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Partnering has come to prominence in the Australian construction industry in a formal sense this decade. The high level of disputation in the building and civil construction industries in the 1980s drove its development in both Australia and North America. PartneringÆs use has been most prominent in the construction industry, particularly in the civil and construction sectors of the industry. It has found favour in some mining development projects, one of the most notable being BHP MineralÆs Cannington project in NW Queensland. This paper examines the requirements of successful partnering agreements and describes in detail the mine development partnering agreement at Cannington. In particular, the paper discusses the authorÆs experience and recommendations for partnering to avoid contractual problems and achieve win û win project outcomes for all parties to major mining projects.

Jan 1, 1999

By Patricia O. Milley

Two years ago, AlliedSignal embarked on a journey to improve QUALITY. However, the focus of this endeavor was on the CUSTOMER and not the traditional product focus. It wasn't that a focus to improve product quality wasn't fruitful in the past. We've practiced it in the chemical industry for many years with significant results. But our industry today is in a survival mode and yesterday's way of doing business is simply not good enough. In the mining industry, we have to make lug strides in how we do business or face losing our customer base. As you are well aware, other parts of the world are importing our technology at a rapid rate. We must work smarter to stay ahead of our customers ever more demanding need for higher quality at lower prices. With this as a driver, throughout the Corporation we reviewed in depth how we support our customers to keep them competitive and sought to eliminate work which did not help them reach this goal. Our first year of emphasis was on tools: how to hold meetings, gather data, and how to make decisions. This sounds very basic, I know, but you can't begin to imagine how productive meetings can become when you start with an agenda and prework delivered days in advance, and agree at the start of the meeting what should get accomplished. In the second year, we applied these tools to our work processes. We mapped how we do our work, scrutinized each step for value to the customer, and then set to work on how we could do things better. The areas we concentrated on were customer linked commercialization of new products, manufacturing and materials management. Our discussion today will focus on the commercialization of new products.

Jan 1, 1994

Training by Inclusiveness ?Background ?Video ?Results ?Partners ?How SEM works ?Future of SEM Background: Inclusivity partners ?Northwest Community College ?Smithers Exploration Group ?With support from the Province of BC ?Federal government ?And First Nations across the northwest

May 1, 2010

By Vic Casaletto

"IntroductionThe Canadian mining industry is under immense pressure to compete with foreign mine operations. The very survival of the Canadian mining industry is threatened by lower ore grades, environmental pressures, high cost of labour, unfriendly tax laws toward exploration and the increasing cost of new technology. In order to compete in the world market, Canadian producers and their suppliers are rethinking age old customer-supplier relationships in favour of preferred supplier relationships which can improve the profitability and enhance the competitive position of both partners.This paper attempts to redefine partnerships with suppliers in the context of a ""win-win"" objective. It will outline the measurable benefits to both partners through a representative product which highlights the keynote structure of any successful supplier partnership The Status Quo...Mines all over North America are plagued with the same recurring questions, ""Who has the best product for my operation at the lowest price... How do we know a product will perform to a supplier's projections after the sale...What do we do if the product fails to perform as expected?"" These questions have been asked by underground mining operators for decades but rarely have long-term solutions with measurable results been achieved.The LHD industry is one example of the status quo where partnerships will provide large gains toward technological advancement, reducing mobile equipment costs. The underground mining industry is out of sync with their surface counterparts in the open pit business.Partnerships with suppliers in the open pit world are not only a standard practice but a culture which has existed for decades. Open pit operators enjoy concepts which fix their mobile equipment costs for the life of the mine and hold the equipment supplier accountable for performance and fleet economics for 60 000 service hours and longer.Manufacturers are attempting to transfer this culture into the underground mining industry. Figure I illustrates the significance of a capital driven decision."

Jan 1, 1994

By Juan C. Ramírez

La deficiencia de un plan de minado a largo plazo en yacimientos mineros de cielo abierto, responde a fluctuaciones inaceptables de la ley del mineral como el minado prematuro de zonas de desmonte, plataformas insuficientes, distribución heterogénea del equipo, entre otros problemas causados por la ausencia de un plan. En este sentido, el plan de corto plazo (seis meses) no asegura el funcionamiento de una mina que oscila normalmente entre 15 o 20 años de vida. Por tal motivo, el presente trabajo señala los parámetros que influyen en el planeamiento de largo plazo en minas a cielo abierto como la de la mina Cuajone, puesto que estos son semejantes y se puede preveer la existencia de problemas de operaciones.

Aug 26, 1988

By Hugo Villanueva

En la actualidad, el supervisor de mina busca optimizar las operaciones de minado para mejorar la productividad del yacimiento minero. Sin embargo, la información recibida sobre minería sin rieles es escaza, así como la experiencia en este sistema. Por ello, el supervisor se limita a esta forma incipiente del sistema. En este sentido, el objeto del texto es otorgar a los supervisores una herramienta que les permita programar o corregir alguna anomalía del sistema de operación a través de una breve descripción del sistema de explotación, standars de operación, definición del standard, cálculo de las asignaciones, standard de las fases principales y el standard de excavación.

Nov 20, 1978

The geotechnical factors controlling the design of the open pit slopes of the Pasminco Century Mine near Lawn Hill, Queensland are presented below. Pasminco Century is a stratiform shale hosted zinc deposit in the Lawn Hill Formation that is overlain in part by the Thorntonia Limestone Formation. Both the mineralisation and overburden is located within a competent rock mass such that intact rock strength and discontinuity spacing is generally sufficient to prevent large-scale slope failure by breakage through the rock mass. Rather, overall slope stability issues are dominated by the major discontinuities within the rock mass. The deposit is located in a structurally complex regime, it consists of a synclinal basin which is truncated by easterly striking normal faults through its centre and northern and southern limits and by an unconformity on its eastern and western margins. Deposit geometry and slope stability is further complicated by small-scale folding, a pattern of northeast and southeast striking subvertical faults and north easterly dipping thrust faults with their associated fault emplaced blocks of Lawn Hill Formation in the overburden. The large size of the deposit requires a staged mining approach with the excavation of both final pit walls around the external sides of each stage and interim pit walls along the internal boundaries between adjacent stages. The deposit geometry and major discontinuities control not only the final pit wall design but also interim wall location and orientation, excavation sequence and in some stages the excavation schedule. Two and three-dimensional limit equilibrium stability analyses were conducted using both deterministic and probabilistic approaches to determine appropriate pit wall design criteria and to select a suitable excavation sequence and schedule.

Jan 1, 2000

By Douglas J. Pendrell, Marvin D. Simmons, E. Raymond Boc

The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers is in the early stages of design for an estimated 14 m (46 ft) diameter tunnel in northeast New Jersey. This tunnel will carry flood waters from the upper end of the Pompton River in Wayne County, to an outlet in Newark Bay, a distance of 33 km (20.5 miles). The tunnel will be constructed by a tunnel boring machine (TBM), the size of which is unprecedented at the present time. The alignment is through Triassic and Jurassic sandstones, siltstones, and shales that include three beds of basalt that range in thickness from 76 to 310 m (250 to 1020 ft).

Jan 1, 1991

By J. Kempken, T. A. Schreiter, R. Degel, H. Schmieden

Keywords: Pyrometallurgy, SMS Demag, Germany, submerged arc furnace, ferro alloys, non-ferrous, FeCr, FeNi, FeMn, copper, cobalt, slag cleaning, PGM, rectangular furnace After a short summary of the SMS Metallurgy part of the SMS group, the paper will focus on Submerged Arc furnace technology. After general aspects of furnace design, the focus will shift to different applications and their specific furnace requirements. Finally, a state-of-the-art design tool as well as a new invention to improve slag-cleaning technology will be featured.

Jan 1, 2006

By T Suwa, S Ishida, J Xue, S Fuchida, H Shimada, Y Aoki, C Tokoro

Pyrite depression with prolonged pre-conditioning treatment in high salinity water has attracted much of researchers’ interest in recent years considering the increased utilisation of multiple stage flotation, closed water circuits, clay minerals, and sea water in flotation plants. In this study, the role of calcium (Ca)/magnesium (Mg) precipitates in stabilising the dissociative ferric hydroxy-xanthate (FHX), and its effect on modifying the balance of hydrophobic/hydrophilic species on the pyrite surface were primarily investigated. The total amount of extractable Fe-bearing species on pyrite concentrates and tailings after floatability test was quantitively determined using ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) extraction tests combined with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). A more evident accumulation of extracted-Fe in pyrite concentrates rather than it in pyrite tailings was observed at both pH 9 and 10.5 when pyrite was pre-conditioned in Ca/Mg-bearing solutions for 360 min. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy showed the main xanthate derivatives changed from di-xanthogen (1155 cm-1 ) to FHX (1167 cm-1 ) on the oxidised pyrite samples that were preconditioned in Ca/Mg-bearing solutions. Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS) suggested the preferential accumulation of FHX upon secondary Ca/Mg-bearing precipitates as reflected by the higher Fe/S ratio together with the decrease of O element herein after xanthate conditioning. Although the hydrophilic secondary Ca/Mg/Fe-bearing minerals on the pyrite surface generally deteriorate pyrite’s floatability, the upper section of these secondary hydrophilic aggregates is partially covered by FHX alongside with further multilayer-adsorbed di-xanthogen. The precipitated Ca/Mg-bearing precipitates promotes the immobilisation of dissociated FHX derived from the reaction among iron oxyhydroxides and xanthate anions upon the localised secondary Ca/Mg/Fe-bearing minerals via acid–base complexation. Therefore, this phenomenon alleviates the hydrophilic modification of secondary Ca/Mg/Fe-bearing minerals to pyrite considering the immobilised FHX upon localised precipitates shows a slight hydrophobicity, and meanwhile, the upper FHX benefits the multilayer adsorption of di-xanthogen via the interaction among their inner hydrophobic alkyl chains.

Aug 24, 2022

By J. -F. Lepage, M. A. Tomlinson, K. K. Murray

"The Éléonore mine, located in the James Bay region of Northern Quebec, generates a gold bearing flotation concentrate rich in pyrrhotite. Direct leaching of the finely ground concentrate results in high cyanide consumptions and poor recoveries, so effective pre-treatment to passivate the pyrrhotite is required before leaching. Following a number of process upsets at the mine, test work was performed to better understand the requirements for passivation so a more effective operational strategy could be implemented. This paper outlines the testing and implementation of the new strategy at Éléonore.ÉLÉONORE CONCENTRATOR The Éléonore mine is located 800 km north of Montreal, in the James Bay Region of Quebec, Canada. The ore, containing gold disseminated in sulfide minerals and free fine gold in silicate gangue, is crushed in a two-stage crusher plant before being ground in a single 9,000 kW ball mill. The ball mill is in closed circuit, with about 25% of the cyclone underflow passing through a gravity plant with two, 48” Knelson concentrators. Gold recovery in the gravity circuit varies between 15 and 20%, with gravity concentrate leached daily in an Acacia intensive leach reactor. Cyclone overflow, at a target P80 of 65 microns, flows to the flotation plant where the gold bearing sulfide minerals, mainly pyrrhotite and arsenopyrite, are recovered to concentrate with a mass pull of about 5%. The flotation concentrate, typically containing between 80 and 120 g/t of gold, is thickened and finely ground using a 1500 kW Isa Mill. The finely ground concentrate is diluted, to generate a slurry with about 32% solids by weight, before feeding the leach plant. Initially the concentrate slurry is pre-treated with oxygen and lead nitrate, to passivate the sulphide minerals before cyanide is added for gold dissolution. Gold is recovered from the leached slurry using carbon-in-pulp (CIP). The flotation tailings are also thickened and gold is recovered in a dedicated leach-CIP plant."

Jan 1, 2017

By R. A. Lowe, P. B. Malla

Smectite is a common impurity in the kaolins of Georgia.This impurity is harmful to the low-shear rheology of kaolin slurries in concentrations as low as a few weight percent. The deleterious effect of smectite on the low-shear rheology is due to the swelling of the mineral. Montmorillonite containing clays were treated to precipitate a compact brucite layer {Mg(OH)2} in the interlayer region of the expandable layer silicate mineral. This treatment forms ahydroxy-Mg-montmorillonite with characteristics similar to chlorite. This treatment effectively reduces the swelling capacity of the mineral and improves the rheological properties of kaolin slurries contaminated with smectite impurities.

Jan 1, 1999

By R. A. Lowe

Smectite is a common impurity in the kaolins of Georgia. This impurity is harmful to the low-shear rheology of kaolin slurries in concentrations as low as a few weight percent. The deleterious effect of smectite on the low-shear rheology is due to the swelling of the mineral. Montmorillonite containing clays were treated to precipitate a compact brucite layer {Mg(OH)2} in the interlayer region of the expandable layer silicate mineral. This treatment forms a hydroxy-Mg-montmorillonite with characteristics similar to chlorite. This treatment effectively reduces the swelling capacity of the mineral and improves the rheological properties of kaolin slurries contaminated with smectite impurities.

Jan 1, 1999

By A. G. Mattes

This paper presents an overview of passive, engineered, biologically-based anaerobic bioreactor (ABR) treatment systems of the sort that can be used to remove dissolved copper from mine wastewaters. The paper begins with a brief history of the origins of this treatment technology and continues with a discussion of principles of engineered wetlands (EWs, advanced kinds of constructed wetlands, CWs) and the use of vertical sub-surface flow (VSSF) varieties that contain pulp & paper biosolids as the reactive medium for EW cells. A brief outline of a procedural methodology used in evaluating the potential for biological treatment on a site-specific basis is also included. An introduction to the microbiology of passive biologically-based treatment systems is followed by some recent research results in the general area of wetlands and ABR research. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of several sites known by the authors to have successfully (or not) demonstrated the potential of this treatment option.

Jan 1, 2007

By L. Alan Weakly

Coal mines and power plants utilize different methods to control dust for the safety of their workers and to protect their installations. The methods that they use are limited by the Environmental Protection Agency or the states in which they operate. Now there is a new technology for controlling dust at conveyor transfers! The Passive Enclosure Dust Control System utilizes several proven technologies to mitigate fugitive dust. This new system has been proven to be four times more effective than standard enclosures utilizing bag house collection and is considerably less expensive to install and operate.

Jan 1, 2000

By G. L. Mowrey

A new coal interface detection (CID) method is under investigation by the U.S. Bureau of Mines. This novel concept is based on utilizing a passive infrared system (FIR) to measure temperature changes associated with the cutting of coal and adjacent strata. For this method to work successfully, a definite mechanical/hardness contrast must exist between coal and rock. Advantages include that FIR responds instantaneously at the coal-rock interface and it is minimally affected by dust and/or water sprays. Based on preliminary tests, results indicate that the PIR method can be applied successfully in mines having a hard immediate roof.

Jan 1, 1990

By S. Murdock, R. L. Fleischer, H. W. Alter, J. E. Gingrich

The use of solid state track deters allows totally passive, integrating measurements of 222Rn (radon) or of 220Rn (thoron) plus radon. A track-detecting solid is placed in a holder that is closed by a selective membrane and exposed to the atmosphere of interest to produce an accurately time-averaged record over times of interest that range typically from a week to a year. By selection of the proper membranes, dosimetry can be done for radon or for the sum of radon and thoron. A different membrane is appropriate for measuring radon under humid conditions such as are found in the ground. Large numbers of measurements have been made with these systems both in the ground, where radon levels are high, and in indoor environments, where levels are orders of magnitude less. Calibrations have been carried out at both high and low concentrations of radon. New results in the air at the site of the Shirley Basin mine and mill give reproducible results with month-long integrating periods. The off-site background levels are in the range 0.7 to 1.0 pCi/l (26-37 Bq/m3). The average yearlong on-site level is 1.5 pCi/l (56 Bq/m3); at the mill it is 2.6 pCi/l (96 Bq/m3); and the level measured at the backhoe in the open pit mine is 3.9 pCi/l (144 Bq/m3). The region of significantly elevated radon levels is confined to a radius of 1.6 km of the mine and mill. All of the on-site radon concentrations are less than but comparable to the typical values found in the living areas of modern energy-efficient homes.

Jan 1, 1981

By B. Yamamoto, D. Post, J. De Leon, A. Meike

"This paper describes the theory, design, building, and testing of the passive magnetic bearing stabilizing system which is the core of the passive magnetic bearing system. The stabilizing system is made up of two large magnetic disks opposing themselves with a stabilizing disk in the center which allows the system to self-locate in a null position without the need for external power sources or sensors. When outside forces act upon the stabilizer, the magnetic fields interact with the stabilizing plate to return the system to its null position. Collaboration between two industry leaders has allowed an actual prototype to be built and tested providing real data to prove out the theory.INTRODUCTIONMagnetic bearing/stabilizer systems have many advantages over conventional mechanical bearing systems. These include near-zero drag losses and no need for lubrication since the rotating elements make no mechanical contact with the stationary elements of the bearing system. However all magnetic bearing systems must contend with a constraint known as Earnshaw’s Theorem in the early 1800’s, this theorem asserts the impossibility of constructing a stable, non-contacting, electrostatic or magnetostatic levitation system using only fixed charges or fixed magnetic poles, such as those produced by permanent magnets. Because of the constraint imposed by Earnshaw’s Theorem virtually all present-day commercial magnetic bearing systems are of the “active” type. That is, they employ electromagnets that are powered by amplifiers the inputs to which come from sensors embedded in the bearing system. These sensors are a part of a feedback loop that operates to keep the levitated rotating parts of the bearing stable and centered. The resulting complexity means that active magnetic bearings are expensive, require periodic maintenance, and continuously consume electrical power to energize their amplifiers and their electromagnets.Passive magnetic bearings are, of course, also subject to the constraints imposed by Earnshaw’s Theorem but they solve this problem in a straightforward and simple way, with only “passive” elements that take advantage of a loophole implicit in the derivation of Earnshaw’s Theorem. This loophole is that Earnshaw’s Theorem as derived applies only to static systems, i.e. an assembly of stationary permanent magnets arranged so as to levitate an object containing other permanent magnets. The theorem can be overcome if dynamic effects are taken into account. In active magnetic bearings the “dynamic effects” involve the afore-mentioned sensors, amplifiers, and electromagnets."

Jan 1, 2012

By A. J. Hudson, M. R. Yenchek

Faulty insulators on mine trolley/track haulageways may allow leakage of currents into the mine roof, which may ultimately result in the combustion of the roof material. The National Institute for Occupa¬tional Safety and Health (NIOSH), Pittsburgh Research Laboratory (PRL), devised a passive means to detect overheating insulators on di¬rect current systems. The detector consists of a spring- loaded car¬tridge that ejects a reflective streamer of white Teflon tape when subjected to elevated temperatures. The cartridge assembly can easily be installed over the outer metallic shell of an existing trolley line insu¬lator. If an insulator overheats due to ground leakage currents, the vis¬ible streamer alerts mine personnel traveling on the haulageway.

Jan 1, 2000

By M. J. Sapko

The design requirements for mine ventilation seals have undergone a radical transformation in recent years, and these revisions have greatly increased the cost of the seal designs and their construction. For example, in the past two years, new federal regulations have increased the minimum design requirement to withstand explosion pressures from 138 kPa (20 psig) to 345 kPa (50 psig) or 827 kPa (120 psig), depending on whether the sealed mine volume is monitored continuously or not. Moreover, there is still a possibility that under certain conditions (such as detonations) even higher pressure requirements may be necessary. The ability of a monolithic, stand-alone mine seal to reliably withstand the full range of current and future pressures is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive. In an effort to develop a practical alternative, the West Virginia Office of Miners? Health Safety and Training (WVOMHST) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have collaborated in a research effort to develop a practical, economic, and safe mine sealing technique that can enable mines seals to meet the full range of new explosion pressure design requirements. The basic idea is to use a barrier of common mine gob and rubble in combination with a conventional mine seal so that the pressure resulting from a gas explosion is reflected, absorbed, and attenuated, so the pressure on the ventilation seal is reduced. This paper discusses some concepts and preliminary test results for a ?Passive Mine Blast Attenuator? (PMBA) that can provide a useful alternative to increasingly larger and stronger stand-alone mine seals. Numerical models and full-scale experiments conducted at the NIOSH Lake Lynn Laboratory Experimental Mine (LLEM) show that the use of a PMBA can signficantly reduce the blast pressure and impulse on conventional ventilation seals. DISCLAIMER: This information is distributed solely for the purpose of pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines. It has not been formally disseminated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy.

Jan 1, 2009