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By John V. Beall

A completed feasibility study executed by an independent agency can benefit a company in two ways. Inside the organization, it verifies the project staffs ideas and their concept of the facility. Outside the company, it can be utilized to obtain equity partners, debt financing, and other forms of credit. It is advisable to bring in a project execution contractor for the feasibility study. A project execution contractor is able to work with engineers to develop the project concept, process flowsheet, and best utilization of the site. By getting an early start on understanding a company's policies and working methods, a project execution contractor saves the company money since it does not have to go through the educational buildup twice. The contractor is a specialist in putting together a bankable document that can be taken to a financing source. It answers all the agency requirements on the first pass. In addition, the contractor can advise an owner on likely financing sources since he works on the worldwide market every day. A less obvious advantage of including the contractor in the study and predevelopment buildup stages is the importance of coordinating finance and technical input. The financing source influences equipment specifications, procurement, logistics, project schedule, cash flow, and liquidity. There are many surprises in store for any manager of a large international project involving worldwide financing and purchasing. The job does not have to be made more difficult by bringing in a contractor after all predevelopment steps are taken. The contractor can still work if the predevelopment steps have been done, even if he does not agree with them. But early contractor involvement is the preferable solution.

Jan 10, 1980

By Stewart R. Wallace

In the spring of 1959 while visiting the offices of the US Geological Survey (USGS) in the Denver Federal Center, I had a chance encounter with Paul Theobold, a former but, at that time, casual associate. Paul mentioned to me the results of his work on stream sediment geochemistry (Theobold and Thompson, 1959). Using panned concentrates, Theobold and Thompson had discovered a tungsten anomaly in Clear Creek and followed it upstream to its source on Woods Creek, a small tributary to the West Fork of Clear Creek. The specific source was a debris cone about 0.8 km (0.5 mile) upstream from the mine yard at the Urad molybdenite deposit. Because of the genetic and zonal association of tungsten and molybdenum at Climax, I found this very interesting. Accordingly, I related this information to Robert Henderson, general manager of western operations for Climax, and asked his permission to do some follow-up work. He, in turn, telephoned Frank Coolbaugh, the president of Amax, telling him of my interest and saying that, "Climax would take care of it." On my first visit to Urad, my companions (Dave Jonson, Bruce MacKenzie, and Dick Baker) and I were confronted by a "Cousin Jack" caretaker who made up for his diminutive stature by a "pistolover" that hung down almost to his knee and by a watchdog that was one-half wolf and one-half mean sled dog. We retreated discretely to Clear Creek and then climbed up the "back" side of Red Mountain by separate routes, across the ridge crest, and part of the way down the "front" side, sampling as we went. Although much of the ground was covered with snow, we found lots of puzzling but friendly looking rocks and the geochemical results were interesting. A geologic map of central Colorado showing the location of the Urad-Henderson and Climax deposits is shown in Fig. I.

Jan 1, 1991

By G. Perkins

The development of the mineral industry of Jamaica has been guided by an unwritten policy which has nevertheless been reflected in various pieces of mining legislation and by case-by-case approvals of incentive packages for non-bauxite minerals. An effort has now been made to bring together in one minerals policy document, all the policy elements that have guided our laws and actions thus far and to upgrade the final version to meet the challenges of the next century. In this regard, industrial minerals will be placed on a more equal footing with bauxite, especially in terms of investment incentives.

Jan 1, 1998

By Waclaw Dziurzynski, Janusz Tracz, Danny Wooton, Andrzej M. Wala

The purpose of this paper is to present validation studies of the mine-fire simulator using data gathered from an actual mine fire which occurred in November 1991 at the Pattiki Mine. This study evaluates the suitability of the computer software package for modeling underground fires. The paper also discusses the importance of the on-line monitoring system for the validation process.

Jan 1, 1995

By K. Kuhnhenn, G. Prommersberger

General aspects In Germany, swelling rock is mostly found in the keuper formation. Keuper is a sedimentary rock formation of varying composition. It mostly consists of fine or medium layers of clay/silt/marl/dolomite stone with intercalations of gypsum or anhydrite in strips or nodes. After disintegration of the top layers and tectonical incidents, the gypsum level, i.e. the upper [ ]

Jan 1, 1989

By Jack E. Thompson

Thank you Tom and JM for that nice introduction. The remarks I am about to make rely on a large way on comments made by Barrick's Chief Counsel, Patrick Garver, to an internal meeting of Barrick's senior staff. I plagiarized so much from his notes that I thought that I should provide attribution. I did get his consent to borrow so freely. What I have done is take his general comments and used my conversations with CEO's and other participants in the industry to enhance the message with concrete examples that underscore the points I wish to make. What you are about to hear is my personal view – I am not speaking as a representative of any company. With that introduction, now would be a good time to give you the main theme of my talk: The SEC should change its rule making to a more public cooperative approach. If that were to happen the SEC would avoid some of the harm it has been doing to the companies in this sector and the very shareholders it seeks to protect.

Jan 1, 2003

By J. Köppel, K. Kovári, Ch. Amstad

INTRODUCTION The measurement of displacements in soil or rock in the vicinity of underground openings provide valuable information for a better understanding of the behaviour of the structure. On the basis of systematic observations conclusions can be drawn concerning - safety of the opening in the various stages of excavation - effectiveness of the support measures - nature of the rock pressure to be expected - influence of the construction of the opening on neighbouring structures (settlements of foundations, underpassing other tunnels etc.) - comparison of theoretical predictions with the actual structural behaviour (1). Today there are several types of suitable instruments available that can be employed at reasonable costs for such investigations (2). The most important ones are the multiple point borehole extensometer, the inclinometer and the multiple point borehole deflectometer. As is well-known, the extensometer only measures the displacement component in the borehole axis, while the inclinometer and the deflectometer provide monitoring of rock mass movements normal to the borehole axis. In the following a new instrument is described, which has been given the name Extenso-Deflectometer ISETH. In this single piece of equipment certain features of the above-mentioned three types of borehole instruments are incorporated. it enables the measurement of all three components of the displacement vector at consecutive points along the borehole, the axis of which may have any direction in space. This device is portable like the inclinometer. A simplified version

Jan 1, 1979

At present, increasing focus of public perception is placed on the environmental and social benefits, risks and impacts of metals and metal-bearing products. To address these issues, the concept of product stewardship has recently been introduced into the political debate. In this paper, results from a survey of existing environmental and social reporting practice in the copper mining, smelting, refining and fabricating industry are presented. In this context, particular emphasis is placed on the reporting practice regarding products and product performance over the life cycle. In a few companies there has recently been a shift towards adopting product stewardship principles and putting them into action. As part of an ongoing exercise within the Non-Ferrous Consultative Forum on Sustainable Development sponsored by the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) key issues of interest to the non-ferrous metals sector are being addressed. The Forum, for example, has developed a series of principles, criteria and indicators that could form the basis for a voluntary, industry-lead product stewardship scheme. Current achievements and way forward of this product stewardship initiative will be presented.

Jan 1, 2003

By V. E. Suter

Anyone with geothermal experience can readily attest that geothermal operations are a natural extension of oil and gas operations. A geothermal company and an oil company need the same type of people to do the same kind of work. In the geothermal industry, geologists and geophysicists define prospects through surface geology, analysis of surface seeps, magnetics, gravity, and resistivity surveys - techniques similar to those used in the petroleum industry. In addition, shallow (250-ft) temperature gradient holes often are used in geothermal operations. Landmen take geothermal leases that are patterned after oil and gas leases. Exploratory drilling is done with the same drilling contractors and same drilling rigs, with minor modification. Drilling foremen and drilling engineers share the same objective of making the most hole, in the shortest time, at the least cost, with a proper completion. Petroleum engineers test the wells, design the completions, determine the reserves, make economic calculations, work with the tax assessor, and manage the reservoirs. Production engineers build roads, locations and pipelines, install gas/liquid separators and meters, and operate production and injection facilities. A contract to sell steam to a public utility is required. Various governmental regulations, permits, environmental concerns, and public affairs pose similar problems in both industries. Also required of both are top management people who are acquainted with geologic risk, prepared to accept million dollar dry holes, willing to bid competitively at lease sales, and able to invest large sums based on a technology not yet fully proven. Successful geothermal development requires in-depth financial ability similar to that required for petroleum development. A high capital investment is required early for leases, geological and geophysical work, and exploratory and confirmation drilling. After

Jan 1, 1980

By B. Moudgil, M. Bogan

A bench-top centrifuge was used to study the consolidation behavior of phosphatic clays. A mathematical model (based on, first-order kinetics) was developed to describe the relationship between the void ratio (at any time) and the effective stress. The permeability of the sediment as a function of the void ratio is also described. The results of this analysis are then compared to data obtained by other consolidation testing methods. The centrifuge results indicate that consolidation data may be developed in a short period of time (hours) as compared to days or weeks when other techniques are used.

Jan 1, 1997

By M. Hancer

The sign of the surface charge of selected potassium soluble salt minerals namely KClO4 , K2SO4 , KNO3, and KCl was determined from nonequilibrium electrophoresis measurements and found to be negative for each of the salt. Dodecylamine flotation of these salts revealed that the concentration of amine required for flotation increases in the order KClO4< K2SO4< KNO3<KCI. Precipitation of the amine collector colloid was not required for flotation of the oxyanion salts and in this case it appears that adsorption of the dodecylamine cation is sufficient to create the hydrophobic surface state. The order for flotation is explained in terms of surface hydration of these respective potassium salts based on contact angle measurements and FT Raman spectroscopic characterization of water structure.

Jan 1, 1999

By Michael Karmis

This paper reviews the fundamental concepts involved in the development, application and validation of ground movement predic¬tion methods developed by Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VPI&SU) over the past 12 years. Prediction techniques have included empirical or semi-empirical methods, such as the profile function, influence function and zone area methods, as well as numerical methods, based on a finite element formulation which utilizes field subsidence data. The former techniques have been integrated in the Surface Deformation Prediction System (SDPS) software package for personal computers, which allows for the calculation of any component of ground movement in any direction. Comparisons between measured and predicted subsidence and strain values are presented for a selection of case studies, which demonstrate the applicability, accuracy and regional validity of these methods for predicting surface deformations due to underground mining.

Jan 1, 1986

By Betty L. Gibbs

Computer software for mining applications has been in development since before 1970. These packages cover tasks from exploration data management through final reclamation planning. These programs were originally written in Fortran and have evolved into colorful, user-friendly packages. Programs that produced printed symbol maps now show color, three-dimensional image of an ore deposit on a computer screen. Pictures can be rotated and looked at it from all directions and layers can be peeled off to show other parts of a model. Computer users have also evolved. In the early Fortran days, users had to learn computer operating systems, have someone punch data cards, set up run files and wait a day or so to find out if there was one little mistake somewhere that caused the program not to run. With today&apos;s technology, users sit at their desks in the office, key in some data, read other data from digital files and build a model within days, rather than weeks or months.

Jan 1, 1999

By L. A. Feldkamp, L. I. Davis, F. Yuan, G. V. Puskorius

Emerging technologies such as neural networks and fuzzy logic have many potential industrial applications in diagnostics, modeling, and control. In the automotive industry, applications can be divided into those that impact manufacturing processes and those that relate directly to the product. Though discussion often centers on neural networks deployed in hardware, their potential in the development of problem solutions (however deployed) could easily be of greater importance. Here we concentrate on the use of neural networks for modeling and control, using a simulation of vehicle active suspension as a concrete example.

Jan 1, 1993

By David Sainsbury, Bevan Thompson, Yuejun Cai

The practice of placing loose rockfill as passive support in open stoping voids, of narrow vein mineral deposits, lends itself to the sterilisation of substantial mining reserves in the requirement for regional crown/sill pillars. Significant benefits are to be gained by the Australian mining industry via the development of improved guidelines for the extraction of such sterilised mine pillars. The application of selectively injecting specifically developed ettringite (calcium sulphoaluminate hydrate) type cement grout into loose rockfill, enables an artificial pillar to stabilise the surrounding rockmass and prevent the caving of loose rockfill from the previously backfilled void during extraction of remnant crowdsill pillars. This paper presents the results of laboratory testing used to reduce the technical risks associated with the design of cemented rockfill pillars. A laboratory testing program was devised to investigate the critical parameters influencing the performance of a stabilised rockfill matrix, along with the critical parameters influencing the interpretation of laboratory test samples. The factors investigated include; sample size and shape, particle size distribution, curing time, water quality, cement : water ratio and the confinement effect.

Jan 1, 2001

By Jurgens PE Hamman, Faisal Putra, Hadnaltias Alpeki, Willem de Beer

The Deep Ore Zone mine is the third lift of caving at PT Freeport Indonesia’s East Ertsberg Skarn System. An increasing trend in seismicity along the northern boundary of the DOZ cave, as well as the northern fringes of the DOZ production and infrastructure levels, was taken as indicative of an interaction between the approaching DMLZ cave and the DOZ subsidence zone. Seismicity trends and locations indicated a reducing crown pillar and an associated stress increase along these DOZ excavations, as well as the regional area along the DOZ cave boundaries. Although rockbursts were not identified as an immediate hazard, seismic shakedown was a highly probable hazard in the case of remote large (≥3.0) seismic events. An evaluation process, as described in the Canadian Rockburst Support Handbook (1996), was followed to identify and quantify the various parameters that could contribute to a shakedown evaluation. A shakedown assessment, based on the Peak Particle Velocities scaling relation, was conducted to assess the current installed ground support systems along the northern fringes and the fixed facilities of the DOZ mine. The range in ground support systems were mostly due to different geotechnical environments. The load–deformation characteristics of these support systems were evaluated to determine the support capacity and compared to the potential support demand under varying shakedown conditions. Shakedown hazard maps were compiled to indicate the installed ground support system’s vulnerability to seismic shaking. Based on this information, areas were divided into zones indicating whether they were sufficiently supported, additional support was required, access was to be restricted, and / or they were to be abandoned. Mine management utilised these hazard maps to strategize actions for the various operational zones within the DOZ, including the fixed facilities. This paper briefly describes the derivation of the PPV scaling relationship. Seismic and geological data for the DMLZ – DOZ interaction areas were evaluated to determine the likely source of large events. Subsequent larger events and their effects are shown to assess the veracity of the magnitude and PPV estimates, as well as the effectiveness and appropriateness of the ground support systems.

Apr 26, 2022

By J. L. Young

The McLaughlin Mill started operating in January, 1985. For the first eighteen (18) months start-up, initial operation, and circuit debottlenecking have been done. The mill was designed to recover gold from a refractory ore requiring acid autoclaving pretreatment. This paper discusses the problem associated with bringing this complex hydro-metallurgical plant to consistently achieve design tonnages. Also, briefly described are the mill flowsheet, training program, permitting, and process and project development.

Jan 1, 1987

By W. C. Patrick

The Spent Fuel Test-Climax (SFT-C) was con- ducted to evaluate the feasibility of retrievable deep geologic storage of commercially generated spent nuclear-reactor fuel assemblies. One of the primary aspects of the test was to measure the thermomechanical response of the rock mass to the extensive heating of a large volume of rock. Instrumentation was emplaced to measure stress changes, relative motion of the rock mass, and tunnel closures during three year of heating from thermally decaying heat sources, followed by a six month cooldown period. The calculations reported here were performed using the best available input parameters, thermal and mechanical properties, and power levels which were directly measured or inferred from measurements made during the test. This report documents the results of these calculations and compares the results with selected measurements made during heating and cooling of the SFT-C.

Jan 1, 1986

By J. M. Barker

Formation of commodity agreements depends mainly on the economic instability and associated mitigation measures inherent in the economic conflict between more developed and less developed nations. Five types of possible agreements exist: futures market, buffer stock, restrictive agreement, multilateral contract, and compensatory finance. Lack of market separation between sulfur consumers and producers coupled with large world production and highly concentrated export production in theory suggest a restrictive agreement as most likely. In practice, stockpiling of sulfur, an informal buffer stock, as done in Canada and perhaps the Middle East, has been the main sulfur price-supporting mechanism in the past two decades. No commodity agreements involving sulfur now exist except for multilateral contracts. Sulfur agreements apparently have existed rarely, if at all, in the past. Law (1975) refers to sulfur as one of a group of commodities where "there have been additional control efforts of various types." Clearly, sulfur was a candidate, at least conceptually in the past, for some form of commodity agreement. The following discussion centers on the world sulfur market from 1976 to 1985 in this context.

Jan 1, 1987

By Steven Tubbs

Steven Tubbs From mine to farm is a long journey for Florida&apos;s phosphate, but it is an important one to the American farmer who uses phosphate fertilizers to replenish the soil and produce the crops which eventually wind up on the American dinner table. In this phosphate-food connection, transportation plays a vital life-giving role, a role that is unique because of the large quantities of phosphate produced and the mineral&apos;s location in relation to its markets. Florida Leads World Florida is the world&apos;s largest phosphate producer, supplying 80% of the nation&apos;s and a third of the world&apos;s annual total. About 95% of Florida&apos;s phosphate goes into agricultural chemicals, with 90% going into fertilizers. Phosphate production is primarily concentrated in west central Florida, with the exception of mining and processing in north Florida by Occidental Chemical Co. The phosphate rock is beneficiated at the mine sites and then is transported out of Florida in a raw state, or to one of the industry&apos;s 18 chemical complexes where it is processed further. In 1981, Florida produced more than 42 Mt (46 million st) of phosphate rock-a 1% decrease from 1980. The industry also produced more than 12 Mt (13 million st) of phosphate chemical products in 1981 and transported them to both domestic and foreign customers. This year, the state&apos;s phosphate production and shipments are substantially lower than recent annual levels because of a depressed worldwide phosphate market. With production down slightly in 1981, shipments declined and company inventories increased dramatically. Phosphate-related shipments through the port of Tampa alone fell 20%. As a result, in 1982, phosphate operations cut production to reduce inventories. According to the Fertilizer Institute, during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1982, phosphate rock production fell 18%; phosphate rock shipments, 28%; finished fertilizer production, 30%; finished fertilizer shipments, 25%; and phosphate rock exports declined by 20%. Despite depressed conditions, Florida phosphate production and shipments are expected to increase in the near future with more rock being processed into fertilizer products. Phosphate is one of Florida&apos;s major industries. The US Bureau of Mines estimates it contributed $3 billion to the state&apos;s economy in 1981 and an additional $1.4 billion to the US economy. In addition, phosphate exports contributed to

Jan 10, 1982