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By D. L. Cramp

The Direct-Connected Electric Hoist In the latter part of 1931 a new electric hoist was installed at the Lake Shore mine. A number of interesting features were incorporated in this machine, which is the first direct-connected, direct-current-operated hoist to be placed in service in the Kirkland Lake district. Many factors requiring care and study enter into the selection of hoisting-engine drive. In this instance, conditions warranted the selection of the generator voltage control system (Ward-Leonard), utilizing a direct-current driving motor and a separate motor generator unit. It was further deter-mined that additional economies could be secured by the selection of a motor generator unit with a flywheel, and consequently the Ilgner-Ward Leonard flywheel set was adopted. Some of the advantages of this system are: 1) Greater accuracy of control, resulting in increased flexibility in hand-ling with increased precision and safety; especially desirable in large, important installations where the rope-speed is high or where frequent shifting is necessary. (2) Reduced energy consumption. (3) Feasibility of load equalization, without which, in some cases, the power system would be unable to carry the fluctuating load imposed on it by the operation of the hoist. ( 4) Elimination of reduction gearing in the construction of the hoist. The hoist is located on the surface and is used for skip operation at the main shaft, hoisting ore from a present maximum depth of 4,200 feet.

Jan 1, 1933

By W. L. Saunders

(New Haven Meeting, February, 1909.) This paper deals specifically with heading-driving as distinguished from the broader term tunnel-driving. A heading is a pilot or path-finder for the main tunnel. Some headings are complete tunnels in themselves; that is, conditions at times warrant driving a heading the full diameter of the proposed tunnel. A tunnel 10 ft. in diameter might be driven to advantage through a single heading, provided the nature of the material admits, but it usually pays to drive rock tunnels of large diameter through the heading-and-bench system. Much de-pends upon the material, as in soft ground tunnels of much larger diameter are driven in a single heading. In mines, the tunnels, drifts, cross-cuts, adits, etc., are usually of small diameter, hence the driving of headings applies to completed tunnels in minim-work, except, of course, in cases like drainage-tunnels and main entries leading into coal-mines, where conditions call for tunnels of large diameter, approximating those driven for railway-service. In building aqueducts the tunnels are driven from 6 to 8 ft. in diameter up to 15 or 20 ft., while in railway-service the dimensions vary from 18 to 30 ft. in diameter. There is no department of rock-excavation so difficult as that of heading-driving. This work. also belongs to the most expensive class in rock-excavation. A heading is driven .directly in the solid. There are no lines of lesser resistance towards which to direct the energy of the blast, but. the material must be blown out by main force. The completion of the heading simplifies all the rest of the work of excavation. It is easy, for instance, to enlarge a heading either from above, below or oil the sides, by breaking towards the open face through holes approximately at right angles to the axis of the heading; or the enlargement sometimes takes place by holes driven outside

Apr 1, 1909

By N. Dahmen

The Robbins Mobile miner has been in development for more than ten years. Two machines have been trialed in mining environments. While day to day performance to date has fallen short of the levels anticipated, instantaneous performance has been impressive for given rock conditions and continues to encourage further development. The Pasminco mobile miner has been committed for a 1.8km main decline extension at Broken Hill. M.I.M. Holdings, parent company of Mount Isa Mines, owner of the first mobile miner, are considering a new machine for McArthur River. Robbins, Pasminco, and The Centre for Mining Technology and Construction have, joined forces to accelerate development of .mechanical rock cutting techniques in general, and of the Mobile Miner in particular.

Jan 1, 1995

By George A. Calboreanu

In order to overcome drilling and tapping of high hardness wear resistent material in slurry pumps, most of time mild steel inserts are mounted in the mold and after pouring they become an integrated part of the casting. This process is limiting the size and design possibilities of slurry pumps and efforts were made to drill and tap the hard iron itself. The paper will present practical results obtained in drilling and tapping Cr-Mo wear resistent material with hardness in excess of 700 HBN. The life time of the slurry pump parts used in hazardous waste fuel transportation with high slurry velocity and 15% solid loading some of it being quartz, increased 2.5 to 6 times.

Jan 1, 1996

By Nico Steenekamp

At Lonrho Platinum in South Africa, ores from both the Merensky and UG2 reefs of the Bushveld Igneous complex are treated by flotation and smelting to produce a nickel-copper matte which serves as a collector for the platinum group metals (PGM' s). The nickel-copper matte was originally shipped to Norway for treatment and recovery of the contained base metals, with the return of the PGM rich concentrate to South Africa. The Lonrho Platinum Base Metal Refinery was commissioned in 1985. The original process employed a Shenitt Gordon design. The converter matte is treated in a refinery which utilises both atmospheric and pressure leaches for the dissolution of base metals to produce nickel sulphate crystals, copper cathode and a PGM concentrate. This paper refers to flowsheet and operating changes as well as improvements within the Base Metal Refinery.

Jan 1, 1999

By André Oliveira

The present paper describes state-of-the-art Pulverized Coal Injection technology with focus to Dynamic Distribution guaranteeing highest accuracy on equal distribution and being thus one of the key factors enabling constantly highest injection rates. As an alternative to the construction of a new plant, existing plants may be modernized and upgraded to latest technology. Two recent examples are presented. As a conclusion, two case studies of return on investment are showing that the PCI technology, both for new facilities as well as for upgrades, is very profitable and mandatory for high blast furnace operation effectiveness.

Aug 17, 2017

By Philip Lindstrom

Retreat mining, using yielding steel friction props, over a seven-year period has been successful at a uranium mine operated by Hecla Mining Company in southeast Utah. The support system allow good roof control, maximum profit, complete extraction, and good ventilation. Unusual subsidence observations were made in that some of the surface was raised rather than lowered, Longwall mining, commonly practiced in European coal mines, has a potential of broader application because of mechanization possibilities and better roof control and ventilation at greater depths.

Jan 1, 1964

By Dorsey A. Lyon

"The ceramic industry of the United States has a total yearly manufactured product of nearly half a billion dollars, despite large foreign importation.After careful investigation of the industry by the Bureau of Mines, it is the belief of those in charge that the usefulness of the industry can be greatly enlarged and the importations greatly lessened through the development of processes that will lead to a greater and better development of the ceramic resources of the United States. This will result in a greater industry with more men employed than ever before, and perhaps a world's supremacy in ceramic trade matters.Investigations in behalf of the ceramic industry are being made at the Bureau of Mines experiment ceramic station at Columbus, Ohio, under the supervision of R. T. Stall, superintendent, who reports a number of instances of practical, beneficial cooperation between the industry and the station during the last fiscal year.Graphite to Crucibles:Prior to 1914, practically all graphite crucibles manufactured in the United States were made from Ceylon graphite bonded with German Klingenberg clay. It was the general belief among graphite crucible manufacturers and users that good crucibles could not be made from American bond clays and graphites.Graphite crucibles were essential for melting certain alloys and special steels urgently needed for the manufacture of war materials. The demand for such metals was so great that it created an unprecedented demand for graphite crucibles.After the European war began no Klingenberg clay could be shipped out of Germany. However, it was fortunate for the cyucibly makers that they had large stocks of Klingenberg clay on hand. When the stock of Klingenberg clay became exhausted, it was necessary for the credible makers to turn their attention to American clays. There were no data or other information available to guide the crucible makers in the selection of good bond clays for their crucibles. It was necessary for them to select their clays more or less by ""guess"", which resulted in the period of service or life of graphite crucibles being shortened 15 to as much as 60 per cent."

Feb 1, 1921

By Trevor R. Ellis

In August 2011, the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (SAIMM) contacted mining institutes and related societies internationally to assess their interest in participating in coordination of the review of the South African Code for Mineral Valuation (SAMVAL) with reviews of other mineral valuation standards. The main mineral valuation standards are the CIMVal Standard of The Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM), the VALMIN Code of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM), the SAMVAL Code, and the extractive industries? guidance note of the International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC), Valuation of Properties in the Extractive Industries, GN 14, designed for application within the full set of International Valuation Standards (IVSs). By January 2012, SAIMM had concluded that the level of respondent interest was adequate to organize a meeting. A meeting was scheduled for April 18, 2012 in Brisbane, Australia in conjunction with a VALMIN mineral valuation conference organized by the AusIMM. The stated purpose of the meeting was to develop an accord on terms of reference for pursuing harmonization of mineral asset valuation standards adopted by the participating mineral institutes. SME decided that, although it has not developed its own mineral valuation standard, it should participate in the Brisbane meeting and the harmonization process, as also did the American Institute of Minerals Appraisers (AIMA).

Jan 1, 2012

By D. Yokom, T. Katsabanis, E. Tremblay

"The mining industry has always faced the problems of replacing retired mining professionals, retaining their knowledge, continuously developing the skills of local talent and employing under-represented groups. In expansionary scenarios the industry faces the additional challenge of increasing available talent. New talent has traditionally come from current mining programs; however, these programs have been declining in numbers, and those that remain face challenges such as fluctuating enrollments, and reduced budgets. Queen’s University and Northern College have partnered to develop an innovative new program that offers online mining education to engineering technologists seeking to upgrade their skills and obtain a Bachelor’s degree. The high quality, flexible curriculum, offered online, includes a wide range of learning activities that promote interaction (student-to-student, student-to-instructor, and student-to-content), and is enabled by modern learning technologies (an integrated learning platform, as well as a variety of types of purpose-built video, web conferencing, and simulation software). The program issues block transfer credit to college graduates, and consequently reduces the time to completion when compared to other Bachelor’s degrees in Mining. The curriculum has been carefully designed to enhance a balance of technical, managerial, and societal skills for students. The program also includes short summer field school sessions, where students gain practical application skills under the direct supervision of engineering experts. THE NEEDS OF INDUSTRY Canada is the world’s largest exporter of minerals, and the contribution of this sector to Canada’s gross national product is more than three times that of the automotive industry, representing approximately 4% of Canadian GDP (MiHR, 2015)1. According to a recent report by the Canadian Mining Industry Resources Council (MiHR, 2016)2, despite the recent downturn in commodity prices, the industry will continuously need to attract new engineers to replace talent retirements and prepare for the possibility of expansion when the industry recovers. As past experience indicates, the challenges during expansion times are severe and the effects on education counter-productive. For example, during the prolonged expansion cycle of 2006-2012, several new programs were started worldwide, and mining became the profession of choice for many young students. During the subsequent downturn in the industry, many of these programs face dwindling enrollments, placing their sustainability in question. However, there is a continual need by industry to retain employees, as well as attract and train local talent, while providing educational opportunities to its employees. High potential college graduates can find themselves reaching a ceiling in their advancement due to their lack of a University degree. Furthermore, there exists an under representation of women, immigrants, and Aboriginal peoples in the labour force, and engineering fields in general1,2. Traditional mining engineering programs have tried to respond to the needs of industry, as well as meet the needs of students seeking diverse and successful employment careers. These programs tend to cater to the educational needs and aspirations of a general population, and their ability to grow and respond to changing industry needs is constrained by the number of students they can attract, as well as the resources available to them in a steady-state scenario."

Jan 1, 2017

By Thomas J. Peters

The Danskin/South Fork Boise River study area is 40 air km southeast of Boise, Idaho. The 16,000-hectare, two-segment area is mainly underlain by Cretaceous-age granodiorite and an aplitic and pegmatitic complex of the Idaho batholith, Miocene-age rhyolitic tuffs and lavas, and late Tertiary-age basalt flows. No mineral resources were identified in the study area. One mine, The Flat Creek mine, which produced several ounces of gold and silver, was found in the study area. It is geologically similar to deposits in the Neal mining district, adjacent to the northwest corner of the area; gold mineralization occurs along east-northeast-trending faults and associated quartz veins, which dip moderately to steeply southeast, and within adjacent Cretaceous granitic rock. Samples indicate the Flat Creek deposit is not rich enough to mine underground, and near surface, open-pit-mineable deposit areas could not be identified. However, exploration is warranted there and also in the 7-km interval to mines in the Neal district, and for extensions of those mines. No evidence of geothermal activity was observed, although there are hot springs in the vicinity. Some alluvial (placer) samples from the interior of the study area contained free gold, but no substantial gravel deposits were seen.

Jan 1, 1993

By D. J. Rose

The San Miguel Mine is owned by San Miguel Electrical Cooperative, Inc. and operated by Atascosa Mining Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Morrison-Knudsen Company, Inc. This multiseam, single-zone lignite surface mine is located near Jourdanton, Texas, 110 kilometers (68 miles) south of San Antonio. Lignite extracted from four closely-spaced seams is used to fuel the 400-MW San Miguel Power Plant. Recovery depths range from 7 to 37 meters (25 to 120 feet). The mine began stripping operations in the spring of 1980 and now produces approximately 2.5 million tonnes (2.8 million tons) of lignite annually. Atascosa Mining Company is responsible for production, maintenance, engineering, and management services. Production responsibilities include topsoil removal, overburden removal, lignite mining, spoil pile regrading and topsoil replacement, as well as ash disposal and construction and maintenance of water retention and diversion facilities.

Jan 1, 1984

Commissioning is one of the many phases of a project, it has inter-dependencies with the other phases, as they have amongst themselves, and has its own terminology and distinctive features. Commissioning time and cost can severely affect project economics, especially through unrealistic estimating, and requires a separate management team to ensure full control is. maintained. Targets to be achieved in commissioning are identified, together with the necessary policies to achieve them. Factors which have to be taken into account in applying these policies are Discussed.

Jan 1, 1986

Laboratory tests were conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Mines to determine respirable dust reduction effectiveness of and interaction between face airflow and water sprays for a continuous miner. Increases in exhausting face ventilation from 3,000 to 9,000 cfm, in waterflow from 15 to 35 gpm, and in water nozzle operating pressure from 80 to 200 psi were evaluated. Results indicated that airflow had the greatest individual impact on reducing dust levels, with concentrations at return and operator sampling locations reduced by as much as 57% and 99%, respectively. Regression modeling was utilized to predict dust concentrations over the range of values tested for the control parameters. Interactions between the control parameters were significant and often defined an optimum level where further increases in that parameter failed to produce additional dust reductions. Increasing airflow to 8,400 cfm, waterflow to 25 gpm, and water pressure to 140 psi typically reduced dust concentrations at operator and return locations. Application of a control parameter above these levels can provide additional dust reductions if used in conjunction with appropriate levels of the other two control parameters. Otherwise, higher operator dust levels may result and can be attributed to increased rollback and/or airflow turbulence.

Jan 1, 2010

By Antonio Mendoza

El presente texto describe el sistema de manejo de agua y aire, las actividades integradoras, preventivas, de análisis y ejecución realizadas para describir la respuesta a los retos del futuro inmediato para alcanzar los objetivos ambientales en la mina Antamina.

Jan 1, 2012

By Edward E. Johnson

The principal purpose of this study was the development of an engineering and economic model of a hypothetical large-scale open pit gold mining operation. The guiding concept in developing the model was the idea that, through study of a number of such models, it would be possible to evaluate a mineral property and to make reasonable estimates of the benefits to be derived from research in mining and metallurgy. The model by use of a computer is able to produce results easily and quickly when cost factors are varied. Cost factors may be varied as a result of assumptions of improved technology or of assumptions of assuming different approaches or methods to accomplish a particular segment of the mining or processing operation. The discounted cash flow rate of return was used to measure the effect of changes in costs or expected revenue. In this study, assumptions based on past processing practices were made in an effort to reduce costs of processing the ore These assumptions were: (1) Eliminating the low-grade cyanide circuit; (2) reducing the quantity of material to be processed by screening after crushing; and (3) using a combination of assumptions (1) and (2). All three assumptions resulted in reduced capital investment and operating cost that caused substantial increases in the rate of return.

Jan 1, 1968

By M-A Van Ende, N Kumar, I-H Jung

In order to utilise the powerful thermodynamic databases for process simulations, a concept called Effective Equilibrium Reaction Zone (EERZ) was introduced to couple thermodynamic database calculations and reaction kinetics. Using the EERZ concept, many process simulation models for steelmaking processes have been developed within the FactSage steelmaking consortium. After validation of the simulation results by comparing with plant data, the simulation models have been applied to improve plant operations. Several success stories of the improvement of real steelmaking operations are shared. A new user-friendly FactProSim software developed for building process simulations is introduced.

Aug 21, 2024

By F. G. Schora

The Institute of Gas Technology (IGT), under sponsorship of the U. S. Department of the Interior, Office of Coal Research (OCR), and the American Gas Association (A. G. A. ), has been undertaking the development of one of several processes to convert coal to high-Btu gas as a means of supplementing natural gas supplies. It is anticipated that there will be a significant need for such gas in the foreseeable future in order to meet the ever increasing demands for this preferred fuel form. HISTORY The development of the HYGAS® Process is based on various studies conducted at IGT starting back as far as 1945. Initial work was directed toward production of synthesis gas with subsequent catalytic methanation. By 1964 the concept of the direct hydrogenation of coal to produce methane noncatalytically was well-founded and the chemistry was reasonably well established. Work up until this point in time was financed by the American Gas Association. In 1964 the U. S. Department of the Interior, Office of Coal Research joined with A. G. A. to support the program. The objective at that time was to develop the necessary know-how to enable the design of a pilot plant, a necessary step in the ultimate commercialization of the process. Work for the next three years (1964-1967) emphasized investigation of fluidized-bed technology in the hydrogasification step, where moving-bed technology had been previously employed, as well as identification of commercially available catalysts acceptable for catalytic methanation of the CO and hydrogen in the hydrogasifier effluent under operating conditions in the system. By 1967, the preliminary design of a 3 ton/hr pilot plant had been finalized, and IGT received authorization from OCR to proceed with the detailed design and construction of that facility. The pilot plant was designed to study the following problems:

Jan 1, 1972

By Robert C. Johnson

Single crystal whiskers of ZrO2 and TiO2 were grown by solution and crystallization of these oxides in molten baths. Mixtures of Na2B407 and LiC1 were the most suitable growth media for zirconia. Sodium borate alone and Na2CO3 plus SiO2 were best suited for titania. The solubilities of zirconia and titania in molten sodium borate were determined, Whether zirconia whiskers were dendritic or nondendritic depended on the temperature used. The best single crystal whiskers were grown below 1,100° C. Titania whiskers always grew as single crystals. The tensile strengths of zirconia and titania whiskers were about 15,000 psi and 50,000 psi, respectively. Modulus of rupture was about 49,000 psi for zirconia whiskers and 75,000 psi for titania whiskers. Chemical analyses showed the zirconia and titania whiskers to be pure. The zirconia and titania whiskers were shown by X-ray analysis to be, respectively, baddeleyite and rutile.

Jan 1, 1965

By Essie Esterhuizen, Michael M. Murphy, Chris Mark

"The design of underground coal mines requires a clear understanding of the overburden response, the loading of pillars, the loading of the gob, the pillar failure process, and the ultimate load carried by partly or fully yielding pillars. Very few highquality stress measurements of yielding pillars and gob loading have been made in full extraction mining. Well-calibrated numerical models can assist in providing a better understanding of the load and failure processes, provided the coal, the overburden, and the gob are all modeled with sufficient realism. A program of numerical model calibration and validation was carried out using FLAC3D.1 The models were calibrated against observed and measured performance of coal pillars and the overburden in operating mines to provide a basic set of input parameters that can be used to provide a realistic first estimate of expected ground response and pillar loading. Input parameters for modeling coal pillar response were based on data from triaxial testing on coal samples, combined with both matching the depth of failure in the coal ribs to observations as well as matching the peak pillar resistance to an empirical equation. The models were calibrated against strong roof and floor case histories in which the pillar strength is governed by failure and yielding of the coal within the pillar and the surrounding strata only had a limited impact on pillar strength. Input parameters for the overburden were determined from a large database of laboratory tests and model calibration against maximum subsidence and subsidence curvature. Further overburden calibration was carried out by matching stresses in the mining horizon to field measurements. Three examples of the application of the calibrated dataset and modeling methodology to field measurements are presented. The results show that a reasopable estimate of the in-seam stress distribution and overburden response can be obtained for both strong and weak overburden scenarios at various depths of cover.INTRODUCTIONThe planning and design of coal mine excavations requires reliable estimates of the expected strength and loading of the mine structures to achieve global stability. Empirical methods are widely used to estimate the strength and loading of coal pillars and have been incorporated into pillar design procedures, such as Analysis of Longwall Pillar Stability (ALPS) (Mark, 1987) and Analysis of Retreat Mining Pillar Stability (ARMPS) (Mark and Chase, 1997), that are widely used in the United States. ~umerical models are finding increasing application as a tool for underground mine design because of their. versatility and the ever increasing computational power available to mine designers. A prerequisite for the application of numerical models is the calibration of the models against observed rock mass response (Hoek et al., 1990; Skiles and Stricklin, 2009). The calibration process may include comparison of model results to measured stress and deformation and modifying the input parameters in a systematic manner to achieve a satisfactory agreement between the model results and measurements. Once models have been calibrated, they can be applied to evaluating similar mining layouts in similar geological conditions."

Jan 1, 2010