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Most new engineers in the mining industry do not realise the importance of legal obligations. During investigations the first question you are asked is: Do you have any proof or evidence? The smallest detail in an underground notebook or a diary entry is able to be used as your proof and/or evidence. The importance of a paper trail is often undervalued and overlooked when you first enter the industry. As a new engineer, all too often your legal obligations, including your duty of care are not given enough consideration. Whose job is it to inform you of what your legal obligations are and when do they end? Everyone has legal obligations at every level of the industry, from graduate to mine manager. The level of these responsibilities varies depending on the position that you hold. When you first start in the industry you need to understand what your responsibilities are and how you are expected to discharge them, whether they are memos, databases or senior sign-offs, etc. In order to fulfil your obligations you must first discharge your own obligation, which in turn discharges those of your department and ultimately those of the mine. As a graduate engineer in the mining industry what I have learnt about my own legal obligations has come directly from my own experience, which will form the basis of this paper.

Jan 1, 2007

By T Brown

Australia is now committed to the most significant period of infrastructure investment since the 1960s and the current climate of project finance and public private partnership (PPP) model uncertainty means it is imperative that the affordability and certainty in delivery of infrastructure projects is maximised.In light of the current and forecast levels of infrastructure investment it is worth drawing comparison with a similar period of Australian expansion when the nation’s first railways were constructed. Similarly to over a century ago, we are following a trend in rapid development and are already reaping the inefficiencies that could be avoided with broader technical planning and improved client coordination.The original rail networks were developed by the individual states before they combined to form a Federation of states in 1901. As a result of the adoption of different gauges by 1917 a passenger wanting to travel by train from Brisbane to Perth had to change trains six times.Similarly in 2011, there is little parity between Australian states on the quality requirements (performance specifications) for road tunnels. Differences between states start most significantly with the size of the specified traffic envelopes, thus the size of tunnel required. Where ambiguity and differences exist in project documentation, performance specifi cations (PS) and broad technical requirements for road tunnel projects, any associated risk in interpretation ultimately ends up being incorporated in the bidder’s (constructor’s) final sell price.Whilst not nearly as inconvenient as having to change train at each state border, and largely unnoticed by the general tax paying motorist, this paper examines examples of apparent minor differences in Australia’s recently constructed road tunnels to highlight the differences in road tunnel specifications.The paper identifies how these small differences manifest themselves in major price penalties between projects and further, highlights the need for further specification review, refinement and standardisation across road tunnel jurisdictions to increase road tunnel affordability.

Mar 8, 2011

THE old mill erected by the .Irvinebank Company consisted of 10 heads of stamps (850 lb.), rock-breaker, Hartz jig, two Krupp tables, two Luhrig vanners, three sand-pumps, one mixer; six flotation vessels, and the necessary settlers. Power was supplied by a small colonial-type boiler, and 10-in. x 15-in Tangye engines. The ore was darted from the mines to the mill and hand-fed, into the rock-breaker, and the broken product elevated into the batter bins and fed into the stamps, the pulp from the stamps passing to a classifier, the spigot to jig, tables, and vanners, the overflow from the classifier passing to settlers. After the removal of bismuth-wolfram concentrates, the pulp was pumped to the molybdenite flotation plant and the olybdenite recovered by flotation.A commencement was made with the erection of the first unit (20 heads) of the new mill in August, 1917, and milling and concentrating commenced in February, 1919.

Jan 1, 1920

This paper discusses equipment replacement strategies and specifically addresses the upgrading of technologically superseded equipment. The process of equipment replacement evaluations is reviewed, and areas have been highlighted where currently accepted practice results in a bias towards retaining existing equipment longer than otherwise justified. The Discounted Average Cost Method is described and the advantages of the technique for this style of decision making discussed. Several key issues influencing the replacement evaluation are also presented together with examples from recent consulting work.

Jan 1, 1992

By M Russ, J Gediga

This paper shows an economic feasible approach to implement greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction measures into the mining and metallurgy industry (MMI). The goal to improve energy consumption is directly linked to the reduction of GHG emissions in the MMI. A baseline scenario of the considered reference system and of the respective reference year has to be designed and analysed. In a second step an analysis of the same operation using the best available technology (BAT) processes is carried out to generate a basis for a benchmark system. The identified gaps will be reported and the potential GHG emission reductions will be put into relation to the investment, running cost and generated carbon credits of the new process technologies to be implemented. This economic feasibility calculation is necessary to realise a cost efficient GHG reduction roadmap decision-making for implementing new technology into the companyÆs business operations. The GHG reduction roadmap is developed using the marginal abatement curve approach.

Jan 1, 2009

By W Curlewis, D Hake, Z Cuthbert

The South Island Line (East) will be a medium-capacity railway covering approximately 7 km from Admiralty Station to South Horizons Station on the south side of Aberdeen Harbour in Hong Kong, with intermediate stations at Ocean Park, Wong Chuk Hang and Lei Tung.South Island Line (East) Contract 904 project is located on the island of Ap Lei Chau at the southern side of Hong Kong island and requires extensive construction works to be completed in close proximity to the existing residential estates of South Horizons and Lei Tung. The project also has areas of significant cultural heritage, including 18th and 19th century temples and historical gravesites. Owing to the site access constraints and location for the project, detailed planning and methodology innovations have been required to ensure the most effective and responsible means of delivering the project works. To excavate the tunnels using drill-and-blast techniques in these restricted locations, the maximum instantaneous charge weight that could be fired while blasting was severely limited. To overcome these restrictions, the project team developed and pioneered the use of ‘deck loading’ in Hong Kong to minimise the impact of blasting operations and has successfully implemented double- and triple-deck blasting operations during the completion of tunnel excavation works.Upon completion of the drill-and-blast excavation, the tunnel lining works were completed using both in situ concrete lining with travelling forms and permanent shotcrete works.CITATION:Curlewis, W, Cuthbert, Z and Hake, D, 2014. SIL904 Hong Kong – Drill and Blast Tunnels, station blasting innovations (double- and triple-deck blasting) and lining solutions, in Proceedings 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014 , pp 21–28 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 17, 2014

By S Morgan, L C Pagdalian, S Serdzeff, C Malaloy-on

It is widely accepted that mineral deposits are decreasing in metal grades. To remain profitable and meet market demand, mining companies are expanding their operations by increasing the tonnage treated. These expansions may include new concentrators with higher nameplate tonnages or upgrading the capacity of existing ‘brownfield’ operations. In many cases, the brownfield upgrade route is preferred as it is less capital intensive; however, brownfield upgrades are never straightforward and present many metallurgical and engineering challenges.For example, to increase feed throughput at a brownfield site, there will be a requirement to modify the mine development plan. This may result in the ore mineralogy varying beyond the current feed fluctuation range. To accommodate these ore variations, a combination of mineralogical analysis and small scale testwork can be used to develop a new process flow sheet to achieve the product recovery/concentrate grade requirements. In general, however, flow sheet development does not usually consider site specific layout constraints and equipment requirements. At sites where future expansions were never considered, taking this silo approach could lead to project delays and compromise the circuit design.Engaging an experienced technology partner ensures the nominated project team is involved throughout all stages and aspects of a given brownfield upgrade – from conceptual flow sheet development, through to detailed engineering, construction and commissioning. The recent Carmen Copper Corporation (Carmen Copper) circuit upgrade has been completed in technology partnership with Outotec. The circuit upgrade was extensive and included new equipment additions to the comminution, flotation and dewatering circuits. Carmen Copper’s intimate knowledge of the ore characteristics, in conjunction with a trusted, knowledgeable technology partner, facilitated a robust circuit design, and fast-tracked the project execution. This paper deals specifically with the flotation circuit upgrade and highlights the benefits to Carmen Copper of this holistic approach.CITATION:Morgan, S, Serdzeff, S, Malaloy-on, C and Pagdalian, L C, 2014. The benefits of technology partnerships during brownfield upgrades, in Proceedings 12th AusIMM Mill Operators’ Conference 2014 , pp 471–476 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 1, 2014

The paper describes the preparation of new rail guides, removing existing rails, and replacing with new rails in a vertical winding shaft.INTRODUCTIONThe general practice in coal winding shafts is the use of two cages, with one or more decks in which men and materials are raised or lowered. Winding speeds vary according to depth, the type of winding gear, and whether winding is done in downcast or upcast shafts. Each cage occupies a position between the centre and side of the shaft, with a clearance depending on the type of guides used. The function of the guides is to keep the cage in position throughout the entire depth of the shaft. There are three types of guides, two of which are in general use.1. Selected wood of about 6 in. square section, fixed to the side of buntons.2. Solid strand steel made up similarly to that of an ordinary wire rope, suspended from the head frame with weights attached to the lower end.3. Standard T-rail sections fixed to end or side buntons. Of the three types, 2 and 3 are in general use. The type used in the particular case, the subject of this paper, is T-rails of the standard section used in railway work.GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF SHAFTDetails of the shaft are as follow: Diameter of shaft: 22 ft. inside lining.Depth of shaft: 900 ft., including sump.Concrete lined throughout.VENTILATIONThe ventilation shaft is used for the upcast, through which all vitiated air passes to the main ventilation fan. Quantity of air passing up the shaft is 400,000 cu. ft. per minute. The air is highly saturated during the summer weather and slightly less...

Jan 1, 1947

By P N. Martens

In the course of the development of the Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) in the 1980s an expression was introduced in the public discussion on environment and development that influenced the international and national policies of the last 20 years in all areas: sustainable development. The UN decided in 1992 to implement a program with the Agenda 21 which contains the demand for developing indicators for sustainable development. In this context an indicator is understood as a quantitative or qualitative measure that can be measured or described throughout time and which moreover is able to depict the current status and changes. In order to enable for a simple holistic assessment of sustainable development, highly aggregated indicators are required, which integrate the criteria identified as relevant within a framework to be defined. In the presented paper, sustainability indicators for the mining industry are developed that account for the allowances of the sustainable development concept and the Agenda 21. The indicators are quantifiable and traceable through time so that developments can be traced and assessed. Furthermore, the indicators account for the multidimensional aspect of sustainable development. They are designed to allow for the integration of several dimensions in one indicator. The premises that are underlying the development of the indicators are the minimisation of negative impacts on the environment and society while simultaneously considering the maximisation of social and economic factors. Moreover, the participative momentum that is part of the sustainability idea is safeguarded in explicitly integrating the social acceptance of certain measures into the assessment. The indicators presented are based on the logical combination of statements through the use of Boolean algebra. Starting with basic statements for which the logical value is oriented on the sustainability paradigm, complex multidimensional statements can be constructed and assessed.  

Jan 1, 2009

By D Finn, D Kentwell

Experience has shown that the E-Type multiple indicator kriging (MIK) estimation technique often works well for resource estimation in stockwork mineralisation that contains a mixture of high and low-grade mineralisation types that are difficult or impossible to separate spatially. E-Type MIK, like ordinary kriging (OK) is a smoothing estimator and where data is sparse can result in estimates of grade tonnage curves that do not reflect the true block variability at selective mining unit (SMU) scale. The rank and replace (RR) estimation methodology is designed to reproduce both local block accuracy and true block variability at SMU scale and has shown good results when used with highly skewed unimodal diffusive style mineralisation. This paper examines the use of RR with mosaic style mineralisation typically found in stockworks via a case study using real data from Newcrest’s Telfer West Dome deposit. Resource level estimation results for ordinary kriging (OK), E-Type MIK and RR are compared to close spaced grade control models as the reference reality.Results show that stationarity requirements and declustering can severely impact on the usefulness of the rank and replace technique and that it should only be used where trends are not too strong and data are relatively uniformly spaced. This does not rule out its application to stockwork or mosaic style deposits. However, in this case, the presence of trends and different data densities requires the non-stationary domain to be further broken down into sub domains for the RR technique to be effective.CITATION:Kentwell, D and Finn, D, 2017. Testing new estimation techniques – rank and replace: a stockwork case study, in Proceedings Tenth International Mining Geology Conference 2017, pp 365–374 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 20, 2017

By Waters CA, Happ JV

The debismuthising plant, commissioned in 1980, is based on the Kroll-Betterton process for preliminary bismuth removal with subsequent antimony treatment for fine debismuthising. Bullion flowrate is continuous and the plant was designed to achieve low bismuth lead product at rates of up to 20 tonne/h.Development of the first stage of the operation has enabled reliable operations at 25 tonne/h to be achieved. Thesedevelopments also introduced the opportunity to treat higher bismuth bullion at up to 35 tonne/h when operating the first stage only to produce product lead of 0.029 per cent Bi, meeting the ASTM B29-55 Corroding Lead Standard.

Jan 1, 1985

The paper reviews winder rope inspection procedures at the Non Destructive Testing (NDT) Unit of Western Australian School of Mines (WASM) and outlines measures taken to adopt the world's best practice. The measures include acquisition of a new type of rope tester, adoption of comprehensive rope rejection criteria, adoption of a standard rope inspection procedure and formal training of the wire rope inspectors.

Jan 1, 1995

By Thompson D. R, Milton R, Perry K. M A

From the Department for Research in Industrial Medicine (Medical Research Council), The London Hospital; and the De Havilland Aircraft Company:M.R.C. INVESTIGATIONS IN 1936In 1936 the Industrial Pulmonary Disease Committee of the Medical Research Council investigated both clinically and radiologically a group of fifty workers who had been exposed for a number of years to the inhalation of alumina in the reduction factory of the British Aluminium Company. The results are shown in Table 1.They also considered the sickness records of all the workers (Hill, 1936), as compared with those in other parts of the factory (Table 2).

Jan 1, 1945

By K Morrison

Australia’s ageing population means that by 2050 there will be 2.7 people of working age to support each Australian aged 65 years and over compared with five working people per retiree today and compared with 7.5 in 1970 (Swan, 2010). This means that there is going to be a greater demand on social services – for medical and aged care – from a smaller private income base. How will this gap be met? Australia is fortunate in that it has vast resources of mineral wealth; from iron ore, nickel and gas in Western Australia to the giant copper and uranium deposits at Olympic Dam in South Australia.The prospect of a meaningful profit based tax on this vast mineral wealth has been lost through Australian government’s handling of the issue in 2010 and with an industry fiercely opposed to the prospect of a mining tax. Hence, new ways of thinking are required. This paper looks at the issues facing the implementation of a novel scheme whereby Australia leases the mineral resources it extracts and thus derives income over the decades the metals are in-use in pipes, wires and structures with a premium paid for unreturned material or that used in dissipative applications. Applicable minerals could include copper, aluminium, nickel and rare earths. If Australia simply digs up and sells the metals once, the buyer becomes custodian of that resource and they benefit from controlling the future ‘above-ground’ resource stock.A complementary driver for a leasing scheme is the increasing importance of chain-of-custody following initiatives of the Responsible Jewellery Council with gold and diamonds, now with the potential to extend across commodities. The Australian minerals sector could thus position itself as a premium supplier with high social and environmental credentials.Recognising the implementation challenges, this paper includes a review of how such a system could be enforced to ensure that the metal is tracked throughout its life. It concludes with a discussion of the rates and terms should such agreements hold and suggestions for institutional arrangements for enforcing compliance.

Nov 22, 2011

By W Patton, I Minniakhmetov, H Talebi, U Mueller

The sustainability of mining projects is linked to informed investment decisions based on public reporting of exploration and mineral resource estimation results. In Australia, public reporting guidelines are established by the Joint Ore Reserves Committee reporting code through the JORC Code (2012). Although the assessment of uncertainty in the results reported is a requirement, this is often communicated qualitatively and evaluated subjectively. This can become a liability particularly in the early stages of mining projects when spatial domains of geological interpretation and mineralisation envelopes inform resource estimations’ reliability. A recent review of JORC reports found no reports used quantitative assessments of the geological interpretation or mineral resource estimation envelopes, and 27 per cent of reports did not address the question of quality of geological interpretation. Reports that did address the quality used 19 different terms to communicate quality. This work presents methodologies for quantitative uncertainty assessment and communication and explores how they could be applied in public reporting practice. Quantitative uncertainty reporting would benefit mine planning and financial modelling as they normally assume the geology is 100 per cent right (since no error is reported or only a single deterministic model is provided). The complexity, cost, and additional work of doing a quantitative assessment could hinder a straightforward implementation. This could be overcome if mining companies budget for quantitative uncertainty assessment and associated professional development. A compulsory requirement for the inclusion of uncertainty assessments in public reporting or adopting standardised subjective language would improve industry practice.

Mar 22, 2022

By S Kakara, A Kamaraj, S S. Varanasi, B V. R Mandalika, M B. Shaik

The properties of top slags play a very important role in secondary steelmaking. Fluxes should be chosen based on the ladle furnace (LF) slag requirements like viscosity, melting temperature, sulfide capacity, etc. CaF2 and CaO-Al2O3-based synthetic slags are the most used fluxes in secondary steelmaking to improve slag fluidity and interfacial chemical reactions. CaF2 is obsolete due to fluorine pollution and CaO-Al2O3 based slags have 40–50 wt per cent Al2O3 and 30–40 per cent CaO which is not beneficial for desulfurisation. Yet another drawback is that LF slag disintegrates into fine powder during cooling due to phase transformation C2S (2CaO.SiO2). Hence, there is a need for the development of low melting fluxes with high CaO content and the capability to prevent slag disintegration. The current work studied the effect of 0–9 wt per cent B2O3 on physico-chemical properties and characterisation of LF slags. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were carried out to identify mineralogical phases present in slag and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis was done to understand the changes in bonds of B2O3 added LF slag. The characteristic temperature of slag was determined by a hemispherical method using high-temperature microscopy. Empirical models were used to calculate viscosity, break temperature, and sulfide capacity. FactSage™, ver 8.2 (by GTT-Technologies) simulations were carried out to find the equilibrium phase fractions and percentage of liquid slag at different temperatures. New phases such as Ca11B2Si4O22 and Ca2B3O5 were formed in LF slag with B2O3 addition. Based on the results, 0.5–1.0 wt per cent B2O3 was found to be sufficient to prevent C2S-driven disintegration of LF slag. Also, the melting temperature and viscosity of LF slag were reduced by adding 3–8 wt per cent B2O3 due to the formation of BO3 planar triangular structure and low melting eutectics in slag. Liquid slag started forming at a temperature as low as 800°C when B2O3 is >6 wt per cent. It was found that the sulfide capacity, viscosity, and break temperature of the slag decreased with increasing wt per cent B2O3. Based on the analysis carried out, B2O3 can be a promising fluxing material in secondary steelmaking, for improving the desulfurisation kinetics and valourisation potential of LF slag.

Aug 21, 2024

The perception of New Zealand as an exploration destination has improved compared with other countries. There has been a realisation that New Zealand's potential is greater than previously thought. Other countries are not as attractive as before, and explorers are looking at alternatives that are geologically prospective and politically stable.   New Zealand is regarded as geologically prospective, especially for gold, with potential for world class deposits. It is also prospective for other metals, coal and industrial minerals. New Zealand is politically stable, and has an economy that is attractive to overseas investors. It is one of the least corrupt countries in the world, which overseas companies see as providing a high degree of certainty for investment.   New Zealand has good opportunities for investment in gold exploration at present. Otago has been the focus for new companies and is the favoured exploration location. Otago is regarded as very prospective, and hosts New Zealand's largest gold deposit at Macraes. There is potential for other similar deposits elsewhere in Otago.   The mineral industry previously had an excessively pessimistic view of New Zealand, which has resulted in little new investment in New Zealand for some years. Previous pessimism is turning to optimism, and there is increasing interest in New Zealand as an exploration destination by overseas explorers.

Jan 1, 1997

By D François-Bongarçon

The theory of sampling (TOS), and therefore representative sampling, is based on three fundamental principles: sample correctness, which handles the search for non-bias; segregation, the effects of which must be eliminated or minimised; and variance control to help achieve the desired reproducibility. After briefly reviewing these very few, albeit essential first principles of Gy’s TOS, the state-of-the-art in TOS is examined through the prism of these principles and the prospects for the future are explored, with suggestions for further research where relevant. Regarding segregation, which is currently the focus of much research, new orientations are proposed. For correctness, which takes on a major importance when it comes to sampling devices, some new, important principles that have been put forth by recent research, are described in details.CITATION:François-Bongarçon, D, 2014. State of affairs and current research trends in theory of sampling fundamentals, including segregation and correctness, in Proceedings Sampling 2014 , pp 11–16 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 29, 2014

By Carlie JC

Many low sulphidation epizonal gold and zinc-lead vein deposits within magmatic arcs are situated on basement highs, and post-date both the main volcanic episode and porphyry copper (gold) mineralization. These features are best explained by emplacement of a flat batholith a few kilometres beneath each mineral district, as recently demonstrated by geophysical data in the Baia Mare district of Romania. The batholith provides heat for the hydrothermal system, and results in extensional faulting both through up-doming of the overlying rocks, and in some arcs through incipient collapse of the thermally weakened crust under regional extensional stress. More water-rich magmas emplaced at greater depths could explain some deep epizonal and mesothermal gold deposits situated outside magmatic arcs.

Jan 1, 1995

By B N. Morrison

In all metallurgical plants metallurgists require analyses of the various intermediate products, eg flotation feeds, flotation concentrates, tailings, mattes, slags, etc to monitor the efficiency of the plant processes and for plant control purposes. Traditionally these samples have gone to off-site laboratories and there can be some considerable delay before analytical data are received. On-line monitors have to be used for plant control purposes and these are difficult to maintain and can give poor quality data. Recent technological advances in automation in analytical laboratories now allow a far quicker turn-around time for analytical data so they can be of more use to the metallurgist. Automation, which involves the use of robots and fewer people in laboratories, has the added benefit of providing higher quality data as the possibility of human error and bias is minimised. Differences between conventional manual laboratories and automated laboratories are described. Automated analytical laboratories are now becoming the laboratories of choice for mining companies which require large numbers of samples to be analysed on a 24/7 basis on similar sample types using the same sample preparation methods and analytical procedures. Automated laboratories have now been installed in platinum, iron ore, copper and aluminium producing mining companies. A further advantage to metallurgical plants is now the possibility of siting automated analytical laboratories in-plant and designing the plant around the laboratory. Concentrator streams, slags, etc can be sampled by automated samplers, the samples transferred by automation to the in-plant laboratories and all sample preparation and analyses carried out by automated processes. These laboratories require a minimum of staff. Such automated in-plant laboratories have been installed on a platinum mine flotation plant, a platinum mine smelter and steel plants. One is in process of being installed on an iron-ore mine with the sampling being carried out by an automated sampling tower. The procedures followed in planning an automated analytical laboratory for a metallurgical plant are described in detail in the paper. The platinum plant smelter automated system which includes rapid transport of samples by air-tube to the laboratory for the analysis of the samples by XRFS is also described in the paper. It is concluded that automated analytical laboratories can be retro-fitted to most metallurgical plants but they are best suited to greenfield sites.

Jan 1, 2008