E&TTS

E&TTS
The Technical English Company

TECHNICAL ENGLISH

FOR

MINING ENGINEERS

Level 1

PEDRO M. RUIZ

Without technological boundaries in the knowledge age!

Total Solutions For Your Needs In Technical English!
TECHNICAL ENGLISH
FOR
MINING ENGINEERS
© PEDRO RUIZ
Chairman and CEO of E&TTS
October 7, 2013
Lima-Peru
990488172
pruiz_thebest@yahoo.com

Technical Dictionaries. Technical English Texts. Teaching of Technical English. Translations.

Diccionarios Técnicos. Textos de Inglés Técnico. Enseñanza de Inglés Técnico. Traducciones.
 CONTENTS

Preface

Section 1 Brief English Grammar Review applied to Mining Engineering.

1. Morphology. Root and derivative words.

2. Formation of Technical Words. Using suffixes, prefixes, and affixes.
3. Modifiers: Indefinite Articles: A/An. Definite article: The.
4. Modifiers: Adjectives and Adverbs. Adjective and adverb comparison.
5. Sentence. Noun or Pronoun. Verb Study. Complement.

Section 2 Introduction to Technical Translations.

1. Present Tense. Infinitive. Simple Present Tense. Present Continuous

Tense. Imperative.
2. Past Tense. Simple Past Tense. Passive Voice Tense. Perfect Tense.
3. Future Tense. Simple Future Tense.
4. Modals (Can, Could, May, Might, Must, Should, and Would).
 PREFACE

This book is intended to mining engineers or students of Mining Engineering

who have already mastered the elements of English, and who now want to
use their knowledge of the English language in order to read/write a thesis,
abstracts, technical books and papers on their own subjects. However, all of
us should understand that the purpose of the book is to teach English
language, not to teach mining engineering.

Este texto se dirige a los ingenieros mineros o estudiantes de ingeniería

minera quienes ya han dominado los elementos del Inglés y que ahora
desean usar su conocimiento del idioma Inglés con el objeto de leer/escribir
una tesis, extractos. Libros y artículos técnicos de su propio interés. Sin
embargo, todos deberíamos entender que el propósito de este texto es
enseñar el idioma Inglés, y no enseñar ingeniería minera.

The English language is a global language in which scientific, engineering,

and technical facts are expressed certainly not a different English language
from that of everyday life, but all the same it presents the global student
with a lot of special features. The most features are related with the
definitions or nouns of a phenomenon or phenomena created or achieved
by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) spread into the entire world.
Then it is necessary to use a good technical dictionary due to these
definitions reflect the state o-f the- art at this time. Such technical nouns as
outsourcing, internetworking, MEMS, smart wristwatches, and so on are hot
spots in the technical vocabulary.

El idioma Inglés es un idioma global en el cual los hechos científicos,

ingenieriles y técnicos son expresados con certeza no en un idioma
diferente de la vida cotidiana, sino que se presenta al estudiante global con
muchas características especiales. La mayor parte de las características
están relacionadas con las definiciones o sustantivos de un fenómeno o
fenómenos creados o logrados por los fabricantes de equipos originales
dispersos en todo el mundo. Entonces es necesario usar un buen
diccionario técnico debido a que estas definiciones reflejan el avance en
este momento. Palabras técnicas tales como tercerización, inter-
conectividad de redes, sistema microelectromecánico, relojes inteligentes,
etc., son definiciones nuevas en el vocabulario técnico.
And there also is another kind of words which are important: the verbs,
adjectives, and adverbs which are not specifically technical, but which
participate usually into sciences, engineerings, and technologies. Words
such as increasingly, broad, entire, counterclockwise, and so forth, belong
to this grouping.

Y también hay otro tipo de palabras los cuales son importantes: los verbos,
adjetivos y adverbios que no son específicamente técnicas, sino que
participan generalmente en ciencias, ingenierías y tecnologías. Palabras
tales como, cada vez más, ancho, completo, sentido anti-horario, etc.,
pertenecen a este agrupamiento.

Then, it is common to use word groupings that are called expressions or

idiomatic expressions which are very frequently used. Groupings such as,
“on the other hand”, “in order to”; “a lot of”; etc., are examples of them.

Luego, es común usar agrupamientos de palabras que son muy

frecuentemente usadas. Palabras tales como, “por otro lado”, “para”;
“muchos”, etc., son ejemplos de tales agrupamientos.

Therefore I present the vector representation of a technical sentence that is

called The Ruiz’ Method or termed an integrated method for translations.

Finalmente, presento la representación vectorial de una oración técnica,

que se llama el Método Ruiz o denominado Método integrado para
traducciones.

This book comprises two sections. Section 1 deals with a Brief English
Grammar Review applied to the mineral industry. Origin of words, roots,
prefixes, suffixes, and affixes are revised and applied to real occurrences
about exploring, exploitation, production, transportation and
commercialization of these useful minerals. Section 2 is programmed to
perform real technical translations with data and information from original
equipment manufacturers into mining field.

Es texto incluye dos secciones. La Sección 1 se ocupa de la Revisión

Sucinta de la Gramática Inglesa aplicada a la industria de los minerales.
Se revisa el origen de las palabras, raíces, prefijos, sufijos y afijos y se
aplican a hechos reales acerca de exploración, explotación, producción,
transporte y comercialización de estos minerales útiles. La Sección 2 está
programada para ejecutar traducciones técnicas reales con datos e
información procedente de los fabricantes de equipos originales (OEMs) en
el campo minero.

October 7, 2013, In Lima-Perú.

PEDRO M. RUIZ
Chairman and CEO of E&TTS
 Section 1. A Brief English Grammar Review applied to Mining
Engineering

1. MORPHOLOGY

Study of origin of the words.

Root
WORD
Derivative

Root words are

Open pit mines
Finance
Risk
Explore
The size of the aluminum particles
The rock mass
The size of the ore deposit
Land, labor, and capital
Overall depth
Surface mine design
Mine water
For copper, gold, and uranium wastes
The entire pit
An optimum pit limit design
High gold prices
The rock surface
Demand for copper
Permanent rock mass support
Concentrate
Markets
Commodity prices
The mine’s life
Slot raises for stopes
Waste dumps
Leach dumps
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 1. Translate into Spanish the following examples.

Name:------------------------------------ ------- -------- Date:--------------------

1. Mine size
2. The ore reserve problem
3. Pit dimensions and geometry
4. Water rights
5. Strong markets
6. Long-term contracts
7. Available area
8. Surface conditions
9. Climate
10. Noise
11. The dust
12. Wastes
13. Head frames
14. High walls
15. Cut-off grade
16. Ghost towns
17. Total profits
18. The market price of common stock
19. Tax purposes
20. Funds flow
 NOUN
ADJECTIVE
ADVERB
DERIVATIVE VERB
PREPOSITION, and so on

Derivative words are

Mine property
Exploration activities
Minerals industry
World silver-mine production
Risk quantification
Mining-related investments
Peru’s copper mining output
Mineral markets
Mineral commodities
The financing decision
Responsibilities of Management
Property access
Collection ponds
Mining method selection
Processing plants
A high level of mining efficiency
Closed down mines
Higher-bulk-strength aluminized explosives
Technological advancements in equipment
Drilling and explosives costs
Direct mining costs per ton of rock for underground and surface operations
Environmental impact
Mine and plant capital requirements
Production rate in tons per year
Ore reserve estimation and mine valuation
Producers of concentrates
Plant construction and mine development
Start-up operation
International markets
The timing of expected returns
Mining machinery and equipment
Geographical location
The widespread use of rock bolt reinforcement systems
Domestic minerals production
A ventilation network for dilution of the methane by fresh air
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 2. Highlight the derivative words and then translate into

Spanish the following examples.

Name:------------------------------------------------- Date:------------------

1. Exploration expenses
2. Production technology
3. Physical plant
4. Mine closures
5. The mining and processing of mineral commodities
6. Environmental regulations
7. The closing of mining operations
8. Precious and base metal producers
9. A mining property for production
10. Mine location and ocurrence
11. Mine evaluation process
12. Successful exploration and property acquisition
13. The global mining economy
14. Global silver, tin, zinc, and lead, copper and gold production
15. The Antamina copper-zinc operation
16. Rock reinforcement systems
17. A competent and durable reinforcement system
18. Difficulties with resin cartridges in underground environment
19. Insufficient reinforcement of the shotcrete
20. Open pit mining
 2. FORMATION OF DERIVATIVE WORDS

a) Using suffixes

ROOT + SUFFIX  DERIVATIVE

Mine -er, -al Mineral

Proper -ty Property
Regard -less Regardless
Value -ate, -ion Valuation
Arrange -ment Arrangement
Tax -ation Taxation
Finance -ing Financing
Environment -al, -ly Environmentally
Invest -ment Investment
Mine -er, -al, -ize, -ation Mineralization
Geology -ic Geologic
Continuous -ity Continuity
Locate -ion Location
Climate -ic Climatic
Ton -age Tonnage
Distribute -ion Distribution
Class -ify, ic, -ation Classification
Sample -ing Sampling
Safe -ty Safety
Equip -ment Equipment
Ship -ing Shipping
Specify -ic, -ation Specifications
Available -ility Availability
Own -er, -ship Ownership
Concentrate -or Concentrator
Tail -ing Tailings
Drain -age Drainage
Treat -ment Treatment
Skill -ed Skilled
Store -age Storage
Hold -er Holders
Disturb -ance Disturbance
Thick -ness Thickness
Require -ment Requirements
Process -ing Processing
Metallurgy -ic, -al Metallurgical
Hard -ness Hardness
Operate -ing Operating
Prepare -ation Preparation
 Mine -ing Mining
Examples of Phrases Using Suffixes in Mining Engineering

PHRASE = Article + Noun

= Adj. + Noun
= Adv. + Adj. + Noun
= Article + Adv. + Adj. + Noun
= Article + Adv. + Adj1,2,.. + N1,2, …, Nm
Where N1,2,… are called Noun-adjectives and the MN is termed the Main Noun.
Examples are
Site preparation
Mine buildings
Mine equipment
Mill buildings
Maintenance supplies
Thickness and variability
Variability of chemical characteristics
Proximity to distribution centers
Contract agreements
Compilation of geologic and geographic data
Mine size determination
Environmental considerations
Pit layout
Pit orientation
Open pit mining
Surface mining
Haulage, power, and drainage systems
Equipment selection
Sizing, production estimates
Capital and operating cost estimates
Project cost estimation
Mine support equipment
Manpower requirements
Development schedule
Environmental approval
Surface operating costs
Within economic limits
Surface mining legislation
Endanger work areas
Some metallic deposits
Some industrial minerals
Complete backfilling
Deferred reclamation
Some open pit operations
Haulage costs and reclamation costs
The mining process
Mining procedures
Area mining, contour mining, or other techniques
Ore extraction
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 3. Highlight the suffixes and then translate into Spanish the
following examples.

Name:---------------------------------------------------- Date:-----------------------

1. Geologic structure
2. Physical properties
3. Climatic conditions
4. Direct shipping ore
5. Electric power
6. Natural gas
7. Concentrator site
8. Waste dump location
9. Tailings pond location
10. Drainage method
11. Skilled in mining
12. Proposed and pending mining legislation
13. Blending requirements
14. Surface disturbance
15. Production requirements
16. Processing methods
17. Chemical properties of ore
18. Metallurgical properties of ore
19. Ore hardness
20. Operating costs
b) USING PREFIXES

PREFIX + ROOT -> DERIVATIVE

Infra- structure Infrastructure

In- come Income
In- direct Indirect
Non- cash Noncash
Out- lay Outlay
In- pit In-pit
Under- ground Underground
On- site On-site
Post- concentrate Postconcentrate
Back- fill Backfill
Em- bank Embank
Dis- charge Discharge
Ex- change Exchange
Out- side Outside
Pre- set Preset
In- take Intake
In- soluble Insoluble
Non- carbon Noncarbon
Di- oxide Dioxide
Multi- component Multicomponent
Dis- integrate Disintegrate
Over- flow Overflow
By- pass Bypass
Down- stream Downstream
En- large Enlarge
Re- load Reload
Non- standard Nonstandard
Non- metal Nonmetal
Dis- advantage Disadvantage
Over- burden Overburden
Over- size Oversize
Multi- stage Multistage
Un- saturate Unsaturate
Pre- install Pre-install
Im- prove Improve
Re- cover Recover
Un- stable Unstable
Off- highway Off-highway
De- water Dewater
Re- agent Reagent
By- product Byproducts
Pre- treat Pretreat
 Re- sale Resale

Examples of Phrases using Prefixes into Mining Engineering

The precipitation of multivalent ions

In-hole delays
The disproportionate increases
Inflexible in operation
The inclination of the conveyor at the loading and discharge points
The oversize material
Underground mining
In-pit crushing and conveying systems
Off-highway trucks
Disadvantages of belt conveyors
The operating ore-to-overburden ratio
Dispatch vehicles
Resale value
In open pit metal and nonmetal mines
The advantages and disadvantages of specific belt fabrics
Acid mine drainage and heavy metals discharges
The byproducts
Chemical stable reagents
The type of reagent and water chemistry
This family of reagents
Unstable geotechnical conditions
Nonstandard working methods
The disadvantage of the operator
The overburden load
Oversize in the slurry
Typically centrifugal multistage systems
A method of overhand stoping
For each man underground
Restrictions on sublevel spacing
Underground sampling
Uranium exchange values
Non-platinum catalytic converter
By-products of platinum refining or nickel production
A by-product of platinum production
The energy output
The stability of most of the major underground excavations
The main underground facilities
A large underground cavern
Assessment of underground stability and installation of support
Underground instability
The potentially unstable wedges and blocks in the roof
Direct and indirect geological evidence via the drillhole spacing
Total exchange stocks
New forecasts for Australian lead mine output
Silver output in Mexico, the world’s largest produce
E&TTS
___________________________________________________________
Self-Testing Division

Homework 4. Highlight the prefixes and then translate into Spanish the
following examples.

Name:---------------------------------------------------- Date:----------------------

1. Underground operating costs

2. Indirect costs
3. Noncash costs
4. Actual monetary outlays
5. The income tax liability
6. On-site generation
7. Gross income from mining
8. Net operating income
9. Postconcentrate cost
10. Discharge pressures
11. Outside diameter of pipe
12. Subcontracts
13. Discharge lines
14. Preset value
15. The upstream flow
16. The downstream pressure
17. Nontoxic properties
18. Interstate pipelines
19. A definite microstructure
20. Underground mining
c) USING AFFIXES

PREFIX + ROOT + SUFFIX -> DERIVATIVE

Un- profit -able Unprofitable

Contra- act -al Contractual
Mis- understand -ing Misunderstanding
Re- place -ment Replacement
Non- deduct -ible Nondeductible
Non- metal -ic Nonmetallic
Uni- form -ity Uniformity
Trans- port -ation Transportation
Un- skill -ed Unskilled
Re- cover -ry Recovery
Un- product -ive Unproductive
Pre- produce -tion Preproduction
Re- move -able Removable
Non- profit -able Nonprofitable
Under- press -ure Underpressure
Re- move -al Removal
Re- introduce -tion Reintroduction
Dis- solve -ed Dissolved
Poly- phosphor -ate Polyphosphates
Un- success -ful Unsuccessful
Re- compress -ion Recompression
Non- corrode -ive, -ness Noncorrosiveness
Per- manganese -ate Permanganate
Un- attain -able Unattainable
De- rate -ing Derating
Non- associate -ed Nonassociated
Un- certain -ty Uncertainty
Counter- product -ive Counterproductive
In- stable -ility Instability
Non- metal -ic Nonmetallic
Re- place -ment Replacement
Re- act -ive Reactive
Re- assess -ment Reassessment
De- water -ing Dewatering
De- press -ure, -ize, -ation Depressurization
Pre- exist -ing Preexisting
Un- economy -ic Uneconomic
Pre- product -ion Preproduction
Dis- cover -ry Discovery
Un- explore -ed Unexplored
Poly- metal -ic Polymetallic

Some examples phrases using Affixes

Major nonmetallic open pit mines

Counterproductive economic decisions
Nonmetallic products
Uneconomic mineral resources
Noncarbon constituents
A domestic mining operation with no nonmining costs
A pre-described angle
A pre-installed drainage point
The unsaturated zone of the upper valley dam
The most cost effective recovery method
Uneconomically mineable by conventional truck and shovel
An impurity
Finely disseminated discrete mineral matter particles
A new family of pyrite depressants
Better selectivity and depression of pyrite
The use of large amount of potentially toxic pyrite depressants
Improved efficiency and increased productivity
Increased geotechnical problems, greater stripping ratios and waste volumes
Biooxidation of arsenopyrite concentrate
The pretreatment of refractory gold ores
A high level of uncertainty
Polymetallic deposits
The discovery of an economic mineral deposit
A multi-billion dollar discovery
An extremely unlikely event
The most important risk in mineral exploration
The high discovery risk
Essentially unlimited resources
The cost of discovering a deposit
A before-tax undiscounted basis
The high discovery risk in mineral exploration
The average cost of discovering a mineral occurrence
The re-exploration of known discoveries
Pre-development projects
Expected value of exploration investment per economic discovery
Undercutting machines
The undercutting mini-fullfacer machine
The 5 level of the South mine in a complex of interlayered, vertically oriented,
variable strength, and highly abrasive schistose country rocks
Within prearranged safe limits
A non-interactive system
Lower recovery
Bioleaching
Pre-feasibility work
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 5. Highlight the affixes and then translate into Spanish the
following examples.

Name:----------------------------------------------------- Date:------------------------

1. Replacement value
2. Nonmetallic commodity
3. Product transportation
4. Unskilled in mining
5. Recovery grade
6. Preproduction development
7. Metallurgical recoveries
8. Preproduction period
9. Reserves and percent removable
10. Nonprofitable concentrations
11. Preproduction stripping
12. Preexisting, high-angle, normal faults and associated fractures
13. Successful depressurization
14. Slope dewatering
15. Chemically inactive
16. A recent reassessment of slope angles
17. Reactive limestone units
18. Degasser
19. Limited interchangeability
20. Replacement deposits
 3. MODIFIERS Article + Noun

MODIFIER + NOUN Article + Adj.+ Noun

INDEFINTE ARTICLE “A” Article + Adv. + Adj. + Noun

A 20-year operation Article + Adv. + Adj. + Noun 1,2,…, N

A 25% increase in gold production
A maiden production of 750,000 oz from Barrick’s Pierina gold mine
A 6% increase in output to 938,643t.
A mature operation
A significant increase in silver production
A forecast rise to 70Moz from the 64Moz
A hefty 34.4% surge in output to approximately 40,700t
A 300 km slurry pipeline
A mechanical excavator
A result of deformation of the excavation
A permanent reinforcement system
A previously mined-out pit
A highly successful exploration drilling program
A reconnaissance exploration program
A mine valuation study
A very rich ore deposit
A given deposit
A significant impact on the valuation of mineral properties
A copper porphyry
A gold concentration
A small amount of valuable mineral
A medium-to-large mineral deposit
A major role in mineral project evaluation
A function of deposit characteristics, mining method, and many other factors
A metallurgical testing program
A copper producer
A small group of mineral commodities
A wide variety of industrial and fertilizer minerals
A depression below the natural ground surface
A new series of cuts in zone B
A range of elevations
A working slope
A difficult task in high-tonnage operations because of surge pile limitations
A copper deposit
A rise in the copper price
A sufficient condition for mineral investment
A mineralized body
A working slope
A mineral occurrence
A modified mining technique for cuts adjacent to the final slope
A production of 142,000 tpd (129,000 t/d) for the next 25 years

E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 6. Translate into Spanish the following examples.

Name:------------------------------------------------ Date:-------------

1. A specific deposit
2. A very large custom smelting industry
3. A concentrate producer
4. A disseminated deposit
5. A shallower working slope
6. A porphyry deposit
7. A complex monzonitic stock
8. A pit limit
9. A large ore body
10. A minimum towards the end of the mine’s life
11. A large number of stacked, narrow benches
12. A low waste-to-ore ratio area
13. A function of the actual rock conditions
14. A greater utilization of lower-grade material
15. A conceptual pit design and overall facility layout
16. A predictable ore availability
17. A low overburden-to-ore-ratio area
18. A predictable mill feed
19. A function of production scheduling
20. A separate calculation of direct mining costs
 MODIFIER + NOUN Article + Noun
INDEFINITE ARTICLE “AN” Adj. + Noun
Article + Adj. + Noun
Article + Adv. + Adj. + Noun
Article + Adv. + Adj. + N12,…,N

An 11% increase in production at Peru’s foremost gold operation

An expected 50% increase to 144,000t.
An aggressive expansion programme
An immediate support action after installation
Subsequent blasting or drilling in an adjacent area
An expansion shell anchored rockbolt of 2 m (6.5 ft) length
An adjacent waste embankment
An adequate return
An actual operating mine
An existing operating mine
An economically marginal deposit
An engineering/economic evaluation of a mining property
An international classification system for mineral resources
An accessible rock face
An accurate appraisal of that reserve
An essential element of any mine investment analysis
An important marketing mechanism in the metals business
An electric shovel
An open pit mine
An ore body
An ore discovery
An impact on metal demand-supply relationships
An increasing tonnage with much lower ore values
Metal value per ton in an ore body or mineralized district
An idealized tonnage-value curve
An enriched zone
An exploration expenditure
Depreciation on an asset
An increase in productivity of labor
An inappropriate angle
An essential part of optimising surface mining costs
An average stripping ratio of 0.4:1
An additional grinding line
An elevation of 6650ft (2027 m)
An in-pit crusher and 5-mile (8-km) conveyor
An economic discovery
An economic deposit
An overall gold/silver ratio of about 2:1
An eight-bay haulage-truck shop
An average 3 to 5 degrees steepening in ultimate slope angles
An evaluation and selection of the optimum scheme
An exploration group

E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 7. Translate into Spanish the following examples.

Name:-------------------------------------------------------- Date:---------------

1- An unsafe condition
2- An alternative stripping method
3- An inclined presplit line
4- An outside curve
5- An initial pit
6- An approximate dipper size
7- An approximate allowance of 7 to 12%
8- An increase in dragline productivity
9- An operating cost item
10-An opening dipper bullclam
11-An alternative to conventional, push-pull elevating machines
12-An approximate guide
13-An influence on the choice of layout
14-An allowance (usually 16.5 ft or 5 m).
15-An outward centrifugal force
16-An integral part of the unit itself
17-An integral mobile crushing plant
18-An indication of the strength of the fabric
19-An articulated type of feeder
20-An electrical or mechanical impulse system
DEFINITE ARTICLE “THE” Article + Noun
MODIFIER + NOUN Article + Adj. + Noun
Article + Adv. + Adj. + Noun
Article + Adv. + Adj. + N1,2…,N

The gold sector

The expansion at Southern Peru Copper Corp.’s (SPCC) Cuajone mine
The main production increase
The Mahr Tunnel/San Cristobal assets
The back of mining expansion programmes at Buenaventura’s Uchucchacua
operation at Volcan
The unreliability of the Peruvian road infrastructure
The availability of skilled labour, good energy supplies
The tax system
The installation and the effectiveness of the bolt
The required level of ore production lower in the pit
The acquisition of mineral properties
The potential of the mineral deposit
The type of mineral property
The drilling project
The existence of mineralization
The mining equipment industry
The well-known sensitivity of profits to metal prices in the metal mining business
The removal of facilities and restoration of the land
The mine investment decision
The attractiveness of a mining investment
The mineral commodity (metallic, nonmetallic, fuel)
The magnitude and quality of the ore reserves
The timing and magnitude of mining revenues
The operating environment of mining properties
The cyclic ore reserve problem
The fundamental nature of mineral occurrence
The analysis of mineral investments
The quantity of ore reserves
The ore-waste boundary
The price of a particular mineral
The amount of valuable mineral
The notions of ore (valuable), waste(worthless), and the finite nature of the
resource
The concentration (grade) of the valuable mineral
The costs of mining and processing
The dynamic nature of ore reserves
The mine planner
The geologic endowment of minerals in the earth’s crust
The degree of certainty of occurrence of the deposit
The unique nature of mineral markets, prices, and product specifications
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 8. Translate into Spanish the following examples.

Name:-------------------------------------------------------- Date:---------------

1. The future price of mineral products

2. The tonnage of ore produced
3. The mining schedule
4. The grade of the ore mined
5. The estimate of ore grade
6. The unusual conditions of direct-shipping ore
7. The valuable mineral in the ore
8. The mine revenue calculation
9. The nickel market
10. The spot market
11. The high unit transportation cost of ores
12. The refined metal
13. The miner’s concentrates
14. The copper industry
15. The question of mineral price forecasts
16. The evolution and status of mineral price projection methodology
17. The “typical” low-grade porphyry deposit
18. The large expansion potential of many existing mines
19. The number of mineral commodities
20. The minerals depletion allowance
 ADJ + NOUN
ADV. + ADJ. + NOUN
ADJECTIVE/ADVERB
MODIFIER + NOUN
ADV. + ADJ. + NOUN1,2,…,N

Very low operating costs – approximately $95/oz at Yanacocha and just $50/oz
at Pierina
Extensive exploratory projects
Its flagship San Vicente mine
South American mining operations
Overland haulage of concentrates
Mechanically anchored rockbolts
Grouted- and cablebolts
Friction anchored rockbolts
In mining and civil engineering applications
Normal milling operations
4.5 million tons of ore
Exploration costs
Adjacent mineral-bearing lands
For domestic copper mining
Many major metals producers
High profitability in the mining industry
Low-grade mineralization
High-cost drilling program
Ultimate exhaustibility of mineral deposits
Final closure of the mine
Mine development
New mining ventures
Environmental protection
High grading of mineral deposits
Long range stripping requirements
Haulage ramp pattern
Inverted, truncated, circular cones
Large disseminated deposits such as copper
High-tonnage operations
Standard unit operations (drilling, blasting, excavating, and haulage)
The world’s first low-grade, open pit copper mine
Grade and metallurgical blending requirements
Planned production
Five waste shovel faces
Five ore shovel faces
Sulfide minerals
For rail haulage of ore from reload facilities
Truck-haulage ramps
Soft material on final surfaces
Long-term mine planning
Maximum allowable slope angles
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 9. Highlight the adjectives and then translate into

Spanish the following examples.

Full Name:-------------------------------------------------------- Date:---------------------

1. The financial analysis of mining projects

2. An important and essential component in the analysis of normal mine
investment
3. New mining properties or ventures
4. Valuation studies for mineral properties
5. Feasibility studies on mining properties
6. Environmental and other regulatory requirements
7. Mining project valuation
8. Massive low-grade deposits
9. Mineral resource classification
10. Specific mineral occurrences
11. Mining and mineral processing technology
12. Economically recoverable mineral
13. Grade of mined ore
14. Mineral prices and revenues
15. Annual mine revenue
16. Annual ore tonnage
17. In-situ ore grade
18. Mining extraction and dilution
19. Small high-grade precious metal mines
20. Long preproduction periods
ADJECTIVE/ADVERB COMPARISON Adj. + Noun
Adv. + Noun
MODIFIER + NOUN ADV. + Adj. + Noun
Article + Adv. + Adj. + N1,2,…N

The world’s most impressive and ambitious mine developments and expansions
The world’s largest mining project
The seventh largest copper mine (270,000t/y)
The third largest zinc producer (163,000 t/y)
Peru’s largest single export, copper’s fortunes
More modest levels
A more diverse group of producers
Higher levels of output
The biggest increase in production
Peru’s sole producer, Minsur, the world’s second largest tin producer
Even more important to the country’s economy
The upper levels
Greater depths
Greater participation in mining projects
The most unique aspect of the minerals industry
The greatest amount of misunderstanding in mine valuation studies
Higher grade zones
Its highest-grade ore
The largest volume of concentrate trade
Lower cost production
Lower required prices
Greater reliance on mineral imports
A stronger minerals industry and more reliable sources of mineral raw materials
Mine higher grade ore
Lower quality deposits
A higher cutoff grade
A higher mining cost and higher cutoff
A higher cost, selective mining system
The higher grade pockets or veins
The lower grade areas of the deposit
Higher cutoff grades and lower resource extraction
The required level of ore production lower in the pit
The upper reaches of a large mine
The greater circumferential distance
At lower elevations
Greater flexibility and more uniform production
Greater consequences
The lowest ore level
The largest man-made excavation
The most cost-effective and productive mines in the copper industry
The two upper tunnels
The most important host rocks for copper mineralization
The upper part of the mine
E&TTS
Self-Testing Division

Homework 10. Highlight the adjectives and then translate into Spanish
the following examples.

Full Name:------------------------------------------------ Date:---------------

1. Lower operating costs

2. Smaller maintenance and operating personnel requirements
3. The lower installation and operating costs
4. Greater energy losses
5. The upper part of the mine
6. Smaller size
7. Lower installation cost
8. Major metaliferous open pit mines
9. The most common sulfide gangue mineral
10. The upper benches
11. The highest relative profit margin
12. The smaller sized hole
13. The larger electric drills
14. Higher productivity and lower maintenance costs
15. The upper, structurally controlled main ore zone
16. The lower, stratiform-replacement deep west ore zone
17. The much greater depths of opencut mines
18. A greater depth in open pit mines
19. The most economic final pit design
20. The highest point of the bench
 5. THE SENTENCE

NOUN/PRONOUN + VERB + COMPLEMENT

It
They

VERB STUDY. Vector Representation. The Ruiz’ Method

PRESENT TENSE

INFINITIVE To concentrate

SIMPLE PRESENT It concentrates

They concentrate

PRESENT CONTINUOUS It is concentrating

They are concentrating

IMPERATIVE Concentrate it
Concentrate them

PAST TENSE FUTURE TENSE

SIMPLE PAST PAST SIMPLE FUTURE

PARTICIPLE
It concentrated It is concentrated It will concentrate
They concentrated They are concentrated They will concentrate
It has concentrated
They have concentrated

It can concentrate
They may concentrate
It could concentrate
MODALS They might concentrate
It must concentrate
They should concentrate
It would concentrate
Section 2. Introduction to Technical Translations

I. PRESENT TENSE

I.1. INFINITIVE TO + BASE VERB

BASE VERB + TO

1. Decisions pertaining to a firm’s proposed capital investments can have

vital short- and long-term consequences on the organization’s ability to
compete, and even survive. Capital investment decisions, in general,
center around two fundamental activities: (1) allocating capital funds to
specific investment projects or assets, and (2) obtaining necessary
financing in such proportion as to increase the overall value of the
firm.

2. In recent years a new generation of heavy-duty machines have been

developed and introduced into the market to overcome the limitation
of the lack of stiffness of the system –with its adverse effects on
machine life, productivity, and cutter life. These heavy-duty machines
have a higher mass and power together with special provisions such
as telescopic booms and multi-speed gear-box arrangements with stiff
electric drives intended to extend their applicability to cut harder
materials than was possible before.

3. To survive, mining operations must maintain a high level of mining

efficiency. To that end, much attention has been given to drilling and
blasting procedure, where direct cost savings can be obtained and
where downstream costs can be reduced through improved
fragmentation. The use of aluminum in explosive products can play a
major role in reducing drilling and blasting costs.

Homework 11. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

a) Initial work in the use of aluminum in explosives to optimize drilling and

blasting costs and improve fragmentation was conducted in the late 1960s
at iron ore properties in Peru and later in Australia. In Peru, significant cost
savings were realized through increased drill-pattern size, while in Australia,
improved material fragmentation was obtained with an overall reduction in
energy input.

b) The most important criterion in planning the ventilation system for Tazare
was to insure that all the equipment was centralized. As there are many
roadways above the main adit, it was decided to use most of these as return
airways and to use a forcing ventilation system; the main fan is located in a
fan drift next to the main adit. The work in establishing the ventilation
network was first done manually and calculations indicated that in two
airways the airstream velocity would be more than 8 m/sec; the cross
sections of these two roadways should be increased accordingly.
1.2 SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE NOUN + SIMPLE PRESENT
OR
PRONOUN

1. One of the basic considerations

to be kept in mind when developing a ventilation network, is that the
planned system remains valid until there is an important change in
airway conditions. At that point, the network must be checked and
recalculated which is a long and tedious process especially if, as is
the case at Tazare, the network is extremely complicated.

2. Resource and reserve figures of various minerals are estimates

derived from mineral occurrence data using different methods. The
financial constraints on data acquisition, at least in the initial stages,
make it rarely possible to get an accurate picture of the total extent
and distribution of the minerals. Several methods are available to
extrapolate the interpolate the sampled data for estimation
purposes. The results of these methods are approximate, i.e. they
have an unknown error component.

3. Expected value is the average value that exploration will yield in the
long term, when the successes and failures associated with a very
large (theoretically infinite) number of discoveries are considered.
The expected value of exploration may be assessed from an
average time distribution of cash flows fro an economic discovery
within an environment of interest. From the viewpoint of a mining
company, costs and returns should be placed on an after-tax basis.

Homework 12. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

a) A mining company has $20 million to invest in mineral exploration. The

average cost associated with discovering a mineral occurrence is $100.000.
The average return given an economic discovery is $20 million for a small
economic discovery and $200 million for a large economic discovery. The
probabilities of economic discoveries are .004 for a small economic
discovery and .001 for a large economic discovery. It is assumed that the
mining company would reinvest 50% of the returns resulting from economic
discoveries in exploration.

b) The allowable mining cost category includes: sorting, concentrating,

sintering, loading, and substantially equivalent operations. However, for
those minerals where there is substantial trade in crude ore, these costs
must be deducted in determining gross income from mining. Processes
which are designated as non-mining are electrolytic deposition, roasting,
calcining, smelting, refining, and several other advanced processing or semi-
fabrication steps.
1.3 PRESENT CONTINUOUS TENSE NOUN + BE + (-ing)
OR
PRONOUN

1. We believe that we are the lowest cost (gold) mine in the world. And
we are the largest producer in South America, besting Inti Raymi by
a couple hundred thousand ounces. While last year’s budget was
450K oz, this year’s budget is 700K oz, so we are taking a gradual
climbs up. We do not know what the ultimate level will be. We are
looking at several scenarios from 750K to 1M oz/yr.
2. The geologic potential for the district is very good. Over the next
couple years we expect to significantly add to reserves. We have 14
anomalies. Right now Maqui Maqui and Carachugo are being
mined, and we have begun San Jose. The San Jose pit has had to
be redesigned due to discovery of an additional 200 K oz in an area
thought to be barren. It runs about 3 g/mt and leaches like crazy, as
it is like sand, yielding 90% of the gold in a couple of days. Fluor has
been awarded the expansion contract. The grade for San Jose runs
1.1g/mt, with a top of 2g/mt. The “light” zone runs about 1.6mt/m3 –
with a 2-3 d leach cycle; the “heavy”zone runs about 2.2 mt/m3 with
a 35/d cycle and somewhat lower recovery.
3. Newmont is trying to raise the awareness of mining’s importance. It
has employed a Harvard specialist who conducted socioeconomic
studies real time to mining in Chile. Some 5K people depend on
mining in the Cajamarca area where Yanacocha operates. A
tangible example is that, before the mine, there was one weekly
flight to the city, now it is four daily and sometimes 10/d. We have a
very exhaustive social program raising money for books, school
supplies, and school lunches. Newmont has built seven schools.
Two years ago only 200 children went to school. Now there are
2,000. And, significantly, girls are going to school; normally
campesinos do not send girls to school.

Homework 13. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

a) On the safety side we certainly find that a clean mine is a safe mine.
They have pride, are environmentally aware, and are taking to the
time to examine the area. It helps prevent maintenance problems
too. Our safety incidence rate for 1994 (based on the U.S.
computation per 200K employee-hr) is 2.4 –well below the 3.3
reported as the U.S. mining average. For 1995 it was even better, a
1.8.
b) Today, Canadian mining is experiencing nothing less than an
industrial revolution in underground mining technology. Since no
producer can control the prices received for metals on world
exchanges the only means of remaining competitive in the global
marketplace is to improve productivity and, thereby to reduce the
unit costs of production.
1.4 IMPERATIVE BASE VERB …

1. Assume that the data are acceptable and provide at least the following
categories of information and guidelines: (1) detailed drillhole data; (2)
mineral and waste inventory; (3) geologic, hydrologic, and geotechnical
criteria; (4) topographic layout, including property boundaries; (5)
metallurgical flowsheet, recovery, and design criteria; (6) access, water and
power information; (7) environmental baseline data; and (8) financial criteria
(minimum rate of return, payback period, etc.).

2. Use the steepest possible pit slope with regards to the safety factor deemed
acceptable for the particular pit.

3. Strip initially in areas with lower overburden to ore ratios to reduce

equipment requirements.

4. Minimize the preproduction construction and mine development period to

the greatest extent possible.

Homework 14. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

a) For example, consider the case of base metal exploration in the shield
region of Canada. Assuming that exploration is funded on a before-tax
undiscounted basis, the relevant exploration parameters are:
C = $450,000;
P = .018.

b) Review the environmental aspects of the Alto operation including

environmental permits, and current and past environmental
performances. This will include a review of current environmental audit
reports, and reports on the monitoring of effluence and the water quality
in surrounding rivers.
II. PAST TENSE

2.1 PRETERITE NOUN + SIMPLE PAST

OR
PRONOUN

1. Over recent years, planning and operating considerations for surface mining
imposed by environmental requirements have increased markedly. There
have, at the same time, been enormous advances made in the design aids
available to the mine planner. Computer simulation of the various options,
whether it be for mine design or equipment selection, provides detailed
information for decision making in real time.

2. Persons closely associated with open pit mines have coined terms or
phrases for certain operations or for defining commonly occurring geometric
parameters in open pit mining.

3. Expected values assessed on the basis of overall environmental

parameters reflect the average performance of all organizations which have
undertaken exploration there. Obviously, there are benefits to be gained
from the application of superior skills and selectivity in exploration; benefits
in terms of increasing the probability of economic discovery, lowering the
average discovery costs, and improving the return characteristics of
economic discoveries.

Homework 15. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

1. The risk associated with commodity price, variability of return of an

economic discovery, and the high discovery risk should be considered in
exploration planning. These risks, individually and collectively, present
challenges to the long-term profit, survival, and growth of the mining
company.

2. Typically, overburden removed from an open pit is transported to an

adjacent waste embankment or to a previously mined-out pit. Seldom is
waste redeposited at its place of origin. In some operations, waste is placed
on engineered surfaces and treated to recover values which are not high
enough in grade to justify processing through normal milling operations. This
activity, referred to as “leaching” is common for copper, gold, and uranium
wastes.
2.2 PASSIVE VOICE NOUN + BE + PAST PARTICIPLE
OR
PRONOUN

1. Standard unit operations (drilling, blasting, excavating, and haulage) are

generally employed in removing both waste and ore. The type of drills most
commonly used include rotary and down-hole percussion rigs. If the material
cannot be ripped, the explosive of choice is ANFO for dry blast holes and
emulsion for wet blast holes. Some operations prefer to pump water from
holes and install plastic liners to prevent degradation of the ANFO.

2. After breakage, material is excavated using electric shovels, hydraulic

shovels, backhoes, front-end loaders, scrapers, and, less commonly,
draglines and bucket wheel excavators. The height of a bench is normally
dictated by the reach of the prime excavators to be used. The height should
be well within the maximum digging range so that the slope and the
tendency toward caving of the face and high wall can be better controlled.

3. A movable crusher is centrally located in a mine near the same level as the
mine’s working face. It is relocated every 1 to 2 years, as required, to
maintain the relationship between distance and elevation from the face. In
Dutex system at the Sierrita mine in Arizona. Copper ore is processed at
rates up to 4000 tph (3628 t/h) by a gyratory crusher, which is part of a
movable three-section system. The crusher can be completely relocated in
48 hours because no concrete structures or retaining walls are required.

Homework 16. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

1. Crawlers are widely used in moving heavy equipment, such as mine

shovels and dozers. Single sets of crawlers have moved up to 1000 tons
(900t) and can be teamed to move even heavier loads. Crawlers are also
able to move at relatively high speeds (up to 40 fpm, or 12 m/min) loaded.

2. Haul roads are required in bucket wheel excavator/conveyor mines for

access by service vehicles traveling at modest speeds. Apart from the need
for bridges to cross conveyors at key points, haul road requirements are not
a major consideration. Generally, such mines are excavated in relatively
unconsolidated formations (e.g., lignite and bauxite mines) and materials
suitable for haul road construction may not be available.
2.3 PERFECT TENSE NOUN + HAVE + PAST PARTICIPLE
OR
PRONOUN

1. The cyanide-free flotation technology developed for processing of poly-

metallic, copper-zinc and copper-nickel sulfide ores has been tested on
lead-zinc ores with a significant content of oxide minerals. The test results
obtained on pure minerals and ore material indicate that it is possible to use
sodium dimethyl dithiocarbamate which is simultaneously an additional
collector for lead minerals and a depressor for zinc minerals.

2. The kinetics of bacterial oxidation of refractory carbonaceous gold-silver

pyrite-arsenopyritic and pyrrhotite-arsenopyritepyritic ore concentrates by
Th.ferrooxidants has been studied. The behaviour of elemental sulphur has
been analyzed. The compositions of oxidized arsenic compounds and As
solubility in solid bioxidation products were determined. The effect of the
Fe/As molar ratio in a solid phase on the characteristics of the arsenic-
bearing residues has been studied.

3. During reducing heat treatment the sticking effect of pellets has been
avoided, as this would make it difficult to separate the non-volatile residue
(Fe, SiO2, CaO, etc) from the reducing agent. The thermal profile was
studied determining holding times of up to three hours at different testing
temperatures up to 1350 C, obtaining fairly good results with 2 hours of heat
treatment. Prolonged treatment times can allow the performance of reducing
treatments at lower temperatures, thus avoiding the appearance of
undesired molten phases.

Homework 17. Translate into Spanish the following examples.

1. The preparation of the charge before reducing heat treatment has been
considered an important factor, and the EAFD is agglomerated in the form
of pellets in order to prevent dragging phenomena. Parameters such as the
temperature and time of reducing heat treatment have also been studied,
as well as the composition profile of hot gasses, the nature of the pellets
inserted in the furnace with and without reducing agent in their
morphological composition, and the effect of the reducing agents.

2. This research work refers to new alternatives which will facilitate the
obtainment of ultradepurated ZnO from electric arc furnace dust (EADF),
minimizing a large part of secondary by-products. This residual dust has
been catalogued by all environmental legislations in developed countries as
a toxic and hazardous waste, containing mainly Fe, Zn and Pb.
III. FUTURE TENSE

2.1 SIMPLE FUTURE NOUN + FUTURITY + BASE VERB

OR
PRONOUN

1. All of this will facilitate and make more attractive the alternative of
constructing the boric acid production plant in the Puna, locating all the
processes for the technological harnessing of the borate deposit close to
their origin. The first development mentioned above will permit the taking of
the necessary energy from the high voltage line. The second development
will make it possible to produce the required steam by burning natural gas,
which is the least pollutant fuel.

2. Many surface mines have depleted reserves of shallow, high-grade ores in

simple geologic settings. This will inevitably require mining companies to
consider deeper deposits of greater complexity, with more critical
groundwater conditions, increased geotechnical problems, greater stripping
ratios and waste volumes, which are further from markets.

3. Variable speed drives are in common use in surface mines. In the future,
most will be based on solid state or static control systems. The trend will
be away from direct-current machines towards synchronous and induction
machines driven via variable frequency and voltage invertors. For low speed
or at very high power, the cycloconverter is preferred, but continued
improvements in semiconductors –in particular high-speed, high-power
switching transistors and gate turn-off thyristors –will extend the range of
application of link converters.

Homework 18 Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

1. In addition to increasing power capacity, improvements in controller

performance can also be anticipated with faster responses, improved
reliability, extensive condition monitoring and self-diagnostics, reduced
harmonic pollution, and maximum demand control. The greatest advances
will come through the use of automatic control, most probably based on
microprocessors and including closed loop, sequencing, and optimal and
intelligent knowledge-based control systems.

2. Ultrasonics are well established in the field of nondestructive testing (NDT)

of engineering components. Routing testing gives an early indication of
fatigue failure or of faulty manufacture. Adaptations of the acoustic camera,
as used in medical scanning, can produce 3-D images of internal structure.
Probing of the internal structure and microstructure of mineral deposits will
be of great assistance in mine and processing plant design and in the
assessment of abrasivity.
IV. MODALS NOUN + MODAL + BASE VERB
OR
PRONOUN
1. One of the major fields of application for electronics in mining is in
operational monitoring and control. This involves the use of a measuring
system to monitor critical operating parameters and relay this information to
the user. The user may be an individual or an automatic control system. In
either case, the measured parameter is compared with a desired value and
the difference, or error, is used to modify the operations in order to minimize
the error.

2. Induction techniques are well established in geophysical exploration.

Adaptations of the techniques can be used to detect moving objects or the
proximity of metal objects. This has been utilized in the detection of the entry
and exit of vehicles from zones within an open pit operation, and by fitting
each vehicle with a coding device, individual vehicles can be identified. As
an alternative, each vehicle could be fitted with a radio beam that could
then be located using scanning direction finding. The same beacon could
be used for voice and data transmission.

3. Intelligent knowledge-based systems (IKBS) have enormous potential in the

field of control engineering, particularly in the more difficult control situations
typical of mining. They have the great advantage of being able to learn the
rules for control of a process from a knowledge base. The knowledge base
can be built up from a number of sources that include observation of
manual operation or manual input of process rules, or the controller itself
can explore the process by perturbation and observation, thereby deriving
the process rules. In mining, both the processes and the raw materials suffer
from enormous variability. The ability of an intelligent controller to
continuously adapt to the changing conditions opens up new fields for
automation.

Homework 19. Translate into Spanish the following paragraphs.

1. It is difficult to identify any operation in surface mining that has not or will not
in some way be influenced by the microcomputer. Any application must ,
however, be based on cost effectiveness. The evaluation of the potential
benefit requires careful and detailed appraisal. Techniques of evaluation
have been described by the British Coal Board.

2. As increasingly marginal deposits are exploited, there is an obvious need to

improve operational planning in order to remain competitive. Operational
planning must therefore look to
a. Utilize the available information efficiently
b. Employ the best analytical techniques
c. Transfer the results of this analysis to the operations.