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Rock Mechanics.pdf - Mining and Blasting

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17<br />

<strong>Blasting</strong> mechanics<br />

17.1 <strong>Blasting</strong> processes in underground mining<br />

Reliable procedures for rock blasting are well established in mining engineering<br />

practice. Explosive charges are emplaced in blast holes suitably located relative to a<br />

free surface of an opening, <strong>and</strong> detonated. <strong>Rock</strong> surrounding the charges is fragmented<br />

<strong>and</strong> displaced by the impulsive loading in the medium, generated by the sudden<br />

release of the explosive’s potential energy. Control <strong>and</strong> routine application of such an<br />

intrinsically violent process represent significant feats in both chemical <strong>and</strong> mining<br />

technology.<br />

Underground mining in hard-rock settings is highly dependent on the successful<br />

execution of blasting procedures. Although shaft borers <strong>and</strong> raise borers are occasionally<br />

used in developing vertical access to <strong>and</strong> within an orebody, the great majority<br />

of mine development is still undertaken with well-established <strong>and</strong> efficient methods<br />

of drilling <strong>and</strong> blasting. Orebody rock is liberated from its natural surroundings, <strong>and</strong><br />

subjected simultaneously to an episode of massive comminution, by primary blasting<br />

in the stopes. Other minor blasts, in stope drawpoints <strong>and</strong> ore passes, for example,<br />

may be required to maintain the free flow of ore in the ore-h<strong>and</strong>ling system. The<br />

significance of rock blasting in mine development <strong>and</strong> production indicates the value<br />

of a brief exposition of the fundamentals of blasting mechanics.<br />

Preceding discussions of mine excavation design <strong>and</strong> excavation support design<br />

have been based, in the main, on consideration of static forces <strong>and</strong> stresses generated<br />

in the medium, <strong>and</strong> their effect on the in situ rock. Most mine openings are<br />

created incrementally, by segments excavated in a near-instantaneous process. The<br />

consequences of the rapidity of excavation have been discussed in Chapter 10, but<br />

the nature <strong>and</strong> effects of the excavation process per se have not been considered. A<br />

particular concern with blasting is its effect on the rock in the immediate vicinity of an<br />

excavation. Intense local fracturing, <strong>and</strong> disruption of the integrity of the interlocked,<br />

jointed assembly, can be produced in the near-field rock by poor blast design. More<br />

extensive adverse effects can be induced by the transmission to the far field of energy<br />

input to the rock by explosive action. In high-stress settings such as occur at depth, or<br />

in pillars supporting panels mined to a high extraction ratio, perturbations associated<br />

with blasting may trigger extensive instability in mine structures.<br />

17.2 Explosives<br />

An explosive is any material or device which can produce a sudden outburst of gas,<br />

applying a high impulsive loading to the surrounding medium. Chemical explosives<br />

are the most widely used in mining practice. Their composition <strong>and</strong> properties have<br />

been described in detail by Cook (1958). Industrial chemical explosives are of two<br />

main types: deflagrating explosives, such as black powder, which burn relatively<br />

slowly, <strong>and</strong> produce relatively low blasthole pressure; detonating (high) explosives,<br />

which are characterised by superacoustic reaction rate <strong>and</strong> high blasthole pressure.<br />

518

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