sluicing
Quick Summary
Sluicing is a method used in placer mining, an ancient technique for recovering heavy minerals from unconsolidated deposits like sand and gravel. This process utilizes water to excavate, transport, and concentrate valuable minerals such as gold, tin, and diamonds.12
In sluicing, a long, slightly sloping trough called a sluice box is used. Water and placer dirt are introduced at the upper end. As the mixture flows down, specially designed riffles (bars) within the box agitate the current. This action prevents lighter material from settling while retaining the heavier, valuable minerals at the bottom. This method is an improvement over simpler techniques like panning and is often used in conjunction with mechanized excavation or hydraulicking.1345
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placer miningIn sluicing or hydraulicking methods, a slightly sloping wooden trough called a box sluice, or a ditch cut in hard gravel or rock called a ground sluice, is used as a channel along which gold-bearing gravel is carried by a stream of water. Riffles placed transversely…
Read MoreIn sluicing or hydraulicking methods, a slightly sloping wooden trough called a box sluice, or a ditch cut in hard gravel or rock called a ground sluice, is used as a channel along which gold-bearing gravel is carried by a stream of water. Riffles placed transversely…
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miningSluicingAnother hand method involves the use of a sluice box. This is a sturdy rectangular box, nearly always built of lumber, with an open top and a bottom roughened by a set of riffles. The most common riffles are transversely mounted wooden bars, but…
Read MoreAnother hand method involves the use of a sluice box. This is a sturdy rectangular box, nearly always built of lumber, with an open top and a bottom roughened by a set of riffles. The most common riffles are transversely mounted wooden bars, but…
Read More