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Ore-Max was a pioneer in the application of drip irrigation to gold and copper mines in the late 1980’s. Previously the mines had
used sprinklers which had many environmental and production limitations which were solved by the application of mining
solution using drip systems. Today the use of drip on mines is standard on 90% of the gold, copper and uranium mines and it is
also used on nickel and extraction of lithium. It is without question “best practice” method for heap leach mining worldwide.

The Leach Mining Cycle

This drawing illustrates the concept of a
typical leach mine. The leach solution is
applied on the top of the mine on the
highest “lift”. As it gradually percolates
through the layers of ore it chemically
bonds with the ore. The solution which now
has the ore in it called the “pregnant”
solution flows by capillary action (ideally) to
the bottom of the leach pile to the geo-
membrane liner. Then the solution flows by
gravity to holding ponds for temporary storage. It is then pumped to the “tank house” which refines the solution and extracts the
ore and then the solution is recirculated repeating the mining cycle.

How Drip is Applied in Mining

This drawing shows a typical layout of drip irrigation on a leach pad. The
leaching solution is supplied to individual cells by lay flat hose. Often a
pressure regulator is installed after the hose fitting to insure that the
emitters operate at exactly the correct pressure, which results in the right
application rate of solution. The drip lines are connected to lay flat hose at
pre-determined spacing. Emitters are installed in the drip lines so that the
solution is applied at a set spacing between emitters and lines. For
example, a typical spacing might be 24” by 24” for a leach pad. Spacing
always depends on the pre-determined ideal application rate for the
particular ore.

How The Max-Emitter Works

This animation shows the operation of the Max-Emitter which is the only emitter designed to operate in the difficult mining
environment. Other drip emitters are from the agriculture industry which operate with clean filtered water. It is designed to
reduce plugging because mining solution always has contaminants in it. Hundreds of screens filter the solution so that it is
almost impossible to plug the screens and the flow path is the largest available on the market. Further, two exit holes are
standard but the emitter can be ordered with four holes to reduce plugging. All of this means that more of your emitters will be
operating more of the time so you can achieve maximum ore extraction.
 Max-Emitter vs. The Competition

Important Considerations in Drip Leach Mining

Emitter Spacing is Critical
The emitters must be spaced to achieve the desired
application of the solution. A typical spacing is 24” as
shown in the drawing but spacings vary from 18” (2 Liter) to
36” (8 liter). All of these flow rates can be used to achieve
the same application rate per square meter.

Drip Solution Flows Laterally

and Vertically Eliminating “Dry
Spots”
When the drip solution is applied the surface area appears
to be dry between drippers. What actually happens is the
solution, moving by capillary action in the soil, flows both
horizontally and vertically. In most soils the solution will
spread up to 30-36” horizontally from the drip point.
Furthermore it also moves vertically up in the soil so there
are virtually no dry spot between emitters. It is very easy to
test the movement of solution in your ore by taking one
emitter and applying solution for an hour and then digging
to find the perimeter of the moisture. However, if the
solution spreads 30” remember this is the full diameter and
when you have two emitters next to each other, the solution
intersects at the radius so there is always plenty of solution
overlap even with the widest spacing.

The Three Mistakes You Want to

Avoid
Emitter Plugging
Emitter plugging greatly reduces production. This is the
biggest problem in achieving design production of ore
because every plugged emitter means sub-optimal
conditions. This is why we developed the Max Emitter.

Over-Saturation of Leach Solution

Nothing good happens when you apply too much solution
and saturate the leach pad. Solution should move by
capillary action through the ore not by gravity. Why?
Because once the ore becomes saturated you don’t have
any oxygen left and oxygen is required for the chemical and
biological reactions which are necessary for extraction. No
oxygen means no extraction so don’t over apply solution.

Fluctuating System Pressure

Correct pressure is vital to the proper functioning of a leach system. A drip system usually operates at 10-15 PSI so a 5 PSI
pressure differential dramatically affects the flow rate of the emitters. A 5 PSI variation can result in a 33% over or under
application of leach solution. Ideally every emitter (dripper) should see the same pressure to achieve uniform application of the
leach solution.

Animation of Drip Wetting Pattern

This animation shows how solution spreads in the ore by capillary action. It not only moves laterally but also vertically virtually
eliminating any dry spot between emitters. Emitter spacing varies but can be as wide as 36” in ore with clays to as close as 15”
in very light sandy ore. The best answer on the spacing is to test your ore for wetting pattern.

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