Investigating frozen paste surface disposal as a climate change adaptation strategy: Case study of Mont-Wright Mine

Khalil Hashem, Department of Civil Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, CanadaFollow
Agus P. Sasmito, Trottier Institute for Sustainability in Engineering and Design, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
Laxmi Sushama, Department of Civil Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
Ferri Hassani, Department of Mining and Materials Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
Mehrdad Kermani, Department of Mining and Materials Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

Author ORCID Identifier

Khalil Hashem: 0000-0003-0619-9594

Agus P. Sasmito: 0000-0003-3444-8922

Laxmi Sushama: 0000-0002-0852-1009

Ferri Hassani: 0000-0002-0894-7907

Mehrdad Kermani: 0000-0002-1439-9775

Abstract

The mining industry faces evolving challenges in adapting to the impacts of climate change. Among these challenges is the management of tailings. This study focuses on investigating surface disposal of non-cemented paste tailings, particularly the effect of water content, freeze-thaw cycles (FTC, defined as freezing the sample to –20°C and thawing it to +20°C), and ambient temperature on the mechanical characteristics and thermophysical properties of paste tailings. The potential for maintaining non-cemented tailings in a frozen state year-round is also investigated through field-scale numerical simulations. Experiment results of thermophysical properties of tailings with water content, freeze-thaw cycles and ambient temperatures varying in the 0–30 wt% range, 0–15 range and –5 – –15°C range, respectively, suggest higher thermal conductivity of paste tailings compared with dry porous tailings, particularly at lower temperatures. The highest unconfined compression strength of 0.93 MPa is obtained for the sample with 30 wt% water content, subjected to 15 FTCs at –15°C. This study suggests that, unlike frozen cemented paste tailings, frozen non-cemented paste tailings exhibit higher strength when subjected to more FTCs, making them more resilient in cold regions. Furthermore, the field-scale numerical simulation results support the practicality aspect of frozen paste tailings as a climate change adaptation strategy if combined with artificial ground freezing.

Recommended Citation

Hashem, Khalil; Sasmito, Agus P.; Sushama, Laxmi; Hassani, Ferri; and Kermani, Mehrdad (2026) "Investigating frozen paste surface disposal as a climate change adaptation strategy: Case study of Mont-Wright Mine," Journal of Sustainable Mining: Vol. 25 : Iss. 1 , Article 1.
Available at: https://doi.org/10.46873/2300-3960.1476