Slip instability and tensor instability are two kinds of failure modes of cemented waste rock backfills. In order to simulate the creep characteristics of cemented waste rock backfills, PFC was carried out. The results show that: rocks inside the models will have displacement under load. The expansion is caused by large lateral displacement of the rocks. A non-stationary creep model of cemented...

An ideal engineered soil cover can mitigate acid rock drainage (ARD) by limiting water and gaseous O2 ingress into an underlying waste rock pile. However, the barrier layer in the soil cover almost invariably tends to develop cracks or fractures after placement. These cracks may change water flow and O2 transport in the soil cover and decrease performance in the long run. The present study empl...

How Mining Releases Toxic Metals Large amounts of waste rock and tailings contaminated with toxic metals can be produced by mine sites. In the case of the Donlin Creek mine, there are only 0.072 ounces of gold for every ton of ore, a figure that does not take into account the waste rock. Toxic substances contained within the rock and tailings are more easily released once these substances are p...

The heat of high-level nuclear waste may be generated and released from a canister at final disposal sites. The waste heat may affect the engineering properties of waste canisters, buffers, and backfill material in the emplacement tunnel and the host rock. This study addresses the problem of the heat generated from the waste canister and analyzes the heat distribution between the buffer and the...

Air movement and associated oxygen transport through waste rock dumps has the potential to significantly enhance the rate of oxidation of pyrite-bearing material. While this is a desired outcome for most heap leach operations, airflow in waste rock storage facilities can result in significant increases in generation and acceleration of acid rock drainage. Hence, a good understanding of internal...

Thermal technologies for the treatment of waste are once again attracting interest, particularly in Europe and North Amerca, as landfill space becomes scarcer and landfill regulations become more stringent. Plasma technologies can be used to destroy waste at high temperatures, using electricity to convert waste into a fuel gas and an inert rock. The Plasma Arc Waste Destruction System’s (PAWDS)...

Measuring or predicting the distribution of oxygen concentration in waste rock underneath a soil cover is an important aspect of cover performance evaluation. The oxygen decay coefficient is a key parameter in the prediction. In the present study, a method calculating oxygen decay coefficient from oxygen consumption rate is developed. The decrease in oxygen concentration over time measured abov...

The integrated disposal of surface subsidence pits and surface solid waste can be realized by backfilling a surface subsidence area with a paste made from the solid wastes of mines, such as tailings and waste rock. The microstructures of these wastes determine the macroscopic properties of a paste backfill. This paper presents an experimental study on the internal structure evolution of pasty f...

The characterization of metal release and attenuation in mining waste rock drainage has traditionally relied upon an array of mineralogical and geochemical techniques. Recent advances in analytical instrumentation now allow robust measurements of minute variations in the isotopic composition of metals in environmental samples, which have become a powerful new tracer of their fate. Here we provi...

Nuclear waste repositories are being installed in deep excavated rock formations in some places in Europe to isolate and store radioactive waste. In France, Callovo-Oxfordian formation (COx) is potential candidate for nuclear waste repository. It is thus necessary to measure in situ the state of a structure's health during its entire life. The monitoring of the near-field rock and the knowledge...