Assessment of rheological and sedimentation characteristics of fresh cemented tailings backfill slurry

Unreasonable choice of solid content (SC) and cement-to-tailings ratio (c/t), including pipeline networking system, will lead to some pipeline problems, such as blockage, wear, and rupture. Hence, this study deals with the rheology and sedimentation characteristics of fresh CTB slurry. Samples having a SC value of 65, 67 and 69wt.%, as well as a c/t ratio of 1:2, 1:1 and 1:4, were prepared and exposed to their rheological tests. Likewise, the sedimentation properties of CTB slurry was studied by picking polyacrylamide (PAM) as flocculant. Results showed that: (1) CTB's slump reduced with growing SC and c/t values when SC was kept constant. (2) The viscosity and shear stress increased with increasing SC values, signifying a linear link between shear stress and stress rate. (3) There was also an exponential link between sedimentation rate and PAM flocculant content in CTB. When PAM value increased from 75 to 80 g/t, a clear difference was observed in the clarification layer height (CLH). The CLH increments were also 7.5 and 7.14% for a ST of 20 and 30 min, respectively. Finally, this work will greatly contribute to the mining industry in assessing the transport aspect of CTB slurry to underground mined-out stopes.

Automated summary

This study focused on the rheology and sedimentation characteristics of fresh CTB slurry. Results showed that increasing SC and c/t values can lead to pipeline problems, while the use of PAM significantly affects the sedimentation properties of CTB slurry.