3/31/2020 Capping and Rehabilitation of Coal Tailings Storages - ATC Williams

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Capping and Rehabilitation of Coal Tailings

Storages
26 March 2020

Categories: Expert Opinion Series , Tailings Management

By Darren Pemberton – Senior Associate Engineer

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3/31/2020 Capping and Rehabilitation of Coal Tailings Storages - ATC Williams

The mining industry has long acknowledged the closure, capping and rehabilitation of
coal tailings deposits as being problematic.

Characteristics of Coal Tailings and Soft Tailings Deposits

Tailings produced from coal handling and preparation plants (CHPP) in Australia typically
have a low soil particle density and a high percentage of clay and silt ines. These types of
materials have poor consolidation properties.

Soft coal tailings deposits arise as a consequence of the combination of the fundamental
consolidation and strength properties of coal ines material, and the geometry of tailings
storages that result in high rise rates - which in the case of in-pit tailings storages, can be
in excess of 10 m/year.

High rise rates, which limit the potential for evaporative drying, in combination with a
tailings material exhibiting poor consolidation characteristics, will ultimately result in a
tailings deposit with low densities, and hence low shear strength characteristics. In worst
case examples, the tailings can exhibit the properties of a liquid.

It can take many years (>10) for the top surface of soft tailings to dry and consolidate to a
state that will support direct access by earthmoving equipment to facilitate safe
placement of ill materials for closure and rehabilitation purposes.

Planning for closure during design and operation will save time and money

For more than 40 years, ATC Williams has been assisting clients in developing tailings
management techniques that enhance the opportunity for safe future placement of
capping ill materials and reducing capping closure costs. We encourage our clients to
take a holistic view to tailings management and consider deposition practices with
rehabilitation in mind.

When it comes to capping and closure of the facility, signi icant time and cost can be
saved through the implementation of carefully considered tailings deposition practices
that facilitate the development of a deep surface crust of tailings, increase density and
minimise water table development.

There can be signi icant differences in coal tailings (or ine rejects) properties. These
differences occur both within a single mine and from site to site as a result of seam
differences, mining methods, and processing methods.

With such a diverse range of properties, a tailings deposition management solution that
works for one site, will not necessarily work for another. A unique site-speci ic
management solution will consider the particular tailings characteristics as well as other
site constraints.

ATC Williams has extensive knowledge in tailings management practices and can tailor
solutions to site-speci ic characteristics to meet future closure and rehabilitation
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objectives.

A safe capping design relies on a thorough understanding of the deposited tailings

The capping techniques that are employed and the time in which they can be conducted
post-deposition are mostly dependent upon the shear strength pro ile achieved prior to
capping placement, and the pore pressure in the tailings.

The estimation of the shear strength pro ile is arguably the most critical factor when
considering the design of a capping system for a soft tailings deposit. It is essential to
obtain the most accurate strength data possible through a thorough investigation to
develop a safe and stable capping design.

There are many different methods for measuring the undrained shear strength of soft coal
tailings deposits. These include shear vane testing, variable energy dynamic cone
penetrometer (DCP) testing and cone penetrometer testing with pore pressure
measurement (CPTu).

CPTu testing is generally considered the best method for obtaining data with a high level
of accuracy. The CPTu has the crucial advantage of providing reliable and repeatable data
to signi icant depths and gives a direct measure of pore pressure data. ATC Williams was
one of the irst to perform CPTu testing over soft coal tailings deposits more than twenty
years ago and have completed many investigations in this manner since this time.

Every site has unique attributes, and as such, there is not a ‘one size its all’ approach that
can be applied to the design of a testing regime. Investigation techniques may require a
combination of different methods, and it is the responsibility of the engineering
practitioner to determine the most suitable method of investigation for a particular site.

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Capping Methods for Closure Development

The primary objective of closure and rehabilitation of a coal tailings storage facility is to
provide a inal landform that is inherently stable both in terms of erode-ability and overall
stability. To achieve a stable inal landform, capping layers need to be placed over the
tailings in a safe and controlled manner.

Capping methods utilised for a particular tailings storage facility will depend upon several
factors, including:

existing shear strength and pore pressure pro iles in the deposited tailings
existing tailings beach slope
proposed inal land use
the time frame in which the storage is to be capped.

Uncontrolled placement of ill over a tailings dam will likely cause failures and signi icant
displacement of the existing tailings, and this method is no longer favoured.

ATC Williams has designed over forty capping projects of soft coal tailings deposits
throughout Australia utilising the following capping methods:

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3/31/2020 Capping and Rehabilitation of Coal Tailings Storages - ATC Williams

i. Placed capping layers (conventional capping);

ii. Placed capping layers with reinforcement;
iii. Radial Telescopic Conveyor Capping;
iv. Beached capping layers; and
v. Placement of secondary locculated tailings.

These methods are described below, together with commentary on their relative
suitability for application to coal tailings storage facilities.

Placed Capping Layers (Conventional Capping)

Where the strength of the tailings permits, it is possible to place an initial, relatively thin
layer of ill using lightweight equipment (e.g. low ground pressure dozers, or smaller
purpose-built machines).

This layer provides additional con inement and strength gain in the tailings and support
for subsequent layers. Placement of this irst layer is critical and is illustrated in Diagram 1
below.

Placed Capping Layers with Reinforcement

Where the strength of the tailings alone does not permit the placement of thin layers of ill
material, reinforcing layers can be used to increase the bearing capacity of the tailings.
Reinforcement materials may comprise woven geofabric, geogrids, or various
combinations (geocomposites) of these. These materials provide tensile reinforcement in
the capping layer and improve the stability, particularly local stability.

The technique for stabilisation of very low strength soil with reinforcement material is
illustrated in Diagram 2. The method relies upon tensioning of the reinforcement material
so that stresses can be transferred laterally through the reinforcement material. This will
act to support placement equipment and reduce the probability of local failures. At the

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same time, the use of ‘ ingers’ reduces global loading and helps prevent failure by this
mechanism.

This capping technique is expensive, and best suited for small con ined areas of a tailings
storage facility with very low shear strengths such as decant pond areas.

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Radial Telescopic Conveyor Capping

Radial Telescopic Conveyor Capping can provide an alternative to placing an initial

con ining layer using earthmoving equipment without the need to place machinery or
personnel over the tailings surface where the storage is narrow enough to achieve
coverage.

This capping approach involves the initial placement of a layer of ill material over the
tailings surface using a Radial Telescopic Conveyor. Capping ill material is fed into a
hopper which ilters oversize particles and places suitable material on a Radial Telescopic
Conveyor. The Radial Telescopic Conveyor gradually places the material in an arc
formation to the desired layer thickness by rotating from side to side and extending the
arm of the telescopic conveyor.

Once a suitable capping layer thickness is achieved in an arc formation out to the limits of
the Radial Telescopic Conveyor, the conveyor is moved along the edge of the storage to
place the next section of capping material. This process is repeated until complete
coverage of the storage is achieved.

This capping approach is particularly suited to narrow storages where coverage is

achieved from the perimeter of the storage without the need to tra ic over the tailings
surface.

Beached Capping Layers

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The alternative to placing an initial con ining layer using earthmoving equipment is to
place a layer of granular ill using methods of hydraulic placement, i.e. “beaching”, as
illustrated in Diagram 3.

Slurry formed by a mixture of granular material (e.g. coarse reject, spirals reject sands or
ly ash) and water, is discharged across the surface of the tailings. The solids settle out to
form a sloping beach, and the water is recovered and recycled. Once a full cover of
beached material is achieved, the aim is to construct a inal placed capping layer with
earthmoving machinery over the top.

The signi icant advantage of this method is that it provides a safe way for placement of an
initial capping layer, without any need to tra ic over the tailings until the layer is complete.
When used with ly ash, a beached capping layer of signi icant strength is achieved in a
relatively short timeframe to support irst capping layer placement using mining
equipment.

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Placement of Secondary Flocculated Tailings

This technique is similar to the beached capping layer approach, but instead of utilising ly
ash, secondary locculated tailings are hydraulically placed over the existing tailings
surface at a controlled rate of illing. A strengthened layer is formed that is capable of
supporting the placement of subsequent capping layers using conventional methods.

This method can increase the initial tailings settled density and beach slope, improve
water recovery, and enhance tailings shear strength by improving the in luence of
evaporative drying.

The key to the success of this method is discharging secondary locculated tailings at a
low rate such that the rate of rise of the tailings surface is no more than 1 2 m per year.
This maximises the drying and consolidation time and shear strength development for
each deposited layer of tailings.

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Summary

The right capping technique to be deployed for a particular tailings storage facility will
depend upon the in-situ conditions, client requirements for inal land use and the desired
time frame for rehabilitation.

It is dangerous to push ill around the tailings site and hope that all will be well. Careful
planning, investigation, design and co-ordination of mine site activities by experienced
engineers is essential.

ATC Williams has over 40 years’ experience developing suitable and safe, cost-effective
capping solutions to meet the needs of our clients. We have the necessary standards and
procedures to ensure the correct rehabilitation strategies for soft coal tailings storage
facilities.

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3/31/2020 Capping and Rehabilitation of Coal Tailings Storages - ATC Williams

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