In underground mining, a raise refers to a vertical or inclined excavation that leads from one level, or drift, to another. A raise may also extend to surface. There are four excavation methods for raises:
Raises serve a number of purposes including:
Underground hard rock mining refers to various underground mining techniques used to excavate hard minerals, usually those containing metals such as ore containing gold, silver, iron, copper, zinc, nickel, tin and lead, but also involves using the same techniques for excavating ores of gems such as diamonds or rubies. Soft rock mining refers to excavation of softer minerals such as salt, coal, or oil sands.
Open-pit, open-cast or open cut mining is a surface mining technique of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow.
A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, or other mineral from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, or otherwise working and removing the rock. In a broader sense, a "miner" is anyone working within a mine, not just a worker at the rock face.
Mining engineering is an engineering discipline that applies science and technology to the extraction of minerals from the earth. Mining engineering is associated with many other disciplines, such as mineral processing, Exploration, Excavation, geology, and metallurgy, geotechnical engineering and surveying. A mining engineer may manage any phase of mining operations – from exploration and discovery of the mineral resource, through feasibility study, mine design, development of plans, production and operations to mine closure.
Heavy equipment refers to heavy-duty vehicles, specially designed for executing construction tasks, most frequently ones involving earthwork operations. They are also known as heavy machines, heavy trucks, construction equipment, engineering equipment, heavy vehicles, or heavy hydraulics. They usually comprise five equipment systems: implement, traction, structure, power train, control and information. Heavy equipment functions through the mechanical advantage of a simple machine, the ratio between input force applied and force exerted is multiplied. Some equipment uses hydraulic drives as a primary source of motion.
Agnico Eagle Mines Limited is a Canadian-based gold producer with operations in Canada, Finland and Mexico and exploration and development activities extending to the United States. Agnico Eagle has full exposure to higher gold prices consistent with its policy of no-forward gold sales. As of 2017, it has paid a cash dividend every year since 1983.
Rock mechanics is a theoretical and applied science of the mechanical behavior of rock and rock masses; compared to geology, it is that branch of mechanics concerned with the response of rock and rock masses to the force fields of their physical environment.
Shaft mining or shaft sinking is excavating a vertical or near-vertical tunnel from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom.
Eagle's Nest Tunnel and Sha Tin Heights Tunnel are road tunnels in the New Territories of Hong Kong. Both tunnels were officially opened on 21 March 2008. The tunnels connect Cheung Sha Wan through Eagle's Nest hill to Tai Wai, and are linked by a shared toll plaza. Eagle's Nest Tunnel is connected at its southern end to Stonecutters Bridge and Ching Cheung Road, whereas Sha Tin Heights Tunnel is linked at the northern end to Che Kung Miu Road and Tai Po Road. The tunnels are part of the Tsing Sha Highway of Route 8, and were constructed in anticipation of future traffic demands generated by development in the northeast New Territories. The combined toll for the two tunnels is HK$8.
Shoring is the process of temporarily supporting a building, vessel, structure, or trench with shores (props) when in danger of collapse or during repairs or alterations. Shoring comes from shore, a timber or metal prop. Shoring may be vertical, angled, or horizontal.
A raise borer is a machine used in underground mining, to excavate a circular hole between two levels of a mine without the use of explosives.
A winze is a minor connection between different levels in a mine. When worked upwards from a lower level it is usually called a raise; when sunk downward from a higher level it may be called a sump. The top of a winze is located underground and it is not equipped with winding gear, in contrast to a shaft, which is a deeper connection between levels and does have winding gear, whether the top of the excavation is located on the surface or underground.
Stoping is the process of extracting the desired ore or other mineral from an underground mine, leaving behind an open space known as a stope. Stoping is used when the country rock is sufficiently strong not to collapse into the stope, although in most cases artificial support is also provided.
P&H Mining Equipment designs, builds and supports a line of drilling and material handling machinery marketed under the "P&H" trademark and applied to minerals and energy surface mining operations worldwide. The firm is an operating subsidiary of Joy Global Inc. In 2017 Joy Global Inc. was acquired by Komatsu Limited of Tokyo, Japan and is now known as Komatsu Mining Corporation and operate as a subsidiary of Komatsu.
Kittilä mine, also known as Suurikuusikko mine, is a gold mine in Kittilä, in the Lapland Province of Finland. The mine is owned and operated by Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited and is located 36 kilometres (22 mi) north-east of Kittilä. Exploration began in 1986, and production started in 2008. The mine is composed of two open pits, with the proceeds of the operation funding an underground mining operation, accessed by a ramp from surface and utilizing both transverse and longitudinal long-hole stoping methods. The mine utilizes on-site concentrating to produce Doré bars for shipment off-site for refinement, and is scheduled to produce 150,000 ounces (4,300,000 g) of gold in 2009.
The Jundee Gold Mine is an active gold mine in Western Australia, approximately 47 km north east of the town of Wiluna, owned by Northern Star Resources.
The Norseman Gold Mine is a gold mine located at Norseman, Western Australia.
Joy Global Inc. was a company that manufactured and serviced heavy equipment used in the extraction and haulage of coal and minerals in both underground and surface mining. The company had manufacturing facilities in Alabama, Texas, Wisconsin, Australia, Canada, China, France, South Africa and the United Kingdom. In 2017, Joy Global was acquired by Komatsu Limited and was renamed Komatsu Mining Corp.
Strataca is a salt mine museum in Hutchinson, Kansas, United States. It was previously known as the Kansas Underground Salt Museum. The museum is built within one of the world’s largest deposits of rock salt and provides the opportunity to go 650 feet (200 m) beneath the Earth’s surface. It is a unique destination attraction for exploring an environs carved from salt deposits formed 275 million years ago. The museum is located in the Hutchinson Salt Company mine which began operation in 1923 as Carey Salt Company. There are 14 other salt mines in the United States, but none of them are accessible to tourists.
LHD loaders are similar to conventional front end loaders but developed for the toughest of hard rock mining applications, with overall production economy, safety and reliability in mind. They are extremely rugged, highly maneuverable and exceptionally productive. More than 75% of world's underground metal mines use LHD for handling the muck of their excavations.
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