Engineering Commons^™

Combined Thermal Weakening And Mechanical Disintegration Of Hard Rock, George Bromley Clark, T. F. Lehnhoff, Gary F. Fenton, M. R. Patel, Jaw K. Wang, Vernon Dale Allen

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This investigation of the combined effects of thermal weakening and mechanical disintegration (thermomechanical fragmentation) was initiated with a view toward better understanding of the processes required for more rapidly and economically fragmenting or excavating hard rock. Boring machines for utility tunnels, transportation tunnels or mining operations may be able to utilize the advantages of processes such as thermomechanical fragmentation. Secondary fragmentation or rock crushing processes also can conceivably employ the data obtained from this study.