The practice of the sampling theory of broken ores

CIM Bulletin, Vol. 86, No. 970, 1993

D. Francois-Bongarcon, Inco Exploration and Technical Services, Inc., Copper Cliff, Ontario

In previous publications by the author, significant advances and generalizations of the theory of sampling of broken ores, prompted and confirmed by experimental results, have been presented. This paper shows how to implement these theoretical results in practice. The models to be used are reviewed, with a description of the various sampling parameters involved. Then the methodology for the experimental assessment of those parameters, including segregation factors, is described in simple and practical terms, along with the use of handy sampling protocol charts. Finally, the particularly important case of processing data from a sample-tree experiment is detailed, and examples of applications covering all situations and types of experiments are provided.

Mots Clés: Geostatistics, Broken ores sampling.