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By R. Noorani, M. Cai

"Excavation of deep underground openings in highly stressed grounds can generate new fractures near the openings. As a result, rock mass bulking may occur, leading to large wall deformation. A better understanding of brittle rock failure and the associated fracturing process at the laboratory scale is an essential step towards evaluating dilation behavior of rocks. A grain-based model that can capture dilation behavior of rocks under various loading conditions at the laboratory scale can be a useful approach to study rock mass bulking at the field scale. The aim of the paper is to study the dilation behavior of rocks at the laboratory scale employing numerical simulation. A modified grain-based model is used to simulate the macroscopic response of crystalline rocks by considering micro-fractures at the grain scale. Grains generated with the Voronoi tessellation are allowed to fail in tension or in shear using a strain-softening model. Damage is represented by either grain boundary fracture or grain failure, or the combination of the two. As stress increases, the process of damage, fracture initiation and coalescence in rocks can be captured.The grain-based model was calibrated using test data of the Lac du Bonnet granite and a parametric study was conducted. Numerical simulation results showed that the proposed modeling approach is able to capture most of the mechanical properties, fracture pattern, and dilation behavior in both unconfined and confined loading conditions. In an unconfined compression test, interactions of microscopic fractures may lead to macroscopic shear or axial splitting failure depending on the chosen micromechanical parameters. Numerical experimental results show that the dilation behavior of the model is strongly related to the failure mechanism of rocks. Tensile-failure-dominated failure mode generates large dilation due to the formation of new cracks that are sub-parallel to the loading direction. On the other hand, shear-failure-dominated failure mode produces small volume increase. One significant finding from this study is that in order to capture large dilation using grain-based UDEC models, intragranular grain failure should be considered."

Jan 1, 2015

By G. R. Cope, C. D. Spence

"The Mac porphyry molybdenum prospect is located 100 km east of Smithers in central British Columbia. The identification of anomalous levels of molybdenum, copper, and silver in three adjacent lakes, sampled during a regional lake sediment survey, lead to the discovery of molybdenite mineralization in float. Subsequent magnetic and soil geochemistry surveys, together with prospecting and mapping, located the source of the float. Mineralization is hosted by a leucocratic granite stock of the Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Francois Lake Intrusions which has intruded Carboniferous and Permian Cache Creek Group volcanic and sedimentary rocks. The stock measures 500 m by 300m at surface and is mineralized throughout. Sulphide mineralogy is simple and consists of molybdenite with minor pyrite and local chalcopyrite. Molybdenite occurs within fractures and as selvages along quartz stockwork veins and is best developed near the margins of the stock.Known mineralization is coincident with distinct soil geochemistry and magnetic anomalies. Two additional areas of the property display similar features and these remain to be tested.IntroductionThe Mac property is situated in the Babine Lake area of central British Columbia on NTS map sheet 93K/13E, approximately 100 km east of the town of Smithers (Fig. 1). The property lies on the western margin of the Hogem Range at the northern tip of the Nechako Plateau. The centre of the claim block lies at 54°51 ' 30""N and 125 °34 '30""W.Topographically, the claims are characterized by gently rolling hills ranging in elevation from 900 m to 1500 m. Slopes are forested with tall conifers and underbrush is minimal. Flat-lying areas are swampy with tall grasses and scrub brush.Presently, the property is only accessible by helicopter from bases located in Smithers and Fort St. James. Recent road construction by the British Columbia Forest Service has brought road access from Burns Lake to within 5 km due south of the property. It is expected that in the near future, roads will be advanced into the claim area to facilitate logging of mature timber."

Jan 1, 1995

By W. Holyk

"Although lead, zinc, copper, and iron sulphides have been known for many years in the Bathurst region, the existence of large massive deposits was not known until the discovery of the Brunswick orebody in 1952. This was followed by the discoveries of the Anacon orebody in 1953 and the American Metals orebodies in 1954. There is no question as to the great importance of these large massive sulphide deposits, and no doubt that other sulphide deposits are to be found. The problem, of course, is where and how to find them.The discovery of the Brunswick and Anacon orebodies is attributed to geophysical work. The original discovery of the American Metals deposit is generally attributed to a regional airborne electromagnetic survey.It is generally stated that the Bathurst area is a geophysical camp, and this is essentially true, but in this highly competitive search for orebodies it is obviously impossible for an individual company to cover the entire area by a comprehensive geophysical survey. Some means other than geophysics must be used to narrow the target. The quickest, cheapest, and simplest method is geological investigations.It has been stated that nothing can be accomplished by geology in the Bathurst region, since the camp is largely covered with overburden. This is true only insofar as detailed work on certain properties is concerned. It is not true of the larger regional picture. Outcrops are scarce, but angular float is abundant, and precedent shows that angular float has moved but a short distance from its source.GeologyAeromagnetic maps published by the Department of Mines and Technical Surveys are the best guides to the geology and structure of the area. These maps supply factual information concerning the underlying rocks. When coupled with field investigations, they are very useful in the interpretation of regional geology and the selection of favourable areas. The discussion of the geology is accordingly centred upon the aeromagnetic maps. The following is essentially a working theory, based on geological facts as best reconciled with all other available information,"

Jan 1, 1949

By Wynne Potter

"On the west coast of Cape Breton Island four coal basins have been identified, varying in age and extending from Port Hood northeasterly to Chimney Corner. Those of Chimney Corner - St. Rose in the north and Port Hood in the south belong to the Pennsylvanian Riversdale Group while lying between them are the coal basins of Mabou and Inverness belonging to the younger Pictou Group. Almost all of the coal basins are submarine and coal mining was carried out on all basins at various times. The seams in all basins dip steeply seaward at angles from 10 to 20 degrees but were found to flatten seaward. The coal is ranked as a high volatile C bituminous coal. Ash and sulphur contents are high compared with Sydney coal and the coal has a tendency to spontaneous combustion when stored in large quantities.Of the four basins, the most significant is that of Mabou. At Mabou recent seismic and drilling investigations have indicated that although a sizable reserve of coal may be found offshore the structural problems, particularly faults, and the poor quality of the coal encountered will make it a resource of the future, if at all. Inferred resources have been calculated at 150 million tonnes in four seams over a 10 km2 area and extending 3 km from shore. The quality of the Mabou coals varies with ash, ranging from 5 to 25 per cent and sulphur up to 6 per cent. Calorific value ranges from 25.3 Mj I kg to 31. 7 Mj I kg. The Port Hood and St. Rose -Chimney Corner fields (Fig. 1) contain 16 million and 3 million tonnes respectively, but the Inverness basin is considered to have been depleted. The active mine in this area is the Evans Mine at St. Rose that is currently producing between 30 -50,000 tonnes a year from proven reserves of approximately 3 million tonnes."

Jan 1, 1985

By L. P. Srivastava

Rock bolts have been used since long to enhance the shear strength response of jointed rocks in civil and mining engineering structures. However, the assessment of strength response of a rock mass reinforced with rock bolts remains an unresolved problem till date. In the present article, an attempt has been made to study, through physical model tests, the shear strength enhancement of a blocky mass due to provision of passive rock bolts. Direct shear tests were conducted on large specimens of size 750 mm x 750 mm x 900 mm of rock mass under a normal stress varying from 0 to 2.0 MPa. Concrete was used as a model material to simulate intact rock and, elemental blocks of size 150 mm x 150 mm x 150 mm were used to form the mass specimens. Steel bolts of 6 mm diameter with 2 mm thick grout were used to reinforce the mass. Three different configurations of bolts were adopted. Observations were made on shear stress, horizontal shear displacement, and dilation during the tests. Effect of normal stress and reinforcement on peak shear stress and shear stiffness was studied. It is observed that the rock bolts enhance the shear strength of the mass by preventing sliding along the shearing plane, and by inducing additional normal stress due to tension mobilized in the bolts. The rock mass, therefore, becomes stronger due to the high degree of interlocking produced by the bolts. Shear strength of the mass increases with increasing numbers of bolts. In the case of reinforced mass, the enhancement in shear strength due to provision of bolts decreases with an increase in normal stress. The provision of bolts improves the cohesion of joints substantially. The effect on friction angle is low. The shear strength enhancement depends on the area of the bolts, spacing of the joints, spacing between the bolts and the cohesion of the intact material. A correlation has been established using which the enhancement in shear strength due to the provision of bolts can be assessed.

Jan 1, 2015

By E. W. Garner

THE greatest problem confronting business managers in modern times is not production, but distribution. It would be easy to expand productive output, but it is difficult to find markets for all that is produced. The fundamental source of economic difficulty, in the view of many observers, is a lack of proper balance between productive capacity and consumptive capacity. The studies conducted by the Brookings Institution on the general subject, "The Distribution of Income in Relation to Economic Progress", have led to conclusions of far-reaching significance, which may be summarized briefly as follows: (1) We have never lived beyond our economic means or capacity. (2) We have not been suffering from general overproduction. (3) We have not as yet reached a stage in our economic evolution at which it is possible to provide adequate standards of living for everybody. ( 4) It would require less than a 25 per cent increase in purchasing power among the masses to absorb our full productive capacity. (5) Production-curtailment programmes-whatever their merit in meeting temporary maladjustments-can only lead to national impoverishment. (6) Our inability to find markets adequate to absorb the full output of our productive establishments is explained by the unequal distribution of income and consequent restricted flow of purchasing power through consumptive channels. (7) The slow rate of growth of consumptive demand serves to retard the rate at which new capital is constructed, and hence the rate of economic progress. (8) The primary need is a rapidly expanding total income, and a broader diffusion of this income among the masses of the people. (9) A broader diffusion of income can best be achieved by reducing prices as rapidly as increasing efficiency will permit. That is to say, the benefits of technological progress, mass production, and low unit costs must be promptly passed on to consumers in the form of lower prices-giving more for each dollar.

Jan 1, 1936

By G. Griffiths

"P. WitteWitteck DevelopmentThe implications of using a tower mill for fine grainding in the ore processing of tailings are significant. What can those of us who are in a research and development situation do when we recommend this equipment to a client? When this prototype is placed on stream next to a conventional grinding mill as you suggest how do we estimate the power requirements and the grind which will be achieved?ReplyLet me explain the Macassa circuit. The tower mill here was running in parallel with one of the ball mills. The feed entering the tertiary system is scalped in a primary cyclone. The finial cut is made in a secondary cyclone. The actual feed to the tower mill is the underflow from the two cyclones and was split to the ball mill and tower mill. During the testing we were unable to isolate the tower mill to determine its contribution to the overall system. We then started to look at the amount of material produced across the mill. We entered the mill at between 17% and 20% finished material and exiting at between 36% and 40% finished material. We were able to project, with a high efficiency classification system, and arrived at 6 Kwh/ton or better."

Jan 1, 1984

By M. Sutherland

"Increased efforts to improve mine safety have led to various successful forms of ground control in Canadian underground mines. At Inca Limited's T-3 Mine in Thompson, Manitoba, a perimeter blasting method has been implemented in jumbo drilled development headings.The technique utilizes an increased number of perimeter blast holes in the drill pattern while decreasing the linear charge density of explosives in any individual perimeter hole. The decrease in perimeter charge density means less blast damage to the surrounding structure.The benefits realized include increased safety through less loose ground and substantially less scaling time, less overbreak and improved long-term drift stability. This paper highlights the development and implementation of the perimeter blasting program.IntroductionThompson Mine Thompson Mine is a 6000 ton per day underground nickel mine located just outside the city of Thompson, 400 miles north of Winnipeg. The mine is serviced by the T-I shaft and by the T-3 shaft. The shafts are 10 000 ft apart and are connected on several levels with the deepest operating levels at T-1 and T-3 being 4000 ft and 2400 ft respectively.The T-3 Mine presently produces 52% of the total Thompson Mine production and 65070 of the 3000 ft of mine development each month. Current development of the 5 million ton 1, C orebody below 2400 level at T-3 will maintain these production and development ratios.Depending on equipment requirements, development headings at T-3 Mine vary in size. The 1, C ramp, at 17 1/2 ft wide by 10 1/2 ft high, is presently the largest development heading at T-3. Fifty- two per cent of the development footage is done with four Gardner Denver two boom electric /hydraulic jumbos and one Gardner Denver one boom electric /hydraulic jumbo. The remaining 48% is driven with hand-held jack-leg drills."

Jan 1, 1990

By George Langford

Introduction The manufacture of ductile beryllium is one of the most interesting problems confronting the metallurgist today, and one which becomes more acutely in need of resolution as the uses for beryllium increase. Beryllium belongs to the hexagonal group of metals along with zinc, magnesium, and cadmium. The melting point of the metal is about l,280°C. ± 5°C. Due to its brittleness, the metal's chief use is as an alloying agent in copper and iron. The very low absorption coefficient of beryllium for x-rays makes the metal ideal for x-ray windows, and, similarly, because of its low capture cross-section for neutrons, the metal holds a preferred position in the field of nuclear physics. Modern x-ray diffraction methods were responsible for explaining the mechanism whereby zinc metal, although brittle when cast, could be made ductile at room temperature. The diffraction patterns of zinc and magnesium indicated the importance of the parts played by recrystallization and preferred orientation in this mechanism. It was with this in mind that an Investigation into the recrystallization and preferred orientation of beryllium was undertaken. The investigation, after a series of experiments were conducted involving cold-working and annealing, yielded the recrystallization temperature curve for beryllium. Both the texture of preferred orientation and the effect of recrystallization on this texture when subjected to compressive stresses were also determined. W. A. Alexander, J. K. Swinton and L. M. Pidgeon, in their investigation on The Recrystallization Temperature of Beryllium (C.I.M., Trans., Vol. L, 1947, pp. 657-664), utilized the Brinell ball as a means of cold straining the metal. Sufficient strain was developed to estimate the recrystallization curve for the metal. However, in order to determine the lowest recrystallization curve, as well as to develop a preferred orientation structure, larger deformation than that possible with a Brinell ball was required. The plastic deformation of beryllium can be carried out at an elevated temperature above 700°C. Above 850°C., the metal is quite ductile and can be readily compressed or extruded.

Jan 1, 1948

By Joseph J. Mgumbwa

Pillars are any structures left between two or more underground openings. The stability of pillars is normally considered to depend on shape (defined by width to height ratio), rock mass strength, extraction ratio, in situ stresses and the gross structural features (i.e. joints, contacts, faults etc). Recent experience has shown that pillar stability is also controlled by the relative orientation of the orebody with respect to the in situ principal stress. In inclined orebodies, pillars are loaded in compression and shear, thus creating unsymmetrical stress distribution. Failure mechanisms of these pillars are little known. This paper investigates the failure mechanisms of pillars under shear loading. Two dimensional elastic numerical modeling was used to examine the behavior of pillars in different orebody inclinations relative to the major farfield stress orientation. First, the paper reviews pillar design approaches including the empirical pillar design chart and uses numerical modeling to investigate the effect of the major farfield stress orientation on pillar stability. It is concluded that the empirical pillar design chart be used with caution, and that for orebodies under shear loading mine planning and design should take this into consideration since such geometrical orebody/stress relations put mine structures at higher risk of instability.

Oct 1, 2010

By W. Cholewa, T. S. Golosinski, J. Wedzicha

"Power requirements of belt conveyor drives are usually estimated based on the calculated belt tension which equals the sum of unit resistances to motion which the belt has to overcome. In most situations, the value of various unit resistances can be accurately predicted using published information (5,6,8,12). A simpler approach calls for use of standard formula and tabulated values of related factors which reflect various features of both the conveyor and the transported material (2,3,7) . None of these approaches is reliable when materials with unique properties are conveyed, nor if applied to conveyors working in extreme climatic conditions. Such is the case of oil sand mines in northern Alberta.There the bitumen content of oil sand causes it to behave in a unique manner. Furthermore the conveyors operate year around, with winter temperatures often lower than - 40°C. It was the objective of presented investigations to quantify the power requirements of conveyors, and related resistance to motion for the conveyors used in oil sand mines during winter operations.The other objective was to quantify the drive power requirements of oil sand conveyors during start-up. These requirements are usually much higher than those during norm al operation, and their quantification is of paramount importance for operation of large conveyors."

Jan 1, 1992

By D. Nower

"The supply of copper is expected to be at a large deficit in 2012. To recover from these deficits mining companies are required to maximize production and there is no better way to accomplish this than to optimize the use of their mobile mining equipment fleets. To optimize these fleets, each equipment type has to be monitored in its own unique way. Automation would not only improve production, but also minimize the safety risks and eliminate planning errors. The automated vibration monitoring of multiple systems on the shovel can determine the machine’s condition at all times. This reduces unplanned downtime and keeps critical shovels in production. This paper will discuss the details of how shovels can be successfully monitored, continuously. INTRODUCTIONP&H Mining, part of Joy Global, is the world’s largest manufacturer of above-ground mining equipment. Its electric rope shovels, such as Figure 1, with capacities up to 115 tons (104.3 metric tons), are used for high production loading in surface mines; its draglines, such as Figure 2, have bucket capacities to 160 cubic yards (122 cubic meters). P&H also produces blasthole drills, mobile mining crushers and other essential mining equipment. Headquartered in Milwaukee, WI, the company does business on every continent, except Antarctica. ECONOMIC FACTORSDue to the global demands for metals and power, mines are required to operate at full capacity. Mine operations cannot afford any critical assets to shutdown unexpectedly; depending on the ore type and quality, downtime for a single shovel can be as much as $300,000 per hour.Electric rope shovels are one of the most critical assets in open pit mining. They are very large, complex machines with DC or AC motors, multiple reduction gearboxes (some of them complex planetary) and multiple large rolling element bearings. This complexity, combined with the tough 24/7 service, results in too much unplanned shovel downtime, which can affect the entire downstream process."

Jan 1, 2012

By Edouard Masengo

A long dyke will be constructed in a lake with rockfill placed by end dumping method. Its crest will be at elevation 521.5 m compared to the nominal lake level at 520 m. In the first portion, its height will vary from 1.5 m on a 35.1 m thick tailings layer to 18.3 m on about 0.5 m of tailings. In the second portion, the dyke will be built on native silty clay and will vary from 18.3 to 15.2 m in height. The tailings consist in stratified layers of fine-grained soils showing lateral and vertical segregation. The tailings are compressible and may develop excess pore water pressure on loading. The tailings overlie a thin layer of relatively soft native silty clay. The till beneath the silty clay is considered incompressible compared to the material above. After construction, as the tailings and silty clay consolidate, pore water pressures will dissipate and dyke stability will improve. Since dyke stability will increase with time, the primary concern is its stability during construction. As a result of construction activities, three potential modes of failure were identified and recommendations were provided regarding the measures that should be undertaken to increase dyke stability during construction.

May 1, 2003

By A. Scheltema Beduin, M. Kalisch, E. Floch, R. J. Dijkhuis, H. J. Oterdoom

In metallurgical copper production, the traditional aim is to increase recovery of copper to the maximum. SMS Siemag (SMS) has supplied numerous furnaces for this application. New targets are to make sure end of line products are as safe as possible with respect to health and environment, and to maximize raw material utilization. This means a for example a minimization of leachable metals in slag, so it can be safely used as a construction material, and either a targeted concentration or fixation of volatile compounds, such as arsenic. Currently, 2 process routes are generally applied for slag cleaning. The first is grinding followed by flotation, and the second is slag cleaning in an (electrical) furnace. Popularity of both options has fluctuated over the years, and currently the milling-flotation seems to be the more popular option. In this article some of the advantages and disadvantages of both methods are described, and especially how long term environmental policies could have an impact on the decision which process route to choose. Finally, this article will describe some of the developments SMS is working on in pyrometallurgical slag cleaning that could influence the direction for the design of the copper plant of the future.

Jan 1, 2014

By A. L. MacAllister

"Keymet Mine lies on the Elmtree River 4 miles west of Petit Rocher and about 18 miles northwest of Bathurst, Gloucester County, New Brunswick. A good gravel road runs through the property.The deposit was discovered in 1880 when a vein 7 to 8 feet wide was re-ported. In 1883 the first shaft was sunk as part of an exploration program which was carried out sporadically until 1897, when the company dissolved. Activity on the property was intermittent until 1946 when the property was again staked and during the next year diamond drilling intersected the vein in several places. In December 1949 Coulee Lead and Zinc Mining Company optioned the property and held it until its sale to Keymet Mines Limited in June 1952. By July of the same year work had begun on a three-compartment shaft.Early development work was concentrated on the 150, 300 and 450 foot levels but the shaft has since been sunk to I,228 feet to allow for eight levels at intervals of 150 feet. Little lateral work has been done to date below the 600-foot level.The first mill constructed to treat the ore was to go into production in the spring of 1954, but was destroyed by fire. A second mill, having a capacity of 200 to 300 tons a day, was officially opened October 25th, 1954. Present shipments are zinc and copper-lead-silver concentrates.The rocks of the area are shale, conglomerate, limestone, and quartzite with minor interbedded volcanic rocks, all probably of Silurian age. Small plugs of Devonian acidic intrusions occur 3 miles east and about 5 miles northwest of the mine. Minor dykes of both acidic and basic rocks occur on the mine property. In many of the fine-grained sedimentary rocks the more brittle laminre have been brecciated and give the rock the appearance of an argillaceous conglomerate."

Jan 1, 1949

By J. F. Jackson, R. W. Mau

"The first commercial installation in the mineral industry of the ""Verti-Press"" pressure filter was made by Falconbridge Limited at the Strathcona Concentrator to filter copper concentrate. The filtercake produced contains 6 - 7% H2O, an improvement from the 12 - 13% H2O produced by an internal drum filter, at rates of up to 20 t/hr. A novel slurry feed system incorporates a hose pump and a pressurized slurry accumulator.INTRODUCTIONIncreased copper production from Falconbridge Limited operational mines in the Sudbury Area has exceeded the current refinery capacity. A copper concentrate has been produced to overcome this constraint and has been shipped to custom smelters either as a slurry or as a 12 - 13% moisture filtercake utilizing an internal drum filter.With the treatment of the new Deep Copper Zone from the Strathcona Mine, copper concentrate production was forecast in excess of the installed dewatering capacity. The filtercake was too wet to transport by truck and the custom smelter refused to handle this product at the truck unloading site. The filtercake had to be trucked to a rail spur and transloaded into gondola cars. This system was expensive, incurred unaccountable losses and the concentrate was assessed a moisture penalty.To reduce the concentrate moisture content to permit direct shipment by truck, two basic systems were available; vacuum filter followed by a thermal dryer or a pressure filter. Past experience with the high capital and operating costs of dryers led Falconbridge to closely examine the pressure filter alternative.COPPER CONCENTRATE PRODUCTIONThere are two separate circuits at the Strathcona Mill; one treating nickel ore and the other treating copper ore.The rougher concentrates produced by both circuits are conditioned with lime and cyanide before the copper-nickel separation in a flotation columns. The concentrate consisting of cha lcopyrite with mi nor cubanite is very clean as shown in Table I. Currently 50% of the copper in the plant feed reports as copper concentrate, in the past, this has been as high as 70%."

Jan 1, 1990

By T. Stergiou

An extensive research is being carried out on the shaft furnace operation in order to minimize down-times and reduce operational cost. The need to increase the scrap percentage on the charging mix, together with the need of cheaper spare parts has led to the investigation of alternative materials for the burner system on the shaft furnace. This system consists of a burner block and a flame holder. Traditionally these items are constructed either from SiC ? oxide bonded or SiC-nitride bonded. A lot of problems have been confronted over the past 8 years of operation. Usually, large cracks are formed on both flame holders and burner blocks. This resulted in leakage of combustion gases to the back of the lining and a quick erosion of it. Additionally, the burner blocks suffer from chemical erosion, due to the increased amount of scrap used in the charging mix and the presence of slag inside the furnace. Alternative materials such as stainless steel for the flame holder and alumina-chromia refractory for the burner block have been tested in terms of life-time and resistance on chemical erosion. Furthermore, additional changes have been made on the burner block design in order to alter the flame shape and improve the scrap melting operation.

Jan 1, 2007

By Par G. Jönsson, Joachim von Scheele, D. S. Sarma, Mukul Goyal

Dust from flue gas cleaning systems at iron and steel production is frequently considered as a waste problem, but it is actually a potential raw material source. By using a technology like the oxyfuel based OXYFINES technique, it can be melted into a suitable form. The product from this processing, however, needs to meet the requirements of a recyclable raw material, here particularly a top-charged blast furnace feed. The present work has been focused on characterization of the product produced from these dusts by OXYFINES technology. The investigation has been carried out on samples of processed dusts from a European integrated steel mill. It was done by means of chemical analysis, density measurement, light optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy combined with energy dispersive spectroscopy, and micro indention hardness measurement. Special attention was paid to the presence of zinc, an element that might be harmful while recycling the material (e.g., in a blast furnace). The results show that the product contains four different regions with different morphologies and properties in the material, which are discussed in detail. The overall conclusion is that by processing the dusts in this way, a raw material suitable for recycling in a blast furnace can be obtained.

Jan 1, 2004

By Timothy D. Dreger

In the spring of 2009, Suncor Energy Inc. technical personnel saw an opportunity to improve planning 0and mining of overburden material in order to address aggressive construction goals and increased mining complexity. By tying together current and historical equipment performance, geological model information, and material observation in the field new operating elevations for the shovels were developed. At the same time, methodology of recording and reporting overburden movement through the Modular Mining DISPATCH system was changed. The result of this first stage of improvements was an increase in construction-grade material available at the face. The personnel involved realized that other opportunities were available to build on the initial successes and establish processes that would stand up to attrition and experience levels. A cross-functional technical team was assembled to identify ways of further improving workflows around overburden mining. Some of the opportunities realized include greater alignment between planning, reporting and operations as well as development of reporting tools that help steward Mine Operations to the plan. All of which have resulted in Suncor meeting or beating its forecast overburden targets. The cross-functional technical team continues to seek out new and better ways of doing business so Suncor can continue to deliver on its commitment of outstanding performance and results.

May 1, 2011

By A. Jeffkins

Visibility is restricted when operating load haul dump vehicles resulting in a number of serious accidents in the Ontario Mining Industry. One of the leading causes of these accidents is the inability of the equipment operator to see clearly people, objects or hazards around the machine. Previous line of sight testing by the research team found specific machine characteristics were responsible for blind spots and impaired visibility. In order to identify feasible design modifications a computer simulation program, Classic JACK 3.1, was utilized. Program features include human factors analysis, which allows evaluation of line of sight and operator posture in order to decrease risk of musculoskeletal injury. Research within the virtual computer environment consisted of a Visibility Audit and a Target Audit in order to quantitatively determine how certain components of the LHD design affected the line of sight around the vehicle. Results indicate that modifying the LHD light brackets, engine profile, cab posts and other components will enhance visibility. The addition of cameras located on the front and rear of the vehicle were able to enhance the operator?s sight lines to previously obstructed areas. Modifications to seat height and the operators orientation both improved sightlines and decreased risk factors associated with back and neck musculoskeletal disorders.

May 1, 2003