Mining Engineering Commons^™

Test Development To Determine The Feasibility Of Rubber Tractor Treads For Use As Blasting Mats, Matthew Kurtis Coy

Masters Theses

"The objective of this thesis was to determine if rubber tractor treads could be used as an alternative material for blasting mats. These treads are made from steel cable and vulcanized rubber and are very tough. However, once they reach the end of their life on mobile equipment, they are destined for a landfill, or dump site because they are too tough to recycle. A potential alternative use for them is as blasting mats.

An examination of existing mat designs was conducted to better understand the matting methods used by the blasting industry today, to learn from those designs allow …

The Effects Of Advanced Structural Materials To Mitigate Explosive And Impact Threats, Caleb Michael Baumgart

Masters Theses

"In a world of ever newer and modified improvised explosive devices (IEDs) that are very common in certain parts of the world, it is always more important to improve the devices used for protection. This research endeavors to design and analyze a blast barrier using three different media types to mitigate the high pressures from an IED or a car bomb. The three media types used in this research are pumice, steel grit, and foam. Six barriers were built to test the three media types and account for the changes from a standard solid concrete barrier to a barrier with …

Stability Analysis Of Bleeder Entries In Underground Coal Mines Using The Displacement-Discontinuity And Finite-Difference Programs, Xu Tang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

The stability of bleeder entries is essential for both mine ventilation and personnel travelling through the entries. Therefore, it is imperative that bleeder pillars remain stable and bleeder entries safe during their service life. Surprisingly, there are few published investigations on ground control issues in the bleeder entries. This thesis is an attempt to analyze the ground control problems in bleeder entries especially, the structural integrity of the bleeder entry. Two numerical programs (a) displacement discontinuity program-LaModel and (b) the finite difference program-FLAC were used to investigate these problems. Modeling results from the LaModel program indicated that the vertical stresses …

Determining And Mitigating The Effects Of Firing A Linear Shaped Charge Under Water, Brian Burch

Masters Theses

"When fired under water, a Linear Shaped Charge (LSC) does not penetrate a steel target as well as in air. This lack of performance has been a problem for shaped charge manufacturers and their clients. It was obvious that this degradation of performance is due to water having a higher density than air and water being incompressible compared to air. This study aimed to better determine how the water was affecting the LSC and to provide a method of mitigation.

LSCs of different sizes were submerged under water and fired through the water with and without a target. It was …

Behavior In Air Leakage And Recirculation Under The Influence Of Booster Fans, Koziba Feledi

Masters Theses

"A booster fan is an underground mechanical ventilation equipment installed in series with a main surface fan that is used to boost the air pressure provided by the surface main fan passing through it. As mining continues to expand and go deeper, the need for improved and efficient ventilation increases. This has led to the use of booster fans and other auxiliary ventilation devices in underground mines. Research defining how system leakage and recirculation are affected by booster fans; describing how system leakage and recirculation are affected by the location, placement, and amount of air pressure from the booster fans; …

Multiscale Modeling Of The Mine Ventilation System And Flow Through The Gob, William Chad Wedding

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

The following dissertation introduces the hazard of methane buildup in the gob zone, a caved region behind a retreating longwall face. This region serves as a reservoir for methane that can bleed into the mine workings. As this methane mixes with air delivered to the longwall panel, explosive concentrations of methane will be reached.

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is one of the many approaches to study the gob environment. Several studies in the past have researched this topic and a general approach has been developed that addresses much of the complexity of the problem. The topic of research herein presents …

Fragmentation Analysis In The Dynamic Stress Wave Collision Regions In Bench Blasting, Catherine E. Johnson

Theses and Dissertations--Mining Engineering

The first step in many mining operations is blasting, and the purpose of blasting is to fragment the rock mass in the most efficient way for that mine site and the material end use. Over time, new developments to any industry occur, and design and implementation of traditional techniques have to change as a consequence. Possibly the greatest improvement in blasting in recent years is that of electronic detonators. The improvements related to safety and increased fragmentation have been invaluable. There has been ongoing debate within the explosives industry regarding two possible theories for this. Shorter timing delays that allow …

Avustralya'da Madencilik Ve Metal Kazanımı (Mining And Metal Extraction In Australia), Ahmet Deniz Bas

Ahmet Deniz Bas

No abstract provided.