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  • Lili ZHANG, Kaipei ZHAO, Shiwei XIAO, Chenchen HUO
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(4): 52-59.

    In order to promote the full utilization of in-situ leaching uranium resources, statistical analysis was conducted on the thickness of ore bodies, filter length, and effective thickness of ore layers in a research area of an in-situ leaching uranium mine in Inner Mongolia. The three-dimensional mining software was used to construct a geological model and mining model of the ore body. Through visual comparison of three-dimensional entities, the location of the "residual difficult ore body" outside the leaching range was accurately grasped, and the remaining resource amount was estimated. The results show that the remaining resource amount was considerable and needed further research. Using the price method to calculate the economic indicators of the deposit, conducting a technical and economic evaluation of the deposit, using the calculated economic uranium per square meter as a threshold to constrain the resource model of the "residual difficult ore body" outside the leaching range, and generating an economic block model. Using the inverse distance power method to estimate the resource quantity of the economic block model, the resource quantity of the uranium per square meter above the economic indicators is estimated. Through research, the precise location, remaining resources, and economic viability of "residual difficult ore bodies" outside the vertical leaching range within the research area have been mastered, achieving economic evaluation of the remaining resources of in-situ leaching mines.

  • Xiaojiang ZHOU, Pengcheng LIU, Lixue WEN, Songyang ZHAO
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(4): 25-32.

    Aiming at the optimization problem of ore blending for multi-metal in open-pit mine, a multi-objective optimization mathematical model for ore blending of multi-metal in open-pit mine is established, which takes the minimum ore grade deviation and the lowest production cost as the optimization objectives, and comprehensively considers various constraints such as production capacity of ore point, ore output, ore grade, oxidation rate, equipment production capacity and quantity, lithology and beneficiation process requirements. A multi-objective optimization method for ore blending of multi-metal in open-pit mine based on SPEA2 and entropy weighted TOPSIS is proposed. The method is applied to the optimization of ore matching in Shangfanggou molybdenum mine. The results show that compared with the original ore blending plan, the ore grade deviation of the optimized ore blending plan is reduced by 73.60%, and the production cost is reduced by 20.99%.

  • Xiaogang FENG, Lihua SHEN, Xilong LI, Junpeng CAO, Bo ZHANG, Wenmeng ZHOU, Zhixu ZHUANG
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 113-119.

    The method and practice of applying automatic inspection technology in an in-situ leaching uranium mine were studied. The advanced technologies, such as unmanned aerial vehicle(UAV), infrared thermal imaging and laser scanning, were adopted, which can realize automatic inspection and monitoring of mine operation. Mine inspection by advanced UAV replaces traditional manual inspections. In the process of UAV inspection, infrared thermal imaging technology is used to dynamically monitor the orifice and overhead lines, and abnormal conditions can be found in real time. The laser scanning technology is realized by using the load lens, which can accurately scan the physical characteristic structure of the mine surface. The UAV inspection technology not only improves the level and efficiency of mine inspection, but also reduces the human and material costs of mine inspection and supervision, and provides reference for related fields.

  • Fa ZHAO, Wendu CHEN, Jiaohong ZENG
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 100-105.

    The main causes of tailings dam failure include seepage damage, slope instability, seismic liquefaction, and ultra-high dam height. The high seepage line inside the tailings dam may cause seepage damage, and in severe cases, it may lead to slope instability, damage, and even dam failure. The common methods for reducing the seepage line of dam bodies have problems such as high construction difficulty, high manual maintenance cost, and complex equipment maintenance management. The horizontal drainage method is used to install horizontal filter pipes in the drainage blind ditch close to the horizontal level to reduce the seepage line. This project adopts the method of drilling horizontal holes inside the dam body and installing seepage pipes inside the holes to form a horizontal drainage body. The seepage pipes form a drainage network through the main collection pipe outside the dam body. The water inside the dam seeps into the drainage pipes, then converges to the main water collection pipe, and finally flows out of the dam by gravity. This method has the advantages of low cost, low energy consumption, and easy management, and is a practical and feasible method to reduce the seepage line of tailings pond。

  • Jing LI
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 106-112.

    Beishan underground research laboratory is the first laboratory in China to study the geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste. A rock crane beam was arranged in the main test level(-560 m) of the underground laboratory. Based on the relevant design standards, the calculation and design steps of rock crane beam were expounded. On this basis, the optimal design scheme of rock crane beam with small crane tonnage was proposed. After adopting this scheme, the material consumption and precious underground space of rock crane beam can be effectively saved, which has practical reference significance for the design of rock crane beam of small tonnage crane in the future.

  • Cheng WANG, Haichao LI
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 68-73.

    Spectinomycin is an alkaline water-soluble aminoglycoside antibiotic, produced by the fermentation of actinospectacin. The prewashing process of D152 resin with EDTA-2Na was studied, by selecting the proper concentration, pH and flow rate of the prewashing solution, the extraction of high purity macromycin hydrochloride was realized, and the recovery process of EDTA-2Na was determined. The optimal prewashing parameters were obtained: the concentration of EDTA-2Na solution is 0.015 mol/L, the pH of prewashing solution is 7.5~8.0, and the flow rate is 1.0~2.0 BV/h. The prewashing process is simple, low cost and high recovery, which ensures the adsorption yield of D152 resin and realizes the green extraction.

  • Yalan WANG, Lechang XU, Hui ZHANG, Lei ZHOU
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 93-99.

    Investigation on release characteristics of radon concentration, radon release amount, migration and diffusion trend of radon of an acid in-situ leaching uranium mine was carried out on the basis of data collection and field investigation. This study monitored radon concentration of source items and surrounding environment on uranium milling plant vents, leaching tanks, evaporation ponds and recovery wells with adoption of E-Perm electret detector, solid track detector and RAD7 radon detector. The results show radon concentration level is highest at top opening of leaching tanks, nevertheless affected area is no more than 500 m. Lowest radon concentration appeare at point of recovery wells. The annual total radon release of the acid in-situ leaching uranium mine is about 1.75 TBq/a, milling plant and leaching tanks are important radon release source items, which accounte for 58% and 39% of the total radon release respectively, additionally radon release of recovery wells and evaporation ponds account for 3% of the total radon release. In summary, the normalized annual radon release amount of the acid leaching uranium mine is much smaller than that of underground mine exhaust shaft.

  • Youpeng ZHANG, Lixin ZHAO, Yanu WANG, Jiandang HUO, Lizhi YANG, Chunru HOU
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 1-8.

    Bayinqinggeli uranium deposit in the northern of the Ordos Basin is hosted in the lower sub-member,lower member of Zhiluo Formation,with an average uranium grade of 0.057 1% and an average uranium mass per square meter of 6.69 kg/m2,but its permeability coefficient is only 0.065 m/d,which is a typical low-permeable sandstone uranium deposit. For this deposit,the well Z5,which has poor injection capacity,is selected to carry out the high energy gas fracturing experiments. The uranium deposit aquifer of the well is located at 619~639 m,and the depth of the propellant is placed at 632.5~637.4 m,626.6~631.6 m,620.6~625.6 m. The amount of the propellant is 40 kg for each time. At the same time of fracturing,microseismic monitoring is carried out around well Z5. There are 59,61 and 49 events generated by the fracturing of three times,and the event profiles show that the fractures formed in the reservoir are trending at 46.8°NW,31.0°NW and 72.3°N,respectively. After fracturing,the injection volume of well Z5 is significantly improved,with an increasement of 126.34%. The high energy gas fracturing can improve the permeability of the near-well area. It is easy to implement and the cost is low.

  • Guicheng HE, Jiaxin CUI, Hui ZHANG, Shenping ZHANG
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 74-85.

    Uranium is an important strategic resource as well as a heavy metal element with chemical and radioactive toxicity. Currently, the efficient remediation of uranium in groundwater from uranium mines remains a huge challenge for environmental protection and ecological security. In this study, sodium tripolyphosphate was used to modify nano zero-valent iron (nZVI), successfully preparing STPP-nZVI. The effects of solution pH, STPP-nZVI dosage, temperature, time, U(VI) concentration, and interfering ions on the STPP-nZVI-mediated remediation of U(VI) in groundwater were investigated. FTIR, SEM-Mapping, and XPS were employed to explore the mechanism underlying STPP-nZVI’s remediation of uranium-contaminated groundwater. The results indicate that STPP-nZVI is suitable for treating weakly acidic and alkaline uranium-contaminated groundwater. At a pH of 5.0, the maximum adsorption capacity of STPP-nZVI for U(VI) reached 102.72 mg/g, with U(VI) adsorption occurring as a spontaneous endothermic process. The removal of uranium by STPP-nZVI is primarily attributed to adsorption and reduction. STPP-nZVI materials demonstrate promising application prospects for treating weakly acidic and alkaline uranium-contaminated groundwater.

  • Deyun ZHONG, Yulong LIU, Liguan WANG, Lin BI
    Uranium Mining and Metallurgy. 2024, 43(3): 86-92.

    Since the independent path with so many applications in the ventilation network, it’s significant to search a quick algorithm in the complex network, which can optimize the regulation of ventilation network effect. However, the traditional algorithm of independent path can’t deal with special network search problem, the paths tending to be long, which can’t assure the independence and completeness simultaneously. To solve the problems of traditional independent path search algorithms, the key search theory of independent path was studied systematically and thoroughly. Based on the analysis about the limitation of traditional algorithms, an improved algorithm of independent path was presented. The problem of cut edge and cut vertex in the network were handled to avoid the infinite loop or abortion. The failure cause of the search of independent path completeness was analyzed. And this algorithm can solve the problems of ventilation network that includes unidirectional circuit by modifying the memory search strategy. An adaptive method is proposed according to the improved independent path algorithm, which can get a regulation tree with optimized position and get a set of optimal solutions of the air quantity regulation through increasing resistance.