Introduction to Mining Engineering

At the end of this course, the students should be able to: 1. recognize the types of rocks that exist; 2. differentiate between rocks and minerals; 3. differentiate between surface and underground mining methods; 4. identify the roles of mining engineering in national development; 5. explain how to operate a safe mine environment; 6. relate the links between mining engineering and its allied professions; 7. determine whether a mineral deposit is economically viable or not; 8. identify when to apply a particular mining method; 9. become acquainted with applications of GIS and remote sensing in mining; 10. explain how to process different types of minerals; and 11. recall how to process and acquire different licenses, leases and mineral rights.

Rocks and minerals: origin, distribution, diagnostic features and classification. Energy, minerals and water resources. Minerals in national development. Introduction to mineral prospecting and exploration by geological and geophysical methods. Development of mining technology – surface mining, underground mining and other novel mining techniques (gasification, liquification, in-situ leaching enhanced recovery, etc.) Mine surveying and the Geographic Information System (GIS). Stages in the life of a mine. Unit operations in mining. Mining and its environmental consequences. Processing and uses of minerals. Introduction to mining allied programmes - Metallurgical and materials engineering, Civil Engineering, Geology, Geophysics and Meteorology. The mineral resources of Nigeria. Introduction to licenses, leases and rights acquisition.