Localised Uniform Conditioning (LUC): A New Approach for Direct Modelling of Small Blocks

Recoverable mineralisation at a given mining selectivity is traditionally modelled from sparse data grids by non-linear geostatistical techniques such as Uniform Conditioning. This method estimates the tonnage and grade of mineralisation which can be extracted as small selective minable blocks from large blocks (panels), whose grade is modelled by Ordinary Kriging. Uniform Conditioning technique estimates the proportions of recoverable mineralisation in each panel without specifying the actual locations of the economically extractable blocks. This inability to predict a spatial location of the recoverable mineralisation is a major disadvantage of the conventional Uniform Conditioning method. A new approach, called Localised Uniform Conditioning, has been developed to overcome this limitation. This method applies the grade–tonnage relationships modelled by the Uniform Conditioning technique to the spatial grade distribution patterns approximated by direct kriging of the small blocks from the sparse data grid. This approach estimates localised selective mining units grades conforming to the proper grade–tonnage curves obtained by the Uniform Conditioning method as well as maintaining the relative spatial grade distribution pattern indicated by the directly kriged small block grades. The advantage of this approach is essentially dependent upon the data available for ranking the small blocks within a panel in increasing order of their grade. Ordinary Kriging of the small blocks can be used for their ranking providing the kriged estimates produce a meaningful indication of the relative grade pattern. Where the data is sparse and not close to a panel, or their distribution is characterised by a strong short-range variability, the advantages of using the Localised Uniform Conditioning approach are more limited.     

A comparative study of kriging and simulation-based methods in classifying ore and waste blocks

Ore grade is the most important source of uncertainty in a mining operation which plays an important role to classify run-of-mine (ROM) material into ore and waste parcels. As a widely used method, kriging estimator is used to estimate the grade of ore blocks. In conventional mining practices, if the estimated grade of a parcel is above the cut-off grade, this parcel is classified as ore, otherwise, is labelled as a waste parcel. An alternative approach is to simultaneously consider the grade of parcels and the economic consequences of sending parcels to destinations by applying simulation-based methods. In this study, kriging and simulation-based methods including loss and profit functions are applied on a real-world case study to classify ore/waste material based on the initial exploration data. Then, the actual known data, collected from blast holes samples, are compared with the estimated results in order to validate the performance of the presented methods. Outcomes show that simulation-based methods can perform better and show more adjustability with real data.     

矿区尺度的品位-吨位模型研究探讨——以崤山金矿区为例

矿床品位-吨位模型属于矿床统计模型,是矿产资源潜力评价的重要组成部分。依据河南省陕县金矿储量核查成果数据,选取崤山金矿区为研究对象,利用SPSS软件及Excel对全矿区75个金矿矿体块段品位、吨位数据进行频率分布分析与处理,然后进行P-P图及Q-Q图正态检验,建立了矿体块段品位模型、吨位模型、品位-吨位联合模型。总结了崤山金矿区矿体块段品位及吨位分布的典型数学地质特征,并探讨了品位-吨位模型在该矿区资源预测评价中的作用,为今后矿区的地质工作提供指导。     

紫金山矿集区地质特征、矿床模型与勘查实践

紫金山矿集区位于福建省上杭县城北约15 km处,是一个典型的与陆相火山活动有关的斑岩-浅成低温热液型铜钼金矿床成矿系统,分布于长14 km、宽4km范围中,已探明高硫化浅成中低温热液型特大型金、铜矿床各1处,低硫化热液型大型银多金属矿床2处,斑岩型铜钼矿床1处,中小型铜、金矿床3处.文章结合近年来在该矿集区找矿取得的重大进展,介绍了创新性地质找矿的实践经验:一是开展三维地质建模;二是开展蚀变矿物短波红外光谱测试和解译,建立蚀变找矿模型;三是注重物化探资料的应用和二次开发,建立物化探找矿模型;四是以大量真实的生产技术经济指标为基础,以资源利用最大化为原则,开展矿床动态评价,指导成矿预测,提高找矿效率.     

某金矿技术经济评价及品位指标优化研究

根据某金矿床的地质特征,利用地质统计学方法对矿床的地质储量进行了评估,并给出了矿石量、金属量及品位的数学模型。在矿山现行生产能力的基础上,对矿山未来开发经济效益进行了２７５个方案的评价,并利用模糊数学理论对各方案进行了多目标优化决策 。     

Forecasting Recoverable Ore Reserves and Their Uncertainty at Morila Gold Deposit, Mali: An Efficient Simulation Approach and Future Grade Control Drilling

Forecasting of recoverable reserves aims to predict the tonnages and grades that will be recovered at the time of mining. The main concern in this forecasting is the imprecision in the selection of ore/waste resulting from both the so-called information effect or information that becomes available during grade control, and the support effect or mining selectivity during mining. Existing approaches to recoverable reserve estimation account for mining selectivity; however, they largely ignore the information effects from future data becoming available through grade control practices. An application at the Morila gold deposit, Mali, is utilized in this paper to document a new simulation-based approach for recoverable reserve forecasting that incorporates the potential effects of future grade control data. This accounts for the information effect as well as changes in data quantity and quality over time. In addition, the case study at the Morila mine elucidates the use of a newer, very efficient, and practical alternative to traditional simulation techniques. This direct block simulation method forecasts recoverable reserves directly into the selective mining unit (support) size under consideration. The case study demonstrates the practical uncertainty assessment of the recoverable reserves within the deposit, so that expected inaccuracies in the selection of ore /waste can be accounted for. This allows for fully informed mining decisions to be made that incorporate the effects of information and selectivity while quantifying the potential impact of uncertainty on the mine operation and its final economic outcome.     

中国铁矿床品位-吨位模型

文章以2005年国家有关部门公布的铁矿储量数据为依据,在拥有翔实和权威的铁矿数据材料的基础上,经过分析整理和统计计算,以铁矿的6种矿床类型(沉积变质型、沉积型、矽卡岩型、岩浆岩型、火山岩型和风化型)为划分依据,建立了中国铁矿及其伴生矿种的品位和吨位模型,并对其品位-吨位联合分布的模型进行了研究。通过研究得出结论,中国铁矿的资源量不服从正态分布,经过对数变换后服从正态分布,品位除了矽卡岩之外都直接服从正态分布。由于铁矿的品位和吨位之间相关性较差,因而不具备分形特征。最后通过建立吨位和品位的直方图来构造正态分布函数,从而实现累计概率曲线的拟合。在取得了远景区的矿床类型、矿床数分布以及矿床的品位和吨位的累计概率曲线后,可以使用计算机通过蒙特卡洛模拟的方法来实现远景区资源量的预测和模拟。     

Geotechnical properties of cemented paste backfill from Cannington Mine,Australia

Paste fill is the newest form of backfill material in the spectrum available to international mines and is made from full mill tailings. Tailings have an effective grain size of approximately 5 μm and are combined with a small portion of binder and water to make paste. It is deposited into the voids created by mining which are referred to as stopes. The empty voids are approximated as vertical rectangular prisms, with plan dimensions of 15–40 m and heights of 100 m or more. Backfilling of mined stopes provide an increased level of local and regional stability to the ore body, as well as providing a suitable and economic dump of mining related waste. Paste is a relatively new technology in the mining industry and a review of the physical properties and mechanical fill behaviour was considered pertinent.     

克里格法在离子吸附型稀土矿勘查储量估算中的应用

我国在离子吸附型稀土矿勘查工作中,一般采用地质块段法估算储量,块段法是将矿体划分为不同厚度的块段投影到水平或垂直方向上,块段的划分、各块段的面积和厚度、品位都会影响储量估算结果。本文以赣南某离子吸附型稀土矿床作为研究对象,基于先期勘探钻孔数据资料,运用三维建模软件创建了该矿床钻孔数据库,建立了矿区内矿体的三维DTM模型;采用克里格法对矿体进行稀土氧化物品位分析,将克里格法的储量计算结果与块段法的储量计算结果作对比分析。结果显示,克里格法计算的矿体体积比块段法增加了11.8%,稀土氧化物储量增加了15%,与实际勘探数据相比较,克里格法的计算结果基本合理,且具有快速、准确、方便的特点。本文利用自主开发的以克里格法为基础的三维数字矿山经济评价系统中价格-边界品位敏感性分析模块,动态设置边界品位,灵活圈定不同价格下经济可采的矿体边界,如当精矿的市场价格从10万元/吨变化为12万元/吨时,通过计算获得了此矿山经济可采矿体的空间扩展范围。基于克里格法的三维估算系统能够帮助矿山选择合理的采矿工程布置,有利于满足矿山动态管理的需要以及保证矿产资源的合理利用。     

陕西铜峪铜矿床地质特征及非常规采矿方法的探索与实践

：铜峪铜矿床是火山岩磁黄铁矿黄铁矿型铜矿床,矿体多,矿床规模小,品位低;矿体厚度变化大,矿体与围岩属渐变过渡关系,采矿极易贫化.采用非常规开采,即开拓（直接沿矿体拉底、切割）—形成矿房—在矿房内按一定间距拉槽—最后在矿体下盘施工运输坑道—再按常规开采,有效降低了贫化率,提高了矿山的经济效益.     

Grade Control Classification of Ore and Waste: A Critical Review of Estimation and Simulation Based Procedures

For a mining operation, minimizing misclassification of ore and waste during grade control is of critical importance. This paper reviews grade control procedures for classifying ore and waste that are based on estimation and conditional simulation approaches. The similarities and differences of the procedures are first discussed in the light of an example. Subsequently, several case studies, including actual operating mines, are presented. The theoretical review shows that conditional simulation is generally better than estimation for ore and waste classification, especially when the profit value of a block is a nonlinear function of the grade of the block. The case studies, however, indicate that, in the context of daily grade control, the value of conditional simulation over good estimation is relatively low compared to the value of improving general practices at mine sites.     

Assessment and prediction of contaminant migration in ground water from chromite waste dump

Sukinda chromite valley is one of the largest chromite deposits of the country and produces nearly 8% of chromite ore. It greatly contributes towards the economic development but at the same time deteriorates the natural environment. It is generally excavated by opencast mining method. In the Sukinda mining area, around 7.6 million tons of solid waste have been generated in the form of rejected minerals, overburden material/waste rock and sub-grade ore that may be resulting in environmental degradation, mainly causing lowering in the water table vis-à-vis deterioration in surface and ground water quality. The study conducted in and around one of the chromite mine of the valley reveals that the concentration of hexavalent chromium is found in the water samples of ground and surface water, mine effluents and seepage water. Hexavalent Chromium (Cr⁺⁶) have been found varying between 0.02 mg/l and 0.12 mg/l in mine effluents and 0.03–0.8 mg/l in shallow hand pumps and 0.05 and 1.22 mg/l in quarry seepage. The concentration of Cr⁺⁶ in Damsal nalah, the main surface water source in the area, is found varying between 0.03 mg/l and 0.14 mg/l and a increasing trend, which is in the downstream of mining activities, has been observed. Leachate study clearly shows that the soil lying in the vicinity of mine waste dump shows highest concentration of Cr⁺⁶. Contaminant migration in ground water depends upon various geohydrological conditions of the area. The study shows that aquifer resistivity varies between 15 Ωm to 150 Ωm and aquifer depth varies from 4 m to 26 m below ground level. The ground water flow and mass transport models were constructed with the help of geo-hydrological and geophysical informations using Visual Modflow software. Contaminant migration and path lines for 20 years have been predicted in two layers model of ground water. The study provided an insight into the likely migration of contaminant in ground water due to leaching from overburden dump of chromite ore and will be helpful in making strategic planning for limiting the contaminant migration in the ground water regime in and around the mining areas.     

An environmental oriented model for optimum cut-off grades in open pit mining projects to minimize acid mine drainage

Environmental concerns on mining activities started near the end of the 20^th century and is still underway. Due to mining activities, the adverse environmental impact has been significant throughout the history of mankind, whereas the minerals produced by mining activities have been providing the basis for human civilization. The legacy of past mining practices is large quantities of acid generating waste materials and tailings that caused abounding acid mine drainage problems. Modern mining environmental management tends to focus on concerns over the impact of waste disposal on surface primarily in the form of tailings and waste materials structures. Sustainable development principles are being increasingly applied by mining companies in developed and developing countries. Operating costs per unit of operation is recognized to be one the most important sustainable mining practice indicator and cut-off grade is considered to be a well-founded representative for this indicator. In this study, a developed model for optimum cut-off grades is presented that not only relies on economical aspects but also minimizes adverse environmental impact in the form of acid mine drainage elimination or mitigation against the approach of postponing the restoration/reclamation activities at the end of the project’s life.     

Gold Grade and Tonnage Models of the Gold Deposits, China

Abstract: The gold grade and tonnage modelling is applied to some types of the gold deposits in China, including placer, Archaean lode, slate belt, Carlin, volcanogenic, skarn and Shandong Peninsula, among others. The Shandong Peninsula type denotes the gold deposit, which was formed in an intensely reshaped Archaean greenstone belt. The modelling results show: (1) the Archaean lode gold deposits of China are similar to the Homestake type in gold grades. (2) The Chinese slate belt type gold deposits are marked by moderately lower gold grades but considerably larger ore volumes than the similar type elsewhere. (3) The Carlin style gold deposits of China are identified by higher Au grades but evidently smaller sizes in comparison with their counterparts in western North America. (4) The volcanogenic (continental) style is similar to Sado epithermal veins in gold grade‐tonnage models and general characteristics while volcanogenic gold deposits of the oceanic subgroup contrast with Kuroko‐type deposits in the gold grade model. But the Chinese volcanogenic (oceanic) subtype (Palaeozoic age) shows similar higher gold grades to those of the Palaeozoic Kuroko‐type deposits elsewhere. (5) Porphyry and skarn gold deposits tend to have a large size but low grade. (6) Less than half of the Shandong Peninsula gold deposits are of ore volumes exceeding the 50th intercept of the relevant gold tonnage model, implying possible undiscovered gold deposits with a larger size in the peninsula. (7) In general, Chinese gold deposits of larger sizes tend to have lower gold grades in relation to gold grade models. (8) Gold grade‐tonnage models can be effectively influenced by how to include or exclude non‐economic gold resources in the modelling. Ore volumes of gold deposits actually to some extent depend on gold grades. Consequently, the way of including or excluding low‐grade values may effect a gold grade‐tonnage model and cause different interpretation of the modelling results. This is particularly true to the gold deposits, which generally show an inverse correlation between gold grade and tonnage.     

影响矿石边界品位的主要因素及其动态性

在市场经济体制下,矿石边界品位的确定主要取决于矿山建设的内、外部条件和矿山经营经济参数.矿石边界品位属于动态参数,依矿床开发过程中所处的内、外部条件和矿山经营经济参数的变化而改变.     

Bootstrapping: A Fast Way to Simulate QTz Curves

The aim of this paper is to present a fast method based on bootstrapping, for simulating recoverable reserves for input to financial Monte Carlo simulations. In mining, the three parameters defining recoverable reserves are the cutoff grade, z, the ore tonnage above cutoff, T, and the metal quantity above cutoff, Q. After introducing the concept of 3-dimensional QTz curves, the statistical technique called bootstrapping is reviewed and applied to a set of South African gold grades. As selective mining is carried out on blocks not points, these curves have to be calculated for blocks. The QTz curves obtained by bootstrapping are compared to those obtained by conditionally simulating the same deposit. The procedure has been extended to incorporate geologists' ideas of the likely size of the ore volume. Lastly, the recoverable reserves obtained by bootstrapping are compared with those obtained by traditional risk analysis (base case ± 10% or 20%).     

福建紫金山金矿露采矿石质量预算方法

结合矿床地质特征和露采工艺特点，通过几何切面分析法建立分析模型图，推导出紫金矿露采矿石质量预算公式。已知矿体平均品位、水平厚度、倾角、边际和围岩品位、采矿台阶高度、开拓方向与矿体走向间夹角、岩矿石安息角、地质矿量等9项参数，且当炮孔倾向与平台推进方向基本平行，矿岩体重也近于一致时，露采矿山可以准确预算出矿品位、贫化率、损失率和出矿量。据此预算结果还可对上述可变参数进行动态分析，以便增加经济和社会效益。     

Effects of search parameters on kriged reserve estimates

Summary Reliable ore reserve estimates for deposits with highly skewed grade distributions are difficult tasks to perform. Although some recent geostatistical techniques are available to handle problems with these estimations, ordinary kriging or conventional interpolation methods are still widely used to estimate the ore reserves for such deposits. The estimation results can be very sensitive to the search parameters used during the interpolation of grades with these methods.This paper compares the ore reserve estimates from ordinary kriging using several cases in which certain search parameters are varied. The comparisons are extended to different mineralizations to show the changing effects of these parameters.