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Rock Mechanics.pdf - Mining and Blasting

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PROBLEMS<br />

of installed support in massive rock subject to peripheral failure is to maintain radial<br />

continuity of contact between rock fragments. It also serves to generate a radial<br />

confining stress at the excavation boundary. The mode of action of the support is<br />

to generate <strong>and</strong> maintain a high triaxial state of stress in the fractured domain, by<br />

mobilising friction between the surfaces of the rock fragments. The significance of<br />

frictional action in the fractured rock can be readily appreciated from equation 7.16.<br />

This indicates that the radius of the fractured zone is proportional to some power of<br />

the friction parameter.<br />

A significant issue neglected in this analysis is the dilatancy of undisturbed, fractured<br />

rock. The inclusion of a dilatancy term would result in a significant increase<br />

in the effective angle of friction of the fractured material, <strong>and</strong> a consequent marked<br />

increase in effectiveness of the installed support.<br />

Problems<br />

1 A long opening of circular cross section is located 1000 m below ground surface. In<br />

the plane perpendicular to the tunnel axis, the field principal stresses are vertical <strong>and</strong><br />

horizontal. The vertical stress p is equal to the depth stress, <strong>and</strong> the horizontal stress<br />

is defined by 0.28p. The unit weight of the rock mass is 27 kN m −3 , the compressive<br />

strength is defined by a Coulomb criterion with c = 20 MPa, = 25 ◦ , <strong>and</strong> the tensile<br />

strength by T0 = 0.<br />

(a) Predict the response of the excavation peripheral rock to the given conditions.<br />

(b) Propose an alternative design for the excavation.<br />

2 The figure on the left represents a cross section through a long opening. The<br />

magnitudes of the plane components of the field stresses are pxx = 13.75 MPa, pyy =<br />

19.25 MPa, pxy = 4.76 MPa, expressed relative to the reference axes shown.<br />

(a) Calculate the maximum <strong>and</strong> minimum boundary stresses in the excavation<br />

perimeter, defining the locations of the relevant points.<br />

(b) If the strength of the rock mass is defined by a maximum shear strength criterion,<br />

<strong>and</strong> the shear strength is 20 MPa, estimate the extent of boundary failure, in terms<br />

of the angular range over the perimeter.<br />

(c) Comment on the significance of this result for any mining operations in the<br />

opening.<br />

3 The figure overleaf shows the locations of two vertical, parallel shafts, each 4 m<br />

in diameter. The pre-mining stress field is defined by pxx = pyy = pzz = 20 MPa.<br />

Estimate approximate values for the boundary stresses around each opening, <strong>and</strong><br />

calculate the principal stresses at point A, <strong>and</strong> their orientations.<br />

4 In the development of a haulage level in a mine, a horizontal opening horseshoe<br />

cross section, 4 m wide <strong>and</strong> 4 m high, is to be mined parallel to an existing haulageway<br />

of the same cross section <strong>and</strong> on the same horizon. The field principal stresses are<br />

p(vertical) <strong>and</strong> 0.5p (horizontal). Ignoring any boundary loosening due to blasting<br />

effects, propose a minimum distance between the centrelines of the haulageways<br />

221

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