Mining Engineering Commons^™

Modeling Of Rare Earth Solvent Extraction Process For Flowsheet Design And Optimization, Vaibhav Kumar Srivastava

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

The separation and purification of rare earth elements (REEs) into individual products has been a topic of significant interest for researchers and engineers for many decades. The prime reason for such sustained interest is due to REEs’ demand and application in modern technology, as well as the challenges associated with their separation and purification. The chemical similarity of rare earth group elements is responsible for difficult separability which makes purification of individual elements challenging. Despite associated complications, processes such as solvent extraction (SX) and ion-exchange have been successfully utilized in the separation and production of REEs on pilot and commercial …

An Approach For Predicting Flow Characteristics At The Continuous Miner Face, Kayla Henderson

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

As coal and rock are mined, dust is dispersed into the air. This dust, among other contaminants, poses a serious health and safety risk to mineworkers. Very fine dust known as respirable dust can infiltrate the deepest part of the lungs, and long-term exposure to these particles leads to a disease called coal worker’s pneumoconiosis (CWP). Occurrence of this disease declined steadily over the latter half of the 20^th century; however, a recent study indicates that CWP has reemerged with an upward trend beginning at the turn of the century. To combat dust exposure, mine operators use a combination …

Concepts For Development Of Shuttle Car Autonomous Docking With Continuous Miner Using 3-D Depth Camera, Sibley Miller

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

In recent years, a great deal of work has been conducted in automating mining equipment with the goals of increasing worker health and safety and increasing mine productivity. Automating vehicles such as load-haul-dumps been successful even in underground environments where the use of global positioning systems are unavailable. This thesis addresses automating the operation of a shuttle car, specifically focusing on positioning the shuttle car under the continuous miner coal-discharge conveyor during cutting and loading operations. This task requires recognition of the target and precise control of the tramming operation because a specific orientation and distance from the coal discharge …

Capture Of Respirable Dust Using Maintenance Free Impingement Screen, Neeraj Kumar Gupta

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Dust produced during mining activities has a detrimental effect on both miners’ health and operations’ safety. There is no definitive treatment for coal miners’ pneumoconiosis (CWP), which is caused by prolonged inhalation of respirable dust. Elevated coal dust concentrations have also been shown to cause several disastrous explosions in the United States and worldwide, resulting in the death of miners and loss of operations. Flooded-bed dust scrubbers are used on all modern-day continuous miners. These devices cleanse the dust-laden air and assist in bringing fresh air towards the mining face. Scrubbers use a multi-layered fibrous screen to capture airborne particles. …

Investigation Of Coal Burst Potential Using Numerical Modeling And Rock Burst Indices, Cristian David Cardenas Triana

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Coal bursts are typically defined as a rapid failure of coal or surrounding rock producing a violent release of energy and ejection of rock particles. This phenomenon is extremely complex and dynamic, and this has made it very difficult to predict. In the last decades, different researchers have aimed to understand the sources and mechanisms of failure of coal bursts. Various indices have been developed to assess the burst potential such as the Burst Potential Index (BPI), Energy Storage Rate, and the Strain Energy Density. Lately, numerical modeling has also been used as a tool to examine the rock deformation …

Application Of A Novel Ventilation Simplification Algorithm, Caitlin V. Strong

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Ventilation network analysis is an integral part of maintaining a safe mine environment. Despite its important role, liberties are often taken with the representation of networks in ventilation network analysis software. In order to provide an alternative to heuristic methods used by ventilation engineers, a simplification algorithm has been developed. This algorithm is designed to work as a compliment to ventilation software. Comparisons of original ventilation networks and simplified networks show little to no change in fan operating point. The program utilizing this algorithm provides an alternative to reducing networks with a parallel factor. It can also be used in …

A Methodology For Autonomous Roof Bolt Installation Using Industrial Robotics, Anastasia Xenaki

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

The mining sector is currently in the stage of adopting more automation, and with it, robotics. Autonomous bolting in underground environments remains a hot topic for the mining industry. Roof bolter operators are exposed to hazardous conditions due to their proximity to the unsupported roof, loose bolts, and heavy spinning mass. Prolonged exposure to the risk inevitably leads to accidents and injuries.

The current thesis presents the development of a robotic assembly capable of carrying out the entire sequence of roof bolting operations in full and partial autonomous sensor-driven rock bolting operations to achieve a high-impact health and safety intervention …

Oxidation Pretreatment For Enhanced Leachability Of Rare Earth Elements From Bituminous Coal Sources, Tushar Gupta

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Rare earth elements (REEs) are critical components in advanced electronics, clean energy technologies, and national energy and economic security. The global supply situation of these strategically valuable elements remains critical as the market is largely monopolistic. Thus, to alleviate the dependence on global imports, investments are being made in the research and development of innovative and cost-effective technologies for the indigenous processing and recovery of REEs from alternate sources that are cheap and abundant. Numerous research findings have identified potential benefits and proven the technological feasibility of extracting and selectively concentrating REEs from coal byproducts such as preparation plant rejects …