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By A Horne, Z Graszkiewicz, D Dettrick, R Evan, B Neal

"Most of VictoriaÆs rivers and aquifers are already fully allocated or reaching full allocation. In regions without a well-established water market, access to water entitlements to facilitate new development is limited. In areas with established water markets, mine developers face an undue cost burden in circumstances where they are only planning to consume a fraction of the water entitlements that they purchase. The challenge for water managers is to ensure protection of water resources and other water users without creating an unnecessary disincentive for those types of developments that return most of the water that they take from water sources. The opportunity for development of a mine is explicitly linked to a particular location and must be developed where a resource is located or it cannot be exploited at all. Regulatory arrangements that facilitate development may have a positive impact on economic development, particularly where water availability is a potentially limiting factor. Net volume licensing has the potential to allow increased economic outcomes through improved licensing of access to water. Net volume licensing differs from traditional water licensing in that it authorises access to water on the basis of ænet useÆ rather than æthe gross volume takenÆ. This paper asks under what conditions net volume licensing is likely to be feasible and effective. In particular, the paper examines the information and accuracy requirements to allow net volume licensing decisions to be made. This work is based around five case studies in Victoria that were used to examine the potential for net volume licensing for mines and quarries. Assessing a potential net volume licensing arrangement requires the regulating authority to have an understanding of the inputs and outputs of water to a site. In contrast, assessment of take and use licences consider only a single input. It was concluded that the conditions that lend themselves to net volume licensing include: well understood water inputs and outputs, including appropriate accuracy of information where the location of site water inputs and outputs are the same where the timing of extraction and discharge can be managed to minimise impact on the water resource.A key remaining challenge is establishing an accounting framework that allows net volume licensing under current water resource limits. CITATION:Graszkiewicz, Z, Horne, A, Neal, B, Evan, R and Dettrick, D, 2013. The practicalities of implementing net volume licensing of water use in mines and quarries - a discussion based on Victorian case studies, in Proceedings Water in Mining 2013, pp 241-250 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Nov 26, 2013

By V. Avzian Belozersky reg 453524, Vasily V. Lodeischikov, Adolf F. Panchenko, Til E. Vidusov, Olga D. Khmelnitskaya, Vladimir E. Dementyev

"Presently, there is a number of gold deposits which cannot be developed using the conventional technologies with acceptable economic indices due to low gold content, high depth of ore occurence and other conditions. For such ores, an innovation technology of underground gold leaching in the place of their occurrence is of special interest. The technology excludes ore mining and hoisting to the surface. This enables the production cost of 1 g of gold to be considerably reduced in comparison with conventional methods of gold recovery.The Maminskoye deposit oxidized ores were chosen as the subject of underground leaching because they are ideally suited for this purpose due to their composition and hydrological parameters. The ore reserves within the underground leaching block are 90, 000 t with 0.7 g/t average gold grade.An experimental system for underground leaching with a throughput of 15 cubic m solutions per hour was developed. A combined filtration-and-infiltration system of the ore massif development by holedrillingwhere pregnant solutions are air-lifted was worked out.The underground leaching flowsheet includes Au dissolution by chlorine-containing solutions, Au adsorption from solution onto active carbon, carbon concentrate ashing and calcine melting to produce Dore metal."

Jan 1, 2003

By J. Riss, S. Gentier, A. Marache

The study of the hydromechanical behaviour of fractured rock masses requires a detailed knowledge of the isolated fractures. The aim of the paper is the simulation of the evolution of the void space, located between both walls of a fracture, during a shear test under constant normal stress. Results of the mechanical simulation model are first validated then analyzed in detail. We observe that, during the shear process, there is an opening of the fracture with the creation of preferential channels. These channels are determined at the early phase of the shear process (pre-peak phase), and we observe during the post-peak phase that void areas increase in size rather than the creation of new apertures. Die Untersuchung des hydromechanischen Verhaltens eines zerlegten Felsmassivs erfordert genaue Kenntnisse der einzelnen Spalten. Ziel dieses Artikels ist die Simulation der Evolution des Hohlraumes zwischen den beiden Wänden eines Spaltes während eines Abscherungsexperimentes unter konstantem senkrechtem Druck. Die Ergebnisse der Modellierung werden zunächst mit dem Abscherungsexperiment verglichen und dann im Einzelnen ausführlich analysiert. Während des Abscherungsprozesses tritt eine Öffnung des Spaltes auf, die die Bildung von bevorzugten Fliesswegen fördert. Diese Kanäle werden bereits in einer frühen Phase des Abscherungsprozesses (pre-peak Phase) festgelegt. In der post-peak Phase tritt dann eher eine Vergrößerung dieser Kanäle, als die Bildung neuer Hohlräume auf. L’étude du comportement hydromécanique d’un massif rocheux fracturé ne peut se faire sans une connaissance approfondie des fractures le constituant. L’étude présentée dans cet article concerne la simulation de l’évolution de l’espace des vides présent entre les deux épontes d’une fracture au cours d’un essai de cisaillement à contrainte normale constante. Les résultats du modèle sont tout d’abord validés puis analysés en détail. On constate que, au cours du cisaillement, il apparaît une ouverture de la fracture permettant la création de chenaux préférentiels. Ces derniers sont déterminés très tôt dans le cisaillement (phase pré-pic), et on observe dans la phase post-pic davantage un accroissement de la taille des chenaux plutôt que la formation de nouvelles zones de vides.

Jan 1, 2003

By L. C. Atkinson, E. A. Azrag, T. M. Hanna

The results of using a simple analytical solution and a relatively complex numerical model to estimate ground water inflow to an open pit mine are compared. The analytical solution assumes lateral, radial flow to a fully penetrating pit in an idealized confined aquifer, whereas the numerical model simulates fully three-dimensional flow to a partially penetrating pit from a water table aquifer. The latter is a more realistic simulation of the problem, but the former method is significantly easier to use. Comparison of the results obtained with the two methods for some typical hydrogeologic conditions encountered in mining yields ratios between them in the range of 0.2 to 0.6. These values can be used as a coefficient in the Pit Flow analytical solution to produce reasonable estimates of in-flow even when there are significant differences from the idealized conditions implicit in its application.

Jan 1, 1995

By Richard Dooley

This paper is one sided because it presents the problem, but not the solution. The problem of blisters (bubbles) and occasional tears in caisson liners occurred when blasting and we have not found a conclusive cause nor a preventive solution. (For back ground information, consult Techniques of Precision Blasting in the Excavation of Drilled Piers, by George Mosteller at the Sixth Conference on Explosives & Blasting Technique in Tampa, Florida 1980).

Jan 1, 1983

Meeting of Dec. 18, 1914. Charles F. Rand, Karl Eilers, and William L. Saunders were appointed a Committee to audit the accounts of the Institute. The matter of the Committee to investigate the relative merits in metallurgical work of turbo-blowers and the reciprocating blowing engine was laid on the table. Benjamin B. Thayer was elected representative on the Board of Trustees of the United Engineering Society to succeed James F. Kemp. Upon the recommendation of the Committee on Membership, 32 Members, 8 Associates, 3 Juniors were elected, and the status of one Associate was changed to that of Member. Twenty-six members owing dues for from three to six years were dropped from the rolls in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

Jan 2, 1915

By W. -C. Huang

In this paper, a methodology for the reliability assessment of geogrid-reinforced unpaved roadways is presented, by taking into account the variability of the subgrade?s undrained shear strength. Analyses are performed using the Point Estimate Method and the Monte Carlo simulations technique. The undrained shear strength is represented by its correlation with the California Bearing Ratio and it is modeled as a random variable following a long-normal distribution. Analyses are performed for different types of reinforcement. The study provides a quantitative assessment of the variation of the system?s probability of failure with this parameter. Overall, the approach suggested in this study may be considered as a complementary approach on the traditional concepts of global or partial safety factors.

Jan 1, 2008

By A. G. Journel

Few Earth Scientists realize fully the assumptions they are making, willing or not, when pooling into a same histogram data coming from different locations and considering such histogram as an estimate of a probabilistic distribution. First they need the hypothesis of stationarity in space; second the presence of spatial auto-correlations implies that data be unequally weighted according to their relative locations and the degree of spatial continuity of the underlying phenomenon. The novel technique of indicator kriging allows construction of local or global histogram which can be considered as unbiased estimators of precisely defined probabilistic distributions, full account being given to the underlying continuity. Such estimates of local distributions can be used in mine planning for estimation of local recoverable reserves.

Jan 1, 1982

By N. A. Karl, D. R. Wilburn

"This summary of international mineral exploration activities for the year 2015 draws upon information from industry sources, published literature, SNL Metals & Mining (SNL) (Charlottesville, VA) database and specialists in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Minerals Information Center. The summary provides data on exploration budgets by region and mineral commodity, identifies significant mineral discoveries and areas of mineral exploration, discusses government programs affecting the mineral exploration industry, and presents analyses of exploration activities performed by the mineral industry.Three types of information are reported and analyzed in this annual review of international exploration: budgetary statistics expressed in U.S. dollars provided by SNL; regional and site-specific exploration activities that took place in 2015 as compiled by the USGS; and regional events that affected exploration activities including economic, social and political conditions, which were derived from published sources and discussions with USGS and industry specialists. Commodity and regional compilations are presented in this summary. Because multiple sources were used to develop commodity and regional compilations, statistics may vary depending on the source and type of data that are being reported.The SNL data summarize planned company budgets for worldwide exploration activities in 2015 for 24 nonfuel mineral commodities and metal alloys and are based on company surveys. Surveys focused on precious metals (gold, platinum-group metals and silver), base metals, (cobalt, copper, lead, molybdenum, nickel, tin and zinc), bulk commodities (bauxite, chromite, iron ore, manganese, phosphate and potash), and other commodities (diamond, graphite, heavy-mineral sands, lithium, niobium, rareearth elements (REE), tantalum, tungsten and uranium).USGS data compilations and analyses are based on information provided by USGS mineral commodity and country specialists, as well as industry contacts and published trade journals. The USGS data summarize exploration site data collected for more than 80 minerals and materials, with a focus on base metals, diamond and precious metals. The USGS analyzed available information to assess the level of exploration activity in 2015 and to report trends in mineral exploration activity for the period 2005 through 2015. These analyses identify where mineral exploration is occurring by commodity and region and the intensity of activity that is taking place in each region for selected mineral commodities, and determines those factors that most affect changes in exploration activity."

May 1, 2016

By Ruilin Yang

Based on large amounts of field data, this paper evaluates the validity of the above equations. During the evaluation, the different selections of the frequency in the equations were examined with field data. It is found that when they are used to estimate the vector sum values the above equations could result in large deviations from the values obtained directly from the field measurements or the waveform integration. The simple equations may be used to make rough estimations for single components of blast vibration provided that appropriate safety factors are taken into account. For single component vibration, the principal frequency (from ‘zero-crossing’) seems more effective to describe the blast vibration than the dominant frequency (fron FFT) for vibration peak value estimation using the simple equations.

Jan 1, 2012

By D. F. Malan

This study Investigates transient closure piles of tabular excavations. Measured closure profiles in stopes indicate that time-dependent acts f the rockmass can be very prominent but such effects have been largely neglected in past analyses and modelling. This was due to a poor understanding of the time-dependent mechanisms controlling closure rates This paper investigates the feas-ibility of representing the rockmass as a visco-elastic medium. Currently, no analytical solution for the viscoelastic convergence of a tabular stope is available in the literature. Therefore, the author derived a solution using the correspondence principle and a known elastic solution. It is assumed that the rockmass behaves elastically in hydrostatic compression and as a Kelvin substance in distortion A parametric study is Included to aid in the calibration of the model parameters, together with a discussion on the correct calibration of these parameters from experimental data.

Jan 1, 1995

By Gerald Edmunds

The liquidus line on the phase diagram for temperature versus composition of a binary alloy system, representing the boundary between the homogeneous melt and the heterogeneous melt plus solid, besides showing the minimum casting temperature, is useful in determining eutectic compositions and the presence of phase changes such as peritectic transformations and intermetallic compound formation. The liquidus often is determined by the cooling curves of thermal analysis, but supercooling frequently occurs, so that the temperature values are low. An alternative method, the one employed here, consists of determining the composition of samples of the melts from heterogeneous alloys that are at equilibrium. With meticulous attention to fundamentals, this method is capable of yielding values limited in precision only by the temperature control and measurement and analyses. Apparatus By starting, on the one hand, with a supersaturated solution and allowing the excess solute to precipitate, and on the other hand with an undersaturated solution and allowing more of the solute to be dissolved, both processes being carried out at the same temperature, equilibrium may be said to have been approached from both directions; that is, from above and from below. If the analyses show the solutions to contain the same fraction of solute when equilibrium has been approached from above and from below, one is assured that equilibrium has been reached in both determinations. In order to carry out such determinations, it is necessary to have equipment for obtaining and maintaining the proper temperatures; for holding the melt, measuring its temperature, and stirring, sampling and analyzing it. The present work required temperatures from 420° to 900°C. The equipment consisted of: A furnace, which was a vertical alundum tube, 13/4-in. diameter inside and 18 in. long, wound with Nichrome resistance wire, surrounded by a 3-in. i.d. alundum tube wound for 5 in. of length near each end, for compensation of end losses. This muffle was contained in an iron shell with Transite end plates, the intervening space being packed with Sil-O-Cel. The outside dimensions of the furnace were 12 in. in diameter by 181/2 in. in height. Heating current was supplied by three independent variable-voltage transformers (Variac), one connected to each end compensator winding and manually controlled, and one connected to the main winding through a series resistance of 5 ohms. This resistance was short-circuited for

Jan 1, 1944

By Gerald Edmunds

The liquidus line on the phase diagram for temperature versus composition of a binary alloy system, representing the boundary between the homogeneous melt and the heterogeneous melt plus solid, besides showing the minimum casting temperature, is useful in determining eutectic compositions and the presence of phase changes such as peritectic transformations and intermetallic compound formation. The liquidus often is determined by the cooling curves of thermal analysis, but supercooling frequently occurs, so that the temperature values are low. An alternative method, the one employed here, consists of determining the composition of samples of the melts from heterogeneous alloys that are at equilibrium. With meticulous attention to fundamentals, this method is capable of yielding values limited in precision only by the temperature control and measurement and analyses. Apparatus By starting, on the one hand, with a supersaturated solution and allowing the excess solute to precipitate, and on the other hand with an undersaturated solution and allowing more of the solute to be dissolved, both processes being carried out at the same temperature, equilibrium may be said to have been approached from both directions; that is, from above and from below. If the analyses show the solutions to contain the same fraction of solute when equilibrium has been approached from above and from below, one is assured that equilibrium has been reached in both determinations. In order to carry out such determinations, it is necessary to have equipment for obtaining and maintaining the proper temperatures; for holding the melt, measuring its temperature, and stirring, sampling and analyzing it. The present work required temperatures from 420° to 900°C. The equipment consisted of: A furnace, which was a vertical alundum tube, 13/4-in. diameter inside and 18 in. long, wound with Nichrome resistance wire, surrounded by a 3-in. i.d. alundum tube wound for 5 in. of length near each end, for compensation of end losses. This muffle was contained in an iron shell with Transite end plates, the intervening space being packed with Sil-O-Cel. The outside dimensions of the furnace were 12 in. in diameter by 181/2 in. in height. Heating current was supplied by three independent variable-voltage transformers (Variac), one connected to each end compensator winding and manually controlled, and one connected to the main winding through a series resistance of 5 ohms. This resistance was short-circuited for

Jan 1, 1944

By R. W. Lawrence

Sulphide is an effective reagent in the precipitation of base metals for both metal winning and environmental control. BioteQ Environmental Technologies Inc. has successfully demonstrated in industrial plants that biogenic sulphide reagent can be generated cost effectively and used to win metals such as copper, zinc and nickel from low-grade leach solutions and wastewater. Commercial plants in which sulphide reagent is used to produce high quality treated effluents for discharge directly to the environment are also in operation. Operations utilizing biogenic sulphide reagent for copper recovery from acid drainage and low grade leach solutions are discussed, including those at Bisbee, Arizona, commissioned in 2004 and at the Dexing mine in China, scheduled for commissioning in 2007. In addition, a new application of BioteQ's technology for the recovery of copper from gold-cyanide solutions, and the regeneration of cyanide, utilizing biogenic sulphide in place of chemical sulphide reagents in the SART process is described.

Jan 1, 2007

By R. I. Jaffee, H. R. Ogden, D. J. Maykuth

Phase diagrams for the Ti-W and Ti-Ta systems were determined. The Ti-W system is characterized by a wide, two-phase region of ß plus tungsten which is derived from a peritectic reaction between the liquid and tungsten solid solutions. The ß field terminates in a eutectoid reaction between a titanium and tungsten terminal solid solution. Tantalum and ß titanium form a complete series of solid solutions. Other features of this system are the extensive a-ß field at low temperatures and an appreciable solubility of tantalum in a titanium. BOTH tungsten and tantalum were first thought to form ß-isomorphous systems with titanium as a result of early work' using powder-metallurgical techniques. Later work2 on arc-melted Ti-Ta alloys, made using a commercial titanium base, showed that, in the range of 0 to 10 pct, tantalum was soluble in ß titanium and that the a solubility extended to between 2 and 5 pct Ta at 790 °C. The present investigation covered the entire alloy range in both systems and was chiefly concerned with high-purity alloys at the titanium-rich end. The constitution of titanium-rich alloys made with a commercial titanium base was reported by Holla-day, Kura, and Jackson.3, 4 As will be shown in detail later, the early prediction of a isomorphism was true for the case of the Ti-Ta system, but not for the Ti-W system. The results of this investigation will be presented first. The experimental methods used are described in the Appendix. Ti-W System The entire Ti-W phase diagram is shown in Fig. 1. Details of the titanium-rich side are shown in Fig. 2. The chief features of the system are a ß eutectoid and a high-temperature peritectic between liquid and tungsten solid solution. Melting Range: Examination of cast structures of low and medium-tungsten-content ingots showed cored ß phase as the primary constituent. Fig. 3a illustrates a typical cast structure for alloys in the range of 20 to 30 pct W. From 30 to 72 pct W, coring was very severe. Alloys containing 72 through 88 pct W, however, showed definite evidence of a peritectic reaction between the liquid and a terminal solid solution of titanium in tungsten. Fig. 3b shows the cast structure for an 80 pct W alloy. A 95 pct W alloy, shown in Fig. 4, consisted primarily of primary tungsten solid solution plus a small quantity of ß probably rejected during cooling. Incipient-melting experiments located the peritectic temperature between 1850" and 1900°C and indicated that the reacting phases are liquid containing about 25 pct W and tungsten terminal solid solution containing about 8 pct Ti. Figs. 5 and 6

Jan 1, 1954

By W. G. Pfann

Under certain conditions, a molten zone can be made to move through a solid by impressing a stationary temperature gradient across the solid. This phenomenon can be utilized in fabricating semiconductive devices, growing single crystals, joining, boring fine holes in solids, measuring diffusivities in liquids, small scale alloying, and purification. Fundamentals and exemplary applications are outlined. ANEW aspect of the travel of a molten zone through a solid is considered in this paper. Whereas, in previously described zone melting techniques,'-' zones were usually caused to move by changing the position or temperature of a heat source, in the present technique a zone is made to move by impressing a temperature gradient across it. For example, a thin layer of molten A1-Si alloy, sandwiched between two silicon slabs having a temperature gradient normal to the layer, will travel through the hotter slab. One feature of temperature gradient zone melting, as this technique will be called here, is that zones of unusually small dimensions can be maintained. This leads to such diverse uses as have been listed in the abstract. In this paper fundamentals of the movement of a molten zone in a temperature gradient, and some practical applications thereof, are outlined. Assumptions The movement of a molten zone through a solid body of solvent substance in which a temperature gradient exists will be discussed. The length of the zone will be its dimension in the direction of motion. The direction of the temperature gradient will be toward the region of higher temperature. To be considered is a binary or higher order solute-solvent system in which the concentration of solute in the molten zone is sufficient to produce a lowering of the freezing temperature of the solvent which is at least of the order of the temperature range impressed on the charge. While we discuss primarily molten zones in a solid matrix, the principles are applicable to solid or vaporous zones in a solid matrix, a requirement being that the diffusivity in the zone be substantially greater than in the matrix. Diffusion of solute into the surrounding solid will be assumed negligible. In general, its presence will not basically alter the conclusions to be drawn. For illustration, a system represented by the partial constitutional diagram of Fig. la will be discussed, in which k, the distribution coefficient defined in the figure, is constant and less than unity. However, the technique is applicable to any solute- solvent system in which one component lowers the melting point of another component. Movement of a Molten Zone in a Temperature Gradient Consider, in the system AB of Fig. 1, where B is designated the solute and A the solvent, the effect of sandwiching a thin layer of solid B between blocks of solid A and placing the whole in a temperature gradient such that the temperature of the layer is above the lowest melting temperature of the system. Surrounded by an excess of A, the layer will dissolve A, becoming molten, and expand in length." As so- lution of A continues, at both interfaces, the mean solute concentration in the zone will move to the right in Fig. la, until at temperature T, the liquid at the cooler interface reaches the liquidus concentration C,. Solution of A thereupon ceases because the liquid T1 is saturated with A. The liquid at the hotter end of the zone, being at temperature T2, is not saturated with A at concentration C1. Hence solution of A continues there and concentration C2 is approached. A concentration gradient therefore is set up in the zone, causing A to diffuse toward the cool end and B toward the hot end. As a result, the liquid at the cool interface becomes supersaturated and a layer of crystalline A containing concentration kc, of B in solid solution freezes. Since a source of A

Jan 1, 1956

By A. Gillis

"In order to obtain the equipment necessary to automate the equipment it was decided that the Department of Mines and Milltronics would jointly survey the circuit. This survey involved a metallurgical study by the Department of Mines and Milltronics took sound recordings during manual operation, checking in circuit bottle necks and determining the number of sensors that could be applied.The conveyer is driven by 2 PIV drives, each has a variable speed of 3/ 1. The cross conveyer that feeds directly into the rod mill feed chute will contain an automatic sampler and will eliminate the necessity of stopping the belt feeders to take samples. At present, hourly samples are taken from this point and the circuit is upset and cycling results.The Adequate scale is very close to the rod mill to totalize and thereby give a continuous indication and the second purpose is to take a signal from it and control the solution addition to the rod mill.A pneumatic positioner was obtained and put on the scale which produces a 3 tp 15 psi signal which is proportional to the actual tonnage going across the scale. This signal was fed to a bias loader which was mounted on the control panel. From there the operator can set the amount of solution that is wanted by the rod mill. No matter what the feed rate is, the signal coming from the bias loader will follow it automatically. This in turn goes to the pneumatic solution valve (1 ½” ) and the solution goes in with the feed to the rod mill. This is only part of the solution required for dilution since the rest of it is used as a force jet for the feed to the rod mill."

Jan 1, 1965

By F. R. Scauzillo

Equilibrium data which should be useful in the design and/or evaluation of glycol dehydration units were prepared from an analysis of various published data and the correlation of these data by the use of the thermo-dynamic equilibrium ratio. The equilibrium ratios of water are used to solve the glycol absorber problem; such solutions are necessary to define the number of trays and the glycol circulation rate needed to meet drying requirements. Activity coefficients were obtained which relate directly to the equilibrium ratios of water in the water-TEG-natural gas system. These activity coefficients have been used to calculate the equilibrium dew points for aqueous TEG concentrations of 60 to 99.9 weight per cent for the temperature range of 40° to 120° F. They also provide a means of calculating equilibrium ratios for water in the water-TEG-natural gas system; this applies to any desired TEG concentration and to the temperature range from 40° to 120°F. INTRODUCTION During the last several years, the drying of natural gas with aqueous triethylene-glycol (TEG) solutions has become very prominent. Most users of TEG as a drying agent have been satisfied with the performance of TEG solutions at the conditions used; however, there always has been some discussion of the drying ability of TEG solutions at conditions not commonly encountered such as temperatures below 50° or 60°F, but more particularly temperatures above 100°F, and pressures above 1,000 psia. Today, when higher wellhead temperatures such as 120°F are more commonly encountered many are skeptical of TEG's ability to dry sufficiently well to provide dew points around 32°F, which is generally the maximum tolerable when attempting to dry a gas to contract specifications of 7 Ib/MMscf. These views probably have evolved to some extent from the days when suppliers would not guarantee dew-point depressions in excess of 65° to 75 °OF. Also, the feelings about TEG drying may have arisen from the lack of information about the equilibrium relation of water in the drying operations. Porter and Reid' have reported equilibrium data for a 95 per cent TEG solution, while Townsend2 reported equilibrium data for 95, 98 and 100 per cent TEG solutions. Townsend also presented a calculational method which obtains activity coefficients in the liquid phase and, subsequently, the equilibrium water content of a saturated gas over glycol from published3 atmospheric dew points. Wise, Puck and Failey' presented activity data for the water-TEG system at atmospheric pressure. In the past, the equilibrium ratios published for water in a 95 per cent by weight aqueous TEG solution have been used indiscriminately by many for all concentrations of TEG encountered in gas drying operations. Since essentially all such gas operations require the use of more concentrated TEG solutions, a study was undertaken to correlate the existing equilibrium data for aqueous TEG and gas systems and to provide some means of calculating the equilibrium ratio of water in the natural gas-water-TEG system where TEG concentrations were other than 95 per cent. The data presented herein consider only the equilibrium drying ability of the TEG solutions and do not consider the effect of temperature and pressure on the tray eficiency of contactors. In other words, this paper is concerned primarily with the development of the equilibrium relationship between water in the dried natural gas and the water in the lean TEG entering the top tray of the absorber. BASIC EQUILIBRIUM RELATIONS A relationship which relates the K value of water in the natural gas-water-TEG system to the vapor pressure of water at the system temperature, the total pressure of the system and the activities of the liquid and gas phases has been evaluated. It is well known that, for any component of a mixture at equilibrium between a gas phase and a liquid phase,

Being a geologist I intend describing the renaissance of the gold industry in Australia within its geologic framework; there is a geological pattern to the numerous gold projects which have been brought on stream over the past decade. We are now about midway through our third and largest gold boom which, at a peak of 7.5 million ounces is about twice the production peaks achieved in the preceding booms. From discovery in 1851 through 1870 we saw the first boom largely based on alluvial production in NSW and in Victoria at the great Ballarat and Bendigo Goldfields. The discovery of the Golden Mile in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, underpinned the second gold boom in the period 1895 - 1915. On that basis the present boom should last through the next decade.   It has been a golden decade for Australian gold production. From less than ten mines in 1980 with production over 10 000 ounces and the largest, Telfer, with output of about 130 000 ounces we now find over 130 deposits being worked around the country today that produce over 10 000 ounces with the largest, Boddington, having an output of over 400 000 ounces. In total these mines produced an estimated 210 tonnes of gold in 1989 and we expect this year, 1990, that a new record production of between 240 and 250 tonnes will be set. This positions Australia in third place in the Western World behind South Africa #1 and the USA #2 and fourth in the world with the Russians holding second place overall behind the South Africans.

Jan 1, 1990

By W. W. Mullins, F. A. Nichols

Solutions are developed, assuming surface diffusion and both internal and external volume diffusion, for the relaxation of bodies slightly perturbed from spherical and cylindrical geometries. Combined with those previously published for the nearly planar case, these results provide a means of gaging the relative contributions of the two diffusional proc-cesses in any given case. It is shown that in all sintering experiments to date, and probably in any attainable in practice, surface diffusion has played the dominant role, although most previous authors have assumed otherwise. It is also shown that surface diffusion predominates in normal field-emission tip blunting and also for the coalescence of gas bubbles introduced into metals by a bombardment. The surface-diffusion solutions for a perturbed sphere are combined with previous results for volume diffusion to show that the inclusion of interface diffusion permits considerably larger spheres to develop in diffusion-controlled precipitate growth before the onset of instability. A mechanism is also proposed for the spheroidization of precipitate platelets as well as rods. In a previous paper1 the relaxation of a nearly plane surface to flatness by the combined action of the transport processes of viscous flow, evaporation-condensation (in a closed system), volume diffusion, and surface diffusion has been analyzed under the assumption that all surface properties are independent of orientation. In this treatment, criteria were developed for deciding which process predominates, and solutions valid in the latter stages of the sintering of small wires and particles to a plane were obtained. A numerical solution, valid throughout the entire particle-sintering process for the case of surface diffusion, was subsequently obtained by the present authors.' It was found that the analytic solution (which assumed small slopes everywhere) is accurate to within -10 pct when the maximum slope of the profile is less than 0.3; the wire-sintering problem has also been solved nu- merically for the case of surface diffusion and here again the results converge to the analytic small-slope solution at late stages of the process, the two solutions agreeing in this case to within 10 pct when the maximum slope of the profile is less than -0.6. The purpose of this paper is to extend the perturbation solutions to nearly spherical and nearly cylindrical geometries. We treat only the two principal diffusional processes, i.e., surface and volume, but for these geometries we discuss volume diffusion both inside and outside of the solid. Our results, when coupled with Mullins' solutions1 for nearly planar surfaces, provide criteria for gaging the relative contributions of surface and volume diffusion to the over-all transport process in three basic geometries. A very interesting feature in the cylindrical case is the occurrence of instability for longitudinal perturbations with wavelengths greater than the cylindrical circumference, a classical result. This instability of the cylindrical surface is applied to give a quantitative explanation for the often-observed "erratic" pore closure in the late stages of the sintering of wire compacts; also, the theory previously presented for the spheroidization of rod-shaped precipitates by surface (interface) diffusion' is expanded now to include volume diffusion inside and outside of the particle. The results for circumferential perturbations on a long cylinder allow quantitative estimates for gaging the relative importance of surface or volume diffusion in the early stages of the sintering of spheres or wires. The results here demonstrate clearly that surface diffusion has played a very important, if not dominant, role in all sintering experiments discussed in the literature, although the surface-diffusion contribution to the kinetics has usually been ignored. The results for the sphere (surface-diffusion case) are added to the results obtained previously by Mullins and sekerka3 concerning instabilities of a growing spherical precipitate particle (with interface diffusion disallowed) to obtain a general solution to this problem including interface diffusion. The inclusion of interface diffusion is found to increase significantly the range of stability of a growing spherical precipitate for typical metallurgical cases. The following assumptions are made: (i) the initial surface lies everywhere near and has a slope differing only slightly from that of the reference

Jan 1, 1965