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By Denton A. Kort

Historically the visual examination of drilled shafts to determine shape was typically done under dry conditions. Many engineers believe that by using a dry method of construction, the question of shape is minimized because they can visually examine the excavation. In fact, test data suggests that slurry stabilized shafts tend to perform better than similarly constructed dry shafts. Clearly, the uncertainty of the shaft shape is magnified when constructed under slurry. Recent advancements have allowed a mechanical caliper to determine shape in wet conditions, but can be limited by certain shaft anomalies. New sonar technology can determine shaft shape, volume and verticality. The value of sonar technology to the geotechnical and foundation industry at large in terms of quality assurance for clients/owners and quality control for drilled shaft contractors is significant. This presentation will discuss the development and process of sonar calipering technology as it relates to the geotechnical and deep foundation industry. Sonar calipering results presented may include images from the following types of projects: slurry walls, bridge piers, cofferdams and secant walls. The results identify shaft anomalies in a variety of slurry environments, from water and polymer mixes through mineral slurries. Real-time in-situ images and CAD drawings will be presented illustrating the advantages of good caliper data taken during construction. This presentation will appeal to the geotechnical and structural engineers, as well as those supporting the deep foundation industry at large.

Jan 1, 2007

By Waghorne E. P

The State Electricity Commission of Victoria is Australia's largest single coal producer. Approximately 19 Mt of coal will be produced in 1989 from the SEC V's newest mine, Loy Yang Open Cut (LYOC), which com- menced overburden stripping operation in October 1982. When the adja- cent Loy Yang Power Station is completed in the late 1990's, LYOC will supply between 35 to 45 Mt/a, depending on power station performance and demand of coal for non-power generation uses. LYOC has been a major challenge for the SECV. It is the biggest single open pit coal mining development undertaken in Australia, with a whole of life capital cost approaching A$1 billion. The mine has supplied a very rapidly growing demand for coal from the expanding power station while developing in breadth, length and depth. Coal demand has consistently been above the figures anticipated during the initial planning because of the substantially improved performance of the 500 MW units of the Loy Yang A Power Station. The superior performance of the LYOC and power station has generated additional electrical energy during the first 5 years of power station operation compared with the initial planning targets- at almost no additional capital cost. This has been a major benefit to the SECV. LYOC will continue to present major challenges for the SECV, particularly in achieving overburden removal and coal reserve targets as development of the open cut continues to full depth over the next 15 years.

Jan 1, 1989

By Alex Moyano

The Peirce-Smith converters are traditionally carrying out the converting process of a copper matte in the smelters of Codelco-Chile. However, its production increment is very limited due to the investment magnitude associated to the fulfillment of the environmental regulation. The objective of this paper is to present the Codelco continuous converting process technological advance when converting mattes and/or white metal into blister copper in a Teniente converter unit as an alternative to increment the corporative anode copper production. In 1994, Codelco-Chile started evaluating its ?home made technology? as an alternative to the traditional batch-type converting process. By the year 2001, the Caletones smelter converted liquid white metal to blister copper in a rearranged PS converter continuously. Then, during the 2001-2003 period, several pilot and industrial scale tests were done in a Teniente converter unit at Codelco Norte smelter, evaluating the continuous converting process, i.e., processing liquid mattes (62-68% Cu) to blister copper, demonstrating its technical feasibility with: (i) both constant production of gas flow and SO2 concentration, (ii) production of liquid slag, and (iii) production of a clean blister copper, suitable for the refining process. The promising results have led Codelco-Chile to plan for the 2006 period, a next advanced stage for the continuous converting process evaluation by carrying out a new campaign of tests in a Teniente converter unit at the Codelco Norte smelter.

Jan 1, 2006

By Yves Prévost, Guy St-Amant, Guillaume Dion

In 2010, the foreseen increase of copper grade in feed concentrate at the Horne Smelter was a significant challenge to maintain a steady copper flow throughout the process. The Horne Smelter process includes a Noranda Reactor, a Noranda Converter, pyro refining vessels and anode furnaces. Of the many challenges involved, improving the single casting wheel performance was one of the key topics. Its reliability had to be improved to meet the new production objectives, as anode copper production was to increase from 170 000 to 225 000 tonnes/year. A multidisciplinary team was dedicated to improve the casting wheel availability. The improvement project allowed pinpointing failure modes and reviewing operational and maintenance practices. The common understanding developed by the team allowed improving small components with a high gain-to-effort ratio. The project allowed reaching operational targets without any significant investment. INTRODUCTION In operation since 1927, the Horne Smelter, located in Rouyn-Noranda, in Quebec, has undergone several technological changes since its original construction. Built to smelt the Horne mine concentrates, the smelter also accepted some local custom feeds from the first years of operation. When the Horne mines stopped production in 1976, the plant became a 100% custom smelter. With the development of the Noranda Reactor (1973) and Noranda Converter (1997), the Horne smelter increased its productivity and improved its environmental performance. Continuous improvement of the Horne process allowed maintaining a high level of flexibility in the operation of the smelter, while improving its overall capacity.

Jan 1, 2019

By A. N. Winchell

Petrographic studies of over 1400 rock and mineral samples, and studies of their field relations, show that there is a complete gradation between sandstone and limestone; the lime-silicate rocks were produced by recrystallization of limestone; mineralization and silicification occurred after silication and at considerably lower temperature; carbonation occurred at still lower temperatures. IN CONNECTION with law suits between mining companies at Bingham, Utah, a few years ago, the writer made petrographic studies of more than 1400 rock and mineral samples in thin sections, and also careful studies of their field relations. In petrographic studies, even when an area is studied intensively, attention is commonly centered very largely on the unusual features of special interest, so that the relative abundance of rock types (or minerals or textures) can only be determined by a study of map areas outlined largely by field methods, and cannot be based directly on microscopic work. It is very uncommon, and usually impossible, to take samples at regular short intervals along and across formations. It is precisely because such methods were used at Bingham that the work presents a rare opportunity for determining, on a microscopic basis, the relative abundance of rock types and the continuity of gradations between rock types. At the same time, a study was made of the alteration of sediments under the influence of igneous intrusions, with results that are believed to be of interest and importance.

Jan 3, 1924

Discussion of the paper of W. A. Forbes, presented at the New York Meeting, October, 1913, and printed in Bulletin No. 82, October, 1913, pp. 2477 to 2514.. SAMUEL K. VARNES,* Steelton, Pa.:-We have a gas-cleaning plant consisting of a, centrifugal dry dust catcher, and two rain-type wet scrubbing towers, 25 by 60 ft. each, for rough cleaning of blast-furnace gas. This plant was put in early in 1910, with the intention of cleaning gas for use in hot blast stoves and under boilers, and was so used for several months. Soon after it went into service, the blast-furnace men complained that they could not get as high blast temperatures as they had obtained when using dirty gas. It was decided to run a series of careful tests to determine if this were true and to what degree the apparent results might be affected by other conditions. About 60 tests were run, covering a period of five months, and at the end we came to the conclusion that it did not pay us to scrub the gas for stoves and boilers. The tests were all run upon a single stove, no boiler tests being made, but the conclusions of the stove tests being applied to the boilers. The furnace burden was practically the same for all the tests and averaged: Per Cent. Daquari and other hard ores 57 Nodules 13 Raw Mayari ore 25 Mill cinder and scale 5

Jan 12, 1913

By H. T. Kennedy

The fact that intrusion of water into oil wells can be prevented by treating the sand adjacent to the well seems to have been only recently recognized. Swan1 mentions the process of solidifying naphthalene in strata. R. Van A. Mills2 recommends the use of materials such as sodium silicate and sodium carbonate, which react with oil-field water to form solid plugging agents. When a well is drilled in a new field the oil sands are found essentially devoid of water (Fig. 1). Unless a completely impermeable break exists over wide areas in the field, no water is found above the lower limit of the oil zone and no oil is found below the upper limit of the water zone. After considerable oil has been taken from the well, however, it is almost universal experience that water intrusion occurs. This intrusion may be of two kinds. The water may follow a path parallel to the bedding planes of the producing formation through loose streaks in the pay sand, as shown in Fig. 2, or the water level of the field may rise and enter the well by coning (Fig. 3). Water entering from the side is called "edge water," and that coming in from the bottom is called "bottom water.'' Effectiveness of any method for shutting off water depends not only on the effective treatment of the sand adjacent to the well but on

Jan 1, 1936

By Jasper Stuckey

THE object of this paper is to record and interpret field and laboratory observations made by the writers during five years of study of the barite deposits of North Carolina. Deposits of barite are known to occur in three localities in North Carolina (Fig. 1) two of which-the Hot Springs and Kings Mountain -contain material of economic value. The Hot Springs area begins near Bluff, some 6 miles south of Hot Springs, and continues northeast by Stackhouse; a total length of 7 miles. The Kings Mountain deposits lie along a belt that extends from the north end of Crowders Mountain in a southwestward direction, along the east side of this and Kings Mountain, to Kings Creek, South Carolina. The third locality is 3 1/2 miles southeast of Hillsboro, Orange County, a short distance west of the highway leading from Hillsboro to Chapel Hill. It is not known when barite was first discovered in North Carolina, but production from the Hot Springs area began some 50 years ago. The state has never produced large quantities of barite-usually there have been less than three producers-and definite figures are not available, but reasonably reliable estimates indicate a total production of 300,000 tons. From 1901 through 1920 barite mining was on a seemingly prosperous basis and a large tonnage. was shipped from the Hot Springs and Kings Mountain areas. With the depression of 1920 the industry began to decline and production practically ceased in 1926.

Jan 1, 1933

By G. R. Gohn, S. M. Arnold

The results of stress-corrosion tests upon several non-ferrous sheet metals are presented in this paper. The metals include tough pitch copper, five binary brasses, two leaded brasses, one copper-silicon alloy, two tin bronzes, and two nickel-silver alloys. The tests indicate that for most of these sheet metals, externally applied bending stresses below the yield point (0.01 per cent offset) do not result in stress-corrosion cracking as determined by the A.S.T.M. Tentative Method of Mercurous Nitrate Test for Copper and Copper Alloys (B 154-41T).~ Only in the cases of low brass, high brass and medium leaded brass, all cold-worked 4 B & S numbers hard, was any corrosion cracking observed below the yield strength, and in all cases such failures occurred at stresses above the proportional limit for these materials. However, when some of the same materials which showed no evidence of stress-corrosion cracking at stresses below the yield strength, are stressed beyond the yield point, stress- corrosion cracking is quite apt to occur. Since experience has shown that some of these materials, particularly the brasses, are susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking under service conditions, these tests would indicate that, besides externally applied stress and corrosion, plastic deformation in addition to that resulting from the original cold working of the material is also required to produce conditions conducive to stress- corrosion cracking.

Jan 1, 1945

By Arthur Knapp

The practical application of mud-laden fluids in wells has been the subject of many papers.' However, there seems to have been little investigation of what actually happens when mud-laden fluids are applied to a loose porous sand. The assumption is that the fluids penetrate the sands and that there is some plastering action. The degree of penetration and the relation of plastering action to wall stability is not generally known. This paper describes a series of experiments made in an attempt to observe, in laboratory apparatus, the action of mud-laden fluids under conditions simulating those to be found in a well. For the purposes of this discussion all fluids containing solid matter in suspension are mud-laden fluids. Series I: Penetration of the Pores of Uncemented Sands The subject of the penetration of porous formations by water is discussed in detail in Water-Supply Paper No. 67 of the U. S. Geological Survey. No attempt was made to repeat the experiments described therein. The results of the first experiment of this series are given simply to show the capacity of the apparatus used. The conditions in this first experiment were maintained throughout the remainder of this and the second series, except where noted. The experiments of Mills, McCoy, and others on subsurface flows, adjustments, migrations, etc., deal with the oil, water or gas within the porous beds.V he experiments described herein deal with the conditions immediately surrounding the bore hole.

Jan 1, 1923

By F. Garcia, J. Cervik

The cross-measure borehole technique has been shown by the Bureau of Mines to be an effective method of controlling methane liberated by fracturing the roof strata in longwall gobs where overburden is less than 750 ft (229 m). Boreholes are drilled into roof strata before mining operations affect the roof strata. Longwall mining fractures the roof strata and releases methane from source beds. Surface exhausters or vacuum pumps are used to draw the gas to the surface through an underground pipeline and vertical exhaust hole. The captured methane is thus prevented from entering the mine's ventilation system. About 71 pct of the methane produced by longwall mining in the Lower Kittanning Coalbed was captured by the cross-measure boreholes. Borehole spacing is an important factor affecting the performance of the technique. Interference tests and measurements of methane flows in return air indicate borehole spacing in the Lower Kittanning Coalbed should be limited to about 200 ft (61 m) except on the first 600 ft (183 m) of the longwall, where spacing should be reduced to about 100 ft (30 m) to capture the large quantities of methane released when the first large roof fall occurs. Comparisons between measured and calculated gas pressure differentials on boreholes indicate borehole length can be reduced from 280 to 140 ft (85 to 43 m), which reduces drilling costs significantly. Additional experimentation is necessary to verify the calculations.

Jan 1, 1985

By Janne Karonen, Stephen Hughes, Mikael Jåfs, Jan Stål, Hannu Johto

End-of-life electrical and electronic scrap material attracts attention as a good opportunity for new value creation through efficient metal and energy recovery of such materials. On the other hand, the treatment of such wastes becomes important to avoid problems for society and environment. Treatment of such secondary raw materials faces multiple challenges due to their increasing complexity and evolving nature. Processing of these complex scrap materials together with recovery of a wide range of valuable metals with a combination of pyrometallurgy and hydrometallurgy using Outotec technology is discussed in this paper. One key consideration is environmental performance which needs attention when processing such complex secondary E-waste materials. Outotec has successful experience with commercial projects in the countries at the forefront of environmental and operational standards. INTRODUCTION Increasing attention has been drawn to the responsible processing of end of life Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) as part of metals recycling, especially copper. It has been estimated that the amount of WEEE globally in 2016 was around the level of 46 Mtpa (Balde et al., 2017), representing a major disposal challenge but at the same time huge opportunity for resource recovery. The potential for increasing the recovery is high, because the official recycling rate of WEEE is in 2016 only 20% (Balde et al., 2017) and at the same time the estimated increase of the WEEE amount is between 3 and 5% per annum in the EU (Eurostat, 2019).

Jan 1, 2019

By Filigenzi M. T

Stresses around mine openings at depth can cause the surrounding rock to fail, releasing stored strain energy. When this happens, the rock may literally explode or `burst' into the opening without warning. As mining progresses deeper into the earth, the possibility of seismic events and rock bursts increases. Researchers at the US Bureau of Mines (USBM) are currently studying seismic activity in three underground hard-rock mines in the United States: the Homestake Mine, Lead, SD; the Lucky Friday Mine, Mullan, ID; and the Sunshine Mine, Kellogg, ID. Waveforms from seismic events are recorded by personal-computer-based hardware and software. This information is archived and transferred from the mine sites to the USBM via modem communication links. Then, using USBM-developed software, the events are analysed to determine various parameters, including magnitude, frequency, and location. In addition, researchers are modelling the deep levels of the Homestake Mine using a finite-element code. These models generate stress and displacement values for a given loading condition. By studying material properties, in situ stresses, and seismic activity along with actual scope sequencing, researchers can make correlations between stresses induced by mining and the frequency and magnitude of seismic events. Information on seismic events coupled with results from finite-element analyses have increased understanding of rock mass behavior and the mechanisms that may lead to rock bursts. Optimisation of slope sequencing designs as a result of these studies could reduce rock burst hazards.

Jan 1, 1995

By John J. Gilman

F many years it has been suspected that a correlation existed between pits produced by etching and the density of dislocations in crystals. In 1953, the interest in this correlation was greatly stimulated when Vogel et al' demonstrated a 1:l correlation between etch pits and dislocations in low angle grain boundaries of germanium. About two years ago, the author began attempts to produce etch pits at dislocation sites in zinc mono-crystals. These attempts met with success a year or so ago,' and since that time a survey has been made of the etch pit patterns that are associated with various modes of deformation in zinc monocrystals. Unfortunately, the etching technique that will be described is too delicate for use as an accurate quantitative tool. Nevertheless, it has been of considerable assistance in clarifying the structure of plastically deformed crystals. Technique Many attempts were made to produce etch pits in high purity zinc crystals. It was found that several techniques would produce surface grooves at grain boundaries that had misorientation angles greater than about l°, but no technique was successful for boundaries with smaller angles. Among the things that were tried were: electrolytic CrO, (both etching and polishing concentrations), HNO, in various water and alcohol solutions, dilute HC1, many 0-0,-Na,SO, solutions, Cr0,-HC1 solutions, picral, electrolytic Na,S,O,, and electrolytic NaOH and KOH. A few attempts to use cathodic sputtering and thermal etching were also made.

Jan 1, 1957

By E Widijanto, A Srikant

PT Freeport Indonesia operates a copper-gold mine located in the remote highlands of Papua, Indonesia, about 3500 km east of Jakarta. Currently, the district produces about 240 000 tonnes per day (tpd) of which about 45 000 tpd come from the DOZ Block Cave and the rest is mined from the Grasberg Open Pit. Over the next ten years, ore production from large block caves in the area is expected to reach about 200 000 tpd, replacing a large part of the production from the Grasberg Pit. Block cave mining alters the hydrological characteristics of the area being mined and when the cave expresses itself at the surface in the form of subsidence, it increases the entrapment area for surface water. Operating a large block cave mine in a region with an average annual rainfall of 5500 mm in steep mountainous terrain and complex geological and hydrological features presents a challenging scenario for dewatering or depressurisation of the area. The high rainfall infiltration and entrapment in stacked mines operating within an essentially single orebody, coupled with the presence of fine-grained and clayey material within the draw points of the block cave, creates mud rushes or wet muck spills, which can endanger the personnel and interrupt production. This paper outlines the problems caused by high water inflow into the DOZ Block Cave and the efforts undertaken to ensure the safety of the miners and continued achievement of desired production rates from underground mining in the district.

Jan 1, 2006

By Christopher Mark

Despite more than half a century of experience with roof bolting, no design method has received wide acceptance. To begin to improve this situation, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted a statistical study of roof bolt performance at a number of mines throughout the U.S. Case histories were collected from 37 mines with a variety of roof bolt types and patterns in a wide range of geologic environments. Performance was measured in terms of the number of roof falls that occurred per 10,000 ft of drivage. The study found that roof falls are rare when the roof is strong and the stress is low, even with light roof bolting patterns. The focus of this paper is on the more difficult conditions, where the roof is weaker and/or the stress is higher. Analysis of the results led to guidelines that can be used to make preliminary estimates of the required bolt length, capacity, and pattern. The guidelines are based on the depth of cover (which correlates with stress) and the roof quality (measured by the Coal Mine Roof Rating (CMRR), and the intersection span. Another contribution is a formula for estimating the horizontal stress level in the eastern U.S. coalfields as a function of the depth of cover. The design guidelines are currently being implemented into a computer program called Analysis of Roof Bolt Systems (ARBS).

Jan 1, 2001

By O. C. Baptist

The gravitational pressure gradient (GPG) in porous sandstone containing free gas was determined to define the proper GPG to use when calculating the rate of downdip flow of oil in the Sub-Scalez No, 1 sand, Elk Hills field, Naval Petroleum Reserve 1. The GPG was determined at several gas saturations using long, artificially consolidated sandstone models that were mounted vertically in some tests and horizontally, with rotation, in others. Also determined by laboratory and field tests were relative permeabilities, capillary pressure relations; critical gas saturation, water sensitivity, and depletion drive performance. The critical gas saturation in the models having an absolute permeability of 1 to 2 darcys was about 2 percent of pore volume. The GPG with the critcal gas saturation was that due to the weight of the gas-saturated oil. The GPG in the upper part of the models was reduced as gas saturation increased to a value considerably larger than the critical. The exact gas saturation at which the GPG became less than that due to the weight of the oil could not be determined but was estimated to be of the order of 10 percent of pore volume. Tests indicate that the rate of oil production is not permanently reduced by exposure of the sand to fresh water but that the rate of injection of fresh water will be considerably less than that to brine, Methods for determining the factors mentioned above are discussed.

Jan 1, 1967

Over the past 15 years many world-class gold discoveries have been made in the region. Some deposits, such as Lihir and Porgera in P.N.G., have a contained gold resource that places them among the top dozen deposits ever found on a worldwide basis. Can we see any pattern to these discoveries, or are they the result of good luck or chance by geologists and prospectors who struck it rich? Whilst such discoveries were a feature of the gold rushes of the 1850s and the 1900s, the present boom is now scientifically based. This paper develops an argument that long-tent, multi-disciplinary exploration by experienced geoscience teams underlie the successes achieved. Dis- coveries nearly always reflect a combination of skills, drawn from the areas of geology, geochemistry, geophysics and remote sensing, and a team approach. They do not represent the chance finds of a prospector's pick or such as the Norseman discovery where the gold reef was first noted by the prospector when his horse fell over the outcrop. The following deposits provide major examples of exploration successes within the Australian-Pacific region, it is not an exhaustive list and I have noted other significant producers at the end of this paper. For the Australian mines listed and based on our estimates for 1990 gold production, they represent about 20 per cent of the Australian production total.

Jan 1, 1991

By Arthur Knapp

The practical application of mud-laden fluids in wells has been the subject of many papers.' However, there seems to have been little investigation of what actually happens when mud-laden fluids are applied to a loose porous sand. The assumption is that the fluids penetrate the sands and that there is some plastering action. The degree of penetration and the relation of plastering action to wall stability is not generally known. This paper describes a series of experiments made in an attempt to observe, in laboratory apparatus, the action of mud-laden fluids under conditions simulating those to be found in a well. For the purposes of this discussion all fluids containing solid matter in suspension are mud-laden fluids. Series I: Penetration of the Pores of Uncemented Sands The subject of the penetration of porous formations by water is discussed in detail in Water-Supply Paper No. 67 of the U. S. Geological Survey. No attempt was made to repeat the experiments described therein. The results of the first experiment of this series are given simply to show the capacity of the apparatus used. The conditions in this first experiment were maintained throughout the remainder of this and the second series, except where noted. The experiments of Mills, McCoy, and others on subsurface flows, adjustments, migrations, etc., deal with the oil, water or gas within the porous beds.V he experiments described herein deal with the conditions immediately surrounding the bore hole.

Jan 1, 1923

Jan 1, 1996