Gold Reserve Estimation Methods
Gold Reserve Estimation Methods
Gold Reserve Estimation Methods
Reserve Estimation and Placer Valuation: Methods that can be used for reserve estimation and placer
valuation are (1) block method (2) triangle method (3) polygonal method (4) cross-section method (5) method
of diamonds. After samples have been collected, washed, and assayed, reserves for a deposit can be
estimated. There are many placer reserve estimation methods available. Some of these are the block, triangle,
polygonal, traverses, and diamond methods.
* Block Method: The value using the block method is calculated as follows:
* 1) Find the volume of each block, length times width times depth.
* 2) Multiply the volume by the value per cubic meter (cubic yard) in each block,
* 3) Find the sum of all weighed values to obtain the total value.
* 4) Find the average grade by dividing the total in step 3 by the total volume to obtain the value per cubic
meter (cubic yard).
Triangle Method: If this method is used, the value of deposit is calculated as follows:
1. The volume equals the average of depth of the three drill holes times the area of the triangle,
2. The weighed average gold content is equal to the gold value of each of the three holes times the depth of
each of the holes divided by the sum of the depths of the three holes.
3. Total volume equals the summation of values in step 1.
4. Total gold content equals the total volume in step 3 times the average from step 2.
5. The average grade equals the total gold content in step 4 divided by the total volume in step 3.
Polygonal Method: Either method may be used in finding the value using polygons.
The grade for regular polygons is calculated as follows:
1. The total volume equals the sum of the volumes of the individual polygons. Find the volume of the
polygons by multiplying the area of the polygon times the depth of the drill hole.
2. Total gold content equals the sum of the grades of each hole times the volume of each polygon.
3. Average grade equals the value in step 2 divided by the value in step 1.
The area of each irregular polygon may be found by using a planimeter or by dividing the polygon into
triangles or rectangles.
Traverses Method: This method is very similar to that of the triangle and may be used as a check:
1. Area of a traverse is the average of the depths of the boreholes times the distance between the boreholes.
2. The total volume of a section between two traverses is one-half the sum of the areas of all individual
traverses, A and B, times the distance between the traverses.
3. The gold content of a section is the volume of the section times the average value between two traverses.
4. The total gold content is the sum of the gold contents of each section.
5. The average grade is the value in step 4 divided by the value in step 2.
Method of Diamonds: The method of diamonds is much the same as that of triangles. The drill hole is located
at the centre of the diamond and apexes midway between drill holes on adjacent lines. This method is best
used for regularly spaced holes. The total area is equal to the sum of all diamonds that may be treated as right
triangles for all practical purposes:
1. 1) Total volume equals the area of each diamond times the depth of each hole through the pay zone.
2. 2) Total gold value equals the sum of the gold value in each hole times the volume of each diamond.
3. 3) To find the value per cubic meter (cubic yard), divide the value in step 2 by the value in step 1.
There are many ways to sample and many methods to calculate the value of a placer deposit. It is important to
remember to use care in sampling and to select the method that best suits the type of occurrence that is being
sampled. Also, use the ore reserve calculation method that best applies to the configuration of the deposit and
mode of deposition. Nothing replaces experience, not a costly site or advanced software. Gold, diamond or tin
placer has a personality of its own, but all placers in a geological province area are similar. Also, placers
formed in cold climates like Alaska or Yukon, are very different from tropical placers formed under laterization
processes. A point often missed (for a time) by a placer specialist (geologist) shifting to new hunting grounds.
Sampling:One of the most difficult tasks associated with placer mining is the sampling of the deposit. More
placer projects have failed due to inaccurate assessment of the reserves than to any other reason. Within the
realm of placers, those containing valuable minerals with a high unit value (diamonds) are more difficult to
sample than those with larger bulk, lower unit value minerals (tin). Some items to consider when sampling a
placer deposit are:
1. A relatively large size sample is needed for accurate valuation of the ground being tested. Placers are
composed of many sizes of gravel that make a representative sample difficult to obtain.
2. When sampling placers for high unit value minerals such as gold, any error in mineral content of the
sample will be magnified in the calculation of reserves.
3. Values usually are erratically distributed within the gravel mass. Therefore, some placers with a more
uniform value distribution may be adequately assessed with a minimum number of samples, while a
deposit with a high erratic distribution of values may not be adequately sampled regardless of how
many samples are taken.
4. The investigation of a placer deposit should be made by or be under the direction of a person
experienced in the art of placer sampling.
5. During a sampling program, items that must be observed and noted in addition to the sample size and
valuable mineral content should include boulder size and number, clay content, bedrock conditions,
water, frozen ground, false bedrock, and any other physical characteristics that would affect mining of
the deposit.
The steps to be followed in approaching a placer sampling program are outlined below:
- Reconnaissance: (1) check status of land ownership, (2) physical characteristics of area, and (3) research
mining history of the area.
- Field inspection: (1) photogeomorphology, (2) surface grab sampling over all exposures of gravel, (3) few
seismic cross section, (4) geobotanical study, and (5) survey for old workings.
- Choosing a Sampling Method: The main methods to consider are ( 1) existing exposures, (2) hand-dug pits or
shafts, (3) backhoe trenches, (4) bulldozer trenches, (5) other machine-dug pits or shafts, (6) churn drill holes,
(7) other drilling methods, or (8) bulk samples.
Existing Exposures: If existing exposures are available, they can be tested for potentially valuable
minerals by taking a grab sample and panning the sample. Advantages of taking samples from
surface exposures are the low cost and the speed at which the samples can be taken. The
disadvantages are that you can only sample what is on the surface and no quantitative information
can be produced.
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Gold Prospecting Methods - Placer Sampling
Bucket or Clamshell Type Excavators: These machines are usually quite large in size and allow
taking a fairly large bulk sample. The advantages of using this equipment are its ability to allow
visual inspection of bedrock, use of caissons to hold the hole open, and the capability of obtaining a
fairly accurate sample volume. The disadvantages are the need for good access for the large
equipment and a fairly slow digging speed.
Churn Drills: Churn drilling is used in deep or wet ground where sampling by pits, trenches, or
shafts is not feasible. The churn drill utilizes a heavy casing with a drive shoe at the bottom, a
chisel-shaped bit, and a vacuum type sand pump for removing the sample from the hole. There are
three main types of churn drills that are differentiated by their size:
The hand operated "Banka", the light "Hillman" or "Airplane, "the heavy "Bucyrus-Erie" or
"Keystone" drills. The advantages of using churn drills for sampling placer deposits are: (1) the
sample is very reliable; (2) equipment is fairly portable; (3) few mechanical problems are
encountered; and (4) technical data and interpretative information are available. The disadvantages
of using churn drills are (1) very slow penetration rate, (2) large boulders create many problems,
Special Problems Associated with Placer Sampling: These are (1) large rocks and b oulders, (2)
erratic high values, (3) uncased holes, (4) small diameter holes, and (5) salting.
Large Rocks and Boulders: In sampling placers, there is a tendency to bypass areas containing
many boulders or to sample the easily collected finer material around the boulders. In many cases,
this is essentially salting the sample since the valuable material in a placer deposit usually occurs in
the finer material. The most direct solution to sampling areas containing boulders would be to take
samples large enough to contain a representative portion of the boulders to give accurate value
estimates. Since it is not physically possible to take large samples to include the boulders in most
sampling situations, how does one consider the effect of boulders without including them in the
sample? The most common solution is to visually estimate the volume and insert a correction factor
into the end sample volume calculations.
Erratic High Values: The methods used for estimating the values of placer ground rely on the
assumption that the value found in a particular sample extends halfway to the next sample. While
evaluation of ground having a generally low or fairly uniform average of values can be done using
the standard reserve estimation methods, erratic high value samples in a deposit cause problems.
Methods for adjusting erratic high values, so an over evaluation of the ground does not occur,
include: (1) resampling erratic areas, (2) using the lower value determined, (3) determining what the
highest reasonable value should be, and then keeping all sample values within that limit.
Uncased Holes: The use of uncased drill holes should be discouraged in placer sampling,
especially in sampling ground with a high unit value mineral. If uncased holes are used, there is a
tendency to unintentionally salt the sample and get overvalued sample results. This problem arises
due to the fact that without casing, an excess of material can get into a sample without the
evaluator knowing where, within the hole, the material came from. An exception to always casing
drill holes is when drilling frozen ground. If the ground being sampled is well frozen, casing is
usually not used.
Small Diameter Holes: Due to the large "nugget effect" associated with sampling ground
containing high unit value minerals, the use of small diameter drill holes is not recommended for
sampling deposits for gold, platinum, etc. When sampling deposits that have fine-grained material
and contain low unit value minerals, small [50 mm (2-in.) diameter] holes may be used.