2/24/2021

UNIVERSITY OF MINES AND TECHNOLOGY, TARKWA LAYOUT OF PRESENTATION

3rd UMaT BIENNIAL INTERNATIONAL MINING AND
FACULTY OF MINERAL RESOURCES
MINERAL TECHNOLOGY
CONFERENCE 2014
MINING ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
 Introduction
PRESENTATION ON:
SEMINAR PRESENTATION
 Advantages & Disadvantages
INTRODUCTION TO MINING – MR/ES 261
CONTAMINATION OF FOOD BY IRON FROM GRINDING  Methods of Mining
DISC MILL  Main Sectors of Surface Mining Technology
 Stripping Ratio
SURFACE MINING
Presented By:
OWUSU ANSAH ERIC  Strip Ratio Methods
Co-Authored By:  Surface Mining Equipment
Mr Charles E. Abbey
BY
SYLVESTER YENZANYA
JULY 31, 2014
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INTRODUCTION ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES OF SURFACE MINING

 All mining operations or activities that are open to the

surface or atmosphere. Advantages

 The method is applicable to surface and near surface  Safer operations as compared to underground mining.
deposits that cannot be mined economically by
underground technology.  High output rates and therefore high productivity.

 The main features are:  High mechanization and therefore less physical work.
 Creation of large holes opened to the surface;
 Removal of large volumes of overburden to expose the  Low and possibly even no ore losses.
ore body;
 Requirement of large areas of operation; and
 Requirement for large machinery.
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Engineering

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ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES OF SURFACE MINING ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES OF SURFACE MINING

Advantages Disadvantages

 Production can be easily varied, and temporary  Moving large quantities of unproductive waste material.
abandoning of certain mining areas is possible.
 Total destruction of the ambience.
 Selectively mining the deposit is possible.
 Considerable area required for waste disposal.
 Reduced labour requirements.
 Dependence on climatic conditions: rain, frost, snow,
 Improved supervision of all operations. etc.

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ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES OF SURFACE MINING METHODS OF SURFACE MINING

Disadvantages
 There are basically 2 techniques employed in surface
 Expensive reclamation work to meet regulatory
mining.
requirements.
 Mechanical extraction techniques
 Limitation in depth, possibly down to 1000 m, since the  Aqueous extraction techniques
stripping or removal of waste becomes uneconomical
as the depth increases.  The mechanical extraction methods includes
 Open pit or opencast mining
 High mechanisation requires large capital investment.  Quarrying
 Auger mining
 Nuisance from ground vibration, air blast, noise and fly
rock.
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METHODS OF SURFACE MINING METHODS OF SURFACE MINING

Placer/Alluvial Mining

 This type of mining involves the extraction of loose and

unconsolidated mineral deposits.
 Aqueous extraction techniques includes:
 Placer or alluvial mining; and
 Placer deposits are unconsolidated deposits of detrital
 Solution mining. materials that contain valuable minerals.

 Placer deposits are formed from such natural

processes such as chemical weathering through
stream/river, marine/sea and ice/glacial action to wind
action and combinations of these processes.

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METHODS OF SURFACE MINING METHODS OF SURFACE MINING

 The resultant effect is the concentration of valuable  Placer minerals include sand, gravel, diamonds, gold,
minerals. platinum, zircon, rutile, tin, etc.

 Alluvial mineral deposits are generally minerals  Also included in Placer mining is Ocean mining, which
contained in alluvium resulting water actions. They are involves the mining of minerals on the beaches and on
found in riverbeds, on river banks, old river beds, etc. the ocean floor.

 Wind deposited placers are called eolian placers, and  Mineralshere include beach sands, nodules of
are generally found in desert regions. manganese, gold, diamonds, etc

 Ice or glacial placers (also known as glacio-fluviatile  The mining of placer/alluvial deposits generally
placers and moraines) are found in the temperate and requires direct excavation of the material either
arctic regions. manually or with appropriate excavating machinery.
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METHODS OF SURFACE MINING OPEN PIT OR OPEN CAST OR STRIP MINING

 This means that no blasting is undertaken.  Open pit mining or open cast mining or strip mining is
the type of mining which usually involves the removal
 It mostly involves the panning of gold, diamonds, tin and
large amount of waste or overburden material to
other heavy minerals from river beds.
expose the mineral of interest for extraction.
 The scooping up of loose placer deposits such as gold,
 This is employed in mining deposits that are thicker or
tin, etc. laid down by running water in river beds, on
more deeply buried or that dip steeply or sharply
beaches or on the sea bed by dredges which are usually
downwards.
mounted on pontoons is termed dredging.
 This is the best known surface mining method
 The utilization of high pressure stream of water directed
employed in mining near-surface or slightly inclining
against an exposed bank of unconsolidated rock/soil,
shallow-lying deposits such as coal seams, gold beds
thereby undercutting it and causing it to collapse is
and other thin layers of mineral.
termed hydraulicking or hydraulic mining.

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OPEN PIT OR OPEN CAST OR STRIP MINING OPEN CAST OR STRIP MINING
 The concurrent extraction of this mineral of interest and
 Minerals include both the metallic and non-metallic
the back filling of the created pit is termed open cast
minerals, such as limestone, nitrates, phosphates,
mining.
copper, gold, silver, iron, etc.

 The removal of unconsolidated rock waste to expose

 The pit is usually developed into several benches and
the flat lying mineral of interest (usually coal deposit) is
the dimensions of the pit increase both laterally and
termed strip mining.
longitudinally.

 In strip mining or open cast mining, the depth of the pit

 The depth of the pit increases with time, as more and
is virtually the same throughout the life of the mine.
more benches are opened up.

 The face of the mine advances very rapidly laterally but

 The material is mostly loosened by ripping or blasting.
not longitudinally.
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QUARRYING AUGER MINING

 This is employed in recovering coal from the high wall

 This involves the extraction of the industrial minerals at the pit limit by means of large diameter auger
such as sand, gravel, building stones, granite, machines.
limestone, clay, etc.
 The auger highwall mining method is an effective
method to recover coal from a reserve when removal of
 These materials may be loose and unconsolidated the overburden by surface mining equipment becomes
(sand, clay, gravel) and therefore require no blasting. uneconomical.

 OR, the material may be hard and consolidated  In this method of mining (see Figures 1 and 2) , a
(granite, limestone) and therefore loosened by ripping horizontal auger enters the coal seam from the surface
or blasting. mine bench under the highwall and the coal is literally
drilled in a series of parallel holes.
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AUGER MINING AUGER MINING

Conclusion Conclusion
 In all these surface mining activities the principles and  In all these surface mining activities the principles and
machinery employed are practically the same. machinery employed are practically the same.

 The method adopted are dependent on the nature and  The method adopted are dependent on the nature and
type of deposit – such as benching, machinery, drilling type of deposit – such as benching, machinery, drilling
& blasting etc. & blasting etc.

Fig. 1 Auger Mining Fig. 2 Auger Mining

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

 This includes both in-situ techniques and surface

mining techniques (solvent leaching of mineral values
from heaps, dumps or insoluble matrix of host rock).
 The various techniques of
 The solution that contains the dissolved mineral is Solution Mining are
called pregnant solution. described:

 It is employed in mining soluble minerals such as salt

(e.g. common salt or potash).

 The pregnant solution is pumped to the surface for

concentration or treatment at the Treatment Plant.

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

Bottom injection Top injection

 Water is pumped down an inner tube and the dissolved
solution (e.g. brine) pumped up throughout-the outer  Reverses the direction of flow.
tube.

 The water or solvent is pumped down through the

 The saturated fluid is produced through the annulus outer tube and the bearing solution pumped up
between the tubing and the casing. through the inner tube.

 It is also referred to as Normal flow.  The fluid is injected through the annulus and
produced via the tubing.

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

The Frasch Process

In-situ Leaching (ISL)
 Applied to minerals such as sulphur.

 Applied on low grade uranium or copper deposits.

 Super-heated steam is injected into the mineral-bearing
formation to generate a sulphur solution that can be
recovered.  A typical uranium mining operation requires injection,
 Injection wells are not being used to extract sulfur at this
extraction, and monitoring wells.
time.
 The process includes the following steps:

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

 Injection wells are drilled into the formation containing

the uranium.
 At the surface, uranium is separated from the
lixiviant and the lixiviant is then injected to extract
 A solution known as a lixiviant is injected and allowed to more uranium.
remain in contact with the rocks long enough to dissolve
the uranium ore.
 The process includes the following steps.

 When the lixiviant is almost saturated with uranium, the

fluid is brought to the surface via a production well.

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

Flooding and leaching of a mine

Multiple Well Systems
 Mainly done after a mine has been worked out
 A series of bore holes are drilled into the ore zone.
 Applicable to copper mines to dissolve the
 The solvent is pumped down some of the remaining mineral.
boreholes which serve as injection wells

 The pregnant solution is recovered through Breaking of the in-situ ore

production wells.  This is done by atomic bombing before using the
leaching process.

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SOLUTION MINING SOLUTION MINING

Heap leaching Heap leaching

 Is actually a recovery method and not a mining  Dilute cyanide solution (for Au bearing ores) or
method. sulphuric acid (in the case of Cu bearing ores),
etc., is sprayed continuously on the heap (pile) for
 Used in recovering low grade copper, gold or silver a long time (up to 60 days in some cases).
ores.
 The solvent percolates through the heap (pile), to
 The broken ore is usually heaped on an dissolves the mineral of interest.
impermeable pad.
 The mineral is collected and drained from the
impermeable pad layer to a solution pond or dam
for clarification.
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SOLUTION MINING STRIPPING RATIO

Heap leaching cont’d

 It is pumped to the treatment plant for recovery of  The stripping ratio represents the uneconomic
the mineral of interest. material that must be removed to uncover one unit
of ore.
 AGA – Iduapriem Mine, GGL – Tarkwa Mine etc.,
employ the heap leaching technique to recover  The ratio of the total volume of waste removed
gold from some of their ores. during the life of the mine to the total volume of ore
mined in the same period.
 It is usually applied to low grade oxidised or
laterites ores.

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

 The overall stripping ratio, R is the ratio of the volume of

waste to the ore volume. It is give as

Volume of waste removed to depth d

R
Volume of ore recovered to depth d

ABD

BCED

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

 While the overall stripping ratio has a volume CUT-OFF SR or Break-Even SR

relationship, calculated in m3/m3, it is commonly  This is the stripping ratio at which the cost of mining
expressed in units of tons/tons. the ore and waste is equal to the revenue from that
ore.
 In mining certain mineral commodities, the stripping
ratio is expressed in units of cubic yards/ton (m3/t).  The Break-Even Stripping Ratio (BESR) is given as.

 The overall stripping ratio may also be defined as the

total volume of waste to the total volume of ore mined
during the life of the mine.

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

CUT-OFF SR or Break-Even SR CUT-OFF SR or Break-Even SR

 The controlling factors in the choice between open pit
mining and underground mining are mining cost, ore  Dilution is when waste becomes part of the ore as
recovery and dilution. the waste/ore interface is mined.

 In an open pit mining operation, mining cost include

 This waste dilutes the grade of the ore.
the cost of removing the waste overburden and
waste in the slopes of the pit.
 The dilution may occur at top or hanging wall
contact and at the bottom or footwall contact
 The ratio of waste to ore is the controlling factor in
between the ore and the waste.
the comparative cost of mining an ore body by open
pit or underground method.
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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

 Ore loss is the ore that is lost into the waste as the  Only that part of the ore body where the stripping ratio
ore/waste interface is mined. does not exceed 4.86 tons waste: 1 ton ore should be
mined by open pit methods.
 Mining recovery is the percentage of the in-situ ore that
is recovered in the mining process taking into account
all losses.  It is therefore reasonable to update the long-term plan
of the mining project at regular intervals.
 Example: Assume an underground mining cost of
$2.00/ton of ore for a particular ore body. Assume open  Commodity prices fluctuate, often on a daily basis and
pit mining costs $0.30/ton for ore and $0.35/ton for mining costs are always changing usually upwards,
waste removal. Determine the indicated stripping ratio so the overall mine plan and the overall strip ratio will
for an open pit mine operation that results in a break- also change over the life of the mine.
even cost differential between the two mining methods.
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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

 These changes mean that there is a constant need to  Declining Stripping Ratio Method
update the long range mine plans and examine if
changes have to be made to the way the mine is
worked.  Increasing Stripping Ratio Method

 There are three ways that a mine can be worked in  Constant Stripping Ratio Method.
relation to the overall stripping ratios.

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Declining Stripping Ratio Method

 In this method, each bench is mined in sequence

so that all the ore and waste on a specific bench
are mined out to the pit limits.

Illustration of the Decline Stripping Ratio Method

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Declining Stripping Ratio Method

Declining Stripping Ratio Method

The advantages include:

 Excellent working space on bench;
 Good accessibility to ore on lower benches;
 Reduced contamination of ore from blasting waste;
and
 Less equipment needed at end of mine life.

Illustration of the Decline Stripping Ratio Method

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Declining Stripping Ratio Method Increasing Stripping Ratio Method

 Stripping is performed as needed to uncover the
The main disadvantages are: ore
 Operating costs are maximum in initial years.

 Sufficient waste is therefore mined on each

 Reduced initial cash flow bench to give adequate working room for
equipment

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Increasing Stripping Ratio Method

 The working slopes of the waste faces are

essentially maintained parallel to the overall pit
slope angle

 This method is often used where mining

economics are likely to change at short notice.

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Increasing Stripping Ratio Method

The advantages are

 Maximum profit in initial years is achieved

 There is a reduction in investment risk.

 The main disadvantage is that it is very difficult to

efficiently simultaneously mine a large number of
stacked narrow benches.

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Constant Stripping Ratio Method

Constant Stripping Ratio Method

 This method attempts to coordinate the waste

removal so that the annual strip ratio is equal to the
overall strip ratio for the ultimate pit.

 The working slope of the waste starts very shallow

but increases as the mining depth increases until
the working slope equals the overall pit slope.
Illustration of the Increasing Stripping Ratio Method

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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Constant Stripping Ratio Method

Constant Stripping Ratio Method

The advantages are:

 Equipment & manpower remain relatively
constant.

 Distinct mining and stripping areas can be

operated simultaneously, allowing for flexibility in
planning.

 Compromise method gives good cash flow over

Illustration of the Increasing Stripping Ratio Method
project life.
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STRIPPING RATIO STRIPPING RATIO

Conclusion
Constant Stripping Ratio Method  In reality, the best stripping sequence for a large ore
body is one in which the rate is low during the initial
The disadvantages are: stages and towards the end of the mine life.
 Requires very careful-planning; and
 Does not maximize profit as some waste removal  Thus, many mines will try and plan for a low stripping
may be done earlier than necessary. ratio at the start of the project, accepting an
increasing strip ratio in mid-life and targeting a low
strip ratio at the end of the mine life.

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STRIPPING RATIO SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery

Conclusion
 Excavators: rope shovels, power shovels/hydraulic

 This method allows for better equipment and shovels, backhoes.

manpower planning.
 Front-end-loaders(F.E.Ls)

 It also gives good early cash flows when needed to  Draglines

pay off debt; and  Bucket-wheel-excavators (BWEs)

 Bucket–chain-excavators(BCEs)
 It usually permits more flexibility in mine planning
 Dredges: Suction; bucket-chain

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery

Backhoe Excavator Loading a Dump Truck Front-End-Loader Loading a Dump Truck

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery

Bucket Wheel Excavator Teeth of Bucket Wheel Excavator

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery

Bucket Chain Excavator Power Shovel

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Excavating or Loading or Digging Machinery

Transport or Haulage machinery

 Rail haulage

 Truck haulage

 Conveyor haulage

 Hydraulic haulage.

Power Shovel - combination

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT

Transport or Haulage machinery Transport or Haulage machinery

Rope Haulage System - Mining in the Swiss Alps Dump Truck

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SURFACE MINING EQUIPMENT REFERENCE MATERIALS

Transport or Haulage machinery

Bullivant, D. A. (1987), “Current Surface Mining Techniques”, Journal for

the Transportation of Materials in Bulk: Bulk Solids Handling, Vol. 7,
No. 6, pp. 827 – 833.

Hartman, H. L. and Jan, M. (2002), Introductory Mining Engineering,

Wiley & Sons, 570 pp.

Hartman, H. L., Jan, M. and Hamrin, M. H. (1998), Choosing an

Underground Mining Method, Gerctch, R. E. & Bulluck, R. L. (Eds.),
Atlas Copco MCT AB, 374 pp.

Hartman, H. L. (1988), Elements of Mining, Prentice Hall, New York, 453

pp.
Dump Truck and Conveyor belt Transportation System

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