The hydrologic behaviour of waste rock piles in the Canadian Arctic : snowmelt infiltration and the onset of long term freezing in test piles ...

• Main Author: Krentz, Andrew
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: University of British Columbia 2014
• Subjects: Arctic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.14288/1.0167039; https://doi.library.ubc.ca/10.14288/1.0167039

This thesis examines the hydrology of three experimental waste rock piles located in the Canadian Arctic at Diavik Diamond Mine (DDMI). Seven years of hydrology data is presented, including measurements of moisture contents, outflow volumes and soil tensions, along with an estimate of annual rainfall infiltration. The hydrology of each pile is influenced by freezing and thawing, and pore water flow is restricted to the time periods when the pile is thawed. The base of each pile contains drain pipes used to collect pore water from the piles, and these pipes are lined with internal heat traces. This research shows that the heat traces significantly influence the thermal behaviour and hydrology of the waste rock. A flooding event in the winter of 2012 interrupted power to the heat trace in two of the waste rock piles, and led to altered outflow volumes and patterns in 2013. A heat trace in the base of the third pile was intentionally turned off in 2011, and led to a significant decrease in the volume of outflow ...