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By Werner T. Meyer

Technical modification of traditional zinc- and lead-based products is moving the metals into diversification is particularly apparent in two areas. The evolution of diverse types of heavy-duty vehicles that employ lead acid batteries. and The development of Galfan™ -- a zinc / 5% aluminum/mischmetal coating alloy designed to provided zinc-coated anti-corrosion protection in applications that are not well suited to traditional galvanizing. Because any product breakthrough must be accompanied by advancement and customer oriented thinking at every step in the chain of production and distribution, a concerted effort is required for market evolution to live up to its potential. As such, all those involved in the metals industries should not only track the progress made by technical and marketing innovations, they must participate as much as possible in their development and promotion.

Jan 1, 1986

By G. Couture

In the introduction to this presentation, we will cover the market of motorized recreational products. We will introduce the public to what is produced and sold worldwide, what is the nature and general behaviour of the customers for such products. We will cover the evolution of this market and put in evidence how drastic must be the changes in the manufacturers organizations in order to, in one hand, constantly adjust to the customer demand, and in the other hand, react to the competitors' offensives on the market.

Jan 1, 2006

By Louis Bender

AFTER investigating the work of coal-dust fired reverberatories of the Canadian Copper Co., at Copper Cliff, Ontario, the management of the Washoe Reduction Works decided to experiment with and ascertain the advantages of using coal dust as a fuel in their reverberatories. Consequently, during the month of June, 1914, reverberatory furnace No. 8 was changed in order to use powdered coal as a fuel. The results obtained by this method of firing are gratifying and show a decided saving in cost of smelting as compared to grate firing with lump coal. The furnace, as remodeled; is 124 ft. long by 21 ft. wide, and varies in height from 8 ft. 6 in. at the back end to 5 ft. 7 in. at the skimming end. The general construction of the furnace is similar to that of the other furnaces at this plant. There are no side doors to this furnace, as it was thought that with the present arrangement for feeding no "fettling" or "claying" would be required. The interior of the furnace can be inspected through the burner port holes, after shutting off the burners and giving a few seconds' time for the gases inside the furnace to clear away. The charging is done on either side of the furnace from longitudinal hoppers, extending a distance of 74 ft. from the back end of the furnace. Leading from the hoppers into the furnace are 6-in. pipes, spaced 194 in. apart, through which the charge is intermittently dropped. The charge is kept well above the slag line at all times; in this way the side walls are protected and no fettling is needed on this portion of the furnace. The remainder of the furnace requires fettling. After operating for three months, we found that the bricks were eaten into along each side wall from the skimming door back to the point where the charge had been dropped. The depth of this cutting away was 8 in. close to the front end and gradually tapered to zero at a distance of 50 ft., and was greatest on the side of the furnace having the larger flue connection. Hoppers will be put in for the entire length of furnace, from which fettling material will be dropped, to prevent this cutting.

Jan 1, 1915

By Francis C. Krauskopf, Carl E. Swartz

Metallurgists differ considerably in their opinions regarding the effect, if any, of small amounts of iron pyrites, or other iron compounds on zinc sulfide ores during the roasting operation. As a result, the literature on this subject expresses many conflicting ideas. The ore, previously crushed to pass through a 1-mm. screen, dries in the roasting kiln, losing water up to 200° to 300° C. At 150° C. iron pyrites begin to lose sulfur. As the temperature increases, while the ore is passing to the hotter part of the furnace, the sulfur burns to sulfur dioxide, leaving the metals as zinc oxide and ferric oxide. These two substances then interact to form zinc ferrite, a compound, yellow brown in color, having the general characteristics of a spinel. Like magnetite, another spinel, zinc ferrite is insoluble in alkalis and dilute acids. As a result, when leached with 10 per cent. sulfuric acid solution, zinc values tied up in this compound remain behind History In the electrolytic recovery of zinc from its ores, the roasted ores are usually leached with a 10 per cent. sulfuric acid solution. When the zinc ore contains iron pyrites as an impurity in an appreciable amount, the actual yield of metallic zinc is much lower than a theoretical calculation would indicate. Further, losses of zinc are, in a rough way, directly proportional to the amount of iron pyrites or other iron compounds present. When the iron is present in the ore in an isomorphous relation to the zinc, as in the case of a marmatite, a greater amount of zinc remains insoluble than when present as a true pyrite or marcasite. Work on the insoluble residues obtained from leaching of the calcines shows that the zinc lost is intimately tied up in this residue. Some investigators have suggested a definite compound, such as zinc ferrite; others merely a mixture of zinc and iron compounds. As early as 1851, Pelouze(')' prepared calcium ferrite by fusion of calcium oxide and ferric oxide. Ebelman, 2) about the same time, prepared

Jan 1, 1928

The Institute is one of the five national societies that joined in organizing the Congress, the others being the American Society of Civil Engineers, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, and the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. Each society has pledged from its general funds or some special fund a certain sum to guarantee the success of the Congress. To this the engineers resident on the Pacific Coast added $13,000, the total guarantee fund amounting to $37,000. It is hoped that this money, iii part or in whole, can be repaid to the guarantors of the Congress. The sums necessary to conduct the latter and to publish the proceedings, are to be derived from membership fees paid equally by all participating. A member of the Institute as such is not a member of the Congress and will not receive any of the publications of the latter. He is eligible to become a member of the Congress and it is hoped that he will do so. The membership fee is $5, and this entitles one to receive the introductory volume of the Congress containing the proceedings; a digest of the other volumes and a general index. It also entitles the member to one other volume of the transactions, to be chosen as he will. For moderate sums he can buy additional volumes, the whole set costing delivered, $30 or less. On Jan. 12 the total membership was 2,350, of which only 290 were recorded as mining engineers. Full details regarding the Congress have been sent to every member of the Institute, and the failure of the members to take a more active interest in the matter is believed to be due to some misunderstanding of the situation.

Jan 4, 1915

By Alan E. Isaacson

Extensive gravel deposits exist within a six-county area in the mountains surrounding the Salt Lake Valley, and in the mountain ranges to the west. The six-county area includes Davis, Salt Lake, Summit, Tooele, Utah, and Wasatch Counties. The majority of these are beach deposits from prehistoric Lake Bonneville. However, real estate development associated with a projected population increase of 54 percent over the next 20 years is expected to remove most gravel deposits in Salt Lake County from consideration for mining, forcing gravel operations to relocate from eastern Salt Lake Valley to the Oquirrh and Stansbury Mountains farther west. The gravels in these ranges are of lower quality and require additional processing to manufacture asphalt and concrete. Replacing gravel resources along the Wasatch Front with resources in the Oquirrh and Stansbury Mountains over the next 20 years has the potential to increase construction costs by nearly $1 billion. The majority of this cost (82 percent) is the result of increased transportation costs due to longer distances to market. The remainder of the cost is attributable to lower quality gravels that will require additional processing in the manufacture of asphalt and concrete. The following analysis and discussion does not take into consideration the amount of crushed stone that is currently being used in the construction industry in northern Utah, its use as a substitute for lower quality gravels, or as a factor in the base case projection.

Jan 1, 2001

By Helmer Hedstrom

GRAVITY surveying with the torsion balance or the pendulum for ore prospecting purposes has generally not been considered practical or even possible. It is the intention of this paper to show that a fast and sensi-tive gravimeter can be very useful in ore prospecting, as an auxiliary to the electrical and magnetic instruments. A number of gravimeters have been constructed and put in practical use in the last seven or eight years; for instance, by Ising, Lejay-Holweck, Haalck, Hartley, Thyssen, Noergaard, the Humble Oil and Refining Co. and the Gulf Production Co. Their main application, apart from their use for geodetic surveys, has been for structure mapping in oil prospecting. There is no record that any of them have been used for ore prospecting. About the middle of 1934 the Boliden Mining Co., in Sweden, began experiments in constructing a static gravity meter sensitive enough for ore prospecting. Calculations and considerations that will be discussed later in this paper showed that this would necessitate an accuracy in the measurements of 0.1 milligal-roughly, one ten-millionth part of the total force of gravity. The first successful practical field tests of the instrument were made in January 1936. About the middle of 1937 the Boliden gravimeter was perfected. Ore prospecting with this instru-ment is now regular practice in Sweden, especially for the testing of indications given by geoelectric and magnetic methods.

Jan 1, 1938

By Milnor Roberts

CORNWALL, a Mecca for metal miners the world over, is easily reached from the southern coast of England. Passengers who land at Plymouth or Southampton can connect with a fast train from London called the "Riviera express," which traverses the beautiful counties bordering the English Channel. In Cornwall the traveler soon notices the pits and stock-piles of white china clay, and the metal mines, both placer and hard rock. The deposits are associated with granite batholiths, of which there are four principal ones, each a few miles in diameter. Tin mines are especially worked in the granite near its borders and also in the immediately surrounding Paleozoic slates. Copper and lead are no longer of importance here but tin is being produced steadily from several mines, with arsenic and tungsten as by-products. At the close of the war the man-power available. for these mines had been reduced to one-third of normal, and only now is it again reaching full strength. As mining in Cornwall antedates the Christian era, even a Nevada prospector would have to admit that "she's a permanent camp." SUB-TROPICAL CORNWALL Redruth and Camborne are industrial centers of the tin mining industry, but more tourist hotels are found in neighboring resorts such as St. Ives, a quaint fish-ing town on the Atlantic-side of the peninsula of Corn-wall, where the numerous cats descended from those mentioned in the ancient riddle-rhyme about St. Ives now occupy every doorstep and wall. Another charm-ing resort. Penzance on the shore of the English Channel, is known by name to the public through the opera "The Pirates of Penzance," but is of especial in-terest to students of nature for its palm trees and other subtropical plants, which thrive owing to the nearness of the gulf stream, although the latitude is that of northern Newfoundland, Winnipeg, and the northern end of Vancouver Island. Among the industrial plants at Camborne are those of Holman Brothers, Ltd., where drills and other forms of mining equipment are manufactured. At the Corn-wall School of Mines, which specializes on the district, the staff has assembled excellent collections of local ores, which repay study by a visitor.

Jan 1, 1928

By F. W. Wellmer

"This paper discusses the changing nature of reserve/consumption ratios, using data from Canadian operations and focussing particularly on copper.IntroductionStudies in world metal consumption and world metal reserves are done regularly by the U.S. Bureau of Mines, the German Federal Institute of Geosciences and Raw Materials, and other institutions. Formerly, on the basis of these data, the following figures were calculated:• a static lifetime of reserves-reserves at year end divided by the consumption of the previous year;• a semidynamic lifetime of reserves-reserves at year assumed constant growth rate.These figures were severely criticized because they were purely theoretical and did not consider the availability of the raw materials.Recent practice is to calculate reserve/consumption ratios (R/C ratios) for periods(1) or for different years(2,3) and to interpret the trend. For base metals, these R/C ratios are increasing (Table 1). This had led to the conclusion that today the relative availability of base metal reserves has increased as compared to 10 or 15 years ago(4,5) As there are normally numerous deposits for each commodity, the anticipated production rates of deposits are irrelevant to this conclusion as long as the statistical distribution of possible production rates does not change significantly.The above conclusion is only justified if the quality and the nature of the data base remain the same. This is certainly the case for the consumption data. It is also assumed for the quality of the reserve figures, which usually take into account only proven and probable reserves. For the nature of the reserve figures, however, this does not seem to be true.Undoubtedly, the reserves increased in absolute terms between 1966 and 1978. To put the absolute reserve figures into perspective, it is common, as said above, to compare them with the mine production, which increased in the free world between 1966 and 1978; e.g. for copper by 40%, for Pb by 17% and for zinc by 36%. However, the reserves are also influenced by other factors, such as average size of the mines, changes in the grade of the mined ore, price-to-cost relationships and the like.The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of the reserve figures in more detail. Because the completeness of mining data published in Canada is rather exceptional, Canadian .data serve as an example and it is assumed that the conclusions can be extrapolated to other mining countries or at least to those with free market systems."

Jan 1, 1981

By S. H. Ash

With statistics still incomplete, it appears that the safety record of the mineral industry for 1955 will do well to hold its own in comparison with 1954. On the one hand, metal mining shows an improvement in its record, due in part to intensive campaigns for preventing ground fall accidents. Coal mining, on the other hand, is showing a poorer record in 1955 than for the preceding year. While no major disasters occurred during the year, increased fatalities resulted from ground fall, haulage, and machinery accidents. It seems probable that increased job training may serve to improve the situation. Health: Utilization of diesel equipment continues to increase in noncoal mines, in spite of existing prejudice. In 1955 two types of diesel-driven tractors and one shuttle car were approved by the USBM. Where diesel engines are used controlled ventilation is mandatory in order to keep the CO content under 20 ppm, but such ventilation is not difficult to achieve with normal equipment.

Feb 1, 1956

By Toshiyuki Kozuka

CdTe semi-conducting materials have been expected as solar cell materials because its theoretical energy conversion ratio is very high. The actual efficiency still low, however, many research works have been done in order to improve the efficiency. And crystal orientation is one of possibilities for that. In this work, a new method using intense magnetic field for a control of texture of CdTe crystals will be proposed, where the CdTe film was electro-deposited under an intense magnetic field. CdTe is less affected by magnetic field, because of its cubic structure, but Cd or Te has hexagonal structure, which is sensitive for magnetic field. In this paper, crystal orientation of Cd or Te film, which can be utilized as basic layer for CdTe deposition, will be developed.

Jan 1, 2006

By S. R. Elliott

THE principles of the caving system, as they apply to mining of soft iron-ore deposits, are well known, as this method has been in use for many years. It is, however, necessary to give a general description of it before describing the Athens method. The shaft and surface equipment should be placed at a sufficient distance from the orebody, so that the caving and pulling of the surface will not disturb the operations of the mine. Levels are started at the proper intervals, and when raises are completed, slicing commences at the top of the orebody and progresses downward. The necessary precautions are taken to avoid the occurrence of large open rooms and it is customary to break sufficient capping to form a mat to prevent heavy falls of ground from crushing through to the lower sublevels and endangering the lives of the workmen. Slicing is continued, and when sufficient width and length are undercut, the capping commences to cave, and in time a settlement occurs at the surface. As soon as this caving commences, the pressure on the timber naturally increases; after it extends to the surface, the amount of pressure has a certain relation to the depth. In other words, the pressure increases with the depth, but not in direct proportion. At great depths, such as that found at the Athens, 2500 ft. (760 m.), the pressure might be so excessive that the cost of keeping working places open would be prohibitive. The actual caving of the surface in a deep mine, with a great thickness of capping, is slow and often takes years to accomplish. After sufficient width and depth -have been undercut, the capping starts to break away, but through arching large masses of rock-.fill the opening, support the capping, and retard the continuation of caving. Caving to the surface is, therefore, retarded until either a sufficient thickness of the orebody is removed, or the width and length of the undercut part have been greatly increased. I wish to emphasize this fact of slow caving, for it is on, this principle that the success of the Athens system. largely depends.

Jan 8, 1920

By Ravinder N. Reddy

Electrochemical capacitors are charge storage devices. They bridge the gap between dielectric capacitors and batteries in terms of energy and power density. Electrochemical capacitors are classified into two types, electrochemical double layer capacitors (EDLCs) and capacitors based on pseudocapacitance. In EDLC, charge is stored at the interface between electrode and electrolyte. Carbon is considered to be prime electrode material for EDLCs due to its many favorable characteristics. In this study carbon materials are derived from thermal decomposition of catechol- formaldehyde polymers and are studied as electrode material for electrochemical double layer capacitors. Carbon electrode surface is characterized using NOVA 1200 gas sorption analyzer. It is also characterized using XRD and SEM. Carbon electrodewaselectrochemically characterized using cyclic voltammetry (CV). A highest capacitance of 110 F/g was observed in 30 wt% H2SO4.

Jan 1, 2006

By Paul Muehl, Roger Lawrence

The massive sculpture taking place on Crazy Horse Mountain in the Black Hills of South Dakota, may Be the most unique application of precision blasting techniques in the world today, It is certainly the largest sculpture in history. And it is being carved not by the usual artist implements, but by engineering of explosives. This paper presents a review of the blastingasting techniques and challenges of blast earring the largest sculpture in the world,

Jan 1, 1991

By P. C. Kapur

Several empirical and semi-empirical laws of comminution, which describe the relationships between the cumulative grinding energy input and the degree of size reduction of brittle solids, have been rationally derived in the time-domain in a unified manner, starting with an integro-differential equation of grinding kinetics. The analysis leads to and provides explicit interrelationships between the energy-size reduction laws associated with Kick, Rittinger, Holmes, Bond, Charles and others, and gives useful estimates of their relative merits and validity. It is shown that Holmes' expression is, in fact, a solution to the grinding equation; consequently, this classical law is compatible with the modern theory of comminution based on population balance on particulate species

Dec 1, 1971

By Yuriy V. Gulyaev, Galina V. Sedelnikova, Valeriy D. Lunin, Valentin A. Chanturiya, Igor J. Bunin

"In Russia the industrial exploitation of ore deposits is determined as a strategic direction of gold extraction industry development. The majority of gold-containing ores of Russia is referred to category of rebellious ores with 3-5 g/t gold content and is characterized by low factors of gold and silver extraction under cyaniding. The resistance of goldcontaining raw materials under their processing is caused by presence of very fine gold particles less than 0,1-0,01 µm in size, associated with the pyrite and arsenopyrite. Significance of the problem of rational rebellious ores beneficiation and high precious metals extraction is increasing from year to year.Group of scientists from IPKON and IRE, Russian Academy of Sciences, has developed highly effective, powereconomic and ecologically clean method of breaking-up of resistant gold-containing ores and their beneficiation products on the base of using an energy of powerful electromagnetic pulses. For the first time there have been designed laboratory installation for resistant raw materials treatment in dry and wet state (solid/liquid ratio = 5:1) and ground material less than 1-0,5 mm.Mechanisms of powerful electromagnetic pulses action on natural mineral components, including dielectrics (quartz, calcite), semiconductors (sulfides) and metals (gold, silver) have been theoretically accounted. Pulses action parameters and ways of pulses generating have been discussed in different conditions. At tension of electromagnetic field, exceeding the electric strength of processing material, an electric breakdown develops in the mineral matrix of sulfides and dielectrics. Under the series of pulses action the forming of plural breakdown channels occurs, leading to strength loss of material and microcrackes developing. Thus, the action makes it possible for leaching solution to access precious metals particles under cyaniding process. Distinctive changing of pyrite and arsenopyrite surface structures under the influence of powerful electromagnetic pulses is confirmed by studies using optical and scanning electron microscopy."

Jan 1, 2003

By L. W. Holm, G. G. Bernard

Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the effect of foam on gas flow in porous media. Previous studies have indicated that foam may be applicable as a restrictive agent in influencing underground gas flow. Foam was found to be exceedingly effective in reducing the permeability of porous media to gas. Consolidated and unconsolidated sands with specific permeabilities of 100 to 146,000 md had, in the presence of foam, gas permeabilities that were less than 1 per cent of the specific permeability; in many cases the gas permeability was practically zero. Foam reduced the gas permeability of loose sand to a much greater degree than that of a tight sand. For example, the permeability of a 125,000-md sand was reduced to 3 md while the permeability of a 4,000-md sand was reduced to 7 md. This effect should cause, to some degree, selective plugging of high permeability channels in various oil displacement processes. The presence of oil in a porous medium decreased the effectiveness of foam in reducing gas permeability; apparently oil acts as a foam depressant. However, it was found that certain foaming agents were very effective in reducing permeability even. in the presence of oil. Also, continuous injection of other foaming agents increased their effectiveness, when oil was present. The effect of foam on permeability of porous media to gas was studied as a function of foaming agent concentration and injection rate, absolute permeability, total pressure, pressure gadient, length of porous system, brine concentration and time. INTRODUCTION The use of surface active agents in flood water to increase the recovery of oil has been studied in the laboratory and in the field for decades, with rather limited success. In recent years a new approach to the problem was proposed. Instead of using an aqueous solution of surfactant as an oil recovery agent, Bond and Holbrook2 proposed that the oil recovery agent be a mixture of surfactant solution and gas. In their method, a water-soluble surface active agent with foam-producing characteristics is injected into an underground formation as an aqueous slug. This slug is followed by gas to produce a foam within the rock. Foams are defined as "agglomerations of gas bubbles separated from each other by thin liquid films'! A foam is fundamentally an unstable system. The foam process for oil recovery has since been studied by other investigators. Fried 1 has shown that foam can displace from porous structures oil that normally is unrecoverable by conventional water or gas drives. This superior oil displacing action is believed to be the result of several factors: (1) foam introduces into the reservoir many resilient interfaces of various sizes and curvatures, which increase the probability that a proper combination of forces for oil displacement will be created; (2) foam has appreciable viscosity which improves mobility ratio and contact efficiency; (3) foam accentuates the trapped gas effect because high gas saturations are possible without producing high gas/oil ratios. Deming4 studied the effect of various foam properties on the displacement of liquid. He found that (1) high foaming ability favors high displacement efficiency; (2) high foam stability is not necessary for high displacement efficiency; (3) displacement efficiency decreases with increase in plasticity of foam and (4) displacement efficiency is unaffected by surface tension of foaming agent solution. One of the important aspects of this oil recovery process is the effect of foam on gas permeability. The simultaneous flow of gas and liquid in porous media has been studied by numerous investigators and a large amount of literature exists on the subject. In this previous work, gas and liquid have generally been considered as essentially independent phases, whose flow characteristics are related through the saturation parameter. Foam, however, is a material with properties that are considerably different from those of its components; for example, the viscosity of a foam is greater than either of its components. Gas flow in a porous medium in the presence of foam should be considerably different

Jan 1, 1965

By Ralph Hayden

I. INTRODUCTION. IN the wet concentration of ores there is always a certain amount of very fine material with which to contend, and which invariably carries such quantities of value that the treatment of it is worth while; commercially. This fine material usually contains that portion of the ore which hinders the separation of the mineral values: namely, the colloidal material resulting from the decomposition of certain constituents of the ore. The object of this paper is to show what efforts have been made to solve the slime problem as it occurs in the concentrator of the Washoe

Jan 8, 1913

By L E. Krause

This paper discusses the considerations for optimum maintenance of critical ore handling infrastructure in order to minimise the cost to the business of maintenance periods. As maintenance periods are a direct interruption to production, time is of the essence and careful management of shutdown periods is essential. The ore pass systems currently in use at Xstrata Copper û Mount Isa Copper Operations are up to 30 years old and have had significant wear over the years. The maintenance of these passes and their brows and chutes in a production situation is a challenge as it can potentially expose personnel to high risk situations in addition to the production interruptions. Some alternatives for mitigating the risk of working in ore passes including plugging and ballooning are described. Criteria are included for selecting a method for the safe entry into a given ore pass. Experience in adapting the method of ore pass plugs and some lessons learnt in the process are also discussed.

Jan 1, 2005

By P. D. Chamberlain

Agglomeration for the heap leaching of gold and silver ores is the process of attaching fine ore particles-less than 150 µm (100 mesh)-to coarser particles. The fines are thus immobilized and uniformly distributed throughout the heap. This is needed to make heaps more porous and uniformly permeable to the flow of a leaching solution. This article describes liquids and binders used to form agglomerates. Agglomeration techniques and equipment are also described. These include drum and disk agglomerators, stockpile and belt agglomeration, and the use of vibrating deck and reverse-running conveyors. The need for agglomeration The main reason for agglomerating heap leachable ores is to prevent percolation problems in a heap. This is different than pelletizing iron ore. In the latter case, the purpose is to bond very finely ground material into coarser, strong particles. These particles can then withstand the rigors of transportation and the loading forces in a blast furnace. Most percolation problems in heaps are caused by the segregation of coarse and fine particles during heap construction. This segregation creates areas with significantly lower permeability because fines plug the channels between coarse particles. Consequently, the leach solutions are subject to channeling, following the path of least resistance. They percolate downward through the coarse ore areas and bypass or barely wet areas that contain large amounts of fines. This results in lower extraction, longer leach time, and higher reagent consumption. Permeability problems in heap leaching are compounded because of the vertical migration of fine particles after the heap has been built. These fines eventually accumulate in pockets or layers and impede uniform solution flow. The fines move because they are not attached to a coarser particle. Moreover, the sluicing action of leach solution flowing over the surface of particles may break the bond between fine and coarse particles. Some fines are also created by the decomposition of ores after being wetted. Percolation problems are minimized if the fines can be attached to the coarser particles. Fines are thus uniformly distributed and rendered immobile within the heap. Heinen (1979) conducted comparative tests of nonagglomerated and agglomerated gold and silver ores. He showed that percolation rates through agglomerated material usually are improved by 10 to 100 times. This reduces leach time for economic recovery to less than one-third of that for nonagglomerated material, and total recovery may be increased. Cyanide consumption is also reduced in most cases because of the shortened leach time. Even run of mine (ROM) ore should be agglomerated. This can be achieved with moderate success by passing each truckload of ore under a water spray to bring total moisture of the ore up to about 8% to 10%. The ROM ore will mix when the ore is dumped, when it cascades down the slope of a heap, or when it is pushed up with a dozer. Overall, agglomeration allows low-cost heap leaching technology be applied to gold and silver ores and tailings that could not be economically processed by conventional methods, according to Phariss (1982). How agglomeration works Agglomeration means that the clays and fine particles contained in the ore adhere to the coarser particles. This creates a coating of fines around the coarse particles. When the ore has few fines and the percolation problems are not severe, the addition of a liquid may be all that is necessary to make the few fines adhere to coarser particles. However, when the quantity of fines is substantial, e.g., +10% -75 µm (-200 mesh), a binding agent may be needed. Use of solution only for agglomeration There are many forces that cause agglomeration and one of them is the surface tension of water. Water-saturated particles collide with each other or with

Jan 12, 1986