Lesson 3: Surface Mining Identification Flashcards
What term is used for the removal of the material that lies above a coal seam in surface mining?
Overburden
In coal mining, what is the term used in the United Kingdom and South Africa to describe a coal mine and its structures?
Colliery
What is the large machine used to remove overburden by scooping material with a large bucket in surface mining?
Dragline
Name the mining method that is performed by removing the surface material in long, narrow strips, commonly used for flat terrain.
Area strip mining
What is the most common form of surface mining used to extract coal in the Appalachian coal fields of the United States, involving the removal of a mountain’s summit?
Mountaintop removal
What is the large, continuous machine used for cutting coal and rock during surface mining, often combined with conveyor belts?
Bucket-wheel excavator
In the process of surface mining, after coal seams are exposed and fractured, onto what are they typically loaded for transport to a coal preparation plant?
Trucks or conveyors
What surface mining method is used when ore is close to the surface but is covered by weak rock layers, requiring the digging of circular benches around the pit?
Open-pit mining
What equipment is specifically used in auger mining, consisting of a cutting head that drills into exposed coal seams?
Auger
What do you call the process of drilling and blasting through overburden to expose coal seams before the coal is fractured and extracted in strips?
Removal of overburden
In which country does surface mining account for 80% of its coal production?
Australia
What surface mining technique uses a cutting head with diameters ranging from 1.5 to 8 feet, and a prime mover to transport the coal to the surface?
Auger mining
When using the contour strip mining method, what is created by bulldozers or power shovels in terraced steps along a hill to access coal seams?
Terraced strips
In the open-pit mining method, what is the sequence of creating horizontal steps called, which are progressively dug deeper to extract ore?
Benches (Circular benches in open-pit mining)
What surface mining technique is primarily used in flat terrain and involves the sequential removal of strips of overburden and the subsequent extraction of coal seams underneath?
Area strip mining
Which company is responsible for 92% of the coal production in the Philippines, primarily through surface mining methods?
Semirara Mining Corporation
What is the equipment used to transport coal after it is extracted from a coal seam during surface mining, capable of moving large volumes of coal over long distances?
Conveyor belt
What type of surface mining involves blasting and removing the overlying rock to reveal a coal seam, often in hilly or mountainous terrain, but with less impact than mountaintop removal?
Contour strip mining
Name the principal piece of equipment in auger mining that provides mounting for the engine, drive head, and controls.
Prime mover
What is the term used in surface mining to refer to the process of transporting overburden and coal from the mining area to dump sites or processing plants?
Hauling
What is the large-scale surface mining method that recovers a greater fraction of the coal deposit compared to underground methods by exposing more coal seams for extraction?
Open-pit mining (or Surface mining in general)
What type of strip mining method is used when a coal seam is located on the side of a hill, and mining is conducted along the contours of the land?
Contour strip mining
In surface mining, what term refers to the removal of the topmost layer of rock or soil in preparation for extracting a coal seam beneath it?
Overburden removal
In auger mining, what is the piece of equipment that cuts into exposed coal seams and transports it to the surface?
Cutting head
What is the process used to access coal seams situated under mountains by completely removing the mountain’s summit, a technique widely used in certain parts of the United States?
Mountaintop removal
What are the long, narrow strips of land left after the coal seam is extracted in strip mining called, where overburden from subsequent strips is dumped?
Spoil piles
What specific surface mining method uses large equipment to create circular benches that descend into a pit to remove ore?
Open-pit mining
What country’s coal production is predominantly surface mined, with 67% of coal being extracted via surface methods?
United States
What is the first step in surface mining, involving the removal of layers of soil and rock covering the coal seam?
Overburden removal
In what region of the United States is mountaintop removal widely practiced due to the abundance of coal seams near mountain peaks?
Appalachian coal fields (West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee)
What type of mining is commonly used to mine coal and lignite from large flat areas, typically found in countries like Australia and the United States?
Area strip mining
What method is used to mine coal deposits that are too deep for surface mining but too shallow for underground mining, utilizing a machine that drills horizontally into a seam?
Auger mining
In surface mining, what is the sequence of steps that involves overburden removal, coal extraction, and hauling to processing plants or directly to markets?
Surface mining cycle
What is the mining method where horizontal steps are cut into the side of a mountain or hill to expose and extract coal seams?
Contour strip mining
In which part of the world is the term “colliery” used to refer to a coal mine operation?
United Kingdom and South Africa
What type of heavy machinery is used in mountaintop removal to blast and haul away the top of a mountain to expose coal seams beneath?
Blasting equipment and haul trucks
What is the primary reason for choosing surface mining methods over underground methods when mining coal?
Coal seams are near the surface and more economical to extract
Name the method used for mining large coal seams spread across wide flat terrains, commonly seen in countries with vast coal reserves.
Area strip mining
What is the large mechanical device used to scoop up and transport overburden in surface mining, notable for its massive size and bucket?
Dragline
In which country does surface mining account for 80% of the coal production, making it a key method for coal extraction?
Australia
