Search Documents

In Australia 'there are hidden deposits of gold, copper, tin, lead and zinc which can be found by drilling at reasonable expense in view of the imp9rtance of the objectives. Exploration of the prospects in mind would mean about a million feet of drilling. The purpose of this paper is to outline, in a technical way, some of the geological thinking that has been given to this matter. To do this, it is necessary to unify the wider ranging thoughts into some sort of coherent perspective and also into some sort of logical sequence. This will be done by treating first the geological subject material which is in fact, at the foundation of the exploratory scheme. With this base, the argument will be continued through a sequence of prospect thinking and brought to a conclusion in regard to the practical employment of geology in the drilling planning. In this knitting together of ideas, the discussion will be given substance by welding into the argument the reasoning that has been applied to the Cobar prospect. The New Occidental Gold-Mines are operating three mines at Cobar, and the writer is indebted to the Company for allowing the reference to be made. It is intended, as opportunity permits, to furnish further examples in later publications.FOUNDATION OF EXPLORATIONThe deposits under consideration are derived from igneous rocks, chiefly granite or porphyry. In and following the emplacement of the intrusives, the rocks have been...

Jan 1, 1946

1991 New Zealand Branch Annual Conference û Appendix

Jan 1, 1991

By Palmer DJ, Bain JH, Pullen JB

Over the last ten years at Risdon, zinc production capacity has almost doubled. This has resulted in modifications, many of which have affected zinc deposition operating conditions in the cells. Some of these changes appeared to have affected average current efficiency to such an extent that a special investigation was initiated, using multiple regression analysis to assess historic cell unit operating para- meters. The study highlighted the importance of certain parameters in maintaining maximum current efficiency for zinc deposition from !Risdon purified solutions under conditions of !changing current density, acidity and zinc con- centrations. Maximum current efficiency was obtained only within a zinc to acid ratio in cell electrolyte of 0.45 - 0.55 and a residual zinc concentration greater than 48 g.1-1, irrespective of actual zinc concentration or The investigation also established: ieters giving minimum power consumption at termined current density; the effect of ntration changes in common impurities on nt efficiency; the existence of high s of some impurities in solids precipit- in the cells and pure solution tanks.

Jan 1, 1975

Eleven years ago I addressed delegates to the Whyalla Meeting of this Institute on the subjects 'Oil in Australia?' -- a title which was followed by a large question mark.My purpose at that time, which was before Rough Range, was to interest members of this Institute in the possibility of oil in this country because I considered that exploration for mineralwealth was our concern.I doubt if I made much impression.but.I recall that the Chairman at that Meeting, Mr Ian McLennan, asked me pointedly to name the areas I-would select and I nominated the Northwest of Western Australia,'Gippsland and the Roma District

Jan 1, 1962

By Russell J

A sustained drop in the grade of Mount Isa lead-zinc-silver ore occurred in mid 1980. It was decided to increase concentrator throughput from 200 000 to 240 000 tonnes/four week period to maintain budget metal production. To achieve this increase whilst maintaining acceptable grinding and flotation performance, crushing plant final product size had to be reduced from 100%-13mm to 1000-11.2mm. The goal in the crushing plant was to achieve a 20% increase in throughput with a 20% decrease in the top size of the product. This was achieved by operational changes to improve plant availability and optimisation of the existing crushing and screening equipment Performance.

Jan 1, 1978

By Alder KF

Nuclear power stations to be installed in Australia will be fuelled from Australian resources of raw materials. This will require the establishment of new manufacturing industries and the eventual expansion of established activities, especially in uranium mining and the preparation of precision metal products. This paper presents some predictions of the possible growth of nuclear power installations in Australia. These might amount to 4000 MWE by 1985 and 11,500 MWE by 1990 and towards the end of the century, about 50% of new generating plant might be nuclear. Predictions are given of the demands for materials (uranium and zirconium) and fuel manufacturing services for four reactor systems which might be considered in the programme. - The availability of raw materials and technical capability place Australia in a particularly good position to undertake the manufacture of nuclear fuel'; in addition to satisfying the domestic demand we should actively seek export markets for these products.

Jan 1, 1970

By Dudgeon RN, Houston ML

When the original Mount Gunson joint venture,between CSR Limited and United Uranium N.L. ceased operations in December 1971, an intensive exploration campaign was launched to prospect for more ore in the Mount Gunson region. This campaign resulted in the dis- covery'of the Cattle Grid copper deposit. A comprehensive sampling pro- gramme including the sinking of over 200 diamond drill holes and two vertical shafts,proved the existence of 4.6 million tonnes of ore, at a mean grade of 2.4% Cu,calculated at 1.00% Cu cutoff.

Jan 1, 1975

**Add abstract here**

Jun 1, 2010

Lithocaps are potentially voluminous zones of advanced argillic and associated argillic alteration located above the subvolcanic intrusive environment. They constitute exploration objectives for epithermal and porphyry-type deposits. High-sulphidation epithermal deposits may be sought within lithocaps, whereas low-sulphidation deposits may exist on their edges. Porphyry Cu-Au/Au deposits may be accessible beneath lithocaps if systems are telescoped sufficiently. Oxidation of the basal, pyritic parts of lithocaps may promote supergene sulphide enrichment under appropriate tectonic and climatic conditions.

Jan 1, 1995

By J G Reid

In the period since 1989 the Yabulu Nickel Refinery of Queensland Nickel has undergone a transformation both in terms of the nickel laterite ore feed and the refined nickel product. These two changes were mutually supporting, as will be shown in the following paper. It had been realised since the early-1980s that the Greenvale orebody would be exhausted by 1992. Consequently planning had been in progress throughout the 1980s for the importation of overseas ore as a replacement for the Greenvale ore. The existence of extensive lateritic ore deposits in New Caledonia and Indonesia made these locations the natural focus of attention. With the three Japanese ferronickel smelters sourcing their nickel garnierite ore feed from these locations it was relatively easy for the miners to supply the overlying limonite ore to Yabulu. This limonite ore was previously discarded as waste. The Yabulu refinery now receives about 85 per cent of its ore from these two overseas sources. The transition from Greenvale ore to imported ore occurred gradually between 1989 and 1993. It was during the ore importation planning stage of the mid 1980s that Queensland Nickel commenced the technical investigation which led to the ammoniacal solvent extraction (ASX) plant installation and the product change from nickel oxide to nickel metal.

Jan 1, 1994

By Deverux M

Heavy mineral deposits accumulate on shorelines with interrupted sediment input. Beach deposits, which form on shallowly dipping coastal plains, are most favourable. However, shallow shelves seaward of cliffed coastlines are known to contain economic deposits. Significantgeologicalconditions are defined, from review of the stratigraphic and geomorphic controls on known deposits , for heavy mineral accumulation on the Swan Coastal Plain.

Jan 1, 1986

This paper presents a summary of the technical achievements of the Port Pirie Smelter in 100 years of lead smelting and refining. It also aims to give where possible the reasons or circumstances that led to the achievements. The major achievements took place in the areas of sintering, blast furnace, copper drossing, copper recovery, lead refining and slag fuming.

Jan 1, 1989

By Rennie J. W

In the first five years of longwall mining at Pacific Colliery, special techniques of goaf sealing, gas drainage, goaf edge ventilation and goaf sampling were developed and used to o crcome the concurrent problems of spontaneous combustion and high methane emissions. The English-inspired back-return face ventilation system was modified to suit Australian mining methods and was first used as part of a 'Y' ventilation system and more recently was used with a 'U' system of ventilation. In conjunction with this ventilation system, the maintenance of a sealed goaf area was an essential element in the control of the spontaneous combustion in the goaf.

Jan 1, 1988

By Kaleta S, McTavish LP, Turner RD

Primary production blasting at Hamers- ley Iron began with seven inch holes at Tom Price in 1966 and has developed since then to large multiple row shots of 381 mm holes at Tom Price and 311 mm at Paraburdoo. Up to 1.3 million tonnes are initiated in a single blast with the average around 300,000 tonnes. Development can be traced through Anfo, AlAnfo, slurries, various boosters, initiation and delay techniques, hole loading and daily operating practices. A standard practice could be developed for the two mines for normal pro- duction blasts; this would not apply to such common variations as low "paddy" shots, pre- splitting, tight corners necessitating single row drilling etc. Because of ground variation three or even four sizes of drill holes may well be economic- al for blasting, even though this would be off set by complications in operation, supervision, store stocking and maintenance, particularly in Drilling.

Jan 1, 1978

Discovery 2000 is basically about data, its collection, management, assessment and dissemination. A major focus of Discovery 2000 is the collection of new geoscientific data. However, the Department is already a major source of data on the geology and mineral resources of New South Wales. These existing data when combined with the new data, will greatly enhance the knowledge of and information on the geology and the mineral development potential of New South Wales. This paper discusses some of the existing datasets and outlines how they can be accessed. It also gives an insight into the Department's strategy for data and information technology management.

Jan 1, 1995

By Walton DR

It is self-evident that the availability of well qualified and experienced people to manage mining operations is vital to the success of an individual mine and to the ability to develop new mines either in Australia or overseas. For larger operations the term "mine manager" is here used to denote a range of positions within an individual company. Thus "mine managers" may be people managing individual mines at one geographic location with overall management provided by other "mine managers" in the roles such as mine super- intendents, production managers, general managers, etc. Smaller operations may have only a single level of management nominated as "mine manager".

Jan 1, 1980

By Kershaw M. G, Maughan R. C A

A process for eliminating nickel from electrolytic zinc plant solutions by precipita- tion with dimethylglyoxime (DMG) was developed to enable the Electrolytic Zinc Company of Australasia Limited (EZ) to treat nickel-bearing zinc dust precipitates. These precipitates are leached to recover their Cd and Zn content. The final Zn bearing solutions contain relatively high Ni concentra- tions (20-100 mg/1) and are treated with DMG and then neutralized to pH 4.6-4.8. The pre- cipitate is filtered off and the solution returned to circuit. DMG consumption is about 200% of theo- retical requirement, and Ni removal is 80% complete overall.

Jan 1, 1977

By Kennewell G. J

This paper aims to present the evolution of the mining method in the Prince Lyell orebody. Initial strategy and practical experience are detailed as are the reasons for and benefits of changes to the method since 1972 when underground mining began. This section of the paper starts with ten series and concludes with 40 series which was completed in 1989/90.In addition, to update the series of papers written by various authors over the past ten years on Mount Lyell, a review of the experience in the current 50 series lift of mining will be given. As well, the basic planning guidelines are discussed for 60 series - the final lift of the Prince Lyell orebody.

Jan 1, 1992

By Tonegato S, Wood M

The lack of objective data on roof bolting machines, bits, rods and overall system has created the need for an objective assessment of roof bolting. This work outlines a test rig for such objective assessment of component parts of the roof bolting system.

Jan 1, 1986

By C Hertle

GHD-Black & Veatch (GHD-BV) have completed design and specification of the ash thickening plant at Tarong Power Station, including operation of a pilot plant. Construction of the plant is in progress and commissioning is planned for early-2004. The objective of the new plant is to convert the low concentration (lean phase) ash slurry currently generated by the power station into concentrated slurry which will then be pumped to the existing ash dam. Water recovered from the lean slurry will be returned to the power station for reuse. The drivers behind this project are to extend the life of the ash dam and to reduce water pumping costs. A maximum flow of 1000 litres per second is expected in the thickening plant. The process involves a screening phase, which removes large material that could cause blockages or equipment damage. A 50 metre diameter thickener then concentrates the screened lean ash slurry to 55 - 60 per cent w/w solids. In addition, the thickener plant will allow the harvesting of floating cenospheres (hollow, spherical ash particles) from the lean slurry. Cenospheres are currently collected from the surface of the ash dam and drained on a pad adjacent to the dam. The new system will use a surface skimmer to remove the cenospheres from the thickener and transfer them to settling ponds for further classification. The settling ponds simulate the detention on the existing ash dam, and allow entrained fine ash and slow settling cenospheres time to settle. As settling occurs in ponds, the slow settling cenospheres can be completely recovered whereas when they settle in the dam, the opportunity for recovery is lost. Cenospheres are a valuable by-product produced during the combustion process, and recycling of this material reduces the waste generated by the power station. Water recovered from the thickener drains to a three megalitre reservoir. Water is drawn from the reservoir for thickener plant service water and various other uses in the power station. The bulk of the water is used to sluice ash from the power station to the thickening plant. In the current configuration, surface water from the ash dam is reused but must be pumped several kilometres back up to the power station. The dam also holds an inventory of several thousand megalitres of water and has significant evaporative losses. Therefore the current raw water make up demand is substantial. In addition, some areas of the power station traditionally using raw water will be modified as part of this project to allow the use of recovered water, further reducing the raw water demand. The design incorporates many features of sustainable water management. By more effectively recovering water from the lean ash slurry, the amount of raw water make up required by the system will be significantly reduced. This method of water recovery provides a more sustainable and energy efficient ash-transport mechanism.

Jan 1, 2003