Pre-Convention Webinar:
Join Adrian Dance and Bob McCarthy for this free webinar hosted by CIM Convention + Expo 2021.
Bob and Adrian will present a different perspective of as to who should be responsible for processes from blasting to crushing and conveying to pre-concentration. Is it the mining engineer, the processing engineer, both – or neither?
Early in a mineral engineer’s career, a decision is made to either pursue mining or mineral processing (or metallurgy). The lines are then drawn, and one pursues one path or the other. The distinction is maintained by an industry paradigm where miners deliver ore to the primary crusher and it is the mineral processors’ responsibility after that. However, modern technology and more holistic ways of dealing with ore feed are blurring these lines. “Mine-to-Mill” concepts bridge opposing objectives of miners wanting to minimize blasting costs and mineral processors wanting well-sized mill feed. With pre-concentration, particularly bulk ore sorting, the heterogeneity of ores is exploited as close to the mining face as possible using either bucket-based sorting of run-of-mine ore or conveyor-based sorting of primary crushed ore. The implication is that the mine now is integral in the processing and beneficiation of mill feed. In this presentation, a different perspective is offered as to who should be responsible for processes from blasting to crushing and conveying to pre-concentration. Is it the mining engineer, the processing engineer, both – or neither?
