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By Donald S. Skufca

This chapter focuses attention on major factors pertaining to plant design and general arrangement of equipment. Considered are efficiency of operations, coordination of maintenance and repairs, plant testing of reagents and possible future plant expansions. The design and general arrangement of equipment considers accessibility for maintenance and isolation for repairs, minimum personnel for operations and cleanup, safe working conditions with minimum interruptions to operations. The constant introduction of new reagents requires eventual plant testing and the manner of isolating a “line” or part of the facilities to allow comparisons in the testing of new reagents is discussed. As technology improves and process changes occur, additional equipment or plant expansions are inevitable. Space for these eventualities must be considered while the general arrangement drawings are in the development stages.

Jan 1, 1986

By J. J. Renton

The iron disulphide minerals, pyrite and to a lesser extent marcasite, are ubiquitous to coal and coal associated rocks and are the source of nearly all the environmental problems associated with the mining, processing and utilization of coal. The iron disulphides as well as the other minerals in coal exhibit systematic spatial pat- terns of distribution on both regional and local scales and show predictable associations, most of which are determined by the geochemical-sedimentological controls under which they form. It is the purpose of this paper to discuss the geochemical-sedimentological conditions responsible for the formation of coal minerals with special emphasis on the formation of iron disulphides, to illustrate the regional and local patterns of mineral occurrence within coal, to present the microscopic associations of the iron disulphides and finally, to discuss the most important single environmental aspect of the iron disulphide content of coal and coal associated rocks; the production of acid mine drainage.

Jan 1, 1986

By D. G. Chedgy

Careful consideration is given to the type of cleaning equipment and control sys- teas to be used when selecting circuits for wash-ing fine coal (28M x 0 size fraction). However, the desliming, declaying and sizing procedures required to ensure efficient operation normally are not evaluated in sufficient detail resulting in disappointing system performance. This paper details desliming and dewatering circuit design which is extremely effective based on recent test data. The circuit maintains control of the 28M x 0 (declayed) size fraction with minimal misplaced material and maximized circuit efficiency. A discussion of circuit design parameters and control systems, as well as results from the testing program, are included in this text.

Jan 1, 1986

By P. H. Williams

Experiences gained using computers in the mining and geological environment have shown that it is quite rare for a system or the data it stores to be truly stand alone. Just as the mining enterprise aims to have a smooth integration of operations from exploration through mining and extraction to sales, so it should develop all its information systems within an overall framework or architecture which covers the applications and data as well as the computer hardware and communications. This paper discusses methods of achieving such an architecture, and describes some of the benefits it can have on the development and implementation of information systems. The key aspects are the identification of the business functions and the data that they use, and ensuring that the IS plan supports the overall objectives of the enterprise. Hardware and communications policies should be based on the plans for the applications and data, rather than the reverse.

Jan 1, 1986

By M. Tomono

Harima Works is operating as the zinc and lead simultaneous smelter utilizing the imperial Smelting Process. The smelter commenced its operation in 1966 with designed capacities of 3500 t/M of zinc and 1500 t/M of lead. After that, owing to the results of progressive developments and improvements in operating efficiency and equipments, it has doubled its production figure. This report reviews our recent developments carried out from 1983 to 1985. Firstly, the furnace bottom design was modified for the purpose of reducing carbon consumption ratio. As a result, shaft operating condition has been satisfactory and carbon consumption ratio was improved by 2%, in addition, furnace zinc production was increased by about 8%. Secondly, the oxygen enriched operation at sintering machine was tested from July 1984 to June 1985, in order to increase the sinter productivity, and to solve the capacity imbalance between sinter plant and ISF. As the test result, it was found out that sulfur elimination rate was increased by approx 10% with the oxygen enrichment of 500 Nm3/hr.

Jan 1, 1986

By Y. C. Kim

The strongly skewed grade distributions and the need to estimate the local recoverable reserves in a selective mining environment are the two problems that Ordinary Kriging (OK) cannot easily handle. With the recent introduction of the nonparametric, distribution-free technique of Indicator Kriging (IK), the above problems can be solved. This paper describes the results of performance evaluation of IK in an open-pit gold-silver deposit. For performance evaluation, the predictions of local recoverable reserves using IK were compared with the actual reserves based on blast hole information. The IK estimator, although a bit optimistic, performed very well in predicting the total recoverable ounces of gold from each panel on a test bench. The OK estimator was also used to try to predict local recoverable reserves, by treating each panel as either waste or ore, depending on the panel's average grade. Under this criterion. OK was found to be very biased and pessimistic.

Jan 1, 1986

By P. K. Crane, S. C. Gambrell

The work reported herein compares the support characteristics of two different types of roof truss subjected to the same force in the horizontal tension member. The major differences between the two trusses are in the sequence of tensioning the horizontal and inclined members and in the design of the loading brackets. A photoelastic model was used to compare stresses at points along the roof of the mine opening and at the junction of the roof surface and the rib. The effects of simulated subsidence on stress in the roof and on tension in the horizontal member were analyzed. Results indicate that there are significant differences in the overall support characteristics of the two trusses. Conclusions are drawn relative to which type of roof truss provides the most favorable support if the horizontal members are tensioned equally.

Jan 1, 1986

By D. E. Munson, T. M. Torres, D. A. Blankenship

The Thermal/Structural Interactions (TSI) In Situ Tests are a series of large scale, well instrumented tests that have been constructed at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeastern New Mexico. As a precursor to the TSI tests, a ventilation drift (Room D) was mined, drilled and instrumented. This room provided the contractor an excellent area to practice controlled construction methods and was a proving ground for construction monitoring and documentation methods. All gages in this first room have been monitored since their initial installation, which has provided a small, but representative, data base. These data also were the first to be available from any TSI area for analysis. This paper discusses the construction activities in Room D and the data generated from the construction and drilling. Deformation of the room is compared briefly to numerical calculations that used a rather simple creep model as a reference. The constitutive model for salt, it appears, must be improved before it can predict the underground deformations.

Jan 1, 1986

By Carl H. Eckert, James P. Berson

INTRODUCTION The demand for specialty metals in industrial applications is in it's healthiest state since the late 1970'8, and several specific markets are recording record sales. Such metals as gold, silver, zirconim., titanium, beryllium, gallium, germanium, the platinum group, and the lanthanides accounted for sales in excess of $2 billion in 1985 among the end uses covered in this report. Although specialty metals as a group have suffered the effects of recessionary pressures in the past, these metals have proved more resiliant than such large volume metals as copper and nickel. This is due to the unique physical properties they possess which makes the threat of substitution or replacement through technological development uneconomic. The outlook for these specialty metals is optimistic in electronics, catalysts, ceramics, and alloys, and their specialty status results .in a combined average annual growth in demand of 7% through 1990. WHAT MAKES THESE METALS SPECIAL? Such characteristics as electrical conductivity, corrosion resistance, catalytic activity, thermal stability, and optical properties allow the term specialty to be applied to these metals. More importantly, all of these metals possess more than one of these qualities, as shown in Table 1. [ ] These five major functions are important in the end uses for these metals, although the specific applications vary somewhat. Conductivity in term of low or high electrical resistance is of obvious importance to electronics manufacturers. Producers of circuit boards or semiconductors require such metals as gold, palladium, platinum, and gallium due to their low electrical resistivity. However, these producers also require such metals as beryllium in the oxide form for insulation components because of the compound's low electrical conductivity. Although the lanthanides' conductive characteristics are not particularly attractive in electronics, they are of great importance to alloy manufacturers producing permanent magnets for automotive and computer applications. Corrosion and wear resistant properties are extremely attractive to a number of end-use industries, particularly in view of the estimate by the United States Bureau of Mines that $10 to $50 billion in losses are experienced by U.S. industry due to equipment corrosion and $100 billion due to equipment wear. The strength of high purity titanium and zirconium make these metals the obvious choice for corrosion and wear resistance particularly in the chemical processing industry, where the ability to maintain integrity in corrosive environments is a must. Heat exchangers, nuclear control rods, and a number of parts in jet engines have benefited greatly from the use of these metals. However, such other specialty metals as beryllium, and the lanthanides also improve the wear or corrosion resistance in various products. For example, a beryllium-copper alloy contact maintains it's spring like character, and does not loose this character after repeated use, which could result in the loss of an electrical contact. Lanthanide, in the form of cerium oxide, is commonly employed in alloys used to produce catalytic converter casings for the purpose of reducing damage by corrosive road salt. In some instances, the catalytic activity of several of the specialty metals assists in the economic production of other materials. However, the importance of specialty metals in catalysts is most apparent in catalytic converters for emission control. Platinum, palladium, and rhodium are

Jan 1, 1986

By D. Bizier, B. H. Gardner, Y. P. Wang, S. Serata

As part of an ongoing effort to develop more cost-effective and “user friendly” hardware for geomechanical measurements required for underground mine design, Serata Geomechanics, Inc. (SGI) has investigated the potential of borehole pressure cells (WCs) for in situ measurement of stress states and continuous monitoring of changes in ground stress. In particular, because of certain advantages gained thereby, WCs utilizing an elastomer, instead of metal (e.g., copper), for the skin of the pressure cell have been developed. A data analysis technique for determining ground stress state directly from BPC data has been developed. This technique has been tested for salt ground through both in situ applications and computer simulation analysis of the BPC/borehole boundary interaction. This paper discusses the data analysis technique, the results of field and computer simulation testing of its validity, and evaluates the advantages of elastomeric BPCs in relation thereto. It utilizes field data from recent elastomeric BPC applications in the salt mine at Goderich, Ontario operated by the Sifto Division of Damtarn Inc.

Jan 1, 1986

By P. Berendsen

Structures along the rift were subjected to episodic reactivation. Major north-northeast-trending high-angle normal or reverse faults and northwest-trending trans-current fault systems, may exercise control over ore-forming processes. Gabbro and basalt are the dominant igneous rock types. Carbonatite and kimberlite occur in Nebraska and Kansas. Concentrations of Cu, Ni, Co, Ti, Au, Ag and PG-minerals are known to occur in this setting Arkosic sandstone, siltstone, shale and minor carbonate units occur on top of the rift basalts and in flanking basins where they may reach thicknesses of 10 km. The potential for stratiform or unconformity-related metal liferous deposits must be considered.

Jan 1, 1986

By Kai Nielsen

In underground mining coarse muck and large boulders lead to ineffective utilization of costly mining equipment, and extra expenses and delays caused by secondary blasting. Cost analysis in some Norwegian mines shows that these extra expenses may amount to 10% or more of total mine operating costs. A computer model has been developed for sensitivity analysis of underground longhole stope blasting. The basic idea of the model is : When increasing the blasting energy input and fragmentation costs, the fragmentation will be better. This will lead to cost savings for loading, hauling, secondary blasting and primary crushing. The blasting design giving the lowest overall costs will indicate the optimal practice. The model has been used with data from several underground operations in Norway. An example run with typical costs shows that the costs for drilling, blasting and secondary blasting are the most significant parameters in the optimization process.

Jan 1, 1986

By Donald L. Gaughenbaugh

Under the terms of the 1970 amendments to the Clean Air Act, the EPA established national ambient air quality standards for a number of pollutants. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) was one of these pollutants. These ambient air quality standards have had perhaps their biggest impact on the power utilities. In an effort to meet the air quality standards set forth by the EPA, utilities using high sulfur fuels have been forced to install flue gas desulfurization (FGD) systems. The majority of FGD systems in operation today are nonregenerable systems, that is the by-product of the system is disposed of, usually into settling ponds. Limestone slurry is the most common reagent used to remove SO from the flue gases. The calcium carbonate (limestone) slurry interacts with the flue gas, absorbing the SO2 and forming a by-product of calcium sulfate/sulfite which is disposed of.

Jan 1, 1986

By Murdoch Mackenzie

"Organic Polymers used as gangue depressants are classified according to their chemical structure. Absorption mechanisms for these reagents at the mineral - water interface are reviewed. The method of selecting these reagents for a particular flotation system is discussed. Details are given of methods of reagent solution make-up and distribution. Plant addition policy is reviewed.”

Jan 1, 1986

By R. H. Zeng

Many subsidence researchers in the U. S. have developed new empirical function methods to predict subsidence, or attempted to validate some empirical functions developed by foreign researchers for use in the U. S. An attempt is made in this paper to develop a new empirical function to predict a surface subsidence basin due to longwall mining. In the U. S., the emphasis of empirical methods for the subsidence prediction over longwall panels has been in large part on determining the profile functions for the major cross-sections of a subsidence basin. In this approach, the surface monuments are usually laid out along the major cross-sections and thus, the subsidence profiles developed are restricted for subsidence prediction along the major cross-sections. However in practice many monuments or surface structures for which subsidence prediction for damage evaluation is required, are not laid out along the major cross-section of the basin. In such cases, it is difficult to get either the empirical profile function for the cross-sections where these structures are located or to predict their subsidence based on the profile function developed for the major cross-sections. Therefore, there exists a strong need to develop a subsidence basin function with a reasonable degree of accuracy, which can be determined or confirmed by the data of scattered monuments on a surface basin. The same subsidence basin function can also be used for prediction of subsidence for any arbitrary points over a longwall panel. In 1982, He (1) proposed the clastic theory, for which he developed the basic differential equations describing the movement and deformation of overburden due to underground mining, and performed the selection of best solution for the equations. He found that the Weibull dietribution is the optimal solution. The Weibull distribution has three parameters that vary to fit the subsidence profile so well that the profile function derived from it provides a high degree of accuracy in subeidence prediction. However the results

Jan 1, 1986

By L. R. Shotwell, C. F. Voss, R. J. Bastian

Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) currently supports the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management in developing and evaluating analytical methods for assessing the suitability of sites for geologic disposal of high-level radioactive waste. The research includes consideration of hydrological, geomechanical , geochemical , and waste package components and the evaluation of the degree of coupling that can occur between two or more of these components. The PNL effort and those of other research groups investing potential waste sites in the U.S. and abroad are producing a suite of computer codes to analyze the long-term performace of the proposed repository sites. This paper summarizes the ongoing research in rock mechanics at PNL involving flow through jointed rock. The objective of this research is to develop a methodology for modeling the coupled mechanical-hydrological process of flow through joints and then attempt to validate a "simple" model using small -scale laboratory test data as a basis for judging whether the approach has merit. This paper discusses the laboratory tests being conducted to develop s joint behavioral constitutive model for the numerical method under development and the modeling approach being considered.

Jan 1, 1986

By J. Herman

The Mid-Continent Geophysical Anomaly (M.G.A.) which extends from Michigan into Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas, has recently been the object of intense preliminary oil and gas exploration activity involving widespread land leasing, seismic data collection, permitting of deep exploratory holes and other activities (Paul et al., 1985). This report describes the remote-sensing techniques and results of the application of these techniques to study the geology of the M.G.A. and the surroundings in Iowa. In early 1981, Coal Valley Natural Resources contracted Geospectra Corporation to find a large, (100,000 acres or larger) lease block for wildcat oil and gas exploration. The southwest Iowa area was chosen for several reasons. First, southwest Iowa contains the northeast portion of the Forest City basin (Figure 1) which has produced oil and gas from numerous fields in Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska (Landes, 1970; Petzet, 1982).

Jan 1, 1986

By R. Norman Holme

Sulfonate promoters and collectors were originally developed as relatively inexpensive anionic collectors to selectively concentrate the iron-bearing minerals in low grade iron ores and to remove iron and other mineral contaminants by flotation in the processing of glass sands, feldspar and other ceramic raw materials. The first reagents produced were effective collectors for such iron oxide minerals as goethite, hematite, limonite, magnetite and siderite. Further development has resulted in additional reagents with a broadened application to the selective flotation of a variety of nonsulfide and nonmetallic minerals. The products in this group are anionic sulfonate-type promoters, natural petroleum sulfonates, and synthetic modified sulfonates. Beyond their applications to iron-bearing minerals, the sulfonate collectors have gained commercial use in the flotation treatment of barite, celestite, fluorite, apatite, chromite, industrial garnet, kyanite, mica, rhodochrosite and cassiterite. in addition, extensive laboratory studies indicate their potential suitability for flotation of the following minerals: Anatase Anhydrite Bauxite Beryl Calcite Chlorite Some Copper Carbonates Corundum Dolomite Hornblende Huebnerite Ilmenite Lepidolite Magnesite Phosphate Minerals Rutile Scheelite Spodumene Sillimanite Talc Tourmaline Wolframite Zircon Sulfonate promoters are water soluble or dispersible liquids, syrups or pastes of varying viscosity with colors ranging from dark blackish-brown to clear. Customarily, they are fed to the conditioner or flotation as 5% to 30% water solutions or dispersions. In addition to their normal collector activity, certain of these products display notable frothing characteristics. Improved collector efficiency and adequate froth control can frequently be obtained by employing mixtures of sulfonate reagents, of ten with results quite markedly superior to those achieved with equivalent dosages of the individual promoter alone. Reagent requirements will vary with the type of mineral being treated; however, a general overall range of 0.13 to 2.0 kg/metric ton (0.25 to 4.0 lb/ton) of feed should cover most applications.

Jan 1, 1986

By Rodger C. Fry

Underground coal mining has been active within the East Mountain property since the mid 1950's. As a result, coal from two seams has been extracted within large areas allowing surface subsidence to occur. Monitoring of subsidence annually, began in 1981 using on the ground conventional monumentation, surveying and photogrammetric monitoring. The data collected has shown the time benefits of photogrammetry and the relationship between observed subsidence and the geometry of the mined out area below.

Jan 1, 1986

By R. Michael Craig

The flood basalts of the Columbia Plateau in eastern Washington State are under investigation for suitability in siting a deep geologic repository for high-level radioactive waste. To support safety and feasibility evaluations of the proposed repository construction and operation, an assessment is necessary of the potential for inflow of groundwater to the repository excavations from the surrounding saturated rock. Preliminary estimates of inflow are presented using simple models appropriate to the current understanding of available data. Both normal and bounding analyses are presented.

Jan 1, 1986