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Pilot plants for pressure hydrometallurgy represent special design and project execution challenges unique to the industry and to the pilot- and demonstration-scale. Pilot plant projects have different objectives and shorter timescales than commercial plant projects. Design considerations and strategies, and project execution methods that meet the special needs of pilot plant projects, are discussed. Specific guidance is given for the selection of appropriate pressure and temperature design points for pressure hydrometallurgical process equipment, and for the selection of materials of construction for pilot-scale equipment. The balance between the need for process similarity with future commercial operations and the realities of pilot-scale equipment is also discussed.

Jan 1, 2004

By D. C. Reid

This paper describes the latest results in research and development currently being undertaken by the CSIRO Mining Technology Group to advance the automation capability of continuous mining equipment in underground coal mining operations. This research delivers enabling technologies that are essential in achieving increased roadway development rates as well as providing a safer working environment for underground mine personnel. Details are presented on technical developments and results of large-scale above-ground experiments conducted under field-realistic conditions. These experiments demonstrate the performance of the ?self-steering? capability which will enable a continuous miner (CM) to automatically maintain a given mining heading and mining horizon under production conditions. A primary technical requirement of this automated functionality is the means to accurately determine both the location and orientation of the CM in real-time. Test results of a high performance navigation system utilising vehicle motion aiding technologies are presented. This system combines high performance inertial sensors, and custom-developed radar to achieve a navigation-grade guidance system. Comprehensive performance evaluation has been conducted using a scale skid-steer mobility platform operating autonomously through a typical roadway development mining pattern with a total path length of 2700 m and mission duration of 112 min. Results from this evaluation demonstrate that the sustained accuracy of the navigation system exceeds the original project expectations and is well suited to the requirements for this underground mining application. There are presently no known alternative methods for providing a practical and accurate three-dimensional guidance solution in this application. This achievement represents a significant milestone in delivering a step change improvement in underground coal mining roadway development.

Aug 1, 2013

By John H. Low

Introduction Despite the fact that the .association of magnetite with chrysotile asbestos in the parent producing area of the world, the Thetford Mines - Black Lake area, has been recognized since the ores of that region were first known, magnetic methods were not extensively employed in exploration for asbestos until about the beginning of 1949. Since then, large areas of Ontario, Quebec, and the eastern United States have been prospected both by aeromagnetic and conventional ground magnetic methods. Prior to 1949, a limited amount of magnetic work had been done, notably that of A.H. Miller (1, pp. 184-186), which was carried out in conjunction with the geological survey of the Thetford area by H. C. Cooke (2) in the years of 1930 to 1932. At that time, Miller pointed out that the occurrence of asbestos is associated with very large magnetic 'anomalies' and that, within the Pennington dyke, an area of asbestos- bearing peridotite could be distinguished, by the anomalies, from adjacent areas of non-asbestos ?-bearing peridotite. Since he .also observed large anomalies in what were believed to be ?barren areas, Miller concluded, however, that the magnetometer could hardly be of much or any value in the direct location of asbestos War .and post-war demands on known reserves of asbestos ore, however, stimulated the search for new deposits, and an economical and rapid method of directing speculative drilling was most desirable.

Jan 1, 1951

By M. C. Walton, W. Roelofs

ABSTRACT: In most cases, a refractory repair involves dealing with used refractory linings above shoulder height, defining these as overhead refractories. This paper details a method of personnel protection involving a low-pressure inflatable balloon system, installed to prevent the dislodgement and freefall of in-situ refractories. This system has been successfully applied to numerous types of vessels in the process industries in the last three to four years. This paper, prepared for the CIM Conference of Metallurgists held in Vancouver, British Columbia in October 2010, outlines details of the system and gives examples of successful applications.

Jan 1, 2012

By V. Vorontsov

Catalysts Mo-Ni-S were prepared by combining MoS2 and NiS in weight ratios 1:1, 1:2, 1:4 and 2:1, each of which was admixed with 5%wt Ag and 5%wt YSZ to increase three-phase boundary surface area of the electrode. For comparison catalysts comprising Co-Mo-S in weight ratio of 1:1 of CoS to MoS2 admixed with 5%wt Ag and YSZ and pre-sulfided NiMoO4 were made. The catalysts were examined for electrochemical oxidation of hydrogen sulfide in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) at 850°C temperature. The catalyst prepared from 1:1 (wt. %) NiS:MoS2 demonstrated highest performance. Current density up to 1,330 mA/cm2 and power density up to 300 mW/cm2 were achieved using pure H25 gas, which are the highest among the reported H2S-powered fuel cells ever published in the literature. Anode materials of different NiS:MoS2 ratios have been characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), simultaneous TG/DSC analysis and Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA). TG/DSC and NAA results show that addition of NiS and Ag increases fuel cell performance due to improved structure/integrity of the anode. It has also been demonstrated that MoS2 is a suitable anode material in H2S-powered SOFC, with high activity towards H25 oxidation and thermally and chemically stable up to 850°C.

Jan 1, 2005

By A. Vervoort, A. Govaerts

Geostatistical concepts are often difficult for students to understand, even those with a strong mathematical background. One of the main problems is the link between the variation of the parameter value in space or time and the calculated experimental semivariogram. Another challenge is differentiating between directional and omnidirectional semivariograms and their interpretation. For these reasons, interactive tools were developed based on the free public domain software R. The use of these interactive tools is limited to educational situations only (i.e., to visualize basic concepts). The interactive modules can be accessed at www.bwk.kuleuven.be/geostatistics.

Jan 1, 2014

By Steven Chung

Decision Network Modelling in a mining operation represents a complex process environment that is inherently more variable than a processing plant or factory. The uncertain availability of loading locations, haulage paths, loading and hauling equipment, along with inconsistent operator behaviour, cause a relatively large number of upset events that must be recognized, communicated and dealt with by the appropriate management authority. Traditional process maps that represent a deterministic model of the mining process can quickly break down in the face of such a volatile environment. An alternate modelling strategy, composed of decision networks, focuses on the interactions between goal-oriented entities and their environment, allowing system integrators to explicitly determine the information to be exchanged while providing feedback mechanisms that improve system flexibility and decision quality. This ensures a consistent framework for incrementally increasing system automation.

May 1, 2010

By T. J. Wells

THE blast furnace is the base of the steel industry, since there is no commercially practical way of converting iron ore directly into steel. In three hundred years, the blast furnace has developed from a small unit using charcoal as fuel and producing about one ton of iron in twenty-four hours to a furnace making upwards of 1,500 tons a day. The principle of the blast furnace is briefly this: A descending column of stock, consisting of ore, fuel, and flux, is met by an ascending stream of gases, consisting in part of gases formed by the combustion of the fuel and in part of pre-heated air which is blown into the lower part of the furnace. The flux combines with the impurities in the ore and the ash in the fuel to form slag, which is drawn off as liquid.

Jan 1, 1943

By M. S. Alam, Jae-Chun Lee, M. Tanaka, K. Koyama

Extensive research work is being carried out at AIST for developing energy saving green technology for base and precious metals recovery. In the present work, a new flowsheet is developed for copper recycling from waste electronic circuit board where copper was recovered by leaching followed by solution purification and direct electrowinning of Cu(I) from ammoniacal alkaline solution. In this new technology, power consumption in EW circuit was greatly reduced. This paper describes the overall process with an emphasis on different aspects of solution purification where impurities were selectively removed by cementation and solvent extraction techniques under nitrogen atmosphere.

Jan 1, 2004

By John B. Phillips

The mine is entered by a central vertical shaft, strongly timbered, and containing two compartments-one for the passenger cage, the other for the large skips bringing the ore to the surface. A man-way, for emergencies, is also provided, parallel to the shaft. The cage is a single-deck steel box, carrying about thirty persons; by means of arrangements above and below, it can also hoist and lower materials needed in the workings. Levels are run at intervals of 100 feet. In special cases, where the ore conditions warrant, sub-levels are operated, such as those at 1,113 feet and 1,123 feet (Fig. 7), which are connected by winzes with the 11 th level. One of these was pushed for 40 feet, and then abandoned because it was unprofitable to take up ore of the grade encountered. The ore between levels is removed by stoping. The drifts follow the course of the veins as much as possible, with numerous cross-cuts. Winzes, raises, connections, etc., are blasted out where needed. The main drifts are at least 8 ft. high by about 9 ft. wide. All former narrow drifts had to be widened sorne time ago, by ruling of the Ontario Department of Mines, to lessen the danger of accidents with cars in the small passages. Accurate plans of the under-ground workings are kept in the office, and extensive surveying is always being done underground to keep the maps up to date, measure the cubical contents of stopes, and so forth. Timber is extensively used in the construction of supports and chutes, and in the sinking of the shaft. Steel and concrete are too expensive to compete with timber, which 1s abundant in such sections as have escaped forest tires.

Jan 1, 1926

By Paul W. Richardson

"Introduction And AcknowledgmentsTHIS PAPER outlines the geology and discusses the geological problems of the Mindamar mine. It is impossible to acknowledge the contributions of ideas of all the geologists who have worked in the area. Among the more important contributors are K. DeP. Watson, W. S. James, B.S.W. Buffam, and L. J. Weeks, and John MacPherson, the resident geologist at the mine.A mineralogical and chemical study of the ore and country rock is being carried •on by Dr. Watson at the University of California, Los Angeles.General InformationThe Mindamar mine is on Cape Breton Island, forty miles south-west of Sydney (Figure 1). The nearest railway stations are at St. Peters, which is thirty-two miles southwest of the mine, and at Sydney. Good gravel-surfaced roads connect the mine to the railways.The mine is producing at the rate of 600 tons a day of ore containing zinc, lead, copper, and minor amounts of silver and gold. At the present time the mill feed averages 9 .per cent combined metals, of which zinc makes u:p 7 1per cent and lead and copper each 1 per cent.General GeologyThe ore being mined ,by Mindamar occurs in a shear zone parallel to a northeasterly striking, vertically dipping, series of rocks consisting of rhyolite tuff, rhyolite, minor more basic flow rocks, and diorite (Figure 2). In the vicinity of the mine, these rocks have been termed the Mine Series. They belong to the Bourinot group, which has been assigned by L. J. Weeks to the Middle Cambrian. At the latitude of the mine, the Bourinot group is bounded on the northwest by the Stirling fault and extends eastward for two miles."

Jan 1, 1953

By Jean-Luc Beaudoin

"In addition to the actual energy consumed, billing is dependent on the peak load and the power factor. The lower the power factor goes, the higher will be the penalty the consumer pays. The principles of a power factor regulator, the two ways of improving the power factor and methods for calculating the capacitor values required will be described.The rate structure of the utility company is founded on three cornerstones: the energy consumed during a given period of time and two penalties imposed when the power factor is low or the power demand is high. Even though the normal consumption of a customer might be 10 kW, with a peak demand of 20 kW only once a month, the wiring and associated equipment at the input to the customer's plant will have to accommodate this peak demand. The power company has no means of forecasting these demands and cannot therefore provide the additional equipment necessary. So it exacts a penalty, and the customer must take all possible steps to avoid these peak power demands. This can be accomplished by using an automatic peak load regulator which will selectively disconnect the loads which are not essential in the operation of a plant .The principles of such a controller will be described.Principles of power factor regulatorsThe operating principles of a power factor regulator will now be described. It might be asked why the power factor of an electrical installation in a mine, or a factory, should be corrected at all, but there is a simple answer. In addition to the actual energy consumed, the billing is dependent on the peak load and the power factor. The lower the power factor goes, the higher will be the penalty the consumer pays."

Jan 1, 1982

By C. Turek, R. Henderson

Mine planning is the foundation of value for a mining company. Good mine planning requires solid understanding of the ore body, rigorous standards and processes, robust and useful information technology and skilled people. Life of mine planning is key to identifying strategic direction for any mine and short range mine planning is key to delivering forecast and budget expectations. Mine planning at Kinross has been identified as a critical success factor and initiatives are being prepared to improve the quality of our plans and to build bench strength in our teams. The Kinross Way for Mine Planning (KWMP) has been developed and implemented to establish the standards to ensure a strong business foundation. This paper briefly describes the process used to develop the KWMP and presents a selection of mine planning best practice initiatives at Kinross mines.

Jan 1, 2011

By S. Suzuki, C. Tokoro, S. Owada, T. Sakakibara

Acid mine drainage (AMD) has been actively treated by neutralization from about 80 abandoned or closed mines in Japan. More efficient and cost effective treatment processes has been demanded for AMD due to the government investment of billions of yen every year to protect the environment from these discharges. In this study, quantitative modeling was conducted for actual AMD to predict pH or residual concentration of toxic elements after neutralization/co-precipitation process. Simple chemical equilibrium calculation was not adequate for quantitative prediction of pH after neutralization, because residual concentration of major elements of AMD, such as Fe or Si, could not be quantitatively calculated. When oxidation rate of Fe(II) to Fe(III) and precipitation rate of kaolinite were added to the model, quantitative prediction of pH and Fe or Si concentration was achieved. Surface complexation at the interface between hydroxide such as ferrihydrite or aluminum hydroxide and AMD was the most important mechanism for removal of dilute toxic ions. When surface complexation model at the interface of ferrihydrite was added to the model, residual As (V) and Pb (II) concentration after neutralization/coprecipitation process was successfully calculated. On the other hand, surface complezation model of aluminum hydroxide was also necessary for quantitative prediction of residual Zn(II) concentration after neutralization/co-precipitation process.

Jan 1, 2014

By H. R. McCabe

"The study of a detailed series of structure and isopach maps of the Palaeozoic strata of southwestern Manitoba indicates that the principal Palaeozoic tectonic elements -the Williston Basin and Elk Point Basin -have been modified to a considerable extent by major tectonic features of the Precambrian basement. The principal basement feature is the break between the Churchill and Superior provinces, which coincides roughly with the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border. East-west-trending orogenic belts within the Superior crustal block may also be reflected to some extent in later Palaeozoic movements. In addition, the Superior crustal block, as a whole, appears to have had a slightly different response to the tectonic forces, giving rise to both basin subsidence and basin uplift. During periods of deposition, especially during Ordovician time, the Manitoba portion of the basin appears to have undergone a relatively higher rate of subsidence, whereas during periods of erosion relatively greater amounts of uplift and truncation have occurred. As a result, the depositional and erosional patterns for most of the Palaeozoic formations in southwestern Manitoba are somewhat anomalous relative to the regional basin framework.Some prominent Palaeozoic structures probably are the result of salt solution and differential compaction caused directly or indirectly by relatively minor tectonic movements related to Precambrian basement features. In particular, the prominent hinge line at the edge of the Devonian Prairie Evaporite salt basin may be due, in large part, to salt solution. Numerous other small structural lows, structural highs and isopach thicks, probably resulting from salt solution, occur along the salt edge and have been important in modifying and controlling Mississippian oil accumulation in the Daly-Virden producing area."

Jan 1, 1967

By T. Verdel, Y. Gunzburger

Rockfalls are major and essentially unpredictable sources of danger, particularly along transportation routes (roads and railways). Thus, the assessment of their probability of occurrence is a major challenge for risk management. From a qualitative perspective, it is known that rockfalls occur mainly during periods of rain, snowmelt, or freeze-thaw. Nevertheless, from a quantitative perspective, these generally assumed correlations between rockfalls and their possible meteorological triggering events are often difficult to identify because i) rockfalls are too rare for the use of classical statistical analysis techniques and ii) all intensities of triggering factors do not have the same probability. In this study, we propose a new approach to investigate the correlation of rockfalls with rain, freezing periods, and strong temperature variations. This approach is tested on three French rockfall databases, the first of which exhibits an outstandingly high frequency of rockfalls (approximately 950 events over 11 years), whereas the other two databases are more typical (approximately 140 events over 11 years). These databases come from (1) the national highway RN1 on La Réunion Island, (2) a railway in the Bourgogne-Franche Comté region, and (3) a railway in the Auvergne region. Whereas a basic correlation analysis is only able to highlight an already obvious correlation in the case of the “rich” database, the newly suggested method appears to detect correlations even in the “poor” ones. Indeed, the use of this method confirms the positive correlation between rainfalls and rockfalls on La Réunion Island database. This method highlights a correlation between cumulative rainfalls and rockfalls in the Bourgogne region, and it detects a correlation between the daily minimum temperature and rockfalls in the Auvergne region. This new approach is easy to use and also serves to determine the conditional probability of rockfall function of a given meteorological factor. This approach will help to optimize risk management in the studied areas based on their meteorological conditions. Nevertheless, even if some rockfalls are correlated to meteorological factors, other seems to occur independently of these factors, which highlights the unpredictability of rockfall hazard.

Jan 1, 2015

By T. Patching

"THE FOLLOWING notes on coal mining in the Edmonton city area are based, in the main, on scattered reports and accounts as little coal mining has been done in this area for about 20 years and few people are left who were involved in what was at one time an important industry of northern Alberta. Although coal mining is not likely to be permitted in the city area itself in the future, a record of this work is warranted to indicate the ·conditions and problems that may be encountered if underground mining again is proposed in the district in the same geological formations and in similar strata. Coal mining in the Edmonton area developed with the influx of settlers in the latter part of the nineteenth century and the first part of the present century. Probably local coal was used by the Fort's blacksmith as early as 1841, and the early settlers probably were 'gopherholing' into the outcrops along the river banks by the 1870s. The first report of commercial coal mining was in 1880 when a contract was let by the Hudson's Bay Company for the provision of 300 tons. As the population in the city and northern parts of the province grew, many new mines were opened along the river and in the district, and coal was even shipped by barge to points in Saskatchewan(1 ,2) By 1909 the Department of Public Works reported that 'Edmonton stands as the second largest domestic coal producing centre in the province'. It continued to hold this position until 1942. From about 1912 to 1951 annual production from mines in the city and surrounding district ranged between 0.38 and 0.65 million tons, depending on weather, wars and strikes. Production began to decline in 1951 because of the increasing availability and consumption of natural gas which was piped into the city and then provided to other towns and rural areas in the northern part of the province. Taylor noted that between 1880 and March 1970, when the last mine within the city area closed, the total of mines and prospects within the Edmonton city area rose to 153. Most of them were small; not more than 20 produced more than a quarter of a million tonnes during their entire life, and only three produced a million tonnes or more. As described by Taylor ""within the city district workings extend discontinuously from the apex of a narrow triangle near Groat Bridge to the base of the triangle in the Clover Bar area"". The larger mines were in this latter area. Approximate locations of the old mine workings in the city are shown in Taylor's atlas. A number of other coal mines were worked in the Rabbit Hill, Big Island, St. Albert, Namao, Cardiff and Morinville districts around the city."

Jan 1, 1985

By M. Jackson, R. McDonald, T. Osken, D. Robinson

"The addition of sulphidic materials in the leaching of nickel laterites has several potential benefits that include improvements in the rheological behaviour of the blends, reductions in the sulphuric acid and steam requirements, sweetening of the nickel grade of the combined feed material, and the option of using a range of sulphidic materials. The current study examines the oxidative processing of 30% w/w blends of nickel concentrate and nickel laterite ore at 250oC. In particular, the viability of using low oxygen overpressures was examined for significant amounts of nickel flotation concentrate, up to 12% w/w. Further to this the impact of process water quality, in particular the presence of chloride, upon the kinetics of extraction and the mineralogy of the residue were also investigated. This paper will present the results of preliminary work in this area.INTRODUCTIONThe use of sulphidic ore as a source of sulphuric acid during oxidative hydrometallurgical processing is not a novel idea and can be traced back over forty years (Seidel & Fitzhugh, 1968). A series of patents pertaining to application of this approach for laterite ores can be subsequently found (O’Neill, 1973; Opratko et al., 1974; Rodriguez, 2008a, 2008b; O’Callaghan, 2010; Liu et al., 2011) and a few of articles containing published data (Ferron & Fleming, 2004; Quinn et al., 2009). The use of pyrrhotite tailings as a source of sulphuric acid has also been employed for the leaching of converter slags (Perederiy et al., 2011).It is known that hydrometallurgical operations such as the HPAL plant at Murrin Murrin have added small amounts of sulphides as either transitional (mixed sulphide/oxide) ore or non-smeltable concentrate. This can improve the rheology (Rodriguez, 2009) and provide heat credits. However these plants are generally limited in their ability to add such materials due to their reducing nature and given under highly acidic conditions that the breakdown potential of the titanium used for the autoclave lining is significantly reduced. A suitable oxidant must therefore be present to ensure the potential remains sufficiently high."

Jan 1, 2012

By M. Pearson, J. Irvine, L. Mercer, P. Lauzon

Severe service ball valve performance has a direct impact on the mechanical availability of high pressure oxidation and leach plants. The primary function of these valves is to isolate the autoclave for maintenance. Valve failure has historically contributed significantly to the maintenance downtime of these process plants. An understanding of the root causes of valve failures is the first step in increasing the reliability of the severe service ball valves. A rigorous failure analysis practice has been developed by Hatch for investigating refractory failures in furnaces and kilns based on Kepner-Tregoe methodology. The method has also been modified for valve failure analysis. From a root-cause failure tree analysis of each of the valve components, a list of all potential valve failure mechanisms was developed for ranking and evaluation, along with recommendations for further valve development. The purpose of this paper is to present the reader with the modified Kepner-Tregoe method and examples of this analysis.

Jan 1, 2004

By Stewart W. Daniel

"Increasing labour costs, the trend to larger mills, the processing of lower grade ores and a diminishing sup-ply of well-trained and experienced mill operators contribute to the necessity of automating a grinding circuit. With sophisticated process control techniques, supervision of the mill line is reduced to an occasional inspection by the shift supervisor. Process operating decisions and/or adjustments are quickly and accurately performed by the electronic devices to be described. When the variables in the grinding circuit are stabilized using the sensors and controllers as discussed, the over-all grinding circuit is maintained at its optimum grinding load level, with ample protection against under-and overloading."

Jan 1, 1967