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By J. T. Vehkala, S. S. Kerr, D. E. Robertson

"Since the late 1970s, extensive work has been carried out at Placer Dome Inc. 's Dome Mine to develop new mining methods and equipment to improve the productivity of narrow vein mining (Mining Magazine, Oct. 1986, pp. 308-317; Mar. 1988, pp. 176-/79). This work has been focused on mining veintype deposits varying from 0.9 m to 1.5 m in width using open stoping and cut-and-fill mining methods.In 1989, the Dome Mine entered into a contract with Ram Raising Ltd., a joint venture company of Angus Martin and I.S. Redpath Ltd., to develop and mine a narrow vein test stope using an Alimak Raise Climber. Early results have been favourable, indicating that Alimak methods can be used successfully to mine narrow vein are.HistoryThe Dome Mine, which has been in continuous operation since 1910, is located in South Porcupine, part of the city of Timmins, Ontario. The mine is wholly-owned and operated by Placer Dome Inc. and is part of Placer Dome Inc.'s international stable of of 19 mines."

Jan 1, 1990

By G. Swan

"The selection of material comprising a backfill is, of economic necessity, site dependent. Nevertheless, given the existing range of typical components-coarse waste, alluvial sand, tailings a balanced or optimal choice is no straightforward matter. A new design approach toward deciding what constitutes an optimum combination of backfill material promises to be useful. In particular a 'binder ' number, based on the mean distance between aggregate particles, specific surface and cement content, is proposed. Using this number, related empirically to compressive strength, the expected mechanical performance of any cemented fill can be predicted.IntroductionOver the years a considerable volume of information has accumulated on mine backfill material design. The principal aggregate component has been deslimed mill tailings, though more recently admixtures of rock waste, sand and tailings are quite common. For these materials uniaxial compressive strength and percolation rate properties are known to be controlled by, among other things, aggregate grading. While empirical formulae exist for relating grading to percolation rates, considerable uncertainty exists concerning strength development."

Jan 1, 1985

By Rafic Moubarac

FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Polyester) equipment has been used in different and several applications during metals processing and extraction, and the hydrometallurgical process. Case histories of such equipment will be shown of major projects worldwide.

Jan 1, 2015

By P. R. A. Andrews, R. K. Collings

"There are more than thirty-five deposits or occurrences of celestite in Canada, chiefly in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and British Columbia. Deposits of economic interest are the Lake Enon and MacRae deposits in the Loch Lomond district of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Two Cape Breton deposits were operated from 1969 to 1976 by Kaiser Celestite Mining Limited, which supplied an upgraded celestite concentrate to an associated strontium carbonate plant at Point Edward, near Sydney.The MacRae deposit is of current interest because of its possible development for strontium carbonate production using the ""black ash"" process. This process involves chemical leaching, rotary kiln calcining with petroleum coke, washing and treatment with carbon dioxide.Celestite is the basic material used in the manufacture of strontium chemicals, principally strontium oxide, carbonate, nitrate, chromate, chlorate, chloride, sulphide and phosphate. Strontium chemicals, in turn, are used in the manufacture of glass and ceramics, in pyrotechnic devices, in the production of strontium metal and in other metallurgical applications. Recently, strontium ferrites have been introduced into permanent ceramic magnets."

Jan 1, 1991

By Robert B. Parsons

"A joint federal/provincial/industry subcommittee of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the Mineral Industry (IOWG) has published an informative and readable report on taxation matters concerning Canada's mining industry. The report, which was presented to the federal and provincial mines ministers in September 1986, identifies and discusses key tax issues relating to this industry. The report is mandatory reading for anybody with an interest in mineral exploration or production in Canada.IntroductionIn 1986, Canada's federal and provincial mines ministers were presented with an important report concerning the taxation of this country's mining industry. This document is important for a number of reasons, two of the reasons being: first, the report contains an objective analysis of the key mineral taxation issues of the day; and, second, the report is the product of a cooperative exercise involving representatives of various facets of the industry and government. The report should be regarded as compulsory reading for anybody who has an interest in fiscal matters affecting mineral exploration and production.The ""Report on Fiscal Proposals"" was prepared by a subcommittee of the Intergovernmental Working Group on the Mineral Industry (IOWO). IOWO is a group of senior federal, provincial, and territorial government officials concerned with the analysis of mineral policy issues in Canada."

Jan 1, 1986

By Tweedy. D. H.

"The paper describes the rapid development of, and operational experience in the utilization of, pneumatic low-pressure pipeline hoisting systems to vertically convey raw coal and rock through shafts, supplementing shaft capacity-the greatest lift to date being 535 m.A typical installation has raised over 250,000 tonnes in less than one year from a depth of 413 m through a 350/ 400-mm pipeline at a rate of 85 tonnes per hour. Operational experience on seven systems has provided valuable data on performance and operating costs.The main advantages of the systems lie in the flexibility of the pipeline to occupy existing free space in shafts and underground roadways, the relatively low first cost, the short delivery and installation time, and the economical running cost.Conclusions are therefore reached on future applications for example, the use of boreholes in older mines where new production technology has outstripped shaft or slope capacity, inter-level hoisting to implement concentration on transport roads and perhaps full mine output from relatively small mines.IntroductionIt is seven years since the basic art and practice of the pneumatic hoisting of minerals was described. The technique was developed in Western Canada by Radmark Engineering and found favour in the United Kingdom with the National Coal Board. Engineering and commercial feasibility trails were conducted in collaboration with the Mining Department and Mining Research and Development Establishment of the N.C.B. There was also considerable involvement with the British Health and Safety Executive.During the last five years, rapid progress has been made in the installation of new systems in the United Kingdom, Hungary and other countries. The operational experience gained makes it possible to report ""in depth"" on these installations, which cover a wide range of different physical mining applications."

Jan 1, 1982

By Marcel Allard

On January 1st, 1977, SIDBEC-NORMINES INC. purchased from Quebec Cartier Mining Company various facilities located at Gagnon and Lac Jeannine together with the Fire Lake deposit. A t the same time, SIDBEC-NORMINES started its mining operations at Fire Lake, 83 km northeast of Gagnon. The paper summarizes the various adjustments which were necessary to satisfy the new production conditions, such as the physical and mechanical properties of the ore at Fire Lake, and the new crushing and loading installations at the mine, together with the transport of some 14 million tons of crude ore to the Lac Jeannine concentrator about 100km away, and finally to achieve satisfactory recovery from the FireLake ore. In addition, mention is made of the manpower organization, in which Quebec Cartier Mining Company plays an important role as manager of operations and owner of the railroad linking the mining operations to the pelletizing operations at Port-Cartier.

Jan 1, 1979

By D. Beneteau

Plotting sets of data collected over time using a frequency-magnitude distribution is common with both earthquake and mining seismology. A Time-Between-Events (TBE) analysis technique simply makes use of the inter-event times and b-values (slopes of the best fit lines on the frequency-magnitude charts) from the same set of data. Four distinct patterns in TBE versus Event Magnitude have been found which suggest whether there are constant seismic sources causing populations of data, or if the smaller and larger events, within the population represent varying seismic sources. Different rates of events, identified as TBE-rates in this study, may suggest whether the events are blast induced, or not. This study was done using actual seismic datasets from hardrock mines in Canada and Australia. This was to verify the applicability of the method to multiple mining environments and to determine the practicality and implications of this methodology to enhance the interpretation of seismic source mechanisms The results of the TBE technique and other proven techniques are combined into a Seismic Mechanism Assessment Worksheet. This is a tool that allows operators to compare trends within seismic datasets with assessments of in-situ rock conditions. The goal is to enhance the understanding of rockmass failure mechanisms.

Nov 1, 2011

By Peter Clevenstine

Minnesota Iron Ore Trifecta 1. World Demand 2. Industry Consolidation 3. Competitive Advantages

May 1, 2011

By M. Scobie, G. R. Baiden

"This paper describes recent developments at Inco Limited, Ontario Division, in the field of information systems for automated mining. A CA TV cable network has been combined with a broad spectrum radio antenna system to allow the supply of voice, data and video services to underground mining. The system formed the basis of a field experiment at the Copper Cliff North Mine of the Ontario Division in 1990.The experimental information system was developed to supply underground mining with voice, data and video services to mobile and stationary locations. In order to test the communication system, telephones and radios were linked together with the outside phone lines for voice communication. Stationary data was implemented on a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system for mine monitoring and control using PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers), while using personal workstations for the mine planning and engineering functions. Stationary video was installed in the experiment to observe crushing, conveyor transfer points and skip dumping areas. Mobile data and video were tested by the teleoperation of an LHD. The functions supplied to the vehicle were monitored through a computer, with control being maintained through a standard radio interface and real time video pictures for the operation of the machine.This paper discusses the field testing of the information system and results achieved to date. It concludes by discussing the options considered to be open to provide information systems for future automated mining."

Jan 1, 1992

By L. Nutter, J. Clancy

"Barite is used extensively by the oil and gas well-drilling industry as a weighting agent. It is particularly well suited for drilling mud because of its qualities; it is non-abrasive, heavy, virtually inert chemically, easy to handle and inexpensive compared to other available heavy materials. Increased deep well drilling in Western Canada, and especially in the Arctic regions, could dramatically affect the demand for barite through this decade. Known deposits in northeast British Columbia are possible sources of incremental barite supplies, should the situation develop.IntroductionThe purpose of this report is to examine the opportunities for expanding barite production in British Columbia. Of primary interest will be the relationship between the projected future levels of production and consumption of barite in Western Canada and the extent to which increased domestic production could replace the need for imports in filling any expected supply shortages.After a brief overview of the nature and uses of barite and some of the relevant features of the barite supply industry, the discussion will turn to the supply gap in the Canadian market and the possibilities for import substitution.OverviewBarite is an industrial mineral which is used in large quantities by the oil and gas well-drilling industry. It is often an important component of drilling mud, a fluid circulated continuously in the well during the drilling process to lubricate and cool the drilling apparatus and to contain the high oil and gas pressures found at depth. Barite (BaSO4) is particularly well suited as a weighting agent for drilling mud because it is a heavy (specific gravity to 4.5) inert mineral which is inexpensive in relation to other materials having a high specific gravity. In the on-site use of drilling mud, ground barite is combined with numerous other solid ingredients and chemicals in the form of a slurry. Other advantages of barite include cleanliness, ease in handling and its non-abrasive character (hardness of 3-3.5)."

Jan 1, 1982

By Royston Colbourne

Objectives Of Presentation - Identify specific risks - A fresh look at risk - Provide a moment reflection on risk - Open discussion on risk A route to solution and advanced thinking.

May 1, 2010

By V. Vekris

A diverse patent portfolio and an effective intellectual property strategy are vital in today’s small business world. Not only does a diverse patent portfolio enable a company to secure a monopoly within the market, it greatly increases the value of a company’s intangible assets and keeps competitors at bay. An overview of the patenting process as it pertains specifically to the materials science-related start-ups will be given, together with a summary of some general patenting strategies and a review of some patenting errors to be avoided, such as premature disclosure of the invention to the public. Additionally, a review of new “green technology” initiatives recently adopted by Patent Offices around the world is also provided. These initiatives are expected to greatly benefit patent applicants in the fields of metallurgy and mining, where research efforts are often directed to environmentally-friendly products and processes. INTRODUCTION Patents are playing an increasingly significant role in the business world. A diverse patent portfolio can enable a company to secure a monopoly within the market, which can provide a competitive advantage over competitors. At the same time, patent portfolio of any size can greatly contribute to the total value of a company’s intangible assets. As an example, Nortel entertained bids in 2011 for its portfolio of about 4000 patents, a large portion of which were directed to 3G- and 4G-mobile communication technologies. The portfolio was eventually sold for $4.5 billion to a consortium including Apple, EMC, Ericsson, Microsoft, Research in Motion, and Sony. Copper mining, and indeed the global mining industry as a whole, is facing challenges. Ore deposits are increasingly low grade, complex, and deeper in the ground, rendering copper mining operations more difficult and costly. Production costs are increasing. According to one study, the cost of producing copper has increased by an average of 10% per year since 2005 (Cantallopts, 2017). To illustrate, the cost of producing a pound of copper in 2005 was 90 cents, but had increased to 217 cents by 2014.

Jan 1, 2019

By Robert B. Parsons

"The Department of Finance introduced draft amendments to the resource allowance regulations on July 23, 1992 that effectively nullify the decision in the Gulf Canada Limited case. Prior to the amendments it appeared that only ""directly"" related general and administrative, capital cost allowance and scientific research expenditures had to be deducted from resource profits. Now ancillary expenditures are required to be deducted. Consequently, the ability of taxpayers to claim the resource allowance is curtailed.IntroductionOn October 25, 1990 it was almost certain that taxable mines were going to get a break. The Federal Court-Trial Division had just decided in Gulf Canada Limited's favour to allow it to claim resource related tax benefits larger than what Revenue Canada evidently wished. Revenue Canada appealed first to the Federal Court of Appeal and then to the Supreme Court of Canada. On January 10, 1992 the Federal Court of Appeal agreed with the Federal Court decision and on July 2, 1992the Supreme Court declined to hear any further appeal. A mere three weeks later, on July 23, 1992, the Department of Finance issued draft ""clarifying"" measures to amend the calculation of the resource allowance. These measures effectively nullify the benefits that arose under the decisions of the Federal Court."

Jan 1, 1992

By William D. Gallant, Thomas M. Barczak, Carol Tasillo

"This paper describes the results of full-scale testing of several multi-layered wood crib configurations that were tested in the Bureau of Mines mine roof simulator in cooperation with the Cape Breton Coal Research Laboratory and Cape Breton Development Corporation of Sydney, Nova Scotia. Nine different crib configurations currently being used as wood packwall supports for advancing longwall applications in Canada were evaluated. Configuration parameters understudy included the aspect ratio (height-to-width relationship) and percentage of solid material used in the crib construction. Test results and generalized wood crib behaviour are discussed in detail. Recommendations are made concerning crib constructions to maximize strength and stability. A cost benefit analysis of multi-layered wood crib configurations is made. A comparison of laboratory results and underground observations of several wood packwall supports in the Sydney coalfield suggest in situ load capacity is less than that measured in laboratory testing. Reasons for the apparent decrease of in situ load bearing capability are described.IntroductionA cooperative effort was undertaken by the U.S. Bureau of Mines with the Cape Breton Development Corporation (CBDC) and the Cape Breton Coal Research Laboratory (CBCRL) to evaluate the behaviour of gateside packing materials used in advancing longwall mining applications in the Sydney coalfield. As part of this effort, full-scale tests were conducted on wood packwall supports in the Bureau's 3-million pound (13.3 MN) active load frame.Nine different pack configurations were evaluated as part of this study. The wood packwall supports were multi-layered crib constructions from 6 in. (0.15 m) by 6 in. (0.15 m) cross section timbers using timber s 30 in. (0.75 m) and 60 in. (1.5 m) in length . The percentage of solid material in the crib constructions varied as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2. A summary of crib constructions is provided in Table 1."

Jan 1, 1991

By Robert B. Parsons

"Ontario and Quebec taxpayers will have to dig deeper into their pockets to pay more tax, according to budget papers tabled in these provinces in May 1993. Individuals will be hardest hit, but corporations will also have to ante up in the face of higher rates, reduced deductions, and new taxes.Up, up, and away...Somewhere in the bleak picture of the 1993 Quebec and Ontario budgets, there is a bit of good news for the mining industry.Careful scrutiny reveals:• Ontario will correct a capital tax provision which inadvertently penalizes flow through share issuers;• Quebec's flow-through incentives will be extended to December 31, 1995; and • both Quebec and Ontario will allow deductions for mine site reclamation payments.The industry may also find some comfort in the fact that Ontario's new corporate minimum tax will be profit-based (unlike the federal minimum tax), so that non-producers should not face a liability for this tax. There is some concern though, about Quebec's announcement that the refundable credit mechanism in the Mining Duties Act will be reviewed."

Jan 1, 1993

By J. G. Mieczaniec

"A key element for a successful mining operation is the grinding circuit. It must be reliable, maintainable and must perform to or above design capacities for 95% of the time. Once chosen and installed major modifications are either prohibitive or very expensive. The selection of mills and drive system is probably the single most important decision made within the concentrator complex.Economic studies revealed that the optimum expansion for Lornex was a 68070 increase in plant throughput. This indicated that the new mill would have to be larger than the existing 32-foot mills.The Lornex ore has a wide range of hardness which has a great influence on mill throughput (Table 1). To smooth out the fluctuations, a blending program ha s always been in effect at the mine, coupled with ball charge control for the primary mills. As can be appreciated, an optimum balance is difficult to achieve. A sudden change to so ft ore with a high ball charge puts the mill into jeopardy with a constant speed drive.The blending philosophy would continue after the expansion, but with the addition o f a second primary crusher, it was envisaged to have the new mill process harder ore to maintain production targets. In theory, the new mill would have a proportionally larger ball charge than the existing mills.This scheme makes the new mill vulnerable for processing so ft ore for a fixed speed mill. Thus, variable speed seemed an attractive option.In early 1979 prominent mill manufacturers were invited to submit proposals for the new mill. Fixed and variable speed mills were to be considered with mill size ranging from 32-foot to 36-foot diameter. The proposals were to include the drive, ball charge, % critical speed, couplings, gears, etc. - the complete package. The recommendations were variable with most manufacturers submitting several alternatives. Recommended mill speed varied from 68% to 78% critical. The concept of variable speed was becoming more attractive, Lornex ultimately decided on a twin DC motor drive system for a 34-foot diameter mill.After start-up it was discovered that best throughput occurred at 78% mill critical speed or top speed of the drive motors. The motor speed range was adjusted upward from 186 to 200 rpm. Today the mills operate at 79% critical or a motor speed o f 193.5 rpm.Clearly the selection of the variable speed mill allowed the flexibility to optimize throughput."

Jan 1, 1985

By Neil Schofield

"The Pine Creek gold mineralization is associated with saddle reefs and quartz and quartz sulphide veining within the Enterprise Anticline. The anticlinal structure is complex and the mineralization was considered prior to development to be dominantly strata controlled. Gold grades vary up to 160 gin 1.5 m core samples with coefficients of variation in excess of three.The estimation of ore reserves for such a deposit must account for both the geological complexity and the extreme variability of gold grade.This paper describes the structural and variogram analysis of the gold grades and demonstrates the importance of incorporating the geological model in such an analysis. Variogram interpretation is greatly improved and greater insights into the finer geological structure areprovided. Part 2ofthis work presents the application of multigaussian kriging to reserve estimation for deposits with highly variable grade and which consequently demand highly selective mining operations. IntroductionThe Enterprise Gold Mine is situated some 220 km southeast of Darwin in Australia's tropical north. Gold is believed to have been discovered there in 1869 during the construction of the overland telegraph line.From 1894to 1915, some 75 000 ounces of gold were produced from 121 000 tonnes mined mainly by Chinese leaseholders. From 1906 to 1915, government-sponsored drilling led to the sinking of the Enterprise Shaft to 79 m and several drives were developed. Mining ceased because of war.Since late 1980, Goldfields Exploration Pty. Ltd. had explored on several mining tenements near Pine Creek under joint venture with the title holders, Enterprise Mines NL. This work culminated in the development of the current mine which opened on October 29, 1985.Feasibility studies to determine the economic viability of mining were based on ore reserves generated by project geologists using a sectional polygonal approach tuned to the interpreted geological control of the mineralization.The study motivating this two-part paper covers are-estimation of the recoverable reserve s using the geostatistical approach of multigaussian kriging developed at Stanford University, (Verly, 1984)."

Jan 1, 1988

By R. B. Stein

"Countercurrent decantation circuits(CCD) are often employed in hydrometallurgy to effect solids-liquid separation in combination with a barren solution wash to reduce losses of valuable solution component(s) from the tails. Bechtel Corporation uses its BEMSIM flowsheet-modelling PC computer program to simulate a CCD circuit where the ""dirty"" wash solution contains significant amounts of soluble components. An algorithm successfully models this condition and is simplified to a single expression when the wash solution is a ""clean"" solution containing no solubles. The CCD calculation module is compared to operating data from uranium and nickel-cobalt CCD circuits.IntroductionHydrometallurgical process schemes have often relied on countercurrent washing methods to reduce soluble losses of valuable product in the tails. Commonly used equipment to effect this operation is a CCD circuit of N thickeners in series, where a slurry is fed to thickener I and a wash solution to thickener N; clear pregnant solution overflows thickener I and washed tails exit as underflow from thickener N. CCD circuits of this type are typically employed when the solids tend to slime heavily and where a filter is not economic.A typical CCD circuit usually employs from two to five thickeners and can employ either a ""clean"" washing solution of, say, pure water or else the hydrometallurgical circuit may generate a ""dirty"" barren solution containing an appreciable amount of soluble component which may be advantageously returned to the process as CCD wash solution. Various authors have treated the case for clean washing solutions (Svarkovsky 1977, Merritt 1970). For the case of dirty wash solutions, an algorithm has been developed to enable efficient modelling by the BEMSIM computer program, because the need for an accurate method to calculate soluble losses is required when performing an economic trade-off analysis of the value of product lost in the tails as a function of the number of thickeners."

Jan 1, 1990

By Barry James

"This paper discusses past and current energy use patterns in the mining and manufacturing sectors of the industrial minerals industry. Information is presented on the primary energy input types as purchased by the industry, the quality and form of the energy actually required by the various production processes, and the residual form of this energy, either embodied in the product or rejected in gaseous and liquid waste heat streams. With the continuing concerns about the availability of energy combined with the rapidly increasing cost of energy as a production input, the reduction of energy usage through improved efficiency will undoubtedly be an increasing priority for the industry during the 1980s. Reduced energy consumption through investment to improve energy efficiency appears to be advantageous from both the corporate and national perspectives.IntroductionEnergy, like labour and materials, is one of the basic production input s to the various mining, processing and manufacturing production stages in the industrial minerals industry. Energy costs, as a percentage of total production costs, have been well above the average for industry in Canada, accounting for more than 50 cents out of every dollar in the most extreme cases. Consequently, energy has always been a relatively important management concern in the industrial minerals industry.The energy supply and price situation in Canada and internationally has been changing rapidly since 1973, following a long period characterized by declining real energy prices and an abundance and wide choice of energy supplies. It is generally accepted that energy prices will continue to increase rapidly, and that there will be uncertainties about the long-term continuity of supply of some energy types. In essence, a period of relative stability has been replaced by a period of relative uncertainty. In such a changing situation, a reassessment of the role of energy as a production input is appropriate.The following sections outline some of the effects of the changing energy scene on the industrial minerals industry. These effects are dealt with primarily in terms of energy costs, because, in most circumstances, a change in the cost of energy as a production input is the end result of both energy price and energy supply changes."

Jan 1, 1981