Lafarge Canada Inc.

Brian O'Hearn

Nils Steward

Terrance Ronald Walton

A binder for mine tailings, alluvial sand and other aggregate used as a backfill for an underground void comprises ferrous slag, cement kiln dust and/or lime kiln dust, and Portland cement and/or lime; the binder displays strength characteristics better than or comparable to those achieved with conventional binders based on Portland cement or Portland cement and slag.

Binder for mine tailings, alluvial sand and the like

A method and device allows determination of the flow rate of solids material, under gravity, in an elongate vertical pipe; the device comprises a flow head chamber having an inlet end and an outlet end, an elongate tubular neck extending from the outlet end, the neck having an exit port remote from the outlet end, and the head chamber having an interior wall means converging from the inlet end to the outlet end, and the chamber being in flow communication with the elongate tubular neck such that in a vertically oriented configuration with the inlet end uppermost, the exit port lowermost and the elongate tubular neck disposed downwardly, solids material housed in the device may flow under gravity from the chamber into the elongate tubular neck towards the exit port; in one embodiment the device has plug means adapted to releasably engage the exit port to temporarily close the exit port; in another embodiment the chamber has a volume capacity for the solids material which permits the device to deliver at least twice the volume capacity of the elongate tubular neck through the neck; in the method a sample of the solids material is allowed to flow downwardly under gravity, as a smooth flow, along the elongate tube, and the volume of material in the smooth flow exiting the elongate tube, in a known time, is measured and thereby there is determined the volume of flow of the solids material per unit time.

Flow device and method

A binder for mine tailings and aggregate used as a backfill for an underground void comprises ferrous slag, and cement kiln dust, optionally with lime kiln dust; the binder displays strength characteristics better than or comparable to those achieved with conventional binders based on Portland cement and slag.

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Richmond Hill, Canada

Brian O'Hearn