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By Sorokin M, Komkov A, Fyodorov A

The Vanyukov Process is a high-intensity smelting system that has been proven over the last 20 years for various metallurgical operations including the smelting of copper, nickel, copper-zinc, antimony concentrates, municipal waste treatment and pig-iron production. Extensive pilot plant tests on copper and copper-nickel concentrates have provided information for the design of the commercial furnaces. The thermodynamic analysis, design idea and the data obtained from commercial furnaces have shown that Vanyukov Process would be the best choice to smelt copper-nickel and nickel sulphide concentrates as well as oxide nickel ores.

Jan 1, 1996

By J Garritsen, P F. Wells, M Xu

IncoÆs Clarabelle mill currently processes ores from eight mines in the Sudbury basin area in Ontario, Canada. The ore from the Garson mine contains a much higher concentration of arsenic than the other ores. Adding this ore into the feed to the mill has resulted in an increase in arsenic content of the Cu-Ni bulk concentrate to a level that significantly affects the smelter operation, and more importantly the efficiency of Cu-Ni separation in the Matte separation plant. The arsenic occurs mainly as gersdorffite (NiAsS), with a small amount being in the form of cobaltite (CoAsS). Extensive laboratory tests on depressing arsenic in Garson ore flotation have been conducted and two reagent suites have been identified as effective arsenic depressants. One is the so called MAA depressant which is a mixture of magnesium chloride, ammonium chloride, and ammonium hydroxide. This reagent combination was reported to depress other arsenide minerals such as arsenopyrite (FeAsS) and enargite (Cu3AsS4). However, in this study for the first time it has been shown to have a depressing effect on gersdorffite. The other reagent suite, a mixture of triethylenetetramine (TETA) and sodium sulfite, that has been reported as an effective pyrrhotite (Fe1-xS) depressant in pentlandite ((NiFe)9S8) flotation, has not been reported as gersdorffite depressant before. The effectiveness of both reagent suites is more pronounced when the arsenic minerals are oxidised through pulp aeration or the addition of hydrogen peroxide. With a flow sheet consisting of a magnetic separation, rougher- scavenger flotation, followed by regrinding and cleaning of combined magnetic and scavenger concentrate, the arsenic recovery to the final Cu-Ni bulk concentrate was reduced from 73 per cent in baseline test to less than 30 per cent with either reagent suite at no decrease in nickel recovery. The TETA/sulfite reagent combination has the advantage over the MAA suite in that pyrrhotite is also depressed, rather than being activated, and the copper and nickel concentrate grades are therefore increased.

Jan 1, 2005

By V A. Chanturia, T N. Matveeva, V V. Getman, A Yu Karkeshkina

The development and application of new effective environmentally friendly reagents for the flotation of thin and ultrathin mineral components is an urgent task. The analysis of the nomenclature of chemicals, including flotation reagents and flocculants, showed that water-soluble polymers (WSP) might be used in flotation separation of fine grinding products containing non-ferrous and precious metals. Water-soluble polymers that are responsive to temperature changes are the most attractive as reagents during flotation. These are the thermo-responsive polymers or thermomorphic polymers. The presence of nitrogen and oxygen atoms in the polymer molecule contributes to the formation of a coordination bond with non-ferrous and precious metals. A research conducted at the ICEMR RAS within the framework of the scientific school of Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Chanturia helped to develop a method of flotation of finely ground mineral particles containing valuable components using modified thermomorphic polymers. The paper focuses on the experimental study of poly (vinyl caprolactam) (PVC) as a flotation reagent for gold recovery from finely ground mineral products. PVC is a ready-made water-soluble thermosensitive polymer that does not require complex synthesis. PVC has a high ability to form complexes in an aqueous environment when heated. According to experimental data, the polymer interacts with gold nanoparticles, contributing to the extraction of gold from fine mineral products and the tailings that makes it perspective as an additional flotation agent for the processing of gold-containing ores.

Aug 24, 2022

By Northcote GG

There are many underground mines with shaft or decline access with limited production capacity or where the mine may become uneconomical as trucking costs escalate with increasing depth of the decline. In such cases a need may exist for a shaft hoisting system which can be constructed more quickly and more economically than a shaft sunk by conventional methods. Relatively cheap small diameter shafts can be constructed by raise boring. This paper describes a simple hoisting system which has been designed to take advantage of the benefits of raise boring. The system uses twin bored raises with a double drum winder hoisting a skip in each hole. The design concept is based on 1. accepting that the raises cannot be truly straight or vertical, 2. using the raise to guide the conveyance, and 3. minimising operating, maintenance, and capital costs. The hoisting system requires a certain degree of accuracy in the alignment of the twin raises. A survey of raise boring practice showed that the required accuracy could probably be achieved with conventional techniques. However it was thought it would be necessary to survey the pilot hole during drilling and to be able to correct the hole if deviation became

Jan 1, 1978

This paper deals briefly with the geology and mineralisation of the Ediacara Mineral Field, which is located about 300 miles north of Adelaide in the Mount James Range.The field was discovered sane time prior to 1872. Total recorded production for the field amounts to a few hundred tons of lead and 36 tons of copper. Re-listing of the field during 1961-62 led to its classification as a Mississippi Valley type deposit. Diamond drilling has partly outlined the spread of mineralisation and confirmed its stratiform distribution,Sources for the metals are suggested and various possible mechanisms. of deposition are described.

Jan 1, 1963

By P A. Gow, J L. Walshe, G J. Masterman

The Eocene-Oligocene porphyry belt of northern Chile contains the worldÆs largest accumulation of porphyry-related copper metal. Conflicting models exist regarding the relative importance of strike-slip and reverse faulting during the emplacement of the porphyry and epithermal systems, based on regional studies and also from work at the Chuquicamata deposit. In contrast, at the Collahuasi district, high sulfidation state copper-silver mineralisation was superimposed into the core of the Rosario copper-molybdenum porphyry deposits along normal faults during gravitational collapse of the Domeyko Cordillera. Exhumation of the porphyry environment occurred rapidly during this event, allowing near-surface epithermal mineralisation (<200 m paleodepth) to be juxtaposed into the potassic altered core of the porphyry deposit (estimated depth of formation: 1300 m) in the space of approximately one million years. Mass wasting after major episodes of tectonic uplift provides an effective method of hypogene upgrading of porphyry ores by high sulfidation mineralisation.

Jan 1, 2005

The Mammoth Copper Deposit consists of three distinct orebodies adjacent to the Mammoth Fault. This fault is arcuate, changing from a normal tension fault to a shear strike fault just to the north of the mine. Movement on the fault was probably contemporaneous with deposit- ion of the adjacent sediments. In the upper levels the No. 1 orebody occurs within a brecciated zone in the footwall of the fault, but at depth the No. 2 and 3 orebodies are stratabound by two brecciated lithologic horiz- ons. The host rocks are impure sandstones, arkoces and quartzites, which in the mine area are near the top of the Lower Proterozoic Myally Beds. Overlying these beds is a conglom- erate siltstone sequence which has been assumed to be the base of the Gunpowder Creek Formation. North and south of the mine the conglomerate rests on an erosional unconformity representing a major time break, but in the mine the uncon- formity and conditions of deposition of the conglomerate are obscure. Some mineralization is contained within the conglomerates. The sulphides present are chalcocite, bornite, chalcopyrite and pyrite. Chalcocite is dominant in the upper levels but could be en- riched by supergene processes. At depth, bornite becomes the dominant copper sulphide with lesser amounts of chalcopyrite, pyrite and primary chalcocite. Throughout the orebody minor digenite and covellite occur and arsenic is a minor constituent bound up with the pyrite. The bulk of the sulphides occur in stringers, fractures and breccia interstices but finer grained primary bedded sulphides can be observed. The genesis is probably a complex process in- volving active tectonic movements extending from deposition to post lithification giving numerous phases of brecciation and redistribut- Ion.

Jan 1, 1974

By Marwick PL

As part of its operations Hamersley Iron operates a heavy medium Concentrator to upgrade low grade, unsaleable iron ore to produce saleable lump and fines products. Firstly, the attempts at delivering a blended feed in both chemical and physical characteristics are presented. Improvements in blending controls are shown to have given process performance improvements. Secondly, improvements to the feed preparation section are detailed. These alterations are providing a much cleaner feed to the subsequent processing stages.

Jan 1, 1987

By U JSger

The Westerschelde tunnel will be the first permanent road link between the Dutch regions of South Beveland and South Flanders. Two tunnel tubes, each 6.6 km long, will be driven using the shield tunnelling method. The difficult ground conditions and a water pressure of up to 6.5 bar make great demands on the design. This paper describes the problems and their solutions.

Jan 1, 1999

By J Emslie

Newmont AustraliaÆs Callie Underground Gold Mine is located on the Dead Bullock Soak Mining Lease, approximately 600 km NW of Alice Springs, NT, in the Granites-Tanami Goldfield. Dead Bullock Soak is part of NewmontÆs Tanami Operations, which also include the Granites Gold Mine and processing plant, Groundrush Open Pit and Tanami Mill. Callie is a world class Proterozoic gold deposit; production to date is in excess of 1.7 million ounces, with an additional Proved and Probable reserves at the end of 2002 of 10.8 Mt at 6.3 g/t. Gold mineralisation at Callie occurs in thin (1 - 30 mm) steeply dipping quartz-chlorite sheeted vein system that cuts across a 40¦ plunging folded sequence of medium to fine-grained metasediments. While the vein system is highly continuous, the gold distribution is highly variable and is controlled by the interaction of lithology, alteration, structure and vein density. The mineralisation is commonly coarse-grained and has a relatively high nugget effect, consequently the orebody is problematic to estimate and shows a high degree of sensitivity to drill hole density. Resource modelling at Callie is an example of a geologically driven model that has evolved with increasing data and understanding. Lithological and structural models are employed to define domains within which the grade estimation is undertaken using multiple indicator kriging. This gradual model evolution impacted greatly on the selection of the mining method. Uncertainty in the estimation of the orebody was a significant factor that led to sublevel open stoping with cemented aggregate fill being adopted as the mining method to improve extraction selectivity. Callie often shows strong positive reconciliation compared to the mill. The mine geologistÆs face the challenge of limiting the degree of underestimation of the core of stopes whilst ensuring that stope boundaries are not conservative. This can only be achieved through the mapping of subtle geological features in order to confirm the orebody model. The increased use of the geological mapping has improved our understanding of the controls on mineralisation and has been extended into the development of new models for near mine underground exploration.

Jan 1, 2003

Mining of copper ore is still the most important business in Chile. In order to mine ore with a copper content of less than one percent at Minera Los Pelambres in an economical way, opencast mining is mandatory. Due to the prevalence of avalanches at the mine, the concentrator was located in a stable area, some distance from the mine. As a consequence, the material has to be transported between mine and concentrator by conveyor. A downhill conveyor system has been implemented for more than ten years as the most suitable and most economical ore transport alternative. Due to the length (12.6 km) and inclination (1300 m drop) of the conveyor system, the stresses in the steel cord belt are the dominant design criterion, resulting in a belt quality of ST 7800. Additional dynamic belt stresses during transient operating conditions are avoided by the installation of high capacity adjustable frequency drives. The rating of a single drive unit is 2500 kW. During ten years of operation, several capacity increases have been implemented, from an initial 5800 t/h up to the current capacity of 9900 t/h. This presentation describes the engineering challenges of the implementation of the world's strongest belt conveyor system. Capacity increase measures like the development of new control and breaking strategy, proved by dynamic simulation of belt forces and belt speed scenarios are explained. During this long-term partnership of RWE Power International, the former Rheinbraun Engineering, with Minera Los Pelambres, RWE has been engaged continuously for development work, safety checks, expert opinions and maintenance audits, and giving new impulse to conveyor technology.

May 1, 2010

By A Hocking, S Henderson

Commonwealth of Australia (2016) defines rehabilitation as comprising “the design and construction of landforms as well as the establishment of sustainable ecosystems or alternative vegetation, depending upon the desired post-operational land use”. For open cut coal mines in Queensland and New South Wales, the question of how to apply this intent to pits at mine closure is repeated for hundreds of individual pits. In EISs, closure plans and public discussion, assorted treatments are proposed to rehabilitate pits. While some aspects of final voids have been intensively studied, there is little guidance on how to choose a final void treatment option that delivers the optimal outcome against rehabilitation goals. For example, in the Bowen Basin and Hunter Valley commonly proposed rehabilitation actions include reducing the angles of pit walls; however, with few voids successfully rehabilitated to date there is limited understanding of what different wall slopes will achieve.CITATION:Henderson, S and Hocking, A, 2018. A decision framework for comparison of coal void rehabilitation options, in Proceedings Life-of-Mine 2018, pp 127–130 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 25, 2018

Efficient performance of pulp lifters to discharge ground rock is critical to the effective performance of SAG and AG mills. The paper covers developments in the design of pulp lifters and associated grates, of both conventional straight-radial and curved types, and of the inner discharge cone. Issues covered include the discharge performance of both the slurry and rock components of the discharge, reverse flow back into the mill through open grates and backflow down the pulp lifters of material that fails to discharge from the mill. The design experience is interpreted in the light of developments in particle flow modelling of the flow of charge in pulp lifters.

Jan 1, 2004

Ore reserve estimates form a basis for strategic mine planning at Argyle Diamonds open pit and alluvial operations. Most ore reserve statements are mainly concerned with resource tonnage and grade. Because diamond deposits are low grade, high value resources, diamond quality ($/carat) is also an important parameter. Relatively large variations in quality and/or grade can occur. These variations must be taken into account before the resource potential can be fully assessed. Computers (HP9000 and PC's) are utilised to compile resource inventories. Resource inventories are then ranked on an economic basis. This paper discusses the methods used to compile resource inventories and explains how these are then used to present ore reserve estimates in terms of resource potential.

Jan 1, 1990

By D E. Tennant

In the fields of geotechnical engineering and slope management, various software packages are used to assess the behaviour or propensity for a slope to fail. Traditional kinematic analysis calculates the probability of failure of design sectors with respect to dominant structural set orientations. A novel methodology is provided here to view potential hazardous slope behaviour in 3D, allowing engineers to make informed decisions regarding various pit slope geometries. Apparent dips are calculated for every point in space with respect to every slope orientation of the entire pit surface/design, specifically in reference to bench and inter-ramp planar failure mechanisms. Implementing a proactive approach to slope design will not only lead to early mitigation of risk but can also add direct value by enhancing or improving upon slope angles for earlier access to ore. From a safety perspective, identification of unfavourably oriented slope geometries can be dealt with before failure occurs. This methodology relies on a strong understanding of the existing rock mass anisotropy, particularly behind the face, thereby removing some of the uncertainty surrounding pit design as well as presenting engineers with an additional means to manage risk.

Nov 29, 2022

By A Whaanga, A Doecke

The internal stratigraphy of the Marillana Creek palaeochannel Tertiary channel iron deposits (CID) in the Hamersley Province of Western Australia was initially defined in the 1980s and redefined as the Marillana Formation in the early 2000s. Recent drilling, open pit mining and field observations in the Western deposits at BHP Billiton Iron OreÆs Marillana Creek tenements have revealed some additional details on the extent and detail of some units of the Marillana Formation stratigraphy in this area. The drill hole data at Western 1 South has identified a number of features either not previously documented in this area or whose significance has not been adequately recognised, including a denatured zone at the base of the Upper CID of the Barimunya Member, and variations in the lithology within the Munjina Member at the base of the channel. Additionally, the Western 4 pit walls show evidence of a significant near-surface clay horizon and overlying CID, which are suggested to be the equivalent of the Iowa Eastern Member in the Eastern deposits. The deposition of this unit was most likely driven by a regional climatic disruption rather than a change in sediment source area alone. The nature of the Weeli Wolli Formation-derived goethitic peloids in the Western deposits may explain the more extensive denaturing in the Western Lower CID of the Barimunya Member. In contrast, the more robust nature of the haematitic-cored pelletoids in the Central and Eastern deposits has resulted in a less denatured Lower CID in these areas. Such work reveals the value of and need for geologistsÆ ongoing face mapping observations and detailed drill hole logging, and cautions against not querying previously accepted interpretations.

Jan 1, 2007

By E Jak, P Hayes, J Chen

The paper provides an overview of the various analytical and microanalytical techniques currently in use to characterise the outcomes of pyrometallurgical processes, examining the advantages and limitations of these approaches. Specific focus with be given to quantitative microanalysis techniques including electron probe microanalysis and laser ablation, covering general principles, capabilities and limitations and recent development to address specific challenges associated with analysing molten slag, matte, and alloys, highlighting the necessity of embracing the application of these and other innovative analytical methodologies.

Jun 19, 2024

By K Sherry, N Shahbazi

Scope 3 emissions are a set of often overlooked indirect greenhouse gas emissions within a company’s value chain and represent the majority of emissions for many sectors. These emissions arise from activities conducted by entities beyond the reporting organisation’s ownership or direct control and are often challenging to calculate. Scope 3 emissions typically encompass purchasing goods and services, transportation and distribution, managing operational waste, downstream processing and utilising sold products. Within the mining sector, scope 3 emissions often constitute a significant portion of the overall carbon footprint. Therefore, these emissions are a significant aspect of the future of sustainable mining. As the journey towards a world committed to achieving Net Zero Emissions has started, the time to spark a transformative conversation in the mining industry has arrived. Consequently, a better knowledge of scope 3 footprints allows organisations to assess their emission mitigation projects against the total carbon impact of their operations and products.

Sep 1, 2024

By K Sommerville

BHP Billiton’s Area C iron ore operation has been in production since 2003. During 2010, below water table mining in the Marra Mamba formation commenced and dewatered ore has been successfully processed through the plant.The ability to mine below water table material increases reserves. Pits can be dewatered using a combination of ex-pit and in-pit bores. Critically it is important to allow suffi cient lead time to dewater. For Area C, in-pit bores yield the most water which presents challenges in every day operations when mining around bores. Operationally there are steep learning curves in obtaining equipment, training personnel and setting up infrastructure. Core risks include lifting, refuelling and maintaining gensets. The pipework, extraction and re-establishment work can be very manual.The challenges include blasting, mining, stockpiling, processing, water balance and disposal. Maximising up time on bores whilst minimising impacts to blast practices have evolved. Blast practices now align bores to the edge of patterns. Protecting bores have evolved from stemming bores with rock and re-drilling to using gas bags which require no drills. Based on moisture and material properties, mining of dewatered material can be categorised into three groups:1. normal,2. sheeting, and3. sheeting and top loading.Ore can go straight to the plant ore to drying pads where it takes between one and three months to drain.Stock management of these piles is important to ensure efficiency of the plant. Rules have been established for blending wet material to maintain feed capacity and some modifications to plants have been made. Dewatering of pits poses a challenge for water use. Initially turkey’s nests were established to capture water and use for dust suppression. As water abstraction has increased methods of management include using exhausted pits for storage and evaporators. Managed Aquifer recharge and use in potable water are being considered. An over arching coordination of the capacity and use are required.Important elements in dewatering include:• capacity models,• capital,• long to short planning,• day to day coordination, and • water level monitoring and balances. Success in dewatering requires a cross function team working towards a common goal. *This is an abstract only. No paper was provided for this abstract.*

Jul 11, 2011

By Brown GA

Results are presented which demonstrate the feasibility of employing electrolytic membrane technology to process leach liquors derived from alkaline pressure leaching of scheelite concentrates and to recover and recyle sodium carbonate. Thus the problem of disposal of sodium sulphate is avoided. In a further application of the technique sodium tungstate is converted to tungstic acid which can be further processed by three possible routes to crystalline or amorphous tungstic acid or tungsten powder. In each route sodium hydroxide is produced which on carbonation can be recycled as soda ash to the pressure leach stage. Further testwork is required to determine long term operational conditions in the membrane cell and to confirm the effect and deportment of impurities on products. The process has been patented.

Jan 1, 1986