. Different improvement strategies create different kinds of capabilities and present new strategic options. Broadly speaking, a mineral-producing company seeks competitive advantage through two principal activities: the development of new mineral production and reserves and the optimization of existing operations. These lead to increases in ore reserves, production levels and cash flows that are manifested in increased profitability and, hopefully, increases in the price of the firm?s stock. The profitability of a minerals company is a function of the overall profitability of the industry sector in which the company participates and the firm?s competitive position within that sector relative to those of its competitors. Competitive advantage within the industry comes from two sources: the ability to maintain lower prices than competitors for the same product (cost leadership), or from the sale of products with unique properties that justify higher prices (product differentiation; Porter, 1980). Most mineral companies produce fungible commodities that are sold to anonymous customers, and sustainable cost advantage is the only long-run strategy available to these companies to enhance profitability.

Jan 1, 2008

By J. D. Morgan

The US economy continued to grow steadily in 1988, reaching an annual rate of $5 trillion in the last quarter (US trillion = 1012). The value of domestically processed mineral-based materi¬als rose 20% to $300 billion (US billion 109). The value of metals produced from US ores rose 40% to more than $10 billion, industrial minerals rose 6%&apos; to $20 billion, and recycled scrap more than doubled to $10 billion. Increasing economic activity stimulated metal prices. Yearly lows and highs were 95 cents and $1.68 for copper, 52 cents, and $1.30 for aluminum, 34 cents and 42 cents for lead, and 43 cents and 75 cents for zinc. A number of mining and metal companies experienced significantly increased profitability. Consumer demand strongly affects mining because the US economy is relatively saturated with long-lived products. Consumer, mortgage, and Federal debt continued to rise. About 246 million US citizens already possess 170 million licensed motor vehicles and 100 million dwelling units. New car production remained at the 1987 level of 7.1 million units. Truck and bus production, however, rose 7% to 4.1 million units. New housing starts fell 7% to 1.5 million units. Imports supplied a significant proportion of total US consumption of several important mineral materials. By year-end, imports of crude and refined petroleum exceeded domestic crude oil production. Such imports cost $42 billion. Imports of nonfuel mineral-based materials were valued at $44 billion and exports at $35 billion. The US and Canada-the world&apos;s two largest trading partners-consummated a historic free trade agreement. In February, President Reagan transferred responsibility for stockpiling strategic and critical materials to the Secretary of Defense. And, in July, the GSA group that bought, stored, rotated, and sold stockpiled materials was transferred to the Defense Department&apos;s Defense Logistics Agency. Concern about apartheid in South Africa continued, resulting in increasing attention to chromium, manganese, platinum-group metals, cobalt, vanadium, and gold. The Defense Production Act, authorizing priorities and allocations, supply expansions, voluntary agreements, and the National Defense Executive Reserve, was amended to include provisions for averting harm to national security from foreign takeovers. The DPAct, in effect through September 1989, is now up for further extension. Under the Act, the US Bureau of Mines maintains the Emergency Minerals Administration. During the year, consultations were held with Canada to strengthen the North American Defense Industrial Base. Coal production, 60% from open pits, rose 5% to 870 Mt (960 million st). Nearly four-fifths was burned to generate 57% of US electricity. Exports included 56 Mt (62 million st) of metallur- gical coal and 29 Mt (32 million st) of steam coal, with a total value of $4 billion. Domestic petroleum produc¬tion fell 2% to 574 hm3 (3.6 billion bbl). Uranium mining, including recovery from phosphates, was unchanged at 5.9 kt (6500 st). Nonfuel minerals Major metals Raw steel production-a major con¬sumer of many minerals-rose 14% to 92 Mt (102 million st). Domestic iron ore production rose 25% to 59 Mt (65 million st), about 96% pelletized. Net imports rose 37% to 16 Mt (18 million st). Raw steelmaking capacity of 102 Mt (112 million st) was unchanged. Voluntary Restraint Agreements with 21 steel exporting nations limited im¬port penetration to about 20% of the domestic market. Domestic producers of bulk ferroal¬loys of chromium, manganese, and sili¬con operated at about 75% of capacity. The US mined no manganese or chro-

Jan 1, 1989

By W. J. Kroll

Jan 1, 1960

By John R. Troxell

"INTRODUCTION The Ahles iron mine, also known as the Pequest mine, in Warren County, N. J., was operated continuously for 15 years and was still in ore when it closed in 1916.Tie property was examined by an engineer of the Bureau of Mines in March 1943. 3/ This examination led to an investigation of the deposits by the Bureau by diamond drilling two holes under the old workings to determine whether the extends downward.This report describes the work done at the Ahles mine by the Bureau and presents the data obtained.ACKNOWLEDGMENTSIn its program of investigation of mineral deposits, the Bureau of Mines has as its primary objective the more effective utilization of our mineral resources to the end that they make the greatest possible contribution to national security and economy. The Mining Division, Lowell B. Moon, chief, conducts preliminary examinations, performs the actual investigative work, and prepares the final report.The Metallurgical Division, O. C. Ralston, chief, analyzes samples and performs beneficiation tests.The investigation was under the general supervision of J. B. Zadra, acting regional engineer, and under the immediate supervision of G. D. Jermain, district engineer for the States of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware. The author was in direct charge of the project.The chemical analyses for the project were performed at the College, Park, Md., laboratories of the Bureau of Mines under the direction of M. S. Sheftel. The ore-dressing tests were conducted at College Park under the direction of Frank Lamb. Preston E. Hotz, of the Federal Geological Survey, logged and interpreted the drill cores."

Apr 1, 1948

By A G. Mitchell

Stream sediment geochemical analyses were collated from open-file mining company reports and assembled in the REGCHEM computerised database at the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited. The database operates on an IBM-compatible PC microcomputer using an application programmed in dBASE IV and termed GEOEXPL. By August 1992, data for 6383 stream sediment samples from 6335 different sites in the Coromandel Peninsula region (Hauraki Goldfield) were entered, giving a total of 29 292 separate elemental analyses. Preliminary statistical analysis using PROBPLOT on a set of data collected by AMOCO from the Mahakirau-Whangapoua area shows that these data are a complex mix of subpopulations related to mineralisation and different source rock types. Thresholds of 37 ppm copper, 31 ppm lead, 112 ppm zinc, and 2.3 ppm molybdenum, defmed by arithmetic models for the combined data set, separate the individual element sets into &apos;first order anomalous/lesser anomalous and background&apos; subpopulations as follows: copper five per cent/95 per cent, lead five per cent/95 per cent, zinc one per cent/99 per cent, and molybdenum 15 per cent/85 per cent.

Jan 1, 1992

By Kathryn C. Sole, Owen Tinkler

"Although the first large-scale application of copper recovery by solvent extraction (SX) took place in Zambia in the early 1970s, it is only in the last decade that this technology has become widely employed in this part of the world and is now a mainstay unit operation in most copper hydrometallurgical flowsheets. The mineralogy of the ores in the African Copper Belt, and hence the characteristics of the African leach liquors, differ significantly from those in Chile and the south-western USA, where copper SX has had a long and successful history. These differences provide operators, metallurgists, reagent vendors and engineers with many challenges: new approaches are needed to adapt this technology for successful implementation in this region. This paper examines typical operating practice in the African Copper Belt, discusses differences compared with other parts of the world and looks at some of the challenges and opportunities presented by these flowsheets. INTRODUCTION Following the success of the Rancher’s Bluebird and Bagdad solvent extraction and electrowinning (SX–EW) operations in Arizona in the late 1960s, the Tailings Leach Plant at Chingola, Zambia became the first large-scale copper SX plant in the world, commissioned in 1974. Despite the equipment design now being outdated, this plant still continues to operate successfully, indicating the versatility and adaptability of this technology. Today, there are some 75 copper SX operations worldwide with cathode production above 10 kt/a. The top ten producers currently account for some 40% of the global 4.3 Mt/a SX–EW copper production. South America (predominantly Chile and Peru) is the largest copper cathode-producing region, with annual production of some 2 Mt. The Central African Copper Belt (Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)) is second, with cathode production of 1.2 Mt/a and North America (USA and Mexico) third, producing close to 0.8 Mt/a Cu (Cytec data, 2014). The remaining 0.35 Mt/a comes from all other regions combined (referred to as “Rest-of-World”). Current and future operations in Zambia and the DRC are summarised in Figure 1. The industry in this region is characterised by a large number of small (3 to 20 kt/a) plants, mainly Chinese-owned, and a few very large (>200 kt/a) operations, owned by major multinational corporations. This paper examines typical operating practice in the African Copper Belt, discusses the differences compared with other parts of the world and looks at some of the challenges presented by the conditions, as well as innovations in flowsheets, reagents and operating conditions that have been introduced in these circuits."

Jan 1, 2015

By Mwaba CC

Ok Tedi Mining Ltd has been using flotation for the production of copper/gold concentrates from a complex copper sulphide ore for several years. During this period, much effort has been devoted to metall- urgical treatment of the ore. This paper examines some of the mineralogical aspects of the sulphide minerals in the ore using the electron microprobe analyser. Results have revealed the complexity of the copper sulphide minerals and in particular, chalcocite. Analysis of both plant and laboratory flotation products has provided further insight into the effects of mineralogy on the flotation of copper and iron sulphides. A significant observation is that some of the pyrite minerals apparently exhibit natural floatability. The implications of the mineralogical characteristics of the sulphide minerals on the flotation of the ore are also discussed.

Jan 1, 1991

By Cathy Aimone-Martin, Caitlin Woznick, Brent Meins

This study is a continuation of previous work in which the responses of tall structures to close-in construction blasting at two rock excavation sites are evaluated. A total of eight buildings were instrumented to calculate blast-induced wall strains. Of these structures, five high-rise buildings measuring 166 ft (51 m) to 294 ft (90 m) in height (15 to 24 stories), were included for this study and compared with the results of previous studies that included one to three story residential structures and mid-rise structures (four to six stories). All five structures were built between 1908 and 1940 with interior walls comprising aged plaster. Three of the structures are designated Landmark, subject to a 0.5 in/s (12.7 mm/s) regulated peak particle velocity (PPV) limit. The regulated PPV limit for the two other structures was 2.0 in/s (50.8 mm/s). To date, a total of 450 close-in construction blasts have taken place over six months at the two adjacent projects, blasting three to six times per day at each site. Seismograph instrumentation included tri-axial geophones in the ground and bi-axial geophones (horizontal components only) mounted on structure exteriors at the corners closest to blasting. Peak global wall tensile strains were calculated from time-correlated differential structure displacements in two horizontal directions as measured by upper and lower geophones mounted near the roof and at street levels. Wall strains were correlated with ground excitations to establish a stiffness factor for each structure defined as the upper bound linear regression slope for strain as a function of ground displacement. In addition, a structure-specific regression best-fit function was established to relate horizontal components of displacement to velocity. These two functions were used to determine the maximum ground motion velocity for a desired limit placed on wall strain. A 25 ?-strain limit was suggested for both projects to protect interior plaster walls. To date, global wall strains have not exceeded 0.53 ?-strains (or 47 times the project limit) for peak particle velocities up to 3.49 in/s (88.6 mm/s). This demonstrates the low strain response of tall structures to ground velocities well above regulated limits. The stiffness factor computed for the most flexible high-rise building was 688 in-1 (17475 mm-1). In comparison, stiffness factors for the most flexible residential and mid-rise structures previously studied were 8651 in-1 (219735 mm-1) and 4387 in-1 (111430 mm-1), respectively. Based on a large number of measurements made at these study structures, the maximum horizontal ground velocity needed to achieve 25 ?-strains in walls ranged from 36 in/s (914 mm/s) to 192 in/s (4877 mm/s) because of the high stiffness of these buildings. Such high amplitudes of ground vibrations can never be safely achieved during close-in blasting in urban environments. These excessive values stand to show how unfounded the current limits of 0.5 in/s (12.7 mm/s) and 2.0 in/s (50.8 mm/s) are when applied to massive, tall structures. This study demonstrated that upper structure motions are highly attenuated from the lower (street-level) motions because of the long travel distances up the buildings. High-rise structures are far stiffer than mid-rise and residential structures and can withstand ground vibration amplitudes far greater than the currently enforced blasting limits in New York City.

Jan 1, 2015

Research personnel from the Bureau of Mines, a representative of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, and research contractors for the Bureau of Mines met with other Government and industry representatives at three seminar locations in December 1980 to discuss the findings and products of Bureau research on mine safety training. The research program is aimed at providing assistance to the mining community in its efforts to reduce industrial-type, human-error accidents through research establishing performance based methods and media for employee training. Research emphasis is directed toward development of baseline materials and instructional models; development of methods for structuring and evaluating health and safety, supervisory, and occupational training; and the continued investigation and application of current learning and simulation technology that could significantly enhance the effectiveness of training opportunities.

Jan 1, 1981