Underground void lling by cemented mill tailings

Choudhary Bhanwar Singh

, Kumar Santosh
Department of Mining, Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad 826004, India
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 14 March 2013
Received in revised form 22 April 2013
Accepted 2 May 2013
Available online 21 November 2013
Keywords:
Underground
Cemented mill tailings
Backlling
Metal mining
Super plasticizer
a b s t r a c t
Underground mining always create voids. These voids can cause subsidence of surface. So it is always a
demand to ll the void in such a manner that the effect of underground mining can be minimized. Void
lling using mill tailings especially in metal mining is one of the best techniques. The tailings produced in
milling process have traditionally been disposed in tailing ponds creating a waste disposal and environ-
mental problems in terms of land degradation, air and water pollution, etc. This disposal practice is more
acute in the metal milling industry where the ne grinding, required for value liberation, results in the
production of very ne tailings in large percentage. This paper includes discussions on the effectiveness
of different paste mixes with varying cement contents in paste backlling operations. The results
revealed that material composition and use of super plasticizer strongly inuenced the strength of
cemented backll.
2013 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of China University of Mining & Technology.
1. Introduction
Filling of the mine voids has multiple reasons such as, a simple
method of tailings disposal, or as a void ller, in a few cases it is
followed as an economic method for supporting the weak wall
rocks, permit maximum ore recovery, safe and selection extraction
of ore deposits without loss of ore and encountering dilution prob-
lems and lastly, for creating a working platform in a few stoping
operations. Based on the specic purpose of backlling, the compo-
sition of backll materials has been varied. According to Barrett
et al. the purpose of the backll is not to transmit the rock stresses,
but to reduce the relaxation of the rock mass so the rock itself will
retain a load carrying capacity and will improve load shedding to
crown pillars and abutments [1]. This leads to less deterioration
in ground conditions in mine, improving operations and safety.
Cemented backll became popular when it was taken as a
means to support the weak wall rock. However, the high price of
Portland cement has thrown open the challenge of economic via-
bility. The consequence is that the researchers have tried to look
for binder alternatives which have eventually resulted in the appli-
cation of high density slurry and paste backll materials that have
improved backll mechanical strength response, and reduced ce-
ment consumption and water disposal.
The placement of backll underground directly reduces the
quantity to be disposed on surface. This has direct operating and
capital cost benets and reductions in future rehabilitation costs.
There are two main types of cemented mill tailings as backll:
hydraulic ll and paste backll. An adequate uniaxial compressive
strength for a backll in a typical mine is 0.72 MPa (100
300 Psi), and common strength specication is 1 MPa after 28 days
[2]. Hydraulic lls are slurry lls having a pulp density in the range
of 55%75% solids weight for weight, Amaratunga et al. and Viles
et al. state that as much as 30% of the total initial lls volume is lost
by dewatering [3,4]. Hydraulic lls consist of classied coarse tail-
ings along with a binder. The ne tailings are usually excluded from
the ll because their removal improves owcharacteristics and pro-
vides better ll consolidation and subsequent water drainage. The
high water content allows the slurry to be transported by gravity
or pumping at relatively high placement rates through boreholes
and pipelines. Level preparation and clean-up can be very time-con-
suming with this type of ll. The high binder dosage needed to cre-
ate a hydraulic ll with good strength properties can be expensive.
Paste ll, on the other hand, has high solids content, usually
with a pulp density in the range of 75%88% solids weight for
weight [3]. Paste backll is cheap as comparison to rock ll or
hydraulic ll [5]. This type of lling usually contains ne material.
According to Archibald et al. and Slater as the concentration of ne
particle (below 20 lm) increases, viscous stresses also increases
and paste become non-Newtonian in nature [6,7]. And it promotes
just like Bingham ow conditions. This viscous character is a dy-
namic property of paste. When the paste is stationary, the attrac-
tive forces between particles or agglomerates form a three-
dimensional structure, which extends to wall of the pipe. The shear
stress, required to rupture this structure and initiate ow, is called
the yield stress. Below this stress the material behaves like an elas-
tic solid. As shear stresses and shear rates increase, the agglomer-
2095-2686/$ - see front matter 2013 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of China University of Mining & Technology.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmst.2013.11.003

Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 9471191374.

E-mail address: bhanwar_ism@hotmail.com (B.S. Choudhary).
International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900
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ates gradually reorientate and disintegrate, resulting in a decrease
in the viscosity of the backll material. This process is known as
shear thinning. At very high shear stresses and shear rates, the
reorientation and disintegration process reaches equilibrium, and
the viscosity becomes constant.
A super plasticizer is one of type of admixtures called water
reducers that are used for reduction in water requirement of mill
tailings. Water reduction results in undesirable effect on setting,
bleeding, segregation and hardening characteristics. The super
plasticizer is chemically different from normal water-reducers,
and is capable of reducing water contents by about 30%.
The transportation of cemented mill tailings in the formof paste
through pipelines is one of the main stages of paste backll oper-
ations. One of the data-sets used for pipeline design purposes are
those correlating the yield stress of uid material changes with
changes in friction loss and the diameter of pipes and it is used
in the design of pumping energy requirements for the transporta-
tion of paste backlls through pipelines [810].
The addition of cement to cohesionless mill tailings backll re-
sults in material which provides high strength and elasticity with
time [4,11,12]. The presence of sulfur in mill tailings reduces the
strength of backll after certain time. The production of hydrogen
ions causes sulfate attack that dissolves the calcium hydroxide
found in hydrating cement and the precipitation of gypsum and
thus, causes expansion in cements [5,6,13,14]. The addition of ce-
ment to tailings also decreases the permeability of tailings with -
ner materials experiencing a greater percentage decrease [13]. The
effect of cementing reactions is to reduce the porosity of the ll
and block drainage paths. Pulp density is a vital role playing in ce-
mented mill tailings backll for strength and ow ability purpose.
For strength purpose a high pulp density is ideal [3,14].
2. Laboratory testing
A number of laboratory tests were carried out to study the ef-
fect of material composition on the strength of cemented mill tail-
ings. The main objectives of developing the backll laboratory
testing were:
First to identify a cost-effective backll mixture which will ful-
ll the desired strength and deformation behavior of cemented
mill tailing. As a function of binder content and cure time in
uniaxial, the mix characteristics will be adjusted in such a
way that when underground opening is lled with this mixture,
the lled structure will safely withstand strata loading, and will
limit underground and surface movements.
Second, to develop an understanding of the performance of
cemented paste backll when exposed to superplasticizer.
2.1. Specimens properties
A mill tailing sample was taken from one of the underground
mines. The basic properties of tailings are summarized in Table 1.
Chemical composition was determined by a scanning electron
microscope method which is given in Table 2. Fig. 1 shows the par-
ticle size distribution of tailings, determined by sieve analysis.
2.2. Specimen unconned compression test
The purpose of the uniaxial compression tests was to obtain
unconned compressive strengths (UCS) and moduli as a func-
tion of binder content and cure time. The different percentage
of cement was sampled for each type of test: 3%, 6%, 10% and
20% by dry weight (cement:mill tailing). In all, sixty samples
were cured in laboratory at pulp density 80% for 3, 7, 14, 21
and 28 days at temperature 30 C. Other 24 samples were cured
on laboratory for 28 days for different pulp density at 20 C.
Again 24 samples were cured on laboratory for 28 and 90 days
for different composition of superplasticizer at 20 C at pulp den-
sity 77%.
The samples of 54 mm 110 mm diameter by length were cast
in wooden cylindrical molds (Fig. 2). After allowing them to set for
48 h, al1 of the samples were removed from the wooden molds and
were waxed at both ends to prevent moisture loss due to evapora-
tion and possible oxidation of the samples.
Immediately before the testing, both ends of the samples ini-
tially were done parallel by polish. The length, diameter and
weight of the samples were measured. The sample was placed
in the testing frame, its stroke control rate was 0.315 mm/min
and brought into contact with the load cell by adjusting the
hydraulic ram. When the sample was failed to load and defor-
mation was noted. UCS was calculated with the Secant value
of Youngs modulus at 50% peak stress.
Table 1
Basic properties of mill tailings.
Parameter Value
Specic gravity 2.67
pH in water 7.89
Particle size distribution (%) Silt 12.22
Fine sand 86.82
Medium sand 0.96
D
10
71
D
30
125
D
50
140
D
60
150
C
u
2.11
C
c
1.47
Permeability (cm/s) 4 [ 10
3
Table 2
Chemical composition of mill tailing (determined by SEM method).
Chemical component Percentage
(% by weight)
Element Percentage
(% by weight)
Na
2
O 5.88 Na 6.72
MgO 6.23 Mg 6.20
Al
2
O
3
9.83 Al 8.97
SiO
2
42.31 Si 35.55
SO
3
4.89 S 3.79
K
2
O 1.1 K 1.67
CaO 9.08 Ca 11.76
TiO
2
1.46 Ti 1.58
MnO
2
0.34 Mn 0.47
Fe
2
O
3
17.43 Fe 21.29
NiO 0.1 Ni 0.13
ZnO 1.35 Zn 1.89
0.1
1
10
100
0.01 0.1 1 10
Grain size (mm)
Fig. 1. Grain size distribution of tailings.
894 B.S. Choudhary, S. Kumar / International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Effect of cement content and curing time on UCS and Youngs
modulus
The unconned UCS was calculated as the mean value of the
maximum stresses obtained during the testing of three samples
of the same mill tailing and cement mixture. The secant values of
Youngs modulus were calculated at the point corresponding to
50% of the compressive strength value. Different UCS (kPa) and
Young Moduli (MPa) were obtained for different cement propor-
tions and curing time.
Fig. 3a shows the relationship between UCS and cement per-
centage and Fig. 3b shows Youngs modulus and cement percent-
age respectively for different curing period. These gures clearly
show the compressive strength and Youngs modulus of the ll.
Both increase with cement content and curing time as expected.
Compressive strength and elasticity are relatively low for 3% of ce-
ment in mill tailing, with a notable increase starting to occur for
some mixes with a cement dosage higher than 6%. All samples
gradually gained strength and elastic modulus up to 28 days of
curing. These results agree with the reports by Belem et al. [15].
The UCS increases nonlinearly with the cement dosage for all ce-
ment mill tailing composition. Modulus values also follow the
same trend, increasing nonlinearly with binder dosage for all ce-
ment mill tailing composition. The rate of increase in UCS and
modulus values was higher in the initial 21 days compared with
its increment after 21 days.
High strength values were obtained in the samples containing
high amount of cement. It can also be seen from Fig. 3a that cement
has high strength gain in the corresponding sample at curing
Fig. 2. Sample preparation in the wood mold.
0
1.00
2.00
3.00
4.00
5.00
6.00
7.00
3 6 10 20
Cement (%)
For 3 days
For 7 days
For 14 days
For 21 days
For 28 days
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
3 6 10 20
Cement (%)
(a) UCS (b) Youngs modulus
Fig. 3. Effect of cement and curing time on UCS and Youngs modulus.
2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0
100
50
200
150
300
250
350
Strain (%)
(a) 3% cement
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
1.5 1.0 0.5 0
1000
500
2000
1500
2500
Strain (%)
(c) 10% cement
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
2.0 1.0 0.5 0
3000
6000
4000
7000
Strain (%)
(d) 20% cement
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
1.5
1000
2000
5000
1.5 1.0 0.5 0
Strain (%)
(b) 6% cement
800
1400
1000
1600
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
400
600
1200
200
Curing 3 days
Curing 7 days
Curing 14 days
Curing 21 days
Curing 28 days
Fig. 4. Typical stressstrain curves for paste backll specimen for different curing period containing.
B.S. Choudhary, S. Kumar / International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900 895
28 days. Therefore, it can be concluded that longer curing period
also plays an important role for increasing the strength and moduli
of paste backll. Fig. 4 shows the stressstrain curve for different
cement composition and curing period.
3.2. Effect of pulp density on UCS
Fig. 5a shows the relationship between UCS and different pulp
densities for 28 days curing period at 6% of cement dry weight
composition at 20 C. Fig. 5b shows the relationship between mod-
uli and pulp density.
When pulp density 83.3% was used then result of UCS of this
sample after 28 days curing in laboratory was 566 kPa, which
was 135% more compared with UCS of sample with pulp density
66.7%. Similarly, Youngs modulus of pulp density 83.3% sample
was 86% more as compared with that of the sample with 66% pulp
density. Therefore, it can be inferred that the compressive strength
and Youngs moduli of the backll samples are related to the pulp
density. It was also noticed from Fig. 4 that there was no more dif-
ference in strength values for the samples with pulp densities be-
tween 83.3% and 80%. This may be due to the required amount of
water to react with cement and develop bonds between tailing
materials. The strength of the backll decreases as the pulp density
decreases mainly because of the subsequent increase in overall
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
Y
o
u
n
g
'
s

m
o
d
u
l
u
s

(
M
P
a
)
(a) UCS (b) Youngs modulus
Fig. 5. Effect of pulp density on UCS and Youngs modulus.
0.5 1.0 1.5
0
100
200
300
400
Strain (%)
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
500
600
700
PD 83.3%
PD 80.0%
PD 77.0%
PD 74.0%
PD 71.4%
PD 66.7%
Fig. 6. Typical stressstrain curves at different pulp density for 6% of cement (dry
weight).
2 5 7 0
20
Shear strain (%)
9
10
40
30
50
70
60
S
h
e
a
r

s
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
8 10 6 3 4 1
Normal stress 19.60 kPa
Normal stress 35.28 kPa
Normal stress 47.00 kPa
Normal stress 58.80 kPa
Normal stress
70.56 kPa
Fig. 7. Curves of shear strain and shear stress from the direct shear test.
20 40 60 0
20
Normal stress (kPa)
80
10
40
30
50
70
60
S
h
e
a
r

s
t
r
e
n
g
t
h

(
k
P
a
)
y=0.5697x+17.4
R
2
=0.928
Fig. 8. Normal stress and shear strength from the direct shear test.
Table 3
Effect of cement addition on porosity and UCS.
Cement content in mill tailing (%) Porosity (%) UCS (kPa)
3 60.000 173.44
6 59.184 635.25
10 58.696 1702.80
20 55.556 5159.30
173.44
635.25
1702.8
5159.3
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
55 56 57 58 59 60 61
Porosity (%)
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
Fig. 9. Effect of porosity on UCS for curing 3 days.
Table 4
Effect of SP on compressive strength and Youngs modulus for 28 and 90 days curing.
Time Composition UCS (kPa) Youngs modulus (MPa)
28 days 94:6:0.2 654.26 214.20
96:4:0.2 545.91 165.36
94:6:0 313.64 124.84
97:3:0.3 130.16 150.90
90 days 94:6:0.2 938.90 234.00
96:4:0.2 892.10 198.60
94:6:0 586.10 170.20
97:3:0.3 331.87 97.30
896 B.S. Choudhary, S. Kumar / International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900
porosity caused by the water-lled voids. On drying these samples
air voids were created which were likely to decrease the strength
of samples. On the contrary, the higher the pulp density ratio the
stronger the samples. This is due to greater cement particle inter-
locking with mill tailing and less air voids creation. Fig. 6 also
shows the stressstrain curve at different pulp density for 6% of
cement.
3.3. Shear strength parameters
Normal stresses required for testing were estimated by dividing
the applied load by the area of the shear box. Peak shear strength
was determined from plots of shear stress versus shear strain.
Internal friction angle was obtained using a linear best-t line from
the plot of peak shear strength versus normal stress. The residual
friction angle was obtained using a similar best-t line. Fig. 7
shows the variation of shear stress with shear strain. Fig. 8 shows
the shear strength with normal stresses which gives internal fric-
tion angle 30 and cohesion 17.4 kPa.
3.4. Effect of porosity
The effect of cement addition on porosity is given in Table 3 and
effect of porosity on UCS is given in Fig. 9. Porosity had decreased
with addition of cement in mill tailing due to neness of cement.
So when cement was mixed in mill tailing and then void ratio of
mill tailing decreased. The higher UCS had been found in lower
porosity due to greater particle interlocking and the presence of
more cement per unit volume of backll.
3.5. Effect of super plasticizer
The results of all the UCS tests due to variation of superplasti-
cizer are summarized in Table 4 and Fig. 10. Fig. 10 shows the var-
iation in the UCS and Youngs moduli with the variation of
composition of paste backll with superplasticizer for 28 and
90 days curing. Fig. 10a shows the maximum compressive strength
654.26 kPa (just double) of the composition MT:C:SP containing
94:6:0.2 ratios as compression to compressive strength
313.64 kPa of composition MT:C:SP containing 94:6:0 ratios (con-
trol binder) respectively for 28 days curing. Compressive strength
654.3
545.9
313.6
130.2
938.9
892.1
586.1
331.9
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
94:6:0.2 96:4:0.2 94:6:0 97:3:0.3
Composition (MT:C:SP)
U
C
S

(
k
P
a
)
For 28 days
For 90 days
214.2
165.36
124.84
150.9
234
198.6
170.2
97.3
0
50
100
150
200
250
94:6:0.2 96:4:0.2 94:6:0 97:3:0.3
Composition (MT:C:SP)
Y
o
u
n
g
'
s

m
o
d
u
l
u
s

(
M
P
a
)
(a) UCS (b) Youngs modulus
Fig. 10. Effect of super plasticizer on UCS and Youngs modulus for different curing days.
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
Strain (%)
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
Strain (%)
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
k
P
a
)
1.2
0.2% SP mixed with
MT:C (94:6)
0.2% SP mixed with
MT:C (96:4)
No SP mixed with
MT:C (96:4)
0.3% SP mixed with
MT:C (97:3)
(a) 28 days (b) 90 days
Fig. 11. Typical stressstrain curve after 28 and 90 days of curing for the different percentage of composition.
Fig. 12. Slump test of backll with superplasticizer.
493
338
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
Without SP With SP(0.2%)
Y
i
e
l
d

s
t
r
e
s
s

(
P
a
)
Fig. 13. Effect of superplasticizer on yield stress.
B.S. Choudhary, S. Kumar / International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900 897
of another binder in which MT:C:SP containing 96:4:0.2 ratios
were also 74% more strength as compression to that control binder.
But effect of superplasticizer was not good in binder which con-
tains MT:C:SP containing 97:3:0.3 ratios. Compressive strength
130.16 kPa of this binder was less than half value of compressive
strength of control binder. Fig. 10b shows Youngs modulus
214.19 MPa of binder which contains MT:C:SP containing
94:6:0.2 ratios were also 70% more than that of the Youngs mod-
ulus of control binder. This type of increment in compressive
strength and stiffness had happened due to renders a lower poros-
ity hardened material and increased the rate of cement hydration
in well dispersed cement so that between cement mill tailing bet-
ter particle packing and denser structure upon hardening in pastes
contains admixture superplasticizer [16,17].
Fig. 10 clearly shows the variation of curing time on its strength
and moduli. Increment on strength due to curing varies from 50%
to 100% for different composition. This has happened may be due
to long term hydration between cement and mill tailing. Fig. 11
produced unclear stressstrain relationship for 28 and 90 days
curing.
The cement paste backll mixture MT:C:SP containing 94:6:0.2
developed the highest unconned compressive strength over a
90 days curing period and showed the maximum stiffness develop-
ment as compared with those of paste backll specimens without
admixture. But the cement paste backll mixture MT:C:SP contain-
ing 96:4:0.2 also developed the required unconned compressive
strength over a 90 days curing period and showed the maximum
stiffness development as compared with those of paste backll
specimens without admixture. So for economical purpose this
composition would be the best.
4. Rheological tests
4.1. Experimental procedure
Cylindrical mould was used for determination of slump value
due to many advantages over the cone slump test [18]. There
was no required standard for the cylinder test. Cylinder was made
by PVS with the length 115 mm and diameter 102 mm. The both
sides of the cylinder were opened so that slumped material is
100% consistent during lifting. And one strong smooth steal plate
on top of cylinder was used for lling with sample. The cylinder
was lled with sample, and the cylinder lifted slowly and evenly.
The change in height between the cylinder and deformed material
was measured (Fig. 12). The midpoint of the slumped material was
taken as the representative height and measured with a scale. Den-
sity and concentration were measured at the time of testing.
The results of the slump tests performed with 6% (dry weight %)
cements with 0.2% superplasticizer and without superplasticizer
(Fig. 13). Results obtained from the tests are: the yield stress of
Table 5
Vicat needle test result.
Binder content Additive Water of total weight (%) Setting time (min)
Initial Final
94:6 (MT:C) None 23 65 125
SP 0.2% of dry weight 23% of total weight 45 120
Fig. 14. Flow characteristics of mill tailing when 0.2% of superplasticizer mixed with MT:C (94:6).
Fig. 15. Flow characteristics of mill tailing when there is no superplasticizer used in
MT:C (94:6).
Fig. 16. Flow characteristics of mill tailing when 0.2% of superplasticizer mixed
with MT:C (96:4).
898 B.S. Choudhary, S. Kumar / International Journal of Mining Science and Technology 23 (2013) 893900
backlls without superplasticizer is 493 Pa with slump height
25.6 mm; the yield stress of backlls with superplasticizer is
338 Pa with slump height 41.51 mm. It had been seen that there
was more difference (155 Pa) on the yield value and also between
slump height (15.91 mm), while 23% of water was present in both
conditions. So uidity increased due to superplasticizer.
4.2. Setting time procedure
Setting time was determined by Vicat needle test (penetration
test). Specimens for the Vicat needle test were cylindrical cup with
70 mm in diameter and 40 mm high. After being lled with paste,
pulp density was 80%. The standard test method, the Vicat needle
test, was used to determine the initial and nal setting time of
hydraulic cement. The initial setting was determined for the needle
to reach a penetration depth of 5 mm in standard Vicat apparatus.
The nal setting took place when the needle does not visibly pen-
etrate into the paste, i.e., the specimen had a solid structure.
Table 5 shows the initial and nal setting time for paste in
which one was without superplasticizer and other was with
superplasticizer. The data indicates that initial time setting of paste
with superplasticizer was less as compared with paste without
superplasticizer. The nal setting time of both pastes was about
the same while superplasticizer paste was wet as comparison to
paste without superpasticizer. So for the same slump value, time
setting would be reduced in superplasticizer paste than paste
without superplasticizer.
4.3. Flow ability test
For the ow behavior test, one galvanized iron sheet with
120 cm length was used at inclination of 20 as shown in Figs. 14
17. Figs. 1417 show the ow characteristics of backll material.
The result of the test was performed with 4 different compositions.
In the rst experiment for the ow test, 0.2% of superplasticizer
was used in MT:C containing 94:6 ratios binder. In the second
experiment, no superplasticizer was used for the same combina-
tion. In the third experiment, 0.2% of superplasticizer was used in
MT:C containings 96:4 ratios respectively. In the fourth experi-
ment, 0.3% of superplasticizer was used in MT:C containing 97:3
ratios respectively. It was found that there was signicant differ-
ence on the uidity of different compositions. At 0.2% of superp-
lasticizer in mill tailing, cement (94:6 ratios) binder, the uidity
increased compared with the other compositions. And in other
compositions some part of paste had owed and some part had
not owed. Higher uidity in the rst case was observed due to
electrostatic repulsion between particles, causing dispersion. In
the 3rd and 4th experiment an insufcient amount of cement
may be available to react with main hydration (i.e., calcium silicate
hydrates or CSH) to produce effective dispersion at later stage.
Fine particles in the compositions played an important role with
superplasticizer for uidity purpose.
The rheological behavior of two paste backlls characterized in
this study was yield-pseudo plastic. The superplasticizer controls
not only the rheological behavior of paste backll, but also their
yield stress. Yield stress measurements in slump test method
showed reliable results for superplasticizer as comparison with
non superplasticizer paste backlls. Based on the results of this re-
search, it can be said that the use of superplasticizer in backll
materials will be economical because this will not only increases
the strength but also aids in the rheological characteristics of paste
backll materials.
5. Conclusions
The following conclusions may be drawn from the above study:
(1) Predominant oxides found in the mill tailing samples are
SiO
2
, Fe
2
O
3
, Al
2
O
3
, CaO, Na
2
O, MgO, SO
3
, and TiO
2
. The pres-
ence of CaO at 9% in the mill tailing samples indicates the
good pozzolanic characteristics of mill tailing.
(2) Particle size distribution shows that the percent of ne sand
is 86.82%. For paste backll purpose at least 15% of mill tail-
ing less than 20 lm is required.
(3) Coefcient of permeability of mill tailing is 4.08 10
3
cm/
s, which is very less and after cement addition its value will
again decrease. So it is not good for drainage in hydraulic
backll purpose without any occulants. This is good for
paste backll purpose.
(4) The Pulp density is a critical determining factor in the
strength of cemented backll. Increase in its value signi-
cantly increases the backll strength.
(5) It has been observed that increase in cement content
increased the backll strength.
(6) Superplasticizer also played a good impact for increment on
backll strength with cement content.
(7) Flow ability increased with mixing of superplasticizer. Set-
ting time was not affected due to superplasticizer.
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