Applied mineral inventory estimation / Прикладные методы оценки запасов полезных ископаемых

Applied Mineral Inventory Estimation presents a comprehensive applied approach to the estimation of mineral resources/reserves with particular emphasis on

The geological basis of such estimations

The need for and maintenance of a high-quality assay data base

The practical use of a comprehensive exploratory data evaluation

The importance of a comprehensive geostatistical approach to the estimation methodology.

The text emphasizes that geology and geostatistics are fundamental to the process of mineral inventory. Practical problems and real data are used throughout as illustrations: each chapter ends with a summary of practical concerns, a number of practical exercises and a short list of references for supplementary study. The topics emphasized include estimation concepts, integration of geology into the estimation procedure, monitoring and maintaining the high quality of the assay database, appreciation and application of basic statistical procedures to the estimation process, exploratory data analysis as a means of improving confidence in the estimation process and applied geostatistical estimation methods. In addition, individual chapters are devoted to other important topics including grade–tonnage curves, bulk density, simulation, dilution, resource/reserve classification, and metal accounting reality checks of estimation procedures.

This textbook is suitable for any university or mining school that offers senior undergraduate and graduate student courses on mineral resource/reserve estimation. It will also be valuable for professional mining engineers, geological engineers, and geologists working with mineral exploration and mining companies.

Alastair J. Sinclair obtained his B.A.Sc. and M.A.Sc. degrees in geological engineering at the University of Toronto and a Ph.D. in economic geology at the University of British Columbia. He taught in the Department of Geology, University of Washington from 1962 to 1964 and at the University of British Columbia from 1964 to 1999. He is presently Emeritus Professor at the University of British Columbia. His teaching and research activities have focused on mineral deposits, mineral exploration data analysis, and mineral inventory estimation. He continues to be active in applied research in these fields. Over the past three and one-half decades he has given a wide range of short courses to industry and has consulted internationally on matters relating to data quality and mineral inventory estimation. <...>