Explosives Engineering Commons^™

Acknowledgments Of Reviewers

Journal of Sustainable Mining

No abstract provided.

Hitting Two Birds With One Emissions-Based Maintenance Stone – A Literature Review On Improving Overall Productivity Of Underground Diesel Fleets, Johannes Deon Swanepoel, Jennifer Hines, Vinod Gopaldasani, Brian Davies

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Many industries regard occupational health and safety as a core value and an integral component to maintaining high productivity, and, thus, shareholder value. Diesel fleets’ engine maintenance is instrumental in ensuring affected workplaces meet production requirements while controlling health and safety hazards that these fleets introduce to the workplace. This systematic literature review focuses on production and occupational health and safety advantages associated with the implementation and adherence to an emissions-based maintenance (EBM) program. The literature review was conducted across eight databases relevant to workplace health and engineering. To be eligible for inclusion, the publication had to contain maintenance interventions …

Research On Vibration-Based Early Diagnostic System For Excavator Motor Bearing Using 1-D Cnn, Dorjsuren Yandagsuren, Tatsuki Kurauchi, Hisatoshi Toriya, Hajime Ikeda, Tsuyoshi Adachi, Youhei Kawamura

Journal of Sustainable Mining

In mining, super-large machines such as rope excavators are used to perform the main mining operations. A rope excavator is equipped with motors that drive mechanisms. Motors are easily damaged as a result of harsh mining conditions. Bearings are important parts in a motor; bearing failure accounts for approximately half of all motor failures. Failure reduces work efficiency and increases maintenance costs. In practice, reactive, preventive, and predictive maintenance are used to minimize failures. Predictive maintenance can prevent failures and is more effective than other maintenance. For effective predictive maintenance, a good diagnosis is required to accurately determine motor-bearing health. …

Predicting Young’S Modulus Of Indian Coal Measure Rock Using Multiple Regression And Artificial Neutral Network, Sayantan Chakraborty, Rohan Bisai, Rohit Roy, Sathish Kumar Palaniappan, Samir Kumar Pal, Karanam Uma Maheshwar Rao

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Accurate information on Young’s modulus (E) is required for simulating rock deformation in mines; on the other hand, it is very cumbersome to obtain in the laboratory and collecting drilled cores in sufficient amounts, especially in the case of soft rocks, is quite impossible. Empirical equations were deducted for E from easily determinable rock properties, and the final model was selected through different statistical strength parameter tests. The generalization of the equation was verified through the normal distribution tests of residues of the equation. R2 came to be 0.609 and was validated using an artificial neural network with an improved …

Gravity And Electrostatic Separation Of Unburned Coal From A Selected Fly Ash, Krzysztof Wierzchowski, Agnieszka Klupa, Barbara Białecka, Joanna Całus Moszko

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Unburned coal grains make it difficult to use fly ash economically, which causes energy losses in the fuel. The article presents the possibilities of separating unburned coal from selected fly ash. In order to assess the possibility of separation of unburned carbon, the analysis of grain density and ash composition was used. Unburned coal was separated by four methods – one wet gravity and three dry methods. It has been found that despite very fine ash grains, the quality and quantity of separation products are significantly dependent on the separation method used and the separated grains’ qualitative characteristics. The analysis …

Exploring The Characterization, Liberation And Flotation Response Of A Nigerian Low-Grade Copper Ore, Willie Nheta, Omoyemi O. Ola-Omole

Journal of Sustainable Mining

This study explores the characterization, liberation and flotation response of low-grade copper ore from Anka area, Zamfara state Nigeria. The ore was crushed, milled and sieved in accordance with BS 410 standard. It was characterized with XRD, XRF, SEM-EDS and AAS. Froth flotation was carried out with varying %solids, pH, retention time and collector dosages using SEX and sodium oleate. Particle size distribution of the ore shows its economic liberation between -150 and +106 µm while 80% passing corresponds to 175.7 µm using the Gaudin Schuhmann equation. However, according to metallurgical balance calculation, 63 µm proved to have the highest …

Production Management System In A Modern Coal And Coke Company Based On The Demand And Quality Of The Exploited Raw Material In The Aspect Of Building A Service-Oriented Architecture, Artur Dyczko

Journal of Sustainable Mining

The paper deals with the implementation of the JSW Capital Group’s (Poland) Demand and Quality Driven Production Management System (SPPJ – System Zarządzania Produkcją oparty na Popycie i Jakości) using a service-oriented architecture (SOA). The main components of the SPPJ architecture have been characterized, and the scope of their integration has been defined. The individual parts in the first area, i.e. quality management, have been described in detail. Due to the extensive nature of the issue, components in other areas, i.e. planning and scheduling, coal extraction and processing, coke production, as well as sales and logistics, have only been signalled. …

Prediction Of Blast-Induced Ground Vibrations: A Comparison Between Empirical And Artificial-Neural-Network Approaches, Luis F. Velasquez

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

Ground vibrations are a critical factor in the rock blasting process. The instantaneous load application exerted by the gas pressure during the detonation process acts on the blasthole walls creating dynamic stresses in the adjacent rock. This triggers different sorts of stress waves, mainly divided into two categories: body and surface waves. The first comprises the P and the S waves, while the second comprises Rayleigh waves. These waves spread concentrically starting at the blast location and move along the ground surface and its interior, being attenuated as they reach further distances.

In most cases, and accepting the hypothesis that …

Shock Wave Formation From Head-On Collision Of Two Subsonic Vortex Rings, Rachel L. Bauer, Cody J. Thomas, Everett V.P. Baker, Emily M. Johnson, Kelly R. Williams, Martin J. Langenderfer, Catherine E. Johnson

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Vortex ring collisions have attracted intense interest in both water and air studies (Baird in Proc R Soc Lond Ser Math Phys Sci 409:59-65, 1987, Poudel et al. in Phys Fluids 33:096105, 2021, Lim and Nickels in Nature 357:225, 1992, New et al. in Exp Fluids 57:109, 2016, Suzuki et al. in Geophys Res Lett 34, 2007, Yan et al. in J Fluids Eng 140:054502, 2018, New et al. in J Fluid Mech 899, 2020, Cheng et al. in Phys Fluids 31:067107, 2019, Hernández and Reyes in 29:103604, 2017, Mishra et al. in Phys Rev Fluids, 2021, Zednikova et al. …

Impact Of Voids And Backfill On Seismic Wave Velocity-Preliminary Results, Zarina Mukhamedyarova, Fidelis Suorineni, Temirlan Aldubay, Gylym Sapinov

Journal of Sustainable Mining

In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted on discrete physical models that mimic mining effects to better understand the impact of continuous changes in mining environments on seismic wave velocities. The discrete physical models are represented by concrete and granite cubic samples of different sizes with holes of different diameters filled and unfilled with cemented sand backfill of different cement-sand content ratios. The hole diameters range from 0 to 150 mm in block sizes ranging from 150 mm to 450 mm in increments of 75 mm. The increasing hole size mimics increasing extraction in the mine with time. Cemented sand …

Predicting The Stability Of Open Stopes Using Machine Learning, Alicja Szmigiel, Derek B. Apel

Journal of Sustainable Mining

The Mathews stability graph method was presented for the first time in 1980. This method was developed to assess the stability of open stopes in different underground conditions, and it has an impact on evaluating the safety of underground excavations. With the development of technology and growing experience in applying computer sciences in various research disciplines, mining engineering could significantly benefit by using Machine Learning. Applying those ML algorithms to predict the stability of open stopes in underground excavations is a new approach that could replace the original graph method and should be investigated. In this research, a Potvin database …

Quantifying The Influence Of Variations In Rock Mass Properties On Stope Stability, Shahé Shnorhokian, Hani Mitri

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Variations in rock mass properties are well-established in rock mechanics and underground mining. The literature is replete with methods of assessing them and determining values that are used in design or numerical analysis. In this paper, a simplified 3D model is constructed for a tabular orebody in the Canadian Shield and instability is quantified using the ”brittle shear ratio” criterion to calculate the volume at risk. A 1-4-7 stope pillar sequence is implemented on four active levels, and three variations in the properties of the host formation are assessed. It is observed that the locations of ore at risk follow …

Prospects For Thiourea As A Leaching Agent In Colombian Gold Small-Scale Mining: A Comprehensive Review, Johana Borda, Robinson Torres

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Thiourea, as an alternative medium, is one of the most promising leaching agents for gold recovery by its commercial benefits and research challenges associated with performance and environmental impacts. This review article describes the operational conditions for the use of Thiourea vs cyanide, its chemistry, limitations, toxicity factors, environment, and recovery processes. Although thiourea gold extraction processes have not been applied on a large scale due to the instability of the reagent, its potential to overcome the limitations of cyanide is attractive to the process; with pH, potential, oxidant dosage, and temperature control, solubilized gold thiourea species are achieved. These …

Panel Destressing Strategies For Remnant Pillar Extraction, Isaac Vennes, Hani Mitri

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Large-scale panel destressing is a rockburst mitigation technique employed in deep hard rock mines during remnant pillar extraction. Panels are choke blasted in the pillar footwall to cutoff the far-field major stress in the mining area and deviate them around the pillar. In this study, the effects of panel geometry and far-field stress magnitude are investigated. Destress blast performance is assessed by measuring change to the energy release rate (ERR) of all mining steps during the extraction of a simplified remnant pillar due to destressing. It is demonstrated that the energy release rate (ERR) of critical stopes is reduced by …

Seismic Activity And Flooding Of Hard Coal Mines In The Ostrava-Karvina Coalfield, Petr Konicek, Eva Jirankova, Vlastimil Kajzar, Jan Schreiber, Pavel Malucha, Kristyna Schuchova

Journal of Sustainable Mining

The termination of mining activities often results in post-mining problems and risks. One of these issues is the flooding of mines. Long-term mining in the Ostrava and Petrvald sub-basins in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin finished in 1994. Tens of coal seams were mined here, and the depth of mining reached more than 1000 m below the surface. Flooding of the Ostrava sub-basin started in 1994. The Ostrava and Petrvald sub-basins were flooded from one half only to prevent water from flooding into the Karvina sub-basin, where mining continued. The continual pumping of water has been carried out ever since. …

Numerical Modelling Of Destress Blasting – A State-Of-The-Art Review, Shuting Miao, Petr Konicek, Peng-Zhi Pan, Hani Mitri

Journal of Sustainable Mining

As a proactive mine safety measure against the occurrence of rockburst, destress blasting has been applied to numerous mining conditions to precondition highly stressed rock mass to mitigate the risk of rockburst occurrence in deep mines as well as in deep underground constructions. However, the application of destress blasting mostly depends on engineering experience, while its mechanism and efficiency have not been well understood. Rapid advances in computer technology have made numerical simulation an economical and effective method to study the rock blasting effect. Enormous research efforts have been made to numerically investigate the blasting fracture mechanism, optimize blasting design, …

Analysis Of The Application Of Methane-Bearing Capacity Test Methods In The Conditions Of Polish Mining, Marcin Karbownik

Journal of Sustainable Mining

The methane hazard is one of the natural hazards occurring in hard coal mining. The content of natural methane in hard coal seams, the so-called methane-bearing capacity, is one of the key parameters that allow for proper assessment of the methane hazard and the state of the threat of gas and rock outbursts. For safety purposes, there is a constant need to improve the methods for the determination of this parameter. In the conditions of Polish mining, the method used for methane-bearing capacity determination is the direct drill cuttings method. This paper contains a comparative study presenting three different methods …

Proposed Design Fire Scenarios For Underground Hard Rock Mines, Rickard Hansen

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Given the complexity and uniqueness of underground hard rock mines, the application of the design fire scenario approach is recommended when evaluating fire safety in mines. Providing a full set of design fire scenarios – ensuring that several important life safety aspects are covered – for a mine can be challenging. The question is whether a catalogue of potential clusters of design fire scenarios could be developed, covering important aspects found underground? Given the general lack of research into design fires in the mining industry, this paper provides a unique analysis of design fire scenarios in underground hard rock mines. …

Effect Of Mining And Geology On Mining-Induced Seismicity – A Case Study, Heba Khalil, Tuo Chen, Yu-Hang Xu, Hani Mitri

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Mining-induced seismicity is a commonly occurring phenomenon in underground mines. This poses a greater challenge to the safety of the mining operation. This paper presents a case study of the Young-Davidson mine in northern Ontario, Canada, where seismic events of magnitude Mn 2.0+ have been observed at mining depths of 600 to 800 m below the surface. The occurrence of large seismic events at such shallow depths is the key issue of this study. A comprehensive study of the microseismic database has been conducted to discern the root causes for the unusually strong seismic activities recorded at shallow depths. The …

Shaft Liquidation Method Adjusted For High Precipitation Associated With Climate Change Impact, Jan Szymała, Joanna Całus Moszko, Ewa Janson, Dagmara Sobczak, Stanisław Konsek

Journal of Sustainable Mining

In connection with the implementation of the international project TEXMIN within the framework of the RFCS fund, a project for the liquidation of the Głowacki Shaft in Rybnik (Poland) was undertaken, which takes into account the effects of climate change, i.e. evaluation of the increase of precipitation in the region. In addition to the standard research undertaken before liquidation activities, precipitation data recorded by the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management from 1995 to 2019 was collected and the precipitation variability was analysed. As a result, a method for liquidation of the shaft was selected consisting of constructing a permeable …