Mining Due Diligence Checklist

Date: February 25, 2019 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 41 Replies
It doesn’t matter how long you have worked in the mining industry, at some point you will probably take part in a due diligence review. You might have been asked to help create a data room. Perhaps your company is looking at a potential acquisition. Maybe you’re a consultant with a particular expertise needed by a due diligence team. It’s likely that due diligence has impacted on many of us at some point in our careers.
The scope of a due diligence can be exceptionally wide. There are legal, marketing, and environmental aspects as well as all the technical details associated with a mining project. The amount of information provided can be overwhelming.

Checklists are great

Checklists are great and can be very helpful in a due diligence review. A detailed technical scope checklist is a great way to make sure things don’t fall through the cracks. A checklist helps keep a team on the same page and clarifies individual roles and tasks. Checklists bring focus and minimize sidetracking down unnecessary paths.
Recognizing this, I have created a personal due diligence checklist for these exercises. A screen shot of it is shown below. The list is mainly tailored for an undeveloped mining project still at the study stage, but it still has over 230 items that might need to be considered.

Every mining due diligence is unique

Not all of the items in the checklist are required for each review. Maybe you’re only doing a high level study to gauge management’s interest in a project. Maybe you’re undertaking a detailed review for an actual acquisition or financing event. It’s up to you to create your own checklist and highlight which items need to be covered off. The more items added the less risk of missing something in the end.
You a create your own checklist but if you would like a copy of mine just email me at KJKLTD@rogers.com and let me know a bit about how you plan to use it (for my own curiosity). Specify if you would prefer the Excel or PDF versions.
Please let me know if you see any items missing or if you have any comments.

Due Diligence isn’t for everyone

Mining due diligence exercises can be interesting and great learning experiences, even for senior people that have seen it all. However they can also be mentally taxing due to the volumes of information that one must find, review, and comprehend, all in a short period of time.
Some people are better at due diligence than others. It helps if one has the ability to quickly develop an understanding of a project. It also helps to know what key things to look for, since many risks are common among projects.
Further on the topic of mining due diligence, I have a previous blog post triggered by my frustrations with some poorly set up data rooms.  You can read that at “Due Diligence Data Rooms – Help!”  My request is that when setting up a mining data room, please think about the people who will be using it.
Note: If you would like to get notified when new blogs are posted, then sign up on the KJK mailing list on the website.  Otherwise I post notices on LinkedIn, so follow me at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenkuchling/.

Hydrogeology At Diavik – Its Complicated

Date: February 11, 2019 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 2 Replies
From 1997 to 2000 I was involved in the feasibility study and initial engineering for the Diavik open pit mine in the Northwest Territories. As you can see from the photo on the right, groundwater inflows were going to be a potential mining issue.
Predictions of mine inflow quantity and quality were required as part of the project design and permitting. Also integral to the mine operating plan were geotechnical issues, wall freezing issues, and methods for handling the seepage water.
This mine was going to be a unique situation. The open pit is located both within Lac de Gras and partly on exposed land (i.e. islands). The exposed land is underlain by permafrost of various depth while the rock mass under the lake was unfrozen. The sub-zero climate meant that pit wall seepage would turn into mega-icicles.
Phreatic pressures could buildup behind frozen pit walls. Many different factors were going to come into play in this mining operation so comprehensive field investigations would be required.

A good thing Rio Tinto was a 60% owner and the operator

Open Pit Slope

open pit wall

At no time did the engineering team feel that field budgets were restricted and that technical investigations were going to be limited. Unfortunately in my subsequent career working on other projects I have seen cases where lack of funds does impact the quantity (and quality) of technical field data.
The Golder Associates Vancouver hydrogeologcal team was brought on board to help out. Hydrogeological field investigations consisted of packer testing, borehole flowmeter testing, borehole temperature logging, and borehole camera imaging. Most of this work was done from ice level during the winter.
A Calgary based consultant undertook permafrost prediction modelling, which I didn’t even know was a thing at the time.
All of this information was used in developing a three-dimensional groundwater model. MODFLOW and MT3DMS were used to predict groundwater inflow volumes and water quality. The modelling results indicated that open pit inflows were expected to range up to 9,600 m3/day with TDS concentrations gradually increasing in time to maximum levels of about 440 mg/ℓ.
The groundwater modelling also showed that lake water re-circulating through the rock mass would eventually comprise more than 80% of the mine water handled.

Modelling fractured rock masses is not simple

Groundwater modelling of a fractured rock mass is different than modelling a homogeneous aquifer, like sand or gravel. Discrete structures in the rock mass will be the controlling factor on seepage rates yet such structures can be difficult to detect beforehand.
As an example, when Diavik excavated the original bulk sample decline under the lake, water inflows were encountered associated with open joints. However a single open joint was by far the most significant water bearing structure intercepted over the 600-metre decline length.
It resulted in temporary flooding of the decline, but was something that would be nearly impossible to find beforehand.

Before (2000) and After (2006) Technical Papers

Interestingly at least two technical papers have been written on Diavik by the project hydrogeologists. They describe the original inflow predictions in one paper and the actual situation in the second.
The 2000 paper describes the field investigations, the 1999 modeling assumptions, and results. You can download that paper here.
The subsequent paper (2006) describes the situation after a few years of mining, describing what was accurate, what was incorrect, and why. This paper can be downloaded here.
In essence, the volume of groundwater inflow was underestimated in the original model.  The hydraulic conductivity of the majority of the rock mass was found to be similar.  However a 30 metre wide broken zone, representing less than 10% of the pit wall, resulted in nearly twice as much inflow as was predicted.
The broken zone did not have a uniform permeability but consisted of sparely spaced vertical fractures. This characteristic made it difficult to detect the zone using only core logging and packer tests in individual boreholes.

Groundwater Models Should Not be Static

The original intent during initial design was the Diavik groundwater model would not be static.  It would continued to evolve over the life of the mine as more knowledge was acquired.
Now that Diavik has entered their underground mining stage, it would be interesting to see further updates on their hydrogeologcal performance. If anyone is aware of any subsequent papers on the project, please share.
One way to address excess amounts of pit wall seepage is through the use of pit perimeter depressurization wells.   In another blog post I discussed a new approach that allows direction drilling of wells to be done.  You can read that article at this link “Directional Drilling Open Pit Dewatering Wells – Great Idea“.
The entire blog post library can be found at this LINK with topics ranging from geotechnical, financial modelling, and junior mining investing.
Note: If you would like to get notified when new blogs are posted, then sign up on the KJK mailing list on the website.  Otherwise I post notices on LinkedIn, so follow me at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenkuchling/.

Mining Dilution Prediction – Its Not That Simple

Date: December 18, 2018 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 2 Replies
mining reserve estimation
Over my years of working on and reviewing mining studies, ore dilution often seems to be one of the much discussed issues.  It is deemed either too low or too high, too optimistic or too pessimistic.  Project economics can see significant impacts depending on what dilution factor is applied.  They are numerous instances where mines have been put into production, and excess dilution has subsequently led to their downfall.  Hence we need to take the time to think about what dilution is being applied and the basis for it.

Everyone has a preferred dilution method.

I have seen several different approaches for modelling and applying dilution.   It seems that engineers and geologists have their own personal favorites and tend to stick with them.   Here are some common dilution approaches that I have seen (and used myself).
1. Pick a Number:
This approach is quite simple.  Just pick a number that sounds appropriate for the orebody and the mining method.  There might not be any solid technical basis for the dilution value, but as long as it seems reasonable, it might go unchallenged.  Possibly its a dilution value commonly seen in numerous other studies.
2. SMU Compositing:
This approach takes each percent block (e.g.  a block is 20% waste and 80% ore) and mathematically composites it into a single Selective Mining Unit (“SMU”) block with an overall weighted average grade.  The SMU compositing approach will dilute the ore in the block with the contained waste.  Ultimately that might convert some highly diluted ore blocks to waste once a cutoff grade is applied.   Some engineers may apply an additional dilution percentage beyond the SMU compositing, while others will consider the blocks fully diluted at this step.
3. Diluting Envelope:
This approach assumes that a waste envelope surrounds the ore zone.  One estimates the volume of this envelope on different benches, assuming that it is mined with the ore.  The width of the waste envelope may be linked with the blast hole spacing used to define the ore and waste contacts for mining.  The diluting grade within the waste envelope can be estimated or one may simply assume a more conservative zero-diluting grade.   In this approach, the average dilution factor can be applied to the final production schedule to arrive at the diluted tonnages and grades sent to the process plant.
4. Diluted Block Model:
This dilution approach uses complex logic to look at individual blocks in the block model, determine how many waste contact sides each block has, and then mathematically applies dilution based on the number of contacts.  A block with waste on three sides would be more heavily diluted than a block with waste only on one side.   Usually this approach relies on a direct swap of ore with waste.  If a block gains 100 m3 of waste, it must then lose 100 m3 of ore to maintain the volume balance.   The production schedule derived from a “diluted” block model usually requires no subsequent dilution factor.
5. Using UG Stope Modelling
I have also heard about, but not yet used, a method of applying open pit dilution by adapting an underground stope
modelling tool.  By considering an SMU as a stope, automatic stope shape creators such as Datamine’s
Mineable Shape Optimiser (MSO) can be used to create wireframes for each mining unit over the entire
deposit. Using these wireframes, the model can be sub-blocked and assigned as either ‘ore’ (inside the
wireframe) or ‘waste’ (outside the wireframe) prior to optimization.   It is not entirely clear to me if this approach creates a diluted block model or generates a dilution factor to be applied afterwards.

 

When is the Cutoff Grade Applied?

Depending on which dilution approach is used, the cutoff grade will be applied either before or after dilution.   When the dilution approach requires adding dilution to the final production schedule, then the cutoff grade will have been applied to the undiluted material (#1 and #2).
When dilution is incorporated into the block model itself (#3 and #4), then the cutoff grade is likely applied to the diluted blocks.
The timing of when the cutoff grade is applied to the ore blocks will have an impact on the ore tonnes and had grade being reported.

Does one apply dilution in pit optimization?

Another occasion when dilution may be used is during pit optimization.  In the software, there are normally input fields for both a dilution factor and an ore loss factor.   Some engineers will apply dilution at this step while others will leave the factors at zero.  There are valid reasons for either approach.
My preference is use a zero dilution factor for optimization since the nature of the ore zones will be different at different revenue factors and hence dilution would be unique to each.   It would be good to verify the impact that the dilution factor has on your own pit optimization by running with a factor to see the result.

Conclusion

My personal experience is that, from a third party review perspective, reviewers tend to focus on the value of the  dilution percentage used and whether it seems reasonable.   The actual dilution approach tends to get less focus.
Regardless of which approach is being used, ensure that you can ultimately determine and quantify the percent dilution being applied.  This can be a bit more difficult with the mathematical block diluting approaches.
Readers may yet have different dilution methods in their toolbox and I it would be interesting to share them.
There is another blog post that discussed dilution from an underground mining perspective.  This discussion was written by another engineer who permitted me to share their paper.    You can read that at “Ore Dilution – An Underground Perspective“.
The entire blog post library can be found at this LINK with topics ranging from geotechnical, financial modelling, and junior mining investing.
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The Mining Bank or eBay for Mining Properties

Date: September 20, 2017 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: Leave a reply
mining properties
I recently attended the Money Show here in Toronto to learn a bit more about personal finanace, investing strategies, and to check out  the latest stock analysis software.
There was also a trade show, but only one mining company booth was present.  This definitely wasn’t the PDAC.  Interestingly there were about five marijuana company booths, so that is where the promotion is today.
The lone mining company was Globex Mining, here is their website.  They referred to themselves as a “mining bank”, so that was something that peaked my interest.

Mining bank

Speaking with their president, Jack Stoch, he gave me an overview on their business model.  As I understood it, GLOBEX’s model is to acquire a portfolio of mineral properties.  They would try to enhance their value by undertaking some limited geological work.  Finally they would option, JV, or sell the property while retaining an NSR royalty.
Mr. Stoch told me that Globex currently has over 140 land packages in their inventory.  Their properties will be at different stages.  Some have resource estimates, others only mineralized drill intersections, mineral showings, untested geophysical targets, or combinations of these.
They are focusing their acquisitions on lower risk jurisdictions like Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Tennessee, Nevada, Washington, and Germany.  They try to acquire historical mines that have old shafts, following the adage the best place to find a new mine is next to an old mine.   They also have some industrial mineral properties.

 

Globex’s only NSR revenue property right now is a zinc project in Tennessee that can generate a seven-figure royalty each year, when that operation is up and running.  Unfortunately for Globex the zinc operation has not been in consistent operation the last few years.

Its a good concept

I like the concept that Globex are promoting.  I like the idea of having a one-stop shop that acquires and options out exploration properties to mining companies looking for new projects.
I also like the idea of trying to consolidate land packages in an area,  minimizing the patchwork of multiple ownership claims that can hinder advanced development.
Globex hope that by putting time and effort into a bunch of properties a few of them will pay off.  If they can generate sufficient NSR revenues, the company may get to the self-sustaining stage.

Its not a new idea

The idea of companies involving themselves in a portfolio of early stage prospects isn’t new.  This has been being done by EMX Royalty Corp (formerly Eurasian Minerals) for properties around the globe.    Abitibi Royalties is also doing something vaguely similar, whereby they would help fund prospectors in exchange for a long term royalty on a property. There are likely others.
There is a high risk to being successful but the cost of entry is relatively low.
It will be interesting to watch Globex over the longer term to see how many properties they can acquire and how many of these will pay off. Spending a bit of money on mapping and exploration on a property may benefit them by increasing value in the eyes of potential partners.
Statistically, mineral exploration is a high risk game but by limiting expenditures and diversifying the portfolio, some of that risk can be mitigated.
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Does the Mining Industry Employ Interns?

Date: May 22, 2017 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: Leave a reply
employing interns
Over the couple of years I have been working on a side project in the tech industry.   One of the things that struck me was the hiring of interns, both paid and unpaid.
I’m now aware that interns are being hired in other industries such as legal, politics, journalism, and marketing.  However I have never come across the use of interns within the mining industry.
Intern

Why hire interns?

I was recently talking to a marketing consultant about tips on tech marketing and one of the suggestions she made was to hire an unpaid intern.  They would do much of the legwork of finding sales contacts and establishing contact with them.
My first question was why would anyone work for free?  There are  three main reasons:
  1. For school credit; as part of a course credit in college or university where an internship is part of the program requirement.
  2. For experience; it is difficult to get a real job without experience and so the internship teaches, builds  experience, and establishes a portfolio of work.
  3. Networking; building up industry connections can possibly lead to permanent work down the road.

Its the right thing to do

At first I was taken aback at the thought of asking someone to work for my company for free.  Are we that cheap?
Thinking about it further, if you are paying someone a salary the expectation is that they should be somewhat skilled at their job.  I have come to realize that the internship may actually be a win-win for both parties.

Its a win-win

The company gets a chance to learn about potential employees and also gets productive service from them.
The intern gains employment experience and learns about the realities of the business world.  Students have already paid the schools to teach them.  Now businesses can help teach them more, but at no cost.   It’s a win-win for both.
So how did our unpaid intern search go?  We posted a free ad on indeed.ca.  Within 72 hours we received over ten replies, of which only 2-3 came close to meeting the actual qualifications.  Some of the applicants had no relevant experience at all.
Possibly in today’s job market people are willing to work for free on the hope that they can get some experience, which will hopefully lead to a permanent job in the future.

Conclusion

The question is whether the mining industry can make use of interns in the areas of geology, engineering, marketing, presentation graphics, websites, etc?
There may be many students or recent grads looking for an opportunity and are willing to do whatever it takes to  advance their careers.
Even if your operating budget can’t afford the cost of hiring another person, you may still have a chance to help out someone new in the industry.
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Underground Feasibility Forecasts vs Actuals

Date: January 28, 2017 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: Leave a reply
underground costing
I recently attended a CIM Management and Economics Society presentation here in Toronto discussing the differences between actual underground production versus the forecast used in the feasibility study. The presenter was Paul Tim Whillans from Vancouver Canada.
His topic is interesting and relevant to today’s mining industry.  Paul raised many thoughtful points supported by data. He gave me permission to share his information.
The abstract for his paper is inerted below.  The paper can be downloaded at this LINK and here are the presentation slides.

ABSTRACT

“An underground mining study that is done in accordance with NI43-101, JORC or similar reporting code is generally assumed by the public to be representative, independent and impartial. However, it has been well documented by academics and professionals in our industry that there is a sharp difference between the forecasts presented in these underground studies and the actual costs when a mine is put into production.
For underground mines, the risks associated with obtaining representative information are much greater than for surface mining and the cost of accessing underground ore is also proportionally much greater. There is a pressing need to align expectations, by improving the accuracy of projections. This will result in reduced risk to mining companies and investors and provide more reliable information to government agencies, the public, and more importantly, the communities in which the proposed mine will operate.
The objective of this article and an article currently being written titled “Mining Dilution and Mineral Losses” is to:
– Discuss the dynamics of intention that lead to over-optimism;
– Provide simple tools to identify which studies are likely to be more closely aligned with reality;
– Identify some specific points where underground mining studies are generally weak;
– Discuss practices currently in use in our industry that lead to a composite or aggregate effect of over optimism;
– Describe the effects of overly optimistic studies;
– Outline specific changes that are necessary to overcome these challenges; and
– Stimulate discussion and awareness that will lead to better standards.”

Conclusion

I agree with many of the points raised by Paul in his study. The mining industry has some credibility issues based on recent performance and therefore understanding the causes and then repairing that credibility will be important for the future.
Credibility ultimately impacts on shareholder returns, government returns, local community benefits, and worker health and safety; so having a well designed mine will realize benefits for many parties.
If you need more information Paul’s website is at http://www.whillansminestudies.com/
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Ore Stockpiling – Why are we doing this again?

Date: April 28, 2016 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 3 Replies
ore stockpile
In many of the past mining studies that I have worked, stockpiling strategies were discussed and usually implemented. However sometimes team members were surprised at the size of the stockpiles that were generated by the production plan. In some cases it was apparent that not all team members were clear on the purpose of  stockpiling or had preconceived ideas on the rationale behind it. To many stockpiling may seem like a good idea until they saw it in action.
Mine Stockpile
In this blog I won’t go into all the costs and environmental issues associated with stockpile operation.  The discussion focuses on the reasons for stockpiling and why stockpiles can get large in size or numerous in quantity.
In my experience there are four main reasons why ore stockpiling might be done. They are:
1. Campaigning: For metallurgical reasons if there are some ore types that can cause process difficulties if mixed  with other ores. The problematic ore might be stockpiled until sufficient inventory allows one to process that ore (i.e. campaign) through the mill. Such stockpiles will only grow as large as the operator allows them to grow. At any time the operator can process the material and deplete the stockpile. Be aware that mining operations might still be mining other ore types, then those ores may need to be stockpiled during the campaigning.  That means even more ore stockpiles at site.
2. Grade Optimization: This stockpiling approach is used in situations where the mine delivers more ore than is required by the plant, thereby allowing the best grades to be processed directly while lower grades are stockpiled for a future date. Possibly one or more grade stockpiles may be used, for example a low grade and a medium-low grade stockpile. Such stockpiles may not get processed for years, possibly until the mine is depleted or until the mined grades are lower than those in the stockpile. Such stockpiles can grow to enormous size if accumulated over many years.  Oxidation and processability may be a concern with long term stockpiles.
3. Surge Control: Surge piles may be used in cases where the mine may have a fluctuating ore delivery rate and on some days excess ore is produced while other days there is underproduction. The stockpile is simply used to make up the difference to the plant to provide a steady feed rate. These stockpiles are also available as short term emergency supply if for some reason the mine is shut down (e.g. extreme weather). In general such stockpiles may be relatively small in size since they are simply used for surge control.
4. Blending: Blending stockpiles may be used where a processing plant needs a certain quality of feed material with respect to head grade or contaminant ratios (silica, iron, etc.). Blending stockpiles enables the operator to ensure the plant feed quality to be within a consistent range. Such stockpiles may not be large individually; however there could be several of them depending on the nature of the orebody.
There may be other stockpiling strategies beyond the four listed above but those are the most common.

Test Stockpiling Strategies

Using today’s production scheduling software, one can test multiple stockpiling strategies by applying different cutoff grades or using multiple grade stockpiles. The scheduling software algorithms determine whether one should be adding to stockpile or reclaiming from it. The software will track grades in the stockpile and sometimes be able to model stockpile balances assuming reclaim by average grade, or first in-first out (FIFO), or last in-first out (LIFO).
ore stockpile
Stockpiling in most cases provides potential benefits to an operation and the project economics. Even if metallurgical blending or ore campaigning is not required, one should always test the project economics with a few grade stockpiling scenarios.
Unfortunately these are not simple to undertake when using a manual scheduling approach and so are a reason to move towards automated scheduling software.
Make sure everyone on the team understands the rationale for the stockpiling strategy and what the stockpiles might ultimately look like. They might be surprised.
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Pre-Concentration – Savior or Not?

Date: April 13, 2016 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 2 Replies
pre-concentration
Can pre-concentration become a savior for the mining industry by lowering metal production costs?
Pre-concentration is a way of reducing the quantity of ore requiring higher cost downstream processing, i.e. grinding in particular.  One can attain significant cost savings in energy consumption and operating expenses by using a low cost method to pre-concentrate minerals into a smaller volume. A previous blog “Remote Sensing of Ore Grades” discussed one new pre-concentration method currently under development.

Pre-concentration isn’t new

Pre-concentration has been around for many years.  However the techniques available are generally limited.  Hence many ore types are not amenable to it..unfortunately.
The main methods available are:
Ore sorting, which can be done using automated optical, electrical, or magnetic susceptibility sensors to separate ore particles from waste. The different sensors can rely on colour recognition, near infrared radiation, x-ray fluorescence, x-ray transmission, radiometric, or electromagnetic properties. The sensors can determine if a particle contains valuable mineral or waste, thereby sending a signal to activate air jets to deflect material into ore and waste bins.
Density separation, or specific gravity differences are another property that some pre-concentration methods can use. Gravity based systems such as dense media separation (DMS), jigs, or centrifugal concentrators are currently in commercial production.
Scrubbing, another very simple pre-concentration method is scrubbing, whereby simply separating fines or coatings may remove deleterious materials prior to final processing.   Blue Sky Uranium is a recent project that I was involved in where a simple scrubbing step resulted in 4-5 times increase in grade and volume reduction.

 BenefitsJig Plant 1

Pre-concentration provides several benefits:
  • If done underground or at satellite mine site, the ore hoisting or ore transport costs can be reduced.
  • If the pre-concentration rejects can be used as mine backfill, this can reduce backfilling costs.
  • Processing of higher grade pre-concentrated mill feed can reduce energy costs and ultimately reduce the cash cost of metal produced.
  • Grinding costs can be reduced if waste particles are harder than the ore particles and they can be scalped.
  • Minimizing waste through the process plant will reduce the quantity of fine tailings that must be disposed of.
  • Lowering operating costs may potentially allow lowering of the cutoff grade and increasing mineral reserves.
  • Higher head grades would increase metal production without needing an increase in plant throughput.

Limited ore types are suited for pre-concentration

Not all ore types are amenable to pre-concentration and therefore a rigorous testing program is required. In most cases a pre-con method is relatively obvious to metallurgical engineers but testing is still required to measure performance.
Testing is required to determine the waste rejection achieved without incurring significant ore loss. Generally one can produce a higher quality product if one is willing to reject more ore with the waste.  It becomes a trade-off of metal recovery versus processing cost savings.
Fine particles generated in the crushing stage might need to bypass the pre-con circuit. If this bypassed material is sent to downstream processing circuits, one may need to examine crushers that minimize fines to avoid excessive material bypassing the pre-con circuit.

Reject waste or reject ore?

One must decide if the pre-con system should reject waste particles from the material stream or reject ore particles from the stream.  The overall metal recovery and product quality may be impacted depending on which approach is used.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that the mining industry is continually looking for ways to improve costs and pre-concentration may be a great way to do this.   Every process plant design should take a look at it to see if is feasible for their ore type.
While the existing pre-concentration methods have their limitations, future technologies may bring in more ways to pre-concentrate.  This is probably an area where research dollars would be well spent.
Note: If you would like to get notified when new blogs are posted, then sign up on the KJK mailing list on the website.  Otherwise I post notices on LinkedIn, so follow me at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenkuchling/.

Landslide Blog – If You Like Failures

Date: April 5, 2016 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 2 Replies
slope failure blog
For those of you with a geotechnical background or have a general interest in learning more about rock slides and slope failures, there is an interesting website and blog for you to follow.
The website is hosted by the American Geophysical Union the world’s largest organization of Earth and space scientists. The blogs on their site are written by AGU staff along with contributions from collaborators and guest bloggers.

Landslide Blog screenshot

The independent bloggers have editorial freedom in the topics they choose to cover and their opinions are those of their authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the American Geophysical Union. This provides for some leeway on the discussions and the perspectives the writers wish to take.

Landslide Blog

One specific area they cover well in their Landslide Blog are the various occurrences of rock falls and landslides from any location around the globe. They will present commentary, images, and even videos of slope movements as they happen.
Often they will provide some technical opinion on what possibly caused the failure event to occur. The Landslide Blog has a semi-regular email newsletter that will keep you updated on new stories as they happen.
The following links are a few examples of the type of discussions they have on their website.
Here is a description of a small water dam failure in Greece.
Here is some video of the Samarco tailings runout in Brazil.
From time to time the Landslide Blog will examine mine slopes, tailings dams, and waste dump failures, however much of their information relates to natural earth or rock slopes along roads or in towns.
Some of their videos are quite fascinating, illustrating the forces behind some of earth’s natural erosion processes. Check it out for yourself.
The bottom line on all of this is that the less the mining industry is mentioned in the Landslide Blog, the better it is.
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Remote Sensing of Ore Grades

Date: March 29, 2016 Author: Ken Kuchling Comments: 1 Reply
mining automation
Update:  This blog was originally written in March 2016 and has been updated Jan 2019. 
The mining industry must continually find ways to improve and modernize. The most likely avenue for improvement will be using new technologies as they become available.
One of the players on the scene is a start-up company called “MineSense Technologies Ltd.”  They are a British Columbia company looking to improve ore extraction and recovery processes based on the sensing and sorting of low-grade ore. They hope their technology will improve mine economics by reducing the consumption of energy, water, and reagents.

Minesense

Having first written about this in 2016, its still not entirely clear to me how developed their technology is in 2019. Thus far they appear to be secretive with respect to their testing and performance results.  Certainly they are able to raise financing to keep them going.

Sensors are the answer

It appears MineSense is relying on a combination of ground-penetrating sensors with other technology in order to measure and report the grade of ore in real time.
Existing ore sorting technologies seem to focus on distinguishing mineralized material from gangue, but MineSense seems to be targeting using actual ore grades as the defining factor.
They hope to be able to eventually integrate their technology into equipment such as shovels, scooptrams, conveyors, feeders, and transfer chutes.
Their proprietary technology is based on High Frequency Electromagnetic Spectrometry and High Speed X-Ray Fluorescence sensors. Reportedly these can deliver better sensitivity and operate at high speeds. They plan to develop two distinct product lines; shovel-based systems; and conveyor belt-based systems.

ShovelSense

Their ShovelSense system would be a real-time mineral telemetry and decision system and used for measurement of ore quality while material is being scooped into the dipper, then reporting the ore quality and type to the grade control/ore routing system, and then enabling real-time online ore/waste dispatch decisions. Additional features may include tramp metal and missing tooth detection.  Sounds like a good idea, albeit some practical operating issues will need to be overcome.

BeltSense

Their belt conveyor systems (BeltSense) will use high-speed multi-channel sensing to characterize conveyed ore and waste in real time, allowing grades and tonnages to be reported and allowing ore to be diverted to correct destinations based on the sensor responses.
MineSense say that pilot units are operating at 20 tph and systems of up to 2000 tph are in the development stages.
Ore sorting has been around for a long time, with companies like Tomra, but possibly the MineSense technical approach will be different.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that we should all keep an eye on the continued development of this technology, especially as MineSense completes larger field trials.  Hopefully they will soon share results with industry since it will be critical for operators to see more actual case study data on their website.
I recognize that developing new technology will have its successes and failures. Setbacks should not be viewed as failure since innovation takes time. Hopefully after fine tuning their technology they can advance to the commercialization stage.
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