Aggregate resources: Production and environmental constraints

Aggregates are produced from sand and gravel deposits or from bedrock sources. Production sites are numerous to minimize transport and are more and more in a competing land use position. Urbanization, while creating a market, also sterilizes deposits and pressures producers to relocate further from populated areas. Regulating and permitting quarries is an issue in regions with growing populations. This regulatory environment may cause exploitation schemes to evolve towards greater recycling, importing, and marine production, for example. These changes may be entirely attributable to increased environmental constraints on producing operations and not on conventional mining constraints such as overburden, ore grade, and costs of operation.     

四川省芦山—宝兴地区花岗石石材产出地质特征及其品质

本文扼要阐明四川省芦山－宝兴地区花岗石石材产出地质特征的基础上，重点讨论花岗石石材的品种、规模和质量。     

华南栖霞组菊花石假象内正延性玉髓的成因及其地质意义

正延性玉髓常被视为干旱蒸发沉积环境的标志。正延性玉髓亦广泛分布于华南地区栖霞组菊花石 (目前绝大多数为天青石假象 )内。本文在天青石后期矿物交代序列识别的基础上,通过对菊花石内各期次碳酸盐交代矿物的电子探针分析,发现菊花石内正延性玉髓形成于富含硫酸根离子和镁离子的成岩介质条件中。结合已有的正延性玉髓研究报道和栖霞组的沉积、成岩作用环境特征分析,认为华南地区栖霞组菊花石内正延性玉髓的形成环境与高蒸发沉积环境或高盐度成岩环境无关。因此,仅根据正延性玉髓的出现不足以确定沉积或成岩环境的盐度条件。     

四川龙门山地区阳新组灰岩地质特征及用途

二叠系阳新组灰岩厚度240~350 m，走向延伸大于50 km，出露面积15 km²以上，资源储量极为丰富.研究区0.6 km²范围内资源量为5193×10⁴ t.阳新组灰岩CaO含量49.87%~55.74%，MgO含量0.24%~2.80%，SiO₂含量0.38%~5.80%之间，SO₃含量0.01%~0.40%，K₂O+Na₂O含量0.02%~0.12%，均达到Ⅰ级水泥用料要求.饱和抗压强度41.6~82.4 MPa，坚固性1%~3%，压碎指标8.2%~9.6%；所有指标均符合建筑石料用要求.对阳新组灰岩地质特征、物理化学指标的分析评价显示，其可广泛运用于水泥、建筑石料等领域，具有重要的经济价值和意义.     

再议“贵美石”的分类

贵美石是所有用于制作装饰品、艺术品和雕刻品的美术工艺矿物原料的总称。在本文中笔者建议将其划分为五大类和若干亚类,即宝石、玉雕石、彩石、砚石、观赏石及其亚类。     

观赏石及其分类

本文首先介绍了观赏石的概念,然后提出了观赏石的命名原则,进而按矿物的化学成分和晶形、岩石的成因、化石种类、陨石的化学和矿物成分、天然造型、用途等方面对观赏石进行了分类。最后阐明了观赏石是重要的自然资源。     

Aggregate production: Fines generation during rock crushing

The energy required to crush rocks is proportional to the amount of new surface area that is created; hence, a very important percentage of the energy consumed to produce construction aggregates is spent in producing non-commercial fines. Data gathered during visits to quarries, an extensive survey and laboratory experiments are used to explore the role of mineralogy and fracture mode in fines production during the crushing of single aggregates and aggregates within granular packs. Results show that particle-level loading conditions determine the failure mode, resulting particle shape and fines generation. Point loading (both single particles and grains in loose packings) produces clean fractures and a small percentage of fines. In choked operations, high inter-particle coordination controls particle-level loading conditions, causes micro-fractures on new aggregate faces and generates a large amount of fines. The generation of fines increases when shear is imposed during crushing. Aggregates produced in current crushing operations show the effects of multiple loading conditions and fracture modes. Results support the producers' empirical observations that the desired cubicity of aggregates is obtained at the expense of increased fines generation when standard equipment is used.     

Salt weathering in dual-porosity building dolostones

The influence of rock fabric on physical weathering due to the salt crystallization of selected brecciated dolostones is discussed. These dual-porosity dolostones are representative of heterogeneous and anisotropic building rocks, and present highly complex and heterogeneous rock fabric features. The pore structure of the matrix and clasts is described in terms of porosity and pore size distribution, whereas the relative strength for each textural component is assessed using the Knoop hardness test. The whole characterisation process was carried out using the same samples as those used in the standard salt durability test (EN-12370), including connected porosity, the water saturation coefficient, fissure density, compressional wave velocity and waveform energy.

Results show the most important rock fabric elements to be considered are the matrix and clast properties and the nature of fissures. Firstly, a relatively weak matrix was the focus of major granular disintegration as it presents high porosity, low pore radius and reduced strength. Secondly, narrow micro-fissures appear to be important in the decay process due to the effectiveness of crystallization pressure generated by salt growth. On the contrary, macro-fissures do not contribute greatly to rock decay since they act as sinks to consume the high supersaturations caused by growth of large crystals. Additionally, an analysis of stress generated by crystallization was carried out based on the general situation of a lenticular crystal geometry. Finally, the relationships between whole petrophysical properties and durability were established using a principal component analysis. This analysis has clearly established that the durability of rocks affected by salt crystallization mechanisms diminishes in weaker and anisotropic rocks with high porosity and fissure density.     

Equal strain consolidation for stone columns reinforced foundation

Column consolidation and deformation are considered by assuming that the quantity of water flowing through the disturbed soil zone into the column is not equal to that flowing out from the column and the difference between them is equal to the volume change of the column. In addition, three patterns of distribution of the horizontal permeability of soil in the disturbed zone are also considered to account for the disturbance effect of columns construction on the surrounding soil. These three patterns include the constant distribution pattern (Pattern I), the linear distribution pattern (Pattern II) and the parabolic distribution pattern (Pattern III). By incorporating the aforementioned characteristics into the analyses, the governing equations containing two variables (i.e. the average excess pore-water pressures within the column and within the entire foundation at any depth) for the consolidation of a composite foundation are derived. The solutions of the governing equations are then obtained using a new initial condition derived from the assumption of equal strain and the equilibrium condition. On the basis of the solutions for excess pore-water pressures, the average degree of consolidation of a composite foundation is obtained and discussed. Finally, a comparison is made of some available solutions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

田黄鉴定要把握的几个重要问题

目前社会上对田黄的界定和鉴别还存在着许多问题,如田黄名称的泛化和滥用、田黄鉴定衡量标准不一等等。本文就此提出了鉴定田黄要把握的几个问题,强调了田黄的次生特征对鉴定的重要性,阐述了真皮和假皮的鉴别要点。