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Aims and overview - slopes, geology and materials
Published in Robin Chowdhury, Phil Flentje, Gautam Bhattacharya, Geotechnical Slope Analysis, 2009
Robin Chowdhury, Phil Flentje, Gautam Bhattacharya
Shallow and deep cuts are of major interest in many civil and mining engineering operations. The aim is to design a slope with such a height and inclination as to be stable within a reasonable life span and with as much economy as possible. Such design is influenced by geological conditions, material properties, seepage pressures, the possibility of flooding and erosion, the method of construction as well as the purpose of a particular cutting. In open-cut or surface mining operations, excavations may be carried out in several steps or benches and the stability of individual benches must be ensured as well as that of the entire cut. Steep cuts may sometimes be necessary in many engineering applications so that preventive and protective measures are part of the initial design. In some situations the stability at the end of construction of a cutting may be critical. On the other hand many cut slopes are stable in the shortterm but may fail without much warning many years later. The reasons for such failure have been given in the previous section concerning natural slopes. The most well known example is that of failures of cut slopes in London clay (Skempton 1964, 1970). (For a discussion of relevant concepts and case histories refer to chapters 2 and 5). Making cut slopes so flat that they are stable for an indefinite period of time would often be uneconomical and sometimes impractical. On the other hand, slopes which are too steep may remain stable for only a short time and pose real danger to life and property. Frequent failures would also involve tremendous inconvenience and the expense of repairs, maintenance and stabilisation measures.
Introduction to mine haul roads
Published in Thompson Roger J., Peroni Rodrigo, Visser Alex T., Mining Haul Roads, 2019
Thompson Roger J., Peroni Rodrigo, Visser Alex T.
In the case of surface mining, economy of scale and the increase in haul truck payload, as shown in Figure 1.2, have so far seen the RDT ultra-class truck (> 220 t payload, > 380 t GVM) population rise significantly (Gilewicz, 2006). With this increasing size, haul road performance can be compromised, resulting in excessive total road-user costs; often seen directly as an increase in cost per ton hauled, but also indirectly as reduced production rates and vehicle and component service life. Especially with the larger haul trucks now predominant in surface mining, it is advantageous to consider the haul road as an asset, similar to the vehicles that use the road.
Introduction
Published in Karra Ram Chandar, B. C. Gayana, P. Shubhananda Rao, Mine Waste Utilization, 2022
There are basically two methods of mining, one is surface mining and the other is underground mining. Surface mining involves removal of complete waste rock to expose the ore body or coal. process of removing the waste bound to damage the natural ecosystem by producing various types of pollution. The waste produced is generally dumped outside the mine in the form of overburden dumps. These dumps occupy large amount of land, which loses its original use and generally gets degraded. Maintaining stability of dump is also a major issue for mining industry. Such waste material is produced at various stages of mining.
Development of an intervention program to reduce whole-body vibration exposure based on occupational and individual determinants among dumper operators
Published in International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics, 2023
Rahul Upadhyay, Amrites Senapati, Kenora Chau, Ashis Bhattacherjee, Aditya Kumar Patra, Nearkasen Chau
Surface mining involves the use of several types of HEMM such as shovels, drills, dozers and dumpers at different stages. Dumpers in mines are used for the transportation of materials, minerals and overburdens from the mine, and travel more distance than any other HEMM. Further, the haul roads on which the dumpers ply are irregular and undulated, unlike smooth public paved roads. Therefore, dumper operators are exposed to multiple shocks during their normal work [20–23]. A review of accident statistics for the Ontario Mining Industry showed that 16% of the traumatic injuries were associated with haul truck operations [23]. Several other studies also found that exposure to vibration for a considerable duration made dumper operators more prone to developing MSD problems [6–9]. As the literature on WBV exposure studies of dumper operators is scarce [20–22] and the small sample size (n = 7–11) of these studies makes the findings unreliable [9,24], the understanding of the WBV exposures of dumper operators is limited. Therefore, it is needed to evaluate the WBV exposure of dumper operators with a greater number of operators.
Review of Solution Methodologies for Open Pit Mine Production Scheduling Problem
Published in International Journal of Mining, Reclamation and Environment, 2021
Karo Fathollahzadeh, Mohammad Waqar Ali Asad, Elham Mardaneh, Mehmet Cigla
Surface mining is applicable for mineral resources or orebodies that exist at relatively shallow depths. However, surface mines require waste stripping or the extraction of overlying waste to gain access to the underlying ore or valuable material that generates profit. Therefore, for the orebodies that exist at great depths, waste stripping requirements may reach extreme limits, such that surface mining is no longer considered economic; in these circumstances, the process of underground mining becomes the only option. This confirms that even though the spatial (size, shape, depth and orientation) properties of an orebody play a significant role in the selection of a mining method, the strategic decision between surface vs. underground mining is mainly derived through the economics of a mining operation. If surface mining becomes the method of choice, then the development of reserves and infrastructure commences for a surface mining method that is appropriate to the mineral commodity under consideration [2]. Open pit mining refers to the large-scale (in terms of production) surface mining of metallic (copper, gold, iron, etc.) and non-metallic (limestone, etc.) resources. Figure 1 presents a 3D view of a copper mineralisation or orebody model in the context of an open pit mining operation.
Comprehensive evaluation of land reclamation and utilisation schemes based on a modified VIKOR method for surface mines
Published in International Journal of Mining, Reclamation and Environment, 2018
Wei Zhou, Wenying Yin, Xiaoqing Peng, Fuming Liu, Fei Yang
Surface coal mining in China is characterised by being nearly horizontal, reaching great depths and having a larger stripping ratio, such that the waste piles must occupy large areas of land. Most surface mines are located in ecologically fragile regions. Groundwater is seriously polluted by surface mining, with the degree of ecological degradation being 10 times worse than that in an area with conventional mining. Surface mining has already caused considerable damage, affecting the surrounding ecological environment and landscape to the point where the original ecosystems have been destroyed. Considering the environmental engineering and sustainable development of the mining industry, there is a great need to restore such destroyed land after the completion of mining operations. By improving the quality and condition of the land, worked-out mines and occupied land can be restored to a usable state [1]. Surface mining destroys the original topography, geomorphology and soil structure affecting the quality of living environment in the area. At present, in China, surface mining for coal damages more than 50,000 acres annually. The land destroyed by surface mining is expected to increase by 8–9% per year, amounting to approximately 1000,000 acres in 2020. To achieve sustainable development and the effective environmental engineering and management of the mined areas and to provide an impetus for the ecological construction of mines, it is essential to reuse land damaged by mining through cultivation, afforestation, grass plantation, etc.