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The work to be described is part of a comprehensive research on the influence of impurities on the properties of lead. The author had previously compared an electrolytic lead containing less than 0.002% total impurities with a commercial lead containing 0.008% impurities (excluding oxygen) and had shown that the former recrystallised more readily than the latter under the same conditions of cold work and annealing. This difference in properties was attributed to the difference in purity. Electrolytic lead containing only 0.0005% total impurities has been prepared and cast in vacuo. Some interesting effects have been obtained by working and annealing this lead, and by adding silver to it. The preparation of this lead, and the effects obtained thereon, are described in this paper. Thepaper is divided into the following sections:(I) Preparation of electrolytic lead.(II) Vacuum Casting.(III) Effect of Cold, Work and Annealing on two Electrolytic Leads, having 0.002% and 0.0005% Total Impurities respectively.1 Research Fellow, Dept. of Metallurgy, University of Melbourne.2 Proc. Aust. lnst. Min. Met., 1932, 87, 145.

Jan 1, 1934

By R. Thornton

Montana Tech is located in the historic mining town of Butte, MT and is adjacent to the Orphan Boy mine. This abandoned underground mine will be the heat source for a down-hole heat exchanger (DHE)/heat pump system. The mine was abandoned in the 1950?s and has since filled with water to within approximately 30 m of the surface. The shaft is composed of a 245 m vertical shaft connected with horizontal crosscut drifts at 60 m and 150 m below the water level that connect to a large stope with approximately 1250 million liters of water at a consistent 75-78°F temperature. The intent is to build this heating system to augment or fully heat a newly built 2,000 m2 building on the Montana Tech campus. As designed the system uses ?off-the-shelf? parts making the basic configuration straightforward with the exception of the DHE?s which need to be placed into the vertical shaft. Because there is little or no examples of placing the heat exchangers in a vertical shaft, the primary focus of this work was to model the heat exchanger placement and configuration in the vertical shaft such that thermal currents develop between the stope and vertical shaft in, via the horizontal crosscut drifts, in order to move the water and thereby provide the required energy. This study includes the modeling of water flow, temperature profiles, and the heat contribution from the surrounding rock walls.

Feb 27, 2013

Worldwide minerals exploration slipped in 1992 from 1991 levels. Although industrial production figures showed the US economy emerging from recession in early 1992, it was not until February 1993 that the lagging indicator of unemployment dropped to 7%. Most other industrialized countries are still in recession. Preliminary data for 1992 showed industrial production dropping in Japan (5%), Germany (1.4%), the United Kingdom (0.5%) and France (1.4%). The slowdown in industrial production led to reduced mineral demand. This resulted in lean cash flows from mining operations, which squeezed exploration funding. Although mineral prices were steady during most of 1992, some mineral commodity prices began falling in late 1992 and early this year. Exploration 1991-1992 According to Metals Economics Group (MEG), planned 1992 exploration expenditures were down by about 5%. Geographically, the leading exploration target was the United States with 21 % of the expenditures, followed by Australia (19%), Canada (18%), Latin America (15%), South Africa (9%) and the western Pacific (7.5%). The remaining 10% was split between Europe and Africa. There were absolute increases in exploration expenditures in the United States and Latin America. Latin America showed the largest increase. The change in the Mexican mining law allowing foreign ownership of mines should result in the inflow of direct foreign investment in Mexico's mining industry.

Jan 1, 1993

By J. K. Lemley

The human element in large measure dictates success in contracting relationships. Because of our professional backgrounds, we view contracts primarily as either engineers, contractors or owners. A beneficial contractual environment--one in which decisions, risks and benefits are shared--demands equal consideration of all three points of view. Most of the older cities in the United States, for example, suffer from bad contracts--generalized, patched-together documents that represent an accumulation of modifications originally written to compensate for specific situations that have occurred over the years. Because such documents lack coherence, they often present conflicting instructions which lead to defensive, ultimately destructive attitudes among the parties involved in the day-to-day administration of the project. Good contract development begins with a strong central philosophy to which the details of the contract can be related. First, the owner should establish a comprehensive philosophy in which risks between the parties are identified. Following this, a specific contract document can be written to satisfy this established philosophy. The contrast between two opposed contractual situations, NYC Water Tunnel Number Three and the Seabrook Nuclear Power Plant Cooling Water Tunnels, illustrates how comprehensive, well-written contracts--contracts which share both risks and benefits--provide the basis for achieving quality construction that will reward engineer, contractor and owner.

Jan 1, 1983

By Manuel Sanchéz

Para las empresas mineras, la búsqueda de buenas condiciones con los clientes y la optimización de los procesos involucrados en la cadena de valor, es uno de sus principales objetivos. En este sentido, el presente texto señala las estrategias y soluciones que priorizen y mejore la calidad de las decisiones en la empresa.

May 25, 1998

By G. G. Krishna Murthy

Interactions of wustite and hematite pellets with Fe-C melts were investigated experimentally by examining the effect of pellet size and bath temperature on the reduction rates of the pellets. Experiments were carried out in the temperature range 1473-1923 K. A flash X-ray equipment was used to obtain images of the melt surface during its reaction with an oxide pellet. The reduction rates were calculated using experimentally estimated time for complete reaction of a pellet, tR. The value of tR was determined employing gas mass flow rate, or pressure rise in the sealed furnace, versus time traces. The value of tR was the same for both wustite and hematite pellets of equal weight at or above 1723 K and it decreased with increasing melt temperature. But the reduction rate was substantially lower at temperatures below 1651 K, the melting point of wustite. The rates were defined as the rate of moles of oxygen removed from the pellet per unit area of bath free surface and it was found that the bath surface area affects the reduction rates. It was established that the overall reaction followed nth-order rate kinetics with the values of n falling between 0.3 and 0.4 for temperatures above the melting point of wustite. The apparent activation energy determined using the apparent rate constants obtained from the experimental data was 76.2 + 27.7 kJ/mol-O.

Jan 1, 1992

By AIME AIME

FEATURES of the second fall meeting of the Petroleum Division for 1941, held at the Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles, Oct. 29-30, were the forum on the Paloma Plan on Thursday after- noon, the large attendance from east of the Rockies, and the dinner on Wednesday evening sponsored by the Southern California Section and at which President Suman spoke on the strategic minerals and metals situation. The attendance was large and the technical fare uniformly good ; the presiding officers had the proceedings well in hand at all times and kept things humming. Some- times it was necessary to taper off the discussion because of pressure on time. All this was due to careful groundwork before the respective sessions. These presiding officers deserve citation: L. W. Huebel, Howard Pyle, E. K. Parks, Carlton Beal, E. G. Trostel. R. W. French, Jr., John Dodge, and H. N. Marsh. The Los Angeles local commit- tees and the Southern California Section deserve much credit for the arrangements, which were recognized by suitable resolutions at the end of the meeting.

Jan 1, 1941

By R. Adsero

The analysis of equipment trends in AUSIMM?s Revision of Monograph 19; Australasian Mining and Metallurgy Operating Practices (AMMOP) in the paper by Dight et al (in press) raised some interesting and in parts disturbing trends in the Open Cut Mining Industry. According to the US Bureau of Labour Statistics the US mining and petroleum industries? productivity is down by 12% since 2004 while the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows the productivity of the Australian mining industry is down by 34% since 2001. In terms of open cut equipment median output for draglines is down by 15% since 2003; electric rope shovels are down by 41% since 2003; hydraulic excavators are down by 39% since 2008; front end loaders are down by 39% since 2007 and trucks are down by 41% since 2006. Clearly the boom has not been good for the efficiency of the mines. During this same time, best practice (defined as the average of the top 10% by annual output per unit of input) has declined but not by as much as the median (eg. shovels down by 8%, excavators down by 19% and FEL?s down by 5%). This paper will build on the analysis of AMMOP to understand the differences occurring between median and best practice and identify the factors contributing to the decline in performance. As the industry enters a period of potentially lower prices for commodities and reduced margins pressure will be brought to bear on mine sites to start moving more with the equipment they have. An understanding of where efficiency has been lost will be a key component in that. The information contained in AMMOP, and the subsequent analysis of that information in papers such as this one will be crucial to reversing the decline in open cut equipment performance.

Feb 27, 2013

By C. J. Guntner, R. P. Reed

A commercial 18Cr-8Ni iron alloy (AISI 304L) was examined in tension at 300°, 76°, 20°, and 4°K. Continuous stress-strain recordings were made, X-ray analyses at periodic stress (strain) intervals were obtained, and the magnetic measurements were taken. From this data the percentage of martensitic products [bcc(a) and hcp (E)] was computed as a function of stress (strain). It was found thatup to 15 pct E phase forms at low temperntures. The amount of E formed increases to a maximum at about 5 pct strain, then decreases. This decrease indicates the additional transformation of E to a'. The total amount of E and a' was suppressed at constant stress (strain) at 4°K as compared to 76°K. It is proposed that the suppression of E and a' is associated with the decreased mobility of extended dislocations at very low temperatures. The yield strength decreased as the temperature was depressed below room temperature and then increased rapidly near 4°K. SOME ferrous alloys which are austenitic (fcc ?) at room temperature appear to be unique in that two martensitic products (hcp e and bcc a') may form on cooling to lower temperatures or on application of mechanical stress. The most common room-temperature austenitic ferrous alloys are 18Cr, 8Ni stainless steels. Most aspects of the spontaneous transformations have been previously described for these steels.' Several previous papers have described special aspects of the stress-induced transformations at low temperatures for the stainless steels, such as the existence of the hcp phase (c) after straining at 76oK,2-7 the morphology after straining using electron microscopy,7 and the decrease in E at higher strains at 76oK.4 However, for a complete representation, one must know the stress-strain characteristics and the dependence of both martensitic products on applied stress and temperature. It is the intention of this paper to provide that documentation. To accomplish this, continuous stress vs strain recordings were made at four temperatures: 300°, 76", 20°, and 4°K for annealed AISI 304L (a commercial 18Cr-8Ni alloy). At periodic stress intervals at each temperature the integrated X-ray line intensity of a selected peak for each phase (y, E, and a') was measured. In addition, photomicrographs of the strained surfaces were taken and magnetic measurements were made. The magnetic readings can be directly converted into percent a'.',e With these measurements the percentage of each phase may be plotted as a function of stress (or strain) and test temperature. It was found that up to 15 pct E phase forms upon stressing the AISI 304L alloy at low temperatures. The E percentage increases abruptly after the alloy yields, but then decreases gradually at higher stresses. The rapid increase in e at 76°K is associated with an "easy-glide" portion of the stress-strain curve. The total amount of a' + .G is suppressed below 76°K at a constant stress or strain. The yield strength decreases down to 76°K but increases rapidly below 20°K. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE Tensile test specimens were cut parallel to the rolling direction from 0.1-in.-thick sheet. Continuous stress vs strain recordings were obtained at each test temperature (300°, 76o, 20°, and 4°K) using equipment and methods described elsewhere.' The specimens which were used in the X-ray analysis were stressed to successive increments of strain at each temperature, analyzed at room temperature, then restressed at the test temperature. This procedure was repeated until approximately ten X-ray analyses had been performed with approximately 1.0 pct strain increments. The specimens had a reduced section 1 in. long, 1.2 in. wide, and 0.1 in. thick. They were electro polished prior to testing and after each strain increment. Table I lists the chemical composition, grain size, and hardness for the alloy which was used. This is the same alloy for which extensive mechanical-property tests3 and morphological studies of the spontaneous transformations' have previously been made. For the low-temperature tests (76o and 4°K) below the Ms temperature the specimens were initially cooled to the test temperature, held for 1/2 hr, then warmed and X-rayed at room temperature. The results are listed in Table 11. From earlier work8 it was known that additional transformation on the second cycle would be considerably less (-0.1 pct

Jan 1, 1964

OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES OF LOCAL SECTIONS AIME Committee on Local Section Affairs Roger Pierce, Chairman Carleton C Long Thomas C Frick AIME Committee on Student Chapter Affairs John P Nielson, Chairman John C Calhoun, Jr J R Van Pelt, Jr Council of Section Delegates A A Burr, Chairman (Hudson-Mohawk) Ralph A Watson, Vice-Chairman (North Pacific) L G Neely, Secretary (West Central Texas) INTERIM COMMITTEE M O Langham (East Texas), Fulton J Olivier (Delta), L W Smith (Niagara Frontier), G R Spindler (Central Appalachian) LOCAL SECTIONS (There are 78 Local Sections in the United States, 9 Foreign) ADIRONDACK Established June 18, 1952 Official year begins in April Meets fourth Saturday monthly, April through October Seven meetings annually Local Section Dues AIME Members $2, Nonmembers $3 Charles F Dievendorf, Chairman Severn P Brown, Vice-Chairman George E Erdman, Secretary-Treasurer Gouverneur Talc Co , Inc Gouverneur, N Y Malcolm V Lowry, '60, Section Delegate Committees Membership David J Crawford, Chairman Program Brower Dellinger, Chairman Student Affairs Eugene A Eastman, Chairman

Jan 1, 1959

Block caving is an underground mining method for the profitable extraction of massive, low-grade orebodies. Lately, it has become the mining method of choice, for many mining companies, because of depleted high-grade orebodies, and declining metal market prices. Block cave mining, however, still faces several challenges. Lack of access to the cave remains a major issue in understanding the rockmass response to mining for method optimisation. Improving our understanding of the rockmass response to caving will lead to safer and more productive operations. Combining large datasets from multiple sources with virtual reality scientific visualisation (VRSV) is a viable alternative to understanding complex cave behaviour without access to the cave. This is achieved using immersive environments with the ability to view complex multi-dimensional data (beyond 3D) graphically. VRSV offers a unique platform where it becomes possible to immerse the multi-disciplinary experts, and/or management team, in a virtual mine environment for quick decision making and fast resolution to conflicting conclusions. The underground mining system is complex due to multiple interrelating factors such as geology, excavation geometries, stress and time. Block caving is even more complex than most underground mining methods due to the network of tunnels required, and the use of induced stress, among others. As a consequence of the complexity in the block caving environment, it is vital that the mining system is analysed holistically, as a system, rather than optimizing individual factors one at a time. This paper presents a customised software module developed for use in the Advanced Visualisation Interactive Environment (AVIE) at The University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, to enable VRSV investigation into block cave mining systems (BCMS). This approach has the potential to provide a better understanding of the effect of time in in rock engineering, which has proven to be an important factor in hard rock mines (Ma & Daemen, 2006; Malan et al., 1997; Suorineni, 2010) but never validated. This work back analyses the early undercutting phase of a case study block caving operation with the view to understanding time/sequence effects. There is evidence that heterogeneous rockmass time-dependent behaviour governs the seismic response of the rockmass following undercut developments.

Jan 1, 2015

By Hyung-woo Kim, Kiyoung Sung, Sup Hong, Jung-Yeul Jung

Many concepts for the commercial production of deep-seabed manganese nodules have been studied since the 1970s. However, the bearing capacity of the deep seabed is not strong because it is composed of fine particles with high moisture content. So it is impossible to carry manganese nodules in the collection system. Therefore, the validity of continuous mining by riser pipe from the seabed to the vessel is highly appreciated. A continuous mining system is composed of mining vessel, lifting pipe, buffer system, transport tube (flexible pipe), and self-propelled mining robot. A conceptual diagram of this system is shown in Fig. 1(a). Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO) developed a deep-seabed self-propelled mining robot called "MineRo" to collect manganese nodules in 2012 (as shown in Fig. 1(b)). In 2013, real sea experiments at around 1380 m depth were carried out to evaluate the collecting and driving performance of MineRo. However, we found that the roller in MineRo did not work well at times. To elucidate the problem, we analyzed the rheological characteristics between the bushing and drive shaft under deep-water conditions.

Sep 1, 2014

Les Mines Inmet ? La Division Troilus exploite une mine d?or à ciel ouvert depuis 1996 et produit un concentré de cuivre. La Division Troilus est localisée à 175 KM au nord de la ville de Chibougamau? au 51 parallèle.

Feb 1, 2008

By John J. Stetler

Introduction Samarco Mineracao S.A. is a Brazilian corporation jointly owned by S.A. Mineracao da Trindade (SAMITRI) and Utah International Inc., with 51% and 49% interests respectively. Headquartered in Belo Horizonte in the state of Minas Gerais, Samarco owns and operates an open-pit mine capable of producing 10 Mt/a (11 million stpy) of iron ore; a concentrator rated at 7 Mt (7.7 million st); a 12-Mt (13.2-million st) capacity pipeline transportation system; a 7 Mt (7.7 million st) filtering and pelletizing plant; and a harbor facility. The mine, concentrator, and initial pipeline pump station are located at Germano, near the town of Mariana, about 300 km (186 mi) north of Rio de Janeiro by air. The pipeline terminal, pellet plant, and harbor are at Point Ubu, 70 km (43 mi) south of Vitória the capital city of Espirito Santo State, and about 300 km (186 mi) by air east of the mine. The 396-km (246-mi) pipeline uses 508-mm (20-in.) pipe except for a 53-km (33-mi) section where 457-mm (18-in.) pipe is used to absorb and control slack flow through increased velocity in one of the areas along the route. Iron Ore Slurry The hematite iron ore concentrate produced at the Germano plant is processed by grinding the average 53% run-of-mine itabirite iron ore to -150 µm (100 mesh) for gangue liberation. It is treated further by cyclones to remove the 10 µm (1250 mesh) slimes to prepare the ore for flotation. During the multistage cationic flotation operation, the silica is reduced to make low silica (-0.9%) concentrate for the direct reduction (DR) iron-making process or to make normal silica (-3.5% +2.5%) concentrate for the blast furnace (BF) iron-making process. The concentrate then is reground further to meet the particle size requirements for pelletizing. The reground hematite concentrate is screened in closed circuit with the regrind mills for close control of the maximum particle size, not to exceed 3.5% +75 µm (200 mesh) for pipeline wear protection. Thickened concentrates at 70% solids are pumped to four 5-kt (5,510-st)(dry) agitated slurry storage tanks that hold the feed before it goes to the first pipeline system pumping station. Pipeline Capacity The pipeline system was designed to transport 12 Mt/a (13.2 million stpy) at 65% solids with an average minimum safe operating velocity of 1.5 m/s (5 fps). The pipeline will transport 5 Mt (5.5 million st) in 1982. The system, therefore, is moving the slurry in 13-kt (14,330-st) batches, dispatched at intervals to move 20 kt/d (22,050 stpd). In operation, the pipeline has exceeded its 93% availability design factor. Pipeline Facilities Pump station No. 1 is located at the Germano minesite 1 km (3,330 ft) above sea level. It has the following principal equipment: • four 5 kt (5,510-st) (dry) agitate slurry storage tanks; • two centrifugal charge pumps (one stand-by); • a 217-m (712-ft) safety loop; • seven mainline positive displacement triplex plunger pumps (189 m3/h, or 832 gpm, at 14.9 MPa, or 2,162 psi, maximum output pressure); • four corrosion-erosion spools; • a control and command center. Operation The output at pump station No. 1, with 66% solids, is pumped 151

Jan 10, 1982

The method of investigation was to study the distribution of ore in great detail, to make a thorough structural study of the lode and the mine area, and then to compare the results of the two studies. Such a comparison usually reveals a very close relationship between geological structure and ore distribution, and can often lead to important conclusions which would not be reached in the ordinary working of a mine.The Triton mine lies 30 miles E.N.E. of Cue, or 380 miles N.W. of Kalgoorlie, in typical pre-Cambrian rocks, consisting of gTeenstone lavas and tuft's, interbedded with slates and some sediments, and intruded by granite and porphyry. Fig. 1 (at end of paper) is a longitudinal section of the mine and shows that the workings consist of the main North Emu and the smaller South Emu, separated by a distance of about 1 of a mile. Both orebodies occur on the same lode, which strikes north and south and dips practically vertically. On the same line, and of 1/2 a mile and a mile respectively to the north of the North Emu, are the small Rand and North Rand workings, where a big width of lode material has proved to be very low grade. In the North Emu the lode width averages 12 to 15 feet; it is seldom less than 5 feet and in places reaches 30 feet. In the South Emu the lode is wide, but only portion of it is payable.The lode is a mineralised bed occurring between massive lava flows on the east and a mixed series of tuft's and thin lava flows on the west. The lode material is hard, fine grained, and dark coloured, and generally has a faint banding which is believed to indicate a tuft'aceous origin of the original lode rock. Microscopic examination shows that the original lode rock has undergone considerable albitisation;' there has also been considerable formation of biotite which gives the lode material a characteristic sheen. The mineralisation consists of abundant fine pyrite, which is auriferous, and a lesser development of pyrrhotite which is, however, barren of gold.THE OREBODIES AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICSThe distribution of ore is best studied from gold contours, as these reveal features that cannot be detected in an ordinary assay section. Gold contours (see Fig. 3) are developed' by plotting the width and grade of all development and stoping assays throughout the mine on a longitudinal projection, representing each sample by a coloured dot according to a suitably chosen range of assay values, and then outlining areas of similarly coloured dots (see H. J. C. Conolly, Econ. Geol., April, 1936). Both width and grade must be taken into account and the simplest method of gold contouring is to use dwt.lft. values, but difficulties arise here with big widths of low grade and small widths of high grade ore. To choose an extreme case, 30 ft. of 2 dwts. and 2 ft. of 30 dwts. both equal 60 dwts.lft., and would therefore be given the same value in dwt.lft. contouring...

Jan 1, 1943

By Marco Muñoz

La mina Porvenir, perteneciente al Grupo Milpo, está ubicada en Cerro de Pasco, destacándose por la corporación de equipos de alta tecnología minera adecuada a sus operaciones. En ese sentido, el presente texto señala el sistema de gestión operativa aplicado en la mina Porvenir con el objetivo de apoyar las operaciones, ya que la tecnología de información permite manejar complejidad y mejorar la calidad de las decisiones.

Jul 17, 2000

Solid Energy New Zealand Limited has grown significantly since becoming a State Owned Enterprise in 1987. Exports, profit, turnover, output per employee are all trending upwards. The company has identified the management of Health and Safety as a key capability to sustain future growth, and to add value to the business. It has set a target of being the best practice in managing Health and Safety.   This paper examines the company's activities in the Health and Safety area, and how it sees that value can be added by preventing and containing losses through accidents involving people, property, process and the environment. Solid Energy is confident that a Planned approach to managing Health and Safety can achieve this. It will explore historical events, strategic changes, Health and Safety systems, Benchmarking, Performance Measures, initiatives, progress to date and challenges for the future.

Jan 1, 1997

By Marc C. Bétournay

A mine production locomotive, the world?s first applied industrial fuelcell vehicle, has been designed and tested in the context of a number of proof-of-concept projects supported by the Fuelcell Propulsion Institute, an international consortium of stakeholders dedicated to facilitate the commercialization of fuelcell vehicles. The locomotive?s simple electric-powered motor and controller system was ideal to study a number of requirements related to fuelcell power application: hydrogen power plant operation, underground hydrogen use, risk and regulatory requirements, production performance versus the conventional battery-powered locomotive version under measured duty cycles and production requirements, power plant design improvements for other fuelcell vehicles, and cost-benefit aspects. This article will focus on the design and testing aspects of this project which has led to successful performance demonstrations of the vehicle under surface and underground conditions at two mines. It will also present information on the creation of a safe, reliable and efficient power plant which fulfilled its design objectives, including longer productivity time for a given vehicle fill-up.

May 1, 2003

By H. I. Kim

The leaching of a complex matte in chlorine and chloride media was studied. The matte was prepared from manganese nodules by the reduction smelting-sulfidation route. From XRD analysis, the major phases of the matte were identified as CuFeS2, CuS2, (FeNi)9S8, (FeNi)S2, Ni9S8, Ni3S2, (CoFeNi)9S8 and Co metal. Investigated were the chlorine, hydrochloric acid, hydrochloric acid-oxygen, ferric chloride, ferric chloride-oxygen, cupric chloride and cupric chloride-oxygen systems. The results are discussed in terms of reagent concentration, retention time, leach temperature and gas sparging rate. The chlorination process resulted >99% metal extraction efficiency within a short retention time and at atmospheric temperature. However, there were no preferential extractions of Cu, Ni and Co with respect to Fe. The cupric chloride-oxygen system produced leach liquors with the lowest Fe content and with a high base-metal extraction. Sulfide sulfur was converted to mixtures of elemental sulfur and sulfate in all the studied systems.

Jan 1, 2009

By D. Bois, P. Keating, J. Lemieux, M. A. Vallée, M. Allard, R. S. Smith, L. Z. Cheng, M. Chouteau, D. K. Fountain

"As part of a larger research program, a number of MEGATEM airborne electromagnetic (EM) test flights were flown over the Gallen massive sulfide deposit in northwest Québec. A particularity of this test site is that a major part of the ore body was extracted before the MEGATEM survey. Therefore one of the purposes of this study was to verify the ability of the system to detect the remaining massive sulfides below the water in the open pit. The open pit is also surrounded by a metallic fence, and a power line is present in the vicinity. A large part of the case study involved accounting for the impact of infrastructure and acidic water on the survey, which will help in the interpretation of airborne EM responses in complex exploration situations.The Gallen deposit was also previously flown with the INPUT and GEOTEM airborne EM systems before the major exploitation period. A comparison between the results from the different survey results allows estimation of the physical properties of the Gallen deposit, which is a relatively poor conductor.A new method for removing the power line signal shows amplitudes with a smaller residual associated with the emanating fields, and more compact, cleaner responses associated with induced currents. This will make it easier to identify bedrock conductors close to power lines"

Jan 1, 2007