Emplaced Geotechnical Characteristics of Hydraulic Fills in a Number of Australian Mines

Hydraulic fills used in Australian mines have similar grain size distributions whilst having quite different specific gravity values, typically in the range of 2.7–4.4. When produced and distributed in slurry at 65–75% by solid content, they settle to produce fills with similar geotechnical characteristics. The fills under investigation have been found to settle, in the laboratory, to a dry density of about 0.56 × specific gravity, a saturation water content of about 17–34%, and a porosity of 37–49%. A quick estimate of the optimum water content that gives the minimum porosity may be obtained by locating the intersection of the saturation curve and minimum porosity line, which may simply be done on a water content vs. porosity plot. However, transportability of the slurry requires it to be mixed at water content substantially greater than the optimum water content. As the tailings settle out of suspension, they settle to relative density of 50–80%. This paper shows that the current empirical relationships relating relative density and N-value to friction angle for sands will significantly underestimate the friction angle of the hydraulic fills. Based on limited experimental data, a unique relationship between relative density and friction angle is proposed for hydraulic fills placed in some Australian mines.     

Methods of metal release assessment in soil water at anoxic sites

Metal mobility at contaminated sites can be assessed by soil water investigations or by leaching tests. Leaching tests are usually carried out in open contact with the atmosphere disregarding possible changes of redox conditions. This can affect the original metal speciation and distribution, particularly when anoxic samples are investigated. In this study, the applicability of common leaching tests (the German S4 test (S4), ammonium nitrate extraction (AmmN), and saturation soil extraction (SSE)) is tested for the assessment of zinc release from sulfide‐bearing flotation residues of a former ore mine. Results are compared to soil solution samples obtained by centrifugation and suction cups. The influence of sample storage on S4 leaching test results is investigated in a long‐term study to assess oxidation kinetics. Within the first 200 days the release of zinc increases with a slope of 0.1 mmol kg^–1 d^–1 or 6.0 mg kg^–1 d^–1, respectively. Since oxidation of the sulfide‐bearing samples leads to a significant overestimation of metal release, a feasible modification for the conduction of leaching tests for anoxic material is proposed where oxidation is prevented efficiently. The modified SSE is found to be the only of the tested leaching procedures, which can be recommended for the assessment of current soil water concentrations at anoxic sites if direct investigation of the soil water is impossible due to technical reasons.     

Enzyme leach anomalies associated with deep Mississippi Valley-type zinc ore bodies at the Elmwood Mine, Tennessee

Deeply buried Mississippi Valley-type deposits that have been or are currently being mined in North America were initially discovered by drilling. Conventional geochemical methods are ineffective for detecting these ‘blind' deposits when they occur deep within sequences of stable-platform carbonates and shales. The ‘enzyme' leach is a selective analytical technique for determining trace elements associated with amorphous Mn oxide coatings in soils. In many areas of the world, the enzyme leach method is useful for detecting low-level geochemical anomalies in soils, which are associated with blind mineral deposits. Enzyme leach analysis of soils, collected at the Elmwood Mine, Tennessee, revealed high-contrast anomalies over ore bodies 370 m below the surface. In areas where the soils are in chemical equilibrium, ‘combination' anomalies occur over Zn ore bodies. These are characterized by asymmetrical halogen halos which occur around a halogen ‘central low'. Commodity metals (Zn and Pb) and trace elements associated with the ore (Cd, Ba, and Mn) form apical anomalies, which occur over the ore bodies and within the halogen halo. Under most circumstances, agricultural practices do not affect enzyme leach results. However, agricultural activity in central Tennessee appears to have altered the proportion of amorphous Mn oxides in the soils in some locations. Where the MnO₂-form equilibrium of the soil has been disturbed, enzyme leach data are erratic. In the one instance where this was encountered, ratioing the data to Mn reveals anomalies which bracket the blind ore bodies.     

A laboratory study of the biogeochemical cycling of Fe,Mn, Zn and Cu across the sediment-water interface of a productive lake

Laboratory incubation experiments were carried out on sediment cores collected from Esthwaite Water, U.K., during April 1987, when the sediments displayed a characteristic surface (1.5 to 2 cm) oxide floc. The experiments were undertaken at 10°C, in the dark, under variable redox and pH conditions for periods of ~ 720 h (30 d). In some cases, realistic amounts of decomposing lake algae were added to simulate the deposition of an algal bloom. Pore waters and overlying waters were obtained from the incubated sediment cores at various time intervals and the samples analysed for pH and dissolved Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu by AAS. The results demonstrated that trace metal concentrations at the sediment-water interface can show rapid, pulsed responses to episodic events associated with controlling factors such as algal deposition and mixing conditions. The variations in dissolved Fe and Mn concentrations could generally be explained by their well known redox behaviour. Appreciable loss of Mn from solution under conditions of well-developed anoxia was consistent with adsorption of Mn²⁺ by FeS. Cu and Zn were both rapidly (24 h) released into solution during incubation of sediment cores prior to the development of anoxia in the overlying waters. Their most likely sources were the reductive remobilization of Mn oxides and the decomposition of organic matter. The addition of decomposing algae to a series of cores resulted in even higher interfacial dissolved concentrations of Cu and Zn, probably through acting as a supplementary source of the metals and through increased oxide dissolution. Switching from anoxic to oxic conditions also rapidly increased dissolved Cu and Zn concentrations, possibly due to their release during the oxidation of metal sulphides. The enhanced releases of dissolved Cu and Zn were generally short-lived with removal being attributed to the formation of sulphides during anoxia and to adsorption by Fe and Mn oxides under oxic conditions.     

GPS-RTK技术监测露天矿边坡的研究与实践

介绍了GPS—RTK露天矿边坡监测系统基本情况，阐述了GPS—RTK技术监测露天矿边坡的过程及技术要点。     

金属矿山井下热源分析

金属矿山井下生产过程中，对劳动者最直接的危害因素主要为温度、湿度、矿尘、有毒有害气体等，导致温湿度变化的主要因素是去下热源及热应力，因此对井下热源进行调查分析就成为我们改善井下环境的首要任务。     

中性厌氧环境中硫酸盐还原菌导致锌的腐蚀行为研究

以锌为研究对象,使用表面表征方法和电化学测试,研究了一个培养周期内硫酸盐还原菌（Sulfate-reducing bacteria,SRB）Desulfovibrio vulgaris（D.vulgaris）引起锌（Zn）试样腐蚀行为的影响。实验结果表明,SRB导致Zn试样发生了严重的均匀腐蚀和点蚀。浸泡7天后,SRB体系中的Zn试样平均失重为32.2 mg/cm²,是无菌培养基中试样平均失重的42倍,腐蚀产物主要为ZnS。生物膜和腐蚀产物膜的累积在培养初期可以减缓金属基体与溶液界面的电子传输过程,导致腐蚀速率减缓。培养中后期,由于生物膜和腐蚀产物膜的阻隔作用,导致混合膜层底部有机碳源缺乏,SRB转向Zn获取自身所需电子,表现为腐蚀速率上升。     

煤矿采空沉陷预测因素分析及计算方法

采空沉陷的预测是矿山开发利用、矿山地质环境保护与治理的重要依据,该文论述了影响煤矿采空沉陷预测的各种因素和应注意的问题,提出了易操作、直观、可动态管理的计算方法,以及矿山在开始采矿之前必须开展地表岩移监测等合理化建议。     

Influence of diurnal cycles on metal concentrations and loads in streams draining abandoned mine lands: an example from High Ore Creek,Montana

Diurnal water samples were collected simultaneously at four locations along High Ore Creek (Montana, USA), a small stream with near-neutral pH that contains elevated concentrations of Zn, Mn, Cd, and As from abandoned mines near its headwaters. During the same time period, two sets of synoptic samples were collected by workers moving in opposite directions along the stream. Large diurnal fluctuations in Zn concentration were found at three of the 24-h monitoring stations, but not at the outlet to a settling pond. Because the concentrations of Zn were dropping at most locations in the creek during the day (in response to the daily cycle of day-time attenuation and night-time release), the synoptic sampler who moved upstream obtained a data set that led to the conclusion that Zn load increased with distance downstream. The sampler who moved in a downstream direction obtained the opposite results. Thus, failure to take short-term diurnal cycling into account can lead to incorrect conclusions regarding spatial or temporal trends in water quality within a watershed.     

元宝山露天矿疏干优化设计

从影响元宝山露天矿地下水疏干的主要水文地质参数随机性特征分析入手,建立并求解了元宝山露天矿疏干工程优化设计的随机地下水管理模型,揭示了水文地质参数随机性对管理模型结果的影响,认为参数的随机性越大,管理结果越坏;置信水平越高,管理结果越坏,且渗透系数和边界条件对管理结果影响最大。