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By Bennett McLaughlin

The Penna Shaft is the deepest single?lift shaft in North America. AGNICO-EAGLE started sinking the Penna shaft in 1995 with a hoisting plant capable of hoisting 1 800 tonnes per day from a 2 240-metre deep shaft. Exploration success at depth lead to the replacement of the existing double drum hoist by another double drum hoist capable of hoisting 7 000 tonnes per day. The use of another double drum hoist, instead of a Blair Multi-Rope winder, to hoist 24,5-tonne skips was only made possible by lowering the safety factor. This paper describes recent experiences at Penna and in South Africa, and examines the possibility of extending the double drum hoisting system to a depth of three kilometres.

May 1, 2003

By S. S. Rowland

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. It is a pleasure, for several reasons, to be here at this 13th International Conference on Ground Control in Mining. Of course it's always a pleasure to be able to see and reacquaint myself with many long-time friends; but it's also a pleasure, or 1 should say worthwhile, because I take something back with me, some knowledge about mining that lets me do my job better and more safely. if I can do that, I've accomplished my purpose in being at a conference such as this. This conference is a little different, though. I have to earn my stay. I have to earn it by telling you a story; a story about mining through a mile of rock to get from one coal seam to the same seam on the other side of an ancient river channel; a story about mine personnel taking over the job from a contractor; a story about having to mine through two faults after the hard part was supposed to be over, but, most importantly, it's a story about how it was accomplished successfully and safely by a group of ordinary coal miners possessed with determination, belief in themselves, and a "can do" attitude. If you can take any part of my story and use it to do your job better and more safely, then I will have accomplished my purpose in being here today. Kerr-McGee Coal Corporation's Galatia Mine is located in Southern Illinois near the town of Harrisburg in Saline County, about 350 miles south of Chicago and 120 miles southeast of St. Louis. Construction of the mine began in 1982, and the first coal was shipped in 1984 from the Harrisburg No. 5 Seam, 550' below the surface. Mining began in the Herrin No. 6 Seam, 100' above the No. 5 Seam, on April 1, 1985. Mining in both seams began by using the room-and-pillar method. In 1989, the No. 6 Seam was converted to longwall mining, as was the No. 5 Seam in 1992. Today, all mining is done by the longwall method except for the required development work, which is performed by continuous miners. A heavy-media preparation plant with a 4.2 million-ton annual clean-coal capacity processes the coal. By the end of 1994, with annual production now exceeding 4 million tons, we will have shipped over 30 million tons of steam and metallurgical coal throughout the United States and the world. Most of the coal has been used as the primary source of fuel to generate electricity for the city of St. Louis. The No. 5 Seam coal can be used as a semi-soft coking coal or as a high-Btu, relatively low-sulfur steam coal. Its use allows utilities to comply with Phase I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 without installing flue gas desulfurization units or blending with other coals. The Herrin No. 6 Seam is a high-Btu, medium-sulfur steam coal that requires blending to meet Phase I requirements. Because the No, 6 Seam coal does not meet the Clean Air Act Amendments' Phase I compliance standards, we were forced to cease mining operations in the No. 6 Seam, leaving 170,000,000 tons of minable coal in the ground. Last month the Galatia Mine became a single-seam operation mining the Harrisburg No. 5 Seam only. The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 and the resultant S02 emission limitations on electrical power generation plants effectively eliminate, beginning in 1995, the near-term potential for profitable mining of the Galatia Mine's high sulfur Herrin No. 6 Seam coal. Because of the Clean Air Act Amendments, it is virtually impossible to market high-sulfur coals like the No. 6 coal unless the mine location and mining conditions enable greatly depressed sales prices to cover costs. We, along with the majority of

Jan 1, 1994

By Anthony Konya, Calvin J. Konya

The publication, RI8507, from the U.S. Bureau of Mines established an envelope equation that related scaled-distance to peak particle velocity in an attempt to predict ground vibration in the design phase of a blast. This has been further modified by Oriard, Dupont, Konya & Konya, and others to develop more refined prediction models for specific situations to obtain better predictions. While these equations can be an ideal starting point for a greenfield blasting project or a project with no given information, these equations can have errors.

Jan 1, 2018

A dedicated tunnel construction version of the Caterpillar 328D LCR compact radius excavator is proving highly productive on the A9 Autoroute construction project near Visp, in Switzerland. It is the first machine of its kind to operate on a Swiss contract and uses a special dedicated front attachment designed and constructed by German Caterpillar dealer Zeppelin. The machine offers a powerful, stable and compact solution for tunneling contractors. A rear overhang of just 305 mm (12 in.) provides a tail swing radius of just 1.9 m (6.2 ft). The 328D LCR is ideal for the restricted working areas within a tunnel construction site. The machine is equipped with the wide tracks from the 330D L conventional crawler excavator, ensuring maximum stability when operating. In addition, the boom mounting has been moved further toward the center of the machine for the tunnel model, creating an increased lift capacity over the front end compared with a standard 325D L. The boom itself features a robust box section construction, with high-strength steels, additional supporting struts and reinforced bearings for maximum durability. All pins have hard-chromium plating for optimum protection against wear. Stick digging force is a powerful 134 kN, with up to 212 kN of bucket digging force available, for maximum penetration in blasted material. The 328D LCR is also equipped with a heavy-duty dozer blade as standard. This ensures outstanding stability when working and providing a useful secondary tool for clearing and leveling within the jobsite. Two 45° tilting mechanisms in the boom construction, allow the boom to be swung to 45° on either side of the machine. So the specially designed attachment linkage provides increased rollback for access to the roof of the tunnel. A Caterpillar CW45S mechanical quick-coupler allows rapid changes between specialist tunneling attachments, standard Caterpillar buckets and a range of Caterpillar work tools. The machine is powered by a Caterpillar C7 diesel engine. This six-cylinder EU Stage IIIA diesel motor [ ] offers 8 percent more power than its predecessor, with 140 kW (190 hp) available at just 1,800 rpm. Caterpillar?s ACERT combustion technology results in lower fuel consumption and reduced exhaust emissions. However, the tunnel machine is also equipped with a diesel particulate filter as standard, to further cut exhaust gases within the tunnel working. The 328D LCR is designed for use in transport tunnels of 6.8 m (22.3 ft) in height. With the tunneling boom in place, the machine has an operating weight of 42,540 kg (93,783 lbs), yet retains a transport height with the tunnel boom of just 3.9 m (12.8 ft). Transport width with 600 mm (23.6 in.) track shoes, is just 3.2 m (10.5 ft). On the A9 tunnel contract, the machine is being used by a consortium of Swiss and Austrian companies working for the canton of Valais? Routes Nationals Construction (RNC) department. The 31.8-km (19.7-mile) A9 Autoroute construction project will connect Sierre in the west and the town of Brig to the east. The tunnel that is bypassing the town of Visp is just one of a number along the mountainous route.

Jan 1, 2009

By E. Ghali, J. F. Dorion

This paper presents the results of on-going investigations on the influence of corrosion on the performance of support systems in selected underground gold mines. Rock support is exposed to various conditions that can be aggressive. Samples of corroded support were analysed using SEM and photomicrography to determine the main corrosion forms. Tests are on-going in controlled corrosion chambers to qualify and quantify the impact of rock and minerals particles on steel corrosion. As more data become available these relationships can lead to useful information on the choice of support systems and reliable estimates of their longevity.

Jan 1, 2011

By Alice V. Peter

Meerschaum or sepiolite is employed principally in tobacco pipes and cigar and cigarette holders, although a few other uses of minor importance are Down. The unique value of a meerschaum pipe is derived from the owner's pleasure in watching the color deepen with smoking and in having the color "set" at the desired shade. The name "meerschaum" (German for "sea foam") is applied because the material, when pure and dry, will float on water. Owing to its resemblance to the porous, bonelike structure of the cuttlefish, or septa, it is also known as sepiolite. There are a few scattered deposits of meerschaum in. the United States which have yielded a small product ion, but the world's supply of the' material is obtained fined principally from Asia Minor, Meerschaum deposits near Eski-Shehir, Turkey, are said to have been worked 2,000 years ago, but commercial exploitation is a development of the last hundred years DESCRIPTION AND PROPERTIES Meerschaum is a hydrous magnesium silicate (H4Mg2Si3010) having the following theoretical analysis: Si02, 60.8 percent; MgO, 27.1 percent; H20, 12.1 percent. It is a soft. (H.2 - 2.5), fine-grained, earthy, white, gray, or yellow material. It is very light weight when pure (specific gravity, 1 to 2) and is highly absorbent. Because of its porosity the proportion of water present in the mineral is affected by the humidity'of the atmosphere. In a moist atmosphere the water content may be as much as 21.7 percent. Then wet the material is soft and somewhat plastic. When dried again it becomes lard and tough. The toughness is especially apparent in some forms that have a fibrous or leathery texture.

Jan 1, 1934

By Michael J. Klishis

It was the goal of this project to develop training materials specific to two areas of the mining industry: (1) safe use and care of the self-contained self-rescuers, and (2) awareness and avoidance of electrical hazards. This report describes the development of the following training material: Instructor's modules for the OCENCO EBA 6.5, CSE AU-9A1, and PASS 700E self-contained self-rescuers; and a textbook, slide tapes, and accident case study scenarios for mine electricity, and a computer based instructional package on mine electricity and electrical hazards. The report concludes that additional efforts are needed in mine training and four recommendations are made: (a) tailor existing materials to fit specific mine sites, (b) develop and evaluate computer based instructional material, (c) develop parallel training materials for metal and non-metal mines and, (d) develop additional training materials for preparation plants and surface areas of underground mines.

Jan 1, 1985

By A. S. Haugh

OHSAS 18001 is a series of international standards for occupational health and safety management. It is comprised of two parts, 18001 and 180029. OHSAS 18001 was formulated by international certifying bodies and is based on BS8800 and was first published in 19996,11. OHSAS 18001 was developed to be compatible with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 in order to facilitate integration of quality, environment, and occupational health and safety management systems5. It is a voluntary standard and the overall aim of OHSAS 18001 is to enable organizations to control their occupational health and safety (OH&S) risks and improve overall health and safety performance5. OHSAS 18001 is widely accepted in the UK, Europe, and Asia, is gaining momentum in North and South America, and it was used as the basis and conforms to the requirements of ANSI/AIHA Z.10-2005: American National Standard for Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems. It defines a set of requirements for an occupational health and safety management system suitable for any kind and size of organization4. Businesses of all sizes are developing and implementing occupational health and safety management systems (OHSMS) that are in compliance with the OHSAS 18001 standard.

Jan 1, 2012

By G. L. Oldright, Virgil Miller, F. K. Shelton, Keck. W. E., Horst Sieg

Potash is one of the principal foods and is necessary for the growth of most vegetables, grains, and fruits. For many years, this country depended entirely upon foreign sources for its supply of potassium compounds. However, during the last 15 years the domestic production of potash has gradually increased, as shown in table 1. 7/ Imports now supply only half of the American market. In 1936, the equivalent of 207,000 tons of K20 was imported, and 210,000 tons was produced domestically. In 1935, domestic consumption was approximately 420,000 tons of potash, a 57 percent increase over that for 1934 and surpassing previous peaks of 1928 and 1930.

Jun 1, 1937

By F. E. Block

This investigation was made as part of a larger program to develop basically new methods for preparing yttrium metal in high-purity form. It was performed under a cooperative agreement between the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the Federal Bureau of Mines. Laboratory-scale tests were made to devise methods for preparing high-purity, anhydrous yttrium trichloride, for reducing the yttrium trichloride with sodium or lithium, and for consolidating the resulting yttrium sponge into ingots.

Jan 1, 1960

By Joel L. Morrison

The preparation of coal-water slurry fuel (CWSF) has the potential to be a commercially viable technology for the coal industry. The technology base required to prepare stable CWSF using grinding circuits has been developed over the past decade and is now being applied to the preparation of CWSF from wet coal fines which are generated during coal beneficiation. When preparing CWSF, the optimum CWSF formulation must be determined to ensure that the fuel will be stable while having acceptable atomization and combustion properties, and the production run must be monitored closely to ensure that the CWSF quality is maintained. This paper describes the CWSF formulation process, CWSF preparation circuits, and some of typical problems encountered in, and solutions to, the transportation and storage of CWSF.

Jan 1, 1993

By B N. Noller, J C. Ng, S L. Bruce

Mining activities can result in the transfer of harmful elements, including arsenic and lead, into the environment. In Australia, one of the potential future uses of rehabilitated mine land is to stock grazing animals. Elemental uptake is dependent on bioavailable fraction for adsorption upon exposure. Bioavailability data are generally lacking in order to provide realistic health risk assessments relating to harmful elements from mine tailings in Australian conditions. Another key component of risk assessment is the ability to estimate a realistic exposure, or dose rate, of the tailings to the grazing cattle over a set period of time. Hence, we aimed to conduct grazing trials directly on rehabilitated tailings facilities in order to provide valuable in situ information on heavy metal dose rates and associated accumulation. For the laboratory-based evaluation of comparative bioavailability, groups of cattle were fed five days a week on a normal diet spiked with mine tailings or soluble pure salts of target elements (eg sodium arsenate, sodium arsenite and lead acetate) for about eight months. For the field validation, cattle were allowed to graze directly on rehabilitated tailings facilities over a similar length of time. Blood and a biopsy of the muscle and liver were periodically collected to monitor arsenic accumulation. At necropsy, blood, muscle, liver, kidney and other saleable tissues were measured for arsenic concentrations. Although this study was focused on arsenic, lead and other metals were also measured. Predictive models for arsenic and other metals have been established to calculate the maximum grazing duration without the risk of exceeding specific food safety guidelines. The outcome of this study is a predictive model for maximum beneficial use of certain rehabilitated tailings for cattle grazing where grazing activities do not impact on the integrity of the tailings dams.CITATION:Ng, J C, Noller, B N and Bruce, S L, 2014. A predictive model for beneficial use of rehabilitated mine tailings for grazing cattle after mine closure, in Proceedings Life-of-Mine 2014 , pp 563–572 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 16, 2014

Your assessment of the minerals business. The global mining industry is strong. I am convinced it will continue meeting the mineral needs of the world population for the foreseeable future. Two developments have greatly enhanced the industry’s ability to produce low-cost minerals. Technological innovations have resulted in increased productivity. And there has also been a dramatic expansion of the number of favorable countries in which to explore and mine. Capital expenditures have flowed to the low-production-cost mines and development projects as well as to the exploration projects and stable countries having the best potential for valuable mineral discoveries.

Jan 1, 2000

By William P. Blake

THE importance to the growing steel industry of the United States of a domestic supply of ferro-manganese or "spiegel" of a high grade, induces me to bring to your notice some details of the method by which a superior article is produced in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. At Reschitza, Hungary, and probably at Laibach also (the Krainische Industrie Gesellschaft), ferro-manganese is made in a blast-furnace, with charcoal as fuel, and limestone as the flux. The ore is a ferruginous mixture, containing about 37 per cent. of sesquioxide of manganese. It is silicious, and somewhat resembles, in its appearance, the manganese ore from Red Island, in the Bay of San Francisco, California. It contains about 29 per cent. of silica and some alumina, shown by the subjoined analysis

Jan 1, 1876

All too often engineers and project teams focus on building æthingsÆ, and they tend to see the key goals as meeting the project cost and schedule targets. We frequently compound the problem by unknowingly rewarding engineers for building bigger, more complex, more æbullet proofÆ and hence more costly æthingsÆ. Unfortunately the end result all too often ends up being a disappointment in terms of business performance. The term æshareholder valueÆ may never have entered the discussions during the development process. This paper deals with the fundamental issues, which tend to pre-dispose new developments to success or to failure. As project management concepts are not particularly complex, it begs the question why is it that the failure rate of new developments is so high? It is argued that the answer lies more in people behaviour issues than in project management tools and processes.

Jan 1, 2002

By Nicholas Zabaras, Deep Samanta

"Solidification of metal aluminum and aluminum alloys is modeled on uneven surfaces characterized by sinusoidal curves. Wavelengths and amplitudes of these sinusoidal surfaces are varied to study their effects on processes like solidification, macro-segregation and inverse segregation. Solidification and macro-segregation are modeled using a slightly modified form of a stabilized finite element method developed recently to model high Rayleigh number solidification and porous media flows. For pure metal solidification, the effect of varying amplitudes and wavelengths is observed in heat transfer, fluid-flow ~nd phase change processes. The relative importance of shrinkage driven flow and solutal convection on the redistribution of solute for an alloy solidifying in a rectangular cavity is compared. The analysis is then extended by modifying one of the surfaces to a sinusoid. In this case the effects of varying amplitudes and wavelengths are studied in heat transfer, fluid flow, phase change, macro-segregation and inverse segregation processes.1 IntroductionTransport phenomenon during solidification of alloys is a major cause ofcasting defects such as segregation, micro-voids, hot tears, porosity, internal and surface cracks. Heat flow across metal and mold surfaces directly affects the phase change process and plays an important role in determining freezing conditions within the metal. In alloys, natural convection and shrinkage play an important role in determining the final solute redistribution, macrosegregation and evolution of solid macromorphology. Surface unevenness plays an important role during the early stages of solidification. It influences the heat transfer rate and fluid flow in the melt, which in turn affect the morphology and shape of the solid-liquid interface. The effect of surface unevenness on solute redistribution is important during solidification of alloys, where solute driven flow in the mushy zone is prominent. Thevik and Mo in [7] and [8] used a one dimensional model for studying surface segregation and macrosegregation in alloys under the influence of exudation and solidification shrinkage. Air-gap formation in their model was expressed through a variable convective heat transfer coefficient at the boundary. Tsai et al. in [3] and [4] have modeled macrosegregation in an aluminum-copper alloy driven by shrinkage and solutal convection. They used a single domain model based on mixture theory and solved the transport equations using finite difference methods. Our aim is to model solidification of aluminum followed by macrosegregation and inverse segregation in aluminum-copper alloys on uneven surfaces by finite element methods. These surfaces are modeled as sinusoids characterized by amplitudes, ?s and wavelengths, As, By varying As and ?s, changes in heat transfer, fluid flow, phase-change and macrosegregation are studied."

Jan 1, 2004

By D. J. Barratt

The application of autogenous and semi-autogenous grinding circuits in recent years has contributed toward substantial savings in capital and operating costs compared to conventional circuits, particularly for large scale copper and molybdenum operations. Such savings have been realized from the deletion of operating, maintenance, equipment purchase and substantial civil/structural costs associated with secondary-/tertiary crushing and screening, fine ore storage and conveying. In spite of the downturn in the copper- moly industry in North America, there is still an interest in autogenous and semi-autogenous grincting for copper-zinc, gold and silver ores and in the overseas market. Both single-stage and two-stage circuits are in operation. Primary circuits operate autogenously or semi-autogenously in either open or closed-circuit. Critical sizes are extracted and crushed for recycle in some cases (e.g. ABC circuit). Secondary grinding is conducted using ball mills or pebble mills.

Jan 1, 1985

By H Vigil, G. Peach

Long tunnels with only one access shaft pose many program problems for logistics, combine these with the requirement to drive directly out under the seabed for 10.2 km, and the program issues become even more challenging. The Musaimeer outfall tunnel was one such tunnel and to meet and eventually improve on the planned completion date required a complex and extensive management of all tunnel logistics required to support consistent tunneling for a two-year period. This technical paper will discuss the management issues and solutions implemented to meet the challenges of the Outfall tunnel construction.

Dec 1, 2022

By Guy Xueyi

The environmental impact assessment of the Imperial Smelting Process for metallic zinc and lead production in Shaoguan Smelter, China, was carried out by the life cycle assessment method. The detailed inventory analysis of the Input/Output in the process during 1998-2000 was conducted and the allocation was done among the main products of zinc, lead and sulfuric acid, according to the system expansion and substitution principle, The environmental impacts were assessed by using the following five Eco-indicators: Gross Energy Requirement (GER), Global Warming Potential (GWP), Acidification Potential (AP), Heavy Metal Toxicity' (HMT) and Solid Waste Burden (SWB). The results from this study are useful to address the environmental situation of the technology practice in this smelter, and provide a scientific basis for the further improvement.

Jan 1, 2003

By G. L. Cook

The design of a dual-inlet system for a Consolidated model 21-103C mass spectrometer is described in detail. The system permits both high-mass and low-mass samples to be run by using a single instrument. The difficulties of using a single instrument for both purposes are given and a method of minimizing these difficulties through the use of the present design is discussed, After examining the experience of five years of use, the conclusions are that the bimodal operation is practical and the low-mass analyses had nearly the same precision as before the modifications to the instrument were made. In 1951, O'Neal and Wier.5/ published the first description of the modifications made to a mass spectrometer so that the spectra of hydrocarbons with molecular weights up to 600 could be obtained. Further discussion of the equipment of O'Neal appeared in 1953.6/ Also, Brown, Melpolder, and Young7/ described a parallel inlet system designed to reduce sorption effects at room temperature.

Jan 1, 1960