About:
Barbara Arnold is a professor of practice in mining engineering at Penn State, with over 30 years of experience in the coal and mineral industries. She holds a B.S. (Mining Engineering), M.S. (Mineral Processing), and Ph.D. (Mineral Processing) from Penn State. For over 20 years, she represented several coal and mineral processing equipment companies in the U.S. and consulted with coal companies and engineering contractors to develop flowsheets for new coal preparation plants and plant retrofits. Much of her research experience has focused on coal properties and their effects on coal processing, especially in the areas of froth flotation and dewatering. She is a recognized international expert in coal preparation.
Arnold currently works with Penn State’s Center for Critical Minerals (C2M), conducting research related to the physical beneficiation of coal underclays and other horizons that contain rare earth elements and other critical minerals. Her other research is focused on respirable dust and the beneficial use/revalorization of mine tailings.
Arnold is a Penn State Alumni Fellow, Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME) Fellow, and American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers Honorary Member. She served as the 2018 SME President and is a registered professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
GRANTS
- Gladys Snyder Education Grant, Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, 2022
- George H. Deike Jr. Research Grant, Penn State College of Earth & Mineral Sciences, 2023
- Coal Preparation Society of America
- Secretary, since 2008
- Secretariat, XVI International Coal Preparation Congress, 2010, Lexington, KY
- International Organizing Committee Representative, International Coal Preparation Congress, beginning 2016
- Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc.
- President, 2018
- Coal & Energy Division, Chair, 2003
- Coal & Energy Division, Miscellaneous Service and Technical Committees since 1993
- SME Board Member, 2002-2005, 2010-2013
- SME Foundation Vice President, 2009 –-2011; President, 2011-2013; Trustee, 2014-2020
- Editorial Board, International Journal of Coal Preparation and Utilization
- Editorial Board, Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration
- Montana Tech Metallurgical & Materials Engineering Industrial Advisory Board, since 2013
- Penn State University, Mining Engineering Program Industrial Advisory Board, 2015-2020
- Mortar Board National College Senior Honor Society
- National President 2001-2003; National Foundation Board of Trustees President 2021-current
- National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum, Board of Directors, beginning 2023
Selected Technical Papers and Presentations
- "The Effect of Clay Slimes on Coal Flotation, Part I: The Nature of the Clay," International Journal of Mineral Processing, Vol. 17, pp. 225-242, 1986, with F.F. Aplan. Presented at SME-AIME Annual Meeting, New York, NY, 1985.
- "The Effect of Clay Slimes on Coal Flotation, Part II: The Role of Water Quality," International Journal of Mineral Processing, Vol. 17, 243-260, 1986, with F.F. Aplan. Presented at SME-AIME Annual Meeting, New York, NY, 1985.
- "The Hydrophobicity of Coal Macerals," Fuel, Vol. 68, pp. 651-658, 1989, with F. F. Aplan. Presented at Engineering Foundation Conference, Henniker, NH, 1985.
- “Simulation of Dewatering Devices for Predicting the Moisture Content of Coals,” Coal Preparation, Vol. 20, 1999, pp. 35 - 54.
- “Use of residence-time distribution techniques to analyze industrial-scale froth-flotation circuits,” with E.C. Dowling, Jr., R. R. Klimpel, and F.F. Aplan, Minerals & Metallurgical Processing, Vol. 16, No. 1, February 1999, pp. 18 - 26.
- “Coal Properties and Challenges for Fines Processing,” Challenges in Fine Coal Processing, Dewatering, and Disposal, M.S. Klima, B.J. Arnold and P.J. Bethell, Eds., Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration, Inc., 2012, proceedings of a Conference in Pittsburgh, PA, October 2012, pp. 47-66.
- “The Reprocessing and Revalorization of Critical Minerals in Mine Tailings,” with Caden Vitti, Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration, January 1, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-021-00524-6.
- “Preface to the MME Special Focus Issue in Memory of Emeritus Professor Frank F. Aplan: Between Theory and Practice,” Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration, January 3, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1007/s42461-021-00530-8.
- “Understanding coal quality and the critical importance of comprehensive coal analyses,” International Journal of Coal Geology, Invited Review Paper with James C. Hower, Robert B. Finkelman, Cortland F. Eble, V 263, 2022, 104102.
- “(Mis)adventures in Fine Coal Processing from a US Perspective,” Arthur Le Page Memorial Lecture, in Vince, A. (Ed.), Proceedings of the Eighteenth Australian Coal Preparation
- Conference, (2021) Australian Coal Preparation Society, Brisbane and Pokolbin, Paper 4.
- “Recovery of Valuable Commodities from Tailings Streams—No Molecule Left Behind,” Proceedings of SMART 2020: Safety, Health, and Environment: Sustainable Practices, Department of Mining Engineering, IIT Kharagpur, 1 June 2021.
- “Coal Formation,” The Coal Handbook, Towards Cleaner Production, Volume 1, Chapter 2, Osborne, Ed., 2013, Woodhead Publishing Limited, pp. 31-52.
- “Coal formation, coal types and coalification,” The Clean Coal Handbook, Volume 1, Chapter 1, Second Edition, Elsevier, 2023.
Invited/Keynote Presentations
- “Sustainable Development and the Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration,” Beneficiation of Phosphates VI, Kunming, China, Feb 20-25, 2011.
- “Recovery of Valuable Commodities from Tailings Streams—No Molecule Left Behind,” Mines to Mill: Technology Towards Zero Waste Generation Session for the International Webinar on Smart Mining and Advanced Resources Technology—2020, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (December 16-18).
- “(Mis)adventures in Fine Coal Processing from a US Perspective,” Arthur Le Page Memorial Lecture, Eighteenth Australian Coal Preparation Conference, Australian Coal Preparation Society, Brisbane and Pokolbin, presented virtually March 16, 2021
- “The Perception of Mining: Emphasis on Coal,” Khanitra: SME India Section Annual Meeting, June 28, 2021.
- “Ellen Swallow Richards: My Hero,” AIME 150th Anniversary Celebration, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, October 2, 2020.
- Howard N. Eavenson Award, SME-AIME, 2023
- American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum Engineers, Honorary Member, 2021
- Ford City Area Hall of Fame, 2015 Inductee
- Percy W. Nicholls Award, SME/ASME, 2014
- Frank F. Aplan Award, SME-AIME, 2013
- Penn State Alumni Fellow, 2011
- Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences Alumni Achievement Award, 2008
- Robert Stefanko Distinguished Achievement Award, Penn State Mining Engineering, 2007
- Fellow (Distinguished Member), Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc., Class of 2006
- Distinguished Service Award, Coal & Energy Division, SME, 2006
- Chairperson Award, Coal & Energy Division, SME, 2003
- J. W. Woomer Young Engineer Award, Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Coal Division, 1992