SME Mining Reference Handbook

Need to recall properties of a rock or mineral on the fly? Or quickly convert to metric units in the field? When you're on a job site, you need answers fast. But answers don't always come easily, especially if your library of reference materials is back in the office. Engineers are often called on to answer technical questions and solve problems while in the field. It's not always feasible to bring along the bulky reference materials needed to research engineering-related topics. Now there's a simple solution. The SME Mining Reference Handbook is a practical field reference for mining and minerals engineers who spend time away from the office. With its comprehensive store of charts, graphs, tables, equations, and rules of thumb, the handbook is the essential technical reference for mobile mining professionals. It's also a convenient desk reference for in-office use. To keep the handbook portable, content was carefully selected to include only the most relevant and widely used information. This distillation of vital technical data was culled from volumes of mining and engineering literature. Its compact size and durable cover make it a convenient resource, ideal for a briefcase, glove compartment, or personal bookshelf. While written as a quick reference for experienced engineers, students and government practioners will also find it useful. Cover 1 Title 2 Contents 4 Copyright 3 Preface 12 About the Editor 14 Chapter Editors 16 CHAPTER 1: Project Evaluation 18 Feasibility Studies 18 Due Diligence Studies 21 Due Diligence Checklist 21 Reserves 21 Mine Engineering and Planning 22 Metallurgical/Processing 23 Economics 23 References 24 CHAPTER 2: Material Properties 26 Soils 26 Rocks 26 Minerals 27 Coal 27 References 28 CHAPTER 3: Exploration and Geology 72 Geologic Time 72 Geologic Map Symbols 73 Rock Classification 74 Igneous Rocks 74 Sedimentary Rocks 75 Metamorphic Rocks 76 Mohs Hardness Scale 77 Structural Geology 77 Fault Classification and Terminology 77 Apparent Dip 78 Determining the Strike and Dip of a Plane (Three-Point Problem) 78 Determining the Intersection of Two Planes 79 Determination of Strike and Dip from Two Apparent Dips 80 Geophysics 82 Plate Tectonics 82 Interpretation of Seismic Refraction Surveys 82 Aerial Photography 82 Drilling 84 References 84 CHAPTER 4: Physical Science and Engineering 86 Chemistry 86 Statics 88 Basic Principles and Definitions 88 Centroids of Lines, Areas, Volumes, and Masses 89 Moment of Inertia 91 Area, Centroid, Moment of Inertia, Section Modulus, and Radius of Gyration for Selected Shapes 91 Friction 95 Analysis of Structures 96 Analysis of Beams 96 Dynamics 97 Basic Kinematics 97 Newton’s Second Law of Motion 98 Impulse and Momentum 98 Work and Energy 99 Conservation of Work and Energy 99 Mechanics of Materials 100 Stress 100 Strain 100 Stress-Strain Relations 101 Uniaxial Loading and Deformation 102 Plane Stress 102 Plane Strain 103 Torsional Stresses 103 Transformation of Stresses in Two Dimensions 103 Failure Criteria 104 Analysis of Beams 104 Buckling of Columns 105 Elastic Strain Energy 105 Strength Properties of Common Materials 105 Fluid Mechanics 107 Basic Concepts 107 Pressure 108 Continuity Equation 109 Fluid Momentum 109 Bernoulli Equation 110 Friction Losses 110 Hydraulic Diameter or Hydraulic Radius 111 Airway Resistance 112 Flow Networks 112 Open Channel Flow 112 Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer 113 Nomenclature 113 Ideal Gas Law 114 First Law of Thermodynamics 114 Conduction 116 Convection 116 Radiation 116 Electricity and Magnetism 116 Basic Definitions 117 Resistors, Capacitors, and Inductors in Series and in Parallel 117 Kirchoff’s Laws 119 References 119 CHAPTER 5: Mathematics, Statistics, and Probability 120 Elementary Analysis 120 Basic Coordinate Relations 120 Vectors 121 Regression Analysis 121 Algebra 122 Basic Laws 122 Basic Equations 122 Matrices 123 Trigonometry 124 Definitions 124 Periodic Properties 124 Negative Angle Formulas 124 Addition Formulas 125 Half-Angle Formulas 125 Multiple-Angle Formulas 125 Products of Sines and Cosines 125 Addition and Subtraction of Two Circular Functions 125 Geometry 126 Right Triangle 126 General Triangle 126 Rectangle 126 Trapezoid 126 Parallelogram 126 General Quadrilateral 126 Circle of Radius r 127 Ellipse 127 Sphere 127 Cylinder 127 Cone 127 Frustum of Cone 128 Cube 128 Rectangular Prism 128 Pyramid 128 Frustum of Pyramid 128 Planar Areas by Approximation 128 Derivatives 129 Basic Definitions 129 Maxima, Minima, and Inflection Points of Functions 130 Derivatives of Common Functions 130 Integrals 130 Probability and Statistics 131 Permutations and Combinations 131 Laws of Probability 132 Means 132 Standard Deviation 133 Confidence Intervals 133 Normal or Gaussian Distribution 134 Chi-Square Probability Function 134 F-(Variance Ratio) Distribution Function 136 Student’s t-Distribution 136 Miscellaneous 136 Critical Path Method 136 Activity Graphs 140 Activity Network 140 PERT 142 References 142 CHAPTER 6: Weights, Measures, Conversions, Constants, and Symbols 144 International System of Units 144 Fundamental Physical Constants 157 Selected Constants, Measures, and Time 157 Selected Unit Equivalencies and Approximations 158 SI Prefixes 160 Greek Alphabet 160 References 160 CHAPTER 7: Sampling and Analysis 162 Sampling 162 Sampling Theory 162 Geologic Data Collection and Recording 162 Size, Frequency, or Density of Sample 163 In Situ and Non-In Situ Sampling 166 In Situ Sampling Methods 167 Non-In Situ Sampling Methods 168 Sample Splitting 169 Sample Preparation 170 Sampling Error 170 Analysis 172 References 176 CHAPTER 8: Economics and Costing 178 Interest Formulas (after Stermole and Stermole 1996) 178 Discrete Interest End-of-Period Dollar Values 178 Continuous Interest Lump Sum End-of-Period Dollar Values 178 Discrete Compound Interest Tables 179 Capitalized Costs 183 Depreciation 183 Straight Line 183 Accelerated Cost Recovery System (ACRS) 183 Book Value 183 Depletion Allowance 184 Cost Depletion (after Whitney and Sibbald 1992) 184 Percentage Depletion 184 Effective Tax Rate 185 Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) (also known as profitability index) 185 Present Value Ratio (PVR) 185 Inflation 185 Consumer Price Index 186 Capital Structure 186 Cash Flow 187 Costing 188 Six-Tenths Rule (after Katell and Wellman 1968) 188 Cost Reports 188 References 189 CHAPTER 9: Quality and Specifications of Products 190 Abrasives 190 Aggregate 191 Aluminum 192 Barite 193 Chromium 193 Clays 193 Bentonite 193 Kaolin 193 Coal 194 Cobalt 195 Copper 195 Diamonds, Industrial 196 Diatomite and Perlite 196 Fluorspar 196 Gold 197 Graphite 197 Iron Ore 197 Lead 197 Limestone and Dolomite 198 Manganese 199 Mercury 199 Mica 200 Molybdenum 200 Nickel 201 Phosphate Rock 201 Platinum Group Metals 201 Potash 202 Pumice 202 Quartz Crystal 202 Sand and Gravel 202 Silver 203 Soda Ash and Sodium Sulfate 203 Stone, Crushed 203 Sulfur 204 Talc 204 Tin 205 Titanium 206 Vanadium 207 Zeolites 207 Zinc 208 References 208 CHAPTER 10: Haul Roads 212 Haul Truck Specifications 212 Stopping Distance 212 Number of Lanes 213 Safe Distance Between Trucks 214 Road Width 215 Sight Distance 216 Gradient 216 Super Elevation 216 Construction Material Factors 217 Other Considerations 217 References 217 CHAPTER 11: Blasting and Explosives 220 Characteristics of Explosives 220 Classification of Explosives by Fume Characteristics 221 Detonation Pressure 221 Blast Design 223 Method Based on Burden Ratios 223 Method Based on Known Powder Factor 224 Determining Amount of Rock Broken per Borehole 225 Powder Factor-Ratio of Explosives Used per Unit Weight/Volume of Rock 225 Powder Factor for Underground Blasting 226 Controlled Blasting 226 Height of Water-Resistant Explosives to Build Out of Water in a Borehole 228 Ground Vibrations and Air Concussion from Blasting 228 Scaled Distance Equations 228 Vibration Attenuation and Peak Particle Velocity Predictions 228 Vector Sum 230 Vibration Level Criteria 230 References 231 CHAPTER 12: Excavation, Loading, and Material Transport 232 Equipment Performance 232 Drawbar Pull 232 Rim Pull 232 Traction 232 Resistance 233 Maximum and Average Speed 234 Altitude Correction 235 Production Calculations 235 Density and Swell 235 Operating Efficiency 236 Bucket and Dipper Fill Factor 236 Load Cycle Time 236 Loading Production 236 Travel Time 237 Haulage Cycle Time 237 Haulage Production 237 Equipment Operating Costs 237 Maintenance and Repair 238 Tires 238 Fuel and Power Consumption 238 Draglines 239 Clamshells 239 Shovels 239 Backhoes 239 Wheel Loaders 239 Crawler-Mounted Loaders 242 Trucks 242 Truck Loading 242 Truck Spot and Load Time 243 Truck Dump Time 243 Truck Cycle Time and Production 243 Number of Trucks 244 Scrapers 244 Scraper Loading and Spreading 244 Scraper Cycle Time and Production 245 Pusher Dozers 245 Bulldozers 245 Dozer Blades 245 Bulldozer Cycle Time and Production 246 Ripping 246 Rail Haulage 246 Tractive Resistance 246 Tractive Effort 247 Adhesion 248 Acceleration 248 Braking 248 Rail Haulage Cycle Time and Production 249 Track 249 Belt Conveyors 249 Conveyor Production Capacity 249 Belt Conveyor Power Requirements 252 Hoisting 255 Hoist Cycle Time 255 Skips 255 Hoisting Ropes 255 Hoisting Capacity 255 Hoist Power Requirements 256 Selected Underground Equipment 256 Continuous Miners 256 Shuttle Cars 257 Longwall Systems 257 Slushers 257 Load-Haul-Dump Units 257 Mine Trucks 257 References 258 CHAPTER 13: Ground Control/Support 260 Introduction 260 Safety Factor 263 Rock Bolting 263 Empirical Rules 263 Pillars 265 Tributary Area Method (Bieniawski 1992) 265 Analysis of Retreat Mining Pillar Stability (ARMPS) 267 Subsidence 271 Slope Stability 273 References 274 CHAPTER 14: Ventilation 276 Air Composition, Density, and Psychrometry 276 Gas Laws (After Hartman, Mutmansky, and Wang 1997) 280 Airflow 280 Quantity 280 Velocity Head (after Ramani 1992) 280 Friction Loss (after Ramani 1992) 281 Shock Losses 283 Fans 283 Horsepower Requirements (after Ramani 1992) 283 Natural Ventilating Pressure (After Hartman, Mutmansky, Ramani, and Wang 1997) 284 Parallel Flow 284 Natural Splitting (After Kingery 1960) 284 Formula for Potential Air Splitting 284 Controlled Splitting (After Kingery 1960) 284 Regulator Formula 284 Mine Gases 285 Regulatory Requirements 287 Tubing 287 Velocities for Mineral Dusts and Gases 290 Explosion-Resistant Seals (Approved by the Mine Safety and Health Administration [MSHA]) 290 References 291 CHAPTER 15: Pumping 292 Introduction 292 Centrifugal Pumps 292 Calculating Dynamic Head 292 Net Positive Suction Head (NPSH) 294 Pump Characteristic Curves 294 Series Pumps 294 Parallel Pumps 294 Best Efficiency Point (BEP) 295 Allowable Operating Range 295 System Head Curve 295 Pumping Power Formulas 295 Efficiency Values 295 Flow Rate Formula and Other Facts 295 Affinity Laws 296 References 296 CHAPTER 16: Power: Electrical and Compressed Air 298 Electrical Power 298 Miscellaneous 298 Compressed Air 300 References 303 CHAPTER 17: Mineral Processing 304 Crushing 304 Guidelines 304 Types of Crushers 304 Maintenance 305 Other Considerations 305 Grinding 306 Guidelines 306 Types of Grinding Mills 307 Classification 310 Guidelines 310 Measurements of Performance for Air Classifiers (Klumpar 1987a and 1987b) 311 Screening 311 Materials of Construction 311 Types of Screens 311 Troubleshooting 312 Check Screen Sizing 313 Sorting 315 All Sorting Techniques 315 Hand Sorting 315 Laser Reflectance (Photometric) 316 Radioactive 316 X-ray Fluorescence Diamond Sorters 316 Gravity Concentration 317 Flotation 318 General 318 Operating Controls 319 Testing 320 Solid-Liquid Separations 320 General 320 Thickening 321 Clarification 323 Hydraulic Classifiers and Sizers 323 Hydrocyclones 325 Centrifugation 325 Vacuum Filtration 325 Pressure Filtration 328 Flocculation 329 Process and Engineering Considerations 329 Solvent Extraction (SX) 329 General 329 Mixers 330 Settlers 331 Controls and Testing 331 Heap Leaching 332 Symptoms of Percolation Problems 332 Typical Heap Operating Conditions 332 General Rules for Column Testing of Gold Ores 332 General Rules for Column Testing Copper Ores 333 Design Features 333 Pads 333 Miscellaneous 334 Carbon Plants 334 Carbon-In-Leach/Carbon-In-Pulp (CIL/CIP) 334 Carbon-in-Column (CIC) 335 Acid Washing, 1% HCl, 30 Minutes, 1 BV at 2BV/h 335 Stripping (Elution) 336 Regeneration (Most Problem-Prone; Check Mechanicals and Fabrication) 336 Bacterial Oxidation 336 Toxicity 336 Minerals Oxidized 337 Calculations 337 Heat Balances 338 Typical Circuit Conditions 338 Nutrient Additions, kg/T of Concentrates 338 Solid-Liquid Separation 339 Neutralization 339 Stirred Tank Reactors for Base Metals 339 Bacteria Heap Leach Operations 340 Coal Cleaning 340 Operations and Troubleshooting 343 Dust Collection 343 Fabric Dust Collectors 343 Suggested Dust Collection Equipment versus Particle Size 344 Power Requirements versus Particle Size for Various Collectors 345 Troubleshooting 345 Dust Control 345 Electrowinning (EW) and Electrorefining (ER) 346 Background 346 Checklist 348 Pyrometallurgy 349 Physical Chemistry 349 Troubleshooting 355 Drying 356 Sintering 356 Fluid Bed Reactors 356 Rotary Kilns 356 Flash Smelter 357 Emissions from Typical Pyrometallurgical Operations 357 Industrial Minerals 358 General 358 Gold Leaching 360 Vat Leaching 361 General 361 Miscellaneous 361 References 365 CHAPTER 18: Site Structures and Hydrology 368 Facility Layout 368 Earthworks 370 Liner Systems 370 Soil Liners 371 Composite Liners 373 Geomembranes 373 Geotextiles 374 Geonet 376 Interface Friction 376 Liner Leakage 377 Pipes 377 Pipe Thickness 377 Earth Pressure on Buried Pipe 378 Hydrology and Hydraulics 379 Water Balance 379 Storm Water Runoff 380 Sediment Ponds 383 Emergency Spillways 383 Inspection and Maintenance 384 References 384 CHAPTER 19: Placer Mining 386 Placer Ore Bodies 386 Placer Evaluation 388 Placer Operations 390 Costs 394 Gravel 394 References 394 CHAPTER 20: In Situ Leaching 396 In Situ Leaching 396 Ore and Deposit Characteristics 396 Lixiviants 396 Wells and Well Fields 397 Operating Considerations 397 Troubleshooting 397 In Situ Leaching of Uranium 397 Deposit Characteristics 397 Wells and Well Fields 398 In Situ Leaching Process 398 Plant Recovery Process 399 Environmental Concerns 399 Operating Problems and Remedies 399 CHAPTER 21: Maintenance and Inventory 400 Maintenance 400 Maintenance Theory 400 Definitions (Bise 1992) 401 Mine Maintenance Organization 401 Preventive Maintenance 402 Predictive Maintenance 402 Lubrication and Equipment Analysis 402 Recordkeeping 406 Reporting 406 Inventory 407 References 409 CHAPTER 22: Environment and Reclamation 410 Major Federal Laws 410 Citations and Regulations 412 Permits and Approvals 414 Air Quality 415 Water Quality 417 Treatment 423 References 426 CHAPTER 23: Health and Safety 428 Legislative History 428 1910-Public Law 61-179 428 1941-Public Law 77-49 428 1947-Public Law 80-328 428 1952-Public Law 82-552 428 1961-Public Law 87-300 428 1966-Public Law 89-376 428 1966-Public Law 89-577 429 1969-Public Law 91-173 429 1973-Secretarial Order 2953 429 1977-Public Law 95-164 429 Health and Safety Regulations 429 Mine Safety and Health Administration’s Mission 430 Statutory Functions 431 Organizational Structure 431 Enforcement 432 Civil Penalties Imposed for Violations 432 “Significant and Substantial” 432 Orders of Withdrawal 432 Unwarrantable Failures 433 Pattern of Violations 433 Discrimination Protection 433 Criminal Penalties 433 Appeals 433 Technical Assistance 433 Testing Products Used in Mining 434 Mandatory Training 434 Historical Data on Mine Disasters in the United States 435 References 435 CHAPTER 24: Bonding and Liabilities 436 Bonding (Financial Assurance) 436 Liabilities 437 References 439 CHAPTER 25: Web Sites Related to Mining 440 Professional Societies, Institutes, Councils, Associations, Foundations, Boards, and Commissions 440 Reference, Information, and Publications 442 Associations 443 Economics 444 Computing Applications 445 Machinery and Equipment Trading 445 Trade Unions 445 Government 445 Federal Agencies 445 State Agencies 446 International 447 Africa 447 Asia 447 Australia and New Zealand 448 Canada 448 Europe 449 Latin America 449 United Kingdom 449 Index 452