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By Thomas Fraser, H. F. Yancey

PRIOR to the war just ended, Germany was the greatest coal producer in continental Europe. In 1943 the production of coal, bituminous and higher in rank, together with brown coal calculated to the equivalent amount of bituminous coal, is estimated to have been about 240 million metric tons, according to the War Department. Before the war production in Germany exceeded consumption. No other country in continental Europe except Poland had a large surplus. However, England's surplus was the largest in Europe as a whole. Before World War II the Ruhr Basin normally supplied about 70 pct of the total production of high-rank coal, the Saar and Aachen about 6 pct each, Upper Silesia about 14 pct, and Silesia and Saxony the remainder. Nearly one third of the brown coal was produced in the Rhineland, a little less than one half in central Germany west of the Elbe River, and about one fourth east of the Elbe. Bituminous coal and brown coal together constituted by far the most important energy resources of the old German Reich. Bituminous coal furnished nearly 70 pct of the total energy requirement, brown coal supplied about 25 pct, and water power, wood, petroleum and alcohol together aggregated only 7 pct. Because it was the most important single mineral resource of Germany, an excess of coal enabled the Reich to import nearly all the other mineral products that she lacked, such as iron ore from Lorraine. The area adjacent to the coal fields was supplied with gas from an interconnected grid. Similar electric grids are based on brown coal with the power stations at the mines. Coal tar provided the foundation for the development of the extensive German chemical industries as exemplified by the I. G. Farbenindustrie. For almost a century, German scientists have been adequately supported both by the State and by industry in studying improved methods of utilizing coal. In Germany the mineral rights were reserved by the State and ordered extraction of coal was enforced. Each lease comprised a relatively extensive area, which accounts for the generally large size of the mines and mining companies. In 1938 there were 160 mines in the Ruhr, with a total output of 125 million tons but go pct of the production was controlled by 20 companies. By far the largest single coal-mining company in Germany was the Gelsenkirchener Bergwerke A. G., which produced nearly 27 million tons in the Ruhr in 1937. Second was Saargruben A. G., a State-owned company operating in the Saar, which produced more than 13 million tons. Third was Bergwerksgesellschaft Hibernia A. G., with 10 million tons, also in the Ruhr. Briquettes are made from both bituminous coal and brown coal, but in 1938

Jan 1, 1946

By R. W. Stahl

The use of continuous mining machines has greatly minimized the necessity for blasting in coal mines, even during pillar recovery; however, explosives are still used to blast stumps. The use of improper blasting materials, improper procedures, or both has caused mine explosions and fires, with loss of life and property damage. Researchers and manufacturers are continuously improving explosives and blasting accessories; use of the more recently developed materials will make the blasting operation safer. Extreme caution is mandatory when blasting stumps, as the ignition of methane or coal dust may trigger an explosion or cause a fire. Since the blasting of stumps will no doubt continue, although often unnecessarily, this paper summarizes recent findings published by the Bureau of Mines and recommends safer methods.

Jan 1, 1962

By K. Musgrave

"The ISO 9000 Quality Management System Standards have become internationally accepted as the way to manage quality assurance. The author has developed a Maintenance Management System Standard using ISO 9001as a model and is working with a major basemetal mining company to implement this. This paper describes the structure of the standard and the steps required for its implementation.Using a management standard ensures that a system is maintained, reviewed by internal audit, and when instances of failing to follow the procedures (nonconformances) occur, that corrective action is taken. It also ensures that regular reviews are made and that the sys-tem is continuously improved.The Standard is designed so that if an organization decides to register to an ISO 9000standard, the Maintenance Management System will be in a format that is compatible and can be incorporated with little effort into the Quality System.IntroductionIn reviewing maintenance operations at many mining companies, and often seeing those same organizations some years later, two recurring issues have been noticed..The first issue is how dependent effective maintenance is upon individual supervisors and crews. In one situation, a mine that had an excellent maintenance system in the 1980s. Now, with new supervisors and crews, it is starting to develop a system that will bring it back to where it once was. No written procedures remain from the earlier excellent system.The second issue is that most operations feel that maintenance is the sole responsibility of the maintenance supervisors and crews. Nothing could be further from the truth. Maintenance, like safety, is everyone’s responsibility. If the operator does not report problems and perform daily checks, and if the production supervisor runs equipment until it fails, then nothing the maintenance crew does will prevent emergency breakdowns and lost production. More importantly, equipment will be operated in unsafe conditions, putting employees at risk and, with today’s regulations, leaving supervisors open to prosecution.The Maintenance Management System outlined in this paper is designed to establish the present best practices as standard procedures, to provide a continual review so that these practices are improved in the future, and to identify instances where the system fails so that corrective action is taken. The mine referred to above is using this approach to make sure that, this time, the system it implements will survive."

Jan 1, 1997

By Laurance L. Oden

The Bureau of Mines is developing melting data for binary combinations of the alkaline earth fluorides and yttria to facilitate the formulation of slag compositions. The present report deals with the CaF2-Y203 system for which solidus and liquidus temperatures and solid solubilities were determined. The information is presented as the phase diagram. All specimen compositions were blended from high-purity materials and encapsulated in Mo or Pt20Rh prior toheat treatment. Liquidus temperatures were determined by ceramographic examination of heat-treated and quenched specimens. Solidus temperatures were determined by differential thermal analysis and by electron microprobe analysis of quenched specimens. Terminal solid solubilities were derived by parametric methods. The peritectic system was found to be pseudobinary due to the formation of yttrium oxyfluoride at temperatures near the liquidus. The peritectic point occurs at 7 mole pct Y203 and 1,438° ± 5°C. The terminal solid solubility of Y203 in CaF2 decreases from 7 mole pct at 1,438° C to 1 mole pct at 1,100° C, and the solubility of CaF2 in Y203 decreases from 9.5 to 7 mole pct over the same temperature interval.

Jan 1, 1970

By R J. Mills, B S. Sinclair, D A. Fergusson, A G. Goldstone

In 2005, Solid Energy New Zealand Limited obtained non-notified consent for the disposal of 1Mt of coal ash at the Rotowaro minesite, forming part of a coal supply agreement with the Huntly Power Station. The consenting of major mine site activities has historically required wide consultation and involves notification of the application.   The risk and cost associated with consultation can be significantly reduced via a non-notified process. A non-notified consenting process necessitates environmental effects to be shown to be æless than minorÆ, which requires the combination of robust science and a pragmatic approach to design, assessment of environmental effects, and consenting issues.   Key issues examined included consideration of how to practically operate a significant disposal project within the confines of an operating mine, minimising the costs, civil and geotechnical design and practical issues associated with traditional disposal. Environmental issues specifically related to the coal ash, led to a site specific performance driven approach to management rather than relying on conventional prescriptive approaches. Environmental issues of concern include the leaching of boron and aluminium from ash into groundwater and mine water management systems where both boron and aluminium can occur at elevated levels.   Coal ash exhibits unusual geochemical characteristics reflecting the primary coal composition and the combustion process. The dominant coal type combusted at the Huntly Power Station is derived from Rotowaro and the resulting ash is cementitious and has a high alkalinity. As a result the disposal design is based on the characteristics of the ash itself rather than the material into, or onto which the ash is disposed. Non-notified status was able to be achieved through consideration of these key characteristics of the ash, ensuring that the dimensions of the disposal site and each location was designed to minimise the flow of groundwater through the ash and demonstrating that the physical ash disposal effects are less than minor compared to the consented mining operation.

Jan 1, 2006

To develop a business case that promotes adoption of noise controls by reducing barriers to industry acceptance and enhancing drivers that foster their implementation. Background Over 75% of the U.S. mining workforce is exposed to hazardous noise, putting them at risk of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). Consequently, coal miners suffer high rates of hearing impairment that increase to 70%-90% by retirement age. To address the noise problem for coal miners, researchers from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) first determined that the continuous mining machine (CMM) ranked first among machines associated with reported coal noise overexposures. Further studies found that most CMM noise is generated by three component systems on the machine: dust collection, cutting, and conveying. Of these systems, the on-board chain conveyor was found to be a dominant noise source. Noise generated by the conveying system was addressed through the development of a urethane-coated flight bar chain. The coated chain, shown in Figure 1, has demonstrated an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA) reduction of operator exposure by 3 dB(A). It has since been accepted by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) as a "technologically achievable" noise control for CMM operators who are exposed to noise that exceeds the MSHA permissible exposure level. Having demonstrated the noise reduction performance of the coated chain, NIOSH has assembled information into a business case that can be used by operations considering adopting the chain at their worksite.

Dec 1, 2009

By Jose R. Hernandez-Aguilar, Chris J. Martin, Rob Thorpe

"This study presents an approach to establishing relationships between metallurgical performance and the characteristics of the bubble population (gas dispersion) inside flotation cells. Bubble size Db, superficial gas velocity Jg, and bubble surface area flux Sb (Sb = 6Jg/Db) measurements were obtained along with metallurgical samples in full-size equipment processing different ore types. The gas dispersion was manipulated by changing the operating conditions of the cells (gas flowrate and frother type) and the metallurgical performance (grade-recovery) was determined. In two cases, the Sb had a strong relationship with grade and recovery, hence, Sb could be used as practical operating parameter. In another case, Sb did not correlate with recovery. The reasons were attributed to creating small bubbles using frothers with desired anti-coalescence properties. This illustrated that bubble size was the key parameter for metallurgy rather than Sb.INTRODUCTIONUnravelling the mechanisms that govern the relationships between metallurgical performance and the characteristics of the bubble population (gas dispersion) inside a flotation cell remains a major challenge. Information on this subject is scarce in the literature, particularly, plant-scale data. The report of Jameson and Allum (1984) appears to be the first gas dispersion study conducted in industrial (mechanical) cells. To introduce concepts, some aspects of their work are reviewed here.The prime motivation of that study was to establish whether any particular cell design (among 44 cells surveyed) could produce very small bubbles (< 0.1 mm), which laboratory research suggested would increase the recovery of fine particles. Although one of the outcomes was that the (examined) cells did not seem to produce such small bubbles (Sauter mean1 D32 ˜ 0.9 mm), the analysis highlighted the importance of including other factors. Jameson and Allum indicated that, besides bubble size (Db), other characteristics of the bubble dispersion should be considered, namely: gas holdup ?g – the fraction of cell volume occupied by bubbles, superficial gas velocity Jg – is the gas flowrate divided by the cross-sectional area of the cell and, bubble surface area flux Sb – the rate of production of (new) bubble surface area (m2/s) per m2 of cell cross-sectional area. It should be noted that, whereas Jg, ?g and Db can be measured directly, the Sb is derived: Sb = 6Jg/Db, where Db is usually substituted by the Sauter mean diameter (D32)."

Jan 1, 2006

By H. A. Wentworth

The Huff electrostatic plant of the United States Smelting CO., operated in conjunction with its wet concentrator at Midvale, Utah, was the second plant of substantial size installed using the Huff process, and the first plant to be put in operation on the so-called Western complex ores. , In spite of the machinery being of early design and consequently embracing many of the mechanical weaknesses incident to a pioneer plant the mill has operated steadily and uniformly since the summer of 1909, about five years now, without any material change other than some rearrangement of the machinery for better handling of the sizes. The ore, at present coming almost entirely from the company&apos;s mines in Bingham, is of practically the same composition as that upon which the plant was first put in operation. The crude ore, consisting of the sulphides of copper, lead, zinc, and iron, and containing small amounts of gold and silver, is brought by train and delivered to the hoppers of the wet concentrator, where by jig and table treatment, there are produced a shipping lead concentrate, a tailing, and a middling product, the latter being conveyed in push cars to the adjoining electrostatic mill. The crude ore delivered to the wet concentrator contains from 6 to 9.5 per cent. zinc. At times the plant is used also for the treatment of custom ores from the Bingham district and elsewhere, and at such times the results of the plant vary according to the material in use, but as by far the larger portion of the product is that from the company&apos;s own mines, the results given below are fairly indicative of the general work obtained. The diagram, Fig. 1, illustrates graphically the flow of the ore through the electrostatic mill. The middling coming from the wet mill, containing from 15 to 18 per cent. moisture, is hoisted while on the cars by an elevator, and delivered from the top of the elevator to a hopper over the drier. The drier first installed was of too low capacity to take care of the moisture present in the tonnage to which the mill was later

Jan 1, 1915

By M Donghi, G Ramage, A Barnes

As the mining landscape continues to transform, the challenge of accessing deeper orebodies quickly and safely is becoming a frequent topic of conversation amongst those in the mining industry. The rapid development of underground mine entries to gain earlier access to deeper orebodies is an ever-present challenge to mine owners and contractors. Overcoming this and providing economical solutions to unlock the value in these deeper deposits is a challenge that should be confronted.In 2013, Redpath Australia Pty Ltd (Redpath) commenced construction of what would be the first of two drifts excavated through the use of a tunnel boring machine (TBM) in Queensland’s Bowen Basin.The excavation and development of the two drifts (declines) was completed as part of a contract for underground mining services between Redpath and Anglo American at the Grosvenor Coal Mine Project in Central Queensland, located approximately 5 km north of the town of Moranbah. Having recently completed the drift development, this paper will extend on the early writings of Donnelly, Ramage and Donghi (2014) and provide detail on the operational achievements, advance rates, threats, opportunities and learnings during the excavation of the two declines: the conveyor (CV) drift and the transport (M&amp;M) drift.CITATION:Ramage, G, Donghi, M and Barnes, A, 2016. Experiences gained through tunnel boring machine decline development, in Proceedings Seventh International Conference and Exhibition on Mass Mining (MassMin 2016), pp 695–712 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

May 9, 2016

By D. Komljenovic, V. Kecojevic

Selection of the best possible truck type (model) is of crucial importance for the mine decision-makers. In this paper, authors contribute to the body of knowledge by developing a novel methodology for the selection of mining truck. Both the Coefficient of Technical Level (CTL) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methods were used in this study. The CTL represents a mathematical function which takes into consideration the interrelations among the main technical parameters of mining trucks. The authors developed a hierarchical structure where both attribute categories and their importance, i.e. priority or weight in the selection process were determined. For each category, a number of sub-attributes and their priorities were assigned, and a pairwise comparison among them was performed using the AHP method. In the final part of the study, the CTL was integrated into the AHP and represents a holistic approach in the selection of mining trucks. A case study on 180 tonnes truck category offered by five manufacturers was carried out. A sensitivity study of obtained results was also performed indicating a very stable solution. The methodology presented in this paper may be used by mining operators to help in the selection of a specific type when acquiring a new truck. It may also be used by equipment manufacturers to help in analysis of potential benefits of envisaged modifications concerning an existing truck type and/or development of a new type.

Jan 1, 2007

By Sangseom Jeong, Moonkyung Chung, Junyoung Ko

"Abstract The plugging effect of open-ended piles in sandy soil is analyzed by full-scale field test and plugging measurement. PLR (plug length ratio) measurement data from 144 field cases are analyzed with pile diameter. Based on the plugging measurements, PLR of open-ended piles which have above 1000mm diameter is predicted to be above 0.9. Through plugging measurements, a new empirical method is suggested for quantifying the plugging effect of open-ended piles. The proposed PLR equation is possible to predict the behavior of soil plug in the preliminary design stage. In addition, in order to investigate the behavior of the soil plug of open-ended pile, field load tests are performed on instrumented three piles driven into sand. It is obtained that the resistance components of open-ended pile are separated by double-walled pile system. It is found that inner shaft capacity is developed nearby pile tip. However, upper soil plug did not influence the inner shaft capacity. Also, it is found that all test piles are floating piles and unplugged condition because the sum of inner shaft capacity and outer shaft capacity is calculated about 58 to 76% of the ultimate bearing capacity.INTRODUCTIONIn Korea, a number of huge construction projects such as harbor terminals, offshore grand bridges, and lifeline systems are progress in urban and costal area. In these areas, steel pipe piles are frequently used to support high-rise buildings and heavy weight structures for ensuring structural safety rather than serviceability limit capacity. Also, steel pipe piles are frequently used in civil engineering structures because they have many advantages such as high-load bearing capacity, light weight and outstanding workability. The mega foundations of grand bridges and high-rise buildings are required in geotechnical engineering. Large diameter driven piles are frequently used in several projects.Many specifications such as API, FHWA and AASHTO have been reported as a design guideline of plugging effect, however , the current design method for plugging effect of steel pipe piles are mainly based on the our knowledge derived from observation of the model test or the small diameter pile load test. Therefore, these specifications have limitation to apply the large diameter steel pipe piles.Much work has been done to study the plugging effect by many researchers. Yamahara (1964) reported that soil plug has been modeled as a thin disk element as shown in Figure 1, since the increment of radial strain of the soil plug can be neglected due to high rigidity of the pile compared to that of the soil plug. Klos and Tejchman (1977) reported that the end bearing capacity of open-ended piles was almost equal to that of a closed-ended pile when penetration depth of pile was above 15times the pile diameters by model tests. Paikowsky and Whitman(1990) reported fundamental studies on mechanism of plugging effect in sand. Paik et al. (2003) reported that empirical relations for plug load capacity, annulus load capacity, and shaft load capacity of open-ended piles are proposed based on the model pile tests. As discussed above, much work has been done in the area of plugging effect. But little work has been done to study the plugging effect by full scale field tests."

Jan 1, 2014

By Euler De Souza

Backfilling in Canadian mines has been practised for close to 100 years and evidence anticipates the application of mine fill technology at an increasing rate during the foreseeable future. The evolution of backfill technology is closely related to the advancement of modern mining methods and the development of new backfill technology continues to evolve. The authors, after conducting extensive surveys of backfill practices in underground mines across Canada, have concluded that, because backfill operations employ large quantities of cement and experience large costs associated both with backfilling practice and cement use, opportunities exist for reducing backfill energy costs and enhancing the application of alternative cementing agents in backfill. Consequently, the authors have developed an alternate, equally effective and lower cost binder agent replacement for cement, and incorporated waste glass into the development of a lower cost backfill (glassfill). This paper presents the results of two design stages associated with the development of glassfill: strength development and flow performance. The advancement of this technology has reached a stage that should promote industrial implementation within the Canadian mining industry. A number of Canadian mining operations exhibit potential for plant optimization through possible binder source replacement, and might thus realize associated reductions in backfill and energy costs.

Apr 1, 2005

By M Edwards

The paper outlines the successful application of some of the on-belt technologies available from Scantech International Pty Ltd and how these have provided benefits in a number of mining and mineral processing operations. Effective process control requires real time analysis so quality can be fed back to the previous process and fed forward to a subsequent process. A range of on-belt analysers that allows for full stream, continuous, non-contact analysis of conveyed materials is available to achieve this. Real time results can provide timely information for effective process control. Benefits of on-belt analysis systems become more evident once the true variability of material quality and moisture content in conveyed flows is measured. To obtain economies of scale in mineral processing operations large material flows are achieved using conveyors. The cost and effort to sample representatively increases as conveyor flows increase. One sample may represent a few tonnes or up to 10 000 tonnes of material. The turnaround time between sampling and availability of sample analysis data does not allow real time process control. Tonnage flow rate, moisture content and elemental or mineralogical composition are required to perform effective process control of most conveyed streams. Tonnages can be effectively measured using belt weighers. The analyses derived from small samples supplied by conveyor-based sampling systems contain high variability. On-belt, continuous analysers see all the material and, through short term compositing of analyses, supply less variable results. Real time analysis helps operators develop a better understanding of material variability. Analysers can be effectively utilised to improve the consistency of product quality through bulk sorting and blending control. Many existing users of the technologies have gained competitive advantages through their ability to supply a more consistent quality product to the market.

Jan 1, 2008

By A. J. Neale

Much has been published lately about the application of advanced control strategies in the automatic control of autogenous and semi-autogenous grinding circuits. The application of adaptive control algorithms, self-tuning controllers, state estimation, and expert systems has been well documented. While these approaches can be very effective; experience has shown that quite often simply "fixing the fundamentals" can have a significant positive impact on overall grinding circuit performance. This paper will highlight the results of process optimization and process control work by the authors at a variety of autogenous and semi-autogenous installations. A review of one approach for quantifying the mill load/bearing pressure/power relationship is provided. Accurate monitoring of key mill process variables is a necessary prerequisite for both effective process analysis and process control. This paper discusses some of the concerns related to defining steady state operating conditions and the issues related to signal conditioning. The paper concludes with a discussion of an effective application of algorithmic constraint control which incorporates many of these considerations.

Jan 1, 1994

By R. S. Shoemaker, F. W. McQuiston

MAGMA COPPER COMPANY San Manuel Division The San Manuel Division of Magma Copper Company is located about 40 miles north of Tucson. Tons of ore milled in 1973 .were approximately 19 million at a rate of 63,000 tons per day. From this, about 42,600 tons of copper concentrate was produced as saying approximately 1.070 MoS2 and 28.5% Cu. As with many copper ores, the San Manuel ore contains a small amount of gold, but in this particular case, much of the gold follows the molybdenite. Separation of the molybdenite from the bulk sulfide concentrate by flotation produces a moly concentrate containing 9170 MoS2, just under 1.070 Cu, and 0.44 oz Au per ton. Cyanidation of this material for gold recovery is the only practice of its kind known to the authors of this Monograph. After thickening, the final moly concentrate is filtered for subsequent repulping with cyanide and lime. Gold dissolution takes place in three agitators in series with the pulp from the agitators being filtered in two stages in disc filters. Between filtration stages, the cake is repulped with barren solution. Filtrate from both filters is the pregnant solution. The Merrill-Crowe recovery unit is comprised of two solution tanks and the usual clarifying filter, vacuum tower, zinc dust feeder and Merrill precipitate press. Because of the presence of finely divided sooty chalcocite in the molybdenum concentrate, the cyanide consumption of 55 pounds per ton is extremely high. A compensating factor, however, is the low copper, moly concentrate produced. Precipitation of the gold from the highly copper-contaminated solution requires 0.56 pounds of zinc dust and 0.28 pounds of lead acetate per ton, high figures when compared to normal cyanidation practice. The Merrill- Crowe precipitate assays approximately 28.5% Cu, 8% Zn, 156 oz Au and 197 oz Ag per ton. The San Manuel cyanidation plant is an outstanding and innovative development.

Jan 1, 1975

By Keith A. Heasley, Lee W. Saperstein

This paper investigates the use of backfill zones and yielding pillars for subsidence control. The investigation begins by choosing an appropriate subsidence predictive technique to simulate the proposed subsidence-control schemes. Two case studies are performed in order to delineate the accuracy and utlility of the chosen predictive technique and then the results of these case studies are used to establish appropriate sets of regional site parameters. Next, a detailed analysis of the major variables affecting the outcome of the subsidence-control simulations is conducted and graphical displays of the exact sensitivity of the surface subsidence to these variables are given. Finally, alterations to the surface subsidence that are expected from using two major subsidence-control techniques are presented. The first technique to be assessed is a backfilled pillar centered longitudinally in a panel. With this arrangement, a minimal amount of backfill material can produce substantial decreases in vertical displacements. The second technique to be assessed is the use of yielding gate pillars to reduce the sinuosity of the transverse subsidence over adjacent panels. With proper design, this technique can greatly curtail surface strains and help minimize remedial drainage control.

Jan 1, 1986

By K. Sun, S. A. Argyropoulos

The assimilation and the exothermic behavior of Zn-Zr metallic powder compacts into molten aluminum was studied by measuring simultaneously the temperatures inside at the centerline of the compact, at its surface, and inside the molten aluminum bath, as well as the net downward force acting on the compact. In addition, the exothermic behavior of these compacts was also investigated in an argon protected atmosphere. The temperature rise inside the compact increases significantly with the mass ratio of zirconium in the compact and to a lesser degree with the aluminum bath temperature. Experimental results on the recovery of these compacts in molten aluminum will also be presented.

Jan 1, 2008

By T. Rudolph, M. Pawlik, J. Benndorf, X. Yin, J. F. Brune, P. Goerke-Mallet

The long and often undefined period in the post-mining phase challenges geo-monitoring with its various responsibilities, like the detection of environmental changes, ground movements and water management. Modern methods of geo- and environmental monitoring observe numerous aspects using active and passive sensors with multispectral, hyperspectral and microwave sensors, with diverse spatial dimensions and spatiotemporal resolutions from satellites, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), in-situ sensors. Data integration, together with on-site knowledge and experience, provides the basis for comprehensive modeling, which improves the understanding of the environmental changes and their related causes, which is an essential step for public acceptance. In this paper, we aim to give a brief overview of various geo- and environmental monitoring methods.

Mar 2, 2022

By Nan Wang

Based on the commercial computational fluid dynamics software, Fluent, the fluid flow and temperature field in an iron-bath reactor were simulated numerically, and the effects of top-blown and side-blown operating parameters on the mixing time of iron bath, distribution range of oxygen in top space, and post-combustion ratio were investigated. The simulated results showed that the mixing time of iron bath increased initially and then decreased with the increase of inclined degree and immersion depth of side-blown lance. The distribution range of oxygen became wider as pulling the top lance away from the iron bath. Furthermore, post-combustion ratio was reduced given the top lance was too close the bath. The simulation results provide theoretical base for the process optimization of iron-bath reactor and further development of new type iron-bath smelting reduction process.

Jan 1, 2009

Perhaps, after years of concerted effort at a mineral prospect, your company has reached the stage of feasibility study. Detailed target investigations, drilling, bulk sampling, land acquisition, and engineering analyses are complete, and the deposit still remains an attractive investment possibility. Your company, after long study, decides to begin mine development-now, how do you convince lending institutions that your proposed operation will return their borrowed funds, plus interest, over the term of the loan?

Jan 12, 1978