Call for papers/Topics

Topics of interest for submission include any topics related to:

Mining Engineering

This discipline focuses on the safe, efficient, and responsible extraction of minerals and resources from the Earth.

• Mineral Exploration and Evaluation:

  • Geology and Mineralogy: Understanding rock types, ore bodies, and mineral deposits.

  • Geostatistics: Applying statistical methods to estimate mineral reserves.

  • Exploration Techniques: Using geophysical (seismic, magnetic) and geochemical methods.

• Mine Design and Planning:

  • Surface Mining Methods: Open-pit, strip mining, and quarrying.

* **Underground Mining Methods:** Room and pillar, cut-and-fill, longwall, and block caving.
* **Mine Ventilation and Airflow Control:** Ensuring safe air quality and temperature.
* **Rock Mechanics and Ground Control:** Analyzing rock stress and designing stable slopes and tunnels.

• Mining Operations:

  • Drilling and Blasting: Methods for breaking up rock.

  • Excavation and Loading: Equipment like shovels, loaders, and draglines.

  • Haulage and Transportation: Trucks, conveyors, and rail systems.

  • Mine Safety and Health: Hazard identification, risk assessment, and regulations.

• Sustainability and Environment:

  • Mine Waste Management: Handling and disposal of tailings and waste rock.

  • Mine Reclamation and Closure: Restoring the land after mining operations cease.

  • Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) Mitigation: Preventing and treating acidic water discharge.

Extractive (Chemical) Metallurgy and Mineral Processing 

This area deals with recovering valuable minerals from the ore and refining them into a pure metal or usable material.

Mineral Processing (Mineral Dressing)

• Comminution: Crushing, grinding, and milling to reduce particle size.

• Classification and Screening: Separating particles by size.

• Separation Techniques:

  • Flotation: Chemically separating valuable minerals from waste (gangue).

  • Gravity Separation: Using density differences (e.g., jigs, tables).

  • Magnetic and Electrostatic Separation: Using electrical or magnetic properties.

• Dewatering: Thickening, filtering, and drying to remove water.

Extractive Metallurgy

• Pyrometallurgy: Processes involving high temperatures.

  • Roasting and Calcination: Heating to cause chemical change.

  • Smelting: Melting the concentrate to separate metal from slag (waste).

• Hydrometallurgy: Processes involving aqueous (water-based) solutions.

  • Leaching: Dissolving the metal out of the ore using chemical solutions (e.g., cyanide or acid).

  • Solvent Extraction and Ion Exchange: Purifying the dissolved metal solution.

  • Precipitation and Electrowinning: Recovering the metal from the solution.

• Electrometallurgy: Processes using electrical energy, typically for refining.

  • Electrorefining: Using electrolysis to produce high-purity metals.

  • Electrowinning: Recovering metals from leach solutions.

• Metallurgical Thermodynamics and Kinetics: The study of energy and rate of chemical reactions in metal production.

Physical and Mechanical Metallurgy & Materials Engineering 

This domain focuses on the structure, properties, manufacturing, and performance of materials, particularly metals and alloys.

• Materials Structure and Characterization:

  • Crystallography: Study of crystal structures (BCC, FCC, HCP).

  • Microstructure Analysis: Using techniques like Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD).

  • Phase Transformations: Changes in a material's structure with temperature or pressure (e.g., in steel).

• Mechanical Properties:

  • Stress, Strain, and Elasticity: Analyzing material response to force.

  • Hardness, Toughness, and Ductility: Key mechanical measures.

  • Fracture and Fatigue: Understanding how materials fail under static or cyclic loading.

  • Creep: Deformation under constant stress at high temperatures.

• Material Processing and Manufacturing:

  • Casting: Pouring molten metal into a mold (e.g., sand casting, die casting).

  • Metalworking/Forming: Shaping solid metal (e.g., forging, rolling, extrusion).

  • Heat Treatment: Controlled heating and cooling to change mechanical properties (e.g., annealing, quenching, tempering).

  • Welding and Joining: Techniques to permanently connect materials.

  • Powder Metallurgy: Manufacturing parts from fine metal powders.

  • Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing): Building parts layer by layer, often with metal alloys.

• Advanced Materials and Applications:

  • Alloy Development: Designing new combinations of elements for specific properties (e.g., high-strength steel, aerospace aluminum alloys).

  • Ceramics and Glasses: Non-metallic inorganic materials.

  • Polymers and Composites: Materials combining two or more distinct phases (e.g., carbon fiber reinforced plastics).

  • Biomaterials: Materials used in medical applications.

  • Electronic and Magnetic Materials: Semiconductors, superconductors, etc.

• Materials Degradation:

  • Corrosion Engineering: Preventing the deterioration of materials due to reaction with their environment (e.g., rust).

Cross-Cutting Topics

These topics span across all three main areas and address modern challenges.

• Sustainability and Recycling:

  • Urban Mining: Recovering metals from electronic waste (e-waste).

  • Life Cycle Assessment (LCA): Evaluating the environmental impact from resource extraction to disposal.

• Automation and Digitalization:

  • Industry 4.0 in Mining: Implementing sensors, data analytics, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for optimization.

  • Autonomous Mining Systems: Remotely or automatically operated equipment.

• Critical and Strategic Minerals:

  • Focus on Rare Earth Elements (REEs), lithium, and cobalt, essential for clean energy and high-tech applications.