Gospodarka Surowcami Mineralnymi - Mineral Resources Management

Fly ash which has been separated from the flue gas stream as a result of fossil fuels combustion constitutes a huge amount of waste generated worldwide. Due to environmental problems, many directions of their rational use have been developed. Various attempts to convert fly ash into sorption materials, mainly synthetic zeolites, are conducted successfully. In this paper, an attempt was made to convert fly ash from lignite combustion from one of the Polish power plants, using alkaline hydrothermal synthesis. The primary phases in the fly ash were: quartz, gehlenite, mullite, hematite, feldspar, lime, anhydrite, occasionally grains of ZnO phase and pyrrhotite, glass and unburned fuel grains. As a result of hydrothermal synthesis a material containing new phases – pitiglianoite and tobermorite was obtained. Among the primary ash constituents, only gehlenite with an unburned organic substance, on which tobermorite with crystallized pitiglianoite was present. As a result of detailed testing of products after synthesis, it was found that among the tested grains:

• two populations can be distinguished – grains containing MgO and Fe2O3 as well as grains

containing Fe2O3 or MgO or containing none of these components,

• the main quantitative component was pitiglianoite,

• pitiglianoite was present in larger amounts in grains containing Fe2O3 or MgO or in the absence of both components than in grains in which Fe2O3 and MgO were found.

The results of the study indicate that in post-synthesis products, the contribution of components were as follows: pitiglianoite – 39.5% mas., tobermorite – 54% mas., gehlenite – 3% mas. and organic substance – 3.5% mas.

The authors established the chemical and phase compositions of grain fractions of the magnesia carbon scrap disintegrated using industrial cone crushers. The investigations included chemical and XRD analyses and optical investigations. The contents of admixtures: SiO2, CaO, Fe2O3 and Al2O3 increase with the decreasing size of the scrap grain fractions, whereas the C/S ratio decreases in finer and finer fractions due to changes of the phase composition. These relations are caused by the presence of low-fusible silicate phases, characterized by their cleavage and brittleness. Such phases were mainly derived from the graphite ash containing a high silica content. The scrap after removing its finest grain fractions can be recycled and utilized for producing the magnesia-carbon refractory materials. However, the finest grain fractions may be used, e.g. as a component of gunite mixes. Many years of experience collected by the ArcelorMittal Refractories Ltd., Krakow, Poland in the field of refractory scrap utilization has also been presented.

The amount of waste from washing dolomite aggregates increases continuously. Aggregates are washed to remove clayey pollutants.They consist of a large amount of clay minerals and carbonates. Their properties and amount depends on the type of raw material and type of washing technology. Utilization of waste from washing aggregates is common problem and has not been sought out yet. Their usage as the raw material in ceramics might be environmentally friendly way to utilize them.

This paper presents technological properties, phase composition and microstructure analysis of materials made of waste sludge from washing dolomite aggregates. Research was divided into three parts: technological properties analysis, phase composition analysis and microstructure analysis.

Samples made of waste dolomite sludge were formed in laboratory clay brick vacuum extruder and fired at 900, 1000 and 1100°C. For final materials, apparent density, open porosity, water absorption, compressive strength and durability were examined. Results of technological research suggest the possibility of the application of the waste sludge from washing aggregates in building ceramics technology as bricks materials. Waste sludge from washing dolomite aggregates can be used as the main raw material of building ceramics masses. Without any additional technological operations (e.g. drying or grinding), the material with satisfactory properties was obtained. According to durability results all obtained materials can be used for masonry protected against water penetration and without contact with soil and ground water and also for masonry subjected to passive exposure (F0 – according to the standard EN 771-1).

Natural resources and the extractive industries play a central role in the economy of developing countries and the lives of nearly half of the world’s population. The increasing demand for oil, gas, and mineral resources has led some countries to prioritize the extractive industries; yet, there is growing empirical evidence that in some cases governments have neglected other sectors of the economy, making them highly dependent and vulnerable to volatile commodity prices. Latin American countries face the challenge of changing their model of primary-export specialization and move away from their dependence on natural resource-intensive exports in order to avoid being vulnerable to commodity cycles. In this context, given the limited literature available on measuring the dependence on the extraction of oil, gas and minerals of the Ecuadorian economy, the objective of this article is to twofold. First, to provide a snapshot of the historical and current situation of Ecuador’s natural resource dependence. Second, to estimate the Extractives Dependence Index (EDI) scores for Ecuador for the years 2003 to 2017. The EDI is a generally accepted method for measuring a country’s aggregate dependence on natural and mineral resources. Based on the EDI scores obtained, we analyze the variation of this indicator and investigate the effect of extractives dependence on the Ecuadorian economy. Results show that despite the government’s significant efforts to diversify Ecuador’s economy, the country has a persistent dependence on the extractive sector.

Because of the value of time, investors are interested in obtaining economic benefits rather early and at a highest return. But some investing opportunities, e.g. mineral projects, require from an investor to freeze their capital for several years. In exchange for this, they expect adequate remuneration for waiting, uncertainty and possible opportunities lost. This compensation is reflected in the level of interest rate they demand. Commonly used approach of project evaluation – the discounted cash flow analysis – uses this interest rate to determine present value of future cash flows. Mining investors should worry about project’s cash flows with greater assiduousness – especially about those arising in first years of the project lifetime. Having regard to the mining industry, this technique views a mineral deposit as complete production project where the base sources of uncertainty are future levels of economic-financial and technical parameters. Some of them are more risky than others – this paper tries to split apart and weigh their importance by the example of Polish hard coal projects at the feasibility study. The work has been performed with the sensitivity analysis of the internal rate of return. Calculations were made using the ‘bare bones’ assumption (on all the equity basis, constant money, after tax, flat price and constant operating costs), which creates a good reference and starting point for comparing other investment alternatives and for future investigations. The first part introduces with the discounting issue; in the following sections the paper presents data and methods used for spinning off risk components from the feasibility-stage discount rate and, in the end, some recommendations are presented.

This paper researches the application of grey system theory in cost forecasting of the coal mine. The grey model (GM(1.1)) is widely used in forecasting in business and industrial systems with advantages of minimal data, a short time and little fluctuation. Also, the model fits exponentially with increasing data more precisely than other prediction techniques. However, the traditional GM(1.1) model suffers from the poor anti-interference ability. Aimed at the flaws of the conventional GM(1.1) model, this paper proposes a novel dynamic forecasting model with the theory of background value optimization and Fourier-series residual error correction based on the traditional GM(1.1) model. The new model applies the golden segmentation optimization method to optimize the background value and Fourier-series theory to extract periodic information in the grey forecasting model for correcting the residual error. In the proposed dynamic model, the newest data is gradually added while the oldest is removed from the original data sequence. To test the new model’s forecasting performance, it was applied to the prediction of unit costs in coal mining, and the results show that the prediction accuracy is improved compared with other grey forecasting models. The new model gives a MAPE & C value of 0.14% and 0.02, respectively, compared to 1.75% and 0.37 respectively for the traditional GM(1.1) model. Thus, the new GM(1.1) model proposed in this paper, with advantages of practical application and high accuracy, provides a new method for cost forecasting in coal mining, and then help decision makers to make more scientific decisions for the mining operation.

The article presents the possibility of using the Cobb-Douglas production function for planning in a turbulent environment. A case study was carried out – the Cobb-Douglas function was used to examine the condition of the Polish hard coal mining industry and the progress which has been made after undertaking certain activities aimed at increasing the competitiveness of coal companies over recent years. Only the correct and confirmed identification of the causes of irregularities in the production process can allow for the introduction of effective remedies. The effectiveness of the solutions proposed by the author has been confirmed thanks to the simulation during which the impact of the proposed production strategy on the parameters of the CD function was examined. Three variants of production functions models were created and production productivity rates and marginal substitution rates were determined. The results enabled the verification of the progress of restructuring as well as identification of the origin of the observed problems and comparison of the current state with the results of analyses carried out in previous years. Scenarios of possible trend developments for the factors introduced into the function model in order to present remedial measures that could improve the process of hard coal extraction were created. The scenarios were created using the ARIMA class models. Which scenario is the most favourable was determined. A computer program, created by the author, for optimising the level and use of labor resources at the level of the entire coal company has been presented.

There are approx. 250 coal waste dumping grounds in Poland, yet there are countries in which this number is even higher. One of the largest sites for depositing mining and power plant waste in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin is the Przezchlebie dumping ground. In the article, it is considered as a secondary deposit of raw materials. An assessment of mining waste collected on the Przezchlebie dumping ground was carried out in terms of its impact on the environment and the possibility of its use. Mining waste samples were tested to determine their chemical composition. Physicochemical properties and chemical compositions of water extracts obtained from the investigated waste and groundwater in the vicinity of the dumping ground were analyzed. Due to the fire hazard resulting from the natural oxidation process of chiefly carbonaceous matter and pyrite, the thermal condition of the dumping ground was assessed. The results of the obtained tests confirmed the slight impact of mining waste deposited on the Przezchlebie dumping ground on the environment. The chemical composition, low radioactive activity of waste itself and the results of water extract tests referred to the permissible values according to the Polish Journal of Laws allow for multi-directional waste management. Due to the significant carbon content, the risk of self-ignition poses a significant threat on the dumping ground. Re-mining of the dumping ground and the recovery of raw materials, including coal contained in waste, will eliminate the risk of fire, allowing for a wider use of waste and, at the same time, will allow for other benefits, e.g. in the form of financial resources and the possibility of managing the dumping ground area.

As one of the key techniques in the fully mechanized mining process, equipment selection and matching has a great effect on security, production and efficiency. The selection and matching of fully mechanized mining equipment in thin coal seam are restricted by many factors. In fully mechanized mining (FMM) faced in thin coal seams (TCS), to counter the problems existing in equipment selection, such as many the parameters concerned and low automation, an expert system (ES) of equipment selection for fully mechanized mining longwall face was established. A database for the equipment selection and matching expert system in thin coal seam, fully mechanized mining face has been established. Meanwhile, a decision-making software matching the ES was developed. Based on several real world examples, the reliability and technical risks of the results from the ES was discussed. Compared with the field applications, the shearer selection from the ES is reliable. However, some small deviations existed in the hydraulic support and scraper conveyor selection. Then, the ES was further improved. As a result, equipment selection in fully mechanized mining longwall face called 4301 in the Liangshuijing coal mine was carried out by the improved ES. Equipment selection results of the interface in the improved ES is consistent with the design proposal of the 4301 FMM working face. The reliability of the improved ES can meet the requirements of the engineering. It promotes the intelligent and efficient mining of coal resources in China.

The paper presents the correlation between the CRI (Coke Reactivity Index), CSR (Coke Strength after Reaction) and the remaining 36 quality parameters of coking coal from the Pniówek deposit (SW part of the USCB). The test results were obtained for a region of fundamental importance to the Polish reserves of coking coal, characterized by highly variable coalification and quality parameters. The tests related to the determination of relationships of the CRI and CSR indices to other parameters were based on 25 channel samples acquired from active workings. The characteristics of the variability of the CRI and CSR indices were analyzed using statistical methods. The dependencies between the CRI and CSR indices and the parameters having an impact on their values were determined using linear correlation. An attempt was also made to determine the correlations between the concerned parameters using the multiple correlation method. The obtained results have been presented and compared to the results of globally conducted experiments in the form of charts presented by (North et al. 2018b). No clear dependence of the CRI and CSR indices was exhibited in case of most of the analyzed quality parameters, which is supported by low correlation coefficients of r < 0.5. The statistical analysis exhibited only 9 cases of correlation between CRI and CSR with other quality parameters, where the correlation coefficient was r ≥ 0.5, that is: Ht a, Na2O, Al2O3 and SiO2, Mn3O4, da a and dr a. This confirms the different characteristics of coal from the studied area, exhibited multiple times, that should be related to the specific coalification process, especially the occurrence of thermal metamorphism.