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By W. H. Zieman

"THIS IS THE THIRD of the consecutive Annual Forums on Grinding that were instituted by Mr. L. E. Djingheuzian in 1957. The first was on the subject of Ball Milling (Transactions, Volume LX, 1957) and the second on The N on-Cataracting Ball Mill (Trans-actions, Volume LXI, 1958). From the discussions at these forums it was evident that one of the most important factors affecting the efficiency of grinding is the shape of the liners. In order to make a study of liners in use, it was •decided to seek the co-operation of operators across the country by sending out questionnaires requesting basic information. Additionally, these operators were urged to set down briefly any pertinent information on the subject acquired through experience and experiments at their own particular plants. A compilation and analysis of these data were to form a basis for discussion at the Forum on Liners at the Annual Meeting in Montreal, April, 1959. The response of the milling fraternity to this solicitation was most gratifying, and clearly indicated the importance attached by the operators to the effect of liner design upon overall grinding performance."

Jan 1, 1959

By K B. Bowley

This paper covers the application of a systematic maintenance plan by the Plant Engineering Department of Rio Algom Mines Limited, Milliken Division. The plan established the function of work study, developed and installed formal work planning and labour cost control procedures, and extended the existing preventive maintenance routines. In June, 1961, assisted by management consultants, a more scientific approach to maintenance was instituted. The emphasis was placed on the control of labour. The development and application of the primary control system was established with-in six months. Since then, the Department has operated for a year, consolidating the system. The procedure of the installation, the results achieved and the results to be expected will be discussed. JNTRODUCTION THE Milliken Division of Rio Algom Mines Limited operates a 3,000-ton-per-day uranium mine, in the Elliot Lake district of Ontario, which went into production in April of 1958. The lowest operating level is 3,000 feet below surface. Mining is carried out by open stopping, with planned pillar support and footwall haulage on rail.

Jan 1, 1963

"THE CONCEPT of energy as a commodity, while not entirely new, is not as widespread as the importance of the idea to this modern world would lead one to expect. The growth in the supply and use of energy over the past years has been tremendous, but our very closeness and familiarity have somewhat distorted the viewpoint, particularly of the younger generation. To many of us who remember the wonderful satisfaction of our first responsibility for directing two horsepower hitched to a farm cart or hay wagon, there still arises a feeling of some awe at the casual flick of the switch with which our sons and daughters summon to their convenience the service of some one hundred or more horsepower.Energy is the vital component of our existence and, no matter what contempt our day-to-day familiarity may •breed, it is wise to .pause from time to time and consider our national energy standing. Have we still capital in the bank? Are our expenditures wisely •conceived and well directed? Is provision being made for the years •ahead for the needs of our children and our children's children?"

Jan 1, 1953

By Greg Yuriy

Over the past two decades, Vale Canada has used discrete-event simulation in a key role to support many underground mining studies. Traditionally, general purpose simulation software was developed for manufacturing and service applications. Not until recently have Mine Designers and Simulation Specialists been able to model the dynamics of underground mining scenarios without extensive manipulation of the inherent tools and entities contained within these simulation environments. This paper discusses Vale Canada?s past experiences with a variety of simulation software, describing model development methods and highlighting some of the lessons learned. The paper concludes with a review of recently considered software and provides a framework of desired attributes/functions for modeling mining scenarios.

Aug 1, 2013

By T. Lamb

There are many honor stories about aluminum in the marine environment and many are not based on facts, so they are myths. Myths must be addressed before progress can be made. This paper attempts to dispel the myths and state the facts. A common perception is that aluminum ships cost significantly more than steel ships. This paper illustrates that even though the cost of the aluminum structure is over 50% more than the steel structure, an "equivalent" aluminum naval ship can be built within 7% of the acquisition price of a steel ship. This is possible because of the cascading benefits of the aluminum ship's significantly lighter weight. Aluminum ships also have a life-cycle cost advantage over steel ships because of reduced maintenance and fuel cost savings.

Jan 1, 2011

By D. O. DeGagné, J. F. Archibald

Spray-on polymer linings, as partial or full replacement for traditional forms of area rock support, have seen rapid growth in interest within Canada. A wide variety of lining types, ranging from polymer chemical to water-based cementitious materials, have been developed and commercially introduced to the underground mining market. Following approximately one decade of development work, several general conclusions have been reached regarding the performance of this class of area support media, these being that: health and safety assessment of the broad range of materials has shown the majority of them to be acceptable and safe for underground use; significant ground support potential can be offered by them, being equivalent to or better than capabilities offered by traditional support forms such as bolt-and-screen or shotcrete, and; their abilities to be rapidly deployed and provide near instantaneous support restraint offer considerable operational and cost benefits to underground operators. A review of currently available liner materials, their historic development within the Canadian mining industry, and overviews of support, health and safety, operational considerations and cost benefits are provided in this paper.

Jan 1, 2001

By K. W. Major

"This chapter outlines the organization of mine/ mill complexes in Canadian mining companies. Many factors unique to the Canadian mining industry will affect the design of the organization in the future: geographic location, the size and the type of orebody, etc. Mining companies cannot choose where new operations will be located, that is dictated by the location of the orebody. New mines are seldom started near established communities. Rather, the towns usually grow up near the mines. The remoteness of most Canadian mining operations has caused severe problems in attracting and/ or retaining all levels of employees. This means that training has a high priority within each operation.Another factor affecting mine/ mill organizations is the size of the operation. Larger operations generally require more departments and increased specialization to manage equipment and manpower effectively. Thus, for mine/mill complexes, organizational charts are less standardized than in other industries. It is often necessary to organize around the work force rather than develop a chart and then acquire the trained personnel to fill the diagrammed positions.The information presented in this chapter has been derived from the responses received from a survey of Canadian mining operations.Principles of OrganizationOrganization can be defined as deployment of personnel to accomplish definite goals. In the mining industry, the major goals are typically the projected number of tons and grade of ore mined on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. Organizing involves establishment of authority relationships with provisions for both vertical and horizontal co-ordination within the company structure. Vertical co-ordination is the delegation of responsibility and communication of goals and reporting of progress between the supervisor and subordinate. Horizontal co-ordination is communication between departments at positions of equal authority to determine methods of achieving predefined goals. The organization structure must reflect the objectives and plans of the company, and must clearly define areas of authority.Two criteria for effective organization are departmentalization and manpower planning."

Jan 1, 1989

By Lauri Pesonen

"Although electrical energy use at copper smelters is typically about 15-20% of operational costs, it is something which is not very often analyzed and discussed at a detail level in technical papers and presentations. This paper aims to list different equipment configurations per smelter area and estimate their electrical energy consumptions versus unit of material processed. In addition chosen smelting technology and oxygen enrichment rates affect the overall electricity consumption and therefore some overall guidance is provided for efficiency gains.INTRODUCTION In principle, processing plants, such as copper smelters, require electrical and chemical energy together with some degree of human input to process input materials into desirable output form like metallic copper. From the standpoint of metallurgical plant designers, the thermodynamics of smelting, when it comes to releasing and conserving thermal energy, is sufficiently understood and frequently discussed in the literature in detail, but judging from the quantity of publications, the way how we exactly utilize electrical energy is not. This article is meant to illustrate how electrical energy consumption is distributed among different process units and equipment types at copper smelters using various smelting technologies. In general, typically about 15-20% of operational costs are related to electricity and at locations with high electricity prices the potential savings can be quite significant for the overall profitability of the plant operations. In today’s tight profit margin environment any potential savings are more than welcome. The purpose here is not to promote any certain copper smelting technology, but to open a discussion on how and where we use electrical energy, and how the overall energy use could be lowered with the implementation of newest electric power saving designs and solutions. Using the principles outlined in this article, it should be fairly easy and straightforward to replicate the calculations and even improve them wherever it is seen necessary for the greater benefit for us all in this industry"

Jan 1, 2017

By P. Kawulka

An integrated pilot plant for the development of the S-C Copper Process was constructed at Fort Saskatchewan in 1975 and operated in 1976. The pilot plant was designed to treat 9 tonnes per day of a pyritic copper concentrate. A demonstration run conducted during the last quarter of 1976 averaged 90% on-stream time, and confirmed that the process is operable as a stable and integrated unit. The paper describes the parameters and equipment developed for thermal activation of chalcopyrite copper concentrates to make them amenable for the dissolution of iron and zinc, and their subsequent separation and recovery. The resulting high-grade copper sulphide was leached with return electrolyte and oxygen to extract 98.5% of the copper into solution. The copper was electrowon at 650 amps per square metre from purified solution, to produce cathodes analyzing 0.1 ppm Se, 0.1 ppm Bi, 4 ppm Pb and 10 ppm S. The electrical conductivity was >101% lACS and the spring elongation value [ ]350 mm. Elemental sulphur and gangue are removed from leach residues to make a concentrate containing over 95% of the silver and gold and most of the unleached copper. Conventional construction materials such as stainless steel, titanium, Hastelloy, acid brick, rubber and plastics performed well. The containment inherent in hydrometallurgy provided high standards of hygiene and safety.

Jan 1, 1978

By John W. Bell

A FEW years ago the writer had the privilege of examining a piece of apparatus in the Forest Products Laboratory of McGill University which engaged his attention. The Forest Products Laboratory has an excellent installation of wood-grinding machinery, and the officials in charge were naturally interested in acquiring means for estimating the fineness of various wood grinds. The problem was referred to Dr. O. Maass ( l ). Dr. Maass designed a piece of equipment to measure the surface of a wood grind and derived an equation applicable in calculating its value, as follows : After inspecting this apparatus, the writer was disposed to believe that, with some modifications, Dr. Maass' ingenious idea might be utilized to measure the surface of mineral powders. Obviously, some difficulty would be found in maintaining an even suspension of mineral particles of high specific gravity compared to that of wood pulp. The writer will not bore the reader with a description of the various machines built and tried out. Some of these were satisfactory enough to obtain some valuable information, and to bring to light a difficulty which threatened to bring the investigation to an abrupt ending. For the mineral quartz, it was found that Kin the formula above stated was not a constant.

Jan 1, 1944

By A Palynchuk

The development of welded pipe has paralleled the general industrial development and, in particular, that of the petroleum industry. The petroleum industry's need for high-grade, economical pipeline material to make many 'of its projects feasible has been a significant factor in the development of light-wall, high-grade welded pipe. The modern welding processes, such as high-frequency, electric resistance, flash, submerged arc, etc., have some basically different characteristics. The modern high-frequency weld mill is a complex of specialized equipment that is integrated into a production unit. Each component in the unit performs a specific function in the production process. Quality control must be built into the process on an operating basis and, to maintain the quality required for pipeline standards, must be more than a policing operation. The further development of the welded pipe industry will be determined by changing and increasing demands. The technical and economic views and requirements that will influence the development have to be resolved.

Jan 1, 1964

By R. Matusewicz

The key drivers for the copper smelting industry are a complex mix of economic and "human" factors which combine to drive technology in new directions and can provide a strong indication of future industry trends. Recent examples have been the drive to achieve increased scale of production and resultant cost efficiencies by using a single furnace high intensity smelting vessel, and the broad acceptance of Top Submerged Lancing (TSL) technology for this duty. The development and adoption of continuous converting processes to counter the increased pressures faced by the Peirce Smith converting process is another example of the need for innovation. This paper discusses the merits of the continuous converting process, describes how the Ausmelt TSL batch converting process has been adapted to the new Ausmelt Continuous Copper Converting (C3) process in response to these industry trends and examines the Ausmelt continuous converting flowsheet options available to the end user.

Jan 1, 2007

By J. Lu, D. G. Ivey, H. Henein

Microalloyed steels are widely used in the oil and gas industry. They are a class of high strength, low carbon steels containing small additions of niobium (Nb), titanium (Ti), molybdenum (Mo) and/or vanadium (V). These steels have good strength, toughness and excellent weldability, which are attributed in part to the presence of nano-sized carbides, nitrides and carbonitrides. In the pursuit of developing higher strength microalloyed steels, it is of great interest to quantify the size, distribution, volume fraction and chemical speciation of these precipitates. However, characterization techniques suitable for quantifying fine precipitates are limited. Possible characterization techniques include SEM, TEM and matrix dissolution. A comparison is presented of the various techniques.

Jan 1, 2005

By W. McCombe, G. Remple, L. Nightingale-Mercer

The McClean Lake Mill is located approximately 850 kilometres north of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, and is operated by Orano Canada Inc. (Orano). The mill was designed to process high grade uranium ores, and a multi-year expansion was completed in 2014 to increase its production capacity to 24 Mlbs U3O8 per annum. The mill also underwent various upgrades to allow it to safely transition from processing low grade ores to high grade ores from the nearby Cigar Lake Mine. During the metallurgical test work on the Cigar Lake ores, it was identified that some ore zones of the deposit have a propensity to generate hydrogen gas during acid leaching. Hydrogen is a volatile and explosive gas, which poses obvious safety concerns in the leaching circuit. Uranium processing is further complicated by the fact that an oxidant in the form of oxygen gas or hydrogen peroxide is required to regenerate iron in the leach, which further increases the risk posed by hydrogen gas. During 2013 Orano and its consultant Hatch designed and engineered several novel upgrades to the leaching circuit to mitigate the risk of hydrogen gas evolution in the process. Best in class technology was utilized in addition to control and operating strategy changes to ensure the leaching circuit could be safely operated with ores that evolve hydrogen gas. This paper reviews the design concepts and modifications implemented on this unique and challenging project, and also provides an update on the operational reality of hydrogen in the circuit gained through five years of operational experience with hydrogen evolving ores.

Jan 1, 2020

By V. D. del Valle, T. G. Joseph, J. J. Berezan

Aggressive driving patterns, rough and poorly maintained roads and pit floors, along with the occasional bump and poorly placed load from a shovel can create intense and sometimes serious vibration levels on a heavy hauler. The effects of high vibration have been shown to be of concern for the health of the operator as well as the reliability of the equipment. It is proposed that an onboard vibration warning system based on the ISO 2631-1 standard could be used to help operators reduce the vibration levels experienced in a heavy hauler. The onboard system would consist of a screen that displays the instantaneous vibration in the form of three lights: green (safe zone), yellow (cautious zone), and red (danger zone), as well as an overall vibration exposure or dose for the entire shift. With the utilization of the warning system, it is anticipated that the overall vibration levels will be decreased resulting in improved operator health, a reduction of vibration-induced maintenance, and improved haul roads through reduced impact loading and repair for localized trouble areas.

Jan 1, 2004

By O. A. Carson

Introduction Although the equilibrium conditions of the copper-tin alloys have been the subject of a ?great amount of research, the equilibrium diagram is still in doubt. The first systematic investigation of the series was made in 1894 by Le Chatelier, who published a freezing-point curve. In 1895, Roberts-Austen and Stansfield published the complete liquidus and partial solidus curves, which they modified somewhat in 1897. Their liquidus as given in 1897 is essentially that accepted today (Figure 3). Haycock and Neville also published a liquid us curve in 1897. In 1898, William Campbell published a series of micrographs showing the changes in microstructure which accompanied the thermal changes of Stansfield? s diagram. The classic work on the bronze series was published by Heycock and Neville in 1903. Their diagram was based on both thermal and microscopic evidence, and is the first for this series of alloys which can be considered nearly complete. Further, it was the first bronze diagram in which any attempt was made to apply the phase rule in the interpretation of the thermal and microscopic results. That portion of Heycock and Neville's diagram covered by the present work is reproduced in Figure 7.

Jan 1, 1929

By William G. Pariseau

"This contribution describes linkage of stress concentration at the face of tabular excavations, for example, longwall coal mine panels, at a meter scale to surface subsidence at a kilometer scale. Joints are considered according to orientation and spacing at an intermediate scale. A new dual-node, dual-mesh technique based on first principles uses a multi-scale technique that allows for computing whole mine surface subsidence while also allowing for computational details of stress, strain and displacement about main entries and pillars, panel entries, and bleeder entries. The technique is implemented in a conventional continuous Galerkin finite element program that has been in use for many years.The advantage of the dual-node, dual-mesh technique is the capability to do a whole mine analysis that takes into account interaction between all sections of a mine where stress transfer over long distances is often the rule rather than the exception while at the same time allowing for details of stress concentration at working faces where caving is initiated and subsidence begins. The technique, outlined recently during ARMA 2014 (Pariseau, 2014), is applied to an underground coal mine in central Utah where mines are developed from outcrops in steep canyon walls. Meshes contain over 10 million, three-dimensional nodes; runtimes are typically overnight, as a practical matter. Results compare favorably with mine subsidence measurements made over a period of several years and show the capability of this new technique to provide useful design guidance for tabular deposits such as underground coal mines. The role of variability or uncertainty in strata properties is illustrated in element safety factor distributions about development, bleeder and main entries and pillars. Such details are new in this contribution. Energy tracking for mine-induced seismicity is also new. Results show a high correlation between number of events and failed elements and suggest a simple index to mine induced seismicity."

Jan 1, 2015

By G. K. Herzog

THE problems relating to the construction and use o{ mining equipment are basically the same as those pertaining to equipment in other industries. It is true that much mining equipment is subjected to an unusually severe combination of shock, high stresses, abrasive wear, and corrosive ? conditions, but in other industries, also, equipment must operate under similar adverse conditions, so that their experiences may readily be applied to the problems of the mining industry. Steel and iron are for obvious reasons the most suitable materials for the construction of the greater part of the equipment used in the mining industry. For a large percentage of uses, the ordinary plain carbon-steels and ordinary or unalloyed cast-iron are, and probably will continue to be for a long rime, entirely satisfactory materials. There are, however, many. conditions which cannot be satisfactorily taken care of by these materials, and alloy steels and irons must be used where the greatest possible economy is desired. In general, alloy steels and irons are used where it is necessary or economically desirable to use materials possessing properties superior to plain carbon-steel or ordinary cast-irons, such as: (a) better strength (b) better wear resistance (c) better corrosion resistance (d) better resistance to high temperatures (e) better resistance to low temperatures or combinations of two or more of these advantages. There are also conditions where materials having other special properties are required, such as, for example, certain magnetic or electrical properties for electrical machinery; but in the great majority of cases, one or more of the five advantages listed are the most desired.

Jan 1, 1938

By L. Garrigues, M. Jarvis, M. Halhead, O. A. Bascur

"Large variability of ore types, escalating variables operating costs and increased throughput require large investment in sensors and systems in mineral processing operations. Mining and mineral processing plants collect and manage more data than a small city with much in real-time. The data is changing rapidly as internal and external conditions evolve. As corporations buy and sell assets, and reengineer their staff, the structure and tools that were used to understand this data is lost. This results in significant deterioration in the ability to maintain a smart operation. When data is recognized as a critical asset and managed as part of an infrastructure, it become a key enabler to help transform the entire operations. In many situations, all partners in business collaboration—such as join ventures, contract manufacturer, expert service providers, and operations and maintenance companies—need access to production and asset data. The emergence and maturation of Cloud technologies make it possible to easily connect the plants to external equipment suppliers and operational support service.This paper will share examples of how mineral processors have adopted new data strategies such as self-service business intelligence, cloud computing and internal/external collaboration.INTRODUCTIONOne of the main challenges in mineral and metallurgical processing plants is effective energy and water management. The lowering of ore grades requires higher throughputs while the ores are getting more complex with variable mineralogical compositions. Electrical energy supply is becoming a restriction in many countries. Rising water management costs has a direct impact on the profitability of the operations. Grade recovery versus energy consumption in copper production for both open pit and underground mines has been described by Fuerstenau (2001). Comminution uses over 55% of the energy to produce nonferrous metals while other operations require much less energy (Nelson, Richins, & Lelinski, 2013)."

Jan 1, 2016

By C. J. Newman, R. J. St. Eloi, G. Macfarlane

"The Kidd Creek copper smelter has been expanded from its original design of59000 tonnes of copper per year to over 120 000 tonnes per year. Modifications to the process gas handling system and acid plant have been made to accommodate this higher production rate and, generally, to optimize the operation.The gas handling system associated with the continuous smelting process is discussed in terms of boiler accretions and modifications to minimize their impact on operations; design changes to effect reductions in high pressure drop duct configurations; material changes to overcome corrosion and plant additions to improve gas cleaning capability. The acid plant is reviewed with references to changes made to accommodate the increased S02 gas strength resulting from the higher smelting rates. IntroductionThe Kidd Creek Division of Falconbridge Limited is a base-metal mining and metallurgical complex located in Timmins, Ontario. The discovery of the original copper-zinc-silver orebody was announced in April 1964. Mining operations began in 1966 with a 9000 tonnes per day (t/d) concentrator corning on stream in November of that year. In April 1972, a 108 000 tonnes per year zinc plant was conunissioned. Over the years the facilities have been expanded, such that the concentrator now has the capacity to process 13 000 t/d of ore. To expand zinc production, the world's second installation of the Commco/Sherritt pressure leaching facility was completed in 1983 to bring total zinc production capacity to 136 000 tonnes per year. In 1973, serious planning for a smelter operation began. In early 1975, after studying both continuous smelting and flash smelting processes, a decision was made to proceed with the technology offered by Mitsubishi Metal Corporation of Japan. The Mitsubishi Continuous Smelting Process was to be used for the smelter and the Onahama No. 3 tankhouse technology for the copper refinery."

Jan 1, 1994