Simple rules of thumb typically develop over time and have become useful tools for the assessment of tailings backfill and disposal. The usage of rules of thumb is common in any industry but caution should be exercised when applying them. The most common and misused rule of thumb for paste is that an ideal particle size distribution should have 15 wt% passing 20 ?m. However, an understanding of the rules' origin and its applicability, along with other details, are mostly lost, based on numerous reviews of studies and design reports.Specifically, one should limit rules of thumb and tailings benchmarking to preliminary or high level studies, with more advanced work relying on well-planned test work conducted on a representative sample. Proper sample collection, a tailored test campaign, and analysis of results with strong operational consideration will lead directly to a robust, economical and sustainable solution. Moreover, all aspects of the mining process need to be considered at the outset of the project to ensure that the final solution meets or exceeds operational needs. A seemingly simple study on backfill (hydraulic, paste, rock) can have far-reaching implications, and should consider regional host geology, mineral reserves and resources, mine geometry, mining methods, mineral processing, surface disposal of both tailings and waste rock, environmental impact and permitting, and all aspects of project sustainability. A more in-depth understanding of the orebody and variability (mining sequence, dilution, upper/lower ranges), processing, and process control must be assessed, interpreted and understood will in advance.
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