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By D. Ingram

"PRIMARY DUST COLLECTOR A. 42,000 CFM James Howden Fan Z-6 Size 3650 Fan Dia 40"" HP 75It was found that the fan was not large enough to remove the air that was displaced by the trucks dumping. So it was removed and an enclosure was installed to isolate the gyro from the rest of the building.B. FANSJames Howden Fans Model RPM 3500 Series 357 FW HP 10These fans were installed when the first dust system was put into operation. It was found that the high RPM and extreme fan wear caused a major maintenance problem. These fans were replaced with Chicage Blowers Model SWS1 RPM 1180 Dia 36"".DRY CYCLONE COLLECTORS A.,Three four foot rubber lined cyclones. Four six foot rubber lined cyclones.All under flow. Water is controlled manually and gravity flows to a central sump box. From there it flows to the grinding circuit in the Mill.Cyclone under flow product runs between 100 and 200 tons of dust per 24 hours with a screen analysis 30% + 400.The cyclone under flow product is diluted to about 3 to 4%. Solids total gallonage approximately 400.B.,Elbair Wet Scrubber125 HP RPM 56042,000 CFM,Model PX861The Elbair collects the total product from the discharge. Of the Cyclone fans the under flaw goes to the Mill - the Elbair discharges stack goes to atmosphere.The Elbair wet scrubber had to be redesigned in order to keep it in service."

Jan 1, 1976

By John G. Henning

Unplanned ore dilution has a direct and large influence on the cost of a stope, and ultimately on the profitability of a mining operation. This paper presents results of a study on the influence of a variety of factors on ore dilution in a blasthole stoping environment. A series of 3-D numerical models were developed and analyzed to examine the effect of mining depth, stope geometry and stope setting within the orezone extraction sequence. To quantify modelled ore dilution from the three-dimensional simulations, the ore Dilution Density (DD) is a term introduced in this study to denote potential hanging-wall overbreak. It was found that hanging-wall overbreak is not significantly influenced by depth alone, and that stopes with large or small axial ratios are more stable than large rectangular stopes. It was also demonstrated that, in addition to stope dimension, the amount of unplanned dilution differed according to stope type. Five stope types were identified, based on their position within a tabular blasthole mining sequence. The methodology presented in this paper can be adopted to develop mine-specific design tools for the estimation of ore dilution associated with a proposed mine design. This can prove extremely helpful in the process of underground mine planning and optimization.

May 1, 2007

By A. Akerman, C. P. O’Connor, N. Vayenas

"Stereolithography is a well-known rapid prototyping technique in the manufacturing sector. Essentially, it is a three-dimensional printing process that produces plastic prototype parts from standard CAD files. At present, Canadian mining companies are not fully aware of the potential of rapid prototyping techniques (RPTs) for their production and mine design systems. Mining engineers and geologists attempt to visualize and understand the characteristics and layouts of orebodies on computer models, and in cases where it is decided to develop physical models, the process is time-consuming, based on simplified constructions. RPTs, such as stereolithography, can facilitate engineers and geologists to quickly, and with satisfactory accuracy, visualize sections of orebodies and evaluate alternative ore extraction techniques using 3D solid models.The research discussed in this paper is carried out by the Laurentian University Mining Automation Laboratory (LUMAL) in collaboration with Inco Limited and the Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Institute (IMTI) of the National Research Council of Canada. The main objective with this research is to evaluate the applicability of state-of-the-art RPTs to underground hard rock mining systems. RPTs can play a significant role in accelerating the design and development process of mining systems."

Jan 1, 2006

By Alfred C. Lane

Reference to the original use of the terms Laurentian and Huronian (and its extension), shows that the former was applied to granitized sedimentary and metamorphic pre-Cambrian rocks, and the gneissoid igneous rocks associated therewith, and the latter to non-fossiliferous rocks supposed to be later. But it appears from the work of Collins, Quirke and others that there is more or less of an overlap, and that of the original Laurentian the Grenville limestone, and some of the granites, may be later than the lowest part of the original Huronian. Before we can decide whether to abandon one or the other of the two terms, or how to delimit them, it is important to know the extent of this overlap. The Pb :U ratio, though not to be depended upon too minutely, does give a real idea of the age of a mineral as it increases with the decay of uranium, and so is greater the longer the time since the uranium was separated: and there are reasonable prospects of help there from in getting a knowledge of the relative age of different granites to assist in solving the problem, as facts already collected show. 1. Historical review of the use of the words Laurentian and Huronian: 2. Difficulty encountered: 3. Popular account of atomic disintegration: 4. Methods of estimating age by it: 5. Applications.

Jan 1, 1925

By D. S. Robertson

More than 700,000 feet of diamond drilling was completed in the Blind River area between 1953 and 1958. Much of this drilling was at depths which are still not usual in North America. However, as the tendency is to deeper holes, factual data from the Blind River operation may well provide information of value in future programs. Rates of drilling decreased with in-creasing depth, but uncommonly good rates (an average of over 50 feet per day over more than 4,000 feet of hole) were achieved with proper engineering and care. Costs varied as contractors and geologists became familiar with the area Hole deviation in the Blind River area was locally severe and control of the hole trace became a major problem. Careful surveying was necessary and found to be highly re-liable. It was found that control of the hole trace above 1,500 feet was much more difficult than at depths below 1,500 feet. This is explained by the mechanics of the drilling operation. Various methods of controlling hole deviation were attempted and,

Jan 1, 1962

By S. Oppenheimer, P. Au, R. M. Kearsey, J. Tsang, E. McDevitt

A new superalloy, ATI 718Plus® Alloy (718Plus), has been developed to have a 55oC higher temperature capability over the traditionally used Alloy 718, while maintaining favourable processing characteristics and intrinsic raw material costs. The fatigue and dwell-fatigue behaviour of four microstructural variations of 718Plus are evaluated and compared to Waspaloy: 1) standard heat treated condition (HT1), 2) standard heat treated condition with thermal exposure at 732ºC (1350ºF) for 1000 hours (HT2), 3) fine grain condition with a modified d phase (HT3), and 4) fine grain overaged through modified heat treatment (HT4). The results show that the steady-state fatigue crack growth rates of each microstructural variation and both alloys are identical, with all of the 718Plus variations showing a clear advantage over Waspaloy in the fatigue crack threshold regime. Dwell-fatigue results show that Waspaloy has better resistance to crack propagation under dwell conditions; however, optimization of the precipitate phase shows vast improvement in the dwell-fatigue resistance of 718Plus.

Jan 1, 2010

By D. M. Aloi

In today's evolving and globalized world, mining companies are being pressured to move beyond compliance towards long-term sustainability and sustainable development. Companies are expected to "engage" with communities and measure the success of these engagements without a clear understanding of "how" to do this. This move, away from "Corporate" Social Responsibility (CSR) and compliance, develops more of a focus on "Community" Social Responsibility and sustainability. This shift in focus leads to the development of world-class projects that provide sustainable development for people, reduces the incidence of costly delays, and promotes good global citizenship for corporations. The process of "engaging" communities in mining project design and development leads to a stronger license to operate and sustainable development. To create this mutually beneficial relationship between communities and companies, communities must be "engaged" in the mining process as early as possible, preferably during the exploration or the concept phases. How to create this "engagement" remains elusive. How to measure the progress of this engagement is also problematic. The quantitative and qualitative metrics needed to measure both positive and negative impacts of the mining and community relationship will be discussed.

Jan 1, 2007

By D. Farrish, W. A. Grell

"IntroductionMost base metal mines sell their concentrate to a custom smelter. The two parties concerned therefore draw up a contract which would detail the conditions under which concentrate sales will take place. The contract will identify treatment and marketing charges (including escalations), deductions for metal losses in the smelter, pricing formula, timing of payments, penalties for deleterious elements, etc.An understanding of the smelter contract is important to the mineral processor, for it will determine how he operates the plant to maximize economic return.Description of Contract ClausesUsing copper concentrate as an example, the smelter contract generally contains the following three basic charges:I. Metal Deductions- as the smelting process does not recover all the metal contained;2. A Smelting Charge- expressed per ton of material to cover costs on the bulk material such as receiving, unloading, thawing in winter, sampling, roasting to drive off sulphur, smelting through the matte and blister stages to recover mostof the copper and precious metals;3. A Refining Charge- expressed per pound of copper.The following is a review in some detail of a number of clauses which could be considered typical of a treatment and marketing type of copper concentrate sales contract. Most normal considerations in an agreement could be covered by the following types of clauses.Terminology- covers definitions, units of measurement to be used (e.g. short tons, troy ounces, etc.), currency (Canadian dollars). The term ""unit"" may be defined - l OJo of a ton of concentrate, e.g. one unit of copper means 20 pounds of copper per short ton of concentrate."

Jan 1, 1989

Project Schedule ?Construction 2005 ?2008 (3 years) ?Operations mid 2008 ?2020 (12 years) ?Closure 2020 ?2023 (3 years) ?Post-closure monitoring Victor Economic Facts ?$982 million investment; ?$110 million already invested in the Project; ?1100 person years of employment in construction; ?375 full time positions during operations;

May 1, 2006

By D. Kidby, A. Briggs

"Vitrokele ™ is a synthetic adsorbent, using chelating groups on large polystyrene beads, developed in Canada over 7 years ago, and first commercialised in 1985 to recover noxious metals from plating wastes.Pilot plant trials have been performed in Australia and Canada to demonstrate the recovery of cyanide and removal of metal cyanide complexes from gold plant effluent using Vitrokele1 M 912. The pilot plants comprise a simple adsorption train (similar to a CIP circuit) followed by complete elution facilities, so that loaded Vitrokele™ can be stripped and returned to the adsorption circuit.An account of these campaigns is provided, showing the reduction of total CN levels from over 200 ppm to less than 0.5 ppm and Cu levels from approximately 100 ppm to less than 0.3 ppm in treated tailings.Comparisons between pilot plant results and laboratory test data are given and probable future work on the process and its application to the gold mining industry is discussed.INTRODUCTIONThrough millions of years of evolution, life forms have developed specialised molecules with exceptionally high affinity and selectivity for various metals such as iron, cobalt, zinc and copper.In the early 80's professors at the Faculty of Medicine of McGill University engaged in research on the extremely efficient ways that living cells captured trace metals essential for life.As research progressed, it became evident that the special molecules used by biological systems to capture metals could be synthesized to capture selected metals with similar efficiency from water or other solutions.The technology was first commercialised in 1985 to recover noxious metals from plating wastes with compositions applying the special molecules (chelating groups) on vitreous particles (hence Vitrokele™). To date approximately three commercial Vitrokele™ plants have been installed for treating plating waters in Ontario and Quebec."

Jan 1, 1992

By I. M. Marshall

A review of technical literature covering Canadian mining emphasizes the advancement and changes that have been made in mining practice. However, current technical publications rarely outline basic principles or state definite rules that govern profitable mine operation. it may be argued that the broad principles of mining have long a go been outlined in various handbooks, text-books, and periodicals, and that these principles never alter. This is in great part true, but modern machinery, improved meta1-lurgical practice, and other advances, have in part modified these principles or changed the manner of their application. Many engineers hesitate to state specific rules, because it is so easy to quote an exception to a rules that any such statement appears to lose weight upon its very utterance. The exception to rules, and the reluctance to formulate rules, has forced such maxims as "the only rule in mining is the point of a pick," and "gold is where you find it". As an illustration of rules and their exceptions, one might quote the time-honoured maxim that a mill should not be built before a shaft has been sunk on a property in point of fact, Canadian mining history is replete with examples of wasted capital where a mill was built before a shaft had been bottomed. Y et this past year has seen a property enter profitable production whereon the building of the mill was started before the shaft was sunk. Instances such as this should not be accepted as evidence that a rule has been overthrown, but rather as an exception to the rule. The case cited pays tribute to the application of the diamond-drill combined with the correlation of sound geology. Incidentally, both these features emphasize a modern trend in the development of Canadian mining properties-a trend that is perhaps worthy of further comment. It is such trends that affect the principles of mining or modify their application. It is with such that this paper deals, at ]east in part. It is hoped that the statement of principles and the opinions herein outlined will be of sufficient interest to arouse discussion.

Jan 1, 1939

By Zetti Gavelán

Globalization and the search for new ore deposits inevitably lead to investment in foreign markets. Investors need to be aware of the effect of their venture on regional, social and economic issues when they invest. Decades of detailed statistics from various sources can be integrated and analyzed to predict the social-economic impact of investment, thereby mitigating risk. To this end, the correlation among variables such as foreign direct investment into mining (FDIM), reserves, and socio-economic indexes is examined. The investigation focuses on South America from 1992 to 2000. Throughout the past decade, South America has benefited from capital investment from more developed countries. This huge investment by the mining industry has impacted the South American economies and can be measured directly using the FDIM. Other economic variables investigated include mining gross domestic product, direct employment, and human development indexes. The correlation is based on data compiled from the World Bank, international risk assessment agencies, the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and the information agencies of various South American countries. Initial analysis of the economic data suggests various expected outcomes. For example, foreign investors may disregard a measured, highly negative country risk in deference to the quality of its mineral resources. It is important to note that the standard measures of country risk published by investment analysts are not industry or investor-specific. In the case of the investor, the level of accepted risk is based on their managed investment portfolio. It is noted that arguments for level-playing fields may be the antithesis of globalization. The discovery and exploitation of ore bodies in a globalized environment necessitates the development of economic measures that standardize mining-specific risk variables and trends. The latest published information on the security of mineral investments in South America is investigated by integrating databases of economic, geologic, production, human indexes, and risk ranking.

May 1, 2003

By M. Churchill, V. R. Degner

"Over the past two decades, declining ore body grades, increased operating costs and increased construction costs have provided an incentive for the development of progressively larger flotation machines. As a consequence, the 60 to 100 cubic foot flotation machine of the l950's and l960's is being rapidly replaced by large volume machines, with a resulting improvement in the flotation machine specific capacity (TPH processed per square foot floor space), specific power (HP per TPH processed) and process control simplicity. The recent development, and satisfactory plant evaluation, of the WEMCO 1000 cubic foot flotation machine provides the means by which further economic and operating advantages may be incorporated in high tonnage mill applications.The systematic development of the large 1000 cubic foot flotation machine, and its subsequent performance evaluation in beneficiating metalliferous ores (copper, zinc and iron) will be reviewed in this paper and recently completed plant results will also be provided."

Jan 1, 1982

By D. B. Stewart

In the past few years, much effort has been spent in elucidating the impact of diesel engines on the mine environment. This paper summarizes diesel fundamentals , exhaust emissions and typical tailpipe concentrations. Mine sampling results and an evaluation of exhaust treatment systems are discussed. A review of changes in pollutant concentrations between the tailpipe and the mine exit is made and suggestions are given to reduce operator exposure to diesel contaminants.

Jan 1, 1978

By F. Flynn, P. Downey, G. Ritson

"Bell Creek Mill which has been in continuous operation since 1987 has undergone numerous operational changes in the past three years. The addition of over 2. 5 million tons of resource at over 13 git from Hoyle Pond Mine precipitated an expansion program for the Bell Creek Mill. This paper discusses the major changes that have occurred over the past two years to increase throughput and efficiencies. In addition, the refractory ore treatment options are also discussed.IntroductionThe Bell Creek Mill is located in the Timmins Goldcamp approximately 8km NE of porcupine Ontario. (Fig I.)The mill was originally constructed by Camamax in 1987 to treat the Bell Creek ore at a design throughput of 350tpd. The flowsheet (Fig 2.) consisted of two stage crushing, grinding, thickening, leach and drum filtration with gold recovery by Merrill Crowe.As ore depleted at Bell Creek, the Mill was purchased by Falconbridge to process ore from their Hoyle Pond property. Kinross purchased the Hoyle Pond property and Bell Creek Mill from Falconbridge in 1992.The successful exploration program at Hoyle Pond has led to several expansions and process design changes, with further changes planned over the next twelve months.In 1994, the mine produced 61,865 oz. of gold at an average cost of 197US$ per oz. In 1995 production was 91, 611 oz. at a cost of 187US$ per oz. Projecting the nine months ended September 30, production for 1996 will be 155,000 oz. at a cost of 165US$ per oz.In early 1997, the CIP expansion will be complete, with a target of 175,000 oz. at a cost of 176US$ per oz for 1997. The mill throughput will have increased from 400tpd to 1500tpd between 1994 and 1997.The changes to Bell Creek since 1994 have been numerous with very little of the existing equipment still in operation. The total cost of the expansion to date is 15 million C$. This paper discusses the major projects carried out during in this time. The focus will be to highlight the justification of each project, the design and engineering, some of the initial start-up problems and solutions.Figure 3 shows a plan of the existing mill facility together with the various additions that were carried out."

Jan 1, 1997

By G. E. Veins

A three-phase, continuously-operated, 250 kv.a. electric smelting furnace has been installed at the Mines Branch, Department of Mines and Technical Surveys, Ottawa, for the experimental treatment of ores and by-products of interest to the Canadian mining, metallurgical, and chemical industries. In the operation of this furnace particular emphasis is placed on the accumulation of quantitative data which will be useful in determining the most suitable smelting technique and the nature of the products, and in arriving at preliminary conclusions regarding the cast of power and electrodes. The results obtained in the experimental smelting of iron, manganese-iron, titanium- iron, nickel, and chromiumiron ores, and of a number of industrial by-products, clearly show the value of such treatment for materials of this type.

Jan 1, 1957

By C. H. Dionne, J. A. Holmes, B. J. Huls

"Falconbridge Limited is presently developing flowsheet alternatives for implementation at the Strathcona Mill. The main thrust for change arises from the need to reject more pyrrhotite from the concentrate. To maintain appropriate levels of sulphur in the smelter concentrate, however, enhanced removal of non-sulphide gangue minerals must be realized. This could best be done in the Non-magnetics flotation circuit.Laboratory investigations were followed by an on-stream pilot test at Strathcona. The application of a column cleaner on the Non-magnetics concentrate resulted in significantly lower levels of fine gangue at equivalent sulphides recovery.This paper discusses the laboratory and pilot testing and results, with a focus on piloting. Also included is a discussion of the Strathcona Mill Flowsheet and the role of the Nonmagnetics flotation circuit.INTRODUCTIONFalconbridge Ltd. is currently developing means to reduce atmospheric sulphur dioxide emissions. One alternative is a reduction in the amount of pyrrhotite in Strathcona Mill concentrate, which reports to the smelter. Pyrrhotite in the Falconbridge ores contains an average of 39 percent sulphur and 0.64 percent nickel. By comparison, pentlandite contains an average of 33 percent sulphur and 34 percent nickel.A consequence of the rejection of pyrrhotite is a decrease in the sulphur assay in the remaining concentrate. This decrease causes downstream difficulties in the roasting process. Therefore, the content of non-sulphide gangue in the mill concentrate must also be reduced in order to maintain sulphur grades adequate for roasting. The resulting concentrate will have lower sulphur dioxide emissions while maintaining nickel production."

Jan 1, 1991

By R. A. Bergman

"Process descriptions are provided for the following ten plants that treat high-magnesia lateritic nickel ores (saprolite) by pyrometallurgical means: PT Aneka Tambang; Cerro Matoso S.A.; Falconbridge Dominicana C. por A.; Hyuga Smelting Company Ltd.; Larco (Societé Minière & Métallurgique de Larymna); Loma de Niquel; Le Nickel, SLN-Eramet; Nippon Yakin Kogyo Company Ltd.; Pacific Metals Company Ltd.; and PT Inco Indonesia.Flowsheets, equipment information,chemistry and production data have been compiledfor plants based on both information providedby the companies and on calculated massand energy balances.IntroductionNickel is of vital importance to modern society. Without it, we would not be able to enjoy many of the things that we take for granted, such as computers, airplanes and stainless steel appliances in our homes and workplaces, to mention a few.Nickel occurs in nature both as sulphide and oxide ores. Approximately 36% of the nickel reserves in the Western World occur as sulphide and 64% as oxide ores. Sulphide ores respond to concentration processes, whereas, oxide ores do not. Sulphide ores mined at 1% nickel can be readily concentrated to 10% nickel, whereas, oxide ores cannot be concentrated and therefore have to be processed as mined.Laterite ores are normally classified intotwo groups:1. The high-magnesia ores, saprolites or serpentines, are, as a rule, processed by smelting. The main reason for this is that the nickel replaces magnesium in the magnesium-silicate lattice. To be able to recover nickel, the lattice has to be destroyed. This can be achieved by smelting under reducing conditions.Acid leaching is also possible, but in this case, large amounts of MgSO4 or MgCl2 will be produced making it costly to regenerate the acid.2. The high-iron, low-magnesia ores are known as limonite. The nickel is relatively loosely bonded to goethite and hence can be recovered by selective reduction followed by ammonium-ammonium carbonate leaching. In recently developed processes, these ores are also being extracted by acid pressure leaching, with high Ni and Co recoveries.This paper focusses on the production of ferronickel and nickel matte from the highmagnesia ores."

Jan 1, 2003

By Ralph Harris, Xia Qi, Frank Komsic

"Gold cyanidation kinetics which are often limited in commercial operations by the rate of oxygen dissolution from gas bubbles into the slurry, are discussed. Emerging technologies for improving the rate of oxygen dissolution are compared and the gas efficiency, energy use and operating performance of inverted cones and a device based on a jet diffuser are examined. The effect of solids loading is also reviewed and a relationship between operating parameters and the kilograms oxygen dissolved per kilowatt-hour is presented.Inverted cones are shown to create slurry settling problems at high gas flow rates and surface tension lowering agents are shown not to greatly improve the overall rates of oxygen dissolution.The novel jet diffuser technology operates at a range of gas to liquid ratios that improves its energy use over conventional technology and the performance of a number of designs are discussed.Gas efficiencies as high as 35% were observed with the novel diffusers at 40 cm diffuser immersion and are expected to increase at greater immersions. Energy use of 1.8 kg 02 I kWh were estimated for prototype full size diffusers operating at 100 cm immersion. Energy use of 3.S kg 02 /kWh is conservatively expected at 600 cm immersion.IntroductionGold ExtractionGold that can not be recovered by gravity separation can be recovered by either the Merrill-Crow process or the newer carbon in pulp (CIP) or carbon in leach (CIL) processes 1. Reductions in operating costs and improvements in gold recovery are central mill operating strategies. The present paper examines the potential for improvement that can be achieved in the gold cyanidation step of gold recovery. This paper introduces a number of emerging technologies and provides a basis for comparison of the performance. It shows that the basis for comparison of a particular technology depends on the type of gold extraction circuit employed and the type of reactants employed."

Jan 1, 1996

By A. Himsley

"There is an ever-increasing demand these days for efficient methods of removing metals from solutions especially for selectively recovering a particular metal from a mixture of metals in solution.Up until the mid l 930's the only methods widely practiced for such separations involved precipitation techniques or electrolysis. Both these methods have limitations and indeed can only be used for certain metals.It is only within the last 40 years or so when synthetic ion exchange materials became available that chemists in industry and universities have been able to apply ion exchange techniques to a wide variety of separations that not only would be impossible by precipitation methods but which are now achieved with much greater efficiency.Ion Exchange TechniquesIon exchange is a unit process that can be applied using either liquid ion exchangers or solid resin particles. Liquid ion exchange - or solvent extraction as it is often referred to - is used in a number of special areas dictated mainly by the nature of the separation.On the other hand, ion exchange resins are much more widely used and consequently a great deal more is known about their application to a variety of metal separations.In both systems there is a loss of the ion exchange material which in the case of solvent extraction results in hydrocarbons going to waste. The ion exchange resin systems lose resin in the form of small particles, referred to as ""resin fines"", and these are insoluble.The loss of liquid ion exchanger is due to the fact that it is slightly soluble in water and consequently the loss is a function of the volume of liquid with which it comes into contact and is not related to the amount of metal processed."

Jan 1, 1975