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By David H. Carlson

The paper presents background information including data on diesel exhaust pollutants, amounts produced and standards, a desscription of mine characteristics that affect air monitoring techniques and a review of portable measurement techniques and instruments for gas and particulate matter sampling. A general review of the laboratory and field research being conducted at Michigan Technological University in the area of diesel emissions is presented. The facilities involved with this research are also described. These are the Experimental Mine, the diesel dilution tunnel test cell, the Mine Air Monitoring Lab (MAML), the portable instruments and the production mines used.

Jan 1, 1979

By Mokhinabonu Mardonova, Yosoon Choi

Open-source technology for supporting the Industry 4.0 has become the target of academic research in many sectors. This study reviewed the trends of open-source technology, its forms, and some industrial applications. As a case study using open-source hardware and software for the mining industry, this study proposed a low-cost environmental monitoring system for non-metallic underground mines to support mine safety and occupational health issues. The system was developed using open-source hardware, Arduino and 3D printer, to design the monitoring device. An open-source software, MIT App Inventor, was used for developing an Android application for smartphones to enable remote communication with the system. Field experiments were conducted at an underground tunnel and a non-metallic underground mining site to assess the performance of the system in both mobile and static modes, respectively. Although a few limitations related to the precision of the low-cost dust and gas sensors still exist, the findings of the experiments show that the mining industry can benefit from open-source technology deployment when considering cost factors

By D. G. Skinner, M. SC. Griffiths

"The natural difficulties associated with the size evaluation of dusts render absolute measurement difficult, or indeed, impossible. Assuming that the desirability of gravi­ metric sampling be conceded, it appears likely tha,t the most suitable means available for physical evaluation are the method of total turbidity measurement, to give a con­ ventional value for specific surface, together with microscopical examination, the great merit of the latter being that in the hands of an experienced operator, semi-quantitative discrimination between coal and other particles is possible.The pipette method, as modified by Fryer, probably-deserves more attention than it has received up to the present. Whatever method is used, it is recommended that in view of the lack of medical knowledge, as much information as possible should be obtained with reference to the total mass concentration, the surface area of the total dust,' and the mass and area of the particles below 5μ in size."

Jan 1, 1947

By Joseph G. Carleton

INTRODUCTION The increasing concern for the environment may well present far more opportunities than problems for those involved in all phases of tunneling. All too frequently in the past, environmentalists and their concerns have been cast in a negative light, as obstacles to be overcome. Often forgotten is the fact that these same environmental concerns have created a rapidly increasing demand for new tunnels. Tunnels for rapid transit projects, clean water supply, and sewage treatment have been given a boost because of environmentalists' concerns about overuse of automobiles, inadequate water supplies, and improper sewage disposal. Concurrent with increasing use of tunnels to help solve or alleviate some of our environmental problems is an obligation not to create new ones in the process. Concerns which we feel responsible tunnel owners, engineers, and contractors should address themselves to include: (1) Minimum energy consumption, both during construction and in operation of the completed project; (2) proper storage and/or disposal of the excavated material; (3) minimum disruption during the construction process - noise, traffic, unnecessarily unsightly work areas, and possible weakening of foundations of nearby structures; and (4) a finished project consistent with community and environmental goals. We are especially concerned about two things. First, the longrun implications of a project -- what's good for a few people in the short-run may be bad for most of the people in the long-run. Cutting corners to save a little money now is false economy. Second, the fact that ultimately we all share the same earth -- its water, air,

Jan 1, 1974

By V. J. Southey

HOLLINGER mining operations have required development by 24 vertical shafts having a total length of 28,160 feet. Seventeen of these are sunk from surface and seven are interior shafts. Four surface shafts and three interior shafts are now active and, excepting the recently completed new main ore-hoisting shaft, the remainder are either abandoned, or are used for passes or for ventilation. The new shaft bottoms 60 feet below the 3,050 level, but there is much work to be done before it is placed in service. The term 'shaft practice' is intended to include shaft construction and a general treatment o typical equipment. It is a large subject for an organization the size of Hollinger and this paper is intended only to present the salient features. The writer wishes to thank the management for permission to publish this information and to acknowledge the advice and criticism o A. G. Irving, chief engineer, and the willing co-operation of other members of the Hollinger staff.

Jan 1, 1939

By S. C. Sethi

The WIPP (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant) Project near Carlsbad, New Mexico, is a research and development project sponsored by U.S. Department of Energy, designed to demonstrate the safe containment for disposal of radioactive waste. A mine (repository) is currently being developed 2150 feet below the surface, in a thick salt bed which will serve as the disposal medium. Provision of a proper ventilation system at the WIPP Project is a major priority of those responsible for its design, management, and operations. As an ongoing effort towards this goal, it was decided to simulate the mine's ventilation system using Dravo's MINEVENT computer program. Specifically, the work included the development of the following simulation models: 1. Simulation of the current ventilation system 2. Simulation of the designed ventilation system for the following modes: o Mine Construction mode/shift o Waste storage mode/shift o Fire or exhaust filtration mode These computer models are useful in solving complex ventilation problems likely to be encountered in an R&D project, like WIPP. They are particularly helpful for the development of contingency plans to incorporate during emergency situations, such as fires, fan stop- pages, radiation leaks, etc. Also, they can be utilized when considering expanding certain underground areas to ensure the availability of adequate ventilation.

Jan 1, 1986

By B. Bichel

For the last 70 years, molten blister copper has been transferred by rail in hot metal cars from the Copper Cliff Smelter to the Copper Cliff Copper Refinery (ex Ontario Refining Company) where it was processed in two (2) reverberatory anode furnaces by poling with logs, cast on four (4) wheels, and then electrorefined. This practice was modernized in 2001 with the installation of two (2) rotary anode furnaces at the. Copper Cliff Smelter which employ steam and. natural gas for reducing and which provide a significant reduction in emissions. A new casting shop with a single anode casting wheel is used to cast regular and stripper constant weight anodes which are transported by truck to the Copper Cliff Copper Refinery for anode preparation and electrorefining. This paper provides an overview of the copper circuit at the Copper Cliff Smelter and a description of the CDN$31 million capital project.

Jan 1, 2002

By Noel A. Warner

Modern steelmaking is based on direct use of oxygen in high intensity batch reactors. A totally new approach is proposed in this paper, based on the view that pursuit of high intensity is unlikely to lead to successful coal-based continuous steelmaking. By substituting carbon dioxide and water vapor as the oxidants rather than using oxygen directly, the intensity is greatly reduced. Accordingly. subsurface formation of carbon monoxide bubbles can be avoided by careful manipulation of the three participating rate processes, gaseous diffusion, interfacial chemical kinetics and liquid phase mass transfer. Steelmaking can then be carried out without explosive ejection of molten droplets and the generation of micro-spray but rather in a controlled and fumeless fashion. The vital component is the introduction of generic melt circulation technology. Three melt circulation loops in series are envisaged. Starting with a composite feed of iron ore fines, pulverized coal and lime flux, a metallized solid raft floating on molten iron is propelled out of the ironmaking loop onto the first of two downstream steelmaking loops. In the first, a liquid slag is formed, primary decarburization is undertaken not with oxygen but rather with CO2 and H2O and the melt is desulfurized. The semi-product stream enters the third melt circulation loop, where open-channel decarburization is effected along with dephosphorization to yield a low carbon steel product. Alternatively, the melt leaves the last loop to irrigate a packed tower countercurrent to argon at around 100 mbar to continuously produce ultra-low carbon (ULC) steel.

Jan 1, 2003

By R. L. Bullock

The New Lead Belt of Missouri, situated in the heart of the Clark National Forest, stands as a dynamic example of how mining activities can successfully coexist in a restricted wilderness area. After 16 years of intensive drilling activity, mine development and surface plant construction, many would agree that the mine-plant design philosophy of St. Joe has minimized the imbalancing effects to the ecology and the wilderness appearance of the Ozark area. In a recent dedication speech of St. Joe's newest operation, it was stated: 1 "this Brushy Creek Mine, as well as nearly all of the mines in this district, lies within the boundaries of the Clark National Forest. Here the Forest Service has an outstanding and realistic program for multi-use of Federal lands. Mining, lumbering, recreation and conservation coexist in, what I consider, a delightful wilderness environment. I believe that this same type of usage could be permitted on all government land without seriously detracting from its natural beauty." Each and every activity in the process of discovery, exploration, development and finally operating a mine and process mill could have drastically degraded some phase of nature's environment were it not for the well developed and executed plans of the mining people involved. This is not to say that everything has been kept in perfect balance; but most certainly the industrial impact on what was once a wilderness area has been held to a minimum. What follows is the story of how each phase of this gigantic development was handed by industry people. Through their interaction and cooperation with government agencies, educators and researchers, allowed not only the ecology of the area to be protected, but the aesthetic beauty of the Ozarks to remain intact.

Jan 1, 1973

By Michael J. Marinigh

"Increased safety requirements, higher operational costs, greater environmental restrictions, and new competitive processing techniques are the challenges smelter operators must confront in order to remain economically viable.In converting furnaces which have tuyères such as the Noranda Reactor and the Teniente, Peirce- Smith and Hoboken converters, efficient tuyère line management is critical to optimizing blowing rates, increasing refractory life, and improving safety.This paper will describe recent improvements made to equipment used for tuyère punching, tuyère silencing, tuyère pyrometry and refractory drilling of tuyères and how the proper application of the equipment can lead to operational and safety improvements."

Jan 1, 2009

By M. J. Marinigh

Increased safety requirements, higher operational costs, greater environmental restrictions, and new competitive processing techniques are the challenges smelter operators must confront in order to remain economically viable. In converting furnaces which have tuyeres such as the Noranda Reactor and the Teniente, Peirce Smith and Hoboken converters, efficient tuyere line management is critical to optimizing blowing rates, increasing refractory life, and improving safety. This paper will describe recent improvements made to equipment used for tuyere punching, tuyere silencing, tuyere pyrometry and refractory drilling of tuyeres and how the proper application of the equipment can lead to operational and safety improvements.

Jan 1, 2007

By John B. Phillips

The mine is entered by a central vertical shaft, strongly timbered, and containing two compartments-one for the passenger cage, the other for the large skips bringing the ore to the surface. A man-way, for emergencies, is also provided, parallel to the shaft. The cage is a single-deck steel box, carrying about thirty persons; by means of arrangements above and below, it can also hoist and lower materials needed in the workings. Levels are run at intervals of 100 feet. In special cases, where the ore conditions warrant, sub-levels are operated, such as those at 1,113 feet and 1,123 feet (Fig. 7), which are connected by winzes with the 11 th level. One of these was pushed for 40 feet, and then abandoned because it was unprofitable to take up ore of the grade encountered. The ore between levels is removed by stoping. The drifts follow the course of the veins as much as possible, with numerous cross-cuts. Winzes, raises, connections, etc., are blasted out where needed. The main drifts are at least 8 ft. high by about 9 ft. wide. All former narrow drifts had to be widened some time ago, by ruling of the Ontario Department of Mines, to lessen the danger of accidents with cars in the small passages. Accurate plans of the under-ground workings are kept in the office, and extensive surveying is always being done underground to keep the maps up to date, measure the cubical contents of stopes, and so forth. Timber is extensively used in the construction of supports and chutes, and in the sinking of the shaft. Steel and concrete are too ex pensive to compete with timber, which 1s abundant in such sections as have escaped forest tires.

Jan 1, 1926

By Koehler Stout

Previous work done by the authors of this report indicates that hydraulically-placed backfill can be strengthened several fold by various placement methods. Sunshine mill tailings were tested by these placement methods and strength increases up to thirty times were achieved over the ordinary placement methods. A computer simulation study of the test stope in the Sunshine Mine showed that a high-modulus fill absorbs up to 27% of normal stresses versus 7% for "normal" fill while reducing maximum convergence 28% versus 8% for "normal" fill. Although high-modulus fill was not placed in the test stope during this contract, various instrumentation was purchased, designed and built to record necessary data in the stope. Stress gauges were placed in the pillars and recorded data corresponded quite closely with theoretical projections.

Jan 1, 1983

By Euler De Souza

"Underground operation ventilation energy requirements constitute a significant portion of mine energy consumption (40–50%) and total energy costs (25–40%). In general, mine ventilation systems are energy inefficient; the author has found several systems that operate at efficiencies below 65%. This paper presents how engineering design principles can improve the performance and efficiency of ventilation appliances, resulting in reduced power consumption and operating costs. Case studies demonstrate that, by retrofitting ventilation appliances using proper engineering concepts, systems will operate at efficiencies well above common operating efficiencies, resulting in a drastic reduction in costs and base electrical and energy loads.RÉSUMÉ Les besoins énergétiques nécessaires à l’aérage d’une exploitation souterraine représentent une part considérable de la consommation d’énergie d’une mine (de 40 à 50 %) ainsi que des coûts totaux liés à l’énergie (de 25 à 40 %). De manière générale, les systèmes d’aérage d’une mine sont loin d’être écoénergétiques ; l’auteur a trouvé plusieurs systèmes fonctionnant à des rendements inférieurs à 65 %. Cet article présente les principes de conception technique qui peuvent améliorer la performance et l’efficacité des systèmes d’aérage, entraînant une réduction de la consommation d’électricité et des coûts d’exploitation. Des études de cas montrent qu’en les rénovant à l’aide de concepts techniques adéquats, les systèmes d’aérage fonctionneront à des rendements bien supérieurs aux rendements habituels d’une exploitation. Ces rénovations donneront lieu à une réduction considérable des coûts ainsi que des charges électriques et énergétiques de base.INTRODUCTIONIncreasing electricity supply problems in North America have encouraged an industry-wide evaluation of energy consumption, resulting in a more urgent emphasis on energy-efficient design and operation for all energy-consuming systems. Electricity is the main mode of energy supply and the mining industry is affected by the increasing cost of this commodity (Natural Resources Canada, 2017). Ventilation systems normally operate 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, and account for 25–40% of the total energy costs and 40–50% of the electrical consumption of a mine operation (De Souza, 2013). Ventilation engineers are under ever-increasing pressure to reduce ventilation energy consumption and be cost effective."

Jan 1, 2018

By Jon Y. Kaneshiro, Eric Dawson, Pooyan Asadollahi, Steven Hunt

This paper provides updates to the paper published by the lead author at RETC 2011 with a summary of developments in technologies, products, and approaches to corrosion analyses of gravity sewer tunnels and microtunnels. This paper presents approaches in evaluating degradation of reinforced concrete liners. Also, the carbon footprint of conventional concrete liners and alternative “green” liners are compared and their life cycle costs are considered. A few case histories from the past decade are provided indicating the latest and emerging trends in liner protection.

Jun 13, 2023

By WALTER M. DAKE

GENERALY speaking, the bituminous coal mines of the country are being operated at a loss. To purchasers of the necessary commodity, a statement of this character may have the sound of a far fetched propagandist cry; but to the coal producer who lives in the hope of an up-turn in the almost stationary market price of his product, while inking in red his monthly operating balances, it carries the ringing sound of truth.

Jan 1, 1925

By AIME AIME

UNDER the auspices of the Institute's Committee on Industrial Preparedness, a symposium was arranged for the Annual Meeting on the subject "Ores, Metals, and the War," with many well-known Government men and industrialists participating. Wilfred Sykes, president of the Inland Steel Co., of Chicago, presided, with C. K. Leith and Clyde Williams as vice-chairmen, Mr. Williams presiding over the latter part of the meeting. On the Auditorium stage in the Engineering Societies Building was a formidable corps of "experts," with an audience of several hundred to hear what they had to say and to ask questions.

Jan 1, 1942

By John R. McWilliams

The technological and economic pattern of the U. S. mining industry has undergone a rapid and continuing change since World War II. To provide realistic up-to-date cost data and to disseminate knowledge of technical developments, the Federal Bureau of Mines, with the cooperation of individual mining companies, is presenting a series of mining methods and costs reports similar to those it issued before 1939. Shaft sinking has always played an important part in mine development and [ration] and is an appropriate subject for this series of reports. Shafts [are] especially important in areas such as the Coeur d'Alene district of Idaho, where every major mine is served by one or more shafts and shaft sinking is in progress at one mine or and her almost continuously.

Jan 1, 1960

By T. N. McVay

The various applications of beryllium and its compounds in atomic - energy technology and a growing recognition of possible increased utilization of the metal in the aircraft and space - missile fields have resulted in increased interest in domestic and world reserves of beryllium . Unfortunately, little dependable data on beryllium resources and reserves are available , as past consumption of the element has been small and only limited prospecting and exploration work has been done . The scarcity of resource information is attributed partly to the difficulty of recognizing beryllium minerals in the field . These minerals frequently do not have distinctive characteristics of specific gravity, color , or other physical properties , that enable ready identification by the average prospector . This is particularly true of fine - grained minerals . As a result , a simple field test for identifying beryllium- bearing rock is needed . Recognizing this , technologists of the Federal Bureau of Mines investigated several of the proposed qualitative chemical tests for beryllium . This report describes various modifications of one of these methods to make it more suitable for use in the field . In the modified method , duplicate samples are fluxed -- one with potassium bifluoride and one with potassium bisulfate -- followed by dissolution of salts in water , conversion of the solution to an alkaline condition, addition of morin , and examination of the solution for fluorescence under short -wave ultraviolet light . This method provides a fast , dependable field test for beryllium minerals containing as little as 0.2 percent beryl or its equivalent . The test involves no radiation hazards , and it can be performed by persons having no technical training ; therefore , it should be useful to prospectors in discovering beryllium mineralization .

Jul 1, 1960

By George J. Karcas

"Non-ferrous metals such as copper, nickel, lead, zinc and precious metals are produced via the electrorefining and electrowinning processes. Apart from controlling electro-chemical conditions for the production of these metals, there has always existed the challenge of controlling the corrosive effect of the electrolyte environment which serves as the medium for non-ferrous metal production.The practice of acid containment in electrometallurgical operations has entered the world of high technology with the advent of advanced acid resistant materials such as vinyl ester resin which is either combined with aggregate to form polymer concrete or used to line various acid containment vessels and ·surfaces. ill comparison to some Asian, European, and African copper refineries, the North and South American copper industry has recently embraced quite heavily in the use of polymer concrete electrolytic cells and process vessels, such as electrolyte storage tanks, and in the use of vinyl ester resin for corrosion protective surface sealing 'systems in lieu of epoxy, acrylic and other materials because of its combination of higher corrosion resistance and superior flexibility.Electrolytic cell construction has undergone a transformation from a multiple part configuration to a single piece moulded/cast unit. ·The one piece moulded polymer concrete cell, which has been patented by Corrosion Technology International, with the overflow, decant, inlet, fast fill and segregation systems integrally designed is now the industry standard.. The combination of a wood, steel, or concrete frame with a lining made of lead, asphalt, rubber or plastic has been historically successful in providing limited protection from chemical and mechanical attack in electrolytic cells and electrolyte storage tanks all over the world. These combinations have now become obsolete as materials such as polymer concrete provide exceptional corrosion and mechanical protection with greatly reduced maintenance requirements and improved efficiency and productivity for the tankhouse. ill addition, polymer concrete can be disposed of in a regular land fIll which is much less costly than disposing of contaminated concrete that is normally associated with conventional lined concrete cells."

Jan 1, 1997