Search Documents

By Robert Stefanko

The most perplexing problem that has confronted mining engineers since the dawn of mining has been strata control. For the purposes of this paper, strata control will be defined as control of ground in the immediate area surrounding the, mine opening. To prevent movement of the surrounding strata into underground mine openings, miners have traditionally relied upon some type of artificial supports placed within the openings and located in a manner determined by trial and error from previous experience. Without the means to measure changes of stress in the supports and within the mine structure itself, an evaluation of the efficiency of the supports and mining system was impossible. Strata control thus remained an art with very little application of science. During recent years a revolution has occurred in mining. The modern mining engineer is contented no longer-with trial and error methods but is utilizing all the technological information at his command to obtain a solution to this age old problem. However, serious problems have arisen due to the lack of certain basic knowledge in three important areas: 1, The original stress distribution within the earth strata prior to mining. 2, Redistribution and concentration of the original stresses with mining activity. 3. The properties of rock that are significant in failure and its prevention.

Jan 1, 1960

By M. E. Bilir

In this paper, we review cases in which dramatic and visual swelling problems are experienced in underground structures. Swelling rocks have caused many problems in underground engineering projects. They pose severe problems to the design, construction and maintenance of underground openings. If an appropriate integrated design procedure, which proceeds from exploration, tests, analyses and realistic assumptions of swelling behavior, is used during the design stage, the execution of the project can be completed without any serious delays or dramatic design changes. The case histories were subdivided into three classes that include tunnels, underground coal mines and others. For the evaluation of cases, the surrounding rocks, swelling minerals, water inflow, swelling test results and swelling problems were considered. The main purpose of this review is to inform the reader about potential problems with swelling phenomenon and to emphasize the rehabilitation and extensive cost which are encountered due to the lack of necessary integrated design approaches.

Aug 1, 2013

By Adam Chrzanowski, Eugene E. Derenyi, Peter Wilson

"The rapid growth of the mining industry in Canada necessitates a reevaluation of existing mining surveying techniques and the development of new methods. In this connection, the Department of Surveying Engineering at the University of New Brunswick initiated a research program, and the major points of investigation conducted to date are as follows: 1. Based on practical experience and theoretical studies, all factors influencing classical shaft-plumbing procedures were analyzed. Refined methods were developed to increase accuracy. 2. The performance of electronic and optical distance-measuring instruments in underground conditions were investigated. In this connection, test measurements were made in various mines, employing four types of Tellurometers, two models of Geodimeters and a proto-type optical range-finder. 3. Tests were conducted and methods developed for the mapping of large underground chambers by photo-grammetric means. The aforementioned points are discussed at some length in the paper. The authors have also indicated areas where further research is needed and suggested ways and means to improve and modernize mining surveying as a whole throughout Canada."

Jan 1, 1967

By Tominaga Y

Mine ventilation control is one of the most important techniques to suppress the disastrous region within a limited area, to have enough time of emergencies (ignitions, fires and so on) for underground workers. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the simultaneous controlling of mine ventilation by using, micro computer connected to various kinds of sensors. In this study, basic of mine ventilation and graph theory are used for making computer programs when the characteristic curves of fans and temperature distribution in an underground roadway network are given.

Jan 1, 1981

By K. D. Russ, A. J. Beer

Non-contact systems for measuring underground voids have used theodolites, reflective or non-reflective laser methods and sonar techniques. An effective but cheaper alternative is based on use of a Wild T1000 electronic theodolite coupled to a Leica Data DISTO and a Wild GRE3 data logger. The software used to process the theodolite data is a spreadsheet and macro combination, while Surpac, Datamine and AutoCAD modelling packages have been investigated for viewing the tunnel profiles. The main limitations were found to be blinding, when irregularities in the stope obstructed the line of sight, and the 30 m range of the Data DISTO model used in the study, although more powerful models are available. All three modelling packages proved suitable, with Surpac providing the best-quality printed images of the voids surveyed and AutoCad by far the cheapest alternative

Jun 21, 1905

By H. Kalsi

"IntroductionRoyal Oak Mines Inc. is currently operating the Parnour No.1 mine located 10.5 miles east of Tinunins, adjacent to Highway No. 101. The operation produces gold ore at a rate of 3300 tpd. A variety of mining methods including bulk open stopes with ITH drilling, narrow vein panel, longhole and open pits contribute to produce 1.2 rnillion ore tons annually. The milling process requires water at an average rate of 1 rnillion gallons per day (700 U.S. gpm). The Pamour No.1 mine has historically had two major problems with regard to water control. The flfSt is the underground pumping system's inability to handle excess inflows of water generated from spring thaws. When the thaw takes place over a short period of time, large inflows of water are created which quickly migrate underground and sometimes result in the loss of the lower loading pocket. During the spring runoff the pumps at Parnour No.1 work continuously for 24 hours at a rate of 1200 U.S. gpm. The system was further taxed in 1991 when the Hoyle mine was connected to the Parnour No. 1 mine and whatever excess capacity the pumping system had for the spring runoff was taken up handling the inflow of mine water generated by the Hoyle.The second problem facing the mine was the lack of water for the mill during the severe cold winter months and dry summer months. At those periods inflows of water into the mine decline and the underground water normally pumped to the mill is severely decreased. In times of dry spells mill personnel increase the water diversion from the Three Nations Lake in order to meet water demands and maintain tonnage throughout. In essence, the mine was going through an annual ""feast or famine"" situation and a solution was needed.A number of options were considered but were narrowed down to the two most practical. The first was to modify the existing pumping system and increase its capacity in order to handle the excessive runoff during spring thaw. This involved a heavy capital expenditure and would have caused additional operating costs (i.e. increased hydro). The option chosen by the management was to divert the spring runoff into an unused section of the mine called The West End. A bulkhead placed at the 2400 level would provide an ultimate underground water storage potential of 150 million gallons. This would also cut down the load on the existing pumping system, save electric consumption in pumping and provide water storage which could be used for milling during the two dry spells. Pumping stored water from the mine could be scheduled for off peak hours to take advantage of lower power rates. To meet these objectives an underground bulkhead capable of withstanding high water pressure up to 2000 ft head (866 psi) was constructed in the spring of 1992. The bulkhead site was at the 2400 level at the Pamour No.1 mine. A major consideration was the requirement to construct a safe bulkhead and to minimize water leakage from the bulkhead.Figure 1 shows the bulkhead location."

Jan 1, 1994

By Adrian Rosen

When one thinks of innovation and leadership in wireless communications, one would rarely consider a potash mine to be leading the way. Agrium Incorporated has proven that they are leaders and innovators, as is evident in their recent deployment of a large-scale 802.11 wireless network in their underground potash mine located at Vanscoy, Saskatchewan. 802.11 is an IEEE standard for Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology. Rather than simply replace an aging communications infrastructure, Agrium chose to let technology provide the framework for future success

May 1, 2006

By Cody Telgheder, Mamoun Laraki

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hanford Site had a multi-decade career of supporting America’s defense system during World War II and the Cold War. A multi-reactor site, DOE Hanford produced plutonium for atomic weapons and steam for generating electricity. In addition, a network of nuclear facilities was built and used to support the research and development process, like 324 Building contained within the Hanford Site’s 300 Area. In 1989, after closing its doors to plutonium production, the DOE, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Washington State Department of Ecology took on a challenging, legally binding accord to clean up the Hanford Site. As part of the final clean-up project within the 300 Area, CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC) contracted Apollo Mechanical Contractors who contracted Nicholson Construction Company (Nicholson) to design and construct an underpinning micropile system to support excavation efforts directly underneath the 324 Building “B-Cell” structure which in turn would facilitate the complete removal of the contaminated soils directly beneath the structure. The work was completed in complex and challenging conditions that required an airtight drilling system, two layers of protective clothing, a hood with a Powered Air Purifying Respirator (PAPR), the use of long reach tools, and continuous radiological monitoring. This paper will address the design, construction, and challenges encountered with underpinning a structure within a highly sensitive Category II nuclear environment.

Oct 31, 2023

By Jon “Ike” Isaacson, Frank Perrone, Eric Prantil

"Tunneling through an urban environment carries many inherent risks to the immediate local infrastructure and subsequently to the project stakeholders. On the CQ031 Contract of the East Side Access Project in Queens, New York, twin 22.5’ diameter Herrenknecht Slurry TBMs were mined within close proximity to many infrastructure assets, with cover of less than half a shield diameter at times. Multiple public bridges and critical railroad infrastructure including catenary poles and signal towers supporting the busiest rail interlocking in the United States required underpinning systems. The support program for these structures was refined over the course of the four tunnel drives. It is the intent of this paper to show how the interaction between the temporary structures, instrumentation monitoring plan, and risk assessment program melded to provide a system which the owner, contractor, and designer relied on as a tool to ensure the project success without impacting the public surroundings. PROJECT BACKGROUND The East Side Access (ESA) megaproject located in New York City, N.Y is a multi billion dollar program for the Metropolitan Transit Authority Capital Construction (MTACC) with the main goal of bringing the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) commuter rail to Grand Central Station located in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. When completed, the project will significantly reduce congestion both into and out of Penn Station, the current terminus of the LIRR. In order to accomplish this, multiple contracts of varying scope are required to operate simultaneously in both Queens, N.Y and Manhattan. In 2009, the CQ031 Queens Bored Tunnels Contract was awarded to the joint venture of Granite Construction Northeast, Traylor Bros. Inc., and Frontier Kemper (G.T.F). The main scope of this contract was to excavate four segmentally lined soft ground tunnels underneath the Sunnyside Rail Yard in Queens, New York. Additional scope of work included the construction of a tunnel approach structure, electrical substation, and multipurpose ventilation and egress facility."

Jan 1, 2016

By Goudschaal Mark R.

"The Museum of Science and Industry U-505 Submarine Relocation project in Chicago, IL consisted of building an underground reinforced concrete vault (37' deep) for the Museum's new U-505 exhibit. This WWII submarine was captured in 1944, had been located outdoors at the Museum since 1954 and was lowered into its new exhibit area in 2004. A unique combination of earth retention, water cut-off and underpinning systems allowed a forty-two foot (42') deep excavation underneath th is historic museum. The museum - originally built in 1893 for the Chicago World's Fair - was closely monitored for building movements throughout construction. The underpinning systems, construction activities and monitoring results are presented herein. IntroductionThe historic U-505 German submarine at the Museum of Science & Industry was restored, moved approximately 1,000' and then lowered into its new indoor home (Figures 1, 2 and 3). The new underground exhibit opened this year celebrating the 61st anniversary of the German submarine's capture on June 4, 1944. On this historic day, Captain Daniel V. Gallery, a Chicago native, led the Navy in the siege of this submarine near the coast of Africa. This U-boat was the only German sub captured by the United States Navy in WWII and the Enigma machines, codebooks and publications recovered from the sub helped the war effort."

Jan 1, 2005

By Thomas Schwind, Elmar Feigl, Gerald Skalla, Angelos Gakis

Cedarvale station was constructed as part of the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Line, under the operational Yonge-University Line Subway box of Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). The station was constructed as an open-cut, which necessitated the underpinning of the existing TTC box to minimize the impact on the Subway and allow its unhindered operation. Six mined galleries, 4 m wide by 2.75 m high, were excavated sequentially (SEM) immediately under the existing box, to provide the required space for the installation of the main underpinning beams. This novel solution was executed successfully providing quick access for the main excavation works to commence.

Dec 1, 2022

By Eric Lindquist, Scott Chambers, Rob Jameson

The Salt Lake Temple is undergoing its most significant renovation since its dedication in 1893. The renovation includes a seismic retrofit of the historic stone structure’s foundations using base isolation. This paper focuses on the temporary underpinning of the 16 to 35 feet thick unreinforced masonry perimeter walls of this massive structure. Conventional needle beam or direct structural underpinning approaches to support the Temple in place during base isolator installation were precluded by its immense weight and extremely thick walls. The design-build team instead developed a unique temporary support of excavation (SOE) program to allow the 19-foot-deep excavations for the new base isolator foundations. The SOE scheme allowed the massive structure to be supported on confined soil “columns” located directly below the masonry wall footings while excavation to construct the new foundations was advanced concurrently along the Temple’s outer perimeter and inside the building. Shoring system stiffness was critical to mitigate settlement risk for this historic building and construction methods were selected to minimize detrimental installation effects.    The structural engineer’s permanent design required sequentially jacked steel pipes immediately below the walls, which were filled with post-tensioned reinforced concrete to create transfer beams. After completion of the foundation excavation, two new grade beams separated vertically by base isolators were constructed along both the interior and exterior sides of the perimeter walls. The concrete filled steel pipe transfer beams were structurally connected into the upper grade beams above the isolators. After load transfer is completed, the soil directly below the walls will be excavated to allow free movement of the structure and grade beams above the base isolators in the event of a future earthquake. The historic temple SOE and underpinning system employed multiple construction methods, including micropiles, secant piles, tieback anchors, tensioned tie-rods, temporary attachments to the jacked permanent steel pipes, hand-dug underpinning piers, permeation grouting and steel structural headers supporting interior walls. Design and construction of the historic retrofit SOE system is detailed in this paper.

Oct 7, 2024

By John E. Crawford

A year ago, if I had the pleasure of addressing you, I would have discussed ocean mineral resources from a promotional standpoint. I would have described exciting indications of mammoth tonnages of sea-floor industrial minerals. I would have attempted to fire your imaginations as to the potential of a nation having the technologic know-how to exploit its submerged boundaries. As a first step toward this capability, I would have solicited your support for a Bureau of Mines? program aimed at determining the industrial worth of marine minerals and devising techniques and hard- ware for their recovery. We still need your support, but recently we have ventured out of the realm of planning and into your Government's first program in marine mineral engineering. Today, I wish to describe what we have done within the framework of existing research problems and our possible goals. I will be brief so as to allow ample time for questions, and I can do this with confidence because our program is so new that I need not be chagrined at not having all the answers.

Jan 1, 1965

By M. L. Free

Acid consumption in copper heap leaching is determined by the minerals present in the ore. Gangue minerals such as biotite and chlorite consume acid together with copper-bearing minerals such as chrysocolla and malachite. Acid consumption is affected by the rate of acid application and the particle size. Some gangue minerals undergo alterations and cause precipitate formation during acid leaching. Other minerals form due to precipitation as dissolved ion concentrations from a variety of mineral sources combine to exceed saturation levels. Copper recovery is related to all of these events. This study presents information on acid consumption of various gangue minerals as well as data for copper recovery from an associated copper ore.

Jan 1, 2010

By B Roache, A Vakili, R Talebi

When a highly anisotropic or weak rock mass is subjected to high-stress conditions, it can lead to large ongoing deformations or squeezing ground conditions. Squeezing ground conditions can impose increased support costs, delays associated with rehabilitation, and disruption to production schedules. Ultimately, in more severe cases, it may result in complete drive closure. Several recent case studies investigated the squeezing mechanism and measures to control squeezing ground in underground mines and also to design appropriate ground support systems. Effective management of squeezing ground conditions requires a sound understanding of the failure mechanism and the driving forces. Once the failure mechanism is understood, the appropriate ground support system should be tailored to specifically manage the critical driving forces that control the squeezing mechanism. Support type, support stiffness, reinforcement length, support density, installation times and mining sequence all have important impact on the effectiveness of the support system. This paper provides a case study at the Ballarat Gold Mine in Australia, where drive squeezing was associated with foliated ground conditions located below 700 m depth. Numerical modelling was used to better understand the failure mechanism and the driving forces that lead to squeezing conditions. The effectiveness of various support types was compared to installed ground support performance. This has provided a credible methodology for assessing and optimising the selection of reinforcement in squeezing ground conditions. CITATION:Talebi, R, Roache, B and Vakili, A, 2018. Understanding and modelling squeezing ground conditions at the Ballarat Gold Mine, in Proceedings The Fourth Australasian Ground Control in Mining Conference (AusRock), pp 107–118 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 30, 2018

By Anthony Spearing

There are approximately 68 million rockbolts installed annually in underground coal mines in the USA (Tadolini and Mazzoni, 2006). The most utilized is the passive fully grouted resin rebar bolt, which constitutes almost 90% of the primary support in US underground coal mines. Resin-grouted rockbolts are a very effective and safe support, but their performance still needs to be further optimized and improved. This paper investigates their performance and suggests operating conditions to optimize the performance of resin-grouted rockbolts. In addition, this paper discusses a small-scale test that can also be used to evaluate the performance of rockbolts that is quicker, easier, and less costly than short encapsulation tests.

Jan 1, 2014

By Wayne Rogers, Sarma Kanchibotla, Alan Tordoir, Bryon Bisiauz, Seth Ako, Eric Engmann

Blast induced rock mass displacement can have a significant impact on ore loss & dilution. The mischaracterization of the grade boundaries both prior to, as well as a result of blasting can lead to significant financial losses on account of ore loss and dilution. Ore dilution occurs when waste material is miscategorised as ore and sent for processing diluting the run of mine head grade and recovery. Ore loss takes place when valuable mineral is miscategorised as waste and sent to the waste dumps, thus never being processed and recovered.

Jan 1, 2012

By Michael S. Moats, John Bailey Fletcher

Wear rates of grinding media can be misrepresented by marked ball wear tests (MBWT). Galvanic interactions between dissimilar grinding media can be affected by the chromium content in the media and the presence of oxygen in the environment. Corrosion, one component of wear, can be affected by many variables. Corrosion rates and corrosion potentials for modern high chromium white iron (HCWI) and high carbon steel (HCS) grinding media samples were obtained through electrochemical testing. In this study, the impact of chromium content in the grinding media and the dissolved oxygen in a simulated mill water solution on corrosion rates and potentials was examined. Increasing chromium content in HCWI above 15 weight percent increases the corrosion potential and decreases corrosion rate. Removing most of the oxygen from the solution lowers both the corrosion potential and corrosion rate of the materials tested. The electrochemical results were examined to model possible galvanic coupling effects on corrosion rates. Galvanic coupling between HCS and HCWI could cause differences in corrosion rates for almost all scenarios modeled. Based on the galvanic coupling analysis, MBWT results could be impacted by mixing HCWI and HCS in a ball mill charge. This impact is predicted to be more significant when dissolved oxygen is present in the mill water and as the chromium content of HCWI is above 15 weight percent.

Dec 21, 2022

By Michael S. Moats, John Bailey Fletcher

The performance of grinding media can be misrepresented in marked ball wear tests due to galvanic interactions between dissimilar media. The possible galvanic interaction of media materials during marked ball wear tests has not been adequately explored. Corrosion rates and potentials of modern high carbon steel and high chromium white iron grinding media materials were measured using electrochemical testing as a function of pH and chloride content in a simulated mill water. The results replicate previous research with the high chromium white iron sample being more noble (higher corrosion potential) and corrosion resistant (small corrosion current) than high carbon steel. Using the experimental data and corrosion theory, the effects of galvanic coupling on corrosion rates were calculated to examine what could happen during a marked ball wear test or when a mixed media charge is present. This analysis indicates that high carbon steel can cathodically protect high chromium white iron leading to significant decreases in the corrosion rate (up to 99%) of this material during marked ball wear tests. The magnitude of the protection is a function of the pH of the mill water.

Dec 21, 2022

By E. C. Winegartner

In producing and selling coal, the coal company is faced with many different parameters by which the quality of its product is evaluated. One type, which we choose to call the economic parameters, includes moisture, ash, sulfur, and Btu's. These are reasonably well understood by both the coal supplier and the customer, and the dollar values can be placed on them. This is the group of parameters of primary interest to most purchasing agents buying coal. A second group of parameters governs how the coal will behave in the boiler itself and is of primary concern to the engineers designing the boiler and to the men who must operate and maintain it. Since we have not yet learned to put dollar values on these parameters, they generally show up in coal contracts simply as cutoff points, the purchaser simply saying that he will not accept coal outside of certain limits.

Jan 1, 1975