Introduction to Mining Operations

Catalog description

The mining industry consists of various stages of prospecting, exploration, beneficiation, development, and processing of naturally occurred solid minerals. These minerals include both metals (copper, iron, zinc, etc.) and nonmetals (coal, potash, limestone etc.), and all of these minerals are closely related to our daily life. For example, the coal still accounts for more than 50% of the electrical energy production. Both surface and underground mining has a long history globally. Modern techniques and large equipment have been applied in mining industry to increase the production effectiveness and create a healthy and safety environment in mining industry. This course offers an introduction to mining operations and related issues. The course will start with the role of minerals and mining in our daily lives and modern society. How should we classify and recognize different types of minerals beneath the earth? The course examines various stages of mining including prospecting, exploration, development, exploitation, and reclamation. From a mining engineer perspective, how to design a mining system form the beginning to the end. Common unit operations in mining, mining equipment, and some of the auxiliary processes are covered. Surface mining methods and surface mine development will be presented, as well the underground mining methods and the development of underground mines. The objective of this course is to introduce students to mining operations through study of basic concepts and equipment that facilitate the extraction of mineral resources. This includes learning about the stages of a mining project and life cycle of a mine, understanding the concepts of ore grades and reserves, mine development, mining methods, and unit operations that are essential to the operation of a mine. Through this course, students should build up the basic structure of mining industry, master the primary stages of developing a surface and underground mine, and enable to select a proper mining method based on the information of geology, deposit condition, mineral properties and so on. Equipment selection and capacity calculation at different mining stages is expected through learning in this course as well.