Geotechnical Characteristics of Copper Mine Tailings: A Case Study |
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| Authors: | Abolfazl Shamsai Ali Pak S Mohyeddin Bateni S Amir Hossein Ayatollahi |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Civil Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran;(2) Department of Civil Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Azadi Avenue, Tehran, 11365-9313, Iran;(3) Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA;(4) Science and Research Unit, Azad University, Tehran, Iran |
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| Abstract: | Waste management issue in mining industry has become increasingly important. In this regard, construction of tailings dams
plays a major role. Most of the tailings dams require some kinds of remedial actions during their operational lifetime, among
which heightening is the most common. In the first stage of the remedial provisions for Sarcheshmeh Copper Complex tailings
dam in Iran, it has been decided to use hydrocyclone method to provide suitable construction material due to the high cost
associated with using borrow materials for heightening of the dam. To undertake this project a series of laboratory experiments
was performed to determine the copper ‘original tailings’ and ‘cycloned materials’ geotechnical characteristics to evaluate
the applicability of the cycloned materials for construction purposes. Different laboratory experiments were conducted to
determine the grain-size distribution, Atterberg limits, specific gravity, maximum density, shear strength parameters, consolidation
coefficient, and hydraulic conductivity. The results were compared with those of similar mines to check whether they follow
the trends observed in other copper tailing materials elsewhere. Variation of the cohesion and internal friction angle versus
different compaction ratios were studied in order to determine realistic shear strength parameters for tailing dam stability
analysis. In this study, using oedometer test, a mild linear relation between void ratio and the consolidation coefficient
has been found for tailings materials. By considering the effects of void ratio and weight of passing sieve #200 materials,
a new relationship is proposed that can be used for estimating the copper slimes hydraulic conductivity in seepage analysis
of tailings dams. |
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| Keywords: | Copper tailings Geotechnical characteristics Hydrocyclone Sar-chesh-meh copper mine |
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